This Dance We Do

Chapter 18: Plans and Conversations

Ron felt Hermione's grip on his hand tighten.

"What do you mean 'a planned attack?' And what the hell are Death Eaters?" Mr. Granger directed his anger onto Snape, something Ron did not find very wise. Snape, however, seemed amused at Mr. Granger's ignorance.

"What is this?" Snape all but laughed. "Did Miss. Granger not inform her parents of the peril she and her little friends put themselves in at school?"

Ron had to struggle against the urge to wipe the smug smile off of Snape's face.

"We don't put ourselves in those situations, they have a tendency of finding us."

"You would do well to hold your tongue until you are spoken to, Potter."

"Actually, sir, this house is mine now, so if you'll refrain from telling me what to do in it.... Come to think of it, I could ask Hermione to find a spell to keep you out, if it strikes my fancy."

Snape's lip curled, and Ron thought he heard him growl softly before he spoke again.

"You know, Potter, you seem to inherit the personality traits of your father's friends who have died. I wonder, if Lupin is the next to go, will you finally gain some common sense?"

Ron was out of the chair before he knew he had left it. He did not hear Hermione or his mother cry out his name, nor did he realize that Harry was at his side, he was completely focused on getting to Snape and hitting him until he, Ron, could no longer lift his arms. Snape had gone too far this time, and what was worse, he knew it.

"Enough!"

Ron felt himself hit an invisible wall and fall backwards, hitting the floor hard and bruising his tailbone by the feel of things. He looked up at the person who cast the spell that he and Harry collided with.

"Severus," Professor Dumbledore said sharply. "If I ever hear anything like what I just heard, I will personally cast the charm on this house that will keep you from it. I know that you and Mr. Potter have never been on good terms with one another, but that is no excuse for what I just witnessed. And Harry, Mr. Weasley," Dumbldore rounded on Ron and Harry. "I know that you were provoked, but I would think that you would be able to control your tempers enough to refrain from attacking a teacher. Now, if you do not think that you can stay seated and control your emotions, I am going to have to ask you to leave. If, however, you think that you can listen to what I have to say quietly, you may stay."

Ron glared at Snape before he took his seat next to Hermione again. Harry did not return to his seat immediately, but instead continued glaring at Snape.

"Harry, please sit down."

Harry finally did as Professor Dumbledore asked, but did not stop glaring at Snape.

"Now, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, I believe that you deserve an explanation as to why you were so abruptly removed from your home in the middle of the night, but first I must know what your daughter has told you about the current situation in the wizarding world."

"Situation?" Mr. Granger asked. "What situation? What the hell is going on?"

"They know about Voldemort's history, Professor," Hermione said quietly from Ron's left. "But they don't know that he wasn't destroyed the night he came after Harry. Nor do they know anything that happened at school. I didn't want to scare them, I was afraid that they wouldn't let me go back to Hogwarts."

Dumbledore took a deep breath and shook his head sadly.

"Normally I would not condone students lying to their parents, but you were probably right. The time has come for your parents to know the truth, however. Molly, if you could get some tea for our guests; we will probably be here for some time."

Ron's mum fixed tea as Dumbledore explained the events of Harry, Ron, and Hermione's first five years of school, their run ins with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his followers, and the purpose of the Order of the Phoenix. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Dumbledore reached the reason why they were now huddled in the kitchen of Grimmuald Place instead of in their beds at Hermione's house.

"Now, before I continue," Dumbledore said to Mr. and Mrs. Granger, "I wonder if you have any questions about what I have covered thus far."

Ron turned his attention to Hermione's parents. He could not place her mother's expression, but her father looked like he was caught between rage and being dumbfounded.

"Any questions?" Mr. Granger almost laughed. "Do we have any bloody questions? Well, how can we, you've made things so clear. Raving lunatics are after my daughter at school, and now they have come after us! What questions could I possibly--"

Mrs. Granger laid a hand on her husband's arm, bringing him to silence. He simply shook his head, took a deep drink from his tea cup, and put his head in his hands. Dumbledore obviously took this as his cue to continue.

"Yes, I'm sad to say that that is the case. You see, Severus here has been working for us as a spy, and he has been able to give us a great deal of information in the past several months. For many weeks now, there has been talk among the Death Eaters of a planned attack. Severus and I naturally assumed that it was Azkaban, the wizard prison, that they were planning to attack, in an attempt to free the several Death Eaters that were imprisoned there last June. However, mere hours before the attack, the true nature of the mission was made clear.

"Since their plans in the Department of Mysteries last June failed, Voldemort and his followers have been trying to devise a plan to lure Harry here out of the safety of his aunt and uncle's home. It was a man they call 'Wormtail' who came up with the idea that they planned to execute: if Harry would rush into the path of danger to save someone he loved who he thought was in mortal peril, he would surely do the same to save someone he knew to be in grave danger. It was then that the plan to abduct your daughter was born."

Hermione softly gasped besides Ron. He tried to wrap his arm around her without drawing any attention to his actions, although he probably could have started snogging her in that moment and no one would have noticed. Mrs. Granger looked to be on the verge of tears and Mr. Granger, though he was comforting his wife, looked very close to breaking every bit of furniture Grimmauld Place held. Ron's parents looked resigned, Snape looked smug, and Harry... Harry looked entirely guilt ridden.

Ron wanted to comfort his best mate, but things like that did not happen between blokes. He could not wrap his arms around Harry, as he was Hermione. All he could do was try to convince his friend later that none of this was his fault, a task that became more and more difficult the longer Dumbledore spoke.

"The two prime targets immediately became your daughter and Mr. Weasley."

Ron's head snapped up at the mention of his name. He was a target? Then that meant...

"Professor? My family--"

"Are perfectly safe, as you were not the planned target."

"But you said--"

"I said," Dumbledore cut in again, "that you were a prime target. But you have many trained wizards living with you, and other wizarding families live nearby. It would have been too risky for them to attempt to abduct you. Instead, they targeted Miss. Granger, for many reasons. First and foremost, Miss. Granger is Muggle-born, so her parents would not be able to protect her. Second, she is the only witch in her area for miles. Third, they are under the belief that Miss. Granger and Harry are in a romantic relationship--"

"We are not!" Harry and Hermione said in unison.

Ron's heart swelled with that unnamed emotion again. Hermione had pressed herself closer to Ron and squeezed his hand, an indication--to Ron, in any case--that it was him that she wanted to be in a "romantic relationship" with. Ron pulled Hermione closer and kissed the crown of her head before returning his attention to Dumbledore.

"As I said, they are under the belief that Miss. Granger and Harry are in a romantic relationship, though anyone who knows them knows that their affections lie...elsewhere."

Ron could have sworn that Dumbledore's eyes flicked to him for a fraction of a second. The implications of this action caused Ron's ears to begin to burn.

"So, the Death Eaters planned to attack your home in the middle of the night, when you all were asleep and there would be less of a chance that you could fight back. But, thankfully, Severus brought us this information immediately, and we were able to intervene."

"Will we be able to return home?" The question came from Mrs. Granger, who was speaking in a soft voice directed at her hands, which were folded upon the table, her knuckles white.

"Not immediately, no," Dumbledore said sadly. "I'm afraid that you all will have to remain at Grimmauld Place for a few days. We will be stationing Order members around your home, and when they feel it is safe for you to return, you may go home. I am afraid that we will have to keep your daughter and her friends here until it is time for them to start school, however."

"Absolutely not!" Mr. Granger boomed. "I have heard enough, and my daughter is not going back to that ruddy school! I should have put a stop to all this when she stopped coming home for holidays. Hermione!" Mr. Granger rounded on his daughter.

Ron tore his arm from her so quickly he thought the both of them would fall off their chairs. Mr. Granger did not seem to notice, however.

"You will return home with us, and you will go to Our Lady's Secondary School for Girls in the autumn. You might have to take an extra year of school, but I'm sure you'll do well in your GSCE's and A-Levels and get into a good university. I am putting an end to all this magic nonsense, like I should have done five years ago! Now, gather your things, we're leaving."

"But Daddy--no--you don't understand--"

"Mr. Granger, I don't think that would be a good move." It was Ron's father who spoke. "If you take Hermione out of Hogwarts now, she will be an even bigger target. Granted, I'm sure she already knows how to defend herself, and anything she doesn't already know I'm sure she can learn from a book, but that is no reason to risk her being abducted, or worse, killed."

Mr. Weasley's last words resonated in the kitchen, pounding inside Ron's skull. Hermione, killed. Ron had the sudden feeling that he was going to be ill.

Mr. Granger was shaking his head silently.

"I assure you, sir, the gentleman speaks the truth. It would be most unwise to remove your daughter from Hogwarts at this date. She has already been marked as a target, and asking her to change schools or even friends will do nothing to change that now. All it will do is make her that much easier to capture. Now, I give you my word that your daughter will be safest in my care, and I hope that you will make the wisest choice. But now it is late, and we all should be getting to bed. Molly, if you could show the Grangers to their rooms? I trust the rest of you remember where yours are. I will see you all in a few days. Sleep well."

And with a pop he was gone.

Ron looked around the table. Everyone looked uncomfortable and like they did not know what to say. It was Snape who broke the silence.

"Yes, well, that was pleasant. As much as I'd love to stay and chat, I have business at the school. Have a nice evening."

Snape smiled wickedly at the group before he too Disapperated from the kitchen.

The silence that coated the room and its occupants was thick and palpable. Ron could almost taste the fear that the air was tinged with. They were targets, all of them. He had known this for years, of course, but something about hearing Dumbledore say it made it so final.

"Well," Mrs. Weasley said in a soft voice. "We'd best be getting to bed now. It's late and we've all had a long night. Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger, if you'll follow me, I'll show you to your room."

Mr. Granger looked like he was about to start protesting, but his wife took his hand and led him to follow Ron's mum up the stairs.

"Right," Mr. Weasley cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Well, that goes for you lot as well. Off to bed."

The three friends stood up, and slowly walked up the stairs to their bedrooms in silence. Hermione mumbled "Good night" before shutting the door to the bedroom that she and Ginny shared.

Ron wondered where his sister was. Dumbledore said she was safe, but where could she be? Before he knew it, his thoughts brought him to the room he shared with Harry.

Ron watched as Harry got dressed for bed like someone who was under the Imperius Curse. Harry crawled into bed, his back turned to Ron, and almost immediately started with the loud, fake snores that he used at the beginning of the summer. Ron shook his head before crawling into bed himself. He doubted that he would get any sleep...

"Come on dear, up you get. It's time for breakfast."

Ron's mother shook his shoulder as she tried to wake him.

"If you don't wake up soon, it will all be gone and you'll have to go hungry."

Ron rolled over. Food did not matter to him right now. He had had a very odd dream that went into a terrible nightmare and all he wanted to do was sleep a little longer.

Wait a minute, if it was all a dream, why was his mother waking him up and not the smells of Hermione's cooking?

Ron opened his eyes and looked at the bedroom that he shared with Harry, not at Hermione's house, but at Grimmauld Place. Ron groaned; it was not a dream, it had all happened. The planned attack, Dumbledore, Snape, Mr. Granger threatening to take Hermione away from Hogwarts - away from him.

"Well, good morning sunshine. Come on, get out of bed and get dressed, everyone else is already downstairs."

Ron glanced over to Harry's bed. Sure enough, it was empty. Ron's mum smiled at him, then left, shutting the door behind her to give him privacy as he got dressed.

He stumbled into the kitchen ten minutes later to find an odd group huddled around the table. There was his father, obviously trying to distract the Grangers by asking them endless questions about Muggles; his mother, filling everyone's plates and telling his father off; Hermione and Harry, each simply moving the contents of their plates around but not eating; and Moody and Lupin, sitting at an end of the table, whispering heatedly. Mrs. Granger kept shooting worried looks at Mad-Eye, but Mr. Granger seemed too busy fuming quietly to notice. Ron took a seat next to Hermione and across from Harry as his mother began fixing a plate for him.

"There you are, dear, tuck in."

Having served that last of her guests, Mrs. Weasley fixed a plate for herself before settling in beside her husband. An uncomfortable silence settled over the table, Mr. Weasley having given up questioning the Grangers. The only sound was the steady hiss of Moody and Lupin's conversation.

"So," Mrs. Weasley said a bit too loudly. "Ginny is arriving today, and I thought that the four of you," she nodded to Ron, Harry, and Hermione, "could do some straightening up around the house."

"But, Mum," Ron whined. "Professor Dumbledore said that everything was removed from the house. What else has to be done?"

"Well, yes, all the unpleasant items have been removed, but the house still needs to be kept up. Dusting and the like. We don't want the house to fall into disrepair again, do we?"

Ron turned his gaze to Harry.

"Hey, mate, why don't you tell Kretcher to do all the cleaning? I mean, the house is yours now, doesn't he have to listen to you?"

This upset both Ron's mother and Hermione.

"Kretcher is old, you can't expect him to clean this whole house by himself!"

"Even if Kretcher hadn't passed, that wouldn't be any help. He wouldn't listen to Harry, he's not a Black. And he didn't clean before, that's why the house was in disrepair."

Hermione looked at Mrs. Weasley.

"Kretcher passed? You mean...he died?"

"Well, he was old, now, wasn't he? But yes, shortly after Dumbledore left, he curled up in Sirius' mother's room and passed away."

Hermione put her hand to her mouth and sadly shook her head. She looked genuinely upset, a fact that puzzled Ron.

"What are you so upset about? He was terrible to you."

"Oh, Ron, that's not the point, he didn't know any better. It's just, he died, and no one even cared, it's like he's not even human."

"He wasn't human, Hermione, he was a house elf. They're classified as Magical Creatures. Anyway, you obviously care, that's enough, isn't it?"

Before Hermione could open her mouth to tell Ron off, Harry stood up abruptly.

"I'm still quite tired. If you all don't mind, I think I'm going to lie back down for a little bit. I'll help with the cleaning when Ginny gets here."

He did not even wait for an answer, but instead turned on his heel and left the room.

Ron and Hermione looked at each other briefly before they started off after Harry. Ron's mum stopped them, however.

"Let him go, he needs his rest."

Hermione nodded.

"We'll just start the cleaning, then."

Ron opened his mouth to object, but his mother cut him off.

"All right, dear. Everything's in the first floor drawing room."

"Thanks."

Hermione grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him from the room before he could say anything.

"Hermione," he said as he pulled her to a halt on the stairs. "Why did you volunteer us to start the cleaning early?"

She looked at him like he should know the answer, then shook her head.

"Fine, we won't start the cleaning until your sister gets here, I just wanted to talk to you."

Ron raised an eyebrow at her.

"Talk to me? About what?"

"Er..." color spread through Hermione's face, "about what happened the other night, in the sitting room."

Ron blushed as well when he realized what she was talking about.

"Oh, that. Right. Well, what do you want to say?"

Oh no! She's going to say it was all a mistake, and she's going to hate me for ever kissing her!

"Well, I don't want to talk about it in the middle of the stairs, so could we go upstairs, please?"

Ron nodded and let her lead him into the drawing room where all the cleaning supplies were located. He started fidgeting with a rag.

"You see, the thing is, er..." Hermione cleared her throat and suddenly became very interested in the pattern of the carpet. "I'm not so sure that we should...what I mean is I don't think it would be wise too--"

Ron's heart fell. That same unnamed emotion that could make him feel so great was now crushing him.

"You think it was a mistake?"

"NO!"

Ron was taken aback by how adamant Hermione was. He watched the colors spread across her cheeks as his own ears burned.

Okay, she did not think that it was a mistake, then what was all this about?

"You see, the thing is, I think we should keep it to ourselves for the time being."

Ron's confusion must have shown on his face, because she elaborated.

"It's just, Harry...."

If Ron thought the pain he felt when it seemed Hermione was saying that she thought their kiss was a mistake could not get any worse, he was wrong. All the air left Ron's lungs as the full spectrum of what Hermione was saying hit him. She liked Harry, she wanted to be with Harry.

Ron forced himself to take in a shaky breath. He would try to be happy for them. Harry was, of course, the type of person Hermione deserved: brave, smart, wealthy, nice to her.

"Of course, Harry. Well, if you want to go and tell him.... What I mean is, you two have my blessing, if that's what you're looking for."

Hermione looked very confused, then realization struck her.

"I don't fancy Harry, you prat! I was trying to say that Harry's not in a good spot right now, and if he thinks that you and I are developing a relationship, he might think that there will be no room for him in our lives. I just don't want to give him any further reasons to pull away, that's all. And he's gone through so much recently, the last thing he needs is to feel like the third wheel."

Ron looked at her. She was worried about Harry, of course. Relief flooded him as the air rushed back into his lungs. If she did not fancy Harry, then that meant that she.... Ron opened his mouth, before he lost his nerve.

"Hermione, would you like to go to the winter ball with me?"