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Part VI She had refused to tell him her suspicions. Instead, Hermione insisted that Ron contact Harry and Ginny as well as his parents and have them come back to St. Mungo’s. It had him seeing red.
When he opened his mouth to argue more, she almost burst into tears again. “Ron, please,” she begged, her voice threatening to crack. “I only want to have to say this once but I need to know that I’m right first. That means I have to talk to the healers.” “Okay,” he muttered, “but I don’t like this, Hermione.” “I know.” She attempted a smile but it failed miserably. “Thank you, Ron.” He watched her as she walked away. Despite all the things they had been through, through all the dark times they faced, he had never seen her look so defeated. It was unnerving. ‘We don’t know anything yet,’ he reminded himself. He forced himself to stand up straight as he tried to get his thoughts in order. He sent the messages and waited for his family to arrive. Ron grudgingly waited outside the door of Hermione’s room. As he expected, Harry and Ginny were the first to arrive. He hoped that his parents wouldn’t be long. “What’s this all about, mate?” Harry demanded. “Hermione’s found out what curse Malfoy used?” “She thinks so,” he muttered. “So, what is it?” Ginny asked, her face anxious. “How bad is it?’ “I don’t know,” Ron replied, drawing gasps from the pair. “Hermione’s speaking to the healers now to make sure she’s right. She wants to tell us all at one time.” Ginny clutched Harry’s hand. Ron noticed that Harry held her hand just as tightly. Not for the first time, Ron was jealous of what they had. His parents then arrived. His mother’s faced was flushed and frantic. “Ron, what has happened? Is Hermione okay?” “Hermione’s okay,” he said quickly, hoping that it wasn’t a lie. “She thinks she knows the curse used on her. As soon as she finishes talking to the healers, she’ll let us know.” “Is it bad?” his father asked as he placed a gentle hand on his wife’s shoulder. Ron shrugged. “I wish I knew.” The door opened and one of the more senior mediwitches stepped out. She kept her face blank as she eyed the crowd. “She’s ready to see you now.” Ron stepped aside to allow Harry, Ginny, and his parents into the room. His mother and Ginny took chairs with their husbands close beside them. Ron leaned against a wall near Hermione. “Thank you for coming,” she said. Mrs. Weasley blinked back tears. “Oh, Hermione, of course. You’re practically family.” “That means a lot to me.” Ron sighed. “Hermione, just get on with it.” Ginny opened her mouth to yell at her insensitive prat of a brother. But she closed it when Hermione nodded. She took Harry’s hand as she settled back in her chair. Hermione took a deep breath as she met their stares. “Draco used the Latrunculus curse on me.” The room was silent for a moment. Finally Ron said, “Okay, so what is it?” “The Latrunculus or robber curse is used to steal something from an enemy,” Hermione explained. “It’s an old curse. The healer said that according to their records it hasn’t been used in over three hundred years.” “What does it steal?” Ginny asked. “Usually it steals the victim’s life,” Hermione said quietly. “What!” Ron demanded. She was dying? He had to have misheard her. There was no way that she could be dying. Was there? “You said usually,” Harry said. Hermione nodded. “The curse works slowly. It gradually takes until there is nothing left of what the curser wanted gone. But Draco didn’t use the curse to steal my life.” Ron heaved a sigh of relief. “He’s robbing me of my magic.” “Your magic?” Ginny echoed. “How do you know?” Everything clicked in Ron’s head before Hermione even began to explain. Her inability to go to the Burow. Her bag crashing to the floor. It all made sense. “But it was just a couple of spells,” Harry protested. “A couple of spells? Harry, it was Wingardium Leviosa. I was able to do it on the first try our first year.” Hermione’s voice took a hysterical edge. “Now I can barely lift a bag a foot off the floor.” “And the healers?” Mr. Weasley asked. “They agree with me.” “But why?” Mrs. Weasley asked. “Why would he do such a thing?” Ron knew. It was the worst thing he could take from Hermione after her parents. She had worked so hard to become a part of the wizarding world. This was his way of banishing her from it. “His perfect revenge,” Hermione said, voicing his thoughts aloud. Her voice was calmer now, but that didn’t reassure him. “The healers don’t have a cure and don’t have much hope of finding one. They think I will be completely without magic in about a week. More or less.” The room was silent as they tried to digest the information. Hermione was losing her magic. The healers didn’t have any hope of curing her. “Well, what do they know!” Ron spat. Everyone looked at him as if he had lost his mind. “No, the healers, what do they know! Hermione was the one who figured the curse out. Not them. They don’t think they can find a cure. Fine, we will.” “But Ron,” Mrs. Weasley began. “No,” Mr. Weasley interjected. “He’s right. They’ve all made a name for themselves for doing the impossible. It would be just like them to do it again.” “So when do we start?” Harry asked. “I’m sure there’s going to be research.” “I swore I’d never set foot in a library after graduation,” Ron said with a groan. “I’m sure Hermione will come up with schedules and everything.” “Well, at least we’ll be organized,” Ginny said, rolling her eyes at her brother. She shifted her attention to Hermione. “When do we start?” Hermione ignored the tears running down her face as she gathered her friends into a group hug. She was glad that they were refusing to give up hope. She could face anything with them. “You guys are the best,” she murmured. |
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