Hermione woke slowly, trying to will herself back asleep. Her face scrunched up in concentration as she started to stretch but tried to keep her eyes shut. Suddenly she felt a hairy leg to her right with her big toe. She gave a violent start and clutched her bed covers as her eyes shot open. She released a quick breath of relief as she realized Ron was asleep next to her. He didn't sleep over usually, except for the odd weekends when they both had more free time available, and apparently that was rare enough to where she still wasn't quite used to waking up with him next to her. Luckily he hadn't witnessed her ridiculousness, but she did notice Ron in a picture of the two of them on her bedside table give a silent snort. The real Ron beside her just turned over still sound asleep as she tried to recall the evening before's festivities.
There was lots of firewhiskey and this bubbling champagne that made actual bubbles exit out if the drinker's ears the more it was consumed. That she was sure of. Her memory almost never failed her and at the moment last night seemed like a blurry photo album. After a long Friday at the ministry she had met Ron, Harry, Ginny, Neville, and Luna at the Leaky Cauldron... They didn't usually go out like that due to all their notoriety in the wizarding world, but they were celebrating something... Oh this was going to bug her. Just what was the big- Harry! And Ginny! Now it came back to her in a rush. Harry and Ginny announced their engagement!
She remembered Ron not-so-subtlety insinuating Harry was just marrying Ginny to officially become a member of the Weasley clan, Ginny silently sending a well-aimed choking hex at Ron when he went to pompously toast the happy couple, and the lots and lots of other more sincere and celebratory toasts that followed. She also blushed as she remembered Ron panicking when he saw her tearing up as the group started parting ways. Ron mistook her tears of joy (OK- and TIPSINESS) for a sign that she felt unhappy about THEIR relationship. Consequently he spent their walk home hushing her any attempt to explain the true motive of her tears and assure her that someday he would make an honest woman out of her when he could afford the ring and living she deserved. By the end of his drunken, but well intended, speech they had reached her flat where she promptly reenacted their first kiss with such fervor that they fell to her tiny living room floor with a crash and didn't bother to move their closely-followed raptures to the bedroom.
Hermione's blush deepened as she cast a side-long glance Ron's way and realized he was shirtless due to the fact that she was wearing his favorite Chudley Cannon's t-shirt herself. She sighed as she chalked the last bit of the mystery, her still damp hair, up to a late night shared shower before bed. With the mystery of last night solved to her satisfaction and embarrassment, Hermione slipped out of bed and into her adjoining bathroom. When she exited it after a few minutes she found Ron waking slowly and looking at the place in bed she had moments ago vacated.
"Morning," she said softly as she dried her hands.
"So it wasn't a dream." Ron said groggily as he took in the sight of her in his Chudley Cannons shirt. She crossed her arms and leaned on the door frame to the bathroom smirking, "What's that?"
"You refused to let me put that on when we were getting ready for bed- said it was your lucky shirt." Ron laughed while sitting up, "I tried to explain that it was obviously MY lucky shirt and the only one I have here to sleep in, but you said you 'looked better in it anyway...'"
And Ron's face took a serious and thoughtful turn, "And you're right of course. Not sure why I tried to convince you otherwise."
Hermione placed herself in Ron's lap silently and ran her hands through his messy but otherwise dry and bright red hair, "You were saying it brought out the orange in your hair."
Ron placed his hands on her hips moving his thumbs in circles ever so slightly, "Ah, yes... But in the light of day it really does suit you much better than me." He said, his serious expression never faltering.
"Always the tone of surprise." She replied before kissing him.
"I've missed you." He said as they broke apart. "I feel like I never get to see you."
Hermione laughed, "We see each other every day."
"Yeah, but that's at the ministry- around lots of other people. I don't even have a cubicle to myself in the Auror Department!"
Hermione rolled her eyes in response and made to get up but Ron pulled her back to him. As he started to kiss her neck she sighed, "Well you know the solution to this already. We've had this conversation before."
"But not while we were so well dressed!" He said into her neck while inching up his shirt on her.
"Well despite that fact, I remember the conversation clearly. I said, 'Let's move in together.' And you said-"
"-I'm not about to be the first Weasley to move in with his girlfriend before getting married.' Yeah, I remember too." He said frowning and staring at the far corner of her cramped bedroom.
"But..." he said starting to perk up a bit but still not meeting her eyes or returning to her neck, "I have always been a bit of a trail blazer."
Hermione rolled her eyes at him again and went to get up from the bed again, this time successfully freeing herself from his dangerous fingers. "What you're getting at has more of a 'black sheep' or better yet, 'breaking your mother's heart' sound to it. I'm not about to have us upset your mum like that. I've personally never been able to stand her scrutiny." Hermione said with an anxious look, thinking back to the full year she spent out of Mrs. Weasley's good graces.
"Well..." Ron started but Hermione was too quick for him, "-WE ARE NOT GOING TO HIDE OUR LIVING TOGETHER FROM YOUR MUM." She said squeakily firing up at once.
Ron deflated immediately, "Well it wouldn't be much different than what we're doing now..." he mumbled standing up and reaching for her hands. It was Hermione's turn to avoid his searching gaze. But she rallied and looked him in the eye determinedly.
Taking a deep breath she said, "Yes, Ronald. Yes it is. Spending odd weekends at my flat versus moving in together are vastly different to me... I'm not about to enter into that type of commitment and then turn around and contradict its very nature by lying to my parents about it."
"Well we wouldn't have to lie to YOUR parents, now would we?" Ron said smartly with his ears reddening.
Hermione raised her eyebrows at this and took a step back from him. Ron stood tall for a moment then began to backtrack, "What I mean is-"
"-I know what you mean, Ronald." Hermione said icily. With that she began rifling through her dresser drawers.
"What are you doing?" Ron questioned alarmed at her sudden movement.
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm getting dressed. There are things I want to get done before we go to your parent's house later." She explained plainly as she fished out some jeans.
Ron snatched them out of her hands and tossed them aside haphazardly as if they were on fire, "No, I'm sorry, Hermione. I'll stop talking nonsense. I promise. Just come back to bed and relax for a bit with me. It's Saturday morning for Merlin's sake!"
He took a hold of her hands again and pulled her back to the bed were they both perched off the side. Hermione kept her eyes on their still clasped hands saying nothing. But at least she wasn't bloody crying. That was something.
"What I am trying to say is I love you and I want to be with you. More." Ron said simply.
She couldn't understand how sometimes he could be so maddeningly ridiculous about reasoning and logic, but then just say the perfect thing when it came down to how he felt. It was the exact opposite with her. She could articulate perfectly about anything logical or fact-based, but when it came to her feelings well...
She nodded slowly and said, "Likewise..." shakily in reply.
Now it was Ron's turn to raise his eyebrows. But then he smiled and nodded leaning his forehead against hers. He patiently closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Hermione did the same, "I love you too." she said softly as she exhaled.
Ron nodded but didn't pull away, "And I want to be with you every chance I get." she added in a whisper. Finally Ron closed the distance between them and kissed her.
"I know." He whispered back.
"I've missed you too." she finished quietly opening her eyes and sitting up.
"Like pulling teeth..." Ron said sitting back but looking pleased.
"I regret my dad teaching you that phrase..." Hermione said shaking her head but smiling all the same.
"Well I regret you giving my dad that old telebrision-"
"-television..." She interrupted.
"-but you don't hear me complaining about it." He finished.
"You're complaining about it now. And you bring it up every time we see him."
"HE brings it up every time we see him!"
"Well I doubt he will tonight. Harry and Ginny should give him plenty to talk about." Hermione said lying down on her side of the bed facing him.
"His only daughter and youngest child? Harry won't know what hit him." Ron said smugly.
"Oh I'm sure he'll be thrilled! He loves Harry!"
"Exactly!" Ron exclaimed, "He's going to be like one of Wizard Weasley Wheezes' fireworks."
Then another kind of smile worked its way to Hermione's face, "You know, I actually forgot you slept over last night. When I woke up this morning I practically jumped out of my skin when I felt your leg. -Thought it was nargles or something."
"You forgot about last night!?" Ron exclaimed in mock astonishment and hurt.
"No!" Hermione said coloring, "Yes- I mean- I remember it now. Just didn't... At first."
"Well I think, just to be sure, I should give you a refresher..." he said as he began kissing the palms of her hands, up her arms, and burying his face in her hair again to kiss her neck.
Hermione cleared her throat and sighed, "Well if you insist... Wouldn't want to-" but the rest of her sentence was drowned out by Ron reaching her lips, expertly silencing them.