Yo! So here is the second chapter.

Yes, this is rated for later chapters.

IMPORTANT: READ A/N AT BOTTOM!

While I've been writing this fic, I've found that the first chapter was forced. I couldn't concentrate and I wasn't into it. I think in order to make a better impression I'll go back and rewrite it, if not for you guys then for me.

Otherwise, here's the next chapter, which came so much easier to me.

Enjoy.

~*~

Chapter Two

Seeing Double

It took him forever to fall asleep that next night. When it had been time to crawl into bed, he was so jittery that he had ended up sitting in front of the fire in the common room for nearly two more hours. Then, when he was able to finally lie down, he had gotten a head ache. His felt as though it were literally splitting from the bridge of his nose to the back of his neck. In turn, he had sat there with his curtains drawn closed, staring into the dark until his head fell forward onto his chest and he eyes closed from exhaustion.

He had thought about his last dream all day. During his classes, during his break, at lunch and dinner the only thing he could think about was the dream that he had had last night. Every time he saw Hermione, the only thing he wanted to do was go right up to her and confront her. He had three classes with her. Potions. Defence Against the Dark Arts. Transfiguration. Every time that he looked at her, she made it perfectly clear that the only thing that she was focused on was her book.

The halls were no better. Every time that they had crossed paths Hermione made it clear that she was in no mood and refused to talk to him. At one point she had even caught the attention of McLaggan and walked the rest of the way to her next class with him. Or at least that's what went through his head for the next hour.

Later on he had come across her in the great hall at dinner. She had been sitting by herself with a book at hand and her eyes plastered to it. Every now and then she'd make a note or two in a notebook and then she'd hold the end of the pen to her lips and continue reading. He had walked feebly, shoulders hunched, biting lip, and hands in pockets toward her in determination to find out if the dreams were real.

When he approached her he was only able to get out her name before she closed her book, thrust her plate away, and storm off through the entrance of the Great Hall.

When he had seen Hermione before any of this happened he had been able to completely close off any thoughts about her that would make them both on the verge of uncomfortableness. Now, the only thing that he could do was second guess anything he did. Whenever he said something or did something he'd think about what she'd say in response or how she'd feel about it.

Most of his day had been filled with shrieks. Lavender was there at every turn and in every class they had together, she had promptly taken Harry's previous space next to him. He couldn't walk through the halls without his name being heard from out of nowhere when he'd turn to see her running at him.

It was nice having someone there for him. She'd ask him how his class was and make a few snide remarks that he'd laugh at...but then he'd think about how Hermione would glare if she had heard and immediately his laughing would stop. Then she'd pull him to the side and ask him if anything was wrong and he'd say no and then they'd snog until they knew they had to get to class.

So now he was confused. For some reason he couldn't break it to Lavender about Hermione. How could he even know if the dreams were real? The fact that she was ignoring him could be because he was with Lavender in the first place, which was also to his confusion.

So when he had closed his eyes only to open them again only in the same room as last night's insinuendo, he felt a little broken down. He looked around the room to find that it was exactly the same. The clock even read 8:05, as it was now expected to. He also noticed that he was now in the same things he had worn to bed.

She looked up at him from her position against the wall opposite him, on the other side of the bed, and on the floor. "Ron?"

He nodded and swung his arms at his side. "Yeah. Looks like we're in for another night."

Ron had wanted to start the conversation. He didn't want to go over what had happened last night but he wanted something to go through the air around them. He didn't do well under pressure. Things never really came easily for him. When he was with someone most of the conversation was forced. They'd always have to bring up something like a test or the weather for there not to be awkward silence.

With Harry and Hermione it was different. There was always something to talk about with them. Most of the time they didn't need to think about what was going on with them for there to be something said. It was like they could each read each others thoughts.

Right now was the complete opposite.

The only thing that Ron wanted to do right now was to crawl under a rock and die. It didn't even need to be a rock really. He just didn't want to have anyone walking by to have a heart attack and fall in next to him.

For the rest of the night neither of them said anything. They sat there, unchanging, but switching positions to get more comfortable every now and then. Eventually, Ron caved and lay all the way on the right side on the bed so that it Hermione wanted to she could get on it too. She didn't though and instead stayed stubbornly on the floor.

That was how most of the nights went. Every now and then conversation was had, but most of the time each of them sat in their own silence.

Durring the day they spent most of their time avoiding each other at all costs, switching their time with Harry in a silent agreement. Ron didn't see him a lot anyway. Most of his time was consumed with Lavender. She refused to leave his side if they both were with free time. She hung on his arm with a smile on her face and talked until Ron had no choice but to completely faze her out, occasionally nodding his head.

When Ron was with Harry they talked about everything but the dreams that he was having. Harry brought up Malfoy at any chance, asking about what he could be up to or where he was at or if Ron had heard anything. He hadn't of course, but as Harry had thought that now that he was going out with Lavender he was privileged to more information. From all of the conversations he had gotten stuck in with Lavender and her group of friends, the only thing girls talked about were guys and pygmy puffs.

He was sure that the dreams were starting to effect his real life too. One time while Ron was starring at the wall in the Common Room, he had heard his name from somewhere behind him and he spun around quickly, breathing out Hermione's name only to find it to be Parviti, asking him about the assignment for Potions that was due tomorrow, which he hadn't even thought of starting yet.

Then something happened and Ron had snapped.

In more ways than one.

~*~

He had spent most of the day not paying attention to anything around him. Whenever he was in class the book in front of him came in his favor for once. When a teacher asked a question or looked for volunteers, he made his presence unknown by stuffing his face in the designated book, looking heavily in thought. Then, as time passed, his mind and eyes would eventually wander. Most of the time landing a few seats away and at the front of the room.

There was a line. A line that both of them had silently drawn in front of one another. This was where things got difficult and things that would go unspoken would stay unspoken and both parties had agreed not to do. Guess who was the first one to break it?

His eyes only just opened and he felt heavy. He felt the usual suction of being pulled into his imagination. Objects were pulled into place. The room and its colors became less blurry and the focus felt better on his eyes. His feet landed on something hard and hollow until the carpet formed underneath his feet.

The first thing he heard was the fury in her voice.

"Ronald Weasley! How dare you!"

He was too out of it to react. Then again, he wouldn't have done anything about it if he could have.

Hermione was standing at the other side of the room one moment and the next thing he realised was a horrible stinging sensation covered his entire left cheek. He lifted a hand to feel he heat it was already emitting.

Hermione had slapped him. Hard.

It wasn't just the physical act that she had committed either. He knew that behind that one motion six years of pent up frustration at his idiocy had followed in its wake.

She had done well too. He found that it hard for people not to release their anger at him over time. Most found it too hard to keep their anger to themselves for long. His mother had only lasted three years. This was the life of a Weasley.

"How could you!" Hermione screamed at him, fist clenched at her sides and into her white tank top. "What did you think you'd accomplish? Putting an end to this fight by humiliating me in front of the entire class? I'd expect this from a lot of people, Ron. Never from you!"

Ron scowled. "Yeah, because the nicest thing to do after I mucked up that spell was to laugh. You could have fixed it, Hermione. I'm sure you could have plungered up something."

She shook her head. "Please. Everyone laughed. I was the only one that got any dispute because of it!"

"No," he pointed a finger at her, "the only reason you were so pleased was because I did it in front of everyone, including Lavender."

She turned to him and glared. "What? How does this have anything to do with her? We were talking about us, Ron. Just you and me. Lavender is completely from my mind."

"Right." He laughed disgruntling. "Then why haven't you talked to me? Why wont you at least let me stand next to you? I mean you went as far as to talk to McLaggen to get away from me!"

"He happens to be perfectly good company, I'll have you know. We even got to talking about S.P.E.W. and he finds it quite interesting-"

"Please. The only reason he'd listen to that is for one reason."

She squinted and stepped to him until the arms across her chest were barley touching his. "Say it, Ron. Tell me exactly what you were thinking, because I think I'd really like to know."

He sputtered. "Well...you know. He only wants you for snoggin'...and stuff."

She touched him. The tip of her finger found the center of his chest. "If you're insinuating what I think you're insinuating, then you better shut your mouth right now."

"That's what you wanted. You said you wanted to know why he wanted you. He only wants your-"

This time he would have taken the slap. He would have taken the slap on the same cheek.

Instead Hermione landed a blow on his right eye, fist tight, arm straight out, she knocked him so hard, that like a tree, he fell down and onto the nightstand. He could feel his scalp open at the back and what seemed to feel like blood seeping out. An immediate headache followed.

He groaned as he got up.

Hermione stood there staring at him, uninterested in helping him up, but acute awareness that he was seriously hurt rising to the service until she sternly told him to sit on the bed and she left to the bathroom.

Ron held a hand to his eye and sighed. Well, now he was happy. At least he knew that the punch Hermione had landed on Malfoy had left an imprint.

Hermione returned with two cold wet cloth in hand and told him to turn to the side. Then she handed him one for him to place on his eye. She didn't say anything after that as she cleaned his cut. He knew that if she was still as mad as she was before her hadn't wouldn't have been as easy on him as it was. It stroked along the cut, taking along with it the blood that dripped from it.

His voice was quiet and soft, trying not to make it sound as harsh as it did in his mind. "So, did you have fun at the party with McLaggen, then?"

Hermione continued to clean his cut as she spoke. "Well...if you must know, it was awful. He was quite dreadful to be honest. The only thing he talked about the whole night was about his hundreds of saves at the keeper tryouts. The only bit of liveliness throughout the entire night was when Luna brought on a conversation about Hartailed Snortbacks."

Ron didn't move, bit he was even a little bit happier on the fact that Hermione had had such a horrible time with McLaggen. His night hadn't been such better with Lavender. As per routine, Lavender's group of girls sat giggling only feet away from them as he and her sat entwined in the chair.

Ron had tried to talk to her about what was going on. Not specific details, but about how he and Hermione weren't talking anymore and about the rush of all his classes. She wouldn't have it though and the most he was about to get out was when she was at his neck.

When she was done she stood. "You'll be fine." She she went to the bathroom for a moment and returned without the cloth.

"Well I hope your happy. Look what you've done. " Ron uncovered his eye, which was already starting to swell. "Wonder if this'll really show up."

Hermione shrugged and made her way around the rubble to sit in the still intact chair. "I haven't a clue whether or not what we do in here effects what happens out there." At Ron's look she rolled her eyes. "Physically."

They sat there for a while in a silence that was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable.

"How do you do it?" Ron didn't look at her, but he could feel her shift in the chair.

"Do what?"

"How do you not let it effect you?"

"Which part? The teasing or...this?"

Ron let his good eye land on her. "Both."

Hermione sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Well, most of my life I've spent learning. My parents taught me at an early age that knowlege will give me a good future. Then I was so spent on learning that I started to love it. So, as expected, I wasn't the most popular person at my school." She stared at her feet, legs crossed and leaning in the direction of Ron. "As for this...I try to keep my personal time and class time as seperate as possible. It's easier that way."

He laughed. "That's a load. Are you telling me that this place never crossed your mind once during class."

She shook her head. "I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that I try not to think about anything other than what I'm doing at the moment."

Ron didn't persist. He didn't want anything else to get even worse than it as at the moment.

At his feet was the clock, now upside down. He could still read it though and he watched it change for a while as the minutes passed by.

"Why did you do it?" Hermione's voice was soft. "Why did you have to do that?"

Ron sat for a long time wondering on how to answer that. Until he realised that there was no best way to put it. He could have lied about it or put it in a way he'd think only he could understand, but he was talking to Hermione. "I was mad. You've been ignoring me. You wont come within feet of me. I'm sick of havin' to have to have Harry in the middle of it, 'cause I know he hates it. I just wish this was over."

When Hermione didn't respond, he looked at her through his hands.

She was now turned away from him, adjusting her short pajama shorts to cover a little more. "I'm not sayin' I'm sorry for the birds. But I am sorry for your eye... and head. That was uncalled for."

Ron nodded and eased himself into a more comfortable position. "Why're you ignorin' me? Out there I mean."

"Ron, just because this happened, doesn't mean that I'm going to ignore everything else."

Something came out of him that sounded like a growl of frustration. "I don' get why you're so upset! So I'm going out with Lavender? That doesn't mean you get to bite my head off about it. You're my friend. It's not like Lavender's hurting anythin'."

Hermione stared at him through her lashes. "You...are unbelievable." She stood and her hand came up to her temple. "Didn't we already have this conversation? Not everything is about you and Lavender! Not everything has to do with your new girlfriend! You've always been this way. Every since I met you, all you seem to do is no understand to obviousness and say all the wrong things at the exact wrong moment."

"So, basically you're mad that your friends with me because I act like myself. Because that's a great reason to punch me."

Her mouth hung open. "You know I'd never do something like that Ronald. You know I'm friends with you because you're..." She turned away from him and stared at the picture on the wall. For a minute all she did was look at the way the lines around the picture curved every now and then and the way the realistic sand faded at the edges.

"What?"

"You're Ron Weasley. That fact that you're friends with Harry doesn't have anything to do with our friendship. If Harry didn't exist, which yes would be terrible, then I would still be your friend...even though we'd get into horrible fights and wouldn't talk for weeks on end...What about me? Would have be here with me if Harry wasn't?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't know who'd I'd get along with if Harry wasn't here. Seamus and Dean, maybe. I don't even know if I'd met you if Harry wasn't here." He bit his lip. "You're right though. It would've been hard without him. He's like the referee, yeah? Not takin' sides, only makin' sure everything is fare."

Hermione and Ron were now both sitting, Ron on the chair, Hermione on the bed.

Ron didn't really understand what had just happened.

"Me 'an Harry are going to the Burrow tomorrow. For Christmas that is."

"I know. I'll be going home and then to Paris soon after."

He remained silent and that was that.

~*~

A/N READ ME

I'm wonderin' whether I should fit this into the book as in "wow all of this happened but it didn't change anything"? Or should I play it off and make an alternate ending?

Yes, I do know that it was short for my taste. Next one to be posted (hopefully) soon. Depends on the reviews...Just to let you know, comming up it will be more of a broad focus. I don't want this fic to spend allits time on the sould perpose of Ron and Hermione getting together...

Yeah Right!

So I'm wonderin' if that was too OOC...Let me know for future refrence!

Later!

CrazedHumor