Essential Hope

The unnaturally cold breeze awoke you that morning. You sat up and stretched, surveying the room. A dull gray glow was present, and no rays of sunshine were passing in through the window. As you got out of bed, a cold shiver passed through your body. You looked outside at the foggy sky, and saw a mist of rain steadily falling. Shivering to yourself, you walked down the hall to the bathroom. Ginny was just coming out in her towel, and she said,

“Good thing your up early, its hard to take a shower once everyone else is up!” You grinned, and stepped into the bathroom. You let the water warm up, and then stripped down, stepping into the shower. Once you were done, you wrapped a purple towel around yourself, and unlocked the door. Fred, George, Harry, Ron and Hermione were lined up outside, arguing over who would go next. Fred and George engaged in a pushing match, while Ron and Harry bickered moodily. While they were distracted, you motioned for Hermione to go in. She snuck past everyone else, and slipped into the bathroom, slamming the door.

At the sound of the door closing, the boys looked around, and groaned in defeat. You smiled as you walked back to the room. You dried off and changed into a pair of form fitting flare jeans, and a white baby tee with the quidditch team name “Holyhead Harpies” printed on it. You slipped on a pair of Vans shoes and after brushing your hair and putting on makeup, walked back out into the hall.

George, Harry and Ron were still waiting by the bathroom. You walked over to them to talk to Harry, but you could tell he was busy. He, George and Ron were in a heated argument about how each other was being unfair. Harry shoved Ron, Ron shoved Harry into George, and all three began pushing each other. You walked over to end the fight, and as you stepped in front of Harry, George shoved Ron hard, knocking him into Harry, which had him tumble into you.

You stumbled back, and hit the railing. You lost your balance, and began to fall backwards, over the railing towards the ground. In an instant, Harry, Ron and George dove over after you, grabbing whatever they could to keep you from falling. George secured a hold on your elbow, while Harry and Ron were each clutching your jeans. They had slipped down quite a bit, and you asked,

“Instead of staring at my underwear, would you mind pulling me back up? Please?!” You added, as no one moved to help you. The bathroom door opened, and Fred surveyed the scene. You looked exasperatedly at him, and he shoved between Harry and Ron to help you up. He leaned forward, just a towel wrapped around his waste, and grabbed either side of your hips to easily lift you up. He pulled you up to the point where you could sit on the rail. Harry and Ron were still speechless, and George took the opportunity to get the bathroom. Fred smiled and said,

“I believe that’s three times, now, that I’ve saved your life?” You grinned at him, and he stepped aside, allowing you to hop down. You pulled up your jeans to cover your underwear, and said,

“Technically this one you just assisted in.” He raised his eyebrows in surprise, and said,

“How long could you have dangled there, huh?” You smirked, and said,

“I guess we’ll never know!” As you began to walk away, Fred grabbed your shoulders, and pulled you back to the railing.

“We could find out, and then I’d be you’re hero again.” Fred grinned at you, and you laid your hands on his bare chest, pushing him back.

“Three’s a lucky number, though.” Fred gave you a small smile, and walked down the hall to the stairs. As you began to walk down to breakfast, Harry caught up to you. He smiled wide and said,

“Hey, Kelsey, I was, um, wondering if you’d wanna come with Ron, Hermione and I in Diagon Alley..” He trailed off, going slightly pink in the cheeks. You grinned widely, and said,

“Yeah, sure! That’d be a lot of fun, I think.” Harry looked relieved and excited, saying,

“Oh, really? Alright, then, cool!” He seemed like he was about to say more, when you saw Fred coming down the stairs. Fred smiled and stopped next to you.

“M’lady? May I escort you down to breakfast?” You laughed, looking over at Harry.

“I’ll see you in a bit?” You asked, as Fred hooked his arm with yours. Harry smiled softly and said,

“Yeah.. Yeah sure. See you in a bit.” You grinned at Fred and walked down the steps. In just those few days you had known him, he had really grown on you.

*Harry’s P.O.V*

He watched Fred lead Kelsey down the stairs, and felt a pang of anger and jealousy fill his heart. He turned angrily and walked back to Ron.

“Did she say no to coming with us?” Ron asked, studying Harry’s expression.

“No, she said she’d come. But before I could ask her out to dinner, you’re dear brother had to show his face.” Harry slumped down on the ground. Ron looked sadly at his best friend, and even though he didn’t feel completely okay about it, he said,

“Hey, maybe its just not meant to be.. And I mean, what about Ginny?” Harry’s head snapped up and whirled around to stare Ron straight in the eye.

“I thought you didn’t want-“ Ron smiled sympathetically and said,

“Look, mate. I figure, I want Ginny to be safe right? How much safer could I get than
having her date you, right? So, I guess it works out.” Harry smiled widely at Ron. Not because he now had his blessing (even though that was part of it), but because Harry could now go for the girl he knew liked him back. Less chance of a heart break…

“I mean, what about Kelsey though? She’s so great.. and she really gets me.. I dunno, Ron..” Ron sat down, understandingly. He looked at Harry and said,

“I think you fell for Kelsey too fast. After Cho.. maybe Kelsey was just a rebound? I mean you’ve only known her, what, three days?” Harry nodded, understanding his best friend completely. He had a feeling he was just using Kelsey to fill a void in his heart (cliche, i know...), and what he really wanted was to go after Ginny.

“So, you’re fine if I go for Ginny?” Ron smiled, and said,

“Have at it, mate.” Harry made a decision. A decision to distance himself from Kelsey. Any girl he fell for so fast was just bad news, and he wanted nothing to do with bad news at the moment.

Just then, George came out of the bathroom. The sentimental moment Harry shared with his friend had just disappeared, as they both scrambled for the bathroom, crawling over each other and almost knocked George down.