Chapter 3

- Flashback Hermione, two years ago -

"Oh, come on, Ron… that's not how it goes. You're supposed to crush it with the back of your knife. Not with the sharp side, you'll smash it to bits," said Hermione impatiently as she peered over the cauldron to watch Ron handle the fig.

"Then you do it!" said Ron grumpily. "I feel like you haven't lifted a finger, you're just hissing instructions in my ear."

"I'm just taking the time to go through everything properly before randomly chopping up every ingredient!" she replied indignantly. She knew she was being unreasonable. But it hadn't been a good week; she had received a letter from her parents a few days ago that her aunt had passed away, at far too young an age. Because Ron hadn't joined them for breakfast, lunch, or dinner for a week, she hadn't been able to tell him yet. And somehow that annoyed her immensely and made her feel even more sad.

Ron was, of course, oblivious to this.

"Why are you even still taking this class?" he asked angrily. "It has nothing to do with international law."

"As I've explained to you so many times: I like to keep my options open. Plus, with all the subjects that are standard on my schedule, I have quite a bit of free time."

"With that free time, you could have done something fun instead of bothering people during Complex Potions who actually need the subject for their careers."

"Ron, stop!" Hermione looked at him angrily. Tears welled up in her eyes. Didn't he see that there was more going on?

"Okay, okay," said Ron after a brief glance at her. He resumed crushing the fig, this time with slightly less aggression.

It was quiet between them for the rest of the class, except for some polite exchanges, all related to the potion that was bubbling in the kettle in front of them.

At the end of the lesson, Hermione quickly left the room. She didn't feel like being in the same room as Ron any longer and pretending that everything was fine.

"Wait, Hermione!" Ron called out as he chased after her. Hermione turned around and stopped halfway down the corridor. She didn't care that she looked so grumpy that several students passing by pointed and giggled.

Ron stopped when there was a meter's distance between them, crossing his arms.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked angrily.

"Merlin's beard, what do you mean, 'what do you mean'? You've been acting all class as if you'd rather pour the contents of the cauldron over my head."

"And why do you care how I feel?" Hermione asked sharply. She was no longer beating around the bush, he was just asking for it.

"Why wouldn't I care?" Ron asked, genuinely surprised. What an idiot he could be.

Hermione had to restrain herself from screaming. "Because for weeks now, you've hardly been joining us for breakfast! Because for days, you haven't spoken to me at all! Because you avoid my gaze when I look at you questioningly during breakfast! That's why!" She brushed away a lock of hair that had fallen in front of her eye during her tirade and stared at Ron angrily.

Ron was silent for a moment and stared at the ground. After a beat or two, he looked up and said in a soft, but not very friendly tone, "I'm sorry that I've also found new friends for once. You've done that too, haven't you?"

"Parvati, you mean?" Hermione asked sharply.

"Yes, her, to whom you said the other day that you were glad that you didn't have to hang out with me and Harry all the time anymore."

Hermione felt herself turning red. "That wasn't... I mean..."

"That wasn't something I was supposed to hear? No, I thought as much."

"I only said that because I was mad at you! You didn't show up for our lunch together that day, because you had to be with the boys again!"

"What lunch together?"

"Really? We agreed to have lunch together, two weeks ago. On Saturday, remember?"

Ron gave her a piercing look. It was clear that he was wracking his brain.

"I had a training that day," he said then.

"Yeah, right."

"And why did you want to have lunch with me anyway if you're glad to be rid of me?"

"Ron! You know that's not true!"

"Then why do you spend almost all your time with Parvati?"

Hermione didn't even know what to say anymore. She felt exhausted, as if she had just run a half marathon. It remained quiet as they looked at each other expressionlessly.

"For me, it's clear now that we're not so important to you anymore," she said then. But the words she had actually wanted to say echoed between them: It's clear that I'm not so important to you anymore.

"It's clear to me that you've already found a replacement for me," said Ron.

Part of Hermione wanted to scream, to yell that this wasn't true, that it could never be true, that no one could ever be a replacement for Ron. But she said nothing. She turned around and strode away down the long corridor. She didn't know that Ron watched her until she turned the corner.

- Hermione -

And now, two years later, Hermione stood nervously in front of the mirror in her room, waiting for Ron to come and pick her up for the first night in two years that they would be in each other's company. The entire evening.

When there was a knock on the door, she was startled due to the early hour. But upon opening the door, she saw Ginny standing there. Her striking red hair cascaded in a long braid over her shoulder, and from her makeup, it was evident that Ginny also had plans to go out tonight.

"Hey!" Ginny said with a grin, in a way that reminded Hermione of Ron. "I was just about to invite you to go out with Harry and me, but it looks like you already have plans for tonight!" She gestured towards Hermione's black skirt and tights.

"Uh, yeah," Hermione replied.

"With whom?" Ginny asked curiously. She breezed past Hermione into the room and sat down on the bed. It was clear what she was trying to convey the message: I'm not leaving until I get answers.

Hermione sighed and said, "Don't freak out. I'm going with Ron and the whole gang to one of those Muggle pubs in London."

Ginny's mouth curled into a broad grin. "Great idea," she declared. "Harry and I are coming along tonight too."

"No way!" Hermione immediately felt considerably relieved. If Ginny and Harry were there, at least it would be less awkward.

"Yes way," Ginny said. "Harry wanted to come along for once, but he said he wanted me there too, just in case all the girls come flocking to him because he saved the world and all that."

Hermione chuckled.

"You know how he is," Ginny said. "Any other guy would gladly welcome that attention, but Harry just wants to be left alone."

"And he loves you," Hermione added.

Ginny grinned mischievously. "That too," she admitted. "But uh..." she said in a tone indicating she was getting to the point, "are you going to wear that?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's probably not sexy enough for you?" she said.

"Right on the money," Ginny said as she sprang up from the bed and opened Hermione's closet.

- Ron -

When the door to Hermione's room opened, he had expected anything but his little sister to answer it.

"Good evening," Ginny said cheerfully.

"What are you doing here?" Ron said in a tone that could be described as mildly aggressive.

"Well, well, what a way of greeting your favourite sister."

"Only sister."

"I'm also very excited to see you again, dear brother," Ginny said in a tone as if she was deeply offended. And then, in a normal tone, "I'm coming along, of course."

"And who invited you then? Oh, Harry, of course," he said indifferently. "Well, fine."

"As if I need your permission," said Ginny.

Ron ignored her. "Hermione, are you ready?" he called.

"Yes," came the reply from inside the room, followed by hurried footsteps coming his way. Ginny stepped aside so Hermione could come out.

"Okay, I think I have everything," Hermione said, rummaging in her bag.

Ron normally didn't pay much attention to clothing, especially not to girls' clothes, but this time he did notice that Hermione was wearing something she normally never wore.

He tried not to look at her slender waist or her beautiful bare legs emerging from the fabric. He also tried not to look at her bare neck, where her collarbones were clearly visible. And he certainly tried not to look at her breasts, beautifully accentuated in that tight blue dress.

"Nice," he replied, a bit too late and with a voice that cracked. He saw Ginny raise her eyebrows out of the corner of his eye. He deliberately didn't look at her.

He escorted Hermione and Ginny to the fireplace in the common room of the student house. There, Harry was already slouched in a chair, waiting.

"Great! Hermione is coming!" he said cheerfully when he saw them.

"At some point, it had to happen," said Hermione. She sounded nervous.

"Have you really never tasted the nightlife?" Ron asked her as he took a can of Floo Powder from the cabinet next to the fireplace. "Not even when you were in Paris with Parvati?"

"No," said Hermione. "I never felt the need."

"You're not missing out on much," said Harry.

"You don't have to come, mate," said Ron as he sprinkled some powder into the fireplace.

"But we're going," Ginny said quickly.

A few minutes later, when all four of them had landed neatly in the fireplace of a dirty-looking pub in London, Ron clapped his hands excitedly.

"Okay, most of the group should already be at the Spike, a few streets away. Nobody brought their wands, right? Just follow me." He pushed open the creaking door of the pub and led the others into the crowded street where hundreds of Muggles were already present. Many of them were already somewhat tipsy.

The Spike was as crowded and hot as ever. It was a large pub, consisting of two floors. But Ron knew he didn't have to look on the upper floor: his friends were always on the ground floor.

"Hey!" shouted Oscar, one of his friends. The boy waved enthusiastically at them from a few meters away.

"There they are," Ron shouted to the rest. He grabbed Hermione's arm and made his way through the crowd, pulling her along.

When they reached the group, the four of them were immediately handed a glass of beer.

"My round!" Jacques shouted to them.

"Thanks, mate!" grinned Ron.

Some in the group hadn't met Hermione and Ginny yet, including Oscar. When he introduced the girls to the group, he saw that Oscar let his eyes linger on Hermione for quite some time. Too long, if you asked him. Hermione smiled at Oscar, in a way that made Ron feel that he had to drag her away from him. He suppressed that urge and forced himself to start a conversation with Harry. Jealous remarks had led nowhere in their fourth year, when Hermione went to the ball with Krum. So leave it, Ron, he told himself.

He chatted with Harry about everyday things but kept a close eye on Hermione, who was now engaged in an animated conversation with Oscar. He got very close to her, and Hermione laughed at everything he said. Occasionally, she lifted the glass of beer to her lips to take a tiny sip. Ron paid less and less attention to what Harry was saying and just nodded, meanwhile keeping an eye on Oscar.

"And then," said Harry, to test if Ron was still listening, "I replaced one of the Bludgers by a huge pink marshmallow."

"Okay," Ron said, pretending to be interested. He stared at Oscar's hand on Hermione's shoulder.

"When the Bludger hit the opponent's Bludger, it exploded."

"Uh-huh," said Ron, still not listening to Harry.

"But because it was already quite expired, a really bad smell was released, causing the entire audience to faint."

"You're kidding me," said Ron, undisturbed.

"Ron!" Harry punched Ron's shoulder with his fist. He looked around startled.

"What?"

"You haven't heard a word of what I said. I was telling a story that was no less than those dreams we made up for Divination lessons."

"Sorry, man, really, but I have to ask Hermione something real quick." Ron left a surprised and slightly irritated Harry behind.

- Hermione -

Oscar was amusing. While she talked and laughed with him, she forgot for a moment that Ron wasn't standing next to her anymore. But not for long, because after a few minutes, she felt a hand on her upper arm.

"Sorry, borrowing Hermione for a moment, alright?" Ron said with a forced smile to Oscar, and without waiting for Oscar's response, he pulled her away. A little further down the room, he stopped and pulled her close to say something in her ear. Hermione's body tingled all over when he stood so close, feeling his warm breath at her cheek.

"I forgot to warn you," he said.

Hermione looked at him questioningly. "Warn me about what, if I may ask?"

"About guys like him," Ron answered, as though it was immediately clear what he meant.

"Oscar is nice," Hermione said. "What do you mean?"

"Yes, he's definitely nice, but he's also a flirt," Ron said. "You wouldn't believe how many girls he has flirted with this month."

"And I suppose you never flirt with girls, do you?"

"As a matter of fact, I hardly ever flirt with girls," Ron said, sounding somewhat defensive.

Hermione found it typical that, as he said this, his hand landed on Hermione's back. Feeling his hand there was so incredible that she wanted to say anything that made this conversation last longer.

"But why can't I just talk to him?" she said, laughing a bit as she turned her head to look at him.

"Of course you can talk to him," Ron said apologetically, "but just don't… let him try to kiss you or anything, okay?"

"I'm not your little sister, am I?" Hermione teased.

"Believe me, Hermione," he said in a low voice as he came even closer to her ear, "I know."

He withdrew his hand from her back and then turned around. Hermione was left with the painfully cliché flutter of butterflies in her stomach, weak knees, and the feeling that something was missing on her back.