Invisible Trail

Chapter Seven: Unforeseen Changes

Sunlight was pouring in through the windows. It was perfect for a Sunday at Hogwarts. The students could just go out and enjoy the day before the classes started; it was one of their last opportunities to have fun before the amount of work started piling up. It was ideal for those who were already awake, which was not the case of Ron. He was barely waking up and had to rub his eyes to try to get them accustomed to the light. He slowly sat up and looked around him to find couches, chairs, tables, a fireplace. Realization struck him after a few moments: he was in the Gryffindor common room.

The memories of the previous night suddenly came to him: he had been waiting for Hermione but he had dozed off. His mind raced as he analyzed all the possibilities, each worse than the previous one. He was already in his room fully dressed and ready to go and look for her. He just hoped she was alright. Worrying about Harry was enough already, and now Hermione.

He decided to begin his search in the most likely place for her to be at this hour: the Great Hall. Evidently the place was filled with students of the different houses and also with several professors, but she was not there. His stomach growled at the sight of breakfast but he pushed his hunger back and decided to find her.

He went to the library next, but it was completely empty. Who would want to be here so early on a Sunday? he asked himself. Besides Hermione, that is, he added as an afterthought.

He went outside; perhaps she wanted some fresh air before the beginning of term. Nothing. The owlery. No sign of her. He was positively frantic when he did not see her at the Quidditch pitch, not that he expected her to be there. He could think of nowhere else to look.

His hunger completely forgotten, he returned to the common room with the faint hope that she had returned so late that she was just about to wake up. He had barely stepped inside the room when he heard a cry.

"Ron!" He didn't need to look to know who it was. Before he could say or even do anything, he found himself being hugged by none other than one of his best friends.

"Where the hell have you been, Hermione? I've been looking for you all over the castle!" He had tried to seem angry, but knew she could see the relief that spread through him after seeing she was fine. "I've been worried sick!"

"I'm so sorry, Ron!" she apologized. "I woke up late and went looking for you but nobody knew for sure where you were. Some people told me they saw you here, others coming out of the library, others at the Great Hall, near the lake. . ."

"I went to all those places looking for you. Don't you ever dare do that to me again or I might have a heart attack. Anyway, why didn't you wake me up when you came back last night?"

Ron saw how her smile vanished and was soon replaced by something he could not easily identify. Anger? Disgust? A mixture of both?

"Let's go for a walk, shall we?" Hermione asked as she led him out of the common room. Once they were in the grounds, she told him everything about last night: Malfoy, the insults, the patrols, her new headquarters. Once she had finished, Ron turned a deep red. Anger was coursing through his veins; one could almost see steam coming out of his ears.

"Ron, what are you doing?" He was already heading towards the castle when she caught him by the wrist, causing him to stop.

"I'm going to see Dumbledore. He is completely nuts; he obviously hasn't realized what he has just done, putting Malfoy and you in the same quarters." Ron was practically dragging her along to the front door. "Doesn't he remember that he hates all the Muggleborns, specially you?! I won't allow this!"

They were already inside the castle and Ron kept on walking through the corridors. "Ron, I know you are worried bu-," Hermione started but was interrupted.

"Worried?! That ferret is going to hurt you if we don't do something at once."

"I can take care of myself very well, thank you!" Hermione replied. "How many times do I have to prove it?"

"I know that perfectly well. You have beaten me loads of times duelling and you can give Harry a hard time, but that doesn't matter. You know Malfoy is well trained in the Dark Arts and he could attack you while you're asleep." They were by now very near Dumbledore's office.

"Yes, and that's the reason I want to stay there," she pointed out.

"You want to get killed in your sleep?" Ron inquired.

"Don't be silly, Ron. Can't you see it? I could watch Malfoy closely and if he makes one wrong move. . ."

"Of course, we could finally present proof that his family is involved with You-Know-Who!" he said brightening up. "Imagine Dad's face when Lucius gets sent to Azkaban!"

"Do you trust me now when I tell you I'm going to be just fine?" Hermione asked.

"You have my full confidence, but if he lays a finger on you I swear I'll. . ."

"Boys!" Hermione said more to herself than to Ron.

They headed towards the kitchens to get a snack before lunch and to visit Dobby, who was quite sad to see them without Harry. Winky had died during the previous year due to extreme depression; she had never quite recovered from being sacked by her former master, Mr. Crouch. They had barely sat on their favourite couches in the common room when Professor McGonagall entered and walked over to them.

"Mr. Weasley, today are the Quidditch tryouts. Potter booked the pitch before we left on vacation." Ron could see her eyes blink back some tears when she mentioned Harry, who had been named captain at the end of their fifth year since Angelina was already leaving. Quidditch had been a hard experience during their sixth year; they had had to find new beaters and chasers. Nevertheless, they had managed to win the Quidditch Cup once again. This year one of the new chasers and both beaters had already left Hogwarts so they had to find new ones. And now their seeker was missing too.

"Who is taking Harry's place as captain, professor?" Hermione asked.

"Being the oldest member of the team, Mr. Weasley should take care of the job," she simply replied. It took a couple of minutes for the message to sink in.

"Me, professor?!" Ron had never considered this, he had not thought about it. How am I going to fill Harry's place? he asked himself. I'll never be half as good a captain as he was.

"Yes, you. I suggest you start getting ready, the tryouts start within twenty minutes." And with that she left.

"Twenty minutes?! I'm not showing up. I could never. . . I wouldn't. . . Why me?"

"Ron, calm down!" Hermione said after seeing his present state.

"Easy for you to say it! You haven't just been told that you have to lead a Quidditch team that your best friend was supposed to captain," Ron exploded. "I can't do it! Harry is the best captain Gryffindor has ever had!"

"I'm sure you'll manage it. And if you aren't certain, why don't you ask Ginny to help you? Two Weasleys are better than one," she suggested.

"Yes, that's it. I have to go. God knows we need a miracle to find four good new players." He left to get his Quidditch robes and broomstick from his bedroom and returned after a few moments. He was half way down the corridor when he turned around. "Aren't you coming?" he asked Hermione.

"What? Oh, no! I have to . . . do Head Girl duties. I'm sorry. I bet you're going to be just fine. Good luck." Ron left quickly; he was already late. This day had been horrible and it was only midday. He just hoped the rest of the year would be easier, knowing that for that he would need Harry by his side.

Hermione stood up and went to her common room. She did have duties, but she was not willing to do them. She could have accompanied Ron to the tryouts but it seemed to her that Quidditch could not possibly be fun without Harry. Sure, she always supported Ron but she spent half the time with her eyes shut from fear. Ron had improved a lot, but she could never forget his first games and that horrible song. On the other hand, watching Harry race and dive to catch the snitch was a wonderful experience: a cross between excitement and anxiety.

When she arrived she heard no noise and supposed Malfoy was not there. She sat in the common room and wondered how many changes were left, with Harry gone. Without him one of her shields was down; for several years she had thought of Harry and Ron as her brothers. She sat there with her arms wrapped around her legs and her head on her knees for a while until . . . BOOM!

Not a second had passed when she stood up. Wand in hand, she looked around to see what had exploded when she saw him. He seemed frightened at what she might do to him and at the same time amused by his little joke. Moron. I'll teach him what's good, she thought. When she lowered her wand, he dropped his guard and . . .

"Petrificus totallus," she shouted with her wand at ready again. He had no chance to escape and fell to the floor. She left the common room and started heading towards the Great Hall but changed her mind. If she seemed lenient, he would surely try something else and she would then get him into a whole lot of problems. Revenge is so sweet; the time would come when he would pay for six years of suffering. She returned, lifted the curse, and suggested he never play a joke on her again if he wanted to live.

She went to the Great Hall, hoping to find someone to talk to and to forget about her worries. When she found no one, she decided to go and catch up with Ron. Amazingly, the tryouts had already finished. She waited for him for about ten minutes before he came out of the locker rooms.

"How did it go?" she cautiously asked.

"Well, it was not very difficult to choose," Ron began. "Very few came to the tryouts and most of them were absolutely lame. The ones we chose are not that good and they need tons of hard work."

"Who did you choose?" She needed to know.

"The chaser is a girl from second year called Nichole Noonan; Ginny and Dennis agreed to help her improve her shots. Seamus and Dean got the places as beaters; they are better than the ones from last year but nothing compared to Fred and George. And the seeker is Natalie McDonald, a fourth year. Do I need to say that not with a million years of training would she beat Harry? This is going to be a hell of a year!"

Hermione could do nothing more than assent.