I have been dreading writing this author's note, just so you know. Most of you wished me luck for my audition and said you'd be looking for me and I'm very happy for that. Unfortunately, I didn't even make it past the first cut with my audition for American Idol. My pride has made it very hard for me to admit this to you, because I know that deep down some of you are thinking "well, I guess she wasn't as good a singer as she claimed to be" and there's no way for me to dispel that thought without reverting to arrogance. I'm not going to try to convince you that I'm an incredible singer or anything stupid like that because no matter what I say, you're going to believe what you want. I could give my excuse about how it was the judges fault, but just saying that much seems like too much, so I won't. You will notice that, below, any of you that made comments on my impending audition, I did not make any remark to that. It's still a bit painful now. But don't worry, I'm not as upset about it as I may seem. My pride is just a bit injured at the moment. So, anywha, now I will explain why this chapter is so late.
I told you last chapter that this one was supposed to be up on Tuesday the 10th…actually, four days from the day I posted would have been Monday the 9th, but apparently, I can't count… I decided to post today instead for two reasons: 1.) This way I'll be posting the day after Snuggle the Muggle posts, so that way I'll be reminded of what day I need to have my chapter finished and 2.) I hadn't finished writing it yet…
So, that being said, enjoy the chapter and the next one will be up the 15th… I think…it's very possible that I'm wrong again, but I think I'll stick to that. Jaa, mata ne.
Chapter; The Seventeenth
Discussing the Past
Ginny was still floating when she got back to her room that night. No one had been around when she and Harry had returned to the alcove so they hugged, which raised Ginny another couple of inches in her floating and went to their separate rooms.
Wondering where Trista was, Ginny closed the door and leaned her head against the cool wood for a moment to compose herself. Turning, she found Trista asleep across her bed. Ginny laughed and walked over to her friend, giving her shoulder a faint shake. Trista opened her eyes slowly. "I wondered when you were getting home. Was it fun?"
"Immensely," Ginny responded.
"Well?" Trista pressed. Ginny had decided not to give any details unless Trista asked for them, so as not to seem to be bragging…but Trista did ask, so Ginny told practically everything.
"And by the way," she finished. "I'm going to kill you for the padded bra thing. I saw my brothers in Diagon Alley, because they own a shop there, and they noticed that I was not my normal size."
Trista blushed and smiled wickedly but made no move to apologize. Ginny figured she wouldn't.
"So," Trista began hesitantly, as though afraid of the answer. "Were there any intimacies?"
Oh yeah…that was a part that Ginny left out. "Nothing of note," was Ginny's reply. To some people holding hands really isn't worth noting. I'm not lying. She told herself.
Ginny couldn't tell if Trista believed her or not, but she changed the conversation either way. "Janice was absolutely atrocious today while you two were gone. I have never heard such language out of anyone before. And the kinds of things she was talking about! If I was the type of person to do such a thing, I would have slapped her!"
This raised Ginny's eyebrows. If Trista had almost shown a temper, Janice must have really been unbearable. "Did she talk about me at all?"
"That's what I almost slapped her for. She was saying all sorts of terrible things about you; implying that you would do the kinds of things that one would more likely assume of her. She is absolutely infuriating!"
"Don't let it get to you. Apparently it's not the first time she's told people stuff like that about me. I do wonder, however, why it's me she has it in for. I mean, what did I ever do to her?"
"Maybe –" Trista stopped suddenly.
"If you have an idea, do tell."
"Well, remember after the first rose ceremony? She thought that you had used that one girl being sent home as a ploy."
"That's right. Joice Turner. That very well could be. She thought I was going to be manipulative like she is, so she wanted to get rid of me before I could get rid of her."
The two were silent for a time. Eventually, Trista announced with a yawn that she had to go get some real sleep now, and Ginny agreed that sleep would be a good thing. Realizing that she had nothing to worry about until the next rose ceremony, Ginny slept better than one might have expected.
The next morning, Harry and Denise left for their date right after breakfast. Trista and Ginny spent the day together in Trista's room. Trista, it seemed, had smuggled some contraband into the castle, so they spent their time watching movies on Trista's television with a silencing charm on the room so that no one would hear the noise and wonder what they were doing.
Later that evening, right before dinner, Ginny decided to test out her stock from her brother's store. Ginny had never heard Trista laugh so hard once she returned to normal after eating a Canary Cream. She promised to go check out the store sometime and Ginny told her not to tell them that their sister had sent her; who knows what kinds of pranks they would do to her then. Trista agreed with enthusiasm and they used the last couple hours of daylight with Ginny describing the wares at Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes while Trista merely asked questions and laughed her head off.
The next morning a wonderful thing happened. Well, it was both wonderful and depressing: Ginny only saw Janice at breakfast and she was gone for the rest of the day. Of course, this meant that it was her turn to go on a date with Harry, but that bitterness couldn't quite compare with having a Janice-free day. The other five girls played games all day and, with the exception of Laurie, who seemed to collapse into herself as they day went on, they all seemed to enjoy themselves.
When Ginny asked Laurie what was wrong, she had simply glared at her until Ginny backed away. "What crawled up her arse and died?" Becky asked when Ginny walked back over to the group.
"Poor girl," Denise cooed dramatically. "She misses Janice." Her fake pout turned into a grimace of disgust as she made a quiet gagging noise and rolled her eyes.
"Oooh! I have an idea on how to pass the time." Becky sat up as she spoke and her eyes were aglow with a malevolent pleasure. "We're all here after the same guy, so let's talk about our ex's. I know I have some good stories, and I'm sure the rest of you do as well!" The other girls expressed their agreement and Becky went first.
Becky described the most interesting parts of her most interesting relationships which just seemed to go on and one, despite the fact that she told them she was leaving a lot out. "Good grief, Becky. How many guys have you dated?"
Becky looked thoughtful for a moment after Trista's question. "I can't remember anymore. I'm sure I've forgotten some of them."
The other girls' love lives were nearly as elaborate as Becky's, though Denise shared some rather that left Trista blushing, and Ginny wishing her own face wasn't nearly as red as Trista's.
Laurie left the alcove about halfway into Becky's recitation and when it came time for Trista to share, Ginny heard a shower start down the hall. Ginny just didn't quite understand Laurie.
Trista's stories were romantic but short, yet they were nothing compared to Ginny, when she finally spoke.
"Ginevra, you've only dated one guy?" Denise asked in disbelief.
"No, I've dated three guys, but only one of them was serious."
"Well, gosh, if we were only talking about the serious relationships, I wouldn't have been talking as long as I was."
"Wish we'd made that rule at the beginning then," Becky whispered to Trista in a stage whisper that caused Denise to throw a pillow at her.
"Anyway," Trista prodded. "Tell us about the serious relationship then."
Ginny sighed, not sure if she wanted to divulge this information, but figuring that she might as well, since they already had. "Well, we met in school several years ago. He was a year ahead of me, the same age as my brother Ron and we were in the same house. He was atrocious at Potions, which just so happened to be one of my best subjects, so I was a year ahead and in the same class as them. Ron set the two of us up for a tutoring session and we just kind of hooked up after a while."
"Go on." Trista urged.
"What's his name?"
Ginny answered Denise hesitantly. "Don't laugh. His name was Neville Longbottom."
"Longbottom? That's horrible! The poor guy."
"Ginevra Longbottom," Becky intoned with a deep voice. "Just doesn't sound right does it?"
"I thought it did…which is why when he asked me to marry him several months ago, I said yes." There was silence for several minutes after this statement.
"What happened?" Trista asked, barely above a whisper, as though afraid to break the silence.
"I'm not exactly sure. We were working on some stuff together using his skill with Herbology and mine with potions, and one day, I figured out the problem we had been struggling against with a certain synthesis. He was furious that I figured it out without him – I had stayed late a couple of night to work on it. I guess he just couldn't handle my success. It was quite pathetic if you ask me, but there was no changing it. He broke off the engagement and I went back to live with my best friend Hermione. Coming on this show was Hermione's idea of a rebound for me."
"That is so sad."
"Yes well, after dating for over five years…?"
Silence reined once again as all the girls tried to think of something to say to lighten the mood. None of them could think of anything, so eventually, they all excused themselves and headed off to bed.
Trista stayed with Ginny. At length, she finally spoke up. "So, he broke up with you." It wasn't a question, but Ginny nodded anyway, staring at the grains in the wooden coffee table in front of them. "Are you still in love with him then?"
"Would you believe me if I said I didn't know? I mean, I thought I still was…until I came here. Is it possible to be in love with someone as deeply as I had been with Neville when I've known him for a fraction of the time?" Ginny turned her gaze quickly to Trista. "Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that I'm in love with Harry. What I'm asking is, if I do fall in love with Harry…would it be real? Or would I just be rebounding?"
"I'm sorry but I can't answer that question."
"I figured as much," Ginny replied with a sad smile.
Trista smiled back at Ginny before she stood up and walked to her room. After the door was shut, Ginny continued to sit there. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep after all that, so she stood and walked out the door into the garden.
It was dark and much cooler than during the day and Ginny found it refreshing. She sat on one of the many stone benches along the path and just breathed deeply.
After several minutes she heard the door open and heard someone speaking. Janice again? Why must she always ruin my respite out here?
"I told you I would make it through the ceremony. I've told you that I'm going to win the whole thing. Why do you never believe me?" Janice was on her cell-phone again. "Dustin, sweety, you should know from the three months that we were together that I always get exactly what I want." Is she talking to an ex-boyfriend? Why would someone talk to an ex-boyfriend on a dating show? There was silence for a moment before Janice snorted a laugh. "Her? If she makes it past the next ceremony, I know how to get rid of her. It will be a piece of cake. I mean, Harry practically eats out of my hand right now." Janice went on to talk about several clandestine snogging sessions that Ginny knew were not true, since the supposed times they took place were when there was no way she would have access to Harry, but it was alright, because it didn't seem ex-boyfriend Dustin was believing a word of it. "You just wait. I will win this. And when I do, I will have the most famous man in the entire wizarding world at my beck and call. You watch." These last comments were made with a voice slightly raised in anger, and she then loudly closed the cell-phone and stalked back inside.
Any chance of calming herself down before going to sleep ruined, Ginny walked dejectedly back into the castle, slipped into her room and fell into a disturbed sleep.
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Harry/Ginnyfan4ever: Thanks so much! I hoped the explanation that Harry gave would make sense. So glad it did. Oh, and I didn't think that was a bad line. It's nice to know that I leave a bit of tension between chapters. I wouldn't be a very interesting story otherwise.
Tricia Emily: Thank you!
IceSugarHigh: Eeeeeh…I don't think so, but nice try ;) I don't really like Burger King, actually; ever since they changed the recipe for their fries. I mean, com'on now! They had the best tasting fries…so they changed them? Weird!
Rayah Papaya: No, I don't want to look old, per se, but I don't want to meet people somewhere and have them think I'm only 14 years old, when actually I'm 20, and more likely than not, older than them. It's just a little degrading is all. I'm glad you liked the last chapter :)
Notice-me: Wow!! Thank you! I am so honored. You're summary of my story was very flattering…any chance you could leave that up for more than a week? hopeful look Anywha, I'm so glad you like my story so much. That's great about you laughing so much. My computer is in my room down in the basement, and if my parents are ever downstairs they're usually watching a movie (very loudly) so they wouldn't really be able to hear me even if I did laugh hysterically at something. Thank you so much again!!
Blue morning tide: Well, thanks for reviewing now. It's nice to have a lot of readers, even if they don't review very often. I'm glad to know that you like my story. Thanks so much.
Joy Cutting: It's really sad when the stories you stay up all night reading are really really good…and they're never updated. That happens so often! Then again…I do that…not saying that all my stuff is really really good…but I think at least some of it is… Anywha, thanks for reviewing, and I hope you liked this chapter!
Elvencherry07: hehehe Thanks for the review.
SailorChibi: Yeah, does that to me all the time. It takes several hours before my computer tells me that my story has been updated. I've gotten used to it. Thanks so much!
Kneh13: Thanks! I try to update regularly…this update was a fluke…I should have posted a couple days ago…
Chewy1: H'mmmm…I don't think that they were saying those lines quickly…that's not how I pictured it. I did try to cram a lot of information in a very small space though, so that might be what you were seeing. Anywha, don't worry about me getting a big head. I don't sit here thinking: "Someone just reviewed my story. I must be the best author in the world!" It's more like: "Yay! Somebody left a really good review! I wonder what I can say that will show how much I appreciate them…" I mean, if it weren't for my reviewers, I would have stopped writing this story long ago, so…
Twins-rule: Thank you. I'm glad that my readers like chapters even when I don't… hehehe That's funny. Do you and your fiancée both read my story? That's fun. My fiancé helps me write this whole thing… hehehe
Kery J. Wales: As good as JKR? I doubt that, but thank you just the same! I'm glad you like how I'm characterizing Harry. I wasn't sure if I had him right. He's a hard one to work with. He's not giving me any help ;) Thanks a lot.
Loves to Read: Yes, the fluff will not be a regular thing, unfortunately. I mean, it can't really, since there are still five other girls vying for his attention…
PippinsMyHobbit: lol Yes, yay Ginny. Hehehe
JamieBell: Yes, I rather liked that line too. It actually sounded like a conversation my mother and I would have…when my mom is hyper. That's the greatest thing in the world…having a parent who can act just as crazy as you! Hehehe Anywha, yes, there are sharp edges that I literally have to file down sometimes. They aren't as bad anymore, thank goodness. Oh, and there isn't really any one particular person I sound like…I can copy just about any style, which really isn't a trait they look for with singers, but, there it is…
Nat: Well, keeping her around may be the plan now, but I haven't really introduced the main twist in the plot as of yet, so… Thanks so much for the review!
Snuggle the Muggle: Yeah, I can totally sympathize with you as far as they are concerned, even though I haven't had to work with them nearly as often as you do! Thanks for the review, and I'm glad you still like it :)
Angel: Yeah, I kind of want Harry to call her Ginny, but there's no good way to introduce that nickname yet. I do plan on it eventually (partially because you mentioned it and partially because I prefer Ginny to Ginevra). I'm so glad that you like it. I think the one flaw in the reality-show feel is that I don't mention the cameras as often, and there aren't as many interviews as I know there would be. I don't really watch reality shows though. Thank you again!
The ever-lovable snuffles: Thanks so much!
Fred-George-Lee-Luver: Oh yeah, I'm totally fine with you writing a story like this. I got my idea from someone else's story after all. Oh, and I would LOVE for you to recommend my story in your author's notes. I always enjoy new readers. That would be fabulous! I am so very glad that you like my story so much. I hope I can continue to meet your expectations.
Allimba: Thank you!
Danu3: Yay Canada. Some of my best friends are Canadians. Very cool. What part of the States is Quebec over? I used to know… Anywha, thanks so much for your review. You don't have to review every chapter, though. I mean, I'd love for you to, but you don't really have to. Thanks again!
HermioneRon 4ever: Thanks! All my reviewers make me happy! Sometimes even when I get flamed it makes me feel good… lol At least then I know someone's reading, right? Hehehe
Emerald Desire: Yeah, there is some muggle influence, but if you think about it, Harry did grow up thinking he was a muggle after all. Thanks for your review!
Nessie8: Meh…I don't really know what school they went to. Basically every thing is the same only they don't know Harry. Don't ask me how that worked, because I frankly don't know. It doesn't really have to make sense, though, since it's an AU. Eheheh I'm very glad that you decided to read my story. I do that sometimes too at the other fanfiction site I go to. There are two or three stories that I'm reading now that didn't have very good titles, so I never read them, but they were updated quite regularly and they're a lot better than I thought they would be. Thanks so much for reviewing, and I'm sorry the story isn't as long as you expected it to be… :)
Milky way bar: Thanks. I will. Hehehe
Wouldn't it be Lovely: Ah, I see. I like Harry. About the only character I would do something like that to would be Janice…but since she's not an original Harry Potter character it doesn't really count. grins
Alexandra5: No, Janice is the mean girl, Tier was the girl that Trista and Ginny were friends with, but she was kicked off during the last ceremony. H'mmmm…who indeed? I mean, I know who's going to be left, but I'm not telling! Lol
PrettyWithAJadedPistol: I'm glad you like my story so much! And I wish I could count correctly, so that I'd know what day I'm supposed to post on blushes Thank you!
California-sushi-girl: Thanks!
Ashlee V: Thanks for the review. And you never have to apologize for not reviewing; that's why I always thank everyone who reviews! It's not your job to review every chapter, so I thank you all for it, hoping you will continue to do so :) I really like Fred and George and I hope to give one of them a fairly significant role near the end… Thanks again!
Spaced Out Space Cadet: Thanks so much. Sorry I haven't been e-mailing you. I promise I will get to that chapter eventually, but what with work and leisure time and wedding planning…I just don't feel like being at the computer all day… Anywha, thanks so much for reviewing like you always do and I hope you liked this chapter!
Manders: lol Thanks for reviewing!