A/N: I am not going to mention how long it has been. Nope. Enough to say, it's been a while. I wouldn't dream of forcing all of you to reread every one of the previous chapters to understand that is going on, although it would be nice, of course. Anyway, I've written you a summary. For some reason, FF.net won't let me link to it, so you unfortunately will have to go to my author's page (www.fanfiction.net/~manu). The link is there.
Thank you Debora and Tissa for the web space!
Chapter 8 (the final part) is half-written. I've been busy, but I've also got unstuck… in short, I don't know how long it'll take until I post it. I'm sure it will be less than it took me to post chapter 7. Nope, still not mentioning how long that was.
Oh, I own nothing.
*
When Ginny had called Hermione to sit and have breakfast with them, Ron had thought it would be uncomfortable. But this... this was almost unbearable.
He glanced at Hermione and resumed playing with his food. He wasn't hungry. There was no way he could be hungry with her sitting right there, even though she hadn't uttered a word since the exchange of "Good morning"s and was doing everything in her power to ignore his presence.
She had told him she was in love with him. In love. With him. He stole a look at her again. No, he still couldn't see it. He didn't know how people in love behaved, but it certainly wasn't the way Hermione was acting, and the more she ignored him the more he was convinced that yesterday had only been his imagination trying to freak him out.
Ginny had tried to start conversation about some potion Fred and George had given her, but soon gave up. Ron had been catching her looking every once in a while from him to Hermione. He had wondered whether she had figured out that something was wrong, and soon came to the conclusion that she obviously had. He and Hermione never stayed silent unless they had had a fight. Although he could hardly call what happened one of their usual fights.
Hermione was in love with him. Hermione was in love with him. In love. With him.
Nope, it still sounded far-off and just plain weird to even think about it.
"Hey, everyone, good morning. Ron, good morning!"
Hermione looked up from her plate for the first time in the last half an hour. She didn't seem too happy to see Dean. Ron wasn't all too thrilled, either – did Dean have to sound so cheerful?
"Good morning, Dean," said Ginny, looking relieved to hear someone speak.
"'Morning," Ron said.
Dean sat on the chair next to him. "Look, mate, I'm going to the Ravenclaw table right now."
Ron waited for him to elaborate. When that didn't happen, he furrowed his eyebrows and said, in all honesty, "So what?"
Dean rolled his eyes. "I don't think you understand what I'm saying. I'm going to the Ravenclaw table right now."
"Well, don't you go there every morning?"
"Ron. The girl I told you about yesterday, remember? Lisa's friend? The gorgeous Ravenclaw, has it completely slipped your mind?"
Ron blinked. It had. It totally and completely had.
"Right," said Ron. "What about her?"
"I'm going to tell her your answer right now, so, you see, I need to know what it is. Look, she is the one sitting between Padma and Lisa, over there." He pointed. "With the great violet eyes."
Ron looked. The girl was very pretty.
"Wow, how come I never noticed that girl before?"
"I know! And she and Lisa and Padma always sit together. Seamus and I agree that just looking in their direction is enough to make a bloke's day." Dean grinned. "So what do you say? You into it?"
"I... well... I don't really think--"
Hermione probably felt his eyes on her while he stuttered, because she looked up and said firmly, "Of course he's into it, Dean."
The other three gaped at her.
"Are you, Ron?" said Dean.
Ron barely heard him, too busy he was staring at Hermione. He could spend all his life trying and he knew that he still wouldn't be able to figure her out.
Hermione looked away from him uncomfortably and turned to Dean. "What are you waiting for, Dean?"
Dean shrugged and headed for the Ravenclaw table.
Ron regained his voice. "Hermione, what the—"
"You've established and emphasized the fact that she's pretty, Ron," said Hermione, once again looking down. "Why not?"
Ron stared at her. Right, that was definitely not the way he reckoned she'd be acting if... "I thought you said yesterday--"
Hermione dropped her fork abruptly and raised her head, eyes darkening. "Don't."
Ron looked down at his plate, shaking his head. No sense. None of it made any sense at all.
They fell silent again.
Ginny cleared her throat to remind people that she was still there. "Er... " she said, "you want me to go sit with Colin?"
Yes, please.
"No, Ginny, it's okay," said Hermione. "We're finished. And it wasn't anything you didn't already know about, anyway."
"Oh," said Ginny, eyes widening slightly. "But you mean that…?" she trailed off, gesturing a lot.
"Yes, that's what I mean," replied Hermione sharply.
Ron's heart was racing. "What? You told Ginny? What exactly did you—"
"She figured it out by herself, Ron," snapped Hermione, and then added, almost under her breath. "I suppose I'm just that obvious."
Oh no, you're not, was the first thought to cross Ron's mind. The second was that Hermione was definitely furious. And he was sure that he hadn't done anything yet.
Well, almost sure.
"Hermione..." he started, trying to be soothing. Or something.
"No, Ron. Stop. I'm fine, really. I'm great. I don't want you to feel guilty. I don't really want you to feel anything. I don't want you to do anything either, really. Things are great, I'm great. I don't need your pity, I – I'll see you in Herbology."
And with that, she was gone.
Ginny seemed to not know whether to follow her or stay here and pester Ron. To his annoyance, she decided on the latter.
"Ron? What on earth just happened?"
"I was hoping you'd explain it to me," said Ron after he picked his jaw up off the ground, still staring after Hermione.
"Well... she said I knew what it was all about, but the only thing I know..."
She looked around and stood up. Ron thought for a wonderful moment that she had left, but it ended up that she had just come around the table and gone to sit next to him. To gossip better, he supposed.
"The only thing I know," continued Ginny in a quiet voice, "is not something I think she'd ever tell you in her right mind, especially while you are acting like such a stupid git."
"I am not a stupid git!"
Ginny ignored that. "But did she, Ron? Did she tell you what I think she did?"
"What do you think she told me?" said Ron, realizing at once that he didn't really want to hear it from his sister's mouth.
"Hmm," said Ginny, "what did she tell you?"
Ron cursed himself inwardly when he realized that he was blushing. "That's none of your business." He was sure that she, too, knew they were talking about the same thing, but he'd never be the first one to mention it.
"Hmm," Ginny repeated.
She looked pensive for a second before she sighed and started handling the sleeve of his robe and running her finger over a small hole just under his shoulder. Ron decided that he would refrain from telling her to quit it, since it apparently entertained her. That way she'd get her mind off of other things he wanted her mind very well off of...
"The fabric's wearing thin," she said softly, starting to examine the rest of the sleeve.
"Stupid old thing," mumbled Ron.
"Yeah, I know..." said Ginny. "Look, Fred and George gave me this potion to fix those things that they – wait a second, I think I have it with me..." She reached for her bag and, after scrambling through it for a moment, handed him a glass vial. "Here. They made it for me as a Christmas present."
Ron held the vial in front of his eyes and tried to identify the color of the liquid inside, to no avail. "And you truly trust something Fred and George gave you?"
"No," said Ginny. "That's why I need you to test it on your robes first."
"No bloody chance."
"Right," Ginny said. "I tried." She patted his arm and, after a moment, gave him a small smile that he knew had nothing to do with the conversation about robes.
"Since when do you know?" he heard himself ask.
Her smile grew wider. She knew what he was talking about. It almost seemed like telepathy, except that he had the impression that the subject had simply never left her mind. It certainly hadn't left his.
"I'm not sure... but she confirmed it a couple of weeks before Christmas, I think."
"Oh," said Ron, who honestly had no idea what to say.
"It must have been surprising for you," said Ginny.
"It was," confirmed Ron, wondering why he was talking civilly to her about this. He could feel his ears growing hot again. "It is. I just don't... I mean, do you think she really..."
"Meant it?" Ginny filled in, seemingly sensing that he couldn't bring himself to finish the question.
Ron nodded.
His sister gave him a look. "You really are a stupid git, Ron."
Pause.
"Do you like her?"
Well. He didn't care if she was family; no one had the right to ask that to anyone. Well, he had said something similar to Harry about Cho Chang, but that was only teasing. Those kinds of question were plain rude, when asked seriously. Especially, of course, when he was the one at the receiving end of them.
"That's not the point," he snapped.
"Oh, Ron," said Ginny, laughing, "you know that it's actually the whole point."
"No, it's not."
"Why do you say that?"
Glare. "Because it's not."
"Oh, that's a great argument," Ginny said, rolling her eyes. Ron missed the arguments they used to have back when she was a six-year-old; if there was one thing he seriously regretted, it was having taught her about sarcasm.
Silence.
"So you're going to let her go," said Ginny.
Silence.
"Just like that," she pressed, and then, when he still didn't give signs of saying anything, sighed. "You know that she's not going to wait for you forever, right?"
"Blimey, Ginny, I don't want her to!"
"Fine," snapped Ginny. "I think you're lying. But we'll see soon enough, won't we? She'll be dating someone else in no time."
"Good for her," snapped Ron.
"Yes, of course, if you really don't feel anything for her, it shouldn't bother you. And even if it bothers you, there'll be nothing you can do about it, will there? You won't have the right to beat him up, yell bloody murder or even forbid Hermione to see him, 'cause you had your chance, you missed it, and it'll be too late."
"Fine, Ginny, I know that, shut up."
Ginny raised an eyebrow at him.
"No, Ron, I don't think you get it. What are you going to do when you have to watch some git whispering sweet nothings in her ear? When you have to sit quietly in the common room when you know she's off somewhere with some bloke? And you can't do anything about it, because you were the one who let her go, and you'll just have to live with the knowledge that you drove her into his arms, and she likes it there. She likes cuddling him and grabbing his shoulders and moaning his name and having his hands roam—"
CRASH!
Ron swore. Loudly.
Ginny's eyes widened as she looked at Ron's bloody hand and then at the splinters of the vial he had been holding, some down on the floor and some stuck in his hand still. She brought her hands to her mouth.
"Oh my God, Ron, I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry... I got carried away, I had no idea it would affect you that way, I'm so sorry, Ron! So incredibly sorry--"
"Ginny, for the love of God, shut up."
"Let me take a look at it," said Ginny.
"No!" But he didn't try to stop her when she took his hand in hers and started examining it.
"Have I told you that I'm sorry?" she said softly, taking the shreds from his hand.
"Ouch!" exclaimed Ron, as she pulled away an especially big piece of broken glass from his skin.
Ginny winced. "Sorry! It really must hurt."
"No, Ginny, having your skin ripped apart by broken glass is very much fun. Think I'll do it everyday."
His sister glared at him. "I don't need the sarcasm right now. You can just come out and say that you think I'm an interfering, blabbering, stupid little brat."
He looked down at his hand. "Just don't... don't say that stuff again, okay?"
Ginny grinned. "What, you mean about how Hermione and her Head Boy boyfriend will –"
"Don't say it," Ron snapped. "Blimey, sometimes I really hate you."
"I know." Pause. "Erm, Ron, all this harshness towards me... does it mean what I think it means?"
"I don't know what you think it means."
"That you've finally figured out th—"
"- and I don't want to know!"
"Sorry." She looked down at his hand again. "Let's go to the hospital wing, Ron."
"What? No, I don't need—"
"Well, all right, we don't have to go. We can just go to our common room and I'll have fun watching you explain to people why your hand's all bloody."
Ron glared at her and then sighed. "How about we go to the hospital wing?"
~o~
"Oh, he's asleep," said Ginny softly, once Madam Pomfrey finished bandaging Ron's hand and left for her office.
"What, who?" asked Ron, lying down on the bed he had been sitting on.
"Harry. Why on earth would I talk about anyone else, when he's the only one here other than us?" said Ginny, who somehow appeared beside Harry's bed. Ron wasn't really paying attention.
Ron grinned. "Why on earth would you talk about anyone else, period?"
Ginny froze, and then blushed. "Ron, that's—that's just—"
"True?" Ron suggested, putting his good arm under his pillow and laying his head on it.
"Mean," corrected Ginny.
"Ginny, if you think that's mean..." started Ron, but a glare from his sister silenced him. He shouldn't tease Ginny about Harry these days. It was a remarkably stupid thing to do, and only the twins still dared do it.
"Yes, I think it's mean and I don't like it. Do you have a problem with that, Ron?"
Ron kept quiet.
"Good," said Ginny, still looking at him suspiciously. After a moment, she looked back at Harry and asked, in what could almost be interpreted as a casual tone, "So he's human again?"
"Yeah, not bestiality anymore, huh, Gin?"
"Ron!"
"Oops, sorry," he said lightly, and then added, upon seeing the look on her face, "Come on, Ginny, you've been bugging me all day, don't you think I deserve to tease you? Just a little bit?"
"Not in front of him," said Ginny quietly, blushing and staring at her feet.
Ron sat up and glanced at Harry. "He's asleep."
"He's in the room and he could wake up!"
"Well, he already knows anyway!"
Ginny opened her mouth, and then closed it. "That's not the point," she said.
Ron let her have the last word for once, and simply lay back on the bed. He was tired of arguing. Ginny sat down on a chair.
"Erm... Ron? Can I ask you a question?" she said after a while.
"A question?" That definitely didn't sound good.
"Yeah, about Hermione. I'd have asked her, but she didn't want to talk to me about you, and I'd feel bad to force her. But you're my brother."
"Oh, so it's okay to force me?"
"Well, what would be the use of being family if it weren't?"
Sigh. "Good point."
"Why were you and Hermione being awkward with each other for these last few weeks, if she only told you yesterday?"
The question came just like that. No beating around the bush, and no time for Ron to figure out what to do except blush.
"Whoa, that's... I mean, um, what makes you think we were being awkward?"
"The fact that you were acting awkward," said Ginny simply.
"Oh, that," said Ron, desperately searching his brain for a good lie, but, as always happened in these situations, drawing a blank.
"So you're not going to answer?"
"Erm... no, actually, you see, I – I don't think I want to."
Ginny smirked. "I see."
"What?" snapped Ron, realizing at once that his tone was too defensive, and his face was too hot. Oh, Lord, let it be a nightmare.
"Nothing," said Ginny, in a light and innocent and absolutely maddening tone of voice. "So, do you think it's going to rain?" she added casually, looking towards the window.
"She wasn't supposed to let me."
Ginny turned back to him immediately, eyes wide and overjoyed. "Wasn't supposed to let you what?"
Ron turned to lie on his back and stared up at the ceiling. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about."
"Well, maybe I don't know what you're talking about."
Ron laughed dryly. "Oh, yes, you do."
"No, I don't," said Ginny.
Ron turned to face her. "Ginny, I know you, okay? You've figured out what I'm talking about. You just want to get me to say it."
"Figured it out?" said Ginny. "Oh, Ron, maybe you're giving me too much credit."
"Maybe you're giving me too little."
Ginny gave him an enigmatic look. "So maybe I am."
He glared at her. She smiled. He sighed.
"Fine," said Ron, looking up at the ceiling again. It was easier that way. "Fine, I kissed her. Three times, too."
Ginny didn't say anything. After a while, when Ron had gathered the guts to look at her, she was simply grinning. He rolled his eyes.
"You are so red," said Ginny relevantly, a few seconds later.
"Shut up," he said half-heartedly, looking away from her.
"Oh, Ron, but it's cute," she said. "I bet Hermione would love to see that you're blushing like this over her."
Ron ignored her, or at least tried to – he was sure that by now he must be purple.
"Could you please admit now that you already knew?"
Ginny smiled. "I didn't know you had kissed her three times."
Ron wished she hadn't said it so loudly, because the next thing he heard made him freeze on the spot:
"George, mate, will you look at that! Our little brother's getting more action than you are!"
"Blimey, seems like he is. Never thought I'd see the day..."
Ron sat up abruptly. "Please tell me Fred and George did not just walk through that door," he whispered to Ginny, through clenched teeth.
"I could tell you that," Ginny whispered back, "but it wouldn't make it true."
He groaned. "Oh, kill me. Kill me now."
Ginny patted his shoulder in what was probably supposed to be a comforting action – although it only annoyed him – and looked up at their brothers. "Hi Fred! Hi George!"
"Go away, Fred, George," said Ron.
The twins promptly ignored him. "What happened to your hand?"
"Nothing," said Ron shortly.
"You know that vial thingy you two gave me? He smashed it," said Ginny.
"Oh, Ron, it took us two days to make that," said George, shaking his head.
"Didn't Mum tell you that you should always try not to break cutting glass with your bare hand?
"And leave the toilet seat down?"
"Oh, you see, that's because I was telling him about--"
"Shut up, Ginny," interrupted Ron. He couldn't begin to imagine how awful it would be for Fred and George to know the reason for his tiny lack of self-control.
"You know, it gets tiring to have you telling me to shut up all the time. You, and them, too," she pointed at the twins, who raised their hands, as if claiming innocence. "Always! It's amazing, really! It's because I'm a girl, isn't it? That's why you gang up on me! You gang up on me, as if you have the right to--"
"Shut up, Ginny," said Ron, Fred, and George at the same time, and then grinned at each other. Well, Fred and George did, anyway.
Ginny crossed her arms. "See?"
The twins looked at one another.
"Don't you have a class or something to go to now, Ginny?" asked George.
She looked at her watch. "Oh, damn, I do. I'm late." She stood up from her chair and then looked at the twins. "Don't you two have to go to class too?"
Fred and George gave her blank looks.
"Yeah," said Fred, "so what?"
"This is too good to pass up," said George, indicating Ron. Ron scowled.
"And what's one more little detention?" said Fred.
"Fred and I have four this week already..."
"Actually, I have five."
"Oh, yeah, the McGonagall thing! How could I forget that!"
"What McGonagall thing?" asked Ginny, sitting down again, eyes glistening.
"Yeah, well, McGonagall decided to make Angelina and I serve detention together last week," said Fred.
"Why she did such a foolish thing remains one of the great mysteries of humankind," said George.
"And, erm, when she came to tell us that our detention was over and we could go back to the tower, we weren't exactly working, if you know what I mean."
Ron and Ginny made disgusted faces. George laughed at them.
"And I think it's safe to say Fred and Angelina will never be serving detention together ever again!" said George.
"Oh my God, I wish I could have seen the look on McGonagall's face," said Ginny, who was giggling by now.
"It was priceless!" said Fred. "And she thinks I didn't notice, but she was watching us for quite a while before clearing her throat to get our attention..."
"Maybe she was just shocked!" said Ginny, scandalized.
"Oh, I bet old Minerva must have been fascinated... she's probably forgotten what that's like by now," said George flippantly.
Ron turned away to hide a smile. Just imagining the look on Hermione's face, had she been here to witness this conversation about her favorite teacher... it almost got him in a good mood.
"And you saw that she had arrived there and you didn't stop?" Ginny said.
"Nah, she seemed entertained." Fred grinned, his nose wrinkling up. "I'm all for entertaining my dearest professor."
"You're awful," said Ginny, failing to sound reproachful as a giggle escaped her. She stood up once more. "Right. I really need to go."
"Don't leave me alone with them!!" said Ron desperately.
"Oh, sorry, Ron. I need to go to class. I don't like detention." She turned to the twins. "Are you sure you're not going?"
They nodded.
"What about your N.E.W.T.s?"
"What about our N.E.W.T.s, Mum?"
Ginny regarded the two of them for a moment and then left, shaking her head. Fred and George turned to Ron with identical evil grins and leaned towards him on their chairs.
"So, Ron..."
"Sod off."
The twins sat back straight at once.
"He seems grumpy today, doesn't he, Fred?"
"Definitely so, George."
"What's the matter, Ron? Why are you no fun today?" asked George, turning to him. "Afraid Krum'll play Quidditch with your eyeballs or something?"
Damn Ginny for all eternity for being so loud.
"I would, if I knew you were getting it on with my girlf--"
"I don't give a damn about that Bulgarian git," snapped Ron.
But that wasn't entirely true. Just yesterday, before that whole mess happened, a sturdy brown owl had arrived for Hermione while she was in her prefects' meeting. From bloody Bulgaria. Ron had taken one look at the sender's name and felt sick. It was disgusting, really, that Krum was still trying to act chummy to Hermione after having been such a sodding bastard. The least he could have done was have the decency to never show signs of being alive ever again.
Ron had read the first few sentences in such a rush that the words had barely registered.
Dear Hermione,
Samira told me about the letter she has sent you. I am sure it must have seemed terrible to you, and I am sorry. Please believe that she did not know the whole story, and if you would just let me explain—
Ron hadn't got past that. He couldn't. He did not, by any means, want to hear the whole story. He was sick of that story and he was sick of Krum.
So, even though he knew Hermione would hate him if she ever found out, Ron did the best thing for all - he'd thrown the letter in the fire and sent Krum the appropriate reply himself:
Dearest Vicky,
Rot in hell.
Not so cordially,
Ron Weasley
He'd returned from the Owlery and was told of Seamus and Lavender's loud break-up, and from then on, the events of the evening had completely washed Bloody Krum away from his mind.
So it was plain to see that - in an admittedly very subjective way - he didn't care about the git, really.
"You don't?" said George, raising an eyebrow. "So what's the problem?"
"What the hell do you think is the problem?"
"Besides Krum? I've no idea. George?"
"Er... you're gay?"
"NO! Please, I thought you were smarter than that. I mean, the two of you together have almost a whole brain!"
The twins looked offended for the whole of four seconds.
"Right," said Fred, shrugging it off. "So you had a few snogging sessions with a girl who's quite pretty. Tell us why that's a bad thing."
"She's not a 'girl who's quite pretty'!! She's Hermione! Hermione!"
"Wait, so the bad thing about kissing Hermione is that she's Hermione?" said Fred, his eyebrows knitting together.
"What if she changed her name?" suggested George.
Ron glared at them.
"What I mean is that she's Hermione, you know? As in that bookish, bossy, stubborn, barking mad girl who's my best friend."
The twins blinked, and then stared at him.
"That's your problem?" said George, after a stunned moment of silence.
"Ron, if that's the issue... well, that's not an issue at all," said Fred, sounding flabbergasted.
"It's definitely not," said George. "There's nothing wrong with a little kissing between friends. It's quite nice, actually."
"And he speaks from experience."
"Aww, I don't feel comfortable talking about that..." said George, with a dismissive wave of his hand.
Fred winked at Ron. "You see, Ron, how much of a gentleman my twin is?" He nudged George. "You liar."
George grinned. "Oh, were just trying to put on my Thoughtful and Respectful act! I was doing well! Anyway, really, Alicia doesn't mind me telling people."
"Alicia? You mean you and Alicia...?"
George shrugged. "Once or twice."
"Or three, or four times..." said Fred innocently.
"Well, I never counted. But Ron, the thing is, Alicia's great. She's smart, funny, good-looking, likes Quidditch, and I'm telling you, she's a hell of a good kisser. Everything I look for in a girlfriend. It's just that the sparks... they aren't there. And we've looked for them, about five or six times..."
"Or seven, or eight..." said Fred, grinning.
"... and nope, not there. We didn't even consider starting a relationship, because frankly, the very idea is ridiculous. She's my friend, and that's that."
"Erm, fine, do you have a point?"
"My point, little brother," said George, grinning, "is that kissing is very nice."
Ron rolled his eyes. He already knew that.
"And healthy," chipped in Fred.
"And fun."
"You bet."
"And, Ron... if you think some kissing will make Hermione stop being your best friend or something... well, really, it's not the kissing that ruins friendships," said George, his tone actually serious. "It's the feelings."
"And trust him, he's had that experience too," said Fred, with a pointed look at his twin. "Right, George?"
George glared at him.
"I think that's enough of the 'let's-tell-all-the-embarrassing-details-of-George's-life' show."
"Aww, but we didn't even get started on Miss Eyelashes From Hell..."
"Well, what about Miss No-Those-Aren't-Quaffles-Under-My-Shirt, hmm, Fred?"
Fred's eyes widened. "Oh. That was embarrassing."
"I know," said George, with a devious smile. "What were you saying about me, again?"
"Uh, that you're just a sexy thing?" said Fred.
"Why, Fred, thank you."
"So let's just embarrass Ron instead, how about that?"
"Oh, deal."
"Deal, then."
They shook hands.
"I'm listening, you know," said Ron grumpily.
"Yeah, sure," said George with a casual wave of his hand. "So what was I talking about again?"
"About feelings and stuff," said Fred.
"Oh, about how physical actions are only an issue when they're actually an expression of deeper, emotional intentions?"
"I don't know, this philosophical stuff make me dizzy," said Fred.
"Me too, that's the fun of it."
"True, but... You know what's really fun? Here, let me..." He straightened up in his seat, turned to Ron, and cleared his throat. "Ron, dear brother, you see, you're panicking about exchanging saliva with Hermione because you know you want to have your babies with her."
"What? Ouch!" Ron gestured so violently that he hit his injured hand on the bedside table. "Damn!"
The twins stared at him unblinkingly for a while, and then turned to each other.
"See, Fred, now you just freaked the poor boy out," said George.
"I know," said Fred, "and isn't it a lot more fun?"
George glanced at Ron, who was still muttering obscenities. "Yeah, you're right."
"You need help with that hand, Ron?" said Fred, after a few seconds.
Ron stopped swearing and glared at him. "I just need you two to shut the hell up."
"Ah. So I take it Hermione's in love with you."
Ron blinked, and then he processed what Fred's completely out-of-the-blue statement was and felt himself going scarlet.
"That's – uh – how – I mean, erm, no. No, she... er, she's not."
His brothers raised their eyebrows.
"Did that convince you, Fred?"
"Not even a little bit, George. Didn't she tell you yesterday, Ron?"
"How—" started Ron, then shook his head. "What makes you think she... what makes you think that?"
"Well, it was all over breakfast today."
"Yeah, why do you think we came here?"
"To tell Harry the gossip, of course. Too bad he's asleep."
"Oh, nah, this is loads better."
But Ron's brain hadn't recorded anything after the Fred's first sentence:
"All... all over breakfast?" he said feebly. He was starting to feel really sick.
"Why, Ron, yes! Didn't you know that?" said George.
Ron shook his head with the little strength he had left.
"You must have been already here when it started spreading..."
"Well, can I just give you a piece of advice? Don't tell stuff to Dean," said Fred.
"But I didn't – I didn't tell Dean anything."
"Well, don't do it. Ever. I think the boy feeds off gossip."
"As opposed to you two, who keep all kinds of secrets?"
Fred and George looked at each other.
"We can keep secrets," said George.
"Of course we can!" said Fred. "I haven't told you about the time George got his arse kicked by a girl, have I?"
Ron snorted.
George glared at Fred. "No, and I haven't told you about the time Millicent Bullstrode grabbed Fred's—"
"Hey!"
"—and he enjoyed it!"
Ron was now having a very bad case of sniggering.
"You shut it, or I'll tell Ron about how last week—"
Gasp. "You wouldn't!"
"Erm..." said Ron, after getting control of himself. "How did Dean find out about it?" He cursed himself for sounding so vulnerable.
Fred and George stopped glaring at each other, and turned to Ron.
"About wha—oh. That," said Fred.
"Does it really matter?" asked George.
The two seemed to have completely forgotten about their argument. It pained Ron to have drawn their attentions away from it – this conversation was giving him lots of blackmail material.
"No, I suppose it doesn't..." said Ron. "I'll just have to kill Dean, that's all."
"The only thing that matter is that now we know Hermione really does fancy our little brother!"
"Actually..." said Ron slowly, his ears volcanic-hot. "No, you don't know that."
"Well, she told you, didn't she?" said Fred.
"Erm, yeah, she yelled something around those lines to me, yes." The heat was spreading to his face.
"Some people really have bad taste," Fred said.
"Well, maybe she's attracted to Ron's dashing tomato-look," said George, pinching Ron's ears.
Ron knocked his hand away. "But she also forced me to go on a date with some Ravenclaw today."
The twins exchanged looks.
"He has a good point," said George. "Women are bloody confusing."
"Hermione's not confusing," said Ron, throwing himself on his back on the bed. "She's completely barking mad."
"Was the Ravenclaw good-looking?"
"Well, yeah," said Ron, surprised to feel his reluctance to talk to the twins fading a little. "She has violet eyes, can you believe that? Violet eyes, I mean... bloody hell."
"Ah, I know who she is!" said George. "Friends with Padma Patil, right? The girl's bloody gorgeous."
"I think you should go for it," said Fred suddenly.
Both Ron and George gave him weird looks.
"What? I'm serious. Didn't even Hermione want him to go out with her? And besides, aren't Hermione and Krum—"
"No, they're not together. Haven't been for a month now."
"Oh," said Fred.
"Now that's interesting."
"Why did they break up?"
"Well, I'm not sure if she'd like me to tell it around..." said Ron slowly.
The twins stared at him.
"Wait, you're serious?" said Fred after a pause.
"Well, yeah, I mean, it's her life and--"
Fred smirked. "Right, I was out of my mind, forget about the Ravenclaw," he declared.
"What?" said Ron puzzledly.
George exchanged another look with Fred and then turned to Ron, also smirking. Ron was getting uncomfortable again.
"Ron, you know, not sharing juicy information about a girl is one of the Clearly Obvious Signs That You've Got It Bad."
"Or it can be common politeness," said Fred, "but, you know, it's you."
And just when he thought that maybe he'd be able to return to his natural color.
"Hey, I can – I can be polite!" he said lamely.
"Yeah, duh," said Fred. "We were watching you during the Yule Ball, you know."
"Actually, I was watching you. Fred was too busy with Angelina."
"And weren't you busy, Georgie?" asked Fred.
"Not while Ron was making a scene, I wasn't," said George. "Thankfully."
"Gah, I can't believe I missed it," said Fred. "If I'd seen it, I'd probably be as much of a Viktor Krum fan as George is now."
"What?" said Ron, sitting up abruptly. "A Viktor Buggering Krum—"
"Fan, yeah," said George, grinning. "I figured that anyone who makes my little brother make a prat of himself deserves my full admiration. Although it's really not hard at all."
Fred gasped. "George! Don't talk like that! Our brother deserves some respect!"
They stared at each other for a few seconds. Then burst out laughing hysterically.
"Oh, good one, Fred," said George, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes.
Ron rolled his eyes.
~o~
Hermione had always thought she could handle being the subject of rumors - she had, after all, dealt brilliantly with the whisperings about her and Harry the year before. It turned out, however, that the situation became a bit more upsetting when the rumors were true.
She promised to herself that she'd hex the next person who stared at her pityingly - that person turned out to be Dennis Creevey, though, so she had to change her mind. She'd been hoping it would at least be a Slytherin, but Slytherins, of course, were far from feeling anything resembling pity, delighted as they were about the whole situation, and Hermione knew that was something of a good thing; she was too drained to hex anyone, anyway.
"Hermione?"
"What?" she snapped, and only then looked up. "Oh, Ginny. Hi. Sorry."
"It's okay," said Ginny softly.
Oh, God, no, not the pitying look... Or was it sympathetic? Hermione hadn't been able to tell the difference lately. She avoided Ginny's eyes anyway.
"Sit down."
Ginny sat. She remained in silence, looking at her hands, and after a while said, "Can I talk to you?"
"You can talk all you want."
"Oh, and will you answer?"
"Erm... that depends."
"Oh," said Ginny, and fell silent again. "So, uh... what's that essay for?"
"Arithmancy."
"Ah..."
"You've heard about it, too, then?" said Hermione briskly. She might as well start the talk Ginny obviously wanted to have, and get it over with.
"It? When you say 'it', you mean... it?"
Hermione gave a short laugh in spite of herself, but her amusement died quickly. She nodded.
"Oh. Yeah, I... I have heard about it."
"Obviously," said Hermione under her breath.
"But I didn't hear it from as many different people as you think," said Ginny.
"Who talked to you about it, then?"
"Dean, and... Colin, Mandy... and... well, Ron, but -- but I figured it out," she added quickly at the look on Hermione's face. "I figured it out at breakfast -- from what you said, you know, before you stormed out. He didn't... offer the information, or anything. I practically bullied him into it, he... I mean, he..."
"Where is he?" interrupted Hermione, not bothering to try to act aloof; there was no point in pretending not to care, now. "He wasn't in our Transfiguration class... and he even missed lunch."
"I... uh, haven't seen him since before I went to Charms..."
"Erm, excuse me... Hi," said a new female voice Hermione didn't recognize. "Hermione Granger, right?"
Hermione looked up at a pretty girl, who was looking at her with anxious eyes.
Anxious, very violet eyes.
Hermione couldn't help hearing Ron's voice in her head ("Wow, how come I never noticed that girl before?") as she willed herself to stop staring at Dean's girlfriend's friend and say something.
"Yes, um... yes, that's me, I'm Hermione Granger."
"You probably don't know me, but I... I wanted to... erm, I mean..." She smiled sheepishly at her own incoherence and shook her head. "Look, Lisa told me that Padma told her that... You're friends with Padma's sister, aren't you?"
Hermione glanced at Ginny, who couldn't have looked more uncomfortable if she tried.
"Yes, I... I suppose you could consider Parvati my friend, in a way."
"Well, because she... is it true that you..."
"No," said Hermione firmly. She didn't think she could handle hearing the next words from the girl's pouty full lips.
"It's not?"
"Hermione..." said Ginny slowly.
Hermione grabbed her arm to silence her.
"Look," continued Lisa's friend, "I can back down, I won't go through with it if you..."
"No, no, it was a misunderstanding, it just... I mean, it's not true. Not at all."
Ginny rolled her eyes and snatched her arm from Hermione's grip.
The girl smiled. "Oh, I told Lisa it wasn't! I mean, aren't you dating Viktor Krum?"
Hermione just looked at the girl by way of answer. She continued looking until the girl started giving signs of feeling self-conscious, and then forced a smile.
"Ron thinks you're very pretty, you know."
Lisa's friend seemed to relax, then, and giggled. "Really? He told you that?"
"He certainly didn't make any effort to hide it," replied Hermione, some bitterness showing despite her big fake smile. She didn't think the girl noticed.
"Hermione!"
"What, Ginny?"
"You... erm, promised to help me with my homework before lunch hour is over."
"Oh, I'm sorry to be disturbing you! I have to go anyway. It was nice to meet you, Hermione! Thank you."
"You're welcome," muttered Hermione as the girl turned away.
"Yes, see you!" said Ginny in mock-cheerfulness, waving frantically until the girl was out of sight. She turned serious at once. "What the hell were you doing, Hermione?"
"Being polite."
"BEING POLITE'? That's what you call it??" Ginny adopted an annoying sugary-sweet voice, "'Oh, hello, I've never met you before, but you should go snog the boy I'm in love with! Isn't that a grand idea? Good, it was nice to meet you! You're very pretty!' For crying out loud, Hermione!" She tried to go back to her normal voice, but it ended up much more high-pitched. "You were being polite??"
Hermione winced.
"First of all, Ginny," she said in as much of a dignified tone as she could, "lower your voice, because I'm getting a headache."
Ginny glared at her. "You know that it's my job, as your friend, to warn you that you're being monumentally st-"
"Second, I'd appreciate if you didn't try to lecture me, as this is my life, my business."
"What?" Ginny gave an angry snort. "You are telling me not to give lectures about things that are not my business?"
Hermione's mouth fell open. "Excuse me," she said, sitting up straighter. "I hope you're not insinuating that I--"
"That's exactly what I'm insinuating, Hermione. Actually, I'm saying it outright! You have no right to tell anyone not to be intrusive and bossy - talk about double standards!"
Hermione sputtered indignantly, as Ginny caught her breath and continued.
"I can't believe you even have the gall to tell someone to mind their own business, because I know very well the amount of times you've given Ron a hard time ab--"
"Ron is my business!"
Ginny stopped and just looked at her with that stupid pi-- sympathetic look again. Hermione avoided her eyes, cursing herself for saying that.
"Oh, Hermione, I'm sorry."
"It's okay," said Hermione, although she wasn't sure if she meant it.
"No it's not, I was horrible, I'm sorry-- I was just frustrated, didn't want to get you angry."
"I'm not angry."
"Yes, you are." She continued pleadingly, when Hermione didn't answer, "Please forgive me? I wasn't thinking, it's just that... Ron is my business too, you know, and if you think I'd rather have him with that syrupy pretty-girl over you... well, let me just say that I don't want my nephews to suffer, and violet eyes must clash horribly with red hair."
Hermione laughed. Ginny smiled at her in a relieved, glad-you-still-like-me way.
"But Ginny," said Hermione slowly, after a moment, "if that's what Ron wants..."
"It's not," said Ginny so firmly that Hermione stared at her a little. "I mean, if you push him away like that and that girl starts making kissy faces at him, he probably won't tell her to sod off, but... she's not what he wants, and you know it."
"He was drooling all over her..." said Hermione lamely.
Ginny chuckled. "It almost seems like you're dragging him to a date with that girl just to get back at him for sounding impressed by her looks."
"What? I am not, it was just the right thing to do, I can't stop him from living his life just because I..."
"You can't force him either, Hermione. Damn it, he likes you."
Her heart jumped. "He told you that?"
"Well, not in so many words, no, but--"
Hermione sighed. "Yeah, I didn't think so."
"-- but Hermione, it's obvious. You've seen the way he acts, he gets jealous and defensive and all red... He fancies you, and any idiot can see it."
"I know," mumbled Hermione.
Ginny made an abrupt movement, and for a moment Hermione thought she would jump off her chair, but all she did was make a lot of noise.
"You know!!" she exclaimed. "I mean, I knew you knew, but I didn't know you knew that you knew, and... oh, I don't even know anymore!"
Silence.
"So what's the problem?" asked Ginny. "I mean, if you like him, and you know he likes you..."
"Does he know it, Ginny?" asked Hermione, looking up at her.
"Well... I mean, even if he doesn't admit it to himself..."
"And why won't he admit it to himself? Really, I mean, fine, so he unconsciously fancies me, so what? Rationally, he won't admit it. Why?"
Ginny just looked at her for a few seconds, then replied quietly, "I don't know, probably because he sees you as his friend..."
"Yes, probably," said Hermione. "I'm his chum, aren't I, who can't possibly be seen this way? Tell me, what kind of consolation is it to know that he likes me, when by the way he acts, I can only suppose that consciously, the very thought is appalling to him? He likes me against all his better judgment, fine. Is that supposed to make me happy?"
Ginny looked at her with her mouth half-open and her brows slightly furrowed, at a loss for words. Hermione felt strangely relieved to be finally voicing all the thoughts that had been torturing her in all this time of overanalyzing.
"I just... Ginny, sometimes I think he should fall for someone who is... I don't know, good enough for him to acknowledge his feelings. Because I... oh, I won't ever be able to get over him while he still likes me, and obviously nothing will come out of it unless he admits it... and I'm afraid, Ginny, I'm so afraid that I'll spend the rest of my life like this. This is hell."
Ginny was silent for a few moments, after which she said shakily, "Oh, Hermione!" then stood up and flung her arms around her.
~o~
Ron glanced at his watch. Lunchtime was almost over, and he was still stuck in the hospital wing with the twins.
George wasn't so bad. He was sitting by his Seeker's bed, staring at him. Harry still hadn't woken up. Fred, unfortunately, wasn't being as cooperative. He was sprawled on the bed next to Ron's, talking - Ron was too hungry to pay him any attention.
Well, all right, so he was paying a little attention.
Just a little.
"... it's not so bad, really, dating your best friend, Ron. In fact, I'm sure it must be great."
Ron snorted. "I doubt it."
Fred and George's let's-humiliate-our-little-brother act had somehow turned into an let's-advise-our-little-brother act. Ron was surprised to notice that he felt a lot more at ease when they were at mode two, and that, as "the experienced older brothers", they were even bearable, somewhat.
"Okay, I understand why it might not seem that wonderful a prospect for you, since, well, if you date Hermione she'll boss you around a lot more. And there'll be no mystery at all involved, since you already know everything about each other."
"Harry'll feel left out, too," said George from across the room.
"True," said Fred. "And you'll only have two options, to marry her and lose your youth, or break up with her and risk ruining your friendship forever."
The weight of Fred's words still hung heavily in the air when he sat up on the bed and added: "Oh, yes, and we'd tease you."
"But that we would anyway," said George, without turning to them.
Ron didn't know what to reply to that, so he didn't.
"I know what you're thinking," said Fred after a pregnant pause, patting Ron on the arm.
Ron looked at him. That was hard to believe, considering he himself didn't have a clue about what his thoughts were.
"You're thinking that it's a very bad idea," continued Fred. "You're thinking that you'd be risking too much. You're thinking it's too much trouble, aren't you?"
Ron gave him a surprised look. That did ring true.
Fred smiled. "But you know, it really isn't. You see –" he started, but then closed his mouth, and opened it again, closed it, and a moment later opened it again to call out: "George, get your buttocks over here!"
George crossed the room in what seemed like a quarter-second. "Yes?"
Fred stood up with a flourish and patted George on the shoulder. "You see, Ron, George here will tell you all the advantages of dating one's best friend."
George gave Fred a wide-eyed look, then looked at Ron. He opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again, then closed it and a few seconds opened it once more to say, "Well, it's... uh, easier to hide the fact that you're together, because, you see, you're always seen in each other's company anyway..."
"But Ron can't really do that, can he? The whole school already knows."
"Oh, true. Well – you'll be allowed to snog her anytime you want and... uh, Fred, help me, I'm drawing a blank. How am I supposed to know that, anyway?"
"Well... you did better than I expected, actually, George."
"Right. Uh. I'm... erm, sure that there must be lots of advantages about dating your best friend."
"Tons!" said Fred in a very forced cheerful tone.
Ron glared at him.
"... we're not helping, are we?"
Ron said that they really weren't, but it was drowned out by a very high-pitched female voice from the entrance:
"Ron, you great big prat, go over to Hermione now and tell her how you feel about her!"
Ron raised his eyebrows at the twins and turned to their sister. He would have felt embarrassed by that if he hadn't just spent the last two hours with the twins.
"Hello, Ginny, how was your Charms class?" he said, ignoring Ginny's outburst.
"Fred, George, you're still here? Didn't you have lunch?" said Ginny, ignoring Ron's question.
"Ginny, please, you can find some advantages about dating one's best friend, can't you?" said Fred, ignoring Ginny's inquiry.
"Advantages of dating one's... is this about Hermione?" said Ginny, walking over to her brothers. "Because if it is, honestly, I really can't see what on earth would be a disadvantage about Ron dating her."
"Well—"
"And you don't need to enlighten me, George," interrupted Ginny. She turned to Ron. "Come on, Ron, do you want to date her? That's all that really matters, you know."
Ron looked down at his hands. Did he want to date her? That was a very hard question, and even though he knew now that he liked her, there was something that made him not want to do anything about it. Ever.
"He's afraid of losing her, Ginny," said Fred, jumping from the bed he was in.
Ron gave him a startled look.
Fred patted him on the shoulder. "Aren't you?"
Ginny sat at the foot of his bed and patted his leg. Why were his siblings all patting him?
"Ron, that's... well, not unfounded, but... well, I think the damage's already done, isn't it?" said Ginny. "Things between you and Hermione can't get much worse than it's been these last few weeks, can they?"
"Well--"
"Shut it, George," she snapped, then turned to Ron and softened. "Look... I just think that what you two have might be worth it, that's all."
George joined in the patting as Ron felt his ears grow hot.
Fine - so maybe he kind of thought so, too.