Chapter 6: Dazed and Confused
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Harry didn't know how much time he had slept, but by the time he opened his emerald green eyes he realized it was already pitch black outside, and his stomach was growling louder than ever.
His headache had subsided somewhat, but it wasn't enough to stifle the groan that escaped from his lips as he forced his sore body out of bed. None of his roommates were in, so Harry didn't think twice about taking off his shoes, shedding his school uniform, and walking to the showers clad only in a towel.
He jumped into first empty stall and turned it on, letting the scalding hot fluid travel down his head and back. He closed his eyes and released a trembling sigh. He felt exhausted, both physically and emotionally.
Now, not only was Hermione mad at him, but he had also managed to piss off Ron, the only person that could help him with his problem.
Harry stayed under the faucet for what seemed like hours, the steam rising around him while he massaged the back of his neck. The pain the scorching liquid caused on his body had a strangely calming effect. It distracted him from the bigger problems he has facing.
Without realizing what he was doing, Harry absently mumbled the lyrics of a song he had heard this summer that seemed to describe his current predicament with an almost prophetic likeness. If this was how it felt to be in love… well, Harry could only reach one conclusion.
Being in love… sucked.
Harry considered the possibility of avoiding his friends. Recognizing how ridiculous the idea truly was, Harry finally stepped out of the shower, dried off and walked back to his room. Quickly dressing in second-hand jeans (courtesy of his cousin Dudley) and a comfortable sweater Mrs. Weasley knitted for him last Christmas, Harry finally put on his eyeglasses and walked down the stairs.
He already knew luck was not really on his side, so he wasn't shocked when the first people he saw as he walked down the stairs were Hermione and Ron. Ron had his potion book and a half-a-dozen discarded sheets of parchment on the table, biting his lip in concentration at what Harry assumed was Snape's homework.
Crookshanks, Hermione's magical ginger cat, was sleeping on the rug in front of the fireplace. Harry often teased Hermione about her cat being lazier than he and Ron combined. But if there was something special about that cat, it was that Crookshanks seemed to posses the ability to read other people's emotions.
Harry wanted to stay out of the cat's way, because he was sure Crookshanks would try to claw his eyes off if he came anywhere near him for what he did to Hermione earlier.
Hermione was sitting on her favorite chair next to the Gryffindor fireplace. She had the History of Magic course book on her lap, her legs tucked under her body, her head resting on her right hand. She was wearing worn out green sweatpants that barely reached her hips, and a gray tank top that was too tight for Harry's comfort.
Seamus, who was doing homework on the chair opposite Ron, was the only one who looked up when he heard footsteps coming down the steps. "Hello, sleeping beauty!" Seamus kidded, bringing both Ron and Hermione's attention to the young man that had just reached the bottom landing.
"You feel better?" asked Ron, his voice businesslike as he went back to his homework.
"A bit," Harry answered softly, greeting Hermione with a nod. For a second there, he thought he saw Hermione's expression soften, but the relief soon vanished as she nodded back at him and quickly went back to her book without saying a word.
Harry took a seat next to Ron and looked up at the common room's grandfather's clock. "9:14," he mumbled.
"What are you doing?" he quickly asked Ron, who was cursing under his breath as he made another ball of his latest parchment and threw it across the table.
"The History of Magic essay… Dark Arts and World War II," Ron groaned as he took another clean parchment and started again with his essay.
"I forgot about that" Harry mumbled. Between the potion problem and the weird dreams he has experimenting, his usually weak interest in schoolwork was down to none.
Harry realized it was now too late to go to the library and start his search for the antidote. It was better to start with his assignment, since he almost failed the last History of Magic test.
"I better start," Harry said tiredly as he reached for his own bag, which he had discarded on the table earlier that day, and opened it. He was in for a surprise. There was a small paper bag inside, and he didn't remember putting it in.
"What's this?" he said as he took the paper bag out and opened it. His mouth hung open when he noticed two banana muffins and two chocolate muffins inside, along with a glass of hot chocolate in a small mug.
"Oh, that… you really should eat something," Ron said casually when he spotted the paper bag.
"Thanks," Harry said, truly grateful, not wasting another second as he gleefully bit into a chocolate muffin.
He almost choked on his muffin when Ron added, "Don't thank me. It was not my idea." Ron didn't need to offer any more information.
'Hermione'
Harry looked up from the table in time to see Hermione looking at him. Both of them looked away, trying to hide their embarrassment as Harry focused on his muffin while Hermione's eyes landed on her book.
Harry felt like the biggest prat in the world. Hermione was angry with him; there was no doubting that. But that didn't stop her from worrying for his wellbeing.
"T-Thanks, Hermione," he said sheepishly.
Hermione mumbled something like "Don't' worry…not a big deal", but without taking her eyes from the comfort her book provided.
Harry forced himself to look away from Hermione, and used the opportunity to offer a muffin to Ron, "You want one?"
"No thanks," Ron said quickly, once again avoiding looking at Harry. If Harry had any lingering doubts that Ron was still mad at him for what he did to Hermione, they were quickly dissipated. The Ron he knew will never pass an opportunity for free food.
Harry quickly took one of the discarded pieces of parchment and speedily wrote, "I'm sorry, mate." Passing the note to Ron, he took another bite of his muffin before he heard Ron sigh wearily.
"It's okay. Just… don't let it happen again," Ron whispered with a small smile, patting Harry's shoulder as he finally looked up at his friend.
"How's she doing?" Harry whispered, signaling toward Hermione with his finger.
"She's angrier than a banshee. Why do you think I haven't asked her for help? I'm afraid she'll pummel me," Ron replied as Harry looked at Hermione over Ron's shoulder.
"I really screwed up, didn't I?" Harry said apologetically.
"Big time. Now, where's my muffin?" Ron asked. Harry managed to smile as he threw him one of the banana muffins ('There's no such thing as too much chocolate') and was ready to start with his essay when Seamus interrupted him.
"Hey, Harry… what happened to you in Transfiguration?" Seamus asked.
Harry cast a furtive look at Hermione, noticing how her shoulder had stiffened visibly, even while she was still pretending to read.
"I… I… fell asleep. Had a nightmare," Harry answered, forcing himself to look at Seamus.
"Must have been some nightmare, mate. You were screaming like a girl," Seamus said, shaking his head.
"You would scream too if you had dreamt you had just married Millicent Bullstrode," Harry lied, trying to make light of the situation.
The truth was that Harry hardly remembered the nightmare except for the feeling of cold numbness that had spread on his limbs.
Harry strategy worked, as evidenced by Seamus laugh as Hermione sighed in defeat. "I believe me would have," the Irish boy said as he went back to his quill and parchment.
Harry was about to start on his own assignment when the door to the Common Room opened and Ginny came walking inside.
Well, maybe "walking" was not the right term. She was waltzing… floating actually. She had a mischievous smile on her freckled face. She was even blushing as she hummed a song under her breath. She sat on the high back chair that was next to Hermione's and propped her legs on the center table, twirling a strand of her red hair between her fingers.
Ron and Harry were raising questioning eyebrows at Ginny. Ron was the first one to inquire as to Ginny's strange behavior, "You are obviously in a jolly mood. What's up?"
Ginny smiled conspiratorially at Hermione and said, "Nothing. I just enjoyed a very relaxing walk around the lake. Hogwarts is beautiful this time of year."
"What's so good about that?" Ron asked bitterly, remembering that the last time he had taken a stroll around the lake with Luna, the squid had decided to come out and play, and it did… by wrapping a tentacle around Ron's leg and pulling him into the water.
Ginny giggled, remembering a very angry and very wet Ron walking into the common room that night. Hermione was the one to answer Ron as she said, "She wasn't alone, Ron. That's why she's so happy."
As it usually happened when he heard those types of news concerning his only sister, Ron was as territorial as a lion guarding his pride.
"Who… is… he?" he asked between clenched teeth. Harry knew that if he didn't take the quill out of Ron's hand, the redhead would break it in half.
Ginny giggled, winking at Hermione, who obviously knew the answer. "My lips are sealed, little brother," Ginny answered enigmatically, grinning cheekily at the other Weasley in the room.
Just then, the door to the common room opened again, and Neville Longbottom stepped inside. His clothes were a little disheveled and there were a few pieces of grass in his hair, as if he had just been rolling and tumbling on the school grounds. And his face… he was positively beaming.
Not noticing the presence of Harry, Ron and Seamus by the table, Neville sat on the chair next to Ginny's. "Here, I got this for you…" he said, as he gave her a bar of expensive Honeydukes chocolate.
"Thank you, Neville," Ginny said, taking him by the arm, leaning toward him and giving him a very innocent peck on the lips.
Harry wasn't that surprised by what he had just seen. After all, Neville had always had a soft spot for the youngest Weasley, and since last year he had become more relaxed, more self-assured, and, according to Parvati and Lavender, more "doable".
Ron, who had by now bended his quill beyond recognition, said between clenched teeth, "Hello, Neville." Neville looked at the table, and he went as pale as if Snape himself was standing in front of him.
To be honest, Snape would have been looking at Neville with more sympathy than Ron.
"E… I… Hello, Ron…" Neville stuttered, avoiding Ron's gaze. A very uncomfortable silence followed. Even Seamus noticed, quickly gathering his things and making a swift exit to his dormitory before the Wrath of the Big Brother was unleashed.
"Neville, can you bring me some pumpkin juice from the kitchens? The walk around the lake has left me a little parched," Ginny said in a sweet voice as she put her hand on Neville's arm.
"A… I… yes, sure. I'll be right back," Neville stammered, managing to smile at Ginny before getting up and leaving the common room. Ginny's smile faded when her eyes fell on Ron.
"Just what do you think you are doing?" she hissed at her brother, getting up from her chair and taking two steps toward him. She towered over him, her hands on her hips, the blush of her cheeks matching her hair.
The resemblance with Molly Weasley was undeniable.
"Neville? THE NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM?" Ron asked as he stood up in front of her, his voice full of shock and disbelief.
Ginny scoffed at him, "Yes, Ron. If you must know, I am dating THE Neville Longbottom."
Ron didn't look angry anymore; he just looked so surprised he was having problems with his English skills. "But… but he's so… so not like you…" Ron finally stammered. Harry and Hermione groaned as they watched Ginny debut a new shade of red.
"Just WHAT is THAT supposed to mean, Ronald Weasley?" she hissed, her voice dangerously low. Even Ron, who was a good foot taller than his sister, looked intimidated.
"I… I didn't mean… is just… is NEVILLE! He's so… so… absentminded… and… just… different… I don't mean anything bad," Ron said apologetically.
The expression in Ron's face knocked some of the anger out of Ginny, but she still crossed her arms over her chest and said, "I will admit he's different than I am. But what can I say? Opposites attract. Besides, what's not to like? He's gentle, polite, courageous… and he makes me feel special."
Ron didn't know how to reply to that, and Ginny just sighed, making her way back to the seat she had previously occupied.
Hermione looked at Ron and shook her head while saying, "I don't know how you didn't notice Ron. They've been going out for months."
Ron gasped and looked at Ginny, his eyes wide. "Months? MONTHS?" he blurted.
"Yes… months… And I don't get what your problem is, Ron…I thought you liked Neville…" Ginny replied. This time, Ron actually seemed to think about what he was going to say before he opened his mouth.
After a few seconds, he replied, "I do like Neville." Harry smiled slightly; Ron had finally not put the proverbial foot on his mouth when it came to his little sister.
But it was a short-lived celebration, for the next words that came out of Ron's mouth were "Neville's just so different from Michael and… Timothy… and Zachariah… and Dean… and… "
Harry resisted the urge to kick his friend as Hermione shook her head from her seat. Ron definitively hadn't developed the ability to know when to shut up.
"Are you implying that I'm a slut, Ronald?" Ginny interrupted him before he could finish the dreaded dating history list, arching her eyebrow dangerously at him. The way she was looking at him made him realize he was very close to getting his arse kicked.
In his defense, Ron looked utterly livid when he realized what he had implied. "No, Ginny… I… It's just… I'm just confused… cause… I… don't know… I just never thought it was possible," Ron mumbled, mortified.
"That what was possible?" Ginny said, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"That you would date someone so… so right for you," Ron whispered. Ginny's scowl turned into beaming smile.
"That's one of the sweetest things you've ever said to me, Ron" she said.
"I'm sorry for snapping at Neville… It's just… why didn't you tell me?" Ron quickly asked. It was her turn to look embarrassed.
"I'm sorry, Ron. It's… well…you guys always overreact… Remember when I had Zachariah over for dinner one night? He spent the next two days in St. Mungo's after you, Charlie and the twins, decided to 'play' Quidditch with him. I guess I didn't want anything to happen to Neville till I was sure of what I felt for him," she explained.
"I'm sure it will be different with Neville. The difference between Zachariah and him is that we actually like Neville," Ron alleged. Ginny quickly got up from her chair and strode toward Ron, grabbing him by the arms and planting a very wet kiss on his cheek, leaving him red-faced.
"Sorry. Couldn't resist the urge to kiss your ugly mug," Ginny said, leaving an utterly embarrassed Ron in her wake. She walked back toward her chair and plopped down dramatically.
Ron sat down in front of the table, mumbling something like "why in public?" as he tried to straighten his quill.
Seeing the fight between the siblings had ended (and had gone a lot better than both Harry and Hermione had expected), Hermione tore her attention away from her book (or from Harry, depending on the angle you were looking at her from) and smiled at Ginny as she asked, "So, why are you so happy? Did Neville proposed?"
Harry had to clasp his hand on Ron's mouth before the redhead could make an ass out of himself… again. "Hermione's joking," he whispered, feeling Ron relax under his grip.
Ginny stuck her tongue at Hermione before replying, "We were just talking about the costumes for the Halloween Ball. We decided we wanted them to match."
Harry groaned.
'I forgot all about the stupid Halloween Ball…'
Harry stole a glance at Hermione over Ron's shoulder, remembering the brown-haired girl will be walking to the ball on Roger Davies' arm. As it had happened over the last two days, the thought of Roger made Harry's bile rise like the tide.
Ginny smiled wickedly and turned to Ron, saying, "By the way, Luna told me all about your costumes, Ron. I can't wait to see you on Friday, big brother." Ron's ears were so red Harry could feel the heat coming from them.
"Care to elaborate?" Hermione grinned, turning around to face Ron. (And deliberately avoiding my eyes!)
Ron mumbled something that sounded like, "Don't make fun of me. I had no choice."
"Ron, try to relax. I'm just teasing. To tell you the truth, I think is very sweet of you," Ginny said. She then turned her attention to the not-very talkative boy next to Ron.
"So Harry… who's the lucky lady?" Ginny asked, winking at Harry.
"Lucky lady?" Harry asked, too busy thinking about how it would feel to use Roger's head as a quaffle to capture the meaning of her words.
"Yes, Harry. Lucky lady! Your date for the ball?" Ginny added.
"I'm… not sure…" answered Harry, returning his attention to the empty parchment in front of him and praying that Ginny would change the subject.
The truth was…
'I thought I was going with Hermione. Why didn't I ask her? I never even thought of asking her… I just assumed she wouldn't have a date, and since Ron would be busy with Luna, I just thought we were going to go together. Why did I do that? Why did I assume no one else would ask her?'
Harry raised his eyes to steal a glance at her.
'After all… she's beautiful… she's fun… she's kind… why did I take for granted she would automatically be there… with me? Why do I always assume she's going to take care of me?'
When Harry looked away, he noticed Ginny was frowning at him. "Don't tell me you haven't asked anybody yet?" she chastised him.
When Harry didn't reply, Ginny just sighed and said, "Seriously Harry. I thought you would have learned your lesson by now. Don't you realize that the girl of your dreams could be right in front of you? That you might lose her because you were too slow to do anything about it?"
Harry resisted the urge to scream.
'Ginny doesn't know about the potion. Does she?'
"Whatever, Gin," Harry mumbled, forcing his eyes to focus on the piece of paper and the quill in his hand. He was so distracted that he wrote Ron's name at the top of his page by mistake.
'I already lost her.'
Harry crumpled the parchment and threw it on the pile Ron had already accumulated. Grunting, he picked a new sheet and wrote his name on the top.
'You didn't lose her! You don't love Hermione that way! It's the potion speaking! Argh, this is stupid! I should be looking for an antidote in the library right now, not doing homework… Why didn't I listen to Hermione and wrote this Sunday?'
"What about you, Mione?" Ginny asked, prompting Harry to look at the two girls from the corner of his eye.
"What about me?" Hermione asked as Crookshanks jumped to her lap and curled on top the book.
"Do you have a date?" Ginny asked with unbridled girlish enthusiasm.
"Yes," Hermione said nonchalantly, scratching the back of Crookshanks' ear, receiving a contended purr from the feline in return.
"AND?" Ginny inquired. Harry didn't have a good view of the girls by looking out of the corner of his eye, and he definitely didn't want Hermione thinking he was the least bit interest about their conversation.
But he didn't want to miss any little detail from this particular conversation.
"Oops," Harry said dramatically, dropping his quill under the table and crouching down to get it. Ron groaned, resisting the urge to kick his best friend under the table; this was Harry's lamest attempt at spying on Hermione to this date.
Truth be told, if Harry wanted to be an Auror, he will have to work on his stealth skills, because frankly… he sucked. Period.
Harry was still crouching under the table, but he didn't even bother to pick up his quill He didn't take his eyes off Hermione.
"And what?" Hermione answered casually.
Ginny looked as if she wanted to strangle the brown-haired girl. "AND WHO IS HE? IS IT ROGER?" Ginny asked, getting up from her chair and standing in front of Hermione with a "don't you dare answer a question with a question" look in her eyes.
"If you must know… it is Roger," Hermione answered with a smile that made Harry's insides twist unpleasantly.
Ginny clapped enthusiastically, "He's so handsome."
"He is," Hermione whispered nonchalantly, trying to push Crookshanks from her lap so she could return to her book. She didn't know why, but she just wasn't comfortable discussing Roger in front of Harry. She knew Harry disliked the Ravenclaw Head Boy, and she knew she shouldn't care.
Truth was she did care… a lot.
Ginny was too giddy to notice that Hermione was not exactly interested in continuing the conversation. "Head Boy and Head Girl! You guys will definitely be the King and Queen of the ball… you two just look perfect together… SIMPLY PERFECT!" she said.
The lyrics to the song Harry had remembered when he was in the shower came back to haunt him.
'Been dazed and confused for so long.
It's not true.
Wanted a woman…
never bargained for you.'
Harry couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed his quill from the floor, and stood up, completely forgetting he was still under the table. The loud thud that followed was loud enough to make Hermione and Ginny glance back at the table in time to see Harry coming out from under it, rubbing the top of his head with his hand.
Hermione quickly forgot she was still mad at him as she asked, "Harry, are you alright?"
"I am… I just dropped my quill…" Harry mumbled as he started gathering his things.
He had to get out of there. He needed to be far away from all the talk about Roger… and dating… and Roger… and perfect…. and Roger… and Hermione.
"Where are you going?" Ron asked as he watched Harry quickly throwing his books inside his schoolbag.
"I'm going upstairs… I'm still a bit dizzy. I'll see you tomorrow," Harry said, turning around and dashing up the stairs as if the devil himself was running behind him.
Ginny looked at Hermione and Ron, who weren't the least bit surprised by Harry's unexpected departure. "What just happened?" Ginny asked, sensing that no explanation was going to be offered.
Hermione was the one to answer, "I don't know. But he's been in a mood all day."
Turning to Ron, Hermione added, "I hope it doesn't have anything to do with what happen last night in the library."
Ron almost had a heart attack as he glanced at his sister just in time to see her arching her eyebrow maliciously. Without taking her eyes off Ron, Ginny asked Hermione, "What exactly happened in the library?"
"Harry wanted to reach a book that was at the top of a bookshelf, so the git climbed to the top, but the bookshelf toppled and he fell. For the life of me, I can't think why Harry just didn't use the Accio spell on the book," Hermione answered, thankfully clueless as to the real motive behind the strange act.
"I can't think of a reason either," Ginny said, still looking at Ron.
Unlike Hermione, Ginny was not so clueless. She did have an explanation for Harry's behavior, however unlikely it was. Ginny thought she had seen something there just now… something in the way Harry looked at Hermione as he was running up the steps. Something she'd have to question Ron about.
She was glaring at Ron the way Mrs. Weasley glared at the Twins when she found out about their joke shop. Ron swallowed hard; he could almost hear Ginny's voice in his head, screaming at him 'Traitors! You promised me you weren't going to go to the library!'
Ron got up from the table so fast he knocked his chair down. "I think I'm going to bed too. Quidditch tomorrow! Night!" Ron quickly said, gathering his books under his arm. He finally ran up the stairs, cursing under his breath when he hit his toe on the top step.
Now it was Hermione's turn to be surprise. "Don't tell me is contagious," Hermione said, arching her eyebrow at Ginny.
"Don't you ever think you got stuck with the two biggest weirdoes for best friends?" asked Ginny, the wheels on her head turning like clockwork.
"Every single day, Ginevra… every single day," Hermione answered with a small smile as she went back to her book and the very needy feline known as Crookshanks.
Ginny waited for Neville while looking at the door where Harry and Ron had disappeared into. Knowing no one was looking at her, Ginny finally smiled.
She wasn't sure, but something told her she had just won the bet she had made with Parvati and Lavender at the beginning of the year.
Seems the time had come to take an active part on her friends' love life.
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Meanwhile…
Ron reached their room, gasping for breath, ready to tell Harry off for dragging him into this mess. But he found Harry was already asleep face-first on his bed, not even bothering to take his glasses off. Ron walked to him and slapped his leg, but he got no reply in return.
"I don't think that's going to work, mate. Harry took one of Madam Pince's Dreamless Sleeping potions," Seamus, who was finishing his essay on his bed, explained. Ron looked at Harry's night table, finding the white vial that had been there earlier completely empty.
"Is he alright?" Seamus asked.
"Yeah... Why do you ask?" Ron said, trying to sound casual as he walked to his own bed.
"Well, before he fell asleep, he mumbled something…" Seamus said.
"What?" Ron asked curiously, sitting on his bed and taking his shoes off.
"It sounded like 'why did I take her for granted?' or something like that," Seamus replied, making Ron's heart jump to his throat.
After recovering from the surprise, Ron replied, "Don't worry about it, mate. He's got love problems." Ron realized his mistake after the words had come out of his mouth.
Seamus smiled. "Harry is in love?" he asked. Ron nodded, mentally slapping himself for not thinking about what comes out of his mouth before it actually does.
"About time, mate… about bloody time…"
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R/R, please!
Hello, everyone. I know this chapter doesn't have a lot of action, but is more for character development. Plus, there are a few hidden clues about what the future brings for Harry.
On the next episode of Caught in a Web (lol): Ginny confronts Ron with a surprising proposition, and Harry has one of the freakiest Divination lessons… ever.
Peace,
Anasazi
P.S. The song that Harry is thinking about in the shower and later remembers when Ginny mentions how perfect Roger and Hermione are together is Dazed and Confused (Nirvana).