DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Hedwig's first stop was Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes in Diagon Alley. Hedwig swooped into the shop and deftly turned and flew into one of the back rooms where Fred and George were standing at a counter eating sandwiches and mixing ingredients in a small cauldron.
Fred looked up to see Hedwig flying toward him. "Looks like we've got a message from Harry. That's new."
"Children these days," George said without looking up from the cauldron. "They never write."
Hedwig landed, and waited for Fred to untie their letter. Once it was off, she gave a single hoot and took off again, flying out of the shop on her way to Grimmauld Place.
"It's... Oh this is priceless." Fred tossed the postcard over to his brother, and nearly fell off his chair as the first wave of laughter hit him. George responded similarly, but recovered fairly quickly. He reached into his pocket to retrieve his Obscuring Orb.
"No!" Fred shouted as he grabbed George's hand. "Have you lost your mind?" He grabbed the postcard from George and rummaged through one of the drawers for a moment. Triumphantly, he pulled a single sheet of blank parchment from it and sat back down next to George.
He carefully placed the parchment over the postcard and tapped it with his wand. Slowly, the scene from the postcard seemed to flow into the parchment, making an exact copy. It even moved like the postcard.
"Willoughby's Cloning Parchment. A marvelous invention," Fred said with a smile.
"Brilliant," George agreed.
George finally revealed Harry's letter and started reading it. He passed the letter to Fred, who was still chuckling over the scene on the postcard.
"Harry wants one of his favors," he announced.
"Figured he would," Fred replied.
"Might be a little expensive."
"It won't be a problem," Fred said as he scanned the letter. "That postcard is worth a fortune."
"You suppose he fancies our little Ginny?" George said as he picked up the parchment copy.
"Hard to say," Fred answered. "I warned Moody about those Orbs. They get to know their users after a spell, start using bits and pieces of their thoughts. Completely random, usually. Anyway, Harry's practically family."
George nodded. "I guess, but I don't know if Ginny sees it that way."
With the softest ruffle of feathers Hedwig passed through the window and made a graceful landing on the table which had only recently been cleared of the evening meal. A number of Order members were present that night, but Ginny had still ate at the table with Ron and Hermione. They were sitting across from Lupin, Tonks, and Bill.
Everyone turned to stare at Harry's owl, dreading the news it might be bringing. Moody walked loudly toward the table and a few of the Order members at the table stood up. Ginny tried to back away as Hedwig hopped toward her, but then relaxed as Hedwig stopped in front of Remus Lupin and held out her leg.
"Er... what's that?" asked Ron as he cocked his head to try and see what the letter had been concealed as.
Lupin quickly untied the postcard, and looked at strangely. He looked up and a sharp bark of a laugh escaped his mouth. He looked away, covered his mouth and tried to pretend nothing happened, but he seemed to be quickly searching his pockets at the same time.
Bill leaned over, and his eyes darted quickly to Ginny. "What?" she asked defensively. Tonks grabbed the postcard, but dropped it and covered her mouth, as she too broke out laughing. Ginny and Hermione finally got a good look at it, but Ron was too far to see it clearly.
Ginny's eyes opened wide and she started to blush furiously. "I'll... er... I'll get my dad," she said and started walking to the fireplace.
"I'm right here!" Arthur said as Ginny strode past him. Lupin had given up searching and had snatched the postcard off the table.
"Was that a mermaid?" Ron asked, causing Ginny to whirl around. A number of other people were now curious and made their way to the end of the table to see what was going on.
"Erm... Yes, I believe so, Ron," Lupin said dismissively. "Hermione, you do have your Obscuring Orb with you?"
Hermione hopped out of her seat and tossed the small sphere to Lupin who immediately revealed the letter. Ginny slowly walked back to see what Harry had to say.
"Ah, of course!" Lupin said as he read the letter. "Relax, everyone, Harry's just wants Molly to pick up his things from Diagon Alley for him."
"What was up with the mermaid?" Ron asked suspiciously, "Why was everyone laughing?"
Tonks broke out laughing again. "She looked familiar—" she started to say, but stopped when she saw the look of desperate pleading on Ginny's face behind Ron. Bill's face went completely blank, and Lupin pretended to be concentrating on Harry's note.
"Familiar?" Ron said with some disbelief. "Where would you lot have all seen the same mermaid?"
"Prefects Bathroom," Bill said evenly as he started reading over Lupin's shoulder. This was followed by a number of people saying things like "Yes, that's what I thought," and "Of course, I thought she looked familiar." Tonks merely nodded her head vigorously. She still seemed to be fighting a battle with her laughter.
Ginny silently wished for the conversation to end, but Ron was giving them a dubious look. "So, when have you been in the Boys Prefects' Bathroom?" he asked Tonks, whose face turned an odd scarlet that clashed with her orange hair. Even Lupin started laughing as Tonks lamely tried to come up with a reason. She gave up, and instead turned back to Ron with her eyes narrowed and a mischievous grin.
"I think I'd be more interested in when Hermione has seen that mermaid."
Hermione's mouth dropped open. She had, of course, never seen the mermaid, since it was in the boys' bathroom. She didn't even know if it looked at all like the mermaid on the postcard. She was caught in her own lie, and now Ron was looking strangely at her.
Ginny tried to sit back down without Hermione noticing, but she failed and got an accusatory glare from the older witch. Ginny wished she could just disappear. She wanted to find her Mirror and yell at Harry for even thinking of sending off a letter that looked like that.
"Hermione, Ginny," Lupin began as he passed the letter for others to read. "Harry wants to know if you'll do him a favor."
Ginny nodded but Hermione made strange noise like a strangled laugh. "Harry wants a favor? After— And now..." She was smiling and shaking her head, but didn't look happy.
Lupin was smiling as well, but looked much more calm, "I know he'll appreciate it, and you know he'll return the favor."
The next morning the Weasley family (and Hermione) took the Floo to Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes in Diagon Alley. Fred and George were waiting to welcome them. They offered them tea, coffee, biscuits and fruit. Everyone turned them down, acting more like the offered food were poisoned than merely likely to make them glow purple or turn them into stoats.
"Told you they wouldn't do it," George whispered.
"Well I had to try, didn't I?" Fred responded quietly.
The lot of them left a moment later, leaving Lee Jordan alone to tend the store. Fred and George explained that they didn't expect the day to be that busy, and that they had some important errands to do anyway. They ate a relaxed but boisterous breakfast before preparing to start the days shopping.
After a trip to Gringott's, they headed directly for Flourish and Blotts, where they spent some time hunting down the small library of books that Hermione would need for the next year. She had been a little disappointed in only getting ten owls, two short of Percy and young Tom Riddle, but she refused to take Divination and had been quite distracted during her Astronomy examination.
Ron had done almost as well as Harry, but hadn't done nearly as well in Potions. Somehow he'd been given an OWL in Charms, though he could not figure out how. "I mean, it was a nice mushroom, but the plate was supposed to be cleaning itself," he told Hermione.
When they left, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were each carrying a bag of books. Ginny's bag was the lightest, since she would be re-using some of Ron's old books, and so she had offered to carry the few books that Harry needed. Molly gave Ron and Ginny some money and told them she'd meet up with them again at lunch. Bill gave Ginny an odd smile and then left with Molly, leaving the three of them with the twins.
As soon as Molly was out of sight, the twins grabbed Ron and Ginny and started leading them down the street.
"Hey! Where are we going?" Ron shouted as Fred steered him around a group of chattering old witches.
Ginny was a little more annoyed but less able to stop George from leading her away. "I'm coming!" she said with an annoyed voice, "You don't have to pull. I'll come along willingly."
The stopped in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies. Ron looked through the windows longingly. "You know, I'd have come with you if you simply told me you wanted to show me something." The twins gently pushed them in the store, letting Hermione follow.
"Oh, we're not here to show you anything."
"We saw the beaters you replaced us with last year—"
"—and we realized that you're going to need some protection—"
"—and Ginny's going to need a new broom."
Ron turned and scowled at them both. "Right, like either of us have money for that. Why can't she just use one of your brooms?"
"Sold 'em," George said, "We used the money to make the sign for the shop."
"So how are you going to get her a new broom?" Ron asked.
"We're not," Fred said simply.
Ron looked completely confused, but Ginny quickly followed Fred and George to the back counter.
"Broom for Ginny Weasley," George announced in a clear voice.
"Of course, Mr. Weasley," the shopkeeper said as he disappeared into a small room behind the counter. A moment later he returned carrying a Nimbus 2001. "Our last 2001," he remarked. "A fine broom for a fine price."
"You're mental if you think that a cheap Nimbus 2001 isn't seriously defective," Ron said, still surprised at Fred and George's odd behavior.
The shopkeeper looked offended. "It is in perfect condition, and it is not cheap. It simply isn't in demand, anymore. Furthermore, it's already been paid for." The old wizard laid the broom on the counter and handed a roll of parchment to Fred. "The bill of sale as well as the certificate of ownership, all in Miss Weasley's name. Will Miss Weasley be carrying it out, or shall I have it delivered?"
"You can deliver it to our shop," Fred said with a smile. "Lee will be around all day. We'll make sure it gets to her."
"Will that be acceptable, Miss Weasley?" the shopkeeper asked Ginny. She nodded quickly. The old wizard handed the broom to his assistant. "Very well, sir," he said with a nod. "Thank you for your business, and please pass my thanks on to the other gentlemen."
Fred and George thanked him, then proceeded to walk about the store looking for new guards for Ginny and Ron.
"Mum will understand. It's really for your own safety," Fred announced. They pulled out a small bag of Galleons to pay for the other equipment, and arranged for it to be delivered as well. As they left the store, the twins said they had to run off, but that they would see them for lunch.
Hermione was eager to finish shopping before they did anything else, so she dragged them off to Magical Menagerie where she and Ron purchased treats for their pets. The store was crowded. It had just received a new batch of salamanders which wizards purchased to keep their fireplaces burning as long as you could convince the salamander to stay put. In practice, they had a tendency to wander, and thus required short fences around the hearth to keep them from starting chairs and drapes on fire.
"I think I'll just wait for you over there," Ginny said, pointing to a small bench nearby. Ron and Hermione waved and resignedly walked into the crowded store. Ginny reached into her pocket and pulled out her Mirror. She said Harry's name and a moment later he greeted her with a smile.
"Morning," Harry said cheerily.
"Oh, you're going to be all cheery then, are you?" Ginny said flatly.
Harry's face froze in fear. "What? Did I— Did I say something—"
"I saw the postcard, Harry." That was all she needed to say. Harry's face started reddening dramatically. She tried to keep from laughing and ruining her fun. "So did Lupin, of course. And Tonks. And Hermione, and Bill—"
"Bill?" Harry exclaimed, his face now getting paler by the second.
"Yes, Bill. Ron, too," she finished. Harry felt positively ill. What would Bill and Ron think? Why did he care what they thought? What was he afraid— He stopped as Ginny suddenly burst out in laughter.
"That's not funny, Ginny!" he scolded her, "What if they had seen it?" He couldn't put his finger on the reason why it was so embarrassing. Perhaps he was worried that everyone would realize that he and Ginny were still communicating.
"Oh, they saw it alright, but it turned out alright. Lupin covered for you, and you really need to buy Hermione a nice birthday present for keeping her Obscuring Orb with her at all times. Bill didn't say anything because he's always liked me."
What would they all think? To be honest, Harry himself didn't know just what to think of it. So long as no one asked, he'd be fine. "What about Ron?" he asked. Ron would be the only one who'd press him for answers.
"Ron," she snorted, "Ron isn't terribly observant, is he?" Harry silently agreed. "At least the twins didn't see it. I'd never hear the end of it—" Harry winced as she said this and she noticed "—Harry? What was that for?"
He tried to break it to her gently, but it was like trying to gently tell someone that their house had been eaten by a magically engorged mole. Harry wasn't sure how she'd react and was relieved a little when she just sat silent and pale, revealing each and every freckle on her face. It was better than screaming, since she wouldn't have to explain why she was shouting at a mirror to everyone around her.
"The day was going so well, too," she said flatly. "You know Bill and Charlie bought me a new broom? And Fred and George bought me new guards and took care of the delivery. And now I have to eat lunch with them. How dreadful." Ginny was staring at him blankly, but he could tell she was trying to think of something to say. "Why, Harry? Why didn't you rewrite the notes?" she finally asked in a pleading voice, as if rewriting them now could undo the previous night.
He explained how he'd tried and that they kept getting worse. At least, that's what he said. He hadn't been able to bring himself to get rid of the last note. It was still sitting near his bed, smiling and waving to him.
"Erm... Why did they all look like me?" she asked. Harry didn't have an answer. He'd tried to figure it out all night. He'd already discounted all theories that might explain it. Except one. He was trying not to think about it, but he knew he couldn't hide from it. He'd gotten quite good at hiding his thoughts from others, and he'd been hiding this one from himself.
"Harry?" she whispered. "I've got to go. I still want to know why. I'll try to talk to you again after lunch."
"Oh! Quills!" Harry said quickly.
"What? What do quills have—" Ginny said quickly as she tried to hide her face. Ron and Hermione were almost out of the store.
"No, I need more quills! I've broken two since the start of the holidays. I forgot to put them on my list!"
"Right," Ginny said. "Bye Harry."
Ginny looked up just in time to see Ron and Hermione stopping in front of where she sat. "What's that?" Ron asked just as Harry faded from view. "Is that a mirror?"
"Yes, it's a mirror, Ron," Ginny said as she stuffed it back in her pocket, "You look at it and it looks back? Seen one, have you?"
"Were you talking to it?" Hermione asked curiously.
"Talking to it? Mirrors aren't usually that entertaining. I was just trying to remember everything I needed, and ended up talking to myself." Hermione accepted the answer with a shrug, and they left.
The three of them walked off down the street stopping in Slug and Jiggers so Ginny and Hermione could restock potion ingredients. Ron was quite pleased that he would not need to. As they passed by the second hand robe shop they stopped. Ginny sighed as she searched the windows for something she might actually like.
"Mum said she'd buy us robes after lunch. No use ruining our appetites now," Ron said glumly and they kept walking.
One of their last stops was the store next to the Quidditch supplier, where they all needed parchment and ink for the next year, especially Ginny. She'd be writing even more essays than usual in preparation for the O.W.L.s. Ron carried the list Harry wrote, and Hermione was carrying the extra supplies he'd asked for.
As Hermione was paying for Harry's supplies, Ginny cried out, "Oh! Wait!" as she ran back into the shelves and then reappeared seconds later with three plain but high quality quills.
"He doesn't say he needs quills," Ron said as he searched the parchment for any other places Harry might have written. "I know he's rich, but it's rather pointless if—"
"Of course he does!" she said dismissively. Ginny had hoped they wouldn't question her. "Just look at the list! The tip on this one is all worn out." Hermione added another three Sickles to the pile of coins on the counter and put the supplies with Harry's books. As they left to go back to the Leaky Cauldron, Hermione gave Ginny a dubious glance.
Ginny remained mostly silent throughout lunch. The twins made no mention of the postcard, and if Harry hadn't told her she would have felt certain they'd never seen it. After lunch she'd hoped to have some time to talk to Harry, but instead Molly said she wanted to go and buy the dress robes so she could wait for Arthur to show up.
"We'll buy Ginny and Ron's robes here and Harry and Hermione's at Madam Malkin's," she announced as they reached the second hand robes shop.
"That won't do, Mum," Fred said airily. "You go and wait for Dad. We'll take Ron and Ginny to Malkin's and buy their robes." Molly protested a little, but was mostly surprised by the sudden generosity of her sons. She relented quickly, encouraged by the hopeful looks on Ron and Ginny's faces, and after giving a quick hug for each of the twins, she casually walked back to the Leaky Cauldron.
"What's this for?" Ron asked as they walked, "What cursed confection am I going to have to eat because of this?"
"You could try a Shut-Up Sherbet if you still want robes made this century," Fred replied.
"You can't, actually," George whispered to the rest of them, "We haven't quite finished them. The last batch left Lee without a mouth for most of a day."
As they looked around Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, Ginny made her way to the robes she'd been hoping for. Somehow she'd got her wish. The twins would buy them for her, and she hadn't even had to blackmail them. She couldn't wait to tell Harry.
Harry.
The name echoed in her mind. Only two people knew how desperately she'd wanted these robes: herself and Harry Potter. Harry had sent a note off to Fred and George the night before, not long after she'd told him. Ginny turned and watched as the twins tried to talk Ron out of bright orange robes which had been hung in the corner behind a large trash bin and a coat rack. She had to get them alone in here. Hermione was in some other area of the store trying to choose between deep blue and dark maroon robes.
The twins eventually pushed Ron into a small dressing room with some a nice set of black robes with dark orange accents. Ginny took the opportunity to corner them, literally.
"Why is it you two suddenly so generous?" she whispered. They feigned offense at her question, but it didn't stop her. "If you were planning on buying us robes, why didn't you do it earlier?"
"Didn't you like those green ones, Ginny?" Hermione asked from behind her, "I thought they'd look quite nice on you."
Fred smiled, "Yeah, you'd look almost like a—"
"—Slytherin!" George interjected, as he clapped a hand over Fred's mouth. "You don't want those robes, Ginny. Pansy Parkinson bought them last week."
Ginny's eyebrows shot up. "And why are you so interested in those robes?"
"Well, they're bloody comfortable, and I like feeling pretty," Fred replied. George smiled and laughed.
"Why are you buying us robes?" Ginny asked, staring intently at Fred.
"We're just paying you back for all the help—"
"—unwilling in many cases—" George added.
"—all the help you gave us in setting up our shop and getting Mum to forgive us for doing it."
Ginny's eyes widened, but she kept staring at Fred. "You're lying," she said simply, and she was certain he was.
"We're under a solemn oath to ensure that all Weasley's are properly attired for any formal occasion," George said as formally as he could. But when Ginny asked who the oath was to, they only said they weren't allowed to tell.
"It's Harry, isn't it?" she said. It was more of a statement than a question. She was certain now. "Harry asked you to do it, didn't he?" The twins responded with silence.
Ginny stalked off as George called out to her, "We're not lying about those robes, though. Pansy did buy them."
Hermione followed Ginny as she started calmly looking around the store. "Are you upset?" she asked.
Ginny let out a disappointed sigh as she moved to another rack. "Yes," she finally said, "I really liked those robes."
"What about Harry?" prompted Hermione.
Ginny didn't respond. She felt she should perhaps be angry, but she wasn't. Her stomach felt light and she had to focus on not actually jumping from one rack to another. She felt... excited. She grabbed some deep red robes and held them up for Hermione. Hermione smiled and nodded.
Ginny draped them over her arm and headed off to a dressing room. Ron had already emerged from his, and Hermione smiled as she walked by with the deep blue robes she'd chosen. He rolled his eyes at the witch who was busy adjusting the fit with discrete flicks of her wand.
Ginny took the Mirror out of her pocket when she got into the room. There were two large mirrors on the wall, and both of them seemed a little upset. "Oh, we're not good enough, are we?" one said, "Witches these days are so distrusting, why back in my day—"
"Quiet, the both of you," Ginny commanded, "You'll get your turns and you'll keep quiet if you know what's good for you."
"Thinks she knows what's good for us! Disrespectful little—"
"Silencio!" The other mirror silenced itself with a little shocked gasp.
Back at Privet drive, Harry had waited patiently for the familiar shimmer of his Mirror meaning Ginny was trying to talk to him. He knew what she'd ask when she saw him. He was pretty sure he knew the answer, but he really didn't want to say it. Finding a date for the Ball seemed to be a much less stressful thing to do. Though, perhaps the two weren't as different as he first thought.
When he finally saw the faint flicker, he wasn't sure if he was glad the waiting was over, or afraid of what would come next. Either way, he didn't expect what happened.
"Thank you, Harry," she simply said.
"Err... Wait— What?"
"Thank you for the dress robes," she explained.
"They were supposed to keep it a secret," he said after he realized that she wasn't going to ask him the question she'd said she would.
"They tried, but they aren't known for this type of behavior. Hold on, I'll try them on and you can tell me what you think of them."
She put the mirror face down on a shelf and quickly changed robes. Her stomach was fluttering and she was smiling. She was going to have completely new dress robes to wear.
Harry's stomach was doing much the same thing. The Mirror wasn't completely on the shelf, and before he realized what was happening, he could see Ginny's bare knees and calves in a corner of the mirror. It wasn't indecent, but his heart was beating a bit faster and he found it a little hard to swallow.
Finally he saw a dark red fabric cover her legs and the world spun in front of him to reveal a smiling Ginny. She turned the Mirror to face one of the large mirrors. "So?"
The dark red material shimmered lightly as she moved. It was mostly fitted, but hung loosely around her arms and legs. Harry had trouble talking and could only get out a few words. "Not the green ones?"
"Pansy Parkinson bought a set of them."
"I like the red ones," Harry replied immediately.
Ginny laughed, and decided that now might be as good a time as ever to talk to Harry quickly. She tried to sound conversational, "So, do you know why the mermaids looked like like me?"
Harry froze. He tried to talk but he wasn't ready anymore. "Well, yes I... I think— I think that I— er... "
"Ginny?" Hermione called from outside, "How are they?"
"They're great," she said shortly, then turned back to Harry, who had paused when he heard Hermione.
"Well? Let's see them then," Hermione said loudly.
"Aaargh. I'll be right out." She turned back to Harry and frowned. "I'm sorry, I have to go," she whispered dejectedly, "I'll try to talk to you again soon."
It took some time before Ginny and Hermione were both finished having their robes fitted, and a little more time to have the robes paid for since the clerk didn't trust the twins and decided to send someone to check with the goblins at Gringott's about their ability to pay the bill.
While the twins waited at the counter, Ginny and Hermione walked about the store quickly trying to find something for Harry. They talked and whispered to each other until the decided on a set of black robes not unlike Ron's, but with green trim to match his eyes. The twins complained only slightly when the clerk stated that he would personally see to paying for the robes from Harry's vault.
As they left the store, the twins invited them over to their shop to get a proper tour. They walked around as the twins pointed out all the things they'd recently invented. Ron and Hermione seemed to be enjoying themselves, but Ginny wished she could simply leave and find a bench to talk to Harry on. Finally, the tour ended, and they left the twins to tend their shop.
Ginny took her new bags and walked off to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor where she found herself a table in the corner where she wouldn't draw attention to herself. She took out a book and her mirror and attempted to get comfortable in the hard chair. She checked to see that no one was watching her, and then called for Harry.
"Ginny? What is it?" he said as his face drifted into focus in the mirror.
"Oh, nothing." she said as she tried to hide behind her book. "I said I'd try to talk to you again. It was getting a bit dull."
"And you figured that I would be waiting around my room just in case you needed someone to entertain you?"
"You did answer pretty quickly, Harry," she laughed.
"Yes, well the Dursleys aren't the most interesting lot." he replied. Harry paused and seemed to be struggling with some decision. "Ginny... I.. err...I did want to ask you something..." he trailed off and seemed a little nervous.
Ginny felt the same twinge of hopeful anxiety return. "Ask me anything, Harry."
"I want you to think about this," he said. "Don't just do it because I bought you— a gift." Ginny's heart started beating faster. "I wanted to know if—"
"Oi! Ginny!" a voice called out.
Ginny squeaked and pulled the mirror into her lap. "You! You're here." she said while trying to keep the disappointment off her face. Not now, she groaned to herself. Not him. "I didn't know you were going to be here. How long are you going to be... here?" she finished lamely.
"A while," he said with a smile. "Long enough to share some ice cream. I haven't seen you all summer. Will you be here for a while? We might be able to sneak off somewhere quiet and—"
"Ice cream sounds great!" she said, cutting him off.
"Brilliant. I'll be right back," he said as he disappeared into the shop.
"Harry?" she whispered, "I've got to go for a bit."
"You look— Who was that? Is everything alright?"
"Yes," she said a little louder. "It's nothing, really. I'll tell you about it a little later."
"Tell who?" a new voice asked.
"About what?" a second added.
Ginny groaned again and began reaching for her bag. "Fred, George, now really isn't a good time." She needed to put the mirror away. Perhaps it hadn't been such a good idea to try and talk with Harry.
"Checking yourself out in that mirror again?" George asked.
"Yeah, Ginny, why so vain today?" Fred asked as he quickly pulled out his wand.
"Accio Mirror!". The mirror was wrenched from Ginny's grasp and flew to Fred.
"Does it do anything interesting, or does it just convince you that you're taller than you are?"
"Give that back this instant, Fred Weasley!"
Fred looked at the mirror in confusion. "Why? You can't even see your reflection in it, it's horribly blurry."
Ginny stood up to go and take the mirror back, but instead Dean came back and handed her a large bowl of ice cream which was gradually turning from a violent orange color to an odd green.
"Dean!" George called out. "We didn't know Ginny had planned to meet you here." He gave Fred a strange look, but Fred simply shrugged.
"She hadn't. I just saw her here. It was complete luck." he said as he pulled a chair out for Ginny. "We were going to share some ice cream."
"—Alone!" Ginny added with her frustration now showing. She noticed that the mirror in Fred's hand was still hazy. Harry must still be listening. Panic suddenly struck her, she didn't want him to hear anything more. "And give me my mirror!"
"Ah. Our dear sister wants some special time with a boy."
"It's not like she's had a chance to spend time with anyone other Ron and Hermione," George replied. "I'd want to spend time with Dean after six weeks of that."
"I agree," Fred said with a nod, "but she did get to spend some time with the Magnificent—"
"Fred!" Ginny shouted. It was louder than she had intended, but it had stopped Fred from finishing his sentence. "Both of you, could you just go?"
"We never get to see you anymore, Ginny," he said attempting to sound concerned. "Whenever we visit, you're always locked in your room writing love letters, or something."
Dean's head jerked to look at George. George looked at Fred, who was still poking and searching the mirror for any interesting functions. Suddenly he realized that he missed something.
"What? What did he say?"
Dean purposefully looked at George. "She's been writing letters?"
"This isn't the time—" Ginny started to say, but no one was listening to her.
George shrugged. "Yeah, she hides most of the day, and everyone's seen owls flying to and from her room late at night."
"George, It was only—" she paused, trying to control herself, "Fred, give me the mirror and go! Take my brother the detective with you."
Dean turned to Ginny. "So," he started as he stepped toward her. Ginny looked away. "Would you like to go to the Ball with me?"
Ginny's eyes slipped to the mirror still firmly in Fred's hands. "I don't know, Dean. The Ball's not for months."
"Is there a reason why you don't know?" His voice held a hint of suspicion.
"I can't talk about it right now."
"Well, we are still going out, aren't we? Can you at least tell me that?"
"I don't know." Ginny said. Her emotions were mixing and getting stronger. She was angry and embarrassed and horribly afraid of what Harry was hearing and thinking. She needed to leave.
"Why not?"
"I said, I can't talk about it," she replied, her voice low with frustration and anger.
Fred gave up on the mirror and became engrossed in the drama being played out in front of him. He leaned toward his bother. "What did you say to start this?"
George shrugged, "No idea, but it seems I've started a bit of an argument. It's a bit novel not being part of it though."
Dean turned toward the twins, with a weak smile. "I haven't gotten any owls from Ginny since the start of summer holidays."
Fred and George looked at each other in shock. George spoke up first. "Well, then who've you been writing to?"
"That's none of your business!" Ginny shouted. She noticed that there were a number of students who were watching as well, though they tried to make it look like they were simply doing other mundane tasks like paging through upside-down books and dusting off brand new robes.
"Is it my business?" Dean asked.
Ginny was quite angry now. "No!" she said sharply. "Give me my mirror. I'm leaving."
"You haven't been writing to Harry without telling Moody again, have you?" Fred asked curiously.
"No— It's—"
"Someone else, then?" Fred asked as he nodded in amazement. "Our sister has quite the complicated love life."
"...well, she isn't a little girl anymore. Do we know him?"
"I'm—not—telling—you." Ginny said slowly.
"Do I know him?" Dean asked bitterly. "You aren't obsessing over Harry again, are you?"
"No— I mean.." Ginny sighed in frustration. "I'm not going to talk about this here."
"You dumped me for some prat who you can't even admit going out with?" he shouted. Dean stared at her and shook his head. "I thought you had more self respect, Ginny."
"No, that's not it at all—"
"Fine." he said testily as he grabbed his bag. "Enjoy the ice cream. I have to be going." Dean walked off through the small crowd that had gathered to watch the argument.
"Right then," George said. "That was unexpected."
"You two," Ginny growled as she rounded on the twins with narrowed eyes. "You couldn't just leave and let it be, could you?" She started walking toward them. "Give me the mirror and just leave! I have to find someone."
"Sorry, Ginny, I didn't know—" George said as he backed away. "I didn't know that you— you had a secret boyfriend, I guess Tonks said something, but I just assumed—"
Fred was still laughing, though. "It's quite impressive, really. You've got—"
"—had—"
"Right, you had Dean, Mr. Mystery on the side, and Harry to keep you company while you couldn't see either of them. Still, two out of three is better than average."
Before Fred even thought to try and escape, Ginny's wand was out and pointed at his throat. There was a flash of light and Fred was suddenly sitting on the ground with a surprised look on his face. Ginny picked up the mirror and looked at it. The shadows were swirling away, revealing a normal looking mirror.
Harry had just left. Ginny's stomach lurched and she suddenly felt very sick. She was about to walk off when Ron and Hermione came running up. The rest of the crowd was slowly dispersing.
"What's going on?" Ron asked. "We heard Ginny shouting." He looked at Ginny and seemed to shrink away from her. "She looks a bit ill, as well." Fred was still on the ground, but sitting. He looked as pale and ill as Ginny. "And what'd she do to Fred?" Ron asked.
George smiled and nodded to Ginny. "Boyfriend troubles. She— Wow, that's bloody revolting..."
Fred had just coughed up a rather large slug.
"Right. I know just what we need for that." Ron said as he dumped everything in his bag into Hermione's bags, causing her to drop them and look quite annoyed. He handed the empty bag to Fred. "I'd say I feel sorry, but— well... you probably deserved it."
Fred nodded sickly, and tried to say something, but instead of words, a pair of slugs came out of his mouth.
"That's —Blimey—" George said, looking away. "I'd really love to try and sell that, but— Ginny, why?"
"You had to say that in front of everyone, didn't you?" she said angrily. "Everyone will think I'm secretly dating someone now, and I look like some sort of... tart!"
"Well, Ginny, you were stringing three boys along—" Ginny's wand flashed out again, but Ron had already jumped between them.
"Don't Ginny. There aren't any extra bags."
"They can share! I only went out with Dean twice. I never said it was more than that! Three boys! Honestly!" Ginny was shouting again. "If I lose my chance with—" she stopped, and took a deep breath. "If I do, no dress robes in all of Britain that will save you."
Fred swallowed and looked up. "So there is someone! I figured—"
George winced at the newest slug. He stepped back as it started inching toward him. "I don't think it's going to make the Prophet, Ginny. Whoever he is, he'll never even hear about it."
Ginny's anger was gone. With the posture of an angry, defeated young woman, Ginny tossed the mirror into her bag. "Oh, I'm pretty sure he'll have heard about it. I'm going home." She picked up her bag and walked away.