Chapter 12
Author's Note: Yes, I'm back again, finally, as some of you are saying right now. And I must deeply apologize for keeping you in suspense too long. I'm sure you must be losing interest now. But, if you're still loyal enough to me to keep reading, or for some others, reviewing *coughHERMIONEWEASLEYcough*, here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it! This, one, I know, will be an object of confusion for Chapters to come. I love that. Just look at the title. You'll know what I mean. MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Now, to recognize those who have been waiting so long….
Marron- Thanks for reviewing! But I just wanted to tell you not to worry about Ginny. She will return soon. You don't think I would just let harry grow old without his beloved Weezys, do you? Of course not. Keep reading! I know you'll love this Chapter.
Anyana- Yay! I'm so happy you reviewed for me! I'm going to keep updating as often as possible. I love Draco, he's just so versatile, don't you agree? And my new key phrase, especially for this chapter, is that fluff helps the medicine go down! Hahaha…keep reading!
owl post 1992- Thanks for the review! Just wait till you read more! Lol, I think you'll like it even more.
Athletic_Gurl_2002- Thanks for the awesome review! I hope you continue to read and enjoy my fan fiction. Have fun reading!
hox- Thank you! I'd be delighted if you keep reading my story, I'm positive you'll like it.
Strawberry_Strudel- Thank you for the review, I'm happy to know that you think it's cute! Ron and Hermione forever! Hehe. Yes. Anyway…well, I knew it was my destiny to be the recorder of this story…*eyes mist over as she stares at the poster of Ron*…Um, anyway! Keep reading!
bumpersticker86- Lol, thanks for the review! Oh, don't worry about Harry and Ginny. I loooovvve happy endings to much to create a remotely sad one. That is, unless it's a Harry/Hermione story *growls* Yes, I could write a sad ending about that. But I'm sure you'll love this chapter, fluff is my forte. Please keep reviewing!
:::WARNING:::Those who have been reading the notes to reviewers might want to skip this one. It will be a bit long. Thank you, and have a nice day!
Hermione Weasley- Oh dear. I'm so sorry. I really am. Forgive me for not updating sooner. You see, school has been very difficult lately, and the only class I have that isn't either Honors or AP is Geometry. Hehe. But that isn't an excuse. I promise that I'm not going to abandon this fic, and I will really try to start updating more frequently. This is my best one so far, anyway….in my opinion. I hope you love this Chapter, I know I loved writing it. And, as to your request for more song fics: I will attempt to rite them whenever I have the time to do so. At the moment I'm trying to find a good song for Hermione to sing back to Ron for Fairy Tale in Pop Music, and I have a few other ideas I might put into words soon, as long as I can find the time. You know, though, patience is a virtue, as Evy says in the Mummy, and suspense is a great literary tool. I have abused that tool a bit, I think. So expect to see another chapter soon. Yes, I will put it up soon. Thank you for waiting so long, my friend. Cheers!
:::WARNING:::Well, perhaps this is not really a warning, but, um, you may commence reading again. Thank you, and continue to have a nice day!
This chapter is dedicated to Jiwon Kang, the best roommate in la monde!
Disclaimer: Okay, I'm done with creative disclaimers. I don't own all these rights to Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling does), only the plot, and goody-two-shoes Draco, though he's a bit depressed in this chapter. And by the way, Anybody else feel like murdering Warner Brothers employees, or at least threatening them by all dressing up like owls, and flying around heir studios. And then we might even get a glimpse of some movie stars! Heehee!
A Kiss in the Snow
A happy red curtain is pulled away to reveal the Great Hall, bright and crowded with lots of students, and the focal point: the four who aren't students or teachers, but are, in fact, very hungry…
Dinner was wonderful. The table was piled high with steak, potatoes, warm rolls, salad, tomato soup, green beans, pasta, rice, chicken, and all sorts of other good foods. The four of them ate ravenously, all looking like Ron during a usual meal.
Afterward, they all felt very satisfied and decided to take a walk on the grounds. They talked cheerfully while they did this, and at one point, Draco picked up a handful of remaining snow, and hit Ron in the back of his head. Ron turned around with a "Hey!" but Harry was already coming to his rescue. Draco bent down to get some more snow, and when he stood up again, Harry was waiting, and rubbed a snowball in his face.
This went on for a while, until it was an all-out snowball fight between two teams: Ron and Harry verses Draco and Hermione. They all laughed non-stop, throwing snowballs at one another, hiding behind trees, pushing each other around. Harry and Ron were winning, of course, but it was still very fun. At one point, Hermione saw Ron sneaking up behind Draco, carrying a substantially large snowball.
"Hey Ron!" She called after him.
Ron turned to look at her angrily, but she was smiling. "Wingardium Leviosa!" She said, with a swish and flick of her wand. The snowball that had been in his hand was now on his head, and he shook the snow off his face and hair violently. "You'll pay for that one, 'Mione," he shouted, shaking his fist at her. A few minutes later, Draco and Harry had been in hand-to-hand snowball combat, and got into a mock fight. They were a jumble of arms and legs, shouting fake insults at one another.
"You're dead, Potter!"
"Don't count on it, Malfoy!"
It went on as thus, and Hermione stepped closer to watch as they rolled around with big "oof!"s and "aah!"s, kicking and punching. Hermione laughed happily, watching them, she knew Harry would become Draco's friend once they'd gotten used to each other. Suddenly, a snowball hit the back of her head. She turned around immediately, her mouth wide open in anger, to find Ron standing right there.
They were nose to nose, facing one another, with Harry and Draco pretending to fight behind them. She shut her mouth abruptly, and looked into Ron's sly, blue eyes. He must have lost whatever idea he had when he looked at her eyes, though, and they lost the sly look. They just stared at each other, for a long time it seemed, until Ron made up his mind. Quickly, he stooped down, and placed his lips on hers, and they kissed. Everything stopped for a moment, however short the kiss was; it seemed perfect. Then Ron pulled away, looking shocked, but smiled, rubbed a snowball in her face, and dashed away. Hermione looked after him in confusion.
Finally, Draco and Harry ended their battle, and the four of them decided it would be a good idea to visit Hagrid before going back up to the castle. After all, they were soaking wet, and could use a little rest in front of a fire. Apparently, the two of them hadn't seen what happened between Ron and Hermione. Unless it didn't happen. But it did, I know it did. Didn't it? Ron was certainly acting like it didn't.
"Harry! Yeh're back! I knew they'd find yeh, I knew it, didn't I?" He yelled joyously to them, when they arrived, promptly giving Harry a big hug which almost suffocated him. "Come in, I'll make some tea. You four look chilled to the bone." They all stomped the snow off of their boots, and stepped into the warm hut, a crackling fire burning in the corner of the one room hut. Ron took Hermione's cloak from her, and hung it up, almost compulsively, leaving Hermione more confused than before, and they all settled comfortably into Hagrid's huge furniture.
Fang was ecstatic. He barked and growled and had to give all of them rather slobbery kisses that they all laughed at. Hagrid brought a big tea pot, and some matching mugs out of the corner which served as a kitchen, and served them all. Hermione hugged her knees to her chest, and held her tea with two cold hands, and they all chatted with spirit for about an hour about Hippogriffs, classes this year, and the progress of the situation, when something happened.
A gust of wind blew into the room from one of the windows, and brought with it a piece of paper, which Harry caught confusedly. He read it quickly, his eyes widening in terror, and then stuffed it into his pocket. Running outside, he looked around wildly, as if he was searching for someone.
"Where are you? You think you're that smart, huh? Well, then, come and get me! Challenge me!" Harry yelled this at the top of his lungs, his arms outstretched to the night, mad with rage. "What are you waiting for? You said you knew where I was! Come on, then! Come on!" Harry stopped to breathe, and muttered, "Damn them. Damn Them!" Then he whimpered, and collapsed in a heap.
"Harry!" Ron cried, and ran to help him. The rest of the group followed him outside. Harry was sobbing; his body shaking hard. Ron helped him to sit, and found the note in his pocket. He read it, and cursed under his breath. Then he handed it to Hermione, who showed it to the rest of them.
POTTER
IF YOU WANT TO SEE
THE WEASLEY GIRL AGAIN
YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS
WILL SURRENDER.
WE WILL FIND YOU.
At the bottom, it was signed cruelly with the Dark Mark. It was burned into the paper. Hagrid looked very grim. "We'd better get Harry up ter the Hospital Wing, he doesn't look too good." He picked Harry up, and they walked silently up to the castle. The Hospital Wing was always open now, so they took Harry to see Madam Pomfrey.
"Yes, he should stay here tonight," she said, after examining him, and listening to what he told her.
"I'm staying with him," Ron insisted.
"Of course. We're all staying here. We couldn't just leave him here," Draco said. Hermione nodded in agreement. Reluctantly, Madam Pomfrey assented to them staying, and gave Harry a sleeping potion to take. Meanwhile, Ron and Draco dragged three chairs over to the side of the bed, and Hagrid and Harry said good-bye to each other. Hagrid patted the bed lightly, making it shake dangerously, got up, told them all good-bye, and left for his Hut. Harry gulped down his potion, and immediately dropped into a deep sleep, but was wearing a frown.
They all sat down in the chairs, and hardly any time passed before Draco also fell asleep, snoring a bit. Ron and Hermione, however, stayed awake, watching Harry intently. It could have been five minutes, or two hours, but some time later, Ron felt Hermione's head droop, and rest on his shoulder. She was fast asleep. With a concerned sigh, Ron placed his arm around Hermione, and watched Harry sleep.
When they woke up the next morning, Harry was trying to convince Madam Pomfrey to release him. "Please?!" Madam Pomfrey looked at him sternly, and responded bluntly.
"Dear boy, I have no knowledge of where you are going, or why you are going, so I think the only ones who would know whether you are ready to go, would be your friends, and they are still asleep. Let them be," she added, as if Harry was going to jump out of bed and shake them, or shout at them to wake up, or something of the sort.
Draco stood up readily, and just on time, Harry was starting to look impatient, and called the nurse back. "Good morning, Madam," he said with his winning smirk, and took her hand, kissing it, like a gentleman would do if he lived in the 1800's. "You're looking very youthful and healthy today, if I may say so," he added.
"Oh! Why, erm, thank you, Mr. Malfoy," she said, blushing deeply, and doing some sort of strange curtsy in reply to his kiss on her hand.
"My friends and I, including Harry, really must be going now. Is that alright? You did a magnificent job on bringing Harry back to health, also, Madam."
She seemed to be fighting some inner struggle at this point, and finally said, "Well, er…I don't…oh, I suppose it's fine. But be careful. I've seen all of you in this wing of the school many times too often!"
Harry hopped out of bed; they all smiled and waved, and left as quickly as they could. Hermione looked at Draco with a sarcastic wonder. "Draco! I never knew you could actually be nice to someone! Good job! Really! Well done," Hermione said, and shook his hand energetically. Draco looked at her in faint annoyance. She dropped it.
"So…where to now?" Ron asked, with a look at Harry.
"Me? Why are you looking at me?" Harry asked, with a familiar confused look on his face. He seemed to wear that a lot.
"You've always been the leader, haven't you, Harry? Of course I'm asking you."
Harry took this as a compliment, and remembering last night, said, "Well, then. To find Ginny."
"Sounds like something I've wanted to do ever since we heard she was missing," Ron said, a twinge of anger in his voice. "Where do you think she is?"
"I might have an idea. But first, I propose we all get a shower, and all our stuff." This idea was agreed on, and they all headed up to the Gryffindor common room, Hermione muttering how unfair it was that the house-elves had to deal with all of their belongings, when they didn't even end up needing them.
"We will now," Ron said, and they started bickering, putting last night's situation out of their minds.
Hermione had gotten a nice, hot bath, and had brought her belongings down to the common room. Mysteriously enough, she hadn't seen Augery or Noss at all since she'd gotten here yesterday. It gave her chills now to think of them, and what they might mean. Ron had returned Harry's map and invisibility cloak to him, and they were having a brotherly talk in front of the fire. I wonder how long it will be until that's legally true. She thought, with a bittersweet laugh. They all seemed too big for the squashy armchairs now, too. I remember when two of us could fit into one of those chairs, oh well…she recalled this, sighing.
Hermione noticed lately that Draco had been quite reserved, and decided to talk to him. All this brooding seemed unhealthy to her. At the moment, he was sitting in a chair far from the fire, looking like a grump old man, his handsome face drawn and worried. He was regretting those events, yet again. Hermione sat down next to him, quietly, and placed her hand on his arm. He started.
"What?" he asked, turning round to face her. As soon as he saw who it was, he relaxed.
"Oh, I didn't think it was you," he said. "What is it?"
"I was just wondering, you're not still thinking about what happened at the Manor, are you? You can't do, and couldn't have done anything about it, you know," she said, knowing that was exactly what was bothering him.
"What, that? Oh, it doesn't matter. I've done much worse. I've killed many, many, people. This isn't any different. Only the fact that he was my father, and I feel like I killed him. But it shouldn't have the effect that it's having on me. Okay, I admit it, that's what's wrong. And I really haven't killed that many people." There was a long and awkward pause between them, and then he spoke again.
"Yes," he said, as if concluding something, "you're right, Granger. As usual. I mean…Hermione. Excuse me." Hermione laughed at this, and, after a few seconds, Draco smiled, too.
"Well, if we want to get going, we had better discuss it with Potter…Harry, I mean, or else we won't know where we're going," Draco said self-righteously, and they walked over to where Ron and Harry were sitting. They both looked up to acknowledge the presence of the two of them, and Hermione blushed slightly, under Ron's gaze. She quickly brushed it off, though. She cleared her throat and reminded herself that business goes first.
Harry smiled. "Ready to go?" He asked.
"Oh, yes. We're ready. We'd be even more ready if you told us where we're going," Draco said, a little icily, lifting his nose. Hermione crossed her arms, and glanced around with a come-on-guys-we're-a-team-and-we-have-to-work-together look on her face. Harry looked at her with his classic Deer in the Headlights expression, Draco nodded and put his nose down, and Ron grinned at her.
"Okay," Harry said, "Our first stop will be the Burrow, and we'll figure out where to go from there, but I have some ideas."
"Great, let's go," Ron replied eagerly, slinging his bag onto his back, and walking towards the portrait. Hermione shrugged and followed him, Harry behind her, and lastly, Draco picked up his bag, gave a last glance to the Gryffindor common room, and walked out with them. On their way out, Hermione happened to catch a glimpse of a leather pant leg under Draco's cloak, and had to stifle a laugh.
