A/N:Here's a one-shot for you guys :) I was flipping through HBP yesterday and I read that Hermionelookedslightlydisheveled at the party and she came up with the excuse that she was trying to hide from Cormac McLaggen. From her tone, it sounded like she wasfibbing, then again, maybe I'm being weird:-D. Anyways, the bit where she said it was a bunch of basil comes from an episode ofthetelevision show, Friends, in which Rachel is standing undermistletoe and the large unattractive superintendent(Mr. Treeger) asks if it is mistletoe to which Rachel replies, "No, that's basil." Anyways, enough of me babbling. Enjoy the story:)

Slughorn's Party

Hermione let out a deep sigh. This night was going to be a long one with Cormac. The only reason she had invited him was purely out of revenge. If she had her choice she would be here with Ron instead of this bloody git.

"Then when I was nine, I joined the England Junior Quidditch League. That is where I made two hundred and ninety-nine saves," Cormac said, waking Hermione out of her stupor.

"There is no England Junior Quidditch League," Hermione said vaguely, wishing the night would be over right now.

"Pardon me?"

"There is no England Junior Quidditch League," Hemione repeated, opening the door to Professor Slughorn's office. "If there was any such league, it would be mentioned in Quidditch Through the Ages. It's not mentioned once."

"Well…I…erm…it was a secret league of course," he stuttered, turning slightly red. Hermione supposed that he didn't think she would read a book like that as she was more into intellectual books than books about wizarding sports.

"Surely though you would have thought someone would have written about it," Hermione replied. She glanced into the room and gasped. Slughorn had definitely pulled out all the stops for this party. The walls were covered with red, green, and gold hangings. There were trays full with mead and Hermione knew that before night was over with, she would be drinking a lot of it.

"Miss Granger! Mr. McLaggen!" Slughorn called out. "How great to see you here! Come in! Enjoy the good food and drink! Miss Granger, come here I have some people that you might like to meet," he said, taking Hermione by the shoulder and dragging her to a man who was a bit shorter than Slughorn.

"Miss Granger, this is Hippocrates Smethwyk, a Healer at St. Mungo's. He is the Healer-in-Charge on the Dai Llewellyn ward. He was a student of mine a long time ago. If you have any interest in becoming a Healer, and I believe you do from your knack at Potions, he is the man to talk to."

Hermione shook the man's hand. She knew the name and tried to remember where she saw it at. Then it hit her. This was the man who was the Healer on the ward where Ron's father was last year after a large snake had bitten him.

Ron.

She had almost gotten him out of her mind and it slipped back in there.

"So," said Smethwyk, "you are interested in being a Healer?"

"I don't know yet," Hermione replied, trying to listen intently to every word the man said. She was trying to get Ron out of her mind, but it wasn't helping.

"Ho! She is very modest this one is," Slughorn laughed, slapping Hermione on the back. It seemed like Slughorn had hit the mead a bit before the party.

Hermione smiled grimly and excused herself. She walked over to the table with food on it and started to nibble on some crystallized pineapple.

"Ahem," came Cormac's voice from behind her. She groaned inwardly.

"Yes?" she replied, turning around sharply.

"I believe you are standing under mistletoe," Cormac said, leaning in a bit and pinning her to the table.

Damn, she thought, how am I going to get out of this one?

"Erm…," she started. "That's not mistletoe. That's a bunch of basil."

Cormac looked curiously up at the plant and Hermione took this split second to escape. She ran through the party, passing what looked like a vampire on the way, and out into the hallway. She walked down to an alcove and sat down.

Thoughts started flitting through her mind. Ron kissing Lavender, the one girl he knew she couldn't stand. She could deal with Parvati, but Lavender was another story. Even though Parvati acted like a stupid ditz, she was fairly smart. Lavender wasn't smart at all and was a stupid ditz.

Hermione felt tears running down her face. He told her he liked her back in fourth year after the Yule Ball, which started an argument. Nothing more was said about it until this year when she had admitted that she had liked him too.

Well, there's nothing you can do about it now, she thought. He's with Lavender now.

Standing up, she wiped the tears from her face and tried to compose herself a bit. She walked out of the alcove and into something tall and lanky.

"Hermione, what are you doing here?" asked Ron.

"I was in Slughorn's party, but I came out here for a breather. What are you doing here?"

"Prefect duties."

"How convenient," she replied coolly, trying to brush past him. He blocked her way.

"Let me by now, or I swear I'll scream bloody murder," she said, staring him down.

"We need to talk," Ron said, pushing her into the alcove as not to be seen.

"There is nothing to talk about. You're with Lavender."

"Not because I want to be."

"What?"

Ron ran a hand through his hair and started, "I love you, Hermione. You know that."

"You have a weird way of showing it," she hissed.

"You attacked me with bloody canaries! How was I supposed to react!"

"You were snogging Lavender before that! What did I do to deserve that?"

Ron stood there with his mouth open, looking particularly like a goldfish.

"And if I'm such a bad person," Hermione continued, "why did I help you out at the Quidditch tryouts?"

"What?

"That's right. At Quidditch tryouts, McLaggen missed the last shot because of me! I Confunded him so you would get onto the team! I knew how upset you were going to be if you didn't get on the team so I did a Confundus Charm on him because I wouldn't be able to stand it if you were sad. Now if you don't think that's love, I don't know what is."

Ron looked down at the ground. "Thanks," he mumbled.

"Now, if you excuse me, I have to get back to the party."

"One more thing," he said. He pinned her up against the wall and bent down. His lips pressed against hers in a kiss that was far different than the way he kissed Lavender. They kissed for what seemed like forever, until Hermione pushed Ron away.

"No," she said.

"What?"

"It's either Lavender or me. Not both of us," Hermione said, straightening her robes.

"I thought it's what you wanted!" Ron said heatedly.

"It is, but not this way. Like I said it's either me or her. You decide," she replied, turning on her heel.

"I will never understand girls! They tell you that they like you and then when you kiss them they don't want you! Is this some sort of mind game you girls like to play?" he yelled.

"How dare you! I told you I liked you and when I made fun of you for some little thing you think that's grounds to go and snog the one person I despise the most!"

"Well, what about McLaggen? Aren't you about to go and have a nice romp with him?"

"I have never and will never kiss McLaggen and you know that! I just did it to make you mad and I see now that it just makes me as low as you!" she finished, walking to Slughorn's office.

"Bloody girls," Ron said, pounding a fist into the stone wall and cursing when the pain shot through his arm.

"Just remember this," Hermione said from just outside the door, "I will always love you. Lavender will have found another guy next week when the new wears off of you." She opened the door and noise filled the air just before she slammed the door shut.