[A/N: The last chapter! It's a bit long... I'm not very good at endings. Well just to let you know, the line "positively howling" is revised from my favorite scene in GoF. Bottom of pg. 358 in the US hardcover version, to be exact. It cracks me up every time when Ron says, "Barking mad." I'm just the biggest dork. Ever. Now on with the story.]
"Sorry to interrupt," said Harry, emerging creepily from a corner of the now completely dark common room, lit only by the fire. "But have either of you seen where my friends have gone? One is tall with red hair, and the other is shorter with oh...light brown hair, I suppose, and they would probably be having a mad, blazing row."
Ron and Hermione froze. Harry slowly made his way to the fireside, now positively howling with laughter.
"Harry... how... how long have you been... watching us?" Ron asked, his voice cracking and his face glowing red.
"Long enough to see that you two have obviously talked things over... and snogged things over," he laughed, but stopped abruptly when he saw the glare Hermione shot him. "And I'm truly happy for you both. There couldn't be better people for either one of you."
"Well, thanks very much, Harry, because you know something?" Ron asked him, with a mock look of interest, "You are a git."
He grabbed a cushion from the seat next to Hermione's and chucked it at Harry, hitting him hard in the face.
"Ow! Okay fine, I'll leave you two alone. I needed to talk to Ginny anyway," He said grinning at them, "But you'll want to watch yourselves, I left dinner early to come find you, and everyone else will be heading back soon..."And with a small wave, he left through the portrait hole.
"You know, I should probably get started on that essay for McGonagall," Hermione said, straightening up in her chair, "Do you, um, need help with yours Ron?"
She made her way to the table she had tossed her bag on when they came in, and sat down, pulling out parchment, quill, and ink.
"Yeah... I should uh... get started too." He answered, his voice still shaking from what had just happened. But he couldn't work. His head was still clouded with all that had happened that day. His life would never be same.
Hermione immediately began thinking aloud as she always did. Talking to herself and scribbling everything she said on her parchment. Ron watched her and thought to himself, his quill poised in his hand dripping useless ink on his yellowed parchment. How can she be so... mad, but perfect at the same time?
He noticed her left hand lying on the desk, while her right was moving fast over her essay. He reached his own hand out and took hers, and reminded himself to tell Harry that he was right. Taking a girls hand when it was lying uselessly on a table was ten times harder than, snatching a zooming snitch out of thin air.
She looked up and smiled, moving her own fingers into the spaces between his. She then frowned at his blank parchment, and quickly snapped back to her own work, deciding not to say anything. She was enjoying how sweet and kind he was being to her too much, and didn't want it to end in a hurry.
They sat there for at least 15 minutes, Hermione working tirelessly, and Ron staring absentmindedly at her. The noise of the portrait hole opening, and people's voices seemed to snap both of their minds back to reality.
Every single Gryffindor filed into the common room, some moving up to the dormitories, and some sitting down near the fire. But 2 of them made a beeline for Hermione and Ron.
Harry stood there, smiling with his arms crossed, Ginny stood a little behind Harry, her mouth slightly open, staring at Ron and Hermione's hands, which were still connected on top of the table.
"When did this happen?" she asked, finally regaining her composure and beaming confusedly at them.
"What? Oh... um... today?" Hermione answered, her face turned slightly pink. "We talked it over... a bit."
"A bit?" Ginny answered, "It looks like loads to me... Well Happy... uh... togetherness, you two. I'm going to bed. 'Night!" She waved and made her way up the girl's staircase.
By the end of the week, it became common knowledge throughout the school that "something" was going on between "that Granger girl and Weasley."
They walked through the corridors to classes holding hands, and when they had different classes, Ron would walk Hermione there, and give her a quick kiss before hurrying off so he wouldn't be late. They fought a lot less too, but when they did it was still about the same nonsense, and they would make up a lot faster.
It seemed like they would be together for the rest of their lives. They balanced each other out perfectly, and they both always looked so happy. Ron started working harder in his lessons, and Hermione learned that you could still get perfect marks and have a bit of fun once in a while. Everyone knew it had to happen sometime, and the only suitable word to describe it would have to be...
Finally.
"Sorry to interrupt," said Harry, emerging creepily from a corner of the now completely dark common room, lit only by the fire. "But have either of you seen where my friends have gone? One is tall with red hair, and the other is shorter with oh...light brown hair, I suppose, and they would probably be having a mad, blazing row."
Ron and Hermione froze. Harry slowly made his way to the fireside, now positively howling with laughter.
"Harry... how... how long have you been... watching us?" Ron asked, his voice cracking and his face glowing red.
"Long enough to see that you two have obviously talked things over... and snogged things over," he laughed, but stopped abruptly when he saw the glare Hermione shot him. "And I'm truly happy for you both. There couldn't be better people for either one of you."
"Well, thanks very much, Harry, because you know something?" Ron asked him, with a mock look of interest, "You are a git."
He grabbed a cushion from the seat next to Hermione's and chucked it at Harry, hitting him hard in the face.
"Ow! Okay fine, I'll leave you two alone. I needed to talk to Ginny anyway," He said grinning at them, "But you'll want to watch yourselves, I left dinner early to come find you, and everyone else will be heading back soon..."And with a small wave, he left through the portrait hole.
"You know, I should probably get started on that essay for McGonagall," Hermione said, straightening up in her chair, "Do you, um, need help with yours Ron?"
She made her way to the table she had tossed her bag on when they came in, and sat down, pulling out parchment, quill, and ink.
"Yeah... I should uh... get started too." He answered, his voice still shaking from what had just happened. But he couldn't work. His head was still clouded with all that had happened that day. His life would never be same.
Hermione immediately began thinking aloud as she always did. Talking to herself and scribbling everything she said on her parchment. Ron watched her and thought to himself, his quill poised in his hand dripping useless ink on his yellowed parchment. How can she be so... mad, but perfect at the same time?
He noticed her left hand lying on the desk, while her right was moving fast over her essay. He reached his own hand out and took hers, and reminded himself to tell Harry that he was right. Taking a girls hand when it was lying uselessly on a table was ten times harder than, snatching a zooming snitch out of thin air.
She looked up and smiled, moving her own fingers into the spaces between his. She then frowned at his blank parchment, and quickly snapped back to her own work, deciding not to say anything. She was enjoying how sweet and kind he was being to her too much, and didn't want it to end in a hurry.
They sat there for at least 15 minutes, Hermione working tirelessly, and Ron staring absentmindedly at her. The noise of the portrait hole opening, and people's voices seemed to snap both of their minds back to reality.
Every single Gryffindor filed into the common room, some moving up to the dormitories, and some sitting down near the fire. But 2 of them made a beeline for Hermione and Ron.
Harry stood there, smiling with his arms crossed, Ginny stood a little behind Harry, her mouth slightly open, staring at Ron and Hermione's hands, which were still connected on top of the table.
"When did this happen?" she asked, finally regaining her composure and beaming confusedly at them.
"What? Oh... um... today?" Hermione answered, her face turned slightly pink. "We talked it over... a bit."
"A bit?" Ginny answered, "It looks like loads to me... Well Happy... uh... togetherness, you two. I'm going to bed. 'Night!" She waved and made her way up the girl's staircase.
By the end of the week, it became common knowledge throughout the school that "something" was going on between "that Granger girl and Weasley."
They walked through the corridors to classes holding hands, and when they had different classes, Ron would walk Hermione there, and give her a quick kiss before hurrying off so he wouldn't be late. They fought a lot less too, but when they did it was still about the same nonsense, and they would make up a lot faster.
It seemed like they would be together for the rest of their lives. They balanced each other out perfectly, and they both always looked so happy. Ron started working harder in his lessons, and Hermione learned that you could still get perfect marks and have a bit of fun once in a while. Everyone knew it had to happen sometime, and the only suitable word to describe it would have to be...
Finally.