A/N: Does a super long chapter and long awaited conversation make up for the delay? I'm not JKR, and don't own any of these characters.

For the first time in his life Ron felt most comfortable hiding between the curtains of his four-poster bed. Being out in the common room or in classes left him either third wheeling with Harry and Ginny or watching Boot stare at Hermione from the corner of his eye. Both left him with a sour taste in his mouth.

Not that he didn't love Harry and Ginny together; he did. Having gotten past most of the initial "my best mate is snogging my little sister" jitters, Ron could tell that having the pair of them together was a good thing. Harry was grinning, bounding and acting like a normal teenager for once. Ginny beamed around the castle, and was great about talking Harry down from minor cliffs that used to fall to Ron. No, it wasn't that they were together, it was more that he was stung with a bit of jealousy. Getting to see Ginny reach over and kiss Harry, or watching them hold hands as they walked down to breakfast served to make him acutely aware that he was not allowed to do that with Hermione. While McGonagall and surprisingly Fletcher had not breathed a word of Ron's planned switch to Hermione, with each passing day the anxiety of her knowing gnawed at him more and more.

As difficult as it was to try and avoid speaking to her, or looking directly at her, he was fairly pleased with his efforts. Given that the last thing he wanted was to have another Professor notice his gaze lingering on her, he was making an effort to keep Harry in the middle of the trio. With Harry being far more attentive to Ginny than his studies, Hermione was there to nag Harry into knowing what needed to be done. Ron was putting more effort than usual into his studies, mostly to avoid the same nagging being directed at him. While part of him loved having her nag at him, most of him recognized that he was definitely going to slip up if they got too close. He tried to stay away as much as possible.

What was throwing him for a loop was Boot's interest. Hermione didn't seem to want to give him the time of day, and yet Boot was nothing if not persistent. Over the past week Ron had witnessed him pick up a book Hermione had dropped, catch her as she tumbled off the bottom step going to class, and wink at her when she made a particularly poignant point in Potions.

The wink was really what did him in. She didn't respond to him, but Ron didn't like that Boot felt he could wink at her one bit. Finding that discreetly watching Boot was safer than Hermione at the moment, Ron kept it up. It did nothing to improve his mood.

Hence-his bed. The only place in the castle he felt truly safe dreaming up ways to bring Hermione closer to him. Where he could pretend she was praising his newfound dedication to academics. Where he was the one winking at her, making her blush. Or any of the myriad of fantasies that somehow permeated into his dreams. Yes, it was nice to have that for the moment. Except that it wasn't as good as the real thing.

As morning dawned, he sighed, getting ready to face another day. Give it a couple more weeks, and then he might feel comfortable talking with Hermione and getting to the bottom of what was bothering her. For now, he just had to deal with Harry and Ginny being gross and in love. He could do it.

Ginny was waiting at the bottom of the stairs as he descended into the Common Room. Her expression darkened as she realized it wasn't who she was waiting for.

'Sorry, just me,' he joked as he stepped onto the carpet.

'Is Harry coming down?' she asked. Ron nodded.

'Just in the loo. He'll be a moment.'

Ron tried to peek up the girls staircase. Though he was supposed to be avoiding her, he couldn't help but want to see her nonetheless. Ginny must have caught his glance, as she gave him a Cheshire grin.

'Hermione's not up there. She headed out to the library already.'

'I wasn't waiting for Hermione.' Ron felt the back of his neck flush.

'Sure you weren't.' The Cheshire grin grew.

'Ginny!' Harry came bounding down the stairs. It was so odd to see Harry bound. Ron looked back towards the staircase as he waited for them to finish a good-morning kiss.

'Sleep well?' Ginny asked.

'Brilliant. You?'

'Not too bad. I was thinking about something Firenze said during out Divination lecture about the position of the stars.'

Harry looked at her in bewilderment. Ginny smirked and began laughing.

'Gotcha.'

'Oh thank merlin. If you'd started talking about more prophecies…' Harry's voice trailed off as he took Ginny's hand and they walked out of the Portrait Hole.

Ron was left standing there, less a third wheel and more an abandoned tricycle part.

'Guess I'll head down to breakfast alone, then?' He called after them. They were too far to hear his sarcastic question.

He sighed. There was always the chance to walk with Neville, or Dean and Seamus, but Ron was too hungry to wait.

Hands deep in the pockets of his robes, he started his solitary descent towards the Great Hall. It was quiet, especially for the morning. He figured most students might be sleeping late after studying into the wee hours. Why Hermione felt the need to go back to the library first thing was beyond him. She'd gotten a perfect score on their Transfiguration test. Ron had outdone himself by getting a solid 87%, and thanked McGonagall for at least giving him an honest grade.

He was down by the third floor when a mess of furious curls came storming around the corner.

'Hermione?' he asked before he could help himself. She swivelled to look at him. Her chest was flushed and heaving. Eyes slightly wild. Then his presence seemed to register.

'Ron. Good morning.' She smiled at him, a big, true smile that reached her eyes. It caught Ron's breath.

'Are you okay?' he asked once he got a hold of himself.

'Yes,' Hermione said, stepping to join him. 'I convinced myself that I'd made a mistake in my Arithmancy calculation. Couldn't sleep over it.'

'Over a calculation?' Ron asked, a slight note of disbelief in his words.

'Well, if I had done it incorrectly, the entire assignment would have been off!' She slumped her shoulders down in defeat.

'Was it wrong?'

She huffed. 'No, it was absolutely correct.'

'No surprise there.'

Hermione paused, looking up at him with tired, bloodshot eyes.

'What is that supposed to mean?'

Ron looked down, a little surprised at her reaction. 'Hermione, it's you. Of course it was going to be right. You're the cleverest person here.'

Her cheeks flushed, and she dropped her gaze.

'Not necessarily,' she muttered under her breath.

'What's that supposed to mean?' Ron asked, concern growing.

She waved a hand. 'Nothing, sorry. I'm knackered. What's for breakfast?'

Resuming her quick little steps, Ron strode to catch up. He'd been doing so well in terms of not getting too involved.

'Can I help with anything Hermione?'

'Hmm?' she asked, clearly not paying attention. Ron wanted to grab her and ask what on earth was going on. But he stayed silent. No use rocking the boat.

They arrived in the great hall and took seats next to Harry and Ginny. The pair seemed to give no notice to them. Indeed, Harry was listening to Ginny speak with a forkful of egg slowly dripping down from halfway to his mouth. Ron rolled his eyes and grabbed the toast platter from beside him.

'Here,' he said, placing it in front of Hermione.

'Thank you,' she said, as she tucked a curl behind her ear. Ron felt himself flush as he reached to grab the bacon.

The Daily Prophet owl swooped down and delivered the paper in front of Hermione. Shoving a slice of buttered toast into her mouth, she poured over the front page. Ron watched as she sped through the headlines, chewing thoughtfully. He felt eyes on him and looked up to see Boot sliding into place at the Ravenclaw table, shooting daggers at him. That was strange. He chuckled to himself, glad to see that normally unflappable Ravenclaw brought down a peg.

'Something wrong?' Hermione asked, putting down her paper.

'Not a thing,' Ron replied, pouring himself a goblet of Pumpkin Juice. She frowned at him, which Ron found oddly endearing.

'What were you laughing about?'

'Overheard something funny at the Ravenclaw table.' Ron took the opportunity to pour Hermione a goblet as well.

Alarm bells went off in his head as Hermione looked over to the other end of the hall, momentarily locking eyes with Boot. His expression did not soften. Hermione bit her lip beside Ron.

'He doesn't seem happy,' Ron ventured. Hermione turned her gaze to him. Giving a non-committal noise, she returned to her paper. Harry and Ginny were laughing beside them at some funny thing Luna had mentioned in Care of Magical Creatures the previous week. Ron cut into his eggs, looking back at Boot.

'I'll walk you up to class.' Harry pushed himself off the bench and gestured for Ginny's hand. This brought Hermione's head snapping up to attention as she stared at them.

'Don't be late to Herbology, Harry,' she nagged. 'That will be the third tardy this week.'

Ginny laughed. 'Get your wand out of the mud, Hermione. I'll make sure he gets there.' The pair stalked off, oblivious to the frustration growing from Hermione.

'My wand is hardly in the mud,' she began, and Ron was half surprised that there was no steam billowing from her scalp.

'I know.'

'If anything, Harry and Ginny should be thanking me! I can't imagine your mother's benevolence continuing to extend to Harry if Ginny doesn't get the OWLS she should!'

Ron stared at her. Hermione looked back at him.

'Don't look at me like that,' she snapped. 'Somebody around here has to be concerned about exams.'

Ron bit back a retort. Something was clearly upsetting her besides the grades. Honestly, she seemed a little tightly wound at the moment.

'Should we head to Herbology?' he asked instead, having finished the last of his pumpkin juice. Hermione nodded. She folded her paper nicely, and stuck it in her bag. Ron looked at her quizzically.

'I didn't get a chance to finish the article on new legislation for Mermish rights out of Tonga,' Hermione told him, as though this were a perfectly normal thing for a seventeen-year-old to be interested in. Ron nodded and they stalked out of the Great Hall. With a glance back, Ron could see Boot's eyes following them as they walked.

'What's the new legislation trying to do?' Ron asked as they entered into the grounds. Hermione launched into a complicated lecture about sonic waves and the distribution of fishing rights and a host of other things that Ron didn't really understand. He couldn't care less about Mermish rights. What he did care about was the way the sunshine peeking through the clouds illuminated the few freckles the dotted her nose. The way the breeze tangled her curls. How some of the stress in her eyes dissipated as she talked about a case from Barbados in the 80's. He became so entranced by the movement of her mouth that he stopped paying attention to where he was walking. A few metres later, his foot caught on an exposed root. Arms flailing as he attempted not to take Hermione down with him, Ron tumbled to the ground as the contents of his bag exploded around him.

'Ron!' Hermione's tone changed immediately to concern, 'Are you alright?'

His ears burned as he tried to straighten his robes. ''M fine.' It came out as more of a grumble than he wanted it to be.

'Are you sure? Are you feeling dizzy? Did you drink enough? Did your-'

'I tripped, Hermione,' he interrupted, trying to stem the flow of her panic. 'Nothing more. Should have been paying more attention.' Her face softened. She bent down to pick up his copy of Advanced Potion Making and opened her lips to speak.

'Everything alright here?' The smug, smooth tones of Boot. Bloody perfect, Ron thought to himself as he tried to grab the inkpot that had fallen into a patch of long grass to his right.

'Yes.' Hermione's voice was terse.

'Need any help Weasley?' Ron looked up to see Boot looking down at him with a self-satisfied smirk. 'Saw you tumble from the entrance hall. Quite a spill.'

'Wasn't paying attention,' Ron replied. His neck began to burn with embarrassment. Grateful for his long arms, he continued to pick up his things.

'It's my fault,' Hermione continued, passing him a pack of Owl treats he'd forgotten were in a side pocket. 'I got caught up in telling him about the article on Mermish regulations.'

'Ah yes,' Boot smiled at her. 'I find it fascinating that the Tonganese Ministry is choosing to enhance the Atlantic regulations rather than the Pacific ones.'

Hermione scoffed. 'One can hardly call the Pacific rules "regulations." The only thing they regulate is the money going towards the commercialization of fishing rights for wizards!'

'Money, I would argue, that helps to provide for the continuation of oceanic development in terms of…'

Ron stopped listening. He really didn't care for the argument. It took him a few moments to collect the rest of his things before standing up. Neither Hermione nor Boot seemed to notice. They began walking towards the greenhouses, still deep in their Mermish rights discussion. The sole of Ron's right shoe had come away from the upper part. It wasn't the first time this had happened, but he wasn't sure Spellotape was going to fix it this time. Internally he swore. He didn't dare ask for galleons to get new shoes from Mum, but he also didn't want to draw Hermione's attention to it. She'd probably know a spell to fix it, and he didn't want her help. He hated being poor.

It wasn't like she drew attention to it, but Ron knew that Hermione came from some money. Not as much as Harry, but enough that she'd never had to worry about how to pay for presents. She never had to count coins to buy candy in Hogsmeade. Owl deliveries came to her with new quills and expensive inks. Her clothes always fit. Her shoes were always clean. Ron drew his own robes closer together, trying to disguise the couple of inches of pale ankle showing from his too-short jeans.

By comparison, Terry seemed impeccably groomed. The git wasn't even wearing trainers, but some sort of fancy leather shoes that shone in the weak sunlight. Like this wasn't just a regular day at Hogwarts. Even the clasp on Boot's robes gleamed. It made Ron dislike him even more.

They reached the entrance to the greenhouse. Boot entered first, but Hermione hesitated at the doorway.

'You sure you're alright?' Her eyes glittered with the question. Ron felt a rush of affection for her. He nodded.

'Only thing hurt is my pride.'

She smiled. 'Nobody will remember by tomorrow.' With a flick of her hair, she walked into the classroom, Ron smiling behind her.

The greenhouse was humid this morning. The heady scent of the fertilizer did nothing to tamp down the flutter of warmth in his chest. Hermione had gone to a far table, already examining the large purple plant they were to study that day. Ron joined her, noticing as he did that Boot had gone over to talk to Antony. This pleased him even more.

'Fascinating,' Hermione said as she pulled on a pair of gloves. 'I hadn't anticipated the stems to be quite so thick.'

Ron looked to where she was gesturing with her head. It did seem stumpier than some of the other plants they'd been working on for the past couple of months.

Sprout was clapping her hands to get the class's attention when Harry came hurtling into the room. She threw him a look as he sped towards Ron and Hermione, but continued her instructions. Harry had the grace to look a little chagrined as he pulled on his gloves.

'These perennials are best tackled in pairs. I hope you did your homework and read the chapter about the proper steps to extract the venom in this plant! Team up, and we'll see how you do!'

Ron chuckled as he grabbed a pair of shears. Harry's face changed to a look of dismay.

'There was a chapter to read?' he asked Ron in an undertone, apparently hoping not to attract Hermione's attention.

'Harry!' snapped Hermione. Evidently they hadn't been quiet enough. 'I reminded you about this three days ago! This is a key chapter and very likely to come up on the exam.'

'You did?' Harry replied, eyebrows raised in surprise. 'I don't remember that.'

'Oh come here,' she snapped again, gesturing him to come over to partner with her. 'First thing you need to do is stroke the petals up top.'

'Stroke the petals? Why?' Harry's eyes were wide behind his spectacles as he reached for his gloves.

Hermione gave a small whine of indignation. Ron chuckled at the sound. Clearly Harry was more in need of Hermione's expertise at the moment. And for once, Ron had actually read the chapter. He turned, hoping to catch Neville or Ernie's eye.

'Need a partner?' Ron froze as he turned to his right. Boot was standing there, holding his own pair of shears.

From behind him, he heard Hermione's curls whip round.

'Er…sure,' Ron agreed, though a large part of him wanted to say no. Something was up. Boot never offered to partner with Gryffindors. Ron was fairly certain he'd once heard him say to Finch-Fletchly that Gryffindors were "so far up their own arses, they couldn't be bothered to do homework." As if Hermione wasn't top of every bloody class.

They moved to an adjoining table. Ron positioned in such a way to see Hermione looking at the pair of them with a stunned expression. Harry had his index finger poised against the highest flower, tongue out as he tried to find the best way to stroke the petal to get it to release its vice-like grip on the venom deep within.

'Stroke or steady?'

'What?' Ron turned his head from his mates to look at Boot. The git had a shiny pair of dragonhide gloves on, gleaming onyx in the reflection off the glass. They hardly looked used, different to the pair Ron had nicked out of Charlie's old room when his previous pair no longer fit.

'Did you read the chapter?'

'Obviously.'

'Then I'll ask again; do you want to be the stroker, or the steadier?'

Boot's eyes narrowed at him. Ron got the sense he was being challenged.

'I'll stroke,' Ron replied. Terry's eyebrows raised a fraction. 'Tallest person is supposed to anyway.'

Knowing he'd just taken the more difficult job was made easier by the souring of Terry's expression. Nice to know being gangly could have its moments of usefulness.

Still sneering, Boot grabbed the base of the plant.

'Let's get to it then,' Boot said. 'Some of us have other classes after this. I know Hermione and I have Arithmancy.'

Ron felt the back of his neck flush. Trying to ignore the verbal hangnail Boot obviously wanted him to pull, Ron reached up and began the clockwise motion needed for the uppermost petal to counteract. He could feel his heart in his ears. Hermione was whispering a series of instructions to Harry, who was having trouble following. Her eyes kept darting over to them, and Ron thought he saw flashes of worry in their depths.

'Tough class,' Ron muttered. The petal shuddered under his finger, sliding back to reveal a dangerous barb. 'Vial?'

Boot handed him a glass vial, and Ron felt a moment of pride for the ease with which he was given the initial venom sample. At least he'd proven he wasn't a complete idiot.

'Not for me. I find the calculations quite simple.'

Ron grunted a reply, placing the vial softly on the tabletop and moving towards the next petal.

'Even helped Hermione with one of them this morning.'

Ron's finger slipped, causing a hiss of steam to rise from the flower he was touching. The left side of Boot's mouth caught in a grin.

'You just happened to be in the library this morning?' Ron tried to keep his tone as breezy as possible.

'I asked her to meet me there.'

Heart pounding, Ron felt a further level of discomfort in his throat.

'Least I could do,' Boot continued, 'she was so worried about the new calculations introduced last week, that checking over her assignment was no trouble at all.'

'She had you check over her work?' That didn't sound like Hermione at all.

'I offered,' Boot replied.

Ron corrected his motions on the second flower, and gained more venom for their vial.

'Course, there's very little I wouldn't do for her.'

Ignore him, Ron tried to tell himself. He's trying to rile you up. The signs were there. He could pretend this was no different than Fred and George taking the mickey out of him at Christmas.

'Honestly, I don't know how you can stand to be friends with her.'

'What's that supposed to mean?' Ron snapped, forgetting to listen to his brain. If Boot wanted a fight, then insulting Hermione was the fastest way to get one.

Boot's expression turned to faux bewilderment. 'Come on, surely you've realized she's gorgeous.'

Ron's finger froze on the petal. Boot took one hand off the plant and began to prepare a second vial for Ron. The air in the greenhouse began to stifle him. Words and responses became strangled in his throat, mixing with the spicy scent of the ruby venom.

'You don't agree?' Boot asked, acting as though he couldn't tell he was making Ron very uncomfortable.

'About what?' Ron managed to ask through gritted teeth.

Boot looked around and then leaned closer.

'That it's patently unfair for someone to be that bloody smart, and have a phenomenal rack.'

The flush rose, beads of sweat now pouring down Ron's back. He had to remind himself to breathe. Whipping his eyes to Hermione, he could see her hands gripping the stem of the plant tightly, whispering with Harry, but darting her eyes between him and Ron's table. Ron swallowed. It was clear that this git was trying to trap him. What for- Ron wasn't sure, but in no scenario did it seem like a good thing.

'She's my friend.' Ron had hoped his voice would be less high pitched, but speaking at all felt like a victory.

'And?' Boot was quick on the uptake.

'I'm not sure how you treat your friends,' Ron managed to snap, 'but I tend to treat them like human beings, not things.'

'Right,' Boot sniffed. He didn't look chagrined in the least, leading to Ron's further frustration. 'Granted, when I was with Padma I never froze out any of my other female friends, so I guess we can choose to disagree about what friendship entails. Suppose you had your reasons for not talking to Hermione for months.'

Ice in his core now joined the heat of his skin.

'Just thought you'd have eyes, is all.' Boot shrugged as he returned his attentions to the stalk he was supposed to be holding. Ron felt drenched in sweat. Boot looked calm and serene.

'Course I have eyes,' Ron retorted, hoping to rile the Ravenclaw up a bit.

'Must be true, given you went out with Brown. Still not sure how you pulled that tail.'

Ron chose not to answer. They stayed silent for a moment, Ron stroking petals and releasing the venom slowly into the vials. Boot kept his hands serenely on the plant, half gazing at Ron with a sly smile.

'Why did you partner with me?' Ron asked, in an effort to change Boot's expression.

'Insight?' Boot's smile deepened. 'Hermione seems to think the world of you and Potter. Guess I'm trying to see the appeal.'

Ron gave him a look as he grabbed the last of the topmost flowers.

'Cause from where I'm standing,' Boot continued, and Ron wondered if this arsehole was deliberately trying to get him riled up when he was working with the flowers, 'I don't get it. She's brilliant and gorgeous, yet neither you nor Potter seem to be trying to get in her knickers.'

Ron crushed the petal between his fingers. He opened his mouth to retort, but Boot just continued.

'You know she wrote an essay on a little-known figure depicted in a mural on a tomb wall of a minor Pharaoh in Egypt, and Babbling sent it to the leading Egyptologist in Greece?' Boot laughed, seeing the surprise on Ron's face. 'A student. That's how good Hermione is. She somehow finds time to correspond with Egyptologists while helping to save your sorry arses. And what's she getting out of it?'

'I dunno,' Ron growled. 'Friendship?'

Boot laughed. 'But what is it that you talk about? She doesn't like Quidditch, and no offense, but it was obvious you didn't have a clue what we were talking about in regards to the Atlantic Regulations this morning.'

'What does that have to do with anything?'

Boot shrugged. 'Seems like you don't have much in common. Other than a trauma bond from getting her into dangerous scrapes.'

'If you seem to know her so well, you know it's impossible to get Hermione not to do something when she's set her mind to it. She does what she wants.'

Boot gave a knowing smirk. Ron wanted to rip the lips right off of his smug little face.

'I do know that,' Boot said quietly. 'Particularly when we're alone.'

All the breath in his lungs seemed to be gone. He stared at Boot, who smiled back at him.

'Lots of venom here, boys,' Sprout beamed at them as she clapped Ron on the back, startling him. 'Keep up the good work!'

Ron dared to look at Hermione, who was worrying her bottom lip, eyes slightly frantic. She was clearly anxious, hardly paying any attention to the growing yellow bile that was accumulating on Harry's glasses as he tried to work the flowers. It was a look he knew well. The one she'd given him when she took him to the Hospital Wing for his cut. The one she'd worn when a mysterious owl came to the Burrow that summer, the one from Viktor. The one when she'd caught him rubbing the last of the ointment into the brain scars on his forearm. Being so familiar with the look meant he also knew how to handle it.

So he gave her a smile. To reassure her that everything was alright. Her shoulders dropped, and some of the worry wiped away.

Because that was the key, wasn't it? It didn't matter that Boot wanted to rile him up. Who gave a dragon's fart about what that smug git thought about being friends with Hermione? Sure, Ron thought more about her body than a proper friend should, but at the end of the day, he genuinely liked her. Not for her brain, or her form, but for the person he knew so well. Her every expression like a painting captured by a brilliant artist. That no matter what came out of her mouth, it felt like honey to him. That he had been with her in some of the worst moments of her life, had seen her covered in bits of glass, in dirt, petrified, as half a cat and still wanted to sit down and play chess with her at the end of the day. Maybe Boot could better relate to her on some more academic things. But Ron knew more of her than pretty much anybody else on the planet, and was damn proud of that fact.

'She can't knit,' Ron volleyed to Boot once Sprout had returned to the other side of the room.

'What?' Boot looked wrong-footed for the first time during their conversation.

'Hermione, she can't knit. Harry and I tease her for it. Sometimes we talk about Quidditch. Sometimes we talk about what's going on out in the world, or the homework we have to do, or stupid stuff, to pretend like things are normal for a while. I don't need to know about the fishing regulations in each of the oceans to be friends with her.'

Boot's eyes narrowed as Ron gained strength from his words.

'I've seen her in every situation imaginable, and I can tell you from two footsteps how she's feeling. Just because you don't seem to have friends you can rely on doesn't mean you get to have a go at our friendship.'

Ron plucked the venom from a particularly juicy flower in the middle.

'And for the record, I don't give a toss if you spend time alone with her, or if she tells you about academic achievements. It's still my house she comes to during summer holidays, including this upcoming one.' Ron shrugged. 'Make of that what you will.'

Boot was silent. Ron filled yet another vial, and added it to the collection he had formed. Briefly he considered bringing up Bill's wedding, that it was basically established that Hermione would come with him, given that Harry was dating his sister now, but he wasn't sure what that would accomplish.

'She hasn't invited you to her house then?' Boot's tone was no louder than a whisper, and as icy as Ron had ever heard.

Ron snorted. 'Why does that matter?'

Boot shrugged his shoulders. 'I dunno, guess I would think it was a bit weird that one of my best friends never bothered to invite me to her house for a holiday. Doesn't seem very Hermione-like to not reciprocate, if she's spent every summer at your home.'

Ron hesitated over the next flower. Was it strange? He'd never really thought about it. Hermione had always come to his house and seemed pleased to be there. Though now that Boot brought it up, he wasn't sure that Hermione had ever offered an invitation to her place. Not just to have him over, but Harry either.

'She likes my house,' Ron offered, returning to the flower.

Boot snorted.

'Do you know where she lives?' Hermione had definitely mentioned the town she grew up in, but he couldn't remember it at the moment. 'St. Alban's.' Boot continued. 'You know who lives in St. Alban's? The well-to-do.'

Any remaining feelings of power zapped away instantly. Ron felt the back of his neck flush once more.

'She probably likes your house because it's as different to where she lives as it's possible to get in the UK, judging from…' Terry trailed off as he glanced at Ron, but the implication was impossible to miss. That Ron's family must live in some sort of hovel.

'She's not swotty like that,' Ron murmured. A bead of sweat trickled down his back.

'No, of course not. Maybe she doesn't want to be seen with the likes of you back in the muggle world.'

'And you're so much better?' Ron snapped, feeling one of his last nerves come undone.

Boot gave another smirk. 'At least my shoes aren't taped together.'

Ron grasped the petal he was holding so tightly that a spray of yellow bile flew out and hit him on the nose. Immediately it began to steam and burn. He hissed in pain. From his left, he heard Hermione gasp.

'Professor Sprout!' She cried out.

Ron tried to move some of the pus away with his glove, but Boot stopped him with a hand on his wrist.

'Wouldn't do that it if I were you,' Boot said. 'You'll probably burn off part of your finger too.'

'What's happened?' Sprout asked, taking a look at Ron's face.

'A little too handsy with the petals,' Boot replied, faking a grim expression Ron could just about make out from beneath his watering eyes.

'I did warn you,' Sprout muttered, taking out a small bottle of turquoise liquid. Pulling out the stopper, she stood on her tippy toes and placed three drops over the worst of the damage. Relief instantly flooded his face.

'Thank you,' he murmured to Sprout. She clapped him on the arm.

'Happens to the best of us. Now hop to it; only five minutes left in class!'

Thank merlin, he thought. 5 minutes might just be all he could take of Boot.

'Thanks professor. Leave it to the Gryffindors to strong arm the plants,' Boot joked to Sprout as she passed them.

'What is your problem?' Ron demanded, the second the professor was out of earshot. 'What did I ever do to you?'

Boot stared at him for a long moment. 'If you can't figure that out, then you're a lot stupider than I thought.'

He turned back to the plant, fingers stroking the stem with a reverence that surprised Ron. The last comment surprised Ron. Not the insult, obviously, but that there was something he had done to Boot. What-know Hermione better than him after nearly 7 years of friendship? How was that his fault?

They stayed silent for the rest of the lesson, Ron not even bothering to grab any additional venom. They'd done enough for one day. His nose still stung, though it was nothing like the blistering heat of before. The bell rang, and Hermione was at his side before he'd even had a chance to pull off his gloves.

'Are you alright? Harry got some of it on his glasses, but nothing like your nose. Did Sprout heal it okay?'

'I'm fine, Hermione,' Ron replied, trying to hide a smile at her concern.

'It might be worth going to the Hospital Wing,' she prattled on, eyes wide as she glanced up at him. 'To be on the safe side.'

'He's fine, Hermione.' Boot's tone mattered to be somewhat callous and sweet in one. 'Accidents happen.'

Hermione bit her lip in worry. She reached up to feel the side of his nose. Fingers brushed over the skin, which flushed under her touch.

'I'm sorry,' she murmured, examining the area that continued to burn.

'It's not your fault,' he countered. Hermione's eyes darted to Boot. Her expression changed. The fingers dropped.

'Promise me you'll take it easy until lunch.'

Ron's eyebrows shot up. Hermione wanted him to take it easy? Not study for the rest of the morning? She must be worried. He nodded at her.

Boot had pulled off his gloves and stowed them neatly into a small case. 'Coming Hermione? Vector won't be happy if we're late.'

Hermione looked back at him, worry still in her eyes. 'See you at lunch.'

Ron nodded. Before he could say anything further, Boot was leading Hermione out the door, one hand on the middle of her back. From the rise in her shoulders, he wasn't entirely sure that she enjoyed it. Any lower and Ron would have ripped his hand away from her.

'You alright?' Harry came to stand beside him. 'That bile stuff is nasty.'

'Yeah,' Ron replied, still looking after Boot and Hermione as they trailed off towards the castle. 'Hermione said you got it on your glasses?'

'Only because she kept pushing my head down so it wouldn't get my skin.' Harry's voice had turned into something of a harumph. 'She's driving me a bit up the wall to be honest.'

'At least she's trying to protect you,' Ron snapped. Harry froze.

'What's gotten into the pair of you?'

Ron pulled his gloves off. 'Nothing. Never mind.'

Harry nodded, still looking strangely at Ron. 'Okay.'

Together they began walking back up towards the castle, silent. Ron was cursing his shoe flapping in the wind, but Harry didn't seem to be paying much attention.

'You working on the Defence assignment now?' Harry asked once they started ascending the staircase.

Ron shook his head. 'You?'

Harry looked guilty. 'Don't tell Hermione, but-'

'-You're going to the Room of Requirement, got it.'

Harry had resisted doing as much to trail Malfoy after the unfortunate Sectumsempra incident, but he was as bad as Pig with Owl treats. Couldn't resist getting to the bottom of it. Between them, they'd discussed not telling Hermione. Even though Ron agreed with Hermione, it wasn't worth the ensuing argument.

They parted ways near the fourth-floor corridor. Ron walked back into the Common Room finding it fairly empty save for some seventh years looking as though they wanted to tear their hair out. NEWTS were definitely not going to be fun.

He went up to a spot by the window, so he could look out over the grounds a bit. From the angle, he could just see Luna and Ginny walking towards Hagrid's Hut for a Care of Magical Creatures lesson. They had their heads together, clearly laughing about something.

Hermione hadn't been laughing much lately. Not since the afternoon when Ginny announced she'd been telling everybody about a secret tattoo Ron most certainly did not have. Her smile had been worth Gin taking the mickey out of him. Since then, her face had been drawn and pinched. Perhaps in his desire to stay away from her, he'd unwittingly been letting things get worse.

Particularly with Boot.

Sinking back into the cushions, he wondered again what Boot was angry with him about. Or why he'd felt the need to press Ron about Hermione. Had he found out from McGonagall? His stomach dropped at the thought. Boot could have very well been listening at the door. Did Boot now see Ron as competition for Hermione? Like she was a prize to be won?

Ron snorted to himself, startling a girl nearby. The idea of Hermione as an object was laughable. She would have hexed both of them if she'd been aware. Besides, it wasn't like Ron was really trying to get with her. The likelihood of her rejecting him and ruining their friendship was much too high. And after Boot's comment about where she lived, he was aware on yet another level that he wasn't good enough for her.

Shaking his head, he pulled out a piece of parchment and began to absentmindedly doodle. He wasn't particularly good, and had nothing fixed in his mind, but there was something soothing about the scratching of a quill and no fixed idea. Anything to get out of his head.

'Is that me?'

Hermione's voice startled him so much that Ron upended his inkpot, smearing it all over the table. He quickly began mopping it up, while staring at his parchment. Now that someone else was looking at it, the squiggly shapes he'd been drawing did look like Hermione's curls.

'No?' Ron offered, feeling the tips of his ears turn red.

She sat down in the chair beside him.

'Sorry for startling you.'

Ron checked his watch. There was still a good hour until lunch. 'What are you doing up here?'

Hermione sighed. 'Terry had an accident in Arithmancy.'

'What kind of accident?'

'Managed to cut himself with an astrolabe.' Hermione rolled her eyes. 'Honestly we weren't even using it during the lecture. But he started to complain to the point that Vector stopped class and told him to go to the Hospital Wing.'

'You didn't go with him?'

Hermione looked at him in surprise. 'Why would I go with him? It's a cut, I'm sure he's fine.'

Ron felt something like relief flood into his chest.

'Besides,' she continued. 'I wanted to make sure you were alright.'

'I am. My nose doesn't hurt anymore.'

She settled back into the cushions, squinting into the sunlight.

'You and Terry seemed to have been having quite a conversation during Herbology.' There was a badly disguised note of curiosity burning in her tone. 'What were you talking about?'

'He doesn't think you should be friends with Harry and I,' Ron replied, turning to face her. 'Seems like a bit of a git to be honest.'

Hermione gave a short laugh. 'He is that.'

'Is he bothering you?'

'No.'

She looked down and noticed his shoe. 'Did this happen this morning?'

'Yeah,' Ron said, quickly trying to move it out of sight. 'But it's fine, I'll just-'

'Let me fix it.'

She slid down onto the floor and pulled out her wand. With no words, Ron watched as she began concentrating on the sole.

'When do you think you'll be coming down for the wedding?' Ron asked as she worked. Hermione looked up at him from her position on the ground.

'Whenever your family wants me, I suppose. An extra set of hands might be helpful in the days closest to the wedding.'

'Not right away?'

'No. I have to go home first for a bit.' Her eyes dropped back down to Ron's shoe. She gripped her wand a little tighter.

Struck with a sudden bit of bravery, Ron decided to figure out a little bit more about Hermione's home.

'I've never been to a muggle house.'

'You've been to Harry's,' she countered, waving her wand in a complicated pattern.

'Yeah, but Harry's relatives are nutters. That's not what I imagine a real muggle place looks like.'

A shot of golden light emerged from the end of her wand, but the sole remained unsecured to the rest of the shoe. She frowned. 'And what exactly do you think a muggle place looks like?'

'Dunno. What does yours look like?'

Her eyes shot up once more. 'You've never asked me about my house. Why do you want to know?'

'Dad,' Ron lied. 'He's missing the muggle stuff.'

Her frown deepened. She tried another spell, this one also unsuccessful.

'You can tell him your home is far more interesting than anything I have.'

'Sure, I'll bet he'll be thrilled with that answer.'

'Well what do you want from me?' she snapped. 'I don't have an inventory of every object your father might find fascinating. It's a house. Beds, books, furniture, the standard things.'

She moved her wand in the shape of an infinity, but the resulting blue light did nothing to his shoe. A crease began to form between her brows.

'Maybe you just need a wizard there to give perspective,' Ron told her, feeling his heart rate double.

'What?'

'I mean, I could come to visit. Especially if you aren't coming to the wedding for a while. Then I can tell Dad what it's like.'

Hermione's face had turned pale. Her fingers gripped her wand a little tighter. She stayed silent for a while.

'I'd like to see where you live,' Ron continued. 'And check out if your room is so stuffed full of books your bedframe rests on them.'

Her silence continued. He'd clearly struck something. Normally she would denounce him for trying to ruin the sanctity of hard covers.

'Harry could come too,' Ron added. 'Anything to get him away from the Dursleys as quick as we can.'

Hermione wasn't looking at him.

'I don't think that's a good idea.'

'Why not? If anything, Harry would be safer in the muggle world. You-Know-Who can't work it out.'

She stood up suddenly, startling him once more.

'I'm going to the library. It seems like your shoe needs a particular charm. I'll go look it up.'

'Hermione, wait-' Ron tried to get up, but it was hard with only one working shoe.

By the time he extracted himself from the chair, Hermione was long gone.

Ron was left confused, and hurt. Hermione clearly did not want him coming to her house. Was Boot right?

With that morose thought, he flopped back down in his chair. Things were only getting worse by the day.