Don't Forget - A Ginny Weasley Story

Don't Forget - A Ginny Weasley Story: Chapter 1

1

The war had ended.

 Finally.

The night we all realised it was finally over, however exhausted we were, no one slept. We stayed awake through the night, just holding each other close, reminiscing, and realising over and over again how lucky we truly were to be all together again.

I sat on the floor of the Burrow and smiled at the room full of family and friends. We were all dirty and bloody, George missing an ear, Harry's leg was gashed deeply, Ron’s eye was bleeding endlessly, and mum’s dress was covered in dirt mixed with blood. The sight was warming, almost welcoming. I thought to myself for a moment, I knew would rather have had them all bloody, dirty and tired, then not there at all.

As Hermione came and sat down on the floor next to me, Dad came into the room, a tray loaded with butterbeers was floating in mid-air in front of him. “Drinks for everyone!” He called. Everyone gathered around and took a drink, Harry handing me mine and Hermione’s as we had stayed on the floor to avoid the chaos.

No body drank just yet. We were all waiting. Finally, the chatter and noise around me slowly began to die down and everyone raised their bottles. The words to silence everyone went unspoken. We all knew what this was for. As if we were all one person, with our bottles raised high into the air, we spoke in unison.

“To Fred.” The words hung in the air for a few stifling seconds, then everyone drank, the noise of laughter and banter never picking back up, a sad silence settling over everyone.

I glanced at George for a moment. His big brown eyes were brimming with tears I knew had he yet to cry.  He wanted to be strong for us. Strong for mum and dad, Ron and I, and even more, he wanted to be strong for Fred. He knew his twin wouldn’t have wanted any tears to be shed. I looked away from him and back to Hermione. Her expression was distant as well. Fred and George were her big brothers too. This pain the Weasleys felt wasn’t only ours to feel.

I gazed around the room, my eyes coming to a rest on Ron. He stood stiffly, his bottom lip stuck out as though he was holding back his tears. I knew he was. His watering eyes met mine for a moment, a pleading in them that struck me directly in the heart. It finally hit me with full force. My big brother Fred was gone forever.  My eyes began filling up as well and I left the room quickly, apparating instantly to Fred and George’s room.

I stood there in the room for a few minutes, staring at Fred’s empty bed. I realised that it was empty in more ways than one. It was empty in the sense that Fred wasn’t lying there in it, smiling down at me, and it was empty in the sense that he would never be there doing that again. I felt the tears coming again and this time, knowing I was alone, I let them fall.

I crawled into Fred’s bed, his scent was still in the sheets. I knew it would soon fade away and this side of the room would be hollow and empty as well. Untouched by anyone for fear of disturbing things the way he had left them the last time he was ever here. I pulled the warm purple blanket over my head and cried into his pillow, not caring at all when I heard the door open.

“Ginny?” came George’s shaky and tearful voice. I heard his footsteps coming toward me and curled up into a ball, willing myself to disappear.

I felt him sit down on the end of the bed. I reached my hand out from under the covers and grabbed his hand. I squeezed it tightly, pulling him close to me.

“George,” I said quietly, “Promise you won’t ever leave me.”  He moved closer, tugging gently on the blanket. I pulled it off of my head and threw my arms around him, taking in his warmth and willing the sadness that prickled between us to go away.

He hugged me tightly and nodded. “Ginny, I’ll always be here to protect you. I’ll always be your big brother. I promise.” I hugged him even tighter and buried my face in his shoulder. “Thank you.” I said as new tears began to spill from both our eyes, I hugged still tighter when I felt his tears begin soaking into my jumper.

When the hug finally ended, I pulled away to look at my brother. His face was hidden in shadows because the only light was coming from a corner on the other side of the room but I could tell that his eyes were puffy and swollen, just as mine probably were. He gave me a weak smile. “I love you, little sister.” He said, sniffling and brushing his messy flaming hair out of his face.

I smiled and kissed his cheek, “I love you too, George.” And with that, I climbed out of Fred’s bed and left the room, leaving George to his thoughts.

Not wanting to apparate, I walked up the next flight of stairs to my room. When I reached the door, I pressed my ear to it. There were soft whispers coming from inside. I stood there for a moment, wondering if I should interrupt or not.

 I decided after a while that anyone who was in my room could surely find another place to sit around and whisper. I opened the door slowly, stepping cautiously into the dim lighting. Arthur fluttered and squeaked loudly from his cage when he saw me, causing Pigwidgeon to screech and ruffle his feathers in annoyance of the pigmy puff.  Two pairs of surprised, swollen eyes gazed up at me from the floor. Hermione and Ron were on the floor, side by side with their backs leaned against my bed.

“Hey Ginny,” Hermione said, turning to gaze out the window. Ron stood up and brushed himself off. “I’ll go now, thanks Hermione.” He stood in front of me for a long second before he wrapped his arms around me, whispering that he loved me and that he’d be in is room. The second thing he whispered was louder, and I knew it as aimed at Hermione, who stayed quiet, eyes still staring out into the night.

When the door had clicked quietly behind me, I walked over to the window and opened it. A cool breeze blew in. I opened Pigwidgeon’s cage and watched as he flew off into the night, eager to escape the silent pain that filled the room. I wished I could be flying away with him. 

***

Another pilot chapter, suggestions and ideas are welcome.

Thanks! xx

<3

*The Harry Potter characters do not belong to me and are the rights of J.K Rowling!