The Hiding Place by WeasleyForMe

'George closed his eyes and started to plead to the universe at large. One more detention this month, and his mother would surely send him a Howler. On the other hand, he wouldn't mind one bit being stuck here holding Hermione's hand for the rest of the evening.' George/Hermione!

George dropped his heavy armful of Wildfire Whiz-bangs and set off at a run down the second floor corridor. It was getting increasingly difficult for he and Fred to pull off any good pranks with Umbridge and Filch prowling all over the castle. And now he was probably about to receive his thirty-seventh detention of the school year. While he regretted leaving the fireworks behind, once he had seen Mrs. Norris he knew it was time to escape.

George wracked his brain for a good hiding spot nearby as the sound of Filch trotting behind him grew louder.

"Come along, Mrs. Norris! We've almost got him now!" the caretaker called to his cat.

Realization dawned on George's face, and in an instant, he sprinted around a corner and pulled back the humongous tapestry of Barney the Barmy, ducking into the shallow alcove behind it.

"What do you think you're doing here?" came a hissing voice next to him.

George turned slightly in the dim alcove, and his eyes widened when he saw that Hermione was already crammed into the small space next to him.

She was glaring at him. "George, what are you-?" she started to say, before he clapped his hand over her mouth in an effort to silence her.

"Shh! It's Filch," he whispered very close to her ear. George tried not to laugh, as her hair tickled his nose. He immediately noticed that she smelled like strawberries, his favourite fruit.

Hermione nodded in understanding, and he slowly removed his hand from her lips, thankful that she remained silent. They stood completely still, barely even moving as they took nervous breaths. George's right arm was pressed against her left, and his fingers kept skimming along her wrist where her robes ended. George bit his lip, a combined reaction to the stress of listening to Mrs. Norris' persistent purring on the other side of the tapestry, and happiness because Hermione had just grabbed his hand in panic.

"Have you caught him? Have you caught that nasty Weasley twin?" Filch asked his cat from the end of the corridor. Hermione tightened her grip on George's hand.

George closed his eyes and started to plead to the universe at large. One more detention this month, and his mother would surely send him a Howler. On the other hand, he wouldn't mind one bit being stuck here holding Hermione's hand for the rest of the evening.

"He's gone. Gone to hide down in the dungeons like last time, no doubt," Filch muttered menacingly, only inches away from George and Hermione. "Don't worry, we'll get him. Give him his just desserts this time."

In a few seconds, the caretaker's voice had faded away along with Mrs. Norris' purring.

"Do you think he's gone?" Hermione whispered, releasing his hand from her tight grasp.

George listened closely for a few more seconds. "Sounds like it, but he might not have gone far. Better stay put."

Hermione turned in the tight alcove until she was facing him slightly. She crossed her arms and said, "You know, I should give you a detention for hiding from Filch." George watched her fingers move to brush along the Prefect's badge pinned to the front of her robes. She had a mischievous glint in her eye.

"You wouldn't!" George insisted leaning toward her until their noses were very close.

She looked him in the eye before giggling. "You're right. I wouldn't. Anything that would irritate Umbridge is okay in my book."

George chuckled, shifting his weight while trying not to hit the tapestry and cause it to ripple. He leaned back against the stone wall and grinned. "That's the spirit, Hermione. Soon you'll be out of control, throwing caution to the wind, setting off dung-bombs with wild abandonment."

She smirked at him. "How did you know about this hiding spot? I thought I was the only one."

George snorted. "Don't flatter yourself. The Weasley twins are all-knowing when it comes to hiding from authority figures. Fred and I found this years ago when he shoved me into the tapestry and I kept going past where the wall ought to be."

Hermione rolled her eyes, but couldn't suppress her smile. "I was thinking it would be a nice spot to meet up with someone and snog, but I guess it's a good place to get shoved into as well."

George's eyebrows shot up. "You came here to meet someone for a hot snog?!" He may never be able to look at Hermione quite the same way again, and now his mind was running wild as he stood just inches away from her, imagining he was the one she wanted to snog.

"No, don't be silly," she said, and George was certain there was a blush creeping into her cheeks, but it was too dark to make it out. "I'm hiding from someone as well."

"Who?"

"That's none of your business," she insisted.

George's eyes narrowed to slits. "If you don't tell me, I'll make enough noise to get Filch back here in an instant. Because really, another detention for me is just a drop in the bucket, but think if the horrible things it would do for your reputation," he said, knowing she was putty in his hands.

Hermione glared at him, but finally conceded with a laugh. "Fine, I'll tell you. You can be quite the con-artist when you want to be… I'm hiding from Cormac."

George's eyes scrunched up. "McLaggen? The sixth year bloke that all the girls have a crush on? Why are you hiding from him?"

Hermione shuddered and a revolted look appeared on her pretty face. "Because he's vile, and I loathe him, and he doesn't seem capable of comprehending that I would like nothing more than for him to bugger off and leave me be!"

"Sounds like unrequited love to me."

"More like unreserved stupidity! How many times do I have to turn him down before he stops winking suggestively and licking his lips?" she asked, shaking her head.

George grimaced. "He sounds like a complete wanker. Want me to spike his pumpkin juice with stinksap?" he asked, feeling very annoyed that McLaggen was being so forward with Hermione.

"Thanks, George, but I can take care of myself," she replied with a brilliant smile. "I'm actually hiding from him because I transfigured his hair into a large bird's nest, complete with baby birds that keep trying to peck his eyebrows."

George stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. This time, Hermione had to cover his mouth with her hands, pressing him back into the stone alcove.

"Shh! George, he might hear you! Or worse, Filch could come back!" she hissed while George tried to stop laughing.

"Okay, okay," he whispered after he pulled Hermione's hands away from his face. "But that's a really brilliant prank, Hermione! There's still one thing I don't understand though."

"What's that?" she asked, trying to keep her voice down.

"If you think McLaggen is so revolting, why do the other girls seem so impressed with him?"

Hermione thought for a moment and scrunched up her nose slightly, something George found adorable. "I guess maybe I wouldn't think he was so horrible if I didn't already have a crush on someone else who is much nicer, funnier and cuter than he is."

George felt slightly deflated. "Oh yeah? Who's that?"

"You," Hermione said quietly before leaning toward George and gently kissing him. She released his lips with a smile, her eyes closed, savoring the moment. George however, was completely frozen, unable to let her know how much he'd wanted to kiss her for the past few months. He watched as Hermione pulled the tapestry to one side and peered out.

"Coast is clear. See you later, George," she said before disappearing back into the corridor.

A smile started to creep onto George's face. "Hermione, wait!" he hissed, running after her. It was worth a detention from Filch and several Howlers if he could just get Hermione to kiss him again.

Thanks for reading! I've had a few people ask me recently when I was going to post another George/Hermione story. Since that is my favorite pairing, I knew it wouldn't be too long :) Did you like it? Please review!