::blows dust off account:: ::waves::

See, I have been writing quite a lot, I just haven't been able to post anything recently. In my short one-shot 'One' from One Tree Hill I said I had a bunny regarding a plot line from the show and turning it into a Ron Hermione fic. This is what this be. So I'm saying right off I don't own the plot. I've tweaked it, obviously, adding chunks and the suchlike, but I'm not taking credit for the story.

It's a hefty one, already over 25,000 words(!) and I'll update as regularly as possible. This is my main writing focus and because it was a gift for a charity auction, will be completed. Hopefully soonish!

I will love you forever if you take the time to review and let me know what you think.

Thank you kindly

Step ;) xxx

Leaning Slightly to the Left

Familiarity

If she had to be honest with herself, this wasn't how she expected her life to turn out. She knew on one level, it was ridiculous to have pre-conceived notions about how she should be living her life, but she couldn't help but feel like something was wrong.

She was successful in her career. When she left school she was given an opportunity that she was thrilled to take and although it had been a little overwhelming and she'd had to grow up a little before starting work, she was good at it and she was focused in what she was doing. That was the only problem with responsibility, growing up had to go with it hand in hand.

As she stared out of the window of her flat, she knew she should feel better than she did. Despite her success and the enjoyment of her work, she needed something… different.

She had to smile to herself. She wanted something new but familiar, exciting but comforting and most of all, she wanted something familiar and comforting to become new and exciting.

She had tried to fill the hole in her life with… stuff, meaningless things to take her mind off the niggle in her brain that wanted more. She had learnt a third language, started writing something of a book that could accompany her research should she ever be able to publish what she had been researching, and for a few weeks she had taken dance lessons, but had lost her enthusiasm with that when she realised she only wanted to dance with one person who was nowhere near her when she danced.

The days of dancing with her first love were long gone.

Without her realising a tear fell down her cheek. She hastily wiped it away and focussed on the lights of the town stretching out from the building her flat was in. She was on the top floor (something she had wanted for a while) and as much as she loved the fact this was her flat that she had bought with her own hard earned money and had furnished it exactly how she wanted, she couldn't help but not want to be there.

Before her nerve left her, she stood from the window seat and picked up her phone. She dialled a well thumbed number and waited for it to ring.

The familiar voice greeted her with the usual 'hello', and, while normally she would laugh and ask why, when her phone always told her who was calling, her 'hello' was a question more than an answer, she asked the question burning through her mind before she could lose her nerve.

'When did life take this random left turn which has left me not knowing what I want anymore?'

'Do you want a specific time and date or just a rough idea?'

She shrugged even though it wasn't seen.

'Whichever you have.'

'I have neither because there wasn't one specific thing, just a lot of little things that leaned slightly to the left, and now you find yourself going somewhere different than you imagined.'

'Does that mean it's wrong?' Another tear fell down her cheek but her voice held strong.

'No. Different isn't wrong, it can just be confusing sometimes.'

'Mmm.'

'Dare I ask what's brought this on? I mean I know you've been unhappy for a while even though you've refused to admit it for, oh, the past six months or so, but I wasn't expecting for you to ever say anything without me having to beat you around the head to get it out of you.'

'Am I that obvious?'

'To me, yes, to everyone else, no.'

'Maybe I just got sick of pretending. Maybe my assistant was an obnoxious bitch today for no reason. Maybe living in France isn't as wonderful as I thought it would be-.'

'Maybe you just want to go home.'

Another tear escaped her eye.

'Maybe I just want to go home.'

'There's nothing stopping you. You can leave tonight if you want. The job you have means you can move around, your flat can be bought by the Ministry, and you can find somewhere at home as soon as, well, anything! You have friends who will help you willingly. Hell, you have people at work who can technically help you unwillingly!'

'You make it sound so easy.'

'When you want something so badly even the most challenging thing is easy.'

'I suppose.'

'Look, sleep on it, don't do anything rash, and phone me in the morning, yeah? If I'm honest, I've been having similar thoughts myself. Touring is fun and all but maybe it's time I grew up.'

'Ginny Weasley, growing up? Nah that can't be right!'

'Shut it, you. I'll rescind my not yet made offer to help you move should you wish.'

'I'd better shut up then.'

She managed a half smile and walked towards her window.

'It'll be okay, you know. You'll work things out. It's like, the law or something. You can't not know what to do for too long, the universe'll implode.'

She laughed and her heart lightened a little.

'I doubt the fate of the universe is dependent solely on my problem solving skills, but thank you for your encouragement and faith.'

'Anytime. Now are you okay or can I get back to failing to fall asleep for my ridiculously early training session in the morning.'

'Wait, so I didn't wake you?'

'I wish! No such luck. I've been doing this for four years and I still can't sleep when I need to.'

'Well, I can happily recite legislation to you if you think that'll help.'

'Um, thanks but no thanks, that will just make me want to kill you rather than make me fall asleep.'

She laughed and heard Ginny do the same.

'Well, I'll leave you to your elusive sleep. I'll phone you in the morning. When do you finish?'

'Eleven, we start at six.'

'Okay, I'll speak to you then.'

'Cool, sleep well.'

'I will, and thanks, Gin.'

'You're welcome. Night.'

'Night.'

She walked to the coffee table and placed the phone back in its stand. She stared out the window for a few more seconds and then turned to the longest wall in her flat. Her bookshelves spanned the length and height of the wall and her books were sorted by subject and then alphabetically, although she had yet to find someone who could understand her logical thought pattern when it came to the way her subjects were organised.

She walked to the right hand side of the vast shelves and raised her arm to the shelf just below her eye level. She looked at the seven versions of the same book she had, two were in French but the other five in English. She pulled the most battered English copy off the shelf and smiled when she read the front cover.

Right Hand Man

by Ronald Bilius Weasley

She let the book fall open and her smile widened when the book opened at the page she head read maybe a hundred times. She read the words once more.

It was the weirdest thing in the world. We'd done something that no one had thought possible, including ourselves. Everything we had feared for three years was over and gone and as much as that was the most brilliant feeling in the world, there was death and destruction and hurt and pain to fill the hole that was left. I wanted it to be just relief and happiness but that was impossible.

Having said that, I think my brain was shutting all that out because I was numb to all the pain. It came later, of course it did, but maybe something or someone was just giving me one day where I could think about what now could be. We had a future and that was pretty scary. Not because I didn't know what I wanted but because I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted the girl next to me to be there for everything I had to do. I wanted her to be the person I went to for everything I ever needed to talk about. I wanted her to kiss me like she had when I'd mentioned saving House Elves and I wanted to tell her I loved her.

I got scared when it all hit me, but when she looked at me and instantly knew something was up, I smiled and kissed her. I took her by surprise but I knew she was smiling. I knew that my life was about to start and as much as I knew there would be pain and suffering and uncertainty, I didn't care, because my best friend, Harry would be on my left and Hermione, the girl I loved, would be on my right.

She closed the book and put it back on the shelf. She walked through to the bedroom and quickly got changed into her nightclothes. She slipped into bed and stared at the ceiling. She tried to kid herself that she was thinking through the decision of whether or not she should and could move home, but she knew the decision had already been made. If she was honest, it had been made before she rang Ginny, but she needed someone to tell her she wasn't crazy or being irresponsible by wanting to go back and try and recapture some of the happiness she had once felt.

She shut her eyes and rolled on to her side. She let her mind wander back to the night before she left for France and she smiled. She told herself that she shouldn't get her hopes up, that things couldn't be the same as they were when she left. Too much had happened, too many words said, far too many unsaid. But for a few minutes before she drifted off to sleep she was happy.

It was something she hadn't felt in a long time.