Disclaimer: I solemnly swear I am up to no infringement of copyright laws…

A/N: I was kind of nervous about writing this chapter and I'm still not sure about how it turned out, thanks to ya'll for reading it! Warning: Pointless Fluffy Chapter!

Chapter Four: Sweet Dreams

Ron awoke at midnight, surprisingly awake. He tried to go back to sleep for a while, but eventually gave up and decided to get up and grab something to eat. As he wandered down the hall and into the kitchen, he thought he heard muffled voices. He walked into the living room and saw Hermione lying down on the couch, watching a large black box with moving pictures.

"Hey, that's a Muggle TV, right?" he asked her. She jumped, startled.

"Goodness, Ron, you scared me," she replied, frowning slightly. She sat up slowly as Ron walked around the couch and sat down at the other end. Suddenly her eyes widened. Ron often slept without a shirt on in the summer, and he hadn't bothered to put one on now, not expecting anyone else to be up. She didn't know how he had gotten so fit; she could see the starting of a six-pack. Suddenly, she realized she was staring, and looked up to see Ron blushing a lovely shade of maroon. He jumped up and ran to his and Harry's room. He grabbed a shirt, shaking all over.

"Sheesh, Ron, pull yourself together," he scolded himself. "It's not like she's never seen a guy without a shirt on before. Now go back and apologize for traumatizing her eyes." He grinned shakily. He pulled the shirt on over his head and walked slowly back to the living room. Hermione was lying down on the couch again, but she sat up when he entered the room.

"Sorry about that," said Ron weakly. "I didn't think anyone else would be awake."

"Oh, it's alright," replied Hermione, blushing.

"Mind if I watch this Muggle junk with you?" asked Ron.

Hermione nodded in agreement. They sat in silence for a few minutes. They were watching some stupid romantic comedy that had gotten like half a star. She didn't know why on earth she was watching this, and had even less of an idea why Ron hadn't commented. Then she noticed he was staring about three feet to the left of the TV and muttering to himself.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly.

Ron looked at her, dazed, and then went back to staring at the wall. "Nothing…" he muttered, "It's just… why did he say that? I mean… me and you… together… as if… don't know where he got that…"

Hermione realized he was talking about that morning, when Harry had suggested Hermione and Ron together.

"He was joking, Ron," she said, rolling her eyes. "Just like we were. But I'm sorry… I didn't know being associated with me offended you so badly," she said with a hurt tone in her voice.

Ron blushed. "It's not that… it's just… me… and you… well… you've got Krum, haven't you?" he finished lamely.

Hermione sighed and looked away from him. "No, I don't," she said quietly.

"What?" gasped Ron in surprise. "Did you two break up, or something?"

"Yeah," confirmed Hermione. "He hadn't written me for ages and ages, so I asked him why he never talked to me anymore. He told me he was too busy with Quidditch, and I had to wait until it was over, so I broke up with him. I didn't really like him anymore, anyway," she continued. "He couldn't even say my name, and he only wanted to talk about Quidditch. He's probably found someone prettier and smarter now. He's an amazing Seeker, after all," she continued, sighing.

Ron frowned. "He couldn't have found anyone smarter," he argued. "You're the smartest witch in the school. You're going to be smarter than the teachers soon. And he won't be able to find anyone prettier either; every girl from Durmstrang looked like a guy. I couldn't tell which they were half the time. Besides, you're not that bad looking yourself. You're loads better than first year, anyway."

Hermione smiled, looking up at him. "Did you just give me a compliment, Ron?" she asked, one eyebrow raised.

Ron blushed again and muttered something like "just telling the truth…"

Hermione grinned and started to lie down again, before realizing that Ron was sitting where her head would go. "Move over," she told him, embarrassed.

Ron grinned. "No way! You're hogging the whole couch!" he replied.

"Move or I'll hex you," she replied, winking.

"Fine," said Ron. He moved a fraction of an inch away from Hermione.

"Come on Ron, move," she said, rolling her eyes.

"If you really insist," replied Ron. He scooted closer to Hermione, grinning. "Haha!" he said triumphantly. "I moved!" Then he seemed to realize what he

had done. "Sorry," he said, his face going darker than his hair. "I didn't mean anything by it." He started to move away.

"No, it's okay, really," said Hermione, looking down. "It's better this way, anyway." And, blushing almost as badly as Ron, she leaned her head against Ron's shoulder and closed her eyes.

Ron somehow managed to deepen his blush, and froze where he was sitting. Then, very slowly, he started to grin. Was it possible that she did like him, he asked himself. Or was she punishing him for being difficult? Well, said a small voice inside his head, she did break up with Krum…

He contemplated this thought for a few minutes, staring at the TV but not listening to a word of it. Then, when Ron was sure Hermione had fallen asleep, he slowly put his arm around her. He stared out the window, wondering what would happen if someone walked in right now. He was so lost in thought, he didn't notice Hermione grinning and moving just a bit closer to Ron.

((A/N: Awwww….grins happily….Please review!))