The Potter Twins and the Half-Blood Prince {6}

22. Sectumpempra

"But now there's no way to hide, since you pushed my love aside. I'm outta my head hopelessly devoted to you. Hopelessly devoted to you" - Hopelessly Devoted to You, Grease

Exhausted by delighted with our night's work, Harry and I tell Ron and Hermione everything that has happened during next morning's Charms Lesson (having first cast the Muffliato spell upon those nearest to us). They're both satisfyingly impressed by the way we wheedled the memory out of Slughorn and positively awed when we tell them about Voldemort's Horcruxes and Dumbledore's promise take Harry and I along should he find another one.

"Wow," says Ron once we're finally finished; Ron is waving his wand very vaguely in the direction of the ceiling without paying the slightest bit of attention to what he is doing. "Wow. You're actually going to go with Dumbledore...and try and destroy...wow."

"Ron, you're making it snow," says Hermione patiently, grabbing his wrist and redirecting his wand away from the ceiling from which, sure enough, large white flakes have started to fall. Lavender, I notice, glares at Hermione from a neighbouring table through very red eyes, and Hermione immediately lets go of Ron's arm.

"Oh yeah," Ron says, looking down at his shoulders in vague surprise. "Sorry...looks like we've all got horrible dandruff now..."

He brushes some of the fake snow off of Hermione's shoulder. Lavender now bursts into tears. Ron looks immensely guilty and turns his back on her.

"We split up," he tells Harry and I out of the corner of his mouth. "Last night. When she saw me coming out of the dormitory with Hermione. Obviously, she couldn't see you two, so she thought it had just been the two of us."

"Ah," says Harry. "Well -- you don't mind it's over, do you?"

"No," Ron admits. "It was pretty bad while she was yelling, but at least I didn't have to finish it." He casts me a sheepish look. "It made me feel kind of sorry for Malfoy, all the yelling."

"Coward," says Hermione, though she looks amused. "Well, it's been a bad few days for romance all round. Ginny and Dean split up too."

I can see in Harry's eyes that is perhaps the best news he's received all year, but he tries to keep his face as immobile and his voice as indifferent as he can, and asks nonchalantly. "How come?"

"Oh, something really silly...She said he was always trying to help her through the portrait hole like she couldn't climb in herself...but they've been rocky for ages."

I glance over my shoulder at Dean, and he certainly looks unhappy.

"Of course, this puts you in a bit of a dilemma, doesn't it?" says Hermione.

"What d'you mean?" Harry says quickly.

"The Quidditch team," says Hermione. "If Ginny and Dean aren't speaking..."

"Oh -- oh yeah," says Harry, colour rushing to his cheeks.

I quickly jump to his rescue. "It's like the opposite of what Mrs Weasley described at the beginning of the year. Remember what she said about everyone getting married because of uncertainty? Except everyone is just breaking up instead."

Ron scoffs. "Are you saying that you and Malfoy were gonna elope?"

I know that he means the best, but his words strike me in the heart. I try my hardest to hide the sadness, but my face must betray me, for Ron's face breaks into a frown.

"Sorry, Hayles," Ron says hurriedly. "I won't joke about it, I know you're still upset."

I shrug, but I appreciate the sentiment nevertheless. "Thanks, Ron."