A/N:- One of the most discussed points of Deathly Hallows is Ron 'deserting' Harry and Hermione during the Horcrux Hunt. This is my take on how the characters around Ron would react to it and how Ron himself would end up feeling about his actions.
This is my first time writing Hermione's POV.
DISCLAIMER- Still don't own Harry Potter, sadly.
English is not my first language. I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes.
The Burrow
Morning, 30th July 1998
Hermione Granger's POV
The Burrow wasn't really a quiet place. With more residents than it could properly hold, the house was usually bustling with its occupants. So the almost eerie hush felt unusual and somewhat uncomfortable. Or at least that's what Hermione thought, as she sat down on a chair next to the dining table, concentrating on the very news article in The Daily Prophet which was to blame for the uncomfortable silence.
Augustus Rookwood, the Death Eater responsible for Fred Weasley's death, had been sighted in France. Rookwood was one of the most wanted of Wizard Britain and yet, he had somehow managed to evade capture for about three months now.
The kitchen was occupied by most of the residents of the house. Some were getting ready for their jobs, while others were just preparing for yet another day. Harry's birthday was tomorrow and that would keep most busy throughout the day. Arthur and Molly had been away since early morning for some Gringotts business.
"I'll be late tonight," Hermione looked up to see Bill breaking the silence, speaking to his wife. "With all the inheritance claims, it's incredibly busy at the bank right now."
The couple kissed each other goodbye. Bill and Fleur had been staying at Burrow ever since the war ended. Hermione quietly observed other people in the room. Harry was sitting by the window, looking outside as if waiting for someone. Ron was helping himself with another course of bacon and eggs. Ginny was reading a copy of Seeker Weekly. Fleur was emptying leftovers from Bill's plate into a bin while George was sitting, staring blankly at his half-eaten plate. The news had affected him quite a lot, unsurprisingly.
The sound of Bill apparating away brought her back, and she looked back at Ron to see him looking at her. He raised his eyebrows and Hermione just smiled at her boyfriend and went back to reading the article.
Boyfriend. That thought was still enough to make her slightly giddy, despite them being officially together for about 3 months.
The sound of a loud fluttering drew her and everyone else's attention. An owl, a ministry owl by the looks of it, flew in and perched itself next to Harry. Harry wasted no time untying the letter from its leg before tearing the envelope mercilessly. Hermione saw Harry's eyes skim over the letter, his smile growing by the second.
"What's that about?" Ron asked, curious, though Hermione had an inkling he already knew. And judging by what Ron had told her regarding his plans for becoming an Auror, this could get awkward.
"It was the Auror's office," Harry said, putting the letter in his pocket, the smile still on his face. "I am joining Robards' class on 10th."
"That's amazing, Harry," Ginny exclaimed, beaming at her boyfriend, who smiled back. Hermione couldn't help but smile at Harry's infectious enthusiasm. She knew how eager Harry was to start his Auror training. He and Ron had been restless for the past months, wanting nothing more than to go out there and help capture Death Eaters who had escaped justice. Kingsley initially wanted them to go through mandated three-year training. But after enough pestering, and realizing that Harry and Ron were far from a regular case of aspirant Aurors, he had relented and agreed to send them out in the field. But only if they completed a shorter, however far more rigorous, eight-month training. She looked back at Ron who looked suddenly very interested in the food on his plate. His lack of reaction had gone unnoticed by everyone but her.
"What about you, Ron?" Harry asked, putting out some treats for the owl. "Have you heard back from Robards yet?"
Hermione saw Ron stiffen for a second before he continued.
"I didn't write to him," Ron replied, barely audible, but everyone heard him clearly.
"What, why?" Harry stopped, confused. "The training starts in a week, mate. You better hurry."
She could almost see gears turning inside Ron's head. Then he shrugged.
"I'm not joining Robards' class," Ron responded, slowly pushing his plate away from himself. Hermione saw Ginny look up from her magazine, confused. Even George was interested now.
"You're not becoming an Auror?" Ginny inquired, her face scrunched up in confusion. "But you always wanted to be an Auror..."
"I am going to be an Auror," Ron clicked his tongue, not looking at anyone in particular. "I'm just not joining Robards' class. I'll join Banwell's. It starts on the 17th. Same deal. 8 months, and I can be out in the field."
Hermione saw everyone trying to process Ron's words. Ron looked at Fleur, and she gave him an encouraging smile. Had Ron talked about his plans with her? They had gotten pretty close in the last few months, especially during their stay at Shell Cottage while she was recovering.
"Why?" Harry asked, looking utterly confused. "Robards is the Head Auror. He's probably the best Auror in Britain right now. Why go for someone else?"
"Better Auror does not mean better trainer, Harry," Hermione interjected. Four pairs of eyes traveled towards her. They had forgotten she was in the room, hadn't they? She looked at Ron, who looked relieved at her coming to the aid. Harry looked like he was considering her words.
"Well, then I'll owl Robards that I can't join his class. I'll join Banwell's as well," Harry declared, making a decision, and Hermione almost sighed.
"There's no need for that, mate," Ron got up from the table, carrying his plate. "I know how excited you are to learn under Robards."
"It's no bother," Harry shrugged. "It's just a week-"
"You just don't want to be in the same class as Harry," Ginny said slowly, cutting Harry off, pointing a finger towards Ron. Ron paused for the second but didn't look at her. He scraped the leftovers in the bin and Fleur took the plate from him.
Ron didn't reply.
"You really don't!" Ginny repeated, getting up from her chair, her voice getting louder. "You have learned nothing from last time, have you?"
"Gin..." Harry said, trying to calm her down before a fight broke out.
"First chance you get and you're abandoning Harry again."
Hermione closed her eyes, suppressing the anger she felt towards the youngest Weasley. That was completely uncalled-for. Harry just looked disappointed while George sighed, got up, and left the room, probably too tired for the drama. Fleur looked ready to bite Ginny's head off, but Ginny looked anything but apologetic. Ever since Bill had accidentally revealed the fact that Ron had left during the hunt, Ron had been getting judgemental looks from his family. They have no idea what it was like for us.
"I'll be in my room," Ron didn't even spare a glance to his sister and left as quickly as he could.
"Yeah, run away!" Ginny shouted at Ron's retreating back, clearly irked by his lack of reaction. "It's what you do best, anyway."
"Ginny, enough!" Fleur looked furious. Wow. It was quite a rare sight, seeing Fleur angry. And Hermione was glad that anger was not directed at her. Even Ginny looked taken aback, not expecting Fleur of all people to come out in Ron's defense. That further showed Hermione how little Ginny understood about what her brother had gone through last year. Fleur had told Hermione how Ron would sit next to her bed, holding her hand as she slept, recovering from the torture. He insisted it helped Hermione with her night terrors. Fleur would sometimes sing to them until they both fell asleep. Hermione didn't remember Ron holding her hand or Fleur singing. She didn't remember much of anything from her early days at Shell Cottage. It was all so foggy. But she was glad Fleur had told her that. It was a memory she never had that she knew she would cherish forever.
"I'll go talk to him," Hermione got up from her chair, shooting a disappointing look at Ginny, who just huffed in annoyance. Harry nodded at her and motioned Ginny to follow him outside. Yes, it's better if Harry deals with Ginny. Hermione didn't want to snap at the girl.
5 minutes later
Hermione stood near the door of Ron's room, unsure of what she would say to him. This issue of Ron leaving them in the middle of the hunt was still a sensitive subject among everyone, especially between the three of them. Ron had apologized and after taking her time, Hermione had forgiven him, but she knew that Ron's leaving still nagged her the tiniest bit in the back of her mind. She was smart enough to realize that she shouldn't judge someone based on their one moment of weakness, especially one that had been born out of sheer misery and absolutely vile dark magic of a Horcrux, but she couldn't help her thoughts. She tried her best to suppress that tiny voice, but she knew it was there and likely will be for the rest of her life.
That didn't mean she didn't love Ron with everything she had. She did. She could see a future for her with Ron. A future she was excited for, but try as she might, in her loneliest moments, she couldn't stop hearing the sound of Ron disapparating away from her.
Of course, she would never tell Ron that it still bothered her. It didn't, really. She hadn't even thought about it in weeks. But then Ginny had to go and make that remark. Now Ron was in a foul mood and that nagging voice was back, reminding her of the cruel fact that he had left her.
She knocked on the door and waited for Ron's footsteps. Instead, the door slowly opened, revealing Ron sitting on his bed, writing a letter. Did he use magic to open the door? She spotted Ron's wand out of his reach on the bed table. Wandless magic? Hadn't he started practicing just last week?
That's something else she had noticed in Ron. That how serious he was about becoming an Auror. She would catch him going through random books about being Auror. Just last Sunday, he had sat down with her and asked for her book recommendations about Wandless magic, which she had, of course, happily provided after doing a bit of research. But this was hardly the norm. Hermione had never seen Ron apply himself in his studies all six years of Hogwarts. He'd usually laze around, even more so than Harry would. But his grades were almost always as good as Harry's. She wouldn't say it out loud, but she always thought Ron could outdo Harry in academics if he put in even a little effort. And now, Ron was really trying. She couldn't be happier. The fact that both Ron and Harry had decided to take a dangerous job scared her, but seeing how serious they were about this allayed her fears a bit.
"Are you going to come in?" Ron's voice broke her train of thoughts, and she realized she had been standing in the doorway for about half a minute, marveling at Ron's dedication to becoming an Auror. She closed and locked the door behind her before she walked in, and Ron scooted over on his bed to make room for her.
"What are you writing?" Hermione asked, as she sat down to his right, looking at the half-written letter in Ron's hand.
"A letter," Ron said, his voice subdued. What Ginny said had definitely got to him. She loved Ginny like a sister she never had, but she could certainly be tactless at times. Especially when it came to Ron.
"To who?"
"Banwell," Ron replied, scribbling something else down on the letter.
"What?" Hermione looked up from the letter at his face, surprised. "Why?"
She knew the answer to that before he replied.
"I'll tell him I can't join his training," Ron shrugged.
"Ron…" Hermione began, but Ron cut her off.
"It's no big deal. There will be less drama this way. I'm really not in the mood to deal with Ginny's shit."
Once again, Hermione mentally cursed the youngest Weasley.
"This is not about Ginny," Hermione replied, her voice firm. Ron had his reasons for wanting to train away from Harry, and whether or not she agreed with those reasons, she understood them. And that was enough for her to at least make an attempt at stopping Ron from doing something he quite clearly didn't want to.
Ron looked up at her and sighed. Hermione could see he wanted her to convince him. All he needed was a push.
"Ron, becoming an Auror isn't a joke. You'd be facing off against the worst of wizards," Hermione began her pitch. "If you think there is even the slightest bit of chance that training away from Harry would help you become a better Auror, shouldn't you do it?"
Hermione knew she might have overdone it, but she didn't want to leave anything to chance.
"It's just that I can go about it my own way, you know? If I'm on my own with people who don't know me like the back of their hand, I can-" Ron began explaining himself, but Hermione stopped him by putting her right hand on his face, gently caressing it with her thumb. He looked up at her because of the unexpected affection.
"You don't have to explain yourself to me."
Ron smiled slowly and nodded, and they sat in silence for a few seconds before she took the unfinished letter from Ron. She pointed her wand at it and cast a non-verbal Evanesco, vanishing it.
They went back to a comfortable silence, sitting with their backs to the wall, their legs inside a shared blanket for a few seconds before Ron broke the silence.
"Ginny won't be happy," Ron sighed. "She isn't the sort to let these things go."
"Then explain it to her," Hermione suggested, herself not sure if it would work. Ginny could be quite stubborn. "She doesn't fully understand the condition you were in. We were in. When you… left."
Hermione finished, feeling a slight pang of hurt at voicing what Ron had done. If Ron noticed her slight pause at the end, he didn't show it.
"Tell her you felt guilty, apologized and we forgave you, " Hermione finished. She really didn't want Ron and Ginny fighting. Two Weasleys fighting is not something she was very keen on witnessing.
When Ron didn't reply for a while, she turned to look at him. He appeared to be in deep thought, as if debating something with himself. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke.
"Can… can I confess something?" Ron's voice was so incredibly small, she had barely heard him. That was so unlike him, it startled her for a moment.
"Ye… yeah," Hermione replied, getting over her surprise. It looked like Ron was really pushing himself to confess something, and she didn't want to scare him away.
"Can you promise to keep a level head?" Ron asked, still not looking at her.
Hermione silently nodded, but she suddenly felt a bit scared of what was coming.
"I don't feel guilty," Ron replied, looking at his hand, his face burning. "I know I should, but I just don't."
"For what, Ron?" Hermione asked, dreading the answer. Her voice laced with so much fear, it felt alien to her own ear.
Ron just kept staring at his hand and Hermione started getting restless. She could feel anxiety bubbling in her stomach when he spoke.
"For leaving you. And Harry, during the hunt."
Hermione felt as if someone had punched her in the gut and all the air was knocked out of her lungs. What? Hermione could only stare at him in utter disbelief and hurt. No. No, this makes no sense. He had apologized, hadn't he? He apologized over and over again. To the point where Hermione thought she was being unfair to him by not forgiving him. He had said he felt guilty and had wanted to come back… Was that all a lie? It couldn't have been.
She saw Ron turn to look at her and immediately looked away after seeing the expression on her face. She wasn't hiding anything she was feeling. How could she? Her worst fears were all but being realized. How could he not feel guilty? For leaving. For hurting her the way he did?
She had often wondered what she would see if she encountered a Boggart now. She knew she had her answer.
The tiny nagging voice in the back of her came back with a vengeance, and it was louder than ever. She knew Ron was saying something, but all she could hear was the sound of Ron disapparating away with a crack. She felt him trying to shake her, and she recoiled away from his touch, the sudden moment bringing her back to reality.
Hermione looked at Ron to see him staring at her with a horrified look. But she didn't care. She felt a righteous anger flare inside her at the sight of his hurt face. What did he expect after telling her he didn't even feel guilty for abandoning her during the hardest moments of their lives?!
She saw Ron open his mouth several times, trying to find words to explain what he had said, but nothing came out. They both kept staring at each other for what felt like hours before Ron got up and started pacing, her eyes following his each and every step, disbelief and anger marring her features.
Please, say something. She internally begged Ron, her anger suddenly disappearing, turning itself into unbearable hurt. Make it make sense! She could feel their relationship getting damaged with every passing second they didn't dare speak.
As if he had heard her silent pleas, he knelt down in front of the bed and tentatively reached for her hand. He slowly took her left hand in his own hands and Hermione forced herself to not pull her hand back. He had asked her to keep a level head, hadn't he? Hermione resolved herself and looked at his face. His face was a mixture of emotion she had never seen on him. He looked hurt, confused, maybe even a bit angry, but most of all, he looked scared. She nodded once, asking him to go on. Ron got up and sat next to her on the bed, not letting go of her hand for a second.
"Look, I'm not very good with words," Ron began, looking at her, but she kept her eyes focused on their joint hands as Ron drew circles on the back of her hand with his thumb involuntarily. "I didn't mean that I didn't feel guilty about leaving you. I did. You know I did."
Hermione looked up at him. There was a sense of urgency in his voice that alarmed her. As if he knew how much he would lose if he failed to convince her. But none of this made any sense. He was just contradicting himself. She said nothing, and Ron took that as a hint to keep going.
"It wasn't the same for us," Ron began, looking away from her, a resolute look on his face. "For you and I. You're smart, Hermione. And the smartest thing you ever did was getting your parents out of this damn country."
Ron finished bitterly, letting out a heavy sigh.
"I regret the way I left. I shouldn't have said half the things I did. I shouldn't have asked you to choose. But I don't regret leaving. I had to know my family was safe." Ron paused for a couple of seconds, staring blankly ahead, as if he was reliving that dark moment before he continued. "Every time someone brings up me leaving, and they look at me, I know they are expecting me to feel guilty about leaving," Ron paused again, looking a bit overwhelmed. "But I don't. And then I start feeling guilty about not feeling guilty. It's a bloody mess."
"I wish I could go on pretending, but I don't want to. Not anymore. That's the truth."
Hermione felt her eyes well up with tears, but she blinked them away. She preferred the lie.
"Waking up every day, doing nothing out in the middle of nowhere and then going back to sleep, dealing with the Horcrux's crap, all while wondering if today was the day I'd hear a familiar name on the radio… it was tearing me apart… It was just a matter of time."
Ron finished, swallowing thickly, his fingers still rubbing circles on Hermione's hand.
Hermione forced herself to look at Ron and she could see how much pain he was in. When she had walked into this room earlier, she couldn't have imagined this was the conversation she'd be having with Ron. She saw Ron turn to look at her expectantly, and she realized he wanted her to say something. She didn't know what to say. Her thoughts went back to the days in the tent, and she remembered how miserable they had been. And how hopeless everything looked. Of course, Ron had more to lose than she and Harry did and she understood that, but Weasleys were more or less her family as well. But it's not really the same, is it?
She thought about the days after Ron had left. They were the worst days of her life. All she could do was cry. He had hurt her in a way no one had, and he didn't feel guilty? No. He said he felt guilty about leaving the way he did. He just didn't feel guilty about leaving.
If only they hadn't worn that damn Horcrux.
"You can't blame yourself for that," Hermione began, trying to make sense of everything Ron had told her. Trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to convince Ron. "The Horcrux, it was evil. It corrupted our thoughts."
Ron suddenly pulled his hand away and Hermione immediately knew she had said the wrong thing.
"You are not listening to me," Ron said, looking away from her, his voice laced with frustration. He turned towards her and continued.
"It wasn't the Horcrux that made me leave, Hermione. I would have left even if I never wore the locket."
Hermione's brow furrowed in confusion and annoyance.
"You don't know that."
"Yes, I do!" Ron suddenly bellowed and Hermione nearly jumped. He closed his eyes and let out a heavy breath, rubbing his face. "Sorry. Look, I've given this a lot of thought. I know I would have left, Horcrux or not. Maybe not in the same way. Maybe we would have sat down, came up with a plan and I'd have gone for a few days, but I couldn't have gone on indefinitely. Not without knowing my family was safe."
"We were worried about them too, Ron," Hermione argued, but she knew how weak that argument was.
"But it's not the same," Ron replied. "You know it isn't."
They both sat in silence for a few seconds before Ron continued.
"You know what was the first thought that came to my mind when I saw Luna in that dungeon?" Hermione looked at him, but Ron wasn't looking at her. "'Thank Merlin, it's not Ginny.'"
After saying that, Ron sighed out and leaned back against the wall, looking exhausted. She was feeling tired as well.
Hermione looked ahead and tried to process all the information Ron had dumped on her. The logical side of her could see perfect logic in Ron's words. She imagined her parents being captured by snatchers, and the thought made her shudder. Did that make her a bad friend? Ron left during the hunt because he was worried about his family. Did it make him a bad friend? Or did it make him a dutiful son? A good brother?
She had never really been angry at Ron for saying what he said when he left. She knew most of it was the locket. The Horcrux attacked their worst fears. It had made her think the boys were going to realize she wasn't doing enough for them. That she was letting them down. It was extremely crafty. No, it was never Ron's words that had hurt her; it was the action. That he'd leave her in the middle of nowhere during the hardest moments of her life. And now he was saying he would have left even without the Horcrux? What was she supposed to make of this?
She further thought about his words. If Ron had left after having a calm discussion with them and after planning it ahead, she obviously would not have minded. It was the abruptness of his action that had left her crumbling.
She looked at Ron and realized he wasn't going to say anything else. He had bared his heart open and let her see a secret she knew he was deeply ashamed of. But did he need to be? She wasn't sure anymore. All her previous anger and hurt were gone, and now she was seeing Ron's actions in a completely different light.
She tried to put herself in Ron's shoes. His family was the biggest 'Blood Traitor' in the entire Magical Britain and was under constant surveillance by Death Eaters. Ron's friendship with Harry was well known. That had made the entire family a target. Heck, Death Eaters attacked Bill and Fleur's wedding. Of course, Ron had been worried sick about the safety of his family. She knew she had been as well.
It's not like she hadn't thought about it before, but she never saw it through Ron's eyes. Not really. It was just too painful to think about that night, and she had never bothered to push past the hurt and look at it from a different angle. It had always felt unnecessary.
She had been worried about Weasleys as well during the hunt. She used to dread hearing their names on the radio as well. But it was nowhere near the same thing, was it? In the end, Ron had lost a brother while she came out almost unscratched. She was safe. Ron and Harry were safe. As were her parents.
Fred…
She took Ron's right hand in her left hand unconsciously and he looked at her, surprised, unaware of her thoughts.
No, it wasn't the same. She was sad about Fred's death as well, but she hadn't been grieving Fred, had she? No. Instead, she was grieving the fact that Ron was grieving. She was more heartbroken about how hard Fred's death had hit Ron than Fred's death itself.
She felt ashamed of that particular realization, but she was logical enough to know what she was feeling wasn't abnormal. It was human to love one person more than another.
'Thank Merlin, it's not Ginny.'
What would have Ron done had Ginny died while he was out on the hunt with her and Harry?
What would she have done if her parents had died while she was out there? She suppressed a shudder. Would she really have made it through the hunt if her parents were in the country, knowing they could be attacked any second?
Why hadn't she thought about this before?
Ron's voice echoed inside her head, and she felt a sudden surge of sadness fill her. She realized she wasn't feeling sad for herself. She was feeling that for Ron. How long had he been burying this inside? How had she not noticed? Wasn't she the logical one? She should have tried to see it through Ron's eyes a long time ago. Really tried.
"Have you told Harry?" Hermione asked.
"No," Ron replied, his voice tired. "I haven't told him, but I think he knows."
Hermione nodded. She had expected that. Harry was a lot better than her at picking up these cues. As was Ron. She also knew that until recently, before the dynamic of their relationship had changed after she had started dating Ron, the boys were more comfortable with each other than they were with her. It was natural, after all. They spent so much time together and had so much more in common.
Still, despite everything Ron had told her and had caused her a whirlwind of emotions, she was glad that he had confided in her instead of Harry.
She saw Ron fidgeting out of the corner of her eye, and she realized just how worried he must be. To hear what she thought of all this. Before she could reply, she heard Ron speak.
"Are we okay?"
She slowly looked at Ron, who was looking at her, an unreadable expression on his face. Hermione thought about their entire conversation. How she had gone from being hurt to angry to sympathetic. And now she couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
Had she been too harsh on Ron? Why hadn't she tried to look at the entire situation from his perspective? Sure, the things he said had been hurtful, but he was under the effects of Horcrux. Admitting that he would have left even without Horcrux's influence showed just how much thought Ron had given this. She had no reason to doubt him.
She looked back at Ron, whose anxiety was written all over his face. Damn. She had been silent for too long after his question.
She smiled and was surprised when she realized she didn't have to force it at all.
"Yes, Ron," she assured. "We're okay. Better than okay."
She saw Ron's face flood with relief as his eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but smile a little wider. She felt the dread dissolve from the pit of her stomach. Feeling a sudden surge of affection towards the redhead, she leaned up to kiss him. But a knock on the door stopped her midway.
"Ron, you in there?" came the voice of Harry.
Impeccable timing as always, Harry Potter.
Before Hermione could get up to open the door, Ron waved his hand, his face scrunched in concentration, and the door lock clicked and swung open gently. Ron looked very satisfied with himself and Hermione couldn't help but be impressed.
He had perfected that in a week? She could do that as well, but it had taken her about three weeks to achieve that. Granted, it was back in the sixth year and she hadn't dedicated herself to it, even so, this was amazing potential.
She looked up at the door to see Harry standing there with his hands raised, no doubt in the middle of knocking on the door again. He shook his head and walked in slowly, looking at them, trying to figure out how their conversation had gone. If only Harry had walked in a few seconds later, he'd have seen exactly how well their conversation had gone.
"I was going to the Diagon Alley to buy something for tomorrow," Harry asked, looking at Ron, trying to sound casual and failing utterly miserably. "Do you want to tag along?"
She internally cringed at how not casual Harry had sounded and looked at Ron to see him looking like his usual self, his exhaustion from minutes ago completely forgotten. She smiled internally. It was enough for Ron. Ron and Harry had a way to cheer each other up without even trying to. Or maybe they knew exactly how to do it?
"Yeah, let me grab something," Ron replied, getting up from the bed. "I'll meet you outside."
Harry nodded and left the room, walking down the stairs. She saw Ron open the drawer of the wardrobe and take a pouch out. He walked up to her and bent down to give her a quick peck.
"I'll see you in a few hours, yeah?"
Hermione nodded. Ron started leaving, but he slowly turned back when he was at the door.
"I'm glad I told you."
And with that, he closed the door behind him, leaving for downstairs, not waiting for a reply.
Hermione felt herself smile. Yeah, she was glad he told her too.
She got up from the bed and started folding the blanket, the entire conversation playing in her head once again. She remembered what Ginny had said and internally sighed. This was going to be a long day with Ginny. In a way, she was happy Ginny had said what she said. It had prompted all this, after all.
Hermione folded the blanket neatly and put it on the bed. She walked out of the door, closing it behind her. As she walked down the stairs, she realized the nagging voice in the back of her head was gone. And she knew it was never coming back.
A/N:- This is probably my favorite thing that I've written. Please tell me what you think about this. I hope I didn't go too OOC with characters. I apologize for writing Ginny the way I did, but I couldn't see anyone else saying those words to Ron other than Ginny.
Reviews are always appreciated. I'm planning on writing more so any thoughts or constructive criticism is welcome.