You Do Approve, Don’t You?

It was the final match of the Quidditch season, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. Ron soared around the goal posts as the Ravenclaw Chaser Su Li flew closer, a determined expression on her face.

Andrew Kirke, last year’s Gryffindor Beater, was commentating. “Li approaching the goalposts – can Weasley save it? No, Li drops the Quaffle, nice Beater work by Coote…Thomas takes the ball…passes to Bell….She scores! Two hundred and eighty to a hundred and thirty to Gryffindor!�

They were a hundred and fifty points up. If Ron could prevent the Ravenclaw team from scoring, and if the Gryffindor Chasers managed to score one more goal, and if Ginny could find the Snitch fast enough….Too many ifs.

“Hays takes the Quaffle, passes it to Markham – Peakes aims a Bludger at Markham but misses – �

Markham raised that Quaffle as though he was about the throw it into the goal – but then he quickly dropped it to Li, who shot out from below so fast that Ron had no time to react. The red ball soared past Ron’s gloved hands and into the hoop. Below, the Gryffindors groaned.

Cursing, Ron righted himself on his broom and swung around to face the pitch. Katie Bell had the Quaffle and was speeding towards the other end with Dean Thomas close behind her. Ron looked up; Ginny and Cho Chang were still circling the game from high above.

“Gryffindor scores!� Kirke shouted gleefully. “Two hundred ninety to one hundred forty!�

One more goal, Ron thought. Just one, please!

Markham had caught the Quaffle and was passing to his teammate Hays – when Demelza Robbins shot between them and seized the red ball, soaring back towards the goalposts.

“Go, Demelza!� Ron shouted.

“Albert circles the goalposts – but it’s a feint! Robbins scores! Three hundred points to one hundred and forty!�

Demelza punched the air before flying back across the pitch with a grin on her face. The Ravenclaw Beaters, Entwhistle and Norton, tried their best to keep the Gryffindors away from their Chasers, but to no avail; Katie and Demelza worked seamlessly together, and Dean kept cutting off the other teams players in midair.

Ginny, where are you? Ron thought furiously. The answer came in a moment.

“Weasley and Chang have gone into a dive!� Kirke said. “One of them has spotted the Snitch, at least!�

Ron scanned the air for any flash of gold. Ginny was just ahead of Cho, laying flat on her broom and speeding almost vertically downward. Then, suddenly, Ginny pulled out of her dive and veered to her right.

“Weasley changes course!� Kirke said in a surprised voice. “But what – �

Ginny’s arm shot out and seized something from the air. Then Ron saw it: the Golden Snitch was beating its wings futilely against her fingers.

It took a moment for the sight to sink in. Then…

“YES!� he shouted, speeding towards his sister.

“Gryffindor wins! The Quidditch Cup is theirs!�

Ron halted next to Ginny and pulled her into a hug just as the rest of the team flew over. Yelling themselves hoarse with joy, the tangle of arms that was the Gryffindor team sank slowly to the ground.

“We did it, Ron! We did it!� Ginny said, happy tears streaming from her eyes. “If only Harry was here…�

“He’ll be proud,� Ron said. But he too wished that Harry could be here – after all, it was Harry who had put together the team, who was the Captain. “We won!�

“Ron!�

He glanced behind to see Hermione sprinting towards him. “Oh, Ron, you did it! You won!� She threw her arms around his neck, and he hugged her back, spinning around a little. Suddenly he realized how close they were; he put Hermione down, but not before catching the smirk on his younger sister’s face.

“What?� he demanded.

Ginny shrugged, smiling innocently. “Nothing.�

The whole of Gryffindor House was flocked around the team, yelling and jumping with delight. They only cleared a path when Dumbledore came forward, carrying the silver Cup. He handed it to Katie Bell, the oldest member on the team, but she gave it to Ron.

“But – �

“You were the one who saved all those goals!� Katie shouted over the noise of the crowd. “Take it!�

And so, as Ron lifted the cup above his head, he was borne upward onto other students’ shoulders. The other team members were lifted aloft by their friends, and the tide of Gryffindors returned to the castle, still wild with happiness.

* * *

The celebration in the common room was so loud that Ron could barely hear himself think. Someone had managed to procure bottles of butterbeer for the party; Katie found seven bottles and handed one to each team member.

“Well – to a match well played!� she said, raising her bottle.

The rest of the team cheered before taking swigs, then they began to wander back to their friends.

“If only Harry was here,� Hermione said as he approached. “He did a good job putting the team together.�

“Yeah,� Ron replied. “That git Snape –�

“It’s over now, Ron, don’t get so worked up about it!�

“I am not getting worked up!�

“Oh – fine!� Hermione said. She glanced over Ron’s shoulder and waved. “Ginny!�

She gave Ginny a quick hug. “That was a really great catch, Ginny – �

“Yeah,� Ron said brightly. “See the look on Chang’s face? She couldn’t believe it!�

“She was tailing me the entire time!� Ginny said. “I don’t think she actually saw the Snitch…�

“You know what?� Ron mused. “I think Harry pulled that move once before. Never learn, do they?�

Ginny grinned before moving away to join her fifth-year friends. Ron and Hermione wandered over to where the Cup stood on the table, the afternoon sun gleaming off its silver surface.

“I still can’t believe we won it,� Ron said, putting his hand on the Cup. “I mean, three hundred points…�

A hush fell over the common room as the Fat Lady’s portrait began to swing open. Then, realizing who it must be, the Gryffindors exploded with cheers once more. The portrait hole opened to reveal a very tense-looking Harry, whose expression quickly changed to bewilderment to delight.

Ron seized the Cup and bounded towards his friend, brandishing the Cup in his face. “We won!� he yelled excitedly. “We won! Four hundred and fifty to a hundred and forty! We won!�

Harry’s mouth was slightly open in amazement. His gaze moved from Ron, who spotted Ginny running up to Harry. She threw her arms around Harry’s neck – Harry wrapped his arms around her tightly –

And quite suddenly, they were kissing.

It was as though someone had hit Ron over the head with the large silver Cup. He watched in shocked fascination as his younger sister and best friend kissed each other before his eyes, looking as though they did not care that anyone else was watching. Ron felt his mouth working soundlessly as he tried to make a sound – any sound that would distract the two of them. The kiss seemed to go on and on, but finally, they broke apart. Ron could not see Ginny’s expression, but Harry was looking around the room, seeking him out. His eyes finally met Ron’s.

Ron could not think of anything to say – and in any case, he felt that the most that would come out would be a strangled sound. What else was he to do? Wordlessly, he jerked his head in a nod.

Harry seemed to take this as a sign of approval, for he grinned back down at Ginny before leading her out of the portrait hole. Before she clambered out, Ginny turned to look at Ron and gave him a sheepish sort of smile. Harry followed her, and then the portrait hole fell shut behind him.

The room was silent for several moments, but suddenly several whispers sprang up, growing into excited murmurs before the noise in the common room became as loud as it had been before. Ron glanced to his right; Hermione was approaching him, a smirk playing about her lips.

He found his voice again. “What – what do they think they were doing?� he demanded.

Hermione put on a look of mock concentration. “Well, let’s see. I do believe they were kissing.�

“But – but – �

“Oh Ron, it was inevitable! It was going to happen sometime soon, they just needed the right moment!�

“You mean they were planning this?�

“No! But it was coming. Didn’t you see it?�

“But I thought – I thought that Ginny was already over Harry!� he spluttered.

Hermione shook her head. “Not really. She told me that she fancied him a long time ago, but she couldn’t even talk around him, remember? So I told her to loosen up a bit, to date a few other boys, maybe…�

“You’re the reason that she went out with Corner and Dean?�

Her cheeks flamed red. “No, I’m not! I didn’t play matchmaker, if that’s what you think. I just gave Ginny advice. She makes her own decisions.�

“Decisions that I don’t necessarily like!�

“Oh, Ron, when are you going to let her go? She may be your younger sister, but she can also think for herself!�

“Well, Harry didn’t tell me that he fancied her! And then he just goes and kisses her in front of me?

“Did you expect him to tell you?�

“Well – yeah!� Ron exclaimed. “He’s my best friend!�

“And Ginny’s your sister. How do you think Harry felt about asking you?�

“He could’ve done it any time.�

Hermione sighed exasperatedly. “No, he couldn’t have done. He was probably worried that you would – well, blow up in his face if he even tried.�

“What?�

“She’s your sister, Ron! Harry already saw how you acted when she started going out with Michael Corner, and he remembers what happened when you caught her with Dean in the corridor – �

“But – �

“He didn’t want to risk your friendship. But you didn’t notice anything about him at all?�

“And you did?�

“He was looking at Ginny every opportunity he got. There were other things, too – �

“Hermione, you know I’m no good with these kinds of things.�

She rolled her eyes. “Obviously. I was sure that you would catch on when I told Harry that she and Dean had broken up. Didn’t you see his reaction?�

“Er – �

“It was the same night you broke up with Lavender.�

“Well, I think I was paying more attention to the Charms class than I was to Harry…�

“Never mind, then. I suspected that Harry had fancied Ginny for months by then, but the way he reacted confirmed it.�

“And Ginny?�

“Well, she was much the same way. After she broke up with Dean, she told me that it was partly because their relationship had been rocky for a long while – �

“But she fancied Harry by then as well,� Ron finished.

Hermione beamed at him. “Exactly. She was a bit worried but – you do approve, don’t you?� she asked, watching him anxiously.

Ron paused for a minute. Did he approve? He had known, even in his second year at Hogwarts, that Ginny was very taken with Harry. He remembered secretly harboring thoughts that they might get together eventually – he even recalled hoping last year that they would finally go out together soon, seeing that Harry was finally over Cho. But no, his younger sister had decided to become Dean Thomas’s girlfriend….

And now they finally were together – they had shown it quite clearly in that kiss. Ron closed his eyes, trying to block out the image of Harry and Ginny entwined in each others arms, lips locked together –

And then another image played unbidden across his eyelids: himself with Hermione in that same place, not caring that all of the Gryffindor House was watching…

The heat rose in his face as he looked down at Hermione. “I – I guess I do,� he said shakily. She was watching him with a curious expression.

“Well then, that’s good. I’ll be sure to tell Ginny, but you’ll have to be the one to tell Harry.�

“But – why me?�

Hermione sighed. “He won’t believe it until he hears from you that it’s all right that he’s dating Ginny – and that your friendship is still intact. Now,� she said, pointing at his hand, “Why don’t you put the Cup back on the table where it belongs?�

* * *

The celebrations lasted until just before midnight, when Professor McGonagall came in and, with a barely suppressed smile, told them that they really ought to go to bed. Ron had spotted Harry and Ginny returning after dinner, but Hermione had hissed in his ear to leave them alone. He did, but not without occasionally shooting glances in their direction. They were talking to each other at quite some length, smiling and holding hands.

They were the last in the common room when everyone else went up to bed. Not wanting to witness another tender moment between them, Ron decided to head up the staircase and get ready for bed.

Harry followed not long afterward, opening the dormitory door with a large grin. His expression turned to one of slight trepidation when he caught Ron’s gaze.

“Er – Ron – �

“Harry, what were you and my sister doing?�

“I – �

“You do realize that I’m protective of her, don’t you?�

“Ron…�

“And that if you do anything to hurt her, I will personally kill you?�

“I wouldn’t do that!� Harry said, bewildered. “Look, Ron, you’re my best mate, and I know she’s your sister, but I felt really awkward even thinking about asking you if I could –�

“You won’t do anything that will get her hurt in any way?�

“No! What do you think of me?�

Ron smiled at his friend’s startled expression. “Mate – it’s okay. I don’t mind it that you fancy each other.�

The smile was slowly coming back into Harry’s face. “You don’t?�

Ron shook his head. “Nah. Better you than anyone else, I’d say. At least I know that you’re mostly normal,� he finished with a grin.

Harry threw a pillow at him, laughing. “So you approve?�

“Yes.�

They were silent for a few moments before Ron asked, “Harry – how long have you fancied her?�

Harry whirled around. “Why?�

“Hermione’s curious,� he said. Truthfully, he wanted to know if Hermione was as accurate as she seemed to be.

“Knowing Hermione, she has it figured out already.�

“Well…� Ron trailed off. “She still wants to know.�

Harry averted his eyes. “Ever since we caught her with Dean in that corridor.�

“That long?� Ron gasped.

“Yeah,� Harry said sheepishly. “And this afternoon – well, I thought that I’d been the one to kiss her, but she told me – �

Ron help up his hand. “Look, I don’t really need to know. But she does like you back?�

The grin on Harry’s face was all that he needed to see.

“Good. Just make sure that this isn’t another fiasco like your relationship with Cho,� he warned. “Or I will hunt you down, if Ginny doesn’t get to you first.�

“She really has a mind of her own, doesn’t she?� Harry said.

“Yeah,� Ron replied. “You know – I reckon it’s time I let her go. She’s not exactly the little sister I used to know anymore.�

They climbed into their four-posters. Before he twitched the hangings shut, Harry turned to look at Ron. “Mate?�

“Yeah?�

Harry smiled widely. “Thanks.� With that, he pulled the hangings around his bed shut.

Ron closed his own hangings and lay back. Harry and Ginny – who would have thought that it would ever happen? They had been like brother and sister for the past several years now; Ron himself had unsure if it would really happen. But happen it did, before his very eyes in the Gryffindor common room….Hermione was right, it was time to let Ginny make her own decisions without his hindrance. Not that it’s mattered before, he thought wryly.

Ginny was his sister, Harry his best friend. Nothing but good could come of their new relationship.

And Hermione…

Unbidden, the image of himself and Hermione flickered across his eyelids. Ron opened his eyes and sighed.

Another day.