Harry Potter and all characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling, not me.

Learning to Dance

Chapter 2 – Dance Lessons

Ginny excitedly walked into her dorm room and rummaged through her truck for the shoes she was going to wear to the ball. She was going to teach Harry Potter how to dance! This would be the first time they were alone together since the Chamber business, but she thought it best to not think of that. She found the shoes quickly and decided to change clothes. She thought to herself, 'What should I wear to attract a fourteen-year old boy who's faced dragons, basilisks, and Riddle himself, yet claims to be average? Hmm. Maybe I should just concentrate on getting the fourteen-year-old boy's attention!'

A few minutes later, Ginny came down the stairs wearing her dress shoes with her school robe wrapped tightly around her. Harry was waiting in one of the chairs. He got up when he saw Ginny. She smiled at him and greeted him brightly, "Hi, Harry! Sorry I took so long. I, um, had trouble finding my shoes." Then she boldly grabbed his hand and suggested, "Let's go!"

Harry looked at her hand in his, but said nothing. He asked, "Er, where are we going?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. Yesterday I asked Professor McGonagall if we could practice in her classroom. I hope you don't mind. She said that since you were a champion, and she didn't want Gryffindor disgraced, we could use the room as much as we want."

"No, I guess I don't mind," replied Harry, with an odd look on his face. "I guess we should get started." With that said, the two of them made their way toward the transfiguration classroom. Ginny was still holding his hand when they arrived.

Harry noticed that the chairs and desks were all together at the sides of the classroom, leaving most of the floor empty, and what appeared to be an old phonograph sitting on the desk. "I guess McGonagall got the room ready for us," remarked Harry. "We should thank her."

"Yes," Ginny nodded, "She's been very helpful. She even set up her magical phonograph with music we can practice to." While Ginny was speaking, she pointed at the desk. Ginny decided to start the lesson. She took off her robe, revealing a tight-fitting black sleeveless t-shirt and tight black jogging pants. When Harry's eyes bulged out of their sockets, she smiled and explained, "I want to be comfortable while we practice. Besides, you should be able to see my feet until you learn how to dance. That may help you to avoid stepping on them.

"Maybe you should take off your robe, too, so I can watch your feet. While Harry was removing his robe, revealing an old baggy t-shirt and loose-fitting jeans, Ginny walked up to the phonograph, started the music, and walked to the center of the room. She instructed, "Now, the first thing you need to know about dancing is how to begin. Stand in front of me." When he was facing her, she put his hands in the proper positions for a waltz. They then began to move to the music.

About an hour later, after several mishaps that made Ginny believe she should have Madam Pomfrey examine her feet later, Harry seemed to be getting the hang of it. He was semi-gracefully moving her across the room, and appeared to be enjoying himself. Despite how badly her feet hurt, Ginny was happy things were going so well. She was in Harry's arms, looking into his eyes, and he was smiling.

The music ended and they stopped dancing, and just stared at each other for a few seconds. Ginny thought Harry was going to kiss her, but then he shook his head and commented nervously, "Ginny, um, thanks, er, for the lesson. Um, I've uh, got to go. Er, I've got, um, homework!" as he hurriedly grabbed his robe and exited the room, leaving Ginny standing there confused.

A few hours later, after soaking her feet in a yellow solution of strained and pickled murtlap tentacles that Madam Pomfrey graciously provided in the hospital wing, Ginny walked into the Gryffindor common room with her robe wrapped tightly around her, and her head hung down. She immediately walked to her dorm room. She was surprised to find Hermione waiting on her bed. Ginny said, "Hello, Hermione. What are you doing on my bed?"

Hermione smiled and answered, "Waiting for you. I wanted to hear your side of how the dance lesson went."

Ginny started panicking "My side? What do you mean? Did Harry tell you his side? Is he mad at me? Did he ask you to tell me he wants to stop the lessons, or cancel our date?"

"Relax, Ginny!" replied Hermione. "He's not mad at you. But I'm not going to tell you what he said until you tell me your side of it."

"Well," Ginny began, "I practically dragged Harry by the hand to the classroom. Just before we started practicing I took off my robe like this," she demonstrated, revealing her outfit to her friend. "His eyes practically popped out. He probably thinks I was trying to…"

"Weren't you?" Hermione asked, apparently holding back laughter.

"Well, yeah. But I don't want him to know that!" explained Ginny defiantly. "Anyway, when the music stopped, he was looking in my eyes for a few seconds, and I stupidly thought he was gonna kiss me. He must have realized what I wanted, because he practically ran out of the room like he was afraid I was gonna rape him! He's probably afraid to be alone with me now! I suppose he knows it's too late to find another date for the ball, so he'll still go with me, but…"

"Ginny! Stop being negative! Stop assuming what Harry thinks!" Then Hermione patted the space on Ginny's bed next to her and instructed, "Sit down and I'll tell you what Harry said to me." Ginny sat down, and Hermione told her story.

-LTD-

Hermione was sitting on one of the couches in the common room waiting for Harry and Ginny to return from their dancing lesson. The door burst open, and Harry walked in looking confused and headed toward the boy's dormitory. Hermione called out, "Hey, Harry! What's wrong?"

He stopped and turned to face his friend. He answered, "I don't know. There's something wrong with me!"

Hermione had a look of concern on her face when she asked him to, "Come over here and tell me what's bothering you. Where's Ginny, anyway?"

Harry repeated, "Ginny? She's probably still in McGonagall's classroom. I about ran out of there. I don't know what's wrong with me!"

"What happened? Why'd you run away?"

Harry took a deep breath and explained, "When we started the lesson, she took off her robe to be comfortable, and I caught myself looking at her like…nevermind! I've got to go!"

"Stay right here, Harry! You obviously need to talk about this. Ron and I are your best friends, and I don't think you want to talk to Ron about this!"

"You're a girl. I don't know if I should tell you…" countered Harry.

"Okay, so you liked what you saw?" clarified Hermione, with a smirk on her face.

Harry turned a shade of red that would have made the Weasleys proud. He replied, "Er, yes."

"Okay. Then what happened?"

"I, well, y'know to dance, I um, put my hand on her waist, and, er, couldn't think and ended up stepping on her feet for the first half hour. I finally stopped doing that, and actually enjoyed dancing with her. When the music stopped, I wanted to kiss her, so I panicked! I can't believe I'm having feelings like that about Ron's little sister! There's something wrong with me!"

Hermione smiled broadly and assured him, "Nothing's wrong with you! You're a teenage boy and she's a teenage girl!"

"But she's Ron's sister! Besides, I'm sure she doesn't like me like that anyway! I know she used to have that crush on me a few years ago, but I'm sure she's over it by now!"

Hermione looked Harry in the eyes and suggested, "Why don't you tell her how you feel? I mean, if she used to have a crush on you, she may still have a soft spot for you. At the very least, she'll understand your feelings."

"No. I made it clear that I was asking her to the ball as a friend! What if I tell her how I feel and then she doesn't want to go to the ball with me? What'll I do then?"

Hermione sighed and replied, "I'm sure Ginny wouldn't do that to you. I still think you should talk to her about it. But if you won't do that, then maybe you should try spending more time with her this week."

"What. Why?" asked Harry, looking confused.

"It would give you a chance to get to know her better while you think about telling her how you feel," explained Hermione, smiling.

"But I told you I'm not…"

"If you refuse to tell her sooner, then the ball will give you the perfect opportunity to talk to her about your feelings. I think you two would be a nice couple, and I don't think Ron would have a problem with it either!"

"Why wouldn't he? He lets me to take his little sister to the ball as a friend and then I try to make her my girlfriend!"

Hermione countered, "The way I heard it, he suggested it! He knows that Ginny's going to end up dating someone, so I think Ron would prefer it to be one of his friends than some bloke from Slytherin."

"Yeah, I know he'd prefer her to date me than Malfoy, but..."

"But nothing, Harry! Ron's your friend because he thinks you're a good person! He knows he can trust you with his sister. He probably secretly wants you two to get together. I wouldn't be surprised if that's why he suggested you take Ginny to the ball in the first place!"

-LTD-

"…Anyway Ginny," summarized Hermione, "he absolutely fancies you, and he absolutely refuses to admit it, for now. I suggest you make him admit it!"

"How?" asked Ginny, now absolutely ecstatic.

"Spend as much time with him as you can, flirting the whole time!" Hermione suggested giddily. "Study with him, play games with him, dance with him! Drive him crazy until he can't take it anymore!"

Both girls began laughing together as they discussed their plans to drive poor Harry out of his mind.

-LTD-

Chapter end