A/N: I wasn't planning on expanding this story any further, but then I decided that it was too much fun to not continue. Instead of continuing from the first chapter, I've decided to put together a collection of different stories about the characters of Harry Potter from different view points. I think that makes things a bit more interesting, but the theme will remain the same. Magic is not always produced from the tip of a wand... happy reading everyone! Please review!
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I've always been a very logical and studious type of person. Even when I was placed into a world of magic and bewilderment, I opted to read as many books on magic as possible and study every motion of a wand in existence. Though most people like this tend to be neglected or thought of as boring, I was blessed with the best friends that anyone could ever imagine and attended the greatest school in history, Hogwarts.
But I was living during a very rough period for the magical community. The dark wizard, Voldemort, which everyone had left for dead, had returned to stir up trouble and reek havoc upon us all. Lucky for me I knew people like Harry Potter, Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, Moody, McGonagall, and even Severus Snape who all did tremendous things for the world, especially my best friend Harry. I thought of all these people as true, genuine heroes. I looked up to my other best friend, Ron Weasley, and his parents for their unbelievable courage and although it seems conceited to say, I felt the infamous Gryffindor bravery bubbling up inside of me as well.
There was one person in the Weasley family I overlooked however, and I never took the time to truly appreciate. She was younger than I was, so I never really thought about the possibility that she could shine through as a heroine (as crazy as that sounds).
Ginny Weasley certainly was not headlining papers after the fall of Voldemort. She was also not given much recognition for her part in the second war. Of course that is to be expected, there were way too many brave souls to include all their names in the Daily Prophet. There were definitely things that made her stand out in a crowd though. She was a very warm-hearted and sincere girl with advice to spare. Her Gryffindor companions really idolized her as she got older and her brothers were (as always) overprotective and ready to stand up for her best interests.
Many of us (including Harry) forgot or chose to ignore all that Ginny went through in her first year at Hogwarts. Harry's life had been more difficult of course, but whose life had ever been harder than his? The dark lord himself had possessed Ginny and forced her to do things that she would never imagine doing of her own free will. She was so ashamed and guilty about all that had happened, but no one took a moment to comfort her. Harry had saved her life in the Chamber of Secrets, but after that year no one really spoke about the event anymore. Ginny had obviously moved on with her life, but I always thought it a little unfair to leave her experiences unacknowledged.
There was one day that changed my life forever because of Ginny and her actions. I learned that love was blind to all things and that good would always triumph over evil. The day that Harry defeated Voldemort was a day that changed everyone's lives, but it was the day after that really meant something to me.
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There were too many injured wizards to be admitted into St. Mungo's after the final battle with Voldemort. The Weasley family and myself were taken care of in the hospital wing at Hogwarts. My eyes were red and swollen from crying during the night, but Ron held my hand and kissed the top of my head every time a new tear tried to fall down my wearied face.
Dumbledore, considered one of the greatest wizards to ever live, had not survived the attack. I had seen numerous others fall to the ground in beams of red and green light, their unconscious bodies resting beside me without a sound. There were many instances I wanted to break down, give up, and die with the others who had been beaten. It was not my time to leave this earth, and I felt that more and more as I used my might to hold back death eaters. I was going to survive, and so were my friends and we would live happily in a world that was safe. My heart was telling me that and I wanted to believe it.
I never saw what happened to Harry. With so much going on around me, I never once thought to look for him among the crowd. He was the one with the heavy burden on his shoulders. If he failed to kill Voldemort, life as we knew it would be over. So much was at stake for him, but I couldn't help thinking about myself and my situation. I don't think myself a bad person for being that way. I could have been one of the casualties that day.
I'll never forget how much my heart swelled when I saw Ron running towards me amongst the remnants of battle. He was crying and shouting my name so loudly I droned out the rest of the world. He lifted me up into his arms and twirled me around so fast I felt numb. I didn't react until he began to plant kisses all over my face.
"I love you Ronald Weasley! Don't you ever leave me!" I screamed to the world.
"It's over Hermione! I'm still here, and I love you more than you could possibly imagine!" he responded and kissed me passionately.
After years of hidden attraction between the two of us, we had finally let go of our fears and held each other tightly. I still wonder what would have happened if we hadn't survived that day. I didn't tell Ron how I felt about him before the fighting occurred. That could have been the biggest mistake of my life.
Now it was morning and the war was over, but no one had reason to celebrate. Close friends and loved ones were gone forever and the pain was still too real to let go of. Ron sat stroking my arm as we remained in a dream-like daze. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walked towards us slowly and burst into tears at the sight of their son.
"They told us you were both alive and well. I almost couldn't believe until now, I see you... Ron..." Mrs. Weasley whispered and held her son close. Mr. Weasley sniffled and hid his face with his sleeve until he had composed himself.
"Is everyone... you know...?" Ron asked, unable to speak exactly what was on his mind.
"Every last Weasley has pulled through. It's a miracle...I told your mother so. Fred and George are being fixed up in the Gryffindor common room as we speak. Charlie and Bill were unharmed. Percy is safe and sound at the ministry, Ginny is in a bed somewhere around here, and well... you... you're okay too," Mr. Weasley explained and managed to force a small smile onto his lips.
"Arthur Weasley, you know as well as the rest of us that is NOT our entire family! I will not be convinced that our whole family has been saved until they bring us Harry!" Mrs. Weasley shouted and burst into tears once more.
I felt my arm grip tighter around Ron's as her words registered in my mind. 'Until they bring us Harry'.
"What do you mean?" I squeaked out in horror of what she could have meant by her statement. Ron's eyes were widened in fear, his satisfaction completely wiped away.
"Well, they aren't sure if Harry made it through. He worked himself to exhaustion and well... they haven't found his body yet," Mr. Weasley explained.
I felt so sick I could have vomited. Ron did vomit, and the look on his face made my heart ache more than it had before. I began to cry as I thought about Harry Potter and all he had been put through. So many people loved him...
"What about Ginny?" Ron asked after he had cleaned himself up.
"She's taking it extremely well. I'm not sure if she really understands, she could be in shock," Mrs. Weasley answered and took a deep breath.
"I want to see her!" Ron demanded and threw off the sheets that kept him in bed.
"Me too!" I agreed and latched myself to Ron's side.
"She's just around the corner there..." Mr. Weasley began, but Ron took off in an instant and left his parents behind.
Ginny was sitting with her knees curled up to her chest and her eyes seemed attached to the window. The sound of her breathing was so soft it was almost as if she were made of wax, only seeming to be real. I was afraid to speak first. The love of my life had made it through, but what about Ginny's love? Everyone knew she secretly loved Harry even when she denied it so forcefully. Harry admitted to me that Ginny had captured his heart, but he never told her how he felt. He knew it would be too painful for her to go through if he didn't make it out alive. I hated his way of thinking, but I was no better myself for hiding from Ron, so I kept my promise and didn't reveal his secret.
"You don't think he's coming back, do you?" Ginny whispered without turning around. Ron cleared his throat and rubbed his temples for a moment before answering.
"What do you expect me to think?" Ron asked with a quiver in his voice. Ginny turned slowly and met his gaze with her own. Her eyes were completely dry as if she felt no emotion whatsoever.
"I'm just not the sort of person who would give up so easily, that's all," Ginny replied and tucked her hair behind her ear. She didn't look upon her brother in anger, but more in understanding.
"Harry loves you!" I blurted out without thinking. A tear trickled down Ginny's face and I felt guiltier than I ever had in my life.
"I know he does, and I would know if he had left me," she told me and smiled as if she knew something the rest of the world didn't.
"He never told me anything about it! How do you know he loved Ginny?" Ron asked me in confusion. Ginny laughed and took her brother's hand. I stared in awe at her power to see past everything around her and remain somewhat normal.
"You great prat!" she yelled and hugged him tightly. I smiled at the pair of them and covered my mouth to keep from whimpering. Everything was making me overly emotional, or so I thought at the time. I should have realized that it was only natural to be bursting at the seams after something so life-altering.
"I still don't understand," Ron mumbled into his sister's hair. She released him from her hold and stared up at him with a glimmer in her chocolate brown eyes.
"First of all, Harry loves all of us and everything he knows at Hogwarts, so I must be included in there somewhere! But secondly, there was just something about the way he looked at me that told me what I needed to know. It's not hard to tell when someone cares about you, though... you two could be the exception to that statement!" Ginny explained and shook her head at her brother and myself.
I laughed for the first time in ages and silently thanked Ginny for being so calm under pressure. Ron blushed furiously and kissed my cheek lightly to reassure he now understood. The ease only lasted a moment unfortunately. I could tell that as time passed, Ginny was beginning to lose hope. She excused herself and informed her parents and us that she was going to take a walk around the castle. I respected her privacy fully and watched sadly as she walked away. I was glad that I wasn't Ginny Weasley at that point in time, and that made me feel even worse.
An hour later, everything around me fell back into slow motion. Harry came bursting through the doors of the hospital wing, bandaged and panting like crazy. I couldn't move from my spot. I felt frozen as I watched him cry with Ron and the others. I had given up hope too soon. Harry Potter had defeated the most dangerous wizard to ever exist, and had lived! He was only 17 years old! I fell to my knees and shook my head in disbelief. He was alive... and I knew everything was going to be okay.
I felt Harry's arms wrap around me and I cried into his shoulder. He laughed and I felt his body move up and down as he did so.
"Hermione! Hermione! He's gone Hermione! I did it!" he told me, the biggest smile on his face. I smiled back up at him and wiped a tear from my eye.
"I know! I know Harry! I thought... I thought..." I mumbled. He seemed not to pay attention to a word I was saying.
"I didn't even need your help this time..." he told me, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"You... git! You did so!" I screamed and began to punch him as many times as I could. He looked frantically around the room and his face dropped as he grabbed my hands.
"Where is she? She isn't...? Oh please tell me she made it Hermione! I can't lose her! I can't!" He pleaded with me. I squeezed his hands tighter and gave him the best smile I could muster.
"You didn't Harry. She's here! She's okay.... She took a walk around the castle... we have to find her!" I yelled determined as ever and kept hold of his hand.
I waved to Ron to make sure he knew I'd be back and dragged Harry to every room down the corridor. She had to be somewhere! I could tell Harry was beginning to get anxious. His hand was gripping my own so tightly, I thought my fingers would break off, but I didn't care. I knew exactly how he felt.
Finally I saw her brilliant red hair come into view. Harry slammed to a halt and stared down the corridor at her, frozen completely. She had her back to us and I watched as her body shook. I knew she must have been crying, and Harry felt that too. I let go of his hand and stayed where I was as he ran down the corridor towards her.
The sound of his feet must have snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned in time to see Harry pull her in for a deep kiss. When they broke apart, they didn't say a word. Ginny was grasping on to his robes, unwilling to lose him again. He held her face in his hands and whispered something to her I couldn't hear. I watched as Ginny mouthed 'I love you' and they kissed again.
Harry was finally receiving the love he always deserved, and Ginny was finally going to be able to sleep at night. It was a happily ever after I couldn't have been more pleased to witness. The way Ginny stared at him with love in her eyes made me think about everything around me in a new light.
Ginny never gave up on Harry, even when all the odds were against him. Not many people understood the tremendous amount of pain she went through to make sure he was loved the way she thought he should be. I knew at that moment that not all magic was printed in books. Some of it remained a secret, ready to surprise us when the time was right. I promised myself that I would love Ron exactly as they loved each other, because I knew that it was more important than anything else that would enter my life from that day on.
Ginny's love was a different sort of magic, and as eager as I've always been to learn something new, it was a lesson I never saw coming.