Here we go with the next chapter. Not much to say with this one. I had a lot of trouble with it and I'm not exactly happy with it but I think I just needed to get it over with and move past it! This chapter is, however, noteable for being the first one with more than one word in the title (remember, I didn't make them up, they're prompts).
Shoutouts: remuslover101, Delia-of-the-Oysters, You Know Who, NotSoPerfectWizard, ForbiddenLove7, glowyrm and MidnightIsCalling. Thanks guys!
By the way, the last chapter makes more sense if you know that the first of April (ie April Fool's Day) is also the twins' birthday. I forget that people who aren't total HP nerds like me don't know things like that, heheh.
Onward!
18. Secret Meeting
Tuesday
"Harry?"
He looks up from the document he is reading at the table. "Hermione!" he says, rising to kiss her on the cheek. "It's great to see you."
Hermione is agitated and keeps wringing her hands. "Harry, if I tell you something, you've got to promise not to tell anyone."
"I—of course I won't," he says.
"Especially Ginny," she persists.
"Why not?"
"Harry, just promise me!" She seems truly upset about something. Her hair is even more unruly than usual, a physical manifestation of her anxiety.
"Hermione, what is this about?"
She still looks torn. "It's just… Harry, I'm worried about Ginny."
"What for? Because of yesterday?"
"Not just yesterday," Hermione insists. "Something's been wrong for weeks. She was spending much more time at our place, locked up in her room, and she always seems to be worried about something, not to mention that whole Rosaria Bradley business at the Harpies—"
"Hermione," says Harry, disrupting her tirade mid-flow. "Ginny's fine. You don't need to worry about her."
"But—"
"Yesterday was always going to be hard, but Ginny's tough. She's handled worse than that without needing our help."
"This isn't just about yesterday, Harry," says Hermione.
"I know she was acting a little strangely before," says Harry, "but it's all back to normal now. Seriously. Everything's fine."
Hermione is not convinced, but she has finally learned when to back off. There can be no reasoning with Harry when he gets defensive or, even worse, when he's in denial.
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