Gordic's Hollow - Part 10

He saw Hermione move toward him, tears streaming down her face as she spoke. He shrank away from her, and Ron held her back, whispering something in her ear. She frowned at him, but stopped shouting and instead stared at Harry worriedly. Harry turned away, not wanting to answer her questions. His gaze roamed over the many faces, searching…

When he saw her, she was sitting alone in a chair in the corner of the room, but to him she appeared to be the center of all the activity. Her brown eyes were filled with concern as she slowly rose and simply held out her arms to him.

He was drawn to her as if she were a beacon on a rough, stormy sea. He moved into her embrace, and although she was a good head shorter than he was, he bent low and rested his head upon her shoulder. She closed her arms around him and held him tightly as he clung to her, not even caring that anyone else was there.

He could hear shuffling sounds behind him and thought Remus might be clearing the others out of the room, but he paid no attention. Every ounce of energy he had was focused on keeping his composure and not falling to pieces. Ginny helped him to do that.

Images of his day, of Wormtail's words and what they meant flashed in his head, and he began to shake. Ginny tightened her hold around him and began whispering soft, gentle words meant to comfort, and he felt like a heel knowing he was going to break her heart.

He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing the world away. "Ginny," he croaked. "I'm going to die."

"Don't talk like that, Harry. Of course you aren't going to die. We're in this together, and I won't let anything happen to you," she replied fiercely.

Harry was unable to form the words. He'd have to tell her everything but not just now. He just wanted to hold and be held by her right now, feeling safe for the first time that day.

Standing there wrapped in the warmth of her embrace and smelling the sweet flowery aroma of her hair, for one brief moment, he could almost believe that was true.

Harry slowly drifted awake, gradually becoming aware of a brightness piercing his closed eyelids. He lazily rolled to one side, hoping to doze again and nearly fell to the floor. He managed to catch himself just in the knick of time, but was startled fully awake. He blinked several times in confusion.

Dazedly, he glanced around the room and realized that he was sprawled on the couch in the drawing room at Grimmauld Place with Ginny snuggled close and sleeping peacefully at his side.

She shifted in her sleep, seeking the warmth from his body that had pulled away from her during his near fall. Soft tendrils of her hair tickled his nose and stuck to his lips as he pulled his head back, trying not to wake her.

He had vague recollections of holding her in this very room the previous evening, but he found it hard to believe that Mrs. Weasley had allowed her to stay here with him all night. He wasn't even certain how he'd got back to Grimmauld Place in the first place, never mind how he and Ginny apparently had spent the night together.

It was just his luck that the first time he'd ever found himself in this predicament, he had absolutely no memory of how it happened. That scenario seemed horribly appropriate for how his life worked, he thought bitterly. He shifted slightly, and Ginny's eyes fluttered open.