Forgive And Forget - Chapter Five: Realisation
Title: Forgive And Forget - Chapter Five: Realisation
Author: ginnyweasley777 hannah_ward
Pairing: Harry/Ginny (main), Ron/Hermione
Word Count: approx 1859 words
Genre: Fluff, General, Angst, Romance
Warnings: None
Rating: PG
Setting: Post HBP, Alternate Universe
Summary: DH disregarded for the most part. The final battle has been fought, and now Harry, Ron and Hermione are joining Ginny at Hogwarts for her seventh year. Ginny vowed not to let Harry break her heart again and is determined to keep her distance from him, but can Harry win her back?
Author's Notes: Thanks to Amelie for the beta work.
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to JK Rowling. I own nothing and receive no profit from this. This is for entertainment purposes only.
The remainder of the Christmas holiday was hard for Harry as he battled continually with his feelings for Ginny. He found himself watching her all the time, much as he had back in his sixth year, and several times he thought he saw Hermione smirking at him as he watched, fascinated with the way that Ginny’s hair shimmered in the weak winter sunlight that streamed down into the Burrow.
Finally, after much inner turmoil, things came to a head a couple of days into the new term at Hogwarts.
“Hermione, I need your help,” said Harry, sitting down opposite Hermione where she was working in the library.
“With what?” asked Hermione expectantly as she looked up from her work.
“Ginny,” replied Harry simply. “I want her back. I’ve been an idiot and I’m still in love with her.”
“Well, why do you need my help then?” asked Hermione.
“I don’t have a clue what to do,” said Harry desperately.
“Yes, you do. Harry, you know exactly what you need to do,” replied Hermione.
“Will you stop being so vague!” exclaimed Harry.
“Fine!” replied Hermione. “You need to show Ginny that you’re not going to hurt her this time and that you really want her back - this time for good.”
“How do I do that?”
“I think you already know how.”
After a moment of thought, Harry nodded his head. “You’re right, I do know what to do, and I’m going to start now,” he said firmly, standing up again.
“Good,” replied Hermione, smirking.
***
Gin ny had tried not to think of the kiss that she had shared with Harry in their detention and she steadfastly refused to acknowledge that he had probably been about to kiss her again before Fred had interrupted them over Christmas. She couldn’t, however, ignore Harry anymore over the following month. It was almost as if he was doing it deliberately - talking to her in the common room about schoolwork, or Ron and Hermione‘s latest row, or what she wanted to do after leaving Hogwarts. He was even walking back from Quidditch practice with her and laughing and joking all the time. If fact, for Ginny it was almost like being back in her fifth year again, when Harry had first started to notice her, only this time she knew what was happening. Ginny couldn’t stop herself from talking to Harry, enjoying walking back from Quidditch practise with him, or just generally enjoying his company once again. It made her realise just how much she had missed all of these little things.
***
“As you are probably all aware, it is Valentine’s Day in two weeks time. In honour of the celebration we are holding a Valentine’s Ball on the fourteenth, which will be open to anyone in fourth year and above, although an older student may ask a younger student to accompany them if they wish,” said Professor McGonagall briskly. She sat down in her seat as a great wave of chatter swept through the hall.
“A Valentine’s Ball! It’s going to be so good,” exclaimed Hermione.
“Is it?” asked Ginny grumpily as she didn’t know if the Ball was a good thing or not.
Hermione was saved from replying as Ron tapped her shoulder. “Hermione, will you go to the ball with me?” asked Ron, the tips of his ears going bright red.
“Of course I will,” replied Hermione, looking immensely pleased.
“I know that I’m your boyfriend; but I wanted to ask you properly, after messing things up so much in our fourth year,” said Ron sheepishly.
“Oh, Ron, that’s so sweet,” said Hermione, leaning over to kiss him.
***
Who are you going to ask to the ball?” asked Ron that afternoon as they made their way to the Gryffindor tower; Hermione had once again gone to the library.
“Er, I, I’d like to ask Ginny, but I don’t think she’ll want to go with me,” replied Harry nervously.
Ron stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Harry. “I knew you still liked her, Harry,” replied Ron happily.
“Look, Ron, it’s taken a while for me to realise what I still feel for her, but I don’t know if Ginny still feels anything for me now,” said Harry solemnly.
“Harry, you hurt her, she hurt you. Trust me; she still has feelings for you. It certainly can’t hurt for you to ask, can it? You don’t know what she’ll say until you’ve asked her, do you?”
Harry was stunned by what Ron had just said. “When did you get so knowledgeable about feelings?” he asked.
Ron gave him a cocky grin. “It’s Hermione,” he replied, “She’s rubbed off on me.”
Harry and Ron climbed into the common room. Ron headed upstairs to the dormitory while Harry approached Ginny where she was sitting at a table.
“Can I sit down?” he asked.
Ginny nodded and he pulled out the chair opposite her and sat down.
“Ginny, I’ve been thinking about this dance and I…” Harry stopped, unsure of himself. As he looked into Ginny’s chocolate brown eyes, he remembered what Ron had told him and strengthened his resolve. “Will you go with me to the ball?” he asked.
“To the ball?” repeated Ginny slowly.
“Yeah,” replied Harry.
“I don’t know, Harry,” she said uncertainly.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re already going with someone else,” said Harry quickly, his insides turning at the thought.
“No, it’s not that, it’s just that I don’t know if I can… because of… well, us,” replied Ginny hesitantly, not knowing what else to say. She wanted to go with Harry, but she just needed to sort things out in her head first.
“Oh, right,” said Harry, his hopes falling rapidly.
Seeing Harry’s despondent look, Ginny said quickly, “Look, let me think about it for a while, okay?”
“Yeah, okay,” replied Harry, standing up with a single flame of hope igniting inside him.
***
“Well, did you ask her?” asked Ron as Harry entered the dormitory.
“Yeah,” replied Harry, sitting on the edge of his bed.
“And?” prompted Ron.
“Ginny said she’s not sure because of what’s happened between us. She said that she’ll think about it.”
“Think about it!” exclaimed Ron.
“Yeah,” said Harry, so glad that Ginny hadn‘t said a clear ‘no’ straight away that he didn’t notice Ron angrily stomping out of the room.
***
“Ginny, I want a word with you,” said Ron firmly as he sat down next to her.
“What about?” sighed Ginny.
“Harry,” stated Ron, “And the ball.”
“Oh.”
“You need to tell him that you’ll go with him.”
“Why should I?” asked Ginny fiercely, her temper flaring at being told what to do.
“Because you love him,” replied Ron matter-of-factly.
“That still doesn’t mean that I should go with him,” said Ginny sadly, not denying the fact that she still loved Harry. “He broke my heart, Ron, or did you forget about that? He didn’t speak to me for months after the battle, so why would he want to go to the Valentine’s Ball with me?”
“Because, believe it or not, Ginny, the man is still in love with you,” replied Ron hotly, standing up. “Although at times like this I don’t know why. You‘ve been denying yourselves what you both want for far too long now. Make up your mind, Ginny, but don‘t string him along anymore, you‘ve hurt each other enough already.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ginny asked Ron’s retreating back, not receiving an answer.
***
Ginny sat in front of the fire in the common room for a long time after everyone else had gone to bed that night, thinking over what her brother had said. Had she been stringing Harry along since they had become friends again? She didn’t think she had, but what did Harry think? What did she want Harry to think? Surely Harry couldn’t still love her now, not after she had hurt him and pushed him away. But you still love Harry, even after he pushed you away, and you didn’t stop loving him while he was gone last year, either, said a voice in her head, not unlike Hermione’s. Her heart told her to go with Harry to the ball, but her head still told her that she shouldn’t give Harry another opportunity to push her away again.
Finally, as the last flame of the fire flickered and then died, Ginny decided to go to bed, still unsure of what to tell Harry. Just as she stood up she heard someone descending the stairs from the boys’ dormitory. Ginny froze, unsure of whether to make her presence known or not.
The figure stepped into the common room and pointed his wand at the fireplace, igniting a fresh fire within. The light given off not only illuminated Ginny, but allowed her to see that it was Harry who had entered the common room.
“I was just going to bed,” said Ginny.
“I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d come and sit down here for a bit,” said Harry, sitting down in his favourite armchair by the fire.
“Okay, goodnight,” replied Ginny, padding quietly across the floor to the girls’ staircase.
“Night,” replied Harry.
Ginny had put one foot on the bottom step when something clicked inside her. It was as if a switch had been flicked on in her mind, allowing her to understand clearly what Ron had meant earlier that night. Harry still loved her, and all she had to do was give him the chance to prove it to her. Slowly she turned around to look at Harry sitting by the fire.
“I’ll go to the ball with you,” she said, a sudden rush of warmth filling her heart.
“Okay. Thanks, Ginny,” answered Harry, his heart leaping, as Ginny began to ascend the stairs.
***
It was with a light heart that Harry went down to breakfast the next morning. He was so elated that Ginny had finally agreed to go to the Valentine’s Ball with him, that it took him a full minute to realise that both Ron and Hermione were staring at him as he sat down and reached for the toast, all with a huge grin on his face.
“What’s up with you,” he asked Ron and Hermione when he eventually noticed their staring.
“What’s up with you, Harry?” asked Hermione while Ron smiled happily to himself, feeling that he knew the answer already.
“Ginny has agreed to go to the ball with me,” replied Harry, unable to keep the news to himself any longer.
“Oh, Harry, that’s excellent!” exclaimed Hermione.
Ron gave a satisfied smirk; he knew that Ginny would come around eventually.
“What are you smirking for?” asked Hermione suspiciously.
“No reason,” replied Ron airily before returning to his breakfast.