Revenge


Ginny knew that Hermione was hurting. Hermione was pretty much her best friend; well at least, she was her brother's best friend. She knew Hermione was upset about the whole Lavender thing, especially from hearing what Harry had to say.

As an outsider looking in on this situation, Ginny could perceive clearly what others could not. All through this year Hermione and Ron had the most sexual tension she had ever seen them have. The sneaked glances while the other wasn't looking. The open mouthed stares that Ron did when Hermione was doing homework. The blush that rose to both of their faces when he was caught doing it. The wondrous look that Hermione gave Ron as he played Quidditch. The small compliments and confidence boosters that they each gave each other in times of need, or just to start conversations. How they would subconsciously lean toward the other while they were talking. To Ginny, this was all very plain. To Ron and Hermione however, it was not.

Ginny was bought out of her thoughts by the sound of Hermione's bed curtains being drawn open slightly. Two large brown, puffy eyes looked out at her and she could see the tearstains made on her cheeks. The eyes gave Ginny an imploring look and Ginny made her way over to the bed that was Hermione's. She sat down cross-legged and Hermione broke down again, sobbing so uncontrollably that Ginny had to cast a silencing charm around the bed. Hermione's form was shaking so hard and Ginny just moved closer and held her friend, stroking her hair and whispering comforting words.

"Get it all out tonight, Hermione. Tomorrow, I am going to help you get payback on Ron." Ginny said soothingly. A plan was already forming in her head and she couldn't wait to put it into action. An hour or two later, Hermione had finally calmed down enough and seemed that she had no more tears left. She had started to go into her angry phase.

"I mean, how many hints do I have to give him? I invited him to Slughorne's Christmas party for goodness sake! Do I have to spell it out for him?" she yelled.

"I doubt he'd be able to read it," muttered Ginny and Hermione laughed. "Can I tell you my plan, please?"

Hermione conceded and listened intently to what Ginny was about to say.

"Well," she started, "Ron obviously got with Lavender to make you jealous. Seeing as now he is being a foul git, you need your payback. I suggest the same advice that you gave to me to get over Harry. You need to start going out with other people. You need to dress a lot nicer than you have been, and you need to try and be genuinely happy for Ron about Lavender. He will then be so tormented that his plan didn't work that he will come running back in the hopes of you still waiting for him".

Hermione had to admit, it was a pretty good plan; and she couldn't exactly go saying it wasn't, especially seeing as this was the advice she gave to Ginny. 'Practice what you preach', she said to herself.

"Let's do it", she stated in a determined voice.

Hermione was well and truly ready to get over Ronald Weasley.


The next morning Hermione entered the Great Hall feeling unusually bright and happy. There was no weight in her chest that there had been last night, and most peculiar of all, no butterflies when she saw Ron shoveling food into his face like there was no tomorrow.

Hermione cautiously made her way over to the Gryffindor table and sat herself in between Harry and Ginny, which made her directly across from the red head she had fancied for years.

"Morning!" she said brightly.

Harry grunted in response, looking like he hadn't got much sleep last night. Ginny smiled with a mouth full of food and Ron looked flabbergasted. Some of his porridge fell out of his mouth, which was a quite unattractive look. He stared at her as if she had grown another head and Hermione started to eat.

"Ron, could you please pass the cream?" Hermione asked politely. He continued to stare at her dumbly and she was forced to reach across the table to get it herself. "Is something wrong? Have I got something on my face?" she questioned him. That seemed to break him out of his reverie and he cleared his throat.

"No, nothing."

"Excellent," she beamed and she turned to look around the hall. Just then, Ernie Macmillan wandered into through the large oak doors and headed towards the Hufflepuff table. "Just a minute, I need to go and talk to Ernie." Hermione stood up and left the table. Ron just dragged his eyes away long enough to see Ginny's suggestive waggling of her eyebrows. What was going on with Ernie and Hermione?

Ron started on his porridge again but more just pushed it around his plate with his gleaming spoon. He had got with Lavender to make Hermione jealous, and if Hermione was jealous, then she obviously liked him. But she wasn't jealous. That was what stung the most. That she hadn't in fact, fancied him back. He wondered what all those subtle hints were though. The burning sensation when his arm accidentally brushed onto hers. The blush that crept to her cheeks when he complimented her in a small way. Had he misinterpreted the signals? Surely not. He felt something for her and he was sure she had felt something for him.

Even now, watching her converse with Ernie Macmillan made his blood boil. It should be him she was talking to, not some stupid Hufflepuff. He could just make out Hermione saying a 'goodbye' and she started heading back towards her friends. Suddenly though, Ernie grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. He looked very nervous and flustered and Ron wished at this moment he could use a pair of Extendable Ears. Ernie now was staring resolutely at the ground as if it was the most interesting thing on the world.

It was when Hermione blushed furiously though, that Ron thought of the possibilities of what just happened. Did he just call her a genius? Did he comment on her hair? Did he ask her for help on his Defense Against the Dark Arts essay because he thought she was fantastic in the DA last year? No, because they were things only Ron said that made Hermione blush like that. So what did he say that made her cheeks hot around Ernie?

Ron saw red as Hermione leaned and embraced Ernie. For a moment, Ernie was stiff against her body, but that moment was short and he melted into her petite frame and hugged her back. Ron was gripping his spoon so hard that his knuckles were turning white. The embrace ended shortly after and Hermione gave a shy wave as she headed back towards the rest of her Gryffindor friends and Ernie headed back to Hufflepuff. Both were looking quite pleased with themselves and Ron couldn't help but notice the way he looked back over his shoulder to her retreating form when she was on her way back. Ron didn't know why it made him so angry, he had a girlfriend after all. A girlfriend, who was in fact, a lot prettier than Hermione.

Don't say that. You know that's not true. Hermione's… perfect.

Ron didn't know where this thought had come from but he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind. At this moment, Lavender had to be perfect for him, and he wasn't going to let any bushy haired brunette get in the way of that.

She sat back down in a daze. She picked up a fork and started trying to eat her porridge with it. Ginny seemed to notice Hermione's change as well and addressed it immediately.

"What was that with Ernie?" she questioned.

"Hmm? What makes you think anything happened?" Hermione said in a way that reminded Ron of Luna. What did Ernie say that had Hermione so dazed? Ginny clicked her fingers in front of Hermione's face and Hermione looked like Hermione again. "Oh, sorry. Must have blanked out… Sorry, Gin." She looked confusedly at her fork and set it back onto the table and picked up her spoon again.

"That's fine! But what did Ernie say?" At this, Hermione's face blushed as red as the Weasley's trademark hair.

"Ohh, err – well, he kind of askedmetogotohogsmeadewithhi mnextweekend." She said, breathless. Ginny gave her a questioning look which obviously meant that she hadn't heard her. Hermione took a deep breath and started again.

"I first had to ask him about something in Potions and then he asked me if I would go to Hogsmeade with him next weekend."

She nodded, seemingly satisfied with her answer. Ron hadn't seen her blush this much in his life. What Ginny did next was unexpected. She lurched forward and seized Hermione into a bear hug.

"Oh I knew it, Hermione, I knew it! He has always had a little bit of a thing for you, I could just tell by the way he looks at you sometimes when you aren't noticing! Oh my goodness, but what did you say? Was that hug a hug of acceptance or to help with rejection?"

Ron couldn't help the words that escaped next. "Yes, Hermione," he managed through gritted teeth, "what did you say? After all, you had already told Harry and I that you would come with us to Hogsmeade."

"Well," Ron was preparing himself for the worst when Hermione started to speak, "of course I said yes! You are probably going to end up going around with Lavender, so why can't I go off with Ernie? He said he'd take me to Scrivenshaft's and that we could go and visit the Shrieking Shack! He told me that he is so into historical places! Oh and after that we are going to Madam Puddifoot's and Honeydukes!"

Ron thought that Hermione was rubbing it in his face just a little. In their third year, when Harry wasn't able to attend Hogsmeade, it has just been him and her. She insisted that they go to the Shrieking Shack because it was one of the most haunted areas in Britain. He hadn't wanted to go and had been bored the whole time. When Hermione had told them that Ernie thought it would be great, he couldn't help but wonder, if he paid attention all those years ago, would he get to be going with her now? And even Scrivenshafts! Every time they went into Hogsmeade she insisted on going in there and admiring their quills and different types of parchment. After the second time, Ron just let her go and said that he would wait for her in either Honeyduke's or Zonko's. He found looking at this utterly boring and couldn't see why Hermione had taken such a fascination to it. Now that he knew Ernie had, and that Hermione liked that about Ernie, he couldn't help but feel like he had missed giant hints that Hermione was trying to leave for him.

Hermione saw Ron's crestfallen face and knew that her and Ginny's plan had worked. She wondered if she was being too harsh on him, but those thoughts got pushed to the back of her mind when she realized that Ron had chosen Lavender, which meant he couldn't have liked her in the first place, and he was just disappointed that they weren't going to Hogsmeade as a trio, like usual. She could faintly hear Ginny rambling about how she was going to help Hermione pick out the perfect outfit and how to do her hair and makeup. But all Hermione seemed to notice was the gangly red-headed figure that had muttered a word of farewell and made his way out of the Great Hall.

Revenge was sweet, Hermione thought. And she engaged in a full discussion with Ginny about how perfect Hogsmeade was going to be with Ernie. However somewhere in the back of her mind, she couldn't help but ponder how it would turn out if it were with a certain red-headed Gryffindor.


AN: Hello everyone! Thank you for reading my story! Not sure whether it is very good or not or whether to continue. I've had this idea for a while but not sure whether to keep going... Please review and let me know your feelings on it! More chapters should be coming up soon and only your reviews will tell me where to go in this story and whether or not to continue with it!

Thanks again and read on!