Harry turned around slowly, and quietly shut the compartment door. What had he just seen? Ron and Hermione? Together? His two best friends. How could they do that to him? Besides, they were all ways fighting and bickering and snapping at each other. It just didn't make sense. He remembered the look on their faces, of happiness and relief, and, well, could it be. love?
In a moment he walked back to the compartment and slid it open very noisily, so they would no he was coming in and separate. By the time he looked around at them, they were on opposite benches, Hermione reading a thick black book titled, "A History of Magical Muggle Mistreatment; Ron polishing his shining new broomstick.
"Hello Harry!" said Hermione brightly as she close her book. She got up and hugged him, then sat back down. Ron smiled gleefully to himself. She had kissed him. She had not kissed Harry! The world was a beautiful place.
"So, did you have a good summer, mate?" Harry asked Ron, trying to wipe the memory of his friends out of his mind, yet failing miserably. Ron's freckled face had seemed to shine with something he had never seen before, and Hermione didn't look so unattractive, almost the opposite. Her hair didn't seem so bushy; her teeth didn't seem so big.
"Oh yeah, it was pretty good. Sorry you couldn't come over to the Burrow. It just wasn't the same with just me and Hermione," Ron replied honestly. Harry didn't believe him. They were probably snogging each other all summer. He felt tempted to say that, but he held it in. Maybe if he pretended he never saw them, he would forget all about it and things could go back to normal.
They had a beautiful view of the rolling English countryside, but Harry didn't notice. The grassy hills and lush meadows went unnoticed, as did the sheep and cows contentedly eating it all.
Ron noticed it. He gazed dreamily out the window, thinking of what a lovely planet he was living on. He smiled delightedly when he saw a horse cantering across a pasture, and thought about what a magnificent creature it was, muscles rippling, nostrils flaring, feet churning the hard earth. He had never liked horses, but that didn't matter.
A spider crawled along the windowsill. Not bad creatures, spiders. Certainly they have a lot of legs, but look at the amazing webs they spin, and all the bugs they catch. This perfect world wouldn't be perfect without it.
Then he reluctantly left dreamland and his thoughts turned to Harry. What would happen if he ever found out? He knew his friend wouldn't understand anything. He'd think it would destroy their friendship, which in a way it would.
There was a loud knock on the compartment door, and Harry rushed over to answer it. The knocker was Cho Chang, Harry's on/off girlfriend. She had not changed into her robes yet, and was wearing a bright blue tube top and hip huggers. Her blue eye shadow accentuated her gorgeous almond shaped eyes, her hair was in a casual, but elegant bun, and she wore large silver hoop earrings. Her smile made her look like a movie star.
Harry had recently gotten used to being around girls, and the ways of flirting and dating. Even though Cho seemed like a vision from a dream, he managed to keep it cool.
"Well," he said with a grin, "someone looks like they walked out of a magazine."
"Thanks," she said tossing her head and smiling flirtatiously. "Look Harry, I've got a compartment all to myself, and I thought you might like to join me."
Harry was only too happy to oblige. He followed after her willingly, and Hermione and Ron heard the sound of a door locking.
Harry hadn't been imagining things when he thought that Hermione looked attractive. Her hair was still very thick, but she took good care of it now, so it was sleek and shiny. Her teeth were straight, and a perfectly normal size. Sixteen had taken its toll on Hermione, and she had finally gotten the curves she thought would never come. Though she looked different, she was still the same girl, the girl that belonged to Ron.
Ron followed Harry and Cho's example and locked the door. He walked back and sat next to Hermione. His arm curled around her, and they looked at each other. Each knew that they were meant to be together.
Ron leaned in towards Hermione, putting a hand on her face. He caressed her lips with his, giving her a gentle kiss. Hermione moved away from him, startled, but then threw her arms around him and kissed him back passionately. He looked so wonderful, his red hair falling into his bright green eyes. She didn't want to let him go, but she did. The moved apart slowly, but Ron kept a warm, sheltering arm around her. She put her head on his shoulder, and fell asleep.