It took some encouragement to get Mr. and Mrs. Weasley to leave the Burrow on a holiday for just the two of them. They hadn't done anything like that since before Bill was born, apparently. And with the more children they had, the less money that was left over for things like this. But now that the war was over, by a whole year now, the children were grown and out of the house, there was no excuse for them not to.

Mrs. Weasley tried to insist otherwise. She simply couldn't just leave. What about her husband's job or ensuring the house was taken care of? Never mind that there were plenty of spells for them to put up to dust along the walls and to water the plants or de-gnome the garden. It took pretty much all of her children to sit her down, telling her it was finally time, now that it was mostly safe once again, for her and their dad to take some time for themselves.

Percy went ahead on his dad's behalf-quickly adding that he hoped that was okay. He was still a bit skittish sometimes around his family as he tried to mend those prior wounds-to ask Kingsley for some time off. The former auror was all too happy to say yes. It left Mr. Weasley with nearly two weeks to do as he pleased and there was to be a portkey arranged for the both of them, to go wherever they wanted to go. Mrs. Weasley was overwhelmed at the chance; she simply didn't know where to go. They hadn't had the opportunity before. It was after some discussion between her and her husband, did they come up with the idea of visiting Germany.

The only decision that needed to be made was in regards as to who would check on the Burrow occasionally. Menial chores aside, there was a minor threat that the home would be targeted for their relationship to Harry. It worried Mrs. Weasley. She almost considered canceling the trip. Luckily, her children and most importantly, Harry told her that she and Mr. Weasley deserved to have this after everything that had happened.

In the end, they went. Hermione offered to look after the house for them, for which Mrs. Weasley was immensely grateful. Percy, too, said he would come by when she couldn't. The older woman was just so relieved that he was back and joining in the family once again; she threw her arms around Percy's middle, openly weeping. She would have expected him to be embarrassed-but perhaps Hermione had been around Ron too long, having anticipated that kind of reaction. However, he hadn't been. He'd reciprocated the hug, whispering something that she couldn't hear.

Now, here she was, looking out the window in the Burrow's kitchen. The weather was fair; the sun shined, the birds chirped. Hermione hummed to herself, enjoying the calm serenity that surrounded her. When it wasn't being occupied by the Weasley children, having their voices reverberate off the walls or wood creaking from all the running, it was relatively peaceful.

She felt a warm body press up against her own. A pair of lips kissed her temple and the unique scent that could only be attributed to him filled her nose. She exhaled calmly, unable to repress the smile that came to her.

"Have I told you how much I love the shampoo you use? Because I most certainly do," he nuzzled her.

"Once or twice," she recalled.

"Consider this my third time."

She laughed softly, turning around to face him, whilst staying within his arms. "I thought we were meeting later?" She didn't mind, of course.

"We were," he said with a nod of his head. "But I just had to see you sooner." His thumbs were rubbing into her back and she bit back a moan in response to how wonderful it felt. "I've hardly seen you this week."

"I know," she let out a soft sigh. They'd made prior arrangements to meet up, but alas none of those plans were able to be fulfilled. Something or other kept popping up, whether it was work or their friends wanted to get together. They couldn't just say no, and they couldn't come out and say why they were unable to. Some days, the secret was more of a hassle. It would have been far easier to admit everything than to keep going as is. Though, there was something awfully alluring about only them knowing. It meant they weren't bombarded with questions regarding a wedding or grandchildren or remarks at Percy's expense as to how he'd gotten Hermione in the first place. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's quite alright," he said, his face inches from hers. "You'll simply have to make it up to me."

She cracked a grin. Hermione loved to see this side of Percy. It was a side that not many knew was there; he kept it hidden except within her presence. "What-" She was promptly cut off by his warm, soft lips capturing hers.

"We have the entire house to ourselves."

"Mmm."

"No one to see us."

"Mmmm."

"No one to hear us." Godric, his lips were right beside her ear. She shivered.

"Are you trying to hint at what I think you're hinting at, Mr. Weasley?"

"Not hinting. Suggesting."

"In that case..." She grinned.

/

"You cheated," Percy stated flatly.

"I did no such thing," Hermione insisted.

"I don't believe you."

"How? How could I?"

"I'm not sure, but you did," Trouble was, he had difficulty concealing his own mirth. "Admit your wrongdoing and I might forgive you."

"My wrongdoing?" Hermione laughed. "I haven't done anything wrong. You, on the other hand...whoever would have thought Percy Weasley was terribly impatient."

"You would be too if you were in my spot," he grumbled.

The two of them had a shared love for muggle board games. A favorite of Percy's was monopoly; he'd become rather fond of it ever since their third date. She had been showing him some of muggle London and soon had gotten on the topic of games. She wasn't all that interested in Exploding Snap and came to find out the Wizarding World was limited in area of entertainment. Curious of his reaction, Hermione steered him toward a local shop, full of toys and games. She'd hid a smile as Percy's eyes lit up in wonder, gently touching things, jumping back in surprise when he'd poked a stuffed animal, unaware it was going to meow at him.

It was really something; for the longest time, Percy believed he was nothing like the rest of his family, when he was truly just like his dad.

They ended up stumbling across the board games. Percy was intrigued by them, reading through the multitude of titles, asking Hermione if she'd seen this one or that; out of her peripheral vision, she saw the shopkeeper eyeing Percy suspiciously. She suggested they get the Monopoly game. It was one she hadn't played before, so they could learn together.

It was then that they learned something about the other: They were wildly competitive.

It was a bit embarrassing for Hermione. She swore she didn't know what came over her. She would just get in over her head, shouting in frustration, getting increasingly louder as it went on. That wasn't her. She would have expected such behavior from Ron! But she couldn't help herself.

And then there was Percy. Certainly did she not think he would have difficulty controlling himself. Imagine her surprise when he, too, let his impatience flare.

It was all relatively amusing afterwards. They had a good laugh over it. But it was also another secret to add to the pile. They dreaded to think what the others would say if they knew; if they saw how the two of them, usually much more dignified, were acting.

Or perhaps, they wouldn't mind so much that, when their attention would be drawn to the two of them laying on the floor side by side, fingers intertwined. They were on their sides, facing each other, with a hint of a smile on their lips.

"You might as well admit you cheated," Percy said playfully.

"I haven't done a thing," She refused to do so.

"Miss Granger, I'm afraid if you don't comply, I will have to take drastic measures to ensure that you do," Percy said smoothly, with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

"Oh?" She raised her eyebrows. "And what measures are those?"

"Why don't you find out?"

She barely had time to register his words when she was pulled right on top of him, effectively straddling Percy. His hands were in her hair, her lips back on his with a sense of frenzy and passion that overtook her. And there were sparks, bloody sparks from the kisses. It was like a trail of fire that started on her lips, only for it to move down her neck.

They were so lost within their own little world that they did not hear the two faint cracks in the background.

Nor did they see the horrified facial expression of one Ron Weasley.

"What the-!"

Hermione and Percy flew apart as if they'd been hexed. She desperately tried to fix her hair while he hastily fixed his glasses. They stumbled to their feet, making an effort to stand a bit apart from each other. They felt flustered under the shocked looks from Harry and Ron, who stood there frozen.

"What...what the-" Ron spluttered, still unable to come up with a coherent sentence. "You were..."

"I know," She said hurriedly. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you. It's just that-"

"We didn't know how any of you would react," Percy said carefully.

"So you're...you're..."

"Yes, Ron," Hermione said as matter-of-factly as she could, feeling Percy slip his hand into hers. Her confidence increased to where she had no trouble saying, "We're together."

"Together!" Ron burst out. He turned wildly to Harry. "They're together!"

"Right," Harry said slowly.

"And kissing!" Ron was going to have a coronary at this rate. "They were kissing!"

"I know, Ron,'" Harry said tiredly. "I saw them."

"My brother," Ron was looking at her in horror. "Merlin, you're with my brother! If you're doing...that, what else are you doing to him?"

Hermione was going to refute that. They hadn't done any of what Ron was insinuating they'd done. But she had no chance for that; Percy said in a short clipped tone, "That's none of your business."

"So, er, how long have you two been involved?" That came from Harry. He was decidedly more tactful about it.

"A few months," Percy said to him. "Five, to be exact."

"That long?" Harry was surprised. "When did that happen?"

Ron was looking accusatory at both of them.

Hermione answered this time. "Remember when Cormac stood me up? Percy was at the Leaky that night and we just hit it off."

She felt him gently squeeze her hand.

"Oh," Harry took a minute to think about it. "Well, good for you. Percy's better than McLaggen, that's for sure."

Percy all but beamed at the compliment. He'd felt awkward around Harry for the first few months after the war ended, regretful of his past words regarding him and his supposed insanity. Harry was forgiving though-sometimes too forgiving, in her opinion-he'd waved it off ages ago.

"Anyone is," she grumbled.

There was still the matter of dealing with Ron. He was practically frozen in his spot. Harry nudged him with his elbow. "Come on, Ron. It's not a big deal. She could be seeing someone a lot worse."

Percy pulled into his side and she relaxed slightly with the feel of his arm around her. "Ron," he said with firmness yet gentleness, "I love Hermione. She's the best thing that's happened to me. Now I'm sorry if you happen to be upset by this but we're going to see each other whether you are okay with this or not." He stood up tall and proud. Hermione felt a little flutter in her heart upon hearing that.

Ron didn't immediately respond. He seemed uncomfortable-and constipated. Hermione anticipated another blow up but it never came. "Err, right," he mumbled.

"You're okay with it?" Hermione couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah," Ron said after a moment. He was much calmer this time around. Harry was eying him somewhat warily like he didn't believe him and thought he was going to have another outburst. "It's a bit weird, is all. That's it. I didn't think you two were together. You...you never talk at Sunday dinners!"

It was far from an accusing tone. It was full of curiosity, confusion.

"We didn't want it to be obvious," Hermione admitted.

Ron looked straight at Percy. "Do you love her?" He asked with a touch of seriousness. "Hermione's one of my best friends and I don't want her hurt."

Percy nodded. He boldly cupped Hermione's cheek in front of them, his face soft and loving like she adored seeing. "More than anything."

Their relationship flourished, most especially after that.

And on their wedding day, Percy cupped her face with both hands, going on for a long snog that had his siblings wolf whistling.