Chapter Seven: Something Real
It was getting close to Christmas break. Most of the kids had plans to go home, go to Spain, Paris, anyplace else. Except for Seven 7th years, and a 6th year. Guess who.
"You three stayin' for Christmas?" Harry asked Ron, Dean, and Seamus as they sat in the common room.
"'Course not, mate. I wouldn't leave you here alone." Ron said to Harry with a laugh. Harry smiled.
"Thanks. How 'bout you two?" Harry asked.
"Nah, mate. We're stayin' here too." Seamus answered for himself and Dean. Harry and Ron nodded. They all jumped when the Portrait slid open with the fat lady yelling.
"You really should got to the hospital wing, dearie!" She said.
"N-no, I-I'm Fine." Said a girl, who sounded like she had to force the reply out. The four boys turned to the girl and saw that it was Hermione. She was hunched over, holding her stomach with one arm, her other arm around Ginny's shoulder. Harry and Ron jumped up to help get her to the couch, Seamus and Dean followed.
"What happened?!" Ron asked as Hermione knees finally caved and she fell to the floor still clutching her stomach.
"Pansy Parkinson sent the Crucio curse at her. There were no teachers around, so she got away with it!" Ginny yelled.
"Oh, Jeez." Harry muttered as they picked Hermione up again and got her to the couch.
"And this little prat won't go to the hospital wing!" Ginny said.
"I'll b-be fine! I can't go t-to the h-hospital w-wing!" Hermione forced out.
"Why?!" Ron said, but practically yelled.
"Because the pain is going away." Hemione said through gritted teeth. And she was telling the truth, to the pain was subsiding. Hermione was finally able to straighten up.
"You need to go to the Hospital wing, Herm." Ron mumbled as he stepped away from Hermione and started heading toward the boys dorms. Hermione stood up and, against the will of Harry, Ginny, Seamus, and Dean, ran after Ron. He was already around a corner and halfway to his door by the time she caught up with him.
"Ron!" She said as she grabbed his shoulder and whipped him around. Ron let out a loud sigh.
"Hermione, leave me alone and go have Pomfrey check you out." He said before he turned around again and reached for the doorknob. He went in and shut his door, only to hear banging on it a second later.
"RON! OPEN THE DOOR!" Hermione yelled. Ron ignored her. "Ron. Open. The. God Damn. Door." She said this time. Although you could tell she said it through gritted teeth. It took Ron a second to shake off the surprise of what Hermione said. In that second, he could hear Hermione. "Alohamora" she said and he saw the door open. "Ron, you have to talk to me." Hermione said quietly as she stepped into the room. Ron shook his head.
"I don't really feel like talking to you, Hermione. Just please leave" Ron said as he looked down at his hands. Hermione shook her own head furiously.
"No. No! You have to say something to me, you can't shut me out. I won't let you! I'm not going anywhere." She said. Then she went and sat on Harry's bed with her arms folded stubbornly. A bitter smile slid over Ron's lips. He got up from his bed, went over to Hermione, grabbed her by the forearm, made her stand up, and led her to the door. He opened the door, and they both went out it. Hermione tried to free her arm a few times but Ron had a good hold on it. He led her down the stairs, into the now empty common room, and then he made her sit down on the couch.
"Okay, let's talk." Ron said in a bitter voice that made Hermione shiver.
"R-Ron," Hermione started, sounding a little scared at the look Ron was giving her. "I-I'm sorry I hurt you. I just wanted you to not shoot me down. What Ginny suggested was the only way I could talk myself into what I did." Hermione said. "Truth is, I hadn't meant to kiss you." She said. This made Ron look up from where he had been staring at. "But when we were in the common room, you were just.....what you did, you know, tucking my hair behind my ear, was just so sweet." Hermione said, know staring at her lap and, smiling thoughtfully. "And, when I looked at you, you looked like you were embarrassed for some reason. You just looked so cute." Hermione said with a slight laugh. "I couldn't help but kiss you." She finished, looking up at Ron, who was staring at her with her eyes slightly open.
Meanwhile, Harry, Ginny, Seamus, Lavender, Dean, and Parvati were around the corner. Lavender had come running down the boys dorm stairs.
"Their coming." She had yelled and whispered at the same time. Parvati, who had come down seconds after Lavender, went and pushed Dean around a corner. Lavender came down and did the same to Seamus. Followed by Ginny pushing Harry around the corner, just as Ron and Hermione came down the stairs.
"What were you doing up there?!" Seamus whispered to Lavender. Lavender hid a smile.
"I've been upstairs for awhile. When Hermione and Ginny came in, and you guys were distracted, me and Parvati ran up the stairs." She said happily. Harry's eyes widened.
"So, Hermione faked it!" He said, he would have been yelling if Ginny had not put her hand over his mouth.
"No!" Ginny said shaking her head. "Pansy really did hit Hermione with the Crucio curse. I didn't even know Parvati and Lavender had gone upstairs." She said, desperate for the boys to believe her. Parvati nodded.
"We didn't tell anyone we were going up there." She said with happiness in her voice to. "We had been in the room next door to you guys's room." She added.
"But, why?" Dean asked.
"Well, we wanted to prove that we weren't lying. So, me and Parvati cast a truth spell on the common room." Lavender said. Seamus opened his mouth but she cut him off. "We cast it from the boys stairs because where you cast it is where is hits fastest. But, after we cast it, we saw Ron heading toward the stairs. So we went into the closest room. Which happened to be the room next to you guys." She finished.
"Wait, you cast a truth spell?" Harry asked. Parvati and Lavender nodded. "That means..." Harry said pointing to where Hermione and Ron were. Ginny cut him off though, when she put her hand on his arm.
"Will you believe me then?" She asked. Harry looked down at her and then looked away.
"We're not in the common room." He said stubbornly. Ginny shook her head.
"Whatever you say." She said, before she slipped out of the corner and got to the girls dorms before anyone saw her. Dean reached up and hit Harry over the back of the head.
"You're a real prat, you know that?" Seamus said. Harry took a second and then nodded slowly.
"I'm starting to." He said quietly.
