~ * ~ W I S H I N G * O N * S T A R S ~ * ~
by She's a Star
Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to the glacially schnazz J.K. Rowling.
Chapter One: I Wish I May...
Though she was sure she'd never star in any major productions, Ginny Weasley really was a marvelous actress.
After all, you really had to be, to go about your normal life, writing essays and forcing smiles all day long, when really you were constantly crying on the inside. It sure as hell wasn't easy to laugh at jokes her friends cracked or concentrate on her homework when she could literally feel her heart breaking in her chest, but Ginny pulled it off. Not only that, she pulled it off with flourish. Everyone around her was positive that she was the happiest girl in the world.
No one even began to suspect how she really felt.
No, the only person who really knew that was Ginny herself.
Ginny was rather shy; she certainly didn't go around informing random people that she had been madly in love with Harry Potter for the last four years of her life. As a matter of fact, her best friend Hermione Granger was the only one that even knew she still had feelings for Harry. However, as far as Hermione knew, all Ginny had was just a teensy little crush. Intelligent as Hermione was, she hadn't even begun to suspect how deep Ginny's feelings ran.
No one had.
And Ginny intended to keep it that way.
Still, one evening as she sat by the window in the fourth year girls' dormitory and stared out at the stars, sparkling like tiny diamonds, she couldn't help but wonder how Harry would react if she told him how she felt. Just went up to him one day and said, "I love you, Harry Potter." Just like that.
A sad, amused sort of smile formed on her lips. He'd probably pass out from the disgust of it all. After all, she was just Ginny Weasley, Ron's pathetic younger sister who'd never spoken a coherent sentence in the great Harry Potter's presence. The day he considered her girlfriend material was the day that Voldemort danced the Macerana and decided that killing Harry wasn't number one on his to-do list.
"Face it, Gin," she whispered forlornly to herself, "It's never going to happen. You're just going to have to keep living your life completely miserable, pretending nothing's wrong all the while."
The prospect definitely wasn't inviting.
With a soft sigh, she stared once more out at the stars. For as long as she could remember, looking out at them had always given her a sense of sweet serenity that she got nowhere else.
But now, even the beauty of the night sky couldn't lighten her heart or give her the teeniest glimmer of happiness.
The only thing that could ever make her happy now was Harry. Having Harry care about her.
But obviously, there was no way that was going to happen.
And yet, being the fool that she was, Ginny couldn't bring herself to get over him and fancy someone else. It was absolutely stupid! After all, both Neville and Colin seemed interested in her. Sure, they weren't the cutest boys in school, but at least they were willing to overlook her ever-tangled red hair, horribly pale skin, and wretched freckles.
Unlike SOME people.
Another wistful sigh escaped Ginny's lips as she stared up at the sky, wondering if the sight of it could ever make her happy again. If ANYTHING could ever make her happy again.
It certainly didn't feel that way.
A streak of sparkling silver quickly brought her out of her reverie, and before she realized the words were even leaving her mouth, Ginny whispered in the direction of the shooting star, "I wish I may, I wish I might have the wish I wish tonight."
Taking a deep breath, she hugged her knees to her chest and said six words that drifted out into the darkness.
"I wish Harry Potter loved me."
~*~
"Ginny! Ginny!"
Moaning in exhaustion, Ginny forced her eyes open. Slowly, the fuzzy image focused, revealing Eloise Midgen's smiling face.
"WhaddisitEloise?" Ginny muttered sleepily, shifting in bed.
"You should come downstairs," Eloise advised.
"Why?" Ginny groaned.
"Harry."
Ginny sat up in bed at once. "What?!"
"You know," Eloise said casually, "Harry Potter. He's been asking for you all morning."
"Asking for me?" Ginny repeated incredulously.
Eloise nodded. "Yup."
"Well," Ginny asked, pulling herself out of bed and immediately dressing in jeans and a green sweater, "What about?"
"He hasn't said," Eloise twirled a strand of dark hair around her finger. "He just claims he needs to talk to you."
"Okay," Ginny said, confused as she rapidly ran a brush through her tangled red hair. "This is odd."
Eloise shrugged. "Not really. I mean, why shouldn't he want to talk to you?"
Perhaps because he's never shown any interest in doing so before, Ginny responded silently. However, aloud she merely replied, "I don't know."
Tossing her hairbrush down onto her bed, she took a deep breath and rushed out of the dormitory.
What could Harry possibly want to talk to her about? Ginny racked her brain violently, but couldn't come up with anything. Ron maybe...but couldn't he just ask Hermione then? She certainly knew a lot more about Ginny's older brother than Ginny did.
Heart beating twice its normal rate, Ginny slowed down once she reached the common room and stood anxiously behind Harry.
"Er..." she said awkwardly, "You wanted to talk to me, Harry?"
He turned around, a huge smile on his face, brilliant green eyes sparkling. Sparkling...
All at once, Ginny remembered the wish she'd made on the shooting star the night before.
But that couldn't have actually worked, could it? she thought wildly. I mean-
However, she never got the chance to finish her thought. As a matter of fact, she lost the power to think at all as Harry leaned over and softly kissed her on the cheek.