~Chapter Four~

Harry's green eyes kept flicking between his two best friends suspiciously. Ron was on his right and Hermione was on his left. He couldn't understand how yesterday they hardly wanted to look at each other, but now all they did was giggle. Harry, like everyone else who knew Ron and Hermione, understood that they liked each other. He knew they were too awkward to ever let each other know, so Harry had never considered what it would be like if they ever started going out. Now that it was a possibility, he was worried. What would happen if the two of them broke up and became enemies, or at least awkward around each other? Harry wouldn't be able to cope without them; they were his rock. And what if they became like Bill and Fleur, too ridiculously happy to be around?

Harry stopped trying to turn his mouse into a guinea pig for a moment and leaned over to Ron. "Is there something I'm missing?" he muttered, keeping his eyes on Professor McGonagall. He really couldn't afford points taken from Gryffindor.

Ron was still unsuccessfully attempting to make his guinea pig lose its mousy tail and gray fur. "What are you talking about?" Ron replied, his eyes focused on his desk.

Harry stared at him. "Never mind," he said, shaking his head. He'd ask Ron about it again later. What could he do? He just couldn't understand his friend hiding something from him when he shared everything with them.

Then again, said that little voice in his head, you haven't told them about your little crush on Ginny, have you? Harry tightened his jaw and looked at his guinea pig again. He still didn't know what he was going to do with that problem. He decided to just leave the inward argument at that.

"Potter, I was sure I told the class that you have to use your wand for this, not your eyes." Professor McGonagall looked at Harry from her desk. Harry had been leaning over his desk as he daydreamed.

"Sorry, Professor," Harry murmured.

Professor McGonagall just gave a small flick of the head and transformed into a tabby cat. She walked between the desks and sat on top of them, observing. Finally the bell rang.

Quickly returning to her human form, Professor McGonagall barked, "For those of you who have failed to transfigure your guinea pigs, I want twenty inches of parchment on the correct maneuver and mindset needed for this simple task. For those of you successful in your Transfiguration, congratulations."

Harry, Ron, and others who failed groaned. They already had tons of homework today. Harry had to write ten inches on some war in History of Magic, which he hadn't even paid attention to, fifteen inches of parchment on Inferi for Snape, and write a report on his magical plant for Herbology. All due for tomorrow. He just hoped that Hermione wouldn't be too busy giggling with Ron to help him.

"Harry, I don't understand," said Hermione. "Why can't you figure out what you did wrong? You have to concentrate on your goal. You don't want to transfigure, you need to. It is a wordless spell; you must enunciate the words in your mind. Point your wand with precision. Flick quickly. If you are following these steps, it is easy!" Hermione had been doing everything she said, and her cup of tea had become a small lizard. "Oh!" she laughed. Then she started giggling which turned into full-out cracking up. Her brown eyes met Ron's blue ones and she laughed much harder than the joke required.

"Wait, what was that last bit again?" Harry asked.

"Point with precision! Flick quickly!" Ron mocked Hermione. Instead of getting angry, Hermione started laughing so hard her eyes filled with tears.

"For the love of God," said Harry. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh, shut it," Hermione told him. She was in a really good mood; she wasn't going to let Harry ruin it. She noticed Ron had gone quiet and, blinking laugh-tears out of her eyes, followed his gaze. Hermione noticed him staring at Ginny and Dean cuddling on the sofa in front of the fireplace.

"I don't bloody believe this," said Ron gruffly.

"What's the matter, Ron?" Hermione's brown eyes crinkled in concern. She knew what he was reacting to. She was just stalling before he went and made a fool of himself.

"Look at what my bloody sister is doing," Ron said, swearing again. "I can't believe she's snogging that prat in front of everyone."

Harry glanced up and Hermione shuffled from her position on the floor. Sighing, Hermione looked over at Ginny and Dean again. They were now kissing, loudly and obnoxiously. Hermione felt a stab of embarrassment for her friend and looked down, blushing. She willed Ginny to stop before she created a scene. Glancing quickly at Harry she noticed his face was void of any color; his mouth was slightly open as though he had just realized something crucial.

Hermione bit her lip nervously. "Ron, I thought you considered Dean a good friend of yours," she pointed out, trying to stop Ron from getting upset. She couldn't believe that just because Ron's friend was kissing his sister all memories of their friendship was gone.

"That was before he starting feeling up my sister," Ron growled. Hermione looked up again and Harry's mouth dropped open. Dean's hands were on Ginny's back and they started to go down towards her arse. After something that looked like a squeeze Dean's arms seemed to get closer to the inside of Ginny's sweater.

Ron and Harry got up at the exact same time. Ron marched over to Ginny and Dean. "Oh, good heavens," Hermione murmured. This was not going to be good. She looked at Harry with confusion. He was standing as if deliberating whether to go over with Ron. She watched him sit down and shift his glasses nervously.

"What were you trying to do?" Hermione asked knowingly, as she watched Ron. He was now standing behind Dean and Ginny. He hadn't said anything yet, just standing with his fists balled.

"Um, I don't really know," Harry said, knitting his eyebrows together. "I was trying to stop Ron."

Hermione shook her head. "It looked like you were on his side," she said, waggling her eyebrows. She knew Harry had begun to notice Ginny this year; now he was finally acknowledging it.

Harry opened his mouth to retort but then Ron started to speak to Dean and Ginny and Hermione jumped to her feet. "Somebody's got to stop him," she explained hastily before getting up.

"Ron, please calm down," she said, her small hands grabbing his arms. He looked down at her and his blue eyes softened for moment, but then he looked back up at his sister's boyfriend.

"Dean, who the hell do you think you are?" Ron roared. "What the bloody hell are you doing, feeling up my sister?" Pretty much half the Gryffindor common room was watching now.

Dean broke away from Ginny and looked up uncertainly and nervously. "Didn't mean to start anything, mate," he said lamely, putting his arms behind his back. He focused his eyes on the floor of the room.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, squeezing my sister's arse?" Ron demanded.

"Ron, please," Hermione said again.

"Um, Ron, I'm really sorry." Dean got up and seemingly wanted to step away.

"Ron, shut up and leave me the hell alone!" Ginny shrieked. "Last time I checked, Dean's my boyfriend and I can do whatever the hell I want. If I wanted a chaperone, I would've asked!"

Hermione shrunk. She started to back away from the scene, realizing that Ron was beyond anyone's control.

Ron looked away from Dean and focused on Ginny. "First you snog all over the bloody castle, and now you're trying to get with your boyfriend in front of the whole of Gryffindor."

Almost the whole of Gryffindor had gone silent and was focusing on Ron, Ginny, Dean, and Hermione. Hermione was sure that no one had been paying Dean and Ginny any attention until Ron had started a scene.

"You're such a hypocrite!" Ginny yelled. "What about you and Lavender? Snogging all over the place, like you can't get enough of each other!" She seemed to understand what she said too late. She looked at Hermione with regret in her gaze, but Hermione just froze. Her brown eyes darkened and she looked at Ginny with anger.

Ron went completely red all over. "You don't know anything about me!" he thundered. He stormed out of the common room and through the portrait hole. Hermione watched him go in disbelief.

She turned back around to Ginny. Her jaw was set and taut. Why did Ginny have to go and ruin everything?

"Hermione, I'm sorry," Ginny murmured.

Hermione just walked away to the girls' dormitories. Lavender had finally been out of the picture. It was just her and Ron, like it was supposed to be. But Ginny had to go making Ron thinking about Lavender. Hermione collapsed on her bed. She didn't know why she was so upset. She just wished that Ron and Lavender had never happened.

It was pretty late. Ginny was in her pajamas, sitting on a couch in the Gryffindor common room. She was painting her toenails a bright yellow. She just wished that none of that drama had happened today. She started applying the second coat and blew on her wet toes. After Ron had left she'd broken up with Dean. It was incredibly painful and demeaning. She didn't want to break up with him just cause of her brother, but it wasn't like it was a huge loss.

Why did Ron have to be such a prat, such an annoying older brother? Why couldn't she just be happy for once?

Ginny herself could answer that question. It was impossible to be happy with Dean. Honestly, she'd rather be with Michael Corner. All Corner talked about was himself, but at least he wasn't such a jerk. Ginny herself knew that Dean was going way too far in the common room earlier that evening. She just didn't want to be humiliated in front of all her friends by her stupid brother. But it wasn't like Ron was wrong.

Dean's hand spent a little less time on his quill and little too much time on Ginny's body. Even when she didn't need him guiding her he was always touching her. When she walked through a door, when she stood up, when she was walking, period. It seemed that as long as Ginny was standing, Dean's hand was on the small of her back and dangerously close to her arse.

The truth was that Ginny really didn't like Dean anymore. As much as she tried, she still had that crush on Harry. She'd followed Hermione's advice and dated other boys, but it wasn't working. She sighed. All the boys' she'd gone out knew Harry or looked like Harry. It was obvious that Ginny still liked Harry; in fact everyone knew it. She was only lying to herself by going out with all these boys.

Ginny's lifted her head and looked at the stairs leading into the boys' dormitories. She could hear someone coming down. She started pulling down her short shorts and fixing her cami, but her pajamas were just too revealing. She hoped whatever boy it was wouldn't look at her.

She finished the second coat on her feet and prepared herself. Finally someone appeared. It was Harry. He came down and sat next to her on the sofa.

Ginny felt her freckled face go red. She normally didn't blush like that around him anymore, but since she had just been thinking about him she couldn't help it. She didn't turn around until her face was back to normal.

"Hey," Harry said. He was holding a purple blob in the palm of his hand. "I was hoping you'd be down here."

"You were?" Ginny said in confusion. Did he want to talk to her? Did he like her too?

"I found Arnold in my bathroom sink," Harry explained. Ginny realized the purple blob in his hand was her pygmy puff.

"Wow, thanks!" Ginny reached over and took Arnold. Her face went warm again when she touched Harry's hand. She looked down in embarrassment. "I've been looking for him everywhere."

"I figured," Harry said. He smiled when Ginny placed Arnold on her shoulder. She smiled at him too. Then Harry looked down quickly and shook his head, as if arguing with himself. Ginny cocked her head in confusion.

Ginny twisted a lock of hair around a finger. She felt rather awkward talking to Harry after what had happened earlier. "I'm sorry about all that drama this afternoon," she said genuinely. She hoped Harry didn't think that she was off-limits or something.

"It wasn't completely your fault," Harry said, his green eyes softened. Ginny melted whenever he looked at her like that. "Ron overreacted. But you were going a little too far." He looked away and Ginny noticed a flash of something in his eyes.

Ginny felt herself getting angry, but controlled herself. Harry was right. She really had been going too far. But she'd taken care of that now.

"I broke up with Dean," she blurted. "He is too much." It was crazy to randomly tell Harry the truth, but she needed to be honest with him.

"Really?" Harry said quickly. Then he stopped. "That's too bad."

"No, he was just as much a prat as Ron," Ginny admitted, shaking her head.

Harry leaned forward and tickled the top of Arnold's head. He sat back down and his eyes darted back and forth across Ginny's forehead.

"What are you doing?" wondered Ginny, giggling.

"Counting your freckles," Harry said honestly.

Ginny blushed. He was just too cute! This was her chance. "Do you want a closer look?" She leaned forward into his lap and kissed him. Her nose brushed against his and she melted again when his tongue connected with hers. Harry moved his arms around Ginny's back. His hands weren't rough and controlling like Dean's. They were gentle and comfortable, like the just-right puzzle piece. Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's shoulders and deepened the kiss. Ginny had no idea how far it would've gone if Ron and Hermione hadn't entered the common room at the same time.

For once, Ron kept his mouth shut. Ginny and Harry broke apart when he cleared his throat. Hermione stepped down seconds after. She took a huge step back and gasped.

Harry broke the ice. Still wrapped with Ginny he said to Ron, "Hey, mate."