The Seventh Year Soap Opera

The Seventh Year Soap Opera

RECAP OF CHAPTER THIRTEEN- Owl Post: Harry and Hermione officially "break up", Ron and Ginny have a huge blowout, Hermione's parents send an owl saying they don't support her decision to keep the baby. The Weasleys send an owl saying they do. Justin walks in the room with Ginny Weasley in his arms.

WHERE WE LEFT OFF-

Then Seamus and Lavendar burst out of the portrait hole, their wands at the ready. Viktor, Ron, Harry and Hermione looked on, confused. Lavendar and Seamus pocketed their wands as someone else came into the portrait hole, carrying a very pale, board. Harry recognized the someone as Justin Finch-Fletchey, and as he got a closer look, he realized he was not carrying a board.

He was carrying Ginny Weasley.

Chapter Fourteen- Cold Shower

"What happened?" Harry demanded as he, Viktor, Ron, and Hermione rushed over to them. Justin laid Ginny on the couch. "What happened?" he said again.

"Malfoy hexed her," Lavendar explained, and Harry's eyes became cold. He looked over at Ginny, whose hands were at her sides. An angry look was frozen on her face and her eyes were blinking furiously.

Hermione noticed Harry's confused look. "It's obviously a spell where she's conscious, but can't move. Ginny, if you can hear what I'm saying, blink twice."

Blink, blink.

"Why did you bring her here?" said Harry. "Why didn't you take her straight to the hospital wing?"

"We did," Justin answered. "Pomfrey gave her some type of shot and said that the hex will wear off soon."

"Why a shot?" Ron said.

"Because her mouth can't open to drink a potion," said Hermione immediately. Ron did question her; after all, she was the smartest witch in their year.

"Oh," Harry said. "By the way, Lavendar, do you know if Parvarti or Padma has a date to the ball?"

Lavendar paused. "Parvarti's going with Dean, and I think Padma is going with someone from her own house. Why?"

"Ron and I need dates."

"Stag."

"Just find us girls, okay?" came Ron's agitated voice. Lavendar nodded.

Harry refocused his attention to the couch. The hex was fading and Ginny was beginning to stretch. She looked around wearily and blinked several times. Then she jumped up suddenly, startling everybody. Rage was written all over her face. "Where's Malfoy?" she said in a low hiss. "I'm going to kill him!"

She ran in the direction of the portrait hole, but someone had grabbed her around the waist, trying to restrain her. "GET OFF ME SEAMUS!" she yelled, struggling to get lose. She was beginning to drag Seamus' feet slowly across the floor.

"A little help please?" mumbled Seamus. Harry and Justin went forward to help just as Ginny broke away from Seamus, adrenaline pumping through her chest.

Harry rolled his eyes at her childish behavior and then lifted her off the ground and flung her over his shoulder. She yelled curse words, her hair spewing all over the place, as Harry carried her up the stairs, everyone following close behind.

"Harry, what the hell do you think you're doing?" cried Ron. He obviously had gotten over his huge row with Ginny and was now back to being his usual, overprotective self.

"She needs to cool off," Harry said, heading toward the bathroom.

"Goddamnit Harry, put me down!" Ginny screamed, pounding her fists into his back.

Everyone was now outside the bathroom. "We'll be out in five minutes," Harry told them, ignoring the look on Ron's face and slamming the door. Once inside, he plopped Ginny down inside the bathtub and turned on the cold water faucet.

He had gotten this idea from a Muggle movie called, In a League of their Own. In the movie, two female baseball players had gotten into a fight. The girls' coach picked up the one girl and dumped her into a cold shower. It had calmed her down quite a bit. He hoped this would have the same effect with Ginny.

"Aaaaarghh!" Ginny shouted as ice rained all over her body, piercing into her skin. Eventually she stopped yelling and became used to the temperature of the water. However, she began to shiver.

Harry reached over to the water faucet and turned it off. He gave her a satisfied look; it had worked. Ginny gave him a glare that wiped the smile that was beginning to form on his lips right off. She stood up, but fell back down into the slippery bathtub, banging her elbow into the side of it. She cursed out loud and tried to stand up again; Harry gave her his arm. She pushed it away fiercely and managed to climb out on her own. Her clothing clung to her body and drops of cold water fell from her hair and onto her skin.

Harry realized she was angry with him just as she opened the door. Ron and Lavendar fell in. She let out an annoyed sigh as she stepped past them.

Stupid boy, Harry thought to himself. Now she's mad at you, you prat! "Ginny," he said.

"Leave. Me. Alone." He had never seen her this angry before. Harry opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off and his face reddened. "You-you-you humiliated me!" she said accusingly, pointing a finger in his face.

"I did what I thought was best for you, Ginny," he said stupidly. Daft, Potter! Daft! Daft! Daft!

"Y-you aren't my father, my brother, my boyfriend--you are NOTHING to me, so stop trying to act like it!"

Harry couldn't help but smile. She looked so cute when she was angry. Ginny did not like this at all and before she knew what she had done, she had punched him in the nose. "Ginny!" exclaimed Hermione.

"What?" said Ginny, glaring at Harry, who was crouched on the floor with his hand to his nose. "I did what I thought was best for him." Sopping wet, she stormed to her dormitories.

Harry stood up slowly and removed his hand from in front of his nose, only to show the blood dripping from it. "Oh, Harry, you need to go to the nurse," Hermione said.

"Ow," Harry said, holding his nose in the air, tears prickling in his eyes. Who the hell had taught Ginny to punch like that?

"That was great!" Ron said, looking very pleased. Everyone turned to look at him. "No offense Harry, but I just saw my baby sister beat up a guy. A guy! I'm so proud of her! I'm just sorry it had to be you Harry. Now, I don't have to give Justin a lecture!" Everyone was still staring at him, but he rambled on. "It's tradition. Every guy that asks her out gets the talk that basically says, 'If you hurt her or try to sleep with her, you'll wish you were never born because I'll--"

"Ron, darling, we get the picture," Lavendar said, stopping him in midsentence.

Ron shrugged. "Well, anyway, now I won't have to do all that stuff because Ginny can do it on her own!"

Justin Finch-Fletchey looked positively terrified.

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Who does he think he is? Ginny thought as she entered her dormitories. She pulled her wand from the inside of her wet clothing and muttered a drying spell. Her clothes became dry and were only slightly wrinkled.

Ginny cursed to herself as she ran her fingers through her wild hair. What a bastard! I'm actually glad I'm not going to the ball with that prick! He is an arrogant, conceited--

A knock on the door broke her train of thought. "Come in," she snapped, not in the mood to be disturbed.

She was disgruntled to see Hermione walk into the room with an anxious look, biting her lip. "Do you want to talk?" she said to Ginny.

Ginny stared angrily at her. "Not to you," she snapped. Then, before she could stop herself, "Who the hell does Harry think he is? Why does he always try to act like some kind of hero?"

Hermione wanted very badly to say that Harry never tried to act like a hero, it just came with the job description, but she didn't. She herself had often thought Harry did try to act like a hero many times before. Instead she picked up a brush from Ginny's dresser and plopped herself on Ginny's bed. "Sit," she commanded, patting the bed.

Ginny sighed and sat on the bed in front of Hermione. She didn't really want to talk to Hermione but she needed someone to talk to. "I just don't understand why he's taken a sudden interest in my life. He's never noticed me before. And everyone knows he'd like to see Malfoy's face smashed," she said all very fast, as Hermione began to brush her hair.

"He cares, Ginny," said Hermione as the brush struck a knot in Ginny's hair.

"Shit, Hermione!" Ginny said.

"Sorry," muttered Hermione, brushing softer. "Anyway, he thought he was doing what was best. He didn't want to see Malfoy hurt you or see you in trouble."

"Well, I can take care of myself!" said an indignant Ginny.

"Malfoy hurt me," Hermione informed her, "and I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself too." A sudden vision of Malfoy pointing his wand at her drifted into her memory, and she shuddered involuntarily.

"Well, Harry's probably regretting trying to be my big brother now," said Ginny, the image of her fist making contact with Harry's face vivid in her mind.

Hermione snorted, but then replaced her grin with a stern look. "You could have really hurt him though Ginny," she said. Ginny turned around to look at her, noticed that she was trying hard not to laugh, and then both of them burst into giggles.

"He--had to go to the--had to go to the nurse," Hermione squealed, clutching her stomach.

"It serves him right," Ginny laughed, standing up and placing the brush on the dresser, while Hermione tried to stop laughing. She did eventually, when her eye caught something in Ginny's closet.

She stood up and walked to the closet and fingered a beautiful dress. "Oh Ginny, is this what you're wearing to the ball?" she said in an awed whisper.

Dumbledore had decided that they would dress like Muggles for the ball. He said he "wanted to try something risky."

Ginny grinned. "It took all of my allowance from this past year in order to afford it. You know, since mum and dad couldn't."

"Ginny, it's so beautiful," Hermione said, not taking her eyes from the dress.

"I know. Are you going with Kr--Viktor?" she said, a little angry still. Hermione had dumped her poor Harry; at least he was available now.

Hermione looked at Ginny and her face lit up. She nodded her head vigorously, blushing a little.

"Are things serious between you two?" Ginny asked hopefully. If Hermione was serious about Viktor, she wouldn't have to worry about her crawling back to Harry.

"Yes," said Hermione calmly. "I love him, Ginny. I really do. I thought I loved Harry, but...I don't think I did. I'm sorry for any pain I've put you through." Her face was dead serious now, and Ginny cleared her throat to apologize.

"I'm sorry too," she said. "You know, about being such a bitch when I found about you and Ron."

The smallest of frowns appeared on Hermione's face as Ginny said the curse word, but then she smiled. "It's okay." Then, "I never meant to hurt Harry or Ron. What happened between Ron and I happened because we were extremely lonely and we needed to satisfy our, er, physical needs. Hormones were flying everywhere--"

"Hermione, you're talking about my brother. You can stop now. I understand."

"Okay."

Pause.

"Where did you learn to punch like that?" blurted Hermione.

"You won't believe me if I told you."

"Oh, come on, who?"

"Percy."

Both girls burst into laughter again.

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"You won't believe how hungry I am!" Hermione said, as she piled every single food available onto her plate that night. Viktor Krum, sitting to her right, smiled in amusement as she poured pumpkin juice onto her mashed potatoes. Ginny, on her left, looked sick. Ron and Harry (who was sporting a very bruised nose) were used to this by now.

Harry tried not to look at Ginny throughout the meal. He had been beaten up by a girl! He had only been trying to help!

Ginny tried not to look at Harry. Every time she saw him, she felt like punching him again. That, or bursting into giggles at his nose, which kept changing from black to blue to purple to red. At the moment, it was a pasty yellow.

Ron was trying to engage Lavendar in conversation to see how she was coming along on finding dates for him and Harry. Unfortunately, she was playing footsie with Seamus under the table and shrieking in delight every five seconds. "Damn it Lavendar!" he said.

"What?" she snapped looking annoyed.

"Have you found dates for me and Harry yet?"

"As a matter of fact, I have," she said, taking a bite of kidney pudding. "Don't you just love this stuff?" she said, gesturing to her half empty bowl.

"Who?" said Ron. "Are they seventh years?"

Lavendar took another bite of the pudding. "Yes," she said through a mouthful. "Hannah Abbot and Eloise Midgen."

"What? They're ugly!"

Lavendar swallowed and glared at him. "Honestly Ron, looks aren't all that matter!" she said, her eyes burning with his. "Besides, they're really nice!"

Ron quivered under her stare. "Fine," he said haughtily, "but I'm going with Hannah." There was no way he'd be seen with Eloise Midgen.

"No."

"No?" he said, confused.

"Hannah said she wanted to go with Harry because their names start with the same letter or something like that."

"What?" he said, even more confused.

"Never mind."

Ron sulked in his chair, having lost his appetite, and he glared at Hermione and Krum.

"Oh, and Ron?" said Lavendar.

"What?" he snarled, now in a very bad mood.

"Please, whatever you do, do not make fun of Eloise's pimples. She's really sensitive about them."

Ron stared at her in disbelief.