"Quidditch tonight, Gin." One of the fourth years at lunch said, smiling at her hopefully.
Ginny'd been sick with worry for almost a week now. She'd be going home in two days, she'd finished her N.E.W.T. exams, and she hadn't received a letter from Draco in nearly a month.
"He'll write soon, you know." The girl was pushing a piece of toast toward Ginny, hoping to get her to eat something.
Ginny pushed the toast away and got up from breakfast. It was now obvious that she wasn't going to eat anything. "I have to go pack."
The Gryffindors watched her leave the table. She was out of the Great Hall before the rumours started to fly again.
Panicked: "She's going to kill herself! Somebody stop her!"
Sagely: "He doesn't love her anymore."
Bitterly: "Malfoy was just using her so he wouldn't feel lonely."
Gossipy: "I heard he ran off with one of the other aurors."
Colin, however, had watched his friend leave the Hall. She doesn't have packing to do. She's been packed for two days. He also rose and followed Ginny out, hoping the rumours were what they usually were: bunk.
Ginny busied herself, trying to find something to clean in an already immaculate room.
A knock sounded softly on the door, "Gin? Can I come in?"
She threw up her wand hand, "Alohamora!" The door swung open rather harder than she'd meant, crashing into the wall behind. She winced.
"Nice. I always thought that wall could use a door-shaped dent." Colin grinned and eased the door closed before turning to his friend, "Ginny, you can't keep this up."
"Yes I can." She wouldn't look at him.
Colin walked to her, placing hands on her shoulders, "No. You can't."
The redhead sunk onto her bed, allowing herself to cry, "I don't know what to do, Colin! Something's wrong, something's terribly wrong…"
Colin sat next to her, sliding an arm around her shoulders, "I know, but you can't stop living just because you haven't had a letter."
Ginny nodded slightly, not really believing him. She felt like her heart was being ripped in two by a guy with studded, dragonhide gloves.
"You're going to clean yourself up. You're going to take a shower." Colin put a hand under his friend's chin, forcing her face up, "You're going to come downstairs in a few hours to the Quidditch game. Dumbledore set it up especially for people like you who've been having such a hard time."
That much was true. It was a mixed-team game. A team made of the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs against one from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. Dumbledore said he planned to make a yearly occasion of it to help with inter-house unity. It was just for fun, too, since the Quidditch Cup had already been awarded. Just something to help the students' minds wander away.
Ginny nodded, "Quidditch, right, fun. I remember fun."
"Yes. Fun. You're going to come to the game. You're going to be in those stands with me and you're going to cheer until your voice is hoarse." Colin smiled and kissed Ginny on the forehead, "Now go take a shower."
Ginny rose and walked into the attached bathroom. Sometimes there were perks to being Head Girl.
Colin wandered around Ginny's room while the shower ran. He ran his hands over Ginny's dresser and wardrobe. He inspected the pictures on the night table. There was one of the whole Weasley clan, taken several years ago, before the war set in. Harry was there too, before he lost his hand. There was a picture of a young man in auror's robes, smiling up from somewhere in France. Trapped in time, Draco. It's a good look for you. Colin chuckled softly.
Ginny walked out of the shower in the robe that Ron had bought for her in Egypt for her birthday and a towel wrapped around her hair. She watched Colin look at her pictures and finger the one of Draco, "He gave it to me for Christmas." She smiled.
Colin nodded, "Want me to braid your hair?"
Ginny walked over to the bed and sat, pulling out a brush and dropping the towel to the floor, "Please."
Colin slowly brushed out his friend's very long hair, pulling the brush through the tangles, "I know girls who'd pay galleons upon galleons for your hair, Gin." He twisted the strands into a french braid, tying the bottom off with a very worn looking blue bow, "There. You look beautiful." He was very proud of that particular skill. It was something that Luna'd taught him last year.
Ginny smiled, seemingly in a less depressive mood, "Thank you, Colin."
Colin just shrugged, "So, I'll meet you in the Great Hall at seven to go down to the pitch?" He was looking forward to the night game. It'd make things interesting.
Ginny took a deep breath and nodded, "Alright."
Colin smiled and left the rooms, whistling tunelessly to himself.
Ginny picked up the picture of Draco, "I'm going to Quidditch tonight. I'm going to enjoy myself. Tomorrow, there's going to be a letter for you at breakfast. Deal?" She nodded, "Deal." She smiled and kissed the picture before putting it back on the dresser.
She picked up her satchel and walked out of the rooms. It was Friday and she was going to go lie out in the sun and read something that hadn't been assigned, for once.
Dumbledore stood in front of the crowd of students in the middle of the pitch, "Good Evening!" He waved happily, "Welcome to the first inter-house game of the Hogwarts SlytherPuffs versus the Hogwarts GryffinClaws!" There was cheering and shouting from the stands that were now two-toned and split into two sections instead of the usual four.
Albus waited for the cheering to die down, "You all know about the war that has been waged over the last year. In one way or another, this war has effected every one of your lives. However, this is a school: a place of learning and cooperation. Please sing the school song with me once more before the term ends." He flicked his wand and the words appeared overhead in large, golden letters.
The students happily shouted out lyrics to any random tune as the words scrolled high above the pitch, reminding the younger students what they were.
"Thank you. Now, before we begin this game of fierce competition and unity, Professor McGonagall would like a few words." He bowed grandly to her.
Minerva walked onto the pitch, "Thank you, Headmaster. Now, I know that this is not a very refreshing way to begin a match, but it is important. As Professor Dumbledore has said, this war has effected us all, some more than others. Please, everyone, would you bow your head in reverence of a list of fallen aurors, wizards, and witches who gave their lives to keep yours safe."
The list seemed to go on forever. There were former students; Justin Finch-Fletchley had fallen just two weeks ago. Family members too. Luna's father had thankfully not made that awful list. He'd been badly injured when doing one of his few serious reports on the war. A stray hex had almost taken his leg.
Ginny couldn't stay and listen to that awful litany. She climbed out of the stands and down to the ground behind them. She saw a solitary Hufflepuff girl crying all alone under the stands. Her sister was dead.
Nearly halfway through the list, one name rang through the crowd that nobody really cared about, except one. Under the stands was a pretty little girl with a worn-out bow in her shining, red hair, crying.
Standing beneath the rows upon rows of seats, Ginny cried for a man she'd loved who was now lying somewhere in France. She cried for Draco.