Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

"Hermione! Are you done yet? We have to go!" Ron called through the bathroom door. Hermione stared back at herself in the mirror. She had corralled her hair into smooth waves and she had applied some light makeup which looked very becoming on her newly sun kissed skin. She rubbed her hands up and down her bare arms, dislodging the slender straps of her dress.

She was wearing a deep burgundy velvet dress that had a shallow v neckline. It had a band at the waist where new fabric began underneath this so as to accentuate her figure. She looked like summer personified, and she would have been stunning if it hadn't been for the frown she wore. She was not at all ready to explain things to her parents or to face their rightful wrath.

She opened the door and Ron's hand fell suddenly and rather sharply to his side. He had been about to knock again. He gaped at her and she couldn't help but giggle. She looked up at him through her eyelashes as he stumbled for words.

"You look like an angel." He stammered awkwardly and she just beamed at him and hooked her arm through his.

"And you look positively sinful." She told him truthfully.

He snorted inelegantly. "Is that so?"

"Let's just say I very much approve. Feel free to wear suits more often." He laughed and there was a hint of need underneath it that was too much for Hermione to handle. She shivered though she wasn't cold and cleared her throat, steering him out of the room and into the lift.

He said nothing but he was watching her with a curious expression on his face as they rode down the floors.

"What?" She asked when she could no longer stand it.

"I was just thinking that there's no way your parents are going to let you stay the night here with me when you look like that." She smirked at him.

"I don't think they'll care one way or the other." He frowned but didn't have an opportunity to say anything further.

They emerged into the restaurant and Hermione almost felt under dressed. The tables at the front of the restaurant were occupied by ladies, gentleman, and everyone in between in their best finery, whether they chose to wear dresses or suits. The hostess guided them back to their private table and Hermione hung her beaded bag on the back of her chair, putting a temporary sticking charm on it so it wouldn't be hit accidentally, or stolen. Ron settled his arm around her shoulders and the waitress brought them some wine.

Hermione had tried wine only once and hadn't particularly enjoyed the experience. But she figured she'd be fine after having become somewhat accustomed to firewhiskey. She took an experimental sip and found it to be less harsh than it had been that first time. She actually found the bitter huskiness rather delicious.

Ron choked a little bit on it and she couldn't help but laugh at the look on his face. "Sorry. I probably should have warned you." He grimaced and took another sip, this time managing to keep a much straighter face.

He casually removed his arm as the hostess reappeared, this time followed by Jean and Richard Granger. Her father was wearing a classic black suit and her mother was wearing a cream long-sleeved dress. They looked rather serious but they both smiled as they thanked the hostess and took their seats.

They were silent while they considered their order and didn't began to speak of anything but small talk until all of their food came. They didn't want to be interrupted during the very serious and somber conversation they were about to have. Hermione's leg began to bounce nervously and Ron put his hand on her knee to try and calm here. Unfortunately, this only managed to do the opposite. Didn't he know what he did to her? Finally, their food arrived.

"So. Let's hear it. The whole thing." Her father ordered her gently, meeting her eyes squarely for the first time.

"When Harry was a baby he defeated the worst dark wizard the world had ever seen, or so we thought. his name was Voldemort, though everyone was too afraid of him to call him that except for a select few which ended up including us." Hermione sent a small smile at Ron. She then went on to explain their first four years at Hogwarts by finally filling in all of the holes in the explanations she had given them.

"And Voldemort was reborn." She paused. "I knew," she looked at Ron and he entwined their fingers under the table, "we knew, that Harry would have to face him eventually and we would follow. In our fifth year we began to fight back against those who sympathized, shall we say, with the Death Eaters. We formed an illegal defense army."

Ron took over for a little while to explain about horcruxes and their sixth year and her parents watched in horrified fascination as he explained what they were. Hermione marvelled at the fact that he had known she needed a break to gather herself before launching into the events of the summer and wiping their memories.

"That summer was…hard for Ron and I. Much harder than Harry ever assumed. We joined the rebellion, the Order of the Phoenix, since we were of age. We went on missions for them that were very dangerous. I was mostly staying at Ron's house, remember? Things were starting to get even worse than they had been last year. You remember all of the so-called random disasters they reported in the news that year. People I knew were dying, stores were ransacked, people were kidnapped, it was becoming so incredibly dangerous."

She took a deep breath. "Ron and I had agreed to go hunt for horcruxes with Harry. We knew we would be skipping school to go on a mission to destroy them." Her parents gasped. "I had been threatened multiple times, openly and in the street, and I knew that you would probably be targeted through me. I had to erase your memories for your safety, but also for Harry's."

"For Harry's?" Her mother asked quietly.

"Yes. You knew a lot about him and I couldn't have the Death Eaters find out what I had told you, incomplete though it was. You knew quite a bit about the Weasleys as well and I knew they would be targeted as well. Not to mention, they would use you to get information on me, and to hurt me. You had to forget so that if they found you, you would be of no use to them. But…" She took a fortifying sip of wine, letting go of Ron's hand.

"But I couldn't let them find you because, even if they found out you knew nothing, they would still kill you. After they tortured you, of course." She shuddered and her parents were aghast. "So I erased even myself from your memories and sent you here where they couldn't find you, with instructions to find one more address after your first so you couldn't be tracked by anyone."

"And then you went on the run and what destroyed these…horcruxes, and Voldemort died?" Her dad asked. Her and Ron exchanged a look full of sorrow.

"No." Hermione said quietly, looking at no one. "There was a war."

Her mother put her hand to her mouth and her father frowned, but they stayed silent.

"I mean, the whole thing was a war and it was very…messy, but it culminated in a final battle. We fought in it, I'm a war heroine." She said, lifting her chin and saying the words fiercely. "We won, and then some stuff happened, and then I came to find you and return your memories and ask if you would like to come back to England."

"You don't have to decide right now, or even today. This is…a lot, to take in." Ron added quietly.

"I mean, you took away our memories, who we were, without our consent." Richard said softly and Hermione nodded. They certainly had a right to be angry, she understood that.

"I don't know why you couldn't have come to us." Jean agreed. "We would have gone into hiding if it was that bad."

"And you would have dragged me there with you." Hermione said evenly, meeting her mother's eyes.

"Ah." Her father said. "So that's why you did it then. So that we would be safe and you could go off and play the hero." Hermione clenched her teeth together.

"Not to play hero. Do you think I wanted to be on the run, hunted by Death Eaters, to see my loved ones die, to be…hurt, and nearly killed, to have to kill people?!" She was shaking and she took a deep breath to calm herself down. I had a part to play, Harry needed me, and I had to fight for what I believed in. I had to fight for other people like me who were being killed simply because of the unfortunate fact of how they were born. I had to fight to honour those we had already lost. So yes, I kept it from you. But don't ever think that it was for glory."

"You said yourself you became a war heroine." Her father pointed out. "It seems like you went on a camping trip, fought in a low-risk battle and came out a hero."

Hermione gaped at him. Her chest felt heavy and she had never been so wounded by words before. She breathed out of her nose sharply to stop herself from crying in frustration and grief and hurt.

"You have no idea what we endured on that 'camping trip'." Ron bit in angrily. "No idea what she had to endure, no idea how incredibly, lethally dangerous the world had become for Hermione as someone born to people without magical powers. That isn't a slight on you, I'm just trying to make you understand. There was a muggleborn registration commission that rounded up all muggleborns; men, women, children, and accused them of treason. They killed them all just because their parents weren't magical. The wizarding world was incredibly dangerous and a horrible place and if not for Hermione the world would not be the safe place it has become. She has endured things you cannot even believe to imagine, so don't you dare tell her she did it for glory." He wasn't yelling, but he told them this all firmly.

Hermione grasped his hand under the table and squeezed it in thanks. She hadn't the strength to defend herself to her parents. Nor to tell them she had been tortured, in so so many ways.

"Can we take the night to discuss this?" Her mother asked calmly, forestalling whatever reply her father had been about to make. Hermione nodded and grabbed her bag off of the chair.

"It doesn't make it right, but I did it because I love you." She murmured, standing up and exiting the restaurant. She walked outside of the hotel around the back pathway. She didn't need to look back to know Ron was close behind her.

"I think that went well." He said dryly and she began to laugh. She turned into him and pressed her forehead to his chest. She sighed.

"I'm going to have to tell them everything about going on the run and the war eventually aren't i?" She asked him, clasping her hands together around his lower back.

"Only if you want to." He said honestly. "My parents don't know everything." She nodded into him, remembering the horrified reactions of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley when they had told them the watered down version of what had happened.

"Ugh. I thought it would get easier when the war ended, not harder. I mean," she pulled back from him abruptly, "my Dad told me I fought for glory. How fucking twisted is that?" Her voice rose despite herself, but they were quite alone.

"I never knew you swore so much." Ron commented lightly, voice tinged with amusement. She knew he was distracting her and she just wove her arm around him and smiled, thankful for it.

"I never used to." She grinned. "You've been a bad influence."

"Me?" He asked innocently and she snorted.

"How many times did you tell Draco to go fuck himself at school?" She asked. Ron grinned delightedly.

"He deserved it." She rolled her eyes.

"Mhmm."

"So." His eyes dilated and Hermione suddenly found it very hard to breathe. "What was this about my suit looking so good on me it was sinful?"

"I don't think I used those exact words," she breathed as he put his arms around her.

"Close enough." He whispered, bending his head down to kiss her neck. Her left hand found his neck, her right hand going to his hair as her back brushed up against the wall of the hotel.

"Ron. We're in public." She forced herself to say after some time.

"Let's not be, then." He said huskily and grabbed her hand, pulling her into the lift. Hermione abandoned herself to his love and promptly forgot all about her parents' reaction until she woke up the next morning.

-HGRW-

Hermione barely slept, unbeknownst to Ron who never stopped snoring. That fact only managed to make her more irritated and she was in a right foul mood the next morning. Ron wisely kept out of her way and got ready swiftly when he woke up. Unfairly, she wondered when he had gotten sense.

They made their way down to breakfast and found her parents seated in the large pea-coloured chairs across from the eating area and in front of the TV. They smiled at them as they walked in and Ron went over to grab a plate of food, leaving Hermione alone with them.

"So?" Hermione asked quietly.

"We're your parents, Hermione." Her father informed her. She stayed quiet.

"We will always love you. And we want to be in your life again. It's only been just over a year but it seems you have grown up so much in that short time." Her mother continued.

"We'd like a week or two more here before we come home, but don't miss your flight. We'll see you when we get home."

Hermione figured that was the best she was going to get. "Our portkeys are scheduled on Monday." She informed them. "Ron wasn't very fond of flying."

"I know this is hard and we're not trying to punish you, but could we have these next week just to ourselves?"

"Of course." She said softly. "I love you." They watched her with matching frowns but didn't stand up to hug her. She nodded to herself and wandered off to find some breakfast.

Ron waved her over and her sadness melted mostly away as she saw that he had gotten her breakfast too. He was shoveling eggs into his mouth and Hermione rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she slid into the chair across from him. He put his fork down immediately and swallowed.

"Well?" His voice was gentle. She scrunched her nose.

"They want to be in my life and come home, but after they have the next week to themselves. I told them we wouldn't bother them and they asked that we keep our original departure."

Ron frowned through this information. "Well, sounds like we get seven whole days to ourselves here on vacation." He flashed her a smile and she couldn't help but return it.

"Seems like it." She stirred her yogurt disconsolately.

"Well let's plan some things to do then. Might as well make the best of it. Whatever you want."

She nodded slowly. "Okay. We can grab some pamphlets from the lobby after breakfast."

"I have one request." He told her. "I've always wanted to fly the way muggles do with those weird wing things they attach and then jump off of cliffs with."

Hermione was impressed he even knew what that was. "Parasailing?" She asked him in surprise.

"Yeah! Whaddya say?"

She grimaced. She was not a fan of heights. He raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "I am so going to regret this."

"Yes!" He exclaimed jubilantly.

"But only if you to an opera with me at the Sydney Opera House." He crinkled his nose in distaste but grudgingly agreed. Luckily, they were wizards and therefore the whole of Australia would be at their fingertips in a matter of seconds.

Their own hotel had a secret wizard's section hidden in the elevator. It was why they had chosen it. There was a whole sort of underground world beneath Australia, sort of like the one in New York City. Hermione wondered if she could get Ron to go to the coral reef and become a mermaid in a sheltered cove experience that existed exclusively for witches and wizards.

"Ron." She began. "What do you think about becoming a merman?" She tried desperately not to laugh at the expression on his face.

"Excuse me?"

"There's a cove near the coral reef where they turn you into Merpeople and you get to swim around and breathe underwater. It's very advanced Transfiguration and I've always wanted to do it."

"Have you seen Merpeople Hermione? They are incredibly ugly, and, according to Harry, volatile and dangerous when they want to be."

"Ah," she said, "but these aren't the British type of Merpeople. These Merpeople are the original ones who came over to Australia from Greece. They're the beautiful ones you see in artwork and myths."

He was smiling curiously at her.

"What?"

"Nothing." He said, smiling deeper. She watched him for a moment before deciding not to press it. "You're just adorable when you talk about things that interest you."

To her horror, she blushed. "Not long ago I believe you called that my insufferable bookworm attitude." She quipped and he shrugged.

"Not anymore." He winked at her. She looked away from him and he chuckled. "Alright. I'll be a merman for you. But only for you, and no pictures unless I look incredibly hot."

She erupted into a gale of laughter she couldn't even try to stop. He frowned playfully. "Are you mocking me?"

"Yes." She breathed, desperately trying to stop and failing. Eventually, he reluctantly joined in.

"It's been so long since we got to relax, or to do something filled with adrenaline that wasn't fighting for our life." He said softly.

She nodded. "I feel bad for leaving everyone else and having fun though."

"What did you say to me? Life doesn't stop so we might as well keep on living."

"I don't think that was what I said." She frowned.

"You've gotta stop saying that. I am nowhere near as brilliant as you and my mind is too full of images" here he stopped to give her a sly grin, "to remember the exact words you use." She lifted an eyebrow, but regarded him fondly.

"I'll try. But for now, let's keep on living." She stood and grasped his hand. They walked back up to their room to drop off their bags, activating he magical lock on their door which would recognize their wands instead of their room key. Then, hand-in-hand, they walked downstairs and began the journey to the mermaid cove. Hermione smiled to herself at the thought, she was quite sure that Ron would make a very dashing merman.