Mrs. Weasley smiled at Hermione from the kitchen. "Why, hello, Hermione! It's nice to have you back here. It's been so long since you've visited," she said. "I would have come along to pick you up, but I just hate those machines that Muggles drive in. I don't see why the Ministry couldn't just apparate the lot of us over there."
"I'm just glad to be here, no matter how I traveled." Hermione leaned back in her chair. "Though my parents are wonderful, it's great to be with some wizards."
At that moment, Ron and his father struggled through the door with her suitcase. Hermione ran over immediately to help them. She grabbed a corner and wrestled to keep her part of the trunk from falling.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't realize it would be this heavy to carry off the ground."
Ginny ended up helping to, just to get the case into where Hermione would be staying, in Ginny's room. When everyone got downstairs again, Mrs. Weasley had hot tea and biscuits ready.
"Food!" Ron moaned, looking longingly at the platters. "I haven't eaten since breakfast!"
"Since breakfast?" Ginny looked at her watch. "That was two hours ago."
"I know," he said, helping himself to a biscuit. "I'm a growing boy. I have to eat, Gin, or else I might shrink to nothing at all." He licked the crumbs of his fingers and reached for another.
Hermione took a biscuit and bit into it. "Growing boy. Sure. You're already almost six feet, aren't you?"
"Five foot eight," Ron announced.
"Five foot eight," Mrs. Weasley repeated proudly, patting her son on the head. "And a prefect too."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Ron said, sounding annoyed.
"Nothing, dear. I'm just so glad you didn't leave school live Fred and George." Mrs. Paused. "Though they did buy this wonderful new dress." She ruffled the hem at the bottom fondly.
"Hey, Ron! Maybe you could be a prefect and a joke shop owner too! Then you could buy me a nice dress too. I've been needing dresses," Ginny said.
"If you ever need one, you can borrow one of mine, Ginny," Hermione told her. She took a final bite of her biscuit, finishing it off. "I have almost everything in that trunk. I didn't have time to be picky about packing."
"Was that all clothes in there?" Ron asked, his eyes wide. He shook his head. "No, it can't have been. Felt like you packed a three ring circus, including the elephant!"
"Mum rushed me! I didn't know she and Dad were leaving until today, you know."
Ron refused to say anything more and laid down on the tatty couch. He was sprawled across it, feet propped up. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back.
"Oh, just be quiet. I'm so tired. Stupid owl got me up early."
"You mean to say that ten o'clock is early? I'd been up for hours by then," Ginny told him. She walked to the couch. "Move your feet; I'm sitting down. Come on, Hermione. You can sit here too."
Ron gave a groan, but moved his feet clear off the couch and onto the floor, making way for the two girls. Ginny ended up where his feet had been, her legs curled up under her. Hermione sat between them, leaning her head back.
"Now that you mention it, I'm tired too."
Before long, no one said anything and the only sound in the room was the ticking of the clock, slow breathing, and the occasional humming of Mrs. Weasley. You could bet on your life that within five minutes the kids were asleep. It was only a bit after noon and they were slouched on the old couch, heads on each others shoulders. Ron gave a loud snort every few moments, Ginny had sprawled over top the other two, and Hermione was snoring softly on Ron's shoulder.
"Poor dears. What a day, and it's hardly been started yet," Mrs. Weasley whispered to herself.