Brief snapshots of the relationships of our favorite Hogwarts couples, I.e. James/Lily, Harry/Hermione, and Draco/Ginny.
Disclaimer: Not mine. This should be obvious because the above pairings are mostly not canon. Curse you, J.K.!
V. When?
When did he fall in love with her?
It's a question Harry has asked himself hundreds of times, but he still doesn't know the answer. Was it the first time he saw her? It couldn't be, because he remembers that time clearly, and there was no earth-shattering revelation that the bossy girl in front of him would command his heart so utterly. Was it when he saw her in class, raising her hand and answering smartly as he watched with bewilderment? It couldn't have been then either, because there were no whistles interrupting the professors' voices, no clanging bells announcing the arrival of his true love. It could have been when he saved her from the troll, his foolish bravado fueled by secret feelings, but, romantic as it would be, it wasn't then, and he acted more from guilt than hidden love. It wasn't when she was petrified, although he remembers that time with a clenched heart, seeing her white and cold as marble, her face frozen in fear. Nor was it when he fought with her to save Buckbeak, although seeing her collapse to the ground, caught in her worst memories, was more terrifying than he likes to recall. It could well have been when he saw her enter the Yule Ball, looking amazing, glowing with beauty, and although he remembers the incident with no small amount of jealousy, a realization that then was when he fell in love with the curly-haired girl is distinctly lacking. The fact is, he really doesn't know when it happened—he only knows that it did, and that there was nothing that he could have done to prevent it, even if he wanted to. It was inevitable, natural, right, far from the only thing in his life he has no control over, yet the only thing he doesn't mind not being free to stop. Falling for her hard took so long, but he can't remember the passage of time before it happened—it took an eternity to understand, but it's something he might have always known. Glancing sideways at Hermione in the library, who is still, despite her extraordinary intelligence, oblivious to his feelings, Harry sighs and turns back to his contemplation, and devoutly hopes that telling her won't be as much of a problem.