Odd Weasley Out
Summary: Ron and Ginny reflect together on their negatively changing relationships with Harry and Hermione. Lots of brother/sister bonding.
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Ron sat on the couch in the Gryffindor common room, playing chess with his sister, Ginny. Neville and Colin Creevy sat to one side watching the duo, while Seamus and Dean looked on from the other. Ron slowly moved his piece.
"Checkmate." Ron stood up, pleased. His sister had turned into quite a good chess player from his teachings, and beating her wasn't easy.
"Way to go, Ron!" Dean laughed, patting him on the back. Ron smiled at the group of people he was with, a group that had spent substantial amounts of time together since the beginning of sixth year. Ginny stood up and shook Ron's hand.
"Good game, my brother," she said dramatically. Colin laughed.
"And this Saturday night's entertainment is complete, I see," Seamus said to Dean.
"I guess so, my friend," Dean replied as he turned toward the rest of the group. "Anyone want to come for a walk with me?" General acknowledgment and agreement came from Seamus, Colin, and Neville.
Ginny, however, stood back. "Not tonight, I think I'll stay in."
Ron looked at his sister. "I'll stay with Ginny," he told the foursome preparing to leave.
"All right," said Neville as they left the common room. "We'll talk tomorrow."
As the group left, Ron looked at Ginny and smiled. "Want to talk?" he asked.
"You guessed it!" Ginny said, giggling.
"I figured," Ron replied, "since you said you wanted to stay in."
The two sat down, and Ginny grabbed his sleeve. "You've gotten so much perceptive, you know that Ron?" she said gently.
"I know. At a price, though."
"A price...." Ginny muttered, her words drifting. "Say, have you noticed that we spend much more time together this year?"
Ron shifted uncomfortably on the couch. "Definitely."
"It's been hard, you know?" Ginny sighed, looking into her brother's eyes. "Getting over it, that is. I mean, I was sure Harry was just a childhood crush. But seeing him so in love with Hermione...it hurts."
Ron patted Ginny on the shoulder. "You lost your crush. I lost a friend. And a former crush of mine."
Ginny returned the favor, taking it upon herself to comfort Ron. "I know. You three used to be inseparable. Until sixth year."
"That was when Hermione and Harry began to go out. Not much of a coincidence, eh?" Ron said, trying to awkwardly laugh.
"And not much of a coincidence that Harry stopped doting on me," Ginny added. "I guess he knew I liked him and kept me in the wings to date. But no...he had to realize he loved Hermione."
"I miss my lively Saturday nights with them. Harry tried to keep up our friendship, but it quickly faded when they were always lip locked," Ron answered, deep regret in his voice.
Ginny stood up. "Thank God you have a little sister who can let you in with her friends," she said with a giggle. She quickly stopped laughing. "I'm sorry. This isn't funny for you. You lost more than me. At least I can laugh."
Also standing up, Ron awkwardly put his arm around Ginny. "Maybe not. But they were your friends, too."
"They left us in the cold," Ginny said bitterly, tightening her grip on Ron. "Especially you."
"I guess I learned a lesson," Ron said.
"What?"
"You can never be sure you'll keep your friends," Ron replied, sounding wise.
"And for me, a first crush never works out," Ginny said, her mind filling with memories of her first year at Hogwarts. A long pause ensued.
Ron finally spoke. "But..."
"But what, Ron?" Ginny asked inquisitively.
"I know now that I can always count on my family."
"Yes, we'll always have each other, right Ron?" Ginny asked contentedly.
Ron stared directly at Ginny. "I'm lucky I have a sister as dear as you."
"Oh Ron," Ginny said as she hugged him, "what a great big brother you are." Just then, the clock struck midnight.
"Wow, it's awfully late," Ron said with a yawn. "Harry and Hermione are still out, I see."
"That's love, I guess," Ginny replied.
"Oh Gin- do, do you think we'll ever be close to them again?"
Ginny frowned. "I don't know, Ron. I don't know."
"I miss them, Ginny. I miss the laughs we had, the jokes we played. I miss arguing with Hermione. I miss sneaking around with Harry."
"I miss them, too." As Ginny talked, Ron began to walk to the stairs. He stopped at the bottom, where the separate steps led to the male and female living quarters.
"I'm glad we talked tonight," Ron said to Ginny.
Ginny gave him a bittersweet smile. "So am I. Ron...we'll eat together at meals, right? Like we always do."
"Just like we have every day for the past year and a half," Ron reassured her.
Ginny began to walk up the stairs. "Ron," she said as she began to walk up the stairs, "Don't ever leave me behind."
Ron walked up his steps. "Never. I never will he replied." He reached the top of the stairs. "Goodnight, sis."
"Goodnight," Ginny replied, and the siblings parted for the night.
Ron went into his dorms and began to get ready for bed. Not too much later, Dean, Seamus, Colin, and Neville came back from their walk. The quartet warmly greeted him, and they all began to share stories and jokes. As the night wore on, Ron began to feel better. These were his friends now; not Harry and Hermione. He had friends who cared for him. And best of all, a sister who would always love him.
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Author's notes: I've always felt that if two members of our trio began to date, the third member would suddenly feel left out. This was initially supposed to be an angsty vignette from Ron's POV, but then I decided to expand it to explore Ron's relationship with Ginny. After all, if Harry and Hermione did get together, she would certainly be affected, too. Not as strongly as her brother, but the hurt would be apparent.