18. Chapter 18: Ron

Whoa! Last time I counted, I got more than 40 reviews for chapter 17! Wow! -Faints in shock- -Revives in order to bring you the next chapter-

& hopefully you'll enjoy...

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10 Ways to Kill Draco Malfoy

Chapter 18

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RON

Wow. He actually did it.

Harry finally asked my little sister out.

Well, kinda... I mean, he did say that Hermione and I would be coming along too. So it's not like they'd be alone together or anything. But still! He did it without stopping halfway and running off! That's pretty good for someone who's been feeling protective of Ginny since he rescued her in his 2nd year, and has been too shy to tell her his feelings for, um, 4 years. Which is a very long time.

Who'd have thought the most famous boy in the magical world would be afraid to ask a girl out?

"OK, Harry. She said yes. What now?" This is Hermione.

Harry shrugs. "I dunno."

I narrow my eyes at Hermione. She narrows hers back at me. "What?" she demands - rather defensively, I think. Or maybe that's just my imagination.

"You still haven't told us what you and Malfoy got up to last night," I say, absently scratching my nose with my quill. I dip it into the ink pot and resist from scratching my nose any longer, because then it would be stained black. I dab the excess ink onto a tissue and start copying down the paragraph from the History of Magic book. "Gargh, this is so boring."

"You were there. You saw. Nothing happened," she answers, but doesn't meet my eye as I glance up to look at her. "Well, too bad if it's boring, Ron. You've got to finish it. It's due tomorrow morning! I mean, Professor Binns was actually nice enough to let you have one more night to complete it. Even though tomorrow is Saturday."

Harry grins. "Your fault for not doing any of it in the three days he gave you to complete it. I mean, three whole days to copy down a few paragraphs relevant to the history of magical pets and how Muggles viewed them. That's nothing. You should see Hermione's homework planner. Man, is it full..."

Hermione laughs. "And strangely, I get it done, too. Unlike some people here."

"Don't try to change the subject from your date with Ginny, Harry - and for you, Malfoy." I finish the sentence and check to make sure I didn't make any mistakes in copying. "Last night, when we were looking out for you, a couple of Slytherins ambushed us from behind a statue. Now you tell us what was going on. The last thing I saw was... hmmm, Blaise walking in. When an infamously bisexual Slytherin walks into a meeting between you and Malfoy, it can't be good." I glare at my friends, one of whom blushes furiously and looks away, coughing delicately, and the other glares right back at me.

"What happened between me and Malfoy is none of your business," she snaps, before realizing the tone of her voice and what she had said. Harry stares at her.

"What's with you, 'Mione?" he asks, surprised. "Ron was just worried about you. That's all. There's no need to get angry."

I nod. "Yeah. If there's anything wrong, you can tell us."

Hermione stands up, and slaps the table. "I wasn't angry!" Yeah, right. "Just leave me alone, OK? I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me! Nothing happened in that meeting. Nothing!" she yells before stomping off into her dormitory. Several people nearby turn their heads to glance at us and whisper among themselves. One murderous look from me and Harry quickly sends them back to what they were talking about before.

"Gee... I wonder what happened last night," I muse. "Must have been pretty bad for her to react like this from a simple question."

Harry shakes his head. "If it was that bad, I'm not sure I want to know."

The next day, we wait for Hermione in the common room for about an hour before giving up and heading to the Great Hall for some breakfast. Throughout the whole day, there is no sign of her. When I ask Ginny what is wrong with Hermione, she shrugs. "I haven't seen her since after breakfast. She said something about going to the library to finish off homework. That's not really a unusual thing for her, so I didn't think it was suspicious or anything."

As Harry comes up from behind me, Ginny sees him and goes bright red. "Er, um... hi, Ginny!" he says, a tad too brightly, when I elbow him in the ribs.

Ginny giggles. "Hello! Well, I've got to go. See you later! We're going to Hogsmeade at 2pm today, right?"

Harry and I nod. "That's right. If Hermione's not around by then, we'll have to go without her," I grimace. "As much as I'd hate for that to happen... but we can't really quit this 'date', right?"

She punches me in the arm rather hard, and frowns. "Aw. Do we have to? It'll be really sad to go without her." Translation: No! I don't want to be alone with my brother and the guy I really like! What if I do something stupid? There won't be another girl to tell me what to do!

Yeah, you may think it's odd that I understand basic girl speak. But I have been living with a sister for 15 years. 13 years since she started talking. So that's a pretty long time to get to know what girls actually mean when they say something.

Slowly the hours tick by. Harry keeps glancing at his watch and shooting worried looks at the portrait-hole, as if expecting Hermione to crawl through it and come in, beaming, any minute now. At first he frantically suggests we look for her, but Ginny tells him not to. If Hermione wanted to be left alone, then it is best to leave her be. When she is ready to face us and tell us what happened, she would. But in her own time. So in the end we settle for asking Nearly Headless Nick to wander around the school and tell us if he sees her anywhere.

But as 2 o'clock comes, there is still no sign at all of Nick or Hermione herself. Sighing, I stand up. "2pm, guys. Time to go. Looks like Hermione won't be joining us."

Ginny looks remorseful as she puts on a coat. We head out with the rest of the students going for a hot glass of Butterbeer at Three Broomsticks, or going to buy sweets from Honeydukes. The rest of the people are probably going to see the rest of the places, like the Shrieking Shack, Post Office or the joke shop. Too bad we already know the secret of the shack, or it would have been another place on our must-visit list for our trips to Hogsmeade.

"Three Broomsticks for some Butterbeer?" I suggest as we head down the street. The other two nod numbly. Both are shocked that Hermione would actually miss their first 'date'. To be honest, I am very surprised, and a little angry, at her stubborneness. What was so bad that she couldn't tell us, and instead had a big fit over it? I suspect she is overreacting about the whole situation.

We walk slowly into the bar, and find an empty table near the back of the room, as usual. Ginny rubs her hands, even though it isn't all that cold. Harry looks like he wants to hold them to keep them warm, but doesn't have the guts to grab her hands. I stand up to take a look around, in case Hermione has decided to come after all. She does know that we would be stopping here first thing, and I am pretty sure that she knows the time we would be coming, too.

Nothing. I sigh. Oh well. I didn't really expect anything...

"I'm going to buy drinks," I inform the two, who are deep in conversation. About what, I wouldn't know. At least they're talking, and awkward silences seem to be few and far between their bursts of animated speech. Harry looks up and smiles, and Ginny gives me a quick nod.

"Thanks. Here's six galleons for the drinks." Harry looks at Ginny briefly before turning back to me. "It's on me."

Ginny tries to protest, but Harry shakes his head. "I guess that means I owe you another present at Christmas," I mumble good-naturedly and walk off to buy the Butterbeers.

"Hello there... Mr Weasley, is it?" Madam Rosmerta says cheerfully as I approach.

I blush slightly. "That's right, Madam. How are you?"

She giggles. "I'm great. Nice weather, isn't it? Now what would you like, Ronald?"

I grimace at the name, but hide it under a weak smile. "Three Butterbeers, if you don't mind."

Madam Rosmerta nods. "Of course. No problem." She takes out a large jar of Butterbeer and three glass cups, and starts pouring the drinks.

At that moment, the door to the Three Broomsticks slams open.

Most people keep on talking, but Rosmerta glances up quickly. "Oh! Mr Malfoy. How nice to see you again. Please take a seat."

Upon hearing that, I decide not to turn around and see Malfoy's stupid smirk (TM). It is what she says next that makes me turn around very sharply, eyes bulging. "Good day to Miss Granger and Mr Zabini, too! What would you like, you three?"

"Hermione!" I shout as I spot her standing calmly among the Slytherins. She sees me and her eyes grow wide.

"Oh! Ron...! I didn't think you'd come here first thing," she exclaims, turning pink. Behind her, Blaise smiles at me, and puts a hand on her shoulder in a rather seductive manner. Hermione glares at him and he quickly takes his hand off and coughs lightly. Several groups of girls around Blaise and Malfoy wink at them. Blaise (that shameless flirt... just because he has a nice face and money! Some people have all the luck...) goes off and starts talking to them, occasionally resting a hand on one of the girls' knees or shoulders.

"Surprised to see her with us, Weasel?" Malfoy drawls after ordering drinks, and smiles at Madam Rosmerta, who flushes and smiles widely back. "Didn't think we'd sink as low as to hang out with her, did you?"

At this comment, Hermione kicks him hard in the shins, and by the looks of his expression, it must have hurt. Ha! He deserves it for insulting her so much. Though it is quite strange. What is she doing with them, anyway? Did she ditch us for them? No way. Hermione wouldn't do that. She's a loyal friend, that much I know from being her best friend for over five years. "Ron, don't listen to that meathead. I came with them to find you. Since you were coming here, anyway..." she trails off when she realizes that she is explaining herself into a corner. "The point is, I found you guys." Hermione looks around. "Where's Harry and Ginny? Don't tell me they've already snuck into somewhere secluded."

I laugh. "Not likely. They're having a heated conversation about Quidditch. The best thing to get them started, I suppose..." I point to the corner, where our table is. I thank Madam Rosmerta and, with the help of Hermione, carry the mugs of Butterbeer over.

When I turn I bump into Malfoy and Blaise. "What are you two doing?" Hermione says, annoyed. "This is our table."

Malfoy pretends to look hurt. "Oh, you're so ungrateful, Granger. We offer to take you along to Hogsmeade, and this is the thanks we get?"

She gives him an angry look, but relents and shrugs. "Well, do what you want. Mind you, this table won't be too interesting for girl-fanatics like you. Maybe the other groups of girls-" she points at the young women Blaise had just been flirting with - "-will be better company for the likes of you."

"What if we want to stay?" Blaise says loftily, glancing at Harry and Ginny, who are still talking. Ginny has this big smile on her face, and Harry looks like he is about to burst with glee. Well. I don't blame him. He's finally on a date and talking with the girl he's liked for how long.

"Then stay. But I warn you, we'll be leaving soon. You can stay here, but we won't be." I smile viciously at him. He looks a little taken aback at the venom in my voice (yes, I did learn that from Hermione) but recovers quickly and puts on that famous smile that so many girls find mysterious, slightly smirky and very sexy. Though not as sexy as Draco Malfoy's smirk, of course. That expression attracts so many girls, it should be illegal. I mean, there are other boys apart from him, you know!

Hermione grins at me. We proceed to talk as if the Slytherins are not there. After a while, there are three groups of people talking at our table, two groups occasionally merging to have a group conversation: Hermione and I, Harry and Ginny, plus the other two extras, Blaise and Malfoy. They talk in whispers, and only occasionally shoot glares in our direction.

When we finish our Butterbeers, Ginny proceeds to stand up. "Let's go! We should visit Honeydukes. I hear they're giving out samples of their newest sw...!"

But she doesn't finish her sentence, because, to the shock of all nearby, Blaise has walked up and kissed her on the lips. Harry's jaw is literally dropping wide open. I stare at the two kissing. Hermione has an angry expression on her face, and is standing up to get the slimy git off her friend. Ginny looks surprised and a bit blank, and Blaise has his eyes closed, as if he's enjoying it.

A moment later, he steps back and breaks the kiss. Ginny is still blank and doesn't seem to have realized what has happened. "Ginny!" Hermione shrieks, and she snaps back to reality.

"Yeah? What happened? The last thing I remember was Blaise... OMFG!" Her eyes widen and the first thing she does is to glance back at Harry, who looks at her blandly. "I'm so sorry, Harry! I didn't even realize what happened!"

"Why are you apologizing?" he asks, a forced smile on his face. "It wasn't your fault." Harry may be famous, but he's not exactly good at covering up his feelings. It's obvious he's very mad at what happened, partly because he was probably hoping to kiss her on the date, but also because of all the righteous crap - kissing somebody when you don't like them is wrong, etc.

I turn to Blaise and give him a withering look. "Why you little..." I hiss as I grab the front of his robes. "You interrupted my best friend and my little sister's date! You kissed my sister in front of Harry, who is technically her boyfriend! You are going to get the beating of your life if you don't get your sorry ass out of here, NOW!" I roar the last part, and Malfoy seems rather surprised at this display of anger. Blaise looks practically terrified.

"OK, OK! Calm down, Weasley. It was a dare, alright? I was dared to kiss your sister in front of Potter. I didn't do it because I wanted to, you know. I mean, she is a Weasley... hahah." He laughs nervously but whimpers as I raise a fist.

"Boys! Stop fighting this instant!" Madam Rosmerta's voice calls out. "If you must fight, do it outside!"

Hermione rolls her eyes at this. "Talk about selfish. Ron, Blaise, break it up. Don't fight here. We're already causing a scene." Ginny is holding on to Harry, whose smile is a little strained. Reluctantly, at my sister's pitiful puppy expression, I let go of Blaise and give him a dirty look. "OK, Draco. What is all this about?" She folds her arms and looks up at Malfoy, who sneers.

"Oh, it was nothing. Simply a game of Truth or Dare. Blaise was lucky enough to be dared to kiss Weaslette in front of Potty. My personal treat. I hope you enjoyed that kiss, Ginny, because you won't be getting another one from a Slytherin for the rest of your life. I'm afraid you'll have to settle for wimpy little Gryffindor boys." He smirks at Hermione, pats her on the cheek, and leaves. "Come on, Blaise, your dares are done. Let's go back to Hogwarts. It's getting a bit cold out here."

Hermione gapes at him. "Who gave you the authority to touch me and then just leave?" she yells. By now, the whole bar is watching us from their tables, like this is some kind of Muggle TV show. Malfoy stops at the doorway and gives her one last smirk before closing the door.

We all sit down slowly, each mentally murdering Malfoy and Blaise for ruining the date. After a while of silence, in which the rest of the bar stops staring at us and the noise level rises again, I speak up, feeling rather dazed.

"Can someone tell me what that was all about?"

Because really... I don't remember inviting those two to come to Hogsmeade with us. And why was Hermione with them, anyway? She was explaining, but then she just stopped. I wonder what she's hiding from us. She didn't seem like she knew about this whole Blaise-kissing-Ginny thing, because when I looked at her when Blaise snogged Ginny, she looked as shocked as the rest of us.

Just what is going on around here between Hermione and Malfoy's gang? I, for one, definitely would like to know. And I have a funny feeling Harry would, too. Especially the Blaise bit...

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And so, Blaise carries out his dare... in front of Harry... who is definitely not pleased. :D Hehe.

Stay tuned for the next chapter. It's the holidays right now (for two weeks), w00t, so I might be able to update faster. I'm not sure. It really all depends on my inspiration to write.

Remember, reviews speed up the updating process. ;3