AN: I Own Nothing
"Hermione!"
The walls rattled with the force of the knocks on the door.
"Please open the door, it's only me."
Hermione groaned and thumped her head on the table, trying to drown out the commotion on the other side of the door in addition to Harry banging on her door. She was tempted to throw up a silencing spell, but she figured it would die down in a bit. Judging by the short amount of time that had passed between Ron's proposal and Harry's pleads at her door, Harry had come straight over to talk to her. So, maybe there was hope after all, Harry hadn't abandoned her yet. However, she didn't want to know what was going to happen once Ginny found out, she only hoped that she wouldn't jump to Ron's side following her refusal. The Weasley family always seemed to support one another; she just hoped Ginny would make an exception. She could do with a few Bat Bogey hexes being directed at Ron, and Ginny's skill was unparalleled. Besides, Hermione needed all the support she could get from Harry and Ginny once Molly Weasley heard about this, that woman was relentless.
Hermione glanced up at the door as Harry's pleads and frantic banging began again.
"Please, Hermione, I'm on your side. Ron convinced me it was what you wanted. I'm sorry."
She moved from her chair and carefully opened the door, anxiously peering outside, trying to not draw any more attention to herself. She was greeted by Harry's mournful expression.
"Do you hate me, Hermione?"
"Of course not! I could never hate you, now get inside, I think there's been enough of a spectacle today, don't you?"
Harry quickly moved into the chair in front of her desk, put his head in his hands and groaned. Hermione knew this was going to be a difficult conversation, so she locked her door from everyone until it was over. She went back behind her desk and slumped into her chair and faced Harry.
"You broke up with him at the ball." Harry stated, cutting straight to the point.
Hermione nodded in response,
"He has been awful, Harry. I couldn't take it any more, he was nothing but abusive towards me, I—"
"Abusive?! He's been hitting you!"
"Merlin, No! He was emotionally abusive, not physically."
Harry looked slightly relived at that, although he still seemed quite concerned.
"So, he was making you miserable then?"
"Yes, Harry. He's been doing nothing but throwing insults at me and trying to control me. I've always been my own woman and I couldn't let him take that away from me. That's why I broke up with him." Harry nodded,
"I'm so sorry Hermione. I genuinely had no idea. I did hear him saying a few nasty things to you every now and again, but I thought you guys were fighting or something. You two always argued a lot at school and figured that his comments were part of a larger argument you were having. I'm sorry I didn't realize it was worse than that."
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. She was so thankful that Harry was on her side.
"It's alright. It was Ron and I's relationship. It was up to me to take control of the situation and I did. Right now though I need all the support I can get, as my rejection of Ron's proposal is going to make the next few days pretty tough. My boss looked horrified. "
"I will do everything I can to help, I promise. Although, I think your Boss passed out after you turned Ron down so maybe you can convince that it was just a bad dream he was having. You have always been pretty handy with the Confundus." The conviction in Harry's eyes as he cheekily grinned at her left Hermione no room for any doubt. Now that she had the Saviour of the Wizarding World on side, she felt a lot more at ease. She elected to change the topic somewhat now that the difficult part of the conversation is over.
"So, Harry, how are things with you and Ginny?"
"They're fantastic, Ginny's pregnancy is going really well. Molly is practically bouncing off the walls and Ginny has not even given birth yet. And don't worry; Ginny has been moaning about Ron's treatment of you for weeks, she's definitely on your side too. Not too sure how Molly is going to react though…"
"Yeah…that's certainly going to be interesting, particularly as Ron has probably gone straight back to the Burrow to tell her all about how I have broken his heart. You've got to say, Ron, cannot be beaten once he has a strategy in his head. I still can't believe that the Ron we know today is the Ron we went to school with. I guess all that fame has grown his ego to the extent that he doesn't understand what is acceptable any more."
Harry gave her a grim smile,
"I know, but at the end of the day, it is Ron that dictates his behaviour, not any one else. Although fame was probably a factor, I think he just didn't grow up. Someday, he'll turn around and realise what kind of man he's become."
"Wow, Harry. Don't ever let me say you have the emotional range of a teaspoon!" Harry laughed,
"I'll keep that in mind. Now I'd better leave you to your work. If you need me, do not hesitate to send a patronus and I will get to you as fast as I can."
Hermione gave him a watery smile and as she walked him to the door she gave him a big hug.
"Thanks, Harry. That means the world to me." Harry just about deciphered her words as she mumbled into her chest. She stepped back and removed her locking charm from earlier. Harry stepped out into the hall and gave her a last smile,
"Bye Hermione. I'll see you soon."
I am so, so sorry. I know I promised to update next week for you but I seriously underestimated my workload once I got back from my family holiday. Now that I have tackled it all, I'll update more frequently to get back on track. Anyway, let me know what you think!