Lavender's Mistake by the Queen of the Pugs

Hermione dropped the teacup she was holding, and it fell to the kitchen floor and shattered into a million little pieces. She hadn't even realized that she let go of the cup until it hit the floor. She bent down to pick up the pieces, and Ron came in to help. They bumped heads trying to pick up the same piece of porcelain. She stood up and grabbed onto the counter as if she didn't have support, she might fall over. Her heart was beating so hard it was getting kind of hard to breathe.

"So?" Ron prompted, also standing up.

Her heart was screaming, "I love you, too!" but her brain was reminding her of the last time that they had met, when they'd agreed that dating each other had been a mistake. If her brain believed that was true, then why did her heart feel like it was shattering just like the cup had? Breathe, Hermione, she instructed herself sternly.

"I still think I stand by what we agreed upon earlier," she said slowly, her heart objected to every word. She turned away at the hurt expression on his face.

"You mean you still think that us being together was a mistake from the very beginning?" She swallowed and nodded. Ron blinked a few times. Why was this going so wrong? A part of him was telling him that he was stupid for thinking that Hermione would just be willing to take him back, just like that. But the other part was confused as to why she hadn't taken him back yet.

A very stunned Ron Weasley slowly back out of his ex-girlfriend/friend's house. When he was gone, Hermione sank onto the floor, pulled her knees up against her and sobbed into them, yet again cursing her logical brain.

Ron paced angrily around his bedroom back at the Burrow. He wasn't mad at Hermione; he could never truly be angry with her. He was mad at himself for being so stupid and dumping her in the first place. But that hadn't been him. After all it was Lavender who had concocted the love potion and made him dump Hermione in the first place. It was all her fault.

Lavender. That was it! He'd make Lavender help him win back Hermione's heart. She'd gotten him into this mess, and now she was going to get him out of it.

Ron knocked on her door, and then, not waiting for an answer, barged right in. Lavender Brown looked up, startled, from her place on the couch. "Oh, hi Ron," she giggled nervously. "How are---?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You're going to help me." It wasn't a question. "You made me break Hermione's heart, and now your going to help me get her back."

She tried her best to look innocent. "Why, Ronald Weasley I have no idea what you're talking about---"

"Stop it!" he exploded. "Just stop lying to me! I know about the love potion, Lavender. I know that it was you who made me hurt Hermione."

Lavender gulped and nodded slowly. "I know what I can do."

There was another knock on Hermione's door. She began wondering if she would be getting any time to herself on her day off. It didn't seem like it. Wiping her eyes and trying to smooth her hair just a little bit, she walked to the door, took a deep breath, and opened it.

"Lavender," she said shortly, curtly nodding her head at the girl in front of her. "What do you want? If you're looking for Ron, he's already left---"

"I wanted to talk to you," Lavender said quickly, waving a dissmissive hand in the air. "Can I come in?"

Hermione eyed the girl suspiciously. She had never really liked Lavender Brown or Pavarti Patil, and she had liked them even less after Ron had dumped her for Lavender. But she stepped aside and let her into her house. After settling back in her favourite chair, she said, "You want to talk to me, Lavender, so talk."

"You have to take Ron back," Lavender began. "I know that you two have already agreed that you never should have dated and what not, but he really does love you, and I know you really love him, too. I shouldn't have interfered with that love in the first place, but I was jealous of what you two had together. And now I'm really sorry."

"Why should I believe you?" Hermione asked rudely. "How am I to know that this isn't just part of your plan to get Ron to marry you? After all, you stole him from me once, so what's stopping you from doing it again?"

Lavender winced. "Listen to me, Hermione. I know that I deserved that for what I did, but I'm trying to make it up to you, I really am. I want you and Ron to be happy, and the only way that's going to happen is if you two get back together. You two are the perfect couple, and I think...I think that's why I got jealous. I wasn't really jealous of you, per se, but I was jealous of what you and Ron had."

"So you're saying that just because you say that you're sorry, it means that I have to get back together with Ron because we 'are the perfect couple'?"

"You can never make things easy can you?" snapped Lavender.

"Not when it comes to you!" Hermione shot back. "Just because you're telling me that I have to get back together with Ron doesn't mean that I'm going to do it, Lavender Brown!"

"Don't you get it?" Lavender cried. "Ron loves you! He told you himself! He doesn't love me, Hermione, he loves you! And you love him! I know you do, so stop being stupid and analyzing it to death, and just take him back."

"I am not analzying anything to death! All I'm saying is that Ron and I have already made the choice to not be together anymore, and that's that."

"Yes, I know that Ron and you agreed that it was a mistake to date each other in the first place, but Ron has gone back on the decision, can't you see that? He wants you back, and I know that you want him back, too. You two are wasting the perfect friendship and relationship that was pratically handed to you."

Hermione went silent. Finally she said, "I guess you're right."