Title- At the End of the Day
Rating- R
Disclaimer- I own nothing but the plot
Summary- After the death of someone that Ginny held dear she becomes reclusive. Many people try to get her to open up but it isn't working. The Dark Lord is going to be attacking soon and Ginny is essential to both sides, but what side will she choose?
Chapter 1
Ginny Weasley was sitting on a rock just outside her house, her hands wrapped around her tightly and her face was stained with tears. She rocked herself back and forth shaking her head, whispering things to herself. Her brother, Bill Weasley was dead. He was killed by a death eater, or so it was assumed. She held onto the locket he gave her, his last present, remembering what he told her.
"I love you Gin- girl" he said ruffling her hair. She laughed and punched his side; he knew she hated to have her hair ruffled.
"I've got a present for you" he said, rummaging his hand around in the pocket of his jeans.
"A present?" Ginny asked him, her eyes going wide, she loved presents.
He nodded "It's for my favorite sister!"
Ginny rolled her eyes "Bill I'm your only sister" She told him.
"That's why it's so important that for your 15th birthday I get you something special." He took something out of his back pocket, and handed it to her.
"Open it up Gin-girl" Bill told her smiling.
She tore open the package, and ever so gently lifted the gold locket out of the case. She gasped with surprise, and opened the locket to find a picture of her and Bill. She was waving happily at the person taking the picture. On the back of the locket was Bill's favorite phrase. "Revenge is easy, but forgiveness is Godly"
Ginny held onto the locket tightly. "I'll never take it off!" she promised him.
He laughed and grabbed her hand and gave her a kiss.
That was two days ago, Bill had died the day after her birthday. Her body was shaking with tears; she didn't want to live anymore. Her favorite brother was killed by a deatheater, and what was she supposed to do about it? Forgive? She ripped the locket off her neck and threw it to the floor.
A second later she realized what she had done, and was down on the grass next to the locket. She let out a hoarse cry from the back of her throat. She remembered watching the clock as Bills hand hovered on mortal peril, and death, until it chose death. It didn't really hit Ginny until earlier, she just couldn't fathom a world with out Bill, but here it was, the cold cruel world that took things out from your arms.
Her hands fumbled with the chain as she tried to fix the broken links. In the end she threw herself down, and just wept herself to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When Ginny woke up she was in her bed, someone must have carried her there. She grabbed the pink flowery blankets around her tighter as the memories of the past couple days hit her with full force. Today was Bill's funeral. Ginny got up, and went to her closet, not knowing what to wear. Bill hated black so she grabbed a dark forest green robe. She went into her top drawer and pulled out a box, she had stolen Bills earring earlier on that week and was waiting for him to come and claim them from her. She put it through one of her earring holes, and took the broken locket and slipped it into her pocket for comfort. She walked down the stairs; her family stared at her attire but said nothing. They all piled into the car, and drove down to where the funeral was being held. Many people had come wishing to pay their dues. After many remorseful speeches, and many tears the family was waiting to receive all of the condolences that the people had come to say.
The Malfoys walked up to them, Lucius and Narcissa nodded at them, and made some snide comment about how small the grave was and couldn't they afford a bigger one for their eldest son? The Weasleys had too much grief already to let the Malfoys bother them, and so all the Malfoys were ignored. Ginny slipped out of the room, she couldn't take all of the people coming to tell her how sorry they were. They weren't sorry! Why did they have to be sorry? It wasn't as if they killed him! Ginny ran out into the church graveyard and through herself down onto her brother's grave. She was in so much pain, her heart was constricting with it. She hugged the gravestone tracing every word
"Here lies Bill Christopher Weasley a loving son, and brother, may he rest in peace."
"You must hate it in heaven Bill" she started talking. "No more adventures for you. I'm quite sure you wouldn't like hell either though, it's not your type" she gave a dry laugh. "I'm going to miss you, you know! Nothing will ever be the same again. Well Bill wherever you are I hope your happy." She whispered to the grave; as a single tear rolled down her already tear stained cheeks.
She slowly stood up from the ground and wiped the dirt of her robe. She took a deep breath to steady herself, it didn't work. She walked back into the room, wondering if anyone had noticed that she left, they didn't. A sigh escaped her lips as she went back to stand in her place, next to Ron who was conversing with Harry and Hermione who they thought the killer was.
"Undoubtedly Malfoy" Ron said, shaking his head in an up and down motion, making him seem like a pompous ass.
"Probably" Harry agreed with him.
Hermione didn't look so sure, but pursed her lips and said nothing.
It could have been anyone Ron, Ginny wanted to yell but refrained herself because Malfoy was the most likely person to have killed Bill, after all Lucius Malfoy did try to kill her in her first year. She shook her head trying to clear her head of those thoughts; it was already a sad occasion she didn't have to make it worse for herself.
When the last person paid their respects, or in this case condolences the Weasleys piled back into the car and drove home.
Arthur parked the car in the front yard and Ginny got out of it after the rest of her family.
She slowly walked up the steps to her house and walked in the door and straight up to her room. She sank down onto her bed, closed her eyes and sank into a fitful sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Molly Weasley was bustling around the kitchen making breakfast.
"Ron, Ginny!" she screamed "get down here and eat your breakfast we don't want to be late for Kings Cross!"
A grumpy and ruffled looking Ron stumbled into the room, followed by a sad and sullen Ginny.
Molly set down their plates in front of them, and sighed when she saw her only daughter just picking at her food. Molly wiped her hands on her apron and walked over to Ginny.
"Bill wouldn't want you to starve yourself" Molly told said, and took Ginny's hand.
Ginny nodded, as tears slipped out of her eyes. It had only been two weeks after Bills death, and she had yet to stop crying herself to sleep.
"I know" she whispered to her mother. Molly stood next to Ginny as her daughter ate. She wanted to make sure that Ginny ate every thing that was on her plate, Ginny was beginning to look too skinny.
After their meal the Weasley drove to the station. Arthur went into the barrier first, then Ginny. Molly took her son aside for a second, wanting to tell him to help his younger sister.
"Watch your sister dear, make sure she eats" she told him sternly.
Ron nodded at his mother and looked around. He saw that no one he knew was there and so quickly kissed his mother on her cheek. He stepped across the barrier, and saw the scarlet engine; he scanned the crowd for Harry and Hermione. When he saw them he waved, and ran over, leaving Ginny to fend for herself.
It wasn't as if it was her first year though Ron reasoned to himself, Ginny knows where to go.
Ginny watched Ron leave it seemed that Ron was always worried about her during the wrong time. He was upset when she went out with Dean last year. He was worried she would get hurt, and now that her heart is truly broken he runs off with his friends.
Ginny picked up her bags and gave her parents each a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I love you" she told them both, and gave them a fierce hug, afraid that this would be the last time she would ever hug them.
They hugged her back with equal ferocity, afraid of the very same thing.
Ginny made her way to the train; she stepped aboard and went to the front looking for the prefect compartment, Hermione had scheduled a meeting.
When she got there she sank into a chair and waited for the rest of the people to show up.
Hermione was the second one there, followed by Ron. She smiled at Ginny, and said something to the likes of thank god this year we have one prefect that will be on time to the meetings!
When everyone was there, well everyone except for the head boy, Hermione started her little speech.
"Well most of you know me, but for those who don't I am Hermione Granger your new head girl-"
"Started without me Granger?" came a cool voice by the doorway. Seventeen sets of eyes went to look at who was standing there.
"Don't you have to wait for the head boy?" he asked her, raising only one of his aristocratic eyebrows.
"Not when the head boy is so late" she said indignantly.
He just smirked and took his seat next to Hermione, thought he made a point of putting as much space as possible between them.
"As I was saying" Hermione continued "my name is Hermione-"
"Nobody gives a fuck Granger" Draco told her "Here, I'll make it easy for you all. The reason why you all are here is to find out your house passwords and the rules. You will also receive your patrol schedule." He told them in a bored tone.
Hermione shot a glare at him, hating the fact that he would always have more power than her.
"Rule number one" she said reading of her list.
"Just give them all the bloody handouts mudblood" he hissed at her, wanting to end this torture quickly.
Hermione and everyone else's face in the room (except for the Slytherins of course) turned pale.
"How dare you Malfoy" Ron started at him, but Hermione shook her head.
"No" she whispered to him "prefects are not allowed to fight and he isn't worth losing your badge over" she insisted.
But she did listen to Malfoy, Ginny thought with an amused grin. Ginny took the pamphlet that Hermione gave to her and scanned it. It was the usual rules.
Her eyes traveled to the Gryffindor password.
"Hermione what the bloody hell?" she screamed as she threw the paper down.
Hermione's face turned red.
"I thought you would appreciate it" she told Ginny, who looked like she was going to smack Hermione.
"I can't believe you would do that, change it now!" Ginny hissed,
"I can't do that Ginny" Hermione said sounding like a mother talking to a child who was throwing a temper tantrum, but at the same time trying to sound friendly. This didn't work as well as Hermione had hoped, and only fueled Ginny's anger.
"Rule number five states that passwords are only to be changed once a month", and cannot be changed before that month is up" Hermione continued, giving to Ginny what she thought a rational explanation.
Ginny right now wasn't in the mood for rational and let out a choked sob. She wanted to say something to Hermione, wanted to tell her where she could shove her rules, but didn't.
"It's not worth it" she could hear Bills voice saying, in a way he was just as practical as Hermione, knowing when things were and weren't worth the penalty. And so out of respect for her now deceased brother all she did was grab her paper and ran out of the compartment, forgetting all about her luggage that was in there.
Draco Malfoy watched this display with amusement; he wondered what had gotten the littlest Weasley's knickers in such a twist. He glanced down at the sheets already knowing what the Slytherin password would be, seeing as he did make it. He grabbed the paper out of Hermione's hands to look at the Gryffindor password. It wasn't a friendly grab, it was more like an I want to know what it says so give it to me now grab.
"Bill Weasley" he said out loud. "Good job Granger didn't think you had it in you to do such a cruel thing." In truth the only reason why it was such a cruel thing was because now the little Weasley, what was her name, Jenny? Jessie? Well whatever the girl's name was she now had to now think of her brother when she was most probably trying to forget and let go.
Draco smirked at her and started lapping, and soon all the Slytherin's joined in.
They were clapping their hands in such a way that made Hermione want to smack them, Draco the most.
"Shut up!" she said her face burning with embarrassment and rage, as she grabbed her paper back, "just shut up!"
He shrugged at her "Not my fault you were a bloody moron."
"Sodding git" Hermione replied back.
His smirk grew even wider "silly bint."
"This is pointless" she cried in exasperation, giving him a withering look, before storming out of the compartment to look for Ginny.
Ron stood up too, torn between beating Draco to a pulp, or running after Hermione and his sister, the latter won and he set off.
Draco snorted "great big Gryffindor ponces" he told the Slytherins that where there, "it's what all the Gryffindors are."
But the people in the room couldn't help wonder if their head boy was right, why only after Hermione left did Ron leave, are Gryffindors more loyal to their friends than their family?
The Slytherin nodded their heads and took in every word Draco said about the Gryffindors, except for Blaise.
"Come on mate, I need a smoke" Blaise said throwing his arm around Draco's shoulder.
~~~~~~~~~~~
After her incident with Tom, Ginny had always prided herself on not crying ever. Now it seemed that after Bill died she couldn't stop crying.
She was in the bathroom and so she wiped her face with a wet paper towel, trying to make her eyes a little less puffy and her nose a little less red.
She looked up into the mirror and saw what she always saw, a pale girl with freckles and auburn color hair.
Her hair was the only part of her body that she liked. Instead of being a fire engine red like the rest of the Weasley's hair, Ginny's hair was a deep auburn that fell in ringlets up until the small of her back. Bill would always twist his fingers in her curls, and pull on them.
When she was eight years old she asked her mother to cut her hair like she cut the boy's hair. Her mother sighed not wanting to chop this beautiful little girl's hair off but complied with her daughter's request. When Bill saw her he made her promise never to cut her hair (except for trimming, that was allowed) ever again.
It wasn't that it was ugly like that he told her, it was just that now he can't play with it and he told her, letting her in on a little secret, mum had always wanted a girl so she shouldn't go off and cut her hair to look like a boy. Ginny agreed with him on this, and so she started to love her hair the best, because that's what Bill had loved the best. Every other body part of hers though, was disgusting, or so she thought.
She sighed, and then heard Hermione's voice.
"Ginny, Ginny where are you we need to talk!" It came from right outside the door to the lavatories, which was where Ginny was.
Ginny looked around quickly before hiding in one of the toilet stalls. She locked the door behind her and put her feet on the toilet. She ducked so that you couldn't see her head. Hermione walked into the bathroom, but found no one; she crouched down looking for feet and found nothing.
"Ginny?" She called out, hoping for an answer, but no one did. She gave a groan of despair and then walked out.
When Ginny was sure that Hermione had left she unlocked the door and went to find an empty compartment to sleep in, she was exhausted.
She made her way down the hall peeking in the compartments praying that the next one she found would be vacant. The last compartment of the train was empty and so she walked inside. She quietly lay down to sleep. She took her robe and placed it as a blanket on top of her. The last compartment was freezing.
She closed her eyes and fell asleep. An hour later she awoke to feel the train lurching to a stop. She quickly threw on her robe and ran out of her compartment. She was about to get off the train before realizing that she had forgotten her bags in the prefects room.
She let out a groan of frustration and ran as fast as she could to her bags. She was in luck that the prefect room had an exit. She opened the door and stepped out of the train.
She saw Hagrid waving at her, but she didn't have the energy to wave back. She nodded her head at him and stepped into the carriage. Luck was with her that day because no one else came into her carriage, besides for Luna Lovegood, but she doesn't count Ginny thought to herself. Luna sat on the opposite side of Ginny so Ginny was able to stretch out as much as she wanted. She closed her eyes.
What is with me? She thought to herself, I used to never get tired and now all I do is sleep. That was her life now, cry, sleep, not much room for anything else. She shrugged it off though and tried to fall asleep, but the bumps on the road to the castle made it impossible.
She sighed and looked at Luna. Ginny thought about making conversation with the girl across from her, but thought better of it. Ginny raised an eyebrow but felt that it would be rude to point out that Luna was reading her newspaper upside down
Ginny shook her head and waited. What she was waiting for she really couldn't say.
She was waiting for a lot of things, she was waiting for the ride to be over, she was waiting to wake up from this nightmare, but most of all she was waiting for the end of the day.
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