Chapter 2 – Happy Families

Chapter 2 – Happy Families

Ginny Potter was sitting at the large, old oak table in her kitchen, scribbling away at a piece of parchment with a bright pink quill, her daughter Lily gurgling away happily in her high chair beside her. She was frowning slightly in concentration, which made her look more than a little like her mother. Her long, flaming red hair was scraped away from her face in a makeshift ponytail, and she looked pale and tired.

Bread. Milk. Teething potion. Book vets appointment.

She dusted the quill lightly against her chin, pausing to think for a moment before scribbling away once more.

Birthday card for Percy. RSVP for Luna's wedding. Wand wipes.

'Pretty, pretty kitty,' a small voice chirped happily from the other side of the kitchen, interrupting her thoughts.

Ginny looked up and saw that her youngest son, Albus, was currently sprawled out on his stomach, tickling their Kneazle, who was sleeping peacefully in the bright ray of sunshine streaming through the glass door, behind the ears. The Kneazle was nearly the same size as Albus, with thick, dark fur which was speckled all over with light flecks. She did not react to Albus' pestering, save for flicking her ears occasionally in annoyance.

'Al, leave Nyx alone, she's trying to sleep,' Ginny told him gently as she turned her attentions back to the list she was writing.

De-gnome the garden. Scourgify bathroom. Tidy. Ron & Hermione for dinner tomorrow. Chicken.

'Mummy, when's Daddy coming home?'

James, Ginny's eldest son, had padded his way in from the lounge, carrying his Quidditch 2008 Annual in one hand and looking decidedly glum.

Ginny put her quill down on the table with a small sigh and turned to James.

'Daddy's at work, sweetheart. Remember, he told you yesterday about how he has to work very hard this week because he has nearly caught the bad wizard he has been after for five years? He will be home as soon as he can. But Mummy has to work tonight, too, so you'll get to stay with Granny and Granddad, and that will be fun, won't it?' she said with a smile.

James, however, wasn't convinced. 'I want to see Daddy!' he said with a scowl, hopping from one foot to the other.

'Darling, Daddy is working very hard right now. But Auntie Hermione and Uncle Ron are coming for dinner tomorrow and Daddy will be home then. We're going to have chicken for dinner, and trifle for pudding. It's your favourite. You'll get to see Daddy tomorrow,' she said gently, reaching for her son to give him a cuddle.

But James was having none of it, pulling away from her. 'I want to see Daddy NOW!' he yelled impatiently, causing Nyx to wake up with a jump and hiss at a hurt-looking Al before shooting off through the cat flap with a noisy clatter. Lily, startled by the shouting and the hubbub, began to cry.

Ginny took a deep, calming breath, trying to keep her voice even.

'You do NOT shout at me, young man,' she said sternly over her daughter's anguished wails, her eyes flashing. 'We all miss Daddy but there is nothing we can do about it. Granny and Granddad will be here in an hour, so you better go and pack your toys away in your trunk before they get here.'

James stared back gloomily at his mother.

'James, don't make me tell you again,' she said in a low, warning tone, and reluctantly James trudged dejectedly out from the kitchen, his Quidditch annual still gripped tightly in his fist, as Al followed after him.

Ginny swiftly picked up her agitated daughter from her high chair and cradled her in her arms, rocking her and shushing her gently. I want to see Harry, too, she thought to herself, stroking the downy red hair on her daughter's head as her cries subsided. I miss him, too.

Since Harry had got his promotion as head of the Auror Office last year, he had been spending more and more time away from the family. Ginny knew how much the promotion had meant to him, and how Harry still felt as though he had something to prove to the world. Even though the hype that had surrounded him had died down, his name would be in the history books forever. But Harry had wanted to forge his own career through his own hard work and achievements, not live off the back of the tale by which he was most well-known.

Despite the numerous conversations they'd had regarding Voldemort and Harry's part in his downfall, Harry still thought it was something he hadn't done alone and was therefore not really responsible for, no matter how many people thought he was the hero of the story. And so, Harry had instead worked harder and harder at the Ministry, earning merit for his own efforts and finally being recognized for something which he felt he actually had control over.

Ginny had been pleased for him, of course. She could see that, by gaining respect as an Auror, he had been, in a way, reclaiming his identity. He was no longer the "Boy Who Lived" or "Voldemort's destroyer". Instead, he was now Chief Auror Harry Potter, responsible for the incarceration of many of the wizard world's most wanted criminals and head of a dozen Aurors. He was a man in his own right and could feel pride knowing that he'd made it on his own.

But still, even though she understood her husband's motives, Ginny could not help but feel as disgruntled as her son, James. She had always tried very hard to be supportive of Harry, but she missed her husband and the way things once were between them. If she were honest, Ginny felt like they were more like brother and sister these days, rather than husband and wife. They had barely spent any time together as just the two of them once the children had arrived, and they were so tired most of the time these days that the only activities going on in the bedroom were snatches of much-needed sleep.

It was never going to be easy, balancing a family with their own careers, Ginny had known that. And being a mother meant sacrificing certain things for her children. As soon as she had found out she was pregnant with James, she had retired from the Holyhead Harpies straight away after four brief but dazzling years, with ten England caps to her name, at the age of just twenty-two. Quidditch was a dangerous sport, and there was no way she would have put an unborn baby at risk, no matter how much she loved playing.

After James was born, she found she had been reluctant to get on a broom again. What if she had got injured? How could she have looked after her baby properly if she had been risking life and limb on a broomstick? She had known she could not continue playing Quidditch once she had a baby, and that had broken her heart. Ginny's bright career had abruptly come to an end, and this time it was she who worried about loss of identity. But she'd had someone else to put first, now. And that was one of the hardest lessons Ginny had to learn about becoming a mother.

Ginny had been offered a position as Junior Quidditch Correspondent at the Daily Prophet when James was just three months old, and she had jumped at the chance. Her deep love of the sport coupled with her in-depth insider knowledge and various Quidditch contacts made her perfect for the role, and it was both immersive and rewarding. Once more, she had a name for herself, and her fears about losing her identity were banished.

It had been hard work, having to prove herself as a journalist, but within a year, Ginny had shed her "Junior" title and had become Quidditch Correspondent for Wales & Northern Ireland. And just last month, Ginny had got her own major promotion, as Senior Quidditch Correspondent. The promotion had meant coverage of the highest-profile games, including internationals, as well as managing the other correspondents. She often had to speak on the WWN for post-match analysis of games and interview some of the top stars in Quidditch, all of which, ironically, made her more high-profile than her famous husband.

But guilt was starting to gnaw at her insides. Ginny felt like she was being a bad mother for needing and enjoying her work, especially since Harry had got his promotion last year. Harry was around less and less these days to babysit and no matter how much her mother and father insisted that they loved looking after the kids, Ginny could not stop the nagging doubt that maybe she could not cope with being a working mother after all.

As far as Harry was concerned, everything was just fine. She did not know how to begin to tell him that it wasn't. That she missed her husband and their children missed their father. That she felt like she had so much on her plate that she never had time to stop. That it felt like he was slipping away from her when he lay next to her at night. That she needed him to take some of the pressure off her and help her.

It wasn't his fault, Ginny reminded herself. He loved her and he loved his kids, she knew that. But he wouldn't rest until he felt he had proved himself. And wasn't she herself guilty of doing exactly the same thing? So how could she even approach the issue?

The feeling of Lily struggling in her arms brought Ginny crashing back to the present, and she checked the clock. Half three. She needed to dress, make herself look presentable and pack the kids' overnight things before her mum and dad came to fetch them to take them to The Burrow, and then grab a bite to eat before heading to the Appleby Arrows versus Wimbourne Wasps match this evening. The report needed to be in for next morning's publication, and she still had all the things on her list to get. Merlin knew when Harry would be home tonight, if at all.

Sighing, she rose from the table, with Lily still cradled in her arms, and headed for the bedroom.