Author's note: Long time, no post

Author's note: We are sooooo sorry for not posting anything for soooo long, but, this is a really long and really good episode, soooo, will you forgive us? LOL!

Ron's Hand: Part Five

Molly plopped down on the bed. She was stressed out. So stressed out, that she could barely keep her limbs from shaking. She felt helpless. She was trying to think of something useful to do, when Arthur called from downstairs. "Molly!" She walked downstairs.

When she reached the kitchen, the smell of tea meet her nose. Arthur brought a cup over, and set it down in front of her. She brought it to eye level, but didn't take a sip.

"Molly," said Arthur. "I know that this is not easy to sit and watch, but you have to drink something. There is nothing that we can do!"

Molly slammed the cup down. Tea sloshed over the edges, and onto the table. "But there is!"

***

It was the second consecutive Weasley family meeting in two hours. Fred would have commented on that, but everyone was too serious to find it funny.

Lupin had joined them, and was sitting by Bill. He had bags under his eyes again.

"Anyone find any leads? Arthur asked. Everyone, including Ginny, raised his or her hands.

"Put your hands down, this isn't school. Charlie, you can go first."

"I'm almost positive that I've figured out what happened; he eloped."

"No," said Arthur sadly. "That's not it."

No one bothered to question them. They were, after all, parents.

Ginny suddenly gasped. "Harry! Hermione! We totally forgot about them!"

Ginny ran over and got Errol off of his perch, ("Hoot!") and got some parchment and a quill, them sat down again. She wrote:

Dear Hermione,

This is very urgent! Ron is missing! Grab Harry and get down to the Burrow as fast as you can!

Love, Ginny

She grabbed Errol, tied the note to his leg, and threw him out the window.

"Sense you all are telling us about your experiences, let us tell about ours." Said Molly quietly.

Arthur glanced suddenly out the window, as it he half-expected someone to be outside, watching.

Molly began, "I was feeling very restless and helpless, s I decided to go see Sybil Trelawney. Now, you all know that I was never a big fan of that woman's, but I couldn't think of anything else to do." Almost instantly the smell of damp and loneliness filled her nose, the way it had when she had entered Trelawney's room. She recalled the crystal ball before her, and Trelawney telling her that Ron was indeed, in Mortal Peril. He was with the same person that had taken their firstborn many years ago, when this person was new, friendless, and lacking power. This person was Lord Voldermort.

"There is something that Molly and I haven't told you all yet." Arthur again glanced out the window, before turning back to them with tears in his eyes. " I had… I had another daughter. She was just a toddler when bill was born! When we went to Trelawney's room, she saw her in the crystal ball. She saw my daughter…"

After this, he seemed to choked up to continue, so Molly took over. "You see," she said. "Voldermort wanted our daughter for reasons that only Dark Lords such as himself can understand. He killed her, and-"

Arthur, regaining composure, said, " And that's about it."

"And we have decided to owl him, and ask for Ron back. He probably wants a ransom, and that's all that we can think of…" Molly broke down again. She was mumbling some other stuff, but it was so slurred that they couldn't understand it.

A shocked silence filled the room. Bill looked as if he was about to cry, Charlie the same, Percy as if he had wet himself, the twins horror-stricken, and Ginny was sobbing and muttering incoherent words. Lupin, however, looked the most distressed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He whispered.

"Well, look how the children have responded! We wanted to protect them." Said Arthur.

"A fine job you did. It would have been easyer if they had always known, trust me."

"We know!" Sobbed Molly. "We know!"

Lupin's rather harsh look softened. "Well, that was in the past, so what are we going to do now?"

"As I have already said, we are going to owl Voldermort, and ask for Ron back! Ginny, get me some parchment, an owl, and a quill. Hurry!" said Molly, with considerable force.

"Yes, Mum!" said Ginny. Presently, she came back.

Dear Lord Voldermort, (Fred made a comment at this, but was soon silenced by a cold look from his mother.)

I understand that you have our son, Ronald. We are terribly worried, and would give anything to have him back!

Sincerely, Molly Weasley

For the second time that day, an owl was thrown out of the window.

"Well, I guess the only thing we can do is-" and an owl flew in, and dropped a letter on Arthur's head. He opened it slowly.

Dear Ginny,

We are the parents of Hermione, and found your letter. We were quite distressed to read it, for Hermione is missing also. She has been missing for almost the whole evening. We have notified the police. We feel that her and your son may have "run off" together. Umm, "owl" us soon!

Sincerely, Mr.& Mrs. Granger

Percy snorted. "As if Muggle police were a match for You-Know-Who!"

"Hush!" said Molly.

"Hey!" said Ginny. "What about Harry?"

"Harry who?" mumbled Bill, who was nodding off.

"Harry Potter! He still doesn't know!"

"Hey, you're right! He's still totally ignorant of the situation!" said Fred.

"Ooooh, big words!" said Percy.

"Why don't Bill and Charlie run over and get him?

"Dad," said Fred in earnest. "The only place that bill could drive us right now is straight up a tree, and Charlie doesn't know that way…"

It was proof of how tired Bill was that he didn't even grunt when this insult at his driving was thrown out.

"Bill, why don't you go to bed?" said Molly gently.

"NO! Ron… Missing…" and then Bill truly went asleep.

"He has been working hard, let him lie." Said Lupin softly.

Without a word, the twins picked him up, (George had his feet and Fred had his arms) and carried him off to bed. Presently they came back.

"I'll do it." Said Lupin.

"You know the way?" said the twins in unison.

"Yea. Sirius and I visited Harry last summer."

"Dad," said Ginny suddenly. "Can I go with him?"

Arthur, who had a shrewd suspicion that he knew what was going on, said; " Sure. He might want some company."

"Great!" said Ginny. She ran out to the hall, and came back wearing her coat. "Let's go!"

Charlie threw Lupin the keys. Lupin said, " Hey, you all don't mind if I pick up Sirius on the way, do you?"

"No, no. Not at all." Said Molly absentmindedly, because she was clearing of the table. " The more help we can get, the better."

Ginny was already in the backseat of the car, which was still charmed to fit five people. Lupin, who had never seen the car before in its charmed condition, was a tad surprised to see that the passenger seat was the size of a park bench.

Lupin put the key in the ignition, and "VROOM!" they were off.

Soon he had to push the Invisibility button, because even Ginny could tell that they were entering an area full of muggles.

"This is where Sirius is hiding!" called Lupin over the noise of the wind rushing past.

Suddenly he stopped. The ca began to sink down. Lupin was gliding it gently into the driveway.

***

Ron came groggily to consciousness. The air was strangely damp. He worked his eyes into focus. Stone walls, and that dripping must be water.

He tried to get up, but ended up collapsing with a groan. But, he had gotten a glimpse of something else. Loads of bushy, brown hair. He knew that he had seen that hair before, but he couldn't quite place it. However, before he could think of whom the hair belonged to, an "alarm system" of sorts went off in his head, and with a groan of "Need…Sleep…" he was asleep again.

***

They were on their way to Harry's. Ginny felt a wild thrill of excitement surge through her. Even though she was terribly worried about Ron, she couldn't wait to see his best friend.

Meanwhile, Lupin had explained everything to Sirius, who was sitting in the passenger seat. He seemed just as worried as Lupin, and his already strained face was looking even more stressed.

"Are we almost there?" questioned Ginny.

"Yes. In fact, that's his hair right there." Lupin replied. Ginny's heart instantly fell to about her knees. During the ride she had been anxious, but now she was tense, so tense that she could cry.

"I'll go in and get him," said Sirius. "After all, I am his convicted godfather." He ended with a wink.

Soon Ginny saw Harry coming out of the screen door, pulling everything that he owned in his trunk. When he got to the car, he glanced inside, and saw Lupin and Ginny.

When Ginny saw him, she turned a beautiful shade of vermilion. Harry, seeing her discomfort, turned away.

"Well, albydarned," said Lupin glancing at Harry's trunk. "You'd think that you were moving in with the Weasley's."

"For the present, I am." Said Harry.

"Fasten your seat belts, Ladies and Gentlemen, we're off to the Burrow!"

As they drove on, Ginny got sleepier and sleepier. She soon drifted off to sleep.

***

Harry stared out of the car window, bored. He didn't know what to do. Lupin was exhausted, and didn't know what to say to Sirius. Just then, Sirius turned around and looked at Harry. Then he looked at the space next to Harry. Then he looked back at Harry. He winked. Harry was trying to figure out why in the world Sirius had winked for, when he felt movement on his shoulder. And there he saw that Ginny was sleeping there. He was horrified! And even worse, he seemed to have put his arm around her!

Instantly, he slowly moved, inch by inch, away from Ginny. 'Omigawd!" he thought. "That was close!"

***

Lupin slowed the Ford Angila to a stop in front of the Burrow. Ginny was still asleep, and so was Sirius. Harry was about to wake them up, but Lupin cut in and said, "Let them lie."

Harry stepped out of the car. He went to the trunk. Lupin opened it, and gave Harry his trunk. "You go on ahead. I'll wake them up."
"Okay." Said Harry nervously. He was worried about meeting the Weasley's without Ron. Harry walked into the house quietly. He saw Arthur and Molly standing with a letter in their hands, reading it aloud. Harry knew that it was a private letter, but listened anyway. After Arthur had finished, he wished that he hadn't.

Dear Mrs. Weasley,

Yes, I indeed have your son, Ronald. I also have Miss Granger. I do want a ransom. I want Harry Potter for the return of your son and Miss Granger.

Sincerely,

Lord Voldermort

Molly gasped. "Whatever we do, we can't tell anyone. Especially Harry."

"Yes, especially Harry. Not even Lupin and Sirius."

"And we know that there is no way out for-"

They heard something move, and turned around to see Harry.

"Oh Harry!" cried Molly, as she ran over to hug him. "We've been so worried about you!"

"Yeah," said Harry, but they could tell that his mind was elsewhere. "I missed you too."

***

Ron woke up for the second time. Trying to clear his head, he sat up. A pain stronger than anything he had ever known exploded on his face. He lightly touched his face, and winced as his fingers fell on a very large bruise over his left eye.

He tried to get up. This time, he succeeded, but barely. His head was still throbbing, and he felt himself for any broken bones.

He groaned, as he tried to recollect his thoughts. He remembered, the ring, and something else… Fiona, that's it! Had she been hurt? Then he remembered that she had brought him here, and his poor heart broke again, as it had when she had hit him.

A sudden movement out of the corner of his eye got his attention. It was that bushy brown hair! Hermione!

He ran over to help her. She was on her back, passed out. He had to tap her several times to get her awake.

"Wha, what? Dumbledore! I didn't know that you shopped at the Gap!"

"I'm not Dumbledore, we're not in the Gap, and I don't shop there!"

"Hnnnh?" she said, glancing around. "Oh, please tell me that we aren't in an Old Navy!"

"No, we aren't." he said gently, because he realized that she must be hallucinating. "We seem to be captured. Where were you just before now?

"Well, I was with whatshisface, umm, Victor, and he asked me to marry him in the middle of a Gap, and I said no… and then he hit me. He's not here, is he?" she said, a fearful look crossing her face.

"No, he isn't. You're safe."

"Oh, good… I'm kinda tired, so can I just go to sleep?"

"Sure, Hermy."

"`Night."

And with that she fell asleep, leaving Ron to his thoughts.

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