Confessions over Sweets

Confessions over Sweets

By Let Me Breathe

The kitchens were only dimly lit when Ron entered, but this oddly surprised him as it was a quarter-past-one in the morning and he had been expecting the lights to be off and the floor to be covered with sleeping house-elves and blankets. Running a hand through his vivid red hair, he looked around curiously. The floor was indeed covered with blankets and sleeping house-elves, but a much brighter light was shining in from the kitchen itself and sound of about half-a-dozen squeaky, high-pitched voices and a meal being prepared could be heard.

Surely they couldn't be making breakfast already? Ron thought, stumbling carefully around the house-elves snoozing on the tiles beneath his feet.

Coming closer to the entrance to the kitchen, a human and much more familiar voice became clear and Ron raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not a big fan of shrimp-flavoured ice-cream I'm afraid, Dobby. Vanilla and Fizzing Wizzbee with be fine, thank-you."

"Hermione?" Ron asked himself, hurrying through the rest of the sleeping elves and into the kitchen.

Sure enough, there stood Hermione, holding a large bowl of ice-cream. Her back was turned to him and Dobby stood in front of her, an enormous container of Think and Receive - Multi, Your Choice, Flavoured Ice-cream! in his long-fingered hands. Five other elves stood at different intervals in the kitchen, preparing several different dishes of food.

"Weezy!" Dobby squealed when he noticed Ron in the doorway, staring at Hermione in disbelief. Dobby ran forward, dropping the ice-cream and grabbed Ron by the wrist and dragged him further into the kitchen. "Weezy, Weezy!" Dobby exclaimed excitedly in his squeaky voice. "What can Dobby get Weezy?"

"I - er - was actually hoping you could get me some éclairs or some other cakes," Ron said, not taking his eyes off Hermione, who was slowly licking some Fizzing Wizzbee-flavoured ice-cream off her spoon as she watched as Dobby ran to claim what Ron had asked for. "What are you doing down here at this time of the morning?" he asked, looking at her suspiciously. "You're not still on about your elf-rights are you and attempting to work by night, are you?"

Hermione gave him a cold look. "No, actually," she said, her voice mirroring the look on her face, "I couldn't sleep, and I had a bit of a craving for ice-cream so I thought I'd sneak down here and get some. I could always ask you why you're down here?"

"I wanted something to eat," Ron shrugged as Dobby hurried back into sight, carrying a very large platter of éclairs, various confectionery slices and a chocolate mud cake topped with thick cream. Ron looked at it hungrily and carefully took it from him, giving an extremely enthusiastic, "thanks a lot, Dobby!"

Hermione led the way into the dining hall with her bowl of ice-cream and took a seat at one of the four long tables that sat in there, mirroring the Great Hall above it. Ron followed and took a seat across from her, placing the huge platter of cakes in front of them.

"Éclair, Hermione?" Ron asked, taking one from the platter.

Hermione looked at him revolted as he took a massive bite out of it, but it changed to a smile as thick, whipped cream spread around his mouth and chin and she had to look away quickly so he didn't see it. "I might have one after this," she said, staring down at the delicious mound of ice-cream in front of her, though she doubted she'd be able to fit it all in.

Ron shrugged and shoved the rest of the éclair down his throat hungrily. He whipped his mouth quickly, not nearly enough to rid it of the cream covering his freckled face, and picked up a small lamington finger. He looked at it quizzically and then straight at Hermione's bowl of ice cream.

Before she could register what he was about to do, he leant forward and buried half the lamington in the soft vanilla ice cream, pulled it out and took a tooth-chilling bite.

"Ron!" Hermione cried, looking at him disapprovingly. "You should really ask if you can do that before you just go and do it."

"It's nice, Hermione," Ron said defensively. "Here, try it for yourself -" He picked up a second lamington finger, dipped it in her ice cream and held it out for her to take. Hermione looked at it hesitantly and slowly stood up. She leant forward, over her bowl of ice cream and Ron froze in shock when he realising she wasn't about to use her hand to take it from him.

She opened her mouth slowly about an inch above the ice cream-covered lamington and moved over it to take a small bite. Her lips were covered with ice cream as she drew away slightly, eating the sponge filling. Ron licked his lips as she opened her mouth to take another, larger bite and opened his mouth in shock as her lips moved closer to the fingers he used to hold the cake in place. Drawing back again, she swallowed and licked the ice cream off her lips.

"It's nice," she said in a soft voice.

"You - er - there's still some left," Ron said nervously.

Hermione swiftly dived down on the cake again and that was when Ron stopped breathing and his heart stopped beating. Her lips closed over his fingers and her tongue came out to push the cake from them and into her mouth. Swallowing her bite, she ran her tongue over his finger, removing the last of the cold, vanilla substance from his fingers, sucking until they were clean.

It was at that moment that Ron truly thanked the table for keeping his crutch from Hermione's view. He had really been expecting Hermione to take the lamington from him with her fingers. This however, was very unexpected and yet so very pleasurable for Ron.

Ron took a very shaky breath as she withdrew, her cheeks turning a very dark crimson. Her brown eyes avoided his blue ones and her lip trembled slightly as though she had just realised exactly what she had done...

"I'm sorry," she said hurriedly, "I don't know what came over me - I didn't mean - I'm just tired - I need some rest - It was stupid - Meant nothing - I really shouldn't have - I gave you the wrong idea - I ... I've ruined our friendship."

"Hermione," Ron said, standing up just as she did, "you haven't ruined anything."

"Ron," Hermione said as if she thought he were stupid, "I just licked and sucked your finger. That's something someone would do to their boyfriend or to the person they fancy or in an act of seduction."

"And I'm not your boyfriend, the boy you fancy or someone you'd like to seduce, am I?" Ron said, feeling his heart sink and a small amount of anger to rise inside his chest.

Hermione looked at him carefully, noting the hurt on his face before sitting back down. "Ron," she began, "you know how I told you I couldn't sleep? Well, I couldn't sleep because I was - I was - er - thinking about something I was planning on confessing to you on Saturday when we were in Hogsmeade together. You're not my boyfriend and I'm not sure if I'm ready to seduce you, but you are definitely the boy I fancy."

Ron, stood where he was, shocked, his heart returning to its correct place and thumping hard within his chest. He was almost too frozen to move but he stiffly retook his seat and looked at her, thinking that what she had begun to say was almost a dream to him... She actually fancied him back...

"I've wanted to tell you for so long but I just ... I never find the right words," Hermione explained. "Remember those prefect duties last year when we discussed Harry hating how we bicker all the time and how we didn't understand why we bickered all the time -"

"I only start fights with you because if I don't, I know I'm going to end up doing something I'll regret like snogging you senseless," Ron confessed before he could stop himself. To his surprise however, Hermione laughed softly.

"Exactly," she said. "I knew there was a possibility you liked me back, what with all your jealousy -"

"I was never jealous," Ron cut in bluntly.

"Viktor and I kissed once, you know," Hermione said heartily, testing his fragile nerve.

Ron stood up abruptly. "You did what?! I'll kill him! Kissing you when he has no right -"

"I thought you said you weren't jealous?" Hermione said with a wide grin. Ron sat down sheepishly, knowing she'd proved her point. "I assure you, I would never let Viktor kiss me. I was just trying to prove that you have been very jealous of people you shouldn't be. Look, we were always denying the truth, saying we saw each other as no more than friends when we were always something more no matter what label people placed on us."

"So what are you saying?" Ron asked uneasily.

Hermione smiled. "I'm not saying anything, but I am asking you to come over here." Ron frowned as she picked up a chocolate éclair and placed it to her lips. "Well, get over here, already."

Ron smiled at how strange those words sounded as they exited her mouth. They were more likely to be heard from his own. He made his way around the table and took the seat beside her as she took a bite from the cake, spreading cream all around her lips. She smiled and licked it away and placed the cake to his own lips, gesturing for him to take a bite, which he did, even more cream covering his lips.

Hermione laughed as she placed the éclair down on her bowl and leant forward. "I want you to be my boyfriend, Ron," she said and before he could say anything in response or express his shock at her saying such a thing, she rested her lips on his, smoothing away the cream.

The End