August 22, 1995, 12 Grimmauld Place

Today has been a rather confusing day. No, no, no, it wasn't boring in the slightest. It was full of activity for once, but much confusion resulted from it. I'll start from the beginning, shall I? I have much to tell you.

The day started out normally enough. I woke early and headed down to the kitchen for breakfast. Hermione and I managed to eat our fill of Mum's delicious food before the boys finally came downstairs, weak-looking and bleary-eyed. Ron rudely asked why us girls got to eat our food first, but he was silenced with one look from Mum.

Not to mention she whacked him lightly on the back of the head with her wand. That was actually quite amusing. Moving on to more important points…

After breakfast, I was just lounging at the top of the staircase, gazing off into space and feeling a bored spell in the air. I heard someone walking through the hallway, and the instant I saw spiked pink hair and a Weird Sisters T-shirt, I nearly tumbled down the staircase.

It was Tonks!

I must admit, I got excited. I had so much to tell her; everything from Michael to hiding Hermione's textbook. I rushed into the kitchen and patiently waited while Tonks finished a conversation with Mum. She sat down at the table, turned to me, and smiled. I took that as my cue to start talking.

We talked together for just under two hours, sipping tea and spilling everything about these past few days. I asked her if she thought Hermione would ever want to join us in our conversation, and Tonks said this:

"Ah, Hermione, she's one smart girl. But she's got to learn to live and let live, and that there's more to life than great grades. I don't think she'll be joining us any time soon."

I told Tonks about my plan to get Hermione off of researching textbooks constantly. I said that I had one of her favorite textbooks hidden underneath my bed, so she'll never be able to find it. Tonks laughed and told me it was a good idea, and that it should work.

After our little chat, Tonks informed me that she had to get back to the Auror headquarters. She's supposed to give a briefing on some huge case today. I wished her good luck, and she hugged me goodbye and went off into the hallway. Mum came in a few seconds later and cleared away our tea mugs.

Here's where we get to the exciting part. Well, somewhat exciting:

It was lunchtime, and the twins still hadn't come down yet. Mum sent me upstairs to go and fetch them, unless she would just give their portions of food to the rest of us. I trekked to the third floor and was fully prepared to open their bedroom door when I heard them speaking in hushed voices. I stopped outside the door to listen in.

George expressed his worries about Mum and the Daily Prophet. "She's bound to read it!" He said. "And what if someone else has already read it?"

Fred asked who else got the newspaper in the house, and George simply replied, "Hermione." They went silent for a few moments. I was almost sure that they could hear my breath.

"Let's just see how long we can hold out." Fred said stiffly. I saw George shaking his head through the crack in the door.

"And what if someone else finds out?" George countered. "Ginny, she's a clever one. She's bound to figure it out sooner or later."

I felt my cheeks grow hot at the moment, though I felt an upsurge of affection for the twins. I listened for a few moments more, but all I got out of it is that Fred and George aren't going to tell anyone about their joke shop…yet.

I'm glad that at least two of my brothers think of me as clever. I know that Bill likes me, but he's never actually expressed it in words. Charlie…well, I never really talk to him. He's always in Romania. Ron still sees me as a little girl with a silly schoolgirl crush on his best mate, and Percy? Ugh. Don't even get me started on that pompous git!

Anyway, I barged into the twins room, told them that lunch was ready, and bolted out of there as fast as I could. I didn't want to tell them that I know…but I think I'll be able to tell them by the end of the summer.

After lunch, Hermione and I went to our bedroom. I sat down on my bed, and it took me a few seconds to realize that Hermione was frantically looking for something. I surveyed her intently as she shuffled through the parchment on the desk in the corner of the room. She lifted up her pillows and let out a little whimper. I could barely suppress a laugh.

"Ginny, have you seen my Hogwarts, A History?" She asked me with a whining tone to her voice. I shook my head, but kept my mouth closed. I was almost sure that I would burst out laughing if I tried to speak.

I watched in amused dismay as Hermione continued to tear the room apart in search of her beloved textbook, but she didn't even check on my side of the room. It pained me to think how much she trusted me. I had to grip the edge of my bed as I watched. It was all I could do, because I was on the verge of reaching underneath my bed and handing her the damn textbook.

I'm hoping that without any schoolwork to do, Hermione will realize that Ron truly does like her much more than just a best friend. Hopefully, my little plan will work. But perhaps Hermione will do something drastic if she doesn't get her textbook back before the end of the summer.

Oh my.

Hmm. Dinner's ready. I'll write more tomorrow, I promise!

-Ginny


Hooray! Another longer chapter! Hope everyone enjoyed it!

Special thanks to: Machiavelli, Jr., Kat, Alex202, LittleWriterGirl, Morei Sky, prongs-gurl202113, harryz babi, and Darache for reviewing. Thanks so much you guys! Lots of love!

My vacation is coming up! I'm so excited, but don't worry, I haven't forgotten my beloved reviewers. I'll be posting the next entries in a day or two.

You know the drill. Please review! It means the world to me. Even if it's just a "cool story update soon", I still get excited.

-Rox 3