a/n: GO BACK AND READ NINETEEN IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY. I REPLACED THE AUTHOR'S NOTE WITH THE ACTUAL CHAPTER!!!!!
Always and Forever
La Maison
"So we'll bring these boxes to Paris with us and these and then we'll take these to the new house." Hermione said looking at her living room that was now full of boxes. They had spent the remainder of Saturday and into Sunday morning boxing everything that would go to the new house and Paris, leaving only the things they would need unpacked. The bridal shower gifts (except for Ginny's gift for the wedding night, which was put into the suitcase Hermione was taking) were packed into boxes to go to the new house. Although Luna's gift was packed with all of the other Paris stuff because it could come in handy there. Majority of the things packed for Paris were things that they wouldn't need in the two months that they had until the move. Everything else would be packed in time. The apartment that Jacques told them about was already furnished and it was one of the best. Hermione and Ron were excited for it but they also were waiting for Harry to come around. They hadn't seen him since he stormed out of their apartment yesterday but Ginny stopped by to tell them that he was home and ok but not in the mood to talk about it.
"When are we going to see the new house?" Ron asked. He seemed to be hinting toward something. "We could maybe stop by after we tell our parents you know, just to check it out…and see if we have room in the back for a miniature Quidditch Pitch." He muttered the last part.
"Alright, if they don't take it back from us after we tell them then we can go." Hermione said. Ron chuckled. "Speaking of we better go get ready to meet them." She picked up the last big candle on the table and placed it into a box after wrapping it with tissue paper.
"Stop right there!" Ron commanded. Hermione froze, confused as Ron dashed to the kitchen table to get the camera. Hermione laughed when she realized what he was doing. "For the scrapbook." He said innocently after snapping the picture.
Hermione convinced Ron that it was only fair if she got one of him too so after taking several pictures of them packing they got ready to head out to lunch with their parents. Hermione wore a pinkish-red skirt that came down to her knees with a white tank top. She wore a black hooded sweater over the tank top and then put on a jean jacket for extra warmth. She wore tan Ugg boots on her feet and put on a black knit scarf and matching hat. Ron wore a pair of jeans and navy blue long sleeve shirt. His beard was shaved since they were going to be meeting their parents and Ron figured he needed to look more kempt. He wore a dark gray jacket over it and convinced Hermione that he didn't need his hat and scarf. He reluctantly pulled the navy beanie over his head after she told him she wasn't leaving until he did.
They had called Hermione's parents the night before and then sent Ron's parents a quick owl to schedule lunch with them. They had all agreed to it and as much as Ron and Hermione were happy about making their practical adult decisions they were kind of hoping that it would work out so their parents couldn't meet them. Now they were nervously looking at each other as they held onto each other and Apparated to Hermione's parents house where they were supposed to meet the Grangers and Weasleys and then travel to the restaurant Hermione had ordered from two summers ago when she and Ron were both sick.
"Mum, dad, we're here." Hermione said trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice. Richard, Ann, Molly, and Arthur came into the hallway to greet them. Ron thanked them for the house since it was only appropriate.
"Don't worry about it. We thought that you two might need more space for work and, well for any new additions." Richard said. Hermione smiled meekly knowing that her father was looking forward to grandchildren after getting used to the idea of his little girl growing up. There would soon be little granddaughters or grandsons to spoil.
"And we thought you two deserved something that showed you we were onboard with this." Molly said. Arthur nodded his approval to what she said and slipped his hand in his wive's. Hermione smiled, looking at both sets of parents, knowing that after all the years together and after all of the struggles they were still in love. It gave her even more hope for her and Ron's future. Ron and Hermione gave out more thanks and smiled at each other, trying not to forget that they had disappointing news to tell them after.
"So shall Ron and I take my car and you four can take the Volvo?" Hermione asked.
"Actually your father sold the mini cooper, and bought a nice red convertible." Ann said. Hermione looked surprised. Her mini cooper was gone and she had really only spent one summer with it and now she had no car. There would be no way of getting to the restaurant with private moments to talk over what they were going to tell their parents about Paris.
"Oh." Hermione said, a little disappointed. Ron looked upset too. Hermione had promised him he could drive. She'd gotten it fixed so that he had his license. She had taken him to get it done a while ago at this place for wizards to get their license for driving. All Ron had to do was answer a few questions that were just common sense and then take the instructor for a spin around the block…simple enough. She had planned on taking the mini cooper back to London with her incase she or Ron ever needed it but she'd never gotten the chance.
"But your grandparents sent over a gift when we told them about ours." Ann said with a smile.
"They wanted there to be more room incase you had…extra passengers." Richard said with a smile, hinting about grandchildren again. Ann led them all out the front door and to the driveway where a black Chevrolet Tahoe was sitting behind Hermione's parents Volvo and in front a red convertible. It had an extra set of seats for extra passengers, just like Richard mentioned.
Hermione was glad she hadn't taken the mini cooper to the city with her.
"Wow, what a magnificent car." Arthur said, not looking at the Chevy Tahoe but the convertible.
"It's not just about looks either." Richard said excitedly. "It is FAST!" Arthur nodded approvingly as Richard turned to his wife. "Why don't Arthur and I take this car and you four can go in the Chevy?" He suggested, knowing that he wouldn't go as fast if he took the Volvo with his wife and Arthur's wife in the car. Hermione's breath caught in her throat, knowing that her mother and Molly would surely question her about the house that in any normal circumstances they would have already visited.
"Actually Molly and I were going to suggest just the opposite because we were going to stop at the craft store to get some yarn. We're working on a project for Alison and Penelope's babies." Ann said. Hermione breathed again.
"Well why don't they take the red car and Ron and Hermione can take their car and we'll meet them at the restaurant." Molly suggested. Hermione silently thanked Molly.
"That sounds good." Hermione agreed. "Do you still want to drive?" Hermione asked Ron.
"Yes." Ron answered smiling at the car and situating himself in the driver's seat. Hermione got into the passenger's seat and they waited for Richard and Arthur to pull out before Ron pulled out. It was silent as they drove and finally Hermione couldn't stand it anymore. She turned the radio up as Breakfast At Tiffany's came on the radio. The song, one of her favorites, put her at ease a little as she slowly directed Ron in the direction of the restaurant.
Ten minutes later Ron pulled into a parking spot next to the red convertible that had been there for at least five minutes. Ron realized that he liked driving the bigger car but it was a lot more difficult to park. He shut off the car and the music went off. Silence filled the car again. Neither of them made a move to get out.
"Are you ok?" Ron finally asked.
"I don't know." Hermione answered in a small voice. "We're getting married, we have a house, and we have a car. My dad wants grandkids. It seems like it's exactly what should be happening but now we're taking this big four month break from everything and I don't know how they're going to feel about it." Ron took her hand.
"I'll tell them." He said.
"What?" Hermione asked.
"I'll tell them." Ron repeated. "You decided to go to Paris for four months for me so I'll break the news to them for you." He smiled at Hermione who smiled back.
"But remember this is our decision and we're just telling them. They're not making the decision for us." Hermione said to him.
"I will." Ron smiled at her.
"Thank you." Hermione said, leaning over to give Ron a kiss.
They traveled into the restaurant where Arthur and Richard were sitting at a table, their hair looking windblown and they were both excitedly talking about the convertible. Molly and Ann joined them fifteen minutes afterward. Orders were placed and then everyone was silent.
"So what is it this time?" Ann asked, breaking the silence.
"Huh?" Hermione asked, pulled out of her reverie.
"Last time you invited us to dinner you told us you were getting married at the end of December." Molly added.
"Well actually we do have some news." Ron said, taking Hermione's hand under the table. Richard smiled, hoping that they were going to give him the news he'd been waiting for. "A couple weeks ago I met with Jacques Boirot." Ron started. Richard lost his smiled realizing that "you're going to be a grandpa" didn't start with "a couple weeks ago I met with Jacques Boirot."…unless Jacques Boirot was a doctor that gave them the news. He let Ron continue though, hoping it was going to be what he thought. "And…well…he offered me a job…as the person in charge of making the Gazette worldwide." When Ron paused here all four parents placed their congratulations (although it wasn't the news he was looking for Richard was still happy) and his mother and Ann pulled Ron in for hugs. They took this part of the news good but Ron hadn't had a chance to tell them that part that might upset him.
"Well that's wonderful news." Molly said once the excitement had died down and everyone was sitting down.
"It is." Ron nodded. "And well, we were going to tell you this at the wedding but since we have the house we figured we should tell you now." Everyone looked at Ron, confused. Hermione gave Ron an encouraging nod. "The job requires me to go to Paris for four months and then a few weeks throughout the year. We're leaving the day after we get back from the honeymoon so we're not going to be able to move into the house until May." Silence was the response to this.
"We've discussed it together and we wanted you guys to know." Hermione said, adding her part.
"Well the Gazette's expanding, how wonderful." Ann said. "I think that moving to Paris for four months would be great for you two, it's almost like an extended honeymoon but you have to work. It'll pay off in the end though and you can always move into the house in May." She smiled at them and then got out of her chair and hugged both Ron and Hermione.
"Can we still come to visit you? And will you come back for the babies being born?" Molly asked.
"Of course." Hermione answered. "We've already talked to Jacques about coming back for a week to see Max and Dennis and he's told us that we'll have a guest room as well as an office so anyone's welcome to visit."
"Great." Molly smiled. Arthur and Richard smiled, glad that their wives took this news ok and they congratulated their children. Hermione and Ron felt so much better; getting this news off of their chests, now the only thing they had to worry about was Harry.
After lunch Ron and Hermione got back into the Chevy Tahoe after saying goodbye to their parents. Hermione took out the piece of paper where she wrote the directions to their house.
"Ready to go check out la maison?" Hermione asked with a smiled on her face. Ron nodded, smiling back.
Hermione sang along to the music while Ron followed the directions to their house. It took a bit of time because they had to drive an hour to get to the city and then it would be another two hours until they reached the Wizard neighborhood where they'd be living. Thankfully it was more common for wizards to have cars because it made an inconspicuous way for them to travel where there would be muggles around so there would be a driveway.
Ron and Hermione decided to stop at their flat to pick up boxes to take with them to the new house. They got upstairs and as they reached their floor, they found Harry walking out of his flat with Ginny behind him.
"Hi." Ginny said cautiously.
"Hi." Hermione replied, smiling lightly.
"Hey." Ron said, looking at Harry. Harry just nodded.
"We were going to drop some boxes off at the new house." Hermione said quietly. "You're welcome to come if you want."
"No thanks." Harry said bitterly. "We're going to visit our friends who are staying in this country." Hermione looked crestfallen as Harry answered. Ginny stared at him surprised. She'd spent the entire morning telling him that these were his best friends and they wanted him to be ok with it.
"Don't do this." Ron said angrily, through clenched teeth because Harry's response and the cause for the look on Hermione's face made him angry. Harry turned back to Ron glaring.
"Forget about it." Harry said. "It's not like you'll be here long enough to care whether I'm pissed or not." He started down the stairs, angrily.
"She asked you a goddamn question." Ron retorted angrily as Harry stopped on the stairs. "She didn't ask you to be happy that we're moving or even accept it. All she wanted to know was if you wanted to come." Ron didn't wait for Harry's response. He stomped up to the door and opened the apartment door. Harry stomped back down the rest of the stairs. Hermione and Ginny were left there.
"I'll talk to him." Ginny assured Hermione, putting her hand on Hermione's arm before following Harry down the stairs. Hermione walked into her flat, seeing Ron putting small boxes into bigger one. Hermione, unsure of what to say, went into the office and shrunk the desk and all of the other furniture by magic to bring them as well. She had the entire office packed up with the exception of the things they would need. She carried the big box out that was heavy with the entire contents of their office in it. Hermione walked out to see Ron sitting on the couch with his head resting in his hand. He looked a little upset; Hermione didn't want to mention Harry again because even though he looked like he was sorry about what he said, he was still angry.
"Ready to go?" Hermione asked, struggling with the weight of the box.
"I've got that." Ron said, jumping up to relieve her of the box. "The one over there is lighter." He informed her. Hermione went to grab the box and took a look around the flat. It looked very empty with only a couch, chair, boxes for Paris, and kitchen table. Every picture and accessory to the room was packed into one of the boxes. Their room still had everything in it but the apartment looked empty.
Ron carried two boxes full of smaller ones that were full of their shrunken things. Hermione carried that last box and they put them into the back of the Chevy Tahoe, headed in the direction of their new house. For the first half hour they drove in silence, listening to the radio. Ron looked over at Hermione while he drove steadily along the road, liking driving. She was frowning out the window. He tried to think of something to say but he didn't know how to start. He knew he shouldn't have snapped back at Harry afterwards but he hated the look on Hermione's face when Harry answered her question. Harry was his best friend but he could be a prat sometimes. After a few minutes Ron gave up trying to think of something to say and just turned the music up. They went another ten minutes listening to the radio.
Ooo ee ooo I look just like Buddy Holly. Oh oh and you're Mary Tyler Moore.
Ron and Hermione knew this song from the Weezer CD they had. Ron turned up the music a little.
I don't care what they say about us anyway. I don't care 'bout that.
Ron smiled as he listened to the song and even though Hermione's head was still facing the window he could tell she was smiling too.
"Don't you ever fear, I'm always there, I know that you need help…" Ron sang along with it. He turned to Hermione to see if she was going to join in.
"Woohoo and you know I'm yours. Woohoo and I know you're mine. Woohoo and that's for all of time." Hermione joined in. They both broke into the chorus, laughing.
"…I don't care 'bout that." The song finished and Ron turned down the radio. Hermione smiled at him.
"Do you think when we get back we could have a party?" Hermione asked. "We could invite everyone to see our house."
"That sounds like a plan." Ron smiled at her. They finished the ride, talking about all the things that they could do with the new house.
An hour later Ron pulled the car to a stop and took the key out. They were parked in the driveway of a house – their house.
From the outside the house appeared to be one floor. The house was white with a brick chimney coming out of the roof. A large window was to the right of the door and there was another window on the left that was smaller and right outside of it there was a navy blue window box where flowers would be planted in the spring. In front of the navy blue door with a semi-circle window on it were two steps with railings painted white. And on either side of that were areas for more planting. There was an even amount of soil on each side, sectioned off for planting flowers. Hermione smiled at the house, knowing that her parents chose the right one. She and Ron got out of the car. There was a white picket fence, surrounding their property and at before the pathway lain out with stepping-stones, was a rose trellis that would look great in the spring when the flowers would bloom.
"By the time we get back, it'll be spring and this place will look amazing with all of the flowers." Hermione pointed out. Ron smiled. Hermione started for the trunk of the car but Ron took her hand to stop her.
"Let's just check the place out first." He said smiling.
"Alright." Hermione agreed. She pulled her purse over her shoulder and she and Ron followed the path to the front door of the house. She couldn't keep the smile off her face as she waited for Ron to get the door open and they walked in. There was a hallway in front of them with were several doorways coming off the hallways and a one at the end of the hallway. The one nearest to the door on the right was a small coat closet.
Next to that on the right was a large doorway with French doors. This one led to where the living room would be. The big window let the sun shine through and there was a smaller window on the other wall. The hardwood floors looked unscratched due to a spell. On the wall at the back of the room was a brick fireplace. It completed the room nicely.
Hermione smiled, envisioning the possibilities of the colors to pain the living room and the furniture for it. Ron smiled, thinking that they had their own house all to themselves now.
In the corner of the room, Hermione noticed, there was a set of ten stairs leading up to a door.
"I thought this was only one floor." Hermione questioned, following Ron forward. They walked up the first five steps and stopped on the small landing before climbing the final five.
"Maybe it's an attic." Ron suggested, turning the knob of the door and walking into the sunlit room. It wasn't an attic but a room above the living room. There were two sun windows in the roof, letting the sun shine in brightly. It had unscratched hardwood floors as well as the living room and a smaller window seat on the window at the far wall.
"I think we've discovered our room." Hermione said with a smile.
"Could you picture it?" Ron asked, wrapping his arms around her. "On a Sunday morning sitting in bed and reading the paper, drinking coffee with the sun shining through. Eventually the kids would wake up and come running in with the dog and then we would all get up and go downstairs to the kitchen where you would make one of your wonderful breakfasts and then we'd all go to the Burrow where the kids would get to play with their cousins and we'd have the big Sunday lunch with our family. Then finally we'd end it with a family Quidditch game." Hermione buried her head in Ron's chest, taking in his smell, wanting to remember every thing about the moment. It was the moment when she realized that she was even more in love with Ron than she could have possibly thought.
"I can't wait." She whispered. She didn't let him go and they stayed like that for another couple of minutes, in their new room.
Afterwards Hermione leaned her head up for a kiss and they traveled back down the ten steps into their living room and back into the hallway. They went in the room directly across from the living room. It was an average size room with one window in it that looked out on the front yard. It could either be turned into a guest bedroom or an office/ library. They went down the hall to the next one. It was bigger and no windows. There was a closet at the back wall that made the decision of whether it would be a guest room or an office/library. They left the guest bedroom and traveled across the hall to the bathroom. It was much bigger than the one they had in their apartment and it had a claw foot tub. The tile in the room was ivory with ruby colored diamonds in the middle. It was the perfect color scheme for the bathroom.
The last room at the end of the hall was the kitchen. Hermione smiled when she saw it. In their apartment there wasn't a lot of room for the kitchen but this was much better. There was a large chrome fridge, a sink the same color, a wizard stove, and an island in the middle with black and white tile on it. Hermione envisioned the endless possibilities.
There was another small door in the kitchen that led to the basement, which was carpeted in tan. It also held another bathroom down there along with a laundry room. It was perfect for a rec. room. Back in the kitchen was another door, leading out to the backyard. It opened up to a stone area, perfect for a small table and chairs. It would make a nice place for breakfast on a summer morning. The backyard was grassy with a big maple tree. Off of the tree hung a handmade swing. Ron and Hermione smiled at each other knowing that this was perfect.
"Well it won't fit a Quidditch Pitch but we can play soccer out here." Hermione suggested. Ron smiled even bigger.
"I can't wait." He said, giving her hand a squeeze. "I'm going to grab some boxes." Ron said. "I want to get the office set up while we're here." He kissed Hermione's forehead and walked through the gate on the side of the house that led to the driveway. Hermione started for the swing and had a seat, gently pushing herself back and forth. She was happy, really happy. This was like an almost perfect moment.
She pushed off and tipped her head back, closing her eyes, smiling. After a minute she went to help Ron unpack the boxes, still smiling.
An hour later all of the boxes were places on the floor in the living room except for the office, which was unpacked and set up.
"Maybe we could get a leather couch for right there." Hermione said, pointing out an empty space next to a bookshelf. They had discovered that the room would need a lot more than they had. Paint, extra furniture, curtains…and more but that was why Hermione was making a list. They were going to go through each room in the house to figure out what they would need.
"How about in brown?" Ron suggested. Hermione smiled and wrote that down in her notebook. She was settled into one of the chairs that were in their former office and Ron was in the desk chair. A set of chimes went off somewhere in the house, signaling them that there was a guests. "I'll get it. It's probably mum coming to check up and see how we like it." Ron said, hoping up from the desk chair and exiting the room.
"Tell her I'll be right there." Hermione said, focused on what she was writing in her notebook. Ron nodded and went to answer the front door. He was surprised to pull the door open and find Harry there. There were a couple seconds of awkward silence before Ron broke it.
"Since when do you knock on our door?" Ron questioned. It was meant to be a joke but it came out sounding stiff. He pushed the screen door open, nearly missing Harry. He turned his back on Harry, staring at the entrance to the kitchen.
Harry shut the front door and stood, unsure of what to do or where to go from there. He felt bad for the way he acted towards his friends, how he hurt Hermione and fought with Ron. He had just dropped Ginny off at Hogwarts and then unsure of what to do he Apparated to the address Ginny had put in his pocket.
"This is a nice place." Harry said awkwardly.
"Thanks." Ron said coldly, crossing his arms over his chest.
Hermione watched from the opening in the door. She knew they looked like little children fighting but it was their way of solving fights. If only she had popcorn…
"Is there room for a Quidditch Pitch in the back?" Harry asked. Ron turned around to answer his question happily but remembered they were fighting. He fought back a smile, remembering that he and Harry had decided they wanted Quidditch Pitches in their backyards.
"No, I think there's one down the road at the park though." He said quietly. There wasn't any trace of anger in his voice anymore, just remorse.
More awkward silence.
Before Harry could suggest that they could play sometime, Ron interjected.
"I'm sorry." He said.
"For what?" Harry asked. "I'm the one that acted like a git, not you."
"I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner." Ron answered. "And I'm sorry that we're going to Paris." He said the last part quietly.
"Don't be." Harry told him. "Don't feel sorry because I overreacted. This is great. The Gazette is expanding. When I added my part for buying the office, this is what I wanted to happen. I'll come visit you when it isn't a match weekend or well, you know if you guys aren't busy and you want me to come by for a day or two, just say the word." Ron smiled.
"You're welcome anytime mate. And you don't even have to knock." Ron assured him. They both laughed before Harry stepped forward for one of their guy hugs.
Hermione couldn't control herself anymore.
"You two are so…" But she never got to finish her sentence as she walked out of the room because they both pulled her into the hug. Hermione shook her head and wrapped her arms around her best friend and fiancée. "I love you guys." She said, smiling even more that things were back to normal.
Ron and Hermione excitedly showed Harry around their new house and Hermione made more notes of what they would need. Harry was glad that he made up with them. It might have been a little awkward at the wedding if the best man and groom were in a fight.
Hermione had her HLF meeting that night so she informed them that she needed to get back because she was going to break the news to Helen tonight.
"We'll leave the car here and Apparate back since we won't need the car anymore." Hermione said.
"But, but…what about…Christmas! Yeah, we need the car to get to your house the day after Christmas otherwise that nosy cousin of yours who thought he was better at chess than I was is going to get suspicious." Ron smiled, having found a way of driving back. Hermione laughed. She knew him too well.
"Alright. You two can take the car back but I'm Apparating or I'll be late. Please don't crash it." Hermione smiled at them. "Now, don't make a mess of the house, you can order something out for dinner, my grandparents number is in your phone. Thank them and tell them I'll call them tomorrow…and of course have fun." Hermione said as she put her jacket on. She kissed Ron goodbye and gave Harry a hug. "I'm glad you came." She said.
"Me too." Harry assured her.
She Apparated off, leaving them in the house. They decided that they would get pizza and watch a movie in Harry's apartment. So Ron drove them back to the city and they went through with their plans after Ron called Hermione's grandparents to thank them for the car. He updated them on their lives with help from Harry's muggle knowledge and then they settled into the chairs in Harry's apartment, each with a box of pizza and case of butterbeer. Hermione returned that night to find them both asleep in the chairs with pizza crust, pizza boxes, and butterbeer bottles on the floor. The TV was blaring the episode of Friends where Monica and Chandler decided they were going to move in together and they had to tell Joey that Chandler was moving out and then Monica had to tell Rachel that Chandler was moving in.
"It's like the end of an era!" Rachel cried on the TV. Hermione smiled but then thought of Ginny. She looked down at Ron and Harry, knowing they had made up but now she and Ginny would have to talk it out. Even thought she tried to make it seem like she wasn't, Ginny was upset too. Hermione shut the TV off and got two blankets and covered, Ron and Harry before going across the hall to contemplate what to say to Ginny.
a/n: Let me know what you think!!!
Always,
Kylie