For the next few days, Hermione fended off constant questioning from girls and boys alike about her "relationship" with Peter. She had no idea that he was so popular and she apparently made a lot of enemies with girls she didn't know who had crushes on the Ravenclaw.
"Goodness, this is crazy! I don't know what's going on between Peter and me and girls hate me just because of some stupid gossip. I swear, I've never had the desire to bitch slap a girl before, but Lavender is making me change my mind!" Hermione seethed, entering the common room with Ron.
"Lighten up Hermione. At least you weren't paired with Draco Malfoy," Ron replied. Although he had given up on being her romantic interest, he figured it was better to be her friend then nothing at all and right now she desperately needed a friend.
Hermione laughed at the idea of being paired with Malfoy. "Thanks for putting it all in perspective for me, oh wise Ron!" Lately, Ron had been really nice to her and she wondered how long this would last until they had another fight. Hopefully forever, she thought.
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During dinner, Hermione, Ron and Harry were busy laughing over the possibility of Hermione being paired with various people, Malfoy being the favorite.
"I can just see it now. Malfoy will be begging on his knees for forgiveness for all the times he insulted you. And then you would say 'Haha! Loser Malfoy! There's no way I'm going to the Yule Ball with you, sucker!!'" Harry and Hermione laughed vigorously at Ron's hypothetical situation.
They all missed sharing these times together, and Harry and Ron were happy to spend more time with Hermione. She decided that it was best that she and Peter not see each other so the rumors would cool down, but she didn't discuss this with Peter.
Their laughter was abruptly broken when someone said, "Hey Hermione, can I talk to you?" Ron and Harry looked up from across the table to find Peter looking at Hermione.
"Um, sure. I'll see you guys later," Hermione said quietly while leaving the Gryffindor table.
Harry looked over at Ron to see his best friend stabbing his carrots with his fork and then mashing them into mush. "Hey, it'll be okay, Ron."
"Yeah, whatever, Harry," Ron replied while he then proceeded to mash his peas to oblivion. The rest of dinner was eaten in silence, though Ron mostly smashed his dinner until Harry was finished.
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"So, how have you been? Haven't seen you around these past couple days," Peter said, attempting to make conversation.
"Yeah, I've been pretty busy. You know, homework, reading..."
"Denying rumors," Peter said, completing the list of excuses Hermione was giving him.
"That too," she admitted.
They walked through the halls in silence for a while. "So what's up between us, Hermione. I thought I made my feelings pretty clear when I kissed you, and I thought you liked me too. Why have you been avoiding me?" Peter's hair fell over his eyes and it reminded Hermione of the first time they met. But this time, she had no desire to brush it away. Something was wrong, and she began to understand what that was.
"I'm sorry Peter, really I am. I got scared when those rumors started circulating and then I started to think about the situation. I realize that I can't be your girlfriend if that's what you want. I'm sorry if I was leading you on in any way, I was attracted to you, but it didn't produce deeper feelings. I'm so sorry."
Peter looked down to the ground, dejected. "I am too. No, you didn't lead me on. But I like your mind and you're a beautiful girl to boot, so, I figured, why not give it a try? I wanna still be friends, is that possible?"
"Of course! Peter, you've been the only guy to have ever given me such amazing compliments. You, my friend, are a smart and handsome guy yourself," Hermione said.
"Well, Harry and Ron are stupid gits if they don't see what I see," Peter said. He looked disappointed, but was still as sweet as ever to Hermione.
"Thank you, Peter, for everything." Hermione gave Peter a warm hug and they went their separate ways.
Hermione realized over the days denying the rumors that if she were to be with Peter, she would be lying to herself. She didn't have passionate feelings about the guy and chastised herself for that while simultaneously patting herself on the back for not going out with him because he was convenient. Guess you aren't over Ron. After all this time and all the fights, you'd think you'd see enough of Ron's bad characteristics that you would not have feelings for him anymore. Yet, I guess it doesn't work that way. I wish he had feelings for me, but no. It just can't be that easy, can it? She finished her thoughts as she was entering the common room. She looked around and noticed no one was there. Odd, I would think Ron and Harry would be here, not to mention Ginny. Oh well, time for bed. Hey, it's my birthday tomorrow...
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Ron didn't want to see Hermione enter the portal all happy because she and Peter had made their relationship official. Harry obligingly suggested that they both go to bed early so they would have to see her. Ron never told Harry how he felt about Hermione, but Harry knew his friend well enough to discern Ron's feelings. Harry could have sworn Hermione had feelings for Ron, but the whole Peter thing seemed to disprove that.
Ron lay in bed, unable to sleep, thinking about all the missed opportunities he had to tell Hermione how he felt. Doesn't matter anymore, it doesn't matter.
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Hermione woke up the next day feeling pretty good about the prospects of the new year of her life. Happy birthday, Hermione. You are now sixteen. The May 7th morning was bright, and just...Perfect, she thought.
She went down stairs to the common room to find a modest stack of gifts on a table and Harry, Ron, and Ginny around them.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HERMIONE!!!!" they said together.
"Wow, thank you, you guys. This this wonderful!" Hermione exclaimed. Looking at the presents, there were gifts from Ginny, Harry, Ron, and some baked goods from Hagrid she had no intention of eating. The Weasley twins came trudging down the stairs, their hair a mess and their tall bodies walking over towards Hermione.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!" they yell at the top of their lungs. They picked Hermione up and swung her around the room.
"You're sixteen! Don't feel too much different, eh?" Fred asked while George spun her around.
Hermione laughed heartily, "Well, if George doesn't put me down, I'm gonna feel sick!" Ron cringed at the joy on her face, especially since his brothers got that expression from her. He couldn't remember the last time she looked at him like that, pure happiness on her face. After George set her down, she gave both of them a big hug, "Thank you, boys." After that, the twin left the common room for breakfast, happy with their performance for Hermione.
It was Saturday, so there was no rush in opening the presents, but Hermione was impatient. "Oh, let's see, I'll open Ginny's first," Hermione said, picking up a gift wrapped in green paper that matched Harry's eyes. Hmm, must be subconscious or something. Ginny and Harry weren't going out, but they had become friendlier this past year. Ginny's gift was a sky blue sweater, Hermione's favorite color. "Ginny, this is beautiful! It's perfect for the spring weather. Thank you so much!" Hermione squealed while giving Ginny a big hug.
"You're welcome, I'm glad you like it," Ginny replied.
Hagrid gift was some brownies that everyone agreed to throw away and tell him they were fantastic.
"Ok, Harry, you're up." Harry's present was wrapped in some gold paper and felt like it weighed about twenty pounds. "Geez Harry, this thing is heavy!"
Harry laughed, "Well, I should hope so!"
When Hermione finally got all the paper off her gift, she found herself looking at a brand new edition of Hogwarts, a History. "Oh my god! Harry! This is amazing. Thank you so much! 'With three new chapters and one hundred new pictures,'" Hermione exclaimed, reading the wrapping of her newest book. She leapt to Harry and gave him a big hug. Ron cringed again, knowing his gift wasn't as big as Harry's and wishing he could give it to her and run out of the portal.
"Alright, last, but certainly not least, Ron," Hermione said, smiling at him. Wow, she's really pretty, he thought randomly. Hermione unwrapped a small square black box from its blue wrapping paper. When she opened the box, the smile left her face and a serious expression came over her. Oh, no, she doesn't like it, Ron thought. If he really looked at her eyes, he would have seen that she was more bewildered than anything else. She walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you so much. It's beautiful, I love it." Ron instinctively held her tighter and they hugged for what seemed like an eternity when Ron pulled away lightly. Hermione looked down at the thin gold necklace with the gold ring on it.
"I remember you looking at the ring the last time we were at Hogsmeade, and then I remembered that you didn't like wearing rings, so I bought the chain so you could wear it around your neck," Ron said happily, now knowing that she in fact liked the gift.
Hermione smiled. "Speaking of Hogsmeade, don't we have a Hogsmeade trip today?"
"Oh yeah, we do. Cool!" Ginny exclaimed.
"You wanna go, Hermione? It's your day." Harry asked.
"Yes, let's go," Hermione said while putting her new necklace on.