crookshanks_2003
October 27th, 2003, 12:20 am
:welcome: Okay, some of you may remember this fic! Well, it's back, but it's been altered. Please read it and review. Most don't. :grumble: Especially appreciated would be comments on what to improve on. :agree: Yeppers. Well, that's about it.
Disclaimer: Not mine. J.K. Rowlings. Yep, Uh-huh.
16-year old Ginny Weasley lay stretched out on her bed, tapping her chin with her pencil and wondering whether or not to add 'Ron was a prat' to her diary when the subject of her pondering came into her room and leaned on the door frame. Ginny quickly shut her diary and cast a fierce look at her older brother, taking in her mothers impersonation of a saber tooth tiger.
"Yes?" she asked, impatient to get back to writing in her diary. Note to self, she thought. Add 'Ron was a prat' to Diary. Ron seemed to be horribly disgusted with something he had in his hand, and when he tossed it to her, she found out why.
"Hmmm, Dress Robes, eh?" Ginny asked raising an eyebrow, "Don't you like the ones that you just got?" Ron screwed up his face. "Nope. You must have new dress robes, because yours are getting too 'short'" He said, using his fingers to emphasize the point he was trying to make. Ginny just nodded, but Ron was still talking. "Honestly, that woman thinks that ever since dad got that HUGE raise, we need new everything! Well I know you'll miss me, but Fred and George challenged me to a chess match! Hafta go! Bye!" he said waving; his body already half down the stairs. Ginny watched his gangly form disappear. Putting aside her diary, she opened up the catalog and flipped through it, occasionally muttering comments like 'Ugh', or 'Too flashy'.
She was just about ready to put away the magazine when she came across a pair of dress robes that suited her nicely. They were plain black, with a tight bodice and waist, and a long flowing skirt. The buttons were iron, and each had a small cat imprinted in the middle. The sleeves went past the tips of the fingers, and they had a hood on the back, embroidered on the edges with gold. As she had put the diary down, she'd recalled seeing a red marker. After searching for a minute or two, she triumphantly held up a big red permanent marker. Popping off its scarlet cap, she placed a big fat (and slightly lopsided) x next to the set of robes.
As she placed the cap back on the marker and put it away, Molly Weasley's voice rang through the silence. "Ginny Dear! Get ready, we're leaving for Diagon alley in 15 minutes!" Ginny called back down the stairs "Okay Mum!" and dashed towards her dresser. After pulling out a few shirts, she settled on a red and gold shirt, and going a couple drawers down plucked out a black pair of pants. After grabbing a set of black robes from her closet, she sat down in front of her vanity. Gently pulling a wide tooth comb through her long auburn hair, she fought through the tangles. After using a bristle brush to soften it and add shine, she pulled off her pajamas and slipped into the clothes she had laid out on her bed. Checking her hair one last time, she slid into a pair of sandals conveniently placed by her door and ran out the bedroom door.
When she reached the kitchen, she found the whole family waiting at the fireplace. As she skidded to a stop she realized Ron wasn't there. A few seconds after she realized this, Ron came running down the stairs, his hair smooth and shiny and to Ginny's observation, wearing his best looking clothes, an outfit that consisted of black pants, a black turtleneck, and black robes. Ginny had never seen her brother look so good.
When Ron had gotten into the kitchen, Molly held out the flowerpot containing the Floo powder to Ginny, and she took a handful letting it sift through her fingers. When she had the desired amount, she stepped into the spacey fireplace and threw the powder onto the floor. As the cool green flames sprang up around her, she uttered only two words.
"Diagon Alley"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ginny slid through the grate at Diagon Alley covered in soot. As she stood up, she started to brush off some of it, and was completely oblivious to the pair of shining black shoes coming closer and closer. With a startling bump, Ginny and whoever owned those shiny black shoes connected, and Ginny's eyes flew upward, past the black slacks and sweater, past the sparkling green and silver Head Boy badge, up to Draco Malfoy's cold silver eyes. Ginny jumped away, all the while rubbing her stinging elbow that had scraped against the ground, which, as she realized as she pulled her hand away, was bleeding.
Draco's eyes turned a softer shade, and he held out a hand. Ginny willingly took it and as she pulled herself up, Draco's free hand flew to his pocket and he pulled out his wand. Ginny shrank back, but he pulled her back and spoke his first words. "Relax, I'm trying to help."
Ginny nodded meekly, and breathlessly said, "I'm sorry for causing you all this trouble!" Draco only shook his head and muttered "Healao". Ginny's pain immediately ceased, and when she snuck a peek, she saw that her skin was completely mended. She was getting ready to pull away when Draco yanked her back, but the result of that was her falling. He picked her up before she hit the ground, and their noses touched when her feet touched the street again. They both looked at each other with widened eyes. Draco closed his and leaned in, Ginny doing the same. As their lips met, it seemed to Ginny that fireworks exploded. But as soon as they pulled away, a hand rested on her shoulder. Ginny whipped her head around and all she saw was a pair of narrowed Hazel eyes. "Ron!"
Ron was furious. Anybody with a brain can find that out. "What- are- you- doing- with- my- sister?! he asked enunciating every word, each one boiling. Draco was his old self, sneering. "We kissed, anyone could see that." Ron's hand was already in his robe pocket and he whipped out his wand. "Tarantellegra!" Draco's feet started dancing, and with his own wand he shouted "Expelliarmus!" Ron's wand landed 10 feet away and he himself flew 2 feet back, landing him on his back. Ginny was taking her own wand out and pointed it at both of them yelling all the while. "Both of you STOP ACTING LIKE CHILDREN! Ron, act your age! And Draco, same with you! We're old enough to talk this out rationally!" Behind her, a few people cheered, and she looked behind her. She found the rest of the family standing there, along with Hermione and Harry.
Blushing, Ginny flicked her wand at Draco and Ron. "Expelliarmus!" Both wands flew towards her outstretched hand and landed neatly. "Finite Incantato!" She yelled at Ron. Tossing them both back their wands, she spoke calmly. "No more fighting, or you get to see how many hexes I can do. Now, scram." Both boys went in opposite directions, stomping.
Molly came over and gave her youngest child a hug. Oh, I am so proud of you, Ginny Weasley! Now, come along, Dress Robes!" Ginny got ready to follow her when Harry pulled her back. "That was really something you did there! Hermione and I came and saw all of you fighting. But the way you handled it!" He reached down and squeezed her hand. Just then, Molly yelled again "GINNY!" Ginny grinned apologetically at Harry and ran after her mother. Together they walked in silence till they reached Madame Malkin's robe shop. As soon as they stepped inside, a fussy looking old witch with hair as frizzy as Professor Sprout's forced Ginny on to a stool. Holding her hand out impatiently, Ginny fished the catalog out of her robe's pocket and handed it to Madame Malkin. The witch took a tape measurer and took her measurements. Ginny grinned. Maybe today would be a great day after all!
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Ginny skipped happily out of Madame Malkin's with the bag containing her dress robes clutched in her hand. She had the robes of her dreams, and the world was at ease when she saw something she most definitely did not want to see.
Draco.
Talking.
To.
Pansy.
Parkinson.
Suddenly Ginny felt glum, and she looked at the talking couple. Pansy had slimmed up in the last couple years, and she had done something with her face. Instead of the pug-like look she had adopted, her face was a beautiful round shape. Her beady eyes had gotten bigger, and the light shade of brown that they were was revealed. Next to her, Ginny felt fat and ugly. Her hair felt greasy and limp, while her skin seemed dull and flabby.
Now Pansy was laughing at something Draco said. Touching his arm with a slender hand, she laughed, sounding like a tinkling bell. Tears were welling up in the corners of her eyes. She wiped them away but they kept on coming. Covering her face with her hands, she ran past the duo. She didn't know how long she ran, but when she at last looked at her surroundings, she found herself in a dark alley. And unknown to her, a certain blonde was excusing himself from a brunette beauty to go look for a crying redhead.
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Draco. All Ginny could think about was Draco. She was lost in a dark alley and all she could think of was Draco Malfoy. If she wasn't upset she would've laughed. Looking around at where she was, she was scared. People were selling things like toenails and Dragon scales. Tucking herself into a dark niche, she brought her knees up to her chin. Crying her heart out for Draco Malfoy. The next time she looked up, it was when a gentle hand touched her on the shoulder. Lifting her eyes up, she saw gray eyes bearing into her own. She sniffed and he crawled into her dark niche and gathered her up in his arms, murmuring soft words to her. She snuggled into him, and he held on tighter, occasionally kissing the top of her head. He was the first one to speak. Gently, he asked "Why are you here?" Ginny choked, but managed to find words. "You, talking to Parkinson and the like, dating her."
Draco was taken aback. "We aren't dating. Actually, I was watching you when Pansy bore down on me. I'm sorry I upset you." Ginny sat up and for the second time that day their noses touched. This time Ginny leaned in and their lips met. The kiss affirmed what Ginny already knew, and she knew she was in love with him. All of a sudden, Draco pulled back. "What?" she asked, confused. He raked a hand through his perfectly gelled blond hair. "We can't go on like this! I'm a Slytherin! You're a Gryffindor! We can't do this!" Ginny felt a tear roll down her cheek. Draco wiped it off and kissed her sweetly. Then he stood up and walked away from her.
Ginny lost track of time and she felt so depressed. Just as she was thinking of gray eyes for the umpteenth time, a pair of voices caught her ear. Peeking around the corner she saw two familiar heads. Ron! And Harry! She stood up wobbly and called out weakly. "Ron? Harry?" Both heads turned, and Ron ran to her, but Harry got there first. Ginny threw her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder. "I got lost, and there were people-so many people-selling strange things!" Then the exhaustion of the day caught up with her, and her arms went limp, causing her body to fall to the ground. The last thing she remembered before falling into a dead faint was a pair of strong arms picking her up and holding her close
"Ginny? Wake up Ginny! Ginny!"
A voice cut through Ginny's mind and groggily she opened her eyes, hoping, wishing they were Draco's. They weren't. They were green, faintly touched by black bangs.
Harry was holding her hand and sitting beside her. "Are you okay?" He asked, concern evident in his voice. Ginny nodded. It was then that she realized that they were in a position where Harry's eyes were an inch or so away from hers. She leaned over and kissed him. His eyes widened and Ginny almost laughed out loud. Pulling away, she grinned and said, "See, if I wasn't okay, I wouldn't have the guts to do that." Harry nodded and then a twin of Ginny's smile appeared on his own face. "Oh, you are SO gonna pay for that!" He tickled Ginny's side and she giggled.
Just then, Hermione burst in and put her hands on her hips.
"What is going on in here?!" she yelled, frowning. Ginny blushed along with Harry, and he sat back down and put his hands on his lap. "Herm, we were just having fun!" He whined. Hermione shook her head. "Nope, Ginny needs her rest!"
Ginny had to protest at this. “I feel FINE!”
Hermione wagged her finger at her. "You THINK you feel fine. But I read a book-" All of a sudden a hand closed over her mouth and whatever else she had to say was now muffled. A familiar freckly face peeked over her head and grinned maliciously. Just then Ron pulled his hand back, looking as disgusted as he did when he had held the Dress Robe catalog. As saliva dripped down from his hand, Ginny realized that Hermione had licked his hand, and she didn't blame him for looking disgusted. Hermione just huffed at Ron and flipped her long bushy brown hair over her shoulder.
Harry took her hand, and walked her out the door, yelling loudly over his shoulder, "Why don't we just leave the FLIRTING COUPLE alone!" Ginny covered her mouth to stifle a giggle. But she widened her eyes as Harry silently led her to the door. Shushing her, he walked over to where her Mum and Dad were sitting. Asking Dad something, she watched Harry explain his reasons, but Mum jumped up and made a definite no. Dad calmed her and spoke again to Harry. A smile lit his features and he thanked them, walking back to her. "Don't ask, because I want it to be a surprise." He said, as soon as Ginny opened her mouth.
He walked over to the shed that they kept the brooms in and grabbed his Firebolt. He motioned her to hop on and she tentatively got on, never riding something so expensive in her life. Harry got on in front of her. "Hold on to my waist, and don't let go cause we'll be going fast!" Ginny didn't need to be told twice. Clasping her hands around his waist, She ducked her head and waited for the Firebolt to go into the air.
Harry kicked off and Ginny felt that wonderful sensation of going into flight. She didn't even bother asking Harry a question because she knew it would be drowned out by the whoosh of air. Instead, she buried her head into the back of Harry's robes and waited for the landing.
It was very smooth landing, and when Ginny looked around, she saw that they were in a grassy meadow covered in flowers, despite the fact that it was almost fall. Her eyes were bright when she looked at Harry. "Now will you tell me what is up?" His own eyes were mischievous and he covered her eyes, leading her down what felt like a path. As they walked on, she heard a rumbling noise. When he at last removed his hands, she found herself in front of a waterfall that filled a small lake. But that wasn't all. The most extraordinary thing about it was that mixed into the clear blue, there was a mixture of rainbow streaks, evenly placed throughout the water.
Ginny ran towards Harry and hugged him. She could feel his nose rest itself in her Auburn hair, inhaling deeply. Pulling away, she held him at arms length and raised an eyebrow. Harry looked sheepish and Ginny shook her head. "Why was your nose in my hair?" Harry put his hands in his pockets. "Um, it smelled nice?" He faltered. "I'm so-" Ginny broke him off just then by leaning her back against his chest and tilting her head back. Harry dipped his head down and the two shared a long and sensuous kiss.
As they broke away, Harry looked surprised. "Wow." Was all he could say. Ginny slipped out of her sandals and slipped her feet into the water. To her surprise, it was warm, not cool.
Slipping off her robe, she rolled up her jeans so they were at shorts length and went in knee deep. "Come on Harry, It feels wonderful! Harry ripped off his shirt and pointing his wand at the hem of his jeans, muttered Reducto. Instantly, his jeans shortened themselves up to shorts length. Ginny caught the drift and waded to shore, starting to undress as she went. Harry just gaped at her. "What are you doing?" He asked dumbly. Ginny shot him a look. "I'm obviously taking my clothes off." She said haughtily. The taking off of her shirt had revealed a bikini top, and she glared at him venomously. "I always wear a swimsuit during the summer." Starting on her pants, she had them removed in a minutes time.
Yanking Harry's hand to follow her, she jumped into that beautiful pool of water. Harry followed her and they splashed each other for some time. Eventually it got boring and Ginny crawled back up on to the bank. Harry plopped next to her and they laid in silence until Ginny noticed there was something different. The sky seemed darker, and something just didn't feel right.
She tapped Harry's arm and pointed at the sky. His vivid green eyes widened and he gathered up their stuff and held it under his arm. Yanking Ginny's hand, he pulled out his wand and muttered something. Their clothing was covered by a clear bubble, and Harry pulled her through the water. Using his wand again, a shield covered their heads and he led her under the waterfall, and into a small cave. Throwing their stuff aside he grabbed her face with his hands and spoke, rushed "I don't have time to explain so listen to me. I am about to do something that will unsettle you, but you must go along with it for our sake. Am I understood?" Ginny nodded. "Good."
Harry leaned forward and kissed her. Ginny felt a rush of love flow through her, and she sent her own flow back at Harry. She wanted to break away, but she found she couldn't. Just then, she felt the cave go dark and cold, but with another intense kiss from Harry, which she guessed was on purpose, her attention was distracted to him. She opened her eyes and looked into Harry's green ones, which to her surprise weren't green. They were blue, and his black hair had turned a sandy brown. A wisp of her own hair crossed her vision, and it's Auburn was turned to a blonde. It was also shorter than normal. As the darkness left the room, Harry pulled away and Ginny could hear birdcalls again. Sunlight streamed through the waterfall.
Slowly, Harry's eyes went from blue to green, and her own hair was growing longer again, and turning Auburn. When they were completely transformed back to normal, Ginny placed her hands on her hips."What just happened? Where are we?" She demanded. Harry sighed and sat down, Indian-style.
Ginny sat down next to him. Harry began. "This place is called Lake of Love. Only when a person is in love with another can they come here." Just then he blushed red, and Ginny knew what he meant. She smiled encouragingly. He sighed. "What just happened was one of Voldemort's supporters entered here. Two souls can also hide if they are truly in love. That's what I did with you. I'm glad it worked. It changed our appearance and made us look like ordinary teens kissing. But we should head back to the burrow." He undid the spell on their clothing, and on his jeans so they were back to normal.
When they were ready, they flew back to the burrow. Putting the broom away, they walked into the door holding hands. Mum was sitting in a chair by the door, and had probably been there the whole time. When she spoke, you could tell she was trying hard not to sound frantic. "W-what took so long?" Harry looked grim. As he went to explain that to her, Hermione came jogging down the stairs.
"Where have you been? We asked your mum, but she said she wouldn't tell. So we looked every where, but we still couldn't find you!" She looked completely frazzled, and she and Ron probably had looked for her. Ginny sighed and took her hand, pulling her up the stairs as she went. Oh boy, this was going to be a long day.
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"So, let me get this straight. Harry swept you away and took you to this unknown place called Lake of Love. Wait, I think I read about it in Scotland's Most Enchanted Places and Where to Find Them. But the section wasn't very big. In fact, all they had was a few sentences and a picture of the most beautiful meadow I had ever seen! Wildflowers of every color of the rainbow! But back to the point. So you get to this place, Lake of Love, and stay splashing in the water, then get out and look at the sky. Harry notices that something bad will happen, so he-" Hermione left off. Ginny picked up where she had left off. "So he casts a protective charm around me and him, and all of our stuff, takes me under the waterfall into a cave I didn't even know was there! And then he-he-he-" She to trailed off, being slightly hesitant. Even though Hermione was her best friend, she didn't feel comfortable telling Harry's best friend what they did in that cave. "And then-" Hermione pressed eagerly.
Ginny sighed. She was already in this deep. No harm in going on a bit. "We kissed. And it was so wonderful, and Oh! It's so impossible to describe!"
Ginny felt guilty. She liked Harry, but his kisses were nothing compared to Draco's. But still, Hermione nodded, obviously unaware of the guilt written all over Ginny's face.
"Now, what did you and Ron do while we were gone?" Ginny asked, and Hermione blushed. "We looked for you of course!" Ginny shook her head. "No, I mean when Harry and I just left." She corrected, raising her eyebrow. Hermione opened her mouth and nothing came out. Going bright red, her friend shook her head. Just as Ginny was about to ask again, she noticed that as Hermione had shaken her head, her bushy brown hair had altered its direction and was now exposing her slender neck. A red something was there, and Ginny could have laughed. The perfect clue, she thought wickedly. Pointing at the incriminating evidence, she raised her eyebrow for the second time in 5 minutes.
"And this is?" she asked pointedly. Hermione went, if possible, even redder. Whispering so quietly Ginny had to lean in to hear her, she said, "We tried to keep it a secret." Ginny held an inward laugh. "It'll be hard for you to do that if you walk about with those displayed on your neck." She said with a straight face. Hermione also put on a stony face, and they both stared each other down, and in a short period of time, they were both laughing hysterically.
When they were both sane enough to talk, Ginny abruptly changed the conversation topic, before she found herself spilling her feelings about Draco. She had already spared enough information, and maybe another day she would tell Hermione, but not today. Definitely not today.
Draco Malfoy lay on his large green and silver bedspread, playing with a gold trinket. Moving his long and slender fingers over the bumps and knobs on it, he thought for the billionth time since he got back from Diagon Alley about the happenings of the Weasley girl. He, Draco Malfoy, was a Slytherin and should not be thinking about the comings and goings of a Gryffindor.
But, he couldn't help but feel different around the Weasley girl. He scoffed. He didn't even know her name. Raking a hand through his ungelled blonde hair, he pushed the stray strands out of his face. He thought of the girl's smile, huge and beaming when she was around her friends. He thought of her long wavy Auburn hair, different from the rest of her family's flaming red.
All of a sudden he felt guilt. He had hurt her twice in one day, and hadn't even apologized. True, he had kissed her, but thankfully he had covered up by fighting her brother. But after the second kiss down Knockturn Alley, he had run away from her, and talked to Parkinson. His guilt topped as he remembered her lifeless body being carried out of the alley, wishing he could have been the one carrying her, not Potter. And yet, through this whirlwind of feelings, he had managed to laugh convincingly enough for Parkinson, snickering at how weak she was. Draco wished he could have been able to act as falsely around the girl herself, but he found himself doing kind things, and even going as far as kissing her!
He mentally punched himself in the head. How could he have been so stupid? He knew she liked him, but what girl at Hogwarts didn't? With his tall figure and muscular body, every girl he passed gave him their eyes. He even remembered Granger looking at him once or twice. But the worst part of the situation was that he knew that he liked her back. Heck! He didn't like her! He loved her.
Ginny sat at dinner later that day, talking animatedly to Hermione, who was spending the rest of the summer with them, when Harry tapped her on the shoulder. Turning towards him, she wore a questioning look, and he motioned for her to follow him. She stood up and gave her apologies to Hermione, as he was already taking her hand and leading her away from the table. Stepping across the soft grass, she felt him take a firmer grip on her hand, and she sped up to keep up with his fast pace. Stealing a glance at his face, she saw it was determined, and he was obviously concentrating on something very hard.
They walked for several minutes and eventually wandered on to a worn path that led into a forest. They walked for many minutes more and just when Ginny thought her legs couldn't take it any more; he stopped abruptly and sat down on a fallen tree that made a perfect bench. Ginny sat next to him. "What's wrong? Why did you lead me all the way out here?" She asked softly, covering his hand with her own. Harry seemed to be shaking, and she was about ready to ask again when he answered her, his voice oddly strained. "I led you out here to tell you something very important. I, well, ever since 5th year, when you told me you were over me, I gradually began to feel different around you."
Ginny was suddenly wary. "What sort of different?"
"The kind of different that makes me feel so happy around you." Ginny pulled away from his startling gaze, and she got up, knowing what he was about to say. "Maybe we should go back to the burrow." Her voice was oddly distant, and she started to walk down the path when Harry pulled her back. "No, wait, I need to tell you this!" Ginny looked back into his pleading eyes, and she seemed to get lost in the brilliant green that they were. Numbly she nodded. After she had sat back down, he took her hands into his and forced her to look him in the eye. "I've been wanting to ask you this since earlier. After we returned from the Lake of Love, I knew it was final. Ginny, I love you with all my heart, I really do, and I'd really like to be your boyfriend.
Ginny was shocked. Like, certainly, but to love?
"Are you sure you aren't exaggerating?"
"Positive."
"Well, Harry, I like you too, but I'm not sure about love. I mean, I really was getting over you. And now for you to say that-" Ginny's sentence was cut off by the gentle touching of hers and Harry's lips. Ginny responded slowly, at first just sitting there, but as Harry cupped her face in his hands, she deepened the kiss further. When they both were done, Ginny thought, Harry is a really good kisser. However, as an afterthought she added, But not as good as Draco.
3 weeks later. . .
"Harry, come on, we have to pack!" Ginny looked down into the green eyes of her boyfriend Harry Potter. Planting a quick kiss on his lips, she jumped off his bed and ran back to her own room, where Hermione was already packing up her trunk. Ginny's lay on her bed, already half full with clothes. Ginny looked at Hermione and thought of her feelings with Draco. After just standing there, thinking whether or not to tell, for 5 minutes, she concluded her thoughts.
"Hermione?"
"Hmmm?"
"I need to tell you something."
This got Hermione's attention. Hurrying over, she sat on the bed. Ginny sat next to her, and soon she had blurted out the whole story of what happened in Diagon Alley. Hermione just sat there for a moment, stunned by what she had just heard. Then she sat up, grinning wildly.
Ginny had good experience with Hermione when she was this way. Step one: Be very careful,
"Why are you smiling?" Ginny asked cautiously. This lit up Hermione's face for a while.
"We have to make Draco want you! And before you ask, no, I'm not upset about this. In fact, I'm happy for you! You can do better than Harry. To tell you the truth," she said, lowering her voice, "I used to like him too. That was when I started going out with Ron. But back to making Draco want you! I can give you a complete makeover. I know I'm not the type, but I learned how from Parvati and Lavender last year at the 6th and 7th year sleepover. Well, come on! And don't worry! Your mum said that she'll use magic to pack the rest of our stuff up if we just want to play around!"
Ginny found herself feeling happy and cheerful. Getting up and sitting down at the vanity, where Hermione was already waiting, she felt glad to have all this lifted from her chest.
Ginny opened her eyes and gazed at her reflection in the mirror. Hermione had done a wonderful job, but she hadn't let her watch. Now she looked at the stranger in front of her, the stranger she knew was herself.
A gold and red glitter adorned her eyes, and a pale pink blush that almost blended into her skin topped off her cheeks. Pinkish red was painted onto her lips, and Herm had painted her nails in a pattern of red and gold. But what she couldn't get over was
her hair. Mum had cast a spell of shielding so that they could use magic, and Hermione had taken advantage of it. Two bright red and gold streaks, one streak for each color hung on both sides of her face. The rest of her hair was piled in a bun towards the back of her hair. Now Hermione was laying out an outfit for her to wear.
Forcing her to turn around so she could only get a glimpse of red and blue, Hermione whipped out her wand and pointed it at Ginny's back. Muttering an incantation, Ginny felt her comfortable ducky pajamas disappear and they were replaced by some of Hermione's clothes.
Looking down at her appearance, Ginny saw she was wearing a denim miniskirt and a red halter-top. Red sandals with a few gold trails of glitter on them took care of her feet. Ginny squealed with glee. She looked perfect! Now she turned to Hermione.
"Time for me to do you!" Before she could protest, she had already performed the spell that shut a person's eyes and pushed Hermione into the seat.
First she painted Hermione's nails. It took her a while to choose which color, but she chose a lovely swirl of lavender and pale blue. Immediately after she started to work on the makeup, choosing a pale bluish-purple for the eyes. For the lips and cheeks she decided to repeat what Hermione had done for her, doing them a pinkish tint. Finally she was left with that mass of hair. First she performed a straightening charm, taming it to a straightness that actually didn't look that bad on her. Choosing to put it up in a high ponytail, she transformed the part hanging down into long curls that reached down to her shoulders. Swiveling the chair around so she could see the full length of the masterpiece she had created. Removing the spell she had cast onto Hermione, she watched happily as Hermione inspected every inch of her appearance.
While Hermione was doing this, Ginny was creeping over to the dresser and after rummaging for a while, settled on something that would go well with the make-up she was wearing.
As Hermione stood up and turned around obediently, Ginny realized she didn't know the spell to change clothing.
"Hermione?"
"Transformus Clothis."
"Thanks!"
"Transformus Clothis," Ginny muttered, her wand pointed at the small of her friends back. Instantly the bluish-lavender tank-top, light purple sandals and pale blue shorts bedecked Hermione, and the black silk pajama's she wore appeared next to her on the floor. Hermione too shone with genuine happiness when she looked at herself in the mirror. "Oh my god!," Ginny whispered as she turned her head at every angle. "We forgot something!" Hermione too looked at her reflection. "Jewelry!" They cried out simultaneously. Together, the two opened her door and crept out in the hall, quietly tiptoeing into Mum's room, where they quickly shut the door behind them. Mum quickly turned around, and cried out when she saw their makeovers.
"Oh my gosh! My little girl looks all grown up! And Hermione looks so pretty-"
"Mum, could we borrow some jewelry. To finish our outfits?" Mum nodded, and motioned for the girls to sit down on her long quilted bedspread while she fetched her small wooden jewelry chest. Bringing it back, she set it down next to Ginny and then she too sat down. As she opened the chest, Ginny and Hermione both gasped with delight at the wonders inside that small box.
"Oh, Mrs. Weasley! You could make a fortune if you sold these!"
Mum shook her head. "I could never sell these, my dear. These are my family heirlooms and have been passed down for many a generation. In due time these will become yours Ginny. Now, I have two sets that will look perfect on you two!" After fishing through the box for a few minutes, she brought out a small red and amber box. Peering deep into the depths of the wooden box, (the little box must have been magicked, because it was a lot deeper than it appeared) Ginny saw that underneath all the odds and ends, there were several different colored boxes, which she assumed were sets. She was proved correct when she opened her small box and pulled out a ruby and amber bracelet, which she fastened around her wrist. Pulling out the next item, a pair of Amber and Ruby earrings, she poked them through the vacated holes in her ears. And next, a gold necklace with a droplet of Ruby hanging down, followed by a drop of Amber.
"Mum, these are beautiful!"
"Oh, thank you dear. Here, let me help you with that." As she fastened together the ends of that gorgeous necklace, Ginny heard an audible gasp come from Hermione, who had opened the purple, blue and silver box that Mum had handed her. Carefully, she pulled out jewelry, more than Ginny had, but that was okay, she liked it simple. After Hermione had finished, she held in her hand six bangle bracelets, three for each arm, and each one of the three that Hermione was now slipping on her right arm had a drop of diamond, sapphire, or amethyst. The other three for the other arm were identical to the first ones. As the bangle bracelets were pulled away one by one, more was shown. A pair of Earrings, each containing a spot of Diamond, were soon pulled through Hermione's ears, and the necklace with the three jewels lined in a row was fastened behind her neck. When they finished, they both engaged mum in a group hug, Tearfully, she pulled away, and shooed them down the stairs, saying she would take care of their packing.
Walking downstairs, the two pondered what the boys would think. Taking the steps two at a time, they went one in front of the other, hands on the wooden banister. Entering the kitchen, they found the whole family (minus mum and dad of course) sitting inside. Ron was the first to look up, but all he did was sit there, mouth frozen open, hand still poised over the knight he was going to move, Harry followed his gaze, and saw Ginny standing behind Hermione. He too just gaped, until George called out, "Really, are you just going to gape, or will you say something?"
Fred stood up and walked over to Hermione, taking both of her hands and pulling her to Ron, and he followed suit with Ginny, except he pushed her to Harry. Nervously tucking a strand of gold behind her ear, she grinned tentatively. Harry brought a chair up next to him and patted its seat, grinning stupidly.
Ginny sat down on the mismatched chair. "Need help kicking some Ronniekin butt?," she asked smartly, already moving a pawn.
"That would be a big help, thanks." Harry replied, still plastered with a goofy smile. Ginny was focused on the game, smiling inwardly at the little secret she knew about Ron. She was the only person she knew that could beat Ron at chess, and she was already turning the game around. Ron was sweating, and she was sure she had seen his teeth chatter when she trapped his bishop with a few pawns. That left the path open to the king, which Ron quickly covered with another bishop. Ginny frowned. Now he had a solid row in front of his king, and no way to get in-wait, was that? YES! A small section at the very end was open, which Ginny moved her Rook into. Stupid of Ron to completely cover his king with pieces. Now he couldn't escape, and she had a clear path to his king.
"Checkmate." She said almost lazily.
"Unfair win! This wasn't your game!" Ron protested. Ginny yawned. "Be that as it may, Ronald Weasley, I won, and THAT is THAT." She said, leaning across the table and poking him in the chest. "Now, shouldn't we gather our stuff up and wait outside? I mean, we leave at 9:30, and it's 9:25 right now. Dad should be here any minute." At that precise moment, they heard an engine rumbling, and Mr. Weasley called out from one of the light blue cars that he had gotten from the ministry of magic for the day, "Morning Weasley's!"
Everyone mumbled a greeting, and a young wizard, probably fresh out of school, because he looked no older than 18, jumped out of one of the cars and started to load luggage that had just appeared at the doorway. He looked up and whistled when he saw Ginny and Hermione, causing their boyfriends to tense up. Both girls giggled and placed a reassuring hand on them, and they relaxed a little. Sure, the wizard was cute, but not her type. As soon as he was done, he returned to the front seat of the first car and awaited people to get in. Ron and Harry quickly moved to the car driven by Mr. Weasley, but before Ginny and Hermione could follow, the twins went in front of them and jumped in.
"Sorry sweets, but it looks like you're stuck with the cute boy." Fred and George were only coming because they helped Hagrid in Care of Magical Creatures now that they had graduated. They also occasionally helped with Madam Hooch with the Quidditch team. But Ginny knew the real reason they came was to maintain their joke shop in Hogsmeade.
"I'm going to murder you two," Ginny growled, causing the twins to laugh. The two girls moved towards the other car and went to sit in the back, their only reassurance being that Mum was going to be in the car with them. Just then, her head poked through the kitchen door.
"Sorry dears! Looks like I can't come! The kettle's on the fritz!" With that she brought her head back inside.
Completely disheartened, they walked the remaining distance to the car, and to their utter dismay found that the luggage had filled up all the back seats but one, which Hermione took in an instant. Ginny took the front seat glumly, and shut the door, refusing to look at the person next to her. As the car started, she stared out the window, watching the burrow disappear behind them.
"I'm Casten." Ginny looked at the wizard next to her. "I'm sorry?"She said, not really listening to him.
"My name is Casten. What's yours?" Ginny couldn't believe this person was openly flirting with her! "My name is Ginny."
"Wow, what a pretty name. Of course, I would expect a pretty name from such a pretty girl. So, who's your friend back there?"
"My name is Hermione." Hermione spoke up from the back.
"Cool. So, those two boys back there. They your brothers?"
Ginny was almost at the point where she could explode. She had a boyfriend! "No, they're our boyfriends," She replied coldly.
That shut him up for the rest of the drive. As they pulled into Kings Cross, she almost pounced out of the car and into Harry's arms. Hugging him tightly, she was glad to be away from that other wizard, and definitely out of the car. Sneaking a peek, she saw that Hermione was doing the same with Ron.
Casten quickly loaded the luggage onto trolleys, without a second glance to the girls. After the cars had left, Mr. Weasley included, claiming he had work to do. This left the four teens and the twins, who currently had the mental states of six-year olds. Gathering together, they walked between platforms 9 and 10 in pairs, emerging on Platform 9 and three-quarters. Hurrying onto the train, they situated themselves in an empty compartment, and were having a relaxing and enjoying time when an hour after the train had left the compartment door slid open and there stood Draco Malfoy.
Ginny felt her heart quicken, and she looked deep into his eyes, but saw nothing. He opened his mouth and his cold sneer washed over them all, although for Ginny it took a while to sink in.
"I just wanted to see if it was true that the Weasel and Scarhead had hooked up, but obviously it's true, judging by the way you two are hanging all over each other."
Ginny stood up, and her full makeover dawned on him, and his eyes had a flash of need for her, but she looked away from him and walked towards the door, brushing against his skin as she went on. "I have to use the restroom." he said shortly, directing her answer to her friends. She rushed off towards an empty compartment she had noticed earlier. Sitting down on the seat after closing the door, she remembered something. Draco didn't have Crabbe and Goyle with him. She cried a couple tears, wishing she had Draco with her now, then she restored her makeup and got ready to go out the door when it was opened.
Draco stood there, looking very much like he did earlier, except now, his eyes were filled with his need to have her in his arms. He closed the door behind him, put a powerful locking charm on it and held out a hand to Ginny. She took it, and he pulled her into his arm, whispering into her ear, "You look beautiful. All this for Potter? That lucky guy."
Ginny grinned. "All of this for you." Wait a minute. The last time they had been like this... "What are you doing? Are you trying to break my heart again. That's it, isn't it? You don't like me, do you? You're just trying to get me to like you that way you can run off again and make me feel like a piece of-" Draco silenced her by bringing a hand over her mouth.
"No, this time I won't run away. I promise."
"Do you promise to keep your promise?" She asked, starting to close the gap between their lips.
"I promise." He whispered back, finishing off the gap and eagerly pressing lips onto hers. She melted into his embrace, and they stayed like that for a while, till Ginny realized the time.
"Oh my GOSH! They are going to be so worried. And what about us? Harry's my boyfriend now. What do we do now?"
"You're being too worrisome! I have it all covered. And don't worry about a Harry. I caught him looking at Parvati's butt a few times, so I don't think you're going to be his love life for too much longer."
With that he hurried off, waving goodbye. Ginny rushed back to her compartment, where it appeared that everyone was frantic with worry.
"What happened?" Harry asked, putting an arm over her shoulders. "Surely a bathroom break doesn't take 20 minutes.
"Well...not exactly. On my way back here, I ran into Parvati and Lavender, and you know how they are."
That satisfied everyone, and for the rest of the train ride they were undisturbed, except for when the trolley stopped by, and they got a few pumpkin cakes. When there only was twenty minutes left, they changed into their robes, and when the train screeched to a stop, they hurriedly got off and rushed into the pouring rain that was outside, said hello to Hagrid and got into the carriage that awaited them. As Hogwarts castle came into view, Harry hugged her, smiling.
"Welcome Home."
She hugged him back, feeling guilty as she felt nothing, no spark, no liking. As the carriage came to a stop, she unconsciously pulled away, and stood next to Hermione, away from the two boys.
"You saw Draco, didn't you?" Hermione whispered. Ginny blushed.
"Yes" She, replied, just as quietly. Hermione grinned as they stepped into the warm entrance to the Great Hall.
"And you kissed" She said slyly. Ginny turned redder.
"Yes" The conversation ended abruptly as they sat down with the boys. Ginny fixated her eyes on the Slytherin table, where she caught Draco's eyes. He grinned and nodded to Harry, who was suddenly fascinated with Parvati. She giggled and turned her attention to the nervous looking first-years. Nothing really exciting. Her thoughts turned back to Draco. When she surfaced, it was because someone raised a hand in front of her eyes. She blinked and realized that the Sorting was over. Mentally she kicked herself, but at that moment, Albus Dumbledore stood up, so she could do no more damage to her mentality.
"Welcome back to a new year!" He rumbled. Hello's were called out. Dumbledore went through the normalities. But towards the end of the feast, he said something different.
"As some may remember the Yule Ball, I would like to inform you that there will be two balls this year, a Halloween ball and a Christmas. Both require formal attire." He ended. Excited chatter picked up, and Ginny smiled.
Disclaimer: Not mine. J.K. Rowlings. Yep, Uh-huh.
16-year old Ginny Weasley lay stretched out on her bed, tapping her chin with her pencil and wondering whether or not to add 'Ron was a prat' to her diary when the subject of her pondering came into her room and leaned on the door frame. Ginny quickly shut her diary and cast a fierce look at her older brother, taking in her mothers impersonation of a saber tooth tiger.
"Yes?" she asked, impatient to get back to writing in her diary. Note to self, she thought. Add 'Ron was a prat' to Diary. Ron seemed to be horribly disgusted with something he had in his hand, and when he tossed it to her, she found out why.
"Hmmm, Dress Robes, eh?" Ginny asked raising an eyebrow, "Don't you like the ones that you just got?" Ron screwed up his face. "Nope. You must have new dress robes, because yours are getting too 'short'" He said, using his fingers to emphasize the point he was trying to make. Ginny just nodded, but Ron was still talking. "Honestly, that woman thinks that ever since dad got that HUGE raise, we need new everything! Well I know you'll miss me, but Fred and George challenged me to a chess match! Hafta go! Bye!" he said waving; his body already half down the stairs. Ginny watched his gangly form disappear. Putting aside her diary, she opened up the catalog and flipped through it, occasionally muttering comments like 'Ugh', or 'Too flashy'.
She was just about ready to put away the magazine when she came across a pair of dress robes that suited her nicely. They were plain black, with a tight bodice and waist, and a long flowing skirt. The buttons were iron, and each had a small cat imprinted in the middle. The sleeves went past the tips of the fingers, and they had a hood on the back, embroidered on the edges with gold. As she had put the diary down, she'd recalled seeing a red marker. After searching for a minute or two, she triumphantly held up a big red permanent marker. Popping off its scarlet cap, she placed a big fat (and slightly lopsided) x next to the set of robes.
As she placed the cap back on the marker and put it away, Molly Weasley's voice rang through the silence. "Ginny Dear! Get ready, we're leaving for Diagon alley in 15 minutes!" Ginny called back down the stairs "Okay Mum!" and dashed towards her dresser. After pulling out a few shirts, she settled on a red and gold shirt, and going a couple drawers down plucked out a black pair of pants. After grabbing a set of black robes from her closet, she sat down in front of her vanity. Gently pulling a wide tooth comb through her long auburn hair, she fought through the tangles. After using a bristle brush to soften it and add shine, she pulled off her pajamas and slipped into the clothes she had laid out on her bed. Checking her hair one last time, she slid into a pair of sandals conveniently placed by her door and ran out the bedroom door.
When she reached the kitchen, she found the whole family waiting at the fireplace. As she skidded to a stop she realized Ron wasn't there. A few seconds after she realized this, Ron came running down the stairs, his hair smooth and shiny and to Ginny's observation, wearing his best looking clothes, an outfit that consisted of black pants, a black turtleneck, and black robes. Ginny had never seen her brother look so good.
When Ron had gotten into the kitchen, Molly held out the flowerpot containing the Floo powder to Ginny, and she took a handful letting it sift through her fingers. When she had the desired amount, she stepped into the spacey fireplace and threw the powder onto the floor. As the cool green flames sprang up around her, she uttered only two words.
"Diagon Alley"
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Ginny slid through the grate at Diagon Alley covered in soot. As she stood up, she started to brush off some of it, and was completely oblivious to the pair of shining black shoes coming closer and closer. With a startling bump, Ginny and whoever owned those shiny black shoes connected, and Ginny's eyes flew upward, past the black slacks and sweater, past the sparkling green and silver Head Boy badge, up to Draco Malfoy's cold silver eyes. Ginny jumped away, all the while rubbing her stinging elbow that had scraped against the ground, which, as she realized as she pulled her hand away, was bleeding.
Draco's eyes turned a softer shade, and he held out a hand. Ginny willingly took it and as she pulled herself up, Draco's free hand flew to his pocket and he pulled out his wand. Ginny shrank back, but he pulled her back and spoke his first words. "Relax, I'm trying to help."
Ginny nodded meekly, and breathlessly said, "I'm sorry for causing you all this trouble!" Draco only shook his head and muttered "Healao". Ginny's pain immediately ceased, and when she snuck a peek, she saw that her skin was completely mended. She was getting ready to pull away when Draco yanked her back, but the result of that was her falling. He picked her up before she hit the ground, and their noses touched when her feet touched the street again. They both looked at each other with widened eyes. Draco closed his and leaned in, Ginny doing the same. As their lips met, it seemed to Ginny that fireworks exploded. But as soon as they pulled away, a hand rested on her shoulder. Ginny whipped her head around and all she saw was a pair of narrowed Hazel eyes. "Ron!"
Ron was furious. Anybody with a brain can find that out. "What- are- you- doing- with- my- sister?! he asked enunciating every word, each one boiling. Draco was his old self, sneering. "We kissed, anyone could see that." Ron's hand was already in his robe pocket and he whipped out his wand. "Tarantellegra!" Draco's feet started dancing, and with his own wand he shouted "Expelliarmus!" Ron's wand landed 10 feet away and he himself flew 2 feet back, landing him on his back. Ginny was taking her own wand out and pointed it at both of them yelling all the while. "Both of you STOP ACTING LIKE CHILDREN! Ron, act your age! And Draco, same with you! We're old enough to talk this out rationally!" Behind her, a few people cheered, and she looked behind her. She found the rest of the family standing there, along with Hermione and Harry.
Blushing, Ginny flicked her wand at Draco and Ron. "Expelliarmus!" Both wands flew towards her outstretched hand and landed neatly. "Finite Incantato!" She yelled at Ron. Tossing them both back their wands, she spoke calmly. "No more fighting, or you get to see how many hexes I can do. Now, scram." Both boys went in opposite directions, stomping.
Molly came over and gave her youngest child a hug. Oh, I am so proud of you, Ginny Weasley! Now, come along, Dress Robes!" Ginny got ready to follow her when Harry pulled her back. "That was really something you did there! Hermione and I came and saw all of you fighting. But the way you handled it!" He reached down and squeezed her hand. Just then, Molly yelled again "GINNY!" Ginny grinned apologetically at Harry and ran after her mother. Together they walked in silence till they reached Madame Malkin's robe shop. As soon as they stepped inside, a fussy looking old witch with hair as frizzy as Professor Sprout's forced Ginny on to a stool. Holding her hand out impatiently, Ginny fished the catalog out of her robe's pocket and handed it to Madame Malkin. The witch took a tape measurer and took her measurements. Ginny grinned. Maybe today would be a great day after all!
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Ginny skipped happily out of Madame Malkin's with the bag containing her dress robes clutched in her hand. She had the robes of her dreams, and the world was at ease when she saw something she most definitely did not want to see.
Draco.
Talking.
To.
Pansy.
Parkinson.
Suddenly Ginny felt glum, and she looked at the talking couple. Pansy had slimmed up in the last couple years, and she had done something with her face. Instead of the pug-like look she had adopted, her face was a beautiful round shape. Her beady eyes had gotten bigger, and the light shade of brown that they were was revealed. Next to her, Ginny felt fat and ugly. Her hair felt greasy and limp, while her skin seemed dull and flabby.
Now Pansy was laughing at something Draco said. Touching his arm with a slender hand, she laughed, sounding like a tinkling bell. Tears were welling up in the corners of her eyes. She wiped them away but they kept on coming. Covering her face with her hands, she ran past the duo. She didn't know how long she ran, but when she at last looked at her surroundings, she found herself in a dark alley. And unknown to her, a certain blonde was excusing himself from a brunette beauty to go look for a crying redhead.
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Draco. All Ginny could think about was Draco. She was lost in a dark alley and all she could think of was Draco Malfoy. If she wasn't upset she would've laughed. Looking around at where she was, she was scared. People were selling things like toenails and Dragon scales. Tucking herself into a dark niche, she brought her knees up to her chin. Crying her heart out for Draco Malfoy. The next time she looked up, it was when a gentle hand touched her on the shoulder. Lifting her eyes up, she saw gray eyes bearing into her own. She sniffed and he crawled into her dark niche and gathered her up in his arms, murmuring soft words to her. She snuggled into him, and he held on tighter, occasionally kissing the top of her head. He was the first one to speak. Gently, he asked "Why are you here?" Ginny choked, but managed to find words. "You, talking to Parkinson and the like, dating her."
Draco was taken aback. "We aren't dating. Actually, I was watching you when Pansy bore down on me. I'm sorry I upset you." Ginny sat up and for the second time that day their noses touched. This time Ginny leaned in and their lips met. The kiss affirmed what Ginny already knew, and she knew she was in love with him. All of a sudden, Draco pulled back. "What?" she asked, confused. He raked a hand through his perfectly gelled blond hair. "We can't go on like this! I'm a Slytherin! You're a Gryffindor! We can't do this!" Ginny felt a tear roll down her cheek. Draco wiped it off and kissed her sweetly. Then he stood up and walked away from her.
Ginny lost track of time and she felt so depressed. Just as she was thinking of gray eyes for the umpteenth time, a pair of voices caught her ear. Peeking around the corner she saw two familiar heads. Ron! And Harry! She stood up wobbly and called out weakly. "Ron? Harry?" Both heads turned, and Ron ran to her, but Harry got there first. Ginny threw her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder. "I got lost, and there were people-so many people-selling strange things!" Then the exhaustion of the day caught up with her, and her arms went limp, causing her body to fall to the ground. The last thing she remembered before falling into a dead faint was a pair of strong arms picking her up and holding her close
"Ginny? Wake up Ginny! Ginny!"
A voice cut through Ginny's mind and groggily she opened her eyes, hoping, wishing they were Draco's. They weren't. They were green, faintly touched by black bangs.
Harry was holding her hand and sitting beside her. "Are you okay?" He asked, concern evident in his voice. Ginny nodded. It was then that she realized that they were in a position where Harry's eyes were an inch or so away from hers. She leaned over and kissed him. His eyes widened and Ginny almost laughed out loud. Pulling away, she grinned and said, "See, if I wasn't okay, I wouldn't have the guts to do that." Harry nodded and then a twin of Ginny's smile appeared on his own face. "Oh, you are SO gonna pay for that!" He tickled Ginny's side and she giggled.
Just then, Hermione burst in and put her hands on her hips.
"What is going on in here?!" she yelled, frowning. Ginny blushed along with Harry, and he sat back down and put his hands on his lap. "Herm, we were just having fun!" He whined. Hermione shook her head. "Nope, Ginny needs her rest!"
Ginny had to protest at this. “I feel FINE!”
Hermione wagged her finger at her. "You THINK you feel fine. But I read a book-" All of a sudden a hand closed over her mouth and whatever else she had to say was now muffled. A familiar freckly face peeked over her head and grinned maliciously. Just then Ron pulled his hand back, looking as disgusted as he did when he had held the Dress Robe catalog. As saliva dripped down from his hand, Ginny realized that Hermione had licked his hand, and she didn't blame him for looking disgusted. Hermione just huffed at Ron and flipped her long bushy brown hair over her shoulder.
Harry took her hand, and walked her out the door, yelling loudly over his shoulder, "Why don't we just leave the FLIRTING COUPLE alone!" Ginny covered her mouth to stifle a giggle. But she widened her eyes as Harry silently led her to the door. Shushing her, he walked over to where her Mum and Dad were sitting. Asking Dad something, she watched Harry explain his reasons, but Mum jumped up and made a definite no. Dad calmed her and spoke again to Harry. A smile lit his features and he thanked them, walking back to her. "Don't ask, because I want it to be a surprise." He said, as soon as Ginny opened her mouth.
He walked over to the shed that they kept the brooms in and grabbed his Firebolt. He motioned her to hop on and she tentatively got on, never riding something so expensive in her life. Harry got on in front of her. "Hold on to my waist, and don't let go cause we'll be going fast!" Ginny didn't need to be told twice. Clasping her hands around his waist, She ducked her head and waited for the Firebolt to go into the air.
Harry kicked off and Ginny felt that wonderful sensation of going into flight. She didn't even bother asking Harry a question because she knew it would be drowned out by the whoosh of air. Instead, she buried her head into the back of Harry's robes and waited for the landing.
It was very smooth landing, and when Ginny looked around, she saw that they were in a grassy meadow covered in flowers, despite the fact that it was almost fall. Her eyes were bright when she looked at Harry. "Now will you tell me what is up?" His own eyes were mischievous and he covered her eyes, leading her down what felt like a path. As they walked on, she heard a rumbling noise. When he at last removed his hands, she found herself in front of a waterfall that filled a small lake. But that wasn't all. The most extraordinary thing about it was that mixed into the clear blue, there was a mixture of rainbow streaks, evenly placed throughout the water.
Ginny ran towards Harry and hugged him. She could feel his nose rest itself in her Auburn hair, inhaling deeply. Pulling away, she held him at arms length and raised an eyebrow. Harry looked sheepish and Ginny shook her head. "Why was your nose in my hair?" Harry put his hands in his pockets. "Um, it smelled nice?" He faltered. "I'm so-" Ginny broke him off just then by leaning her back against his chest and tilting her head back. Harry dipped his head down and the two shared a long and sensuous kiss.
As they broke away, Harry looked surprised. "Wow." Was all he could say. Ginny slipped out of her sandals and slipped her feet into the water. To her surprise, it was warm, not cool.
Slipping off her robe, she rolled up her jeans so they were at shorts length and went in knee deep. "Come on Harry, It feels wonderful! Harry ripped off his shirt and pointing his wand at the hem of his jeans, muttered Reducto. Instantly, his jeans shortened themselves up to shorts length. Ginny caught the drift and waded to shore, starting to undress as she went. Harry just gaped at her. "What are you doing?" He asked dumbly. Ginny shot him a look. "I'm obviously taking my clothes off." She said haughtily. The taking off of her shirt had revealed a bikini top, and she glared at him venomously. "I always wear a swimsuit during the summer." Starting on her pants, she had them removed in a minutes time.
Yanking Harry's hand to follow her, she jumped into that beautiful pool of water. Harry followed her and they splashed each other for some time. Eventually it got boring and Ginny crawled back up on to the bank. Harry plopped next to her and they laid in silence until Ginny noticed there was something different. The sky seemed darker, and something just didn't feel right.
She tapped Harry's arm and pointed at the sky. His vivid green eyes widened and he gathered up their stuff and held it under his arm. Yanking Ginny's hand, he pulled out his wand and muttered something. Their clothing was covered by a clear bubble, and Harry pulled her through the water. Using his wand again, a shield covered their heads and he led her under the waterfall, and into a small cave. Throwing their stuff aside he grabbed her face with his hands and spoke, rushed "I don't have time to explain so listen to me. I am about to do something that will unsettle you, but you must go along with it for our sake. Am I understood?" Ginny nodded. "Good."
Harry leaned forward and kissed her. Ginny felt a rush of love flow through her, and she sent her own flow back at Harry. She wanted to break away, but she found she couldn't. Just then, she felt the cave go dark and cold, but with another intense kiss from Harry, which she guessed was on purpose, her attention was distracted to him. She opened her eyes and looked into Harry's green ones, which to her surprise weren't green. They were blue, and his black hair had turned a sandy brown. A wisp of her own hair crossed her vision, and it's Auburn was turned to a blonde. It was also shorter than normal. As the darkness left the room, Harry pulled away and Ginny could hear birdcalls again. Sunlight streamed through the waterfall.
Slowly, Harry's eyes went from blue to green, and her own hair was growing longer again, and turning Auburn. When they were completely transformed back to normal, Ginny placed her hands on her hips."What just happened? Where are we?" She demanded. Harry sighed and sat down, Indian-style.
Ginny sat down next to him. Harry began. "This place is called Lake of Love. Only when a person is in love with another can they come here." Just then he blushed red, and Ginny knew what he meant. She smiled encouragingly. He sighed. "What just happened was one of Voldemort's supporters entered here. Two souls can also hide if they are truly in love. That's what I did with you. I'm glad it worked. It changed our appearance and made us look like ordinary teens kissing. But we should head back to the burrow." He undid the spell on their clothing, and on his jeans so they were back to normal.
When they were ready, they flew back to the burrow. Putting the broom away, they walked into the door holding hands. Mum was sitting in a chair by the door, and had probably been there the whole time. When she spoke, you could tell she was trying hard not to sound frantic. "W-what took so long?" Harry looked grim. As he went to explain that to her, Hermione came jogging down the stairs.
"Where have you been? We asked your mum, but she said she wouldn't tell. So we looked every where, but we still couldn't find you!" She looked completely frazzled, and she and Ron probably had looked for her. Ginny sighed and took her hand, pulling her up the stairs as she went. Oh boy, this was going to be a long day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So, let me get this straight. Harry swept you away and took you to this unknown place called Lake of Love. Wait, I think I read about it in Scotland's Most Enchanted Places and Where to Find Them. But the section wasn't very big. In fact, all they had was a few sentences and a picture of the most beautiful meadow I had ever seen! Wildflowers of every color of the rainbow! But back to the point. So you get to this place, Lake of Love, and stay splashing in the water, then get out and look at the sky. Harry notices that something bad will happen, so he-" Hermione left off. Ginny picked up where she had left off. "So he casts a protective charm around me and him, and all of our stuff, takes me under the waterfall into a cave I didn't even know was there! And then he-he-he-" She to trailed off, being slightly hesitant. Even though Hermione was her best friend, she didn't feel comfortable telling Harry's best friend what they did in that cave. "And then-" Hermione pressed eagerly.
Ginny sighed. She was already in this deep. No harm in going on a bit. "We kissed. And it was so wonderful, and Oh! It's so impossible to describe!"
Ginny felt guilty. She liked Harry, but his kisses were nothing compared to Draco's. But still, Hermione nodded, obviously unaware of the guilt written all over Ginny's face.
"Now, what did you and Ron do while we were gone?" Ginny asked, and Hermione blushed. "We looked for you of course!" Ginny shook her head. "No, I mean when Harry and I just left." She corrected, raising her eyebrow. Hermione opened her mouth and nothing came out. Going bright red, her friend shook her head. Just as Ginny was about to ask again, she noticed that as Hermione had shaken her head, her bushy brown hair had altered its direction and was now exposing her slender neck. A red something was there, and Ginny could have laughed. The perfect clue, she thought wickedly. Pointing at the incriminating evidence, she raised her eyebrow for the second time in 5 minutes.
"And this is?" she asked pointedly. Hermione went, if possible, even redder. Whispering so quietly Ginny had to lean in to hear her, she said, "We tried to keep it a secret." Ginny held an inward laugh. "It'll be hard for you to do that if you walk about with those displayed on your neck." She said with a straight face. Hermione also put on a stony face, and they both stared each other down, and in a short period of time, they were both laughing hysterically.
When they were both sane enough to talk, Ginny abruptly changed the conversation topic, before she found herself spilling her feelings about Draco. She had already spared enough information, and maybe another day she would tell Hermione, but not today. Definitely not today.
Draco Malfoy lay on his large green and silver bedspread, playing with a gold trinket. Moving his long and slender fingers over the bumps and knobs on it, he thought for the billionth time since he got back from Diagon Alley about the happenings of the Weasley girl. He, Draco Malfoy, was a Slytherin and should not be thinking about the comings and goings of a Gryffindor.
But, he couldn't help but feel different around the Weasley girl. He scoffed. He didn't even know her name. Raking a hand through his ungelled blonde hair, he pushed the stray strands out of his face. He thought of the girl's smile, huge and beaming when she was around her friends. He thought of her long wavy Auburn hair, different from the rest of her family's flaming red.
All of a sudden he felt guilt. He had hurt her twice in one day, and hadn't even apologized. True, he had kissed her, but thankfully he had covered up by fighting her brother. But after the second kiss down Knockturn Alley, he had run away from her, and talked to Parkinson. His guilt topped as he remembered her lifeless body being carried out of the alley, wishing he could have been the one carrying her, not Potter. And yet, through this whirlwind of feelings, he had managed to laugh convincingly enough for Parkinson, snickering at how weak she was. Draco wished he could have been able to act as falsely around the girl herself, but he found himself doing kind things, and even going as far as kissing her!
He mentally punched himself in the head. How could he have been so stupid? He knew she liked him, but what girl at Hogwarts didn't? With his tall figure and muscular body, every girl he passed gave him their eyes. He even remembered Granger looking at him once or twice. But the worst part of the situation was that he knew that he liked her back. Heck! He didn't like her! He loved her.
Ginny sat at dinner later that day, talking animatedly to Hermione, who was spending the rest of the summer with them, when Harry tapped her on the shoulder. Turning towards him, she wore a questioning look, and he motioned for her to follow him. She stood up and gave her apologies to Hermione, as he was already taking her hand and leading her away from the table. Stepping across the soft grass, she felt him take a firmer grip on her hand, and she sped up to keep up with his fast pace. Stealing a glance at his face, she saw it was determined, and he was obviously concentrating on something very hard.
They walked for several minutes and eventually wandered on to a worn path that led into a forest. They walked for many minutes more and just when Ginny thought her legs couldn't take it any more; he stopped abruptly and sat down on a fallen tree that made a perfect bench. Ginny sat next to him. "What's wrong? Why did you lead me all the way out here?" She asked softly, covering his hand with her own. Harry seemed to be shaking, and she was about ready to ask again when he answered her, his voice oddly strained. "I led you out here to tell you something very important. I, well, ever since 5th year, when you told me you were over me, I gradually began to feel different around you."
Ginny was suddenly wary. "What sort of different?"
"The kind of different that makes me feel so happy around you." Ginny pulled away from his startling gaze, and she got up, knowing what he was about to say. "Maybe we should go back to the burrow." Her voice was oddly distant, and she started to walk down the path when Harry pulled her back. "No, wait, I need to tell you this!" Ginny looked back into his pleading eyes, and she seemed to get lost in the brilliant green that they were. Numbly she nodded. After she had sat back down, he took her hands into his and forced her to look him in the eye. "I've been wanting to ask you this since earlier. After we returned from the Lake of Love, I knew it was final. Ginny, I love you with all my heart, I really do, and I'd really like to be your boyfriend.
Ginny was shocked. Like, certainly, but to love?
"Are you sure you aren't exaggerating?"
"Positive."
"Well, Harry, I like you too, but I'm not sure about love. I mean, I really was getting over you. And now for you to say that-" Ginny's sentence was cut off by the gentle touching of hers and Harry's lips. Ginny responded slowly, at first just sitting there, but as Harry cupped her face in his hands, she deepened the kiss further. When they both were done, Ginny thought, Harry is a really good kisser. However, as an afterthought she added, But not as good as Draco.
3 weeks later. . .
"Harry, come on, we have to pack!" Ginny looked down into the green eyes of her boyfriend Harry Potter. Planting a quick kiss on his lips, she jumped off his bed and ran back to her own room, where Hermione was already packing up her trunk. Ginny's lay on her bed, already half full with clothes. Ginny looked at Hermione and thought of her feelings with Draco. After just standing there, thinking whether or not to tell, for 5 minutes, she concluded her thoughts.
"Hermione?"
"Hmmm?"
"I need to tell you something."
This got Hermione's attention. Hurrying over, she sat on the bed. Ginny sat next to her, and soon she had blurted out the whole story of what happened in Diagon Alley. Hermione just sat there for a moment, stunned by what she had just heard. Then she sat up, grinning wildly.
Ginny had good experience with Hermione when she was this way. Step one: Be very careful,
"Why are you smiling?" Ginny asked cautiously. This lit up Hermione's face for a while.
"We have to make Draco want you! And before you ask, no, I'm not upset about this. In fact, I'm happy for you! You can do better than Harry. To tell you the truth," she said, lowering her voice, "I used to like him too. That was when I started going out with Ron. But back to making Draco want you! I can give you a complete makeover. I know I'm not the type, but I learned how from Parvati and Lavender last year at the 6th and 7th year sleepover. Well, come on! And don't worry! Your mum said that she'll use magic to pack the rest of our stuff up if we just want to play around!"
Ginny found herself feeling happy and cheerful. Getting up and sitting down at the vanity, where Hermione was already waiting, she felt glad to have all this lifted from her chest.
Ginny opened her eyes and gazed at her reflection in the mirror. Hermione had done a wonderful job, but she hadn't let her watch. Now she looked at the stranger in front of her, the stranger she knew was herself.
A gold and red glitter adorned her eyes, and a pale pink blush that almost blended into her skin topped off her cheeks. Pinkish red was painted onto her lips, and Herm had painted her nails in a pattern of red and gold. But what she couldn't get over was
her hair. Mum had cast a spell of shielding so that they could use magic, and Hermione had taken advantage of it. Two bright red and gold streaks, one streak for each color hung on both sides of her face. The rest of her hair was piled in a bun towards the back of her hair. Now Hermione was laying out an outfit for her to wear.
Forcing her to turn around so she could only get a glimpse of red and blue, Hermione whipped out her wand and pointed it at Ginny's back. Muttering an incantation, Ginny felt her comfortable ducky pajamas disappear and they were replaced by some of Hermione's clothes.
Looking down at her appearance, Ginny saw she was wearing a denim miniskirt and a red halter-top. Red sandals with a few gold trails of glitter on them took care of her feet. Ginny squealed with glee. She looked perfect! Now she turned to Hermione.
"Time for me to do you!" Before she could protest, she had already performed the spell that shut a person's eyes and pushed Hermione into the seat.
First she painted Hermione's nails. It took her a while to choose which color, but she chose a lovely swirl of lavender and pale blue. Immediately after she started to work on the makeup, choosing a pale bluish-purple for the eyes. For the lips and cheeks she decided to repeat what Hermione had done for her, doing them a pinkish tint. Finally she was left with that mass of hair. First she performed a straightening charm, taming it to a straightness that actually didn't look that bad on her. Choosing to put it up in a high ponytail, she transformed the part hanging down into long curls that reached down to her shoulders. Swiveling the chair around so she could see the full length of the masterpiece she had created. Removing the spell she had cast onto Hermione, she watched happily as Hermione inspected every inch of her appearance.
While Hermione was doing this, Ginny was creeping over to the dresser and after rummaging for a while, settled on something that would go well with the make-up she was wearing.
As Hermione stood up and turned around obediently, Ginny realized she didn't know the spell to change clothing.
"Hermione?"
"Transformus Clothis."
"Thanks!"
"Transformus Clothis," Ginny muttered, her wand pointed at the small of her friends back. Instantly the bluish-lavender tank-top, light purple sandals and pale blue shorts bedecked Hermione, and the black silk pajama's she wore appeared next to her on the floor. Hermione too shone with genuine happiness when she looked at herself in the mirror. "Oh my god!," Ginny whispered as she turned her head at every angle. "We forgot something!" Hermione too looked at her reflection. "Jewelry!" They cried out simultaneously. Together, the two opened her door and crept out in the hall, quietly tiptoeing into Mum's room, where they quickly shut the door behind them. Mum quickly turned around, and cried out when she saw their makeovers.
"Oh my gosh! My little girl looks all grown up! And Hermione looks so pretty-"
"Mum, could we borrow some jewelry. To finish our outfits?" Mum nodded, and motioned for the girls to sit down on her long quilted bedspread while she fetched her small wooden jewelry chest. Bringing it back, she set it down next to Ginny and then she too sat down. As she opened the chest, Ginny and Hermione both gasped with delight at the wonders inside that small box.
"Oh, Mrs. Weasley! You could make a fortune if you sold these!"
Mum shook her head. "I could never sell these, my dear. These are my family heirlooms and have been passed down for many a generation. In due time these will become yours Ginny. Now, I have two sets that will look perfect on you two!" After fishing through the box for a few minutes, she brought out a small red and amber box. Peering deep into the depths of the wooden box, (the little box must have been magicked, because it was a lot deeper than it appeared) Ginny saw that underneath all the odds and ends, there were several different colored boxes, which she assumed were sets. She was proved correct when she opened her small box and pulled out a ruby and amber bracelet, which she fastened around her wrist. Pulling out the next item, a pair of Amber and Ruby earrings, she poked them through the vacated holes in her ears. And next, a gold necklace with a droplet of Ruby hanging down, followed by a drop of Amber.
"Mum, these are beautiful!"
"Oh, thank you dear. Here, let me help you with that." As she fastened together the ends of that gorgeous necklace, Ginny heard an audible gasp come from Hermione, who had opened the purple, blue and silver box that Mum had handed her. Carefully, she pulled out jewelry, more than Ginny had, but that was okay, she liked it simple. After Hermione had finished, she held in her hand six bangle bracelets, three for each arm, and each one of the three that Hermione was now slipping on her right arm had a drop of diamond, sapphire, or amethyst. The other three for the other arm were identical to the first ones. As the bangle bracelets were pulled away one by one, more was shown. A pair of Earrings, each containing a spot of Diamond, were soon pulled through Hermione's ears, and the necklace with the three jewels lined in a row was fastened behind her neck. When they finished, they both engaged mum in a group hug, Tearfully, she pulled away, and shooed them down the stairs, saying she would take care of their packing.
Walking downstairs, the two pondered what the boys would think. Taking the steps two at a time, they went one in front of the other, hands on the wooden banister. Entering the kitchen, they found the whole family (minus mum and dad of course) sitting inside. Ron was the first to look up, but all he did was sit there, mouth frozen open, hand still poised over the knight he was going to move, Harry followed his gaze, and saw Ginny standing behind Hermione. He too just gaped, until George called out, "Really, are you just going to gape, or will you say something?"
Fred stood up and walked over to Hermione, taking both of her hands and pulling her to Ron, and he followed suit with Ginny, except he pushed her to Harry. Nervously tucking a strand of gold behind her ear, she grinned tentatively. Harry brought a chair up next to him and patted its seat, grinning stupidly.
Ginny sat down on the mismatched chair. "Need help kicking some Ronniekin butt?," she asked smartly, already moving a pawn.
"That would be a big help, thanks." Harry replied, still plastered with a goofy smile. Ginny was focused on the game, smiling inwardly at the little secret she knew about Ron. She was the only person she knew that could beat Ron at chess, and she was already turning the game around. Ron was sweating, and she was sure she had seen his teeth chatter when she trapped his bishop with a few pawns. That left the path open to the king, which Ron quickly covered with another bishop. Ginny frowned. Now he had a solid row in front of his king, and no way to get in-wait, was that? YES! A small section at the very end was open, which Ginny moved her Rook into. Stupid of Ron to completely cover his king with pieces. Now he couldn't escape, and she had a clear path to his king.
"Checkmate." She said almost lazily.
"Unfair win! This wasn't your game!" Ron protested. Ginny yawned. "Be that as it may, Ronald Weasley, I won, and THAT is THAT." She said, leaning across the table and poking him in the chest. "Now, shouldn't we gather our stuff up and wait outside? I mean, we leave at 9:30, and it's 9:25 right now. Dad should be here any minute." At that precise moment, they heard an engine rumbling, and Mr. Weasley called out from one of the light blue cars that he had gotten from the ministry of magic for the day, "Morning Weasley's!"
Everyone mumbled a greeting, and a young wizard, probably fresh out of school, because he looked no older than 18, jumped out of one of the cars and started to load luggage that had just appeared at the doorway. He looked up and whistled when he saw Ginny and Hermione, causing their boyfriends to tense up. Both girls giggled and placed a reassuring hand on them, and they relaxed a little. Sure, the wizard was cute, but not her type. As soon as he was done, he returned to the front seat of the first car and awaited people to get in. Ron and Harry quickly moved to the car driven by Mr. Weasley, but before Ginny and Hermione could follow, the twins went in front of them and jumped in.
"Sorry sweets, but it looks like you're stuck with the cute boy." Fred and George were only coming because they helped Hagrid in Care of Magical Creatures now that they had graduated. They also occasionally helped with Madam Hooch with the Quidditch team. But Ginny knew the real reason they came was to maintain their joke shop in Hogsmeade.
"I'm going to murder you two," Ginny growled, causing the twins to laugh. The two girls moved towards the other car and went to sit in the back, their only reassurance being that Mum was going to be in the car with them. Just then, her head poked through the kitchen door.
"Sorry dears! Looks like I can't come! The kettle's on the fritz!" With that she brought her head back inside.
Completely disheartened, they walked the remaining distance to the car, and to their utter dismay found that the luggage had filled up all the back seats but one, which Hermione took in an instant. Ginny took the front seat glumly, and shut the door, refusing to look at the person next to her. As the car started, she stared out the window, watching the burrow disappear behind them.
"I'm Casten." Ginny looked at the wizard next to her. "I'm sorry?"She said, not really listening to him.
"My name is Casten. What's yours?" Ginny couldn't believe this person was openly flirting with her! "My name is Ginny."
"Wow, what a pretty name. Of course, I would expect a pretty name from such a pretty girl. So, who's your friend back there?"
"My name is Hermione." Hermione spoke up from the back.
"Cool. So, those two boys back there. They your brothers?"
Ginny was almost at the point where she could explode. She had a boyfriend! "No, they're our boyfriends," She replied coldly.
That shut him up for the rest of the drive. As they pulled into Kings Cross, she almost pounced out of the car and into Harry's arms. Hugging him tightly, she was glad to be away from that other wizard, and definitely out of the car. Sneaking a peek, she saw that Hermione was doing the same with Ron.
Casten quickly loaded the luggage onto trolleys, without a second glance to the girls. After the cars had left, Mr. Weasley included, claiming he had work to do. This left the four teens and the twins, who currently had the mental states of six-year olds. Gathering together, they walked between platforms 9 and 10 in pairs, emerging on Platform 9 and three-quarters. Hurrying onto the train, they situated themselves in an empty compartment, and were having a relaxing and enjoying time when an hour after the train had left the compartment door slid open and there stood Draco Malfoy.
Ginny felt her heart quicken, and she looked deep into his eyes, but saw nothing. He opened his mouth and his cold sneer washed over them all, although for Ginny it took a while to sink in.
"I just wanted to see if it was true that the Weasel and Scarhead had hooked up, but obviously it's true, judging by the way you two are hanging all over each other."
Ginny stood up, and her full makeover dawned on him, and his eyes had a flash of need for her, but she looked away from him and walked towards the door, brushing against his skin as she went on. "I have to use the restroom." he said shortly, directing her answer to her friends. She rushed off towards an empty compartment she had noticed earlier. Sitting down on the seat after closing the door, she remembered something. Draco didn't have Crabbe and Goyle with him. She cried a couple tears, wishing she had Draco with her now, then she restored her makeup and got ready to go out the door when it was opened.
Draco stood there, looking very much like he did earlier, except now, his eyes were filled with his need to have her in his arms. He closed the door behind him, put a powerful locking charm on it and held out a hand to Ginny. She took it, and he pulled her into his arm, whispering into her ear, "You look beautiful. All this for Potter? That lucky guy."
Ginny grinned. "All of this for you." Wait a minute. The last time they had been like this... "What are you doing? Are you trying to break my heart again. That's it, isn't it? You don't like me, do you? You're just trying to get me to like you that way you can run off again and make me feel like a piece of-" Draco silenced her by bringing a hand over her mouth.
"No, this time I won't run away. I promise."
"Do you promise to keep your promise?" She asked, starting to close the gap between their lips.
"I promise." He whispered back, finishing off the gap and eagerly pressing lips onto hers. She melted into his embrace, and they stayed like that for a while, till Ginny realized the time.
"Oh my GOSH! They are going to be so worried. And what about us? Harry's my boyfriend now. What do we do now?"
"You're being too worrisome! I have it all covered. And don't worry about a Harry. I caught him looking at Parvati's butt a few times, so I don't think you're going to be his love life for too much longer."
With that he hurried off, waving goodbye. Ginny rushed back to her compartment, where it appeared that everyone was frantic with worry.
"What happened?" Harry asked, putting an arm over her shoulders. "Surely a bathroom break doesn't take 20 minutes.
"Well...not exactly. On my way back here, I ran into Parvati and Lavender, and you know how they are."
That satisfied everyone, and for the rest of the train ride they were undisturbed, except for when the trolley stopped by, and they got a few pumpkin cakes. When there only was twenty minutes left, they changed into their robes, and when the train screeched to a stop, they hurriedly got off and rushed into the pouring rain that was outside, said hello to Hagrid and got into the carriage that awaited them. As Hogwarts castle came into view, Harry hugged her, smiling.
"Welcome Home."
She hugged him back, feeling guilty as she felt nothing, no spark, no liking. As the carriage came to a stop, she unconsciously pulled away, and stood next to Hermione, away from the two boys.
"You saw Draco, didn't you?" Hermione whispered. Ginny blushed.
"Yes" She, replied, just as quietly. Hermione grinned as they stepped into the warm entrance to the Great Hall.
"And you kissed" She said slyly. Ginny turned redder.
"Yes" The conversation ended abruptly as they sat down with the boys. Ginny fixated her eyes on the Slytherin table, where she caught Draco's eyes. He grinned and nodded to Harry, who was suddenly fascinated with Parvati. She giggled and turned her attention to the nervous looking first-years. Nothing really exciting. Her thoughts turned back to Draco. When she surfaced, it was because someone raised a hand in front of her eyes. She blinked and realized that the Sorting was over. Mentally she kicked herself, but at that moment, Albus Dumbledore stood up, so she could do no more damage to her mentality.
"Welcome back to a new year!" He rumbled. Hello's were called out. Dumbledore went through the normalities. But towards the end of the feast, he said something different.
"As some may remember the Yule Ball, I would like to inform you that there will be two balls this year, a Halloween ball and a Christmas. Both require formal attire." He ended. Excited chatter picked up, and Ginny smiled.