Merely Business

Six Little Rules

Ron was only seventeen, seventeen years, four months, and three days old to be exact. He was too young, much too young to die in battle. Come to think about it, he wasn't even supposed to be in battle. But he was Harry's best mate; he couldn't be expected to stand back and watch. Loyalty, it was a Hufflepuff quality, but bravery, that was a Godric Gryffindor's famous trait, Ron's trait as well.

It's crazy how one day can change everything in a person's life. But it happens almost everyday. It happens when two people get married, or when a woman has a baby, but it happens most dreadfully when someone you love, someone you cared about above all others, dies. The day that changed everything was the day Ron died. Most people would say that it was for the better; without him the Light Side never would have won, but others would beg to differ. Ron's death changed some lives for the worse.

Ginny's life would never be the same. She was devastated, more so than anyone else in her family, including her mother. The only person more upset over this loss was Hermione. She admitted everything at the funeral. She loved Ron, fancied him since third year in fact. She had planned on telling him after the war was over.

One would think that everything would be fine from there on in. Anyone who knew Ginny and Harry would assume that they'd get married, have kids, and live happily ever after. But this is real life, not a fantasy world.

About a year after Ron died something odd happened. For some reason, Harry didn't ask Ginny out; he asked Hermione out. They dated for less than two months before Hermione dashed into the house with a ring on her finger. Harry had proposed and Hermione had accepted.

They were to be married in spring, probably May. None of the Weasleys had seen this coming, but all of them were happy for them, all except Ginny. Ginny was furious. Harry was hers and Hermione knew that. They had talked about all of it so many times. There were rules.

Ginny found the parchment in a box with her old mementos. They had stayed up that night during fourth year, just laughing and chatting about their stupid rules. But they really didn't seem all that stupid anymore. They were more than rules; they were the law. Ginny looked at the parchment, reading over it again and again. Written in delicate purple script (Hermione's handwriting) were the rules.

1. Harry was property of Ginny Weasley.

There's one broken rule from the start.

2. No dating an ex-boyfriends.

Two.

3. No dating unapproved boys.

Three.

4. No dating a Slytherin.

5. In the event that the dating of a Slytherin occurred, it would not be one Draco Malfoy.

6. Rules are not meant to be broken.

Four.

Four of the rather simple rules Hermione had broken with one date with Harry. But that didn't bother Ginny, not really. What bothered her, what really bothered her was that Hermione would stoop so low as to marry Harry.

It couldn't really be happening... Hermione would never... But she did. After thinking it over, Ginny realised that there was nothing to really worry about though. Anyone who knew Ginny knew that Ginny didn't take things like this lightly. Hermione would pay for breaking the rules.