Disclaimer: I own my American friends; I do not own Ron or any of the original HP characters, but thanks to J.K. Rowling for creating them!
The red harvest sun set over the woods that stood behind the Burrow. The aroma of a Weasley dinner hovered about and the sounds of laughter echoed throughout the air. In the backyard stood a table set for all of the Weasley family. At the end sat Arthur Weasley and at the other sat Molly Weasley, on the right sat Bill and his fiancée Fleur, beside them sat Charlie, then Fred and George. On the left sat Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Ginny. The table was full of every Weasley child's favorite dish as well as Harry and Hermione's. Pixies flew about looking much like fireflies as the sun continued to set and by the time dinner was through the sun had been replaced by the silver moon. Ron stood up and held his hand out to Hermione who smiled and took it graciously. He placed his arm around her waist and pulled her close inhaling the sweet scent of her hair. Hermione in turn wrapped her left arm around his waist and the two walked this way for a while, neither one breaking the silence. Ron led her through the yard to the woods and while grasping her hand tightly led her to an opening in the woods. Once they reached his desired destination, Hermione looked around and gasped. The trees around them stood tall and solemn but straight up above them were millions of stars all blinking and winking, knowing what was to come.
"Ron, it's absolutely beautiful."
"It is." Ron said not taking his eyes away from her. He then bent down on one knee and opened a velvet box that held a silver engagement ring with two sparkling diamonds. Hermione gasped once more as he smiled. "Hermione, my love, I've waited for the day when the stars would align just for us, and that day is today. I've loved you for years, everything about you, every breath, smile, laugh, and frown. Please Hermione, make me the happiest man in the way only you can and marry me." He said in a low voice. She looked down at him as tears began to roll down her face. She got down on her knees and grasped his face in both of her hands. She said nothing, her eyes spoke it all. "Hermione...?"
"Ron, I love you, but I can't, I just can't." She folded her fingers over his hand to close the box. She then stood up and ran off. Ron sat there shell-shocked. He knew she loved him, so why did she decline. He pushed back onto his backside and stared up at the night sky, silent tears marking his cheeks and breaking his heart.
"Ron...?" Ron heard his sister say gently.
"Ginny." She sat down behind him and wrapped her arms around her big brother. Throughout her life he had always been there for her, supporting her in all of her decisions. Tonight, he needed her to do the same. She placed her chin on his shoulder and stared up at the night sky with him. Hermione was his other half; she knew how much he loved her. He leaned his head against hers and placed his worn calloused hand on her arm. "Tell me what to do." He spoke hoarsely.
"I wish I could, but I can't." He nodded and dropped his head to stare at his lap. She moved to sit next to him and the two sat in silence for hours. 'Happy Birthday to me...' Ron thought bitterly.
Ron sat up quickly in his bed and groaned. He looked at his alarm clock and sighed. It was seven a.m., he realized he might as well begin the day. He walked over to the balcony and opened the doors. He looked out into the city. It looked so much bleaker in the light, most things did though. 'You haunt me in reality Hermione, leave my dreams to my own damn self' he mumbled bitterly. A knock came at the door. "Room Service!" A female voice called out. Ron sighed and walked through the apartment and opened the door to a grinning strawberry blonde. "Good morning." She said pushing a cart past him into the dining room. He weaved his hands through his tangled hair and grinned back.
"How'd you know I'd be up?"
"You seem like a man who would be up at this god-awful time of day." She said to him while putting the covered dishes on the table as well as the coffee pot, creamer, sugar, and juice down. He put his hands down on her shoulders while overlooking the food she was placing before him.
"It looks great." She smiled and turned to face him. She handed him a newspaper, then turned to push the cart to the side.
"Enjoy your breakfast Ron." She said warmly.
"Why don't you join me?"
"I'd love to take you up on your offer; unfortunately I have a work load downstairs." She said, sighing dramatically, causing Ron to laugh.
"Well if I'm being denied your presence at the breakfast table then I insist you join me for dinner."
"It would have to be a late dinner, I work till ten tonight."
"I don't mind waiting."
"In that case I'd love to. I know another great place. Unfortunately you'll have to wear more than you are at the present moment." She said. He looked down and realizing he was still only clad in boxers he blushed. "Don't worry about it Sparky. I actually like your wardrobe." She winked.
"Meet you at 10:30?"
"Sounds great."
"Great."
"Yeah, well..." She turned to go but Ron grabbed her hand, pulling her close, he stared down at her, it was her turn to blush. He rubbed her cheek with his fingertips as he smiled down at her.
"Have a good day."
"I will." She walked out of the apartment and Ron sighed. He sat down at the table and began eating, American food was not that bad. Nothing compared to his mother's cooking, but not bad. After he was through, he placed the empty dishes onto the cart and pushed it out into the hall. He then jumped into a quick shower. He left his hair wet and put on black trousers and a green button-up. He gave the apartment one last glance and hurried down to the first floor. He was immediately greeted by Carter.
"Ronald! I trust you had a good day yesterday?"
"I did."
"Good. Heading off to the Ministry?" Ron nodded.
"Here's the address. Have fun, a lot of them act as if they have a large stick protruding from their asses, welcome to New York, eh?" Ron laughed and nodded.
"Thank you." Carter waved it off.
"See you later." Ron hurried out of the doors and into the streets. He walked to the address and was surprised to see the building was what seemed to be a regular office building, no charms or shields hiding it from Muggle view. He shrugged and tried to open the doors, but found they were locked. He frowned, then heard a voice coming through a speaker.
"Place your hand on the screen." Ron obliged. His hand was scanned, then, "Thank you, and welcome to the American Ministry of Magic." The doors opened and Ron walked inside. He walked to the front desk where a fairly attractive secretary sat.
"I'm here to talk to-"
"The Minister of Magic, I know Mr. Weasley, follow the door to your left and take your first right, it will lead you straight to his office." The young woman stated without even looking up. Ron said his thanks and followed her directions. He walked to the door and it opened for him.
"Welcome Mr. Weasley. Please have a seat. Coffee? No? Well then some tea? Are you positive? Well then I guess we'll just get down to business. Here are the files. By the way my name is Kyle Hendericks, American Minister of Magic."
"Pleased to meet you Mr. Hendericks."
"Please, it's Kyle. 'Mr. Hendericks' makes me feel like an old man. I'm only 58."
"Well then Kyle, may I see the files."
"Sure thing. There should be about ten in there. There were around fifty or so to begin with but we caught most of them, these are the ones who have proved to be somewhat tricky."
"I see. I'll look over these later, but do you know who is leading them?"
"We have an idea. We think his name is Issak Denton, brutal fellow really." Ron flipped to his file and saw that "brutal" did not even begin to describe it.
"He's killed more people than fifty Death Eaters combined!" Ron stated.
"I know, he's one sadistic bastard."
"I see that."
"Our sources stated that he was last seen right here, which is why you were brought over here." Ron continued reading the file and grew angrier by the moment, in many ways he was worse than Lucius Malfoy.
"I'll get right on it." Kyle thanked him. Ron placed the files into a briefcase that he conjured up. "I'll get back to you in three days time." The minister and Ron stood up at the same time and Kyle reached to shake Ron's hand.
"You have no idea how grateful we are."
"It's no problem." Ron left the office and returned to his flat. He began going through the files and spent the entire afternoon reading over them. He took out a map and pinned it on the wall. He studied the areas of the murders, tortures, and sacrifices and looked for some sort of pattern, any sort. He rubbed his chin and looked back on the files of Issak and of another man named Rogue. Something was not right, but he could not place what it was. There had to be an inside source for these powerful people to still be thriving. At ten his phone rang, he walked over to it and picked it up.
"Hello."
"Ron?"
"Hey Jennifer."
"Hey, I just got off, so where do you want to meet?"
"Main lobby?"
"Works for me, see you in thirty." Ron hung up the phone and changed into a pair of khaki slacks and a black button down. He walked out and rode the elevator down to the main lobby. He walked down to the front desk.
"Hello Mr. Weasley, everything to your likings?" The man named Josiah asked.
"Yes thank you. Could you tell me where Je-"
"Outside." Ron thanked him and walked outside. Jennifer stood leaned up against the wall of the building, on foot on the wall and the other on the ground. She had her hair curled and was wearing a short black cocktail dress with black heels.
"Hey you." He said walking over to her.
"Hey." She said pushing herself away from the wall. "You look wonderful."
"Nothing compared to you." He said to her. He held out his arm and she took it. "So where are we going."
"I'll show you." She took him to a nice restaurant down the street that was not overly expensive but had good food and wonderful entertainment. They entered the restaurant and were immediately seated by the dance floor. They both ordered a glass of wine and the soup.
"So what is this place?"
"Just a restaurant I found a few years back. They have great live bands, I thought you'd enjoy it."
"I do." Their meals arrived and they ate. The conversation was light, and Jennifer found herself laughing constantly while Ron smiled at her. She enjoyed the ongoing banter because it gave her reason to look at him. He was very attractive, dark red hair that stood in a very appealing manner, dark brown eyes, and perfect lips. She caught herself staring at his lips more than once. The band started playing a slow song and Ron stood up. "Would you dance with me?" She wiped her mouth and then grasped his hand. He led her out onto the dance floor and pulled her closely. She closed her eyes and placed her had on his shoulder. The two swayed to the soft melody. They danced to every different kind of music until well past one in the morning. They paid for their orders and left the restaurant hand-in-hand. Outside the hotel the two stopped.
"Here is where I leave you." Jennifer said softly.
"Thank you for a wonderful time tonight."
"It was my pleasure." As horribly cliché as the moment was the two stared at each other. Ron then leaned his head down and kissed her lips softly.
"Goodnight love."
"Goodnight." She said numbly. He walked through the doors and Jennifer lightly touched her lips and smiled. Things were finally turning up for her. She turned and walked down the street to her apartment. Ron walked up to his apartment. He opened the door and walked into the bathroom. After washing his face and brushing his teeth he glanced into the mirror for a few moments. The date was in a word...perfect.
A/N: Sweet? Yes? No? Review and let me know!
The red harvest sun set over the woods that stood behind the Burrow. The aroma of a Weasley dinner hovered about and the sounds of laughter echoed throughout the air. In the backyard stood a table set for all of the Weasley family. At the end sat Arthur Weasley and at the other sat Molly Weasley, on the right sat Bill and his fiancée Fleur, beside them sat Charlie, then Fred and George. On the left sat Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Ginny. The table was full of every Weasley child's favorite dish as well as Harry and Hermione's. Pixies flew about looking much like fireflies as the sun continued to set and by the time dinner was through the sun had been replaced by the silver moon. Ron stood up and held his hand out to Hermione who smiled and took it graciously. He placed his arm around her waist and pulled her close inhaling the sweet scent of her hair. Hermione in turn wrapped her left arm around his waist and the two walked this way for a while, neither one breaking the silence. Ron led her through the yard to the woods and while grasping her hand tightly led her to an opening in the woods. Once they reached his desired destination, Hermione looked around and gasped. The trees around them stood tall and solemn but straight up above them were millions of stars all blinking and winking, knowing what was to come.
"Ron, it's absolutely beautiful."
"It is." Ron said not taking his eyes away from her. He then bent down on one knee and opened a velvet box that held a silver engagement ring with two sparkling diamonds. Hermione gasped once more as he smiled. "Hermione, my love, I've waited for the day when the stars would align just for us, and that day is today. I've loved you for years, everything about you, every breath, smile, laugh, and frown. Please Hermione, make me the happiest man in the way only you can and marry me." He said in a low voice. She looked down at him as tears began to roll down her face. She got down on her knees and grasped his face in both of her hands. She said nothing, her eyes spoke it all. "Hermione...?"
"Ron, I love you, but I can't, I just can't." She folded her fingers over his hand to close the box. She then stood up and ran off. Ron sat there shell-shocked. He knew she loved him, so why did she decline. He pushed back onto his backside and stared up at the night sky, silent tears marking his cheeks and breaking his heart.
"Ron...?" Ron heard his sister say gently.
"Ginny." She sat down behind him and wrapped her arms around her big brother. Throughout her life he had always been there for her, supporting her in all of her decisions. Tonight, he needed her to do the same. She placed her chin on his shoulder and stared up at the night sky with him. Hermione was his other half; she knew how much he loved her. He leaned his head against hers and placed his worn calloused hand on her arm. "Tell me what to do." He spoke hoarsely.
"I wish I could, but I can't." He nodded and dropped his head to stare at his lap. She moved to sit next to him and the two sat in silence for hours. 'Happy Birthday to me...' Ron thought bitterly.
Ron sat up quickly in his bed and groaned. He looked at his alarm clock and sighed. It was seven a.m., he realized he might as well begin the day. He walked over to the balcony and opened the doors. He looked out into the city. It looked so much bleaker in the light, most things did though. 'You haunt me in reality Hermione, leave my dreams to my own damn self' he mumbled bitterly. A knock came at the door. "Room Service!" A female voice called out. Ron sighed and walked through the apartment and opened the door to a grinning strawberry blonde. "Good morning." She said pushing a cart past him into the dining room. He weaved his hands through his tangled hair and grinned back.
"How'd you know I'd be up?"
"You seem like a man who would be up at this god-awful time of day." She said to him while putting the covered dishes on the table as well as the coffee pot, creamer, sugar, and juice down. He put his hands down on her shoulders while overlooking the food she was placing before him.
"It looks great." She smiled and turned to face him. She handed him a newspaper, then turned to push the cart to the side.
"Enjoy your breakfast Ron." She said warmly.
"Why don't you join me?"
"I'd love to take you up on your offer; unfortunately I have a work load downstairs." She said, sighing dramatically, causing Ron to laugh.
"Well if I'm being denied your presence at the breakfast table then I insist you join me for dinner."
"It would have to be a late dinner, I work till ten tonight."
"I don't mind waiting."
"In that case I'd love to. I know another great place. Unfortunately you'll have to wear more than you are at the present moment." She said. He looked down and realizing he was still only clad in boxers he blushed. "Don't worry about it Sparky. I actually like your wardrobe." She winked.
"Meet you at 10:30?"
"Sounds great."
"Great."
"Yeah, well..." She turned to go but Ron grabbed her hand, pulling her close, he stared down at her, it was her turn to blush. He rubbed her cheek with his fingertips as he smiled down at her.
"Have a good day."
"I will." She walked out of the apartment and Ron sighed. He sat down at the table and began eating, American food was not that bad. Nothing compared to his mother's cooking, but not bad. After he was through, he placed the empty dishes onto the cart and pushed it out into the hall. He then jumped into a quick shower. He left his hair wet and put on black trousers and a green button-up. He gave the apartment one last glance and hurried down to the first floor. He was immediately greeted by Carter.
"Ronald! I trust you had a good day yesterday?"
"I did."
"Good. Heading off to the Ministry?" Ron nodded.
"Here's the address. Have fun, a lot of them act as if they have a large stick protruding from their asses, welcome to New York, eh?" Ron laughed and nodded.
"Thank you." Carter waved it off.
"See you later." Ron hurried out of the doors and into the streets. He walked to the address and was surprised to see the building was what seemed to be a regular office building, no charms or shields hiding it from Muggle view. He shrugged and tried to open the doors, but found they were locked. He frowned, then heard a voice coming through a speaker.
"Place your hand on the screen." Ron obliged. His hand was scanned, then, "Thank you, and welcome to the American Ministry of Magic." The doors opened and Ron walked inside. He walked to the front desk where a fairly attractive secretary sat.
"I'm here to talk to-"
"The Minister of Magic, I know Mr. Weasley, follow the door to your left and take your first right, it will lead you straight to his office." The young woman stated without even looking up. Ron said his thanks and followed her directions. He walked to the door and it opened for him.
"Welcome Mr. Weasley. Please have a seat. Coffee? No? Well then some tea? Are you positive? Well then I guess we'll just get down to business. Here are the files. By the way my name is Kyle Hendericks, American Minister of Magic."
"Pleased to meet you Mr. Hendericks."
"Please, it's Kyle. 'Mr. Hendericks' makes me feel like an old man. I'm only 58."
"Well then Kyle, may I see the files."
"Sure thing. There should be about ten in there. There were around fifty or so to begin with but we caught most of them, these are the ones who have proved to be somewhat tricky."
"I see. I'll look over these later, but do you know who is leading them?"
"We have an idea. We think his name is Issak Denton, brutal fellow really." Ron flipped to his file and saw that "brutal" did not even begin to describe it.
"He's killed more people than fifty Death Eaters combined!" Ron stated.
"I know, he's one sadistic bastard."
"I see that."
"Our sources stated that he was last seen right here, which is why you were brought over here." Ron continued reading the file and grew angrier by the moment, in many ways he was worse than Lucius Malfoy.
"I'll get right on it." Kyle thanked him. Ron placed the files into a briefcase that he conjured up. "I'll get back to you in three days time." The minister and Ron stood up at the same time and Kyle reached to shake Ron's hand.
"You have no idea how grateful we are."
"It's no problem." Ron left the office and returned to his flat. He began going through the files and spent the entire afternoon reading over them. He took out a map and pinned it on the wall. He studied the areas of the murders, tortures, and sacrifices and looked for some sort of pattern, any sort. He rubbed his chin and looked back on the files of Issak and of another man named Rogue. Something was not right, but he could not place what it was. There had to be an inside source for these powerful people to still be thriving. At ten his phone rang, he walked over to it and picked it up.
"Hello."
"Ron?"
"Hey Jennifer."
"Hey, I just got off, so where do you want to meet?"
"Main lobby?"
"Works for me, see you in thirty." Ron hung up the phone and changed into a pair of khaki slacks and a black button down. He walked out and rode the elevator down to the main lobby. He walked down to the front desk.
"Hello Mr. Weasley, everything to your likings?" The man named Josiah asked.
"Yes thank you. Could you tell me where Je-"
"Outside." Ron thanked him and walked outside. Jennifer stood leaned up against the wall of the building, on foot on the wall and the other on the ground. She had her hair curled and was wearing a short black cocktail dress with black heels.
"Hey you." He said walking over to her.
"Hey." She said pushing herself away from the wall. "You look wonderful."
"Nothing compared to you." He said to her. He held out his arm and she took it. "So where are we going."
"I'll show you." She took him to a nice restaurant down the street that was not overly expensive but had good food and wonderful entertainment. They entered the restaurant and were immediately seated by the dance floor. They both ordered a glass of wine and the soup.
"So what is this place?"
"Just a restaurant I found a few years back. They have great live bands, I thought you'd enjoy it."
"I do." Their meals arrived and they ate. The conversation was light, and Jennifer found herself laughing constantly while Ron smiled at her. She enjoyed the ongoing banter because it gave her reason to look at him. He was very attractive, dark red hair that stood in a very appealing manner, dark brown eyes, and perfect lips. She caught herself staring at his lips more than once. The band started playing a slow song and Ron stood up. "Would you dance with me?" She wiped her mouth and then grasped his hand. He led her out onto the dance floor and pulled her closely. She closed her eyes and placed her had on his shoulder. The two swayed to the soft melody. They danced to every different kind of music until well past one in the morning. They paid for their orders and left the restaurant hand-in-hand. Outside the hotel the two stopped.
"Here is where I leave you." Jennifer said softly.
"Thank you for a wonderful time tonight."
"It was my pleasure." As horribly cliché as the moment was the two stared at each other. Ron then leaned his head down and kissed her lips softly.
"Goodnight love."
"Goodnight." She said numbly. He walked through the doors and Jennifer lightly touched her lips and smiled. Things were finally turning up for her. She turned and walked down the street to her apartment. Ron walked up to his apartment. He opened the door and walked into the bathroom. After washing his face and brushing his teeth he glanced into the mirror for a few moments. The date was in a word...perfect.
A/N: Sweet? Yes? No? Review and let me know!