Before Fred and George Weasley made the wise decision to give Ron a copy of Twelve Fail-Safe Ways to Charm Witches, well… let’s just say that our favourite redheaded chess champ wasn’t the best at wooing the ladies. Or, to be more specific, the one lady he was actually after – Hermione Granger. And before Ron realised that the best thing that could ever happen to him was right in front of him, tirelessly helping him with his homework, he could be downright mean to poor old Hermione.

Then there was Viktor Krum. Hermione was given a reprise from being constantly teased by the clueless Gryffindor and given a taste of romance from someone who actually deserved her… and we loved every moment of it.

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s a big claim but we’re sticking by it: here’s exactly why Viktor Krum and Hermione Jean Granger were meant to be together.

He was a man of few words – but they were all the right ones

Viktor Krum was about as chatty as a Dementor, but he still managed to make Hermione feel special, unlike half of the highly insensitive and sometimes just plain rude things Ron came out with. In fact, Hermione pointed out exactly how Viktor had asked her out to the Yule Ball after it was mentioned that he was constantly in the library, and it was frankly perfect:

‘If you really want to know, he – he said he’d been coming up to the library every day to try and talk to me, but he hadn’t been able to pluck up the courage!’
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

He did some impressive magic to save her

We don’t think we’re being too melodramatic when we say that Viktor Krum risked his hawkish good looks, perhaps forever, to save Hermione’s life by turning himself part-shark. If you think about it, he basically tried to become an Animagus with just a few short months of practice. It took the Marauders a few years before they could all turn themselves into animals!

Sure, he didn’t quite manage it properly, but we’re still seriously impressed with the effort it must have taken to give himself that shark head for the second task. Can you imagine Ron trying that feat? Ron, who caused a dinner plate to mutate into a large mushroom for his O.W.L.s Transfiguration exam? Shudder.

Viktor wasn’t the jealous type

At Bill and Fleur’s wedding, Viktor and Hermione met each other again for the first time since the year of the Triwizard Tournament. Although Viktor was clearly very much into Hermione, telling her (without the help of a self-help book) that she looked ‘vunderful’, he immediately backed off when Harry told him that she and Ron were ‘sort of’ together. Meanwhile, one of Ron’s biggest flaws was his streak of jealousy, and he was simply rude to a perfectly respectful Viktor at the wedding. Frankly, we can’t imagine that Hermione and Viktor’s pen friendship was kept up after she and the green-eyed Ron-ster started going out.

Viktor helped Hermione to chill

Hermione had many, many wonderful qualities, but ‘switching off’ had never really been one of them. Whether it was homework, securing freedom for all house-elves or Horcrux hunting, there was always something on Hermione’s mind. But when she was with Viktor she actually let herself just enjoy the moment, something we’re not sure we can say she ever really did before. In turn, she helped Krum open up and be a little less grumpy (her words, not ours!).

For once, Hermione didn’t seem to be thinking about S.P.E.W. She was deep in talk with Viktor Krum, and hardly seemed to notice what she was eating. It now occurred to Harry that he had never actually heard Krum speak before, but he was certainly talking now, and very enthusiastically at that.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

He remembered she was a girl

Need we say more? Being a teenage girl is not an easy task, and it must have been horrible for a 15-year-old Hermione listening to Ron obsess over who he was going to ask to the Yule Ball without even considering for a moment that she might be interested. Meanwhile, lovely Viktor asked her to the Ball even though he could have picked any of his adoring groupies, and they had a great evening together – and then when Ron finally noticed her, he ruined it all with his jealousy and hurt her feelings so much she went to bed in tears. Nice one, Ron!

Ron, however, walked right past Hermione without looking at her.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

In all seriousness, we’re so glad that Ron and Hermione got together in the end, and of course they make a great pair. But we’re also glad that Viktor Krum helped Ron to start paying attention to Hermione – and to step up his game by noticing what we’d all known for years: Hermione was someone special!