I Own Nothing! There have been some great suggestions from the last chapter, and I have run out of people! So any ideas who is late to the meeting, or who just decides to barge in? No one dead though. If you reviewed, and I didn't message you I'm sorry and thanks for reviewing!

"Maybe we should take a break soon? There are a few things I need to do." Molly asked, exchanging a significant look with Arthur, which was missed by all except those few who knew about their suspicions.

"Hmm, we'll break after the next question then, because I really want to hear what you have to say to Molly's question!" Rolanda Hooch chirped. Harry and Ron looked confused.

"But…it could be a boring question." Ron stated. Hermione rolled her eyes, and with a touch of asperity, told them that the others had planned the questions they were going to ask beforehand. She was answered with a short 'oh'. And then indignant cries at the names she muttered half-heartedly. Molly intervened before the situation could escalate.

"After this question then. Alright children…" Said 'children' bristled at being referred to as such. "…In your fourth year, I believe that there was a bit of a misunderstanding about you two." She pointed at Hermione and Harry. "I also know that that led to another fight between you two." This time Ron and Hermione were accused. "…And that for some reason, you two weren't talking before all of that." Harry and Ron now found themselves being pointed at. "So my question is, what did Rita Skeeter do to upset you, and is that why is she now currently out of a job?"

Hermione blinked, having never anticipated this. She felt a cold feeling in her stomach, because what she had done was blackmail, and there was no telling if once the truth was out one person in the room would rat her out. She could easily end up in Azkaban if the wrong people found out… Why am I the one that seems to be coming off the worst in this?

Ron was feeling a similar sense of dread for his friend. He had no fear of her going into Azkaban of course, because he and Harry would never let that happen. But he was scared that if things went really wrong, he would have to ask her to flee the country. And then, with the recent revelations, whatever his friends were feeling he would have to help them alone.

Harry himself was wondering whether or not he would have to pull his rank as the boy-who-lived and order Hermione pardoned. There were after all certain perks as Tonks had once mentioned, and in fifth year Hermione had shown him how influential he really could be.

The three, were wrong obviously. The people in the room would never allow any of them to suffer that fate. But then again how were they to know that every single person in that room cared for them as if they were their own children? They knew that they were well liked, but not even Ron knew how much his mother and father would do for the three, or any of their children. They didn't know how Poppy Pomfrey had returned home to her husband at the end of each year weeping because the three had endangered themselves yet again, and she was waiting in dread for the day she wouldn't be able to fix them. They didn't even know how their head of house had considered them her own children since she'd first met them, and had spent every night in their seventh year praying for their safe return. No . The people in the room all loved the three of them, whether it be for their sacrifices or their souls, and no one would ever send them to Azkaban for the trifle crime of blackmailing a bug.

But at that point everyone else was silently wondering why the trio had gone into dazes after Molly had asked. The room spent a few moments in silence and wonder. Finally, Hermione shook her head and smiled rather forcefully. "Well Mrs Weasley, I think this is going to need a bigger explanation. But I'll try and keep it brief, and go at it in order. When Harry was announced for the triwizard tournament, Ronald thought he'd entered himself on purpose and they both fell out over that. They wouldn't talk, but made up soon after the first task."

Eyebrows were raised in Ron's direction, and he flushed. But Harry automatically defended him. "He had his reasons, but the issue was solved and we both forgave him. Eventually he understood, and he regrets his actions. So there's nothing to be mad about. We all make mistakes, and we all fight with our friends. " He glared at them, and Ron's ears went an even brighter shade of red. "However, we just have bigger fights than normal." Harry nodded at Hermione to continue.

"Where was I? Oh, so at the weighing of the wands ceremony, Skeeter then picked up on Harry being in the tournament, and she started digging around for lies to write about him. She found everything, and when she discovered that we were best friends she decided to write about Hogwarts's 'golden couple' and spread lies about us being together. People believed her, and it was bit awkward between us for a while. Then the Yule ball came along and…" she covertly cast a glance at Ron, who by now looked like he'd been sunburnt. "Victor Krum asked me to the ball first because he was afraid Harry would." She blushed at this, and to her further mortification there were a few cooing noises from the adults. So she continued on in a louder voice. "Once Ron had realised he would need a date he rather rudely exclaimed that I was a girl and assumed that I didn't have date. I told him, that I had in fact, and that he wasn't the first to notice I was a girl. He didn't believe me and thought I was being proud." She started talking faster as her memories resurfaced, and her irritation grew. "Then, when I showed up at the ball with Victor, Ronald accused me of working with the enemy. He insinuated that no one would want me as a date, and that Victor only wanted my brains so that he could win the tournament. He said later that he didn't care what I did, but that I was a traitor to Harry by running off with the fist boy who said he liked me. We had a massive fight in the common room, and needless to say things were a bit frosty afterward." Her tone was now clipped, much like their head of house's and Ron winced as he heard about what he had insinuated. "Rita didn't really have much to do with that either. However, as soon as she wrote that blatantly prejudiced article about Hagrid I knew that she had to be stopped. I told her exactly what she was and how much of a foul person she was, and she told me I'd regret it. In retaliation she wrote those scathing articles about me, I blatantly didn't care because I thought my friends and family would know the truth, and stand by me." Molly looked away, ashamed that she had believed Rita's lies and shunned Hermione because of Ron. "And most of them did so I was alright until the readers sent me howlers and letters containing bulboter pus." Those present frowned at the memory.

"They sent you ACID! And why isn't this sort of thing checked?" Molly was again acting like an overprotective mother. "Who was sent those kinds of letters?" Hermione, Harry and most of the staff raised their hands. "What!"

"Please Molly, calm down; the Hogwarts letters are checked by various wards before entering the school, but they can only cover certain criteria. It would be an invasion of privacy to open student's letters. However, I distinctly remember that over half of Miss Granger's letters that year were sent to be incinerated, and as far as I can remember, Mr Potter only ended up with one nasty letter before we managed to stop his. These things are hard to keep on top of, and as school teachers we can only do so much." Minerva facilitated. The others nodded.

Hermione and Harry were both shocked, not to mention relieved that they hadn't see all of their letters. The howlers were bad enough. Molly huffed, and Hermione decided to continue before she exploded again. The younger girl didn't even bother to acknowledge the fact that Molly's concern touched her, yet it also saddened her and made her angry. She would wonder why later, and then thank Molly when she knew what exactly annoyed her about the older witch.

"So I decided that I would figure out how she knew so much about people. I spent hours in the library and eventually, thanks to an offhand comment from Harry, figured it out." Here she paused, inwardly smiling at the eagerness on their faces. If she played her cards right, they would be so shocked that the rest of the question would be forgotten. "Rita Skeeter…is an unregistered beetle animagus!" There were several shouts of disbelief, a few gasps and many more growls.

"So that's how she…."

"How dare that evil-"

"I'm gonna…"

"Well I never.."

"WAIT!" Everyone stopped, shocked by the sheer volume of Neville's voice. "So how did you stop her Hermione?" This turned all of the attention back to her, something Hermione definitely didn't want. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, mentally thanking Neville and promising revenge.

"I…uh convinced her that it was in her best interests to retire." Sceptical expressions stunned her, and she realised that they now knew how good she was at twisting the truth. George poked her a couple of times with his wand. "What! Oh alright I blackmailed her, saying I would tell the aurors if she wrote anymore lies…turns out she can't survive without them. The daily Prophet fired her!" At this her lips curled into an evil smile.

Which was wiped off her face by Molly's fussing. "Hermione! You could've been in serious trouble, Azkaban or worse! I dread to think if we didn't have the charm…." She shook the girl by the shoulders.

"Err…Mrs Weasley? What Charm?" Harry timidly asked.

"The one that prevents anyone repeating the information they learn inside of this room Harry." Arthur answered. Ron's eyes widened considerably. Oh.

"I think I shall add this to the list to, Molly." Minerva indicated. The woman's eyes narrowed. "You are very lucky we are taking into account the good things you have done, or else right now you would be locked in my classroom doing detentions every day for the next couple of years." The three gulped. "And Molly would most likely have had you wrapped in buggle wrop for the rest of your lives." Hermione itched to correct her and say bubble wrap, but the look in her eyes said that this was not a good time. Then a thought struck her.

"Molly?"

"Yes darling?" Hermione winced at the name. Molly really reminded her of…No.

"Um…How did you know? About our arguments, I mean? I don't really think Ron would write about it and it wasn't ever publicised. Ron never was mentioned in the paper at all."

Ron himself was quite pleased to not feel the familiar pang of jealousy or inadequateness. And he reflected on how much he'd grown in the weeks after the battle, together with Harry and Hermione they'd helped to quell his fears and reason his doubts. He still needed help from them every so often, but it was no longer the issue it once was, and it no longer threatened their friendship.

"Oh, well a little birdie informed me sweetie." Ron came back from his thoughts.

"Ginny was spying on us?" Molly's tell-tale red cheeks told him his answer. "I can't believe you mum! You could've just asked!"

"Well it's not like you would have told me, and after Ginny's first year I needed to now from someone you were alright! You yourself told me every week how Ginerva was doing, and you were happy enough to when it wasn't you Ronald!" Properly chastised, Ron sat down with a scowl in his face, looking at Harry and muttering about controlling mothers who wouldn't leave them alone.

Arthur stood up, looked at Molly and left the room. "I think we all need that break now, if a few of us go and get food…Then Molly can run her errands." Ron perked up, feeling conflicted. He wanted to help Harry, but the idea of his abuse unsettled him. Eventually he knew Hermione would know what to do, even if he didn't, and he resigned them to their fate.