Chapter Seven: Christmas Eve Eve
"YAY! Christmas Eve Eve!" yelled Seamus as he awoke his dorm-mates on the morning of the yule ball.
"Seamus. Save it for tommorrow" grumbled Ron as he rolled over to go back to sleep "Or maybe even the day after that" he added.
"Oy Ron.. Getup would you? Hermione's looking for you already" yelled Harry from the doorway of the dorm.
"Just another few minutes" mumbled Ron rolling over to go to sleep again.
"Oh honestly!" said a female voice as the owner of it pushed its way into the dormitory. "Getup Ron! we have to go to hogsmeade!" said Hermione as she began to drag him out of bed.
"Mione! leave me to sleep!" he said as he gathered the covers around him again and promptly rolled over to face the wall.
"You guys act like your married!" said Seamus as he walked out of the room laughing with Dean. Harry just smiled at Ron's back and said "'Mione?" teasingly before leaving the room as well.
"Whats with them?" asked Hermione grabbing Ron's covers and tried to pull them off.
"Mione! IF you dare pull my covers down.. I won't go to the ball with you!" Ron said through clenched teeth as he tried valiantly to keep his covers tucked around his chin.
"Doesn't matter" said hermione laughingly still trying to pull the covers off. Ron let go of the covers, rubbed his eyes and sat up bemusedly "Why?".
"You'll have to go anyway to get some dinner, so I guess it doesn't matter if you go with me or not because we'll end up hanging around together anyway. Just hurry up and get out of bed Ron" she said as she ran back down the stairs to the common room.
"I won't go!" yelled Ron in response flopping back into his bed.
~~~~
Hermione had pulled Ron into every shop that contained clothes that existed in hogsmeade. She said that she wanted to make sure that they looked good tonight and everytime she'd announced this Ron had greeted the statement with a shrug of his shoulders and an unenthusiastic grunt. He wasn't as unenthusiastic as he appeared however, because during this time, as no other time since he had known Hermione, he had witnessed her acting like a typical Teenage Girl. "This dress doesn't fit right!" or "Ron, do you think this dress looks nice on me?" where questions Ron never thought he would hear Hermione utter, but utter them she had, and many times over. That explained why, while all their friends were at the three Broomsticks, Hermione and Ron were still scouring the clothes shops trying to find a suitable dress. She was browsing through rack after rack of dress robes, looking for the perfect dress when Ron spotted a beautiful blue dress on a rack standing behind Hermione.
"How about that one?" he asked her.
"Ohhh. I don't know Ron.. It's a bit too glamourous for me wouldn't you say?" she responded pulling the dress off the rack and holding it against herself.
Ron looked at it and shook his head "No Mione, it'll look wonderful and it goes with my Robes. Go and try it on" he replied. Hermione looked at the dress for a second longer before sighing and walking off towards the change rooms with the dress slung over her arm. When she emerged, Ron's breath caught in his throat, standing in front of him was his best friend, but it wasn't his best friend, the dress had transformed his studious best friend into a regal beauty, fit for the Queen's Court in London.
"Mione! You look Wonderful!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione smiled shyly in return and did a graceful turn in front of the mirror.
"Get that one Mione" said Ron decisively. She looked over at him for a few seconds and nodded once to herself before returning to the change rooms to put on her hogwarts Robes once again.
"To the three Broomsticks then?" asked Ron holding the door open for hermione to exit the dress shop.
"Yes. All that shopping has put me in the mood for some Butterbeer" said hermione with a smile. Ron nodded and they walked together to the crowded inn where most of their school friends were already sitting in groups talking, laughing and drinking butterbeer.
"There's a group of Gryffindors over there. Do you want to sit with them?" asked Ron as they spotted a sizable group of their fellow Gryffindors in amongst the Crowd. Hermione nodded and Ron began to make his way through the crowd to the table in the corner. Finally they both made it through the seemingly endless crowd of their school fellows to slide into seats around the table.
"Hello Ron! Hello Hermione!" said Harry brightly to the new arrivals.
"Hello Harry" they both replied in unison.
"Hi Ron, Hermione" said Ginny pushing harry along the seat so she could get closer into the conversation.
"Did you find a dress?" she asked of Hermione. "Yes" replied hermione holding up her bag to show that she'd made a purchase.
"Can we see?" Ginny asked excitedly.
"No!" said Ron from the otherside of the table causing everyone to turn and look at him in surprise.
"No" he said a bit more calmly "It's a surprise. Its very very beautiful though".
A small smile spread across Ginny's face "So you've seen it Ron?" she asked teasingly. Ron's face flushed his trademark embarrassed red "uh.. yeah" was all he could think of to say.
"Why do you get to see and no-one else does?" Ginny probed. Ron threw a pleading look at hermione and she jumped into the conversation "Ginny, it really is a surprise, Ron was there when I bought it, that's all". Ginny pouted exageratedly and everyone at the table began to laugh.
"Well why where you there when she bought it then?" asked Ginny, causing Ron to blush again.
"I asked for his opinion" countered hermione quickly watching Ron struggle to form a sentence that wouldn't let Harry and Ginny know that he was in fact more important to her Ball plans than a mere opinion.
"Ron's Opinion?!? Hermione what were you thinking!" laughed Ginny poking her brother in the ribs. Hermione laughed along with the rest of the table and reached across and squeezed Ron's hand under the table. Ron caught her eye and smiled slightly and felt his heart skip a beat as she returned his smile.
Ron sat in shock for a second trying to analyse what had just happened, he hadn't just felt "something" for his best friend had he? No of course he hadn't he assured himself, although a small part of his mind kept yelling at him, trying to convince him that Yes he had just felt the first signs of attraction to his best friend.
"So who are you going with then Hermione?" asked Ginny now turning her teasing attention from her brother to Hermione.
"Not Telling" said hermione with a smile.
"Yes! Tell us at least something about this mysterious date of yours" said Ginny jokingly. Hermione sighed "Ok you can ask one question" she said finally. Ginny smiled delightedly and looked around the table at her friends.
"Is he in Gryffindor?" she asked with her eyes sparkling. Hermione rolled her eyes and looked in Ron's direction briefly before answering "I'm not going to answer that" she said haughtily.
"So he is then!" said Ginny "Since if he wasn't you would have told us!" she stated getting approving nods from around the table.
"So lets see then. Who in Gryffindor hasn't got a date for the ball?" she continued her musing outloud.
"Well it could be Neville" said Harry dubiously "I'm not sure if he asked Joanna or Not". Ginny shook her head.
"No I think its someone much closer to home." she paused for a second watching Hermione who was trying desperately not to laugh.
"I think its Ron!" said Ginny loudly and Ron and Hermione both blushed a bright red while bursting out laughing. Everyone at the table sat looking at each other in shock.
"Does this mean." asked Seamus. "No. no.. we're just friends" said Ron smiling at hermione, who smiled back once again and definitely made his heart leap this time.
"YAY! Christmas Eve Eve!" yelled Seamus as he awoke his dorm-mates on the morning of the yule ball.
"Seamus. Save it for tommorrow" grumbled Ron as he rolled over to go back to sleep "Or maybe even the day after that" he added.
"Oy Ron.. Getup would you? Hermione's looking for you already" yelled Harry from the doorway of the dorm.
"Just another few minutes" mumbled Ron rolling over to go to sleep again.
"Oh honestly!" said a female voice as the owner of it pushed its way into the dormitory. "Getup Ron! we have to go to hogsmeade!" said Hermione as she began to drag him out of bed.
"Mione! leave me to sleep!" he said as he gathered the covers around him again and promptly rolled over to face the wall.
"You guys act like your married!" said Seamus as he walked out of the room laughing with Dean. Harry just smiled at Ron's back and said "'Mione?" teasingly before leaving the room as well.
"Whats with them?" asked Hermione grabbing Ron's covers and tried to pull them off.
"Mione! IF you dare pull my covers down.. I won't go to the ball with you!" Ron said through clenched teeth as he tried valiantly to keep his covers tucked around his chin.
"Doesn't matter" said hermione laughingly still trying to pull the covers off. Ron let go of the covers, rubbed his eyes and sat up bemusedly "Why?".
"You'll have to go anyway to get some dinner, so I guess it doesn't matter if you go with me or not because we'll end up hanging around together anyway. Just hurry up and get out of bed Ron" she said as she ran back down the stairs to the common room.
"I won't go!" yelled Ron in response flopping back into his bed.
~~~~
Hermione had pulled Ron into every shop that contained clothes that existed in hogsmeade. She said that she wanted to make sure that they looked good tonight and everytime she'd announced this Ron had greeted the statement with a shrug of his shoulders and an unenthusiastic grunt. He wasn't as unenthusiastic as he appeared however, because during this time, as no other time since he had known Hermione, he had witnessed her acting like a typical Teenage Girl. "This dress doesn't fit right!" or "Ron, do you think this dress looks nice on me?" where questions Ron never thought he would hear Hermione utter, but utter them she had, and many times over. That explained why, while all their friends were at the three Broomsticks, Hermione and Ron were still scouring the clothes shops trying to find a suitable dress. She was browsing through rack after rack of dress robes, looking for the perfect dress when Ron spotted a beautiful blue dress on a rack standing behind Hermione.
"How about that one?" he asked her.
"Ohhh. I don't know Ron.. It's a bit too glamourous for me wouldn't you say?" she responded pulling the dress off the rack and holding it against herself.
Ron looked at it and shook his head "No Mione, it'll look wonderful and it goes with my Robes. Go and try it on" he replied. Hermione looked at the dress for a second longer before sighing and walking off towards the change rooms with the dress slung over her arm. When she emerged, Ron's breath caught in his throat, standing in front of him was his best friend, but it wasn't his best friend, the dress had transformed his studious best friend into a regal beauty, fit for the Queen's Court in London.
"Mione! You look Wonderful!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione smiled shyly in return and did a graceful turn in front of the mirror.
"Get that one Mione" said Ron decisively. She looked over at him for a few seconds and nodded once to herself before returning to the change rooms to put on her hogwarts Robes once again.
"To the three Broomsticks then?" asked Ron holding the door open for hermione to exit the dress shop.
"Yes. All that shopping has put me in the mood for some Butterbeer" said hermione with a smile. Ron nodded and they walked together to the crowded inn where most of their school friends were already sitting in groups talking, laughing and drinking butterbeer.
"There's a group of Gryffindors over there. Do you want to sit with them?" asked Ron as they spotted a sizable group of their fellow Gryffindors in amongst the Crowd. Hermione nodded and Ron began to make his way through the crowd to the table in the corner. Finally they both made it through the seemingly endless crowd of their school fellows to slide into seats around the table.
"Hello Ron! Hello Hermione!" said Harry brightly to the new arrivals.
"Hello Harry" they both replied in unison.
"Hi Ron, Hermione" said Ginny pushing harry along the seat so she could get closer into the conversation.
"Did you find a dress?" she asked of Hermione. "Yes" replied hermione holding up her bag to show that she'd made a purchase.
"Can we see?" Ginny asked excitedly.
"No!" said Ron from the otherside of the table causing everyone to turn and look at him in surprise.
"No" he said a bit more calmly "It's a surprise. Its very very beautiful though".
A small smile spread across Ginny's face "So you've seen it Ron?" she asked teasingly. Ron's face flushed his trademark embarrassed red "uh.. yeah" was all he could think of to say.
"Why do you get to see and no-one else does?" Ginny probed. Ron threw a pleading look at hermione and she jumped into the conversation "Ginny, it really is a surprise, Ron was there when I bought it, that's all". Ginny pouted exageratedly and everyone at the table began to laugh.
"Well why where you there when she bought it then?" asked Ginny, causing Ron to blush again.
"I asked for his opinion" countered hermione quickly watching Ron struggle to form a sentence that wouldn't let Harry and Ginny know that he was in fact more important to her Ball plans than a mere opinion.
"Ron's Opinion?!? Hermione what were you thinking!" laughed Ginny poking her brother in the ribs. Hermione laughed along with the rest of the table and reached across and squeezed Ron's hand under the table. Ron caught her eye and smiled slightly and felt his heart skip a beat as she returned his smile.
Ron sat in shock for a second trying to analyse what had just happened, he hadn't just felt "something" for his best friend had he? No of course he hadn't he assured himself, although a small part of his mind kept yelling at him, trying to convince him that Yes he had just felt the first signs of attraction to his best friend.
"So who are you going with then Hermione?" asked Ginny now turning her teasing attention from her brother to Hermione.
"Not Telling" said hermione with a smile.
"Yes! Tell us at least something about this mysterious date of yours" said Ginny jokingly. Hermione sighed "Ok you can ask one question" she said finally. Ginny smiled delightedly and looked around the table at her friends.
"Is he in Gryffindor?" she asked with her eyes sparkling. Hermione rolled her eyes and looked in Ron's direction briefly before answering "I'm not going to answer that" she said haughtily.
"So he is then!" said Ginny "Since if he wasn't you would have told us!" she stated getting approving nods from around the table.
"So lets see then. Who in Gryffindor hasn't got a date for the ball?" she continued her musing outloud.
"Well it could be Neville" said Harry dubiously "I'm not sure if he asked Joanna or Not". Ginny shook her head.
"No I think its someone much closer to home." she paused for a second watching Hermione who was trying desperately not to laugh.
"I think its Ron!" said Ginny loudly and Ron and Hermione both blushed a bright red while bursting out laughing. Everyone at the table sat looking at each other in shock.
"Does this mean." asked Seamus. "No. no.. we're just friends" said Ron smiling at hermione, who smiled back once again and definitely made his heart leap this time.