A Sudden Realisation

After the end of our sixth year, when we were all back at King’s Cross, Harry came home with us instead of having to go with those dreadful muggles of his. Honestly. They’re terrible, terrible people. And rather robust.

The look on Ginny’s face when she realised Harry would be with us for the entire summer was one of ecstasy and rapture.

Hermione made plans to spend July with us as well. During the school term, she and I had taken to spending time in Hogsmeade together when Harry decided to show my little and only sister the basement of Honeydukes.

Honestly. It’s not as though we don’t know what they’re up to. He should just come right out and say, “Right. We’re going to go snogfor a bit. Ta-ta.”

Actually, he did say that once. Ginny kicked him, a well-aimed blow to the back of the knee. She then proclaimed in really quite a loud voice, “Harry, what are you trying to say? My lips are virgin! As well as the rest of me!”

Hermione had a sudden coughing fit.

But back to my narrative.When Harry and Ginny were off “exploring tunnels” and all that nonsense, she and I – she being Hermione, of course – had some interesting conversations. She came to the conclusion that I wasn’t a total pouf. After all, I had gone out with the best looking girl in Ginny’s grade. Again, not that Ginny’s frightful to behold, but she’s my sister! That’s just not on!

“See, Ron, I have reason to believe that you swing both ways,” said Hermione thoughtfully, swilling her Butterbeer around in her glass.

I shrugged. “Sure. Right. Just keep your voice down, will you?”

Hermione grinned suddenly, a devious look that was rather shocking to see on her. “Do you know, the girls in my dorm would pay loads of Galleons just for a glimpse of you snogging Harry? Think of the money you could make for your family!”

“They would pay to see – what, exactly?” I gave her a glare. “Hermione…”

“Apparently, they believe it’d be quite sexy, really.”

“You didn’t… tell them… about how I - ”

“No, Ron, don’t worry. I did not reveal to them how you write Ronald Adam Potter-Weasley all over your textbooks when Harry’s not looking, you know, in that horrid cursive of yours.”

“Hermione, how did you know about that?”

“You just said it.”

Honestly. People should not be able to be so sneaky. It irritates me.

Another thing that irritates me is the fact that Erika and Ginny have been and still are really quite good friends, ever since Erika came up to Ginny during my third year and said, “your brother Ron is rather cute, you know… and his best friend is Harry Potter! Don’t you think Harry’s just simply adorable?”

Of course, Ginny wasn’t too pleased with the comment about me (although I was – yes, it does disturb me that I found a twelve year old attractive, but I suppose to my defence, she developed quite early! My sister didn’t have… those!), but she realised that with Erika’s comment about Harry, they had shared interests. And what can you build a friendship on, if not shared interests?

But I do think there should be some sort of etiquette rule stating clearly that your friends and family should not be friends with your ex-girlfriends. Honestly. What exactly is that all about?

What? What’s that you’re saying?

You’ve been talking to Seamus, haven’t you?

Fine. I suppose I do have some Erika issues.

Do you know, it is incredibly unfair that she looks like a Greek goddess.

And she was rather good at –

Well, let’s just say that we were very well acquainted with each other.

But that is beside the point. So to be back on the point, yes, I do have one:

So Hermione was describing how the girls in her dorm were actually rather depressed that Harry was going out with Ginny, but no, don’t worry, it meant that he was simply only hiding his true feelings for me, because after all, Harry had picked me for the Second Task back in our Fourth Year, and –

“Hold on a bit. Go back to that thing about the Second Task.”

“They basically said – well, it’s really quite dumb, really – that he picked you as the ‘thing that he would miss the most’” – Hermione put on a funny sort of voice for that bit – “and they made the connection that Cedric of course picked Cho and Viktor picked me, so…”

Well. I had never thought of it quite that way.

But honestly. Was it really the smart thing to think, you know, that Harry might actually reciprocate these strange little random feelings of mine? After all, he is dating my sister.

And I’m just his friend.

I wouldn’t want to break them up by telling Harry about my latest hobby of fancying him. I mean, can you imagine the conversation?

~

“Harry! I’ve just subscribed to the Harry Potter collectors edition trading card set! I get a delivery of the latest cards each month!”

“What on earth would you want that for, Ron?”

“Oh, just so I can watch little Moving-Flying-Quidditch-Harry on the cards riding your splendid broomstick -”

~

Don’t give me that look.

Gutter mind.

He has a Firebolt, for God’s sake! It’s absolutely gorgeous!

But… No.

Best to just leave it alone.

I felt Hermione’shand on mine. “You really do fancy him, don’t you, Ron?”

I looked at her.

Really looked at her.

She was such a good friend.

“Come off it, Hermione, what are you talking about? I don’t fancy him!”

And that’s right about the time when she hit me about the head.