Chapter 12: Holiday
"Ron! Come on! The bloody train is going to leave you behind!" Ginny yelled into the common room.
Ron was dragged his trunk on the floor. "I am going to hate this aren't I?" Ron grunted.
"You'll have time to hate it once we get on the train, come on, Christmas only comes once!"
Ron gritted his teeth and walked with his sister to the train. Hermione, Harry and even Luna and Neville were there. "Are you lot going to spend the holiday with us?" Ron asked.
"No," Luna answered, "Father wants to take me out this holiday. He says that he needs to see me at least 2 times a year. I wrote him and told him I was going."
Neville shook his head, "Sorry Ron."
"It's alright, so just us again?" Ron asked Hermione and Harry. Hermione nodded, "Of course."
Harry also nodded, "Where else would I go?"
The boarded the train and found a cabinet. Ron squeezed in with Ginny next to him. Hermione sat next to Ginny, Harry was across from Ron as Luna and Neville got in. Luna sat across from Hermione and gave her a dazed smile. Hermione nodded her head and smiled back weakly.
"You think mum is going to get us those sweaters again?" Ron asked Ginny.
Ginny laughed. "It wouldn't be mum if she didn't," Ginny said, "I kind of like them. I use it during the winter."
"Those sweaters with R and G on them?" Neville asked.
"Yea, mum makes them special for her children," Ron snorted, "Mine is always the worst."
"It is not, Bill got a horrible one last year," Ginny reminded him.
"How so? It was blue with a big B on it," Ron tilted his head.
"The B was in yellow! Yuck," Ginny stuck her tongue out. Everyone in the small compartment burst into laughter.
"I can't get this trunk through the door!" Fred complained. George pulled out his wand and casted Reduico on the trunk causing it to shrink.
"Thanks George!"
"Anytime brother," George smiled.
"Do you two have to use magic in the house!" Molly came out of the kitchen shouting.
"Hello Mrs. Weasley," Hermione beamed as she carried her trunk up to the front door.
"Hello Hermione! Harry!" Mrs. Weasley called.
Harry nodded his head; his wand was in his mouth, trunk in his hand and Hedwig's cage in his other hand.
"Hey mum," Ron and Ginny said in unison. Sirius was with Lupin in the hallway as they both turned around. "Hello kids," Lupin smiled.
"Kids!" Hermione sighed.
Tonks was trying her best not to trip over anything as she made her way to greet the new arrivals.
"Tonks!" Ginny smiled.
"Hello everyone!" Tonks almost made it to the door, but ended up tripping over Lupin's shoe.
"Tonks," Lupin extended his hand, "are you alright?"
Tonks blushed as she took his hand, "yes I'm quite alright." Her hair was red this time, down to her waist. She later told Ginny that she wanted to fit in better with the Weasley family. Ginny motioned for Hermione to follow her to her room. Harry and Ron made it up the stairs and walked into Ron's room.
Ron threw his truck on his bed and sighed. "I dunno how well I am going to be able to handle Ginny and Hermione this vacation Harry," he admitted.
"Just go with it," Harry said, "I'm sure there is going to be someone else out there for you. Don't fret too much."
"Oh thanks Harry," Ron sat down on his bed burying his head into his hands, "that helps tons."
Harry laughed, "too bad Lavender is such a cow eh?"
"Shut up Harry," Ron muttered.
Ginny placed her things at the foot of her bed. She motioned for Hermione to place her things down.
"This is going to be weird," Ginny said, "We have to pretend that we aren't together because I am not sure how mum is going to react to her daughter being with another girl."
Hermione turned her head to look at Ginny, "that was rather blunt."
"What?" Ginny looked at her confused.
"I don't think your mother would mind much," Hermione shrugged her shoulders, "it is me. She likes me."
Ginny laughed nervously, "No, Hermione you do not understand." Ginny sat down on her bed and looked at Hermione with a worried look on her face. "Mum likes you, but she might blame you."
"Excuse me?" Hermione laughed, "You are the one who was having fantasies about me!"
"Hey, that is not completely true! You told me you kind of liked me but weren't sure what to do about it!"
Hermione put her hands up, "I know I did!"
"Then?!"
"What?" Hermione threw her hands down, "if it wasn't for those drawings of us together I would have never spoken to you about it!"
Ginny sighed, "So it's my fault?"
"It's no one fault Ginny," Hermione was growing impatient; "This isn't a bad thing!"
"You want to tell my mum that?"
"Not really, let's just pretend we are friends around her," Hermione said.
"Alright," Ginny laid herself down with a sigh escaping her lips. Hermione crossed her arms over her chest. She breathed in deeply as she walked over to the bed. She was standing over Ginny, straddling her leg, "Are you mad at me?"
"No," Ginny breathed, "I'm just worried."
Hermione laid herself down on top of Ginny and kissed her. Ginny returned her kiss passionately. As it ended, Hermione put her head on her shoulder and held onto her hands. "This will be fun," she reassured her, "just wait."
"Can someone pass me those potatoes?" Tonks asked. Fred was about to cast a spell when Mrs. Weasley came around the table and took his wand away. "Just because you can use magic doesn't mean you have to whip your wand out for everything Fred!" George laughed and Mrs. Weasley gave him a nasty look, "Same goes to you!"
They sat down to dinner and had pleasant conversation as Crookshanks walked around the house sniffing every little corner. Hermione at one point, put her hand on Ginny's lap. Ginny smiled and gave her 'what are you doing' look. Hermione winked and got back into the conversation with Harry about the prophet and He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named.
"They will have to believe you Harry," Sirius said, "Voldermort cannot stay hidden for long."
"Must you say that?" Mrs. Weasley cringed.
"Sorry Molly," Sirius smiled.
Mr. Weasley sighed, "He has no fear, so let him say it."
"Whose side are you on?" Mrs. Weasley shot her husband a glance.
"Yours dear," Mr. Weasley lied with a smile.
Dinner finished. Mrs. Weasley asked the younger ones, including Tonks, to help clean up.
Tonks sighed, "Why me?"
"You have red hair, get to work," Mrs. Weasley joked.
Tonks snorted, "I knew I should have gone blonde today."
Tonks was cleaning the dishes with magic as she glanced around the kitchen. She caught Hermione giving Ginny a slight kiss on the cheek and Ginny blushing. Tonks tilted her head. She had a look of confusion on her face.
"I hate when mum makes us do these things without magic while she talks to the others about important issues," Fred groaned.
"Tell me about it," George sighed, "Say Tonks?"
"Yes," she shook herself out of her thoughts.
"Shouldn't you be over there? I mean, you are in the Order?"
"Yea, but Lupin doesn't want me to be in this meeting for some reason," she shrugged her shoulders.
"That's odd," Harry stated.
"Not really," she said, "it has to do a lot with things I don't even understand. I hate it, but I can't fight them."
Hermione looked at Tonks and Tonks looked at Hermione. There was an awkward silence between them. Finally, Tonks gave Hermione a smile and went back to cleaning the kitchen up.
That night, Ginny was lying in bed with Hermione next to her. She was running her fingers through her brown bushy hair.
"Ginny?" Hermione whispered softly.
"Yes?" Ginny replied in a whisper.
"Tonks was looking at me a bit weird in the kitchen," Hermione admitted.
"Why would she do that?" Ginny asked as she continued to run her hands through her hair.
"I don't know," she said, "she was washing the dishes and cleaning up, I don't think she saw anything."
"Well," Ginny sighed, "you did sneak me a quick kiss and put your hand on my lap when Tonks was near us."
"Do you think Tonks would care?" Hermione asked with a sigh. She didn't want to start another disagreement.
"I don't think so," Ginny said, "but you know I want to be careful."
"Yes, I know," she sighed.
"Let's just get some sleep ok?" Ginny suggested. Hermione didn't even answer; she was already dozing off on Ginny's shoulder as her fingers ran through her hair. Ginny kissed her on the forehead and started to close her eyes.