In Which These Two Smiles Meet

There is a smile of love,
And there is a smile of deceit,
And there is a smile of smiles
In which these two smiles meet.
—William Blake, The Smile

Part I

Ginny was startled from her daydream by a knock on her door. “Ginny, dear,” her mother said cheerily, “it’s nearly time for your Portkey.”

“Coming, Mum,” Ginny answered, turning from the window to give her old room one last look. She suspected that she would never look at it the same way again, after today. The thought made her sad in a way, but the prospect of living on her own—or mostly on her own, at least—quickly put such thoughts out of her mind. In a few minutes, she would leave to begin her professional Quidditch career. With a smile, Ginny levitated her trunk and made her way down to the Burrow’s kitchen, where her parents were waiting.

Arthur handed Ginny a small pouch that clinked as she put it in her pocket. “Just a few Galleons to tide you over until they pay you,” he said with a smile.

“Thanks, Dad,” Ginny said, then turned to her mother.

“Now, you take care of yourself, do you hear?” Molly asked. “Be sure to eat properly—you’re nothing but skin and bones as it is. And be sure to take a cloak when you go out at night—it can get chilly this time of year, and you wouldn’t want to catch cold, now would you?”

“I’ll be careful, Mum,” Ginny answered. She hugged both of her parents fiercely, saying, “I’ll miss you both!”

Ginny clutched the empty cigarette packet that would carry her to Holyhead. After only a few seconds, she felt the jerk of the Portkey. She barely managed to call out a quick “Goodbye” before she disappeared in the swirl of space and time.

Ginny managed to land—if a little precariously—on both feet. She found herself in the sitting room of a small flat, cozy and full of light. Ginny smiled happily.

“Hello?” Ginny called out. “Alicia, are you here?” She was to share the flat with Alicia Spinnet, a Gryffindor a few years older than Ginny, who was another Chaser on the Harpies’ reserve team. Hearing no reply, Ginny set out to explore the flat on her own.

The sitting room faced the wizarding end of Market Street, which was bustling with shoppers on a Sunday afternoon. Ginny paused at the window to watch a small, wizened old man make his way slowly into the Apothecary before turning away. A small kitchen with a table for two opened into the sitting room. The pantry was well-stocked with healthy foods; Ginny smiled, knowing her mother would have been relieved to see it.

Ginny followed a small hallway from the sitting room to a washroom and two bedrooms. The larger room was already strewn with clothing and other personal items, so Ginny directed her trunk to the smaller room. It was quite small; there was barely room enough for the bed, the wardrobe, a chest of drawers, and a small writing desk, but it was pleasantly decorated in shades of pale blue, and there was a wide window seat. Ginny gasped as she pushed the curtains aside. The window offered a spectacular view of the harbor and the shining modern ferry port on the other side.

Ginny turned away from the window when she heard Alicia’s voice. “Ginny?”

“I’m here!” Ginny called.

A moment later, Alicia bounded into the room. “Oh, Ginny!” she said with a hug. “It’s so good to see you!”

“It’s good to see you, too! It’s been ages, hasn’t it?” Ginny answered.

“It sure has! I’m so sorry I wasn’t here when you arrived. Isabella and I were out shopping and we totally lost track of time!”

It was only then that Ginny noticed that she and Alicia weren’t alone. A tall blonde woman was standing near the door.

“Don’t worry about it,” Ginny said absently, as she looked curiously at the stranger.

Noticing Ginny’s expression, Alicia performed the introductions. “Ginny Weasley, this is Isabella Thierry. She’s also on the team—a Seeker.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Ginny said, holding her hand out for the other woman to shake.

“And you!” Isabella said enthusiastically. “Alicia has told me so much about you that I feel as if I know you already. I’m sure we’ll be the best of friends!” She bypassed Ginny’s hand and hugged her instead.

“So, Alicia,” Ginny said with a smile. “Tell me what you have been doing lately.”

Alicia and Isabella sat down, and the three of them chatted amicably while Ginny unpacked her trunk.

Alicia had started Auror training when she left Hogwarts, but once Harry defeated Voldemort, she decided to pursue the career she had always wanted, and signed with the Harpies.

Isabella had been born and raised in Somerset. “My mother was a Selwyn, you know,” she said, as if in explanation. “But Papa insisted on Beauxbatons. He can be a terrible snob! Everything French is always best to him.”

When Ginny’s trunk was empty, she slammed it shut, and happily said, “Done!”

Isabella looked at her, startled. “That’s it?” she asked. “But I didn’t see any dress robes. Whatever will you wear to the Elliots’ ball?”

“The Elliots’ ball?” Ginny asked blankly.

“Yes!” Isabella said. “It’s next weekend, and you must go, of course.”

“Why must I?” Ginny asked.

“Everyone goes!” Isabella insisted.

“I’ve never gone to a ball before,” Ginny said, then added, “except for the Yule Ball during the Triwizard Tournament, of course.”

“You’ve also never been a professional Quidditch player before,” Alicia added softly.

Ginny looked at her in confusion. “What does that have to do with it?”

“Sponsorship,” Alicia answered. “Once you’re out of the reserves, you can make a lot of money advertising various products. The people who own the companies that might hire you all go to the balls. They hire players they know, and they get to know you at the balls and society parties.”

“Oh,” Ginny said quietly. “I never would have thought of that.”

“That’s what we’re here for,” Alicia said with a smile.

Ginny thought for a moment. “I don’t have any dress robes,” she whispered.

“Don’t worry about that,” Isabella said. “We’ll just go shopping!” She looked at her watch, then added, “We still have four hours before the shops in Diagon Alley close!”

***

Ginny grinned as she slipped into a seat across from Isabella at the Wand and Staff, the local wizarding pub in Holyhead. “Dinner is on me tonight!” she said happily.

“Oh really?” Isabella asked. “What’s the occasion?”

“I made it through the first week of training in one piece!” Ginny said triumphantly. Training had been brutal. She had flown more in the past week than she had during some whole summers growing up. In the evenings, she had worked on memorizing the team’s playbook—all two hundred and forty-three pages of it. To top everything off, her style of play was very different from that of the other Chasers. She felt as if she had to relearn everything from scratch.

“And I’m treating tonight to thank you for your help in getting me here,” Ginny added. During their shopping excursion on Sunday, she and Isabella had immediately hit it off. Over the course of the week, they had become fast friends. Isabella had been a huge help in introducing Ginny to the team and helping her learn plays. And when Ginny had gotten discouraged, Isabella had helped cheer her up.

“I hardly did anything,” Isabella insisted. “I knew you would find your stride before too long.”

“I didn’t think so!” Ginny said. “I was sure Gwenog would send me home, especially when it seemed like Alicia and I couldn’t execute a Porskoff Ploy to save our lives.”

“But you did manage it. I saw you do it today; it was absolutely beautiful. You sure can fly!” Isabella said with a smile.

“Thanks!” Ginny said, grinning. “But you’re not so bad yourself. That Wronski Feint you did today would even give Harry a run for his money.”

“Harry?” Isabella asked. “Do you mean Harry Potter?”

Ginny nodded. “Who else? I’ve never seen anyone with as much natural ability as he has.”

“Is it true that he has actually stayed in your house?” Isabella asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

“Sure,” Ginny said. “He and my brother Ron are best mates. Though they have a flat in Diagon Alley now, so I don’t see them as much as I used to.”

“He’s in Auror training, isn’t he?”

“Yeah,” Ginny said with a fond smile. “He’s already saved the world once, but for some reason, he wants to keep on doing it.”

“Is he very brave?”

Ginny looked at Isabella incredulously. “Yes, of course,” she said.

There was a pause as Isabella focused intensely on prodding her mushy peas. Ginny knew that there was something else Isabella wanted to ask, but she was building up to it.

“And… Is it… Alicia said…” Isabella paused to take a deep breath, before asking in a great rush, “Is it true that you actually dated him?”

Ginny blushed slightly, and said quietly, “Yes, for a while.”

“What was it like?” Isabella asked breathlessly.

Ginny shrugged. She didn’t like talking about her few weeks with Harry. At the time, she had been giddy with happiness, but looking back on it, it really was a disappointment. They had snogged whenever they had the chance, but other than that, there wasn’t much to their relationship. That wasn’t what Isabella wanted to hear, though. It was never what people wanted to hear when they asked her about Harry.

“I’d love to meet him,” Isabella said wistfully.

“I’ll introduce you someday,” Ginny said with a smile.

Isabella’s eyebrows shot up. “You would do that? That’s so nice of you!” She paused slightly, then asked, “Do you think he’ll be at the ball tomorrow?”

Ginny snorted with laughter. “Harry? At a ball? I don’t think so! That would take a minor miracle or extreme coercion.”

“Oh,” Isabella said, clearly disappointed. “Another time, then.”

“I’m sure an opportunity will present itself sooner or later,” Ginny said gently.

“You’re right,” Isabella answered. Then she smiled widely. “So are you ready for your first big ball?” And with that, the conversation turned toward dress robes and shoes, and other such things.