Author's Notes: And here is Chapter 2, beta'ed by Laura. She's pretty much awesomesauce.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Saturday, May 9, 1998 - 9:09 PM
The Burrow
From an outside perspective looking down towards the bottom of the hill at The Burrow, one would assume six carefree teenagers were enjoying a Saturday night around a fire. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, and Luna Lovegood each sat on magically cushioned wooden logs, the six circling a campfire made by Hermione. Today was a hard day for the six, but mainly for Ron and Ginny. Today, their brother, Fred, had been laid to rest near an ancient maple tree on the family's land. All the Weasley's in attendance wept profusely except for Aunt Muriel, who simply stood at the funeral, trying to look somber, but ending up simply looking bored by the proceedings. The Weasley who took the funeral the hardest, apart from Fred's twin brother, George, was Percy. Having just reunited with his family before Fred was killed in the Battle of Hogwarts, he had missed out on ample amounts of time with Fred during his almost three year rift with the rest of the family. Many Hogwarts students, both former and present, attended the funeral, along with Order of the Phoenix members, Ministry of Magic employees, and the residents & staff of Diagon Alley.
After the funeral, however, attempts of a return to normalcy ensued. Tension and grief filled the air, but normalcy did indeed return, if only as a coping method. Molly Weasley cooked an enormous meal for her husband, children, Harry, Hermione, Neville, Luna, and Lee Jordan, who was a close friend of Fred's. While the meal was a relatively somber affair, it soothed Molly that much was clear. Afterwards, George tried to cheer the family up with a plethora of jokes and tricks from the joke shop, with help from Lee along the way. George, despite being a wreck for the funeral, decided it was best not to mourn Fred's death, but honor him through humor. George, Lee, Ron, Ginny, Harry, Charlie, Bill, Fleur, and even Hermione, Percy, Luna, and Neville all joined in a game of modified Quidditch, where each team played with 4 Chasers, 1 Keeper, and 1 Seeker, putting more emphasis on scoring than anything else. It was a soothing experience for those involved, and helped wash away at least some of the stress and grief that had consumed so many for the past week.
Now, sitting beside the campfire as the evening cools, the six made casual talk and roasted marshmallows over the fire, a Muggle act that Hermione happily suggested once she made the fire. Hermione, being Muggle Born, made the fire the Muggle way, instead of using magic. Ron seemed interested in the roasted marshmallows, devouring several of them; Luna, on the other hand, ate nothing, instead checking the fire for some critter known as Fire Gargans, little creatures that create campfires (her words of course). Ron however, seemed not to care about how the fire was made, just that he got more roasted marshmallows.
"Mmm, `Er-my-nee, `disifver'ood," shouted Ron, marshmallow spraying out of his mouth everywhere. Hermione, disgusted by her face being attacked by flying bits of marshmallow, wiped her face off. "Thank you, Ronald," her voice dripping with disgust as she said his name. "But I would appreciate it if you learn to actually swallow your food before you decide to talk!"
Ron blushed while everyone laughed. It really wasn't that funny, but just a simple example of that needed return to normalcy. As time wore on, the bag of marshmallows emptied, in part heavily due to Ron and his appetite, and the six simply talked the night away. Small, casual talk for the most part, but Neville eventually got onto the topic that had been asked by all six of them many times in the past week.
"What are your lots' plans?" Neville asked suddenly. There had been a moments break in silence of the Quidditch banter by Ron, and Neville took his opportunity. "Now that the war is over and all, what do you all plan on doing?"
"Well, that's obvious, isn't it?" Luna replied in question. "We go back to Hogwarts and finish school."
"Not all of us can go back to school, Luna," Ginny retorted. "Harry and the others aren't seventh years anymore."
Hermione shook her head sideways in disagreement. "Actually Ginny, Harry, Ron, and I never started our seventh year of Hogwarts. We could go back to Hogwarts in September."
Ginny, despite being proven wrong by Hermione, beamed in delight. "Oh, really?" Ginny asked. And then, looking directly at Harry, she said, "You three should come back to Hogwarts this September then!"
Harry and Hermione exchanged looks, mentally debating a Hogwarts return. Clearly, Hermione wanted to return for a seventh year. "It would be a wise decision, to return to Hogwarts," she said. "Seventh year is a crucial year after all; it's NEWTs year!"
"Well, not always," Luna chimed in. "Neville and the other seventh years never got to take their NEWTs this year; the fifth years didn't take their OWLs either. Hogwarts closed for the remainder of the year, remember? The only logical decision is to repeat our years."
Ginny scoffed. "There is no way I am repeating a sixth year at Hogwarts," Ginny stated roughly. "I am ready to be a seventh year and graduate."
"Well I for one hope I can go back to Hogwarts," Neville said honestly. "I figure I could always use an extra year of schooling, probably. But if my Hogwarts days are done, me and Gram already said we'd devote our time to helping rebuild the Ministry. It's what my parents would've done…"
Neville grew quiet, feeling awkward at the mention of his parents. Sitting beside Neville, Ginny placed a hand on his arm, trying to comfort Neville. Instead, Neville stood up from the log, brushing himself off. "I'm feeling rather tired," he said suddenly. "I think I'll go back to Gram's house and kip off for the night. `Night everyone."
And with that said, Neville started walking up the hill towards The Burrow, his hands in his pockets and his head dropped to the ground. "Poor Neville," Hermione said. "I feel so bad for him about his parents."
"It kind of seems like it's worse than them being dead," added Ron, attempting to be insightful. "You know, they're there, but they're not there." Hermione glared at Ron, not finding his comment appropriate at all. Looking over at Harry, she saw his jaw stiffen from Ron's comments, feeling angry and uncomfortable on the subject of absent parents.
Feeling the tension, Luna also sat up quickly as well. "Where are you going, Luna?" Ginny asked. Luna looked around blankly at the remaining four still sitting, and nodded her head to the departing Neville. "I think I'll go talk to Neville; I'm pretty good at helping people when they're sad and maybe I can help Daddy at the house then too. We're convinced that Ter Mittles are resting in the foundation of our house, and helping the decay process since our house was attacked by Death Eaters."
Luna then turned on her heel and walked up the hill after Neville, leaving Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny looking at each other with blank looks on their faces. "Ter Mittles?" Ron asked, amused by Luna's antics. "Where in Merlin's name does she come up with this stuff?"
"Who knows," Ginny said. "But it's those crazy-probably-made-up creatures she likes to talk about that make Luna as fascinating as she is."
Ron smirked and nodded, agreeing with his sister. Harry chuckled along, while Hermione, never a fan of Luna's wild stories of "rare" creatures, crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, yet smiling nevertheless.
Silence fell on the four for a few moments, before Ginny spoke up again. "So what about you, Ron?" she asked.
"Huh?" replied Ron.
"You know," Ginny said. "Hogwarts! Would you go back to Hogwarts in September? I mean, we know Hermione will want to go back to finish her NEWTs, and Harry will return, but what about you?"
Harry frowned at Ginny, catching the suggestive glance she gave him. While he likes Ginny and would love to spend time with her at Hogwarts if he went back, he would never go back to school just for a girlfriend. However, biting his tongue, Harry decided not to reply to Ginny's suggestive comment, and allowed Ron to answer.
"I don't know," replied Ron, shrugging his shoulders in uncertainty. "It'd be wicked to go back and play Quidditch for another year, but I'm not sure how much I want to go back and study for another year."
Hermione seemed ready to reply with a retort to Ron about how important it was to finish school, but Ron quickly started to talk again, not wanting to hear Hermione's argument. "You know what I think, though?" Ron asked. "I think we need to stop worrying about the future for right now. Whether we return to Hogwarts or not, that isn't until September. That means we have over three months of time off, and what we all need right now, is a holiday!"
Hermione seemed impressed by Ron's sudden declaration of going on holiday, while Harry and Ginny both seemed happy with that idea. Harry exclaimed, "That's excellent, Ron! You got any place in mind?"
Ron smirked and nodded his head in glee. "Not just any place, Harry," Ron said smugly. "I'm talking a whole month holiday, in France, for the Quidditch World Cup!"
Ron smirked proudly. It's clear he had been bursting to say that ever since the six convened around the fire. Ginny covered her mouth to shield her shriek of delight, while Harry grinned in delight at Ron's proposal. "That's smashing, Ron!"
Hermione studied Ron's proud smirk for several moments before finally saying, "Ron, while I'm sure this would be a lot of fun, but how are you planning on having us all go to France for an entire month?"
Again, Ron simply smirked, smugly. "Ah, Hermione, ever the uninformed child," Ron said, his voice dripping with jesting sarcasm. "You forget that we have a new Minister of Magic, and a Minister who's quite fond of Dad and the family after we helped out with the Order of the Phoenix from the very start of the war. Kingsley offered Dad tickets for the World Cup - not just the Finals like we got last time, but the whole Cup. Dad told me just before we all came down here; the entire family is invited, as are you two, Hermione and Harry."
Ginny grinned like a Cheshire cat. "This is so cool!" Ginny squealed. "When does the Cup start?"
"The Group Stage starts on the tenth of June; Knockout Round starts the twenty-seventh of June; Finals is the twelfth of July," stated Ron matter-of-factly. "So, you in?"
Ginny answered right away. "Of course I'm in, Ron," she exclaimed. "An entire Quidditch World Cup, and a month in France! Wicked!"
"Count me in, Ron," Harry said grinning, "should be great."
Having looked somewhat downtrodden, Hermione remained silent, instead letting the three bask in their delight of going to the Quidditch World Cup. However, Ron eventually turned to Hermione, and noticed her silence. "What about you, Hermione?" he asked her. "You want to come, right?"
Hermione paused, trying to decide how she wanted to answer that question. Before she could, however, Mrs. Weasley intervened from the top of the hill. She screamed, "RON! GINNY! Get up here and help attend to the chickens, this instant!"
"Fucking hell," Ron groaned. Ginny threw her head back in annoyance. However, they both stood up and started walking up the hill. Harry went to join them, but Ron cut him off. "You two just stay down here. We won't be long, and you know how Mum is if you try to help with my chores."
Ron and Harry shared a smirk, and the two Weasley's trotted up the hill to The Burrow. Harry and Hermione sat in silence, Hermione still looking frustrated. "What's got your wand in a knot?" Harry asked her.
"Oh, it's nothing," she lied.
Harry scoffed, and shook his head. "Come on, Hermione," he said. "I know you well enough to know when you're lying. And right now, you're lying. So what's wrong?"
Hermione took a deep breath, and tucked a loose hair behind her ear. "Well, I was planning on inviting Ron - and you too, of course - to Australia in June. Now that the war is over, I want to go and bring my parents back to England, where they belong. I miss them terribly, Harry…"
Tears started to overcome Hermione, as her speech broke off and she started to cry. However, she stopped quickly, not wanting to cry about the topic at hand. "I felt awful having to send my parents away, and it's a miserable thought, knowing that your parents don't even know they have a daughter."
Hermione looked up at Harry, pleadingly, hoping for him to let her know she isn't pathetic for thinking this. Harry smiled at Hermione, "Going to Australia to get your parents would be better than going to a lifetime of Quidditch World Cups."
Hermione beamed in delight at Harry. "Really!? You mean you'll go with me!? Oh, thank you, Harry!" Hermione jumped off of her log and leaped into Harry's arms, giving him one of her trademark hugs. Harry laughed as Hermione hugged him.
"Hermione, do you really think I would choose Quidditch over you?" he asked. "Going to get your parents is much more important than the World Cup. I'm sure Ron will feel the same way too."
Hermione released her grip from Harry, and moved back over to her magically-cushioned log, still grinning in delight at Harry. Moments later, Ron and Ginny came trotting back down the hill, rejoining Harry and Hermione around the fire. Ron, however, no longer seemed in the mood to be around a fire anymore. Scratching at his sweater in irritation the whole time he got close to the fire, he continued to do so once he sat down on the log.
Harry eyed Ron quizzically; it was obvious he wasn't acting like himself. "Something wrong there, Ron?" he asked him, chuckling slightly.
"Oh, no; it's just really hot around the fire now," he lied, still scratching around the neck of his jumper. "I think I just need to walk around in the cool air for a while, maybe walk through the woods." Ron paused for a few seconds, before turning to look directly at Hermione. "Hey Hermione, want to go on a walk with me?"
Ron's intentions were clear to everyone around the fire. Ron wasn't hot around the fire, he did not want to simply "walk" through the woods, and he did not want Hermione just to walk with him; Ron wanted to snog. Harry rolled his eyes at Ron, finding his whole approach rather nauseating. Hermione, however, got up from her log, and joined her boyfriend. The two set off walking slowly towards the wooded regions of The Burrow, Ron looking over his shoulder to cast a suggestive wink to Harry and Ginny.
Studying the look between Ron and Ginny, Harry couldn't help but think the two planned this on their short time away from Harry and Hermione. Harry didn't mind the fact that Ginny wanted to be alone with him, he understood that. They are in something that resembles a relationship right now, and Harry does have feelings for her. However, the mere fact that the two conspired together to go off alone with their respected counterparts irritated Harry to no end. He wasn't sure why, but it simply irritated Harry to see Ron walking off into the woods with Hermione, casting suggestive glances back at the two.
Before Harry could even come out of his reverie, Ginny had moved over to the log Harry occupied, so the two were sitting side by side. Despite his irritation, he still couldn't help but think that she looked pretty. Ginny stared at him quietly for a few moments, before speaking suddenly. "I've missed you, you know," she whispered quietly, "Not seeing you this past year… I missed you greatly."
Ginny smiled sadly at Harry, and Harry half-smiled in return. "I missed you too, Gin. Being with you last year, it was a real nice change for me; I've never had someone to be with, like that."
"Then what are we doing here, Harry?" she asked. "Ever since you killed You-Know-Who, you've been distant from me. We never talk - this is the first time we've been alone together since your birthday."
Harry ran his right hand through his hair. Being on the run for so long, he had never had the time to cut it, and it had become increasingly shaggy. "Every thing's just complicated right now Ginny. I've been through a lot, and everything is just really stressful. I really am not sure if I want to be in a relationship with you right now or not Gin."
Harry looked at Ginny apologetically, while Ginny tried not to show any hurt from Harry's words. After taking a few moments to collect her thoughts, she said, "I understand that you're going through a lot, Harry. I stayed loyal to you when you were gone, and I'll stay loyal to you now, even if this is up in the air."
Harry frowned. "You don't need to do that, Gin," he stated. "I don't know when I'll be ready to try and make a relationship work again, if ever. I just feel too numb emotionally to make a relationship work right now. If we tried, I know I'd only hurt you, and that is something I never want to do. You deserve to be with someone who can be with you; and right now, I can't."
The two sat in silence for several moments before Ginny suddenly asked, half-smiling seductively, "Do you still fancy me, Harry?"
"Of course I still do, Ginny," he told her. "You know that."
Having heard that, Ginny suddenly swung her body sideways, swinging her left leg across hers and Harry's body, straddling him.
"Gin…" Harry started to say, but she cut him off, placing her index and middle fingers over his lips.
"Shh. Be quiet, Harry. You fancy me, and I fancy you. Right now, that's enough for me… enough for this." Ginny removed her fingers from Harry's mouth, replacing them with her own mouth, kissing him passionately. Harry resisted, refusing to return her kiss. However, the more Harry resisted, the harder Ginny pressed her lips and body against Harry. Eventually, her force knocked the two off the log, Harry landing back first onto the grass behind the log. Ginny landed on top of Harry, and continued kissing him. Ginny pressed herself against Harry harder, rubbing her crotch against Harry's quickly. The friction caused Harry to gasp in delight, opening his mouth to Ginny. Ginny used the opportunity to plunge her tongue into Harry's mouth. The feeling of her kisses, of her core pressing into Harry's, and the feel of her warm tongue probing his mouth was too much for Harry. Despite his initial resistance, the sensations were too much, and Harry broke down his proverbial wall, giving into temptation and returning Ginny's kisses…
-->