Author's Note: Thanks to Lissie89, the guy, and ronandhermione4ever for the fantastic reviews!

Disclaimer: See that woman over there? Hers. See all that money? Also hers. The only thing I own is the almost non-existent plot.

********************* Chapter 2

For the next month, all any one talked about was the upcoming ball. Even those who were too young to attend could not seem to find a different topic of conversation. This irritated Hermione to no end. She began to snap at random people who persisted in discussing the ball in her presence for more than a couple of minutes at a time. She also stopped spending most of her time in the common room after classes were finished. She could be found in either the library or in the girls' dormitory instead. It was the former in which Ginny found her one day.

"Hey 'Mione!" Ginny said, bounding up to Hermione with a big grin on her face. "Mind if I join you?" Hermione felt a slight irritation at the interruption, but smiled politely and nodded at Ginny, who sat down immediately and pulled out one of her school books. 'She's going to ask, I just know it!' Hermione thought, once again looking at the book in front of her. A conversation drifted out from behind one of the shelves...

"Well, my robes are going to be a baby blue color and my hair..."

Hermione scowled. She wasn't sure how much more talk of the ball she could stand. She cast about for something else to think about, knowing perfectly well that she wouldn't be able to concentrate on her book again until Ginny either left (which wasn't going to happen in the near future) or just asked her. Hermione looked at Ginny out of the corner of her eye. The sight of her red hair made her think about Ron. Hermione's scowl deepened. 'Ron sure has been acting strange lately...' she thought. When ever she got near him, he would turn crimson and avoid making any eye contact. If she talked to him or asked him a question, he would either stutter like mad or not say anything at all. Harry found all of this extremely amusing. He would just grin like a fool whenever Hermione got near and Ron's face would turn a color to rival his hair. Unless Hermione was mistaken, Ron was acting exactly like someone who had a crush. This thought caught Hermione off guard. The scowl completely disappeared from her face as her eyes grew wide. A crush! Of course! Why hadn't she thought about that before? 'Now, who does he have a crush on?' she thought, concentrating hard. Who was around him all the time besides her and Harry? 'Ginny, but it's definitely not her. I hope it's not Neville either. Hmmm...' Hermione's eyes narrowed as she thought about the times she had approached Ron in the last month. There had been lots of people around whenever she had talked to him in class or the Great Hall. But he had gone red a couple of times when it had just been her, Harry, and Ron himself. 'But that means...!'

"So," Ginny started, interrupting Hermione's thoughts, "who are you going to the ball with?" Hermione blinked rapidly and looked over at Ginny. The youngest Weasley had picked an inopportune time to finally ask the question Hermione had been dreading.

"I don't know Ginny," she said, regaining her composure and once again looking down at the book in front of her. "I don't know if I'm even going."

Ginny looked absolutely affronted. "Of course you're going!" She nearly shouted. This earned them several annoyed looks and a stern "Shush!" from somewhere behind them. Ginny lowered her voice, "Come on 'Mione. You have to go. Please?" Ginny gave her the puppy dog eyes. Hermione, however, seriously wasn't in the mood. She snapped the book shut out of pure irritation and was on the verge of getting up.

"I don't see why it matters whether I go or not. You'll be with Harry the whole time anyway."

The puppy dog eyes disappeared. "Oh, come on, Hermione! It'll be fun!" Hermione just looked at Ginny. "Well," Ginny said, "at least it would give you a break from all the...studying you've been doing lately."

Hermione surveyed Ginny for a moment before answering. "We'll see, Ginny."

Ginny, seemingly to have taken this as a yes, squealed, threw her book back into her bag, and ran from the library. Hermione got up slowly from the table and slung her bag over her shoulder. With the book securely under her arm, Hermione followed Ginny out of the library. Her thoughts, however, were on an entirely different Weasley...

~

Harry and Ron were sitting in a corner of the common room, playing a game of wizard chess. Ron was able to easily beat Harry at this, they both knew, but it didn't stop Harry from trying his hardest. Ron was thankful for this. It meant that all of Harry's concentration would be on the board in front of them instead of remembering to tell Ron every few minutes to ask Hermione to the ball.

Ron had just nudged his queen towards Harry's quivering castle when Harry suddenly asked, "So, are you going to ask her or what?"

Ron groaned. "Harry, I thought I asked you to drop it?"

"You did," was Harry's only response.

"Well then," Ron said in a slightly irritated voice, "drop it!"

Harry looked away from the board and up at Ron. "I'm not going to drop it until you ask her." Harry's voice was annoyingly calm. Ron also looked away from the board at this point. Harry had leaned back in his seat and was staring pointedly at Ron, his face etched with fierce determination.

Ron put his head in his hands and said, "Alright, alright! If it will make you happy, I'll ask her!" Harry smiled slightly, but said nothing. They sat like this for several minutes. It was Ron who finally broke the silence. "When should I do it?"

"Well," Harry said, sitting up in his seat, "I suggest that you ask her tonight."

"Tonight?!" Ron looked at Harry, baffled.

"Yes, Ron. Tonight. The ball is only a week away. If someone asks 'Mione before you do, I'll kill you."

Ron rubbed a hand through is hair, contemplating this information. "Okay," he finally said. "I'll ask her tonight, after supper." Harry's smile widened while Ron's insides wriggled with the thought of what was approaching.

~

Hermione was back up in her dormitory, thinking hard. After leaving the library, she had walked to the common room in a very slow manner. After giving the Fat Lady the password, she had dashed quickly through the common room, hoping to go unnoticed by Ron and Harry. It did indeed appear that she had succeeded. Before going completely up the staircase, she had chanced a glance at the boys. They had a chess board between them, but it appeared as though they were no longer paying it any mind. Ron had looked highly upset about something while Harry had looked quite pleased with himself.

Hermione threw herself face down on her four-poster bed and put her pillow over her head. She needed to think. She needed to think about Ron. If her suspicions were correct and Ron had a crush on her...'So what?' asked a little voice in her head. 'So what if Ron has a crush on you?' That was a very good question; a very good question indeed...Hermione removed her head from under her pillow and rolled over onto her back, staring up at the canopy overhead. Crookshanks leapt lightly onto her bed, looking to get his ears scratched. Hermione complied, much to the delight of the cat who began to purr loudly. Hermione, however, was still lost in thought.

'If you knew for a fact that Ron Weasley liked you, what would you do?' the voice asked. 'Well,' thought Hermione, 'I guess once I had gotten over my initial shock I would feel...flattered.' Yes, that was it. Flattered. It wasn't as if Ron was exactly terrible to look at. It was quite the contrary, actually. Hermione had always been fond of Ron's extremely expressive face. You could always tell what he was feeling by looking at his face. Especially when he was embarrassed! Hermione giggled as she imagined Ron's face turning as red as his hair, completely masking his freckles. Ron was also one of the sweetest boys in the entire school. Well, he could be if you caught him in the right mood.

Hermione's earlier conversation with Ginny came to mind. She had no intention of attending the ball. That was, until Ginny had pleaded with her. Hermione's very vague answer had apparently confirmed her attendance in Ginny's point of view. Hermione sighed heavily, knowing exactly what would happen on the night of the ball. Harry and Ginny would be together most of the night, of course (that was a given), and she, Hermione, would be left alone at one of the tables, sipping on her punch and watching other couples dance the night away. Maybe she could go for just an hour or so, then make up some excuse to get out of there. For one thing, she wouldn't have a date. Even if someone did ask her, she would probably say no anyway. There wasn't anyone one she was really interested in, except maybe...Hermione chided herself. There was no use thinking like that because there was no way he was going to ask her. As Hermione lay there thinking, she wondered idly who Ron was planning on taking to the ball...

~

As everyone finished supper that night, Hermione felt more than saw Ron sneaking glances at her all throughout the meal. He was back to acting more like normal, however. He was actually talking to her and making eye contact. 'Stupid,' Hermione scolded herself, 'stupid for thinking he might have a crush on you!' She pushed her plate away and announced that she was going upstairs to bed. As she turned and strode toward the doors, she was not aware of the meaningful look Harry gave Ron as he gestured at Hermione's back. Ron gulped and followed Hermione out of the Great Hall. She was just starting up the steps when he caught up with her.

"Hermione, can I have a word? In here?" he asked, pointing toward an empty classroom to the left of the stairs.

"Sure, Ron." Hermione said, a bit uncertainly. Ron held the door open for her before following her inside and closing it behind him. Hermione cast a spell and lit the torches along the walls. The light was very dim, though. It bathed Hermione in a golden glow. Ron was at a loss for words. Hermione had done nothing special with her appearance, but Ron was still mesmerized by the sight of the light playing softly across her skin. Hermione cleared her throat, drawing Ron's attention back.

"Well," he started, his courage wavering, "well..." Hermione just looked at Ron, certain that he had brought her here for a reason. She was just going to let him get it out on his own. She was a bit distracted, though. The dimmed lights cast Ron half in shadow, making him look a bit foreboding, and downright handsome. 'Stop that!' she scolded.

"I was wondering," Ron began, his voice gaining strength and losing it again, "whether you were planning on attending the b-ball next week?" Hermione was a bit taken aback. She hadn't expected this...

"I was thinking about it, but I'm still not sure. Why do you ask?"

Ron cleared his throat. "Well, I was wondering if you would go with me?"

Hermione really hadn't expected this. It was too..."Oh Ron, that would be wonderful!" She was grinning, but she couldn't help it.

Ron blinked at her. "Really?" He sounded surprised. "'Mione, are you serious?" "Of course I am! Ron, I would love to go to the ball with you."

Ron was also grinning very broadly. "It's a date, then!" he said. Ron took a step toward Hermione and held out his hand. Hermione took it, and, together, they walked out of the classroom and up the staircase towards the common room.

********************* I may end the story here, I'm not sure yet. If I get enough reviews wanting me to do so, I will write a third chapter about what happens at the ball. Review and let me know!

I want to give a special thanks to my beta-reader, Lissie, for putting up with me through all the sugar highs and writer's blocks. You're the best!