A/N- I do not have writer's block. My muse has not abandoned this fic. Instead, I was stuck trying to work out where the chapter was going. And finishing reading a book I recently got called 'How Not to be a Professional Footballer' by Paul Merson. I had a huge section of this chapter devoted to Dumbledore before I deleted it, moved the second task back to its place, and felt it start to flow again and the humor start to return to the characters I have borrowed from JKR.

I really, really hate the second task. It is so unbelievably stupid! I mean, the audience stares at a lake for an hour. There's no commentary. Just four people diving into an icy cold lake in the middle of February in Scotland. Then they wait. For almost an hour. Until the hostages and champions emerge. …So incredibly stupid. It's not like magicals would even understand television so there's no way to film it or broadcast it like a game at the (real life) World Cup or something and there's no way for anyone to know what happens in the lake. They don't know when there's trouble, they don't know whether anyone needs help…Stupid.

Which brings me to Ron Weasley…I was writing this chap trying to work out what Draco would do when I just instantly knew what to do. Several chuckles later my problem solved itself.

The morning of the second task Draco Malfoy was full of glee. Potter and Granger were under the lake, vulnerable. He'd get there first and take them both out. Then they'd be gone forever and his father would be proud of him. It was a brilliant plan. There were no flaws in it. He pushed past Weasley, "Out of my way blood traitor," and it all went black.

Ron Weasley had, ever since being put in Slytherin, been the butt of every joke. He was the one mocked and teased for being sent back to first year and for having to be resorted because his entire house had wanted to hang him from the rafters of the Great Hall and let spiders play with him (at least that's what the rumors said anyway). Ron's temper was quick to snap but Slytherins were good hexers and he learned that the hard way. But when Draco Malfoy pushed him out of the way the final thin string that kept Ron's temper in check snapped and he pulled out his wand to cast a banishing spell. Now, banishing spells were fourth year. And Ron had been put back in first year because he couldn't cast fourth year spells. So rather than banish Draco Malfoy it only served to make him trip. Draco's head hit the stone floor and Draco was unconscious. Ron freaked out. He'd harmed a champion. The day of the task.

Thinking quickly (which hurt) Ron put Draco into a closet and ran off. There. No one would know.

Draco Malfoy's disappearance would generally not be noticed; he was no more popular in Slytherin than Ron Weasley was. But it was the day of the task and so his disappearance was noticed. He was found unconscious in a broomcloset by a house elf. Pomfrey woke him up and treated him for a concussion before warning the tournament officials that competing would be impossible for him that day. Draco was fuming. His brilliant plan shattered because of that blasted weasel. Weasel would pay for getting in his way.

The solution to Draco's problem of needing to compete or lose his magic was to jump into the lake and then climb back out. That was humiliating for the blonde but he took solace in the fact that he could plot what he'd do to Weasel.

Ron had been assigned detention and had points removed for attacking a champion but he was excited to sit in the stands only to find he was staring at a lake. The Veela wasn't even wearing anything attractive. Just some kind of full body swimsuit. He sat in the stands, grumpier than usual at his rotten luck.

Fleur was glad for the wetsuit. It was certainly keeping her warmer than a swimsuit would have. She and Hermione had decided that she should go with Gillyweed. Viktor had chosen the same and in tandem they dived down to the merpeople village. Cedric had his own method for diving down; a bubblehead charm which was not as effective as the magical plant both of the foreign champions had chosen. When she learned that Hermione was going to be taken Fleur had thrown herself into working out how best to deal with her handicap to make sure she didn't let her friend down.

With Viktor by her side she felt more confident as they swum down to the hostages. They finally came upon them and they moved to free their friends. Cedric wasn't there for Cho yet. Draco's hostage was his broomstick. Fleur motioned toward the broom for Viktor to see and the two laughed as they managed to release the bonds that held their friends and swam back up to the surface.

When Harry and Hermione surfaced they both gasped for air before their hands reached for each other and pulled the other one close. "Gillyweed lasts for an hour," Hermione said. Harry and Hermione were pushed toward the docks by their friends and they climbed up and into the blankets Remus and Poppy had waiting for them. Harry shifted so that they could share their blankets and Hermione sat on his lap, grateful that she had the wetsuit on to protect her. A few moments later Viktor and Fleur both surfaced and were wrapped up in blankets as well.

"You two saved us," Hermione beamed at their friends.

"Viktor frightened off the grindylows," Fleur said, smiling at Viktor.

"Fleur untied the knots far faster than I could have," Viktor countered.

Harry glanced at Hermione, "Are we that pathetic?"

"We're worse," she winked. Harry chuckled and kissed her.

Cedric came up with Cho about ten minutes later. They too were covered in blankets and a merperson tossed Draco's broomstick out of the lake shortly after they had surfaced. They sat as the scores were read out before they were permitted to go back into the castle. Once inside Harry and Hermione led Viktor and Fleur to the Room of Requirements which they turned into a hot tub. Hermione actually required Harry's assistance to get out of the wetsuit before she sent him out of the changing area. She helped Fleur strip down and, in their bikinis, they returned to the main room. Hermione sighed in contentment as the hot water covered her. "That was the dumbest task imaginable," Harry said.

"Feeding flobberworms," she said.

"Okay not the dumbest task imaginable but a close thing," Harry argued, pulling her into his lap, "warming up?"

"I could use some assistance with that," she smiled at her boyfriend. Harry leaned in to kiss her and she returned it.

"Zey seem to 'ave forgotten about us," Fleur said to Viktor.

"A common occurrence when they are together," Viktor commented.

"We can hear you," Harry said. The other couple turned their heads to see the couple giving them mock glares, "So how was the task?"

Draco Malfoy had plotted how to best punish Ron Weasley throughout the task. Seeing how he would fall all over himself around the two Veela gave him an idea. Krum and Potter were their boyfriends and neither one would take kindly to the weasel trying to force himself on the two creatures. Let alone what the two Veela would do to him. Maybe he could get Potter and Granger expelled too. That would certainly sweeten the pot. He made a trip to the owlery. He had a potion to order.

Monday morning before classes the Daily Prophet arrived with the headline- Dumbledore Defiles War Heroes' Memories! Harry smiled at Hermione, who gave him a small smile. They'd known that this was coming. Dumbledore had been charged by the DMLE for kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment, child abuse, and child endangerment among others. The Prophet went into detail about Dumbledore sealing the Potter will indefinitely, placing Harry at the Dursleys where his parents demanded he never go, and about how Sirius Black was supposed to be Harry's guardian before he was imprisoned falsely, never even receiving a trial. Sunday evening he'd been escorted out of Hogwarts by aurors after the students were in bed.

The couple resumed eating breakfast. Sirius had warned them that it was going to happen so they weren't surprised. They were enjoying their breakfast together when Ron Weasley walked over. Silence fell as most people hoped to see Ron get hexed or blasted with a fireball. Roast weasel would be entertaining. "Come on Granger I know you want me."

Hermione ignored Ron and continued eating her breakfast. Harry glanced at his lover before following suit. Ron continued, "You know that I'm a better choice than Potter. I'm a pureblood."

Harry was beginning to wonder if Ron had mental problems. He'd already tried this line. And it didn't make any more sense than it did the last time. "Ron, go away. Hermione and I are trying to eat breakfast."

"Shut up Potter! Always taking everything that's mine! It's about time you learned your place!"

Hermione's hand on Harry's arm was all that kept Harry from letting his temper go. It wasn't what he was saying about Harry that irritated the young man; it was that he was acting like Hermione was an object. Ron looked at Hermione, "Come on Herms let's go. You don't need to be around some half-blood bastard."

She pinched the bridge of her nose, "Ronald Bilius Weasley. You are ignorant, obviously narrow-minded, cantankerous, narcissistic, emotionally retarded, and you smell. I want nothing to do with you. Now leave me alone."

Ron was trying to work out what she'd just said. He understood ignorant but her other words he didn't know. "Cantink-what?" Still frowning he suddenly shouted, "Hey I'm not Narcissy! That's Malfoy's mother."

Harry couldn't repress the snort that escaped at Ron's words. He wasn't the only one. Hermione's glare didn't lessen though. Draco was enjoying the show until he heard Weasley mention his mother. Then he promptly forgot his plan, "Don't you dare talk about my mother you stupid troll! She's far better than your fat whore of a mother."

Those were words that Ron understood. And he promptly ran at and leaped onto Malfoy. He began to punch Draco as the blonde gave back what he got. It was Snape's turn to pinch the bridge of his nose as he got up from the staff table muttering about stupid dunderheads.

Many detentions and point deductions were handed out that morning between the two boys. Minerva was really not looking forward to seven years more years with Ron Weasley. Harry followed Hermione out of the hall, "That was weird."

"Do you think Ron's always been a bigot or is this just him trying to woo me?" She asked.

"Hard to say," Harry answered, "honestly I'm not sure. I think for the past few years I spent so much time clinging to Ron being my very first friend that I ignored alot of unsavory aspects about him; and you didn't want to lose me as a friend so you just put up with him."

"What if Ron and Malfoy are just products of incest?" Hermione suddenly asked. Harry stared at her blankly so she continued, "Well purebloods boast that they are just that; pure. Now how would you guarantee that your wife or husband's blood is 'pure' Harry? Hint- the royal family did it for centuries."

"Incest," Harry said before his eyes lit up, "which means that all the purebloods in school are related."

"Yes," she smiled that Harry picked up where she was going with this line of thought, "Some are probably closer related than the others. That's why squibs are created. Inbreeding leads to birth defects; for magicals what better birth defects are there than not having magic?"

"But they always say they don't know how or why squibs are born," Harry began.

"They also don't know how to use a telephone, Harry. Or mail a letter. Do you think they actually care? No. They like to scapegoat muggleborns so they can continue to hate us. You've heard Malfoy and his ilk. Muggleborns 'steal' magic from purebloods. But we both know that's not true. Purebloods, instead, seem to be willing to give up their magic to stay 'pure'. They just don't understand that the cost of remaining pure is their children becoming squibs."

"If they did know do you think they'd stop?"

Hermione milled that thought around for a bit before answering, "No. They need their ideology because they need to feel superior."

Harry sighed, "That's just sad."

"That's the perk of bigotry," she said. "On the plus side marriage laws enacted have always been used to keep purebloods from marrying anyone who isn't pure. That includes half-bloods," she nudged him, "and creatures."

"Even if the creature is pure?"

"A man can never be a Veela. We're always female. So Krum isn't a Veela but if he had a sister she would be."

"And purebloods hate creatures," Harry said, "even if they want to shag Veela."

She chuckled at his words and slid her arm around his waist, "You're mine Potter."

"I'm a lucky boy," Harry grinned. She laughed. "We should tell Sirius. You know, to protect any of his own future children."

"I'd rather Sirius found someone on his own though," she said, "if he's only interested in a woman because she's muggle or muggleborn or Veela or whatever…well it's not as sincere."

"I guess I can see that," Harry nodded. "Shall we head off to class?" Hermione nodded.

Sirius' freedom (legal, that is) seemed to lift a massive burden from the old dog's shoulders. Still, it was obvious he wasn't quite free from Azkaban's influence. Under threat of not spending the summer in France with Harry and Hermione he went to a mind healer, Remus moving into Grimmauld Place with his friend to make sure that he was going to the healer.

Kreacher received help from Dobby and Winky to clean and redecorate Grimmauld Place. According to Remus, who was doing some work with Gringotts on finding and containing dark items that were in the house, the house looked completely different and Kreacher the elf was much happier. He had told Sirius something about 'Master Regulus' work being done' and that the 'evil locket' was destroyed, which told Hermione for certain that her gambit with the horcruxes had paid off and also made her quite grateful Voldemort had removed the horcrux from Harry. To make Kreacher even happier he'd been promised he could meet and thank the woman who'd defeated Voldemort, just like Master Regulus had wanted to do. Harry was quite amused to learn that Dobby and Winky would tell Kreacher about how wonderful Hermione was and how kind she was to other creatures.

One spring day in April Harry and Hermione sat on a picnic blanket, Harry's head in her lap as they watched their classmates play in the warm sunshine. Dean was teaching some purebloods about football with help from Justin Finch-Fletchley. The pair had become friends recently and watching them be asked questions like why the ball didn't fly and why the game was played only with feet was quite entertaining from Harry's perspective. Hermione could be heard giggling at some of the more out there questions. "Magicals really can't grasp life without magic," Harry observed.

"They take it for granted," she corrected. "There's a laziness to magic users who were born with it that muggle-raised folks don't have."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Well, not all of them," Harry's eyes flicked over to where Colin and Dennis were patiently explaining football to the Weasley twins and Ginny. "They seem eager to learn."

"Obviously not everyone raised with magic is lazy but think about people like Ron or Malfoy. Neither one could survive without magic. If they were squibs they'd be hopeless."

"Is that why you were so worried about Ron at first? Because you don't think he could survive without being magical?"

"Do you?"

Harry thought about Ron and how he acted, "No I don't. But then why isn't he applying himself more?"

"Because he's Ron. He believes that he's a pureblood and thus above the rules. He expects to get away with it."

"I don't understand where those beliefs come from though," Harry said, frowning, "no one else in the Weasley family is like that."

"Well Sirius was unlike everyone else in the Black family," Hermione pointed out, "until his brother died defecting from Voldemort." Harry nodded. Sometimes he forgot that. "Family doesn't dictate your beliefs and your identity; according to Remus your aunt and your mother were complete opposites."

"That's certainly true," Harry's words stopped short as the ball rolled to a stop against his leg. "You told me you play in a youth league during the summer."

"I do," she nodded.

"Show me your stuff then," he said, getting up and picking up the ball, "I want to see this hidden prowess."

"Okay but don't be offended if I'm better than you," she teased, accepting his hand to help her up.

"Upset? More like turned on," Harry grinned. Hermione took her wand and transfigured the woodwork of the goal posts from a branch on the ground. Harry moved into goal and tossed the ball to her, "Come on then Granger. Show me what you've got."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at his baiting. "Be careful what you ask for Potter. You might just get it."