The days following Harry’s birthday were filled by worries about the O.W.L results. By now they would be winging their way to the hundred or more students who had the misfortune to have sat them that May. Whenever Hermione wasn’t working herself up into a fury about the results she was shut away in the library, with her nose in several books. Whenever Harry asked her what she was up to she would just mumble something about research. One evening after dinner when Hermione rose from the table - much to Harry’s astonishment - Ron called after her, “Hermione would you mind if I came with you?”
“Are you sure? I’m just looking through books, it’s not very exciting,” Hermione looked a little bit surprised as well.
“Um-mm,” Ron mumbled with his mouth full with the last of his treacle pudding. Before Harry could ask if they would mind him joining them they were gone and the kitchen door was slowing drifting shut behind them. He looked across the table at Ginny who looked back at him equally mystified. Instead they helped Mrs. Weasley tidy up the aftermath of dinner and then settled themselves in the drawing room with a game of Exploding Snap. After five games (when Harry had beaten her three times) Ginny suggested that they changed to Wizard’s chess, largely because she knew that Harry didn’t have a hope of beating her, he came close once but being beaten at it four times did not sit well with him. They finished up and sat in contemplative silence for a minute. Now that they were not engrossed in the games Harry remembered the flip of his stomach from the morning after his birthday and blushed embarrassedly.
“Are you okay, Harry?” Ginny was now gazing at him with a look so reminiscent of her mother that she would probably have unleashed a torrent of abuse on him if he had voiced that opinion.
“I’m fine.” He was desperately trying to look anywhere but her face. “Just wondering what it is that Ron and Hermione are doing that would take them this long; they’ve been up there for hours.”
“Do you want to go and check on them? Maybe we can help with this research that Hermione is doing.”
“Good idea.” Harry led the way from the drawing room to the library, the whole way there he was acutely conscious of just how close Ginny was to him. So they trudged up the many staircases to the library where they found the door shut. Harry glanced back at Ginny whilst reaching for the door handle. Sat at the small mahogany table in the middle of the room were Ron and Hermione, there were several books lying open on the table in front of them but the books were long forgotten. Hermione’s hands lay on the table with Ron’s clasped over them. Their owners were leaning forward to grace a gentle kiss on each other’s lips.
Harry and Ginny stood rooted to the spot. They didn’t know whether to sneak back out or to announce their presence, however the decision was taken out of their hands. Crookshanks snuck in behind them and his loud purring alerted the two oblivious teenagers to the others in the room. They stood up completely startled and flummoxed,
“Harry! Ginny! I…we…well we were researching!” Hermione’s brain flung itself in to action trying to find some kind of excuse.
“Um…yeah,” Ron chipped in quickly after her.
“Well that’s interesting because I know I’m not a brilliant student or anything but I’ve done research before and it certainly didn’t look like that. Have I been doing it wrong?” He couldn’t help the enormous grin that spread across his face from ear to ear. Hermione was blinking and blushing furiously and Ron was staring at his feet as if wondering what on earth they were but his ears betrayed him, they weren’t even pink they were scarlet.
“So, what is it that you’ve been researching here? Apart from each others mouths that is,” he heard Ginny snorting beside him. Hermione seemed to recover herself somewhat at this.
“Well I’ve been looking at the accuracy of prophecies, trying to see if I can find out just how often they’re right,” she spoke quickly, it all came rushing out in one long breath.
“And how often are they right?” Harry felt he already knew what was coming from the expression that her face wore.
“Almost always, I’ve only been able to find two cases in recorded history where what was foreseen didn’t come true and in both of those cases there were only minor discrepancies.”
“Well, if it makes you feel any better I don’t feel anymore condemned than I did before. Thanks for trying to help though.” Harry knew that Hermione had been trying hard to find anything that could provide a glimmer of hope for him, but if she couldn’t find it then it wasn’t to be found. He appreciated that she’d tried so hard regardless, “What will be, will be.”
“How can you do that, Harry?” It was the shock and fear in Ginny’s voice that caught his attention the most. “You’ll either have to kill or be killed! How can you talk like it doesn’t matter all that much how it ends?”
“Because I can either spend the rest of my days dwelling on it, thinking about it everyday of my life and never actually get to enjoy what may or may not be left of it or I can put it to one side and get on with things and have fun and enjoy myself. Ellie said something to me the first night that I was back here, and I heard Dumbledore say it to Voldemort down in the Department of Mysteries. It was that there are fates worse than death, I didn’t really understand at first but I’ve been thinking about it a lot and it’s true.” He looked around at the shocked faces of his companions and continued. “Think about it, and think about Frank and Alice Longbottom, they’ve spent the last ten years down in St. Mungo’s they don’t have a clue who they are or all the things that they’ve done, they don’t even recognise their own son when he stands in front of them. They don’t know anything or anyone. How is that better than death? Think of Sirius, he hated this house yet he was trapped in here for months on end, left to go mad with nothing to do. But now, now he’s free and he can do whatever he wants. At least once you’re dead it’s all over, the pain goes away and you can be free.” Harry had lost himself in his words and was throwing his hands all around with the passion of his speech.
“But surely a life of any kind is better than no life at all?” Hermione looked at him with horror in her eyes.
“No, it’s not and that’s exactly my point Hermione. Would you rather I just sat in a dark corner sad and pathetic waiting for Voldemort to come and get me or would you rather that I got on with things and did the best I can to make sure I’m ready when he gets here? I want to make the best of my life.”
“ ‘Course we don’t want you sad and pathetic.” This was the first time that Ron had moved his eyes from his feet the entire time. “That’s why they all died, isn’t it? They wanted you to grow up happy and normal.” He fixed Harry with a look that was uncharacteristically piercing.
“Well at least we achieved something here today. It appears that Ron has finally found his brain.” Ginny folded her arms across her chest and glared at her brother. It was Harry’s turn to snort.
“We knew it was in there somewhere.” Harry allowed himself to laugh out loud until he caught the look that Hermione was giving him; he held his hands up in surrender.
“Promise me you won’t do anything stupid, Harry,” she told him in her best motherly voice.
“Me, since when did I do anything stupid? Unless of course you count dragging five other people into an almost life or death situation,” he flushed slightly with embarrassment.
“I wasn’t talking about that, I meant that you won’t go getting yourself killed for no reason. You’re not alone in this, Harry.”
“I have no intentions of getting myself killed, or anyone else for that matter. I promise to be a good little boy, to keep my nose clean and stay out of any and all trouble. Will that do for you, Mum?” He placed his hand across his heart and held his head up unnaturally high.
“Yes, it will, and don’t call me mum,” she scolded as she slapped him playfully across the arm.
“So, Ron, have you asked Hermione to be your girlfriend or is she just your snog buddy?” Harry thought that they had sufficiently recovered themselves to be asked questions relating to what they had been up to when they were disturbed. He was sure that he saw a small flare of fury in the back of Ron’s eyes.
“Shut up, Potter! For your information I was just about to when you marched in.” He positively sparkled with indignation.
“Terrible sorry there, WEASLEY, didn’t realise I had interrupted but when I MARCHED in you didn’t look fit to be asking anything!” Harry knew exactly what he was doing, Ron was just like an old wind up clock, and you had to wind him up so far before he did what he was supposed to.
“WELL I WAS!”
“Then there’s nothing to stop you right now is there, since you’re not trying to suck each others face off any more. Would you like Ginny and I to go away so you can have some privacy?” Harry was purely teasing and everyone in the room but Ron himself knew it too.
“No, you just stay right where you are!” He then turned to face Hermione and lowered his voice so that it was much gentler. “Hermione I…well…I really like you and I’d…well I’d be really chuffed if you’d be my girlfriend.” It was more of a statement than a question.
“I really like you to Ron and I’d like nothing more than to be your girlfriend,” Hermione smiled at him relieved that he’d finally come out and said what he’d been feeling. Ron wrapped his arms around her shoulders triumphantly and turned to glare at Harry with a face that said ‘Ha! I did it’.
“So what do you say to that, Harry?” For one terrible second Harry was reminded of Dudley, gloating away because he had something that Harry didn’t, fortunately it passed as suddenly as it had appeared.
“I say I’m really happy that you’ve finally come to your senses, you took your time I was beginning to think that we’d be old and wrinkly before you finally realised how much you liked her. Congratulations,” Harry smiled at him genuinely pleased.
“Thanks mate,” Ron appeared to be a little taken back, “Now all we have to do is get you a girlfriend, and then we’re all set.” Hermione shot him a reprieving look but Ron just ignored it, apparently an upside of this new arrangement would be Hermione holding her tongue. That would benefit everyone not just Ron.
“Actually, I’ve already got my eye on someone.” Three startled faces turned to him,
“Oh, Harry! Who is it?” Hermione gave the impression of a person ready to explode with excitement at any minute.
“Just someone, I’d rather not say I’m not sure yet.” He let his eyes drift over towards Ginny, hoping that no-one would notice, she was a little bit upset but was trying (and failing) to hide it in and expression of interest.
“Do we know her?” she finally managed to ask.
“Yes, I believe that you do. Now, if you all don’t mind, I’d rather not talk about it just now. Actually I’m getting a little hungry again I might go and ask your mum if I could have a sandwich.” Harry turned on his heel…
“Count me in I’m…”
“Starving,” they all finished for him.
“All you ever think about is your next meal,” Ginny gave a polite little half smile before gently pushing her way past Harry and leading them in the direction of the kitchen. As Harry chased after her he took in her appearance properly for the first time, she had grown into a beautiful young woman, her long smooth red hair swayed somewhere just below her waist. Harry noticed with some embarrassment that her figure was blossoming as well. He stopped himself and suddenly felt like a pervert, this was Ron’s baby sister, in fact she wasn’t just Ron’s baby sister, she was the baby of the Weasley children, little sister to Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred and George as well. She was the same Ginny who had stuck her elbow in the butter dish four years ago when Harry had made his first visit to The Burrow. Harry scolded himself every time he admired the curve of her hips, what would Ron say if he told him about the thoughts that were running through his mind just now?
He’d probably swing for you. Yep, that’s exactly what he would do, and don’t you forget it.