Dinner was marvellous, as always. Mrs. Weasley had done her best in creating all of Harry's favourite foods, and the family kept up a lively conversation while they consumed the roast chickens, potatoes and greens, salad and treacle tarts. Harry very nearly forgot about the writings he had found in the living room, and Ginny was reminded of them every time she looked at the green-eyed boy.

She didn't know what she was going to do with her scribe work. How she would tell Harry, she had no idea. Even just looking at him at his happiest showed his scars from last year. Ron and Hermione thankfully thought of it as little as possible, and it was rarely mentioned, although Ginny thought it should be talked about once in a while.

Ginny stared dreamily down at her plate during a part of conversation that did not include her, pondering out her next few paragraphs on her personal project.

His uncle Vernon and family unfortunately heard the racket, but were foiled, and Harry Potter, along with companion Ron Weasley and drivers Fred and George Weasley managed to escape back to the Burrow.

The rest of summer passed by easily and lazily for Harry, with some unfortunate and amusing moments with Ron's younger sister, Ginny (I am trying to be impersonal, shh!). School started almost like any other, with a magnificent entrance, namely, by way of flying car. Yes, folks, unfortunately Harry and Ron missed the train, and took the family Ford (the same he was rescued in) and flew it into the Whomping Willow of Hogwarts. Said car turned wild and ran (drove) into the Forbidden Forest. Class happened, Lockhart happened. Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, Five time winner of Witch Weekly's best smile award, author of several fantastic best-selling books, and finest dresser in all of England became our DADA (Defence Against the Dark Arts) teacher. According to Ron, the best class they had was when the lilac-robed professor released a cage full of Cornish Pixies in the classroom. The lesson: Never release Cornish pixies into a classroom full of second year students.

Harry later began to believe he was schizophrenic, as he continually heard strange voices that nobody else could hear, speaking words like 'rip… tear… shred… bleed…' He attended the death-day party of Sir Nicholas (a.k.a Nearly headless Nick) and discovered that yes, the Chamber of Secrets had indeed been opened. His Quidditch game wasn't going as well either. By this time Malfoy had bought himself a way onto the Slytherin House Team, by purchasing brand new Nimbus two thousand and one brooms. Ron attempted a curse, and it backfired, causing him to burp slugs for a whole afternoon. Oliver Wood continually raged and ranted and drilled the team to be their best, and nearly managed to win the Quidditch Cup, but was foiled by Harry Potter's running off to save the school again. This time, in particular a younger sister of his best friend, Ginny Weasley. Moi.

Ginny shut her eyes at the sudden flood of memories from her first year. She had never been able to forget that horrific moment when Riddle took her down to the Chamber to reel her hero in. Yes, he was her hero. And it was all her fault that she had put him in danger in the first place. If she had only known before about that stupid diary… She still couldn't write in a diary. Her mother forbid it, and she literally could not force herself to write her feelings. Harry was the one who managed to get to her, while Ron was playing with rocks and making sure Lockhart wasn't getting himself into more trouble. Harry was the one who came in and fought the Basilisk, using one of its sharp poisonous fangs (that had only just tried to kill him) to destroy the little book that caused the whole caboodle. She was in debt to him for life, and she knew it. Worst, she was beginning to realise she might actually…

No. She wouldn't even think it.

Harry was quite oblivious to the exchange in Ginny's mind, to the sudden tears welling in her eyes, as she bent her red head towards her plate to eat. Harry's green eyes were sparkling with laughter at a joke Gred (I mean Fred) had just told them, and he managed to keep his laughter around him… Until dessert.

Mrs. Weasley called Ginny to help clear the dinner dishes before dessert was brought in, and Harry suddenly noticed Ginny's still face, her shining eyes, her sad expression. As he noticed this change, Ginny looked up, and their eyes locked for a moment. Ginny's eyes, Harry noticed, were brown, with flecks of green and gold, rimmed with a black circle. Gorgeous eyes, in fact, to look into, to get lost in…

Ron nudged him, grinning at a joke he had just made, and Harry broke the contact to grin at his friend, silently muttering in frustration. When he looked back again, Ginny was gone.

Harry's eyes spellbound Ginny. Even while he was looking at something else, they still captivated her, and while directly looking into them, that captivation intensified ten fold. As soon as his eyes released her from their grip, she dashed away, frightened yet yearning. Her mother barely glanced at her as she ordered Ginny to put the candles on the cake and set it on the table in front of Harry, while she gathered all the presents to be opened after dessert.

"Oh, and Ginny, be a dear and tidy up the living room before we all troop in there. I haven't been able to go in there with all this cooking and fuss."

"Yes, Mum."

Ginny trotted into the living room, hearing the sudden bursts of laughter and conversation continuing in the dining area. She spied her papers, and snatched them up. Funny… They weren't in this order before… Ginny rifled through them, but found nothing else wrong or amiss. She ran upstairs to put them in her room then returned and replaced everything back to their proper position in the room before returning to the dinning area for her share of cake and after dinner drinks (hot chocolate for the kids).

Hermione tugged Ginny to a spot beside her, and whispered in her ear,

"What's the matter, Ginny? You look flustered."

Ginny grimaced. She'd forgotten how perceptive her friend was. "Nothing is the matter. I just noticed something a bit out of place. I'll tell you about it later."

Harry noticed Ginny coming back into the room looking slightly confused and worried, and flushed as he remembered the papers he had read in the living room. He must not have replaced them as well as he had thought. He didn't see Hermione whispering to Ginny, but he did notice when they left together. And he definitely noticed the glazed look Ron gave at Hermione's retreating back. He shook his head in amused wonderment and grinned, then nudged his friend.

"Fancy going after her, mate?"

Ron jerked back to a normal appearance, and pretended to brush off his robes trying to hide the fact his eyes were tomato red. "Don't know what you're talking about, Harry."

Harry winked at him and whispered out the corner of his mouth, "of course you do, you git. Just ask her out already. She's your best friend, and as YOUR best friend, I'm getting awful tired of you two dancing around each other like a pair of fencers!"

Ron ignored him pointedly and began a conversation with George on the joke shop.

Harry sighed, but was immediately 're-entertained' by Mrs. Weasley calling for the girls to come down again to watch Harry open his presents.

Once the girls appeared, they trooped into the newly straightened living room and collapsed around the room, Harry being squeezed in on the couch in between Ron and Ginny. Hermione was on Ron's other side, and George was on Ginny's other side.

As he unwrapped presents, thanking and marvelling over the gifts, (a book on Seekers, 'Top Seekers From The Beginning' from Hermione, a Chudley Cannons flag from Ron, and useful sensible things from the rest of the Weasleys..) Harry unwrapped his gift from the twins gingerly, revealing samples from their joke shop. Last present that dropped into his lap was wrapped in red and gold and had a slightly messy 'To Harry, from Ginny' on the wrapping. He unwrapped it carefully, and luckily not too many people were watching by now. Out rolled… a ball. Harry blinked, and Ginny looked at his facial expression in amusement.

"It's a Game Sphere. New made, actually." Ginny continued watching Harry's face as he attempted to process the information.

"It's a what, and what does it do?" Harry was now in perpetual confusion.

"You name a game, and it … I guess the only right word is transforms into the game you called it to be. It's just a two player though. Any higher is still tricky for the makers. Anyway, this one has all manner of games on it. Just ask it for the full list… like this."

Ginny took the ball from Harry and stared into it for a moment, then said clearly, "Game Sphere list". Immediately Harry saw words in a flowing script float then disappear to be replaced by more words. He couldn't tell from his angle, and Ginny was hunched over it. Once the words faded away completely, Ginny blinked, leaned back, and handed the ball back to Harry. It was clear once more.

"That's how, anyway. Just name the game you want to play and it will form."

Harry looked at the ball back to her. Gathering his courage, (after all, he was a Gryffindor) he opened his mouth …

"Would you-"

"Hey, mate! Whatcha got there?" Ron bounded closer to look at the orb in Harry's hands. "Hey neat! You got him one of those Game ball thingies! Neat! Care to have a go at a game, Harry?"

Harry closed his mouth, his eyes, and screwed up his face in frustration. Then he opened his eyes and sighed. Ginny should be the first. The Gryffindor Lion loomed in his mind, and so he reopened his mouth and managed to say without stuttering,

"Actually, I was thinking Ginny should be the first, since she gave it to me."

Ron blinked a few times at this, glancing from the ball, to Harry, to Ginny. Both subjects of his blinking eyes were slightly red in the cheeks, while the ball remained clear. Ron opened and closed his mouth a few times, then managed to gasp out "Sure, yes, right, of course…" and turned away to tease Hermione about her gift to Harry. "A book, honestly! It's getting a bit repetitive, isn't it?"

Ginny nearly refused to meet Harry's eyes, until she figured it would be terribly impolite for the boy who just faced down his best friend to play with her. She glanced up into Harry's green eyes, and noticed they were focused on her, with a mild confusion and surprise showing in them. He cleared his throat.

"Well then… What do you want to play?"

A/N: not exactly a cliffie, but an interesting end to a chapter nonetheless. I'm glad my reviewers like my writing…

I am K: thanks, but yours is also great. (I'd have to say we're on the same level).

Gryphonmistress: I updated! Yay! Thanks for reviewing

ElizabethMM: Thanks! I'm glad you like my writing, but if you marry it, then I may have to divorce it… cuz I'm married to it now. :P

Iplis: I may be a vampire wench, but I like cliff hangers. They're a writers best friend on Fanfiction!

NAy: okay, I know who you are now. I'm slow, but I can be fast! Honest! slow….

Nightwing: thanks for reviewing! Either you haven't checked this story lately, cuz I've added three other chapters since you did review.. or you're just reading… ;)

Thanks again!

Sea-my-eyes, the hyper vampire wench who controls this Harry Potter Dimension…. Muahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaa … coughs and chokes