Ginny's Story
By Frog-Princess
(ginny@darkcastle.com)
Chapter One
First entry.
Dear Diary,
My name is Ginny Weasley, and for the first time in my life, my twin brothers are treating me like royalty. The downside? The humiliating nickname they've given me - "The Frog Princess."
I suppose it all started with one particularly memorable Valentine's Day. I was in my first year at Hogwarts. I don't know what made me do it... I was a great deal less mature back then. But for some reason beyond my comprehension, I decided to send Harry Potter a singing Valentine. I still know it by heart.
Anyway, the day before we left for Hogwarts, Fred and George (who think they've got the run of the school just because they're going into seventh year) were sitting around and recounting the "good times we've had all these years," and they just had to bring it up. Right when I was beginning to think people had forgotten about it, too. I thought - just maybe - people were starting to respect me a little more. But good old Fred and George - they just couldn't resist. They had to remind everyone.
And now, it isn't Ginny anymore - it's "Frog Princess." Or "Her Majesty." Or even "Your Highness."
Ginny stopped writing and stared blankly out the window. For once, there was silence in the usual compartment aboard the Hogwarts Express. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger stared uncertainly at one another. Ginny, the youngest of the Weasleys and the only girl, now sat with her arms crossed, her face and ears a deep shade of pink.
"Ribbit."
The twins, Fred and George Weasley, sniggered under their breath as Ginny turned around to look at them. "Stop it," she said softly, then resumed looking out again at the lush green countryside.
"Ribbit," repeated one of the twins, breaking the silence yet again. "Ribbit. Ribbit."
"Come on, stupid, lay off it already," said Ron, annoyed. "You'd better knock it off before you make her mad."
Harry and Hermione exchanged glances. Nothing had been said about it on the train, but the Weasleys were all acting a little strangely. "All right, you two," demanded Hermione. "What's this all about?"
Ginny unfolded her arms and crossed her hands in her lap. She spoke in a barely audible whisper. "They're making fun of me," she said, looking down. "Because..." But she couldn't finish.
"In the interest of being fair," said George, "you should probably hear both sides of the story."
"We were minding our own business," said Fred loudly. "And there was one of Ginny's old diaries, from a few years ago. We weren't going to read it, but honestly, would you have walked away from a diary that was sitting wide open like that?"
"That's not what happened," argued Ron. Ginny remained silent. "You knocked it to the floor. You were being a pair of great prats and knocked it down, and it fell open. I was there."
Ginny sighed. "I wish you'd have just given it back," she said in a much quieter tone than Ron. It was nice he was sticking up for her, but she knew it would be hopeless to persist. It'd probably only make things worse.
"Hey, we're sorry, Ginny," said George sincerely. "We really are."
"I still don't understand," Hermione said. "Why are you making fun of Ginny?"
"Well," continued Fred. He dug around in the pocket of his robes. "We found this."
He was holding up a picture that had been torn from the pages of a story-book. It showed a beautiful princess, wearing an elegant dress with flowing skirts. A sparkling crown was fixed atop her golden curls.
"We'd been thinking about that poem Ginny wrote," said Fred. "How did it go again, George? 'His eyes are green as a fresh pickled toad...' " He batted his eyelashes at Harry, who shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"Fred!" Ginny hissed. Fred immediately grew quiet and apologized to his sister, but the damage had been done. Ginny fought to remain in her seat. Part of her wanted to duck under the table and hide, and the other part wanted to jump over it at Fred and George. She sat there for a few moments, the dreadful inner struggle beginning to make her feel sick.
Ginny lowered her head, but not before Harry caught a glimpse of her pretty, freckled face. It was soon thoroughly soaked with tears. Hermione got up, shot the twins the same exasperated glare Ron had been giving them, and put a reassuring arm around the younger girl.
George was the first to speak up. "What's up with Gin?" he asked quietly, as if unaware he and his twin had been the cause of the problem in the first place. Fred shrugged. "Hormones," he replied in a loud whisper, and George nodded knowingly. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Hey," said Fred defensively. "Just trying to keep things light."
"See?" Ron said, in an I-told-you-so sort of voice. "You see what you've done? Now she's upset. You should have just given it a rest!"
"What was that?" Fred looked at George, who replied, "Did you hear it too, Fred? I could've sworn it sounded just like dear Percy!"
Ron leaned back in his seat. "I do not," he growled, though in a somewhat dejected tone. "And don't try and change the subject. You really should apologize."
"Again!? For what?"
As the argument carried on, Ginny glanced at Harry for a moment, her eyes pleading. He looked back at her, somehow knowing just what she felt. Secretly, Ginny wished she could have just kept on gazing into Harry's green eyes, but she forced herself to look away. She hurriedly dried her face for the tenth time and whispered something to Hermione.
Fred sighed, realizing he was fighting a losing battle against his younger sibling. "We really didn't mean to make you cry, Ginny," he admitted. "It's just that, you know... it's a little tense, with You-Know-Who hiding out. We thought it would be funny - just like the story you were reading about in the Muggle fairy tale book Dad gave you--"
"No, no, Fred, that was a frog prince." George couldn't help winking at Harry, but caught a severe look from Hermione. The smirk on his face vanished.
"Ah, but don't you see?" Fred pressed on. "The prince and princess always get married in Muggle tales--"
"Wouldn't that make us some sort of royalty then?" asked George.
Both twins burst out laughing. "Frog royalty?" Fred gave a low bow to George. "Your Highness," he said, while his twin did the same. They finally succeeded in making Ginny smile, though Ginny tried to hide it.
Frog spawn, more like, she thought to herself bitterly. She resumed scribbling in her diary.
Sometimes I wish those two would just leave me alone. I know it's nothing personal, that they treat everyone that way. I realize that they're only trying to help by keeping us laughing. But it's the worst feeling when they tease me in front of Harry.
I know Harry's probably disgusted. I worry he'll start avoiding me. I'm nothing more than a little kid to him, and the way I feel is just an annoyance. I know he'll never think of me the same way.
So why can't I just let this go?
