Ron simply couldn't take it anymore. Hermione hadn't eaten since yesterday, and he'd been boggling his mind trying to find a way to make her eat. He had known all about eating disorders because a friend of Charlie's had nearly died because of one. He knew that this was different, Hermione wasn't doing it because she wanted to lose weight (Merlin knew she didn't need to, thin as she was), she was trying to make a stand. Ron, who didn't want to go up the stairs to the girls dorm to wake up half a dozen sleeping, moody teenage girls, decided to write her a note and send it off with Pig.
He scrambled out of bed after first making sure the others were asleep and quietly as he could grabbed a quill and parchment and scribbled a note. He asked her to meet him in the Common Room. Being Ron, he always had some food on him. He had stashed a full loaf of his mum's homemade bread as well as some peanut butter and jelly in his trunk. He grabbed it and walked downstairs to the Common Room. He saw Hermione descending the girls dorm.
"Ron? What's going on?" she asked. "Don't tell me you aren't hungry because I know for a fact that you haven't eaten since breakfast yesterday because of your nerves and now this House-Elf rights thing." Ron said. "So I brought down some food I nicked from The Burrow before we left." He finished. Hermione had tears in her eyes and she threw her arms around him. Ron turned a nice bright shade of scarlet and put his arms around her loosely, food still in his hands.
"It wasn't a problem…" he mumbled, though he didn't want her to let go. She did. "I can't believe you did that, it's so sweet." She said, tears still falling off her cheek until she wiped them off with a lovely brush of her hand. He'd never quite send her look so beautiful, her bushy hair pulled into a bun (her weak attempt at making it manageable), her eyelashes wet and her eyes big and beautiful.
She was wearing a Cannon's sleeping shirt that she had probably gotten from Ginny, however, it very well might have been his or Bill's. His eyes scanned it and saw a tear on the sleeve that he had vividly remembered getting. It brought a grin to his face to know that she was wearing one of his shirts. "Um, you wanna sit down then?" he asked motioning to the couch.
"Yeah." She smiled at him and allowed him to lead her over. Ron sat down and layed everything out in front of them. The bread was already sliced, and he had a knife out for the peanut butter and jelly. "Hermione," Ron started as he handed her a sandwich. "Yeah?" she asked before taking a small bite. Ron grinned at her and continued to talk. "I think that there might b another way to make a stand than to just not…you know…eat." He finished, hoping that she'd see it his way for once.
"Yeah? Like how?" she asked taking another bite, this time a little slower as she listened to him. "I dunno, maybe you could make a club or something. It would be much more beneficial, don't you think? I mean out of all the people at Hogwarts, the Elves aren't going to notice that one person isn't eating." Hermione looked disappointed. Really disappointed. Dangerously close to heartbroken even.
That was why he loved her so much…she always cared about everything and everyone. Ron was going crazy. He did NOT love Hermione. "Maybe if you didn't eat as well?" she offered pathetically. "Hermione…I can't not eat." He said, never feeling as guilty as he did right then. "Maybe you're right…a club could work." She mumbled. "You'll join won't you?" Ron looked at her. "Definitely." In truth he couldn't care less about protecting the Elfish rights, they liked what they did, but if Hermione wanted him to join her, he would. He just couldn't for the life of him understand WHY.
After they each finished their third sandwich (and consequently the rest of the bread) they cleaned up and stood. Hermione drew Ron into a hug and flashed him a grin. "Thanks." She said pressing a kiss to his cheek and running silently to her dorm. Ron stood there for a minute before walking upstairs to his dorm in a daze. He climbed into bed, his mostly empty jars of peanut butter and jelly stashed safely under it, and a satisfied grin upon his face as he fell into a deep slumber.
A/N Missing moment in fourth year. If I'm wrong on anything, I'm very very sorry. Hope you liked it!!