A/N: Wow look at me go…another update! Woo hoo! This one is a really long one and I wrote it in one sitting…well I moved around my room a lot but I never stopped typing…except when I walked. Have you ever tried typing while you walk? It's hard!

As always this is for you Jess. You keep me happy and writing. Thank you for everything. And by the way SURPRISE!! I got it done before you could…umm… motivate….me again.

Enjoy!

Lockers and Owls

After Ginny's confession to Hermione the girls were even more inseparable. In public they had even been a bit more affectionate, sitting in each other's laps, holding hands, doing sweet things for the other. Most people just wrote it off to them being best friends a couple more people believed that they were a couple. No one cared though it was someone else's life and there was no proof. Some rumors started but nothing too serious.

About a week after the incident with Ron and Harry, Ron still wouldn't talk to Ginny. Harry had forgiven them and would even laugh about it but Ron was being stubborn and as usual a bit of a git about it.

"God Hermione I can't take it anymore!" Harry said one late night in the common room. Quidditch practice had just ended and Harry had changed and ran for safety.

"Still that bad?" Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione's question. She sighed and put away the essay she had been writing.

"Well of course its still bad. Has Ginny talked about apologizing at all yet? And why the bloody hell are you writing an essay now? All the teachers have quit assigning things, even Snape."

"Ginny shouldn't apologize to Ron he was a git, he should be apologizing to her. It's a letter to the Ministry about an internship this summer. By the way Harry, Snape just doesn't show up for class anymore. Plus teachers may stop assigning things but that doesn't mean I have to stop learning, you know you could join my study group. We meet twice a week and-" Harry held his hand up and cut her off.

"Who is in this study group?" Hermione blushed. "I will not be alone with you and Ginny. I refuse. Plus if I join that means you will have to stop making out with her."

"We do have interesting conversations Harry. We use our words to you know, which is more than I can say for you and Ron. You two are like a couple of horny teenage boys…oh wait you are." Hermione sent a cheeky grin Harry's way. Harry just rolled his eyes.

"Ok fine. But seriously what are we going to do about our respective partners?" Hermione shrugged and eyed a couple of third years that were looking suspicious. Harry followed her gaze.

"Oh come off it Herm, we have five days left until we get to leave for the summer, let them be. I'm serious about Ginny and Ron though. Quidditch has been absolute hell, even some of the other players are starting to get annoyed with them. They want me to fix it." Hermione glared at the potential troublemakers and they scattered. She then turned her attention to Harry.

"I don't know what you want me to do. I think Ginny has every right to be mad at Ron. He was completely out of line, he should be apologizing to her." Harry leaned back into the large chair he was in and looked at the ceiling as he groaned.

"I know he was a git but I can't get through to him. I don't know if I can take another quidditch practice like today. Did you know that while we were doing warm up flying, formations, drills and stuff, Ginny nearly knocked Ron from his broom! Then Ron was absolutely steamed for a while. In one drill he was supposed to be throwing the ball to Ginny as part of a play but he was just throwing it as hard as he could, nearly broke Ginny's nose one time."

"Well it sounds like its just some sibling fighting that's going on. We should let it run its course and stay out of the way."

"Yeah but that's not all that happened. After we got Gin's nose to stop gushing I yelled at Ron for a minute or two and had him throw to Katie instead. Well on the last run through of that play he threw it at Ginny's head and it hit her hard. She was so pissed she started chasing him. Ron is a good keeper but his flying skills suck." Hermione looked at Harry with large worried eyes.

"What happened?" Harry looked back at Hermione and away from the ceiling.

"Well Ginny is ok, she wouldn't make a half bad seeker you know. She can move that broom like no one's business. She caught up to him in no time and chased him low enough to the ground and then did the stupidest thing. Instead of pulling out her wand and giving him a nasty hex she jumped off her broom and tackled him to the ground."

"Oh god are they ok?" Hermione started to get up and look for Ginny but Harry put a hand on her wrist and sat her back down.

"They're fine. Ron's a slow enough flier they just rolled a couple of times then Ginny started to punch him. She got him a couple times in the gut and then got off him and pulled out her wand. Ron never said a word he just glared at her. We were all flying down to stop Ginny when she lowered her wand and just walked away."

"Is she ok?" Harry nodded.

"I was the last to leave the locker room. She came in as I was leaving. She mumbled something about going for a walk. I think she's still down there. Ron just came in so I'm gonna go talk to him." Harry got up and called to Ron who slowed his pace and waited for Harry to catch up. Hermione watched as Harry caught up and they walked away side by side. When they turned a corner Hermione could have sworn she saw them with their pinks linked.

Hermione then got up and left the common room, she headed towards the locker rooms to find Ginny and make sure she was ok.

Ginny hadn't left the locker rooms she had stayed there after her shower and when she was dressed again she got mad. She was simply mad at Ron for being a git. A few days ago she had gone up to him and apologized for over reacting. She had said she was sorry that she had tied him and Harry up but she was still mad at him for what he did. He just looked at her and walked away. Ginny was furious, she didn't apologize much and when she did she meant it. She was mad that he just dismissed it like that.

Ginny checked to make sure she was the last one in the locker room then she started punching a locker. It was an empty one and after a few punches there was a dent and she had sore knuckles. After ten minutes the dent was a considerable size and her knuckles were bleeding. When her arm was too tired to lift and repeat the action Ginny just sat down and cried. She didn't like crying but she also hated fighting with her brother. That look that he had given her out on the field was one that told her they weren't going to be making up anytime soon.

She didn't even hear Hermione walk in until she heard her name.

"Oh Ginny!" Hermione ran over to the red head that was sitting on the floor looking utterly dejected. Hermione saw the bloody hand and gasped. She saw the locker and put two and two together.

"Oh Gin…" She sat down beside her girlfriend and pulled the still shaking girl into her lap. Ginny curled up against Hermione's chest and buried her face into Hermione's neck.

"I don't want to fight anymore. I'm so done with it. I just want to go back to being happy with him and Harry and you and me all laughing together at the table." Ginny clung to Hermione's shirt as if it was for dear life. Hermione wasn't sure if this was left over emotion from the other day when Ginny told her she was scared or if this was just about Ginny and Ron.

"We will Gin, we will." Ginny shook her head.

"You don't get it. I tried apologizing the other day and he didn't even listen to me." Hermione pulled the girl in her arms as close as she could, hoping to keep the pain away using herself as the shield.

"Why is he so mad?" Hermione wondered mostly to herself.

"Because, I broke my promise."

"What promise?" Hermione never remembered hearing about a promise.

"The first year he came her I missed him so much. He was my last brother, the only one that still played with me. When he came back for break I made him promise that no matter what we would always be friends. He promised and we had a list of things we couldn't do. Things like hate each other, blow each other off, let anyone come between us, and we always had to have lunch or a meal together once a week." Ginny took a deep shaky breath.

"I don't see the problem sweetie." Hermione hated seeming thick but she couldn't see the broken promise.

"You wouldn't, I wouldn't let you."

"I don't get it. Ginny talk to me please?"

"I haven't been eating with him and a couple of times he wanted to hang out just the two of us and I blew him off."

"Why Gin?" Hermione thought she might know the answer but she hoped for once she was wrong.

"You. I wanted to spend all my time with you. Ron didn't say anything for a while but I knew he was mad and I just ignored it."

"I don't want to be the cause of problems between you and Ron. Ginny don't blow him off for me any more. I can't begin to tell you how lucky you are, I don't have the over protective big brother or a nosey little sister. It's important that you maintain a good healthy relationship with him. You are miserable when you and him fight. Talk to him, eat with him, do the things you two normally do. I'll be waiting for you when you get back." Ginny looked up into the kind and carrying dark chocolate eyes of the love of her life and she knew Hermione was right. She hugged the brunette tightly and started to get up.

Once she was up she looked at Hermione who was still on the floor and said,

"Thank you." It was all Hermione needed to hear. She stood up and gave Ginny a slow kiss.

"Anytime, anything." Hermione then put her arm around Ginny's waist and lead the younger and taller girl out of the locker room. She muttered a quick spell at the locker that Ginny had beaten. "We should get you hand looked at. It might be broken, we should at least get it healed."

"No this is one injury that I'll keep." Ginny slowly and carefully opened and closed her hand. She winced at the pain but she wanted to ride this one out, Hermione called it stubbornness but Ginny thought of it as a symbol.

"Alright Gin, you can keep your little battle scar. But that poor locker will never be the same." Ginny laughed at this. The girls walked back to the castle, Hermione's arm around Ginny's waist and Ginny's arm draped over Hermione's shoulders.

"You know Hermione," Ginny started as they were opening the doors to the castle. "You seem to be saving me a lot lately. I wonder if I'll ever save you…" Hermione wanted to say something or let Ginny know she was far from strong but for some reason she couldn't. Now just wasn't the right time.

I'm scared of lots of things.

Well its not like we're any fun, parties and crowds scare us.

Plus we aren't the most popular person.

Ginny could do a hundred times better than us.

And some day she will.

Yeah…

But for now she is ours to treasure.

Lets enjoy it shall we?

"You've saved me plenty of times Gin. Maybe one day I'll tell you about the things that scare me but for now lets just focus on you and Ron." Ginny nodded in agreement. Hermione was sure that the only reason she wasn't being grilled was because Ginny was genuinely worried that Ron hated her.

The next morning Hermione was walking around her and Ginny's room looking for her skirt, the weekend was over and it was time to go back to classes. Luckily they only had until Thursday and they were free for the summer but that also meant they only had until Thursday to patch things up between Ron and Ginny before everyone's summer became hell.

Hermione was walking around with her shirt mostly unbuttoned and nothing covering her lower half other than some underwear. After a while Hermione found her skirt and pulled it on. She turned around and found that Ginny was starting to wake up.

"Mmphf…" Ginny mumbled into the pillow.

"What was that Gin?" She had found the tie she had been looking for and put it on the chair with the rest of the clothes she had laid out for Ginny. Hermione was wearing a white button down top with short sleeves. Where Hermione wore a skirt Ginny would wear shorts that reached her knees. Ginny's would most likely wear a button down long sleeve and roll the slaves up. She hated the t-shirts she said that it showed her arms and made her feel awkward. Hermione thought they looked great on her but she wasn't going to argue.

Ginny mumbled some other incoherent sentence into the pillow and Hermione sighed and walked to the window and opened the blinds.

"MMMMMM!! Svut va muvy lines!" Ginny mumbled-yelled into her pillow.

"What Gin? I seriously can't understand you." Hermione sat on the bed next to Ginny and was about to pull the covers off the girl when an unfamiliar owl tapped on the window. Hermione looked at the owl, got up and opened the window. The owl flew in dropping the letter it cared into Hermione's hand; it landed on the bed's headrest just above Ginny's head and started to not so quietly ask for its reward.

Ginny rolled over and found herself looking into a pair of yellow eyes. She screamed and rolled off the bed.

"Who the bloody hell let an owl in here?" She peaked over the side of the bed and fell back on her bum as the owl snapped at her.

"I did Gin. It's a letter to the prefects. It's from Snape!"

"What does it say?" Ginny ran her fingers sleepily through her hair. "Don't tell me the arrogant son of a-" The owl swooped down at her and she ducked "…that he gave us the day off. Nah that would be too nice. He's probably warning us all of some assignment he never assigned but wants us to turn in." Ginny laughed and crawled back into bed lying on her back.

"Well you were some what right the first time." Hermione smiled as she waited for the words to sink in with Ginny.

"See I told you…" Ginny stopped and rolled over to look at Hermione and when she saw that Hermione was completely serious she simply stared at Hermione.

"You were close Ginny. The only part you got off was he isn't giving us the morning off. He's giving all his classes the day off. But he wants us in class next time for a little speech. I'm supposed to make an announcement. I'd better go figure something out." With that Hermione was out the door and off to find some clever way of letting everyone know with out having to tell everyone individually.

"Sweet finally the man has a bit of a heart. I'm sure Dumbledore made him though. Oh well back to bed." Ginny pulled a pillow over and laid her head on it and she was nearly asleep already dreaming of a particular brunette in a swimsuit walking with her to the creek near her house. Right before she drifted off she felt a sharp pull on her hair.

"Oww bloody hell! What was that for?" Ginny looked up and found the owl staring at her again. This time she jumped, but didn't scream. "Oh yeah your treat. You really are Snape's owl, won't let a girl dream." Ginny got up and threw a treat to the owl, there was no way she was putting her hand near its mouth.

"There now go bug someone else. Bloody owl." Ginny wasn't a particularly happy person when she woke up and that owl had ruined a potential fantastic dream. She shut the window behind the owl and fallen back in bed.

Hermione came back in and found Ginny sound asleep again. So she knelt down next to the sleeping girl and put her lips right up against Ginny's ear and started to gently kiss it. She then gently nipped at Ginny's ear lobe and started to suck on it.

"Mmmm, Herm." Ginny smiled in her sleep. Hermione stopped sucking on her ear and instead whispered.

"I know Snape cancelled classes but you have McGonagall first, not Snape. I'm fairly sure she didn't send a letter." Ginny's eyes shot open and she nearly took out Hermione when she bolted off the bed and started throwing clothes around looking for something to wear.

"Oh damn, I was so excited. How long have you been gone? Are we late? Oh god where are my clothes??" Ginny started panicking. Hermione laughed and stood behind the younger witch. She slid her arms around to Ginny's front and pulled her close and started to kiss on Ginny's neck. Ginny instantly melted but she moaned,

"Ah Herm, you know I would love nothing more to stay her and do this but I can't be late."

"Don't worry Gin I woke up early today and I was only gone for fifteen minutes. The spell was a simple one and I ran down to the kitchen to ask for a favor."

"So…are you saying I'm on time?" Ginny sounded slightly confused.

"No. I'm saying you're a bit early Ginny." Hermione smiled and continued, "I put out some clothes for you on the chair over there. I found most of them while I was looking for my skirt. We really should clean this room it's starting to drive me crazy." The room wasn't that messy because neither Ginny nor Hermione could stand to live in much of a mess.

"Oh." That was all Ginny said before spinning around in Hermione's arms and capturing her lips in a hungry kiss.

"Gin, we're going to be late if you do that." Hermione tried to reason with Ginny but since she didn't want to stop kissing the red head the motivation wasn't there.

"Nope, you said it yourself, we are early." Hermione giggled before Ginny started kissing her again.

A/N: Ok so I was going to write another scene but I thought it would take too long and this chapter is already the longest one yet (yey for Abby!) so I'll do that scene next.

There are a couple things I kind of want to point out and get some opinions on.

1. Should Hermione show some vulnerability? I feel like Ginny is the only one showing any fears right now and I don't want people to think that Hermione is invincible because she isn't. She's just better at keeping a level head.

2. There isn't too long before the BBQ and then the story is over. Is there any requests or suggestions for a summer scene for me to do before it ends. I'll try and make it work if you have one if not the story will most likely be ending soon.

3. I don't want you guys to hate Ron. He is simply worried about losing his little sister, and you will see more of his reasoning later.

So yeah its kinda really late right now so I'm really sorry for any mistakes but I wanted to get this out soon…as in tonight….even though its 2:45 am…yawn