Spoilers: Nothing specific. Set post Goblet of Fire.

Rating: T

A/N: Another old story written sometime between the publication of Goblet of Fire and Half-Blood Prince. It feels like a bad sign that I can't narrow it down more than that.

xxxxxx

He was doing it again. He was... looming. Drat Ron and his height and his broad shoulders and... just drat him. Hermione didn't even have to turn around to know it was him. She recognized his loom. Giant feet clumping towards her were the first sign. And he actually thought he was sneaking up on her. Then there was a shadow cast over the book she had just pulled from the library shelves. Then the sudden warmth at her back from the presence of another body standing just behind her. Then there was the quickening of her pulse. Stupid pulse. Always choosing the most ridiculous times to quicken. Drat Ron!

She slammed her book closed, and was unreasonably gratified when she felt Ron flinch. "Must you always do that?" she asked irritably, turning to face him.

"Do what?" asked Ron, looking surprised and hurt at her cross tone.

"Loom," Hermione replied testily.

"Loom?" Ron repeated.

Hermione gestured at the very minuscule amount of space between them. "Yes, loom."

"I wasn't looming," Ron said defensively.

"You were standing right behind me leaning into my personal space. Since you're about a foot taller than me, I'd say that definitely qualifies as looming," Hermione said.

"Since when do I always loom?" Ron wanted to know.

"I don't know. Since you got so blasted tall, I suppose," Hermione responded.

Ron feigned shock. "Hermione! Such language from a Hogwarts prefect. I would have expected you to set a better example for your classmates."

Hermione glared at him. "Very funny."

"So when have I been doing all this alleged looming?" Ron teased.

Hermione put one finger on her cheek and pursed her lips as though she were in deep thought. "Well, let's see. Care of Magical Creatures for one."

Ron grinned. "I just want to make sure I'm near you so I can protect you from any terrifying creatures Hagrid sets loose on us."

Hermione snorted. "And in Potions?"

He shrugged. "How else am I going to copy your notes?"

"Ron!"

"I didn't know my looming, as you put it, bothered you so much, Hermione," Ron said with a smirk.

"Well," Hermione hedged. "It doesn't bother me, exactly."

Ron's eyebrow rose again. "Oh, really? So you admit you like the looming!"

"Don't be ridiculous," snapped Hermione. "Anyone would be unsettled by some strange figure leaning over her and breathing on her neck."

"Strange figure, huh? You knew it was me!" Ron said, now grinning mischievously. "It's okay, Hermione, it happens all the time. Girls just tend to get a little restless when confronted with this sort of animal magnetism," he said, thumping himself on the chest.

"Oh, please," Hermione grumbled.

Ron ignored her. "You can't help yourself, I suppose. What girl's heart wouldn't be all a flutter when faced with a fine specimen like myself?" This accompanied by Ron flexing his arms to show off his biceps.

Hermione rolled her eyes. Heart all a flutter, indeed. A quickened pulse did not a flutter make. She reached out and squeezed his arm, but unfortunately had to pretend to be unimpressed when she realized her fingers barely made an impression on the hard muscle beneath them. "Very impressive," she said with all the sarcasm she could muster.

Ron did not seem fazed. "That's right, solid as a rock!"

Hermione wished she could contradict him, but she was an honest person, after all. She just grunted in what she hoped was a disparaging way, and said, "Ron, clearly, you are missing the point."

Ron waggled his eyebrows at her. "Oh, I think I'm getting the point very well. The point is you can barely control yourself when I'm near you."

"That's right. For example, right at this moment, I'm having a lot of trouble controlling the impulse to smack you!" Hermione said scathingly.

Ron grinned wickedly. "Hermione, I never knew you liked that sort of thing."

"Oh! You're impossible!" Hermione exclaimed.

Ron nodded. "I know I'm impossibly sexy, but I don't mind you telling me again."

"Impossibly arrogant, more like," Hermione said.

"Hey, I'm just saying what dozens of girls have said before," Ron replied.

"Dozens of girls? Name one girl who has said that," she challenged.

"Okay, they may not have technically said that, but I can tell they're thinking it. I'm attuned to these subtle nuances of female behavior," he boasted.

Hermione snorted angrily. "You are not."

He spread his hands. "All I'm saying is, I'd be willing to bet any girl who kissed me would not leave disappointed."

Infuriated, Hermione said sharply, "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is, you prat?"

She froze. She did not just say that. She closed her eyes and wished for a Portkey to Siberia to take her away from Hogwarts so she never had to look Ron in the face again. She did not just say that. She did not just effectively dare Ron Weasley to kiss her.

Only judging by the look on Ron's face when she opened her eyes, she had done just that. Clearly, he had never in a million years expected her to call his bluff, and the shocked expression he wore hardly indicated that the idea of kissing her was even remotely appealing to him.

Okay, she could deal with this. She just had to think of a nice, logical plan of action. Only she could not think of one blasted thing, so logically, there was only one thing to do. Run for it. She widened her eyes in panic and moved to rush past him.

Ron was too quick for her. He sidestepped as she moved forward, so her attempt to escape resulted only in closing the remaining distance between them. He grabbed her arms, immobilizing her.

"Hermione," Ron said huskily. "We both know I don't have any money, but I'd love to put my mouth wherever you want me to."

With that, he bent and kissed her firmly on the mouth. Hermione was so surprised it took her a minute before she was able to form a coherent thought. When she finally managed a thought at all, it was Ron is kissing me, and then she gave up on thinking all together and kissed him back.

The book in her hand fell to the floor with a thud as Ron made a marvelous sort of growling noise in the back of his throat and pressed her up against the book shelves. He began to rub his hands up and down her arms in a way that left her all shivery and immobilized her much more effectively than brute force ever could have.

Her hands seemed to float upwards of their own accord. One of them placed itself on his chest, while the other found itself caressing the back of his neck. He kissed her temple; she kissed his cheek. He kissed the corner of her mouth; she kissed the hollow of his throat. He kissed her eyelid; she kissed him behind the ear. Finally, their mouths met each other again for a long slow kiss. They sighed contentedly together.

"I'm sorry about the looming," Ron said in a gravelly voice, twirling a strand of her hair in his fingers.

"Well," Hermione hedged, tracing her finger up and down his chest. "I suppose it's not so bad at that."