The stars shined particularly bright that night. Harry's hands, slick with sweat, pulled at the lapels of his dress robes. He took deep breaths, tilting his head back as he slowly tried to calm his breaking heart.

"Are you ready?" He felt a hand clap onto his shoulder. Harry turned to see the blue eyes of his best mate, and made himself smile slightly.

"Yeah," He said, "I'm ready."

To be honest, he wasn't. He wasn't ready to walk down that aisle knowing that it wasn't him who would slide a ring onto her finger. He'd be sitting on the second row, hands clasped together tightly and eyes squeezed closed. He'd listen to the soft words of two lovers, hear her lips press against his, clap half-heartedly as the man pulled her to him. He'd follow them to the reception and excuse himself early as she softly kissed away a smear of cake from the corner of her new husband's mouth.

"Dean is at the end of the aisle already. We should really go before she walks down." Hermione said from beside Ron, her hand softly resting on her husband's arm. Ron looked happier than he'd ever be. And Harry had to admit... He was jealous. Not of Ron having Hermione, but of the fact that Ron had found his true love and... Harry would never find his. Because he already knew who she was, but he wasn't her own true love. Apparently.

"Let's go." Harry forced another smile and Hermione smiled at him softly, almost pityingly, and she and Ron walked ahead of him.

Hermione softly waved goodbye to the two boys as she took her place where she'd enter to be Ginny's maid of honor, and mouthed It'll be okay to Harry secretly. He tried to believe her. He really did.

"Wow, it's so beautiful." Ron looked over the venue, which was just the backyard of the Burrow, with a grin. The aisle stretched before them, open air, and stars shined over their heads. The wedding arch was white with some kind of red flower twisting around it. The chairs were plastic, but were covered in white silk which was tied with red string and lace.

Harry took his seat, placing his elbows on his knees as he looked at the ground beneath his feet. The green grass was covered in drops of water which sparkled like glitter but didn't get on their feet. Harry tried to make sure his tears wouldn't join the drops, and hid his eyes with his mop of shaggy hair that was now down to his shoulders.

"It's starting." Ron whispered. Harry looked up, his eyes meeting his friend's. He knew that the man knew. He had to. He'd seen the way Harry had looked at her, "It's not too late." The man swallowed.

Dean and Ginny were not meant to be. That was all anyone but the two knew. With the constant fights and aggressive attitudes towards each other, they clearly weren't in love. Not like Harry and Ginny had been. Not the blinding, searing love that had been theirs and only theirs. He missed that. The heat and the intensity. The feeling of his lips against her neck and her hands in his hair. But he also missed the silent love. The deep, soft love that he had felt for her. His finger tracing hearts onto her hip, reading a Muggle storybook over her shoulder, laughing between sloppy kisses beside the Lake. He missed the smell of her, the look in her eyes as she smiled at him, the feel of her skin under his fingertips as he traced her jaw lightly, and the sound of her even breathing as they lay on the couch with each other in the Common Room.

Harry almost stood up right then, but stopped himself. What if this was what she wanted? What if Dean was what she wanted? He honestly couldn't answer those questions, so why should he stop her? She was independent. She wouldn't go through with this if it wasn't what she wanted.

So, Harry sunk further into his seat just as the wedding music began.

His entire being almost burst into little flaming atoms when he saw her. She was beautiful. She always was, obviously, but now it was shown in a different way than he'd ever seen. She wouldn't wear a long dress, so she had one that stopped just above her knees, which showed off her long legs. In her hands were red roses, tied together with gold string. Her dress hugged her hips ever so slightly, and he had to admit that his eyes lingered there for a half a second longer. She had lace sleeves and her fingernails were golden. Her makeup was done and her eyes were blazing with intensity as she stared ahead. Her cheeks were slightly red against her natural, creamy complexion. Her lips were pressed into a firm line. She didn't wear a veil, instead her hair was pulled up into a slightly messy bun. Strings of hair fell into her eyes. She wasn't very awkward in her heels, even though she had had trouble walking in them before.

Dean was practically drooling by the time she was down the aisle, and Harry almost took his wand from his pocket and murdered the man right then as he saw where the man's eyes were focusing. Not just on Ginny, but every part of her. Every part of her that would soon be his.

Harry tasted bile in the back of his throat as he thought of that. Dean didn't deserve her. He didn't deserve to hear her laugh or listen to her hum her favorite rhyme. He didn't deserve to hold her or kiss her or have her kiss him. But, despite all of that, Ginny was standing before the man with a determined look on her face. That was strange to Harry, who hadn't expected her to have that sort of expression. Like she was just ready to get it over with. He didn't expect her to have love in her eyes either, really, but he had supposed she'd just be happy. That was what she wanted, right?

The two said their vows and all of that, and the wizard behind them raised his wand, getting ready to complete the ceremony, when he asked if anyone objected.

There was silence, and Harry was tempted to stand, but he didn't.

He didn't stand.

But Ron did.

"Ronald!" Hermione gasped. Ron, red-faced, looked around him with a set look on his face.

"I object." He said, his voice full of strength. Harry stared forward for a few seconds, then slowly rose as well.

"I object." His heart hammered as he watched Ginny's eyes widen and Dean's become angry. Dean dropped her hands.

"What's this about-"

"I object." Came a voice from the front row. Surprisingly, Molly Weasley had stood, her arms crossed in front of her. Beside her stood her husband, his hair starting to grey, with his hand on her back.

"I object." He announced.

Then it was Percy, surprisingly, who stood and said the two words. Bill and Fleur were next, then George and Angelina, and right after them was Charlie. Seamus said it too from right beside Dean, and even Luna stood up with her eyes soft and compassionate towards her friend. After a few more seconds, almost everyone but Dean's family had stood up. But after a while, even they gave in.

The wizard started blubbering, shocked at what was happening, and glanced between the bride and groom nervously.

"I-I object." Hermione said, holding her head up finally. That was everyone.

"I-" Ginny looked around, mouth agape slightly. Her eyes met Harry's and he looked away.

"You don't love each other." Came, shockingly, Percy's voice. He looked around as all eyes landed on him. Thankfully, Luna stepped in before he got too embarrassed.

"Everyone can see it." She said dreamily, "You two don't look at each other with love."

"You don't," Ron said, "He doesn't look at you the right way, Ginny. He doesn't look at you like... Like..."

"Like Harry does." Molly whispered to herself. He took in a sharp breath, hoping no one had heard her. But he knew that no one did. It was only him who had heard her sudden realization.

"He needs to look at you with respect." Charlie's angered voice came.

"He needs to think you're his world." George said.

"He needs to not think of you as an item." Hermione agreed.

"'E needs to know you. Not just what you look like." Fleur said fairly normally as her accent had almost slipped away a while before.

"So," Luna tilted her head to the side, "He needs to be Harry?"

There was complete silence as everyone looked over at the boy. He swallowed, not meeting anyone's eyes.

Dean ran out after that, humiliated, with Seamus trailing after him. Ginny had dropped her bouquet and quietly started towards the Burrow. No one stopped her, but after a little while Hermione followed after. Harry had quickly helped everyone take down the decorations while he let Hermione handle the whole 'girl problems' thing, but wished he could have been with Ginny as well during what was probably a tough time.

He went in the Burrow an hour later, after Hermione had exited to go and sit down for some food with everyone else. No one stopped him.

He knocked on her door quietly, hearing her muffled 'Come in' from inside. He edged the door open, looking at where she sat on her window seat with a vacant look, watching as everyone quietly are outside. They couldn't see her, so she must have cast a spell on the window so they couldn't see the light of her candle which was burning beside her.

Softly, Harry sat down and looked over the yard with her. She didn't start a conversation, so he figured it was his job to do that.

"I'm sorry." He figured that was a good path. Ginny looked over at him. Her hair, slightly damp, probably from getting in the bath, fell in her eyes.

"For what?" She asked, her voice normal. Harry blanched.

"For... You were getting married and..."

"I didn't want to..." She said, "I didn't think I'd actually marry him. But he wanted to marry me and... I didn't want to seem like I was using him or something or that I was a jerk by saying no when he proposed." She explained.

"Oh." Harry looked down.

"Yeah," Ginny swiped her hair from her eyes. She was silent for a minute, then her voice reached his ears again like a soft breeze, "Was it true?"

"Was what true?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"What Luna said." She wouldn't meet his eyes.

Harry summoned his Gryffindor courage and choked out a "Yes."

Ginny smiled, "Good," And her lips curled into a smile. He wanted to kiss her, but didn't want to move too fast.

"Maybe we could go get butterbeer later?" He asked hesitantly. She smiled.

"I'd like that."