A/N: Thanks for all reviews. Enjoy. Love is Stupid Stuff. 2. I sigh, getting up from dinner at the Gryffindor table, and glare at Ron, who was sitting across from me. "Let's go," I tell him tersely. "Okay, okay," he says, looking a bit annoyed. He's got no right to look that way. I'm the one who should look annoyed. "You don't have to act like this is all my fault, you know." I turn to him, astonished. "Ron- It is all your fault!" He rolls his eyes. "Please. If you hadn't answered me when I asked you all that stuff.. we wouldn't we heading to Snape's detention in the first place." I sputter at him angrily, speechless. How could he be so-- Arg, so irritating? Ron smirks a bit, then turns to wave a bye at Harry, but his effort is useless. Harry is busy blowing kisses at Cho, who sits over at the Ravenclaw table. Ron turns to me and we share a disgusted look. Honestly. In public, too. Thank goodness Ron hasn't lost his wits.. or I would be completely alone in my scorn of it all. We walk down to the dungeons. Ron is trying to explain to me some new Quidditch move he has read about in Sorcerer Sport's Weekly; he gestures with his hands the intricate movements that the player must make in order to get it right. I roll my eyes and try to block it out, and instead concentrate on not killing Ron. It's my first detention of the year. And I plan to make sure it's my last. All he cares to talk about is Quidditch. Ron will just have to start studying. Huh. I shake my head. That's a useless thing to hope for. The stars may as well fall to the Earth. We reach the Potions room, and Ron opens the door for me. I smile at this- he is pretty sweet at times. Though he's an annoying little git at others. He follows me in and I spot Snape sitting at his desk, as he stares at something. The picture, I remember. I had forgotten to tell Harry or Ron- who would find it hilarious. He sets it down rather hastily and narrows his eyes at us. "Get over here, Granger. Weasley," he sneers. I don't like the way he says Ron's last name. As if it were some kind of disease or something. I glance up at Ron as we walk up to Snape's desk, but he doesn't seem to mind. He's probably used to it- between Snape and Malfoy and them. "Here." Snape lifts up a massive box, stuffed chock full with papers, from behind his desk. "You will organize this. Alphabetically. And without magic." Ron and I share a look of horror- though Ron looks far more terrified than I. Neither of us make a move towards the box until Snape snaps, "Take it!" Ron steps up and takes the box from his hands, then staggers from the weight. I move to help him, but he sets it down before I can lend a hand. We stare at it together, rather dismally. "Get to it!" Snape stands up with a scrape of his chair and I automatically move back. He glares at us, then straightens his robes. "I will be back shortly." He sweeps across the room and disappears out the door. Ron looks at me. "Shall we.. 'get to it' then?" I groan and look at all the papers- overflowing, crumpled- stained. Probably twenty year old tests that Snape will throw away after we organize them. "This is all your fault, Ron." I say as I kneel by the box. He does the same. "It's as much your fault as mine." I roll my eyes. He can be so aggravating at times. "Let's just get this done." Ron shrugs. * One hour later, we are still not even half done. And Snape has still not come back. I yawn and stretch out my arms. Papers are strewn all about us, and laying in the box is the short amount we've finished. Right up to the D's. They have turned out to be old essays from past years; past Potions teachers must have stowed them away for a couple decades.. essays about love potions, dream potions, telepathy potions.. I look over at Ron. His brow is furrowed as he sifts through a stack of parchments, muttering to himself. A lock of red hair falls in his eyes. He doesn't look half bad. I force myself to look away. Thinking things like that is stupid, anyway. I pick up a random paper off the floor, stretching my legs out in front of me. And I stare at it. It's old, wrinkled, and one corner is torn off. Yet the name is clearly readable. Light, dainty handwriting that proclaims: Lily Evans. Harry's mum. "Oh, my.." I turn to Ron slowly. "Ron- Look at this." I hold it outstretched in my hand. He looks up. "Huh?" Then he takes it from me. And he stares at it. Just like I did. He reads aloud, "The dream potion called 'Bliss' was invented by famous potion-maker James Humble.." his voice trails off. "Should we show him?" There's no question as to who he is talking about. "I think so- he might be interested in it." I shrug uncertainly. "Maybe there's something by his father here." Ron stares at the piles and piles of parchment. "Maybe.. let's just keep an eye out." He nods, and we continue our work in mostly silence. Twenty minutes and three letters later (we were up to G), I look up at Ron just in time to see him slip one of the papers in the pocket of his robes. "What's that?" I ask. He reddens almost imperceptibly, but I notice, of course. "Nothing." "Ron," I state. "You put something in your pocket." "No, I didn't." He denies uselessly. I furrow my brow in confusion. What's he trying to hide? An essay? "Ron." "What?" He tries to look innocent. Finally, I reach over all the papers to get to his pocket.. hiding things is never good. He slides back, and I lean forward until I lose my balance- and fall- onto him. "Ron!" His eyes widen, and he laughs. "Wow. If I had known it would just take a piece of parchment to get you on top of me-" "Ron!!" I stare at him, shocked. Did he just say that? No, he didn't, of course. I heard wrong. Ron didn't say things like that. Ron had all of his wits. "I mean- get off me, Hermione." "Right." That was much better. I finally pull myself off of him, but not before swiping the paper that was in his robes. "Hey," he protests, but I turn away from him and unfold it. "A Complete Evaluation of Medicinal Potions," I read the title, then look at him. "What's the point of taking this?" He shrugs. "Thought it would be good to read over. For Snape's 'completely different and highly difficult test'." I stare at him, then shake my head. "Honestly. What's wrong with reading the section in the book?" "Takes too long," he says matter-of-factly. I roll my eyes. "Whatever." Then I remember the picture Snape has on his desk. I glance at the doorway; he still hasn't come back yet. "Ron- take a look at this." I stand up and walk around to Snape's desk, hear Ron getting up behind me, and pick up the photo frame that's set face down on the surface. "Ugh!" I turn, startled at the sound, to see Ron looking over my shoulder with a horrified expression on his face- "What?" "Snape! Can you imagine that sleazy git with a witch?" I raise my eyebrows. "Not really. Maybe it's his sister or something. After all, what kind of girl would like him, anyway?" "I don't know." We both look at the brunette in the picture again. I shrug, and turn again- only to see Ron staring the girl. I furrow my brow and turn to look at the witch again- what's so amazing about her anyway? "What are you looking at?" "Uh- nothing," he says. I'm surprised to see him redden, and follow his gaze to.. the tiny bikini on the girl. Argh- so like a wizard.. "Honestly, Ron," I snap, pulling the picture away. Every wizard thinks the same way. It gets tiring after a while. I set the picture back on the desk- while it is amusing, it isn't really any of my business. Just another proof that everyone is losing their wits over this love stuff. "C'mon," I tell him, and walk back around the desk. I am just about to walk over to the pile of papers I had been organizing- when I gasp and trip over something hard- the floor flies up to meet me- or I fall down to meet the floor- Strong arms encircle my waist- and pull me back up. I heave a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Ron." "Yeah." He says in a low voice. It tickles my ear- he is so close. His hands haven't left my waist. What is he doing? I bite my lip- he is acting very strangely tonight. "Ron?" I turn my head slightly to the right- only to see Ron's face hovering above my shoulder, too close- and turn my head back where it was before, cheeks reddening. "Huh?" "Let go of me," I say. He drops his arms and I step forward, moving around the box of papers that tripped me, then swing around to look at him. He doesn't look at me. Instead, he stares at the doorway so interestedly that I have to turn around and look also. But there's no one there. Huh. It looks as if his wits are slowly escaping him too. "So." I say after a pause. "Yeah." "Granger! Weasley!" The sharp voice cuts through the awkward silence. I jump and turn- and Snape stands there with a malicious look on his face. "Why aren't you two working?" "We were, Professor, but-" He cuts me off with a "Shut up", as he walks into the room and steps right through my neatly made piles of essays on the floor. He kicks a pile lightly- but it is enough to send the papers flying every which way. I watch, astonished. Oh, I would never say so- but he is being downright childish! So much for him being nicer this year- "Hey!" Ron cuts in angrily. "First you set us to work organizing these lousy twenty year old essays, then you ruin our work! What do you think you're-" Snape swings around, the expression on his face is more vicious than I have ever seen. "Silence! Get out, both of you! I will expect you here tomorrow at the same time- since you haven't finished your work." He sneers. I recoil. I don't think I've ever seen him so angry. And he is obviously mad about something- my gaze drifts over to the picture on his desk- but before I can think anymore about it, Ron grabs my arm and pulls me away. "What a lousy little prat," he spits out as we enter the corridor. He still has my arm and is angrily dragging me along. "What the hell does he expect us to do-" "Don't swear, Ron," I admonish, and then wish I had kept quiet. Ron turns towards me, furious- "Don't swear?! Only swear words could describe that lousy-" He proceeds to swear, words far worse than the one he had used before. I flinch, and pull my arm away. "Forget it. Let's just get back to the tower." He fumes in silence as I lead the way. * We enter the Gryffindor common room, and I sneak a glance at Ron. It looks like he has cooled down during our walk. "You okay?" I direct this at him. "Huh?" He looks confused as if he has no idea what I am talking about. Then, "Oh- that. Yeah. I'm fine." I nod, and wander on in the room- only to make a face of disgust when I look around. Honestly. There are people cuddled up everywhere- Harry has somehow smuggled Cho into the Gryffindor room, and is snuggling up with her on a seat made for one- Fred corners Angelina by the entrance; he tickles her while she laughs hysterically- Lavender snogs with Seamus right in the middle of the room, they are all over each other- Ron turns to me, an identical look of aversion on his face. "Promise me, Hermione," he says in a desperate way, "that you'll never fall for this kind of thing." I shake my head vehemently. "Never. Love is stupid stuff, anyway." He looks both relieved, a bit- but mostly something else that I can't name. I look around again a bit helplessly. "I think I'm going to go up to bed." "Me too." We both leave; I bid him good-bye where I turn to go up to my dormitory. * I decide to go out for a walk after lunch the next day- there is no class in my way and the outdoors looks so inviting. Snow glistens outside and covers the fields and hills- even the enchanted ceiling in the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall is given the job to charm it off. Along with Hagrid. I think I am the only one who notices the looks they give one another. I walk outside and am surprised to see witches everywhere- Some are having snowball fights, some are traipsing around alone- Most, however, are holding hands or gazing deeply into each others eyes. I shake my head. Honestly. A loud voice calls out after me as I walk down the path. "Hermione!" It's Ron. I'd recognize that voice anywhere. "What?" I turn and yell- only to find two seconds later that my mouth is stuffed with snow. I blink- then spit it out angrily. "Ronald Weasley! Have you no manners? How do you dare-" My shouting is cut short in an unpleasant way. Apparently, he dares- and with no shame. I spit out my second mouthful of snow and start towards him- scooping up my own handful of that blasted stuff. The war is on; the walk is forgotten. Ten minutes later, we are both soaking, freezing, and have silly grins on our faces. The fight is pretty much finished, as all of our fingers have turned an alarming purple. "Let's go," he says. I agree and start to walk towards the castle- but don't hear him coming behind me. I turn around to see why, only to let out a small cry and duck as fast as I can. It isn't fast enough. A snowball smacks me cold and wet against my face. I wipe off the dripping stuff and glare at him. He is laughing, doubled over, his red hair is almost completely speckled with white bits of snow- I push him hard, furious, and he tumbles to the ground- I tumble down after him, and land on top. I glare at him. "Ron! How could you! And attacking from behind, no less! What kind of a coward are you?!" "Coward?" He says immediately, and a bit heatedly. I can see I'm making him mad; Ron can't stand being called anything close to uncourageous- "Well, you- you can't even take a joke!" He yells. "You're too busy with your books and your studying that you can't even see what's right in front of you-" He cuts off abruptly. I stare at him- and am suddenly aware of how close we are, and of the fact that I am on top of him. There's nothing in front of me but him. He pushes me away gently. I sit up, and he does the same. He looks at me. I look at him. His eyes have gone soft and he leans in closer. Uh-oh. I try to move back- but before I can his face is in front of mine- and I find that I can't move an inch under his gaze. "Hermione?" He asks in a low tone, lightly touching my cheek with his fingers. "Huh?" I squeak. I don't know what's happening. I've never squeaked in my life. "Can I kiss you?" He moves even closer, something I didn't think was possible. My eyes never leave his. What's happening? "No," I whisper. He doesn't listen. And the next moment, all I am conscious of is that his lips are pressed against mine- and the sweep of sudden sweetness that flows through my body. He pulls away slowly. "You never do listen, do you, Ron Weasley?" I say softly, though a bit breathlessly, which I hate that. I sound like Lavender. "Hermione," he grins a bit. "Be quiet for once, will you?" "No," I tell him. He leans in again. I find that I really don't mind. * I sit in the Gryffindor common room, trying to concentrate on my Potions book. After all, there is that 'completely different and highly difficult test' to go through tonight. But I can't seem to focus on the section... I keep reading the same sentence over and over again. Because Ron Weasley sits next to me, sprawled on the same sofa. He apparently has nothing to do but blatantly stare at me. It's kind of hard to center in on Medicinal potions when someone has had his eyes fixed on you - never wavering - for twenty minutes. And counting. "What is it?" I finally snap, shutting the book. "What?" "Is there something you want?" "Look around, Hermione," he says. I sigh- then do. It's the typical scene- Cho sits in her usual place with Harry- Fred and Angelina camp out by the entrance- Neville whispers to some Gryffindor girl I've seen around- and Lavender and Seamus kiss in the dead center of the room. I raise my eyebrows and turn to look at him. He holds out his hand. I stare at his palm, then sigh rather defeatedly and give him my own. Once my fingers are clasped in his, he suddenly pulls me toward him. I am jerked towards him rather helplessly- he puts a tentative arm around me. I stiffen at first, then relax. It does feel nice. "Do you think you've broken your promise?" I think about it. I had promised him I would never fall for this kind of mushy stuff- yet here I was, and with *his* arm around me, no less. "If I did- it's your fault." "It's as much your fault as mine." "Ron- it's all your fault." "Whatever." He sounds a bit exasperated. I smirk. It isn't often I get to tease him. We spend the next few minutes in comfortable silence. Ron pulls me a bit closer, and I don't feel pressured to say anything. "Ron?" "Huh?" I pause, then say quietly, so that no one hears but him, "When are you going to kiss me again?" I feel my cheeks redden, though I try my hardest not to blush. He looks at me incredulously. Then, as if he is the luckiest wizard in the world, "Now." * Oh- I'm not in love, of course. We're much too young. I suppose these feelings will deepen as we get older. I can wait. I plan on keeping my wits though. I haven't lost any yet- I think. Honestly. Just because I like to hold hands with Ron sometimes, or give him a quick peck on the lips.. doesn't mean I've lost hold of my intelligence. Detentions are fun though. Well- no, they're not. But I once found myself purposely acting out in class- with Ron- to land us both a two hour detention. Sorting old essays can be a bit romantic- if you have the right person with you. And Snape? He's more foul than ever. His tan's nice though. I guess that Hawaiian witch didn't work out.. You know, I found a quote recently that goes like this: "The only abnormality is the incapacity to love." Now, how true is that? * End. A/N: Did you like? Review.