Dealing With Fame

Dealing With Fame
CHAPTER 1
Back To The Burrow

Molly looked down at the parchment in her hands that had come earlier by owl, unsure whether to believe it was true or not. She looked out the kitchen window, watching the back of her youngest child as she de-gnomed the garden. A tear escaped her eyes, falling upon the parchment and smudging some of the words, but letting loose of all the worries kept inside her. She gripped the parchment tightly, crumpling it up a bit, as she used her other hand to wipe the few tears away.

The back door swung open as a tall teenage girl walked in, her hair all askew and her clothes dirty from kneeling outside. Her pretty and freckled face was covered with a little bit of dirt but one could easily tell from the tear tracks along her cheeks that she had been crying. Of course her mum hadn't noticed this, for she was absorbed with the contents of the letter that came.

"Mum, I've finished. There's always that one gnome..." Ginny paused, noticing that her mum was shaking. "Mum, what's wrong?" she asked breathlessly, while running to her mother's side to see what was wrong.

Molly sniffed. "No I'm fine, dear. It's just-" She started, but she found that she couldn't continue on, so she just pulled her daughter into a tight embrace.

Ginny looked at her mum with concern. "Just what?" she asked in a soothing tone. "Does it have to do with that letter?" Ginny motioned with her hand for her to read the letter, but her mum moved her hand away and nodded.

"Is it bad news?" Ginny asked, her thoughts lingering on the conditions of Harry, Hermione, her father, her brothers, and the rest of the Order.

"No, dear," she replied, shaking her head and trying to smile. "It's good news." She paused as if she too was trying to convince herself that what she was saying was true. "Can you set the table?"

"Wait, so it's good news?" Ginny shook her head with confusion, her loose red hair slapping against her cheeks and scattering all over her back. "Then why are you crying?" Ginny asked, while trying to get a glimpse of what the parchment said, but her mother pulled it away before she could, leaving her unsuccessful.

"You'll see later," she said softly, planting a kiss on top of Ginny's head and stroking it. "I'll be doing some shopping and I won't be back till later, so can you be a dear and set up the table?" Ginny nodded. "We'll be having a big feast tonight so be prepared to help me when I return." With that, her mum, with the letter still in her hands, disapparated out of the Burrow, leaving Ginny with a mouthful of unanswered questions

Ginny walked over to the dining table and pulled out her wand. "Thank Merlin, I'm of age now," she thought while setting up. "Wait a tick, mum never told me how many people to set up for. "

So she set two plates and goblets on the table as usual, unsure if she should do the whole table. When she was finished, there was a pop behind her. Without turning around to see who it was, she said, "Mum, you never told me how many people we're having tonight..."

"That's not like mum to forget," a boyish voice said.

Ginny dropped whatever she was holding and quickly turned around to see who the intruder was. When she found out who it was, she gasped, not believing if what she was seeing was real. A tall young man with the famous Weasley red hair and trademark freckles stood before her.

"Ron?" she asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

Ron grinned. "Yeah, Gin, it's me," he said, holding out his arms to her.

Ginny's surprised face immediately broke out into a huge smile. "I can't believe it! You're back!? I haven't seen you for almost three years!" she said excitedly, while hugging him.

"I didn't know you'd miss me that much," he said jokingly, while Ginny hugged him.

There was a momentary silence as they stared at each other, taking in how much they both had grown over the years. Ginny smiled affectionately as she got a good look at her favorite brother. He had grown much taller than the last time she had seen him, which was over two years ago, and his fiery red hair was thicker and longer that it curled around his ears.

She looked at his face, noticing that he had dark circles underneath his tired eyes, knowing that he saw so many terrible things that would be beyond her imagination. She noticed that he had a serious, but a more determined expression, one that she rarely saw in their Hogwarts years together. He had also become skinnier and more haggard looking, which would undeniably make her mum frown, as his red T-shirt hung loosely around his shoulders.

"You've changed," she whispered, smiling weakly.

Ron nodded. "I guess I have," he said. "I did grow a few inches..."

"I can see that." Ginny smiled as she shook her head. "And you...you're not the same git of a brother that left us here years ago. You've matured." She said the last word with much emphasis that Ron pulled her into a tight hug.

"So have you, Ginny," he whispered in her ear. "Everyone has, especially Harry. Effects of the war, I'm sure of it."

"Is it over?" she asked, her voice breaking as she squeezed Ron's arm firmly. "Please tell me it's over!"

Ron nodded. "Yeah, Ginny it's over," he said slowly as if he couldn't believe what he was saying. "We finished him off yesterday night. We would've come home sooner, but we were exhausted."

Ginny wrinkled her forehead as she stepped back to look at her brother. "How come you didn't owl us or anything?"

It was Ron's turn to wrinkle his forehead. "Didn't you get the letter I sent Mum and you this morning?" he asked.

"The letter? What letter?" Ginny asked, but she then remembered her Mum crying that morning. "Oh that! Mum didn't show it to me nor did she let me read it! So that's why she was crying this morning!"

"Where is mum anyway?" Ron asked looking around the familiar room he grew up in.

She sighed. "She's out. Said something about a feast before she left," Ginny said, smiling.

Ron smiled too. "So how's my baby sister been doing? Doing well, I suppose?"

"Well, yeah," Ginny said, cocking her head to the side. "I've been helping Mum out and stuff."

Ron smiled sympathetically. "That's good."

"What are you doing back here in the Burrow by yourself?" Ginny asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Ron looked down at his shoes and back at her. "Nothing really. Just wanted to check on my Mum and sister."

"Oh really," Ginny said, as she began to count the numerous freckles on her arm. "And where's Hermione and everyone else?"

"Merlin, Gin, you're bombarding me with questions!" Ron joked. "Anyway... they're packing up and getting ready to apparate back here."

"Um...how's Ha-... I mean, how's everybody?" Ginny asked softly.

Ron chuckled. "Gin, it's okay to ask about Harry. It's not like he's You-Know-Who or something." When Ron said that, Ginny blushed, and turned away. "They're all alive, if that's what you mean. Let's see...Gred and Forge are still the pranksters, Bill and Charlie are still the oldest, Hermione is still Ms. Smarty, and Harry is still...um...Harry."

"Oh, that's good to hear then," Ginny said, smiling.

"Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Ron asked.

Ginny nodded. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," Ron said, smiling down at his sister. "So do you need help then?"

"Help?" Ginny asked, not grasping the idea of what Ron meant.

"Help. Do you need help with the table?" Ron asked, gesturing to the table.

Ginny glanced at the table. "Oh. Um...yeah...can you?"

"Sure...let me just get my wand." Ron reached for his wand in his back pocket but couldn't find it. "Ginny, have...have you seen my wand? Ron asked, looking all over himself.

Ginny couldn't help it. She burst into fits of laughter as her brother helplessly looked for his wand.

"Are you looking for this?" she asked, stifling a laugh as she held up his wand in her hand.

"Wait, how did you get that? Ron asked, scratching his head.

"How else?" Ginny laughed. "I nicked it off you when we hugged."

"Give it here, Ginny." She shook her head no. "Do you want me to help you or not?" Ron asked in a serious tone, but the look in his eyes told Ginny otherwise.

"Well yeah, I need help..." she said, laughing.

"Then give it. This is so like you, Gin. I see Gred and Forge traits in you," he said seriously, but again, his eyes showed amusement in the matter.

Ginny laughed and stuck out her tongue as Ron tried to grab it from her hands.

"Accio wand.." The wand flew from Ginny's to Ron's hand instantly. "Luckily I can do wandless magic, eh?" Ron said grinning.

Ginny grinned in defeat. "Yeah. So how 'bout we do the table now?"

Ginny and Ron set the table immediately, goblets, plates, and eating utensils flying everywhere.

"I have to go now, Gin," Ron said when they finished. "I'll see you later then?"

"I guess so." Ginny smiled weakly at Ron as they stared at each other.

They shared another hug before Ron disapparated out of the Burrow.

An hour later, Mrs. Weasley apparated back with food for the celebration that would take place later.

"Dear, help me, will you?" she asked in a pleading tone.

"Sure, mum," Ginny replied, walking over to where her mum was.

"Let's get cooking," her mum said happily.

After all the cooking and preparations were accomplished, the two rested in the living room, tiredly but anxiously waiting for the group's arrival.

Ginny turned to her mum. "Ron came earlier today," she said, resting her head on her propped up knees on the sofa.

Mrs. Weasley looked at her. "He did?" she asked, her eyes becoming misty. "I didn't see him. Where was I?"

"He came while you were out shopping," she replied.

Her mum placed a hand on her shoulder. "So he told the good news then?" she asked.

Ginny nodded. "I knew they could do it," she said.

Ginny sat on the sofa, thinking how she would react when she saw Harry again. "Should I hug him or should I just smile? Maybe I should just smile, 'cause if I hug him maybe it'll be awkward, and I wouldn't want that for Harry's or my sake. But then if I just smiled, he might think I'm mad at him or something... I think I should probably..."

"Excited are you, dear? Can't wait for Harry and the others to come home?" her mum asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"Yea, I suppose I am, mum," Ginny whispered softly, trying to contain the smile that threatened her lips.

"Harry once told me-" Her mum started, but was interrupted by a series of pops.

A group of familiar yet unfamiliar faces of red-haired young men and a brown-haired young woman stood before the two Weasley females but the long awaited raven-haired boy with spectacles was nowhere to be seen.