Chapter 4: Introduction to Newfound Romanticism and Conclusion

Author's note: This is not a canon-compliant story. If stuff changed and that annoyed you, welp, welcome to . The deathly hallow thing changed only and only because of what preceded it. In earlier circumstances, Ron wasn't sure Hermione even liked him back and all that shit, in this case, it's obvious that's not the case. It just makes no sense why that'd still happen with all the loud pep talks from Harry and Hermione and the fact that Ron and Hermione actually kissed. If you still disagree, I don't wish to argue further upon this.

If the kiss stuff was poorly written and/or mechanical or anything of the sort, please know it was out of my element. I don't write kissy stuff, I only read it. I can't bring myself to re-read what I wrote, if it was bad, please forgive me.

Ron couldn't believe that Hermione was kissing him.

It was a bit sloppy. A bit awkward. A bit unrehearsed. It was perfect.

He couldn't believe she was pinning him against the door and attacking his mouth with such ferocity. He couldn't believe he was thinking instead of savouring this moment forever, so he turned off his brain and concentrated.

He slid up his arms from her back to her hair as she let out a light moan. Then she started to slide her fingers underneath his shirt, making him gasp.

"What?" she asked, dazed in her face, slightly annoyed, slightly anticipative.

"I don't mean to really, ruin this moment, but I can't believe this is happening." He said, simply. The nervousness, obvious, in his voice.

"Why?" she simply asked.

"I mean you're so bloody perfect, and I'm just Ron."

"What do you mean 'just Ron'? And what makes you think I'm perfect?"

"I mean sometimes I feel like you're out of my league."

"What rubbish!", she exclaimed, "Is this what Harry meant by your self-loathing ceremonies?"

"What?"

"Oh you know, when you were off snogging Lavender, and I was sad, he said I should let you be because at least then you wouldn't be participating in your self-loathing ceremonies."

"Right."

"I mean I understand why you must be feeling that but I still think it's stupid. I mean what do you have to loathe about yourself. You're perfect."

"Okay, I'm jealous all the time, I can't get through a sentence without fucking swearing or sounding like an arse and I ju-"

"So, you have three bad things about you, so do I, so does Harry, he was literally yelling at us for no reason all throughout last year. Just stop being stupid."

"I'll try" he smirked.

"Okay" she said, haphazardly, and leaned up to kiss him again. This time he complied immediately. He swiftly slid his tongue inside her mouth and explored it, as she let out a moan. She then started to suck on his tongue, while exploring his hair. They continued this for a while but suddenly Ron's head lightly hit the door and Hermione got tired of standing on her tiptoes.

Both of them walked away from the door, their sides now facing it, far enough from the round-table. Walking towards each other, they met in the middle.

Both of them now kissed with this newfound confidence. Hermione now had learnt how to use her tongue and applied what she learned from their last kiss to the best of her abilities. She let out a moan as Ron sucked on his tongue. Then she absent-mindedly started undoing the buttons of his shirt. Ron groaned when he realized what she was doing. She unbuttoned enough of his shirt to feel his chest. She could feel his muscles, his chest was incredibly freckled. It was getting harder to reach his mouth though, so she held on to his shoulders, and jumped up, putting her legs around his waist.

That was it for both of them. They attacked and explored each other's mouths with a newfound passion.

And then suddenly the door bolted open.

They threw themselves apart but both of them knew they couldn't hide it, what with Ron being shirtless and Hermione's lips being swollen as anything.

It was Harry. He could only manage one sentence though: "what the fuck was that?"

Ron couldn't be more annoyed. But then again, Harry would've naturally gotten curious if Ron just went missing.

Hermione was blushing ferociously.

"What do you think was that?"

"Well you were clearly sucking each other's faces off"

Hermione abruptly cut in, "Look, Harry, we're sorry if—"

"Merlin, yes, you should be sorry, by putting me through years of bickering when you could've talked to each other a long time ago. Took you long enough, honestly."

"Wha-" Hermione said.

"Oh yes, your whole Krum thing. You carried that bit for way too long honestly. Then when you dropped that off, Ron does his Lavender thing and then guess who has to deal with that?"

"You, mate." Ron muttered.

"Exactly, as if I don't have enough shit to deal with, you guys and your unresolved tension makes up for half of it."

"Um, we're sorry…?" said Ron.

"Don't be. Just don't do weird break up shit, at least not soon, and please don't do the sucking face thing in front of me either."

"As if you don't snog my sister in front of everyone, git" Ron said.

Hermione kicked him on his shin. "You don't have to worry about it Harry, I have enough decency to not show public displays of affection. Besides we are prefects."

"Oh, sodding hell."

"Yeah, well, you could've easily locked this door" Harry smirked, motioning towards the little shutter at the top of the door."

"Damn it." Ron muttered.

"So…" Hermione continued nervously, "This doesn't make you uncomfortable?"

"No, I think it's better. At least you won't row with each other as an excuse to create passion and shit, I don't know."

"Well, okay then, good to know." Ron said.

Hermione smiled and nodded her head. Relieved.

"Well, I guess, I'll, uh, leave you to it then." Harry said awkwardly.

"Yeah" Ron chuckled, "go away"'

When Harry left, Ron and Hermione kissed a bit again.

Horcrux Hunt

He felt like shit.

It was that fucking locket, doing that. Yes, it was.

It filled feelings inside his head. He could write a poem.

He had actually:

"When I walk the streets

I see people

And I see in their eyes

Venom

Hatred

Contempt

For me

And

Then I scold myself

Teach myself

Nobody hates me

I believe me

Then it's three o'clock in the morning and I no longer believe me

I look at the girl I like

I feel she's not good enough for me

I look at my best friend

Feel like he's not good enough for me

No one's good enough for me

And then I drown in my self loathing

It's hard to get out now

So I'll just drown in my self-loathing

I'm non miraculous

I have no gifts

No talents or smarts

I have my self-hatred

My insecurities

My anger

At myself

My brothers once told me

That I was a mistake

My mother longed for a daughter

But she was cursed with me instead

I sit down and I see them around me

Lifeless orbs

They're my mates, and then

They shift form

They just morph

They just taunt me and

I can't smile anymore

I'm a miserable coward

I'm a miserable coward

So just leave me alone

On second thought, don't

I don't trust myself anymore."

Of course, being maudlin, as he was, didn't help here. You see, there was this thing that afflicted him.

He'd gently taken Hermione aside at Bill and Fleur's wedding, and the both of them decided amicably to take a break during the hunt. From their relationship.

He brought his attention back to the conflict.

"Oh, you're sure, are you? Right then, well, I won't bother myself about them. It's all right for you two, isn't it, with your parents safely out of the way —"

"My parents are dead!" Harry bellowed.

"And mine could be going the same way!" yelled Ron.

"Then GO!" roared Harry. "Go back to them, pretend you've got over your spattergroit and Mummy'll be able to feed you up and —"

Ron made a sudden movement: Harry reacted, but before either wand was clear of its owner's pocket, Hermione had raised her own.

"Protego!" she cried, and an invisible shield expanded between her and Harry on the one side and Ron on the other; all of them were forced backward a few steps by the strength of the spell, and Harry and Ron glared from either side of the transparent barrier as though they were seeing each other clearly for the first time.

"Leave the Horcrux," Harry said.

Ron wrenched the chain from over his head and cast the locket into a nearby chair. He turned to Hermione.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" "Are you staying, or what?"

"I . . ." She looked anguished. "Yes — yes, I'm staying. Ron, we said we'd go with Harry, we said we'd help —"

"I get it. You choose him."

"Ron, no — please — come back, come back!"

He tried to walk away, get out, but he couldn't.

His life seemed to flash before his eyes. All his experiences and memories. All his feelings and realizations. They all laid bare before his eyes as he recalled the things his friends told him.

if you had the confidence, you could become like Quidditch Captain and Head Boy and get a buggering PhS in whatever. But no, no, no. You will just spend 20 hours every single day just being all "should I do this? Should I do that?" like just stop

I mean I understand why you must be feeling that but I still think it's stupid. I mean what do you have to loathe about yourself? You're perfect

"I can't fucking do it" he yelled. "I can't run away now!"

"Well, then don't" Harry roared back.

Hermione was crying hysterically at this point.

"Look, Harry, I figure I'm sorry, I just get anxious, and I don't like what this sodding locket is doing to us. We used to be best mates and now we're saying just totally fucked things to each other!"

"Yes, we are, I don't know why, and I'm sorry, you should care about your family, you have like eight people to go back to, I don't know why I'm getting mad, now is not the fucking time to!"

"Well." Hermione cut in with a soft voice, "I think we should all take a deep breath and just move on from there."

"I'm sorry for scaring you guys."

"Yes, I am mad, Ron, I won't deny that, but if you had actually run away, it would take forever for me to even be civil with you."

"So you'd never forgive me?"

"I wouldn't go there, but you'd have to do all sorts of things to get me back. It would take a considerable amount of time to, really, correct the whole ordeal."

"I exist too." Harry said, rolling his eyes.

Ron was walking home from the grocery store. He'd gotten some pasta to make some macaroni and cheese. It was Hermione's guilty-pleasure. She liked to pretend that she ate all that posh shit but deep inside all she craved was some iced tea, chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese. He really loved that about her. He smiled as he walked home. Now, he'd gotten more or less used to not using brooms quite as often as a means to travel. Ron stayed with Hermione at a temporary settlement, while they looked for a home in a more magically inclined area. It was excruciating to go through the whole underground process because Hermione didn't really fancy using Floo powder much.

He had become sort of the cook. Hermione was better at baking than cooking really. Sometimes she'd play the keyboard. Both of them were saving up for a piano. An upright one possibly, made of elegant, strong wood.

Ron reached what he called home. There was a letter in the post.

He opened it, and it seemed like it was from none other than Vicky. Ron had matured quite a bit through the course of time and he somewhat seethed. He read on and it seemed like it was addressed to him.

"Dear Ron,

I would like to say that I want your girlfriend Herm-Own-Ninny! Haha bet you'd fall for that, you dumbarse.

Love,

Harry, George, Hermione and Ginny

Ps- check the date"

"It's not even fucking April 1st. It's like June.

He continued reading

"might arrive a bit late, since Errol is delivering it."

Ah okay then, he muttered.

He put the water to boil and sprinkled some salt as it heated up.