A/N: This was for the rarepair_shorts prompt 'only so many'.
I looked at the woman my brother and I had decided to date and hoped she would answer my question soon.
"Hermione," Rabastan said, emotion thick in his voice.
It wasn't easy for us to express our emotions very well as we were taught by our father that it was a sign of weakness, so the fact that Rabastan was, told me exactly how much this upset him.
"Are you ashamed of us?" I asked.
"No, no I'm not," Hermione replied, shaking her head.
"Then why haven't you told your friends? There's only so many excuses you can make before we think that you don't want to be with us," he said.
She stood still for a few moments looking at the floor before taking a deep breath.
"I'm not ashamed, I'm scared," she admitted, "I'm scared of what they will say. I know how they will react, and I don't want to lose them; they're like my family."
"You should have told us how you felt and we would have helped you through it," I said softly.
"Our relationship is none of their business. If they really cared for you then they would just be glad you're happy," Rabastan said.
The crease between his eyes had relaxed a little knowing it wasn't because of us that we were stalling, but he was still worried by what she had said.
"Are we worth it, Hermione?"
"What?" she asked, turning towards me.
Her face was full of shock as she looked into my eyes.
"Is our relationship worth the trouble you might have with those closest to you?" I asked.
"Yes, it is," she replied. "I will tell them on Sunday when everyone is there. Is that alright?"
"That's fine, love. Please tell us about these things though as if it goes too far it will only hurt us all in the end," Rabastan said.
I was glad that our girl wasn't ashamed of us, but I was also worried about her friends would react. All I know is that my brother and I will be there for her no matter what.