Hermione's cabin was situated on one of the more secluded areas around Derwentwater, which she liked because it was near the muggle town of Keswick and wasn't entirely cutoff from civilization. The cabin was practically invisible to any passing muggles after all of the protective spells and charms that Hermione had placed on the cabin, and the only other person who knew of its location was Ginny.
She knew something was off the moment her feet touched the ground after seeing Ginny pacing back and forth across the deck of the cabin.
"Okay, what's going on?" Hermione asked as she made her way up the steps and opened the door.
Ginny didn't answer, instead rushing in and immediately going to the kitchen for two wine glasses and a bottle opener, pulling a large bottle of wine out from her bag. Hermione was starting to get worried at Ginny's silence, but she let her friend gather her thoughts and waited patiently in the living room.
After a few moments, Ginny appeared with the open bottle in her hand and two glasses in the other, a nervous look plastered on her face. She kept sighing as she paced again in the living room, running a hand through her hair.
"I don't know where to start," She said finally.
"Well, why don't you tell me how you and Blaise started talking?" Hermione asked, grabbing the bottle and pouring a glass for Ginny who eagerly took it.
"That works." After taking a sip of the wine, Ginny started pacing again more slowly than before, taking a bit of time to gather her thoughts.
"It honestly started during my fifth year, when we were all in the Slug Club together," Ginny began. "After I made that comment about him posing; apparently it amused him."
She smiled slightly at the memory and then went on. "Well, I started getting random notes that didn't have a name on them, but they were definitely for me. They started out as jokes, things like how my hair is so bright it blinds people and stupid things like that. I'd get teased about dating Dean too. But then the notes starting becoming more sweet and romantic, like checking in on me to make sure I was alright after Dean and I would have a fight. Ron and I were fighting as well then, and he must've seen because he'd ask me about that too."
"I'm guessing the notes came from Blaise," Hermione said as Ginny sat down on the couch finally.
Ginny nodded. "He made a joke during Slughorn's Christmas party that I knew because he had written it to me before and that's when I caught on. I think he wanted me to find out without actually telling me because it was just easier for both of us. With tensions as big as they were between Gryffindor and Slytherin, we didn't need the extra attention. By that point we had become somewhat friends through the notes.
"He would always cheer for me secretly during the games, apparently," Ginny added with a small smile. "He loved the fact that I played quidditch. We talked about it regularly and he was very encouraging about me pursuing it after school. But when Harry and I started dating, he stopped the notes."
She took another drink and continued. "I didn't realize how much he had become a part of my life until that happened. We sent notes back and forth nearly every day between classes and had gotten to know each other really well. And then the end of the school year happened and the summer...he didn't know that Harry had broken up with me after Dumbledore's funeral, and I didn't want to risk sending him notes because I was worried that he was associated with Death Eaters like Draco was. It was just too much of a risk.
"Then the new school year started. We actually ran into each other at King's Cross, and he asked me how I was doing. When I told him that Harry and I had broken up, he was happy but had to hide it. He told me to be careful and stay out of trouble then, making the comment that he knew I attracted trouble. I think he was trying to warn me about the Death Eaters at that point, because he told me to stay in my compartment no matter what.
"He was a prefect that year, and actually caught Neville and I out of bounds multiple times when we were sneaking out at night to do stuff for the DA. He'd always try to cover for us, which put him at a lot of risk because his mother wasn't a Death Eater and neither was he, which made me feel a little relieved. But when we were caught by the Carrows, he tried to make sure that Madam Pomfrey could take care of us."
She paused and took a deep breath, casting a glance over at Hermione before looking down at the floor. "That went on for months. He would still try to send me notes, though they were few and far between, and had to be disguised as homework. After the Christmas holidays, he finally admitted that he was in love with me, and I couldn't deny that I felt the same way."
"I thought you still loved Harry at that point?" Hermione asked when Ginny had paused again.
"I did, but I didn't know if he was coming back," Ginny said before laughing slightly at herself. "I know it's a bit selfish, but Blaise was there. I mean, physically there. He wasn't targeted by anyone, and no matter how bad things got, he made sure I was alright. He made sure I was eating and sleeping, made sure I was healing properly after I'd get punished. I didn't have to worry about him possibly getting killed, and he managed to make me laugh as much as he could. He's a wonderful person, Hermione; it was so hard not to fall in love with him. I tried at first to not fall because I still loved Harry and I wanted to be there when he came back. But then Blaise happened..."
"But you're with Harry now," Hermione said. "What happened?"
Ginny took a deep breath before continuing. "Well, the battle happened, essentially. Mum and dad, along with everyone else wanted me to leave, to stay home where it was safe. I was so incredibly angry about that, I wanted to stay and fight. But then Remus suggested I stay in the Room of Requirement, which Harry pushed me to do and I begrudgingly agreed. Blaise sent me a note asking where I was because he hadn't seen me, and I told him where I was and that I was alright.
"He ended up coming to see me secretly. His mother was forcing him to leave instead of staying to fight, and he begged me to go with him. I told him I couldn't because I needed to stay for my family, and he understood. He told me to be safe and then kissed me."
Ginny smiled then. "It was the best kiss I've ever had. I thought Harry was good, but Blaise was just...I can't even describe it. But when he pulled away and told me to be safe again and that he would contact me after the battle, I nearly changed my mind to go with him. I didn't want to see him go, and I didn't want him to leave me. But he did, and my heart broke slightly. But he left and the battle went on. When everything was said and done, I wrote to him just like he asked. Then I waited, and waited. I never heard back from him."
Hermione could hear the sadness in her friend's voice at the last sentence. Ginny poured herself another glass and took a long drink from it and quietly went on. "I told myself that he wasn't going to speak to me again, considering it had been months. I waited for him though, secretly hoping that he would come back to me. But he didn't, and between the grief of Fred dying and the trauma I was dealing with from everything else, I went a little crazy. I told myself that he would come back if I started dating Harry again. I was convinced that getting back together with Harry would piss him off enough to come back to me. But he didn't."
"So you stayed with Harry?" Hermione asked, even though it was more of a statement.
"Yes," Ginny nodded sadly. "I still loved Harry, but I wasn't in love with him. Eventually I came to terms with the fact that Blaise wasn't coming back, and decided to stay with Harry. But when Harry proposed and the Prophet announced it, I guess he finally saw it because the very next day, there was a letter waiting for me at my fan mail box at the stadium."
Hermione raised an eyebrow at this and Ginny shrugged. "You have no idea how many letters we get as quidditch players. Anyway..."
Ginny waved her hand as she took another drink. "Blaise wrote to me saying that he wished me well and would continue to cheer for me at my games, but nothing else. I had started to write him back before realizing that he had had all that time to write to me. He knew I was interested in going for the Harpies, and he had told me once that he would watch for announcements of me becoming their new chaser, because he was going to throw me a party when it happened. Well, they announced it well before the engagement, and I never heard from him. It just made me feel...I don't even know how to describe the full feeling but I was definitely angry. All that time, waiting. And he decided to not say a damn word to me until my engagement."
She was now glaring at the floor as she said, "I don't know why he didn't say anything until then, but unfortunately my mind decided to convince me that it was because I was just temporary. I was so unbelievably angry at that damned letter and him that I never responded. Today was the first day I had seen him since the battle five years ago."
Ginny fell quiet then, staring off into space. Hermione took a deep breath and sighed it out before asking, "And how did seeing him make you feel?"
There wasn't an answer as Ginny continued to stare off, but her shoulders lowered after a few moments and she quietly said, "I still love him, Hermione."
"Okay..." Hermione chewed on the inside of her cheek as her mind raced. "So, what about Harry?"
"What about him?" Ginny asked, turning slightly to look at her friend.
"How do you feel about him?" Hermione asked.
"Ah." Ginny thought for a few moments before sighing heavily. "Honestly, he's felt like somewhat of a placeholder."
Hermione's brow furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"
Ginny shifted slightly, pulling both of her legs up onto the couch and crossing them beneath her. "I mean that I never truly let go of the thought of Blaise. I tried to, and I tried to convince myself that I was happy with Harry. And I thought I was, until I saw Blaise today."
"Did the feelings return?"
"They never really left, I guess," Ginny said quietly. "I thought they did, but as soon as I saw him I just wanted to run to him. And then I remembered how he hadn't spoken to me in years save for when I got engaged and I just didn't want to get hurt again and didn't know how he would react so I sort of panicked."
"That explains why you were kind of frosty to him earlier," Hermione nodded.
"Exactly," Ginny said. "I just got so confused because I was really happy to see him, and he seemed so happy too and even called me that damn nickname that I will never tell him I really like. I just don't know what to feel right now..."
The two girls sat in silence for a few moments until Hermione asked, "So, are you not at all happy being with Harry?"
"I mean, I'm not fully unhappy with Harry," Ginny explained. "But it's not like a constant happiness. It's like I just settled for him because I didn't think I was ever going to get Blaise again."
Hermione nodded in understanding and then sighed. "Well, it's too early to tell what's going to happen. But regardless of whether or not Blaise comes back, do you really want to be unhappy with Harry for the rest of your life?"
Ginny didn't answer for a few moments, taking a long drink of her wine. "I don't know. I mean, I'm not completely unhappy."
"Ginny, you're in love with another man," Hermione said. "You're never going to be fully happy with Harry if you aren't in love with him, and life is too short to spend with someone you aren't in love with."
"I know..." Ginny trailed off, looking away. "I just...I don't want to get my hopes up again."
"You don't need to," Hermione said gently. "You don't have to leave Harry only to be with Blaise. If you aren't happy, leave because you're not happy. That's a completely valid reason."
"Yeah..." She leaned back against the chair again, staring up at the ceiling. "I'll figure something out."
Hermione reached over to squeeze her friend's arm reassuringly. "Things will work out. Blaise seemed very happy to see you at least."
Ginny smiled slightly at that. "Yeah, he did. At least until he started asking about Harry and I."
Then she jumped up slightly and looked over at Hermione. "By the way, have you and Malfoy been speaking?"
Groaning, Hermione rolled her eyes. "Unfortunately. It's just because he...has an employee that has recently become a client of mine."
Ginny raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Really?"
"Yes." While Hermione trusted Ginny to the end of the earth, she just couldn't reveal Draco's true nature. "He's been bothering me since the potion brewer I had for all of my clients was murdered and has been trying to put his two cents into the decision."
"Why doesn't he just find a potion brewer for his employee?" Ginny asked curiously. "It's not like he doesn't have the money to pay for it."
"Who knows," Hermione shrugged. "I'm very close to making a decision though so hopefully he'll get off my back soon about it. Ron's already mad that we've had to do business together."
"Ron's just a prat in general about you talking to other men, even if it is professionally," Ginny said.
"Can't argue with that." Hermione rolled her eyes as she remembered all of the times she and Ron would have a row about it. She didn't know why he would be so jealous, especially since she had never shown any kind of interest in another man.
"Maybe it'll get better over time," Hermione said hopefully.
Ginny frowned slightly and said, "Maybe. I doubt it though."
"Yeah, I honestly do too." Shaking her head, Hermione took a drink of her wine. "It's just so frustrating sometimes, especially when he does it in public. And I'm so tired of arguing that it's been easier to simply not even try to have friends with any other guys. He even gets jealous of Harry and I sometimes."
"He's just ridiculous," Ginny said. "He has no reason to think you would ever do anything."
"I know, but I can't really do anything to make him think otherwise apparently." She shook her head again and sighed, looking away. "Man, our lives really didn't turn out the way we wanted them to."
"At least we have each other," Ginny said with a smile.
Hermione returned the smile and gave her a side hug. "Yes, we most certainly do, and that makes it bearable."
A/N: So what do you guys think of the story so far? I know a couple of you like it and I'm already seeing some of you add it to your reading lists (thank you so much, by the way!). I've got some really good things planned out for this one that I hope you all love, and it's going to be another long story because at this point I don't think I can ever write a short story haha!! Anyways, love you all! Enjoy! <3