A/N: This is rated M just to be safe! I'm pretty sure I want this story to go toward the M direction but I haven't written those parts just yet. I know a lot of stories have the same plot but I just couldn't stop myself. I hope you guys like it. I would appreciate feedback immensely.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. This is purely for entertainment's sake. JK is a genius and I am merely a speck of dirt on her shoe.
Ron was dozing of on the far side of the settee. He was slumped on his side and his head was lolled in w hat looked to be an uncomfortable position. His mouth was slightly open and there was a bit of drool on his chin. He looked awful. There were still ugly red splotches of skin on his arms from the whole Gringotts debacle. Not that it was noticeable because right now Ronald Weasley was covered in dirt, grime, soot and quite possibly dried blood. Wherever she looked evidence of what they had all just gone through was unmistakable. She probably didn't look any better. In fact, she was certain she looked worse. Ron grunted in his sleep which made Hermione focus back on Ron's freckled face. She was automatically drawn back to his slightly open mouth. She had just kissed that mouth. Was it just hours ago? It felt eons ago though thinking about it made her chapped lips tingle. She had always loved Ron that much was plain. She had just been too scared to say anything before. She was hoping he'd make the first move. It had taken Viktor, of all people, to make her realize she had more than friendly feelings for Ron. Viktor commented on Ron's behavior all those years ago. He said that Ron seemed to dislike him which of course, was new to Viktor. He had made an offhanded joke that Ron had been jealous of him because Hermione was paying him more attention and instead of feeling indignant or even slightly offended, she found Ron's jealousy to be pleasing. Further examination of her own feelings led her to the only conclusion there was, she didn't like Ron just as a friend. It was a winding road from then on. She shouldn't have waited. But that was done now. All worked out in the end. She knew that outside the sun was high in the sky, but inside the Gryffindor common room it was dark and a low fire was burning in the fireplace. The side of Ron's face was barely illuminated. She didn't want to wake him. Not now. But she knew that people would soon come and the room would quickly fill with noise and movement, she was surprised to find the common room empty to begin with. She flexed the fingers entwined with his. She sat up and leaned close. She bent her head a little and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek.
"Ron" She whispered. "Ron" She said a little louder while gently shaking the hand she was holding. "Wake up"
His eyes fluttered for a moment and then he slowly opened them.
"—Mione?" He muttered.
"Yeah" She replied.
Ron smiled and turned towards her. She returned his smile reassuringly and let go of his hand. She started to get up and was moving in the direction of the girls' dormitories when Ron reached for her hand. She looked back at him and his eyebrows were raised in question.
"Wait a minute. Where are you going?" He asked.
"To the dormitories" She answered simply.
He got up and turned her to face him. She looked into his eyes and saw a kind of pleading vulnerability there.
"Why would you do that?" He asked a slight smile on his lips.
"Because Ron…" She started. "Rules are rules. We're back in school. We should.."
"Yeah but it's not much of school right now. More like a refugee camp innit?" She knew he was trying to make light of the situation and she appreciated it. She nodded and let him drag her toward the boys' dormitories. Harry was up there. She hoped he was okay. They didn't say much after visiting the headmaster's office. They went straight in here and before Harry could hastily make his way up to the room he used to share with Ron, Dean, and Seamus, she stopped him by gripping his arm. She wanted to say so many things to Harry. She didn't know how to put it into words though. She must have looked like a goldfish caught out of water. How could she express the horror of thinking he was dead? The hopelessness she felt. And then the exhilaration of having him back and of him finally defeating Voldermort. How was she supposed to sum everything up into words? She wasn't used to not knowing what to say. Harry seemed to understand though and he stepped forward, wrapped her into the tightest hug she's ever received.
"We'll talk some other time, yeah?" He smiled a little as he said this. "I love you. I'm glad the three of us are here" Harry whispered as he pulled away.
He turned to Ron gave him a hug and muttered words she could not hear. And then without further preamble, he turned and left Ron and Hermione alone. She supposed he was right. There would be time. Now was not the time to go rummaging into feelings and thoughts. So she led Ron to the couch nearest the fireplace and rested her head on his shoulder. They didn't say anything and before she knew it Ron had started to nod off.
She hardly noticed, but Ron was already opening the door to their room. One of the beds, the one nearest the door, had its curtain drawn. She guessed it was Harry in there. All the other beds were empty. Ron led her to the one nearest the window. She noticed how some of the light from the outside came in through the gaps. She didn't know what time it was and she hardly cared. She pulled out the beaded bag from her robes. She dug around until she found clean clothes for both her and Ron. Silently, she handed the clothes to Ron. He crossed to the bed across the one she was sitting on drawing the curtains closed as he went. She heard clothes rustling. She cast a cleaning spell on herself and went about changing into her clean clothes. She opened the curtains a bit to peak through them and saw Ron patiently waiting on the other side. She stuck her hand out and waiting for him to take it. She felt Ron's calloused hands take hers and a second later he was sitting with her on the bed. They should really talk about what was happening between them. They hadn't made anything official yet. How could they in the midst of the battle? She felt heat on her cheeks as she thought of what others might think if they found her in bed with Ron, no matter how innocent their intentions were. But she didn't feel like talking. For the first time in Hermione's life, she really didn't want to think or talk things out. Her eyes were already feeling heavy and she could hardly move her legs. She could feel the fatigue creeping up and catching up with her. When had they last had a good night's sleep? She started to move back into the pillows and she felt Ron follow her lead. She let Ron settle into the pillows first and put her head beside his. Ron turned to lie on his side facing her. He was so close that she felt his breath on her cheeks.
"I love you" He said plainly.
She turned to face him. She cupped his jaw and traced the stubble growing with her thumb.
"I love you" She replied. He sighed and she shifted. Ron placed his hands around her and she lay against him. There would be time to talk. That was her last thought as her breathing evened and Hermione finally fell asleep.
Ron knew Hermione was asleep. Months of sleeping near her had taught him a thing or two about her. Sometimes he would stay up straining to hear her move about in her sleep or hear her steady breaths. She would grind her teeth at night too, he noticed that. Especially when she was worried about something as she fell asleep. Her brows creased even as she slept. She would toss and turn. All those nights at Grimmauld or in the tent, he wanted to go over to her. He wanted to sleep by her side, hold her. It had taken Viktor Krum of all people to make him realize he wanted her. He's always loved Hermione. She was brilliant at charms, transfiguration, potions, and every other bloody other class they had. Well, except for divination. She was horrible at divination. It was bollocks anyway, divination was. She was brilliant, thoughtful, and kind. She was a great mate. Like Harry was to him except that she was a girl. But when he saw her with Viktor Krum it made him feel strange. He was angry and irritable and he couldn't figure out why. He was a downright git to Hermione. He should have been happy for her. Viktor Krum was a world famous Quidditch player. Someone Ron had actually admired up until... well up until he didn't.
Then he started paying attention to her more often. It wasn't that he hadn't noticed her before. He just saw her differently or rather he noticed different aspects of her. Things like how many different gasps she had depending on what she was gasping at exactly or the way her mouth twitched slightly when he made a crude joke and she would try to hide her amusement with a stern look. He noticed how soft her hair looked or how bright her smile was. He wasn't dim. He knew Hermione was attractive enough like how he knew Ginny was attractive to other people just not to him. But he didn't know, he never thought he'd be drawn to Hermione that way. He wanted her. He loved her and he wanted her. He didn't have the slightest clue how to go about telling her. Especially when he couldn't even fully explain it to himself. Before he could even start to ponder on what to do Lavender happened. Of course, he wasn't just some innocent bystander in that situation. He knew he participated just as much as Lavender. It was just that he was jealous of what he thought Hermione had done with Krum and he had been insecure. And though utterly stupid now that he thought about it, he thought it would impress Hermione to some degree.
After that, there was no right time. In fact, there was no time to think about those things at all. He knew he loved her, but everything else just had to wait. They had a war to fight and they had to have their priorities on straight. And then she kissed him. Full on the mouth. Right in the midst of the battle. But before all that, the whole time between sixth year and their hunt for horcruxes he had tried to make it more known to her that he fancied her. He read all about being the right amount of subtle in the book, Twelve Fail-Safe Ways to Charm Witches. Fred and George had given him that book. Fred. His chest constricted at the thought his brother. He always knew there was possibility. They had all been fighting in the war and in war, there had to be casualties. But no matter how hard he tried to be ready, it didn't hurt any less. It was one of his worst fears. , losing one of his siblings or parents to war. Fred was one of his brothers he loved the most, only because, Fred and George were his closest brothers. He loved all his brothers, but he had gotten on with Fred and George the most. They could be tossers when they wanted to be, but most of the time it was all for a laugh. Then the image of his mum's forlorn face swam up into his mind. The war was over, but it had left its mark. They would carry the pain of having lost their loved ones forever. But he didn't want to dwell on death right now. There would be time for that. He settled further into the pillows. He shifted on the bed so that now Hermione's head was resting on his chest. Now that the war was over, he didn't know what came next. What would happen then? He loved Hermione. That much he knew. She was alright. Harry was alright. They were here and that's what mattered. The war was over.