Author's Notes: Written for Round 11 of daisychain_drab on LiveJournal, with the pairing Hermione/Viktor and the prompt "Jealousy".

)O(

Hermione had been irked by Ron's jealousy when she had gone to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, and entertained by it later, when Ron became defensive when she so much as wrote letters to him, but she had no idea how to react to it when she told Ron that she and Viktor were together again.

Not that she really told him. That might have been easier for him – but Hermione didn't see that as her responsibility. Ron was her friend, and her former boyfriend, but that didn't mean that she needed to seek out his permission to have any new relationships.

Or rekindle old ones, as the case happened to be.

Hermione and Viktor were at a café, lounging outside in the afternoon sunlight. They weren't talking, but Hermione was very aware of the way Viktor's leg brushed against hers beneath the table, and she found herself smiling with every little movement he made. It was a good day, she thought – things were quiet and pleasant.

And then she saw Ron.

She saw him across the street, stopped dead still and glaring at her and Viktor, and Hermione felt a sudden twinge of embarrassment, foolish as that was. She stiffened, aware of her cheeks colouring.

"Hermione?" Viktor sat up a little straighter, instantly aware of her discomfort. "What is it?" Then, following the line of her eyes, he saw Ron, and his eyes narrowed. "Oh."

"Nothing," she said quickly. She didn't want a scene, but Ron was already heading across the street towards them. She covered her face with her hand and tried to quickly think of something that she could see to avoid a fight.

"Hermione," Ron said shortly when he reached them. He grabbed a chair from another table and pulled it around, joining them at the table without invitation. "You didn't mention you were seeing Viktor again."

"Did you want a coffee, Ron?" she asked, in a vain attempt to change the subject, but Ron didn't seem to be paying attention to her in the slightest. He had turned on Viktor, and his eyes were narrowed into furious slits. Viktor was glaring back, and he crossed his arms defensively over his chest.

"Is something wrong?" Viktor asked coldly.

"Oh, nothing!" Ron spat. "I'm just wondering why she's here with you."

"I've been led to believe that buying coffee together is a fairly usual thing to do with one's girlfriend," he snapped back.

"Oh, girlfriend?" Ron's ears were red and he looked ready to explode.

"Yes, girlfriend," Hermione interrupted, drawing Ron's attention back to her. "Not that it's actually your business, Ron, as we're not together anymore, so I'd appreciate it if you–"

"Not together anymore! I'm your best friend!"

"I know that," she said calmly. "But I don't have to justify myself to you or Harry, so if you'd just–"

"What would you want with him anyway?" Ron demanded of her. "He's just a Quidditch player – and he can't even pronounce your name–"

"I can pronounce Hermione's name quite well, thank you," Viktor put in.

"So do you fancy him more than me?" Ron hissed, and that was more than Hermione was going to take.

She stood up, slamming some coins onto the table to pay for their coffees, then she grabbed Viktor's arm and dragged him away from Ron.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, as soon as they were out of earshot of the café.

"It isn't your fault," Viktor told her. He shot a dirty look back over his shoulder at Ron. "He's only jealous."

"Yes," Hermione sighed. "He certainly is."

)O(

Fin