Rating:
G
House:
Astronomy Tower
Ships:
Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Characters:
Hermione Granger Ron Weasley
Genres:
Romance Humor
Era:
The Harry Potter at Hogwarts Years
Stats:
Published: 01/22/2003
Updated: 07/02/2007
Words: 13,959
Chapters: 15
Hits: 21,564

Jigsaw Puzzle

RonHermioneStory

Story Summary:
Ron and Hermione are beginning to have confused feelings about each other. They are being increasingly awkward around each other and having more arguments than ever. Will they ever admit their feelings to each other...let alone to themselves? Maybe, but it won't be right away...and it won't be easy...unless something happens to make them see just how perfect they are for each other.

Chapter 04

Chapter Summary:
An argument and several conversations lead to something unexpected...
Posted:
04/20/2003
Hits:
1,614
Author's Note:
I am SO sorry I haven't written another chapter in so long. I know how it feels, as often I've had to wait for the next chapter of a fanfic I was reading. Enjoy, fellow R/H fans!(and please don't be angry with me...)


"You lied to me, Hermione! You said you were only friends with Viktor!"

"I wouldn't lie to you, Ron. I honestly don't think of Viktor as anything more than a friend!"

"Sure. Of course you don't," Ron replied with very heavy sarcasm.

As summer was nearing an end, Viktor Krum had just left the Burrow to return to his home, and Ron had witnessed him kissing Hermione goodbye. He was furious. Once again, Ron and Hermione were having a rather loud argument. They were outside, but the noise probably carried to the house, if not to the whole neighborhood.

"Why can't you even try to listen to me for once?" Hermione yelled.

"All I want is to know what the truth is! How am I supposed to believe you now?"

"I told you, Ron. I wouldn't lie to you. Honestly I wouldn't. I'll talk to Viktor if that makes you happy, okay? I guess maybe he doesn't understand that I don't want my relationship with him to be more than friendship."

"That's not answering my question!"

"What question?" snapped Hermione.

Ron was growing tired of beating around the bush. "Do you like him as more than a friend or don't you?" he asked bluntly, for this was the burning question that he had wanted to know the answer to ever since the Yule Ball.

"If you must know, I don't really know, but since when is it your business? Why do you care if I do or not?"

"Well, I..." Ron said slowly, trying to think of, or at least make up, a reason why he cared.

"Do you just enjoy bothering me? Is that it?"

"No...I just-"

Acting as though she hadn't heard Ron, Hermione continued. "Well I am tired of this, Ronald Weasley, and I don't know why I bother putting up with you! What's wrong with my meeting someone who actually cares about me; who doesn't find something to argue with me about almost every single day; who appreciates me for once; who isn't a self-centered git like you?" She stormed off, tears in her eyes, and Ron glared after her.

Ron heard a sound at his feet and looked down to see Crookshanks there. "Hey," he said quietly, bending down and scratching Crookshanks behind the ears. He'd been getting along fine with Crookshanks since the end of his third year of Hogwarts. "I don't know how or why I put up with her," he told the cat. "I just asked a question. She didn't need to get all worked up about it!"

Crookshanks meowed.

"I know I'm who started it, but, well...I didn't start this whole thing! It wasn't my idea for Hermione to go to that ball with Krum!"

Crookshanks meowed again.

"I know I'm who started those huge arguments about it, and that no one else seems to have a problem with it, but...I guess I'm just jealous because Krum's a famous Quidditch player and all. I don't really care about Hermione being with him otherwise.

Crookshanks meowed yet again, and maybe it was just his imagination, but Ron thought the meow sounded sarcastic.

"What?" said Ron angrily. "You don't believe me? You've been around Hermione too much. Why am I talking to a stupid cat anyway? Go away and leave me alone!"

Ron was about to kick Crookshanks, but Crookshanks was too fast and ran away. Ron kicked a rock instead.

Ginny came outside to find Ron throwing a rock into the garden pond, scattering the frogs in it. "Where's Hermione?" she asked.

"I dunno, and I don't care, either," Ron replied, throwing another rock.

Ginny sighed. "You had another argument with her, didn't you?"

"So?" Ron said, looking for something else to throw into the pond.

"Could you please stop terrorizing the frogs for a minute?" asked Ginny. "I just want some idea of where Hermione is so I can ask her something."

"I dunno where she went. She just told me I'm a self-centered git and ran off crying. I don't know what her problem is."

"She was crying?" said Ginny. "I'm not asking you what you said, but don't you think you should apologize?"

"Why waste my time? She deserved it!" Ron snapped. Although he didn't tell Ginny, he felt slightly guilty that he'd made Hermione cry. After all, he always got angry when other people made Hermione cry, like that time when Snape called Hermione an insufferable know-it-all and she started crying and he got detention because he yelled at Snape...when Ron asked himself why he got so angry when people made Hermione cry, however, he didn't really know.

Ginny just sighed and went to find Hermione.

Ron and Hermione didn't speak to each other for the rest of the day. No one said anything about it, probably afraid that another argument would ensue if the topic were brought up. Ginny tried to get the two of them to talk to each other, but it was no use. The only way Ron and Hermione communicated was through glaring at each other from time to time.

Although Ron tried not to show it, he began to feel pangs of guilt when Hermione glared at him. Her last words of the argument kept going through his mind, and continued to when he went to sleep that night.

"What's wrong with my meeting someone who actually cares about me; who doesn't find something to argue with me about almost every single day; who appreciates me for who I am for once..."

Those words stung Ron. Did Hermione really think that he didn't care about her at all; that he didn't appreciate her for who she was, but was only her friend for the free homework help? "That's not true at all...As much as I hate to admit it," he thought. "I admire her. She's lightened up over the years, but she still can be serious when she has to be...She always has clever solutions to things...She does her best to help Harry and I...She's a wonderful friend...Why do I just take that for granted so much? She's not like other girls at all...She doesn't spend half her time worrying about how she looks and what other people think of her...She has a real laugh instead of a stupid fake giggle...yet...she's pretty, in her own way...and..."

Ron sat bolt upright in bed. "Oh, God..." he whispered aloud in disbelief. "I've officially gone insane..." he thought. He couldn't go back to sleep.

Ron quietly went into Ginny's room, went over to Ginny's bed, and shook her.

"Wh-what? What's wrong? Is it morning already?" said Ginny groggily.

"Shh!" Ron hissed. "Ginny, I have to talk to you!"

"Can't it wait until morning?"

"No!"

"What is it, then?"

"Not here," said Ron in a hushed voice, glancing over at Hermione's bed and quickly looking back to Ginny. "Downstairs."

Ginny would have refused, but she looked up and saw the panicked look on Ron's face. "All right," she said curiously.

"So what's wrong?" Ginny asked when she and Ron were in the living room.

"Ginny...Am I insane?" Ron asked.

"Of course you aren't. Whatever gave you that idea?" said Ginny, looking at Ron strangely.

"You're sure?"

"Of course I'm sure! Ron, there is nothing wrong with you!"

"But there must be! There has to be! Maybe I'm insane and you don't know it..."

"Ron, I insure you that you're perfectly sane," said Ginny. "Now what is it? A bad dream?"

Ron paused. "Promise me you won't laugh," he said.

"I won't. Just tell me," said Ginny, starting to get impatient.

Ron took a deep breath, looking at the floor, and began, in the sort of tone someone uses when they are telling someone they have a fatal disease. "I was just thinking...and I think...I think I'm..." Ron searched for the right word. "I think I'm attracted to Hermione."