Chapter 8
Over the next few days, Hermione appreciated the quiet of the house. The silence gave her time to think, and absorb herself in books she grabbed from the library. She needed to keep herself busy, and avoid spending every day thinking about Ron.
"Could you be a dear and go down to the storage cellar, I think I've put my old measuring stick down there." Mrs. Weasley pointed towards the door at the edge of the kitchen.
Hermione nodded and stepped into the cellar, calling 'Lumos' as she descended. Reaching the bottom, she looked on in awe. The cellar was filled to the brim with hundreds, if not thousands of forgotten items. It looked like a smaller Room of Requirement.
She didn't find the measuring stick, but knew instantly she had a new project.
"Mrs. Weasley, your cellar is enormous!"
Mrs. Weasley smiled.
"We've had to expand it three times as the kids grew up. I honestly don't even know what's down there anymore." She said nonchalantly as she stirred her pot of stew.
"Can I...that is...would you mind if I organized it?" Hermione asked, unsure if she was crossing a line.
"Have at it, my dear." Mrs. Weasley said graciously. She honestly appreciated Hermione having another project to dig into. She was feeling rather lost with Hermione taking over almost all of her daily chores.
That was all Hermione needed to hear as she descended into the depths of the cellar.
Days went by where she'd spend every waking moment down there. Mrs. Weasley would call down at times after she heard a large crash, but eventually gathered that Hermione was alright.
Hermione found a treasure trove of family memories. Everything from broken down rocking horses to old muggle artifacts that Mr. Weasley didn't have the heart to throw away. She dug through everything. Climbed over boxes, swept away cobwebs from the furthest reaches of the extended room.
As she went deeper, she came upon boxes and boxes of family photographs. She pulled out every single one, looking at them lovingly, sorting and stacking them neatly. Many of them were worn and faded, and she could almost barely make them out. She even found a dusty old stack of photos from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's wedding.
Hermione's heart skipped a beat. She knew exactly how she could thank the Weasley family for letting her stay here. For helping her heal.
The days continued as Mrs. Weasley watched Hermione trot up and down from the cellar. Sometimes Mrs. Weasley would notice that would even bring library books down with her. She'd hear incantations, yelps of glee, and hollers of frustration.
As Hermione pulled out broken Quidditch broomsticks and quaffles, and cleaned off old chairs and jump ropes, her mind drifted to all the things Ron had said to her. That he had loved her. That he was the one so easily broken. Her heart hurt at the thought.
Even after all this time, she still mattered to him. In the end, after all the excuses she gave, it was she who had pushed him away. She who had caused all this heartache. And still he was there for her, still finding a way to take care of her, even when he couldn't himself.
She spent the days soaking up responsibility for the last four years. Digging deep into her past mistakes as she dug into the Weasley cellar, finally beginning to understand and take ownership for her actions.
Ron had done exactly what she'd asked. He shared his feelings with her. The least she could do was return the favor. She could make it right, even if he never saw her the same way again. She owed it to him.
After two weeks of cleaning, sorting and working on her pet project, the kitchen table had become a dumping ground of artifacts from Mrs. Weasley's past. Hermione had brought up toys she knew would be perfect for Victoire, Mr. Weasley's old wizard camera, which they discovered still worked, and loads of other interesting items. Hermione even brought up one of George and Fred's first prank toys. Hermione recounted to Mrs. Weasley the moment the prank toy erupted downstairs in a maniacal child-like voice screaming that it would get her.
One afternoon, Hermione brought up a box. It was intentionally sealed and had a beautiful inscription and lace-like designs.
"Oh, my." Mrs. Weasley paused as she lay her hand on the box. "My wedding dress."
Hermione grinned. "You've got to try it on."
Mrs. Weasley chuckled, "There is no spell that could fit that dress around these hips again."
Hermione tried to wave her off, but saw a sparkle in Mrs. Weasley's eyes.
"But..." she sighed, "I would rather like to see it again." She said opening the box. "Will you try it on for me?"
Hermione was taken aback. "Me?" She squeaked.
"Yes, dear. I'd love to see it again."
Hermione went to a nearby alcove to drop her clothes and gently pull the dress from the box.
Hermione gasped. It was truly magical. Intricate lace swirled across the bodice and down the sides.
She took extra care as she slowly pulled the dress up. It was tight. She imagined Mrs. Weasley would have been as slender as Ginny on her wedding day.
Hermione pulled her arms through the long sleeves. It wasn't often that she found something so beautiful, and in such perfect condition at the Burrow. This dress must have been special to Mrs. Weasley.
After Hermione magicked the clasps shut, she looked down at herself in the magnificent white dress. The dress hung gently off her shoulders, leaving them open and bare. The lace ran down the long sleeves. Her heart skipped a beat. She'd never tried a wedding dress on before, never even thought about it. But standing here, she felt like she was a different person.
"Oh my." She heard Mrs. Weasley gasped as Hermione made her way out into the kitchen. Hermione twirled.
"It's...lovely, Mrs. Weasley." Was all Hermione could get out.
"And you look absolutely stunning, Hermione." She said, with tears springing from her eyes.
They both stood there silently. Mrs. Weasley just stared at the dress. Hermione could see the memories gushing to the surface.
"Well, we need to get a picture of this, don't we?" Said Mrs. Weasley, hunting for the old wizard's camera on the table.
Picking it up, she prepared the lens and before she could snap the shot, they heard a pop from the living room and a voice echoing loudly as it walked in through the kitchen door.
"Mum! Can you get me one of Dad's ties for my date tonight-?"
Hermione turned slightly to see Ron standing in the doorway, face frozen as he took her in.
Without warning, a light flashed and Mrs. Weasley snapped the shot.
Hermione stared at Ron in surprise. He was clean-shaven, standing in the doorway in a well-manicured deep grey pantsuit. She felt a blush creeping up her neck as he remained stock still looking at her in the tall, lacy gown that fit in all the right places.
"Sure dear." Mrs. Weasley answered as if she didn't notice the tension in the room. "I'll be right back with something nice."
Hermione didn't know what to do.
"It's your mum's." Hermione said, breaking Ron out of his trance. "We found it downstairs and she asked me to try it on."
Ron gulped. "I-I'll wait in the living room." He said ducking out as quickly as possible.
Hermione had prepared everything she'd planned to say to Ron at the next family dinner. The last thing she'd expected was for him to show up weeks early while she was wearing a wedding dress.
Now or never. Hermione told herself as she lifted the dress and followed him barefoot into the living room.
"Ron." She called after him.
She could tell he was trying to bee-line out the front door when she stopped him.
"Can we talk?" She asked.
He stopped and slowly turned around. "Not necessary, Hermione." His face was bright red and his eyes were wide, appearing as though here were a deer that had been cornered.
"Please?" She pushed, gently.
"Could you help him with the tie, Hermione. He always has a bit of trouble on the knot." Mrs. Weasley magicked a tie through the air in their direction as she hurried back into the kitchen to check on her food. Hermione caught it.
"Uhh...sure." Hermione said to the empty doorway, unsure. She'd helped her father with his tie when she was young.
Now or never. She breathed.
Hermione walked up to Ron and hooked the tie around his neck.
"Ron. I've been meaning to talk to you...well tell you…" Her words weren't coming out at all like she had planned. She continued. "I wanted to say thank you for...sharing your feelings with me the other day."
Ron remained stock still, eyes frozen staring down at her, terrified to move a muscle.
"What I mean to say is, you were honest with me, and I'd like to be honest with you...and I owe you a big apology."
She looked up at him as she began tying the knot. It had been a while, so as she talked, she also focused as much as possible on getting it right.
"I was scared too... back then." She breathed as she continued to tie the knot. "I thought that maybe I had misread the...signals...and that I shouldn't have kissed you. I thought that you were uncomfortable, because you didn't...care for me. And you were so busy, and didn't want any help. I thought I was being selfish. That I was being selfish asking you to go to Australia with me."
She risked a glance up. He was still motionless, but she could tell he was absorbing her every word.
She pulled the tie through the knot and down his chest.
"And after...Australia...something in me broke. I was scared. My parents were gone, I felt like I was alone. I figured, if I kept my distance, and I focused solely on getting justice for my parents... if I wasn't vulnerable, I couldn't be hurt." everything was spilling out and she knew it wasn't making sense, "I could avoid everything and not feel. I was so tired of...feeling…"
She paused, but then continued on, trying to get it all out before her courage disappeared.
"But then, I ended up hurting you...and Harry...and it was so much easier to fight with you then face my own feelings. I...I made a mistake and I should have trusted that you would be there for me. I am so sorry Ron."
Ron wasn't prepared to say anything, and Hermione didn't give him the chance. She grabbed his hands in hers.
"I loved you too, Ron. More than anything." She paused and looked him directly in the eye. "And expect I always will."
She saw Ron gulp, his eyes wide. She took a moment, worried he might keel over.
"I know we can't go back, and I know you're literally about to go on a date…" She chuckled looking down at his hands in hers. "But I am going to do everything I can to earn back your and Harry's trust… and maybe...one day we can be...friends again." She said it more wishfully than she meant, but it was out there and she felt relieved.
"Now," she said matter-of-factly dropping his hands and adjusting the knot on his tie one final time, "it's time for your date. You look...perfect." She said softly.
He heard a loud clank from the kitchen, and that seemed to jerk him out of his trance. He took a few quick paces away from her towards the fireplace. She couldn't make out the expression on his face.
He took one long look at her, standing in the intricately laced white dress, and then -pop- disappeared without a word.