A/N: Just got home from our annual Christmas concert. Inspired me a bit. =]
Hermione rounded the corner, her butterflies tickling the inside of her stomach. She almost stopped short when she saw him. He was even more handsome than usual. His hair fell slightly in front of his eyes; his suit fit him to perfection. One side of his mouth pulled up into a crooked smile when he saw her. At that moment, all of Hermione's fears melted away. She smiled back, sure that she had made the right decision in attending the ball with Draco.
He held his arm out. She placed her hand in his elbow and smiled shyly up at him. His icy eyes danced with joy. Like a child getting his Christmas present early. And, in a way, she guessed he was.
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As soon as Ginny and Harry walked into the Great Hall, Ginny suggested he go get them some punch. Right after he departed, she went to find Ron. She knew Hermione and Draco would show up soon, and she didn't intend to let Ron get blindsided by their appearance.
After a couple of minutes of increasing panic, Ginny found her brother off to the side of the floor, laughing with Lavender. Harry had managed to find Ron in the mess while Ginny was looking. She walked up to the trio, and cleared her throat.
"Boys, I have something to say." Ron and Harry looked at Ginny, unsure of how to react. "Hermione has decided to attend the ball."
Ron glanced quickly at the door, as if she would be standing there waiting for him. Looking back at his younger sister, he inquired, "Is she here yet?"
Ginny took a breath. 'Now or never,' she thought. "No. She's not. But she'll be here soon… With her date." She looked pointedly at Ron.
He stood there for a moment, as if he had not heard her correctly. "Date? But who would she go with?"
Ginny sighed. "I know you won't like it, but here it is: Draco Malfoy is madly in love with her. But he doesn't know it yet. And neither does she. But you are not going to mess it up for them, Ronald."
Ron turned a slight shade of pink. "Why would I want to ruin that? She's my friend. Sure, we may have a thing at one point…" He didn't finish his sentence; he didn't have to.
Ginny then turned her attention to Harry, taking a different approach. "Look, sweetie, I know he's not your favorite person. But think about it for a moment. They are amazingly well matched in intelligence. Even more so in passion; look at the way they used to fight all the time. There's a thin line between love and hate, and I think they're crossing it. I just want her to be happy."
Harry's face remained emotionless throughout her speech, but as soon as she finished, he let a small smile slip through. "I know. And I want her to be happy, too. But I just want what's best for her first."
Ginny slipped her hand into Harry's and smiled at him. "I know. But I think in this case, it's the exact same thing."
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Draco and Hermione walked into the Great Hall arm in arm. Its transformation took Hermione's breath away. "It's beautiful," Hermione said, dropping her hand from his arm.
The centerpieces for all the tables were small arrangements of poinsettias. Sprigs of mistletoe were charmed to float at random intervals above peoples' heads. The teachers' table had been replaced with the largest Christmas tree Hermione had ever seen. It was decorated with red, green, yellow, and blue ornaments to represent the four houses. The star on top of the tree was iridescent, shining with every color imaginable. Snow was charmed to fall slowly from the ceiling, but disappeared before it reached the heads of the students.
"I designed it with you in mind," Draco whispered in her ear. She glanced at him, smiling.
She shook her head. "You really are something. You know that, right?"
He smiled back at her. "Why, of course I am, dear Hermione. Everything is something."
She rolled her eyes and scanned the floor for her closest friends. His slender, pale hand entered her vision. He was pointing to a table pushed off to the side of the floor, where Harry, Ginny, Ron, Lavender, Neville, and Luna were sitting.
Hermione looked up at Draco, suddenly hyper-aware of everyone's eyes on them.
He half-smiled. "They're staring, and we haven't even made our entrance yet."
Hermione laughed. "Oh, making an entrance, are we?"
His grin faltered. "No, were you wanting one?"
Her smile widened. "Not at all. I just wanted to grab some punch and bask in the glory of our meticulous planning."
He took her hand and began navigating around the dance floor. "Then let's go get some punch, but we're going to dance eventually."
Hermione blushed slightly, his hand warm in hers. "I don't really dance, Draco."
He nudged her with his elbow. "It's okay. Just follow my lead. I'll let you sit out when they play the waltz."
She smiled, realizing he was joking. They reached the refreshment table, covered in assortments of drinks and snacks sent up from the kitchens. The dishes were charmed to refill when they got low. Draco handed Hermione a cup and she filled it with the pink-orange liquid of sherbet punch. Draco filled his cup with the punch after Hermione.
As they made their way back around, Draco asked Hermione, "Do you want to go sit with your friends?"
Hermione's eyebrows pulled together. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, and she looked over at their table. "Well, yes. But not really. I want to go talk to them, but I don't want to have to put up with Ron and his attitude…"
Half of Draco's mouth pulled up, his crooked smile making another appearance. "I don't think you'll have to worry about Ron's attitude."
Hermione looked up at Draco, confused. He smiled completely and pointed over to the group, where Ginny was giving Ron a look that would have made Mrs. Weasley proud.
Draco squeezed Hermione's fingers and led her the rest of the way to the occupied table. Five pairs of eyes looked up at the couple. Ginny, Luna, and Lavender beamed at them. Neville gave a small smile. Harry nodded, but looked weary. Ron picked at his napkin, refusing to look at Hermione and her date.
Lavender broke the silence first. "Hermione, you look absolutely ravishing."
Hermione blushed and smiled shyly. "Thanks, but it wouldn't have been possible without Ginny. And, Lavender, you look pretty amazing yourself. Doesn't she, Ron?"
Ron looked at Lavender for a moment, and then responded, "Yeah, she looks good."
Lavender looked disappointed. She turned to Hermione. She raised her eyebrows, lifted one shoulder, and then let it fall back down, as if to say, 'Oh well. You tried.'
Luna smiled serenely and turned to Neville. "Would you like to dance?"
He turned a slight shade of pink and murmured his assent. Hermione and Draco took their seats. The group sat in silence for a few moments, each one sipping from their cups.
Ginny cleared her throat. "So, we have you two to thank for the wonderful ball tonight."
Draco smiled slightly. "Well, actually, most of this was Hermione's planning. I just did what she told me to."
Hermione laughed. "That's not true at all. Draco designed almost all of this. He really quite enjoys Christmas, much to my surprise. You should see our common room. He decorated it all himself."
Ginny chuckled, and Harry smiled. Ron gave no indication that he was aware anyone had spoken. Lavender was quiet, but half-smiled in Hermione's direction.
Feeling the tension grow, Draco turned to Hermione. "Well, I promised you I'd show how to dance. Want to go now?"
Hermione smiled at Draco and turned back to the rest of the table. "I'll see you guys later."
Draco stood up and offered his hand to Hermione. She smiled and took it before getting up to walk with him to the dance floor.
Ginny turned to Harry. "See? I told you he loves her."
Harry smiled at Ginny. "I know the signs when I see them, Darling, and I believe you may be right. So, would you like to dance?"
Ginny beamed. "I would love to, Harry."
After they were gone, Lavender looked across the table at Ron. "Ron, if you loved her, you should have let her know. She liked you starting around third year. After the ball in fourth year, she cried. All night long, she tossed and turned. Around three in the morning, she left. I followed her. She went to the library, curled up between two shelves of books, and cried some more. I let her finish crying, and then sat down beside her. She didn't even look up at me. She just said, 'Why do I love him so much?' But she didn't cry again. She just sat there, looking hopeless. The next day, she was back to normal. But I could tell. She was changed."
Ron looked slowly up at Lavender. "But, sixth year…"
Lavender looked at her lap. "That's what took her by surprise. But we were never really friends, so it wasn't a betrayal. It was just… you were you. And I thought Hermione had moved on."
Ron nodded, his eyes distant. "When we came back from hiding, I told Hermione that I loved her. Her face fell. And I knew right then, at that moment, that I had waited too long. I let her get away from me."
Lavender looked up at him from under her lashes. "And what was I to you?"
He focused on the girl on front of him. "You were my girl. There were times when I wanted to go hang out with my friends, sure. But you were mine."
She looked back down at her hands, clasped on top of her legs. "I shouldn't have pushed you. You weren't ready for what I had to offer." She looked him in the eye. "I'm not offering the same thing anymore. I'm not the person I was. The war changed me. But you, of all people, should know what that's like."
Ron smiled, surprised. "Yes, I know exactly what you mean. We've both matured since sixth year."
Her eyes became hopeful. "So, would you be willing to try again?"
His grin grew. "But this time, a mature relationship. With time together, and apart. And we'll shop for Christmas presents together."
She giggled. "I'm sorry about that, by the way. I plead temporary insanity."
Ron laughed. "It's okay. I've still got it somewhere in my room."
She rolled her eyes, smiling. "Oh, gosh, throw it away. Please, for the love of Merlin, throw that away."
"No, I'm going to keep it forever. If I can find it." He stood up and walked around the table. "Now, Lavender Brown, would you like to go have your toes stepped on by my two left feet?"
She smiled and took his offered hand. "Ronald Weasley, there's nothing I would like more."
A/N: It is now snowing here! :D Okay, well, this was more of a filler chapter, which I hate, and I am extremely sorry for. But I really kinda wanted to explore the Ron/ Lavender relationship. The final chapter should go up on Christmas Eve, if I can time it correctly. Thanks for reading. Please review. (: