|
Memoirs of a Red Headed Witch | ||||||
|
Category: Pre-OotP, Post-OotP, Post-HBP, Post-Hogwarts, Post-DH/AB Characters:All Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Humor, Romance, Songfic Warnings: Mild Language, Mild Sexual Situations, Violence Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 136 Summary: Ginny Weasley was always overlooked. Always the youngest, always the smallest, and was never really given the chance to let her voice be heard. But sometimes the best insight comes from those who were always in the background. Her story of redemption, loyalty and love, proves that she was never just the Weasley brothers' little sister. Hitcount: Story Total: 178022; Chapter Total: 8865 Awards: View Trophy Room Author's Notes: Based on Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince |
Previous Next |
|
||||
|
Entry 20 All’s Fair in Love and Quidditch Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince “How did you get here under my skin? Swore that I'd never let you back in Should've known better than trying to let you go Here we go, go, go again…” - Here We Go Again, Demi Lovato With Ron and Katie both out of commission the Gryffindor Quidditch Team had taken some major blows. We had to get replacements and those replacements came in the forms of Cormac McLaggen and Dean Thomas. McLaggen was just about as fowl as Romilda Vane herself, only in male form. With him on the team it was a new headache every day. He would nag Harry about new Quidditch techniques telling everyone else what to do and how to do it, being everywhere except where he should have been: at the posts, covering for Ron. “Where is he?” I asked sitting down to tie my Quidditch boots in the changing rooms. Demelza looked up. “No one’s seen him all morning.” I sighed and was about to say something when McLaggen spoke up. “Well, that’s not very professional of a captain. If I were captain, I’d be here bright and early before anyone to make sure everything is in order,” he was already up and pacing in front of the team whom were preparing for the upcoming match. “Well, I guess since Potter’s late, I’ll-” “Oi!” I stopped him. “Sit it, and zip it.” My reputation proceeded me; he sat. Minutes were slipping away and the game was coming closer, and we should have been pumping up, going over strategy, Harry should have been there, motivating us. He still hadn’t shown. I could see the team getting restless. Without our seeker it would have been an automatic forfeit. He eventually made it into the changing rooms, at the last possible second mind you, and everyone blew a sigh of relief. “Where have you been?!” (HBP page 412) I asked standing up extremely annoyed. He grabbed his robes and whispered to me, “I met Malfoy.” Of course he did. I looked over my shoulder at all the pair of eyes watching us in question. “So?” I asked waiting for his head to come out of his robes and passed him his gloves. “I wanted to know why he was up in the castle rather than down here with the rest of the school.” he replied putting his glassed back into place. Nothing came before Quidditch. Nothing. “Does that really matter right now?” I gave him his Firebolt, and he was ready. “Well I’m not likely to find out now am I?” he said to me then turned on his heel. “C’mon then!” I rolled my eyes and followed them all out of the tent. Some things would just never change. Out on the pitch the match was going alright, until McLaggen opened his trap. The one moment I let the quaffle out of my reach, he started yelling at me left and right. At one point I got so fed up, I turned to yell back but Harry got to it first. We scored a few times but Cormac was just the biggest distraction. I didn’t need to know how Cootes should have been going after the chasers on the outside, but McLaggen was loud enough to let everyone in on it. If that weren’t enough, Luna was doing the commentating. I loved Luna and I hated how everyone treated her, but I would have appreciated her voice more had I had been seated in the stands, not zooming about trying to get on the left side of Demelza for a quick pass. At some point McGonagall had to cut in: “Seventy-Forty to Hufflepuff!” (HBP page 415) “Is it already?” Luna asked, her attention coming back to the game. I was fifty feet in the air covering Demelza who was in possession of the ball; Cootes was on her other side like we had planned and the only thing that was missing was Peakes. He should have been bringing up our tail. “Oh look! The Gryffindor keeper’s got hold of one of the Beater bats!” said Luna. I stopped abruptly. The back wind almost knocked me off my broom but I managed to I turn around. And there he was, McLaggen with Peakes’ bat teaching him how to hit the oncoming Hufflepuff players. Peakes was trying to grab hold of his bat again and my hands were just shaking in rage. McLaggen was single handedly running our winning strategy! The play I came up with! Many things happened at once. I was still on the other side of the field and I couldn’t really change any part of what happened but, Merlin, that didn’t stop me from trying. The moment Harry roared, “You give him back his bat and get back to the goal posts!” I started full speed toward the scene because I saw McLaggen go to hit the oncoming bludger. And even before it made contact with the bat I figured the trajectory of the bludger. I kept my eyes on my destination and managed to see McLaggen hit the ball. One instant I was playing Quidditch and the next I was racing towards Harry as the bludger made its way to his skull. I wasn’t going fast enough to save him, I knew that, but when the ball collided with him my heart stopped. I didn’t let my broom do the same, I kept moving as though my life depended on it. I yelled his name as he fell unconscious and I caught him the moment he slipped off his broom. The sudden weight of him on my broom caused us to dip steep and dangerously towards the ground. I kept my arm around his torso balancing him on my broom. Peakes got to me then but I was too shaken up to let him out of my arms. So he and Coote helped me get to the ground safely where a crowd had already formed and I let them take him. I watched as they took him away to the hospital wing. A chorus of “Are you alright?” “Is he going to be ok?” “How did that happen?” Chanted around me but I was barely aware. I needed to find Cormac. No. they expected me to keep on playing as though one of my own team’s players did not just knock out our captain, seeker and not to mention my… Harry. That though distracted me even more from the game, what was he to me? It seemed like we were leaning on a thin line, one that I stubbornly didn’t want to attempt to cross. He was more than just my brother’s best friend; we were close. Maybe like siblings, but only not like that at all. It was confusing when you threw it all in the mix. I began to see that I truly had been lying to myself those last couple of months, but I was too chicken to do anything about it. AND FOR LORD SAKES I HAD A BOYFRIEND! I didn’t play well obviously. Once we all made it to the changing rooms I exploded on Coote. “WHAT THE BLOODY HELL WERE, YOU THINKING?” my voice was ice; sharp and cold. “Well… I….uh…Peakes was-” “I was doing just fine by myself!” the other boy said. The whole team was now following my lead, standing up behind me, I reached for my wand. “Yes. He. was.” Cormac was absolutely terrified. “It was an accident.” “An accident when every time someone told you mind your own business you just did it again?” Coote asked. McLaggen gulped and stepped back but we had him cornered. “I know what you’re thinking,” I told him. “You’re relieved that the great Harry Potter is up in the castle unconscious, because after that stunt you just pulled, he’d kill you.” I laughed, “Well guess what? I’m sure he trusts me to do him justice.” McLaggen let out a shriek and pushed past us trying to get away, but he didn’t get away quick enough before I caught him with one of my favorite jinx’s. I don’t think anyone will forget the sight if Cormac’s underwear rising up from the back of his trousers. Everyone roared in laughter as he flew from the tent, trying to stop it. There were already tears in his eyes when he hopped out of the changing rooms. I didn’t even crack a smile. “That’s what you get when you piss off a girl with six older brothers.” Up in the common room, my arms were still tingling from where Harry’s body had been. I needed to shower and get to the hospital wing, the longer it took the more I needed to see him. I made my way up to the bathroom. “As much as it sucked to lose the game you must admit, Harry’s face when he saw that bludger coming was hysterical.” I turned around, halfway up the stairs. “What?” Dean shrugged, chuckling, “The whole thing; it was rather amusing.” “Amusing? Really, you think?” “C’mon, Gin you have to admit-” “Don’t call me Gin.” “Why not? Isn’t that what Harry calls you sometimes?” “You’re not Harry.” He froze, as did a lot of other Gryffindors who were slumped around after our loss. “Obviously…” “Because if you were, you’d be lying in a hospital bed with your skull cracked open and your blood all over my Quidditch robes!” I waved the bundle of soiled red clothes in my hands. “Where’s your sense of humor, huh? It was a joke, laugh it off and move on.” Dean was once again telling me what to do. “A joke? You’ve never gotten hit by a bludger have you? Do you remember the last time he got hit with one? He had to grow his bones back! You were there Dean. So, sorry if I don’t find it ‘amusing’.” We were attracting more attention. “God!” he scoffed, “Do you realize what you sound like right now? Harry Potter’s over protective girlfriend. But you’re not; you’re mine!” “Oh, really? Keep this up and we’ll see just how much longer that’ll last.” I pushed past him dropping the robes at his feet. And that is how I found myself storming up to the hospital wing, messy, un-showered and smelling foul. I can still remember how angry I was, at Dean at Cormac at the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. Where did Dean get off just standing there laughing when his own friend and roommate had just been injured in front of him? I made my way through the corridors not really caring where Dean and I stood. I needed to see Harry. The wing was empty except for Ron who was flipping through a book warily and Harry on the bed beside him, still asleep with a thick bandage wrapped around his head. A pit in my stomach formed at the sight. “Ginny!” Ron exclaimed when he noticed me tossing the book aside. “Shh!” I warned him shutting the door behind me and walking closer. “Oh relax! I’m so bored! Thank Merlin you’re here, I’ve been trying to wake Harry up but it seems no matter how big a book I use, he doesn’t even stir. He’s not good company when he’s out cold.” Sure enough I could see some magazines and such scattered around Harry’s bed and the floor. “Ron, honestly?” I asked rolling my eyes. “So he still hasn’t woken up?” I got to my brother’s bed to see that there was, conveniently, a chair placed in between them two. Apparently I wasn’t the first to visit. “No, but would you tell me what the bloody hell happened out there?” “They didn’t tell you?” I asked taking a seat. Ron blushed, “Well Lavender was here when they brought Harry in…and I was well…” “Pretending to be asleep.” “Yeah.” “Ron honestly, break up with her already.” According to Harry, Ron had been avoiding Lavender as much as he possibly could get away with. The coward couldn’t even bring himself to tell the girl he was in a relationship with how he felt. “Anyway, tell me,” he said. So I did. Ron was grimacing towards Harry’s life less form when I finished. “So over all, not one of our best performances?” I groaned and sat back in my chair, “The whole thing was a disaster, from the commentating to Harry showing up late.” “Late?” “Yea, he almost missed tip off.” “But he was with me earlier, and he left with plenty of time.” I shrugged, “He told me he met Malfoy.” Ron rolled his eyes, “You’re taking the mickey! Malfoy, over Quidditch?!” “That’s what I said!” “Did he find anything out at least?” “Not that I’m aware of.” “Where’s Hermione?” he asked changing the subject, I knew a lost cause when I saw one. I sighed, “Up in the common room, she’s probably taking care of her prefect duties, making sure everyone settles down.” “Everyone must be pretty upset with McLaggen right about now.” He was grinning from ear to ear. “Yes well, we dealt with McLaggen already, right at the pitch. He hasn’t been seen since.” “So what’s wrong in the common room?” “I really don’t want to talk about it.” I looked over at Harry. He seemed so helpless. It was odd to think of him that way, when usually he was so resourceful. When I turned back to Ron, he was watching me with that same expression he had a few years before, that thoughtful look, I hadn’t seen since the night they rescued Harry from the Dursley’s, and again the day on the train when he found out I broke up with Michael last year. It was a distinct look, what it meant, I had no clue, but I still blushed because he caught me starring at Harry. “What?” I stayed for a long while, not particularly wanting to meet anyone else for the rest of the day. Ron had fallen asleep by the time Harry stirred. It was just a slight movement of the head but it made me feel loads better. I wanted him to sleep, but I also just wanted him to open his eyes look up at me and threaten McLaggen’s life. I wanted him to sit up and agree that in the future we will look back on this and laugh. I hated seeing him so fragile. I started thinking about what Dean had said. Though I knew I shouldn’t have, there wasn’t much else to do. ‘Harry Potter’s overprotective girlfriend?’ What would it be like if I really were? Of course I had thought about it before but never as though it were a real possibility as it seemed to be now. My mind went into over drive. Suddenly, it wasn’t Dean and I in that empty corridor, it was Harry and I. His arms around my waist, my hands in his tangled hair, just so different from Dean. We understood each other and what we wanted. His woodsy smell, like a broomstick, warm and inviting. His eyes would glow so close to mine I would have a perfect view to his momentary happiness. Two pieces of a unsolved puzzle left alone for so long. I wouldn’t mind that I couldn’t breathe… “Gin…” he’d sigh… I jumped when I realized that sigh hadn’t come from my imagination. I was forcefully brought back from my day dream. I turned, expecting to see Harry awake, but he wasn’t. No one else was in the room and I was certain that it was Harry’s voice. He smiled and shifted a bit and spoke again. “Ginny…flowers…” Harry was dreaming. I almost fainted. Flowers? What the bloody hell did that mean? I grabbed his hand and moved forward, stroking it with my thumb. It was so warm, just like my day dream. My other hand went to his bandages and I started tracing them lightly. “I’m here, Harry,” I whispered. He smiled again and my heart stopped. Twice in one day Harry Potter made my heart stop. A sudden urge moved me nearer; I was inches from his face when his lips parted, practically asking me to kiss him. I was so close goose bumps made their way up my arms. I wasn’t breathing straight but it still felt amazing; I wanted so much to make that dream into a reality. No. I sat back straight. I just couldn’t risk my heart like that. I stood and walked out briskly. I was with Dean. That was when the argument came about it my head, Dean or Harry. I want Harry. What if he doesn’t want you? What if he does? You’re with Dean. We are having problems. Everyone has problems. I’m better off without him. No, you’ll just be alone. I’ll have Harry. And if you don’t? Then I’ll just be alone! So I didn’t do anything. But of course, Hermione didn’t waste any time realizing things either. “Have you noticed anything different about Harry lately?” “Uh… no not really, what are you talking about?” She looked at me and I raised my eyes from my homework, “I’m not buying that, Ginny.” “I don’t need your sickles,” I said dropping my gaze again. “When I mentioned your argument with Dean to him, he seemed particularly interested.” “Did he?” I asked trying to sound distracted, though she had captured all my attention and then some. “Yes, he said he didn’t want his team messed up.” “Of course he wouldn’t.” “He was lying Ginny.” “Now, why would he do that?” “Isn’t it obvious?” “Hermione,” I said still not looking up, “not everyone is as swift as you, so no, it’s not obvious what you’re talking about.” She ignored me, “Ginny.” I dropped my act and set my quill down on my parchment. “I’m with Dean, Hermione.” A smile made its way across her face, “But who’s the one calling you ‘Gin’?” “What?” “Oh come now, Ginny! You told the whole common room that Harry Potter was the only one allowed to call you by a pet name.” “Ginny is a pet name.” “Ginevra!” I shook my head, a bit surprised that no one had told us to keep it down; the library seemed crowded all of a sudden. “What Hermione? You were the one who told me to get over him!” “Not in so many words,” she snapped. “I said to let things happen as they should, and you have!” “So you think things are happening?” “If they haven’t already then they’re about to.” We stared at each other for a moment before I said, “I’m with Dean.” She stood, taking her books, with a last, “Well in your words, ‘let’s see how much longer that lasts.’” It didn’t last much longer. After that day, everything Dean did annoyed me more than usual. One night we were walking silently up to the common room; we didn’t speak much anymore, which was impressive considering we never talked all that much in the first place. As we came though the portrait whole, I felt a nudge against my arm and threw me off balance. “Don’t push me, please, Dean. You’re always doing that; I can get through perfectly well on my own.” “I didn’t-” “You didn’t? You really expect me to believe that after all the times I’ve asked you not to?” He ignored me and entered the common room. “Don’t just walk away!” I called after him. He turned around and that was when I noticed Ron and Hermione. Ron was having an argument with Lavender, though it seemed as though she was just scolding him as he looked at his feet, while Hermione stood awkwardly in the midst of it. “I can’t even get a word in with you anymore so what’s the point?” “Maybe you would if you would just listen to me sometimes rather than try to turn any conversation into a snogging session!” I said with a huff. “Oh, don’t act like you ever minded it.” “Well, I do now.” “Just like how all of a sudden everything I do is wrong?” “Yeah, just like that.” He shook his head, and I crossed my arms. He was finally getting the picture. “Well I don’t know what you want me to do any more.” He turned to leave again but I wasn’t quite done. “Maybe you would if you would get to know me. I feel like you don’t understand anything; all those long winded talks about absolutely nothing, it drives me mad!” He stopped, “Understand? Of course I don’t understand; there’s so many secrets you keep from me every day and I’ve finally realized you have no intention on sharing them with me.” I was taken back: he was right. But there was nothing I could do about that. “There’s a lot of things you don’t know, sure, but that doesn’t mean you can’t listen when I want to talk.” “That’s not fair at all.” “Well then, maybe we should just end it and be done with it!” “If that’s what you want then fine. I don’t care!” Though I was furious, each word hit me like a block of ice. He didn’t care. Maybe he never had. Our relationship was all chemical and generic; it was artificial from the start. We didn’t have a real connection, so naturally he wouldn’t care if it all broke apart. He seemed to notice the depth of his words and he stepped forward guiltily. “I didn’t mean- Ginny, I…” “It’s ok because you’re right. I’m too much trouble to care. All the drama with my family, my involvement in the war, the secrets- everything. It’s not worth it. I’m not worth it.” I said. We stared at each other silently. The only other sound in the room was coming from Lavender’s shrieks. “It’s Harry, isn’t it?” It became so clear so fast. Who else would I be able to open up to without worrying about revealing too much information? Who else wouldn’t be afraid to stand up to me and treat me as an equal? Who else would understand me when I let them know what Tom put me through? Who already did? “It’s always been Harry,” I whispered, knowing there was no point in lying. Confessing the truth aloud was both terrifying and exhilarating. He nodded solemnly, “I just hope you can be happy, really.” “I know. And Dean you really are a great guy it’s just-” “Not right for you.” I nodded. “Ok…well, I guess…goodbye, Ginny.” “Bye Dean.” Though the break up with Dean was harder than the one with Michael, I was genuinely ok with it. The only times I missed having him was when I would walk the hallways alone with no one there holding my hand. But it didn’t take long for that to change. Katie and Ron’s return to Quidditch put the team in great spirits. We were unanimously glad to see McLaggen go. Harry was in a specifically cheery mood, constantly laughing at every joke I made and taking liberties he hadn’t before. He began eating meals with me and offering to help me study for my OWLs. He was more so distracted during practices, apparently he spent a lot of time observing his redheaded chaser. Although I tried, it was hard not to attribute the change in demeanor to my recent change of relationship status. “So what are you going to do about Mr. Potter over there?” Katie zoomed up to me in the middle of one of our practices. “What do you mean?” “I mean, if he continues like this, we might not have a functioning captain by the end of the week,” she said with a smirk and a nod over to Harry, who at the moment had the beaters running drills. He seemed so determined so focused, and yet the smile on his face just showed how content he was with our progress and well… everything. Other than his mysterious lessons with Dumbledore every so often it seemed things were getting back on track, more than could be said for us in years. I wouldn’t have been surprised if Katie could hear my heart pounding as I watched him. “And what could I possibly do about that?” I asked her. Katie’s smirk went from slight to full blown. “Hmmm… I don’t know…maybe just snog him senseless and give him back his sanity.” “What!?” I swerved on my broomstick a bit in surprise. Snogging him senseless was just what I was thinking and being called out on it was completely unexpected. “Oh please, Weasley. It’s me. Katie: Fred and George’s best friend, the one who knows all about your history with a certain infatuation on a green-eyed-boy?” she laughed when I blushed. “Ginny, come on don’t you remember your first years here? You admitted to me, begrudgingly might I add, that you wanted two things. To be chaser on the Gryffindor team and Harry Potter.” “Begrudgingly? Bell, you practically forced it out of me. I still, what does that have to do with our captain and his recent Quidditch fumbles?” I knew perfectly well what she meant but playing dumb was the safest choice. “Ginny, you know if you act now you can have both of the things you always wanted? You’re one of my closest friends and if I have to push you towards him I will.” “Katie, I have no idea what to say to that.” “How about the-” “HEY! I’M MISSING TWO THIRDS OF MY CHASERS!” We both looked up to see Harry making his way over to us. “What’s going on here? Gossiping during practice? I thought better of you two.” “Sorry, major news in the world of females,” said Katie with a saucy wink. Harry rolled his eyes, “Let’s get back to work, alright?” “Of course, Captain Obvious.” And with that last remark she accelerated past us causing enough wind to practically knock me off my broom. “Bloody-” was all Harry said before he caught my elbow to balance me. I tried to ignore the tingle it sent up my arm but it was more difficult than it should have been. I pulled my arm away. “I can keep my own on a broom thank you very much.” “Obviously, if not you wouldn’t be on the team,” he said matter-of-factly. “I wasn’t about to fall off,” I lied. “And I wasn’t about to let you fall.” He shot back acknowledging my lie. “Of course not, it’s part of your hero complex.” “Hermione’s got you convinced of that too?” “Nah,” I whispered as though everyone could have heard us. “I’ve known about it for years; I witnessed it first-hand remember?” He leaned in, “How could I forget?” “You do sometimes.” “Yeah but not anymore.” “Really?” “Really.” His smile was just so contagious; it created the most attractive little wrinkle just below his eyes that you could only see from close up. I couldn’t help but give him a dazzling smile back. “So what was Katie going on about?” “No idea.” “You’re lying.” “Don’t you know it?” And I left him sitting there in midair and went to join Demelza and Katie. Harry acted like a boy who liked a girl. I knew that I was that girl. I sensed it, I felt his heazy gazes, his nervous energy, the…. chemical attraction. But he was not acting upon any of the feelings I was sure, and Hermione was positively sure about. It had a to happen a few times before I realized what was going on. Whenever Ron interrupted a conversation or a moment of privacy Harry and I had, Harry would nearly jump out of his skin and move away. Harry was worrying about my brother‘s reaction: what would Ron think if his best mate started seeing his little sister? Ron seemed oblivious to Harry and me becoming closer and neither of them would ever get the courage to talk to each other about it if he had noticed. I knew and understood that Harry valued Ron’s opinion more than anyone else’s. So I was stuck. And suddenly, I wanted Harry Potter more than I ever wanted him before. Hermione and I were in the Common Room when Ron told us something was happening with Harry. “He was covered in blood! Again! He ran up to me telling me to give him my potions book! I didn’t know what to do! I just gave it to him.” Ron looked down. “I think he’s in trouble.” “Well that wouldn’t be out of the ordinary,” I muttered. Hermione slammed her book shut, “I bet it has something to do with the Half Blood Prince. I keep telling him-” “Who’s the Half Blood Prince?” I asked. “The owner of his potions book, well the original anyway, the Half Blood Prince wrote all over that book- footnotes, really- and Harry has been following each one to the letter. That’s how he’s been doing so well in class! But he doesn’t even know who it is! I just think it’s wrong, it doesn’t feel right.” I sat, frozen in shock and disbelief. What Hermione said couldn’t have been true. But then I was sent back to the night I found Harry in the common room reading his potions book, the same night I convinced myself I was over him. I had seen the writing of the Half Blood Prince; she was telling the truth. We waited for Harry to return from wherever he was. And when he did, it was just as bad as we had expected. He sat with his head in his hands as he told us the tale of how he almost murdered Draco Malfoy in the bathroom using one of the spells in the footnotes of his potions book. Draco wasn’t doing anything other than crying to moaning Myrtle about the task he’d mentioned to Snape. We still had no idea what the task was, we didn’t know if Malfoy was guilty for something, we knew nothing and now it seemed harry had nearly killed him. Granted, Malfoy drew the first spell and was going to use an unforgivable but… Harry said he had no idea what the spell was going to do before he used it. Ron had gone pale while Hermione sat visibly fuming. I just couldn’t find any words. Snape arrived in time to nurse Draco back from what sounded like the brink of death. Harry would serve his sentence of detention with Snape, and we all knew that it could have been a lot worse. Harry was ashamed of what he had done, but was still defending the Half Blood Prince. Hermione was yelling and Harry was yelling back and I had such a bad headache I needed them to stop. “Give it a rest Hermione! By the sound of it Malfoy was trying to use an unforgivable curse, you should be glad Harry had something good up his sleeve!” I snapped. “Well of course I’m glad that he wasn’t cursed!” she said, “But you can’t call that Sectumsempra spell good, Ginny, look where it’s landed him! And I’d thought, seeing what this has done to your chances in the match-” I interrupted her, “Oh don’t act like you understand Quidditch, you’ll only embarrass yourself.” There was deafening silence for the reminder of the evening. The next morning after breakfast, Harry called an emergency team meeting to inform the team of the bad news. “So seeing that I have detention with Snape for the remainder of term…Ginny will be playing seeker for the Cup Final.” Harry was met with shouts of outrage and disappointment, and he looked about as bashful as you’d expect. “It’s the only way I can think of to fix an impossible situation!” I looked away from him, I was still so beyond angry that I could hardly stand to look at him. “I know mate, but you’ve got to see it from our point of view,” I heard Ron say. “What’s the point in having a start seeker if he can’t play in the most important game of the season?” “Ginny is just as good as I am! She’s got a record for the catching the snitch for Gryffindor too!” “But-” “No buts, I’m the captain and I have to make the decision. There’s nothing to be done. I know you guys will win on Saturday; I have no doubts about it.” “What did you do, Harry? Detention with Snape until the end of term? That’s hardly fair for back talk in class,” Katie asked. “It doesn’t matter, alright? Ginny plays seeker, Dean returns as chaser, that’s that. She’s going to catch the snitch. Right, Ginny?” I continued to stare at an ant crawling its way over a rock. “Um… I guess, that’s it then. Everyone better get to class.” The team marched past him without another word. I followed. “Gin!” I didn’t turn around but he persisted. Harry caught my elbow and turned me around. I pulled my arm away. “Listen, I’m sorry; I know I let the team down, but I want to thank you for standing up for me to Hermione last night.” “Trust me, that was more for my benefit than for yours.” “Look I know I made a stupid mistake but I know that you’re going to catch the Snitch I know we’re going to win the Cup-” “You really don’t get it Harry? Still? I know I’m going to catch the snitch I know we’re going to win and if we don’t, well then we don’t! This isn’t to do with Quidditch!” “What?” “Not playing on Saturday, letting the team down, that’s not the problem here. The problem is that you can’t see what you’ve done all year. Running around taking orders from a book, hanging on to its every word, a book that you just happened to come by. Treating it like a friend and defending it when it gets you into trouble. I thought maybe you of all people would know better.” He was speechless, naturally, but I didn’t care. Even though he’d promised he always forgot what I went through. I stood there for a moment. “You’re right, but Ginny you have to understand me, the Prince didn’t do anything wrong!” I sighed. “Harry if you’re waiting for me to say, it’s alright, go back and find that book that you hid from Snape, and trust it again, I can’t, I won’t. Harry please listen to me; never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain.” He nodded slowly, “I guess you’re right. I’ll leave it hidden where it is now, seeing as Snape suspects something. But I can’t promise I won’t retrieve it when my grades start slipping.” “Just don’t- don’t trust it okay? Be careful, please, if you value me and my experience at all, please trust me.” “Ginny, if the Prince starts speaking to me you’ll be the first person I run to. I’m sorry.” “Whoever this Half-Blood Prince is, he can’t have been a good person.” “He’s just smart, Ginny, he was good at potions and-” “Tom was smart too.” Harry looked away. “Yeah. Yeah he was.” “If you go back to that book… keep it away from me, alright?” He turned back to my eyes, “Then maybe I won’t go back for it. I don’t want any reason to be away from you.” “Okay.” “Mind if I walk with you to class? Or are you too upset with me?” “I suppose I can think of worse company.” When the final Quidditch match finally came, there was no doubt Harry was reluctant to walk away from us to head to Snape’s office. I felt bad for him, but I was more nervous about playing seeker. I hadn’t played seeker for Gryffindor in over a year. We were up against Ravenclaw and I was playing opposite Cho Chang. The team wasn’t looking all too excited in the changing rooms; the nerves were getting to us. A lot rested on our shoulders, without a captain and original seeker the game was going to be hell. We knew that from experience. No one really spoke in the few moments before it started; I just smiled encouragingly at my brother who seemed about ready to show us his breakfast. The moment the Quaffle left Madam Hooch’s hand, I was air born. The adrenaline ignited my energy. I played smart and calm, taking my time to watch for the snitch, also watching the chasers and deciding how many points I was going to bargain before I caught it. Cho, as I couldn’t help but notice, was zooming around frantically like that little house elf Dobby when Harry didn’t have anything for him to do. The score was close. We made a goal and Ravenclaw would follow immediately. I knew we needed over 200 points to win the cup, Ravenclaw needed much less, so I began to sweat. I knew had to wait, but I couldn’t help notice that forty-five minutes into the game, I hadn’t caught a glance of the snitch. Ron was doing well; he saved 4 out of 5 of the balls and was paying more attention to the game than the people in the stands. Dean and Demelza were actually a great pair; they had the quaffle moving at blazing speeds. And gratefully, there had yet to be any injuries. It had been an hour when one of the beaters on the other team was sent to the hospital wing with a broken limb. “And back to the game,” Smith was commentating again, unfortunately. “120 to 90, Ravenclaw, seems like Potter ruined the team’s chances landing himself in detention. Taking Weasley off her post of chaser isn’t doing any good either. Just then the snitch showed up, swirling around me before taking a quick plunge. It took a few minutes for Cho to catch on but by then I knew I was going to get it, I had to. She came up on my right, her blue blur of a robe against my red one. Don’t ask me why, to this day I still don’t know what made me do it, what made me break out of my concentration, but I turned my head to look at her. She was pretty, I give her that, pretty enough to catch Michael’s attention, and Cedric Diggory’s and even Harry. But that was it. This girl who I was so envious of for a few years, she didn’t go to the Department of Mysteries, Harry had never told her about the Order of the Phoenix or that his Godfather was a framed mass murderer on the run. She knew nothing, like Michael… like Dean. She didn’t have enough in her to keep Harry interested that’s why it was easy for him to walk away. He didn’t have time to dry her tears. She met my eyes, we were shoulder to shoulder going over 65 miles an hour 150 feet in the air, but all I noticed at that moment was the fact that I didn’t hate Cho Chang. As much as I thought I did, I didn’t, I pitied her. She gave me an incredulous look and focused in front of her again, but it was too late, my hand had clasped around the ball. The next few moments were a blur, I probably couldn’t remember them if I tried, but I do remember Ron lifting up my hand that was still holding the snitch and yelling, “FOR HARRY!!!” the crowd around us went wild. The party in the common room was really out of hand, but incredibly fun. Music, banners and confetti, chorus’ of Weasley is our King went around, from what I heard it had been lengthened to add a verse of Weasley is our Queen. Everyone was overjoyed at winning the cup again, but I was only waiting for Harry to show. He deserved to be there, but no doubt Snape was keeping him longer on purpose. “Too bad Harry isn’t here,” said Anarise, a girl from the year below me. “Uh... Yeah, but I know he’ll be here any moment.” I stood on the tips of my toes in the crowded room to search for Hermione or Demelza but all I saw were the heads of Dean and Seamus. “Hi Ginny,” Dean said softly, warily. “You did great today.” “Thanks Dean. So did you.” There was a moment of awkward silence as we watch the party around us. “So Ginny, on the subject of Harry, you have to tell me some stories. You practically live with him there has to be something juicy you can tell us about.” No doubt she was taking a page from Romilda’s book, sure enough, Miss. Vane -no pun intended- herself was standing by the window watching us with a glass of pumpkin juice. A prominent smirk on her face. Anarise was waiting on me for an answer though that was the last thing I wanted to do. Dean let out a strained uncomfortable cough. “Well…I don’t-” “Is he seeing anyone?” she interrupted me. “You must at least know if he fancies someone.” I knew for a fact that Anarise was a very devoted fan of Harry’s; I figured it didn’t take long for Romilda to convince her to get some information out of me. Her blue eyes watched me excitedly, as I struggled with the awkward conversation. Why of all times did she have to carry out this plot in front of my ex- boyfriend. I had the urge to grab her butterbeer and pour it all down her front. When I didn’t answer Dean turn towards me with hurt eyes, “Harry’s my roommate, he would have told me if he’s seeing someone,” he said, partly to me, partly to the girl standing beside me. “That’s because he isn’t.” I said nonchalantly, taking a sip of my drink. She smiled, “Oh good! I would just be a shame if a catch like him is taken.” “By someone other than yourself you mean.” I muttered under my breath praying for something, someone to get out of there. Dean heard what I said, but didn’t comment he nearly smiled half-heartedly. “I mean, Harry Potter! The Chosen One, Ginny you’re so lucky you know him so well, aren’t you both extremely close? I wish I had that kind of relationship with him. Hey you never know, if he’s single then…” I bit my lip and held my cup tighter, if I had opened my mouth it wouldn’t have been nice, I mean Harry wasn’t mine, it wasn’t like I had the right to be mad at her for saying such a thing, but it irked me extremely. Dean noticed and said, surprisingly, “I wouldn’t get my hopes up; I know Harry’s type.” Her face fell at his words, but I was looking at Dean he gave me a look that said it all, I turned away blushing. Thankfully, I found a way to get out of that mess. As I looked up Ron was pulling Harry into the center of the party. He was positively beaming. “Excuse me.” I pushed past the girl and the crowd of screaming people who were currently worshipping our captain, and rushed to him. It was so long ago but I so clearly remember being so happy to see him, and I remember the smile he gave me when he turned me way. I threw my arms around his neck when I reached him and hugged the life out of him. I remember thinking that Quidditch was something so special, that it could really make us forget all about the ugliness outside the castle…and that was my last thought before he kissed me. Out of nowhere, in front of fifty people, Harry Potter kissed me, Ginny Weasley. And people thought it would never happen. It was amazing, everyone, everything faded away and we entered our own world where Voldemort didn’t matter, the war didn’t matter, my brothers didn’t matter only each other. It wasn’t like kissing Michael or Dean, there was something more, special. Maybe because I knew I had fallen in love with him, or maybe it was how his hand on my neck was sending goose bumps down my spine, or how I fit so well into his body. My heart slowed, my head spun, it was pure bliss. No. It was magic. I wasn’t sure how long it was but at some point, I pulled away and stared into his chest, wondering if that really had just happened. There were whistles and a few giggles that broke out in the otherwise dead-silent room. Hermione to my right was grinning like a fool and Ron just seemed rooted to the spot. I almost laughed when I caught that expression on his face again, the one he gave me when he was really considering something, when he was trying to put together a puzzle in his head that he just couldn’t quite see. A puzzle that had just finally been put together. Harry must have seen it too, I guessed the only person he would care about right then was Ron. I looked up and met his eyes, almost dazed. I had never seen him look so happy. I like I said before, back when I told you about the summer I met Sirius, this was the first time I had ever seen him completely happy. This was the moment I was referring to: The first time he ever kissed me. I was almost sure I was dreaming, but then he nodded to the door and I smiled. We walked out of the common room, leaving everyone still speechless in our way. I made sure not to miss Romilda’s face. |
| Reviews 136 |
Previous Next
|
