A/N Just as a heads up, this is somewhat AU. I tried to stay true to as much of the books as possible, but did make some big changes that are non-canon. This is my first fic. Please read and review; it'll make me really happy! (I would prefer reviews of the non-flame variety, but don't mind constructive criticism.)

This should have been a happy, exuberant time.

Percy and Penelope's wedding was wonderful; the Burrow was bursting with loving friends and family eager to indulge in a joyous event during such dark and dangerous time. Streamers hung delicately from tree branches and shimmering red balloons swelled with music. The wedding alter had just been removed in favor of an elegant gold and red dance floor large enough to fit every student in Hogwarts. The newlyweds beamed happily as they receive congratulations and good luck wishes. It was as though the crisis has been sealed out of everyone's mind for this one evening as effectively as enchantments around the Burrow protected the party from Death Eaters.

Despite all of the merriment and festivities, one eighteen year old girl sat in a distant corner looking absolutely miserable for reasons altogether unrelated to the Dark Lord's rise. As she impatiently wiped a tear from her eye, the girl muttered something to the effect of "insensitive git." For years now, she had been trying to coax him into asking her out to no avail. It took him until the middle of his fourth year to realize that she was in fact a girl. Since then, in spite her obvious signals, he had remained woefully ignorant of what to do after realizing she was a girl, and acted more than a bit insensitive toward her. He obviously cared for her; they had been through life or death experiences together. She thought he'd had a breakthrough during last year's battle at Hogwarts, but after the threat of imminent death lifted momentarily, he returned to his old ways. What's his problem? Why doesn't he get it? She thought bitterly.

The red headed boy's latest bout of cluelessness and insensitivity had sent her over the edge; up until today she'd been patiently hoping he'd finally get it. As the wedding had been approaching, she'd had a glimmer of hope that he would ask her to be his date to the wedding. Like always though, he missed the opportunity. Still, the brown-haired girl had held out hope that he would realize his error and ask her for a dance. He, however, was too enamored by Fleur's part Veela cousins, and had chosen to flirt, or try to flirt with the blonde beauties. The girl could see him gazing at the cousins with a silly expression of admiration on his face. She gave a small huff of impatience at his current state as tears threatened to escape.

As the girl hastily wiped her eyes yet again, a voice from behind her startled her out of her bitter reveries.

"Is there something wrong Her-my-o-ninny? You look upset."

"Oh, how nice to see you. You startled me for a moment there," Hermione responded, adding, "It's nothing really, at least nothing new. "

"Well umm…" he started, Viktor Krum was surprisingly awkward for a world renowned Quidditch player, "would you like to, er, talk about it?"

Hermione considered the offer; it was sweet of him to make sure she was ok. Plus, she didn't want to reject his self-conscious offer of help. After casting a glare in the direction of the Veela cousins, she said, "Ok, let's get out of here though; I need to walk for a bit."

Viktor nodded in agreement and walked besides her towards the small woods in the Weasley's backyard. He strode silently beside Hermione until she was ready to divulge what was on her mind. As soon as they were out of earshot of the party, she started a rant that seemed incredibly well prepared.

"It's that insensitive git. He has emotional intelligence equal to the intellectual intelligence of one of Malfoy's cronies. That's not the worst part," she spat, "He gives me false hope. I know he doesn't know it, but it hurts worse than being ignored."

Viktor was stunned for a moment; he had never seen this indignant, raging side of Hermione. "Er, are you talking about Harry?" He cautiously inquired.

"No way," she replied with a dismissive wave of the hand, "He's like my brother, and he's with Ginny. I'm talking about Ronald Weasley. He used to be quite a fan of yours."

"He mustn't be all bad then," Viktor said with a grin, "He definitely has good taste in seekers."

"Well, good taste in seekers aside," Hermione continued after a reluctant smirk, "I'm running out of patience with him. I feel like he doesn't care enough to even try to understand. The worst part is when he flirts with other girls right in front of me."

"Are you talking about the Veela girls? You can't entirely blame him for that. Their beauty makes most men incredibly stupid," Viktor replied.

"I know they're beautiful, OK," Hermione snapped, as she started to cry despite herself, "I just want to know that I'm beautiful to someone too!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," Viktor said with a look of regret, "I think you're very beautiful."

She stopped short at this proclamation, a bold one for Viktor. "You do? I mean I know you took me to the Yule Ball, but I thought it was more that our personalities fit than anything else."

Viktor stopped too and sat on a nearby log in the small clearing. "Well, it was both," he started, "your personality, intelligence and beauty made you very easy to be around," he said, and added, "Even though we've always been more like very good friends."

"Thank you Viktor," Hermione said. Not really sure what to say or do next, she sat next to him on the log.

He put his arm around her. It was the way a friend would embrace her, not any sort of advance. "I think everything will be fine. If Ronald doesn't care enough about you, which I doubt, but if he never gets it, it's his loss," he said as he soothingly rubbed her head, which was now resting on his shoulder.

"It's just," she sniffed, "With Vol--I mean you-know-who, still at large and spreading his reign, we in all likelihood don't have the time for him to understand how I feel. Everyday could be our last, Viktor."

Unsure of how to respond to such heavy comments, Viktor gave Hermione a soft, friendly peck on her cheek. Without understanding exactly why, she turned and kissed him back, not on the cheek, but on the lips. Viktor, though altogether confused by the sudden passionate show of affection, kissed her back. When they stopped, he looked stunned at this most unexpected development.

Pulling away at the sight of Viktor's face, Hermione looked at her hands and said, "I'm sorry, Vik. I didn't mean to do that, I just haven't been kissed by anyone, not even by family, for more than a year now. Not since I sent my parents away. "

Viktor felt a surge of sympathy for this sad, beautiful young woman. She was now sitting on the ground in front of him. He slid off the log to sit next to her and wiped a fresh tear from her cheek. He slowly leaned forward and kissed her, not on the cheek this time, but on the lips. He kissed her and didn't stop. She reached up and started to take off his dress cloak, as she continued to kiss him back. Viktor paused and looked at her.

"Are you sure you want this?"

She looked at him, still holding the cloak. Hermione could see why he would be so surprised by this sudden change. Her behavior in the clearing had been distinctly un-Hermione. She offered a kind smile and asked him, "Well do you care for me, love me, as you would a best friend?"

"Of course I do. You helped me through some tough times when the Death Eaters killed my cousin this summer. I trust you and care about you very much," Viktor said.

"That's good. Sometimes friend love is better than romantic love; it can last longer and it's more forgiving. It is more even keeled and sensible. Even it's magical properties are more stable. I count you among one of my best friends, so yes. I do want to do this, I want to do this very much," Hermione said.

"Always count on Hermione for a logical answer," Viktor said with smirk. He resumed kissing her, and this time they didn't break apart.

He kissed her, held her, and undressed her in a way Hermione had never experienced. He was not like a hungry lover; he treated her as though they were having an intimate, private conversation. The physical act they were performing was secondary; this was an act of acceptance-an acceptance of love, of the fragility of life, of each person as they were.

After dozing peacefully for awhile, Hermione woke up to find that Viktor had dozed off as well. She rested her head on his shoulder and traced a line from his palm slowly to his elbow. As she repeated this, he stirred and faced her, a soft smile on his lips.

"Hi there," Viktor said.

"That was nice," Hermione said contemplatively, "I think that's what I really needed."

"Really? You don't strike me as the type of girl with that kind of, er, appetite," Viktor said.

"That's not what I meant," she said impatiently. "I needed to feel that kind of love. The love where you know both people truly deeply care for each other. I needed that sort of touch."

"Well I am glad that I could do that for you," Viktor said, as he wrapped his arm around her. There was no awkwardness between the two as they lay there watching the sunset. They were two close friends resting together as they gazed at the dusky sky.

A sudden, distant crack snapped Hermione out her peaceful reveries. When she realized what she'd heard, she jumped up in a panic.

"Oh no! They found the Burrow! Vik, its last year all over again," Hermione said as she pulled on her clothes.

Viktor scrambled off the ground and began to dress quickly. As he hurried off, Hermione pulled Viktor back and cleaned the dirt off of his dress robes with a quick flick of the wand once she had completed her own dress.

"Ok, let's go," she said and set off towards the flashes of green coming from the Burrow.

A/N I know Viktor has an accent, which I tried to write. I, however, failed miserably at this. My butchering of his accent was distracting, so I axed it, with the exception of the Her-my-o-ninny bit, which I use so that the reader will recognize him immediately.

Bit of a cliffie there for you. Don't worry the next chapter will be forthcoming shortly. Please review! More reviewshappy authorfaster updates. : )