This chapter will have dialogue and parts of my fic Twelve Kisses in it. And I promise these moments will not take away from THE kiss in Deathly Hallows. But come on now. Let's be real here. They had been kissing way before Harry had seen.

Chapter 172: Confused

Dear Bill,

IF YOU BLAB TO MUM OR THE TWINS, I'LL HEX YOU!

I've gotten myself a girlfriend. No, not Hermione. She barely even talks to me these days. Matter of fact, the last words she said to me was the spell that she used to sic fucking canaries on me.

Anyways, her name is Lavender Brown. I know, I know, she is named after a color, don't even start. But she's great actually. She's really hot with blonde hair, and blue eyes, and a right nice face. She cheers me on a lot, and she always has something positive to say, unlike Hermione.

I forgot to tell you. Hermione has been lying to me about everything. She lied to me about snogging that fucker Krum, and she lied about me playing Quidditch. I can only imagine what else she has lied about.

She seems to not want shit to do with me anymore, and while I felt a little down about it, I got over that very quickly. I mean come on! What's wrong with me having a girlfriend? She didn't act like she fancied me, so what did I look like waiting around when there was a perfectly acceptable witch that fancied me?

Well, I got to go, Lavender wants to go "study." That's code for we are going to find somewhere to snog.

Love,

Ron.

Snow was swirling against the icy windows once more; Christmas was approaching fast. Hagrid had already singlehandedly delivered the usual twelve Christmas trees to the Great Hall; garlands of holly and tinsel had been twisted around the banisters of the stairs; everlasting candles glowed from inside the helmets of suits of armor and great bunches of mistletoe had been hung at intervals along the corridors. Large groups of girls tended to converge underneath the mistletoe bunches every time Harry went past, which caused blockages in the corridors. Seemed like every witch in Hogwarts wanted a piece of the Chosen One

I was a lot happier these days. Lavender was a great girl. She didn't care about my family being blood traitors, she didn't care about my grades she didn't care that I was a Weasley, and she didn't care that I was poor. She always had an encouraging word to say, and she always cheered me on. Something that Hermione hardly did anymore. Matter of fact, ever since she had attacked me, we had not spoken. Once again, Harry was the unfortunate victim of Hermione and I icing each other out.

Harry would try every now and then to get me to talk to her. However, as my hands and forearms still bore scratches and cuts from her bird attack, I really didn't want anything to do with a reconciliation.

"She can't complain," I told Harry. "She snogged Krum. So she's found out someone wants to snog me too. Well, it's a free country. I haven't done anything wrong."

Harry did not answer.

"I never promised Hermione anything," I continued. "I mean, all right, I was going to go to Slughorn's Christmas party with her, but she never said... just as friends... I'm a free agent."

Harry continued to pretend to read his book. Why wasn't he agreeing with me? I was right! Wasn't I?

"She shouldn't have lied.." I mumbled more to myself. "This is all her fault."

I was spending a lot of my time with Lavender these days. We would be all over the school. In classrooms, broom closets, the common room, we didn't really care. It felt like some sort of weird honeymoon.

Kissing her was great and I had no complaints about it. The only thing was that we really didn't take a lot of time getting to know each other. Besides what I learned through observation over the years, I really didn't know much about her. Other than she was cute, her favorite color was pink (despite her name being a shade of purple), she liked Peppermint Toads a lot, she liked using colorful ink instead of black, her best friend was Parvati, she was good at Divination, and she liked smelling like apples.

But other than that, zilch.

It wasn't like I didn't try to have conversations with her. I really would try. However, it seemed she was more interested in snogging than talking, which really didn't bother me.

One Transfiguration lesson we had just embarked upon the immensely difficult topic of human transfiguration; working in front of mirrors, we were supposed to be changing the color of our own eyebrows. Hermione laughed unkindly at my disastrous first attempt, during which I somehow managed to give myself a spectacular handlebar mustache; I retaliated by doing a cruel but accurate impression of Hermione jumping up and down in her seat every time Professor McGonagall asked a question, which Lavender and Parvati found deeply amusing. Unfortunately, Hermione didn't find it too amusing, and raced out of the classroom on the bell, leaving half her things behind, crying as she went.

I couldn't help but feel horrible about that. I was tempted to go and find her to apologize, but Lavender pulled me into the other direction, saying that she needed to talk to me about something important.

At dinner, Harry caught up with me and told me that he had asked Luna to Slughorn's party.

"You could've taken anyone!" I said in disbelief. "Anyone! And you chose Loony Lovegood?"

"Don't call her that, Ron!" snapped Ginny, pausing behind Harry on her way to join friends. "I'm really glad you're taking her Harry, she's so excited."

I watched Ginny walked over to Dean. I couldn't help but notice Hermione sitting at the end of the table, looking miserable.

"You could say sorry," suggested Harry bluntly.

"What, and get attacked by another flock of canaries?" I muttered.

"What did you have to imitate her for?"

"She laughed at my mustache!"

"So did I, it was the stupidest thing I've ever seen."

He couldn't have been more right, but before I could respond, Lavender had just arrived with Parvati. Squeezing herself in between Harry and I, Lavender flung her arms around my neck.

"I missed you so much Won-Won!" she squeaked.

That was one thing that did annoy me about her. She had started calling me this stupid fucking nickname. At first I had found it to be an adorable slip of the tongue. But now?

"I only saw you like a half hour ago." I said, putting my arm around her.

"I know that, but it seemed like much much longer!" said Lavender, showing my cheek with kisses.

"Oh, hi, Hermione!" I heard Parvati say from the other side of Harry.

I looked out the corner of my eye and seen Hermione beaming at her. Lavender turned my head and began snogging me, but something told me to actually pay attention to Hermione and Parvati's conversation.

"Hi, Parvati!" said Hermione. "Are you going to Slughorn's party tonight?"

"No invite," said Parvati gloomily. "I'd love to go, though, it sounds like it's going to be really good... you're going, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm meeting Cormac at eight, and we're-"

There was a noise like a plunger being withdrawn from a blocked sink and I forced myself from Lavender'# lips and turned my head so hard to face Hermione that my neck had hurt. Hermione acted as though she had not seen or heard anything.

"-we're going up to the party together."

"Cormac?" said Parvati. "Cormac McLaggen, you mean?"

"That's right," said Hermione sweetly. "The one who almost became Gryffindor Keeper."

The fuck?

"Are you going out with him, then?" asked Parvati, wide-eyed.

"Oh-yes-didn't you know?" said Hermione, with a most un-Hermione-ish giggle.

My jaw dropped.

"No!" said Parvati, looking positively agog at this piece of gossip. "Wow, you like your Quidditch players, don't you? First Krum, then McLaggen."

"I like really good Quidditch players," Hermione corrected her, still smiling. "Well, see you... got to go and get ready for the party."

I watched speechlessly as she walked off. At once Lavender and Parvati put their heads together to discuss this new development, with everything they had ever heard about McLaggen, and all they had ever guessed about Hermione. I said nothing.

What the bloody hell was she playing at?! Fucking Cormac?! So she lied about fancying that fucking asshole too? And what was that about only liking really good Quidditch players?!

I walked off and left Harry, Lavender, and Parvati sitting there. I refused to keep quiet about that.

I walked swiftly towards the common room and finally caught up with Hermione on the stairs. I grabbed at her arm and swung her around to face me.

"Hey! What in the-"

"McLaggen, Hermione?" I snapped. "Of all the fucking tosspots in this fucking school, you had to choose McLaggen?!"

Hermione looked defiantly at me. "What do you care who I go with, Ronald Weasley?!"

"Its fucking McLaggen! He's a fucking slag! He's a fucking ass! You could have went with anybody!"

"Well I was SUPPOSED to be going with you, wasn't I? Apparently you had forgotten that!"

"I didn't forget anything and we could have still went, Hermione! You just stopped talking to me because I dared go and get a girlfriend!"

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, and then shut it. She stared daggers at me, turned, and then made her way to the tower. I waited until she had gotten out of my sight and made my way slowly there as well.

When I got to the common room, I plopped down into an armchair. I hoped that Lavender wouldn't have followed behind me, as I really didn't feel like talking, nor snogging.

About 20 minutes later, fuckin McLaggen appeared, dressed to the nine. He looked over at me and smirked as he walked over to me.

"Weasley."

"McLaggen."

"Got a nice evening for yourself lined up? I know I do!" said Cormac, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You're only going to a stupid Christmas party."

"With one of the sexist witches in all of Hogwarts." he added.

I stood up and glared at him.

"If you so much as-"

"Ready, Cormac?" came a voice on the other side of the room.

I looked over and my heart melted. There was Hermione looking absolutely gorgeous is a knee length red sparkly dress. Her hair had been pulled back, but didn't have any of that shit she had in it fourth year to make it straight. Her curls hung both wildly and neatly at the same time. Her brown sugar toned skin popped even more. She was the most beautiful witch I had ever seen in my life, even rivaling full on veelas. I would have given her anything and everything she wanted no matter what I had to do to obtain it.

I wanted to punch Cormac, get on my hands and knees, and beg Hermione for forgiveness so that I could take her to that party. I didn't want Cormac anywhere near her. He looked at her as if she were a piece of fucking meat that he wanted to devour her. It sickened me.

"I'm ready." said the lucky undeserving bastard, holding out his arm. I gave Hermione a pleading look, telling her with my eyes not to go, but she looked the other way as she took Cormac's arm, walking with him out the portrait hole.

I was furious. I threw a pillow, a fucking pillow, into the fire without a care and watched it burn. What the bloody he had I done? I was supposed to be on his arm. Not fucking him! Cormac wouldn't know what to do with her. He wouldn't know what to say, how to hold her. He probably would step on her toes a million times while dancing.

I had to get out of there. I suddenly felt as if I were suffocating. I took off out of the portrait hole and headed to the quidditch pitch.

The night air was frigid, but I didn't give a fuck. I mounted my broom and flew some laps around the pitch, trying desperately to get the ravenous look on Cormac's face when he saw Hermione it of my head.

I wanted to hex his cock to his nose. I wanted to curse him bald. I wanted to take a quaffle and throw it into his face multiple times h til he was unrecognizable. He had better not touched her in any ways she didn't want tonight, or the last face he would see would be mine before I killed him.

I stayed out there for about two hours, contemplating how to get away with his death, when I realized just how cold I was, and the fact that I had prefects duty. I put my broom away and headed into the warmth of the school.

I decided to go to where I knew the party was being held and start from there. I was thinking about using my prefects duty as an excuse to crash it and get Hermione away from him.

As I rounded a corner filled with fairy lights, I heard voices. One that I immediately recognized.

"Look, I just want to go back to the tower." said Hermione voice. I could tell from it that she was scared.

"It was rude of you to leave me under the mistletoe like that, Granger." came a male voice whom I recognized as Cormac's.

"Cormac leave me alone." I heard Hermione say, as I rounded the corner to see Cormac putting his hands against the wall on either side of her. I saw red.

"Why would I do something silly like that?" said Cormac, trying to kiss her as Hermione turned from it, eyes tightly shut.

"Because she said told you to." I said, enraged as I stuck my wand out at him.

Hermione immediately ducked out of Cormac's arms and ran over to me, hiding behind my back, something that she normally wouldn't do, so I know she had to have been terrified. That angered me even more.

Cormac turned around and glared at me "Weasley, this is none of your business." he said.

"Hermione is my best friend therefore it is all of my fucking business." I growled. "If I catch you even breathing in her direction ever again, I will hex you so hard your future children will feel it. Now get the hell out of here before you get a detention. And that's 50 points from Gryffindor. You can explain to McGonagall how you lost them due to your sexual harassment."

Cormac sneered at me, but didn't say anything. He walked back towards the party, ego very much bruised.

I turned to Hermione, who sighed and leaned against the wall, looking as if I had just saved her life.

"Why Mione?" I asked again, trying to keep my voice calm. "Why the bloody hell did you go with that prat?"

"Are you blaming me for what almost happened?" said Hermione, fiercely.

"No. But you know he's a fucking perv. You're smarter than this."

"I thought you were smarter too. Remember you were the person I ORIGINALLY invited!" she reminded me again.

"I still would have went with you despite Lavender! You're my friend. Why would you think me having a girlfriend would have stopped me?"

"BECAUSE I WASN'T TRYING TO GO AS JUST FRIENDS RONALD!" yelled Hermione, glaring hard at me.

My jaw dropped as I processed what Hermione had just said. She didn't ask me as just friends after all. It was meant to be a date.

She actually fancied me!

"This is all your fault. Why did you have to kiss that cow?" yelled Hermione.

"My fault?! Why did you bloody lie to me?!"

"Lie to you?"

"Yeah. About you and your precious Bulgarian bon bon Vicky! You told me all you did was peck him, when Ginny told me all of it!"

Hermione looked flabbergasted. "Are you kidding me?! What did she say?"

"She said that you and your Krum bum snogged! You could have told me the bloody truth, Hermione. I would have told you! And you still write the old bloody git. "

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Again with this Ron? I swear to you that I didn't lie! I never have snogged him and I have no intentions to! Why is it so hard to believe me when I tell you? And yes, I do write him still. He is after all my FRIEND! Nothing more!"

"A likely story..." I mumbled.

"Why Ronald, why?" cried Hermione, her hair starting to frizz. "Why are you still hung up on a meaningless kiss that only lasted not more than two seconds that DIDN'T MEAN A THING FROM TWO YEARS AGO?!"

"BECAUSE HERMIONE!" I shouted, and not knowing what to say or do, I pulled Hermione into my arms and kissed her.

Before realizing what I was doing, she put her arms around my neck and kissed me back. Our lips seemed to had melted into each others as I kissed her with as much passion as I was feeling.

This felt completely different from any kiss that Lavender had ever given me. It was as if there were no one in the world but us and if we were to stop, we would die. I got lost in the very much missed smell of her hair, and I could tell she was wearing the perfume I had given her last Christmas, which turned me on even more.

Her tongue licked against my lips, as if it was begging to be inside. I obliged, opening my mouth and letting her in. Our tongues wrestled with each other as I pressed into Hermione. She held onto my shirt as she reached behind her and opened the door to a classroom that we were near.

She pulled me into the classroom and closed the door. We were back onto each other within a millisecond. I felt as if I were floating on air as I ran my fingers through her now completely wild hair.

I felt as if I was in one of my fantasies. Merlin knew how much I had longed to have Hermione in my arms, snogging her senseless in a classroom, the common room, on my four poster bed, my room at the Burrow, in my treehouse, on the Quidditch pitch, and about a dozen other places. I was perfectly content with staying in that classroom with her for as long as we could, just being with her.

Unfortunately it couldn't happen.

"WON-WON? WHERE ARE YOU SWEETHEART?!"shrieked a high pitched voice in the hallway.

We paused, lips still pressed against each others, as we had to face the fact that this couldn't be happening.

"That would be your girlfriend." whispered Hermione, pushing me away from her.

I grabbed Hermione's hand. "Mione, I-"

"Don't. Please don't." said Hermione, tears welling up in her eyes. "We can't do this."

No, this couldn't be happening. Everything was perfect, everything was right in the world. She had me. She always had me. If she wanted me to get rid of Lavender, all she had to do was say it. I would have done anything. That moment had confirmed it for me. All I wanted was her.

"But...But Hermione, I-"

"Ronald please!" said Hermione, cutting off my stuttering. "Don't do this to me. Your girlfriend is out there looking for you. I suggest you go to her."

"I don't want to." I said, caressing Hermione's cheek. She closed her eyes and allowed a couple tears to fall, which I caught with my thumb and wiped away. I was starting to feel my eyes fill up too.

"I can't do this. I won't. And you shouldn't." Hermione said, moving my hand from her face.

I stood firm, staring into Hermione's eyes. She needed to know. I had to tell her. How could I have been so stupid?

"I'll just go then." she said, running out of the classroom. I stared at the door as it closed, devastated. I felt as if my entire world had just ran away from me. And it didn't seem to want to come back.

I didn't leave the classroom until I knew for certain that everyone would possibly be in bed. I didn't want to see Lavender. I didn't want to talk to Harry. I just wanted to be to myself.

I went back the dorm and quietly opened the door. Harry nor Dean was there yet, but Seamus was sleeping in his bed. I changed into my PJs and got into my bed, pretending to do the same.