Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: Just realized I haven't updated this story in QUITE some time. So I thought it'd be a good idea if I uploaded a new chapter. Haha. Thanks as usual, for all the loyal and kind reviewers; I really appreciate your encouragement and the simple fact that you have taken your time to actually sit down and read this garbage. Haha.
With much love,
Gene
Ginny Weasley was running in circles. Not literally of course but figuratively. The accidental kiss with Harry had left her stomach in knots, her heart blanketed in a cloud of confusion and her head hazy and in a state of vertigo. She'd gone back to The Burrow after visiting Harry's and clobbered straight up the stairs and to her old bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Luckily, the only person home was her Mother, which proved to be an asset. Mrs. Weasley knew Ginny well enough to know that a slamming door usually meant A) No, she didn't want to talk about it and B) She would need some time to herself.
Ginny flopped onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling as though it held all of life's answers. Folding her arms over her chest, she let out a huge sigh. Since when did things get so complicated? Oh wait, that's right, when Harry decided to collapse into a heap on her doorstep.
She wasn't sure if she should tell Dean. They were all adults, now. It wasn't like Harry and she couldn't work this out like two mature, responsible grown-ups. Besides, informing Dean would only be total marriage suicide. Who in their right mind would tell their soon-to-be husband that they accidentally kissed another guy, when it didn't mean anything? Telling Dean would indicate that Ginny had returned those feelings when in reality, all she felt for Harry was friendship.
Yes, that was it. Simply and purely friendship. What they shared had been wonderful but it was over now. She had moved on. There was no sense in treading backwards when she needed to be moving forward.
She let herself smirk. It wasn't even that good of a kiss. It probably would rate a mere 2.5 on the kissing scale. No, not even that much! She definitely was being too generous. She let her mind wander back to the event and immediately frowned. Who was she kidding? It was sensational. She was a little surprised that Harry could still have that affect on her…the whole "weak in the knees" thing.
But that didn't mean she had felt any genuine emotion, right? Sure, the kiss had left her a little woozy but that didn't mean she, herself had romantic feelings for Harry, right? It was the technique of the kiss that had caused the butterflies, not because of the piercing way he was looking at her…or the fact his hair just wouldn't stay…. Or the way…
Ginny shook her head. Grabbing a nearby pillow, she thrust it over her face and let out a frustrated scream.
Ron and Hermione, minus Harry, were hanging around the flat and eating breakfast when Hermione let out yet another sigh, for about the sixth time that morning. Ron, who was scanning The Daily Prophet, let out a groan. Flinging the paper on the table and narrowly missing his bagel with cream cheese, he sternly gazed at Hermione.
"All right, what's wrong?" he demanded.
Hermione swallowed her chunk of pancake and stared back at Ron with false bewilderment.
"What do you mean, dear?"
Ron rolled his eyes and threw her a sarcastic grin.
"You've been sighing all morning. And I know, dear, that when you keep huffing and puffing like that, it's because you want to talk to me about something but you want me to be all concerned and ask first," he smartly scoffed.
Hermione shrugged, taking another bite of her strawberry pancake.
"It's just that…I'm worried about Harry."
Ron chuckled.
"You're always worried about Harry. You've been worried about Harry since the day he set foot in Hogwarts. He's nearly twenty-four, Hermione. I think he can take care of himself."
Hermione frowned.
"Yes, I know that Ron. But do you always have to be so clueless? Were you listening last night at Nicholas Nickleby's? Harry wants to propose to Ginny!"
Ron's expression relaxed and he waved it away, as though the problem were an annoying fly.
"Oh, right, that. I'm glad Harry wants to propose to Ginny. I'd rather have my best mate marry my sister than anyone else."
Hermione let out a groan.
"RONALD WEASLEY! Where in Merlin's name have you been these last few months? Ginny's getting married to Dean in less than a week, you daft wanker! How can Harry propose to Ginny if she's already engaged!" she screeched.
The light finally turned on in Ron's head and his eyes widened.
"Bugger, I really am dense sometimes. I was so happy that Harry was home, I forgot all about Ginny's wedding! What are we going to do Hermione?" he wondered, panic in his tone.
Hermione let out another sigh, resting her chin in her hand. She knew that Harry still loved Ginny and it would just crush him if he discovered she was getting married. She knew that Ginny was the drive that had kept him determined to get home; Harry was a little clueless as to why the red head was behaving less as to what he expected.
Hermione wasn't entirely sure Ginny was still in love with Harry but had a hunch that Ginny had never fully gotten over her first love. It was all a big mess, no doubt the cause of imperfect timing. If only he had returned home sooner…
For once, the smartest witch didn't have all the answers.
"To tell you the truth, I don't have any idea," Hermione regretfully informed.
Ron's ears turned red with annoyance.
"But-but…you always have all the answers. You have to think of something. You know and I know that if Ginny walks down that aisle, she's going to be making the biggest mistake of her life!"
Hermione scowled, took her chin out of her hand and stiffly straightened up in her seat.
"Look, Ron. As much as I think Ginny and Harry should be together, this is between your sister and Harry. Ginny has to make the choice not us. It's her life. We can give her as much of our opinion as we want, but in the end, it's her choice as to who she wants to marry," she crisply argued.
Ron nodded, though it was clear he wasn't satisfied with Hermione's philosophy.
"But we can give her a nudge in the right direction, can't we? I mean, a really big nudge, right? C'mon Mione, you honestly can't sit there and tell me you're going to stand back and do absolutely nothing."
Hermione paused for a moment. She was against stepping into Ginny's business but Harry was her best friend. She couldn't sit back and let him lose the best thing that had ever happened to him. Besides, Ginny was family now. And before that, she'd been a friend. Could she really tolerate watching her sister-in-law and best male mate fumble blindly in the dark?
But then again, Ginny really did seem to be smitten with Dean. Hermione was fairly skilled at reading people and she could tell that Ginny had grown to love Dean. However, she wasn't sure was if Ginny's love for Dean was stronger and bigger than her old love for Harry. And this was precisely why Hermione refused to intervene.
Playing Cupid was never her area of favor or expertise. She believed that if it were meant to be, it would find a way to happen. Only Ginny knew what her heart said and no one could decide this for her, not even her parents.
"Ron, I see your point, I really do. But I really think that Ginny should make the decision by herself. I don't think playing Cupid is the wisest idea right now. Especially if you are involved," she defended, with a teasing smirk.
The tip of Ron's ears transformed an even brighter shade of red and he spat out a sardonic string of laughter.
"Hermione, stop thinking like a genius and start thinking from Harry's shoes. He's head over heels for her and if he even finds out that Ginny's getting married, it'll destroy him. Think about it, would you want to come home after a year of amnesia to discover I was marrying some girl?" he shot back, rising an eyebrow.
Hermione slapped a hand against the table, causing the plates to jump a few centimeters.
"Bloody hell, Ron! I know all this! Of course if it were me, I wouldn't want you going off with some other girl. But that's just the point, this isn't about you and me, it's about Harry and Ginny. As much as you think we're involved in this, we aren't. We're just innocent bystanders."
Ron was silent for a moment, then broke out into a grin.
"You know, I think that's the fifth time in your life I've heard you swear."
"Ron!" Hermione fumed.
Ron rolled his eyes.
"I know, I know. I guess you have a point. Harry doesn't know about the wedding yet, right?"
Hermione shook her head, regaining composure.
"No, unfortunately or fortunately, whichever way you look at it. But he's got to know as soon as possible."
"You think Ginny told him already?" Ron wondered with curiosity.
Hermione bit her lip.
"Well, judging from last night, no. But I OWLED her this morning and told her what he said at dinner; the proposal and everything. I hinted that now was a good time to let him know about Dean. I hope she told him. If not, we just might have to step in," she predicted.
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean, is that if Ginny doesn't tell him today, we'll have to let him know. Can't you just imagine his face at the wedding, if he didn't know before hand? It would be awful. The sooner he knows the better. If your sister doesn't tell him then someone better. And that's where we come in," Hermione explained.
Ron exhaled deeply, amazed at his wife's "take-charge" attitude and feeling sorry for his friend. Picking up the paper once more, he began reading the sports section, though his interest had wavered since the beginning of their discussion.
"I guess Operation When Harry Met Ginny is underway," he joked, in hopes of lightening the mood.
Hermione rolled her eyes and ate another portion of her food.
"Oh, Ron," she jokingly scolded.
But in fact, she was glad for Ron's teasing mood because she really didn't want to think too much about the upcoming disaster at hand.
Harry was walking around Hogsmeade, alone and though a little peeved at Ginny's quick departure that morning, mainly content. Word had gotten around that he was in fact alive and not dead via press such as The Daily Prophet and official release statements from the Ministry. Harry was grateful, because people smiled and sometimes waved, instead of issuing him that surprised look of disbelief and fear, as when he first came home.
Many of the papers had wanted interviews, but the only one he had issued so far was with The Quibbler, a magazine run by one of his peers from Hogwarts, Luna Lovegood. It had been about three days since Harry had arrived home and though he was in a state of bliss, something was nagging at him.
He didn't mean to keep dwelling on the subject, but he had a strong feeling that Ginny was hiding something from him. And whatever it was, it wasn't good in the least. He frowned to himself, the shops blending into one another. It was pestering him beyond belief that Ginny felt the need to keep secrets from him.
True, he trusted that whatever it was, maybe it was best if he didn't know and therefore had faith in Ginny's judgement. But what he didn't understand was why she was contradicting herself. She said she couldn't marry him, yet she gushed that she missed him. She acted like she had gotten over him, yet she kissed him.
Or had he kissed her and she had kissed him back? Whatever the circumstances had been, it still was a kiss by any standards. Harry gazed up and saw he had walked right past Olivander's. A nostalgic smile was embedded on his lips, as a memory of an eleven-year-old wizard going through a "wand fitting," popped up.
It had seemed so long ago that he'd just received his admission to Hogwarts letter. So long ago had it appeared that he wasn't anything out of the ordinary and the lightening-bolt scar on his forehead was a reminder of the "car crash" he'd survived. Back then, the world of wizards and witches had only been stories upon weathered pages in the thick books of his favorite fantasies. And now…he was probably the most famous wizard in his world, excluding people like Headmaster Dumbledore, of course.
His smile faltered a bit. If only his parents had been around to watch him grow up…
Remorse crossed his features for a moment and then it passed. He would always love and remember his parents but he couldn't let his regret and grief concerning their deaths run his life.
Suddenly in the mood for a huge slab of chocolate, Harry began to head to Honeydukes, when someone caught his eye. About a few yards away, across the street, were Ginny and Dean Thomas. Harry had troubled recognizing Dean at first, but once he really thought about it, the name came to him. Unable to tear his eyes away, he watched as the pair came out of Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue. This struck Harry was peculiar, because the shop was a bridal boutique.
Why would Ginny and Dean be together in a bridal shop, of all places? Harry wondered.
He observed as Ginny stopped, said something to Dean he couldn't make-out then leaned on her tiptoes to place a hasty kiss on his lips. Harry felt an unknown force send a swift kick to his gut. Feeling a bit guilty for spying on them but still curious, he ducked in alleyway out of their view.
Trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, he saw Dean laugh then bend down to kiss Ginny. Harry narrowed his eyes as he saw Dean hand Ginny a white veil, then apparate away. Ginny remained in her place, her eyes still glued to the spot where Dean had been, as though in a trance. She then looked down at her hand and Harry winced, as though he'd been struck. Though Harry was a distance away, it was unmistakable what was on her ring finger.
It was a sparkling, gorgeous diamond engagement ring.
Harry felt queasy as he watched Ginny sigh, then briskly stroll down the street in the opposite direction. Leaning against the wall for support, he felt his chest constrict with dread and disappointment. So that was why Ginny was acting so weird around him. That was why she had said she couldn't marry him.
Because she was already getting married!
You're such an IDIOT, Harry! The answer was right in front of your face and you were too caught up in yourself to notice.
Harry stood there in shock, hurt churning into regret. He took off his glasses for a moment, rubbed his eyes and then shoved them back in place. If only he had made it home sooner…then maybe Ginny would be marrying him instead of Dean. Regret soon turned into anger. Ginny had told him she loved him! If she loved him why had she gone and gotten engaged to Dean? And then his flash of rage turned to hurt once more.
He was still in love with a girl that didn't love him anymore. He didn't know how easily Ginny had gotten over him, but he knew it would take plenty of time to get over her. Harry had truly fallen in love that summer and he'd cherished every moment of it. He couldn't picture himself with anyone else. And now that Ginny was with Dean, it appeared as though this unthinkable future was becoming a reality.
How could she…?
He had lost her…. He had lost her and there was practically nothing he could do about it. All he had were the memories…. Sweet memories of fiery red hair enveloping him like a curtain and dancing in the summer wind.
"Screw chocolate," Harry bitterly muttered to himself.
Storming past Honeydukes in a blaze of rage and anguish, Harry barreled into the nearest pub and ordered the tallest glass of Fire Whiskey.