Author's Note (back by popular demand, hahahaha): So I really have no explaination as to why, two years after I decided to discontinue this story, I have decided to finish it. I actually lost interest in writing this a full year or more before I actually decided to discontinue it. I just woke up a few mornings ago and wanted to finish it. So here I am.

Love.me.or.leave.me: Are you always so long winded in your reviews? JUST kidding! I LOVED your review. I wish everyone reviewed like that! Thanks a million

Ev80: Thanks for checking out my LJ. I update it about as often as I update this . I know, I'm a horrible person

Tdolphing: Am now! Here's the beginning of the end...

To anyone who's interested in finding out what Nicci has in common with Nicci from Sword of Truth: Good luck and if you figure it out, let me know, because I totally don't remember!

Oh and P.S. - I swear that when I first posted these chapters, they were a lot neater than they are now. was going through a lot of changes and stuff back then and it affected the stuff posted before.

Chapter Nine: Back to School

Ginny slept that night with the lightness of someone unfamiliar with their surroundings. She woke early the next day to the sound of someone, her mother she presumed, making breakfast downstairs. Though she hadn't gotten much sleep, she wasn't tired. The red head started her day full of curiosity and optimism.

Not wanting to wake her roommate, Ginny decided to read more of her old journal. She grew bored of reading the thoughts of a twelve year old after a few pages and decided to skip forward a bit. She put back the journal from her second year and instead pulled out the one from her third year. Glancing at the form of the other girl to make sure that she hadn't been too loud, Ginny settled back onto her bed and began reading again.

After only a few pages, she had decided that this journal was a lot more interesting than the previous one. It seemed that with entering her teenage years, she had learned to check her emotions with rationale. She had started questioning her crush on Harry instead of just writing about how she was so smitten with him. But from the way that she was looking for and defending her reasons for the crush, the older Ginny got the feeling that something was going on that hadn't been written down.

She knew the journal was hers, but she felt guilty, as if she were violating someone's privacy.

"How long have you been up?" Hermione asked when she finally stirred.

Ginny started before she remembered that she wasn't doing anything wrong. Hermione seemed not to notice.

"I'm not really sure," Ginny answered. "I guess for about a half hour or so."

"Why didn't you wake me? Did you sleep well?" the older girl asked, rising and stretching.

"Yeah," Ginny answered. "I think Ron and Harry are both still sleeping and I didn't want to bother you. Besides, I was content reading," she explained.

Hermione nodded her understanding. "Your mum will have breakfast ready soon," she told the other girl. "Are you hungry?"

Ginny hadn't noticed how hungry she was before Hermione mentioned it. She was reluctant to leave the journal, but knew that she could come back and read after breakfast. "Yeah, I feel like I haven't eaten in ages," she confessed.

A funny smile played at the older girl's features. Ginny might not remember that she was a Weasley, but her stomach did!

--

After breakfast, Ginny wanted to return to read more of her old journal, but was reminded of her promise to beat the boys at chess.

"I think I'd really rather go back upstairs and finish-"

"Oh you're not… scared are you?" Ron taunted.

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "Scared? You wish," she flung back at him.

Hermione marveled at how much of her friend's fiery personality lingered, though her memory was gone.

"Oh, okay," Ron teased. "But so you know, I'd be scared too, if I had to play against me."

The girl's eyes narrowed. "You're on," she said, accepting the challenge.

Harry and Hermione shared a private smile as they watched the exchange between their friends. Both silently hoped that the pieces of Ginny's personality that presented themselves in moments like this would fit together and help to remind her of who she was.

As the day went on, Ginny started to feel more at ease; and as the fun increased, her desire to read the journal decreased. She only remembered it again later that night when she and Hermione retired to their room.

Remembering her curiosity from earlier that day, Ginny picked the journal up and plopped onto her bed to read. Hermione did the same, only, with a school book. Ginny smiled to herself, not understanding how anyone could find a text book interesting. Hermione was a special breed.

The thought flittered across her mind that it was funny how she remembered that text books were boring, yet she couldn't remember her own family.

She read the journal with interest, but because she had detailed every day, the reading was slow going. She still felt that there was something she hadn't written down, but didn't understand why. Why would she not write about something bothering her in her own personal journal?

"Hermione?" she asked.

"Yes?" came the reply, the bushy haired girl peering over the top of her book.

"Why do I remember some things, but not others?" Ginny asked her.

The older girl pursed her lips in thought for a moment before answering. "I don't know," she answered softly.

"Like, I just know some things," Ginny explained. "I knew your face when I woke up, but I didn't remember your name. I knew Nicci's name when I saw her. I can't explain how. I get these feelings that there's something missing, or something more to the story sometimes. But right as I think I'm about to remember, I forget again."

"Don't think too hard about it," Hermione told her. "The doctor said it could take a while for you to remember everything."

"But why do I remember some things and not others?" Ginny asked.

"Magic is funny sometimes," the older witch said. "Maybe… maybe you were thinking of things when your memory was lost and you remember those things that you were thinking about when it happened." She looked doubtful of her own words even as they came out of her mouth, but it was all she had to offer.

Ginny thought about how she had remembered text books were boring. "I don't think so," she said, knowing that she wouldn't be thinking of text books unless she absolutely had to. It being summer time and not having classes, what reason would she have for thinking of books?

"I think I just did it again," she said slowly, realizing what she'd done.

"Did what?" Hermione asked.

"Did I enjoy school work?" the confused red head asked.

"No, not particularly," Hermione told her, not able to follow the other girl's train of thought. "Why?"

"I didn't think so," Ginny told her. "In fact, I knew that I didn't."

Hermione smiled. Maybe she would get her friend back sooner than she thought.

--

The next few days went the same. Ginny's understanding of her surroundings grew by the day, but still, her memory didn't come back. She wondered how much things had changed from before she had lost her memory.

For instance, she knew that Hermione was her best friend, but she also knew the guilt that the other girl felt over her memory loss. She couldn't distinguish whether the older girl's overly nice demeanor was always sincere.

Ron was different entirely. He was nice enough, but he was a lot easier to read. She knew she made him uncomfortable when she asked questions about herself, and for the most part, he treated her like a total stranger – which actually made things easier for her because she didn't feel any pressure to act like more than that toward him in return. She wondered how she would handle it if the situation had been reversed.

Her mum and dad kept a close watch on her. They told her stories every day about when she was younger, and she could sense the sadness they felt as they spoke. Through and through however, they made her feel comfortable, protected, and loved. She knew that she was lucky to have them as parents; she just wished she could remember loving them.

Harry was different all together. Where the others were always reminding her of the things she used to like and find fun, Harry instead, accepted that she might like different things. He let her figure things out on her own, and he treated her according to the way she acted now and not the way she used to act.

Ginny still read her journal bit by bit, but was growing wearisome of trying to remember who she was, instead of getting to be who she wanted. She couldn't help but enjoy being around Harry. He made her feel comfortable.

It was easy to see why she had liked him so much.

--

Ginny came downstairs one afternoon after taking a nap to find Hermione sitting on the couch, Ron stretched out beside her, his head on her lap as she read yet another school book. Unexplainable jealousy tore through her body as physically as if someone had split her in two with a dull kitchen knife. She was taken aback by the emotion; completely unaware of where it had sprang from.

Suddenly the jealousy left, leaving in its wake a terrible sadness. Her heart ached in a way that ripped the breath out of her lungs. She turned from the room before either of its two occupants had noticed her. She wanted to run back up the stairs to her bedroom and cry forever for no reason that she understood.

Turning sharply to do just that, she came face to face with Harry, bumping into him and nearly knocking him from his feet. Luckily enough, he was quick on his feet and managed to stay upright. She on the other hand would have fallen to the floor if his strong arms hadn't steadied her.

Embarrassment flooded through her, soaking through the unexplainable sadness. "Have a nice nap?" he asked sincerely, not giving the embarrassment enough time to settle.

"Yeah," she answered sheepishly, her face red. "You'd think I was sleep walking with as clumsy as I am."

"Don't worry about it," Harry said soothingly. "Everyone's always running into each other around all of these cramped corners," he lied, trying to make her feel better. It worked.

The red haired girl looked into his sparkling green eyes and then down at Harry's arms, still around her. At the same time, Ron walked through the door. From the look on his face, it was apparent that his eyes were also fixed on Harry's arms around his little sister. It was Harry's turn to go red in the face.

"Oh, I, uh," he quickly let go of Ginny. "Sorry," he said to no one in particular and then moved to walk into the room where Hermione still sat.

"What was that about?" Ron demanded before he made it past.

Harry turned, taking in a deep breath as he racked his brain. He knew what it had looked like to Ron and didn't know how his best friend would react.

"I got a bit dizzy and tripped and couldn't catch my footing," Ginny said quickly. "Harry caught me though. Lucky too, I wouldn't want to hit my head again."

Ron looked from one to the other, not entirely sure that he believed the girl.

Noticing that he wasn't exactly buying it, Ginny quickly gripped the wall. "Help me to a chair?" she asked Ron. "I'm still feeling a bit dizzy. I think I need to sit down."

Without hesitation, her big brother picked her up and carried her to the chair nearest where Hermione was sitting. "You okay?" he asked, sincerely concerned.

"I'll be alright," she assured him. "I think I just got a bit overheated during my nap and came down the stairs too quickly."

"Do I need to get mum?" he asked, already halfway across the room. Hermione looked up, worry lines evident on her face.

"No," Ginny said smoothly. "I'm fine, really."

"Are you sure?" Ron asked.

"Yeah. I just needed to sit down for a minute."

Ron stared at her for another second, before going to sit back down with Hermione.

"Alright. But if you even think you are starting to feel like that again, you'd better tell me," he said forcefully.

"I will," she said sweetly, in attempt to make him relax.

When Ron's attention had shifted away from her, the Weasley girl looked up at Harry, giving him a smile that said she was half ashamed for making her brother worry, but that her other half was glad she had been able to evade him asking questions. Harry returned the smile, impressed that she had been able to think so quickly and thankful that she had.

Ron was oblivious to what had occurred between them, but Hermione caught their smiles and could guess that there was more than met the eye. She was glad to see a real smile on Ginny's face again and couldn't help but admire the beauty that seemed to radiate from the girl's face when she smiled like that.

"Did you see the Daily Prophet this morning?" Ron asked Harry.

Harry disengaged himself from his own thoughts to answer. "No, why?"

"Chudley Cannons won last week's match against Wimbourne," he said proudly.

"About time they won one!" Harry teased, prompting Ron to chuck a pillow at his head.

While the boys talked about quidditch, Ginny thought to herself about what had happened just before she had run into Harry - the strange feelings she had felt. She didn't understand them, didn't understand where they had come from, why she had felt them, or what they meant. But she did understand that Harry had made her forget about them.

Maybe that's what she had sensed in the journal that she hadn't written down. Though she wasn't 100 percent sure of her theory, it made a lot of sense. She must have still liked Harry and had been trying to talk herself out of it because she thought he could never feel the same.

Ginny wondered back over the last few days that she had spent around Harry. Harry had been really nice to her. She wondered if he was that way with everyone.

Mrs. Weasley walked into the room and looked disapprovingly at the four of them sitting about. "You leave for Hogwarts day after tomorrow, and none of you have packed your trunks," she reminded them.

"Mum…" Ron groaned, eliciting a threatening look from his mother. "Alright, alright," he conceded, standing up and dragging himself off toward his room, following by Harry, Hermione and Ginny.

"Ginny dear," Molly Weasley called after them. "I've already packed the things you need," she told her. "But I left enough room for you to take a few extra things if you have anything you'd like to take with you."

Ginny smiled her thanks and continued up to see if there was anything else she wanted to take. Before she made it all the way to her room though, Harry stopped her in the hallway.

"Hey," he started out, not sure of what to say. "Sorry about earlier – about the… you know," he said, making a gesture with his arms to convey his meaning.

"What's there to be sorry for?" she asked softly, slightly surprised at her own boldness.

She looked up, her bright brown eyes meeting his brilliant green ones. They looked at each other, into each other, for a long moment. Harry smiled, breaking the gaze.

"I better go," he said in a near whisper. "Ron will be wondering where I've gotten off to."

Ginny nodded her understanding and then stood and watched him walk to the room he shared with her brother. It wasn't until she started walking to her own room that she realized she had been holding her breath.

Hermione seemed not to notice anything when Ginny walked in, or at least, didn't say anything about it if she did.

"I've gathered a few of the things you usually take with you," Hermione told her. "A few pictures and things."

"Thanks," Ginny said happily.

"My first year at Hogwarts, I took a few things I was familiar with to make me feel more comfortable," Hermione said. "I know that nothing here is really familiar to you, so I owled and had my parents pick this up for you." She handed Ginny a package wrapped in brown paper.

Smiling, Ginny took the package and carefully opened the paper, revealing a gorgeous leather bound book. "It's a new journal," Hermione explained. "Just in case you want to write or something."

The journal was beautiful, but Ginny was more warmed by the thought that her friend had put behind it. "Thank you," she said, setting the journal aside and giving her friend a hug.

Hermione smiled. "You're welcome."

--

The next day passed much too quickly for all of them. Before any of them were ready for it, they were stepping onto platform 9 ¾ at Kings Cross Station. Ginny was more nervous than she let on. Outwardly, she was timid. Inside, she was absolutely terrified.

After assuring her parents that she would be okay, promising them that she would write as often as she could, and bidding them goodbye, Ginny followed Harry, Ron, and Hermione onto the train. People looked at her with interest as she passed, but she didn't recognize any of the faces. Finally, the group found an empty compartment and walked inside, followed shortly by a round-faced boy and a rather peculiar looking blonde haired girl.

Ginny noticed both of the new members of their group stealing nervous glances at her. The boy looked away sheepishly when she caught him, but the girl held her gaze.

"Everyone is saying you lost your memory in a Deatheater attack," she said. "Is it true?"

Ginny nearly choked on the straightforwardness that was the way of Luna Lovegood. "Yes," she managed.

"Ginny," Harry said, coming to her rescue. It was the first time he'd spoken directly to her since their meeting in the hallway over a day ago. "This is Luna Lovegood. She's a good friend of yours... of ours," he explained. "And this," he continued, turning toward the boy, "is Neville Longbottom, also a good friend."

"Nice to see you again, Ginny," he said. "I'm glad you're alright."

The Weasley girl smiled politely. "Nice to see you," she said back. "And you," she said to Luna.

"Well Hermione, are you ready to go to the prefects compartment?" Ron asked his girlfriend.

"Yeah, I suppose we should be on our way," she said, grabbing her robes. She looked at Ginny, giving her a reassuring smile. "We'll see you guys at the banquet tonight."

The others said their "see-you-laters" and then Ron and Hermione were gone, leaving Ginny alone with Harry and two strangers.

Though they were both a bit odd, Ginny found the company of Neville and Luna to be fairly pleasant. The conversations were light, no one caring to darken the conversation with talk of Voldemort or the Deatheaters. Occasionally a group of students would walk by their compartment slowly, eyes glued to Ginny through the window.

"They're just curious," Harry explained. "There are so many rumours around now days, no one knows what the truth is anymore."

Ginny nodded and shrugged it off as Harry lowered the blinds.

"So you want to give me a chance to win back my pride?" Harry asked Ginny, holding up Ron's chess set. "Ron left it in case we got bored."

She couldn't help but smile. "Does 'giving you a chance' mean I have to take it easy on you?" she asked.

Harry smiled and set the board.

When the train finally arrived at Hogwarts, Ginny felt as if she was in a dream that was moving far too fast for her to keep up. She didn't know what to do, so she just followed the examples of Harry, Neville, and Luna. All the people, the carriage ride, the long lines, the big table full of people – before she could even realize what was going on, Ginny was following her three friends to a table crowded with people who all seemed to know her.

Everyone was talking at once and she was being 'introduced' to so many people that she hardly had time to put the names and faces together, much less remember them. She felt a huge relief when she heard Hermione's voice from behind her. "How was the ride?" she asked, sitting beside Ginny, a bright smile on her face.

The Weasley girl gave her a half smile, betraying her feeling of being overwhelmed. Hermione wasn't used to seeing the sense of helplessness on her friend's face. Even when she was lying in the hospital bed, Ginny always had that air of self-assuredness about her. She took Ginny's hand in her own under the table and gave it a squeeze, letting her know that everything would be okay. Seeing the softer side of the youngest Weasley evoked many emotions from within Hermione.

Ginny watched as the first years were sorted into their houses. She wondered if they were as scared as she was right then and she knew that they probably were. She wished she could remember being sorted. She was glad when the meal started because it meant delaying more questions and comments from her schoolmates.

"Ron and I have to escort the first years up to the tower," Hermione told Ginny. "Stay with Harry, he'll show you the way up." Ginny nodded.

"I know you don't remember any of these people, but they all mean well," Ron said of the people packed in around them. "Most of them anyhow," he added with venom in his voice as he stared down a group of students with the Slytherin house crest on their robes.

"He's right," Hermione told her, as the bustle of the crowd began to separate them. "See you in the common room later!"

Ginny turned to find Harry before they got too far from one another. Harry put a hand on her upper arm, ushering her toward the side of the room. "It's easier to ignore it than it is to worry about it," he told her, feeling her tension about the way people kept craning their necks to get a good look at her. Neville wasn't far away from them and Harry moved toward him, knowing that a familiar face always made things at least a little easier.

The room buzzed around them as students were meeting and greeting and catching up after summer break. It was as if they were making their way through a maze. "Once we get to the Gryffindor Tower, it'll just be other people from our house," he told her.

"Usually it's Harry everyone's trying to get a look at," Neville told her, noticing the special attention everyone was paying to the Weasley girl.

"Harry!" a voice called out from a person that they couldn't see. Suddenly, a girl appeared before them. Neville didn't recognize her, but Harry apparently did, Ginny judged. "Cho told me to give this to you," the girl said. "She wanted me to ask you to please meet her in a few minutes."

Harry turned to Ginny. "She said it's really important," the girl added. An array of different emotions crossed Harry's face. He looked torn.

"I'll take her up," Neville said to Harry.

"Uh... thanks," Harry replied, letting the girl lead him off to where Cho was waiting.

Ginny didn't understand, so Neville explained. "Cho was Harry's girlfriend last year," he said. "Things kind of went bad between the two of them at the end of last year, and then Michael Cor- ... well, I suppose you don't remember all of what happened and it's too complicated to try to explain," he told her, a bit of confused look crossing his face just thinking about explaining it.

Another stab of sadness inched its way through Ginny Weasley. She nodded her head, but kept silent, just letting Neville lead her to the Gryffindor Tower. Her brow furled as she thought. Maybe she was right for thinking that Harry couldn't like her the way that she had liked him. What was she doing thinking that he liked her now just because he was being nice to her? Cho probably wanted to reconcile with him and be his girlfriend again.

"This is the fat lady," Neville said to Ginny, drawing her out of her own self-pitying thoughts. "You have to tell her the password to get into the tower.

"Bowtruckles," he then said to the fat lady. The portait moved allowing them entrance to Gryffindor Tower. If she hadn't been thinking about Harry, she would have been thoroughly captivated by the scene before her. The room was marvelously decorated and there seemed to be a bit of a party going on. No one seemed to notice her enter.

"Which way is my room?" she asked Neville quietly.

"That way," he said, pointing her in the right direction. "If you go now, you might be able to make it before someone notices."

Taking Neville's advice, Ginny inched her way the direction that he had pointed. Before she could make it up though, someone, of course, had noticed her. "Ginny!" a friendly voice from somewhere beside her called.

"Oh, hi," Ginny said less than enthusiastically.

"Everyone was just talking about you," the girl informed Ginny. Ginny didn't respond. "We were just saying how we hoped you were doing okay."

Ginny gave the best smile she could muster as several pairs of eyes settled on her. "Not everyone believes it was Deatheaters, you know," the girl continued. "Those of us who were in Dumbledore's Army know it was, though," she said matter-of-factly.

"Did you get any Deatheaters?" someone asked.

"What were they after, anyway?" someone else asked.

"How'd you manage getting back home?" yet another person asked.

"The girl's a real trooper," someone else chimed in. "Second time she's gone up against Deatheaters and come out alive."

"A lot of adults couldn't even do that." Ginny had lost track of who had been talking. She flashed another half smile, wishing she could just sink back into a corner and have everyone forget about her.

"So tell us about it," the first girl spoke again.

"I-... I don't remember any of it," Ginny answered.

"So it's true then?" a voice asked.

"Did you really lose your memory?" another person asked.

"I-... yes," the girl answered.

A half excited squeel came out of the first girl's mouth. "So you don't remember anyone here?!" she asked, but it was more of a statement. "Well let me introduce you to everyone then," she said.

Not wanting to be overwhelmed again with more people and names than she could possibly remember, but not wanting to be rude, Ginny found herself in a dilemma. She looked to Neville for help, but he looked as helpless as she did. The poor girl found herself subjected to being dragged around the room by the girl, whose name, she learned, was Lavender Brown.

Just when Ginny thought that she would couldn't take being dragged around any longer, the portrait hole opened and a group of small, scared, sleepy looking students was ushered in, escorted by a group of prefects, her brother and Hermione being among the mix. Relief flooded over her. The youngest Weasley watched as her best friend's eyes darted around the room until they settled on her. Hermione turned to the group of students she escorted and after directing them to their rooms, made quickly for Ginny.

"Hello, Lavender," Hermione said to the girl beside Ginny. "Have a nice summer?" she asked, directing the attention away from the red head.

"It was alright," Lavender answered.

"Well, that's good to hear," Hermione said back. "Ginny can you come with me for a minute?" she asked, pulling the younger girl away. Of course they both knew she hadn't really needed Ginny for anything, but Lavender didn't know that.

"Lights out in 10 minutes," one of the older prefects called out, which spurred people moving toward their rooms. Hermione and Ginny lagged behind.

"Where's Harry?" Hermione asked.

Disappointment flickered across Ginny's face for a split second before she answered, but a split second was all it took for Hermione to catch it. "Cho wanted to see him," Ginny said. "So he had Neville show me up." She didn't say anymore for fear that bitterness would be evident in her voice.

The bushy haired girl frowned, but didn't say anything. "Are you about ready for bed?" Hermione asked.

Ginny nodded. "I'm pretty tired," she said. Hermione showed her where she would be if she needed her and then escorted the exhausted red head to her own bed.

"Get some sleep," Hermione said. "You'll have another busy day tomorrow," she said, wishing she could somehow make it easier on her friend.

"Thanks," Ginny said, then turned and without a word to any of her roommates, climbed into her bed and pulled the curtains closed around herself.

Hermione was pretty tired herself, and headed off to her own bed. Her roommates must have been just as tired as she was, because they were already in their beds. The first day back was always tiring. It didn't take her very long to fall asleep and drift into her dreams.

She felt like she had only been asleep for a few minutes, and knew by the amount of light coming into the window from the moon that it couldn't have been more than an hour, when she woke to someone whispering her name. "Hermione," the voice whispered again once she was sure that the prefect was awake.

Hermione blinked to focus her eyes to the dark. She could make out a familiar pale form standing near the foot of her bed. "Ginny? What are you doing here?"

Ginny looked as if she was afraid that Hermione would reproach her for coming in and waking her in the middle of the night. "I couldn't sleep," Ginny said, ashamed of herself.

"What's wrong?" Hermione whispered back, clearing a space for Ginny to sit on her bed and then drawing the curtains closed around them. That same look that Ginny had had on her face earlier at the sorting ceremony was back again – the helpless, overwhelmed look that was so unfamiliar and foreign to Ginny's features. Hermione wrapped her arms around the frail girl.

Ginny leaned into the other girl, her resolve crumbling. For the first time since she had lost her memory, she wept for herself. Seeing this side of Ginny wasn't something Hermione was used to, and it caught her completely off guard. She breathed in deeply, but held tight to the younger girl. She thought of all the times that Ginny had stood strong in the face of whatever had been thrown at her and was reminded again of how much she cared for this girl.

Hermione held the position for several minutes until Ginny's crying slowed and calmed to soft miserable sobs. "Here," Hermione said, pulling back her blanket. "Lay down with me." Ginny, not having the strength or will to do anything else, let Hermione lay her down as if she were a rag doll. She laid down beside the crying girl and held her tight. "You've had a hard day," she said. Then thinking back over the the last few weeks, added, "I honestly don't know how you've gone this long without letting it get to you. But you've always been strong." She smiled grimly and held Ginny even tighter.

Despite Hermione being so close, Ginny still felt alone in the world. She stared into space, lost in her thoughts of loneliness and despair. She didn't know who she was. Everyone else was happy being back and seeing their friends again. But she couldn't remember anyone. She had no idea how she would make it to, much less, through her classes tomorrow. So many thoughts rushed through her head that she felt like she would never feel happiness again.

"Close your eyes," Hermione whispered into her ear. "Don't think about anything, just close your eyes." Hermione's voice pulled Ginny back out of her thoughts and Hermione would never know just how grateful the younger girl was. Hermione hoped that as long as she gave Ginny something to concentrate on, she wouldn't be thinking about everything that had

happened, so she kept talking, hoping her voice would distract Ginny from her thoughts.

"Don't worry about anything. I'm going to be here with you through this. And your other friends, I know you don't remember them, but you'll get to know them again in time and they'll be here for you too." Hermione kept talking until she felt Ginny's breath even out and then just lay there beside the sleeping girl.

She couldn't help but notice how good Ginny smelled. Funny that she was thinking of that in the light of all that had been happening. She shook her head at herself and raised up softly to get a drink of water from her nightstand. With the cup about halfway to her mouth, she glanced to make sure that she hadn't disturbed Ginny's sleep. The cup froze at her lips as she watched the moonlight dance on the younger girl's pale, freckled skin.

The brown haired girl smiled affectionately. She had never noticed before how beautiful her friend was. She finished her drink of water and then sat it back down, pausing to take another long look at Ginny's beautiful sleeping form. Before she let her thoughts travel any farther down the path they were headed on, Hermione laid back down, deciding to go to sleep quickly, forcing the thoughts out of her head.

Hermione trembled beside Ginny. This time, it was she that couldn't sleep. She couldn't believe the thoughts that were picking at the edges of her mind and tried all she knew to ignore them. The girl was on the verge of panic, wondering what she would do. She couldn't stay here, not in this bed, not having these kinds of thoughts about another girl, about her best friend. What was wrong with her? She couldn't get up though. She had no where to go. And what would Ginny think when she woke and Hermione wasn't there?

Closing her eyes tightly, Hermione forced herself into sleep. Her dreams though, were as haunting as being awake. Ginny's face drifted back and forth across her mind. What was going on with her? Why was she having these thoughts?