Ch. 46
Almost

There was a buzzing in the air when Harry and Ginny returned to Hogwarts. Their hands twitched, their eyes shifted, and they ached for a single touch. To hold hands, to kiss, to be in the arms of the other. But it was impossible.

Ginny looked tired, her eyes bloodshot. In the hours Harry had stared into her brown irises, he had noticed a single thing different. The gold in them was slowly disappearing, being replaced by dark splotches.

Yes, he was afraid. Yes, he missed her. And yes, he was angry.

Cain and Katrin called them in for little "Meetings" several times, mostly late at night. But they were becoming distant, long stretches of time between them before they'd get a scrap of information. You-Know-Who would not be attending whatever meeting was taking place, Chimpy was slowly draining, people were regularly searched for letters that may have pointed to them being a mole.

Finally, Harry couldn't take it anymore. He was tired of waiting, tired of being unable to kiss his girlfriend. His soul began doing that twitching thing again from long ago, like it was trying to dislodge itself from his chest and go to her.

The Visions, which had been infrequent, now assaulted them at every turn. Harry saw wars and killings, he saw possibilities that almost tore his heart out of his chest. Cain and Katrin (Both of whom had recently become close friends of his) being pounded by spells and curses as they writhed.

And the worst of them all. Ginny, slashed across her tired face, the light in her eyes flickering out as she begged him to heal her. But he couldn't. Every touch he gave pushed her farther away, teetering on the edge of the non-existence which was what you became after death.

The Guardian siblings often started bickering with each other, but they always ended up laughing. Harry envied them for being able to laugh when his world was being pulled from under his feet like a rug.

The days passed monotonously, Cain and Katrin both dueling regularly with Ginny and Harry to keep their abilities sharpened.

"Why can't you use those weird Guardian-y powers of yours?" Ginny asked after she had disarmed Katrin for the second time that day. The girl had shrugged.

"It only comes in times I need it. Or, so the legends say." She laughed. Then, she looked embarrassed, "I just hope that I can control them."

"Of course you will be able to control them." Ginny said it like it was obvious, "You're an amazing fighter, Katrin. You don't give yourself enough credit."

Katrin looked down, clearly immensely flattered, "Thank you," She said softly. Her cheeks had turned a bright red and she twirled her wand between her fingers nimbly, not meeting Ginny's eyes.

"Hey, that's what friends are for." Ginny laughed obliviously.

"Uh, Gin? Maybe you could help me with the wandless thing a bit more?" Harry tried to bail Katrin out, who was clearly getting uncomfortable.

"Sure," She walked over.

A month went by in a blink of an eye, with Umbridge becoming more unbearable than ever. Neville had shyly come up to Harry a few months before, asking if he could perhaps use the Room of Requirement (that he had discovered, anyway) to start a new "Club". Harry had agreed, though felt guilt as he realized just how much he and his friends had drifted apart.

And so, as all of this added up, Harry decided he needed to do something to ease his hurting.

"Cain..." Harry approached the boy after a 'practice', "You seem to know a lot about this thing attacking Ginny--"

"I don't know, Harry, how long it will take." Cain cut him off, "My informant only got the smallest bits of information on it."

"Would it be possible--"

"Mate, I'm sorry, but would you rather kiss your girlfriend and her die or not kiss her for a few more days and have her live?" He seemed annoyed for some reason, and not towards Harry. Instead, it was like a third-party was on Cain's mind at the moment. He chewed his lip, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and stared into the fire.

"I know..." Harry sighed, "But you don't know how much it hurts."

"It'll all be fine, soon." Cain turned to look him in the eye, "My informant says that it could be mere days from now that the meeting is held."

Harry said a quick "Thank you," and left. His heart was heavy, however, and he went straight to the Common Room and laid on the couch with exhaustion. It wasn't long before Ginny walked in as well.

"Harry?" She asked. He sat up, turning to look at her. She was beautiful, her long hair over one shoulder and her freckles splattered over her cheeks and nose contrasting against her pale skin. She wore her uniform still, but the tie was undone and her vest rumpled from practice.

She sat beside him, and a roaring started in his ears. Everything blurred away but her, and she was bathed in golden light. Her eyes widened, but she didn't move away. Instead, her head tilted toward him.

Just as their lips brushed, softly as if evaluating what would happen, and she nodded ever so slightly. He didn't move, instead felt as she pressed her mouth to his for a long second.

Then she pulled back, shaking, blinking quickly. The roaring in his ears dimmed, his soul calmed, and he felt almost content for a single moment.

And then, a feeling of lightheadedness swept across him. He tumbled into a valley of dark shadows, Ginny right beside him.