Author's Notes: Okay, well, it's been two weeks, so you all know what that means right? It's time for your regular dosage of "Aftermath". I've spent a lot of time these last few days working hard to get this chapter out on schedule. It almost didn't happen, and I'll tell you why...I had the chapter halfway done and decidedto SCRAP everything I had written on Monday. That meant a complete re-write of the entire chapter...and, well, because you people are worth it...and because the winged monkeys won't let me have coffee any more unless I did it, I...well...did it. I completely re-wrote the chapter...and I only had to forgoe any sort of a social life tonight (Friday) and stay up 'til 3:30 in the bloody morning to do it!
You're probably asking yourselves, "But Uncle BlackHawk, why?! Why scrap the chapter when it was almost done and you were closing in on the post date? Are you a complete Fkwit?" (Call me insane, but when reading that last bit, you have to do it while imagining a voice similar to Cindy-Lou Who Who's no more than two when she said "Why Mr. Sandy Claus? Why? Why are you taking our Christmas tree? Why?". Why do you have to change the sound of your inner voice to that of Cindy-Lou Who's Who's no more than two? I dunno. You're the ones who keep coming back to read the ravings of a self-diagnosed madman. So maybe we should put YOU under the stethoscope...err...occiloscope...err...microscope! Yeah! Microscope!!)
Uhm...where was I? OH! Right. Why'd I do a bonehead thing like scrap the chapter. Well, while writing the dialogue-rich chapter, I came to the sudden POOF! realization that the dialogue was leading you (the readers) off in directions I had no interests or intentions of following! And since I'd LIKE to wrap this story up by Chapter 50, so I can concentrate on some other stories I've been dying to write, opening up new cans of worms seemed like a bad idea, since I barely had enough time to fish with the worms I already opened. (How's that for an analogy? Does it track? Or does it just make me sound weirder?)
So, here's Chapter 36. Some questions get answered. Some don't. Some stuff happens. Some doesn't. I was going to have Death Eaters jump out of the giant fat-warming cake, but they got in BEFORE the cake was baked, and, well, it was a HUGE mess,so I had to scrap that idea as well...and if anybody sees that baker, he owes me my deposit back for the cake!!
As always, I'd like to give a shout out to the people who've reviewed my work in he past: Edinburgh Love, Ann Malfoy, Cantletharrygo, CutewithAcapital-Q, fatyellowrat, Avanell, Dizzy0305, katie1985, Elytha, Trude, mugglemamma, emmy1124, Emma.Jane-HPfan, Moony3005, IsI Wisi, Lady Anja, embergrl9010, the written princess, MissFinnegan, Tiffany M, kareem33, randomguy1517, Shlesha, ronniemione, sarah-keyko, not for lack of trying, Emma04, Jacob's-One-Girl, Ravenhaired2, Nosta82, Aly-Cat 101, EnglishGirlVerity, marauders rox, Lane Joey, allenterrill, skippyboo, Larelles, kellymc1, xxafterglowxx, screamxheart, zsdvnn, Foxy-Steph, Kirsty-Luan, marvelous-fanwriter, hctb, ronlover997, HeatherRiddle, LadyInWriting, beautifulshamrock, shadowmonger, lemondrop43, watched 2 much tv, LaRay93, CwamBeta, Chick Flicks- Rock 'N' Roll, james87, griffyndorgirl,iriepotter,and Trebius have all submitted reviews for my story, and I just want to give them all a big THANK YOU!!
Although not a lot of naughty stuff or bad language has happened since way back when in this story, "Aftermath" is still rated M for adult language and naughty stuff.
Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns this stuff, and if anybody tells her the stuff I've done to her characters, I swear I will hunt you down and force feed you peppermintMentos and Diet Coke until you explode!!
"Aftermath"
Chapter 36 -- Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting
"Bloody Hell, Harry!" Ron exclaimed crossing the distance across the sitting room in a few strides of his long legs. He stood next to his best mate, who was still being held by George, and looked down at Dean Thomas, "You planted one on him good," the redhead said, sounding a bit proud of his best friend.
"RON!!"
Ron Weasley jumped, startled, as half the room – including his girlfriend, his brother, his best friend who did the hitting, and his former dorm-mate who was the one hit – yelled his name in unison, sounding exasperated by the praise it seemed he was heaping on Harry for his brief display of pugilism.
"What?!" Ron snapped looking around the room, blushing a bit at the sea of faces full of consternation that were focused on him right now.
Hermione shook her head and clucked her tongue at him in a very Mrs. Weasley-esque manner as she stepped up next to him. "What's this all about, Harry?" she asked, turning her attention and her consternation away from her boyfriend and onto her best friend, "Why in the world would you hit Dean?"
Dean had kissed Ginny, or so Neville said, but Hermione was smart enough to know how these things went. A person often saw one thing, but when they reported on what they saw, they claimed to have seen something else entirely. Before the logical mind of Hermione Granger could accept that her friend had beat up their other friend, she'd have to hear the words from his own mouth.
"He kissed Ginny," Harry said quietly, looking away from everybody, and sounding completely embarrassed and ashamed of his sudden bout of violence.
"Understandable," Ron nodded, placing a comforting hand on Harry's shoulder, "Seeing the two of them snog back in Sixth Year always made me want to lay him out, too…and I'm just her brother."
"Ron…!" Hermione called out, exasperation once more evident in her voice, "It is not 'understandable' that Harry would punch Dean for kissing Ginny! They're friends, and friends don't treat each other that way! What Harry did was wrong, and you shouldn't be treating him as if he's a hero for this!"
"Well, there's no need to treat him like a bloody Death Eater, either!" Ron shot back, falling into the familiar grind of arguing with Hermione over the simplest things. Not that this was a simple situation, but being able to row with her about it certainly made it feel as if it were, "Friends don't go around snogging other friend's girlfriends! I say Dean got what he deserved!!"
"Got what he deserved?!" Hermione repeated, starting to shout. By this point, she and Ron had separated themselves from Harry and were standing about a foot apart, yelling at each other, all-but-oblivious to the rest of the people standing around, watching them, "All he did was kiss her! It isn't like they were shagging!!"
"And all Harry did was hit him!" Ron countered, "It's not like he beat the bloody piss out of him!!"
"Oy!" George yelled at the top of his lungs, causing the two of them to jump in surprise, "Will you two stop bickering already?! You're in love, remember? Stop acting like you're back in Hogwarts and that you haven't spent every possible moment together snogging each other stupid over the past month!!"
Ron and Hermione blushed together in embarrassment, each of them looking sheepishly at the other before smiling shyly. "Sorry," they both said at the same time. Hermione reached out and took Ron's hand and he squeezed it affectionately.
"Good," George said, rolling his eyes, "Now that Ronniekins and his ickle girlfriend have put an end to their re-creation of their last six years at Hogwarts, we can deal with the matter at hand: Dean kissing Ginny, and Harry socking him a good one for it."
"I didn't kiss Ginny," Dean said as he unsteadily climbed to his feet. Seamus moved to his side and gave his best mate some support until his knees stopped wobbling, "She kissed me."
The room got deathly quiet and all eyes turned towards Dean Thomas. Ron and Harry both opened their mouths as if to protest, to call the young man an unmitigated liar, but Hermione headed them off at the pass; she held up a hand that silenced their protests before they even left their mouths.
"Perhaps we need to hear what happened from an unbiased observer," Hermione said, hoping a dose of logic would help alleviate the problem and put an end to the contention filling the room. She looked around the sitting room at the faces staring at her, trying to decide who best to ask for the straight story.
"I can tell you what happened," Luna Lovegood announced, her voice, as usual, having an ethereal, otherworldly quality to it.
All eyes – including the rolling eyes of Ron Weasley – focused on the slight, blonde-haired girl. She moved over and stood between Dean and Harry, taking the hand of each young man before she went into her explanation.
"It really wasn't Dean's fault, Harry," Luna explained, looking at the bespectacled Boy-Who-Lived, "You had gone to talk to Ron and Hermione, and a song came on the wireless that Ginny really wanted to dance to. It was a very nice song…by Wandjina Neverwinter…it's a shame she got spattergroit from an angry Kneazle. I understand that the cure for spattergroit is quite involved, and --…"
"Uh…Luna…you're drifting off-topic," Harry interrupted, trying hard not to be snippy with the girl. He wasn't angry with her after all.
"Am I? I'm sorry," Luna said with a smile, "Ginny wanted to dance, and you said before that you didn't like to dance, so she asked Dean. He's a very good dancer, and Ginny must have enjoyed herself very much…because she kissed him after the song ended. You know the rest…"
"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" Harry snapped, looking first at the blonde girl who smiled back at him, perhaps not understanding the seriousness of the situation for Harry, and then looking at Dean who at least had to courtesy to look shamefaced about what happened.
"I didn't know I was supposed to be making you feel better, Harry," Luna replied, her voice still as light and airy as ever, "I thought you just wanted to know what really happened. But, if you want me to make you feel better, I'm sure Ginny's actions were motivated by Nargles; I'm sure some were in here before I gave Ron the anti-Nargle ward."
It was Harry's turn to look shamefaced now, and he looked down at his shoes. He felt horrible, and not just because his girlfriend had kissed another bloke. He felt bad for hitting Dean, for snapping at Luna, and for bringing Ron and George's party to a screeching halt. He was about so say something, to apologize for his behavior, but Ron cut him off.
"Now that's just completely mental!" Ron protested once Luna had finished her story, "Why would Ginny kiss Dean when she's dating Harry? It makes no sense!"
"It does if, perhaps, Ginny wanted to make Harry jealous," Hermione said, quickly countering him, "It obviously worked."
Ron shot her a look that was both quizzical and fearful all at once, "Why on Earth would a girl want to make her boyfriend jealous? That's just stupid!"
There was a collective snort of derision at Ron's words from most of the females in the room…including Hermione. This caused Ron's eyebrows to shoot up into his hairline and his eyes widen. He knew for a fact that he would never understand women; he just hoped that Hermione never chose this particular tactic to make him jealous.
"Where is Ginny?" Hermione asked, changing the subject and looking away from Ron to some of the other occupants of the room, "Maybe if we heard her side of the story…"
"She ran outside after Harry…" George made a punching motion into his hand and jerked his head towards Dean, "She seemed a bit…distraught."
"Someone should go talk to her," Hermione said, moving towards the door. She was a bit surprised that someone hadn't gone after Ginny, but a quick look around the room made her realize that these weren't the most sensitive people in the world. Her hand was on the doorknob when Harry grabbed her wrist, stopping her.
"I'll go," he said, still looking down at his feet, unable to face anyone in the room due to his embarrassment.
Hermione was about to voice her concerns that Harry might not be the best one to speak to Ginny at the moment, since she was obviously fleeing him and his barbaric outburst when she ran out in the first place…but Ron stopped her. Placing an arm around her, he gently led her away from the door.
"That's a good idea, mate," Ron said, nodding at Harry, "You two obviously have some stuff to talk over."
Harry nodded and made his way out the door, leaving the chaos inside the flat behind him.
"Well, this is disappointing," George said, putting his arm on his younger brother's shoulder and leaning against him.
"What?" Ron asked, shooting a sidelong glance at his brother.
"Typically," George began, explaining things to his brother in a lightly condescending way, "When the fight breaks out, the party's over."
"Yeah?" Ron narrowed his eyes at his brother, wondering what George was getting at.
"So…the party's over," George sobbed, bringing his hand to his face to hold back the mock tears, "And no one had any of the Wheezes!"
Outside, Harry was oblivious to George's distress over nobody having been turned into a canary, or having their lips pucker permanently, or any number of other results of the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes he had slipped amongst the regular party food. Harry was too busy plucking up his courage for his confrontation with Ginny.
He stood on the landing outside the flat taking deep breaths. He wasn't sure what to expect when he came face-to-face with Ginny. This was something he hadn't had to deal with before. Did her kissing another guy constitute cheating? Did it mean she wanted to dump him in favor of someone else? Should he act angry at her for her kissing Dean, or should he act recalcitrant towards her for his hitting Dean?
These questions went unanswered as Harry was spurred into action by the soft sounds of sobbing coming from the small courtyard below. Making his way down the cast-iron stairs to the cobblestones below, Harry found Ginny perched on the short wall next to the stairs, practically leaning over the large rubbish bin. He was about to open his mouth and announce his presence, when Ginny began vomiting into the bin.
Despite the questions and fears circulating through his mind at this point, upon seeing his girlfriend in physical discomfort, whatever boyfriend instincts Harry possessed kicked in and he rushed to her side. Placing a comforting hand on her back, he used his other hand to move her long, red hair out of her face to keep it from getting in the way.
Ginny continued to be sick in the rubbish bin for several minutes. When she was finally finished…at least for now…Ginny shakily wiped her mouth on the back of her hand, and made a point of looking anywhere but at the young man currently rubbing her back in a soothing manner. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, her nose was running, and she was fairly certain there was puke in her hair…in short, she was a mess.
"I'm a horrible person," Ginny said, her voice hoarse and cracked when she finally spoke after several minutes of silence.
"Gin…" Harry began softly, intent on trying to make her feel better despite his worries about what happened with Dean.
"You shouldn't have punched Dean, Harry," she sobbed, looking up into the starry night sky, "It wasn't his fault. I kissed him. You should have hit me."
"You know I'd never do that," Harry said, his voice barely above a whisper; he was uncomfortable and getting moreso by the minute, "But Ginny…I need to know…why did you kiss Dean?"
Ginny sobbed and looked down, "Would you believe me if I said 'I don't know?'?"
"No," Harry replied grimly, moving his hand off of her back and running his fingers through his messy black hair.
"What about it if I said it was because I was drunk?" she asked, her voice cracking at the loss of contact with Harry's hand.
"That's a bit more believable," Harry admitted, taking a deep breath, "You did have a lot to drink tonight. But something tells me there's more to it."
"Do you know it's been a month since Fred…?" Ginny couldn't quite bring herself to say "died" or "was buried".
"Uh…yeah, I guess it has," Harry nodded, really not seeing what Fred's death had with her kissing Dean, "Hard to believe it's only been a month."
"Only?" Ginny turned to look at Harry, her eyes were ready and puffy from crying, "This has been the longest month of my life, Harry. I keep waiting for things to get back to normal, for life to go on…"
"Life is going on, Gin," Harry said, trying his best not to sound frustrated with the direction their talk had taken, "Things are getting back to normal."
"Then why do I feel like I'm not normal?" she asked, the tears streaming down her face, "Why do I feel so lost? I put on this brave front, force a smile onto my face, and act like everything's fine…and then two weeks ago, I attacked two of my brothers in one night…and now, tonight, I kissed my ex-boyfriend in front of all our friends and my current boyfriend! Does that sound normal to you?!"
"Maybe not," Harry said, shaking his head. He wasn't sure if she wanted him to agree with her or not, but he didn't want to lie.
"Then when do I get to be normal again, Harry?!" Ginny stood up and advanced on him, raising her voice, "When do I get to feel like me again?!"
Harry grabbed her and pulled her into a tight hug, letting her bury her face into his chest despite the runny nose, tear-stained makeup, and the smell of vomit mixed with alcohol. He gently stroked her long, red hair and rested his chin on her forehead as she sobbed noisily against him.
"You've been trying to be strong for everybody…wanting to take care of everything," he said softly, trying his best to calm her down, "I think, maybe, you need to be able to fall apart just like everyone else…and when you're done, I reckon you'll feel a bit more like yourself again."
"You're not going to leave me because of that kiss in there, are you?" she looked up at him, her brown eyes were bloodshot and glassy, "I don't think I could get over you a second time, Harry."
"No, Gin," he said, shaking his head and looking deep into her eyes, "I'm hurt…confused…maybe a little angry…maybe a LOT angry…but I love you; I'm not willing to give you up again."
"You have to know, Harry, I didn't mean to kiss Dean like that," Ginny croaked, trying her best to explain when her mind was so cloudy, "It was just so nice…dancing with someone…and I meant to give him a peck on the cheek…just to say 'thank you'…but…I don't know…my brain was so addled…next thing I know, my lips are on his and you're yanking us apart. I am so sorry!"
Harry frowned at her explanation, but she was practically in tears, so he wasn't about to make this any more difficult for her than it already was. He knew she'd had too much to drink…it was obvious to anybody at the party…and people do stupid things when they're drunk. He'd heard a story about her brother Charlie getting drunk once and coming home with a tattoo of a dragon somewhere on his body, so kissing the wrong bloke didn't seem too farfetched. It still hurt that it had happened to him, though.
"I guess it could have been worse," he sighed, looking deep into her glassy brown eyes, "I could have walked in on you shagging Dean."
Ginny responded with a hoarse, croaking sort of chuckle, "If I didn't shag him when we dated, Harry, I'm certainly not going to shag him now that I'm with you…no matter how drunk I get!"
Harry smiled and a short laugh escaped his throat. They were going to get over this little bump in the road of their relationship, and he would help Ginny to get back to being herself again. He'd be there when she needed to fall apart, and he'd help her put herself back together again. She'd been there for him, after all.
"I love you, Gin," Harry said, leaning down in order to plant a kiss on her lips.
"I love you, to--…urlp!!" Ginny was leaning up about to make contact with Harry's lips when her stomach gave a lurch. She quickly tore herself out of Harry's embrace just in time to resume being sick in the rubbish bin.
Several more minutes passed out in the small courtyard beneath the flat where Harry continued holding Ginny's hair and rubbing her back tenderly while she continued to be sick in the bin. His green eyes flashed with deepest sympathy as he watched her; not for her alcohol-induced vomiting, but for the way she'd been feeling lost in the face of Fred's death. He had a lot of experience in that area, after all, having lost so many people close to him over the course of the last seven years.
"Things are going to be alright, Gin," Harry said in his best soothing voice, "No matter how long it takes."
When Harry and Ginny finally made their way up into the flat, neither one really wanted to go back in; both expected to have an unwelcome spotlight thrust upon them following the incident with Dean. That being said, the young couple was rather surprised to re-enter the home of the Weasley Brothers only to find four people within.
"Alright there, Harry? Gin?" Ron sat perched on the couch with his arm around Hermione. As his best friend and baby sister entered the room, all eyes turned to them, and although Harry looked much the same as he had when he left a few minutes before, Ginny looked atrocious.
"Do you need anything, Ginny?" Hermione asked, looking concerned at the younger girl's disheveled state.
Ginny shook her head and looked around, noticing that with the exception of Ron, George, Hermione, and Angelina Johnson, the flat was now empty, "Where is everyone?"
"They all scarpered off," George said with a grin, "No doubt afraid that they all would receive a drubbing at the hands of the Boy-Who-Lived."
George and Ron were the only ones in the room who thought his joke was funny, apparently, because they were the only ones laughing at what he said. The other four people in the room were scowling at the Weasley Brother's inappropriate humor.
"Prat!" Angelina snapped, moving up behind George and smacking him in the back of the head.
"Honestly, George," Hermione scolded from her position on the couch, causing Ron to chuckle again. This prompted her to frown disapprovingly at her boyfriend and pinch him on the arm to silence his laughter, "Hush, Ron!"
"So everyone left because of me," Harry stated, sounding down-in-the-mouth, "I ruined the party."
"Nonsense," Hermione objected, looking around for someone to agree with her, "It's just…well…it is getting late, Harry."
"It's not even Eleven, Hermione," Harry replied, giving her a look. He knew what she was trying to do, and it just made him feel worse, "I'm sorry that I ruined the party."
"We ruined the party," Ginny corrected him hoarsely. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. He looked down at her and the two of them shared a sad little smile. At least they shared the blame, so it didn't weigh as heavily on either one of them.
"Don't be ridiculous!" George exclaimed after a particularly pointed nudge from Angelina jabbed her elbow into his ribs, "There's a rule around the Weasley Brothers' flat: It ain't a party, 'til a fight breaks out!"
"That's a rule?" Ron asked, shooting his older brother a look. This was news to him.
"It is now!" George smiled.
"Good to know," Ron smirked, causing Hermione to roll her eyes.
"Remind me to avoid the next party," Harry said, smiling slightly. He was still feeling a bit downtrodden over bringing an abrupt end to Ron and George's flat-warming party, but since it seemed like the people who mattered to him…his family…weren't holding a grudge against him, he started to feel a bit more lighthearted.
"Nonsense, Harry my boy," George said, moving over and putting an arm around the adopted Weasley, "You were the absolute LIFE of the party…or the death of it. Either way, it wouldn't have been a party without you!"
With the flat-warming party officially over, the six of them made quick work of the cleanup. Magic made the chore quick and easy, and inside of ten minutes the flat was sparkling and looking brand-new once again. Once that was all behind them, Harry and Ginny used the Floo to return to the Burrow, but not before reminding Ron and George about the Sunday brunch their mother had planned for the morning.
As soon as the fire in the fireplace died down after the exit of Harry and Ginny, George turned to his little brother and his girlfriend. "Alright you two, get out!"
"What?!" Ron looked up, confused and a bit put-out by George's demanding tone.
Hermione, meanwhile, looked downright insulted, "And just where are we supposed to go, George Weasley?" she snapped, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.
"You don't have to go home," George said, smirking at Hermione, "But you can't stay here! Angelina and I have plans for that couch."
Angelina rolled her eyes at the "tactful" way her boyfriend was ensuring a little bit of privacy for the two of them. She couldn't help but think it must be an inherited trait, for she knew Ron was even less skilled in the art of tact. The dark-skinned former Quidditch captain gave Hermione an apologetic look as the two of them made their way out of the sitting room and down the hall towards the bedrooms.
"That was rude, George," she finally said to her boyfriend once they were all alone.
"You kidding me?" he laughed, "Ron was dying for a reason to get Hermione back into his bedroom, and I gave him one. Personally, I think I'm the best big brother ever!"
Exasperated at the Weasley Brother standing before her, Angelina Johnson could only shake her head in disbelief as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down onto the couch with him. There was just something about a Weasley man that was irresistible, and the dark beauty found herself hoping that Ron and Hermione would find something to do in his bedroom for quite some time.
"Can you believe your brother?" Hermione said, her voice sharp with frustration, "Shooing us out of the sitting room like we were a couple of annoying children."
"Uh huh," Ron agreed absentmindedly as they entered his room. He quietly closed to the door behind them, and remembering all of the interruptions earlier, he quietly cast an Imperturbable Charm on the door.
"And you…you didn't even stand up to him," she went on, chiding Ron, "All you did was obediently vacate the sitting room."
"Did you ever stop to think that I might have wanted to leave the sitting room?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest and giving her a meaningful look.
"Why would you…?" All of a sudden, realization of where they had been "exiled" to dawned on Hermione. They were all alone in his bedroom, and the only other people in the flat was the couple out on the couch wanting their own privacy, "Oh," was all she could say as she started blushing profusely.
Ron smiled that special lopsided smile that he reserved solely for Hermione and began moving towards her. He quickly pulled her into his arms and planted a kiss on her lips before she could protest…not that she would. When they broke apart, her face was still flushed, but she was smiling brightly at him.
"Wait, Ron," she said, pulling away from him. She moved over to her bag where it sat on the bed and dug inside it quickly, "There's something I need to do first."
"What's that?" he asked, still curious as to what secrets were still held inside Hermione's bag.
As she turned around to face him again, Ron could see that Hermione was brandishing something in her hand. A toothbrush! She made her way towards the door, causing Ron to protest.
"'Mione, your breath is fine!" he said, wanting to get back to the kissing…and other things…he hoped the night had in store.
"I'm glad you think so," she laughed, "I'd be mortified if I found out we were kissing and I had bad breath." She stopped at the bedroom door and motioned to it for Ron to undo his spell. Ron rolled his eyes and complied, doing whatever it took to get her back to the kissing as soon as possible.
While she was gone, Ron found himself alone in the room with nothing to stop him from going through Hermione's bag. Allowing curiosity to get the better of him, Ron quickly moved to the bed and began rifling through the contents of her duffle. He was confused to find neatly folded clothes sitting in the bag alongside a pouch full of mysterious little bottles. He'd seen similar bottles in Ginny's room…makeup, perfume, girly products of various types.
When he heard the sound of Hermione coming across the hall towards his bedroom once again, Ron moved to the other side of the bed, away from her bag, and did his best not to look guilty. Of course, the bright pink tint his ears had taken on was probably a dead giveaway.
"There we go," Hermione announced once she re-entered the room, smiling brightly, "All minty-fresh and protected against tartar and plaque build-up and the gum disease gingivitis," this last bit she said in an ominous tone as if it were some sort of monster waiting to attack an unsuspecting village.
"You really didn't need to brush your teeth, 'Mione," Ron said again, wanting desperately to get back to the kissing, "I'm telling you, your breath was fine."
"Ron, I always brush my teeth before I go to bed," she said, moving over to stand in front of him, putting her hands on his shoulders, "And don't you think my parents…the dentists…would give me a world of grief if I didn't brush my teeth just because I was spending the night away from home?"
"Yeah, but…wait…what?!" he looked up quickly into Hermione's eyes. Was she saying what he thought she was saying? "So…all that stuff in your bag…"
"Went through it, did you?" she asked, smiling. There was no need keeping anything a secret at this point. She leaned down and planted a minty-fresh kiss on his lips. "Pajamas, a sundress for your family's brunch tomorrow, a change of underwear, and some necessary toiletries to make myself look all beautiful tomorrow…just the essentials any witch needs when spending the night with her boyfriend."
"Spending the night?" Ron grinned, "So you mean…you're…we're…?"
"We are," Hermione nodded, "As long as you want to."
"Want to?!" he exclaimed, grabbing her and pulling her down onto the bed with him, "'Mione, I'm halfway done!"
Hermione laughed at his joke and kissed him deeply. As their bodies pressed against each other, one this was certain: whether he was halfway done or not, there was no mistaking the fact that Ron was ready!
"You'd better slow down then, Ronald Weasley," she joking chided him, "And let me catch up!"
"Anything you say, love!" he agreed happily. He would agree to almost anything she wanted him to do now; anything for his chance to finally be with her completely.
A short time later, Ron lay on his back, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling, his skin flushed pink and covered in sweat, his hair damp and matted, with the biggest smile he'd ever had plastered to his face.
"That…was bloody…brilliant!" he exclaimed, still panting from the exertion.
Lying cuddled up next to him, also flushed and sweaty, Hermione smiled happily and snuggled closer to her lover's body, her head nestled perfectly into the area between his chest and shoulder as if it had been tailor-made for holding her.
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," she chuckled, running her hand lazily up-and-down his heaving chest.
"Didn't you?" Ron asked, quirking an eyebrow as he craned his neck to look down at her. His smile faded a little and he almost looked…worried.
Sensing the doubt in his voice, Hermione looked up at him with love and reassurance shining in her deep chocolate eyes, "Of course I enjoyed myself, Ron…it was lovely."
"Did you…?" he twitched his head and bit his lip as if to signify what he was trying to ask her. His blue eyes were still filled with worry as he searched her eyes for some sign of recognition.
"Did I…finish?" she asked, hesitantly, concluding that that was what he was trying to communicate to her. He nodded nervously at her as best he could from his position, and then it was Hermione's turn for nervousness. She bit her lip and looked away, "Well…no. I didn't."
"Bloody Hell…!" Ron groaned, his voice nearly an unmanly whine. He covered his face with his hand to hide his shame, "'Mione I am so sorry! I bet I hurt you, too! I thought I saw you wince…"
"It did hurt a bit, yes," Hermione admitted, not wanting to add to Ron's anguish, but not wanting to be dishonest with him, either, "But that is incredibly common for a girl's first time…and so is not finishing."
"How do you…?" Ron moved his hand away from his face in order to look at her, a confused expression marring his features. She looked up at him sheepishly and as their eyes met, recognition dawned in the redhead's bright blue eyes, "You read about it in a book! When…?"
Hermione looked away again, embarrassed by the answer, "Erm…it might have been…Fourth Year…"
"Fourth…?!" he gaped at her, shocked, but very quickly narrowed his eyes as he realized what that must mean, "Bloody effing Krum! Read it in preparation for the Yule Ball, did you?"
He didn't know why he said it. He knew that nothing happened between Viktor and Hermione at the Yule Ball, or at any other time, but he couldn't help himself. Ron Weasley was a jealous git, and no matter how hard he tried…and he was trying…for her…he would always be a jealous git.
"Actually, Ronald," she began, her voice humorless and her eyes hard, "I read it shortly after spending the summer with you at the Burrow."
His eyebrows shot up into his hairline, and Ron Weasley (jealous git that he is) was once again shocked by something that Hermione had said, "You…you were thinking about this…with me…all the way back then?!"
"Weren't you?" Hermione asked accusingly, blushing intensely at the revelation of her embarrassing secret.
"Well…yeah…but I'm a guy…and you're a girl," her offered lamely as an explanation.
"I suppose if we'd have done this sooner," she said, deadpan, although her eyes held the faintest spark of humor, "You'd have spotted that I was a girl before the Yule Ball."
"No chance of me forgetting that now," Ron said, forcing a chuckle. Even so, hurt shone in his eyes for a brief moment. The Yule Ball and everything that it entailed would always be a dark chapter in their life together. Just like the "nightmare" comment from First Year, the Scabbers/Crookshanks incident from Third Year, the Lavender Brown situation from Sixth Year, and the tent-leaving fiasco during the Horcrux hunt. There were so many horrible reasons for Hermione not to be with him that Ron's next question seemed inevitable.
"Why are you with me?" he asked, unable to control himself. His fear and lack of confidence had gotten the better of him…again.
Hermione looked taken aback by the question. She searched his eyes and found the cobalt orbs she loved so much to be full of despair and self-loathing.
"Ron…" she said softly, reaching up to caress his cheek, "I'm with you because I love you, and because you love me."
"Yeah, but…"
She put a finger to his lips to quiet him.
"You're faithful, loyal, caring," she continued, extolling the virtues of Ron Weasley to himself, "Funny, courageous, intelligent --…"
"Bollocks," Ron snorted derisively.
Hermione pulled herself to a sitting position and leaned over top of Ron so she could look down, directly into his face.
"Just because you don't apply yourself doesn't mean you're not intelligent," she said sternly.
He rolled his eyes and tried to look away from her, but Hermione took his face in her hands and kept his eyes focused on her.
"Whether you believe me or not," Hermione said, never taking her eyes off of him, "I stand by what I said. And then, of course, there's the most important reason that I'm with you…"
"And what's that?" Ron asked, hoping that her next reason would convince him.
"You complete me, Ron," Hermione's voice was firm and unwavering as she spoke; what she said, she believed with all her heart, "I'm very staid and structured, whereas you're very spontaneous and push me to be as well; I tend to get caught up in my work, but you show me how to have fun, and how important having fun can be; I worry about what's going to happen in the future, but you help me to live in the now; I get wrapped up in my books, but you pull me out into the world; I look at everything with an eye toward cold logic, while you see everything through a lens of warmth and emotion."
"You complete me, too, you know," he said, rubbing a hand up and down her bare back.
She nodded and smiled, "We complete each other; that's why we're so good together," Hermione moved suddenly from her sitting position and threw a leg over Ron until she was straddling his hips, "And with lots and lots of practice, we'll be even better together."
"Practice?" Ron croaked as he felt her naked bum pressing down against his most-sensitive of parts, "You mean…you want to go again?"
"Unless you'd rather just go to sleep," Hermione replied, smirking naughtily as she began to wriggle and grind herself against him.
"Bloody Hell, woman!" he laughed as her movements brought him quickly back to life, "With you here…like this…I may never sleep again!"
But Ron did, eventually, go to sleep…but not before he and Hermione completed each other one or two more times that night.
-- End Chapter 36 --
Author's End Notes: So there you have it! Chapter 36! The question of The Kiss is solved, the question of whether or not Ginny shagged Dean is solved, and the much anticipated Ron & Hermione's first time is...well...not solved...but it occured!! I hope you ejoyed it...and whether you did or didn't, feel free to review. Chapter 37 should be up in two weeks...which will put it at thesecond weekend in November, so keep an eye out for it.
I had wanted to do a Halloween HP story, but the truth of the matter is, nothing came to me. Still, I've got about a week...if some great Halloween idea hits me, I'll try and do a story. If not, well, maybe inspiration will hit me in time for Christmas.
Until next time, in the immortal words of Casey Kasem, "Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars!"
'Hawk