Chapter 10- Funny Feelings

Hermione had been right about the cloaks—there was an unusually strong breeze that made their walk to Hagrid's hut a little longer than normal. Harry realized that they hadn't seen Hagrid in a long time, seeing as all three decided not to take Care of Magical Creatures this year (Hagrid had understood, knowing that now was a time to focus on their more intense N.E.W.T. classes).

"Do you think Grawp is still in there?" Hermione asked, peering off into the woods of the Forbidden Forest. Harry shrugged and Ron made a weird sound with his mouth; he didn't seem particularly fond of the idea of meeting Grawp.

"Well, if he's not, let's hope he's somewhere safe," Harry concluded, knocking on Hagrid's door. They heard the loud footsteps of their former Professor, and the door finally opened.

"Harry! Hermione, Ron!" Hagrid exclaimed, looking extremely delighted at their appearance. "Come in!

The trio entered and relaxed at the heat that was dissipating from Hagrid's fireplace. It still looked the same as the last time they had been in there, but slightly messier—Hagrid had obviously been busy.

"How have your classes been, Hagrid?" Hermione asked, placing her cloak on the back of one of his rather large chairs. Hagrid shrugged, rolling his neck to crack it. The cracks resonated throughout the hut, making all three cringe.

"S'alrigh', bu' I suppose I'm lucky—go' a lo' less Slytherins this year, no need to beh worryin' 'bout false accusa'ions."

"Yeah, a lack of Slytherins anywhere does make for a good change of pace," Ron added. Hermione sighed and crossed her arms over her chest, her foot tapping rapidly. Ron poked one of Hagrid's biscuits with his finger. "How long have these been out?"

"Jus' an hour or so," Hagrid said nonchalantly as he began to put cups and plates on the table. Ron jerked his hand back and sent Harry a really disgusted look. Harry held in a laugh as best as he could, and nodded in thanks as Hagrid poured him some tea.

"Have you been doing anything for…well, you know," Harry asked, remembering that anyone could be listening. Hagrid's eyes widened slightly, but he shook his head.

"Nah, Dumbledore…he said I should take a break for eh few months."

"Well, after all that time…er," Hermione looked for the right words, "with your family, I suppose you do need the break."

"Hey! Tha' reminds me; would you like to see Grawp?"

"No!" the three exclaimed, a bit too eagerly. Hagrid frowned and they immediately noticed their mistake. Hermione was quick to cover up, "It's just that, we don't want any of those new security trolls catching us!"

"Bu' you'll be with me…" Hagrid countered, looking slightly suspicious.

"Yeah, but really, do you want those trolls snooping around?" Ron asked, picking up a biscuit casually. "Because, you know they'd want to see what you were doing."

"Righ' you are, Ron," Hagrid said, seemingly dismissing the matter. "Oh! I saw yer brother Charlie this mornin'!"

Ron's eyes lit up and he dropped the biscuit (it made a loud 'clunk'), "How is he? Does he look like sh--"

"Don't say it, Ron," Hermione scolded before he could curse. Ron ignored her though, as Hagrid laughed.

"I jus' saw 'im for a bi', looked really tired—but he managed to insul' Fred…or, er, George."

Ron let out a roar of a laugh, looking immensely relieved. Harry was quite relieved that Charlie was okay, and that his vision had managed to save his life. He had absolutely no idea what he'd do if one of the Weasleys were seriously hurt.

"Your mum wasn't happy, o' course," Hagrid added, making Ron frown. "She demanded tha' he no' be sen' ou' again."

"Charlie's not going to let her do that," Ron said with a grimace. "They'll be fighting about it for who knows how long…"

"But yeh mothah will pu' 'im through hell before he does," Hagrid laughed, slapping his knee. "Now, when you star' askin' to join…"

"Well, she knows that he's training with the D.A., so his skills will be honed," Hermione interjected, though she didn't seem too pleased with the subject. "It's almost like Auror training, but without the advanced difficultly.

"Or Death Eater training," Ron mumbled, making Harry wince. Hagrid looked a bit confused, but Hermione turned on him and glared.

"Everyone is allowed a chance to join, Ron," Hermione said through gritted teeth. Harry noticed that her eyes had narrowed almost into slits, and she was glaring at Ron as if he was the vilest thing she had ever seen.

Ron wasn't going to let her get away with the glare, though, and he shot an equally vicious look right back.

"I know that, Hermione. But when it comes to foul creeps like him, I think we could make an exception!"

Harry and Hagrid shared a concerned glance, but Harry knew what he had to do.

"Listen, no one likes the idea of Nott coming to meetings, but we can't stop him, we're not allowed." He looked between the two, Hermione looking smug and Ron looking livid. "But, that doesn't mean we have to be overly nice to him—as long as he doesn't try anything, all we have to do is deal with him in once a week. And you know people are going to be paying extra attention to him."

Ron seemed to calm down slightly, but Harry knew this anger was more towards Nott than allowing a Slytherin to join the D.A. He would have to learn how to control his anger, for the sake of not getting hurt.

"Would you look at tha'!" Hagrid exclaimed, peering out his window. "That's snow I'm seein'!"

"Snow?" Hermione groaned, standing up and pulling her cloak tight to her body. "I knew it was going to get cold!"

"Yes, Hermione," Ron said, almost like a drone. He stood up as well, and Harry followed.

"I guess we'll be going, Hagrid, don't want to get caught in the snow," Harry said, ignoring the tension between his two friends. "We'll be sure to visit more often."

"Tha' you should!" Hagrid said, grinning widely. "Ge' back to the school—don't wan' to ge' sick for the Hogsmeade weekend!"

The three said their goodbyes and hurried out of his hut, across the field, and through the great oak doors.

......

It seemed that the Professors liked to make Hogsmeade weekends oh-so-much-more enjoyable. They poured on the work all week, making all of the students study extra hard, as if they had to earn the damn visit. The all day trip did feel like a bit of reward, after the work of the week, but Harry would still prefer about half of the amount of notes he had to take.

It was Friday night, and even though they had been to Hogsmeade numerous times before, the Gryffindors still seemed a bit excited about going. It took a long time for the Prefects to get everyone up to bed, and Ron was still with Hermione, trying to get some upset Second Years to calm down and head up to bed.

Harry was changing into his pajamas, and on the other side of the room, Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan were talking excitedly about the Hogsmeade visit. Neville didn't pay any attention to the conversation; he was looking oddly nervous and was trying to decide which sweater he should wear tomorrow; about five sweaters were floating near his bed, and he was standing behind each and staring at his reflection in the mirror.

"You're going with Parvati?" Seamus Finnegan exclaimed loudly, jumping off of his bed. Neville looked away from his floating sweaters and looked at Harry as Dean preened in front of the mirror next to his bed. He certainly looked very happy about his date for the Hogsmeade visit the next day.

"Yep. And she was so happy that I asked her," Dean responded, waggling his eyebrows at his best friend. Seamus hooted, fake-punching Dean in the arm a few times.

"I know you've had your eye on her for a while," the Irish boy said, looking extremely happy for his friend. Harry and Neville shared an annoyed look; had Dean been interested in Parvati while he was with Ginny? "Glad you finally got the nerve."

"The nerve for what?"

Seamus squeaked and jumped slightly, startled at the entrance of Ron, who was coming into the dorm. Harry and Neville, both knowing that Ron was still very annoyed at Dean for breaking up with Ginny so publicly and nastily, made their way towards their beds, standing so Dean couldn't see them. They were able to hear every word, though; this confrontation would be too interesting to ignore.

"Er…" Dean began, sounding a lot less smug. Ron raised a single eyebrow, looking very much like a Prefect should. Harry watched through his curtains as Dean straightened his shoulders as if he was ready to take a blow, "I'm going with Parvati to Hogsmeade, is all—Seamus was impressed that I asked her out."

Seamus didn't manage to become as composed as Dean and he looked like a fish out of water, his hands moving in odd gesticulations.

"She's…she's just so bloody hard to get close to, you know?" the sandy-haired boy commented, grinning meekly.

Ron, still looking as if he didn't believe a word his two roommates had said, shrugged slightly and made his way toward his bed.

"You'd have a better time with my sister, but you kind of messed that up, didn't you?"

Harry and Neville, who were both in the process of climbing into bed, froze in place. This wasn't going to be pretty.

"Your sister and I had a disagreement," Dean said through clenched teeth, his euphoria completely diminished. Ron clicked his tongue, changing into his pajamas.

"No, you didn't agree with the Quidditch team's decision, and you took it out on her," Ron explained, looking at Dean as if he were quite stupid. The Prefect smirked triumphantly as the other boy fumed, clenching his fists.

"That's not all of it!" Dean said with his jaw shut tight. Seamus turned purple and backed away into the bathroom. Ron faced him, glaring daggers.

"If that was the 'final straw', Dean, I suggest you go to some anger management classes," Ron said smoothly, crossing his arms. Harry and Neville held in laughs; Ron, talking about anger management?

"You just think she's perfect because she's your sister!" Dean shouted back. He was clearly not afraid of Ron's glares. Dean was almost as tall as Ron, and his shoulders much broader. Harry wondered briefly why he didn't seem to have grown as much as his roommates.

"Oh, I know she's a brat," Ron said dismissively, "but she couldn't have done anything to deserve being humiliated!"

"You know what? Forget it!" Dean yelled, finally exasperated with the argument. "You lot are all alike, there's no point trying to tell my side of the bloody story!"

"There's no point because everyone knows you're wrong," Ron said simply, and with that, he climbed into his bed and slammed the curtains shut, almost pulling them off their rungs.

Harry cringed and closed his curtains as well, listening to Dean huff and Seamus apologize. The candlelight went out soon after, and it wasn't long before there were soft snores resonating throughout the room.

He didn't feel like sleeping, though, and for some reason Harry's mind was occupied with the argument Ron and Dean had gotten into. He wasn't sure, but there was something about it that had bothered him immensely.

Harry knew he didn't like that Dean was pining over Parvati while with Ginny, that was just uncalled for. What was wrong with Ginny? Not much

She was smarter than Parvati, Harry was sure; after all, she had been named Prefect. Ginny knew how to behave around boys—hell, she grew up with six of them; she's dealt with the best of them. She wasn't overwhelmingly girly, she would never make him sit and read poetry 'just to do it.'

Ginny played Quidditch! What bloke wouldn't want a girl who could fly with the best of them? She straightened you out when you were out of line, but she always made sure that your feelings weren't hurt. Adding the fact that she was really funny and always knew how to cheer you up, Ginny Weasley was quite a catch.

Hell, she was pretty too. She wasn't a Veela, no, but she had a very nice smile, and her eyes weren't just brown, they had flicks of green and yellow in them too. Her red hair was so different than those of the other girls in the school, and she had always had such nice styles to put her long locks in…

Harry sat up, eyeing his surroundings carefully.

"Long locks?" he thought, scratching his head. Where had that come from? Actually, where had all those thoughts come from? Ginny was his friend, she was Ron's little sister! How could Harry have thought up such an expanse list of good qualities for her like that? Only a bloke who thinks about a girl not like a friend can do that.

His eyes widened, and suddenly an image of Ginny in her blue bathing suit flashed in front of his face. Harry clamped a hand to his forehead, feeling as if he were going to be sick. He fell back to his pillow, shaking his head slowly.

"Oh hell," he muttered. Did he like Ginny Weasley?

Harry wasn't exactly sure. Well, she had never made his stomach flip like Cho once had, but then again, she did make him blush and stutter a lot, for some unknown reasons. Harry had barely noticed his reactions to her; they had just felt so natural. He remembered his violent thoughts toward Neville, after he had found the boy staying up with Ginny that night after the Quidditch game. Had that been…jealousy?

His mind swirled, and then it all started to fall into place. He had felt uncomfortable at the wedding because of Dean and because of his subconscious feelings towards Ginny. She had walked down the aisle and even danced with him…how could Harry not have realized that the warmth in his stomach was because he was with her?

When she had cried on his shoulder after Dean had broken her heart…Harry had just wrapped his arms around her and held her close, wishing that she never again feel such pain. You don't wish something like that for just a friend. You wish that for a good friend, someone you know is going to be by your side for a very long time…

"Oh hell," Harry whispered again, rolling to his side. This was not good. It wasn't good at all. First, she was Ron's sister. His only sister. The only Weasley girl in generations. How was he going to deal with that?

Just like you dealt with that dragon, and that troll, and that guy named Voldemort…

Harry scoffed. Second, he didn't know if her feelings were reciprocated. Ginny had been staring at Dean and Parvati with a very sad look on her face. Was that because she still cared for Dean? Did she need time, space?

You could take her to Hogsmeade…the little voice piped, again. Harry looked thoughtful, and contemplated the idea. He could definitely make it seem platonic, seeing as Ron and Hermione, as sixth year Prefects, had so much more to take care of. Harry could simply ask to hang out with her, for the sake of not being lonely.

Yes…that's what he'll do. Harry smiled into his pillow, wrapping his arms around it. He knew he felt something for Ginny, if he liked her or not…well, he'd figure that out tomorrow.

......

The next morning, like all first Hogsmeade weekends, the common room was quite hectic. Third years were bouncing off the walls, second years were crying, the first years were looking on in interest because of all the stories they'd heard, and the other students…they were just mingling and chatting, voices that usually aren't heard that early on a Saturday morning.

Harry had put slightly more effort into his attire, finding the green jumper Mrs. Weasley had sewn for him last Christmas. It still fit, and he supposed he should believe the woman when she said it brought out his eyes. Not that Harry was exactly sure what that meant…

He made his way into the common room, immediately spotting Ron, who was looking flustered with a cluster of first years around him. They were tiny and speaking in very high-pitched voices; it was obvious that Ron wanted to hit one of them.

Ron, though, was not the Weasley that Harry was looking for. It wasn't hard to find Ginny; he'd always be able to spot that red hair she and all of her family had. It was getting to her that was the problem. Harry poked and prodded some random Gryffindors to make his way across the room and towards Ginny, who was watching with quiet mirth as Ron tended to a bawling second year.

"Hey," Harry said, not knowing anything more eloquent to start up the conversation. Ginny looked up, smiling brightly at him. He felt his face flush and inwardly groaned. Why did he have to have those thoughts last night?

"It's quite a sight, Ron with children," Ginny giggled, looking away as Ron sent a rather vicious glare her way. She pulled her feet up into the chair she was sitting in and seemed intent on watching the entire scene ensue.

"Yeah, I reckon' he'll have to ask your mum for advice a lot," Harry added, not really comfortable with talking about children. He then remembered he had come over for a reason, though really, even if he wasn't going to ask her to escort him, Ginny was quite fun to have a conversation with. "Er, can I ask you something?"

He felt his ears burn red as she turned and looked at him questioningly; he was glad that his hair fell long enough and covered them from her view.

"What?"

"Er…well," he began, realizing that this wasn't very easy. He didn't want to seem obvious, but then, he didn't want her just walking off in the middle of it to join other people because she thought the 'date' was so relaxed. "I realized just last night, rather stupidly actually, that Ron and Hermione are going to be on patrols most of the time at Hogsmeade…so…I was wondering if…well, if I could spend the day with you?"

Her brown eyes brightened and was that…? Well, maybe, it could be a blush! That made Harry's heart leap; he had done something right! And doing it hadn't killed him! Damn, Voldemort would be a piece of cake, compared to this! She didn't laugh, she didn't seem disgusted, this was good--this was such a good sign!

"Of course, Harry! I'm sure Neville wouldn't mind if you tagged along."

It felt like he had fallen off of his Firebolt and was now falling very fast and from very high up. His face contorted into something that must've looked like confusion, because Ginny put out a hand, resting it on his. "Oh, Neville asked me to go to Hogsmeade with him, last week. You know, after the Quidditch match and the Charlie thing?"

"O-oh," he stuttered, pushing his glasses up his nose. "Y-yeah, I guess that's fine. Sure, why not? It'll be…fun."

Ginny grinned and nodded, looking away and beckoning Neville over. He complied, and Neville seemed very happy that Harry was joining them for the day, maybe too happy about it, in Harry's opinion. Harry realized the reason behind Neville's search for a sweater the night before, and he wondered how he couldn't have figured out that the boy had something planned for the next day.

Neville asked Ginny to Hogsmeade. And apparently, he wanted to look really nice. So, unless Harry was mistaken…Neville fancied Ginny.

He groaned inwardly. That would be horrible to go after a girl that one of your best mates fancies. It would've been like Ron asking Cho on a date last year, not that Ron would ever do that, for reasons besides loyalty…

He'd just have to forget about it, then. Forget about ever fancying Ginny, or ever thinking about her in a way that was not very friendly. Should be easy enough, since the two had never had a relationship that surpassed that of friends.

But his heart ached, and it ached a lot. Even if things with him and Ginny didn't work out in the end, it would've been nice to try and see if they would work. He'd never get to find out if his feelings for her were true, and that, Harry believed, was the worst part of Neville fancying her.

Harry knew there had been a reason why he wanted to kick Neville that night.