Opposite Directions

            “Harry, can you please tell me where we’re going?” Ginny asked with a sigh. She wasn’t very fond of the Forbidden Forest, and her feet were beginning to ache.

            Harry did not respond, so she asked again. Receiving no answer, Ginny looked behind her to find that Harry was no longer with her.

            “Harry?” Her voice quivered slightly with fright. “Harry? Harry! Where are you!” She began turning in circles in search of him.

            She was alone in the Dark Forest, with no idea of which way she was going, or how to get out.

            This was very bad.

            “Harry! This isn’t funny anymore!” Ginny’s voice was now alive with desperation, frantic to find him. “Harry, please! Come out!”

            Ginny felt her eye’s well up with tears. It was going to be dark soon, and she didn’t want to stay the night in the forest. Especially not this one.

            Tears began to stream down Ginny‘s face. She couldn‘t stop them. She felt helpless. She had no idea of what to do. No idea of what might be in this forbidden place. Then a thought struck her.

             My wand! She thought hopefully.

            She felt around in the pockets of her robes for it, but it wasn’t there, so she double checked, and found it to not be there again.

            She was stranded in the Forbidden Forest, alone and wandless. How in the world was she going to survive the night with only a bag of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans--and only vomit and sardine flavored ones at that. It was hopeless. She might as well crumple to the forest floor right now.

            And she did just that

            She began to tell herself that she would have been better off finishing her potions essay, because then she wouldn’t have been stranded in the forest, when she heard a faint noise in the distance. When she heard it for the second time, it was more distinct.

            “Ginny?”

            She looked up at the sound of her name. She saw no one, but she knew whose voice it had been. She would never forget the sound of that voice--

            “Ginny? Are you there?” The voice became more profound, and she could hear footsteps, as well as the crunching of dry leaves beneath his feet.

            “Harry!”

            “Ginny! Where are you?” Harry sounded scared, and his pace quickened.

            Ginny soon saw his jet-black hair, and brilliant emerald eyes searching for her through the trees. When he saw her, he quickly ran over and knelt down beside her with a look of relief on his face.

            “I’m so glad I found you.”

             But his relief turned into concern. He raised a comforting hand to her cheek. “Ginny, you’ve been crying. Are you alright?”

            What he did not know was that his touch alone could make all of Ginny‘s sorry cease to be. He only saw her instinctively wipe the tears from her eyes.

            “I’m fine, Harry, really,” she lied.

            Harry was still looking at her with soft eyes--those beautiful eyes that made her want to melt on the spot. Carefully, he asked, “Then why were you crying?”

            If it had been one of her brother’s asking her that question, Ginny would have most likely told them to go away or that it was none of her business. But this was Harry. And Harry knew absolutely nothing of the female species, and curiosity sometimes did overcome him, so she thought that he might deserve an answer.

            Ginny began to explain, but noticed that however she worded it, it would sound very much like she was a damsel in distress, which was not true at all, making it quite difficult to word properly. “I…well, I…you see, I was talking to you, and I looked back…and you weren’t there…and…” Ginny heaved a sigh of exhaustion, then finally, let it all come out--quickly.

            “Okay, I wanted to know where we were going, so I asked you, and you didn’t answer, and when I looked around, you weren’t anywhere in sight.  I became frantic. I didn’t pay attention when we came in here, and I had no idea of how to get out. And it’s getting dark, and I didn’t want to spend the night in the forest. Then, I thought about using my wand, and when I looked for it, it was gone. And by that time, I was expecting to have to spend the night here, and all I had to defend myself with was some Bertie Bott’s Every Flavored Beans. And so, I was basically defenseless, unless some centaurs thought of taking the Beans as a peace offering, which I highly doubt. So I began crying. And Harry, I really, really, really don’t like the Forbidden Forest, can we please go now?”

            She said this all very fast, and it took Harry a few seconds to register it all. Then he looked at Ginny and smiled, suppressing a chuckle.

            He was laughing at her. He was laughing at her being so defenseless. Ginny had never thought of him as so heartless. She became angry--very angry.

            “Oh so you think I’m funny, do you?” She snapped.

            “No, not at all, it’s just…” Harry gave a soft laugh. “Isn’t this your wand?” He reached up and gently pulled Ginny’s wand from her bun, causing her long, fiery red hair to fall down past her shoulders, and waved it in front of her face.

            Ginny had a look of awe on her face. How could she have forgotten that it was there?

            “You know, I thought you would have learned after your hair catching on fire last week,” Harry laughed.

            “Now, come on, I want you to meet a friend of mine,” he helped her to her feet, and began to lead her in the opposite direction that she had been heading.

            “A friend of yours…in the forest?” She asked, cocking an eyebrow.

            “His name is Grawp, and I think you‘ll find him very interesting,” he said, flashing her a winning smile.