#and for the love of god stop comparing movie!ginny with book!ginny because book!ginny would have kicked movie!ginny in the ass

[alwayshinny]

Ginny Weasley 👑 - The most underrated character in hp, and the girl who deserves so much more love than she receives in fandom.

[pufflyhallows]

Comforting Enough

Pairing: George Weasley x reader

Request: May I request an imagine where George and the reader have been close for many years, her father being friends with the Weasley’s. The reader and George obviously have feelings for eachother, but they’ve never confessed. When Fred and George leave she is still at hogwarts, cause shes a year younger. But, the reader gets into a serious relationship with someone else, until she gets hurt or cheated on. Cut to now, where they meet again at the Burrow when Harry is being moved ? Thank u!💛

a/n: I took the movie as reference, hope you don’t mind. Also, I think it got this long because I had to go through a few events to be as close to canon as possible. Thanks again for requesting it, I loved the idea! 

Warnings: angsty, mentions of death and blood.

Word count: 4,898

********

You hugged your pillow tight and let out all the tears you had been holding during the way back to your dorm.

How could he do that to you? You had always been there for him. Always! You didn’t deserve that. No one deserved that. 

The thought of how unfair it was only made you cry even more. 

Why had he done that to you? You couldn’t understand. He said... he said he loved you. But that wasn’t love. That couldn’t be love.

The scene went through your eyes again. The sharp feeling of a knife being dug into your heart was too intense. 

It was just before the last class of the day. You had seen him at lunch, you had shared a short kiss, you had gone separate ways. A perfectly normal day.

But you heard giggles coming from the second floor girls’ lavatory on your way to the last class. You, being the Head Girl, had to go there and see if Moaning Myrtle was being teased by the students or something of the sort. You would never think that what you were about to see was your boyfriend shamelessly making out with a girl. A girl that wasn’t you. A girl that was sitting on the sinks with her legs wrapped around your boyfriend’s hips. 

You froze on the spot. You wanted to turn around and leave. You wanted to run as fast as you could, but your feet were glued to the ground. You could only watch the scene with your mouth dry.

It was only when the girl saw you and parted the kiss that you were able to turn around and run to your dorm. You guessed your boyfriend saw you leaving too, because the last thing you heard was him yelling at the girl. 

“You said no one comes here!”

And now there you were. The tears fell down so quickly, you thought they would never stop. 

Your chest felt so tight, the room so small, the bed so cold... 

But the worst part of it all was the fact that you had no one to call. You couldn’t think of a single person you could go to at that moment. There was no shoulder to cry on. Well, of course there was someone in your mind, though. But that someone wasn’t here anymore. And, God, did it hurt. 

It hurt because you knew if that someone was still here, you wouldn’t be going through that. How many times had he warned you about the boy you insisted in dating? How many letters had he sent you saying you deserved better? Saying that boy wasn’t the one for you? Saying he would hurt you?

And how many letters had you sent back saying you were the one who knew what was best for you? And that he had lost the right to say those things when he left?

One. Only one.

George didn’t write back after that. 

Your crying got even more intense as you thought about what happened between you and your best friend. You had no one to cry to anymore. You had no one to hold you until the pain went away. You had no one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your seventh year in Hogwarts was the hardest school year you had ever been through. You caught your boyfriend cheating on you with a younger girl just weeks shy of graduation, but that didn’t compare to the death of your headmaster Albus Dumbledore and the small battle that took place in Hogwarts just before that. It was the scariest moment of your life and when you truly realized you were in a war, leaving you completely lost and on the verge of despair. 

Once you were back home, you felt uncertain of your future as the fear of losing your loved ones was taking over you. 

The long weeks went by and you saw your father going out often while your mother spent her days making sure all the protection spells worked. She was starting to become obsessed with it and you were worried about her, but you didn’t know what to do. You were spending your days almost like her. Though instead of protection spells, your obsession was the news. Every day you read the news terrified of seeing a known name on the missing people list... or worse.

You wanted to do something to help, and although your father agreed you were old enough to fight, your mother always rejected the idea, keeping you home.

One day, you were surprised by the visit of Arthur Weasley. It was strange to realize that you had missed him very much. You wanted to be part of the conversation he was having with your father, but your mother kept you in the kitchen with her, saying they needed privacy.

When they were finished and Mr. Weasley left, your father had a puzzled look on his face. You wondered what they had talked about specifically, although you knew it was the war.

The next day, your father came to your room and, for your shock, said you would have to leave.

“It’s not safe enough here,” he said, holding your hand, “You’ll stay at the Burrow, with the Weasleys. I’m sure you’ll feel at home there.”

Of course you would. You had basically grown up there. 

“Yes, but what about you and mom?”

“We’ll be okay. Don’t worry,” he gave you a smile, but that didn’t stop you from worrying at all. “Arthur brought me a Portkey. You’ll use it this evening.”

“This evening?! Dad, I don’t understand. Why aren’t you coming with me?” you frowned, confused.

“Your mother and I have work to do here,” he answered with a more serious expression, “You’ll be safer there.”

“When will I see you again?” you asked, realizing you had no choice.

“Soon. Now pack what you need and be ready.”

You nodded and your father left the room. Although you didn’t quite understand why you had to leave or why you would be safer at the Burrow, you did as your father said and packed what you needed.

Soon enough you were standing at his office and staring at an old book on the floor, holding your suitcase. Both of your parents were there with you, your father’s arm around your mother’s shoulder. 

“In a minute, darling,” your father spoke.

“I love you,” your mother said, holding back tears.

“I love you too. Both of you,” you replied.

“We’ll meet again,” your father stated, refusing to take part in the farewell. He looked at his watch one more time and nodded, “Be ready.”

You took a deep breath and tightened the grip on your suitcase’s handle. 

You didn’t remember hearing your father’s signal or touching the old book. All you remembered was feeling a hook pulling you back strongly. You closed your eyes as you felt really dizzy and only opened them again once your feet were firm on the ground.

You looked around and recognized the living room you were in. It didn’t take long for you to see Mrs. Weasley rushing from the kitchen.

“Oh, Y/N! You’re just in time! Thank Merlin,” she approached you with her arms open to give you a tight hug, “Welcome, dear.”

“Thank you, aunt Molly.”

“They haven’t arrived yet. I’m waiting with Ginny,” she took the suitcase from your hand and walked towards the stairs. You followed her. “I know they still have time, but you know what a mother’s heart is like. I will only calm down when my four boys come back here safely. And Arthur, of course.”

“Um... Where are they?”

Mrs. Weasley stopped in the middle of the corridor and looked at you. 

“You don’t know?”

You shook your head.

“Your parents didn’t tell you?”

You shook your head again, slightly upset for being left out.

“Oh, well. They are moving Harry,” she continued her way to Ginny’s room, “Alastor came up with this nearly crazy plan to bring him. Insanely dangerous! I didn’t agree with it, of course, but do they listen to me? Not ever.”

“Fred and... George are there too?” you asked. It was the first time in months you said those names aloud. You felt weird, actually. And sad. Those names rolled out of your tongue as if you were talking about strangers, or at least two people you met in a different life. Either way, you felt sad.

“Yes. They are out there with Arthur, Bill and Ron. Can’t blame me for being worried, huh?”

“No, I cannot,” you shook your head, feeling worried as well, “Who else is with them?”

“Alastor, of course, along with Fleur, Remus, Nymphadora, Hagrid, Hermione, Kingsley and Mundungus.” 

You felt your worry slightly fade away as you heard those names. You would trust those people with your life if needed. Your father was friends with Mad-Eye Moody and you were well aware of his incredible reputation. But you knew you couldn’t be completely relaxed though, given the risks of the mission, and you felt your guts twirl once you thought about your friends facing Death Eaters. However, you didn’t have to worry about that, they wouldn’t have to face anyone that night, they were just moving Harry.

“Ginny?” Mrs. Weasley opened the door, allowing you to see Ginny staring at her window with her arms crossed. “Y/N is here.”

“Hey,” you waved at her. 

Ginny quickly walked up to you and hugged you almost just as tight as her mother had. 

“It’s really good to see you, Y/N,” she whispered, sounding relieved. 

“It’s good to see you too, little one,” you breathed, realizing how much you had missed her, even though you had seen each other in Hogwarts weeks before.

You had always seen Ginny as your best friend’s little sister, hence the nickname you gave her, but after she caught you crying in the Common Room at two in the morning and stayed with you until you were able to go to bed, you started seeing her as a friend. Even though you weren’t really close, she comforted you and made sure you were okay before leaving you alone again. You couldn’t expect that from many people.

“We should wait for them downstairs, girls,” Mrs. Weasley said as she placed your suitcase on the bed, “It’s almost time.”

You and Ginny went to the living room, while Mrs. Weasley decided to stay in the kitchen, where she would be closer to the entrance door.

With each and every sound you heard outside, you felt your heart sinking in. You were trying to push those thoughts away, but it was impossible. What if George didn’t come back? What if something happened to him? Of course you were worried about every single person in that mission, but... George had your heart in his hands. He had it ever since your thirteenth birthday and he would have it forever. You loved him deeply, no matter how many times you had tried to fool yourself by going out with different people and even being in a serious relationship with a boy that wasn’t good to you, which turned out hurting you badly. 

You shouldn’t have sent that letter to George. Those couldn’t be your last words to him. They won’t be, you thought. But you couldn’t stop the regret from flooding your mind as you remembered one specific part of the letter.

You don’t get to tell me who I can or can’t go out with. I know what’s best for me and if I want to go out with Pete, I will. You don’t know him like I do. 

You were embarrassed. You didn’t think you would be able to look George in the eyes now. Did he know Pete had cheated on you? Had Ginny told him? Should you ask her? Probably not. It wasn’t time for that. She was worried about truly important things at that moment.

But you couldn’t help it. You kept wondering. Was George upset with you? He didn’t write back after that letter, which meant you two hadn’t talked to each other for several months now. You missed him very much, but you had no idea of how you were going to fix things. That is, if you could fix things.

Suddenly, you heard a noise outside, the loudest in that night. You and Ginny jumped from the couch and ran to the front yard, where Mrs. Weasley welcomed Hagrid and Harry. 

Ginny ran to the boy and threw her arms around his neck. 

“Where are the others?” Mrs. Weasley asked. 

“Is no one else back?” Harry questioned. 

You shook your head, biting your lower lip nervously. 

Hagrid started explaining to Mrs. Weasley what had happened to them, while Ginny and Harry talked to each other. You wanted to give them privacy, so you followed Hagrid and Mrs. Weasley inside. 

“We didn’t stand a chance, Molly,” Hagrid said, once the three of you were in the kitchen, “The Death Eaters were waiting for us. It was an ambush.”

You felt cold in your core. The fear you had been trying to push away finally took over your entire being. You needed to sit down, or else you would fall. 

An ambush. 

“Quick! Into the house!” you heard the familiar voice of your former teacher Remus Lupin coming from the front yard. You ran to the entrance door and opened it to let the people inside. What you didn’t expect to see was George covered in blood being held by Lupin and Harry. 

“My boy!” Mrs. Weasley cried, “My boy.”

Professor Lupin and Harry laid George down on the couch. You watched it all from the kitchen door, too shocked to even breathe properly. Your hands were shaking and your core felt so cold... You didn’t know what to do. Worrying about the whole Pete situation seemed so silly and insignificant now. 

You didn’t remember seeing the others arrive, but with a blink of an eye you saw Fred kneeling down in front of George, everyone else watching with worried expressions. 

“How do you feel, Georgie?” Mrs. Weasley whispered.

George’s fingers groped for the side of his head. 

“Saintlike,” he murmured. 

“What’s wrong with him?” Fred croaked, looking terrified. “Is his mind affected?”

“Saintlike,” George repeated, opening his eyes and looking up at his brother. “You see... I’m holey, Fred, get it?”

You chuckled silently, feeling a tear roll down your cheek. But you quickly wiped it as you saw Tonks looking at you curiously. 

Fred laughed quietly. “The whole wide world of ear-related humor, and you go for ‘I’m holey’? It’s pathetic.”  

“Reckon I’m still better looking than you,” George smiled weakly. 

You smiled to yourself after hearing that. He was still the same George you had grown up with and fallen for. The same George that had taught you how to fly on a broomstick and how to play Quidditch and Exploding Snap. The same George you had shared your deepest secrets with. The same George.

You were gathering the courage to get closer to him and let him see you, but you were completely disarmed when Bill announced the bad news. 

“Mad-Eye is dead.”

The room instantly fell in silence. You could see the usual sparkle in Tonks’ eyes fading away. 

“Mundungus took one look at Voldemort and disapparated,” Bill added in a low voice. 

No one dared to say a word. Everyone seemed to be completely in shock. You didn’t move one muscle, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley shared a sad glance, Ginny looked down at her feet, Fleur got closer to Bill, Tonks placed her hand on Lupin’s and slowly every person in that room felt the reality hitting them. 

The sad atmosphere was almost unbearable, the silence deafening.

You crossed your arms above your chest in an attempt of holding yourself tight.

And it was just the beginning... 

After a while, the people in the room started leaving. Some passed by you and went to the kitchen, some went outside, others went to their own rooms... Until it was just you, Mrs. Weasley and the twins. 

George couldn’t see you from where he was, since Fred was in the way. Mrs. Weasley was caressing her son’s hair with one hand and trying to clean the blood with the other. You hesitantly approached the couch, seeing that George had his eyes closed, and touched Mrs. Weasley’s trembling hand. 

“Let me do it,” you asked softly. 

George instantly opened his eyes at the sound of your voice. You didn’t meet them as you didn’t think you were strong enough to do so. You took the handkerchief from Mrs. Weasley’s hand and told her to rest. She didn’t reject the idea and soon left the room as well, being followed by Fred, who understood the importance of that moment for you and his brother. 

You could feel George’s eyes piercing you, but you ignored them. You sat by his side on the couch and focused on his injury, softly wiping the blood with the kerchief. 

“Didn’t think I would see you tonight,” he whispered once you two were completely alone.

“And I didn’t think I would see you like this tonight,” you replied in the same volume.

“What? More handsome?” 

You smiled, finally meeting his eyes. You didn’t expect them to be so sad, though.

Your heart skipped beats as he blinked. There was so much you wanted to tell him, so much you wanted to hear from him...

“I...” you tried to say the things you were thinking, but you didn’t find the right words. It was all too crowded in your mind, and suddenly your body expressed what you were feeling in the only way it could: you started to cry. 

It was quietly and discretely, but it was still crying. You wiped the tears with the back of your hand and sniffed, trying to make it look like less than what it truly was. 

“Hey,” he said, grabbing your hand and squeezing it tightly, “I’m okay.”

“I’m so sorry, George. So sorry,” you shook your head, “I was so stupid. I’m sorry.”

George looked at you, slightly furrowing his brows. He seemed hesitant and unsure, like he was fighting a battle in his head. What you didn’t know was that that battle wasn’t new to him and he had fought it many times before. 

But when George saw you wiping one more tear, he left all that hesitation behind and let go of his uncertainty. He sat up on the couch and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you as close to him as possible. Maybe you should have been more rational than him, maybe you should have told him to lay down again. But you didn’t do that. You hugged him back and at that moment you let out everything. 

You were completely vulnerable, as you always were around him, and broke down immediately, crying like never before. It was all too much for you. And even though you felt safe in his arms, you knew that war was far from ending and that you would be really lucky if the people you loved didn’t get hurt again.

George, on the other hand, felt grateful. He was happy to be hugging you again and to be feeling your soft skin against his, even if it was such a brief touch. He felt his worries fading away, his fears disappearing, the war being reduced to a headache. Your embrace was peaceful, warm and gentle. It was perfect. And it smelled really good, like home.

“Shh, I’m here,” he whispered while he slowly stroked your hair, still holding you strongly, “I’m okay.”

“I was so scared,” you said between sobs, against the clean part of his shirt, “I thought you were-”

“Shh, it’s okay.”

“I’m sorry, George.”

“It’s okay,” he repeated. 

“I should be comforting you. Not the other way around,” you let go of him and wiped your tears once again. 

“You are here with me. You are safe. Alive,” he said, looking in your eyes, “That’s comforting enough.”

You tried to give him a smile, but your chest felt too tight for that. Instead, you reached for his face and caressed his cheek, trying desperately to let him know how much you cared for him, how much you loved him. 

“Lay down,” you whispered, realizing he was still bleeding, “I’ll put a bandage on your ear.”

“You mean my non-existent ear?” George raised an eyebrow as he laid back on the couch. 

“You’ll have two non-existent ears if you keep teasing me,” you warned, already conjuring the stuff you would need for the wound dressing. 

George smiled. “I missed you.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You woke up the next morning sweating. You had a nightmare of which you couldn’t remember the exact details, but you could feel it had something to do with your parents. You rubbed your eyes and realized they were wet. Great, you had been crying in your sleep. 

You looked around noticing you were alone in Ginny’s room, which meant you were the last one to wake up. You didn’t understand why the girls had been up so early until you realized what day it was. You jumped from the bed and rushed to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get ready. It was Bill and Fleur’s wedding and you couldn’t be late. 

Fortunately, your father had told you about the wedding and you had packed a dress for the occasion. You hoped your parents would make it to the party, but you highly doubted it. 

Soon enough, you were walking down the stairs fully dressed up and entered the living room. There was no one there. You spun on your heels to go to the kitchen but stopped when you heard Ginny’s voice. 

“Zip me up, will you?”

You walked slowly to the door and looked at the kitchen’s interior, seeing Ginny and Harry in there. The girl had her dress unzipped on the back, that was facing the boy. He hesitantly walked up to her and started zipping it. 

You blushed when you realized how intimate that moment was. You were about to step back and stop creeping on them when you saw George coming in at the other side.

“’Morning,” he said, raising his cup of tea at them and completely ruining their moment. 

You sighed, but a chuckle slipped out of your mouth. Typical.

You had to do something, though. 

“Hey, George,” you greeted him as you entered the kitchen. “Oh, hey, Ginny. Harry,” you nodded at them, pretending you hadn’t seen them before. “Could you come with me, Georgie? I need your help.”

The younger twin narrowed his eyes at you but gave in, following you outside.

“Yes?” he asked once you were in the front yard, “What is it?”

“Nothing. I couldn’t let you get in their way,” you shook your head. 

He sighed deeply. “I should’ve known.”

“Probably,” you agreed, smiling.

Only at that moment George was able to actually look at you and take in what he was seeing. You looked absolutely beautiful. Like always! But this time was different. You were both older and you were basically two grown ups now. It had been a long time since he had last seen you. Your hair was slightly longer, he noticed in his mind. 

His eyes trailed down your entire figure until they curiously stopped on your left hand. Suddenly, they seemed sad, grey. 

“Is he coming?” he asked.  

You frowned. “Who?”

“Pete,” he pointed at your hand. You looked at it and saw the silver ring on your ring finger. A ring that your father had given you for your eighteenth birthday, but George didn’t know that. 

“No, he’s not,” you answered, feeling your throat tighten. “We’re not together anymore.”

Something shifted in George’s eyes and you couldn’t tell what it was. You felt your mouth slightly dry as he tucked his hands in his pockets.

“Oh,” he said, “What happened?”

“What you said it would. He hurt me,” your voice broke at the last sentence, although you weren’t going to cry. You cleared your throat, realizing the atmosphere around you two had suddenly become serious.

“I’m so sorry, Y/N.”

“Yeah... me too,” you nodded, “I shouldn’t have pushed you away like I did. You didn’t deserve that, you were just trying to protect me.”

“Maybe I was too invasive? You had the right to react the way you did. I could’ve been mistaken, since I was mainly acting out of...”

Jealousy. Acting out of jealousy. But George wasn’t going to admit that so easily. 

“Well, I didn’t really know how to deal with the distance,” he concluded.

“Me neither. I felt so lonely in that castle, George. You have no idea,” you breathed, “But no, you weren’t mistaken.”

George nodded, looking down at his feet. Was it too selfish to admit that he was slightly glad that you weren’t with Pete anymore? He felt guilty for it, but he couldn’t avoid it. He still remembered the letter you sent him talking about Pete for the first time. He remembered feeling helpless and lost, like he couldn’t do anything to stop it. He knew Pete, the charming Ravenclaw that every girl in Hogwarts had a crush on. Of course the boy would ask you out, he would be crazy if he didn’t. But George had been almost sure it would end up with your heart broken. Pete had a reputation and it looked like you were ignoring it. 

Now, seeing that he was right and it did end up with you being hurt, he felt guilty. Guilty because he could’ve done more to protect you. He could’ve ignored your angry letter and visited you when you went home for Christmas. He could’ve been there for you more. But no. He let his pride take over him and didn’t write to you again. 

“I’m sorry to hear that, Y/N.”

“Well, it’s over now. And I’m okay. Ginny was great, I don’t know how I would have carried on if it wasn’t for her.”

“Oh, I see,” George nodded, “That’s why suddenly you decided to help her?”

You chuckled. “The only way to have a friend is to be one.”

“Yeah,” he looked down again, “I should’ve had that in mind.”

“Stop, George,” you moved closer to him, “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I should’ve been there for you.”

“I pushed you away.”

“I should’ve known better.”

“You couldn’t.”

“I love you.”

You froze.

You had said you loved each other countless times before, but it sounded so different this time. You felt it was different. You felt it had more meaning behind it. 

Or were you overreading it? 

You didn’t care.

“I love you too,” you said, hoping he would feel the same thing you felt when you heard it from him. 

The sadness you had seen in his eyes minutes before was now gone. It was replaced by a sparkle you hadn’t seen in over a year, the same sparkle he had in his eyes when his pranks worked the way he wanted.

George slowly took your hand in his and started playing with your ring.

“I-”

“George! Over here! We could use some help!” Bill waved at his brother from across the yard. You both looked at him, realizing that the men were setting the tent for the wedding. 

“I should go there,” he sighed. “Or maybe I could use my injury to stay here,” he looked at you as if he had just had the most brilliant idea. 

“No,” you chuckled, letting go of his hand, “It wouldn’t be right, they need your help.”

“I knew you would never be the same again after becoming Head Girl,” he shook his head. 

“Hey!” you protested, “You didn’t even see me in action.”

“But I’d bet a hundred galleons that it was something like this,” he smiled, “Always playing by the book, never having fun...”

“I had my fun,” you shrugged it off.

“Sure.”

“I did!”

“Okay.”

“Weasley!”

“Don’t say it too loud, otherwise everyone will answer,” he smiled, “And I don’t believe you. I don’t think you had fun without me.”

“You are so entitled, aren’t you?” you shook your head in disbelief, but your smirk contradicted your line. “Go set the tent.”

“Will you still be here when I come back?” he asked, half-joking. 

“Always,” you replied truthfully.

********

Bonus Part

[the-potter-analyst]

Chapter 16 - The Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Sacred Text word of the day: Grace

Another word with multiple meanings oof. The hosts took a more spiritual approach to the theme, looking at how grace is given to characters mostly as something that’s outside of their power. But I read it as more of an act or state of being? Like grace can be dignity, elegance, or beauty, but it can also be acts of love, compassion, and generosity. I’ll just list the definitions of grace before my head hurts: elegance or beauty of form, manner, motion, or action; a pleasing or attractive quality or endowment; favor or goodwill; mercy or clemency; the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God; the influence or spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them; a virtue or excellence of divine origin.

I guess one way to compare this difference in interpretation is in McGonagall. The hosts saw her as maintaining or protecting the grace that is Hogwarts by keeping it open and continuing the term like normal, because the school itself is a gift that allows the children of today with magical abilities to learn how to use magic. This privilege may have not been available to people before Hogwarts opened. And I saw McGonagall as embodying grace and dignity in running the school like always. Like handling the situation with grace.

I was going to talk about the whole “unmerited” thing, but that’s too much theological discussion than I want to get into lol. Instead I’ll talk about Lockhart. With my interpretation of grace, Lockhart throughout this chapter embodies gracelessness when he usually tries his best to be charming and look elegant. If McGonagall handles everything with grace, Lockhart is the exact opposite. He tries to look like he does, but in reality he’s basically a shit show. As soon as things don’t go right for him he just falls apart. The hosts talked about how receiving grace leads to gratitude which then becomes responsibility to honor that gift received and McGonagall embodies this. She has talent, which she uses to be the best teacher she can be. Lockhart on the other hand doesn’t honor his own grace: he’s handsome, has a big personality, has a talent in memory charms, but instead of using those gifts responsibly, he chooses to become famous off the backs of those who do the real work. I can’t believe he tried to give a spiel to Harry about how fame is hard work,,, when really all that effort is going into creating a fallacy for himself.

I think what sucked about being so young when the books and movies were coming out is that I didn’t get to appreciate B2 as being a mystery book. I watched the movie at the ripe age of 7 and later read the book, so I don’t remember what it was like to go through the story for the first time and try to piece together the clues before the final revelation. Thinking about it, the only clues that really could be pieced together is figuring out that the monster is a snake lol. Like that would be galaxy brain to realize Moaning Myrtle was the girl who died when the Chamber was last opened before Aragog mentioned she died in a bathroom, or to guess that Tom Riddle was Voldemort before meeting him in the Chamber.

Ok, big question time. If Myrtle immediately became a ghost and haunted Olive Hornby, why hadn’t anyone asked about how she died right after her death?? Like from her reaction to Harry asking (she was excited someone wanted to know something about her!) it seems like no one else took the time to do the same. And her death gives so many clues like that the entrance to the Chamber is probably in her bathroom. Also acromantulas don’t have large yellow eyes. Nor can they kill by sight only. And I don’t think Hagrid knows another language. Just,,, ugh. It shows how much both the Hogwarts administration and the Ministry didn’t care about the facts, only that it looked like they were doing something about it.

Speaking of the Chamber’s monster, I said that I’d talk more about basilisks in this chapter analysis lol. First of all, it’s interesting how a basilisk is born from a chicken egg (in some older stories, a basilisk has the front of a cockerel and the back of a reptile), yet a rooster’s crow is fatal to it. Like the very thing that helped create it is its undoing. The hosts had also suggested that it has something to do with the rooster’s crow being a sign of a new day and change, like the basilisk is the darkness and the rooster is the light. Which makes sense if the basilisk is compared to the conservative idea of blood purity, which pure-blood Slytherins tend to have and also Salazar Slytherin himself. The rooster would then be the progressive idea that all those with magical abilities are equal wizards. I’m still not sure why a basilisk would be a spider’s mortal enemy though. Maybe something happened in ancient times between the two that made the spider pass down this fear lol.

How rude is it that Percy made Ginny move so he could have her seat?? Like I understand he’s tired but there has to be a ton of other seats open at that huge table. And she finally built up the courage to tell someone about her experiences that year! It was her last desperate attempt to find help. I wonder if Ginny approached Ron bc she felt most comfortable confiding in him or if it just so happened that there was an open seat next to Ron. Maybe because they’re closest in age? Does she often confide in him? I can understand if Ginny and Ron are close since they’re only a year apart, Fred and George have each other to hang out with, Percy is Percy, and Charlie and Bill are so much older that they wouldn’t have been able to spend much time together.

It’s funny how certain things end up coming together in the book. Like if Dobby never tried to stop Harry from getting to Hogwarts by blocking the barrier to Platform 9 3/4, Ron would never have gotten the idea to take the flying car to Hogwarts. Then Ron would never have broken his wand and Lockhart would’ve Obliviated his and Harry’s memories. Though I guess they would’ve never have made it that far bc they would’ve died in the Forbidden Forest since the car was what rescued them. Sometimes things go wrong so something can go right for you :)

A long list of small things:

I can’t believe Hermione out of all people defiled a book by ripping a page off and writing in it. I guess it shows how important this was

Harry frantically trying to remember what he learned that year is such a mood lol

Again, how has Ron survived the entire year with a broken wand??

rip to Collin and Justin who’ve missed the majority of the school year, they have so much to catch up on

Is Harry able to make a greater story than “we wanted to see Hermione and tell her the Mandrakes are almost ready” or is this when he peaks

Kudos to Ron for figuring out that the Chamber entrance is in Myrtle’s bathroom. The movies really did him dirty 👏🏾Ron👏🏾is👏🏾smart👏🏾

The movies also take so much of his agency away ugh

How did McGonagall realize Ginny was taken

The teachers are so savage omg even Sprout and Flitwick joined in the roast Lockhart party

Ron really went this bitch empty. yeet. to Lockhart’s wand

Previous: Chapter 15 - Aragog

Next: Chapter 17 - The Heir of Slytherin

[artfulmiss-blog]

trigger warnings: death & fire

It was like he was watching a muggle movie without sound, he was mute as his son raised his wand towards him

The party is at full swing at the Burrow when Albus notices he forgot Artemis’s present at home. The thing is, he distinctly remembers putting the gift with everyone else’s, because he wanted to make sure it went off without a hitch. This is the beginning of the next step in his life and it should be perfect. But here he is, looking at the christmas tree and the carefully wrapped ring box is missing. Another item gets added to his ‘my family doesn’t care about me’ list. How could they have remembered to get everyone’s presents but forgotten his? It has to be an intentional thing.

“Everything okay babe?” His girlfriend asks wrapping her arms around his middle, her large brown eyes shining with warmth. This is the image he wants to carry for the rest of his life, his girlfriend gazing at him with love, ignoring the rest of the room in favor of spending time with him. She is his light in the dark, and he can’t wait to promise her forever. He bought the ring three weeks ago in a cute little muggle shop, it will take him months to pay the ring but its worth it. He wants to give Artemis the best.

“I forgot something at home.” that’s not news to Artemis, because she is the one who took the gift out of the pile and put it back in his room. “I am going to go find my dad and tell him I need to go back and get it.” he says looking around the room.

Artemis smirks.

“I’ll come with!” when he looks at her again, the smirk gone from her face, in it’s place a soft loving expression. “I need to brush my teeth.” she says with an adorable little frown.

Grabbing her hand, Albus leads her to his father.

The only sounds in the room were their breathing. Excitement. Fear. Confusion.

Harry had been nursing a drink in the corner of the room, though his expression was merry like everyone else’s, his eyes were troubled. One might think it’s because of the troubles in the wizarding world, that he is feeling like he is seventeen again and that the whole world is counting on him. But those who know him better, Ginny and the rest of the Golden Trio, know there is something else troubling him. Harry, as most of the wizarding world knows, is a powerful spirit elemental and can feel when something terrible is going to happen. His power isn’t refined, so he can’t determine a date or the event, but it has never steered him wrong.

Seeing his son approach, his expression softens. Albus has always been a quieter kid, who had trouble connecting with people, but somehow he found someone who made him happy. Artemis has always been a puzzle for Harry, something about her never added up in his mind, but the sight of his son’s smile was enough for him to push those worries back.

“Dad. I am going to go home and grab something. That okay?” That was okay in Harry’s mind, but… two kids barely out of their teens going to an empty house? Molly would have his head if Albus missed the batch of cookies she is cooking up. Plus, most importantly, he has to disarm the wards he activated around the house before he left.  “Sure. Just wait a second, i’ll come with so I can disarm the wards in the house.”

Albus frowns, and begins protesting. "Dad, just tell me how to disarm the wards. Tell me the spell and I will do it.” He is in his twenties already, and his dad keeps treating him like he is an incompetent child. He is sure Lily and James know how to disarm it. He is not a weakling, if his dad just tells him the spell he will do it. He knows he can do it. Why can't everyone else see it?

Adjusting his glasses nervously, Harry smiles at Albus kindly. "No. No. I will go with you guys, I don't mind.” what were supposed to be nice words to soothe his son, make his son angrier, because all he hears is that he is too useless to do magic, that his father doesn't think he can disarm the wards on his own. Before Albus has the chance to open his mouth and argue, Artemis grabs his sand, rubbing circles in the palm of his hand, a touch she trained him to associate with calmness.

Once upon a time she would have to hint at the fact Harry doesn't trust him enough to tell him the curse, but her work is so well done that the smallest action performed by Harry can send him into a frenzy of self doubt. Artemis can see the situation more clearly, she and Albus are teenagers who are sneaking off in the middle of the afternoon to an empty house? Of course Harry is against them going alone, but her dearest boyfriend only sees his father thinking he can't do something. Again.

“All right Mr Potter. We will meet you at the floo.” The girl tugs Albus away, murmuring something in his ear that Harry cannot hear, but he observes that iby the end of their short walk, his son's shoulders are no longer tense. Once again, he is grateful she is in his son`s life, Albus needs someone in his corner.

Artemis heart beats so loudly she thinks Harry can hear it.

Shaking his head, Harry heads to the kitchen, puts the cup on the counter (on a coaster of course) and kisses Ginny’s cheek as he passes by her. His gaze flickers around the room one last time, making sure everything is alright, a habit he picked up from being an auror. Through the windows he can see some of the kids playing quidditch. James is asleep in one of the couches, having played a very long game before the day before, with a flick of his hand he moves a blanket over from the corner of the room so it’s covering him. Hugo and Ron are playing a very competitive game of chess. Arthur is tinkering with something. And Lily is reading about defense spells, ignoring the rest of the room, just like she did when she was a kid, but this time she doesn’t grumble when someone interrupts her, whilst she does look mildly annoyed, she sets the book down and begins animatedly chatting with Teddy.

It’s going to be a good christmas.

After all that has happened during the past few years, it’s time the Weasley-Potter family gets a good gift from Santa Claus.

The wand falters

Blood rushes through her veins as Albus falters. There is a glimmer in his eyes that hadn’t been there moments ago, one she had very carefully drained out of him by isolating him from his friends and family. But it’s there as he gazes at his father, lowering his wand. Harry hadn’t said any words, hadn’t tried convincing his son not to kill him, he had only gazed at Albus, his green eyes shining with tears as he realized what was going on.

It was that pain that made Albus stop, because until then he had thought his father didn’t care about him anymore, but in that moment he realized that the pain he saw in his father's eyes was not there because Harry was afraid to die, it was caused by who was behind the wand.

Harry breathes a sigh of relief, takes a stop forward and envelopes his son in a hug, tears running through his face as he consoled the sobbing boy, immediately forgetting the harsh words that had been spoken a few moments. And Artemis, the girl who had urged Albus on during the argument, was forgotten for a minute, in this father and son moment she was nothing but a shadow darkening their house. But being forgotten had it’s benefits, because the second they remembered she is there, they will also remember of what had happened and her role in it. If she was arrested, the whole Mayte operation would be at risk, and that scared the hell out of her. Using this sudden invisibleness, Artemis uses a body bind on both of them, so nervous about what is going to happen she doesn’t notice it’s not completely successful. There is two things that matter in her life: Albus and the Mayte mission, and right now she just lost Albus… the thought of her destroying Lawrence’s life work…

Her life work really. Her life. Her whole life has been about helping Lawrence achieve her dream, which eventually became her dream.

She won’t let Albus’s weakness get in the way of what she had planned, sure now it will be harder to pretend that Albus killed Harry and attempted to kill her, but she is Artemis Kent, she will figure out something, she has to. Because she doesn’t want to activate Plan B.

Plan B.

Activate an anti apparition spell (already activated by Harry when he entered the house)

Set fire to the whole house.

Die with Albus and Harry.

Become a Martyr in Lawrence’s eyes.

Become a poor victim in everyone else’s.

Plan B is of course something she doesn’t want to do. But looking at the situation in front of her she is beginning to think it’s the only thing she can do, because every single other plan she has thought of during the last minute will not only fail, but it will lead to her capture.

“Artemis.” Harry’s voice cuts her musings. Looking up, she no longer sees Albus and Harry as two separate beings, instead they turned into one -- the Potter, a vengeful god ready to strike her for what she has done. And how many things she did!

Albus had been free spirited when she showed up, close with his family and interested in the world he was already quiet, already had his doubts about his family, but nothing close compared to the hatred and disgust he has for them now. Over the years she made him a recluse, until all he cared about was a few certain subjects at school and her. Her in the middle as his life’s obsession. Honestly, Lawrence never truly appreciated that, sure, Albus was useless in the end, but he had become the perfectly trained dog for her. Charlie’s words echo in her mind, he had said once this about her, he had been wrong though. Artemis had certain free wills, she chose to stay with Albus after Lawrence told her he wouldn't be useful in their mission, that she should move onto other things.

But Artemis was wrong too.

Because Albus was not perfectly trained, when it was time for him to act he hesitated.

“Harry.” she replies coldly, in that moment she is not the eighteen year old girlfriend who makes his son smile, he finally sees what he had been missing. Her eyes are older, her voice had always been just one tad too sweet, and there is a certain evilness in her smile.

She takes a step back.

He struggles to take a step forwards, the body bind though weak is still keeping his arms locked around Albus, making it impossible for him to catch his wand.

Albus is frozen in his father’s arms, looking at the scene completely detached. Because unlike his father, he is still struggling to put the pieces together, Artemis’s brainwashing is too ingrained in his mind and seeing her acting completely different has made his brain stop. Too many feelings and informations coming out of everywhere, he can’t make sense of them. He can barely breathe.

Taking a deep breath she begins Plan B. It had always been in the back of her mind so she is standing in front of the kitchen, quickly she sends a burst of fire through the room, it spreads around like a vine, covering the walls and floor, the carpet and curtains become a tornado of fire, its flames are soon licking their skins.

The Potter’s green eyes filled with fear are the last things she sees, for the fire finally reaches the pipe of gas that runs through the kitchen, the explosion destroys everything in a itss radius, effectively killing Artemis in an instant.

Harry had activated a shield spell to protect himself and Albus for the fire. But it’s not strong enough to protect them from the explosion.

They survive, Harry tries apparating them out of there, momentarily forgetting about the ward, his energy is drained by the attempt and he faints before he can disarm it. By the time help comes they have both passed away due to injuries they sustained.

summary of the opera: artemis, harry and albus are all dead. they die around three o’clock, its the 25th of december. for now there are no clues linking artemis to the explosion, preliminary reports point towards a fire started by a flame left unattended in the kitchen, that spread through the house and caused the pipes to explode.