Chapter 5: Spider Encounter & Fly Wings

Hermione walked apprehensively around pile of boxes. She spotted Ron standing right up against the wall his eyes wide with terror.

"Ron? What is it? Did you find something?" she asked. She heard a moaning behind her and whipped around to see a large bucktooth creature with slimy, grey, flabby skin.

Hermione searched her mind desperately to think what it was. Bucktoothed and slimy; it clicked; it was the ghoul in Ron's attic. It took one long dimwitted look at Hermione and ran off, hitting a pipe in its haste. The sound of crashing and large metal objects falling would, in no doubt, be audible to the Thestrals in the forbidden forests at Hogwarts. It was amazing that Ron could live under it and receive a decent night's sleep.

Hermione also wondered why Ron would be so timorous of the ghoul. She was sure he would have seen it before, as he had to come up here. But then she followed Ron's gaze to see a diminutive spider on the floor.

Hermione let out a sigh of relief mixed with slight disappointment that Ron was so terrified of something so small. Well, Fred had transfigured his teddy bear at the age of five, so..., "Oh Ron there's nothing to be afraid of. It's about sixteenth of your size!"

She down and picked up the spider by one of its miniscule legs. It thrashed and wiggled its small body scrambling to be let down. This, obviously, was too much for Ron. He dropped the rag he was holding and flung himself into a little wooden closet that was in the attic. It banged closed behind him.

Hermione rolled her eyes, laid the spider down and followed Ron. Upon opening the closet, she saw that Ron was hunched up in the corner of the closet. He looked very funny, like a very tall five year old child. He had his knees up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. His head was obscured by his blazing red hair and he was rocking back and forth muttering. "Spiders... don't like spiders." Hermione felt he was being childish and needed to get over his petty fear.

"Ron, you mustn't get so worked up over a tiny little harmless spider. One day that will become more of a problem for you. What if you're a ministry wizard and your boss wants you to get something out of the closet. But when you reach the closet a spider comes
down. Will you run back and not do your job?" Ron looked up.

However, she couldn't see his face because it was concealed by shadow now.. She took a step closer to see his expression, shutting the door behind her.

"No! Hermione I just remembered, don't-" Ron began.

"No Ron, you better stop this. You're way too old to be this childish. Just like this morning; calling me unladylike. Well let me tell you something, I may not be like one of those giggling idiots, but I'm still a girl. Which, by the way, took you four years to
notice!"

Ron looked taken aback, "I was just going to say that the door only opens from the outside." He smiled weakly at her.

Hermione whipped around and started pulling at the doorknob. -If only she had her wand- "It can't be," she kicked at it, "great, just great." She slumped down against the wall. "Now we're stuck here, and it's your entire fault."

"Mine! You shut the door." protested Ron back.

"Well if you hadn't been so afraid of spiders..." she shot back.

"Just drop it, ok?" said Ron sounding tired.

Hermione crossed her arms and sniffed.

"Maybe Ginny will come up checking for us, and open the door," said Ron hopefully.

Hermione only glared back. Optimism is the last thing she needed right now. She was stuck in a dirty closet, with he biggest git in the world. (Next to Draco
Malfoy, of course) And, she did not have a solution for the problem facing her, which always made her difficult.

Ron still tried at conversation, "Did you see the ghoul? Cool, huh? I come up here a lot and I usually bring him treats."

"Why do you come up here often?" said Hermione. Her voice still had coldness to it, but she was still interested in what Ron was saying.

"There's a set of stairs that leads to a little hidden patio on the roof. I like to go think about...stuff," Ron said quickly. "Like... what kind of stuff?" Hermione asked. Ron would brood? How odd. Maybe he more of 'the emotional range of a tablespoon now.'

Ron shifted uncomfortably, "School, Harry, You-Know-Who...you." Ron seemed very interested in his shoes.

Hermione, even though she didn't wear makeup or 'provocative' clothing was still a girl and therefore was taken aback. Ron was her friend, so he had every right to think about her. What was unusual about that? It was more the way he said it though... the way his face and ears turned pink with embarrassment in addition to his slightly nervous body language. But, perhaps, that was still the aftermath of the spider.

Just then light flooded in and the door opened. "ACHOO!" It was Ginny; Hermione realized that she had to have the worst timing in the world.

Ginny was giving them a funny look that made Hermione say, "What?"

"What are you two doing here?"

Both Ron and Hermione burst into explanation.

"Well you see Ron was acting like..."

"It was HUGE about 5 feet long...

"And then he ran into the closet..."

"Tried to bite off my neck. So I kicked it off me and ran for cover..."

Ginny just smiled evilly at them, "Were you two snogging?"

Hermione felt all the blood rush to her face. "Of course not, what would make you think that?"

Hermione cast a look at Ron and he was bright red, mouthing wordlessly at Ginny. Ginny was looking extremely smug, as if she had just heard a particular big piece of gossip.

"Sure, whatever. I just wanted to tell you-" She was cut off by a voice sounding out through the attic.

Familiarly surged through Hermione and she felt relived. "Ginny? Are they up here?"

It was Harry.

"Harry?' Hermione asked flabbergasted. "But you said you weren't coming until-"

"Change of plans," Harry said gruffly, cutting sharply cross her.

Hermione looked at her other best friend. He looked different. His hair still messy, and the same skinny frame, and he still had the hunched over demeanor which he looked very self-conscious. But there was something there, in his eyes that hadn't been there before. Usually his green eyes seemed to be an open window, showing all his emotions. But now the shutters were closed and all emotions were cut off from the rest of the world.

"Well, welcome mate," she heard Ron say tensely from some far off distant land. Then everything came back into focus, as if she traveled hundreds of miles. All blurs became sharp clear pictures so fast that she stumbled back a bit, kicking up some dust.

"Don't you think this might be a bit a of a surprise… I mean it might be a bit of a shock for Charlie but I'm sure he'll understand," Ron said. He smiled trying to cheer up Harry, who seemed so sad with his puppy dog eyes and his bashful manor that Hermione felt the urge to give him a huge hug, but that wasn't what Harry looked in the mood for now.

"Oh Charlie already knows," said Harry waving this aside.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked wondering how this was possible. "Charlie has been in town all day."

Harry obviously didn't want to be pushed on the subject, "Look, let's talk later. This attic doesn't seem very fun anyway."

Ron smiled, "Anybody up for a game of Quidditch?"

"Yeah!" she heard Ginny and Harry say in unison. She rolled her eyes but followed them anyway. Maybe she could get her Charms essay done…

The hot sunshine beat down from the blistering sky. Above, Harry, Ron, and Ginny were playing Quidditch. More like throwing the quaffle around while diving at one another. Honestly what's the point? Hermione thought moodily.

She averted her eyes from her Charms essay about an hour later to see a sweaty Ron walking towards her, broom placed over his shoulder. Hermione tilted her head; Ron seemed to be strutting. It seemed very strange for him, walking along with his jeans gasping his thighs. And his face looked too smug to be allowed.

He walked over and sat down next to Hermione clearly waiting for her to ask him why he was acting so strange. But Hermione stayed quite, acting as if she was so into her work she hadn't even noticed Ron sitting next to her. Ron cleared his throat. Looking up, she noticed with a grim satisfaction he had a very annoyed look set upon his freckled face.

Finely she couldn't take him glaring any longer, "What's up Ron?"

Ron sighed, "Oh nothing, but I just beat Harry at Quidditch!"

Hermione tried hard to roll her eyes, "How could you tell? You all were just zooming around dive bombing each other. I hardly could call that a game of quidditch."

Ron glared at her, "For your information we were playing a special game of Quidditch."

"So special you can have three people and two teams?" she shot back. She didn't know why she was being so harsh on him, but some small part of her knew she was getting back at him for the shower comment.

"Yes," Ron quipped back. His nose shot up in the air and he folded his arms across his chest stubbornly. Again Hermione was forcibly reminded of an overgrown two-year-old.

"Where have those two gotten anyway?" she asked Ron glancing sideways.

"Who?" he asked his voice a little to sharp.

"Harry and Ginny," she answered back calmly. She knew he was acting stupid on propose.

Ron ruffled his hair unnecessarily, stretched out under the tree yawning. Finally he answered, "Erm, they said something about putting away their brooms away in the shed."

Just then Ginny's red hair emerged from over the Weasley's fence. That's funny the sheds that way, she thought to herself looking in the opposite direction of the approaching Ginny and Harry. She didn't have time to voice this to Ron because right then Harry and Ginny had sprawled out next to them.

Ginny fanned herself, "Whew, it's hot."

Harry was smiling at her, watching her hand move back and forth like a cat watching his tail swish. "Quidditch was great too," he agreed.

Ron was leaning against the tree, his hands behind his head, "Yeah especially since I beat your arse off!"

At this Ron and Harry started in a heated discussion about who had won the game. But Hermione was to busy watching Harry. Every few seconds he would glance at Ginny, smiling. Hermione was unnerved by Harry's smile in a way she couldn't explain. It was a smile with no gentleness or laughter but with an almost longing. And his eyes were still shut off and cold. At least he's smiling, she thought to herself. Also an annoying fly was swirling around their heads, buzzing annoyingly.

Ginny turned to Hermione, "I'm going to go get some food in the kitchen, I'm starved."

Hermione nodded, "Do you need any help?"

Ginny shook her head, "No, I'll got Ron to help me carry it out." Hermione's stomach growled loudly. "I'll bring some out for you too, ok?" she added smiling playfully.

Hermione watched Ginny cross the garden and enter the house before hearing Ron ask, "So Harry, what's up mate?"

Harry looked solemnly at Ron blinking in the sunlight. The same fly was spinning around his head and Harry seemed intent on catching it. "The Dursleys kicked me out," he said after a while, indifferently.

Hermione gasped and heard Ron make a noise of protest. "So they just…kicked you out?" asked Hermione as if the last words were ludicrous.

Harry lunged forward; Hermione thought he was coming after her but had just caught the annoying fly. Then he shrugged, still holding the fly in his hand, and his face darkened, "Oh they got what they deserved." Hermione shuddered at the look on Harry's face.

Ron looked bewildered, "What do you mean-"

Ginny's voice ran out from the kitchen, "Ron come help me in here! I need you to bring the cutlery out!"

Ron followed Ginny's path to the house. Hermione glanced at Harry who seemed perfectly occupied with pulling the fly's wings off of which he had just caught.

A/n: Wasn't this chapter a bit longer? I know that doesn't excuse the month of not updating.

Questions: When is Ron going to stp being a git? What were Harry and Ginny doing? Who won the quidditch game? And what the he11 is up with Harry?

Thanks R/R!