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It was a year after the Final Battle. The memorial service had just started, yet Michael Corner couldn't concentrate on it. His mind wandered to the people who were remembered here (friends, acquaintances, but fortunately, no family members of his). He could still picture them quite vividly, very much alive. He still couldn't believe they were all gone.

He stared at the other people present. They had all suffered too. They had all lost people. They had all been wounded, whether it was physically or mentally. His old Ravenclaw friends had all huddled together and he was there too. People had been coming out of their hiding places too, this past year. They had been lost; they were completely shocked when they had found out about the numerous deaths.

His eyes wandered over the people. The Malfoys – Michael did not understand at all what they were doing there – , the Abbotts, the Bones'. And of course, the Weasleys. They were at the front, standing out from the crowd as usual. He didn't know them all very well, actually, he didn't know any of them very well.

Except for one. Ginny Weasley. Although he couldn't quite say that he knew her well; he had known her well, once. Years ago. Of course, both of them had changed a lot since then, so he wasn't actually so sure if he still knew her.

He could remember the night they had met rather well. He'd seen her before (Hogwarts was a large school, yes, but after a while you start to actually remembering people), but that night – that night changed it all. They had had so much fun together, it would have been unnatural for them not to keep in touch. So they did. Things had become more and more serious and therefore, he hadn't really hesitated to sign up for the DA; after all, if Ginny thought it was safe enough, then it would be. He was sure of that.

Yes, he had done things he regretted later. He could have taken it all easier – not that they had been reckless in any way, but maybe he had pressured her too much. He could have tried to understand the hero-status Ginny ascribed to Harry Potter. He could have reacted differently after Ravenclaw had lost that Quidditch match to Gryffindor.

That was the one thing he regretted most. If only he hadn't been so sour about the loss, things would've gone differently, he was sure of that. He had overreacted, she had shouted, he had shouted back, and she had broken up with him. Whenever he thought about that, he felt like banging his head into the nearest wall (or table, or anything else that would hurt). How could he have been so stupid? How could he have let her get away, only to go and comfort (and somehow, find comfort in) Cho? Not that Cho wasn't a great girl, but she wasn't Ginny.

Yes, Michael Corner still hadn't gotten over Ginny Weasley. It seemed, however, that it couldn't be said that she wasn't over him. Only about a month after their break-up, he had seen her with Dean Thomas. It had been heartbreaking for him. After Dean, there had been Harry Potter. When that didn't seem to work out, Michael had begun to hope again. He'd started silently dropping hints that he could still see things work for the two of them. Ginny hadn't reacted to that, although he wasn't sure whether it was because she'd rather ignore him, or because she was simply oblivious.

And now, as she was standing there among her large family, it turned out that in the end, things had worked out between Ginny and Harry. They seemed happy. And there was no way that Michael could ever compete with the Harry Potter, even if, say, his OWL scores might have been better or something like that.

Michael tilted his head to the side and observed the pair quietly, trying to listen what was said in the front. Why was it, that Ginny hadn't given him a second chance, yet she had been more than willing to give Harry one? Deep down inside, he knew the answer. Ginny had already been smitten with Harry from the day she met him, at the tender age of ten. She had never gotten over that, however much she liked to think so, however much she had tried to convince others, including him, of that. He wasn't sure about the others, but she had surely managed to fool him.

Furthermore, Harry had a much more valid reason for breaking up with her than he had had. Alright, so Ginny had broken up with him, but it was about a Quidditch match, for Merlin's sake, how could he have been so stupid? He hadn't needed to save the world and protect her, no, he had been grumpy about a stupid loss. How could he have been so stupid?

As he sat down at his kitchen table that night, he decided to try to make his feelings more discernable. It would be good for him; perhaps that would be the way to get over her. He grabbed a stray piece of parchment and a quill and started writing –

Dear Ginny,

I never thought I'd ever write to you, but now that I've seen you again today, I had to do something. You looked more beautiful than ever, and – who am I kidding now? I'm still very much in love with you. Yes, Ginny Weasley, I love you. And I'm trying very hard to get over you, which is why I'm writing this down in the first place. I'm hoping to forget you after this, because I know you're happy the way you are, with Harry. Oh, this is really stupid. This'll never work. Why am I even bothering? You're far too perfect. And you don't want me anymore. I accept that, even if it's making me more miserable than I've ever been. I hope that one day, we'll meet again, and I'll be able to conclude that I truly have no feelings for you any longer. Until then –

Yours, Michael

The letter was the greatest bunch of rubbish he'd ever seen in his life. It didn't make any sense whatsoever. Angrily, he threw down his quill. This wasn't working. Perhaps he should try again tomorrow morning. He could surely use some sleep.

When Michael entered his kitchen the next morning, something was missing. The letter. It wasn't on the kitchen table anymore. Where had it gone?

A couple of hours later, his owl Pop came flying in with a letter in its beak. Surprised, Michael walked over to the bird and took out the letter. His heart almost stopped when he recognised the handwriting – Ginny's. He peered down at Pop. "Did you bring her the letter on the kitchen table?" he asked sternly.

Pop hooted in confirmation (at least, that was what Michael made of it). It was really an overenthusiastic owl, it seemed.

Dreading the contents, Michael slowly started reading the small note; it wasn't very long. After all, what could Ginny have to say after reading his overly chaotic letter?

Dear Michael,

I must admit, I was very surprised when I received your letter this morning. I had no idea that you still felt that way – I'm sorry to hear that. Especially since, as you already mentioned, I'm happy with Harry. I am sure that one day, you'll meet someone with whom you'll become very happy too. I already look forward to our next encounter; hopefully it'll be under happier circumstances as those you're in now.

Ginny


A/N: Well, what do you think? Let me know, please review!