Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and Whatnot

I was sitting in the common room one morning with Harry and Ron after I got back to school, working on an essay when Ginny walked in, laughing at something some boy, Andrew I think it was, had said. I noticed both Ron and Harry stare after her as she said goodbye to the kid and go up to the dorm.

“She’s much too popular for her own good” Ron muttered.

Harry nodded.

“Guys, come on now, she’s allowed to talk to boys. Nothing you do is going to stop her” I said.

“I know, it’s annoying. And it’s like you all over again” Ron said.

“What do you mean it’s like me?”

“Well, not exactly like you because you were always kind of oblivious – “

“Gee, thanks”

“But you had guys after you all the time. Fred and George used to say that they had to practically beat them off with their Beaters’ bats.”

“They did? I never heard them say that”

“Of course, you ended up with one of them rather, but obviously, neither of us is going to date Ginny” he concluded, motioning between himself and Harry.

I couldn’t help the smirk on my face as Harry bent his head back into his book, but Ron didn’t notice.

“Yeah, obviously” I said, still smirking.

I went back to my book as well.

Another week or so passed, and I was in the Great Hall with Hermione at breakfast. Ginny came in and plopped down next to me.

“You heard about Fred’s new girlfriend?”

I about choked on my juice, “What? No!”

“Yeah, in Mum’s last letter, she said Fred and George came for dinner over the weekend and Fred brought a girl”

“Some best friends, not even bothering to tell me important life information” I muttered, “Who is she? Do we know her?”

Ginny shrugged, “I don’t think so, pretty sure she goes to another wizarding school, but according to Mum they met when she came into their shop. Her name’s Faith”

“Well, dang that boy moves fast”

Ginny laughed, “You’re tellin me”

The days slid by through May and soon it was closing in on the final Quidditch match, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. The one that would determine the Championship. Luckily Katie Bell was back, so the chances were looking good for Gryffindor, as long as nobody else got injured.

What we hadn’t even foreseen was one of the players injuring someone else and getting detention for it.

“I would say ‘I told you so,’” Hermione said.

“Leave it, Hermione,” said Ron, angrily.

Although we had already heard, Moaning Myrtle had made sure everyone had heard, Harry had just finished telling us about his run-in with Malfoy. He’d used a spell from the Half-Blood Prince, and it turned out to be a terrible hex. Malfoy was in the hospital wing and Harry had gotten detention with Snape every Saturday until the end of the year. Meaning, he couldn’t play in the last match. Ginny would take his place as seeker and Dean would rejoin the team as a chaser.

“I told you there was something wrong with that Prince person,” Hermione said, a few minutes later, apparently unable to leave it, “And I was right, wasn’t I?”

I was a little appalled, as well, actually. We’d warned him about using spells that he didn’t know anything about. It made me shudder to think of what other kinds of spells were in that book.

“No, I don’t think you were,” Harry said stubbornly.

“Harry, how can you still stick up for that book when that spell – “

“Will you stop harping on about the book!” snapped Harry. “The Prince only copied it out! It’s not like he was advising anyone to use it! For all we know, he was making a note of something that had been used against him!”

“I don’t believe this,” said Hermione. “You’re actually defending – “

“I’m not defending what I did!” he said quickly. “I wish I hadn’t done it, and not just because I’ve got about a dozen detentions. You know I wouldn’t have used a spell like that, not even on Malfoy, but you can’t blame the Prince, he hadn’t written ‘try this out, it’s really good’ – he was just making notes for himself, wasn’t he, not for anyone else…”

“Are you telling me, that you’re going to go back - ?”

“And get the book? Yeah, I am,” said Harry. “Listen, without the Prince I’d never have won the Felix Felicis. I’d never have known how to save Ron from poisoning, I’d never have – “

“ – got a reputation for Potions brilliance you don’t deserve?” said Hermione nastily.

“Give it a rest, Hermione!” Ginny spoke up suddenly. “By the sound of it, Malfoy was trying to use an Unforgivable Curse, you should be glad Harry had something good up his sleeve!”

“Well, of course I’m glad Harry wasn’t cursed! But you can’t call that Sectumsempra spell good, Ginny, look where it’s landed him! And I’d have thought, seeing what this has done to your chances in the match – “

“Oh, don’t start acting as though you understand Quidditch,” snapped Ginny, “you’ll only embarrass yourself.”

My mouth dropped open and we stared at them, Hermione and Ginny always got along. Now, they were glaring in opposite directions with their arms crossed. This was not normal.

Ron quickly hid behind a book, and I picked one up as well. We spent the rest of the night in relative silence.