I felt this chapter should be sort of a filler...explaining some things and putting everyone's thoughts into perspective. To be honest, I'm not sure what is going to happen after this, although I DO know there will be many more chapters. I know I'm super slow at updating now that school has started, but I hope you still enjoy.

Reviews are sexy.


'How did you find me?'

'I know you, Ginny, sometimes I feel like I know you too well.'

'I'm glad you came.'

'I'm scared.'

'I know. But can I tell you something?'

'Yes.'

'It will be okay.'

'How can it be? I need you.'

'When I was a little girl, we had a dog named Lucy. I loved that dog more than anything in world. She was my best friend, she listened, she didn't judge, and her love was unconditional. One day, she ran away, or got lost and I felt like someone had ripped my heart from my chest. Those next few weeks were the loniest of my life, I dreaded going to sleep and equally dreaded getting up in the morning. I missed her so much, I thought I would die. And you know what mum told me? She said, 'She'll come back, dogs always find their way home.' and the next day Lucy came home. I almost couldn't believe my eyes, but after I had lost all hope and thought I was never going to see her again, there she was. Sitting there, looking up at me with those big brown eyes and in that moment I knew that everything is always okay, and everyone always finds their way back to where they're meant to be. Can you believe me?'

'I'll try. I love you.'

'And I love you. Always remember that Hermione, no matter what.'


Hermione Granger was not vain. As she studied the pale faced girl in the mirror, she couldn't help but realize that she hadn't seen her in quite a while. She looked at the pale brown eyes, the eyes that held so many secrets, so much love and so much pain. The green flecks in them, the flecks disrupting the unity, the peace. She loved those green flecks, those little bits of chaos that were constantly present in her life, even when Ginny was so far away. But that's were the chaos ended. Everything else about her was so plain, so normal. Her brown hair, her smooth skin, her dark eyelashes, her perfectly manicured eyebrows, the soft jawline that led to her neck. Flawless except for the small red spot directly under her left ear. She smiled, Ginny had been there. That one spot she had claimed for her own. Hermione's fingers found the spot and tenderly stroked it, wishing Ginny's lips were there once again. She sighed and looked away from her reflection, turning instead to the towel hanging on the wall. She grabbed it and wrapped it around herself, turning now to walk back to her room.

Ron was there.

The urge to walk back to the bathroom was overpowering.

"Good morning" he said, his face betraying nothing, a complete stone wall.

"Morning" she mumbled, crossing the room to the closet, where she paused and looked back at him.

"What are you doing today?" She asked, not quite sure why she wanted to know, but suddenly realizing that this was Ron...one of her best friends and she hated what their relationship was becoming. She wanted him back, but not in this way, she wanted it back to when she thought of him as a brother. As a constant presence and support. As someone she could laugh with into the early morning, as someone she could share herself with, someone who she loved and never wanted to lose. She couldn't bear that she was beginning to dread him being in the same room.

"I dunno, probably something with Harry. Are you going out with Ginny?" She heard the catch in his voice, almost as if he wanted to laugh. He knew. Hermione knew too but she knew that the timing wasn't right for that particular conversation.

"Yeah." She answered, the irony was almost suffocating.

"Ah, what are you doing?" Ron looked genuinely interested, and for a moment, Hermione wanted to run to him and throw her arms around him. She wanted to tell him everything, she wanted his advice, she wanted to know how he felt about Harry and she wanted to know where everything was going to go from here. The moment passed as she realized that she could do none of these things, she had to wait and see how things panned out, or at least let Ginny make the decision. Hermione shivered as she realized this, it suddenly became clear that Ginny and Harry had full say in what was going to be done. They were the married ones, the ones with a child. Ron and Hermione were powerless.

She could almost feel the color fading from her face. She almost forgot that Ron was there.

"Oh, you know, girl stuff." She answered absentmindedly, the realization still settling in.

"Sounds fun" Ron said, looking concerned and slightly uncomfortable.

Hermione's eyes went to the closet, her hand reached inside and withdrew the first thing she touched. A yellow sundress. "Do you mind?" she asked weakly, the fabric feeling like it weighed a thousand pounds.

"Yeah, of course" Ron mumbled, evidently confused at the drastic turn their civil conversation had taken.

She heard him push himself off of the bed and the door shut softly a moment later. She felt like she was drowning.

She didn't know how she hadn't thought of that before...it's not like she thought that Ginny would just leave her and continue on with her life, but just the fact that she could if she wanted to scared Hermione so much that her whole body shook.

She couldn't handle that, not again.

She cradled the dress in her hands, letting her towel fall around her feet, she stared at the bright yellow for a moment before pulling the dress over her head. She knew that she just had to let things happen, but now that she had no control over the outcome, that task seemed much more daunting.


"We need to talk." Ginny's face was unreadable, her eyes downcast and her fingers knotted together. Hermione's heart dropped into her stomach, not this talk, please not this talk.

"Okay." she said, her words shaking as she allowed Ginny to lead her to the couch.

"I don't know what to do." Ginny said almost immediately.

"About what?" Hermione asked cautiously, her fingers knotting into the fabric of her shirt.

"No, no, it's not that kind of talk." Ginny said nervously, noting the color draining from Hermione's face.

"What kind of talk is it then?" Hermione asked, although she was sure that she knew the answer.

"About us...about Harry and Ron and about what the fuck we're going to do about it." Ginny's eyes finally betrayed emotion, deep, haunting confusion.

"Oh..." It was that talk. Hermione didn't even know where to start, or even if she had anything to say at all.

"I love you, right? You know that. But what about James, what about Harry? I love him too...not like I love you, but the same way that you love him. Like a brother, like someone I couldn't bear to lose." Ginny's face fell again, she looked completely lost.

Hermione of course, understood completely, having had the same realization only hours before. But, it wasn't the same with Ginny, her and Harry had a deeper connection, a child.

"But we're all in the same boat, don't you think that's going to make it easier?" Hermione knew that wasn't going to be an adequate solution, but it felt better than saying nothing at all.

"James..." Ginny said, and Hermione knew that this road wasn't going to be a simple one.

"James is so young though...lots of parents split up...and I'm his Godmother..." Hermione decided this angle wasn't helping, so she moved to Ginny's side instead.

"Look. I need you. I love you." Hermione took Ginny's face into her hands, looking into her confused eyes, trying to clear them. "I love you." she repeated, pressing her lips to Ginny's softly, sighing as she felt the response. It had to be okay, it had to. If Ron and Harry felt this way about each other there was no way that they could disagree.

When they broke apart tears were clinging to Ginny's eyelashes, making Hermione's heart ache.

"I love you so much." Ginny said, the tears finally overflowing and cascading down her face.

Hermione softly wiped her eyes and smiled.

"Then it's going to be okay." she didn't know what else to say, except what she knew.

"We have to talk to them." Ginny said, squeezing Hermione's hand.

"I know." Hermione agreed, squeezing back, trying to take some of Hermione's confusion for her own.

Ginny smiled, that beautiful breathtaking smile that always made Hermione's face flush with pink.

"You're so cute when you blush." Ginny said, brushing her fingers across Hermione's cheek.

"Hopefully I'll be around for awhile so you can see it all the time." Hermione looked into Ginny's eyes, a plea hidden there.

"You will be. No matter what happens, you will be." and she kissed her lover on the lips and with that it was a promise.