So here it is, my second ever fanfiction! I have no ideas for future plots, so suggestions are always welcome. I'll have a go at writing anything you would like to see. Thank you all so much for your reviews on my first fanfic, keep them coming and I'd love to hear what you think of this one :) If you haven't read my 'Harry Potter Missing Moments', go check it out!

Again, obviously, I don't own any of the characters - they are all the genius of JK Rowling.

Tree Talk

Ron had woken her early that morning, before the sunlight crept over the horizon and worked its way up the hill to the Burrow. She hadn't noticed how he snuck out of bed an hour earlier to throw some food in a hamper and sling a rug over the back of a chair near the door so he would remember it. The bed had gone cold beside her and she had slept on without noticing. Ever since she had been reunited with her parents, she had made her visits to the Burrow frequent, stopping by twice a week, sometimes alone, sometimes with her mother and father. It was amazing really, how quickly they had warmed to Ron, Harry and the other Weasleys. Hermione had begun to stay over on these occasions, waving her parents goodbye from the doorstep and then retreating up to Ron's room with him. With Ron's family sleeping only a few doors or stairwells away, neither had felt comfortable with more than a few stolen kisses and falling soundly asleep in each other's arms – but that was ok.

After Hermione had hastily dressed, Ron took her hand and they crept down the stairs and out the back door together, Ron grabbing the hamper and rug as they left. Once they were a safe distance from the house, Hermione stopped with a questioning look on her face, causing Ron to turn.

"Ronald, I'm tired. Please tell me there's a good and legitimate reason for us to be up at this time?" she sounded exasperated, as Ron had expected.

"Trust me, 'Mione. There's a good reason." Ron whispered, placing a feather light kiss on her lips.

Then, tugging on her hand, he led her away down the slope until the sun had risen and the Burrow was no longer in sight. Ahead of them rose a huge tree, its roots so twisted they had become lost in each other, bonding and breaking until they had formed a shelter beneath the glossy green leaves above. Hermione, in awe, had stopped dead before it, a look of wonder crossing her face.

Ron chuckled and leaned in behind her until his lips touched the shell of her ear. "Is this a good and legitimate enough reason for you, 'Mione?"

Instead of retaliating, the only words Hermione managed were, "Can we go in?"

Without waiting for Ron to respond, she had relieved him of the blanket and hurried inside, manoeuvring herself between the twisting roots until she was safely inside, perched comfortably on the blanket, further softened by the dead leaves underneath. Ron soon followed, joining her and putting the basket aside.

"Why did you bring me here, Ron?" she asked, bemused.

"I thought it was about time we got away from all of them," he said, indicating in the direction of the Burrow with his head, "for a while. So we can talk. Properly."

Impressed, Hermione shuffled forward and sat cross-legged on the rug, mirroring the boy in front of her. She leaned in to leave a lingering kiss on his lips and then settled back, rummaging through the hamper for a corned beef sandwich – a difference in their tastes that proved undoubtedly helpful to Ron.

"So," she said through a mouthful of sandwich, "What did you want to talk about?"

"I thought we should just… I dunno… talk." he responded eloquently, "I know I want to ask you some stuff, and I don't really want anyone interrupting."

Hermione nodded, understanding. Every time the couple had tried to have a decent conversation over the recent weeks they had been cut short by Molly attempting to feed them, George popping in for a prank, or Harry and Ginny stumbling in to find that the room they thought was empty was, in fact, occupied. She thought today, just maybe, they could have a meaningful conversation for as long as they liked, without the rest of the Weasley family listening in.

"That's so sweet Ron. What did you want to ask me?" Hermione was all ears, her hand resting on one fist, leaning forward so her knees touched his.

"When…" he started shyly, before ploughing on, "did you first realise you loved me?"

Hermione had hoped this question would come up, and was more than willing to answer him. "Second year," she said, smiling as she remembered, "when Malfoy called me a Mudblood and you burped up slugs all afternoon. Somehow I know you would be the one to defend me – I guess I thought you assumed it was your job to pick fights with me, and no one else's."

"But I would never call you a Mudblood," Ron said indignantly, yet managing to shine with pride.

"I know you wouldn't, you silly tosser!" Hermione laughed, brushing some stray hair out of his eyes. Then she continued, "So, what about you?"

Ron sat thinking for a second before replying. "The first time I saw you. As pathetic as it sounds, when you told me in that prissy little voice," he said, cringing as Hermione's fist connected with his upper arm, "that I had dirt on my nose, I knew you were the one I wanted to boss me around for the rest of my life. You were beautiful, and I hated you at first for making me feel these things I'd never felt before. Was bloody awful there for a while." he chuckled.

She kissed him then, rising up on her knees so that she could weave her fingers through his hair as he tasted the corned beef on her tongue, and didn't even mind.

There you go, Chapter 1! I hope you liked it, and if you have more question ideas for Ron and Hermione to ask each other, send me a review and let me know so I can write them. Hope you enjoyed the first instalment :) xx