Written In The Body

Poetheather

A/N: Yay! Over 100k hits! Yay! The comments on this chapter will probably take those over 500! Woot! Almost 200 favorites! You guys are awesome! Only 2 Communities, but that's still pretty sweet. Thank you guys for helping to make this story nice and epic.

Still not JKR.

Thirty-nine

It had certainly been a conversation to remember. She had to explain about Ginny getting hurt at the match and how that made her feel, the thoughts it raised and everything. Once she had walked him through her reasoning for wanting to get engaged her mother joined in as she was behind her and thus they had a united front against anything he said. Hermione had to admit that it wasn't much of a struggle but her father did see reason in the end. It also didn't hurt her case that Amy and Simon both liked Ginny and had no problem saying so the few times they had come in the room and overheard that they were talking about the redhead. Amy especially was loud in her defense of Ginny, proclaiming her "the bestestest girlfriend." Her father had thrown his hands up in defeat at that point and grumbled for a bit until Hermione hugged him and kissed him on the cheek, "I love you Dad."

He hugged her back, giving her a concerned smile, saying, "So long as she makes you happy then I am okay with this. I understand why you're not waiting to do this. After a scare like that I would probably have been in the same boat and that's not even counting the whole surviving a war part of things. You know that I love Ginny, it's just that I just worry about my baby girl."

She had talked more with her mother after that, when her father had gone off for a drive to think. Amy had joined them and they talked about fathers and daughters, especially how hard it seemed to them to watch their little girls grow up. Amy got concerned and had to be reassured that her new father would be just like that when it came time for her to get engaged. After a little bit more her mom went to her jewelry chest, sliding open a drawer. She looked inside for a moment, as if deciding something before grabbing something. When she came back she was holding a ring in her hand. "I know this isn't much compared to some more modern rings but this is the ring your father gave me when he proposed. I was always loved it and since we never had a son until now, I had always planned on giving it to you. I was the fourth Granger to wear it and I think it would be very fitting if you gave it to Ginny when you proposed. Wizards aren't the only ones with family traditions you know."

Hermione held the ring and was wowed. This was more than she had expected when she had planned on talking with her parents about this. She had expected what happened earlier, not this. Nothing like this. The ring was a white gold band with a brilliant cut diamond mounted on it, fairly plain by modern standards but all the more beautiful due to its simplicity. She loved it. "That's lovely."

"We can get it cleaned and resized for her quite easily. There is the jeweler I usually go to who does excellent work. If you know her ring size we can get this taken care of fairly quickly so you can give it to her over the holiday if you wanted." said her mother, smiling at her fondly.

"Actually looking at it, I'm thinking I can probably get some spells cast on it that would allow for resizing and permanent cleanliness and such. The band seems to be both wide enough and thick enough for runes to be carved in there that can accomplish those things. There is that Jewelry store in the Alley that we've seen but never gone into and I think they would be able to handle something like this either with runes or spells. From what I remember reading it isn't that difficult a task but requires someone with the proper skills to do it." explained Hermione, clearly having thought about this topic already. "That way when I give it to her there would be no problem with it fitting her or anything. I think I would die of embarrassment if it didn't fit when I asked her."

Her mother chuckled a little, "That would work out just fine Hermione. I am sure it can all get taken care of. I would be interested in seeing what sort of things they manage to do with it. I wore it for years so this interests me."

And all of that brought her here, walking into Diagon Alley with her bag, the ring she planned to give her girlfriend safely ensconced within, with three main tasks for the day lined up. First things first were her visit to Gringotts because she had to take care of business before pleasure. Besides, it would be easier to accomplish her other task if she knew how much she had available to spend. Knowing your upper limit was a good thing. As she was walking towards the bank with purpose, not really looking around, she was a bit surprised to note that people did not stop her and mostly just watched her pass with quiet looks of awe on their faces. She tried to avoid shaking her head at the stares she was catching in her peripheral vision and she was moderately successful at that task for the most part. At some point people would calm down over this whole her being a hero nonsense and stop gawking. Right? She grumbled internally when she recalled how well that had worked for Harry for whom the staring had only gotten worse.

Nervous about what she was about to discover, she opened the doors to the bank and stepped in, pausing at the threshold long enough to see what sort of reaction she would get from the guards. It would not take her long to flee from the bank if she had to and given how close she was to the doors a dragon would not be needed for this rapid departure. When one of the Senior Tellers walked over to her and bowed, she had to admit it was one of the last things she had expected when she had walked in here today. Glowering, a cold shoulder sure, but this? "Miss Granger, welcome and how can Gringotts assist you today?"

"Thank you. I was informed that I now have a good bit more in my own vault as opposed to the money my parents have been putting in there and I wanted to inquire about the balance." Hermione was being very polite as was her want and knowing from Harry's experiences that he got better service when he was polite and respectful. She had done some crazy things involving the Goblins in the last year and the last thing she wanted to do was offend them in any way. If this would help improve her relationship with them then she was completely behind it.

The goblin inclined his head slightly in acknowledgement. "Do you have your key with you?"

The Goblin was still being polite to her and this was really starting to creep Hermione out due to how abnormal this was. What was going on? Since when did she rate this kind of service? "I do."

She handed it over with no further question and after taking it, the Goblin led her to a desk that provided them a bit more privacy than the normal teller windows granted. Once the Goblin checked the key to verify it was indeed hers, he then looked at her, stating, "I will also need a drop of your blood."

Hermione raised an eyebrow, trying to figure this out. This was also not a normal procedure for her bank visits. She has never needed to have blood proof of any other transaction before. "Very well."

She reached her hand across the table and allowed the Goblin to stab her with a needle that was used for these specific purposes. She recalled them doing that same thing when her vault was opened just before her first year, when her parents and she had come shopping that first time with Professor McGonagall. The droplet of blood was tapped onto a sheet of paper where it was absorbed and then spidery red letters of Gobbledegook moved across it which he read. He smiled at her, content with what he had read. "Security procedures you understand Miss Granger."

"Yes of course." She was not really sure as she honestly did not have that much in her vault before, well at least not much compared to a lot of those that were wizarding raised and she had no clue how much there was now after the money from the Ministry. Was that the reason for the increase in the security?

"What was it that you wanted done today?"

"I was curious what I now have in my vault? The Ministry gave me some money and I am interested in exactly how much it is." Hermione really had no clue as there really had been no way to estimate the number of Death Eaters that had been recovered or arrested and then there had been all those killed before the war. If all of them had been accounted for who knew what had been in their vaults and thus what her portion of that… well bounty might be the best word. Why did it feel a little like she had gotten money for bringing in proof of kills though? She shuddered slightly.

The Goblin nodded then turned on his heel, speaking over his shoulder. "Very well. If you will follow me, I will take you to the office of your account manager and they can go over that information with you."

Hermione gasped in surprise. "I have an account manager?"

A snort was the only response and the goblin continued on, expecting her to follow her. This was behavior she was much more familiar with from goblins. The casual rudeness that indicated that the statement was wasting their time was honestly expected. It made her feel on more even footing and was calming. Hermione was a bit shaken though since to have an account manager meant she had to have a substantial amount of money, certainly a great deal more than she had before. If not, there would be no need to assign a single person to the account to keep track of it. What the hell was going on? Just how much money had there been in the combined vaults of all those Death Eaters? And what was this going to do to the economy, this influx of Galleons? She swallowed heavily as she realized that the implications of this action by the Ministry were a lot more profound than she had initially thought.

The goblin gestured her through a door where there were a pair of seats in front of a very nice desk. There was a well-dressed Goblin seated across from the chairs with a rather thin ledger in front of him. He looked up from his work and said, "Miss Granger, I am Throatrender, the account manager assigned to your vault."

"I am honored to meet you Throatrender." Hermione bowed her head slightly, recalling the goblin manners she had been briefed in prior to them coming here back in September. That had been a great help then and even more so now. Anything to give her a leg up.

The Goblin only nodded at her. "I have the full accounting of your vault right here. Your account prior to the recent influx of capitol stood at 328 Galleons 8 Sickles and 13 knuts or 1,619 Pounds and 49 Pence from the total deposited amount of 700 Galleons or 3,500 Pounds. Are there any discrepancies with those numbers Miss Granger or are we in accord?"

Hermione shook her head. She had thought she had less in her account than that so this accounting was a pleasant surprise. All it had been used on was school supplies and extra books, even dress robes, but honestly she rarely pulled that much from her account at any time so those numbers did make sense. Perhaps being worried about your safety such that it kept you from the bank was good for your finances overall. A year on the run certainly did wonders for your finances as she hadn't spent any wizarding money for a larger chunk of the last year. "I do not doubt your numbers."

This seemed to startle the Goblin a little but he recovered quickly. Clearly wizards didn't trust goblins much, which seemed dumb to her. "Due to the accounting of seized Death Eater and sympathizer vaults and properties done by Gringotts which was completed on the 17th of October of this year, once divided into the allotted shares, you had an influx into your account on the 31st of October of 823,579 Galleons 9 Sickles and 15 Knuts, partial or total ownership in 8 businesses and the deeds to two properties: a manor in the Lake District and a well-appointed summer home on the Isle of Wight. Not counting in the value of properties and businesses, including quarterly earnings, that brings your current net worth to 823,908 Galleons and 28 knuts or 4,061,866 Pounds and 72 Pence."

Hermione goggled at that, barely able to comprehend what she was hearing. Were those numbers actually real? It was such an amazingly large sum of money that her mind had trouble really grasping onto it. Was she actually a millionaire? If those numbers were right that meant that the Ministry had seized nearly ten million Galleons. It was more than enough to make her head swoon. "I… uh… I…"

"In addition, as a thank you from the Goblin Nation for your assistance in bringing about our… current status in regards to the Ministry, the Director himself authorized a further compensation pulled from the accounting. You will also find in your Vault, when you go down there that it has been moved as you needed a larger space, there will be a few Object d'Art and items that are more commonly thought of as familial Heirlooms that are not linked solely through blood. They are a mere trifling and had more value to us as gifts to you than further tallies for the Ministry as we were aware of their resale value in relation to what it could mean to you. We foresee the House of Granger becoming one of influence shortly in wizarding society and as… I believe the term the Director used was a friend to Gringotts, we do not wish for you to start out on the wrong foot." Throatrender was staring right at her as he said that and she met his eyes, remembering that as a warrior race that they preferred those that did not flinch from their steely gaze.

"I am honored that I was able to assist the Goblin Nation in this manner and doubly honored to be considered a friend. It was a correction in status that was long overdue. I am sorry what it took for us to get there." said Hermione, hoping her voice wasn't shaking as much as she thought it was. The implications of what he was stating were staggering. A friend to the Goblin Nation? That was almost more stunning than the amount of money she now had. And the fact that they hadn't publicized this fact was telling as well.

"Indeed. Well-spoken Miss Granger. Is there any other business you wished to transact at this time?" Throatrender asked.

"Uhm… uh… oh yes, two things actually. I have this ring I need to get enchanted as soon as possible. Do you know anyone who would be a good source for that?" asked Hermione, hoping that he would be able to guide her to a decent jeweler who did good work somewhat fast. Clearly affordability was not much of an issue any longer not with what she had in her account. She guessed that the jeweler in the Alley would be best but why not get advice from someone who might know more about the subject.

"May I see the ring?" Throatrender asked, sounding somewhat interested.

Hermione pulled the ring out from her bag and smiled when she saw it, thinking of Ginny and what she was going to ask her. It already had positive thoughts and memories for her and she hadn't even given it to her girlfriend. She looked up at the goblin and held it out, "Here it is."

The Goblin took it carefully in a claw, turning it to see it from different angles, how the stone caught the light and so he could better examine the metal. "And what did you wish done to it?"

"I definitely want a sizing charm and a self-cleaning charm. Perhaps either a radiant charm or a brilliance charm in order to make the metal and the stone brighter but I'm not sure about that. It's an engagement band and I'm not sure of all of the other things that are often added to those." Her voice softened at the end when she said that, unconsciously.

Throatrender looked up at her, an eyebrow quirked, "Yours?"

"Oh no. I am going to be asking my girlfriend to marry me on the New Year. I can't think of a better way to start the New Year off than with such a moment of joy and hope. I wanted the work done as fast as possible so I could have it with me ready to go." Hermione's eyes were only on the ring and their future. She was already starting to make plans for her proposal and hoping that they would play out as she wanted them to. She was thinking of taking Ginny out into London that evening, maybe dinner, a show and then be somewhere appropriate when the time came. She liked the idea of Greenwich but wasn't sure if Ginny would get the reason behind it. This would require more thought.

With a smirk, Throatrender replied, "I see. Well, just so you are aware that is a service that Gringotts can provide to our more preferred clients for a fee naturally or there are several excellent jewelers in Diagon Alley who might suit your needs as well. We can get it done and have one of our secure owls bring it to you if you wish, for fastest delivery."

Again taken aback by that unexpected revelation, Hermione tried to avoid gaping in surprise. The Goblins were not known for offers of this nature and this discussion was keeping her off balance. She was trying to keep track of things and not say anything stupid, ending up insulting her account manager. As politely as she could manage she said, "I would love to have the ring worked on by the Goblin Nation. Your work is of high renown and that would be absolutely stunning addition to my families ring."

"We will send it to you by owl once completed and deduct the cost of the work from your vault. Do you authorize such?" he asked pleasantly.

"I do. Provided that I am given an accounting of the service and if the amount looks wrong I will be able to have it judged by a third party so I may seek redress if I am wronged." There was no way that Hermione was going to let them have that kind of free reign with her account. She was a student of history after all and knew the kinds of things that had happened before that had started wars. Did they think she was stupid? "I am aware that this is merely the cost of enchanting the ring and not making it and enchanting it. There is a vast difference. I am also aware that since the ring is already made that enchanting it does not make it fall under the usual Goblin loan rules."

He grinned at her, obviously pleased by her answer, and said, "That would be perfectly fine Miss Granger. You said there was a second matter?"

"Yes. My parents work full time and need some assistance in watching my new sister and keeping the house. I am unsure how one goes about hiring a House Elf as they could use the help and someone familiar with magic would be the best help possible," explained Hermione.

"You said hire and not buy, is that correct?" Throatrender seemed intent on her answer.

"Yes. I am aware of their need to bond with a family but the general treatment they receive by a number of families is appalling. To be treated as such is simply wrong. I would like to hire an elf that will be bound to my family by magic and contract such that if the elf is displeased with their treatment they may leave and perhaps activate a penalty clause of some sort on our family, if their departure is due to poor treatment. I know that my family won't treat them that way but it will make me feel better to have something like that in there, so that the elf sees that we are serious. I want it to be fair to all parties and I want the contract to include wages. I know that they will not want much so I figure 8 knuts a month is the best I can expect an elf to accept." Hermione had been thinking about this contract for a while, ever since she had spoken with the Hogwart's Elfs. To her it sounded like a way to fix the problem with poor treatment of House Elfs if only she could make something like this standard. She had looked into various employment contracts and found some variations that might just work out for everyone.

There were a few moments of quiet before Throatrender said, "I believe we can assist you in making this happen. Do you happen to have a copy of such a contract or notes of what you are looking for?"

With a happy grin to hear that her idea was not being ignored. She opened her bag and pulled out her notes she had compiled. "Here you go."

Throatrender scanned over them and nodded. "That should help. Is that all?"

Hermione smiled and nodded, "Yes that will take care of things for now. I think I will come back later for the details about the properties and businesses. Visiting the vault will happen then."

"Excellent. I believe doing business with you will be a pleasure Miss Granger." Her account manager seemed quite pleased with things.

"You as well Throatrender."

A bit stunned by the revelations of the day, Hermione made her way out of the clean lines and white marble of the bank and back into Diagon Alley in a bit of a daze. She needed a dose of normality after all that heady and somewhat world shaking information and unfortunately all she had planned was a meeting with George. Not much normality involved there. Her head was spinning with all those numbers. They were large numbers, far larger than she had expected and she was having some difficulty connecting those numbers to herself. She now owned properties and parts of businesses, maybe even a few businesses outright? That was insane. And she was rich, maybe not compared to say what the Malfoys and other families had before but certainly far more than she had expected to make while working. Even in the muggle world making that much money in her lifetime would have been a big stretch unless something extraordinary occurred. And that bonus of Art and Heirlooms? What was up with that? This was far more than Hermione had ever dreamt of and it was dazzling. Ginny was going to flip. That made her wonder just how much she had gotten in her share. Now was so not the time to dwell on this and spin herself farther from reality.

She walked into the shop, and the discordant noise cleared her mind of anything else. It took her a few moments searching through the crowds but she spotted George helping a customer. Now that she thought more about it, this might not be the best time for a meeting, as it was before Christmas and thus one of the busier times for the store. On the other hand she did have things to give him and he would love to get his hands on those. It would be his call. She caught his eye and he nodded at her, indicating that he saw her. When he finished with that customer he came over and smiled at her, "Well, how is the fair curly haired corruptor of my sister?"

Hermione rolled her eyes, glad that no one was really close enough to hear what was being said or she might just have to kill him. She would apologize for it but Ginny would understand. "Just fine George. How are you doing?"

"Much better. Dating seems to be good for me for some unknown reason. Who knew? Is there a particular reason for this social call or did you just want to drop by to bug me? It's not that I'm not happy to see you but business and all." He gestured to the fairly filled store as he said that.

"I am aware of that George so I won't take up too much of your time. I just wanted to drop by, say hello and hand off a few more of the journals. I even have some copies of some more recent notes that might be of some interest to you." Hermione smiled sweetly and reached into her bag, pulling out the pile of journals and papers she had tied up with string earlier that day.

"More recent journals? How? There aren't any of the Marauders left Hermione so how could there be any new material?" George was honestly confused by this, looking between the stack and her as if that would provide the answers.

"Who said anything about the new material being from them?" She really was trying to be as sweet and as innocent as she could be, something she knew that Luna and Ginny no longer believed and it was taking everything she had not to start giggling. This really was fun. She could begin to see why the twins did this sort of thing all the time.

George gaped at her as the knut dropped. He blinked a few times, brought a hand up to cover his mouth and push it closed. Eyes filling with pride he then suddenly pulled her into a tight hug. It sounded like there were actual tears in his voice when he said, "I think I love you Hermione Jean Granger. Does that mean that the things up at Hogwarts that I heard about…?"

"It does. Your sister and I." Her smile was very broad and almost hurt her face. She had never seen George this gobsmacked before and it was wonderful. This would be a memory to cherish for all time. The only sad part of this whole thing was that Ginny was not here to see it. She would have to see if she could use a pensieve to show Ginny this whole thing because otherwise Hermione was not sure she would be believed. Words alone would never be able to convey just how strange this was and how she knew it would probably never happen again.

"Merlin… if only Fred could hear you now he would be so pleased. We always knew that if you ever got over being so rules focused you would be brilliant at this, absolutely brilliant. Thought that for years but knew it ever since we saw your Patronus. From what I've heard about the events up at Hoggy Hoggy Hogwarts there have been some amazing pranks occurring that no one can figure out. Brilliant stuff based off the descriptions. Of course it would be you and baby sis. Who else could come up with things like that?" George looked so proud he almost seemed ready to cry.

Hermione closed the distance and hugged George. "I had plenty of good inspiration from several sources, including you and your brother. I certainly learned a lot doing it as it really requires you to think about magic differently, so it's all thanks you in a way."

George hugged her back, saying "You are most welcome. And thank you so much for these journals. They have been so helpful. Moony has been able to help me keep some of Fred's ideas alive and that has helped me more than you will ever know. It's almost like having him here again which helps."

"You think me seeing you smile isn't a good thing, doesn't make me happy? I can tell you that Ginny and I have both missed it. I know it hurts and it will probably always hurt somewhat. When I got that bequest from Remus, it was a godsend because I knew that I could use it to help you. Sure it really has helped me, but helping you was far, far more important in the long run. I've known you about as long as I've known Harry and Ron, so of course I was torn up by what happened. You and your brother were some of my first friends and I could never give up on you. So I took this chance on trying to help you and I am so grateful that it worked out to the benefit of us both." Hermione smiled shyly at him, a bit embarrassed to be sharing her reasoning with him but figured that he needed to hear it.

With a soft chuckle and a slight shake of his head, George hugged her again, "You are a good woman Hermione Granger. Thank you for your help. I would have had trouble keeping up the store but you gave me an extra push. I hope my sister knows just how lucky she is to have you."

Thinking about how much she loved Ginny and how much Ginny said she loved her, Hermione replied, "Oh, I think she knows."

Verity called out from the register, that had a number of people around it, "Oi, George!"

The lanky redhead sighed and shook his head, "Well, back to work I go. You take care and I will see you at Christmas. Expect some fun surprises in your stocking young lady. I need to make sure you are well stocked for when you return to school with all the supplies to help in your quest."

Laughing as she walked out of the store, Hermione waved goodbye and turned towards the Leaky Cauldron. She felt warm inside from her conversation with George and a lot more calm than she had been earlier. In a lot of ways it seemed like she, George and Harry were all healing nicely from the trauma from earlier that year, which was a good thing. Even Ginny was doing far better than she had at the start of the summer, moving past her grief at the loss of Fred and the trauma of the previous school year. If only things were better in a few areas then life would practically be perfect. There had been so much death that the joy they had found made all the difference with them. She bumped into someone and almost fell over, thankful that she was able to catch her balance.

She said sorry at the same time the other person did and they both froze, recognizing the others voice. Hermione swallowed nervously. Of all the people in magical Britain to run into, Ron.

Looking up, she saw that Ron was there with veiled features, clearly trying to keep how he was feeling a secret from her. That in itself was telling and worried her a little. Not that he was really all that good at it but still this was just what she needed right now, a potential fight if he were still mad at her. "Hey there Hermione."

"Hello Ron." She stayed polite and kept any tension out of her voice.

"Uh… can we talk?" He sounded a bit nervous as he asked that which was a somewhat encouraging sign. There were only flickers of it on his face so he was learning but she still knew him too well for him to try this. Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as she had feared?

"Sure. Where do you want to go?" What did he want to talk about? It had better not be about them and his desire to date her because that would be a very short conversation and might just be a painful one for him depending on how it played out. Just walking out on him would not make any friends either but it would serve to show him how she felt on the matter. If push came to shove this could be bad. What exactly was the punishment for hexing an Auror trainee? Maybe she needed to peruse the legal statutes. That might be fun for after school.

"How about in the Leaky Cauldron?" He offered.

She followed him into the pub and they got a seat in a corner that was somewhat removed from other seats after he had grabbed them some butterbeers. It clearly looked like this corner had been set up for this sort of thing. With a quick flick of her wand she set up some privacy spells as she was well aware that he did not want this conversation overheard. Honestly, she didn't want it overheard either as this was their business and not something to be shared with the rest of the wizarding world. Sadly this would qualify as news and would be splashed all across The Daily Prophets front page. Once that was accomplished she replaced her wand and focused on Ron, "What is it Ron?"

"What happened with us Hermione?" He asked, looking down at the wood of the table.

"What do you mean?" She really wished he would be a touch more specific in this instance as there were a couple of options for answers. Where exactly was he taking this.

"Weren't we happy?" He looked up at her, looking a bit lost, needing her to make it all better.

Hermione closed her eyes and sighed. That look had made her heart go out to him because in the end he still was her friend but it was clear that Ron wasn't getting the real reason. This wasn't much of a surprise now that she thought about it given that Ron was never all that introspective. She really couldn't hold that against him. "No Ron, we really weren't happy. We just thought we were."

"I… uh… I don't get it. I thought things were fine. I mean I knew I screwed up now and again and we fought but I tried. I know I did." said Ron, apologetic.

"Oh Ron…" Hermione rubbed her forehead in an attempt to relieve the growing tension. She hated hurting him but knew there was no other way to drive the point home. "Yes parts of it were you, there is no denying that since we both know that, but in all honesty not most of it. Really Ron, it wasn't you. Most of it had to do with me and my issues. Even if you had been absolutely perfect, the greatest boyfriend ever there is nothing you could have done that would have stopped me from being attracted to girls. Because of that it would have torn us apart. Looking back on it now, I really think I was with you because you were one of my two best friends and there was no real future for us. It was safe and comfortable. If I was with you then I wouldn't be available for anyone else. So it wasn't you Ron." explained Hermione, hoping that it might finally get through to him. Thankfully this was Ron looking for answers rather than looking for them to get back together or for vengeance. She could deal with and work with that. If this was really the case then this should work.

"But I thought we loved each other. I know I loved you." Ron was grasping for answers and clearly his own thoughts were not helping him. The pain in his voice was making her tear up but she fought against crying. Merlin it hurt to have done this to him. "I would never have been able to have found you in the forest if I hadn't."

"I'm not saying you didn't love me. I'm not saying that at all. And I did love you Ron but in the end it was more like I love Harry, more like a brother than anything else. You are one of my best friends Ron and that's far more important than a boyfriend. Despite our rocky start we have been together through some pretty rough times and I wouldn't trade that for anything. I am trying to be truthful with you about this as you deserve to be happy and if we stayed together than I would have broken your heart," explained Hermione, with a sad smile on her face.

Ron was trying to follow but so much of this was probably outside of his experience that it was clear that he was having a little bit of trouble keeping up. "How would you have done that?"

"Eventually I would have realized I was in love with your sister or at the very least that I was attracted to girls and if we had been married or had kids by then that would have been ugly as things fell apart. You would have hated me. I would have hated me. It would have been a terrible mess. You are a wonderful guy Ron and you don't deserve that. You deserve someone who would love you for you not as a consolation prize. I would have hated to have done that to you, to us, tearing our lives apart, but I would have had to be true to myself if that had happened. After all we have gone through, we both deserve real love and not some dream of it." Hermione was a bit saddened by that realization, as she knew it was true. When she would have realized that she was a lesbian, and it would have happened sooner or later, she would have torn her life apart and his in trying to come to terms with herself. It would have been messy and ugly and no one deserved that. This was so much easier and cleaner since they hadn't truly dated, just grown closer. With a glance at her left arm she realized that in some ways Bellatrix had done her a favor, done them all a favor. Now that was irony.

Ron sat there nodding for a few minutes, processing the things she said. He had some of his butterbeer and frowned before looking up at her, "But my sister. Why my sister? Why her?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. Did he seriously want to get into this? Seriously? Part of her wanted to get up and leave at this point as she knew she didn't have to deal with this shit and another part knew what Ron was trying to do, however clumsy. She knew very well what his emotional range was and time had not increased it too much. She had to work within the constraints required to get through to him. "Well why did you fall for Lavender in sixth year?"

"What? Why are you asking me that?" asked Ron, thrown by the change in tack.

"I mean, did you sit down and decide that Lavender was the one you wanted to pursue or did it just sort of happen? Which was it Ron?" Hermione pressed her questions on, noting how flustered that Ron was getting. He wasn't angry, which was good, just not sure what was going on. That might mean she might get a real answer out of him.

"Uh… I… uh… well, she was interested in me and I liked that. She was attractive and… uh… she was really close to me after the match." Ron furrowed his brow as if trying to figure out where she was going with this.

"So you liked that she was interested in her? It made you feel good? Feel special? Was that it?" She was making sure that her tone was not bitter or chiding in anyway while she spoke as she was trying to make a point with all of this, trying to use his words to drive things home. The hurts of that year were not important, besides her happiness now made that pain unimportant in the long run. What did Lavender and Ron snogging then mean compared to her wanting to marry Ginny now?

"Well yeah." Ron said, as it was clearly obvious.

"Well because I am interested in girls and not boys you need to think of the girls around me. The only one I ever really connected to was Gin. I hadn't really connected to Luna until Shell Cottage and by then I had already gotten established in my attraction to Ginny and had been for years. So when I realized that I was a lesbian I tried to fight against it, I truly did, but I guess my interest in her came through anyway, maybe even before I realized I was a lesbian it did. And what did you just say; you liked that interest, how it made you feel good, feel special? That could be how I got Ginny. Not because I was trying to hurt you or anything but because I was interested in your sister and she liked the attention and how it made her feel, liked how I treated her. Just like with you and Lavender back then." Hermione was rather proud of herself for coming up with that particular explanation. She had no idea if it would help but it was the best chance she had of getting through his thick skull with anything less than a troll club. Using his own experiences to relating things to would make them far easier for Ron to understand them. If only she had a Quidditch metaphor.

Ron sat back in his chair and stared at her, a bit surprised. It seemed as if that way of looking at the issue had never occurred to him. She wasn't really surprised by that fact. He took a drink of his butterbeer as he was processing what he had heard before speaking, which was a nice change of pace. All of them were growing up. "That's really how that happened? Really?"

"Yes Ron, it is." Hermione smiled at him. "I love you like a brother. You have been one of my dearest friends for years and I gave you my heart for a while, which I don't regret. I am sorry I had to take it back though."

Ron shrugged and fidgeted some in his seat. He had some more of his butterbeer and was clearly trying to change the subject when he asked, "What was this thing Harry talked to me about? Saying I might be messed up because of the War? I figure it had to come from you because honestly the only time either of us sounded smart was thanks to you."

Closing her eyes and trying not to lash out at Ron for being his usual tactless self due to the way he had described the whole issue. Messed up? Hermione chose instead to focus on the complement tacked on the end when she said, "Yes, there is a muggle term for the problem called Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It is something that happens to people who face horrible things in war or other really intense situations. After they go through some sort of traumatic event, the stress of the even and the memories of it cause a number of problems. The wizarding world treats it as well but in a different manner and I don't think they call it anything special, but it is something they recognize that Aurors get. Harry has a really bad case of it as do I thanks to the things we both went through. After talking about it, we think you might have it as well, since you have been acting a bit out of character now and again. It makes sense, given some of your actions of late."

"What are you talking about? I'm fine," protested Ron, looking confused.

"I am sure you feel that way Ron and Harry thought that way as well at the beginning before he got help but he was not. I know I'm not and it looked that way for me as well from the outside. I even pretended that I was okay for a bit before I just gave up and accepted that something was wrong and dealt with it. Can you at least go in and get checked. The worst it will be is a few hours of your time getting tested and answering some questions. Then if you are fine then you can say I told you so to both of us." said Hermione, pleading her case. Harry and her both wanted this and she had to do her best to convince him.

"This is crazy." protested Ron.

"Can you at least give it a try? For us?" asked Hermione. "It really isn't going to be that bad."

"Fine. I'll do it. Who is this stupid Healer I am supposed to talk to?" grumbled Ron, giving in to her prodding.

Hermione felt a surge of hope. Maybe just maybe things might actually get better between all of them and they could get back to being the friends they had been before. It was eminently possible. "Thank you Ron. This really means a lot to me. You won't regret it."