"So...what's the Room of Requirement?" Ginny asked James. She knew perfectly well what it was, but she had to keep up the pretense of not knowing the school grounds.
"Ah...you'll see once we get there," he replied, grinning as if he knew a secret.
"Look who's the mystery now!" she said teasingly.
To this, James simply clucked his tongue and put his arm around her shoulders. It felt nice to Ginny; although it seemed as if they were moving fast, she didn't want it to stop.
As the two of them entered a narrow corridor, James put his hand out, signaling for Ginny to stop. He then went on to stride quickly three times back and forth, staring at the blank wall to his left in concentration. On his third time around, a polished silver door shimmered into view.
"Ladies first," he said, holding open the door for Ginny.
She walked in and looked around, a smile slowly growing on her face. "I love it," she said, giggling.
The walls of the room were painted a pale bronze colour and were decorated with paintings of beautiful mermaids and handsome knights. An elaborate crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting dancing lights to fall upon the single four-poster bed in the center of the room. A large, arched window was carved into the east wall, giving the occupants of the room a clear view of the quidditch pitch below.
"I'm glad you like it," James said, walking in behind her. He grabbed her arm and led her towards the bed on which he sat down. "Come on, sit down."
After she had settled herself comfortably on the bed, Ginny turned to look at James. "What are we going to do in here the whole night?"
"Hmm...well I could think of quite a few things we could 'do'," he said, grinning mischeviously.
Laughing, Ginny punched him playfully on the arm. "I'm serious! We can't just sit here like this for the entire night."
"Do you want to talk then?"
"Sure. Talk about what?"
"Well...lets talk about you first. I want to know more about you."
Ginny shifted on the bed uneasily. The conversation was moving into dangerous grounds. She wanted to tell James more about her, she really did; however, if she made one mistake and let it slip that she was from the future, everything and everyone would be put in danger. She couldn't alter the past, and she knew it.
"I....there's not really much to talk about," she said nervously. "I'd rather talk about you."
Raising an eyebrow, he shrugged. "Okay then...well I'm James as you may know me." Ginny laughed and rolled her eyes. "I'm 17 years old, I...oh come on, this isn't fun."
"Yeah you're right," Ginny answered, admitting her defeat. "I have a question for you then," she said. "What happened between you and Lily?"
James' head quickly snapped around to look at her. "What are you talking about?"
"I saw the way you looked at her when she kissed Draco. Something must have happened between you two before to cause that look."
"I'd rather not discuss it with you," he muttered in response.
Ginny moved closer to him and put her hand gently on his arm. "James, if we're going to be friends, you have to tell me these things. I know it might hurt, but I'm here for you."
"You wouldn't understand," he said to his hands.
"Maybe I wouldn't, but you can still tell me."
"It's not a big deal or anything. I had a crush on her since 2nd year, and in 6th year, she finally admitted that she liked me too. I asked her out; we went out for 11 months and then one night I found out that she had been cheating on me for 3 months with a Ravenclaw 7th year. It doesn't really matter all that much..."
Ginny's eyes had been progressively widening throughout his mini speech. "I can't believe she would do something like that!" she exclaimed. "That's terrible."
"Yeah well we're friends now so who really cares," he said. Although he seemed composed, there was a hint of sadness and defiance in his voice. Ginny could tell that his experience with Lily had hurt him more than he let on. I suppose I should let it drop if he doesn't to talk about, she thought, sighing. I do wonder how Lily and James ended up together after that whole thing, though...
After a moment of silence, Ginny said, "Well...I suppose this is where I share something about me? Y'know, to break this awkward silence."
"Yeah," James said, forcing a smile onto his face. He was determined to make the best out of his night with this gorgeous girl, and not let old memories catch up with him.
"I...I..." stuttered Ginny as she struggled to think of something to say. She wanted nothing more than to say the truth - that she was from the future - but she knew she couldn't. Yet she couldn't lie to James...he'd just told her a secret of his, and it was only fair that she do the same. At last, it came to her. It was something no one else knew about her; something that, if found out, could ruin her future. But she knew that there was nothing to lose by telling James, and it was the only thing about herself she could tell that wasn't a lie. Gritting her teeth, she finished her sentence. "I have 7 years to live."
[A/N: Some of you may be confused about Ginny's last sentence...when she says seven years to live, this is assuming that (since the statement is true for her future self at her age) it is also true for her past self (who is the same age), although it has no affect on her future self whatsoever. Meaning in the future she *doesn't* die as a baby or anything...she just has 9 years to live from that point in her life. Wow that was a confusing and boring explanation...I'm not sure if that cleared up anything (it's highly likely that it only made things more confusing :P), but yes...reviews? Oh and sorry for the cliffie...I'm having fun writing those lately.]