Love Blooms in Harry Potter: Will Ron and Hermione Ever Admit Their True Feelings?

It's hard to grow up without going through teen angst. Wizards and witches are no exception to this rule of life. Boy and girls at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry go through the same bouts of uneasiness and trepidation amongst the opposite sex just like in the Muggle world. It seems like all the magic in the world cannot get you through your teenage years any easier. Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger definitely have something going on there but when are they going to open their eyes and let love in?

Ron Weasley, the youngest boy of a large wizarding family, enters Hogwarts for the first time with big footsteps to follow. Two of his older brothers are already out in the world making a name for themselves. Another older brother is Head Boy of Gryffindor house and has quite the chip on his shoulder. A year ahead of Ron are his twin brothers Fred and George, both members of the Quidditch team. Right behind him is his little sister Ginny, the only daughter in the family, who has a mature air about her. Ron isn't particularly good at anything and only stands out to his parents when he messes something up.

Enter Hermione Granger - daughter of an ordinary pair of Muggles, having never even heard of Hogwarts. Hermione enters her first year with her nose firmly planted in books. Her innate magical ability is astounding, especially because she doesn't have a drop of wizard blood in her. Hermione becomes friends with Ron and Harry and is usually the voice of reason and knowledge. If not for her it's quite possible Harry wouldn't have made it through the Sorcerer's Stone. However between the three of them they always manage to come out of the worst possible dangers.

Hermione and Ron spend the first three books bickering and fighting. In the beginning Hermione is simply exhausted by how much Ron doesn't know and how little studying he does. It's one thing for Harry, not being privy to the witches and wizards until his eleventh birthday, to not know anything but Ron is a pure-blood wizard. All of this squabbling finally opens up to something more to Hermione. In Goblet of Fire Ron starts to take notice in girls, namely Fleur Delacour. Up until now Hermione was fine with him not noticing her as long as he wasn't noticing anyone else. But now things have changed.

Hermione still holds out some hope that Ron will ask her to the Yule Ball, but when he doesn't she accepts an invitation by Viktor Krum. Ron doesn't believe her when she tells him but when he see her arrive with Krum suddenly he feels something for her in return. Too bad he's too immature to realize what he's feeling and what to do with it! Hermione and Ron end up having a large spat after the ball where Ron figures out what's going on but doesn't let Hermione know.

Then the real fun begins. Ron and Hermione spend the next two books nearly at each other's throats. Hermione figures that Ron just has some growing up to do and she'll wait. That doesn't mean she isn't going to take a cut at him at every turn. In Half-Blood Prince Hermione finally summons up the courage to ask Ron to Slughorn's Christmas party but he gets together with Lavender Brown instead. It takes Ron being poisoned by mead at the party for the two to make up and become proper friends again.

In the end Hermione and Ron will likely end up together. Both of them, in their own way, have fought for this relationship and when both of them are in the same place at the same time it will all work out. Ron took the long road to maturity and Hermione certainly did her best to stick it out and wait for him. At the end of the day love will show them the way.