Harry POV
After classes Hermione decided to drag Ron and I into town to get suits for Hogs-Prom. "Why do we have to do this today?" Ron and I moan in unison.
"Because." Hermione begins. "It's a little over a week until Hogs-Prom, and between trying to stay on top of classes and searching for a way to defeat Lucius' ghost... when else am I supposed to find a dress?"
"Couldn't you have taken Ginny shopping instead of us. Shopping is a girls thing." Ron grumbles.
Mione lets out a sigh. "She's too busy with Neville. She never has anytime for me any more."
"Sorry." I say, pulling her into a hug. I can't help but feel guilty.
"Why are you sorry, Harry?" She asks, pulling out of the hug and resuming her lead with us into town.
"I don't know, maybe if Ginny and I were still together, she would hang out with you more."
"But you wouldn't have been happy." My two best friends respond.
"I know. Thanks you guys." Suddenly my stomach begins roaring up a storm. Hermione and Ron snap their heads round at the sound. Just as my grumble finishes, Ron's stomach growls with more ferocity than mine just did. Hermione rolls her eyes at us. I just shrug my shoulders.
"Mione, you didn't let us have lunch before dragging us into town." The redhead groans.
"Fine. We will grab a burger, but right after that I'm getting my dress." She says, insistently.
"It's a good job the rest of classes are cancelled today." I state.
Once in town we go to McDonalds. We all get a big mac and then we follow Hermione into a dress shop.
She drags us around the shop three times before finally deciding it does not hold the dress she is looking for. "The dress must be perfect." She tells us.
Ron wraps his arms around Hermione's waist, making me jealous that Draco isn't here. "How will you know it's the perfect dress?" Ron asks her.
"I'll just know." She replies.
Well that's reassuring. I sarcastically think to myself.
We walk past a tux shop and as we do Hermione grabs both our hands, and pulls us inside. "You two also need a tux for Hogs-Prom." She says, pinning several different suits against us. "Go try those on." She orders, sitting in the chair by the changing rooms.
"Do we have to?" Ron moans.
Hermione gives him a blank expression. "Unless you want to wear that interesting suit you wore to the Yule Ball back in forth year."
Ron's face whitens at the mention of it. "I'll be just a minute dear." He says, bolting into the changing room. I laugh at the sight, before going into the changing room myself.
I try on four suits, before finally deciding on a black one with a scarlet bow tie and waist coat. Ron goes with a similar suit in navy and a purple bow tie and ribbon.
"Draco won't be able to keep his eyes off you, Harry." Hermione tells me, causing me to blush redder than Ron's hair.
"Eh hum..." Ron begins. "What about me?" He huffs.
"Oh Ron... you looked handsome too." She says, rolling her eyes before giving him a peck on the cheek.
We go into another dress shop and that's when she spots it. The perfect dress. A long slim purple gown with lace ribbon from the back that attaches to the wearers wrists. Hermione picks it up and runs into the changing rooms. Ron and I wait outside. Five minutes later she emerges from behind the curtain. My jaw drops to the ground, as does Ron's.
"Woah." Ron gasps.
Hermione grins. "Is it okay?" She asks, sounding insecure. A side I didn't know she had.
"It's the perfect dress." Ron and I reply.
"You'd nearly have me going straight." I say, truthfully. She really does look incredible.
"Yeah, well you have Malfoy." Ron tells, sounding defensive.
I hold my hands up. "I said nearly. Don't worry, Ron." I laugh.
His grumpy looking face softens and he pulls me into a hug. Probably guilty for blowing up over nothing.
"Right this is the one." Hermione says, going back into the changing room. As soon as she is changed, she buys the dress and we leave.
We make our way back towards school, all of us lost in thought. Well, Hermione and I are anyway, I can't say the same about Ron.
"Of course!" Hermione screams, causing Ron and I to jump out of our skin.
"You scared the shit out of me, Mione." Ron scolds.
I just laugh, and as I do his grumpy face returns. I turn to Hermione. "Of course what?" I ask.
"I don't know why I haven't thought of it before. What better way to get rid of one ghost, than asking another ghost how to do it."
"That's a brilliant idea." I compliment. "So who do we ask?"
"Definitely not Peeves. He'll tell McGonagall, and we don't want her sticking her nose in." Ron replies, as we walk through the Gryffindor portrait hole.
"Okay here is the plan." Mione begins. "Ron and I will talk to Sir Nicholas. Harry, you talk to moaning Myrtle." She orders.
"Why do I have to talk to Myrtle?" I groan.
"She does like you the best." Ron answers.
"Fine, I'll talk to her." With that I leave my friends to go to the girls bathroom on the first floor. I am dreading this, but Ron is right she does like me the best. Even if it is because she fancies me, I am the best person to get information out of her.
I enter the bathroom, Myrtle is no where in sight so I sit on the floor by the sinks, and I wait. Thankfully I don't have long to wait, because after several minute she comes up through one of the sink drains.
"Oh Harry." She says, pleasantly surprised.
"Hi, Myrtle. I need to talk to you."
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" She giggles, shimmying close to me.
"I was wondering if you knew anything about getting rid of malevolent spirits?" I ask.
"The only way to get rid of Lucius Malfoy for good is by him accomplishing his unfinished business. I'm sorry I don't have any better answers, Harry."
"You know about Lucius?" I ask, shocked.
"Of course I know. He sometimes comes in here. He is really mean." Myrtle wines, bringing her cold hand to my cheek. "Oh Harry, we could be so good together."
"Myrtle, you do know I'm gay." I say, hoping she will back off.
She nods. "Yes. Your boyfriend, Malfoy's son comes in here too, but I like him he's nice."
I smile at that. "Yeah, he is... wait Draco comes in here."
"He is always sad when he does and he always has a pretty silver blade. It matches his eyes."
"Why does he have a blade?" I ask, afraid I already know the answer.
She shrugs her shoulders, giving me an innocent look. "I've only seen him do it a couple times. He really does hate that tattoo on his arm, he uses the pretty blade to try and cut it off."
"You mean he cuts himself." I gasp, feeling tears burn in my eyes.
"Uh huh." She nods. "Don't you know? You were the one that found him."
"You know about that?"
"Obviously. He told me a couple days ago when he came in here again with his pretty blade. I didn't arrive until after he cleaned himself up but I knew he did it by the way he kept holding his arm. I like talking to your green snake." She smiles, as she says it.
"I'll talk to you later Myrtle, I need to go find Draco."
She glares at me and then suddenly smiles. "Okay. Bye bye red lion." Myrtle tells, before going back into the schools pipes.
She really is weird. I think to myself as I leave the bathroom.
Hermione POV
"Hurry up Ron! Otherwise we'll miss Sir Nicholas." I order.
"You didn't even let me finish my crisps and Nick is always in the Gryffindor common room." Ron moans.
"Maybe so, but he isn't always alone. We can't exactly talk to him about it in front of a bunch of first years."
"Yeah. They're mouths run bloody faster than Malfoy to McGonagall in first year."
"Exactly." I agree.
"But you owe me a packet of cheese and onion crisps." Ron huffs.
"Fine." I say, rolling my eyes at him.
We get to the common room and just as I said it, Sir Nicholas was alone. "Hello, Sir Nicholas can we please speak with you?" I ask, politely.
"Hello, Miss Granger, Mr Weasley. What can I do for you?"
"We wanted to know if you knew anything about dealing with bad ghosts?"
"I know Peeves can be a pain in the backside, but I would say he's a bad ghost." Nicholas replies.
"It's not Peeves we need help getting rid of." Ron throws in.
"What exactly do you want to know then?" The ghost asks, very seriously.
I clear my throat. "Is there any way of making ghost move on?" I ask.
Nicholas considers my question for several minutes, before answering. I must say I appreciate that he is taking it seriously. "The only time a ghost can't move on is if they have unfinished business and it isn't always clear what that business is. For example I still don't know mine and it's been a few hundred years." His face saddens. "I'm afraid a ghost can only move on once that unfinished business is accomplished. However there are spells to temporarily keep them at bay, but that is all the information I have. I'm sorry I couldn't have been more help."
I smile at him. "You don't have to apologize. You have been more than enough help. Thank you." I respond. Ron just nods in agreement.
"If you don't mind me asking, Miss Granger. Who is the ghost that is troubling you?"
"I'm afraid we can't tell you, but you have been a great help."
He flashes me an understanding smile. "I understand. I must go now, I intend to plead my case to join the headless hunt. Please take care."
"We will." Ron and I reply together.
Just as Sir Nicholas leaves, Harry walks in looking very troubled. "Blimey Harry, you look terrible. Are you okay?" Ron asks.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He responds, dismissively. "Any way. What did you find out from Nearly Headless Nick?" He finally asks, changing the subject.
"We didn't get much." I say. "It turns out the only way Lucius will move is when he accomplishes his unfinished business."
"Yeah, Myrtle said the same thing." Harry sighs.
"Then what are we gonna do?" Ron asks.
"I don't know." I reply.
"Well there's a first." Ron states.
Harry begins shaking his head, looking as though he's fighting back tears.
"Harry, what's wrong? Did something else happen with Myrtle?" I ask, my concern growing.
"I can't talk about it right now. I need to find Draco." He answers, wiping his eyes with his sleeve and leaving for his room.
Ron and I share the same worried look. I really hope everything is okay.
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Until the next chapter ;)