Chapter 7: New Images

Mumbling exasperatedly to himself Harry stomped up the stairs to the boys sixth year dormitory and flipped open the lid of his trunk, pushing aside the contents until he found the warn piece of paper he was searching for. Making sure the room was empty he sat on the foot of his bed and pulled out his wand. Giving the map a tap he murmured "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Instantly streams of ink began to spread across the page like a web until distinct borders and boundaries materialized. When all the lines were in place and the tiny dots began to move about the castle, Harry bent his head close to the page in search. He found his target sitting alone in the transfiguration classroom. Nodding, Harry slipped the map in his pocket before standing and making his way down to the common room and to the portrait hole below.

Ginny had avoided Harry for a week now, ever since the day at lunch that Ron had revealed to him that Ginny still fancied him Never before would Harry have thought it would be possible for Ginny to avoid him so completely, but now he knew it was. She didn't show up for dinner, he suspected she snuck down to the kitchens and Dobby took care of her. She avoided the common room, the library and the empty class room at the end of the fourth floor corridor on the left hand side, all places he knew that Ginny preferred to study.

When he realized he realized that eh couldn't possibly corner in her school he decided that he would have to wait until their next Quiditch practice. But even in that Ginny was able to thwart him by arriving late to practice while Harry was busy taking the team through their warm up paces and fleeing afterwards before he had a chance to ask her to stay.

While Harry had been annoyed before he was livid now. He missed having Ginny around. She was a good friend. Granted she wasn't Ron or Hermione, but she was still good to have around. She had a knack for knowing when Harry's thoughts wallowed on Sirius's death or the ramifications of the prophesy. She had the amazing ability of diverting his thoughts before he could sink to deep into self pity. She was blunt and witty and embodied all the characteristics that he loved from the Weasley family.

She was touched with Ron's bravery and loyalty, Percy's intelligence, though thankfully not his big headedness. She had Charley's Quiditch abilities, Bill's big heart, Mrs. Weasley's nature to take care of people and Mr. Weasley's enthusiasm for things he loved, though Harry was much relieved hers was not geared towards plugs and other Muggle contraptions. She also had a sense of humor and a diabolical mind to rival the twins, but had the sense to use it sparingly and cleverness not to get caught. Harry knew for a fact that well over half the pranks attempted since Fred and George had left school the year before had been carried off by Ginny. But never once had she been caught and no one other than Harry suspected that sweet Ginny Weasley could possibly be the culprit.

Harry missed having her around. He hadn't realized until this week how much he really enjoyed her company and how much he missed her when she was gone. He never laughed so much as when he was with her, and all his troubles seemed to melt away under the warmth of her smile.

He missed Ginny and frankly had had enough of his friends avoiding people. He might not be able to do anything about Ron and Hermione, but he would be damned if he was going to let Ginny withdraw from their friendship simply because she had a crush on him. They had managed to be friends for the past year and a half under the same circumstances and he didn't see why things would have to change now just because he knew the full truth.

Harry reached the bottom of the stairs and strode quickly across the common room towards the portrait hole. He was just lifting his hand to push the portal open when he heard his name called from the other side of the room. "Harry?" he turned to see Ron staring at him from near the fire, his charms book propped open between his knees. "Where you off to?"

He debated for a moment telling Ron that he was off to find Ginny but decided that he wasn't in the mood to answer Ron's questions, as he was sure he would have to if he told the truth. Instead he shrugged dismissively. "Just for a walk. I need to clear my head."

Ron nodded. "Want me to come with you?"

Harry stared at his friend a moment in surprise. This was the first time Ron had offered to come on a walk with him in a long time. That fact alone caused Harry to seriously reconsider confronting Ginny tonight and going on the offered walk with his best friend. "No." He smiled fondly at the red head. "I just need a bit of time to myself. Besides, you haven't finished your charms essay yet I still need time to copy it into my own words."

Ron snorted as he rolled his eyes. "Heaven forbid you should try doing it yourself."

Harry grinned brightly. "Why break a tried true method we know works?" A flash of something akin to pain flashed across Ron's face as he recalled having a similar conversation with Hermione the year before. Harry saw that look in Ron's eyes and grasped for something to say. "Why don't we play chess when I get back." He finally offered. "You should be done with your essay by then."

Ron quirked his head to the side a moment in consideration before nodding and turning back to his book, scribbling some hasty notes in the margin. Harry cast one last glance at his friend before slipping out the door, pulling the map from his pocket to make sure the way was clear before heading towards the transfiguration class room.

When Harry arrived Ginny was sitting in a desk halfway up the isle, a large book open in front of her, head propped on her left fist and her right hand moving absently across the page. He stealthily moved in behind her, peering over her shoulder at the half filled parchment. The top half of the page was filled with drawings of snitches, broom sticks, circle glasses and lightning bolts.

Harry's lip quirked at the corner as he slipped onto the bench beside her. "You've been avoiding me." He whispered silkily into her ear.

Ginny jerked with surprise, dropping her quill and tipping her ink well with her hand. Using the reflexes honed from years of being a Seeker, Harry caught the ink before it had a chance to spill.

Ginny withered with embarrassment beside him. "Thank you." Her voice squeaked as she accepted the well from Harry. Turning quickly away from him to hide the heat of her face, she screwed the top firmly into place before slipping it into her bag along with the parchment and her book. She was just standing up readying the strap to slip over her shoulder when Harry reached out and gently pulled Ginny back down to the seat.

"Why have you been avoiding me?" He asked, deciding it was best to adopt Ginny's abrupt nature in this instance.

She tipped her head forward so that a curtain of silky red hair fell from over her shoulders and blocked her face from view. "I haven't been avoiding you."

"Ginny, don't lie to me." He gently reached out and brushed the silky strands away from her eyes, tucking them behind her ear. "Hermione said you were over me."

Ginny's cheeks flamed a deeper scarlet. "She never would have said that."

Harry sighed with mild exasperation. "She told me on the train going home last year that you were over me."

Ginny shook her head emphatically. "No. I can assure you she did not."

"How do you know?"

"Because," Ginny looked over at him. "That would be a lie and if anything Hermione never lies. Well at least to others. To herself is an entirely different story."

"But I remember her saying that you had giv-en up on me." His eyes widened with understanding.

Ginny turned away from his penetrating green gaze. "I told Hermione earlier last year that I realized that nothing was ever going to happen between us. She knew that I had given up on you…not that I was over you."

The pair sat awkwardly in the heavy silence for several minutes, neither sure what to say or do next.

"Ginny, can I be honest with you?" She nodded hesitantly, watching him coyly out of the corner of her eye. "I think…I'm beginning to fancy you too." Ginny's eyes widened to the size of saucers. She turned fully in the seat better to see him. "But you see, the thing is…"

Ginny reached out her small calloused hand and placed it on top of his larger, Quiditch roughened one. "What is it Harry?"

He turned over his hand to grip hers. "I don't want to spoil anything." He looked up at her with pleading eyes. "Do you understand that?"

Ginny's eyes narrowed with confusion. "What could you possibly spoil by fancying me?"

Harry sighed and moved closer to her. "Well first there's my friendship with Ron. He's not overly keen on the idea of you seeing anyone, as you well know. And the prospect of us being together didn't seam to charm him over anymore then the prospect of you and Dean did."

"When did you talk to him about that?"

"After you left us at lunch. He told me not to worry about you because you knew there was no chance of us ever being together."

"He did?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. He still sees you as his baby sister and no one, not even his best friend, is good enough for you."

Ginny rolled her eyes before pinning Harry with an annoyed look. "You wouldn't let that stop you now would you?" she crossed her arms challengingly in front of her chest.

"No." Harry shook his head. "Normally I wouldn't. But Ron isn't the only thing to consider. I also have to think about your family."

"My family?"

"Yes. Gin, your family." Harry ran a disgruntle hand thought his unruly hair, mussing it even further. "Your mum and dad have taken me in and cared for me as one of their own. Your brothers have all treated me like a brother, as if I was just another of the Weasley clan. Call me selfish, but I don't want to loose that." Ginny opened her mouth to protest but Harry stopped her by placing three fingers gently but firmly over her full lips.

"Let's say we did start seeing each other, and things didn't work out between us. I would be loosing your family, I would be loosing Ron and I would be loosing you forever. Ron would forgive me in time of course, and we both know your parents would never let me get away with not coming around." Harry's other hand came down to fold around their entwined fingers. "I don't think you realize this Ginny," he ducked his head so that she couldn't see his eyes, "but your friendship has meant more to me these past few months then anything else." He rubbed the cold sweat from the back of his neck. "I can't believe I'm actually telling you this but this past summer when I was stuck at Privet Drive it was your letters that kept me from going mad. Ron and Hermione both wrote to me, but most of the time they were telling me not to worry, that I would be joining you all soon, or that they couldn't tell me anything about what was going on with the order, or asking me how I was doing, or even, they would write endlessly about the other. Gods, if it wasn't so funny it would be enough to drive me mental." Harry and Ginny shared a snicker at Ron and Hermione's expense.

"So what was so different about my letters?"

Harry's brows scrunched in consideration. "What I think I liked most about your letters was how normal they were. You wrote about everyday things you know, the trouble Fred and George were getting into, how work was going for your dad, what you were doing to pass the days. When I read your letters I could believe for a short time that life was still normal, that there wasn't the most evil and powerful wizard in history coming after me, that all the people I cared about most were deeply imbedded in fighting, that I could receive word any day that something had happened to one of you. It was your letters I looked forward to reading, not Ron and Hermione's."

"Really?" Harry looked up to see that her coffee brown eyes were bright with tears.

The corner of his lip quirked up. "By the end of the summer I was looking forward to seeing you just as much as I was Ron and Hermione."

"Then things feel apart between them..."

"And the three of us split up." he finished.

Sensing his need for comfort, Ginny rested her coppery head on his shoulder. Instead of shaking her off, Harry scooted closer and wrapped an arm protectively around her waist. "I never thought I'd see the day when anything could separate us."

"Neither did I."

Harry sighed heavily. "Please don't think I only see you as a replacement for them."

"I don't." she assured him.

"It's just that, with Hermione in Bulgaria and Ron…walking around like an ogre…I don't know what I would have done without you."

"It's all right, Harry." She gave his hand an affectionate squeeze.

"No." He pushed her slightly away and tilted her head up, forcing her to look at him. "I need you to understand. I'm sorry that I never really noticed you in the past. That I thought of you only as Ron's little sister. It was stupid and wrong of me. But you really have become one of my best friends. And I don't know what I would do if I lost you as well."

Ginny nodded her head sadly. "I understand, Harry." And he knew she did, but he also knew that she was deeply disappointed. She began to rise to her feet but Harry pulled her down again.

"Ginny, please tell me we can still be friends."

Her expression softened into a sad smile. "Of course we can, Harry." Her hand rose on its own accord to cup his face. "I would rather have you as a friend then nothing at all." Making a quick decision she pushed aside her mortification, leaned forward and pressed her lips firmly to Harry's.

Before he had a chance to react to the high voltage of electricity that shot down his spine at her touch she had already pulled away and had scampered out of the room, leaving her rucksack behind in her haste.

Harry stared after her, his mind reeling. Ginny kissed him. Ginny Weasley, little sister to his best friend, bright, beautiful, sparkling Ginevra Weasley kissed him. And it was bloody brilliant!

Harry closed his eyes and replayed that moment in his mind over again for several minutes until it was burned into his memory. Gods, why did he have to go and tell her he wanted her just to be his friend.

Hermione sat in her desk chair, her hands clenching and unclenching with anxiety in her lap as she saw more strands of her brunette locks pile on the floor around her.

"Relax Hermione." Thora chuckled, not bothering to look up from her gloosy magazine. "It's just hair. If you don't like what she does it will grow back."

Hermione took several calming breaths. "I know that. I've just never done anything like this before."

Maj snorted unattractively as she closed the scissors with a slice. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"

Hermione glowered with ill amusement. "Ester, they're not butchering my hair are they?"

Ester rose from Hermione's bed and walked forward, her lips pursed appraisingly. "I'm no expert," She said in a voice that mimicked Maj's expertly, "but I think they're doing an admiral job."

"Well," Hermione rolled her eyes, "as long as you're sure."

Maj and Thora burst out laughing while Ester simply grinned at her friend.

"All right." Maj flung out her arms when her laugher died away, indicating she wanted silence. "Let me get this done so that we can finish her in time for the ball."

The other girls waited patiently as Maj snipped away the last remaining strands of undesired hair. With one last slice she stepped back a step with the scissors pressed to her lips as she appreciated her handy work. She took a minute to rearrange locks of hair by hand until she was satisfied with the outcome. "What do you think Ester? Thora? Should we let her see?"

The two girls' faces split into approving smiles. They nodded their encouragement with enthusiasm. Rushing forward they took Hermione's hands and pulled her to her feet and towards her mirror, Maj, having dropped her scissors, was now covering Hermione's eyes so that it would be a surprise when she looked at her reflection for the first time.

The four girls crowded into the small lavatory, angling themselves so that Hermione would have an unhindered view of herself in the glass. Hermione's anxiety grew with each burst of laughter that came from the other girls. Sensing that Hermione couldn't stand the suspense a moment longer Maj counted down from three and on one she lifted away her hands leaving Hermione to blink against the bright light for a moment. When her eyes were adjusted she risked looking in the mirror and stopped short at what she saw.

Gone was the wild, unruly, bushy hair that she had known all her life. Now it was replaced by soft silky curls that hung around her face in sleek strands. She leaned closer to the mirror in amazement unable to believe what she was seeing. Her hair looked not only looked manageable, but it looked rather pretty.

She reached up with a slightly shaky hand and ran her fingers through it, her eyes widening with delight when they didn't get caught. "How is this possible?"

Maj reached a hand out and ran her fingers through Hermione's hair. "I know you think you have ugly hair, Hermione. But really you just had too much of it. I cut away the excess so that the curls could breath and take definition. I also cut it a bit shorter so that you wouldn't have so much hair weighing it down." Maj released the curls and they sprang perfectly back into place to Hermione's delight. "Do you like it?"

Hermione spun around a bright smile on her lips. For a moment she was unab;e to speak from pleasure. "I love it." She flung her arms around her friend's neck "Thank you so much."

"We're not done yet." Thora broke in, taking hold of Hermione's arm and tugging her back out into the bedroom and pushing her into the chair once again.

Shaking her head Ester sank down on the foot of the bed again. "I think I'll sit this out."

Maj rolled her brown eyes. "You're no fun, you know that?"

Ester held her hands up defensively. "Leave me be. I thought she looked just fine the way she was."

It was Thora's turn to roll her eyes. "Of course she looked fine before, we're just enhancing what she already has."

"Yes, well. I'll just sit here and read." She picked a book up from Hermione's bedside table and settled against the headboard. "Let me know when you're done."

"Ester," Hermione moaned. "You promised me you would watch and make sure they didn't do anything drastic."

Her friend's piercing hazel eyes appeared over the edge of the book, one brow arched high. "And I thought you, of all people, wouldn't be the kind of person who changes their appearance in the hope of impressing a boy." Ester stared at her pointedly.

"I'm not trying to change myself to impress a boy." Hermione snapped slightly annoyed. She brushed her silky hair over her shoulder. "I don't have to change anything. I've already caught his attention haven't I?"

Ester stared deeply at her friend for a moment before sighing heavily and shaking her head. The hazel eyed girl snapped the book closed. "I think I'm going to go get ready myself. I'll see you in a few hours."

The Bulgarian girl tossed the book onto the middle of the bed before she turned and strode from the room, closing the door smartly behind her. Hermione looked between her two other friends in confusion.

"What was that about?"

Maj and Thora shrugged simultaneously but shared a look over Hermione's curly head when she slumped in her chair slightly put out. They both had their suspicion as to what was bothering Ester however they were both unwilling to voice their opinion. They loved Hermione and they loved Bjorn, but they all knew things wouldn't work out between the two. As Ester had confided in them a few weeks back when she learned that Bjorn and Hermione were going to the Halloween Ball together, Bjorn was a great guy, but he wasn't the one for Hermione.

"Come on." Thora patted Hermione on the back causing her to sit up straighter. "Let's finish you up so that Maj and I can get ready as well." Hermione nodded and the two girls stepped over to where their bags were leaning against her bed. Taking hold of the straps they upended them over her bed, tipping a mass of products onto the snow white comforter.

Hermione's eyes widened in shock. "Oh God." She moaned when Thora pulled out several shades of lipstick and Maj a compact of eye color, "What have I gotten myself into?"