A Smooth Proposal
Harry felt a bit foolish in the new skiing suit Hermione had bought him after the first time he went skiing in jeans and ended up with a cold. Of course, later, Hermione teased Harry that he could spend all winter freezing in the woods, but three days of skiing gave him the sniffles.
He had gone skiing with Hermione and her parents during the Christmas break of his seventh year. He had just broken up with Ginny for being far too… smothering, and had decided to stay at Hogwarts during the holidays instead of dealing with the Weasleys while they dealt with the first Christmas without Fred. Avoiding Ginny's open hostility was also a good reason to stay at school.
Of course Hermione refused to allow him to spend another Christmas alone. Hence the skiing lessons, a cold, and now the blue shiny costume he now sported. At least he was better at skiing now. As it turned out, Hermione was lying when she told him and Ron that she didn't even like skiing that much in fifth year. Every Christmas holiday she was with her parents, they went skiing.
It had only taken Harry three years of lessons to be able to keep up with Hermione when she was flying down the mountain, her curly hair tangling in the wind. Although, grant it, once when he was first learning to ski he beat her down the bunny slope. He couldn't stop before he ran out of inertia. Luckily the ski resort had placed the lounge far enough away to keep any in experienced skiers from hurting themselves too badly on the brick wall. His pride was the only thing broken.
The first two years he had gone skiing with Hermione and her family as a friend, but the third year he went as her boyfriend. She and Ron had broken up three months before he and Ginny did, but it wasn't until two years after he broke up with Ginny that he had the courage to ask her out on a date. Or rather he had finally pieced it together that he loved her as a girlfriend and not as a sister, like he originally thought.
He was rather large dunder-head. Of course if Snape ever heard him admit that, he'd rise from the grave expecting the second coming of Christ. A Potter agreeing with him would only happen at Armageddon.
"Are you certain you want to try night skiing? It's a bit disorientating," Hermione asked, bringing Harry out of his revere.
"Of course," Harry smiled. It only took the equivalent of a thousand galleons to convince the resort to put up barriers to keep the other patrons out. "I'm positive it will be a unique experience."
"If you break a bone, don't expect me to carry you to St. Mungos," Hermione sighed dramatically. "You and your unique experiences land you in the hospital more than anyone else I know."
"Well, life is never boring with me around, now is it?" Harry continued to smile as he picked up his ski poles and coasted towards the ski lift.
"Certainly not," Hermione agreed as she followed. "But it would be nice to have a unique experience without someone getting hurt, for once. The lights reflecting off of the snow does tend to mess up one's depth perception."
"It can't be worse than playing Quidditch at night. Especially with that ghost that haunts the field at Hogwarts. He's caused more fouls than any other player in the history of the school," Harry replied.
"Most players only play for up to seven years at school," Hermione retorted. "He's been there for decades."
"The real question," Harry said as he sat down on the ski lift and double checked his right pocket for the ring. "Is how he keeps managing to foul when he's incorporeal."
Hermione paused, "Doesn't he always get called for non-team interference?"
"Exactly! He's not even part of either team that's playing," Harry's smile widened slightly. "He's even more obsessed than Ron. I mean, to spend your afterlife haunting a pitch instead of joining your family and friends."
"I agree," Hermione snorted. "Even Ron isn't so obsessed with Quidditch to exclude everything else."
"Although he does incorporate it into a lot of his life. He did take Luna to a Cannon's and had them hold up multi-colored signs asking her to marry him fifteen minutes into the game." Harry laughed as they made their slow way up the hill.
"Didn't Luna respond by saying she didn't understand how she could be married to a Quidditch team?" Hermione chuckled.
"Yup," Harry chirped cheerfully. It began to snow softly just as he caught a glimmer of gold ahead. "Hey, Hermione, what do you think that is? Isn't it on the closed slope?"
"Maybe they're working lights for whatever is going on there, I heard that someone broke a leg there, but that was hours ago," she studied the golden glow intensely. "But it looks like its flickering. Muggles wouldn't be using candles or fires to light their way."
"Maybe the power to the lights is cut and that's what they're trying to fix," Harry suggested grinning as he got the ring box out of his pocket. He watched Hermione's face as the lights became clearer.
"I think it's a bunch candles writing something out," Hermione strained to take a closer look. "Yeah, something…"
Harry put his free hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Maybe we should wait until we get closer to read it, so you don't fall out of the lift, hmm?"
Hermione blushed and sat down properly. "Good idea."
It was a tense minute for Harry. He kept turning the box over in his hands while he waited for Hermione to read his message. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and asked her, "Can you read it yet? Your eyesight is better than mine."
"Sure it is, Mr. I-Can-See-A-Snitch-A-Hundred-Yards-Away," Hermione snorted. She leaned forward slightly. "It says, 'Will…. You Marry Me,'… Hermione." She whipped around sharply. "What?"
Harry's smile widened even more if possible as he showed her the elegant ring in a simple black velvet box. "Please forgive me for not getting down on one knee, Hermione. But you would make me deliriously happy if you would consent to spend the rest of your life going on unique experiences with me. Will you marry me, Hermione?"
Hermione bit her lip as tears pooled in her eyes. "Yes."
Harry reached for her left hand, gently took off her glove and slipped the ring onto her finger. "Thank you," he whispered as he leaned to her face to share their first kiss as an engaged couple.
AN: I normally don't write romance fics. I usually sink ships instead.
But I have a poll that needs H/H and R/H shippers so I bribed you.
Reviews would be nice, but so would voting in my poll. Thanks!
Oh yeah, I don't own HP.