Top secret
By HermioneFan
Disclaimer: Bob is mine, all mine! Bwahahahahahahahahahahahaha! Everyone else is too! ::Evil looking lawyer guys clutching lawsuits glower threateningly:: I'm joking, I'm joking! Everyone and everything else belongs to the wonderful JKR (except the plot, of course).
Author's note: So, here's chapter 4. Pleeease tell me what you think of Cho Chang! Do you: Love her/hate her/don't mind her? Tell me.
Thanks to all who reviewed so far, except cho-granger23 under one of her many names.
***
Sometime later, Bob was shaken awake by Ginny for the second time that week.
"Wow, déjà vu," she commented, reaching for her glasses and sitting up.
"Did you take those photos?" hissed Ginny accusingly.
"Er…no?"
"All right, so you did. Anyway, have you asked your sister what she thinks about Ron?"
"Well, yes, but it didn't go all that well. She called him – what was it now? – Oh yes, a "brainless, selfish, moronic pig", or something along those lines."
"Oh dear."
"Correct," Bob sighed. "Have you asked your brother what he thinks of her?"
"Not yet," Ginny shook her head. "I think I'd better give him time to cool off, first. He's still getting over the "Harry and me" thing. I'll wait 'till morning. Anyway," she went on, "what else do we have to do?"
Bob pulled out the crumpled note from under her pillow.
"We have to…" she scanned the page, "scrawl notes on their work and get them to meet in Hogsmeade."
"And get rid of Hannah and Terry," added Ginny, reading over her friend's shoulder. "I think this calls for a spot of double matchmaking."
"What do you mean?" queried Bob.
"We need to get Ron and Hermione and Hannah and Terry together!"
"Oh, brilliant!" Bob groaned, falling back against her pillow. "As if our job wasn't difficult enough!"
Next day was Sunday. Ginny woke up early and crept across the common room and up the stairs to Ron's dormitory.
"Ron!" she shook him. "Wake up!"
Ron rolled over and groaned. "G'way, Ginny. You're not 'llowed in here. It's half past five in the ruddy morning, for Pete's sake! Leave me alone!" And with that, he pulled the covers back over his head and went back to sleep – or tried to. Ginny pulled the blanket off him and sat on his feet.
"Wake up!" she repeated.
"All right." Ron relented. "Whaddayou want?"
"Come down to the common room; I need to talk to you." she told him.
"Oh, if I must." Ron sighed, "Go down while I get changed."
Ginny left the room, pausing, when Ron wasn't looking, to grab a book from his bedside table. When she reached the common room, she found a quill, and under "Ron Weasley, Gryffindor", on the first page, wrote "Me 4 Mione" in a good imitation of her brother's handwriting, encircled it with a heart and put the book under the table where Hermione usually worked. With the amount of homework Ron did, Ginny reckoned he wouldn't miss it anyway.
At that moment, Ron came down the stairs, pulling a Weasley jumper over his head. He flopped down in an overstuffed armchair.
"So?" he yawned.
"What do you think about Hermione?" Ginny got straight to the point.
Her brother raised an eyebrow. "Why on earth…?"
"Never mind," cut in Ginny.
"Whatever." sighed Ron, too sleepy to delve for logic in the question.
"So…" prompted Ginny.
"If you must know, I think being Head Girl's gone to her already over-large head. She is such a priggish, irritating, goody-goody, know-it-all…she's turning into a right Percy!" he finished, echoing, although he didn't know it, Caitlin's exact sentiments. He eyed Ginny suspiciously.
"I hope you're not consorting with that sister of hers." he said, "Right little swot, I expect, if her sister's anything to go by…probably runs in the family. 'Fraternising with the enemy', that's what it is."
Just then, Hermione came down the stairs, her arms full of books, on her way to the library.
"Oh," she said, eyeing Ron distastefully over her pile of books. "You're here."
"No law against it, is there?" Ron replied hotly.
Hermione ignored that remark and climbed through the portrait hole, nose in the air. She was followed by Bob, who came down the girls' staircase, an even higher pile of books in her arms.
"Oh, hi Ginny! Hi Ron!" she said cheerfully.
"Hi, Bob!" replied Ginny.
Ron didn't answer. Bob shrugged (a difficult move, when you're carrying a heap of books as high as your head).
"Oh well," she said, "I'm just off to the library."
"Surprise, surprise." muttered Ron.
Bob glared at him and climbed through the portrait hole after her sister.
"See what I mean?" complained Ron, "They're all going to turn into Percy one of these days!"
"So, why are you and Hermione fighting, anyway?" Ginny asked curiously.
"I…I…it's too complicated for you to understand." replied Ron.
"That's not an answer," Ginny pointed out. "Come on, Ron! You can tell me – I'm your sister!"
Ron groaned. "I know! I've been trying to avoid that fact. Anyway, you…um, wouldn't understand."
Something suddenly occurred to Ginny. "You can't remember, can you?" she asked him, a smile spreading slowly over her face.
"Yeah, well…"
Ginny burst into laughter. "What…" she choked, "you mean you haven't spoken to each other for three weeks and you don't know why?"
Here, giggles overcame her completely and she collapsed in an armchair, still laughing hysterically, while her brother watched grumpily.
"Have you finished yet?" he asked testily. "Only I've got to get to Quidditch practice, and it really wasn't that funny in the first place…"
Ginny leaped to her feet. "Quidditch practice?" she exclaimed, "When, now? What time is it?"
"You've got ten minutes." Ron told her.
"Ten minutes?" Ginny looked horrified. "I've got to find my robes!"
And with that, she ran up to her dorm, three steps at a time.
***
Ron chuckled to himself. She's going to kill me when she finds out we've still got three hours until practice, he thought. Still…he yawned. At least now I can go back to bed…
***
Three hours and one lump one Ron's head due to Ginny's broom later, the Quidditch team was practising hard down on the pitch, even though (typical British weather) it was raining. The team played well for about half an hour, but after that Ron (as Keeper) seemed to become rather distracted, and fourth-year Pippa Browning and Ginny, both of whom were Chasers this year, put quite a few easy goals past him without his noticing. Roger, one of the Beaters, (who was, coincidentally, Oliver Wood's second cousin's brother's half-sister's uncle's wife's son's great-great aunt's nephew's dog's ex-owner, twice removed) almost knocked Ron off his Cleansweep 6½ with a well aimed Bludger.
"What's up, Ron?" Harry yelled.
Ron didn't answer – he was gazing at the stands. There sat a familiar bushy-haired girl and someone else, who, upon closer inspection, appeared to be Terry Boot. Apparently, they had come to watch the Quidditch, but they were missing most of the action of the game as they seemed to be very busy… (now, before I continue, please pause here to get your mind out of the gutter)…doing homework. Terry was holding an umbrella protectively over his girlfriend's head. Ron was scowling at Terry, and if looks could kill, the Head Boy would have been dead on the spot. Ginny rolled her eyes. She had seen Ron jealous before.
"What's wrong, now, Ron?" she sighed.
"Ravenclaws aren't allowed to be here," Ron replied stiffly.
"Honestly, Ron!" scoffed Ginny, "He's not even on the Quidditch team, and it's not like he's going to steal our new game plays or anything…"
"Especially seeing as we haven't got any, yet," commented Harry, zooming up beside them. Then, changing the subject, he added, "Hey Ginny, d'you want to come for a Butterbeer with me next…"
Ginny, however, shot a warning glance in Ron's direction. Her brother was looking as if the next person to annoy him would end up in the hospital wing for a month. She preferred Harry in one piece. Harry took the hint, for a change, and shut up.
Hermione looked up and saw Ron scowling at her. She nudged Terry, said something, and they both laughed. Hermione stood up.
"I take it we're not wanted here," she called across the pitch. "We'll just go, shall we?"
Ron said nothing. Hermione turned to Terry.
"Let's go; we need to prepare for the prefects' meeting, anyway," she said, almost apologetically.
"Okay," Terry nodded. He picked up Hermione's large and heavy copy of Numerology and Grammatica ("Hope it breaks his arms," Ron muttered), and the two of them left the stadium.
Harry, taking one look at the murderous expression on Ron's face, decided to call off practice before someone got hurt, and the team made its way back to Gryffindor Tower.
Only Harry and Ginny lingered behind on the Quidditch pitch.
"You were saying something about a Butterbeer…" reminded Ginny, casually.
"Oh, yeah!" Harry said, "So, d'you want to meet me at the Three Broomsticks next Hogsmeade weekend?"
A smile spread over Ginny's face. "Of course I do!" she replied, reaching up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek before turning to run after the rest of the team.
***
A/N: At last, another chapter! Did you like it? Did you? Did you? Pleeeeeease tell me!
Incidentally, that was the very first kiss I've ever put in a fanfic, not being exactly romantically inclined…All right, so it wasn't much of a kiss, but I'm getting there, OK?
Please tell me about any of my stupid typos which I'm sure I made, as I was typing this rather late at night.
Tell me what you think of Cho! Thanks to those who have.
Next chapter: The prefects have a meeting, Hermione puts forward a proposition, and Harry and Ron are outnumbered.