Kicked in the Teeth

by Ashwinder3ggs

April, 1997. Ron's still with Lavender but trying to repair his friendship with Hermione. Harry's trying to figure out what Dumbledore's trying to tell him and ignoring the romantic entanglements of his best mates. Hermione feels torn between trying to help one friend while avoiding strong feelings for the other. By the time the school year ends, none of them will be the same.

9. Scarlet Celebrations

A/N: Minor trigger warning in this chapter-substance use.

I do not own HP, nor any of these characters.

The pitch was a mess of people. Masses of scarlet and gold-clad students surrounded themselves on all sides. They were pouring out of the stands. He'd barely had a moment to get off of his broom before being engulfed in the arms of a few first years who barely came up to his chest. All around were raucous cheers and the faint call of someone singing "Weasley is our King." Didn't sound like Luna, nor Hermione.

Keeping his eyes peeled for her hair, Ron was dismayed not to see curls anywhere in his periphery. Instead he returned Seamus' clap on the back, and shook hands with Ernie MacMillan who had put money down on Gryffindor to win. 'After I heard Harry was out, I thought I was done for! But you lot really turned it around!'

He was grateful for the cheers. His chest swelled with pride in knowing that he had helped to make this happen. Harry was going to be pleased. And good on Ginny, giving Harry a run for his money. He wasn't ashamed to admit that his sister was the better Quidditch player.

Ginny was being hoisted up by Dean and a burly seventh year Ron didn't know. Both of her fists were raised high in the air and she was grinning madly. Ron chuckled slightly at the sight. Ginny was the one who deserved all the admiration. She had been the one to give the rousing speech to the team before the match. Not to mention rescuing him when he nearly fell off his broom.

'Come hold the cup!' Katie yelled to him over the cheers. He could barely see her through the flashing of Colin's camera, but made his way through the sea of younger students over to Dean and Ginny. There he found Coote and Peakes looking surprised by all the attention and holding tight to their broomsticks. Demelza was trying to bolster them, but even she looked bewildered by the throng on the pitch. They grouped themselves together, and watched as Hooch walked out with the cup. It glinted in the sunlight. Gryffindor would once again have their name engraved on it.

'Gather round, gather round!' Hooch called to the Gryffindors. Reluctantly, the crowd parted for them. As the team got into formation, Dean placing Ginny gently on the ground, Ron's eyes swept over the crowd once more. Still no familiar head of curls.

As Hooch began to describe the usual traditions, Ron let his gaze wander up to the stands. Half of him hoped that she wasn't still up there with Boot. The other half hoped that she was waiting to surprise him somewhere. If she was, if he had a moment to be alone with her, maybe he'd use some of the adrenaline and joy coursing through him to work up the courage to talk about what happened earlier.

'-Please join me in congratulating our MVP for this final match, Ginny Weasley!'

Ron whirled his head back to look at his sister. She looked gobsmacked by Hooch's words. As if she hadn't anticipated getting such an honour. He felt his face split into a grin. She could now join Charlie as the second Weasley to be named MVP. Charlie was going to lose his mind with delight. Ginny stepped forward and allowed Hooch to place the cup in her hands. She thrust it high above her head to the cheers of the milling Gryffindors and their fans from other houses. Ron joined in the applause for her.

'Time for Team Pictures!'
Ron stepped slightly closer to Demelza and Katie. Ginny, he saw, was now frowning. 'But we don't have Harry!'
Katie turned to face her and grasped her arm. 'We'll make sure to get one of all of us back in the Common Room.'
Ron heartily agreed.

As the tallest, Ron and Dean stood in the back, while Ginny stood front and centre clutching the cup. Demelza, the Beaters and Katie crowded around her. The throng was still cheering. His heart was still pumping madly. Ron looked at the ancient camera person, who had none of Colin's enthusiasm, and got ready to take the shot that would stand in the Trophy Room.

Behind the wizard, a pair of Hufflepuffs moved to the left, whispering furiously. Behind them was Hermione, standing alone. Her lips formed a giant grin and her eyes sparkled. For a second their eyes met, and Ron felt his face stretch into the biggest smile he'd made all day.

With a flash and a bang, the photo was taken. Gryffindors came bounding back in to congratulate the players. Ron was no longer enthusiastic about the crowds. He really wanted to get to her. Clutching his broom, he took a few steps in her direction before he was stymied by a beaming Professor McGonagall.

'Well done, Mr. Weasley! I must admit, you had me worried there, but you managed to turn it around in the end!'
'Er, thanks, Professor.'
'No, thank you! I'm glad the Cup will stay in my office for another year!'

With a clap on his shoulder, McGonagall turned to speak with Demelza. Ron resumed his path towards Hermione, only to discover that she was no longer in the same spot. He spun around trying to find her, with no success.

'Come on then, back to the Common Room!' Seamus was yelling at him now, grabbing a few fifth years and sweeping Ron off his feet. 'It's celebration time!'

Ron didn't have the opportunity to ask them to put him down. He was swept in a wave of Gryffindor pride and was being carried above the crowd, now chanting "Gryffindor! Gryffindor!" They only let him down once it became apparent that it was too difficult to navigate the stairs in the manner they'd been going. As he found his footing, he looked out over the crowd but couldn't make out Hermione anywhere.

Violet and the Fat Lady were gossiping over a box of Chocolates when they arrived. The Fat Lady smiled at all of them, and saluted Coote and Peakes as they gave her the password.

Feeling the crush of people jamming into the tiny entrance, Ron momentarily found it difficult to breathe. This passed once they made it near the fire.

'Let's get this party started!' Seamus cried out. Dennis Creevey immediately began playing music out of a funny soundbox he'd been keeping in his pocket. Over the ensuing din, he saw Parvati and a few fourth years getting the stash of glasses and Butterbeer they'd been hiding under one of the couches up and onto nearby tables.

'Probably could've saved more than you did.' Cormac's voice was nasty near his ear. Ron turned to see McLaggen sneering at him, arms crossed. 'Seemed like you weren't all there.' Ron felt his ears redden.
'Why don't you bugger off?' He told the older student.
McLaggen snorted at him. 'Maybe I will. I've got a line of witches just waiting to hear my commentary on the match. Doesn't look like you've got anybody.' McLaggen made a show of looking around the Common Room. It was true. The only person Ron really wanted to speak to wasn't around at the moment.

Without waiting for a retort, McLaggen spun on his heel, and made his way over to a giggling group of fourth years. Ron tried to keep his anger down. McLaggen was just trying to get under his skin. And he was wrong. If Ron could just find Hermione, he was sure that they could have a moment to talk.

The sounds of the Weird Sisters boomed through the tower. Dean was taking his turn at holding the cup, while giving a description of a few goals he'd made to Lavender and Parvati. Ron thought it probably best to avoid that particular grouping. Ginny was chatting animatedly with Demelza as a gaggle of third year girls listened with rapt attention. Coote and Peakes were surrounded by their friends, who looked thrilled that they knew them.

'Congratulations Ron!' Neville called out to him. Grateful for his friend, Ron walked up to him.
'Thanks mate.'
'Good match too. The way you saved that last one was really impressive.'
Ron smiled at Neville. Sometimes he forgot how nice his dormmate could be. Unlike the other three, Neville wasn't about to talk Quidditch technique with him.
'Glad you didn't fall off your broom,' Neville added, suddenly looking pensive. 'Hermione seemed like she was about to faint when that happened.'
'Have you seen her?' Ron asked, before realizing that it probably looked a little suspicious. Neville's face looked puzzled. Ron coughed before adding; 'Want to reassure her that I'm alright.'

Neville looked around the room. Gryffindors were congregating in all areas, most holding glasses of Butterbeer. There was much laughter and loud conversation. As they looked around the room, the portrait hole opened, revealing the person he most wanted to see.

'Hermione!' Ron cried out to her, waving his arm. Several heads swivelled to look at him, some with knowing little smirks. He didn't give a toss what they thought. Dropping her bookbag at the sound of his voice, she saw him waving and made her way over to the pair. As she approached, they spoke simultaneously.

'Where have you been-'
'You played brilliantly-'

Hermione laughed as she threw her arms around his neck. Grateful to have her in his arms, Ron took a strong hold of her and lifted her off the ground.

'I told you you'd be wonderful,' she muttered in his ear. He flushed at the compliment. Placing her gently back down he felt his shoulder pull. He hissed in pain.

'What is it?' Her tone changed, now worried.
'S'nothing. Just my shoulder.' Ron would much rather that she kept complimenting him rather than worry. Hermione frowned. Her arms were still around his neck, though she was nearly on her tiptoes. She let her hand fall to his shoulder blade. Though her touch was gentle, he could still feel the tightness in the muscle.
'You hit the hoop rather hard,' she noted.
'I'm fine,' Ron tried to tell her. Hermione removed her hands and gestured to the chair beside them.
'Sit.' It was a command. Ron knew better than to ignore her.

It wasn't until he was in the chair that Ron realised that Neville had disappeared. He couldn't be sure when. Hermione pulled out her wand and pointed it at his arm. Her face took on a look of concentration before a tawny thread emerged from the tip and centred itself into the knot. Tension seemed to melt away, the knot loosening.

'Merlin,' Ron muttered, enjoying the feeling that came from no longer having a stiff limb. 'How'd you do that?'
'I've been practicing Healing spells,' Hermione replied. She tucked her wand back into her robes. To his surprise, she perched herself on the arm of his chair, feet pointing towards him..

'I hope you're proud of yourself. It was a great match.' Ron smiled at her.
'Gin got MVP, did you hear?'
'Did she?' Hermione asked, sounding surprised. She looked around the room, spotting Ginny with Demelza once more. 'She did do that fainting thing very well.' Ron resisted the urge to laugh as his heart jolted. Hermione was brilliant at many things, and yet Quidditch tactics continued to flummox her. This only served to endear her more to him.

'Someday I'll give you an exam on maneuvers. I think it's the only way you'll ever learn.'
Hermione rolled her eyes. 'There are far more important things to think about…' Like you, Ron thought to himself. Hermione seemed to turn inward for a moment. She bit her bottom lip in thought. Ron watched her, mesmerized. After a moment, she seemed to notice him staring.

'Sorry,' she blushed. 'Lost in thought. Have you had a butterbeer?'
Ron had not. 'No, but I've been wanting to talk-'

'Oi! Your turn with the cup!' Ginny had marched over to them and thrust it into his hands. 'You're tall. Show it off to everybody.' Without waiting for a response, she tossed her hair and marched back towards the Butterbeer table. Hermione chuckled.
'Well, you'd best listen to her. I wouldn't want to get on her bad side.'
She got back up, Ron reluctantly following her. Hermione made no move to look at the cup. Her eyes searched his face instead. She reached out a hand and placed it on his forearm. 'Go mingle. I'll bring you a drink.'

Ron tried to form coherent thought past her fingers on his skin. It didn't seem to be working.

The Creevey brothers marched up towards them.
'Can I see the cup?'
'How many years has Gryffindor won in a row?'
Hermione squeezed his arm and made off towards the table. Ron watched her go, wishing he could follow. But he turned and showed the brothers where the previous decade's winners were listed.

He ended up with a gaggle of interested children, mostly the ones without older siblings to explain how these sorts of things worked at Hogwarts. By the time he got to which past Quidditch captains had gone on to play for England, the portrait hole opened once more. There were shouts, and people near the entrance began pulling someone in. Harry's messy black hair appeared. Ron grinned as he lifted up the cup, calling out the score to his best mate. Harry looked pleased, but surprised.

Ron couldn't wait to discuss the match as he made his way over to him. But Ginny got there first. Harry gave her a small smile, and then pressed his mouth against hers.

Time seemed to grind to a halt.

Harry was kissing Ginny.

Harry was kissing his little sister.

His best mate was kissing his little sister.

All the air was sucked out of the room. This wasn't a gentle peck either. If someone didn't stop them soon, this might turn into a full-blown snog.

Ron couldn't feel his arms. This was…well he didn't quite know what to think. Ginny had fancied Harry, sure, but hadn't that been in a childlike way? She'd just been dating Dean! And Harry…the git had never mentioned a thing to him! Shouldn't he have asked or something?

Harry broke the kiss. People were whistling. Ron couldn't see Ginny's face, but figured she must be pleased. Behind his spectacles, Harry's eyes found his. Though there was uncertainty in his expression, Ron could see the elation in Harry's eyes. It was rare to see Harry so happy. Who was Ron to deny that?

He felt himself shrug. Harry beamed at him and offered his arm to Ginny. Ron watched the two of them leave the portrait hole, leaving a vacuum in their wake.

Ron was faced with confusion. Did this mean they were dating? Did he have to talk to Harry about boundaries? Would Ginny kill him for talking to Harry about boundaries? He had no idea what the rules around your best mate dating your sister were.

'Here,' Hermione's voice was in his ear. She pressed a glass into his hand. 'Drink.'
As Ron took a shaky gulp, Hermione grabbed the Cup and passed it back to Dean. As Dean took it furiously from her and stalked off, Ron watched as Hermione repaired the broken glass at his feet. He took another sip.
'Is he…' Ron tried to speak, but failed. He took another gulp of Butterbeer. 'Are they…' He couldn't ask that either. Hermione put the newly pristine glass back on the table next to where they were standing and looked at him.
'Did he tell you?' Ron finally managed to ask.
Hermione gave Ron a sad smile. 'When does Harry tell us anything about his feelings?'
'That's true,' Ron agreed. He felt a little weak in the knees and collapsed into the nearest chair. Hermione followed him. The music resumed. Conversations started up around them. Ron was left with the swirling thoughts in his head.

'Did you know?' Ron asked softly.
'That Harry fancied Ginny?' Hermione clarified. Ron winced at the wording. It seemed so sordid. That was his little sister for Merlin's sake! Hermione nodded, apparently oblivious to his distress. 'For a few months now.'
'Months?!' Ron repeated, shocked.
'Oh Ron, he hasn't been hiding it very well. He's been staring after her, finding excuses to start conversations. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't the reason he wanted to save the Felix-'
'For the love of Merlin, I don't want to think about that!' Ron groaned. He could practically feel Hermione rolling her eyes at him.
'Because she's your sister?'
'Yes!'

There was a pause.

Hermione cleared her throat.
'Do you trust Harry?'
Ron looked up at her, utterly bewildered by the question. 'Are you mad? Of course I trust Harry.'
'Good. And do you trust Ginny?'
Ron nodded, realizing where this was headed.
'So then there's nothing to worry about.'

Ron slumped further down into the chair. Hermione didn't have siblings. She couldn't possibly understand what this felt like. He had to protect Ginny.
'Isn't this a good thing?' Hermione queried, perching herself back on the arm of the chair.
'What, Harry and Ginny?' he clarified.
She nodded. 'At the very least, Harry respects Ginny enough not to bungle this.'
Ron acquiesced this with a jerk of his head.
'Maybe I should threaten him a little though,' he said aloud. 'Make sure he knows where he stands.'
'Don't you dare. Harry deserves to be happy!'
'Why did it have to be Ginny, though?'
Hermione laughed. 'Who would you rather it be?'

Ron thought about this for a moment. Nobody immediately sprang to mind.

Hermione seemed to sense his mood, as she leaned forward and put her hand on his shoulder.
'In time, I think you'll realise how compatible they are. This feels like a good thing.'
Ron took another swig of butterbeer. He hoped he could soon feel that way.

The happiness that he felt at winning the Cup was down the drain now. If he wasn't lying to himself, there was a part of himself that felt a little miserable at this knowledge. Ginny had been pining for Harry for years, much in the same way he'd been pining for Hermione. Now Ginny and Harry were together, but Ron had no idea if or when that would happen for him and Hermione. He chanced a glance back up to her. She was jiggling her foot in time to the music, keeping her eyes sharp for any excess rule breaking.

Well, Harry had shot his shot, hadn't he? Couldn't Ron do the same? What was the worst that could happen?

Hermione looked back at him and gave a small smile. His stomach somersaulted. The worst scenario would be that she'd reject him. That they'd spend weeks not speaking to each other. He didn't want to go through that again. Having her back, having her sitting next to him was enough for now.

Well he could say that to himself, but her hair looked so inviting from this angle. Her shoe was nearly off, revealing the gentle arch of her foot. Perched as she was, it would be no trouble at all to reach up and pull her into his lap. Maybe she'd be pleased. Maybe she'd curl even closer into him, so that he could smell her treacle-y breath once more. Then he would be the one to reach down and-

'Ron, your broom!'

Face reddening immediately, Ron's eyes darted quickly to his lap. Mercifully his robes were still positioned in a decent fashion, given what he'd just been thinking about. Hermione stood up, and was marching over to McLaggen by the time Ron realized what was happening. McLaggen was standing near the same group of giggling fourth years, only now he had Ron's Cleansweep in his hands. Ron had still been holding his broom upon his triumphant return to the tower, but must have let go at some point during the party. Now it was clutched in the greasy mitts of McLaggen.

'Give it back, McLaggen,' Hermione warned as Ron tried to compose himself enough to join her.
'Sure, Granger,' McLaggen leered. Ron didn't like how McLaggen towered over her. 'If you go out with me again.'
Well that did it. Ron bounded up to the pair of them, rage burning in his throat. He'd already opened his mouth to tell McLaggen to bugger off when Hermione beat him to it.

'Not if you were the last person on Earth.' She spat in his face as she reached out her hand. 'Now give it to me before I report you to McGongall.'
'And say what? I'm just admiring it.'
'I'd rather you didn't,' Ron added, reaching his own hands out for the broom.
McLaggen grinned at Ron, which didn't make him feel comfortable. Ron glared at him, while McLaggen continued to smile his stupid little smirk.
'McLaggen,' Hermione warned once more. 'Let me remind you you're already on thin ice.' Without warning, McLaggen threw the broom back to Ron, who caught it in his chest.

'It's a useless piece of wood anyway. I just wanted to see if it had some sort of flaw in the twigs, or if it was Weasley's own stupid fault he nearly fell of his broom. Turns out it was just stupidity.'
Turning away from them once more, McLaggen laughed and sauntered away. Ron made a step towards him, but Hermione grabbed him by the arm.
'He's not worth it.'
Ron laughed darkly. 'He just stole my broom and harassed you! I'd say that's bloody worth it.'
'Don't swear,' she sighed.

Ron bit his tongue and jerked his head back to watch McLaggen traipse between more girls. Was it just him, or did most of them seem to cringe as McLaggen walked by?
'What did you mean, thin ice?' Ron asked Hermione, keeping his hand clutched around the broomstick. Hermione's cheeks reddened.

'Doesn't matter,' she muttered. 'Although I did want to ask-what happened with your broom? I've never seen you nearly fall off like that before.' Her eyes flashed to his, and he could see the worry in them. Was this the moment? Should he say that she was the reason he'd been so discombobulated?
'Dunno,' he said. 'Just distracted, I guess.'
He felt low, even to himself. Couldn't even bring himself to admit to her that she'd been pulling his focus. Hermione frowned.

'I'm glad you're alright,' she said quietly. 'For a moment there I was worried you were going to be seriously hurt.'
'Nah, Ginny got me in the end.'
'Thank goodness. I've had enough of the Hospital Wing this year.'
Ron felt a smile pull at the side of his face. 'Are you saying you wouldn't come to visit me?'
Hermione rolled her eyes. 'Of course I would have. I visited you every day when you were poisoned, remember?'
'Yeah. It was the best part of my day.'

If Ron could have stuffed the words back into his mouth, he would have. Hermione froze, her mouth half open. His heartbeat sped up considerably. The seconds seemed to stretch onwards, the lack of a response overwhelming.
Then she smiled. Ron felt bolstered by this.

'Listen,' he rushed to say before he lost his nerve, 'can we go somewhere and talk? I wanna-'

Glass shattered across the room. Ron hadn't realised how close together their heads were until together they shot them up.

Two guilty looking first years were frantically trying to hide a Fanged Frisbee.

Hermione clucked her tongue. 'Give that here! You know that's contraband!' She began marching over to the pair who cowered at the sight of her. 'I know for a fact that it was mentioned in your…' as she got closer to the table, Ron watched her stare at an unmarked bottle.

'Seamus!' she cried out. 'This had better not be Firewhisky!'

Ron looked around but couldn't see his sandy-haired dormmate. He hoped Seamus was hiding somewhere. Hermione yanked the Frisbee out of the hands of the blonde boy and grabbed the bottle off the table. 'I'm taking these down to Filch. You're all lucky Gryffindor won, so I won't say from whom I took the items.'

With a sniff, Ron saw her climb back out of the portrait hole. He swore. So close to getting a chance to be alone. With a sigh, he decided to put his broom back up in the dorm.

Hermione hadn't returned when he came back down. Seamus had reappeared and seemed to be taking the opportunity to pass around another bottle of unlabelled liquor.

'Oi! Keeper extraordinaire!' Seamus called to him. 'Come have a tipple! You earned it!'

Ron glanced around the room. If Hermione had gone down to Filch's office, she likely wouldn't be back for a while. She'd never have to know. He walked over to Seamus, a Horny Hippogriff's song blasting through the room.

Seamus had a big grin on his face. He poured a bit of the carmine liquid into a glass for Ron, and then poured a measure for himself.

'To Gryffindor!' Seamus cheered. Ron saluted him and knocked back the drink. It warmed the back of his throat and had the slightest cinnamon taste to it. It reminded him of the toothpaste Hermione used. He smiled at the thought, before a worry entered his mind.
'Don't tell Hermione,' he muttered to Seamus.
'Wouldn't dream of it!' Seamus agreed conspiratorially. 'Consequently, don't tell Hermione you saw me with this.'
'Deal.'
Seamus held out the bottle. 'Another?'
Ron glanced towards the portrait hole. It remained closed. 'Sure, why not?'
They knocked back another sliver and grinned at each other. Ron could feel the burn of the alcohol now. He rather enjoyed it.

With a wink, Seamus called out for Dean to take another shot. Ron wasn't entirely sure what the other prefects were thinking about this, but everybody seemed to be having too much of a good time to think about it. Ron bobbed his head in time with the beat, enjoying the buzz the alcohol was giving him. His blood felt rather bubbly. With this bit of liquid courage, he'd be able to get Hermione alone. This time he was sure of it.

He decided it would be best to meet her at the portrait hole, so that he could ambush her into going for a walk. His feet seemed to have trouble getting there though, and his head suddenly felt dizzy. Before he knew what was happening, he found himself nearing the edge of a chair.

'Whoa, easy there,' Neville said as he caught Ron before he tripped over a table. 'You okay?' Out of nowhere, Ron's mouth began to tingle. It was as though he had swallowed a Ton-Tongue Toffee.

'My, my tongue feels weird,' Ron said out loud. Was it his imagination, or were the words slightly slurred? Neville looked at him with concern. Ron looked back. For a moment it looked like there were two Nevilles. He tried his best to figure out which one was the correct one.

'Stay here,' Neville told him, in a particularly authoritative voice. This was very funny to Ron. He laughed at the idea of Neville telling him what to do. Neville sped away, and Ron tried to stop the dizzy feeling in his head. Not that he'd ever had Firewhisky before, but something felt a little weird about this. None of his brothers ever described feeling dizzy. Or seeing double. Racking his brains, he tried to remember what Fred and George had told him about the first time they tried it. The two Nevilles came bounding back over to him, merging into one before his eyes.

'Drink this,' Neville commanded. Ron stared down at Neville's hands. He was holding a bottle of Butterbeer, into which he was dropping some dried green leaves.
'What are you doing to it?' Ron words were definitely slurring in his mouth.
'I added Tusli to it,' Neville said. Ron knew he must be drunk, because Neville was starting to sound like Hermione.
'What's Tulsi?'
'Holy Basil,' Neville said, thrusting the bottle into Ron's hands.
Ron looked at Neville and then back at the bottle. He'd never heard of anything called Holy Basil. It seemed like some ingredient Hermione might have mentioned at one point, but he couldn't be sure.

'No offense, but I'm not sure I should drink this,' Ron told Neville. 'After that mead-'
'Yes,' Neville cut in with exasperation. 'That's why I put it in your Butterbeer. You aren't supposed to be ingesting anything with cherries for the next few months, because it can affect how you heal from the poison!'
Ron did vaguely recall Madame Pomfrey telling him this. He wasn't sure how Neville knew.

'Tulsi is going to counteract the effects of the cherries, so you don't pass out.'
'Oh,' Ron said, surprised. 'Thanks.' He took a sip. It tasted vile, and it was all he could do not to spit it out.
Neville seemed to realize this as he grimaced in sympathy.
'Yeah, I know it sucks. Next time ask what sort of drink you're about to take before you do a shot with Seamus.'
'It wasn't Firewhisky?' Ron looked at Neville, shocked.
'No, its Cerisenol. Some sort of Cherry moonshine. Luna was telling me about it.'
Ron took another sip of the disgusting Butterbeer. 'Luna knows about this?'
'Luna knows about a lot of things.'
Ron took another swig. 'Thanks, Neville.'
'No problem. Glad I just helped Sprout with the basils the other day.'

They sat in silence for a moment. Ron felt his head slowly return to normal, although his stomach still churned.

The portrait hole opened, and Hermione came back in. For the first time since he'd won the match, he didn't want to see him. She was definitely going to rip him a new one. He suspected the only reason Neville knew about what Pomfrey had said was because of Hermione, likely in an effort to keep an eye on him. He slunk as far down into the chair as he could go, hoping his head wouldn't be seen. Neville watched him with a bit of amusement, before looking back and realizing why Ron was hiding.

'I'll go talk to her.' Neville was chuckling at Ron, who was now trying to finish the bottle as quickly as possible. He went over and engaged Hermione in a quick conversation, leaving Ron to slink further down out of the chair in hopes of avoiding her for a few more minutes.

'Ron!'

Colin Creevey broke his stealthy moment.

'What do you want, Colin?' Ron asked, trying to keep a note of annoyance out of his tone.
Colin held up his camera. 'Shots of the team! So far I'm missing you, Harry, Ginny and Katie.'

Katie. Ron looked around the room. He hadn't actually seen Katie since the match. Where had she gone?

'Er, sure,' Ron agreed. As quickly as his still meandering feet would allow, he followed Colin over to the Fireplace. It looked like Colin had made a little frame for them, with the cup placed on the mantle. Ron tried his best to smile, while thinking about where Katie could have gone off to.

'Thanks!' Colin said after a few flashes. 'Now if I could just find Katie…'
'I don't think she'll be up for a while.' Lavender was sitting on the couch, chatting with Parvati. The pair had clearly been looking at them out of the corner of their eyes.
'Why not?' Colin asked.
'Well she was getting scouted. I think she went to have a meeting with the Holyhead rep.'
Scouted? Had there been scouts there? Ron felt his heart sink. How had he missed that?

'Wow!' Colin said. 'Wish I'd known. That would have made a great picture!'
'You didn't see Ginny with the Tornadoes rep either?' Parvati asked, crossing her legs tightly.
'Ginny?' Ron repeated.
'Yeah, they were chatting on the field together. I'm pretty sure the Tornadoes witch gave Ginny her card.'Multiple scouts? Had he been so caught up in the celebration that he failed to notice multiple Quidditch professionals there?
'I didn't see any scouts,' Ron muttered, more to himself than anyone else.
'Well generally they tend to scout people who don't need their sisters help to stay on their brooms,' snickered Parvati. Lavender laughed at the joke. Ron scowled at them and stalked off.

He could feel the basil working now. His feet were moving more of their own volition. He still felt a little dizzy, and his stomach still churned but more than anything, the sting of mediocrity burned through him. Why would he have assumed that a scout would come and talk to him? If anything, he wasn't a good enough player to play for his beloved Cannons. He wasn't good for much, except being Harry's sidekick. Merlin, he couldn't even drink properly!

'Are you alright?' Hermione was suddenly there, grabbing his wrist.
'Did Ginny tell you?'
'Tell me what?' she asked, looking a little thrown. 'About Harry?'
'No!' Ron was aware that he was speaking louder than he wanted, but was too far gone to care. 'About being scouted! A Tornadoes person and a Holyhead rep were at the match and they talked to Ginny and Katie, but they didn't talk to me!'

Another beat heavy song began to play throughout the tower. Hermione looked at Ron in confusion.

'A Quidditch scout?' she tried to clarify. Ron nodded. 'Why does that matter? You want to be an Auror.' He looked down at her, feeling an inexplicable anger surge through him. Hermione couldn't possibly understand what he was going through.

'Yeah,' he started in a belligerent tone. 'And since I'm the idiot who's already gone and poisoned himself this year, how likely is that to happen? I mean merlin, I know you don't think I can play, but some of us need options, Hermione! Some of us aren't perfect little know-it-alls who have the luxury of not knowing what we want to do after Hogwarts because every bloody department is clambering to have us! Some of us didn't get 12 OWLS!'

The people around them had gone silent, though most of the common room continued to party. Hermione removed her hand from his wrist. Without a word, she turned on her heel and walked stiffly towards the portrait hole. Pausing only to grab her bookbag, she left without a look back at him.

Ron watched her walk away, breathing heavily. The music continued to pound in his ears.

'What was that about?'
Ron looked to see Katie and Leanne walking up to him. They were both clutching bottles of Butterbeer.
'She doesn't understand,' Ron mumbled.
'I don't understand,' Katie replied. 'What scout are you talking about?'
'The Holyhead rep you were talking to after the match.' Ron spat at her. 'Hopefully you're getting a good contract.'
'What are you on about?' Katie asked with a laugh. 'There weren't any scouts at the match.'
Ron looked at her, bewildered. 'But…then where have you been?'
Katie looked at him, bemused. 'We stopped and got lunch at the Great Hall. I have to keep my blood sugar levels even after being in the coma for so long.'

Dread filled his stomach.

'Did you see Ginny talking to a Tornadoes rep?' he asked her desperately, hoping it was true. Otherwise he'd just gone and yelled at Hermione for no reason. Leanne shook her head. 'Dumbledore isn't letting outsiders onto the Quidditch pitch anymore. My cousin works for the Wasps and was pretty gutted. Usually the finals is when they come to scout.'
'Who told you this, anyway?' Katie asked, folding her arms.

But Ron knew the answer. There was just enough of the Cerisenol left in his system that he wanted to confront her.

Lavender and Parvati were still sitting on the couch, only now Parvati was joined by a 7th year, who was giving her another drink.
'Why'd you make up that story?' Ron demanded to Lavender. She looked up at him. A smirk crossed her features. She threw her long hair over her shoulder as she stared at him.
'Figured it was time you knew how it felt.'
'How what felt?' Ron's chest was nearly painful with the rapidness of his heartbeats.
'To have your heart broken.'

With that, she languidly pulled herself up from the chair, and marched over to Seamus. Ron watched her knock back another shot of the cherry liquor before siding up to dance with a particularly tall fifth year.
Ron felt sick. He'd fallen right into a trap. Not only that, but he imagined Lavender was loving the fact that her lie had made him yell at Hermione.

Bugger. Hermione. Ron made his way towards the portrait hole, now singularly focused on making things up with her. He made it nearly halfway before his stomach roiled once more and he realized he was going to be physically sick.

'Easy does it.' Neville was by his side once more. 'Let's get you up to the dorms.'
'Her-' Ron started to say, but couldn't finish through the nausea.
'You can deal with that in the morning,' Neville told him firmly, starting to guide him up the stairs. 'The last thing she needs is for you to be sick all over her as well.'

Ron paused at the thought, trying to keep his mouth firmly shut. He was barely able to make it into the loos before being violently ill.
'On second thought, I probably should have put the Tulsi in water,' Neville mentioned as Ron sat on the cold marble floor. 'The bubbles couldn't have helped.'

Nothing could have helped at this point. To think that when he woke up this morning, his main concern had been winning the cup for Harry and not looking like an idiot. Now Harry and Ginny were together, he was suffering from some minor form of alcohol poisoning, and he was going to have to apologize profusely to Hermione.

But for right now, all he wanted to do was sleep. Sleep and forget about this whole miserable day.

A/N: Thank you to all those sticking through the story! The few parties I went to as a teenager usually involved us having some sort of illicit liquor, normally of a terrible taste. Part of the joy of HBP is the fact that they are just adolescents. The Gryffindor win always seemed a seminal moment in the books. Harry and Ginny get together, but why not Ron and Hermione? What happened after the match? This is how Ron reacts. The next chapter is Hermione trying to pick up the pieces...and maybe running into a certain someone.

Thank you for all the love and reviews! Wishing you all the best!

-Ashy