My Dark in Lighter Times
Chapter One
Ginny Weasley sighed and looked out the window. This summer was just like every other summer before it since she had begun attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her brother's friends, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter, had come to stay at the Burrow (Ginny's home). And, like usual, she was ignored unless it was convenient for Harry, Ron, or Hermione to talk to her – though they did not ignore her on purpose.
Ginny noticed that they were paying Quidditch outside. She decided to go watch them since she was nearly falling asleep of sheer boredom. When she got outside, she noticed that Hermione was sitting under a tree, watching her two best friends fly around in the air. She smiled up at Ginny as she approached.
"Hey Hermione," Ginny said.
"Hey Ginny," Hermione replied. "Sit down with me. We need to talk."
Ginny stood there for a moment, wondering what Hermione wanted to talk about. Could it be about Harry? Ginny had had the biggest crush on Harry since before she even met him. Slightly nervous, Ginny sat down beside Hermione underneath the tree.
"Ginny, I know that sometimes Harry, Ron, and I ignore you, and I am truly sorry for that. You are a wonderful girl and you do not deserve to be ignored. Please forgive us. It is just that we all know each other so well and we have shared so many experiences with each other....I hope you can understand. I really think that you should be a part of our group, but Ron insists that being around the three of us would somehow corrupt your mind and you would want to gallantly throw yourself at trouble."
The girls laughed for a long time; Ron always was overprotective of his little sister. While they were laughing, the boys landed and headed over.
"What is so funny?" Harry asked, flashing a smile.
"Oh, nothing really, we were just having a little heart to heart," Hermione replied, returning his smile.
Suddenly, a loud voice rang out: "Children, come in for supper!"
The children immediately headed for the house; everybody knew better than to disobey Molly Weasley. Supper was delicious, as always. The family received a great shock when Percy showed up halfway during the meal. He looked absolutely terrible.
"My dear, what happened to you?" Molly asked, rising from her seat.
"I finally figured out where my loyalties lie...here with my family," he replied. Then his expression turned sour. "Fudge and Umbridge didn't like that too much, so they sent some people to rough me up...."
"Oh, my poor dear!" cried Molly, pulling him into a hug.
The rest of supper progressed normally after everyone had welcomed Percy home.
Later that night, Ginny sat alone in her room, reflecting on the rather eventful day. Hermione, whom she had always admired, had offered her an apology for leaving her out. This meant a lot to Ginny; Hermione Granger could become a good friend after all. A voice suddenly interrupted her musings.
"Harry James Potter!" she heard Hermione say a few doors down.
Wondering what the two of them were doing upstairs during Percy's welcome home party, Ginny began to walk down the hall. She had not attended the party because she felt that, although Percy was family, he would always be a git. When she reached the door from which the voice had come, she cautiously peeked inside.
What she saw at that moment would change her life forever.
Harry had Hermione backed into a corner. They were laughing, then Hermione threw her arms around Harry's neck. Harry leaned in and kissed her.
Ginny turned away with tears in her eyes. She ran back to her room and slammed the door. Hermione Granger would never be her friend. Hermione Granger was now the enemy. Ginny then felt an emotion course through her body that she had never felt in its entirety before: hatred.
But what surprised her most was the fact that she liked it.
After calming down a bit, Ginny decided that she would pay. While she was at it, she would make Harry pay, too. They had just done the unthinkable: they had hurt Ginny Weasley's feelings.
Ginny began to think of ways to make them pay. She realized that she would need some outside help. And she knew exactly whom to contact.
With a smirk on her face, Ginny began to write a letter.