AN: I'm definitely back sooner than I thought I'd be, but I had a chance to get a good amount of writing done this week, so I figured I'd start updating again! I'm tentatively thinking I'll be updating once a week, aiming for Sundays, we'll see how it goes. Thanks again to everyone reading and reviewing this story!

Chapter 45

Ginny POV

It was the morning of August 11th, Ginny's 14th birthday, and just like nearly every other morning that summer, she was the first Weasley up and out of bed. The sun had yet to rise over the rolling hills that extended out past the Burrow, but she didn't care. Ginny actually preferred to train under the cover of darkness, as it allowed her to fly higher than she could during the light of day, when she'd be risking a Muggle spotting her if she flew too high. Up and down, back and forth she flew, speeding up, then coming to an instant halt; Ginny had complete control over her body while flying, and had become one with her broom.

She'd done little else over the past five and a half weeks but train for Quidditch, either in the air or on the ground, and it was paying off. Besides becoming an exceptional flier, Ginny was also becoming stronger and more athletic, and it was all due to the training program written for her by Juliette. While she didn't exactly relish the fact that her training was coming from the girlfriend of the girl she'd suddenly developed feelings for at the end of last term, she couldn't deny how effective it had been for her, and she was hoping she'd actually be able to make a run at the open reserve player slot on the Gryffindor Quidditch team in a month.

Speaking of Hermione, Ginny had been enjoying receiving regular letters from her best friend throughout the month of July. In true Hermione fashion, they were intricately detailed and methodically recounted how she'd been spending her summer holiday with her parents. It sounded like she'd been spending the majority of her time reading, getting a head start on studying for her O.W.L. exams, and going off on a camping trip here or there. However, once August rolled around, the weekly letters from Hermione stopped completely. Ginny knew it was because Hermione was in France visiting Juliette, and while she knew she should be understanding of the sudden lack of correspondence she was getting from Hermione, it still stung. She missed her, and she was jealous that Juliette had her all to herself. But it didn't matter how she felt, how much she missed her, or how jealous she was of Juliette, Ginny had vowed to not ruin Hermione's happiness with Juliette, no matter how badly she wanted to tell her that she had feelings for her. Occasionally, Ginny wondered how Hermione would react to hearing that, considering Hermione had apparently harbored feelings for the younger redhead for the better part of the last school year, but Ginny wasn't willing to risk it. She knew how Hermione felt about Juliette, and couldn't bear to risk ruining that for her, even if it meant she'd have to struggle through the pain of fancying her from afar. She'd get over this little crush eventually, she was sure of it.

As the sun began to slowly creep up and over the dark hills in the distance, Ginny began to fly lower to the ground until she was able to hop off her broom. She dismounted gracefully and jogged back to the garden behind the Burrow. She stored her broom in the run-down broomshed with her brothers' brooms, then turned back around and took off running past the orchard and off into the hills until she reached the clearing where they'd met up with Mr. Diggory and Cedric the summer prior when they were headed to the Quidditch World Cup. From the top of this steep hill, Ginny could see all across Ottery St. Catchpole and spot the Burrow far out in the distance. She smiled as she caught her breath, taking in the beautiful view. The long tufts of grass around her were moving lazily in the warm summer breeze, and Ginny sat down to relax a bit.

She'd been running up to Stoatshead Hill almost every morning this summer, and had yet to get sick of the view overlooking Ottery St. Catchpole. Before she'd started attending Hogwarts, she used to hate the little village in which she grew up. She thought that it was too small and too boring. However, now that she spent the majority of her time at Hogwarts, she'd begun to appreciate the quaintness of the village. Besides the Weasleys, a few other wizarding families lived in Ottery St. Catchpole as well, including the Fawcetts, Diggorys, and the Lovegoods. The only witch or wizard around her age was Luna Lovegood, who was in the same year as Ginny, but had been sorted into Ravenclaw. Ginny didn't speak with Luna much, but found her to be incredibly unique and interesting, while others tended to categorize her as weird or "looney". Ginny figured the difference between her and other's views of Luna was because she was much more sympathetic to the girl, knowing she'd lost her mum at a young age to a terrible magical accident. Whenever she'd see Luna in the corridors at Hogwarts, she'd smile warmly, but that was about as far as their friendship reached.

Ginny spent just a few more moments seated on the soft grass, gazing out over the little village, before she stood up and began her trek back to the Burrow where she hoped a hearty breakfast would be waiting for her.

"Happy birthday Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley greeted her as she jogged through the back door of the Burrow into the kitchen that was filled with delicious smells of sausages, eggs, and pastries, "Oh, you're drenched! Go on and get cleaned up, and then I'll give you a proper birthday hug," Mrs. Weasley said, beaming at her youngest child. Ginny climbed the stairs to the first-floor landing and stopped off at her room to grab some fresh clothes and toiletries before she went to the bathroom to shower. Once she was properly cleaned up, she bounded down the stairs to find her family seated around the kitchen table, "Happy birthday Ginny!" they cheered. Ginny grinned, and was wrapped in a tight hug by both her mum and dad.

"Someone's spoiled…" Ron muttered as he reached for the pile of sausages.

"Oi! Let the birthday girl go first!" Fred said as he smacked Ron's hand away.

Ron swore loudly and half-heartedly swung at Fred, earning the two of them a scolding look from Mrs. Weasley. They stopped immediately, Ron grumbling and holding his recently-smacked hand. Ginny sat down beside Ron, picked up the platter of sausages, and offered them to him first.

"Here, go on," she said, pushing the platter into his hands. Ron gave a thankful smile and loaded up his plate, making Ginny shake her head and laugh. She looked down the table at all of her brothers and her parents and smiled. Even Bill, Charlie, and Percy had apparated in for her birthday breakfast. As they settled in to eat, stories and laughs were exchanged freely, and Ginny felt completely at ease. She loved being around her family, and especially appreciated when they were all together, as it didn't happen often.

After breakfast, Mr. Weasley brought in a pile of presents from the scullery and placed it in front of Ginny at the end of the table. Ginny gaped at the pile, looking up at him in shock.

"It appears you've got some very thoughtful friends, Ginny," he smiled down at her. "You've got gifts here from Hermione, Harry, and Demelza as well."

Ginny was taken aback by hearing Demelza's name, as were the rest of her family, Mrs. Weasley especially. The first day back from Hogwarts, Ginny bit the bullet and confided in her parents about her fancying girls. They seemed to be almost relieved by the news, and she certainly appreciated the positive reaction over a negative one. Since then, her mum hadn't left her alone about who she fancied, what her type was, etc., and Ginny did eventually tell her mum that she'd seen Demelza during the past school year, and that it had ended somewhat amicably, but that they weren't exactly on speaking terms. She didn't get into the depths of what was really going on, how she fancied Hermione and had hexed Hermione's girlfriend because she was jealous, leading to Demelza breaking up with her out of fear, because she figured her mum didn't really need to know all of the details that she herself wasn't particularly proud of.

She put the packages from her friends to the side. She was planning on opening those gifts later, as she wanted to open what her family had gotten her in front of them. She first started with an orange and purple package with a big W and W scrawled on the outside. She shot her brothers a look as she opened it to find a box labeled "Skiving Snackbox".

"Thank you… Er, what exactly is this, though?" Ginny asked, confused.

"It's a box of sweets that'll make you ill! Get you out of class whenever you want!" Fred exclaimed.

"We've been work- " George paused, taking in their mum's furious expression. "Oh, it's just for a laugh Mum, we're only joking, they don't actually do anything! It's a gag gift that we picked up from Zonko's last year," he explained earnestly.

"We'll explain more later," Fred whispered under this breath to Ginny as Mrs. Weasley busied herself with sending another stack of buttered toast flying over to the table.

"Thanks guys," Ginny grinned at the twins.

Next, she picked up Ron's gift, a small package loosely wrapped in an old copy of the Daily Prophet. She opened it to find some sort of glass spinning top. She looked down at it, then up at Ron, curiously.

"Thank you, Ron. But again, what is it?"

"It's a Sneakoscope. It uh, it detects if someone is doing something untrustworthy or not. Now that you're dating and apparently don't need my protection I just… Well, I just thought that maybe it would be useful for you to have so you don't waste your time with someone you shouldn't…" Ron muttered, blushing.

Ginny stared at him, in awe at the thoughtfulness of the gift. Of course, she knew she could figure out who was and wasn't trustworthy on her own, and was slightly offended by the gift, but it was still a kind gesture from her overprotective brother.

"Ron, where did you hear about Sneakoscopes? I've always heard that they aren't the most reliable objects from my work over in Egypt. They're usually sold to tourists…" Bill said hesitantly.

"Well, apparently Lavender and Parvati used one once we started up to vet me… Wanted to see if I was good enough for Lav… And it didn't go off or anything, so – "

"Case in point," Fred muttered to George.

"Clearly a rubbish device, if it didn't detect ol' Ronnie" George muttered back.

Ron glowered at the twins, while the rest of their brothers laughed, but Ginny put a hand on his arm, "Thank you, Ron. This is really thoughtful," she said, smiling genuinely at him. He blushed and smiled weakly back before returning to his pile of sausages.

She moved on to the biggest package, one cleanly wrapped in paper covered in brooms. As she opened it, her jaw dropped. It was a brand-new set of Quidditch pads. She looked up at the rest of her family in shock, "What – This is too much – I – "

"Nonsense! The five of us split it," Mr. Weasley said, beaming at her excitement. "We've seen how hard you've been working this summer to get ready for the Quidditch trials once you get back to school, so we wanted to help!"

"You'll appreciate not having to wear the pads that everyone else has worn," Charlie added. "I'm pretty sure some of the gear the Gryffindor team still uses has been hanging around from when I was Captain," he said, chuckling.

Ginny felt a tinge of guilt at the fact that Ron, too, would be trying out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team this fall, and he hadn't been given anything to help him out. However, he also hadn't been spending any time practicing this summer, so she didn't feel too bad.

"Wow, thank you so much! Everyone, thank you, this is all really great," Ginny smiled around at her family. "I think I'll open the gifts from my friends a bit later, honestly, I'm a little overwhelmed," Ginny laughed lightly. "Can I help clean up, or – "

"Oh, don't be silly dear, the boys will help me! Go on, take the rest of your gifts up to your room, you can relax today as it is your birthday!" Mrs. Weasley ushered Ginny out of the kitchen while the boys around her groaned at the fact that they'd be having to help clean up.

"Keep groaning like that and you won't be allowed to use magic either! Come on now boys, help your mother!" Ginny heard her dad say as she carried the rest of her packages up into her room.

She couldn't believe how generous her family had been. The Quidditch pads must've cost a fortune, even with her parents and Bill, Charlie, and Percy splitting the cost. She smiled, realizing how much support she had from her family in her journey to becoming a great Quidditch player. The Sneakoscope as well was a very thoughtful gift from Ron, even though she doubted it actually worked. Her brother Bill dealt with a lot of dark magic detection in his work with Gringotts, so she was sure if anyone would know if the Sneakoscope would work or not, it would be him. The gift from Fred and George was odd, but she figured it had some other meaning.

Ginny set her remaining birthday packages down on her bed, not knowing which one to open first. She bit her lip, trying to decide, when she figured that opening Harry's first would be the least emotionally taxing on her.

She opened the large package to find a brand new Quaffle. The red leather was smooth against her hands, nothing like the old Quaffle the Weasleys had been using for years that was so tattered and worn it was starting to split almost completely apart at the seams. She smiled, appreciating that Harry was just as invested in her Quidditch career as her family was. Yes, Quidditch really was all Ginny had lived and breathed the past few weeks especially, but she still loved that people noticed and cared enough to support her in this way. There was a small card fixed to the Quaffle, that read:

Cheers to the next Gryffindor reserve player, if you don't replace one of our Chasers all together. Happy birthday, Gin! See you soon!

Harry

Next, Ginny picked up the small, flat package from Demelza. She had absolutely no idea what this could be, and wasn't anticipating hearing from Demelza over the summer, let alone on her birthday. She pulled out the card first, and read it.

Ginny,

Happy birthday! I know we said we wouldn't talk until the start of the term, but this couldn't wait. My dad and I were traveling up north around the Isle of Anglesey, and we just so happened to come across a Holyhead Harpies training. Now, you know they're not quite mine and my dad's favorite team (Go Tornadoes!), but we still couldn't resist taking in some excellent Quidditch. You would have really loved it, Ginny, they were incredible. Anyway, we stayed around after the training, and I got you something that I hope you'll enjoy.

Demelza

Ginny smiled at the card, then opened the rest of the package and immediately lost her breath. Demelza had sent her a photograph of Gwenog Jones, signed by the Harpies Captain herself. Ginny could not believe it. She set the picture down on her bed not wanting to crease it by accident in her excitement. This was an incredible gift, and she couldn't believe Demelza had done that for her.

She finally and a bit nervously moved to the final gift, the carefully wrapped package from Hermione, opening the card first.

Ginny,

Happy 14th birthday! I'm so sorry that I haven't been keeping up with our letters, I've been a bit busy since I've arrived in Cannes. Juliette has been showing me around, the architecture and food is incredible and her family is, well, passionate. I'll fill you in when I arrive in a few days, but let's just say that Juliette is actually the least intense member of her family, if you can believe that.

Anyway, I can't take all of the credit for your gift, as Juliette suggested you'd find it incredibly useful. I'm hoping you haven't already gotten yourself one with Viktor's winnings, but if you have, we can exchange it and get you something else when we go to Diagon Alley for our school things.

I'm very much looking forward to seeing you this summer, and I can't wait to finally be able to talk to you in person. I miss you, Ginny.

Hermione

Ginny reread the last paragraph more times than she should have. Ginny missed Hermione too. It'd been nearly six weeks since they'd last seen each other, and Ginny missed everything about her. She missed her voice, her scent, the way her loose curls would always find their way into her face so she'd constantly be tucking them behind her ears, the way her lips moved and her brow furrowed when she'd get really into a book she was reading, the way she made Ginny feel...

Stop… Ginny, she's with Juliette. She is not yours. Remember that… Ginny shook her head, knowing her annoying rational thoughts were in fact, correct.

She opened the carefully wrapped package to reveal a black leather case that read "Broomstick Servicing Kit" etched in silver lettering. She opened it, and smiled. Inside were all types of tools for her to take care of her Comet 260. There was a jar of handle polish, a pair of clippers to maintain her broom tail twigs, a brass clip-on compass, and a book labeled "Handbook of Do-It-Yourself Broomcare". She decided she'd be giving total credit to Hermione on this one, even though she knew that Juliette probably had a kit of her own and knew it'd be a great gift for Ginny.

Now that she had so much Quidditch stuff, she wasn't actually sure what she would spend the remainder of the winnings Hermione gave her on. She had re-upped her subscription to Seeker Weekly and added a subscription to Quidditch Times to make sure she was completely up to date on all things Quidditch. Other than that, she really hadn't needed much so far this summer, but maybe something would catch her eye once they went to Diagon Alley. She had tried to give her remaining funds to her parents, but they vehemently refused, maintaining that it was her money and that it was hers to do what she wanted with, and that they'd be just fine.

Ginny leaned back against her headboard, going through all of the wonderfully thoughtful gifts people had given her for her 14th birthday. She remembered back to this time a year ago when she received her Comet 260 and thought her life could never get any better than that moment. She smiled, nothing she'd received this year had quite been able to top her Comet 260, but she certainly was feeling very appreciative of her friends and family for the love they had shown her today. She began to flip through the broomcare handbook, but couldn't stop herself from thinking of two specific cards she'd gotten. She scooched herself back to sit up straight against her headboard, and looked at the cards from Demelza and Hermione again, and sighed. One came from a girl she'd been in a relationship with for the better part of the school year, happily so, but now had no future with other than maybe friendship. The other came from the girl she pined after so deeply now, but unfortunately had a girlfriend and was therefore unattainable. Ginny tipped her head back against the wall and closed her eyes in frustration, doubting that fancying boys would be this complicated.