Ginny's breath caught in her throat as she heard the knock, watched Harry's knuckles hit the door again. Merlin, what was she thinking? She shouldn't be here. She turned her back on her family when they needed her the most. It didn't matter that she had been hurting too. As a family, they should've come together and she ran. Ran as fast as she could, and never truly looked back. Of course, she had kept tabs on them. Kind of. But the information could be speculative. The Weasleys were well known. The wizarding world paid too much unwanted attention to them.

Harry knocked again.

Merlin, who would answer the door? It could be anyone. Any of her brothers or her mum or dad.

Her heart pounded.

"Hey," Harry whispered. "It's going to be great. You'll be happier this way."

She knew he was right, but... Frowning, she turned towards him. "I'm a coward."

He rolled his eyes. "Hardly." He caressed her cheek, a soft smile on his lips. "Like you said, it's been a while. It's only natural that you would feel nervous." He brushed a lock of hair behind her ear and met her eyes. "You're anything but a coward. You're fierce, you're dangerous, you outwitted an entire unit of Aurors."

She laughed. "I did."

"And that will be the last time we mention anything about that today," he told her.

She rolled her eyes this time. "Harry, please. Fyrefox is caught, I'm not going to mention it."

"Good because Ron and Hermione will be here, and they were right there with me while I was working on the case. Hermione hasn't said anything straight out, but she's got doubts, I know it."

"That's Hermione for you," Ginny muttered.

"We shouldn't be talking about it at all. The truth should be locked up, just as tight as Malfoy is in Azkaban." A dark look shot across his face.

Ginny sighed. She knew he was still torn up about it, regardless of what he said. She hated that she put him in that situation. "I'm sorry." She paused then added, "Not about Malfoy, that bastard can rot in Azkaban for –"

The door opened, and it was Ron, smile wide, as he took her in. "Ginny!" He gathered her in his arms and spun her around.

She laughed, she couldn't help it. He hadn't done that since they were kids.

"Ginny?" Voices came from inside.

She was engulfed in one huge hug, screams filling the entrance to the house. She hadn't been hugged like this, by her family, in years.

All of them spoke at once, and she heard Harry laughing behind her, and when she peeked over her shoulder, she saw her dad pull him into a hug.

"Ginny!" Bill's smile tugged at his scars.

"The runaway daughter has returned," Charlie teased.

"Ginny!" Percy smiled.

"I have a sister?" George asked and snickered, and in the breath that followed, she could almost swear she felt Fred there, with them. Together.

"Ginny?" A voice said, and her brothers stepped away as her mum caught sight of her. "My baby!" Tears rolled down her cheeks.

Guilt gripped her. Her mum. She'd been hurting back then and she never thought about how much pain she was causing them. Her mum. Her poor mum. Merlin, she was so sorry.

Ginny hugged her tightly.

"You're back. Thank you, Merlin, you're back," her mum whispered into her hair as she hugged her back just as tight.

How could she have ever worried about reuniting with her family? Harry was right. This was her family, and they loved each other. Nothing would ever change that. She was a Weasley, would always be.

She shuffled inside and was seated at her old spot at the table, in between Ron and her dad, but a chair was pulled up next to her for Harry. And she realized that over the years, the table changed, grew.

Her mum and dad, Bill and Fleur to their right with their daughter Victoire, who wasn't a baby anymore at three-years-old. She sat between them, while one-year-old Dominique bounced on Bill's lap. The most precious smile on her face.

Ginny smiled.

Next to him was Charlie, who hadn't changed much. Face still weather-beaten and covered in freckles from his work in Romania.

Then there was Percy, and a quiet woman sitting next to him. He whispered something to her, and a soft smile came onto her face. It lit up her face. Ginny instantly liked her, and her own smile grew when she left the table and returned with a baby girl. Molly. Almost a year old.

George sat in his usual spot, and in Fred's chair was Angelina Johnson. They were engaged, she remembered seeing the ring on her finger at the Alliance Ball when she'd stolen the Golden Unicorn Horn months ago. George looked even better than he did then, the dark circles under his eyes lighter, not much shadows in his eyes. It hurt to remember she'd left him alone. He'd been surrounded by family, but not her. She'd been a bad sister, a bad daughter.

She gulped.

And finally, there was Ron and Hermione. Though she'd seen him more, the occasional meet-up, it was still so strange to see him married. She was happy for them, happy for her entire family. Their lives had so much love and happiness while hers had been so steeped in anger and the past. She'd loved being Fyrefox and the thrill that brought her. She'd love getting what her clients needed. She'd loved it all, but she'd been alone, only Neville and Luna with her.

Why had she run off alone? Why hadn't she huddled deeper with her family and licked her wounds together with them? How different things would've been if she stayed.

Harry's hand covered hers on her lap, and she looked down to realize it was clenched.

He smiled at her and pushed his glasses. It made her smile. Merlin, she loved him so much. She never would've been able to do this without him.

"I love you," she mouthed.

His smile grew.

"So, Ginny," George spoke, leaning forward. His hair covered his missing ear. It was easy to forget it wasn't there. "What have you been doing for the last five years?" he asked.

"Oh, you know, little things, here and there," she said with a smile. Retrieving items for clients wasn't a good answer. Her smile grew as they all stared at her.

"Working?" her dad asked.

"Helping people with things."

Harry's cough sounded suspiciously, at first, like a snort, but when she glanced over, he was adjusting his glasses.

"Where have you been?" Percy asked.

"I could've sworn I saw you at that Ministry ball months back when the Americans were here," George said.

Harry's hand tightened around hers on her lap, and she smacked it with the other, without looking at him. "Yeah, I was there. I went with Luna and Neville."

"Oh, how are they?" her mum asked. "I heard that Luna married Rolf Scamander."

"Yeah, they're good. Luna's found the perfect person in Rolf." She smiled, thinking about their home.

"Actually, that was the night I bumped into Harry," Ginny said and smiled at his glare.

"I didn't know that was when," Ron said, frowning.

Harry shot her a look, and she could read the 'Stop talking about it!' in his face. She fought down her laugh.

"I was surprised to see you," he spoke up quickly. "I was... searching for someone when I spotted you in Diagon Alley."

He was right, she should stop. She might not be Fyrefox anymore, but she had to find that thrill somehow.

She patted his arm. "I'm glad you found me." She smiled at him. She was so lucky he found her. "You saved me." More than he'd ever know.

Harry flushed and cleared his throat, looking away.

"Saved you?" Ron asked.

Shite. She forgot where they were.

"Metaphorically, Ron, of course," Hermione said, rolling her eyes, and Ginny laughed.

"Thank you, Harry," her mum spoke up.

The entire table turned to him.

His mouth opened then closed. Then he righted his glasses. "Mrs. Weasley –" He started, but she stopped him.

"You've done so much for us, but I don't – I – how can we ever repay you for bringing Ginny back to us?" Tears filled her eyes as she reached across Ginny and grabbed his arm.

Harry grabbed her mum's hand and squeezed, a soft smile on his lips. "You never have to thank me, Mrs. Weasley. You're family. And Ginny..." He stopped, looking at her.

Ginny's heart squeezed.

Her mum then grabbed her hand, drawing her attention away from Harry. "I can't believe you're finally home."

"I'm home," Ginny said softly and was overwhelmed by all the love of her family.

*

PART TWO! Thoughts? Are you all enjoying it? So, Ginny's home! Aw. What do you guys think about their reunion? There are still three more parts in this short story, so don't fret! Also, I love having Ginny and Harry play fight. Especially when others aren't sure what's going on. Their play on words on what happened when they ran into each other made me smile, and I got a little teary-eyed because of Fred and George. I will never, EVER, be over that. Do you still cry of Fred or are you normal? LMFAO

Alright, that's all for now.

Remember to stay safe and healthy and kind. Always <3