Gone/Ghost of a Memory
Ghost of a Memory - Epilogue
By Kinsfire
Ghost of a Memory
Epilogue
It was a week later, and they were in the Burrow. The entire Weasley family was there, even Percy, who had come quite close to quitting the Ministry when Ginny died, since Fudge had continued to try to rule his private life. He had rather publicly informed Fudge that he was going to his sister's funeral, and that if he was that concerned about keeping the Ministry running, perhaps he should stop taking liquid lunches and leaving the job at 2 PM while requiring his subordinates to work late. Fudge hadn't lasted much longer after that.
Percy was currently a six foot tall canary, and as he reverted back, he was laughing. "How in hell do you continue to get me?" he was asking Fred and George.
"Well, you were always such a target before," George replied. "You're not as fun to prank anymore, though."
"Ever since I got that stick out of somewhere tender, right?" Percy laughed with a twinkle in his eyes. "Can I assume that you are getting your senses of humour back, now that Harry has pulled a miracle out of his hat and brought our sister back to us?" He walked over to Harry. "I don't think any of us can thank you enough, Harry. You helped make our family whole again."
"Well, I think you had a hand in it, too, back when you told Fudge to fold it until it was all sharp corners and place it where it would do him simply a world of good," Harry responded with a laugh. "Of course, he probably would have enjoyed it, so that might not have been a good idea."
"I was just sorry that my sister's death was required to help me see what was really important. I am serious when I say that I will do anything for you if you ever need it." Percy hugged his sister with tears in his eyes. "I'd never gotten the chance to tell her that I love her, and now I can, because of you, Harry."
"If you're serious, Percy, you could keep an eye on Lily for a week or so," Ginny purred, "and we'll get started on little Molly."
Harry laughed again as he picked Ginny up and swung her around; a sound of joy that the Weasley family hadn't heard for three years, but were glad to have heard quite a lot of recently. "Why wait?" he grinned, still laughing loudly. "I intend on dragging you out by your pond tonight. We can start little Molly or little Ron or Bill or Percy then."
There was a moment of shocked silence, during which a small sniff could be heard from Ron. "You know, Harry, I'd never have expected to hear something like that from you," Charlie said.
"Charlie, Ginny was dead for three years. A miracle happened, and I get to hold her in my arms again. If she wanted me to make love to her in the street in Diagon Alley, I would. My reason for waking up in the morning is alive again, and has even given me a new reason for living. The same as Percy says he'd do anything for me, I would literally do anything for this woman."
"Even strip naked and take me on that coffee table?" Ginny asked with a laugh. His response was to start unbuttoning his shirt.
"I'm serious, Ginny. If you ask me to, I will." She didn't stop him until he reached for the zipper of his jeans.
Her eyes shined with happy tears. "So many guys would say that, but you were serious! You'd have embarrassed yourself in front of the entire group, just for me."
"He'd have nothing to be embarrassed about," Hermione murmured into the sudden silence. Looking up, she blushed as she realized that everyone had heard that. "What? We dated for a few months. We never did that, but we've seen each other nude. Trust me, neither Harry or Ron has anything to be ashamed of," she said, the blush getting more pronounced.
"What would there be to be embarrassed about?" Harry asked. "I learned to enjoy life, from you." He snorted. "Girl-watching will now be a religious experience for me. I never would have found you again if I hadn't openly been ogling the girls the way you always asked me to. Amber wouldn't have gotten angry at me, and I wouldn't have been there when you found Amber." He kissed her deeply. "I'm serious. If you ask me to do something, I will. I will bless every day that follows July 30th of this year as a gift from the gods, because the woman who was my very reason for living has been returned to me, blessing me with a second reason for living, too. If you told me that my making love to Charlie would make you happy, I would." He looked to Charlie. "This assumes, of course, that she'd gotten the idea from you."
Charlie laughed. "Hey Ginny?" he asked speculatively.
"Wait 'til I'm tired of him. Should only be a couple thousand years." Charlie snapped his fingers, and Harry had the good grace to blush.
"I never knew you felt that way, Charlie," he grinned.
"You've known that I'm gay for years, Harry."
"Yeah, but I never knew you fancied me."
Charlie shrugged with a grin. "I fancy a lot of people. Doesn't mean I'm going to do anything about it."
Percy cleared his throat. "When do you want us to start babysitting, Ginny?" He had his arm around Penelope Clearwater-Weasley, who was smiling and nodding.
"I wasn't serious!" she said.
"Well, we are," Penelope said. "Harry hasn't seen you for three years, and you two need some time to yourselves. Let Lily get used to her uncles, aunts, and grandparents, and Harry can get used to living again, rather than merely surviving."
Molly walked over to Harry and Ginny, carrying a picnic basket and a blanket. "You'll want a little dinner out by the pond, so I packed you something. It's very warm this time of year, all night long, so I'll tell you right now that I'll burst into tears if I see you two back in the house before morning."
Ginny's jaw dropped, but Harry simply stepped forward, tears shining in his eyes. "Thank you, Mum. I love you." He kissed her on the cheek before taking the basket and blanket from her.
As he walked toward the door, he heard Ginny ask Molly, "Why, Mum? Not that I'm complaining, mind you, but you never seemed to condone that sort of thing before."
"It's going to take you some time to really grasp what having you back means to us, Ginevra. You being alive brought not only you and your daughter back, but Harry as well. I think the only reason he was still alive to find you was that he was afraid that if he committed suicide, he'd end up someplace other than where you were. He kept living because he wanted to honour your memory."
Yes," Hermione added. "He refused to consider getting involved with another woman because he felt that it would make him forget you in some way." She grinned at Harry, who was looking at them. "By the way, Harry, I was thinking of dyeing my hair. How do you think I'd look as a redhead?"
If he'd been drinking, it would have been a classic spit take. "I'll explain later," Hermione chuckled quietly. "Now, go on out to the pond and enjoy yourselves."
They lay on the blanket after their second round of love-making. "Ginny, I will never tire of telling you that I love you."
"And I will never tire of hearing it," she smiled in return. "By the way, what are you thinking of naming our new child?"
He laughed. "Let me guess, Molly packed a Fertility potion in that basket for a 'just in case'?"
"Yup. One for men, as well. I'm fertile right now anyway, so I figured it couldn't hurt." She looked smaller than normal. "I should have asked, Harry. I'm sorry."
He laughed. "For what? We're going to have another baby. We'll have to see what it's sex is, but I'm not against naming the baby Percy or Ron if it's a boy. I think I'd like to name a daughter Hermione someday. She was there for me when I needed her most. If she ever needs me that way, I'll be there for her." He looked Ginny in the eyes. "You understand, don't you? She proved that she's my friend by letting me be me at my worst, and only lashed out when I stepped over the line."
"What did you say?" Ginny asked in horror.
"That if she wanted me to replace you so much that she should dye her hair red and sleep with me." He scowled. "I'll be making up for that one for a long time."
"She forgives you, Harry; I think her joking about it proves that."
"I don't forgive me, though. I wanted her to stop, and I knew what I was saying was wrong, but I said it anyway. Basically, I was Malfoy for a while. I said it to hurt."
She put his head between her breasts. "Hear that, Harry? It beats for you. We all say things we regret. You stopped living because of me, no matter what you said you were doing. Don't let what you said to Hermione get you down. You need to forgive yourself." He heard her heart rate pick up slightly. "So, sexy — have you recovered enough to go for a third time?"
He stood up. "Let's go into the pond. The water's warm, and I think I'd like to make love to you there." They walked into the water hand on hand, and made love again, fairy lights once again filling the area as their passions flowed together.GoneGhost of a Memory - 1Ghost of a Memory - 2Ghost of a Memory - 3Ghost of a Memory - 4Ghost of a Memory - Epilogue