Broken

"You Don't Bring Me Anything but Down"

I light your cigarettes/
I bring you apples from the vine/
How quickly you forget/
I run the bath and pour the wine/
I bring you everything that floats into your mind/
You don't bring me anything but down/
You don't bring me anything but down/
You don't bring me anything but down/
When you come 'round/
You are a raging sea/
I pull myself out everyday/
I plead insanity/
'Cause I can't leave but I can't stay/
You say, "Won't you come find me" and "Yes" is what I say/
But you don't bring me anything but down/
No, you don't bring me anything but down/
Everything is crashing to the ground/
Maybe I'm not your perfect kind/
Maybe I'm not what you had in mind/
Maybe we're just killing time/
You with your silky words/
And your eyes of green and blue/
You with your steel beliefs/
That don't match anything you do/
It was so much easier before you became you/
Now you don't bring me anything but down/
No, you don't bring me anything but down/
Everything just crashes to the ground/
When you come around, when you come around/
No more playing seek and hide/
No more long and wasted nights/
Can't you make it easy on yourself/
I know you wish you were strong/
You wish you were never wrong/
Well, I got some wishes of my own /

Harry grabbed the wand away from Ginny's hands and stood up. He walked slowly towards Draco and put a finger under his nose. Ginny realized he was checking to see if Draco was still breathing. Ginny hoped she had killed him. She wanted him to die for all that he had put her through. She did not care if she went to Azkaban for using a wand and using that wand for an Unforgivable curse.

Harry turned to Ginny. "You've killed him." He stood up from Draco's body and kicked it lightly to make sure he was truly dead. "I have to call in the other aurors. We have to capture his father and report Draco's death."

Ginny nodded and looked into Harry's eyes. "I understand. I won't put up a fight."

Harry walked over to Ginny. "Whatever happens, don't argue with me or say anything. Wait for your brothers to come and see you. It's likely Charlie or Bill will want to talk to you."

Ginny readily agreed and sat down on one of the café chairs while Harry went outside and shot off a signal from his wand to get the other aurors to come. Seconds later, aurors were filling the building. Kingsley Shacklebolt was walking around, reviving muggles and obliviating their memories. Tonks was repairing windows and shooing people out of the café. Bill and Charlie walked into the café and immediately ran to Ginny. Bill pulled her into his arms and Ginny immediately began weeping.

"Gin! Thank goodness you're safe. We've been so worried about you. Why haven't you written us? Mum and Dad have been sick with worry for you." Charlie watched as Bill scolded his sister and then took her into his own arms for a hug. Finally both let go of her. Ginny continued to sob and her breathing become uneven. She suddenly wanted to go home to the burrow. She wanted to be with her mother and father. Ginny wanted to be a little girl again and know everything was going to be okay. The problem was she knew that it would never be okay again. She had murdered someone with an unforgivable curse. She was going to spend the rest of her life in Azkaban.

Charlie reached down and began stroking her hair. "Gin, what's the matter? Why are you crying like this? Harry won't talk to us. He told us not to ask you what happened. But we can't help asking, Ginny. What happened here and how are you involved in this?"

Ginny looked up at her brothers with tear filled eyes. She then looked at Harry who was speaking in low tones to Kingsley. He was gesturing towards the café table they had been sitting at and pointing to Draco's body. Suddenly, as if he felt her eyes on him, he turned and looked at her. He shook his head at her and mimed for her to remain silent. Ginny looked back at her brothers and spoke. "I really can't say. I don't know what happened."

Charlie and Bill exchanged a look between them and wanted to say more. However, their plans were interrupted when a healer shoved her way between them. "Look up girlie. Mr. Potter says you were badly hurt in your struggle with Malfoy. He says that you were choked with his wand. He wants me to check for any injuries." The healers cool hands inspected her neck. "Looks like you were restrained pretty tightly." The healer motioned for a photographer over. "Potter says he wants photos of her injuries." The photographer nodded and soon purple puffs of smoke were clouding her vision as the photographer documented her injuries. Charlie and Bill were both shocked to see how badly she had been hurt. Tears were filling Ginny's eyes when she saw her own brothers began to get teary over her injuries.

"Settle down lass. It'll be okay." The healer turned to Harry, who had suddenly shown up next to Charlie and Bill. "Shall I sedate her?"

"Yes, please." Harry's voice was soft and Ginny wondered how she could have ever thought Will was not Harry. Their mannerisms were the same. She didn't think Harry had bothered to change his voice. Ginny suddenly felt like a prize fool for even falling in love with Will. It was likely that Harry had befriended her to get close to Draco. When she went to trial for this everyone would know how dumb she had been, falling in love with Harry Potter for a second time. The shame her family would endure when she went to Azkaban would be horrendous. Ginny opened her mouth to apologize to Bill and Charlie, when suddenly Harry took the sleeping potion from the healer's hand and poured it down her throat. A feeling of incredible warmth engulfed her and she closed her eyes. In a few seconds she had fallen asleep, leaning against her brother Charlie.

Charlie looked up at Harry. "What happened here?"

Harry looked at Charlie while the healer began fussing over him. "I had followed Malfoy here using the map Remus and I had created. I was surprised to find Ginny working here as a waitress. Malfoy immediately recognized her and began to accost her. He used some gas to knock out the muggle customers. Seeing Ginny was in danger, I dropped my disguise and tried to reason with him. You know Draco, though. There's no reasoning with him. He took Ginny as a hostage and began to choke her. When he saw that I wouldn't give in and let him go, he threw her on the ground. I was worried that he might apparate and escape, so I used the Avada Kedavra curse on him. I'm not proud of what I did Charlie, but he was hurting Ginny. I couldn't let him get away. He and his father were planning to bring take over the world and continue with Voldemort's plans."

Charlie nodded and stroked Ginny's hair. "You did the right thing Harry. You know aurors are allowed to use such curses in emergencies. I wouldn't question your judgment. Thank you for saving my sister's life."

Harry hated lying to his friend and boss. In the five years since Ginny left the magical world, Charlie had risen through the auror ranks. He was now the top auror and was in charge of the rest of them. But to tell Charlie the truth, that his sister had killed Malfoy would kill Charlie. He reasoned that Malfoy really had been trying to kill Ginny and himself. After all that Lucius and Draco had done to her and caused her to lose, Draco had deserved to die. Anyway, hadn't he and Neville hunted down Bellatrix Lestrange the summer before their seventh year and killed her? Harry refused to blame Ginny and he wouldn't let her be punished. Some people deserved to die. Draco Malfoy was one of them.

Hours later:

Ginny Weasley woke up in a small room. It was dark and cold. She sat up in bed and began reaching for a candle to light. Suddenly, a light came on in the room. She looked at its source and saw that Harry Potter had lighted it.

"Where am I?" she asked Harry.

"St. Mungo's. The healers want to watch you for a few days before they let you go home. They're worried that you might have injured a lung when Draco was strangling you." Harry sighed and stood up from his chair near her bed. He began lighting candles in the wall sconces by her bed.

"Why am I here?" Ginny looked up and watched as Harry pointed his wand at the unlit candles in their bubbles that bounced along the ceiling. The wicks caught fire and their light began to flood the room.

"I told you. You injured a lung when Malfoy choked you. The healers want to make sure you're okay before sending you home." Harry sat down in the squashy chair by her chair again and looked down at his hands.

Ginny shook her head and realized she had an incredible headache. "No, I mean, why am I here and not Azkaban? I killed someone. I used an Unforgivable curse. I should be in prison."

"Are you crazy? Don't you remember what happened? Malfoy choked you and threatened your life. He wanted to use you as a hostage so he could escape. When I refused, he made like he was going to apparate and escape. I used the Avada Kedavra curse on him because he refused to give himself up. You didn't kill him Gin, I did." Harry looked Ginny in the eye and hoped that she had forgotten what had really happened.

Ginny shook her head at him again, this time slowly. "No, I killed him. I remember doing it. Why are you telling me this?"

Harry quickly stood up from his seat and walked to Ginny. He put his hand over her mouth. "Don't ever say that again. I killed Malfoy, not you."

Ginny looked up at him and pulled his hand from her mouth. "Is that what you told everyone? That you killed Malfoy?"

Harry nodded and looked down at Ginny. Not able to control himself, he began stroking her hair. "I can't let them take you away Ginny. I won't let you go to Azkaban. I fell in love with you. I'll lie to your family, the only family I have ever known, to keep you safe. You won't go there."

"I can't let you lie for me Harry. It isn't right. I deserve to be punished for what I did. I'm ready to take responsibility for my actions." She leaned against Harry as he stroked her hair. It felt nice and she could forgive him for deceiving her when she knew what he was risking for her now.

"What if I'm not ready for you to leave me? Don't I have a choice in this? I love you. I'm not ready for you to go yet. If I can save you, why not let me?" Harry was now rubbing her back.

"So I can owe you again for my life? I won't be beholden to you because you saved my life." Ginny turned her head away from Harry and began crying again.

"Is that what you think this is? Some way to make sure you owe me?" Harry stroked her collarbone and turned her head to look at him. "Look at what Malfoy did to you! He deserved to die. I didn't save your life so you could owe me. I saved your life for my own other selfish reasons."

Ginny turned her eyes to his. "And those selfish reasons would be?"

"I'm in love with you. I can't live without you in my life. Even if you don't love me back, at least I'll know you're alive." Harry took his hands from her and Ginny was sorry for the loss of them. "You have been cleared of any suspicions. The Wizengamot is deciding whether or not to give you back your wand tonight. I have to be there." Harry walked from the bed and began to open the door.

"Harry, wait!" Ginny kneeled on the bed and let the covers fall from her. Harry stopped walking and looked back at her. "Will you come back? Regardless of how they decide, I want you to come back." Harry nodded and left the room. He shut the door quietly behind him.