Ok. Yeah. I did it. Sorry. I like to have one chapter written before I post the next, and by last Monday I'd written exactly nothing. But I was then inspired over the weekend, so Christmas is very neary sorted! And it's half term next week, so perhaps I may get a bit of writing done then, too.
In other news…exams are now well underway…5 and a half HOURS today! Gah!
But I also have three chicks, hatched today and yesterday! And hopefully three more to come!
The people whos reviews were just as welcome as my chicks were flower123, Ethereal Flame, Isis the Sphinx, SweetSummerx3, dingohart, HeyLookTheSnitch, moony391, Nessa19, Mei1105, Phantom of a Rose, Lady Zabini, ballerinadoll9, disneydork, Olaf Erikson, PHEONIX39, NamelessHeretic, tickledorange, seikinoko, Leather Splotches, Lady Potter of Tortall, Sunfairy and helbaffy.
Sorry about the lack of review replies – I have literally had about five minutes to myself recently. But they were a particually nice bunch from you all, so thank you! And thanks to all who wished me exam luck; I think I'm going to need it!
And this weeks HTCHB prize goes to: Sunfairy, with "HomicidalTeachersCutHatstoBits"
The only real indication of the start of the Christmas Holidays at Hogwarts was the end of lessons. Where normally the halls would have emptied on the first day, this year barely a dent was made in the student population– even a good number of Slytherins seemed to be staying, although whether for the party or their own safety Harry wasn't sure.
The presents were bought, the decorations went up; Hagrid bringing in the usual trees for the Great Hall and Flitwick showering them with enchanted tinsel and singing baubles.
"They sure know how to do Christmas round here." Jane sighed on the first morning of the holidays, as they sat in the Great Hall at breakfast. Owls were swooping in and out with Christmas cards, several of the muggleborns had donned Santa hats, and Ginny had produced a piece of green tinsel from somewhere to tie back her hair.
"This is nothing." said Ron with an air of dismissal. "Just wait 'til Christmas Day itself."
"And the party." added Izzy with a grin. "I've never been to a proper party before."
"At least we don't have to worry about dates this time round." muttered Harry, who had never quite recovered from the Christmas of his fourth year.
Ron grunted in agreement, his mouth full of sausage, and Hermione's face flashed between disgust and annoyance. Ginny rolled her eyes, and poked her brother meaningfully with the end of her spoon.
He glared at her, and she gesticulated some more, much to the amusement of those sitting nearby. A look of dawning comprehension suddenly took up residence on Ron's face, and he turned to his sort-of girlfriend.
"Hermione?"
"Yes Ron?"
"Would you like to go to the party with me?" He spoke casually, a far cry from the nervous wreck he had been the first time round.
Hermione took a bite of toast, and chewed on it thoughtfully for several moments. Ron's face fell as the seconds ticked by, until Hermione suddenly smiled.
"I'd love to."
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Christmas eve dawned gloomy, with thick, rain-filled clouds clustering around the castle. A lazy day was spent in the Gryffindor common room, playing cards, chess, and generally doing nothing at all.
Hermione and Ginny disappeared mid-afternoon, claiming "preparation" time, and soon the common room was empty of the vast majority of its female population. Eventually, as the time neared six o'clock, even the boys reluctantly threw down their pass-times, and headed for the dormitories.
Neville lost his toad, Ron had a rather dramatic battle with his hair, and Dean tore his robes.
Harry sighed. It was going to be a long night.
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Hermione and Ginny were already waiting when Ron and Harry made their way back downstairs. Hermione had donned muggle clothes for the night, wearing jeans and a red top, which twinkled as it caught the light, while Ginny was wearing what appeared to be Hermione's dress robes from two years previous, dyed a deep green. Charlie stood with them, apparently waiting for Izzy and Jane, and several other Gryffindors also stood about, waiting for friends or dates before making their way down to the hall.
"Hey," Ron greeted Hermione with a smile, and nervously thrust a rose towards her. Looking surprised, but distinctly pleased, Hermione took both the rose, and the arm her boyfriend was offering, and the two made their way out of the room.
Ginny watched them leave with an amused look on her face.
"Who told him to do that?" she asked, turning to Harry, who tried, and failed, to look indignant on behalf of his friend.
"No way you'd believe me if I told you he thought of it himself?"
Ginny snorted. "He's my brother. I've lived with him for the vast majority of his life. That was not his idea. And I doubt it was yours, either."
"I take offence at that comment!"
"Harry, you're lovely, honest, but both you and Ron have yet to prove the existence of a single romantic bone in your two bodies combined."
"Yeah. Neville told him to do it."
Ginny nodded, as though she had suspected as much, and turned to Charlie. "You been stood up?"
The first year wrinkled his nose up the girls staircase.
"Jane wanted to do something funny with Iz's hair, and it had better be something good, 'cos it's taking them agggges, and I want to get down before the food starts."
Laughing, Harry and Ginny joined the throng moving downstairs, leaving a very disgruntled Charlie behind them.
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The Great Hall was bursting by the time they arrived. It was a strange sight – close to every student in the school, the usual blacks of school robes abandoned in favour of pretty much anything else. Many of the muggleborn students had, like Hermione, turned to jeans, skirts and fancy tops, contrasting sharply with the traditional dress robes worn by others. Music was playing from somewhere, although there was no band to be seen – presumably some form of amplification spell, and the usual house tables had disappeared, to be replaced with smaller round tables, designed to seat about ten. Ron and Hermione had already snagged one, and waved Ginny and Harry over.
"I don't think I've ever seen this place so stuffed!" Ron exclaimed as the two finally managed to fight their way through the group.
"It's the same as at the Feasts." pointed out Hermione. "Less, really."
They chatted quietly for several minutes, until Dumbledore, who had climbed to his feet and cleared his voice, halted conversation.
"Welcome," he boomed, "to what promises to be an enjoyable night. Let us, for the next few hours at least, perhaps try and forget the troubles we are currently living in, and spend a happier time with those we love. I believe the food awaits!"
Cheers scattered round the hall as those left standing found seats at tables with friends. Jane, Izzy, Charlie, Luna and Neville arrived to join the four already seated, and so began a cheerful and noisy, if slightly crowded, meal.
Conversation passed easily, Jane and Charlie falling into an argument over who would win in a battle between Spiderman and Superman, with Izzy and Ron acting as referees. Luna was trying desperately to persuade Hermione as to the existence of the blue-feathered fire-breathing Peruvian chicken, Neville was trying not to choke on his turkey, and Ginny and Harry swayed between conversations of their own, chipping into the conversations of the others, and simply sitting back and let the general melee entertain them.
Dinner ended, and the music restarted. It was a strange combination; stuff Harry recognised from the Wizarding Wireless at the Weasley's, and some that was distinctly more muggle. Jane, Izzy and Charlie were soon in the middle of the hall, now empty of tables, spinning round madly, paying no particular attention to what type of music was playing. Luna and Neville were taking it in turns to lead each other around in the most ungainly of waltzes - both wincing regularly as the other stepped for the hundredth time on their foot.
Dean was dancing with Lavender Brown, Colin Creevy was being propelled about by a fifth year Hufflepuff twice his size, another fifth year had claimed Ginny several songs ago, and even Hermione had managed to drag a very reluctant Ron up to dance. Sitting there, watching the others, Harry suddenly felt amazingly alone in the world. The music had changed again, to something far more fast paced than it had been previously. People were whirling about the room, the different colours of their clothes blurring into each other in a never-ending circle, their faces turning into identity-less shapes.
The room was hot, noisy, and Harry's vision suddenly clouded. He swayed slightly as he desperately got to his feet, knocking over a chair in the process, and made an unsteady path for the door.
From the dance floor, a worried pair of eyes watched him leave.
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Harry leant against the cool stone, soaking up the quiet calm of the Entrance Hall. Music could still be heard, spilling in from the Great Hall, but it was far quieter and much more peaceful out here.
"Harry?"
Correction; was much more peaceful. Ginny's worried voice floated across to him as she searched amongst the shadows for her absent friend. Harry debated, for a moment, slipping away, out of the open doors before she saw him, but quickly dispelled the thought. She would most likely see him anyway, and besides, avoiding it now meant she'd only question him closely later, when there would likely be others around to nose in with their concern as well. Not that he didn't love his friends, but sometimes…sometimes less was better.
He stepped out of the shadows, not realising quite how close Ginny was. She jumped as he suddenly appeared from behind the pillar, and laughed nervously.
"Hey,"
"Are you alright?" she asked, concern etched in her features. "I saw you leave. You're all pale."
"I'm fine, Gin."
"No you're not. Harry, you're many things, but fine isn't one of them. Pretend all you like; we can see otherwise."
"It was just a bit hot in then. Too many people - I'm feeling much better now."
"It's more than that, and you know it. Something's wrong, Harry. Why won't you tell me what it is?"
"Because I don't know!"
Ginny frowned, moving closer in the dim light so she could see her friend better. He was leaning against the pillar again, staring straight ahead with a blank expression.
"I should be happy, Ginny! I've got my family, Voldemort's gone, at least for the moment, and aside from the Death Eater attacks, everything seems pretty good. Just about the best it's ever been. Which I guess says something about my life."
Ginny smiled sadly. "Harry, you can't expect to be happy all the time."
He shook his head vehemently. "It's not that. I just…never mind."
"Yes mind. Don't you dare go all teenagey on me, Potter."
"I just can't understand how everyone can be so happy in there!"
A deathly silence fell at Harry's outburst. Even the music seemed quieter.
"I don't understand." ventured Ginny at last, willing him to explain.
"They're all in there, smiling and laughing and dancing, like there's nothing wrong in the world!"
"Maybe because, right now, at this moment in time, there isn't."
"But there is! People have died, Gin! People are still dying! Right now, somewhere out there, there are people plotting and planning on how best to kill someone next!"
"And right now, in here, people are having a chance to relax a little for the first time in ages!"
"But what difference will it make? They're all in there now, having a good time, and tomorrow, or the day after, or next week, there'll be another article in the Prophet, and someone else'll be getting a letter, and leaving school to go bury their parents."
"Harry, you've got to stop fretting about the future!"
"Why? It's never been that friendly to me."
Ginny sighed, moving to lean against the pillar next to him.
"People die. We fight wars, we get hit by buses, whatever. We get hurt, knocked about, battered and bruised. We lose those we love, and those we love might lose us. We get worried and stressed and panicked. All because of one idiot and his crap ideas. We're only human, Harry. We need this time to let ourselves go, and just be people. No worries, no fears. Just you and a cute guy and a good song, and a bunch of friends to remember the night with afterwards. Pretending at normality."
Harry said nothing for a few moments, thinking deeply about what she had just said.
"You scared, Ginny?" he asked at last, his voice soft in the dark.
"Yeah."
"Me too."
In the silence that followed, two hands began crossing the gap between their owners. Neither particularly noticed what they were doing, let alone that the other was doing the same, until the two sets of fingers brushed in the darkness.
Harry jumped, and Ginny glanced down quickly. Neither of them moved, however, and a moment later Harry moved his hand slightly so that his fingers were laced through Ginny's. She said nothing, but a soft smile settled across both teens' faces as they stood together in the dark, leaning against the pillar with their fingers entwined. Clinging together against the force of the future.
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The Hall seemed calmer, somehow, when Ginny eventually lead him back in. The people were still dancing, the music was still playing, but with Ginny's hand firmly entangled in his own it all seemed suddenly a lot clearer. She led him easily over to the dance floor, moving compliant hands into position and joining in once more with the celebrating students. On their way they passed Ron and Hermione, the former of whom gaped and the latter of whom beamed. Charlie wolf-whistled from the midst of a large group of first years, and Jane and Izzy erupted into yet more giggles.
"Relax." Ginny murmured into Harrys ear, which had at some point moved to being conveniently near her mouth. "You're going to break one of my fingers."
"Sorry." Harry amended his iron grip on her hand.
"You see, though? It isn't so bad."
"This time last year your dad was being attacked by a giant snake."
Ginny felt herself grow cold at the mention of the snake attack, but kept her face and voice determinedly mild.
"Don't think about it." she whispered. "Not last Christmas, not next Christmas. Forget how things are, forget how they'll be, forget how they could have been. Right now it's just you and me and a random piece of muggle music that I've never heard before in my life, and that's all that matters."
He said nothing for a few minutes, and so Ginny continued to move them about the room, allowing herself a quick glance at his face every now and again. It was completely empty, an expression she'd never seen on him before. No fear, no anger, no laughter, no smiles…just a strange air of peace. She wondered, for a moment, what he would have been like if life had been kinder. But it was a path not worth walking, and besides…spare someone the pain and the misery, and do the happy moments, the peaceful moments, the evenings in the common room and the victories on the quidditch pitch, mean as much? Doesn't make it worth it, sure, but it's a pretty good compensation.
"Moonlight Serenade." he said suddenly.
"What?"
"The song. It's called Moonlight Serenade."
"I like it."
He turned his head slightly so that she could see his eyes and face clearly. A small grin was beginning to poke out of the corners of his mouth.
"Yeah? Me too."
And Harry Potter danced.
I'm very fond of this chapter. The scene with Harry and Ginny out in the Entrance Hall was a large factor in me wanting to re-write this story. I was hit by the idea in the latest film version of Pride and Prejudice – there's a moment when Kiera Knightly leaves the hall where a dance is going on, to lean against the cool wall outside and look confused by life. And I thought…ha! So there we go. This chapter is possibly the longest planned of the lot, with the exception of the final chapter, and the plot climax.
Review!