Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and am not making any profits out of this.
Author's Note: Hey guys! Thanks for reading! . I hope the story is enjoyable to read. Please review and tell me what you think so I can decide whether or not to continue. Thank you!
Hermione threw her bag onto the ground and sat down on the bed. She clutched her head in her hands. I'm so confused! Hermione hated emotions right then, How could I be thinking of Fred as I was snogging Ron? Is it possible that I like…NO! She stopped herself, NO! Fred is the git who's been the core of my troubles! So what if every girl in Gryffindor wants him? I don't! So what if his eyes are the most beautiful I've seen? Ron has those eyes too! So what if he's clever? He didn't put his cleverness to good use! He uses it on his joke products, which are complete junk! Hermione immediately regretted what she thought. As much as the twin's joke products bothered Hermione, she knew in her heart that they were not junk. In fact, it had to take skill to create them. Skill that Ron obviously lacks. Hermione thought before she could stop herself. Wait! What am I thinking? What kind of girlfriend am I? Ugh, and I thought loyalty was one of my top qualities. Hermione shook her head, disgusted with herself. Yet somewhere deep down inside, a little voice was crying out with the truth.
"You l-i-k-e him, Hermione!"
Hermione argued back, "No I don't! I l-i-k-e Ronald Weasley!"
"C'mon Hermione, why else is he constantly on your mind?"
"C'mon yourself, why am I even talking to you? You are me!"
"Quit being in denial!"
"I'm not! I know that I like Ron!"
"You know that plenty of his habits disgust you."
"Just his eating habits! Well, also the way he procrastinates, doesn't help out with Prefect duties, how he seems so needy sometimes, and… So? Everyone has flaws! I'll learn to accept them! Besides, Fred also has flaws that I hate, if you're using this against me!"
"But you don't truly hate them. Remember how Ron totally had you disgusted? Fred just had you annoyed, and after that, you forgave him. Proves you like him."
"Why the heck am I arguing with myself?"
"You just gave in."
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Did not!"
Hermione shut her little voice out and gazed around the room. She began giggling and it soon erupted into laughter. My my, Hermione Jane Granger, She thought to herself, Aren't you getting a little crazy? If someone walked in and saw you shouting to nobody like that…Hermione doubled over, bursting out with laughter. And even as she laughed, she secretly knew, at the very back of her mind, that she did indeed like Mr. Fredrick Immature Weasley.
Suddenly, a loud yell traveled up from downstairs, "AW MAN!" It was followed by a few select cuss words. Hermione went to the head of the staircase to see that it had turned itself into a slide, which it does only when a male wants to get into a girl's dorm.
Searching for the culprit, she was astonished to discover it was─ "Fred?"
Fred became worried when he didn't find Hermione in the library after lunch, and didn't see her in Snape's class even after class had started for fifteen minutes; an all-time late record for Hermione. Leave it to Hermione to be in the same potions class as a group of 7th years. Thinking she may have been seriously ill or in some kind of trouble, Fred swallowed one of his puking pastels and was excused by an extremely revolted Snape. Fred decided to look for her in the girl's dorm when he couldn't find her around the school. He'd even checked Moaning Myrtle's bathroom! Fred shuttered, thinking about him. Moaning Myrtle had come up on him like he was her possession or something! His last resort was the girl's dormitory. Although he heard about the whole stairs-turn-to-slide rule, he didn't quite believe it since he didn't ever need to sneak into a girl's dorm… it was usually vice versa. But when Fred ran up half the stairs, just as he was triumphant that he'd proved the theory wrong, the stairs slid out from under him and he tumbled down the slide. Getting up, he cursed and glared at the slide. As he was plotting revenge against a slide, he heard a timid voice ask "Fred?" Jerking his head up, he saw Hermione looking questionably down at him. Awww bloody Hell, Fred thought, Of all the times she could have seen me, she had to see me with a bruised elbow, a red nose, and messed up hair, glaring daggers at an inanimate staircase that just recently turned into a slide because he, Fred Weasley, was trying to sneak into her dorm. God, I hope she doesn't think I'm some kind of perv!
"Uh, why hello, Hermione!" Fred answered, trying to make it sound like he didn't just tumble down a huge staircase-slide.
"Yeah, why were you trying to come up here?"
"Wha─? I didn't! I… went up the wrong staircase."
Hermione raised her eyebrow skeptically at him, "Right. And where have you been this past six years?"
"Erm…" Fred stuttered, "I… You're late for Snape's class!" He blurted. Why couldn't he talk straight? Maybe because you just made a fool out of yourself in front of Granger, He thought bitterly, When you planned to waltz into her dorm and announce, teasingly, how she was at least twenty minutes late for potions.
"WHAT? HOW LATE?" Hermione shrieked, checking her watch, "OH MY GOD! IT'S TWENTY FIVE MINUTES INTO CLASS?" She let out a stream of extremely colorful swearwords including ones Fred thought she'd never learn in her lifetime. Hermione scrambled out of sight and came back with her bag and ran down the stairs that had turned itself back to normal.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, JUST STANDING THERE?" She screamed at Fred, on the way down. Reaching the bottom, she grabbed his hand and raced for the dungeons.
"What do we have here?" Snape sneered, as Hermione and Fred burst into the classroom, hand in hand, "A young couple on a honeymoon? It looks like Mr. Weasley recovered quickly. That's…" He glanced at the clock on the wall, "Thirty minutes late. Let's take a point for each minute, which makes thirty points each. Sixty points from Gryffindor!"
Hermione turned beet red and shuffled to her seat while Fred walked over to his two tables away. She wasn't so upset over the loss of house points; she was used to that. What had startled her was Snape saying that they were a couple. What would Angelina think? She got her answer when she glanced over at Angelina, only to see Angelina staring at her with a murderous glare. Okay, I've lost thirty points, missed nearly half of class, and Angelina looks like she's about to kill me with her bare hands. Hermione snuck another peek at the older girl, Yep. If looks can kill… I'd be dead.
"Fred, what's going on between you and Ms. Nerdy?" Angelina hissed as Fred dropped down next to her.
"Nothing! I went to the Common Room to relax, and found her. I told her that she was late to Snape's and she freaked out and dragged me along with her!" Fred didn't exactly lie.
"Why were you guys holding hands?" Angelina's eyes flashed dangerously, "I swear if I find out that she's been seducing you, I have plenty of ways to murder her with nothing but my hands. Forget my wand."
"Uh… She tripped just outside the door and I pulled her up as we walked in." The lie slid easily off his tongue. It wasn't as if he's never had practice with teachers. He only had to watch himself around Hermione. She was the kind that could make the smoothest liar stutter.
Angelina didn't seem to completely believe him, but she laid off on the "watch-out-I'm-going-to-kill-you-in-your-sleep" look. Fred smiled sheepishly and slipped his arm around her waist, allowing her to lean against him.
Once Angelina was taken care of, Fred tuned everything out and sank back to relive what happened just moments ago. He replayed the moment Hermione and his hands wrapped together. A dreamy smile appeared on his face as he remembered how good her soft warm hand had felt in his calloused one. Coincidentally, Angelina chose that moment to take Fred's hand and grin sweetly at him. Fred smiled vaguely back and couldn't help but notice how crude and calloused Angelina's hands were from years of Quidditch. He glanced over at Hermione, only to see her look back. He winked at her, causing her cheeks to flush pink and she glanced away, fiddling with her robe. How he loved it when Hermione blushed! It reminded him of all the reasons why Hermione had captured his heart; the side of Hermione that was usually hidden by a mask of bossiness and cleverness. He knew it was this side that Ron saw in her and loved. Ron…The name suddenly registered in Fred's mind, I can't do this to Ron! If I somehow lead Hermione into thinking…Er…knowing that I like her and some odd thing comes over her and she decides that she likes me back, what will happen to Ron? He's like her for ages! No, I can't do this to Ron. Fred decided that, for his brother's sake, he was going to leave Hermione Granger off his list… As hard as it will be for him.
Oh. My. God. Did Fred just wink at me? Hermione felt pleased, Like, Fred Weasley. Like the guy you just admitted to yourself that you were majorly crushing on? Like, the Hogwarts Hottie? Oh my God, is this Hermione thinking? I SOUND LIKE AN AIRHEAD! Hermione fought down the urge to slap herself upside the head, Okay, so you like Fred Weasley. Big deal. You don't have to totally blank out every time he winks at you! Wait, how can you do this? What about Ron? How could you tell him you like him, get his hopes up, and let him down like this? Oh well, I can't lie to him anymore… I can't keep him in the dark anymore… I have to tell him. Ugh! I hope he's happy, that Fred. He's causing me so much distress! Ugh… I mean, I like him… but at the same time─
"Miss Granger? Could you please answer my question?" Snape's droning voice interrupted her thoughts.
"I HATE HIM!" Hermione cried, finishing her thought out loud. The whole class stared blankly at her.
Snape blinked twice before saying smoothly, "I'm sure you do, but that has nothing to do whatsoever with the question, so will you get on with answering?"
"I… uh… You… Please…" Hermione became flustered, "Sorry, Professor, I wasn't paying attention."
"I thought as much," Snape smirked, "Five points from Gryffindor." Hermione turned red as the rest of the Gryffindors groaned and the Slytherins laughed. She turned to catch Fred's eye, only too see him glare angrily back at her.
Who does she hate so much? Fred thought worriedly, I hope it isn't me! Oh please tell me it's not me! Fred groaned, Yeah, it's probably me. I mean who else has been pulling pranks and making her angry since about forever? God, why'd I have to fall for the girl who's been on my tail, making sure I've toed the line every minute of the day? He groaned again, I just had to like a girl who probably won't like me back, didn't I? A girl who my little brother has already called dibs on. Fred groaned a third time.
"Fred, what's wrong?" Angelina whispered, her voice filled with concern.
"Huh?"
"You keep groaning."
"Oh, nothing. Just a stomach ache." He gave Angelina a reassuring smile and turned away to see Hermione staring into his eyes.
Oh, Hermione! Please look away! I beg you! Fred pleaded silently, Your eyes… they way they're glistening sadly…No! I can't stand this! But…Ronald. I have to think for my brother, my baby brother. Fred forced himself, using all his willpower, to glare defiantly at her. Oh God, Hermione, if only you knew how much it kills me to do this. But I'm sure you wouldn't want to hurt Ron either, would you? He tried to communicate all this with her through hateful eyes. Somehow, he didn't think she got the message. His heart ached to see Hermione turn away, her eyes hurt and tearful.
"Class dismissed." Snape announced, sounding all too cheerful.
"Hey Fred, we can actually talk loudly!" Angelina stood up and swung her bag over her shoulder, beaming.
"Yeah." Fred put his arm around Angelina and pulled her close, knowing that Hermione was watching this, "I love you." …Hermione, Fred added to himself. Closing his eyes, his lips met with Angelina's in a soft kiss. In Fred's mind, though, the girl in his arms was Hermione.
