The Devils Triangle
Chapter 2: Who is This Girl?
The Weasley family gathered contentedly around the table to dine on roasted chicken. There were just five in residence at The Burrow that night, so dinner was a more subdued affair than usual. Mrs. Weasley, however still managed to cook enough food to feed twenty and was determined to fatten Harry up by the end of summer. During dinner, a post owl flew through the window and straight to Ginny. The owl had a box attached to its leg, and Ginny removed it with a puzzled look.
"What'cha got there Gin?" Ron asked.
"Don't know yet." Ginny unwrapped the box and removed the letter inside. "Excellent. It's a box of chocolate frogs from Dean." Ginny grinned happily.
"You just saw him this morning! Why's he sending you presents?" Ron exclaimed.
Ginny blushed as she read his letter, and giggled. "He's just apologizing for being a little grouchy yesterday. He's sweet."
"What do you mean 'apologizing'? Did he try something? Dad, see I told you she shouldn't have gone over there," Ron began to rant.
Ginny rolled her eyes. "Really Ron, it wasn't like that."
"What was it like then?" Ron insisted.
Ginny ignored Ron and turned to her mother. "Actually Mum, it was the weirdest thing! I'm usually so invisible to boys, but at this wedding there were about twelve of them who kept asking me to dance. It was amazing! It must be something in the Thomas blood that makes me attractive to the," she shrugged.
Mrs. Weasley smiled at her daughter. "I think you'll find other boys will be paying attention to you too, dear."
"Really? Why?" She sounded shocked.
"You've filled out a bit Gin," Harry said before he even realized what was coming out of his mouth! He grimaced and kept his eyes locked on his potatoes.
"Is that it?" Ginny asked him incredulously.
"Pretty sure, yeah," Harry answered, still looking down, but feeling the hot glares of Ron and Mr. Weasley upon him.
"Hmmf. It's amazing what a few pounds of well placed body fat can do for a girl's popularity," she said matter-of-factly.
"It does work wonders, dear," Mrs. Weasley laughed.
"Wait a minute!" Ron interrupted. "You're at this wedding flirting and dancing with a dozen other blokes, and Dean's apologizing to you? Is he insane? Why didn't you just dance with Dean?"
"He didn't want to dance… he only wanted to snog in the cloakroom! I was bored with that; I wanted to dance!"
Ron was rendered speechless; his face, apoplectic. Mr. Weasley didn't look too healthy either, but Harry burst out laughing. "You were bored snogging? Are you sure you were doing it right?"
"You're an expert, Potter?" Ginny glared at him. "I just wanted to dance,alright?"
"Right then!" Mrs. Weasley interrupted. "Who's for apple pie?"
Dinner finished in virtual silence, with Mrs. Weasley giving Ron 'You'd better keep quiet' threatening glares. At the same time, she was sending her husband 'We'll talk about it later' soothing glares.
To escape the Weasley family tension, Harry headed to his room immediately after dinner. His trunk had been delivered to The Burrow that afternoon and Harry began unpacking a few things and setting up Hedwig's cage. Unfortunately, a very agitated Ron had followed him and lay down on Harry's bed to vent his spleen.
"As soon as we get on the Hogwarts Express, I am going to hex Dean into next week! What is he thinking, trying to snog my sister senseless as soon as she's out of my sight?" Harry smirked at Ron's all too predictable rant.
"And can you believe her? Snogging in cloakrooms! Flirting shamelessly! My sister's a scarlet woman, I tell you! She's only fourteen!" Ron fumed.
"Ron, calm down! Your mother didn't seem to think there was anything to worry about, so why should you? Ginny'll be fine, and actually she's fifteen, almost."
"Scarlet woman!" Ron yelled at Ginny as she passed by the open door and entered her own room.
"Bite me, Ron!" she yelled back.
"That's exactly the problem! You let entirely too many boys bite you!" Ron yelled as he stomped out into the corridor. Ginny immediately flew out of her room in a fiery rage, wand in hand. She threw her hex before Harry even realized what was happening. Ron crumbled to the floor with a groan as Bat-Bogeys flew out his nose, attacking him all over his body. Harry had never seen Ginny's Bat-Bogey hex before, but it looked very unpleasant.
Ginny stood over Ron screaming, her voice sounding like a demon from hell. "That, dear brother, is how I deal with boys who don't treat me properly! And that's how I'll deal with you in the future if you ever speak disparagingly about me again or if you ever interfere in my love life again! Do you understand?" Ron made a sort of belching sound, but it was impossible for him to speak because bogeys kept flying out of his mouth every time he opened it. "I said, do you understand?" she repeated. Ron managed to nod in agreement. "Good." Ginny turned and began to leave the room.
"Gin, wait!" Harry managed to shake off his shock in time to stop her.
"Yes, Harry?" she said in her normal sweet voice.
"You can't just leave him like this! You have to perform the counter curse!" Harry said desperately.
"Oh. No, I'm sorry but I can't. I'm not allowed to perform magic outside of school," Ginny said calmly. She smiled and returned to her own room. Ron continued to writhe in agony on the floor.
"Bloody hell!"Harry ran from the room and bellowed down the stairs, "Mrs. Weasley! Mr. Weasley! Come quickly!"
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came running as though they expected to find a room full of Death Eaters. When they saw Ron in a slimy, gooey mass on the floor they were extremely relieved. Mrs. Weasley performed the counter curse, then a cleaning spell. "Ginny Weasley! Come here this instant!" she hollered.
Ginny appeared at the door with her arms crossed over her chest and her face locked in a cold scowl. Harry thought she looked terrifying and beautiful; he'd never seen anything like it. Had I even known this girl before today? Ron managed to sit up on the floor and he glared back at Ginny.
"Well?" Mr. Weasley said, glaring back and forth at the two of them glaring at one another. There was no question what Mr. Weasley was expecting from his youngest two children at that moment.
Ron took a deep breath and spoke in a monotone voice. "I'm sorry Ginny, I went too far. You're not a scarlet woman."
"And?" Ginny asked expectantly.
Ron thought for a moment, and then reluctantly continued, "…and I'll try to not interfere in your love life. I can't promise anything, but I'll try." Suddenly, the stoic Ron disappeared. "Look Gin, I love you! I just don't want to see you hurt."
Ginny's stance immediately softened and she flew to her brother, throwing her arms around him. "I'm sorry I bogeyed you, Ron. I just wanted to remind you I can take care of myself." Harry smiled at the realization that he had no doubt whatsoever Ginny could take care of herself. "Forgive me?"
Ron nodded and grinned.
For the second time in less than an hour, an owl flew into The Burrow and headed straight for Ginny. This letter had an official seal of the Ministry of Magic. With trepidation, she opened the letter and scanned it. Sheepishly, she handed the letter to her father who read it quickly, and then sighed handing it back to Ginny.
"Ginny, you're going to have to accompany me to the Ministry tomorrow, so we can pay your fine and clear this up," Mr. Weasley said as he and his wife turned to leave.
"Oh! I'm so sorry, Dad. Will the fine be big?" Ginny said with real remorse in her voice.
"We'll know tomorrow," he said quietly, as he began to descend down the stairs.
Harry took the parchment from Ginny and quickly skimmed it. He was surprised to see a letter almost identical to the one he'd received in his second year when Dobby dropped the cake on Mrs. Mason's head. He shook his head and gave Ginny a weak sigh.
It was amazing how quickly Ginny and Ron rebounded from their fight; within five minutes they were both sprawled on Harry's bed, giggling and teasing each other like nothing had happened. It must be a sibling thing! Growing up with Dudley, he'd never experienced anything like it.
"Well, I'm out of here. See you boys later," Ginny said, leaving them alone and returning to her own room.
"Wow… she's something else!" Harry said in awe, with nothing but admiration in his voice. "Honestly Ron, I'd be more worried about Dean than Ginny." Harry paused, watching his friend for a moment. "Ginny misses you, you know."
"She sees me every bleedin' day!"
"No, I mean as a friend, like you were before Hogwarts. Before me and Hermione."
Ron looked surprised momentarily, and then his face relaxed as he remembered. "Yeah, we were pretty close. We'd spend hours hiding up in that Bower of hers, talking and dreaming. I assume that's where she took you today." Ron watched Harry's wary reaction. "It's okay, I know you can't say anything. She guards that place viciously."
"Is there something the two of you could do, just the two of you? You know to reconnect? I think she'd like that."
"I'm sure there is, loads of stuff. I'll have to think about it."
"How are you feeling Ron?" Harry asked tentatively.
"I'm good; that Bat-Bogey hex doesn't seem to have any residual effects."
"No… I mean from the Department of Mysteries. I'm sorry I never wrote you..."
"Harry!" Ron grimaced. "If hanging around Ginny is going to make you go all mushy, I'm going to have to find a new best friend!"
Harry laughed with relief. "Sorry."
"No problem. To quote my best mate, Harry Bleedin' Potter: 'I'M FINE!' Really, there are some things you just have to suck-up, right?"
"That's right," Harry said with a wry smile.
Ron was quiet for a moment. "Thanks for asking, though. Well, I'm off to bed." Ron stopped as he reached the door. "I almost forgot. Ginny told me to give this to you, but I'm not going to ask why!" Ron glared at him, as he pulled a small book from his back pocket. "This has been passed down through all the Weasley men, so I figure it's your turn now. Don't let Mum catch you with it."
Harry took the book from Ron and his eyes went wide as he read: The Witches and Wizards Guide to Wild Whoopee. Harry opened the book to a random page and his eyes went even wider.
"The pictures move!" he gasped.
"Good book, that! 'Night, Harry!" Ron left the room grinning, and closed the door behind him.
"Whoa!" Harry exclaimed, as he paged through the book. It's a lot more complicated than I thought it was. It looks like a lot of work! Fun, though!
That night Harry Potter forgot to stay awake, and had a full night's sleep for the first time in over a month. He did not dream of the Department of Mysteries. He did not dream of Voldemort. But Harry Potter did dream. Oh yes! He dreamt.
The next morning dawned bright and warm. Harry hadn't drawn his curtains the night before, so the first of the sun's bright rays woke Harry with a start. His first reaction upon waking was one of complete contentment and relaxation. This feeling was quickly replaced by a frenzied panic as he remembered the nature of his dreams the previous night. Oh no!
Harry'd had sexy dreams before, of course, but they had been rather sweet and as innocent as they could be, given the subject; but thanks to Harry's new education, the previous night's dreams were very vivid and extremely graphic and this time they involved Ginny. Oh Ginny! What have I done? I'll never be able to look you in the eye again! I've got to get out of here! I need to fly! Harry bounded out of bed and quickly dressed, grabbing his Firebolt and heading for the door.
As soon as he opened the door, he saw the last thing he needed to see at that moment! Ginny was coming out of her room wearing only her bed clothes, wearing the same Chudley Cannons tee shirt she'd been wearing for as long as Harry had known her. However, she'd grown into the much worn shirt in a way that left nothing to the imagination. (Of course Harry's imagination took in the sight and ran with it anyway!) She was also wearing a pair of too large orange Chudley Cannons boxers hung loosely over her hips showing the milky white, lightly freckled skin of her belly and her bellybutton.
Harry's conscious mind finally caught up with what his subconscious mind had discovered yesterday: Ginny Weasley was sexy! Very sexy, in a way that only a girl who had no idea she was sexy could possibly be. Her small frame had developed more than generous curves in all the right places. Harry had always thought she was pretty; her features weren't refined enough to make her classically beautiful, but her large, warm chocolate eyes, her bow-shaped mouth, and a smattering of freckles made her very attractive yet still approachable. Then there was her fiery red hair flowing halfway down her back in turbulent waves…... His mouth went dry as he stood there, gaping at her.
"Harry! Harry, are you all right? Is it your scar? Does it hurt?" she exclaimed in a very worried tone.
Harry snapped out of his daze and focused on Ginny's concerned face, not quite meeting her eyes. "No, I feel fine. Morning, Ginny. I'm just going for a fly. See ya later." He was gone in a flash.
Harry spent the next two hours circling the Weasley's meadow/Quidditch pitch at top speed. His one goal was to purge images of Ginny from his head. She's your friend you randy git! Finally… someone who understands you and is easy to talk to; you're not going to ruin that by drooling over her. Besides she's not interested in you in the slightest; she got over you years ago. So stop it! ... Stop it! ... I said, stop it! You're in no mental state to even be thinking about girls right now. You'll just make a mess of it. Stop it! Harry's internal tirade continued along these lines until he felt fairly certain he was back in control of his thoughts. Actually, he found he was just very hungry and wanted to go into breakfast.
Harry grabbed a quick shower and headed down to breakfast with Ron, who had recently woken up.
"Ginny mentioned Quidditch after lunch today, as she should be back from the Ministry by then. Is that good for you?" Ron asked.
"Yup," Harry grunted, eating as fast as he could. He was famished.
"You going to the… you know… place we're not allowed to talk about today?"
"Yup. When's Hermione coming?" Harry asked.
Ron rolled his eyes in frustration. "I'm not sure yet. I can't get a straight answer out of the woman. She's traveling with her parents, and every time they're supposed to head home, her parents think of somewhere else they want to go. It's almost like her parents are trying to keep her away from me… er, I mean us." Ron corrected himself quickly and Harry pretended not to notice his slip.
"I'm sure you're reading more into it. They hardly get to spend time with her at all anymore. It must be hard for them," Harry said consolingly.
"I guess," Ron pouted.
"What are you doing today?" Harry asked, feeling a little guilty about deserting his friend to escape to the bower.
"I'm flooing to Diagon Alley; I promised Fred and George I'd help them unload an inventory shipment today. I've been working for them a bit this summer, but I'll be done by lunch though."
"Brilliant! Do they pay you?"
"Yeah, but they're cheap as dirt, those two. They'd try to pay me with dung bombs if I let them."
"You can never have too many dung bombs!" Harry laughed as he rose to leave. "I'll see you at lunch then."
"See ya mate."
Harry passed the remainder of the morning in Ginny's Bower. She was right: it was a magical place to be alone. Harry lay in the hammock, looking up at the sky. He could easily keep his mind blank, but Harry felt he didn't want to. He cautiously allowed his mind to wander through his troubles: Sirius' death, his rash decision to go to the Department of Mysteries, the Prophecy. He found that in this peaceful place he could think about these things; he still felt the guilt and anguish that accompanied many of his memories, but the emotions didn't overwhelm him here. As Ginny promised, the blackness didn't linger. It was as though he could feel himself healing from within.
Eventually Harry wandered over to Ginny's bookshelf; he picked up the two books she'd indicated were her favorites which had (What did she call them? Oh yeah…) 'the two sexiest heroes ever committed to the page'. Harry just had to know... he returned to the hammock and began reading.
Harry returned to The Burrow at noontime and found both Ginny and Ron had returned.
"Hey Harry," they said in unison, as they helped their mother bring lunch to the table and they all sat down to eat.
"Are you feeling better Harry? You looked a little peaked this morning," Ginny asked.
"No, no. I just needed some exercise," Harry said quickly, willing away the blush that was threatening to appear on his face. "So, how was the Ministry? Are you in trouble?"
Ginny's face darkened. "No, Dad paid the fine, so I'm off the hook." Harry was about to inquire further, when he noticed Ron running his fingers across his throat, indicating that Harry needed to 'Shut up!'
Ron jumped in to change the subject. "Hey! Guess what I heard in the twins' shop this morning? A bunch of kids came in the shop, Slytherin types. The only one I knew by name was Nott… anyway, they were talking about the Ferret. It seems that he's disappeared!" Ron said gleefully.
"What?" Harry and Ginny asked in unison.
"Yeah. He was supposed to show up at Pansy Parkinson's birthday party a couple of weeks ago, but he never did. No one's heard from him. Apparently he's pretty tight with Pugface and wouldn't just blow her off. They said Malfoy Manor's deserted, and his mother's gone too."
"Wow! I wonder what that means," Harry said.
"I bet he went off to be a Death Eater," Ron speculated.
"Ronald Weasley, stop it right now. I won't have my children gossiping idly and speculating about other peoples' misfortunes. I don't care what your feelings are towards that boy, it's not right," blustered Mrs. Weasley.
Ron eyed his mother suspiciously and thought for a moment. "Hang on… you know what happened to them, don't you? Did he become a Death Eater? Did he kill his mother? I hear they make you do horrible things to prove your allegiance…"
"RON! That's enough! Finish your lunch and go de-gnome the garden. I'm warning you… not another word!"
At first Harry thought Ron was going to protest this punishment, but it seemed his friend knew when he should not cross his Mum. Yet another Weasley meal ended in tense silence. And to think, Harry thought it would be dull without the twins around.
"Come on Ron, I'll de-gnome with you for a while. Coming Gin?" Harry said getting up from the table.
"Sure, I'll help Mum clean up first though," Ginny replied.
Harry and Ron busied themselves in the garden spinning and chucking gnomes. This was a favorite chore of Harry's. He wasn't sure it was an effective way to deal with the gnomes, because sometimes they seemed to enjoy it as much as he did, but it was great fun.
"Ron, what happened at the Ministry? Why did you shut me up?" Harry remembered.
"Oh, it was bad Harry. The fine was really steep; Mum and Dad had to use the money they were putting aside to buy Ginny a decent broom."
"Ginny's really good though, she'll make the team no matter what kind of broom she flies," replied Harry.
"I know that and you know that. We just have to convince Ginny," Ron agreed.
"Convince me of what?" Ginny asked as she grabbed her first gnome and chucked it with gusto.
"Nothing," Harry and Ron said it unison.
"Fine! Keep your secrets. Prats!" Ginny grumbled, chucking another gnome really far. The girl was really freakishly strong.
The three of them happily continued de-gnoming together for the next hour. They had decided to put off Quidditch until after dinner. Harry and Ron were eventually able to coax Ginny into a better mood. Harry began to feel The Bower calling him; it felt as though his body needed to be there.
"I'll see you guys later," Harry said suddenly, his voice dark and tense. He turned to leave without further explanation.
"Wait, Harry," Ginny stopped him. "Mum said dinner will be later than usual today. I'll come get you when it's ready, okay?"
"Sure, Ginny. Thanks," Harry turned and left.
Once Harry was out of earshot, Ron turned to Ginny. "He's completely forgotten it's his birthday today, hasn't he?"
"I think he has!" Ginny giggled. "Come on, we have lots of work to do!"
Later that evening, Ginny went to The Bower to fetch Harry.
"Harry! May I come up?" Ginny called for the ground below the bower.
"Yeah, I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about me."
"No. It's just that the twins are coming to dinner, and they couldn't leave their shop before now." It wasn't exactly a lie. Ginny climbed up into The Bower, and she smiled when she saw Harry sprawled comfortably in the hammock, reading a book.
"You're reading my book! I was wondering if you would. What do you think?"
"Yes, I was curious about what you said. Honestly, so far I'm quite concerned about your taste in men, but I'm withholding judgment until I've finished," Harry said grimly.
"I've never claimed to have good taste in men," Ginny said coyly. "Come on. Rip yourself away from your romance novel and let's go to dinner," she giggled.
As they walked back to The Burrow, Ginny smiled slyly. "Did Ron give you the book I asked him to?"
Harry choked a bit and cleared his throat; he never dreamt she would actually bring it up! "Yeah… er, thanks. I don't think I'd be comfortable asking Hermione to explain any of that to me!"
Ginny laughed. "Oh, I'd love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation, though!"
"Ginny, have you read that book?" Harry asked, with alarm in his voice.
"Of course! Loads of times."
"Ginny!" Harry was shocked.
"What? A girl needs to know what's what as well too, you know! It's not like Mum would ever enlighten me about these things. Besides whenever I read it, I have the most brilliant dreams afterwards!"
"Ginny!"
"What? Really, Harry! Oh… I get it. That's why you were so weird this morning! Woke up in a bit of a state, did you?" she tittered.
"Ginny!"
"You're really not keeping up your end of the conversation here, Potter! It's normal you know, just harmless fantasies. Unfortunately the fantasies always seem like they would be better than reality."
"Ginny, have you ever…" Harry started.
"No. Just snogging, bit of touching, but I've never been inspired to go any further. You?"
"No. I kissed Cho once, but I don't think it went very well," he said painfully. "I don't believe I'm talking to you about this. You're really easy to talk to."
"Most people think I'm difficult to talk to; I think we just understand each other, you and I."
"Yeah, I think you're right," Harry agreed.
"I don't suppose you'd tell me what you dreamt about last night?" she asked mischievously.
"Definitely not! Never!" he grimaced.
When they entered The Burrow, it was deserted and dark. "Where is everyone?" Harry asked Ginny. She shrugged. Suddenly, there was a loud pop and the room filled with flying streamers in every color, darting this way and that. People were apparating all around Harry, yelling "Surprise!" and "Happy Birthday!" He was shocked, as he'd never had any sort of birthday party before. It seemed all of the Weasleys were there, as well as Remus and Tonks.
"I forgot it was my birthday today! Thanks, everyone."
Mrs. Weasley's wonderful meal was followed by cake and presents… it was a brilliant evening.
Harry made a point of spending a considerable amount of time talking with Remus. They spoke quietly together, mostly about Remus' efforts at the Ministry to get Sirius' name cleared of being a Death Eater; at the time of his death, Sirius was still a wanted man. Remus inquired how Harry was doing and for the first time, Harry didn't say 'Fine.' He said simply that things were better now he was at The Burrow. Remus seemed greatly relieved by this news.
Later that night, Harry and Ron were rummaging through the box of 'school supplies' the twins had given Harry for a birthday present.
"This is brilliant, Harry! You have enough stuff here to make Filch's life a misery, all term!" Ron said enthusiastically.
"Spoken like a responsible Prefect," Ginny's voice came from her darkened room. She had already gone to bed, but had left her door open and was occasionally contributing to Harry and Ron's conversation.
"Do I look like Hermione to you? I plan to take some revenge on Filch this year; he was a complete bastard last year. Now that the twins are gone, we have a reputation to maintain."
"You talk tough now but once Hermione gets a hold of you, you'll cave!" Harry laughed at his friend.
Ron was very offended. "What are you saying?"
"Whipped!" The taunt came from Ginny's room, and Harry collapsed in snickers.
Ron rose and his spine stiffened in mock indignation. "I really don't like the way this new alliance between the two of you is shaping up; my own sister and best mate teaming up against me! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go write Hermione and tell her to get her arse over here immediately; at least she'll be on my side! Good night!"
"Don't count on it!" Harry teased as Ron left, generating more giggles from Ginny's dark room.
Harry changed into his bedclothes, turned out the light and went to bed. He left the door open between his and Ginny's rooms.
"Hey Ginny?" he asked, in the darkness.
"Hmmm?"
"Thanks for my birthday present. It's really lovely there."
"You're welcome, Harry. I hope it helps."
"It already has, I can feel it. You've helped too, Ginny. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Harry. I'm so glad." Ginny was quiet for a long while. "Harry?"
"Yeah, Gin?"
"Tell me a secret."
"Across the hallway? That's not exactly private, you know."
"Oh, please. Mum and Dad are downstairs and Ron's in such a state, I guarantee we won't see him until morning."
"Okay… er, what do you want to know?"
"I don't know… how did Sirius escape from the Dementors two years ago?"
Harry chuckled. "That's really Hermione's secret to tell, but I don't think she'd mind my telling you."
So Harry began what would become a nightly ritual for the rest of the summer. He and Ginny would share their secrets in the darkness. Sometimes, Harry would talk about his adventures at school, but he also told her about his childhood at the Dursleys', and about the day Hagrid told him he was a wizard.
Ginny in turn told him about her experiences with the dairy, and her twisted relationship with Tom Riddle. She also told him stories about "Growing Up Weasley"; many of her stories were funny, but some were quite sad. Harry was surprised: as happy and idyllic as his adopted family seemed, they had gone through some difficult times as well.
Later that night, long after they had both fallen asleep Ginny awoke with a start. Someone was calling her. It didn't take her long to figure out that Harry was calling her name in his sleep; and the way he was saying it! Oh My! He's having naughty dreams about me!
Now, Ginny was a practical girl. She knew that when a randy teenaged boy (Harry) was dreaming about a girl (Ginny) it meant three things: (1) He was a randy teenaged boy; (2) He had noticed she was a girl; and (3) He didn't think she was terribly troll-like. She honestly didn't read anymore into it than that.
Ginny Weasley had gotten over Harry Potter long ago.
She had taken her feelings for him and folded them neatly into a little box she kept in the corner of her heart. This box was kept tightly locked. She had moved on. Ginny certainly couldn't blame Harry for dreaming about her either; after all Harry had played the leading role in Ginny's dreams since she was ten. Even long after she'd gotten over Harry, she continued to dream about him; just him and no one else, so she figured it was just a habit.
When Ginny woke up the next morning, Harry wasn't in his room. She spied him out the window zooming at top speed around the Quidditch pitch. She giggled. He must have woken up in a state again! She resolved she wouldn't say anything to him; she'd file the information away until she needed some blackmail fodder against him. Ginny had learned many lessons from Fred and George.
When Ginny saw Harry at breakfast a bit later, he seemed dark and troubled. She recognized the look.
Harry spent the majority of the next few days in The Bower. He came out for meals and Quidditch as he'd agreed. He spent his evenings with Ron and Ginny, but he seemed more reserved and subdued than usual, almost as if he were struggling with something internally he couldn't quite control. He didn't talk about his troubles to Ginny during their conversations in the darkness and she didn't press him. She kept the conversation light and they shared only pleasant and funny things on these nights.
"Harry?" Ginny asked from the darkness. It was a particularly warm night, and they were both having trouble falling asleep.
"Yeah, Gin?"
"Guess what Ron did today?"
"Let me think… he was a great prat and called you a mean name which forced you to bogey him?" Harry guessed.
Ginny giggled. "No, he did just the opposite actually. He found our old record book. When we were kids we played chess all the time and we kept score in this little record book. I thought he'd burned it years ago, but he still has it. We played chess almost all day today… I even beat him twice."
"You can beat Ron at chess? You'll have to give me pointers."
"It was nice. It was like he actually enjoyed spending time with me."
"Gin, you've got to get over this 'pesky little sister' complex you've got; no one feels that way about you, especially Ron. Believe me, if you can beat Ron at chess he'll love playing you; I think he's always dumbing down his game when he plays me."
"He gets quite peevish when he loses; but then he wants to play again immediately. It's funny," she giggled. "Thanks, Harry."
"For what?"
"I don't know, but I'm sure you had something to do with it."
"I didn't do much. I still can't believe you can beat Ron at chess! Wow."
They were both quiet for a long while.
"Ginny?"
"Hmmm?"
"Would you come to The Bower with me tomorrow? There's something I have to tell you."
"Okay."
Another long silence, and Ginny heard Harry tossing and turning as he tried to get to sleep.
"Harry? Have you finished reading those books?"
Harry chuckled and cleared his throat. "Yeah, and I've been meaning to talk to you about that. Quite disturbing, your taste in men."
"What do you mean?" she giggled.
"Well, what does Cathy see in this Heathcliff bloke? He's just a moody, grouchy git."
"He's her soul mate Harry!" she said dreamily. "A girl can't help it if her soul mate's a moody, grouchy git!"
"But he seems to enjoy destroying people! That's just so… not NICE!"
Ginny sighed deeply. "No, it's not nice, but it is VERY romantic."
"Geez! Like I said, very disturbing."
"What about the other book?"
"Oh, well in that one there are so many blokes, I can't figure out which one it is. It can't be Mr. Collins, he's an idiot; Mr. Wickham is a slime ball; Mr. Bingley's alright though, I wouldn't mind spending some time with him."
"Keep trying, Harry," Ginny said quietly.
"Oh Ginny, no! It can't be Mr. Darcy!"
"Mmmmm." Big sigh from Ginny.
"Ginny, he's awful, he's rude and arrogant, and he thinks he's superior to everyone else. All you have to do is make him a Death Eater and he'd be Draco Malfoy!"
Ginny remained quiet for a few seconds pondering what Harry had said. "Well, if you put it that way, yeah! If you took the evil Death Eater factor out of Malfoy, he'd be dead sexy!"
"GINNY!" Harry practically shouted.
"Harry! Shhhhh!" Before she realized what was happening, she heard the rush of footsteps and a bounce on her bed as Harry dove onto Ginny's. There was just enough moonlight for them to see the others' faces.
"Are you insane? You can't possibly think Draco Malfoy's even the tiniest bit attractive!" Harry was sitting on her bed, whispering frantically, as he was leaning over just inches from Ginny's face.
"No, of course not! Ewww. You're the one who brought him up, not me. It's not possible to separate Malfoy from his inherent evil, so it's a completely moot point. But, I have to admit, hypothetically, a non-evil Draco Malfoy? Well, the boy has a way about him!"
"Oh Ginny, that's disgusting. I'm telling your mother on you! No! I'm telling Ron!"
"Harry, you'll do no such thing and you know it." Ginny was the tiniest bit distracted by the fact that Harry wasn't wearing his pajama top as he leaned above her. She could see his thin, but very well toned chest and abdomen glowing in the moonlight. Her mouth had gone quite dry.
"No, I won't," Harry agreed.
"Harry, go back to bed. There's a cool breeze now, I think we can sleep."
"Yeah, alright. I'll leave you to your dreams of Draco Malfoy," Harry teased.
"I don't dream about Draco Malfoy. Now shut it!"
"Can you imagine if the two of you got together? It would be awful… you're so red, and he's so white! Your kids would be pinkdozens of little pink children insulting everyone and throwing Bat-Bogeys everywhere. What a mess!"
"Out, Potter!" Ginny hurled her pillow at him.
"Thanks, Gin. You always manage to make me feel better. I'm scarred for life now, but I feel better."
"'Night Harry."
"'Night Gin. Don't forget about The Bower tomorrow."
"I won't."
Authors Note:
I'm using a few ideas I think have become fan fiction canon, I've read them in so many stories I don't know who to give credit to. There is the sex manual with moving pictures, Ginny's too small Chudley Cannon Tee shirt, and the idea Ginny is a compulsive clothes thief (which I use later). If you were the first person to come up with these ideas thank you.
The line "The boy has a way about him" is lifted from "The Dragon Rebels" by Lee Velviet. A wonderful story that I hope gets finished soon!
Finally, there are my references to Bronte's Wuthering Heights and Austen's Pride and Prejudice. If you haven't read them then STOP reading this crap and go get them!
Thanks for reading!