PhoenixSong.net :: A Harry/Ginny Fanfic and Fanart Archive

Author: Arnel

Story: Summer Story

Part: 11: Reunion

Rating: Young Teens

Status: WIP

Reviews: 7

Words: 3,661

Updated: June 4, 2008, 8:03pm

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11: Reunion

Ginny woke with a start, slightly disoriented and very stiff from sleeping on one of the sofas facing the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room. She sat still for a moment, taking in the comforting surroundings of the familiar room. The light streaming through the windows had an early morning feel to it, and she briefly wondered why she was here on the sofa instead of downstairs in her suite.

A snore made her look down. She smiled when she saw Harry's head resting in her lap. Harry, love, I'm so glad you're back safely, she thought. She had been so worried when she had found his note, and more than a little angry that he had left her behind. But she now realized that if she had been with Harry, Ron and Hermione, she couldn't have alerted Madam Pomfrey or relayed Harry's message to Professor Dumbledore. The knowledge that she had taken part in this expedition after all made her much happier. Still, the anxiety of the day before lingered in the muscles of her shoulders and neck. She stretched as well as possible without disturbing Harry and layback on the cushions.

She had awakened much later than she usually did at the Burrow and had taken her time getting ready for the day; although she was eager to see Harry, her luxurious room made her feel as if she had been transported back to the room she had shared with her mum on their trip to Egypt several summers ago and she wanted to enjoy her suite as much as possible. By the time she'd found Harry's note, he and Ron and Hermione had already been gone for hours.

Grabbing her book bag, she had sought out Neville in his greenhouse for company. He had been sympathetic to her extended rant about being left behind because she was too young and had shared his own feelings concerning their situation. Once she had calmed down, though, he had been eager to show her some new Stinksap experiments he had just started. She had marvelled over Neville's complimentary copy of The Healers' Journal and then asked to see the process he used to separate the sap. He had obligingly boiled down and decanted a small sample of the stuff into three separate containers for her.

As they waited for the Stinksap to separate, Neville had puttered amongst his plants, talking at length about what he hoped to find with his research. Ginny followed him round the greenhouse and discovered she was very interested in his growing techniques. She even pitched in when he asked her to help transplant some seedlings. The three hours they spent together had been a pleasant and revealing way to pass the morning: she could now appreciate just how complex Neville's research actually was and how it had helped her recover from her accident.

At lunch, which she and Neville had shared with Professor Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey, there was no news from Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"How long have they been gone?" Neville asked.

"Harry was planning to leave about five this morning," Professor Dumbledore responded casually.

Ginny glanced at Neville with a raised eyebrow; they should have heard something by now, shouldn't they? Harry, Ron and Hermione had been gone nearly eight hours!

"When do you expect them back?" she asked.

The headmaster looked troubled. "I do not know when they will be back, Miss Weasley," he said quietly. "They have gone to a very remote part of the castle which makes communication impossible."

"Just how remote is 'remote'?" Neville asked.

"That, I am afraid, is something I am not willing to disclose at the moment," Professor Dumbledore told him pointedly.

"So you're telling us that if they run into trouble, there is no way for us to know about it? No way for us to send back-up?" Ginny asked incredulously, laying down her fork and pushing away from the table.

"You are correct."

"Then excuse me, Professor. I am no longer hungry. Thank you for your hospitality," Ginny said stiffly as anger at Professor Dumbledore's attitude threatened to overwhelm her. She rose from her seat and, picking up her book-bag, hurried out the doors of the Great Hall and up the marble staircase to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom where she found the entrance tunnel to the Chamber of Secrets open, as she had suspected.

Waiting in the chilly, damp bathroom had not been fun. Myrtle had been very vocal throughout the afternoon and had cried copious tears when Ginny had irritably told her to shut it because the Transfiguration essay she was attempting to write was not going well. At that point, Neville had stuck his head in the door and told her that he would be sitting outside in the corridor if Ginny wanted to wait where it was less damp. That made her smile and she had gathered up her things, glad of Neville's company.

The two had sat quietly together, leaning against the wall next to the bathroom door. For the longest time, their companionable silence was broken only by the scratching of their quills as Neville worked on his research notes and Ginny completed her essay.

Dobby appeared with a plate of sandwiches and a flask of pumpkin juice at dinner time. "Professor Dumbledore wants Harry Potter's friends to eat, so Dobby brings you this," he told them before he disappeared with a pop!

Ginny and Neville had eaten little of the food and when Dobby reappeared sometime towards midnight to collect the dishes, he had scolded them.

"I'm sorry, Dobby," Ginny had said, "Neville and I aren't very hungry tonight. Thank you for the sandwiches."

Dobby had been worried. "Is Harry Potter not yet back?" he queried.

"We hope they will be soon," Ginny said bracingly. "They've just found what they are searching for."

Neville raised an eyebrow. "How? Your connection?"

Ginny nodded. Dobby looked relieved and shortly after he left, Harry had contacted her again.

Harry turned over in his sleep, stirring Ginny from her reverie. His hand caressed her knee and she began running her fingers through his hair. Eventually, his eyes fluttered open and he groaned at the brightness of the morning.

"Good morning, Harry," Ginny said, smiling at his dazed expression. "How are you?"

"I'm doing okay," he mumbled, sitting up and rubbing his shoulder. "How long did I sleep?"

Ginny looked at her watch. "Two and a half hours, maybe three."

Harry let his head flop dramatically onto the back of the sofa. "Not enough," he said, stifling a huge yawn. "Have you seen Ron or Hermione?"

"No, not yet, but I'm expecting Ron to come looking for me any minute. We're leaving this afternoon, and Mum was going to send Pig with a note telling us when she and Dad expect us home."

Harry raised his head, looking more awake. "Blimey, Ginny, I'd forgotten," he said apologetically. "We don't have very much time together, then."

Ginny smiled and reached for his hand. "That's OK, Harry. I'll take whatever time I have with you."

"Let's have a quick breakfast and then take a stroll around the lake," he suggested, looking at her hopefully.

"Great idea," Ginny replied. "I'll go down and see if that owl has come. I'll be right back." As she left, she heard Harry calling Kreacher.

Ron's hair was badly mussed when Ginny knocked on his portrait two minutes later. "Pig just got here," he said, thrusting their mother's note at her. "I haven't opened it yet."

Ginny tore open the envelope and scanned the note quickly. "Mum says we can stay until six o'clock," she reported happily. She grinned as she told Ron, "We'll be home in time for dinner."

"Yeah, yeah," Ron mumbled, yawning. "I'm going back to bed."

Ginny didn't wait for him to close the portrait. Instead, she turned and sprinted back through her own suite to the spiral stair case that connected her room with the Gryffindor common room. She arrived just as Kreacher and Dobby were laying one of the tables for two with an assortment of pastries and a pot of strong-smelling coffee. She smiled happily when she spotted a pitcher of juice and poured herself a glass.

"You, too?" she asked Harry, pointing to the pot. She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Ron's addicted to that stuff."

Harry grinned and poured himself a cup. "It's not bad once you get used to it," he said, taking a sip. "My Uncle Vernon drinks it by the litre."

"Eww. Not for me." Ginny selected a pastry and bit into it, enjoying how the warm strawberry preserves filled her mouth with sweetness. She jumped as Harry planted a sticky kiss on her neck from behind. "Cut that out, Harry! I'll have to wash again!" she giggled.

"Hurry up, then. I've sent Hedwig to Hermione telling her these are up here," he said, edging towards the portrait hole. "And if we don't leave now, she and Ron will come up and we'll never get time to ourselves."

Ginny finished the last bite of her pastry, grabbed two more and then followed Harry out of the portrait hole. Hand in hand, they walked down to the lake talking about what they had been doing since the tea at Mrs Figg's. As they munched on their pastries, Harry reported the results of his check up with Madam Pomfrey and his decision to go through with the surgery to reduce the size of the scar on his shoulder.

"It's a little sore from yesterday," he admitted, "but Madam Pomfrey was right to push me to go through with it. I had no problems moving my arm at all yesterday."

Ginny squeezed his hand. "I could make the soreness go away if you'd like," she said.

"Maybe in a little while," he said, looking suddenly bashful. "I, erm, I don't want to let go of your hand."

They stopped half-way around the lake and took turns skipping stones on the placid water at the giant squid who seemed to like batting the stones back at them. When they tired of this, Harry found them a seat under a tree and told her about his race with Dumbledore and how wonderful it felt to spend time with him one on one, without an agenda of any sort.

Ginny found Harry's eyes and gazed into them saying, "It's almost as if you two were spending time like grandfather and grandson."

Harry looked away, his face an emotional mask. "Yeah, Ginny, something like that," he said softly. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.

Ginny changed the subject and told him about spending the previous day with Neville.

When she finished, Harry pushed himself away from the tree and began walking back towards the castle. Mystified by his suddenly negative behaviour, Ginny ran to catch up with him.

"Harry, what's wrong?" she asked.

Harry kept on walking. He wouldn't look at her as he said heatedly, "I'm sorry we had to leave you behind yesterday, but I thought it was the best thing to do."

"I don't understand."

Harry quickened his pace, his frustration lengthening his stride. "We were going to the Chamber of Secrets, Ginny! Do you know how hard it was for me to go down there again? If I had trouble facing the memories, I know it would have been even harder for you!"

"Well, sitting in that bathroom was no picnic, believe me," she retorted. "Moaning Myrtle thought I was there to entertain her. She didn't understand how worried I was for you three."

"Fine, I apologize for making you wait for me somewhere you didn't want to be," he said tightly, stuffing his hands in his jeans pockets, "but what we were doing was hard physical work. We scrambled over and climbed rocks, we rappelled up and down ropes, we ran from danger! It was exhausting, Ginny. I don't know how Hermione kept up and she's in good physical form..." Harry trailed off, shaking his head.

So that's what this was all about: Harry was feeling guilty for leaving her behind because he thought she wasn't strong enough yet physically or that her mental health, as far as the Chamber of Secrets was concerned, was in question. Well, she fumed silently, he needed to rethink his reasons for leaving her behind.

"I don't care about how physically exhausting it was, I know I could have done it, I could have kept up. And as for the memories from my first year, it would have been good for me to face my nightmares head-on," she told him. Harry just glanced at her quickly. "Harry, listen to me. I waited in that bathroom because I wanted to," she said, willing him to understand.

Harry had slowed his pace abruptly to nearly a stroll while she was speaking. Now that she wasn't running to keep up with him, Ginny could see how tense the muscles in his jaw had become. Encouraged by the change in his reaction, she continued, "I went there because I was angry at what Professor Dumbledore said at lunch. When Neville and I asked him about how long you'd been gone, he didn't seem overly concerned about how long it was taking you. He even told us there wasn't any way to communicate with you."

When she finished he asked, "He actually told you we couldn't get messages up to the surface?"

"Yes, he did. He seemed almost resigned about it... like he'd sentenced the three of you to something horrible. Thinking back on the conversation, I think he wanted to tell us more, but decided not to." At this, Harry's demeanour changed almost instantly, leaving him looking slightly deflated. Ginny paused, thinking hard. Finally, she asked, "What you did yesterday has something to do with Voldemort, doesn't it?"

Harry nodded slightly. He pulled a hand out of his pocket and reached for the nearest one of hers. When she looked up at him, he said wistfully, "Yeah, it does and I really wish I could tell you more than I have about what we did yesterday, Ginny, but Dumbledore swore me to secrecy about what we're doing. I don't want to break his trust."

Ginny stopped walking and turned to face Harry. "It's OK, really. I think I understand now why you left me behind yesterday," she said, reaching up to caress his cheek. "What you're doing is important. Otherwise Professor Dumbledore wouldn't have asked you to do it. I know I asked this last night, but will you give me a little more advance notice of your next expedition, if you can? I felt very left out when I found your note yesterday morning."

Harry put his hand over hers. "I'll try, Ginny. I promise."

"Thank you, Harry. I won't worry quite so much if I don't wake up to find you gone like I did yesterday," she said. She stood on tiptoe and gently kissed his other cheek.

"I'm sorry I worried you," he murmured into her hair and it was several minutes before they resumed their stroll around the lake.

"Have you heard from Dudley?" Ginny asked as they entered a secluded cove. Water lapped gently on the rocky shore and the surrounding rocks made it the ideal place for a snog, she thought.

"Not this week, although he did send me a second note as soon as I wrote back the first time," Harry remarked, shaking his head. He chuckled as he added, "I think his minders have managed to convince him that it's best if they pass his letters along instead of him trying to find his own owl."

"That's funny," Ginny snorted. She sobered almost immediately. "Do you think he's making a genuine effort towards establishing a friendship with you or is he more looking out for himself?"

Harry shrugged. "At this point, I don't know, Ginny. I really don't know."

They walked in silence until they completed their circuit of the lake and the path veered away from the water, climbing the hill back up to the castle's front doors. Ginny was enjoying holding Harry's hand so much that she suggested they circle the perimeter of the Quidditch stadium. The sun climbed higher and higher as they walked and, towards noon, Ginny noticed that Harry's steps were slowing.

"Shall we find a place to sit?" she asked, indicating one of the paths leading under the bleachers into the stadium.

"That sounds good," Harry agreed and soon they were sitting on one of the huge cross beams that supported the stands.

Harry reached over and drew her closer to him, planting a tender kiss on her cheek. "I think we fell asleep mid-kiss, this morning," he whispered in her ear. "Do you feel cheated?"

"Not in the least, Harry, as long as we can continue where we left off," Ginny told him coyly.

Very swiftly, he closed the gap between their lips and captured hers in a soft kiss that almost immediately deepened. Ginny reacted the only way she could: her arms snaked around his neck and one hand found its way into his hair. All the worry from the day before transformed into a passion she rarely let herself show him. Its intensity was such that if it scared her, she knew it might scare Harry as well.

However, Harry didn't seem to notice; the little noises he made at the back of his throat told her he was enjoying this kiss just as much as she was. When they at last pulled apart, they sat somewhat dazed for a few seconds before either of them said anything.

"That was--" Ginny began.

"--amazing!" Harry finished for her. "I guess I'll have to go away more often!" he remarked, smirking.

"Don't you dare!" Ginny exclaimed, playfully swatting his arm. She climbed over the beam and leaned over Harry's shoulder. "Which shoulder did you say was sore earlier?"

Harry pointed to his left shoulder and Ginny began massaging it gently. She liked the feel of his muscles under her fingers and the way they responded to the pressure she was applying. Harry seemed to like her ministrations, too, for he leaned towards her a little and bowed his head a little to allow her access to his neck. His other shoulder responded just as his left one had done; when she finished Harry looked very relaxed and content.

Harry scooted over and leaned against one of the posts supporting the stands. "Thank you, Ginny. I feel much better," he said, pulling her onto his lap. Another kiss followed, this one gentle and lingering, but nonetheless as breath-taking as their first. Eventually they pulled apart and Ginny snuggled into the crook of Harry's arms, her head resting on his shoulder. They sat like this for a long time until Harry's stomach gave a particularly loud rumble.

Ginny giggled at Harry who looked somewhat sheepish as his stomach growled again. "That time already?" He glanced at his watch. "Er... do you think we could go to the kitchens for some lunch?"

"Sure, Harry," Ginny said, getting up. "Do you want to try to find Ron and Hermione or should we just eat alone?"

"They're probably up to the same thing we were," Harry said with a smirk as they emerged from their hiding place and turned towards the castle. "Ron said something last night about wanting to be with Hermione most of the day."

"I take it he wants to make sure she's all right after breaking her wrist yesterday," Ginny said, grinning.

"Something like that," Harry said. His eyes, and Ginny's, turned upwards to find Gryffindor Tower and Ginny couldn't help wondering whether Ron had finally gotten around to kissing Hermione.

The house-elves greeted them enthusiastically and soon had a small feast set up at the end of one of the long tables in the kitchen. Ginny and Harry sat side by side as they often did during term with their knees touching and their elbows gently bumping as they ate.

Half way through the meal, Ginny asked, "What do you have planned for the afternoon?"

Harry put down his fork and fidgeted with his napkin. "Would it be horrible of me to ask if I could do my usual afternoon workout in the P-T Room?"

Ginny shook her head. "Not at all. I didn't do my exercises either, today, Harry. I'd like to join you."

"Good. I was hoping you'd say that," Harry said, reaching for his water goblet.

When they were done, they thanked the elves and climbed the marble staircase to the second floor, heading for the hospital wing and the P-T Room.

"I'm too tired to do a complete workout," Harry said as they turned the corner into the hospital wing corridor, "but I need to..." He stopped, his eyes wide.

Someone was lying face down on the cold stone floor of the corridor.

"Oh no! PROFESSOR!"

A/N: I know, this isn't a very nice place to leave you, but since I have this annoying rule that all the chapters in this fic are supposed to be between eight and twelve pages long, I had to find an appropriate place to stop and this is it. I promise that within the first three paragraphs of Chapter 12 you will know which professor is laying on the hospital wing floor.

I have some thank yous to dish out as usual. First, to my pre-beta GhostWriter, I am genuinely thankful for your suggestions, comments and questions that help me make my story readable. Second, to Aggiebell, my beta-extraordinaire, thank you for reading through this chapter when you're swamped with real life things to do. You make me smile with your comments and suggestions that help keep my creative thinking going. Thank you both for the time you've given to help me make this story the best it can be.

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