❝I think the war changed me a lot, yeah. I hope you noted the sarcasm.❞
The Kingdom of the Magical folk had never been at rest ever since the birth of the Dark Lord. Constant wars and bloodshed had become children's bedtime tales.
One such gloomy d...
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Ginny arrived late in the morning at the camp where all the strongest members of every family existing, not just in Hogsmeade but throughout the magical community, were present.
It was a flurry of activity; people were forming friend groups or simply sulking about the entire Order in a corner.
As she passed by under the guise of a man, she spotted a blond boy caring for his plants in a very lady-like fashion. Hoping that she was not the only person cross-dressing (although that was a ninety-nine percent guarantee that she was), she approached the boy.
"Uh, hi." He seemed rather startled by her sudden appearance. Ginny could tell that by the way he was holding the plant close to his chest.
"Hello. Do you mind if I sit here?" she asked, making sure to tune down her voice. The boy eyed her for a split second before gesturing to make herself comfortable. She obliged.
"I'm Neville of the Longbottoms." The boy introduced himself with a small bow. Then, he pointed to his plant. "This is Mimbulus Mimbletonia, an exotic plant that my uncle got me." Ginny smiled politely, not sure about how to respond to that. "May I-" Neville was interrupted by the appearance of another boy.
"Hey, mate! I would be lying if I said I expected your uncle here instead." The boy slumped on the other side of Ginny, breathing in relief. A small bead of sweat dropped down his forehead to his sharp jaw. The curls of black hair that touched his neck were wet with the same salty liquid. "Er-is this your friend, Neville?" The way the boy blinked at her snapped her back to her senses. Oh, she had started observing things already.
"Yeah. Meet-uh," Neville stammered. Ginny then remembered that she needed a male name and, fast.
"Uh is the name?" the new boy asked, the corner of his lips raised in amusement.
"Is that yours? Because your 'statement' definitely did not sound like a question," Ginny retorted, sinking to sarcasm while her mind ran in a race to come up with a name. Apparently, the boy found it quite funny as he threw his head back in laughter.
"Ah, I love your cheek, young man, but unfortunately for you, I'm not called Uh. It's Harry."
Harry. Something was amiss with the name.
"May I now know your good name?"
Ginny snapped out of reverie once again, grinning like an idiot. "Yeah, sure. I'm Ron. Ron Weasley."
Neville and Harry nodded in acknowledgement. "Pretty much the whole Light population is here, huh?" Harry asked, leaning against the pole behind them. "Dumbledore is really proud to have such supportive countrymen."
Something clicked at the end of Ginny's mind. The good days when her father read out the newspaper to the Weasley children flashed in front of her eyes. "You're the High Commander, aren't you?" She found herself asking Harry with an inquisitive stare. Harry's bemused expression confirmed her thoughts. Making sure her voice was hoarse enough, she said, "I've heard so much about you. Through newspapers, you see."
