Ginny Weasley had many friends, although she cherished none as much as Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, and her brother Ron. Ginny was a grade younger than Ron and his friends, and she loved being able to hang out with them. Hermione was intelligent and was almost always able to figure out exactly the right detail to save the day when Harry and Ron were in a crisis. Harry was heroic and was adored by the wizard world for defeating He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (the Dark Lord) on more than one occasion. Ron didn't seem to be anything extraordinary, however Ginny still adored him and liked to hang out with him.
It always bothered Ginny when the other three would whisper to each other when she was out of earshot. They always seemed to have some secret of great importance going on, however they fell silent the moment she got close by. Over the years, Ginny had grown used to this behavior. Now, Ron, Hermione, and Harry were in their final year at Hogwarts, and Ginny desperately wanted to be a member of their inner circle. This would after all be her last chance to get involved in whatever adventure was thrown their way.
When Ginny entered the Gryffindor Common Room one afternoon, it was empty aside from Harry, Ron, and Hermione. They appeared to be having an intense conversation. To Ginny's amazement, they did not stop speaking when she entered the room.
"Ginny! Over here," Hermione called, waving her over.
Ginny sat down beside Hermione. "What's going on?" She asked.
"Ginny, if we tell you this, you have to swear to keep it a secret," Hermione began.
"Sure! Sure I will," Ginny said, excitedly tossing her head of flaming red hair.
"Okay. Hagrid found a baby dragon in the Forbidden Forest. She was hurt badly, and he needs us to help him take care of it. The thing is, she needs constant care, and Harry, Ron and I are all in Care of Magical Creatures at the same time. As you know, Hagrid is the teacher, so that means the dragon will be alone. Is there any chance you're free during third period on Mondays and second period on Thursdays?"
Ginny thought quickly. She had muggle studies during those times, but she didn't want to lose her chance to be "part of the gang." Muggle studies was an easy class, and she figured she could study on her own and still pass it. She flashed a wide grin and said, "Yes, I'm free during those times!"
"Fantastic! But remember, you can't tell anyone about this, alright? Dragons are illegal and Hagrid could get into a lot of trouble if you tell."
"So could we," Ron added.
"Yes, tons of it," Harry jumped in. "In fact, we shouldn't even be doing this at all, but the dragon's so tiny… And she can't survive on her own right now. Even if we asked your brother to come pick her up and take her to be with other dragons, she'd never survive the journey."
"I swear I won't tell anyone! Thank you guys so much for trusting me," Ginny said. She was glowing with pride.
* * *
The following afternoon, Hermione gave Ginny a book on dragons and their care. "Don't let anyone see that. They may get suspicious," Hermione said cautiously.
"Don't worry, I'll hide it," Ginny promised. However, someone spotted Ginny reading it that evening. She quickly made up an excuse for her reasons for having the book and gave it back to Hermione for safekeeping.
* * *
Things were going amazingly well. Ginny loved being in on all of Harry, Hermione, and Ron's secrets, and she was having fun taking care of the dragon. It was far more interesting than muggle studies would have been, and she was certain of that. She also enjoyed spending extra time with Hermione. The two girls were growing closer every day.
"Hermione, do you ever feel down?" Ginny asked. She had never dared to discuss this subject with anyone before, however she felt as though Hermione would understand.
"How do you mean?" Hermione asked.
"Down. Like depressed."
"Oh, sure. Lots of times. Everyone does."
"I don't mean like the general kind, Hermione. I mean… I mean, like, really down. Like you're so down that you never quite get back up."
Hermione was thoughtful for a moment. "Yes, Ginny, I have been," she admitted. "For a long time, I was depressed. I still am, really, but I'm trying to get beyond it. Are you depressed, Gin?"
"Yes. I'm depressed." As soon as Ginny said it, she felt as though a shadow that had been hanging over her was gone and the sun was finally shining down on her. She had told someone the truth, something she had longed to do for years. She had Depression, and she did not know what to do about it. Suddenly, before she could stop herself, Ginny began to weep.
"Oh Ginny… Is it that bad? I'm sorry. I know how hard it is."
"Sometimes it hurts to breathe."
"I know."
"And I can't stand being here, and I just wish I'd wake up dead one day."
"I used to be just like you." Hermione hugged the younger girl, suddenly feeling Ginny's emotions. She understood more than she wanted to, and she was desperate to help end Ginny's pain. "I know how hard it is when all you want to do is lay in bed and waste away."
"How do you beat this, Hermione?"
"I don't know. I'm still trying to beat it, and it's a struggle every day. I guess you just have to keep fighting, no matter what happens. The only other option is suicide, and that's not the answer. It won't solve anything."
"I know, but sometimes… Gods, sometimes I really want to die. It seems like everything would just go away then, and it would all be easier."
"But you'd probably haunt the place you died, like Moaning Myrtle. I don't think I'd want to be a ghost who is as miserable as I sometimes am."
"You have a point. Still, it's so hard to keep that in mind when you're desperately trying to hang on to sanity, you know?"
"Yes," Hermione said sadly, "I know." And, for the first time in a long time, both girls felt at peace, even though they were in pain.
* * *
For weeks, Hermione and Ginny discussed their battles with Depression. A closeness was formed between them that they found with no one else. Ginny, who had never had any close friends, finally felt somewhat happier about things.
Unfortunately, chaos soon arrived once again. Mrs. Weasley came to the school to see her daughter and demanded to know why she was failing muggle studies.
"Your father would be ashamed! I haven't told him yet because I want to hear your side of the story. What happened, Ginny? You're smarter than that," Mrs. Weasley said.
"I'm sorry, Mum-" Ginny stammered, but her mother would not allow her to speak yet.
"You need to tell me why this happened, and it had better be a good excuse! Your teacher tells me you haven't been to class in weeks! Why on earth would you cut class?"
"It was Hermione, Ron, and Harry, Mum!" Ginny said suddenly, panicking. She needed to tell her mother something, or she would be punished, possibly even expelled.
"What about your brother and his friends?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"We… Well, there's this dragon and Hagrid has them hiding it in the school and taking care of it."
"Dragon! Dragons are dangerous, and illegal to keep, especially in a school environment!"
"And I helped. They talked me into it." Ginny sighed inwardly. Why was she lying to her mother? It hadn't taken any persuasion on the part of the others to get Ginny to help. "The dragon's really big and scary, and they told me that if I didn't help, it would hurt me!"
"Oh my goodness, I can't believe this! How could they do something so stupid, and cruel?" Mrs. Weasley held her daughter, willing to believe anything except that Ginny had done this of her own free will. Ginny was her perfect daughter. She could accept that Ron and Harry had gotten into trouble and had dragged Hermione into it. This wouldn't be the first time. But she knew Ginny would never be involved with such dangerous things willingly.
"I was so frightened, Mum!" Ginny wept. She was lying, but she couldn't seem to control the words coming from her mouth. Stop this, Ginny, she scolded herself. Don't lie about this. You can't just sit back and watch them get into trouble.
"I'll make sure the school knows what is going on immediately! Imagine, the nerve of them! I'm stunned at this behavior!" And, before Ginny could say another word, her mother stomped off to talk to a staff member. It was too late to turn back.
* * *
"We're in trouble," Ron said, pulling Harry and Hermione into a corner.
"What's wrong?" Hermione asked.
"My father just sent me an urgent owl. Apparently, thanks to Mum, the whole staff thinks we've started some dragon cult with Hagrid or something!"
"Slow down, Ron. What happened?" Harry asked.
"It's Ginny! She told Mum some story about us involving her with some dangerous creature and Mum threw a fit and told the school and… It's bad. They know too much, plus they know a lot of lies, too."
Hermione froze. "But… Why would Ginny do that? I mean, she wouldn't. She couldn't have…"
"She did, Hermione," Ron said. "And we're all in a load of trouble."
* * *
The following morning, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked into McGonagall's office to cover up what had happened. Somehow, the three of them managed to convince her that there was no dragon, much less a cult, in the school. McGonagall seems suspicious, but let it go. The dragon was strong enough now to be on it's own, so Hagrid sadly sent her on her way.
That same day, Hermione was sitting in the room where they had kept the dragon. She was crying. When the door opened, she expected to see Ron or Harry standing there, but it was Ginny. Hermione stared at her once-friend whom she now felt so much anger toward.
"Hey," Ginny said cheerfully, acting as though nothing were wrong.
"Don't." Hermione said, filling the single syllable with stinging hatred.
"What? What's wrong?" Ginny asked, keeping her tone concerned, but unknowing.
"You know perfectly well what's wrong," Hermione said.
"I don't think I do."
"How could you do this to us, Ginny? You swore!"
"Oh, that." Ginny shook it off. "You can't blame me for what my mother did."
Hermione sat, stunned at Ginny's behavior. How could she go on acting as though this were no big deal? Ginny was about it sit down. "Get. Out." Hermione said it calmly, but made each word sting.
"Fine," Ginny said. "I didn't want to stay here today, anyway." She walked out of the room.
* * *
No one would speak to Ginny for the rest of the month, including Ron. She spent hours locked in her dorm room alone. She was sinking back into her Depression and it was growing worse than ever. "There is only one thing I can do," Ginny said. "There's only one way to make things right again." She took out a pen and parchment and began to write.