✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼

"Where is she?" A loud shout from outside her room woke Amanda up. She opened her eyes slowly and looked up at the clock on her wall. It was just 2 in the afternoon. She sighed and buried her face into her pillow, still feeling sleepy and her body aching all over. The trainees used her as a Stunning Dummy, and unfortunately for her, there were no cushions to soften her fall.

Just as Amanda's eyes were about to close, there was another shout from outside her room. She let out a groan and stood up slowly. What was Ginny doing to make noises that loud? Wasn't she supposed to be at her practice anyways? She opened the door with irritation on her face and walked out of her room.

"Oi, Ginny! I'm trying to sleep." Her voice died down when she walked into the living room and saw Eliza and Hermione there. She smiled nervously when the couple glared at her.

"What do you mean you're trying to sleep?" said Eliza angrily. "We set a date and time for chess and lunch, remember?"

"We've been waiting for two hours already!" Eliza and Hermione walked to her, angrier than ever. Amanda chuckled nervously. She did forget about it due to the exhaustion of yesterday... All sleepiness went out of her body because the glares her two friends had on her were enough to wake her up. She turned around when she felt a tap on her shoulder and saw Ginny there with a worried smile.

"Sorry, Ada, I told them you were still asleep, but they told me it was urgent." Ginny glanced at the still angry Eliza and Hermione. Amanda smiled at Ginny weakly before turning back to her two friends, racking her brain of ways to calm the two girls down.

"Eli, Mione, let's calm down and talk, all right? I was up late-"

"You're buying lunch." Eliza cut her off with a serious tone.

"For all of us," Hermione added with the same tone. Amanda was about to speak up when Hermione crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. A loud and angry Hermione was one she could deal with, but a silent and angry Hermione was one Amanda would never choose to fight with. She had no choice...

"Fine. I'll just wash up-" She was cut off when Eliza and Hermione hugged her tight. She rolled her eyes and sighed exasperatedly. These gits played her well...

"What's better than free lunch courtesy of our dear Amanda Faye?" said Eliza cheerfully. Amanda groaned and went back to her room, taking some stuff before walking to the bathroom. When she was at the door of the bathroom, she glanced at Ginny, who was still looking at her with worry. Amanda grinned at her and nodded reassuringly before she entered the bathroom.

"Are you three going out?" Ginny asked Eliza and Hermione, who were now looking at her.

"Yeah, do you want to join us, Gin?" Hermione offered her.

Ginny chuckled softly and sat down in front of them. "You do know I'm not good at Wizard's Chess, don't you? Ron gave up on teaching me."

"Ada's the best of us, she can teach you," suggested Hermione after she glanced at the smirking Eliza.

"Yeah, she'll surely be patient if it's you she's teaching," said Eliza teasingly. "When I gave up on Hermione, Amanda was the one who taught her though she kept on snapping at Mione." Hermione glared at her fiancée and slapped her on the shoulder. Ginny laughed at the two before thinking about their suggestion. Since they didn't have practice for today, she thought she could join the trio, but she didn't want be a bother to them.

"I don't want to be a burden," said Ginny. This made the two girls look at her before they burst out laughing.

"You? A burden?" said Eliza, shaking her head at the thought. "As if Ada thinks you are one."

"Come with us, Ginny." Hermione smiled reassuringly at her. "It'll be fun."

"Are you guys ready?" Amanda came out of the bathroom, all freshened up.

"Ginny's joining us, is that fine?" Eliza said though Ginny hadn't said that she would join them yet. Ginny opened her mouth to protest when Amanda grinned.

"It's more than fine!" Amanda said excitedly. "Wait a few minutes then, I'll just fix my stuff." She stumbled over her feet and smiled at the three behind her. Eliza and Hermione chuckled at their lovestruck friend and turned back to the smiling Ginny.

"We told you. You're not a burden to her," said Eliza teasingly.

✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼

Amanda, Ginny, Eliza and Hermione were currently at one of the famous chess places in Diagon Alley, and while Amanda and Hermione were off to one side, battling a pair of regulars, Ginny and Eliza were battling another pair.

"Ginny! What are you – "

"Bring your knight to E4!"

"What?"

"Just do it!"

"But wait, I don't understand-"

"Ginny! Just bring your bloody knight to E4."

"O-Okay. Knight to G4."

"E4! Ginny! E4!"

"Checkmate," said their opponents with smirks on their faces, and Eliza groaned before knocking down their king.

"Oi, Ginevra! I said E4! How did you hear G4?" Eliza scowled at the girl and saw her looking at the chessboard with wide eyes. The Ravenclaw groaned and set her head down on the table.

"I-I'm sorry Eliza, I thought I heard G4," said Ginny with a tone of guilt. Eliza just slumped back in her seat. Amanda and Hermione made their ways to them and saw Ginny, looking down at the floor.

"Eliza Lois Collins," said Hermione with a frown on her face, defending the guilty redhead. "Ginny isn't used to playing Chess like we are." She glanced at Amanda, who nodded once at her.

"Eli, let's change pairs," Amanda suggested to her. "I'll teach Ginny and you go play with Hermione first."

"I'd like that." Eliza's face immediately lit up and she smiled at Ginny apologetically. "I'm sorry, Ginny." Ginny just smiled up at her weakly as the Ravenclaw kissed the blushing Hermione's cheek. She looked down at the floor again when Amanda sat down beside her.

"Don't mind Eliza." Amanda patted Ginny's hair gently. "She's just a competitive woman. Now, let me teach you the basic strategies, okay? It's just like Quidditch." Ginny smiled softly at the grinning girl beside her. Amanda couldn't resist and she ruffled the younger girl's hair, which made Ginny pout at her.

"Oi! Stop flirting and start practicing, you two." Eliza called out teasingly, which made them jump away from each other.

"Shut up! After I teach Ginny, she's going to kick your arses." Amanda called out to her with a confident smile.

"They were having a moment, you git." Hermione slapped Eliza's arm. Eliza chuckled slightly and kissed the Gryffindor on the cheek once more, which made Hermione blush again and roll her eyes at Eliza.

Amanda turned back to Ginny and moved her chair closer to her roommate. She started setting up the chessboard. When she finished, she turned back to Ginny, who was looking at the chessboard blankly. "Let's start with the positions and then we'll see how we go from there, okay, Gin?"

"I don't know, Ada. I think you should just play with Eliza and Hermione," said Ginny, looking down again.

"Hey, don't look down, Gin. Keep your head up because we'll beat them after this. I got your back," said Amanda encouragingly, and this caused Ginny to look up at her and nod with the familiar fire in her eyes which seemed to make Amanda's heart skip a beat.

And that's what they did for the next 30 minutes. Amanda taught Ginny some strategies and compared Chess to Quidditch to help the younger girl understand, and thankfully, the comparison to Quidditch did make Ginny finally understand how to play Wizard's Chess. She was thankful for Amanda's patience with her. Amanda could have been a professor if she didn't choose to become an Auror.

"This is the Sicillian Defense. It's like facing off the opponent's Chaser with another Chaser. And don't worry about their attacks. I'll be here, and I got your back, all right?" Amanda said, now looking at Ginny. Ginny stared into Amanda's brown eyes and nodded. Amanda smiled before continuing. "Okay then. So, you have to take control of your center, of the ball..." While she was focused on explaining the strategies, Amanda did not see how Ginny continued staring at her, wondering how the Ravenclaw could be so patient when she was usually so stubborn.

From the other side of the room, Eliza glanced at the two girls to see if they were done with their strategies. Her eyes widened when she saw Ginny staring at Amanda with a soft look in her eyes. Eliza tapped Hermione on the shoulder.

"What is it, love?" Hermione mumbled, trying out another strategy.

"Look at them. Look at Ginny." Eliza muttered back, her eyes fixed on her best friend and her roommate. Hermione stopped playing and turned around to see Ginny staring at Amanda with a gaze so deep Amanda could melt from it. Hermione saw that Amanda was so focused in explaining that she really did not notice Ginny's stare at her. Hermione wondered if Ginny was even listening to Amanda's explanation.

"Are you two done?" Hermione called out to them. Amanda looked up at her while Ginny stopped staring at the former.

"Of course." Amanda grinned at her before turning to Ginny. "We're going to crush them, right, Gin?" Ginny looked down and panicked mentally, not remembering much of what Amanda had taught her.

"Y-Yeah. Probably," said Ginny defeatedly.

"Come on, Gin," said Amanda with a soft smile. "You had the great Amanda Lewis teach you, and remember, it's just like Quidditch. Surely you wouldn't want to lose a Quidditch match, eh?"

"Come on then!" Eliza shouted as she and Hermione made their ways to them. "You'll be paying for lunch anyways."

Amanda rolled her eyes before turning back to Ginny, who had turned too quiet. "We'll give our best, Gin. Don't think about winning or losing. Let's just have fun, and you have me every move we make." She sent one last smile at Ginny before setting up the chessboard with Eliza.

Hermione saw the exchange between the two and nudged Ginny with her foot. Ginny looked up at her questioningly.

"What's the problem?" Hermione mouthed to her.

Ginny hesitated before shaking her head and mouthing back. "Nothing."

Hermione frowned at her for a few moments before sighing and mouthing one last thing. "Let's talk later. It's not nothing." Hermione turned back to Eliza who was smiling widely at her as they talked shortly about what to do. Ginny looked to her left and saw Amanda, smiling softly at her.

"We've got this, Gin. We've got each other." Amanda said with a twinkle in her eyes. Her smile was contagious that Ginny couldn't help but smile as well. As the game started, Ginny took a deep breath and tried remembering everything Amanda thought her. It was just like Quidditch.

✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼

"Hey, Hermione Granger!" Eliza moaned on their way out of the Chess Club. "How couldn't you see the trap they had? We lost our queen to them." Hermione glared at her fiancée while Amanda laughed loudly and wrapped an arm around Ginny's shoulders.

"Oh, Eli. Just admit that Gin and I are a great pair," said Amanda with a smirk on her face before she grinned at Ginny.

"Yeah yeah. We lost because of Hermione!" Eliza shot back.

"Eliza Lois! What are you talking about? You were the one who lost our bishop to them, and it went downhill from there." Hermione smacked the girl's arm, which made Amanda and Ginny laugh at them. Ginny realized that Amanda did not take her arm off her yet and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Take your arm off," said Ginny warningly as she removed her roommate's hold on her.

Amanda pouted at her. "But you might get lost. Come on, Gin." She tried to hug the girl this time.

"I'm going to punch you, I'm warning you, Amanda." Ginny warned her again, but Amanda took another step towards her and hugged Ginny tight. The younger girl smacked the older on the back, which made Amanda laugh. Eliza and Hermione could only exchange glances and sigh as they watched the interaction between the two roommates. It was clear right there just how much Amanda Lewis loved Ginny Weasley.

"Hey, Ada! Speed up, we're all hungry, and it's almost dinner." Eliza walked over to them and pulled Amanda with her.

Hermione walked beside Ginny who was glaring at Amanda because Amanda sent her a wink while Eliza pulled her. "You look like you want to kill her, Gin."

"That's exactly what I want."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "As if. We all know you'd be starving by now if it weren't for Ada." Ginny turned her glare to her which made Hermione chuckle before she looked at Ginny seriously. "We need to talk. You're not fine." Ginny looked like she wanted to protest before she nodded and they walked faster to catch up to Amanda and Eliza.

"Hey, love, Ginny? Is pasta good? Alicia's serving some." Eliza asked the two girls behind her. When they nodded, Eliza grinned at Amanda, who could just sigh. She knew her wallet was going to be empty after today.

"Pasta it is! Let's go!" Eliza pulled Amanda into the diner of Alicia Spinnet, now Jordan, with Ginny and Hermione following them to a table in the corner.

"Order what you want, but please, please don't murder my wallet." Amanda begged them especially Eliza who had a mischievous glint in her eyes. Someone then approached them, and they turned to see Lee Jordan there.

"Lee!" Amanda stood up and gave the boy a hug.

"Ada, it's nice to see you again." Lee hugged her back before looking at the three other girls. "Hello there, Eliza, Hermione, Ginny." They all waved to him in greeting.

"I thought you were working as a commentator. You're working here now?" Amanda asked him.

"Maybe?"

"What do you mean maybe?" Eliza asked in confusion.

"Alicia's been needing a part-timer, and unfortunately, nobody applied yet so here I am," said Lee with a grin at the thought of his wife. The four nodded and ordered their meals. Lee left to fix up their orders. Hermione stared at Ginny, signaling that they should talk now. Ginny nodded subtly.

"I'm just going to the comfort room," said Hermione, standing up.

"I'll come with you," said both Eliza and Ginny at the same time. Eliza looked at Ginny with surprise in her eyes.

"It's fine, love," said Hermione, kissing Eliza's cheek quickly. "Come on, Gin." Ginny stood up as well but not after taking another glance at the smiling Amanda. As Hermione and Ginny left for the comfort room, Lee then sat down with them with their drinks since there weren't much customers.

"Where are Hermione and Ginny?" Lee asked curiously.

"They're in the comfort room," said Eliza, sipping her Butterbeer. "How's business going, Lee?"

Lee's face lit up suddenly. "Oh, I just remembered. Did you know Harry and Jason came in earlier today for brunch?" Amanda's eyes widened slightly, and she exchanged glances with Eliza.

"Really? Just the two of them?" Eliza asked with surprise.

Lee nodded excitedly. "I think they're already dating. I mean, they were clinging onto each other and flirting that I almost threw them out." He chuckled at the memories of the Ravenclaw and the Gryffindor. Amanda and Eliza looked at each other again with panic in their eyes. Eliza coughed on the Butterbeer she was drinking while Amanda drank hers.

"Are you sure?" Amanda asked Lee seriously.

"Yeah, I am." Lee said with a chuckle. "I mean, you don't smile at someone like they're everything if that person is only a friend to you."

Amanda was feeling a lot of things at the moment, but the worry for Ginny was what overcame all her other emotions. She did tell Harry that he should go for it, but she didn't think that he would do it right away. She thought that he would give it a bit more time and she could help Ginny move on by that time, but then again, Harry Potter wasn't someone who would wait after everything he's been through.

She should be happy. She would have a chance with Ginny now. She didn't have a rival anymore since Harry liked her other best friend, but... Ginny. Ginny would be heartbroken when she found out that Harry and Jason were dating, and Amanda didn't want that. She didn't want Ginny to feel the hurt because Amanda went through it too many times already to know how it felt.

Amanda couldn't help but feel annoyed at Harry. How couldn't he see that Ginny had feelings for him when she couldn't even look him in the eyes without stuttering? But she couldn't be angry with him and tell him that because she knew that was just how love was. You can't choose who you fall in love with. Everyone deserved to be loved and to love, to be happy.

She smiled slightly because of the thought that Jason was finally happy. After everything he had been through, he finally had a permanent reason to smile. And Harry too. He also had been through a lot. From losing his parents to losing Diggory to Sirius and so much more. They deserved happiness, and they deserved each other. Amanda's face fell at the thought. Everyone deserved to be happy. Did she deserve that happiness too?

"Ada?" Eliza said worriedly, bringing her back to reality. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Eli," said Amanda with a smile at her before she turned to Lee. "Lee, don't talk about this when they arrive, okay?"

Lee looked at her in confusion before he nodded. "I won't, but is there a reason why?"

"It's just Ginny, don't worry about it," said Eliza quickly, seeing that Ginny and Hermione were back from the comfort room. Lee smiled at the two girls while Amanda took a deep breath and smiled nervously. She took a glance at Eliza, who shook her head, telling her they didn't hear a thing. Amanda sighed in relief while Ginny and Hermione sat down beside them.

"What is it?" Ginny raised her eyebrow when she noticed that Amanda and Eliza were exchanging glances.

"Amanda was just asking if I could help them with her plan to change your Butterbeer for Firewhiskey." Lee said convincingly with a subtle wink at Amanda and Eliza. Ginny glared at Amanda, who smiled nervously at her.

"We've only been gone for a few minutes, and you're already doing things to annoy me?" Ginny punched Amanda on the arm hard.

"Ow! Lee was just joking, we weren't doing anything." Amanda looked to Lee for help, but he was already walking away and into the kitchen.

✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼

After the long day with Eliza and Hermione, the two roommates settled down in the living room. Ginny lay down on the couch and watched her movies while Amanda sat down on the floor, leaning on the couch and reading a book.

"I live in Notting Hill. You live in Beverly Hills. Everyone in the world knows who you are, my mother has trouble remembering my name."

"I'm also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her."

"Merlin's beard, Gin! What is that?" Amanda put down her book and glared at the movie.

"Shut it! You just don't appreciate the love William and Anna have." Ginny shot back with her attention still on the movie. Amanda sat up and turned around to look at Ginny. She remembered what Lee told them about Harry and Jason, and she started thinking about how would Ginny react if she learned about the news.

Amanda didn't want her to be heartbroken. She hated seeing Ginny cry, and she knew she couldn't feel angry with Harry and Jason because they deserved to be together, and they were happy with each other. But how about Ginny? How could she be happy if Harry didn't return her feelings? It was just unfair that Ginny was in love with someone who was in love with Amanda's best friend. She was starting to feel guilty about introducing the two, but she immediately made that thought fly out of her mind.

Amanda did not notice that she was still staring at Ginny because she was so immersed in her thoughts. Ginny finally noticed her stare and saw the worry on the Ravenclaw's face. Ginny cleared her throat to get Amanda's attention, and Amanda shook her head and looked at her questioningly.

"You were staring again."

"Oh, sorry," mumbled Amanda.

Ginny furrowed her eyebrows because usually, when she said that, Amanda would flirt with her, but she was apologizing now. "Why were you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you have something... Forget it." Ginny sighed and looked back at her movie. She looked like she had something to say...

"Gin? What would you do if you somehow fall in love with me?" Amanda's question made Ginny's eyes widen.

"What the hell are you going on about?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at Amanda before she sighed. "That would happen only in your wildest dreams."

Amanda grinned at her. "Come on, Gin. Aren't I doing good with our deal so far? I mean, I am a good teacher in Arithmancy and I helped you with your Quidditch strategies. I also taught you how to play Wizard's Chess and made it like Quidditch. And, I introduced you to the best ice cream flavor, mint chocolate. There's a great chance you'd fall for me!"

Ginny blinked at her before shaking her head. "One more word. One more word that comes from your mouth, and I swear I'm going to punch you."

"Hey, is that how you're going to treat your girlfriend? You should be sweet!" Amanda pouted at her.

"Shut it, Ada. The next movie's starting," Ginny kicked her gently to shut the girl up. Amanda looked at the television and grinned when an idea came to her mind.

"Do you want to kiss too?"

"What?"

"Let's kiss." Amanda said with an innocent smile. Ginny looked at her before rolling her eyes and continuing the movie. Amanda sighed and picked up her book again. She didn't have a chance with Ginny no matter what she told herself. She should just stop getting her hopes up. Amanda then remembered her conversation with Eliza and Hermione just a few hours ago while Ginny went to Quality Quidditch Supplies.

"What were you guys talking about when we were in the comfort room?" Hermione turned on them.

"Nothing. Pranks. Food." Eliza quickly answered.

Hermione raised her eyebrow at Eliza. "You're sleeping on the couch if you don't tell me."

"Wait, Mione," said Eliza with a pout. "I'm sorry. We'll tell you the truth." She turned to Amanda. "Ada, we have to tell her. I can't sleep on the couch."

Amanda chuckled at her friend before looking at Hermione with a serious look. "Harry and Jason are together. Lee told us."

"What?" Hermione's eyes widened. She looked around and saw that Ginny was still in the shop, checking out the supplies. She lowered her voice to a whisper. "Did you tell Ginny already?"

"Of course not." Amanda shook her head. "I'm not in the position to tell her, and I don't even know what to do when she sees that they're a couple." She sighed and looked at her roommate through the windows with worry in her eyes. Eliza and Hermione frowned at each other.

"But shouldn't you be happy, Ada?" Eliza asked her. "You would have a chance with her."

"Come on, Eli." Amanda chuckled lowly. "Just because Harry's in love with someone else, it doesn't mean she'll fall in love with me."

"Hey." Eliza frowned at her best friend. "Where's the fire you had a few days ago? Don't feel down, Ada."

"Just forget it." Amanda muttered under her breath, seeing that Ginny was already at the counter. "Hermione, don't tell her, okay? It would break her heart."

"Won't her heart be broken either way?" Hermione's question made all three of them silent, but none of them could answer anymore because at that moment, Ginny came out of the store.

Ginny turned away from her movie and saw Amanda with a frown on her face. She worried if her words had hurt the older girl's feelings. "Ada, are you okay?"

Amanda turned to her and smiled slightly. "I'm good, Gin. I'm just tired."

"Are you sure?"

"The surest I've ever been." Amanda grinned at the Chaser, who smiled back.

"Let's go. I'll just continue tomorrow." Ginny stood up and rolled her eyes when Amanda raised her hand with a pout. She helped the older girl up, and they started on their way to their own rooms.

"Hey Ginny?" Amanda called out just when Ginny was about to enter her room. Ginny was about to say something when Amanda took a step towards her, trapping her between Amanda's body and the door. Ginny closed her eyes immediately. Amanda smiled softly before she leaned in and kissed the younger girl. From all the kisses they've shared, this was different. It wasn't heated or full of passion. It was just a soft kiss of innocence. Amanda held the younger girl's waist while Ginny's grip on her doorknob tightened.

Amanda pulled away and smiled at her before fixing Ginny's red hair. Then, she leaned in and kissed the younger's forehead which made her cheeks as red as her hair.

"If you asked me, what would I do if I somehow fell in love with you," said Amanda, stroking Ginny's hair. Brown eyes met brown eyes, and Ginny could see only love and sincerity in Amanda's eyes. "I don't know how to answer. Because I already did, and I'd do anything and everything for you."

Amanda took a step back and smiled softly. "Good night, Gin. I love you." She turned around and went into her own room. Ginny stayed where she was for a few moments before snapping back to reality and entering her own room.

"Bloody hell." Ginny muttered. She fell back onto her bed and held a hand to her heart that was beating so fast.

In her room, Amanda slid down the door and looked at a picture of her and Ginny on her tableside. She laughed shakily and wiped the tears that had escaped her eyes without notice. She chose to do this. Even when they told her she would be broken, she chose to do it still. So, she should put up with the pain that came with it.

✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼

✼ •• ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ •• ✼