Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any related characters.
Prompt: "Move out of my way before I make you." 6th year AU first kiss.
Written for the lovely romioneb's birthday!
You're Worth It
Hermione spends a lot of time bickering with Ron, but their arguments are never unproductive.
If anything, it's the best way she knows how to communicate with her stubborn, ginger-haired best friend. Although their arguments often fail to get to the root of the problem, they never fail at releasing the dramatic tension that endlessly brews like they're waiting for a crucial ingredient needed to complete the Draught of Peace.
Within minutes, they are able to take the smallest of issues and turn them into all-out rows, often resulting in hurt feelings and bruised egos. Hermione focuses her time on proving that she's right, triggering the all-too-familiar wave of defensiveness from Ron.
One thing that Hermione believes she has in common with Ron is that they're both combative in nature. They will seek each other out in the common room, looking for a quarrel, much to the dismay of the other Gryffindor students. Both of them can willingly go into any level of an argument to make their opinions count.
Sometimes she ends up storming out of the room, sometimes he does, effectively shutting down the debate until they decide to resume at a later time. Hermione's blood pressure levels spike during their rage-filled fights, and she imagines that's why she keeps coming back for more animated discussions.
She reflects on this fact in a moment of peace between them as they're patrolling the corridors late one evening. Ron is quiet, ducking his head into room after room, and she wonders what he could be thinking about.
Her wonders are squashed when Draco Malfoy appears, alongside Pansy Parkinson, in the doorway of an adjacent classroom. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Weaselbee and...nevermind, somebody not worth mentioning."
Hermione rolls her eyes at Draco's lame attempt to offend her. "Running out of material to cycle through, Malfoy?"
Draco guffaws at her, followed by Pansy's unfortunate trill that sounds more like a hyena laughing.
"We've already got this section of the castle covered," Draco insists, shoving his robes aside to show off his prefect badge. "So you two will have to find some other place to engage in your filthy tonsil tennis."
Hermione resists retaliating, yet again not impressed by Draco's joke as it isn't the first time someone's insinuating that more than just patrolling happens whenever she's alone with Ron.
She glances up at Ron beside her who, although red in the face, has remained surprisingly quiet throughout the whole exchange. She's just about to applaud him for controlling his usual flaring temper, when Malfoy's smug grin as he rounds the corner out of sight is what sends Ron over the edge.
"I'll fucking show him!" Ron curses, already making a move to chase Malfoy down.
Hermione quickly steps in front of him, blocking his path. "Don't, Ron! This is exactly what he wants. Don't give him the attention he's looking for!"
The heat of his gaze burns a hole on her skin. "Move, Hermione."
True to her nature, she doesn't back down. "No."
"Move out of my way before I make you."
Hermione tries to ignore the shiver that runs down her spine from the mixture of Ron's darkened eyes and low tone.
Hermione opens her mouth to respond, when Ron seizes the opportunity of her momentary distraction to brush past her. "Ron, no, he's not worth it-"
"But you are!"
Hermione's hands fall to her sides. "I'm sorry, wh-what did you just say?"
Although Hermione is usually the one poking a finger in his face, she doesn't miss the one time Ron uses this gesture, pointing directly at her heart. "You're worth it. You deserve better than to be treated like rubbish by that Malftwat."
Her usual pugnacious stance falters. "You really mean that?"
A flash of hurt crosses his face. "Of course."
Just as fast, her eagerness returns. "Then let me take care of this."
"Whoa, wait — where are you going?"
She withdraws her wand from her pocket as she marches down the corridor. "To end this ridiculous charade. Once and for all."
Ron grabs hold of her wrist, pulling her back. "Oh, no, you don't."
Hermione tries to ignore the sparks from where his fingertips are curled around her skin. "What? It's okay when you go stomping around the castle like a madman, but I can't?"
Ignoring her question, he asks another one. "Weren't you the one telling me that he isn't worth it?"
"That was before!" she exclaims with a shrill voice that echoes throughout the empty corridor.
"Before what?"
"Argh — nevermind! Just move over!" she pushes on Ron's chest, sending him tumbling backwards as she sets off down the corridor again.
"You're not doing this." Ron catches up to her far faster than she's able to chase down Malfoy, trapping her into a corner.
Hermione huffs out a frustrated breath. "Move, Ron!"
He crosses his arms, a smirk playing on his lips. "No."
"Move, or I'll make you." Her words mirror his own from minutes earlier. She tries to convey the seriousness of her command by narrowing her eyes onto his burning gaze.
"Then make me."
She places two firm hands onto Ron's chest — his rock solid chest — and pushes him hard into the stone wall behind him.
Ron's eyes widened, grunting from the force of her argumentative blow. "Bloody hell, you really did."
Chest heaving, Hermione takes in Ron's flushed face that matches her own, adrenaline pumping through her body.
When he rakes his eyes up and down her face with his intense gaze, Hermione allows her eyes to linger on his mouth.
With one last impassioned once-over, she realizes that what they were fighting about wasn't all that important in the grand scheme of things.
Ron seems to agree, a small chuckle releasing from his lips with a shake of his head. "You're the most infuriating woman I've ever met. You know that, right?"
Hermione has an inkling that he's trying to convey something else. She's hit with the realization that, much like her own feelings, he wouldn't argue so much with her if he didn't care about her. Right?
She decides she needs to find out.
Hermione yanks on the collar of Ron's jumper, crashing his lips to hers. He responds with fervent enthusiasm, his hand glued to the back of her head to keep her in place. The experience is initially awkward, full of sloppy kisses and teeth clashing, but they soon settle into a rhythm that just fits for them. They both give as much as they take, each fighting for control, but also allowing the other person to take the lead every once and awhile.
When oxygen becomes a necessity, they pull apart, panting. They both stare at each other with combined confusion and shock, neither making a move for several long seconds.
Then Hermione sees Ron's lip curl up, and she can't help but release a bubble of laughter, delighted when he joins in.
Her lips find their way back to Ron's, releasing the last of her contained emotion, and ending the dance between them. Disagreeing with Ron seems to be the proper catalyst for admitting all that they had denied between them for years.
Hermione finds snogging Ron to be quite a satisfying end to their rows.