Risking True Feelings

Friday

The next day, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast. All of the Gryffindors were commenting on the past evening's meeting, and they were all excited to see Seamus ask Professor McGonagall to go with him to Hogsmeade. Seamus said nothing when he walked down the boys' dormitory stairs, and made no comments about the past evening's meeting.

Harry and Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table. Hermione needed to stop and see Professor Vector, and Ron had to get something from the dormitory.

Seamus looked horribly pale, and didn't eat or say anything during breakfast. Lavender tried to persuade him with some toast and marmalade, but he shook his head.

"Maybe we shouldn't make him do it," Harry whispered to Ginny.

"The only one who can give him permission not to do it is the one who dared him; Hermione," she told Harry.

"But, Ginny, look at him. He looks... unnatural."

All of the other Gryffindors, who didn't seem at all worried about Seamus's appearance, eyed him, waiting for him to follow through with his dare.

Hermione and Ron entered the Great Hall together, and sat down across from Harry and Ginny. "Is he okay?" Hermione asked caringly.

"Hermione, you have to call off the dare," Harry begged.

"No, I think if people want to watch, then people also have to be involved and make sacrifices," Hermione argued.

Finally, about five minutes before classes started, Seamus rose from his seat silently.

The Gryffindors stared at him, as he walked toward the teachers' table. When he reached the platform, leading up to the teachers' table, many of the other students were also staring.

"Er, Professor McGonagall, I was wondering something," Seamus started.

"Yes, Mr. Finnigan?" Professor McGonagall answered impatiently.

Seamus now seemed to be trembling with fear. "Wannagowimet'Hogsmee?" Seamus muttered as quickly and quietly as possible.

"Excuse me, Mr. Finnigan?" McGonagall said loudly, not understanding a word Seamus said.

The Great Hall got horribly quiet, as all eyes shifted to Professor McGonagall and Seamus.

"Will you go with me to Hogsmeade?" Seamus said clearly so that she understood.

McGonagall's face turned dark crimson, and her eyes widened to the size of galleons.

"Mr. Finnigan, we will settle this tonight, in detention," McGonagall told him. "Now, please return to your house table," she said, hoping to get him away as soon as humanly possible.

The Great Hall burst into laughter, the majority of it coming from the Gryffindors and the Slytherins. Seamus obediently walked up the aisle, with his head hung low, back to his table and took his seat between Lavender and Parvati.

Seamus's face remarkably resembled a tomato. It was no longer pale and sickly as it had been before breakfast, it was now a reddish-pink color.

"Hermione," Seamus whispered. "I am going to murder you."

"You're welcome," Hermione answered, grinning.

"I know where you sleep," Seamus threatened her.

"Too bad boys can't get into the girls' dormitory," she said, now grinning more than before.

"Don't try it," Harry advised him, remembering what had happened to him and Ron when they attempted to enter the girls' dormitory.

"Okay," Seamus said, grinning like Hermione. He scooped some scrambled eggs onto his plate. "I'll just have to throw this at her!" Seamus yelled, picking up the eggs and throwing them at Hermione's head.

Hermione rose to her feet, screaming. She instinctively grabbed a handful of marmalade and chucked it at Seamus. Unfortunately, Seamus had been expecting this and ducked. The marmalade hit Pansy Parkinson in the back of the head.

Pansy, of course, would not let something like this go unpunished. She, too, began throwing large quantities of food at the Gryffindors.

"FOOD FIGHT!" Someone yelled across the Great Hall.

Soon, the Great Hall was filled with flying eggs, toast, and marmalade.

Much to everyone's surprise, Dumbledore did not say anything. He did not attempt to stop the food fight, nor did any of the other teachers.

Harry remembered looking up at Dumbledore once, who did not seem at all upset by the food fight, in fact, he looked downright pleased.

Ginny screamed after marmalade flew into her hair. Harry hurried over to her and grabbed her wrist. They quickly ran out of the Great Hall, avoiding any flying food.

Ginny put her hand in her hair, feeling the sticky purple marmalade in her silky red hair.

"I need to get this out," Ginny complained. "Could you help me?"

"Well, I can't really go in the bathroom with you," Harry reminded her.

"You can in one bathroom," Ginny said with a grin and pulled him down the hall to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

They rushed over to the sinks and Harry helped her get the marmalade out of her hair.

Not surprisingly, all classes were canceled that day, considering all students who were still in the Great Hall by the time classes were scheduled to start, were ordered to help clean up the Hall. Unfortunately, this was almost the entire student body.

Ginny and Harry, being two of the few who were not in the Great Hall, spent their day on the Quidditch Pitch trying out new skills.

At around eight, the sun started setting. They both dismounted their brooms and sat down on the pitch. Harry wrapped his arms around Ginny as they watched the sun go down.

"This is so beautiful," Ginny commented.

"What can I say? I'm a hopeless romantic," Harry told her.

Harry leaned over and kissed her sweetly on the lips. Ginny wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him on top of her.

"What happened to the romantic idea?" Harry asked when they pulled apart form the kiss. "Not that I'm complaining..."

"Exactly. So stop talking, and start kissing."

Ginny and Harry stayed out there until they heard McGonagall and Dumbledore come looking for them. They hurriedly jumped on their brooms and flew to their towers, sneaking in through the windows.

"Where have you been?" Hermione asked Ginny.

"With Harry," she answered contently.

"This late at night?"

"Who are you, my mother?"

Meanwhile, in the boys' dormitory, Ron asked Harry, "Where have you been all day?"

"Is it any of your business?" Harry asked Ron.

"If you were with my sister then it is," Ron answered angrily.

"Then I guess it's all your business, because your little sister isn't so little anymore," Harry mocked Ron.

"Harry, you bastard! How could you! To my sister!" Ron yelled.

"Ron! Ron!" Harry yelled trying to get his attention. "Relax, we didn't do anything. We just practiced Quidditch."

Ron's face turned a dark, angry red. "Are you saying that you just led me on like that?"

"Yep," Harry said, sounding quite satisfied with himself.

"I'm going to murder you, Potter. And I know where you sleep. Unluckily for you, I can get into your dormitory."

"Ron, if you murdered me, who would you have for a best friend?" Harry asked.

"That's the only reason I'm not going to murder you, Potter," Ron said, giving Harry a hug.