Christmas of Surprises

Christmas of Surprises - chapter 10/10

January 2nd

Waking that morning after their last night for now in a proper bed, Ron and Hermione made the most of their time in bed together. Even if they did manage to find an hour or so together in the Prefects' Bathroom, it wouldn't be the same, since they'd have to return to the common room afterwards. They finally forced themselves to shower, dress and head downstairs to the common room. Harry was waiting for them, looking at his watch. Hermione smiled innocently at him. 'We're a bit late, you know,' she said. Harry grunted, and pointed out that they'd be lucky if there was any food left for breakfast.

Nobody else in the Great Hall commented and, although all the teachers apart from Professor Flitwick had finished and left the table, there was still some food, though they had less choice than usual. After eating breakfast, they stood by the Hall's windows and looked out at the snow, which was still falling gently. 'It's not a good day to go outside,' said Harry finally. 'I suppose that means more of the usual activities.'

'What a pity,' said Hermione. 'We'll just have to make the best of it. I don't suppose this snow will affect the train at all.'

'You wish!' said Harry.

Hermione grinned at him. 'Definitely. Wouldn't it be good if the train couldn't leave King's Cross, and everyone just went back home and we were stuck here by ourselves for several more days?' Ron agreed by kissing her. There was a cough from the breakfast table and, when it became clear they weren't going to react, there was then a second cough. The two separated and looked to see who'd coughed. Professor Flitwick was just smiling, but Lisa was glaring at them.

'What do you think you're doing?'

'It's called kissing,' explained Hermione. 'It's fun, and it doesn't upset the teachers the way alcohol does.'

Lisa paled, and looked round at her Head of House, while the three Gryffindors went back upstairs. Even Harry was chuckling, and he was almost sure Flitwick had smiled back at Hermione's comment.

Once back in the common room, Hermione sighed. 'This is the boring bit. We've got to make sure we haven't left anything incriminating around. I'll check my dorm to see if Ron left anything up there.'

Ron nodded, and went up to his and Harry's dorm to check again that nothing of Hermione's was still up there.

Harry wasn't sure whether they wanted him to help, and settled for tidying up all evidence of his homework, and putting Hermione's Christmas book on top of her bookbag.

Crookshanks, who'd spent the night in Harry's dorm again, came downstairs looking disgruntled at being disturbed by Ron, settled in front of the fire, and began washing himself.

Hermione came back down the girls' stairs, barefoot for some reason. Harry pointed out what he'd tidied.

'Thanks, Harry. Though you could keep reading the book until we go downstairs for tea -- I don't think anyone will come up here until they've eaten.' She sat down in her usual chair and stretched her arms. Harry realised with a shock that her shoes weren't all she'd removed. He couldn't be sure what she was wearing under her school robes, but it didn't seem to be much.

Ron came back down his stairs. 'The only incriminating thing I found was Crookshanks, and he ran away when I tried checking under my bed.'

'OK, we should be all right then. Did Ron scare you, Crookshanks? Did he?' Her cat didn't answer, so she reached into her bookbag and pulled out the Chocolate Frog card. 'I can't remember if you did see this, Harry.'

He took it, and looked at it. 'Yes, I did.' He looked up, and saw the two of them kissing again. He groaned and put the card on the table near her.

They separated, and Ron asked Harry, 'I thought you were happy for us? Why do you keep groaning?'

'Well, just look at Hermione.'

'I have!' he said happily.

'Hermione, I don't know what you're wearing under those robes, but it can't be much -- and it obviously doesn't include a bra!' said Harry.

She looked down. 'No, but why does that matter? I'm not wearing anything under them, but you can't actually see anything, you're just imagining.'

Harry put his head in his hands again.

'Why? Does it really bother you?' she asked.

'Does it bother me that a beautiful girl is wandering around in the common room and sitting opposite me with nothing on but her robes? Am I fifteen? I don't think you really understood me when I said why I shouldn't have a girlfriend.'

'I don't understand you now,' said Ron. 'Of course you're fifteen -- why are you asking us that?'

'Look, I know I'm fifteen. That's the point. I want a girlfriend as much as anyone does. You two keep talking about sex, and it's obviously pretty great from the way you're talking about it. But I told you why I shouldn't have a girlfriend. I'm not being selfless, I'm being selfish. If I'd just been selfish and grabbed that Cup instead of doing something selfless, Cedric would be alive now.'

'You have to stop blaming yourself,' said Hermione quietly. 'Nobody else does.'

'I can't stop blaming myself, any more than I can stop looking at a girl who's obviously not wearing much. Look, I hardly even knew Cedric. Suppose I did have a girlfriend -- you keep suggesting Ginny, so she's a good example.'

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but then decided not to interrupt.

'I know Ginny much better than I knew Cedric, just because she's Ron's sister.'

'Not to mention that you saved her life once,' said Hermione.

'Yes, I did. I saved her from Tom Riddle. Now, if she was my girlfriend, I'd be risking her life, because of Riddle again. What would happen if he killed her? I'd never get over that. It'd be much worse than with Cedric, just because I know her better.' He looked at Ron. 'And there's also her six older brothers who know where I am and don't know where Voldemort is. You wouldn't be too happy either, Hermione -- you two are friends. So my not wanting anyone to be my girlfriend is selfish.'

'Not completely, as it stops their lives being in danger,' she said.

'No, not completely,' he admitted. 'But the point is, I do want to have a girlfriend. I want to have a relationship like the one you two seem to have started. But I can't. So what happens? I get tortured.'

'Tortured?' exclaimed Ron in surprise.

'Yes, by you two. You talk about playing strip chess, and playing it right in front of me. I've watched you two playing enough chess games that I know who'd lose that game.'

'I didn't lose the strip chess games by that much,' objected Hermione. 'Don't assume I'm that bad!'

'How many pieces do you have to lose for it to get embarrassing? Anyway -- you talk about places you could go -- which I didn't actually mind so much, since hopefully if you can keep having sex, you won't feel you need to keep talking about it as much -- but then you suddenly switch to talking about why Myrtle should be my girlfriend.'

'That's why you shouted, and said we were getting on your nerves, then,' said Hermione.

Harry nodded. 'I know you don't mean to hurt me. I know you're just really enthusiastic at the moment, and very in love. But the result is torture.'

'Why were you reading the book then?' asked Ron.

'For the future ... and I hoped that if I could imagine what you two were doing, then I could at least dream of what I can't really have, and it might hurt less.'

Hermione looked down at her robes. 'That's why you didn't like me walking around dressed like this, I was torturing you again. Sorry, Harry. I went from your dorm to mine the day you came back, just dressed like this, in case you got back early. It feels ... freeing, and I wanted to try it again, just once, before everyone else got back. I'll go and get dressed again. It's not that long before lunch, anyway.'

Hermione went upstairs and the two boys sat in silence for a while. Ron finally broke it. 'I didn't know. I mean, you said you were happy for us, but didn't want ... well, didn't think you ought to have ... a girlfriend yet. I suppose I just got the impression you didn't want anyone -- that you were happy with your decision, the way you disagreed when we tried to change your mind. I got it completely wrong, didn't I?'

'I should have explained it better to begin with. But the two of you just keep reminding me of what I want, but can't allow myself to have.'

'You mean sex.'

'No, or not just sex,' said Harry. 'You two have more than that, don't you? There's love, or romance or whatever. I don't think Hermione ever even calls it sex, she always says "making love" or "sleeping together", at least when I'm around. Obviously, to her, it's more than just sex.'

'She does?' said Ron, surprised. 'I didn't notice.'

'Umm ... well, you mostly do too. Does that mean you're copying the way she does things without noticing?'

'Maybe I am. Is that creepy?'

'It's probably romantic or something,' said Harry.

Hermione came back into the common room. 'Are you talking about me?'

'Yes,' said Harry with a grin.

She sat down next to Ron and looked at Harry, who noticed she was now wearing her Prefect's badge. 'Now I don't know whether to believe you or not.'

'We were talking about the fact you two have more than sex, you've got love and romance.'

'Then Harry said we don't have sex, we make love, or we sleep together. I didn't realise you never called it sex, and then he said I do the same.'

She thought about it. 'I suppose I don't. I hadn't thought about it. You're probably right, Harry -- it must be deeper than that.'

'I've thought of something else I want to say,' said Ron. 'First, can you sit facing more towards me, and not the door, Hermione?'

Hermione moved as requested, and looked at Ron, puzzled. 'Why?'

Ron got out of his chair and knelt on one knee before her. He took her right hand in his, then looked up at her dazed expression and asked, 'Hermione Granger, will you marry me?'

'Oh, Ron ... I still have to say "maybe". I'm sorry, I still think we should wait until we've left Hogwarts, and have a better idea of what we're going to do.'

Ron stood up, and sat in his chair again. He hadn't let go of her hand. 'I know. That's OK -- I didn't think you'd say anything different this time. But the other day it wasn't a very good proposal, and now I've asked properly.'

Hermione smiled. 'Yes, you have. Very romantic; thanks.' She glanced over at Harry, an unasked question in her eyes.

'Proposing doesn't bother me. I don't know why not, but it's not like planning to play strip chess right in front of me. I suppose my dreams don't go as far as proposing yet, but I can imagine wanting to do the other things.'

'What about kissing? Does that bother you?' she asked.

'Well ... if it helps to get rid of dangerous rumours, it won't bother me. In fact, I'd welcome it.'

'OK.' She glanced at her watch. 'It's almost lunchtime now.'

They went down to the Great Hall for their lunch. Snape was there again, but looking slightly more cheerful. Harry thought it must be because it was the last meal that he'd have to sit at the same table as Gryffindors for. The train would have brought everyone back by teatime, and they'd all be eating at their house tables, or at the staff table, as usual.

After lunch, the three Gryffindors looked out of the window again. It had stopped snowing at last, but the snow was still piled around the castle in deep snowdrifts. They decided against going out and sinking into it, and returned again to their common room, where they sat down in their usual chairs. Hermione and Ron started yet another chess game, after Hermione had tried and failed to get a sleeping Crookshanks' attention.

Harry started reading more of Hermione's book, trying to finish it before everyone else returned on the Hogwarts Express. After a while, he looked up to see that Hermione was watching him as much as the chess game.

'I told you, I'm reading it for later, when things are safer.'

Hermione shook her head. 'It's not that. I was just thinking about earlier.'

'When I was explaining again about girlfriends?'

Ron stopped to listen, although he didn't have much choice until Hermione moved her next piece.

'Not exactly, but it was something else you said then,' she said. 'You were complaining about a "beautiful girl" wandering around in the common room with just robes on.'

'You were very distracting,' he said with a smile. 'Why were you thinking about that?'

'It just occurred to me. I forgot to say anything then because you were explaining how you felt. I was just thinking about it, and realised you said I was beautiful -- and Ron never has.'

'You haven't?' said Harry, looking at Ron in surprise.

Ron ignored Harry, and looked at Hermione. 'I compared you to a painting, and called you "Beauty at the Window" -- doesn't that count?'

'Oh. Yes, it does. Sorry, Ron.'

Harry couldn't resist asking, 'Have you ever called Ron handsome?'

Hermione blushed.

'It sounds as if you don't need to be reassuring each other all the time. That's good, isn't it?'

'I suppose it is,' she said. 'I hadn't even realised until you said it earlier.'

'Why aren't I handsome?' Ron wanted to know.

'Too much red hair and too tall,' said Harry, grinning at him.

'Dad described him as a matchstick when I was telling my parents about him,' said Hermione.

'Why?' asked Harry.

'I don't think I like being called a matchstick. Or everyone knowing I'm called that. Don't tell Ginny or my brothers,' pleaded Ron.

'OK -- if you're good.'

'I thought I'd been very good the past nine nights. Even the night I had detention.'

'Yes, you were. Very very good.'

'This is probably a very rude and very personal question,' said Harry. 'But how can you tell? I mean, I think you're each other's first-ever lover, aren't you?'

'You mean that we don't have anyone else to compare each other with?' asked Hermione. 'I suppose that's true. But you like Hogwarts, don't you, even though you've never been to Beauxbatons or Durmstrang, and don't have anything to compare it with? You know what you like, you're happy with it, and you probably don't want to try anything else.'

'I suppose that's fair enough,' said Harry.

Ron said, 'I agree, and I'm glad you answered first! I couldn't think of a way to say it.' He hugged her, then asked plaintively, 'Are you going to make a move? I mean, a chess move.'

'OK. Let's see, I think I'll have ... a knight. Not Sir Cadogan, I don't think he'd be a very good lover unless he can get out of the picture world.'

Ron choked. Hermione giggled. 'Ok, I'll move my knight.' She moved a knight up to threaten one of Ron's bishops.

Harry soon finished Hermione's book, and gave it back to her to put in her bookbag. He watched the chess game, which didn't last very much longer.

Ron leaned back in his chair after winning the game. 'Can anyone think of anything good about term-time?

'Quidditch trials?' suggested Harry.

'There won't be any of those. There's no vacancies on the team, are there?'

'Well, since Katie, Dean and I will be the only ones left next year, Angelina suggested it would be a good idea to have the trials while the others were still around to give us a hand -- particularly Fred and George, to help pick the new Beaters. We don't want to interfere with anyone's N.E.W.Ts or O.W.Ls, so we're going to do it this term.' Angelina was the Quidditch Captain that year.

Ron cheered up. 'That's not too bad then. I hope I can get in this time. That last one was ridiculous -- Dean didn't even know what Quidditch was until he came here.'

'Don't forget, I didn't know what Quidditch was until after McGonagall put me on the team!' Harry reminded him. 'Dean knew a lot more than I did by the time he became Keeper.'

'Well ... OK, I suppose that's true. But I wasn't expecting to be the new Seeker, and I did think I stood a chance of being the Keeper last term. Being tall gives me the reach you need to be a Keeper.'

'These things happen,' said Hermione. 'At least you've got another chance. So Angelina, Alicia, Fred and George are all leaving this year? I didn't realise Alicia was in the same year as the twins.'

'Lee too, even though he's not really on the team,' said Harry.

Hermione stood and stretched. 'I wonder when the train will get here.' She looked out of the window, and chuckled.

'What? You can't see the others arriving already?' said Ron, looking at his watch.

'No. Professor Flitwick's out there clearing a path through the snow to the gates.'

The two boys joined her, and saw Flitwick using his wand to send the snow up almost like a ship's bow wave, leaving a clear path behind him.

'He ought to do that every year -- or teach Hagrid how, when he gets back,' said Harry.

'If he does get back,' said Ron. 'How much longer do you think he's going to be away?'

Harry shrugged. 'I don't know.'

Hermione was still watching Flitwick. 'They must expect the train to get here fairly soon then. That reminds me ...' She sat back down, and got her copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 5 out of the bookbag, then hesitated, looked at her watch, and put it on the table. 'I'll look after tea.'

'That's an innocent enough book, anyway,' said Harry. 'What are you going to do with your mother's present?'

'I'm going to leave it in the bookbag. Nobody'll bother to look in my bookbag.'

'No, they're likely to be attacked by Ancient Runes!' said Ron teasingly.

Harry relaxed and watched the two of them tease each other about Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and Divination. This was more like the old, familiar Ron and Hermione, before they became lovers. It gave him hope that they wouldn't really change, at heart, but would still be the old friends he remembered and loved.

Crookshanks came over and jumped up onto Hermione's lap, where he soon settled down. Harry smiled at the cat, thinking that he must recognise this Hermione better than the new Hermione-the-lover. She was stroking her cat and fussing over him.

Ron stood up and looked out of the window. 'I think I can hear -- yes, the carriages are coming back from the station. It must be nearly tea time.'

'Oh, Crookshanks. I've got to go now. You stay here and wait, all right?' She picked him up, stood, and put him on the chair. He seemed happy enough on the warm chair, and settled back down.

The three of them headed downstairs, and got to the Gryffindor table at about the same time as the earliest pupils from the train. Fred and George sat near them, and talked to Ron about the Christmas they'd had at the Burrow.

Dumbledore made a brief speech, the gist of which was to welcome everyone back at the beginning of a new calendar year, and then the food appeared and they began to eat.

Harry looked at Hermione, who seemed content to listen to the twins and Ron. By now, the topic of Christmas at the Burrow appeared to have ground to a halt, and Ron was asking the twins about the Quidditch trials, and what they thought were the most important qualities for a Beater to have.

'The most important thing is that you should have a twin brother,' said Fred.

'Red hair's quite important too,' added George.

'Come on, you must have some idea!' said Ron. 'Or don't you want a Weasley to be on the team after you leave?'

'Charlie wouldn't forgive us if we didn't give you something more helpful,' admitted George.

After that decision, they gave him some more serious advice, all of which sounded believable and useful as far as Harry could tell.

He looked over at Ginny, who appeared to be telling her friends about her Christmas, and back to Hermione, who was quietly and slowly eating while still listening to Ron and the twins. He was just going to comment on her silence, when he realised he wasn't saying anything either.

Angelina, who was sitting opposite the twins and Lee, was now also talking to Ron about what she thought important in a Quidditch player. Harry hoped that Ron did get into the team this time; he clearly wasn't going to be Head Boy, as he hadn't been made a Prefect, but he might manage to become Quidditch captain.

He looked round at other people on the Gryffindor table. Lavender and Parvati were talking so animatedly they seemed hardly to have time to eat anything, so he assumed they were gossipping about someone again -- hopefully, not about Hermione and him. Seamus and Dean seemed to be discussing their Christmases, but it was hard to hear anything over the twins and Ron.

He looked across at the other tables. Lisa Turpin was talking to Cho Chang and other Ravenclaws. He forced himself not to keep looking at Cho, and wondered if Lisa was telling them about the alcohol Professor Flitwick had found in their common room. Nobody at the Hufflepuff table caught his eye, but he could see Malfoy with Crabbe and Goyle at the Slytherin table. Malfoy was laughing loudly, as if he'd just told the others a joke. Harry watched until the other two began to laugh, then looked back at Ron and the twins, still talking about Quidditch.

'It's nice to have everyone back again, even if it's disappointing for you two,' he said quietly to Hermione.

'I suppose it is,' she said. 'It shouldn't be a complete end to what we can do, either. That helps.'

She turned back to listen to Angelina, who was now talking about the qualities of a good Chaser. When Angelina had finished, Lee started trying to persuade Ron that the commentator's job was the best, and meant the least time spent in the hospital wing. Hermione grinned and turned back to Harry.

'I don't think Ron would settle for commentator!'

'Commentators can never become Captain,' agreed Harry. 'I'm sure he wants that.'

'You'll be the Captain next year, won't you?'

Harry shook his head. 'We've already decided it'll be Katie. I might be Captain in our seventh year, but it depends who else is on the team -- so it could be Ron.'

Hermione nodded, and went back to listening to the others.

The Quidditch talk had ground to a halt by the time the desserts were served. After that, the pupils all left the Great Hall for their common rooms. Harry, Ron and Hermione sank into their usual chairs once they were back in their common room. Neville came over to tell them about his Christmas.

Hermione picked up the Spells book and started looking through it, not noticing the card that Harry had left there, underneath it. Neville was asking Harry more about the Quidditch trials, though Harry had to admit he didn't know very much about any position other than Seeker. Just as Hermione put her Spells book down, Neville decided to go and talk to Dean and Seamus.

'Found it! Now I'll know a spell for cleaning carpets next time something gets spilt in here.'

'I thought you already knew some cleaning spells,' said Harry. 'I'm sure I remember you cleaning something away in Potions.'

'That's for desks and stone floors. It would work on a carpet, but it wouldn't do the carpet any good.'

'Why not? What happens if you cast the wrong cleaning spell on a carpet?'

'It would bleach the pattern off when it cleaned it.'

'Oh. All right.'

'You know, you ought to learn a few spells like this, unless you're going to have a house-elf slave you force to do everything. Or are you going to be sexist and say it's a woman's work?'

'Even if I wanted to say that, it wouldn't make sense, since I can't even think of getting married while Voldemort's a threat. I suppose I was just thinking of vacuum cleaners -- I'm used to things like that. The Dursleys never did any cleaning if they could make me do it.'

'But you're the one who said you were going to give up on the Muggle world completely.'

Harry thought about that. 'Maybe electricity would be worth keeping then.'

Ron had been keeping quiet through this. Hermione turned to him. 'You're being very quiet. You could learn these spells too, you know.'

Ron held his hands up as though surrendering. 'Yes, dear.'

She laughed. 'Now who does that sound like?' She put the book back in her bookbag and stood. 'I'm going to take these back upstairs. I won't be long.'

As Hermione left the table, Harry looked round, wondering where Ginny was, and saw her talking to Fred and George. Ron saw where he was looking.

'I wonder if Ginny's going to try to get on the team too. I don't suppose she'd have the strength to be a Beater though,' said Ron.

'Someone small and light would be better as a Seeker or Chaser,' agreed Harry. 'Was Bill on the team in his day?'

'Yes, but he wasn't as good as Charlie.'

'So if you and Ginny both get into the team, it'll only be Percy who didn't.'

'That's true. The Weasley family Quidditch team -- I like the sound of that.'

Harry looked back to where Fred and George were, but didn't see Ginny there. Then he saw her, now talking to Angelina. 'I think she must be talking to them about the team.'

Hermione reappeared, and sat back down. 'Who are you looking at?'

Harry explained what they'd guessed.

Hermione nodded. 'She said last summer she'd like to be on the team, but didn't think she'd be any good as Keeper. I don't think she was expecting there to be any more trials this year. The twins must have told her about them at Christmas.'

Ginny, who'd apparently finished talking about Quidditch, came over to the three of them and hesitated. Ron and Hermione were sitting on one side of the table, with Harry on the other side, as they'd been doing for most of the holiday.

'That's not fair,' she said. 'Two on one side and one on the other? I'll even it out,' and she sat next to Harry.

'Hello Ginny,' said the three of them.

'Hello,' she replied. She noticed the faked Chocolate Frog card on the table where Harry had left it before lunch. She reached for it, but was shocked when Ron leant forward and grabbed for it so fast that he nearly pulled her hand off too. She looked at him, hurt.

'Sorry, Ginny, but it's a really unusual card,' her brother said, his face almost as red as his hair. Hermione seemed to be trying not to laugh. Ginny turned to look at Harry, who was also suppressing a laugh.

'Fine, don't tell me what's going on, then,' she said irritably. 'Anyway, you missed a good Christmas at the Burrow,' she told her brother. 'Did you have a good one here?'

'Oh yes,' said Ron. 'I don't think I'd have missed this Christmas for the world.'

He turned to Hermione, who smiled at him. 'I wouldn't either,' she said.