DISCLAIMER: I don't own Harry Potter, J.K. does, and she has every right to do whatever she thinks is best for Harry Potter. I just love writing. So sue me. Wait, seriously… don't.
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Hermione stared, mouth slightly opened, at the photograph.
`Am I seeing things?' she asked herself as she took in what was in front of her…
There, beside Ron, and smiling equally as solemn, was Hermione's own image.
Only, her hair was a bit straighter and styled than what she had now. She only had to look closer to see the visible wedding bands on both their left hands and find out why she was there.
But she didn't need to see them to prove what she already knew. Harry's picture, together with that Alyssa McGee, was enough to make a conclusion.
But she had to make sure…
Name: Ronald Weasley
State: 117
Residence: Desman's Curve (currently on vacation in America)
Vocation: Partial Owner of Quidditch Team, British Seahorses
Successor: Richard Andrew Weasley
Wife: Hermione Granger
Familiar Colleagues: Harry James Potter (see Potter- Generation 2)
She couldn't believe it…she had actually married Ron.
But why?
Did Ron have feelings for her secretly like the one she had with Harry? If so, then why hadn't he said anything? But that wasn't right…the additional information in the profile indicated they had married when they were 20 years old, which meant that somewhere in between the three years since they left Hogwarts, they had a relationship and got married.
Hermione couldn't think straight.
Ron had loved her more than she thought he did enough to ask her to be his wife? She just couldn't believe it.
But why couldn't she bring herself to ask the question about when she fell in love with him?
As silly as it may seem, Hermione couldn't have possibly married him for love no matter how long she was given time to develop deeper feelings. She couldn't imagine herself saying vows to him on their wedding day, thinking that if she had, they must have been false and forced. Seeing him as her husband was unbearable, not that he wouldn't have been a good one, but still, she didn't love him that way.
Maybe that's the reason why he was smiling so somberly…he had been suffering, depressed and lonely of having a wife saddled by his side who didn't love him as more than a friend.
Faith really was something. Putting two people together who both knew to whom her true feelings were for.
Had she really let him have a life like that? There were many things he had done for her -- many favors left unrequited. She owed him much, but what had she done? She let him be a second rate partner for life. Although she couldn't be actually right, Hermione felt she was mostly correct.
Loving Harry had always felt right and real. She couldn't think of loving anyone else even at the time when she knew he had fallen for another. She hated the feeling of not having the one she loved and no matter how sacred and binding marriage is; Hermione knew Ron never had her. She didn't want that…she didn't want him to feel the way she did and still does. After all he has given her; she would be unworthy of being his friend if she let him be hurt each day of his life.
What was she going to do?
Knowing what had happened to them, how would she ever look him straight in the eye again?
Everything turned out to be even more complicated than she expected.
Was she glad it happened?
She couldn't tell. She was happy she had met their future relatives, and was ecstatic to know they were a part of her, but she was also sad that her life with Harry was on the line if she wouldn't be able to make it back in time.
A part of her was relieved, too, that she came to know what would have turned out back then. Now, she would be more careful in making decisions.
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"What is that git doing here?"
"You're awake." Harry kidded somberly at Ron, who began glaring openly at Draco Malfoy the minute he saw him behind Harry.
"I am." Ron rubbed his eyes and blinked more than once. "Though I don't know if it's possible to be having a nightmare at the same time."
"If you were, Mr. Weasley, then I must also be having the same vision." Dumbledore said quietly, although amusement was clearly shining in his eyes.
"But what is he doing here?" Ron asked again.
"He's here because of me." Harry explained simply as if those words were enough to calm Ron down and help him understand everything.
Ron peered behind Harry and saw Malfoy looking grim, then back at his best friend, with a look of sheer sincerity in his eyes. "Have you been hit with the Imperius curse?"
Harry suppressed his urge to laugh. "No, I haven't. Ron." He dismissed the notion with an impatient, yet amused, wave.
Then, Malfoy stepped forward to stop him from talking, also with a laughing disposition that surprised everyone in the room, especially the red-headed Gryffindor. "As much as I hate to spoil your fantasy of seeing me hauled into Azkaban because of a curse I can't perform, I have to admit, that was funny, Weasley." Then he turned to Harry. "Let me handle this, Potter."
Harry held up both hands, smiling affably. "He's all yours. You'll have your hands full, Malfoy, so I'll leave you to it." Passing Ron who was looking at him with questioning eyes, Harry went straight to Dumbledore.
"I see your walk had done wonders, Harry." The old professor whispered the moment he stood next to him.
"It did help, sir. Thanks." He nodded and smiled as he recalled the conversation he had with Malfoy earlier and found himself thinking.
Would he admit the same things he had to Ron? Harry couldn't help but ask himself. And as he remembered the reason why he and Malfoy were somewhat in good terms already, he couldn't also abstain himself from anticipating if Ron would know about Draco and Ginny at the end of their talk.
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Hermione couldn't recall ever leaving the library and was surprised half an hour later that she had somehow managed to make her way back to her dormitory in one piece. All that came to her mind, when she had come back to the little of what was left of her senses, was that she had returned the book on the shelf and had gone out without telling Erin, although whether she had left the book on the right shelf was still a puzzle for her.
But the rest of it was a blur, and now, as she sat on her four-poster, she couldn't help wishing for what seemed like the umpteenth time that she had never opened the book that had clearly stated "trouble" the moment she held it for the second time.
Finding out Ron had become her husband wasn't what was making her nauseous. It was the thought that she must have been a horrid wife to him that had her feeling sick. Although she couldn't be too sure about anything right now, she didn't want things to happen that way. No matter how cruel she sounded, marrying Ron had probably been forced on her, her disappointment over Harry's marriage with someone else pushing her to her limits.
She loved Ron, that's for sure, but not enough to marry him. But what was she going to do about it? It was actually a simple question that could simply be answered by anyone if she would stop considering other people's feelings even for just a short while. Turning Ron down would not be an easy feat, but there was really nothing she could do about it when the time arrived if she really didn't want to be married to him.
Without warning, a sudden bang exploded in the room that had Hermione clutching her head as spasms of pain hit her fully. All this thinking was making her dizzy, not to mention depressed and worried. Now all she needed was Prof. Dumbledore's instructions to make her day completely chaotic.
She shook her head at the mess she had recently gotten herself into. "What am I going to do?" She mumbled.
She nearly jumped out of her skin when she actually got an answer.
"Why, get a move on, Ms. Granger."
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"How am I supposed to believe you when all you've done was made our lives miserable?" Ron groused.
"Have I ever done something that had you believing I'm a liar?" Malfoy merely lifted an eyebrow. "I may be everything you said I was, but I've always told you the truth."
"But you twisted everything you said." Ron said though he agreed half-heartedly, after thinking about it for a while. "And you were never actually discreet about anything, were you?"
Malfoy smirked. "What can I say? I hate to lie."
Obviously looking for other ways to take him down, Ron crossed his arms. "Suppose you've really changed, what do I care?"
Malfoy muttered something and raked a hand through his hair. For a brief moment, his gaze flickered over to Harry, who was standing beside Prof. Dumbledore, both looking at something he couldn't quite make out. "You're harder to convince than him."
"I suppose I am." Ron agreed, nodding his head. "Well…"
"You'll find out soon enough." Malfoy answered his unfinished question. "Just take my word for now, and trust me, you'll care."
"You haven't actually cared about me--or my family--or my friends--ever since we met, Malfoy. How am I supposed to just take your word for it?" Ron pointed out, hoping he would shut the mouth of his enemy once and for all.
"Aw, come on now, Weasley." Malfoy cried out, hilarity in his tone. "I cared enough to bother you everyday for the last seven years, right?" He added, already aware of his gaining victory.
Ron was about to oppose him when Harry suddenly emerged beside them and said in a tone that was casual, but with words carrying deeper meaning. "Is everything okay with you two?"
"I don't know. What do you say, Weasley?" Malfoy asked.
Ron looked from Harry to Malfoy then back, not sure of what to say.
But having Harry as a best friend let him know the guy had always been better in judging people, and if he thought Malfoy was okay to have around, then he had no other choice but to accept him, despite what went on before.
But that didn't mean he'd stop fooling around…….
"Harry may have forgiven you readily, Malfoy, but I'm not like him." Ron said in a grave tone--a tone no one has ever heard him use, that at hearing it, Draco's face lost its laughter and was replaced by a frown.
"What--"
"But…" Ron interrupted him, smiling mischievously, "I'm willing to give you a chance." He concluded, his face breaking into a grin.
Over the years, he had grown and developed into being so much of an open-minded person that people was astounded by the thought of him as the same Ron Weasley, who had always thought of fighting and eating as the only solutions to every problem.
Now, he was different. He already thought of his decisions as if they were important as life itself and had never regretted anything since then--except of course his decision a few days ago to help Hermione which had turned out to be a disastrous one. Nevertheless, this was one choice he knew he'd never be sorry for.
"Now that we've cleared off some things, can we get back to why we're here?" This, he said, while looking at Ron.
"Before you do that, Potter, I have some things to say to Granger." Malfoy said, unaware of the turmoil he caused at the mention of her name. "Where is she, by the way? Come to think of it, I haven't seen her around lately."
Harry and Ron exchanged meaningful glances at each other with a simple question in each other's minds. Harry seemed about ready to say something when Prof. Dumbledore's voice echoed across the room.
"Why, get a move on, Ms. Granger."
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Hermione whipped her head about and managed to speak out although her voice had sounded quite strained and unfocused. "Prof. Dumbledore?"
She was still recovering from her stun from the headmaster's sudden connection when Ron's voice came, sounding quite breathless. "You don't have to sound so shocked, Hermione." He said in an amused tone. "We've done this before."
Her initial surprise was replaced by a sudden sense of solemnity as she heard the voice of the person whom she had been thinking of earlier. "I didn't expect to hear from you this soon." She tried to hide her uneasiness behind an annoyed voice but failed miserably.
"Is anything wrong?" Ron asked in a worried voice.
Had she been as ignorant as she was before, she would have probably mistaken his tone as nothing more than an impulse to know her current state. But now that she knew, she realized how much his words carried out his affections and she couldn't help but think it will never be the same again between them.
"Nothing." She muttered gravely, feeling quite depressed all of a sudden.
He really did care--it wasn't as if she hadn't been aware he did--but she never knew because of his seemingly-friendly fondness for her, they'll be married someday.
And now, thinking of what he had done for her and his support, she couldn't imagine herself turning him down even though she knew she wouldn't have the ending she wanted.
"What's going on?" A voice that belonged to someone completely out of place and unwanted emerged at the other side of the connection, followed by a couple of shushing and a hiss of a `keep quiet', which made her frown first in surprise, then in disbelief.
"Ron!" She cried out. "Tell me you didn't…!"
"Uh…" Ron couldn't say anything since the explanation of that would include Harry and mentioning him at this point wouldn't help at all. "I didn't say anything." He then flashed an apologetic look at Prof. Dumbledore. "He's here because of Prof. Dumbledore."
"Why didn't you ask him to leave before you talked to me?" Hermione asked again.
"Because we weren't aware Prof. Dumbledore would already talk to you before Malfoy left." Ron explained truthfully.
"Then ask him to leave now." Hermione said stubbornly.
"Don't talk as if I'm not here." Malfoy interrupted. "I'm not deaf, mind you."
"Get out of this conversation, will you?" Hermione snapped.
"I'm included in it." He shot back heatedly, forgetting he was supposed to be apologizing not creating an argument.
"I don't recall inviting you."
"As far as I can recall, Prof. Dumbledore did." He sneered.
He earned himself a stomp from Harry who mouthed `no, you didn't'.
"Calm down." Ron said before any of them can say something to further aggravate the matter.
They could hear Hermione's labored breathing at the other end and waited till she calmed down. "I could wring your neck for this, Ronald." She stated, agitatedly. "I suppose Ginny's there with you, too?"
Ron looked confused. Beside him, Harry and Draco froze and looked anxiously at each other. "Why would she be here?"
"Why? Because she--" Hermione paused, remembering Erin's story of Ron finding out about Ginny and Malfoy on graduation day, and decided to avoid the truth. "She's your sister. You could have told her." She, then, decided to change the topic and diverted to what she thought was an inevitable one. "Where's Harry?"
At the sound of his name, Harry straightened and looked pensively at the foam swirling about them. Ron, on the other hand, knew nothing to say. "He's--uh--not here."
"I sure hope he's not." Hermione said coldly. "Because I'm going to have to kill you if he is."
Hearing this, Ron shot a worried glance at Harry who was looking somber by the minute.
"What I mean is--where is he right now?"
Again, Ron was robbed of words. For someone who had so many excuses, he had suddenly run out of them. "I haven't been out of the office since we talked."
"But hasn't he asked you about me at all?" Hermione asked, desperately needing something to make her want to come back even more. At the other end of the line, Harry nodded his head frantically at Ron who had inquired him on what to say.
"He has." Ron answered.
"And what did you say?"
"You're not here and you're not ready to see him yet."
"And he hasn't approached you since then?"
Harry heard the disappointment in her voice, but he was too busy feeling ecstatic to tell Ron what to answer. Before he could stop himself, Ron replied `no' which got him a kick from Harry.
"Figures." Hermione muttered glumly. After taking a deep breath, she cleared her throat. "Prof. Dumbledore, I'm ready."
Hearing his cue said in a confused tone, Prof. Dumbledore thought greatly, linked his hands together, and leaned forward, then spoke. "Before we proceed to anything, I will have to test your determination to come back here. As we only have limited time, I expect no questions from you regarding the matter, whatsoever. Do you understand, Ms. Granger?"
Although taken aback by the statement, Hermione managed to whisper. "Yes, sir."
"Good." Prof. Dumbledore nodded. "Then let's begin."
Moving away from the other three lads, the headmaster muttered a few words and a blue-like mist suddenly emerged from under his wizard's hat and dove into the foam. Malfoy, sensing it would take some time, took the opportunity to ask.
"Has this anything to do with you and Granger going underground the other day?"
Ron gaped at him in incredulity. "That was you?"
"Who?" Malfoy asked, surprised.
"You!" Ron said animatedly. "The one who followed Hermione and I!"
"Oh." Malfoy looked thoughtful then grinned. "Yep, that was me."
"What did you think you were doing, sneaking behind us like that?" Ron whispered, glancing fleetingly at Prof. Dumbledore who was looking disconcerted.
"I wasn't planning to. But I was curious to know where you were going." Malfoy smirked.
"You were always the nosy git." Ron muttered.
Malfoy was saved from an answer by Prof. Dumbledore clearing his throat. "Mr. Malfoy, will you kindly inform Prof. McGonagall that I'll be down in a short while to have a word with her?"
"Yes, sir." Reluctantly, Malfoy stood up and went out.
As they heard the door click, the headmaster turned with a grave impression to look at the other two boys left. Ron looked on curiously, while Harry's heart began to slam against his ribs.
"I bet you did that, sir, to get him out of the way." Ron spoke up cheerfully when no one else did. "That was brilliant, that--"
"I'm afraid I asked him to actually go for that reason, Mr. Weasley." Prof. Dumbledore interrupted him, holding up a hand. "I do intend to talk to Prof. McGonagall just as soon as I clear everything."
With a lingering look at Harry and Ron and a glance at the still swirling mass of foam a few feet from where they were standing, he said. "In fact, I think I shall go now and be back later to explain everything to both of you."
"Sir…" Ron opened his mouth to inquire when, again, he was interrupted before he could finish.
"Meanwhile," Prof. Dumbledore alleged, his voice restrained as if he was dreading something. And as he took hold of the doorknob, for no known reason at all, Ron became frightened and Harry began to shake his head at the realization of what he had been afraid of.
"I'll leave you to your goodbyes."
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