More Than Enough

The sky was cloudless and brightly illuminated with millions of twinkling stars. Gleaming in clusters, they formed a wide array of constellations and spread across the dark canvas of the night, outdone only by the moon, which was a perfect whitish yellow circle levitating in vast empty space.

Down below, lengthy cords of lights mirrored the heavens above as chirping crickets were drowned out by the sounds of laughter, music, and a permeating assortment of clinking glassware and utensils.

A young woman sat at one end of a long table with her chin resting in one of her hands, listening to a humorous anecdote that was drawled out by both the bride and groom; Not without thanks to the abundant and readily accessible supply of wine and champagne.

She smiled, which was a rarity these days, and it instantly alleviated her features from her unmistakable bushy brown hair. After six years, Hermione's hair had finally started to turn into manageable curls. And she now had her hair swept up and away from her face aside from her short bangs, which she kept having to place behind her ear due to sporadic summer evening breezes. The neatly trimmed grass slightly tickled her bare feet, for she had removed her shoes earlier and reveled in the atmosphere.

Hermione was feeling quite tipsy herself. But whether it was from the excitement of witnessing a union between two loving souls, or because she was in such close proximity with a certain red head, she really couldn't tell at this point because she could feel his eyes on her. She tried her hardest to listen to the viable couple, but her eyes wavered. This would have given her away if her head was not turned away.

For several years, she had wished for him to look at her the way he did now and was at times full of anger, hurt, jealousy and even lacked self confidence when he didn't seem to reciprocate the way she felt. But he was her best friend. And she could have never expected him to see her in that light. It was never really a declaration of love that she was expecting, a knight in shining armor. Like the ones in the portraits in the great hall, where he would probably be an unconventional hero, but still all hers. In a sense, he already was, because of all those times he had stood up for her and protected her. But of course he would do the same for Harry. She was just a silly girl with silly romantic dreams. Sometimes she secretly wished she could trade all her books to have him feel something more than just friendship. But at this point, she was just waiting.

She tried to steady her gaze, but her eyes would not budge from an empty spot on the table cloth which had been stained by condensation that had glided off a cool champagne glass. She traced the outline of the water with her other hand and blushed when he didn't falter. Slowly, she finally turned and scanned up his shoulder and met his eyes. For a split second, they stayed like that, and it was if the whole world had melted away, and it was just them. Alone. Together.

But then, Ginny had gotten up from her seat and followed Harry when he approached her, and she unintentionally bumped Hermione's seat. They broke contact at the same time and flustered, Hermione looked away. Afraid of then being caught in an awkward situation, Hermione reached over and grabbed for her fork to finish her non existent slice of cake. At the same time, Ron nervously tried to seize his napkin, causing their fingers to touch, barely, like an eyelash gently resting on skin.

This slight and trivial touch felt strangely intimate to her and she flushed a deep crimson. Ron jerked his hand away, cleared his throat and attempted to shift in his seat. But by doing so, his leg came in contact with hers and she stifled a gasp. The silverware jumped slightly and clattered as Ron's knees came in contact with the table. Startled, people began to look towards them and Hermione shot out of her chair. "Excuse me." Ron, not knowing what to do, quickly followed suit and sheepishly said, "That was a lovely dinner, gotta go and um, yeah, you know…"

They both were prompted to flee, feeling substantially embarrassed, but suddenly, the band stepped up and announced that there was going to be dancing. Everyone got up and started moving towards the dance floor, leaving Ron and Hermione to find their way through the crowd. She moved her elbow closer to her body to avoid hitting Charlie and swerved to miss running Fred and George, while heading towards the house. Ron, now offered an opportunity, saw his chance and tried to catch up to her. But he then hesitated and stepped back. He went back and forth for a few seconds before clutching his hands firmly and muttering "Oh bloody hell, get it together…"

Ron quickly caught up to her in a few long strides. "Hermione, wait," he called. She turned to face him and noticed that he had started fidgeting. He seemed rather interested in his shoe and he dug his heels into the grass. "Woul- Would you like to...um…to…"

"Yes?" She asked, hopeful. He breathed in a deep breath and steadied himself. "Would you like to dance with me?" Hermione's eyes widened and she suddenly became elated.

"Of course you don't have to, I -, I mean if you prefer-"

"Ron, I would love to," she replied, beaming.

"You would?" He said, finally looking up, and she nodded.

Courteously, he took his hands out of his pockets and ushered her to the floor. Another sweet and lethargic melody began and they tentatively approached one another, fumbling a bit before he placed one hand on her waist and held her hand in his other. Then, they began to sway slowly, neither one wanting to look at one another.

When Hermione felt Ron relax against her and she could finally read his body language, she unconsciously let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around his neck. He tensed for a second, becoming alarmed, but then became tranquil again. He then realized that she was on the tip of her toes because he was so tall, and hunched down a little bit so she could have better access.

As the song continued, there was a breeze and Hermione shifted her weight and pulled him closer to her body. She placed her chin in the crook of his neck but then moved her head down so that her face was sheltered in it. She suddenly felt a sense of nostalgia and longing as she caught a scent that was so familiar to her. It was the same smell she had smelled in the amortentia potion in her 6th year at Hogwarts. His smell.

Ron noticed their proximity and his hand automatically came to cradle the top of her back, which was bare due to the opening of her dress. He caught the way she smelled also, like sweet jasmine from the flower in her hair. There was also a light trace of perfume, the same one he had given her as a Christmas present a few years ago. It seemed like just yesterday and he wanted to cherish this moment, since he didn't know if this would ever happen again.

Ron then proceeded to gently trail his hand down her spine down to her lower back, tracing the thin strap that held the top of her dress. Hermione shivered in the summer night and the air around them became so still all of a sudden, as though it were the beginning of an electrical storm. Her skin was blazing against his, and her breathing became shallow. She suddenly noticed even the slightest details about Ron, such as his breathing, which was hot against her skin.

Abruptly, there was a scattering of applauses. The song had ended and they both quickly pulled away and looked completely flustered. She blinked several times. "I'm sorry," she said, her brow furrowing with mixed emotions. Then she ran towards the house. Ron watched her disappear as she opened the front door, allowing a stream of light from inside to travel out, and then closed it, letting the darkness settle back.