Ginny had been sitting up that night, she’d lost track of time pouring herself over a copy of Quidditch Through The Ages that had been kicked through the house for as long as Ginny had been alive. She’d been going over that and a few plays she’d been jotting down on spare bits of parchment since she received the letter naming her Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. She hadn’t told anyone she’d received the position as she felt that in the wake of everything that had been going on lately—it would have been a bit tasteless to boast her trivial good news.
She personally felt that the title belonged to Harry, but when time went by and someone else received Head Girl over Hermione and Harry didn’t seem to be questioning where his Quidditch Captaincy badge was—she was reminded why they tended to put so much faith into Hogwarts for making the decisions best for its students and their families—because after all, even if Ginny didn’t know much, she could tell that things were going to be affecting everyone, it couldn’t and wouldn’t be contained anymore.
When Hermione walked into the room and stated that it was past midnight, she tucked the parchment inside the worn book with the tattered binding and placed it to the side. In the past, Hermione had come to stay at the Burrow and the two of them would be able to steal away moments from the boys and Ginny’s parents—but that was happening less and less. She knew it was part of the consequence to what was going on and she accepted it and tried her very best to be understanding and as helpful as she could be.
However the other day, Justin had responded to her warning reiterating that no one should trust the Prophet with the words: Tell us something we don’t know. It hit her a bit like a blow to the face when she could only think that she didn’t know a single bit more than any one outside of the Burrow did—in fact the way that Molly sheltered her, she wouldn’t be surprised if she knew even less.
Then Hermione brought up Ginny’s birthday gift and—selfish as it may have been—the redhead’s face lit up a tiny bit and she bounced up easily from her own bed to Hermione’s guest cot to give her friend a hug. “You didn’t have to get me anything at all, Hermione.” She nodded, “I was just hoping that sometime today you and I might get the chance to chat.” she smiled softly.
Part of her wanted to pry and part of her wanted to not ask at all and just pretend like everything inside Ginny’s room was simpler. She opted for not asking but decided she wouldn’t protest if Hermione elected to tell her anything. To be honest, she just missed being spoken to about things other than chores, school, and the wedding.