In The Arms of the Monster

Chapter 2 Un-Freaking-Belivable

Hey lovely readers of the web, please remember to vote and comment and try to remember helpful criticism only, try to bear with me as it may take a while for updates. With school, homework,  softball, chores, and two other stories (Mudblood work in progress and Forever sequel to Hidden and work in progress) the updates may take a while but I will try to get the chapters up as quickly as possible. Now without further ado, the book...

Third Person's Point of View
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Hermione walked down the stairs quickly as she left Ginny behind, wiping the tears out of her eyes. "Harry," she calls. "In here," Harry calls back. "Coming," Hermione calls as she looks around 'The Burrow,' her temporary home. Of course she hadn't been able to find her parents so the Weasley's had taken her in. With George, Bill, Charlie and Percy out of the house Hermione had her own room. Of course she would have taken a shared room with Ginny but Harry had insisted she have her own and that he would stay with Ron. 'The Burrow' was still 'the Burrow' it was just renovated, Hermione had been able to fit all of her things in her room with room to spare, two to three years ago that would not have been possible. She had even changed the wall color. She sighed contentedly as she thought about that room as she walked towards another. "Hermione," Harry said politely as she swung the door inward. She inclined her head and said, "How are you?" "The real question," Harry says seriously, "Is how are you? After Ron did whatever he did last night?" "I'm fine and I've forgiven him but next time I probably won't." "Probably doesn't cut it," Harry says shortly as Hermione examines the room. Orange, like a furnace, from the explosion that was Ron's favorite Quidditch team, The Chudley Cannons, because he had plastered posters and pictures to ever spare inch of his wall. The only thing that wasn't decorated with his Quidditch team was the owl cages by the window. The cages usually held Harry and Ron's owls. Ron's owl, Pigwidgeon, was gone and Harry's owl, Fleck, was also gone. The boys both swore that the owl's hadn't been mating but the rest of the family didn't believe them. She sighed and sat down, "Harry probably is the best you are going to get. What if next time it's something small like him staring at a girl or something?" "That is significant, if there is any sign that he could be cheating on you, sober or not, you should leave him," Harry says.

    "Harry Potter I came looking for advice but instead I get a lecture you're as bad as your girlfriend. Would you all just let me deal with my own problems? Because on top of this my parents are still missing, I can't find them and even if I do there is no way for me to get there memories back," Hermione shouts as she jumps to her feet and runs out of the room and straight into Ron. "Hermione," Ron said sounding relieved. "Yes?" Hermione asked, forcing a smile. "I just wanted to talk to you," Ron said. So he led Hermione to her bedroom and said, "Ginny can you close the door on your way out?" Ginny smiled and agreed looking back at Hermione worriedly. "Bye Ginny, see you at dinner," Hermione said. Ginny nodded, still looking reluctant to leave. "Look Hermione, you're an awesome girl but I just don't know if you're the one for me," Ron said going straight to the point. "Oh, that's rich coming from you," Hermione snarled, "Was it me that was unfaithful to you twice in the past two weeks? Was it me that accidentally looked at another person for too long to be just friendly? Was it me who kissed someone else, then blamed it on them? No Ron it wasn't and it should not be up to you when we are through, because you have no reason to leave me, but I have every reason to leave you. You should actually be thanking me for forgiving you because I could have left you long ago. Now please know in your heart that this is my decision not yours and we are through. Now please get out," Hermione finished deadly calm. Ron stared for a second then left.

Hermione stood for a second then swayed, as if the world was tilting, and fell onto the bed. Unlike before she didn't cry, she wondered what life Ron could have given her. She didn't care about him, she couldn't. Ginny walked back in a few minutes later and looked at her friend laying on the bed, staring into space looking neither sad nor happy, and neither mad nor joyful. Hermione was just there and probably thinking. "Hermione, Mum told me to fetch you for dinner," Ginny says quietly. Hermione greets her with silence, but movement. As she walks down the stairs a hysterical laugh bubbles up from her throat, "My choice, not his," then she goes silent. Ginny is deeply troubled as her friend never acts this way. She looks closely and sees that maybe, just maybe, her friend had taken an emotionally blow to the head and could only deal with it one way and that was not to be sad or mad or happy or joyful, it was to just be there. Ginny wondered what was going through Hermione's mind as she walked down the stairs by her friend towards the kitchen.

        They step off the landing and Hermione smiles and acts like she is all there, like she is trying not to fall apart. But she is not falling apart and only Hermione herself knows that, but everyone else thinks - or maybe wishes - that she is because maybe they do not know how to deal with someone breaking down without making a sound. Hermione and Ginny sit down wordlessly as Harry says, "Why don't I get us some drinks?" Hermione nods and says, "Firewhiskey." Harry looks at her strangely, as she is never one to ask for something so strong, but gets the drink anyway. When he sits it down Hermione opens the bottle and, instead of putting it in a shot or wine glass, pours it into her cup, which would normally hold milk or whatever other non-alcoholic drink you wanted. She raised her glass, when everyone was finished filling there shot glasses, in a silent toast everyone bumps each other's cup and drinks. Hermione downs the whole cup as quickly as the rest of them down their shot glasses. Harry and Ginny raise an eyebrow at each other, but say nothing. "Dear," Mrs. Molly Weasley says, "Is something wrong?" Hermione shakes her head. "Are you quite sure?" Mr. Arthur Weasley asks. She nods and no one says another word about it, though everyone wonders what is wrong. When supper is over Hermione stands and collects the plates without a word, does dishes the muggle way and has more Firewhiskey. When she is finished she goes up to her room which is odd because after dinner there is at least two hours of talk and fun before anyone goes to bed. No one follows her up the stairs, except for with their eyes. Ron slams the door to the house calling, "I may or may not be back tonight," over his shoulder, probably aiming it at Hermione. But if it had any effect on her she did not show it not even when she was alone in her room.

        Hermione climbs in the shower and scrubs her body hard as if trying to scrub the events of the day away. When she brushes her teeth they do not feel clean and she can still taste the alcohol when she climbs into bed after brushing her teeth five times. She lay still and silent not moving just staring at the ceiling willing her eyes to shut and sleep to take her. But even though she wished this sleep evaded her and her eyes refused to close. So she lay still until the morning when she heard a horrible scream.