Chapter 22

Hermione was awoken in the middle of the night when Harry gently shook her and murmured something about needing to go take care of a few things. She tossed and turned for a few minutes until she decided to get up and make sure Harry hadn't disturbed their guests.

But when she padded into the living room she found Ron sitting up on the transfigured sofa watching the television on a low volume, all alone.

"Hey," she said, barely above a whisper, "where's Lavender?"

He shot her a small but genuine smile. "She went with Harry."

"What?" Hermione had just assumed that whatever Harry had gone out to do had something to do with his job. In his line of work it wasn't at all uncommon, and that was the reason she hadn't questioned him when he left.

Ron simply shrugged. But he couldn't hide the way he averted his eyes ever so slightly and he didn't fool her.

"Really?" She snorted.

He just shrugged again.

"So, you know, or at least you have some idea what they're up to, but you're not going to tell me?" She guessed.

"Pretty much."

"Well, since I'm pretty sure that I can trust that your fiancee and my boyfriend…" she trailed off and Ron raised his head.

"Is it weird to call him that?"

"Very," she nodded, "it doesn't seem like nearly enough," she added quietly. "We should talk, huh?" She asked when she saw the way he was regarding her with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I think that would be good," he patted the place next to him on the bed.

She hesitated, thinking that they might need to have this conversation on more neutral ground. "Would you like some hot cocoa, and maybe a snack?"

His expression morphed from something resembling slight nervousness into a sly grin. "Trying to butter me up, Granger?"

"I'd just like something sweet, Weasley," she responded, smiling to herself as she turned her back on him knowing that, if nothing else, his stomach would make him follow her.

In the kitchen she began removing ingredients from the fridge and cabinets, both of which were much better stocked since Harry essentially came to live with her. Bread, milk, two different kinds of cheese, butter, a tin of cocoa, and a bag of mini marshmallows.

He watched her, openly curious. "You learned to cook? Without burning the house down?"

"I can manage a grilled cheese," she demurred, refusing to rise to his bait and just pulling out a pan with a fond glance at the grocery list Harry had neatly taped to the fridge for them both to add to.

This was only one of a thousand reasons she and Ron never could have made a relationship work long term. She found what she considered to be his antiquated views about gender roles insulting, and he was threatened by her unwillingness to adhere to said gender roles. But there was no reason to fight about that now.

"Is cheddar okay with you?"

He nodded. "What's the white one?"

"Oh- um, it's Harvati. I like the two of them together. I can make mine first and you can try it if you like."

"Thanks, anything I can do to help?"

She turned and gave him a small smile. "If you could slice up the cheese that would be great."

They worked in companionable silence for a few minutes. She buttered the bread and put the milk in a saucepan to heat up. When she went to begin assembling the sandwiches she glanced over to see a veritable mountain of cheese on the cutting board in front of Ron. She burst out laughing.

"Ronald! We're not feeding an army!"

"You're feeding me," he winked at her.

She chuckled and went up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "Fair enough."

When she was through grilling the sandwich just the way she liked it, she cut it and put one half on a plate for Ron who didn't bother to wait for it to cool, but he didn't so much as flinch as bit into it and chewed. In fact, his eyes lit up.

"Merlin, Mione, this is amazing!"

"Told you. So, I'll make two more?"

"I suppose I can limit myself to two."

She rolled her eyes.

"How did you come up with this?"

"Actually, it was Harry," she explained as she put the second sandwich in the skillet.

"Harry?"

"Grilled cheese is my comfort food, but he said that I was being very boring about it." Hermione smiled to herself. Harry told her that he loved her often enough, but his primary means of expressing his emotions was still through actions. Little things like ensuring there was always a pot of coffee brewing first thing in the morning, new books she'd wanted would just appear in her briefcase or on her desk before she had the opportunity to purchase them for herself, and she was convinced that if he ever decided to quit this auror gig he was so good at that he would be a phenomenal massage therapist.

So, he'd undertaken the mission to figure out the perfect sandwich to make for her with all the gravity of an auror mission and dragged her to markets all over the city. It was adorable.

"It's even better with a little tomato, some bacon…" She told Ron.

"Witch! Why are you holding out on me?!"

She chuckled. "Sorry, we're out. Probably best to stick to something simpler at," she looked at the clock, "Two AM, anyway."

There was a beat of silence.

"So you really love him, huh?"

Hermione glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. There was something between them tonight, something she'd felt many times before, though it felt like a lifetime ago since she'd last experienced it. Times when it had been just the two of them, Harry having isolated himself, and they were desperate to just hold things together and make it through one more day. It was a feeling which had once made her think that she could make Ron the center of her world.

Now she recognized it for what it was: deep, abiding, and hard fought for friendship. He was not meant to be the man she came home to at the end of the day. Still, what they had was infinitely precious and she could only be totally honest with him.

"I love him so much that sometimes I think I might burst with it."

He exhaled sharply and ran a hand through his hair. "It's always been like that, hasn't it?"

She shrugged. "Yes and no, it's evolved over the years."

"You would have followed him anywhere, you did." His words were matter of fact. "You never hid it, I was always so afraid of being left out and left behind."

"Me too," she responded quietly.

He looked completely taken aback. "What?"

"I was necessary. I was the planner. I felt like a tool. Whereas you and Harry were friends simply because you wanted to be. I was completely convinced there would come a day when you wouldn't need a bossy little witch around anymore and I would lose you both."

"Hermione," he gasped.

"I know better now," she assured him, "you've both shown me in your own ways that I'm not replaceable. You were just immature teenage boys and I was an insecure teenage girl, and there was a lot the three of us failed to say to each other."

"Is that why you left?"

"There were a lot of reasons. But yes, I think it felt easier for me to remove myself from the equation than stick around and wait for the day when I was shunted aside."

"Because of Ginny?"

"Yes, and because I assumed I would be a threat to any witch you were with. And I don't regret moving here, I love my life. But I deeply regret the way I closed myself off from all of you."

"Harry's a broody bastard," Ron said, apropos of nothing.

"What?" she let out a startled laugh. "I mean I'm aware, but where did that come from?"

"It's just that you were always better at handling him when he got like that. There's been a few times over the past few years I really could have used your help," he nudged her.

"I'm sorry."

"Well, he's your problem now."

She turned off the burner and turned to wrap her arms around him. "I'll take care of him. But you know that you aren't replaceable to us either, right?"

"Yeah," he answered gruffly.

They held each other for a long time.

"Hey, Hermione?"

"Yeah?"

"When he asks don't hesitate to tell him 'yes.'"

Her heart felt like it skipped a beat. "What?"

"Don't play dumb, it doesn't suit you."

"No- I, you just surprised me. And of course my answer will be 'yes.'"

"Good, because seriously, he's such a broody bastard."

0000000000

Harry hadn't been able to sleep, even with Hermione curled up against him, her breathing deep and even, which was usually like a lullaby to him. His conversation with Ron earlier that evening had been a push he hadn't known he'd needed and he didn't want to wait another minute to make Hermione his in every way that he could.

At which thought a plan started to form in his head. It was probably crazy. But he wasn't a Gryffindor for nothing. But he did at least realize that he should probably get another witch's opinion, especially considering the circumstances. So he carefully crawled out of bed and went to talk to Lavender.

It was only when she squealed like a schoolgirl (literally, he remembered what Lavender's shrieks of excitement had sounded like at Hogwarts) and then informed him very seriously that they had to get up and start making 'preliminary arrangements' immediately that he realized he was probably in way over his head. But he decided to trust her and let her drag him out of the flat with strict instructions to Ron not to breathe a word.

He arrived back at Hermione's flat- home- just before eight AM, exhausted but far too amped up to sleep, even if he had the time. He spoke briefly with Ron, giving him an update and then he crept into the bedroom.

Hermione was curled up in bed, hugging his pillow. When he'd left she'd been wearing her own pajamas but now she seemed to have donned one of his older Weasley jumpers. He perched himself on the edge of the mattress and poked her. She slowly opened her eyes.

"Hey you."

"Hey, did you do...whatever it was that you needed to do?"

"I did," he tugged on the sleeve of the jumper she was wearing. "This is mine."

She shrugged. "Ron and I had an early morning snack, I spilled cocoa on my pajamas and this is soft and smells like you. Do you mind?"

"Of course not. It looks way better on you anyway."

She bit her lip. "Thank you." She stretched her arms out for him. "I missed you, I don't sleep well alone anymore."

He pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I promise it was for a good reason, though."

"Hmmm, I know, you would never leave me without a good reason."

"Come for a walk with me?"

"A walk? Harry it's early, and we have guests."

"Our guests are having breakfast elsewhere, and there's something I want to show you."

She frowned but nodded and climbed out of bed. Harry's mouth went dry, because what he hadn't realized was that she appeared to be wearing only his jumper.

"Are we going any place special, what should I wear?" She looked back at him and her eyes went wide. "Harry James, if you keep looking at me like that we will not be leaving this bedroom for the foreseeable future."

He looked away from her quickly, as appealing as that sounded, he had plans. "Whatever is comfortable, we really are just going for a walk," he told her.

She nodded and began ruffling through her drawers. He actually had to close his eyes at the sight of the lace knickers which were all she was wearing under his jumper. When they'd first gotten together he had been surprised to discover that Hermione had something of a thing for fancy underwear. She was generally so practical. But she had pointed out to him that if she was going to indulge a little, it only made sense that it would be in something that would be resting against her skin all day long.

And if she purchased a few things just for them to enjoy together, well, he wasn't fool enough to complain about that. He gripped the edge of the mattress to prevent himself from reaching from her.

When she had gotten herself ready to go- in her usual expeditious fashion- he took her hand and led her to the front door. She stopped him and pulled him in for a long, slow kiss.

"Good morning."

"Morning," he grinned.

"Okay, show me what you're up to."

He led her on a meandering route through her neighborhood. They got coffee from the shop they preferred before he brought her to the destination he had in mind. He brought her to a halt on the sidewalk in front of the property he'd been contemplating for weeks. He turned her so that she was facing the dilapidated brownstone, her back against his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"So, here's what I've been thinking," he murmured into her ear.

"Yeah?"

"I know you love this neighborhood. And your flat is great, but it's a little small. I mean it's pretty perfect for just us, but I think we're probably about to be flooded with visitors. And I'd like to put down some roots here. And this place is a mess, but this way we could really make it our own, you know?"

"Harry-"

"There's a garden in the back, it's big enough that we could get a dog. I've always wanted a dog."

Her breath caught and she gripped his arms. "So, you want to buy a house?"

"Amongst other things," he urged her to turn in his arms so that she was facing him. "It seems like the smallest of the things, really."

"What does that mean?"

"I hate calling you my girlfriend, it just seems so insufficient."

She laughed. "I said almost exactly the same thing to Ron earlier."

His lips twitched. He knew that he and Hermione were very different people, but they prioritized each other, and it continued to shock him how often they were on exactly the same page.

"I wish there was a word for what you are to me, maybe you can help me come up with one." He placed his forehead against hers. "But until then I was hoping you would consent to a few new titles."

She let out a shuddering breath. "What would those be?"

He gathered himself. "My wife," he took a deep breath as her eyes filled with tears. "My life partner. My Lady. The mother of my children. The guardian of my most cherished dreams."

"Oh," she choked.

"And I'd also like if you'd take one back."

"What's that?"

"My best friend- always, always my best friend."

She closed her eyes and visibly gathered herself before she answered. "Yes. Always yes. Forever yes."

He crushed her against his chest. The just held each other as his heart slowed and she began to chuckle.

"What's so funny?"

"Harry, please tell me you didn't find a way to buy this house overnight."

"No," he laughed in return, "I was actually starting plans to get married this weekend, Lavender was very enthusiastic about the idea. I've been calling in favors I didn't even know I was owed."

"What?" She blinked at him. "What, I mean what? This weekend?"

"We don't have to, obviously. But we'll be with our friends and you've told me more than once that you weren't keen on a big production of a wedding. And I don't want to wait. I want to build a life with you, and I want it to start as soon as possible."

She looked at him, studied him, like he'd seen her examine a text many times, trying to make sure she fully understood its meaning, and he knew he'd either gotten it completely right, or absolutely wrong.

"Let's do it."

Author's Note: Merry Christmas! Even if you don't celebrate I sincerely hope you're able to enjoy a day away from the grind. Thank you so much for reading and my best to you all!