Disclaimer: Ok, I'm getting sick of thinking of creative ways to do
these...it's not mine, ok?
A/N Once more, much of this was written in my classes when I was supposed to be doing other things. And with this stupid hardware failure at ff.net, I could have slowed down on my writing and it wouldn't have made any difference! I could have been studying! Oh, well, who wants to study anyway? On with the story!
Chapter 5 ~ Revelations
Ginny was sitting on Harry's bed, gazing out the window at the late afternoon sky which, she was certain, she would never see at any other angle for the rest of her existence. Trapped...the word echoed in her mind. She was trapped here with nothing to do, no one to talk to, and certainly nowhere to go. A black depression descended upon her and she began to contemplate whether it was possible for a ghost to commit suicide. She doubted it. That was just her luck.
She would be forced to sit in this room and see Harry everyday and be completely ignored by him. It was like a regression back to the time where she was stutteringly infatuated and he studiously ignored her. Now he truly didn't know she existed. It was pure hell.
That was a scary thought. What if she had not become a ghost, but rather had died and gone to hell. 'What did I ever do?' she thought frantically. 'I wasn't that bad. If I went to hell, then Fred and George are doomed.' But as she looked around, she became more and more convinced that she was in hell. There was no other explanation. And besides, the Hogwarts ghosts were visible and she wasn't. That in itself was proof that this wasn't real. She sighed miserably. She really didn't know whether reality or hell was worse. Just then, a heartbreakingly familiar voice sounded behind her, "Ginny!" Hell was definitely worse.
She didn't turn around. What did it matter? He couldn't see her anyway. There were hesitant footsteps behind her, and she heard again, "Ginny?" There was a breath of wind by her shoulder and she got the impression that his hand had gone through her arm. She glanced over involuntarily in surprise and her eyes locked with Harry's.
"You said you weren't dead," Harry said accusingly and a little desperately.
"I said that I wasn't dead exactly; the last part got cut off. How can you hear me? You can't, of course. I'm just being delusional. Why am I even talking?"
"Because I can hear you, perhaps?" If Harry was expecting a performance like the time in his dream, he was to be sadly disappointed. Ginny merely bowed her head with a little groan.
"They found their mistake, and now they're going to fix it. Make me believe it's all real again. But I know the truth, now. They can't fool me again," Ginny muttered, sounding slightly demented even to herself. Harry gazed at her with extreme confusion. Ginny completely disregarded him. If this was hell, then this certainly wasn't Harry; it was just some demon trying to deceive her.
"Ginny, are you all right? Wait, no stupid question. You're...um, well...a ghost, I suppose. And I guess that's not really a good thing. Is it? I guess I really wouldn't know, don't know much about ghosts and stuff, you know. Um, but are you...ummm....feeling all right? I mean, like emotionally. 'Cause you sound pretty upset. I mean, maybe not upset, no...upset isn't the right word at all. Um, what I was trying to say was, well...I don't really know what I was trying to say." He looked at her sheepishly.
All through his rambling, Ginny's head had been slowly coming up and her expression brightening. By the time his voice trailed off in embarrassment, she was grinning excitedly.
"No demon would act like that! This has to be real," She suddenly became rather abashed as well. "Um, if I sounded crazy before, it's because I thought that I was in hell and you were a demon sent to torment me. But I suppose if you were a demon, then you'd have professed your undying love for me now that we could never be together." She quickly clapped her hands over her mouth after she'd said that. What had she been thinking of? Or rather, not thinking! It was a practically a blatant confession; Harry would probably run screaming because a ghost was in love with him.
Instead, he stood as still as if he had put down roots in the floor and gaped at her. Pretty soon, she almost wished that he'd run screaming. At least then he wouldn't be here staring at her and she'd be able to go and bang her nonexistent head up against a wall...Suddenly, of all preposterous things, Harry started laughing. If she could have melted into her previous invisibility, she would have. Then her embarrassment transmuted to anger and she clenched her hands into fists. How dare he laugh at her!
Harry immediately stopped laughing as he saw Ginny's posture. He knew her well enough to see the danger signs and he backed away from her with his hands upraised in surrender. She didn't follow, mostly because there was nothing she could do to him. If she still had a real body, it would have been tempting to use the excuse of her anger to tackle him...She almost grinned, but managed to keep it under control.
"Sorry, Gin. I didn't mean to laugh. It just never occurred to me that confessing my love would be a bad thing. But I guess we'll never know, will we?" He sounded very sad as he said that and he was looking down at his shuffling feet. "I'm going to go down to dinner. I missed lunch and I barely ate at breakfast, so I'll talk to you later. Ron probably won't be back tonight. Took a nasty fall down the stairs when he saw you. Went on babbling about how he was crazy and wanted a padded room." Harry cracked a smile and Ginny couldn't help giggling.
"He always wanted one, for some reason. He has a strange fascination. We'll talk later. Oh, and Harry? Could you pull the curtains shut on your bed so that the other boys don't see me here? Then I can just hang out in there until you come back."
"No problem," Harry said easily, as he walked over to his bed and drew the heavy, red curtains shut. Then he waved goodbye and left Ginny alone once more in the boys' dorm. Only now, she felt infinitely more hopeful than she had before. Harry, at least, would not forget her. She floated in the darkness within the bed curtains and contemplated his words to her.
"I guess we'll never know..."
~*~
Harry's thoughts were roiling as he walked to dinner. His emotions were swinging wildly from depressed to elated and he abruptly pitied females for having to go through this regularly. He grimaced at his train of thought; he couldn't seem to keep his mind off of females. Or rather, on one female in particular.
On the one hand, Ginny was definitely dead, but on the other, she was still with him. He could still talk to her and look at her, even if she looked rather different now. He missed the fiery color of her hair which had been absorbed into her present transparent bluish hue. Just about the only thing he couldn't do now touch her, and he hadn't been able to do that the way he wanted to when she was alive, either. He sighed and got a sudden urge to turn around and return to the dorm to talk to her. But then his stomach rumbled loudly, attracting a few curious looks, and he decided that he'd better continue on to dinner. Then afterwards, he'd better visit Ron and tell him that he wasn't insane - technically, anyway. Ron would be so disappointed that he wouldn't get his padded room.
He walked into the Great Hall and noticed immediately that Hermione wasn't in her seat. He grinned in triumph; he would bet anything that Hermione was still with Ron. Those two would end up together eventually. It seemed unlikely, but he was the one that knew both of them best, and it would happen. He didn't need Professor Trelawney's phony divination class to tell him that. He became depressed again as he thought of them as a happy couple.
If only he hadn't been so shy...but it had seemed that there was no rush. Ginny was always going to be around, wasn't she? Yes, she certainly was, but she was completely out of his reach now. Her words kept playing over and over in his head. Why hadn't he told her how he felt sooner? The reason was rather uncomplimentary, to tell the truth. He, Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, had been embarrassed that he liked little Ginny Weasley, whom he had been avoiding for years, and he couldn't have born the gossip he knew was sure to follow if he showed any signs of interest in her. He knew he would regret it for the rest of his life. He ate automatically, all of his thoughts focused on Ginny.
After he'd finished (and he never could remember afterwards what he'd eaten), he made his way to the hospital wing to visit Ron and Hermione. He told himself that he wasn't avoiding Ginny, but seeing her, even just thinking about her, was painful.
When Harry entered the pristine infirmary, he saw Ron sitting up in his bed and looking affectionately down at Hermione, who had fallen asleep in the chair with her head resting on the bed and one of her hands tucked in Ron's. Ron looked up upon hearing Harry's footstep and smiled at him. He seemed much more peaceful now.
"She said that she wasn't going to leave until I admitted I wasn't crazy," Ron said as Harry glance at the sleeping girl.
"I guess you didn't admit it," Harry replied with a knowing grin. "She did get some dinner, right?"
Ron bristled. "Of course she did! Madam Pomfrey tried to kick her out but she wouldn't go. Quite a tigress, our Hermione. You should've seen it. She almost got a detention, but Dumbledore came in and said she could stay. Even made Pomfrey get her some dinner when she got mine so she wouldn't have to leave even for a moment."
"So now that we've covered Hermione's condition, how are you doing? D'you still think you're insane?" Harry asked.
Ron immediately sobered. "I don't know how else to explain what I saw. I can't have seen her alive," Ron protested.
Harry also became grave and replied, "What if I said that I saw her as well?"
Ron replied immediately, "Then I'd say that you were crazy, too."
"Thanks for your touching confidence in my sanity," Harry said sarcastically. Ron winced slightly. "But, honestly, I went back to the dorm— "
"Yeah, I know you went back to the dorm! You went tearing out of here as if your pants were on fire," Ron smirked. Harry made a face at him and continued.
"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted – I went back to the dorm and found Ginny there, just like you said," Harry stopped meaningfully, because Ron was shaking his head stubbornly, and glared at him, then resumed, "only she wasn't alive. Ginny's a ghost, Ron. Another Hogwarts ghost," Harry looked down, guilt and sorrow crashing down on him again.
"A ghost?! How did Ginny become a ghost? And why is she in the boys' dorm, of all places? And why haven't we seen her before? And—" Harry held up his hands to stop the flood of questions.
"I don't know, Ron! Sheesh, I'm not omniscient. But don't worry, I'm on it. I'm going to talk to Ginny some more before I go to sleep," he abruptly became aware of his exhaustion, "and tomorrow, I'm going to see Dumbledore for some more information on my sword and possibly on Ginny. Then, if its not sufficient, and I'm sure it won't be, I'll go to the library and check out some books on ghosts and afterlife. Maybe I can get Hermione to help, if she can tear herself away from your side," Harry ended with a mischievous grin, and Ron rolled his eyes.
"I'm going to have a blast next time you get a crush on someone," Ron retorted, "An absolute field day! Harry, what's wrong?" Ron looked concerned, and Harry wasn't surprised. He had felt the blood drain from his face, and he was sure that he was as white as a....ghost. 'The next time you get a crush on someone...' Harry thought.
"Not bloody likely," he replied roughly and got up so suddenly that his chair made a loud grating noise on the floor and almost tipped over. He stormed out of the room with his back ramrod straight and his jaw clenched, leaving Ron staring after him in confusion.
~*~
The loud noise of Harry's chair had woken Hermione and she looked around groggily for the source of the disturbance. Her eyes fell on her and Ron's entwined hands and she hastily tried to pull her hand away , blushing, but he wouldn't let go. She met his eyes and he smiled slightly, although confusion still lurked in his eyes.
"Ron? What happened?" she questioned softly.
"I don't really know," he replied, seeming a little abstracted. "I don't understand."
"Well, tell me, and then perhaps we can figure it out," she said with a touch of her usual asperity. He grinned and didn't argue.
"Well, Harry just came in here and told me that I'm not crazy because I really did see Ginny," Hermione's eyes widened and she opened her mouth to protest but Ron cut her off, "I think Dumbledore's completely wrong about Harry. There's not many times when Dumbledore is wrong, but this is one of them. Ginny's a ghost, and she's been haunting the boys' dorm; that's why Harry's been hearing and seeing things....not because he's going crazy," Hermione's eyes were had grown as big as saucers as he told her this.
"Oh, poor Ginny! And poor Harry. He must have had some doubts, as well, you know. But it's a logical explanation and I'm surprised that I didn't think of it myself. I suppose," she concluded, "that this will teach us not to place such faith in Dumbledore that our brains forget to work on their own."
Ron nodded his agreement, though he was sure that such a situation would never have occurred to him in his wildest dreams.
"That's not why he went storming out, though. He...was teasing me," his eyes flickered to their hands and up again, giving Hermione enough clue as to what the teasing had been about. She blushed again. "I said that I'd have fun teasing him when he found somebody, and he just turned dead white, said, 'Not bloody likely,' and stormed out. I don't know what got him so mad," Ron trailed off forlornly and looked over at the empty doorway. Hermione, though, was nodding in understanding.
"Once again, I don't know why I didn't see it before. It seems so obvious from his behavior recently. It must be the reason, but...oh, I don't know. Harry, you stupid git!" Hermione burst out. Ron looked shocked.
"Hermione, what? Tell me!" He sounded about to burst with impatience.
"I think that Harry was...in love with Ginny." Ron gaped at her for a moment and then burst out laughing.
"You girls and your romantic schemes! If Harry was in love with Ginny, then why weren't they together? He had plenty of opportunity and it was obvious how she felt about him."
"If you love me, then why aren't we together?" she said contemptuously with another glance at their joined hands. "Things just aren't that simple Ron."
"Well, they should be. Will you go out with me, Hermione? There, now Harry has no excuse," Ron had turned as red as his hair, but he was still smiling hopefully at Hermione's blank look. His smile faded slightly as Hermione didn't answer after several minutes.
Hermione's clever mind was hard at work and very confused. She might be mentally suited to book learning, but this romance stuff didn't compute very well. It sounded at first that he was asking her out simply because he didn't want to believe that Harry was in love with Ginny. But then, when she remembered what she'd said before, it sounded as if he was admitting that he loved her. Did she want to accept? She didn't if he was just doing it to prove a point and didn't really care for her, and that was what her rational mind was telling her to believe. But he had kissed her – twice. Maybe, just maybe, he had wanted to ask her out and hadn't been able to get up the nerve, so he was using this opportunity. Did she want to accept? She asked herself again. The answer was most definitely 'yes,' and Hermione usually managed to get what she wanted.
Ron was almost paralyzed with fright when Hermione didn't respond. His thoughts went in circles. He was certain that she was going to say no and that he'd just ruined their friendship permanently. It was just his good luck that she'd gotten over the fiasco down at the lake, but this was unforgivable. He wondered if Harry would be able to stay friends with both of them or if he would choose one or the other.
Ron's train of gloomy thoughts was interrupted by Hermione, who suddenly grinned hugely and threw her arms around his neck. To say he was shocked would have been an extreme understatement. His eyes went wide and his hands started shaking.
"Is – is that a 'yes?'" he croaked uncertainly. His only answer was a nod which he felt more than saw as Hermione's soft cheek rubbed up against his. Ron sighed with relief and happiness and put his own arms around Hermione. They stayed like that for quite a long time.
~*~
A/N I've decided to end the chapter there simply because it's gotten to my 'normal' length, and since the there was that infernal 'hardware failure' – grrrrrrr – I can't upload this for about a week...By that time I'll have the next chapter done as well. In fact, I'm going to start it right now. I'll probably post it about a day or two after this chapter, so there won't be much of a wait. I can definitely get it written before then because there is NO MORE SCHOOL! Yippee!
And thanks to all my wonderful reviewers once again!
Hedwig: Thanks! Yeah, it was a pretty horrible end, wasn't it?
queenrandom: Please don't die! Especially since I had no control over how soon this was posted. Evil hardware...But I'm glad you like it!
The White Plume: Thanks a lot! Hmmmm.. "What's happening with Ginny," you want to know...I can't tell you THAT! That's the whole plot! I think....*grin*
Julephenia: Don't worry, I have no intention of leaving it there...as this chapter probably already told you...
Tinabedina: I'm forever grateful for your good opinion!
Bucky: Thanks! Blame the wait on that 'hardware failure.' Bah, humbug...
Anon: Yeah, that's an awful thing to say, isn't it? But it's all over now and I can concentrate on the really important things in life...writing and sleep, in that order!
You know me: hmmmmmm.......wonder who this is? Congrats for finally reviewing, and thanks, I really do appreciate it.
So now there's only one person who didn't do their reviewing duty for this chapter.....you know who you are. Tsk, tsk.
Now...on to the next chapter!
A/N Once more, much of this was written in my classes when I was supposed to be doing other things. And with this stupid hardware failure at ff.net, I could have slowed down on my writing and it wouldn't have made any difference! I could have been studying! Oh, well, who wants to study anyway? On with the story!
Chapter 5 ~ Revelations
Ginny was sitting on Harry's bed, gazing out the window at the late afternoon sky which, she was certain, she would never see at any other angle for the rest of her existence. Trapped...the word echoed in her mind. She was trapped here with nothing to do, no one to talk to, and certainly nowhere to go. A black depression descended upon her and she began to contemplate whether it was possible for a ghost to commit suicide. She doubted it. That was just her luck.
She would be forced to sit in this room and see Harry everyday and be completely ignored by him. It was like a regression back to the time where she was stutteringly infatuated and he studiously ignored her. Now he truly didn't know she existed. It was pure hell.
That was a scary thought. What if she had not become a ghost, but rather had died and gone to hell. 'What did I ever do?' she thought frantically. 'I wasn't that bad. If I went to hell, then Fred and George are doomed.' But as she looked around, she became more and more convinced that she was in hell. There was no other explanation. And besides, the Hogwarts ghosts were visible and she wasn't. That in itself was proof that this wasn't real. She sighed miserably. She really didn't know whether reality or hell was worse. Just then, a heartbreakingly familiar voice sounded behind her, "Ginny!" Hell was definitely worse.
She didn't turn around. What did it matter? He couldn't see her anyway. There were hesitant footsteps behind her, and she heard again, "Ginny?" There was a breath of wind by her shoulder and she got the impression that his hand had gone through her arm. She glanced over involuntarily in surprise and her eyes locked with Harry's.
"You said you weren't dead," Harry said accusingly and a little desperately.
"I said that I wasn't dead exactly; the last part got cut off. How can you hear me? You can't, of course. I'm just being delusional. Why am I even talking?"
"Because I can hear you, perhaps?" If Harry was expecting a performance like the time in his dream, he was to be sadly disappointed. Ginny merely bowed her head with a little groan.
"They found their mistake, and now they're going to fix it. Make me believe it's all real again. But I know the truth, now. They can't fool me again," Ginny muttered, sounding slightly demented even to herself. Harry gazed at her with extreme confusion. Ginny completely disregarded him. If this was hell, then this certainly wasn't Harry; it was just some demon trying to deceive her.
"Ginny, are you all right? Wait, no stupid question. You're...um, well...a ghost, I suppose. And I guess that's not really a good thing. Is it? I guess I really wouldn't know, don't know much about ghosts and stuff, you know. Um, but are you...ummm....feeling all right? I mean, like emotionally. 'Cause you sound pretty upset. I mean, maybe not upset, no...upset isn't the right word at all. Um, what I was trying to say was, well...I don't really know what I was trying to say." He looked at her sheepishly.
All through his rambling, Ginny's head had been slowly coming up and her expression brightening. By the time his voice trailed off in embarrassment, she was grinning excitedly.
"No demon would act like that! This has to be real," She suddenly became rather abashed as well. "Um, if I sounded crazy before, it's because I thought that I was in hell and you were a demon sent to torment me. But I suppose if you were a demon, then you'd have professed your undying love for me now that we could never be together." She quickly clapped her hands over her mouth after she'd said that. What had she been thinking of? Or rather, not thinking! It was a practically a blatant confession; Harry would probably run screaming because a ghost was in love with him.
Instead, he stood as still as if he had put down roots in the floor and gaped at her. Pretty soon, she almost wished that he'd run screaming. At least then he wouldn't be here staring at her and she'd be able to go and bang her nonexistent head up against a wall...Suddenly, of all preposterous things, Harry started laughing. If she could have melted into her previous invisibility, she would have. Then her embarrassment transmuted to anger and she clenched her hands into fists. How dare he laugh at her!
Harry immediately stopped laughing as he saw Ginny's posture. He knew her well enough to see the danger signs and he backed away from her with his hands upraised in surrender. She didn't follow, mostly because there was nothing she could do to him. If she still had a real body, it would have been tempting to use the excuse of her anger to tackle him...She almost grinned, but managed to keep it under control.
"Sorry, Gin. I didn't mean to laugh. It just never occurred to me that confessing my love would be a bad thing. But I guess we'll never know, will we?" He sounded very sad as he said that and he was looking down at his shuffling feet. "I'm going to go down to dinner. I missed lunch and I barely ate at breakfast, so I'll talk to you later. Ron probably won't be back tonight. Took a nasty fall down the stairs when he saw you. Went on babbling about how he was crazy and wanted a padded room." Harry cracked a smile and Ginny couldn't help giggling.
"He always wanted one, for some reason. He has a strange fascination. We'll talk later. Oh, and Harry? Could you pull the curtains shut on your bed so that the other boys don't see me here? Then I can just hang out in there until you come back."
"No problem," Harry said easily, as he walked over to his bed and drew the heavy, red curtains shut. Then he waved goodbye and left Ginny alone once more in the boys' dorm. Only now, she felt infinitely more hopeful than she had before. Harry, at least, would not forget her. She floated in the darkness within the bed curtains and contemplated his words to her.
"I guess we'll never know..."
~*~
Harry's thoughts were roiling as he walked to dinner. His emotions were swinging wildly from depressed to elated and he abruptly pitied females for having to go through this regularly. He grimaced at his train of thought; he couldn't seem to keep his mind off of females. Or rather, on one female in particular.
On the one hand, Ginny was definitely dead, but on the other, she was still with him. He could still talk to her and look at her, even if she looked rather different now. He missed the fiery color of her hair which had been absorbed into her present transparent bluish hue. Just about the only thing he couldn't do now touch her, and he hadn't been able to do that the way he wanted to when she was alive, either. He sighed and got a sudden urge to turn around and return to the dorm to talk to her. But then his stomach rumbled loudly, attracting a few curious looks, and he decided that he'd better continue on to dinner. Then afterwards, he'd better visit Ron and tell him that he wasn't insane - technically, anyway. Ron would be so disappointed that he wouldn't get his padded room.
He walked into the Great Hall and noticed immediately that Hermione wasn't in her seat. He grinned in triumph; he would bet anything that Hermione was still with Ron. Those two would end up together eventually. It seemed unlikely, but he was the one that knew both of them best, and it would happen. He didn't need Professor Trelawney's phony divination class to tell him that. He became depressed again as he thought of them as a happy couple.
If only he hadn't been so shy...but it had seemed that there was no rush. Ginny was always going to be around, wasn't she? Yes, she certainly was, but she was completely out of his reach now. Her words kept playing over and over in his head. Why hadn't he told her how he felt sooner? The reason was rather uncomplimentary, to tell the truth. He, Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, had been embarrassed that he liked little Ginny Weasley, whom he had been avoiding for years, and he couldn't have born the gossip he knew was sure to follow if he showed any signs of interest in her. He knew he would regret it for the rest of his life. He ate automatically, all of his thoughts focused on Ginny.
After he'd finished (and he never could remember afterwards what he'd eaten), he made his way to the hospital wing to visit Ron and Hermione. He told himself that he wasn't avoiding Ginny, but seeing her, even just thinking about her, was painful.
When Harry entered the pristine infirmary, he saw Ron sitting up in his bed and looking affectionately down at Hermione, who had fallen asleep in the chair with her head resting on the bed and one of her hands tucked in Ron's. Ron looked up upon hearing Harry's footstep and smiled at him. He seemed much more peaceful now.
"She said that she wasn't going to leave until I admitted I wasn't crazy," Ron said as Harry glance at the sleeping girl.
"I guess you didn't admit it," Harry replied with a knowing grin. "She did get some dinner, right?"
Ron bristled. "Of course she did! Madam Pomfrey tried to kick her out but she wouldn't go. Quite a tigress, our Hermione. You should've seen it. She almost got a detention, but Dumbledore came in and said she could stay. Even made Pomfrey get her some dinner when she got mine so she wouldn't have to leave even for a moment."
"So now that we've covered Hermione's condition, how are you doing? D'you still think you're insane?" Harry asked.
Ron immediately sobered. "I don't know how else to explain what I saw. I can't have seen her alive," Ron protested.
Harry also became grave and replied, "What if I said that I saw her as well?"
Ron replied immediately, "Then I'd say that you were crazy, too."
"Thanks for your touching confidence in my sanity," Harry said sarcastically. Ron winced slightly. "But, honestly, I went back to the dorm— "
"Yeah, I know you went back to the dorm! You went tearing out of here as if your pants were on fire," Ron smirked. Harry made a face at him and continued.
"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted – I went back to the dorm and found Ginny there, just like you said," Harry stopped meaningfully, because Ron was shaking his head stubbornly, and glared at him, then resumed, "only she wasn't alive. Ginny's a ghost, Ron. Another Hogwarts ghost," Harry looked down, guilt and sorrow crashing down on him again.
"A ghost?! How did Ginny become a ghost? And why is she in the boys' dorm, of all places? And why haven't we seen her before? And—" Harry held up his hands to stop the flood of questions.
"I don't know, Ron! Sheesh, I'm not omniscient. But don't worry, I'm on it. I'm going to talk to Ginny some more before I go to sleep," he abruptly became aware of his exhaustion, "and tomorrow, I'm going to see Dumbledore for some more information on my sword and possibly on Ginny. Then, if its not sufficient, and I'm sure it won't be, I'll go to the library and check out some books on ghosts and afterlife. Maybe I can get Hermione to help, if she can tear herself away from your side," Harry ended with a mischievous grin, and Ron rolled his eyes.
"I'm going to have a blast next time you get a crush on someone," Ron retorted, "An absolute field day! Harry, what's wrong?" Ron looked concerned, and Harry wasn't surprised. He had felt the blood drain from his face, and he was sure that he was as white as a....ghost. 'The next time you get a crush on someone...' Harry thought.
"Not bloody likely," he replied roughly and got up so suddenly that his chair made a loud grating noise on the floor and almost tipped over. He stormed out of the room with his back ramrod straight and his jaw clenched, leaving Ron staring after him in confusion.
~*~
The loud noise of Harry's chair had woken Hermione and she looked around groggily for the source of the disturbance. Her eyes fell on her and Ron's entwined hands and she hastily tried to pull her hand away , blushing, but he wouldn't let go. She met his eyes and he smiled slightly, although confusion still lurked in his eyes.
"Ron? What happened?" she questioned softly.
"I don't really know," he replied, seeming a little abstracted. "I don't understand."
"Well, tell me, and then perhaps we can figure it out," she said with a touch of her usual asperity. He grinned and didn't argue.
"Well, Harry just came in here and told me that I'm not crazy because I really did see Ginny," Hermione's eyes widened and she opened her mouth to protest but Ron cut her off, "I think Dumbledore's completely wrong about Harry. There's not many times when Dumbledore is wrong, but this is one of them. Ginny's a ghost, and she's been haunting the boys' dorm; that's why Harry's been hearing and seeing things....not because he's going crazy," Hermione's eyes were had grown as big as saucers as he told her this.
"Oh, poor Ginny! And poor Harry. He must have had some doubts, as well, you know. But it's a logical explanation and I'm surprised that I didn't think of it myself. I suppose," she concluded, "that this will teach us not to place such faith in Dumbledore that our brains forget to work on their own."
Ron nodded his agreement, though he was sure that such a situation would never have occurred to him in his wildest dreams.
"That's not why he went storming out, though. He...was teasing me," his eyes flickered to their hands and up again, giving Hermione enough clue as to what the teasing had been about. She blushed again. "I said that I'd have fun teasing him when he found somebody, and he just turned dead white, said, 'Not bloody likely,' and stormed out. I don't know what got him so mad," Ron trailed off forlornly and looked over at the empty doorway. Hermione, though, was nodding in understanding.
"Once again, I don't know why I didn't see it before. It seems so obvious from his behavior recently. It must be the reason, but...oh, I don't know. Harry, you stupid git!" Hermione burst out. Ron looked shocked.
"Hermione, what? Tell me!" He sounded about to burst with impatience.
"I think that Harry was...in love with Ginny." Ron gaped at her for a moment and then burst out laughing.
"You girls and your romantic schemes! If Harry was in love with Ginny, then why weren't they together? He had plenty of opportunity and it was obvious how she felt about him."
"If you love me, then why aren't we together?" she said contemptuously with another glance at their joined hands. "Things just aren't that simple Ron."
"Well, they should be. Will you go out with me, Hermione? There, now Harry has no excuse," Ron had turned as red as his hair, but he was still smiling hopefully at Hermione's blank look. His smile faded slightly as Hermione didn't answer after several minutes.
Hermione's clever mind was hard at work and very confused. She might be mentally suited to book learning, but this romance stuff didn't compute very well. It sounded at first that he was asking her out simply because he didn't want to believe that Harry was in love with Ginny. But then, when she remembered what she'd said before, it sounded as if he was admitting that he loved her. Did she want to accept? She didn't if he was just doing it to prove a point and didn't really care for her, and that was what her rational mind was telling her to believe. But he had kissed her – twice. Maybe, just maybe, he had wanted to ask her out and hadn't been able to get up the nerve, so he was using this opportunity. Did she want to accept? She asked herself again. The answer was most definitely 'yes,' and Hermione usually managed to get what she wanted.
Ron was almost paralyzed with fright when Hermione didn't respond. His thoughts went in circles. He was certain that she was going to say no and that he'd just ruined their friendship permanently. It was just his good luck that she'd gotten over the fiasco down at the lake, but this was unforgivable. He wondered if Harry would be able to stay friends with both of them or if he would choose one or the other.
Ron's train of gloomy thoughts was interrupted by Hermione, who suddenly grinned hugely and threw her arms around his neck. To say he was shocked would have been an extreme understatement. His eyes went wide and his hands started shaking.
"Is – is that a 'yes?'" he croaked uncertainly. His only answer was a nod which he felt more than saw as Hermione's soft cheek rubbed up against his. Ron sighed with relief and happiness and put his own arms around Hermione. They stayed like that for quite a long time.
~*~
A/N I've decided to end the chapter there simply because it's gotten to my 'normal' length, and since the there was that infernal 'hardware failure' – grrrrrrr – I can't upload this for about a week...By that time I'll have the next chapter done as well. In fact, I'm going to start it right now. I'll probably post it about a day or two after this chapter, so there won't be much of a wait. I can definitely get it written before then because there is NO MORE SCHOOL! Yippee!
And thanks to all my wonderful reviewers once again!
Hedwig: Thanks! Yeah, it was a pretty horrible end, wasn't it?
queenrandom: Please don't die! Especially since I had no control over how soon this was posted. Evil hardware...But I'm glad you like it!
The White Plume: Thanks a lot! Hmmmm.. "What's happening with Ginny," you want to know...I can't tell you THAT! That's the whole plot! I think....*grin*
Julephenia: Don't worry, I have no intention of leaving it there...as this chapter probably already told you...
Tinabedina: I'm forever grateful for your good opinion!
Bucky: Thanks! Blame the wait on that 'hardware failure.' Bah, humbug...
Anon: Yeah, that's an awful thing to say, isn't it? But it's all over now and I can concentrate on the really important things in life...writing and sleep, in that order!
You know me: hmmmmmm.......wonder who this is? Congrats for finally reviewing, and thanks, I really do appreciate it.
So now there's only one person who didn't do their reviewing duty for this chapter.....you know who you are. Tsk, tsk.
Now...on to the next chapter!
