the_debt_of_time

had ever had to a brother, and she knew he felt the same way; there was no need to address
it.
"Sometimes I think that if you'd never met me―"
"Shut up, Harry."
Harry chuckled at her ire. "I thought you'd be upset about... you know.. ."
"You thought I was jealous? I don't see Ron like that. I might have thought about it
a very long time ago, but, well, I haven't always had the most logical taste in men, have I?"
Harry shrugged. "Krum wasn't so bad."
"He couldn't pronounce my name."
"Professor Lockhart could," Harry teased.
Hermione rolled her eyes, doing her best not to confess her previous crush
on another professor... or...
She frowned.
"I'm sorry, Hermione," Harry said. "I was just teasing."
"I know. It's... It's not that."
"If it makes you feel any better, I'm, well, lonely too."
"It doesn't make me feel better to know that you're lonely. Ginny will come
around."
Harry blushed, his eyes widening. "Ginny—What? I-I-I never said―"
"You are the least subtle person I've ever met, Harry Potter." Hermione smirked at
him. "I won't tell Ron, though."
Almost as though mentioning him was a Summoning Charm, Ron appeared,
stepping through the door with a giggling Lavender on his arm. His red hair was mussed,
and his lips were swollen. He looked at Hermione briefly—almost smug when their eyes
met—and then turned his attention to Harry, purposely ignoring her.
This is why my brain forces me to find men twice my age more attractive than adolescent idiots.
Ron pretended to look embarrassed to have stumbled upon them in the room.
Lavender actually did look a bit sheepish, but she giggled, flashed Ron a beckoning look,
and then left without a word.
"Hey, Harry," Ron said, running a hand through his hair, clearly not planning on
following his new girlfriend. "Was wondering where you'd run off to."