Summary: One-shot. It's the final battle on Christmas Day. Ginny Weasley waits at home for her love. Harry Potter has some Christmas presented to give out…
Notes: Hello! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! This is a Christmas present for you all, since I've got writer's block on Teasing, Teaching and Time Travel. Hopefully this will do. It's got no connections with any of my other stories.
Enjoy!
Christmas PresentsBy Tanydwr
Ginny Weasley sat with her family in the Burrow, worrying desperately.
Today, it would all be over for better or for worse.
She stared at the Weasley clock, looking at all the names that had been added over the years.
Only one name had been removed.
Percy. Voldemort himself had killed him. For making a mistake. Percy had been a Death Eater.
She ignored the horrible feelings his name now brought and looked to the clock's hands.
Bill. His hand pointed to 'mortal peril'. He was on the battlefield like the rest of her brothers. Fleur, his wife of three years now, was sat beside her, her hand pointing to 'the Burrow'.
Charlie. His hand was with Bill's. Tonks' hand pointed there as well, as an Auror she was not to be kept away. They had been married a year ago.
Fred, the older of the twins, and he never let George forget it. The same. Angelina sat on the floor below her, twisting her engagement ring on her finger, and staring at the clock, ignoring her own hand, which also read 'the Burrow'.
George. His hand was also at mortal peril. His fiancée Alicia tried to concentrate on the Quidditch plans she was drawing up, but spent most of her time staring at the clock like the rest of them.
Ron. Her closest brother. He would be there, right in the thick of things, she was sure. Hermione, injured from a previous battle, was curled in Molly's arms, sobbing and worrying as her someday mother-in-law did.
Her father. He was there too. Her mother sobbed, but tried to stay strong.
Was this how women had felt throughout the centuries, watching their beloved menfolk go off to war? Ginny wondered.
Finally her eyes lit on the last two hands. Her own was pointed to 'home', she had been living at the Burrow since she left school last June.
And the last hand.
Harry.
Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived. And her love. The man who was either going to kill Voldemort or be killed by him.
Most likely today.
She just hoped her Christmas present wasn't Harry's head on a platter, delivered by Death Eaters.
XXXXX
"That's the plan?" Ron asked incredulously. "Harry, are you planning on living through the battle? Because Ginny'll kill me if anything happens to you."
"Just like Hermione will kill me if anything happens to you." Harry told him and grinned. "This will work. I know it will. And then you and Hermione can have a nice springtime wedding and inform everyone that your child is three months early."
"Harry!" Ron growled and swatted him over the head, which the young man ducked.
"What? I know what you Weasleys are like!" Harry told him, and grinned at the other Weasleys in the room. "And besides, both you and Fred promised to get married when the war was over."
"That doesn't mean we'll…" Ron went red. "Harry, you know Hermione's said that none of that will happen until the wedding night."
Fred gave a wicked grin. "Building the anticipation up, eh, little bro? Always good. Much more… fulfilling afterwards."
"Can we get back to this insane plan of Harry's?" Remus Lupin interrupted. "Harry, that'll never work."
"Have you ever heard the phrase 'play on your enemy's weaknesses'?" Harry asked.
Remus frowned for a moment. "No."
Harry grinned. "That's alright, I pretty much made it up after I saw an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Actually, I have the whole lot on DVD. Nice thing, having a magical house with a Muggle room."
"What is your point?" Bill wanted to know.
"The point is that Buffy defeated a supposedly all powerful enemy who'd turned into a massive snake-like demon – what is it with bad guys and snakes anyway?" Harry suddenly asked, then shook his and got back to the point. "The point is, that she played on his human weaknesses. She got him angry, led him to exactly where she wanted him, and blew him up. All I need to do is make Tommy angry enough to start getting careless, and then I run him through and invoke the Furies to take his soul away."
"Invoke the Furies? Harry, that's dangerous. They might…"
"They won't trick me. I've never actually killed anyone, or anything and through killing Voldemort and calling them, I'm avenging my parents, therefore making it so that the Furies cannot demand anything from me." Harry explained.
The others stared at him.
"Never mind. This will work though." Harry grinned. "Besides, I think making ol' Tommy-boy mad could be fun."
Charlie stared at him. "You're insane, you know that right? And this is coming from someone who works with dragons for a living. You're definitely insane."
Harry gave a chuckle.
"I'm counting on it."
XXXXX
It was at three o'clock that every household (and areas of the Ministry) was startled with the sudden appearance of a large mirror where they congregated, waiting for news. Presents were left wrapped, the Christmas dinner on hold, and the games were at a standstill. Even children were silent, able to understand that something important was going on, even if they did not know what.
Hermione and Molly ceased in their worried sobbing to gaze in wonder, Angelina and Alicia changed their stare from the clock to the mirror and Ginny looked confused.
"What is it?" Ginny asked.
"A mirror. But I think…" Hermione began and trailed off as a picture began to form.
A voice began to speak.
"What you are now seeing is a new day for wizarding kind, the creation of mirrors to show you exactly what goes on in another area. However, they will all disappear at the end of the battle. Anyone who wishes to buy one, they're ten galleons each from Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes, but produced by a certain dark-haired hero who wishes to remain nameless."
"Oh yes, they're never to work out who made them now, are they, Fred?" A sarcastic and familiar voice bit.
Ginny gave a squeal. "Harry! Fred!"
Angelina looked up, now Fred had appeared in front of the screen.
"Much as I know you don't want to see my ugly mug, we feel you should have some background to what is about to take place."
George joined him, grinning.
"You see, soon there will be the Final Battle."
"The Big One."
"The Be All and End All."
"The Last Battle."
Then in unison they grinned. "The Battle Where Harry Potter Kicks Voldemort's Hairy Arse Back To Hell."
Molly began to swell with indignation at their foul language.
"Fred! George! What did I say?" A voice yelled. Harry again. Molly smiled.
"Er…"
"Don't jinx me!"
Molly looked disapproving as Ginny, Alicia and Angelina laughed.
"Anyway. This should be the seventh and last time Voldemort and Harry Potter face each other. Two warriors enter, only one shall leave."
"Voldemort is famed for the horrific murders of thousands, including Harry Potter's parents. We're offering one hundred per cent odds on Harry winning. Also, Bellatrix Lestrange is out there. We're offering odds on whether it is Neville Longbottom avenging his parents' torture to insanity or Harry Potter avenging his godfather's death who offs her."
"Fred, George!"
"Sorry, oh mighty general." They responded to Harry's chagrin. "As you can see, he is already regretting making us his spokespeople, but since it's his fault we had the money to set up a shop, he can't really talk."
Now they heard a groan from Charlie. "Yeah, just make the Death Eaters more angry at him, why don't you?"
"And add me to the odds on Bella! She took my best friend away from me, not to mention two of the only other people who accepted me. And I have a soft spot for Neville and Harry!" Remus yelled.
"Ooh, dear, Bellatrix has pissed off a Marauder as well as a Marauder's son. Well, that should be an interesting exhibition." George observed.
"Now, onto to the feature of this production, the battle itself!"
Fred and George disappeared, and all the observers saw was Harry Potter, stood out in front of the forces of light, looking every inch the warrior. He wore an old-fashioned outfit, but none the less gorgeous as Ginny felt herself salivate. Brown leather 'breeches' and a matching tunic over a cream shirt. Boots on his feet and a scarlet cloak hung from his neck, blown back by the wind, displaying a sword at his belt as well as his wand.
"We're calling this 'The Hero In Front of Thousands'." One of the twins' voices whispered.
Harry just stepped forward.
Ginny's breath hitched as she watched her love make himself an easy target.
XXXXX
Harry knew that thousands of eyes were watching his every move. But he ignored them, and focussed on what he was about to do.
Send Voldemort down into the ground.
"Good afternoon, forces of evil. Did you know the British queen is making her speech on Muggle television right about now?" Harry asked conversationally, his voice magically louder.
"Why would we care about the Muggle queen?" A Death Eater snarled.
"Not so much her as her message. She says the same thing every year, but its true. Give to others, help others, live life to the fullest, war may be necessary, but its not something anyone enjoys. It's not something I enjoy." He looked at them coldly. "I hate war. I hate that it takes lives. I hate that it separates. I hate what it embodies. But sometimes war is the only way to protect ourselves. As it is now."
His friends stood behind him, gazing at their enemy, prepared.
"I've lost too many people to war. My parents, my friends, my godfather. The Weasleys lost a brother, seduced by evil because of his employer's idiocy. Neville lost his parents to the cruelty of the Lestranges and Barty Crouch Junior. Remus Lupin lost his closest friends because another sold them out. I refuse to let anyone else lose someone they love. There's a lot of women at the Burrow waiting for me and the Weasleys, and I'll be eviscerated if I let even one of them get hurt.
"Enough of the solemn stuff. Hey, Voldie, why not act like a true leader and quit leading from behind?!" Harry yelled.
Everyone began to stir, what on Earth was he doing?
"I know we're all geared up for a big fight, but I have a proposal. Either we all fight, you get your arses kicked and ol' Tommy-boy dies, or Tommy comes up, gets his arse kicked, dies and the rest of you get sent to prison. The Dementors can't actually get away anymore." Harry gave a scary grin. "I took their bodies from them and bound their spirits to the walls. We've even got a second prison without Dementors for those of you who committed slightly less serious crimes.
"So, how about it? Is Voldie prepared to lose?"
A high-pitched laugh rang through the battlefield. "You must be extremely brave to think you can defeat me, or extremely foolish."
"Y'know, Lucy said that to me. D'you plug such things to your Death Eaters or what? Do they have to pay royalties when they repeat you?"
Voldemort materialised before Harry looking extremely annoyed.
"Oh dear, did I say something to piss you off?" Harry asked, then shrugged. "You know, the snake look is so passé, how about you try a cockroach for your next transformation?"
Voldemort pulled out his wand and yelled, "Crucio!"
Harry stopped and watched as the red light hit him. Incredible pain ripped through his body, but he knew it was mental, not physical, which was why it caused such terrible mental effects. He ignored it, and stood still, a serene smile on his face.
"That really does give a good emotional detox, Tom, is that why you use it so much? I'll show you what I use." Harry pulled out his wand. "Fulmen!"
Lightning crackled, struck Voldemort, electrocuting him.
"Aargh!" Voldemort yelled.
"Oh, do you not like it?" Harry asked. The Electrocution Curse was more physical pain, legal, but controlled. Effectively, it was the Aurors' version of Cruciatus because it could be stopped.
Voldemort stood and looked at Harry angrily. "What are you doing here, Potter?"
"Well, avenging my parents and several other people for starters." Harry informed him. "And, well, since you're technically dead already, I can't be persecuted for your death, I called the Furies around for a chat."
Voldemort looked terrified.
"I call thee, bringers of justice! See that justice is done against this cruel soul!" Harry cried out.
He pulled out a sword.
"What are you, Potter? What is this?"
"This, Voldemort?" He asked. "Well, this sword was a Christmas present."
"What is this duel?!" Voldemort roared, bringing his wand up again.
Harry dashed in, slashing and plunged the sword deep into Voldemort's heart. "This duel. Well, it's my Christmas present to the world. We're all tired of fighting. We figured we're all bleeding enough. Your death ends this."
"Another… will… merely… take my… place." Voldemort choked out.
"Not when none of them can. Your inner circle are tied to you, Voldemort. When you die, they die."
"The spy…"
"Snape? Don't worry, I severed that part of the Dark Mark's magic long ago."
And with that, Voldemort died.
The Furies took shape, in human form at the moment.
Harry made a deep bow. "May my service to you in avenging my parents be ceased. May his payment begin. Fair ladies, I thank you for ensuring he cannot rise again."
"Such a charmer, Mr Potter. You will not suffer our call, for you have avenged those you must. But if you don't go right now and…" Megaera began to whisper in his ear so no one could hear her. "We will haunt you. We've a soft spot for her."
Harry grinned. "My dear ladies, you read my mind."
The Furies turned to the spirit of Tom Riddle. "Come on, you."
The third looked at the fallen Inner Circle. "You too, come along."
Souls screamed as they were dragged to hell to pay their dues.
Harry grinned. "There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the death of Voldemort. There endeth the programme. Call Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes if you want one of the mirrors, but it may be a while before we can do anything other than tap into Muggle transmissions of news, fiction and documentaries. I have got a special channel devoted to how Muggles show magic though. Ciao."
XXXXX
Ginny and the others stared at the mirror disappeared from existence.
Ginny gasped. "Harry, he did it. He did it!" Then something else. "They're coming home!"
Everyone brightened up. Mrs Weasley rushed into the kitchen to do the final touches to the Christmas dinner.
Ginny, Hermione, Fleur, Angelina and Alicia all rushed outside, and began dancing in the falling snow.
"Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!" Hermione sang.
A few minutes later, several pops signalled the return of the 'conquering heroes'.
Charlie and Tonks were already kissing in the snow. Fleur ran up to Bill, flinging her arms around him and kissing him passionately. Angelina and Alicia's Quidditch training became obvious as they both took flying leaps into their lovers' arms. Hermione just tackled Ron and lied on top of him, kissing him in the snow. Mrs Weasley ran out of the kitchen and engulfed her husband in a massive hug.
Ginny stood alone, wondering where her love was.
She sighed, and turned to go back into the house.
And saw Harry stood in the eaves, lounging against the pillar of the steps down to the patio. A spring of mistletoe hung above him. Ginny walked up the stairs, gracefully, elegantly. She stood in front of him on the step below as he took one back to let her up.
"For a moment, I thought you weren't coming." Ginny confessed.
Harry smiled. "Where else would I be if I were to risk standing under the mistletoe?" Harry asked.
"Well…" Ginny began, but stopped as Harry's lips blocked hers.
His hands gently cupped her face as he kissed her so sweetly and gently, but she could still feel the passion and love in such a soft kiss. She slipped her arms under his to wrap them around his neck and back. His hand slipped round to cup the back of her head, the other in the hollow of her back.
"I love you." He seemed to whisper through that kiss.
"I missed you."
"I need you."
The others ceased their exuberant greetings to watch the scene before them.
"It's like a Christmas card." Hermione murmured.
Angelina laughed. "More like a Christmas advert." Her mother was Muggle-born, and therefore she had been brought up with TV.
"A sweet one." Mr Weasley decided. "Anyone got a camera?"
Bill had and proceeded to take several photos of the kissing couple. It was a few minutes before they realised what was happening.
Harry broke the kiss. He smiled. "I missed that. I missed you."
"I know. I love you, Harry. Don't do anything so stupid as challenging Tom again, ever, hear me?"
"I will quite happily bask in the sun of your love, Cariad, as long as I live."
"Cariad?"
"It's Welsh. Mum was Welsh, and I guess I remembered it subliminally. It means beloved." Harry smiled, then looked up. "It seems we have the undivided attention of our family."
Ginny looked around, eyes wide. At some point during the kiss, Remus Lupin, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Neville had Apparated in.
Everyone had a 'look, how sweet' expression on their face.
"Um, hi?" Harry offered.
XXXXX
It was a long while later, after presents, after dinner, after jokes and stories and thanks that the war was over, that Harry and Ginny returned outside, where the snow still fell consistently, covering the flaws from their earlier greetings.
Harry held her close, just basking in having her near him.
"I missed you, Harry. Being at the hospital, seeing people brought in with wounds… I prayed every day that you wouldn't be coming in." Ginny told him.
"I promised that the next time I saw you would be when Tom was dead. And he is." Harry told her, taking her hands and kissing them. "I've still got one more Christmas present to give."
"Oh, but Harry, this is already too much!" Ginny protested, referring to the elegant Celtic-style necklace and earrings he had bought her. They were obviously magical, as they seemed to shift from gold to silver as she wished. The diamonds within them were small, but nonetheless beautiful. It was delicate, beautiful but modest.
"Well, they weren't really the presents." Harry told her. Ginny looked confused. "I just found the matching items."
"Match what? Harry, I don't understand." Ginny looked confusing.
"Ginny, I found them in my family vault. They are the Potter family jewels – no crude jokes." He ordered, observing the look on her face. "The jewels given when a Potter finds someone particularly special to them. Eventually, they give the final item."
He pulled out a small, emerald-green box. Ginny's eyes widened.
"Ginny, it took me a long time to realise who you were and what I felt. But I don't intend on wasting anymore of that time. Ginny, would you like the full set? Ginevra Weasley, would you consent to becoming my wife?"
Ginny opened the box. Inside was a matching ring, the ring itself in Celtic knotwork, while the diamond sat inside a Celtic knot symbolising eternity. She handed him the box, ring facing him, and held out her finger.
"Harry Potter, I would be honoured and more than happy to become your wife." Ginny replied.
Harry slid the ring onto her finger.
He caught her in another kiss, passionate and happy, a kiss he had never been able to truly give her before. Tingles spread through his body as he realised that it would not be long before he was able to have her in his life permanently.
He broke the kiss and just looked at her.
"Everything I do, I do it for you." He told her.
"Come what may, I will love you until my dying day." She responded with another song lyric.
Harry laughed and hugged her. "I guess we ought to go inside and tell everyone the good news."
Ginny laughed and gave a sly grin. "How long do you bet before we have a series of my brothers giving 'good news' in the form of babies?"
Harry grinned. "I think that September will see the beginning of a large baby boom and the Hogwarts Record Quill will go on overload."
When they entered, everyone noticed the ring on Ginny's finger. Remus grinned, saying it was very similar to how James had proposed.
It was later that evening when everything came to a head.
"I am not sleeping in a room with Hermione and Ron." Harry winced. "Not tonight. I'll sleep on the sofa."
"Not at all. Harry can sleep in my room." Ginny smirked.
The others looked like they were about to protest.
"We've just become engaged and we wouldn't do that." Ginny informed them.
"I'm not stupid enough to do that in a house with her parents and her brothers." Harry pointed out. "Besides, it'll make the wedding night even more special."
"When are you planning on getting married?" Molly asked.
"New Year's Day. Perfect way to start the New Year, I think." Harry smiled as she pulled him upstairs. "There's a suitable hall in the Phoenix Nest, I think."
Remus grinned. "You're definitely following in your father's footsteps."
"Asked Dumbledore to officiate as well, huh?" Harry asked.
"Yes."
"Oh good, so long as he's had some practise with Potter weddings…" Harry began. "Goodnight!"
"Goodnight!" Ginny called.
The bedroom door slammed shut.
XXXXX
It was half an hour later after showers and getting into nightclothes that Harry stretched the bed.
"I just want to be able to hold you." Harry smiled at her. "I want to be able to wake up to you. Other… enjoyments are meant for the wedding night."
"How very gentlemanly of you, Mr Potter." Ginny teased.
"Oh, not at all, I don't want to risk your family killing me." Harry replied, slipping into bed beside her.
Ginny snuggled into his chest. "Thank you, Harry. I love you."
Harry smiled at her, and wrapped his arm around her. "Merry Christmas, Ginny."
XXXXX
A/N: How was that? Suitable Christmas present? I hope you enjoyed it!
I've spent Christmas Eve baking, peeling vegetables, taking collection money from our singing in the local shopping centre to the hospice (the charity!), doing homework and arguing with my sister. Sounds about normal, actually!
I've got presents to wrap, plays to read and fun to have.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Lol, Tanydwr
P.S. Sorry for not updating Teasing, but I've got a major block on it!