You Don't See Me

CHAPTER ONE: Life After Hogwarts

It was the evening before the day when I would leave Hogwarts for good. Yes, after seven long years, I was finally leaving school. I had made my family proud and received high marks on my NEWTs. Ron, who was currently in Sweden on a photography assignment for The Daily Prophet, was especially proud and told Mum that he wanted to hold a big party for me at the Burrow. With a high-paying job as an in-demand photographer, Ron could afford about anything right now.

As I was preparing to go to bed, I double-checked my trunk and made sure all my things were packed neatly inside it. A noise by the window distracted me, and when I went to check it, I found my owl Maximus hooting outside with what looked like a letter attached to his leg.

"It's from Hermione!" I said to myself, as I untangled the piece of parchment from Maximus' leg. My owl had been a gift from Hermione when I started my seventh year last September. She knew I would be lonely for at least the first few months, since I would have no brothers to turn to in school. She was right, I wrote to her almost every day and we've kept in touch for the last ten months already.

Dearest Ginny,

I told Maximus you still must be in at Hogwarts. I hope this letter gets to you in time. How are you feeling these days? Congratulations on making it through your seven years at Hogwarts. (Especially seeing as your first year was so traumatic.) I'm so sorry I haven't written, there's just so much work to do here at the Ministry's Office of the Improper Use of Magic. Of course, I'm taking up medical studies as well, so nothing's changed much on my busy schedule. It's still as hectic as it was when I was a student. By the way, Ron owled me and said that he's hosting a party for you when you arrive home. Oh, and I almost forgot... Harry will be there as well so try not to mess up this time, okay? Don't worry, I'll help you. Write back soon once you're back at the Burrow. Give my regards to your family.

All the best,

Hermione

Folding the parchment, I could feel that I was blushing at the mention of Harry's name in the letter. So I'd be seeing him again, then? I guess it was unavoidable, considering he's the best friend of my brother, but I never seem to do anything right whenever I'm in front of him. Hermione's right... I always mess up. No wonder Harry thinks I'm so clumsy. Oh dear... I'll be seeing Harry Potter again after ten months! I don't even know what he's been up to lately. Hermione's never mentioned a word about him during our correspondence. He probably knows I like him. Guess I'll have the next few days to find out then, won't I?

****

My trip back home seemed to last an eternity. I fidgeted in my seat and kept glancing at the window, wondering how long it would be before King's Cross came into view. After a few hours, the long wait was over. The train stopped and I knew I was finally back home. I hurriedly gathered my things, and was among the first few to disembark from the train. Going through the solid barrier, I glanced around the station for any familiar face that was there to pick me up.

No sign of Mum or Dad. Fred? Nah, he and George were too busy these days with the expansion of their joke shop. Their business venture was such an instant hit that many wizards were now wishing to buy a franchise of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes for all parts of the world. Charlie was still in Romania. Bill of course was at his job in Gringotts. Percy could never be relied on to pick me up at the station as he was so fixated with work, especially since he had been promoted.

"Hey little sister, how're you doing?" a familiar voice greeted me from behind, and I was so sure who the owner of that voice was that I shrieked in delight when I turned to face the person.

"Ron! How did I know? Wonderful to see you! This is quite a surprise; I thought you were still in Sweden!" I gave my brother a tight hug for all those months we hadn't seen each other.

"Well, we managed to finish the assignment earlier than we expected and so I came right home to prepare for the party I promised you." Ron took my trunk and loaded it into a taxi waiting outside the station. With Hermione as our friend, we've grown more accustomed to Muggle things after all these years. "By the way, I have lots of presents for you waiting at home. I never knew shopping could be that tiring... Hermione seemed to have perfected that skill ages ago," he added as we boarded the cab taking us back to the Burrow.

I merely shrugged at his remark. I was both too tired and too glad to talk much.

It was nice to see my brother once again. Most importantly, it was nice to be back home.

(To Be Continued...)

A/N: In earlier drafts, Ginny's owl was named Spooky. But I decided to change it to Maximus since it was more suited to the mood of an HP story.