hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh A/N: Here is Part nine!!! Mind you, it's two weeks from our previous installment, the night of Ron's detention. I'm going to start when he returns, around eleven. The Common Room is completely deserted, or so he thinks..... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ "Mione?" Hermione glanced up to see Ron standing in the doorway. She said nothing and turned away, clenching a paper tightly in her hand. Ron found this strange...very strange indeed, "Mione? What are you still doing up, its past eleven. Where is Harry?" "I...I...Harry is out on the Qudditch Pitch." She said in a monotone voice, clenching the paper still tighter. "Oh that's right, they're picking a new Keeper...SHOOT! I..." Ron trailed on off suddenly, "Mione? What's that in your hand there?" He walked over to the couch and sat down beside her. She turned completely away from him, keeping her face out of his sight. She couldn't let him see.... she couldn't... "Hermione? What is going on? Why won't you..." Hermione cut Ron off by forcefully thrusting the paper she had been holding hard into his chest. Ron glanced at her warily, but took the paper silently. He didn't even have to look for what it was that was making Hermione so quiet. The paper was today's edition of the Daily Prophet. The first page gave him all he needed to know...written in bold print as the day's lead story was: MUGGLE KILLINGS HAVE STARTED Ron gasped and skimmed the article. From what he could tell, well the muggle killings had finally started. It said that two muggles and three muggle borns had been killed somewhere on the boarder of Ireland. He felt as if he would be sick any second. It had started.... it was true...oh GOD! Ron suddenly realized that Hermione was still with him. He felt like such a fool! She must be scared, and upset and.... "'Mione?" he said softly, " where did you get this?" "Malfoy." She said shakily, "I was coming out from the...the Prefects bathroom when I remembered you had detention with Flitwick. I was right there and spied you in the room, finishing up. I decided to wait for you, when Malfoy come strolling by," Hermione stopped to take a breath, " He walks up to me and says in that annoying way of his, "Here Mudblood a little article in there might interest you while you wait for Weasel there." I took it of course and when I saw the Headline, he burst out laughing...LAUGHING! and walked off. I ran up to the Common Room and have been sitting here ever since." Ron glared, fury rising inside him. Malfoy was such a git! He knew perfectly well what was in that article, and HE KNEW.... oh HE KNEW that it would hurt Hermione like this. Ron wanted to kill him. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ron sat in a furious sick type of silence, a mute Hermione beside him. Ron kept mentally picturing Malfoy's death, each worse then the one before. After ten minutes of his silent insanity Ron turned to look at Hermione. She was staring at the fire, her face white as a sheet, her hands shaking horribly. Ron decided that he should at least say SOMETHING to her... "Hermione? You know that Malfoy is a git and you should never let him hurt you." Ron wanted to kill himself...Malfoy had nothing to do with this current situation! Ron you idiot! He cursed himself. "I.... I know that Ron but the article.... and his stupid face, and... and Ron the article!" That was it. Hermione couldn't hold it in any longer. Her tears silently spilled over. Bringing her hands up to her face, she began to sob. Her shoulders shook and her chest began to burn from her hot tears. But Hermione realised that she couldn't stop crying, now that she had started. Ron was alarmed when Hermione's shoulders began to shake. He was positive that she was crying, but he wasn't entirely sure what he should do. He placed a hand on her shaking shoulder, and said, "Mione? Come on Mione...please don't cry. I...I'm here." He realized how lame that sounded, but oh well, desperate times called for desperate measures. "Mione.... look at me. Please?" She looked up at the use of the nickname. This was becoming a weakness with her, it really was. Tears were running down her face, little streams flowing from her eyes. She sniffed quietly and locked eyes with Ron finally. His usual clear blue eyes were clouded again, like they were on that night in the garden. That fury was still in them from his anger at Malfoy, but they softened at the sight of Hermione's tear streaked face. He smiled very slightly at her, brushing a tear away from the tip of her nose. She sniffed again, trying to stop crying mostly, but also from surprise at Ron's gentleness with her. He brought his hand away quickly however, and asked with a sheepish grin, "Are you OK?" Hermione wiped at her eyes and said in a breathless shaky tone, "I...I think I'll be OK now." Ron sighed in relief, "Jeez Mione I've never seen anyone, especially you, come unglued like that." Hermione let out a shaky sigh, "I guess that was a little strange for me, but I couldn't help it Ron. I mean that headline just terrified me.... they are actually killing people Ron! Muggle people! People...people like..." "Stop Hermione!" Ron interjected quickly, "or you'll lose it again." "Right, right." She said hastily, swiping at the tears that had managed to escape, "You know, I think I should go up to bed now...I'm tired." "That's probably a good idea." Ron said getting to his feet. He helped her up to hers and pulled her into an unexpected hug. His arms fell around her waist and he just held her for a moment. She hugged him back and held on tightly, like he was some sort of support for her. Ron was surprised at her open flow of emotions towards him. Usually they were fighting or she was nagging him to study, while he teased her relentlessly. "This is actually better"; Ron thought to himself and then thought almost on top of that, "WHAT! This is Hermione I'm hugging here". ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Well, well are we interrupting a moment here?" Ron spun on his heels, breaking his hug on Hermione, to turn and see his brothers and the rest of the Qudditch team hop through the portrait hole. Fred chuckled again, it was him who had spoken, "Well Ron I..." He got no further because Hermione suddenly fled the scene. She ran up to the Dorminity without another word to anyone. "Hermione! Mione..." Ron called after. She never answered and he rounded on Fred, "You stupid git!" He said flopping into a chair by the fire. "Ron? Is something wrong with Hermione?" Katie asked walking over, "She seemed upset." "I swear that girl has emotional antennae." George whispered to Harry. Ginny giggled, she was with the group as well. By now all three of the girls (Angelina, Katie, and Alicia) were sitting with Ron on the couch, trying to get him to talk. He stubbornly refused to reveal the reason he had been hugging Hermione. He felt that he should let her keep some alone time that's all she would have until she saw Malfoy tomorrow morning anyway. "Come on Ron, if something is wrong we should know!" Harry demanded. "NO! Guys, I'm going to let her tell you, DROP IT!" Ron nearly yelled, out of fatigue and frustration. "Ok, ok, ok Ron..." Ginny soothed, "OH! Ron guess what!" "What?" He asked distractedly. "I made the Qudditch team!" She said beaming. "Oh that's gre-...You what!" Ron sputtered in surprise. "I.... made.... the.... Qudditch.... Team." Ginny drawled out as if Ron were deaf. "I heard you Gin.... but how?" "She was amazing Ron! I've never seen anyone take to Keeping so easily, besides Wood of course." Harry said enthusiastically. "Yes she was good, I'll give her that." Fred nodded. "Better than the others anyway." George added. "Well, I thought she was outstanding and that's why I choose her." Angelina said importantly, "Oh I'm Captain by the way." She added so Ron would understand. "Well, "Ron said getting to his feet, "Congratulations, but I'm staying for any celebration I'm going off to bed." He walked up the stairs and out of sight, Harry reluctantly went after him, telling everyone that he needed to find out what was going on and that he'd see them tomorrow. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The door clicked shut and Fred, George, Katie, Angelina, Alicia, and Ginny were left just watching it. "Well..." George started. "That surely was..." Fred continued. "Strange?" Alicia vouched. "Eerie?" Katie added. "Abnormal." Angleina said. "No guys," Ginny said gravely, "It's just that something is really wrong this time." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A/N: Well, I made Malfoy really mean didn't I? Wasn't Ron just perfect...? I thought so anyway. Poor Hermione...oh the trouble starts!!!!!!