Just Another Victim of Love
Chapter 7: Off to the Burrow We Go!
Disclaimer: Not mine! (Short and straight to the point, non?)
A/N: *Sigh* I'm beginning to really hate my title. It sounds so corny! I'm also very sorry for not updating for SO long! Anyway, back to the story. Hmm, the whole Ron and Hermione thing was a bit rushed in the last chapter huh? Well, do keep it in mind that their relationship was put on hold for seven years so when the time was right (i.e. they both were available) Ron decided to "pounce" and grab onto Hermione before he lost her again. Also, for those who might be curious, though I believe no one has asked me yet, why were Fred and George at the graduation dance when they have graduated already? The answer to that is simple really; the families of the graduates were invited to the dinner, then left so the graduates could enjoy their last dance together as a class or year. Being the devils they were, Fred and George sneaked into the dance to cause chaos and test their new products.
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Hermione looked around. The familiar lopsided house greeted her in the same fashion it did seven summers ago. God did she miss the Burrow! For some strange reason, she felt like she was home. Hermione suddenly noticed that Ron was staring at her, with his oh-so-cute grin and a sort of amused look on his face.
"What?" asked Hermione, giving Ron one of her "glares" again.
"Hey, hey, hey! Relax ok? We don't want your pretty face to be stuck like that now do we?" said Ron, in a teasing manner.
"Shut up Ron!"
"What?" said Ron, as innocently as he could. Then he added, "I'm just glad that you seem happy to be here, at the Burrow."
"Oh, I am. It's been awhile huh?"
"Yeah, it has. The place was different without you Hermione." Hermione blushed at this.
"Oh shut up Ron. The place was fine without me before I met you and Harry and it looks fi –"
"Hermione!" Before she knew what was happening, Mrs. Weasley gave Hermione one of her famous bone-crushing hugs.
"Oof! Umm, glad to see you too Mrs. Weasley!" Hermione said to the mother of the seven red-haired children.
"Hermione dear! Did we miss you at the Burrow! It's so nice to see you here again," said Mrs. Weasley. Hermione was pleased to hear this, until she added, "with Ron." Hermione blushed again and Ron took the opportunity to hold her hand. Mrs. Weasley positively beamed. Then, out of the corner of her eye, Hermione noticed two identical red-haired figures trying to tiptoe out of the yard.
"Fred, George! How nice to see you two again! Why, I haven't seen you two for ages! You guys aren't going anywhere now are you?" asked Hermione, in a manner which teachers talked to guilty students.
"Umm, of course not Hermione," said George. The two undoubtedly knew that Hermione knew about the cheering charm at the graduation. Fred decided to act innocent anyway. "Yea, so we were just trying to see if we could leave the yard, without you noticing of course, to, umm, leave you alone with mum and Ron."
"Oh, I see. Thanks for being so considerate," said Hermione icily.
"Yea, so as we were saying… We'll leave you there alone now. I'm sure we'll be able to catch up later," said George in a hurry, obviously hoping to get away from Hermione as soon as possible.
"Oh no, that's not necessary. I would like a word with you two." Fred and George gulped. Hermione gave a small shattered laugh. "Boys, it's not like I'm going to kill you or anything. You two have behaved yourselves haven't you? Done nothing that would upset me in the slightly way, in the last, say, seven years?" asked Hermione.
"No, Hermione, of course not!" said Fred, who tried laugh it off but ended up delivering a guilty sort of giggle.
"Okay then, you may go. However, if I find out anything that you two have done that would have caused me misery, you two aren't going to be very comfortable, you hear?" Hermione made her point very clear.
By the time Hermione finished her last sentence, Fred and George bolted out of the yard. Obviously, they thought that she was going to hex them any second. When her turned around to face Mrs. Weasley and Ron again, she noticed that the mom of seven had a look of amusement and curiosity on her face. Ron on the other hand chuckled.
"You're pretty and smart, but you got a really scary side too. It's no wonder that I love you!" said Ron. Hermione blushed again and simply took Ron's hand. "Let's go." Ron smiled.
"Oh, demanding too huh? I like," said Ron, giving Hermione the grin and the waggling eyebrows. She tried to give him a stern look but only managed to do so for a second then burst into a huge smile. With Ron in tow, Hermione walked towards the Burrow feeling much happier than she had in a long while.
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Harry had just apparated into the front yard of the Burrow. From the note he had received from Ron just a while ago, he knew that Ron and Hermione had patched things up. He was torn between being happy for his best friend(s) and disappointed for himself. Slowly but surely, he walked towards the door. Hermione, who had spotted Harry from the window, ran to the door and flung it open.
"Harry! You're finally here!" said Hermione enthusiastically, while giving her best friend a big hug.
"Hermione! As much as I love you…" Ron gave Harry an evil glare, "…as a friend, and the fact you give wonderful hugs, you can get off me now. It's not like you haven't seen me for years and years. I saw you just two days ago" reminded Harry.
"Well then, I'm in a touchy mood today! Besides, I think you deserve a big hug. What would Ron and I do without you? Why, I don't think you'll be talking to each other without you!" said Hermione, crushing Harry even more. He didn't mind the hug, but the words stung. 'Help them?' Hermione loosened her grip on Harry.
"Well dear," said Ron while putting his arms around Hermione from behind so she would release Harry, "if you feel touchy, you can always touch me. Anytime." Ron snuggled his face in Hermione's neck.
Harry felt extremely uncomfortable. It wasn't because his best friends were together but he was beginning to feel something for Hermione. To cover up his slight bitterness to Ron, he coughed loudly, put on his silly grin and said that perhaps they could get a drink before he gagged. The couple thought he was joking of course, but Harry thought that if he didn't get a drink soon, he really would be sick.
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"So Ryan, what do you do for a living again?" asked Harry. The Weasley family, minus the three oldest children, along with Hermione, Harry and Ryan were sitting around the table in the yard for a mini feast. Not surprisingly, Fred and George chose to sit at the opposite end of where Hermione was sitting.
"Well, I'm a plumber," said Ryan.
"Really? A plumber huh? Interesting…" said Harry looked away. 'Ginny married a plumber?'
"I know what you're thinking Potter! Ryan owns a muggle plumbing company but sometimes he works as well because… well even I don't know why!" said Ginny, defending her husband. Then she added, "Not everyone is a big-shot Quidditch star like you Mr. Potter."
Harry felt a little embarrassed and looked at Hermione. She smiled back at him and him smiled back. Ron was furious. He tightened his grip on Hermione's waist to pull her closer. To Harry's dismay, she snuggled herself closer to Ron, leaning on his chest. Ron looked at Harry with a smirk, as if trying to challenge him to do something about it. Hermione, who was completely unaware of the feud that was boiling between her boyfriend and best friend reached across the table to grab Harry's hand to give him an affectionate squeeze. It was Harry's turn to smile.
A/N: Do I see a love triangle forming? LOL! I hope so. Anyway, I apologize for such a short chapter even though I didn't update for so long. I promised to update very very soon for the next chapter! Anyway, please review and I'll be grateful forever! Happy holidays everyone! I wish you all the best and enjoy the break guys! Remember to look "Under the Stars".