((I`m Still A Child))

[potter_fan122]

((Okay... please people, I want a serious, long RP. One where it takes more than fifteen seconds to respond to. I`d like it if the posts were rather long. AkA: No One-liners.))

The trees loomed over Stacey like ghosts over a grave. The air was a soft orange and purple shade only a sunset could achive. She slowly pondered through the large trees, her eyes on the break where she knew the trees would end. Her denim jeans were stained at the knees for resting a rare patch of grass. Her light grey jacket had a couple leaves on it, but she didn`t care. Her windswept hair felt like it was a mess, but that didn`t matter.

The date of the wedding was looming ever closer. That wasn`t a bad thing, but things had been going much to fast for Stacey`s liking. It wasn`t that she didn`t want to marry Aiden, no, she wanted that more than anything else she`d ever wanted in her life.

The thing that bugged her the most was the feeling that she could make mistakes anymore. It seemed like everything was so strict and exact. She felt tied down. She now had more responsibilities than ever, and she wasn`t too fond of that. Just yesterday she had sent a letter to her father explaining this. He had always had a sense for making things better. He had described his daughter as a cloud tied to a tree. His comparison had just made her feel even more adult-like.

Stacey stopped a few feet from the edge of the forest, her eyes frosting over with a deep shade of inky purple. "I`m still a child." She murmured softly, her voice about as loud as a breath. She realized only a few seconds after she spoke how true her words were. She was a child entering the adult world. Willingly. She wanted to enter that world because it would mean she could spend the rest of her life with Aiden, the person she loved.

Sometimes when she mentioned that she was getting married, a stranger that overheard would give her a dirty look then rush away. She hated that look; it made her feel unresponsible, which she wasn`t. She had always been a lot more responsible than anyone her age, she had even made friends with people twice her age.

She sighed. "I`m still a child." She repeated.

[Ginny Weasly]

Ginny hadn't hardy left the house for the past month, too busy taking care of her children. She loved staying home with them every day, but occasionally needed a break. So she had left her son and daughter with their father, with a promise to be back before bed time. Nw she wandered the forest of her youth, remembering.

This forest had been where she'd first learned of her psychic abilities. It had been the place where she had first seen death, where she had first cause one. It knew all her secrets, all her fears. It new her as well as she knew it, nothing was left unexposed.

It had seen her first marriage bloom, and then fail. It had seen her first husband hit her the first time, leaving purplish bruises all over the left side of her face. It had seen her fight him back once, then several times.

The forest had seen her and Xaver fall in love. It had seen their love grow. It had seen Xaver's sister's death. It had been there for every moment since she had first stepped foot onto Hogwarts ground, more than ten years ago.

It was still a place she went to.

And as the red haired woman walked, she sang. A silly tune, something she sang to her children. It was full of happiness, full of carelessness. She was reverting back to her original childish attitude. Everything was ok as long as you wanted it to be.
She knew it wasn't really like that. But it was a fun lie, something she had told herself millions of times. Even when she'd been hurting people.

Now she spotted Stacey, lifting up a hand in a lazy wave and a small smile flitting across her face.
"Hi Stacey."

[potter_fan122]

A child. Usually defined as one under a certain age. Did age really matter? Of course not, at least it shouldn`t. It meant next to nothing to Stacey, a seventeen year old getting married to a ninteen year old. She had heard the similar speech from many a stranger and relative.

Distantly, she heard a soft tune; someone was singing. She realized she had been paying very little attention to his surroundings and she snapped back to where she was standing. She heard the song get closer and the words became more distinct. The voice that went along with the words was unmistakable; Stacey would recognize it almost anywhere. It had been the voice that had taught her so much. The voice that had sometimes seemed more like a mother to her than her biological parent.

"Hello." Stacey replied, lifting her hand as Ginny had in a simple wave. She suddenly felt like a weight had been lifting off of her shoulders, but she also felt more tired-- an effect she blamed on stress, instead of planning.

[Ginny Weasly]

Ginny smiled, stepping closer. Around and over fallen tree limbs, through brush. Nothing seemed to bother her at all, at least not in this forest. She stopped within a few feet of Stacey, still smiling. It had been months since she had seen her last. Ginny realized that as spring swiftly approached, so did summer, and soon many of her former students would be graduating from Hogwarts.
Something she had never done.

Although Ginny had stopped singing, the tune of the song seemed to continue. There was no music, no words, and yet the feeling that one could hear a song was left. The way Ginny's smile was relaxed and at ease heightened this imaginary sense.

"I simply love spring...not as much as fall, mind you. But spring is most definitely on my list of good seasons."
Ginny hated the cold. She was a warm person who like warm, if not hot, weather. This was strange, seeing as how her husband loved the cold weather and excelled greatly in it. She needed the heat, and was often cold even when most were warm.

She laughed softly, wrapping her arms around herself and squeezing. Her black hoodie seemed to hold in the heat from the sun, keeping her warm all over.

[Sky]

Today is such a lovely day. Thought Sky as she sat perched up on a thick branch in a tall oak tree. Her long shiny black hair was almost perfectly straight except at the ends, where they were just barely curled. She had spent so much more time in the forest than what she used to, just to think. Several times a week, she'd wander to the forest when she needed to think. Or perhaps to just clear her thoughts. To relieve herself of the ongoing stress that overwhelmed here beneath those castle walls. This was her sanctuary. 

It was amazing how warm the air seemed to be now. Just a month ago, it was snowing. The air so bitter that you're cheeks would become red from the wind. Now Sky could actually come outside in a t-shirt and shorts, like she wore now. She hated being enclosed in a jacket. And jeans tend to get old.

She took a deep breath of the fresh air, filling her lungs, and then slowly exhaled. She could smell the pine. She put her hand to her chin, as if in thought, and gently swayed her legs to her own rhythm. She could hear voices around her, but the conversation wasn't that clear. But she could make out who's voice was who's. Stacey and Ginny were the ones talking.

Sky considered jumping down to greet the two. She hadn't seen Ginny in a long time and was curious to know about her new baby. And Stacey to see how the plans were coming for her wedding. But she chose to remain where she was. She would come down when the time was right.

[potter_fan122]

Stacey`s smile grew as she watched Ginny, unaware of Sky in the tree, although sensing many living forms all around her.

"Fall is my favorite season, too. I just hate it when it has to get cold afterwords." Her frown flickered downward for a moment. "How have you been?" She asked, the obvious only now hitting her. "How`s your family?"

She had to swallow after she said that as the reason she was out in the trees to begin with wriggled its way back into her memory. She would be her own family soon, no longer as close to her parents as she used to be. She shook her head slightly, her eyes toward the ground rather than on Ginny. I`m still a child. She reminded herself, the words becoming almost a chant.

[Ginny Weasly]

Ginny smiled as Stacey asked about her family. It set off a chain reaction in her features, lighting up her eyes and smoothing her brow with ease. Something that originally only Xaver had seen happen. She easily looked five years younger than usual, which would put a guess around 12.

"You wouldn't believe how quickly Cody has adapted to being a big brother!" She gushed happily. Her cheeks grew pink in her moment of elation, "And Xaver is such a good father, even for knowing not a thing about babies. Sometimes I sit back and think, 'oh my god, this is really my family'."

She shook her head, flushing with slight embarrassment.
"I'm sorry," she laughed softly, "but I really have trouble realizing that I actually have this. That for once since I was a small child, I am truly happy."

It was true that Ginny had faced much hardship in her short life. Her childhood had ended the day her brother Ron had entered Hogwarts, and had only gotten worse. Her first marriage had been political by all means, and whatever care had been there at the beginning had been lost. He life had been hard until this point.

[potter_fan122]

Stacey`s smile grew as Ginny went on. She was extremely glad that Ginny was happy, she deserved it after all.

"That`s great! I`m so glad that you guys are all settled and everything. We`ve really missed you here, but I`m so relieved that you like it at home." She stopped herself before she could say 'I figured you would get bored at home all of the time.' She shook her head, glaning at the ground again.

As Ginny talked about her own family, it also made her situation lighter. It made ehr more optimistic about her own future.

[Ginny Weasly]

Ginny wagged her finger at Stacey, "I know what you are thinking, Stacey."

She was a powerful psychic still.

"I haven't been and won't be bored." She grinned, chuckling softly, "This is the happiest time in my life. For once I'm not fighting some bad guy who wants to kill me and everyone around me. For once I'm not in charge of two thousand student. Which is supposedly the count of the school. And for once, I get to go home and have dinner with my husband and children and feel completely and utterly safe."

Never mind that it was her own magic that held the protective spells around their home. Xaver had added his own as well, and it had been only through their constant upkeep that the family was so far safe. But Ginny didn't seem to care.

"Besides, how bored can I get watching my children grow and mature every day? Getting Cody to school every morning is all the life threatening adventure I need."

[potter_fan122]

Stacey gave a shy smile, embarassed that Ginny had heard that. "I know, it`s just it`s hard for me to imagine you sitting down and not fighting the bad guys all of the time. It`s like finding out your favorite superhero plays golf in his free time." She said as a rough translation of what she meant.

Her smile pulled at the corners of her mouth and her eyes flickered a mischevious green.

"After all, how often have I seen you sit down at all?"

[Sky]

Sky listened intently to the two talk, now more in tune to their conversation. Hearing about such happiness made Sky smile a little to herself. She fiddled with a loose string on her shirt, not realizing that was leaning a little to far back. As she plucked the string off of her shirt, she fell backwards, practically sliding down the tree and falling flat on her back. Leave to her to make such an awkward appearance.

"Er...hiya guys." She said while laughing and rubbing her shoulder. "What's up?" Not me. She thought and smiled.

[Ginny Weasly]

"I..." Ginny paused, actually trying to think about that. She didn't sit down a lot. It was out of habit, she supposed. So many of her friends and family had never needed to sit down. Their constant power kept them from tiring. She had simply grown accustomed to always moving.

"Maybe that one time." She didn't specify, but she was sure she'd sat near Stacey at one point or another. Her smile shifted though as she processed what Stacey had said first.

Superhero?

"Surely you are not comparing me to a superhero?" She seemed almost horrified, "I'm nothing like a superhero!"
Before Stacey could answer, though, Sky seemingly fell from the sky above, and Ginny hardly moved. Her mouth twitched though, into a small smile.

"Hi Sky." Ginny said breezily. Sky's appearance had not surprised her at all. It seemed she had known the girl was there all along.

Now that she was no longer pregnant, Ginny's powers had returned to normal. Which was above normal for most people.

[potter_fan122]

Stacey smiled as Ginny thought, and her smile only widened as her old teacher realized the comparison she had made. "Yes, you are somewhat of a superhero." She smiled, just as Sky fell. She flinched back instinctively, but laughed when she saw who it was.

"Hey Sky, haven`t you learned yet that the sky is the limit for you?" She teased.

[Sky]

Sky stuck out her tongue at Stacey and then grinned, standing up slowly and dusted off herself, a few brown and green spots now on her white shirt from the dirt and grass. She ran a hand through her now crazy black hair in an attempt to get it back to it's original state, if not somewhat identical.

"Never fall out of a tree. You end up looking like one." She said with a big grin. She looked at Ginny. "Hiya Ginny! How's the baby doing?" Sky had known that Ginny had had the baby anyways because Cody had brought it up. But Sky dared not mention it, for he had brought up other things. So she tried her best to block it from her mind.

((My posting is so crappy today. I've been getting writers' block a lot these days!))

[Ginny Weasly]

((It's ok. The best way is to work through it.))

A look of annoyance flashed over Ginny's face at Stacey's insisted comparison. Superheros only hurt bad guys. They never killed, especially not innocents. Ginny hadn't always been so caring about life.
But a grin replaced it immediately at Sky's question.

"She's amazing! Wait till you guys see her, she's beautiful!" Ginny was back to gushing, unable to contain her excitement. "She's just like Cody was. Hardly ever cries, takes to new things astonishingly quickly, and oh my, you can just tell how smart she is. And her wings are gorgeous."

Ginny's amazement with her children was something she would never get over. Although it would quiet a bit as they both got older, she would continue to be awed by them. By the fact that those two wonderful perfect little angels were her children. Her and Xaver's. Her dreams of long ago had come true.

In her excitement, Sky's obvious concealment of her thoughts slipped past Ginny. She practically didn't even notice it.