Written for the "First Christmas at home" contest at "Ron x Hermione" group at Devianart.
Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.. I´m just playing and enjoying with them.
A/N: Thanks so much to willow_wand!
Warnings: Excess of fluff ahead... ;)
"We do not remember days; we remember moments."
Cesare Pavese
Hermione stood alone in the middle of the empty sitting room.
If she focused enough and closed her eyes with force, she could pretend that the furniture was still there, over the little marks they had left through the years. There was nothing so sad to her eyes than an empty house. Their empty house.
They had been anticipating this moment since Hugo's birth, when their gorgeous but small place had become insufficient for a growing family. Now, they had reached the possibility of moving out to a nice cottage with a huge pitch and big rooms. They wanted that. They needed that. But she felt her heart constrict at the idea of never returning to the place that had hosted so many memories of the life she and Ron had built together. As time went by, that house had turned out to be their haven.
Against her will, her eyes were forced open to face the impending farewell and came to rest over the fireplace.
The fireplace.
And her mind traveled years before. Only this time, choosing the memories carefully…
As soon as she had returned from Hogwarts for good, they had made the decision with absolute conviction, fueled longing, and outbursting love.
They were going to live together.
Even though persuading their respective future in-laws hadn't been an easy achievement at all.
They were definitely too young. She needed to get established at her job. He was starting his training. They wouldn't even see each other every day what with them having opposite shifts. What if they got bored after a couple of months? What if –Merlin forbid! - they got pregnant?
What if their families lost track of them for months, as had happened not long before?
But their beloved ones hadn´t counted on the certainty they possessed after dueling with the remainder of the war.
They were young but they were also adults, and they had awful reasons to prove it. All the departments at the Ministry fought to have Hermione on their staff. Ron had shield experience enough to convert in an excellent Auror in a short amount of time. There was no way in the Muggle or magical world they could get bored with each other. And Merlin- and Hermione´s careful and almost obsessive precautions- wouldn't let them increase their family for a couple of years.
And (the most important thing) they weren´t going anywhere. They just wanted to make up for so much lost time by sharing a home of their own.
After a few months of bickering, numerous opinions, and Molly's endlessly lecturing, December 20th of 1999 found them on the threshold of their new house.
They didn´t have a bed. They didn´t have enough dishes. And the walls were painted such a sickening pink color that Umbridge´s outfit paled in comparison.
But they had a wonderful mattress to set on the floor, they were capable of drinking from the bottle if necessary, and the changes in the decoration were just a matter of time and good taste.
Christmas would find them living together for the first time.
"Awwww..."
"Why the sigh?"
"I´m happy. That´s all," Hermione answered, and her eyes delightedly scanned the tree in front of her. "I´ve always wanted a big one, you know."
"If you say so…"
"Luna!"
The girls fought a giggle while Hermione finished the last touches to the silvery ornaments, conjuring fancy garlands with her wand.
Hagrid himself had brought them the pine as an early Christmas present. He had affirmed feeling honored to help decorate their new home, as he had witnessed their fights, their courage, and the loyalty they had carried for Harry all the way. He had seen their relationship develop from a crush to life-altering love.
And, of course, he had cried the entire time while saying all that.
They were going to spend Christmas brunch at The Burrow with all the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione´s parents, but Christmas Eve was going to be just a private celebration for the two of them. Her excitement rivaled the emotions she had felt at eleven, when a mysterious letter had changed the course of her existence forever.
With Luna´s help, Hermione hung stockings on the mantle over the fireplace, lit little candles over it, and moved the simple but comfortable mattress to the center of the room.
When Ron arrived that evening, he received a view he would remember the rest of his life.
Hermione was standing in the middle of the sitting room, dressed in red and surrounded by the fresh smell of pine. Through the open windows, he could see the snow falling. She looked like a vision and the house seemed to have a soul of its own.
They were at home.
"Hey… are you ready to go?"
"Um? Oh, yes. I was just saying goodbye…"
Ron approached and encircled her from behind, one of his arms squeezing her waist and the other crossing over her chest.
"I´ll miss this place too." He breathed over the shell of her ear and she shivered involuntary, partly because of how emotional she felt and partly because her husband still affected her that much.
"You know what? I want to leave our imprint here."
"Imprint? I think we left lots of imprints here. The walls are full of marks, you know. The ones Rosie did with the Muggle Crayons, you couldn´t even erase them with magic…"
"No… I want to leave something more permanent, like a carving or something like that."
"A carving?"
"Yes. This house was our first home. It is part of our history, but we are part of its history too, and I want to leave something to settle it. I definitely want to do some carving."
"You shock me, Hermione Granger!"
"Hermione Granger would have never done this." Then she added, "It's your fault."
"Ha! Why doesn't it surprise me that it turned to be my fault in some way?"
"Because Hermione Weasley is capable of some… mischief. I think it is something that comes with the last name… and that is entirely your fault."
"In that case…" Ron took his wand from his pocket while stealing a kiss from her. "I couldn't be prouder, my love." He exaggeratedly waggled his eyebrows, which she found adorable.
"Do you want it… under the stairs, for example?
"Under the stairs would be perfect."
"And what do you want to carve?"
She stood on tiptoes and hugged his broad shoulders.
"A mattress on the floor in front of the Christmas tree."
˜˜˜˜˜˜Fin˜˜˜˜˜˜