I Saw My Lady Weep

Chapter 15: ...Is The Empty, Empty Page

"Get him, Harry!" Ron shouted as Harry's table swung past Charlie's. It bounced off with a hearty *THUMP*, but with no actual damage done. Harry wasn't utterly sure how he ended up as one of the combatants, but he was doing his best to uphold his end of the traditional table joust. He was never sure of why this great contest happened prior to family gatherings... it just always had. And now it was Harry's turn. Ron stood nearby, offering his encouragement, while George merely watched in silence.

Harry waved his wand, causing his table to spin on its axis as it swung around. He waited until almost the last moment before giving his wand a twist. The table mimicked the action, twisting to present its solid top just as it grazed past the other table's legs. With the satisfying snap of breaking wood, the other table's legs were sheared clean off.

"And it looks like we have a winner," Arthur Weasley called from the door. "And, according to the rules of the contest, the winner makes the repairs." It was clear to everyone that Arthur was amused, though he tried to put a tone of reprimand into his voice. "Now that the fun and games are over, we need to finish setting up. Everyone will be arriving soon and your mother wants it all perfect."

"Sorry..." Harry said, a little sheepishly. While Charlie maintained his levitation of the now broken table, Harry lowered his own to the grass. Harry pointed at the broken table and, in his mind, spoke the word Reparo. Charlie sat his table, including its now repaired legs, next to Harry's.

"Don't worry about it, Harry. You weren't here the time that Fred and George butted tables so hard that one of them shattered right down the center. That was impressive." Charlie gave Harry a pat on the shoulder. "You have to take the not-fun with the fun, I always say."

Under Arthur's supervision, the four young men maneuvered the tables and various chairs around the garden, and then strung up some paper lanterns. When the garden was set up precisely to Molly's instructions, Arthur proclaimed their jobs finished. "You should all get cleaned up," he said at last to his boys. "I suppose everyone will be arriving soon."

This turned out to be all too true. Harry followed Arthur in to find Bill Weasley and his wife Fleur coming out of the fireplace. "Hello, Dad."

"Ah, Bill! Fleur! Glad to see you again. If you'll excuse us, we all need to get washed up before dinner!" With that, Arthur, Charlie, and Ron left for the kitchen. Harry, however, found his way blocked by Bill Weasley.

Shaking off the soot, the oldest Weasley brother smiled at Harry with a grin that was slightly predatory. "Hello, Harry. So...I saw this interesting magazine article that said you were on the hunt for an engagement ring. Said you might be close to getting married. Anyone I know?" Bill's voice had just the right amount of menace to it to put Harry on edge.

Fleur, on the other hand, wasn't having any of it. She casually slapped Bill's stomach with the back of her hand. "Leave 'im alone, Beel. You should be vary t'ankful zat eet ees 'Arry... In 'eem she 'as a fine catch." She guided her husband away from the fireplace and brushed his shoulders off.

"It's not the who that concerns me, dearest. It's the when." Bill looked decidedly unhappy. His eyes never left Harry's. "I just think it's a little fast."

"Bill, look..." Harry began.

"No, Harry, you look." He stepped closer to Harry, who was suddenly very aware of how large and imposing Bill was. "She's my baby sister, and I have a duty to watch out for her, even when she doesn't want me to. I think I have the right to say this, and I'm going to. She's seventeen. Seven. Teen. Merlin's white beard, neither one of you is even out of school yet! I know you're a great guy, but you're only eighteen, yourself! What business does the pair of you have getting married at your age?"

"We're not getting married at our age." Harry said quietly. "At least..."

Bill was on a roll, however. "You're still both kids! Do you even have the first clue what you're going to do for a living? Do you know where you're going to live? I like you fine, Harry... you're as good as a brother to me, but even I see this as a bad idea! You're not even old enough to know what love really is yet. You both need time to grow up and be adults for a while!"

Bill was getting louder. Arthur and Molly stepped into the parlor from the kitchen, staring open-mouthed as their oldest son's irritation wound tighter and tighter. Behind them, both Ron and Charlie stood, looking nervous. Ginny and Hermione had come down the stairs, both looking slightly frightened at Bill's growing anger.

"Harry, I'm not saying I don't think you and Ginny wouldn't be perfect together... I'm just saying that you need to think with the big head instead of the little one!" This comment elicited a gasp from Molly, but Bill didn't even notice. "You're just too damned young to be getting married right now!"

"I agree," Harry said. He had a look on his face that told everyone in the room he'd rather be screaming right back at Bill, but amazingly he kept his voice level and calm. "We're waiting. I promised Mum and Dad that we'd wait at least until Ginny was out of school, and I intend to keep that promise. But you're wrong about one thing, Bill."

That stopped Bill cold. "You're... Agreeing? You... What... Wrong? What?"

Harry looked at Ginny. She looked back at him with such love and devotion that he felt invincible. "We're old enough to know what love really is, Bill. And I'll thank you not to think otherwise in the future."

"Well said, Harry," Ron's voice carried from the kitchen.

Everyone was quiet for a moment. Bill and Harry continued to look at each other, speaking volumes by saying absolutely nothing. Harry was asking the other man to trust him with the life and soul of Bill's precious baby sister, and he understood how hard it would be for Bill to accept that.

The silence grew, a bit more uncomfortably.

It was suddenly shattered by a voice from the fireplace. "Did... Did I miss something? What's going on? Is everything all right?" Percy stepped into the parlor, brushing soot and dust from the shoulders of a young woman in a light green sundress. "Did we interrupt something?"

XxxxxxX

Harry wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. "One second... you're saying Percy did this? Percy Weasley?" Harry asked. He couldn't quite believe his ears. His conversational partner was the young lady who arrived with Percy, who gave her name as Audrey Winterbourne. Harry surreptitiously glanced away from her to Percy Weasley, who was chatting up his brother Bill. "That Percy standing right over there? The one in the horn-rims? Mister Don't-Make-Waves-Keep-A-Low-Profile Himself rushed into a burning building?"

"Oh yes... he was quite magnificent. My knight in shining armor, as it was," Audrey laughed. "When those... did you call them 'Death Eaters'? When they set fire to my dormitory, I was caught beneath some burning wreckage. He rushed into the fire, looking for survivors, and found me. If he hadn't teleported me to a hospital, I'd have burned or suffocated from the smoke. Of course, he wasn't specifically there for me... just for anyone he could rescue. It was quite gallant of him."

Audrey followed Harry's glance to Percy, and it was clear to Harry that she was purely his. If Percy was smart - and Harry knew that while Percy might be a good many things stupid wasn't one of them - he'd be marrying this woman in short order.

"During our first few dates, he tried to hide it, but I knew there was something off about him," Audrey smiled. "He would get confused over basic concepts, and had no idea about money, and occasionally something odd would happen... we were eating in a sidewalk cafe once and an owl landed on our table; it had a note tied to its leg. Eventually I cornered him and got him to confess. That was close to a year ago."

She turned back to Harry. "So... Percy tells me you were raised among normal people? Well... you know... non-magical people? I didn't mean to..."

"Not at all." Harry waved her concern away. "But to answer your question, yes... I had quite the mundane childhood, as free from magic as possible."

Audrey waved toward...everything. "It's a bit daunting. Percy's tried to ease me into it, but..." She looked at a loss for words. "I mean... everyone knows that there's no such thing as magic. But... here it is, right in front of me."

"I understand. When I first entered this world at age eleven I could hardly believe it myself. You'll... Er... I suppose if you're around for long enough... "Harry grinned, trying not to make assumptions but at the same time, trying to not be off-hand. "You and Percy seem good for each other."

"Thank you!" Audrey replied with a smile. It lit up her face in a way that made it obvious to Harry what Percy had been attracted to.

"I should warn you, though... if you do continue to see Percy, Arthur is going to end up interrogating you," Harry grinned and took a sip of his drink. "He's mad for Muggles, you see... used to ask me all sorts of questions. 'Harry, just what is the function of a rubber duck? Harry, do you happen to know anything about typewriters? Harry, what sort of fuel does a refrigerator require in order to function?' All sorts of questions."

"I'll have to be on my guard, then." Audrey smiled.

"He really isn't that... Oh, hello love!" A pair of brilliantly freckled arms wrapped around his chest from behind and Harry felt Ginny press her cheek to his back. "How is your evening so far? Audrey, has anyone introduced you to Ginny yet?"

"The birthday girl?" Audrey asked. "No, not directly. It's nice to meet you, though."

Ginny shifted so she could see past Harry's shoulder. "It's nice to meet you as well. I was talking to Percy earlier and he said you were some sort of linguist?"

Audrey laughed. "Well... not quite. I'm actually a behavioral psychologist. I specialize in non-verbal communication. I'm still at university, however. I'm hoping to get my doctorate."

"So how does one get 'linguist' out of that?" Harry asked, amused.

"I specialize in reading body language. So I suppose I'm a bit like a linguist." Audrey sipped her drink and made a face. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to pumpkin juice."

"Believe me, I can relate," Ginny laughed. "A couple of weeks ago, Harry and Hermione and I were out running errands in Muggle London and we stopped at a café called... what was it, Harry? They sold American food... MacDunnoughs? MacDingles? Something like that, anyway... and I had my first taste of soda-pop. I still can't believe Muggles actually like to drink something that over-sugared. It was like drinking liquefied candy."

At Audrey's laugh, Ginny made a face. "Don't get me wrong, I like the occasional sweet, but drinking it with lunch? Eww..."

"All right, everyone... time for presents!" Molly Weasley caught everyone's attention, calling them all back into the parlor. Ginny sat at the center of things, with Harry next to her, and everyone else ranged around them.

"Here you go, Ginny, dear. From your father and me." Molly handed Ginny a brightly wrapped rectangular package. She tore into it with gusto, revealing a new set of school robes. Charlie's gift, a set of dragon-leather arm- and shin-guards that were perfect for playing Quidditch, followed. From Luna Lovegood, Ginny received a box of chocolate frogs and a set of scented bath oils. Neville Longbottom had sent her a book, Happy as a Harpy: The Autobiography of Gwenog Jones, while Bill and Fleur gave her a portable wireless set that would not only allow her to listen to broadcasts, but came pre-charmed to play twenty of her favorite songs.

Harry reached behind the couch and pulled out a long, thin package. He handed it to Ginny with a wide smile. Ginny, who suspected what it was from the shape, tore it open more enthusiastically than any of the other presents. The shredded wrapping paper fell away to reveal...

"The Captain of the Gryffindor House Team ought to be riding a Firebolt." Harry said. "I think it should be a new tradition."

"Now that is a broom!" Charlie whistled, utterly impressed. "So... are you going to let anybody else try it out? I mean... after you've had a go, of course." Beside him, Ron smirked.

"Anyone who wants a turn can have one," Ginny said with a laugh. "But me first."

"You're going to want to put it through its paces before using it in a game. Just so you get used to the acceleration, of course." Harry gave her hand a little squeeze. "And Firebolts have a tendency to climb if you don't keep your concentration."

George stepped forward. "Here, Ginny... I know it's not as exciting as a Firebolt..." He handed her a small package. He grinned weakly at her, but it didn't stick. Within moments, the same morose expression he'd been carrying for months reappeared on his face.

Ginny smiled up at her brother and tore open the package. Inside was a shiny metal frame containing a photograph of Ginny and Fred at the pond. Ginny was in a bathing costume, sitting on her brother's shoulders. "Oh... I remember this..."

"You remember Fred, then?" George said, brusquely. "Good. In all the excitement I thought you might have forgotten him. It's good to hear you managed to sneak in a thought about him in between getting all engaged and getting all grabby with your boyfriend! You and Ron both... "

"George Fabian Weasley!" Molly began, outraged.

"No, Mum... I'm serious. All this... nonsense... this... Fred's not even cold yet and they..." George waved vaguely at Harry and Ginny. "They're acting like nothing's happened. Like he doesn't matter at all."

Ginny dropped the picture and the broom to the floor as she stood. Sobbing, she ran upstairs. Hermione shot a poisonous look at George and ran after.

"George..." Harry stood slowly. His eyes burned with anger. "I don't think..."

George reached forward. He bunched Harry's robes in his fist and pulled Harry to him. "You need to shut up or I'll shut you up."

Harry pushed George away, back into Bill's arms. "George... you're drunk!"

"George..." Arthur stepped forward, beseeching his son.

"No... I don't... want... I can't do this. You all just..." George pulled himself out of Bill's grasp, turned in place, and was gone.

"I'll go look for him. He's probably headed back to the shop. Harry, go calm Ginny down," Ron said quietly. "Go check on Hermione, too."

And with a loud pop, Ron was gone as well.