Hello my dears. Yes I'm back, I'm writing & I love you. xo
"Trust on this, Hermione," said Fred.
Hermione shook her head. "Only if you come up with a completely simple, fool-proof and non-tampering method."
Fred and George exchanged glances. "We know exactly what we're doing. It's perfectly simple, fool-proof and the opposite of tampering."
Hermione frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You'll find out in good time," smiled Fred. They both winked and departed, leaving a puzzled Hermione in their wake.
Over the next few days, Hermione noticed no change at all in Harry's behaviour towards her or Ginny. He remained smitten and doting with his girlfriend, and serious but fond with his best friend. Hermione had no idea what Fred and George were planning, and they didn't appear to have done anything about it yet. She decided to go and find him.
She slipped up to the Gryffindor boys' dormitory, reaching the room she knew to be the twins'. Cracking the door open slightly, she saw the twins sat on one bed, talking in low voices. Hermione gave a sharp intake of breath as she saw the pink bottle they were both looking at. Love potion.
"No way!" Hermione cried, bursting into the room and causing Fred and George to jump.
"What?" said Fred innocently.
"You know what!" said Hermione, grabbing the potion in one clenched fist, "I told you – no tampering! That included love potion! I don't want Harry to love me falsely, okay? And if that's what you're planning on, well-''
"Hermione, have you heard yourself?" sniggered George while Fred laughed. "How do you even know that's why we have the love potion?"
Hermione faltered for a minute, her hand dropping as she let the bottle fall back on the bed. "Well – well, why else would you have it?"
The twins looked at each other nervously for a second. Fred then nodded and George signing, turning to address Hermione again. "Okay... here's why. A month ago, one day before Harry and Ginny started to go out, Harry confessed to Ginny that, well, he loved you, Hermione. If they won't the Quidditch Cup he was going to ask you out at the after party."
Hermione had sunk slowly down onto the bed, gaping at the twins. "B – but – why –''
George held up a hand. "Let me finish. So, Ginny liking Harry and all, acted cool around but inside she was heart-broken. She came to us and told us everything, she was dead upset. And us, supporting you and Harry and everything, told her there wasn't really anything she could do. She asked us for love potion. We totally refused her, but she came and took it anyway. And so, for a month, she's been slipping it into Harry's morning pumpkin juice everyday. We've tried to stop it, but, well... we needed to know if you loved Harry before we got between him and Ginny. And now we know you do, well... we feel it's only right to stop this. So we've taken the love potion under the false pretences that we've found a new ingredient that strengthens it. It took a bit to persuade her, but she's pretty desperate. So now we need something to put in it, or swap it with, to stop it from working but still so she doesn't notice a thing."
Hermione just sat there, still and pale with her mouth wide. It was all piecing together now – the suddenness of the relationship, Harry's rather over-the-top adoring nature, Fred and George's mysterious manner... "So – so, Harry does love me? And Ginny... Ginny's just using a potion to make it so he loves her?"
"In a nutshell," nodded Fred.
"Oh Merlin," sighed Hermione, running a hand through her curly brown locks.
"So," said Fred, "more importantly... what do we do about this potion?"
The next morning, Hermione met Fred and George in the common room.
"Who would've thought a Colour Change Charm on water would produce such a realistic love potion," Fred grinned.
"They don't call her the brightest witch of her age for nothing, you know," said George, tipping Hermione a wink.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Come on then, Ginny will be in breakfast. Harry's gonna be down soon."
The three of them crossed the room, through the Fat Lady portrait, and down to the Great Hall. Ginny was sat alone at the Gryffindor table. Her roommates Romilda Vane and Lydia Dixon sat further along, and Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan were a little way off them.
"Morning Ginny," said Fred airily, taking the seat opposite his sister. George and Hermione followed suit.
"Morning," replied Ginny tensely. There was a long silence. Hermione helped herself to a piece of toast and causally began buttering it. The twins smirked at their sister before grabbing bowls of porridge. Harry and Ron entered shortly after that, both sleepy as always. Harry gave his girlfriend a fond peck on the cheek.
"Pumpkin juice, Harry?" she said sweetly.
"Sure, anything," he smiled, before turning to Ron.
Hermione dropped her gaze to her toast as Ginny slipped the small bottle of 'love potion' out of the robes. She really did manage it very discreetly. "There you are," she smiled, passing her boyfriend the cup.
"Thanks Gin," he said, taking the juice and gulping it in one. Ginny continued gazing dotingly at him, obviously expecting him to start doing the same after his daily dose of potion. Harry, however, just turned back to Ron, leaving his girlfriend frowning.
"The potion is at its weakest in the morning," Fred muttered to Hermione, "give it a bit... the effects will completely wear off..."
Ginny glared at her brother as he whispered to Hermione. "A word outside, Fred?" she said stiffly.
"Be my guest," said Fred, his innocent facade in place. He grimaced to Hermione as his younger sibling led him out of the hall. Harry and Ron stopped conversing, and Harry turned forwards again, a frown on his face. Hermione held her breath.
"Where's your girlfriend gone?" Ron frowned to Harry. "She was here just then."
Harry turned slowly to him. "My girlfriend?"
His friend gave him a strange look, brows furrowed. "Yeah... Ginny? She's just gone. "
"Why am I going out with Ginny?"
Ron looked confusedly at the others. Hermione did her best to look non-plussed, but George cleared his throat. "Erm... yeah... it's a long story."
Harry just stared. Then, everything seemed to fall into place behind his eyes and he turned bright red. "Merlin's pants..."
Ron was also staring at George. "What... what? Someone help me out here?"
Before Hermione, George or Harry could make any kind of explanation, Ginny stormed back into the hall, a rather dishevelled looking Fred in her wake.
"Harry... I'm sorry," Ginny said, her voice hollow and tears springing to her eyes, "what I did was really wrong, and – and I'm glad it's over now. I know I was wrong..."
Harry got to his feet and faced her. "How could you deceive me like that?" he demanded, shock replaced by anger.
"I'm sorry, Harry, I really am. I just thought you knew I liked you, and then when you said about Hermione it killed me. I know it's all my fault, and I really am so sorry... I hope we can still be friends."
Sighing, Harry let his hunched shoulders sag as he relaxed slightly. His anger had not entirely abated, but he spoke steadily nevertheless. "Okay. I don't know if I'll ever completely forgive you, but, well, I'll try. We can forget... forget all this ever happened.
The redhead nodded, eyes welling with tears. "You're far too nice about this," she whispered before turning on her heel and running out of the hall, bursting into tears as she went.
"Well... now I'm really confused." Ron looked blankly at Harry.
Harry didn't acknowledge him, instead turning to Hermione. "You're probably wondering-''
"It's okay. I know everything."
"Oh... right... so..."
Hermione said nothing. She just smiled, before flinging her arms around her best friend and kissing him. When they broke apart, Ron was just staring bemusedly at the two of them. "Okay... now is someone going to fill me in?"
YAAY. We're done. Haha, why is it everything looks so much longer in Word than on Fanfiction? Oh well I think its okay. I think. Haha, I'm gonna start writing my OA sequel now...pretty excited for it tbh! See you guys soon. xo