Weight of the World

by DoYouKnowWhatI'mSayin

"You're asking me to give up my entire life, do you realize that?" Kingsley nodded. "Hermione, you really are the only one who can do this. We wouldn't ask you if there was no other way." "I don't know, Kingsley. I don't know if I can do that to Ron." "Hermione, we both know how this is going down. You're either going to this willingly or we'll be forcing you."

4. Broken Arrows

Author's Note: Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed the story so far. You have no idea how much I appreciate it! Like I said before, please listen to the songs for each chapter guys and tell me when you do! The songs have been such a huge inspiration to this story and Daughtry is just such an incredible band that your bound to like a few, if not all of them!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any Daughtry lyrics.

Hey

Show me one man who never makes mistakes

Oooo,

And I pay

All of my time and every dime I make

But today

The best of intentions

I lay at your feet

And I need you to see past the worst part of me

I'm tired of taking my aim

When I keep on missing

There's gotta be a better way

There's gotta be a better way

Seems like every little word I say

Keeps on getting twisted

Coming out wrong

So baby hold on

I'm tryin' to hit the mark

But I'm shooting with broken arrows

It's like I'm shooting with broken arrows

~Broken Arrows~ Daughtry

Hermione woke up screaming from her nightmare. She had been running through a dark forest, breathing heavily. The only problem was, Hermione couldn't remember who or what she had been running from. She placed her elbows on her knees and hung her head, taking deep breathes and reminding herself that everything was fine, it was only a dream. Then reality hit her, that might have been a dream, but reality wasn't a fairy tale either. She groaned and looked at her alarm clock, it was five in the morning but she knew she wouldn't be able to get any more sleep. Instead, she swung her feet out of bed and left her room, feeling her way into the kitchen in the darkness. She turned on one of the lights and started her coffee before padding her way into the family room to watch something on television. She ended up watching reruns of the Big Bang theory until there was a scratching sound at her window. An unfamiliar owl waited outside, a copy of today's Daily Prophet in it's beak. Hermione groaned inwardly before unlatching the window and allowing the owl to hop inside and drop the paper on the counter. She put a few coins in the pouch tied to its leg, fed it a treat, and sent it on its way. Nervously, she picked up the newspaper and looked at the headline.

RONALD WEASLEY CAUGHT CHEATING ON HIS FINACEE, WAR HEROINE HERMIONE GRANGER, AT THE WIZARDS INN AND PUB

Hermione poured herself another cup of freshly brewed coffee and sat down at the kitchen table to read the article. It was a typical Rita Skeeter article, overly exaggerated and consisting of twisted facts, but it got the job done and in the very last paragraph she had written that there had been an anonymous tip from someone very close to Hermione Granger. Oliver wood had come through for them and tipped of Rita Skeeter who had plastered the front page with a blown up picture of Ron Weasley snogging-bloody hell was that Lavender Brown?!

Hermione couldn't believe her eyes. There was no way that the witch Ron was snogging was Lavender Brown, that just wasn't possible, was it? But Hermione had a feeling that someone had set this up in order to make sure that the article would stay a headliner for a good long time. Someone had made sure that one of Ron's old flames was there that night, that Ron would specifically be caught snogging that person. And she had a pretty good idea of who would want to interfere that way. The one and only Draco Malfoy.

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Just a few weeks ago the last thing Hermione Granger had ever expected was to be meeting up with four other wizards from Slytherin at eight in the morning on a Wednesday in a muggle café. Now it didn't seem too far from normal, and Hermione wasn't sure how she felt about that. The café she had chosen for today's meeting was a quaint little place and she quite liked it because it was quiet and well off the beaten path as one would say. She often liked to have meetings with her clients outside of her office and today's café was high on her list of meeting places. In fact, she was getting to know some of the staff there quite well.

"Good morning Miss Granger it really is lovely to see you again." Jacob smiled down at her. "What will you be having today?"

Hermione scanned the menu and then set it down. "I don't know, are there any specials today?"

"I'm sorry, but we don't do specials at breakfast." Jacob informed her.

"That's too bad." She picked the menu back up and glanced over it once more. "I think the pick three with buttermilk pancakes, scrambled eggs, and some sausage sounds lovely this morning. I'll have that with some orange juice, please."

"That does sound lovely, Miss Granger." The bell on the door rang and Jacob glanced up. "This must be the rest of your party right here."

Hermione turned around and glanced at the four people who had just entered the café, their cheeks tinged pink from the cold wind and looks of confusion on their faces. Hermione laughed softly. "Yes, that would be them."

Jacob hurried over and showed them to where Hermione was sitting. "Can I take your orders or would you like some time to look over the menu?" He asked them politely.

"We just got here, obviously we need more time." Draco snapped impatiently. Hermione glared at him and Astoria kicked his shin under the table.

"I'm sorry," Astoria apologized to Jacob. "my fiancé here is not a morning person. If you could give us just a few more minutes that would be wonderful." She smiled up at him.

"Of course ma'am." He turned back to Hermione. "I'll be right back with your drink."

"Thank you, Jacob." Hermione said to him. When he left Hermione turned to Draco. "Jacob is a nice guy don't be so rude to him next time." She snapped.

"I don't know why you keep picking bloody muggle cafes for our meetings, Granger." Draco ignored her comment. "They're hard to find and they're always a long walk and have you not noticed it's bloody cold out there?"

The other diners in the café gave Draco disapproving looks as he raised his voice. He glared at them, huffed, and returned to trying to set his menu on fire with his eyes.

"Well, I like Hermione's choice of a café. It's quite a quaint little place and it would do you some good to be a bit more cultural, Draco." Blaise said leaning back in his chair and winking at Hermione. She laughed softly at his antics.

"I'm not entirely sure that's what's meant by cultural, Blaise." Theodore Nott commented.

"Oh, well, you know want I mean." Blaise said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Now, Hermione, tell me what's good on the menu or I may just have to try absolutely everything!"

"It is all very good." Hermione told him as Jacob returned with her drink before hurrying off to help another costumer. "But I really do like the pick three option, I get it almost every time I come."

"Hmmm…I think I'm going to have to go with the chocolate chip pancakes, the bacon, and some fruit. That just sounds absolutely wonderful, don't you think?" Blaise asked his companions.

"I think I agree with you there, Blaise, since I'm going to get the same thing." Theo told him. "Now have you decided on anything yet Draco?"

"I'm just going to eat some bloody pancakes." Draco told him sharply.

Astoria rolled her eyes. "Don't be difficult, Draco. I'm sure the food here is very good."

Draco ignored her comment as Jacob had returned to ask for their orders. When he left again they all exchanged uncomfortable glances. "So," Blaise began. "did everyone see the Daily Prophet this morning?"

Hermione nodded uncomfortably. Astoria reached across the table and covered one of Hermione's hands with her own. "That has to be hard," She sympathized. "even when you knew it was coming."

Hermione looked at the engagement ring on her finger. "I mean, it's not exactly something you want to wake up to but I figured it was going to happen eventually anyways."

Astoria nodded sympathetically and withdrew her hand. Theo spoke up. "So when do you plan on breaking off the engagement?"

"I don't know, Kingsley didn't really give us a lot of guidance on this one." She told him.

"Kingsley didn't give a lot of guidance on anything." Draco commented. "All he said was here's what needs to get done, now go do it and I'll see you when it's all over."

The other nodded in agreement. "Well we know that the next step is for Hermione to break off her engagement with Ron. I just worry that things could turn violent, I don't think Hermione should go alone." Astoria told them.

"Who said she was going anywhere?" Draco asked her.

"Well, I mean it kind of seems like we have a time limit on this thing so the sooner the engagement is called off the better. Also, the quicker she calls off the engagement the more the press will want to cover it. I was thinking Hermione should go to one of his games and break it off with him there." Astoria explained.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "That actually sounds like a very good idea, and having someone with me wouldn't be a bad idea either." Astoria beamed at her.

"I'll go." Theodore suggested. The others looked at him. "What? I'm the best person for the job, I haven't been in the press as much as the rest of you and if I went it would raise the least amount of questions."

"He's got a point." Blaise said.

"Then it's agreed, Theo and Hermione go." Draco announced. "Now, when should they leave?"

Hermione began digging in her purse, pulling out a Cannons schedule and a personal calendar. She flipped through the calendar until she found the month and compared it to the Cannons schedule. "Would Saturday work for you, Theo?" She asked him. "I have a lot of appointments this week and I feel that if we wait any longer we'll lose the press coverage."

"Saturday is fine with me." Theo told her as their food arrived.

Blaise laughed and looked at them. "Who would have ever thought we'd be manipulating the press for our cause?"

"I don't think any of us did." Astoria replied and they all chuckled.

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Saturday morning Hermione and Theodore Nott waited at the train station together. Astoria, Draco, and Blaise agreed that it would be best if they did not come to see the two off at the station for that surely attract some attention. Luckily, neither Hermione nor Theo saw anyone they recognized so they didn't have to worry about anyone talking of seeing them together.

"Ten minutes," Theo told her glancing at his watch. "the train leaves in ten minutes."

"We should be boarding any second now then." Hermione told him without taking her eyes off the muggle newspaper she was reading. Theo watched her with an amused expression of his face. "What?" She asked when she finally glanced up.

"Nothing." Theo told her before looking at the face of his watch again.

"A bit anxious are we?" Hermione asked him.

"I just like to be on time, that's all." Theo told her scanning the train station. "Do you really think he'd hurt you?" He added as an afterthought.

Hermione bit her lip and turned the question over in her mind. "Honestly? I don't know. I'd certainly like to say no but you just…you just have to take precautions sometimes."

"Astoria really likes having you around." Theo told her. "She doesn't do a lot with girl friends besides the normal pureblood crap stuff she's forced to go to."

"She doesn't like that stuff?" Hermione asked surprised.

"I'm sure she does to some extent, but those people aren't really her friends. They're just acquaintances she has to socialize with because of her status."

"Are any of you guys really friends then or do you all just socialize because of your status?"

"I think we really are friends and if we aren't now then we will be when this whole bloody thing ends."

"Why do you think Kingsley chose us five? Like, what on earth drove him to the conclusion that we would be the best five for this job?"

"I don't know." Theo leaned his head back and shut his eyes. "Sometimes I think that Kingsley is really just off the old rocker and sometimes I think that he was right and that he just somehow knew we would be the best five for the job. Maybe one day he'll tell us."

"Yeah, maybe one day." Hermione replied softly.

"NOW BOARDING THE 10:30 TRAIN TO BADAROUX, FRANCE." Said a voice over the intercom.

"Come on, that's us." Theo told her grabbing their bags and heading towards the train. Hermione tossed the muggle newspaper before following behind him.

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It was a haul to get to Badaroux, France and when they finally arrived they both wanted nothing more than a nice long nap. Instead, they got to go to a Quidditch game. Hermione followed Theo through the gates of the large Quidditch complex and up the stairs to their seats. For once things seemed to be going their way as the match didn't last very long at all, though that was largely due the fact that the Chuddley Cannons really were the worst team in the league.

"What a great match." Theo commented sarcastically when it ended. "So what do we do next?"

"I'm going to go wait for him outside the locker rooms. I guess you can stand guard somewhere not real noticeable?" She suggested.

"Are you sure you don't want me right there with you?" Theo asked clearly concerned.

"No, I think I'll be quite alright. I doubt he'll hurt me in front of a crowd like this, don't you?"

"You just never know. If you need help, just yell for me alright? I'll try to be within eyesight."

"Okay, I will." She disappeared into the crowd and Theo tried to find a position near the locker rooms that wouldn't put him in the direct line of sight.

Hermione waited, tapping her foot on the ground for Ron to come out along with the rest of the team. After what seemed like hours, they finally emerged from the locker rooms, disappointment written clearly on their faces, their heads hung in shame, and their feet dragging.

"Ron," Hermione called softly "can I speak with you a moment?"

"Hermione!" Ron exclaimed walking over to her and hugging her. "You made it!"

"Well, I didn't just come all the way from London to watch the match, I also came to speak with you." She told him, shuffling around in her purse until she found her copy of the Daily Prophet from Wednesday. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Ron's face paled at the sight of the newspaper and his shoulders drooped. "Hermione, I can explain if you'll just listen to me. It was a stupid, one-time thing. I was drunk and Lavender was there and then one thing led to another-"

"I think that's enough, Ron." Hermione interrupted him softly. "I really want to believe you when you say it was a one-time thing but I honestly don't think I can."

"What are you saying, Hermione?" Ron asked her nervously, reaching out to hold her hand which she snatched away.

"I'm saying that I can't do this anymore, Ron. I'm calling the engagement off." She began to slide her engagement ring off her finger.

Ron grabbed her forearms. "Hermione, please listen to what I'm trying to tell you-"

"Ron I don't think-"

"Listen!" He roared, shaking her like a rag doll. Hermione's eyes widened in fear and just as Theo was about to hex Ron into oblivion there was a flash and Rita Skeeter came to the rescue. When he saw her Ron automatically let go of Hermione and took a few steps back.

"Is this really what I think it is?" Rita gushed. "Is Hermione Granger, one-third of the Golden Trio, really breaking off her engagement to Ronald Weasley, another third of the Golden Trio?"

"Yes, Rita. We are calling our engagement off." Hermione slipped off the ring and pressed it into Ron's palm, curling his fingers over it. "I'm sorry, Ron. I just can't do this anymore."

"Hermione wait!" Ron called after her retreating form. She didn't turn around, just glanced at Theo and listened for the soft scuffle of his footsteps behind her as Rita's questions and Ron's shouts faded into the background.