Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. If I did, I would be very very rich and it wouldn't be called fanfiction, now would it?
Hermione eyed the door as if it were a snake.
She wouldn't answer it. There was absolutely no reason why she should. It would be Ron, and all that would happen was that they would stare at each other awkwardly and that would be that. A waste of her time.
The door opened.
It was Charlie, and he wasn't wearing a shirt.
Hermione wondered if Ron would look like that without a shirt.
And realizing that those words had actually formed in her mind, Hermione also had a strong urge to smack herself.
"Oh...Uh, sorry." Charlie gave an embarrassed grin. "I thought nobody was in here... You didn't say anything."
"I was caught up in my reading..."
But Charlie had stopped listening and gone to Ginny's closet. "Ginny said she had patched up my robe yesterday... It got very badly burned by a Short-Snout. She said she left it in her room. That a good enough explanation for barging in here?" Charlie asked, his last few words slightly muffled as he found the robe and put it on
When Hermione didn't answer Charlie glanced over at her. She was staring very hard at her book, although her eyes didn't seem to be focused on the words at all.
"Good quality paper?" Charlie sighed. "Are you actually reading that book?"
Hermione tried to keep quiet. Her emotions had seemed to decide to catch up to her at that very moment with Charlie in the room. The sudden wave of feelings were utterly confusing, and the confusion alone threatened to bring Hermione to tears.
Charlie glanced at Hermione more closely. "You've been crying, haven't you?"
Hermione wouldn't for the life of her admit that she had cried the night before. Maybe she should talk to Harry... Yesterday they had both explained their reasoning for their kiss, and going back to being friends had just seemed to happen naturally.
"Okay, what's wrong?"
Then again, Harry wasn't quite the love expert. And Charlie was more mature.
"Everything," Hermione said before she could stop herself. "Or...Nothing."
"Uh...huh... Does it have anything to do with my little brother?"
"It might."
"Good Lord...Don't tell me you're in love with Percy!"
"Hah. Hah."
"Don't I get a bonus hah?" Whatever happened to her Charlie being more mature theory?
"Do Fred and George get their obnoxious nature from you?"
"Ouch..."
"What did Ron tell you?" Hermione asked suspiciously.
"Nothing! I simply...gathered..."
"Gathered? From what?"
"Hermione," Charlie said seriously, "if you avoid speaking to someone in all circumstances, blush or look incredibly angry whenever that person does speak, and that person does the same for you... It doesn't take a genius."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "How did you really find out?"
"Fred and George."
"Thought so."
~~~
Fred and George stood behind Ginny. Ginny felt their eyes on her. Turning around she looked at them, and they both smiled pleasantly. With a sigh Ginny turned around again, but the twins stayed there, neither of them saying a word. Ginny watched the sky for a moment, but could tell the twins were still there, watching her.
"What?!" Ginny snapped finally, whirling around.
"You have to get over lover boy," George said, not unkindly.
"What are you talking about?"
Fred gave Ginny a pitying look and pointed to the sky. A small blur that was Harry flew past them.
"So?!"
"So, you've been watching Harry for over half an hour."
"I have not. I've been watching the sky. It's not my fault Harry keeps intruding in my patch of sky, now is it?"
Fred and George both raised an eyebrow.
"I mean, if he just happens to fly by...Well, what am I going to do?"
Fred shook his head pityingly. "George and I, we've been waiting for a kiss between you and Harry. You know, waiting to catch you in an awkward situation..."
"It's really easy to catch Ron and Hermione together and make them uncomfortable. In fact, it's hard not to..." George smirked.
"But you and Harry?" Fred sighed. "You two are going at it at the pace of a sloth."
"Do you know anybody who likes watching sloths, Ginny?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Ginny sniffed.
"Well, there are bird watchers, but I don't know of any sloth watchers, and-"
"I mean about me and Harry," Ginny said, impatiently interrupting George.
"Haven't you two even kissed?"
"What?!"
"I'll take that as a no..."
"Harry is just a friend," Ginny said, turning away from the twins. Harry seemed to find this moment appropriate to sweep down towards the ground and wave at Ginny, Fred and George before soaring off again. Ginny found herself smiling and waving back wildly.
Fred made a sound of disbelief.
"What?" Ginny asked again.
"That was not a friendship wave," Fred told her.
"That was a wave of infatuation," George agreed.
"That was an I-want-you wave."
"That was a Take-me-now wave."
"An I'm-undressing-you-with-my-eyes wave."
"A Can-I-marry-you-and-have-your-babies wave."
"Ew!" Ginny said and made a face.
"We speak but the truth," Fred said sagely.
"Just go away, will you?" Ginny sighed. "I don't feel like listening to this. I just want to be left alone."
"Left alone with Harry?"
"GO AWAY!"
Fred seemed to feel rather guilty now, and went back into the house. George, however, lagged behind.
"I really think he may like you, Gin..." George said gently. "You should go for it. I mean, you don't have to be satisfied with stalking-"
"I'm not stalking!"
"-and watching from afar. I'm telling you, Ginny, there's a good chance Harry likes you. Why don't you just find out?"
"I told you to go away," Ginny said, although most of the anger had drained from her voice.
"Fair enough," George said, shrugging, and ran to catch up with Fred.
~~~
"Ron, did you take my quills AGAIN? How many times do I have to tell you that-... Good Lord, are you doing homework?"
Ron gave Percy a sulky look. "You have tons of quills in your room. I was just borrowing this one, mine are out of ink."
"You're doing homework!" Percy marveled, dropping the subject of his quills. "And it's...Ron, it's mid-august! You have a good two weeks left to procrastinate."
"I just thought I'd get it over with, all right?" Grumbling, Ron returned to his work.
"Something is wrong," Percy said, beaming confidently.
"And you sound so heartbroken about it too."
"Perhaps I can help."
"Since when have you jumped at the chance to be Ms. Advice Column?" Ron asked, turning around to face Percy. Percy looked flustered. "Oh. I see," Ron said knowingly. "Since you saw me and Hermione...me and Hermione..."
"Expressing... your...affections?" Percy offered tentatively.
"MAKING OUT IN THE HALLWAY!" Ron exploded.
"Er...Well...Yes. That too..."
Ron sighed.
"You can't just avoid Hermione."
"Watch me."
"May I have my quill back now?"
"I thought you were trying to help me."
"You obviously don't want help," Percy told his brother sharply.
"Fine then," Ron said, trying not to get angry. He glanced up at Percy. "Do you think Hermione is avoiding me too?"
"Yes, I do."
"Good," Ron said smugly. "That means she's upset." A worried look crossed his face. "Doesn't it?"
"I think she's upset... And why in the world you'd be happy about that is beyond me."
"She's been nothing but a b-" Seeing Percy's look Ron started over. "She's being a twit."
"So are you."
"Maybe," Ron admitted. Percy looked at Ron in surprise, as he was usually much more stubborn than this.
"The key," Percy said importantly, jumping at this chance, "is communication."
Ron raised an eyebrow.
"Well it is," Percy continued defensively. "I read it in a Daily Prophet column."
"So what are you saying? I've gotta talk to her?"
"Oh bravo," Percy said dryly. "Caught right on."
"Shut up. What do I say?"
~~~
"Please forgive me for being stupid, let's kiss and fall madly in love."
"I am not telling Ron that." Hermione frowned. "I am not telling Ron anything. Ron can stay in his room until he's thirty for all I care, I don't want to talk to him right now."
"Why not?" Charlie asked. He was pacing Ginny's room, trying to get Hermione's stubborn side to fail. Hermione was perched impatiently on Ginny's bed.
"Because," Hermione began. "Because..."
"Yes?"
"Because he has no right to be a complete idiot, kiss me and then expect everything to be all better, tied up with a neat little red ribbon."
Charlie sighed. "Judging by the screaming I heard earlier Ron wasn't the only one being an idiot. You both sounded pretty mad."
Hermione shrugged.
"And," Charlie went on, "from the way Fred and George told it, Ron wasn't kissing you. You were kissing each other."
"Ron is right," Hermione grumbled to herself. "Fred and George both need girlfriends to occupy their time."
"Look!" Charlie said triumphantly. "You and Ron just agreed on something! Progress! Come on, Hermione, I'm sick of this. Go talk to Ron. Figure things out. You can't hide up here forever."
"Why not?"
"Well, you'll have to go to the bathroom eventually..."
"Am I supposed to laugh?" Hermione asked coldly, holding back a smile.
"A little chuckle would be nice," Charlie admitted. "Are you this mean to Ron?"
"I am NOT mean to R-" Hermione began, but Charlie cut her off.
"Look, either talk to the guy or don't. Just don't stay up here feeling sorry for yourself." He tilted his head at Hermione. "And get some sleep. You look terrible."
"Thanks," Hermione mumbled as Charlie left the room. Apparently she had made yet another person mad. It seemed to be a new talent of her's.
Charlie doesn't know what he's talking about, Hermione reassured herself. Although, after a nearly sleepless night... Hermione yawned... A nap didn't sound too bad.
~~~
Harry soared to the ground, landing right next to where Ginny sat, staring up at the sky.
"Ginny?"
"Oh," Ginny said, glancing at him. "Hi." She went back to looking at the sky. Harry blinked.
"So..." he said. "What's up and what's wrong?"
"My brothers," Ginny informed Harry, "are morons."
"Fred and George bothering you again?"
"Percy's working and Ron is sulking over Hermione, and they hardly ever tease Charlie. That leaves me."
Harry tried to wince sympathetically.
"Harry," Ginny said suddenly. "You don't think...you don't, erm, think that I'm..."
"What?"
"obsessedwithyou."
"Huh?" Harry asked. Then, figuring out what she said, he blushed. "No... Of course not, Ginny."
"Good," Ginny said. "Because I'm not, you know."
"I know."
"I don't have a crush on you. In fact," she said airily, "I don't like you at all."
"Uh... Good?"
Ginny gulped and shook her head. " I didn't mean that...It's just, I meant that I don't-"
"Have feelings for me," Harry finished.
Ginny nodded.
"I know," Harry said again. "Come on Ginny, don't let Fred and George get to you. We're friends."
"Really?" Ginny said, turning slightly pink. Harry smiled.
"Yeah. What else would we be?"
"I thought you just saw me as an annoying little sister," Ginny confessed. "And Harry, I'm not. I'm nearly fourteen. I'm not stupid, or immature, or-"
"Ginny, I never thought you were any of those things."
"I'm just trying to say...I'm mature enough now to be considered your friend, don't you think?" Ginny looked at him anxiously.
"Ginny..." Harry gave her a little half hug before quickly letting go, surprised at how distressing it was to see Ginny so worried. "Of course I can consider you a friend... I just said I did, remember?"
Ginny smiled. "Can I also remind you then, that I'm usually not this pathetic about friendship?"
Harry nodded.
"I'm just sick of being considered the little sister," Ginny went on. "And I wanted to make sure that you didn't only see me that way. It's important that you don't."
Harry looked slightly embarrassed. He cleared his throat. "Er...So what are you doing out here?" Changing the topic. That was subtle.
"Just thinking... I'm going to garden later."
"Oh yeah, I saw that small garden in your family's backyard... It's really...nice."
"Thanks."
"Can I help?" Harry asked, before he could think twice.
"Gardening?" Ginny looked slightly startled. "Yeah, sure. Would you go inside and get a trowel?"
"A trowel?" Harry paused and then laughed. "So you don't garden with magic?"
"Just saying some silly spell isn't fun...And it isn't real." Ginny grinned. "So I guess if you want to help garden you'll have to work."
"Damn." Harry smiled. "It's inside?"
"In the basement."
"I'll be right back."
"All right," Ginny agreed, beaming as she watched Harry go.
Harry went inside, but his steps slowed slightly as he entered, and he found himself watching Ginny from a window. The sun was shimmering against her hair in a way that caught Harry's eye immediately. She stood out against the bright day, as she sat there, self contained. Harry continued watching her for long a few minutes before he turned away nervously.
She could be his friend, he could talk and laugh with her, he could even let the thought that she was pretty pass casually through his mind...
But he had to remember that she was still Ron's little sister.
God, why was that getting so hard to remember?
~~~
"You don't understand," Ron said, dismissing Percy's idea of reciting poetry. "Hermione isn't like that... She won't melt over a bunch of sappy words. She doesn't buy insincere crap." Ron smiled to himself. "Partly why I like her so much..." He coughed. "Uh, anyway. Save your sonnets for Penelope, okay?"
They were both silent for a moment as they heard the door to Ginny's room opening, and footsteps going down the stairs. They both knew it was Hermione. Ron looked down.
After a moment Percy frowned. "I do not write sappy poetry. I just meant that maybe a poem or something will sweep Hermione off her feet."
"Percy, I don't want to sweep Hermione off her feet. I just want to figure out what's going on, can you get that through your thick skull?"
"Which brings us back to why don't you talk to her you stupid git."
"I want to...I guess. I don't know, maybe I should just forget anything ever happened. Harry and Hermione seem to have forgotten their little encounter... Why shouldn't she do the same with me?"
"That's different, and you know it is. Harry and Hermione, they have a friendship. What do you and Hermione have?"
"I don't even know anymore. We had a friendship..."
"But it was never quite the ship shape friendship Harry and Hermione had, was it?"
Ron looked at Percy incredulously. "Ship shape?"
Percy glared.
"Uh, no." Ron looked nervously at Percy. "The shape was not ship," he said glumly. "Or...would it be the ship was not shape? Because, you know, neither one really makes much sense."
"Figure it out," Percy said. "How much does she mean to you?"
"Is there a reason you're trying to be so insightful?"
"Is there anything wrong with being insightful?"
"In your case, it's freaky."
Percy rolled his eyes. "Does Hermione matter to you?"
"Stupid question."
"If you want things to continue to go on in this offset manner, if you want to continue being formal and polite to her, if you want to go on avoiding awkward conversation just to save yourself a little embarrassment, if you want to just sit here...then don't go downstairs."
Ron shrugged and didn't move from his chair.
"If you want to continue to go on with your life, never knowing what could have happened between you and Hermione if you had just talked to her, then don't go downstairs."
"Percy?"
"Yes?"
Ron took a deep breath. "You're standing in front of the door."
Realizing he was in danger of being run over by Ron, Percy moved aside, and Ron opened the door.
"Is my hair sticking up?" Ron asked, nervously patting down his hair as he gave the stairway an apprehensive look.
"Ron."
With a sigh, Ron left his room and went downstairs, still patting down his hair and looking very pale.
Once he was sure Ron was gone Percy opened one of the drawers in Ron's desk and recovered fifteen of his quills and three bottles of ink. Slipping his formerly stolen property (each neatly marked with labels saying 'Property of Percival Weasley') under his arm, Percy smiled to himself.
"Knew that would work."
~~~
A cloud passed by Hermione's head- it looked like a choo-choo train, part of her noted dully.
"Choo-choo," she said to herself.
She looked down.
She was suspended in mid-air. Trees and far off valleys were down below. Why in the world was she up here?
Slowly Hermione began to descend towards the earth.
"Bye bye choo-choo," she said softly as the ground came closer. She should be feeling panicked, she knew she should. But instead of feeling worried, she was feeling impatient. Where was Ron? Couldn't he help her out?
No, she thought, sighing. He was too busy slugging Draco Malfoy down below.
"How could you?" Ron said. Hermione was at the Weasley's now and Ron was looking at her despairingly.
"What?" Hermione stared. "What did I do?"
Ron stared right back at her and shook his head. "You of all people should know better."
"Know what better?"
"How could you do that?"
"Do what?" Now Hermione was feeling panicked. She'd much rather be back in the sky.
"Didn't you read about it?"
"Read what? Read about what?" Hermione blanched. "You're testing me! Is there going to be a test?"
"No."
"Then what?" Everything was so confusing! And Ron...Why did he keep looking at her like that, like she was stupid? Why wouldn't he stop?
"I dismissed all my house-elves," Ron told her. He was closer now, and he was whispering.
"You don't have any house-elves," Hermione said.
"Not any more." And then Ron was kissing her, except Hermione wasn't part of it... She was standing by the stairs, watching her and Ron kissing from below. She had to get back up there... She was so far away. It was so hard to see from so so far away.
They pulled apart. Ron took a step back.
"So. What do you have to say?"
Hermione didn't say anything. Ron started laughing.
"C'mon, Mione... Wait, you do know what to say, don't you?"
"I...Am I supposed to? Ron, I didn't know I was supposed to."
Ron burst into a new fit of laughter, and Harry shook his head.
Harry was there?
"What did you expect?" Harry said to Ron. "She doesn't know anything. Kinda sad, isn't it?"
"Very sad," Ron agreed, still laughing.
"Maybe if I... Hogwarts! If I go back to Hogwarts and research in the library, I'll find the answer!"
"Hermione, you know full well that on page 357 of 'Hogwarts a History', it's clearly stated that during the summer holiday, Hogwarts grounds are not open to any students unless specific circumstances are agreed on by the school's current headmaster or headmistress."
"Yes... Yes, I do know that, don't I? Or...Or was it page 316?"
"I always thought it was on 320," Harry said.
"Well nobody asked you, did they?" Hermione snapped.
"It's 357," Ron said without doubt.
Harry pouted at Hermione. "Can't believe I kissed you... Ginny's never so mean to me, are you, Ginny?"
"Never," Ginny agreed, standing at Harry's side. Harry immediately grabbed Ginny and they began kissing.
"It's 357," Ron repeated. "I'm positive."
"Look!" Hermione pointed to Harry and Ginny. Maybe this would give her some time to read, to figure out the answer... "Look! Harry and your sister, Ginny! Ron, look at that!"
Ron furrowed his brow as he looked to where Harry and Ginny were. "I don't see anything."
"They were just there, Ron, they were! I'll go find them!"
"Do you know what to say now?" Ron sighed. "How could I ever have liked someone so dumb?"
"I'll go find them." Hermione ducked around a corner. Aha! Ron's room. Hermione was sure they were in Ron's room. She'd go and show them to Ron, maybe then he wouldn't think she was dumb.
She threw open the door to Ron's room. The familiar Quidditch players and faint comforting scent that always reminded her of Ron greeted her, and her heart immediately stopped pounding.
"Harry? Ginny?" Hermione looked up and down messy shelves, opened drawers, but she couldn't find them. She looked on Ron's bed.
There was her book! Forbidden Passions! Hermione quickly took it off the bed. Maybe the answer was here?
She opened it at a random page and began to read.
"No, beloved, you know I love only you." The young man smiled.
"Oh, Ron, I love you too," the young woman replied, burying her face in his chest.
"Yes, Hermione, I know."
Hermione shut the book quickly and began to sob. Where was the answer?!
"You can't find what to say from any book," Charlie said, shaking his head.
"Then where?!"
"You already know."
Hermione threw the book down and ran out of the room.
She crashed right into Ron. She fell down. Ron didn't.
"So?" he said.
Hermione grabbed a book out of Ron's hand. Sitting on the floor, she frantically turned the pages, the answer was in here somewhere, right, it had to be in here somewhere. Unicorn boils...Malfoy generations... Andalites... Spells to make your opponent laugh uncontrollably until they pass out... Where was it? What was it?!
"Didn't you hear?" Ron sighed again. "It's not in any book you'll know."
Charlie grabbed the book from Hermione and shut it with a thud.
Hermione bolted up in bed.
Ron. She had to find Ron!
As soon as she looked at page 357 in Hogwarts, A History. She was sure dream-Ron was wrong about that.
~~~
A now fully awake Hermione leaped out of bed and ran down the stairs (Dream-Ron, it turned out to her dismay, was right). The real Ron, however, was no where in sight. Mrs. Weasley was reading on the sofa.
"Mrs. Weasley?" Hermione said, her voice shaking slightly.
Mrs. Weasley looked up. "Oh. Yes dear?"
"Do you kno-" Hermione squinted at the book Mrs. Weasley was reading. "Are you reading..."
"Harry's book?" Mrs. Weasley said brightly.
"Harry's book?"
"Have you read it too? It's called Forbidden Passions. It's quite exciting. I was cleaning Ginny's room and found it there... It certainly looked interesting."
"Um. Yes. I have read it. Um." Hermione was caught slightly off-guard.
"There was something you wanted to ask me," Mrs. Weasley reminded gently.
Hermione nodded. "Do you, um, know where Ron is?"
"Hey," said a voice from behind her. Hermione turned to see Ron.
"Hi," she said quietly.
Ron crossed towards her, and they both glanced quickly to Mrs. Weasley, who was once again, immersed in her reading. Then they looked back at each other.
"We need to talk," Ron said finally.
"Yes," Hermione agreed. "We do."
I've learned not to promise things in my author notes anymore, because they very rarely happen in the next chapter..But I *can* promise that the next chapter will be the last (I really really hope.. It'd be terrible to have this go on forever until everybody gets sick of Picturesque). And I can also ask vague questions! For example...
Will Ron and Hermione talk or will they end up killing eachother? Or will they do a little bit of both? When's the wedding date for Ginny and Harry? Who knows, at the pace they're going. Will Charlie and Percy start an advice column together? And is Percy's full name *really* Percival?
Bwahaha, I'm enjoying my end-of-fic-note-thingy babbling priveleges. Come on, humor me! I'll only have one more chapter of Picturesque to do this in!
Thanks to Ruby, Rhi and everybody who reviewed. And Cancer, let your sister finish the fic. Don't be power hungry... Fun as it is. ;)
