Secret Poems
Written 2002-2003 - a stupid idea I had at age 13

CHAPTER 1 - From Ginny With Love

Ginny Weasley put down her quill on the desk in Potions. Her poem was complete. Sadly, she read it through and truly wondered if Harry Potter loved her in return.

I want to know,
If you love me so.
I see your eyes, but not what's beyond them.
I can feel your touch,
but not the intention.
I want to know if I'm yours alone
But everyone else likes you
Because you're well known.
If I could only know, Harry, my dear,
I would not dwell upon this fear.

Ginny gently folded the piece of parchment up, tucking it into her bag. She turned her eyes to her teacher, but her mind was elsewhere. She supposed she'd never know if that dashing Quidditch player loved her.


CHAPTER 2 - From Harry With Love

Harry Potter sat at the back of the Gryffindor common room, casting sneaked glances at Ginny who was sitting some distance away. In between, he was writing furiously on a spare piece of parchment.

I love the way she understands
I love the way she smiles
Each new day I think of her
But does she think of me?
And if she did, would it be
For love
Or for fame?
Does she see me as a stranger
Or is she afraid of the danger?
I want to know if she sees me
For who I am, not how.

Harry ruefully stuck the poem inside his Unfogging the Future book, in turn throwing this book aside. Shaking his head at the thought of Ginny liking him for more than just fame, he busied himself with his Transfiguration homework.


CHAPTER 3 - A Not So Secret Poem

Ginny smiled in triumph as she finished her next poem. She'd never felt so happy, so alive! She knew Harry had feelings for her!

He left his homework out
The other night.
I lifted it up, in hopes of returning it
When out slipped what I'd hoped for.
Scrawled was my hopes, my dreams, my fears
By his own hand, his own mind
It was a poem, one he'd written
Probably while watching me
It told of his love for me only,
His hope that I felt as truly!
I don't know how to tell him
But somehow I know,
I dream not in vain.

Ginny did not fold this one. Instead, she waited until the common room was empty to place it beside Harry's homework. She hoped that he would find it, and preferably not Ron.


CHAPTER 4 - Harry's Reply

Harry Potter found a stray piece of parchment with his homework. Curious he read it through then realised who'd left it out. He sat down and began write another poem for Ginny.

I found you poem, sweet Ginny
I know you left it there for me
Now that I know we feel
Exactly the same
And that you love me
Not just my name
I would like you to be
More than a friend.

Harry didn't know how he was going to give the poem to Ginny secretly. He looked over at Hedwig who ruffled her feathers in a Leave-Me-Out-Of-This way. Harry sighed, then turned to Pig who watched him beadily.

"You don't mind, do you?" he asked quietly.

Pig took the poem without protest.


CHAPTER 5 - A Poem Written At Breakfast

Ginny received the owl at breakfast. She looked along at Harry who smiled, then he looked away from her. Ginny borrowed a quill from her friends and began scribbling her reply on a scrap piece of parchment.

Harry I like you, I like you a lot
Just a friend, I am not
I don't know how to explain
My feelings to you...
But know this I do
I like you for who you are
Not for your fame, by far!
Love is a funny word,
A word I cannot say
You can teach me how, you know
But that is up to you.

Ginny got up to get ready for class, but she shouldered past Harry, slipping him her new poem. She felt his hand grasp hers for a second, but the moment was gone. However, Ginny knew Harry would be reading her message in class.


CHAPTER 6 - Meet Me At The Lake

Harry didn't pay any attention in History of Magic. He sat at the back, hardly daring to believe his luck, writing to his Ginny. He had never remembered feeling this way about another person.

I'm sure we can learn
That word together.
Know that I'm yours,
And yours forever.
If you're mine I'll be waiting, Ginny
By the lake at nine.

At break, Harry dashed up to Gryffindor Tower and put the note on her bed so that Ginny would know to meet him at the lake that night. It was quite a surreal feeling, leaving the poem for Ginny.

Harry dashed back down stairs for Transfiguration, hoping to not be late.


CHAPTER 7 - A Joint Poem

At nine o'clock Ginny hurried down to the lake, her heart beating fast. Sure enough, she saw Harry waiting by the lake.

"Would you like to walk?" Harry asked nervously.

Ginny nodded mutely, but inside she felt like saying anything, anything at all! Harry took her to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and showed her a tree which he'd scratched into:

~HP 4 GW~

They began to write a poem together.

What once was distorted
Has now become clear
I know how my heart feels
And I know why it does.
When you enter the room
I feel my breath leave me
And I see your eyes seek me
Your eyes tell me things, things I've never known.
They tell me you love me
They tell me I'm something
They tell me our love will last.

"We'd better go," Harry told Ginny.

Ginny folded their poem up and stuck it inside the tree with their initials on it. Then, hand in hand, they walked back up to the castle.

 
CHAPTER 8 - Denial

Ginny was skidding down the corridors, trying to get to the Great Hall on time. She was thrilled, wanting to see Harry and talk to him. Leaning against the doorframe was none other than ferret boy and his cronies. Ginny gulped in terror - she hated them! They always made her feel stupid...but never mind that now, she had Harry. Just as Malfoy opened his mouth to say something, none other than Potter rounded the corner.

He just stood there, said nothing
Malfoy teased us,
Called us more than just friends
But the worst thing that happened
Harry put this to ends
He said we were nothing more
Nothing less
Denied that I loved him
Denying his feelings
Take more, I could not
Slapped him and fled
Even I'm not sure were.

Ginny began to cry, now very miserable and alone. She would skip breakfast today - and classes, if she couldn't regain herself. Now very lost in the Forbidden Forest, she didn't much feel like leaving, even if she knew her way out.


CHAPTER 9 - Missing

It was sundown and Harry was worried. He hadn't seen Ginny all day and neither had any of her dorm mates or her brothers. He paced the dormitories for hours before sitting down in the darkening room and lighting a lantern. Tearing a piece of parchment from a convenient spot, he chose to pour his frustration into writing...

Missing
From world, from heart
And from safety
It's all my fault
I might've been hasty
Was I denying
Or I was I afraid?
I'll search in the dark
And squint in the light
If only to say sorry to Ginny
For causing this plight.

Harry immediately screwed up the piece of parchment and threw it into his trunk. He looked out at the half-moon taking its shine and finally decided he was going to deny it anymore. Who cared what Malfoy thought! Who cared what the school said! Harry mounted his Firebolt and sped out onto the grounds in a desperate search for Ginny Weasley.


CHAPTER 10 - Us

Ginny wrapped arms around her knees, shaking as she looked up at the darkening sky. She felt so alone, both physically and mentally. Was she just Harry's best friend's sister? She was a loose end, a girl, the youngest. Sometimes she felt left out.

Alone In the dark
Why can I only think of you
Even if you have betrayed me?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry skimmed the tree tops, squinting into clearings and branches without finding Ginny at all. He'd been flying for so long and his neck was tired from craning so much. He should have just looked Malfoy in the eye and told him that Ginny was more than a friend to him. It was his fault and it weighed heavily on his heart.

Frantic
I look for you, I seek forgiveness
I denied that I loved you but now
I will scream it out loud to enemies
If need be.
But even now if I confess this
Will you still love me?
I promise to tell your brothers, your friends
And our enemies.
If you see straight into my heart
Give me your love again, please.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ginny looked up and saw him on his Firebolt, searching this way and that. If she moved back into the shadows, he wouldn't notice her and fly on. Why wasn't he in class either? Harry might have been truly worried. Maybe he really did love her. Love...but they only liked each other, didn't they? She'd have to be content with that for now.

The fact that he had come looking for her showed that he cared.

Ginny crept out of the shadows of the Forbidden Forest and shouted, "Harry! I'm here!"

Never again will I deny my feelings
Never again will she doubt me
For all the joy she brings
Will take away the pain.

Harry helped her onto the back of his broomstick and she slipped arms around his waist. Harry had never been happier with Ginny and it didn't matter for that moment that Voldemort was still out there, waiting. Prophecies might be meant to be fulfilled but there were other things less vague and more real than a few disjointed lines about destiny and fate.

"I wonder if the Professors will be mad," Ginny smiled.

Harry watched the looming castle ahead. "Not too mad. I'm just worried about how your brothers will react when they find out about us."

Us.