Disclaimer: I'm not J.K. Rowling… darn! Ha ha, ok read!

Chapter 4: Secrets, Secrets

Silencing charms were miraculous. Ginny was a very proud person, and with a simple, though strong, silencing charm cast over her office, she would not have to worry about the neighbors hearing the piercing expletives flying freely from her mouth. She also enjoyed the tinkling crash of china against any hard surface (she had always loathed the ridiculous pattern Mrs. Zabini chose for the house and now she had an excuse to ruin it). Ginny did not want to see anyone, not even her patients. How hard was that to comprehend? No visitors – it was short and sweet. Knowing her luck, Voldemort would most likely show up at her doorstep asking to borrow a cup of sugar because he was making chocolate chip cookies as a peace offering for Harry Potter. That was that. Ginny Weasley would have no visitors today, and she reminded Cossi just so in a rather menacing tone.

"Cossi is sorry, Mrs. Krum, but Miss Wheez-i-lee isn't seeing anyone today," the house elf whispered after cowering out of the office. "Cossi thinks whoever upset Miss Wheez-i-lee doesn't know about Miss Wheez-i-lee's temper."

Hermione laughed. "Believe me, Cossi, they know. Now why don't you get some tea ready in the china Ginny likes?" Just as she was about to enter the room, she felt a tug on her pant leg.

"Mrs. Krum is sure she wants to go in there?" Cossi looked up at her with saucer-like eyes, and Hermione's heart melted. Her heart had to be quite large to fit her loves of knowledge, books, Viktor, and house elves.

"Yes, I'm sure," Hermione said softly and gently touched Cossi's head. She turned on her heel and entered the room.

Ginny's office looked much different than the last time Hermione had been there. A faint light leaked through the drawn curtains that weren't thick enough to block out the strong Grecian sun. The ice blue walls took on a grayish hue that made Hermione feel like she were surrounded by storm clouds, which warned her of the danger the walls held. In the middle of this man-made gloomy day sat Ginny at her chocolate brown desk. Her forehead rested on her desk and her tangled locks completely covered her face. As Hermione light smoothly shut the door, Ginny's head popped up and her curls flew back as if they had a mind of their own. "Go the fuck away, Cossi!" she shouted with slurred speech and half-closed eyes.

"Sorry, but no," The brunette retorted. Then came the Weasley death stare – the same one Ron had given Draco after he had called Hermione a mudblood. This time the look was almost too depressing to be intimidating. There was no true way to tell if Ginny had slept or not. She had circles under her eyes mainly from her smeared make-up she had worn the night before, but Hermione swore she saw hints of a bluish-purple beneath the black. Black water-colored rivers smudged Ginny's cheeks, and she wore a tattered terry robe that had been peach at one time but was now a faded pinky-gray. She obviously had made no effort to take down her hair last night. A rat's nest had formed at the top of her head and was tilting to the right, not quite covering the top of her ear. Some pieces were no longer curled, water-logged with tears, and clung to her face; towards the back a few ringlets coiled against the nape of her neck. Ginny had a clear, empty glass clutched in her hand. Hermione had seen her like this only once before, but with the look Ginny was giving her, fixing Ginny's problem was not her top priority.

"Get out, Granger," the red-head snarled and slurred. Hermione stood still only allowing her chin to tilt up slightly in defiance, as she were saying, "I triple-dog-dare you." Ginny rolled her eyes. "Didn't that cock-sucker warn you?"

It was a shame that when Hermione was mad steam didn't come from her ears; the inside gloomy day in the office could have used some fog. Instead her hands went straight to her hips as she raked out Ginny.

"First off, I refuse to leave because I'm worried about you, especially now that I've seen your present state. Number two: you know how I feel about house elves." Ginny took this time to admire the ceiling and roll her eyes once more. "Don't ever let me catch you abusing Cossi again. And thirdly, what's with the last names? We've been friends for 15 years!"

"Would you rather I call you mudblood?" Ginny smirked. That was it; the gloves were coming off. Smack! Hermione's palm connected with Ginny's cheek and the sound resonated of the walls.

"Don't say you didn't deserve that," Hermione growled. There was an awkward silence for a moment that lasted an age. What is a woman supposed to do after she has smacked her best friend across the face? That is what Hermione wanted to know, and secretly she thanked Merlin for the uneasy quietness. It was always better when no one said a single word. Ginny sat in a bewildered drunken stupor. Hermione preferred her friend drunk and silent than even speaking up herself.

"Are we friends?" Ginny asked, shaking Hermione out of her daze.

"Yes."

"Best friends?"

"What the hell are you playing at?" Hermione argued and lifted an eyebrow.

"Answer the question: are we or are we not best friends?" Ginny prodded.

"We are." The chin was lifted and her hands were on her hips- Hermione's defensive stature that was a complete replica of how her mother would stand.

"So as your best friend I deserved to be lied to and to be slapped?" the youngest Weasley sat up a little straighter in her chair, and once again Hermione was taken aback.

"I was trying to protect –"

"Stop right there, Hermione. I am 25 years old; I am not a little girl," Ginny stood and loomed dangerously over her desk. "I really don't know where you all get off being so over protective. First it was Harry and Ron saying that it was too dangerous for me to look for Horcuxes. Then when I finally started missions, Draco refused to let me go unless I had a more-experienced, male partner, but if he was with me, it was completely alright. I could never handle even a sleeping Death Eater.

"After Bellatrix and Narcissa attacked me, my parents went to the Order to have my assignment changed to spying on Blaise. Then Charlie died, and Blaise insisted that I get away from the chaos. Now you and Viktor are suddenly back in my life, but you can't help to lie to me for my own God damn protection! Don't you people understand that I live with an upper-ranked Death Eater?"

Ginny's breathing was ragged and her eyes were brimming with tears. Her pain that currently filled the room held the strength to break the windows. Her arms shook from holding her body upright. Ginny took her eyes away from Hermione for a brief second. No one ever saw her cry, not even Ron. With a small sniffle and a quick wipe of the eyes, everything was right again – for the time being.

"Look, we should –"

"Get out," Ginny grumbled.

"But we need –"

"No!" she bellowed. "What you need to do is get the fuck out!"

Hermione wanted to stand her ground. Her heart was completely all for staying in that office and making some kind of progress. But her mind told her to leave, so Hermione's legs carried her out of the room. The moment Hermione was gone Ginny slumped into her chair and buried her head in her hands. Then she reached for her glass.

"Cossi!" she shouted. Then she moaned in despair. "Why is the rum gone?"

A/N: Happy Holidays everyone! I'm sorry this chapter didn't get up quite as quickly as I wanted, nor is it as long as I had wanted it to be. I guess I can't complain if it's effective. If you're lucky, I might get chapter 5 up before my break is over. I do have homework to do, but with my boyfriend in Louisiana it gives me something to do while I wait for my 11 (or since he's a time zone behind, 10) o'clock phone call. I wish everyone a Happy New Year!