Chapter 18: Jealousy

"Janny…"

Janieve woke up and found Hermione and Ginny peering down at her. Her face lit up as brightly as her physical being allowed. Her body still felt weak but she was really happy to see visitors other than those from the Order. She had been staying in St. Mungo's over the past three days and all who had come to see her were people from the Order. She was thrilled to finally see her friends.

"Hermione! Ginny!" She squealed with delight.

"Look what we've brought you," Hermione said cheerfully. Janieve thought she sounded awfully like Mrs. Weasley. Ginny pulled out a box of chocolates and two books from the paper bag they had brought along with them. Janieve inspected the books. One was 'The Ancient Spells of The Unknown' and the other, 'Quidditch Super Star'.

"Brilliant!" shrieked Janieve. "You girls are amazing…" she muttered as she flipped the second book open. The book opened to the middle and staring back at Janieve was a picture of Harry. In the photo, he was sitting on his broomstick, a golden snitch held in his palm. He was smiling and waving with his free hand fanatically at her, his green almond shaped eyes sparkling with glee. The caption beneath it read "Harry Potter – The Next Seeker of The Century".

Hermione saw where Janieve's eye fell on and said immediately, "Harry, he had wanted to come but Dumbledore told him not to."

Janieve shook her head as she felt her tears threatening to fall over. She knew that Hermione was lying. How could Harry ever want to see her? He had wanted to kill her. He hated her because her mother had killed Sirius. Even Hermione and Ginny seemed to have realised it was a bad lie.

"Jan… He was really worried about you," Ginny said soothingly, "he's just too damn proud to admit it."

At this, Janieve could no longer hold back her tears. She allowed them to trickle down her cheeks. She felt Hermione slung her arms around her shoulders and drew her into a hug. Ginny sat on the other side and joined them in a group hug.

"It's alright Janny," she heard Hermione whispering in her ears, "he'll come around. He will come around."

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It was two more days of stay after Ginny and Hermione's visit before Janieve was allowed discharge. Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin had come to pick her up. Janieve was feeling apprehensive about going back to Grimmauld Place. Because of the change in circumstances, they had decided to forgo the plan of spending Christmas at The Burrow.

Twenty minutes later when they arrived at Grimmauld Place on foot, Janieve was so sick with apprehension she felt like throwing up. She forced herself to continue walking.

"Jan!"

Janieve looked up and saw Ginny running down the stairs. Hermione, Harry, Ron and the twins who were seated around the dining table looked up.

"Janny!" Hermione squealed.

Everyone else at the table just stared at her. Ron was still shooting her daggers. Harry went back to inspecting his fork on the table.

"Just in time!" said Mrs. Weasley who had just walked out of the kitchen and saw her. "Lunch is about to start."

Janieve looked at the hostile look Ron was shooting her and the awkward looks the twins were giving her, and said, "I'm not really hungry," and went up the stairs squeezing past Ginny.

She ran down the corridor to the room she had slept in over the summer. She flopped onto her twin size bed, laid face-down on the sheets and sobbed into her pillow quietly.

"Jan?"

Janieve quickly wiped her tears discreetly over her pillow.

"Jan," Hermione said as she sat down on the bed next to her. "Are you okay?"

Janieve rolled around to face Hermione, a fake smile fixed on her face. "I'm fine," she lied, and hoped her face told the same story.

Either it did, or Hermione had chosen not to bring it up. She merely said, "That's good."

"So, what have you guys been up to?" Janieve asked casually.

"Nothing much. Cleaning up the place. Can you believe this place still has so much to clean up despite a year of doing so?" Hermione said. Janieve gave a fake forceful laugh.

"Look Janny, we've found a perfect room and set up a video viewing projector. There are big comfy couches and we bought all sorts of videos and snacks. Would you care for a muggle treat tonight?"

Janieve just stared at Hermione. The offer was too tempting. Sitting on the couch, eating chips and watching muggle shows, how many times had she done that back in her home? On the other hand, the thought of spending the night with people who did not welcome her, it was too daunting for her.

"I don't think…"

"Don't answer me now okay? Just think about it and if you feel like it, you're always welcome. Well, I can't say the same for Ron but who cares about that git." Hermione told her.

For the first time, Janieve looked at Hermione carefully. Hermione was usually quite pretty but now she had looked waned. Had Hermione been quarrelling with Ron over her? She wondered.

"Don't worry Jan. If Ron is going to behave like a five year old, I think maybe I was wrong to even consider him a potential partner," Hermione said, reading her mind.

"Hermione," Janieve said gratefully, "I've never even been close to you before. I was with Harry most of the time. But the person who trusted me most turned out to be you, not him. I can't even begin to describe how much I appreciate you."

Hermione just smiled at her. Shortly, she left the room to let Janieve sleep. But Janieve was too awake to sleep. She had been sleeping so much in the hospital that she thought it would be impossible for her to sleep at all for three days straight. Instead, she had lied on the bed and thought about the events that had happened over the past half of a year. She had thought meeting Harry had been the best thing that had happened to her. But now, it had been the source of her misery. She wouldn't have minded the hostile looks Ron was shooting her. But it was Harry's nonchalance that had upset her so. He had acted like she did not exist even when she had been a mere few feet away from him.

"Janny, it's time for dinner," said Hermione. She and Ginny had suddenly appeared at the door.

"I'm not hungry," Janieve lied.

"Don't be silly, of course you're hungry," Ginny said and the two walked in with plates and bowls of sandwiches, salads and pies. "We've brought them up."

"You're right, I'm famished." Janieve announced cheerfully. Her friends had been so considerate of her feelings, how could she have the heart to reject their good intentions. Especially when her stomach was protesting so violently.

"Good. We were starting to wonder if you've become anorexic," quipped Ginny. The three girls began attacking the food. To be exact, Janieve was the only one who had actually fit that description.

"So movie?" Hermione asked as she took a piece of the chocolate pie. Janieve was going to say no when a loud crack was heard. Fred and George suddenly appeared in the middle of their room.

"Fred! George! We could have been changing!" Hermione reprimanded.

"That's a risk we're willing to take," they said together, which earned them a nasty look from Hermione.

"Anyway, we're here to escort you to the screen room," said Fred.

"Ron and Harry are getting impatient," added George.

"Well, we're just about to go," said Hermione and she looked at Janieve pointedly.

"I uh, I think I'll pass," she said.

"Walker says she's passing," Fred told George in mock alarm.

"Then I think I'll pass too," George replied sadly.

"Me too. Where's the fun without her?" Fred said dramatically.

"Me three," piped Ginny.

"Me four," said Hermione.

"Guys!" exclaimed Janieve but she was laughing genuinely.

"Well, we just want you to know that we do not think like the two gits in the screen room now," said Fred, suddenly serious.

"Yeah, we know you are a good person, or you wouldn't be so willing to try our new experiments," added George.

"Come on Janieve," Ginny urged.

"Alright alright I'll go." Janieve said defeatedly but inwardly she was smiling happily.

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Harry had been shocked to see Janieve joined them at the screen room. Not angry, just shocked. Afterall, she had been hiding in her room ever since she came back from St. Mungo's Hospital. He could not blame her for hiding though. The way he had treated her the past month was proof of how lousy a boyfriend he had been. Then he reminded himself that he was no longer her boyfriend.

Harry had not meant to ignore her like he had. He had wanted desperately to visit her when she was in the hospital. He had been so worried about her he had barely eaten. But his ego was too big, bigger than he was willing to admit. First he had been angry with her for… He didn't even remember what he was angry for. For her keeping her mother's identity from him? Or just the fact that her mother was an evil dark witch who had killed Sirius? All had seemed too trivial to blame her. It was not her fault that she had a vile for a mother.

But now, the anger had been mixed with shame. He had tried to kill the girl he cared the most about. What kind of sick person was he? Even though he had been acting on Voldermort's accord, he had not been able to forgive himself. With all these mixed feelings, Harry had found it easier to simply not talk about it. And that had meant, ignoring Janieve.

"Are we there yet?"

They were watching Shrek 2 and Janieve was laughing uncontrollably into Fred's shoulder. Harry felt a twinge of jealousy. Harry had not thought it was possible to feel so many emotions towards one person at the same time until that moment. Hermione had once chided Ron and him for having the emotional range of a teaspoon and now Harry finally understood what she had meant.

Well, Fred is good, Harry thought. He was older, funnier, and less dangerous to hang out with relative to Harry. Janieve should be happy with him. But somehow, that thought had not comfort him at all.