Chapter One: Perfect.

The kitchen was a scene of calm serenity. Ron had cooked, piling pancakes up high and drizzling them in maple syrup on Hermione's plate. She grinned and kissed him when she came downstairs.

"I love you," she said rubbing his nose.

"I love you too," he answered.

It couldn't get more perfect than this. Just the two of them, in their own house, with their own lives. No one else around, no Harry, no Ginny, nothing. Yes, it was perfect. It made Ron Weasley almost enjoy the mornings, he thought, stroking her bushy hair tenderly. She was his, and he was hers and they were going to live happily ever after…

Pop!

"Good morning!"

Ah yes. Perfection didn't last.

Harry sat down and pulled a plate of pancakes towards him. "Seriously, Ron," he said, digging in. "You've inherited your mother's cooking skills."

"Oh, and I haven't?" asked Ginny.

"Ginny, you burnt porridge," Harry said, pouring more syrup onto his plate.

"True," Ginny said. "I do wonder where Ron gets this skill."

"In the hope that every morning I can eat it myself. In peace," Ron hinted.

Pop!

"Good morning everybody!" Parvati said with a grin. "Oh, wow, Ron's pancakes! Budge over Harry, let me sit down."

"These are mine!" Harry said defensively.

Hermione rolled her eyes as the two began fighting over the plate.

Pop!

"Told you we should come, look, it's Ron's pancakes!" Dean said happily, letting go of Luna's arm. Luna waved at them all.

"How are you?" she asked happily.

"Well, we were having a really nice morning-"

"Only now it's perfect, right?" Dean said. "Because we're here."

Pop!

"You know there's not going to be any left at this rate," Ron muttered.

"Then make some more!" Lavender said, having Apparated. "Don't worry though, I don't much like your pancakes, I'm not here for them."

"Then what are you here for?"

Pop!

"Thanks for leaving without me," Seamus said. "Oh, pancakes. There won't be enough here, Ron, you'll need to make some more."

Ron sighed. "There was enough for two!" he said loudly.

The room stopped buzzing.

"Yeah, but you clearly knew the rest of us were coming," Harry said and kicked him. "Go, Ron, go!"

"I sometimes wonder if we abuse our brother," Ginny asked him with a frown.

"We've really got to get new Apparation protections," Hermione whispered in Ron's ear, standing up to help him.

"What are you looking for, Lavender?" Harry asked, as Lavender stuck her head in the fridge.

"I had this weird craving for cheese this morning," she said, sounding as vague as Luna. "And you two have a really good selection."

"Right," Dean said slowly.

Pop!

"Neville, you're almost late!" Parvati said. "Anyway, about our appointment…"

"You make appointments?" Harry asked incredulously.

Parvati rolled her eyes. "What time can you make it?"

"Twelve forty five?" Neville asked.

"Suits me," Parvati said. "Hurry up with those, Ron!"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" Ron said, sounding harassed.

"I've got to be in the Prophet by nine," Parvati said with a sigh, pouring herself some orange juice.

"Do I want cheddar or mozzarella?" Lavender asked.

"Cheddar," Luna said, taking the brick of mozzarella off her and biting into it.

"Since when are we the people with cheese?" Hermione asked Ron. He shrugged and flipped a pancake onto Parvati's plate.

"That's seriously impressive," Dean said. "Hermione!" he said suddenly. "When are we going to, um… go to that Muggle born meeting thing?"

"What Muggle-born meeting?" asked Seamus. "I've never heard of them."

"Because they're only for Muggle-borns," Dean said quickly.

Ron frowned. "You've been going to loads of those together," he said, nodding to Hermione and Dean.

Hermione blushed. "Well, I wasn't going to go alone, was I?"

Ron glanced from one to the other.

Were things so perfect after all?

Parvati swallowed the last bite. "Okay, I have to go. So Neville, I'll see you, you know…"

Neville nodded. "See you there," he said, and Parvati Disapparated.

"What are you two doing together?" Ginny asked.

"Nothing," Neville said quickly, taking a too-big bite of the pancake Ron had just given him.

Ron frowned again. That was weird. But he was still too worried about Hermione, who had just agreed to meet Dean at half past eleven for Merlin-knew-what.

Over his dead body!

Lavender finished the last of the cheddar. "That was so good," she said. "Anyway, I have to meet a Muggle couple today and show them every aspect of the wizarding world. This'll be fun. So I'll see you guys around at your work I guess."

With a pop, she was gone.

Neville was still eating nervously and Luna was picking at the mozzarella.

"How do they make cheese?" she asked, looking around the room.

"Uh, I think it has something to do with milk," Hermione said with a frown.

Ron watched her carefully. Was she really living in sin?

With someone other than him, of course.

Ginny stretched. "I said I'd look after Teddy, seeing I have a day off today," she said, kissing Harry rather loudly. "So I need to go meet Andromeda."

"Flip!" said Seamus really loudly. "I said I'd watch my cousin's daughter. But I'm doing spell research today!"

"That's okay, I can watch her if you'd like," Ginny said with a smile. "Teddy would like some company."

Seamus checked his watch. "Ginny, you're a star. Anyway, I'll have to go talk to me cousin then. I'll see you."

Pop!

"Oh, Harry," Luna said. "The Quibbler wants to do some photos to go with that piece we did, so you'll need to look nice for them."

"Look nice? No problem," Harry said.

"You need to wash your hair," Ginny said bluntly. "It's kind of greasy."

"Thanks, Ginny, I love you too."

"Me neither," she said.

Pop!

Neville finished his food. "I'm going to go."

"Why are you meeting Parvati?" Harry asked curiously.

"No reason. No reason at all. Did I say I was meeting Parvati? Because I'm not. I'm meeting, um… Cedric Diggory!"

"Cedric died like, four years ago," Hermione said. "Pity. I liked him."

Oh, so she liked Cedric, did she? But Ron wasn't good enough? Was that how she wanted to play?

"I have to get to Gringotts," Dean said. "So I'll see you later for that thing, Hermione?"

She nodded.

Pop!

Luna smiled and shook out her long blonde hair. "I think I'll go help Daddy. If anybody needs me," she shrugged. "I'll be there."

Pop!

Why wasn't Luna worried about Dean? Did she not see it? Ron thought angrily.

Harry was running his fingers through his hair. "Is it really greasy?"

"Yeah, a bit," Ron said.

Pop! He was gone.

Ron turned to Hermione. "Hermione…"

"Actually Ron, I've got an interview with a house-elf really soon, I've got to go now," she said. She kissed him. "I love you," she said and Disapparated.

Yeah, right.

Ron played with the last remaining pancake.

Things were just perfect.