AN: So here we are, at the end of another mammoth fic. I had so many ideas I wanted to have happen to Ron and Hermione and a thousand more ends to tie up, but nothing was long enough for me to work into full chapters; although Merlin knows I tried. Nonetheless, I hope these flashes into their life post-Quinn is good and I hope you enjoy the ending, I know I did. There will be another sequel, I just can't help it with these two and as soon as I wrote the final words of this chapter, it was calling out to be written. However, I have also joined the IWSC competition this year, so it may not get posted straight away. Make sure you subscribe to me to get the new story when it finally comes out.
Lastly, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, however you celebrate. Thank you so much for your support and kind words. You've really helped me to survive this crazy pandemic. The last chapter of Merry Witchmas should be out tomorrow or Boxing Day too, so keep your eyes peeled for that! xxx
Ron recovers and Hermione gets more than one surprise as graduation draws near.
A hearing was held about what happened at Malfoy Manor; that was to be expected. Confined to his bed for strict rest meant Ron had nothing else to do but obsess about the outcome, regularly pestering Harry when he came to visit and sending owls to Robards whenever he could. He had pleaded to be allowed to go, but everyone had refused.
Instead, he'd been questioned from his bed at Primrose Cottage, which was extremely uncomfortable and awkward and Ron had reminded himself never to get into a position where Robards would have to enter his bedroom again.
His frustration at being left out from the tribunal was compounded by the way his mother clucked around the cottage after him, choosing moments when she knew Hermione was out to come over and fuss.
Fortunately, the results went in his favour. Ultimately, the group's decision to investigate Malfoy Manor had been a good one, resulting in another dangerous criminal being taken off the streets (although Robards had reminded Ron when he'd visited with the outcome that he preferred his criminals behind bars and not dead). A decision had also been made to make therapy mandatory for all Aurors, including those going through the training academy, to avoid the crippling panic attacks that had put Ron in such a vulnerable position during their mission. He had already been feeling the benefits from the sessions that had been prescribed for him by one of the more radical thinking healers treating him at the hospital and he'd been preaching to anyone who visited him to check on his progress.
As his energy and strength started to return, Ron took to going for walks; mostly to distract himself. Although he preferred to do this alone, sometimes he allowed his mother to join him. He started small, increasing the number of laps he took around their tiny garden before slowly increasing his range. His goal was to get to the Burrow by himself on foot, then he'd know he was really recovered.
That morning, he'd attempted to crest the large hill between Primrose Cottage and The Burrow; almost making it before having to give up. He said goodbye to Molly as he caught his breath, watching her disappear over the top before slowly making his way back to the cottage. He was surprised to see a large box addressed to Hermione waiting outside the front door. He summoned the last of his energy to move it into the house, ensuring it was in a prime position before making himself lunch and settling on the sofa, awaiting Hermione's return from work where she'd been tying up the last of the MACUSA paperwork.
The living room had already been starting to turn dark when she finally folded herself out of the fireplace. Ron didn't mind; in the early days after his release from the hospital, she'd barely stepped foot into the Ministry unless it was really urgent. Instead, she focused all her attention on looking after him and helping him to heal.
The nightmares had been particularly bad, especially before the therapy had started helping and Hermione had wanted to be sure she had the energy to look after him. She was lucky enough to be in a position where she could afford to take the time off.
"Hey, beautiful…" Ron pushed himself off the sofa to greet her, placing a loving kiss on her forehead before taking her light summer robes from her.
"Hey yourself, how are you doing?" She regarded him carefully, as she often did when she'd been away from him for the day and therefore hadn't been personally responsible for making sure he stayed out of trouble.
"Not too bad! I almost made it to the top of Stoat's Hill with mum. I'll get there tomorrow for sure…" He placed his hand on her shoulder and started to steer her towards the kitchen.
"I made dinner; did you eat lunch today?"
"You know I didn't…" Hermione responded wryly, letting him push her into a chair at the table. She frowned at the pile of books sat waiting for her. "What are these?" She took the one off the top, her eyes lighting up. "It's my book! I'd forgotten the publishing company were sending them over!"
"They came this morning. I almost owled you but I thought I'd leave it as a surprise! I didn't peek, I promise. I thought maybe you could show me later, after dinner.." He smiled as he started serving up dinner; leaving her to flick through the pages of her new book.
When Ron was finally allowed back to work, he was thrust into preparations for their final assessments and exams. With almost two months out of it, he felt completely unready – especially as they were so important. If he failed, he'd be forced to look for another career. The ordeal at Malfoy Manor hadn't put him off unlike his last run-in with Quinn. If nothing else, he was desperate to catch the remaining Death Eaters they'd been tracking. Luckily, the hard work he'd put in over the past three years meant that by the time he was back to training full time, he actually didn't have a lot of catching up to do.
The rest of the year passed by in a flurry of activity. With Hermione taking up a new role in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Ron's ever-increasing hours spent training and revising, the couple found it difficult to align their schedules. They moved into a routine of staying up late or waking early, desperately seeking out even an hour where they could be completely alone. It seemed to work for them; they spent more time looking for different ways to show appreciation of one another – a bubble bath drawn for Ron after a testing day spent duelling Harry, a packed lunch appearing on Hermione's desk, internal memos flying between departments. The distance brought them closer together, and they didn't think things could get better than this.
The Winter soon melted into Spring, as seasons so often do. Ron woke one Saturday morning, just a few days after his birthday to find Hermione sleeping peacefully in the bed next to him. He was excited for the day ahead of them; after the long, arduous slog of their final assessments he, Harry and Neville had made it into the ranks of the Auror department; following in the footsteps of Tonks, Mad-Eye Moody, and Kingsley Shacklebolt.
He turned his attention back to his sleeping girlfriend, letting out a content sigh. The early spring sun had crept through the blinds, drawing lines along her curls which despite her best efforts never seemed to stay in the messy bun she pulled onto her head night after night. He couldn't resist; he dropped his head to press the softest of kisses against her lips as he combed his fingers gently through her hair.
He had a whole uninterrupted weekend with her; a rarity at the moment, and he didn't want to waste one minute of their time together.
He carried on kissing her as he felt her start to stir underneath him, grinning as she reciprocated the kisses eagerly. He shifted further over her; pushing their duvet off the bed to give him better access to her body. She still slept in one of his old, holey t-shirts and a pair of comfortable-looking knickers; something which he found sexier than all the lacy lingerie in the world. His hand trailed down her side and under the material of her top, moving back up over her stomach to gently cup a breast.
"Mmmm….. good morning…" Hermione slowly opened her eyes, a smile appearing on her face as she locked eyes with Ron. She absolutely loved it when he woke her up like this, although usually, it was the other way around since she was the early bird in the relationship. She reached up lazily, looping her arms around his neck, and pushing his head closer to hers for a hungry kiss.
They lay next to each other afterwards; fingers tangled on the bed between them and their clothes pooled at their feet.
"Well, that was a good start to my graduation weekend…" Ron turned his head, giving her a wide smirk.
"Weekend?!" Hermione couldn't help but let a laugh escape her lips as she rolled back towards him. He loved extending celebrations; Christmas usually lasted a week and his birthday could sometimes stretch out for the whole month if he really tried.
"Yeah – me, Harry and Nev deserve it, we've been working hard; especially recently. Three months of gruelling assessments, showing how amazing we are and then three months of being a proper Auror and working our backsides off to keep you safe. I'm going to enjoy every minute of my weekend…"
Well okay, I guess you deserve it!" Hermione laughed. "Come on then – my proper protective Auror needs a good breakfast so he can graduate and continue saving the world…" She scratched his tummy gently before starting to move.
A few hours later, they joined the rest of the Weasley family waiting outside the Great Hall in the Ministry of Magic, where just a few months ago they'd attended their second Yule Ball together. As they waited for the doors to open, Hermione took the opportunity to check his uniform one last time, straightening one of the buttons at the top of his robes.
"You look really handsome, I'm proud of you Ron…" She gave him a loving kiss, resisting the urge to slide her hands back into his hair and pull him into a dark corner somewhere. She found his Auror uniform so sexy, it took a lot of her self-control to step away from him.
"Just because I'm handsome?!" He gave her his patented lop-sided smile.
"No…" Hermione looked indignant at the accusation. "Because you're a bloody good Auror too. You've worked so hard…"
Ron grinned, pulling her back for another quick kiss as the doors to the hall opened. "I love you…" He pushed her in the direction of his family before heading into the room with the rest of his cohort. Once he was in his seat, he glanced back over to Hermione; watching as she took a seat next to Ginny. He gave her a small wave before turning his attention to the ceremony.
Luckily, it was a short affair. Robards opened the proceedings with a short speech before letting Kingsley take over.
The Minister talked of the importance of the graduation, especially given the fact that the graduating class included the students who had led the war against Voldemort and of the significance that meant for their community.
Their class was small – there'd been a high number of dropouts over their last few months so it meant that the presentation of awards didn't last long. Despite the formality of the occasion, neither Hermione nor Ginny could resist getting to their feet when Harry, Ron and Neville's names were called, laughing as the rest of the family joined them in a standing ovation.
After the formal ceremony, the family congregated at the Burrow where Molly had put on one of her best buffets. Slowly, they were joined by their wider family and friendship group and the afternoon was full of food, alcohol, and love.
Despite her best attempts to stay close to him, she found herself being kept apart from him by family members keen to know what she was up to next. She lost count of the number of times she had been forced to explain her new position within the Ministry; she was responsible for reviewing their laws and looking for opportunities for improvements, liaising closely with the heads of departments as well as key people in the muggle world only to find her audience soon take on a glassy-eyed look. She knew the development of wizarding laws was boring to everyone else, so she wondered why people really asked if they just weren't interested.
She finally got fed up of not being with Ron when she found herself stuck between Great-Aunt Muriel and a wizard who looked like he could be one of the many Weasley cousins. Muriel was describing in great detail why Hermione shouldn't have chosen the smart dress she wore to the ceremony and Hermione found her eyes drifting back over the party, desperately seeking out Ron. She finally spotted him sat in a quiet corner of the room, a bottle of beer clutched in his hands. She excused herself, not caring if her abrupt departure sounded rude and made her way over to him, helping herself to another glass of wine as she moved.
"Hey, you…" She stood in front of him, smiling as he looked up at her. She was glad to see he looked happy too.
"Hey, beautiful…" He picked up her spare hand and pressed a kiss against it.
"Your Aunt Muriel doesn't think so. Apparently, my choice of dress ages me by 15 years…" She smirked at his confused look. "Fancy taking a walk?"
He nodded and drained the last of his bottle, leaving it on the side. He peeled her wine glass from her hands and left it with the bottle before pushing himself out of his chair and letting her lead him out of the Burrow and into the garden.
They walked silently down to their spot by the lake, their hands swinging happily between them. With an unspoken agreement they sat themselves down, Hermione settling in between his legs and waiting for him to wrap his arms around her before leaning back against him.
"Today has been really lovely…" She traced the familiar paths of his scars up his now bare arms. The weather had been unseasonably warm for mid-March and Ron had removed his Auror robes not long after getting back from the Ministry, rolling his shirt sleeves up too.
"It really has. I suspect you and Ginny had some do in putting together this party?!"
"Well your mum wanted a quieter affair, but we brought her around by offering to help her cook. That's where I was most of yesterday…"
Ron gasped in mock shock. "You mean you took a day off work?!"
"Yes… it happens occasionally…" She laughed, linking her fingers with his. "Are you happy Ron?"
He had been busy nestling his nose into her hair, breathing in her scent. Even after all these years, it brought familiar scenes racing back to his mind - sharing a workbench with her in Potions class, the smell of the fire at the Gryffindor common room. Despite this, her question took him a little by surprise, although he didn't need to think twice about the answer.
"More than happy. This year has been perfect Hermione…"
"Good!" She smiled to herself. "You deserve it…"
"We deserve it. After everything we've been through 'Mione, we deserve a little chunk of happiness…"
Hermione watched a pair of ducks make their way across the lake as she pondered her next question to him. Her stomach tied was tied in knots, she knew what she wanted to ask him; but despite her weeks of rehearsing, the words felt false and weird now it came down to it.
"So what are our next steps? We have the house, we have good careers, Harry isn't in mortal peril, at least for now…"
"A puppy?"
She couldn't help the loud laugh that escaped her lips. She was trying to be serious with him, yet all he could do was make jokes. He'd been trying for months to persuade her to adopt a Crup puppy, fuelled by the new litter Hagrid was taking care of but so far she'd resisted his pleas; telling herself and him that they were far too busy to look after it properly and it wouldn't be fair on the poor animal.
However, she didn't know how much longer she'd be able to put him off.
"I was thinking of something else…" She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, letting the Spring sun warm her face.
"Yeah?" Ron turned his head to watch her closely, a curious smile on his face.
"I was wondering if…"
"Wait!" Hermione frowned and opened her eyes again as he rudely interrupted her. He was a bundle of energy and she found herself being shifted forward as he got up from where he was sat, moving instead to kneel in front of her. She let him lace his fingers with hers again.
"Let me try and guess. I love this game!" He looked thoughtful as he played with her fingers, his other hand resting on her knee. "Do you want us to move to Australia to be closer to your parents?"
She laughed, deciding to play along. "No…"
"Good, because I can't handle the sunburn and you hate it when I moan it's too hot!" He chewed his lower lip. "Do you want us to buy a bigger house?!"
"No, what's wrong with Primrose Cottage?!"
"Nothing! It's perfect and I've been learning from dad how to magically build on it, just in case…"
She frowned, wanting to question what he meant by 'just in case' but he didn't let her get a word out.
"Okay, okay – I have one last guess. Close your eyes…" He grinned as her frown almost doubled in size, causing those cute little wrinkles he could never tell her he loved as it usually pissed her off more. "Come on, humour me…" He squeezed her hand.
Hermione did what she was told, closing her eyes tightly and not daring to peep; knowing he would not be impressed if she cheated. Her senses were always heightened when one was removed from her – she felt his thumb running patterns over the back of her hand, the air tickling over her bare knee as he removed his other hand and heard the rustle of his pocket as he dug something out. Suddenly, a small box was pressed into her hand.
"My last guess is…" He paused for dramatic effect and Hermione almost cursed him. Her heart was pounding, she was desperate to open her eyes and see what he'd gifted her with.
"Ron…" She protested with a small moan.
"Fine – you were wondering if I wanted to marry you?"
Hermione's heart lurched, though not in a displeasing way; how the hell did he know?! She felt tears start to collect in the corner of her eyes as she opened them quickly, though her frown had been replaced with the biggest smile Ron had ever seen.
"Is that a lucky guess?" Hermione tried to laugh, although her hand was shaking as she admired the box.
"Are you going to open it and find out?!" Ron watched her expectantly as she fumbled with the box, eventually opening it to reveal a modest-sized Sapphire, surrounded by a cluster of small diamonds set on a white gold band.
"Oh Ron, this is perfect! It's my birthstone! Did you pick it out yourself?"
"Yep!" He looked pleased with himself as he took the box from her and carefully released the ring from its holder. He picked up her left hand, holding the small band near the tip of her ring finger. "So are you going to bloody answer me, Hermione, because the suspense is killing me!"
Hermione tutted. "Trust you to swear during a proposal." She laughed at the warning look he gave her. "Yes, a million times yes, Ron. There's absolutely no doubt about it…"
As soon as the ring was firmly on her finger she threw herself at him, pushing him into the grass with a hard kiss. Things absolutely could not get better than this.