Part 12
Harry sat there, stunned for a moment at the thought that had occurred to him. Then, moved by his fear, the dark haired, wide-eyed boy got up and ran to his desk. If something had actually happened to the Weasleys, then Hedwig may have been followed. 'No!' Harry shook his head sternly. 'No thoughts like that.' Still, his movements were quick as he took out a piece of parchment. Holding it down with one hand, he dipped his quill in the black ink. It splattered a little when he took it out and Harry cursed. His aunt and uncle hated even thinking about Harry doing school work in their house. He would have to clean it up after he wrote the letter.
Harry took a deep breath to steady his hand before he started writing. It wouldn't do any good for Hermione to think something was actually wrong.
Once his hand had stopped shaking, Harry began to write.
"Dear Hermione,
I hope that everything is good with you. I was wondering, have you had any word from Ron lately? It's just, I've sent him six letters, and one to his parents, and haven't had a reply.
I'm sure that they probably just went on holiday somewhere, but if you can perhaps let me know where I can write to Ron at…."
Harry trailed off in his letter and read it over. It didn't sound too worried, though he knew that Hermione would never buy the 'holiday' part. That would get her attention if nothing else did. Hermione was clever enough to catch Harry's worried undertone and, in these times of troubles, know that maybe a holiday wasn't such a good thing. She would find out what was going on, even if he couldn't. Harry sighed enviously. Hermione still had access to the wizarding world. Her family actually supported her magical skills and encouraged her to practice for them. What a difference from Harry's life where he was worried about some ink drops on his desk.
Shaking his head, Harry looked back to the letter. That was really all he had wanted to say, so he decided to finish it off.
"Anyway, hope everything is going well. I can't wait to hear about your summer so far. See you later…I hope.
Bye,
Harry"
Harry was tempted to sign it, "Love," like Hermione did, but refrained. He reached behind to massage a crick out of his neck, and saw Hedwig's empty cage. His stomach lurched. He had given her specific instructions not to come back without an answer, but what if…what if he had just sent her into danger? Harry shook his head violently, partly to clear the thoughts out of his head, and partly to get rid of the crick. It would probably be a while before Hedwig returned--Harry didn't voice the 'if' in that thought—so he would send the letter with the Daily Prophet owl that arrived every morning. He would be able to deliver the letter.
With a sigh, Harry put the letter down on his windowsill. It was already late. He would just have to wake up early enough the next morning to pay the Daily Prophet owl extra. Quickly, Harry changed into his pajamas and removed his glasses. His vision became slightly blurry and was making him dizzy, so Harry lay down and closed his eyes. He was asleep almost immediately.