Disclaimer: You know already that I am not capable of owning Harry Potter. Why else do you think this is a fanfic? I could be writing my own stories right now and publishing them, even though no one would buy them. *sob* Anyway...
CHAPTER VI: CONFUSED EMOTIONS
The next day, Dean hurriedly left the Divination room and headed down the stairs towards the hallway. He wanted to catch up with Hermione, before Ron did, so he could ask Hermione what Muggles would call a million-dollar question. Harry had told him he would keep Ron busy, but he could never be too sure. He skidded in his tracks as he saw Hermione leaving the Arithmacy classroom. "Hermione," he called eagerly as he approached her, out of breath.
"Hey Dean," she stated, shouldering her bag over one of her shoulders.
"Hey Hermione. Can I talk to you for a sec? It's really important," Dean, panted breathlessly.
"Sure, if you're that desperate," Hermione commented warily as they started walking towards the Gryffindor Tower.
"Um, I wanted to ask you that if you're not going with anyone in particular to Hogsmeade, I was wondering if you would like to go with me?" he requested patiently, as he regained his composure.
"If I would like to go to Hogsmeade with you," she repeated apparently stunned. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect Dean Thomas to ask her out. In the back of her head, she honestly wanted Ron Weasley to put forth the question first, but she could never say that to anyone, especially since Dean was asking so nicely.
"Yea, I mean if you're not going with anyone already. You didn't really show that you had been asked by anyone, so I thought I might as well ask you, before anyone else. Please, I really want to go with you," Dean pleaded eagerly. He secretly crossed his fingers behind his back, hoping that this plan of Harry's would work on Hermione.
"Well, I was kind of hoping Ron would ask me to go with him," Hermione remarked slowly, avoiding eye contact with Dean, by suddenly finding her shoes to be very interesting.
"But he didn't," he pointed out. "Besides, I overheard Lavender telling Parvati that she might ask Ron to accompany her. So I asked you," he insisted keenly.
She seemed to be thinking it over, when she finally agreed, "Okay Dean, I'll go with you."
"Really," Dean exclaimed enthusiastically. This was going better than he thought it would.
"Yep," she nodded her head firmly before adding softly to herself, "Maybe this way Ron will actually notice me, since I'll be going on a date." She gave him a small smile and left for the great hall.
Dean waited until she had turned the corner, before breathing out a sigh of relief. He caught the eye of Harry, who was escorting Ginny down the hallway. He gave them a thumbs-up sign; everything was going according to the plan.
Meanwhile Ron was busy searching for Hermione, who was nowhere to be seen, since she had already left for lunch. He had just about given up hope for her when he saw Lavender running up to him. "Ron, I was looking everywhere for you," she shrieked, clutching his arm desperately.
"Well, you found me," Ron replied weakly, while wrenching his arm free of her grasp. "Why were you looking for me anyway? We just had class," Ron remarked eyeing her suspiciously.
"Yea, I know we just had class," she said impatiently, waving her hand in the air, as if brushing away the topic. "What I wanted to ask you, however, is really important so you have to answer honestly," she continued, as they stopped to talk amidst the crowd of students.
"Okay, what is it?" he questioned, leaning against the wall, while glancing at his watch. Food always made him hungry, and at that very moment he was starving.
"Well," she whispered shyly, glancing down at her sneakers. "I was wondering if you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me," she finished softly before looking up at him.
Now, being the stupid unaware jerk that Ronald Weasley, the one we all know and love, can be he absentmindedly replied, "Sure," even though he was thinking about his stomach.
"Oh thank you so much Ron. You don't know how much I appreciate it for you to take me," Lavender squealed joyfully. She stood up on her tiptoes and gave Ron a kiss on the cheek.
Luckily this brought Ron to his senses because he awkwardly remarked, "Excuse me Lavender what did you just say and do to me?"
She answered calmly, "I asked if you would like to go with to Hogsmeade this weekend and you said yes so I kissed you on the cheek."
"What!" Ron exclaimed. Lavender eyed him quizzically before answering placidly, "Yea, why do you have an objection to taking me to Hogsmeade?
"Um, truthfully Lav," Ron replied, while running his hands through his hair, "I wanted to ask Hermione to go with me," he muttered, his ears turning a tinge of pink.
"Oh," she voiced slowly. "So Weasley did have feelings for Granger, after all. This was getting better and better," she thought gleefully.
"Sorry Ron, but you're to late. Dean already asked Hermione and she agreed," she responded, though she didn't know for sure, if it had actually worked out.
"She did?" Ron repeated horrified, leaning weakly against the wall. How could Hermione dare consent to go with Dean when she shared a room with him? This was too much for him to handle. Unfortunately, however, he didn't have long to ponder over his best friend's sudden decision because Lavender was impetuously tapping her foot.
"Well Ron, are you going to take me to Hogsmeade or no?" she inquired raising her eyebrows at him, while flicking her blond hair over her shoulder.
Ron sulked to himself but going to Hogsmeade over the weekend with Lavender was better going all by himself. Besides, he still had to deal with Hermione. "Okay," he agreed reluctantly.
Lavender squealed happily, "Thank you so much Ron. You have no idea how much this means to me. See you over the weekend." She gave a quick wave and skipped down the hallway leaving behind a very cross Ron.
While she was enjoying her success, she caught the stare of Seamus. She nodded her head vigorously at him and he gave her a thumbs-up sign. At this rate, their plan was sure to work.
Ron was absolutely fuming with rage, by the time Lavender left him. How dare Hermione agree to go to Hogsmeade with anyone else, especially after the Krum incident and the fact that *he* was still there?! He was beyond control. Students walking by him could actually sense the heat escaping him as he stormed the corridor.
He was just about to explode his frustration to Harry, when he spotted Hermione calmly walking towards the tower. Ron quickened his pace, reached her and grabbed her by the arm, despite her protests, and hurtled her into the nearest vacant classroom.
"We need to talk," he hissed into her ear, as he closed the door behind them.
"Really Ron," she chided exasperated, releasing his tight grasp on her. "If you wanted to talk, you could have just asked," she stated a little more pleasantly than before.
"What do you think you're doing?" he roared at her, his blue eyes twinkling with fury.
"What do you mean?" she asked completely astonished at his behavior.
"You know what I mean, Hermione Granger?" he sneered furiously, his flaming red hair sticking up in frenzy.
"Don't you dare use that tone with me Ron," she warned angrily. "And I don't know what you're talking about," she remarked in an undertone. "What's wrong with him?" she thought silently to herself.
"How could you agree to with Dean to Hogsmeade?" Ron retorted sharply.
Suddenly, the truth hit her. "Oh," she mumbled aloud as she started to feel her own anger boiling up inside of her.
"What's oh?" Ron repeated, advancing towards her; she in turn, backed away uncertainly.
"Going with Dean is just an *oh* for you?" he asked in a tight lipped voice.
"Well, it's not like you did anything better," she retorted defensively, standing her ground. Two could play at this game.
"What do you mean by that?" he replied hastily.
"You agreed to go with Lavender, didn't you?" she accused pointing her finger at him. "How dare you accuse me of acting wrongly, when you, yourself have acted the same way?"
He took a step back, as if he had just received a huge blow in the face. "How do you know about that?" he questioned.
"I don't know; I just know," Hermione cried loudly, throwing her hands up in the air, in frustration.
"Well still," Ron pointed out, "I wouldn't have agreed to go with her if you hadn't already planned to go with *someone else*."
"Oh so it's my fault," she declared, glaring at him.
"Yeah," he answered matter-of-factly.
"Well, excuse me," she announced, placing her hands on her hips. "I wouldn't have agreed to Dean's request if you hadn't asked me, instead. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some serious studying to do."
Hermione turned around and headed towards the door. She was just about to turn the doorknob, when Ron gripped her shoulders from behind her and forced her against the wall, placing both of his hands around her, blocking her path.
"Don't you think I wanted to ask you," Ron whispered softly. She stared into his deep blue eyes thoughtfully before replying gently, "Why didn't you Ron?"
"You had already been asked by Dean and besides I just found out today that there was actually going to be a trip to Hogsmeade," he hissed through clenched teeth. He could see Hermione controlling her temper, as her chest heaved up and down. He suddenly had the urge to brush away the strands of hair hiding her dark brown eyes.
"Well don't expect me to around for you, Ronald Weasley, because I'm not," but Hermione never got the chance to quite finish that statement, for at that very precise moment Ron had tightly fastened his lips onto her very own.
***
CHAPTER VI: CONFUSED EMOTIONS
The next day, Dean hurriedly left the Divination room and headed down the stairs towards the hallway. He wanted to catch up with Hermione, before Ron did, so he could ask Hermione what Muggles would call a million-dollar question. Harry had told him he would keep Ron busy, but he could never be too sure. He skidded in his tracks as he saw Hermione leaving the Arithmacy classroom. "Hermione," he called eagerly as he approached her, out of breath.
"Hey Dean," she stated, shouldering her bag over one of her shoulders.
"Hey Hermione. Can I talk to you for a sec? It's really important," Dean, panted breathlessly.
"Sure, if you're that desperate," Hermione commented warily as they started walking towards the Gryffindor Tower.
"Um, I wanted to ask you that if you're not going with anyone in particular to Hogsmeade, I was wondering if you would like to go with me?" he requested patiently, as he regained his composure.
"If I would like to go to Hogsmeade with you," she repeated apparently stunned. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect Dean Thomas to ask her out. In the back of her head, she honestly wanted Ron Weasley to put forth the question first, but she could never say that to anyone, especially since Dean was asking so nicely.
"Yea, I mean if you're not going with anyone already. You didn't really show that you had been asked by anyone, so I thought I might as well ask you, before anyone else. Please, I really want to go with you," Dean pleaded eagerly. He secretly crossed his fingers behind his back, hoping that this plan of Harry's would work on Hermione.
"Well, I was kind of hoping Ron would ask me to go with him," Hermione remarked slowly, avoiding eye contact with Dean, by suddenly finding her shoes to be very interesting.
"But he didn't," he pointed out. "Besides, I overheard Lavender telling Parvati that she might ask Ron to accompany her. So I asked you," he insisted keenly.
She seemed to be thinking it over, when she finally agreed, "Okay Dean, I'll go with you."
"Really," Dean exclaimed enthusiastically. This was going better than he thought it would.
"Yep," she nodded her head firmly before adding softly to herself, "Maybe this way Ron will actually notice me, since I'll be going on a date." She gave him a small smile and left for the great hall.
Dean waited until she had turned the corner, before breathing out a sigh of relief. He caught the eye of Harry, who was escorting Ginny down the hallway. He gave them a thumbs-up sign; everything was going according to the plan.
Meanwhile Ron was busy searching for Hermione, who was nowhere to be seen, since she had already left for lunch. He had just about given up hope for her when he saw Lavender running up to him. "Ron, I was looking everywhere for you," she shrieked, clutching his arm desperately.
"Well, you found me," Ron replied weakly, while wrenching his arm free of her grasp. "Why were you looking for me anyway? We just had class," Ron remarked eyeing her suspiciously.
"Yea, I know we just had class," she said impatiently, waving her hand in the air, as if brushing away the topic. "What I wanted to ask you, however, is really important so you have to answer honestly," she continued, as they stopped to talk amidst the crowd of students.
"Okay, what is it?" he questioned, leaning against the wall, while glancing at his watch. Food always made him hungry, and at that very moment he was starving.
"Well," she whispered shyly, glancing down at her sneakers. "I was wondering if you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me," she finished softly before looking up at him.
Now, being the stupid unaware jerk that Ronald Weasley, the one we all know and love, can be he absentmindedly replied, "Sure," even though he was thinking about his stomach.
"Oh thank you so much Ron. You don't know how much I appreciate it for you to take me," Lavender squealed joyfully. She stood up on her tiptoes and gave Ron a kiss on the cheek.
Luckily this brought Ron to his senses because he awkwardly remarked, "Excuse me Lavender what did you just say and do to me?"
She answered calmly, "I asked if you would like to go with to Hogsmeade this weekend and you said yes so I kissed you on the cheek."
"What!" Ron exclaimed. Lavender eyed him quizzically before answering placidly, "Yea, why do you have an objection to taking me to Hogsmeade?
"Um, truthfully Lav," Ron replied, while running his hands through his hair, "I wanted to ask Hermione to go with me," he muttered, his ears turning a tinge of pink.
"Oh," she voiced slowly. "So Weasley did have feelings for Granger, after all. This was getting better and better," she thought gleefully.
"Sorry Ron, but you're to late. Dean already asked Hermione and she agreed," she responded, though she didn't know for sure, if it had actually worked out.
"She did?" Ron repeated horrified, leaning weakly against the wall. How could Hermione dare consent to go with Dean when she shared a room with him? This was too much for him to handle. Unfortunately, however, he didn't have long to ponder over his best friend's sudden decision because Lavender was impetuously tapping her foot.
"Well Ron, are you going to take me to Hogsmeade or no?" she inquired raising her eyebrows at him, while flicking her blond hair over her shoulder.
Ron sulked to himself but going to Hogsmeade over the weekend with Lavender was better going all by himself. Besides, he still had to deal with Hermione. "Okay," he agreed reluctantly.
Lavender squealed happily, "Thank you so much Ron. You have no idea how much this means to me. See you over the weekend." She gave a quick wave and skipped down the hallway leaving behind a very cross Ron.
While she was enjoying her success, she caught the stare of Seamus. She nodded her head vigorously at him and he gave her a thumbs-up sign. At this rate, their plan was sure to work.
Ron was absolutely fuming with rage, by the time Lavender left him. How dare Hermione agree to go to Hogsmeade with anyone else, especially after the Krum incident and the fact that *he* was still there?! He was beyond control. Students walking by him could actually sense the heat escaping him as he stormed the corridor.
He was just about to explode his frustration to Harry, when he spotted Hermione calmly walking towards the tower. Ron quickened his pace, reached her and grabbed her by the arm, despite her protests, and hurtled her into the nearest vacant classroom.
"We need to talk," he hissed into her ear, as he closed the door behind them.
"Really Ron," she chided exasperated, releasing his tight grasp on her. "If you wanted to talk, you could have just asked," she stated a little more pleasantly than before.
"What do you think you're doing?" he roared at her, his blue eyes twinkling with fury.
"What do you mean?" she asked completely astonished at his behavior.
"You know what I mean, Hermione Granger?" he sneered furiously, his flaming red hair sticking up in frenzy.
"Don't you dare use that tone with me Ron," she warned angrily. "And I don't know what you're talking about," she remarked in an undertone. "What's wrong with him?" she thought silently to herself.
"How could you agree to with Dean to Hogsmeade?" Ron retorted sharply.
Suddenly, the truth hit her. "Oh," she mumbled aloud as she started to feel her own anger boiling up inside of her.
"What's oh?" Ron repeated, advancing towards her; she in turn, backed away uncertainly.
"Going with Dean is just an *oh* for you?" he asked in a tight lipped voice.
"Well, it's not like you did anything better," she retorted defensively, standing her ground. Two could play at this game.
"What do you mean by that?" he replied hastily.
"You agreed to go with Lavender, didn't you?" she accused pointing her finger at him. "How dare you accuse me of acting wrongly, when you, yourself have acted the same way?"
He took a step back, as if he had just received a huge blow in the face. "How do you know about that?" he questioned.
"I don't know; I just know," Hermione cried loudly, throwing her hands up in the air, in frustration.
"Well still," Ron pointed out, "I wouldn't have agreed to go with her if you hadn't already planned to go with *someone else*."
"Oh so it's my fault," she declared, glaring at him.
"Yeah," he answered matter-of-factly.
"Well, excuse me," she announced, placing her hands on her hips. "I wouldn't have agreed to Dean's request if you hadn't asked me, instead. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some serious studying to do."
Hermione turned around and headed towards the door. She was just about to turn the doorknob, when Ron gripped her shoulders from behind her and forced her against the wall, placing both of his hands around her, blocking her path.
"Don't you think I wanted to ask you," Ron whispered softly. She stared into his deep blue eyes thoughtfully before replying gently, "Why didn't you Ron?"
"You had already been asked by Dean and besides I just found out today that there was actually going to be a trip to Hogsmeade," he hissed through clenched teeth. He could see Hermione controlling her temper, as her chest heaved up and down. He suddenly had the urge to brush away the strands of hair hiding her dark brown eyes.
"Well don't expect me to around for you, Ronald Weasley, because I'm not," but Hermione never got the chance to quite finish that statement, for at that very precise moment Ron had tightly fastened his lips onto her very own.
***