1Chapter 5: Posted to Diagon Alley

"Posts here. Your Hogwarts letters have come." Mrs. Weasley yelled one morning up the stairs, waking up the four sleeping Hogwarts students.

"Ugghh. Does she have to do that?" Ron grumbled as he and Harry woke from their dreams rubbing their eyes. Ron reached behind his head and pulled out his pillow, hurling it at the door. Harry laughed at his lazy friend.

"Come on Ron, perhaps we can get out of the house and go to Diagon Alley to get our supplies today." Harry said sitting up and throwing off the covers revealing his bare chest and pajama bottoms. He stood up and stretched, reaching toward the ceiling. "We can drool over the latest brooms in Quality Quidditch supplies and check out Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. See how Fred and George are doing."

Ron stared at Harry. He actually seemed excited for once in a long while. Ron was shocked and his faced showed it.

"Are you okay mate?" Ron asked not sure how he should react to the whole up beat and excitedness that Harry was shooting out as he dressed.

"I'm fine. I'm just kinda excited to get back to school ya know?" He said as he switched his pajama bottoms for a pair of ragged old jeans. "At least there I'll be too busy to think about Voldemort and how much he wants to kill me."

"Yeah I guess your right. It is going to be a busy year, what with quidditch, the D.A., and getting ready for our N.E.W.Ts next year. Hermione will have us in the library every single second we have free. Ugh!" Ron said pulling the covers up over his face. "Sounds like the most exciting year of my life." Ron said sarcastically in a muffled tone.

"Yeah well perhaps...," Harry paused as he pulled a old short sleeved navy and yellow t-shirt over his head. "Perhaps we'll find something better to distract us too. But ya never know."

Ron threw back the covers and stared at his friend. Again what in the heck was going on with Harry this morning? Something was defiantly different. Something fishy was going on.

"Okay alright what have you done with my best mate?" Ron asked somewhat jokingly but seriously wanting to know what had happened with Harry. He was defiantly uncertain as to what had come over Harry.

"Nothing mate. It's still me. It's just that I'm really looking forward to getting out of here for a little while and wandering around with you, Hermione, and Ginny. It'll be like this whole war isn't even going on. We can forget all about Voldemort and the stupid Death Eaters and just be students. Like it was all those years ago. Back when Ginny was a first year and we met Hermione in Diagon Alley. It was nice." Harry said remembering back as he put on his dirty, not-so-white tennis shoes.

"Yeah it would be nice I guess. But that still doesn't mean I want to get out of bed." Ron said, the covers back over his head and his voice muffled again.

Harry laughed. "Fine. Stay in bed and sleep. But I'm going to get breakfast and go to Diagon Alley with the others. You can stay here and keep the gnomes company." Harry replied as he crossed the room to the door.

"Fine." was Ron's only muffled reply. Harry laughed again as he exited the room and closed the door behind him.

As soon as Ron heard the door close, he pushed back the covers and gazed up at the cobwebs and peeling ceiling of his room. It would be nice to just wander around Diagon Alley as if there was nothing going on. Kidding around and doing what other normal teenagers their age had done in the past. But there was a war going on. A war were their side had no idea of the next move of the other. At the moment it was a losing battle. A losing battle they knew nothing about. That was as scary as the war itself. Admittedly Ron wouldn't mind if he could close out the war like Harry did. It was amazing that Harry could. He was more involved in it then Ron was. He was part of the reason there was a war.

Suddenly a picture of him and Hermione wandering around Diagon Alley together, off on their own. It was quite a nice picture, making Ron smile.

"We'd probably end up in a bookstore or two knowing Hermione." He mumbled out loud to the owls, smiling. Hedwig hooted as if in response. Ron looked over at her. "You know her to huh?" Ron turned back to the ceiling and let his mind drift, continuing the vision he had seen. The more he thought about it, the more he didn't think he'd mind if the bookstores too much. Being with Hermione was the important thing anyway.

Unexpectedly, right in the middle of his daydream of the perfect afternoon with Hermione in Diagon Alley, a knock came at the door. He looked over at the clock and realized that it had been at least a half an hour since Harry had went down to breakfast.

"Ron!" came Hermione's voice from the other side of the closed door. At the sound of her voice, Ron jumped up and rushed to open the door. Hermione was about ready to knock again when the door bust open.

"Yes?" Ron asked stupidly, looking down at her. Hermione looked at him, standing there, leaning against the door jam still in his Pj bottoms without a shirt, hair completely a mess. She had found him this way quite a few times over the summer. It was starting to become a normal occurrence.

"Boy does he look nice." she thought to herself. It was pathetic to think so seeing as the state he was in but she believed it. In fact she had purposefully volunteered to come up and see if he was going to accompany them to Diagon Alley. She had secretly been hoping to catch him without his shirt on again and his hair slightly messy. Any chance she got, she did. It was her guilty pleasure that she wouldn't admit to anyone and hardly admitted to herself.

She shook her head, looking up at his face. "The rest of us were wondering if you ever planned to get out of bed and join us or if we were going to Diagon Alley without you. You really do sleep too much Ron." Hermione said in her know-it-all voice, her hands on her hips. Ron grinned wider. He loved it when she pretended to be all hoity-toity and smart.

"I was planning on coming but if you're going to act like that then I won't." Ron said with a straight face. Hermione glared back at him. He was teasing her again. She hated it when he did that.

"Fine," she said as she turned and headed for the stairs. Ron rushed after and grabbed her arm. A tingle went through her body originating from the place where he had touched.

"Wait. You know I didn't mean it. I was just teasing." Ron said with a smile as he looked down at her.

"I know but I hate it when you tease me Ron." Hermione said looking back at him. Ron saw that she meant it.

"I'm sorry." He apologized not really knowing why. Hermione looked surprised herself.

"Well then I guess I'll see you downstairs in a few minutes." she said looking down, acting shy all of the sudden.

"Yeah I guess so," Ron replied still looking at the face that was turned downwards. With that she turned and rushed down the stairs. Ron watched her as she hurried down the stairs wearing a pair of dark jeans and a navy v-neck t-shirt.

"Only she could look good in a pair of jeans and t-shirt," he thought as he turned back to his room.

Hermione stood in the front room with Harry, Ginny, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley waiting for Ron. She was talking/ listening to Harry and Ginny as she watched the stairs out to the corner of her eye.

Suddenly there was a pounding on the stairs and she turned toward them to find Ron bounding down them wearing a pair of faded jeans, gray t-shirt and one of his black Hogwarts' robes.

"Ready to go?" he asked as he joined everyone in front of the fireplace.

"It's about bloody time mate. We were thinking of leaving you." Harry said with smile.

Ron grinned. "Thanks mate. I love you too." he replied sarcastically.

"Alright everyone. We're going to go in pairs, just in case something should go wrong. It's just precaution though. Now don't panic the Floo network is still safe, it's just being watched. This is just so we cut down on the chance of one of us getting lost." Mr. Weasley said as he threw the first handful of Floo Powder into the flames. Mrs. Weasley looked worriedly from his husband to the kids. "Harry and Ginny, you first."

Harry and Ginny came forward and stepped into the green flames. Together they said Diagon Alley. As they began to disappear, unnoticable to the others, Harry grabbed Ginny's hand.

"Ron and Hermione, you two next." Mr. Weasley said throwing in the next handful of Floo powder into the hearth.

Ron and Hermione stepped forward and entered the green flames together. Ron looked over at Hermione and she looked over at him. Together they said Diagon Alley and the world began to disfigure. They were pushed into each other and finally Ron took Hermione around the waist and held on to her.

Suddenly the twirling came to a halt and they stopped. Ron tripped and tumbled out of the fire grate bring Hermione with him. He grunted as she landed on top of him. She looked down into his eyes and didn't move. Neither of them did for a few moments. They just laid there, Ron with his hands on her waist, Hermione with her hands on his chest.

Quickly Hermione noticed their position, pushed away and stood up. Ron stood up and began to brush himself off, avoiding her eyes. Both of their cheeks were slightly rosie from embarrassment.

"Harry! Ginny!" Ron shouted as he searched the Floo gate courtyard, that was surprisingly packed, for his little sister and best friend. "There all here to get school stuff," he thought to himself.

"Ron! Hermione!"

Ron turned at his name and looked toward the voices that had called it. There was Harry and Ginny with a smiling Neville trailing after them. As the five reunited, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley arrived in a nearby grate. Mrs. Weasley rushed over to see if everyone had arrived.

"Are you four okay?" Mrs. Weasley asked not noticing Neville yet. She rushed forward and began fussing over Harry, Ron, and Ginny.

"Mum get off." Ron said as Mrs. Weasley tried to fix his messy hair. Ron reached up and tried to push her away.

"I wish you would cut it. It's starting to get as long as Bill's." Mrs. Weasley said putting her hand on her hips.

"Ron's isn't nearly as long as Bill's, Mrs. Weasley. And it doesn't look bad on either of them." Hermione put in as she brushed herself off. Ron looked shocked and turned to look at her. She liked his hair. When had this happened? He stared at her but she would not look up. She knew he as looking at her and it made her blush a pretty shade of pink.

Mrs. Weasley sighed and moved on to Harry. "Harry you're just as shaggy as Ron. Perhaps I can give you both a trim before you go back to school?" Mrs. Weasley suggested as she tried to flatten Harry's dark unruly hair.

"No Mum." Ron said strongly. Harry nodded in agreement. He was not going to cut his hair. Especially now that he knew Hermione like it. That just made him want to keep it long more.

"Well could you at least get it to lay straight?" She asked as she moved on to clean Ginny off.

"I like it the way it is Mum. It's who Harry is." Ginny said trying to move her mother away.

"I like it too Mrs. Weasley." Harry replied smiling at Ginny with a slight wink. "Besides even if I wanted to do something with it, it wouldn't stay. It never does. Drives my aunt mad." Harry laughed at this and Mrs. Weasley frowned moving down the line to clean the next person in line.

Suddenly she realized Neville for the first time and jumped back.

"Hello Mrs. Weasley." Neville said slightly blushing.

"Hello Neville. How are you dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she stepped back and brushed herself off.

"Alright. We can split up but you must stick with at least one other person. Safety reasons again of course." Mr. Weasley said looking to every one of the students under his care.

"Molly and I will meet you at two o'clock at Flourish and Blotts to get your books. Don't be late." Mr. Weasley said strongly. The kids nodded their understanding.

At that the group split up. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley went in one direction and the students in another.

"Well I wanna hit Quality Quidditch Supplies cause Harry said they had the newest model of the Cleansweep." Ron said shoving his hands into the pocket of his pants.

"Well I want to check out the newest robes at Madam Malkin's." Hermione stated. Harry sighed. He could see the beginning of an argument among Ron and Hermione. He was getting quiet good at picking them out. Most of the time he let them argue but today he was in a good mood and didn't want anything to ruin it.

"Okay don't you dare ruin my day alright. Who wants to go to Quality Quidditch?" Harry asked. Ron, Neville and Ginny raised their hands. " Well Hermione it looks as if you are out numbered."

"Well I'd be willing to go with you to Madam Malkin's if you want Hermione." Ginny offered. "I can catch Quality later."

"Thanks Ginny." Hermione said looking to her friend.

"Well then it's settled. Hermione and Ginny will go off together and us guys will head for Quality. Perhaps we can meet up for lunch or something in an hour or so." Harry suggested looking around at the group.

"Sounds like a plan." Ron said fidgeting in his spot, aching to get on with it

"Great. We'll see you later." Ginny said smiling at Harry as she and Hermione passed the guys.

"To Quality Quidditch to we go." Neville said leading the way. Harry and Ron followed behind him.

The hour past quickly. But during the hour, Hermione and Ginny had a chance to talk. They caught up on everything. And the guys got to talk as well. Although there conversation mostly consisted of quidditch rather then the latest happening in their lives.