Title: Head Over Heels
Summary: When Lavender Brown and Ron Weasley snogged at the victory party for the entire common room to see, Lavender was certain that it would appear to an outside observer that her interest in Ron must have begun while watching the Quidditch match that preceded it. In actuality however, her feelings for the youngest Weasley son began to develop ages before their lips ever came into contact.
Rating: PG
Warnings: None
Pairing: Ron/Lavender
Word Count: 1,225
Betas: Many thanks to the wonderful brumeux77for the beta, and to thesteppyone for a beta/Britpick. Any remaining errors are my own.
Author's Notes: I started writing this story for luvscharlie over a year ago for a prompt that I can't even remember what it was anymore. I set it aside at the time because I just couldn't figure out how to end it. When I finally brushed off the dust and was ready to make another attempt at an ending, imagine my surprise to discover that the blasted thing was already finished! So, luvscharlie, here it is, a year late, but I hope that you enjoy it anyway:)
Head over Heels
When Lavender Brown and Ron Weasley snogged at the victory party for the entire common room to see, Lavender was certain that it would appear to an outside observer that her interest in Ron must have begun while watching the Quidditch match that preceded it. In actuality however, her feelings for the youngest Weasley son began to develop ages before their lips ever came into contact.
While she supposed that she first began to notice Ron in more than a passing way in fifth year, during their secret sessions of Dumbledore's Army, it was actually on a Saturday morning at the very beginning of their sixth year when Lavender had found herself literally head over heels. She had been on her way to the library to return some books she'd borrowed when Ron had barreled around the corner in the corridor. They'd collided, knocking Lavender clean off her feet and scattering her books all over the floor.
"Shit!" Ron exclaimed as he realized what he had done. "I'm sorry, Lavender. Are you all right?"
The sleeve of his robes rode up as he offered her his hand, and at once she noticed the silvery lines of scar tissue running as far as she could see up the length of his arm. She quickly averted her eyes before he could catch her staring, and allowed Ron to assist her to her feet.
"Thanks," she responded. "I'm all right."
"Are you sure, you're okay?" Ron asked as he helped her gather up her fallen books.
"I'm fine, honestly," Lavender assured him.
"Good," Ron said with a sigh of relief. "I guess I'll see you later, then?"
"Sure," Lavender responded. She watched for a moment as Ron started to walk away before she called after him, "Hey, Weasley!"
"Yes?" he asked as he turned back toward her.
"Just make sure you look where you're going next time," she said teasingly.
He grinned at her then, and Lavender wondered how she had never noticed before how Ron's smile could light up his entire face like that. "Sure thing," he responded and then continued on his way down the corridor.
As soon as Ron was out of sight, Lavender had quickly made her way to the library. She had dropped off her books and returned to Gryffindor tower as fast as she possibly could. She had quickly scanned the common room for Parvati Patil, grabbed her friend's hand, and pulled her up the stairs to their room so that she could tell her everything. Lavender had been relieved when they found that Hermione Granger was nowhere in sight. While she had been positively giddy about her "run-in" with Ron, she knew that she wouldn't have been able to speak freely if that bossy know-it-all had been around.
"What's happened, Lav?" Parvati asked as soon as the door was closed. "You're glowing."
"Ron Weasley just swept me off my feet!" Lavender exclaimed excitedly.
"Ron?" Parvati asked before bursting out laughing. "This I have to hear, because the Ron Weasley I know is certainly NOT a charmer."
Lavender bristled at her friend's harsh words and shot back, "He might be a bit clumsy, Parvati, but he's a sweetheart and a real gentleman."
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," Parvati said quickly. "It's just hard for me to imagine anyone falling for Ron. He's a rotten date, Lav, and he was just as horrible to my sister at the Yule Ball as Harry was with me."
Lavender's expression softened toward her friend and she said, "I'm sorry you both had a bad time, but the Yule Ball was two years ago. Just because I had a good time with Seamus when we went together doesn't mean that he's someone I would consider dating now."
"Okay," Parvati conceded. "So tell me what he's done to sweep you off your feet."
Parvati had listened intently as Lavender recounted the story about their collision in the corridor, and how Ron had stopped to make sure that she was all right and to pick up her fallen books. She told her about the scars that she had seen on Ron's arms as he helped her to her feet, confirming the rumors they had heard about what happened at the Ministry of Magic toward the end of last term. She told her about his smile, and how she wanted to make him smile like that for her again. Parvati's eyes were wide by the time that Lavender finished telling her everything, but before she could share her reaction, Hermione had entered the room, and caused their conversation to come to an abrupt end.
Lavender took one last look in the mirror, assessing her reflection before she headed down to the victory party in the common room. Satisfied, she smiled brightly as she descended the stairs and scanned the jubilant crowd for Ron. She finally spotted him across the room, in the middle of an animated conversation with Seamus Finnigan, and her breath caught at the sight of his smile. Lavender forced herself to look away before she could be caught staring, and walked over to the refreshments table. She quickly grabbed two bottles of butterbeer, took a deep breath, and before she could lose her nerve approached Ron.
She handed him one of the bottles and said, "You played a fantastic game today, Ron."
Ron blushed as he accepted the butterbeer and replied, "Thanks, Lavender."
Impulsively, Lavender leaned over to give him a kiss on the cheek and said, "You're welcome, Ron." She smiled at him and as she moved to turn away, Ron reached out to grab her wrist.
The world seemed to stand still as they looked into each other's eyes. Almost without thought they each set their drinks aside and their bodies drew closer and closer together until Ron lifted his hand and gently caressed Lavender's cheek. Lavender sighed happily and leaned forward into his touch; felt the sparks of attraction surge through her entire body, and just when she thought it couldn't possibly get any better than this, Ron leaned forward and kissed her.
Instantly, Lavender threw her arms around Ron's neck, pulled him closer and kissed him back with all the passion she could manage. They stood there for ages, kissing as if they were the only two people in the room until the sound of catcalls and whistling brought both of them back to reality. They pulled apart, gasping for air, and as Ron smiled that incredible smile of his he whispered, "Let's get out of here."
Lavender nodded, and Ron kissed her one more time before he grabbed her hand and raced toward the portrait hole.
Lavender had been determined to win Ron's attention, and now she had finally succeeded. Ron was handsome, brave, sweet, strong, and loyal. He was a hero who had survived a fight against fully-trained Death Eaters, and now, after all this time, Ron was finally hers. Lavender walked over to her bed and lay down with a smile on her face. She could still feel the lingering caress of his lips on hers from when he kissed her goodnight. She hugged her pillow happily as she closed her eyes, still drunk on Ron's sweet kisses. He would be the perfect boyfriend, Lavender thought as she drifted off to sleep. She just knew it.