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Another Piece of His Heart | ||||
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Category: Post-OotP Characters:Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley Genres: Fluff Warnings: None Story is Complete Rating: PG Reviews: 14 Summary: Ron and Ginny find Harry and Hermione kissing in an empty classroom. Hitcount: Story Total: 4748 |
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Another Piece of His Heart All characters are the property of J. K. Rowling. No money is being made on this story and no infringement of copyright is intended. Author’s Note: This story was written for the 2005 Summer Challenge, but ended up well over the word limit. It follows canon through “The Order of the Phoenix” but not necessarily for “The Half-Blood Prince”. The gasp brought them out of their clinch. Hermione’s lips left his and, still holding onto Harry, she turned her rapturous gaze towards the pair in the doorway. “Ron! Ginny! You’ll never guess what Harry…” “Hermione,” croaked Ron, “you were kissing Harry.” “Yes,” Hermione responded blissfully, apparently unaware of the stunned expressions on Ron and Ginny’s faces. “Oh, Ron, it’s really the greatest…” “You were kissing Harry,” Ron repeated, somewhat louder. Hermione looked puzzled. “Well, yes, but just listen…” “You were kissing Harry!” Ron yelled. Hermione frowned. “Really, Ron, if you just let me explain…” “YOU WERE KISSING HARRY! HOW COULD YOU! AND YOU!” Ron rounded on Harry, “I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY MATE! SOME MATE YOU ARE!” “THAT’S ENOUGH!” shouted Hermione. “WHAT BUSINESS IS IT OF YOURS WHO I KISS, RONALD WEASLEY? WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO YELL AT US LIKE THAT?” “Hermione,” Ron looked wounded, “I thought you and me, we…” “We? What ‘we’? There has never been a ‘we’ because you’re too stupid to even notice I’m a girl! And now, suddenly, you’re telling me who I can and can’t kiss! Well, I’ll tell you, Ron…” Harry, realizing that the situation was rapidly spinning out of control, grabbed Hermione’s shoulder, stopping her in mid-rant. “Hermione, just tell him.” She turned and glared at him. “Please? I don’t want my two best friends not talking to each other over a stupid misunderstanding.” Hermione continued to glare at him. “Please?” “Oh, very well; although if Ron is going to be this stupid, I don’t see why you…” “Hermione, just tell him.” “Fine!” she huffed. She turned to Ron. “It isn’t like that at all, Ron. Harry had the greatest news and I was so excited…” Harry slipped out of the room, confident that things would go better without him, and he needed to find Ginny. He wasn’t sure at what point she had left, only that she was gone and he’d better find her and explain. He hoped she hadn’t gone up to the girls dormitory, since he couldn’t follow her up there. However, as he entered the Gryffindor common room, he spotted her in one of the armchairs in front of the fire. He walked over and stopped in front of her. She glanced up indifferently at him, then returned her gaze to the fire. “Ginny, it wasn’t what you think.” She didn’t bother to even glance at him. “It’s not like that.” This time, she looked up with the same air of indifference. “Not like what, Harry?” “Well,” Harry found himself at a loss for the right words to explain. “It wasn’t you snogging the girl my brother loves behind his back? ‘Cause that’s what it looked like.” “It wasn’t like that, Ginny. I… well, what happened was…” Ginny went back to gazing into the fire. “Oh, save your excuses, Harry. I don’t care who you snog,” she told him in a cool, indifferent voice. Harry felt his temper start to rise. He pushed it back down. Ginny looked back up at him. “But you should at least have the courtesy not to go behind Ron’s back. He shouldn’t have to find out that way.” “Is that what you think of me?” hissed Harry. Ginny shrugged and shifted to gaze back to the fire. “Fine.” Harry turned to stomp away and realized he couldn’t yet. There was something he had to tell her, whether he wanted to or not. He turned back to Ginny and swallowed to clear his throat. “Professor McGonagall has agreed to teach us to become animagi.” Ginny looked up at him, her eyes widening. It was hard to force out the next words, but he did it. “You too.” “Oh. Harry, is that why…” But he had walked away. He grabbed his book bag from where he had left it before going to McGonagall’s office and headed for the table furthest from the fire. He sat down and started to work on his Divination homework. It wasn’t due for a week and he had a Potions assignment due in two days, but he knew he couldn’t concentrate on that. Coming up with predictions of horrible things that were going to happen to him; that he thought he could manage. He heard her tentative footsteps and could feel her presence behind him. He didn’t turn around. “Harry, I’m sorry. I should have known…” “If you don’t mind,” he interrupted rudely, “I’m trying to do my homework.” He tensed, waiting for the explosion, wanting it. It would give him an excuse to yell, to let his anger fill up the hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach. But nothing happened. Finally, he couldn’t stand the tension any longer and he looked over his shoulder. He saw Ginny, shoulders slumped in defeat, walking away. The hollowness in the pit of his stomach seemed to get a bit larger. It was at least a half an hour later that Ron and Hermione came through the portrait hole, holding hands. They both looked a little flushed and they kept glancing at the other and then looking away, as if afraid to believe what had happened. Both were wearing identical smiles of happiness. Lavender whooped when she saw them. “About time, you two!” She rushed over to them, quickly followed by Parvati and a couple of fifth year girls, demanding to hear all the details. Harry caught a glimpse of Ron’s expression through the giggling, gossiping girls. Any other time, he would have found it funny. Now, it just added to his anger. Right now, the thought of anyone being happy made him feel slightly ill. Eventually, the other girls got tired of Hermione’s circumspect answers and went back to what they were doing. Ron and Hermione sat down next to Harry. He didn’t look up. Hermione poked Ron with her elbow. Ron gulped and then said in a rush, “I’m sorry, Harry. I should have known you wouldn’t go behind my back.” Still not looking up, Harry said, coldly, “Yes, you should have.” “Look, mate, I know I was in the wrong. It was just that… I was afraid I had missed my chance with Hermione. I… I knew I couldn’t compete with you.” Harry looked up at that. “You didn’t need to compete with me, or anyone else. You just needed to tell Hermione how you felt.” He looked at Hermione. “I take it he did?” Hermione nodded as a huge smile spread over her face. “Did he make a mess of it?” She nodded again, her smile growing even larger. “Good.” Harry tried to go back to his homework, but Ron interrupted. “So you’re not still mad at me?” Harry sighed. “No, Ron, I’m not mad at you.” “Did you tell Ginny?” Hermione asked. Harry nodded and went back to his homework. “Well?” Harry did not look up. “Well what, Hermione?” “What did she say?” Harry shrugged. “You’ll have to ask her.” “Harry,” Hermione asked tentatively, “did you two fight?” Harry looked her in the eyes. “Leave it, Hermione,” he told her coldly. He turned his attention back to his homework. He heard them get up and move away. Good. He wanted to be alone; he didn’t need any of them. But the hollowness in the pit of his stomach grew larger, then larger still as he heard them talking with Ginny. He wondered if it would keep growing until it encompassed him entirely and if, when that happened, he would feel nothing at all. He thought he might like that. ***** “I want you all to understand,” Professor McGonagall told the four of them, “that this is very advanced magic. Few seventh years can manage it. I would not normally teach it to sixth years, but circumstances are far from normal. Two of you have shown an aptitude for difficult spells. I am afraid that you, Mr. Weasley, may have more difficulty but I believe that, if you apply yourself, you can master the transformation.” Ron straightened up and nodded, determination writ large on his face. “I would normally never consider teaching this to a fifth year, Miss Weasley, but I have been assured,” her glance drifted to Harry, “that you are up to it.” Harry felt Ginny’s gaze on him, but he ignored it. He had had considerable practice over the past week and was finding it easier and easier to feel nothing. He kept his attention focused on McGonagall’s voice and took copious notes. Hermione, he thought distantly, would be pleased. Harry stood when McGonagall dismissed them. He caught a glimpse of a pale-faced Ginny as she left the room; spine straight, shoulders back, her face closed but composed. Then Hermione grabbed his arm. “Harry, she’s really unhappy. She wants to apologize, if you would just let her.” Harry shrugged. “What’s the point? It won’t change the fact she thought I would actually do that to Ron.” “You forgave me, mate,” Ron pointed out. “Yeah, well, I pretty much had to, didn’t I?” Harry countered nastily. “Since Hermione had already forgiven you.” “So it doesn’t matter that you’re making Ginny miserable?” Hermione asked. “She’ll get over it.” Hermione’s eyes narrowed. “Yes, Harry, she will; but will you? I don’t like what this is doing to you.” “Leave it, Hermione.” “Leave you to wallow in your misery and… and self-pity?” It was as if she had ripped the scab off a wound and the hollowness inside, which had been growing all week, filled with anger. “Who says I’m miserable?” “Anyone with eyes, Harry.” “I… you…” Harry was ready to blast her with his anger, if only he could find the right words. But they wouldn’t come; Hermione wasn’t the one he was mad at. “Just leave me alone!” He turned and fled. He ran through the castle until he was out of breath. Propping himself against a wall as he gasped, he realized he was near the library. That would make a good excuse, he thought, I’ll tell them I went to the library to review my notes. He took a few more breaths, then straightened and marched into the library. He found an empty table in a secluded corner and sat down. A boy and a girl — both Ravenclaws, he thought — looked around the corner of a bookcase and he glared at them. They disappeared, looking for some other secluded place to do couple-type things. Harry settled in to pretend to study. He was distracted by some girls talking on the other side of the bookcase. He paid no attention until he heard one say, “Come on, Ginny, it can’t be that bad.” “Rose, I said mean and spiteful things. I don’t blame Harry for not forgiving me.” “I don’t know why you care,” another voice said. “Sure, he’s cute and there’s that whole ‘boy-who-lived’ thing, but he seems like a real grouch. He’s always getting mad at somebody or other and if your last name isn’t Granger or Weasley, he doesn’t even know you exist. Well, there was Cho, but that didn’t last long, did it?” “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ginny replied fiercely. “You don’t know what he’s been through, what he has to put up with, including silly girls swooning over him because of what happened when he was a baby.” “Are you sure you’re over him?,” asked Rose. Ginny didn’t reply. “Well, I wouldn’t worry. Sooner or later Malfoy will do something to make him mad and he’ll forget he’s mad at you.” Silence. “Let’s go, Rose. I don’t think she wants to be cheered up.” Harry seethed. For some reason, Ginny defending him had reignited his anger. He tried to divert himself by opening his Charms book, but then he slammed it down and stood up. He stalked around the bookcase to find Ginny sitting all alone at her table, sucking on a sugar quill. He dropped into the chair opposite her. She looked shocked to see him. “Harry! Look, I’m sor…” “How could you think that of me?” he demanded. “Harry, I’m sorry…” “I thought you knew me!” “Shhh! Madame Pince!” “I thought I knew you.” Ginny started to look cross. “I’m sorry, alright? I lost my temper and said things I didn’t mean. I’m sorry.” Harry calmed a little at that. He knew about saying things you didn’t mean. But he wasn’t going to let her off the hook that easy. “Why?” “Why what?” “Why did you lose your temper? I understand why Ron did, but why did you get so mad? I thought you knew me better than to think I would do such a thing.” Ginny ran her fingers through her fiery mane. “I… what do you care? What do you care what a stupid, silly, little girl thinks?” Harry blinked. He knew he had never called her that, but somehow it sounded familiar. He opened his mouth to reply and then it hit him. Tom Riddle, calling Ginny those names in the Chamber of Secrets. He froze, his mouth hanging open as the realization washed over her. “Ginny, no! I would never… that’s not… you’re not like that. I would never call you that.” Ginny smiled bitterly. “No, you wouldn’t. You’ve always been kind to me. Well, maybe not the night we went to the Department of Mysteries; but you were right. I was useless; worse than useless. You had to protect me from Bellatrix Lestrange and then I broke my ankle and Luna had to help me, as well as keep off the Death Eaters.” She laughed mirthlessly. “She was amazing, Harry, and I… you would have all done better if I had stayed at Hogwarts.” “No, Ginny, that’s not true. We were, all of us, lucky to survive. So you had the bad luck to break your ankle; Neville got his nose broken and couldn’t say a spell properly. But you both so brave and I nearly got you all killed with my stupidity.” “How did this suddenly become about you?” “Sorry. But I never did apologize for almost getting you killed, did I? I am sorry.” “Don’t be stupid, Harry, I forced you to take me along. If I had gotten myself killed, it would have been my own stupid fault.” “Well, I’m glad you didn’t.” “So am I. Sugar quill?” Harry looked at the sugar quill she was holding out to him. “Thanks.” They sat there for a moment, sucking on their sugar quills. “So why were you so angry at me?” Harry asked without heat. Ginny blushed slightly. “You’re not going to leave me any dignity, are you?” “If you don’t want to tell me…” “No, you deserve a truthful answer.” She sighed. “I wasn’t so much mad at you as I was mad at me. You forced me to realize I had been lying to myself; and to Dean, too. And I was jealous of Hermione.” Harry blinked. “But you told Hermione that you were over your crush on me.” Ginny looked into his eyes. “I am. This is not just a crush, Harry. I could deal with it if it were.” She smiled sadly. “I have experience at that.” “But… I… Ginny…” She put a finger against his mouth. “Shhh. I don’t expect you to love me back, Harry; I don’t expect you to do anything at all. But I couldn’t lie to you about it; that wouldn’t be right.” Love. No one had ever told him they loved him. How did he feel about her? That was not something he had ever considered before. He thought about it now. He remembered the first time he saw her, on Platform 9¾, and how she ran after the train, crying and laughing at the same time, waving. He remembered his first visit to the Burrow and how she put her elbow in the butter dish. But mostly, he remembered the Chamber of Secrets. The moment he first saw her there, and thought she was dead, was one of the worst moments of his life; just as the moment she awoke was one of the happiest. When he thought of her, that was what he remembered; in his mind, she was always that 11-year old girl. Because, he realized, no matter how many stupid things he did, no matter how many mistakes he made, that image reminded him that one time he did something very right. That girl owned a corner of his heart. But trying to keep her always eleven, even just in his mind, was not fair. Ginny had grown and matured. He looked at her, really looked, for the first time. When had she gotten so pretty? He thought over this past year, to all the times she had helped him, even (or maybe especially) when he wouldn’t admit he needed help. Never intimidated by his temper; never asking anything in return. He looked into her eyes and saw the pain and sadness. He would do almost anything to erase it. Almost anything. He could not lie to her; he could not tell her he loved her too. That wouldn’t be right; and, in the end, the lie would break two hearts. Instead, he said the first thing that came to him. “You’re not going to stop talking to me, are you? I’d really miss it if you did.” He almost groaned aloud at the inanity. But a little bit of the pain was replaced by amusement as Ginny said, “No, Harry, I’m not going to stop talking to you.” “Good.” He thought for a moment. “So what animal do you think you’ll be?” Ginny blinked. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it.” “Well, I think,” he stopped for a moment, then thought of that night in Grimmauld Place. Ginny, curled up like a cat in her chair, while they waited to hear whether Mr. Weasley would live or die. “I think you’ll be a cat.” Ginny looked pleased at the idea, but Harry wasn’t finished. “Not a house cat like Professor McGonagall. No, a…” he thought about lions and tigers, but neither seemed quite right. Then he had it. “…a panther.” Ginny’s eyes sparkled at this. “And what will you be?” she asked. “Maybe a baboon.” Ginny giggled at that. “No, I know: a rhinoceros. They’re short-sighted, just like me.” He raised his glasses and waggled his eyebrows at her. She grinned back. “That fits.” Harry didn’t think she was referring to his eye sight, but he didn’t care. She continued, “Or maybe you’ll be a warthog.” “Yuck. No, I got it. I’ll be a flobberworm.” They both laughed at that. For the next thirty minutes, Harry took it as his mission to make Ginny laugh. By the time Madam Pince threw them out for making too much noise, Harry could not see a shadow of sadness in her eyes. They didn’t talk as they walked up to Gryffindor Tower, but it seemed to Harry a comfortable silence. They sat next to each other at one of the tables in the common room. They didn’t talk as they worked on their homework, but twice Ginny passed Harry another sugar quill. Finally, she stood up and stretched. She looked at Harry, smiling shyly. “Thanks.” “I enjoyed it,” he told her. “Maybe we can do this again.” Ginny nodded. He watched as she climbed the stairs to the girls dormitory. Just because he wasn’t in love with Ginny, Harry thought, didn’t mean they couldn’t enjoy each other’s company. That thought satisfied him and he didn’t even notice that she carried away with her another piece of his heart. |
| Reviews 14 |
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