Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

I hope you enjoy the story, and please do let me know if I make any mistakes – English is not my first language.


Chapter 2

Ginny was on the edge of Slumber Land. The summer night had been quite hot, but thankfully Hermione had thoughtfully casted a cooling charm on their room before they bid their goodnights. Ginny wanted to cast it herself but considering her birthday was still several weeks' away, she was not of age yet. Normally this would not be a problem, except for Hermione's innate sense of following the rules that had returned. The younger witch consoled herself that in a few weeks' time she could use magic whenever and wherever she wanted.

Just before she fell into the canyon that was Slumber Land, Ginny heard a flapping sound coming through the window. She groaned internally, hoping that the owl was not for her. She was facing the wall and had no intention of getting the owl - she was so close to sleeping. She, along with the Trio, had been de-gnoming the garden. This year's gnomes had been particularly ferocious, and it took them over seven hours and various bites to clear the garden. Ginny fervently hoped that Hermione was still awake and would be kind enough to deal with the owl.

Her prayer was answered.

She heard Hermione shuffling and moments later, the owl flew away. Ginny briefly wondered who would send a letter at this hour of the night. She mentally shrugged and decided that she would just find out in the morning. Ginny prepared herself to enter Slumber Land again. But, for the second time, just as she was falling asleep, she was brought back to Land of the Awake. Ginny was annoyed and wondered why was she awoken again. She strained her ears and heard sobbing from across her bed.

"Hermione? What's wrong? Is it bad news?" Ginny turned and opened her eyes.

Hermione was sitting on her bed, her back against the wall, and head in her hands. She did not answer Ginny.

Bargaining with her sleepy body, Ginny clumsily climbed down her bed and went to Hermione's. The former spotted the offending letter lying on the latter's bed, and debated internally whether to read it or not. Ginny had no idea whether the letter was specifically for Hermione or not. She decided against it, and held Hermione instead.

They were in that position for some time, with only Hermione's sobs breaking the silence. Ginny sensed that it was better to let the other witch cry and ask questions later, so she kept quiet. After what seemed to be an eternity, Hermione stopped crying and wiped her tears.

"They found my parents, Gin."

A million scenarios went running through Ginny's mind, most of them were things she hoped would not come true.

"Is that good or bad?" Ginny was afraid of asking, and more afraid of hearing the answer. "Should we get Harry and Ron? Do we need to make a plan? Should we contact Kingsley? Are we going into a battle?"

Hermione chuckled.

"They're alive, Gin. My parents are alive."

Ginny relaxed a little.

"After the war, I spoke to Kingsley about what I did to my parents and asked for his help to track them. I broke so many rules to hide my parents and did not want to break more to find them."

"They're not going to put you in Azkaban for that, right?" Ginny was worried.

Hermione shook her head.

"No. According to the Ministry, my actions were necessary for the war, and therefore I won't get in trouble for that, fortunately. Anyway, I've just got a letter from Kingsley, saying that the Aurors have located my parents and that they will arrange for me to go to Australia to see them."

Ginny sighed in relief.

"Why did you cry? Isn't that good news?"

Hermione fidgeted.

"What if their memories can't be returned? What if they can remember everything else but me? What if they hate me? I'm not ready to be an orphan, Gin!"

Tears started to fall again from her eyes. Ginny sympathised with her friend - she lost a brother and it was painful. She did not want to imagine how it felt like losing both parents. Ginny hugged the crying witch.

"'Mione, trust me, they won't hate you. They will understand that you did what you had to do. I know they won't blame you for Obliviating them. They love you too much for that," she consoled Hermione.

"What if they can't remember me?" Hermione whispered. There was a hint of panic in her voice.

"They will remember you, 'Mione. You're the brightest witch of your age, remember? You can and you will return their memories. Don't doubt yourself, alright?"

Hermione did not answer, but moments later Ginny could feel her friend nodded. When Hermione wiped away her tears, Ginny could see that the former had calmed a little.

"So tell me, when are you going to Australia? Are Harry and Ron going with you?"

Hermione shook her head.

"They don't even know I asked Kingsley for help. I don't want them to know, Gin. I want to do this by myself. I know they would accompany me and help me, but I don't want to complicate things."

Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"How would they complicate things?"

Hermione shrugged.

"Well," she hesitated, "until now they have never asked me about my parents even though they both know what happened. For the past couple of weeks the four of us would just hang out and spend time as if nothing major had happened. Maybe I'm not thinking straight but I don't think I can deal with my parents with Harry and Ron present."

Ginny felt guilty and mentally kicked herself. She did not pay attention to how Hermione was faring and whether the older girl was coping at all. For that matter, Ginny was stubbornly blind to her surroundings and did not want to see how the Trio were coping. She herself had been trying to avoid a one-to-one situation with Harry, not wanting to deal with the gigantic elephant in the room - their relationship. She herself had no idea how she felt about him. She was still rather angry that Harry broke it off for her "protection and safety" before gallivanting across Britain to defeat Voldemort. While she knew he had a good intention, it bothered her that he did not think she was smart enough to deal with hardships. Her own brother, that idiotic Ron, was allowed to accompany Harry, for Merlin's sake! Ginny was also feeling slightly mad at Hermione for not defending the redhead and not trying to convince Harry that while being a year younger, Ginny could hold her own ground in any fight.

But what was done was done. The past has gone. She has to deal with the present, but she felt unprepared to deal with it.

"I'm really sorry, 'Mione," Ginny said softly. "I don't know about them, but I myself did not want to stir the pot. Things were going fine, and I just want to be happy again. I'm really sorry for not noticing how you feel. That was thoughtless of me."

Hermione sighed.

"That's alright, Gin, I know that we all deserve a moment of peace, at least. I'm not angry at you, alright?"

Ginny nodded.

"The Ministry is trying to assess whether there are any damages done to my parents' memories, and if so, to what extent. Once they know, they'll prepare the suitable countercharm and they will arrange for me to meet my parents as well as performing the countercharm. I am nervous, but hopeful."

Ginny squeezed Hermione's hand.

"All will be well, 'Mione. I hope it won't take too long."

Hermione nodded.

Once again, they bid their goodnights.


Ginny was woken with the sound of her stomach rumbling. She groaned. She was famished. She was usually hungry in the mornings, yes, but never at this level. A glance at the clock answered her question. She swore and quickly changed clothes. If her mother found out she had been sleeping till noon, she would be getting an earful.

Ginny ran down in a hurry, skipping three steps at once. She groaned when she saw that the kitchen table was empty of food.

"Your mum had to go somewhere this morning, so we're left to fend for ourselves," Harry had entered the kitchen, grinning.

Ginny groaned loudly this time.

"I'll whip something up for you, Gin," Harry chuckled.

He kissed Ginny lightly on her cheek and went to prepare some food for the girl. Ginny froze. Her instincts screamed at her to hide and disappear - she was definitely not ready to deal with this. But her rumbling stomach made her take a seat.

"Um, thanks Harry."

Harry nodded. He fried some bacon and eggs - okay, a lot of bacon and eggs. Considering Ginny had not eaten breakfast as well, he knew she would be ravenous. He decided that a couple of pancakes would be good as well. After all, one should always bring a lot of ammunition when dealing with the Weasleys.

"Do you know where Hermione is?"

"She went with Ron outside. I'm not sure where they were going though, Gin. It's about time they're alone," Harry sniggered.

Ginny was silent. She despaired, would there be nobody to rescue her? She was dreading spending time with Harry. As she busied herself finding ways of avoiding Harry, the young man put plates of food in front of her. All thoughts of planning were gone in an instant, and Ginny ravenously gobbled everything in sight.

Harry chuckled. He sat opposite of Ginny, smiling as he watched her eat.

"Eat the food, Gin, don't inhale them."

Ginny, of course, ignored Harry's advice.

"Gin, I was thinking, since we have not spent some time together, wanna go out for dinner with me tonight?"

Ginny gulped the last bit of egg and, for the umpteenth time, groaned internally. Harry looked so hopeful and she felt guilty for what she was about to do.

"I'm sorry Harry, but I don't feel the same way with you anymore. I don't want to lead you on, but you are like a brother to me," Ginny told him truthfully.

Harry was crestfallen.

"Was it because of me leaving you during the War?" he whispered.

"Well," the redhead hesitated, "that's partly the reason. I realized that I need someone who will let me stand by his side facing challenges instead of someone who prefers to shove me to safety. While I appreciate you trying to keep out of danger, I don't like being kept in the dark and worrying about your safety all the time. I can hold my ground, Harry. Another reason is that I don't think we have the chemistry anymore. I'm so sorry, Harry."

Harry slumped at his seat.

"I understand, Gin," he nodded. "I don't blame you for that. I had a feeling you have no interest in an 'us' anymore, but I thought I should try."

"Mum's gonna kill me for this," she muttered.

Harry chuckled weakly. "It's your life, Gin. She's wonderful, but you should do what you want. You can stand your ground in this battle, right?"

Ginny laughed. She squeezed his hand.

"Thanks, Harry. I really appreciate this. Friends?"

Harry nodded.

"Friends."


When Hermione and Ron returned, Ginny noticed that they were holding hands and stealing glances at each other. Ginny rolled her eyes at them, but was glad that Hermione at least looked happier. Ron, meanwhile, was unhappy when he found out that Harry and Ginny were not together again. Surprisingly, he did not throw a tantrum. Ginny assumed that he reacted rather maturely due to him being on cloud nine with having Hermione.

All of them agreed not to let Mrs. Weasley know of the situation for the time being. None of them were keen on facing a disappointed/angry Mrs. Weasley. They felt that it was best to just let it be, and hopefully by the time all of them were gone to auror training and Hogwarts, the Weasley matriarch would get the hint and would not make a fuss about it.

They spent their days lazing around, enjoying their remaining carefree teenage years. The new couple would often disappear by themselves, and Ginny would drag Harry away from the Burrow before Mrs. Weasley started asking why were they not spending their precious time together. Ginny was glad that Harry could play Quidditch. At least it did not look weird they tend to spend a huge amount of time practicing Quidditch. Ginny wanted to be a professional Quidditch player and felt it was better if she were good in two positions. More teams would open their doors for her.

As per their custom, they celebrated Harry's birthday. While a lot of people came, it was obvious that many would never make their appearance anymore: Fred, Tonks, Remus, and Moody, to name a few. Percy even showed up for a while, although Ginny made it a point to avoid her elder brother. She still felt he had not done enough to earn their forgiveness for leaving them. But all in all, the party went smoothly. Kingsley came and Hermione later on told Ginny that she would be going to see her parents in three days' time. While Ginny was happy for her friend, she felt a bit sad as she would be all alone for her birthday - both Harry and Ron would be going for their Auror training in three days' time as well.

The three days before the Trio's departure to their respective destinations (Ron and Harry were a bit disappointed they could not accompany Hermione) were filled with a flurry of activities. The two boys were going to stay in Auror training camp until their training was completed, as their schedules would be hectic. In the final night, Ginny found Hermione sobbing on her bed. The redhead frowned and approached her crying friend.

"Hermione? What's wrong?"

Hermione wailed. Ginny could see that her friend was in a hysterical state and hugged her.

"'Mione, I'm here. What's wrong?"

Hermione just shook her head. Ginny did not say anything, but sat on the bed and just simply held the crying girl. Ginny wondered whether Hermione was nervous about meeting her parents. After some time, the crying subsided.

"I'm sorry to worry you, Gin."

Ginny pushed a stray strand of hair away from Hermione's face.

"What's wrong, 'Mione?"

Hermione was quiet for a moment.

"It's Ron," she hesitated. Seeing that Ginny looked at her expectantly, she continued, "He… he was being pushy. We won't be able to meet each other for quite some time and he felt that it's time we should bring our relationship to the next level. I… I told him I'm not ready and he got angry at me. I think we're over."

Ginny was livid. She swore. Before she could storm out of the room and murder her brother, Hermione pulled her hand.

"That's alright, Gin. Let him be. I'll deal with him, okay?"

Ginny wanted to protest but Hermione had a determined look on her face. The redhead sighed and reluctantly nodded. Ron may be safe that night, but he better watch his back.


The next morning, Kingsley came at exactly seven o'clock and Disapparated with Hermione. She hugged her goodbye to both Ginny and Harry, but ignored a sheepish-looking Ron. It seemed that Harry had a talk with him the night before, and if that did not put the boy in his right place, Ginny's infamous Bat-Bogey Hex must have worked. Ron looked crestfallen that he was ignored, but he did not push his luck. Ginny sometimes wondered what was in her brother that Hermione see. When both Harry and Ron went off to the Auror training camp, Ginny could feel how empty the house was. She was looking forward to go back to Hogwarts, but for the moment, there was her mother yelling at her to help with chores.