Valentine
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, although if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfiction now would I? They are the sole property of J.K. Rowling, Scholastic Press, Bloomsbury Publishing, and Warner Bros.
A/N: My first attempt at something more lighthearted. I really needed something to bring up my mood, since I'm at a crappy place in my life right now. Feel free to comment and review. I'd love to hear what you all say.
Thanks to: The entire Wonky/HOAF crew for helping me get through the good times. BtB for getting me in a bad mood in the first place, which led to the writing of this. And my best friend, Christina for being an H/Hr fic fiend.
-------------------------------------------------
Chapter One: Bollocks!
"Bollocks!" Harry shouted, throwing his wand across the room in frustration. He had his hands on his hips and was breathing heavily. Scattered along his four-poster bed were various bits of colored paper. A haphazard disaster was formed into what was presumably an innocent valentine.
A few minutes later after his lashing-out, the sound of hurried footsteps reverberated off of the spiral staircase. Harry jumped up quickly as if he had been electrocuted. He made to stash away the remnants. He stuffed a few scraps of paper and supplies in his bedside drawer. Heart beating rapidly, he was nearly about to stash the rest underneath his pillow, but at that moment, the door burst open.
"Harry…" Ron stopped. He started curiously at Harry with wide, protruding eyes and at the leftover valentine pieces being held in his arms. "What's all this?" he asked, a grin growing upon his face as soon as he realized what Harry was carrying.
Harry rushed over to his bed and stuffed the pieces under his pillow. He straightened up to look at Ron and began twisting his hands behind his back nervously. "It's nothing, really."
The grin on Ron's face grew even wider. "Come on, Harry. Do you really expect me to believe that? Honestly, you can tell me. Who is it for?"
"I told you, it's nothing," said Harry, who was obviously getting flustered. "I was just practicing some of those new spells for Flitwick."
Ron was absorbed in mock pondering. "I don't seem to remember Flitwick teaching us spells to help us create valentines," he said very matter-of-factly. "And I've never seen you so worked up over homework that you would throw your wand across the room." He pointed towards Harry's wand, lying forgotten on the floor. "That kind of magic is something only a girl can do, mate." Ron paused to let the words wash over Harry.
Harry blew air through his teeth, thinking silently for a moment. Should he tell him or should he not. "Sod it," he muttered. "I was making a valentine…but it didn't go over too well."
"I'll say, judging by the looks of this mess," Ron smiled. "But, that's what Hermione is good for!" He tapped Harry on the back consolingly. "She's the brilliant one. Or you could ask Dean…he's artsy."
Harry's heart fluttered at the sound of Hermione's name. He gripped his stomach nervously. He couldn't ask her for help with the valentine. She was the one that was going to receive it! He had already thought of using Dean and his artistic expertise. However, he felt that Hermione would be able to spot someone else's handiwork a mile away. Harry wanted the valentine to come strictly for him.
"I think I'll be fine on my own," Harry lied. "I just have to tough it out, that's all."
Ron shrugged. "I guess you're right. How hard could making a valentine be?" He looked around the room once more. His face turned a brilliant shade of scarlet. "Er-forget I said that. So who is it for?"
Harry remained silent and still has Ron continued to gaze at him absently. He looked down at his feet, determined to not make eye contact. Ron caught onto this tactic fairly quick.
"It's not Cho again, is it?"
"Of course not."
Ron thought for a moment. He began racking up the names of the entire female student body at Hogwarts one-by-one.
"Parvati?"
"No."
"Lavender?"
"She's dating Seamus, remember?"
"Oh yeah…" Ron suddenly mused. "Well, I'm going to make this list a bit shorter. Let's cut to the chase, shall we? I'm getting impatient. Is it a Ravenclaw?"
"No."
"Hufflepuff?"
"No."
Ron's face suddenly garnered a disgusted expression. "It's not Slytherin, is it? If it is, I swear I'll…"
"No!" Harry replied rather vehemently. After hearing this, he couldn't shake the image of him giving the valentine to Pansy Parkinson. He shuddered.
"Well, I guess it's a Gryffindor then," stated Ron in mock puzzlement. "Just tell me, Harry! It would be much easier, because I'll probably find out sooner or later anyway."
Harry shook his head feverently. He had never been comfortable with sharing the details of his personal life (his love life, especially). "I suppose you'll have to learn the hard way, because I'm not telling you."
Ron groaned in exasperation. He began inching around the room, but Harry hardly took notice that he was sauntering ever closer to the bed. "Shall we go through the list one-by-one?"
"Or you could just give up," Harry interjected hopefully.
Ron wagged a finger impatiently at him while still closing the gap between himself and valentine lodged underneath the pillow. "Oh, that's not an option, I'm afraid." He began to recite a list of names that he seemed to have memorized.
After ten minutes, Ron was down to just two girls. His sagging form was sitting atop Harry's bed. Harry's arms were crossed irritably as he paced around the room.
"And then there were two," Ron muttered, a grin suppressing his face once again. "I think we can stop here, mate. I know who it is."
Harry blinked in utter confusion. He stopped his incessant pacing. "You do?" he asked Ron curiously.
Ron threw his arms up excitedly. "Of course, I do. I'm not always terribly dense. I do notice things, you know. I'm happy for you two," he added. "Although, you could have told me sooner."
"I didn't want you to feel uncomfortable about it. I guess that was a mistake, since you seem to be fine with it. But, if I were you, I'd be a bit uncomfortable if my two best friends were dating."
"Well…" Ron stopped suddenly, coming back to the harsh reality. For one brief moment, he had thought Harry was referring to Ginny. However, now he could see just how wrong he was. The valentine was for Hermione, their best friend and the girl he himself had been infatuated with since their forth year.
Somewhere in the back of his mind, Ron had known it all along. He had always noticed something special between them. And unbreakable bond, if you will. He felt has if his mind was ripping in two. Conflicted, was how he felt at that very moment. Half of him wanted to scream out loud and beat Harry to a bloody pulp, but the other half wanted to smile and be happy for Harry and Hermione.
"Hermione?" Ron asked weakly, his voice breaking slightly.
"Yes…"
Ron massaged his throat. "How long has this been going on?"
Harry looked down at his feet. "A few years," he mumbled. "But, only a few days officially." Listen, Ron, I can see that you're upset about this. You have every right to be. But no one, with the exception of you at times, can understand me in the way that she does. It's hard to explain, really."
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Ron nodded slowly. "I want to be happy for you, Harry. Believe me, I do. But, I love her."
"No you don't, Ron."
"Excuse me?" snapped Ron.
"You don't love her," stated Harry, still refusing to look Ron in the eye. "Not in the way that I do, at least. If you loved her, would you continue to do the things that you do? Would you continue to shamelessly flirt with other girls, or bicker incessantly with her?"
Ron sat there contemplating Harry's words. He could feel a lump rising up in the back of his throat. What Harry had said made perfect sense, but he was too stubborn to want to fully accept it. "I support you two, Harry. But, it's going to take a bit of time." With that he picked himself off of the bed and strode over to the door. Without looking back at Harry, he opened the door at left the room silently.
Harry threw himself forcefully onto his now empty bed. He grabbed a pillow and pressed his face into it, screaming all of his frustrations out. Breathing deeply, he let go of the pillow and threw it across the room where his wand lay. "Bullocks!"
A/N: Ok ok…it's not as lighthearted as I would have hoped. But, it does get more so in later chapters. Now, on to Chapter 2!