Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Author's note: Here is my Ron and Hermione fic, which I said I would do, in 'After the Quidditch game', I hope you like it, I am certain that Ron and Hermione will end up together so I have more belief in these two, I know JKR will make a much better happy ending for Ron and Hermione, this fic is just how I would like it to be. Just for the record I don't do the whole dating/going out thing. I hope you enjoy it, and tell me what you think of it, I need to know people's opinions. Thanks to my sister for once again not proof reading it!

Thanks to the Silence

Chapter 1

'SPEW is a highly motivated society!' yelled Hermione.

'You are the only one in spew!' yelled back Ron, his ears flaming.

'it is not called spew, it is called SPEW' retorted Hermione, in a highly offended way.

'Alright then SPEW has no bloody point to it, you just have to stop it'

'WHAT!' screamed Hermione at the top of her lungs, quite a few students turned from there calm walk towards Hogsmede to turn at the raging riot between Ron, some of them were smirking, some of them were look entertained and some of them looked rather annoyed.

They continued to bicker along the path way into the quaint village, their arguing seemed to distribute itself over a wide range of topics, it began with toast for breakfast that morning and then onto Hermione's mania over SPEW and elf rights, it then progressed onto how many sheets of parchment they were going to buy while in the village, and amazingly onto dungbombs.

'What's wrong with buying dungbombs?' snapped back Ron, his eyes slightly wider than usual with faint disbelief,

'They cause trouble, and smell horrid'

'Well, I think that's what it was made for-'

'And they disturb people who are serious about their exams'

'Oh s-'

'Will you two just stop it!' yelled Harry through frustration, he unfortunately needed to buy parchment as well, and it was an even greater misfortune that he had to accompany Ron and Hermione, their bickering didn't seem to stop ever since they placed one foot in Hogwarts. 'You two have one serious problem, and I am really sick of it, so could you please just help everyone and sort it out!'

Through his temper Harry turned on his heel and walked away with no grace at all. Ron and Hermione were left alone with shocked and frozen faces. They turned their heads away from the direction of Harry's exit and towards their own faces; both eyes were wide, and both faces contained an even fused mixture of shame and anger.

'Well, um…' stuttered Hermione,

'Bloody hell' said Ron simply.

'Oh, for God's sake Ron, can't you string a single sentence without swearing?' she asked irritated, with a defined frown on her forehead.

'Lets just go and get parchment alright, so I can do the lovely homework' said Ron screwing up his eyes in annoyance.

'Yes, lets, you just might learn something'

'Oh, right like the past five years of school was nothing'

'For once you are correct' Ron's ears went pink.

They walked up Hogsmede and continued walking steadily towards the further part of the high street and turned into Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, they said nothing to each other all the way, and only spoke to enquire if either wanted any new quills, Hermione said she didn't need any and Ron said he didn't have enough money for them, other than these few sentences they positioned themselves in a stony silence, waiting for the other to not speak or apologize which both of them were quite ready not to do.

After a while both Ron and Hermione were getting rather embarrassed from each other, not quite sure what to do, their anger at each other had obviously ebbed away and all that was left was a heavy feeling in the pit of their stomachs, something they were both quit certain was guilt.

They walked down the high street after spending half an hour in Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, they were still not speaking to each other, though both often sneaked sideways glances while the other wasn't looking.

'Um… d'you wanna go into Honeydukes' asked Ron quietly, not certain if he should do anything.

'Er…yes' said Hermione in an equally quiet tone, though she was not looking at him, which was quite the opposite of what Ron was doing.

They turned into Honeydukes, and the sight of brightly coloured sweets and lively students seemed to depress both of them even further, and without saying a word both turned out of the shop with only a slight of a glance to ascertain that each other didn't want to stay in the sweet shop for another moment.

They now stood on the pavement wondering weather to talk or not, there was a very dark cloud moving among the lighter coloured clouds. Ron decided that he should at least ask her if she wanted to go anywhere else, however his nerves failed him and a slightly hoarse sound came out of his mouth.

'Do you want to go any where else?' he asked.

'Um, no, not really'

'Alright' said Ron in reply, and they continued standing there outside Honeydukes doing nothing.

'How about the three broomsticks?' asked Hermione, her voice shaking a little.

'Yeah, okay' replied Ron and they both walked up to the gleaming pub, it was not packed with students as what was expected but the bar still gleamed with all it's glory. Hermione frowned a little as she looked around the unusually quiet pub, she glanced down at her wrist watch and found that it had stopped.

'Ron, what's the time' she asked

'Five thirty, why?'

'Well, we are a bit late aren't we?'

'Yeah, we might miss dinner but, I don't think the teachers will come to look for us' he said awkwardly.

'I suppose so' she said still with a slight frown.

'So what drink do you want?' asked Ron, in an attempt to act normally.

'Well, I only drink butterbeer, but don't worry, I'll get them' she said.

'Nah, nah, they're on me' said Ron, smiling slightly.

'But…'

'They are on me' repeated Ron decidedly. Hermione still felt guilty, still not knowing what to do, he did seem quite determined and decided, so she let him get the drinks, she was left sitting on her own, waiting for Ron to come back, he really was quite sweet, he was always loyal, always there, on the other hand he is quite dense, always, never getting the point, always puzzled, but it really never mattered, well actually, Hermione had always quite liked how he was confused, him and his red hair, you could find him any where with that trait, she liked him because Ron was just Ron, and there was nothing in the world she would ever do to change him.

Hermione now felt worse than ever about being rude to Ron, she did feel that she hit him quite hard sometimes, and the quarrel they had earlier must have been one of them There was a slight bang on the table in front of her, Hermione shook out of fright and looked up to see Ron, sitting down, with his bottle of butterbeer in his big clumsy hand.

'Thanks' said Hermione feeling shameful.

'It's nothing' said Ron quietly, not looking at her.

They drank their drinks in silence, wondering what the other was thinking about, and just like their walk, they kept sneaking glances at each other, hoping for a sign of…something, or anything. Hermione kept her head down when she had almost finished drinking her butterbeer, and in a brave attempt to occupy her mind with something other than Ron she looked at her wrist watch, and she remembered that it had stopped, it was then that she wished she had a book with her, anything, even Professor Binns would suffice.

'Um… er… do you think we should go back to school now?' asked Ron

'Yes' said Hermione simply, and they both stood up from their seats and strode toward the door swiftly. The sky was extremely dark it could've been black, however neither Ron nor Hermione registered this, they walked in silence, feeling a tiny bit lighter after their drinks, They were walking closer to The shrieking Shack when Ron stopped.

'What?' enquired Hermione.

'Can you feel raindrops?' he asked

'No' she said, but just as these words escaped her mouth here was a huge thundering sound which shocked the pair into silence, something splashed to the right of Hermione and Ron without a moment to consider grabbed Hermione's arm, and ran.

Ron ran as though running for his life, Hermione didn't have time to look back, she heard continuously increasing loud splashes on the floor behind her.

'Ron wha-' but she didn't have time to continue speaking when Ron ushered her into a broken down and deserted shop, it's shattered windows, and dingy appearance not welcoming Hermione very much. It consisted of one very large room, no torch brackets or candle sticks so the room was in complete darkness.

'Ron why, what, why-?' stammered Hermione in utter shock.

'That was a storm, Hermione' said Ron, closing the door and slightly deafening the splashing noises outside.

'Wha-'

'The raindrops are so big they'll knock you out' continued Ron, who was now standing against the wall'

'Oh' said Hermione weakly.

'Yeah, we had one once, at the Burrow, Mum was scared to death, locked all of us in our rooms and she personally guarded Fred and George's' said Ron now walking to the window and staring at the scene in front of him. He looked so bold and strong.

Hermione gave her head a little shake and took to sitting against the wall, it was Hermione's turn to look out of the window and she saw for the first time the so-called raindrops which looked more like millions of bludgers hitting the ground, she now understood why it was so imperative to get out of the rain so quickly, it was like rain from an ant's point of view.

She now turned her train of thought from the rain to Ron, it was thanks to him that she wasn't out there, inside and sheltered from any danger. She now felt more guilty than ever for quarreling with Ron, though it seemed really pitiful now, it was so insignificant, and these thoughts only depressed Hermione further into despair. She tried to bring conversation into the dark room, because she didn't think she cold stand his silence any more.

'I didn't know that there could be storms like this' she said quietly.

'Well, they only exist in the magical world, but they are what the muggles call, monsns or something like that'.

'You mean monsoons' corrected Hermione, but instantly regretted it, she felt like she was invading something, Ron didn't give any sign of not wanting Hermione to speak, and that is what Hermione found most distressing. Hermione found it very difficult to speak but having no words lingering in the air was unbearably painful.

'It looks very dangerous' said Hermione, picking on any subject.

'Yeah, it is' said Ron simply still looking out of the window and not turning to even glance at Hermione.

'Thanks by the way' said Hermione trying to discharge at least one of her depts.

'For what?' asked Ron alarmed, and this time Hermione blushed.

'For getting me out of that storm'

'Oh…that, I was trying to get myself out of it'

'But you grabbed my arm before you started running' said Hermione, before she could control her mouth, it was Ron's turn to start blushing.

'Your…er, welcome' said Ron; giving a feeble smile towards Hermione, and turning his head back sharply to the window.

Hermione smiled to herself, in spite of everything that had happened, she felt a little bit less stressed. They fell into silence yet again, and Hermione felt that she could no longer take in the guilt, the unendurable silence was eating her inside out, she needed to say something, she had to say something…anything.

'Ron' she said quietly, but her words were drowned when Ron said her name to call her attention, they were now looking at each other, and Ron had turned away from the window.

'You go first' they both said uniformly,

'You go first Ron' said Hermione decidedly but Ron was insisting that she talk first.

'Alright, I'm sorry for offending you earlier today' she said to the floor.

'Oh that's nothing' said Ron in a shaky voice,

'No really, I am sorry' pleaded Hermione.

'It's fine' said Ron, 'actually I wanted to say sorry as well'

'What?' said Hermione alarmed, what had he to apologize for?

'Well I am sorry about the whole…SPEW thing' he said quietly, Hermione was shocked, she had completely forgotten about that, an he wasn't that upsetting anyway, no, she had definitely been more harsh.

'Oh, that was nothing'

'No, I upset you and I am sorry.'

'Well, okay' she said weakly, still not knowing what to so, she thought that apologizing would lift this heavy weight of guilt, indeed she didn't feel such defined guilt anymore, but it was something else that was in her stomach, something she did not know about, and it was much much worse than guilt.

She looked over at Ron, but he wasn't there, she turned her head in panic, did he leave her? Did he just go out? Where is he? Her head came round to the wall she was leaning on and she found nothing there, she turned her head 180 degrees just for the sake of it, and to her shock, Ron was there, sitting down next to her and leaning his back on the wall, looking more tired than if he had five Quidditch matches in a row.

They now sat in stillness yet again, it was still uncomfortable and awkward but less heavy, they were a little bit more peaceful, Ron was staring at the wall in front of her, she wondered what he was thinking and found herself staring at him, she shook her head and continued to think meditatively, it was still raining hard with the rain drops the size of rocks.

'Hermione' said a voice quietly, Hermione turned her head to face Ron, he was red and frustrated, and he looked very anxious about something.

'Yes?'

'Um… er, oh nothing' he said, but Hermione was now rather worried about him, his face was sweating and he was growing increasingly red.

'No, Ron, what is it, you look anxious'

'No, it's nothing'

'Ron tell me, what is it?' she asked firmly.

'Well, um… er… will, will you go into Hogsmede with me one day?' he stuttered and his faced mimicked a quaffel. Hermione had no idea what he meant, they had just had a day in Hogsmede and had a horrid time of it.

'What on earth are you talking about?' she said looking confused. Ron looked even more flustered.

'I…well, I…'

'Well?' demanded Hermione tired of his stuttering.

'Will you bloody well go out with me?' asked Ron annoyed, his face contorted in annoyance and then it fell as he realized what he said, he turned his back against the wall and took to staring at it, Hermione also took to staring at the wall, her face was paralyzed with shock, she did not see that coming, she always thought Ron wouldn't be able to do that, she always thought that she would make the first move, but she had never been strong or brave enough to do that. Hermione's brain was for the first time, numb. She didn't know what to do or say, it took her a few moments to recover and she turned to look at Ron, his breathing was shallow and he looked as though he actually was grateful for Hermione absence of talk, she turned her head back to the wall.

'Yes' she said quietly.

'What?' exclaimed Ron, apparently out of his reverie but still looking at the wall.

'I will go out with you' she said simply, fighting a blush.

'Really?' asked Ron his voice growing higher.

'Yes, but can't you string a single sentence without swearing?' she asked teasingly. Ron chuckled. They sat like that, every thing lighter, nothing in the pit of her stomach, no walls between them, nothing, just pure happiness. It was after a while that something miraculous happened, she was not expecting it at all, she didn't believe it at first.

Ron, came closer to her and very softly, kissed her gently on her cheek, his lips brushed her skin, and his warmth was still left there after he sat back, the nerves on her skin where Ron had kissed her were tingling and electrifying, there was chill that shot up her spine making her a little stiff. Hermione's eyes widened, she just sat there not knowing what to do. They said nothing to each other, Hermione was happier than she had ever been, not even a little bit chipped was her joy, nothing spoiled it at all, it would always stay there, permanently, a mark of this moment.

'Oh my God!' exclaimed Hermione after a while,

'What?' asked Ron alarmed,

'What's the time?'

'It's about… seven thirty, why?'

'The teacher's will start looking for us Ron'

'No, look the storm has stopped, we'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes, come on' and he stood up and gave her his hand to help her stand up.

'Well we better be quick'

'No, I think we should take as much time as we want' said Ron, and they walked up to the school in a comfortable silence, just being happy and nothing else.

The sky had cleared up to reveal a brilliantly twinkled night, it lit up the street and there was not a single trace of cloud, leaving no barriers, walls, objects or obstacles between it and the ground.

Authors note: what did you think? I didn't put a snogging scene but I believe that Ron and Hermione are definitely not based on lust, it's something much more substantial than that. But for those of you who are interested in fluff, don't worry.

Keep your eyes peeled for the second chapter!