AN: Hi everybody! Thanks for the reviews, favs, and follows! Thanks to you guys I know what I have to work on, like my formatting. Trust me, this story WILL BE IMPROVED! Remember, this is my first fanfic so I'm not 100% good on how to save and upload new chapters. But I will continue to do my best. Special thanks to-

*Sunshine72

For being the first to add me to her author alert. You rock! Thanks for the support!

So, where was I? Oh yeah… on to chapter three!

The next few days passed rather pleasantly. Ron had finally given in and begrudgingly agreed to talk to me, and Harry and I were enjoying our time together. I think that Hermione was just happy to have another girl to talk to. We made ourselves busy by collecting edible berries and mushrooms, and keeping the tent clean. One afternoon I came out of the tent to find Hermione casting protection charms around the area. I raised my wand to help her.

"Prote-" I began, feeling the energy from my magic building up inside me. For me it was a pleasant fiery feeling, though I heard before that it was different for each witch or wizard.

Hermione whirled around at the sound of my voice. "Ginny! Stop!" she shrieked.

"What? What's wrong?" I yelled.

"What are you doing? You can't use magic, you still have the trace!"

"Oh jeez! I totally forgot!" I exclaimed, slapping a hand to my forehead. How could I have been so stupid? If I had finished that spell, the ministry would have been able to find us and the entire mission would have been ruined!

"I say we need to find you a new wand to use, at least for now." Hermione mused.

"You're right, but where are we going another wand? Ollivander is missing and we can't exactly walk into Diagon Alley with Harry Potter. Plus you, Ron, and I are supposed to be in school." I stated.

"Well, we'll figure that out later. For now you'll just have to act like a muggle and keep from using magic." said Hermione.

I inwardly groaned. I hated the feeling of having magic and not being able to use it. Normally during the summer I'd be pretty ok with not using my magic, but being the only one on the mission who couldn't use her wand made me feel extremely vulnerable, as if the words attack me, I can't fight back! were plastered onto my forehead. I silently vowed that I would still keep my wand with me wherever I went. I'd rather be discovered by the group of morons they call the ministry then watch a friend die.

While I was lost in thought, Hermione finished up the protection and concealment charms.

"Well, I guess that's all. How about we go start on lunch?" she said.

"That'd be great. I'll tell the boys." I nodded

We usually had bland wild mushrooms and tart, sour berries for lunch, except for the rare occasion where Hermione would sneak off to a nearby grocery store, grab some canned goods, and leave some money on a counter. Those days were the best, because when Ron was hungry, he was also grumpy, and mushrooms did not satisfy his humongous appetite. I wasn't too keen on having a nearly empty stomach either. Thankfully, Hermione had gone out last night and returned with several cans of ravioli, so Ronald was in a decent mood.

I walked into the tent where Harry and Ron were playing Exploding Snap. "Hey guys, Hermione says we should start on lunch." I informed them. "So you better start clearing up." I said, gesturing to their game.

"Aw, c'mon Gin, just one more game!" Ron whined.

Just then, Hermione appeared, carrying a stack of plates and cups. Instantly, my brother jumped to his feet as if he'd sat on a porcupine.

"'Mione let me take those." he offered and scooped them up out of her arms.

Hermione looked taken aback; perhaps Ron's sudden act of generosity had surprised her as much as it had surprised me. He certainly never did this at home.

"Oh… well, um… thanks Ron. You can set them over there." she said hesitantly, pointing to a spot on the table. She then turned around and gave me a quizzical but (could it be hopeful?) look, which I returned with a smile and a shrug. It seemed that my brother might have a crush on Hermione!

Lunch was very cheerful. We laughed and told jokes as we ate the lukewarm ravioli, which tasted surprisingly better than usual. When it was time to clear up, Ron once again jumped to his feet and helped Hermione with the sauce covered plates then offered to wipe down the table. He continued to do that the rest of the week, earning mixtures of surprised and grateful looks from Hermione. She still seemed pretty weirded out though. I couldn't blame her. It wasn't very often that Ron was helpful with chores, unless our mum ordered him to.

He was beginning to be more helpful with other things too. He would act his usual, lazy self when Harry and I were around but the second Hermione entered the room he would jump to his feet and offer to take over what ever task Hermione was doing at the moment. She hardly ever had to do the guard shift at night; Ron would insist she get some sleep whenever she tried. I rarely had to do it either. Perhaps Harry did not want to be upstaged on tact and manners by Ron, because whenever I situated myself outside the tent at night, he would appear minutes later, usually with a hot mug of tea or cocoa, and would send me off to bed. The tent was a lot warmer than the frigid night air so I usually had no objections. Honestly, I thought one night. A girl could get used to this.

One night, Ron and Harry decided to do the guard shift together so that they wouldn't become bored. I went back inside of the tent and found Hermione sitting by her bed, skimming through The Beedle Bard.

"Want some cocoa?" I asked, pointing to my own mug.

"Hmm? Oh, sure, thanks." She answered looking up at me. "Oh, and Gin? When you're done, c-can we talk?" she asked, and for some reason her voice quavered.

"Yeah, whatever you need." I nodded, trying my best to look nonchalant. On the inside though, my heart skipped a beat. Why on Earth would she need to talk to me? She's usually the one who has to comfort and reassure me when we talk.

Once I finished heating up her drink I sat cross legged at the foot of her bed.

"Ok, spill." I commanded gently.

"What's up with Ron lately? Is it because he likes me or… is it that he doesn't?" she asked worriedly.

Wow. I thought she was going to ask something a lot harder for me to answer. The answer to this was so simple that I almost laughed.

"Oh my gosh, Hermione, of course he likes you! Isn't it obvious? I mean, he helps you with chores, he takes over the night watch for you, and he clearly looks after you. Plus he's been acting more polite towards you and paying you compliments. If he doesn't like you, then my name isn't Ginerva Weasley." I declared.

"Really?" she sniffed.

"Really." I confirmed.

Hermione let out a sigh of relief. "Ok, good. I was getting kind of worried."

"Worried? About what?" I questioned, rearranging my features into an expression of curiosity.

"Well…" she started, looking bashful. "Don't tell either of the boys, but I was just worried that Ron was sucking up to me so that later on he could get something in return. Like if he ever wanted help with something that he would be too lazy to do. I just want to make sure that if he's being kind to me, that it's genuine kindness. Not sucking up and stocking up on favors I would owe him." she told me.

"Don't worry Hermione. Ron at times can be rude, lazy, utterly oblivious, annoying…" I began, but stopped at the look on her face. "Ok, sorry, but you know what I mean? I'm just trying to say that Ron can sometimes be a pain, but he would never do that to someone, especially you." I reassured her.

"I know Ginny. I guess I'm just being overly paranoid." She said with a shaky laugh.

"So…" I teased, nudging her playfully in the side. "Are you going to make the first move?"

"I certainly hope I won't have to! If he really does like me then I shouldn't have to make the first move. I don't expect something big and fancy, especially not here where we're literally migrating across England. But considering that he's on the mission against you-know-who, being brave enough to make the first move should be a cinch." She stated passionately.

Well, she has a point there, I had to admit.

But then again, it doesn't seem likely that Ron will be able to take the first step without a little help. I reasoned.

It looked like it was time for me to get out my bag of tricks and play the role of matchmaker.

Well thanks for reading! What did you think of the chapter? Another special thanks to-

*Daphne

*Mahika

For the awesome reviews. I had a serious case of writers block and you guys helped boost me out of it. You and everyone else who have helped me with this fanfic are really appreciated! Now, I haven't gotten any reviews about whether I should add in either-

Ginny finding a lost magical creature and taking her under her wing.

Ron and Hermione having a fight!

The gang at Malfoy Manor getting help from none other than Draco!

Please review and tell me what you think! Thanks again!