Disclaimer: The wonderful world of Harry Potter and the canon characters belong to J.K Rowling and I am only borrowing them to write for my and other people's enjoyment, without any intention of profiting from it. I thank this creative lady for blessing us with such a rich ground to build up our creativity on!
"You broke my brother's heart." A tight voice muttered, and the brunette witch glanced at the redhead and sighed, averting her gaze.
"I know." She replied sadly, staring straight out at the breath-taking scenery of the Hogwarts grounds.
The other witch's eyes hardened slightly, and her voice was harsh when she asked her next question. "Why did you lead him on, if you didn't want to marry him? I never pegged you to be so needlessly cruel, Hermione." Ginny accused.
The muggleborn cocked her head to the side, looking at her friend with a shocked expression. "I did not lead him on, Gin. You of all people know that I had a crush on him, since our third year." She frowned. "I love your brother, I really do, but we want completely different things from life. I don't know what the future holds for me, but I know that I am not ready for marriage."
Ginny grimaced and ran a hand through her long tresses, an uncomfortable feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. She knew that her friend was right, but she wanted to be mad at her. She needed to be mad at her, because it was easier to blame her for rejecting Ron's proposal and shattering the idealistic Weasley family dream they had, than accepting the situation for what it was.
She leaned against the railing, and sighed. "I know." She admitted quietly. "It's just..., it would have been so perfect to finally have you in the family. I hate that it won't happen now." She choked, her eyes misty with unshed tears.
"Ginny-" Hermione whispered, her gaze soft with understanding, but she was interrupted.
"No, don't say anything, I know I am being ridiculous." She chuckled bitterly, looking at the calm surface of the Black Lake. "Growing up with six brothers was never how I imagined my ideal childhood to be." She paused, and looked back at her best friend. "Don't get me wrong, I adore my brothers, but I always wanted a sister. When Ron's feelings for you became glaringly obvious, and after all those years of skirting around each other you finally started to date, I was hoping that you would officially become a Weasley, and I..." Her voice faded, as she trailed off.
"And you would get the sister that you always wanted." The older witch finished her line of thought tenderly.
"Yeah." Ginny sighed, and tightened her school robes around her lithe form.
"I am sorry that I ruined that dream for you-" Hermione said carefully, and placed a small hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "But Gin, you have to know that I do consider you my sister. My rather loud, terribly hot tempered, albeit kind and caring younger sister, who is always eager to pull me out of my world of books and academics." She chuckled. "My world has become so much broader when we became friends. I might have been getting into all sorts of trouble with the boys, but you comforted me when they were being utterly moronic, and it is you I come to with my problems. You have always been my confidant, and that will not change just because I broke it off with Ronald."
Ginevra took a shallow breath and crushed into the petite body in front of her, sobbing into Hermione's shirt. "Do you promise?" She asked with a small voice.
"Yes, I promise." The bright witch said softly, and hugged the youngest Weasley close to her.
"I am sorry that I called you cruel." Ginny mumbled, feeling guilty about rounding on her. "I did not mean it, I hope you know that I did not mean it. I know you did not want to hurt Ron, and I am sorry for not asking about how you are feeling about all of this. I am such a terrible friend." She sniffled.
Hermione smiled. "It's okay, I understand. I won't lie and say the accusation did not sting a bit, but I know you were just upset. I won't hold it against you, but I would appreciate if you could try to accept that I cannot make Ronald happy, and he wouldn't be able to make me happy either. We are both passionate people, and we clash more often than not. I know there is this whole exciting opposites attract thing that we have going on between us, but it is not always a good thing when sparks fly so fiercely. It can be bad, and unfortunately even though our flame is bright, it scorches us all the time, and we hurt each other without meaning to." She explained with a deep sadness reflecting in her warm chocolate coloured orbs.
"But you love each other!" Ginny desperately exclaimed.
"Yes, but sometimes love is not enough." She frowned.
"I don't understand. Love is all you need, and the rest will work itself out." She vehemently shook her head. "All you need is time, and you will see that I am right, you will see. Please, give it another chance. Please." She pleaded with her.
"Ginny, sweetie, please stop." A low voice called out gently from behind.
Hermione looked up to see Harry walking towards them, and she let out a breath she did not know she was holding. She was grateful for his presence, as she was struggling to placate her hysteric best friend. She did not meant to hurt anyone with her decision, however she did not want to deal with this right now, as she was hurting herself.
"But-" The flaming haired witch protested.
"No." Harry shook his head, and pulled the sobbing girl into his arms. "You don't have to like Hermione's decision, but you need to accept it, because otherwise you might lose someone irreplaceable from your life." He whispered into her ear.
The brunette witch watched the scene with a bitter ache in her heart, and since her friends were so wrapped up in each other, she walked away unnoticed. She broke into an aimless run, which surprisingly lead her to the Headmaster's office, where the Gargoyle guarding the entrance slid to the side seamlessly.
"Miss Granger, what a delightful surprise." Dumbledore's portrait called out serenely.
"Headmaster Dumbledore-" Hermione returned the greeting somewhat confused. "I apologize for the intrusion, I am not quite sure why I am here." She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Well, that would be my fault." Another voice muttered, and her eyes widened comically.
A/N: Honestly, I have absolutely no idea where this story is going. I am writing this because the line "You broke my brother's heart." would not leave me alone, and I just had to write it down, and it went from there. I do know who called out at the end though, that will be fun. If you have any ideas you'd like to see, please let me know, I will be happy to consider it. This is a clean start, with a sea of possibilities. Thank you for reading!