Ginny Weasley and the Final Test of Friendship

Chapter 2

Ginny Weasley awoke the next morning to the sound of two tawny owls perched at the end of her bed. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and untied the letters from their legs. Throwing them both an owl treat, she picked up both letters and laid her head back on her pillow.

The first letter was from Will Mahon, one of the Gryffindors in her year and one of her best friends. He was staying at her other best friend's house, Colin Creevy. The three of them had become friends at the beginning of their third year. Ginny opened the letter and started to read.

Dear Ginny,

Hope your summer is well. I'm staying at Colin's house for the last week of the holiday. (You have no idea how WEIRD Muggle homes are, Ginny. It's nothing like Muggle studies we take at Hogwarts. Don't tell him I said that!) We got out Hogwarts letters yesterday and we're going to Diagon Alley on Friday (today's Wednesday). Maybe we'll see you there. Meet us around noon by Florean Fortescuse. Hopefully you'll be there.

From, Will

P.S. Colin's written you a note at the bottom

-W.

Ginny unfolded the rest of the letter and two pictures fell out. She read the rest of the untidy scrawl at the bottom of the parchment.

Gin,

Thought you'd like these two pictures. I took them at the end of the school term before we got on the train. See you in Diagon Alley on Friday.

Colin

Ginny picked up the first photograph on her lap. The first was of Will, Colin, and Ginny standing outside in front of Hogwarts. Ginny was in the middle of the two boys with her arms linked in each theirs. They were all laughing and the wind was blowing Ginny's hair into Colin's face. He kept pushing it out of his face and trying to wave at the camera. (Ron was taking the picture)

Ginny laughed and picked up the second picture. This one was with her other set of friends. Ron, Harry, Hermione, and herself were sitting in their compartment on the Hogwarts Express. Ginny and Hermione were glancing from a book, Hogwarts, A History, to the camera smiling. Harry and Ron were playing Exploding Snap on the other side of the compartment and were rolling their eyes and pointing at the two girls while smiling and laughing at the camera.

She put the two pictures back inside the parchment and picked up the next letter. She could tell it was Hermione from the neat writing on the front.

Hermione and Ginny had become very close friends over the past years. They were almost sisters to each other and it was nice to have a girl to talk to when almost all the people closest to her were male.

Ginny ripped open the letter and began to read

Dear Ginny,

Hullo, hope all's well at the Burrow. I think Harry should be there by now if what you told me in your last letter is correct. I'd know a little more about what's going on with Harry and Ron if either of the would send me an owl. EVER. Do you have the same problem with Will and Colin?

So you want to know about my visit to Bulgaria to see Viktor. It wasn't much really. Honestly, Ginny, he took me a few places and introduced me to new people, but that's about it. By the end of the week I was bored. I wanted to come back home. It's not that I didn't like seeing him again, but I think that he doesn't just want to be friends, if you catch my drift. It had to firmly put it one night that we were just FRIENDS, and that's it. I do like him as a friend, and I felt bad saying that to him, but I don't think that a relationship would work out between us if we were a couple. I still owl him often, but that's it, Miss Weasley are you satisfied? With all the questions you asked I was wondering if I was taking a test for History of Magic instead of answering your letter.

Did you get your Hogwarts letter yet? Mine came this morning. Did you read what we have to bring? If you haven't read yours yet I won't ruin the surprise. I have another thing to tell you, but that will wait until the Hogwarts Express.

I'll be in Diagon Alley on Friday and my parents and I are staying at the Leaky Cauldron for the last few days of vacation. They want to look through a few shops and just relax for a while. (They're even talking of buying an owl so they can write to me when I'm at school!) Send me an owl there and tell me when your family plans on coming to pick up your school things. See you then!

Love From, Hermione

Ginny folded up her letter and set it on her nightstand. She got up and dressed before heading downstairs.

"Well you're sure in a better mood this morning," Mrs. Weasley said as her daughter skipped down the stairs. "By the way, your Hogwarts letter came this morning, it's by your plate. We're going to Diagon Alley tomorrow to get everything."

"Thanks, Mom."

Ginny sat down at her plate and opened her third letter of the morning. She glanced down the book list, realizing that her brothers had almost all of the books she needed.

Ginny hated the fact that that she always go the hand-me-down books, but because she was a girl she got semi-new clothes when she needed them. She needed new robes again this year. She grew almost two inches since school was out and her robes were well above her feet.

She continued to look down her list: double thick dragon hide gloves, a list of new potions ingredients, dress robes...

"Dress robes?!?" she asked aloud.

"You should have heard your brothers' reactions." Mrs. Weasley laughed. "Ron's face was a greenish color, I honestly don't know why he has such a problem with dances."

Ginny remembered the Yule ball last year. She could vividly remember the fight that Ron and Hermione had. "Bad past experiences I guess," Ginny said shrugging. She looked up at her mom. "I don't think that it's the dancing part, Mom. It's more with his dress robes I think."

"Which I am not wearing by the way." Ron burst through the back door followed by his brothers and Harry. They sat down at the table to eat when Mrs. Weasley came over to Ron and pointed her wand at him.

"You'll wear them Ronald Weasley if you know what's good for you! I swear if I knew why you boys were so afraid of these dances..." Her voice trailed off as she stormed off to finish the dishes.

Harry made a coughing sound that sounded a lot like "Hermione." Ron reached over and punched him on the arm and went back to eating his breakfast.

Ginny rolled her eyes and finished reading her letter.

*********

"Ginny! We're leaving in five minutes, you better get down here!"

"Coming, Dad."

Ginny sat on her bed looking at the few coins she had in her hand. "One Galleon, twelve Sickles, and twenty-one knuts," she sighed. I couldn't even buy the sleeve of a dress robe if I wanted to.

She shoved her coins into her velvet pouch and grabbed her hairbrush. She watched her hair shine in the light as she brushed through her long reddish-brown hair. Over the past two years her hair had darkened into a handsome auburn, darker than the traditional Weasley fire red. It was one of the only features that she liked about herself. She examined her face in the mirror and sighed again.

"You look fine dear, run along," the mirror replied.

Ginny put the brush into her pouch picked up her things and ran down the stairs.

"Ginny, Come On." Ron yelled up the staircase. "We're meeting Hermione in-"

"- Five minutes, I know I know," she said hurrying down the stairs. "You think I don't talk to Hermione too, Ron? Let's go already, I'm meeting Will and Colin at noon." Ginny grabbed a pinch of floo powder and stood in the fireplace.

"The Leaky Caldron," she articulated throwing the powder on the floor. Green flames engulfed her and she felt herself zoom away from the burrow.

Ginny didn't like traveling by floo, but because none of the younger kids could Apparate yet, this was the only way to go. She tucked in her elbows and waited for the swirling to stop. All of a sudden she tumbled out of The Leaky Cauldron's fireplace.

She stood up and brushed the soot off of her robes. "This is why I hate floo powder," she mumbled.

"Well it's a lot better than portkeys, or so everyone tells me."

Ginny stopped brushing her robes. She knew that voice, it was-

"Hermione!" she said running to her friend and enveloping her in a hug. "Oh, I missed you, it's good to see you again!"

Hermione laughed and hugged her back. "It's good to see you too, Ginny."

She released Ginny and stood back to look at her.

"I can see why you don't like it, you're full of soot! Let's go up to my room and you can wash up a bit."

Hermione turned to her parents sitting at a table. Could you tell everyone we'll be right down?" They nodded and the two girls went up the stairs. Ginny ran after Hermione and almost crashed into her as they stopped suddenly at room eleven. Hermione opened the door and they went into to the room.

Ginny recognized the room; her family had stayed here a few years ago when her dad had one the annual Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw. They were cozy little rooms, just like she remembered. Ginny walked over to the hand basin and washed her face. After she toweled herself dry, she combed her hair again, and brushed off most of the dirt that was on her robes.

"Better?" Hermione asked.

"Much better." Ginny said. "Everyone should be here by now, let's go back down."

As they reached the bottom of the stairs they realized it had grown much louder since they left. Ginny looked over at Hermione and it looked like she was thinking the same thing. "What else would you expect from the Weasley clan than a lot of noise?"

They laughed loudly and shouted their greetings when they reached the bottom of the stairs.

Harry and Ron walked over to the two girls. Harry's face lit up. He smiled at Hermione.

"Good to see you, Hermione."

"Good to see you, Harry." She flung her arms around Harry and hugged him.

They broke their hug and Hermione looked to Ron. "Hello, Ron," she said awkwardly looking Ron in the eye.

Ginny could tell they were still a little weird around each other since the end of last year. She thought a summer would sort everything out between them, but apparently it hadn't.

Ron's face colored a little, and he smiled an awkward smile back at her. Hermione finally let the awkwardness go and she almost tackled Ron in a hug.

"It's good to see you too, Ron."

Both Ginny and Harry saw the goofy/happy look on Ron's face and it appeared like he was happy to see her too. Harry rolled his eyes.

Ginny covered her mouth and tried not to laugh out loud at Harry's reaction. She suspected that Ron had some sort of feelings for Hermione. His jealousy had shown through when she went to the Ball with Viktor Krum. It looked like he forgave her now.

Ginny finally broke up the reunion. "Ok, are we going to stand around hugging all day, or do you two plan on going to Diagon Alley at all."

Ron and Hermione finally broke their hug and turned away from each other. Their faces were still red. Harry and Ginny exchanged another side-glance, this time breaking out laughing hysterically.

The Weasley children, Harry, and Hermione took off, waving to the adults as they left. Charlie reached up and tapped the correct bricks and the wall opened into Diagon Alley.

The twins ran off to Lee Jordan who was yelling at them from the Quality Quidditch Supplies store, Bill and Charlie headed down Knockturn Alley, and Hermione left with Ron and Harry. Ginny suddenly felt very alone. She looked at her watch. She still had a half an hour before she was meeting Will and Colin, so she decided to walk around and browse through the shops. Ginny stopped in Madam Malkins Robes for All Occasions first to look at the dress robes she couldn't afford.

Ginny opened the heavy door and walked inside. She couldn't believe all of the colors she saw. Every color imaginable was available. She walked through the emerald greens, royal purples, and even the rich Gryffindor red she was so accustomed to. But the one in the back on display on a lighted platform was the one she had spotted right off.. She walked up to the beautiful robe and stroked the material.

It was an ivory color that sparkled ever so slightly in the light. She felt the silky material it was made of and imagined herself walking into the Great Hall, green eyes sparkling, and seeing the shocked look on Harry's face. He would ask her to dance and they would dance the night away.

Ginny was so wrapped up in her little fantasy that she never heard the door to the shop open and someone creep up behind her.

"Like you could afford that, Weasley," the voice drawled.

Ginny turned around and was face to face with her brother's worst enemy. Ginny looked up into his sneering face and folded her arms.

"What do you want, Malfoy?"

"Do you plan on buying that for the ball? What are you going to do, sell off your house? I don't think that would even fetch half of the-"

"Shut your ugly face, Malfoy, I was just looking at it."

"Temper, temper, Weasley. You better watch what you say or I'll-"

"Leave her alone Malfoy." Ginny looked over Draco's shoulder and saw Harry, Hermione, and Ron standing there. Harry was looking daggers at the back of Malfoy's head. Draco turned around and found Harry's wand three inches from his face.

"What did you say, Potter?"

"I said leave her alone."

Ginny looked over at Ron. He was being held back by Hermione who was struggling to keep him from, by the look in his eyes, killing Malfoy. They both had their wands drawn, ready to back up Harry if he needed it. Ginny walked over and stood by Harry, glaring right into Malfoy's eyes.

Draco smirked. "I was just telling your girlfriend here how she couldn't afford to buy decent robes if her life depended on it. What with your father's measly wages, Weasley, you couldn't even buy--"

Harry raised his wand to curse Malfoy, but Ginny got there first. She slapped him across the face with all of the strength she could muster.

"Don't insult my father you stupid git!" Ginny's eyes were flaring and her face was as red as her hair.

Malfoy was knocked back a step and his silver hair flew into his eyes. He put his hand up to his face and touched the red hand mark that was forming on his cheek.

"I'm not taking any of you insults this year, Malfoy," Ginny stormed pulling out her wand. "Get out of my face before I hex you into the next century!"

Draco stood dumbfounded. He then narrowed his eyes and pushed by Ginny, heading for the door. Before he left he turned to the four Gryffindors.

"You'll pay for this, Weasley." With another sneer on his face, he swished his robes and walked out onto the street.

Ginny sighed and smoothed out her robes. She looked up and saw the three of them staring at her with their mouths open.

Ron blinked and finally spoke. "Ginny! I never--I--What was that?"

Hermione smiled at her. "Wow, Ginny!"

"I think you're rubbing off on her, Hermione," Ron said smiling at the memory of when Hermione had done the same thing in their third year.

Ginny blushed and looked over at Harry. He was still looking out the door. Her smile faded as she saw the look of concern on his face.

"What's wrong, Harry," asked Ron. "You're not afraid of what Malfoy said, are you?"

"I dunno," he replied shaking his head, "I just don't like how he put it. You never know with Malfoy."

"You're just paranoid, Harry," Hermione said patting him on the back. "He's always threatening us. Besides with me around this year, he won't be able to do much."

Ginny looked at Ron and Harry and they looked just as confused as she was. "What do you mean?"

Hermione just smiled. "You'll see," she said smugly, walking toward the door. "Let's go to Florean Fortescues for an ice cream, my treat."

They all headed for the door. Ginny turned around right before exiting and looked longingly at the ivory robes. With a sigh she walked back out to Diagon Alley.

*********