Hermione Granger never really bothered too much with parties.

Usually, she had so many things that she had to do, she never found the time to go out and have a drink or two with her friends. It wasn't that she hated the idea, because she actually didn't, it was just finding time and money and, well, friends to go with.

Tonight was a celebration. A party thrown by Minerva McGonagall to mark 4 years since the war ended. Everyone, of course, had to attend. And that included Hermione herself, although she'd never dream of missing it.

She was at the Weasley household, getting ready. She loved the Weasleys dearly – especially Ron, her...well, he wasn't her boyfriend – they'd never really gotten around to speaking about what happened at Hogwarts, but they had said that they weren't yet dating. Ron was in love with her, though, and that made Hermione's heart sink. Because, well...

She hadn't fancied him for a long time now. Sure, he was her schoolgirl crush. But the problem was, their friendship had prevailed through everything. Just their friendship. And now, after Hermione's romantic feelings were gone with the wind, Ron still had feelings for her and wanted to pursue a relationship. She always avoided the subject, though.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she looked at herself in the long mirror beside her. She liked what she was wearing – after all, she wanted a chance to show off her figure now that she was old enough to do so. At the age of 21, she still hadn't had any children – and she wasn't even sure she wanted any – and so her figure was still beautiful.

She was wearing a tight black dress that showed off her cleavage and clung to her curves and it made her look...well, incredibly sexy, even if she were admitting it herself. She had black heels on, secured with a strap around her ankle, and a black sparkly bag on a golden chain hung on her left shoulder. She was wearing a thin, gold chain with a few charms on it around her right wrist, and she wore a gold necklace – actually with the Deathly Hallows symbols on it – around her neck.

Satisfied with her outfit, Hermione's gaze traveled to her hair. She'd gotten it cut to her shoulders very recently. She could still tie it up – in fact, it was tied up currently – but she looked terribly formal and that wasn't what she was going for with this dress. So she reached up and let her hair down, shaking her head slightly to free it. Her hair was bushy and looked rather wild, but it went well with her outfit. She applied some mascara, a little winged eyeliner, and bright red lipstick that made her outfit pop, and she was done.

She slipped out of the room and walked downstairs. She could hear chatter and laughter from the kitchen and so, taking a deep breath, she sneaked down the last three steps and quietly made her way into the room.

Molly and Ginny were standing by the door, laughing at Harry as he tried to explain something Muggle to Arthur, who looked fascinated and a little confused. Ron was, of course, finishing off the last slice of the cake Molly had made the other day. He hadn't made much effort with his clothes tonight, Hermione noted, and there were cream stains on his shirt from the cake. She grimaced slightly. The twins were nowhere to be seen, and she wondered briefly if they were coming or not.

"Holy..." Percy's voice cut her from her thoughts, and brought silence over everyone. Hermione turned her gaze upon the boy to find that he was looking right at her.

His wide eyes raked down her body, taking her in slowly as if he'd never seen her before. His mouth was slightly agape, but then, so was everyone else's as they examined her.

Hermione should've felt nervous for their approval, Ron's especially, but tonight, she didn't. She stood there confidently, a slight smirk on her lips due to how Percy reacted to her attire.

"Shit, Hermione." said a voice from behind her, and none other than Fred Weasley slid one arm around her waist. "You look gorgeous...is what Percy means to say. But he's a bit of a blithering idiot these days."

A soft chuckle escaped Hermione's lips as Percy blushed furiously. She turned her gaze upon him kindly, the smirk slipping away to something a lot more sweet. "Don't worry, Percy." she said softly. "I understood the meaning. And thank you."

"What, so I don't get a thanks for actually saying it?" Fred complained, pouting slightly. "So not fair. He would've used the word nice, y'know. I decided to use the word gorgeous. Much nicer word, don't you think? I should get some credit here."

Laughter rippled through the Weasley house, and then Hermione did something that surprised even herself. She turned her head sideways and pecked Fred Weasley on the cheek, leaving a pretty mark of lipstick on his cheek.

She smirked as he blushed, turning to look at her with eyes as wide as saucers. They relaxed, though, and he smirked in return as his hand squeezed her hip. Surprisingly, his touch sent tingles up Hermione's spine and her breath hitched slightly as he brought her closer.

"You realize," he said. "That I've just had a shower and I can't wash that lipstick stain off?"

Of course he could. Hermione knew he could. Was this his way of saying he didn't want to wash it off? Her smirk widened.

"Good." she replied. "You'll be stuck with it all night and then nobody will kiss you because they'll think you've already been claimed."

God, when did this get so flirty? They were going backwards and forwards so quickly. It was a witty, yet very flirty conversation, and for a while, Hermione completely forgot the others were there.

"What about you?" he challenged. "What can I do to get you back, and make others think you've already been claimed?"

"I can think of many things, Mr Weasley, some of which you'd be too scared to do." Hermione replied daringly. Were they this close a few moments ago?

Molly cleared her throat and Hermione glanced over at her. Her eyebrows were knitted together and Hermione felt a twist in her stomach. Harry and Ginny looked amused, George – who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere – was smirking, Percy was trying not to laugh. But Arthur was looking at Hermione in a sort of disappointed way, a frown clear upon his features. Ron was staring at Fred at first, but then he turned his eyes on Hermione. She saw the hurt flash in his eyes.

The worst part about it? She didn't care at all.