A/N: I had this REALLY crazy idea of how to maybe improve the reader/writer relationship and the way you comment on a story. For those not interested just skip this and continue on to the second to last chapter of Days.

For those of you who are a bit intrigued; have you ever been on/heard of googel docs? I love it. My favorite part is the ability to highlight a passage and comment on just that rather then the chapter as a whole. It also allows you to see what others are saying about what parts and you can comment on their comments. This prospect thrills me! As a Sagittarius, conversation and open discussion is my lie blood.

So, if you're interested in leaving comments/questions as you read as opposed to lumping all your thought at the very end head over to my profile where a link to this chapter on googel docs is posted.

24 August 1998

Hermione sat numbly as Ginny tied her hair back in to a simple bun; didn't protested when Ginny suggested some makeup to hide the dark circles under her eyes. In fact she wouldn't have cared if Ginny dressed her. She didn't want to move. She didn't want to leave this room. If she went down stairs it would mean she was ready to go. If she was ready to go, it meant she was ready to bury her parents. She wasn't, she would never be ready; so she sat numbly wishing time would stop.

A commotion out side the door reminded her that time would stop for no one and she groaned. The ministry cars would be arriving soon and there seemed to be a problem.

"I'll go see what it is," Ginny said putting in the last pin.

Hermione began to stare at her reflection. It was no good. Her mother always loved her curls. She should wear it loose. Her mother would have preferred that.

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

Hermione hand stopped just as she was going to undo all Ginny's work, that was Ron's voice and he didn't sound fine at all. She poked her head out of the door to see Ginny Harry and Mrs. Weasley standing right outside the loo.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm fine." But his declaration of well being was punctuated by reaching noise. Hermione hurried to the loo and saw him hunch over the toilet being violently ill in his dress robes.

"No, no no no no," she muttered pushing past and knelt down beside Ron rubbing his back. He had just eaten too much breakfast. That was all. He was fine, he said so himself.

"Better?"

"Much," he said giving her a small smile but it didn't last very long, in the next instant he was back to being sick.

"I'll go make some tea to settle his stomach."

"Thanks, Mum."

"You're OK," Hermione said pushing a lock of his hair off of his brow and immediately she knew this day was destined to be the worst of her life. Pressing the back of her hand to his forehead her bottom lip began to tremble.

"You're burning up."

"I'm fine."

"You're not fine, Ron."

"I have to be," he said taking her hand in to his.

Hermione took a beep breath not even trying to stop the tears from falling. "You can't go like this."

"I'm fine," Ron said once again quickly getting to his feet, but the momentum coupled with his fever cause him to sway, If Harry hadn't rushed over to steady him he would have surly fallen.

Hermione followed behind Harry and Ginny as they guided Ron back to his room and laid him on the bed.

"I'll go see how mum's coming with the tea," Ginny said pulling Harry out of the room along with her.

"I'm sorry," Ron said looking at her with tears of guilt in his eyes. They were tears of guilt, it seemed to radiate off of him.

"It was out of your control."

"I'm so sorry," he said one more time, surprising Hermione by breaking down; sobbing in a way Hermione had never seen him before, it broke her heart. "I'm so sorry, Hermione. I just can't. I can't do it."

Hermione shushed him, disappointed that he wouldn't be able to hold her hand as she said her final goodbyes to her parents, yet somehow comforted in the fact that Ron's tears showed that he did care. That while he was obviously ill, his insistence that he was 'fine' told her that he wanted to be there for her. "It's fine Ron, really. I'm not upset. You didn't ask to be sick today."

It was the last time she would be in this house. It was the third time that thought had crossed her mind. The first was when she left to the Burrow right before the horcrux hunt. It was a madding moment where she though there was no way she would survive the war. The second was after the fight between Ron and her father. But this time, there was no fix to this. This truly was the last time she would be in this house.

"It was a beautiful service," Harry said coming to sit by her on the front step. She could hear Mrs. Weasley inside the house barking orders for dishes to be washed and tables to be wiped down. It was odd hearing Mrs. Weasley voice taking charge in her house. Everything was odd; she kept expecting one of her parents to walk in to a room at any moment. She should have listened to Mr. Weasley when he suggested to rent a hall rather then have the after service gathering at the house.

"Ginny's getting the last of your clothes. She figured you wouldn't have thought of it."

Hermione hadn't, she hadn't thought much on clearing out any of their things before the house was sold.

"What do you have there?" Harry asked once again trying to engage her in conversation.

"Post," she said simply.

"Anything interesting?"

Hermione handed him the manila envelope containing a Muggle passport for Ron.

"How did you get this? Ron never told me…"

"McGonagall and Kingsley helped. They were going to take us to Rome, my parents, it was supposed to be a surprise for him."

Harry pointed to the bridal magazine in her hand.

"Were they going to renew their vows on the trip?"

"No. My mum said she had already started planning my and Ron's wedding. Said so by the time it happened most of what needed to be done would be out of the way. I thought she was joking." Hermione confessed not caring to control the tremor in her voice.

"You- you don't think that's what the trip was about, do you? You know, Ron asking you…"

"No," Hermione said knowing that much. "They planed the trip last summer; it's my present for graduating Hogwarts, or was supposed to be. Dad said if we were still going he wanted Ron to come. Mum and I loved going to museums and Dad liked pubs. Ron was really my dad's guest not mine," she said with a laugh that turned into a sob. "We were supposed to leave in two weeks!"

"It's going to be alright."

"How can you say that!"

"Because I'm Harry Potter. I've felt the way you're feeling right now. It'll get better, you just need to give it time." Hermione cried into his shoulder as Harry awkwardly rubbed her back as much as she appreciated Harry in that moment she couldn't help but wish he was Ron.

"I want to get back to the Burrow to check on Ron," she said after she calmed a bit. "No one's been there since we left and I'm sure Ron hasn't eaten anything."

"Alright, I'll just say your goodbye for you and I'll come with you."

Hermione went straight up to Ron's room when they arrived. She could hear the shower running from the stairs and opted to wait for him in his bedroom. Opening the door she found it a complete mess; Harry's old camp bed and wondered what had Ron been up to the hours he had been alone.

Deciding to tidy up a bit Hermione grabbed the trousers of his dress robes from where he haphazardly threw them on his bed. As she did so two wrappers fell from their pocket. She bent down, picking them up and for one madding moment wondered what Ron was doing with fever fudge and puking pastille wrappers..

Hermione froze staring at her hand clutching the wrappers. No, Ron wouldn't do that. He wouldn't fake being ill. He wouldn't do that to her. He wouldn't leave her to face her parents' funeral alone. He knew how much she needed him today. He promised he would, he promised.

Hermione didn't know how long she stood deathly still in the middle of Ron's bed room. But it was long enough for him to finish his shower and go down to the kitchen, because when he walked in he was stuffing one of the sandwiches they had brought in to his mouth.

"Hey." He smiled at her. "Harry said the service was nice."

Hermione stared at him. He was the picture of health smiling at her. He had broken another promise. He had lied and said he would be there then used his brothers' inventions to fake being ill to get out of it. And she had fallen for it. Ron had played her like a chess match and won. He had insisted he was fine but it was she, she who told him to stay. He knew she would never demand he go to the funeral if he was so ill. He used her kindness against her. Hermione couldn't recognize the man standing in front of her.

The room began to spin and she fell to her knees unable to breath. She told him that if he loved her he would be there for her, and he wasn't. He lied. He lied and faked being ill. They weren't having problems, Ron had fallen out of love with her.