Title: You're My Bertie Botts
Summary: It's the fifth summer holiday for the trio and spending it with a troubled Ginny at The Burrow leaves Harry wondering about the littlest Red Head and Hermione about the next oldest. A light fluffy HG RH
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters, otherwise I would be married with children, have blonde hair, and be pretty darn rich!
Chapter Two: Stuff You Might Need To Annoy Ron While We're Gone
Author Notes: Hey, not many reviews but three-quarters of them great!! Sorry "!!!!!" that my story is 'dumb' but this is all happening at the end of the summer holidays and Harry is often too embarrassed to share his problems with Ron and Hermione so why couldn't he have shared them with Ginny. He has noticed she exists, he did throughout the whole of book five. But if in doubt use your imagination!! Hehe. Sorry it took so long to update, internet problems! So thanks for my reviews and keep going. But of course enjoy!,,,,,,,
....... Glancing over at Hermione, his eyes sparkling more than usual, as if on the brink of tears he whispered to me,
"I took it too far, there's no way we'll make up this time.".............
Harry was familiar with their arguments and had often seen them result with a break down from Hermione, but he had never seen them get so far as for Ron to shed any emotion. His face was pale against his vibrant red hair but as his eyes lingered on Hermione's petite figure, he turned paler still and sunk lower into his chair his arms thrown over his face.
Harry walked over to Hermione who flinched when he placed a hand on her shoulder. Crouching down next to her, she looked up at Harry, her eyes were bloodshot and her face was dripping with tears. He could feel a protective anger boil up inside of him, the same anger Ron must have been feeling for Ginny, because over the years Hermione had become like a sister to Harry. He tilted off his feet to sit next to her and she flung her arms around his neck in a tight hug. She continued to cry and her warm tears soaked through Harry's t-shirt, her bushy hair tickled his face.
Hermione leant back so that they were facing each other, Harry brushed away the hair sticking to her tear stained cheeks and she swallowed nervously, her body was shaking violently.
"He called me a mudblood." She said quickly, her eyes began to fill once more. Harry found himself in such a state of shock he was unable to respond. So many times he had watched Ron stand up for her when anyone called her that foul name, and here he was committing the crime himself. Harry had the sudden urge to stride over and give Ron the beating he deserved, but when he span round to look at him in disgust Ron looked straight past Harry and at the sobbing Hermione in his arms, his face was full of pain and guilt, his eyes still glistened with a hint of tears, Harry could tell he was genuinely upset by it.
Focusing back on Hermione she said between shaky breaths. "We were just having our usual argument, nothing special.... and it started to get vicious. I mean usually we just snap back with witty and sarcastic comments, but this time they were insulting and....... and they hurt. I can't remember exactly what happened but Ron was still ticked off from the whole Ginny thing earlier and he suddenly snapped at me....." she broke off to wipe her eyes on her sleeve, Harry gave her a reassuring smile and she finished the explanation, "he started yelling at me, really loud, then.....then he said, 'You know what? That Malfoy is right, you really are a filthy mudblood and the world would be better off without you!" Hermione let out a choked sob and collapsed back into her protective ball.
"Hermione I didn't mean it," Ron croaked. Harry swore loudly at him and heard someone move in the room above. "Look Harry, you've got to trust me, I didn't....!"
"How can I trust you Ron?" he snapped, "You've made two of the most important people in your life cry, and called them things I still can't believe you said. I don't want to fall out with you again, but just face up to the fact that at the moment you're being a pretty lousy brother and a friend. So don't expect me to go around trusting you that easily."
His head swung low and he nodded, "I know I have and I'll do anything to take it all back, I'd never purposely hurt the person I care about most." Harry felt Hermione freeze in his grip. Blushing furiously Ron stood up, "I'll go!" But as he walked out of the room he came face to face with Ginny.
"Where are you going?" She whispered, a hint of spitefulness in her voice.
"I'm not wanted here." He snapped back, his gaze never leaving his feet.
"No you're not," Ginny admitted, "But that's why you've got to stay and try and fix it."
"But...Gin..."
"No Ron," she lowered her voice further, "look you can give me your apologies later, Hermione's the one who needs them now." Ginny lifted his chin with her hand so he was forced to look at her, "I know you didn't mean what you said, I know that you like her and it was all just a cover up, you've just got to tell her that."
Ron's reaction was a picture, his face was a mixture of repulsion, shock and a glint of panic.
"What are you?..... Huh?..... Me....and.... Hermione? You're off your bloody head you are!" he stammered.
"Am I?"
"Yes!..." Ron paused, "....I think."
"If you really didn't like her in that way, there would be nothing to think about."
"Well there isn't 'cuz I don't, she's my friend...well." he scratched his head nervously, "Stop stirring things up Gin, you're confusing me. And aren't you supposed to hate me right now?"
"I do, but Harry helped cheer me up," Ron shot him a threatening look, "And for the moment I want to sort you guys out, I can hate you later." She grinned sarcastically.
"Fine! I'll apologise, but none of this made up 'love' stuff, you've really got it on the brain. You're trying to match make everyone."
Ginny glared at him and turned him round to face Harry and Hermione still curled up on the floor. Hermione freed herself from his grasp and stood up, only metres away from Ron.
"Did you mean it?" she asked, her voice still shaking.
"Mean what?" Ron growled.
"That you'd never purposely hurt me, the one you care about most?"
"That? I meant Ginny, my sister, the one I care about most because she's my sister, not you 'cuz you're not!" his voice was panicky and his forehead glistened with sweat. Hermione let out a soft "Oh" of disappointment.
Harry looked over Ron and Hermione at Ginny who beckoned him towards the door. Ron glanced at him nervously, he looked trapped and worried. Harry just raised his eyebrows and walked past.
"Was that a wise idea?" he whispered to her as Ginny closed the door behind them, leaving a slight gap so that they could see into the room.
"The best I've had in a long time!" She flashed Harry the Weasley grin. He smiled, when Ron grinned like that it made him laugh, but Ginny.... he tried not to think about it and pressed his ear against the door. "What are you doing?" Ginny giggled.
"Um trying to hear what's going on!" Harry replied, slightly puzzled.
"Have you forgotten who my brothers are?" And saying that she pulled out a pair of Fred and George's Extendable Ears. "They left me a pack of 'Stuff You Might Need To Annoy Ron While We're Gone'!" Harry laughed and rolled his eyes, "Well someone's got to do it while they're not here!"
"That's a good point!" He followed her lead and put on the Extendable Ears and leant over her to peer through the gap in the door. Clearly neither of them had said anything since Harry had left the room but Ron suddenly spoke up.
"Hermione I promise I didn't mean to say it."
"How can you not mean to say something. If you didn't mean to say it, you would never have said it in the first place!!"
"Yeah but you had me all pumped up, I just snapped!"
"But that didn't mean you could team with the likes of Draco Malfoy."
"I didn't team with him because I didn't mean it, I don't think you're a filthy mudblood."
Hermione shivered as he said it again, "Well then how could you possibly have said it?"
"I don't know Hermione, it's like.... like a packet of Bertie Botts. You really really like them, but you're worried that they'll not like you back and turn into a nasty flavour.... and so you pretend that you don't like them just so that you don't get a bad flavour and make a prat of yourself.
"But then as you pretend you don't like them, you lose out and other people take these sweets that you really like away from you. And you're angry that you don't have the sweets and that they don't like you. But it's too late to admit that you like the sweets so you have to keep on pretending that you don't like them.
"But then you take it too far and end up saying that you prefer another type of sweet to the Bertie Botts and that they're much better than them, when you don't really mean it. You're just scared."
Pausing for breath Ron looked at her, wondering if she understood. Harry threw a confused glance a Ginny but she just grinned even more.
"Ron?" Hermione's voice filled the room, this time it wasn't shaking. Harry tried to look harder through the gap without being seen, Ginny grunted beneath him to let him know that he was squashing her. "Ron are.... are you using packet of Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans as a simile for.... me?"
However red Harry had seen Ron go before, it was nothing compared to what colour he was now.
"What? No! Where do you get a stupid idea like that?" Ron's eyes shifted across the room.
"Ron!" Hermione sighed, she stepped closer to him and Harry leant forwards to get a better view. Ginny shuddered beneath his weight and fell face down on the floor, sending Harry tumbling into the living room. All eyes were on him and Ginny as they lay tangled in a pile of bodies and Extendable Ears.
"Harry? Ginny?" Hermione gasped. She looked across at Ron who was in an embarrassed shock and realising how close she was standing to him jumped away nervously.
Flashing an anxious grin at them, Harry and Ginny edged quietly out of the room and ran upstairs where they collapsed on the landing in laughter.
As Harry laughed with Ginny it was like laughing with Ron or Hermione. Except he had never noticed the way Hermione's eyes sparkled or Ron's vibrant hair lit up the room like Ginny's did. He stopped laughing and began to panic, scolding himself for looking at his best friend's sister in a different light.