A/N Hi everyone out there :o) Welcome to my first HP fanfic... tadadaaa. This was actually supposed to be a one shot, but it somehow developed a life of it's own and got longer than I intended it to be. So I decided to make two chapters out of it. But that will most likely be it. Well, the second part is already half written, so it shouldn't be too long till I post it. I would finish it now, but I'm too tired.

I apologize in advance for grammar and spelling errors. English is actually not my first language, so I hope you won't get a headache from reading this...

Disclaimer: Not mine, what a surprise. Not making any money with it either. Again, what a surprise.

Enjoy!

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

Ron sighed as he stared out at the black sky. Despite it being the beginning of September the night was still very warm, almost humid. Not a single gust of wind moved the eerie locking black outlines of the trees in the distance, or the puffy clouds in the sky.

Absentmindedly he chucked a few pieces of dirt down into the garden. He was listening hard, as if expecting the little clusters composed of old leaves and the general grime up here to make a loud crashing noise when hitting the ground. He had half hoped for one. It would have been satisfying.

However, the only sound to be heard was a distant rustling (maybe the gnomes in the garden, he thought) and the hooting of an owl. It should have been comforting, but instead he felt a chill rund down his spine despite the warm temperature.

Annoyed with himself he picked up the letter again.

„Dear Ron" it said on the topmost line. He smiled. Weired how big of a difference there could be in having your mum address a letter to you in this fashion and... well, your girlfriend. It was also very strange to think of her in this way. Not bad, of course, but he had become so used of admiring her from, well, from a save distance.

All this was more than just slightly overwhelming.

He turned the envelope over and studied the pretty stamp that sported a cuddly koala bear. Once again he regretted his decision of not having gone with her. It had seemed like the right thing to do, with his family so... he gulped and cleared his throat. Everything had been such a mess after they returned to the Burrow. Hell, everything still was a bloody mess. His throat started to burn ominously, and he had to take a few deep breaths and think hard about the smell of Hermione's hair to remain calm.

He held up the letter again. Due to the lack of light from the quarter moon half hidden behind clouds, he actually couldn't make out the words really well. But having read the letter six times since it arrived this morning by a very important looking big owl, sporting a little ring on it's legs which identified it as belonging to the „International Wizarding Mail Service, London", he didn't really need to read the lines, so much as remember them.

„I'm so sorry it took me a whole week to write again. Thank you so much for your letter. And I don't think it sounded stupid! Actually, I think it was really sweet :o).

We're currently visiting Sydney and my parents have now set a date for returning home. Since they moved here with all their belongings and sold our old house it's quite a lot of work getting everything organized for moving back. You wouldn't believe all the paper work, it's quite mad."

Here he skipped a whole paragraph containing her detailed description of all the things they had to organize. Honestly... she obviously had forgotten again that she wasn't talking to a muggle (who would maybe have been able to make sense of all those agency names, although he doubted it) and moreover, he really wouldn't have minded if her parents had decided to just stay in Australia for good.

Not, that the Grangers weren't nice enough people. The one time he and Harry had visited Hermione's home for a weekend they had gone quite out of their way to make them feel at home. But... well, back then he had only been „one of Hermione's friends" to them, hadn't he? And Mr. Granger had seemed extraordinarily fond of his only daughter. Joking around with her and even calling her „my little sunshine" once. Well, just once. Hermione had not missed his and Harry's fake coughs and forbidden her dad through clenched teeth to use that term of endearment in front of other people again. Harry and he had gotten quite a good time out of teasing her for at least a month with it afterwards.

He grinned and skimmed the letter till he reached the end of it.

„So I'll definitely be back by the end of September. I'm flooing back from the Ministry of Magic in Canberra around the 25th I think. I'm so sorry we won't be able to spend my birthday together, but my parents would be so sad if I left before. I so hope the works at Hogwarts will be finished by then!!

Well, I have to leave now, since we're going out for dinner. There's so much more I want to tell you... I promise to write again soon. I really miss you. Did I tell you that I put a picture of you in my wallet? Hope you don't think it's too girlish or something, but this way you're sort of here with me.

I love you!

Yours, Hermione"

His cheeks felt flushed, despite having read this particular part countless times more than the rest of the letter already. He couldn't wait for her to get back.

Sighing, he put the letter back into it's envelope and placed it next to him.

So she wouldn't be here for her birthday. As sad as he was that they would not spend the day together, it also gave him a few more days to solve his problem: What to get her. And moreover, how to get her anything at all. If he didn't get a job soon he would have to ask either Harry or the... or George for money.

Fuck!

He picked up the nearest rock and threw it as hard as he could. Unsatisfactorily there was again no sound of anything hitting the ground. Why the hell was it that he couldn't have any line of thought that wouldn't end up with reminding him that he was fucking dead.

The burning in his throat was back again. And there weren't even any good rocks left to throw. Only little, pathetic pebbles and dirt. He had been up here too often in the last weeks. The ghoul, too, didn't seemed too thrilled of having him come through his attic all the time. He was in a foul enough mood already, having been banned up there once more. Ron's room had been much to his liking it seemed.

Well, he sure didn't pity him. He had to throw out his old bed and everything in it... ghoul smell was very resilient.

He laid back on his back and took a few deep breaths. Well at least the burning had subsided. Good old ghoul. Always a save topic to think about.

Closing his eyes his thoughts wandered back to Hermione's present. He really wanted to impress her, show her that he was capable of making her a... well, a girlfriend-kind-of-gift. But he also didn't want to overdo it. But seeing as he only had a few sickles down in his room the danger of him buying her a diamond ring was rather thin in any case.

Damn it all.

Angry at himself and at the whole world in general he opened his eyes... and let out a scream.

He had jumped a few feet backward and reached for his wand before recognizing the person who was hovering on a rather outdated broom in front of him

"George! What the hell!" he said, feeling his heart hammer against his chest.

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

If you liked it it would be great if you left me a review! Criticism is ok, too, of course (but try to make it constructive, please). You're also welcome to point out my mistakes! Since it's 2:15 am there are bound to be quite a few. I reread it, but, well, that's not saying too much, now is it... yaaawn