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Author: pottervader Story: Harry Potter and the Prophesied Six Rating: Teens Setting: AU Status: WIP Reviews: 16 Words: 374,905
Disclaimer: This story was made without any intention of profiting from it. Only the original characters and the plot are mine. The rest of it belongs to JKR. A/N: Here is the next one. As the title says, it also takes place on Valentine's Day and starts before Ginny woke up in the last chapter, as Harry leaves his sister and Hermione before they enter the Great Hall for breakfast, to go up to the hospital wing to see Ginny, just to clarify matters. Sorry for the delay but I was busy the week after posting the last one and I had a bit of trouble deciding how to end the chapter. Enjoy and please review.
"Come on, Rose," Hermione said, "There's nothing we can do for him right now except leave him alone. He's probably heading for the Hospital wing. We can check on him and Ginny later." Reluctantly agreeing, Rose followed Hermione into the Great Hall. When she spotted the Gryffindor table, she saw Neville talking to Dean. Once again, she suppressed the disappointment she felt on not finding him in the common room waiting for her. It was their first Valentine's Day together and she thought he'd meet her the same way Harry had been doing with Ginny for the past few years. Neville saw her coming to the table when she was still halfway there. He got up and quickly intercepted her. "Happy Valentine's Day, Rose," he said, kissing her lightly on the lips. "Come on and have some breakfast." Trying to smile brightly to hide her disappointment, Rose followed him and sat down beside him. As soon as she was seated, the flurry of activity that accompanied the arrival of the delivery owls filled the Great Hall. She was surprised when a pair of barn owls gently landed a large bouquet of flowers in front of her. It looked like six dozen roses of different colors. There were the usual red ones, but also blue, yellow, pink, white and even purple roses in the bouquet. She turned to Neville who had a huge grin on his face. "Happy Valentine's Day again, Rose," he said, "I hope you like your name sake." "Oh they're lovely, Neville," she said, twining her arms around his neck and pulling him to her so she could kiss him. "Happy Valentine's Day," she said once they broke away. "I love them. Thank you so much. I've never seen purple roses before though." Neville blushed. "It's just an experiment I wanted to try, crossbreeding the red and blue ones. I grew all of those in my greenhouse at Longbottom Manor. Most roses on sale for Valentine's Day are grown in greenhouses since it's too cold yet for natural blooms. Oh, I have one more gift for you." He reached into a pocket and pulled out a small box. Rose felt she couldn't breathe. Surely he wasn't going to propose now. They haven't even declared their love for each other. Of course, she knew she loved him already and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him but then he had never hinted that he felt the same. Then, Neville opened the box and Rose felt both relieved and disappointed that it didn't contain an engagement ring. However, the sapphire pendant nestled within instead took her breath away. "Neville," she said, awe in her voice, "it's beautiful." She took it out of the case and admired it for a few seconds. Then she turned to him. "Help me put it on." She handed to him then turned around and lifted her hair. Neville deftly undid the clasp and placed it around her neck, allowing the pendant to nestle just above the valley between her breasts. "There," Neville said, kissing her on the cheek. "It looks perfect on you. It was my great-great grandmother's." "Thank you, Nev," Rose said, giving him a quick kiss on the lips. She felt her heart swell with affection for Neville. It was their first Valentine's Day and he had given her a special gift. "You're right about it, Rose," Hermione said, smiling at her from her other side. "It's a beautiful pendant. I think I'm jealous." Neville frowned. "Sorry, Hermione. Before I left the dorm room, I tried to wake Ron up several times but he just grumbled a bit and turned over." Hermione huffed. "That's all right, Neville. I know Ron likes his sleep just as much as food. I just wonder how he managed to be awake this time last year when he gave me this bracelet." She showed the bracelet with the bookcase shaped charm Ron had given her the previous Valentine's Day. Neville shrugged. "Maybe Harry had more luck waking him up then. Speaking of Harry, is he with Ginny?" Rose nodded. "Yeah, he said he didn't feel hungry. Considering the circumstances of the day and Ginny being in a coma, I can sympathize." She looked forlornly at the food she had put on her plate. "Hey," Neville said, putting his arm around her, "she's going to be okay. Who knows, she might actually wake up today. Wouldn't that be an awesome Valentine's Day gift?" "I hope so, Neville," Rose said. "Harry's been so down these last two weeks. I don't know if he'll be able to handle it for much longer." Just then, there was a flutter of wings throughout the Great Hall, signaling the arrival of the owls bearing the morning mail. One of them landed right in front of Hermione, holding a bouquet of red roses. Hermione took the bouquet and gave the owl a bit of bacon. It hooted its thanks before flying up and out of the Great Hall. Hermione returned to examining the bouquet. There was a tag on the bouquet. "Bob's Garden of Magical plants," she read. "But who's it from? Neville, you're an expert on plants and flowers, do you know anything about this garden?" "I know it's one of the better shops for flowers and plants in Diagon Alley," Neville said. "It's also only one that accepts owl-orders." "Owl-orders?" Hermione asked. "Oh, Ron, of course. It figures he had no time to find them himself." As she said that, Rose saw Ron enter the Great Hall, a look of panic on his face. He practically ran to the Gryffindor table. Once he reached it, he sat down beside Hermione. "'Mione, I'm sorry," he blurted out, "I forgot it was Valentine's Day. If I had realized it earlier, I would have been up already to meet you in the common room. I'm glad you got the flowers already." "Are you sure, Ron?" Hermione asked. "Are you so sure these are the flowers you owl-ordered?" "Of course I'm sure," Ron said. "It has the logo of the shop I ordered it from on Neville's recommendation." Hermione sighed. "You could have at least had them put a card on it to make certain that I knew it came from you. Anyway, it was sweet of you to do this." She kissed him on the cheek. Ron grinned at her before doing the same. "Here," he said, handing her a badly wrapped rectangular package. "I hope you like this." "Thank you, Ron," Hermione answered. "This is for you, Happy Valentine's Day." She handed him a much better wrapped package. She then opened the gift Ron had given her. It was a book. She frowned after seeing the title but quickly changed it into a smile. "Thank you, Ron, I think this will prove useful." "I'm glad you liked it, 'Mione," Ron said. He grinned as Hermione's gift to him was revealed to be a selection of Honeyduke's chocolates. "Thanks for the chocolates." He then proceeded to fill his plate to overflowing. Hermione stared at him for a few seconds before sighing and attending to her own plate. Curious, Rose took a peek at the book Ron had give Hermione. She shook her head at Ron's obliviousness when she saw it: 100 Ways to Please Your Wizard. He should have been there when Neville gave her the pendant. It might have given him a clue for a more appropriate gift for Valentine's Day. She exchanged a look with Neville, silently asking him if she should say anything. Neville seemed to understand what she wanted to say but shook his head. Accepting his opinion, she proceeded to eat her breakfast. All around her, the other Gryffindors began to discuss what the fair would be like. Half an hour later, Professor Dumbledore rose to his feet. "My dear students," he began, "a happy Valentine's Day to you all. Today is a day that has been set aside by tradition to laud something that has a power as great as magic. I'm sure many of you would scoff at such a comparison but let me assure you that Love has as much power as our beloved magic. It can be used to build a family and inspire us to do great things. But it can also be used to destroy when it becomes twisted and misguided, just like magic. Some say it is the greatest power in the universe. Thus, it is fitting that a day is set aside to celebrate it. So, to make this even more special, you have the fair to enjoy yourselves. Those of you who are done with your breakfasts may now go down to the grounds around Black Lake and partake of the stalls set up for the day... Enjoy." The students cheered and started rising from their tables. Ron rapidly shoveled the rest of his food into his mouth, much to Hermione's disgust then got up from the table. "Come on, 'Mione," he said, extending his hand to Hermione. "I don't want a large crowd when we reach the Fair." Surprised by his chivalry, Hermione didn't reprimand Ron for his lack of table manners but took his hand and allowed him to assist her from the table. Before they walked off, Hermione turned around and said, "We'll meet you guys for lunch around half past noon." Then, hand in hand, they exited the Great Hall, Ron practically pulling Hermione along in his impatience. Rose watched them leave with amusement before turning to Neville. "Shall we go?" she asked her boyfriend. Neville grinned and got up. He mimicked Ron's earlier action. Giggling, Rose accepted his hand and let herself be pulled from the table. They waved their goodbyes to the rest of the table, including Ti and Maggie who were going to wander around the fair with their dorm mates. Then they followed the other couple at a more leisurely pace. When they reached the Entrance Hall, they saw Sirius standing there, talking a bit to Ron and Hermione before the couple left through the massive front doors. "Sirius!" Rose cried, running up to hug the man. "Why didn't you tell us you'd be here today?" "And ruin the surprise?" Sirius asked, returning her hug, "Come on, Rose, is there anyone else your father would trust to supervise Hogwarts' security for today?" Rose shrugged. "I guess that should have occurred to me last week when Professor Dumbledore announced that Aurors would be providing security for the Fair." "Hi, Neville," Sirius greeted the younger man as he reached them. "I hope you're taking good care of my best mate's girl. I wouldn't want to have to hex you. Your parents wouldn't like that." "Yes, sir, Mr. Black," Neville said. "I'm sure my parents will be the first to hex me if I did anything disrespectful to Rose." Sirius laughed. "I bet they would. I heard your mum wouldn't let your dad kiss her before the third date. Speaking of your parents, they're part of the team providing security so they're around here somewhere. I'm sure they'll stick around after the Fair is done to see you and your sister." "That would be great," Neville said. "Maggie would love to see them, too." "I'm sure she would," Sirius said. "Um, do you know where Harry is? I forgot to ask Ron and Hermione where he was. I was waiting for him to come by from breakfast and thought of going with him to visit Ginny." Rose sighed. "Harry didn't feel hungry so he went straight to the hospital wing." Sirius frowned. "That's not good. I better go make sure my godson has some decent food. Go on, you two, have fun. It looks good out there." He turned around and headed for stairs to the Dungeons where the kitchens were. Rose and Neville watched him disappear down the stairs before turning to head out the front doors of the castle. ******* Hermione and Ron reached the steps down from the Entrance Hall and looked toward Black Lake. Most of the grounds around the Lake were occupied by various small shops decorated with streamers and bunting featuring hearts. Each shop was almost as large as the original shop. Among the shops from Hogsmeade represented were Honeydukes, Dervish and Banges, Scrivenshaft's and Gladrags. There were also shops from Diagon Alley represented like Quality Quidditch Supplies, Flourish and Blotts and, of course, Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes which was the most garishly decorated stall. Right on the edge of the lakeshore, there was also a replica of the Three Broomsticks. "Come on, 'Mione," Ron said, "Let's go to the Honeydukes stall first." Hermione rolled her eyes. "I just gave you some of their chocolate, Ron," she said. "Yeah," he said, "but you can't have enough chocolate. I'd like some Drobbles and Peppermints." Hermione sighed. "Oh all right. But we're going to the Scrivenshafts' stall afterwards." Ron shrugged. "Sure, fine by me." So they went to the Honeydukes shop where Ron spent fifteen minutes deciding which chocolates and candies to get. Then they were off to the Scrivenshafts shop where Hermione made Ron wait for almost twenty minutes while she decided which quill to buy. Then they decided to visit the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes shop. They weren't surprised to see a large crowd in the shop. They were surprised to find both Fred and George manning it. "What are you two doing here?" Ron asked, "Who's at the shop?" "Now is that any way…" Fred began. "…to greet your older brothers?" George asked. "Don't worry, ickle Ronniekins," Fred said. "Lee's manning the Diagon Alley shop today," George said. "We just couldn't…" Fred said. "…pass up an opportunity…" George said. "…to visit our sleeping sister…" Fred said. "….and adorable little brother," George said. "We intend to visit once the crowd lessens," Fred said. "Yeah," George said. "It's a madhouse right now." "Just like the rush before school started," Fred said. "And we love it," they both said together. "Now go on and get out of here," Fred said. "Yeah, you aren't paying customers," George said. Ron and Hermione shook their heads in exasperation as they left the shop. Even then, they couldn't be mad at the twins. Ginny would have been mad at them if they didn't go on with their work spreading laughter in a time of war because they were worried about her. "Let's go to Flourish and Blotts next," Hermione said. "Oh come on, Hermione," Ron said, "Why would you want to look at more books? I just gave you one for Valentine's Day." Hermione bit her lip to avoid telling Ron exactly what she thought of the book he had given her. It would have shocked both their mothers. Before she could reply to him, a beautiful Eagle owl swooped down in front of her, a bouquet of roses in full bloom in its talons. The owl thrust the bouquet at her. Stunned, Hermione gingerly took the bouquet. At glance at Ron showed that he was eyeing the bouquet with narrowed eyes. Hermione looked at the bouquet and sure enough there was a card. She opened the card and read it. Hermione, Accept these flowers as my way of apologizing for being a prat two days ago. I'm sorry for how I acted. It's just hard for me these days. I hope I can count on you as a friend and hopefully, something more than a friend. Draco "Who are they from, Hermione?" Ron asked. "Er, just from a friend, Ron," Hermione said. Before she could react, Ron grabbed the card from her and read it. "Malfoy," he said with venom in his tone after reading it. He turned his gaze to Hermione, anger in his eyes. "Two days ago? You met up with that prat two days ago and you didn't tell me?' "We didn't meet up, Ronald," Hermione said. "We just happened to be in the library at the same time. He asked about Ginny and I told him she wasn't improving. He commented on Harry's appearance and I tried to explain to him about the depth of his love for Ginny. He wasn't impressed by what I said and I mentioned to him that Ti had told us about the way their father had treated them, without much affection so he really wouldn't understand what I was talking about. I told him to think about it before leaving him. That's all that happened. He's just apologizing about that." "You're sure?" Ron asked. "I don't like the last part he put down, about being more than just friends. You really shouldn't consort with him, Hermione. He's a junior Death Eater for sure." "Ron, we have no proof of that," Hermione said. "He's just confused after all that's happened since this last summer. I'm just trying to be a friend and show him our way is better than what Voldemort wants." Ron stared at her for several seconds, making her nervous. Finally he said, "All right, but don't turn your back on him for a second. Come on, you said you wanted to go to Flourish and Blotts." Hermione Banished the flowers to her dormitory. They then walked over to the Fair's replica of the Diagon Alley bookshop. It was more than half the size of the original, housing hundreds of books. They separated there, with Ron wandering over to the Quidditch section. Hermione walked around the shop looking over the advanced books on Arithmancy and Ancient runes. She found two books she wanted and headed for the checkout counter. As she waited in line for her turn to pay, she heard shouting outside the shop. Her eyes widened when she recognized the owner of the shouting voice. It was Ron. Abandoning the books she wanted, she rushed outside. She found Ron standing in front of Draco, poking the blond boy's chest. A crowd was starting to form around the two boys. "You keep away from my girlfriend, ferret face," Ron shouted. "I don't think you have a say in whoever she has as her friends, Weasley," Draco said, "even if she's your girlfriend. Of course, I don't see what she sees in you. She can do better than an insensitive prat dressed in second-hand clothes." With a roar, Ron threw himself at Draco, causing them to tumble to the ground with Ron on top. Ron then proceeded to pummel Draco who feebly tried to fight back. Blood spurted everywhere as Ron broke Draco's nose. After standing in shock for a couple of seconds, Hermione reached for her wand and pointed it at Ron, shouting, "Stupefy!" which knocked out Ron, who fell to one side. Hermione rushed forward and started casting healing spells on Draco, who seemed to be unconscious, stopping his bleeding nose and clearing most of his bruises. Once she had healed him to her satisfaction, she pointed her wand at Ron. "Rennervate!" Ron groaned as he woke up. He sat up and looked around. Spotting Hermione beside Draco, he said, "Hermione! What are you doing? Get away from that git. One of his cronies Stunned me while I was busy with him." "I was the one who Stunned you, Ronald," she said. "What do you think you were doing, fighting with Draco?" Ron glared at her as he got to his feet. "YouSstunned me? I was just teaching him a lesson. He's been insulting me for years and I've had enough." "They're just words, Ronald," Hermione said. "You really are an insensitive prat like he said." "You heard him say that and you're still defending him?" Ron asked. "Well, it seems perfectly clear to me you like the ferret so much, Granger. You can have him. We're through." He turned around and stormed away from her before Hermione could say anything. Hermione stared after Ron in shock. How could he think she liked Draco more than him? She just didn't want him to get into more trouble. Draco may be a friend but it was Ron she loved. Her mind reeled as she realized the meaning of what Ron had said last. She felt a hand rest gently on her shoulder, turning her around. Rose looked at her with sorrow in her eyes. Neville stood by her side, a look of bewilderment on his face. "We saw the whole thing," Rose said, wrapping her arms around her. "I'm so sorry." Hermione stared at Neville as the tears started to fall down her cheeks. "He can't have meant what he said. We can't be over, can we?" Neville couldn't say a thing, which upset Hermione more. She wrapped her arms around Rose and started sobbing into the younger girl's shoulder. She felt another pair of arms surround her and gently guide her away from the Fair. Not caring where they were bringing her, Hermione continued to cry. After a few minutes, Hermione's sobs lessened to sniffles. Finally, she pulled back from Rose, feeling embarrassed. "I'm sorry," she said, "I shouldn't have used you for a towel." She looked around. They were down by the lakeshore, a little ways away from the bustle of the Fair. Neville stood a bit apart from them, giving them some privacy, for which Hermione was grateful. "Hey, that's all right," Rose said. "I understand how upset you are. I felt the same way when Ti broke up with me last year. Um, be honest with me, Hermione. Do you like Draco?" Hermione stared at her. "Merlin, no, no way," she declared, shaking her head vigorously, "he's only a friend. It's Ron I love." "You sure about that?" Rose asked. "Now, I'm only asking to make you think about it. Let me explain a bit before you say anything. Okay?" Hermione raised an eyebrow but nodded her consent. Rose took a deep breath before continuing, "Do you remember when Ti broke up with me last year?" Hermione nodded. "Well," Rose continued, "I told you one of the reasons he did was because he thought I was cheating on him with someone else. I never told you that, even if I didn't realize it at the time, I actually was, sort of. I was already crushing on Neville before I started going out with Ti. Remember the Yule Ball when he danced with me? He was so wonderful then that I found myself often thinking and dreaming of him. But then, I didn't think he'd be interested in a plain redhead like me. So, when Ti asked to be his girlfriend, I accepted since I liked him too and didn't think Neville would notice me, especially since he got together with Lisa Turpin. Unfortunately, my relationship with Ti didn't turn out as wonderful as I had hoped, especially after Lisa died when I spent a lot of time comforting Neville. Ti saw that and he knew I was more interested in Neville than in him. Our argument over Draco was the last straw for him." "But what does that have to do with me, Ron and Draco?" Hermione asked. Rose shook her head. "For someone so smart, you can be so naïve about emotions and relationships. My point is that it might be the same way with the three of you. Are you sure you aren't feeling even a bit of attraction to Draco? Do you sometimes daydream what it would be like to be with him?" Hermione stared at her. Was it possible she was right? She had intrigued by Draco's change in his attitudes and manner ever since she had witnessed his confrontation with his father. His old attitudes came back once in a while but he did seem different from the cocky, arrogant proud boy she had known for the past six years. She had felt good about reaching out to him so he wouldn't follow his father's path and be more like his younger brother. "I have been thinking about how much better he is than before," Hermione said, "but that doesn't mean I have feelings for him greater than friendship." "Well, that's something you have to think about," Rose said. "Rose is right, Hermione," Neville said, stepping closer. "You have to figure it out, Hermione, before you try to fix things with Ron. You have to have no doubts whatsoever of your feelings for Ron. From what I've seen him act around you, he cares about you a lot. You owe it to him to be absolutely clear what you feel about him and Draco." Hermione sighed. "I guess I have to think really hard about all this. It was really all so much clearer when Draco was an arrogant Muggleborn-hating git. I really don't want to hurt Ron." "If Ron really cares about you," Rose said, "he'll give you the space you need to decide and wait." "I hope you're right," Hermione said. "I do hope so, too," Rose said. "Now, come on, I'm hungry." "Wait a minute," Hermione said. "What happened to Draco? I can't believe we left him unconscious there in front of the bookshop." "Well," Rose said, "we thought that what you were going through emotionally was more important. After all, you healed most of his injuries. But don't worry about him. Ti was there with his friends and they took care of him. We can ask Ti about it later." "Oh, all right," Hermione said, "I guess Ti will take good care of him." "Of course he will," Rose said, "Now let's get to the Three Broomsticks stall and have some lunch." The trio headed away from the lakeshore back towards the Fair. As they neared the stalls, Hermione stopped walking and turned back to the other two. "Uh, Rose, Neville," Hermione said, "one more thing. Please don't tell Harry about our breakup. The last thing I want is for him to worry about his best friends on top of his concern with Ginny." Rose nodded. "All right, Hermione, if that's what you want. I just hope he doesn't notice the distance you two are bound to keep each other at." "If that's what you want, Hermione," Neville said, "it's your choice. We won't say a thing but you should realize that there was quite a crowd that witnessed the whole thing. It won't take much for Harry to hear about it." "Oh my," Hermione said, wringing her hands, "I know there were a lot of people around Ron and Draco but surely they wouldn't say anything to Harry." Neville shrugged. "I really don't know, Hermione. I think it'll be better if he hears it from you or Ron." Just then, a white light flared in front of them, resolving into a beautiful silver stag. It opened its mouth and Harry's voice came out of it, sounding happier than it had been for the last two weeks. "Ginny's awake." The three teens looked at each other with expressions of surprise and joy before breaking into a run. They rushed across the fairgrounds up to the castle's front steps, into the Entrance Hall and up the main staircase. Luckily, they didn't run into any teacher or Filch. Rose was the first one to reach the hospital wing. She threw open the doors and gave a squeal of delight before continuing her wild dash inside. Hermione arrived at the door right behind her with Neville coming up to door after her. Looking inside the hospital wing, Hermione saw that Ginny was sitting up in her bed with Harry sitting beside her on the bed, holding her hand. The next instant, Rose reached Ginny and threw her arms around her best friend. Hermione and Neville quickly entered the wing and closed the door. ******* Harry felt his heart swell with happiness as he watched his sister embrace Ginny. He was so glad Ginny was awake with no side effects after two weeks of being in a coma. Rose pulled back from the hug she had given Ginny and sat down beside Ginny. Hermione and Neville arrived at Ginny's bed and also gave her hugs before sitting down on straight backed chairs. Rose grasped Ginny's other hand and said, "I'm so glad you're awake. Do you know what happened to you?" "Yeah," Ginny said, "Harry told me I got hit in the back of the head by a Bludger during our match with Slytherin and have been unconscious for the last two weeks." "That's right," Rose said. "We were all so worried. Harry was a mess, what with worrying over you. He practically lived here while you were asleep." "So I gathered from Madam Pomfrey," Ginny said. "Harry said he could barely feel me through our Bond but I don't remember anything. The last thing I remember was putting a goal through the leftmost hoop, then the next thing I know, I'm waking up here in the hospital wing." "I'd like to know why you woke up now," Hermione said. She turned to Harry. "Do you have an idea why, Harry?" Harry blushed. "Yeah, I do, Hermione. I kissed her." Hermione looked at him in confusion. "That's it? You just kissed her and she woke up?" Harry shrugged. "Yeah, I kissed her on the lips and felt her through the Bond much stronger than the last two weeks. I called Madam Pomfrey. She came over and ran her wand over Ginny which showed her much stronger than before. She then asked me if I did anything and I told her I kissed her on the lips. She, um, told me to kiss her again for a much longer time, so I did, then she woke up." Rose threw back her head and laughed. When she stopped, she looked at Harry and said, "So the handsome prince woke up his Sleeping Beauty." She shook her head. "Only my brother can make a fairy tale come to life." Her comment caused Hermione to giggle while Neville had a puzzled look on his face. Meanwhile, Harry glared at his sister. "What fairy tale is that?" Neville asked. "Pure-bloods," Hermione muttered before saying louder, "There's a Muggle fairy tale called Sleeping Beauty." She turned to Neville and told him a quick summary of the fairy tale. "It's quite popular among Muggle children." "Oh, I get it," Neville said, laughing a little, "I guess that does seem appropriate." Harry groaned and buried his head in Ginny's hair. He felt Ginny's amusement through their Bond. "Oh, don't be embarrassed, Harry." Ginny said. "You were like a fairy tale prince to me until I realized the Harry Potter in those books was really you. Then you were the boy I liked because you were so much more than the fairy tale Harry. Even now, being bonded to you feels sometimes like a fairy tale to me." "Well, it's a dream come true for me, too, Gin," he said, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. It seemed Ginny wasn't satisfied with his kiss because she placed her hand against the back of Harry's head and kept him from pulling back as she returned the kiss with some passion. When they separated a few seconds later, Harry had a feeling he was missing something after that heated kiss. Looking at his sister and friends, he asked, "Hey, where's Ron? I should have heard him griping about that kiss." He saw the three other teens exchange nervous looks before Hermione answered, "Um, he went to the loo just before your Patronus message reached us. We forgot to tell him Ginny was awake." Harry and Ginny exchanged suspicious looks. Before they could say anything, the doors to the hospital wing opened up. In strode Molly, carrying a basket of wool. Harry realized he hadn't told anyone else in their families that Ginny was awake. Molly noticed that Ginny was awake and gave a scream before dropping her basket and rushing forward. Once she reached Ginny's bed, she pulled Ginny into a tight hug, muttering over and over, "You're awake." Finally, Harry felt Ginny close to passing out from lack of oxygen. He tried to pry Molly off his soul mate as he said, "Mum, please, Ginny can't breathe." "Oh my," Molly said, releasing her daughter. "I'm sorry, Ginny. I'm just so happy you're awake." She then glared at the teens around her. "When did she wake up? Why weren't I or Arthur told immediately?" Harry blushed. "Sorry, Molly, she just woke up an hour ago. I was so glad to have her awake and feeling her through our Bond that I only told Hermione, Neville and Rose through my Patronus." Molly smiled and patted his hand. "That's all right, Harry dear. I can only imagine the relief and joy you felt. How is it she woke up only now? What woke her up?" Molly's question caused Rose to burst out laughing again and Harry to groan again and hide his head in Ginny's hair. "Did I say something wrong?" Molly asked, causing Hermione and Neville to join Rose. It took a few minutes for the three teens to sober up enough to explain things to Molly. Because of Harry's renewed embarrassment and Ginny's amusement of Harry's reaction, the Bonded couple forgot to ask the others again about Ron's absence.
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