The Music Box

Chapter Five: The First Date

 

“So how do I look Harry?” Ron said, spinning around in front of the mirror.

They had all had an early dinner and were now preparing for Ron's first date with Hermione. He had planned to take her for a stroll around the lake and grounds of the castle.

Harry was distracted. Only a week had passed since their trip to Hogsmeade and Ginny had once again put up a false front in order to hide away her true feelings. Only now, Harry could see right through the mask. He knew that Sirius' new information about her father bothered her more than she had let on. Harry had tried to talk to her alone on several occasions, but she kept avoiding him all week. He had never felt so alone.  It was only that morning when Harry had finally cornered her and made her promise to meet with him that night to finally examine the music box.  

“You look great,” Harry said unenthusiastically.  

“Honestly, what's with you this week? Ever since last weekend you=ve been acting so strange.”

Harry so much wanted to tell him about his father's death, and what Sirius had told him about the music box. Most of all he wanted to tell him about Ginny. He didn't just fancy her anymore; he had fallen in love with her.          

“I'll tell ya later. Let's get going, or you'll be late,” Harry said with a sigh as he slapped his friend on the back. Harry and Ron waited downstairs in the common room for Hermione to come down. Ron was wringing his hands nervously, as Fred and George were trying to give him some brotherly advice.  

“Whew! You need a mint!” said George, waving the air in front of him.  

“But I just cleaned my teeth!” Ron said, holding his palm in front of him checking the state of his breath.  

“Don't you want to make a good first impression?”

“Fred, I've known her for five years! I think we are way past first impressions!" Ron said, even more agitated.

George continued to press the breath issue further. “Still, fresh breath is important...”  

“Fine!” Ron said exasperated. “Harry, do you have a mint or something?”  

“Uh, no,” Harry said, feeling around in his pockets.  

“I've got some!” Fred said excitedly, pulling out a small tin box from his pocket. Ron looked at the twins suspiciously. He knew better than to take anything edible from them.  

“I swear, they’re just mints. Go on you silly git, take one!” Fred said encouragingly.

“Alright, but if this any sort of a trick, they will have to put me in Azkaban for what I would do to the both of you, I swear!” Ron popped the tiny green candy in his mouth with a note of satisfaction on his face from the taste of mint. Harry noticed Ginny was coming down the stairs.

“She will be down in a moment,” said Ginny happily, walking over to Ron, straightening his collar and smoothing his shirt. But Ron had hardly noticed. Hermione was already coming down the stairs patting her bushy hair down. To Harry she looked perfectly normal in her usual sweater and pleated skirt, but Ron looked at her as though he had never seen her look so lovely in his life, his mouth gaping open in awe.

Hermione walked over to them.

“Are you ready?” she said to Ron, beaming.

“You look very nice,” Ron said, trying not to choke on the mint.  

"Thank you," Hermione blushed. She suddenly gave him a curious look. “What did you eat for dinner? Your tongue, it's all green.”

Ron spun around on his heel towards the twins, but it was too late, they were already halfway up the stairs, laughing hysterically. Ron had started after them when Hermione held him back.  

“Ron, it's okay. It's really not that noticeable,” she said with the sweetest smile she could give him. Ron had turned to face Harry and Ginny.

“Is it that bad?”

Harry noticed that it had already begun to spread to his lips.  

“Not bad at all,” Ginny said, desperately trying to keep a straight face. Harry was standing slightly behind her, pinching her arm.

“Honestly, you look fine Ron. You had better go,” Harry said, as Hermione tugged on his arm impatiently.

“I want to go. Come on.”  

“Okay,” Ron said still perturbed. “I guess we'll see you two later.”  

“Bye now!”  

“Have fun!”

And Ron and Hermione climbed out the picture hole. Harry and Ginny turned to each other and let out their uncontrollable laughter.  

“Did you see his lips?” Ginny said, clutching her stomach and trying to catch her breath.

“Yeah, I just hope it stops there, or they are gonna have some issues,” Harry snorted. After a few more minutes, Harry and Ginny settled down from their laughing fit, and got down to business. Ginny went upstairs to get her music box. She came back down and handed the box to Harry.  

“You=re not going to find anything. I=ve looked at least a dozen times,” she said undoubtedly irked.  

“You have?” said Harry, turning the box around in his hands.  

“Of course I have! I want to know just as much as you, if the box belongs to your Mum or not!” she said.

They took turns for over an hour examining every crack and crevasse of the music box, both of them becoming more and more discouraged. Ginny, now biting her lip, handed the box back to Harry again, who was now pacing in front of the fireplace. She sat back down in the chair and sighed.

“This is hopeless. I think Sirius was wrong. It=s just a music box.”  

“No, it has to be here. We just can't see it somehow. I know it's here, it has to be,” Harry said to himself. He looked up at Ginny. Tears were beginning to fall down her beautiful, but weary face.

“So it was all for nothing.”  

“Don't say that, Ginny,” Harry stopped and stood there, trying to deny what had been in the back of his mind for days.

But Ginny's face changed instantly from sadness to anger. She stood up and walked over to him in front of the fire.

“Don't you see Harry, whatever they were looking for, they felt they needed to kill my father to get it!” she said to him through gritted teeth. Harry knew in his heart that Ginny was right. Why else would they both have dreams of Mr. Weasley's death?  

“But they were wrong,” Ginny said grabbing the music box from Harry's hands. Her face was as red with anger. “And he died, for what? Just a stupid little wooden box!”

Ginny hiked the box in her hand, aiming for the fireplace.    

“Ginny! NO!”

But her aim was too high. Surprisingly, the box, which should have broken apart on impact, bounced off the bricks just below the mantelpiece and hit the floor hard. A false bottom plate fell from the bottom of the music box. Harry and Ginny just stared at the box for a moment before Harry scrambled to the floor to pick it back up.  

“Ginny! Look at this!” Harry said holding up the bottom of the box to her. Beneath the newly opened end of the box, were the initials engraved “L. E.”, and beside it attached with a small piece of spell-o-tape was a small sized key.

“I don't understand, what does this mean?” Ginny said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

“I have no idea, but I know Sirius does,” Harry grabbed some parchment, a quill and Ron's owl, "Pig" from his dorm room. He very quickly scratched down a letter. 

Dear Sirius,

We found what we were looking for. We also found something else along with it. Please contact us as soon as you can.

Harry  

 

Harry tied the letter to Pig's leg and sent her off. He came back down to the common room where he found Ginny fidgeting on the couch with the key. He sat down beside her.  

“Harry, I'm sorry that I acted like such an idiot,” Ginny said.  

“It's alright,” Harry said with a smile. “I realize that the pain is still fresh for you. Besides, we probably never would have found it if you hadn't thrown it anyway.”

Harry brushed the hair from her eyes as she smiled sweetly at him. He couldn't hold back his feelings for her any longer. “Ginny, I know that you told me you wanted to take things slow but IBA  

Ginny quickly put up her hand to his lips.

“I know. I do too.”

 They embraced each other until they heard the portrait hole open once again. Ron and Hermione were back from their date.  

Harry sat back with a smirk. “I take it the date went well?”  

Both Ron and Hermione had bright green dye all over each other=s lips.  

“Well, er . . . “ Ron's ears went pink.

Ginny stood up. “You can tell us all about it later, but I think it's time that we tell something.”

“What?”  

“Harry, Ron deserves to know what happened to our father,” she said.  

“Oh . . . yes, of course,” Harry was only slightly disappointed that she wasn't referring to their other little secret.

Harry and Ginny confessed to almost everything. From their dreams, meeting Sirius and their findings about his mother, and they key that they had found that evening.

Ron sat on the couch, Hermione at his side, taking it all in. Ron fought back the sorrow he felt with every thing he could, but he was visibly shaken to hear the truth. When they had finally finished, Ron stood up from his seat.

“Did you already send word to Sirius?” he said softly.  

“Yes. I hope you don't mind, but we used Pig, in case someone intercepted it.”

“Good,” Ron said. He looked at Harry squarely in the eyes. “You should have told me sooner,” Ron then gave Ginny a sideways glance. “You should have too.”

“I know Ron, we're so sorry,” Harry said.

“We didn't want to say anything until we knew for sure,” Harry said.

Ron nodded and started for his dorm room.  

“Are you going to be alright Ron?” Hermione asked, very concerned..  

“Yeah,” he said, not really hearing her. “I just . . . I have to go to bed right now.”

Ron trudged up the stairs, forgetting to wipe the mournful tears that were streaking his face.