A/N: My fellow readers. Thank you again for your patience. I truly am appreciative. I would like to also take this moment to thank all those who have favorited, reviewed, and followed the story. I am going to be a lot more busier now at work because I will be going to a lot of training sessions so I will be very busy from here to about mid-April. This means that I may be posting less frequently. I hope you like the following chapter. Now on to Chapter 7...
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or its characters. The credit of this wonderful world goes to JKR.
Chapter 7: Coming To Terms
The weeks went by and it was a very wet day in October. To make things more difficult, it was raining hard and there was thunder and lightning outside. Ginny nonetheless had to get out of bed and put on her quidditch uniform. There was going to be a match against Hufflepuff. She had started to learn to love Ernie and she still remembered the one day when Harry had walked in on her and Ernie while they were snogging. Ginny suddenly felt a pang of guilt and the familiar dulling ache over her stomach for having slapped Harry. It was the only thing she could do. She had to muster her strength to not show Ernie her weakness for Harry. More than once Ginny had wanted to go next door to ask Harry to forgive her but she couldn't seem to find the words. One day she came as close to almost knocking on his door but she wound up going back quickly to her room.
Ginny loved rainy days like that. She remembered that on days like this, she and Harry used to cuddle in the Gryffindor common room sofa under a blanket and they would look out the window. Ginny looked at her calendar and noticed that Harry had mistaken one of his early morning work-outs and scheduled it on the next Hogsmeade outing. She was going to go tell Harry but it was going to have to wait until after the game before she could tell him. Ginny looked at the small clock on her cabinet and groaned. She only had enough time to put on her quidditch uniform, eat breakfast and go to the quidditch pitch.
When Ginny walked into the Great Hall for breakfast Ernie came to her side and hugged her. He then whispered, "I know the game is against Hufflepuff today but I'm sure you will do just fine. I personally want you to win but don't tell anyone in Hufflepuff that I said that"
When he pulled away to look down at Ginny she giggled, "We'll see about that MacMillan". He then gave her a quick kiss on her neck and then they each made it to their own house tables.
"Ginny! This is so exciting! The first game of the season! Are you nervous at all? I mean there was no quidditch last year here at Hogwarts" commented Neville with a big grin of excitement.
"Well, I am a bit nervous but I feel more than ready for the match" responded Ginny and then she took a sip of her orange juice.
"You better put in that quaffle in Ginny Weasley! We are all counting on you!" said Seamus as he came to sit down with a big smile.
"I'm sure we'll win Seamus. We have a rather strong team" said Ginny.
"I'm serious Weasley, I put in a bet for butterbeers at the next Hogsmeade outing with some wizards" said Seamus before taking a drink of orange juice.
All Ginny could do was shake her head and chuckle. Ah, the Irish, you can always count on them to do something blooming mad she thought.
Dean then came and sat down next to Ginny and said, "Ginny, you will not believe what I heard from one of the Hufflepuff beaters."
Ginny turned around in surprise, "What is it Dean?"
"Well, I hope it won't make you nervous" said Dean a little hesitantly.
Ginny sighed in frustration, "Well out with it Dean!" He was already making her nervous as it was.
Dean took a deep breath and said, "There's going to be scouts out there. Including Gwenog Jones from the Holyhead Harpies."
Ginny gasped in surprise, "Did you say Gwenog Jones from the Holyhead Harpies?!" Ginny's heart was beginning to pound so hard, she felt like it was going to explode any minute.
Dean nodded his head, "Oh you heard me right Ginny. Gwenog Jones all right."
"Oh Merlin's Beard! This can't be. This is just too stressful. I never thought that they would be here today" said Ginny starting to panic.
"Since the Second War at Hogwarts, a lot of quidditch players also died when they too were attacked. There weren't any matches last year and so now they are looking to replace those that they lost" responded Dean.
Suddenly Ginny's breathing began to grow shallow and she didn't even realize when she stopped breathing.
"Ginny! Ginny breath!" called a voice from far away. Ginny finally snapped out of it and began to breath.
"Ginny, you can't pass out. We need you" said Seamus.
"Yeah I know, it's just that for some time now I had been thinking about playing quidditch professionally and they are here to watch us play" said Ginny as she made an effort to eat her breakfast.
Suddenly she saw Harry signal the team at the end of the table and she got up to go join the rest of her teammates. The whole Gryffindor table whistled, cheered and clapped at the quidditch team as it made it's way out of the Great Hall and to the quidditch pitch.
The whole team muttered "impervious" and their uniforms remained dry as they walked out into the pounding rain.
Minutes later the whole school was at the quidditch pitch with their umbrellas. They were all happily cheering for the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff teams respectively.
Robert Jordan, Lee Jordan's younger brother began to speak through the school megaphone, "GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME ON THIS RAINY DAY TO THE GRYFFINDOR AND HUFFLEPUFF MATCH. TEAMS WILL TRY TO PUT THE QUAFFLE THROUGH THE HOOPS AND THEIR SEEKERS TRY TO FIND THAT CHEEKY SNITCH FOR THE POINTS AND TO END THE GAME."
Harry stood up front of the team with Ginny and Ron at his sides. Ginny looked up at Harry and he glanced back at her. For a minute, Ginny thought that Harry's look showed the familiar fondness that he had for her. He gave her a small smile. She wanted to smile back at him but it took every bit of energy for her not to smile back. She actually wanted to run into Harry's arms and kiss him senseless for good luck like they did in her 5th year at Hogwarts. This time she simply looked away and looked outside at the pouring rain.
"HERE IS THE GRYFFINDOR TEAM, THEIR CAPTAIN HARRY POTTER, THEIR KEEPER, THEIR CHASERS, AND BEATERS"
When the Gryffindor team heard their announcement, they kicked their feet off the ground and shot up towards the air. The quickly flew around the quidditch pitch before taking their spots at the middle of the quidditch pitch.
"AND HERE WE HAVE THE HUFFLEPUFF TEAM, THEIR CAPTAIN IS KEVIN WHITBY, AND THEY ARE FOLLOWED BY THEIR SEEKER, CHASERS, AND BEATER."
"Alright, as usual, I want a nice clean game" said Madam Hooch.
"MADAM HOOCH SETS THE QUAFFLE AND THE BLUDGERS FREE, FOLLOWED BY THE GOLD SHINY SNITCH... SHE BLOWS THE WHISTLE AND THEY ARE OFF!"
"THE MATCH STARTS AS THE GRYFFINDOR CHASERS TAKE CONTROL OF THE QUAFFLE. A FEW FANCY MOVES ON THEIR PART AS THEY MAKE EVERY ATTEMPT TO KEEP THE QUAFFLE IN THEIR POSESSION. 10 POINTS TO GRYFFINDOR AS GINNY WEASLEY PUTS IT THROUGH THE HOOP. THAT SURE WAS THE FASTEST GOAL IN HISTORY!"
Ginny grinned when she heard that because she knew that Gwenog would have seen it and heard it. For a minute Ginny felt like she had drank a vial of felix felicis.
"HUFFLEPUFF NOW TAKES POSESSION OF THE QUAFFLE AND OH... THE CHASERS PULL THEIR STUNT FOR THE STEAL AND GET AHOLD OF THE QUAFFLE!"
A couple of hours later Gryffindor was in the lead by 180 points and Hufflepuff with 120 points. The game continued and in the teacher box, Gwenog Jones turned around to ask McGonagall about a chaser in particular who got her attention.
"Excuse me but who is the red-head girl chaser. She is rather good and she has helped or made most of the goals in this game" asked Gwenog Jones.
"Oh that is Ms. Ginevra Weasley Ms. Jones. I must admit that she has had a talent for quidditch since she joined the quidditch team. She comes from a long line of quidditch players" said McGonagall with a smile.
"Professor McGonagall, if you don't mind much, I would like to talk to her after the match" said Gwenog Jones, focusing again on the match.
"It will be my pleasure Ms. Jones. I will call Ms. Weasley to my office when the match is over. There you will be able to talk to her more privately" said McGonagall as she too looked back at the game.
"Thank you, I don't wan't to jump to any conclusions just yet but I think I have found a possible candidate as chaser for our team" concluded Gwenog Jones.
Robert Jordan continued "HUFFLEPUFF TAKES THE QUAFFLE AGAIN AND THERE GOES THAT CHEEKY BLUDGER AFTER THE HUFFLEPUFF CHASERS. WHILE IT APPEARS THAT HARRY POTTER MAY HAVE SPOTTED THE SNITCH AND HE IS HOT ON IT'S TRAIL. THE HUFFLEPUFF SEEKER IS ALSO SPEEDING OFF TO GO RACE FOR THE CHEEKY LITTLE SNITCH."
Hermione was next to Luna in the quidditch stands. Luna had managed to get another Lion headdress just for the occasion.
"I can see that Ginny has incredible skills. She was telling me just the other day that she is considering to play professional quidditch" said Luna as she looked at Hermione.
Hermione nodded, "Yes, she told me too. I heard Dean say earlier that there are scouts here today to watch the game."
Luna turned back to the game and replied, "I'm sure Ginny is going to get into one of those teams with the sort of skills that she has."
Hermione nodded with her eyes still fixated on the game, "She sure will!"
"STRATEGY IS ALL IN PLAY AS HARRY POTTER GLANCES AT GINNY WEASLEY. GINNY WEASLY PUTS IN THE QUAFFLE THROUGH THE HOOP AND HARRY POTTER CATCHES THE SNITCH. GRYFFINDOR WINS AND THE GAME IS OVER! THANK YOU FOR COMING TO THE GAME AND HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A PLEASANT RAINY AFTERNOON!"
Ginny flew down to the ground and got off her broom as she made her way to the main doors.
"Ms. Weasley, there is someone who will like to meet with you in my office" said McGonagall.
"Yes Professor but who is it?" asked Ginny with curiosity.
"You will see. I think you will like it" said McGonagall now walking through the corridors of the school.
Ginny suddenly remembered that she needed to talk to Harry, "Oh professor I need to talk to someone."
McGonagall turned around and said, "I'm sure they can wait, this meeting can't. You'll see when we get to my office Ms. Weasley" replied McGonagall as she and Ginny now made their way to the phoenix staircase.
McGonagall opened the door and Ginny followed behind. "Ms. Weasley, I would like you to meet Gwenog Jones. Captain of the Holyhead Harpies. Ms. Jones, this is Ms. Ginevra Weasley, the chaser you were inquiring about. I will leave you two alone to discuss matters" and McGonagall walked out of the office.
"Ms. Weasley, it's nice to finally meet you" said Gwenog as she shook hands with Ginny.
"The honor is all mine Ms. Jones" replied Ginny with a wide and nervous smile.
"I am here to make a proposition for you. I am hoping you will accept it" commented Gwenog Jones.
"What is the proposition you have Ms. Jones?" asked Ginny with curiosity.
"Ms. Weasley, while I was out there watching your every move as a chaser, I noticed how agile, strong, and smart you were out there. Not to mention the stunts that you pulled on the opposing time. It appears that you always seemed to know what was their next move is, thus allowing you to take the appropriate action. I also noticed that you put the quaffle in through one of the hoops almost every time" said Gwenog Jones now shifting in her seat.
"Well, I suppose that come from practicing with my brothers" said Ginny with a smile.
"Yes, Professor McGonagall told me that you come from a long line of efficient quidditch players. I'm here to offer you a position as chaser with the Holyhead Harpies after you sit your NEWTs and finish your schooling here at Hogwarts."
"Do you really mean that?" asked Ginny with a surprised look on her face.
"Yes, I really do. Look, here's my card. When you are finished with your NEWTs and your school here at Hogwarts, send me an owl so we can set up an appointment. I will guarantee that with your skills, there will be a rapid rise to stardom for you Ms. Weasley. In fact, I hope to have you training by the end of July of next year" replied Gwenog Jones extending her card to Ginny.
This time Ginny shifted nervously in her seat and took the card from Gwenog Jones' hand and looked at it before looking back, "I thank you so much Ms. Jones. I truly look forward to playing and training with the Harpies."
Gwenog and Ginny stood up and they shook hands again, "Good then Ms. Weasley, I will be waiting for your owl then" said Gwenog before she stepped out of the office.
Ginny was so filled with excitement. She had never been so happy in her life. She was going to go tell her parents through the fireplace at the first chance she had to do that.
I can't wait to tell Harry about this!
Ginny froze in her steps after she walked out of McGonagall's office. She had just remembered that things were now different between her and Harry. She realized with a heavy heart that she wasn't going to be able to run up to Harry's arms and tell him that she had gotten accepted to the Holyhead Harpies. However, there was Ernie who for sure would share in her happiness. Harry would eventually find out from Ron or Hermione.
Ginny slowly made her way to the head student tower. She had been so happy about the good news and she had so wished she could share it with Harry. She then remembered that she had to go talk to Harry about one of their early morning work-outs. She uttered the password and walked in.
"There you are Ginny! We had been looking for you all over the place! We are so happy that Gryffindor won and you played incredible out there" exclaimed Hermione as she hugged Ginny tightly.
"Well, that's not all. I actually have some good news" replied Ginny.
"Oh what is it! Tell us!" said Hermione excitedly.
"I met with Gwenog Jones from the Holyhead Harpies."
Ron gasped in surprise, "The Gwenog Jones from the Holyhead Harpies you say?"
Ginny nodded with a wide smile, "Yes, she offered me the position of chaser as soon as I'm finished sitting my NEWTs and my schooling here at Hogwarts. She told me that I have a great potential for success."
"Ginny that is great news! You have to tell mum and dad!" said Ron as he took his sister in a tight Weasley hug.
"I will, I first need to talk to Harry about something before I forget" said Ginny as she started to walk up the stairs.
Ron and Hermione then turned back around and started to talk about Ginny's success as Hermione began to take out her books to study for her NEWTs.
Ginny opened the door to Harry's study a crack and she was taken aback with what she saw.
There was Harry on his chair behind his desk nipping and suckling at Susan's neck and she wasn't even wearing her blouse. Ginny found that she was standing in front of it!
"Oh Harry... please don't stop..." said Susan in between moans.
"Whoever... said... I would stop... you... sexy witch... you" said Harry in between groans.
Ginny had no idea that Harry and Susan were going this far. Ginny could see that Harry was fondling Susan's breasts and he wasn't wearing a shirt at all either.
Harry was about to unclasp Susan's bra when Ginny said softly, "Harry?"
Harry and Susan gasped and turned to look towards the door.
"Ginny! I- Susan-" Harry was speechless at being caught in the act.
Ginny picked up Susan's blouse and threw it at Harry and Susan made an effort to cover herself. Ginny then shook her head, "It's alright Harry. I'll come back later or if you want you can come to my study whenever you can" and Ginny quickly closed the door.
Ginny quickly walked over to her study, closed it and locked it. It had been a long time since she had felt the dulling ache over her stomach. Ginny began to gasp as the ache began to grow deeper within her. It had hurt her beyond imaginable measure to have seen another girl in Harry's arms. Ginny felt like she was being betrayed, even cheated on. However, Harry wasn't hers anymore. Harry had decided to bring their relationship to an end and now she had to bare down every time that she saw Harry with Susan in his arms instead of her. The ache inside of her hurt so much that after a long time, Ginny slid down onto the floor and began to softly cry into her hands.
Time passed by and Ginny eventually told Harry about the schedule conflict and he fixed it. The outing to Hogsmeade with Ernie had helped cleared her thoughts and being with Ernie also helped her forget what she had seen that one day after the meeting with Gwenog. This time she was going on Winter holiday to the Burrow and then she would go visit Ernie's parents for the first time. It would be so different from the previous years. Ginny remembered in particular when Harry confessed his love to her during their Winter holiday the year before last, and now she was facing the pain of being alone. She thanked Merlin again for have Ernie in her life because she wasn't going to feel as lonesome for the upcoming Christmas.
The Yule Ball was finally coming up and all the students were happily talking about it. Naturally Ron and Hermione were going to the ball together. Harry of course was going with Susan Bones and Ginny with Ernie MacMillan.
"This is so exciting Ginny! We are going to be wearing masques and all!" said Hermione as she went to her walk-in closet to get her ball gown.
"I suppose it is" said Ginny gloomily.
Hermione noticed the tone in her voice and she turned around to face Ginny. By then she was frowning and looking outside the window at the falling snow.
"What is it Ginny? You should be happy. I mean you are going with Ernie after all."
"Yes, I know. It's just that- I was hoping that by this time I would be going to the Yule Ball with Harry. You and I know that is impossible because he's taking Susan" said Ginny still looking outside at the snow.
"Ginny, would it help if you and Harry tried to talk things out?" asked Hermione as she came to Ginny's side and put her arm around her best friend's shoulders.
"No Hermione, Harry and I already talked and found some closure when he came back from fighting Voldemort. There is nothing more to say."
"But Ginny, why don't you try talking to Harry again? Let him know what your true feelings are. Tell him that you never got over him."
"I couldn't do that Hermione. He's with Susan, besides he caught me snogging Ernie and I caught him snogging Susan. You and I perfectly know that happens when you are fond of someone."
"Ginny, if you don't really love Ernie, then why are you snogging him? For all we know, you might end up hurting his feelings."
"I know, I know but what else can I do Hermione? He helps me forget Harry when I'm with him."
Hermione took Ginny by her shoulders, "Ginny, look at me, you can't go on using Ernie like that. It just isn't right. I recommend that you end things with Ernie before they get more serious."
"And then what will I do Hermione huh? You tell me. Should I go back to feeling that ache in my heart that has been hurting me since the day that Harry left me? Should I go back to the sleepless night where I have to take sleeping potions again? Then to see him walking the corridors with Susan and seeing him snog her? Have you any idea how much that hurts? I feel like he's cheating on me, like he's betraying me!" said Ginny with angry tears in her eyes.
Hermione frowned, "Look Ginny, let's just get dressed for the Yule Ball and you try to find the time somehow to tell Ernie that things are over. Better to do it soon than to see him hurt badly."
Tears were now rolling down Ginny's cheeks, "How could I Hermione? How could I go back to feeling hurt and betrayed again? After all, Harry broke his promise and that hurts even more!"
Hermione dried her tears and nodded, "Come on Ginny, let's make the best of tonight. Let's get dressed, make ourselves look pretty and get ourselves to that Yule Ball alright?" said Hermione with a look of resignation in her face. She knew that she was going to have to talk to Ginny some other time.
A few minutes later Hermione walked down the stairs and Ron's jaw dropped as he saw Hermione walk down in a off-the-shoulders burgundy ballgown dress. Her hair was elegantly held up in a twist. Similar to the one she had done when she went to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krumm.
Harry came running down the stairs and walked past Ron and Hermione, "See you both later at the ball. I have to go pick up Susan at the Hufflepuff entrance."
"Alright mate, see you at the ball" replied Ron as he put his arm around Hermione.
When Harry had walked out of the portrait hole, Hermione leaned into Ron's ear and said softly, "Ron, all of this just doesn't seem right. Harry should be taking Ginny to the ball."
Ron frowned, "I know Mione but there's nothing we can really do. I mean... Susan is Harry's girl."
Hermione sighed, "I just wish they would see how much they love each other. You should have seen Ginny a few minutes ago. She was feeling terrible because she wouldn't be going to the ball with Harry."
Ginny then suddenly called out from the balcony, "The two of you go off. I'm waiting for Ernie. He'll be here any minute."
Ron smiled at his sister. She was wearing an ice-blue strapless ballgown dress and she too had her hair held up elegantly on her head. "Alright Ginny see you there then."
A few minutes later Ginny walked through the portrait hole and there was Ernie. His smile grew wide as he saw Ginny right there before him. Ginny never thought about it but suddenly she felt that odd little tingling sensation between her legs after a long time at the way that Ernie was looking at her. She noticed that there was desire in Ernie's eyes. However, he was a gentleman in every way and he extended his arm out to her.
"Ginny, you... you look so stunning!" exclaimed Ernie, still admiring Ginny in her dress.
"Thanks Ernie, it is the Yule Ball after all. You look handsome yourself" said Ginny smiling back at Ernie.
Ernie suddenly leaned down and gave Ginny a lingering kiss before they made their way to the Great Hall.
When Ernie and Ginny arrived, they each chose a masque and looked at the amazing Christmas decorations that were laid out around the Great Hall. It was decorated with ice blues and whites. The colors making a striking contrast with the snowflakes that were falling being shown on the charmed ceiling. The waltz music echoed throughout the hall as the other couples danced around the room. While Ginny began to dance around with Ernie, her eyes caught the attention of an elegantly dressed young man with somewhat disheveled hair. Ginny smiled to herself and found out that that kind of hair could only belong to one person throughout the entire school. It belonged to none other than to Harry Potter. Ginny's heart began to feel heavy as she recognized the red head young woman who was in his arms. This only broke Ginny's heart even further. Ginny could feel her eyes begin to mist and she was thankful that her tears could be partially hidden behind the masque.
Ginny then softly gasped as she saw that the young man with the disheveled hair had realized that she was looking at him. He gently smiled back at her and Ginny shied her face away from him and looked up at Ernie who only smiled back down at her.
Ginny then discreetly looked in the direction that the young man was dancing but he wasn't there anymore! She started to look around as Ernie twirled her about in circles and found out that the young man with disheveled hair was dancing nearby. As fate would have it, Ernie gently pulled away and asked into Ginny's ear, "Does the lovely young lady care for a drink?" asked Ernie.
Ginny looked up quickly and nodded her head. When Ginny turned back around to look at the young man, the young girl that he was with said something in his ear and walked away and he nodded.
The young man then made his way over to Ginny and the familiar voice said, "Would the lovely young lady care to dance?"
Ginny was startled by the offer and she just simply nodded. Within minutes, she was in the arms of the young man. She even felt as he pulled her in closer and held on tightly to her, as if he were afraid to lose her. By then, there were many students and couples in the Great Hall dancing and Ginny and the young man were suddenly and gradually pushed out of the Great Hall. When they realized that they were outside of the Great Hall, they stopped dancing and looked into each other's eyes. Meanwhile, back in the middle of the Great Hall, the red-headed young woman and Ernie were looking for their dancing partners. They greeted each other and began to dance.
The young man led Ginny to a nearby isolated staircase by a window. The two of them looked outside at the falling snow.
The familiar voice of the young man then said, "That is one of the things I like about Christmas and Winter time. The snowflakes begin to fall to the ground in silence. Everything is so peaceful and quiet. If only life could be like that."
Ginny responded, "Yes, It's lovely isn't it. When I was little I used to go out and play in the snow with my brothers. We would have snow fights until my mum called us back in."
The young man looked back at her through his masque, "You are very lucky, you had brothers. I was an only child but I lived with my aunt and uncle."
Ginny then turned back around and gasped, "Harry?" with a soft voice.
Harry turned back around to look at the lovely red head and asked, "Do I know you? I must admit. Your voice sounds oddly familiar to me." There was a moment of silence as he looked at her and then he continued, "I once knew a very lovely red head. I loved her very much. I broke up the relationship to protect her. I had promised that I would go back to her but things had changed by then. The sad thing is that now I'm with another red head but I don't love her as much as the one I used to love. I still love the red head that I was in love with a long time ago. If only I could find her and just have one dance with her. I'm with the current red head girl to help me forget this awful knot of pain in my chest after losing the red head that I still love."
Ginny looked back up at Harry and saw that there were tears gliding down past his masque as he looked out at the snow outside the window. Ginny couldn't resist any longer. She had just discovered that it was Harry behind the masque and that he still loved her but he was interested in another. Even if he didn't love the girl he was with as much as he loved Ginny. Ginny then used her delicate fingers to wipe Harry's tears away. Harry turned back around to look at her and smiled, "Are you sure that I don't know you? Your eyes look rather familiar to me."
Ginny only smiled back and decided to stay silent for fear that Harry would discover her. She then leaned up and gave Harry a simple lingering kiss on the lips before pulling away and walking back into the Great Hall. There stood Harry in awe at the young woman who had just kissed him and then left him. Without even saying a word, no way of knowing who she was or even what her name was.
When Ginny walked back into the Great Hall, she saw that Ernie was dancing with another young woman. She noticed that Ernie was dancing with another red head. Ginny didn't recognize her because of her masque. It was then that Ginny realized that she had to let Ernie go. She couldn't fool herself anymore. She knew that if she let her relationship with Ernie go on, he would get hurt real badly in the end. For now, she was going to let him enjoy the night and when they got back from their Winter holiday, she had every intention of talking to him to end their relationship.
Ginny turned back around and made her way to the head student tower. Ginny made her way and walked over to the window in the common room and looked at the now big snowflakes fall outside. She remembered what Harry had said.
"That is one of the things I like about Christmas and Winter time. The snowflakes begin to fall to the ground in silence. Everything is so peaceful and quiet. If only life could be like that"
Ginny was thankful that she had remained quiet or Harry would have easily guessed that it was her behind the masque. It was interesting how Harry could have such a way with words with the simplest of things as simple as snowflakes. Ginny sighed in frustration and walked up to her study, closed the door and made her way to her bedroom. There she took her dress and masque off. She then hung them up in her closet and looked at them one last time. She would never wear the ballgown again. It would be the memory that she would cherish that she danced with Harry for one last time. It would be the last time the she had been in his arms. A small tear slid down Ginny's cheek and she wiped it. She then made her way to her bathroom, turned on the water with bubbles into the tub and then got into the nice hot water. She closed her eyes and sighed at the memory of having felt Harry's arms around her again. Her heart fluttered and the memory of the moment. She closed her eyes and relived the moment she felt his arms around waist as they waltzed around the room. Ginny sighed in frustration again at the realization that it was the last time they would ever dance.
Harry was back at his flat for his winter holiday. How he wished he could go to the Burrow but Ginny would be there and it would be too painful for him. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had insisted again but Harry kindly refused. Instead he was going to invite Ron, Hermione, Neville, Seamus, Luna, Dean, and other friends from Hogwarts to a special occasion. He had given it some special thought over the month of December and he knew that it was the right thing to do in order to move on with his life. He was going to have a Christmas dinner party and he was really looking forward to spending some time alone with Susan too.
Creely appeared with a popping sound at Harry's sitting room as Harry adjusted the collar to his burgundy dress shirt.
"Your Lordship, Mr. Ron, Ms. Hermione, and all your other guests are waiting for you. Ms. Susan sent an owl and said that she will be here in five minutes" said the elf.
Harry put on his robes on, "Thanks Creely, tell everyone else that I'll be down in a moment."
Harry walked down the stairs and walked into the sitting room. There he was greeted by his friends.
"So Harry, what's this wonderful news you're talking about?" asked Hermione with curiosity.
"What I can tell you is that it's time that I moved on and I will let you all know after dessert. How is that?" said Harry cheekily.
"Harry, that's is just awful! Making us wait until dessert!" manifested Hermione.
"Hey mate, so you coming to Percy and Audrey's wedding? It's in June when we get out of Hogwarts" said Ron as he put his arm around Hermione's waist.
"I sure will. I would like to see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley again. I miss seeing them" said Harry smiling to himself.
"Well, why don't you come stay at-" and Ron went quiet as Hermione elbowed him. "Oh that's right, I remember. Sorry mate, I wasn't trying to..." said Ron trying to apologize for what he almost said.
"It's alright Ron. I'll come to the wedding in June" said Harry giving him a pat on the back.
At that moment, Susan walked in behind Creely, "Your Lordship, Ms. Susan is here."
"Your Lordship?" asked Ron with a questioning look on his face.
"Another long story that I will have to tell you one of these days when we get back to Hogwarts" answered Harry. Harry then turned to Susan and kissed her neck, "Suse, love, I'm so happy you made it."
"Sorry I was a bit late" she said with a sheepish smile.
"It's okay love" and Harry gave her a kiss on the lips this time.
Creely then appeared with a popping sound, "Your Lordship, the dining room is ready."
"Thank you Creely" and everyone made their way into the dining room.
They all talked, laughed, and drank. Others were praising Harry on interior design of his flat. Just as Creely was taking the last of the dessert dishes and dessert wine, Harry clinked his wineglass and stood up. Everyone turned around to look at Harry.
"I'm happy and honored to be sharing such a joyous and wonderful occasion with my closest friends from Hogwarts. You all mean the world to me so that is why I invited you all here today to feast with me" Harry then got up and went to Susan who was at his right and got down on one knee. Everyone at the table gasped. Hermione was more shocked by what Harry was doing.
"Susan, you came into my life when I was going through a difficult and confusing time in my life. I thank Merlin for getting to know you better throughout this entire time. Susan Bones, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, will you marry me?" and Harry took out from underneath his robes a black velvet box. Inside was a 3 karat round diamond halo ring on a diamond band.
"I- Harry, I- Yes! Harry, I will marry you" said Susan and there were tears pouring down her cheeks as Harry slid the ring on her finger.
Hermione then discreetly whispered into Ron's ear, "I'm happy for Harry but this can't be good for Ginny. She musn't find out Ron. I found out that she still loves Harry."
Ron turned around to look at Hermione in astonishment, "What? Did you just say that Ginny still loves Harry?"
"Yes and with this engagement, Merlin knows what will happen to Ginny" whispered Hermione.
"But- but Harry told me a couple of months ago that he loves Ginny!" exclaimed Ron.
"He what?! He still loves Ginny? Then why is he marrying Susan?" asked Hermione, trying to get to the bottom of things.
"I don't know but it looks like we are going to have to talk to Harry" whispered Ron back and Hermione nodded in agreement.
"I love you Suse" said Harry and he took Susan into his arms and gave her a passionate kiss.
That night Ron and Hermione arrived at the Burrow. Hermione and her parents were going to spend Christmas at the Burrow with the Weasleys.
"But it can't be Ron, how could Harry marry Susan? How could he say he loves her when he really loves Ginny?" asked Hermione, still trying to go over the facts in her head.
"I don't know Mione. They only met over the Summer and now Harry wants to marry Susan. This can't be right. All we can do in the meantime is keep this from Ginny and hope that nobody at Hogwarts finds out or tells her" said Ron.
"How will we do that?" asked Hermione and at that moment Ginny walked out of the kitchen.
"Hey you two, where were you? We missed you at supper" said Ginny.
Ron and Hermione looked at each other and then Hermione decided to keep it simple, "Oh we just- we went to Harry's for supper is all."
Ginny's smile changed drastically and simply nodded and said "Oh" and she went past them to go up the stairs to her bedroom.
"Did you have a good time at Harry's dinner party?" asked Mrs. Weasley as she walked out of the kitchen with a smile.
"We did mum, it was really nice. You should also see Harry's flat some day, it's brilliant! One thing I don't understand is why his elf calls him 'his lordship'"
"His elf called him his lordship. Now how can that be?" asked Mr. Weasley with curiosity.
Ron then responded, "He said he would tell us later."
Hermione had just waved goodbye to her parents at Kings Cross when suddenly the thought came to her head and she pulled Ron by his robes, "Ron, what if Harry tells others or those who were at the party say that he's engaged to Susan? I mean, Ginny will find out soon enough!"
"Oh bloody hell! That can't be good" said Ron in shock with wide eyes.
"We'll just have to be ready when the time comes" said Hermione looking up intensely at Ron.
"Ready for what?" asked Ginny as she walked up to them after walking through the barrier onto the platform.
"Well, ready for our NEWTs" lied Hermione with a smile that she hoped wouldn't betray her.
"Oh yeah, NEWTs, we will have to be studying a lot harder now when we go back" said Ginny with a frown.
Ernie walked up behind Ginny, put his arms around her waist and kissed her neck, "Now why is my beautiful witch frowning for?"
Ginny turned back around to look up at Ernie, "We will have to study for our NEWTs for sure when we get back to Hogwarts."
"Ah yes, more studying. I suppose we will just have to give it our best" said Ernie smiling back down at Ginny before she gave him a kiss on his cheek.
"Hey Ron, Hermione. How are you?" asked Neville walking up to them with Seamus to greet them.
"Did you do much after Harry's engagement to Susan?" asked Seamus.
Hermione gasped and dropped her head in her hand. Ginny's breath hitched and she stopped breathing. She started to see bright twinkling stars before her eyes and then everything went black before her. Ernie caught her in his arms before she fell to the ground.
When Ginny woke up, she discovered that she was in a compartment on the moving Hogwarts Express and in Ernie's arms.
"Ginny? Are you feeling better?" asked Ernie with concern.
Ron and Hermione were looking at each other with concern but Ginny was oblivious to that. She looked up at Ernie's blue eyes and nodded.
"Ernie, could you please leave for a moment? I need to talk to Ron and Hermione in private for a moment" said Ginny making an effort to sit up with Ernie's help.
"You sure you'll be alright?" asked Ernie, still with worry in his eyes.
"Yeah, I will. I'll come get you when I'm done talking with Ron and Hermione" Ernie nodded and got up to leave the compartment.
Ginny looked out the window and gathered her composure before asking, "When did it happen?"
"It was the night I told you that we went to eat supper at Harry's flat. He had proposed to Susan that night. Ron and I were just as surprised as you were. Just not as much though" said Hermione with a small smile.
"And just when do you think you were going to tell me? After I found out from the whole school?!" asked Ginny now slightly raising her voice.
Ron and Hermione shared a look before Hermione responded, "We weren't sure how you were going to react Ginny. I think your fainting is something of the sort that we were expecting."
"Harry is free to do whatever he wants. If he wants to marry Susan Bones then he can go ahead and do that. I don't care for him anymore" said Ginny with teary eyes. She then got up and walked out of the compartment to go look for Ernie.
Ron shook his head silently and frowned, "Poor Ginny, I knew this was going to get her and hard."
"Ron, did you see how hurt she was? She still loves Harry for sure" said Hermione. The two of them then didn't know what else to do or say but to remain silent for the rest of the journey.
It was now mid-January and the Gryffindor team was meeting at one of their early morning work-outs. Harry waited as the rest of the team arrived. Ginny hadn't arrived and Harry thought that he should get the team started. About twenty minutes later he spotted Ginny walking into the pitch and Harry flew down to where she was and hopped off his broom. He could see that she had been crying.
Out of concern Harry asked, "Ginny, are you feeling alright? Because if you aren't, you can take the day off from practice."
Ginny furrowed her brow and yelled at Harry, "Who are you to say if I'm feeling alright or not Harry Potter! Mind your own business!" and Ginny got on her broom and kicked off the ground to join the rest of the team.
Practice went on as it was expected. The only thing is that Harry had never seen Ginny play so aggressively. He knew that she definitely had a temper that morning and he decided to not talk to her anymore for the rest of the day.
The game with Ravenclaw in early February had been a success and Gryffindor had defeated them. Gryffindor was getting closer to winning the quidditch cup again. Harry was very proud of his team and he thought that they couldn't do any better.
Ginny had finally decided that now was the time to tell Ernie the truth. The truth that she liked him but that she didn't love him anymore. She had found him studying for his NEWTs in the library. She stood there looking at him from behind a shelf. She felt bad that she didn't love Ernie. Ernie had been such a nice bloke with her. She gathered her courage and made her way over to the table where Ernie was studying.
"Ernie?" said Ginny in a quiet voice.
Ernie looked up from his book and notes and smiled up at Ginny, "Well, hello there beautiful. Did you have a good day? I suppose you must be happy that your team finally defeated Ravenclaw. Whose your next game with? Slytherin right?"
Ginny only nodded and she put her school bag on the table as she sat down next to Ernie. Ginny finally spoke again and said, "Ernie, do you think there's a chance that we can talk somewhere else?"
Ernie looked around and then looked back at Ginny, "Sure, let me just get my stuff and we can go talk."
After Ernie put his things away, he and Ginny walked out into the corridors and Ginny suddenly stopped in front of a statue. She looked up at Ernie and said, "Ernie, I had wanted to tell you this for some time but I just didn't know how to say it."
Ernie now with a questioning look asked, "What is it you wanted to say Ginny?"
"Ernie, I think it's about time that we ended our relationship. I just don't love you anymore. I'm sorry." said Ginny saying half-truth and half-lie. She was truly sorry for Ernie.
"Ginny, I- whatever happened to us?" asked Ernie as he took her hand in his.
Ginny gently pulled away and put a gentle hand on his cheek, "It's just me Ernie, I- I haven't loved you for a bit now and I thought that would be unfair to you. I'm sure there's a wonderful girl out there who deserves you more than I do" responded Ginny and then she pulled her hand away.
Ernie frowned, "I do love you Ginny. I thought we were happy together."
"I also thought that we were happy together but I felt that I was not only lying to myself but also to you. Please Ernie, let's just end it here" said Ginny and then she stepped away from Ernie, turned around and walked away without looking back. Ginny went back to the head student tower and went up to her bedroom. There she lay down on her bed and began to softly cry out of frustration. She couldn't get Harry out of her mind or her heart and that is why she couldn't feel free to love Ernie whole-heartedly. Ginny once more began to feel the dulling ache over her stomach and felt the urge to to continue crying. As she did before, she took a sleeping potion again and there she kept on crying until she fell asleep.
It was now late March and Harry lay there in his bed. Wishing he had Susan in his arms so he wouldn't end up thinking about Ginny. He looked towards the wall that connected his and Ginny's rooms. A part of him wanted to get up and go lay down in bed next to her and feel her small body next to him. Harry looked at his clock on top of the bedside cabinet. 5:30 Harry groaned at the time and got out of bed. He hated getting out of bed early but there were things he needed to do in order to increase the chances of winning the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup. He quickly put on his quidditch workout uniform and robes. He took his firebolt and walked out the door. Just as he turned around, he ran into Ginny and there they were. Their faces were inches from each other. They stood there for a minute gazing into each others eyes. Harry's eyes then lingered down to Ginny's lips. Her lips were so close and for some time he had been missing the taste of her sweet lips. Harry then decided against his restraints and leaned down to give Ginny a kiss. The kiss lingered on for some time. Oh how he had longed to feel her lips against his. It was just the thing that he was thinking about the night that he had run into the beautiful red head in the ice-blue ballgown at the Yule Ball.
Harry heard Ginny gasp and she quickly pulled away from their lingering kiss. The next thing that Harry felt was a hard slap across his face which took him by surprise, "Harry Potter! How dare you do that! You're engaged for Merlin's sake!" She then furrowed her brow and ran down the stairs and out the portrait hole.
Down in the quidditch pitch, Ginny kept avoiding Harry's gaze but followed the instructions that she was given. Harry felt a bit heart-broken. How he loved to look into Ginny's warm brown eyes, if only for an instant. The workout continued until 8:30 and then they left. Harry caught up with Ginny and took hold of her by one of her wrists.
"Ginny, why did you slap me for back in the tower? You cannot lie to me Ginny, I know that I felt you kiss me back" exclaimed Harry.
Ginny finally looked up at Harry and her eyes had angry tears in them, "I slapped you because I realized that I'm not yours and you are not mine. You are engaged to Susan Bones and you should respect that Harry."
"Yes, but what is Ernie going to think when he finds out that we kissed?" asked Harry challenging her.
"Because he won't find out Harry. We're not together anymore. I broke up with him a couple of weeks ago" said Ginny and she turned to walk away but Harry still kept a firm grip on her.
"Let go of me Potter!" yelled Ginny.
"Ginny please, tell me that the kiss meant something for you and I will break the engagement off with Susan" asked Harry with begging eyes.
Ginny tried to wiggle her hand out of Harry's firm grip but was unsuccessful, "I said let go of me Potter!" said Ginny with a louder voice.
"Not until you tell me if that kiss meant something to you Weasley!" said Harry, now with a furrowed brow.
Ginny looked down at her wrist in Harry's grasp and then looked back up at him. With tears streaming down her eyes, she slowly shook her head and in a mere whisper and with effort said, "no."
Harry didn't believe her. All he had to do was look into her eyes and he noticed that the kiss had meant everything to her. However, she had been insistent and with the shake of her head and a no, Harry gently eased his grip on her wrist and he saw Ginny slowly trudge back to the castle. Even by the way she walked with her head down showed that the kiss truly had been special for her as it had been for him. For the first time Harry cursed under his breath for having proposed to Susan. He liked Susan but he didn't love her anymore the way he used to. Harry began to feel guilty at the realization that he had used Susan to help him forget Ginny. For Merlin's sake, Susan also had red hair! Harry had made up his mind. As soon as he had an opportunity after the quidditch match against Slytherin, he was going to tell Susan that the engagement was off. Harry only hoped that it wouldn't be too late to take Ginny back as it had been when he came back from fighting Voldemort.