A.N. : Sorry it took so long to update, I was honestly not looking foward to this chapter, because I'm not great in the confession department I guess. Anyway, here it is, chapter 7. Chapter 8 probably won't take as long, I hope.
Chapter Seven
Harry and Ron sat at the Gryffindor table conversing quietly with each other about the days course of events. To Ron's dismay this was going to be the day that he was to tell Paige that he liked her, whether he wanted to or not. His best friend had already decided that last night on the way to the boys dormitory. No matter what hesitation or nervousness the red head felt he would have to push them aside before this evening.
On sighed to himself and stared at his glass of juice as if he were deep in a trance as Harry tried desperately to get through to him. "Ron, it's not going to be THAT hard, just suck it up and do it. Trust me, you'll be glad you did once it's over with. After all, it is obvious to pretty much everyone except you that she likes you as well. All you have to do is say 'Paige…I really like you, more than a friend.' See? No problem."
Ron glanced over at the Slytherin table and found himself staring at Paige, his face started to flush. Quickly shaking his head he stood up. "No way. We've become awesome friends and I don't want to jeopardize that. I just…can't tell her." After that he walked towards the door only stopping to give a quick hello to Hermione.
Hermione gave Ron a strange look as he walked by and then took her seat beside Harry. Brushing back a few loose strands of her thick brown hair she took a sip of juice from the cup that was now in front of her. "Where's he going?" she asked Harry who's mouth was currently filled with scrambled eggs.
Finally he chewed the last bit and swallowed, taking a sip of water to wash it down right after. He then sighed as he placed the glass back down on the table and turned towards Hermione. "Ron has ultimately decided that he is not going to tell Paige how he feels about her. He just doesn't want to do it."
Looking over at Paige who was currently staring down at her plate Hermione's eyes radiated determination. She soon started to drift away in her thoughts. 'There's no way I can sit here and let Ron get away with not telling Paige, ESPECIALLY after I somewhat befriended her,' she thought to herself as she rested her head in her palm. 'They totally deserve to be together…wow. I can't believe I'm actually thinking this. I mean, yes, I still like Ron myself and think it's unfair, but he deserves to be happy. Plus, I know what's best for him right now, even if he doesn't.'
The boy who lived suddenly felt curiosity and nervousness creeping up his spine. Casting a glance over at his secret crush, yes, he secretly likes her, he suddenly felt a bit afraid. Her eyes had that look of determination that meant nothing would get in her way of something, and her lips were slowly creeping into a somewhat evil seeming smile, as though she was secretly plotting something. 'What ever it is…I'm not sure I want to find out,' Harry mused giving off a slight smile.
Hermione suddenly nodded to herself and then abruptly stood up from her seat and turned to Harry. "Come on, we've got work to do," she said seemingly with no intention of giving any sort of explanation. Looking down at Harry's baffled and hesitant look she sighed and grabbed his hand in order to pull him up. "I'll tell you once we get back to the common room," she finally said. After that the bushy haired girl nearly dragged Harry down the isle and out the door to head back to Gryffindor.
The Gryffindor common room was left quite empty for most students did not intend to spend their weekend sitting around inside. For this exact reason, Hermione had chosen to drag Harry back there. Realizing that she was still holding on to him she released his hand blushed slightly. Right after, she settled herself down in a comfortable armchair and closed her eyes for a moment while leaning her head back and letting a smile escape her lips. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing odd going on at all. However, her smile slowly turned into a knowing smirk as she glanced over at Harry who was still utterly confused by the whole ordeal. Opening one eye she looked over at her friend. "We're going to get them together," she said simply as though everything had been explained in that one sentence.
Combing a pale hand through his black hair Harry sighed and flopped down on a couch which was opposite of where Hermione was sitting. To him, the brown haired girl seemed absolutely mad. He had told her only minutes ago that Ron had not wanted to tell Paige of his feelings and he had a feeling that nothing they said would change his mind. Besides…it really was Ron's business whether or not he acted upon his feelings. 'Though…I must admit getting involved might be a bit fun,' he thought to himself letting his lips curve into as small smile. "Well Hermione, what did you have in mind?"
Meanwhile the young love sick Slytherin girl was lying down on her father's bed covered with silk, green sheets staring down at a blank piece of paper. She held a quill in her right hand and absent mindedly stared at it while twirling it in between her slim fingers. Her hair fell limply on both sides of her face and she let out a small sigh as she lightly brushed it back behind her ear. Suddenly, a small smile crept across her face and her eyes seemed to brighten ever so slightly as the quill connected with the paper.
She held the quill ever so lightly and only gently touched it to the paper, just enough so that the ink would be able to show up. For a moment, as she gently dipped the quill in the ink well, her eyes closed and memories of her mother passed through her mind Stopping right before that horrible day, she began working once more, seeming to block out everything else around her. Then again, there wasn't much that could disturb her. The only person with the ability to enter this room was her father and she knew that he spent the afternoon terrorizing the hallways, searching for anything he could use to deduct house points.
Two hours passed before Paige finally sat up from her lying position and stretched out her arms, still holding onto the quill she had been using. Finally, she placed the quill down on the nightstand next to the bed and lightly picked up the picture she had been working on for the passed couple of hours. The scene was one outside of her home, in the back where the scene outside of simply breathtaking. A large tree was off to the side with a swing hanging down from one of the larger branches and the sun was shining down. Then, there was her mother, knelt down in the middle of the paper, smiling happily as she held a watering can to tend to her garden filled with flowers. Her free hand held onto her hat. It was truly one of Paige's best drawings.
Paige smiled softly at the picture and then placed it on the nightstand before leaving the room. The hallway was empty for the most part because most of the other students were outside enjoying their weekend while teams impatiently waited for their turn to use the Quidditch pitch for practice. Suddenly as she rounded a corner she went head on into one of the other students. She began quickly streaming out apologies but then heard the other laugh, and recognized who it was. "Harry! I'm sorry," she said slightly laughing to try and cover her embarrassment.
The 6th year Gryffindor smiled at her and shook his head. "It's perfectly okay. I wasn't watching where I was going anyway," he replied trying to keep himself from bursting out laughing as he fingered the envelope that was In his pocket. "Besides, I suppose it's actually in my favor that you're here. I've got something for you."
Paige stared at him for a moment, confusing and curiosity shining from her expression. Seeing this, Harry smiled and pulled the envelope out of his pocket to give to her. "Ron wanted me to give this to you…I don't know what it's about though, so don't ask." After she had taken the envelope completely he turned around and looked back at her. "Well, I've got to go get ready, I've got practice. I'll see you later." With that Harry waved behind him and took off down the hallway, smirking to himself as his part of the plan was complete.
After Harry was gone from sight Paige pried open the envelope and pulled out a note. Her fingers slowly unfolded the paper and her eyes began to scan through it, which as she did her face began to light up. 'Dear Paige, I'm sorry to have Harry give this to you, I really am shy you know. I'd really like it though if you would meet me outside by the fountain a half hour before dinner. Pleeeeeaaaaaassse come J . Your friend, Ron.' As Paige finished reading the note for the fifth time she smiled and ran up to her dormitory with a smile on her face.
Meanwhile, Hermione was on a journey of her own, to find Ron. The Hogwarts corridors were long and empty, the only movement being that of the portraits that hung on the walls.. The only noise, was the light clicking of Hermione's shoes against the stone floor as she ran down the hallways hoping to locate Ron as quickly as possible. Finally, she found Ron in the Great Hall, just standing up to leave. 'That's right…I should have known better," she thought to herself, flushing slightly. 'Harry and I skipped lunch to plan, but of course he would have still gone.' Shaking her head she walked down the middle of the hall and stopped when she reached Ron.
Once Ron realized that Hermione was next to him he looked at her in utter confusion. "Where have you been? He inquired. "I was all alone to sit and listen to Neville go on about some herbology stuff"
Hermione let out a slight giggle and then pulled out an envelope from behind her back. "I've been with Paige, trying to become better acquainted," Hermione lied. "You know, since I felt terrible about how I had been treating her earlier. Which reminds me, this is for you," she said as she stuffed the envelope into Ron's hand. "She wouldn't tell me what it was about, but I bet I can guess." Letting out a small giggle she winked at him and then turned to leave before he could question her.
Slowly making his way out of the Great Hall Ron continued to stare down at the sealed white envelope which he held tightly in his hands. He had wanted to wait until he reached the common room but curiosity proved to be too much for him and he tore it open and quickly unfolded the paper inside and began to read the note. 'Hey Ron! I'm sorry I had to resort to having Hermione deliver this to you. I guess I'm rather silly aren't I? Anyway…there's been something I've wanted to talk to you about, or rather tell you about. I was hoping you would meet me outside at the fountain half an hour before dinner. I'd really truly appreciate it if you did. Anyway, I'm gonna go, and I hope you come. Sincerely, Paige.'
The red haired Gryffindor's grin after reading the note seemed to stretch on either side up to his ears which were now, along with the rest of his face, bright red. As he headed back to his dormitory he couldn't help but smile happily at everyone who he came in contact with. This was going to be one heck of an evening, and he knew it. Yet, something lingered in his mind. Something that just didn't seem to match up, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Ron just shrugged it off and flopped down on his bed with his closed, smiling at the thought of what would take place later that day.
It was 6:15, 15 minutes from when Paige was supposed to meet Ron outside. Currently she was pacing back and forth through her room, stopping every few seconds to take another glance in the mirror. Finally she stopped and simply stood, staring at her reflection with nervousness written all over her. This could very well be one of the happiest days she'll have since the beginning of the term, the boy she liked could possibly like her too! Sighing to herself she tried to continue straightening out her skirt, which was not really possible, but still provided her with something to do. Her hair was pulled half up on either side, held up by two sparkling green hair clips.
6:20. Ron was feeling as though he were going to go insane. He was aimlessly walking around the Gryffindor common room, not really noticing or caring if other students were staring at him. His fingers kept moving and fiddling with each other as the boy tried desperate to calm down. 'Alright Weasley, breathe, breathe,' he thought to himself. 'This is no time to panic or be nervous. Harry told you this would happen, that sooner or later everything would come out, and it is…Sadly I had hoped it would be later rather than sooner.'
At 6:25 the red head took in a deep breathe and walked out of the room into the corridor. The few seconds that it took to reach the fountain seemed like an eternity to him, though when he finally caught sight of it, Paige was about the distance away on the opposite side. 'Okay…remember, stay calm. You'll be fine, just fine.'
When Paige first caught sight of Ron she felt as though her stomach was flopping around inside like a pancake. Her cheeks became warm and it was most definitely not because of any heat. Finally reaching the fountain the younger girl took a seat on the fountains edge and patiently waited for her crush to do the same, which he did.
For the first few minutes an uncomfortable silence had wedged itself between them. Paige sat quietly staring down at her hands which seemed to be clutching the end of her skirt which Ron sat silently, stealing a glance at her every few seconds. Finally, Paige shook her head and looked up at the sky which was now being painted a variety of pinks and oranges from the sun's setting figure. "It's beautiful isn't it?" she asked aloud, while flashing Ron a smile and then turning her gaze back to the sky. "The way the colors all blend together to paint the sky. It really is rather amazing."
Ron continued to stay silent for a moment, unsure of what to say and having an argument with himself. One voice told him this would be the perfect opportunity to say something sweet and finally tell her how he felt, while another voice, a rather evil sounding one, said no way. Shaking his head Ron decided he had nothing to lose and shoved the evil voice out of his mind. He smiled at Paige and joined her in looking at the sky. "Yes it is…beautiful," he said. Then, taking in a deep breathe, but not loud enough so that should could hear, he finished his sentence. "But it couldn't compare to you."
As those six words flowed from Ron's lips Paige's eyes widened slightly and she turned to find that he was staring at her, smiling. If at all possible, her cheeks became redder than they had already been and she smiled shyly at him, unsure of how to reply. This however, didn't seem to be a problem at the moment for Ron decided to continue what he had started. " I know…that I've only known you for a few months, and there's probably still a lot to know about you, but…I still feel like I've known you so much longer. And…I know you're 3 years younger than me and that your dad probably hates me more than anything, except maybe Harry, but, despite all that. I…well, I really like you, like, more than just a friend like you. Anyway, I'm sorry…I know you probably don't like me back and everything but I couldn't help but tell you because I just had to and I-"
Before Ron could continue any further Paige's lips brushed against his. It was a short kiss, but still full of emotion. As they parted Paige still stayed only inches from his face. "I really like you to," she said softly as she smiled at him.
As all of this was happening, Harry and Hermione had taken the liberty of using the invisibility cloak to their advantage. They had decided a while ago that if they were going to be the ones to get them together that the most definitely would not miss the show. Besides, it was proof that they had done a terrific job. The tow friends smiled at each other and shook hands for a job well done.
Although he did not have an invisibility cloak to hide him, there was one other who had witnessed the scene. Severus Snape had been prowling the corridors, looking for any helpless student to steal house points from when he came across his daughter and Mr. Weasley sitting together outside. Unable to resist the temptation he decided to take a short break from his "duties" and have a glimpse at what was going on. What he had witnessed though, did not really surprise him. Although he wasn't sure if he approved of his daughter kissing, he couldn't help but let a small smile creep over his lips. He was truly happy for her, but yes. He would have a little chat with her about kissing.
Deciding to let the two spend the rest of their time together mostly alone, for he had a feeling Potter and Granger were somewhere nearby, he turned and headed back to his quarters. Quickly spilling out the password he walked briskly into his room and sat down on his bed, letting out a small sigh. Spending the day walking around taking away points could really tire a person out after all. All the yelling and listening to complaints.
Suddenly, something on his nightstand caused him to lose every thought that had currently been making its way through his head. His hands, which had begun to shake ever so slightly, slowly picked up the paper that had been left there by Paige. His face suddenly was void of any emotion and his fingers gently traced over the lines his daughter had sketched onto the paper. He then closed his eyes trying desperately to keep himself from losing composure. The only sound in the room was a soft whisper. "Sarah…"