A Slip of Paper
The next day at breakfast, Hermione sat across from Ginny and Dean and didn’t talk much. Ginny kept smiling solemnly at her and Dean was keeping a careful watch, but neither said much. She assumed Ron had said something about last night and waited for the impending explosion, but there was nothing. Then Ron and Harry came into the hall and made their way down the table. They were whispering to each other and Ron was staring right at her, grimacing. Hermione knew what was coming next, and turned the focus onto her plate, trying to eat as much egg as possible in case she had to leave.
When Ron finally made it to her, he didn’t even slow down. He kept walking past, his hands clenched into fists, and sat down nearly at the end of the table among a bunch of first years. Hermione did a double take, scrambled egg hanging from her mouth, but Ron wouldn’t look at her. Harry sat down beside her and sighed, pouring some orange juice for himself.
Hermione swallowed and looked from Ginny and Dean’s serious expressions, to Harry who was trying to hide in his porridge, then back down the table in Ron’s direction.
“So, I guess we have to talk, then.” Hermione whispered. “I guess Ron told you about last night.”
“I’m sorry, okay?” Harry turned towards Hermione, “I know I over reacted and I had no right and I should have just let you deal with him I just, I snapped, okay?”
Hermione’s eyes went big and she dropped her fork. “What did you do?”
“I banished him.” Harry sighed.
Hermione turned toward the other house tables for a moment, concerned. But no, there was Draco sitting at his normal breakfast spot. She turned back to Harry with a look of confusion on her face.
“No, Ron. I told him he wasn’t allowed to go near you anymore.”
Hermione raised her eyebrows and barely held back a snort. “You what?”
“You should have seen it.” Dean said across the table. “He shouted at Ron for a good ten minutes. I’m not afraid of meeting your dad anymore, Ginny, I’m more worried about seeing that guy at your house.”
Harry smiled awkwardly and carded his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t mean to, it just came out. Ron started ranting and calling you all these names and saying ‘how could she’ and I just snapped. I guess he walked in on you and that guy you’ve been seeing. And I get that it wasn’t the best way to find out about it, but still. I sort of banished him until he could act more like a friend. If you’re upset with me though, I’ll tell him to forget it.” Harry muttered.
“No,” Hermione laughed. “No, that’s pretty much what I told him too.”
It was Harry and Ginny’s turn to look astonished now.
Hermione sighed, “Last night, me and that guy I’m seeing were up in the astronomy tower, and Ron just sort of burst in, I guess he had your map. And he started yelling and I started yelling back and everything that’s been bothering me just sort of came out. It ended in Ron saying I was picking the guy over Ron, and me telling him he could either start acting like a friend, or get out. It probably didn’t help his anger much in hindsight.”
Hermione sighed and Ginny reached across the table to squeeze her hand.
“Ron can be a real prat, you’re both right. Maybe this is just the wakeup call he needs to smarten up and be a bit nicer. Don’t worry, Hermione, you and him will make up sooner or later, and hopefully he’ll learn his lesson this time.”
Hermione gave her friends a sort of half-smile and stared at her breakfast plate. “Harry,” She asked after a moment, “Did he, did he say who I was with?”
“No, your mystery man is still a mystery.”
“I don’t see what the big deal is, no one’s going to judge you.” Ginny said, “Unless there’s a big age gap or something like that…”
“Or he’s actually a she…” Dean suggested.
“Or he’s Neville or something…” Harry threw in.
Dean’s eyebrows went up and he leaned into the table, “Neville? You mean you don’t know yet?”
“What?” The other three leaned in.
Dean pointed toward the other end of the Gryffindor table where Neville was sitting backwards on the bench, talking to a girl at the Hufflepuff table and entirely ignoring breakfast.
“Hannah Abbott? No kidding!” Harry said.
“Yep, me and Dean sort of walked in on them kissing after herbology one day.”
Ron fled from breakfast as soon as he could and wandered around the castle alone for a while, thinking. He checked his watch at quarter past eight and decided to start his trek slowly to the first class of the term before the morning rush really began. He walked his way out from an empty side hall on the first level, making his way toward the stairs when the last person he wanted to see turned the corner. Draco was wandering alone down the corridors, fists balled at the sides of his pressed white shirt, staring at Ron. He couldn’t believe Draco was there by coincidence. They walked towards each other and for a moment it looked like they might get past one another without conflict. Then Ron felt Draco going for his book bag, and he threw out an elbow into the boy. Ron had hardly pushed him, certainly not tackled him in any way, but still Draco collapsed like a muggle tent in a breeze.
Ron backed against the wall and looked around to see who Draco was acting for, but they were alone. Draco laid face against the floor, clutching at his rib cage for a long time before making it eventually to his knees.
“What the fuck was that for?” Draco hissed
“I barely hit you. And you went for me first.” Ron muttered. “Your ribs are still fucked I see. Does that mean Hermione finally got some sense and refused to fix you up?”
“She did what she could.” Draco said with a grimace. He set his jaw and tried to stand up straight. He let out a grunt of pain when he tried to straighten his back and went back down to his knees, clutching the broken ribs.
“What the hell does that mean, she tried?”
“Like you give a shit.” Draco muttered and rolled onto his back, gasping. “It means they jinxed me. I can’t be healed by magic.” Draco said, staring straight faced at Ron.
“But-“ Ron mumbled. “You’re one of them, you’re a Malfoy. Shouldn’t you be their poster boy or something?”
“Yeah, they love me.” Draco started to laugh, which turned into a cough, holding onto his chest. “Fuck,” He mumbled, pulling up his shirt to look at his bandages. “I think I’m bleeding again.”
“You started it.” Ron took a step forward. “You went for my bag, it was a reflex. What were you playing at?”
Draco laid his head against the tile floor, looking away from the redhead. “I was trying to be covert, thanks Weaselbee. Front pouch.”
Ron dug into the open front pouch of his book bag and found a small scrap of parchment. He unfolded it and found three names written in a hurried black scrawl.
“What’s this supposed to be.”
“You are thick, aren’t you.” Draco said, finally trying to sit up again. “It’s information. Your dad’s in the Order, so give it to him.”
“Is this some kind of joke?” Ron’s anger flared, he moved to stand over Draco now. “This some sort of trap your goons have set up for us?”
“No, it isn’t.” Draco mumbled.
Ron lifted Draco up by his shirt and pushed him against the wall.
“What was that, ferret?” Ron whispered. “Why don’t you tell me the truth, why are you giving me these names?”
“Because I want them to suffer.” Draco said, his steely eyes staring into Ron’s blue orbs. “I want them to be hunted and I want them to be killed.”
Ron recoiled at the look of rage on Draco’s face, letting go of his shirt.
“Have you ever felt the cruciatus curse, Ronald Weasley?” Draco asked, sneering.
Ron stood back up to tower over Draco “Is that a threat?”
Draco laughed a little. “I have. Three times. Three names.” Draco raises his eyebrows and stared up at Ron, challenging him to say something. “You cannot begin to imagine how little I give a fuck about these people. You give those to the Order. You keep my name out of it. Your people do the best they can to drag ‘em down to the pits of hell. I’ll keep feeding you more.”
Ron stared down at Draco for a long time, but he couldn’t see anything in his eyes other than revenge. For the first time in six year Ron felt maybe Draco didn’t have some secret plot to fuck him over. Finally, he folded the slip of paper up and put it back in his bag. He extended his hand then and Draco hesitated only slightly before taking it and letting the redhead help him up. Ron turned and walked down the hall, refusing to look back. Malfoy stood holding his ribs for a few more seconds, before slowly walking off himself.