A/N: Here is Part two of Christmas! Enjoy!

Chapter 11 – Oh Holy Night

Hermione's thoughts started racing when her eyes wandered back and forth between Ginny's face and the parchment the redhead was holding in her hand.

When she arrived at the Burrow that day she had been determined to find out more information for the list, but she had completely forgotten about it, because she had been so happy to spend the day with Ginny and her friends. The parchment must have fallen out of her bag when she retrieved the presents earlier. How could she not have noticed?

Hermione wanted to hit herself in the face for being so careless and stupid. What should she say to Ginny now? How could she ever explain this to her? Frantically she tried to think of something – anything – to say, but the angry and hurt look Ginny was giving her made it impossible for Hermione to organize her thoughts.

"You made this to find out whether I like you?", Ginny finally said accusingly and she gripped the parchment tighter. Hermione just nodded, still at loss for words.

"Why didn't you just ask me?!", Ginny asked in a sharp voice which did not match the hurt expression on her face. "Why did you need this bloody list or whatever that is?! Are you that afraid I could be interested in you?! Did you have to check if I am touching you or stare at you before you reject me?! As if I was a bloody lunatic?! Yeah, but at least you got your research done, good for you!" Ginny's voice had gotten louder and more agitated with every sentence. Every word she spoke cut through Hermione's heart like the sword of Gryffindor and though it made her feel even worse, she could not break their eye contact. Worried that someone might overhear them, she cast a wandless muffliato spell at the door, a skill she had mastered perfectly over the years.

Hermione finally opened her mouth in an attempt to say something, but Ginny cut her off right away. The redhead held the parchment higher and pointed her finger at the last question 'Does Ginny have a crush on me?'.

"You didn't reach a conclusion? Must be frustrating for you, right?!", Ginny said, every word heavy with anger and hurt. "Well let me do it for you then, so you can put it on your damn list!"

"Ginny, I-", Hermione finally managed to utter, but Ginny cut her off again.

"Spare your words, Hermione! No need to talk to me if you can put it on a list, right?!" She gripped the parchment tight, wrinkles spread over its upper half and her knuckles became white.

Hermione suddenly felt dizzy and the world around her started blurring, except for Ginny who stood out clearly against the twilight in the room.

She wanted to explain. Explain that she did not think of Ginny as crazy, that she did know nothing about love yet, that she did not want to make false assumptions about Ginny, that she never meant to hurt her. But her mouth remained shut, her lips pressed together tightly, while she was fighting tears for the second time today. It was strange how the same tears could be evoked by such different emotions. She wanted to take a step towards Ginny, reach out for her hand, tell her that she was sorry and explain everything, but her limps would not move. It reminded her of second year when she had been petrified by the basilisk. Only that now felt way worse.

Ginny closed her eyes for a long second and took a deep breath, apparently organizing her thoughts. As she opened her eyes again, the anger had vanished leaving only hurt and disappointment in her expression. The youngest Weasley sighed as she let out another deep breath. "I can't believe I'm telling you like this", she finally said, shaking her head in disbelief. Her voice was quieter than before, soft even, but Hermione could not hear even the faintest trace of the warmth that it used to contain whenever the redhead spoke to her.

"So, this is it", Ginny continued and a humorless laugh escaped her lips. "Do you know how many times I have thought about this moment? How I imagined it over and over again every night before I fell asleep? Of course not, if you knew you wouldn't have made this stupid list."

Hermione averted her eyes and lowered her head, because she felt more ashamed than she had ever been in her life. She had never expected that such a small action like writing this useless list could lead to such consequences. To her, it had been a small action, but to someone else, it could mean much more. She now understood it. Yet, it had never been her intention to harm anyone, it had just been for reference… The dizziness increased, making her wish she had something to get a hold onto.

"Look at me!", Ginny demanded. Hermione rose her head and after a few quick glances she managed to restore their eye contact.

Ginny closed her eyes once more and a single tear ran over her cheek, barely visible in the dim light. Seeing her friend crying made Hermione's sight blur as well, but once again, she fought back the tears.

"I like you Hermione", Ginny finally whispered, so quietly Hermione wondered whether she really heard it. "I like you as a friend", Ginny continued. "And I like you as a woman. I like you in a way that I want to hold your hand while taking a walk around the burrow. I like you in a way where I want to feel your embrace when I am sad or lonely. I have liked you for longer than you might imagine, even though at first, I didn't know what these feelings meant. I knew you would never like me back. But I had this tiny bit of hope that somehow you would like me the way I do like you. I don't even know where this hope came from; thinking about it now makes me seem quite stupid, doesn't it?" She let out a heavy sigh and looked at the parchment still clutched in her hand. "Well, there you have your conclusion." Then she let go of the list and it fell to the floor, Hermione's sad eyes following its movement.

"G-ginny", Hermione uttered. She wanted to explain herself, but she had no idea how to start so she just said the first thing that came to her mind. "I didn't mean to hurt you, I just made this list to find out whether my assumption was true or not. I thought you might be uncomfortable if I'd ask you such a thing directly, because…because I could've been wrong and then our friendship would become awkward." She wanted to say more, but even though the thoughts and emotions were chasing each other inside her head, her overall thinking was slow, almost as if paralyzed.

"You didn't want to make me feel uncomfortable?" Ginny put her hands on her hips and lowered her head, her hair hiding her face. As she looked up again, she mustered Hermione witch such an accusatory look that the young witch felt a shudder rolling over her back.

"So this situation right now is supposed to be more comfortable, you think? I thought you'd possess some more empathy, Hermione. You've changed quite a lot." The redhead's eyes wandered from Hermione's to the framed photograph showing both girls smiling happily. Ginny's gaze lingered on it for a few seconds before it found its way back to Hermione's face.

"I don't expect an answer to this question, but have you at least once thought about how I might feel about all of this? You say you were afraid of making me uncomfortable? I'd say you were afraid of feeling uncomfortable yourself, Hermione!" Another tear run over her face as she finished. With an angry gesture, she wiped it away and turned around.

"Now leave me alone", Ginny said quietly but determinedly and walked out the door.

Hermione wanted to stop her, grab her hand, but she could not do it. She was still captured in her stupor. Her body felt numb and heavy, so did her mind.

She continued to remain in that position for another one or two minutes, but it felt like an eternity. Then, slowly, she raised her right hand, which was still holding the photograph Ginny had given to her, and her eyes found her own, then Ginny's. What had happened to her?

The thought suddenly struck her mind like a lightning bolt and finally – finally! – she awoke from her stupor. Her legs gave in and she slumped to the floor, the photograph pressed to her chest. Tears started to run down her cheeks, washing away the numbness, replacing it with new thoughts and a number of realizations.

Hermione had not considered Ginny's feelings at all. She had been egoistic, scared and intrigued by the fact that Ginny might like her, but too much of a coward to just simply ask her. What had become of her? Where was the Hermione who stood up for her friends, who was brave like a Gryffindor was supposed to be, who was willing to give up her own goals when she could help a friend instead?

Now she was only trying to reach goal after goal in a job she did not even like, to find a mysterious person from a stupid prediction that might not even be true and to be professional. She was sick of acting professional!

Tears continued streaming down her face and it did not take long until she was sobbing and crying louder than she had ever done in years. The disappointment and hurt in Ginny's eyes would not leave her mind and she could not stop thinking about how stupid she had been. Ginny liked her and she had done nothing to deserve it. She had betrayed her trust and disregarded her feelings.

Hermione's body was shaken by continuous sobs, but after a while they grew weaker and less in number, so it became easier for her to think. After all Hermione Granger wouldn't be Hermione Granger if she didn't organize her thoughts on the situation.

The obvious question was: Why had she acted like this? Why hadn't she just asked Ginny? Hermione set up straight and hugged her knees, the photograph still in her hand. She thought about everything that had happened after her and Ginny had left Hogwarts.

The first realization that hit her was that she hated her job. She hated the reports, she hated her office and she hated the fact she was placed first on the overtime-work-meter. And she hated all these things more than Pansy. Hermione had convinced herself that it would get better if she just tried hard enough. That she could change something about the world she lived in. Focusing blindly on this goal, bearing and enduring day after day, had made her numb for other's feelings, even for her own.

And then she had met Ginny after quite some time and the witch had changed something inside her. The redhead had stirred Hermione's emotions. She had made Hermione reconsider the life she had been sure was the right one for her. Everything Hermione thought essential had started to crumble because of the few moments she had spent with Ginny. And that brought her to the second realization: She wanted to love and she wanted to be loved. She needed love in her life.

But that did not explain the fact why she did not just ask Ginny about her feelings. Hermione hugged her knees tighter and held the photograph a little closer to her face. She traced along Ginny's features with her index finger, trying to catch every movement the witch made. A faint smile appeared on her lips as she regarded the widely grinning redhead in the photograph.

She remembered the feeling when she met Ginny on the Quidditch pitch, the familiarity and the realization that she had missed her so much. She remembered her excitement when Ginny showed up in front of her flat and the empty feeling she was left with when they parted. She remembered a lot of things. The warmth that had spread through her body when Ginny held her hand, the brush of their cheeks against each other when they hugged, the hypnotizing power of the redheads beautiful eyes, the jealousy she felt when she imagined her with someone else, the excitement and nervousness that rose inside her when Ginny replied to Ron's and Harry's joke about the possibility of her being Hermione's 'special person'. And then she remembered the fear. The fear that Ginny might deny everything. That she felt nothing for Hermione. And with that stupid list she had wanted to make sure that her fears were ungrounded. She had wanted to proof that Ginny had a crush on her.

Hermione's eyes widened as the third realization hit her: She liked Ginny. She liked her more than she had ever liked Victor or Ron and she liked her more than only as a friend. And the only thing surprising about it was that she did not find it very surprising at all.

With newfound determination Hermione got up to her feet, wiped the dried tears from her face and placed the framed photograph next to its twin on Ginny's desk. Then she left the room to find Ginny. She had to put some things right.

It didn't take long to find the redhead. When Hermione descended the stairs, she could hear faint sobs from the living room. Quietly and surrounded by darkness, she approached the door, which was standing ajar. Hermione pushed it slightly so she could peek inside.

Her heart wrenched when she saw the young witch sitting on the armchair where they had sat next to each other just hours ago. She was pressing the Quidditch spell book Hermione had given her as a present to her chest, her body shaken by heavy sobs. The Christmas tree still bathed the room in soft and warm light which in contrast made the sight of Ginny even more painful. Christmas was supposed to be joyful, but she had ruined it for Ginny.

Hermione continued standing in front of the door for a few moments, hesitant whether to enter or not, but her rediscovered Gryffindor courage made her take the final step into the room.

Ginny looked up at Hermione, her eyes red of tears, her hair messed up as if the young witch had ruffled it repeatedly.

"I said leave me alone", Ginny mumbled weakly. She averted her eyes as soon as they met with Hermione's.

Hermione did not listen to her and proceeded into the room until she was standing right in front of the armchair. "May I sit down?", she asked carefully but determinedly.

Ginny just shook her head, stubbornly focusing on a spot over Hermione's shoulder.

"You sure?", Hermione tried again. "You were fine with it a couple of hours ago."

Ginny did not reply, but Hermione could sense that her defenses were starting to come down. She sat down next to Ginny, who shifted as far away from her as possible, but given the chair's limited width, their bodies were still touching each other. Hermione could feel the redhead tensing up. For a brief moment she considered to touch her, but then she decided that talking might be the better option at the moment.

"Ginny, please look at me", Hermione pleaded softly. But Ginny did not move. Her eyes were glued to the Christmas tree, whose light made Ginny's hair shine like polished copper. Hermione felt a big lump forming in her throat as she thought about how much she had hurt this beautiful person.

Hermione's eyes followed Ginny's and they were staring at the Christmas tree in unison, neither of them saying a single word for a while.

"I am sorry", Hermione finally said and a tear escaped the corner of her eye. It went unnoticed by Ginny. "There is so so much I have to tell you, but the first thing I want you to know is that I am thankful. I am just so thankful for having you in my life." As another tear rolled down Hermione's cheek, Ginny's head slowly began to turn in her direction.

When their eyes finally met Hermione was once more astonished about how beautiful Ginny's eyes were. The Christmas lights reflected in them made them shine even warmer than usual. But they also held sadness and anger, which reminded Hermione of the things she wanted to tell the redhead.

"I am thankful for so many things, Ginny", Hermione continued, careful not to break their eye contact. "I am thankful that you still wanted to be my friend even though I neglected our friendship for such a long time. And I am thankful that you opened my eyes and made me realize that I'm not happy with my life right now, that I need to change something. But what I am most thankful for is that you always supported me. You always believed in me and you were the only one who could tell that I wasn't feeling happy. Even I myself wasn't able to do that. You were by my side when I needed you and the times I spent with you lately reminded me of what happiness really is."

Ginny still did not say anything, but the anger in her eyes was vanishing slowly. Hermione hoped that her imagination was not playing tricks on her.

"I am sorry for so many things as well", she continued. "I am sorry that I never asked about your worries and concerns, that I didn't take your passion for Quidditch seriously enough and that I made such a foolish list behind your back. You were right, I didn't consider your feelings, my actions were selfish and sadly I only realized that now."

Hermione was not sure whether her words were reaching the redhead. She was as stubborn as Ron, so she was prepared for all kinds of reactions, from telling her to piss off to Ginny demolishing the tree. But nothing like that happened. Ginny just stared at her motionlessly, only blinking from time to time.

"You asked me why I made that list instead of asking you directly", Hermione continued. "Well, here is the answer. I was afraid." She took a few deep breaths, trying to fight her nervousness.

"What were you afraid of?"

Hermione was surprised at the sudden question. Ginny's voice was quiet, even soft and sounded nothing like the voice she had used earlier.

"I was afraid you might have no feelings for me", Hermione answered nervously. Say it! Just say it!, a voice inside her head shouted.

"Because…because I like you." Hermione held Ginny's gaze for one more second before the courage she had mustered so painstakingly left her again. She lowered her head and shoved her hands under her tights to calm herself down.

"You…like me?", Ginny asked perplexedly.

Hermione looked up again. She had to do this properly. The time where she ducked her head and tried to run from her feelings was over. She would start a new life, no matter if she found the sign or the person or whatever. And now would be the time to start it.

"I like you Ginevra Molly Weasley." Her voice was steadier and louder than before and Hermione could feel the confidence coming back. "I like you as a friend and I like you as a woman. And I like you as a seeker. I like you more than I have ever liked any of the people I have been with...by Merlin, I think I am in love with you!"

Ginny's eyes widened at her confession and Hermione could not believe what had just left her mouth. Even one day ago she would have strongly denied to like somebody – let alone Ginny of all people! – but now she knew that every word was true.

"So you don't think I am weird?", Ginny asked, the expression on her face still puzzled.

Hermione nodded. "Of course I don't think that, actually I think you are wonderful! You're brilliant, you're the best seeker in the league and on top of that the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. Your kind and caring, honest and funny and so much more. Some people might think you are weird, but to me, you are just perfect."

Tears started rolling down Ginny's face and suddenly, all the tension from her body was gone. She hid her face in her hands and sobbed even louder than she had just a while ago. Hermione was surprised at the sudden outburst. Had she said something wrong?

Cautiously Hermione raised her hand and lightly patted the redhead's back. After a while she slung both arms around her and held her tightly. Ginny continued to cry for a few minutes more while Hermione held her and stroked her hair. She felt nervous since she did not know what Ginny's reaction meant, but at the same time she felt relaxed, because it felt so nice and warm to hold Ginny in her arms, to feel the texture of her hair and to inhale her scent.

Finally, the sobs subsided and Ginny wiped her face. Hermione drew her wand, summoned a tissue and handed it to the redhead. Ginny took it and blew her nose noisily, which made Hermione smile.

"Are you alright?", Hermione asked worriedly.

Ginny raised her head and looked at Hermione, her eyes even redder and puffier than before. She still looked beautiful.

"It's just-", Ginny started to say but was interrupted by a hiccup coming up her throat.

"I – never expected – you would - like me", she said. "I thought – you would reject me- and – and – I don't know what – to say."

"You don't have to say anything right now", Hermione replied and resumed stroking the redhead's back. "How about we just call it a day and go to sleep? You must be exhausted."

Ginny silently nodded and managed to form a weak smile. "You're - right. Let's – let's go", she said, still hiccuping, and got up from the armchair. "Nox." With a quick movement of her wand she turned off the Christmas lights on the tree leaving both women in complete darkness.

They walked up the stairs to Ginny's bedroom in silence, each woman immersed in their own thoughts. When they entered the room, Ginny crawled into her bed and Hermione awkwardly stopped in the middle of the room. She glanced over to Ginny's bed and then to the one Mrs. Weasley had prepared for her. Finally, she slipped into her own bed.

As she lay there and stared into the darkness above her head she could feel her heart still racing, and so were her thoughts. Ginny had confessed her feelings for Hermione. Hermione had confessed her feelings for Ginny. What did that mean? Were they girlfriends now? Hermione pulled the blanket over her head in frustration. She knew nothing about dating, let alone love. And how would Ron and Harry react if they found out? What about Ginny's parents?

She did not want to think about it at the moment. Maybe she should just be happy for now? But she still had no clue whether Ginny had forgiven her about the list issue or not.

Hermione could hear Ginny stir in her bed. She turned and focused on the spot where she assumed Ginny's face.

"Hermione?", Ginny asked softly.

"Mh-mh", Hermione replied alertly.

"I'm still angry about the list." Hermione's heart sunk and she clung her hands into the sheets. "You have every right to be angry", she answered weakly.

"Do you want to go on a date with me?"

Hermione's eyes widened in surprise at the sudden question. Her heartbeat doubled in less than a second. A date with Ginny? "Y-yes I do", she uttered blankly. "But didn't you just say you were still angry with me?"

"I am, but that doesn't mean we cannot go on a date, right?", Ginny replied and some of her usual mischief had found its way back into her voice. "So, goodnight then."

"G-goodnight", Hermione said, still confused.

A/N: Reviews are always welcome!