DISCLAIMER - All characters belong to JK Rowling. I do not own any of the characters or places portrayed in this story. All rights belong to JK Rowling.
This day we remember…
Mrs Weasley bustled about the kitchen as the rest of the family thundered about upstairs. Today was a very important day and Mrs Weasley was expecting some guests for an important dinner.
She waved her wand over a tray of potatoes and a delicate seasoning drifted over them before she transferred the tray to the oven. She flicked her wand again over a large sharp knife which began to carve a joint of roast beef into slices.
Mrs Weasley paused by the kitchen window and looked out onto the garden where the mid-afternoon sun filtered through the leaves of the trees, a light breeze moving over the long grass of the lawn like rolling waves.
She remembered a summer not so long ago when they had all been together, enjoying a meal beneath the spreading boughs.
The sound of approaching footsteps brought her back to the present and Mr Weasley entered the kitchen wearing his best set of robes, desperately trying to straighten his tie.
"Molly dear, the others will be here any minute…"
His voice faltered as he saw his wife's hunched shoulders begin to shake slightly. He walked towards her and gathered her tenderly in his arms.
"Shh, there now Molly, today is not a day for tears," he soothed over her head.
Mrs Weasley pulled away from her husband and quickly wiped her eyes on her apron.
"You're right Arthur; today is a good day…I…I shouldn't cry."
Mr Weasley smiled warmly and laid his hands on Mrs Weasley's shoulders.
At that moment, the doorbell rang, which seemed to bring them both back to their senses.
"You finish putting out the dinner Molly, I'll let them in."
Mrs Weasley nodded and set about getting the dinner plates whilst Mr Weasley hurried to the door.
On the doorstep stood a young lady, just about eighteen years of age, with warm hazel eyes and hair that fell in soft shimmering waves over her shoulders. She was dressed plainly in a knee length black skirt and a pale pink blouse.
"Hermione! So glad you could make it!" exclaimed Mr Weasley, smiling broadly. Hermione returned the smile.
"Hello Mr Weasley, it's wonderful to see you again."
Mr Weasley pulled a wry face and smiled gently.
"You know Hermione, I think after all this time and everything we've been through, you can call me Arthur," he ventured.
Hermione just grinned. "I'll think about it Mr Weasley."
Remembering herself, she held out a wrapped box.
"Before I forget, this is a present from my parents. They remembered how fascinated you were with muggle technology when you met them in Diagon Alley all those years ago and they asked me to give you this."
Mr Weasley unwrapped the box excitedly and pulled out an electric toothbrush. His lined face exploded into a huge smile.
"I'm not sure if it will work in a magical environment…" she continued but Mr Weasley threw an arm around her and pulled her into the house with cries of, "Hermione's here, everyone come down!"
Thunderous footsteps sounded above her head, indicating that the vast tribe of Weasley children were descending.
Mr Weasley thanked her profusely for the gift and ran off to show Mrs Weasley while the others greeted Hermione. Fred and George were the first to get to her and after each giving her a hearty punch on the shoulder, turned her over to Ginny for a hug.
"Hey Ginny," Hermione greeted her old friend warmly as Ginny returned the hug.
Hermione looked her over carefully. The past year had obviously taken its toll on her and today she had taken pains to dress as plainly as possible. She wore a long black skirt and matching blouse and her normally vivacious red hair was tied back with a simple black ribbon.
Hermione alone knew how much she had loved Harry, how deeply she had cared for him, to an extent that even Harry had not known, and how much she had been destroyed when Harry had died in her arms.
It had taken her a year to recover and, out of respect for her dear friend, Hermione had put things on hold with Ron.
So for the past year, Ginny had been in mourning, finally emerging from her room after two months and began getting on with her life. Today however, there was a light in her eyes and a smile on her lips that Hermione had not seen in a long time.
"It's been too long Hermione," Ginny smiled warmly, grasping her friend's hands as she kissed her on both cheeks.
"It's wonderful to see you again Ginny. You're looking really well," Hermione grinned. Ginny smiled again and made way for Charlie to give Hermione a handshake. They all began to make their way into the kitchen, leaving Hermione momentarily alone in the hallway.
Someone was missing from this little gathering and a profound emptiness began to fill her as she realised how much she had missed him. It had been a whole year since she had seen him.
"Hermione!" a voice exclaimed. She turned on the spot and saw Ron stood at the foot of the stairs, tall as ever, same tousled red hair, same bright eyes, same smile.
She ran to his open arms and felt a surge of familiar warmth replace the echoing emptiness as he wrapped his arms around her.
"God, I've missed you," she whispered, the threat of tears burning her eyes.
Ron, his arms tight around her, kissed her cheek briefly, breathing in the delicate scent of her hair.
"Missed you too Hermione," he whispered back, giving her a squeeze before letting her go. He stepped back for a moment and looked at her, taking in every detail, "You look amazing."
Hermione blushed and noted that Ron also had made the effort to dress as smart as possible, in a pair of black jeans and a cream shirt.
Silently, he offered her his arm and they made their way to the kitchen for dinner.
"How have you been Ronald?" Hermione inquired as the tantalising smell of Mrs Weasley's famous cooking filled the air and assailed her senses.
"Can't complain really. It's been….quiet," Ron shrugged, grinning, "But then, after the year we had, I'm not knocking a bit of normality."
She nodded but said nothing as they entered the kitchen and joined the others.
As soon as Mrs Weasley saw her, she threw her arms around her, hugging her tightly.
"It's so good to see you Hermione dear, you're looking so well," she beamed, her face seeming a little older and more lined than Hermione remembered.
Hermione smiled warmly, disentangling herself from Mrs Weasley's arms after a few reassuring moments.
Mr Weasley motioned for them all to seat themselves round the table and Mrs Weasley waved her wand at the last few dishes to rest in the centre.
Mr Weasley cleared his throat and the smattering of gossip that had started quickly died. He began to fill glasses, one by one, from a dusty bottle of wine.
The glasses were handed round in silence until everyone at the table had one. Then, following Mr Weasley's cue, they rose to their feet and raised their glasses silently.
"We take this moment to honour and remember a remarkable young man, whom we all loved and will always miss."
Everyone at the table bowed their head. Hermione felt a lump catch in her throat and heard a distinct sniff from Ginny's direction where Charlie had put a comforting arm around his sister.
Mr Weasley surveyed them all and Hermione felt Ron's hand slip into hers and give it a squeeze.
"Happy Birthday Harry," Mr Weasley finished.
"Happy Birthday Harry," they all chimed, raising their glasses and drinking to his memory.
The meal was Mrs Weasley's usual success. The talk was light hearted, interjected here and there by humorous recounts of Harry's various school escapades.
Hermione sighed contentedly when she finally pushed away her empty pudding dish. She had been apprehensive, at first, that this memorial meal on Harry's birthday was going to be sombre and full of tears. Instead, each person had recalled what they loved best about Harry and had laughed with each other about what he was doing right now.
"Probably putting his feet up on a cloud somewhere playing his harp," Ron remarked with a smirk, draining his glass of wine.
At this, Ginny went into a fit of giggles about the expression she could picture on Harry's face about having to wear a pair of wings and a halo.
The golden afternoon sun was starting to redden as it slowly set into the west.
Hermione excused herself from the table, as everyone began to entertain themselves. Ginny, Fred, George and Charlie began a game of exploding snap and Mrs Weasley listened to the wireless while Mr Weasley began to doze gently in his chair.
Hermione slipped out the back and decided on a brief stroll in the garden. It was peaceful and beautiful and she could not think of a better end to the day.
A few moments later, she saw Ron slip out of the back door and wander over to her, his hands in his pockets, his face full of smile.
"Felt like some fresh air?" Hermione asked as he approached her.
He nodded and they began to walk around the garden, the soft breeze swirling Hermione's hair about her shoulders.
Not much was said as they walked. Hermione had noticed a subtle change in Ron's demeanour since they had last met. A quiet confidence that was altogether different from his usual abrasive, albeit jovial self.
A small shadow had been cast on all of them since the end of the war. She'd heard people say that you could not go through an experience like that and not have it change you in some way.
"What are you doing with yourself these days?" she asked, picking a spray of white bells from the flowers in the grass.
"Auror training mostly, it's much tougher than it looks, that's all I can say," Ron replied, absentmindedly slipping his hand into hers. It was a habit he had developed in their last days together at Hogwarts and Hermione had always found it comforting.
"Auror training? But I thought you didn't have the grades to qualify, especially since we didn't even finish our NEWTS."
Ron smirked slightly and shrugged. "Well the Head of the Auror Office didn't think that was a problem considering that we've had first hand experience in defeating a dark wizard. He seemed to think that helping to bring down Voldemort more than compensated for a lack of grades."
His usual cheekiness returned like a ghost as he grinned down at her.
"Not that you'd share that sentiment, I'm sure. You always set great store by grades as I recall."
He laughed and Hermione thumped him playfully on the arm.
"At least I knew what decent grades were," she remarked tartly.
They both laughed and finally settled on a bench, looking out at the deepening sky. They leaned comfortably against each other, Ron still clasping Hermione's hand, his thumb now gently brushing over hers.
Hermione rested her head against Ron's shoulder, feeling drawn by his warmth.
"You know Hermione, I really did miss you," Ron murmured, his words breaking through their silence.
Hermione raised her bright eyes to him, somewhat stunned by his open admission.
Ron gave a small smile.
"I thought about you all the time this past year, even with training being so intense, you were always there in the back of my mind, reminding me to do my best because you weren't there for me to copy your notes."
He gave a short laugh and Hermione closed her hand around his, a silent encouragement so he could continue.
"Our last years at school, I always held back from telling you how I felt…now I can't remember why."
Hermione smiled and felt as if a wall were breaking down inside her.
"You're weren't the only one Ron, I…I kept some things back as well," she admitted, "But things were happening back then that we couldn't change. It just made things difficult."
Ron looked down at her, a spark of hope in his eyes as he gently brushed his fingers through her hair.
"It should never have been that difficult to tell you that I love you."
Hermione's lips parted in surprise, the gold of the dying sunlight adding to the glow on her face.
"You love me?" she repeated his words, as if unable to believe he had finally spoken them aloud.
Ron smiled and shyly looked down at their intertwined fingers. "For so long, I can't even remember when it started."
Hermione felt the last of her defences disappear to dust. For over a year now, she had been waiting to hear these very words from Ron and now that she had, she could barely believe it.
"Remember the Yule Ball Hermione?"
She nodded and squeezed his hand. "Yes?"
Ron grinned and stood up, holding his hand out to her.
"I never did manage to ask you for a dance."
Hermione smiled and took his hand; music or no music, she wanted to dance with this man, knowing that long ago, Ron had stopped being a boy and grown into more than she could have hoped for.
Ron snaked his arms around Hermione's waist and she, in turn, put her arms around his neck. Silently, they moved together in the dying light of the evening, their eyes searching nowhere but each other for the truth they both knew.
Ron pulled Hermione closer with agonizing slowness. Hermione's breath caught in her chest and her heart began to race. His firm lips brushed against her own and for a moment, time stood still. Every nerve in her body felt as though it were on fire as she returned the kiss with equal tenderness.
Ron gathered her in his arms and held her tight.
"Marry me Hermione, please? I'm nothing without you."
Hermione took his head in her hands, looked deep into his eyes and knew the answer instantly.
"Yes Ron, I will. I can't live without my best friend and the man I love."
She paused and bit her lip.
"Ron, we've already lost Harry, if I lost you as well, I don't think I could survive. I want to be with you always."
For the longest time, they simply held each other, saying nothing.
From the kitchen window, Mrs Weasley smiled and rested her head against Mr Weasley's shoulder.
"Well Arthur, it looks as though we still have hope after all."
Mr Weasley patted his wife on the shoulder. They could never bring Harry back from the dead but his life would always go on in his two best friends.