It Started at Midnight
DISCLAIMER: ALL CHARACTERS AND VERSE IS J. AND I AM JUST RESPONSIBLE FOR MY TAKE ON HER GENIUS. I AM IN NO WAY PROFITTING FROM THIS STORY
Chapter 1: The Beginning
It was a month after the final battle and all was quiet. In the kitchen of The Burrow at midnight under a dim light were two people. Both eyes were red and both faces sullen. The air around the kitchen was one of grief, more so the male than his company but you could tell they were mourning. These two individuals were George Weasley, who lost a twin, and Hermione Granger who was just lost.
Many who know these two would be amazed that they were even in each other's company because of their differences, personality-wise. She, a stickler for rules and he, a glorified rule-breaker; even his business is about breaking rules. But there they both were, in each other's company as odd as that is. Let it be said that nothing is impossible. How exactly did this happen?
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"I can't believe it Herms, he's gone! You-know-who is gone. No more running around the world. We can be together happily now Herms! We'll get married and I'll get a job and you will raise our kids, they will grow up to love reading and playing Quiditch. He's gone!" Ronald Weasley was beaming as he said this. In his mind, as evident by this, his fairytale just came true. But unfortunately for him his counterpart was not feeling that all-round joy that he felt.
"What do you mean we'll get married and I raise your kids Ron?" she asked him with a smidge of annoyance in her words. But of course Ronald did not detect it at all.
"Well yeah, now that it's all over we can settle down like we planned" he continued still in dreamland.
She sighed and bit her bottom lip undecided as to whether to ruin his dream or to go along with it for a little while.
"Ron, when did we plan this? You haven't even asked me on a date yet. We haven't even had time to think about whether the school opens or not. Let alone marriage jobs and babies. I'm not even sure I want to get married." She asked him quiet wearily.
"What? Why not? I mean don't you love me?" he asked flustered.
"Honestly Ron, no. I like you but I don't fancy you or anything. I mean we just don't match. We've been friends this long but I don't really fancy myself with you. I mean you never, not even once said you fancied me." She tried to be as soothing as possible but knowing Ron, an explosion was to follow and she cast a muffliato and silencio immediately.
"But everybody knows I fancy you for a long time now! Everybody knows that and even expecting us to get married! Do you love someone else? Who is it?! Is it Viktor again or Harry?!" he bellowed.
"See that is one of the reasons we won't work. You always dig the past into current discussion, or rather your current tantrum. You don't even like me, let alone love. It is just 'expected'; well I don't do things just because they are expected but because I want to. And I really just don't fancy you." She replied rather calmly as opposed to her normal screaming match with him.
"What, I'm not good enough is it. I'm never good enough! I even got that book to help me but it still wasn't good enough! Well fine! No one can love an uptight prudish know-it-all like you anyway! " He stormed out.
She sat there thinking about his tantrum and decided that it was better this way; he can mourn his loss along with everything else. Then maybe he can start his own life afresh. Now what was she going to do. "Better check on Harry." And with that she headed for the hospital wing.
MEANWHILE……
"FRED! NO IT CAN'T BE! FRED!" George Weasley was just waking to the realization that his nightmare was real, that his twin was truly gone. "What am I going to do now?!" and with that he cried himself to sleep again for the hundredth time that day. He lost his twin and he was now alone. His whole family was in mourning the whole week
They returned to The Burrow at the end of the week, everything reminded him of Fred still. So he holed himself up in his room. Harry and Ginny had each other now, Ron with Hermione, Bill and Fleur, Mum and Dad, Charlie and even Percy. None would understand anyway. So he just stayed in his room,
They had the funerals two weeks later and he did not want to go but he did anyway. His mother would cry or try to hold back tears when looking his way. Then the sympathy glances his way, the full blown staring whenever he wasn't looking. The conversation would stop abruptly whenever entering the room. So he just stayed in his room. He didn't even remember the last time he had a shower but he didn't care, he stayed in his room.
A week after the funerals Harry asked Hermione about Ron.
"So Hermione, what's going on between you and Ron? I mean you are never together anymore. When I ask him he just mutters a 'nothing' and Ginny says you don't talk to her. What's going on Hermione?"
She regarded him for a minute silently and then dropped her shoulders and stared at the pond.
"There was never a 'Ron and I' Harry. I told him that the day after the battle." She said softly staring at the pond.
He was shocked to say the least. "But Why? What happened? I thought you fancied him?" he asked.
"No, it would not have worked. He came to me that day, told me all about getting married and me looking after his babies and such. So I just told him I didn't fancy him. He even asked if I fancied someone else. But I just could not pretend to like him. At least now he knows and can make proper plans for himself." She finished and looked at him.
"But he really likes you Hermione. When we destroyed the Horcruxes, the locket, it showed him the two of us kissing and he went mental. I even had to tell him that- never mind." He stopped there obviously uncomfortable.
"Oh, okay. I have to go get my parents back from Australia Harry." She almost whispered that sentence. He merely nodded at her and asked when she planned on doing that. She completely stilled, took about ten very deep breaths and turned to him. Utter disbelief was displayed clearly on her face.
Then she just said "I haven't worked on the date yet but I'm thinking really soon." She then turned and walked away when he called.
"Oi Hermione! Well, what is going on with you and Ginny? Aren't you friends anymore? She says you don't talk to her."
"The truth is Harry, Ginny and I haven't been friends since she started going out with you. I wouldn't even say that we're acquaintances. We are just sharing space as it is; nothing more nothing less."
She shrugged then continued "What did you say to Ron after the Horcrux? That made him 'less' mental."
"Well I told him that, uhm, you see, I told him that he shouldn't worry about me because I could only love you as a sister. That I loved you like a sister." He said sheepishly.
She asked him "Then he came back after that? And became your best mate again right?", "Yeah." he replied.
"Tell me this Harry; what is it about Ron, aside from being your best mate, that you find so worthy that you would approve him for your sister?" she asked him holding back tears.
He looked like a fish out of water so she pressed on. "Why didn't you comfort me while I was crying when he left? Why did you ignore your so-called sister and opted to rather check on your girlfriend's red dot instead?
Please don't give me the 'you were under pressures from that situation' because obviously you were able to comfort your best mate in the exact pressure. You were able to find just the right words to give him and conveniently never knew what to do about me." She was crying now
"Did you ever ask if I even harbored any romantic feelings for you? Am I honestly that repulsive that you would immediately jump off to sisterly feelings and not even daring consider a romantic interest with me?"
She then wiped her tears and said "Don't worry Harry, I don't have romantic feelings for you, I would have liked to be asked though before that conclusion. So yeah you have you best mate and the girlfriend you fought for. Don't worry about anything else and just enjoy it. It's dark now so I'll see you."
She hurried back inside The Burrow leaving him outside. She went to her room and went to sleep only to wake up around midnight very hungry. She went to the kitchen to get something to eat and that's when she saw him again. Their midnight ritual; giving him a semblance of a smile and taking his spoon digging in the tub of chocolate mint ice cream.
"Hey George, we have got to stop meeting like this." He turned to her and asked, concern showing in his face. For the first time since their midnight meetings started two weeks prior, he spoke to her "Hermione, what's the matter? Why were you crying?"
And that is how our story begins, with these two individuals at midnight sitting in the kitchen of The Burrow eating a tub of ice cream.
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