Author's Note: Ron/Luna fans should like this chapter. There's a little Harry/Hermione too, and Ginny finds out some earth-shattering news and decides to tell Draco. In this chapter, during the Ginny scenes, some of the dialogue is typed in italics---this is her thoughts. I didn't know how else to do it, so I hope you aren't confused.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy! Thanks for reading and reviewing!!!!!
Chapter Ten
You Get Me
"So I'm a little left of center
I'm a little out of tune
Some say I'm paranormal
So I just bend their spoon
Who wants to be ordinary
In a crazy, mixed-up world
I don't care what they're sayin'
As long as I'm your girl"
(Michelle Branch, "You Get Me")
"Ron, would you please get that thing out of my face?" Hermione said. She cringed as Ron again placed a flaming red eyeball gumball in her direction.
"Come on, Hermione," Ron said, shoving it again in her face. "It's just gum."
"It's disgusting and hideous," Hermione said.
"It's one of our bestsellers!" George's voice called to them from the front of the store. "Hermione, you can't be talking down our products in here!"
Harry laughed as Hermione rolled her eyes at George.
"How about if I throttle your little brother, then?" Hermione asked him, recoiling yet again as Ron placed the gumball in her face.
"Well, that's alright, then," George said. "In fact, anyone who abuses-either emotionally or physically my little brother here gets a 10 percent discount on their purchase!"
George clapped his hands together, excitedly. Ron, on the other hand, scowled.
"Oh, shut it, George," Ron said coolly. "Where did Luna run off too?"
George's eyes lit up.
"What?" Ron asked.
"She's in the back with Fred," George said.
"Doing what?" Ron asked.
"Taking a look at some of your baby pictures, brother dear," George said with a devilish laugh. "Mum sent some old photo albums to us. Fred thought Luna would enjoy seeing you in the bath."
Ron's face fell and he ran off toward the back of the shop.
"It's almost too easy to get his goat, sometimes," George said. "I do miss it. It's probably one of the things I miss most about being with him at Hogwarts."
"I think I should take lessons from you and George," Hermione said. "Can I have a look at some of those photos, too?"
At that moment, Ron's voice echoed loudly from the back of the shop, "I WAS TWO YEARS OLD! MUM MADE ME DO IT!"
This was promptly followed by Fred's bellowing laughter and Luna's dreamy giggles. This set Hermione and Harry and George into their own fit of laughter.
"I love seeing him squirm," George said. "Fred must have showed Luna the photo we took of Ron when Mum was trying to knit a dress for one of our neighbor's daughters. She used Ron to make sure it fit."
"Oh, I have to see that!" Hermione said, her eyes twinkling. "I have to see that!"
"Yeah, I think I'd like to see that, too," Harry said, laughing.
Fred came out from the backroom of the store, clutching the leather-bound photo album tightly to his chest. Luna followed him, laughing. Ron brought up the rear, scowling haughtily the entire way.
"This is cruel and unusual punishment," Ron said. "I'm your brother. Aren't you obligated to be nice to me, even if it's just every once in awhile?"
George and Fred exchanged amused, thoughtful glances. They then turned to look at their younger brother and shook their heads. "No, I don't think so. We are obligated, however, as your older brothers to give you a hard time whenever possible. It's what you do to Ginny."
"I do not!" Ron protested. "I've never once treated Ginny like you two treated me."
Harry interjected, "Oh, Ron. I don't think that's entirely true. You remember when she was dating Dean? You kept following them around and making sure that he didn't do anything to your sister."
"That's being protective," Ron said. "There's a big difference between being protective and being an overbearing, pompous, obnoxious pair of gits like these two."
Ron pointed at his twin brothers, who beamed back at him.
"Overbearing, pompous, and obnoxious?" George asked. "Wow! Ron, I didn't know you cared!"
Ron shrugged, obviously defeated.
"I thought you looked great in a dress, Ron," Luna said helpfully.
Ron blushed.
George and Fred bit their lips not to laugh out loud at this remark from Luna.
"Are you happy now?" Ron asked. "You've embarrassed me in front of my girlfriend."
Luna looked up in surprise at this. Ron had never called her his girlfriend. He'd never once mentioned her that way to anyone, let alone her.
Hermione beamed at Luna.
Ron's cheeks flushed red as he realized what he'd just said. He suddenly became very interested in the floor.
"Hey, Hermione?" Harry asked. "Weren't you just saying how you'd wanted to check out the new selection of books at Flourish & Blotts?"
Hermione caught on. "Oh, yeah! Yes, of course."
Harry took her hand. "We'll catch up with you guys, later. See ya, Fred. See ya, George."
George and Fred waved goodbye to Harry and Hermione as a new group of customers entered the store. They left a very uncomfortable Ron and Luna alone.
"So," Luna said, looking at him.
"So," Ron said, kicking his foot impatiently on the floor.
"You consider me your girlfriend, do you?" Luna asked point-blank.
"Well," Ron said, still not meeting her eyes. "I mean, we've been spending a lot of time together and all and I haven't spent any time with anyone else. I don't think you've been spending time with anyone else. I just thought, you know, I mean you're a girl. You're my friend. So, you're a girlfriend. I mean, that doesn't mean you're necessarily my girlfriend. You're just-"
He was cut off by Luna bridging the distance between them with two quick steps and planting a kiss on his lips.
"What was that for?" Ron asked when she pulled away.
"For calling me your girlfriend," she said, smiling at him. "However, you meant it, thank you for calling me that."
Ron smiled back at her. "So, you wouldn't mind being called my girlfriend?"
She started to nod her head, but laughed as Ron's eyes lit up in surprise. "Only kidding. I would love to be your girlfriend."
"Awwwwwwww," Fred's voice said loudly in Ron's ears.
Fred had snuck up behind his brother. "This is so sweet!"
"Oh, sod off, Fred," Ron said, with a laugh.
"Yeah, sod off, Fred," Luna echoed.
Fred, instead of being taken aback or affronted by Luna's remark, beamed back at her. "You are going to fit in quite nicely with our family, Miss Lovegood. Quite nicely."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
While her brother and friends were enjoying the autumn weekend in Hogsmeade, Ginny Weasley was sitting on the edge of one of the beds in the hospital wing. In all her life, she'd never felt so alone.
Madame Pomfrey's words were echoing and reverberating loudly in her head. A million questions were going through her mind. Most prominent was "How could I have ever let this happen?"
Pregnant. She was only 16 years old, for Merlin's sake, she thought miserably to herself.
What on earth will my parents say? What about Charlie, Bill, Fred, George and Ron?
She honestly didn't know which would anger them more---the fact that she was pregnant or the fact that Draco Malfoy, of all people, was the father of the baby.
What on earth was she going to do? She felt fresh, hot tears come to her eyes. Feeling as if she would faint, she lay back onto the bed and brought her knees to her chest.
How could I have been so stupid? I should have realized that we were taking a huge chance; a big risk. I never asked him, not once, about using protection. I was too caught up in my feelings for him, to even consider it. I was too caught up in what was happening in the present to even give a second thought to what could happen. Now, I'm paying for my carelessness in the worst possible way.
For the first time, she wondered what Draco would say; how he would react to this news. He loved her. She might not know much about what to do, but at least she did know that he loved her. He'd told her and shown her time and time again.
Maybe he'll be happy. He talked to me just the other day about how he could see himself marrying me someday. When I'd said that our parents would never go for it, he'd assured me that we'd make them see. They'd see how much we meant to each other and they'd change their minds. They'd be all for it.
She'd believed him then. The dreamy, romantic side of her thought that he could be right. They could make them all see. It might take time, but they'd all come to see how much in love they were.
Ginny shakily arose from the bed. She felt a little bit better. She had to tell him. There was no other course of action. He had to be told and the sooner the better. She really needed his support, both emotionally and physically. She needed that now, more than ever.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Hermione clutched her bag of books to her as she looked around Flourish & Blotts for Harry. He'd left her alone as she'd browsed through the books. He'd said he was going to check out the Quidditch section while she shopped.
Hermione laughed as she watched him sitting on the floor in front of the Quidditch shelf. He was thumbing through one of the books; obviously totally engrossed in what he was reading.
"Wow," she said, peering over his shoulder. "That looks quite interesting."
"It does, doesn't it?" Harry said, not looking up from his book.
"What is that bloke doing?" Hermione asked, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder as she took a look at the illustration in the book. A man was flying carefree through the air; doing spins and turns daredevil style on his broom.
"Having a bloody good time," Harry said, looking up at her. "You know, you could do that, too. If you'd just let me get you up in the air."
"No," Hermione said, taking a seat beside him on the floor. "Why is it so important for you to get me to fly?"
He looked at her, his eyes serious. "Because I enjoy flying about as much as anything. I want to share that with you."
"You do?" Hermione asked, touched. "Well, now I feel guilty. It really means that much to you?"
He nodded. "Yes, please say that you'll go up with me. Please?"
She looked a little hesitant, but nodded her head. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but okay."
He beamed back at her.
"But, you have to promise me, you will do no flips or turns or wild turnabouts with me?" she asked. "I mean it. Besides, you don't want me to spew all over you, do you?"
"It's S.P.E.W," Harry chided her. "Not spew."
Hermione laughed despite herself. "Oh, shut up, Harry!"
He got to his feet and placed the book back on the shelf. He offered his hand to Hermione and pulled her to her feet. He kissed her softly as he did so.
"You're going to get us thrown out of here," Hermione said, a little breathlessly as the kiss ended.
"Well," he said teasingly. "What a way to go, huh?"
"How about we go back to school and snog in front of the fire, away from prying eyes and in the comforts of our own room?" Hermione asked, looking up at him. "What do you think?"
"I think I have the coolest girlfriend in the universe," he said.
"Race you back," Hermione said, letting go of Harry and running out of the store with Harry following close behind.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
It took Ginny awhile to find Draco, but she did. She found him on the Quidditch pitch, alone.
"I thought you'd be in Hogsmeade," Ginny said, quietly coming up behind him.
"Hey, Red," Draco said, leaning in to kiss her cheek. "Yeah, I thought about it, but I didn't much feel like it."
She nodded.
"Are you alright?" he asked, noticing her sad expression.
"I don't know," she said, folding her arms protectively across her chest.
"What is it?" he asked. "Tell me. Maybe I can help."
"Maybe, you should sit down, Draco," she said.
"Okay," he said confused. He took a seat on one of the benches and Ginny sat hesitantly down beside him.
"I have something to tell you," she said, looking straight at him. "I don't know how you'll react. I still haven't let it sink in myself, to tell you the truth."
"What is it?" Malfoy said, looking at her. He took her hand. "Tell me, Red."
She took a deep breath. A single tear came down her cheek.
"I'm pregnant, Draco," she said softly. "We're going to have a baby."
(CLIFFHANGER AMY REARS HER HEAD AGAIN!!!!! I'M REALLY SORRY, YA'LL! IT REALLY WAS THE BEST WAY TO END THE CHAPTER! I HAD NO CHOICE!!!!! PLEASE FORGIVE ME; I KNOW NOT WHAT I DO!!!)
(IF IT'S ANY CONSOLATION, I PROMISE TO HAVE THE NEXT CHAPTER UP SOON!)