Chapter 8
Friday 25 August (but later)
As we trailed aimlessly about the food stalls trying to find somewhere that didn't look too vegan or too likely to give us botulism, everyone kept a tactful silence about what had just happened between me and Draco. I could tell Lavender was dying to say something, but I think Parvati kept pinching her 'cause she kept rubbing her arm and whispering, "What did you do that for? I wasn't going to say anything."
We were queuing up outside the cinema tent when I saw Ron striding towards us. Minus Veronique. It was funny, Draco could touch me in places that were meant to be erogenous zones and I felt nothing, but the sight of Ron in a tatty pair of jeans and an old t-shirt reduced me to roadkill.
"Where's Veronique?" I heard Cho ask him.
"I don't know and I don't care," was his tense reply. There was a muttered exchange between the two of them, during which I saw Ron glance my way before he hissed, "it's got nothing to do with me. She does what she wants, she always has. That's half the problem." And I couldn't help but wonder if he was talking about Veronique or me.
As we pushed our way into the tent, the crowd surged forwards shoving Ron into my back and almost knocking me over. He yanked me to my feet, and then dropped his hand like I'd burnt him before pointedly going over to find a space next to Justin. And although I hadn't expected to drop Draco and pick up where I left off with Ron, I couldn't help the little pang of hurt that settled in my stomach.
Saturday 26 August
That night I didn't get much sleep. In fact, it had been weeks since I'd managed full eight hours without interruptions and weird dreams. It didn't help that the ground underneath my sleeping bag was lumpy and had more stones per square inch than your average quarry. Everyone else was fast asleep which just made me feel more frustrated and lonely. And when I did finally manage to catch a few zzzzzs I was woken up by a weird drumming noise outside. I pulled on my jeans and quietly clambered out of the girls' tent.
I could hardly take in what my eyes were seeing. There were naked hippies. There were bongos. There were naked hippies making mucho noise with the bongos. I was tired, I was dirty and I had had enough.
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" I screamed at them. "It's half five in the morning."
"Hey we're just thanking the earth for welcoming us," breezed this middle- aged Muggle with dreadlocks who had a huge spliff in his hand. "Don't be so uptight, little sister."
"You woke me up!" I yelled. "You woke me up with your stupid bongos."
"Here have a toke on this," the hippie suggested brandishing the joint at me.
"I don't want it," I protested. "I just want you to be quiet."
"You're the one making all the noise," said a voice behind me. I turned round to see Ron standing a little distance away with an amused look on his face. "I was standing here listening to the bongos, as you do, when you come out of your tent and start screaming loud enough to wake the dead."
"Why aren't you asleep?" was all I could think to say as the bongos started again.
"I thought I'd get up early and brave the communal showers while it was quiet," Ron said.
"I'd love a shower," I breathed.
Ron smiled evilly. "It was nice, all that hot water and soap making me squeaky clean. And when I washed my hair, that was the best."
"Stop it," I moaned.
Ron walked over to me. "You look awful," he said, cupping my face in his hands. "You still not sleeping?"
"Yeah," I sighed.
"Listen, why don't you go and get your wash stuff and have a shower while there's no-one around and then I'll buy you breakfast and we'll watch the sun come up?" he suggested.
It sounded like my idea of heaven. I nodded.
"Off you go then," said Ron, reaching out to ruffle my hair but I pulled away. You could fry chips on my head. And besides, I was alright as long as Ron didn't touch me. It was when he touched me that things got icky. And not in a good way either.
I never thought I'd strip off and have a communal shower. But actually there was a woman's shower block and there were cubicles and the two girls that I did see looked as embarrassed as me. As I stood under the showerhead and scrubbed off the dirt and felt the water raining down on me, I started to cry.
I didn't even know why I was crying. I used to cry all the time. Even last year I could always be relied upon to start blubbing over silly things, but I was making great strides in self control these days. But in the shower I wept like my heart was breaking. And I guess it was the strain of exams and the whole Draco thing, but it was also because Ron was outside waiting for me and although he was offering me breakfast, what I really wanted from him he wasn't able to give.
I finally emerged oozing cleanliness from every pore. It felt so good to be wearing a dress again. Ron was stretched out on the grass and I walked over to him and nudged him with my foot.
"I'm starving," I said, as he sat up and looked at me. His gaze started at my feet and travelled slowly up. By the time he got to my eyes, I was shaking.
"You're not going to scream at me for failing to have your breakfast ready and waiting?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice.
"Not my style," I said lightly. "You've got the wrong girl."
"Hmmm, if only you knew," said Ron significantly. He stood up and snaked his arm around my waist and I could have pulled away but it felt so right that I didn't.
"Let's get ourselves fed."
We brought coffee and bacon rolls and sat under a tree to have breakfast and watch as the sun climbed in the sky. We didn't talk, but we didn't need to. Instead we just leant against each other and were silent. Finding someone you can be quiet with is way more difficult that sustaining a conversation. Draco always used silence like a weapon, but Ron and I had always been good at companionable silences.
By this time the sun was up and staying put. It was really hot. I reached into my bag for my sun block and started smearing it on my shoulders but Ron took the tube from me and began to smooth the lotion onto my skin. His fingers slipped under the thin strap of my daisy-covered sundress and his touch became less soothing and more caressing.
I held my breath as he traced a finger down my spine to the zip. Ron hesitated for a second and then handed the tube back to me.
"You'd better do the front," he said unsteadily.
I shoved some of the cream around my neck and arms and then turned to face him. His eyes were very brown against his tan but there were dark smudges painted into the hollows of his face and I itched to smooth them away.
"I know we've had this bad patch but I really want everything to be alright between us," I said carefully. "And I want you to know that all the times I said I didn't want to be friends with you, I was trying to convince myself."
Ron got up and tugged me to my feet so I was standing with his arms round me.
"It doesn't matter Hermione," he told me. "I've said and done things to you that make me not like myself very much but you'll always be my friend. Even if I don't act that way sometimes."
"Do you mean that?"
Ron didn't reply but he pulled me close to him and held me. My arms crept around his neck and he buried his head in my shoulder. I could feel his heart tapping out its beat through his thin t-shirt and I put my hand against it. Ron gently drew back.
"I think if we're going to spend the day together we should have a 'no touching rule'," he drawled in that light, teasing way that I'd missed so much.
I pulled a face. "You touched me first," I pointed out. "I was just returning the favour."
"I'm serious," Ron insisted. "No touching, let's just do the friend thing."
"I never said I was going to spend the day with you," I said jokingly and Ron arched an eyebrow and smirked knowingly.
"Stop whining, Hermione or I'll make you spend all day in the trance tent."
I really got into the whole festival vibe, man. OK, I didn't buy any stupid hats or get henna tattoos, but Ron and I saw some bands, spend an hour in the comedy tent, pigged out on junk food and bragged about how much we hated jugglers. Nobody knew us, nobody cared if we were dating or were friends who ended up kissing each other or even having an adulterous affair. Being anonymous can kick some serious ass.
Ron stuck to his no touching rule even though our hands kept brushing and I wanted to grab his fingers and not let go. Walking round in the summer heat and not touching and the way Ron kept looking at me like I was a Cauldron Cake and he hadn't eaten for days made me feel restless. My whole body felt heavy and Ron and I were exchanging do many lingering eye-meets that the whole thing was getting a bit ridiculous.
Eventually we made our way back to the tree where we'd seen the sunrise and I flopped down on the ground, exhausted.
"Next time I go to a festival I'm at a hotel and having myself air-lifted in and out," I announced before digging into my bag to find my emergency bottle of nail polish to start a quick repair job on my toenails that were looking decidedly chipped.
Ron collapsed next to me, his arms pillowing his head. I tried not to look as his t-shirt rode up to reveal several inches of tanned, taut stomach.
"You're not like other girls," Ron said wonderingly, taking the bottle from me and hoisting my feet onto his lap so he could paint my nails.
"How am I not like other girls?" I enquired.
Ron shrugged. "I don't know any other girl who'd come to a festival with nail varnish and I don't know any other girl who'd put up with all the crap I've thrown at her and still want to spend time with me."
"I've been pretty nasty to you too," I said. "Leading you on and backing off the next day."
"I wish we could get back together now," Ron said casually, his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrated on my toes. "I think we've both changed."
My breath caught in my throat and I couldn't speak. Was Ron getting real or just playing "if only" with me?
"I've thought about it a lot this summer," Ron continued. He paused. "Say something, Hermione. Even if it's only to yell at me."
"I've split up with Draco," I muttered.
"I know," said Ron. "And I've tried a million times to dump Veronique but she won't listen. Or she goes ballistic and smashes things up."
"So what happened outside the café wasn't a one-off?" I asked.
Ron snorted. "That was Veronique on a good day. I don't even like her, let alone want to be with her, but she's in complete denial."
Ron had finished my nails now and I swung my legs off his lap and lay down on my side. Ron copied me so we were facing each other.
"I have this theory," I told him. "I think Draco's been busy seducing me so you get the message that I'm out of bounds. Because if you're looking after Veronique then he doesn't have to."
"I think you're spot on," Ron agreed. "I've thought that for months."
"It's so messed," I said hopelessly.
"But it doesn't have to be," Ron said fiercely. "If we were together and blatant about it, they'd have to let us go."
"Rebound romances never work."
"I only went out with Veronique to take my mind of you," admitted Ron. "And when I'm with you I don't feel like I'm on the rebound, I feel like I've come home. It's like my whole world is different shades of black and white but when you're around, everything goes Technicolor. You're still the coolest witch I know."
"Do you think it would work this time?" I asked hesitantly.
"It has to," said Ron firmly. "My heart couldn't take being broken again."
"So I broke your heart, did I?" I snorted. "That's funny 'cause you broke mine too." But it wasn't funny. I'd never told Ron how much he'd hurt me before. And I knew that now probably wasn't the time or the place. But these things had to be said while I could still walk away. Though I knew deep down I'd probably have to get on my hands and knees if I wanted to crawl away from him.
"Then we're even," Ron replied.
I stared at his face intently. His deep brown eyes held my gaze.
"I couldn't go through all that again," I told him. "Seriously."
"I wouldn't put you through all that again, I promise."
"Cause it's not too late to change your mind."
"Herm stop it! Ron shouted. "Stop trying to find reasons why it won't work before we've even started seeing each other again."
And there was so much I wanted to tell Ron, starting with the fact that I'd been in love with him for years, but there was a shadow looming over us and I didn't mean metaphorically. I looked up to find Draco and Veronique glaring down at us.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" Veronique screamed.
Ron sat up while I put my hands over my eyes in the really mature belief that if I couldn't see them, they couldn't see me.
"I'm with my best girl," Ron said quietly. "What does it look like?"
"What does it look like? What does it look like?" spat Veronique. "It looks like that little mudblood has got her claws into you again."
"Don't talk about Hermione like that," snapped Ron, jumping to his feet.
"Look at her! She's pathetic," snarled Veronique and she did have a point. I was still lying on the ground with my eyes covered. Showing willing, I got to my feet. I didn't really know what to do once I was standing up.
Veronique's face was red with temper (which made her hair seem unreal), Ron was grim-faced and Draco was smirking like he found the whole thing too entertaining for words.
"Ron and I are getting back together," I said eventually, more to fill up the silence than anything else. I looked at Ron for support and he took my hand. The gesture seemed to trigger something in Veronique. Something violent and dark and incredibly twisted.
"I didn't think sloppy seconds were your style," she hissed at Ron. "You know she's been having sex with Draco for months. And he wasn't the first."
It was as if everything had come to a standstill and the only thing moving was Veronique's mouth as all this poison spewed out of it. I let go of Ron's hand.
"It's not true," I whimpered, turning to Ron. He looked like he wanted to believe me but then Draco spoke up.
"She's a real pro," he said to Ron in a conspiratorial way, like it was all lads together and they were down the pub. "I can't blame you for being interested, mate."
"Is this your revenge 'cause I wouldn't sleep with you?" I demanded as Draco turned to me with a twisted little smile.
"Hermione, you seem to forget I practically had to fight you off," he chuckled.
Veronique gave Ron a triumphant look. "I told you she was a devious little slut," she said.
"I'd rather be a slut than a psycho banshee from hell," I shouted at her, not bothering to point out that I wasn't actually a slut.
"What did you say?" she said menacingly. Ron tried to step between us but Veronique sidestepped him and punched me hard in the stomach before I even knew what was happening. I doubled over, yelping in pain.
"That's enough Veronique," said Draco in an icy voice.
"I haven't started," she threatened.
Ron took hold of her shoulders and told her to calm down but she twisted away from him and grabbed at my hair and started dragging me away. I tried to prise her fingers away but in the end I ran with her, it was either that or lose a good chunk of my scalp. The whole thing was surreal. Ron and Draco ran after us telling Veronique to leave me alone but she kept up this evil commentary about little mudbloods who couldn't keep their hands to themselves. I so didn't want to do the whole wizard duel thing but as we approached the toilet queue and the crowds started thickening I knew that it would be too risky to whip out my wand. Veronique had to slow down and I took the opportunity to dig my nails into her wrist.
She let go of me, cursing and I pushed her away with great force. In fact I pushed her so hard that she lost her footing and slipped over the edge of the latrine pit into two days' worth of festival-goers' waste product, which was being saved, for compost.
I didn't stick around. I mean, I'd just pushed someone into a pit-full of pooh. There wasn't really a right way to behave after that. Still clutching my tender stomach I took off as if the hounds of hell were snapping at my feet.
By the time I got back to the tents I could hardly breathe. The others were sitting around a campfire they'd built, having a jamming session with the bongo players and they looked pretty shocked to see me come staggering towards them at great speed. For a moment I stood there, painfully winded and trying to catch my breath while they stared at me.
"You alright?" Harry asked eventually.
"I'm fine," I gasped because it seemed easier than actually trying to explain what had just happened. "But I need to go home. Now."
"But Hermione you can't," Parvati protested. "We've still got two days to go."
"No," I puffed. "You don't understand, I have to go, Harry, please drive me to the nearest station. Please."
"Why do you have to go home?" Cho asked, getting up and coming over to me. She looked concerned and tried to put an arm round me but I flinched away from her."
"I'm going to ruin things for everyone if I stay," I gabbled. "I'm fed up with me so you must be even more hacked off. Veronique and Draco told Ron.they said.I can't stay with them here."
I dived into my tent and started shoving things into my backpack. I could hear a muted conversation going on outside but I ignored it. And I could see someone Lavender-shaped waiting for me outside, so I carefully pulled the pegs from the back of the tent and squeezed myself and my backpack (which were roughly the same size) out of the gap I'd made and sloped off before anyone could realise I was gone.
Friday 25 August (but later)
As we trailed aimlessly about the food stalls trying to find somewhere that didn't look too vegan or too likely to give us botulism, everyone kept a tactful silence about what had just happened between me and Draco. I could tell Lavender was dying to say something, but I think Parvati kept pinching her 'cause she kept rubbing her arm and whispering, "What did you do that for? I wasn't going to say anything."
We were queuing up outside the cinema tent when I saw Ron striding towards us. Minus Veronique. It was funny, Draco could touch me in places that were meant to be erogenous zones and I felt nothing, but the sight of Ron in a tatty pair of jeans and an old t-shirt reduced me to roadkill.
"Where's Veronique?" I heard Cho ask him.
"I don't know and I don't care," was his tense reply. There was a muttered exchange between the two of them, during which I saw Ron glance my way before he hissed, "it's got nothing to do with me. She does what she wants, she always has. That's half the problem." And I couldn't help but wonder if he was talking about Veronique or me.
As we pushed our way into the tent, the crowd surged forwards shoving Ron into my back and almost knocking me over. He yanked me to my feet, and then dropped his hand like I'd burnt him before pointedly going over to find a space next to Justin. And although I hadn't expected to drop Draco and pick up where I left off with Ron, I couldn't help the little pang of hurt that settled in my stomach.
Saturday 26 August
That night I didn't get much sleep. In fact, it had been weeks since I'd managed full eight hours without interruptions and weird dreams. It didn't help that the ground underneath my sleeping bag was lumpy and had more stones per square inch than your average quarry. Everyone else was fast asleep which just made me feel more frustrated and lonely. And when I did finally manage to catch a few zzzzzs I was woken up by a weird drumming noise outside. I pulled on my jeans and quietly clambered out of the girls' tent.
I could hardly take in what my eyes were seeing. There were naked hippies. There were bongos. There were naked hippies making mucho noise with the bongos. I was tired, I was dirty and I had had enough.
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" I screamed at them. "It's half five in the morning."
"Hey we're just thanking the earth for welcoming us," breezed this middle- aged Muggle with dreadlocks who had a huge spliff in his hand. "Don't be so uptight, little sister."
"You woke me up!" I yelled. "You woke me up with your stupid bongos."
"Here have a toke on this," the hippie suggested brandishing the joint at me.
"I don't want it," I protested. "I just want you to be quiet."
"You're the one making all the noise," said a voice behind me. I turned round to see Ron standing a little distance away with an amused look on his face. "I was standing here listening to the bongos, as you do, when you come out of your tent and start screaming loud enough to wake the dead."
"Why aren't you asleep?" was all I could think to say as the bongos started again.
"I thought I'd get up early and brave the communal showers while it was quiet," Ron said.
"I'd love a shower," I breathed.
Ron smiled evilly. "It was nice, all that hot water and soap making me squeaky clean. And when I washed my hair, that was the best."
"Stop it," I moaned.
Ron walked over to me. "You look awful," he said, cupping my face in his hands. "You still not sleeping?"
"Yeah," I sighed.
"Listen, why don't you go and get your wash stuff and have a shower while there's no-one around and then I'll buy you breakfast and we'll watch the sun come up?" he suggested.
It sounded like my idea of heaven. I nodded.
"Off you go then," said Ron, reaching out to ruffle my hair but I pulled away. You could fry chips on my head. And besides, I was alright as long as Ron didn't touch me. It was when he touched me that things got icky. And not in a good way either.
I never thought I'd strip off and have a communal shower. But actually there was a woman's shower block and there were cubicles and the two girls that I did see looked as embarrassed as me. As I stood under the showerhead and scrubbed off the dirt and felt the water raining down on me, I started to cry.
I didn't even know why I was crying. I used to cry all the time. Even last year I could always be relied upon to start blubbing over silly things, but I was making great strides in self control these days. But in the shower I wept like my heart was breaking. And I guess it was the strain of exams and the whole Draco thing, but it was also because Ron was outside waiting for me and although he was offering me breakfast, what I really wanted from him he wasn't able to give.
I finally emerged oozing cleanliness from every pore. It felt so good to be wearing a dress again. Ron was stretched out on the grass and I walked over to him and nudged him with my foot.
"I'm starving," I said, as he sat up and looked at me. His gaze started at my feet and travelled slowly up. By the time he got to my eyes, I was shaking.
"You're not going to scream at me for failing to have your breakfast ready and waiting?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice.
"Not my style," I said lightly. "You've got the wrong girl."
"Hmmm, if only you knew," said Ron significantly. He stood up and snaked his arm around my waist and I could have pulled away but it felt so right that I didn't.
"Let's get ourselves fed."
We brought coffee and bacon rolls and sat under a tree to have breakfast and watch as the sun climbed in the sky. We didn't talk, but we didn't need to. Instead we just leant against each other and were silent. Finding someone you can be quiet with is way more difficult that sustaining a conversation. Draco always used silence like a weapon, but Ron and I had always been good at companionable silences.
By this time the sun was up and staying put. It was really hot. I reached into my bag for my sun block and started smearing it on my shoulders but Ron took the tube from me and began to smooth the lotion onto my skin. His fingers slipped under the thin strap of my daisy-covered sundress and his touch became less soothing and more caressing.
I held my breath as he traced a finger down my spine to the zip. Ron hesitated for a second and then handed the tube back to me.
"You'd better do the front," he said unsteadily.
I shoved some of the cream around my neck and arms and then turned to face him. His eyes were very brown against his tan but there were dark smudges painted into the hollows of his face and I itched to smooth them away.
"I know we've had this bad patch but I really want everything to be alright between us," I said carefully. "And I want you to know that all the times I said I didn't want to be friends with you, I was trying to convince myself."
Ron got up and tugged me to my feet so I was standing with his arms round me.
"It doesn't matter Hermione," he told me. "I've said and done things to you that make me not like myself very much but you'll always be my friend. Even if I don't act that way sometimes."
"Do you mean that?"
Ron didn't reply but he pulled me close to him and held me. My arms crept around his neck and he buried his head in my shoulder. I could feel his heart tapping out its beat through his thin t-shirt and I put my hand against it. Ron gently drew back.
"I think if we're going to spend the day together we should have a 'no touching rule'," he drawled in that light, teasing way that I'd missed so much.
I pulled a face. "You touched me first," I pointed out. "I was just returning the favour."
"I'm serious," Ron insisted. "No touching, let's just do the friend thing."
"I never said I was going to spend the day with you," I said jokingly and Ron arched an eyebrow and smirked knowingly.
"Stop whining, Hermione or I'll make you spend all day in the trance tent."
I really got into the whole festival vibe, man. OK, I didn't buy any stupid hats or get henna tattoos, but Ron and I saw some bands, spend an hour in the comedy tent, pigged out on junk food and bragged about how much we hated jugglers. Nobody knew us, nobody cared if we were dating or were friends who ended up kissing each other or even having an adulterous affair. Being anonymous can kick some serious ass.
Ron stuck to his no touching rule even though our hands kept brushing and I wanted to grab his fingers and not let go. Walking round in the summer heat and not touching and the way Ron kept looking at me like I was a Cauldron Cake and he hadn't eaten for days made me feel restless. My whole body felt heavy and Ron and I were exchanging do many lingering eye-meets that the whole thing was getting a bit ridiculous.
Eventually we made our way back to the tree where we'd seen the sunrise and I flopped down on the ground, exhausted.
"Next time I go to a festival I'm at a hotel and having myself air-lifted in and out," I announced before digging into my bag to find my emergency bottle of nail polish to start a quick repair job on my toenails that were looking decidedly chipped.
Ron collapsed next to me, his arms pillowing his head. I tried not to look as his t-shirt rode up to reveal several inches of tanned, taut stomach.
"You're not like other girls," Ron said wonderingly, taking the bottle from me and hoisting my feet onto his lap so he could paint my nails.
"How am I not like other girls?" I enquired.
Ron shrugged. "I don't know any other girl who'd come to a festival with nail varnish and I don't know any other girl who'd put up with all the crap I've thrown at her and still want to spend time with me."
"I've been pretty nasty to you too," I said. "Leading you on and backing off the next day."
"I wish we could get back together now," Ron said casually, his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrated on my toes. "I think we've both changed."
My breath caught in my throat and I couldn't speak. Was Ron getting real or just playing "if only" with me?
"I've thought about it a lot this summer," Ron continued. He paused. "Say something, Hermione. Even if it's only to yell at me."
"I've split up with Draco," I muttered.
"I know," said Ron. "And I've tried a million times to dump Veronique but she won't listen. Or she goes ballistic and smashes things up."
"So what happened outside the café wasn't a one-off?" I asked.
Ron snorted. "That was Veronique on a good day. I don't even like her, let alone want to be with her, but she's in complete denial."
Ron had finished my nails now and I swung my legs off his lap and lay down on my side. Ron copied me so we were facing each other.
"I have this theory," I told him. "I think Draco's been busy seducing me so you get the message that I'm out of bounds. Because if you're looking after Veronique then he doesn't have to."
"I think you're spot on," Ron agreed. "I've thought that for months."
"It's so messed," I said hopelessly.
"But it doesn't have to be," Ron said fiercely. "If we were together and blatant about it, they'd have to let us go."
"Rebound romances never work."
"I only went out with Veronique to take my mind of you," admitted Ron. "And when I'm with you I don't feel like I'm on the rebound, I feel like I've come home. It's like my whole world is different shades of black and white but when you're around, everything goes Technicolor. You're still the coolest witch I know."
"Do you think it would work this time?" I asked hesitantly.
"It has to," said Ron firmly. "My heart couldn't take being broken again."
"So I broke your heart, did I?" I snorted. "That's funny 'cause you broke mine too." But it wasn't funny. I'd never told Ron how much he'd hurt me before. And I knew that now probably wasn't the time or the place. But these things had to be said while I could still walk away. Though I knew deep down I'd probably have to get on my hands and knees if I wanted to crawl away from him.
"Then we're even," Ron replied.
I stared at his face intently. His deep brown eyes held my gaze.
"I couldn't go through all that again," I told him. "Seriously."
"I wouldn't put you through all that again, I promise."
"Cause it's not too late to change your mind."
"Herm stop it! Ron shouted. "Stop trying to find reasons why it won't work before we've even started seeing each other again."
And there was so much I wanted to tell Ron, starting with the fact that I'd been in love with him for years, but there was a shadow looming over us and I didn't mean metaphorically. I looked up to find Draco and Veronique glaring down at us.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" Veronique screamed.
Ron sat up while I put my hands over my eyes in the really mature belief that if I couldn't see them, they couldn't see me.
"I'm with my best girl," Ron said quietly. "What does it look like?"
"What does it look like? What does it look like?" spat Veronique. "It looks like that little mudblood has got her claws into you again."
"Don't talk about Hermione like that," snapped Ron, jumping to his feet.
"Look at her! She's pathetic," snarled Veronique and she did have a point. I was still lying on the ground with my eyes covered. Showing willing, I got to my feet. I didn't really know what to do once I was standing up.
Veronique's face was red with temper (which made her hair seem unreal), Ron was grim-faced and Draco was smirking like he found the whole thing too entertaining for words.
"Ron and I are getting back together," I said eventually, more to fill up the silence than anything else. I looked at Ron for support and he took my hand. The gesture seemed to trigger something in Veronique. Something violent and dark and incredibly twisted.
"I didn't think sloppy seconds were your style," she hissed at Ron. "You know she's been having sex with Draco for months. And he wasn't the first."
It was as if everything had come to a standstill and the only thing moving was Veronique's mouth as all this poison spewed out of it. I let go of Ron's hand.
"It's not true," I whimpered, turning to Ron. He looked like he wanted to believe me but then Draco spoke up.
"She's a real pro," he said to Ron in a conspiratorial way, like it was all lads together and they were down the pub. "I can't blame you for being interested, mate."
"Is this your revenge 'cause I wouldn't sleep with you?" I demanded as Draco turned to me with a twisted little smile.
"Hermione, you seem to forget I practically had to fight you off," he chuckled.
Veronique gave Ron a triumphant look. "I told you she was a devious little slut," she said.
"I'd rather be a slut than a psycho banshee from hell," I shouted at her, not bothering to point out that I wasn't actually a slut.
"What did you say?" she said menacingly. Ron tried to step between us but Veronique sidestepped him and punched me hard in the stomach before I even knew what was happening. I doubled over, yelping in pain.
"That's enough Veronique," said Draco in an icy voice.
"I haven't started," she threatened.
Ron took hold of her shoulders and told her to calm down but she twisted away from him and grabbed at my hair and started dragging me away. I tried to prise her fingers away but in the end I ran with her, it was either that or lose a good chunk of my scalp. The whole thing was surreal. Ron and Draco ran after us telling Veronique to leave me alone but she kept up this evil commentary about little mudbloods who couldn't keep their hands to themselves. I so didn't want to do the whole wizard duel thing but as we approached the toilet queue and the crowds started thickening I knew that it would be too risky to whip out my wand. Veronique had to slow down and I took the opportunity to dig my nails into her wrist.
She let go of me, cursing and I pushed her away with great force. In fact I pushed her so hard that she lost her footing and slipped over the edge of the latrine pit into two days' worth of festival-goers' waste product, which was being saved, for compost.
I didn't stick around. I mean, I'd just pushed someone into a pit-full of pooh. There wasn't really a right way to behave after that. Still clutching my tender stomach I took off as if the hounds of hell were snapping at my feet.
By the time I got back to the tents I could hardly breathe. The others were sitting around a campfire they'd built, having a jamming session with the bongo players and they looked pretty shocked to see me come staggering towards them at great speed. For a moment I stood there, painfully winded and trying to catch my breath while they stared at me.
"You alright?" Harry asked eventually.
"I'm fine," I gasped because it seemed easier than actually trying to explain what had just happened. "But I need to go home. Now."
"But Hermione you can't," Parvati protested. "We've still got two days to go."
"No," I puffed. "You don't understand, I have to go, Harry, please drive me to the nearest station. Please."
"Why do you have to go home?" Cho asked, getting up and coming over to me. She looked concerned and tried to put an arm round me but I flinched away from her."
"I'm going to ruin things for everyone if I stay," I gabbled. "I'm fed up with me so you must be even more hacked off. Veronique and Draco told Ron.they said.I can't stay with them here."
I dived into my tent and started shoving things into my backpack. I could hear a muted conversation going on outside but I ignored it. And I could see someone Lavender-shaped waiting for me outside, so I carefully pulled the pegs from the back of the tent and squeezed myself and my backpack (which were roughly the same size) out of the gap I'd made and sloped off before anyone could realise I was gone.