"You are sure you don't want to come?" Dane asked again
"Positive, I need to be far ahead in my classes before the baby comes, but thanks, really I know I seem unappreciative, it was very kind of you to invite me,"
"Will you at least come by for Christmas Dinner? That's all," she smiled,
"I suppose dinner couldn't hurt," his face lit up
"Alright then! I will see you on December 25 at five o'clock sharp!"
He reached in for a hug and held Ginny close, she would miss him, but Julianne would be staying until Christmas Eve (Ginny had been invited to have dinner there).
She and Julianne had gotten closer especially by the time final exams rolled in.
They had gone through names nothing seemed right. Nothing seemed strong enough or sweet enough, they all seemed too… something.
Julianne now often joined Ginny in her evenings with Dane in the pub, it was fun to have a small group to hang out with like she used to at Hogwarts. Especially now that she was well much larger, and required more favors from her friends it was nice to split the work.
Ginny walked back to her flat, Dane had brought in a Christmas tree and Julianne had come over, the three of them spent the evening decorating the tree, drinking non-alcoholic eggnog, and exchanging stories of their favorite Christmases.
It made her homesick, she longed greatly for Christmas at the burrow, with a sweater made by her mother (which she knew wouldn't fit her), her brothers thumping around, hurling bat-bogey hexes at them as they teased her mercilessly, Harry coming over Christmas morning in his flannel pants and Weasley jumper trying to pretend it didn't itch.
It was looking like a bleak Christmas.
Hermione was striding through Diagon Alley briskly, she had hit everything on her list and left herself with fifteen minutes to spare. Ginny had already said she wasn't exchanging gifts this Christmas but Hermione had been making extra money at work and decided to get Ginny a very charming necklace she saw in a muggle jewelry store.
As she walked by the Leaky Cauldron she saw a familiar face inside, Harry with a young woman, laughing and noticeably enjoying his time.
"Really Harry? Honestly,"
"No, Ron sat and explained it all to me when we were fourteen,"
"Wow, I knew at like twelve,"
"Scarlet woman," he said smirking
"Shut up you," she said slapping him in the arm,
"You're a funny girl,"
"And you're a funny boy, not haha funny, just weird," she said eying him
"And why is that?"
"This is the third time we have gone for coffee and you haven't tried to kiss me," Harry was taken back,
"I- uh," she smirked
"Its okay if your not attracted to me,"
"No- I just, well"
"So you are attracted to me?" she was tilting her head and smiling, and suddenly he stopped stuttering,
"Yes I am," she continued to look at him, and then without a thought he leaned over the table and kissed her briefly on the lips,
"Well, that was nice," she was surprised at his boldness, and rightly enough he was too
And as they sat there eyeing each other in silence a bushy haired girl left the window in a hurry.
She wasn't meant to see it, yet a part of her felt she needed to tell Ginny. Regardless of what she said she knew that Ginny was waiting for Harry, though waiting for what Hermione didn't know.
Before she had time to debate it further she quickly went to the train station. It was time to wish her best friend's happy holidays and quite possibly break her heart.
Final exams were grueling, she spent hours holed up in her flat eating ice cream and pickles, and staying away from poultry which was currently making her nothing but nauseous.
She was quite comfortable in her loveseat with her books propped up on her belly when Pig starting pecking wildly at her window.
"Come here hun," she said letting her owl in, and subsequently getting it water and food.
She reached for the package her owl had been carting; wrapped in a brown bag she saw words written very carefully "For Ginny, Happy Holidays, Harry,"
What she pulled out she could only laugh at, they were socks made by Dobby, "I 3 Ginny" they were discombobulated but thick, and when Ginny slid them on she wished she could see how funny her feet looked yet before she could take a seat she saw a letter below everything else written in Hermione's handwriting
"Hey I'm coming by this afternoon I'll be there around eight" suddenly Ginny's mind went into a panic attack.
It was 7:23, Hermione was already on the train here, no time to tell her to stay behind. She would have to come clean to one of her closest friends. She hurried down the hall to
Julianne's room.
"JULES!!" Julianne came hurling out of the door,
"What!?!"
"Hermione just owled me, she is coming here, she is coming here," Julianne's eyes widened
"Okay lets clean up your flat, you shouldn't be traveling to the apparition point alone especially at night,"
"What am I going to do let her just wait?" Ginny was growing more and more impatient
"No, I will pick her up you can stay here, preparing yourself because you will have to tell her,"
Ginny nodded and went to her room to put regular clothes on, while Julianne cleaned up the flat, throwing away the unwrapped candy bars, and half drunken soda bottles.
At 7:50 she left and Ginny sat at the kitchen table of her flat not knowing what to tell her friend, truly worried that she may hate her for not telling her in the beginning. They had always talked about it, Hermione would be her child's Aunt, since she and Ron's wedding Hermione had become family.
Hermione stepped off the train with a heavy heart, she was still debating on whether she should tell Ginny about what she saw.
She looked for flaming red hair as she stepped off the train but didn't see any, she did however see a nervous looking girl attempting to wave her down.
"Hermione?" she asked
"Yes," Hermione replied still feeling some what out of place,
"Hi, I'm Julianne, Ginny couldn't make it out here to meet you so I came to bring you to her"
"Is she doing alright?" Hermione said now worried
"As well as can be expected with exams but I'll let her talk to you about that," on the way up to the flat they made small talk,
"Ginny said she was having trouble making girlfriends up here,"
"Yeah a lot of the girls are of a rather snooty nature," Hermione nodded,
"She doesn't put up with that too well," they continued walking they made nice yet both had other more pressing matters on their minds.
"Its right down the hall 7C" Julianne said walking into her flat directing Hermione down the hall
"Thanks," she walked down and knocked on the door,
"Come in," Ginny said her eyes beginning to well up as she sat at her kitchen table
"Ginny!" Hermione said now wondering why her friend didn't bolt towards her as well,
"Please don't be mad Hermione," and then Ginny stood, her hands holding her belly, tears streaming down her face,
"Oh my, oh- I, oh Ginny when, with, well I" Ginny nodded painfully,
"I know, sit down let me explain it all to you"
She then proceeded to tell Hermione about she and Harry's break up, that last time they were together. She told her why she had kept it from Harry originally, and after he came to visit how she continued to keep it a secret.
"I'm so sorry Hermione, he is one of your best friends I couldn't ask you to betray him. I just cant tell him you know how he is, he it would destroy him and his career, at the end of the season I will invite him here and break the news to him gently"
"Ginny, how can you expect to do this alone?"
"Im not alone Hermione, really, Julianne and Dane have been amazing, they are hiring a house elf to help while I'm gone to classes. Julianne has been helping with names," suddenly Hermione's face softened,
"And?" Ginny forced a laugh,
"Nothing yet, nothing fits,"
"Well have you thought of meanings?"
"Kind of, mainly just what sounds cute" she smiled
"Alba and Harriet are out of the picture," Ginny nodded, "Think about things that you would hope for most in a daughter, things that all of yours and his role models showcased most,"
Ginny thought, "Bravery, honesty, strength internally and externally and a wisdom that I could never achieve"
"Look those up you might be surprised," she shrugged it off,
"It took me so long to be able to enjoy my pregnancy its kind of a relief to see you here and be able to tell you, such a weight off my chest,"
"I just, you're going to have a baby, how are you going to tell your family?" she laughed and shook her head,
"when I come home you will come with me they will be so excited to see me, bringing an extra little visitor will be a happy change for them,"
"Your brothers will murder Harry," Hermione added with a smile,
"It will be fun to watch, that's actually something I'm looking forward to," Ginny laughed, "However telling Harry will not be fun, with any luck he will still be waiting for me,"
At that Hermione's face fell, "There's a reason I came here today," Ginny saw it in the way she said it,
"My luck has run out?" Hermione didn't say anything at first,
"I saw him, with some girl at the Leaky Cauldron while I was getting Christmas presents,"
"Oh," Ginny replied quietly now clutching her belly,
"I mean I didn't see much, a quick kiss, but it didn't look like anything serious," Ginny gave a half hearted smile and shook her head,
"Has Harry ever been involved when he didn't seriously like them?" Hermione stayed quiet, "Right, I expected so much, Witch Weekly's Bachelor of the Year was bound to meet someone, thin and gorgeous, smart, Harry wouldn't have it any other way"
"Ginny I highly doubt she could hold a candle to you,"
"She is though Hermione, I mean I had Dane on the back burner for a while but I never actually did anything, and I'm not going to because it wouldn't be right,"
"Ginny,"
"I guess I'm just surprised, I mean this may sound cruel but I always though I had the upper hand, I guess I was wrong, I over estimated his feelings for me,"
They didn't speak much for the rest of the night, they made small talk at dinner but Ginny was having trouble focusing.
"Claire, you should know," Harry said as he dropped her off at her flat
"You carry a lot of baggage?"
"A train's worth,"
"Look Harry, that kiss can remain where it was, I mean it was nice, but the last thing you need is a relationship, and the last thing I want to be is the product of a lack of options," Harry smiled,
"Thanks,"
"I just wanted you to realize, sometimes it can feel like you'll never be whole again, but you'll never know until you give life a chance to surprise you,"
It was then that Harry realized he couldn't live his life in a daze, moping and watching every opportunity flutter past him. It was no way to live.
And that's it, sorry for the delay, I know people will be mad at the Claire thing, I promise it all adds to the story happily. The next one will have Christmas with Julianne and Dane's family then we only have two more months til the baby comes!!! It gets better…. I told my friend Shannon, she was pretty stoked ab it!! (shan-on-a-non rocks)