Until the Moment of Truth

    "Hermione," Ron said, "wake up." He laid her on her bed in

the girls' dormitory. They had just gotten back from the Hogwarts' Winter

Ball. He heard Harry and Ginny come into the common room. Hermione

rolled over.

     "Ronnie," she said groggily.

     "Hang on, Mione," Ron said as he heard a knock on the door. He went

and opened the door, suprised to see George there. "Alicia isn't here right

now, George."

     "I don't want to talk to Alicia... Wait, yes, I do. But I need to talk to

you first. You're my brother and you need to know about this," George said. Ron yawned.

     "Okay, but make it fast," he told his sibling. He stepped out of the

dorm and into the boys'.

     "Ron... You're not going to believe me now, or if you do, you'll hate me

for it. But I KNOW you'll thank me for it in the long run," his brother started as Harry and Ginny came into the room.

     "George, what is it now," Ron said, exasperated. 'This better not be

one of his jokes again.' Harry looked at Ginny uncertainly. Gin looked

mad, which was unusual.

     "Listen, Ron, Hermione is cheating on you," Harry spoke up.

Ginny burst into tears at the mention of this. Harry took her into his arms. Ron's face turned blood red.

     "You three have stepped over the line! Saying that Hermione is

CHEATING on me! Besides, who would she do it with? She's the most

honest, loyal girlfriend! And Harry! As long as we've KNOWN her! How

could you SAY that about her? And Ginny... Some kind of best friend

YOU are," Ron said ragingly.

     "Ron... It's not just those three that seen her with him. Bay, Licia,

Luna, Fred, and Tyler all seen her with him. We'd never tell you a lie

about this," Jennifer spoke up, as Baylor, Tyler, Luna, Alicia, and Fred

all entered the room.

     "Okay... I see how it is. Someone is jealous of our relationship, and

they are using ALL of my friends to get me to dump Hermione. Well, it's

not going to work. Not now, not ever. I LOVE her... Nothing is going to

change that," Ron said as he left the room, slamming the door behind

him.

     "Hermione... How much of that did you hear," Ron asked when he

looked up. He was assuming everything, because she was crying. She

dropped onto the floor, tears rolling down her cheeks. Ron sat down

beside her and pulled her into his lap. "Don't worry about what they say. We know it's not true. We have one of the BEST relationships... And nothing will ever change that." He wiped her tears and carried her back into the girls' dorm.

     'Hermione Jean Granger. You should feel ashamed of yourself. You

LIED to Ron! You got him mad at all of his friends,' she scolded herself

after he was asleep. 'You WILL straighten this out in the morning,' she

added. Hermione snuggled against Ron, feeling a slight bit guilty.

     "Hermione. Wake up. RIGHT now," she heard Ginny's voice. "Ron's

gone for the morning. Get up. We're going to talk."

     "Ginny, leave me alone. It's a Saturday morning, and I'm not getting

up."

     "Oh, yes you are," said Fred Weasly's voice. "You're gonna pay for

making Ron think you didn't cheat on him. He's p.o'd at all of us, and

you're not going to live it down."

     "Shove it, Fred. It's Ron's stupidity that makes him vulnerable to

these kinds of things. If he'd use his eyes and brains as a combination,

he'd know you were telling the truth. That's not my problem," Hermione

said as she rolled over, pulled the covers over her head and a pillow over

her ears.

     "No, Hermione, YOU shut up," Baylor Jennigs said. This shocked her.

No one had ever told her to shut up, because she was a prefect, pretty,

and popular. "NOW you have nothing to say."

     "Okay... Why don't all of you little busy-bodies butt outta mine and

Ron's business. I'll tell him eventually, or he'll dump me before then.

He's hott, so he'll find another girlfriend," she said as she sat up.

"Besides, why does it matter SO much to you all? It's not YOU I'm

cheating on. All it concerns is me, Ron, and Draco."

     "It MATTERS because Ron is our FRIEND, Hermione. You

CLAIM to love him, but you cheat on him. And you're no kind of friend

to any of us, either, because you're letting him think we're lying," Luna

said. Hermione rolled her eyes.

     "Why are you doing this, Hermione," George asked.

     "Because it's FUN! Draco goes all the way. Ron just plays it safe...

'Hermione, we could get diseases. Mione, I don't want to right now.

Hermione, let's do it another time.' Draco BEGS me! Which would

YOU take," she asked.

     "Oh come OFF it Mione! You KNOW you don't like it.

You never even THOUGHT about screwing Draco before you heard

that Ron still liked Padma! You KNOW you feel bad, and you KNOW

you love RON even if he WON'T do you," Harry yelled.

     "How in the heck would you know, Harry? Or ANY of you? Maybe

I already liked Draco," Hermione shot back.

     "Oh, after being called a Mudblood, or all the trouble Malfoy gave

my family? Or you being called hideous in your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd years?

I mean, sure, every boy in Hogwarts liked you after your 4th year, but

Malfoy only liked you because of your looks! Come ON, Hermione!

TELL RON! At least tell him that you want OUT! Don't torture him OR

us like this," George pleaded.

     "Listen. I'll tell him when I want. And you can't change that.

And until then, you KNOW Ron won't believe you... So try and convince

him. He'll believe ME... You know it. So get a life and deal with it."

     "Okay, Hermione. But you know that Draco is using you, just like he

did me, Luna, Parvati, AND Padma. And you also know that Ron is

going to be CRUSHED when you DO tell him. And you'll lose a friendship.

And a great person. And all of US as friends," Ginny warned her.

     "Yes, Know-It-All, I know all that. But, did Draco ever tell any

one of you four that he LOVED you? Or did he ever pull you close, and

tell you goodnight," Hermione asked. Ginny, Luna, and Parvati, along

with everyone else in the room looked stunned.

     "No... He didn't," Parvati started.

     "Okay then. Shove it. He makes me feel just as specail as Ron does!

He may HAVE called me a Mudblood... And me may HAVE made fun

of your family, Ginny, but he's a good person. Plus, there's this thing

called forgive-and-forget that you all haven't tried. But you should.

Now shut up and get out." Hermione's last words took the group by

suprise as well, especailly the 'shut up' part. Hermione Granger, not

once in her life, had ever told anyone to shut up and meant it.

     Three days later, in the Slytherin common room, she told everyone

about what happened. After all the Slytherins had left the room,

Draco said," Hermione. We're ending this RIGHT now. I didn't know

all this would happen. I DO love you... And I WILL miss you... But you

love Ron and I know that you'll miss him more than I'll miss you. You're

NOT going to dump him for me."

     "Draco, just kiss me," she said, shakily.

     "No."

     "What?"

     "I said 'no'. And I meant it. I won't kiss you. Hermione, I told you.

We're ending this." Tears rolled down Hermione's cheeks and Draco

drew her close to him. "Forget what I just said. I didn't mean to hurt you. Even if I don't like Ron, I didn't mean to cause him pain either."

     "I know you didn't. And I also know that I love you, too. So if I can

truthfully tell you that I wanted to end it with Ron before you stepped in,

will you believe me," she asked. 'Hermione, you're making a mistake,' the

little voice in her head said. Draco nodded.

     "Hermione, this is NOT what you want, though. You may think it is...

But it's NOT! I love you, too. But, I KNOW you well enough to know that

this isn't what you're going to want 3 years later."

     "Yes it is," she argued. "If I didn't want this, I wouldn't be here arguing

my head off with you to try and be with you." Draco stared into her eyes,

knowing that he shouldn't do what he was about to. She shut her eyes

and rested her head on his shoulder. He pulled her in a position so that

when she opened her eyes, she'd see the wall, instead of him. Hermione

opened her eyes, pulled her head around, and kissed Draco's lips a little.

She enjoyed the sweet, juicy taste of the boy's mouth, and pulled herself

away from him, climbing out of his lap. Just then, Ron walked into the

Slytherin common room with Padma Patil.