Pansy

„You know why I don't want to do this yet", Hermione said once again, annoyance evident in her voice. We had been moving into a dead end in our discussion and it was annoying the hell out of me. I had no intention of being pushy, after all it was a rather big step, but lately I had gotten the feeling she was simply skirting around the real issue of her reluctance to come out in front of the school. That she was simply delaying the inevitable fallout with Ron and all the unwanted media attention it would draw when it became clear that Hermione was dating a girl.

"You know what? You're nothing but a coward!" I knew this statement was liable to get me slapped, but it felt good to finally let go of a the frustration that had been building inside me every time we had had this discussion over the last few weeks. It would always end in a fight anyways, so why not speed that process up a bit?

I was quite right: I got an angry huff and a slap to the face, followed by an almost diva-esque storm off. Do not get me wrong, I understood her fear, but , hell, all she would have to loose was a little bit of public status. Her family was already okay with us, two of her best friends did so as well, and knowing the Weasleys both Ron and the rest of the family would come to terms with our relationship as well. She was not the one who put all her eggs in one basket. The day we would come out everybody I would have left was Hermione. My family would turn their backs on me, and the few of the friends I could actually call friends would do so most likely as well. Yet she was the one who was stalling.

I knew for sure now that she would not be the one to suggest a coming out ever. I was the one who would have make our relationship public. But then again, planning had always been my strong suit. Because, how could I be a good Slytherin without being cunning?

H/P

Okay, so maybe there was not that much to be planned about this, but still. I had an idea and I would pull through with it. It was dinnertime, and everyone was sitting in the great hall eating. Hermione was, too, I could see her sitting amongst the other Gryffindors on the other side of the hall at their table. I took one more deep, steadying breath. I had not been nervous about it before, but now I nearly bailed. There was just so much to lose should I be wrong about her reaction. I really did not want to lose her. But I also knew that no healthy relationship would come out of this if we just kept hiding our love away. I had to know what I was to her. And, as often as she told me I was not her dirty little secret, her actions spoke another language.

I stood up and made my way across the hall towards the Gryffindor table. I could already feel the first eyes on me. Usually, if a Slytherin walked over to the Gryffindor table, it meant that they wanted to pick a fight. And who should know that that was not my intention, other than Hermione, Harry and Ginny, who sat with their backs to me, blissfully unaware of what was about to come.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I reached the Gryffindor table and leaned across Hermione's shoulder.

"Missed me?", I whispered into her ear.

"Hmm", she mumbled and leaned back into me, before, a moment later, she seemed to realize where we were.

"What one earth are you doing here", she hissed lowly, turning around to me.

"If you don't want to, just slap me", I whispered, without really answering her question. I did not want to force her to choose me, so I had to give her an alternative so she could back out with her dignity unharmed if she wanted to. But God, did I want her not to!

Softly, I put my hands on her cheeks and kissed her, as gently as I could. I poured all my love for her into that kiss. Love. Such a strong word, yet I knew that if I had ever felt anything that could be love, it would be what I felt for Hermione.

Hermione

Pansy was kissing me. That on its own was nothing out of the ordinary, after all she did so quite often, but right now she was kissing me in the great hall, in front of the whole school! What shook me even more was what she had said in before. If you don't want to, just slap me. Did she really think I would just shove her away if she kissed me in public? Had I ever given her a reason to? Looking back now, I had given her quite a few reasons. The only person I had told about us on my own free will had been Harry. Ginny and my parents had found out by accident, and whenever she had wanted to tell someone else, I had vetoed the idea.

I wrapped my arms around her neck and kissed her back gently.

"I really haven't been a very good girlfriend lately, have I?", I asked her, feeling ashamed that I had not even realized how much I hurt her with my insecurity.

"Don't be so harsh on yourself, 'Mione", she said before sprouting a wicked grin. "But, if you still think you need to apologize, I am sure I could think of ways for you to do so."

"Good God, no, nothing of this here", Ginny groaned from our left, effectively killing our mood. Given the fact that we were still sitting in the great hall with everybody's eyes on us, it was probably better that way. "I've already seen more than enough of horny Hermione to last a lifetime."

"Totally your own fault", I shot back. After all, she was the one who had drugged me.

"What?", Ron exclaimed loudly, finally waking from his stupor. I inwardly sighed. Time to face the music.