“Ron, I’m sorry, I didn’t know that he’d be venting on us like that! I just wanted to go see him. You know we’ve been avoiding him “ “
“ “ but that’s ‘cause we’re not in his class! Along with practically the rest of the school…I mean, I love Hagrid, but I didn’t really want to hear rants of how no one takes his classes anymore and how we don’t come around anymore.”
As Ron finished his sentence, the boys ascended the steps and entered the castle.
“Well okay, I agree with you,” Harry continued, “but who can blame him really. I mean, he’s not the greatest teacher in the world, but that doesn’t mean we can’t see him again.”
Ron frowned.
“You sound like Hermione…speaking of the devil...”
For Hermione was approaching with a look of utter determination on her face. Her book bag swinging fiercely by her side, Ron couldn’t remember ever seeing her look so purposeful, except when taking her exams.
As she passed them without saying a word, Harry turned around.
“Hey, Hermione, where are you off to?”
She didn’t answer Harry immediately, but stopped walking.
“I’m…going to go take a walk by the lake,” she stated with the same determination in her voice.
Though Ron turned to look at her suspiciously, she still didn’t meet their eyes. She shifted her bag nervously on her shoulder and glanced up at Ron.
He swore he saw her expression change as she looked at him, but it was gone as quickly as it came. The mischievous glint he had seen in her eye had disappeared. Quickly, Ron decided to say something.
“Er…could we join you, then?”
Harry’s mouth opened in retort to Ron, but before any sound could escape him, Hermione cut him off.
“No. I don’t want any company.”
And with a scowl at Ron, she turned on her heel and left the building just where Harry and Ron had entered only moments before.
***
“So Harry, where’s Hermione?” Ron asked as he sat in a chair across from Harry in the Gryffindor Common Room.
“Dunno…out on the grounds, probably.”
“Again? What is she doing down there these days anyway? She never brings us along…it’s like she doesn’t want us to know what she’s doing…”
As Ron sat staring out the window and pondering Hermione’s mysterious outings, Harry sat in front of him, writing his Potion’s essay.
Deep in concentration, Harry scribbled steadily, pausing every so often to look up something in his Potion’s book. As Ron watched him, Ron realized how much Harry had changed that year. For one thing, Harry’s grades had been improving steadily in nearly all his classes. Ron just couldn’t understand this, because on the contrary, Ron’s grades had been steadily slipping. The easy going atmosphere and the lighter load of coursework provided Ron with the perfect excuse to become uninspired and lazy. And on top of that, the depth of the material bad become even more challenging, and so Ron was simply giving up on trying to understand it all; another excuse for his dropping grades.
Harry, however, seemed to be feeling the opposite. It was like instead of becoming lazy, he was even more determined to just get it all done and over with. And instead of being confused and uncomprehending, he seemed to take it upon himself to understand the material. The tougher the material, the more the challenge, the more Harry was determined to make sense of it. It was like Harry and Hermione’s roles were switched: Harry the studious one, Hermione the mysterious one filled with secrets and unknown plans.
What was wrong with Ron? He was beginning to feel lonely and out of place…
***
It was the next day, and Ron was thinking of how jealous he was of Harry and how he wanted to get to the bottom of this “Hermione Mystery”, when he noticed a commotion in the Common Room. He had just walked in along with Harry, Hermione, and Ginny when he noticed a sign posted on the bulletin board.
Ron peered over the crowd of heads and read:
Due to the small number of students,
We would like to present the
~Yule Ball~
to celebrate the spirit of Christmas
in these dark times.
The Ball shall be held on
December 25th, 8 o’clock in the evening.
1st through 7th years may attend.
Dress robes required.
“Another Yule Ball? Well, this should be exciting…” However, Hermione’s smile faltered as she saw the look on Ron’s face.
Memories of his 4th year’s Yule Ball had filled his head. Oh yes, how he remembered it well! It was quite a disaster, but the good thing was that there would be no “Vicky Krum” this time around. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Harry and Ginny exchanging knowing looks. Finally, Hermione broke the silence.
“Ron, how about a game of chess?”
Awkwardly, Hermione walked over to the fire where she sat down at a small table where a wizard’s chess set sat awaiting them. Ron slowly followed her while Harry and Ginny walked over and sat on the couch to enjoy the game.
As the game bore on, Harry and Ginny struck up a conversation about Quidditch whilst Ron and Hermione gazed intently at the chess board. Hermione was clearly trying her hardest to set up a trap for Ron, but he knew that she could never beat him, no matter how hard she tried. Ron always won; they all knew it.
Ron slyly glanced up to Hermione and watched her plan her next move. He stared at her, and he realized that no matter how brilliant she may be, no matter what she may be doing on her mysterious outings, no matter how great Harry was at Quidditch, and no matter how well he was doing in school, Ron still had one talent that he could count on: chess.
Hermione made her move. After a pause, Ron made his move.
“Checkmate,” he whispered.