A/n: This took some time to update but, again, I apologize. School, as we all very well know, is time consuming and, er, a load of crapola but oh well. Don't fret, though, the next chapter will probably come pretty quickly because I'll have lots to write about. If you hate cliffhangers, I'll be absolutely dead by the time you finish this chapter. That's all I'm saying. Yes, I know, I'm horrible...
Disclaimer: Don't own them but I luckily have the pleasure to do with them as I please
Chapter 9: Strong BondsRon glanced sideways at Hermione. Since the day before, upon their return from Privet Drive, the pained look had not left her eyes. He had never seen her more woebegone before, except perhaps in her third year. He had a feeling, however, that this was much worse. He knew, even though she had never spoken about the rough year she had had to bear, that no matter how terrible they had seemed to her, she had somehow known that Harry and Ron would come around.
But now...even he wasn't sure.
How could he judge Harry's feelings? There was no denying that Hermione had interfered somewhat the previous year. But Ron knew it had only been out of love and care for her best friend. And he had always assumed that Harry knew as much. He would have never guessed that Harry was harboring such abhorrent feelings for Hermione's fussing and meddling.
He had been pretty shocked himself to see Harry scream at her, complaining about how she had tried to take over his life, tried to tell him what was best for him, and ending the row with slamming the door in her face. Somehow, he understood that the slammed door symbolized so much to Hermione. It was like Harry was closing the door to his friendship and, possibly worse, his life, and Ron could sense without asking that these were the things that hurt Hermione the most about the argument, much more than the accusations and the deaf ears.
Now they both sat on the couch in the living room, waiting for Mrs. Weasley and Ginny. After their Hogwarts letters had come the evening before, Mrs. Weasley had suggested they visit Diagon Alley to buy their supplies. Ron had mentioned to her the fight Harry and Hermione had had, making sure to dismiss it as something casual so his mother wouldn't worry. He was relieved when she suggested that it could just be the three teenagers in the household to avoid Hermione feeling any discomfort.
It hurt Ron to see Hermione so devoid of an emotion other than agony. He knew he couldn't comfort her because he had no idea what to make of the situation. She had her chin on one hand, her elbow propped up against a cushion. She had her head slightly turned away from Ron, and she seemed to be in the same trance-like state she had been in the previous afternoon. No matter what he did, he could not grab her attention. And it was driving him mad.
He gave a frustrated sigh. Shaking his head, he said, "Hermione." She made no movement of recognition at the sound of her name. It was almost like she hadn't even heard him. Cautiously, he took her free hand in his and gave her a gentle shake, repeating her name. This time, her eyes glanced at him and gently withdrew her hand from his. With his patience at its end, he grabbed both her shoulders and forced her to turn to look at him. For a few moments, she kept her eyes down, not bothering to remove Ron's firm grip on her shoulders. After closing her eyes briefly, she slowly lifted her head to meet his gaze. She bit her bottom lip and without the slightest premonition, she threw her arms around his neck and buried her head into the nook between his shoulder and his head.
He gently rubbed her back and momentarily forgot about her sorrow. He couldn't help but revel in the—would he call it bliss?—that he felt whenever she did this. She'd never really hugged him until their fifth year, but by now she'd done it so much that he had forgotten the first time she'd actually done it. It didn't really matter, though; what mattered was that she did hug him now and then. He couldn't understand why neither of them had shared a hug before.
Shaking himself from his reverie, he pulled away from the hug. Looking at his best friend straight in the eye, he said, "Do you want to talk about it?" She sighed and nodded.
"I—it's completely ridiculous, isn't it? I should have said something." She was silent for a moment and then plunged on. "Harry...I thought Harry knew that I just nagged because I'm looking out for him. I know everyone else is but...they're in the Order, Ron, that's what they're supposed to do. I'm doing it because I want Harry to be around even after all this—this madness ends, you know? I have no idea how long it's going to take to sort this out. I'm completely devoid of solutions for it, because I don't know what to say to him. I don't think he meant this to be a 'forever' type of thing. But what it?"
Ron shook his head. "Well, what if I sprouted wings and flew away? Hermione, you shouldn't think about that stuff. I mean, come on, it's you and Harry. You two have been friends for a really long time and gotten through stuff. Harry just has...er, temper tantrums, kind of. I think it might have come out wrong. He might have said the wrong thing and not what he wanted to say. Just...don't think about it today. I know he'll come around, it'll be hard for him not to. But don't go nutters over it too much. Deal?"
Hermione nodded and gave him a small smile. "Deal."
The sound of Mrs. Weasley's voice made Hermione remove her hands abruptly from Ron's. They both turned to find Mrs. Weasley and Ginny standing at the bottom of the staircase, making sure to have all the Hogwarts letters. When Mrs. Weasley had shoved the pieces of parchment into her purse, she looked up at Ron and Hermione.
"Well, come on then," she said, walking towards the fireplace. "You've got everything you need with you, right?" Ron and Hermione nodded and joined Mrs. Weasley at the fireplace. Ginny stepped up beside them a moment later. "Right," Mrs. Weasley said, snatching the little flowerpot from the fireplace mantle. "I suppose you two want to do the shopping on your own?" she said, addressing Ron and Hermione. Ron nodded before Hermione could object. Mrs. Weasley gave Hermione a sympathetic smile and turned back to the fire. She snatched some Floo Powder from the little flowerpot before returning it to its place on the mantle. When she threw the powder into the flames, she waited for them to turn green and then allowed Ginny to step up and say "Diagon Alley!" The flames swallowed her up and she was gone. Mrs. Weasley did the same after her daughter, after saying to Ron and Hermione that they would meet in two hours time at Flourish and Blotts.
When Mrs. Weasley was gone, Ron motioned for Hermione to go first. She stepped into the green fire, but hesitated. Then she turned around and said, "Thanks, Ron. For everything." Then she leaned forward and did something she had only done once before. She placed her lips against his cheek, which immediately reddened. She gave him a small smile, turned back to face the flames, and with the words "Diagon Alley!" she was gone.
Ron lightly touched his cheek. He would never understand her. With that thought in his mind, he felt the whirl of air pulling him towards her, towards Diagon Alley.
END POV
It had been over an hour since they had arrived at Diagon Alley. They had collected all their books and necessities and were now walking briskly along the crowded streets of the wizarding place. Hermione had livened up greatly after what Ron had said to her. She had disposed of the silent sadness in her eyes, although he knew she still felt it. However, she was taking care not to show it, and it was helping her relax a bit.
"Oh, Ron, look!" she said all of a sudden, grabbing his arm and pointing to a sign over a new shop in the Alley. Ron's jaw dropped. On the sign, it said "Weasley Wizard Wheezes."
"They really did open the bloody joke shop," he murmured. After a moment, a smirk full of pride that he would never admit to settled on his features. "And to think that they couldn't even bother to buy their favorite little brother one of those wicked dragon-hide jackets." He shook his head. "Shame."
Hermione laughed weakly. "Now you're starting to sound like them."
Ron grinned. "So that's three of my brothers that are working here in Diagon Alley."
Hermione nodded. "I'm sure Bill enjoys being here closer to his family. I imagine that's why he took the time to visit a couple of weeks ago...with Fleur," she said, with a hint of bitterness in her tone as she mentioned Fleur.
Ron shrugged. "I guess he likes it but I suppose he misses Egypt. He's pretty attached to that place. It's kind of like how we miss Hogwarts during the summer holiday."
"Bur Hogwarts is different. It's not our job."
Ron shrugged again. "Sometimes it feels like it is."
Hermione bent her head and Ron mentally cursed himself. He had given her a reason to think about Harry. Trying to make the best of what he had said, he put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him and he knew she didn't blame him for saying what he had said, that she agreed with him. But before she could say anything, a sickeningly familiar voice startled them.
"Well, fancy that...Granger and Weasley." Draco Malfoy stood before them, his malicious eyes glaring at them with the utmost contempt. A smirk settled on his pale lips as he raised his eyebrows. "I would have thought you two would have been a little smarter. Maybe not you, Weasley, but definitely Granger. I guess you're just not much without your books, are you?" He laughed. "You two have less common sense than Potter."
"What's that supposed to mean?" growled Ron, his voice dangerously low. Worry crossed Malfoy's pointed face for a fleeting instant, but soon it was replaced by his usual smug expression. It infuriated Ron, and it was all he could do to prevent himself from connecting his fist with Malfoy's nose.
"Come on, Weasley. With what happened in June, I'm surprised you're not clinging to your mummy for protection. After all..." He lowered his voice to a murmur and at this, Hermione took a step back. "You never know who could be lurking in the dark corners of this pathetic place." Ron kept his face as neutral as he could. He was not going to give Malfoy the satisfaction of knowing that that was the very thing that he had worried about whenever he went out, especially if Hermione was with him. After all, she was a Muggle-born, and there was no denying that they were the first targets, other than Harry, on the Death Eaters' list.
To Ron's surprise, Hermione spoke up. "Don't be stupid, Malfoy. I know it's hard for you, but think. Do you honestly believe that we'll eat up all that—that crap you're saying? Please. You're just bitter that your father is rotting in Azkaban."
At the mention of Lucius Malfoy, Draco's eyes lit up with rage. He shoved Ron aside and stepped towards Hermione, until he was very close to her. Ron was about to lunge at him but Hermione held up a hand. Malfoy walked up to her, his eyes flickering to Ron. With his nose almost touching hers, he said, "Don't speak about things you don't know, Granger. You might be surprised. You've been locked up with Weasley doing who knows what for the past few weeks. You have no idea what's happening around you." His voice was so low Ron could tell it was unnerving her. He wanted to do something, but he was curious about what Malfoy would say. After all, he did have a big mouth that had given his father away on other occasions, and Ron was willing to bet this would be no different. Malfoy continued. "You won't be ready. And they'll strike. They'll hit you—and Weasley—where it will hurt the most...and where you least expect it."
Hermione was trying to hide the fact that he was scaring her, but it was very evident. "Empty threats, Malfoy. That's all they are to me." Her voice was shaking, and Malfoy noticed.
He laughed. "Shame that you had to be a Mudblood," he said, leaning closer still towards her, so that his breath was on her face. Then he did something that made Ron absolutely livid. He brought his hand up to her cheek and touched it slowly. Ron saw Hermione shudder slightly at his touch. "You're starting to be sort of...pretty." He turned his head toward her ear and got as close as he could without touching her. He whispered in her ear, loud enough for Ron to hear, "Maybe there's a way I could convince Father to do away with only Weasley and Potter. Then I'd keep you as...let's call it a prize."
Ron's patience was at its end. In one swift movement, he grabbed Malfoy by the collar and pinned him against the wall of the nearest shop, earning a gasp from quite a few people nearby. Ron's jaw was clenched and his eyes held such hate that Hermione had only seen in Harry's whenever Bellatrix was mentioned. Ron brought his face close to Malfoy's and said, "Don't ever touch her again, Malfoy. If you do, I'll personally see to it that my hands wring every last breath from your body." With that said, he threw him against the wall and allowed him to crumble to the ground. Then he walked back to Hermione and stood beside her. Malfoy regained his breath on the ground before standing and brushing the dust off his expensive black robes.
"How very touching...you two make such a sweet couple," he said, sarcasm all too evident in his drawling voice. The smirk that had been on his face was replaced with a look of absolute malevolence. "Too bad you won't live to develop the budding romance. I suggest you watch your backs. But even if you do...you'll pay. You'll all pay for what you did to my father."
And he turned on his heels and stomped off, his robe billowing behind him, leaving Ron and Hermione to think about what he had said.
"The bastard did it to himself!" Ron bellowed after Malfoy's retreating back. His breathing was uneven for a few seconds, but the minute he recovered himself, he put a protective arm over Hermione's shoulders and said, "Malfoy can only talk a load of bullshit. Come on. We should head to Flourish and Blotts."
Hermione nodded and they both began to walk. But Malfoy's words echoed in her head. Too bad you won't live to develop the budding romance. And as the words resounded in her head, she gently shrugged Ron's arm off her shoulder. She was willing to risk her life and her future if it meant putting an end to the pain Voldemort and his followers were causing. But she was not willing to risk Ron. And if that meant that they couldn't take their relationship any further, she would have to make that sacrifice.
END POV
"Harry." Hermione's statement initiated a silence only broken by her bag of supplies dropping with a loud clunk to the floor of the living room at the Burrow. Upon their return from Diagon Alley just a few seconds before, they had entered to find Harry pacing near the fireplace. The minute Hermione had seen him, her jaw had dropped and panic rushed to her face.
Ron couldn't help but cringe internally when he saw Harry at his house. This was either a visit with the purpose of making sure Hermione understood that he no longer wanted her as a friend or he wanted to apologize. He sincerely hoped it was the latter of the two.
Harry looked like a deer caught in the headlights. His eyes were wide as they stared around at the three Weasleys and Hermione. Ron drank in the disheveled hair and the wrinkled clothes and he knew that his row with Hermione had hit him as hard as it had hit her. He hoped this was a sign that he didn't want to fight anymore.
Mrs. Weasley broke the deafening silence. "Er...hello Harry dear. To what do we owe the pleasure?" Ron silently thanked his mother but it was evident that her delight was somewhat forced. Ginny looked from him to Harry and back to him, and the siblings exchanged worried glances. She tried to tell him something using only her eyes and slight movements of her head, but Ron was distracted by the sight of Hermione, still staring at Harry with fear etched on her young face.
Harry ran a hand through his hair. "Um, actually, Mrs. Weasley, I was hoping to have a talk with—with Hermione." He said this without lifting his gaze from the floor, avoiding any eye contact whatsoever with Hermione.
"I see..." Mrs. Weasley said softly. "Well, we'll leave you two alone, then."
Ron saw Hermione react immediately at this statement. "What?"
"I think it's best if you and Harry talk in private," Mrs. Weasley said, giving her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. Ron touched her elbow and she turned to look at him. He leaned close to her so only she could hear him. "Don't worry," he whispered. "It'll be okay. Just tell him everything and you guys will sort it out." Hermione nodded and stepped away from him.
Because his first priority was having his best friends speaking to each other, he did not let his frustration show. But Hermione's sudden change of character was bothering him. After their encounter with Malfoy, she had avoided showing any signs of affection that she normally displayed...and she stepped away every time he touched her. He didn't understand what had changed the way she acted towards him but, whatever it was, he didn't like it.
Shaking these thoughts out of his head, he nodded at Harry and gave him a look that said, "Do the right thing." Then, with one last glance at his best friends, he followed his mother and sister out of the room and closed the door behind him.
pov shift
Hermione didn't look up when she heard the door close. She felt so alone now, so vulnerable. She knew she would not be able to convince Harry that she had nagged him incessantly just because she wanted him to be safe. Harry was stubborn, and she knew that he would try but fail to understand.
Harry's sigh made her look up. He was staring at her with no readable emotion. She bit her lip and waited for him to speak. When he didn't, she said in a soft but nevertheless firm tone, "Why didn't you tell me before?"
Looking determined, Harry drew in a shaky breath before answering. "I...I didn't want to hurt your feelings."
Without thinking, Hermione flicked her gaze up to look at him. "Well, you certainly weren't very good at that, from what I heard yesterday," she snapped. Immediately, she wished she hadn't. Harry groaned and walked away from her.
"I knew this would be hard with you...you're making it be difficult," he said in frustration.
Hermione's first instinct was to apologize for being so crude but her initiative self-defense kicked up. "How am I making this difficult? I'm not the one who blew up all of a sudden with no sort of warning!"
Harry whipped around and pointed a finger at her. "Okay. You are going to sit down there—"he pointed to a small armchair near the fireplace, "—and you are going to listen to what I have to say to you and you are not going to interrupt because this is important. Understood?"
Hermione almost defied his orders but the authority he had suddenly demonstrated took her by surprise and she obediently sat down and looked up at him, waiting for him to speak.
He sighed and looked at her, never taking his eyes from her. "First of all, I'm sorry," he started. "I'm sorry for chewing you out unexpectedly and I'm sorry for not telling you that you were bothering me. I'm sorry for being so inconsiderate." He stopped to stare at Hermione's satisfied smile. "I'm not done, so don't start assuming that you were right all along because I do have points to prove, and they make sense.
"Look, one of the reasons I blew up on you yesterday was because I found my mum's old photo album. It had some pictures of when she was a child, and you have to understand that I never knew her. I was feeling pretty bad because it hit me so hard, knowing that my mother was gone and I never got a chance to talk to her or ask her for advice. And that's when I started thinking that it was my fault she was gone. Her and my dad and...and Sirius. And the moment I thought about Sirius, I remembered how you had told me not to go to the Department of Mysteries, that it could just be a trap because Voldemort knows how I 'love to play the hero.' I realized if I had listened to you, Sirius would be alive, that you were right, that if I hadn't rushed to the Department without careful thinking, Sirius would still be with us. And I got so mad. Damn, Hermione, you're always right. The fact that you were right and I was wrong basically killed Sirius. That's what made me so angry, whether it be at you or at myself or at both.
"And then there's the fact that it always felt like you just woke up and started telling me what to do and what not to do. It felt like you were trying to run my life, and I managed to keep my temper at bay for a while, but my patience ran out, and it happened to be yesterday, when the weight of what I just told you fell on me out of nowhere.
"So I apologize for being so harsh and for not letting you know exactly why I was so angry." With a deep sigh, Harry finished and collapsed into the sofa next to Hermione's armchair.
Hermione stared at her hands for a few minutes. She understood perfectly why Harry had acted the way he had. Now she was just glad they were going to be able to sort it out.
"I understand. I mean, I—I don't suppose I do. And I shouldn't have pretended like I did, or like everything was perfectly fine. I guess sometimes it's just hard to believe it. But you should know all about that..." She let her voice trail away and sucked in a shaky breath. "Look. We're not good at apologizing to each other. With you and Ron and me, it's always been that things can be corrected easily. We don't have to give each other speeches about how we'll stick together through everything and things like that. But, honestly, Harry. You saved me from a mountain troll when I was eleven. There's no way that pointless arguments will ever manage to get between us permanently. So of course you're forgiven. But I'm sorry for being so...thoughtlessly reckless." She smiled tentatively and hugged him.
Harry smiled as he hugged her back. "I forgive you. And, you're right, stuff isn't gonna come between us too easily. I'll be there when you get that Hogwarts diploma and when the whole world recognizes how brilliant you are. I'll be there whenever we manage to get you on a broom. I'll be at your wedding—and at Ron's, of course, although I daresay those won't be two separate ones." Hermione pulled back and gave him a stern look, although she couldn't muster a good one. He laughed and said, "I'll be here for you. I swear I will. As long as I can, I'll be here."
The friends grinned at each other. The moment Harry finished speaking, the door from the kitchen burst open and Ron and Ginny rushed out. Ginny rushed towards Harry and when she reached him, she threw her arms around him so hard that he was almost knocked backward. Ron wasn't exactly as extravagant and enthusiastic as Ginny. He went to where Hermione was sitting and said, "So is everything resolved?" When she gave him a dazzling smile of joy, his face split into a grin that mirrored her own. Then he turned to Harry and clapped him on the back. "I'm glad to know that you guys are okay. I was worried there for a moment."
Harry stood up and offered Hermione his hand to help her up. The four teenagers walked in the direction of the kitchen, Ginny's arm around Harry's waist, a smile again on Hermione's face. She couldn't believe how happy she felt. To think that a few hours before, close to nothing would make her crack a smile. Now she had Harry back, and she knew that he cared about her as much as she cared about him. For now, everything felt perfect.
Too perfect.
Which might explain why she, along with all the others, was startled to see Moody rush through the front door, dread and exhaustion etched across his deformed features. His normal eye was almost as wide as his magical eye, which demonstrated quite clearly the state of shock he was in. His hair was disheveled, his face was dirty, and beads of sweat glittered on his temple. Worst of all, there was a long, blood cut on his disfigured cheek. Hermione stopped abruptly, and the others followed suit.
Something was wrong.
Hermione's heart was pounding so hard she half expected it to burst through her chest at any moment. The Moody standing before them was quite different from the Moody they were used to seeing. Moody was always calm and collected. This Moody...he looked on the edge of a nervous breakdown.
Ron obviously was thinking the same thing she was. Concern etched on his face, he stepped forward and said, "What's going on, Mad-Eye?"
Moody looked too shaken to answer. After a moment of silence, he said, "Where's your mother?" He said this all very quickly in a demanding, desperate tone. "You'll know soon enough, but first, your mother..."
Ginny straightened up as Harry stepped away from her and walked up to Moody. "We don't want to know soon. We want to know now."
Moody sighed. "Very well...if you so desire. Where is Molly?!"
"What's all the ruckus about?" said Mrs. Weasley herself, walking hurriedly out of the kitchen. She drank in the state Moody was in and said, "Mad-Eye? Is everything all right?"
There was a long silence. It was deafening. It screamed warning, peril, bad news. It made Hermione want to clap her hands over her ears so she wouldn't have to listen to the awful silence, such loud silence...
Then Moody said something, in a whisper that seemed no louder than the rustle of the wind on an autumn afternoon, that made Hermione's blood freeze in her veins. He said something that made Ginny gasp, Mrs. Weasley faint, and Harry choke for breath. He said something that made Ron's hand go limp, a hand cold with sweat, so cold it felt like the life had been sucked out of him. The three words that Moody uttered would change Ron forever.
"Bill is dead."
A/n: .......review!!!