Disclaimer: I must not tell lies! I'm not J.K. Rowling, and I do not own any part of Harry Potter.
Harry paced back and forth in front of the hospital wing, staring down at the floor. He glanced up at Ginny, who was standing nearby. She gave him a tiny smile, but she was obviously very anxious.
"Why would Slughorn poison Ron?" she asked.
"I don't think he did it on purpose," Harry said. "He seemed really shocked when it happened…" He trailed off at the sound of footsteps running toward them. Hermione came flying around the corner, looking as pale as if she'd seen a ghost – or maybe, because that wasn't such an unusual occurrence at Hogwarts, as if she actually was a ghost.
"What's wrong?" she demanded, seizing Harry's arms. "I heard something happened to Ron. Is he okay? Can we see him?"
The panic and concern on her face told Harry she wasn't in the mood for a lengthy explanation. "Ron accidentally ingested a love potion, so I took him to Professor Slughorn for an antidote. Then Slughorn offered us some mead, and Ron just happened to drink his first, and it had poison in it. Luckily I found a bezoar and gave it to him, so he survived."
"He'll be all right, won't he?" Hermione said.
"We think so," Harry said. "We can't see him yet though."
Hermione released Harry and took a step back. She turned toward the hospital wing door and looked like she was about to open it anyway, but she restrained herself. Harry turned back to Ginny and continued their conversation.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Madam Pomfrey poked her head through the door. "You may come in and see Mr. Weasley now," she said.
Harry, Ginny, and Hermione entered the hospital wing and followed Madam Pomfrey to Ron's bed. He was lying under the covers, unconscious. Hermione couldn't take her eyes off him as she silently took a seat by his side.
She would remain that way for the next several hours.
That night, Hermione was in bed, unable to fall asleep as she was thinking about Ron. This is ridiculous, she told herself. Why are you still worrying about Ron? I'm sure he'll be up when you go to see him in the morning.
No. She couldn't wait until morning. She had a strong urge to be with him, though she couldn't imagine why, as Ron had been distant and somewhat cold to Hermione ever since he started dating Lavender. But it was as if there was some magnet pulling her toward him.
Hermione slid out of bed and put on slippers and a dressing gown. She tiptoed out of the girls' dormitory and over to the boys', silently thanking the Hogwarts founders for allowing her in there.
Once inside, she crept over to Harry's trunk and rummaged through it until she found his invisibility cloak. She didn't like stealing – borrowing without asking, she told herself – or sneaking out after dark, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
Hermione put on the cloak and left the common room. To her relief, she didn't run into anyone as she sneaked down the corridors to the hospital wing. She cautiously pushed open the door and made her way down to Ron's bed, pulling off the cloak once she was certain Madam Pomfrey was nowhere in the vicinity.
Ron was still unconscious – or was he just asleep? Hermione wasn't quite sure, but she felt disappointed. Well, what were you expecting? she asked herself. Ron to be awake and waiting for you to come?
Sighing, Hermione sat down by Ron's bed. She had no idea what she was doing there. She imagined this was somewhat like what it had been like to visit her while she was Petrified – there was nothing to say, nothing to do.
Right then, Ron stirred. Hermione drew in a sharp breath. A few seconds later his eyes opened. Judging by his apparent confusion, Hermione assumed that he was waking up for the first time since he had been poisoned.
Ron's gaze locked on Hermione's. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
Hermione's anger flared. "Sorry. I shouldn't have bothered to come," she said. "How silly of me to think that you would appreciate me being here. I'll go now."
She began to stand up, but Ron reached out toward her. "No! Wait!" he said hastily. "That isn't what I meant. I want you to be here. It's just that… I thought you weren't talking to me."
"I'm not. I mean, I wasn't. I mean… I don't know," Hermione said, sitting in her chair again.
"Well… Thanks for coming," Ron said. Then he frowned. "What time is it?"
"Two-thirty in the morning, last time I checked. Why?" Hermione said.
A grin spread across Ron's face. "Do you mean to tell me that Hermione Granger, the model student, is sneaking out of bed? What if you'd been caught?"
"I had Harry's invisibility cloak," Hermione said sheepishly, holding up the silky fabric. Ron's eyes looked like they were going to pop out of their sockets.
"As a prefect, I feel it's my duty to turn you in," Ron said seriously. "This kind of behavior cannot be tolerated."
"Ron Weasley, you wouldn't!" Hermione shrieked.
"Keep your voice down, I was only joking," Ron said quickly. "But to be honest, I am rather surprised at you. What could have possibly compelled you to break the rules – and to come see me, of all people?"
"I hate being mad at you," Hermione confessed. "Yes, I know we argue and bicker a lot – that's what we do. But it's gone too far this time. I – I miss you."
Ron gaped at Hermione.
"What if you died, Ron?" Hermione went on. "You would have died thinking that I hated you. And I would have never forgiven myself for that. Because no matter how much I told myself I hated you and acted like I hated you… I never did. I never could. You were one of my best friends – you still are – and we've been through too much together to let that go to waste."
"I – blimey, Hermione, I'm speechless," Ron said. "Do you really mean all that?"
"Yeah," Hermione said. "And I'm really sorry for everything I did. I treated you unfairly. If you want to date Lavender, then I should support you."
"You're wrong for once," Ron said quietly. "If anyone should be apologizing, it's me. I deserved exactly what you gave me. The birds, the silent treatment… Everything." He sighed. "I always manage to screw things up, don't I?"
"No, you don't," Hermione said. "You're human, and you make mistakes, just like everyone else."
They fell silent, having run out of things to say. "I should get back to my dormitory now," Hermione said at last.
"All right," Ron said. "Thanks again for coming. And don't tell Lavender I said this, but for the record, I'm glad it was you who was here when I woke up and not her."
Hermione smiled. Ron had no idea how much that meant to her. But she merely said, "I'll see you later," grabbed the invisibility cloak, and left the hospital wing.