My Romance

My romance doesn't have to have a moon

In the sky.

Ginny stared at herself in the mirror. But she didn't see her reflection in the mirror; she saw someone else.

"You look so pretty, Miss Ginny!" the mirror chirped. She just ignored it.

It was the night of the Winter Ball. Her robe, which was a beautiful sparkly lavender color, lay on her bed, freshly pressed by one of the house elves.

One of her friends, Elaine, had done her hair. It lay in soft, cascading waves around her face, almost all the way to her waist. It was so different from her casual style of a bun with strands hanging loose. And the makeup! Ginny never wore makeup. But Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown somehow found out that she was going with Harry, and barged in, demanding that they make her over.

She pursed her lips. They were coated with a shimmery peach gloss, which felt too sticky on her lips. Her cheeks had been brushed with a soft pink rouge, which they claimed added color to her face (Ginny merely thought she looked like she was eternally blushing. Yuck!). Brown eyeliner lined her lids (she cried when they did that torture) and a light gold shadow was smeared on her eyes (what did they want her to look like, an Academy Award?). And the mascara! Ugh! She probably looked like spikes were growing out of her eyes.

With a sigh, Ginny left her vanity and put on the robe. There was a new song on the radio, and it was about romance. Ginny groaned. Just what she needed! A song about romance, and here she was going to a ball with the guy of her dreams...as friends!

Just friends, Ginny thought sadly. That, after all, was what Harry said when he asked her to the Winter Ball. She turned to the mirror, and grimaced at what she saw. This was not her. If she wanted Harry to see her as Ginny, not as Ginny-Ron's-little-sister or Ginny-Who-Looks-Like-A-Clown, she would go as herself.

Ginny ran to the bathroom and creamed off all the makeup. There. She looked at her reflection again. Then she just put on a little lip balm. Her hair...well, she rather liked it that way, to be honest.

"Why, hello, Ginny," the bathroom mirror said kindly. "You look beautiful."

Ginny smiled. "Thank you."

Then she closed her eyes, said a little prayer, and walked back into the dormitory to wait for Harry.

My romance doesn't need a blue lagoon

Standing by.

Harry stared at the pale green robe laying on his bed. What had Hermione been thinking, to have everyone dress in light colors? All the guys would look like pansies...or some other type of flower. Perhaps he should have gotten another color, but Ron was already wearing blue, Draco wearing gray, Hermione wearing gold, Irene (Ron's date) wearing pink, and Ginny was wearing purple.

Ginny! That was the hundredth time today he had thought about her! Gosh, just thinking about going with Ginny to the Winter Ball was giving Harry strange, alien feelings shooting up his spine.

How did he really feel about her? Did he like her more like a friend or something more? Harry ran a frustrated hand through his black hair, making it even more messy. He grimaced. Then he turned to the bed and threw on the light green robe.

Steeling himself, Harry turned around to look into the mirror. Surprisingly, he didn't look half bad. Definitely not like a pansy.

"Hello, Mr. Potter!" the mirror said politely.

"Hello, mirror," Harry said pensively. "How do I look?" His reflection winked back at him.

"Absolutely spiffing! Do you have a date tonight?"

Harry pushed his glasses up his nose. "Yes I do. With Ms. Weasely."

"Well have a good time, Mr. Potter! And do get a move on, you don't want to be late," the mirror warned.

Harry smiled. "Thank you." With that, he turned on his heel and strode purposefully towards the girl's dormitory. He walked down the stairs, and straight into the girl's corridor. Then pausing at the second door, he knocked.

The door cracked open, and Ginny peered out cautiously. She smiled tentatively when she saw Harry standing there. He was relieved to see she had on no makeup. He hated it when girls hid their natural beauty with makeup products, wizard or not.

"Hello, Harry," she said softly.

"Good day, Ginny," he murmured. "Why don't you step outside and come down to the Great Hall with me?"

She blushed. She is so beautiful when she blushed, Harry thought idly as she stepped outside. Then all thoughts vanished.

She wore a lovely lavender robe that complimented her skin so wonderfully, and her shining face was upturned to his. Her hair was different! It cascaded down her back like tendrils of flame.

Wordlessly, Harry held out his arm.

No month of May,

No twinkling star.

Ginny took his hand, trying desperately to get herself under control. Harry was so handsome tonight! The light green robe he wore was exquisite on him. Most light colors weren't good on boys, but they suited Harry.

She didn't even realize that they were walking down the corridor and down the stairs into the common room. Ron and his date, Irene Moon, were waiting in the Common Room.

"Harry! Ginny!" Ron bellowed as soon as he saw them. "Come here!" He was sporting an enormous grin, and Ginny noticed that Irene's hand was tucked into the crook of his elbow. She smiled. Irene and Ron would be good for each other.

"Ginny, you look great," Irene said as they approached. She pushed her long black hair over her shoulder. "You too, Harry."

"Thanks, Irene," Harry and Ginny said together. They gave each other embarrassed grins before Ginny looked away, flustered, while Harry pushed his glasses up yet again.

Ron was still beaming. "Are we going to the Ball or what?" He pulled Irene off the armchair and guided her to the entrance. "C'mon. We'll let them just follow us."

Irene rolled her eyes significantly at Ginny, who didn't quite get the underlying meaning her brother had put into the sentence. She glanced at Harry. He was merely looking straight ahead, no emotion showing whatsoever on his face.

Ginny sighed. Somehow, the initial magic of the evening was dissipating.

The walk down to the Great Hall was filled with strained silence. Ginny couldn't think of a single thing to say to Harry. After all, what could she say? I adore you, worship you, need you, and would die if you ever left me? Gods, she could only imagine what Harry would say to that.

As their procession (they ran into other couples, such as Dean and Lavender, Seamus and Parvati, and Neville and Eloise Midgen of Hufflepuff) moved down the main staircase, Ginny could hear the soft instrumentals floating out of the Great Hall. She knew right away that Hermione had a hand in that. Draco, everyone knew, was obsessed with Muggle rap music.

Speaking of the two, there they were, at the entrance of the Hall, greeting everyone who went inside. Oh, they were a handsome pair! If only me and Harry were like that, Ginny thought wistfully, then kicked herself for being so self-pitying. She would think of some way to win Harry Potter over tonight, for when this year was over, she would never see the Boy Who Lived again, she knew it.

"Ron! Irene! Don't you two look great!" Hermione was saying. Draco was merely grinning, shaking Ron's hand and saying something to them that caused them all to break out laughing. Then Hermione caught sight of Ginny and Harry. Almost imperceptibly, she got Draco's attention and directed it towards Harry and Ginny.

"Ah! Harry and Ginny! You all look splendid!" Hermione chirped. Draco smirked at her enthusiasm. Then he turned to Ginny.

"Hey, little weasel," he said affectionately, mussing her hair a little bit. Ginny smiled. Draco had come to be like one of her extended brothers. She glanced at Harry. He was frowning at Draco with-what-jealousy? No, it couldn't be.

"...make sure you have fun!" Hermione was saying. Ginny glanced up at her. With a smile that looked more like a grimace, Harry said good-bye to Hermione and Draco and steered Ginny into the Great Hall.

No hideaway,

No soft (no soft) guitars.

Harry had to commend Hermione and Draco for their ingenuity. The Great Hall looked fantastic. Light snow was falling inside, yet it never accumulated on the ground or tables. Two rows of frosted pine trees lined either side of the Hall, with little seating areas in between them. The walls were a pearly peach color, and everyone was wearing pastel colors. The teacher's table had been converted into the refreshments area, with luscious food and drink spread generously everywhere. And the dance floor looked like a sheet of sparkling ice, but no one was slipping.

He glanced at Ginny. In this wonderland, she looked like some ethereal entity, like a faerie or such. His gaze strayed to the couples on the dance floor.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked her. Ginny looked up at him, surprise and something like hope shining in her eyes.

"Of course," she whispered, and put her hand in his. Harry led her out to the dance floor and drew her close to him. He was startled to notice that she fit against him perfectly. Her head seemed to have been made for his shoulder. With one hand on her waist, the other holding her hand, and her other hand on his shoulder, they swayed slowly to the music that seemed to come out of nowhere.

Ginny was in heaven. Why did being in Harry's arms feel so right, like they were two halves of a whole finally put together?

She closed her eyes contentedly and almost imperceptibly gripped his hand tighter, trying to meld into him and be one.

Suddenly, the song changed. Ginny was surprised to hear the music playing. It was that song that she'd heard earlier on the radio! The one about romance...

"Are you enjoying the Ball so far, Ginny?" Harry murmured, his mouth close to her ear. It sent shivers of delight down her spine.

"Of course, Harry. I'm having a wonderful time," she whispered. She lifted her head to look at him. His eyes were so brilliant...so beautiful...what was that look in them?

He smiled down at her. "I'm glad." Then he stroked her cheek softly with one finger.

Ginny stopped breathing. What was happening?

Harry had the most peculiar expression on his face. His hand slid from her cheek to the underside of her chin, tilting it up. His breath whispered over her face, and he slowly brought his lips to hers.

Ginny staggered. Harry was kissing her? Right here? On the dance floor? But all thoughts were wiped clean from her mind as Harry slowly deepened the kiss, puller her even closer to him, if that was possible. Ginny clutched at his shoulder and his hand as her knees weakened. He...really is...a very good snogger, she thought dazedly.

All of a sudden, Harry pulled away, his breathing ragged. Ginny turned her glazed eyes up at him. "I'm...sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have done that."

Ginny's heart sank. He was sorry. He didn't want to kiss her. Her eyes began to fill. "You're right," she said slowly. "You shouldn't have. Will you excuse me?" She untangled herself from him and walked away, trying desperately to look like he hadn't hurt her.