Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or associated characters. I'm not JKR or Scholastic or Bloomsbury Books. Also, Spindle's End, which I quote, is owned by Robin McKinley, not me! I do own Stanley Goatshep, and Alexandra and Sophia Nott a.k.a. Moondrift. So ask nicely before you use them!

Hermione's Secret

Part 3

"Hermione, I am sorry to inconvenience you," Dumbledore apologized, gesturing to a chair for Hermione to sit in. "I just wanted us to have a chat."

"What about?" Hermione said cutting to the point of the visit.

"I don't know how much Professor McGonagall has told you about her sister and Alexandra, but they are here at Hogwarts now. Alexandra needs a friend and tutor to catch her up to the fourth years. You are the perfect candidate, Hermione. Will you please do it?" Dumbledore asked.

"Why, of course!" Hermione answered. "How hard it must be for her! In hiding all her life I can't imagine she's had many friends. I would be honored."

"That's wonderful. You must remember that she is still in hiding, for obvious reasons, and her name is Alexandra Moondrift now. Professor McGonagall will take you to meet her tonight at seven o'clock. Later if you wish to bring Harry or any of the Weasleys with you to see her, you may," Dumbledore concluded.

"That sounds fabulous, Professor," Hermione answered. "I am looking forward to meeting Alexandra."

"Oh, and Hermione?"

"Yes, Professor?"

"I wouldn't worry about anything certain professors divine, if I were you."

~*~‚ ~*~

Going back to the common room, Hermione wondered if Ron would be there. "Aurora borealis," she said, stepping through the portrait hole.

"Ron?" she said, staring. He was sitting on a sofa, his hair looking like a magical extension of the fire nearby. He looked like he was waiting for someone.

"So you finally decided to speak to me?" Ron asked, a sarcastic grin on his face.

"No, I haven't, and stop smirking at me!" Hermione argued.

"You still haven't gotten over our incident have you?" Ron asked.

"You had no right to kiss me!" Hermione protested.

"You didn't stop it! Anyway, I had to shut you up somehow!" Ron vociferated.

"You could have just left. You did NOT have to kiss me!" Hermione exclaimed indignantly.

"Great, now we're back to our world-famous rows," Ron quipped.

"Great, now we're back to a world-famous smart ass," Hermione retorted.

"Damn it, Hermione! Can't you figure out why I kissed you?" Ron exclaimed. "I'm in love with you. There, I said it. I, Ron Weasley, am in love with Hermione Granger!"

"You, what?" she screeched. "Ron, you can't!" She thought of Sophia, his father, and the awful prophecy. "This will ruin everything!" She ran up the stairs crying.

~*~‚ ~*~

"Hermione?" She felt a hand on her shoulder and started at the deepness of the voice. It was much too deep a voice for the speaker to be allowed in the girls' dormitory. She sat up from lying facedown on her bed.

"Harry? What are you doing here?" Hermione asked.

"I heard that you and Ron have been having some disagreements lately, and I haven't even noticed. Hermione, I have been so preoccupied lately that I have not been a very good friend. I want to start making it up to you now."

"Oh, Harry!" she exclaimed. She had been so preoccupied by thoughts of Ron and prophecies that she hadn't even noticed Harry's lack of attention.

"Do you want to talk about what's going on between you and Ron? Is there anything you need to tell me? Or do you want to talk about something else instead?" Harry asked anxiously.

"I don't know. I- oh, Harry! Ron told me he loves me!" she exclaimed tearfully.

"He what?!" Harry was stunned. "I wondered when he would finally get around to it."

"You knew?" she asked him, incredulously. If so, why didn't he tell her?

"No one told me, if that's what you mean, but it was pretty obvious. You two are head over heels in love. Or at least I thought so. Why are you so upset about it?" Harry asked.

Then she told him about McGonagall's nightly discussions and the prophecy. She spilled her soul to Harry. She told him all about the kiss, her arguments with Ron, her initial elation at Ron's divulgement, and her dismay at what it all meant. She went as far as to tell Harry how long she had felt this way about Ron- since third year- and how she tried so hard to keep it hidden because of how much she values the friendship all three of them have.

"Wow, Hermione!" Harry said after her voice and tears were spent. "I promise everything will be alright. If only you could see how crazy Ron is about you…" He held her and stroked her hair, awkwardly albeit, but his actions were still the comfort she needed.

"Hermione, you know what you must do." She only looked at him. "You have to ignore Trelawney's crackpot predictions. That old bat is as likely to have a true prediction as my Uncle Vernon. You have to tell Ron how you feel. Take a chance at happiness, Hermione. If for some reason it does not work out, at least you won't regret never trying."

~*~‚ ~*~

Hermione tried to find Ron and talk to him, but it seemed like he disappeared from the face of the earth. She figured Ron borrowed Harry's invisibility cloak to hide, so Hermione asked Harry for the Marauder's Map. Even in the invisibility cloak, Ron would still show up on the map, but the map was gone too.

Finally she gave up for at least the time being, since she had to eat and then go meet Alexandra. Ron wasn't at dinner, but Hermione supposed Harry took him something. He was probably giving Ron the same kind of talk she gave both of them when they refused to talk to each other before the first Triwizard task.

Finally seven o'clock rolled around without any Ron sightings, and Hermione went to McGonagall's office. McGonagall was waiting for her, ready to take her somewhere, by the looks of the lantern in her hand.

"Come, follow me, Miss Granger," she said. They walked to a corridor off the hall to the Gryffindor dormitories. A suit of armor in front of a tapestry was the only decoration in the hall. McGonagall tapped the helmet of the armor and said, "Spindle's end." The words must have been a password of some sort because the suit of armor jumped creakily aside, allowing McGonagall to lift the corner of the tapestry. There was a door behind it- with no knob! Hermione supposed another password was in store, but she was wrong. The door spoke! It said in a raspy voice, "Small spider weave on a silver sleeve/ Oh weave your grey web nearer…"

McGonagall answered, "From a golden crown, let your silk hang down/ For lost, lost, lost is the wearer."

The door swung inward on unseen hinges. McGonagall handed Hermione the lantern and said, "Go on, dear. I must go attend to the Weasley twins' latest prank or I would come with you. Don't be frightened. Goodbye!"

With that the door swung shut, leaving Hermione in complete darkness. "Incendio!" She lit the lantern. She looked to be in a long, dark hallway with the end nowhere in site. She took a deep breath and started walking. The hallway was old and unused; cobwebs were everywhere. Ron wouldn't like it with all the spiders. She kept walking and noticed the ground was uneven. She reached down and touched it. It was dirt, and parts of the dirt were damp. She felt as if she was underground somewhere near the lake, but that was very odd. She came from a hall several floors above ground, and if anything, this hall was sloping up. It must be magical, she thought, and pushed the matter out of her mind.

She should have been getting to an end by now, but the hallway still looked dark with no ending. Her lamp went out, but that wasn't odd since there was a strong draft in the hall- the hall that Hermione was beginning to think of more as a tunnel. She wanted to get to the end of the hall, so she didn't take time to light the lantern again. She kept walking. Suddenly, she ran face first into something solid. "Lumos!" It was a door, where there had only been air seconds ago. Strange…

The door opened. A woman younger than McGonagall stood at the door. "Come in," she said. "We've been expecting you."

She led Hermione through a short whitewashed hallway to a beautiful living room. The room was awash with corals, pinks, and oranges. Two cushy armchairs sat next to a cheery fire with a sofa by the wall.

"Alexandra! Come down," she called. That was when Hermione noticed the staircase leading upward. "So, I see you found out the trick of the hallway."

"Excuse me?" Hermione asked, having no clue what she was speaking of.

"The hall is never-ending when you travel along it with a light," she explained. "Only in the dark can you reach the end."

"Oh," Hermione said, studying her. She was considerably younger and less severe-looking than McGonagall, but Sophia Nott looked as if she had a hard life. She had silky dark brown hair- graying at the temples- and light green eyes lined with laugh lines. Her skin was milky white, perhaps from being in hiding so long, and it showed the marks stress had etched in her forehead.

Suddenly footsteps pounded down the stairs. "Yes, Mum? Is she here?" A thin, black-haired girl appeared on the stairs. Apparently her mother's genes are stronger than her father's are; she does not have the trademark Weasley hair, Hermione thought. She was flushed with excitement that also glittered in her blue eyes. "Hello! I am so happy to see you! You are one of the few new faces I've seen in many years."

"Um, hello," Hermione said.

"Oh, forgive me!" Alexandra exclaimed. "I am Alexandra No- um, Moondrift. Although I might hurt you if you call me Alexandra. Most people call me Lexa. I'm fifteen years old," she continued chattering.

"I am Hermione Granger. I'm also fifteen. I'm a fifth year in Gryffindor," she said.

"So was Mum!" Lexa cried. Sophia smiled.

"I'll let you girls get acquainted, and perhaps you might get some work done," Sophia smiled again. "It was lovely meeting you, Hermione," she said and exited the room.

Hermione and Lexa chatted about anything and everything for the next hour. Hermione discovered that Sophia had been a good teacher to Lexa and that Lexa was not far behind the fifth years. Two hours passed quickly as they talked and Hermione quizzed Lexa in every subject. Hermione was pleased with Lexa's knowledge, but soon she began to feel tired. She looked down at her watch.

"Oh no! It's already ten! I have a bit of homework still! I must go," she said.

"Alright, but will you come back soon?" Lexa asked.

"Tomorrow," Hermione promised. "Then I want to know what that poem that the door recites is from."

"No problem," Lexa answered. "I'll tell you- or show you- but then I want to hear about your friends."

"Alright, I'll be thinking of good embarrassing stories about them to tell you," Hermione answered.

"Great," Lexa answered, walking Hermione to the door. "Don't forget to keep you light out in the passage," she reminded.

"I won't," Hermione responded. With that, she left.

Wincing, Hermione withheld the urge to light her lamp. She took a step forward. Almost as soon as the door behind her had closed, Hermione bumped into a door in front of her. "Lumos!" she said. There was no handle on the door, just some odd pattern with a circle in the middle. At a loss of what to do, Hermione leaned against the door, pressing her hand to it inside the circle. The door sprung open. She pushed the tapestry aside, and slipped around the suit of armor.

No one was in the hall when she came out. Even though she was not sneaking around, Hermione had no desire for any questioning. She quickly walked to the Gryffindor common room and then to her room to get her homework. She went back to the common room and sat by Harry to work.

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry avoided her gaze. "Well, have you?"

"Maybe."

"Harry, I must talk to him! At least tell me if you've seen him!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Yes, I have," Harry admitted. "But I have no idea where he is now."

"I suppose not," Hermione sighed. "I suppose I may just have to wait until tomorrow."

"I suppose," Harry agreed, then left to play a game of chess with Ginny Weasley.

~*~‚ ~*~

The next morning, Hermione had still not seen Ron. She was beginning to be very worried about him. He was not at breakfast, but he did show up for Charms that morning.

Hermione had been paired with Neville as they practiced a silencing charm. After she frantically looked up the counter-charm to the singing spell Neville had accidentally put on her, she noticed Ron looking horrible. He had accidentally cast a blindness spell on Harry. Ron could not seem to concentrate on anything, even with Professor Flitwick trying to help him.

Weasley!" Professor Flitwick exclaimed, after muttering the counter-charm to Harry's blindness. "I am near my wits end! What is wrong with you today?"

"Professor," Ron wearily explained. "I feel a bit sick. May I go see Madame Pomfrey?"

"Of course! You should have said you were sick," Professor Flitwick answered, as this admittance was entirely out of character with Ron. "Go to Madame Pomfrey." He appeared relieved to have Ron and his blundering spells gone. Hermione thought Ron had looked a bit pale; hopefully Madame Pomfrey could fix him up.

~*~‚ ~*~

Ron stayed in the infirmary all day- at least Hermione thought since he had missed all his other classes. He missed lunch and dinner and was not in the common room before Hermione left to visit Lexa again.

Hermione made it to Lexa's home without problems that night. Lexa was waiting for her at the door. "Hermione! I am so glad you could make it!"

"Hello, Lexa. So the first order of business tonight is…?" Hermione wondered.

"Discussing the poem and password in here, and you were going to tell me about your friends," Lexa answered.

"Oh, yes. I remember. You go first, for discussing my friends will likely take longer."

"Well, the password 'Spindle's End' is the title of my favorite book, a Muggle book; it's written by Robin McKinley. The poem is part of the book. You really must read it- and any other book by Robin McKinley." Lexa's eyes had a strange light in them, and she spoke with passion- she really loved books. Hermione now felt they definitely had something in common. "Now, I want to hear about your friends!"

Hermione told Lexa all about Ginny, Harry (You're friends with Harry Potter?!), and finally Ron. As she spoke on and on about Ron, Hermione realized what she had been denying all along. She was in love with Ron, completely and hopelessly; never would anyone else do for her.

Hermione continued speaking with Lexa and going over lessons, but her mind was on Ron. As she left, she knew she must talk to Ron. Hopefully she would be able to find him now.

~*~‚ ~*~

Hermione ran into the hospital wing, skidding to a halt right inside the door.

"May I help you?" Madame Pomfrey inquired.

"Is Ron Weasley here?"

"No, young Ronald went back to Gryffindor a few hours ago," Madame Pomfrey answered with a knowing look in her eyes. "He's quite all right now. He was ill because of stress."

"Oh, thank you! I'll go find him now." Hermione hurried to the Gryffindor common room.

~*~‚ ~*~

"Harry! Where's Ron?" Hermione asked as she stepped through the portrait hole.

"In the dorm, writing his mum to tell her he's going to stay here for Christmas break," Harry answered. "Why?"

"I need- have- to talk to him!"

"You…ohhh!" Harry realized what Hermione wanted to talk to Ron about. "I would say go on up to the dorm, but I know you have reservations about that. So, I'll get him down here, somehow."

"Thank you, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. "You're wonderful!"

"Well, I suppose I am."

Hermione hit him, and he ran up to get Ron while Hermione sat on the couch waiting.

A few minutes later Ron appeared. He was wild-eyed. "Ginny! What? Where is she? What happened?"

Hermione stood up. "Ginny is fine, Ron. I asked Harry to bring you down here to speak to me."

Ron stood as if petrified, staring furiously at Harry.

"Will you come somewhere more private, so we can talk?" Hermione asked Ron.

"Of course," Ron answered. Then he added in a hurt voice that only she could hear, "I've never been able to tell you no."

Hermione could think of many times Ron had told her no, but she decided not to argue this time.

Silently, she led Ron to an empty classroom, after borrowing Harry's invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map- just in case. Ron sat down on top of McGonagall's desk while Hermione fidgeted nervously. "So, what did you want 'Mione?"

"I want to tell you, Ron, I don't know what got into me the other night. I was frightened by some ridiculous prophecy, and I possibly messed up the one wholly good thing in my life. I want to right it," she said, and with unusual courage, she kissed him.

"Ron," she said when they broke for air, " I was so silly. I was afraid to admit anything because I was afraid I'd lose you. But now I am not afraid. Ron Weasley, I love you."

She wept with happiness as they kissed, not noticing his own tears mingling with hers. Finally they stopped sobbing and kissing. Sitting in McGonagall's classroom, they simply held each other, making meaningless conversation.

"So, where have you been disappearing to for the past few evenings?" Ron asked Hermione.

In the doorway someone leaned forward to hear what was being said. This subject interested her. As she leaned into the room, she bumped against the door, and it creaked.

Ron and Hermione jumped. "Filch?" Hermione silently wondered as Ron hastily threw the invisibility cloak over them. They sat in silence, looking around them for a few minutes.

Little did they know, someone had slipped back into the hall. A voice rose out of the darkness. "Well, Granger, you're not the only one with an invisibility cloak. However it won't help you; I will have Potter no matter what. And I will be sure my brother helps me. You won't be so happy for long."

The sinister clank of a suit of armor leaping creakily aside could be heard down the hall. And with a chill, the words "Small spider weave…" echoed through the dark halls.

The End