| Part Six |
The sky had darkened and the moon had risen on the following evening before the returning Gryffindor players were allowed to leave the pitch. Ron finished the last practise before trials by expressing great concern that they all work together to find the best possible replacements for Katie Bell and Andrew Kirke, both of whom had left in June.
The Cup-winning team had been especially strong the previous year, thanks to Ron's exhaustive knowledge of Quidditch history and strategies. And to his leadership: departing captain Angelina Johnson had tipped Ron off that she had recommended him for the Captaincy, and Ron had spent the summer working with Beaters Kirke and Sloper until they rivaled any the school had seen in decades. Ron had also honed his Keeping skills so that he had vastly improved his percentage of shots blocked, and had gained enough confidence to override the performance anxiety that had plagued his first season.
Still, he always approached the team as if apologising that a more suitable leader couldn't be found. Ginny didn't know why her brother, in his second year as Captain and third as Keeper, was still unable to believe that he deserved either job.
Ginny had made good on her plan to try out as Chaser in her fifth year, and had won one of the two positions vacated by Angelina and her classmate Alicia Spinnet. The other had gone to Natalie McDonald, a petite, brunette third-year whom Ginny hadn't known well before she had joined the team.
Natalie had returned for her fourth year with a feisty attitude that had clearly caught the attention of Jack Sloper. There had been several near misses already in practises, where Jack had been so taken with Natalie that he had narrowly avoided being knocked out by a Bludger.
Ginny didn't have the heart to tell him that Natalie's preferences appeared to tend toward the other side of the fence: she'd seen her holding hands with Emma Dobbs in the Owlery one night while on Prefect Duty.
Emma was planning to try out for the open Chaser position, Ginny knew, and hoped she got it. Gryffindor had something of a tradition in recent years of all-female Chasers, a tradition that seemed to carry a special chemistry with it that made Gryffindor's offence hard to beat; it would be a shame to break it. Ginny didn't know who was trying for Beater, but had heard rumours about tiny Dennis Creevey and tinier Euan Abercrombie. She sincerely hoped at least one of them was stronger than his size implied.
Ron had finished his end-of-practise speech about the importance of the next few days, and everyone had started to move around, getting showered and changed to return to the castle. Ginny took her time, hoping she would be able to catch her favourite Seeker alone after the others had left. She really thought they needed to talk.
Ginny was in luck: As she left the girls' side of the showers and changing area and began to cross the grounds toward the castle, she discerned a dark outline some ten paces ahead of her, also walking alone. In the waning moonlight, the black hair and robes melted into the darkness of the grass, making Harry almost as invisible as if he'd been wearing his father's Cloak.
She jogged to catch up.
"Harry!" She greeted him cheerfully but quietly, not wanting to startle him if he'd been lost in thought.
Harry had spent a lot of time apart from his friends since last summer, and Ginny understood why, but she still worried for him. She hoped he remembered that he was a Weasley in the eyes of her family, which made him her brother as surely as Ron was. If he needed anything at all, Ginny and Ron and their brothers and parents would be all too happy to oblige.
Harry did not appear startled in the least, and smiled brightly to see who had caught him up. "Hi, Ginny. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to you."
"Really?" Ginny grinned as she fell into step with him. "Probably the same reason I wanted to talk to you, then?"
Harry chuckled, the warmth of the sound creating a protective bubble around the pair against the chill of the September evening. It was good to hear him laugh again. He'd laughed so little since the summer.
"What are we going to do about those two?"
"Haven't the slightest," admitted Ginny. "I was hoping you might be hatching a clever plan."
"I'm out of the clever plan business, Ginny," Harry's smile turned somewhat wistful. "And in any case, we don't need to be clever. You know your brother. He has all the sensitivity of a Beater's bat, and only half its subtlety."
The playfulness returned to his expression, and Ginny was happy to see it.
"Hermione is so determined to be subtle in case she's mistaken about his feelings, that all she does is nag him to do work with her!" Ginny shook her head in exasperation. "It's no wonder they're both still single."
"Well," interjected Harry decidedly. "That's where we come in, isn't it?"
Ginny nodded. She looked to her friend. "Any ideas?"
"Of a sort..." replied Harry vaguely. "You do know what Friday is?"
Friday... Friday... If today was the sixteenth, then Friday was... OH!
"... And Ron planned the team party for that night..." Ginny thought aloud. "Oh, no, what did Hermione say when she found out?"
Harry sighed, but not without amusement. "She was furious, of course, but didn't tell him why. She just stormed away." He shot her a mock-reproachful look, but a sparkle glinted in his eyes. "You women really need to let us know what you're thinking. We're entirely too thick to guess."
Ginny stifled a giggle. If Harry was still focussing his attention on women, then he really was rather thick, if her suspicions were correct.
Harry shook his head as he continued, "Ron couldn't understand it, because as he said, Friday isn't a school night..."
"He never!" gasped Ginny. "He said that to Hermione?"
"Oh, he most certainly did," replied Harry with a smirk.
"But he does know what day it is, of course?"
Harry's look gave Ginny all the answer she needed.
"Oh, but Harry, we must do something!" Ginny urged. "Hermione will be absolutely crushed if Ron forgets her birthday!"
"You're right, Ginny," said Harry, then stopped suddenly in his steps. Ginny had gone a few more paces before she realised, and had to turn around to meet his eye.
Harry gave her a slightly devious smile. "You know, Ginny? I think I may have a clever plan, after all."
Neither canon nor the Harry Potter Lexicon specifies the years of Beaters Kirke and Sloper, who were new to the team in OotP, so I made them up. Emma Dobbs's house is not specified, but I chose to make her a Gryffindor.