Here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. I'm trying to get out a chapter a day before I leave on Friday because I won't have internet connection on my vacation. I will, however, have my computer so I will continue to write. Thanks to pottyboutweasley AKA Caiti-pie. Your reviews just made me smile and even more excited to write. Thanks and enjoy this chapter. Ace

Chapter 7: Flourish and Blotts

And so they wandered together for an hour around Diagon Alley. In bookstores and shops of all sorts. Hermione dragged Ron around into and out of shops by the names of Odessa's Books of All Sorts, Octavian's Parchment, Quills, and Writing Supplies, and Mr. Changer's Caldron's and potion things. But Ron did not seem to mind too much. He was having a great time. They laughed and talked and enjoyed the summer sun that shown through on to the street.

Everything was great until Hermione mentioned needing more stationary parchment.

"Who do you write to besides your parents?" Ron asked as they entered Octavian's Parchments, Quills, and Writing Supplies. He looked around at the simple owl quills and fancy peacock quills. There was ink wells of all colors, red, green, blue, rainbow, and even invisible that can only be read by the one whom it was addressed to.

"Hmmm..." She said looking at the different rolls of stationary parchment debating on which one she liked more. Light brown, dark brown, bleached white. "Viktor of course."

"You still write him?" Ron asked looking over at her quickly. He hated that name. Ever since 4th year he had despised the name Viktor Krum.

Hermione looked over at him. "Well yes. He is my friend. We have been keeping in touch since the Triwizard Tournament. We have become quite good friends." She replied turning back to the parchment rolls.

"Of course you have." Ron said in a disgusted undertone. The green eyes of jealousy had set there gaze upon him now. He always managed to get riled up at the first mention of Viktor Krum. He couldn't stand another guy, other then Harry and his brothers, being close to her. Not to mention the fact that she had went to the Yule Ball with him.

Hermione looked over at him and gave him a dirty look. "Why do you get all angry when I talk about Viktor and I being friends? It's like you don't want me to be friends with any other guys except you and Harry." she retorted.

"Well maybe I don't but that's not the point. The point is that I don't like him. And I believe he wants more then just friendship. He's up to no good." Ron said now red faced for the second time in the past hour but for an altogether different reason. "I just have this gut feeling about him and it's not a good one."

"Well Ronald I'm sorry to say that you cannot control who I'm friends with. I can be friends with whomever I please." Hermione replied quite snobbishly.

"Fine. But when he does do something bad, don't come whinnying to me for help, because all I'll say is I told you so." Ron spit out, turned on his heals and left her there. As he rushed out of the shop, he made a quick turn hoping that she would not follow. She didn't.

But as he walked past the Floo Network station, he frown and kicked himself. He was reminded of what his dad said about keeping together. He felt guilt that he had left her but he couldn't take it anymore. He hated the way she talked about Krum and how he fancied her. It just made him furious. In his mind, Hermione would always be single. That was unless she got with Harry. He dreamed about the two of them getting together but he knew it would never happen.

He looked at his watch. "Well only a little less then a half hour until we meet mum and dad. I think she'll be okay," he said trying to convince himself that he was right. He tried not to worry about her. "She's smart. She can take care of herself." And with that he continued to walk.

So Ron wandered around Diagon Alley, slightly hunched over and feeling worse about leaving Hermione alone. He had looked for her but he hadn't found that bushy brown hair of hers anywhere.

Finally, at two o'clock, Ron went into Flourish and Blotts to meet everyone. As he entered he spotted Hermione's beautiful brown hair hiding down an aisle. He slumped over to her, his hands in the pockets of his robes.

"Hey," he muttered. She turned around and looked at him with piercing eyes. It made him feel even worse about the whole situation. "I'm such a jerk."

"Still fuming or have we calmed down and come to our senses?" She asked pulling a book off the shelf. She opened it and flipped through it's pages.

"I'm sorry I got so mad about the whole Krum thing. I know you're just trying to promote the whole wizard unity." Ron said staring down at his feet. "I just have this feeling about him and I don't like it. I don't know what it is but it's not a good feeling."

"And I understand that Ron, but I feel different about him. And I accept your apology." she said replacing the book onto the shelf and pulling off another one. "But in the future could you not act like you own me. I can judge people on my own. After all I made friends with you and Harry without your help."

Ron looked up and smiled at her. She was smiling back at him with the book open in her hands. "If I remember correctly, you actually had problems making friends with me and Harry. Only after we saved you from that troll on Halloween did we really become friends." Ron said sounding matter-of-factly like Hermione sometimes did. "But I'll forget it. As long as we're still friends."

"Oh course we are you silly git." She replied placing the book back on the shelf and turning to him.

Ron grinned but then it disappeared slightly. "Even though I left you alone?" he grimaced.

"It's okay. I'm still here aren't I? The Death Eaters haven't got me. If they had, though, you'd be in a really big caldron full of Stinksap." She said smiling.

Suddenly Ginny came around the corner. "Hey I found them." She yelled back at her mother and father. Mrs. Weasley came around the corner and sighed with relief.

"There you are. I was getting worried about you two. I thought perhaps you had gotten separated." Mrs. Weasley said rushing over to them.

"No, Mrs. Weasley. Were fine. We're been together since we spilt up from Harry and Ginny." Hermione said covering up for Ron. Silently he thanked her. Silently she knew he was truly sorry about it and that he didn't need to be punished more.

"Good, good." Mrs. Weasley said relaxing slightly. She couldn't truly relax, not until Voldemort was gone for good but knowing that her son was safe relieved some of the stress. "Well lets get your books and get back home." She lead the two to the back of the store where piles and piles of school books stood and next to them waited Harry and Mr. Weasley.

Each student picked up all of the books that would be needed for their 6th year at Hogwarts. Harry's, Ron's and Hermione's stood five books high and included Standard Book of Spells, Grade 6 and Defending Oneself against the Dark Arts. Hermione's pile was somewhat higher because of the extra books she purchased "for a little light reading." Ginny's pile was smaller and only contained 3 books, the other two would be Ron's hand-me-downs. When everyone had collected their stack of books they all headed for the Floo Gates to head for home.