AN: Alright everyone, I'll be moving in a couple days. After that I'll be with family for about a week in an area with spotty internet before I work on getting settled in and having proper stable internet access again. Updates will resume then and I'm still working on the big project I mentioned before.
AN2: I gotta say, I loved the number of reviews of everyone wanting to throttle this Harry for being so dense.
A Chance Encounter
Chapter 15
-Ginny-
Frowning, Ginny twirled her wand between her fingers as she wandered the halls of Hogwarts. The announcement of the upcoming Yule Bal was both a blessing and a problem.
With Harry living in France with Delacour this was her last chance to lock him down. To make him be with her like he was supposed to. Rounding a corner, Ginny paused in surprise as she saw Fred and George giving a nervous Ron a vial of some sort of potion, her dense brother taking it and walking away nervously.
"What was that all about?" She looked at the twins with a puzzled frown as Ron got out of sight.
"Ah, Gin Gin!" Fred grinned happily, resting an arm on her head, completely unphased by the wand in her hand.
"That, little sis, was us doing our duty as Ronniekin's amazing big brothers." George answered, copying Fred in using her head as an armrest, their own wands out to keep her from hexing them "Ron needed a little 'liquid assistance' with getting a date and came to us given…well to be honest he sucks at Potions."
"Liquid assistance huh?" Ginny asked, even as an idea started to form in her mind.
"Yep!" George grinned before looking at his twin, "For now I believe we deserve a reward for being such good brothers. To Honeydukes?"
"To the Secret Passage!" the twins ran off, eager for chocolate and candies. Ginny, meanwhile, made her way back to Gryffindor Tower with new purpose in her footsteps and, more importantly, a plan.
Walking into the tower, most of the house outside or trying to find a date still, Ginny climbed the stairs to the boys' dormitories, the stairs not caring about a girl going up there. Finding the Twins' dorm, she started going through their stash, finding their potions and, more importantly, love potions.
Ignoring the notes about the potion, she guessed they were trying to alter it or something, she found a vial labeled as proper Amortentia. Her mother had always told her stories about using Love Potions when she was young, and this was just what she needed to get Harry to figure out she was the girl for him.
Now all she had to do was add one of her hairs and make sure Harry drank it.
-Harry-
Working to hide his grin, Harry sat next to Fleur as he noted Ron outside the Great Hall, his red-haired friend gulping down a potion nervously.
"Do you have something to share with the class 'arry?" Fleur asked him with a raised eyebrow, his grin apparently not as hidden as he'd have hoped.
"We're about to get a show." Harry subtly pointed at Ron who was suddenly showing a distinct lack of nervousness.
"I just saw him drink something. A potion?" one of the other Beauxbatons students he hadn't gotten a chance to know all that well looked very suspicious.
"Draught of Courage." Harry snorted, "Ron didn't trust himself not to chicken out or choke at the last minute, so he asked his brothers to help him get some 'liquid confidence'."
"He plans to ask Hermione?" Fleur asked, sharing his grin now as Ron confidently marched right over to their bushy haired friend.
"Of course." Harry nodded pleased as he saw Ron approach Hermione. They were too far away for him to hear Ron ask the question, but he could easily see Hermione's shocked expression, her face darkening with a deep crimson flush, before she responded enthusiastically, Ron's own elated expression making it clear what her answer had been.
Nodding to Fleur, he got up and approached the two, his blonde companion at his side "Congrats you two." Harry grinned, tossing Ron a sack of Galleons "Here, get yourself some better dress Robes as an early Christmas present from me. I'd hate for Hermione to go blind from how gaudy those things are before you two even share a dance."
"Harry!" Hermione tried to scold him, but her stifled giggles detracted from it.
"Don't have to tell me twice." Ron grinned, taking the coin and rolling with the barb. His friends had started to grow into themselves as of late and he was glad about it, "What do you think we should do with the old ones though?"
"Give it to the twins?" Fleur smirked, "Perhaps they would like to arrange a little date between those awful Robes, Malfoy, and a switching spell during ze ball?"
"…Hermione, remind me to keep Fleur as far from the twins as I can." Ron looked decidedly terrified "I'm not sure who'd be a worse influence on who, but I doubt the castle could survive the three of them working together."
"Rude." Fleur pouted as Harry and the others laughed.
"Ron, why don't you go and get those new Robes." Hermione shooed away her date, hesitating before kissing Ron's cheek as both of them turned crimson "And Fleur, do you mind if I steal Harry away for a bit?"
"Go ahead." Fleur laughed, "I wanted to go talk to Madame Maxime about something anyway."
Waving and watching the beautiful blonde till she was gone, Harry turned to his friend "So, what'd you want to talk about?" he asked as they exited the Great Hall, heading to walk by the Lake where they'd have a bit of privacy.
"Have you gotten a date to the Ball yet?" Hermione asked, her tone oddly pointed about it.
"Not yet, no." He admitted sheepishly, "I'm not sure who I should ask you know?" As they reached the shore of the Black Lake, Hermione took a deep breath, pinched expression and hands pressed together in front of her face giving the impression she was trying to resist smacking him for some reason.
"Harry…I love you; you know that right?" Hermione was giving him an intense stare down "You're like the little brother I always wanted but never knew would make me go gray before I got to seventh year…but you're a dumbass." He gaped at her, both for the statement and for her actually cursing at him "Don't give me that look Harry! Even Ron got his act together and was able to ask me and he has the emotional range of a Teaspoon!"
"Hermione what are you talking about?!" Harry gulped as the shorter bookworm gave him a look, finger pointed at his face even as he felt he should know what she was talking about.
"Oh, sweet Merlin you're impossible."
-Fleur-
Smiling to herself, Fleur walked into the Great Hall to get lunch and hopefully meet up with Harry again. Her talk with Madame Maxime had gone well and the ICW was apparently checking the tournament's history to see if there was a case of removing Dumbledore as a Judge given the clearly biased scores or at least appealing them to get a fairer score.
Spotting Harry sitting at the 'Beauxbaton's table', Fleur grinned and moved to join him when she noticed Ginevra Weasley walk past Harry, subtly slipping something into Harry's drink. If she wasn't already suspicious of the girl, and already looking that way, she might have missed it. As it was, she wasn't able to speak up before Harry picked up his cup and took a big gulp…and promptly spat it out all over the table, letting out a sound reminiscent of a trumpet.
"Ugh!" Harry looked decidedly nauseous as he gaped at the cup, everyone in the Great Hall now looking his way "Why does this taste like Pepto Bismol?" forcing down a grimace at the unpleasant thought, Fleur scowled and approached, snatching Ginevra's wrist before the little girl could try to slip away.
"I saw this one slip something into your cup 'arry." Fleurs furious statement caused the Great Hall to go deathly quiet as Madame Maxime cast a quick detection spell at the cup.
"Love Potion." The French Headmistress looked positively thunderous.
"I believe this discussion should be held in private." Professor McGonagall came over, the stern-faced Transfiguration professor casting her own spell and looking disappointed at Ginevra who hadn't denied slipping the potion in.
-Harry-
Safely back in the Beauxbaton's carriage, Harry ran a tired hand down his face. He'd known Ginny had a crush on his 'legend' but he'd never thought she'd do something like trying to drug him for a date. It was both baffling and painful to lose one of the few people he thought he could have considered a true friend. Hearing a knock at his door, he opened it warily, seeing Fleur standing outside.
"May I come in 'arry?" Fleur's voice was soft as he stepped aside, letting his French companion in without hesitation.
"Is something wrong Fleur?" He asked concerned, hating seeing the blonde part Veela so down.
"I…yes." Fleur sat down beside him on the edge of the bed, her soft fingers gently settling on the back of his hand, "Earlier today, with Ginevra and the potion…I was furious."
"Yeah," Harry gave a strained forced grin "I don't blame you for being angry at her."
"That's…that's not what I meant 'arry." Fleur shook her head as he blinked in confusion, "I was angry at Ginevra yes, but I was furious with myself. For a split second when I saw a girl that I knew to be pining for you slip a potion into your drink I thought I had wasted my chance."
"Your…your chance?" he gulped, wondering if it had always been so warm in his room. Fleur couldn't actually mean what he was thinking, could she? He had to be imagining things.
"Oui 'arry, my chance." Fleur seemed to steel herself as she looked him dead in the eyes, "I would never have forgiven myself if I continued to tither away. If I continued to waste my time and lie to myself. I…I care for you 'arry, as more than just a friend. 'arry, will you go to the Yule Ball with me?"
He was struck speechless, processing every conversation with Fleur that he could remember, every subtle look she'd sent his way. Every feeling in his gut when he'd heard her laugh.
Suddenly, the feeling he'd been having since the ball was announced that he was missing something obvious made a lot more sense.
"Fleur, nothing would make me happier." He nodded, meaning every word as the happy blonde threw her arms around him, holding tight.
-Hermione-
Silently turning the pages in a book but not taking in a single word, Hermione's gaze kept flickering from Ron and the twins pacing by the fire, and the portrait hole where they were awaiting Ginny to return. Hearing the Fat Lady swing open, Hermione only got to see a glimpse of red hair before Ron was storming over.
"What the hell Ginny?!" Ron looked ready to spit fire, "A love potion?! Are you out of your mind?!" the twins were remaining silent but still nodded in agreement.
"Back off Ron." Ginny glared at her brother, uncowed "It was just a love potion, mom told us stories about using them all the time. Stupid Frenchie getting me in trouble." The last part was muttered as Ron turned redder, but then Ginny continued "Besides, like you have any room to talk. I know the twins gave you a potion too." Ron's expression went from fury to sheer pain and betrayal, her date to the ball actually staggering back a step. Hermione went still, confusion filling her as this was the first that she'd heard of any potion.
"Ginny…that we didn't give Ron a love potion." Fred's voice was soft as he helped keep Ron standing.
"Ron asked us for the Draught of Courage because he was afraid that he'd chicken out before he could ask Hermione without it." George added, standing with his twin in supporting Ron. Hermione felt flattered at the lengths Ron went to in asking her out but right now the pain on her date's face was far more important.
"…You really think I'd do something like that to Hermione?" Ron's voice was soft and shaking, "That I'd…that I'd force her to…" Ron couldn't even get the words out before he turned and stormed through the portrait hole. Tossing her book aside, and barely registering the twins tearing into Ginny about how even their use of love potions was about making prank versions that lasted a couple seconds tops, Hermione raced after Ron. Right now, her boyfriend needed her.