Chapter Eight: An Awakening or two
A/N: Ummm...it's not quite as fluffy as I'd hoped, but I promise a big happy gooey ending....bear with me! .............
"Ginny?"
Ginny groaned softly and slid deeper into thesoft bedclothes. Who was trying to wake her? Sleep...sleep was good.
"Ginny, wake up."
Her head hurt.
Why did her head hurt?
"Er, because you bashed it against a big bit of rock."
Had she said that out loud?
"Yes."
Ginny opened her eyes gingerly. "Hermione?"
"Thanks, Gin." Harry said, mock affrontedly. She realized he was gripping her hand tightly and his face was rather pale.
"I'm here." Hermione spoke up, leaning over the girl with a tender smile.
"Me too." Ron piped up.
"Who...who brought me here?"
"Erm...Malfoy." Ron said gruffly.
Ginny raised an eyebrow.
"I second that." Ron sighed breezily. "Just don't ask me. I reckon he's hit his head on something as well."
Ginny giggled and then winced. "Ow."
Harry was watching her silently, biting his lip in the kind of way he had that made her want to...Ginny looked away. "Um, is it all right for me to leave the hospital wing?"
"Yeah, Madame P said you'd be good as ne soon as you were awake. She also said though that if you don't start eating properly you'll be right back here." Hermione told her sternly.
"I didn't know you weren't eating, Gin." Harry said quietly. She looked at him.
"Yeah. Well. I guess I didn't really notice either."
The tension in the room was so thick you could've cut it with a knife.
"Well," Harry said, after an uncomfortable silence. "Let's get you out of here, shall we?"
They helped Ginny back to Gryffindor and Hermione insisted she take Ginny up to bed ("You still need rest."), leaving Ron and Harry alone in the common room. Harry sighed and flopped into a chair.
"Scared the crap out of me."
"I could tell." Ron said quietly.
Harry looked at him and shook his head. "We've had this discussion..."
"You love her-"
"And today just proves my point, if I lost her-"
"You'll lose her anyway, don't you see that?"
"What are you going on about?"
"She'll move ON Harry, Ginny loves you but she's not stupid." Ron was visibly upset. "She'll move on and you'll still lose her, just in a different way. At least you could be together, even if..."
"Even if she dies."
"Harry, it's not-" Ron sighed frustratedly. "It's killing both of you. Dammit, you have this...whatever it is you two have...and you can't hide from it or run away from it...I saw that today in your face, and in hers. You'll just end up hurting both of you."
"I'd rather that than have her dead." Harry said in a deadly whisper. "I don't think I could live with seeing her with someone else, Ron, but I could endure it. Just as long as she's alive...I don't care."
"You DO care and that's the thing." Ron said hotly. "You care. Stop denying it."
"I-I can't risk it." Harry said weakly.
Ron sighed. "It's like Hermione said...or maybe it was Lav. Who knows, some girly thing, anyway, but it makes sense. It was, er, the heart wants what the heart wants. Be happy. If not for yourselves, then for me, because I am tired of all the moping about."
Harry stared fixedly at his shoes. "I'm sorry, Ron...I wish you could understand."
"Yeah." Ron muttered. "I wish I could understand too."
A/N: Ummm...it's not quite as fluffy as I'd hoped, but I promise a big happy gooey ending....bear with me! .............
"Ginny?"
Ginny groaned softly and slid deeper into thesoft bedclothes. Who was trying to wake her? Sleep...sleep was good.
"Ginny, wake up."
Her head hurt.
Why did her head hurt?
"Er, because you bashed it against a big bit of rock."
Had she said that out loud?
"Yes."
Ginny opened her eyes gingerly. "Hermione?"
"Thanks, Gin." Harry said, mock affrontedly. She realized he was gripping her hand tightly and his face was rather pale.
"I'm here." Hermione spoke up, leaning over the girl with a tender smile.
"Me too." Ron piped up.
"Who...who brought me here?"
"Erm...Malfoy." Ron said gruffly.
Ginny raised an eyebrow.
"I second that." Ron sighed breezily. "Just don't ask me. I reckon he's hit his head on something as well."
Ginny giggled and then winced. "Ow."
Harry was watching her silently, biting his lip in the kind of way he had that made her want to...Ginny looked away. "Um, is it all right for me to leave the hospital wing?"
"Yeah, Madame P said you'd be good as ne soon as you were awake. She also said though that if you don't start eating properly you'll be right back here." Hermione told her sternly.
"I didn't know you weren't eating, Gin." Harry said quietly. She looked at him.
"Yeah. Well. I guess I didn't really notice either."
The tension in the room was so thick you could've cut it with a knife.
"Well," Harry said, after an uncomfortable silence. "Let's get you out of here, shall we?"
They helped Ginny back to Gryffindor and Hermione insisted she take Ginny up to bed ("You still need rest."), leaving Ron and Harry alone in the common room. Harry sighed and flopped into a chair.
"Scared the crap out of me."
"I could tell." Ron said quietly.
Harry looked at him and shook his head. "We've had this discussion..."
"You love her-"
"And today just proves my point, if I lost her-"
"You'll lose her anyway, don't you see that?"
"What are you going on about?"
"She'll move ON Harry, Ginny loves you but she's not stupid." Ron was visibly upset. "She'll move on and you'll still lose her, just in a different way. At least you could be together, even if..."
"Even if she dies."
"Harry, it's not-" Ron sighed frustratedly. "It's killing both of you. Dammit, you have this...whatever it is you two have...and you can't hide from it or run away from it...I saw that today in your face, and in hers. You'll just end up hurting both of you."
"I'd rather that than have her dead." Harry said in a deadly whisper. "I don't think I could live with seeing her with someone else, Ron, but I could endure it. Just as long as she's alive...I don't care."
"You DO care and that's the thing." Ron said hotly. "You care. Stop denying it."
"I-I can't risk it." Harry said weakly.
Ron sighed. "It's like Hermione said...or maybe it was Lav. Who knows, some girly thing, anyway, but it makes sense. It was, er, the heart wants what the heart wants. Be happy. If not for yourselves, then for me, because I am tired of all the moping about."
Harry stared fixedly at his shoes. "I'm sorry, Ron...I wish you could understand."
"Yeah." Ron muttered. "I wish I could understand too."