Hi, I hope you enjoy Part 3! I just want to say a quick thanks to everyone who took the time to write me about this story :) Thank you grey-skies 3228 (especially for being my very first reviewer ever!), DRUNKEN LANDLORD, Marie-Claire1, Tara-Yo, Shade of Pink, oOo The Skittle Queen oOo, Wicked-59, Lady of the Lads, 3-Legged Dog, little mimi, FlairVerona, joeyandpaceyforever, Pauly 85, and TyBass31 (thanks for the bit about the originality!). I really appreciate the feedback and encouragement.

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3

"He what?!" Ron asked incredulously.

"Your horrible brother asked me out as a prank!" Hermione hissed again, as some of her anger and embarrassment over-flowed onto the closest available Weasley. She was still so upset that even the school library was failing to work the usual distraction she had so desperately been craving when she had walked through its doors. It was where Ron and Harry had found her after they'd finished with Quidditch for the day. Naturally, it was the first place they'd looked after not finding her in the common room.

"That utter wanker!" Ron growled, his face starting to flush in outrage.

"Hermione, are you sure it was a prank?" Harry asked hesitantly, his brows furrowing behind his glasses. It just didn't seem like the sort of the thing the twins would do. Well, not to Hermione anyway.

"Of course Fred was pranking her!" Ron scowled at Harry. "Y'don't think Fred or George would ask Hermione out for real do you!"

Harry winced on Ron's behalf even as Hermione reacted by jumping up furiously from her chair. "Oh, thank you so very much Ronald Weasley!" She stormed at him, outrage mingling with hurt. "Obviously no one would ever want to actually go out with me! Obviously the very idea of that is just ludicrous, isn't it?"

"No," Ron protested weakly. "No, that's not what I meant Hermione. Y'know, I just meant that Fred and George tend to go for more…more…" he trailed off as if realizing that anything said would only dig him in deeper.

"Oooh!" Hermione sputtered, driven to the unusual event of near speechlessness. "You are…you are just…you horrible Weasley!" Grabbing her book from the long table, Hermione stormed off and out the main library door.

Ron and Harry watched her go along with Miss Pince, the librarian, who had come to furiously scold whoever dared disturb her library with shouting. So shocked was she that the responsible party was Miss Hermione Granger that Miss Pince merely blinked after Hermione's departing figure for several surprised seconds, turned and aimed a furious scowl at Ron and Harry (she wasn't surprised about them), and stalked away.

"Oh, good one Ron." Harry rolled his eyes, offering a wry smile of sympathy as his best friend sank weakly back onto the bench.

"Ah, shut it Harry. Y'know I didn't mean it like that."

"Yeah, I know," Harry agreed sympathetically. "But I think the only Weasley that Hermione's going to be talking to for awhile is Ginny."

At that Ron groaned, reaching up to run his hands through brilliant red hair in vexation. "Why are girls so bloody sensitive?" He asked imploringly of the world in general.

"Umm, yeah…well, females are strange," Harry offered in a show of solidarity, although privately he thought that for such a brilliant chess player Ron could be a bit of an idiot. Granted, not that he, Harry, was any better with the opposite sex, but still…idiot.

Suddenly Ron sat upright banging both fists against the table in outrage. "It's Fred's fault!" Ron scowled, latching onto the reason he'd got into trouble with Hermione in the first place. "He started it with this whole stupid date prank!"

"Y'know Ron," Harry tried, "I really don't think that Fred would…"

"Oh, sure he would," Ron cut him off vehemently. "You didn't grow up with those two, did you? You didn't have to be suspicious of every piece of candy or glass of milk that got handed to you when you were growing up." His face got redder as he went on. "You didn't have to ask Bill to spell wards of protection into your clothes every year so they didn't suddenly turn invisible in public!" By now his face was thunderous. "They like you Harry. They take it easy on you. But trust you me, Fred and George are dangerous and untrustworthy blokes!"

"Er, they're your brothers Ron," Harry pointed out, unable to come up with a better defense.

"So is Percy and he's a total git," Ron shot back.

Harry tried again. "I just think that maybe you should go ask Fred before you…"

"Yeah! You're right!" Ron cut him off, brightening. "You're right Harry. I should go confront the prat! And George! I'm sure the two of them came up with it together. I'll make them apologize to Hermione! C'mon!" Jumping up, Ron strode out of the library, determination visible in every step. He didn't even look back at Harry, secure in the knowledge that his best mate would be steps behind him.

Harry watched his best friend stride away with a sinking feeling in the pit of his suddenly cold stomach. Groaning, he shook his head and muttered, "OH, this could be so bad," before he scrambled up, grabbing his stuff and hurrying out after Ron. Maybe he could help his best friend avoid any permanent curse damage.