Hermione is spendig the first weekend of the holidays at The Burrow; set after HBP

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE HARRY POTTER SERIES. This little bit of writing has come from me though

It was late on the Saturday evening of their first weekend back at the Burrows for the summer. Hermione's parents were away up in the North so Hermione had decided to spend the first part of the holidays with the Weasley family. She knew she was always welcome there and if she had any doubts then she would only need to listen for Molly's voice echoing the same thing back to her. Ron and Ginny's parents had turned in early after a busy day of unpacking and washing all of their children's uniforms, of course they had magic that could do this for them but Mrs Weasley rather liked being a busy mum and Arthur was always willing to help out.

The clock struck 10 and the firewood was sparking and letting off scents that reminded them of the Gryffindor common room. Ron was sitting in the small armchair looking through a book of the greatest Quidditch players of all time, while Hermione (obviously reading), Harry and Ginny sat on the larger sofa in front of the fire. It had not been long since Harry and Ginny had become and official couple and as much as he put on a brave face in front of his family, Ron still wasn't sure about it all. He knew that she would be safe with Harry but still, his elderly brother instincts started to kick in and he often had thoughts running through his head along the lines of 'If he even slips his hand near her bum, I'll punch him all the way back to Surrey.' Every few minutes or so Hermione would see Ron look up from his book and check where Harry's hand placements were; she also caught him looking at her a few times with a sleepy grin on his face. At the present time, as Hermione sat with her feet tucked underneath her, Harry had his arm round the back of the sofa just behind Ginny's head and she rested her ginger hair on his shoulder, making Ron squirm a bit. Ginny didn't take much notice of Ron's reactions as she was used to all the teasing (she had 6 older brothers and ignored most of the things they said anyway) but Harry had always been a bit cautious knowing how protective Ron was over his sister, and although he wasn't one to show his true feelings, Harry knew that he - in Hermione's words - would have to keep the snogging to a minimum to avoid a black eye.

On the inside Hermione was laughing as she could see how wound up Ron was getting seeing Ginny and Harry being just a touch affectionate with each other; she has encouraged them for as long as she could remember, after all, they were two of her best friends and she knew how much they liked each other. The bell chimed as the hand hit half past on the clock and Ginny yawned as she said her goodnights to both Hermione and Ron.

"I'll walk you up to your room" Harry said as he pulled her off the sofa and took her hand in his leaving the lounge and heading up to the stairs. Without any hesitation, Ron leapt from his seat, threw his book down and followed them, waiting around the corner so he could spy on them without being seen.

"Honestly Ronald, they will only kiss goodnight, nothing to go crazy over" Hermione said from her comfy position in front of the fire.

"Shh! You'll blow my cover. I swear if I see any tongues going into anyone's mouths, I'll kill him."

Hermione turned with a smile on her face and went back to her book, knowing that however Harry and Ginny chose to say goodnight, it would be too much for Ron to deal with. She heard doors closing as she came to the conclusion that Harry had too decided to turn in.

"Honestly," Ron said as he came back to sit on the sofa next to Hermione, "Who does he think he is, acting like Romeo in that muggle play you were going on about the other day?"

"I thought you were okay with it?" Hermione asked as she turned one must have been the last page in her book.

"I thought I was but I dunno, just the thought of him kissing her and doing other stuff, holding hands all the time, and the way they smile at each other"

She lay her book down and turned so that she was facing Ron with her legs crossed.

"Yes Ron because smiling obviously means they're having sex" Hermione said in a rather sarcastic tone.

"I never said anything about s-, wait! Are they having sex? If they are then by Merlin's beard I'll-"

Hermione cut him off as she placed her finger over his mouth. "Honestly Ronald, you need to relax. As much as you hate him right now, Harry is a good guy; he would never overstep any boundaries with Ginny, he cares about her too much to do anything like that."

"He really cares for her?" Ron asked in an awkward, yet caring tone.

"Yes and if you would look into his eyes instead of where his hands are, you might find that he is only ever staring at Ginny's face and nowhere else. He really cares for her Ron and sooner or later you're going to have to get used to it."

Ron looked down into the fire and rested his arms on his knees as he leaned forwards. He had a concerned look on his face, or maybe a thoughtful one – Hermione could read him as well as anyone but at this moment she couldn't quite tell what was he was thinking.

"Look," Hermione leaned forward and placed her hand on his knee, causing Ron to turn a shade of red that nearly matched his hair, "You've got nothing to worry about. Yeah, when Ginny was with Dean they were arguing a lot but he never looked at her the way Harry does."

"No, he just snogged her face off in public and touched her." Hermione knew that he was referring to the many times they had seen them together in The Three Broomsticks. They were both quiet for a few minutes as they reminisced on the time when Hermione had made the suggestion of Ron snogging her and how Ginny would be okay with that. Neither knew how vivid that memory was in the other's head. Whether they liked to admit it or not, both Ron and Hermione had imagined themselves kissing at least once.

As he shook his head in a plea to get images of Harry and Ginny out of his head, Ron turned to Hermione, her eyes were reflecting the warm glow of the fire light and her hair and gone even more frizzy from the time of day. She was still looking at him with her hand on his knee, and as she began to speak she found another voice speaking over the top of hers.

"I-", She pulled her hand off his knee, starting to feel inappropriate.

"We… Sorry 'Mione, you were saying"

"I was just about to say I should probably go to bed. My hair is almost at its worst and I couldn't put you through that." She giggled as she tucked it behind her ear and got up of the sofa to walk across the room to the stairs. Just as she crossed in front of Ron, he held out his arm and caught her hand in his. She blushed slightly at the touch of his hand but hoped the glow of the fire would mask it.

"Your hair looks fine, and you look beautiful, as always" Ron said with a smile on his face. He made his way back to his original seat and picked up his book once again. "Oh and Hermione?"

"Yep" she said as she turned around, her hair flicking almost in slow motion.

"Thanks for the chat. I can always count on you to make me feel better"

"Of course Ron, anything for you." she blushed again as she heard those words out loud. Ron nodded and smiled, as their eyes locked on to each other's from across the room.

"I guess I'll get back to reading my book then" He said, snapping out of his daze.

"Wow," Hermione giggled, "Words I never thought I would hear you say. Goodnight Ron, sweet dreams."

"You too Hermione, sweet dreams." He replied, his words as soft as hers had been. He watched her climb up the stairs, thinking of only how beautiful she looked as she closed the door to Ginny's room.

He looked at his watch and read 11.30pm, early for Ron to go to bed but he knew he would probably be playing quidditch all day on Sunday and he would need the rest. He passed various rooms as he made his way up to bed but found himself stopping outside his sister's bedroom door, which had been left open just an inch. Through the gap he could see the moon lighting up Hermione's face and as he caught a smile he could only hope that her dreams were sweet indeed, that she would be in a world where nobody could get to her, a world where she was safe.

After changing into his pyjamas, he lay on his bed with his hands behind his head picturing that same image of Hermione and him kissing in the booth of The Three Broomsticks, and with that locked in his imagination, he fell into a deep sleep.