There were only a few things that made Ron Weasley truly happy. The first was his mother’s cake that she made on his birthday every year until he went to Hogwarts. The next was Quidditch, and only if Fred and George weren’t there to tease him about his dismal Keeping skills. The last was Hermione Granger.
There was something about her that always made Ron smile. It could be her hair, or her smile, or even her know-it-all attitude. One thing Ron knew for certain was that it wasn’t her cat, Crookshanks. Just the thought of the evil feline make Ron shudder as though the room had suddenly become very cold.
Ron remembered the first time that he’d met Crookshanks. The cat had leaped at Ron’s ill rat, Scabbers. Sure, Scabbers turned out to be an evil wizard in disguise who was responsible for the murder of Ron’s best friend’s parents, but it was still evil of Crookshanks to attempt to eat his rat.
The only thing that stopped Ron from cursing Crookshanks into giant squid food was, of course, Hermione. Every time he pulled out his wand, she intervened, and suddenly he would feel very light and happy. Once, he’d almost accidentally pushed Crookshanks out an open window in the Gryffindor Tower, and Hermione went ballistic. He smiled the whole time she was shouting at him about “his responsibility and carefulness.”
“Ron!”
Ron, startled, jumped out of the enormous armchair in which he was sitting. He looked up, and saw Hermione staring reprovingly at him.
“What?” he asked, disgruntled due to the fact that she had woken him.
Instead of answering, Hermione pointed at the floor. Ron followed her gaze and saw his half-finished Potions essay lying on the floor.
“Oh... I, uh...” Ron stuttered.
“That essay is due tomorrow,” said Hermione promptly, as Ron scrambled to pick it up before it smudged.
“I fell asleep,” muttered Ron shortly.
Hermione looked like she was refraining, with great difficulty, from rolling her eyes. “I can see that,” she said.
“Could you look over it for me?” asked Ron earnestly.
Ron, who had been expecting a lecture about homework, was surprised when Hermione blushed a little. “Sure,” she said, taking it cautiously and avoiding Ron’s eyes.
She sat down in an armchair beside Ron and began reading the essay so fast that her eyes blurred. After a moment or two, Hermione passed his essay back to him.
“You need to correct this,” she said, pointing to the third paragraph in his essay. “You misspelled Wigglewend Potion. It should be W-I-G-G-L, not W-I-G-L. And it’s Pepper Root that causes measles, not Underroot.”
Ron hastily corrected his errors. “Thanks,” he muttered, the tips of his ears turning red.
Just as he was about to put his essay inside his bag, Crookshanks appeared from behind the couch. He took one look at Ron’s finished paper, and pounced at it.
“Crookshanks, no!” cried Hermione, just as Ron roared, “NO!”
Within seconds, Ron’s perfected Potions essay was reduced to shreds on the carpeted floor. Crookshanks looked pleased with himself, and he rubbed his tail against Hermione, who looked stunned.
Ron stared furiously and silently at Crookshanks and his ruined paper, before he pulled out his wand and pointed it at the cat. However, before he could cause any real damage, Hermione stepped between Ron and Crookshanks.
“No, Ron!” she exclaimed, her face crimson with embarrassment at her cat’s behavior.
Ron had half the mind to lunge past her, but then his senses kicked in, and he bent down to pick up the shreds that were once his essay.
“Do... do you think we could use Reparo?” he asked, half hoping that it would work, even though he knew it wouldn’t.
Hermione shook her head glumly. “Sorry...” she murmured.
Crookshanks, however, did not seem the least bit sorry. He strutted up the stairs to the girl’s dormitory, and out of sight.
It took Ron nearly three more hours of the night to complete another essay. By five o’clock in the morning, he was finished. He knew it wasn’t up to his usual standards (which were pretty low), but he was sure he could scrape at least a “P.”
He imagined the look on Hermione’s face when she found out he’d failed Potions because of her cat, and he smiled in spite of himself.
“You okay?” asked Harry, shaking Ron awake for the fifth time that morning.
It was breakfast, and Ron found himself splattered with the contents of his plate, due to the fact that he’d fallen asleep in it.
“I had to stay up all night doing a Potions essay,” he said.
Harry looked at him curiously, so he went on.
“I finished it last night... Hermione even corrected it! Then Crookshanks destroyed it,” Ron said glumly.
Harry snickered. “At least you two are getting along.”
Ron sighed. “I wish Hermione would just get rid of him,” he mumbled glumly.
Harry attempted with great difficulty to suppress a smile, and he failed. Ron ate the rest of his breakfast in silence.
A few minutes later, Hermione arrived looking quite tired and out of breath.
“Where were you earlier?” asked Harry curiously.
“I had to let Crookshanks out so he could get some fresh air,” Hermione mumbled, avoiding Ron’s gaze.
“Fresh air?” Ron asked. “What does a monster like that need fresh air for?”
“Oh be quiet, Ron. Just because you think he’s a monster doesn’t mean he is. I think he’s adorable,” Hermione snapped.
By the end of breakfast, Ron and Hermione were no longer speaking.