Hermione slowly opened her eyes, and then blinked a few times, before wiping the sleep from them. She rolled over very slowly and eased the covers off; so as to not wake the bed's other occupant. Her feet padding quietly around the room, Hermione slipped her thin, dark blue dressing gown over her shoulders and pulled back her messy hair into a bun before tip-toeing out of the room and gently closing the door. Carefully making her way down and skipping the creaky bottom stair, Hermione entered the kitchen of the Burrow.
She wasn't surprised that it was empty. After the ministry ball that had kept everyone in the house up to the small hours of last night, Hermione supposed that everyone was still asleep. Of course the Weasleys were all naturally very late sleepers, a fact that she had come to know from being best friends and staying with the family for over seven years, but even Mrs Weasley, who was always up and cooking breakfast, was nowhere to be seen.
Hermione made herself a cup of coffee, without magic, before stepping out onto the front porch and sitting demurely on the swing. She felt slightly guilty by hoping that Mrs Weasley would wake up soon, because she was constantly working herself to the bone and needed her rest. But even so, when Ron woke up, he would want a full English breakfast ready for him on the table, and Hermione knew from spending a year camping with him, he would make her cook unless his mother wasn't there to wait on him. But now she was feeling guilty about thinking that way about her boyfriend.
Hermione thought about her and Ron. They had gotten together after the "final battle", as it was now being called in the Daily Prophet. Of course, everyone had expected them to get together, but nobody was more enthusiastic as Mrs Weasley - or Molly as she insisted she be called. Mrs Weasley let the two of them break all of her house rules, because she wanted the two of them to be together for the rest of their lives. Hermione was a bit uncomfortable with the thought, because she knew Mrs Weasley wouldn't want her to have a career, but be a house mum instead. But anyway, Mrs Weasley let the two of them be alone in rooms with doors closed, something even the twins and Charlie weren't allowed to do. They were allowed to stay at home when everyone else went out and were even allowed to sleep together in Ron's bedroom. It felt to Hermione like she was practically encouraging them to have sex all the time – something her own mother would never allow for her eighteen year old daughter and her boyfriend. Harry and Ginny didn't complain about these rules at all, because when Hermione slept with Ron, Harry had to move somewhere else, and generally occupied Hermione's old bed, in Ginny's room – with Ginny in the same bed.
Harry and Ginny had started dating again, but because Harry – and Ron – had begun Auror training, they didn't get to spend much time together, much alike Ron and her. Both Harry and Ron had jumped at Kingsley's (the new Minister for Magic) offer to start training to be an Auror and they now worked long hours, often leaving before all the Burrow's occupants were up and coming home when several were once again in bed. Ron frequently complained to Hermione about how tired he always was and how hard he worked, but that didn't stop him boasting to his girlfriend about how good he was or diminish his ever-present want, or need as he called it, for sex.
Hermione didn't blame him though. She knows that he is a young man of eighteen and will of course have a rather enthusiastic sex drive. She also knows that Ron probably feels lost now that Voldemort is gone and he isn't worrying about having to help Harry save all of humanity, so of course he would through himself into work and want to rid the magical world of all Death Eaters and those who believe in pureblood supremacy. Hermione also knew that it would all eventually die down and then the two of them could hopefully have a normal relationship – not that Hermione didn't love the relationship she was currently in. They were written in the stars and meant to be together.
But here she was, sitting on the porch swing of her boyfriend's home, which she currently resided in with his parents and siblings, dreading the moment said boyfriend would wake up and demand that she make him breakfast.