Between Friends

[Ravenclaw]

Between Friends
A Ron and Hermione Tale

Summary: N/A as of yet.

Credit to: Er, Chiana for starting the thread that sparked my inspiration. And FleurD, for letting me “borrow” an idea and expand upon it. As well as many other Ron/Hrm fans.

A/N: It may seem Hermione's acting a bit odd at first, but just go with it here... must admit, not my best work, but fun nonetheless. Also, I know strategy and logic are basically the same things, but let's not forget who we're dealing with here ;).


Hermione sat on a windowsill, which was hidden in dust, and stared longingly towards the horizon. Ron was sitting on a four-poster a few feet away, fiddling with a puzzle Hermione had given him, a Muggle Rubix Cube.

“Don’t you feel even a little bad, Ron?” she said, watching as a canary fluttered from a nearby tree branch and soared across the sky until it was only a yellow dot on the horizon.

“Hm?” Ron looked up from his puzzle, which seemed to have entranced him.

“About Harry.”

“Oh...” Ron muttered, and turned back to his cube. She spoke of this often.

“I mean...” Hermione went on, still staring out the window. “I mean, he’s out there and he has no clue, no clue, what’s going on. And it all involves him and I think–”

“Hermione,” Ron said, looking up at her again. “We barely have any clue what’s going on.”

“I know, I know,” Hermione sighed, frustrated, and placed a stray piece of her brown hair behind her ear. “But Harry doesn’t even know the few things we do, and seeing as he’s in incredible danger, I just thought...”

“Hermione,” Ron said again, this time not bothering to look up. “Dumbledore knows what’s right for us all. You know that. He’s smart, he is.”

“I guess you’re right...But...” Hermione sighed again. By now, Hermione’s frustration had passed quickly to Ron and he slammed the Rubix Cube on the bed.

“Bloody hell, Hermione, why don’t you just marry the bloke!” Hermione turned her head slowly, looked at Ron and blinked.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Why do you talk about him constantly?” Ron demanded. Hermione smiled and laughed weakly, and turned back to her window. Ron coughed loudly and Hermione payed no attention. Of course, Ron took this as a personal insult.

“Hermione!” he cried. But she continued to ignore him and stare out the window. “Hermione, I’m trying to have an row with you, would you turn around and let me do it right!”

“Look over there,” said Hermione, pointing at the returning canary. “She lives over there in that oak with her chicks. Do you hear her every morning when you wake up? I do.”

Ron opened and closed his mouth, utterly perplexed at his friend's bizarre behaviour. So stunned, in fact, that his frustrations with her were totally forgotten.

“What on earth are you on about, Hermione?” he finally said.

“You know,” said Hermione, “those chicks have a father. Every night he returns to the nest where his mate and offspring are, and he tries to get the attention of the mother. But she’s too preoccupied with the chicks, so he just goes to sleep. They’re loving creatures, canaries are. Stubborn, too at times, and they often crave attention. But if they can’t solve a problem, they just go to sleep. Why don’t you take a nap, Ron?”

Totally missing Hermione’s metaphor, and wondering if she was trying to throw him a clever insult, Ron decided to try and come up with a clever retort.

“Well... the same to you too!”

Hermione laughed again and turned to him.

“I talk about Harry a lot because I’m worried about him and I don’t know what’s going to happen. But you keep asking for my attention, and you get angry when I don’t give it to you because instead, I talk about Harry. Is someone a bit jealous?” Hermione grinned and Ron glared.

“You know, Hermione, you’re... you’re...”

“Yes?”

“Annoying.”

“Yes, I suppose I can be.” Hermione laughed again. “It’s a lovely day today. Shame we have to be stuck in here cleaning all day.”

“Yeah...” Ron said, slowly, hoping Hermione didn’t remember that they were supposed to be cleaning the very room they were in at that very moment.

“Well!” Hermione sighed, standing up and shaking her head. “Time to get back to work!” She tossed Ron a broom and picked up a duster. “Remember, if you find any more Doxies, tell your mother right away.”

“I know, I know,” Ron grumbled, as Hermione seemed to come back to herself. But for a while, Ron merely stood there and watched Hermione dust off the windowsill on which she had just been sitting. She leaned out the window and dusted off cobwebs from underneath the sill outside. Ron tilted his head and watched the wind caress her hair with invisible fingers and smiled, weakly. He watched her intently for a while, taking in her graceful figure. He watched her hair wave about her neck and his eyes wandered down her back to her slender waist and...

“What are you staring at?” Hermione looked back at him.

Ron started and blinked, looking guilty. “Wha... Nothing! I mean, I was just... There’s a... You know, you have... The canaries!”

“Canaries?” Hermione raised an eyebrow and smiled, amused.

“Yes!” Ron cried, glad he’d finally found an excuse. “The canaries! I was listening to the canaries because they sound really... er, great. And... yeah.” Hermione grinned.

“Yes, they do sound lovely, don’t they?” she said, looking out the window briefly. “I mean, when they are singing, of course. Now don’t just stand there! We have a whole house to clean!”

Ron mumbled and began sweeping some dust bunnies under a carpet. Hermione smiled as she turned to the end table. She had seen Ron staring at her and, to her mild surprise, felt like she had conquered some great obstacle.

As she dusted around the lamp on the end table she noticed Ron’s Rubix Cube in the middle of the newly made bed. Ron had slammed it down so hard, he had caused a considerably large wrinkle in the nice bedspread. Hermione took a deep breath and tried to ignore it, but the thought kept nagging her at the back of her mind.

Giving into her obsessive compulsiveness, she sighed and picked up the Rubix Cube and straightened out the wrinkle in the bedspread. Satisfied, she looked at the puzzle she held in her hand.

“Hm...” she muttered as she contemplated her next move. Ron seemed to have been working on placing all the reds together... and if he just turned it this way...

“Hey,” said Ron and Hermione jumped. He had surprised her as she had been pondering the solution. “What are you doing with that?”

“Hm? Oh, well, I was looking at it and I realized that if you just turn this row of squares up here and then turned the row on the right of the red squares, you’d have...”

“Don’t touch that puzzle!” Ron said, smiling and slowly shaking his head. “You’ll mess it up!”

“Ron,” said Hermione, sternly. “It’s a logical conclusion. I mean, if you just–”

“Hermione,” said Ron, the smile slowly fading. “It’s a logical conclusion. Don’t touch my puzzle.”

“Ron...” said Hermione, slowly. “I’m only trying to help you.”

“Hermione, I play chess,” said Ron. “I know how to strategise.”

“This isn’t a strategy game, Ron, it’s a logic puzzle,” said Hermione. “And that’s my forte.”

“It’s strategy, Hermione,” Ron said, as if he were talking to a five-year-old. “You have to plan ahead. You move one thing in order to move another. Do one thing in order to get another done. Position your pawns, or in this case, little coloured squares.”

Hermione laughed. She wasn’t used to getting this tone from Ron Weasley, of all people.

“Ron,” she said, even more slowly, in case he didn’t understand what she was saying. “I thought you had more sense than this. It’s a logic puzzle, not a chess game!”

“It’s STRATEGY!” Ron half-yelled. “Now give it to me so I can fix your mistake.” Hermione raised her eyebrows.

“Mistake? You really think that I, the infallible Hermione Granger, made a mistake?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact I do,” said Ron. “Now give it back.” He held out his palm as he said this.

“Hm...” Hermione said, examining the cube and turning it from side to side. “You know I think that I might just... take this back. And you know, if you turn this...” Hermione reached to turn the top half of the puzzle. In the corner of her eye, she watched Ron’s eyes widen and he made a sudden move forward. She looked at him and he stopped.

“Ah ah ah... You stay there, or I’ll change your precious puzzle.”

“You wouldn’t...” Ron said.

“I would,” said Hermione, laughing.

“Give it back, Hermione,” Ron said, sternly.

“You want it?” she said. “Come and get it.”

[Ravenclaw]

Ron dropped his broom. “If that’s the way you want it.” He laughed. Hermione jumped on the bed as he started running towards her.

“Hermione!” Ron cried. “You’re wrinkling a perfectly made bed! Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Shut up and come get your precious puzzle!” Hermione laughed. As Ron climbed up on the bed Hermione jumped down and ran towards the closet door. Rolling his eyes, Ron followed her off the bed, this time walking slowly and watching her.

He was a few feet away now and they had both stopped, waiting to see what the other would do. Finally, Hermione opened the closet door and quickly ran inside. Ron dove in after her just in time for the door to close on them both.

“Er... Where’s the light switch?” Ron said, opening his eyes wide to help them adjust to the light. The only thing he could see was the string of light from under the door...

There was a click and a flame flickered in a lantern hanging from the ceiling.

“Oh,” said Ron. He saw Hermione underneath the lantern, grinning. “Where’s the cube thing?”

“Can’t say,” said Hermione, still ginning. Ron advanced on her as she backed up against the wall.

“Where is it, Hermione?” he laughed. He put one hand against the wall on either side of her to make sure she wouldn’t move, and she was trapped in a small space. She giggled and he grinned.

But she looked up into his eyes and faltered. The smile he had held so vividly on his lips merely seconds ago was dwindling as well. Their eyes met and they stared, surprised at what they saw. Hermione wasn’t just seeing Ron’s eyes, she was studying them harder than she ever had before. She was seeing deep into them, pools of knowledge and personality. She looked deep into his soul. He was an open book; everything about him lay bare before her.

Similarly, she knew he was looking into her own eyes, reading all her secrets as if it were a diary, left open on a bed. At that moment, he understood her better than anybody, better than her own childhood friends, better than her parents ever could. He could see straight through her, straight through any façade or cover she could put up. He saw straight to her heart.

The scene was a frozen tableau of silent words and emotions running wild. They knew, and yet they had no idea, exactly what was going on. They had been so swept away by the moment...

They stared so long into each other that they could read each other’s mind and know exactly what the other was thinking. And they were both thinking the same thing. Ron leaned in, hesitantly at first. Hermione noticed, but didn’t move. She didn’t flinch or pull away when she felt his warm hand on her arm. Her lips parted and her eyes closed. She drew in a quiet, shuddering breath and let it out. And when she did nothing to stop him, Ron moved faster and their lips touched and locked. Ron put his arm around her and she moved closer to him. It took her a moment to come to her senses and realize what exactly was going on. Suddenly frightened, her eyes snapped open and she pushed him away.

“Wait,” she said, suddenly. “What are we doing?”

Ron blinked, as if coming out of a dream. “Huh?”

Hermione took deep breaths and began to shake.
“Let’s get out of here,” she said, disturbed. “This room is...” Hermione tailed off and walked over to the door. “Let’s see... Um... Ron?”

“Yeah?” said Ron, shaking his head slowly.

“Uh... where’s the doorknob?” Ron stopped shaking his head and blinked again.

“Doorknob?” he said.

“Yes,” said Hermione, nodding. “You know, it’s the thing they put on doors so you can open them.”

“There’s no doorknob?”

“Apparently not...” said Hermione, turning back to the door.

“Well... Well, I suppose they didn’t think anyone needed to have a doorknob on the inside of a closet... maybe Sirius’s mother was stingy and didn’t think she needed to pay extra money for a doorknob she’d never use.”

“You mean... we’re trapped in here?” Hermione’s voice was unusually high. Ron frowned.

“Well, you said it, not me. Don’t worry, they’re bound to find us eventually, probably in a few hours they’ll come up looking for us. We can say we were... cleaning. Cleaning out the old closet and the door closed on us and...” Ron frowned at his friend, who began pacing back and fourth in the small space. “Are you alright?”

Hermione was taking deep breaths.

“Did I ever tell you that I get nervous in small spaces?” Hermione panted as she tried to smile at Ron but only ended up shuttering.

“Well that’s not very good, is it?” Ron smiled. “Because we’ll be here for a while, so you should calm down.”

“Don’t say that, don’t say that,” said Hermione. Ron noticed that she was beginning to speak quite fast. “I mean, I don’t know why, I think it was because when I was little, my Mum and I got stuck on a lift and we were there for hours it seemed to me and I really hated it, I kept thinking the wires would snap and fall and I nearly went insane... Are the walls moving or is it just me?”

“Shh,” Ron said, grabbing Hermione by the shoulders to steady her and stroking her hair. “Relax. This could... you know, be a good thing.”

“A good thing?!” Hermione shrieked. She turned to the door and started banging on it. “How could this be a good thing??? We’re locked in a closet! Are you sure you don’t have a wand? I’m sure this counts as a necessary situation...”

“Hermione, I don’t have my wand,” said Ron. “And no one’s here right now, remember? Mum went out to get some cleaning supplies and took Ginny and the twins with her... the others are out doing things for the order. But...” He bit his lip. “I mean, this would be a good time to... catch up, you know? Talk. I mean, what just happened there, by that wall. Did I imagine it? If not, we should probably talk about it.”

“Oh no, Ron,” said Hermione, turning to him and grinning hysterically and shaking her head. “No, no, no, don’t spring this on me now, any time but now.” She turned back to the door, despite Ron’s reminder of the deserted rooms and corridors beyond.

“OK!” Ron shrugged. “Well, if you don’t want to talk about it, do you want to... do it again?” Hermione stopped pounding on the door

“I mean,” said Ron quickly. “It would get your mind off things.” He watched Hermione’s back. At least she seemed calm. But she wasn’t speaking. Finally, she started banging on the door again.

“Maybe Kreacher could hear us? Oh prey he does, he’ll let us out...”

“Hermione, did you hear me?” Ron asked.

“Sorry?” she said. She turned to him with tears in her eyes. “Ron, I can’t stay here. I have to get out of here. It’s– It’s killing me.”

“Well, maybe if we tried... I mean, you know, it would calm you down maybe and... and maybe you’d forget about the closet and just...” Ron faltered.

“Ron, I don’t think that’s a good idea right now...” said Hermione, glancing anxiously at the door.

“Well you never know...” he muttered. “You’re... sure then?”

“You can be such a guy!” Hermione cried. “Oh, I think I’m getting light-headed...” Hermione staggered and Ron lifted her arm around his shoulders.

“It’s all that shallow breathing you’ve been doing,” he said.

“I’ve not been getting enough oxygen!” Hermione shrieked, but this only made her hyperventilating worse. She could feel her heart pound against her rib cage and the pressure was so bad it began to hurt her chest. Ron’s face was getting blurry. She had to get out of here. The last thing she heard was Ron’s concern for her well being before her legs seemed to disappear and her head hit the hard wood floor...

[Fleurdelacour]

*squeals* J'taime!

Oh that was good, really good! :D I'm squealing! Rah! :D Write more now!

I actually started to write a fic too...

Funny how cleaning can actually inspire people :LOL:

[Ravenclaw]

Thank you, Fleur! OK, wrote some more....



Ron tried to catch Hermione as she fell but his grip slipped and she hit the floor. Flinching a bit, Ron bit his lip. He kneeled down and checked Hermione’s forehead, and then leaned close to her face. He could feel her breath upon his face, which seemed deep and constant now. Smiling slightly, he lightly kissed her and lifted her up to a sitting position, leaning her against the wall.

“Hermione?” he said, quietly. She wouldn’t stir. He lightly stroked her soft hair before standing up again. He looked around the room for something to make her more comfortable...


When Hermione opened her eyes again, she found herself lying on some old clothes Ron had undoubtably found in the closet. He also seemed to have spread an old, moth eaten fur coat over her to keep her warm...

Hermione blinked and looked up to see Ron, leaning against the wall by the door, fast asleep. She smiled weakly. How considerate of him. He was such a sweetheart. Sitting up carefully, and feeling slightly dizzy as she did so. She crawled over to her friend, dragging the fur coat behind her. She could feel a draft whisking in through the crack under the door and noticed Ron shiver slightly. It was unusually cold in this closet...

Hermione sat next to Ron and leaned her head on his shoulder and smiled. But as Ron stirred, she drew away.

“Hermione?” Ron muttered as he looked over and smiled at her. “How are you doing?”

“I’m alright, I suppose,” said Hermione. “But I still don’t like it in here... though with you, it seems, claustrophobia isn’t that bad.”

“Huh?”

“Never mind,” Hermione laughed. There was a moment of awkward silence. Ron squirmed and Hermione looked away.

“What will they think?” she sighed to herself.

“We were cleaning...” said Ron, slowly, as if trying to excuse something. “The door closed... And you...”

“We got carried away,” said Hermione quickly, looking at Ron. “With the game and all. I mean, I didn’t mean to let you... And I was so anxious to get out of this house, it was such a beautiful day...”

Ron blinked at Hermione, confused. “You... you didn’t mean...?”

“Oh Ron!” Hermione laughed, nervously. “I mean, you and I? It would never...”

“Yeah,” said Ron. He tried to hide the hurt from his voice and bit his lip so hard it bled to keep his true feelings behind his eyelids, before they threatened to give him away. There was another strange silence.

“Hermione?”

“What?”

“Never mind.”

“OK.”

The quiet returned. Hermione looked up at Ron, who was watching the door, and refusing to look at her. She reached out to place her hand on his shoulder, but hesitated.

“Ron...” she said slowly. Quickly, she withdrew her hand, and turned away.

“Hm?” Ron said, turning to find her fiddling with her robes.

“I... I mean, nothing,” she said.

“Hm,” said Ron, and he turned toward the door again. Hermione found the Rubix Cube, which lay forgotten on the wooden floor and began to play. Ron was fiddling with the fur coat.

“Ron?” said Hermione again.

“Yeah?” said Ron, turning slowly to see she was looking at him. He quickly turned away again. He couldn’t meet her eyes, twin puddles of darkness which consumed him every time he delved into them. He wasn’t going to do that again.

“You know... Logic and strategy are both part of chess... and this puzzle,” said Hermione. “They’re basically the same thing. All strategies are logical.”

“Yeah...” Ron muttered.

So quiet. She inhaled. Another wasted breath. The puzzle in her hand had taken her voice. Ron’s bitter emotions silenced him. The flame in the lamp began to flicker and eventually went out. The darkness stole the conversation.

In the darkness, they each dared a glance, and in the darkness, their eyes met at last. What little light their was in the room caught Ron’s eyes and they seem to sparkle in the dark. Or, perhaps, it was the emotion he was trying hardest to keep hidden that made his eyes glitter so.

Hermione took in a short gasp and Ron turned away from her.

“Ron, I don’t think we should mention this again... to anyone. Not for a while.” She said.

How could she be so cold? Ron thought to himself.

“You don’t think...”

“Ron...” Again, Hermione tried to reach him, but she couldn’t even touch his shoulder with her palm, let alone his heart with her words. “Ron, I care about you a lot.”

Ron looked up at her and she saw the light reflect off of the tears he refused to shed. He said nothing.

“I really care about you. And I... I’m scared. What would Harry say, Ron? What would happen to us if we actually...”

“Hermione,” Ron said. “I love you...” He said the words as if they settled everything, a justification, a reason, an excuse. Hermione smiled weakly, and she wondered if he could see.

“It’s not that simple. I...” But Hermione trailed off as Ron moved closer to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder again. “I’m sorry, Ron.” He put his arm around her and kissed her hair softly.

“I don’t know what you’re doing, Hermione,” said Ron. “But I’ll try and understand. And I’ll... I’ll listen, I will.”

“Oh, Ron...” Hermione sighed. “I love you too.” Forgetting her fears, she sat up and looked deep into his heart. Gently, she leaned forward. Their noses touched. They each smiled. Hermione’s lips delicately touched his and he embraced her.

And it that moment, there was no one else.



(A/N: What can I say, I couldn't stand to have her break his heart.)

[Fleurdelacour]

Would this be a good time to say "I wish I was Hermione?" :p

Eek! That was soo good! :D It's soo squeakabely good! *sigh* I'm convinced this happened now!

[Ravenclaw]

“Ginny, would you go up and find your brothers and Hermione?” said Mrs Weasley, as she pointed her wand at the oven to turn it off. “It’s time to eat.”

“Actually...” said Sirius, looking up from behind the Daily Prophet, “I haven’t seen Ron and Hermione all day. I wonder what they’re up too...”

“Me too.” Ginny giggled until her mother threw her a look that silenced her. She coughed. “Ahem... Uh, I’ll go fetch them, shall I?” And with that, she was gone.

“It’s just us tonight,” said Mrs. Weasley, as she brought the shepherd’s pie out of the oven. “The others are elsewhere.” Sirius grunted, almost resentfully. Mrs. Weasley smiled.


Ginny knocked on the door of Fred and George’s room.

“What do you want?” called one of them from inside.

“Mum says diner’s ready. Are you two coming?” said Ginny.

“What’s she made for tonight? Not more of that stew?” said one twin, which was obviously Fred, the one who complained loudest about his mother’s beef stew.

“No, it’s shepherd’s pie,” Ginny told them. They were quiet for a moment as they contemplated.

“Tell her we’ll be there in a minute,” they said. Ginny shrugged, and continued onto Ron’s room. She knocked.

“Ron?” But there was no answer. She opened the door to find the room vacant of an occupant. The room was clean and the bed was made, but there was no one there. Ginny shrugged and went to Hermione’s room.

“Hermione?” Ginny called. But again, only silence responded. She looked inside her room as well, but it was as empty as Ron’s. Ginny couldn’t help but smile a little. She knew her brother fancied Hermione Granger, even if he didn’t know it yet.

She continued to search the rooms on the second floor in much the same manner to no avail. She was beginning to get suspicious. Where could they be? Shrugging, she decided to just go back downstairs for dinner.


“What time is it?” said Ron, nudging Hermione, who was resting against him. He was gently rubbing his hand up and down her shoulder as her head leaned against his chest. She could hear him breathing.

“No idea,” she replied. “But I’m getting kind of hungry. Do you think they’ll find us soon.?”

“Probably,” said Ron. “It’s bound to be close to dinner by now.”

They were quiet again, but it wasn’t so awkward anymore.

“Hey, Hermione?” Ron said.

“Yes?” muttered Hermione. Ron gently played with her hair.

“Why don’t you think it would work, you and I?”

“We’re total opposites, Ron,” said Hermione. “We bicker constantly, sometimes just for the sake of having an argument. Like our logic/strategy argument. It was pointless. We’d tear each other to shreds after a week.”

Ron frowned. “If that’s true... then why am I feeling like this?”

“Like what?” said Hermione.

“Like... Like I’m standing in the middle of train tracks and see the headlights coming but... But I’m not worried. Like I was hit by that train and I couldn’t care less. Why do I feel like that every time... Every time you smile at me?”

Hermione took his hand and interlaced their fingers. She smiled to herself.

“It’s because you love me,” she said.

“Huh,” said Ron, accepting her answer. “Well then. I think... I think I like this, this being in love.” Hermione giggled.

“Yes,” she said. “I think I like it too.”

“How do you feel, Hermione?” Ron asked.

“I feel...” Hermione started. “I feel like I’m in a convertible with the top down, driving down an abandoned road through the countryside towards the sunset, and not knowing where I’m going. I’m just chasing the sun... I’m following it somewhere... I think... I think I’m following you.” Hermione looked up at Ron, who was smiling down at her. She flushed and looked away.

“But we can’t do this any longer. Not after today. Everything will shatter into a million pieces.”

“I think,” said Ron. “That if you don’t want this to go beyond today... You’ll never catch the sun.”

“Then maybe,” said Hermione, “it was never meant to be caught.”



“Ginny...” said Mrs. Weasley as her daughter descended the stairs alone. “I thought I told you to call the others down to dinner.”

“I did!” said Ginny, defensively. “Well, I tried anyway.”

“What do you mean?” said Mrs. Weasley.

“Fred and George are trying to decide whether they want to come or not, and Ron and Hermione are nowhere to be found,” Ginny reported.

“Nowhere?” there was concern in Mrs. Weasley’s voice. “I’m responsible for that girl, if she’s hurt or lost what would her parents say? Oh, I hope they’re alright. They’ve got to be in the house. Sirius, they didn’t leave the house today, did they?”

“Couldn’t say,” said Sirius. “I was sulking in my room all day. God, Molly, I need to get out of here, I swear I saw a pirate tap dancing on my bed this morning.”

“Oh if those two left the house, they’ll never see the light of day until school!” Mrs. Weasley cried. “Ronald! Hermione! Where are you?” Her calls from the depths of the kitchen were ignored. Annoyed, she climbed the stairs. Before she left, she told Sirius and Ginny to start without the rest of them.


Molly opened every door and found no one but an irritated Fred and George, who seemed to be hiding something behind them.

“And just what do you think you two are doing?” said Mrs. Weasley. “If you don’t get downstairs right this moment, I’ll have you take care of the Doxies tomorrow!”

The twins, who could tell their mother was in a temper, decided to obey, but only after they insisted that she left the premises of their room.

As she exited and continued down the hall, the twins ran down the stairs as fast as they could. Alone, Molly bit her lip, nervously. It wasn’t like Ron or Hermione to disappear without a word. She only preyed it wasn’t serious. She acted angry, but in truth, her heart was forgetting its rhythm in anxiety for the two of them. What if they had wandered outside the house and been captured, or worse, killed?

Molly stopped and clutched at her heart. She couldn’t think of such a horrible thing. She tried to call out their names but her lungs were weak from her previous terrifying thoughts. Her pace quickened as she continued to search the house as beads of sweat began to form on her forhead.

It was a considerably large estate, so there were plenty of places to look. After about half an hour, Mrs. Weasley decided to check one of the extra bedrooms more thoroughly. She looked under the newly made– but considerably creased– bed and called their names again. She was getting quite frightened for her youngest son and his best friend.

Finally, she walked over to the closet and opened the door slowly. She gasped and almost fainted as she saw two bodies, resting on top of each other. It took her a moment to realize they were merely sleeping. With all the thoughts in her head, she’d thought...

She had good reason to wake them up and scold them right then and there. But as she was inhaling for her wake up call, she stopped.

They looked so sweet and peaceful. Ron’s head was on Hermione’s lap and her arms were on the side of his chest, atop which rested her head. The poor things, they must have been in there for a while. Molly noticed that there was no doorknob on the inside... they must have been stuck. Smiling slightly, she decided to let them rest.

As she turned away, an idea crossed her mind and a smirk began to form on her face. She was still rather angry at them for worrying her so. So...

Grinning, she turned back around, closed the closet door, and left the room.



(A/N: The more I write this, the more I like it. :D)

[Fleurdelacour]

Fluff!!!! :D I just want to squeeze it! Seriousley, it's that good!

Please, write more!

[ChianaWeasley]

Oh! Absolutley wonderful!!!!!!!!
write some more!!!

[Ravenclaw]

Hermione awoke to her rumbling stomach and noticed Ron breathing heavily, asleep on her lap. She realized that there was no light coming from beneath the crack in the door. She reached up and turned on the light, but beyond the door their was black ness. Her claustrophobia returned and she stood up immediately, knocking Ron to the floor.

“Huh... what?” Ron mumbled and blinked.

“It’s dark!” Hermione shrieked. “Dark, can’t you see?”

Ron stood up and stroked her hair.

“Sh,” he said. “Relax. Everything’s fine.”

“Oh God...” Hermione breathed. “Oh God, what time is it? I’m starving! I think the floor is tilting...”

“Hermione,” Ron grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. “Stop this. Look, why don’t we just try banging the door again?” Hermione tore away from Ron’s grip and rammed her shoulder against the door.

“It won’t open!” she shrieked with tears in her eyes.

“Hermione, please!” Ron begged. “Please, just, sit down and we’ll talk.”

“Talk??? Remember the last time we sat down and talked?” Hermione cried. She returned to banging on the door. “Hello? Hello, can anyone here me? Hello–” but Hermione was cut off as Ron grabbed her by the shoulder, spun her around, and kissed her hard on the lips.

Her breath was more than taken away, it was stolen by a red-haired angel who refused to give it back. And frankly, she didn’t mind much.

The room started to spin, but not from her claustrophobia. One of his hands gently rubbed her shoulder and arm, while his fingers on his other hand moved up and down her spine, slowly, giving her chills. She shivered and he pulled her closer. Slowly, she put her hands up onto his shoulders. His lips withdrew, but his embrace held, and he leaned his forehead against hers and smiled.

“Are you calm?”

Hermione swooned in his arms, but he supported her. “Hardly,” she said, breathlessly. But she swung her arms around her neck and smiled. “However, I’m happier than I was a few minutes ago.”

She kissed him again and leaned back against the door. Ron massaged the back of her neck and her hands were in his hair. And indeed, they were happy, but their bliss was to last merely seconds as they Hermione fell backwards onto the hard wood floor with Ron tumbling out on top of her.

“Well, well, well!” They heard the voice before they dared open their eyes to look. Hermione could already see the light through her eyelids and realized what had happened.

“Our little Ronnie!” They could hear the grin in his voice as Fred threw back his head and laughed. Regaining feeling in the rest of her body, Hermione groaned and pushed Ron off of her and both teenagers climbed to their feet. Hermione was staring at an ant crawling over the planks of wood on the floor. It was small and black and looked a little lost. Where’s your home little ant? Oh dear, it fell into a crack in the floor...

“So, that’s were you two have been all day!” George exclaimed. Ron’s face was red and he put his hand over his eyes and rubbed them.

“Mum was smiling when she came back downstairs and said you didn’t want dinner. I guess you already ate, hm?” Ron hit Fred rather hard for that comment as Fred smiled at Hermione, who was going as red as Ron.

“It’s not what it looked like,” said Ron, harshly, remembering what Hermione had told him. “We were trying to get your attention by–”

“Oh, you’ve got our attention little brother!” Fred laughed.

“That’s not what I meant!” Ron said in a low growl like a wolf. “We were banging on the door... I guess you heard us and–”

“Don’t worry, Ron,” said George. “You’re secret’s safe with us. We understand your insecurities.”

“You won’t say a word about this?” Hermione said, finally looking up at them. “To anyone?”

“Of course not,” said George, raising his left hand. He thought about it a moment, and then quickly raised his right hand instead. “You have our word.”

Why was it, as Ron and Hermione exited the room, they felt for sure they heard the twins snicker?


(Note: I tried to keep it clean-- No DETAILED discriptions... I cut out one part before for the boards, so I had to keep this in!)

[Fleurdelacour]

*squeals* How great if it was that the twins found them! :D

Oh damn these boards for being PG! :p Detailed descriptions are always so good... You could post it on ff.net with the descriptions!

Yes, it was rather exellent :)

[LuthienElentari]

A very good love story I kept telling my family that I had to finnish the the story first before I ate dinner. I think the characters were really close to the characters in the book. Please right more even a section about Harry's reaction when they finally tell him. That would be fun to read and write. But just a little advice not too much kissing. Because you want to balance the story. I really enjoyed it. Keep writing more! I'd love to read it!

[Ayla]

As I read this I absolutely squealed with laughter. I think my neighbours might be wondering what's going on in here!

This is soooooo good. Keep it going. I always said Ron and Hermione would hit it off and now you proved me right! Go gal!

How I wish that I could be Hermione ... :kiss: :o :kiss: :o :kiss:

[owl]

Keep up the great work Ravenclaw!:D

[Bellatrix_Lestrange]

This is sweet beyond words...and nicely seasoned, good choice having the twins find them.

:notworthy

Your characterizations are spot on...please don't stop now!

[Ayla]

Do you know what I was thinking? :) (No, I did not think you would ;) )

Well, let me tell you.

My sisters are twins (really!) and they also have red hair (as well as I ). Soooo, I was joking them the other day that they should flutter their eye lids at Fred & George :D

Now we have Fred & George's situation sorted out -- well, at least I do. My sisters will fuss over F&G. They are terrible so they will get along fairly well. :swoon:

[Ravenclaw]

FINALLY MORE!

Hermione buried her face in her hands.

“Oh Ron!” she sobbed. “This was a terrible mistake!” Ron sat beside her on her bed and awkwardly patted her on the back. He seemed reluctant to touch her at all now. Hermione felt he was afraid, like herself, that someone would see them and jump to conclusions...

Correct conclusions, she realized.

“No it wasn’t,” Ron tried to say carefully. “Fred and George...”

“Are Fred and George,” Hermione finished, looking up at him with tears streaming down her cheeks. Ron felt a wave of sympathy for Hermione and folded his arms deliberately around her and she cried on his shoulder.

“Hermione, I’ve known Fred and George longer than you have and they do keep secrets when it comes down to it. We just have to make sure we don’t make them angry and they’ll be quiet.”

“They know they have something on us,” Hermione said into Ron’s shoulder. “And they’ll use it to their advantage.”

“Sure, the twins have their... dark side, Hermione, but they’re also my brothers and they realize it.” Ron’s eyes narrowed as he said the next part darkly, “They’ll laugh about it with themselves, surely, and maybe make a few subtle jokes about it to our faces, but they wouldn’t tell. Not unless we got them very angry with us.”

Hermione lifted her head from Ron’s shoulder and glared at him.

“I’m not worried about *me* setting them off, it’s *you* I’m worried about!” Ron looked offended for a moment, then grinned.

“You’re right, aren’t you?” he laughed. Hermione smiled. They caught each other’s eye for a moment, and then abruptly looked away from each other, coughing.

“Yes...” Hermione muttered.



Hermione was on the brink of sleep at midnight that night when there was a knock at her door. She heard it slowly open and someone creep inside.

“Oh go away,” she groaned, as she pulled the covers over her head. Someone sat on the edge of her bed and Hermione could feel their gaze even through her covers. Finally, she sat up.

“Look, I’m not in the mood to–” But Hermione stopped in mid sentence as her eyes adjusted and she recognized a petite feminine form with red hair that stood out in the moonlight. “Ginny, what are you doing here so late?”

Hermione could see Ginny smile even in the dark.

“Mum and the twins said you and Ron were locked in a closet all day. How did that happen?”

Hermione groaned.

“Look,” she said, fed up with the whole thing. “We were cleaning out the closet when the door closed on us and there’s no doorknob on the inside. So we couldn’t get out. We were in there for hours before Fred and George heard my hysteric knocking and let us out.”

Ginny nodded and seemed appeased. Hermione’s tone was so bored and dull sounding that Ginny believed her. “I’d just thought that maybe my brother had gotten some common sense.” She rose off of Hermione’s bed and made her way to the door.

“What do you mean?” Hermione mumbled. Ginny stopped and turned at the door and smiled at her.

“Well,” she said. “To a girl like me, it’s quite obvious.”

“What?” Hermione blinked and rubbed her eyes.

“Oh come off it!” Ginny laughed. “It’s easy to see you’re in love with him! And don’t deny it, because though my brothers may be oblivious, as they always are, it’s obvious to me. I’ve been there.” Ginny tossed Hermione a warm smile and left.

Hermione smiled warmly back at her as she closed the door.


PS: I need advice for ppl who know Les Miserables-- Visit the thread in my siggy!

[LuthienElentari]

Nice! ooh! write more! Ron is absoulutely adorable in your story! write more! :D

[Ravenclaw]

“Pass the jam, would you Ron?” said George at the breakfast table the next morning. Ron looked at him suspiciously. George yawned and stretched, but stopped in the middle as his eyes fell on Ron’s expression. “What?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ron snarled, defensively. George raised an eyebrow, confused, his hands still in the air. Finally, he sighed, relaxed, and reached for the jam himself.

“S’alright, then, I’ll get it.”

“George!” Mrs. Weasley snapped as her son leaned over Hermione’s lap to snatch the jam which was right in front of Ron. Again, George stopped, and Hermione’s cheeks grew slightly redder as he put his hand on her shoulder to steady himself. George looked over to his mother as Ron scowled at him. Ron kept looking from Hermione’s abashed face, to George’s mock-naive one, and then to the hand resting ever so innocently on her shoulder.

“Yes, Mum?” George said, pretending he had no idea why she could be angry. Fred snickered in his seat next to George.

“Sit down, I’ll get you the jam!” Shrugging, George fell back into his seat. Hermione looked down at her food. Ron frowned at the twins in silent fury.

“Ron!” Ron gave such a start at his mother’s voice, he nearly fell off his chair.

“Yeah?” he said as he turned and noticed her watching him.

“Be nice to your brother,” she said, handing George the jam. When her back was turned, George stuck his tongue out at Ron, who folded his arms and slouched. Breakfast continued in silence, with a couple of unhappy grumbles from Sirius behind this morning’s Daily Prophet. Fred and George seemed to be acting quite normally, however, as they devoured their food and kicked each other under the table.

Ginny looked up from her scrambled eggs across the table at Hermione, who refused to take her eyes away from her food. Not wanting to draw attention, she continued to watch Hermione, hoping to catch her eye. But Hermione merely continued to eat until there was nothing left on her plate. Even then, she drew little circles in her syrup with her fork. Giving up, Ginny’s attention turned to Ron, who was sitting to Hermione’s right. He was watching Hermione as well as he bit his lip.

“This is strange...” Mrs. Weasley said carefully, as she looked around the table at her children. “Hermione, would you like some more?” Hermione started but looked up calmly from her plate at Mrs. Weasley.

“Um, no thank you, Mrs. Weasley,” she said in a quiet voice, rising to her feet and taking her plate. “Is anyone else finished?” she said, offering to take their plate. She looked at Mrs. Weasley, who was watching her intently. “Oh, I’m sorry... May I please be excused?”

“Of course, dear,” Mrs. Weasley said, a note of worry to her voice. “Is something the matter?”

Hermione smiled warmly at her. “Oh no, not at all. I’m just not feeling quite well this morning.” Mrs. Weasley nodded slowly. “Mm hm...” she said. Hermione smiled politely and then staggered up the stairs. Ron’s eyes never left her until the door closed at the top of the stairs. He sighed and he seemed to relax in his chair. He seemed disappointed and relieved at the same time, to Ginny. She had a feeling she knew why Hermione wasn’t feeling well. Fred and George, however, were watching the top of the stairs, looking totally confused. Fred shrugged.

“Wonder what’s gotten into her,” he laughed.


In her bedroom, Hermione pulled out a clean piece of parchment and a quill. She wiped the sweat from her brow. It seemed like a furnace in this house... The pounding in her head was an incessant fiery drum.

Dear Harry,
There is something I’ve been burning to talk to someone about. And before you say it, I know I haven’t been writing you this summer. There are things happening that you can’t even begin to imagine... I wish I could tell you. But–

Hermione bit her lip and thought for a moment. Shaking her head, she crumpled up the paper, and started over. She shouldn’t digress. She needed her questions answered before she could answer his.

Harry
Listen. Ron and I did something horrible yesterday and I can’t think of anyone to talk to but you because I think you’d understand. Well, we were cleaning and we got locked in the closet and I got rather claustrophobic and he calmed me down... well, sort of. He kissed me. I mean, I kissed him. I mean... I don’t know what I mean. Anyway, something happened in there that shouldn’t have and when we were discovered... Oh Harry, I don’t know what to do. I really love Ron as a friend and yet, I’ve always felt that... He’s such a good guy... And that kiss... But... Oh God, Harry, I think I love him! And I don’t mean just as a friend...

[Ravenclaw]

Hermione looked at the letter and realized she had inserted way too many unfinished sentences and pauses. She wrote the same way she though. There was a knock on her door and she gave a start, hiding the letter quickly behind her back.

“Hermione?”

It was Ron, looking pale as the moon. Hermione smiled and stuffed the parchment in her pocket.

“How are you feeling?”

“Not good,” Hermione said, honestly. She felt unusually hot and her head was throbbing like crazy. She wondered if she was in some sort of fever delirium. Ron seemed to be glowing... Like an angel with a fiery crown. She felt lightheaded suddenly and grabbed onto the back of the chair she had been sitting in. Seeing her weakness, Ron reached out to her suddenly, six feet away. His feet seemed rooted to the spot, but his face spoke of the painful need to catch her if she fell. She blinked and smiled about that.

I suppose fainting isn’t so bad if I wake up in his arms...

With that thought, she staggered again. At this, Ron uprooted his feet and ran to her putting his arms around her. She grabbed his shoulder for support.

Ron looked concernedly into her eyes. Last time she’d passed out, she’d hit the floor. But this time, he was determined to catch her and carry her to the bed. She doesn’t look too good, he thought to himself.

“I saw you at breakfast,” he said, tentatively. “And you were sweating. You were pale as hell, and then George...”

“Have you heard the canaries today?” Hermione asked him, with a dopey grin on her face.

“What?” Ron asked her.

“I don’t think I can stand anymore,” Hermione said accurately as her knees gave way. Ron instantly put his arms under hers and eased her to the floor.

“Come on, Hermione, get up,” he pleaded, sounding almost desperate. “This room is wide open... and look, there’s a window. Why are acting all funny?” He tried to help her up, but she stumbled again.

“It’s not that, Ron,” Hermione gasped. “What was in that closet...”

“Dust and stuff...” Ron shrugged. “I don’t know! I don’t know if Sirius’s family ever cleaned their closets! Oh God, it could be anything!” Ron seemed suddenly horrified. Hermione forced a laugh.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ron,” Hermione said. “It’s probably the flu or something.”

“Even so...” Ron put his arm under Hermione’s knees, leaving the other arm to support her back. She frowned.

“What are you doing?” she asked, accusingly, struggling a little. Ron glared at her, looking hurt.

“Relax, Hermione, it’s me. What am I going to do?”

“No!” Hermione shrieked, straining against his grip. “No! Get away!” Ron clambered difficultly to his feet and carried Hermione on the bed, where he dropped her. All the while, she was kicking and screaming. He watched her as she rolled on the bed and clutched at the sheets.

What’s wrong with her?

Ron grabbed her by the shoulders and she stopped a moment. She was panting and her noticed the roots of her hair were soaking. She was shivering.

“MUM!” Ron yelled. “MUM!”

Fred and George were already at the door.

“Ron! You don’t have to attack her, she seemed perfectly fine with it yesterday...” but Fred’s grin disappeared as he noticed Hermione tossing and turning and moaning.

“She’s sick,” Ron said.

“Well, obviously!” George gave a nervous laugh. Mrs. Weasley pushed past the two of them and entered the room. Fred and George stayed in the doorway.

“Oh my, what’s happening, Ron?” Mrs. Weasley demanded. She pulled out her wand and cried out an incantation. Hermione stopped suddenly. She was levitated into the air by the spell. Her hair fell down towards the bed and her robes hung off her. She was deathly white. Mrs. Weasley looked her up and down and touched her wand to Hermione’s forehead.

“Heavens!” she shrieked. “That’s a terrible fever! George, run and get Mortwup’s Magical Maladies Manuel and bring it to me immediately! Fred, get me some ice and put the kettle on. When the fever’s down, she could probably use Jessup’s Cure-All Potion.” The twins were off in an instant. Mrs. Weasley looked at Ron. “How long has she been like this?”

“Not long,” Ron said. “She was saying strange things about canaries and then her legs gave out and so I tried to pick her up and she started screaming like I was attacking her.” Mrs. Weasley nodded as she watched Hermione hover over the bed in suspended animation.

“It’s probably just a fever, Ron,” she said, smiling warmly at her son who looked horrified. “You shouldn’t worry.”

“Hermione’s sick,” Ron said, gesturing to the girl. “I worry.” Mrs. Weasley smiled.

“I always knew you were a sweet boy, from the moment you were born,” she said. “Caring and protective from the womb. You know what you did with that Sylvia Lyons girl when you were five years old?”

“Mum, not now!” Ron cried. “Hermione needs your attention!”

Mrs. Weasley looked back at Hermione.

“And when George gets back, I’ll unfreeze her and care for her as she needs to be cared for. But I’m serious.” She turned back to Ron. “Do you remember Sylvia Lyons?”

“Remember her?” Ron laughed, sadly. “Yeah, I remember her. Mum, please...” he begged. But she continued.

“I remember when you were five years old and she was playing with her mother’s wand. She was your sister’s age, so you felt special because you were older. And as I walked in, you noticed she was doing something she shouldn’t, so do you know what you did?”

“Mum...”

“You snatched the wand out of her hands and looked up at me, thinking I hadn’t noticed. And you said, ‘I’m sorry, Mama, I didn’t mean to take Mrs. Sylvie’s Mommy’s wand but it’s so pretty and you do so much magic.’ And then little Sylvia started to cry and you couldn’t understand it. ‘Sylvie!’ you said. ‘Why are you cryin? I told Mama I took the wand, you won’t get punished, I will!’ and she stopped crying and I laughed. You were so cute, Me and Mrs. Lyons didn’t punish anyone.”

Ron was quiet. Mrs. Weasley smiled sadly.

“You miss her, don’t you?” she said, putting a hand tenderly on his shoulder. Ron tore away from her gaze.

“Molly?” Sirius was at the door, with a volume from downstairs. Molly hurried over to him and tried to take the book, but he pulled it towards him. “I know what it is,” he said. “It’s the Cholrox Virus.”

“Chlorox?” Molly shook her head. “How could she have Chlorox? The kids who are prone to it get it when they’re young.”

“Hermione’s a Muggle-born. She’s never been exposed to it. But believe me,” Sirius said. “It’s Chlorox. A mutated form. Mother bred them and sent them all over the house. She made sure that it didn’t infect us, but sometimes we caught miner doses of it, especially me after I fell out of her good favour... I thought I’d cleaned them all out before you guys came...” Molly bit her lip, but Ron looked confused.

“Your mother bred a virus?” he asked. “Is that even possible?” Sirius looked grave.

“Ron, with dark magic, anything is possible,” he said. Mrs. Weasley nodded and looked at Ron.

“Ron, do you remember when Ginny had Chlorox?”

“Yeah,” Ron said. “She couldn’t go outside for weeks.”

“And you stayed inside with her, telling her stories and making her laugh,” Mrs. Weasley said.

“And I never got it,” Ron said. “Because of something in my blood...” Mrs. Weasley nodded.

“I suppose you’re going to want to do the same here?” Mrs. Weasley asked. Ron grinned. Mrs. Weasley nodded harder. “I thought so.”

[Fleurdelacour]

I LOVE YOU! :D Ok not in that way, but...!

I love this story! I'm just sitting here going "eeek!" I'm getting really weird looks from my little brother, but he doesnt understand... lol.

MORE MORE! :D This is really, really really really good! Yes, you get the general idea! :D I can just imagine it!

[LuthienElentari]

What? Hermione? Clorax? Ron? Disease? Your description is wonderful! I can picture this in my head! please write more! your writing is so fluffy! PLEASE WRITE MORE! WRITE MORE! WRITE MORE! your story is so ORIGINAL!

[lithorose]

You guys! Sooo much suspense! lith sits on the edge of her seat... What happens next? Huh? Huh?

[LuthienElentari]

The thing that I think is really interesting it that everyone writes Ron/Hermione fics including me but I realized that Harry is alot like James and Hermione is a lot like Lily, yet, Ron and Hermione have more chemistry. Do you thing that JKR will attempt a Harry/ Hermione thing?



Sorry, if I got as bit off topic.

[Fleurdelacour]

Chiana... Ravenclaw.... *hem hem*

*cracks knuckles*

Who wants to start ;)

Well.... jkr has stated several times that Harry and Hermione are platonic friends!

[LuthienElentari]

I know their just friends :rolleyes:, but I wonder if she would "try it " at least once in one of the future books. But we of course no that in the end its going to Ron and Hermione:D

[ElmoRock3113]

Ravenclaw please you need to write more! I beg you from the bottom of my heart!

[owl]

Please, Please, Please write more of this wonderful story

Its great well done:clap:

[LuthienElentari]

Ravenclaw I beg I beg I beg!

[owl]

This is sooooooooooo good
write more! write more! write more!

~Owl sets up a demonstration~