Was It Something I Said?
Chapter 12 --"Oh it's good to be home." Ginny said as she flopped down onto her favourite lounge chair at the Burrow later that night.
"Too right." Ron said, reclining in his own chair.
Harry sat next to him, looking extremely comfortable as he looked around at the pictures that adorned the walls. "Is that…?" He asked, pointing to a picture of a small child with only one front tooth in their mouth.
"No!" Ginny said, a blush creeping up on her face.
"Awww isn't she cute?" he said standing up to get a closer look at it.
"Accio picture!" Ginny cried and before Harry could take it from the wall, the picture flew into Ginny's outstretched hands. She let out a triumphant sound and clutched it to her chest. Harry grinned and walked over to her and tried to wrestle it from her grasp. "Nothin' doin' Potter. You'll never see it!" Ginny cried, sounding very much like a pirate in Harry's opinion.
"Would you to put a sock in it? I'm tryin' to get some shut eye over here." Ron said grumpily and Ginny laughed.
"You're only grumpy 'cos Hermione isn't here." She said and Ron's eyes snapped open.
"Shut up." He said but Ginny saw a slight smile on his face. She shared a knowing look with Harry and as she did so, she let her guard down and he took the opportunity to seize the photo from her grasp.
"Noooo!" Ginny said, letting out a dramatic wail of defeat and Harry laughed and patted her on the head.
"What are you worried about? You were a cute kid." He said, tapping the glass in the photo.
"Yes well…" Ginny said, smiling brightly. "Are you saying that I'm not cute anymore?" she said, a mischievous look on her face.
"I-well-sur—I mean…uh…that wasn't fair." Harry said, flicking her on the arm.
"Yeah sorry."
"When are you two going to come to terms with what happened when Ginny was wierded out?" Ron asked, slinging his legs over the edge of his chair.
"When Harry tells me what happened." Ginny said, staring at the person in question intently.
"If we had the pensieve, I would, but isn't it back at Hogwarts? What a shame." He said, though he didn't sound bothered that the Pensieve wasn't near them.
"Well you see Professor Dumbledore is really keen that I find out what I've…missed so he was kind enough to give me permission to bring it here!" Ginny said happily now that she knew how to get Harry to tell her things. Or rather, just the Pensieve.
"I…oh. Well that's…great…I suppose." Harry said, glumly. Ginny could see him deflate and she frowned.
"I didn't do anything that bad did I?" she asked him, biting her lip.
"Well…"
"Harry!"
"No! All right, you didn't. Not…that bad…"
"Right, that's it. I'm going to straighten this out, once and for all." Ginny stood up and ran the length of the house then up the many flights of stairs to her room. Once there, she slammed her door shut.
She blew out a frustrated breath then locating her trunk in the mess that was her bedroom that she didn't even live in for the majority of the year, she kicked open her trunk and pulled out the mini Pensieve that was hidden within its depths.
"Engorgio." She muttered after she placed the pensieve on the floor. It grew to its original size and Ginny repeated the steps she'd seen Hermione do up in Professor Dumbledore's office less than a week ago. Her eyes widened in amazement as the first image appeared in front of her eyes…
Harry and Ron sat in silence in the Weasley's living room meaning that it was inevitable that they would hear the slightest noise…which they did, not fifteen minutes after Ginny had stormed off to her bedroom.
"HARRY JAMES POTTER!" she hollered and Harry flinched even though she was many floors above him.
Ron grinned at him from across the room then within a second, his expression changed. "She had just better be making a deal out of nothing Potter or I will have something to say." Ron said, narrowing his eyes at Harry.
"Ha….ha." Harry said feebly and he left the Burrow as soon as he could. Though he was soon joined by Ginny.
"You, Mr, have a lot of explaining to do!" she said as she poked him in the chest, though this time not because she was having fun.
"Which part did you see?" he asked, cringing and wishing he didn't have to ask.
"Which…which…part?" Ginny asked, loosing her anger as though it were falling through a sieve. "There's more?" she asked incredulously. "You've got to be joking…please be joking?" she half pleaded.
"Which part Ginny?" he asked her firmly, as he grabbed her by the shoulders and made her look at him.
"T-The Halloween Ball…" she muttered, beginning to cry. Against her, she felt Harry sigh with relief.
"Is that all? Ginny I hate to tell you, but that's not the worst of it…" he said, trying to console her and not doing a very good job of it.
"That.was.awful." she said through clenched teeth. "and you're telling me there's more!"
"Maybe you should take another look at the Pensieve…" Harry suggested and Ginny nodded.
"Not by myself this time. You can look at it with me."
"Are you sure you want—"
"Positive. After—"
"Dinner's ready!" Molly Weasley called from back in the Burrow kitchen and Ginny cursed and stamped her foot on the ground.
"After Dinner then." She said as she dragged Harry back to the house.
"Woah! I did not play Quidditch like that!" Ginny said as she and Harry sat watching the Pensieve later that night outside on a hill situated not far from the Burrow.
"'Fraid you did…you were excellent Ginny, absolutely amazing. Everyone was shocked, no one could believe it was you!" Harry said, he couldn't seem to get his praise out quick enough and Ginny loved every second of it.
"Thank you, thank you." She said waving her hands over her head like a boxer who had just won a match. "Now, what's next?" she said as she sifted through the memories that were spinning though the Pensieve sitting before her and Harry.
Harry was watching the images swirl around in the bowl and he paled slightly when Ginny stopped on one of a certain blonde Slytherin.
"What the…? Why would I talk to—oh my Merlin. I am not talking to him! Harry, do you think you could explain to me why my mouth is even within ten feet of his?" Ginny asked, the anger rising in her voice as she whipped around to look at Harry who shrunk back.
"I…uh well you see you didn't give anyone warning before you did that." He said scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably.
"Didn't give…argh! How could you let me kiss him Harry? Why didn't anyone stop me? Oh ewww. Still kissing. Not stopping. Oh there we go. Why didn't I wipe my mouth! Oh gods, who else did I kiss?" she'd meant for this to be a rhetorical question but Harry, quite unexpecting it, launched into a coughing fit, though before hand, Ginny noticed that he had a rather pleased look on his face that she was so disgusted with herself. Suddenly Ginny's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Is there anything you want to tell me Harry?" she asked sweetly, hoping he would tell her himself, that she wouldn't have to resort to desperate measures. However Harry didn't seem capable of speech so sighing, Ginny prodded the contents of the Pensieve so that Malfoy's face dissolved and was replaced with Harry's.
Ginny's eyes widened even further when she saw herself in the Gryffindor change rooms with Harry clad only in a towel. "I now see why you didn't volunteer any information. Were you ever going to tell me about this?"
"I well…yes…someday…in the far future." Harry said, reddening slightly though he seemed to be enjoying the memory.
"Oh I didn't say that! Ooo. I did. How embarrassing! Oh cool! I made you uncomfortable." Ginny grinned and punched Harry on the arm when he tried to deny it. "Let's see…what else?"
"Do you really want to do that Gin?"
"But of course. I must know what I got up too. Can't keep me in the dark."
They sat together in silence as Ginny sifted through her hidden memories. She let out small noises of indignation every now and then, only half believing the things she'd done. It was getting rather chilly outside and Ginny was about ready to give up for the night and continue looking through her memories in the morning when a particular scene caught her eye.
She was walking towards Harry who was sitting on a ledge and whilst she watched, the two of them had a slight argument then she hopped off the ledge and with a determined look on her face, walked over to Harry and after a short pause, she lent down and kissed him.
"Oh my…now I see why you are acting so weird! You weren't ever going to tell me were you?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
Harry merely held his hands up in front of him in surrender and remembering the scene perfectly in his own mind, spoke. "It doesn't matter though does it, you said a kiss is 'just a kiss' so it shouldn't bloody matter."
"A kiss is never just a kiss!" Ginny said, her eyes blazing.
"B-but you said it was! I heard you, look I just saw you say it too!" he said indignantly pointing to the revolving people in the Pensieve.
"I wasn't in my right mind Harry! I said and did a lot of stupid things—"
"Was that stupid, do you regret it?" he asked, his voice a mix of accusation and hurt.
"What? Oh don't be stupid." She said turning from him and crossing her arms. Then after a moments silence a smile crept onto her face and she turned back to him and stepped closer. "The only thing I regret is that I don't remember doing it. I don't suppose you could refresh me memory could you?" she said, cocking her head to the side and a smile appeared on Harry's face too.
"Only if you promise that it won't be 'just a kiss'."
"Give it up already Harry, that topic is long exhausted."
"You're being very forward tonight I might add. Since when do you act like this, you aren't still under the Potion are you?" he asked suspiciously drawing away from her.
"No," Ginny said, looking slightly hurt. "Professor Dumbledore put it right for me before we left…why, didn't you like the Ginny that was under the spell?" she asked, stepping back from him so she could see his full reaction.
"To tell you the truth when I think about it, no. I didn't like her much at all. Though I did notice you more when you were being a nasty little prat but all the while I wished you would stop, it wasn't you."
"If it all made you notice me, how do you know it wasn't me? Maybe I'd always been like that." Ginny countered, raising her eyebrows to show that she had a fair point.
"Not even. I've heard your brothers talk about you and from what I can gather you have always been a nice person, once you get to know people."
"My brothers talk about me? Surely you jest?" Ginny asked, giving him a disbelieving look.
"Not jesting, just don't tell them. I'll never live it down." He said with a smile.
"So where were we anyway? Ah yes, I believe you were going to show me what that kiss was like before." Ginny stepped closer.
"As long as—"
"I know, I know. It will not be 'just a kiss' Harry! I promise!" Ginny was getting slightly aggravated.
"That wasn't what I was going to say. As long as you never kiss Malfoy again!"
"Not in this lifetime I promise."
"It's got me worried though, those things you did, apparently they—"
"Harry?" Ginny said, stepping even closer to Harry now that she was directly in front of him and looking up into his eyes.
"What?" he said, distracted.
"Shut up." She said removing his glasses.
"Don't do that, I can't see." He said as he reached out for them.
"Really? Huh whadda ya know." Ginny said as she walked backwards away from Harry who was forced to follow.
"Ginny, please this isn't funny."
"I beg to differ, it's rather amusing. Oh alright, come here." She said as he gave her an annoyed look and as he did, she backed up against her favourite tree on the Weasley property and waited until Harry was in front of her. She held up his glasses and looked into his eyes that were somehow focused on her face. Once he was close enough, she slid his glasses up his nose and looked deeply into his eyes and with a small grin he placed his hands on either side of her body, leaning against the tree.
"There's no escape now." He said, laughing lightly.
"I don't plan on escaping." She said seriously and was pleased when Harry blushed slightly.
"You're driving me nuts you know." He said as if it were a well-known fact.
"Oh really? How so?"
"Well when you were under the spell you'd kiss me much quicker than this! Now it seems as you're making me wait forever."
"Forever sure is a long time." She said airily, pretending to examine her fingernails. Harry let out a strangled noise in his throat and Ginny laughed. "Fine!" she said and putting her arms around Harry's neck, their lips met in a sweet kiss, one quite unlike the others they had shared previously.
Once they parted Harry stared at her, his mouth partly open.
"What, was it something I said?" Ginny asked, looking at him confused and Harry laughed.
"Sure Ginny, it was something you said alright." He said, taking her in his arms and hugging her so tightly she though she would burst.
They walked back to the Burrow together, knowing that from now on Ginny would be a different person but that was ok with the both of them, and after all, honesty is the best policy.
Well guys, that's it for WISIS…I'm not completely happy with the ending but it's an ending and I realise that there are a lot of unanswered questions but in my mind, sometimes that's a good thing, it helps to have things unanswered, that way you can always come up with answers that suffice. Ok, so that's probably a really lame excuse but unfortunately it's the best I can do.
I've decided to take a bit of a break from Harry fic for the moment as I'm still reeling from HBP and I'm not sure if I can do fic justice from now on. I'm sure I'll go back on my word and write something but for now, I'm taking a break and concentrating solely on my studies unless a small plot bunny decides to nibble on my leg at some point. We shall, evidently, see what happens.
In closing I want to thank each and every one of you for reading and reviewing my fictions – it really makes my day when I get a nice review telling me that people are reading my fic and appreciating it and I'm glad I can bring smiles to people's faces and even sometimes a laugh. I enjoy what I do, even if there's always someone out there who can do it better.
So thank you all again and keep ficcing! I shall of course keep reading.
Nesserz. )