THE FALL OF GINEVRA WEASLEY

It was with great exhaustion and weariness that the eight of them were able to drop their tired bodies into bed an hour later.

Just as Hermione had said, one of the tunnels led right outside. It was the tunnel that Neville and Meghan had taken that looped a few different times and one portion came out near the boathouse. Ginny had never known such relief as when they had found an end to that horrid snake den of doom. She almost fell down to kiss the grass when they found it.

As stealthily as they could, they traipsed up the stairs that led up the cliffside, all Disillusioned. With the Map's help, they were able to stay well away from any patrols. Although Ginny saw that Harry was very careful not to let Malfoy see the Map, only opening it inside his Invisibility Cloak. Finally, the Gryffindors made it to their own tower and collapsed into a deep sleep, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Harry still sopping wet.

Of course, it only lasted for three hours.

Ginny grumbled, moaned, and complained all throughout breakfast. There was no way she could handle classes today. It was a Friday and Merlin abroad and his blue balls too, she had Double Potions.

Not fun, not fun, not fun.

She barely managed to get through half the day and make it to lunch. She slept all through History of Magic, but what else could you expect? Binns was boring as all hell. It did help that every time she passed Harry in the halls, they grinned at each other. They hadn't had much time to talk after they decided to start going out, but they had seemed to come to some unspoken agreement to keep it a secret. At least for now.

Merlin, I haven't even kissed him yet…

But fantasies of kissing Harry bleeding Potter were put on hold by the sight of Hermione as Ginny came into the entrance hall. Ginny really wanted to talk to her about where the Gryffindor tomb might be, and now seemed as good a time as any.

"Hermione, wait!" Ginny called, seeing the bushy curls ahead of her in the entrance hall. "Don't eat lunch without me!"

Hermione stopped and turned, confused. "Sorry, I'm not going to lunch yet, I'm dropping off my books in the tower. I don't need them for Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes is a practical today. Do you want to come with me?"

"Oh, no thanks. I just wanted to spend some time with you, not that much time," Ginny said cheekily. "I'm starving right now, I don't think my stomach can wait for you. Carry on!"

Hermione shrugged and grabbed the bag that was already hanging off her shoulder and continued up the entrance hall staircase.

Ginny made for the Great Hall and found her brother easily amongst the shorter, less-vibrant-haired students at the Gryffindor table.

Finally, she plopped her heavy, bulking bag beside Ron, and dug into the mashed potatoes in front of her. It didn't take her long to see Lavender, her brother's girl-toy, casting angry tear-filled daggers at them.

"What's with Lav-Lav?" Ginny asked, not too kindly.

But she only had three hours of sleep. So suck it.

Ron sighed, depressed. "She knows I snuck out last night. Without her. I can't tell her why, of course, and she thinks it's because Hermione and I were off...you know—" his face turned scarlet at this "—since she saw Hermione come back late, same as me."

"That girl is N.E.W.T.-level," Ginny deadpanned. "She really didn't see Harry, Neville, and me all come back at the same time? Hermione makes sense because they share a dorm. But even Disillusioned, how would she know about you coming back late and not us?"

Ron shrugged.

"She broke up with me over it," he said, dejectedly.

Ginny grimaced. "That really sucks. And not fair, too. I mean, you were with Hermione, but you weren't...you know..."

They both reddened.

But inwardly, Ginny couldn't help but be pleased. Well, now that Hermione isn't with Krum, and Ron isn't with Lavender, Ginny thought, my evil plan is coming to fruition...

But time. He just needs a bit more time to get over Lavender.

Heartbreak was clearly written on Ron's face, and he glanced forlornly at the blonde's direction.

"I tried, you know. I really tried talking to her," he said. "To explain that we were with you guys and Meghan and Malfoy, but she just laughed at me. Said there's no way she's going to believe I was off with Slytherins, with as much as I hate them. She's just convinced that I'm cheating on her with my best friend."

Ginny chewed slowly, watching him push his food around disinterestedly in a very un-Ron-like way. Things must be really bad if he wasn't even eating…

"Look, I'm really sorry, Ron," she said, setting her fork down and rubbing his back. "I know it's tough. Is there anything I can do to help? I could go talk to her…"

"No..." Ron sighed glumly. "It's probably for the best. I was thinking of breaking up with her anyway. Hermione wanted me to wait till after the Halloween Ball so Lavender could still have a date for it. I just...Merlin...I'm going to miss her. Her soft hands...her smiling at me...laughing when I tell a joke…"

"The snogging?" Ginny offered, trying to crack a grin on his face.

"The snogging. Definitely the snogging," Ron agreed...but no grin. "But mostly, just...her."

"Her?" asked Harry, sitting down.

Ginny nodded over to Lavender. "Her."

Harry's face fell as he realized they were talking about the break-up. "Oh...her."

The witch in question was wiping her tear-stained face and avoiding their gazes.

Reaching over, Harry clapped a reassuring hand on Ron's shoulder, squeezing it. "If it helps, I bet she's going to miss you too."

Ron put his head down in his arms. He looked completely heartbroken.

And Ginny was at a loss as to how to help him.

With Ron moping and trailing behind as he walked, and with Hermione strangely absent from lunch that day, Harry found himself walking down to their next class alone. He was just on his way to Hagrid's in the breezy open-windowed corridor when he bumped into Professor Jones.

"Oh, good afternoon, Harry. I was just coming to find you. I wanted to make sure you were all right," she said, concerned.

He was taken aback. "Oh...why wouldn't I be?" he asked.

Professor Jones looked at him. "I—I would have thought it was obvious, Harry. It's almost Halloween."

Harry blinked. "Er...so?"

"H-has no one ever told you?"

"Told me what?"

There was pity in her eyes, as well as sadness. "Harry...your parents died on Halloween. Fifteen years ago. I...I thought you knew..."

"I thought you knew..." All the way down to Care of Magical Creatures, Harry couldn't stop thinking about it. "I thought you knew..."

He had known, he realized. A long-hidden memory sprung to mind. It was his eleventh birthday and Hagrid was telling him how his parents died.

'All anyone knows is, he turned up in the village where you were all living, on Halloween ten years ago...' Hagrid had said.

His eleven-year-old self had heard him speak those words, but the date didn't mean anything then. He had completely forgotten it until now.

Fifteen years…

Hermione and Ron heard all about it from Harry while they were in class. It was one of the last classes on Friday, the twenty-fifth of October, and the sun was bleak and watery in the sky. Shivering even with heat spells cloaking them, the sixth-years crowded around Hagrid as he finished his last outside lesson on runespoor.

Hermione looked at Harry with pity written on her face. She knew he didn't want or need it, but she couldn't help it. She looked over and saw Ron giving her his warning look—the one that clearly meant "He doesn't need you to feel sorry for him, Hermione."

I don't care. Harry's parents died, for goodness' sake. And just because he's a boy, it doesn't mean he doesn't feel emotional about it. If my parents died, I would want sympathy wherever I could get it.

They huddled behind everyone else as Hagrid explained about each of the runespoor's three heads. As fascinating as the three snake heads were, the three best friends were more concerned about their conversation.

"But Harry...I always thought you knew they died on Halloween..." Hermione said, reproachfully.

He shrugged. "I forgot. It just didn't seem that important at the time."

"Is it just me, or do bad things always happen on Halloween?" said Ron darkly. "I think Voldemort cursed it, like he did that teaching post. Have you noticed, something has happened every Halloween we've been here so far?"

"What do you mean?" said Hermione.

"Well, think about it. Our first year, Quirrell let the troll in and we set it on you, Hermione—then of course we had to save you—"

She smiled when he grinned ruefully at her.

Harry caught on. "And then in our second year, we were at that dreadful Deathday party, and that same night was when the basilisk first attacked—Mrs. Norris was Petrified—"

"Third year had Sirius try to break into our tower, bless him, and did nothing but slash the Fat Lady's portrait. But then later, he did get into the tower to kill that rat, Wormtail, and I thought he was trying to kill me—gave me a right scare—" continued Ron, shuddering at the memory.

"And fourth year was the Triwizard Tournament, and the Durmstrangs and Beauxbatons were there, and the Goblet of Fire picked little old me, and Ron here thought I did it on purpose," said Harry, refusing to look at Ron. He was still a bit miffed at Ron betraying him.

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but Hermione lead him away. "And what about last year?"

There was an uproar. At the front of class, two of the runespoor heads gained up on the third one and were trying savagely to bite it off. Hagrid wrestled it back into its crate, sticking each head into its own separate cage.

"Fifth year...I can't really think of anything…. Well, we did have that one D.A. lesson where you gave us those Galleons, and Colin Creevey did that amazing Impediment Jinx and Neville actually disarmed Hermione, and Ginny did a powerful Reductor Curse..." said Ron.

"Hang on, I can," said Harry. "Remember, Ron? We had a Quidditch practice that day, and you fell off your broom, hung by it one-handed, and kicked the Quaffle into the other goalpost! That was brilliant! If only you could accomplish that during a game..."

Ron puffed himself up and smirked. "You see? Every Halloween something happens! I wonder what it will be this year..."

The lesson ended then, and Hermione, Harry, and Ron hung back as everyone else surged past.

While Harry talked with Hagrid about the newly-settled Norberta the Dragon and Grawp, Hagrid's giant brother, Ron sidled up beside Goldeneye in the paddock. Hermione watched him, smiling fondly at the way Ron caressed the long, golden feathers.

He's really very sweet with him. I can just see him someday with children, stroking his daughter's hair as softly as he's stroking Goldie.

She felt a pang as she realized how much she cared for him, and just how close he had recently been to death. If anything happened to him...

"Knut for your thoughts."

Hermione jumped as Harry snuck up behind her. "Oh...nothing. It's just...he looks so happy with Goldeneye. He deserves to be happy with someone."

"Someone like...Lavender?" he said, glancing at her sideways.

She flinched. "No," she said. "Not like Lavender."

He waited as she had an internal battle with herself.

"Oh, all right, Harry," she said sadly. "Yes, with Lavender. I can't stand her, I think he deserves better...but if he's happy when he's with her...then that's all that matters...isn't it? So...yes, I suppose. With Lavender."

Harry watched her with a look in his eyes she couldn't quite read. "That's kind of you," he said quietly.

They both went back to watching Ron mount Goldie under Hagrid's watchful eye.

"So then...it would make you sad to hear that she broke up with him this morning?" Harry finished.

Hope sailed in Hermione's heart. "Really?"

A grin snuck onto Harry's face. "Really."

Hermione fought to keep the smile off hers. Lavender broke up with Ron! Lavender broke up...but...oh dear…

She realized how sad he'd been all day, and her smile dropped. He must be hurting so much…he really did love being with her…

I want to tell him how I feel. I want to just...ignore all my reasons why I shouldn't and just tell him…

But logic reasoned with her mind, and told her to wait. Just...wait. Wait till he had more time to get over Lavender. Wait for Lavender to heal as well before Hermione betrayed her trust for real.

Merlin, did she not want to wait...

Depressed once again, Hermione checked the time.

"Speaking of being happy," she said, erasing the Tempus. "I have a lesson on Ancient Runes that I need to get to."

Ron, hearing this last, rolled his eyes. "Leave it to Hermione to say she is happiest when she's in class."

"Leave it to Ron to say he is happiest sloughing," Hermione retorted.

"Oh, please, like this is sloughing—"

But he seemed to realize their argument and forgotten rules at the same time she did.

"Arresto," they both said.

"I'm really sorry, Ron," Hermione said, as he drew near. "I didn't mean it. Honestly...you seem happiest when we aren't arguing, if anything."

"You've got that right," said Ron with a snort. "I'm sorry too, though. Although...you really do seem happiest when we are in class!"

Hermione laughed. "I am happy then, yes. You're right."

Looking back and forth between them, Harry looked utterly bemused, like he knew he was missing something but not knowing what. "What...just happened?"

Hermione and Ron stared at each other, not wanting to admit their rules just yet. "Just an understanding," she said, and Ron grinned.

Harry furrowed his brow.

Behind them, Goldeneye started making a fuss because Ron walked away from him.

Hagrid chuckled. "Looks like yer his new buddy, eh, Ron? Griffins are the best creatures to be makin' friends with, I'll tell yeh tha'!"

"You know though...you really should drop it, Hermione," Ron said, walking back over to the fence to scratch Goldie under the chin. The griffin trilled lowly, eyes closed in pleasure. "Then you'd be looking at an hour-long free period like us!"

He leaned back on the fence as if in show of how carefree she could have been. Behind him, Goldeneye nibbled his hair.

"Har, har," said Hermione sarcastically before picking up the books she dropped. "Bite him hard for me, Goldeneye."

Ron snickered behind her, but it was broken off when the griffin pecked him on the rear.

"OI!" he yelled as Harry and Hagrid laughed. "Why're you taking her side then, you traitor?"

Hermione trudged up to the castle wearily. Wearily and hungrily. Her stomach growled from missing a meal, and she cursed herself for not going to the Great Hall with Ginny for lunch when she had the chance.

Why didn't I? I thought I planned enough time...I suppose I just took too long in my room.

She thought about what Ron had said, even if it had been in jest.

Why don't I take a load off and quit one of my classes? she thought. After all, the only free breaks I have are on Fridays. Harry and Ron get one every day. It would be nice to have a free break and not need to use it for homework...

She thought about this, then sighed irritably. Oh, fine, maybe on special occasions...

Even without taking Astronomy and Herbology, her workload was still harder than last year, given the fact that every one of their four main classes were now doubled. That wasn't counting the amount of homework they were given each day and how difficult the work had gotten. Hermione had found that she needed to struggle more and more just to stay ahead of the class.

And now, what with all the attacks, all the fear, all the research, all the tomb-hunting, all the million other things she had to do...

I could definitely use a break.

Exhaustion set in from the lack of sleep and the never-ending work and research she had to do. Tears sprung to her eyes, and she hurriedly wiped them before anyone in the entrance hall saw. Now wasn't the time to break down. Maybe later. She fiddled with the necklace around her collar bone, something she found she kept doing when anxious.

And all the way down the corridor, her Auror Guard—a female this time named Morwen—trailing behind her, Hermione kept hearing Ron's voice echoing in her head, niggling and spurring her on.

You should drop it, Hermione. You should drop it.

After climbing the many staircases till she reached the sixth floor, Hermione turned into the Ancient Runes classroom, Morwen stopping at the entrance, and she went to sit down beside Sally-Anne, her Runes partner, when she stopped, confused.

Michael Corner was sitting in her spot.

"Oh nope, nope! Not today!" cried out Professor Babbling. "Pairing you up differently today! Sally-Anne already has a Ravenclaw partner, Hermione dear, would you mind pairing up with Draco today? We must help the Gryffindors and Slytherins become friends, you must know."

Hermione wanted to drop dead.

Fear, worry, and disgust mingled alike. Draco Malfoy as well looked properly horrified behind his stoic, gray exterior. He was sitting in the small back corner of the classroom, his usual spot, and as he never wanted a partner it was far too cramped there to fit anyone else.

"Excuse me?" she asked, hoping she misheard. Of course, no such luck.

"The Headmaster has asked us to be sure to pair up the different Houses so we can smash out those rivalries, don't you know," said Professor Babbling with a nervous chuckle, drawing another chair in midair. "Sit there with Draco, darling. There's a dear."

Hermione walked over and sat.

It was at once apparent that the both of them were sitting far too close together. Classroom 6A was rather small and they hardly had room enough to move their elbows, let alone breathe. Hermione became very aware that his elbow was touching hers, that she could hear his quiet close-mouthed breaths, that she could even smell his cologne...much less gag at the idea of Draco Malfoy, Slytherin King, wearing cologne.

"Now, now, we must begin! As you well know," said the professor, beginning the lesson, "the pairing of the polarities is a very wide-spread theory circulating the magical world. Can anyone tell me why this is? Yes, Hermione, dear?"

Hermione put her hand down. Draco looked increasingly annoyed next to her.

It's not my fault that you never deign to raise your hand, she thought, before answering. Or that you aren't bright enough to know the answer in the first place.

Of course, it pleased her far more than she cared to admit that she knew something that Malfoy didn't.

"Polarity gives us a more complex view than a simple binary," Hermione stated. "Some believe that if it weren't for polarity, we would only have synergy and resonance to work with, and according to Pugle's Fourth Hypothesis, those are what the simpler magics and spells are made of. But polarity gives us the more difficult spells, the harmony of dark working with the light, and fire with water, for example. Magic theory, however, cannot prove this to be factual."

"Right! Right, right, of course, did you hear that, class? Now if you look here, yes, here on the board, see? This is the rune for polarity. See how the two sides come together like this..." Professor Babbling continued to tell them all about what Hermione knew already, but Hermione was no longer paying attention.

Draco Malfoy leaned in to her ear, and whispered, "You always have to show off like a fucking prostitute, don't you? What are you trying to prove anyway? That Mudbloods are as good as purebloods?"

Hermione's cheeks grew pink. "Why would I try to prove something I already know to be factual? Just face it, Malfoy. You didn't know the answer and you're just peeved that I did. It's not my fault that I study five chapters ahead and you only study two."

He scowled. "Oh, shut up," he hissed. "You're such an unbearable bitch. Nobody can stand you, you know. With as many times as everyone's tried to kill you by now, one would think you'd get the message and just drop dead to please everyone. At least it would shut you up. It certainly would make me happy. Just stay the hell away from me!"

Never before had Hermione been so furious.

She stood up, and Professor Babbling ceased her babbling. Hermione couldn't even see the stares from everyone, tears blurred her vision too much.

She strode right out of the classroom without a backwards glance to the shocked, hateful eyes of the Slytherin behind her.

Once classes were done for the day, the Gryffindor team set off for their last practice before the big game tomorrow. There was already a light drizzle when Ron opened the great doors and stepped outside onto the cobblestones. Harry and Ginny had already gone on ahead...walking remarkably close together, Ron saw from afar. He'd been too busy trying to find Hermione though, and trailed along dejectedly after them.

As luck would have it, that's when he saw her.

She was sitting by the beech tree beside the Black Lake, knees drawn up and chin resting on them. Surprised and concerned that she was outside in this weather, Ron jogged over to her.

"Hermione! Hermione, what are you doing? Where've you been?"

She didn't say anything.

Worried, Ron sat down beside her and looked in her eyes. She was still wearing her school uniform, he saw, and he wondered why she wouldn't have changed out of it after class like she always did.

"Are you all right?" he tried again.

Still silence.

"We missed you, you know. During lunch."

Not even a glance in his direction.

Frustrated, he sighed. "Do you just want to be alone then? I do have a practice to get to but I didn't want to leave you all alone out here. Where's your guard anyway?"

She still ignored him, and he stood up angrily.

"Fine," he snapped. "Don't accept my help. But you don't have to be rude about it either. Have you forgotten our agreement already? We promised not to insult each other anymore. You ignoring me is insulting! Just look at me, damn it, and talk to me!"

Hermione's brown eyes flashed over to him as soon as he said it. "Ron, I'm sorry, I really am. I wasn't trying to ignore you. I was just…"

She stood up, face etched with distress. "I quit my class today. I just...I just walked out. I haven't done that since...since...third year. Divination. I was so angry, it felt like my blood was boiling, and I was hot all over, and he is just such a pig—"

"He?" Ron asked, confused. "I thought your teacher was—"

"Professor Babbling, yes. It wasn't her fault. She's a dear, although...a little scatterbrained. But I love her, truly. And Ancient Runes. I don't know what...what in the world compelled me to quit! I don't want to drop that class. Not...really."

Ron stepped towards her and sat down on a large rock beside the beech tree. The umbrella charm Hermione had been under welcomed them both. She came next to him, plopping down once more on the tree root she'd been perched on, and turning back towards the lake. They both watched the drizzling raindrops hitting the surface of the dark lake as it spread out before them, far beyond where their eyes could see.

"You said 'he'," Ron realized.

She tensed beside him. "It's nothing. I shouldn't have brought it up."

"Yes, Hermione. You should have. Who's 'he'?"

"It's just…" she said, hesitating, then talked rather fast, her face pink. "Professor Dumbledore wants Gryffindors to be paired with Slytherins now apparently, and I got into the class late and everyone else had just been paired up, so the only other one left was him, of course, and so we were paired up and Malfoy was being such a...a...self-righteous prick, honestly."

"Malfoy?"

"Yes. He said...well...I guess what he said doesn't matter. It was just the usual. 'Mudblood are scum', and all that rot," Hermione said woodenly.

Ron seethed. The fact that Malfoy had been in her Ancient Runes class...that she'd had to sit with him, listen to him, be alone with him…

He saw red.

Fists clenched beside his body, his nails digging into his palms and making indents in his skin, his ears and neck hot with anger, Ron felt like he wanted to punch something. Not something. Someone. A slimy, pointed-chin, smug-faced bastard of a someone.

But a cold hand touched his closed fist gingerly, and Hermione's worried eyes were looking into his own. Ron got ahold of his anger quicker than he could ever imagine doing before.

"It's fine, Ron. I was mad and I left. Please, please, don't go off and do anything rash," she said.

"I just don't want him near you," said Ron, his voice low. "I know it's not up to me, and you can do whatever you want. I just don't like you being in that class if you're forced to be his partner. I don't trust him in the slightest, Hermione. He tried to drug you! He almost tried to kidnap you! As far as we know, he's behind all of this! Behind all the attacks on you, all the ones on me, the one on Harry and Ginny, for Godric's sake!"

"I know, Ron," Hermione whispered. She leaned in close to him, their sides touching, and her head laid on his shoulder. "I know."

And he found that he really, really liked it there.

"I'm sorry Lavender broke up with you," she whispered.

The heartbreak settled anew in Ron's heart, and his throat constricted painfully as a lump formed in it.

"I'm sorry Viktor broke up with you," he whispered back.

They stared out over the serene lake, watching the sun set over it, painting the already murky sky with hues of orange and yellow, pink and gold. The rain stopped, and the umbrella charm was lifted, but still they just sat together, best friends, watching a sunset amidst a brief respite of the darkness that surrounded them.

And Ron quite forgot to go play Quidditch.

The morning of the first Quidditch match of the season on the last Saturday in October dawned...probably not so bright. Not raining anymore, which was a beautiful thing to witness after days and weeks of almost constant rain.

But it was definitely windy, which wasn't a good thing. Hermione didn't know much about Quidditch, but she did know that wind = bad.

The gale rattling the window panes in the girls' dorm is conveniently what woke Hermione up before the sun, and she dressed in the half-light into her jeans, boots, bright red blouse, and Gryffindor scarf (in lieu of Gryffindor colors).

Grabbing her purple beaded bag that Hestia Jones had gotten her, Hermione threw in a water bottle, some lip balm, and wondered what else she would need. Most things she could do with a wand, like an umbrella charm and a binocular spell on her eyes so she could try and spot the Snitch.

Merlin, would my parents be jealous! Packing for a trip to a game with them is a nightmare, honestly. Mum always stuffs the car full of extra things like seat cushions and sun umbrellas and extra sunglasses for any and all weathering events. If the match went on for three weeks straight, Mum would very well be prepared. One time she even brought our sleeping bags!

Smiling fondly at the memory, Hermione wondered how Mum and Dad were doing in hiding. Was it like Muggle witness protection? Were they even still in the country? Would she be able to go and visit them over Christmas break?

She'd asked the Headmaster about that when he first told her about her parents, and he sadly shook his head.

"I must apologize, my dear, but it would be far too risky," he said somberly. "I can tell you that they are with some very fine Order members. Alastor Moody and Mundungus Fletcher, to be precise. They are extremely good at what they do and are an invaluable asset. Never fear, your parents are in good hands."

That knowledge did sit well with her. She thought rather highly of the real Alastor Moody (that fake one couldn't light a candle to him), and would have picked him to watch over her parents had it been her choice.

Hermione sighed.

Her parents being made to leave the comforts of their homes, their work, their lives, their family...it made this war all too real.

Thoughts turning back to the matter at hand, Hermione grabbed a quill and diary—you never knew how long these Quidditch matches would be and writing in her diary would be a nice way to pass the time if needed—and tossed them into the bag. They clunked around and she grimaced as she remembered Crookshanks' collar was also in the bag.

She still had never found him. Her worry for him grew with every passing day. Knowing her cat, he was probably off still gallivanting in the Forbidden Forest...making friends with werewolf packs and whatnot...

Eyeing the stone tablet on her desk that went with the collar, Hermione wondered if she should bring that too. Perhaps she could try some new spells on it, and see if it still held the remnants of the feline it had been attached to...maybe there was a possibility of chasing Crookshanks down through that way, like the Priori Incantatem spell.

She shook her head, and left the stone tablet on her desk. Really, she'd never have time for that today. She'd just need to try that later.

Feeling like she'd taken long enough to get dressed, Hermione tucked her necklace into her shirt and reached for her brown leather jacket, thinking about possibly going for a walk before everyone else woke up.

When she got to the Gryffindor common room, however, she saw with great surprise that Ron and Harry were both as awake, bleary-eyed, and yawn-prone as she was.

"Fancy seeing you two awake at this unholy hour," she said, with a bounce in her step, as she came down the stairs. The boys halted their Quidditch chatter as she came into view, startled by her presence.

"Couldn't sleep," Harry grunted. "Nerves. You know."

She did know. They always flooded her as well when it was a match day. With as many times as Harry's fallen off his broom…

Hermione noticed Ron staring at her. Did her stupid hair manage to spring out of her hair clips again? They were in the shape of brooms. Just a fun way to dress up for her boys. Nonchalantly, she smoothed down her hair and wrapped her Gryffindor scarf around her neck in an infinity loop, ignoring his stare.

"Fancy a walk then?"

They all traipsed out of the common room and down the hall, talking about whether breakfast would be set yet, or if they should steal into the kitchens before going down to visit Hagrid. The match wasn't for two more hours, so whatever activity they could cram into that time, the better it would be for poor Ron who always seemed to let his nerves get the better of him.

In the end, they grabbed a few scones from the house-elves, hanging out for a while, and headed down to Hagrid's hut.

"When're we going to see Norberta anyway?" Ron asked. "I thought Hagrid said he'd be showing her to the classes. That's why Charlie's been visiting so long too. That and...well..Tonks.."

Depression fogged around them, making the air heavy.

"Have you...heard anything?" said Hermione. "Charlie and Tonks were getting rather close. Have you talked with him?"

"Yeah, actually. Charlie and I talked yesterday. Him about Tonks, and me about Lavender. He said she's still unresponsive though. Hasn't woken up. Although she stirs...you know...occasionally."

There was a silence at this.

"That's good," said Harry, trying to be optimistic.

Hermione and Ron nodded, but the faux-brightness didn't quite spread over to them.

"It's November, by the way," said Hermione to Ron after a few minutes of no talking. "Hagrid said. About Norberta."

"Oh. Well. That should be fun then."

She nodded.

And silence reigned some more as they walked out the empty entrance hall and outside the double doors.

When they got to Hagrid's hut, however, he wasn't to be found. Must be an early riser, Hermione thought.

Just a note nailed to the door.

" 'Dumbledore, I've gone to show some visitors the cave. Be meeting you there.' " Hermione read. "Cave? Wait...he must mean the mountain cave that Snuffles showed us in fourth year."

Dismayed, they let themselves into Hagrid's place and played with Fang for a bit and chatted before the fire, listening to the whistling wind. They wanted a jaunt to the cave too, but there wasn't enough time before the match started.

It wasn't too long before the Quidditch trumpets started ringing out in the distance. So off they traipsed up the path that led toward the towered Quidditch stands. The gusty breeze blew Hermione's hair this way and that, and she wished she'd thought ahead and done a bun or plait.

They got to the changing rooms for Harry and Ron to get dressed with the rest of the Gryffindor team. It was Ginny's first match as a Chaser, and she was really green. Hermione felt sorry for her and hugged her good luck.

With nerves and excitement high, Hermione followed the other Gryffindors up to the stands amidst the screaming and the catcalls and raucous laughter. Seventh-year boys pushed her rather roughly as she tried to go around them to the highest wooden bench to sit with Neville. Luna from Ravenclaw and Meghan Freeman from Slytherin soon came to join them.

Viktor flew over to the middle of the pitch, where the Gryffindor red and Ravenclaw blue players were all in their positions, waiting. Hermione's heart started thundering in her chest in worry for not just Harry and Ron, but for Viktor as well. Visions of his tales of the bludger and the beater's bat hitting his head swarmed her thoughts, and she cringed.

Viktor opened the box and the balls shot out of it. He blew his whistle. There was at once a flurry of movement out on the field.

"Aaaaaaand the game, my dear Watson, is on!" shouted Dean Thomas, the new Quidditch commentator, ever the Muggle lover.

Everyone in the stands around her cheered as the Gryffindor team flew around, seamlessly unmatched.

Hermione cheered in her seat beside Neville as half an hour quickly passed, keeping her eyes out for her boys.

"...and Gryffindor Keeper Weasley blocks another goal from the Ravenclaw Chaser Picklesby! What a move! We are still sixty to fifty in favor of Gryffindor! What a close game this is turning out to be..." Seamus Finnegan's Irish voice boomed out over the field from his spot in the commentator's box.

"Quite right you are, Seamus, and now we have the Gryffindor Chasers with the Quaffle—mmm, what fine-looking women those three are—" said Dean Thomas from beside him, then dodged when Professor McGonagall reached over to whack him on the head.

Next to Hermione, Meghan stifled a giggle.

For more than an hour after that, the Chasers kept scoring, and yet Harry, high in the air, never did dive for the Snitch. Hermione grew antsy, wondering where it could be, and tried to find it as well through the binocular spell on her eyes.

"And Ravenclaw Seeker Max Hatter has just spotted the Snitch!" Seamus roared. The crowd around her gasped, and everyone sitting shot up at once to their feet. "Oh wait—no, no, sorry—it seems he mistook a wandering canary for it...well, shite…"

Hermione heard McGonagall shout at Seamus for swearing, but his sentiments weren't far off from what everyone else in the stands was feeling.

Where, in Merlin's good name, is the Snitch…

Harry was beyond perturbed.

He knew there was no Snitch.

Not just from the hours he had spent up in the air on his broom searching for it. As a Seeker, he just...knew these things. Call it sixth sense.

So where the horklump was the damn thing?

Another hour passed, and yet everyone was still wondering that question. Dean and Seamus had taken to making jokes about it, saying they'd spotted it flying around Snape's ear, only to make Harry and Max Hatter fly careening through the stands and find nothing.

"Well, that's just too bad for Potter and Hatter, isn't Dean?" yelled Seamus gleefully into the megaphone, sniggering at the joke he played.

"Right you are, Seamus, right you are. Though if Hotter and Patter—I-I mean, Potter and Hatter— don't find that Snitch soon, we'll all be out here playing this game well into the night."

Hermione scanned the pitch, getting rather frustrated. After yet another huddle by both teams, she could tell they were getting really tired, almost ready to call on the reserve players.

And then she muttered a spell that would have made even Ron gasp and say "Scandalous!"

She cast a spell that would make her see the Snitch, and only the Snitch. It was outlawed on the grounds, but since she wasn't actually a Quidditch player trying to cheat, it must be all right…it's not like she was going to tell Harry...

For minutes on end, she scoured the pitch. Everything else in her eyesight was gray-black. She should have seen the bright gold of the tiny winged ball within moments, but with trepidation, Hermione realized what had happened.

The Snitch wasn't even on the field.

"Come on ...where is it?" she muttered. "I can't find it anywhere. But that's not possible…"

"The Snitch? No idea, I don't think anybody has seen it all game. It's like someone forgot to let it out of the box…" Neville said.

"That must be what happened...but that's foul play, that is... thanks, Neville!" Hermione touched his arm in gratitude, and took off down the stairs, determined to get to the bottom of it.

Hovering by the Gryffindor goalposts, Harry and Ron both talked in low voices over what to do.

"I mean...if it really isn't here...we could try calling the match off…" Ron said.

There was a bit of a flurry at the other end of the pitch. The Chasers were all over by the Ravenclaw goalposts. Ginny, Katie, and Maggie McGonagall were having a hard time getting the Quaffle away from the Ravenclaws, as their Beaters kept trying to unseat them.

"But there's no proof," said Harry, frustrated, all the while keeping his eyes glued to the Ravenclaw Seeker. "All the spells we could try are banned on the pitch for cheating. Once the Snitch is let out of the box, there are all these strict rules on tampering with it and trying to summon it. Plus if anyone so much as touches it besides a Seeker, the game is forfeit."

"Then what the hell do we do?" Ron mused. "Has this ever happened before?"

"Not that I've heard...should I tell Krum?"

"No. Just...no. For all we know, he's the one who has it. I wouldn't trust him as far as I could hex him."

Harry's irritation at Ron's snub grew.

"You really need to get over him, you know," he snapped. "Dating Hermione is not a crime."

Ron grumbled under his breath. "Yeah, well, dating Krum should be…"

Ron and Harry watched the swarm of Chasers across the pitch climb higher into the air, Ginny suddenly shooting out from all the rest, the Quaffle tucked firmly in her arm.

"Yes!" Ron cheered.

It happened in an instant.

One second, Ginny was soaring almost straight up into the air, two hundred feet above the ground, an elated grin on her face from having successfully wrestled it away from the other team.

The next second, a Bludger was chucked straight at her, and collided into her side with great force, slamming her off her broomstick. And Ginny Weasley was falling.

It seemed to happen in slow motion. A gasp rose up from the crowd as everyone slowly realized what was happening.

Terrified, Harry and Ron could only stare, agape.

And then Harry sprung into action.

He flew over to the other end of the pitch, but he wasn't fast enough.

He urged his Firebolt to go faster, faster, faster as he tore across the field. The other Chasers didn't quite seem to know it was happening and why was no one else trying to catch her?

I'm not going to make it in time!

Hermione raced down the stairs, then took off down the long, empty corridor to get to the next set of steps.

By the time she got down to the field, she could hear screaming, but her focus on her task at hand was too narrowed. She shot a spell out at the box in the middle of the field with the balls in it. It shot open, and another well-placed spell unlocked the box that the Snitch was kept in.

But nothing came out of it. It was empty.

Confused, Hermione's wand arm fell, her eyes going over to Harry to see if he had noticed.

He wasn't by the Gryffindor goalposts anymore, however. He was flying faster than she had ever seen a person fly before. But why...

She followed his path, and Hermione's heart locked in horror at the sight of Ginny, her best girl friend, falling.

Harry was too far up, his broom arcing down to follow her trajectory, but she was still fifty feet away, and falling fast—too fast—

He dove headfirst into the gaggle of Chasers, making them scatter like fallen leaves in the wind. Like a bullet, he tore downwards into a steep Wronski Feint, getting closer and closer to her falling body.

Harry flew faster than he had ever flown in his life.

A shriek rose up from the crowd, but the wind was roaring so loudly in his ears he couldn't tell what the commentators were saying or see who was screaming, all he could focus on was his Ginny, his Ginny, his Ginny, and getting to her in time.

He was still too far away—she was getting closer to the ground—

Go faster, faster! Go, go, GO! He urged his broom, heart in his mouth from such a steep dive—he was going almost straight down—he wasn't going to make it—he had to make it—

She was still twenty feet away from him...fifteen...ten...five…

The ground came up too fast. In a rush of adrenaline, fear, and terror, Harry let go of his broom and reached out to grab her hand before it was too late.

Screams followed him down—

There was no way he could pull up in time—!

There was a jerk—Harry's Firebolt stopped in midair—hovering just above the ground. Harry was dangling from it with one hand, his other arm stretched downwards, and holding Ginny's arm tightly, where she was looking up at him, face whiter and eyes bigger than he had ever seen. The ground was just a mere yard below her dangling boots.

And above him—holding on tightly to his Firebolt, the reason it had stopped so abruptly in midair before he and Ginny crashed straight into the earth—were both the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Chasers, collective hands holding on tight to his Firebolt, their faces ashen.

Harry's head spun with dizziness at what had just happened. The crowd around them was screaming, completely beside themselves; even McGonagall had tears streaming down her face.

"DID YOU SEE THAT! DID YOU SEE THAT! HE CAUGHT HER! POTTER CAUGHT WEASLEY! HE CAUGHT HER!" Seamus shouted, face red, jumping up from his seat.

Dean beside him was likewise whooping. "NEVER BEFORE HAVE WE SEEN THE WRONSKI FEINT PERFORMED IN THIS WAY, FOLKS! HARRY POTTER OWNED IT! AND DID YOU SEE HOW THE RAVENCLAW AND GRYFFINDOR CHASERS WORKED TOGETHER AS A TEAM, THAT WAS MAGNANIMOUS! WHAT POTTER DID, THAT WAS INCREDIBLE! WHOO! WHAT A DEATH-DEFYING STUNT!"

"NEVER BEFORE IN THE HISTORY OF QUIDDITCH!" Seamus continued. "CAN YOU HEAR THAT CROWD, THEY ARE JUST GOING WILD! NEVER BEFORE HAS A SEEKER REACHED THOSE TOP SPEEDS AS HARRY POTTER DID JUST NOW!"

"HE MUST HAVE BEEN GOING TWO HUNDRED MILES PER HOUR! TWO HUNDRED!" Dean exclaimed ecstatically.

Harry and Ginny were lowered to the ground, where they shakily embraced each other in a tight hug.

"Thank you, Harry," she whispered in his ear, the magnitude of her gratitude completely evident. "Thank you…"

"I thought we were going to lose you," he whispered back. "I thought…I thought..."

The Ravenclaw and Gryffindor Chasers alike were all hugging each other and hugging them, the relief palpable.

And then Harry's lips found Ginny's, and hers found his, and the screams around them grew more intense as they started making out in the middle of the Quidditch field, in the middle of a Quidditch game.

And, probably for the first time in the history of Hogwarts' Quidditch matches, nobody seemed to give a Snidget's arse about the Snitch or who had won.

As far as Harry was concerned…

He had.

Author's Note:

So much that happens in this chapter! Which was your favorite part? The sneaky mention of my birthday? (Chapter 29 had the sneaky mention of my name, you know) The death-defying stunt that Harry pulled? The smidgeon of Dramione I laid down for you? Ron being bitten in the arse? Lavender breaking up with Ron? All the Romione ANGST?

Leave your favorite parts in the review box below, (and of course what you want to see in the next chapter), and we'll see who can bring this story to 100 reviews!

Next chapter?

"Never Tickle a Sleeping Dragon"...coming to you hopefully before next weekend (fingers crossed)!