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Chapter 30

Ginny slept for a few hours, but a roll of thunder woke her up, and she couldn't get back to sleep as her thoughts about Harry started to invade her head again. "Hermione, are you awake?" she asked rather loudly.

"No," Hermione answered with a yawn. She was clearly in a half-conscious state. She yawned again and turned over.

"I'll just go back to sleep, then," Ginny said to herself. If I can stop thinking of Harry, that is, she thought. "I shouldn't have been so annoying. Maybe he would have taken me a bit more seriously." Oh, well, tomorrow is a new day.

She changed positions and started to drift back to sleep until another raucous clap of thunder was heard. Ginny groaned a put a pillow over her head. The action didn't help, and she realized she would never get to sleep. "Rain, rain go away," she sang harshly, "come again, another day." That didn't seem to work, she thought. "Rain, rain go away!! Come again another day!!" she shouted, but was muffled by the pillow still covering her head. She then felt someone gently push her shoulder. "Hermione, we need our rest!" She removed the pillow from her face and then saw it was not Hermione.

"Ginny," said Harry who was standing over her with remorseful eyes.

Ginny sat up straight and ran her fingers through her disheveled tresses. "My, you look needy," she responded coolly. "Why are you here?"

"I need to talk to you," he said and then glanced at the slumbering Hermione, "alone."

"She won't hear us, and if she does, she'll just think it was a dream or something," said Ginny. She was also shocked at why Harry picked this time of night to talk to her.

"Yeah, she's really thick when she's dozing," he answered, "but, I'd rather talk to you in private anyway."

"Alright," she said, "we can go in the bathroom. That's kind of sound-proof." She attempted to get out of bed, but the covers got in her way and she fell--"Ahhh!"--straight to the floor. "I'm okay. I'm okay!" Being embarrassed in front of Harry was way past her. She was more focused on regaining his trust and friendship.

"Sure," Harry merely said and followed her to the bathroom. Ginny closed the door and Harry looked at her as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't find the correct words, and then finally spoke. "If you're wondering why I woke you up," he said, but looked around the bathroom with his eyes as if he was still trying to find words.

"Don't worry, I was already awake. Why did you have to talk to me so late though?"

There was another pause, but it didn't take too long for Harry to respond. "I, I just had to do it right now. I--"

But he was cut off as Ron opened the door and came into the bathroom. "I knew you'd be here Harry! Why are you talking to her?"

"Ron! Just get over it! I'm your sister!" Ginny shouted and her eyes started to tear up. It was like Ron to make her moods go from unruffled to agitated. She was also angry at the interruption of what Harry needed to say to her.

"It's not that simple, Ginny," he responded and then turned to Harry again. "Let's just go before she works her advantage on you too."

Ginny clenched her fists and looked at Ron with an aggravated expression. "You seem to be doing just that, Ron!" she yelled. Ron was about to respond as they heard a scream from Ginny's room.

"Hermione!" Ron exclaimed. He tried to open the door leading to the room, but it was locked. They heard another scream and then some unfamiliar deep and raspy voices speaking a different language.

"Someone else is in there!" Ginny yelled, and Harry tried to open the other door leading to the hall.

"I think more than one other person is in there, and this door won't open!" said Harry.

"They're both locked! What are we going to do?!" Ron exclaimed. "Hermione!" He yelled again as he heard another scream.

"Leave me alone!" they heard Hermione yell. "Expecto Patronum!"

Harry and Ginny looked at each other with shocked expressions and widened eyes. Ron looked as if he was going to have a heart attack.

"But they should be after me! Not Hermione!" Harry exclaimed. They then heard her again.

"Expecto Patronum! Expecto PATRONUM!" she kept on yelling. The three realized that the spell was probably not working. Ron was banging the door and trying to force it open, but it wouldn't budge. He then saw Ginny's wand on the counter and picked it up.

"You'll be expelled!" Ginny said in her most Hermione-like tone. She then stopped her attempt to argue as it was Hermione's life they had to save.

"Then I'll be expelled with Hermione--if she doesn't get kissed by one of those ugly dementers!"

"Expecto Patronum!" Hermione was heard crying again. Ginny heard some laughing in the room, but she ignored it as Ron was going to unlock the door.

"Alohomora!" Ron said quickly with a swish of the wand and turned the door-knob more forcefully than before and it opened. "Hermione!"

Ginny entered her room with the other two and they saw two figures with black robes and hoods cornering Hermione. They turned around and Ginny could see their faces that appeared to be the kind of green aliens she saw in the films. She gasped but suddenly saw one of them grab his face and lift it off. It was Fred, and George took his mask off as well.

"It's just us!" Fred said.

"Hermione! We're not dementers!" George tried to explain.

Hermione was breathing heavily and looked frightened. "You-you're not?" she asked and put her wand down.

"What were you two doing?" Harry demanded. He looked as aggravated as Ginny was when Ron interrupted the conversation between Harry and her.

"We didn't think it would get in a big mess like this!" Fred claimed. "We were just trying to play a joke on Hermione and her unbelieving ways."

"I guess she was too out of state to realize that we were supposed to be aliens--not dementers!" George added.

"Maybe you should just think about your little jokes or tricks you do and what trouble they can cause! I'm sure Ron and Hermione's expulsion notes from Hogwarts are on their way!" Ginny cried.

"Oh, no!" Hermione began to weep. "I'm getting thrown out of Hogwarts!"

"I am too!" Ron asserted and looked at Fred and George as if he was about to pounce on them. Harry grabbed his arm incase he had to hold him back.

"Well, we're sorry! I'm sure we can give them a good enough explanation in court!" Fred exclaimed. He looked very repentant.

Mr. Weasley entered the room right then. He looked exhausted. "What's all the trouble?"

"I'm getting expelled from Hogwarts!" Hermione cried.

"I am too!" Ron added. Mr. Weasley didn't look to worried.

"Are you sure it's not just a misunderstanding?" he asked.

"No, I'm sure they're going to come now and destroy my wand!" Hermione cried again and wept even louder. She held out her wand, and Ginny thought there was something very peculiar about it.

"Let me see that," said Mr. Weasley and he examined the wand. "Is this one of your joke wands?" he asked Fred and George. Fred took the wand and ran his thumb over the inscription.

"WWW," he said, "Yes, this is one of ours."

"So I'm not expelled?" Hermione asked ad then wiped a tear from her eye. "Is that why I couldn't get my Patronus to work?"

"Right, but you were probably a little unstable at the moment, as well," Mr. Weasley replied.

"What about me? I did the Alohomora spell," said Ron. He handed the wand he used back to Ginny.

"This is a 'Wheezes' wand, too!" Ginny exclaimed. "They made it to look just like my real wand!"

"So we didn't do any real magic? Oh, someone up there likes me!" Ron said happily and relieved.

"I think there was a little too much excitement tonight. Everyone should get there rest," Mr. Weasley announced.

"Alright," said Ron and the twins. They left the room with Mr. Weasley as Harry and Ginny read each other's minds as they both wanted to finish what they started.

"I'll see you in a second," Ginny said to Hermione and she nodded in response. Harry followed Ginny into the bathroom again.

"Anyway," he began, but the hall door opened and Mr. Weasley appeared.

"I thought I told you to get back to bed," he said sternly, and then turned to Harry. "And if I catch you snogging my daughter--"

"Dad!" Ginny exclaimed. She couldn't believe he would assume something like that. Harry looked rather uneasy.

Mr. Weasley chuckled. "I'll give you a second, but then go to sleep!" he said and then left the room.

"I guess I should talk to you tomorrow," Harry said.

"Yeah, that's okay," Ginny agreed. Harry left the room and she went back into her bedroom to find Hermione back to sleep. The recent events knocked Ginny out a little while later.