Disclaimer: I'm running out of things to say here! I guess I'll just go with, I don't own Harry Potter.

Ron and Hermione, 4th Year

"I just don't understand what spaw even is!"

Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger were walking down the cobbled roads of Hogsmead village, consumed in one of their usual arguments.

"I've told you a million times Ronald, it's S.P.E.W! Who would ever call something spaw, it just sounds ridiculous." Hermione said with a roll of her eyes.

Ron mumbled under his breath that the maker of S.P.E.W really shouldn't be talking of ridiculous names.

Ron had been slightly nervous for this Hogsmead trip. After all, it was just him and Hermione since Harry was doing something or other for the Triwizard Tournament. And let's just say that recently, Ron had rather conflicting feelings about Hermione, not that they were really feelings that he had, just thoughts that... were a little more than friendly; thoughts that were very different from friendly. But the longer he denied it, the more those so called feelings would go away.

Or so he hoped.

He couldn't have feelings for Hermione, he simply couldn't. It could complicate everything. Their friendship, her doing his homework when he told her he was 'confused' and just 'didn't seem to get it'. And he couldn't risk losing any of that, especially now that his grade in potions had dropped from an A to a P rather quickly and he had an essay on the six different ingredients used in the malevolent mixture due in potions in just a few days.

And their friendship of course, that was important too.

Deciding it was worth the risk, Ron quickly snuck a glance at Hermione who seemed to have zoned out and was staring blankly at a young first year that looked rather uneased by her sudden fascination with his nose. Her eyes did look especially nice today. They were a very pretty color of brown, sort of like looking into melted chocol-

"Ron, why are you staring? Have I got something on my face?" Her cheeks turned slightly pink as she rubbed at her nose. Ron couldn't help but think that it was rather adorable.

He cleared his throat. "No. Sorry. I guess I just zoned out. And might I ask what you found so interesting about that first year you couldn't stop looking at?"

Her cheeks further reddened. "Stop it Ron! You know I wasn't starring!"

Ron laughed and bumped his shoulder against hers. "I'm only joking! And by the way," He looked down at the Honeydukes chocolate bar he held in his hand, "remind me not to buy this again, it's nasty."

Hermione laughed as she and Ron continued on their way to the Three Broomsticks.

After a particularly delicious butter beer and a nice chat- and argument of course- with Hermione, Ron was whistling and walking back down the street with Hermione towards Hogwarts.

While passing under a particularly twiggy tree Ron found that he could walk no farther.

"Hermione, what's going on?" He asked cautiously. Hermione whipped her head around to look at him, her bushy hair hitting his cheek in the process.

"I think I know what this is." She said slowly.

"Well go on then, what is it?"

"If you look up, you'll see an odd plant like thing hanging from one of the branches. It's enchanted mistletoe. The only way you'll be able to move from underneath it is if someone kisses you." Hermione said quietly, blushing slightly.

But why was she blu-

Oh.

Oh.

They were going to have to kiss. After constantly contemplating his feelings for her, Ron was going to have to kiss her. And it wasn't even a choice!

Well, there were worse things that could happen.

He had imagine kissing Hermione in a more romantic setting, not under some scrawny little tree with branches that looked like they were about to break and crush the two teenagers standing under it.

"Well." Hermione said, still rather quietly. "I suppose we're going to have to kiss."

Ron nodded his head, avoiding her eyes. "I suppose we will."

"Well I guess we should just hurry up and get it over with."

"I guess we should."

"So you should probably kiss me now." Hermione said with a tinge of annoyance in her voice. It wasn't his fault he was nervous.

"I probably should."

But Ron still hasn't moved- and if it was up to him- he wasn't moving for a while.

"Ronald!"

"Oh, right, sorry." Ron sputtered.

This was it: the moment that determined if his friendship would be altered (and if he would fail potions). He was leaning in now; he was awfully close to her face. Her eyelids were fluttering closed as well as his, and before he knew it their teeth had knocked together.

Hermione jumped back from him, hold her hand to her mouth in pain.

"Ron, you idiot!" She practically screeched, her bushy hair billowing around and her nostrils flaring dangerously. The image was really quite frightening.

"I'm sorry!" He squeaked. But as he looked around he noticed he could move again, and Hermione had been able to jump back rather far when his teeth had knocked into hers.

"You daft boy! You could have knocked out one of my teeth or ruptured m-

"It worked!" Ron exclaimed, grinning at Hermione despite the ache in his front teeth. "We can move again!"

Hermione paused, her finger still pointed a little too close to his face from where she had raised it in her rage. She seemed to consider what he had said before looking around and realizing that she indeed had moved a little ways back from where she had been standing previously.

"Well than I guess I should say thanks." She mumbled.

Ron grinned. "What was that? I didn't quite hear you."

Hermione gritted her teeth while Ron's smile grew wider by the second. "I said thank you." She finally forced out with what looked like, was extreme difficulty.

After some angry mumbling about someone (Ron), acting like an immature little kid on Hermione's part, Ron's stomach growled slightly. "Well we wouldn't want to miss dinner, so we best be on our way."

And with a small nod from Hermione they continued on their way. The rest of the short trip to the castle was spent in a comfortable silence, both teenagers absorbing that day's events.

Ron found that he felt somewhat shocked, cheerful, in pain, and oddly... Disappointed? Was he really disappointed that he hasn't been able to kiss Hermione? No, he was just delusional from his lack of food in a couple hours.

But at least one good thing had come out of this rather odd day. He knew he wasn't going to fail potions.

AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter and even though the holiday season is now over, I'm going to continue this. I think I might even add a strange crackfic kind of chapter about Tom Riddle getting caught under the mistletoe with some strange, very unlucky animal or person. Happy readings!

-American Hippogriff