A/N: Melting Pot (18+) is a group that I run on Facebook along with a few writer friends and for the month of February we are hosting an event called the 28 Day Ship It Challenge. This means that each day has a brand new theme and, fingers crossed, you'll get a new story to read across the board of fandoms that I write for.

The first day's theme is the Ship I would make canon. Funnily enough, I managed to fit two ships into one story that I believe should have been the canon pairings in the end.

This story originally started out as as Five Sentence prompt that I wrote for xxDustNight88 on tumblr. Five sentences is a game I'm constantly running on my tumblr where you leave an ask with a first sentence and I will write you the next five lines.

Beta love as always is going out to the one and only xxDustNight88! I wouldn't know what to do without her! If you aren't one of her readers, then you definitely should become one. She's amazing.

Title: The Bet
Rating: K
Pairing: Harry/Hermione, Ron/Pansy
Summary: Harry and Hermione had kept their feelings for one another hidden for so long that many had given up hope that they would end up together. However, there were two who kept hope and even made a sport of it.

If you are interested in checking out my other works or keeping up with me in general, consider checking me out on Facebook! I have an author's page (starrnobella Fanfiction) as well as a group (starrnobella Fanfiction Friends & Fans) that I post in regularly. I'm also on Tumblr (starrnobella) where you can follow along with me as well.

Hopefully you enjoy this piece and the rest of the pieces that come out of this month! Let me know what you think!

Love always,
~starr

"Well, that happened."

"Yes, yes it did," Hermione mumbled, tossing her head back against the pillow as she contemplated her next move. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined falling into bed with the Chosen One after a few cocktails. The entire night was a bit of a blur, but she knew that this was something she wanted. After all, she had fancied him since their third year.

Looking at him out the corner of her eyes, she thought about the moment that she knew how she really felt about him. It was right after they had saved Sirius. She'd never forget the smile he wore on his face when he watched Buckbeak fly away. That smile made giving up her time travelling secret completely worth it.

Harry's movement beside her brought her back out of her thoughts and she smiled. She sighed happily when she felt his hand against her skin.

Harry propped his head up on his elbow, placing a tentative hand across her body. "I'm not sorry it happened."

Hermione smiled and turned towards him and pressed her lips against his, gently whispering, "Me either."

As she slowly pulled back, she noticed a smile toying at his lips. Looking up at him through her lashes, she returned the smile before nuzzling in closer to him, feeling his arm wrap around her waist. "What are you smiling for?"

"Would you rather I be frowning?" he laughed, squeezing her tight as he leaned down and pressed a few gentle kisses on the top of her head as he felt her shake her head beneath him. "I'm just happy."

"Me too," she mumbled, sleep beginning to take over her body. "G'night Harry."

"Good night, Hermione," Harry replied, shifting himself slightly to rest his head on the pillow.

. . . . . . . .

"Harry! Are you awake?"

"Oh shite," Hermione mumbled, jolting straight up as she covered herself to the best of her ability with the sheet Harry was currently hogging. "Harry, wake up."

She nudged him in the side with her elbow, resulting in a groan escaping his lips as he rolled over to look at her. "What time is it?"

Shaking her head, Hermione got out of bed and began searching for her clothes. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed Harry giving her a puzzled look. Just as she opened her mouth to respond, the voice came calling again followed by a pounding on the door.

"Oi, Harry. Are you in there?"

Fumbling for his glasses on the nightstand, Harry looked at Hermione and mouthed his apology. "Yeah, give me a minute."

"We're gonna be late for the match."

"I said I'll be out in a minute," Harry snapped, opening the cupboard door to grab a pair of trousers. Turning to Hermione, he frowned. She looked upset and she had every right to be.

This was going to be awkward, no matter who it had been on the other side of the door.

"This is so not what I had in mind for this morning," Hermione sighed, pulling her top over her head.

"What did you have in mind?" Harry asked, quirking his brow as he smirked.

She laughed slightly, shaking her head. "I guess you'll just have to wait to find out. I'm gonna go find Pansy. I'll see you downstairs." She walked over and kissed him gently before leaving.

As she opened the door, she found Ron standing on the other side. His expression was priceless. She tossed her head back slightly with a laugh as she walked past him. "Good morning, Ron."

"'Mione?" he mumbled, scratching his head. When Harry appeared in the doorway in front of him, Ron furrowed his brow slightly, keeping an eye on Hermione as he waited for her to round the corner. Crossing his arms over his chest, he looked at Harry and smiled.

"What?" Harry asked, reaching for the doorknob, pulling his bedroom door shut behind him.

"So, you and 'Mione?"

Harry smiled, nodding his head.

"It's about damn time," Ron replied, clapping a hand on Harry's shoulder.

. . . . . . . .

"Morning, Pans," Hermione said, smiling as she walked into the kitchen.

Looking up from the paper in front of her, Pansy was shocked by the voice that had magically appeared in her flat. A wicked smile appeared on her face when she noticed the slightly disheveled look to Hermione's appearance.

"Rough night?" Pansy asked, folding the paper in front of her.

"In a good way," Hermione replied cheekily, grabbing a coffee cup out of the cupboard and pouring herself a cup. Leaning up against the counter, she smiled.

"So who made the first move?" she laughed.

"I'm honestly not sure," Hermione replied, shaking her head slightly before taking a sip of her coffee. "We were both flirting, so I guess you could say it was inevitable that something was bound to happen."

"I told you it would."

Rolling her eyes, Hermione took a seat beside her friend. "Yeah, you and everyone else in our sixth year."

"Are you complaining?" Pansy asked, furrowing her brow. "If it's not what you want, you might want to say something before -"

"Before what?" Harry asked, entering the kitchen and interrupting Pansy's sentence, a smile beaming brightly from his face. He leaned over and kissed Hermione's cheek before pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"Before it's cold," Pansy replied, looking to Hermione who only shrugged in reply.

"Okay?" Harry questioned, looking between the two. "So what were you two talking about before I came in?"

Pansy snickered, raising her coffee cup to her lips. "You and Hermione," she said.

"I hope it was a good conversation," Harry said, taking a seat at the table and placing a hand on Hermione's lap. She smiled and interlaced her fingers in his.

"Definitely good," she whispered.

"Alright then," he replied, squeezing her hand softly.

A few moments later, Ron came into the kitchen with an unusual bounce to his step. Hermione and Pansy exchanged a momentary glance before turning their attention to him. The more attention they paid him, they soon began to realize that he was humming.

"Why are you humming?" Pansy asked, furrowing her brow.

"You owe me £14," he replied, reaching for the coffee pot and pouring himself a cup before turning to face them.

"For what?" Hermione asked, curiously.

Ron opened his mouth to respond, but Pansy quickly cut him off before he could formulate his response. "I don't owe you anything. In fact, you owe me £14."

"I don't think so, Pans. I asked Harry this morning."

"What are you two talking about?" Hermione insisted, only to be ignored as the couple continued to argue.

"Did you ask Harry or did you interpret the scenario in front of you?"

"Uh," Ron mumbled, carding a hand through his hair as he tried to remember the exact encounter he and Harry had had this morning.

"That's what I thought," Pansy said proudly, crossing her arms over her chest. "It was a spur of the moment thing, not something planned. Therefore, you owe me £14."

"You two were betting on us?!" Hermione exclaimed, jumping up from her seat and slapping her hands on the table. "I can't believe this."

"Come on, Hermione. Half of Hogwarts was betting on you two, but you took too long. Ron and I were the only ones still holding out hope," Pansy said, reaching a gentle hand up to console her friend.

Fighting the urge to roll her eyes, Hermione sat back down and crossed her arms over her chest, exhaling sharply. "I can't believe you two were betting on when we'd get together."

"Actually," Ron chimed in. "We were betting on how…"

"Not helping!" Hermione hissed, glaring back at him over her shoulder.

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance of concern before turning the attention back to Hermione. Harry leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, causing her face to soften as a smile played at her lips.

"You aren't mad at them are you?" he whispered.

Sighing, she shook her head. "No. I knew about the bets at Hogwarts, I just wasn't expecting them to follow me into my twenties."