"He asked you to what?" Ginny exclaimed loudly when Hermione told her that the pair was meeting up so that he could return Hogwarts: A History directly into her competent care.
"It's nothing Ginny," Hermione stressed. "He seems really shy. I don't know how many friends he has here. He's probably lonely." Hermione could relate to that. In third year when neither Ron nor Harry was talking to her she had felt as though she'd never be happy again. Viktor may be a world renowned quidditch player and a triwizard champion but he was still a teenage boy. Both insecure and bad in situations outside of his comfort zone.
"Whatever you say Hermione," Ginny said adding and eye role to her steaming heap of sarcasm. "So," she said and looked a little guilty for asking. "What's he like up close? Is he really handsome?" Hermione thought about it for a second before nodding.
"Yeah, I guess. If you like that sort of thing." Ginny looked disbelieving and Hermione restrained from rolling her own eyes at Ginny.
"Hermione, he's everyone's type," she said with a sigh flopping back onto her mattress. Hermione giggled at her melodramatics but shook her head.
"I thought you like Harry?" Hermione asked. She knew this was unfair. Ginny obviously like Harry but he didn't seem to view her in any way other than that of his best friend's little sister. Besides didn't people say you could look and not touch?
"I do," Ginny confessed, "But that doesn't mean that I can't window shop occasionally." Hermione laughed but Ginny wasn't done yet. "It doesn't mean that you can't either you know." Now it was Hermione's turn to blush and avert her eyes. Ginny sat up again dragging a pillow from the top of her bed and cradling it against her chest.
"You know exactly what I mean Hermione Granger. You like my brother." Hermione felt her cheeks begin to redden but she didn't bother trying to deny it. Ginny was her closest female friends and Ron's sister. She shouldn't keep something like this from her.
"I think he likes you too," Ginny said a mischievous tone in her voice she nudged Hermione with her elbow but Hermione didn't nudge her back. Instead she shook her head.
"If he liked me he would have asked me to the Yule Ball by now," she said hating how soft her voice had become
"It's okay Hermione." Ginny's voice was soft and she laid her hand on Hermione's arm. "He's extremely stubborn and pig headed. His heart is telling him one thing but his head is probably tell him that if he tries anything he'll make a mess of it." He was stubborn.
The girls sat in silence for a while and eventually Hermione noticed that Ginny was beginning to yawn so she bade her friend goodnight giving her a hug. An unspoken thank you for the comfort she had just offered.
Downstairs the common room was empty with most students having long gone to bed. Hermione was about to gather her school bag from the window seat where she had left it earlier when she noticed Ron sitting on one of their favourite chairs by the fireplace. He had a chess board set up in front of him and appeared to be battling it out against himself. He turned when he heard her approach and smiled at her.
"Fancy a game?" he asked already anticipating her affirmative answer and began returning the pieces to their original places. She allowed herself to collapse into the squishy red arm chair across from Ron and allowed herself to examine him as he set about organizing the board.
She felt slightly lightheaded like the time she tried some champagne at her cousin's wedding as she watched a small bit of his red hair fall across his forehead. Ginny was right, he really did need a haircut but she liked his hair long. His freckles stood out against his pale skin and she marvelled over the strange, new urge she had to count and celebrate each one.
Ron made the first move, moving a pawn. Hermione mirrored his action and they played in silence. In a shorter time that Hermione would have liked Ron beat her.
"Checkmate," he said with a smug grin which he tried to hide. Hermione groaned loudly and leaned back in her chair rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand.
"You are unreasonably good at this game Ron. Next time I get to pick the game." Mentally she pictured herself victorious over him after a game of Scrabble. Ron just laughed and began to place the pieces back into their box.
She didn't know what spurred her onwards, maybe it was the late hour or her talk with Ginny but she decided to bring up the dance outright.
"So, Ron," she said trying to keep her tone brusque. "What are your plans for the Yule Ball? Have you asked anyone yet?" Ron's ears grew slightly red but he continued putting away the chess pieces as if he wasn't flustered by what she had just asked him.
"No," he answered. "But I'm going to." Hermione's heart seemed to double in speed and she held her breath. Merlin! He was going to ask her. Ginny was right all along. All he needed was some gentle prodding and he'd get the idea that she wanted him to ask her.
"Yeah?" she said struggling to keep her tone neutral and hoping her excitement didn't show through her voice. "Who's the lucky girl?" But what she really wanted to ask was 'Me?'.
Ron shrugged before continuing. "You'll only laugh at me," he said and Hermione scooted forward to the edge of her seat placing one hand on the coffee table between them wishing desperately it was his hand she was touching.
"I won't Ron," she promised in the soft voice that she only ever used or wanted to use with him. He looked up at her and she smiled as his clear blue eyes locked with hers. This was it. He was going to ask her and everything was going to change…
"Fleur. Fleur delacour." Hermione jumped back as if he had slapped her. Fleur? What?
Hermione couldn't help the red flush that spread up her neck and stained her cheeks. How had she been so naïve and stupid to think that he would take her? He didn't even see her as girl. She was simply his androgynous best friend. Inside her she felt her fantasy of what the Yule Ball would be crumple up and die a fiery death.
"I've got to go to bed," Hermione said sharply standing up. Ron looked up at her seemingly taken aback at the sudden change in her tone.
"Goodnight," he called as she ran up the stone steps to her dorm room barely remembering to bring her school bag. Once she reached the door of her dorm room she paused. Inside she could hear Lavender and Parvati talking and she didn't want to have to listen to their idle chatter when all she wanted to do was wallow in her own despair.
No. She wasn't going to let Ron get to her. She was just going to have to find her own date to the ball. Just because Ron didn't want to go with her didn't mean that no one else didn't. Hogwarts was big enough. Besides she could always ask a student from one of the lower years if need be.
Hermione felt stronger and went into bed confident in her resolve that this time tomorrow she will have successfully snagged a date to the Yule Ball and that date was not under any circumstances going to be Ronald Weasley.
Okay it has been months since I finished chapter two of this but I recently was flicking through old PC files and I found chapters one and two. I reread them and decided to take up where I left off. Remember review = 3