Life Is Cruel

Ginny tiptoed silently down the dark corridors of Hogwarts, dressed in her white nightgown and fluffy slippers. The gown billowed behind her as she walked through the quiet halls and the moonlight that shone in through the windows bounced off of it, enveloping her in a sort of divine light. She figured that her old Chudley Cannons shirt would not be concealing enough for traipsing through the castle at night. She did not carry a candle and her wand was not lit so she wouldn't be seen as easily. Over her shoulder was a large, empty bag that flopped noiselessly behind her.

Something crashed a ways down the corridor and caused Ginny to jump. Her eyes widened and strained to see in the darkness. After a moment she heard a high-pitched cackle, and then a reedy voice calling after it. Peeves and Filch, she thought frantically. She jerked her head left and right, and spotted a small cranny she could fit into. She quickly squeezed her way into the tiny space.

Another cackle echoed through the hall much closer this time, and Ginny saw a dark blur speed past her through the air at an alarming speed. She poked her head out to look after it, but had to pull it back in again as another figure hobbled by.

"I'll get you this time, Peeves, you annoying little bugger!" said Filch in his wheedling voice. "I will! I'm going straight to Dumbledore, and that'll be the end of you!" She watched as he waved his cane menacingly in the air at the poltergeist. Ginny wondered briefly why he might have cane, and then just figured he wanted to have it handy, just in case any of the students were out late.

Like she was.

Ginny held her breath after this epiphany, hoping desperately that he was not allowed to beat unruly children. She could hear him faintly yelling more obscenities, marveled at his extensive range of insults, and stifled a giggle as he tripped and fell on his face. She waited for him to get up and hobble around the corner and then let out the breath she had been holding. Oxygen! her lungs screamed at her, and she took in as much as possible. After a minute or so, her lungs reasoned with her. Alright, don't over do it, they said. She huffed in indignation.

She would breathe any way she wanted, and they weren't going to tell her how to do it!

And then she realised that she was rebelling against her own lungs, and shook her head slightly. If she planned on going through with this, she would most likely have to keep a good relationship going with the rest of her body. Otherwise she was probably not going to get very far.

Ginny readjusted up her bag and then continued her padding through the deserted halls. The slippers she was wearing made very little noise, which was why she had worn them in the first place, and came in quite handy while going up and down stairs. As she reached the top of one particular staircase though, she was confronted with a very large problem that could not be avoided by the right footwear. A very large and very noisy problem.

One of the suits of armor had decided to start a conversation with her. Ginny watched, awe struck, as its visor moved and arms clanked about emphasizing certain points.

"Good morrow, fair maiden. Although I suppose it is not yet the morrow, is it? Tell me, what is it that compels thee to travel these lonely halls at night? Nay, do not answer, it is most likely for the best that I do not know." Ginny tried shushing the noisy suit of armor, but he didn't appear to be listening. It was a pity that it had a hole for a mouth, but not two more for ears.

"I was once owned by a traveler myself," it continued loudly in it's obnoxious, clanky voice. "It was back in the time of King Arthur, ah yes, I remember it well. Sir Lancelot, I believe they called the knight that I accompanied. Oh, how I long for the days of old, battling Dragons and rescuing fair maidens such as thee." Ginny looked around and saw that some of the portraits that lined the hall were waking. Some were grumbling, and others were looking around for the cause of the disturbance, their expressions bleary.

"If thou should happenst upon a Dragon in thy lifetime, remember to stay away from the front end. Dear Lancelot had to learn the hard way, I'm afraid." The disembodied voice seemed regretful, and it echoed strangely in its empty self.

Three words immerged in Ginny's mind and floated around for a bit, annoying her greatly. She pushed them away, and then darted down the corridor, leaving the suit of armor to talk to itself. She couldn't get caught, not when she had come so far. Just a little bit farther, and she would be there.

As she rushed through the darkness, the endless chatter of the suit of armor dwindled until she couldn't hear it anymore. She stopped with her back to a wall and let out a breath of relief. She began to walk quietly once more.

Turn right at the statue of the Unfortunate Knight (which was really quite an exquisite statue. Had Ginny paused to admire it, she would have noted the great detail that went into the making of it. The Dragon was large and ferocious-looking, and the knight even had a few flames coming off of his bottom. It was a delightful picture of cat and mouse, and Ginny later wondered if perhaps that was Sir Lancelot).

Ginny passed the statue and continued to rattle of the directions she had studied to herself. Turn left at the tapestry of The Witch Burning. (Also a wonderful piece of artwork. It pictured a very grotesque looking witch who was tied to a stake in the middle of a square. In fact, the fire was already burning merrily, but the townsfolk looked utterly bemused. The witch was squirming and giggling in spite of the flames, and though she was trying to scream in pain every now and then, it was not a very convincing act.)

Ginny turned left. After walking straight ahead for a few more minutes, she came up to a very large bookcase. It seemed to be a dead end to the hallway, but she went right up to the assortment of books and stood directly in front of it, dropping her bag at her feet. Truth be told, there weren't very many books on it. At least it seemed as though there weren't. There would be five or six books stacked together at one point, then a large gap, and then more books. It looked odd and unorganized; it hardly seemed the place where Ravenclaws would meet. But no matter.

Ginny rubbed her hands in anticipation. After all the things she had gone through to get there...

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ginny," said Roger Davies, who was staring at her in a meaningful manner. They were hidden behind a tapestry, but Ginny could see that the look in his eyes was hungry. Her lip curled.

"Ginny, you know that I'm a reasonable fellow," he said pleasantly, and flashed her a charming smile. "I would gladly give you the password if you gave me something in return." Ginny glared up at his smiling face.

"I would think that un-petrifying you at Madam Puddifoot's would deserve something in return." Davies shook his head.

"But you're the one that got me into that mess in the first place." Ginny pondered that thought for a moment.

"Well, you got a free snog out of it," she pointed out. He nodded reflectively.

"But you also kicked me this morning."

"Kneed, is more like."

"Alright, but you still owe me something for that. It really was quite painful," he added. Ginny crossed her arms, frustrated at losing the upper hand in the conversation.

"Fine," she spat. "What do you want?" He answered immediately, in the same pleasant tone he always used.

"How about a quick shag in the broom closet?" Ginny stared at him blankly. "The Astronomy Tower?" he offered instead. Ginny's expression, if it could be called that, did not change. "One of the Greenhouses?"

"No shagging," she answered finally. Roger Davies sighed and put one hand on the wall, right above Ginny's shoulder. As much as she wanted to, she restrained herself from hexing him right then and there.

"Well, then how about a snog?" Ginny narrowed her eyes at the Quidditch captain.

"No snogging." He pouted, and sighed.

"I don't know then Ginny, I mean, there has to be something you can do. The password is on the tip of my tongue, it really is." Ginny sighed and closed her eyes.

She needed that password to get into the Ravenclaws' rooms. She needed it to get at Chang. She needed it to have Harry.

Harry, she thought to herself. Harry and his untidy black hair. Harry and his chipped front tooth. Harry and his beautiful green eyes...

She took a deep breath, and then without opening her eyes, she hooked an arm around an unsuspecting Roger Davies's neck and pulled him down onto her lips, the image of Harry still fresh on her mind.

Perhaps it was the suddenness of this act that caused Davies to act the way he did, but when Ginny's mouth came in contact with his own, he did not kiss her back right away.

Ginny mashed her lips against his so hard that it was painful. Their teeth knashed together and she kissed him sloppily, feeling repulsed. Unfortunately for Ginny, instead of shocking the Ravenclaw and having him simply stand there while she did what she had to, he recovered alarmingly fast. Whatever breath Ginny had left in her body came whooshing out of her mouth in a muffled 'ooph' as she was slammed into the wall. Roger Davies was not one to simply let an opportunity slip past.

Ginny opened her eyes and looked around. The tapestry behind Davies was moving, due to his enthusiastic response to her previous actions. She unhooked her arm from around his neck and placed both of her hands on his chest to prevent him from getting any closer to her. She could only take so much torture.

She was beginning to regret ever talking to him.

She was beginning to regret ever being born.

As she continued to be held against the wall and smothered, her thoughts swirled on Harry. If only it were Harry she were kissing, not this sex-crazed adolescent. Harry was not like that. He was sweet and kind, and he would never push her up against a wall. He would never demand anything from her. If only he would walk up and save me right now...

"Blimey, what's going on back he-" Ginny stopped struggling and froze. Could it be? she thought to herself. Has Harry come at my moment of need? Will he leap forth and save me from this intolerable act? Will he proclaim his love for me, and sweep me off my feet?

The tapestry was pulled back slightly to reveal, to a very disappointed Ginny, a curious Ron Weasley, who quickly turned into a very pale Ron Weasley. He stared at the two of them incredulously, and then focused on Ginny. She widened her eyes and looked at Davies, knowing what was inevitably about to happen.

For a moment, time stood still, and it irritated Ginny. She wiggled her feet around impatiently, and noticed that they didn't touch the floor. Out of habit, she tried to bite her lip, but, due to the current circumstances (i.e. Roger Davies's mouth attached to her own), she bit his lip instead. He let out a yelp of pain, jumped back, and Ginny stumbled onto the floor.

Without missing a beat, Ron spun Roger Davies around and, taking advantage of his confusion, punched him in the face. Ginny yelped as the Ravenclaw slammed into her and then toppled onto the floor. Ginny bent down to look at him.

His nose was bleeding profusely - Ginny figured he would be sporting a swollen nose and two black eyes in just a few minutes. Ginny slapped him on the cheek lightly. Nothing. He was out cold. She stood up quickly and glared at her brother, who was looking smug, disgusted, and shocked, all at the same time.

"Ginny, what the-" But she didn't let him get any farther. She was furious.

"What did you do that for?!" she yelled, much to the surprise of her brother. She felt her cheeks flush with anger and she stomped her foot in outrage.

"What do you mean what did I do that for?!" he said incredulously. "I did it to stop him from chewing your face off, that's what I did it for!" Ginny stepped closer to him, but he quickly backed away, his hand going instinctively for his jaw.

"I had everything under control, you stupid prat!" she raged. "Oh, this is just bloody perfect! Couldn't have waited just a few minutes before knocking him unconscious, could you? Oh no, of course not, because that would make it all too easy!" Ron watched, utterly bemused, as she kicked Roger Davies in the side. It only made her more angry when she did not get a reaction from him. She whirled on Ron again.

"Why are you even here, anyway? Hardly anyone comes into this hall! Just my luck that you happened to be the exception," she then added spitefully.

"I, er...I, um, erm-"

"I was this close," she went on, using her fingers for emphasis, "to getting the password to the Ravenclaw dormitories. This close! And you just ruined my chance of ever getting it!"

Ron blinked. "Well," he said in a normal voice (which was probably the best way to talk around a raging redhead who just happened to be family), "can't you just asked him when he wakes up?" Ginny seethed.

"Think, Ron, think!" she whispered loudly while pointing to her head. "He just got his nose broken by my brother; he is probably not going to be on the best of speaking terms with me when he gets up!" Ginny tugged on her hair in frustration. "Ronald Weasley, you are - you're such a - must be the biggest - why don't you just - ARGH!" She pushed him aside and strode out down the hall, her footsteps echoing loudly. Ron stared at his retreating sister, and then looked down at the unconscious Ravenclaw.

"Well," he said in conversational tones, "at least she didn't break my jaw again." He paused. "Women." He shook his head, kicked Roger Davies in the stomach (and was rewarded with a muffled groan, much to his satisfaction), and then walked down the hall after his sister, leaving him to lie on the floor.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny sat on her four poster bed, staring at the wall. This is not fair, she thought. Nothing is fair. Life isn't fair. She heaved a dramatic sigh and fell back onto her pillow.

"Why did he have to come then?" she said to herself glumly. Roger Davies was the only Ravenclaw she knew, and since he was lying in an empty corridor and would not wake up a happy fellow, she figured she could say that he was not going to tell her anything without any doubt in her mind. Her last chance, her only chance, ruined. By her brother.

Stupid git.

Well, she supposed that saying Roger Davies was the only person she knew in Ravenclaw wouldn't be entirely truthful. She did know one other person - Luna Lovegood. But trying to get a straight answer out of her would be as easy as getting one out of a centaur. In fact, it had been rumored that Luna had been walking around saying "Mars is bright tonight" to anyone who talked to her. Asking her would simply be a waste of time.

She rolled over and buried her head in her pillow. She contemplated simply going up to a random Ravenclaw and asking them, but ruled out the idea immediately. No one in the Ravenclaw house would just give out their password randomly to people. They were too smart for that - which was exactly why they were placed in that house in the first place. Befriending one of them was also immediately pushed aside. That would take much too long. Gaining someone's trust took time. Time that she could not afford to give.

Why? Why did nothing go right for her? It was rubbish.

Suddenly, she heard a strange sound just above her that made her jump. She looked up and saw something scratching and pecking at the window. It was an owl.

She got up and opened the large window and watched as the bird hopped inside. It flew up onto her nightstand and knocked over her water glass, which spilled onto her bed. She ran over to the small table and righted the glass, and then looked at the owl, who was hooting impatiently.

"Excuse me, you knocked over the glass, you can wait." It bristled its feathers in annoyance as she soaked up the water with one of her shirts that had been lying on the floor, since her wand was in the pocket of her robes and she was too lazy at the moment to walk across the room and get it.

The owl hooted again, and she left the shirt to attend to it.

"All right, all right." She began to untie the parchment from around its leg as it hopped here and there, making it extremely difficult. "Just hold still, you little bugger!" The owl hooted indignantly, and then held still, staring at her with its large eyes. Ginny wondered if it actually understood what she had said. It was giving her a look that clearly said, "How dare you call me that! You try flying along all day with something attached to your leg! Oh wait, that's right, humans can't fly, all they do it potter about on the ground all day while looking up at the clouds!" She finished untying the string and the owl flew up, clearly stating as it retreated, "Bloody humans, don't appreciate anything."

And just as it fluttered out the window, it scoffed.

Ginny vaguely wondered if she had imagined what the owl had just said, or if it had actually said those things before unrolling the tiny piece of parchment. What was written on it was something that made every other thought she had been thinking vanish.

From the Great hall~ right, left at the tapestry of Brogg the Terrible, straight, up the stairs, straight, right at the Unfortunate Knight, left at the Witch Burning, left, straight, the bookcase.

Hippocampus

Ginny stared at the paper, hardly daring to believe her eyes. There it was - exactly what she needed to follow through with her plans. But who had sent it to her? There was no name. She hadn't told anyone...

Well, now that she thought about it, she had heard a suspicious sound while stomping away from her brother. Like something rocking back and forth, as if righting itself after having been almost knocked over. But then, she could have imagined it. It could have been Ron.

Ginny stood up suddenly in a burst of enlightenment. Of course! Pansy Parkinson must have sent her the owl. She had befriended the Slytherin just recently, and they were on reasonably good terms with each other. An anonymous note from her would certainly make sense. She was definitely the type who would do that.

Ginny grinned and put the small piece of paper in her pocket. Tonight would be a night to remember, that, Ginny promised herself, would be for certain.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny rubbed her hands in anticipation. After all the things she had gone through to get there...

Well, all right, so she had been sent the directions and password by an anonymous witch/wizard. She was almost certain it was Parkinson, but just to be sure, she hadn't said anything during the day to her.

Still, she had stood up to Davies, and that had to count for something, didn't it?

Of course it did.

"Hippocampus," she said quietly. There was a clicking sound that sounded muffled by something, and then everything started to move. Ginny watched, amazed, as the books on the shelf began to slide to the side they were closest to. The empty spaces on the shelves were closed as the books shuffled this way and that, until finally, in the middle was a strip of bare shelves that went from the very top of the bookcase to the bottom. She jumped as the bare part of the shelves gave way and collapsed, looking as though they swung on hinges. The back of the bookcase then folded downward in sections, and ended up as a sort of welcome mat on the floor. Indeed, just as the last section of bookcase folded downward she could see a very elaborately written "Enter" on it.

Where the back of the bookcase had just been, a door now stood. Ginny looked at the entire entrance now that it was done transforming and whistled. They never let up a chance to appear clever, those Ravenclaws.

Ginny jiggled the door handle gently and found to her delight that the door was open. She doubled back, grabbed her bag, opened the door, which, also to her delight, did not emit the slightest of creaks, and slipped silently in.

As she closed the door behind her, she noticed that the room was dimly lit. Firelight flickered along the walls, but the fire was slowly dying. She looked around and, thankfully, saw no one. She paused for a moment to observe the large room.

It was nice, she had to admit. Just as nice as the Gryffindor tower. Almost the same, actually, except that everything was blue. There were many paintings along the walls, and a stuffed crow - Well, Ginny thought, it would more likely be a raven, wouldn't it? She never could tell the difference - sat in the corner on a small perch. There were bookshelves lined up along the walls also. She tiptoed over to one and pulled a book out. It was a fictional book, which proved the notion Ginny had had about Ravenclaws never reading anything but facts wrong. But then, the book was rather dusty.

"Gryffindor!" Ginny let out a short shriek and jumped out of the chair, her heart hammering against her ribs. She looked around frantically, trying to spot the person who had spoken.

"Sneak!" She spun around to face the direction the sound was coming from. There was nothing there. It was the same as she had seen it before, with a painting in the corner of a beautiful woman and the stuffed raven. And then Ginny squinted at the bird. It was breathing. She moved closer to it, and it scuttled a little ways down on its perch.

Great, a talking bird. This was just what she needed.

"So, you can talk," said Ginny. The raven looked at her as if to say, "Well isn't that obvious?"

She seemed to be hearing a lot of talking birds lately.

"Sneaking!" the bird squawked, and Ginny shushed it.

"Shh, no, please be quiet, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just, er, visiting." The bird cocked its head to the side and looked at her as if studying her intently. "But you need to be very quiet, because its a surprise. Okay?" Ginny reached out to pet the raven, and it allowed her to.

Ginny then let out a breath of relief, and left it alone. Hopefully it wouldn't make any more noise.

She walked over towards the door, grabbed her bag, and then stood in front of two staircases. They weren't positioned the same way they were in the Gryffindor Tower. She pondered this for a moment, shrugged, and then started up the one to the left.

She walked as quietly as possible, and looked at the doors as she passed them. First years, second years, third years... There was nothing about Boy's or Girl's Rooms on them at all.

She stopped at the door that said fifth years and quietly opened the door. She stepped inside quickly and shut the door so no light would shine in, and then stopped dead in her tracks.

She had climbed up the wrong staircase.

She could hear snoring from every corner of the room, and it was in no way feminine. She giggled quietly as she saw someone sleeping on the floor, tangled in sheets. She walked a little closer and saw that it was Terry Boot. He was mumbling in his sleep, and she giggled more. It was cute, in a way. His pajamas were twisted up and his hair was messy and hanging into his face.

If she hadn't had her heart on someone else, she would have thought he was a little bit attractive.

She giggled a little louder at the thought of Harry sleeping on the floor like that.

Terry Boot rolled over, and she clapped a hand over her mouth. He sat up abruptly. Ginny's eyes widened and she stood stock-still. Maybe, said an irrational part of her brain, if I do this, he won't see me.

Of course, that didn't happen.

Terry Boot looked around, his eyes half glued shut. He yawned and stood up slowly after realising he had fallen onto the floor, and then came face to face with Ginny. It took him a moment to notice her. He smoothed his pajamas out drowsily, stretched, and then realised what he was looking at. Her hand was still clamped over her mouth and he looked at her incredulously, his eyes boggling slightly. After a moment his eyes went back to normal and he seemed thoughtful.

"Am I sleeping?" he asked in a calm voice. Ginny nodded vigorously.

"Yes, yes, you're sleeping," she said excitedly. Maybe he would just go back to sleep and think that he was dreaming. She watched his expression turn from thoughtful to curious. This didn't look good.

"So, technically, if I am, in all actuality, dreaming, then I can do whatever I want, right?" Ginny was forced to nod, and then she felt her stomach tie itself into several knots. Oh no, she thought desperately. No, no, no, no, no. Please, no.

"All right then." And with that, he seized her, and dragged her over to his bed. Ginny was flopped onto the it unceremoniously and he climbed on after her, fumbling with the buttons on his pajama top. Ginny didn't know what to do. If she made any noise, then she would wake up the other boys in the room. If she didn't, she would be pounced on by this boy.

At this moment, she wished she were in the Bahamas, sitting in the shade of an umbrella in a comfortable chair, a lemonade in hand. And then, after a bit of thought, a smiling Harry Potter was thrown into the picture, dressed in trousers (only) and fanning her with a palm leaf.

She sighed glumly, mostly because this was not happening.

Ginny watched as Terry struggled with the third button. He had about ten more to go, and that made her a bit more relaxed. Unfortunately, he seemed to notice this too, and then left the shirt and dove right for her. She squeaked in a alarm and pursed her lips together as his met her own. He kissed her hard, and Ginny thought for one terrifying moment that he would simply suck her lips right off her face. She was relieved when he went up for air, and also realised that this was the second Ravenclaw that had kissed her that day. It wasn't as enjoyable as she thought it should have been. Terry seemed confused, and then looked at Ginny.

Well, he squinted at her.

"And, uh, who are you again?" Ginny's foot started to tap, although all it did was make the bed shake. Then, just as he was about to kiss her again without waiting for an answer, she blurted out,

"Your mother!" Terry made an odd noise and then toppled off the bed. Ginny decided to make it a little more convincing. "Terry Boot," she said in a stern voice, no longer bothering to keep her voice down, "if you do not go and clean your room right now, Mummy will have to give you a spanking! And you know how much she hates to do that," she added in a seductive purr. The distressed Ravenclaw started to scream, and Ginny heard the grumbling and moaning begin to come from the other beds. She hopped off the bed, over the writhing body on the floor, grabbed her bag, and quickly slipped out the door.

She shut the door behind her and then listened to the voices coming from inside the room.

"Wha- Terry? Terry, what is it?"

"What the bloody hell-"

"What's going on? Terry? Is that you?"

"Ugh," came Terry's voice, "It was horrible, just horrible!"

"What? What happened?"

"I... I was dreaming..." he began.

"Spit it out! I have to get up early tomorrow!"

"And there was this girl on my bed..."

There was a pause, and then the boys started laughing wildly.

"So what's so horrible about that?"

"Well? What happened, then? Details!"

Ginny wrinkled her nose in disgust. Boys, she thought heatedly.

"Wait, wait," said another voice. "Who was it?"

Another pause.

"M-my Mum."

At that point there were numerous groans, gagging noises, and the muffled sounds of pillows being thrown.

Ginny tiptoed back down the stairs and rested at the bottom. She listened intently, but no one else had seemed to have heard the racket. She let out a breath of relief and then started up the other set of stairs.

She stopped at the door that said fifth years, opened it quickly, slipped in, and shut it. No problems so far. Before she even turned around she was certain that she had stepped into the right room. There was no snoring - just heavy breathing.

As she peered into the darkness, she saw that the one of the bed's drapes had not been closed, and she tiptoed closer to see who was in the bed. She saw long black hair covering the white pillow, and she smiled fiendishly.

Perfect.

Ginny set down the empty bag and took out her wand. She struggled to keep her hand steady while she gleefully pointed it at the sleeping girl. She could barely keep herself from jumping up and down on her bed with joy. She would finally get even.

Ginny had spent all that morning looking up spells to make Chang look abominable without making too terribly obvious that someone had hexed her. She began to cast the spells quietly so no one would wake up.

One spell for a restless sleep...

One spell for frizzy hair...

One spell for acne...

One spell for itchy, red eyes...

One spell for a runny nose...

And the list went on. They were mostly subtle things; things that you wouldn't notice alone but in the scheme of things (being many subtle things) they all added up. Once she was done casting them she stuck her wand back into her pocket and then wandered over to the desk next to Chang's bed. She opened the first drawer and spotted clean robes. She opened the one underneath it. Clean skirts. The one beneath that one. Clean socks and knickers.

Finally, she opened the one on the very bottom and found what she was looking for. Hair charms, cosmetics, cleansing potions - it was all there. True, there weren't as much as she thought there would be. She herself had more. But she wasn't complaining - less for her to carry.

She grabbed her bag from the floor and stuffed the contents of the drawer into it hurriedly. The glasses and vials clinked together noisily, but none of the Ravenclaws stirred. When she had gotten everything Ginny heaved a sigh of relief and walked out of the room as quietly as she could.

She closed the door silently and then began to bounce down the stairs, a very large and very silly smile plastered on her face. She paused in mid-bound, adjusted her gown, and then sat on the large banister. She held her bag protectively against herself and then began to slide quickly down. Everything had gone perfectly. It couldn't have gone any better, in fact. Brilliant.

Her state of euphoria quickly diminished though when her gown snagged on a crack in the stone and she tumbled down the rest of the way. She landed heavily on the ground and the bag landed next to her, crashing loudly. She sprang up, grabbed it, and began to run as fast as she could towards the door. She heard the raven screech loudly behind her.

"Sneak! Sneaking! Gryffindor sneaking!" She ran out the door and didn't look back.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Cho woke up to a loud crashing noise and sat up suddenly, trying to figure out whether she had dreamed it or if it had actually happened. She was all too familiar with the strange sensation of hearing her brush fall off of her bed and then wake up thinking a bomb had gone off.

But no, it wasn't a dream after all, because she then heard Kaw begin to shriek.

"Sneak! Sneaking! Gryffindor sneaking!" She heard the other girls begin to stir and she threw the covers of of her.

"Whassappening?" mumbled someone.

"I don't know," said Cho, getting off of the bed and tying her bath robe around herself. She walked over to the door carefully, trying avoiding anything that she might trip over, but she was struck with a stroke of unluckiness. She let out a yelp as she stepped on something sharp and hard and toppled onto the ground. She looked around blindly in the dark, searching for the object, but gave up soon after. It was pitch black, and the only light in the room came from underneath the door. She crawled over to it and opened it carefully and quietly, just in case the person might still be down in the common room.

Cho stood and looked out of the doorway. She could hear others waking up also, their doors opening and grumpy murmurs traveled throughout the hall. She stepped out and walked down the stairs slowly. When she reached the bottom she went over to Kaw, who had not quieted down yet. She shushed the crow soothingly, petting its back. Once the bird calmed down she explored the rest of the room. She heard other Ravenclaws begin to file down the stairs to see what the disturbance was and looked back at them. Lisa Turpin had stumbled down the stairs after her.

"What was that?" she asked, her eyes strangely unfocused. Her curly blonde hair was sticking out at odd angles and gave her the sort of look you expect to see on people when you walk into a mental institution. Cho shrugged and continued to walk around.

"I don't know," she said. "Kaw said it was some sort of Gryffindor. A sneaking one," she added unnecessarily. Lisa looked around.

"Well, whoever it was he seems to be gone now. I wonder how they got in?" she wondered aloud. Cho shrugged again, and then wandered over towards the entrance to the common room. The door seemed unscathed - it didn't appear to have been slammed shut. But then it could have very well shut by itself. Doors in Hogwarts had a tendency to do that. She opened it and saw the back of the bookcase. Nothing seemed to be out of place. Peculiar, thought Cho.

More and more people of every age began to swarm into the common room. Terry Boot had wandered down looking slightly green and Lisa had promptly turned away as he looked over in her direction. Orla Quirke walked over to Cho looking frightened.

"What happened?" she managed to squeak. Cho sighed.

"Well I..." she faltered. Saying 'I don't know' to a second year seemed awfully thoughtless. As an older student it was her job to comfort those younger than herself. She took a deep breath and thought for a moment before saying "I'm not entirely sure." She figured this would have a better effect on the child since one would assume that she knew something about what had happened. It seemed to work. Orla looked up at her through very large eyes. She seemed to be waiting for Cho to elaborate, so she decided to point out the obvious.

"Someone must have gotten in, I suppose." The small girl gasped. "Oh, don't worry," she said reassuringly. "They're gone now. And I don't think there was any harm done to anyone."

"But," said the small girl, "but who was it?" Cho looked around at the rest of the Ravenclaws. They were all watching her and she faltered again.

"I..." She could not say 'I don't know' to everyone. She had to figure out a way to get some information and fast. She looked around the room and her gaze settled on Kaw, who was cleaning his feathers precociously.

Of course, the bird did everything precociously. He could talk, after all.

Cho hurried over to him and cleared her throat. Kaw looked up at her with his head cocked to the side, one eye focusing on her unblinkingly.

"Kaw," she began loudly, so everyone in the room knew she was talking to the bird, "who came in here before?" Everyone was silent.

"Gryffindor! Sneak!" said Kaw. Cho nodded.

"Yes, yes, but what did he look like?" she asked earnestly. "Do you know?" Kaw seemed to ponder this for a moment.

"Red! Red!" Cho furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Red..." she mumbled. "But red what? Red clothes? Red hair?" Kaw bobbed up and down on his perch.

"Hair! Red hair! Red hair!" he squawked. Cho turned around and addressed the crowd.

"So," she said somewhat dramatically, "who in Gryffindor has red hair?" Quite a few people spoke up, but Cho managed to pick out the name 'Weasley' from almost every sentence spoken.

"Weasley? Well, that's no good," she said. "There's four of them, isn't there? There's Ron, I know him. He's Harry's best friend. But who else-"

"There's Fred and George, those two buggers who bewitched the lavs a couple of weeks ago," said a scowling Mandy Brocklehurst, who had just turned a shade pinker.

"And there's Ginny, too," said Padma Patil. "I was talking to her just this week." Padma managed to keep herself from sounding sheepish or embarrassed. Cho plunked down on one of the sofas and rested her chin in her hands. Everyone was quiet for a moment.

"Well," said a boy named Steward in the thick silence, "we could see if they were tall or short?" Cho looked at him and he blushed and began to stammer an apology.

"No, no," she said, "that's a good idea! Only... who's short and who's tall?"

"I believe Ronald is the tallest," said a dreamy voice that seemed to drift over the crowd to Cho. Luna Lovegood walked to the front of the crowd (and indeed, she did walk. There was no pushing or shoving involved since everyone sort of sidled out of the way to make room for her. Even for a Ravenclaw she was a bit on the eccentric side). "And Ginny is the shortest," she continued. "She's really not much taller than me. And you know," she said, her eyes widening even more than they already were, "Fred and George aren't all that tall either." The crowd of Ravenclaws held their breath as one person as Cho got up and walked over to Kaw again.

"Was the person who came in here," said Cho slowly," tall or short, Kaw? Tall or short?"

This was unfortunate for Cho and the rest of the Ravenclaws, really. Had she phrased the question a bit differently things might have turned out for the better and, well, correcter. Kaw sat on his perch which sat on a small table which was around three feet tall and to Kaw, just like to a small child, almost everything seemed tall. So, given the circumstances, Kaw gave his answer.

"Tall! Tall!"

*~*~*~*~*~*

As Cho walked back into her room she walked over to her bed and promptly fell onto it. She was utterly bemused. Why would Ron Weasley want to sneak into the Ravenclaw common room? What was he doing? How did he get in? Cho sighed and then tucked herself under the covers. She would just have to go and see Harry tomorrow about it.

Harry...

What a wonderful time she had had earlier. Of course, it hadn't started off quite so pleasant, but when Harry had come, when he had rescued her... Cho thought her heart might burst. They had had such a nice chat together. Harry was a really nice fellow once you got to know him. Not that she hadn't thought so before, but goodness. He was modest and kind and clever and handsome...

She didn't even mind his messy hair. Hair was something she usually had a problem with when it came to boys. Not a stray strand of hair could be misplaced or she would have to absentmindedly put it back. But with Harry it was different, even though she didn't quite know why. A lot of things were different with Harry.

Cho rolled over and smiled. She was looking forward to seeing him tomorrow, that was for sure.

She fell asleep and dreamed of monsters.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny opened her eyes slowly, her lids peeling apart like two pieces of bread that had been buttered quite heavily and then smooshed together unceremoniously. Sunlight was pouring onto her face, momentarily blinding her. She grunted in annoyance. Bloody sun has no respect for people trying to sleep, she thought to herself. She wasn't on good terms with the sun. It rose each morning and subjected her mercilessly to the cruelties of the day. She closed her eyes again, groped blindly for her sheets, and rolled over.

She didn't find any sheets.

She fell off the couch.

She landed on the rug with an unpleasant thunk, her nose becoming slightly squashed between her face and the floor.

She sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes, yawning widely. She smacked her lips a few times to get some spit into her dried mouth, rubbed her irate nose, and then took a deep breath.

Now perhaps the reader is interested in knowing where Ginny is, since that little piece of information has yet to be unveiled. But the truth is, Ginny herself had absolutely no idea where she was. Then again, she wasn't actually thinking about it. She was stuck in that state of pleasant drowsiness when reality seems to blend with the fantasy world of the subconscious.

And then she got that nasty jolt that comes from waking up in the place you had not intended to fall asleep.

She stood up quickly, tried to step backward to have a look at her surroundings, and toppled onto the floor, her feet tangled in her nightgown. She made muffled irritated sounds and after a few moments was able to sit up and untangle herself, though her face was still slightly flushed from embarrassment. When you are your toughest critic, it is sometimes impossible not to get flustered in front of yourself after doing something quite unintelligent.

After freeing her ankles from her twisted pajamas she looked around her and let out a loud sigh of relief. She was in the Gryffindor common room. She recognized those deep shades of red anywhere, and at the moment deep shades of red was definitely better than dark shades of blue.

Ginny groaned and rested her head in her hands. She had completely botched up her plan. Who knew what had happened after she had run out of the Ravenclaw dormitories? Perhaps she had left something behind. Perhaps someone had followed her last night. Perhaps someone - anyone - actually knew it was her.

Ginny groaned again and fell back onto the floor. Things couldn't have gotten any worse.

There was a faint sound at the portrait.

It sounded like... voices.

Ginny sat up quickly and listened with all her might.

Yes, it was most definitely voices. And they were arguing, from the sound of it. Ginny stood up slowly and tiptoed her way over to the portrait, her ears straining to hear the argument better. She stopped when she got five feet away.

"I'm sorry dear, but if you don't have the password you can't come in." It was the voice of the Fat Lady. Then the second voice spoke.

"But please, it's urgent!" It was Chang, and she sounded desperate. "You see, I must speak to Harry, it's about his friend!" Ginny gasped and flattened herself against the wall with an unintentional shlumping noise. The voices paused and for a moment Ginny thought her body would explode. Or implode. Or even both, however that might happen.

In reality this could not actually happen, but the idea is so drastic that it expresses her feelings perfectly in this situation. The voices continued.

"I'm not the one who made up this silly rule, you know. It just isn't possible. You need the password."

"But if you could just let me slip in for just a moment-" The Fat Lady began to sound impatient.

"No, you don't understand, I can't open unless the password is said." Ginny heard someone say something, but she couldn't quite catch it. Bloody walls, she thought. You couldn't hear anything through them.

"Oh, what am I going to do?" said Chang, sounding miserable. Ginny fought the urge to laugh maliciously. "If I could only talk to him.... You see," she began, obviously venting her pathetic, trivial woes to the portrait, "someone snuck into the Ravenclaw Lounge yesterday."

"No!" said the Fat Lady with just the right amount of shock and sympathy.

"Yes," said Chang wearily. "And we found out who did it, too." Ginny began to tap her foot and chomp her nails while simultaneously twirling a stray strand of hair around one of her fingers. She would have been quite pleased with herself had she been in the mood to appreciate this but the fact was, she wasn't. She dreaded to hear the words that would come out of the girl's mouth next...

"Who would have though such a nice person..." she started sadly. "I don't know why Ron would want to come sneak into the Rave-"

Chang was cut off rudely by the portrait swinging open unexpectedly ("I say, what's going on here?") to reveal a slightly breathless Ginny Weasley. The redhead's hair was in complete disarray, and was sticking up unattractively in the back. Her eyes were boggling. Chang blinked in surprised.

"Um. Hello." Ginny didn't answer. She simply stood there, staring at the Ravenclaw.

Ginny managed to keep her feelings to herself at the sight of Chang. Her mind slumped in disappointment. Instead of making the girl an abominable piece of ugly flesh, she had just succeeded in making her look sick as buggery.

She just looked... pathetic. Her nose was red and her eyes had that large, glassy look to them when one is ill. The acne spell had hardly done anything to her - there were only a few pink dots scattered across her face. Her hair was quite frizzy but she had put it up in a bun so only a few wisps of hair stuck out. Her face was a little pale except for the bright splotches of red on her cheeks, but all in all Ginny had to admit that she wasn't quite the image she had had in mind. She had pictured her more... hag-like.

Damn. Damn damn damn.

"Are you alright?" asked Chang, who was looking at her worriedly. Typical, just typical, thought Ginny. There she was looking pathetically ill and she was seeing if someone else was feeling well. Disgusting.

Ginny searched her mind quickly for something to say.

"Oh, yes, yes I'm fine. I just, uh, heard you mention my brother?" Chang looked uncomfortable.

"Oh, well I - yes, I did. "But, well, I was wondering if I could talk to Harry, if it isn't too much of a problem," she muttered sheepishly. Ginny looked behind her back breifly. There was no one there.

"Oh. Um. Sure, come in!" she said with false cheerfulness. Chang entered gratefully, smiling at Ginny as she passed. Ginny smiled back, and then grimaced once the girl was no longer looking.

This was torture. Here she was, Chang, Cho Chang, and Ginny didn't get to hex her. Not even one tiny little jinx. Complete and utter torture.

Chang stood in the middle of the room looking embarrassed to be there. She was watching Ginny expectantly and Ginny raised her eyebrows in response. And then she remembered.

"Oh! Right! Harry!" she said, getting a bit flustered. And Ginny had thought it bad to act stupid in front of herself - it was much, much worse when you did it in front of your mortal enemy. "I'll just pop up and get him, shall I?" She walked quickly over to the staircase leading to the boy's dormitories and began to run up them. Only when she was at the top did she realise the position she had been put in.

She was going into Harry's room.

While he was sleeping.

And she had to wake him up.

She faltered and paused. Her breath was getting faster by the second just thinking about it. She began to walk slowly, making sure each step went where it was supposed to. Who knew what would happen if she fell on her face? Nothing good, that was for certain.

She stopped when she reached the fifth year's door. She took a deep breath, put her hand over her heart to stop it from beating so loudly, and pushed the door open.

The door squeaked ever so slightly and Ginny winced at the sound. She listened to the sounds coming from inside the room - snoring, mumbling, and generally heavy breathing. No one had seemed to have heard. Ginny continued through the open door and stood in the middle of the dormitory. All around her were closed curtains. It seemed that the Gryffindor boys enjoyed their privacy.

She walked over to one and opened the drapes gently. It was Neville, snoring quite loudly. She closed them and them walked over to another bed. It was Ron. She turned up her nose and looked at him sisterly contempt. He was lying on his stomach with his head turned to the side and mouth open. He was drooling freely on the pillow. She shut the curtains sharply. She snuck over to yet another one. She opened the red drapes and -

- and -

- and -

- she shut them quickly. She closed her eyes and struggled to keep her knees from giving out.

He was beautiful.

She opened the curtains again after a time slowly, making sure that nothing disturbed him. The golden light of the morning was falling onto his face. His face... without glasses he seemed so defenseless, so innocent. He looked peaceful - nothing was currently haunting his dreams. He was lying on his back with one arm draped on the pillow just above his head while the other was resting on the sheets. Ginny stood stock-still, fearing that if she moved she would shatter the priceless moment.

The temptation was simply too great.

Ginny reached out with her hand. Contrary to her beliefs it was not trembling or shaking, though it did feel a bit on the clammy side. She stroked his cheek softly. His skin was so warm. She brushed her fingers down to his lips but did not touch them. She could feel his steady breaths - hot rushes of air against her hands.

He was perfect.

In every way she could think of he was perfect.

He was everything she looked for in a man, everything she dreamed of.

Her heart ached at the unfairness of it all.

She moved her hand and placed it on his shoulder. She shook him gently.

"Harry," she whispered. He rolled onto his side so his back was to her and continued to sleep. "Harry!" she said a bit louder. He stirred and Ginny heard his breath become quieter. "Harry," she said one last time, and he rolled over again, facing her. He opened his eyes.

Oh hell and buggery.

She was in a forest, a lush, beautiful, thriving green forest. It sparkled around her, it surrounded her. She struggled half-heartedly to escape from the stifling foliage but then gave up. She surrendered to it, letting her senses drift away. Emeralds shone and glinted in the light and she felt herself fall into it. Falling, falling....

"Ginny?" Ginny jumped and looked around. She looked down at Harry and blushed. His eyes were still half shut and she still had fallen victim to them. Shameful.

"Gin, what're you doing in here?" He blinked against the bright sun and she fought every urge to shut the curtains for him.

"There's someone here to see you downstairs," she said quietly. Harry furrowed his brow, creating a small crinkle in the middle of his forehead. Ginny looked at it, wondering how this made him look even more attractive.

"Who?" he said groggily. Ginny swallowed.

"Erm. Cho Chang."

"What?!" Harry said a bit too loudly. He ripped the drapes open and sprang out of bed.

Ginny gurgled and then fell over.

"How can she be here?" he continued. "What does she want? I need to get dressed, I need to - to-" He paused. "Ginny?" Ginny made a small noise, confirming that she was alive. She was hidden behind the bed and Harry looked over it. "Ginny, what are you doing?"

"Um. Admiring the scenery. It's quite lovely down here. Funny, I'd never noticed it before."

"Don't be silly," he said, smiling. He reached down and grasped Ginny's hand, pulling her to her feet. She gulped and looked at him. He wasn't wearing a shirt. He only had a pair of worn trousers on, and Ginny found it extremely hard to concentrate. He obviously didn't know what he looked like, because he went about gathering his robes without a thought. His tan skin and rippling muscles caused her to go slightly cross-eyed.

"Do you know what she needed? Why is she here? What does she want? Just to see me? Is she-" Harry continued to ramble as he pulled a sweater on. Ginny continued to stare. There were two of him now, and it was impossible for her to turn her gaze away.

Harry then walked over to her. She forced her eyes to go uncrossed and then watched him as he looked at the floor.

"I'm sorry, I'm rambling, but - thanks Ginny," he said quietly. "For telling me that she was here, I mean. It was really nice of you." Ginny blushed.

"Oh, Harry," she said quietly. If only you were this happy to see me. If only you rambled on about me like this. If only you loved me. "You're welcome."

She watched him head out the door and she sighed wistfully. She saw a tuft of his hair sticking up in the back. "Wait!" she said loudly. She looked around, startled at how loud she had sounded. No one had woken up, surprisingly. Boys.

"What?" said Harry, looking back. She walked over and stood in front of him. She looked up at his face. Soon you will be mine, she said to herself. She put her hands on his shoulders, forcing him to crouch down slightly. She ran her fingers through his hair for a moment, svoring the feel of the silky soft tresses, and then attempted to flatten down the back. It didn't. She automatically began to bring her hand up to her face and her mouth was already open when she saw the look on his face. His nose was wrinkled in a completely adorable fashion. She paused.

"D'you mind?" she asked him, forcing her voice to sound casual. He shook his head.

"Nah, go ahead." She licked her hand and ran it over the stubborn tuft of hair. It worked. Sort of. She smiled at him and pushed him into the hall.

"All right, go see her already. Shouldn't keep company waiting, you know," she said, her voice straining against her will. He smiled back and then paused, looking uncertain about something.

"Ginny," he began slowly.

"Yes?" asked Ginny breathily.

"I-...well, thanks," he finished lamely, and then quickly walked out the door. Ginny let herself deflate and she followed him dejectedly. He had sounding as though... as though...

Well, she didn't actually know. But it had sounded as though it would have only gotten better if he had stayed.

Now Chang was going to get to see him instead of her. It was no wonder why she hated the girl.

And then Ginny remembered why Harry was going down to see her and she stepped tentatively towards the door. He would see her while she was sick-looking. While she didn't look too entirely terrible she was definitely less attractive. Ginny walked out the door and sat on the first steps of the staircase to listen.

"Hi Ch-... oh." Harry didn't sound entirely sure of himself. He must have seen how Chang was looking. No doubt he thinks that she's a disgusting monster and never wants to see her again, thought Ginny. I'll bet he tells her to leave right now.

"Um," he continued, "wh- why don't you sit down?" No, no, he wouldn't send her away. He was much too tactful for something like that. Of course.

"Oh, thank you. It's nice to see you, Harry." Ginny fought off a wave of nausea.

"Oh - it is? I mean, yes, it's nice to see you too."

There was an awkward pause.

"Well," said Chang, "I suppose I should just get to the point." She sighed. Harry didn't say anything, so she went on. "Last night someone snuck into the Ravenclaw Lounge."

"...I see," said Harry, obviously coming up with nothing to say. Ginny sympathized with him. She didn't have anything to say to the Ravenclaw either. Unless "I hate you, you skanky tart!' counted as something to say.

"Yes. And, well, you see..."

Ginny found herself bending over to listen. Chang had taken a deep breath and now everything came out in one long jumble of nouns, adjectives, and adverbs. Not necessarily in that order.

"Well I heard this noise and so I got up to see who or what it was and it turned out that someone had knocked something over downstairs in the common room so I ran down and I saw Kaw who was frantic and I asked him who had snuck in and he said that it was a Gryffiindor with red hair and so that could mean any of the Weasleys so I asked what else and he said tall!"

Silence greeted the end of this speech, and not until the two had shaken hands, properly introduce themselves and had started bragging about their children did Harry say anything.

"What?"

"It was Ron, Harry. Ron snuck in last night." Ginny growled. She was talking to him like he was a little five year-old, and it made Ginny want to bash her over the head with something hard.

"Cho, I think you're not feeling well," said Harry doubtfully. "Ron was here all of last night, I was with him."

"But-"

"We were up all night doing homework. Trust me, he didn't go to the Ravenclaw common room."

"But Harry, I-"

"You know, you could have been dreaming," Harry suggested helpfully. "Maybe you just thought you heard someone, and-"

"No," said Cho firmly. "I wasn't dreaming." She sounded slightly offended. Ginny stifled a snicker.

"Well, I still think you must not be feeling well. You don't look... too good," he said awkwardly. Ginny smiled happily. Everything he was saying, the tone he was using, it was all pointing to the one thing that she wanted. Things were going beautifully.

"It's Saturday, so you could sleep in if you think that would make you feel better." Yes! thought Ginny. He's kicking her out! It's a dream come true! "I can come with you, if you like."

Wait a tick.

He wasn't supposed to want to go with her.

"Oh. Well. Yes, I'd like that," said Chang. She heard the couch creak, dying voices, and footsteps and then the slamming of the portrait.

And so they left.

Just like that.

Ginny sat on the top step, stunned.

Why would he want to go with her? Why would he want to talk to her now that she was ugly? Honestly, if she didn't figure out how boys' minds worked the way they did soon she was going to scream.

Life was so mercilessly cruel to her.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny heard the portrait swing open and close again, but did not get up. She was lying on the couch, where she had been for the last hour, waiting for him to come back. She had strewn herself across the couch, her arm thrown over her eyes to block out the rest of the world. She heard him walk over to her and stop just feet away.

"Ginny?" she heard him ask. His voice was so wonderfully caressing. How ever could she ignore it?

"Hm?" she replied, wholeheartedly. Half a heart would simply not do him justice.

"What are you doing?" Ginny pondered what to say for a moment. While he had been gone she had simply been drowning in her sorrows, not thinking of things to say to him when he returned. She decided to point out the obvious.

"Resting." Harry laughed lightly. She suddenly felt his hands pick up her legs and she jumped. For a brief moment she had expected him to pull her off of the couch, but it seemed that he was just going to move her feet so he could sit next to her. She scooted down obligingly, and then slumped again.

"What's wrong?" asked Harry. Ginny sighed.

"Nothing, nothing," she replied lightly, stuffing her troubles into a distant part of her mind. For the time being, anyway. "So what was the matter with Cha- Cho?" Ginny gritted her teeth. No matter what she couldn't let on that she disliked Chang in any way. For some reason he didn't seem to be too terribly upset about her current appearance, and it unnerved her.

"Oh, she thought Ron snuck into the Ravenclaw's dorms last night. No big deal. I think she'd been sleeping and dreamed it. But it was odd... she didn't look well at all." Ginny's ears sharpened at that.

"Oh? And, uh, what were you thinking when you saw her like that?" She couldn't help it. She just had to know. She had to know what was going through that mind of his, or it would drive her insane.

"Well, I had the strangest urge to wrap her up in a blanket and tuck her into bed with some soup," he said, a perplexed look on his face. He turned to her. "Is that good or bad?"

"Depends on your point of view," she grumbled. It seemed that the answer would drive her insane as well. So many things were happening it was making her head spin. How could Harry like her after seeing that she looked sickly? Why would he want to see her get better? She knew she didn't. It just didn't seem logical to her.

"But, well," she began. How should she phrase it? Tactfully, she supposed. "She wasn't looking her best, certainly." Harry nodded. So far so good. "Do you still fancy her?" she ventured.

He didn't answer right away, and after a few moments Ginny moved her arm and glanced at him. His face was quite red, and he was trying to hide it. He failed spectacularly.

"Oh. Well," he stammered, "yeah. I guess I do. I mean, why wouldn't I?" Ginny let her arm fall back onto her face, causing her nose to throb from the impact.

"I don't know," she said sullenly. "I guess-"

Well, what did she guess? She didn't know what to guess, she didn't know what to think. She didn't know what he thought, she didn't know why he thought it. It was all so very confusing, and for once her undercover facade melted away and she spoke the genuine truth.

"I guess I thought you liked her because she was pretty." As soon as the words left her mouth she winced. She hadn't really meant for that to slip. Now he would laugh at her and tell her how stupid she was to think such a thing, that he loved Chang and hated her.

Ginny winced again. That last thought was just too horrible to even think about.

"No!" he declared, and then said, "I mean, well, I..." He trailed off and sighed. "I like her because she's a nice person. I like her personality, not just her looks. Although," he admitted, his face turning pink again, "the reason I first noticed her was because I thought she was pretty. But now I know what she's like. And I like her because of it."

Ginny was silent. There wasn't anything to say, really. What could she say? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

They sat in silence for a while, and then Harry looked at her, obviously expecting a response. She shrugged and smiled weakly at him.

"Well," she said, "I suppose that's as good a reason as any to like a girl." Harry grinned at her.

She heard something and turned to the stairs. People were beginning to wake up and amble down the stairs. Harry turned to her.

"I'm going down to breakfast, Would you like to come with me?" he asked her. As usual, her heart started to beat slightly faster.

"Oh," she said. "Oh, sure. That'd be great. I'll just go change and be right back down." Ginny got up and walked up the stairs to her own dormitory and walked in the door.

So Harry liked Chang's personality. What was she supposed to do about that? She couldn't just be Chang for a day and be nasty to him. She knew about a polyjuice potion she could use, but she had to be quite honest with herself. There was no way she could ever be nasty to Harry.

Ginny began to pull on a pair of Charlie's old pajama pants over her gown. She was too drained to change completely.

He used to like her because he thought she was pretty, she mused. That's why he first noticed her.

Something seemed to present itself in her mind, but she couldn't quite connect her thoughts.

He thought she was pretty, and then he liked her for who she was.

Ginny paused, her face puzzled. She absentmindedly began to pull on one inside-out sock.

He noticed her because she was pretty.

Everything snapped into place with such force that Ginny thought she could feel it.

She hurriedly pulled on the rest of her garments and raced down the stairs. She met with Harry and they walked down to breakfast together, side by side, happily chatting away. But while her mouth was running about Quidditch or breakfast or whatever it was, her mind was thinking about something totally different.

If she couldn't keep Harry from liking Chang, then she would just have to steal him back for herself.

And now she knew precisely how to do it.