Disclaimer: None of the people, places, or things surrounding Hogwarts and the Wizarding world are my creation; they belong to the wonderful Ms. Jo Rowling.

A/N: I couldn't wait for this chapter! I don't care if you all hate it; it will still be my favorite. I wrote it WAY before I decided to make this a chaptered story—it's my favorite Missing Moment, and if I could, I would write a gazillion different one shots for it. (And I just might; I have enough ideas!) Lol. Enjoy :-)

M-M-X-M-X: I concur. Any fic where Hermione cries into Ron's chest and they fall asleep together, is a good fic. I promise that there will be more of that to come. Read ahead--I kind of gave you what you're looking for here.

hogwartsgirl52: I love "Torn into Pieces," or whatever it's called. It's one of my favorites songs! And Lavender definitely made up the part where she says that Ron told her things about Hermione. Ron (in my mind, and probably everyone else's) never talks about Harry or Hermione with Lavender, mostly because Lavender is always talking about herself or their relationship. Lol. Anyway, thank you so much for your review. :-)

Phillyactress: Hmm...the relationship between Ginny and Hermione. Interesting. I think I will definitely put something to that effect in the coming chapters. Yes, I can see it now. Even though Ron and Hermione have reconciled, he and Lavender are still together for awhile. I can see Ginny and Hermione talking about their respective boys, can't you? Thank you for that idea, and look for it!

suckr4romance: Thank you! Yes, I loved my little "cliffhanger." :-) I think that you should write a one shot of where Hermione visits Ron. Yes, it's been before (this is my second time writing one), but I think that each one is unique enough to still be fluffy and perfect.

FadedRose: Sugarquill hugs FadedRose. Thank you for being addicted to my story; just don't hurt yourself over it! Lol. :-D

DCoD: "How the heart thunders and the mind forgets when the one you love is in trouble." Is that a quote, or just something you made up by yourself? Wow...it was unbelievable. I think I might feature it at the beginning of the next chapter. Is that all right with you? It's perfect, so beautiful. I'm honored to have you reading my story.

RonMione4eva: I have NEVER been a big fan of Ms. Lavender Brown. EVER. It's kind of like Draco, though of course not to the same extent. I just never liked Lavender. Having to read that she was Ron's snog interest (I refuse to use the word "love" because what Ron and Lavender had wasn't love at all) in HBP nearly undid me. GAH. Anyway, yes, even when she and Ron break up, you won't find any sympathy from this author. :-)

sam250505: All right, after legolascrazy17, you are officially my favorite reviewer. For that comment--"Ron is a legend and therefore has to get the girl"--you are an amazing, brilliant person. You hear that kind of thing all the time about Harry, but rarely Ron. And seeing as I heart Ron Weasley more than other fictional character, it always hurts me to hear about Harry and not Ron. So..thank you. :-D

Blonde-Titch: I'm not sure how far I'm going to take this. Perhaps to the end of the book, but I'm not sure how long I keep the two of them from snogging each other senseless and still have a plot. On another note, I had just about the same reaction to finding out that Ron had been poisoned as you did. I nearly had an anxiety attack. ;-)

Azu Luna: Yes, Hermione's mindset did change pretty quickly, didn't it? But if the love of your life had just been poisoned and you were arguing with his girlfriend, what would you do? Lol. Thank you for your thoughts.

Machiavelli Jr: Your comment reminded me of something you would read in the books. "If not actual brains..." YES! Lavender is such a giggly bimbo. I reviewed your fic, but I'm sorry to say that I don't think I did a very good job of it. I liked it, don't get me wrong. You're very talented...I just don't think I did it justice because I only do Ron/Hermione stuff.

final lullaby: I love review exchanges! And I love your story even more. Update soon, by the way. :-) Your story is also on my alerts.

legolascrazy17: There you are! I must confess that I was getting worried after a few days went by and there was no review alert in my inbox from you. But don't worry, I never thought that you'd lost interest in the story; I figured, as you mentioned, that your life had just gotten very hectic. I've been there, trust me. Last week was actually like that, which is why I didn't get around to writing until this weekend. This installment is revealing, but I'm sorry to burst your bubble, there won't be any kissing. Lowers head shamefully. BUT before you get angry with me, let me explain. Because your apparent desire not to see this story end, I've decided to stretch it out longer than originally planned. I didn't want Ron and Hermione to kiss yet, because then, in my opinion, you don't have much of a canon story left. Besides, even after the Talk in this chapter, Ron (the bloody idiot!) is still with Lavender, and I don't believe that there should be Ron-Hermione snogging before there is truly no Lavender in the picture. Thank you for appreciating Harry in the last chapter; yes, he's got the weight of the Wizarding world resting on his shoulders, but he'll still sympathize with Hermione. The "shouting match" was just what I'd imagined happening. :-) Fiendish glee, indeed. When I was writing that chapter, I just kept thinking of when Hermione found out that Ron was always "asleep" when Lavender visited him, and she tended to smile for no apparent reason. Lol. That's where the fiendish glee came from. All righty...so I've talked your ear off long enough now. I'll let you actually READ my story now:-D Until next time, Sugarquill

The Talk

Hermione paced the length of her dormitory floor, looking anxiously between Lavender's bed, where Lavender and Parvati were talking and giggling in hushed voices, and the door to the hallway. She was aware of them—vaguely—but was too caught up in her own thoughts to pay much attention.

Ron…poisoned. Those were the only thoughts currently passing through her mind. She had yet to ponder over the "how's" and the "why's" of the situation. Just knowing that Ron—HER RON—had come that close to dying was enough for her brain to take in. She hadn't taken part in Harry and Ginny's length discussions of what exactly happened to Ron. Even now, Hermione was still unclear on all the details. Ron had been affected by a love potion, she knew that much, but other than the fact that he'd been poisoned with bad meade in Slughorn's office, she had no idea what had occurred.

And here she was now, pacing around the room, wanting to sneak down to the Hospital Wing and see Ron, but knowing that doing so would possibly get in her trouble, not to mention draw the attention of Lavender and Parvati. Their questions were something Hermione had no desire to deal with at the moment.

I could just go down there, check on him to make sure he's all right, then be back up here before anyone notices I'm gone. Hermione nodded resolutely towards the doorway, and had already taken two steps in that direction when she stopped short, turning guiltily back to her bed.

But we're not supposed to be out of the rooms this late, her conscience banged against her chest. Why was this so difficult? Ron was sick; he'd been poisoned to near death earlier that day. Why shouldn't go see him? With that thought firmly in mind, squeezing it as if it was her last breath, she silently crept out of the dorm, careful not to attract the attention of the two other girls.

In the corridor, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. So far, so good. She quickly made her way down to the Hospital Wing, slightly unnerved by the quiet of the school. It was not terribly late; two years ago, students would still have been allowed to be out of their Common Rooms. It was simply another testament to how drastically things had changed since then.

With a deep breath, she pushed open the large wooden doors, and poked her head around the corner, checking for Madame Pomfrey. She saw no sign of the nurse, so quietly entered the room. She spotted Ron immediately; he was the only person staying there overnight. Plus, it was Ron, so no matter how many shapes might have been created in the dark, she would have been able to pick him out.

"Oh, Ron," she breathed as she came up to his bed and looked down at him. Normally when Ron was asleep, she would never feel this much compassion and sympathy. But he didn't even look the way he usually did while sleeping. She could tell that he wasn't there… if she tried to wake him up, it was perfectly obvious that he wouldn't respond.

"Why did this have to happen?" she whispered. "I know that I said that we shouldn't be friends anymore. But…" She broke off on a slight sigh, trying desperately to quench the trembling in her voice.

She laughed bitterly. "You know, you always tell me that I talk too much for anyone's own good. And here I am, with absolutely no idea what to say. You would tell me I was being unreasonable."

Hermione stopped, staring down at Ron's stiff and silent body. "Please tell me I'm being unreasonable!" she cried out softly. "Anything is better than this."

She wished more than anything that she could go back in time, and take back those angry words she'd hurled at Ron—not to mention her own private thoughts—the last time they'd spoken. Hermione was a young woman of intellect, and knew that despite the overwhelming guilt she was feeling now, no thoughts or words could have prevented, or not prevented, Ron's poisoning. But that didn't stop her from wanting to someone to allow her to have another chance.

And NOTHING she said or did was going to wake Ron up any sooner, she realized with a painful sigh. She looked down at her hands, twisted anxiously on her lap, and sighed heavily. Reaching down to the floor underneath the hard chair in which she sat, she grabbed Hogwarts: A History and began to read. Books had always been able to calm her down; unlike life, with a book, she always knew what happened at the end.

But tonight was different. Hermione groaned a few minutes later when she realized that she'd been reading the same sentence over and over again. Even her constant literary companion was proving useless in her fight to maintain her emotions.

"Bloody hell, Ronald Weasley, WAKE UP!" she yelled in a whisper, so as not to draw Madame Pomfrey into the room. That was more like it. When in doubt, yell at Ron, she figured.

He won't wake up, though, she thought, and before she could try to stop them, the tears were coming. Finally. She hadn't been able to cry since she'd heard from Ginny what had happened to Ron. She'd been walking around in a numb daze, not feeling or hearing what was going on around her. But now, sitting here alone, watching Ron's near lifeless body, it was as if a dam had burst.

Why Ron? What had he done to deserve this? What had she done, she thought selfishly. Hadn't she suffered enough already? Having to watch Ron carry on with Lavender, then in addition to that, find out that he had very nearly died.

Her shoulders shook with the force of her sobs, and suddenly she couldn't bear the couple feet of distance between them. She laid her head next to Ron's arm.

"Please, Ron, wake up," she sobbed. "Just…just wake up!"

"All right, all right, just stop crying."

Hermione gasped. That was fast, she thought absently. Ron was laying next to her, looking down at her disheveled features, looking a bit terrified.

"Ron?" she asked a bit timidly. Now that she had him awake, she didn't quite know what to do.

He smiled lop-sidedly. "I think so," he murmured. They stared at each other, and after a few moments, Ron's eyebrows scrunched together in puzzlement. "What are you doing here?"

Hermione's cheeks turned faintly pink and she swept her gaze back down to the blanket covering Ron's legs. How did one explain that they were sitting a vigil over another person, even when one had been assured repeatedly that said person was going to fine?

"Were you—were you worried about me?" came Ron's next question, and Hermione cringed at the distinct tone of awestruck pride in his voice.

"You don't have to sound so happy about it," she muttered grouchily, sitting up fully and crossing her arms. "And if you must know, I was reading." Or trying to, at least. You not waking up was making the whole reading thing a bit complicated.

"I don't think you were reading, Hermione. I think you had a book with you as an excuse. You were worried about me," Ron observed.

This time, Hermione didn't defend herself. Ron waited for a sarcastic retort, but when none came, peered closer at Hermione. She still had her head bowed, and her bushy brown hair was covering her face. A small sob came from underneath her mane, and Ron's heart clenched.

"Hermione…" Without thinking straight, he reached out with both hands and gathered her hair away from her face. She still looked down, and he sighed. "Oh, Hermione, I'm all right. I woke up, didn't I?"

"But you might not have!" she yelled, suddenly not caring if someone walked in on them. "What if you…what if you hadn't made it? What if Harry hadn't known to stuff that bezoar down your throat?"

"Harry saved me?" Ron asked curiously, breaking into her rant.

Hermione's anger whooshed out of her as if a balloon had just been popped. She hadn't realized; of course Ron wouldn't remember what had happened. "Yes, Ron," she said wearily. "Harry saved your life. I should hope that you thank him in the near future."

Ron's face crinkled in a grin. "Oh, I will, but he doesn't want gratitude. You know how he is."

Hermione nodded with a smile. "Yeah, he'll brush it off as if it were nothing."

They smiled at each other, once again lapsing into silence. Hermione took in Ron's features; for someone who had barely looked alive a few minutes ago, Ron had certainly made a hasty recovery into the land of the living. His skin was still a bit paler than it usually was, but his eyes—his brilliant sapphire eyes—were blazing as brightly as ever.

"Ron, never leave me." She gasped in shock, covering her mouth. That had most certainly not been what she'd wanted to say.

Ron looked equally shocked. For a few moments, Hermione feared that he would ask her to leave, but soon the surprise left his eyes, and his gaze softened. Her brows drew together in confusion; he had never this sort of reaction to her emotional outbursts.

"I didn't get myself poisoned on purpose, Hermione. And…and, er, well, I'd never leave. You." He blushed. He couldn't even get a bloody sentence out without stuttering.

Hermione's chin wobbled. "But you did," she said quietly, unable to conceal the tremor in her voice. "You—you just stopped talking to me. As if you just turned off the 'being Hermione's best friend' switch, it was that easy."

"Hermione, no it wasn't," Ron blurted. She looked at him unblinkingly, in blatant disbelief, and he squirmed under her piercing cinnamon gaze.

"Look, Hermione, I—" he began, but she cut him off.

"You stopped talking to me," she continued as if he'd never started to speak, "And it hurt more than anything I've ever experienced. And, as you are well aware, I have been through my fair share of pain over the past years. But nothing…NOTHING…hurt me as much as you seeing you angry with me, and having no idea as to what I did wrong."

Hermione didn't know where these words were coming from. They simply kept spurting out of her mouth, pure emotion, that she had been holding in for weeks.

"I know that I've done something, I must have. Otherwise I don't understand why you stopped speaking to me. And I retaliated, because I wanted you to hurt like I was hurting. Cormac never meant anything, Ron. And—and on that night on patrol…" Her voice faltered as she started to cry again.

Ron couldn't stand it anymore. Forgetting their fight, forgetting Lavender, forgetting Krum, forgetting everything except seeing Hermione in pain, and wanting to make it stop, he groaned lightly and pulled Hermione up onto the bed with him. He had absolutely no idea what he was doing, other than wanting to make Hermione stop crying.

"Hermione, please don't cry," he murmured, placing a shaking arm around her shoulders. She was half lying, half sitting next to him now, and the sobs were still wracking her body. "Please, I'm sorry…"

The confused apology did it. Hermione hiccupped, but her sobbing trailed off. "For what?" she asked.

Ron gulped. "Er, um."

"That's just it!" Hermione barked, anger suddenly seeping into her once more. "You just hate seeing people crying, because you don't feel comfortable dealing with it. You don't understand why I'm crying…you don't even care."

"That's not true," Ron spat, loosening his arm from around her. "I do care."

Hermione snorted. "You've done a fine job of showing it these past three months."

"I've been with Lavender."

"That much is obvious," she replied quietly, but her tone sounded more lost than biting.

Oh, thought Ron inanely. "Hermione…"

She was refusing to look at him again, preferring to play with her fingers in her lap. She hadn't, however, moved off of the bed, even though Ron had let go of her.

"I waited for you, Ron. I've waited for four years," he heard her say softly. "Ever since you stood up to Malfoy for me second year. Something clicked then…I heard it. And I've stupidly spent these years wondering…hoping…that you heard it, too. But you didn't."

She wouldn't look at him, she vowed, furiously scrubbing at the tears on her cheeks. She wouldn't look into his bright blue eyes that she knew were filled with confusion. She was through, through with Ron being confused and her having to explain everything to him.

"So I stopped looking for signs that you had also heard that click. I—I gave up. When I saw that you had moved on to Lavender, something…something changed, Ron. It hurt so much, that it made more sense to stop being your friend, stop interacting with you, than to be hurt whenever I saw the two of you together."

She was going to kill him, Ron decided, listening to Hermione's dry, emotionless voice. Bloody girl and her emotions. Why did I have to love her? He sat up straight, the truth hitting him upside the head. Love. Merlin, that's what this feeling was! He opened his mouth stop Hermione's rant, but her next words gave him pause.

"I made a wish that night after our fight on patrol. I wished that you would go away, or that something would happen to make me forget you." She shook her head wildly. "And then I got my stupid, idiotic wish. I almost lost you! For real. I—you can't possibly imagine how horribly ill I felt, hearing Ginny tell me what happened, then not knowing if you were going to be all right…"

She broke off as the tears started in force once again. "I—I…Ron, please, don't leave me ever again," she managed.

Hermione turned towards him again, and Ron reached for her, placing his arms around her and holding her as tightly as he dared. She was so small compared to him, and even though he was in the Hospital after being poisoned, he still felt strong enough to break her. She sighed brokenly, crying into his shirt.

"Hermione, listen to me," he said after a few moments. She felt the words rumble from inside his throat, and peered up at him, having no desire to move.

"I didn't want to get myself poisoned, all right?" he said. "I—I could never bloody well leave…leave you, could I? You're Hermione," he added, as if that made all the difference. He paused, considering. "Look, you've got your knickers all twisted over Lavender."

Here, Hermione reached up and smacked him lightly on the arm. "Ronald, please."

He grinned. This felt good…almost normal, in fact. "All right," he conceded. "You're upset about Lavender…an—and you think I don't care." With the serious tone came the nerves, he figured, taking a deep breath.

"But I do, Hermione. I care about you more than…" More than anyone or anything, he finished silently. "Well, more than Lavender, that's for sure. I swear, Hermione, it's just snogging! I don't even like her."

Hermione smiled widely. She knew it was petty and underhanded, but hearing that blunt confession made her happier than she'd been in months. "Well, she thinks that you're ready to plan the wedding and pick our your children's names," she said wryly.

Ron groaned in exasperation. Somehow, that didn't surprise him. "I've told her that we're not getting married," he muttered. Hermione remained silent, and suddenly Ron knew that it was his turn to be serious.

"Look, Hermione, about the past few weeks—"

"Months," she cut in.

He grimaced. "Months," he conceded. "I—I just want you to know that…that I didn't—that is, I…" He raked a hand through his hair. "That click you were talking about? Well, I—I reckon I heard it, too. I just didn't realize it. You and me, we're sort of predictable, aren't we? We fight, then make up…it's a cycle.

"Except this time we didn't make up, did we?" He continued, still speaking to Hermione, but putting his own thoughts together as well. "And—and that's my fault. I know it, Hermione, and you have to believe me. This," he said, gesturing between them, "Apologizing. It doesn't come easy, you know? But I want to do it."

"Oh, Ron," Hermione breathed, taking in his earnest gaze.

"You said you were waiting for me, Hermione. Is—are you…I mean… Did you stop?"

There were the tears again, she thought resignedly, swiping at them. "Did you want me to?"

"No," came the quiet answer.

"Then, no, Ron. I never stopped waiting. I've felt stupid for months, for ever thinking you fancied me—"

"Don't feel stupid," Ron squeaked out nervously. He smiled softly at her, and in that moment, Hermione heard that click once again. Except this time, it was louder, more pronounced.

And judging by the intense, blazing look on Ron's face, he'd heard it as well.

"Lavender meant nothing. Nothing."

"It still hurt, though. But…it was supposed to, wasn't it?"

"Hermione, you are the last person on the earth I'd ever want to hurt." Ron's eyes widened. That was the most open and direct sentence he'd been able to speak without stuttering all night.

Hermione herself was equally surprised—pleasantly—and shocked. She could feel the tears sliding down her cheeks; this time, though, they were tears of happiness. "I really missed you," Ron said hoarsely, reaching over and brushing the dampness off her cheeks with both hands.

She sniffed. "I missed you, too. It's—it's really been awful."

"You have no idea," Ron breathed with relief.

Hermione smiled, and allowed herself to be drawn into another tight hug. "We're going to be all right, then," she said after a few moments.

Above her head, Ron swallowed past the growing lump in his throat, laying his cheek down into her hair, and pulling her even closer to him, if that was possible. "Yeah…yeah, we're going to be fine."

Hermione sniffled through the few remaining tears as she settled comfortably into Ron's arms. She didn't know what this embrace meant; he was technically Lavender's boyfriend, after all. But something about the way Ron was holding her told her that this was more than a friendly hug. It felt…it felt tighter, she realized suddenly. Tighter, warmer, closer, and stronger.

Yes, she didn't know exactly what was to come, but they would be fine.

"Hey, Hermione?" Ron's drowsy voice reached through her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Thanks for not yelling at me. For once."

Hermione grinned. Yes, things were most assuredly going to be all right.

"Don't worry, Ron. I have the rest of our lives to yell at you."

A/N: All right, guys, there you have it. Another epic chapter. I'm sorry that I'm not more consistent with the lengths of these things. Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW! And tell your FRIENDS to REVIEW! I'd really like to see this story get 100 reviews. It's a dream of mine...as stupid as that sounds. But don't worry; I won't stop updating if I don't. But I would really like it... :-)