I lay curled up on my bed, wearing flannel pajamas, long underwear, and my thickest turtleneck sweater. I was absolutely freezing. Honestly, the Weasley house had practically no heat in early January.

I really wished Ginny were here. She was the only Gryffindor girl in her year, so she shared a room with us sixth-year girls. But no, Ginny was in danger of failing Transfiguration and had stayed the Christmas holidays for tutoring, which left me with no warm body to snuggle up against.

That might sound strange, but that's what the four of us did on cold nights like this. We would push two beds together, pile everyone's' blankets on them, and basically have a warm, squishy nest that did a fine job at conserving body heat.

Suddenly, I had an idea as I shivered in my dark, cold bed. A truly practical and thoroughly embarrassing idea. Was I really that desperate? What if he didn't take things the way he should? Really, it wasn't like that! (At least, not yet. I couldn't make any promises there.)

So, out I ventured, carefully avoiding various floorboards. (It was fairly easy to do so since Fred had gone and painted glow in the dark stain on them.) Up three flights of stairs, open the door, and up a few steps to Ron's room, which was just underneath the attic.

I hesitated. What if …? I knocked with my heart pounding.

There was a faint groan and a creak of bed springs before the door was swung open and a sleepy, tousle-haired Ron appeared, looking equally cold.

"What?" he asked, rubbing his eyes and holding on to the door frame.

I couldn't answer him. We stared at each other. Just then, a huge shudder ran down my spine.

Ron frowned. "You okay, Mione?" He reached out a hand, and then dropped it. I nodded. "Just cold," I managed, my face burning. Ron's eyes brightened and I knew something had clicked.

Silently, he stepped aside, shutting the door behind me. He climbed into his bed, leaving a space for me. I slid into the warm covers, our legs touching. For a long while, we just lay there, unconsciously pressing closer to each other, not really moving. My eyes drifted closed. I turned on my side, away from Ron, and I felt him shift position too, slipping his arm around my waist.

When I woke, Ron was still snoring softly. I had turned to face him during the night and he was holding me protectively. His chest felt warm against my head. I could feel his heartbeat through the thick sweater he wore.

Ron's eyes slowly opened, inches from my own.

I watched him, not daring to move. a smile spread across his face as he touched my jaw with his knuckle, stroking my face. I couldn't help smiling back as he hugged me tighter then let go quickly.

He sat up, gave me one last look, and walked out into the hall.

I rushed down four flights of stairs and into Ginny's room and no one was aware that I had been gone.