Chapter 11: A friend in need.
With the Yule Ball that evening, the students that did not have dates were getting desperate. No one had asked Harry to the ball, mainly due to Hermione's constant presence by his side. He was sure that based upon the looks some of the girls had been giving him, and the glares that they were shooting at Hermione, that dozens of people wanted to go with the Boy-Who-Lived or a Champion. `Bunch of bloody wankers' Harry snorted to himself.
Harry was lost in his thoughts and it took him a few seconds to realize that Neville was talking to him.
"I'm sorry, Neville, I was thinking about something. What did you say?"
"That's okay, Harry." Neville said chuckling at his friends antics. "I was asking what you were going to get for Hermione as a gift for going to the Ball with you."
Harry looked up at Neville with panic in his eyes. "I forgot. Oh, Merlin, she is going to kill me." He said while looking around the Great Hall for Hermione.
Fortunately, she was deep in conversation with Ginny Weasley and did not hear what they were saying. She must have sensed his discomfort through their bond because she looked over towards Harry to check on him. He smiled and waved, so she returned the gesture and went back to her conversation with Ginny.
Neville was having a hard time not laughing at Harry's reactions. `He can face a dragon but he is scared of upsetting Hermione.' He thought to himself with a chuckle. "I've been growing some flowers in the greenhouse to give to my date. Would you like me to make up a corsage for Hermione?"
Harry smiled in relief at Neville's gesture. "Can you show me how to put it together?"
Neville was surprised at the request and he quickly replied, "Sure. That would be great. She will like it even more if it came from you anyway."
"Okay. Should we do that this afternoon then?" after Neville's nod yes, Harry asked, "Who are you going to the ball with?"
Neville blushed a bit but his gaze drifted over to where Ginny and Hermione were talking together. "Ginny Weasley." He said proudly.
"That's great, Neville!" Harry said clapping Neville on the shoulder.
The gesture of friendship from Harry surprised Neville. He had noticed that Hermione was usually the only other person that Harry would voluntary touch. "Thanks, I really like her and I think that she is very pretty. She sometimes gets that same stare you have in the common room when you are sitting in the window seat."
"Oh." Harry, shocked by Neville's comment about the `look,' knew it well. He wore it whenever he was remembering some of the more disturbing events in his life. "I think I know what that's about."
Harry gazed over at Ginny with a pensive look on his face, while muttering under his breath, "How could I be so stupid?" His expression became determined and he turned to Neville and said, "Com on. Let's go and get them and go somewhere private so we can talk."
Neville and Harry made their way over to where the girls were sitting. "Hi, Ginny." Harry said before he leaned down and kissed Hermione's cheek. "Hey." he said softly into her ear as he stood back up. "Would you two like to take a walk with us?"
Hermione gave Harry an understanding look before holding out her hand to him with a smile. "That would be nice." She looked over at Ginny and said, "Come on, we know somewhere quiet to talk and the view is wonderful."
As the couples walked out of the Great Hall together, various people were watching them for different reasons.
Professor Dumbledore had noticed that Harry and Hermione didn't stay for very long in the Hall for meals. Especially since the Yule Ball was formally announced two weeks ago. He was concerned that Harry was isolating himself from everyone but Ms. Granger, so he was pleasantly surprised to see Mr. Longbottom and Ms. Weasley leave the hall with them.
He knew that they were not leaving the grounds, so he hadn't followed them out on one of their walks yet. If they continued spending time apart from the rest of the students, he would see about putting some monitoring wards out where they walked around. Monitoring Harry was more important than allowing him privacy. `It is for the Greater Good.' thought Albus as he watched the children leave the hall.
Minerva McGonagall was also paying close attention to Harry Potter. She had watched him come out of his shell this year, despite the challenges of the Tournament and the way he the Dursleys raised him. `Ms. Granger is really good for him' she thought to herself while watching Harry lean down and kiss her cheek.
Their relationship was a bright spot in an otherwise dismal year for Harry and Minerva hoped that it would be strong enough to help him through his tasks and everything else that Dumbledore seemed to throw at him. Mr. Potter's improved grades were evidence enough that he was taking everything very seriously and Ms. Granger seemed much happier and more relaxed now. Part of that was also due to their fallout with Mr. Weasley, she mused as she turned her gaze to the young man.
Professor McGonagall sighed as she looked over at the youngest Weasley boy. His grades were down a bit and he was not socializing as much with his classmates. His jealousy had really surprised her. After Charlie Weasley and Poppy Pomfrey had filled her in on what had happened in the hospital wing she had had a hard time not punishing him more than he was currently suffering.
The Head of Gryffindor hoped that Ronald Weasley would outgrow his jealousy and resentment before he slipped further down the dark path he was traveling and away from his one time best friends.
Ron Weasley scowled as he saw Harry reach over and clap Neville on the shoulder before they walked over to where Hermione and Ginny were talking. His gaze became even more resentful when Harry leaned down and kissed Hermione on the cheek.
`He has everything; fame, money, and now Hermione. It just isn't fair! Ron though bitterly. He never realized that Harry would gladly forgo the fame and money to have his parents, alive and well. The fact that Harry had a girlfriend, and he didn't, only made the Hermione situation harder to accept.
Ron missed his friends and they way things were before the announcing of the Triwizard Tournament Champions. He couldn't get past his pride to apologize, so their friendship continued to shatter under the weight of his stubbornness.
Harry, Hermione, Neville, and Ginny were waling towards the spot that Harry had created near the lake. The snow was about a foot deep on the grounds and they had their cloaks pulled tight around them for extra warmth.
When they reached the secluded spot overlooking the lake, with the castle in the background, Harry stepped aside to let the others into the garden that he had created for Hermione.
The snow didn't intrude into the small garden clearing by the shore. It stopped at the edge of the ring of Holly trees that Harry had planted to screen it from view.
Hermione, Neville, and Ginny had all stopped at the edge of the Hollies, each of them staring open mouthed at the beautiful, snow free, garden in front of them. Slowly they each began to step into the area, walking around marveling at this warm oasis in the middle of the snow-covered grounds.
A stone pathway led to the shore and another to a seating area, carved from the surrounding boulders. There was an enchanted fire burning in the center of the benches that radiated warmth.
Well-manicured flowerbeds, in a ring around the benches and next to the stone paths, dotted the landscaping. The overall effect was very peaceful and the surroundings affected each of the teens.
Harry was watching everyone's reaction to the garden. He had worked very hard, and in secret, to finish the project and he wanted to know what they all thought.
Hermione turned to Harry with a smile and said, "It's very beautiful Harry. When did you find the time to finish this?" Her voice held a note of wonder and pride that made Harry smile at her.
Neville was looking at the plants in the garden and he realized that none of them was magical. The garden held an aura of serenity that you did not often find outside of magical ones. "It's very peaceful here. You did a marvelous job, Harry."
Ginny sat down on one of the benches and pulled her legs underneath her cloak. She had a soft smile playing across her lips and she seemed relaxed.
Harry went over and sat next to her on the bench with Hermione and Neville joining them. He tentatively reached out a hand and touched Ginny's shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked her while gazing directly into her eyes.
They held each other's gaze for a few moments before Ginny finally spoke. "No, but I think that I will be. Can you tell me what happened down in the Chamber?" Ginny asked with a small hitch in her voice.
Harry surprised everyone when he leaned in and pulled Ginny into a hug. "I'm so sorry Ginny. I should have talked to you about this a long time ago. I still have nightmares about that day from time to time too." Harry admitted quietly.
Ginny was quietly crying on Harry's shoulder as he rocked her back and forth.
Hermione was rubbing Ginny's back in silent support of her friend. She knew about the events from the Chamber of Secrets but not all of the details. Harry had only told the Headmaster exactly what had happened that day. She felt that if Harry was finally going to talk to Ginny about that horrible day that it would probably help him with his nightmares about it.
Neville was shocked. He began to piece together some of the strange events from their second year. He knew that Ginny was never petrified but something had happened to her and Harry knew what it was. He reached over and patted Ginny's back and said, "If I can help in any way, I will."
Ginny gave Neville a watery smile before replying, "Thanks."
Hermione and Ginny had talked about their experiences from that ordeal so she had an idea what Ginny was going through. She felt that talking with Harry about it would help bring her some closure and the ability to begin healing. She reached over and gave Ginny's shoulder a reassuring squeeze.
Harry's voice was whisper quiet when he asked, "Do you want me to tell you about what really happened down in the Chamber of Secrets?" he asked as he looked directly into Ginny's eyes.
There was a hint of fear, mixed with longing, in Ginny's expression but she nodded yes to his question, not trusting her voice.
Harry sat back to make himself more comfortable before he began re-counting the events of his second year. Taking a deep breath, he began telling them everything that he experienced that horrible year.
He told them about his feelings of loneliness when the majority of the school shunned him for speaking Parseltongue. He also explained his feelings when Hermione was petrified and how she had figured out the clue about Slytherin's monster, the Basilisk.
Ginny and Hermione were both crying as Harry explained his second year from his point of view. Ginny was crying because Harry's explanation described much of how she felt for her entire first year.
Hermione's tears were for Harry's plight and how tough he had it and yet he still managed to persevere. She knew that he had a horrible year but this was the first time that he had explained everything in detail.
The details of what happened down in the Chamber itself left all four of them crying. However, it finally began the healing process for Ginny and furthering the progression for Harry.
Having finally heard all of the details about Harry's second year caused Hermione to reflect on his other years as a part of the magical world. She realized that his life was still very difficult.
He dwelled in both worlds, but was not really a part of either. At Hogwarts, the populace never took the time to understand, or get to know, him. Because of that, he was both revered and reviled at the same time.
This dichotomy in the Wizarding world never truly allowed Harry to integrate fully into their society. In the non-magical world his relatives despised him for existing, which lead to the same problem, as they never involved him in any aspect of their lives if possible.
Hermione had moved over so she could hug Harry. She knew that he needed the physical reassurance that her touch brought and she craved the same thing in return. She made a vow that she would do everything in her power to provide a loving, normal, life for him.
Since their bonding, they had both been so busy with the tournament that she had not been able to dedicate much thought to it. Hermione knew that there were aspects of it that she didn't understand but that some would come with age and experience. She did know that they needed each other now more than ever.
Hermione looked over to see Neville and Ginny sharing an awkward, but reassuring, hug while whispering to each other.
Ginny stepped back from her hug with Neville and turned to Harry and Hermione with a small smile of gratitude on her face. "Thank you for telling me about what happened down in the Chamber and what you went through." She said as she pulled each of them into a hug.
Stepping back, Ginny looked up at Harry and said, "If you need any help with the tournament I'll do what I can. I believed you when you said you didn't put your name in but I was too shy to say anything to you."
"Thank you. That means a lot to me." Harry said with a smile.
Hermione looked at her watch and said, "We need to get up to the castle. Ginny and I have to get ready for the Ball."
As the two girls headed off to the dorms Harry and Neville made their way down to the greenhouses to put together the corsages for their dates.
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