"What's going on, Weasley?" Rowena sneered, crossing her arms over her chest. Ginny had just returned from dinner and climbed through the portrait hole when Rowena, Gemma, and Penelope blocked her path.

"What do you mean?" Ginny asked angrily.

"With you and Professor Potter," Rowena snapped. "I want to know why you were alone with him!"

"Not that it's any of YOUR business," Ginny said coldly, "But he happens to be my brother's best friend, and we were discussing my brother's visit here." She moved to walk around the girls, but Gemma stepped sideways and blocked her path.

"He sat with you at breakfast," Penelope accused. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, to ask me to come to his office later," she snapped. "Really, are you this stupid?" The three girls blinked and looked at her strangely.

"What do you mean?" Rowena snarled.

"Do you really think, I mean really, that a Professor would have anything to do with a student?" The girls glanced uncertainly at one another. "And that means you, too, Rowena." Rowena's face turned purple with rage, and the other two girls looked at her curiously.

"What is she talking about?"

"I'm talking about her trying to get him alone herself!" She snapped. Their eyes widened.

"You didn't tell us you did that," Penelope said in surprise. Rowena rolled her eyes.

"I don't have to report everything I do to you stupid prats!" The girls gasped in shock. Penelope looked at Gemma.

"Prats, are we?" She asked angrily. "Then I suppose we'll just take ourselves elsewhere!" She and Gemma stomped away, and Rowena stared after them in surprise. Ginny, figuring that this was as good a time as any to leave, quietly walked towards the stairs that led up to the girls' dormitory. She had just set foot on the second stair when she felt a hand yanking her ankle backwards. She fell face first onto the steps, and felt a blinding pain in her nose. She stood up slowly and touched her nose gingerly; when she drew her fingers away, they were covered in blood. She turned to face her attacker.

Rowena stood, with her arms crossed over her chest, smirking.

"Serves you right," she said loftily. "You should really watch where you're going." She turned her back to walk away, and Ginny drew her wand.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Rowena fell on her face, unable to move her arms or legs. Ginny stared down at her coldly. "And you should really never turn your back on someone you've just injured." She heard the portrait hole open, and Hermione came running in, followed by a first year that had gone to get her when the fight started. Hermione looked from Ginny's bleeding nose to Rowena's stiffened body. She wrapped her arms around Ginny and steered her towards the portrait hole.

"Someone perform the counter curse," she called over her shoulder. She and Ginny disappeared through the portrait hole into the hallway, leaving the Gryffindors staring after them.

**

“Well, it’s not broken," Madam Pomfrey said, dabbing at Ginny’s nose with a wet towel. Ginny winced and held the towel in place. Hermione looked very relieved.

“It hurts like it is,” Ginny complained. Madam Pomfrey gave her a stern look.

“Students getting in fights, honestly!” She tsk-tsked and squeezed a drop of ointment onto Ginny’s finger. “Rub that on, and you’ll be fine.” She walked away, and Hermione stared at Ginny.

“What happened that you got into a fight with Rowena?” She asked disbelievingly. Ginny felt her face turning red as she rubbed the putrid-smelling ointment onto her nose.

“She asked me why I’d been in Harry’s office, alone with him.” Hermione’s eyes widened.

“That was none of her business,” she goggled. Ginny nodded.

“That’s what I told her. Then I said something to her in front of her friends about her trying to be alone with him, and she got mad at me. I don’t know why she has it in for me so bad,” she said, rubbing her nose gently.

“Well, it’s totally obvious that Harry is the problem here, not you,” she said bluntly. “So just stay away from Harry.” Ginny stared at her. She could just as soon rip out a lung!

“I have class with him!” She shrieked. Hermione glanced around nervously and shushed her.

“I meant, don’t get caught in his office alone with him or – or anywhere else, for that matter!” She noticed Ginny’s crestfallen look. “I just don’t want you to get into any trouble, Ginny.”

“I know,” she sighed, standing up. “But Harry is my friend, and I have so few here. It’s nice to be able to spend time with someone I know.” She blushed furiously, remembering what had happened in his office. Hermione gave her an odd look.

“Ginny,” she said slowly. “Harry is your teacher now. There can’t be anything between the two of you. You could get him into a lot of trouble.” Ginny stared at her feet.

“I know,” she said sadly. She missed him already. Hermione rose and they exited the hospital wing together. When they got to the Gryffindor portrait hole, Hermione turned back to her.

“I know you have feelings for him,” she began. “And I know he has feelings for you. But you’ve got to be careful, Ginny. Think of what might happen to you both if someone caught you doing something you weren’t supposed to be doing.” The crimson color of Ginny’s cheeks told Hermione that she’d hit a nerve.

“I know,” she said, tears stinging her eyes. “Goodnight, then.” She muttered the password and disappeared through the hole. Hermione stood there for a moment, then made her way towards Harry’s office. He was still at his desk, looking over his lesson plan for the next day. He looked up when he heard footsteps, and smiled at Hermione.

“What are you doing up so late?”

“Harry, you need to leave Ginny alone.” His smile faded.

“What?”

“She got in a fight over you tonight in the common room.” He blinked.

“Over me?”

“Yes, over you. That girl Rowena tripped her going up the steps and gave her a bloody nose.” Harry stood quickly, his brow furrowed in anger.

“She did what?”

“Harry, sit down.” He stared at her, then lowered himself slowly back into his seat. “She performed the full-body bind on Rowena in retaliation.” Harry grinned.

“Well, that’s better, then.”

“Harry, you don’t understand what you’re doing,” she said impatiently. “You’re putting Ginny in a difficult situation by giving her special attention! She has no friends, and Rowena is going to be harder than ever on her now! Ginny would most likely do anything for you since she loves you, so you have to be the one to tell her that she has to stay away from you!” Harry’s eyes went funny.

“She loves me?” Hermione rolled her eyes.

“She has since she saw you, you know that!” She snapped. “So you have to tell her not to be alone with you anymore!”

“I can’t do that, Mione.” He said softly. She saw the look in his eyes, and knew she had been defeated.

“Why not?” She insisted. He ran his fingers through his hair and suddenly looked tired.

“Because I think I’m in love with her, too.” Hermione blinked. She knew Harry cared for Ginny, but not to this extent.

“Harry, please,” she begged. But Harry was not to be deterred. She sighed and slumped her shoulders in defeat, as Harry buried his face in his hands. He looked at her, and Hermione was caught off guard. He looks older than 19, she thought. He looks tired and old. Why shouldn’t he have some happiness? He’d been miserable his whole life – everyone he loved died, and he was finally away from the family that abused him. If Ginny could make him happy, why shouldn’t he be allowed to see her?

“Then just be careful,” she pleaded. He grinned, and she smiled back, despite herself. She rose to leave, but stopped at his door. She turned to look at him.

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” she said softly. He nodded and she left.

**

Ginny wandered into Harry’s classroom and sat in the same seat she’d occupied the last time. She slowly removed her parchment and a quill from her knapsack, and felt someone plop down next to her. Violet was wearing her hair up in a ponytail today, and it was so long that it fell to her waist.

“I heard you used the full-body bind on Rowena last night,” she said excitedly. Ginny blinked in surprise.

“How did you know that?”

“Everyone in Hufflepuff knows. Gemma and Penelope were talking to my friend Kate, and I overheard them,” she said breathlessly. “What happened?”

“She tripped me and gave me a bloody nose,” Ginny explained.

“Well, she didn’t expect you to just let her get away with it, could she?” Her eyes were bright, and she smiled at Ginny. “Serves her right, the great bullying prat!”

“I guess,” Ginny said uncertainly. She looked up when she saw someone approaching her desk. Gemma and Penelope were standing in front of her. She held her hands up in surrender.

“Look, I don’t need any more trouble,” she said cautiously. The girls shifted their feet nervously and exchanged glances.

“We didn’t come over here to start trouble,” Gemma said. “We just wanted to apologize to you.”

“Apologize?” Ginny repeated incredulously. Penelope nodded.

“We’re sorry that we ganged up on you like that with Rowena,” she said softly. “We feel really bad about doing it.” Ginny gaped at them.

“It’s okay,” she stammered. The girls looked relieved.

“Well, well,” a nasty voice said. “Isn’t this a pretty picture?” Rowena stood with her hands on her hips.

“Rowena,” Ginny said, in the sweetest voice she could muster. “Get bent.” Penelope, Gemma, and Violet started sniggering, and Rowena’s face went red.

“You better watch your back, Weasley!” She snarled, and started to walk away.

“After last night, I would think you’d watch yours!” She called after her. The girls roared with laughter, and Rowena sat down, fuming. Penelope and Gemma sat down in the seats in front of Ginny, and turned to talk to her. Ginny felt like a queen; she had finally made some friends! Maybe this year wouldn’t be so bad, after all!

“Good afternoon, everyone,” Harry said pleasantly. The students all immediately snapped to attention, and the room got extremely quiet.

“Good afternoon, Professor,” they chorused. He grinned, and Ginny could swear she heard several sighs from some of the girls surrounding her. She smiled to herself and Violet nudged her. Harry was grinning right at her! She felt her face go red and looked down quickly.

“Alright then, let’s begin,” he said, and pulled out his wand. Once again, the entire class sat riveted until the bell rang. As everyone began gathering their things, Gemma turned to Ginny.

“He hasn’t given us any essays yet,” she said in amazement. “I wonder why not? I have tons of homework in all of my other classes!” Ginny shrugged.

“I don’t know why he hasn’t,” she said. “I expect he will soon enough.” She slung her knapsack over her shoulder and headed towards the door, surrounded by the three girls, when he called to her.

“Miss Weasley,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “May I speak to you for a moment?” She smiled at the girls, who were goggling at Harry.

“Be right back,” she said, and quickly crossed the room to stand in front of him. He grinned at her. “Yes, Professor?” His grin faded.

“Ginny,” he chided. “Call me Harry, remember?” She smiled and he winked.

“I see you’ve got some new friends,” he said softly, looking over her shoulder at them. They saw him looking and giggled madly. She smiled and rolled her eyes at him.

“So I have,” she said. “They apologized to me for being nasty.” His eyes widened slightly.

“They did, did they?” He asked interestedly. “Well, I won’t keep you, but I was wondering if you’d like to come see me again tonight. I thought we might take a walk by the lake or something.” She stared at him.

“Harry,” she said slowly. “Maybe we ought not to do this.” His eyes showed his disappointment.

“Why not?” he asked softly. “Don’t you want to be with me?”

“Of course I do,” she whispered. “I just don’t want to get you in trouble, if we get caught.” He looked relieved.

“Don’t worry about that,” he whispered. “No one will see us. Meet me here after dinner.” She nodded, and he waved at the girls.

“Good afternoon, ladies.” He went up the stairs into his office, and closed the door behind him. Ginny walked dazedly back to her new friends, who were giggling.

“What did he want?” Violet asked, looking at his door as though she half expected him to burst out at any moment.

“He was just checking on me,” she lied. “My brother Ron is his best friend, and I suppose he feels like he has to watch out for me,” she rolled her eyes to try and convince them that it bothered her. Gemma sighed dreamily.

“I wish he’d check on me,” she said wistfully. Penelope elbowed her and giggled. Violet stared at Ginny, and it began to make her uncomfortable.

“Well, I’d better get going,” she said. “I have Herbology, and I’m going to be late.” Penelope and Gemma pouted in disappointment.

“You must sit with us at dinner, then,” Penelope piped up brightly. Ginny nodded.

“Alright, then.” They left with a wave and bounded down the hallway. Ginny began walking towards the greenhouses when Violet caught up with her.

“I have Herbology now, too,” she said. Ginny smiled. “What did he really want?” She asked slowly.

“What?” Ginny stared at her.

“I know he wasn’t just checking on you,” she said flatly. “What did he really want?”

“He. . .he wanted to make sure I didn’t tell Herm- I mean, Professor Granger – that my brother is coming. They’ve been fighting, and he didn’t want her to know.” She hoped Violet would believe her. She eyed Ginny carefully, then seemed to accept this explanation. Ginny let out a small breath she’d been holding, and reminded herself to be careful what she said around her friends from now on.

**

Hermione stared out the window of her small room. She had finished helping Hagrid with his morning class, and was free for the rest of the day. She breathed deeply and turned away from the window. What good would it do to sit and pine for him? She wondered. If he’s not going to answer me, then fine! She flopped down angrily on her bed and propped her chin up on her elbows. She thumbed through a book on household spells, looking for something that would help her make her bed. When she finally realized she had been reading the same paragraph for fifteen minutes, she slammed the book shut angrily and stood up.

“I’m not going to let him ignore me any longer!” She snapped at herself. She grabbed her cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders as she stomped to the door. She walked just beyond Hogwarts grounds, and disappeared with a loud pop. She re-apparated outside the entrance to the Ministry of Magic. She got a visitor’s badge and went inside. Behind the information desk sat a small elderly looking witch. “Please, where is the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office?”

The small witch pointed down the hallway. “Follow the signs.”

Hermione thanked her and, after walking for a while and getting lost in one of the corridors, she finally found herself standing in front of Arthur Weasley.

“Hermione!” He smiled pleasantly and embraced her. “What in the world are you doing here?” She smiled nervously.

“I’ve just come to see Ron,” she explained. Mr. Weasley smiled broadly.

“Of course, of course! Maybe a visit from you will cheer him up! He’s in my office, right over there.” He pointed to a door in the corner, and went the opposite direction, humming happily. Hermione reached out to touch the doorknob, and found her hands were shaking. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves, and went inside.

Ron was sitting behind a desk, scribbling wildly on a piece of parchment. He didn’t look up when he heard the door.

“Dad, I forgot to tell you I wanted chips, too. . .” his voice trailed off when he looked up and saw her. She was beautiful; her long hair was swept up into a loose bun, and tiny wisps of hair were falling around her face. He felt his heart jump into his throat.

“Hello Ron,” she breathed. “How have you been?”

“How did you know I was here?” he asked, standing quickly. She took a step closer.

“Ginny told me,” she said. His cheeks went pink.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to see if you got my owl,” she said. He nodded.

“I did,” he said. He looked down at his feet.

“Well?” She asked.

“Well what?” he snapped. “I told you I got it.” She blinked, hurt. He obviously had not forgiven her yet.

“I just thought that. . .I thought I might come and see what your answer is.” He stared at her in confusion. “Answer to what?” “Whether or not you’ll be my friend again,” she whispered. He looked down again.

“I don’t think I can do that,” he said. Tears stung her eyes, and she looked down at her fingers.

“Oh,” she said, barely above a whisper. “Alright, then – I’ll just go. I’m sorry I bothered you.” She opened the door and paused to look back at him, hoping for the smallest of glances to give her hope, but none came. She ran from the room in tears, and he slumped down in his chair.

The first thing Hermione did when she got back to Hogwarts was run to Harry’s office. He’ll know what to do, she thought. When she pushed his door open, she found him with his head lying on his desk, snoring loudly. She smiled and tapped his shoulder.

“What?” He jerked up quickly and looked around with wild eyes. She covered her mouth with her hand, smiling through her tears. His eyes focused, and he adjusted his glasses. When he saw her crying, he stood up.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’ve just been to see Ron,” she said, sobbing. He let out a breath slowly.

“Oh, no,” he whispered. She nodded.

“It was horrible,” she said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “He said he wouldn’t be my friend again.” Harry let out a low whistle.

“He’ll change his mind,” he said softly. “He was probably just surprised to see you.” She shook her head and sat down.

“He meant it, Harry!” she cried. “He doesn’t want to be my friend anymore.” He hugged her tightly.

“He’ll come around, I swear it,” he whispered. “Don’t you think on it, Mione. He’ll come to his senses soon enough.” She sobbed into his chest for a moment, then pulled away and wiped her eyes again.

“I’ve gotten your robe all wet,” she gave a halfhearted laugh. He grinned.

“Well, that’s the closest that I’ve gotten to a girl all day, so I don’t mind a bit!” he said. She laughed.

“Thanks, Harry,” she said softly. “Thanks for everything.” She waved and went out the door. He sighed and sat down in his chair. Ron, you idiot! He thought. You’re running out of chances! He turned to his desk and began scribbling on a piece of parchment.

Ron,
You prat! You had better come and apologize to Hermione, or she’s never going to want to see You again! What happened to you having feelings For her? Why don’t you come and stay with me At Hogwarts for the weekend? I’ll be waiting For your owl tonight, so write back!
Your friend,
Harry

He rolled up the parchment and sealed it. He walked to the owlery, and looked around for Hedwig. She was perched on one of the wooden ceiling beams, hooting softly. When she saw him, she glided down and landed on his outstretched arm. He attached the parchment to her leg and told her where to go.

“And peck him until he writes back!” he said sternly. She gave a soft hoot and flew away. He grinned, thinking of the look on Ron’s face when Hedwig wouldn’t leave him alone. He laughed softly to himself, and went back to his office. When he walked in, he saw Ginny sitting in one of the chairs. She was holding her knapsack on her lap, and bouncing her legs nervously. She stood up when he came in, and he shut the door behind him.

“I’m sorry I’m early, I know you said you wanted to meet me after-“ he cut her off with a kiss. She felt her knees getting weak, and he wrapped his arms around her waist. She grabbed his arms for support, and kissed him back. After a moment, she pulled away. He had a glazed look in his eyes. “Dinner,” she finished. He blinked, then grinned. She smiled, feeling foolish.

“Sorry,” he said, his arms still around her waist. “I didn’t mean to surprise you just now, but I’ve been thinking about doing that all day.” Her heart did a violent somersault, and she buried her face in the front of his robe, so he wouldn’t see her face flush with pleasure.

“Ready for that walk?” he asked. She nodded, and he grabbed something silvery that was draped across a chair. He pulled her close and wrapped the Invisibility Cloak around them. “We’re off, then.”

**

“Where are we going?” Ginny whispered. Harry shushed her, and they continued walking through the hallway. He had to bend down so his feet wouldn’t show – he was considerably taller than she was, and the cloak didn’t cover his feet when he stood to his full height. She watched and remained silent as they passed several students and teachers on their way to the Great Hall for dinner. They waited until everyone had cleared the hallway, and pushed the big oak doors that led outside open. They walked across the grounds, past Hagrid’s hut, and straight to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Ginny hesitated when Harry moved like he was going inside. He turned and gave her an odd look.

“It’s perfectly safe,” he reassured her. “And I’ll be with you, remember?” She nodded and walked inside. She felt as though she had a lump of lead in her stomach as she followed him. When they reached a very small clearing, he pulled the cloak off and sat down on a patch of grass. She looked around – just beyond the trees there, she could still make out the outline of Hagrid’s hut. She looked up, but the foliage was so dense that she couldn’t see a bit of the now setting sun. She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. Harry patted the grass next to him.

“Come sit down,” he grinned. She sat down and hugged her knees to her chest, still shivering. He scooted closer to her and wrapped his own robe around her.

“How did you find this place?” She asked softly. He plucked a piece of grass and began shredding it. He shrugged.

“Your brother and I were quite the rule breakers, you know that,” he chortled. She smiled and continued to look around her.

“Aren’t you afraid of the centaurs, or anything?”

“No,” he shook his head. “They don’t generally come this close to the edge of the forest. If you want to see them, you’ve got to go farther in.” She nodded and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

He was as handsome as ever; it seemed the danger of getting caught together made him even better looking. His bright green eyes were sparkling even in the darkness of the trees, and his unruly hair looked even more wild than usual. He turned and caught her staring at him, and he grinned at her. She looked away quickly, blushing.

“Sorry,” She said quietly. “I didn’t mean to stare.” He said nothing, but continued to grin at her.

“So,” she said, wanting to break the silence, “How does it feel, being a teacher?”

“It’s actually a lot of fun,” he said. “Except when I have to interact with some of the other teachers, of course.” His eyes darkened. She guessed he was talking about Snape.

“Why haven’t you given us homework yet?” She blurted. He grinned, and his eyes sparkled again.

“I was never very big on homework myself,” he said. “And I reckon that Snape will give you more than enough to make up for what I don’t give you.” She smiled at him.

“Are you ever going to give us any?”

“I might, sooner or later,” he said, leaning back and stretching his legs in front of him. “But not for a while.” He looked at her, and she smiled again. His look changed, and his eyes grew dark again. Her heart started to flutter madly against her ribcage, and she could feel the heat rising in her face. Why does he have this effect on me? She thought angrily. She tore her eyes away from his and looked down at the grass. He sat up quickly.

“Is something wrong?” he asked. She shook her head. “Come on. I know you better than that!”

“It’s just,” she started, fumbling for words, “I can’t understand why you even want to see me like this,” she gulped. He blinked.

“Why I want to see you?” He repeated blankly. “I want to see you because I like you. I have feelings for you, Ginny; I thought you knew that by now!” She nodded slowly.

“I know that, but I can’t understand why.”

“Ginny,” he said softly, “I am sorry I never asked you out. Before my fourth year, I didn’t want to. After my fifth year, you were always with someone else, and I never had the chance to. When I finally realized I had feelings for you, I thought it was too late. I thought you were over me. Then Dumbledore wrote and asked me to teach, and I knew I’d gotten my second chance. I’m not going to let you slip by me again. Not when I know you have feelings for me, too.” She blushed and gave him a small smile.

“Don’t you worry about us getting caught together?”

“Not really,” he grinned.

“Why not?” He shrugged.

“I’m just not. Do you not want to see me anymore?”

“No, I didn’t mean that,” she said, a little too quickly. He laughed and she blushed.

“You’re so pretty when you do that,” he said quietly. She hugged her knees tighter, flushing with pleasure.

“I’m not pretty,” she said. “My red hair is awful, my brown eyes are ordinary, and-“ she moved her robe aside to reveal her slender legs. “-I have knobby knees!” She exclaimed. He laughed, and she covered her legs in embarrassment.

“Are you trying to get me not to like you? Because it won’t work,” he smiled broadly, and she smiled back. “Your red hair isn’t awful. I like it. In fact, it reminds me of my Mum.”

“It does?” She breathed. He nodded solemnly.

“And your eyes remind me of chocolate,” it was his turn to blush. She stared at him, her eyes riveted.

“T-They do?” She stammered. He nodded and looked back up at her. She felt her chest tightening as he leaned forward.

She closed her eyes in expectation. When his lips touched hers, she shivered. The butterflies in her stomach began fluttering madly. He wrapped his arms around her, and she lifted her arms around his neck. His lips seemed to have an extraordinary effect on her; she felt as though she might be flying. Her head was foggy, and all she could think about was him. The world existed only for them, and no one else mattered. Suddenly, he jerked away from her and stood up.

“What’s wrong?” She asked dazedly.

“Did you hear that?” His eyes darted around quickly, and lingered in the direction of Hagrid’s hut. She shook her head and stood up slowly.

“No,” she whispered. Harry grabbed the invisibility cloak and wrapped it around them.

“Stay still,” he whispered. She froze, and they stood there for what seemed an eternity. Suddenly, a petite figure was visible near the edge of the trees, and it was coming towards them. Ginny gasped in surprise, and Harry covered her mouth with the palm of his hand. She felt her heart beating so quickly that it threatened to tear out of her chest.

**

“Harry?” A feminine voice called uncertainly. Ginny breathed a loud sigh of relief, and Harry pulled the cloak off as Hermione came into view.

“Criminy, Hermione, you scared us to death!” He said angrily.

“Sorry,” she said, shaking dirt off of her shoe. “I didn’t mean to frighten you.” Harry stared at her.

“How did you know where we were?” He asked curiously.

“Harry, really,” she rolled her eyes. “Did you think that every time you and Ron left together that I wasn’t going to follow you at least once, to find out where you were going?” Harry grinned and looked at her with something akin to admiration. Ginny’s heart was still racing.

“Hermione,” she said, putting a shaking hand to her chest, “I’m so glad it’s you!”

“Well,” she scoffed disapprovingly. “Better me than anyone else, right? You should both be getting back to the castle; people are starting to notice that you’re both gone, and it won’t be long before someone makes a connection.” She glanced at Harry, who had put his arms around Ginny to keep her warm.

“Who’s noticed that we’re both gone?” He murmured, totally uninterested. Ginny closed her eyes and buried her face in his chest.

“Who do you think?” She snapped. “Snape has, for one. And that awful Rowena girl has noticed, too.” Ginny’s head snapped up.

“You know,” she said, reluctantly pulling away from Harry’s embrace, “I wonder why she wasn’t sorted into Slytherin? She’s certainly nasty enough to be there.” She followed Hermione out of the maze of trees, being careful not to walk too closely to Harry. If anyone saw the three of them together, she was certain that nothing would be said; but if they saw her and Harry touching – well, that was a different matter. Harry seemed to be thinking the same thing, and he positioned himself on the opposite side of Hermione.

“I overheard her talking to Snape in the hallway this morning,” Hermione said, as they neared the entrance. “She was asking if she could be moved.” Ginny stopped in her tracks.

“She what?” She caught up to them again. “They can’t do that, can they?” The desperation in her voice made them both turn to look at her.

“You want her to keep sleeping in the same room as you?” Harry asked incredulously. She shook her head.

“No, but I don’t think I’ll feel safer actually having her in Slytherin, either! She knows too much about me already! And Snape would let her do whatever she wanted to; you know how he favors his own house! I’d be tortured!”

“Well, I don’t expect Dumbledore will allow it,” Hermione soothed her. “She already knows where the Gryffindor common room is, and the Sorting Hat put her where it thought she should be.” She patted Ginny’s shoulder and opened the door. The warm air flooded over Ginny, and she felt a wave of relief.

“Well, you’ve both missed dinner,” Hermione sighed. “Why don’t you come to my room, and we can all eat there, in private?” Harry stared at her, smirking.

“That would mean that house elves would have to bring us our food,” he winked at Ginny, who let her eyes twinkle back. “And you don’t allow them to wait on you!” Hermione rolled her eyes.

“I’ll make an exception, just this once. To avoid getting you into trouble, I mean,” she added quickly. Harry grinned. He knew better – the experience with Kreacher, Sirius’ old house elf, had made Hermione rethink her efforts to free house elves everywhere. They followed Hermione to her room, and on her dressing table was a plate of sandwiches. Ginny grabbed one and shoved it hungrily into her mouth. She had forgotten about eating in the excitement of being alone with Harry. He was eating quickly too, and she felt a pang of guilt for making him miss dinner. She noticed that Hermione’s bed was in perfect order, and knew that Hermione had made it herself. She smiled and sat down on the edge of the bed.

“Watch out,” Hermione cautioned. “Don’t wrinkle my covers!” Ginny laughed.

“You’re going to wrinkle them in a bit, anyway!” she teased. Harry grinned and continued eating. They heard a soft hoot, and a small white owl with brown spots landed on Hermione’s windowsill. Ginny looked from the owl to Hermione, who stood frozen to the spot.

“Are you expecting mail?” Ginny asked curiously. Hermione didn’t move. Harry got up and removed the letter from the bird’s leg, and it flew back out the window. He examined the parchment closely, and then turned to Hermione with a look of wonder on his face.

“It’s for you, Hermione. It’s from Ron.”