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Summer of Recovery | ||||||
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Category: Post-DH/AB Characters:Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Teddy Lupin Genres: General, Romance Warnings: Mild Language, Mild Sexual Situations, Negative Alcohol Use Story is Complete Rating: R Reviews: 145 Summary: What comes after Voldemort’s defeat? A very, very difficult summer. The world moves on, and it’s much different than it was when Harry and Ginny first got together. The summer will be one of grief, but they’re ready to recover together after so long apart. The only question is: will the world finally let them? Part 1 of Happier Every Day Hitcount: Story Total: 39229; Chapter Total: 1019 Awards: View Trophy Room |
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Harry sat on the edge of Ginny's bed, adding the newest picture to their album. He should've expected that the Daily Prophet would focus more on him and his relationship with Ginny more than the award ceremony itself. In the five days since, he and Ginny had been on the cover of the Prophet three times. The first had been an article about the awards ceremony, and a picture of the two of them holding hands during the ceremony just happened to be the one that was chosen. The next day, an article specifically about him was run, and they used a picture of him kissing Ginny after he'd received his medal, probably because that sold papers. Today, there was another article about him and the fact that he was returning to Hogwarts. The picture used with this article was one that he hadn't realised had been taken. It was the two of them dancing in a corridor at the Ministry. Well, he knew they were dancing, but the picture looked like they were just holding each other tightly, which was pretty accurate as well. He was annoyed that Ginny kept showing up on the cover, but at least the Prophet hadn't run any more slanderous articles since he'd written his letter to the editor. He flipped back through the first few pages of their album, smiling at the picture of them on his birthday, the small version of the family portrait from Bill and Fleur, and the newspaper clippings from the three articles. The larger version of the portrait was currently hanging on the wall opposite the picture he'd given Ginny for their anniversary. He stood and walked over to that picture, admiring his memory of their first kiss for what must've been the thousandth time. It never failed to make him smile, a fact that Ginny obviously appreciated when she opened the door to the room and saw him looking at it. "Hey," she said, grinning as she let Harry pull her into a hug, kissing the top of her head. "Hey," he responded, smiling down at her, not needing to look at the picture anymore because the real thing was so much better, even though it didn't seem like that should be possible, considering how great the memory was. "There's something downstairs I think you're gonna want to see," she told him. He set the album down on the bed and followed her down the stairs and into the kitchen, where Molly, George, Ron, and Hermione were sitting. "What is it?" he asked, and Ginny grinned, picking up two envelopes from the table. "Hogwarts letters!" she exclaimed, and Harry grinned, taking the one that she was extending out to him and sitting next to her at the table. Everyone else watched on eagerly. "Ready?" Harry asked, and she nodded. "Three… two… one…" They both tore their envelopes open, and there were two almost identical thumps on the table as a piece of metal fell out of each of their letters. Ginny picked hers up first, gasping when she saw what it said. "I'm… Quidditch Captain?" she asked in disbelief. Harry grinned with pride even though everyone else looked surprised. Suddenly, she looked at Harry with a mixture of confusion and apology on her face. "But you're supposed to be captain," she said. Harry shook his head, still grinning at her. "You deserve it. I'm glad you're getting a chance to be captain." Then he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "You're not the only one who gets turned on by Quidditch captains, you know?" Ginny blushed scarlet as everyone else still looked confused, although Hermione had a knowing look in her eye that Harry wasn't incredibly fond of. "Wait- if Ginny's captain… what's your badge?" Ron asked. Harry frowned, realising that he had no idea what it was. He'd expected that it was the Quidditch Captain badge until Ginny had shown him hers. He picked the badge up between his thumb and forefinger, eyes widening as he saw what it was. "It's a- a Head Boy badge," he answered in disbelief. "Congratulations!" Hermione exclaimed. Ron clapped him on the back. Even George was smiling when Molly began talking about how she was so proud to have another Head Boy in the family. Harry nodded, but he was still looking at the badge, almost cautiously. He blinked after a moment and set it down, forcing a smile and glancing over at Ginny, who was looking at him curiously. "Let's see about the letters," he suggested, trying to sound as positive as he could. Ginny nodded, tearing her eyes away from him to look down at her own letter while Harry opened his. Dear Mr. Potter, Please note that the new school year will begin on September the first. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock. As Head Boy, you are entitled to all the rights and responsibilities of your position. You will be expected to meet with all prefects in the Prefect Carriage at the start of the journey to Hogwarts, and you will meet with Professor McGonagall after the Welcoming Feast to learn more about your responsibilities. A list of books for next year is enclosed. Yours sincerely, Professor F. Flitwick Deputy Headmaster Harry looked at the list of books, unsurprised to see it was smaller than usual. Seventh Year Students Will Require: The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7 by Miranda Goshawk Aurors' Arsenal: Advanced Strategies for Defence Against the Dark Arts by Adrian Grimhall "Just two new books," Harry commented. "I've got three. Seventh year arithmancy gets a new book," Ginny responded. Hermione eagerly began talking to Ginny about arithmancy, and Harry glanced back down at his Head Boy badge. Ron nudged him. "Don't worry about not being Quidditch Captain. I'm pretty sure Ginny will put you on the team without a tryout." Harry snorted and shook his head. "I'm not upset about that. She deserves it." Ron nodded. "I guess being Head Boy makes up for it anyways," he said like there was no higher honour. Harry shrugged, not really having a response to that. A few moments later, Ginny put a hand on his leg. "Ready to go to Hogwarts?" she asked, and he nodded. Andi would be bringing Teddy by later in the day for his weekend visit, so they needed to add the next set of ingredients to the potion before then. They said goodbye to everyone and walked hand in hand past the wards, apparating to the gates of Hogwarts. "You don't want it, do you?" Ginny asked as they started walking to the castle. Harry sighed, remembering that she knew him as well as or better than anyone. "I- I don't know. I know it's supposed to be a big deal and everything, but I don't really want more attention or responsibility. It's selfish, but… I just wanna enjoy this year with you without having to worry about being Head Boy." Ginny shook her head. "That doesn't sound selfish at all. Even though it's all over, you still have more weight on your shoulders than anybody else at school. It's up to you, but I don't think anyone would blame you for turning it down. I know I wouldn't." Harry smiled at her, appreciating the comfort she gave him through those simple words. "Dumbledore told me at the end of my fifth year that he didn't make me prefect because he thought I had enough on my plate." "He was probably right," Ginny responded, and Harry nodded. "He usually was." "Besides, you still have a lot on your plate," Ginny commented, and Harry snorted. "Right, what's changed in the past three years anyways?" Ginny grinned impishly. "Well, you're with me now, and I know I'm a handful." Harry laughed and, after a moment's consideration, withdrew his hand from hers and cupped her bum with it, making them both stop walking. "My favourite handful," he responded in a lower voice than usual, and Ginny's mouth formed an 'o' even though her eyes were glittering. "My bum is your favourite handful?" she asked, raising an eyebrow after composing herself slightly, turning to face him. Harry chuckled and, feeling even bolder, took his other hand and placed it on her chest. "Every part of you is my favourite handful." Ginny's eyes darkened with hunger, but Harry wasn't finished yet. He raised his hand up to her face, caressing her cheek. She instinctively leaned into the touch, and he brushed her lips with his thumb, feeling her warm breath. "But this… this would have to be my most favourite handful," he whispered. He suddenly found himself flat on his back, with Ginny perched eagerly on top of him. They were kissing, but she broke away to trail kisses down his jaw before paying special attention to his neck. He moaned but somehow managed to chuckle too, realising how he'd ended up on the ground. "Did you just tackle me to kiss me?" he asked with a wide grin on his face. Ginny moved so that her flushed face was just above his. "Damn right I did," she growled possessively, and Harry thought he might just melt into the ground. "You're so hot," he barely worked out, earning him another passionate kiss before Ginny rolled off him, sitting next to him while he recovered, still breathing heavily. "I'm glad you don't have a problem touching me now," she said brightly out of nowhere. Harry chuckled. "I never had a problem touching you. I just- I didn't want to make you uncomfortable with anything you didn't want." "Well I'm glad you know what I want now. Because I don't want you to ever forget what I told you on your birthday. I'm yours, completely," she said, running a hand through his hair before starting to pull his head close to hers. Harry was very eager to resume kissing her, and he exhaled desperately when she put a finger on his lips, which were just mere inches from hers. "But we do have something to do today." Harry sighed heavily, kissing her finger before standing and extending a hand to help her up. She bounced off the ground, and they resumed their walk to Hogwarts with a newfound spring in their steps. Without warning, Harry returned the conversation to what they'd been talking about before making out in the middle of the path. "You know, I don't think it'd be very fair either. For me to take Head Boy away from someone else who deserves it when I'm not even a real seventh year." Ginny smiled, shaking her head. "You really are one of the most considerate people I know." He smiled slightly at that compliment and kissed her hand. "I'm excited for you to be my captain," he commented. "Your captain? You've gotta try out for the team first, Potter," she said sternly, and he laughed, putting an arm around her and hugging her tightly to him as they walked into the Entrance Hall. "Seriously… you being Quidditch Captain is gonna be a massive turn on for me this year," Harry said quietly, causing Ginny to blush once again, even as she grinned from ear to ear. "Are you sure you don't want to be captain? I can talk to McGonagall about-" Harry cut Ginny off. "No way. You deserve it," he said strongly, and she nodded, kissing him quickly on the cheek. Once they were in the Room of Requirement and had added the last batch of fluxweed and boomslang skin, they sat together in the chairs Harry had conjured the first time they'd started working on the room. "So tomorrow's the day," he said. Ginny nodded. "Yep. We'll be able to finish the potion tomorrow. We just need to solve the last riddle." Harry furrowed his brow as he pulled out the parchment from his pocket. He'd glanced at the riddle a couple times over the past week, but it admittedly hadn't been much of a priority for him. "Not taught by books, nor written in ink, a whisper in silence, a nudge and a wink. Guiding from within, like a light in the night, in the realm of feelings, I take flight," he read. Ginny stood and began pacing while Harry took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, contemplating the meaning of the riddle. "So the whole point is that it's something internal, right? Guiding from within… in the realm of feelings. It's like an idea or something," Ginny thought aloud. Harry nodded, agreeing with that assessment. "Plus it's not written in ink," he added. "It's not something that can be taught, either. It has to be some sort of idea or feeling," Ginny said. "What do you think about instinct?" Harry offered the word that suddenly came into his mind. It seemed like it fit the riddle well, and Ginny agreed, nodding as she walked over and planted a kiss on his cheek. "I think you're right," she said, and Harry reddened, still feeling a heat in his cheeks every time she kissed him. "So we'll just need to translate those words into runes that we'll draw onto the walls tomorrow," she added. He nodded. "Hermione can help us with that tonight." He paused for a second before continuing. "I want to stop at McGonagall's office before we leave." Ginny raised an eyebrow. "You don't need more time to decide?" she asked, and he shook his head. "I know exactly what I want from this year. Being Head Boy has nothing to do with it." Ginny put a hand out and helped him up. "Let's go reject the Headmistress of Hogwarts, then." "I don't want to be Head Boy," Harry blurted out as soon as they'd sat down across from McGonagall. She looked sternly at Harry, a look that probably would've made Ginny feel a little terrified if she'd been on the receiving end of it. "I don't believe I've ever heard of someone turning the position down before," McGonagall said in a flat tone. Harry shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time I've done something nobody else has done," he replied, rubbing his scar for good measure. It took a lot for Ginny to not laugh at that wry comment, and she thought she saw the corners of McGonagall's mouth twitch slightly. "May I ask why?" McGonagall asked, but it didn't really sound like a request. "I don't think it would be right to take the spot away from somebody who's a real seventh year and deserves it. And… I don't really like the idea of having more responsibility on me when I come back. I just- I want to enjoy this year without dealing with any of that," Harry answered. "I see. I suppose you were right, Albus," McGonagall said, not bothering to turn back to look at Dumbledore's portrait. Ginny glanced up and saw the man was smiling slightly in the chair of his portrait. "Professor Dumbledore knew I wouldn't want to be Head Boy?" Harry asked, sounding a little surprised, and McGonagall nodded. "I believe his exact words were 'after all the responsibility Harry's carried, the last thing he'll want is to be Head Boy.' I had to see for myself if he was right." "He knows me pretty well," Harry responded, smiling up at the portrait now. "I have to admit that I did think the appeal of having the Head Boy dormitory and access to the Prefect bathroom would be enough incentive, but I was clearly mistaken." "Head Boy dormitory?" Ginny interjected to ask, and McGonagall turned to her and nodded. "Every house has two concealed single-person dormitories in case the Head Boy or Head Girl is in that house." Ginny was a little surprised that she'd never heard of that considering she'd had two older brothers who were Head Boys. Next to her, Harry shook his head. "That'd be really nice, but I still don't want to be Head Boy… even for that." McGonagall nodded. "Very well. I'll select someone else. Thankfully, I waited to inform the Daily Prophet." Ginny wondered if that was sarcasm. "Regardless, I presume the efforts with the Room of Requirement are still going well?" "If everything works like it's supposed to, the room will be fixed tomorrow," Ginny answered. "Good," McGonagall responded simply, and they left her office a moment later, promising to let her know if everything ended up working. When they arrived back at the Burrow, they sat down with Hermione in Ron's bedroom to go over the runic translations. After they'd explained to her what this was all for, she wanted to see the riddles to 'make sure the answers were correct'. One by one, she went through the riddles they'd solved. The first word- self- translated to the rune Mannaz, which looked like an 'x' between two vertical lines. The second word- need- translated to Naudhiz, which was a vertical line with a slanted line crossing it. The third word- transformation- translated to Raidho, and it looked like the letter 'R'. Reading the riddle they'd just solved, Hermione shook her head when they told her they believed the answer was instinct. "It's not instinct," Hermione said plainly, bursting Ginny and Harry's bubble of accomplishment. "How do you know?" Ginny asked, hoping that for once Hermione could be wrong about something like this. "A couple reasons. First, the riddle talks about something that's subtle. Instinct isn't subtle. It's very primal and reactive. The riddle also talks about the solution's impact on feelings and emotions, and instinct isn't typically associated with that," Hermione answered academically. Harry sighed frustratedly. "So we're back to square one then," he bemoaned. Hermione shook her head. "I actually think you were pretty close with instinct." They waited a moment, and Ginny realised that Hermione was waiting on someone to ask for her guess. She bit back the urge to make a sarcastic comment, knowing that Hermione was being gracious in helping them with this. Instead, she asked, as politely as she could, "Do you have any idea what it could be, Hermione?" Hermione nodded eagerly. "I think it's intuition. Intuition fits the riddle better as a quality that's very subtle but guides our decisions, both intellectual and emotional." Ginny glanced at Harry, who was looking back at her and nodding. She nodded too, thinking that explanation sounded plausible. "The translation for intuition is Laguz," Hermione said, pointing at the word in her Ancient Runes Dictionary. Ginny leaned over to look at it, seeing that the rune was a vertical line with a crooked line coming out of the top, going down. Next to the rune was its translation- 'intuition/instinct'. "So Laguz translates to both intuition and instinct?" Ginny asked, and Hermione nodded. "I thought you'd want to know what the correct word was though." Ron snorted, inviting a sharp look from Hermione, and he was thankfully wise enough to not say anything more. "Thanks Hermione," Harry interjected, doing his best to avoid seeing Ron and Hermione possibly bickering right now. That night, Ginny and Harry were in the living room with George and Teddy. "Gagaga." Ginny quickly looked at Teddy. That was the first time they'd really heard him make sounds other than crying and laughing. Teddy giggled for good measure, and Ginny smiled, looking at Harry, who was beaming with pride. "He'll be talking your ear off pretty soon," George said, smiling down at the baby in his arms. "He's already gotten one of mine," he added, pointing to the hole where his ear should've been. Ginny and Harry both laughed at that, but Ginny was also thinking about just how unbelievable it was that Teddy had developed so much in the few short months they'd known him. "So I was thinking more about what we talked about the other day," George continued after a minute, looking at her. He must've noticed Harry looking at them curiously because he explained further. "Percy told me that he wanted to help me reopen the shop. Ginny thought it was a good idea, but I wasn't sure if I could handle the product creation stuff by myself." Harry nodded. "That does sound like a good idea. I know Percy's not the type of person that you'd picture working at a joke shop, but he'd probably be helpful in other ways." George nodded with Harry. "Yeah, I agree. Ginny suggested I think about adding a third partner, who's more funny and can help me with that stuff. So I'm gonna talk to Lee this weekend and see if he wants to do it with me." Ginny grinned, thinking that was a great idea. "I think Lee would be perfect for it," she responded. "I'm kind of surprised you didn't think of him sooner," Harry added. "I probably should've, but at least I did get there eventually," George responded, tickling Teddy, who giggled once more as his hair turned red. Harry and Ginny returned to Hogwarts the next day, ready to finish the mission they'd been on for the past month. They collected the Valerian root from Greenhouse Two and made their way up to the Room of Requirement. While Ginny crushed the root and stirred the potion four times clockwise, like Helena had instructed, Harry drew the runes Hermione had translated for them on each of the four walls with his wand. Raidho, Naudhiz, Laguz, and Mannaz shone brightly on the walls now. He returned to the middle of the room where Ginny was bent over the cauldron, which now held a blue potion that resembled the primary colour of Ravenclaw House. She conjured a goblet and ladled some of the potion into it before holding it out to Harry. "You want me to do it?" he asked, and she nodded, holding the goblet out a little further. "If I messed it up, you've already proven you're difficult to kill," she said, cracking a smile that made Harry roll his eyes. "Ha ha ha," he responded wryly, and she giggled. "I just feel like it should be you," she explained. He looked down at the potion inside the goblet. "It's a good thing I trust you, Gin," he said, holding the goblet up in a mock toast. "Cheers," he added before swallowing the entire thing in one gulp. Ginny looked on nervously as Harry waited for the effects of the potion to take hold. It hit him hard. His knees almost buckled as his head felt like it was splitting open for less than a second before he felt completely normal. Other than the fact that his brain was working in overdrive. It was an odd sensation- the only thing he could think to compare it to was when he took Felix Felicis in his sixth year. The main difference was that when he took Felix Felicis, he couldn't explain how he knew what the right thing to do was- he just knew that whatever he did would work. With this potion, he could easily predict what the results would be of any action he took, and it would be easy to map out a path to get whatever he wanted if he desired. Ginny still looked a little nervous. "Did it work?" she asked. He nodded. "Definitely. This feels weird," he said honestly. "Weird how?" "Like- like I can do anything I want because I know exactly how to accomplish it." Ginny raised her eyebrows slightly. "And what do you want to do right now?" she asked. Harry chuckled. "First, I want to fix this room. What was the spell again?" "Erimiloci," Ginny answered, still looking at him curiously. Harry nodded and spun his wand over his head twice. "Erimiloci!" he shouted, the spell echoing to the furthest corners of the room. The effect was almost instantaneous- blue light started cascading down the walls from the ceiling, pulsating like the room's heartbeat. The runes he'd drawn into the walls slowly faded, being absorbed into the essence of the room itself. Then, as quickly as it had started, the light vanished, leaving the room looking exactly like it had every other day they'd been in here. "Do you think it worked?" Ginny asked. "Only one way to find out," Harry answered, even though he was almost certain that it had worked. They walked out of the room, closing the door behind them. He waited for the door to fade back into the wall before he began pacing back and forth in front of the wall, knowing what he wanted to ask for. 'I need the Gryffindor common room,' he thought. After his third pass, the door reformed, and he gripped the handle, glancing back at Ginny, who nodded encouragingly. He pushed the door open, grinning when he saw the familiar red and gold adornments of his common room. Ginny gasped as she followed him into the room. "It worked," she whispered, and he nodded, walking over to the large fireplace, wishing there was a fire in it. Immediately, the room responded, and a crackling blaze ignited on the hearth. "I love magic," Harry said, grinning as he sat down in the oversized armchair that had been a favourite of theirs when they were dating in his sixth year. As she had when they were dating, Ginny immediately climbed into his lap, draping her legs over one of the arms of the chair while Harry supported her with an arm around her back. "Hi," she whispered sweetly. "Hi," Harry answered, grinning at the woman he loved with everything. "You did it," she said, and he shook his head. "We did it." Ginny smiled at him and brought him into a deep kiss- far longer and more passionate than the ones they usually got to enjoy in this chair with all the prying eyes of their housemates around. When they were both out of breath, they separated enough to suck in some air, still staying close enough for Harry to kiss the tip of her nose, thinking she looked incredibly sexy with her now messy hair and flushed skin. "I can't wait for this year," he said, and she smiled brightly at him. "Me too. I can't believe I'm gonna get to date you for a whole year at Hogwarts," she responded a little giddily. "And it's still only the beginning," he said, making her smile even brighter. "Oh, really? And what's next for us after we graduate?" she asked, a little curiously and a little teasingly. In his normal state, Harry probably wouldn't have given a real answer or made a joke, but the potion was still affecting his thoughts enough for him to know the best thing for him to do was to be honest. "I'm gonna marry you." "Ginny, dear… what are you doing?" her mother asked, barely containing the incredulous smile on her face as she looked at her five-year old daughter. Ginny was currently standing in the garden with a gnome she'd caught. She'd been taught to throw them out of the garden, but she'd decided to tie this one up instead. She'd drawn a lightning bolt onto the gnome's head and put one of her dad's ties around its neck. She was holding some flowers she'd picked in the orchard and had a white pillowcase on her head. "I'm marrying Harry Potter," she answered. It was pretty obvious that's what was happening, after all. Her mum knelt next to her and examined the hostage gnome. "You do know this isn't really Harry Potter, don't you?" Ginny rolled her eyes. Her mother obviously didn't understand. "Of course it's not, Mum. But I have to practise so I'm ready." "Well, you'll need him to be ready too. It wouldn't do for you to tie Harry Potter up and carry him down the aisle." Ginny giggled, thinking it impossible that Harry Potter could ever be captured, much less by someone like her. It did seem rather silly to imagine him marrying her while he was tied up. "He'll be ready," she responded confidently. "You're what?" she asked, wondering if she'd somehow misheard the words she'd dreamed about for almost her entire life. He'd tiptoed around it before and very clearly promised to spend forever with her, but still… he hadn't ever actually said that before. "I'm gonna marry you," he repeated. His green eyes were gleaming with a confidence, intensity, and love that left her breathless every time. "If that's okay with you, I mean," he added belatedly, blushing a little despite his confidence. Ginny shook her head and sat up fully to kiss him in something that was both passionate and gentle, just like him. "I can't wait," she whispered, hugging him tightly now, savouring the slightly scratchy feel of his stubble on her cheek. "Really?" Harry whispered, sounding more surprised, as if he was somehow losing confidence despite her reaction. She leaned back and looked directly in his eyes, and he inhaled sharply. "I don't know if it'll happen right after we graduate or sometime soon after, but I've dreamed for a very long time about being Ginny Potter. So whenever you ask, I'll say yes. And it'll be the easiest decision I've ever made." "I love you," he exhaled, pulling her tight against him again. She sighed contentedly, happy to hold onto him in front of the blazing fire forever. At Sunday dinner the next day, the entire family seemed to be buzzing with news. It started when Harry and Ginny told everyone that Teddy had rolled over onto his stomach for the first time without any help earlier in the day, which seemed like a much bigger deal to them, Molly, Arthur, and Andi than the rest of the family. "Ron and I have decided to leave on Friday," Hermione announced after everyone else stopped pretending to be interested in Teddy's minor developments. "Where are you going?" Charlie asked, apparently having been inadvertently left out of the loop. "Australia," Ron answered, grinning as he shifted closer to Hermione, who blushed slightly. Charlie nodded slowly, looking a little confused but not really wanting to ask any more questions. "How long will you be gone?" Molly asked, pursing her lips slightly. Harry guessed that she hadn't voiced any disapproval of their trip, but it probably still made her uncomfortable for Ron to be that far away from home with nobody but his girlfriend to keep him company. "We're not sure… yet. Hopefully just a couple weeks," Hermione answered, and for the first time, Harry was forced to consider that they could actually be gone for much longer if they couldn't find her family easily. He'd be at Hogwarts for most of that time, but it was still weird to think that they'd be separated indefinitely after spending so many years in close proximity. "And you're sure you're ready?" Arthur asked, doing his best to distract everyone from Molly's increasingly distressed expression. Hermione nodded, launching into a long-winded explanation about the intricacies of international travel- portkeys, visas, and currency exchange. They'd booked a flight and hotel rooms through a Muggle travel agency, and Harry had given them free access to his Gringotts account for all their travel expenses, which Ron and Hermione were much less reluctant to accept after seeing the estimated cost of their trip. Unsurprisingly, Arthur was fascinated with every facet of their trip, particularly the idea of travelling by aeroplane. Ironically, as Hermione got more and more detailed in explaining Muggle flight, Arthur's expression became more excited while Molly's became more concerned. Harry wasn't the only person that noticed this either, and as soon as Hermione took a breath in her commentary, Bill butted in to ask Charlie how starting up his dragon reserve was going. Hermione looked a little offended, but she didn't attempt to continue talking. Harry made a mental note to himself to explain why Bill had done her and Ron a favour. "It's going. I've found a lot of available land up near Wrexham. I'm working with the Ministry on getting permits for the reserve, and I'll either need a loan from Gringotts or Ministry funding to start getting everything built." Instinctively, Harry started trying to imagine how he could offer Charlie some money in a way that wouldn't upset or offend him. It hadn't been easy to get Hermione and Ron to accept his financial help, and he was pretty sure that Charlie would be significantly more opposed to the idea than they had been. Ginny glanced at him with a small smile on her face, as if she could read his mind and understood the dilemma it posed. "I think Kingsley could probably help with securing Ministry funding. I can set up a meeting for you later this week if you want," Percy offered. Charlie nodded, looking grateful for the offer. "Thanks, Perce. I'd really appreciate that." Percy nodded, acting like it wasn't a big deal. That reaction was a far cry from the pompous reaction he likely would've had if his brother had thanked him for something before the war. But it was obvious that Percy had changed a lot since the war, and the next announcement only further proved that. "I've decided to reopen the shop," George suddenly said a couple moments later. Everyone was silent, almost in shock, until Fleur exclaimed, "Zat's fantastic!" Then everyone joined in, congratulating George on his decision. Harry remembered how the family had rallied together around George when he'd been at his lowest point almost a month ago. It was incredible that George had turned things around like this- he'd stopped drinking, started spending more time with everyone, and was now ready to move forward and reopen the shop. "Are you doing it by yourself?" Bill asked, and George shook his head. "No way. Lee's gonna help me with coming up with new products and making them, and Percy's going to be in charge of the business side of things." Once again, it was eerily silent as most of the family heard this news for the first time. "Percy?" Molly asked in disbelief, looking at her older son to see if this was true. To his credit, Percy nodded, looking at peace with his decision. "I want a fresh start after everything. I'm going to try and have some fun for once. I owe that to Fred… and myself." Arthur clapped Percy on the shoulder. "I'm proud of you, son. No matter what you do or where you go, I'm proud of you if you're happy. And if this is what will make you happy, I can't wait to see what you do with it." Percy blushed a little when his dad said he was proud of him, and Charlie added, "You know, Fred would've thought this was hilarious." George laughed at that, and everyone else joined in. "See, I'm already getting funnier," Percy commented wryly, still smiling at Charlie's joke. George shook his head and clapped Percy on his other shoulder. "Keep thinking that, Perce," he responded, smiling too. In an unusually reflective moment, Harry looked around the table at his family. Life had snuck up on all of them in a way. Summer was rapidly drawing to an end- he'd be returning to Hogwarts with Ginny in just a few weeks, while Hermione and Ron would be on the opposite side of the world by themselves. Charlie, George, and Percy were all taking major new steps in their lives and careers. Bill and Fleur were finally getting a chance to live like a normal married couple, and Harry secretly wondered if they were planning on having kids soon. The idea would've made him uncomfortable to think of a year ago, but one of the best things that had happened to him in the past year was the baby in Andi's arms. That kid was changing a lot too, a very obvious reminder of how removed they were from the war. The world and their lives were changing, but Harry knew there wasn't a group he'd rather face all that change with than the one he was with now. On the day before Ginny's birthday, she woke earlier than Harry for once. She slipped out of bed, but she wasn't ready to leave the room yet. She looked around her childhood bedroom, considering how much it had changed over the years. The room had belonged to Charlie until she'd been born, and it hadn't taken her long to make it her own. At different phases in her life, the walls in the room had been light purple, pink, Holyhead Harpy green, and Gryffindor red. She'd returned to pink, the colour she'd had for the best parts of her childhood, when she returned home after her first year, and nobody in her family had said a word about it. After her fourth year, Ginny decided that pink wasn't a colour she wanted in her room for reasons mostly related to Dolores Umbridge. She changed the colour to a golden yellow that reminded her of Gryffindor and a Golden Snitch. It was a bold choice, but it was her way of reminding herself that she could still make some parts of her world bright, despite the darkness all around. The colour wasn't the only thing that had changed in her room. When she'd been younger, she'd had a wide variety of toys and stuffed animals to play with. She and Ron had spent endless hours having play fights with her dragons. Now, the only stuffed animal that she kept out in her room was a plush lion Bill had given her when she was seven. He'd given it to her just before he left for Egypt, and for years, it was the first place she turned to for comfort. Roary was the first person to hear about Tom Riddle's diary. As much as she'd cried in front of her parents between her first year and this past year, they hadn't seen a fraction of the tears she'd shed with Roary. She didn't really need him now- her older brother was back in her life, and she had someone else to share her emotions with, but she'd always keep Roary close by anyways. He'd been a great friend. At one time, she'd had pictures of her favourite bands, Quidditch players, and drawings she'd made of herself flying on a broom or marrying Harry Potter. When she was much younger, her mum would cut out every article in the Daily Prophet that mentioned Harry. There weren't many- usually just one a year on Halloween. Those had been on Ginny's walls too, but thankfully she was wise enough to take them down and put them in a box under her bed after Ron told them that he'd become friends with Harry Potter. Now, her walls were less cluttered than they had been when she was younger, but the meaning they carried was far more important than her decorations used to be. She still kept a picture of Gwenog Jones as a reminder of what it took to be great at Quidditch. She also had a poster of the Weird Sisters- hers and Tonks' favourite band. Harry's letter to the Daily Prophet announcing their relationship and Emily's painting of Harry for his birthday were hanging near each other. The family portrait that they'd taken in Diagon Alley was in a large frame on another wall, and Ginny's favourite thing in her room, the picture Harry had given her on their anniversary, hung opposite it. Actually, her favourite thing in her room was still asleep in her bed with a faint smile on his face. He was breathing softly- the only sound permeating the stillness of her room. A lot of things had changed in her room, but he was the most obvious signal that she had grown up from the little girl with the pink room and the stuffed animals. She changed into a light green shirt and jeans, leaning over Harry to press a kiss to his forehead. He exhaled and smiled a little bit more, which warmed Ginny's heart more than she could express, seeing him react like that to her even when he wasn't conscious of it. She stood up straight and walked to the door, quietly opening it and glancing back one last time into her room on the last morning before she became an adult. It was a little weird that she was feeling this sentimental about everything. For years, the biggest thing that she'd been looking forward to about turning seventeen was the ability to do magic outside of school, and that had sort of been unceremoniously given to her early. Granted, she wouldn't have to hide that she could do magic from anyone after today, but it still didn't feel quite as significant. She made her way downstairs, sitting on the porch swing and contemplating why she felt an odd sense of melancholy. Watching all of her older brothers grow up made her constantly look forward to growing up, but it felt now that she'd already done the growing up and her seventeenth birthday was more for show than anything else. Ginny hated crying, and she'd been doing better recently about not crying so much, but for some reason, tears began running down her face as she looked out at the orchard where she'd learned to fly a broom by stealing her brothers' from the shed. How had it been so long since all of that had happened? She was so caught up in the memories of her childhood that she didn't even notice the door opening until she felt weight on the bench next to her. She turned to look at who her visitor was, drying her cheeks as she saw Charlie sitting next to her. He didn't look judgmental or confused; if anything, he looked like he understood what she was going through. "Usually it's Harry that's up with me this early," he commented, looking over the yard now. Ginny snorted, wiping her eyes now. "I know, I'm never up this early. Don't know what came over me." "You turn seventeen tomorrow," Charlie answered plainly. She was silent for a moment. "It shouldn't feel like that big of a deal. It doesn't, really. I don't get why I'm getting worked up about turning seventeen when my childhood ended a long time ago." He considered her response before replying. "Maybe that's why you're emotional. Because you've been through so much that forced your childhood to end early and it wasn't really fair. When you were younger, you looked forward to your seventeenth birthday and imagined a massive party where you were the centre of attention and became an adult, but it doesn't feel like you need a celebration now when you became an adult through your experiences rather than your age." "I mean everyone goes through stuff-" she started but Charlie shook his head. "Most people don't go through stuff like you have. The only people I know of that are close are all sleeping upstairs right now. It isn't fair. I think you're upset because you're too mature to really care about your seventeenth birthday too much, and it feels like a letdown since you spent so much of your childhood looking forward to it." "I didn't realise I'd grown up so fast," she said, her voice breaking slightly. "But I was looking around my room and remembering how much it's changed, and seeing what's in there now, seeing Harry-" Charlie involuntarily tensed slightly but didn't make a comment "- it just reminded me that I grew up a lot earlier than it felt like I was supposed to." Charlie nodded, still looking out to the orchard. "Sometimes that's how life works. It sucks. It's so not fair that so many people, you and the three upstairs included, had to grow up so fast. Honestly though, the whole seventeenth birthday thing is kind of ridiculous as it is. You've been fully grown up for months at least, but there are kids who turn seventeen and still have no idea what's going on enough to be considered grown up. It's just an excuse to give you a party more than anything because everyone grows differently." Ginny nodded and then looked suspiciously at her brother, suddenly realising that it felt extremely odd for Charlie to be the one having this conversation with her. "When did you get so wise about all this stuff?" she asked curiously. Charlie shrugged. "I turned seventeen when I was living in Romania, by myself. Mum and Dad sent me cards and gifts and stuff, but there wasn't a party or anything. Just another day of work. I probably hadn't ever looked forward to my seventeenth as much as you have, but I remember when I realised after my birthday that it hadn't mattered much because I'd clearly already grown up enough to be living by myself in another country." "You probably didn't cry about it though," Ginny responded, sniffling once for emphasis. "Well… no, but I am strong enough to handle my emotions like an adult," he said, chuckling when Ginny punched his shoulder. "I'm kidding, sis. It wasn't as devastating a realisation to me, but I also had way less going on with myself when I came of age than you do now. Believe me, we all know how strong you are. You hate crying- I'll never forget the time you came into the house with a gnome latched onto your finger, desperate for someone to take it off, but you refused to cry even though it must've hurt like hell. And you were only four! I know it takes a lot to make you cry, and I also know you're strong enough to handle the things that do push you to that point." "I have no idea how, but you're doing great with advice today, Charlie," she commented, smiling in mild disbelief. Charlie grinned. "Hey, a broken wand works every once in a while, right? We'll just consider this my birthday present to you." Ginny snorted. "I think Ron would disagree with you on that wand bit." Then her eyes widened as she processed the rest of what he'd said. "Did you really not get me a birthday present?" He laughed out loud now. "No, I did. But- Merlin, you should've seen your face. I'm wondering if I was wrong to say you're grown up if you still care that much about presents." Ginny stuck her tongue out at him, which only made him laugh harder. She finally laughed too, leaning against her older brother, who wrapped a protective arm around her. "Still, you should probably try and enjoy your seventeenth birthday. You only get one of those," he said. Ginny smiled. "I'll do my best," she promised, already thinking that the day before her birthday had gotten off to a pretty good start- other than the crying, at least. She was disappointed but not completely surprised that she didn't see a lot of Harry for most of the day. He'd left early in the afternoon with Ron, and he didn't even hide the fact that it was to get her a present, although he assured her that he'd already planned it out and wasn't just now looking for something. That evening, before Harry and Ron got back, Hermione surprised her by taking her out to dinner at a restaurant in Diagon Alley that Ginny hadn't ever noticed before- Le Chaudron D'or, which Hermione said translated to The Golden Cauldron. Apparently the French owners wanted to compete with The Leaky Cauldron, even though this was a completely different sort of establishment. The restaurant wasn't very large, and it clearly catered to a more refined and higher-paying audience than its pub counterpart. Crystal chandeliers, golden embellishments, and beautiful oil paintings accomplished their task of making Le Chaudron D'or seem like a very sophisticated place. It certainly wasn't a place that Ginny ever would've thought to go in herself- as much as she enjoyed dressing up and pretending to be a woman of high class, she felt much more comfortable in a place like The Leaky Cauldron. Hermione seemed really excited about bringing Ginny here though, so Ginny happily went along with it, and the second surprise of the night was revealed when she saw Luna already seated at their table. Ginny shot an impressed look at Hermione, who held her chin up proudly. "Hi Ginny! Hi Hermione!" Luna greeted them as they sat next to her around the small, circular table. "Hi Luna, how have you been?" Ginny asked, feeling like it had been much longer than a week since the last time she'd seen Luna. "I'm very good. Last night, Daddy and I saw a Moon Frog fall into the stream behind our house. We looked for it for hours, but we couldn't find it again. They are very good at hiding themselves, though," she answered, oblivious to the look Hermione was giving her, which appeared to be barely controlled derision. "I'm sure you'll find one soon," Ginny offered, knowing it was much easier and more fun to encourage Luna. It didn't really matter if the things she believed in were true or not; despite her beliefs being mocked as delusional, Luna was arguably the most observant person of the real world that Ginny knew. "And how is your dad?" Hermione asked, surprising Ginny, who'd decided weeks earlier to not bring up Xenophilius with Luna because she got mad every time she thought about his betrayal. Luna actually took on a rather contrite look, as if she understood the undertones in Hermione's question. "Daddy's good, too. He's had a much better time with business since he started publishing more interesting articles again. He's afraid to apologise to you for what he did, but I know he's sorry." Hermione blushed like she was surprised Luna understood the meaning behind her question. "Oh, it's- that's alright, Luna. We all know he was just doing what he thought was best for you." Luna nodded absently, now looking up at the chandelier above their table. Ginny and Hermione exchanged an amused look and conversation flowed much easier as they ordered dinner. To Ginny's delight, the steak that she'd ordered was fantastic, although she probably shouldn't have expected anything less from a place as nice as this one. "What made you pick this place, Hermione?" Ginny asked curiously. "I thought it looked nice when we were in Diagon Alley a few weeks ago. It's been ages since I've had a dinner out like this, and I thought it would be a fun way to celebrate your birthday," Hermione answered, still clearly proud of herself. "Well, you did a good job. This was fantastic," Ginny commented, leaning back in her chair comfortably in a way that probably wasn't completely appropriate for a place like this. "Does this mean that there will be something special happening tomorrow that would've kept us from doing this on my birthday?" she asked as innocently as she could. Hermione snorted and shook her head. "That was pathetic. I'm the wrong person to be trying to get information out of about your birthday." Ginny sighed, knowing she was probably right. She turned hopefully to Luna, who blinked at her as if she had no idea what they were talking about. "You have more Erosprites than before," Luna commented offhandedly, dramatically changing the topic of conversation. Even though she didn't think they were real, Ginny couldn't help but blush slightly. "Erosprites?" Hermione asked dubiously. "Yes," Luna answered as if Hermione just wanted to be sure she had the right word. "What are those?" "You don't know about Erosprites? I see a few around you, but Ginny has a lot more," Luna responded, and Ginny had to tightly grip the tablecloth that was draped near her legs to keep from laughing at that and Hermione's confused reaction. She obviously couldn't decide if it was a good or bad thing that she had less Erosprites than Ginny. Ginny took a breath, trying to hide the small chuckle that escaped, and helped Hermione out. "Erosprites are magical creatures that appear around someone who's in love," she explained, and Hermione nodded, blushing a little now too. "Harry had just as many as you did the last time I saw him," Luna added helpfully, making Ginny grin. "Well I should hope so," she responded as if it had ever been in doubt. "I don't think you need Erosprites to be able to tell if you and Harry love each other. After what you did for his birthday and what he's got planned for-" Hermione suddenly stopped talking, and Ginny tilted her head curiously, looking intently at Hermione. "What does he have planned?" Ginny asked, but Hermione just shook her head, refusing to say any more about Harry or Ginny's birthday. "Of course it's obvious. That's why the Erosprites show up," Luna stated as if that settled the matter. Ginny nodded, a little annoyed that Hermione had gotten this close to spilling a secret but hadn't. Then again, she didn't really want to ruin whatever surprise Harry had planned, and knowing him, it would probably be pretty good. "You want to get her a what?" Ron asked, apparently positive he'd misheard Harry. "You heard what I said," Harry responded, and Ron sighed, shaking his head. "Don't you already have enough presents for her?" Ron asked while they were standing in a side street off Diagon Alley, away from most curious eyes. "We just bought those-" "Enough presents?" Harry challenged. "I missed her last birthday- actually, it was worse than that. I'd broken up with her and she didn't know if we were dead or alive on her last birthday." "But you're not gonna make up for that by buying her a shit ton of presents, mate," Ron countered. Harry shook his head vehemently. "It- it's not about making up for anything. Ron, this is her seventeenth birthday for Merlin's sake! You saw what she did for me last weekend. She deserves something as great as that." "So throw her a party then." Harry exhaled and pinched the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses up in the process. "You know there's gonna be a party. But your mum was pretty clear that she was in charge of it all, and there's no way I could pull off something like that even if I was given the chance. But this- I know her, and I know this would be a great gift." "It's not about whether or not it's a great gift," Ron said. Harry noticed the tips of his ears reddening. "It'd be a bloody fantastic gift, obviously. But- mate, we- you know we don't have a lot of money. So it might be a little awkward if you give her something like-" "But-" Harry started to protest and Ron put a hand on his shoulder. "Believe me, I've seen how little money matters to you. And we're your family, so if you want to spend money on us, that should be okay. It's just… it's not something we're really used to. That'd be a pretty big way to start, but… well, it's your choice, but if you do get it, I don't think you should give it to her at the party." Harry sighed once again, finally understanding Ron's meaning. "It'd probably make Ginny feel uncomfortable too, huh?" he asked, thankful for Ron's perspective on something like this that Harry just didn't understand or have context for. Ron shrugged. "I mean I wouldn't feel weird at all about it if you bought one for me." Harry chuckled and Ron grinned for a moment before looking more serious again. "But I don't know how she'd feel, being your girlfriend and all. I just think- well, you honestly probably know her better than I do, but I don't think it would hurt to talk with her about it instead of surprising her with it." Harry ran a hand through his hair, nodding as he decided that Ron was probably right. It was Ginny, after all. It'd be much easier to talk with her about it than make things uncomfortable for her or anybody else because he wanted to spring a surprise. Besides, he still had one more idea. "Okay, you're right. I'll talk to her about it. I've just got one more thing we need to go do." Ron groaned, rolling his eyes. "It can't be another present. We've been at this for hours." Harry snorted. "We've been to two shops plus meeting Bill to get some money, and I knew exactly what we were getting in both shops. Besides, this isn't so much a present… more like something you and Hermione inspired me to do when you decided to go to Australia together." "When we decided to… wait, Harry. Are you saying-" Harry cut Ron off by slinging an arm around his best friend's shoulders. Grinning, he asked, "How do you feel about the beach?" before turning on his heel. Several hours later, Harry found himself in a position that felt more uncomfortable than he'd expected it to be. After he'd returned home with Ron and ate dinner with the family that wasn't out in Diagon Alley, he waited for Ron, George, Charlie, and Percy to go into the living room before asking Molly and Arthur if he could talk to them for a moment. "Er- so… with the- birthdays…" he looked up, hoping one of them had understood what he meant. The blank looks on their faces told him he wasn't going to be that lucky. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I… wanted to ask if- there's a house- cottage, really- in Weymouth. Since- before school starts- Ginny…" That was the best he had. Molly was still looking blankly at him, but Arthur's expression registered some sort of recognition. "Are you asking if you can take my baby girl away to some house by yourself?" he asked, and for the first time in a while, Harry was reminded that, while Arthur was like a father to him, he was Ginny's father, and that idea could be rather intimidating in times like these. Harry cleared his throat again. "Er- yeah?" he offered, inwardly wincing for the reaction now that it was out there. Arthur's eyes seemed to bore into Harry's soul, and he actually felt his heart skip a beat. Then Molly looked at Arthur with raised eyebrows, and the corners of his lips twitched. Harry blinked as if to make sure he'd really seen that. Then Arthur burst, laughing loudly as actual tears streamed down his face. "Arthur, that was terrible," Molly chided, though she was red from doing her best to hold in her laughter, even if it wasn't an entirely successful effort. "I'm sorry, Harry," Arthur said, wiping his eyes and still chuckling. "You have to understand that every father looks forward to the day that he can scare his daughter's boyfriend. And when my daughter's boyfriend is- well, you- I can't help myself when the opportunity's right there." Harry shook his head, feeling his pulse steadying as he let out a slightly shaky breath. "So does that mean…" Arthur looked at Molly, and they nodded together. "You know we trust both of you, and it's not like you aren't already… bunkmates," Arthur said, shifting a little because he wasn't entirely comfortable talking about things like his daughter's sleeping arrangements with her boyfriend, which Harry was more than okay to never speak about again. "Thank you for asking us, though. I know you'll both be adults, but it is nice to have her boyfriend being so respectful," Molly added, smiling at Harry, who felt his cheeks warm slightly. "I mean, you're- you're like the closest thing I have to parents too. So it's only what I'd think that-" Harry didn't finish that thought. Molly had wrapped him in a bone-crushing hug, apparently still getting used to the idea that Harry really did consider them to be like his parents, even if it was still taking some adjustment from him too. Molly finally released him, and he was certain now that his cheeks were red. Arthur smiled at him and nodded. "We're proud of you. And we know you'll take care of each other." Harry felt a lump rising in the back of his throat, and he couldn't formulate any response to that. Almost mercifully, Ron called him into the living room to play Exploding Snap. They both inclined their heads towards the living room, still smiling warmly at him. He nodded at them and stood up a little awkwardly from the table. As he walked out of the kitchen, he thought he heard Molly say, "I can't believe all our kids are really grown up." Harry still couldn't believe it himself, but he was going to do everything he could to make the last official coming of age in the Weasley family the best ever. A/N: Harry only just made it through asking Molly and Arthur! Obviously, Ginny will be an adult after tomorrow and asking isn't really something that's totally necessary, but considering how close Harry is with them, there wasn't any chance he wouldn't be asking them, even if it's just to assure himself that he's on the right path with what he's got planned for Ginny. Going back to the start of the chapter, one of the very fun things for me was starting to identify places where things would clearly be different than before if Harry and Ginny went back to Hogwarts for a seventh year. There's a bit of an implication, even if it's never explicitly stated, that Harry going back meant that he would be Captain and Ginny would lose her chance. I definitely didn't want to make either of them feel like they were giving up anything to be with each other at Hogwarts, and I also felt like the idea of Harry being Captain was explored enough in HBP, at least to the point that I was much more interested in Ginny's arc as a Captain than Harry's. To that end as well, I think McGonagall would feel like Ginny had earned a chance to be Gryffindor Captain, and, as an unimportant spoiler, she's also aware of Ginny wanting to play Quidditch professionally through Ginny's career planning meeting, which is a memory we'll get to see in Book 2! In a kind of similar vein, Harry feels like such an obvious choice for being Head Boy, but it's impossible for me to imagine him actually wanting to do it, especially with how much he's grown up in the past few years since he was jealous of Ron for being Prefect. His primary reason for going back to school is to be with Ginny, and he'll have other things to fill his time instead of taking on a position of authority like this in the school. I will also say that I did briefly consider giving Ginny Head Girl, but there were two main reasons I didn't. First, I honestly didn't have the faintest idea with where to go with writing the specifics of being a Head Girl, and it wasn't interesting enough to me to devote considerable time thinking about. And secondly, I really, really love the character who is Head Girl in their seventh year, and I think she fits the role better than Ginny would have anyways. I want to note, because I'm a bit proud of it, that all the runes mentioned in this chapter are real runes that you can look up if my descriptions of them don't paint a clear enough picture in your mind. The translations I use are loose because there's a lot of different translations for them, and I needed translations that I could write riddles for because I worked backwards with them. First, I picked the runes and translations that made sense with the Room of Requirement- self, need, transformation, and intuition- and then I wrote riddles for all of them. It was really hard to write riddles that I thought were solvable but also complicated enough that they might not be solved right away, so I hope I did a good job since it was tough for me to evaluate the ease of solving them when I wrote them. The spell that Harry uses to restore the Room of Requirement, Erimiloci, is an abbreviated version of the Latin phrase Eritis mihi locus, which translates to ‘be my room’ because it’s a spell invented by Rowena Ravenclaw to quite literally tell the Room of Requirement to become the room she wants it to be. My favourite part of this chapter is the conversation between Charlie and Ginny. He's definitely had his ups and downs with both her and Harry so far, but he was the right person to talk with Ginny about growing up early, considering he wasn't even seventeen when he moved to Romania. It also goes to show that there are times when Charlie can be as good with giving advice and being relied on as Ginny's other brothers, which I think he deserved after the past several chapters. I want to make a bit of a note, just because I think people might ask about it. To me, there is nothing unrealistic about Harry and Ginny talking about marriage, particularly considering Harry had taken a potion that did affect his brain somewhat. They are young; however, they're both very in love, and both sets of their parents also married extremely young. Yes, they were living in a time of war, but Harry and Ginny became adults in a time just like it, and things like that do bond people and make them grow up far quicker than they might otherwise. It also just seems to be a cultural thing in the wizarding world. Absolutely none of this is to say that they are actually anywhere near marriage, but since this is the first time it's really been brought up, I just wanted to put that out there. So the Room of Requirement is fixed, the start of term at Hogwarts is creeping closer, and there's a very important birthday to celebrate! I already cannot wait to post the next chapter, which, speaking of… Coming Friday: Coming of Age- Ron's eyes bulged as his jaw flapped but no words came out. |
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