Part Thirteen:
Everybody at the Burrow Apparated to the small church. There, they met up with Charlie and his family...and were soon joined by the Muggles in Hermione's family.
"Where is the vicar!" Helen Granger fretted as the party went into their separate rooms to get ready.
"Mum, will you relax?" Hermione demanded. She herself was only beginning to calm down after the incident that morning. "The wedding isn't for two hours, there's nothing to worry about."
Mrs. Weasley, Mrs. Granger, Mrs. O'Neil (Hermione's aunt), Rebecca (her cousin), and all the Weasley women went into one of the small church's upper rooms. There, they got themselves ready and helped Hermione. Mrs. Weasley had warned them all about using too much magic. "We don't want to alienate the Muggles," she'd said earlier.
But Hermione's Aunt Shannon WANTED them to use magic. "Come on, girls, pull out your wands!" she trilled in an Irish accent. "We have to get moving if this wedding is going to happen in two hours!" So, reluctantly, Ginny and Angelica began putting strong spells on Hermione's hair. In five minutes, she had a complicated, twisty updo that looked great.
"Ow! It hurts!" she cried, putting a hand on her tightly-wound hair.
"Now, now, darling, beauty is pain," Mrs. Granger said, patting her daughter on the shoulder. Hermione winced in pain and annoyance.
Meanwhile, the men were in another room in the church, putting on their tuxedos. The crowded room was strangly quiet: the only people talking were Mr. Weasley and Hermione's Uncle Joseph. "Now, what sort of Muggle things have they in Ireland?" he asked as they put on their pants.
"Um..." The poor man didn't seem too comfortable talking about "Muggle things" with a wizard while putting on his trousers.
Ron sat on an old chair by the window, staring into space. The events of the morning flew through his brain. He still felt guilty about being such a coward...but Hermione's words ran through his head. Everything would be okay...
"Hey." Harry sat down in the chair next to Ron's. Ron smiled at his best friend, in his tuxedo.
"Never thought I'd see you in one of those, mate."
Harry winced, his face almost like Hermione's was in the next room. "Never again. You're the only person I'd do this for."
"Hey, you aren't doing this for me," Ron said with a smile. "If it were up to me, we'd all be wearing robes...or plain Muggle clothing, at least."
"Oh," Harry said. "Well, Hermione is the only other person I would do this for."
"What about Ginny?"
Harry's smile faded, but he tried to cover it up. "No, I wouldn't even do this for Ginny."
"No, I mean...what happened with you two last night?"
Harry sighed, and got into the story: how he'd been thinking about her at the bachelor party, how he'd gone back to the Burrow and found her in her bedroom, how they'd talked, and one thing led to another...
"I really care about her, Ron," Harry said. "I do. But I think she hates me now." He felt his heart sink at these words.
Ron shook his head. "Give Ginny time, mate. She's weird about these kind of things. Just...she'll come around."
"I dunno..."
There was a sudden knocking at the door. "Everyone got their britches on?" Charlie asked, and then he opened the door. A very startled-looking Mrs. Granger stood there.
"This is an emergency!" she cried.
"What IS it, Helen?" Hermione's dad demanded impatiently.
"Well, it's not an emergency, really, Daniel," Helen said sarcasticly. "If it's alright that the vicar has shown up."
"Oh, NO! Not the VICAR!" Mr. O'Neil teased.
"Joseph...he's dressed head-to-toe in ROSE PINK ROBES."
There was a silence in the room. Everyone looked at each other. Ron's eyes were wide with confusion and surprise. Suddenly, Bill broke the silence:
"Oh, he's gay."
The silence that followed this statement was followed by peals of laughter. Mrs. Granger didn't look amused.
"My daughter is not being married by a man wearing pink robes!"
"Helen, why does it matter?"
Mrs. Granger glared at her husband. Then she spotted Ron. "Ron, dear, you don't want to be married by a man in pink robes, do you?"
Ron found his voice. "Um...does Hermione mind?"
"Well..." Helen faltered.
"If she doesn't mind, then I don't," Ron said with a shrug.
"But-"
"GoodBYE, Helen," Mr. Granger said quickly, slamming the door in his wife's face. The laughter filled the room again.
"This is EXACTLY why we got eloped," Fred said, rolling his eyes.
At one o'clock, the wedding was scedualed to start. Hermione's head was pounding, but it didn't hurt as much: Mrs. Weasley had given her a goblet of pain potion that she'd quickly made. Mrs. Granger had insisted on giving her daughter some asprin, but Mrs. Weasley had insisted. "This stuff will take the pain away with the drowsiness," she promised.
"Oh...alright, then."
Hermione felt a little bad for her mother. She knew that the older woman had always been excited about planning her daughter's wedding. This hadn't been what Helen was expected: magic, and Squib vicars in pink robes? Definatly not her idea of perfection. But Hermione was too excited to dwell on her mother's feelings much. She did her wedding her way, Hermione thought. And this is the way I want MINE to be.
She stood in front of the full-length mirror in the small room as the others went to greet the guests. She thought she was alone, until she saw her mother standing behind her. Hermione turned around, and Helen's eyes filled with tears.
"You look so beautiful!"
"Thanks, Mum."
"I'd hug you, but I wouldn't want to wrinkle your dress."
"Don't worry: I know a good spell for wrinkle-removal." But Hermione saw the effect that those words, so casual in her world, had on her mother. "Are you okay?"
"What? Oh, yes, darling!" Mrs. Granger gushed. "It's your wedding day! I couldn't be any better!"
"No...something's wrong." Hermione knew her mother too well.
"Well, you know, dear...I wasn't expecting the vicar to come looking like THAT. That's exactly the reason we don't have Tarts and Vicars parties anymore: the vicars have all turned into tarts!" Mrs. Granger laughed at her own joke, and Hermione smiled half-heartedly.
"Are you sure that's it?"
Mrs. Granger's smile faded and she sighed. "Darling, I'm so happy that you're in love. Ron is a very good boy."
"But...?"
"But nothing, dear," Mrs. Granger went on. "It's just...and please, don't take this wrong, darling, you know I love you more then anything-"
"What IS it, Mum?"
"It's just..." Mrs. Granger's eyes filled with tears again. "I feel like I'm really losing you now."
"Mum, don't be silly!" Hermione cried with a small laugh. "You're not losing me! I'll call on you all the time!"
"It's not that, dear," Helen went on. She sighed again. "I felt this way when you went off to Hogwarts for the first time. We split apart. Our worlds are so...different."
Hermione finally understood: it was the magical-Muggle thing again. "Mum, you're not losing me."
"The magical world is your world," Mrs. Granger went on sadly. "All my grandchildren will be magical. They won't be able to relate to their Nana Granger."
"Mum..."
Helen let out a sob. Hermione felt so helpless: her mother had never told her this before. There was only one thing she could do: put her arms around her mother and hug her.
"Oh, darling!" Helen sobbed with a small laugh. "Look at me! I'm bringing you down on your wedding day! I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Mum."
"No, no," Helen pulled away. She was going back to normal, but there were still tears in her eyes. "Forget everything I said, I'm just a mother watching her little girl take the biggest step of her life."
There was a knock on the door, and Ginny stuck her head in. "Hermione? The guests are all here, are we going to do this?"
Hermione gave her mother one last look, then turned and looked at her reflection. No matter what her mother said now, she'd never forget what she'd just heard. She looked back at Ginny. "Yes," she whispered. "I'm ready." She followed Ginny out of the room, leaving her mother behind.
Everybody at the Burrow Apparated to the small church. There, they met up with Charlie and his family...and were soon joined by the Muggles in Hermione's family.
"Where is the vicar!" Helen Granger fretted as the party went into their separate rooms to get ready.
"Mum, will you relax?" Hermione demanded. She herself was only beginning to calm down after the incident that morning. "The wedding isn't for two hours, there's nothing to worry about."
Mrs. Weasley, Mrs. Granger, Mrs. O'Neil (Hermione's aunt), Rebecca (her cousin), and all the Weasley women went into one of the small church's upper rooms. There, they got themselves ready and helped Hermione. Mrs. Weasley had warned them all about using too much magic. "We don't want to alienate the Muggles," she'd said earlier.
But Hermione's Aunt Shannon WANTED them to use magic. "Come on, girls, pull out your wands!" she trilled in an Irish accent. "We have to get moving if this wedding is going to happen in two hours!" So, reluctantly, Ginny and Angelica began putting strong spells on Hermione's hair. In five minutes, she had a complicated, twisty updo that looked great.
"Ow! It hurts!" she cried, putting a hand on her tightly-wound hair.
"Now, now, darling, beauty is pain," Mrs. Granger said, patting her daughter on the shoulder. Hermione winced in pain and annoyance.
Meanwhile, the men were in another room in the church, putting on their tuxedos. The crowded room was strangly quiet: the only people talking were Mr. Weasley and Hermione's Uncle Joseph. "Now, what sort of Muggle things have they in Ireland?" he asked as they put on their pants.
"Um..." The poor man didn't seem too comfortable talking about "Muggle things" with a wizard while putting on his trousers.
Ron sat on an old chair by the window, staring into space. The events of the morning flew through his brain. He still felt guilty about being such a coward...but Hermione's words ran through his head. Everything would be okay...
"Hey." Harry sat down in the chair next to Ron's. Ron smiled at his best friend, in his tuxedo.
"Never thought I'd see you in one of those, mate."
Harry winced, his face almost like Hermione's was in the next room. "Never again. You're the only person I'd do this for."
"Hey, you aren't doing this for me," Ron said with a smile. "If it were up to me, we'd all be wearing robes...or plain Muggle clothing, at least."
"Oh," Harry said. "Well, Hermione is the only other person I would do this for."
"What about Ginny?"
Harry's smile faded, but he tried to cover it up. "No, I wouldn't even do this for Ginny."
"No, I mean...what happened with you two last night?"
Harry sighed, and got into the story: how he'd been thinking about her at the bachelor party, how he'd gone back to the Burrow and found her in her bedroom, how they'd talked, and one thing led to another...
"I really care about her, Ron," Harry said. "I do. But I think she hates me now." He felt his heart sink at these words.
Ron shook his head. "Give Ginny time, mate. She's weird about these kind of things. Just...she'll come around."
"I dunno..."
There was a sudden knocking at the door. "Everyone got their britches on?" Charlie asked, and then he opened the door. A very startled-looking Mrs. Granger stood there.
"This is an emergency!" she cried.
"What IS it, Helen?" Hermione's dad demanded impatiently.
"Well, it's not an emergency, really, Daniel," Helen said sarcasticly. "If it's alright that the vicar has shown up."
"Oh, NO! Not the VICAR!" Mr. O'Neil teased.
"Joseph...he's dressed head-to-toe in ROSE PINK ROBES."
There was a silence in the room. Everyone looked at each other. Ron's eyes were wide with confusion and surprise. Suddenly, Bill broke the silence:
"Oh, he's gay."
The silence that followed this statement was followed by peals of laughter. Mrs. Granger didn't look amused.
"My daughter is not being married by a man wearing pink robes!"
"Helen, why does it matter?"
Mrs. Granger glared at her husband. Then she spotted Ron. "Ron, dear, you don't want to be married by a man in pink robes, do you?"
Ron found his voice. "Um...does Hermione mind?"
"Well..." Helen faltered.
"If she doesn't mind, then I don't," Ron said with a shrug.
"But-"
"GoodBYE, Helen," Mr. Granger said quickly, slamming the door in his wife's face. The laughter filled the room again.
"This is EXACTLY why we got eloped," Fred said, rolling his eyes.
At one o'clock, the wedding was scedualed to start. Hermione's head was pounding, but it didn't hurt as much: Mrs. Weasley had given her a goblet of pain potion that she'd quickly made. Mrs. Granger had insisted on giving her daughter some asprin, but Mrs. Weasley had insisted. "This stuff will take the pain away with the drowsiness," she promised.
"Oh...alright, then."
Hermione felt a little bad for her mother. She knew that the older woman had always been excited about planning her daughter's wedding. This hadn't been what Helen was expected: magic, and Squib vicars in pink robes? Definatly not her idea of perfection. But Hermione was too excited to dwell on her mother's feelings much. She did her wedding her way, Hermione thought. And this is the way I want MINE to be.
She stood in front of the full-length mirror in the small room as the others went to greet the guests. She thought she was alone, until she saw her mother standing behind her. Hermione turned around, and Helen's eyes filled with tears.
"You look so beautiful!"
"Thanks, Mum."
"I'd hug you, but I wouldn't want to wrinkle your dress."
"Don't worry: I know a good spell for wrinkle-removal." But Hermione saw the effect that those words, so casual in her world, had on her mother. "Are you okay?"
"What? Oh, yes, darling!" Mrs. Granger gushed. "It's your wedding day! I couldn't be any better!"
"No...something's wrong." Hermione knew her mother too well.
"Well, you know, dear...I wasn't expecting the vicar to come looking like THAT. That's exactly the reason we don't have Tarts and Vicars parties anymore: the vicars have all turned into tarts!" Mrs. Granger laughed at her own joke, and Hermione smiled half-heartedly.
"Are you sure that's it?"
Mrs. Granger's smile faded and she sighed. "Darling, I'm so happy that you're in love. Ron is a very good boy."
"But...?"
"But nothing, dear," Mrs. Granger went on. "It's just...and please, don't take this wrong, darling, you know I love you more then anything-"
"What IS it, Mum?"
"It's just..." Mrs. Granger's eyes filled with tears again. "I feel like I'm really losing you now."
"Mum, don't be silly!" Hermione cried with a small laugh. "You're not losing me! I'll call on you all the time!"
"It's not that, dear," Helen went on. She sighed again. "I felt this way when you went off to Hogwarts for the first time. We split apart. Our worlds are so...different."
Hermione finally understood: it was the magical-Muggle thing again. "Mum, you're not losing me."
"The magical world is your world," Mrs. Granger went on sadly. "All my grandchildren will be magical. They won't be able to relate to their Nana Granger."
"Mum..."
Helen let out a sob. Hermione felt so helpless: her mother had never told her this before. There was only one thing she could do: put her arms around her mother and hug her.
"Oh, darling!" Helen sobbed with a small laugh. "Look at me! I'm bringing you down on your wedding day! I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Mum."
"No, no," Helen pulled away. She was going back to normal, but there were still tears in her eyes. "Forget everything I said, I'm just a mother watching her little girl take the biggest step of her life."
There was a knock on the door, and Ginny stuck her head in. "Hermione? The guests are all here, are we going to do this?"
Hermione gave her mother one last look, then turned and looked at her reflection. No matter what her mother said now, she'd never forget what she'd just heard. She looked back at Ginny. "Yes," she whispered. "I'm ready." She followed Ginny out of the room, leaving her mother behind.
