Hermione never knew that being with the man of her dreams would have a deadly price to pay. Sure, she would have to endure gossip around the school, but for some reason, he felt like Harry did when he finally went public with Ginny. She kind of liked being talked about something that made her happy. The worst part of the gossip, however, was when the students tell it to the public maybe on Christmas Break, and who knows, maybe Rita Skeeter's ears would perk up and her Quick Quotes Quill would jump to her hand again.
Yes, she could handle that; Hermione Granger could handle a little gossip. But what she couldn't place was the reaction of Draco's parents.
"Don't worry about them," Draco said reassuringly one afternoon. It was the week before the break, and they wanted the best of it even if both of them will be staying at Hogwarts. They were sitting in the beech tree and Hermione was fidgeting around until Draco asked what was wrong. "Mother respects you even more ever since you fought in the War magnificently after you've been… you know… by Bellatrix. And my father's in Azkaban, so what can he do?"
"Do you really think they'll accept me with my blood status?" She persisted, the questions nagging her gushing out.
"Look, Hermione, I know I made a big deal about that in the past, and I admit I was a huge prat of doing so. My mother never really cared about blood status. Like me, she just showed her cold side to keep up with my father. She even told me once that she was planning on running away with a Muggle if it wasn't for her family announcing her betrothal to Lucius Malfoy."
"I never knew that."
"Neither did I, for eleven years, I might add. I told her I liked you when I went back home for Christmas Break, and she told me about it when I mentioned you were Muggleborn. She didn't mind, really, as long as I found someone."
"She seems very nice. I never knew why I was so… intimidated… on that day in Madam Malkins."
Draco laughed softly and made her look up by taking her chin gently. "Well, you know, after that, I told mother that the girl she just sneered at was you, and she made nods and appreciative gestures at my choice, but quietly, because the people at Twilfitt and Tatting's were eavesdropping."
"Wow." She said, smiling for the first time of the day.
"You're more beautiful when you smile." He remarked, smirking.
"Well, you never cease to make me smile, so blame it on you," she retorted, poking his ribs playfully. He squirmed. Hermione poked again.
"Stop it!" he exclaimed, covering his torso with his arms. Hermione's fingers were jutting out her hands, and they searched every possible opening for his body. They spent fifteen minutes like that; Hermione occasionally poking him, and Draco would laugh and prevent another attack.
"Gotcha," Draco muttered smugly as he raised Hermione's wrists into the air. Now it was her turn to squirm.
"Stop squirming," he said. When Hermione wouldn't stop, he swooped down and kissed her full on the lips, his hands sliding up to take Hermione's instead of her wrists.
"That's not fair," Hermione said, out of breath, and pouting.
"But you loved it, nevertheless," Draco said, letting her sit beside him again.
She nodded and blushed. Draco laughed.
"Are you feeling better now?" he asked after a moment of silence.
"Much, much better," she said, smiling again.
"Good. Now let's go back, it's getting dark and I very well know you hadn't eaten anything for lunch today," he said, smirking when the rumbling of her stomach became audible right on cue.
"SHIT!"
"Harry, just calm down; everything's going to be okay…"
"I will not calm down, Ginny Weasley!"
Heads turned as they saw the brave Harry Potter pale and panicky, jumping up from his bench at the Gryffindor Table at dinner. Was it something worse than Voldemort that made him blanch?
"Sit. Down," Ginny said warningly. Harry gave in with the look she was giving, and he sat down again meekly.
"How can you not react to this? I mean, Ron's going back! And Hermione and Draco just started their relationship!" Harry whined. Ginny threw him a piece of cheese.
"Oh, very funny, Ginny," Harry said, flicking the cheese from his sleeve.
"I said don't worry, Harry. He's been at the asylum – "
"What the hell was he doing in the asylum?"
"Keep your voice down, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, sitting right beside Ginny.
"Yeah, we could hear your voice when we were at the front doors," Draco added thoughtfully, sitting beside Hermione, "Honestly, you screamed 'I will not calm down, Ginny Weasley!' and it resounded all the way where we are…"
"And what did you say about an asylum?" both asked, Hermione in a dangerous tone while Draco was curious.
"Ron was dragged there – "
"What's an asylum first?"
"It's where 'crazy' people go for rehabilitation, in the Muggle way." Hermione replied, and Draco's face cleared.
"Yeah, okay. Now, Ron was in there," Ginny continued, "and he's been getting better. He's being cared for by old Xenophilius Lovegood."
"I never knew he was much of a Healer." Hermione mused amusingly.
"Neither did us, Hermione," Harry said, "So when's he returning?"
"He's going back NOW?" Hermione and Draco both asked again.
"Yes and no. He's going back, yes, but not right now. He'll be returning on Wednesday," Ginny answered.
They all sat in silence again; occasionally putting mouthfuls of food on their mouth, thinking and hoping that the four days in between that date would be enough for them all to get ready.
The castle's gate opened and in trudged two horseless carriages, or so it seemed to the innocent eye. The people inside got out, all eight of them. They walked towards the oak front doors, and one would constantly slip and fall on the hard ground.
The front doors opened and the people were welcomed by Professor McGonagall. Behind her were Ginny, Harry, Hermione, and Draco, whom it seems she was holding hands with.
The one who constantly slipped walked into view, pale and sickly looking, with a knitted blanket draped over his shoulders. His red hair was a mess, his jaw was clenched not too tightly, and his blue eyes were blank, dull… dead.
Hermione tossed and turned on her bed that night. The picture of all seven of the Weasleys, except for Fred and Ginny, along with Xenophilius Lovegood, kept intruding her almost blank mind. The sight of Ron so vulnerable and fragile seemed to be unnerving.
She got up from her bed, pulled on a dressing gown, and walked down to the common room.
"Where are you going, Harry?" she asked, and the creeping figure froze, a crumpled piece of parchment in one hand, a silvery cloak in another.
"Oh, you're going out. Where are you going, by the way?" she continued.
"If you must know, I'm heading to the hospital wing. I can't sleep." He replied.
"Then I'll come, too. I've tossed and turned on my bed for nearly an hour." She said. Harry nodded and they both ducked under the Invisibility Cloak, ignoring the surprised squawks of the Fat Lady.
Harry was good at nighttime strolling. In first year, he managed to find the Mirror of Erised and the door to the then forbidden corridor. In third year, he was able to get him and Hermione back to the Hospital Wing after they set Sirius Black, Harry's deceased godfather, free. In fourth year, he managed to get away by a scratch because of the impostor 'Moody' and his magic eye seeing him waving around under the Invisibility Cloak, one leg plunged into the stairs' trick step, mouthing 'It's mine!' and pointing at the Marauder's Map.
They walked quietly and carefully, occasionally stopping when they were at intersections. They climbed some stairs and knocked on the door.
"Ah, yes, Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger, a sleeping Draught would come in handy," Madam Pomfrey stated after just one look at their pale and tired faces. "I have another seventh year here that can't sleep."
Hermione peered around and saw a flash of platinum blonde hair.
"Draco," she muttered to Harry, and he grinned.
"Pick a bed, dears, and I'll go get the potion ready," the nurse said, bustling about. They climbed into a bed beside Draco's. He was doing something under the blankets. Hermione pulled back his blankets roughly and he groaned.
"Hermione, why are you in the Slytherin dormitory?" he whispered, thinking he was dreaming.
"Silly, you're in the Hospital Wing. You said you couldn't sleep?" she said, and Draco nodded. She kissed his forehead lightly and squeezed his hand.
Harry looked at them in awe and glee, thinking what in the world was he thinking of putting aside his realizations since he caught Draco looking away from Hermione hurriedly in their first ever Potions class.
"Ron, what the hell happened to you?" Ginny shrieked when Hermione and Harry arrived.
"And where did you go?" she continued, rounding on the two. They both put their arms in the air on surrender.
"Chill, Gin. We couldn't sleep last night and we went to the Hospital Wing for a Sleeping Draught. Draco was also there, and that's where we spent the night." Harry said, clamping his hand to his mouth afterwards and looking at Ron fearfully. The redhead shrugged and looked out of the window.
"Gin, what happened?" Hermione asked delicately.
"I don't know, Mione, he's been like that ever since he woke up. Xeno said that he misses someone from the asylum, but he isn't so sure…"
"From the asylum, huh?" Harry piped.
"Ron?" Hermione asked tentatively. The addressed person looked at her without emotion, just… unnerving blank. "What happened at that place?"
She was expecting him to shout at her to mind her own business. She was expecting him to show his impassiveness and just stare out the window again and never give her an answer. If he was really a prat then he'd want this attention to get going.
What Hermione didn't expect, however, was Ron crying hysterically into his fists and rocked himself on the balls of his feet, which jumped from the floor and onto the armchair.
"I want to go home!" he garbled in between sobs. Ginny looked around fearfully, and then sighed in relief when she saw that they were the only ones in the common room.
"I don't want to be in here!" he continued, "That… That place was my home! I feel at ease there with my friends! I miss her!" he shouted as he jumped onto Harry and clung onto his shirt and showed him his tear-streaked face.
Ginny ushered him back on his seat, and Hermione gave him a glass of water. He drank clumsily, half of the water spilling on his faded shirt. He gasped at the end of the drink, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and put the glass down.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry said, concerned for his best mate. Ron nodded and launched into story.
"After Dad Apparated me home, he was really disappointed. He called Xenophilius to take care of me while he was gone. And in came… Luna." He said, and his face shone. "She took care of me really good, and once the family was back at my house, they went and dropped me off of Xeno's rook-like house.
"There were people there, mostly Muggles, but there were a few wizards there, too. Some were tortured by the Death Eaters; others went crazy on their own watching their family die. Luna took great care of me, and I didn't get loony as them. But they were civil to me, and they congratulated me on a job well done of helping you guys defeat You-Know-Who.
Every day I would look forward to seeing Luna. I'd get all nervous and excited about it. When I cooled down a little, I would slip into the dining hall and grab a couple of mugs full of coffee. I don't care. I kept transfiguring them to dust and complain to Luna that I can't sleep. Of course, she'd go to my room and hand me a Sleeping Draught. I don't care if I really get into coffee; I just wanted to see her even right before I sleep."
"So… you miss Luna, huh?" Ginny stated bluntly, a hint of slyness in her voice. Ron nodded vigorously and looked around as though expecting Luna was in there with him.
"Luna! Luna, come here for a moment!"
Seconds later Luna appeared at the Gryffindor Table, her hair a little flustered but otherwise her breathing was fairly normal. It was lunch, and no one was talking to her, so Ginny wanted to have her company.
"Yes, Ginny?" she said, smiling.
"Join us here, please," she replied, scooting over for the blonde to sit in. She did gracefully, and greeted Harry, Hermione, Draco (who was now accustomed to going to the Gryffindor Table at every meal), and Ron, who blushed as she gave him an extra kiss on the cheek, not noticing everyone smirk knowingly.
"Well, Ronald, I see you've been doing well," she said formally, taking the food she had on her plate on the Ravenclaw Table.
"Yeah, thanks to your help," he said meekly. Hermione stared. Who knew Ron was formal and civil when it comes to talking with the one he loved?
They sat in silence for a few moments. After that Ron attempted to have small talk with Luna, and Draco and Harry would snort into their food every time Ron slipped on his own words. Their girlfriends would smack them not too playfully and they'd scowl. After lunch, Luna's eyes glanced towards a certain someone far away when Ron asked her to spend the afternoon together walking around the grounds.
"See you later, everyone!" they both said at the bottom of the steps, and they rushed towards the side of the castle so they'd have some privacy.
Walking back, Ginny blurted out suddenly, "If they have kids, I'm sure its hair would be a strawberry-blonde."
Draco, who was drinking from a water bottle, spat the contents out.
"What?" he said, letting Hermione dab a handkerchief on his wet face. Harry knew he was holding in something, and he slapped him on the back, making him break into raucous peals of laughter.
"Ah, what a thought," he said dreamily, wiping a tear off his eye and still smiling.
"Yeah, it is. But why did you have to think about that so suddenly?" Hermione asked, blushing at the thought.
"Hey, a girl can let loose her imagination, can't she?" Ginny replied indignantly.
"Yes, she can. But not in that way, Ginny."
Hermione and Draco doubled up in laughter as they watched Ginny chasing Harry around the Great Hall with her wand out, Harry running around for his precious life. Besides, if it was a choice between Voldemort and Ginny who would kill him…
…he'd choose Voldemort.
A/N: Nice one, Harry. :DD
Ah, I love it. And I have imagined a situation wherein Blaise will be 'embarrassed' when he learns Muggle sayings. *hint hint*
REVIEEEEW!