Disclaimer- I do not own Harry Potter.

Chapter Five- Ginny's Side

"What are you doing?" A soft, meek voice in the very back of the redhead's mind spoke up weakly, "You said you wouldn't hurt him…you promised you would—"

"Oh, shut up!" the same voice, stronger and rougher this time, barked. "I won't do anything to your fancy little prince…" It hissed, "I'm just trying to look for him…bring him here…to you. Isn't that what you want?"

"I…I want…I just want to go home." In the back of the young woman's mind, a little girl curled up, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. "Please stop! I don't want this anymore!"

A laugh—a long, sinister laugh was her reply. "I'm very sorry, love," the voice was amused and almost sympathetic. "But a deal's a deal, Miss Weasley. You're stuck with me until the end."

The little girl lifted her eyes—swollen and bloodshot—from her hands. She stared out into the seemingly never-ending darkness around her.

"The…the end," she repeated, "Wh—what are you talking about?"

"You will be keeping me company," it drawled, "until your precious Prince Harry is dead."

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When they were fifteen years old, Harry and Ginny started growing apart.

The King and Queen were very intent on finding a bride for their son, while Harry started focusing on his studies.

Ginny was also putting all of her energy into her own studies, but that didn't lessen the hurt. She missed her best friend. She missed Harry's voice, his laugh, the way his eyes lit up when she said something he thought was funny—she missed everything.

To make matters worse, princesses from different kingdoms, along with many other noblewomen started visiting the palace regularly.

From the small classroom she and about ten other kids her age studied, she would watch the most beautiful women she had ever laid eyes on walk into the throne room.

She dreaded the day when one of those women would walk out, and no longer be just another princess, or lady, or duchess—but Princess of Gryffindor, Mrs. Harry Potter.

As a result of her longing and constant worry, her marks were slowly slipping away. Her teachers became concerned, but Ginny assured them she was alright.

She would get through this, she told herself. Harry was her best friend, and whoever he chose to be with…She would be happy for him. But it was hard to believe her mind, when the ache in her chest was telling her otherwise.

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Her mother was the head cook in the palace's main kitchen. But as much as Ginny loved her mother, from the time she was a child she'd always wanted to be just like her father.

Arthur Weasley was a certified wizard, and worked in the King's court.

She wanted to finish her studies and become a witch, so when her father retired, she would then take his place.

However, this dream was slowly slipping through her fingers.

She tried to keep herself focused, but after the third failed test, it was becoming apparent that she needed help.

Finals were just around the corner. Her teacher had warned her specifically that if she didn't receive high marks on it, she would have to repeat her studies for another year.

"Are you alright, dear?" Her mother's voice drifted through the door.

Ginny was startled from her thoughts, and slapped at her cheeks to wake herself up. She quickly scanned the papers laid out, and cringed when she realized she hadn't started on any of them.

"I—I'm fine," she called back, "just studying!"

"Oh, alright," there was a pause, "do you need any help?"

"I'm fine!" Ginny repeated, her voice firmer.

"Okay, dear," her mother said, "I'll leave you alone now."

When her mother's footsteps faded away, Ginny slumped against her desk, laying her cheek against one of her papers. "God…" She groaned, shutting her eyes tightly.

She breathed deeply in through her nose, and sighed. "Alright," she sat up, "I can do this." She nodded. "I know I can."

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The next week, she ended up in the dining room alone with her father. She sat at the table next to him, and kept her eyes down. She couldn't stand to look at her father and see the disappointment in his eyes.

"Ginny…what in the world is going on with you?"

"I…I don't know," she mumbled, "I really don't know…"

Arthur reached out, and laid a gentle hand on top of his daughter's shoulder.

"You can tell me anything," He said, "you know that, don't you?"

"Yes, of course," she said, meeting his eyes for just a moment before returning them to the ground. "I…I just don't have anything to tell."

"Are you sure?" He let his hand drop, and took the papers from the table. He glanced over them, and then looked back to his daughter. "At the beginning of the year, you were at the top of the class." He ran a hand roughly through his thinning hair. "Now, I have a letter that says you are going to be held back for another year!"

He tried to keep his voice down, but it was hard.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice wavering. She bit her lip and tried to keep the tears away.

Arthur saw Ginny's eyes watering, and let out a long sigh. "Don't apologize to me," he said quietly, "I'm not the one whose hard work went to waste."

With those final words, he stood up, and left the room.

When he was gone, tears started dripping from her eyes. She reached up to wipe them away.

She wanted to stop crying, but she couldn't.

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It was a few days after that she finally left her room. By force of habit, she walked to the garden. She sat by the fountain, where she and Harry used to meet.

"Hey."

Ginny jumped a little, and looked up at the young man with wide eyes.

"Harry?" Her eyes lit up, and she smiled for the first time in a few days. "What are you doing here?" She really didn't care. She was just glad he was here.

He sighed heavily, and sat down next to her.

"I'm taking a break," he said, "If I see another 'marriage candidate,' I think I'll scream." He leaned forward, and lightly ran his fingers on the surface of the water.

"And what about you?" He turned a serious look on the girl, "I heard about your studies."

Ginny blushed, both in shame and embarrassment. "How?" She asked, but she already knew the answer.

"Your brother," Harry shrugged, "he somehow managed to get a maid to slip me a note." He left out the fact that her brother also asked him to check up on her.

"I'm going to kill him," she muttered, clasping her hands tightly together.

"He's only worried about you," Harry said, patting her on the shoulder. "Don't be too hard on him."

She rolled her eyes, but moved past the subject.

"So…you probably don't want to talk about it, but…" She did. "Did you meet anyone you like?" She was anxious to know.

"Not really," he answered, "what about you? Whatever happened to the guy you liked last year?"

She blushed. "I…I haven't had the chance to…you know…"

"Ah." Harry nodded. "Why don't you?"

"Because…he's kind of…well…" She tried to come up with the right words, but it was difficult enough lying right to his face.

"He'll be lucky to have you, you know," Harry said, "so you should just tell him."

"Okay…" Ginny rubbed at the back of her neck. She should tell him. Just to get it over with. She could tell him and put an end to the pointless longing and fantasizing.

"I…I…" She swallowed thickly, "I… like you, Harry."

He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, she held up a finger. "I'm not done," she said with renewed determination, "when I say 'I like you,' I mean that I really like you…I might even love you…actually…"

"Oh." Harry said after a long pause. "Oh." His eyes widened as suddenly, everything made sense.

Ginny wrung her hands together, and looked at him. She couldn't help but feel hopeful that maybe, just maybe, he felt the same way. His next words destroyed all of that hope.

"I'm sorry," he ducked his head, and kept his eyes away from the redhead, "I…I like you, Ginny, but…"

"Not like that."

"…yes."

Ginny was prepared for rejection, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

"I'll just…I need to go now." She muttered, and got up. Despite Harry's objections, she quickly fled the garden.

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Whatever happened after that was a complete blur.

How she ended up there, she doesn't remember. But the next thing she knew, she was in the palace's library.

She was only ever there during class hours, and while this place held no significant sentimental value, she knew no one would bother her here.

She was wrong.

"Hello, Misss Weasssley…" A raspy, cold voice spoke in her ear.

For the second time that day, she jumped in surprise. One hand clapped over her ear, while the other rubbed furiously at her eyes.

"Who's there?" She whipped her head around, and tried to see who the voice belonged to.

When she ran into the room, the lights were off. She didn't bother to turn them on, and so the room was nearly pitch-black. The only light source came from the sunset from outside the window and it wasn't much.

Suddenly, a red flame appeared out of nowhere, and lit up the room.

Ginny gasped quietly as the light revealed a very tall man, who held the flame in the palm of his hand quite literally.

He was deathly pale, and but was handsome in the way noblemen were handsome. His eyes were the same shade of red as the fire in his hand, and they looked as if they were glowing. His hair was black, and neatly slicked back with a large pair of curled, dark horns sitting on top of them.

"What do you want, demon?" She spat, stepping away from him. She grabbed whatever was closest—a book—and held it protectively in front of her.

The demon grinned, showing off pearly-white, red-tinged fangs. "No need to be sso ssusspiciouss…" He didn't move an inch. He could practically smell the fear in the air. "I'm here to help you, I ssswear."

She lowered the book, but held onto it. "What are you talking about?"

"If I told you I could give you everything you wanted, what would you sssay?"

Ginny's grip loosened. "I…I would say, 'how?'" She said quietly. She couldn't help but be interested.

The demon's grin widened. "Now, my dear, let'sss talk."

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The King and Queen knew Harry didn't like any of the girls they had met with.

So they did what royalty did best—they organized a ball, and made sure to invite more lovely, young women.

Of course, Harry did not like this idea one bit.

But there was someone who did—the demon who visited Ginny in the library. He thought this was a splendid opportunity.

In a twisted version of Cinderella, he took the prince's humble, childhood friend, and turned her into a princess. Or made her look like one, anyway.

"Before you leave, princesss," the demon began, "remember…if he doesn't fall in love with you…there will be consequences."

Ginny glanced down at her forearm and at the mark their 'deal' left behind. She nodded. "I understand," she tried to sound brave, but it didn't work out as planned. "I won't go back on our deal."

"I knew I could trussst you…" The demon gave her one last, cold smile, and disappeared.

Ginny gripped at the skirt of her dress, the dress the demon had made for her, and tried to muster up what was left of her confidence. She could make Harry see her for someone other than just his friend. She could.

With one deep, calming breath, she stepped into the ballroom.

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End of Chapter 5—Ginny's Side

Well, there's a little background stuff. I wanted to establish all this before moving on…so…yeah… The next part will still be Chapter 5, but it'll be more about what's going on with Harry.

Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a review. They help. Quite a bit. :)