Chapter Text
The wind whipped around Ron and Hermione as they trudged up the street towards the village. Hermione always felt bad that she and Ron had to leave Harry behind on Hogsmeade weekends, and they’d even considered staying back this time, but then it was agreed that they had to do some Christmas shopping, and decided to make a short day of it for that purpose.
As they walked toward the shops, she couldn’t help the familiar feeling of excitement bubbling up. It was something she experienced every time she and Ron happened to spend time alone together, mostly when Harry was off at quidditch practice. She couldn’t deny that she was beginning to feel something... more for her best friend. Having these moments alone with him made her feel special, like he wanted to spend just as much time with her, too, even if Harry wasn’t around.
As they took care of their shopping, Hermione paid close attention to the things Ron was looking at. She knew he loved quidditch and chocolate, but felt as though she’d exhausted those options for every other holiday and birthday. She wanted this year to be different.
“No way!” he exclaimed as they were browsing Quality Quidditch Supplies.
“What?”
“They have Cannons merch!”
“Cannons?”
“The Chudley Cannons. They’re my favorite quidditch team, even though they’re at the bottom of the league every year. That doesn’t matter to me, though…” he trailed off.
“Oh, I didn’t know that!” Hermione acknowledged, taking note of the singular rack of bright orange Chudley Cannons t-shirts.
A plan formed in Hermione’s mind as she figured out exactly what she would get him this Christmas. She told Ron she was going to the counter to purchase the gift she grabbed for Harry, and while there, sneakily had the shopkeeper get one of the Cannons shirts for Ron. Once finished with her transaction, she made her way to the door, where he was waiting for her.
“Have anywhere else you wanted to go?” he asked.
“No, I think I’m all set. What about you?”
“All good. So we should, er, probably head back up to the castle then?”
Did he sound like he didn’t want to go yet?
“Erm, yes, we did promise Harry we wouldn’t be out long today,” Hermione chewed on her lip.
“Next time, we’ll stop at the Three Broomsticks, and I’ll buy us Butterbeers,” Ron said.
“I’d like that,” Hermione's heartbeat sped up at his offer.
“I can carry that if you want. Er, I mean—”
Ron held out his hand awkwardly at first with his offer, but pulled it back when Hermione shook her head quickly. “No! It’s fine! I mean—thank you, it’s just—I’d rather carry it, that’s all. It’s not that heavy,” she added.
“Oh, er alright,” he said as they began walking up to the castle.
It took longer than it had to walk down to Hogsmeade because the wind was fighting them every step of the way. Even with her heavy cloak, scarf, hat and mittens, Hermione was still frozen by the time they reached the castle. When they stepped out of the cold and through the large oak doors of the castle’s main entrance, they walked over to the far wall to catch their breath before heading up to the common room.
“It’s bloody cold out there! Should have cast a warming charm or something.” He set his packages down and rubbed his hands together.
Hermione’s teeth were chattering as she nodded in agreement. “Even though we’re n-n-not technically supposed to use m-m-magic outside the castle, I w-w-wouldn’t be opposed to that.”
Ron reached out and took his hands in hers. Hermione held her breath at the sudden contact, but welcomed it happily. His hands were much warmer than hers as he rubbed them together.
"Bloody hell, I thought I was cold. Hermione, your hands are like ice! I should have held that package so you could have kept your hands warmer.”
It wasn’t lost on Hermione at how sweet Ron was being. This sort of behavior was unlike him, and it made her wonder if maybe he was feeling something more between them, just like she was. No, that’s silly. He’s your best friend, and he’s always looking out for you . At least that’s what she was willing herself to believe so as not to get her hopes up.
Hermione was so lost in thought that she didn’t realize Ron had let go of her hands. She instantly missed the contact, until she saw his arms were outstretched, and it looked like he was going to wrap her in a hug to warm the rest of her up. She moved closer to him, and his arms were just closing around her when a familiar voice shouted to them from the stairwell.
“Ron! Hermione! You’re back!” Ron immediately jumped back as Harry came bounding down the stairs. “You’ll never guess…”
Harry clambered on, but Hermione was paying him no mind. She immediately missed the feel of Ron around her, even though it was barely a few seconds.
Well, there’s always next time, I suppose,
she hoped before turning her attention to her other best friend.