Realization
Ginny wanders back to the Common Room, where Ron and Harry are both hunched over a tea cup, staring at the leaves. Lavender and Parvati are trying to help them figure it out but burst into fits of giggles when it comes to talking about the boys' future love lives. They fall silent when Ginny enters the lounge, though. "We should go," Lavender says.
Parvati nods and they head up to the girls' dormitories. Ginny shakes her head. "Those girls get loonier every time they get into that Divination stuff."
"Don't tell me you think it's nonsense the way Hermione does," Ron says, exasperated. He sinks back into his seat. "She really doesn't know what she's missing. This is easy!"
"So easy that you and Harry have to make things up to pass?" Ginny asks, smiling. It helps to think about things other than Johnny Parker.
Harry just shrugs amiably. "The Americans invited us to spend Thanksgiving with them. Want to join us?"
"Thanksgiving? Don't they know they're not in the United States?" Ginny asks.
"It's just a custom of theirs that they want to share with us," Ron says. "It's really nice of them."
Ginny looks at him slyly. "You going to ask Hermione to attend?"
Ron blushes. "I think she's already going with Colby. They've been inseparable since the Halloween Ball. I never thought she'd be into a jock like that. You know, all Quidditch, no brains."
"You sound jealous," Ginny says seriously. "Have you ever just talked to her? Let her know how you feel?"
Ron shrugs. "She wouldn't care…"
"You know better than to think that way," Harry says suddenly. "Come on, this is getting stupid. How are you going to know if you don't try to find out?"
"It's not that easy," Ron complains. "She's just so… I don't even know. Perfect."
Ginny shakes her head. "She's not as unattainable as you think. There are plenty of relationships that are much harder to maintain."
Ron and Harry look at Ginny for a minute. She knows that they think she means her affection for Harry but they have no idea that she's long since moved on from him. Even if they knew she had feelings for girls, she wouldn't mean being afraid of being public with the relationship. Ginny doesn't believe in hiding her feelings. Which is why she's so angry with Johnny for refusing to let her be open with her feelings. "Never mind. What I mean is that all you have to do is talk to her. Make her understand what you feel. Even if she doesn't agree, you at least are being honest with her, right?"
Ron nods slowly. "Sure. I guess," Ginny gives him a look. Ron sighs. "All right. All right, I'll talk to her. Okay?"
Ginny smiles. "Good for you. I'll see you both in the morning."
After Ginny has left, Harry looks at Ron. "She never answered us about the Thanksgiving invitation."
Johnny is pacing outside the door for the Slytherin house. She hates going inside. Seeing all those Slytherins staring at her, glaring at her. She shudders. They're just so creepy, she decides.
"Do you have any idea how much trouble you vill be in if you are caught out of your house after hours, Parker?" Zimmermann's voice says suddenly. "If I vent to Snape about zis, you'd be expelled for sure. Why throw avay ze chance you've been given at staying here?"
Johnny shivers nervously. "Why tell Snape? Wouldn't that ruin your plans?"
"You presume too much, Parker," Zimmermann says simply. "I am simply trying to make a decent young vitch out of you. But you refuse to follow ze rules and I must take disciplinary action as I see fit."
Johnny rolls her eyes. "Whatever. I'm going to bed. I've got a long day tomorrow. It is Thanksgiving, after all."
"And vhat do you have to be thankful for, Parker?" Zimmermann asks. He narrows his eyes. "You have nothing. No parents, no friends, novhere to belong. Zere is nothing for you to be thankful for."
Johnny smiles. "It makes me feel much better thinking that you have no idea what you're talking about. Thank you," she leaves the hallway.
Ginny is waiting by the Slytherin house door when Draco Malfoy walks out it. He glares at the younger girl. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Waiting for Johnny," Ginny says angrily. "What's it to you?"
"Just was wondering why a Gryffindor brat would be wandering around in Slytherin territory. You might want to run along before you get in over your head," Draco sneers, pushing her back.
"Hands off the girl, Malfoy," Johnny's voice says harshly from the doorway.
Draco backs away from Ginny. "What's it to you, Parker? The lack of Quidditch starting to get to your brain?"
Johnny grabs Draco by his collar and throws him aside. "You're just lucky I ain't going to be there to mop up the Pitch with you. Run along. I'm sure Pansy's waiting for you somewhere."
Johnny is pleased to see a flush in Draco's cheeks. He uses his shoulder to push Johnny aside as he walks away. Johnny looks at Ginny, who seems very relieved to see her. "I'm so glad you got here. He scares me so bad."
"I would never let him hurt you," Johnny replies softly. "What were you doing here anyway?"
"Waiting for you," Ginny admits. "We need to talk. To figure things out. I want to understand you. What you're feeling, what you want. You can't keep me in the dark like this."
Johnny sighs. "I'm not trying to do that to you, Ginny. It's just…" she looks away. "You wouldn't understand."
"Understand what? If you'd explain to me, maybe we could help each other," Ginny says. "Like it or not, I need you in my life. You bring to me something that I've never felt before. I feel like there's something worth living for when I see you, hear you, and touch you. You make me feel more real than anyone else I've ever met. It's kind of scary but I'm willing to accept it so that I can be happy. What about you? What are you so afraid of?"
"I ain't scared of anything," Johnny grumbles. She starts to walk away but Ginny grabs her arm. "I ain't trying to walk away from you. I just need food in my system or else I'm going to pass out, okay? Come along and we'll talk."
Ginny nods and follows. They walk for a little bit before Johnny finally starts to talk. "There's a lot of stuff going on that I don't understand. A lot of it involves just magic in general but another part is the politics of the magic world. Why am I hated so much? I don't like magic. What's wrong with that? It's not that I ain't good at it, you've seen how good my marks are now that I ain't doing Quidditch anymore. I just don't like it and I'm treated worse than Hermione is for being a Mudblood."
"It's just that people here don't understand why you wouldn't want to use magic. Even the Muggle-borns here are really into magic. It makes life easier, I guess," Ginny says.
Johnny shakes her head. "Not to me. It just adds complications to everything."
"How do you mean?" Ginny asks.
"Well, I was raised not to believe in magic. So when I got my letter, my whole family was really surprised. We chalked it up to my parents being wizards, maybe, but we aren't sure. We don't know who my parents were," Johnny sounds a bit sad. "I go home and my family looks at me oddly. Like I'm a freak. And I don't want that. I want to be normal again. Just another one of the guys, you know?"
Ginny puts a hand on Johnny's. "But you wouldn't really be normal, even as a Muggle. Or else you wouldn't have kissed me. You may have thought it was Hermione at first but you still thought you were kissing a girl."
"That's different," Johnny says. "I can handle that part of my life. At least that's relatively common where I come from. But being a wizard? Come on. People are going to have trouble accepting that."
"It shouldn't matter what other people think," Ginny says. "I'm willing to tell the whole world that I'm falling in love with you. I'll scream it from the top of Gryffindor tower. It's who I am. I'm not ashamed of it or you."
Johnny looks at Ginny. "You're falling in love with me?"
Ginny blushes. "I think so. I feel really strongly for you and can't think of anyone else. What else could it be but love?"
"I think I love you, too," Johnny says quietly. "But… oh, the heck with it!" she yanks Ginny into her arms and kisses her deeply.
"Parker. Weasley," Zimmerman's voice says suddenly. The girls look up, shocked. "A vord with you, if you vill."
