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: Are you all sure that my huge delay in updating last time didn't change your minds about reading this, because a lot of my faithful reviewers were absent and I'm starting to worry that people don't like this anymore. But that won't discourage me—I will press onward! I'm really proud of this chapter; I gave all of you (and myself) the fluff that we've been so anxiously waiting for. Happy reading!
Hermione-is-my-Goddess: Sadly, my dear, this fic is about HBP Missing Moments. Lol :-) I think you were probably just a bit confused, right? Anyhow, thank you bundles for your compliments!
letsseesomeid: Well, thank you. I'm glad that you like my stories! It means a lot, because it took me nearly 6 months of reading stories on this site to work up the courage to get an actual profile and attempt to write some fics myself. ;-)
suckr4romance: I read your story! Whoo hoo! I heart it SO much. I was so happy when I found it; it was after a really stressful day of taking tests and it just made me relax, knowing that I could read your amazing work. :-D And thank you for your review as well, of course! The "I love you" scene was definitely one of my favorites--I'm so glad J.K. Rowling put it in, to give us shippers some actual evidence that she does plan to get them together at some point. (Which, if you ask me, is taking way too bloody long to appear in the books...)
hogwartsgirl52: Don't worry about your sister thinking you're crazy if you just giggle out of the blue. I do it all the time when I'm reading stories and my little sisters are somewhere within earshot. They've just accepted my obsession and go about their lives. Did I put in the scene where Ron and Lavender break up! Hmm...perhaps you should read on, my dear friend.
DCoD: I am SO sorry about the slow update process this story has undertaken! You are probably the reviewer that I worry most is not going to come back. I live for your reviews, mainly because they contain fluffy praise (which we all love), but also a literary analysis, and being an English nerd, I love literary analysis. Thank you for noticing the reasoning behind showing Ron's and Hermione's thoughts during and after the "I love you" scene...that's what was going through my head while reading it (after I screamed from utter joy, of course!). What were they thinking? Did Ron do it on purpose, or was it truly an accident? I think you'll like this chapter...I gave you all more fluff. Hint, hint.
M-M-X-M-X: Yes, well, Ron is incredibly sexy, isn't he? ;-D And yes, Harry/Ginny is slowly coming along as a side-note. A brief one, though, because as much as I love the Harry/Ginny relationship, I'm a true Ron/Hermione shipper and relate to that in my life the most, so that's what I feel that I write the best.
harrypotterfan2011: Thank you gobs and bunches. I feel that because the books are narrated from Harry's point of view, it's our job as shippers to fill in blanks; to tell what was happening if the "camer" panned away from Harry.
BexyLou: Tee hee, you remind me of myself just a bit. Your reviews are full of energy and kind of bounce around happily. :-)
goblin monkey: "That was bloody brilliant." --Ron, CoS movie. "Well, thank you for that assesment..." --Prof. McGonagall. :-D That's what I was thinking of when I read your review. I'm flattered that you really think my work is good...that's what keeps me writing.
Broken Rain: THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART! You made my wish come true! I love you to bits and pieces, I truly do! And yes, that other reviewer made it go up to 105, but you've been reading it longer so I'm going to give it you by default. Haha...I'm the writer, right?
To everyone else, thank you for sticking with me. And I'm still searching for legolascrazy...where have you been, my darling reviewer?
Chapter 9: A Turning Point
Well, honestly, Lavender, it isn't as if Ron and I were doing anything in his room, Hermione thought crossly, watching as Lavender's eyes spit fire at both her and Ron. She knew Lavender was yelling; she simply wasn't paying very close attention.
"What were doing up there with HER?" Lavender shrieked, and beside her, Hermione felt Ron jerk physically. He moved almost imperceptibly closer to her, and though it made her skin tingle a bit, she couldn't resist rolling her eyes.
"Ron, she's just a girl," she muttered out of the corner of her mouth.
"No, she's Lavender," he murmured just as quietly.
Harry, Hermione noted, was quickly making his escape, running down the stairs with barely a whoosh of air. She sighed. Coward, she thought wryly. Leaving her and Ron to deal with Lavender on their own.
Well, actually, leaving Ron on his own. I don't need to be here. With that thought, Hermione followed in Harry's retreating footsteps down the stairs, feeling only a little but guilty about leaving Ron to his own devices. Perfect opportunity, she reckoned, for Ron to actually do something about the situation with Lavender that he seemed to hate so much.
With optimistic steps, she carried herself toward the library, her own private sanctuary.
Hermione, NO! Ron's mind screamed, watching his best friend scurry down the stairs and out of the portrait hole. She couldn't leave him alone with…with her. Especially not when she was angry.
"Ron, how COULD you!" Lavender continued to rant and rave, and Ron clenched his eyes shut at the horrible sound. "After everything I've given you over the past weeks! I—I gave you everything I had…and you—you ruined it. For HER."
Ron's eyes blazed with anger as he charged down the stairs to stand directly in front of Lavender. "Don't bring Hermione into this," he said clearly, surprised that his voice (for a blessed one time) didn't stutter. "None of this is about her."
Lavender laughed manically. "And my name isn't Lavender Brown." At Ron's puzzled look, she raised her hands and punched him hard on each shoulder. "Of COURSE it has everything to do with Hermione! Isn't that what everything has to do with these days?"
"Lavender…what are you talking about…"
"Oh, Ron, honestly," she snapped, sounding eerily like Hermione herself. "Sometimes I think that you have this notion that I have no brains in my head."
Well…"Come on, Lavender, it's nothing to do with her," Ron offered weakly.
"You were in a BEDROOM with her!" Lavender screeched, her voice level not lessening in the slightest.
"And Harry!" Ron put in loudly, before realizing that because Harry had been under the Invisibility Cloak, Lavender wouldn't have been able to see him. "Well," he squirmed, "He was there, earlier…I mean, not that he had to—to chaperone or anything…because he didn't…because Hermione and I are—are just…"
Lavender's foot was now bouncing furiously up and down on the floor, and her face looked positively murderous. Best stop while you're ahead, Weasley. "Who, then, Ron?" she asked, eyes livid.
"What?" Ron was completely lost. Was breaking up always this confusing?
"Who are you going to pick?"
"…Pick?"
She seemed to be losing patience with him, Ron noticed. Perhaps if he kept this up—not that it was going to be difficult to remain perplexed—Lavender would simply get fed up, and leave him alone.
"Me or Hermione!"
Ron jerked back in shock. He hadn't been expecting an ultimatum of that magnitude.
"Are—are you asking me to choose between you and Hermione?"
Lavender nodded. When Ron didn't respond for a few moments, she clucked her tongue on the roof of her mouth. "Well, I wouldn't expect this decision to be that difficult."
"It's not," Ron muttered absently, still stunned that she'd actually asked him to choose.
Lavender brightened visibly, her anger dissipating almost as quickly as it had come. "Well then, I don't think we have such a large dilemma," she said sweetly, coming up to him and resting her hands gently on his shoulders. She batted her eyes and pursed her lips. "Perhaps we can get back to…normal," she purred as she reached up for a kiss.
Ron instinctively backed away from her clutches, holding up his hands in a gesture of peace. "Wait, Lavender, you—you don't understand—"
"Oh, I understand perfectly," she cooed slyly. "You made the right choice. I just had to put the idea in that adorable little head of—"
"I'm not 'choosing' you," he said, almost as a wondering question.
Lavender's babble ceased immediately. Her face screwed up in anger as she turned to him. "What did you just say?" she asked quietly, menacingly.
"I never I said I was choosing you."
She simply blinked at him in disbelief. "What? You—you can't possibly be considering choosing…choosing Hermione, can you?"
Ron cocked his head in Lavender's direction, staring at the girl who had been his—he shuddered even now, almost too scared to say it—girlfriend for months, wondering how he could have possibly been so thick.
"I—I think I am," he said simply, then turned and walked out of the portrait hole, knowing that it looked to Lavender as if he wanted nothing more to do with her. Though this was certainly part of it, he was really just terrified that she'd do something drastic, such as launch a flock of canaries at him. (One could never be too careful, right?)
"Wha—what? WHAT did you just say?"
Ron winced. There went her voice again, increasing in volume until his ears nearly exploded. "I…"
"Well…well fine then, Ronald Weasley! You know, I don't understand why I even bothered. From the first moment, I knew that this would happen! Parvati warned me about you—'Watch out for Hermione Granger—' she said, but I thought that maybe, just maybe, she was wrong. That you two were just friends, but obviously I was mistaken wasn't I?"
Ron's mouth gaped open like a fish struggling to survive out of water. He was so bloody terrible at this sort of thing.
"Erm…"
Lavender looked positively murderous now. Her eyes were blazing with a maniacal glint that Ron had never seen in anyone's eyes before.
"Fine, Ronald. Be with her, if that's what you want. Go—go be with the sl—"
Ron had snapped out of his trance and pounced near Lavender before he'd fully realized. "Don't finish that sentence," he said quietly, his first complete sentence in minutes. He was angry now, he realized, more than simply confused or guilty because Lavender was upset.
Lavender's head snapped back. "Now you're defending her? After all that you and I have been through? Just because she came to visit you while you were sick…not that that accomplished much, I'm sure. You were asleep every single time I tried to come visit."
Ron looked away guiltily. As annoyed as he was with Lavender at the moment, he still felt terrible about pretending to be sleeping whenever she came to see him. What else is a bloke supposed to do? He justified to himself.
"Are you just going to STAND THERE!" Lavender shrieked, sounding very much like a banshee once again. Ron remained silent. "Fine then! I'm done, Ronald! Done with YOU!" she screamed.
She paused, as if waiting for Ron to jump in with an apology. When it became clear to Lavender that one wasn't coming, she pivoted forcefully on a foot, then with a haughty flounce, stomped out of the portrait hole.
When she was gone, Ron breathed a sigh of relief. That was a load off his mind. He shook his head. Harry didn't know what he was talking about; chucking someone was a lot more stressful than it had right to be. Although it hadn't been as bad as he'd originally thought—Lavender'd done most of the yelling.
"One thing down, five million bloody more to go," he muttered, raking a hand through his hair.
"Ahem." He turned at the soft cough, breaking into a grin when he saw who had just walked through the portrait hole.
"Hermione," he said happily, rushing over to her.
Hermione smiled softly. "You seem to be all right," she observed.
Ron cocked his head in confusion. "What'd you mean by that?"
"Well, for someone who just ended things with his girlfriend, you don't seem to unhappy."
"How do you—"
"Oh, honestly, Ron—" she began, but Ron groaned, interrupting her. She raised an eyebrow.
"Please, can you hold off on the 'oh, honestly, Ron' for a bit? It's the one thing that…"
He trailed off, but Hermione seemed to understand exactly what he wasn't saying. "It's the only thing that she and I have in common, right?"
Ron grinned gratefully, nodding. "You're bloody brilliant, Hermione."
Hermione sighed happily. Things were back to normal…plus, Ron had FINALLY chucked Lavender.
"I just wanted to make sure you were all right," she began, "But it's obvious that is not the end of the world as far as you're concerned."
Ron shrugged sheepishly, feeling the blush creep up his neck and cheeks. "I—I'm sorry?" he said meekly.
Hermione gestured to the couch, walking over and sitting down. Ron stared at her in confusion and she rolled her eyes, patting the space beside her. "Sit down, you prat."
"Oh…oh right," Ron coughed, blushing even harder.
The two sat next to each other somewhat awkwardly. Hermione could feel the tension between them; it was so thick, she was sure a knife would not be able to cut through it. She could lightly feel the warmth from Ron's body, and wanted desperately to move closer to him.
But she didn't have the right to. Not yet, that is.
"She's just so bloody…infuriating!" Ron's voice broke through the uncomfortable silence. Hermione let out a relieved breath.
"Oh, Ron. She didn't do this to hurt you or make you angry. She…she really fancies you. And now she knows that you don't fancy her—"
"Never did," he muttered sulkily.
"—And no one likes to have a broken heart," Hermione finished without pausing, though a ray of happiness burst through her at Ron's brief statement.
Ron tore his eyes away from the fire to peer questioningly into Hermione's gaze. "And you would know about having a broken heart?"
Hermione's cheeks turned faintly pink and she looked down at her fingernails. "I—I'm sure that everyone experiences it at some point, right? I mean, it's only logical…it would be nearly impossible to spend an entire lifetime without having—"
"Hermione! I didn't ask for a ruddy lecture." Her mouth snapped shut in embarrassment. "Right," she murmured softly. "Sorry."
Ron groaned. Ten minutes of almost civilized conversation with Hermione, and he'd already bungled it. "No, I'm sorry. Bloody hell…I'm no good at this, Hermione, you know that."
She smiled, already forgiving him. Silence took over once again.
"It's just snogging," Ron suddenly added vehemently. "That's it, I swear. You—you've seen…I don't even like Lavender very much. Well, no…I actually can't stand her at all."
Hermione stopped herself from rolling her eyes simply because of the adorable and earnest look on Ron's face. "That is because you didn't get to know her before you…well, you know." She grimaced. This topic of conversation was not one she enjoyed at all.
Ron looked away. "I know. But you've got to believe me…it didn't mean ANYTHING."
"I know it didn't," she said softly, steadily avoiding Ron's eyes. Hers were watering too badly; she knew that if she looked at him, the tears would pour out. Yes, Lavender hadn't been important to Ron, this much she believed.
But yet Lavender had been the one that Ron was with; had held, had kissed, had touched, had shared all those "firsts" with? What was left for her?
"What 'first' is left for me?" she asked out loud, then after realizing she'd actually spoken, clapped a hand over her mouth.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ron's jaw drop in surprise, and his eyebrows disappeared into the fringe of his hair. "Uh…"
Hermione cringed. "That—that was just me thinking…I mean, it's nothing…um…" She shook her head helplessly.
Please don't say anything, she pleaded to Ron silently. But of course, true to his nature, Ron spoke.
"D—did you want…er, that is…" He took a deep breath and turned fully to face her. Hermione was taken aback by the intense emotion blazing in his blue eyes. "Well, it's as if I was your first!" he said bluntly.
Her eyes popped open. "What?"
"You snogged Krum," he said, folding his arms as if that decided the whole matter. "So it isn't as if you were saving yourself for—for…anyone."
Meaning me.
Hermione was speechless, something that rarely happened to her. Where had Ron gotten the idea that she and Viktor had 'snogged?' They had kissed, certainly, but it was only once, chastely, after the Yule Ball. And the only person who'd known about that was…
"Ginny," Hermione murmured under her breath. "Oh, Ron…did she say something about—"
"You're bloody right, she did!" he burst out, unable to control the jealousy in his tone.
Rather than respond to Ron's anger with her own, Hermione softened. At least, she understood. "Ron, Viktor and I didn't snog, if that's what you think. We went to the Ball together, and yes, might have kis—"
"Hermione, I don't need to hear the ruddy details."
"Right, right." She took a steadying breath. "Ron, listen to me. You just told me that Lavender meant nothing to you…Well, Viktor meant nothing to me, at least, not in that way. We've remained pen pals, friends. But that's it. There has never been anything more. I've never wanted anything more."
Hermione stopped, watching for Ron's reaction. This was the most direct she'd ever been with him about Krum, and she hoped that he would finally understand that there truly wasn't more than friendship there.
The wheels turned in his head. So if they really didn't snog, and Hermione says that she doesn't like him…that means…That means I've got nothing to worry about. Ron brightened visibly upon that realization.
"But if that git—Krum—wanted to snog you, then wh—why didn't you?" he asked finally.
Hermione sighed heavily, knowing that everything—their future—depended on her answer. "I've already told you…I was waiting, Ron."
"For?" His skin was tingling. He already knew the answer…but he needed to hear her say it again.
"…For you."
Ron's eyes closed at her last statement, and he swallowed hard, fighting the sting of tears at the back of his throat, which had apparently closed up. Without thinking, he reached for her, and she came willingly into his arms. Ron sighed in relief when he felt her arms reach around his waist, holding tightly to him. He'd been so afraid that he'd ruined everything…that his delay in breaking up with Lavender had shown Hermione somehow that he didn't care. When he did…more than anything.
His shirt was wrinkled, Hermione noted a bit dazedly, as her senses were a bit off in the shock of feeling so much RON after so much time. His white collared shirt, which had started out crisp and fresh that morning, was now wrinkled and worn…but it smelled like him. She sniffed at him lightly, burrowing gently into the side of his neck, feeling as if that spot had been created just for her.
"I hated when we weren't speaking," Ron said suddenly, close to her ear. Hermione felt the words, more than heard them. He broke away, but then reached for her hand, entwining it with his own.
Hermione tried to concentrate on Ron while feeling the incredible sensation of his hand tracing patterns over her fingers. She tried to say something, but found that her brain wasn't allowing words to come out of her mouth at the moment.
"This Christmas was horrible," he continued quietly and she nodded. "I—I never want it to be like that again…even if we're rowing, we should at least put it on hold for Christmas." Ron smiled—a genuine Ron smile—for what seemed to Hermione to be the first time in months.
"Or you could stop dating other girls," Hermione found herself saying.
Though Ron's eyes widened a bit, he didn't pull away. In fact, his grip on her hand tightened and Hermione felt herself being pulled a bit closer to him. "There is nowhere else I want to be right now," Ron said seriously, staring deep into Hermione's eyes, knowing that this was the most important thing he'd ever said to her.
Without conscious thought, Hermione moved herself back into his arms, sliding hers around his back. "Oh…Ron," she murmured a bit awkwardly, cursing herself for having nothing better to say.
"I…I just thought…well, I thought you sh—should know," he stuttered, ears going red, but never did his gaze stray from hers.
Hermione's heart tripped, and then she felt the click. In that moment, she knew that everything was going to be fine. They would have to take it slow, to be sure, but she knew now that nothing was going to go wrong anymore…no more silly arguments over 'who kissed who' nonsense.
She took a deep breath. "I fancy you, Ron. So bloody much," she whispered.
Ron's eyes closed at the joy of hearing the words he'd unconsciously been waiting to hear for years. He pulled Hermione to him gently, placing a light kiss on her forehead, then both cheeks, carefully avoiding her lips, wondering how far she'd let things go.
He got his answer when she pulled back—albeit, a bit reluctantly—and took his face between her hands. "Ron…we—we have to go slow. I…We can't let anything mess this up, right?" He nodded somberly.
"Can…can I still hug you…and, er, stuff?" he asked nervously and Hermione giggled, still a bit uncertain that this wasn't just a dream.
"Of course…all the time, if you wish. And I expect you to hold my hand."
Ron grinned. "No worries there." To prove his point, he reached out and grabbed her hand, and then turned his body so that she could curl up in the crook of his arm.
It wasn't until a few minutes later, just when Hermione was drifting into a comfortable, warm slumber, that Ron spoke up in surprise.
"Hermione…you said bloody."
Hermione rolled her eyes, loving all the more for things like this. She simply snuggled further into his arms, shivering slightly from pleasure when he tightened his embrace.
"Yes, well, you have had rather a bad influence over me."
A/N: So there you go. I gave you guys fluff…kissing, but probably not what you were looking for. I know and I'm sorry. I just really think that even though Ron and Lavender aren't together anymore, Hermione would want them to go slow, so they don't mess things up. There's also the fact that they are both still very unsure about Ron AND Hermione as a relationship…they fight all the time, so it's natural that they might worry that dating could potentially ruin a friendship. So, yes, while there will be lots more hugging, handholding, and just general marshmallowey goodness, there will not be any intense snogging…at least, not in the next chapter. But look for it in the chapters to come.
Sadly, this story is slowly coming to its end. I think that the next chapter will take place either at Dumbledore's funeral, or shortly after. Then I'll probably have a wrap-up/epilogue type of thing afterwards. That's just the outline I have in my head…if anyone has any ideas as to what one more chapter could be about, let me know! I heart you all SO, SO much!