Sleeping, Waking, and Flying Away

Disclaimer: I think that the fic entry said that I have to include the disclaimer in the text for now, so here it is: I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER; I AM MERELY SETTING MY FICTIONS IN ITS WORLD.

There is nothing to do. Ginny Weasley sleeps when there is nothing else to do, and when she is sad.

Ginny Weasley sleeps a lot, now.

Don't wake me, she says. Don't wake me. I will wake when I am ready.

Ginny's mother is afraid that someday she will not wake; she will not be ready to wake.

So Molly Weasley visits Harry Potter, at 12 Grimmauld Place, where he is staying when he does not look for the Horcruxes.

Harry, she says. Harry.

Mrs. Weasley, Harry replies. Why are you here?

Molly's mouth tightens. She is afraid now; but she must choose the lesser of two evils--let Ginny kill herself with grief, or have her be happy for a while although she might be in danger?

About Ginny, she says finally. Pain flashes through Harry's eyes.

Everybody's talked to me about her. She understands! He stands. Mrs. Weasley, if you have something to say, make it quick.

She understands why you did it, Molly says. But I'm afraid that she will die if she keeps up like this.

Die? Harry asks. His face is a study in confusion.

Harry, all she does is practice and sleep. She barely eats. Take her with you.

But--if she goes with me--Harry protests.

She'll die? Molly knows that she has hit the nail on the head. A sort of instinct, one might say.

Yes.

But this way, I'm afraid she'll die. If she dies by Voldemort's hand--which is a large possibility, even now--it will not be totally your fault, Harry. And I'm sorry to play on the guilt factor, but she's dying of heartbreak now. She's more fragile than she looks, Harry.

Harry paces back and forth, quickly and maniacally. But if she's fragile--

Emotionally, Harry. You are too. You need each other.

Aren't you sad that you're persuading me to send her to her death? Harry asks. His voice is calm and slightly poisonous.

I'm sending her to her life, Harry. She loves you. You love her. She needs to wake up, and only you have the power to wake her from her sleep. Molly passes a hand over her eyes. This is the hardest thing that she has ever done.

I--all right, Harry finally agrees. His face is set with determination. You're right--I was actually wrong about breaking up with her. I bet Voldemort already knows how I feel about her--I've sure had enough dreams about her-- He breaks off and turns red. Molly knows what he was going to say, though.

I've raised six teenage boys, Harry, and now you are a man. You have nothing to worry about. Now, go to Ginny's room in the Burrow. Shoo. Molly flaps her hands at the man, and he scurries out of the room.

Molly sighs. All her babies are babies no longer, now. This war has done it to her--done it to them all. And a man who was practically her baby will kill Voldemort!

Kill Voldemort. Molly plops down on the old couch. His fate. Fate.

Molly had been like Ginny when Arthur had shown no interest in her. Just like Ginny, she had taken one action to heart for comfort, like Ginny's sleeping. She had cooked, and still cooks when she needs comfort and Arthur is not there.

Now, Molly needs to get her hands on some dough, just feel it with her hands, no wand...she rises and walks to the kitchen. There's flour, water, cinnamon, vanilla. More ingredients; enough to make the Molly Specialty Cookie.

A half an hour later, the cookies are in the oven, and Molly has cleaned up. She feels more peaceful now, and quickly charms the sheet to do the rest of the work of taking themselves out of the oven, and placing themselves on a plate.

That is surely enough time for Harry and Ginny to do their thing, right? Molly hopes so as she Apparates to the Burrow from and to designated Apparition Points.

Once at the Burrow, into the kitchen Molly heads. If Ginny is here, she will wait for Molly in the kitchen, and if not a note will be on the counter or table somewhere.

And, yes. There is the note. Molly carefully detaches the used piece of Spell-o-Tape from the parchment and begins to read.

Mum, it begins.

As you read this I'm probably off with Harry. He came by. I was sleeping, and he woke me up. You know that I hate to be woken up, but this time it was okay. Really nice, in fact!

Harry told me that he'd had a conversation with you and realized a few things. Thank goodness for that. He is taking me along with him, Ron, and Hermione on the search for the Horcruxes. I'm so happy, Mum. We're getting back together, and I love him.

Bye, Mum! I love you,

Ginny

Molly cries and smiles; her baby is now truly a woman. The last fledgling has fled the nest with its powerful new wings.

A huge dinner is on the table by the time Arthur comes home.