Study Buddies
Author's Note: I hate studying for A.P. exams. It generally causes me to do other, less appropriate things, such as write stories about people who are having trouble studying.
Funny, that.
I'm not sure yet if this is a one-shot or not, especially due to my lack of updating when it comes to my chapter stories as of yet. I guess I'm just not feeling the multi-chapter groove. Maybe this will be a shorter thing, like two or three parts. I don't know.
That was so pointless.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I do own a nifty set of U.S. History flashcards, however, thanks to Sparknotes and Barnes & Noble (which I also don't own).
***
There were footsteps behind her. She shrank into herself, begging the evil that was seeking her out to turn back and leave her to the peace and quiet she'd been enjoying up until that moment.
Crunch. Another broken twig alerted her to the near-vicinity of her stalker. The tree she was leaning against would only provide so much shelter…
"Ginny?"
Thank Merlin. It was Harry. But wait—
With a speed neither knew she possessed, Ginny jumped to her feet and looked over Harry's shoulder. The entire time her feet were moving, as if she would be ready to run if need be. Satisfied, she looked back at Harry.
"Did Hermione send you?" Ginny narrowed her eyes. "How much did she pay you to come find me and lure me back to the castle? Out with it, Potter!"
Harry's eyes were wide as he stared back at Ginny. "Are you quite alright?"
"DID HERMIONE SEND YOU?!"
"No!" Harry jumped back a few feet in terror.
Ginny's shoulders slumped; it took a lot of effort to be that scary. "You can sit down then," she told Harry as she moved to sit back down behind the large oak tree by the lake.
Briefly, Harry wondered shy she would think he wanted to. He realized that Ginny was staring at him expectantly and, fearing another outburst, quickly sat down to join her.
"Sorry about that whole Scary Ginny thing," the redhead said. "I thought you were Hermione."
"What's Scary Ginny?"
"Me. When I get really angry. Fred nicknamed me that when I blew up his train set one time."
Harry made a mental note not to piss Ginny off ever again. "What did Hermione do?" he asked.
"She didn't do anything, really. I suppose I'm just overreacting, she's actually been quite helpful." Ginny looked as if she were choking on the rest of her statement, much to Harry's amusement.
"You can tell me, you know. It can't be that bad."
"Wrong!" Ginny said. "I'm her new project."
He raised an eyebrow. "Care to elaborate on that?"
"It's true! Ever since she realized I had OWLs this year and she didn't she's been following me around, wanting to help me study and get a perfect score. It was fine in the beginning, I encouraged it even—but that was before."
Harry had to bite his lower lip to keep from laughing. "Before what?"
Ginny quickly turned to face him. "Before she started following me around with those bloody review books of hers. Everywhere I look, there she is! She wanted me to recite potions ingredients while I was brushing my teeth last night!"
"She's probably just bored without exams of her own to study for. Also it probably keeps her mind off…things." Harry's eyes darkened for a second or two.
"Well, that's incredibly perceptive. For you, anyway."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Harry asked, immediately pulled out of the sulk he'd been about to enter.
Ginny blushed. "Let's face it, Harry. You haven't exactly been observant when it comes to Ron and Hermione lately." When Harry opened his mouth to protest, Ginny put up a hand. "I realize you have bigger issues, but you have to admit you haven't been paying much attention to us—to them, I mean—lately."
It was true, Harry realized. After Sirius had died Harry had pulled away from everybody. Only recently had he begun to come out of his shell, and that was only because of an extremely long talk with Remus. That was another story, however.
"I'm not trying to ignore any of you," Harry finally said.
"I know. But still, I would have liked to have someone to chat with about how Ron and Hermione have been sneaking off to snog."
"I'm sorry, Gin, really. I—What?"
Ginny began laughing so hard she fell onto the grass with a thump. "The look on your face, Harry. It's priceless!"
"Wow, I thought you were serious for a minute," Harry exclaimed as he watched Ginny roll around on the ground. She began to laugh even harder. "What's so funny?"
It took awhile, but Ginny was finally able to sit back up. "Harry, I'm not joking," she said, obviously trying hard to stifle her giggles.
"I guess I really have been out of it," Harry consented after he'd gotten over his shock. "I've been waiting for years for those two to get over themselves and now I've missed it!"
"Sorry," the redhead told him as she pulled herself back into a sitting position. "That's what you get for being so moody."
Harry was about to make a retort when suddenly the warm, spring sun was blocked. The two students looked up to face none other than the object of their conversation (and in Ginny's case, dread).
"Ginny, there you are! I've been looking all over you. Did you know I still have my old Astronomy essays from the last five and a half years? We could look over them if you like. They're very detailed and…"
While Hermione kept talking, totally avoiding Harry as she focused in on her target, Harry snuck a look at Ginny's face. In the last twenty minutes he'd seen her shift from anger to mirth with agility, now she looked like she was going to cry.
"Hermione?" Harry broke in. The prefect didn't hear him, however, so busy was she discussing the constellations and the night sky in general. He was forced o repeat himself several times. Eventually, she noticed his existence.
"Oh. Hullo, Harry. Have you been there the whole time?"
"Yes," Harry said. "You interrupted the lesson I was teaching Ginny."
"Lesson?" Hermione echoed.
"Er…yes," Harry said. He glanced over to see Ginny looking at him, her eyes filled with renewed hope and just a smidge of desperation. "I was tutoring her in Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Really?" Hermione said. "That's very nice of you."
"Wasn't it?" Ginny said. "My knowledge of the subject is so poor when it comes to certain areas. All I've ever learned has come from Dumbledore's Army and Professor Lupin."
"Well, don't let me keep you," Hermione replied. She smiled at them pleasantly (a little too pleasantly, Ginny thought) and walked back towards the castle.
"Thank you so much," Ginny said when Hermione was out of earshot. "You're a life saver."
"It was nothing," Harry replied. "I know what it's like to be on the receiving end of Hermione's attempts to educate the ignorant."
The two smiled and began talking about little things. They chatted for over an hour, only going inside when a chill entered the air and clouds covered the sun.
***
Later that night, Hermione cornered Ginny on the stairwell. "How was studying with Harry," she asked.
"Um…fine." Ginny took a step closer to her dormitory door. It was so close, but so far.
"What did he teach you?" Hermione persisted.
Ginny thought she'd break out in a sweat. "Things."
"Ah." Hermione turned and began walking towards her own dormitory, much to Ginny's amazement.
"Don't you want to interrogate me?" the younger girl called out before she could stop herself.
"Not really," Hermione called over her shoulder. "Everybody needs a little study break now and then." And with that, she shut her door.
Ginny simply stood outside her own door for a moment, lost in a sea of confusion. Did Hermione Granger just excuse her lack of studiousness? Why would she do such a thing? The only time Hermione wasn't studying she was either helping Harry save the world or snogging Ron!
It was obvious Ginny and Harry hadn't been doing the former. This could only mean one thing.
***
"Hullo, Ginny," Harry said the next morning when he saw her at breakfast. He was in the middle of eating some eggs, but he put his fork down when Ginny stared at him for an inordinate amount of time. "Do I have egg on my face?" he asked, wiping at his chin.
"Hermione thinks we're snogging. I thought you should know," Ginny deadpanned.
Without any more ado Ginny got up from the table and walked out of the Great Hall, in her wake an extremely bewildered Harry Potter.