Chapter 3
July 11th, 1999
Three days after Nathan was attacked by Ron, Hermione was in her room at her parent's house in Australia, still sad over what happened, when she heard a knock on the front door. Mrs. Granger opened it and saw Harry, Ginny, Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, George, Fleur, Bill, and their daughter. Mrs. Granger let everyone in, called down Hermione and Mr. Granger, and they all sat around to discuss what happened with Ron. Harry asked Hermione, "What exactly happened?"
Everyone turned to Hermione, who reluctantly said, "Ginny told me Ron was going to leave to Manchester. I went to George's shop to find him, and then when I tried apologizing to him again, he then said we should visit Nathan. Using his deluminator, we apparated to the spot where he saw me kiss Nathan. Then, we took a cab to Nathan's house, where Ron bizarrely said I would be better off with Nathan moving forward since I kissed him and loved him. I tried to make something up to Nathan because I didn't know what to say since Ron was the one who unexpectedly brought me over here. So, I tried to say I was going to the university nearby here, which Nathan used to go to, but then I backtracked saying that Nathan kissed me while I was dating Ron. Ron acted aggressive and yelled at Nathan, being mad that he kissed me. Nathan then said that he would've been a better boyfriend than Ron ever would be and that he'd be a better father to my kids than Ron would. And Ron snapped. He punched Nathan several times and brutalized him."
Everyone listening was in shock, before Ginny asked, "What do you mean he brutalized him?" Hermione responded, "The doctors at the hospital said Nathan suffered a Grade 3 concussion, a broken nose, a broken jaw, missing teeth, a black eye, and worst of all, Nathan's paralyzed." Everyone was in more shock at the injuries Nathan sustained at the hands of Ron. Hermione then asked, "Where is Ron now?" Harry responded, "The git left for Manchester. He's gone."
Mrs. Granger then said, "Well, what's going to happen now? The police have been trying to find out who did it." Harry then said, "Apparently, the training facility is in Preston and is heavily guarded with magic, just like at Hogwarts. Ron's already started his training and the people who have organized the training are not going to let him go. They refused to acknowledge he's even in the facility." Mrs. Granger then said, "He assaulted Nathan. We can't just let him get away with this. Nathan can't move right now." Harry responded, "I'm sorry, Mrs. Granger. But there's nothing we can do. You can try to talk to the organizers there, but they won't even acknowledge that he's there." Hermione then said, "One way or another, I'm going to confront Ron. I want to talk to him first before any extradition process happens. Nathan deserves his justice." Harry responded, "Hermione, that's not a good idea. You were there when he assaulted Nathan. I don't want you to be around him, when he's exhibited the kind of behaviour that he displayed when he attacked Nathan. Plus, you're supposed to be back in England today getting ready for your first day at the Ministry. I had to tell them you had a family emergency once Ron came back and told me what happened himself." Hermione responded, "I don't care. My biggest concern right now is Nathan. I saw him get brutalized by Ron. I feel responsible for all of this happening." Mrs. Weasley then said, "No, it is not your responsibility. Yes, you did do something wrong and you broke my son's heart by kissing another boy. But two wrongs do not make a right. And what Ron did was wrong, and was way worse. He put that boy in the hospital. Now, are you going to come back to England with us, dear?" Hermione replied, "As much as I want to go back, I feel it's best to be with my parents and help look after Nathan. I'll be back in England soon and tell the Ministry what happened. Maybe then, we could get Ron removed from his training and extradite him here to Australia."
July 15th, 1999
In the week since Ron assaulted Nathan, Hermione decided to stay back in Australia and, along with her parents, check up on him at the hospital he was staying in. The nurses at the hospital said the day before that Nathan was slowly recovering and that he could regain consciousness in a matter of days. The week after he was assaulted, Nathan groggily woke up, though he couldn't move. Hermione was in his room when he woke up and went up to him to see how he was doing.
Once Nathan opened his eyes, he angrily sighed before he slowly said, "Why are you here?" Hermione was confused at Nathan's question and asked, "What?" Nathan repeated the question again, but sounded more rude, "Why are you here, Hermione?" Hermione tried to respond, "I'm here because I saw you get hurt. My aunt and uncle are concerned about you and so am I." Nathan then asked, "Let me ask you this, why did you bring Ron over here?" Hermione froze before she reluctantly said, "I didn't. He essentially dragged me here, claiming he wanted me to be with you. He said that the awkward chasm between us that started when I kissed you was bothering him. So, he said that while he loves me and he wished to be with me, he'd rather have me be with you, even though I love him more." Nathan then said, "So, you don't actually want to go to UWA? You don't actually care about me? And you brought your boyfriend over just to attack me?" Hermione replied, "Look, I didn't know Ron would attack you. He has a short temper and I'm sorry." Nathan angrily said, "Look at me, Hermione. I'm laying in a hospital bed because of your boyfriend. I've been paralyzed from the neck down. But guess what? When I get out of this hospital, I'm going to find him. Where is he?" Hermione didn't want this to escalate anymore and lied, saying, "He disappeared. I don't know where he went." Nathan then replied, "Well, he's gotta be somewhere. And when I find where he's finding and I see him, I'm going to get payback. And I want you to come along. In the meantime, I want you to get out. I don't want to see you again until I find him." Hermione pleads Nathan to listen to her, "Look, I'm sorry Ron attacked you. I know I caused this but please, forgive me, Nathan." Nathan raises his tone and angrily yells, "GET OUT! NOW!"