Author note: Hey people, yes, it's me again! With another chapter that took me forever to write! Oh well...
I just want to clarify a few things:
1) I know that it's annoying when author's don't update quickly, but I do have a life besides writing fan fiction, you know? I have University, friends and family, so I can't dedicate all my time to this story. I'll try to be faster, but it's not a promise.
2) There are two other stories named "My Best Friend's Wedding" as I have seen. Hence, some people's confusion. This is a sequel to my own My Best Friend's Wedding, which was written a long time ago. So Draco and Ginny are definitely not married in this story ;)
3) I'm sorry, but this chapter has no good stuff happening to H/Hr.You'll probably get irritated and annoyed and more murderous thoughts towards Cho will come up... But hey, I am a H/Hr shipper so it won't be like this forever. Just have to develop a little conflict. And this story is plenty of it. The main topic of this fic is the misunderstandings. So please, keep that it mind.
Oh and I've never been drunk, so I just have to be very observant to write the following scene =D
Okay, that was too long for an A/N, but was needed. I thank you all for you reviews and sticking up with me. Also to Nousia (Nitya), who beta read this, and I also want to thank her and Psy_Girl (Ana) for enduring my ranting while I was writing this.
Chapter 12 - Conspiracy?
"Hermione?" Harry asked dumbly. But he needed to confirm it was her and not someone playing a joke on him. That couldn't be his girlfriend...
"Hiya 'Arry, luv," Hermione said incoherently and let out a strange laugh.
Only then Harry realized that Hermione wasn't alone. She was leaning against Cho Chang, who had a very anguished expression in her face, while she tried to help Hermione keep her balance.
"Cho... What is this?"
"I'm sorry, Harry," Cho said, while Hermione stared at Harry with a blank expression, smiling like a mad woman. "I couldn't stop her... As soon as we arrived to that bar, she started drinking..."
"A bar? I told you she didn't drink!" Harry exclaimed, feeling angry all of a sudden. He caught Hermione just in time when she fell forward.
"Hey, don't blame me," Cho said, looking affronted. Harry dragged Hermione to the couch in his living room and Cho followed them. "It was the nearest place... Since you told me she wasn't a drinker, I thought she would order a butterbeer or something. I just did what we discussed in the afternoon. I was trying to give you time to prepare..." she trailed off when her eyes fell on the table Harry had set and then looked at him apologetically. "Forgive me," she said, looking down.
Harry's expression softened a little. It wasn't Cho's fault; she had just wanted to help. He turned to Hermione, running a hand through his hair. He was still shocked. He had never seen Hermione drunk before... In fact, he was sure she had never gotten drunk in her life... If it was a different situation, he would have considered it was quite funny even, but not on the night he was supposed to propose to her! And especially not after they had had a nasty argument...
"What are you going to do?" Cho asked. "Do you need help with... anything?"
Harry sat down beside Hermione, not sure what to do.
"Um... Hermione?" he asked tentatively.
Hermione, who was lying in the couch, smiled. "Hi."
"Er- Hi... I think we need to take you to your apartment..."
"Atarpment? This is a pretty amarptent!" Hermione said, standing up and stumbling a little. Harry rushed to her side and prevented her from falling. "Oh, and you have a dog!" she exclaimed, when Aquiles, probably curious about the noise, came running to the living room.
"Yes, I have a dog, you gave it to me, remember?"
"And where's your cat?"
"I don't have a cat."
"Oh. Why not?"
Harry rolled his eyes and look at Cho. She just shrugged.
"Hermione, you're not very well, let's take you to bed, alright?"
Hermione let out a high pitched laugh that startled both Harry and Cho.
"You're taking me to bed?" she asked him, winking. "Now?" she added, leaning on him.
Harry blushed and tried to remind himself that Hermione was not Hermione right then. "How many cups did you drink?"
"'Arry, how long have I and you been together? Oh wait, it should be you and I..."
"A year," Harry said, trying to take Hermione back to the couch, but she resisted. "Hermione-"
"Who are you again?" Hermione asked, turning to Cho.
"Uh..." Cho looked at Harry. "I'm Cho Chang..."
"Cho Chang?" Hermione put a thoughtful expression. "Aren't you Harry's girlfriend?"
"No, you are," Cho said.
"No, I'm sure you are," Hermione insisted. "You kissed him in the Room of Requirement-"
"I've never seen anything like this," Harry interrupted, feeling slightly uncomfortable. "I've seen drunk people, but this is beyond... Not even Fred and George..."
"He's have a crush on you since we were thirteen," Hermione whispered to Cho, walking towards her. She looked at Harry and then at Cho, conspirationally. "And he only made a move two years later... Well, you see, Harry is kind of slow."
"Hermione, come on..." Harry said, a little desperate.
"Well, you are, love, face it," Hermione told him sweetly, stumbling in her own words. She turned to him. "If I hadn't... you know... done that with Ron, or to Ron, whatever, we would still be just friends, right?" Hermione turned to Cho again, who was listening with great interest. "He took eight... no nine..." she counted with her fingers "well, he took a lot of time to tell me how he felt... What am I saying? He didn't tell me. I found out. Didn't I, Harry?"
"Cho, I think I can handle it," Harry said, his face red. Cho could tell he was starting to get annoyed, but from the look in Hermione's face, she was down the same road.
"Oh no, Cho, you don't have to leave," Hermione said. "I'm sure that Harry will enjoy your company. He certainly looked like he was having fun in that picture."
Harry sighed. He knew that had something to do with this.
"Oh, a CD player!" Hermione exclaimed, walking towards the stereo Harry had in his living room. Actually she had given it to him a long time ago. She started pressing the buttons.
"Stop," Harry said, kneeling beside her. He didn't know what to do and was seriously thinking in taking out his wand and stun her.
Hermione found the play button and Frankie Valli's voice singing "Can't take my eyes off of you" filled the room.
"You know, Cho," Hermione said, grinning, "this is my song."
"Is that so?" Cho asked, looking at Harry who had stood up again.
"It is... Harry once sang it for me... When he was trying to tell me he loved me, but was too cowardly to actually say it."
Harry looked hurt with her comment, but she didn't seem to notice.
"Honsilty, Harry, you were brave enough to kill Veldomort... Why don't you just say it, then? Say that you... Hey that's my favorite part!"
Hermione tried to sing along, but she was terrible, off key and kept forgetting the words. At one point, she grabbed Harry's hand to dance, but she tripped and fell forward. Harry caught her and turned off the radio.
"What is wrong with you!" he exclaimed, with frustration. Cho realized his control was about to break.
Hermione shoved him away, angrily. "What is wrong with me, you say? Do you really want to know?"
"Yes, so maybe I can understand why are you doing this!"
"Harry, remember she's not-" started Cho.
"Cho, stay out of this," Harry said, rudely. She looked crossly at him. "Look, I'm sorry, I thank you for your help, but I need to talk to Hermione alone."
"You can't talk to her like this," Cho said. "In case you haven't noticed, she can hardly stay on her feet. And you don't need to take it out on me, I'm just -"
"Oh, stop whining and get the hell out of here! I'm tired of you ruining everything all the bloody time!" Hermione yelled. Harry and Cho looked at her with surprise.
"Excuse her, Cho, she doesn't know what she's saying..." Harry muttered.
"I know. I hope you realize she won't know what you're saying either, so save yourself the pain and don't try to... you know," she answered, walking towards the door. "Good luck, Harry. I'll see you tomorrow."
Harry waited until Cho left to turn to Hermione again. Her face was very red and her hair was falling all over the place. For a moment, none of them said anything. Harry wasn't sure of what he could do. Cho was right, there was no point in trying to talk to Hermione like that. But he couldn't help but feel a little angry. Sure, she was drunk, but she had said some hurting things... Did she really think he was a coward?
"You should lay down," he said finally. "I'll make you some coffee."
"I don't want coffee, I'm fine," Hermione babbled. She stumbled back in the couch. It was then when she noticed the table, where the candles were already melted. She looked at it with her eyes narrowed, and Harry guessed she was trying to focus her sight. "There's a table settled."
"Yes."
"Why?"
Harry walked to the table. "I prepared this for you. I thought that it would be nice to talk to each other, so I could explain you why I lied... And I wanted to tell you something..." he turned around and noticed that Hermione was fast asleep. He summoned a blanket and covered her, sighing. If someone had warned him this would be that complicated...
* * *
Priceless. That was the only adjective she could think of. Harry's face when he had seen Hermione had been priceless. She did feel a little bad for causing him this pain, for ruining what he had taken so much effort planning, but she comforted herself thinking he would thank her someday. Hermione Granger wasn't right for him, and if he couldn't see it for himself, someone had to help him.
She would have expected Draco Malfoy to show a little more excitement with the news. He had thought that what happened to Hermione and Harry was indeed hilarious (personally, she only agreed as far as she was concerned), but he had told her she was being too confident. Ah, what did she care about what Malfoy had to say? He wasn't doing anything, after all. And she still didn't know why he was so interested in breaking Harry and Hermione's relationship.
Alright, enough thinking about Malfoy. Cho had a lot to do. She had noted the tension between Harry and Hermione... They were keeping things from each other, bottling up their feelings and she had to use that to her favor. She had a couple of tricks up her sleeve. She was sure she'd accomplish what she had promised herself.
* * *
Someone was splitting my head with an axe... Or was it a hammer? Considering the sound it was making, it could very well be a drill...
I tried to open my eyes. I swear, I've never had this trouble to just separate my eyelids. When I managed to do it, the light coming from somewhere blinded me and I had to blink several times to adjust my eyes.
Between the headache and the pain I was feeling all over my body, it took me a while to realize I was in Harry's living room. How I got there or why was a mystery to me. I rubbed my temples, trying to think... Okay, I remembered I was working... Cho had come to my office... She wanted to talk about something. We went out... to a bar... I bit my lip, trying really hard to remember what I had done after that, but my mind had gone blank.
I tried to stand up from the couch, but I felt dizzy, so I sat down again. I was wearing the same clothes from yesterday. I heard steps and looked up to see Harry coming out of the kitchen. He was carrying a cup with something steamy inside. He saw I was awake, and handed it to me.
"I'm not very good at making this Potion, I only brewed it once for Fred a couple of years ago, but I think I got everything right."
I looked at him, dumbfounded. "What's this?" I asked.
"It's a potion for your hangover."
"My... What?"
"Your hangover," he repeated. "Considering the state you were in last night, I'm sure it must be pretty bad."
"Wait, I don't understand what you're saying... You are talking as if I arrived drunk last night or something."
He snorted loudly and went back to the kitchen. I was still confused about what was going on... And what was that about a 'hangover'? I stood up, ignoring the dizziness with the cup in my hand and followed him to the kitchen. He was rummaging through the fridge and I realized he was in a very bad mood.
"Harry, can you please tell me what's going on?"
He looked at me, disbelief in his eyes. "Are you pulling my hair?"
"Of course not! Are you pulling mine?"
He stood up and looked at me in the eye. "You don't remember, do you." Apparently, my expression gave him the answer. "Last night, you showed up here, completely drunk."
For a moment I thought he was joking, but he was too serious. I looked at him, confused. "That's not possible... I mean..." I tried to remember. "You know I don't drink, Harry."
"Yes, I know that, so maybe you can imagine my reaction when I saw you stumbling into my living room."
The situation was so absurd, I couldn't help but let out a shaky laugh. There was no way I could have gotten drunk. I only remembered having one drink... Actually I couldn't remember anything else after that. Okay, maybe I'm not used to drinking, but I certainly don't lose my head with just one.
"I only had one drink," I said.
"One drink! You certainly didn't look like you had one drink, Hermione."
I tried to think. With the headache I had, it was hard to focus, though. Why couldn't I remember anything?
"Look, it's not a big deal if you got drunk," Harry said, in a softer voice. "The thing that worries me is the reason behind it."
"Reason?" I asked, still lost in my thoughts.
"You've never even stepped in a bar before, why did you do it yesterday?"
I stared at him. There was something about the way he said 'yesterday' that caught my attention. I was still too confused about what had happened; I didn't even remember what I had done, if I had done something... But Harry's attitude had to mean something. He didn't get angry for no reason.
"Is it because of the argument we had in the morning? Do you still think that I'm hiding something from you?"
I hadn't even remembered about the argument. The events of the morning before came to my mind. That dreadful picture... Harry's reluctancy to give me a decent excuse...
"Oh right, so you think that I suddenly decided to drown my sorrows in alcohol?" I asked, feeling the anger raise inside me. "My boyfriend is lying to me, so hey, let's go and get pissed."
"I'm not lying to you!"
"So you say!"
"You see? You're still angry about that! Why don't you just admit that's the whole reason behind the little show you pulled last night?"
I slammed my fist on the kitchen table. "I can't believe you are even suggesting something like that! You know me better than this. You know I wouldn't be drinking just because of what happened..."
"Then why... Just for fun? You suddenly decided that, instead of coming home and talk to me, you'd be going to a bloody bar?"
"Look, it wasn't my idea to go there in the first place and..." I trailed off, a new idea coming to my mind. Sure it was somewhat out of proportion, but it made perfect sense.
Harry eyed me, understanding that I had just realized something. "Are you remembering now?"
"I wasn't drunk, Harry."
A sarcastic smile appeared in his lips. "Of course you weren't. Right, I must have been imagining things. It wasn't you the one who-"
"It was Cho..." I said, more convinced than ever and ignoring his irony.
"Cho? What does she have to do with this!?"
I didn't answer and started pacing. Why hadn't I thought about that before? She had given me that drink... She had wanted to 'talk' about something, but I couldn't remember any conversation... What had she used? A potion, probably... I'd have to do a little research...
"She did something to me," was the only information I gave Harry.
He shook his head. "Hermione, I can't believe you are blaming her for that... Don't you think you're getting paranoid?"
"Just tell me something. Yesterday, did I smell like alcohol?" He fell silent and I realized he was thinking about my question. "Well? Did I? Was I sick? Did I throw up? Huh? If I was so drunk like you claim I was..."
"I don't have time for this," he interrupted, angrily. "I have a big game tomorrow, and I should be training. We'll talk about this later, that is, if you decide you actually want to tell me what's on your mind."
Before I could answer, he grabbed his cloak and left me alone in the apartment.
* * *
Harry tried to avoid thinking about what Hermione had said until he was on his broom, flying in circles around the pitch, warming up for the training session. He was very upset, as his teammates had noticed when he slammed the door of his locker and tied the noose of his cloak so hard that he almost strangled himself.
He was perfectly aware that 90% of his anger was because Hermione had ruined his proposal for the second time. Sure, it had been unconsciously, but still... Why of all nights, she had to choose that one to lose her head? He had thought that his anger would have released entirely in the moments he had spent cleaning what he had made for her, after she fell asleep on his couch... He had broken three plates in mere frustration.
That wasn't the only thing that made him angry, of course. It was what she had said... She had called him a coward. Surely, someone would tell him not to pay attention to the babbling of a drunk person, but he suspected she had been bottling up that thought for a long time. What had she said? "Why don't you just say it, then? Say that you..." He wondered what she meant. He sighed, remembering with melancholy those times when they actually told each other what they were thinking...
Charlie Weasley had once told him that a romantic relationship between people that had a friendship like Hermione and his could only turn out very well or into a complete disaster. Harry refused to believe it was the second outcome. He just knew that he and Hermione would work out perfectly... They were only going through a stage. They had never had troubles, not when they were friends, not when they were a couple... Apart from a few arguments and ocassional mess ups that were quickly solved. This time, however, it felt different. None of them was openly making a mistake... They were just going through misunderstanding after misunderstanding...
Harry made a turn and his eyes fell on Cho, who had started practicing with the other Chasers. He remembered Hermione's words.
"Just tell me something. Yesterday, did I smell like alcohol?"
He couldn't remember... Why would he notice a detail like that when she was saying such stupid things? But now that he thought of it, he would have probably reported on that fact if she smelled like most of the clients of Hog's Head.
"Was I sick? Did I throw up?"
No, she hadn't. That, he was sure of. But not every drunk gets sick... Or so he had heard, he really didn't have much experience in the area, except for a couple of times when he had seen his teammates after a celebration.
Hermione had said something about Cho. She had said she had had only one drink. Considering that she couldn't remember at all what had happened last night, couldn't she just have forgotten about the fact she had drank? But no one gets like that with only one drink... And if she says she had only one, he should believe her. He always believed her. She always believed him. And now, they were both treating each other as liars... As if they were two strangers that had just met.
Harry stopped flying and gazed at Cho. "I couldn't stop her..." Harry had no reason for not trusting Cho. Why would she lie about that? But then again, he would never doubt Hermione's word.
Geez, when had his life gotten so confusing?
* * *
I came out of the Wizarding London Library feeling triumphant. I had found the potion she had used. Everything fit. That sneaky little... What would Moody think of me if he knew I had been so stupidly fooled? I was ashamed. She had caught me flying low. But I would straighten this no matter what. I had to know why she had done something like that. I didn't want to jump to conclusions, but I was pretty sure it had to do with Harry. Maybe Ginny was right. Maybe she did want to steal him from me. But what was the point in drugging me? Had she thought that Harry would be embarrassed and dumped me just because he thought I had gotten drunk?
Or was there something else? Harry's reaction this morning wasn't reasonable. Maybe there was something else I was not aware of...
"Hermione, wait!"
I whirled around and was faced with Alan Wagner, who came walking quickly towards me. He was breathing fast when he reached me.
"I saw you from across the street," he said, trying to catch his breath. "I tried to get your attention, but you were walking so fast and deep in thought that I don't think you've noticed if a train passed by you."
"Alan, what are you doing here? I thought you were training. Don't you have a game against Puddlemere tomorrow?"
"The team does, but I won't be playing," he replied, starting to walk along with me. "Remember I told you the other day a bludger hit me and the nurse said it would be fine? Well, turns out that it's not... I can't swing the bat in a week."
"That's terrible!" I exclaimed. "What's the team going to do now? Oliver must be going crazy!"
"We have Rivers, the reserve player... I thought Harry told you."
I shook my head. Harry and I hadn't had much time to talk about Quidditch lately.
"Anyway, why aren't you working?" he asked.
"I took the day off. I needed to solve some issues."
"Sounds serious," he said, his face concerned. "Can I help with anything?"
"No, I don't think you can, but thanks for the offer, anyway," I replied, smiling at him.
"Ah, does it have to do with Harry?" I wasn't quick enough to hide the expression in my face and he quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry..."
"It's okay," I cut him off. Alan was a nice guy, but he wasn't my friend. I didn't feel comfortable talking about my troubles with Harry with him.
"Um, Hermione, now that I see you here I was wondering if I could talk to you for a second..."
I stopped walking and turned to look at him. We were in London's downtown, surrounded by people. It was hard to keep a conversation with all the noise coming from the streets. And I was in a hurry... I needed to see Ginny and tell her about what had happened. I was trying to delay my encounter with Cho until I was 100% sure of what was going on and what were her motives.
"Alan, right now it's not the best time... But hey, I'll tell you what. Let's talk tomorrow after the match. I can give you all the time you need there. I'll be all yours."
He beamed at me. "That sounds perfect."
* * *
As I had expected, Ginny's reaction really stood up for her family name. After letting out an incredible amount of insults to Cho she had asked me to repeat the story for a second, and then a third time.
"No matter how many times you tell me, I can't believe that you, Hermione Granger, were so stupid to go with her anywhere."
"It's not like I thought she would be capable of doing something like that, Ginny. Well, I'm not completely sure yet she did it, that's why-"
"Of course she did it! That sounds like the kind of things that tart does!"
"-I'd like to go to that bar and ask people there if they know something. Maybe the bartender can give me a hint," I continued, glaring at Ginny. "And I'll appreciate it if you don't refer to Cho Chang in those terms..."
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to insult that bi-"
"Hermione, dear!" Mrs. Weasley squealed, coming into the living room. "I'm so glad you're here!" she said, pulling me into a hug. "Are you here alone? Didn't Harry come with you?"
"Er-no, he is training for tomorrow..." I said, knowing that by this time, Harry was probably going home.
"Aww that's too bad... Well, I understand he's busy. Would you like to stay for dinner?"
I would have wanted to say no... I was actually wanting to see Harry and explain things to him, but one look from Ginny made me think it wasn't such a good idea to discuss this yet. I was angry, he was angry, and it would lead us nowhere but another argument. It was better if I gave him some time to think about things... And I really wanted to go and visit that bar afterwards.
Of course, I had to let him know I would be staying there for dinner. I scribbled a quick note and sent it to him with Ginny's owl.
* * *
Well, turned out that our visit to the bar wasn't successful. The bartender didn't remember me or Cho... How was he supposed to remember all the clients that went there? He had said. So I guess I wouldn't have confirmation through there. But I was so sure about my theory, that I decided to ask her straightforward. I would have to end this nonsense. But I decided to wait until after the match against PU, when I would get her full attention without jeopardizing the team.
Guess you're wondering about Harry. When I got home that night, I found a note that said Oliver had called for a late training, so he would arrive home late and probably very tired. It was hard to tell if he was trying to avoid me, but I decided to leave it at that. The next day we would have more than enough time to talk and solve everything.
That was what I'd been thinking all Saturday morning. Harry had left early to get ready, and he hadn't even let me know. I let it go too... I knew that his concentration was easily shattered when he was troubled, and I supposed he was thinking that if we talked, we'd end up arguing again. I was supposed to meet with Liz and her mum at her house and then we would go together to Puddlemere's Pitch, where the match was being held.
When I arrived there, I found Liz waiting for me outside. I was wondering if it would be all right for her to go to a Quidditch match in that state; she looked as if she was going to spit the baby any minute. I was about to ask her this when I noticed the serious look on her face.
"Hi Liz... Where's your mum?"
"She left with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. I waited for you because I wanted to ask you something."
I stared at her confused. "Sure, what is it?"
"Have you seen today's Whiz in the Spot?"
"You know I don't read that rubbish. And after what appeared there the other day I certainly don't want to have anything to do with it again... Hold on. Don't tell me they've published a bunch of lies about Harry again."
"Not quite. This time is about you," she said, giving me the infamous newspaper.
On the cover there was a huge headline that said: CONFIRMED POTTER'S BREAKUP. HERMIONE GRANGER HAS A NEW LOVE, by Cassandra Miller. Below, there was a picture of me and Alan Wagner talking. We had been talking yesterday, it seemed. In the picture he was smiling at me. I looked up at Liz, not knowing if I should laugh or get very, very worried.
"What the hell? How can they make up something like this? I mean... Alan?? We just ran into each other yesterday!"
"Well, Hermy, that's the way these people work, you should know by now..."
"Did Ginny see this?" I asked, staring at the headline in disbelief. The article that followed was quite similar to the one that had related Harry and Cho.
"I think she did, yes. But she didn't say anthing to me... Don't worry about her, you can explain and it will be fine..."
"Harry saw it too, didn't he?"
Liz nodded. "He came here very early... Apparently, a copy of "Whiz in the Spot" arrived by mistake to his apartment."
By mistake... sure. Now a lot of things started to make sense.
"What did he say?"
"He said it was the most absurd thing he had ever read."
"Then why are you looking at me with that concerned expression?"
"Well, I am a little worried about you two, Hermy. If you don't want me to meddle in your business, it's fine, but I can see that you're having trouble. Aren't you?"
I nodded. There was no point in hiding that kind of thing from Liz anyway.
"Let's go and I'll tell you on the way," I said sighing.
* * *
We arrived just in time. The match was about to start. I spotted the Weasleys in the first row. Liz and I struggled among the crowd to get there and we sat down. Liz beside Ginny, and I next to Liz. As soon as I sat down, Ginny leaned forward to talk to me.
"I'm guessing, because I know you, that you have a good explanation for this," she said, not caring to lower her voice.
"Of course I have one Ginny," I said, leaning forward as well. Liz was in the middle and she looked from Ginny to me. "And that is there's nothing to explain. We ran into each other yesterday and we just talked a little. You aren't thinking I have a 'new love,' are you?"
"And here comes the team of Puddlemere!" a voice was heard in the stadium and people started cheering. I barely noticed the seven figures that came flying, while the announcer named them.
"I don't think bad of you, Hermione," Ginny said, raising her voice for me to hear her above the screams and whistling. "But I was right... Alan fancies you."
"Don't be ridiculous!" I exclaimed. In that moment the Chudley Cannons were announced. I spotted Harry who entered the last. He was expresionless. I turned to Ginny again. "We barely know each other."
"That doesn't mean anything. He obviously likes you a lot... He's even smiling in that picture!"
"Even if he did," I said, my voice raising as well, "it's pointless! I'm with Harry and he know that."
"Shhhhhh," an old man from the upper line said, annoyed.
Ginny ignored him. "It's very well known that the fact that a woman has a boyfriend doesn't mean she's dead..."
"Ginny! I can't believe what you're saying!"
"I'm just worried that this whole problem with Harry will get strange ideas in your head..."
"I don't think Hermy..." started Liz, between us, but neither Ginny or I were aware of her presence.
"Virginia Weasley, take that back right now or I'll get really angry with you!"
"Stay quiet!" the old man said. And again, Ginny ignored him.
"I'm just-"
"And Chang scores!! The newest addition to the Chudley Cannons has proved to be one of the best players this Season. Keeper Weasley does not look too pleased..."
I looked at Ron. In fact, I could tell he was upset. I couldn't see his face, but I knew he was glaring at Cho.
"WHY DON'T YOU JUST PUSH THAT-"
It took both Liz and Mrs. Weasley to make Ginny sit down, with a huge frown on her face.
"Ginny," I said, "You really don't need to worry about Alan and me... I mean, I'm sure he does not... he doesn't..."
"Fancy me," Liz apported. "I mean, you," she corrected, and I nodded.
Ginny's eyes narrowed. "Would you be willing to stake your life?"
"Hey, shut up already!" the old man shouted.
Ginny turned around and glared at him. "Are you watching the match with your ears?? Huh? Why the hell do you need us to be quiet? Everyone is shouting!"
"If you have a problem sir, I suggest you move to another seat," I added. Liz smiled and shook her head. "Ginny," I started again, when the man sat back, looking very offended. "I assure you that Alan Wagner has no interest in me."
"Well... I guess you're right... After all..." Ginny trailed off and fixed her eyes in something behind me.
I turned around, confused. Of course, it had to be Alan.
"Hi Hermione," he greeted. "Hi," he said then to Liz and Ginny. Liz waved and Ginny just nodded.
"Hullo Alan," I said, feeling embarrassed all of the sudden. Was he going to mention the dreaded article?
"Do you mind if I watch the game here? Oliver is really getting on my nerves with his screams."
"Er- No, not at all," I muttered, gazing at Ginny who was glaring at us.
For a while, we just watched the game. Cho scored two more times, but Ron also stopped the Quaffle several times.
"Harry is kinda slow today, don't you think?" Alan commented.
I nodded absentmindedly. Alan was a weird guy. Why was he so friendly towards me when he barely talked to the rest? I knew that Ginny's theory was completely out of the question. Then why...?
"Hermione, are you still free to talk to me after the game?" Alan asked then.
"Er-"
"Please, it'll only take a couple of minutes..."
I was about to answer whe a small gasp coming from Liz interrupted me. I looked at the pitch and saw that Harry and the other Seeker were flying at top speed in search for the snitch. Harry caught it, and for a moment I was so happy cheering that I forgot about everything.
Harry landed, surrounded by his teammates and Cho hugged him. I felt like hexing her right there. I would probably had if I had found my wand quickly enough. Harry let her go and his eyes searched for me. He saw me and smiled, but then his eyes darted to Alan and he frowned.
A/N: I was planning to end this in a different way, with a mean cliffhanger you all love so much. But, considering I haven't been updating quickly, I decided not to. I'm not that mean, see?