Ficlet: Not A Destination (HP, Ron/Hermione)
Title: Not A Destination
Author: Pandaimonia
Rating: PG-13 (for mention of sex)
Pairing: Ron/Hermione
Word Count: 716 (Cutting it down was a toughie!)
Summary: Hermione is impatiently waiting for her first kiss. Why doesn't Ron realize this?
A/N: Written for the spoil_me_hbp drabble contest. However, it is SPOILER FREE. ;)
And yes, I'm really softening to the idea of Ron/Hermione, LOL.
Hermione Granger was seventeen years old and had never been kissed. She knew this was a depressing statement, statistically speaking, but she was at a loss. Unlike all the other things she could teach herself or learn from a book, kissing was not an effective activity when done solo.
She heard the other girls whispering at night, saying things like, 'How far have you gone?' As if sex were a destination, with sign posts along the way reading 'kissing', and then 'groping' or 'bra off' and then 'knickers off' and then IT.
Before now, Hermione had never really cared that she was left out of such discussions. But she was used to being ahead of her peers; now, she felt somehow defective. Why hadn't she gone and kissed Viktor when she had the chance? She should have been proactive instead of shy, hanging back and waiting for him to make the move. Boys were strange creatures; you couldn't count on them to hold up their end of the bargain. They were unpredictable, and this worried her--what if she was never kissed? Or what if her first kiss was with someone terrible (Crabbe and Goyle flashed through her mind, leaving her nauseated) or someone who was nice enough but just not kissable (Neville came to mind, though this made her feel guilty)?
So problem one was a willing partner. Problem two was a worthy partner. Problem three was making it happen. Hermione knew she needed several things before she could get to work on this: a target, a modus operandi, and an excuse for getting close to said target. It would be easiest with someone she knew well, someone she was friends with. By these criteria, the best targets were Harry and Ron.
Hermione considered them both. They were likable in their own ways, possessed tolerable hygiene for males, and really weren't too bad to look at, come to think of it. Harry, however, was under a lot of stress and quite preoccupied (and his only kissing experience that she knew of had been less than successful), so she decided not to burden him with her mission. Deductively speaking, that left Ron. Kissing Ron was a rather odd thought, but not too bad really…
Getting a date with Ron was easier than she had expected. She dropped hints Harry until said, "You know, I bet Ron would like to go with you to Hogsmeade…"
So they did. They strolled along the outskirts of town licking at ice creams, chatting. The problem was, it didn't feel like a date, it felt like a rather pleasant, if awkward, outing with her friend Ron. When Hermione finally grabbed Ron's hand, he looked rather startled but didn't let go. Eventually this progressed to sitting on a bench with his arm around her. At the end, he asked if she would like to do this again sometime, and she agreed. And that was what happened next week, and the week after, until she was going mad with the waiting.
She was beginning to despair that it would ever happen. Ron was dating her, he seemed interested enough, and at the moment they were snuggled quite pleasantly together under a tree. Her head rested on his shoulder, kissing-distance away, and she kept licking her lips to draw attention to them. He smelled good: clean, like warm soapy water with a hint of fresh-cut grass, probably from the Quidditch pitch. If only she had the courage to move first, but she was too worried--what if she missed and wound up snogging his nostrils? What did you actually do once you touched lips?
And then she found out. Her head had slid down to the crook of his neck, his nose was brushing against hers, and then something was pressing against her lips. It took a moment to register.
Squishy. Like some aquatic creature, soft and moist and…
Hermione, you’re bceing kissed for the first time, pay attention! Don't go stiff, do something!
She parted her lips slightly, turning her head to prevent nose-mashing. He smoothed her hair back, his hand stroking her cheek shakily. Then it was over, and Ron drew back to look at her nervously. She grinned. He grinned back.
"Well."
So that was what she had been waiting for.
Author: Pandaimonia
Rating: PG-13 (for mention of sex)
Pairing: Ron/Hermione
Word Count: 716 (Cutting it down was a toughie!)
Summary: Hermione is impatiently waiting for her first kiss. Why doesn't Ron realize this?
A/N: Written for the spoil_me_hbp drabble contest. However, it is SPOILER FREE. ;)
And yes, I'm really softening to the idea of Ron/Hermione, LOL.
Hermione Granger was seventeen years old and had never been kissed. She knew this was a depressing statement, statistically speaking, but she was at a loss. Unlike all the other things she could teach herself or learn from a book, kissing was not an effective activity when done solo.
She heard the other girls whispering at night, saying things like, 'How far have you gone?' As if sex were a destination, with sign posts along the way reading 'kissing', and then 'groping' or 'bra off' and then 'knickers off' and then IT.
Before now, Hermione had never really cared that she was left out of such discussions. But she was used to being ahead of her peers; now, she felt somehow defective. Why hadn't she gone and kissed Viktor when she had the chance? She should have been proactive instead of shy, hanging back and waiting for him to make the move. Boys were strange creatures; you couldn't count on them to hold up their end of the bargain. They were unpredictable, and this worried her--what if she was never kissed? Or what if her first kiss was with someone terrible (Crabbe and Goyle flashed through her mind, leaving her nauseated) or someone who was nice enough but just not kissable (Neville came to mind, though this made her feel guilty)?
So problem one was a willing partner. Problem two was a worthy partner. Problem three was making it happen. Hermione knew she needed several things before she could get to work on this: a target, a modus operandi, and an excuse for getting close to said target. It would be easiest with someone she knew well, someone she was friends with. By these criteria, the best targets were Harry and Ron.
Hermione considered them both. They were likable in their own ways, possessed tolerable hygiene for males, and really weren't too bad to look at, come to think of it. Harry, however, was under a lot of stress and quite preoccupied (and his only kissing experience that she knew of had been less than successful), so she decided not to burden him with her mission. Deductively speaking, that left Ron. Kissing Ron was a rather odd thought, but not too bad really…
Getting a date with Ron was easier than she had expected. She dropped hints Harry until said, "You know, I bet Ron would like to go with you to Hogsmeade…"
So they did. They strolled along the outskirts of town licking at ice creams, chatting. The problem was, it didn't feel like a date, it felt like a rather pleasant, if awkward, outing with her friend Ron. When Hermione finally grabbed Ron's hand, he looked rather startled but didn't let go. Eventually this progressed to sitting on a bench with his arm around her. At the end, he asked if she would like to do this again sometime, and she agreed. And that was what happened next week, and the week after, until she was going mad with the waiting.
She was beginning to despair that it would ever happen. Ron was dating her, he seemed interested enough, and at the moment they were snuggled quite pleasantly together under a tree. Her head rested on his shoulder, kissing-distance away, and she kept licking her lips to draw attention to them. He smelled good: clean, like warm soapy water with a hint of fresh-cut grass, probably from the Quidditch pitch. If only she had the courage to move first, but she was too worried--what if she missed and wound up snogging his nostrils? What did you actually do once you touched lips?
And then she found out. Her head had slid down to the crook of his neck, his nose was brushing against hers, and then something was pressing against her lips. It took a moment to register.
Squishy. Like some aquatic creature, soft and moist and…
Hermione, you’re bceing kissed for the first time, pay attention! Don't go stiff, do something!
She parted her lips slightly, turning her head to prevent nose-mashing. He smoothed her hair back, his hand stroking her cheek shakily. Then it was over, and Ron drew back to look at her nervously. She grinned. He grinned back.
"Well."
So that was what she had been waiting for.