Chapter 63

Ginny POV

It had been about a month since Ginny saved Hermione from McLaggen, and fortunately, nothing of the sort had happened since. Every time Ginny came across McLaggen as well, he looked terrified and would avoid eye contact, so she figured she'd scared him off enough that he'd hopefully never approach Hermione again. That was all well and good, but once again, a month had passed without little to no contact between herself and Hermione.

Ginny couldn't figure Hermione out for the life of her, and she was getting tired of trying. What more did she have to do to prove herself to the girl? She told her she fancied her, she saved her from McLaggen, she's done her best to honor the space that Hermione so clearly wants from her as she's been avoiding her yet again. She hadn't been able to ask Hermione straight up if she'd broken up with Juliette because, much like McLaggen, she'd avoid eye contact with Ginny whenever they ended up in the same room as each other, which wasn't very often to begin with. But as difficult and exhausting as it all was, it hadn't deterred Ginny from Hermione one bit. She still fancied the older girl greatly, and would certainly jump at the chance of being with her. She just didn't want to push it and ruin anything, so, she'd honor whatever space Hermione clearly needed to have right now.

What didn't help the situation much was how affectionate Demelza and Katie had been lately, especially as Valentine's Day was only a few days away. Yes, they were still very cute, but with them still hiding their relationship from pretty much everyone, it isolated most of their cute, lovey-dovey moments to when they were around Ginny, which was less than ideal.

"Hey, love birds?" Ginny asked one afternoon as Katie and Demelza were cuddled up talking quietly on Demelza's bed. They either hadn't heard Ginny, or had chosen to ignore her, "Oi!" Ginny shouted.

"What?" Katie asked, clearly annoyed by the interruption.

"What have the two of you got planned for Valentine's Day? Am I going to be needed to shield your relationship from the rest of Hogwarts? Although, I do think that the three of us being so inseparable might be actually perpetuating a rumor that the three of us are something of an item these days…"

Katie gave her a look, "It'll just be the two of us, but you're more than welcome to tag along if you'd like."

"Really? Just the two of us?" Demelza asked excitedly, looking up at her girlfriend.

This made Ginny smile, she really did love to see Demelza happy in her relationship with Katie.

"Yes, unless Ginny wants to come along."

"No, no! Of course not! I think it's great that the two of you are doing something, I just wanted to check and make sure I wasn't needed. I'll probably just take the time to get some extra training in when everyone's busy with whatever they're doing for Valentine's Day. You two have fun."

Katie and Demelza had already gone off back to their own little world, as neither girl responded to Ginny. Ginny took this as a sign to get up and leave, and she headed to the Great Hall to see if she could grab a snack between classes.

Suddenly completely free for the weekend, Ginny started planning a solo Quidditch training session in her head as she walked to the Great Hall. She'd been doing so well in the trainings with the Gryffindor team, and she wanted to make sure she stayed sharp, especially with the match against Hufflepuff coming up in a week. While most people often discounted Hufflepuff, she knew it'd be a tough match, especially with them having Cedric Diggory as their Seeker. Besides Harry, Cedric might be the best Seeker at Hogwarts. Well, Cho Chang was also quite good. Really, just Malfoy was subpar, and other than him, it was a pretty competitive field for Seekers at Hogwarts. It'd surely be a battle against Hufflepuff, and Ginny was hoping Ron would be up for the challenge. He'd been doing just fine in practice, but it was the matches where clearly his nerves got the best of him. It was too bad, as he really was a great Keeper, he was just apparently intent on being his own worst enemy when he needed to be at his best.

As Ginny arrived in the Great Hall, she sat down near the middle of the Gryffindor table and grabbed a bacon sandwich from a large platter in the center of the table. She looked down the table and spotted Hermione, fully immersed in a book with a plate of fruit in front of her. Ginny looked around, saw that no one else was around, and took a deep breath as she made a decision and went for it. She and her bacon sandwich moved down quietly to sit across from Hermione, who unsurprisingly didn't look up from her book. Ginny smiled as she watched Hermione mouth the words she was reading before she broke the brunette's focus.

"Hi Hermione."

"Ginny!" Hermione exclaimed, obviously startled by the seemingly sudden appearance of the redhead.

Ginny laughed a little before settling into a warm smile, "I'd say I didn't mean to scare you, but I saw an opportunity and took it. Sorry."

Hermione smiled a little back at her, "It's alright, I just didn't notice you, that's all."

"I know. Must be a good book for you to not even notice me sitting right in front of you."

Hermione looked at her curiously before nodding, "It's incredibly interesting, actually. We've really begun to delve into some fascinating work in Ancient Runes this past week, and I couldn't not read ahead."

Ginny smiled at this, she couldn't help it, "So uh, I've been meaning to ask you something…"

Hermione's curiosity was again evident on her face, "Yes?"

"I… Did you… Have you been avoiding me again?" Ginny managed to get out. Not what she wanted to ask, but it was a start.

Hermione stared at her for a moment before responding, "I've been busy…"

Ginny hated that response. It was so easy for Hermione to use as she was, of course, very busy, but Ginny knew that it was just an excuse.

"I've noticed. I feel like I haven't even been in the same room as you for ages. Well, if you're so busy, why not use one of the task coupons I gave you for your birthday? They do expire at the end of term, after all…"

The look Hermione gave her now was one that almost rivaled on frustration, "I'm perfectly capable of managing my own tasks, thank you. I don't need you to – "

"I know that, I'm just offering! It was my birthday present to you, Hermione. I'm just reminding you that if you need anything, I can – "

"I don't need anything from you, Ginny."

It was blunt and to the point, and Ginny wasn't going to argue. Hermione was staring her down now, and it almost looked like she was angry with her.

"Message received… Sorry," Ginny said as she got up and made to leave the Great Hall.

"Ginny, you left your sandwich!"

Ginny ignored Hermione, and continued walking straight out of the Great Hall, not looking back to see if Hermione was watching her this time.

Hermione POV

"Ginny, you left your sandwich!" Hermione called out.

However, the redhead was moving swiftly out of the Great Hall, no pause or hesitation in her stride.

Hermione looked at the half-eaten sandwich in frustration.

What exactly was Ginny playing at? She startles me out of my reading then asks me if I've been avoiding her. What is it to her? She's got Katie, does she really need to try and vie for my affection as well? That's completely unacceptable and selfish of her. Why can't she just leave me alone?

Hermione stood up, placing Ginny's unfinished bacon sandwich on her plate of fruit before picking up her Ancient Runes text and exiting the Great Hall. She had just a few more classes that afternoon before she'd be free for the weekend. Valentine's Day weekend. Hermione rolled her eyes remembering the holiday, and made a conscious decision that she'd spend as much time as possible in the library so as to avoid as many couples as possible, one in particular. She assumed Ginny and Katie would be off to Hogsmeade this weekend as it was both a holiday and a Hogsmeade weekend. What a perfect combination for any happy couple.

After her afternoon classes and dinner in the Great Hall, Hermione set off for the library, as she'd planned. She was hoping she'd be able to dive into her studies and not think about Ginny all weekend long. As she settled into her table near the back of the library, books stacked across her table, she got this odd feeling, like she was being watched. She looked around, but couldn't see anyone, so she tried to ignore it and opened a big dusty Ancient Runes text that she'd just found buried amongst all the others on the shelf. A few minutes went by, and yet, Hermione still felt like there were a pair of eyes on her. Then, she heard footsteps walking towards her. Not too heavy, not too soft, and familiar.

"Ginny?"

"Hi…" Ginny said a bit reluctantly.

"Have you – Have you been watching me?"

Ginny blushed a bit, "Well, after today I wasn't sure you'd want me to interrupt you again while you were reading… But I couldn't be in here and just not say anything… So… Hi…" the redhead said a bit uncomfortably.

"Why aren't you… What are you doing here?" Hermione asked.

"Same as you, I suppose, coursework? What, is this your own private library now or something? Why are you so shocked to see me here?" Ginny asked, studying Hermione's confused face.

"I just – Well, it's a holiday weekend and a Hogsmeade weekend, I figured you'd be gearing up for that."

"I've got to study, Hermione. We've been given Quidditch training off this weekend because it's a holiday, so I'm going to try to catch up on my classes while I can. I haven't been doing as well as I would like this year, especially since my usual study partner has decided to give me the slip…" Ginny said, looking away from Hermione, "Anyway, I just wanted to say hi without scaring you this time. I won't interrupt again."

The redhead walked off and sat at a table out of view from Hermione. While Hermione certainly found it odd that Ginny was using her time off on the holiday weekend to study instead of spending it with Katie, she didn't mind it. She paused, then began rifling through her bag.

Ginny POV

Ginny sat down hard at her library table out of view from Hermione. When she first saw the older girl walk in, she decided she wouldn't say anything and would just try and focus on her studies. It became quickly apparent that she wouldn't be able to do that, as she couldn't help but continuously look over in the brunette's direction. After a while, she decided to get up and address her. And she'd done it. She'd gotten up, said hello, and returned back to her seat. Now she could hopefully focus on her studies and work on getting her classwork sorted before next week. She wasn't too far behind, but she certainly wasn't where she wanted to be in terms of her coursework. Just as she was really getting into the latest chapter of her Herbology text, a piece of parchment dropped onto the page she was reading.

This slip is good for one study session with Ginny Weasley, location and duration dependent on you. Wherever, whenever, whatever, I'm there.

Ginny looked up to find Hermione standing over her, with an opened envelope labeled "For when you want a study partner" in her hand.

"I would like to cash in on one of my tasks, please," Hermione said a bit nervously.

Ginny cautiously smiled up at her, "Uh, alright. Would you like me to join you at your table, or would you like to join me here?"

Hermione paused, "My table," and then she disappeared around the corner.

Ginny grinned and gathered her things before walking back over to Hermione's usual table where she spent a good chunk of last year studying with her and Viktor Krum. She sat down across from her, placing her texts off to the side and out of the way of Hermione's fortress of books. They worked silently for a while, reading and scribbling on parchment, before Ginny finally spoke up.

"Have I got all of the different properties of Bubotuber pus listed here? I feel like I'm missing one…"

She turned her roll of parchment around to show Hermione, and Hermione read it over carefully.

"Yes, you've got them all," Hermione said, giving Ginny a reassuring and almost proud smile before returning to her work.

Ginny watched Hermione's lips as they mouthed the words she was reading in the dusty old text she was flipping through. This went on for too long, until Ginny couldn't keep her question in any longer, the butterflies in her stomach wouldn't let her.

"Hermione?"

"Mmm, yes Ginny?" Hermione responded, finishing what she was reading before looking up at Ginny.

Ginny immediately got nervous, but tried to fight the nerves back down as she didn't want to put it off any further. She suddenly noticed that Hermione didn't have a chain around her neck, and must not be wearing the necklace Juliette had given her. How long had she not been wearing it? That was the confidence boost Ginny needed.

"How's Juliette?"

Again, not what I wanted to ask, but that's getting the ball rolling…

Hermione looked at Ginny, but didn't respond. She looked down at her text, then back up into Ginny's eyes.

"Why do you ask?"

"You're not wearing the necklace she gave you…"

Hermione looked down as if she was looking at an invisible necklace and then back up at Ginny. She bit her lip, then responded.

"I don't know how she is. We're not together anymore."

Ginny's heart felt as if it could explode. Finally, she was being told what she had assumed was to be true for so long. Hermione was in fact single.

"You're not? Wha – What happened?"

Hermione looked at Ginny with an unusual expression. Almost a combination of sadness and irritation.

"We broke up when she came to Hogwarts a few days after my birthday."

"Why?"

Hermione paused again but kept her eyes on Ginny.

"I think you know why, Ginny…"

Ginny's breath caught in her throat. Finally, it was finally out in the open!

"Because of m – "

"Ginny! There you are! Have you been here this whole time? Come on, I need you!" Katie had suddenly appeared at the end of the table and looked panicked. Ginny looked from Katie to Hermione, who looked exceptionally put off by Katie's sudden appearance.

"Katie, can you hold on – "

"No, I really can't. I know what I said earlier, but this can't wait, come on!" Katie grabbed Ginny's arm firmly and started pulling her up out of her seat and marching her towards the exit of the library.

"Shhh!" Madam Pince shushed them as they hurried by.

Ginny turned back to get a look at Hermione as they left, and could see that she was extremely upset.

"Katie, what's the matter with you? You said you wouldn't interrupt me when I'm with Hermione ever again and what did you just do? This better be worth it!" Ginny exclaimed once they got out into the corridor, Katie still pulling Ginny along firmly.

"Demelza's in the Hospital Wing."

"What? What happened?"

"McLaggen."

Ginny's heart sank upon hearing Katie's response.

"He – He must've cornered her as she was on her way to meet me. When she didn't show up at our planned spot, I knew something was wrong, she was so excited to spend time together just the two of us…"

"Katie, what did he do?"

"I tracked back to the Potions classroom as I knew that she was going to come to me directly after class, and found her in a corner of one of the deepest corridors in the dungeons. Crying."

"Katie, what – "

"I don't know!" Katie said harshly, her voice breaking, "I asked her what had happened and all she said was McLaggen. I immediately took her to the Hospital Wing and we've been there for a while, but she hasn't said much. She just looks scared and broken and – " Katie's voice broke again as she choked back a sob that had pushed its way through.

Ginny felt the anger building up inside her, coursing through her body, "I'm going to kill McLaggen..."

"Not if I get to him first…"

They'd finally arrived at the Hospital Wing. Katie immediately went and sat by Demelza's side while Ginny stood at the foot of her bed. Demelza, already small in stature, looked so tiny in the hospital bed. And Katie was right, she looked scared and broken. Katie was holding her hand now, and Demelza was looking at her, but just barely.

"Demelza…" Ginny said softly. Demelza turned to look at her. "What happened?"

Demelza shut her eyes tight and winced as if she was replaying a horrible memory in her head.

"Ladies, please do not push Miss Robins on this matter. She needs her rest, and if she wants to tell you of her experience, she will when she is ready. Do you understand?" Madam Pomfrey said sternly.

Both Ginny and Katie nodded while keeping their eyes fixed on Demelza. She did look tired, and there was no way they'd push Demelza on this. If she wanted to talk, she would, Ginny would of course respect that.

Ginny and Katie stayed with Demelza, Katie in the chair beside her holding her hand and Ginny sitting at the end of her bed, until Madam Pomfrey closed the Hospital Wing to visitors.

"Are you alright?" Ginny asked Katie as they exited the Hospital Wing and began walking back towards Gryffindor Tower.

"No, I'm not. I have no idea what actually happened. All I can do is assume and imagine what I think happened, which I'm hoping is nowhere close to what actually happened to her… She's so sweet and… And… Wh – Why her…" Katie started to cry, and Ginny grasped her hand tightly as they walked.

"He won't get away with this, whatever he did. I promise you that," Ginny said fiercely.

Katie nodded as they continued to walk. As they approached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Katie stopped and worked hard to wipe away her tears and appear as normal as possible.

"How do I look?" she asked Ginny.

Ginny tried to give her a reassuring smile as she took in Katie's blotchy appearance, "Great…"

Katie gave her a look, "You're such a bad liar."

The two laughed lightly and Ginny wrapped up the older girl in a tight hug.

"It'll be okay. She's in good hands with Madam Pomfrey, she's safe. And I promise, McLaggen will not get away with whatever he did to her, okay?"

"Alright… Thanks Ginny…" Katie said softly, burying her head in Ginny's neck. Ginny understood, it had been a really long, mentally and emotionally exhausting evening.

Suddenly, the two girls broke apart and turned at the sound of a throat being cleared. Hermione was standing at the bottom of the steps leading up to the portrait of the Fat Lady, staring daggers at them.

Ginny gave her a curious look, Why was she angry?

Hermione said nothing as she ascended the steps, walked past them, gave the password, and stepped through the portrait hole. Ginny and Katie exchanged confused looks, then entered the common room behind her.