Title Needed (Desperately!)
Chapter 6: Masquerade- Part 2
A/N: Here's the second part! It's a work in progress at this point... lol.. of course it is! Sorry... I'm going to try and work on this more than I have been, but life is crazy.. I have play practice everyday after school until like 4, then I have fire department stuff, and karate stuff, and school stuff... yeah... and my friend asked me to write a song for her, so I have to work on that cuz we need it done and a tape of us singing it by April, and I really suck at writing music... oh well.. oh yeah, I have women's choir stuff too... yeah, so you can obviously see I'm quite busy... but you probably don't care, so I'll just stop babbling now...
Disclaimer: Um.... I don't have any witty remarks right now... can't think.. I obviously don't own Harry Potter and Co... they belong to big important people... thus, not me...
***
"Why. Won't. It. Lay. FLAT!" James growled at his reflection as he tried to get his hair to flatten out. Usually it would lay flat, the ends curling a bit, but tonight it was being stubborn. After finally deciding to go as the Phantom of the Opera, he was already dressed in his tuxedo, his half-face mask lying on the counter in front of him, his white gloves next to it. He poured some more hair gel into his hand and ran it through his hair. Then he picked up his comb and tried to straighten his hair. It still wouldn't do what he wanted. He sighed in defeat. Then he heard a knock at his door.
"Come in," he said, not bothering to open the door for whoever it was. Ron walked in, wearing an outfit that looked like it was from the 1800s, a crown on his head and a scepter in his hand. "Nice costume," James said, looking at Ron in the mirror.
"Having a bad hair day, are we?" Ron asked teasingly. James just glowered at him, making Ron laugh hysterically.
"Can I help you, your highness?" James asked sarcastically. Ron stopped laughing when James said this. He cleared his throat.
"Yeah, Hermione sent me to see if you were ready to go. Need some help with your hair?" Ron asked. James shook his head.
"It's a lost cause. Trust me, I've been at it for about an hour now, and nothing has worked. Don't worry about it. Give me a second to get my mask and gloves on, and I'll be ready," James said.
"What are you going as?" Ron asked, looking at the outfit that James had donned for the occasion.
"The Phantom of the Opera," James said. Ron looked at him in confusion. "It's a Muggle thing. Some French guy claimed there was a phantom in this opera house, wrote a story about it, which was later turned into a musical play," James explained. Ron nodded in understanding. "Okay, let's go," James said, only the bottom half of his face visible behind his mask. The two men headed to pick up Hermione and go to the ball.
A few hours later, everyone was dancing and having a good time. Except for James. He was sitting at a table, sipping some punch, watching all the students dancing. He closed his eyes for a moment, reminiscing about a similar situation. As if on cue, a girl with deep reddish hair came up to him.
"What are you thinking about, James?" Ginny asked him, sitting down in the seat next to her. He opened his eyes and looked at her.
"Nothing really. Just a dance I attended when I was younger," James said, smiling slightly. Ginny smiled as well.
"Oh really? Did you spend the entire time sitting, or is that just something you're doing tonight?" Ginny asked teasingly. James blushed slightly, but Ginny didn't notice, since his cheeks were hidden by his mask. He looked at Ginny for a moment, taking in the long, flowing white gown she was wearing and a small, delicate looking mask that covered only her eyes.
"No, I spent most of that one dancing. I'm afraid I haven't really danced since my wedding though. My wife and I really don't have time to go dancing," James sighed. Ginny stood up.
"Well, then, would you care to dance?" she asked, holding out her hand in front of him. He looked up into her eyes, his cheeks once again flushing red. He mentally thanked himself for wearing a mask that covered his cheeks, then took her hand in his own, stood up and lead her onto the dance floor. Just as they reached it, a slow song came on. He brought Ginny close to himself and wrapped his arms around her waist as she put hers around his neck, a few inches between their bodies. They began to sway slowly to the music just as everyone else was doing.
"Wow, if I had known how good you were at dancing before, I would have asked you sooner," Ginny whispered into James' shoulder. They had moved closer to each other as the song had progressed, and were now very close to one another.
"If you had asked me sooner, I might have said no," James said. He felt Ginny tense slightly in his arms as they both felt a sense of de ja vu. She pulled away slightly. "I'm sorry, did I say something to offend you?" James asked, looking into her eyes that were filled with painful memories of the past.
"No. I'm sorry... What you said... It just reminded me of something someone once said to me," Ginny said, leaning back in towards James, somewhat uncomfortably though.
"I didn't mean to. It's just, being around such a lovely woman, my mind seems to go blank," James said, blushing once again. Ginny was blushing as well.
"Don't let my husband hear you say that," Ginny replied. A small smile played across James' lips.
"What about your brother? Wouldn't he have something to say to me as well?" James asked. Ginny once again pulled back and looked at James in the eyes. "Is something wrong?" James asked.
Ginny looked hard at him. James was silently thanking himself again for wearing a mask so she wouldn't be able to see his face. Her eyes had started to glisten as if she was about to cry. She looked incredibly troubled, making James feel guilty.
"Look, whatever it was that I said, I'm sorry. Maybe we shouldn't dance any more. I'm sure there are others that wouldn't mind dancing with you," James said, realizing too late what he had said. Ginny's eyes narrowed angrily.
"Is this some kind of sick joke, James? Because if it is, I swear on all things I hold holy, you will pay for this. Out of all the low down, stinking things people have ever done to me, this is the lowest," Ginny said, the anger evident in her voice. Ron and Hermione, who had been dancing near by, overheard her, and came to see what was wrong.
"Ginny, are you okay?" Ron asked, putting a comforting hand on Ginny's shoulder while shooting James a death glare. "I swear, if you hurt her in any way," Ron whispered lowly to James, who's face had paled considerably under his mask. James quickly took his mask off though, feeling foolish hiding behind it.
"I don't know how you found out about all that, but whoever told you must be a real creep," Ginny tried to keep her voice under control, but it was cracking slightly, and tears had started to fall down her face.
"Ginny, what's wrong? What did he do?" Hermione asked with concern in her voice. Ginny took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure to tell her brother and sister-in-law what had happened.
"It was just a misunderstanding. Honestly!" James said, trying to defend himself. Ron glared at him again.
"Be quiet. You aren't allowed to say anything, and I mean anything, until we hear what Ginny has to say," Ron growled. Now it was James' turn to look like he was holding back tears.
"He said almost the exact same things that... that... that Harry said... the night of the ball," Ginny got out before breaking into full out sobs. Ron and Hermione's faces both paled, as Hermione pulled Ginny into a tight hug. Ron then rounded on James.
"I don't know who you are, but whoever you are, stay away from my sister. If I even see you go near her, I swear I won't hesitate even a second to hurt you as much as I humanly can," Ron threatened. James gulped.
"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't even know why she was all freaked out. I don't know what you people are talking about. I didn't even know who this Harry person was until I came here to Britain, so how should I know anything about him?" James spoke in his defense. Ginny just sobbed louder and went running out of the Great Hall, Hermione following after her.
"Just stay away from us. I thought you were a good person. We know nothing about you, so how can we trust you? Just leave us alone, James, if that's even you're real name," Ron spit out, walking out of the Great Hall as well. James sighed deeply, then went to get something to drink, his throat dry and scratchy. After he got his drink, he left the Great Hall as well, heading outside to clear his head.
Without realizing where he was headed, James found himself at the monument Ron had showed him just a week before. He heard quiet sobbing, and carefully walked around the statue to see Ginny sitting on the ground, her head on her knees. A wave of guilt swept through James, and he had to clear his throat. Ginny looked up suddenly, and seeing who it was, stood up and backed away slightly.
"Leave me alone. Just go away," she sobbed, taking a few more steps backwards. James didn't move from where he was standing.
"Ginny, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I'd never mean to hurt you. Hurting you would hurt me," James said softly. Tears continued to flow down Ginny's cheeks.
"Then why are you still here? Why are you so much like him?" Ginny asked, pointing to the statue at the last part.
"I can't help who I am, Ginny. If I'm like him, then maybe I'm supposed to be like him," James said in response. A tear slid down his cheek and landed on the ground. Ginny looked him in the eyes. A flash of recognition passed through her.
"Harry?" she asked weakly, barely above a whisper.
***
A/N: Oooh!!! A cliff hanger!!! I'm evil!!!! Lalalala!!! I think I'm gonna go work on chapter 7!!! Just a quick apology, this might take an unexpected turn cuz I kinda lost my notes I had written for it, so now it will take on a life of its own...... oh well! Thanks to everyone who's reading this, and PLEASE REVIEW!! I'M BEGGING YOU!!!!!!!!!! Thanks again. A special thanks to Tiger Lily, the only person to have reviewed in ages!!! Thanks Tiger Lily!!!!!!!
A/N 2 (3-29-02): I'm re-formatting this for (*hopefully*) an easier read. Plus I have some mistakes to fix in some of the chapters. Please bear with me!
Chapter 6: Masquerade- Part 2
A/N: Here's the second part! It's a work in progress at this point... lol.. of course it is! Sorry... I'm going to try and work on this more than I have been, but life is crazy.. I have play practice everyday after school until like 4, then I have fire department stuff, and karate stuff, and school stuff... yeah... and my friend asked me to write a song for her, so I have to work on that cuz we need it done and a tape of us singing it by April, and I really suck at writing music... oh well.. oh yeah, I have women's choir stuff too... yeah, so you can obviously see I'm quite busy... but you probably don't care, so I'll just stop babbling now...
Disclaimer: Um.... I don't have any witty remarks right now... can't think.. I obviously don't own Harry Potter and Co... they belong to big important people... thus, not me...
***
"Why. Won't. It. Lay. FLAT!" James growled at his reflection as he tried to get his hair to flatten out. Usually it would lay flat, the ends curling a bit, but tonight it was being stubborn. After finally deciding to go as the Phantom of the Opera, he was already dressed in his tuxedo, his half-face mask lying on the counter in front of him, his white gloves next to it. He poured some more hair gel into his hand and ran it through his hair. Then he picked up his comb and tried to straighten his hair. It still wouldn't do what he wanted. He sighed in defeat. Then he heard a knock at his door.
"Come in," he said, not bothering to open the door for whoever it was. Ron walked in, wearing an outfit that looked like it was from the 1800s, a crown on his head and a scepter in his hand. "Nice costume," James said, looking at Ron in the mirror.
"Having a bad hair day, are we?" Ron asked teasingly. James just glowered at him, making Ron laugh hysterically.
"Can I help you, your highness?" James asked sarcastically. Ron stopped laughing when James said this. He cleared his throat.
"Yeah, Hermione sent me to see if you were ready to go. Need some help with your hair?" Ron asked. James shook his head.
"It's a lost cause. Trust me, I've been at it for about an hour now, and nothing has worked. Don't worry about it. Give me a second to get my mask and gloves on, and I'll be ready," James said.
"What are you going as?" Ron asked, looking at the outfit that James had donned for the occasion.
"The Phantom of the Opera," James said. Ron looked at him in confusion. "It's a Muggle thing. Some French guy claimed there was a phantom in this opera house, wrote a story about it, which was later turned into a musical play," James explained. Ron nodded in understanding. "Okay, let's go," James said, only the bottom half of his face visible behind his mask. The two men headed to pick up Hermione and go to the ball.
A few hours later, everyone was dancing and having a good time. Except for James. He was sitting at a table, sipping some punch, watching all the students dancing. He closed his eyes for a moment, reminiscing about a similar situation. As if on cue, a girl with deep reddish hair came up to him.
"What are you thinking about, James?" Ginny asked him, sitting down in the seat next to her. He opened his eyes and looked at her.
"Nothing really. Just a dance I attended when I was younger," James said, smiling slightly. Ginny smiled as well.
"Oh really? Did you spend the entire time sitting, or is that just something you're doing tonight?" Ginny asked teasingly. James blushed slightly, but Ginny didn't notice, since his cheeks were hidden by his mask. He looked at Ginny for a moment, taking in the long, flowing white gown she was wearing and a small, delicate looking mask that covered only her eyes.
"No, I spent most of that one dancing. I'm afraid I haven't really danced since my wedding though. My wife and I really don't have time to go dancing," James sighed. Ginny stood up.
"Well, then, would you care to dance?" she asked, holding out her hand in front of him. He looked up into her eyes, his cheeks once again flushing red. He mentally thanked himself for wearing a mask that covered his cheeks, then took her hand in his own, stood up and lead her onto the dance floor. Just as they reached it, a slow song came on. He brought Ginny close to himself and wrapped his arms around her waist as she put hers around his neck, a few inches between their bodies. They began to sway slowly to the music just as everyone else was doing.
"Wow, if I had known how good you were at dancing before, I would have asked you sooner," Ginny whispered into James' shoulder. They had moved closer to each other as the song had progressed, and were now very close to one another.
"If you had asked me sooner, I might have said no," James said. He felt Ginny tense slightly in his arms as they both felt a sense of de ja vu. She pulled away slightly. "I'm sorry, did I say something to offend you?" James asked, looking into her eyes that were filled with painful memories of the past.
"No. I'm sorry... What you said... It just reminded me of something someone once said to me," Ginny said, leaning back in towards James, somewhat uncomfortably though.
"I didn't mean to. It's just, being around such a lovely woman, my mind seems to go blank," James said, blushing once again. Ginny was blushing as well.
"Don't let my husband hear you say that," Ginny replied. A small smile played across James' lips.
"What about your brother? Wouldn't he have something to say to me as well?" James asked. Ginny once again pulled back and looked at James in the eyes. "Is something wrong?" James asked.
Ginny looked hard at him. James was silently thanking himself again for wearing a mask so she wouldn't be able to see his face. Her eyes had started to glisten as if she was about to cry. She looked incredibly troubled, making James feel guilty.
"Look, whatever it was that I said, I'm sorry. Maybe we shouldn't dance any more. I'm sure there are others that wouldn't mind dancing with you," James said, realizing too late what he had said. Ginny's eyes narrowed angrily.
"Is this some kind of sick joke, James? Because if it is, I swear on all things I hold holy, you will pay for this. Out of all the low down, stinking things people have ever done to me, this is the lowest," Ginny said, the anger evident in her voice. Ron and Hermione, who had been dancing near by, overheard her, and came to see what was wrong.
"Ginny, are you okay?" Ron asked, putting a comforting hand on Ginny's shoulder while shooting James a death glare. "I swear, if you hurt her in any way," Ron whispered lowly to James, who's face had paled considerably under his mask. James quickly took his mask off though, feeling foolish hiding behind it.
"I don't know how you found out about all that, but whoever told you must be a real creep," Ginny tried to keep her voice under control, but it was cracking slightly, and tears had started to fall down her face.
"Ginny, what's wrong? What did he do?" Hermione asked with concern in her voice. Ginny took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure to tell her brother and sister-in-law what had happened.
"It was just a misunderstanding. Honestly!" James said, trying to defend himself. Ron glared at him again.
"Be quiet. You aren't allowed to say anything, and I mean anything, until we hear what Ginny has to say," Ron growled. Now it was James' turn to look like he was holding back tears.
"He said almost the exact same things that... that... that Harry said... the night of the ball," Ginny got out before breaking into full out sobs. Ron and Hermione's faces both paled, as Hermione pulled Ginny into a tight hug. Ron then rounded on James.
"I don't know who you are, but whoever you are, stay away from my sister. If I even see you go near her, I swear I won't hesitate even a second to hurt you as much as I humanly can," Ron threatened. James gulped.
"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't even know why she was all freaked out. I don't know what you people are talking about. I didn't even know who this Harry person was until I came here to Britain, so how should I know anything about him?" James spoke in his defense. Ginny just sobbed louder and went running out of the Great Hall, Hermione following after her.
"Just stay away from us. I thought you were a good person. We know nothing about you, so how can we trust you? Just leave us alone, James, if that's even you're real name," Ron spit out, walking out of the Great Hall as well. James sighed deeply, then went to get something to drink, his throat dry and scratchy. After he got his drink, he left the Great Hall as well, heading outside to clear his head.
Without realizing where he was headed, James found himself at the monument Ron had showed him just a week before. He heard quiet sobbing, and carefully walked around the statue to see Ginny sitting on the ground, her head on her knees. A wave of guilt swept through James, and he had to clear his throat. Ginny looked up suddenly, and seeing who it was, stood up and backed away slightly.
"Leave me alone. Just go away," she sobbed, taking a few more steps backwards. James didn't move from where he was standing.
"Ginny, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I'd never mean to hurt you. Hurting you would hurt me," James said softly. Tears continued to flow down Ginny's cheeks.
"Then why are you still here? Why are you so much like him?" Ginny asked, pointing to the statue at the last part.
"I can't help who I am, Ginny. If I'm like him, then maybe I'm supposed to be like him," James said in response. A tear slid down his cheek and landed on the ground. Ginny looked him in the eyes. A flash of recognition passed through her.
"Harry?" she asked weakly, barely above a whisper.
***
A/N: Oooh!!! A cliff hanger!!! I'm evil!!!! Lalalala!!! I think I'm gonna go work on chapter 7!!! Just a quick apology, this might take an unexpected turn cuz I kinda lost my notes I had written for it, so now it will take on a life of its own...... oh well! Thanks to everyone who's reading this, and PLEASE REVIEW!! I'M BEGGING YOU!!!!!!!!!! Thanks again. A special thanks to Tiger Lily, the only person to have reviewed in ages!!! Thanks Tiger Lily!!!!!!!
A/N 2 (3-29-02): I'm re-formatting this for (*hopefully*) an easier read. Plus I have some mistakes to fix in some of the chapters. Please bear with me!