Chapter Fifteen

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Revelations and the Showdown

When the class was dismissed, Harry leaned toward Hermione. "So," he said. "You and Nevile?"

Hermione could feel herself blushing. "Capital n, capital o," she said.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I don't know," he said. "It looks… serious."

Hermione stood up. "Yeah, well, things aren't always the was they look, Harry."

A lopsided grin spread across his face. "You got that right," he said.

She felt he was trying to tell her something that had nothing to do with Nevile Longbottom. "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

He just kept grinning at her.

She turned on her heel and left the room.

In the Great Hall, the girls were poring over the makeup ads in a teen girl magazine.

When Hermione sat down, Padma said, "I saw Hermione flirting with Nevile," and Pansy added from the table opposite, "We all saw Hermione flirting with Nevile."

"I was not flirting with Nevile," Hermione snapped. She turned to Parvati. "Was I flirting with Nevile?"

Parvati wasn't paying attention. She was drawing tiny hearts on her fingernails with a red marker. In each, she inserted a different boy's initials.

"I was not flirting with Nevile," Hermione repeated emphatically.

Nevile passed by the table sideways. "Hi, Hermione," he said, grinning shyly.

"Hi," said Hermione unenthusiastically, a scowl on her face.

"Hermione likes Nevile," Lavender said, and everyone at the table took up the chant.

"Hermione Longbottom," Parvati said dreamily. After a pause, she added, "It doesn't sound right."

Hermione pushed herself away from the table. "I think I'm going to be sick," she said.

"That's because you haven't eaten," said Lavender.

"Love does that to a person," Millicent put in, leaning over towards the Gryffindor table. "They lose their appetite."

Padma's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"This is all so stupid," Hermione said.

Pansy cackled. "If you think it's so stupid, Hermione, then why are you flirting with Nevile?" She looked around the table smugly.

"I already told you," Hermione protested. "I am not flirting with Nevile Longbottom."

"Why not?" Lavender asked. "What's wrong with him?"

Hermione groaned. "Nothing's wrong with him."

"Do you like somebody else better?" Lavender persisted.

"Harry," Parvati answered for her. "Hermione likes Harry best."

"I do not like Harry!" Hermione shouted.

Everybody stared at her incredulously.

Hermione pulled her hair over her ears. "I mean I like Harry – of course I like Harry – but I don't like him the way you mean."

"He likes you," Parvati told her. "He told me he did. That's why he wouldn't be my boyfriend."

A rush of emotion made Hermione's heart pound. She didn't want Harry as a boyfriend. It would spoil everything. And all this talk about it was unsettling. She shot to her feet. "Harry does not like me!"

No one paid any attention to her vehement denial. Instead, they began to talk among themselves as though she weren't standing right there.

"If Harry's her boyfriend," said Lavender, "then I don't think she should flirt with Nevile."

"Right," Padma agreed. "It isn't fair."

"No one should have two boyfriends," Lavender added.

"I don't have any boyfriends!" Hermione said, a frustrated edge to her voice. "And I don't want any either!" She whirled around and bumped into Seamus.

He stood near the table, his thumbs hooked through his belt loops. "Hi girls," he said. "You fighting over me?"

"Very funny!" said Padma.

"How'd you like the little verse you got yesterday?" he asked.

There was a stunned silence.

Hermione's stomach tightened. Seamus had written the verse! She should have known. He was a worse speller than Harry.

The girls exchanged glances. Then, as if on cue, they got up and started shouting at him. He put up his arms protectively.

Hermione dashed out of the hall. She had been wrong to assume Harry had written the note. Wrong not to have talked to him about her suspicions. She had to find him.

Outside, she saw Harry in the corridor. Ginny was with him, but Hermione was so intent on seeing Harry, she barely noticed.

"Harry!" she called.

He and Ginny were practising calming spells on each other, and he didn't look up.

Hermione raced toward him. She had to talk to him before class started. Breathless, she ran up beside him. "Harry, I have to talk to you!"

"Can't now," he said. "I'm doing an experiment – seeing how calming spells affect Ginny."

"Hi Hermione," Ginny said, smiling sweetly.

Ignoring her, Hermione said, "Har-ry! It's important!"

"So's this," he said and turned toward Ginny. With a twist of his wand, purple cloud sprung from his wand and swirled around Ginny, but she wasn't watching.

She was looking at Hermione, concern in her eyes. "What's wrong, Hermione?" she asked.

"You should know!" Hermione snapped. "It's all your fault!"

Ginny took a step backwards as though she'd been hit. Her stunned expression made Hermione feel awful, but she continued to lash out. "Well, it is," she snarled. "Before you came here, everything was fine. We were all friends and school was fun and now all anybody thinks about is boyfriends and girlfriends and nobody is the same anymore and I hate it!"

"Ginny," Harry said urgently. "Take deep breaths! Relax!"

Ginny's chest heaved.

"That's it!" Harry said. "Breathe! In! Out!"

Hermione had never attacked anyone this was before. It made her feel as though she were growing smaller and smaller and if she uttered another word, she would surely disappear. Yet the sight of Ginny standing there, breathing deeply, and the sound of Harry's enthusiastic prompting made her so angry she couldn't keep herself from saying, "And I hate you, too!"

Ginny inhaled deeply. And stopped breathing. Her mouth was open and her eyes wide. Finally, her gaze unflinching, she let out a long, slow breath.

Hermione turned and stumbled away.

Behind her, Harry said, "It works, Ginny! Calming spells really work!"