Chapter Two: More Talk and the Hogwarts Express
Ginny got her chance to talk to Ron later that evening. Hermione had gone to shower, and Ron came up the stairs at just the right time.
"Hey!" she called from her doorway.
"What?" he asked, irritably.
"Come here, I want to talk." She saw his eyes flit around the room nervously. "She's bathing. I wanted to talk to you. Sit!" she added, with a touch of Mrs. Weasley.
He sat--on the floor.
"You like Hermione." It wasn't a question.
"Uh..." Ron went pink.
"You do, I know you do. So does everyone else, except her." She ignored Ron's stammers. "I just want you to be careful dealing with her. Push her too much she'll retreat into her studies completely. Give her room and she'll be yours." Goodness, that was corny, Ginny thought.
"Uhh..." He still hadn't got his tongue. "How did you--how do you know?"
"Well, the biggest clue was probably the way you hated Krum after the Yule Ball, and now you two seem to sunburn very easily in the others' presence."
"She--she likes me too?"
"Enough so that you have a chance." How dense can you get! thought Ginny.
"What about Krum?" Ron sounded so jealous that Ginny had to laugh.
"Long distance relationships don't work in the long run. You're much closer than Krum, and she's known you longer. I honestly don't know what's going to happen with him, but I do know that she likes you as more than a friend--potentially, so just be yourself and let her come to you." Another cheap line out of Witch Weekly.
Ginny heard the water shut off as Ron digested this info. Half a minute later, Hermione emerged, wrapped in a towel, her hair hanging limply around her shoulders. Ron's jaw almost dropped, and he sidled out of the room as a very pink--it could have been from the shower, but probably not--Hermione clutched the towel to herself. Ginny pointedly buried herself in her copy of The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts, leaving the two of them to figure it out.
The rest of the holiday passed quietly: rumors of attacks on Muggles going ignored in the Daily Prophet; her father coming home exhausted each day, tight-lipped about Fudge; Hermione showing Ron and Harry Krum's Nimbus 2001 and flying for a bit, much to their amazement; Ginny borrowing it and playing against Harry, who only narrowly won.
They trooped back down towards the Burrow, sweaty, hot, thirsty, happy, Ron offering to carry Hermione's broom. Poor guy, thought Ginny. He likes Hermione and admires Krum... what a nightmare.
Harry tapped Ginny's elbow, making her jump, then stared at her pointedly as the others drew ahead of them. He didn't say a word, so she simply stood there, waiting for him to make the first move.
When the others were out of hearing, he spoke quietly. "Ginny, I--the last thing I want to do is hurt you or scare you off..." His eyes (how can they be so green?) were oddly intense, searching hers for a reaction.
"What do you mean?" Carefully, carefully, girl.
He seemed to be choosing his words carefully, speaking slowly and haltingly. "Last June was--a nightmare. Seeing Voldemort rise again, out of that cauldron--I just always feel, even now, like I'm never going to grow up. Like this day will be my last..." he trailed off, searching Ginny's face.
"Harry, you know that Dumbledore would never let Voldemort near you--"
"It isn't that. I want a life, dammit!" His fists rolled into balls, his eyes squeezed shut, and in the fading light from the sunset Ginny thought she saw tears on his cheeks. "This entire summer I felt like Voldemort was going to suddenly show up on the Dursleys' front porch and hex me into pieces. I don't know if I could survive another duel with him, even if our wands are brothers." Harry's words rolled faster and faster as he kept speaking. "And no one in the wizarding world wants to answer my questions! It just doesn't seem fair..." he choked.
It may have started out as a Mrs. Weasley-esque gesture, but certainly felt like something else. Ginny put her arms around him, holding him to her--never mind that he was six inches taller. He stiffened, then let his arms wrap around her shoulders, squeezing her gently.
For a moment they just stood there, Ginny reveling in the comfort she felt near Harry. Harry eventually stopped shaking enough to draw back. "I'm sorry, Ginny--I never meant to--to burden you..."
"Shh..." she said, reaching up to run her hands through his hair. It's amazing what you can get away with as an act of comfort She drew a hand down his cheek, her finger landing on his lips. He took her hand in his, kissing the finger gently. His mouth worked its own magic as it pressed into her palm--I think I'm going to faint...--then down her bare arm to her elbow. Oh, gods...
They kissed. Or, more exactly, Harry pulled Ginny closer and let his mouth touch hers, gentle but certain, inexperienced but dead sure of the desire. Ginny wanted to scream in delight. I kissed Harry Potter! cheered her inner fanclub.
Harry shuddered and drew away. "Uhh.."
"What?"
"I don't want to hurt you, Ginny--you're my best friend's little sister--I don't want Ron running after me with a club... Fred and George neither, come to think of it..."
Ginny laughed. "I think Ron would freak out if anyone so much as held my hand. Trust me, he doesn't need to know." She looked up at him coyly. "Can we continue?"
They were on the grass suddenly, lips together, hands tracing out unidentifiable patterns on each other's bodies. In the darkness Ginny could just make out Harry's sillhouette, lying slanted across hers. No fireworks, no candles and soft music, just the two of them, the smell of grass, and a deep-seated happiness permeating her bones.
"Ginny! Harry!"
They groaned. Mrs. Weasley's voice came floating across the hill, breaking their moment.
"Guess we'd better go in..."
They went back down towards the house.
"You'll need to move, boys, for dinner," Mrs. Weasley was saying to Fred and George as Ginny and Harry walked in. She pointed her wand at the cupboard; several plates flew out and landed in a neat pile next to her chopping board.
"Just a minute, Mum," said George absentmindedly.
"What are you two doing, anyway?" asked Mrs. Weasley suspiciously. She came over and picked up the parchment they were both hunched over.
"Weasley's Wizard Wheezes," it read.
"Boys!" shouted Mrs. Weasley. "How many times have I told you that I don't want you two wasting your time on this rubbish! You could be revising for your N.E.W.T.s!" And with that, she tossed the parchment into the fire.
Ginny looked at Fred. He looked back at her. That wasn't as bad as usual, his eyes said. And then Ginny realized that her mother hadn't mentioned the word "Ministry."
Harry and Ginny didn't get much time alone together before September 1. But when they were alone together, in a private place, many passionate kisses were be exchanged. They never once spoke of how things were going to work when they got back to Hogwarts, a topic that Ginny really wanted to talk about but never was able to bring up.
So it happened that they got to King's Cross without discussing The Relationship, and that Harry spotted Cho on the platform and forgot about Ginny completely as he went over to talk to her.
Oh, great, thought Ginny miserably. So I get a Summer Of Love, but the moment he spots Little Miss Ravenclaw Seeker, I'm just his friend's kid sister, great for an easy feel...
She couldn't quite make out what they were saying through the noise of owls and people, but she saw Cho turn to smile at Harry, who blushed slightly. They seemed to exchange a few pleasantries, and then Cho touched Harry's shoulder gently. Harry stiffened slightly, and Ginny could almost see the sexual tension between the two of them. She felt her anger rising. What was it Harry had said to her when they first kissed? "I don't want to hurt you, Ginny..." Well, this certainly hurt!
She stomped off to find a compartment to herself, ignoring Colin Creevey's inviting wave.
Ginny spent the train ride fuming. Maybe her friends had realized how upset she was, maybe the train had some magic allowing people who wanted to be left alone, left alone, but no one really bothered her--apart from the lady with the tea cart--until she had calmed down enough to take out her spellbooks and study for a while. Hermione tapped on the glass, wearing a concerned expression.
Ginny sighed and put the book down, gesturing for Hermione to come in.
"I had hoped to get through chapter seven--" she began, trying to sound irritated.
Hermione looked at the book. Numerology and Grammatica. It was one of Ginny's textbooks for Arithmancy, which she actually quite liked. "Oh, that chapter's actually quite short--it should take only an hour or so to finish, depending on how well you know your Greek symbols, otherwise you'll need to keep referring to chapter five."
"Where they talk about how the Greek mythological characters are related by threes to their opponents?"
"Yes, that chapter--I'd recommend you reread it first, actually."
"Thanks."
They fell silent. Ginny looked at Hermione. Hermione didn't fidget. Ginny waited some more.
"Why was it so hard for me to find you?" Hermione finally asked.
"I wanted to be left alone. I guess the train knew it."
"That would explain why I had to use a Finding Spell on you--I couldn't see you in any of the compartments until I began walking without looking, following the spell."
"Oh."
"So..." Hermione looked at Ginny.
"Yes?" Ginny wasn't sure why she was being so irritable to Hermione. It's all Harry's fault.
"So, why did you storm off like that?"
Ginny glared. "If you don't know..."
"I have a theory, and I don't like it."
"Do elucidate," Ginny said silkily.
"You saw Harry talking to Cho and somehow that annoyed you," said Hermione flatly.
"Why would that annoy me?" Ginny asked.
"Oh, Ginny! Don't think I didn't notice at the Burrow that whenever you weren't around, neither was Harry! You've been disappearing together--"
"And did you know that the first thing he said to me was, 'The last thing I want to do is hurt you'? Well, this hurts!" Ginny's anger was like a palpable knot in her throat. "The moment he sees Cho, he just goes off, not so much as a 'see you in a minute,' nothing!"
Hermione broke in, "Look, I don't know what he said to Cho, or what their status is. But I do know that Harry is honest and kind, and you should tell him what's going on. He really wouldn't want you to stay angry at him."
"I know!" Ginny wailed helplessly. Trust Hermione to say exactly what's true. "It just feels so good to be really angry for once!"
Hermione laughed. "Yeah, it does. I remember when Ron made that fuss at the Yule Ball last year..." Ginny couldn't help it. She remembered that scene they'd made in the common room last Christmas, and how completely idiotic Ron had acted, and she just cracked up.
"Hey, what's so funny?" It was Ron, followed by Harry. Apparently the train wasn't letting her be alone anymore. Ginny stopped laughing, the knot back in her throat.
Hermione was still chuckling. "We were just remembering last Christmas' Yule Ball, that's all."
"And?" prompted Harry, not looking at Ginny.
"Nothing you'd be interested in, really," Hermione said quickly, glancing away from Ron's face.
"Oh, go on," said Ron.
"I'll tell you back in the compartment, Ron, let's go," said Hermione with a sharp look at Harry.
They left, which meant that one fuming Ginny Weasley was left alone with one clueless Harry Potter.
The silence hung in the air around them. Neither spoke, avoiding each other's eyes completely.
Finally Harry broke the quiet. "Are you mad at me?"
"Now, why would I be mad at you?" said Ginny acidly.
"I just wanted to--"
"No, answer me. Why do you think I would be mad at you?"
"I'm assuming it's Cho..."
"Fifty points to Gryffindor, Harry! Too bad Hermione isn't here, she could award them as a prefect..."
"Oh, stop it, Ginny! There's nothing between me and Cho, really!"
"Oh, really? Is that why I could see the sexual tension between the two of you when she touched you? Why you looked so happy to be near her? Why you didn't even tell me you were going over to talk to her? We spend as much of the summer snogging as possible, then the moment we're in public, it's Harry-Potter-in-love-with-Cho who appears?"
Harry looked dumbstruck. "Ginny, I--"
"What?"
He took a deep breath. "I didn't know that it would upset you so much. I'm sorry."
"Hmph."
Silence fell again, calming Ginny a bit.
"So am I your, y'know, girlfriend?"
"Um...I don't know," Harry mumbled. "See, I do like Cho--at least as a friend--and she's very pretty, and she's a good Seeker..." he broke off as Ginny's eyes flashed like her mother's. "On the platform I just wanted to know if she was okay, after last June, and she just asked me how my summer went. I don't know if she likes me, too."
Ginny realized that she could get Harry all to herself if she just lied, but she couldn't do it. "Hermione thinks she does," she said softly.
"Really?" Harry asked brightly.
Ginny almost burst into tears in frustration. "Look, Harry, I don't want my heart led around with a carrot. You told me that you didn't want to hurt me, that you'd seen enough hurt already, and here you are telling me how much you like another girl after we've spent the summer together? That hurts, Harry, it really does."
"I'm sorry, Ginny! I don't want to hurt you, but I don't want to hurt Cho, either! You're someone I can talk to, someone I feel comfortable with. Cho makes my insides squirm, and my..." he blushed. Ginny suddenly realized that he was referring to a certain bodily reaction. "And she's already lost Cedric."
I have too much Molly Weasley in me, thought Ginny, almost resignedly. "I suppose you're right," she sighed. "I shouldn't expect you to be mean to every other girl. I'm sorry I was so upset at you. It's just that I thought we were something..."
"But we are, Ginny," Harry said earnestly.
"What?" asked Ginny dejectedly.
"Good friends?" he asked tentatively.
"Who snog occasionally in empty classrooms?" she asked just as hopefully, beginning to feel better.
"Alright." He grinned mischievously, then glanced at his watch. "We have a while before the train gets to Hogsmeade..."