“Miss Weasley, what is that?” Snape snarled at her. It was the middle of Potions class and they were making the Simmondisa. Instead of a dark green, her potion was more of a lavender. She was in for it now.

“It is the Simmondisa potion, sir.” This was the only answer that she could think of.

“Alright then, imbibe this substance that you identify as Simmondisa,” Snape ordered.

Ginny was nervous about this. Carefully and slowly she swallowed the potion. To her surprise, it tasted quite good. Just like hot chocolate. Hot chocolate was her favorite drink.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny wanted something. She wanted it so bad that she could concentrate on little else. Her desire for this need shadowed her for what seemed like forever. Yet, no one knew what this hunger was for. Not even her.

Her friends noticed something wasn’t right. In fact, Luna was the first to realize it. Now along with this hunger, was Luna. Both seemed to be on her trail. Every turned corner, every walked hallway, every climbed staircase, was the thirst. And then Luna was also tagging along. Luna was really bugging her. Her intentions were good, but it was getting on Ginny’s nerves.

She needed this thing. These nuisances that kept following her never seemed to give up. She tried everything. She even joined the Dueling Club to get her mind off things, for that matter. Nothing helped. Nothing cured her illness. Nothing in the world could, or so she thought.

It was the beginning of spring, and this sudden feeling came unexpectedly. She was highly embarrassed for sending Harry the valentine. Yet more embarrassed on how he reacted. He didn’t even appreciate it. He just ran. She felt bad for the longest time, but then something took over just at the beginning of the season.

She continued to write in her diary. The attacks became more and more. She had a hard time remembering things. And this troublesome hunger for something made it worst. Her teachers had also noticed her change in schoolwork. Professor Flitwick was the first to consult her on this.

After Charms, Professor Flitwick asked her to stay behind for a while. He asked her to visit him at the end of the day. Curious to what he might want, she agreed and went on her way. Luna was still tagging behind.

After dinner, she went to the Charms Teacher’s office. “Sit down, Miss Weasley, sit down,” He squeaked. It was obvious that something was on his mind. Yet he still pretended to act fine.

“I’ve noticed a sudden drop in your grades. I know that Charms is getting harder, but I don’t think that is the case. I apologize if I am mistaken, but I doubt I am. Is anything bothering you? If so, how can I help?” he asked, the worry clear in his voice.

“Well, something has been bothering me. Promise not to tell?” she asked uncertainly. She was really nervous about telling him this, but he was the only one who might be able to help. After all, he was the one who was a real friend to her at the beginning of the year. After he nodded, she continued. “Well, I have something that won’t leave. I ache without it, but I don’t know what it is. I know that once I have it, I will become whole. I just get this feeling that when I get it, my heart will be complete and my worries will go away. I just am clueless to what this thing could be. Can you help?” She spoke quickly, as to get it out of her system.

“I can’t do that. But maybe a Cheering Charm might work for the moment. I will ponder this, and let you know when I get near an answer,” Flitwick reassured. This made Ginny feel a bit better, but she still felt empty. Her thirst grew larger as every minute went by.

The Cheering Charm helped out for a few hours, but then the haunting thoughts came back. Night after night she wondered. Dreams consisted of reaching for something that you could never get. Then being take farther and farther away before you can recognize what it was. Soon she was falling. Falling into the deep darkness of her mind.

Every morning she would wake up shaking. In the night her dormitory partners informed her that she was tossing and turning. Moaning and mumbling, gasping for air as she slept in the night. They were scared for her, but didn’t know what to do.

She decided to write. Not in her usual diary. That wouldn’t help. But in her new diary. One that she could trust. One that wouldn’t answer back and make fun of you. One that would just carry the words that you wrote into it. It would help her. It lightened her burden, although that was still there. Waiting to attack. And then she knew.

She ran to Professor Flitwick’s office that very night. On the way, her foot got stuck into a trick staircase. Neville was nice enough to help her out. He was always nice to Ginny. She was sort of embarrassed around second years. She felt stupid and ashamed around them. Especially Harry.

She knocked on the Professor’s door. “Come in! Come in!” greeted the short man.

“Professor, I’ve got to talk to you.” She sat down as she said it. “I think I know what the problem is. I am craving a best friend. I have friends, just not a best friend. Luna and Neville, and Colin are nice, just not what I need. I don’t know what lead me to the realization, but I’m glad it happened.” Ginny said. She was surprised with herself. She hadn’t realized that this was true until that moment. She knew that she knew what it was.

She just didn’t know what she knew. If that makes any sense. She was certain that if she came to the Professor, it would come out one hundred percent truthfully.

“Oh, well, I have a theory now to what had happened. First though, tell me about potions,” he said interestedly. He took a lot of looking into this. The reasoning was because Ginny was his favorite student. She always took interest in his classes, even if they were boring. She was more than a student, though, she was a friend.

“Well, I dislike the subject. Lately, we have been making the Simmondisa. It is very complicated, and I messed up. He made me test my own potion. Obviously I added to much Laureth. Why?” she informed him.

“If you added a millimeter more of ground Laureth, you created the Cocamide potion. This causes the drinker to find the truth about their life socially. They learn more about themselves that way. It will wear off eventually. Within the next few days, since it led its purpose,” he explained.

This really helped out Ginny. She was glad for that potions mistake. Everything happens for a purpose. This one was for the better. She was now ready to talk to Luna.