Disclaimer: Not mine. Property of the wonderful J. K. Rowling.
A/N: After a bit of a break, here is a new chapter! Please R&R! Also, the second chapter of my other story, "Mending Fences", is up. Please check it out! Hope you like them!
Chapter 14
Ginny was still sitting in the Gryffindor common room when Hermione returned.
"You're back rather late," she said, not looking up from the issue of Witch Weekly she had been rifling through.
"Uh… Well, I was just finishing up at the library," Hermione stammered. Damn it, damn it! Ginny's never up this late! she thought.
"I thought the library closed hours ago. Were you there past when Madam Pince locked up?" asked Ginny.
"I guess… I must have been. Yes… I was reading a… good book," faltered Hermione, barely getting out the sentence coherently. She was so stunned at being caught returning from a lesson that ran quite late, she couldn't seem to come up with a good excuse. She kept walking by Ginny, hoping she wouldn't notice that anything strange was afoot.
No such luck.
Ginny had finally looked up from her magazine. "You've got flowers in your hair," she said, arching an eyebrow suspiciously.
"Do I? How did those get there?" Hermione questioned in what she hoped was an innocent tone, reaching into her hair and feigning surprise. Okay, that was just pathetic! Is that the best response you could come up with, Granger? she mentally chided herself.
"I think…" Ginny started, but Hermione didn't get to find out what Ginny thought, as they were interrupted by Fred entering through the portrait hole.
Hermione tried to communicate telepathically to Fred. She wished very much right now that one of them was a Legimens. Please, Fred, play it cool! Don't let Ginny catch you off guard. Please!
"And where were you?" Ginny asked, narrowing her eyes into small slits.
"Kitchens," answered Fred automatically.
Ginny's eyebrow rose again. "So where's the food?" she inquired.
"Ate it," he said. His answers were better than Hermione's but he suddenly seemed incapable of more than two syllables.
"Riiiiight," Ginny said. She looked from Hermione to Fred, and back again.
"Well, Ginny, if that's everything, then I must be off to bed," Hermione said, doing her very best to act casual while heading off in the direction of the stairs to her dormitory.
"Well –" Ginny started.
"Great! Good night!" Hermione quickly interrupted, and left the common room.
A wry Ginny turned to face an impassive-looking Fred. "So, I guess it's just you and me, big brother?"
By this time, Fred had regained the capacity for speech. "Afraid not, baby sister. While I would love to stay and chat, I really must be off to bed. And I advise you do the same, Gin, a mind must be well-rested to stay sharp," he finished, waving a finger at her in an imitation of Percy, before starting up the stairs.
"Mustn't it, though," Ginny mused to herself.
The next day, as it was a Saturday, Ginny used the day off from classes to try to locate another brother of hers. She knew it would be difficult catching George on his own, as he generally always had either Alicia or Fred and Lee in tow, but she used all the Weasley cunning she had learned over the years from the twins. She patiently spent her time after breakfast stealthily stalking the twins, through hallways, past the Quidditch pitch, through secret passages. She finally found her moment when the twins used a passage to get into Hogsmeade. Fred went into the cellar of Honeydukes, while George stood guard in the passage. Ginny ran up to George, grabbed him by the arm, and pulled him back around the corner of the passage.
"Ginny? What on earth –" George started, in shock.
"No time for that," hissed Ginny. "I've been following you all day. I need to ask you something. Did you know I was trailing you?"
"No, actually. I'm impressed, Gin."
"Good, so that means Fred probably didn't realize it either," she concluded to herself out loud. "You know everything going on with Fred. Isn't that right, George?"
George straightened his robes in a show of mock pride. "Of course I do!"
"Great!" whispered Ginny. "So you're equipped to tell me what's going on between him and Hermione."
George's eyes widened for less than a second before regaining his composure. Unfortunately for him, that brief flash of expression told Ginny that George could tell her everything she wanted to know.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said in a low voice.
Ginny rolled her eyes. "Don't give me that! Of course you know! You were practically bragging about the fact that you know just moments ago! So tell me, do I have to ask you again, or do I have to write to Mum implying that you've been testing products on me and Ron again?"
The colour drained out of George's face. "Fine," he said, bitterly and defeated, "What do you already know?"
"Nothing definitive," she answered. "I just saw them return to the common room late last night, one right after the other. They were both acting very sketchy, very strange. Something seemed… off. I know something is going on, but I don't know exactly what. Are they dating?"
"Ginny," George scoffed, "Think about what you're asking. Fred and Hermione, dating?"
Ginny smacked her hand on her forehead. "You're right, what was I thinking?" she said. "I'm so sorry, that does sound just completely –"
"But don't you think they should be?" he interrupted.
"WHAT?" she exclaimed, completely dumbfounded.
"Think about it, Gin. They've known each other for years, and they're suddenly really getting along like I've never seen. I think that, well… maybe there's something between them that they're just not admitting to each other… maybe even themselves."
"Hmm… As I said, there was this weird vibe between the two of them last night. But what about Ron?"
"What about Ron?" George asked.
"Well, only that he's practically in love with Hermione. He just hasn't admitted it to himself yet, either!"
George scratched his head. "Well, they've been best friends for ages now. Who knows when he's going to do something about that? Don't you think Hermione would be a better match for Fred?"
Ginny furrowed her brow. "Fred is quicker on the uptake," she admitted. "Hermione needs someone to challenge her, Ron seems like he'd be too much of the whiney pushover type for her. Fred would always give her a bit of a run for her money, but I think she'd prefer it that way."
"I agree," affirmed George. "So, what do you think, li'l sis? We'll do our best to help my twin and your best friend see what's right in front of them?"
Ginny nodded. "Deal. Now I'm going to get out of here before Fred comes back." And she retreated back down the passageway.
George smiled. He hadn't betrayed Fred's trust, but still had a collaborator anyway. And any minute, Fred would be back with armloads of sweets. It was a good day.