SERENDIPITY
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except for the new ones that I created.
Author's Note: I'll be getting everyone to Hogwarts pretty soon, but I felt that there were a few plot points that had to happen before that happened. So read and enjoy, and remember reviews are greatly appreciated.
CHAPTER 5-SOMETHING LONG OVERDUE
"Do either or you have any idea what they were up to," Harry asked softly before yawning deeply as he pushed the door to Ron's room open with his foot and carefully helped Hermione aid Ron in his journey back to his bed.
"Not a bloody clue, although I think Ginny winked at me a couple of times, hell if I know what it means…," Ron mumbled with a tired look on his face as Harry and Hermione lightly set him back down onto the bed before Hermione straightened up and put in her two cents.
"You shouldn't swear Ronald, it's not polite," Hermione added with an impatient and disapproving pout on her face, one that made Harry fall back onto Ron's bed and roll his eyes while sighing deeply. But to Ron the pout on her face made him want to do something far different. At that particular moment in time all that he wanted to do is resume kissing his bushy haired best friend.
"Sorry Mione," Ron said softly with a sincere half smirk on his face as he gave up arguing and relented before awkwardly trying to lie back onto the bed beside Harry.
"You're forgiven," Hermione replied with a slight shrug of her shoulders before she walked around the edge of Ron's bed and sat down on the edge of the pillow and bending her right leg under her so that Ron's temple nearly brushed up against it.
"That was a little quick Hermione, you forgiving Ron," Harry observed with a deep yawn as he closed his eyes and tried to get comfortable.
"Give it a rest okay Harry, I'm to tired to start anything," Ron mumbled sleepily with an uncomfortable frown on his face as he stretched his neck in an attempt to relieve the stiffness that had come up after lying down. After his early attempt didn't work Ron clumsily began to try to rub the stiffness out of his by bringing his left hand up towards his neck, but the bandages did nothing more than irritate his skin.
"Me to Harry, besides we should be worrying about what three Death Eaters were doing so close to the Burrow, I highly doubt that they were just on a stroll and decided to stop by because they were in the neighborhood," Hermione stated with a slightly confused frown on her face as she leaned forward a bit.
"Hermione's right Harry, Voldemort must be getting pretty desperate…," Ron began to say with a worried and uncomfortable scowl on his face as he started to shift in his position on the bed before he calmed instantly at the cool touch of Hermione's fingers on his neck. His breath hitched a bit at her touch but didn't continue as her fingers slowly began to massage the area of his neck that was stiffest.
"I guess, but Ron…are you sure that you and your family weren't the target…," Harry questioned with an unsure frown on his face as he kept his eyes closed even though secretly he wondered why Ron had been silenced so suddenly.
"If Ron and his family were the targets then why didn't Lucius Malfoy and the other two Death Eaters just apparate into the living room after we all went to bed," Hermione interjected with a very worried look of fear on her face as she stopped rubbing Ron's neck.
"Hell if I know," Ron mumbled through a deep yawn before he cracked an eye open and stared back and up at Hermione.
"Ron," Hermione exclaimed with an angry look on her face as she pulled her hand back form his neck and shoved him hard in the shoulder.
"Sorry Mione," Ron replied with a nervous smile on his face as Hermione was still scowling at him until his ears flushed a deep red.
"It was probably me…Voldemort wants me dead so badly that he's going to extremes," Harry stated glumly before he got up off of the bed and walked over towards the window. Hermione and Ron stared first sadly at Harry's back for a bit before their gazes met. Ron would have stayed like this forever expect for Hermione's sudden change of countenance from concerned to commanding as she silently motioned with a quick nod of her head and wide eyes toward Harry.
"Fine….," Ron mumbled harshly under his breath, sending Hermione a dirty look, before he reluctantly pulled himself up out of bed and staggered towards the window, with Hermione's worried gaze never leaving him.
"I know what you're going to say Ron so you can save it, I don't want to hear it," Harry interjected with a serious and somewhat angry frown on his face as he held a hand back up and over his shoulder, motioning for Ron to keep his distance.
"Hear what…that's not," Ron began with a dumbfounded and scared expression on his face before Harry cut him off.
"You were going to say that it's not all my fault, that the only reason that Neville's parents…that Sirius…that all of you have suffered is not because I was able to survive Voldemort using the killing curse on me when I was a baby…," Harry exclaimed with a very unhappy and bitter tone to his voice before he leaned forward and pressed his forehead up against the dirty windowpane.
"You're wrong Harry, that's not what I was going to say at all…," Ron stated quickly, his face fully red, before he was able to calm his nerves before Harry snapped his head around to stare oddly at his best friend.
"It wasn't…," Harry asked softly, with Hermione almost not being able to hear him, before Ron thought about quickly looking to Hermione for an idea but stopped when a thought popped into his head.
"Nope, not even close…what I was going to say is that I don't care if you are my best mate, you still can't throw a quaffle to save your life…," Ron said with a slowly growing level of enthusiasm before Harry stared at him oddly for a second before turning awhile while Hermione only rolled her eyes and flopped down onto Ron's bed with a pronounced sigh.
Ginny was roused the next morning by the inviting smell of bacon, eggs, toast, and rolls. She picked her head up off of the couch's armrest and rubbed her weary eyes before her vision cleared enough so that she could make out Tonks, decked out in a bright orange do, excitedly trying to explain something to a sleepy eyed Hermione, who didn't look the least bit interested in divulging anything other than the fact that she was still tired. For a moment or two Ginny fully debated whether or not to get up, but that decision was made for her when a bleary eyed Harry stumbled down the steps, leaning heavily on the wall to keep himself upright.
"Good morning Harry, sleep well," Molly asked with a pleased smile on her face as she wiped her hands on her apron before she piled the eggs and bacon onto a plate and set it down at the empty seat next to Tonks.
"Not sure…," Harry replied glumly with a deep yawn before he nearly collapsed into the empty seat and stared at his plate, hoping that he would soon become hungry.
"Well I'm sure that a big breakfast will cheer you up, dig in," Molly continued without missing a beat as the broad smile that she had been wearing when Harry had first come downstairs stayed firmly fixed upon her face.
"Harry…where's Ron," Hermione whispered softly under her breath, not wanting to draw to much attention to herself, as she leaned over slightly towards Harry and tried her best not to yawn.
"Upstairs…said he wasn't very hungry," Harry timidly replied with a somewhat worried look on his face as he silently rejoiced that neither Tonks nor Ginny nor Molly had seemed to have heard him answer. Harry turned back to his plate at just the right time to miss the look that passed across Hermione's face. Hermione knew Ron well enough to know that he never, ever, passed up a meal. Even during one of the various times that he had been hurt since his first day at Hogwarts Ron's appetite had never been dulled. The fact now that Ron had waved off breakfast, saying that he wasn't hungry, brought such a chill of fear and worry about Hermione that she failed to reply when Tonks briefly inquired where she was going as she got up and walked towards the stairs. Ignoring the growling in her own stomach Hermione made quick work of the stairs and lightly pushed the door to Ron's room open, revealing a shirtless Ron lying on his side on his bed, staring sadly at the scars on his arms.
"Ron…," Hermione asked with a scared and very worried look on her face as she slowly pushed the door fully opened and stepped into the room, glad that she had yet to put her shoes on so that no more sound was created that she wanted.
"Go away Mione," Ron grumbled with a very unhappy look on his face as he kept his gaze fixed straight ahead and hoped that she'd take the hint and leave.
"No," Hermione stated with a very clear and unalterable tone of voice as she then shut the door behind her and locked it, dropping the key into one of her pockets.
"Why not," Ron asked, more on impulse than from thought, before he rolled over and saw the very determined look on Hermione's face.
"Because Harry said that you weren't hungry, and for as long as I've known you Ronald Weasley I've never once known you to not be hungry for a meal…," Hermione replied softly, trying her best to sound as if she could care less about Ron's feelings, as she softly walked over to the side of the bed.
"So, there's a first time for everything right…," Ron shot back with an angry glare sent Hermione's way, a glare that she knocked away with a carefree wave of her hand.
"But not with you Ron, and not about this…what's really bothering you, and for your information I'm not leaving until I get the truth, the whole truth," Hermione retorted with a firm frown on her face as she lightly sat down on the edge of the bed, taking it as a good sign that Ron stayed where he was and didn't instantly try to get away.
"I don't want to talk about it," Ron mumbled with a tired and sad expression on his face before Hermione inched a bit closer to him so that she could see his face, rather than having to talk to the back of his head.
"Well sorry but you no longer have that choice, is this about her…about Fleur," Hermione stated at first with a lot of confidence before she spoke the name of the one woman that Hermione felt was her only competition for Ron's heart, mind, and soul. To Hermione Fleur was everything that she wasn't, tall and slender, her grace being something of many a tale, her beauty enough to cause grown men to drool despite themselves whenever she'd bat an eye. Hermione thought of herself as an ugly wart beside the lithe Fleur. She had hoped endlessly, ever since first hearing that Fleur had taken up with Ron's older brother Bill, that the two would end up happily married, thus keeping Fleur far enough away from Ron that Hermione could have him all to herself. However ever since learning of the dissolution of the coupling of Bill and Fleur Hermione's stomach had been in knots. Her worst fears had been confirmed upon discovering that Ron and Fleur had spent the entire summer together, doing things together that Hermione could not bring herself to imagine. But the half veela young woman had left only minutes before Hermione had arrived and after their horrifying ordeal at the hands of one Lucius Malfoy they had finally shared their first kiss. The thought of the kiss kept running began to run through Hermione's mind but was rather rudely interrupted by Ron's voice.
"What…no, this isn't about Fleur Delacour, it never was…it's always been about you…," Ron interrupted with a slightly scathing and angry sneer on his face as he wheeled around to glare up at Hermione, who in jumping back away from Ron's sudden movement very nearly fell off the other side of the bed.
"Me Ron, but…," Hermione questioned with a stunned and surprised look on her face as she slowly crept back away from the edge of the bed, trying to calm her suddenly frayed nerves in the process.
"Yes you Hermione, do you know why I always got so mad when you wrote to Viktor," Ron asked with a very nervous frown on his face as while trying to fully understand the question Hermione realized that Ron had, for possibly the first time since the Triwizard tournament, spoken the full name of the Bulgarian seeker instead of using the nickname that he had come up for his rival, Vicky.
"No…I always thought that you got mad because you either didn't like me or was just being rude and insensitive…," Hermione answered, nearly in a whisper, as she struggled to keep from tearing up.
"Bloody hell Hermione that's not…I always got mad because I was jealous of him, insanely jealous…," Ron exclaimed back in reply with a growing look of anger on his face before he sat up and looked Hermione straight in the eye.
"Jealous…but why, you didn't have anything to be jealous of…Viktor and I were…are, just friends…," Hermione stammered out in a stunned voice as her mind reeled in an attempt to figure out the full meaning behind what Ron was telling her.
"Just friends…right, you mean just like you and I are friends…," Ron joked with a distasteful scowl on his face, looking as if the words were a poison upon his lips, before he looked away.
"I thought that we were more than that…you and I…," Hermione answered in a soft whisper as her battle against the tears ended and a lone pair trickled down her cheeks.
"We are more than friends Mione…much more, or so I thought, but when you went to Bulgaria to see that…to see Viktor, and I started to get those bloody letters of yours, going on and on about how much fun you were having with him I…I couldn't take it any longer…then Fleur showed up on my doorstep…she was in so much pain, my heart broke seeing her like that…I could see it in her eyes…one thing led to another…I never meant for it to happen, but it did, and I wouldn't take any of it back if I could…but…," Ron continued with although a nervous and terrified feeling in the pit of his stomach, feeling that Hermione would either never speak to him again after hearing his abbreviated explanation or simply slap him and walk away or both, he knew that he had to tell her everything.
"But…but what Ron…are you upset because Harry and I found out about what the two of you did this summer or…," Hermione asked as she charged headlong into her question, crossing her arms and fixing her steely eyed gaze at Ron, expecting him to squirm.
"No Hermione, I'm upset because in the end…after all of this, we're…you and I, we're still just friends…that's what made Fleur and I so easy…it was just so easy to be with her…," Ron added with an almost somber frown on his face as he turned his head away and stared out of the window that only two days before had filtered light into the room on a pair of young lovers. Now it filtered light into the room onto a pair of friends that were either on the verge of becoming something much more or nothing at all.
"Easy…it was easy to be with her, I don't believe this…I bet that it was easy because she didn't say no," Hermione dared with an envious and bitter frown on her face as her tears dried up and she glared over at Ron.
"No Hermione, that wasn't the reason at all, you wouldn't understand," Ron replied quickly with a very hurt but yet sincere expression on his face as he gazed at Hermione out of the corner of his eye.
"What wouldn't I understand…what made you and Fleur so easy to be together, just tell me Ron," Hermione stated with an almost McGonagall tone of voice, one that made Ron fully turn his head back to look at her in the eye for a moment before turning away and hanging his head.
"Because I haven't been in love with her since I woke up in the infirmary after getting knocked out by a giant chess piece and saw how scared she was that I wouldn't wake up…and how elated that she was that I woke up that she nearly crushed me in that hug," Ron answered with a curious amount of courage as he slid his gaze back to Hermione and stared her straight in the face as he told her everything.
"Oi…those two have sure been up there awhile, you think that I should just pop up there and make sure that they're not casting hexes or worse at each other," Tonks asked with a bored frown on her face as she leaned heavily up against the wall nearest to the stairs, settling her gaze up the stairway.
"I don't think that's what they need Tonks," Harry replied in between bites of his food while Ginny quietly sipped her glass of pumpkin juice.
"But shouldn't we…I don't know, help them," Tonks continued with an odd sense of urgency on her face before she pushed away from the wall and looked pleadingly at first Harry and then at Ginny.
"You know Ms. Tonks…for someone that we have known for a short time compared to the amount of time that we have know Harry and Hermione you seem quite interested in my son," Molly said with a slightly accusing edge to her voice as she untied the strings of her apron and laid it on the counter before taking a seat at the table next to Ginny.
"Hey now…don't go and getting any crazy ideas about, call me nosy if you want but I'm only worried about Ron and Hermione because I know what it's like to have feelings for someone that are so strong that you feel that if you say something it'll ruin your friendship with them, but staying silent is torture," Tonks replied with a very sad and regretful look on her face before she only glanced up in the direction of those seated at the table.
"Tonks…are you…in love…with…," Harry stammered out with a very awkward and nervous tone of voice as he was having trouble in his attempts to put everything that Tonks had said and everything that she had meant into order.
"In love with Ron…sorry Harry, wrong brother…," Tonks replied with a sheepish grin on her face before she realized what she had said and her face turned a shade far deeper of red than any jumper that Molly had ever knitted.
END OF CHAPTER 5
