We went back out to the party, hoping to find Ron sitting with Dean and Seamus, but he was no where to be found. I walked up and sat next to Neville while Hermione sat next to Ginny. "Have you guys seen Ron?" I asked.
"He ran out towards the trees" replied Dean "he looked pretty mad about something."
I looked at Hermione and found her gaze fixed on me. "I'll go see if I can find him" I said, getting up from my seat.
"I'll go with you" said Hermione, walking up beside me. I just nodded my head and started to make my way to the tree line. We walked a little ways into the forest and found Ron sitting on a tree stump, staring off into the distance.
"Ron?" I said, trying not to startle him. He didn't move at the sound of my voice, he just sat there ignoring us. Hermione walked up and sat beside him on the stump. She reached over and laid her hand over his, and I felt my stomach tighten at the sight of them touching.
"Ron, please talk to us" she said "I know you're mad, but don't shut us out."
He looked at her then, with a sad and angry look on his face. "Don't shut you out?" he asked "You weren't the one kept in the dark about certain things."
"What do you mean?" asked Hermione, voicing my own question.
"I mean you and Harry being together" he said, turning to glare at me. "You knew I liked her" he said to me, venom in his voice. I just looked at him, confused.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Harry and I aren't 'together' Ron" Hermione said. Ron looked from her to me, his eyebrow raised in question.
"I was thanking her for the present she gave me" I explained "there's nothing going on between Hermione and me." I looked at Hermione and saw a strange look pass over her face; she seemed sad for a second, but it was quickly replaced by what I could tell was a fake smile.
Ron sat there quietly for a few more minutes, looked at Hermione and asked "what about you and me?"
Her head snapped up and she looked at him, a bewildered look on her face. "What about you and me?" she asked, staring at him intently. I was starting to feel uncomfortable, so I started to back away. Without looking at me, Hermione said "stay Harry. This is something the three of us need to discuss."
"Why does he have to be here? This is between you and me" Ron said, giving me a dirty look. I was starting to get really sick and tired of him throwing those looks my way.
"Because I want him here Ron" she said impatiently "now, I want to make something clear. The three of us are friends; nothing more, nothing less. All right?"
Ron sat there quietly staring at the ground as I sat staring at Hermione. 'That's all we've ever been, right?' I asked myself, feeling a strange tightness in my stomach all of a sudden. She turned and looked at me, and I knew that I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize our friendship. She and Ron were all I had and I wasn't going to do something stupid to lose them. "Right" I said, seeing that same sad look cross her face.
"Right" Ron repeated, and then stood up abruptly. "I'm going to go talk to Dean and Seamus" he said, and then took off back towards the Burrow. Hermione stayed where she was and turned to look at me.
"Harry, about before..." I interrupted her, without really meaning to, and said "it's just like I told Ron, I was thanking you for the necklace."
"Right" she said, getting to her feet quickly. "I'm going to go find Ginny." I watched her walk away, wondering why I had lied about the kiss we had shared just a little while ago.
After Harry's party, the rest of the summer seemed to fly by. We received our Hogwarts letters and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley took us to get our school supplies. We had to go everywhere together because Sirius Black was still on the loose and presumably still looking for Harry. I walked along with the group, lost in my thoughts. When I had mentioned that I didn't have any money for my school supplies, Mrs. Weasley said that Dumbledore had sent her a letter saying that he had contacted my Father in jail and had gotten the money I would need for the following year. We went to Gringotts and I went to the vault I had there; that's where Dumbledore said he had put the money from my Father.
When the vault door opened, I nearly fainted. There seemed to be enough money inside to last me the rest of my Hogwarts years. I took what I thought I might need and met everyone outside the bank. Harry mentioned something about having to get owl treats for Hedwig, so we made our way to the pet store to get them. Harry and I went into the store while everyone else stood outside, close to the door. I started to look around as Harry found the treats he needed, and I saw this patch of orange fur sitting on a stool. I walked up to it, and when it turned to face me, I saw that it was a cat. It had a squashed looking face; not the cutest cat I'd ever seen, but there was something about the cat's eyes. They seemed to hold an intelligence that you didn't normally see in cats. I reached out carefully to pet him, and he started purring instantly. I fell in love with him immediately.
I went up to the shopkeeper and asked how much he wanted for the cat; the price he gave me was more money than I had with me at the time. I quietly thanked him and walked outside to wait with everyone else, feeling sad that I couldn't get the cat. It took Harry about ten more minutes in the store, and when he came out, I was shocked. He came out carrying the orange cat I had wanted to get.
"Harry, what are you doing with a cat?" Ron asked, looking at it with a disgusted look on his face.
"This is Crookshanks, and he is Hermione's cat" he said, walking over and handing the cat to me. I just stood there, holding the cat and staring at Harry.
"What do you mean?" I asked him.
"I saw how much you wanted him, so after you walked out of the shop, I bought him for you."
"Harry, you shouldn't have done that, I'm not sure I'll have enough money to pay you back" I said.
"Consider him an early birthday present" he said, handing me a bag. "This is everything he will need; there's enough food in there to last until our first Hogsmeade weekend and there are also a couple of toys for him to play with."
Tears started to form in my eyes; I had always wanted a cat, but my Dad would never allow me to get one. Now I was holding this great big ball of orange fur, and he was mine. "Thank you so much Harry" I said, giving him a hug the best I could.
I felt like I floated through the rest of the shops; I had a cat of my own, something I could love and take care of that was all mine. I was so happy; I kept thanking Harry and he would just smile and say it was no big deal. I don't think he would ever realize how much of a big deal it really was to me.
The day for us to go back to Hogwarts arrived, and it was a very hectic morning. We were going to the station by a Ministry car, expanded to fit the nine of us. Hermione and Ginny sat in front with Mr. and Mrs. Wesley while Percy, Fred, George, Ron and I sat in the back. Fred and George kept picking on Percy, teasing him about being Head Boy and playing keep-away with his badge. It made for a pretty interesting ride.
We ran through the barrier onto Platform 9 3/4 with five minutes to spare. We quickly stowed our luggage and found a compartment that had a strange man in it who seemed to be sleeping. It was the only compartment that was nearly empty; Ron had sat down next to Hermione, so I sat in the seat across from them where the man lay asleep propped up against the window. We shared small talk, but things had been strained between us ever since my birthday. Plus, if Ron asked me one more time why I REALLY bought Hermione that cat, I thought I might punch him. He was bugging me incessantly about it, trying to imply I had an ulterior motive. I had no idea what had gotten into him, but he was really starting to make me mad.
We were discussing the Dementors; we had heard Mr. and Mrs. Weasley discussing them this morning before we left. Supposedly they were looking for Sirius Black and there were rumors that they would be guarding the school.
We should have kept our mouth shut; it was like us talking about it only invited trouble. The train had come to an abrupt halt, the lights had flickered out, and the temperature inside seemed to have dropped twenty degrees or more. As the three of us watched in horror, a shadow fell over our compartment door and a skeletal hand reached out to open it. There stood the very creature we had just been talking about. Only it looked much worse than what Ron had described; it reminded me of the Grim Reaper I had seen in some of the books I had read when I was younger.
The Dementor stood hovering in the doorway, dropping the temperature in our compartment ten more degrees. As it floated there, my body started to feel cold and all the horrible things that the Dursley's had ever done to me flashed through my mind. I looked desperately at Hermione, noticing that her eyes were wide with fear. If I were seeing my worst memories, I could only imagine what she was reliving. I watched helplessly as her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell unconscious onto the floor. I felt myself growing colder and as I heard a woman screaming, I lost consciousness as well.
I woke up, not really knowing where I was, feeling very cold and empty of emotion. As I had slowly opened my eyes, a head of red hair was the first thing I made out. As my vision cleared, I was staring into Ron's bright blue eyes. I never noticed they were that color before...
"Hermione, are you ok?" he asked, putting his hand behind my neck and carefully helping me to sit up. I sat there, trying to get my bearings, when I noticed Harry lying on the floor next to me.
"Harry?!" I asked, leaning closer to him to get a better look. He was ghostly pale, with a light sheen of sweat coating his face.
"Will he be okay?" I asked, looking toward Ron. I noticed that the strange man that had been sitting next to Harry was now crouching next to Ron.
"Here, eat this" he said, shoving a huge piece of chocolate in my face. I must have looked at him funny, because he said "it'll help you feel better, I promise."
"It helps Hermione" said Ron "he gave me a piece once he forced the Dementor to leave, and I felt much better right away." I took it and nibbled on it, feeling as if I was drinking hot cocoa instead, the warmth spreading through my body slowly. I noticed Harry start to stir, and turned so that I could see his face.
He slowly opened his eyes, much like I had, and focused in on my face. "Hermione?" he asked, looking at me confused.
"Yeah, it's me" I said, giving him a small smile "it seems that you and I were affected by the Dementors."
He stared at me for a moment, and then asked "did you see flashes of your Dad?" I looked away from him and nodded my head, shivering involuntarily at the images I remembered much too clearly.
"Did you see flashes of the Dursley's?" I asked him.
"That, and I heard a woman scream right before I passed out" he answered, looking at me strangely.
"That was all caused by the Dementor; they feed off of any happy thoughts or feelings you might have and leave you with all of the horrid memories" explained the strange man.
"Not to be rude, but who are you?" I asked, looking at him, noticing all the scars on his neck and face.
"Oh, sorry, I'm Remus Lupin, new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor" said the strange looking man. The three of us in turn introduced ourselves and then slowly sat back in our seats. Thankfully I noticed that we were indeed moving once again, and we weren't very far from Hogwarts. I couldn't wait to be in the castle where I knew we would be safe, especially Harry.
Once we got to Hogwarts and had the welcoming feast, everything went downhill from there. I had started Divination class, which was taught by Professor Trelawney. Every time she saw me, she predicted my death.
Hagrid was our new Care of Magical Creatures teacher. During our first class, Hagrid introduced us to Buckbeak the Hippogriff; it had the head of an eagle and the body of a horse. Hagrid chose me to go up to the creature first, to show the class that it was harmless. It was a little frightening at first, but once I bowed and gained his acceptance, it was fun to pet him. Then Hagrid put me up on the Hippogriffs back and next thing I knew, Iwas soaring through the air. Flying on Buckbeak was wonderful; I hadn't felt that free before, not even on my Nimbus 2000. After we returned back to earth, Draco Malfoy thought he would just march up to Buckbeak and show me up. Buckbeak reared up and crashed down on Malfoy, injuring his arm supposedly. Bloody git got what he deserved.
During our game with Hufflepuff, as I was chasing the snitch, the Dementors swarmed around me. The last thing I remembered was hearing that same woman screaming as I fell to the ground. Next thing I knew, I woke up in hospital with Hermione, Ron and the rest of the team around me. Ron stood there with a pile of twigs in his arms; he proceeded to tell me it was what was left of my Nimbus.
The rest of the school term was just as bad. Hagrid had to go to a hearing for Buckbeak; it resulted in an execution being set for the Hippogriff. Ron, Hermione and I stood at the top of the hill above Hagrid's hut and watched as the poor animal was put to death. I watched as Hermione turned and threw her arms around Ron, unable to look at the grisly scene below any longer. I felt sick to my stomach, but I figured it was just from what I had witnessed. I placed my hand on her shoulder to let her know I was there and that I felt just as horrible about what we had seen as she did.
After that it seemed like everything erupted in chaos. Scabbers, Ron's rat that he thought Crookshanks had eaten, suddenly showed up as we walked back to the castle. As Ron chased his rat and caught him, a big black dog came out of nowhere and grabbed Ron's pant leg, dragging him into a hole at the base of the whomping willow. After Hermione and I went for a wild ride on the willow's branches, we were thrown into the same hole Ron was dragged into and made our way through a tunnel.
What we found at the end of the tunnel was a great surprise. We walked into a room and saw Ron sitting on the floor, holding on to Scabbers for dear life. I heard a noise behind us, and when I turned around, I found Sirius Black standing there. Professor Lupin came running in, as did Professor Snape. I ended up knocking Professor Snape unconscious because I wanted to play hero and take care of Black myself. Hermione had jumped in front of me, using herself as a shield between me and Sirius Black and I pushed her out of the way. She could protect Ron; I had a score to settle with the man who betrayed my parents.
Scabbers had gotten away from Ron and after prodding from Professor Lupin and Sirius Black, transformed into a man they called Wormtail. I later found out that the three were best friends with my Dad at Hogwarts, and that it was really Wormtail that had betrayed my parents, not Sirius. I also found out that Sirius was my Godfather. By the end of the night, my head was spinning with all of the new information I had learned.
After Harry, who was really on my bad side at that moment, found out a bunch of new information we finally got out of the shrieking shack where everything had happened. We followed the tunnel back to the castle and as we walked out of the hole in the willow, Wormtail broke free and ran.
Sirius ended up being captured and was held in the castle to await the Dementor's kiss, which would take his soul from his body. As we were up in hospital with Ron, I watched as Harry agonized over the fact that he would now lose his Godfather, who he had just found out existed. I walked over to Dumbledore and spoke with him about the time turner I had used to make it through all of my classes that year. When I laid out my plan, he had agreed to it and had left the ward. While Harry watched me curiously, I pulled out the time turner, draped it over both of our necks and turned it the appropriate number of times.
I watched as everything became a blur; we went back far enough to save Buckbeak and Sirius, each escaping together into the night. As we watched them fly away, I noticed Harry turn towards me. Before he could say anything, I interrupted him. "I'm going to go make sure Ron's ok; I'm obviously not needed here anymore." I watched the shocked look that crossed his face and felt a little thrill of satisfaction. If he felt he didn't need me to help protect him, I would go help Ron who I knew wouldn't push me away.
~A/N>Keep in mind that this is a H/Hr fic; please don't be mad at me for the way the chapter ended :) I
hope I touched on all the important parts of year 3. It was really hard to remember everything that happened in the
book after seeing the movie twice. The story will really start to center on H/Hr after two more chapters, hopefully.
And yes, you will find out what happened to Hermione's Mom soon too. Please review! :)