I am fairly certain this has kept to the schedule I have set for release, but I can't help but feel as though it is late. Thank you all so much for the reviews it truly means a lot! Enjoy!
Also this chapter contains more than a few references to fics that I really enjoyed. Some rather overt like: Ginny duty by Count Westwest, many others as well but merely in passing and none as obvious.
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A Week at the Burrow | ||||||
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Category: Alternate Universe Characters:Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Teddy Lupin Genres: Comedy, Fluff, Romance Warnings: None Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 30 Summary: The Weasley family is finally all together at the Burrow for the week prior to Easter. During their stay Harry and Ginny, discover their feelings for one another, or the fact that they hadn't left. Set in an AU where Harry and Ginny were unable to talk following their kiss in HBP. Hitcount: Story Total: 13984; Chapter Total: 1949 Awards: View Trophy Room Author's Notes: |
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When Harry awoke that morning he was more than a little unhappy to find that the pillow on which he was laying, did not in fact have red hair splayed on it. And the room did not smell of that flowery scent that seemed to emanate from Ginny. But rather smelled of unwashed socks. He blindly searched for his glasses and his watch on the nightstand, finding, once he put his glasses on, that it was just past five in the morning. The room was still mostly dark but for a small line of light from the beginning of the sunrise. He knew he wouldn’t get back to sleep at this time nor was it even really worth it. When he stepped out of bed the cold shocked him. He hadn’t realized it was this cold this late into March. He pulled on his most recent Weasley jumper. And for a moment was pleasantly reminded of Ginny in his jumper which still sat big on her even though it was from his sixth year. Harry made his way down the stairs and quickly made himself a cup of Coffee. He always associated the Burrow with being loud with the love of the Weasley family. But it was at times, nice to enjoy the quiet mornings sometimes provided by his horribly irregular sleep schedule. After he poured his cup he went out and sat on the front step. He casted a small warming charm on himself, hoping to maintain the coziness of his bed, and maybe be reminded of the pleasant dream he had already forgotten. He sat there for a short time just watching the sun crest the orchards and trees that spanned out around the Burrow, until a sweet quiet voice interrupted. “In need of company?” Ginny asked, plopping herself down next to him, her own cup of coffee in hand. Her hair was tied up in a ponytail and she was clearly already dressed, though he was a little disappointed that she wasn’t wearing his jumper. “You’re up early.” Ginny said with a slight knowing smirk. “As are you.” “I’m always up by now unlike you sleepyheads.” “Really?” he’d never heard her ever come down when he was awake and trying to fall back asleep during this time. And you could hear everyone on the stairs of the Burrow. “Really.” “Well if you ever need company you know where to find me.” “I’ll let you get your beauty sleep. You need it.” Ginny teased. Harry stifled his laugh so as to not wake the whole house. But took a sip from his coffee. They stayed silent just watching the sunset for a while. “I’m sorry we haven’t talked much recently.” Harry said breaking the warm silence between them. “It’s alright, I know you’re busy.” she said, with the slightest hint of disappointment in her voice. “I was but I haven’t been in a while; I should have reached out prior to this.” “Harry, really, it’s alright.” He hoped that was true but knew that if he kept pushing, Ginny would only keep insisting it was. “I can’t say I didn’t miss you a whole lot though.” she said. “I thought about you quite a bit too.” Harry hadn’t meant to sound forward with emotion but frankly didn’t care. He had thought of her often, and they were always truthful with another about how they felt. He noticed Ginny's small smile at his response to her before she took a sip of her coffee. They fell back into a comfortable silence, them both enjoying the sunrise, and thinking about the implications of what Harry had said. Until Harry broke the silence again. “Remember when I was your minder for a while, just after you joined the Harpies?” they both laughed at the memory. “How could I forget. My teammates all started fawning over you.” “Oh yes, quite a few made some comments at me.” Harry laughed recalling some of the less lewd implications and direct offers of Ginny's teammates. Though he wanted to tell them that there was only one Harpy from which he’d accept, he always went with a simple ‘No, thank you’. “Oh god, that jumping jack prank you pulled.” Harry said, causing Ginny to spit a bit of her coffee out with laughter at the memory. “Oh, please I’m sure you enjoyed the view.” Harry looked around for a brief moment but turned back to face her with a small smirk. “Can’t say it wasn’t all bad.” Harry hoped that she would pick up the small hint. “Well then it served its purpose.” Ginny responded.They fell back into a comfortable silence for a while, before Harry broke it once more. “Do you think that any of them found me attractive or did they just care because of who I am?” Ginny paused for a second. She knew that Harry had a hard time connecting with people, given all he’d done and been through; all people treated him like that without even knowing the amazing person that he actually is. Not to mention what he'd truly given up at the battle of Hogwarts. The remnant of the order thought it best to keep the fact that Harry had died and come back a secret, as opposed to faking his death to fool Voldemort, as the public was told. Regardless of what was between Harry and other people, she and Harry sat there together, even if not in the way she wished, that to her was an astounding fact. Thus she was honest with him. “I think it was a combination of both for many of them. Though I know for a fact that one of them found,” she corrected herself “finds you attractive and has absolutely zero cares for what fame or fortune you may possess” Harry turned to look at her. “Really? Who?” Ginny sometimes forgot how clueless Harry was sometimes. “Me, I’ve always found you very attractive.” “Oh?” Harry looked surprised, and she hoped that the heat she felt rising in her face did not show to him. “I’ve always thought you were attractive too. I’d even wager the most beautiful woman I know.” Ginny felt bad for the slightest second for Alice, it was so clear. But she also felt a rush of butterflies and warmth of his words flow through her that pushed those thoughts away. “Why thank you.” She winked at him. As they felt back into a comfortable silence. They just continued to sit there for awhile saying nothing but enjoying one another’s company. After a short time, the wind picked up the slightest chill but it was just enough to give Ginny a chill. Which Harry noticed. “Are you cold?” “No.” she lied as she shivered lightly. “I have a warming charm on, I’ll extend it. Move over here.” Harry patted the spot right beside him. Ginny smiled and moved closer to Harry. She slid herself right against Harry, shoulder to shoulder and knee to knee. The warming charm helped but she could feel how warm Harry was too where their bodies came into contact. She leaned her head onto his shoulder, and he smiled. “Harry is this the life that you thought you would be living just after the war finished?” Ginny asked softly. “I didn’t think I would make it through the war.” He always said it so bluntly, and though she knew it, and tried to tell him otherwise during the years prior to the war many times, it still hurt to hear. “I know that. But after the dust settled, and all the funerals were over. Is this where you thought you would be? Where we would be?” “Honestly, yes and no. I knew that I wanted to be an Auror and wanted to stay a part of the family as much as I could. I hoped that one day we would again be able to have get-togethers like this, like the family I was never able to have.” “You always talked about wanting to get married, how come you and Alice haven’t married?” Harry laughed, a little stiltedly at her question but answered nonetheless. “She’s not really the person that I want to marry.” “Is there anyone?” Ginny felt her heart begin to race a little with his honestly. “Yes.” she wanted to ask more, but she didn’t want to know at the same time. “I also think that I maybe,” He paused and looked around for a moment very intently following this, before leaning close to her ear on his shoulder and whispering “breaking up with her soon.” “Why?” she was thankful that it did not come out with the excitement that she felt rise up in her, that she was trying to quash. “She’s not the person I want to be with.” She heard what he said, but she also was pretty sure she heard what he implied or what she hoped he implied; “She’s not you.”. “I see.” she replied a little smugly. “I hope you do.” Harry said, a smirk on his face as he looked at her. They fell back into silence for a while. The sun was now fully up but they stayed out there, simply enjoying being with one another. At some point her Mum had awoken and the beginning sounds of breakfast were starting, the mixing of what was likely to be a big batch of eggs. Yet still they remained. wanting the moment to last as long as possible. “When is your next game?” Harry asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. “Saturday.” “Damn.” She felt him sigh a little in what she assumed was disappointment. “What?” “I wanted to watch, I haven’t in a while. But I have a meeting then.” Ginny looked down. She felt disappointed that he couldn’t come, she was pretty sure Harry was her biggest fan. One time when she had a day match he’d stopped in during his lunch to watch. But she knew he couldn’t rearrange meetings, yet at least. There had been talk and likely a plan of Harry being fast-tracked to being Head-Auror. But he only had just become a full Auror and thus was still subject to the whims of his superiors. Just like everyone else. “It’s okay, everyone’s busy that day, it’s all our first days back. No one can come.” She sounded more disappointing and sadder than she had meant it. But she was pretty sure Harry understood. Again they fell back into a comfortable silence. That this time however did not last long. Behind them the door opened, causing them to jump a part a little bit. So that they were no longer touching anymore. Then there was a sharp inhale of breath from whoever opened it. “Oh.” the voice that said that was very distinctly Alice's. Ginny cringed a little bit for Harry, but tried not to show it. They weren’t doing anything wrong, really. “There you are Harry,” Alice paused “and Ginny.” she emphasized Ginny’s name. “Breakfast is ready.” She said very pointedly to just Harry, who got up and followed hastily after Alice. Shooting Ginny a very slightly annoyed look. Though she knew it was not at her. Breakfast was rather quiet and awkward, Harry ensured that he was attentive to Alice, as she had likely come out of her room with Hermione looking for him only to discover him nearly cuddling with Ginny. They spoke normally however throughout the rest of the day. She seemed to pay no mind to how she found him and Ginny that morning, though he supposed that there really was no reason too. Nothing had happened. At least nothing physically wrong. Eventually however a couple hours after Lunch, Andromeda arrived with Teddy. The entire family of course, followed around and played with Teddy. So he too sat there next to Alice, enjoying a small conversation with Andromeda, recalling a time they took Teddy to the zoo, the same one Harry had removed the glass from when he was eleven. The snake wasn’t the same, nor had been able to speak to any snakes since the Horcrux inside him had been killed. But he still was reminded of the conversation he had with the snake nonetheless. Teddy passed himself around the arms and laps of various members of the Weasley family and eventually ended up in Alice’s lap. He was playing with a little snitch toy, but at one point he looked up at Harry and he realized that Teddy at some point had morphed the colour of his eyes to match Harry’s. Everyone laughed in admiration at Teddy, but Harry loved it so much he could not even describe it. Alice set Teddy down and he wandered around the room changing his eyes colours of those around the room. But eventually he got bored and went back to playing. After a short time Ginny came in telling everyone that dinner was almost ready and in doing so she picked up Teddy. She began talking to and playing with the small boy in her arms. She stayed there for a short time and Harry just watched the two people he perhaps cared about most in the world. Something he felt sorry admitting to himself. That Alice came second to the two of them. He loved them both so much. They had each in some sense given him everything he had ever wanted. He would do anything in his power to ensure that the two of them were not alone in the world. They would be taken care of, and know that they were loved. At the moment he thought of his will and the names of those who would receive his collected wealth, despite none of them not wanting it, even Teddy who would likely feel the same when he grew up, based on who raised him and who his parents were. But most of all he was stunned by Ginny in that moment. The strong beautiful woman she had grown into, really that she had always been. The person that had been there for him the most next to Ron and Hermione, even surpassing them in the years following the war. There was seldom a day where he did not think about or miss her when they were not together. The truth in that moment became clear to him. The feelings that were re-arising within him over the last week, that had never really left him since his sixth year, were not a crush. He loved Ginny. He thought of Alice and what the two of them had, and to him, though he felt horrible admitting it, what they had paled in comparison with the feelings he had for Ginny. Drawing him from his thoughts were Mrs. Weasley’s calls from the Kitchen. Harry got up with the rest of the Weasleys but instead made his way over to where Ginny was standing with Teddy. Just in time to hear Ginny gasp at something. As he reached them he discovered what it was. Teddy had turned his hair at some point the exact same colour as Harry’s. Yet he had taken the exact eye could of Ginny. Harry froze, it was like he was granted a vision into his future, a potential future, the one he wanted most. Ginny holding their child. Harry nearly felt himself be overwhelmed with tears at the tiny moment. Ginny met his eyes, as they stood close to one another. The warmest smile appeared on her face, and Harry knew in that moment that she likely thought the same thing he did. Between them sat Teddy, yet it felt as though it was only them, for a brief second. “Oh, dears” Molly drew them both out of their moment. She was holding her hand softly over her heart, with a lightly withdrawn look in her eyes. “You looked so much, like James and Lily just then.” Molly said. Harry felt chills shoot down his spine. “It gave me a fright. You were even looking at one another the same way Sirius described.” it was clear to Harry, and to Ginny as well, and too it seemed, to Mrs. Weasley. They quickly made their way to the dinner table and the moment they had shared remained unmentioned for the rest of the night. |
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