Disclaimer : It's all J.K. Rowling's. I own nothing but the plot.
Summary : Fifth year at Hogwarts. Ron finally admits his feelings for Hermione, but it's too late, as she's become Krum's girlfriend. Their relationship becomes very tense and eventually they have a massive row... and this time it's serious. How will that end ?
A/N : This is my first fanfic ever... Main character is Ron, but sometimes the story will be written from another character's point of view. Of course, all critics are welcome. Thanks for reviewing ! I'm almost done with chapter two, and it will be posted soon (a few days). Thanks to Meg B. aka Draco's girl for beta-reading !
Part 1 : Back to the Burrow.
Ron dragged his trunk slowly in his room, dropped his knapsack on the floor, and fell heavily on his bed. He was usually happy to be back home, happy that the exams were finally over, but this year things were different.
You-Know-Who... no Voldemort was back. Just thinking about Him sent a shiver down Ron's spine. But if He was really back, Ron had better get used to think about Him as Voldemort, and learn to speak his name.
"What did Dumbledore say ? 'Fear of a name increases the fear of the thing itself. Never be frightened by a mere name.' That may be easy for Dumbledore, but I've heard frightening stories about You-Know-, no..Voldemort since I was born. Stories about Him and Harry.", thought Ron.
Harry.
He was surely feeling miserable by now. Back at the Dursleys'. Ron fought
back a sudden surge of anger. Why couldn't Harry come at the Burrow ?!
Dumbledore said it would be safer for him. Well, maybe. But then... those
Muggles were really horrible to him, and this year Harry certainly didn't
need that.
Anyway, Dumbledore was right, as usual. You-Know- –Blimey– Voldemort
wouldn't be looking for Harry in a Muggle house. And maybe Harry would
be allowed to come at the Burrow later this summer, when Dumbledore would
have set proper protective spells around the house.
I'll have to ask Dad about this later. He and Mum also think Harry should be allowed to come here.
Harry.
Ron and Hermione had tried to cheer him up. In vain. He had always been
like that, keeping his thoughts for himself. Now, it was even worse...
Ron knew his problem. Harry believed it was his fault if Cedric was dead.
'I
told him to take the Cup with me.' It was impossible for Ron to look
Harry in the eyes after he'd said that.
Yet he was wrong. It was Voldemort's fault. And that damned Wormtail.
How could a man sink so low? Ron couldn't understand that.
"I shouldn't worry too much about Harry. It's perfectly normal that he's feeling guilty right now. He'll feel better in a few weeks, when he and Hermione come to the Burrow," thought Ron.
Ron let his thoughts drift towards Hermione. He wasn't sure about how he should feel about her. She was driving him mad at least half the time, but, well, sometimes she was nice. Sometimes. She'd been stunningly beautiful at the Yule Ball. But at that time, Ron couldn't say that to her. She had to come to the Ball with that Krum git. Ron fought back another surge of anger at the thought of Hermione entering the Hall, holding Krum's arm.
I'd better not think too much about that. It'll get me in a foul
mood.
Let's just enjoy my holidays.
***
These first three weeks of holidays had been pretty dull, but it was a very welcome change, after the crazy year Ron just had at Hogwarts.
This morning, the breakfast table was strangely quiet. Ron and his family did not talk very much about Voldemort's return. Mr Weasley, and Ron's eldest brothers, Bill and Charlie, would not want to talk about whatever they were doing for Dumbledore, which Ron found incredibly annoying. It usually came out in that way: "Ron, don't ask. It's better if you don't know."
They were right, of course, but all the same, it was still annoying. The minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, simply refused to believe that Voldemort – 'I'm getting better at that', thought Ron to himself – had returned. And now his father and brothers were conspiring against the ministry... so they had better keep it quiet or it could get them in serious trouble. But then, could you call that conspiring? Voldemort had returned. And somebody had to take action, before things got worse.
Since the beginning of the month, they were no alarming news in the Daily Prophet. Fudge really did a good job shutting the reporters up. Ron knew it was all a facade. As Mr Weasley was working at the Ministry, he had heard rumors about several Dark Mark sightings and Muggle killings from his colleagues in the Magical Law Enforcement Squad.
"Do you want a toast, dear?"
"Huh, what?" said Ron sheepishly, interrupted in his thoughts by his mum.
"A toast. Hello? Somebody there?" asked Mrs Weasley, waving her hand in front of Ron's eyes. "What were you thinking about?"
"Oh, nothing. Nothing, really." Everybody eyed him suspiciously, but no one made a comment.
Arthur Weasley came into the kitchen, looking at his watch. "It's time to go. Ready, boys?" he asked to Bill, Charlie and Percy. They nodded and got up from the table.
"Wait, Dad! Did you ask Dumbledore when Harry is allowed to come here?" asked Ron hastily.
"Yes, Ron. I've asked him at least twice a week since the beginning of the holidays. He's working on the protective wards. We should get his answer anytime soon." answered Arthur Weasley. "Don't worry too much about Harry, Ron. He's safe at the Dursleys'. And as soon as it is safe for him to come here, he'll be allowed to. And he will. Get me?"
"Yeah, sure." muttered Ron.
"Well, time to go!" Arthur Weasley, Bill, Charlie and Percy all said goodbye, and with a quick wave from their wands, they all Disapparated.
"So, Ron, what do you want to do today?", asked Ginny.
"Oh, I don't know. I think I'll write to Hermione and Harry. I haven't had news from them for weeks."
"I had news from Hermione a few days ago. She seems OK. She's worried about Voldemort and all, of course." Everybody twitched at the sound of the name, even Ron. It was odd, hearing that name coming out of his little sister's mouth. Yet it was true that she was the only one besides Harry who had encountered Voldemort and lived to tell about it. Ron shook his head. Better not think about those things. "Anyway, she told me she was having a good time.", added Ginny after the tense pause.
"Er, well, that's great. I'll ask her about it when I write her." said Ron. He ate his breakfast quickly then went into his room.
***
'So, what now?', thought Ron to himself. He'd been lying there on his bed for hours (or at least it had seemed like hours), staring blankly at the ceiling. He didn't feel like doing anything today.
His thoughts went back to Hermione. He'd always seen her as a mere friend.
Well, not exactly. His best friend, after Harry of course. But when he
thought back at the Yule Ball... what had he been feeling then? Anger?
Definitely. Jealousy? Maybe. But why? He hadn't been able to understand
his own feelings back then. After all, Hermione only was one of his best
friends. Was she really?
'I fancy her', he admitted to himself. But that's so weird!
She's always been my best friend... well not always. There were times I'd
have killed her with pleasure, but... Anyway, you can't wake up one day,
and decide that you fancy your best friend. How will I deal with that?
He was interrupted in his reverie by a soft knock on his door. Ginny entered the room, holding an envelope. Her face was rather pink and she looked truly happy.
"What?"
"Good news! Oh, you won't believe it! We just got an owl from Dumbledore and he says he's working on the protective spells and wards and he thinks he'll be done in less than a week so he says it's OK if Harry comes here!! Oh, Ron, that's so great!!", said Ginny extremely quickly.
"Breathe, Ginny. Just breathe." said Ron with a chuckle. He took the envelope from Ginny's hands, and read the letter.
Arthur, Molly,
I'm currently working on the protective spells I'd planned to put
around your house. So, what we discussed earlier should be all right by
next week. I believe the kids will be happy.
Albus Dumbledore
"Wow, that's a rather vague letter. I reckon that's just in case it was intercepted. Anyway, that's good news! And just in time for Harry's birthday! Wonder if Dumbledore did it on purpose..." he said pensively. "And that means... that we've got less than a week to get him a proper present!!" he added, now looking rather panicked.
Ginny flushed. "Oh my, his birthday! I totally forgot to think about something!!"
"OK. Calm down. We still got a week. Lemme think... I reckon he'll be pleased with a book about Quidditch, or anything about Quidditch actually..."
"Yes, that seems like a good idea."
"So, what do you think if we joined forces to buy him a good present? I'll ask Mum if we can go to Diagon Alley this week. After all, it's not as if we had loads of work to do..."
"OK, Ron. I'll try to think of something, though. Maybe I'll find something more original." She paused and eyed Ron mischievously. "So."
"What?" asked Ron. He didn't like that look in her eyes.
"Daydreaming about a special person, are we?" she teased. Ron flushed.
"None of your business. And anyway, what makes you think so?" he muttered with annoyance.
"Honestly, Ron." she said in a very Hermione-like tone. That sure wasn't a coincidence. "I've hit the right spot, hmm? See, you don't talk when we're eating, you've got that blank stare on your face all the day, you blush every time someone says her name, you." "OK, OK, I see your point. First, that doesn't mean anything. Second, as I just said, none of your business. Now, get out!" "Yes sir!" she said, supressing a grin and fleeing out of the room as Ron threatened to throw a cushion at her.
Oooh my. If she's noticed, then everybody must have. I've not seen the end of it yet., Ron thought gloomily.
"Well, I've got letters to write", he said to himself. He sat at his
desk and took out a piece of parchment, a quill and a bottle of ink. He
began to write with a smirk on his face.
Harry,
I've got good news, but I'd rather talk about it directly with you
(I don't think that owl post is safe these times). Be sure to be home on
July 31st between 10 and 12 o'clock, right?
These holidays have been pretty dull so far. I've got nothing to
do... it's nice at first, but it gets pretty boring after a while. I could
be doing my holiday homework, but what's the point? I've still got ages
to do it.
How's life for you? I hope the Muggles treat you right (or as right
as possible anyway). I'm sure you'll be allowed to come to the Burrow,
eventually. I've been harrassing my parents about it since the beginning
of the holidays. 'Safety measures', my arse. I'll write Hermione to ask
her to come at the Burrow. See you soon (I hope).
Ron
"He'll sure be surprised!" said Ron with a chuckle. Now was the hard part. He had to write a letter to Hermione.
Dear Hermione,
How are your holidays? I hope you're not working too much. Mine
are okay; I don't really have much to do. Anyway, Dumbledore just wrote,
and 'what we've discussed earlier should be alright by next week', just
in time for Harry's birthday! You know what I'm talking about (I'm vague
on purpose, just in case this letter is intercepted).
Would you like to come to the Burrow next week (it'd be best if you came on July 31st morning) and spend the rest of the holidays here? I'd be really pleased if you do.
Ron.
He gave a final glance to his letter, and put it in an envelope. He sighed. Done! He looked at his room. Crumpled pieces of parchment were scattered all across the floor. It had taken him one hour to write that letter. That had been particularly difficult: he was afraid to sound either too casual or too friendly. He had finally opted for a normal, yet friendly tone.
He called his owl, Pig, who began to flutter about the room and to hoot frantically. "Calm down, stupid owl!" Ron yelled. Then he finally managed to catch Pig, tied the letter to its leg, and let him go through his window. "Deliver this to Hermione, quickly!"
He went into the living room to fetch Errol, the family owl, and sent him to deliver the letter to Harry. He went back to his room, and collapsed onto his bed. His heart was beating fast. Now, I'll just have to wait a few days, he thought.
***
Some days later, Ron found himself in an awful mood. This, of course, had to do with the reply he'd just received from Hermione. He pulled the crumpled piece of parchment from his pocket and read it once more; just to be sure it wasn't some bad dream.
Dear Ron,
I'm so very sorry but I won't be able to come the Burrow until the
last week of August. By the time you'll be reading this, I'll be in Bulgaria,
at Viktor Krum's place. I've decided to accept his invitation and to go
over there with my parents. Bulgaria seems to be a very interesting country
to visit; the local wizarding history is fascinating.
The holidays have been all right so far. I've used the first week to get a rest, then I decided to get my summer homework done and to study for the O.W.L.s. Next year subjects seems really great, but sometimes I'm afraid I won't have the time to prepare myself for the O.W.L.s. It really gets harder every year.
Anyway, I think Harry will really like his birthday presents, especially
Dumbledore's (you know what I'm talking about). See you,
Hermione
This sure wasn't the reply he'd been waiting for. "Damn! How could she go to Bulgaria with that git?!!" exclaimed Ron. He sat at his desk, and wrote a reply hastily.
Hermione,
I just can't believe you really did go to Bulgaria. You hardly know
the git! Come on, all the family will be there tomorrow. I'd had
thought you'd prefer to see us rather than your boyfriend Vicky. I guess
I was wrong.
Ron
Retrospectively, that particular letter had been a bad idea. That had started a letter fight that had spread on weeks. Hermione had not been very pleased with Ron's reaction, and her reply had been pretty harsh.
Ronald Weasley,
I told you I'd be at the Burrow on August 24th. And I told Viktor
that I'd come to Bulgaria, and so did I. By the way, Bulgaria really is
an interesting country, not that you would care, of course.
For information, Viktor is NOT my boyfriend. And what I do or do
not with my holidays is definitely none of your business. Have I made myself
clear?
Hermione
Ron's reply to that letter had been quick, and about as nice.
See, I got your point. It's nice to see how you value your boyfriend
Vicky above people you've known for years. Do what you want I don't care.
Ron
The more we talk about it, the less I want to see you. At least right
here, Viktor behaves like a gentleman.
Hermione
P.S.- Stop calling him Vicky. That's ridiculous.
At that point, Ron decided it would better just to stop writing Hermione. After all, what was the point? he told himself.
***
Harry and Ginny had witnessed these friendly exchanges with a mix between amusement and concern. Ron wouldn't talk about it very much, but Ginny was being well informed by Hermione herself. Those two had become good friends since last year. Harry was amazed by the changes he'd noticed in Ginny. She was no longer stuttering and blushing and losing her head in Harry's presence, which was a good thing. She seemed more confident in herself, more mature. I'm stupid, thought Harry. She's just grown up. She's no longer the little-girl-with-a-huge-crush-on-Harry-Potter. There was definitely more to her than meets the eye. Harry believed that they would become good friends, eventually.
Ron and Hermione were always fighting, so their latest argument was nothing really neither new nor worrying. But the 'Krum issue' was a sore spot with Ron. Harry often thought at the way his two best friends were behaving towards each other. It was pretty obvious that Ron liked Hermione, but he was just too stubborn to admit it. Hermione seemed to like Ron as well, but she was much harder to tell than Ron. Harry was sometimes afraid that this might affect their friendship. In the bad way.
Besides this little 'inconvenience', Harry was perfectly fine. Dumbledore had made Harry one of the best birthday presents he could: allowing Harry to come at the Burrow. He was truly happy to be ridded of the Dursleys' for one more year, and he was pretty sure the Dursleys shared the same delight.
Harry had been pretty surprised by the sudden arrival of Ron and his Dad at Privet Drive –Ron had it well planned, thought Harry, with a smile–, and of course, so had been the Dursleys. And that was a serious understatement. It had seemed that they hadn't quite forgotten their last encounter with the Weasleys, judging by the way Uncle Vernon's face turned purple, or the way Dudley had flew in his room with his tail between his legs. Anyway, their feeling of disgust at the sight of the Weasleys had largely been compensated by their delight at the idea of Harry leaving for another year.
Back at the Burrow, Harry had been welcomed by a row of smiling redheads. The whole Weasley family had been present to welcome him, even Percy. Mrs Weasley had greeted him with a bone-crushing hug. 'Harry, dear, how wonderful to have you back here!' she'd said, almost crying with happiness. Harry had found that incredibly embarassing, but he really liked Mrs Weasley. And sometimes it was good to feel the love of a Mum. Everybody had seemed very happy with Harry's arrival, but Harry had noticed then that something had been bothering Ron.
The birthday cake Mrs. Weasley had cooked for Harry had been absolutely delicious. After the meal, Harry had proceeded with the opening of the gifts. Ron had offered Harry a bright orange Chudley Cannons sweater, and Ginny had offered him a nice frame with an old picture of him, Ron and Hermione, sitting in a sofa in the Gryffindor Common Room.
Actually, everything was going fine until Harry came upon a particular package wrapped in blue paper. 'Whose gift is it?', had asked Harry cheerfully. 'Hermione's', had muttered Ron with disgust. 'Oh yeah, where's she, by the way?', he had asked casually. He'd seen instantaneously by the look in Ron's eyes that he'd made a mistake. Ginny had kicked him under the table. 'Don't talk about her!', she had whispered quickly in Harry's ear, which made him drop the subject quickly.
That was how Harry had learned about the most recent disagreement between Ron and Hermione. Ron's mood had seemed to get even worse with the days. Harry had suspected that him and Hermione were having a letter fight, and Ginny had confirmed the impression.
Harry sighed. With time, Ron would come around and tell Hermione how he felt. Harry only hoped that Hermione shared these feelings, or else that would be the end of their friendship. Anyway, these holidays had been pretty good so far. Ron was perfectly friendly as long as he didn't hear the words Hermione or Bulgaria, and so on.
Strangely enough, it seemed that Ron poured his anger in his homework. Harry had never see him working like that during the holidays. Maybe he did it to impress Hermione, after all, Harry thought with amusement.
All in all, Harry was having a really good time at the Burrow. He was feeling much better by now than at the end of the term, thanks to the support and love of his friends. The guilt that had plagued him was still here, but now it was under control.
***
Ron was feeling nervous. Hermione was supposed to arrive at the Burrow this morning. Ron glanced over at the calendar. August 24th. He had been waiting anxiously for her since breakfeast. The rest of his family -plus Harry-, might have noticed his unease because they didn't really try to talk to him.
Ron was decided to make peace with Hermione, to apologize for that stupid letter fight. It was difficult to admit, but he had missed her. Badly.
He went into the bathroom and tried to improve his looks. He looked at his reflection, and suddenly felt very stupid. The mirror said softly, "You look great already, dear."
Ron studied his reflection more attentively. Yes, maybe. He had grown a few inches more during this summer. If this kept going on, he would definitely become the tallest man in the family. Yes, I'm not looking too bad, he thought without any real satisfaction. All the exercising he'd been doing during the summer was beginning to show up. Anyway, Hermione wasn't the kind of girl to care about one's look, Ron thought, at least if you could judge it by the fact that she went to the Yule Ball with Krum, the ugly git. Ron sniggered. Yeah, at least I know that in that field, I've nothing to fear from him, he thought.
A loud thump coming from the kitchen, followed by an eruption of happy voices warned him of Hermione's arrival. He took a deep breath, gathered up his courage, and went downstairs.
As he arrived in the living room, he noticed that everybody was already standing around welcoming Hermione. She was hugging Harry when Ron entered the room. He took another deep breath, and said as casually as he could, with a weak smile "Hi, 'Mione. Missed you."
As she looked at him, her smile faded and the expression on her face-hardened. "Ooh, did you, really?" she said with a highly sarcastic tone.
Ron was taken aback by the coldness in her voice and in her eyes. She was looking at him like a total stranger. He felt suddenly a wave of anger running through his body, totally overwhelming him. "Yes, I did! Obviously that feeling was not shared, so why don't you just go back to your friend Vicky!" he snapped. Without waiting for her to reply, he bursted out of the kitchen, shoving his brother Fred out of his way, and got out of the house, slamming the door shut. Everybody was staring open-mouthed at the place where Ron had been standing just a few seconds ago, except Hermione, who looked hurt.
Ron wandered for a while, then he went to the lake shore and sat down on the ground, still shaking with anger. What, what had he done this time? Sure, the letters he'd sent weren't particularly nice, but he wouldn't believe that Hermione, of all people, would keep a grudge against him for that. It's been weeks, god dammit! He began to stomp frantically the ground with his fists. "Damn it, damn it, DAMN IT!!!!"
"Ron."
Ron almost jumped with surprise. He turned around and saw that Ginny was standing right behind him.
"What?", he said with an annoyed tone. "Leave me alone."
"Ron, why did you act like that?"
"What do you mean like that? Don't tell you didn't notice the way she spoke to me! I'm her best friend, and there she speaks to me like I'm some bloody stranger!"
"And you don't think there's a good reason for that, do you?", she said accusingly.
"You know about the letters, don't you?" Ginny nodded. "Yes, I know it's been stupid, but I couldn't stand that she went to Bulgaria with that Krum bastard! And I was trying to make peace back there, for God's sake! I missed her, you know, I really did."
"Oh, Ron, I know." She sat down next to him, and put her arm around his shoulder. "Listen, I've spoken to her. She admits she may have not been very nice."
"Does she, really? There's a first for everything, I guess." he said sarcastically.
"Please, Ron, cut it out. You know these witty remarks of yours really drive everybody mad."
"What are you talking about?! Hey, that's why people love me!", he said with mock outrage.
Ginny sighed heavily. "Anyway. I'm sure you two will find a way to work this out. After all, that's just the latest one in a long series of rows, isn't it?"
"Yes, maybe. But this time, things are different. I like her, you know. As in 'more than in a friendly way'." he said thoughtfully. He looked up, and his face paled as he realized that he had just confessed his feelings to his little sister. "Oh, damn it! Please don't tell anyone, Ginny, please. Fred and George will make my life a living hell if they ever learn about it." he pleaded her.
She chuckled. "Well, let's say that will be our little secret. Let me tell you how pleased I am that we could have this conversation. It's good to have someone to speak with, isn't it?" He nodded. "Anyway, I think it's obvious enough already." she added with another chuckle.
"That's what I thought, but I always hoped that it wouldn't be that obvious. Well, Gred and Forge have been really nice, not bringing the subject up in the last few weeks..."
"Believe me, your mood was bad enough already. They must have noticed that as well."
"Well, what now? I guess I'll have to gather up my strength and go to speak to Hermione." he said with a sigh.
"And maybe you won't have to.", said a voice coming from behind. Ron froze. That was Hermione.
Ron turned around. It was Hermione indeed. "For God's sake, are you people trying to give me a heart attack?", he said in a resigned tone.
"Sorry."
"Nevermind."
"Well, gotta go!" said Ginny, coming up to her feet. She gave Ron a peck on the check. "Love you, Ickle Ronniekins."
"Love you too, baby Ginny," he said with a chuckle. She crossed her arms and assumed an outraged expression. "Off you go!" added Ron. Ginny stuck her tongue out at him and ran to the Burrow.
Ron watched her run away, and got up to face Hermione.
"So, eavesdropping, now, are we?" he asked calmly.
She took a deep breath to calm down. "Listen, I just overheard your last sentence. Sorry, but I couldn't help it. Anyway, I don't really know what you were talking about."
"We were talking about you."
"Oh. I should have known." There was an awkward pause.
"'Mione, listen, I'm sorry about the letters. It wasn't very nice," he said, without looking her in the eyes.
"That's okay. And I'm sorry about the way I talked to you..." there was another tense pause.
"But I still think Krum is an ugly stupid git." he muttered, not too loud. Hermione gave a annoyed sigh.
"Please, Ron, I had to go. And..." She paused, and bit her lip. Strange. That wasn't a good sign. "Listen, can't we just drop the subject? It makes me feel uncomfortable."
He snorted. "I'll try, but I don't promise anything."
"Good enough."
"Well, I guess that's a truce. Let's go home, shall we?"
She extended her hand. "Friends?"
He took her hand, and brushed his lips upon her knuckles. That boy will never cease to surprise me, Hermione thought, with utter astonishment.
"Friends."
***
A/N : That's it ! Next chapter coming soon (a few days I think).
Thanks to all the people who reviewed so far.
Everybody, please give me feedback !