Tears and Potato Soup
Ginny perched on the arm of the couch. George had taken back the space she had sat in earlier, but Ginny couldn’t find it in her to care. The only thing she was focused on was hiding that incriminating smirk.
It was useless, however, because the moment her butt met the sofa she was bombarded with questions from her best friend.
Hermione, still sitting in Draco’s lap, stared at her, jaw hanging open.
“Did I just witness what I think I did?” she asked in a rushed but quiet tone and she leaned forward. Draco put his hands on her hips to stop her from leaning too far forward and falling completely off his lap.
“I don’t know what you mean,” Ginny said in an impossibly posh tone.
“Don’t play dumb Ginny Weasley, it’s unbecoming.” Her friend stated plainly.
The rest of the group was still distracted, lost in their own conversations. Ginny was glad for this. She was about to be grilled enough by Hermione, she did not need the rest of the group joining in on the interrogation.
Ginny casts her gaze around the room before muttering, “Not here,” in a pleading tone.
She didn’t want her issues with Dean to be blasted out in front of their friend group, it was her problem to deal with and hers alone. She didn’t need to be bombarded with the opinions of her brothers and the other men on what she should do. And to talk about… the incident… yes, she decided, that is what she would call the kiss Hermione just witnessed between her and Pansy.
“Finish your drink, then we’re going, because I am not letting you get away with not discussing this,” Hermione ordered her with finality. Draco groaned at the prospect of having to leave early. Hermione smirked before whispering something in his ear that made him perk up, no longer upset at the idea of walking back to Hogwarts.
Ginny rolled her eyes at her friend’s flirting. She focused back on the drink in her hand, thinking back to moments ago.
What was she thinking? She just asked Pansy Parkinson to kiss her! That has got to be one of the more stupid things she’s done with her time on this Earth. Really, out of all people Pansy? The woman she now has to face every day, multiple times a day, for the next eight months. God this was dreadful.
At least the Christmas Holiday was coming soon, so she could have some sort of reprieve from her inevitable embarrassment that she was now doomed to face.
God everything was going to get messy, wasn’t it? Suddenly her drink was no longer appetizing, in fact, it made her a little sick even thinking about finishing it. She nudged George, “Want to finish this? I’m heading out,” she pushed the drink into his hands not even giving him a chance to respond before she stood.
“I’ll never turn down a drink,” he said with a laugh, Ginny’s mood going unnoticed.
She fast-walked to the exit of the pub, trying to get to the cool air before she threw up. Maybe the shock of the icy air could curb the sickness growing in her stomach.
She heard a shuffle from Draco and Hermione before Draco announced, “We’ll be leaving too.”
Hermione was already at her back as Ginny opened the door and burst into the cool winter air. Sucking in a deep breath she walked to the path that led to home. She covered her face with her hands, beyond embarrassed by what happened inside.
“Gins, do you want to talk about it?” Hermione’s voice was soft. She gave a soft comforting touch to her friend’s shoulder.
“I don’t know.” Ginny whimpered.
“Why don’t we go back to the dorms? I’ll make some hot chocolate and send Draco down to get us dinner so we don’t even have to leave the room, hm?” the woman suggests.
Hemione’s plan does sound enticing, not having to face anyone besides the two people now beside her. She nods in agreement, setting out on the snow-covered stone path, not wanting to waste any more time out in the cold than she has to.
The walk back is relatively quiet. At least Ginny does not mutter a single word. She can see her friends casting worried glances at each other every now and again, before whispering about something; probably the deep mess Ginny has gotten herself into if she had to take a guess.
Finally, after what felt like decades, they reach the girls’ dorm room. The warm rush of air that meets her face as she opens the door gives her a sense of comfort. This whole ordeal was not something that she could ignore. She couldn’t push it down and deal with it on her own. She really needed to talk to her best friend about it, right now, or she might explode.
Ginny immediately kicked off her shoes on the way to her bed before crawling under the thick plaid sheets and comforter. Nuzzling into her bed seeking some form of comfort to combat the ugly feeling swirling inside her at this moment.
Hermione followed her into the room, bending at the hips to grab Ginny’s discarded shoes and lining them up neatly next to her wardrobe, ever the mother of the group. Draco stayed in the doorway watching as Hermione walked to Ginny’s bed sitting on the end of the mattress.
“I’ll go grab dinner for you two. Everything will work itself out, Ginny.” He pushed off the door frame turning back down the hall, being swallowed up by the darkness.
The finality in his statement oddly brought Ginny a bit of comfort. Hermione watched his retreating with so much love in her eyes that Ginny thought she might light him on fire from the heat.
She turned back after a moment, crossing her legs under herself and setting her questioning eyes on her friend.
“What happened back there?” Hermione finally questioned.
Ginny cast a glance at the still-open door. Before she could say anything Hermione got up, softly closing the door, and grabbed her wand to cast a silencing charm.
Finally settled Ginny started, “I don’t know Mi. Dean was coming towards me so fast and I couldn’t get back to the group quickly enough,”
“Ugh, Dean.” Hermione groaned as if in pain just hearing the name leave her friend’s lips.
Ginny continues, unperturbed, “I decided to make a lap around the room back to you all and hope to lose him in the process.” She pauses, nervous to revisit the next part of the story, “That’s when I saw… When I saw Pansy. We have some classes together and she seems nice enough, if a bit intimidating, so the idea popped into my mind. I cut her off, asked her to kiss me and she agreed.”
Ginny sucks in a breath after her rant.
“That’s…” Hermione pauses, collecting her words. It’s not often that anyone leaves the woman speechless, her quick wit is too strong for that. So it’s a little startling that this whole situation has the power to do so.
“That’s not what I expected to hear.” She settles on.
“What did you expect?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe… I guess I thought you might be into her, is all.” Hermione shrugs.
“I’m not not into her it’s just… UGH!” Ginny falls back into her pillows covering her head with a blanket, not wanting to face her best friend.
Hermione grabs the blanket, attempting to pull it off Ginny’s head, intending to grill her no doubt. Ginny resisted, keeping her iron hold on the fabric. If there’s one thing Ginny has on the older girl, it’s physical strength.
“Come on Gins,” Hermione pleads.
Ginny pulls the blanket back, only because Hermione rarely pleads so if she is it’s important. Ginny only lowers the sheet to her chin, peaking at her friend over the cover.
“What do I do Mi?” tears welled in her eyes, not used to this onslaught of emotions being bared to someone. Especially not the feeling of embarrassment.
“You go about your life. You continue going to classes. You don’t let the incident dictate your life. You hold your head high. And most of all, you hope it worked. You hope Dean The Ass takes the hint this time.” She smiled at the last bit, loving to point out that Dean is an ass anytime she can.
“But I’m so embarrassed. How am I supposed to face Pansy ever again?” a groan of pain followed her question.
“Why are you embarrassed? She kissed you too. She didn’t have to but she did,” Hermione poses the question. Why did Ginny feel embarrassed? It’s true, Pansy did kiss her. In fact, she’s the one who leaned in first. She’s the one who gripped Ginny’s hair. And she was definitely the one who slipped her tongue into Ginny’s mouth first.
Just then, a knock came at the door. Hermione shot one last glance to Ginny before getting up to answer the door. It was Draco, they discovered, as the woman swung open the door. Two bowls of steaming hot potato soup floated in the air next to him.
Ginny sat up as Hermione grabbed the bowls and brought one to her. Draco moved to Hermione’s bed, sitting down and leaning against the headboard. Hermione followed, joining him on the bed with her dinner.
Ginny took a spoonful of soup into her mouth, sighing at the warmth and comfort of the food. It reminded her of her mother’s dinners. She could really use her mother’s words right now. Molly Weasley could be a loud and sometimes cranky woman but when it comes to her children’s happiness, she would do anything. Ginny knows her mother would know all the right things to say at this moment.
She stared into the bowl, missing her mother, feeling anxious about the coming days, and overall just wanting to cry herself to sleep.
“But what if she just kissed me out of pity?” Ginny directs the question to Hermione, going back to the conversation they were having before Draco brought them food.
“Why would she kiss you out of pity? She has no reason to pity you.” Hermione supplies.
“Because she saw me running from Dean.” Ginny sighed.
Draco interjects at that moment, “I know Pansy, and if there’s one thing about her it’s that she doesn’t do anything she doesn’t want to.”
“You know Pansy? How?”
“She’s friends with Blaise. She comes around sometimes when he’s there.” he shrugs
“Hm,” Ginny thinks on his comment. If the sentiment was true then… why would Pansy kiss her. Ginny didn’t know the woman that well but from what she witnessed of her it did seem plausible that she only did the things she wanted to.
She took another bite of the soup, stewing in her thoughts for a few moments.
“Alright, I’m going back to my dorm to study. Do you want to come?” Draco asks Hermione.
She pauses looking between Draco and Ginny, deciding if she should stay with her friend or go with her boyfriend.
“Go. I need a moment alone anyway.” Ginny makes the decision for her.
Hermione looked relieved not having to make the decision. Hermione loved the people closest to her and had a hard time telling them no.
She stood with Draco, gabbing a book off her desk and walking to Ginny’s bedside. She planted a chaste kiss on the crown of her friend’s head, “Everything will be okay, I promise.”
Ginny only gave her friend a sad smile as the pair left the room and shut the door. She made it all of thirty seconds after the door closed before the first tears sprang into her eyes. All of the day’s emotions, from the frustration of Dean and his actions to the embarrassment she felt from her own, spilled out.
She lay down, holding onto the hope that Pansy truly didn’t kiss her out of pity, before she drifted off to sleep, tears staining her pillow.