Chapter One: The Halloween Ball

A/N: Hi, I'm new to writing fanfiction so please review my story & give me feedback. I have some great ideas so I hope you'll keep reading. Thank you soo much.

Harry Potter fluttered his emerald-green eyes and then slowly closed them, his thoughts rewinding until that horrible day. He was standing right in front of the Ginny he loved.

"Ginny, I can't afford to lose you. Voldemort is getting stronger, and the people I love will be a target to him. If something ever happened to you, I wouldn't be able to live with it. We can't be together anymore." He heard himself say.

He tightened his eyes to not let the water come flowing down. Ginny Weasley was the girl for him; he had found that out several months ago. With her flaming red hair that made Harry feel as though he was on fire, and her hazel-brown eyes, there was nothing to not love. Her sweet personality left Harry thinking about her all the time.

And of course, there was always Dumbledore. The Dumbledore that always made Harry happy. The Dumbledore that went through difficult journeys, looking for the horcruxes with him. The Dumbledore that taught Harry everything he knows about Voldemort and his past. The charming Dumbledore that wasn't there anymore to check on Harry every few days…

Harry abruptly opened his eyes to find himself in the beautifully decorated Great Hall. There was four long tables which represented the four houses: Hufflepuff, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Harry's house, Gryffindor.

Students were everywhere, in their long dark robes. Their eyes were tightly fastened on Professor McGonagall, who was on top of the podium. She was wearing light green robes, which brought out the incredible color of her eyes. She also had a jet-black witch hat and a huge smile that meant there was an announcement that needed to be made.

Harry's eyes zoomed over to his right, and then his left. He recognized almost everyone at the Gryffindor table, and then forcefully gave a smile to his two best friends, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. Hermione was the bookwork type, always reading and studying for school. She was the smartest with Harry knew. Then there was Ron Weasley, who was funny, couldn't handle girls, and scared of everything. Sitting next to Ron, was Ginny, one year younger than himself.

"Something is definitely up. I've never seen Professor McGonagall in such a good mood after Dumbledore died. Us 7th years are really getting to her, too. She should learn to loosen up when she's stressed." Hermione nodded, adding a little chuckle at the end of her sentence. She turned to Ginny, who in a second, got engaged in another conversation.

"Yeah, surely. If it's anything, I hope it's a no homework and no detention strike," Ron agreed. He grinned and then turned to Harry.

"You don't think it's another ball, right?" Ron cringed at the thought of his own words. "I hope it's not like the Yule Ball. That was horrible."

"That's just because Mum gave you that ghastly looking dress robe to impress Padma with." Ginny grinned. Ron rolled his eyes and then frowned.

Harry laughed softly, not wanting to look at Ginny, and then focused his eyes on Professor McGonagall. She cleared her throat, scanned the room once more, and then was off.

"Good evening, students," she announced, taking a large gulp of air and placing her hands together in front of her.

"I have gathered all of you here tonight for a word about the next couple of weeks. As all of you know, things will have to change now that… D-Dumbledore has passed away. Nobody will ever replace Albus Dumbledore, but I can only hope to be a good alternative." She choked, looking down at her fingers.

"Hogwarts has decided to hold a Halloween ball this year. Students are allowed to dress up in costumes, and there will be a huge feast. Dancing will also be present. All students that are in 3rd year and above will be allowed to participate." She held a hand up to stop the groans and protests from the 2nd and 1st years.

A couple of the Ravenclaw and Slytherin girls erupted into squeals of excitement and starting whispering to each other, perhaps talking about who they wanted to be their date. He saw Ginny give a quick glance at him. Harry pretended not to notice and sat up straighter in his seat.

Ron gleefully looked at Hermione and gave her a told-you-so look. Hermione rolled her eyes and whispered, "I knew something like this would happen." She smiled at Harry. She brushed back a lock of her curly brown hair and gave a dazzling smile.

Harry personally hated parties that had dancing and dates involved, especially know that he broke up with Ginny. Would she go with someone else? Who was Harry going to go with? He didn't have time to deal with this right now.

"This will be taking place on October 31st, the day of Halloween. Not everyone will be required to attend, and not all have to wear costumes. Even so, it will be much appreciated if you come." Professor McGonagall added, and her strict face finally erupted into a beam.

"Girls that choose not to wear costumes will wear gowns, or dresses. Formal wear, to be specific," she recited. "The boys will be wearing tuxes, or suits. Dress robes are okay as well. If you have any more questions, come talk to me about it later."

Ron gave a loud groan, which caused Seamus Finnigan to leap from his seat. Professor McGonagall gave him a glare and Ron sank down into his seat.

"So now that this is done, let the feast begin!" Professor McGonagall boomed. She waved her hands and long stretches of food appeared on all of the house tables. There was every type of food you could imagine, including desserts, drinks, and veggies.

"Oh honestly, Ron. You're just acting that way because you have no girl chasing after you. You're not going to get a date." Hermione pointed out, pouring herself a glass of Pumpkin Juice and taking a plateful of mashed potatoes.

"Ha! You think I won't get a date? Let me tell you, I will. Just you watch." Ron got out of his seat. He marched right up to Lavender Brown. Hermione laughed as Ginny followed Ron and gave Hermione a wink.

"So, Harry, are you going to go to the Halloween Ball?" Hermione asked softly. She knew that Harry was still hung up over Ginny and that he might not want to go because she probably would be there. Maybe even with another guy.

Harry sighed and shrugged. "I might if I'm feeling okay. It's in a couple of weeks, right? So maybe." He took a sip of his tomato soup and looked toward Hermione.

"If you do go, who do you plan on asking?" Hermione asked, leaning in towards Harry. She had a huge grin on her face and she looked as though she was eagerly waiting his answer.

"Umm.. I don't know actually. Now that I.. with Ginny.. So… I don't know." Harry finally said, looked down at his plate.

Hermione's face fell instantly. She sat back in her seat and began drinking her Pumpkin Juice without another word. Harry looked away from Hermione and bit his lip. Did Hermione like him? Did she want him to ask her to the ball? No, no way, it couldn't be true. They were best friends - always. They told each other everything. Harry shook his head and excused himself from the table.

"I'm not feeling hungry anymore. I'll be in the common room, okay?" Harry got up and ruffled his shaggy black hair. He walked over to where Ron was standing.

"Ron! How'd it go?" Harry inquired, placing his hand on Ron's back. Harry had said this even though he knew Lavender had rejected him. His face was crimson red and his eyes were as wide as olives. His neatly brushed hair was completely messy and his jaw was hanging down low.

"She said no! NO! I've just embarrassed myself in front of all the girls! They were all laughing like they've just seen me with no pants!" Ron cried, "And not only that, Hermione's going to give me a huge lecture about how she knew this was going to happen."

"Ron, you've got to calm down. What did you say?" Harry asked, who couldn't help but erupt with amusement. He saw Ron's stern face and then quieted down after saying sorry.

"It's not funny, mate. I just walked up to her, asked her if she wanted to go to the ball with me, and she just turned around and said 'no'. A plain 'no', without any expression. I hate myself." Ron told Harry as he buried his face in his hands. His face softened down a bit after he took a seat next to Hermione.

"Look, Ron, I'm not feeling very hungry and I'm really tired, so I'll be in the common room, okay?" Harry said again, this time to Ron. He nodded, and Harry walked off.

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Meanwhile, Ron, still in a horrible mood, told Hermione about his encounter with Lavender. Hermione found this quite funny and started laughing right away.

"Oh, Ronald. When will you ever learn? You don't just go up to a girl and ask her to the ball. You have to compliment her, spend some time with her." Hermione explained. She stood up and patted his shoulder, "You'll learn someday, I hope."

"I've complimented Lavender enough and I've spent enough time with her. It's probably my teeth. Do I have something stuck in my teeth?" Ron asked.

Hermione chuckled politely.

"Fine then. Why Hermione, you look very nice today. I love your brown hair. Will you go to the ball with me?" Ron asked Hermione dramatically, getting down on one knee.

Hermione sighed and agreed to go to the ball with Ron. "I'll see you then. And just so you know, I agreed to go with you only because your act was very, very pathetic. We're just going as friends, okay?" She whirled around and gave him a forceful smile.

Ron mumbled, "Just as friends."

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Harry leaned against the wall and sighed heavily. He couldn't stand not being able to talk to Ginny and not spending time with her. He loved being friends with her in his 5th year and below, but ever since he had broken up with her, he couldn't talk to her, or even be near her. His heart would just crumble every time.

Finally, not knowing what he was doing, or what he was thinking, he ran out of the room, into the Great Hall and found himself face to face with Ginny.

"Ginny.. I-I want to talk. A lot. M-more than lot, I want to be f-friends again, maybe even more." Harry finally coughed up. He found himself very nervous and his palms were sweating faster and faster by the second. He walked a little closer to Ginny.

Ginny paused for a few seconds, finally processing his words. She sighed, and then put her hand on his shoulder gently.

"Harry, I really like you, and I've been thinking about what you said before…and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Namedwill be after everyone that means something to you. I don't want to be under that kind of danger. I'm sorry…" Ginny looked down and shuffled her feet. "I have to go."

Harry saw her running out of the Great Hall, tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm not going to lose her again." Harry murmured to himself. Without thinking, he ran after her again.

"Ginny! Please, wait!" Harry called. Ginny stopped running, and turned around. She was standing in the middle of the stairs. Her eyes were red and puffy and she quickly rubbed them with her hands.

"What?"

"Will you go to the ball with me?" Harry asked, breathing heavily. He took a gulp of air and looked straight into her deep, brown eyes.

Ginny bit her lip and looked straight at him, and opened her mouth to respond.

A/N: Hmm so yeah I don't think this chapter's that great, it doesnt really have much to do with the story, but the next chapter will really start to pick things up. And seriously, Id love all of your guyses feedback, ideas, or something I could improve on. So i hope you liked it and review my story :) Thanks so much. I really want your guyses feedback. And btw, this is a H/Hr story for those who dont know.

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