Chapter 19:

Badger Blues

The next couple of weeks passed quickly. Harry kept up Quidditch practices once a week. Ginny began to fall under the mountain of homework the professors were heaping on her in her O.W.L. year. Harry spent almost every night doing his own homework as fast as he possibly could, so that he could spend the rest of the evening helping Ginny finish hers.

The week of the next Quidditch match on Monday night after the dueling club, Ginny threw up her hands in defeat, "I've had it. There is no way that I can get this finished tonight."

Harry smiled, "Come on, Gin. You're almost done. We can finish in another half an hour."

Ginny sighed in exasperation, "Harry, we've been at this since we got back from dinner. It's almost midnight. Everyone else has gone to bed. Let's just leave it till tomorrow."

Harry shook his head, "You can't leave it till tomorrow. You have Potions on Tuesdays. You know that Snape is going to give you a ridiculous amount of homework. He will want to make sure that you are tired. He'll be doing the same thing to Natalie's class as well. He knows that if he can wear out our chasers, then we won't be able to beat Hufflepuff that badly. Slytherin smeared Ravenclaw since two of their starting chasers were in the hospital wing from unknown causes."

Ginny snorted, "Unknown my foot. The Slytherins hexed them."

Harry nodded, "I know that, but there was no way to prove it. Now, come on, we've got to finish this."

Ginny sighed in defeat, "This would be a lot simpler if I could just use your brain."

Harry stopped and leaned back with a smile on his face, "You know, Ginny, that's not a bad idea."

She looked at him in bewilderment, "What are you talking about?"

Harry continued to smile, "You using my brain."

Ginny grinned back, "I wish. If I knew everything that you knew, I wouldn't have to do half the homework that I do. Charms is the only subject that I'm really good at."

"You don't have to wish, Ginny. We can do this."

"Are you serious?" asked Ginny.

Harry nodded, "Of course. It will take me a little bit to prepare for the spell. I'll have to look up a couple of things in the library, but I shouldn't have any problem casting it tomorrow night."

Ginny's eyes widened, "You are serious!"

"Yes, I can allow you to siphon off information from my brain directly into yours."

Ginny asked hesitantly, "Does that mean that I will know everything about Voldemort?"

Harry shook his head, "No, I will be in control of what information that you get. Don't worry, I won't allow you to get any information that might be dangerous. Now, finish your homework."

Ginny grinned, "You're starting to sound like Hermione."

Harry looked horrified, "Me? I don't sound like Hermione."

Ginny laughed at the expression on Harry's face, "If you keep pushing like a slave driver about homework, then the next thing you know you will be harping about people breaking the rules."

Harry snorted, "I don't think that I will ever be hypocritical enough to jump onto people for breaking the rules. I'm pretty sure that I have broken them all."

"True, you probably have. Between sneaking into the Forbidden Forest, and sneaking off to the village without permission, and flying a car to school, I'm surprised that they haven't thrown you out of school at least a dozen times already." Ginny laughed.

Harry smirked, "Just keep talking, Weasley. Just remember that I am the only boy in Gryffindor tower that can get up the stairs to the girl's dormitory, and I know where you sleep."

Ginny paled, "You wouldn't."

Harry continued to smirk, "Wouldn't I? You've just been talking about the number of rules that I have broken over the years."

"Yes, but you weren't dating a prefect at those times." Ginny trumped.

Harry snorted, "I've had the biggest stickler for rules following me around for six years, and it hasn't stopped me yet."

Ginny nodded, "Good point. You win."

Harry leaned back in the armchair that he was sitting in, and put his hands behind his head, "That's right."

Ginny leaped out of her own chair and tackled Harry into the floor. The two struggled for a moment, before Harry pinned Ginny to the carpet and began to tickle her mercilessly. She gasped with laughter until Harry stopped and asked, "Do you give up?"

Ginny shook her head, "No."

Harry began to tickle her again, and she finally gasped out, "Alright, I give up." Harry stopped tickling her, and leaned down to plant a kiss firmly on her lips.

Harry pulled away form her, "Now, its time to stop playing and you to finish your homework."

Ginny groaned, "Slave driver."

"We'll see."

The next morning the five Gryffindors met Luna in the Great Hall for breakfast. Harry looked at Ron, "Ready for out final Quidditch practice before the match?"

Ron nodded enthusiastically, "Can't wait."

Hermione snorted, "Boys."

Ron protested, "Hey, the girls on the team are just as eager as the boys, aren't they Ginny?"

Ginny nodded, "Of course. I can't wait for the game."

Harry nibbled on her ear slightly, "Don't forget that we have an appointment tonight."

Ginny grinned back, "I'll see you at lunch, Mr. Potter."

The rest of the day passed quickly and five o'clock found the Gryffindor Quidditch team entering the changing rooms to prepare for practice. Harry came out of the captain's office and smiled, "Team, this is our final practice before the game. I think that we need to have a little bit of fun."

The rest of the team looked at Harry in amazement. Ron was the first to find his voice, "Are you serious, Harry?"

Harry nodded, "Yes. We're going to go out there and have some fun. No practicing for Quidditch. Let's just go and ride for the pleasure of it." Harry jumped onto his broom and flew out the doors onto the pitch.

The team followed Harry out onto the pitch to see him flying at breakneck speed around the pitch. They all exchanged glances and then Ginny shrugged at the rest of them. She swung one leg over her broom and took off into the air after Harry. Ron followed quickly and soon enough the entire team was swooping and diving all over the pitch. After about an hour Harry stopped and blew his whistle. The team stopped in mid-air and looked at him.

"Good practice, team. I'm going in. If any of you want to stay out here, we have the pitch booked until dinner. Have fun." Harry landed with Ginny not far behind. He took her hand and they walked back up to the castle hand in hand.

Ginny asked, "So, are you still planning on doing what we talked about last night?"

Harry nodded, "Yeah, I looked up the stuff I needed to check about the incantation. We'll wait until the rest of the Gryffindors go to bed, and then we'll do the spell."

Ginny arched one eyebrow at him, "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Harry shrugged, "Don't you trust me?"

Ginny shook her head, "Considering the fact that your Dad was a Marauder, no."

Harry grinned, "Okay, I can see where that would be a problem, but I promise that I'm not up to anything."

Ginny snorted, "Harry Potter, you are always up to something."

"Not always. Sometimes I'm asleep." Harry returned.

"I think that you plot in your sleep, so that doesn't count."

Harry protested, "That's low, Gin. I have never plotted in my sleep."

Ginny raised her eyebrows, "Never?"

Harry made a see-sawing gesture with his hand, "Almost never."

The two students laughed as they entered the castle, and headed up to Gryffindor tower to allow Ginny to work on her homework a little before dinner.

Later that night, once all the other Gryffindors had finally made their way up to the dormitories, Harry and Ginny turned to face each other. Harry looked at Ginny and asked, "Are you ready?"

Ginny nodded, "Yeah, I'm ready. What do I do?"

Harry grinned, "Close your eyes and sit still. I'll take care of the rest."

Ginny complied and closed her eyes. She heard Harry begin chanting and then she felt the tip of his wand touch her forehead. Suddenly, a wave of knowledge and visions flooded through her mind. She fell out of the chair, gasping.

Harry leaned over and shook her slightly, "Are you okay, Ginny?"

Ginny managed to pry her eyes open and look at Harry, "I'm fine. That was amazing, but I don't feel like I know anything that I didn't know before."

Harry smiled, "You will. When you are asked questions that you know the answers to without knowing how, you'll see the information that you gained. Since you took it all in so quickly, most of it won't actually be conscious knowledge until you need it."

Ginny stood up and almost fell back down. Harry caught her easily and laid her on the couch. "Easy, Gin. You can't expect to take in that much stuff and not be affected by it physically. I'll carry you up to bed."

Ginny nodded, "Okay, Harry." She yawned widely, and then slipped quickly off to sleep.

Harry shook his head, and then leaned over and brushed his lips across Ginny's lightly. Next, he picked her up and walked to the stairs to the girl's dormitories. He pointed his wand at himself under her sleeping form and muttered a spell. He instantly floated off the ground. Then, he made his way up the stairs to her room. A Silencing Charm later, he had Ginny tucked neatly into bed. He pecked her on the lips once more and whispered, "Good night, my love." and then swept from the room without making another sound.

The remainder of the week was over in a flash and it was time for the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff Quidditch match. The morning of the match, Harry was up at dawn as usual. He went down to the pitch to see how things were going to be. The day appeared as if it was going to be extremely overcast. That was good. It would make visibility poor, and would allow the match to go on longer. Harry had no doubts that the game was in the bag.

He went back up to the castle and joined the rest of the team for breakfast. "I went down to check out the pitch. It's going to be cloudy, but I think that the rain will probably hold off until later in the afternoon. That means we're not going to have good visibility, so the match should last for awhile. Everyone knows their job. When we get down there, let's do them."

The team met in the changing rooms just before the game and waited for Harry to make a speech. "Alright, team. We need a big one today. Katie, Natalie, Ginny, work some magic. Dean, Seamus, remember to keep the bludgers off of the girls. Hammer Eleanor. I want her slightly shook up. That way I won't have to worry about the Snitch until we have a pretty good lead built up. Ron, I don't want you to let them score. The only number I want on your mind is zero. I hate to do this to Hufflepuff, but its our only shot. Slytherin got off easy against Ravenclaw. We won't. Let's go."

The team cheered and walked to the doorway to await their names to be called. Soon they heard Owen calling out the names of the Hufflepuff players. Justin Finch-Fletchley was the new Keeper and captain for the Hufflepuff team. Next it was time for the Gryffindor team to enter the pitch. "I give you your Chasers. Katie Bell! Ginny Weasley! And Natalie McDonald! Your Beaters. Seamus Finnigan! And Dean Thomas! Your Keeper. Ron Weasley! And last, but definitely not least, a boy who needs no introduction anywhere in the wizarding world, your captain and Seeker. Harry Potter!"

Harry emerged onto the pitch amid a storm of cheers. Harry walked out into the center ring to shake hands with Justin. They smiled at each other. Justin leaned in, "Will you take it easy on us, Harry. I've got a lot of young ones on the team."

Harry shook his head, "Sorry, Justin, but as badly as Slytherin trounced Ravenclaw, we need the points. I'm afraid that they will just have to learn the hard way. Look at it like this. They'll be a whole lot better for it next year."

Justin nodded, "True. Good luck, Harry."

Harry smiled, "Same to you, Justin. Let's fly."

Madam Hooch released the Bludgers and the Golden Snitch. A moment later, she threw the Quaffle up and blew her whistle allowing the game to begin. Before the echo of the whistle had faded away, Ginny had the Quaffle and was racing for the Hufflepuff goals. Just as she reached the scoring zone though, she swerved left and dropped the Quaffle, where it was immediately grabbed by Natalie, who had been right on her heels. The Keeper swerved to block Ginny, but Natalie put the Quaffle through the right hoop.

Owen yelled out, "McDonald scores. That makes it ten-zero to Gryffindor." The Gryffindors cheered, while the Hufflepuffs booed.

The game continued in much the same vein for almost an hour. The Hufflepuff chasers led by Justin had managed to get two goals past Ron. The score was now 160-20 and Harry was actively searching for the Snitch at this point. He finally saw it close to the ground, and went tearing after it. He caught it easily with poor Eleanor nowhere to be found. She had been at the other end of the pitch when Harry spotted the Snitch and had not even realized the game was over until it was far too late.

The Gryffindors landed and began celebrating right there. Harry walked up to Eleanor and kneeled down in front of her, "Hey, that was some amazing flying out there today."

Eleanor shook her head, "You're just being nice."

Harry smiled easily down at her, "No, I'm not. You were getting hammered by the Bludgers the whole game, and you came out of it without a scratch. That is amazing."

She sniffed, "You didn't get a scratch on you either."

Harry chuckled lightly, "Not today, but if you want to hear about Quidditch injuries, I probably have the Hogwart's record. In my first game, I had someone curse my broomstick and try to throw me off. Once I finally did catch the Snitch it was in my mouth. The opposing captain had a fit. In a game during my second year, a bludger broke my arm. During my third year, I fell off my Nimbus 2000 and allowed it to be blown away and destroyed by the Whomping Willow tree. I've had my fair share of disasters."

Eleanor was looking at him with widened eyes, "You've really been hurt that many times?"

Ginny had quietly walked up behind the two of them and been listening to the conversation. She laughed out loud at this question, "Harry has spent more time in the hospital wing than the rest of Gryffindor combined. His Quidditch injuries don't cover half of it. He's been in a fight with a Basilisk, Dementors, Acromantulas, Death Eaters, and the Dark Lord."

Harry pointed at her, "Don't forget Hagrid's Blast-Ended Skrewts."

Ginny shuddered, "I was trying to push that one out of my mind."

Harry snickered, "How do you think I feel about being bit by a sixty foot long snake?"

Ginny conceded, "That's a good point."

Eleanor looked at Harry in disbelief, "You were bit by a sixty foot long snake?"

Harry nodded, "Yeah, I would have died from it if it hadn't been for Fawkes."

"Who's Fawkes?" asked Eleanor.

Harry grinned, "Fawkes is Professor Dumbledore's pet phoenix."

Eleanor nodded, "Oh. Well, thanks. I'm going to go back to the castle, now."

Harry waved, "Bye, Eleanor." Then, he turned to Ginny, "Now, Miss Weasley, do you know that it is impolite to spy on your boyfriend when he's talking to another girl?"

Ginny laughed, "I don't care if it's impolite or not. I'm still going to do it. That was really sweet of you, Harry."

Harry shrugged, "I couldn't let her go away feeling horrible just because her team lost. She might have given up the game. That would have been horrible. She has got the potential to be a really good seeker. She just doesn't have the confidence, yet."

Ginny smiled and entwined her fingers with his, "Come on. Let's get back up to the tower, before the rest of those idiots demolish it."

Harry laughed and followed Ginny up to the castle.

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews. I hope all of you continue to enjoy.

Athena kitty: No your questions don't drive me crazy. I just don't know how to answer half of them. To give it a go, though, Narcissa Malfoy will not die, she's not really important enough to the story. As to the other two, you will have to wait and see, but don't expect it in this book. It will be in Book Seven if it happens. Draco is the one that cast the Impeious Curse on Filch, but no will find proof of that.

Solar: Thanks for the review.

Lord Nyax: Currently, I am not planning on adding any more forms, but Book Seven might make on e more necessary. I'll just have to wait and see as I finish developing the plot for the sequel.

Ladybug: Don't worry, I will continue posting three times a week until I'm finished.

To all Anonymous reviewers: I appreciate the reviews, but unless you give me some way to refer to you, then I can't give you a personal response.

David M. Potter: I hope you like the way Harry helps Ginny.

Mature Immaturity: Commas were one of the things that I had trouble with in English class, and my Beta reader seems to miss them as well. I'll try to watch them more closely.

Lourdes: I went back and reread the text. You're right. I'm not sure what I was thinking when I wrote it. Thanks for the review.

John: Thanks for the review:

Ed-space-cpwgirl: Thanks for the review. One question, though. What does your I.D. stand for?

Dustin-Coons: Thanks for the review. I am going to start reading some new fanfics before much longer. I will put yours in the list.