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“Ron, stop, can’t you just leave me alone?” Hermione shouted angrily. “Stop biting my head off about Viktor! It was two years ago for God’s sake!”

“For one thing, I am not biting your head off! For another, we both know Vicky was your boyfriend!” Ron retorted, getting redder around the ears by the second.

It was a typical evening in the Gryffindor common room. Ron and Hermione fighting, girls giggling, and boys struggling through homework assignments; you know, the usual. Harry was out meeting with Professor Dumbledore, so there was nobody around to stop Ron and Hermione from sniping at each other until they reached the inevitable breaking point.

“He was not my boyfriend, Ronald!” Hermione screamed, blanching. “I can’t believe you! You are the most immature person in this school!” She stepped closer to him.

“Oh, ok, I’m immature,” Ron snorted sarcastically, taking a few more steps toward her, so that their bodies were inches apart.

“Yes, you are! You always want me to do your homework for you and you’re always bothering me about Viktor! You are such a git!”

Hermione stared him straight in the eye, trying to stare him down, but, if anything, they pushed their bodies together, unaware that the whole common room was waiting, holding its breath, for what could happen next. Both Ron and Hermione did not notice how close they were, how many people were watching, or how quiet it got so fast.

“Why don’t you admit it, Ron? We all know it! You are jealous of Viktor.” Hermione glared gloatingly at him, but something else flashed in her eyes as she said the word ‘jealous’. Was it hope?

Ron turned maroon, but his voice was very steady when he said, “Why in God’s name would I be jealous of that stupid Bulgarian moron?” As he said this, he moved his face closer to hers.

“I’m not sure, Ron, why don’t you tell me?” Hermione asked, narrowing her eyes at him and closing in on him. Their faces were not even an inch apart.

Ron froze with terror. Should I tell her? he questioned himself. No. No, I can’t tell her, it’s too risky…but I could show her…

“Well, Ron? I’m wait�”” Hermione began, but she never finished. Ron had closed the gap between them and kissed her softly on the lips.

The common room, which had been so quiet up until now, burst in applause, wolf whistles, and laughter. Ron and Hermione abruptly broke apart. They blushed and looked away from each other.

Hermione’s heart was bursting with joy. Ron had kissed her! Finally! After so many long years, she had been granted her wish. Ron liked her back, and kissed her in front of the common room to prove it.

Ron couldn’t bear to look at Hermione, or anybody, for that matter. He blew it. He had screwed up their friendship. He had to get out of here. Ron rushed past the people who were congratulating him and clapping him on the back to the portrait hole. Just as his left the common room, a hand grabbed his.

“Ron,” said a very confused Hermione, “where are you going?”

“I’m sorry for kissing you, and for screwing up our friendship. I’ll understand if you don’t want to talk to me anymore.” Ron said, looking at his feet.

“Wait, what? Screwing up our...Oh Ron, you’ve got it all wrong.” Hermione began.

“No, don’t try to make me feel better. Look, I, I got to go...change my feet,” Ron stuttered, and with that unusual statement, Ron wrenched his hand from Hermione’s and took off down the corridor.

Hermione’s heart broke. Why had he kissed me if he didn’t like me? she wondered sadly to herself.

As she turned to go back in the common room, the Fat Lady, who had watched the whole thing without saying a word, suddenly piped up, “Are you really going to let him slip away from you that easily? After you’ve loved him for so long, you’ll let him run off with the wrong idea like that?” She snapped her fingers for emphasis, and slammed closed.

“Let me in,” Hermione said shortly.

“No.” the Fat Lady said. “I’m not letting you back into this common room until you and Ron are a happy couple.”

“Let him find me,” said Hermione, starting to feel angry.

“You’ve been waiting for him for six years. Don’t you think you stopped waiting and did something?” the Fat Lady said.

“Yeah,” Hermione said slowly. “Yeah. I’ll find Ron, and I’ll show him that we’re still friends…or maybe something more.” As she turned to run down the corridor after Ron, she turned back and said, “Thanks, Fat Lady.”

“Don’t mention it,” the Fat Lady called after her. To herself she added, “Maybe I’ll be able to get a full nights’ sleep if they get together.” And with that, she fell asleep.

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*A/N: Did you like it? Review, please! I’m working on the next part of this story as you read this.

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Hermione bolted down the corridor. She had to find Ron. She had to. She had to make him understand. Understand that they were still friends…or perhaps they were something more.

Just as she turned the corridor, she realized something: she didn’t have any idea where in the hell Ron was. Thoughts of going back floated across her mind. No, I can’t go back. Hermione reasoned sadly. The Fat Lady will never let me in. When she finished pondering this, another thing came to her. She remembered the Fat Lady’s last words to her:

“You’ve been waiting for him for six years. Don’t you think you stopped waiting and did something?”

Hermione looked around at her choices to go next, not with sadness, but with an unstoppable, irrepressible desire to find Ron. She turned down the right corridor, all the while thinking, if I were Ron, and I was hiding from Hermione, where would I go?

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Ron wrenched his hand from Hermione’s and took off down the corridor. The first turn he got to, he instantly turned right. He had no idea where to go, but he knew Hermione would be right on his heels. Unless she hates me and never wants to talk to me again. Ron thought nervously.

Ron stopped suddenly, checked behind him, and sat down. He breathed in and out slowly, trying to return his heart rate to normal, if only for a moment. Where should I hide? It has to be someplace Hermione would never think to look. Certainly not the library, or the kitchens, she knows I’d probably be there.

Ron stood up and began to run. If Hermione was trying to find him, then he didn’t want to make it too easy. He ran along the corridor that looked very familiar to him. He tried to figure out when he had been here before when he saw a tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls to dance ballet. He stopped to stare at the tapestry, and then looked around at the empty stretch of wall behind it. He swore he had been here before, he just didn’t remember why.

I don’t have time for a trip down memory lane. Ron scolded himself. I need a place to hide from Hermione, a place where she can’t find me, someplace she’d never think to look.

Suddenly, the wall Ron was absentmindedly staring at had turned into a door. Oh, of course, duh, this is the Room of Requirement! Ron had a sneaky idea. Hermione would never think to look here, right?

He pushed open the door, and, quickly and quietly, hid himself among the remains of thousands and thousands of objects that had been hidden from people. Ron wondered to himself if Hermione would even go so far to look for him here.

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Hermione sat down after fifteen minutes of searching for Ron. She had checked every nook and cranny of the library. She had asked all the house eves if they had seen a tall boy with red hair. She had even asked random people walking along corridors. They all gave her quizzical looks, and a few meaner people had laughed at her, saying, “Lost your stupid boyfriend, have you, Granger?”

She glanced at her watch: nine thirty. It was half an hour past the time she was supposed to be back, and she had to keep going if she didn’t want to run into Filch. She couldn’t believe she had been searching for Ron for almost two hours.

Hermione sighed to herself, wondering where Ron was. She walked along past the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. I need to find Ron. I need to tell him that I love him. I need to tell him we’re more than friends.

A door suddenly appeared, giving Hermione a huge fright. The Room of Requirement, of course! Why didn’t I realize I was here? Hermione paused, running her hands over the door handle. If I open this door, will it lead me to where Ron is? Footsteps were coming down the corridor; she could see the shadow of Argus Filch. Hermione’s heart began to drum hard and fast. What to do? Do I risk going in here? Just as Filch rounded the corner, she flung the door open and flew into the room, slamming the door behind her.

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, which turned almost immediately into a gasp. She had been in the Room of Requirement before, but it was so much smaller last time. The room had transformed itself into what looked to be the inside of at least twelve cathedrals. There where shelves upon shelves of wonderful, mystical objects that even Hermione didn’t know of.

I don’t have time for this, I need to find Ron. Without warning, a bookcase in the far left corner shone so brightly that it illuminated the whole room. Hermione distantly, yet distinctly, heard a voice that sounded like Ron’s and it said, “Bloody hell! What’s the hell’s going on?”

“Ron?” Hermione said happily, before she could stop herself. Her heart soared. She had finally found Ron!

“Bloody hell, Hermione, where are you?” said Ron’s voice.

“I’ll find you, it shouldn’t be too hard,” Hermione chuckled nervously. She walked toward the light that was half-blinding her. Once Ron was in full view, the light died.

“Well, um, I mean, uh…hi,” Ron stuttered quietly, looking at his feet.

“Ron, look at me,” Hermione said, gently, but commandingly. When his gazed reluctantly met hers, she said quizzically, “Ron, why did you run away from me? After I thought you liked me…”

“Look, Hermione, I don’t like you, I love you,” Ron said, “and I kissed you for two reasons: partly to shut you up and partly because I had to show why I was jealous of Krum. I know you probably didn’t feel the same, so I panicked. I was afraid I had screwed up our friendship.” He let his gaze fall back to his feet, feeling shame and embarrassment well up inside him.

“Oh, Ron,” Hermione said, smiling at him and staring him in his eyes. “I hoped that was the reason you were jealous of Viktor. I love you, too.” She leaned toward him and kissed him softly to prove it. “But you were right about one thing: you did screw up our friendship, but you made us something more.”

Ron smiled stupidly, and, blushingly, extended his hand. Hermione pressed her palm to his, and they walked out the Room of Requirement. When they reached the portrait hole the Fat Lady jerked awake and said happily, but with a hint of annoyance, “Found him, did you? Good for you!”

Ron looked questioningly at Hermione, but Hermione merely smiled at him and said to the Fat Lady, “Thank you, Fat Lady, for helping me find the courage I had in myself. Without your advice, I wouldn’t be able to do this.” And she kissed Ron.

The Fat Lady swung open to admit them, without even waiting for the password. “Huh, I told Vi I could get them together. She owes me two boxes of chocolates liquors.” The Fat Lat said to herself sleepily, “but I’ll bother her for them in the morning.” And with that, she fell asleep, the first undisturbed sleep said had in a long time.

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A/N: Yeah, I know, one of my stupid, unexpected ending, but you got to love them. R&R!!!!!!!