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Was It Something I Said?

Chapter 6 --

Ginny was about to flush the toilet she'd just used when she heard a group of girls walk into the lavatory giggling away at something their leader had said.

"I can't believe little Miss Weasley is failing Charms! All thanks to Moi! I only meant for her to get a bad test grade, now she's failing and in her O.W.L. year too! I couldn't have planned it better!" A voice simpered that Ginny was sure belonged to Monique.

Anger flared inside her, what she would do to tear that girl's limbs from her sockets. She'd been after Ginny for years. Ginny's fingers were grasped around the handle of the door though she let them drop. She might be lucky enough hear something else.

"She'll never make it passed fifth year if I can help it." Monique said, her voice sounding extremely happy. "Though I am a little annoyed that my Unicorn Horn didn't work. Oh well, you can't have your sugar quills and eat them too!" she said with a laugh that Ginny was sure she thought was fantastic though it sounded awful.

She didn't have the faintest idea what Monique meant by the Unicorn Horn but that didn't matter. She just needed to know if she was really failing Charms as Monique claimed. She waited for the girls to leave and sprinted down to the Charms corridor.

"No running!" called a Prefect though he apologised as he saw it was the girl who had yelled so fiercely at Ron Weasley in the Common Room a few days back.

"No, my fault!" Ginny called over her shoulder and the boy did a double take, he'd been expecting a 'Bite me!' or something of the sort.

Ginny found tiny Professor Flitwick marking work behind his desk in his classroom and she slowed to a walk and knocked on the door and he nodded her in without looking up.

"Professor, I need a word." She said breathlessly.

"Of course what is it?"

"Am I failing Charms?" she blurted out suddenly, taking the tiny little man by surprise.

"Well." He said surveying her over his glasses. "It isn't good." Ginny grimaced though she still held hope.

"If I told you that someone tampered with my test, would that change anything?" she asked, hoping against hope that he'd say yes.

"Yes, most definitely but what is this about tampering?" he asked seriously.

"I just overheard Monique Danes admit that she tampered with my test. Though I don't think she'd admit it again for a teacher." Ginny said more to herself than the Professor.

"No need for her to do so." He said picking up his wand and levitating a piece of parchment to himself from a large pile and tapping it twice with his wand, black marks appeared on the page, indicating where Ginny had circled the correct answers to the test. Soon after that, large green swipe marks appeared over the page, as though someone were erasing out the answers, and lo and behold the black marks disappeared also. Ginny gasped, thinking her answers had been lost.

"Not to worry," the professor said smiling, bringing the black marks back again, and marking Ginny's parchment as she stood there. He smiled and the parchment floated back to its previous spot between many other pieces much like itself. "I am happy to announce that you will be passing the theoretical side of Charms with flying colours! I will be having a word to Miss Danes though." He said frowning.

Ginny thanked him profusely and left the classroom with a new bounce in her step. She had been really worrying about her Charms grade as it was one of her better classes and she enjoyed Charming things.

As she walked to the Great Hall for lunch, she couldn't help but think that Monique Danes should seriously think about what she says before saying it to the walls of Hogwarts, they had ears.

Ginny was just finishing her meal and preparing for a night of reading in her dorm when a sugary sweet voice rang out from behind her.

"Oh Ginny dear, how is Charms class going?"

Monique. Ignore her. Ginny told herself as she grit her teeth, trying to listen to her own advice.

"Ginny, can you not hear me? Are you deaf? Did a Potion go wrong or something and affect your hearing?" she said this last bit hopefully and Ginny looked at her and frowned, not knowing what to make of it.

"Oh you can hear me. I was worried there for a second."

"You were not." Ginny said, though she hadn't meant too, Monique just had that something about her that Ginny didn't particularly like.

"Oh but I was. Now, I heard a rumour that you may need tutoring in that lesson. I would be more than happy to offer my services." She said though Ginny had had enough.

She knew it was extremely rude manners to walk away when you were being spoken too but she decided this was an exception. She turned on her heel and walked away calmly. She heard Monique follow her a little way and continue talking.

"Ginny, please, let me offer my services…" she said, waiting for Ginny to bite. She wasn't going too though, she was better than that, she knew when to walk away, when to ignore she knew when too –

"I got one hundred and twenty percent on my Charms test, I was quite shocked really—"

Screw knowing anything Ginny thought as she whirled around and closed the small distance between the two of them and punched Monique in the face. Monique let out an ear-piercing squeal and Ginny took this as her que to jump onto the girl, hitting any part that she could reach.

"You bitch!" Ginny pulled at Monique's pride and joy; her ugly mop of hair. She screamed and Ginny taking it as a pathetic whimper, pulled harder.

"Get this crazy lunatic off me!" Monique managed to yell as she found a fistful of Ginny's hair and yanked. Ginny growled, and pushed her to the floor, the two of them rolling around madly between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor tables. People were staring at them but Ginny noticed no one came to her aid, as usual. Not that she cared; all she wanted to do was make Monique as bruised and ugly as she could single handedly manage. It looked as though she were reaching her target but was soon pulled away.

She tried to punch the person holding her but found that it was Colin and that she didn't really have a chance of hitting him as he was holding her there with his wand.

"Let me go Colin!" she growled again but he just shrugged.

"No can do. McGonagall's instructions." He said, motioning to the woman now pulling the battered Monique to her feet.

Ginny stood firm, glaring at Monique who was cowering. Good. Ginny thought with satisfaction. Maybe now she'll leave me alone!

"My office Miss Weasley! Mr Creevey will you please escort her there, I don't know that she would turn up otherwise!" Professor McGonagall said, looking at Ginny with what could only be described as disappointment. Ginny almost felt bad for bringing this look to her teacher's face but then looked at the whimpering Monique and she smirked.

Colin jerked his wand and Ginny was forced to walk where he wanted, being out of the Great Hall, amidst all the terrified looks on people's faces.

"What, it's only Ginny Weasley, Hogwart's resident problem!" she yelled at them, her eyes resting on Harry for a split second. "You should be used to it by now. It's rude to stare you know!" she snarled at a first year who looked as though he'd wet his pants.

"Miss Weasley. I am most disappointed in you." Professor McGonagall said as Ginny sat in her office, Colin having been told to sit outside.

Ginny bit her tongue so as not to fight back with a sarcastic 'Really? I hadn't noticed.'

"This year is important for many reasons. Firstly it is your O.W.L. year and if you wish to have a successful career, I believe you shall want to get as many as you can. This will not happen however if you devote your study time to picking fights with unsuspecting students!" she said, her voice rising with each word.

Ginny couldn't help it; she couldn't sit there and be scolded for the wrong reasons.

"She wasn't unsuspecting, she provoked me and I bit back, as anyone would have done if they'd heard what she'd said." Ginny said angrily.

"I understand. I will however have to give you a detention for your behaviour. It is not acceptable to behave like that anywhere on Hogwarts grounds Ginny, despite what your brothers may tell you." She added softly but Ginny heard her all the same. "I suggest you look into finding yourself a tutor to help you out. Infact, I insist. I suggest Hermione Granger. I believe you are friends and will be able to work efficiently together?" she asked, giving Ginny a piercing look.

"Um…could you suggest someone aside from Hermione?" Ginny asked quietly, her anger subsiding quickly to be replaced with a pang of sadness.

The Professor looked at her with a blank expression and looking as though it were a bad idea, she spoke another name.

"Harry Potter."

"I—what? Noooo." Ginny said, before thinking.

"They are the people you have to chose from I am afraid. They are our best students that will be able to help you.

"I'd rather Malfoy over them...but I suppose Harry." Ginny said, McGonagall surveying her strangely.

"Very well. Mr Potter it is, I trust you are able to study with him. I mean, really study." Her teacher asked and Ginny frowned.

"Yes, Professor." She said, slightly insulted.

"I shall inform him of his duty tonight. You will study in the Library every night. Also, you shall serve your detention later this evening." She said briskly and shooed Ginny from her office.

Ginny nodded and left the room, feeling extremely calm for some reason. Ginny veered left and was soon joined by Colin who she had left at the door.

"So what's the verdict?" Colin asked as he walked alongside her. Though he didn't look as though he was particularly concerned. He was still annoyed with Ginny for breaking his pride and joy. He hadn't spoken to her since but he didn't think that she'd noticed much. She looked like she had a lot on her mind as it was. Why would she bother about Colin and his Camera?

"Huh?" Ginny asked, trying to work out why she was walking down the corridor from McGonagall's office.

"What did she say?" he asked, elaborating slightly.

"Who?" Ginny asked, blankly again.

"McGonagall!" Colin said, looking at her, exasperated.

"Uh…have a nice day?" Ginny said, hanging her head in hopes he wouldn't ask anymore.

"Have a – Ginny are you ok?" he asked suddenly, touching her on the arm to stop her, despite the fact that he wanted to appear indifferent to her. She should have apologised for what she'd done. Ginny however stopped at his touch and looked up at him.

"No!" she said, starting to cry and Colin wrapped his arms around her and she cried into his chest, wondering why on earth she was.

"Shh. It's ok…um…here, sit down and tell me what's wrong." He said, leading her to a flight of stairs quite forgetting about his previous anger towards her.

Ginny sat next to Colin and tried to control her crying, which she did after a good few minutes. She looked at Colin and he smiled crookedly. Ginny really felt that she could trust him so she spoke, pouring out her strange feelings.

"—They won't talk too me, I think I did something really wrong. I thought thing's were changing, I thought they really wanted to be my friends..." She said and Colin wrapped a comforting arm around her.

Had Colin been in the Common Room during Ron and Ginny's fight he would have been confused by what she was saying, he would have known why they weren't talking to her but he couldn't tell her any more than she already knew which frustrated Ginny even more.

"I feel so lost!" she said laughing though not amused at all, a fresh wave of tears spilling over.

"You're not lost Gin, you're right here." Colin said, a weak attempt at a joke. Ginny gave him a watery smile.

"Why are you so nice to me Colin? Whatever did I do to deserve your kindness?" she asked him suddenly and he paused before answering.

"You're you, Gin. You didn't do anything. You're Ginny and that's enough for me. You're such a nice, polite, caring person." He said and Ginny suddenly heard a voice, though she wasn't sure where it was coming from.

"What happened to the nice, polite, caring Ginny?"

"You ok?" Colin asked as he noticed her blank expression.

"Yeah…fine. I just…fine." She said, recalling the voice. It sounded like Harry's, but when had he said that, she was always nice and polite. When hadn't she been?

"You're really pretty Ginny, you'd make a great subject. I wish I had my camera with me."

Ginny smiled, flattered. "Where is it, you always carry it with you."

Colin stared at her. Ginny thought she must have had something on her face.

"What…happened…to it?" Colin asked in a strangled voice. "I loved that Camera Ginny, don't joke about it, I don't need to relive the nightmare!" he said suddenly angry. He stood and began to leave. "See you around." He said before walking off.

Ginny looked around and opened her mouth to speak but stopped at the sound of the same voice, though it was saying something different this time.

"Sort out your priorities or you won't have anyone to cry too."

Ginny bit her lip and sighed as another tear made it's way down her cheek.

Now what was she going to do? Colin wouldn't talk to her. Ginny sat on her bed, her knees hugged to her chest crying softly. She heard the door open and saw Sachelle walk in. She made to get up.

"I'll just leave…" she muttered and Sachelle nodded quickly, looking just glad to be rid of her, until she saw her face.

"Ginny?" she asked softly.

"It's ok, I'm going." She said, wishing that the girl wasn't so impatient to get rid of her.

"No, stay. You're upset. Do you…want to talk about it?" she asked and Ginny stopped sniffling to look at her properly.

"Won't your friends disagree?" Ginny asked, though she didn't care.

"They're not my friends." She said darkly. Ginny looked at her, surprised. Sachelle was always to be seen with the girls in their dorm. It was as though they were attached at the hip with a permanent Sicking Charm. Ginny couldn't understand where this was coming from.

"You know, talking about it always helps." Sachelle said soon after, smiling warmly and leading Ginny back to her bed and then walking to her own bed and rummaging under it and producing a large box. She walked back over and sat on Ginny's bed and opened the box, pulling out every sort of chocolate imaginable.

"For situations like this." She said offering the box to Ginny who took a piece of Honeyduke's best chocolate.

"You know, you're not who I thought you were." Ginny said, surprised at her forwardness, she would never be so blunt to someone she barely knew. Sachelle merely laughed.

"Neither are you!" she said and Ginny frowned.

"What do you mean?" she asked, biting into the chocolate slowly.

"Oh I see, we're forgetting about the Halloween Ball then are we? I understand." She said, smiling again. Ginny returned the smile though wary. "Oh before I forget, I saw what you did to Monique, it was brilliant!" she exclaimed happily. "She had it coming to her."

"Yeah, of course." Ginny said laughing nervously. She sat in silence for a while, trying to piece things together.

"Thinking about Harry, Ron and Hermione?" Sachelle asked knowingly.

"Yes, how'd you know?" Ginny asked surprised.

"I have my ways. You didn't expect them to forgive and forget straight away did you?"

"Forgive and forget about what! I don't know what I've done!" Ginny burst out suddenly, surprising herself again.

"About you yelling at Ron, and from what I've heard, telling Hermione she's boring."

"I—what? I wouldn't do that!" Ginny said, mortified.

"Well not normally, no but lately…" Sachelle trailed off, giving off a low whistle and shaking her head.

"Lately? Have I been…different?" Ginny asked, feeling stupid that she had to ask because she didn't know herself.

"Different is an understatement. A new person completely would fit the description— Oh no. Ginny forgive me for this!" Sachelle said quickly and ran to her own bed.

"Shell sweetie! What are you doing in here?" her 'friends' asked as they walked in the door.

"Oh you know, just checking up on the boys in Witch Weekly if you know what I mean!" she said, pretending to fan herself, as though the pictures of the boys were extremely hot. She giggled airily and they copied her, then stopped laughing as though they had been paused mid laugh. They suddenly looked right at Ginny and then at Sachelle and spoke in what they must have thought where whispers.

"Has she done anything weird?" Ginny turned away and Sachelle continued to talk.

"No, hopefully if I don't go near her, she wont do anything, but you never know these days!" she said, with a fake fearful look in Ginny's direction.

"We're going to go, she scares us." One of the others said and Sachelle nodded.

"See you later darlings!" she simpered and once they'd left the room, she tossed the magazine under her bed and walked straight back over to Ginny. "I'm really sorry about that. I just don't want them to think anything's up." She said taking some chocolate. "It's so good to finally act like myself!" she said looking at Ginny who was quite shocked.

"Oh right, I'm sorry. I should explain. My mother is high up in the Ministry, and she likes me to be friends with the right people. Frankly, I think they're all really stupid. Do you know how hard it is to have a conversation with someone whose brain is addled due to the fumes of nail polish?" she said speaking very fast and ending her talk by shaking her head in disgust.

"Why stay friends with them?" Ginny said, still shocked at how well this girl could act.

"I don't have a choice. Mother's orders." She said, sticking her nose into the air. Ginny laughed and nodded.

"Well it's the opposite for me. I can be friends with whoever I want, but no one likes me." she said, hardly believing she'd said it.

"I'm sure they do—"

"They don't but I'm used to being alone now. At least I had Colin before though, I stuffed that up just now."

"Colin…Creevey?" Sachelle asked with forced casualness.

"Yeah…why?"

"Just wondering! Anywho, I have to go, I'm really sorry but I have to meet them all for dinner." She said rolling her eyes. "I hope we can chat again soon!" she said and left the room soon after in a flurry of giddy perfume and fluffy hair.

Ginny was on her way to the library the next day, having just ran into Professor McGonagall who informed her tartly that she had missed her Detention from the night before. Ginny didn't get Detentions! And she was sure that if she did, she wouldn't neglect them! Her previous thoughts that all this strangeness had died down were suddenly very real again. Things were how they'd been before Harry, Ron and Hermione had stopped talking to her. It had been two weeks now. She hadn't trad to talk to them again since as she figured that it must have been awful what she'd done.

She sat down at the table that Madam Pince had showed her too for her studying session and was gearing herself up to speak to Harry when Hermione sat down in front of her. She opened her mouth but Hermione spoke first.

"Harry was unable to tutor you as he has other arrangements, I however was available so was therefore given the job of helping you study for your O.W.L.S. We shall begin with Transfiguration as I think it is essential to know the fine art of this subject ahead of any other." Hermione said in a very businesslike tone. Though on closer inspection, Ginny noticed that she looked extremely nervous to be in the same room as her.

Ginny nodded and opened her Transfiguration text book and they worked for over an hour on it, Hermione gradually becoming more relaxed as the minutes ticked by. Ginny refused to get her hopes up that Hermione might suddenly forgive her. She knew better than that.

"Alright, next lesson we will take a look at Potions. I think that is the area that you struggle most in." Hermione said, packing up her bag.

"No I don't!" Ginny said calmly though Hermione looked short of terrified though she still commented.

"You received a 'D' Ginny." She said calmly.

"You don't know the reasons behind that." Ginny said quietly.

"I'm sure. Good night." Hermione said and walked out, leaving Ginny sitting alone at the empty table.