Chapter Twenty
"No way."
"Come on, Hermione."
"I absolutely refuse to."
"You need practice."
"I'm good enough as it is."
"You are in serious denial, Hermione." Hermione rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. Harry felt frustrated with his friend's stubborn attitude. He just wanted to get this over with so he could get out of there.
He, Hermione and Ron were standing in front of Ron's truck in an abandoned shop's parking lot. It was a chilly day and Harry really did not want to be out there, but Ron had insisted he come along as well. He had reluctantly agreed, feeling it easier to give in than to argue about it further. He really wanted to just practice his and Hermione's newly constructed dance routine. The performance date was closing in on them and they still needed a lot of preparation.
So instead of doing that, they were standing in a cold and desolate lot so Hermione can practice her driving skills. Despite the girl's obvious denial, she was seriously lacking in that area. And Ron was kind enough to agree to be her tutor. Hermione had argued quite a bit all the way there, but Ron paid no mind to any of her protests.
"This is…just absurd, Harry, I can't believe you actually went to Ron," Hermione said. She was giving him a look that made it seem as if he had just ordered a world-wide book burning.
"I told you I would, didn't I?" Harry responded. He just hadn't expected to be dragged along too. He blew into his numb hands for warmth and shifted from foot to foot to make sure they didn't fall off as well.
"Let's get this show on the road, shall we?" Ron announced as he finished setting up the last cone. The old lot was decorated in bright orange cones lined up in a sort of test course.
"Where did you get those cones, anyway?" Hermione asked a bit suspiciously.
"They were just lying around the house," Ron shrugged. "So I just snatched them. It's no big deal."
"Whatever, let's just get this over with, okay?" Harry suggested impatiently. He was pretty sure they looked a bit silly to anyone that happened to pass by the secluded area. They were, after all, just standing in front of an old truck, in an old lot, staring at it as if they'd never seen a truck before.
"This is so not okay," Hermione said in a feeble attempt to get the boys to change their minds.
"Well, no one was asking you," Ron said as he pushed Hermione towards the driver's side of the truck.
"But Harry just…"
"No arguing, get in there. From what Harry tells me, you are in serious need of professional instruction – and I'm just the guy to provide that."
"I'm so sure," Hermione said as she rolled her eyes again. She grabbed the door frame of the driver's side and hauled herself into the seat. Harry couldn't believe how she was reacting to this; usually she would be ecstatic to learn something new. He figured her mood had a lot to do with who was doing the teaching at the moment.
"Come on, Harry, you next." Ron was waving for Harry to get in from his spot by Hermione. But Harry couldn't help but feel hesitant. The last time he had gotten into a car with Hermione behind the wheel, things had been a bit too bumpy for him. He wasn't particularly keen to go through that again.
"I dunno…"
"Are you telling me you want to miss out on Hermione's first driving lesson?"
"I…" But before he could get another word out, Ron leaned over the seat and grabbed his arm. He pulled Harry in so he was settled next to Ron.
"Don't you think having so many people in the truck could be a hindrance for Hermione?" Harry asked while fumbling for the door handle. He really did not like this.
"No way, I'm here. I'll guide her through it. Besides, this will be a group thing. We three friends are in it together, for better…or for worse." Harry didn't like the sound of that "for worse" business. How did he always get himself into these situations?
"Okay, Hermione, first things first - start the truck…you just gotta…"
"I know how to start a vehicle, Ronald," Hermione said.
"Then by all means, please," Ron said, waiting for Hermione to continue. Hermione, with shaking hands, Harry noticed, started up the car. It spurred to life and rumbled underneath them. Harry wondered if Hermione was nervous or just eager to impress a certain someone. He settled on a mixture of both.
"Okay…um…," Hermione looked confused as to what to do next.
"Just guide the car through the simple course I created with the cones. Every time you run over a cone, think of it as running over an innocent person."
"Thanks, Ron," Hermione said. "That was just the confidence booster I needed."
"Honestly, Hermione, you're seventeen. I'm surprised you never learned how to drive before this."
"My parents just didn't think I was ready, okay?" Hermione shot back at him.
"Well, won't your parents be surprised when they finally decide you are ready and you already kick ass at driving?"
"Oh, they'll be thrilled," Hermione muttered. "I got lucky, considering they didn't find out I took the car last time. But this…I think I'm pushing my luck a bit."
"Then you shouldn't have pulled that stunt. If you hadn't, then you wouldn't be here right now."
"Don't remind me." Hermione took a deep breath and reset her gaze on the course in front of her. Harry buckled his seat belt securely and gripped the edge of his seat tightly.
"You're both making a big deal out of nothing. This was your idea in the first place, Harry, so relax," Ron said as he thumped Harry on the back. Harry just gave him a weak smile. That was easy for Ron to say; he has never been in a car with Hermione driving before.
"Any time, Hermione," Ron urged on.
"Hang on a second!" Hermione snapped. "I'm just preparing myself mentally."
They both watched silently as Hermione muttered to herself. They were only able to catch snippets of her conversation with herself – mostly things along the lines of "It's okay, it's just like an exam" and "It's not like I need this anyway".
"So over dramatic, Hermione," Ron said when Hermione seemed to finish. "Everything is going to be okay. The car won't do anything you don't make it do."
"Alright, here it goes," Hermione said. She reached her hand out to the gear shift and changed it to first gear. Gently, she eased the truck out onto the test course and lined it up in between the cones. Pressing down on the gas pedal even more, she sped up just a bit.
"Good, Hermione, just keep it steady," Ron instructed her. "Go ahead and change it to second gear now."
"Okay."
"There's a turn coming up, just stay inside the cones…"
"I got it, Ron."
"Slow down a bit."
"I know how to turn!" The truck slowed down as Hermione turned the wheel slightly to follow the turn made by the cones.
"Speed up just a little as you're inside the turn," Ron said.
"I've done this before, Ron," Hermione said as she stepped on the accelerator. But she must have pressed on it a little too much because the truck suddenly jolted and sped up.
"Slow down!"
"I'm trying!" Hermione screeched as the truck bashed through the line of cones and sped off down the lot.
"The brakes! The brakes!" Ron yelled as he reached over and grabbed the wheel, roughly yanking it to the left before they could smash into an upcoming tree.
"I'm pressing the brakes, it's not working!" Hermione said. Harry's eyes were wide as he watched the scene unfold. He knew this was a bad idea – he will never, ever let Hermione drive him anywhere…ever.
"You've got your foot on the gas! Let it go." Hermione apparently had her foot on the accelerator and brake pedals at the same time. She abruptly took her foot off the gas and jammed down on the brake. The car came to a halt just before a large pole in the center of the parking lot. Everyone sat frozen for a few moments; Hermione had both her hands on the wheel and her eyes were wide open with fright. Her chest with heaving and Harry could see her hands were shaking. He himself was sure his heart was going to leap out of his chest.
After a few more moments of buzzing silence, they all took timid looks at each other. But that was all it took; the moment Ron and Harry's eyes met, they both burst out laughing. Harry doubled over as Ron leaned over on him as the laughter continued to spill from their mouths.
Harry looked up at Hermione, who was giving them both looks of pure loathing. She was obviously not as amused by these events as they were.
"Honestly! What is the matter with you two?"
"My God, Hermione," Ron wheezed out. "When Harry said you needed a little help…I never imagined…you would be this bad!"
"I…it…stop laughing!"
Harry and Ron immediately sat up and tried to hold back the laughs that threatened to come out. They shared a look and almost choked on the humor of it all. Swallowing their amusement, they sobered up and took deep breaths.
"Sorry, Hermione."
"Yeah, sorry 'Mione. It wasn't that funny…, well the way you were screeching like a hen was…I mean…"
Ron immediately stopped talking at the look Hermione was giving him. "Er…how about we just back this up and try again?"
"That sounds like a grand idea, Ronald."
"Okay, then. Just put the truck in…"
"Reverse, I know." Hermione switched the gear into what she obviously thought was reverse, but instead of going backwards, the car went forwards and slammed right into the pole. Harry jolted forward and the seat belt caught around his throat, keeping him from being thrown through the windshield but definitely giving him a nice choke. There was more silence as everyone took in what just happened.
"My truck!"
"My throat."
"…oops."
Ron scrambled over Harry and climbed out of the truck. Harry and Hermione unbuckled their belts and immediately followed. They all rushed to the front of the car to inspect the damage. Ron knelt down to take a closer look while Hermione leaned forward.
"It's just a little dent."
"Just a little dent? Do you have any idea how much that will cost to fix?"
"Honestly, it's not that bad. You just need to buffer it out a little."
"You've wrecked my truck," Ron accused as he stood up.
"I did not wreck your truck; it was a little bump in with a pole. Get over it."
"As if my poor truck hasn't been through enough as it is."
"I didn't think anything else could happen to it," Harry commented from the background. Ron spun around and narrowed his eyes at him.
"What's that mean, Harry?"
"I'm just saying it was in pretty bad shape as it is. A little dent like that isn't gonna change anything. I seriously doubt anyone will notice."
"I'll notice! Now I'll never get any girls with it all banged up like this."
Hermione snorted, "Oh yeah, because I'm so sure it was a serious chick-magnet before."
"Be quiet, truck-wrecker."
"You're the one who made me do this! I told you it was a bad idea!"
"And you're the one who doesn't know how to use 'reverse'!"
Harry covered his ears with his hands to try and drown out the heated argument. He was tired of hearing the two go after each other's throats. Deciding enough was enough, he uncovered his ears to stop the fight from escalating any further.
"…the brakes, Hermione! That's what they're bloody there for."
"For goodness sa…"
"Enough!" Harry shouted over their voices. They both stopped and looked at him.
"What, Harry?"
"Something wrong, Harry?"
"Yes! You two always going at each other over every little thing is what's wrong. It's getting annoying!"
The two of them had the decency to look ashamed at their actions.
"Sorry, Harry."
"Yeah, sorry."
"Good. Now can we act like adults for two minutes and not like irrational children?"
"I guess so," Ron said as he looked at Hermione. He gave her a small smile. "I'm sorry for overreacting. It's not a big deal, really."
"And I guess I'm sorry for wrecking your car in the first place," Hermione replied. They lapsed into a sort of awkward silence after that. Harry couldn't help but feel happy at this new step they have taken. Maybe now they can get past their childish ways.
"I think we should get going now, I'll gather up the cones," Ron said.
"And I'll get the truck." Hermione made to walk back to the driver's side of the truck. Ron reached out and caught her arm before she could take a step closer.
"Oh no. I don't think so."
"What? Why not?"
"After that little display of total lack of driving abilities? You must be bonkers."
"I'm not going to wreck it again! Stop being such a baby about your stupid car, and give me the keys. I can do it, just watch."
'…Or not,' Harry thought. He sighed and rolled his eyes – he supposed some things never change.
The Weasley house was unlike any other household Harry had ever been to (granted, that was not very many). It was a narrow, two-story house with an unkempt garden and old shoes and broken objects lying about on the front steps. It was located in the lower-middle class section of the city; however, it was lucky that the neighborhood they lived in was a friendly one. As the trio pulled up to the Weasley house in Ron's newly dented truck, neighbors gave friendly smiles and waved to the youngest Weasley son.
"Afternoon, Ronald," an elderly lady said from her front steps as they stepped from Ron's car. "And who are these young people? Friends of yours?"
"Hi Mrs. Peterson," Ron waved. "This is Hermione and Harry."
"Nice to meet you, dears," Mrs. Peterson greeted. "But you best get on inside, Ronald; Molly has been looking for you all day."
"Oh no," Ron groaned. "We better get inside." As they were making their way up to the front steps of Ron's house, they heard a very distinct shouting match coming from inside.
"I told you two! No playing jokes on your little sister!" was the greeting that met them as they opened the door.
"But Mum! We didn't do anything!"
"Don't give me that. You'll go apologize to Ginny this instant! The poor girl is distraught over what you two did."
Harry and Hermione shared a look. They wondered what happened.
"Fred and George," Ron whispered to them as he hung his coat up by the door. "It sounds like they pulled another prank again."
Harry nodded in understanding; he had heard about Ron's older twin brothers; they were notorious for pulling practical jokes on anyone dumb enough to fall for them.
The three of them walked into the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley, a short and plump woman, was washing dishes in the sink,
"Er…I'm home, Mum," Ron said a bit timidly. It seemed as if he didn't want to turn his mother's wrath upon himself. "And I brought friends."
Mrs. Weasley whirled around and a smile lit up on her face the instant her eyes landed on them.
"Hermione! How good to see you," she said as she approached them. "How have you been?"
"Good, thanks, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione responded with a smile of her own.
"And this must be Harry," Mrs. Weasley said as she turned to Harry. "Ron has talked about you, of course! It seems you are becoming quite the pair of friends."
"It's nice to meet you," Harry said.
"Are you hungry? Or course you are, look how thin you are!"
"I…er…"
"Come, come, sit down and I will prepare you something. You too, Hermione."
"Great, Mum, I'm starving!" Ron said as he made for the table in the kitchen.
"Not you," Mrs. Weasley said, stopping Ron in his tracks. "I want you to go out to the back yard and finish pulling those weeds from my garden. I also think there's a rat living in Ginny's room. I want you to catch it for her; she's been hysterical all day."
"What? Why me?"
"Because I said so, now get moving!"
"Fine, fine." Ron was just about to head out when he turned back to his mother.
"Speaking of Ginny, what did Fred and George do to her?"
"Oh, those horrible boys! They replaced her shampoo with green dye. The poor dear is mortified. Luckily, it is only temporary dye; it will wash out soon enough."
Ron seemed to trying to hide his laughter, because he said in a rather choked voice, "Really? This I gotta see…I mean - I'll just go check up on her."
"Don't you dare make fun of her, Ronald Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley called after him, but Ron was already gone. "That boy, I swear…, well, anyway, take a seat you two."
Harry and Hermione took a seat at the table, sitting in the two chairs beside each other. They watched as Mrs. Weasley bustled about in the kitchen, preparing a small snack of freshly baked biscuits and milk. She smiled at the two of them as she set the tray with a small pile of oatmeal and raisin biscuits, as well as a jug of ice-cold milk in front of them.
"I'm so happy you and Ron are getting along again, Hermione," Mrs. Weasley commented as she poured milk into glasses for them. "He was in such an awful state after you two had that fight. But now he's back to his normal self again."
"Oh, really…?" Hermione said, looking a bit guilty. "That's…that's good to hear."
Harry reached out and grabbed one of the warm biscuits and nibbled on it. He wondered what Hermione was thinking about – it looked as if she was thinking something over very seriously. Her index finger was tracing the outline of the top of her milk glass and her eyes held a far-off glaze to them.
However, they were quite suddenly interrupted by a loud disturbance from the floor above them. It seemed as if two people were having a row about something.
"I better go check on them," Mrs. Weasley said as she gazed up at the ceiling from where the noise was coming.
"We'll do it, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione offered out of no where. She pushed her chair back and stood up.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, we're done here anyway."
"Well…alright. I do need to finish up in here anyway."
Hermione nodded and grabbed Harry's arm to haul him up. He dropped his half-eaten biscuit and followed her out of the kitchen. They walked into a hallway crowded with everyday household objects and other trinkets. He nearly tripped over a pair of boots as they made their way through it. When at last they reached the staircase leading to the upper-floor, the shouting had increased in volume. Harry looked up the steps toward the sound and recognized one of them as Ron's voice.
"Sounds like Ron found Ginny," Hermione said as she rolled her eyes and began walking up the case of stairs. Harry followed right behind her as he continued to look around at his surroundings. He wanted to drink in everything he saw; he had never seen such a strange house before – while Hermione's home was always neat and well-kept, this one seemed to be disorderly, but in a homey way.
The stairs creaked under his feet as they ascended to the second-floor landing. There was a long stretch of hallway with doors that opened up to bedrooms and the like. There were family portraits, as well as individual and casual pictures on the walls – some lined straight while others hung crooked. He was just about to study a few of them when a couple of large, identical figures suddenly blocked his way.
"Who's this?"
"I've never seen him before, have you Fred?"
"I haven't, George."
"An intruder, perhaps?"
"It would seem that way, wouldn't it."
"Stop it, you two," Hermione said sternly. The twins turned to Hermione and huge, identical grins appeared on their faces.
"Hermione! Didn't see you there."
"And what do we owe this pleasure?"
"We're here with Ron," Hermione answered.
"Ron? Why bother with Ron, we're here," one of them said as he wiggled his eyebrows. Hermione just sighed and shoved at his chest playfully.
"Seriously, we're just looking for Ron."
"Oh, well he's in Ginny's room."
"Getting a good holler while he's at it."
"The poor dear, she didn't need big-nose Ron making things worse." He said this with a hand over his heart and a false-sympathetic expression on his face.
"You two shouldn't have done that to her in the first place!" Hermione admonished. Harry just stood in the background, seemingly forgotten.
"I think it looks good. Her hair needed a bit of brightening up, anyway."
"Isn't that a bit childish, even for you two? I thought you were on to bigger and better pranks."
"It isn't a bad thing to fall back on the old classics once in awhile, my friend."
"Yeah, never underestimate the value of an old-fashioned prank."
Hermione just sighed in annoyance and faint amusement.
"What are you two doing here, anyway? I thought you had your own place now."
"We do. We thought we'd just stop by and give Mum and Dad a visit."
Harry cleared his throat, not really wanting to draw attention to himself but not wanting to stand there in the shadows all day long either. They all turned to him simultaneously.
"And who is this, Hermione? A new lover, perhaps?"
"Ron will be heartbroken! How could you?"
"Don't be ridiculous; Harry and I are just friends. Harry, these two are Fred and George." She pointed to both respectively so he could recognize which is which. He wondered how long it took Hermione to finally learn how to tell them apart.
"So you're Harry! Pleasure to meet you," Fred said as he grabbed his hand and shook it a bit roughly.
"Ron has spoken so fondly of you," said George as he grabbed Harry's hand after Fred was done with it and gave it his own round of shakes. "I'm beginning to wonder if it's not Hermione who we should worry about stealing Ron's heart." He winked as Harry blanched a bit and his face heated in embarrassment.
"That's quite enough, you two," Hermione said, rescuing Harry just as he was about ready to crawl into a hole and hide there. "We're looking for Ron, so if you'd please be so kind as to get out of our way so we could find him."
"As you wish," George said and he stepped out of the way so Hermione and Harry could pass through. But just as they did this, a door banged open and two figures, a boy and a girl appeared out of it. Harry recognized the boy as Ron.
"Just get out, Ron!" the girl yelled. Harry couldn't help but notice her shockingly green hair. Bits of red could still be seen at odd patches, giving her an overall strange appearance. She turned her attention in their direction and the moment she saw Hermione and Harry, her eyes grew wide and her face turned red. She gave a squeak of embarrassment, covered her hair with her arms and ran back into her room.
"Well, we found Ron," Harry commented. Ron walked over to them and started shaking his head.
"What's her problem?"
"What did you say to her?"
"Just that the green in her hair makes her look like a giant carrot."
"That's horrible, Ron!" Hermione said.
"Whatever, let's go. I need to go into my room for a second," he waved for them to follow him down the hall. He led them to the very last door, which apparently led to his room. The door was old and worn with a chipping brass knob and a sign hanging from it that read 'Ron Weasley's Room'.
"Here we are," Ron announced. He placed his hand on the knob and gave it a turn. The door didn't budge, "Heh, it get stuck sometimes, so you just gotta give it a shove." He rammed his shoulder against the door while pulling up on the door knob. Harry and Hermione looked at each other as Ron worked on getting into his bedroom. After a few more attempts, the door flew open and Ron stumbled into his room.
"There," he panted, "welcome to my humble abode." Harry stepped in after Hermione and looked around. The first thing he noticed was the prominent amount of orange, but when the shock of that wore off and his eyes adjusted, he then noticed the number of posters decorating the walls. They seemed to be a team for some sport, one Harry wouldn't really know much about. He didn't follow many sports, seeing as he hardly watched television.
"I just need to put my bag away and grab my gardening gloves."
"You have your own pair of gardening gloves?" Hermione asked as she too looked around, though she didn't look quite as shocked at the state of the room. It appeared she had been in there before. 'For what, though,' Harry thought with a smirk.
"Yeah, it's best that way seeing as Mum is always making me pull weeds." Ron rummaged through one of his dresser drawers and pulled out a pair of worn gloves used specifically for gardening. "Got'em. Okay, let's go."
They trooped down the stairs once again, but were stopped at the foot by Mrs. Weasley, who looked quite peeved about something.
"RON WEASLEY!"
Ron flinched beside them and paled considerably.
"Y-yes, Mum?"
"WHAT HAVE YOU GONE AND DONE TO YOUR SISTER? AND WHAT'S THIS I HEAR YOU'VE DONE TO YOUR TRUCK?"
"Oh no," he whispered to them, "Looks like Mum's in a right state at the moment. You two better save yourselves. I'll see you later, okay?"
Harry couldn't help but feel relieved when he said this. Mrs. Weasley looked rather scary just then and he really didn't want to be around when she unleashed her fury on the cowering red-head next to them.
So, without a moment's hesitation, Hermione and Harry sneaked around Mrs. Weasley and fled through the front door. They both heaved relieved sighs as they stood outside on the porch; the sky was turning gray with clouds, with a few patches of sunlight peeking through.
They would have to walk home now, without Ron to drive them, so they wrapped their coats around themselves tightly and began walking down the street.
It was a quiet journey to Hermione's home – but Harry didn't mind this. He was perfectly content in just enjoying the walk. He breathed in the mid-November air with content, smiling up at the sky as he breathed it out again. Everything felt rather peaceful at the moment, and how he wished things could stay this way forever. He didn't feel any particular worries, feeling only at peace with himself.
When they reached Hermione's house about an hour and a half later, a peculiar sight met them. Draco Malfoy was sitting on her front steps, his hands jammed in his coat pockets and his hair hiding his face as his head was bowed. 'What's he doing here?' He hadn't seen the boy in about a week and, even though he never said anything to Hermione, he had been thinking about him quite a bit.
The boy's head snapped up as they approached him. His eyes locked with Harry's immediately and he gave an odd sort of smile.
"Draco? What are you doing here?" Harry asked as he went and sat next to him. Hermione chose to just stand in front of them, looking as if she was feeling awkward.
"I was just looking for you. So um, do you wanna get out of here and go do something? I just gotta get away for a few hours."
Harry looked at him sympathetically – he knew how it was to want to just go somewhere for awhile and pretend nothing bad is happening. He studied the blond for a moment, taking in his appearance. He looked better than he had the week before, all of his wounds seemed to be healing at a good pace and he didn't look as tired. He looked like something was troubling him though and Harry wanted to help him.
"Sure, where do you want to go?" he asked softly.
"Anywhere, I don't care. Let's just go somewhere."
Harry looked up at Hermione and shrugged, "What do you think, Hermione?"
"Well…," she tapped her chin in thought, "My dad told me about that new ice rink downtown, we could go there. I've always wanted to try ice-skating."
"Hey, that sounds fun. What do you think, Draco?" Harry asked as he smiled and nudged Draco a bit with his shoulder, "Wanna try some ice-skating?"
Draco looked between Harry and Hermione before seemingly coming to a decision. He gave a small smile and nodded his head.
"Great! I'll go tell Mum and Dad real quick," Hermione said excitedly as she ran up the steps between them and through the door.
"So...," Harry said through the thick silence. He tapped his fingers on his thighs and chewed on his tongue.
"So," Draco repeated him, looking just as desperate to break the awkwardness between them.
Harry turned his head to face the other boy and smiled, leaning back while bringing his hands down to brace himself against the steps. His fingers brushed lightly against Draco's, which too were splayed against the cold cement. They both snatched their hands away and Harry could feel another blush coming on. He sat up straight with his hands folded in his lap and he kept his eyes averted.
When the door reopened and Hermione appeared from it, it came as a blessing to them.
"Great, I'm ready!" she said as she trotted down the steps, "What are you two waiting for? Let's go!"
Harry and Draco shared another look before getting up and following the bouncing girl. Hermione sure was excited about this – as she always was whenever they were about to do something new and fun.
It didn't take too long to reach the rink. Harry looked up at the building with awe – it was brand new and looked quite impressive. They had never had an all-year-around ice-rink before. Usually there were a few outdoor ones during the winter, but never one in a building. He had never gone ice-skating before and Hermione's excitement was beginning to rub off on him.
"We're here! Hurry up, you two!" Hermione shouted as she ran off. Harry clicked his tongue and shook his head. Grabbing Draco's hand without thinking, he ran off after the girl, dragging the other along behind him.
The three of them burst through the doors and stopped to look around in wonder. The place was huge! There was a concession center, a place to rent or buy ice-skates and one giant rink. Christmas music was gently playing from the speakers and people were walking to and fro, their voices echoing through the expanse of the building. Harry looked up and noticed a skylight looking out onto the gray sky above. He smiled as Hermione practically jumped with glee.
"This is amazing! Come on, let's go get skates!" She hurried off to that section of the building and Harry and Draco just followed helplessly. They were going to be stuck with Hermione during this and she seemed determined to make it a very scary experience.
One of the workers, a tall man dressed in his uniform, came over to and greeted them.
"Hello, is this your first time skating?"
"Yes," Hermione nodded.
"Would you like to take a small lesson on ice-skating? We have a discount for first-timers."
"Hmmm…no, I think we'll just figure it out for ourselves, thanks."
"No problem, miss. Now, you'll be needing skates of course. Buying or renting?"
"Renting."
"Hmm, okay I'll need your sizes."
"Well, I'm a six in women's and Harry is six in men's. I remembered because we have the same number size."
"I'm not five, Hermione. I can remember my own shoe size."
"Oh, don't make a fuss. And I'm sorry, but I don't know yours, Draco."
"It would be creepy if you did," Harry said.
"Ten," Draco said plainly. The worker nodded and wrote it down.
"I'll be right back with your skates."
Hermione whistled and grinned at Draco, "You have some big tootsies."
"I'm tall, what do you expect?"
"That's true; at least you don't have small, girly feet like Harry."
"I do not!" Harry protested but tucked his feet under himself nonetheless.
"Aww, is Harry embarrassed by his little feetsies?"
"Yes, if you continue calling them 'feetsies'!" Hermione giggled at him. "And besides, six is medium, not small, I'll have you know."
"Whatever you say, Harry," Hermione said and looked up as the worker returned with their skates in hand.
"Let's see…ten," he read off and handed the black pair to Draco. "Six in women's." The brown pair went to Hermione, "and six in men's." The last pair, which happened to be white, was handed to Harry.
After they all took off their shoes and slipped their feet into their skates, the worker showed them how to lace them up properly. When that was done, they placed their belongings in a safe place and walked (rather awkwardly on their new footwear) toward the rink.
The cold air blasted them unwelcomingly as they stood around the entrance to the rink. Shivers and goosebumps ran down Harry's arms and back as he looked at the gleaming white ice.
"I think we should have taken those lessons," Harry said with a bit of trepidation. The ice looked very slippery. He looked up and watched as other people glided perfectly across the smooth ice – but a few them looked really wobbly and unsure of themselves.
"Nonsense," Hermione said. She was the first of them to step out onto the ice. She took a few moments to adjust herself, but miraculously she got the hang of it and skated out toward the center of the ice elegantly. 'She's always been a fast learner,' Harry thought with jealously.
"You first," Draco said as he stepped aside to let Harry through next. Harry glared at him but took a deep breath and walked out onto the ice anyway. It was not as easy as Hermione made it look; his feet stumbled and slipped and he had to grab onto the edge to steady himself. He looked over and watched as Draco repeated the same process as him. He was having even more trouble than Harry had.
"Come on, you've got it," Harry said and he reached out a hand for Draco to grab. Draco reached for it and clasped hands with his. Harry helped pull him towards the edge so he could grab hold of it as well. They let go of hands once he did and they stared at each other.
"Figures Hermione would pick something like this for us to do," Harry said as he looked down at his feet. He worked on straightening them up.
"What are you waiting for?" Hermione said as she stopped in front of them, "this is great! Get your butts out here." She skated away again and performed a little spin to show off her new-found talent.
"Show off," Harry muttered as he let go of his holding and followed Hermione out with not an ounce of grace.
"It's easy, Harry," Hermione called while skating backwards, "it's just like dancing."
"Dancing on dangerous ice," Harry mumbled as he straightened himself up a bit. He kept his arms outstretched a bit to keep his balance and he moved his feet inches at a time. He felt Draco right behind him, struggling just as much. The blades of their skates clanked against the frozen water and cut into it as they started getting more and more used to this new experience. It was sort of like dancing; only Harry was used to dancing in his bare feet, not on thin pieces of metal.
"This isn't so bad," Harry commented. He dropped his arms and straightened himself fully, "It just takes some getting used to. What do you think, Draco?"
Harry turned around to face the other boy, but he must have done so too quickly because he stumbled and began to fall. He tried to reach out to grab onto Draco but his feet slipped underneath him and he fell to his butt.
He heard laughter ring out from behind him and he looked up. Hermione skated to a stop beside him, her body shaking with laughter.
"I won't lie to you, Harry," she said between laughs, "Everyone saw that."
"Shut up; and someone help me, please." Draco reached down to help him up. Harry extended his arm upwards and Draco wrapped his hands around his arm. He hauled him up and Harry fought to keep his balance. He placed both hands on Draco's arms as he leaned against him.
"There," Draco breathed. "Steady?"
"I think so." Harry moved a bit to test his balance, but it turned out that he wasn't as steady as he thought. His feet slipped apart and before he knew it, he was scrabbling to keep his hold on Draco. This only caused to bring them both down as Draco slipped backwards from Harry's weight. The two of them landed on the ground in a tangle. More laughter came from Hermione's direction as she continued to have the time of her life watching them struggle.
Harry and Draco shared a look and identical grins appeared on their faces. As Hermione was too busy laughing at them to really take notice of what they were doing, they both crawled over to where Hermione was standing; without a moment's hesitation, they grabbed onto her legs and broke her balance. She came crashing down on top of them heavily.
"What the hell was that for?" Hermione screeched.
"There, now we're even," Harry said as he wormed his way out of the pile and sat down on the ice. He was panting and grinning at Hermione's sour face. However, their fun was short-lived. One of the security personnel was heading in their direction.
"You three," he said as he skated up to them, "No horse playing allowed as it is dangerous. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"Good going, Hermione," Harry said as he struggled to his feet.
"Me? You two are the ones that tripped me!"
"Only because you were acting so smug."
"I was not!"
"Was too!"
"Not!"
"So was," Harry said. They walked from the ice rink and over to the rental department. He sat down with a sigh, wanting to get out of his uncomfortable skates. He untied the tightly wound strings and pulled his feet from their entrapment. He wiggled his toes in relief and pulled his worn trainers on.
"I can't believe we got kicked out on our first visit," Hermione said, "I am so embarrassed."
"Oh lighten up," Harry said as he threw an arm around Hermione's shoulder, "We had fun, didn't we?"
"Well…yeah."
"Then it was worth getting kicked out for."
"I guess so," Hermione said. Harry knew she wasn't the kind of person who liked getting in trouble for breaking the rules. "Well, I need to get home. Are you coming over tonight?"
"Yeah, but I think I'll walk Draco home first."
"You want me to come too?"
"Nah, that's okay. You go on ahead so your parents don't worry."
"Okay, Harry. I'll see you later. Bye, Draco," Hermione waved to them as she broke off in the opposite direction.
"Thanks for this, Harry," Draco said as they began walking.
"It's no problem, really."
"Um…I'm not ready to go home yet," Draco announced.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, do you mind if we make a quick stop at the hospital. I want to say good-night to my mother."
"Definitely. That's fine with me. I'm in no particular hurry to get back anyway."
Harry looked down and just caught the sudden movement of Draco's hand. It looked as if the boy wanted to take hold of his hand but had decided against it. Harry didn't know if he was disappointed about that or not. His heart fluttered a bit and he felt a churning in his stomach as he walked close to the blonde. Their journey was one of silence and they reached the hospital in what felt like only seconds to Harry.
They entered the warmth of the building, the sliding doors closing shut behind them. Harry looked around at the gleaming white walls and floors and shuddered as he remembered the last time he had been there. Off to the side, an elderly man was playing a solemn tune on the piano patients sometimes use. The music echoed off the walls and set an ominous feeling in the atmosphere.
Their footsteps bounced off the empty hallways as they made their way down to Draco's mother's room. Draco was silent beside him and Harry couldn't help but think something didn't feel quite right. They ascended the stairs to the third floor where the cancer ward was. Harry looked out the windows and down at the ground below where doctors, patients and visitors were walking about in the dimming sunlight. The setting sun cast golden light through the windows and lighted their path as they continued to walk.
"Something's not right," Draco whispered as his fists clenched. "I can feel it. Something's wrong." He suddenly broke off into a run and all Harry could do was hurry behind him. They shot around a corner and ran down another seemingly endless hallway. They were suddenly stopped by a woman in a white coat appearing from one of the rooms.
Draco halted in front of her and his eyes shot back and forth between the room and the doctor.
"Mr. Malfoy," she said with surprise as she looked up at him, "I was just about to phone you."
"What's wrong?" Draco demanded. Harry stood a ways back, feeling dread begin to seep within his own body. "Why did you need to call me?"
The doctor's face went solemn as she tried to keep eye contact with the frantic boy.
"Well?" he almost shouted hysterically. "Tell me!"
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Malfoy," the doctor said as she reached out an arm to comfort the boy.
"No!" Draco shouted as he backed away from her. "NO!"
The woman's arm dropped by her side and she lowered her head in sympathy. Draco pushed her out of the way and ran to the room she had just exited. He suddenly stopped in the doorway. He grabbed hold of the door frame as he looked like his knees were about to give out underneath him. Harry could only look on helplessly as he watched the boy's heart shatter into a million pieces. He could feel his own heart bleed for him.
He continued to watch as the boy shakily walked into the room, almost with hesitance. It was as if he was afraid to walk into that room, walk right into the reality of the situation. When Draco disappeared through the doorway, Harry just stood there, rooted to the spot. When the sounds of sobbing reached his ears, however, he took a few tentative steps forward. He continued to walk until he was at the doorway himself. He looked on at the scene with saddened eyes.
Draco was bent over his mother's still form, his head resting on her unmoving chest as his hands clenched her hospital gown. The setting sun's golden light was fading fast through the window opposite them and darkness settled in on the two forms in the room. The echoing sound of Draco's heartbreaking sobs filled the entire hospital, causing tears to fall from Harry's own eyes. He averted his sight from them and wiped his face clean. He wanted to walk up to the boy and give him some form of comfort, but he found his legs unable to move. So instead, he just stood there, looking away as Draco's cries continued throughout the still and empty night.