When they arrived back at the Burrow, Molly asked Ginny and Hermione to help her with dinner. George disappeared up to his room and Harry asked Ron if he wanted a game of chess, but Arthur cleared his throat.
"Before you do that, could you help me with something in the shop, Ron. We won't be but a minute, Harry," Arthur said.
"Sure Dad," Ron said, and followed him into the garden.
His father didn't say anything else until they were in his workshop standing among various articles of Muggle paraphernalia. Ron wondered if Hermione knew what all this junk was.
"Ron," his father started. "Since you'll be at the Lovegoods' for the rest of the week, I thought it worth reminding you that they are the press."
"Luna's a friend, Dad," Ron said.
"I know, but her father runs a newspaper for a living, and like it or not, you three are news."
Ron didn't think Xenophilius seemed capable of running anything these days, but he kept that to himself. "Yeah, alright, well, the subject of an interview already came up and Hermione said we couldn't talk about the war right now and that was that."
"Good," his father said, "Because the other night, you mentioned Hermione taking you and Harry in double side-along Apparition and it's probably best not to tell anyone else that. You wouldn't want it to be misconstrued."
"What are you talking about? It's bloody brilliant she can do that," Ron said.
"Yes, of course, it is, but it's an unusual talent, especially in one so young, and given the circumstances... Well, you know how people talk. Best to keep it quiet."
Ron looked at him. "I don't—"
"Most people can't even do a single side-along," his father reminded him. "And those who can manage it, can generally only do it with their children or with those they're closest too, unless they've had specialized training."
"Well, it's hard to get closer than the three of us," Ron said. "We were crammed in that tent for months."
His father looked pained. "I know, son, I know, but now that the war is over, some things are best left unsaid. She already went through that business with Harry and Viktor Krum a few years ago."
"Those were bloody lies, Dad," Ron insisted, feeling his face heat up. "I told you that back then."
His father held up his palms. "I know that, son. I'm just saying, why feed the rumor mill?"
"The rumor mill?" Ron said, appalled. "She's a great girl. Brilliant. And she's saved my life multiple times; Harry's life multiple times. None of what Harry's done would have been possible without her. Do you understand that?" To his horror he realized he was crying.
His father reached to put his hand on Ron's shoulder, but Ron knocked it away. "Don't put your bloody hands on me! You don't know! You don't know what they did to her. What this cost her! You don't…" he choked on a sob.
"Ron," his father said softly, but Ron pushed past him and ran into the garden out the back gate and into the orchard. He kept running, as fast as he could, through the trees and past the Quidditch field until he found himself at the family cemetery. He stood panting and wiped his face on his sleeve. The worst part of what his father had said was that he himself had wondered about Hermione's ability to Apparate with him and Harry. When she'd done the double jump out of the Ministry to Grimmauld Place and into the woods, why had she only Splinched him? But that was before he'd abandoned them in the woods and he knew there was no truth to the rumors about the love triangle between Harry, Hermione, and Viktor. He knew it. Didn't he? He hated his own doubts. He hated that he might have driven them together after that by leaving them with no one but each other. He hated that it mattered to him. Harry had told him at Shell Cottage that he and Hermione hadn't gotten together while he was gone. Ron believed him, at least he thought he did, but always in the far recesses of his mind was this tiny voice saying maybe and that voice sounded a lot like the bloody locket. He opened the wrought iron gate and walked into the cemetery and over to Fred's grave. He didn't know why. It wasn't as if Fred was the kind of guy a bloke could go to for advice, at least Ron couldn't, or never had anyway. He sighed and looked at the grave. It was still hard to imagine that Fred wasn't back at the Burrow conspiring with George about their latest prank product. Instead, what was left of Fred was six feet under the ground right now. A shiver passed through him.
"What are you doing out here?" George said as he walked up behind him.
"Nothing," Ron said. "What about you?"
"I come up here most nights," George said with surprising candor.
Ron looked at him. "Do you talk to him?"
"No. He's dead so it would be a pretty boring conversation."
"What do you do up here then?" Ron asked.
"Same as you, nothing," George said. They both stood looking at Fred's grave. "We used to pretend to be each other, you know," George said. "Way past the point we should have outgrown it, we still did it, sometimes at the shop even. I don't know why, really, except we thought it was funny."
"I can see that," Ron said.
"Yeah, except now…dunno, it's done my head in a bit," George said sadly.
"How do you mean?"
"I just wonder was there ever a time, when we were very little say, when we forgot to switch back and then we just kept trading off because, we lost track somewhere of which one was which." He scratched his head. "Sometimes, I can't help wondering if that's really Fred in there, or if it's George, and I'm Fred. Mental, I know."
"Nah," Ron said. "I don't think that sounds so mental."
"Really?" George said, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe you're mental then."
Ron nodded. "Most likely."
"What's eating you?" George said.
"I don't know. Do you ever worry that you don't measure up, that you can't compete?"
"How so?" George asked.
"You know, like with a girl?"
George glared at him. "Are you trying to take the piss? Here?"
"What?" Ron said. "No. I'm being serious."
George scratched his head. "You better be because, honestly Ron, I will hurt you."
"Bloody hell, George. I don't even know what you're talking about."
"Angelina," George said. "Who else would I be talking about?"
"Oh," Ron said. He glanced down at Fred's grave. "Oh."
"Yeah, oh, so yeah, I know what it's like to worry about not measuring up. What are you talking about?"
"Um, well…" Ron really wasn't sure he should get into this, especially not with George of all people, but he couldn't talk to Harry and he certainly couldn't talk to Ginny. "It's Hermione," he finally said.
George snorted. "Yeah, I figured out that bit for myself. Who are you trying to measure up to, Krum? I can see how that would worry you but she dated him ages ago. I mean he was at the wedding but…"
"It's not just Krum," Ron said sourly.
"No?" George said, raising his eyebrows. "Well, go Granger."
"Shut up," Ron said.
"Come on, Ron, I'm only teasing," George said.
"Well, don't. Not about this. Anything but this."
"Hey," George said. "I'm sorry. You're really torn up. Why?"
"Dad just talked to me and told me that we shouldn't mention the double side-along Apparition to anyone else."
George chuckled. "Well, yeah. He told me, Percy and Charlie that too."
"Right," Ron said glumly.
George looked at him. "You think she slept with Harry? Huh, so it wasn't a threesome thing?"
"Hey!" Ron shouted.
George backed away and held up his palms in surrender. "Desperate times, Ron. No judging. It's obvious the three of you are very close."
"It wasn't like that!" Ron shouted. "We weren't out there on some perverted spa holiday, you know!"
"Okay, alright," George said. "But clearly you think she might have slept with Harry at some point or we wouldn't be having this conversation."
Ron sighed. "I don't know. He says no, but…"
"You don't trust him?" George asked.
"I do, but if he felt like he was protecting her by saying that, then he would say it whether it was true or not."
"So, you don't trust him then," George said.
"To put the truth before Hermione, or me, for that matter, no," Ron said.
"Okay, then does it matter?"
"Well," Ron said, and then stopped. "I…what?"
"Say I saw them ages ago in an empty classroom at one o'clock in the morning and I could say to you definitively, yep, they were shagging, I saw it with my own eyes. What would you do?"
"How do you mean?"
"I mean, what would you do? Would you go back to the house and confront them? Would you kick her out? Punch him? Hex them both? What?"
"I wouldn't do any of that," Ron said, startled to realize it was true. "I mean, I'd be surprised because the idea of Harry and Hermione getting it on in an empty classroom is…" He shook his head. "So unlikely, but if it happened ages ago, well, it's nothing to do with me, is it? And given everything that's happened since, well…it doesn't change anything about now."
"So, you love her then," George said.
"What?" Ron said.
"Look, if she might've shagged your best mate sometime in the past and you don't care, then you definitely love her." He looked down at Fred's grave. "Oh, bloody hell."
"You alright?" Ron asked.
"Yeah," George said. "I'm going to go back, but for what it's worth, nothing about Harry and Hermione makes me think they were ever lovers. I don't know what she got up to with Krum or anyone else, but from where I'm sitting, that extraordinary girl is in love with you."
"Yeah?" Ron said. "You reckon?"
"Well, there's no accounting for taste," George said, and walked off.
Ron didn't bother with a retort and just watched him go. So, George was in love with Angelina and was worried he would never measure up to Fred. Ron thought that sounded a lot worse than his situation. He sighed, cast a charm to cover that he'd been crying (he really had to stop that) and walked back to the house.
His father was standing in the back garden when he came down the orchard path. "Ron?"
"I'm fine, Dad."
"About what we discussed—"
"I'll take care of it," Ron said.
"But—"
"I'll take care of it," Ron insisted and went inside.
Ginny was setting the table. Harry and Hermione were putting out platters of food.
"I need to talk to you two after dinner," Ron said to Harry and Hermione. They glanced at each other.
"Alright," Hermione said.
Harry nodded.
Dinner was unusually quiet. Everyone seemed lost in their own thoughts. Charlie's cheerful presence was sorely missed.
xXx
After dinner, the three of them trudged up to Ron's fifth floor bedroom. Ron closed the door behind him and cast Impreturb on it.
"What's going on?" Harry asked.
Hermione just looked anxious.
"Dad had a security talk with me before dinner," Ron said.
"Why?" Harry asked.
"He doesn't think we should mention that Hermione can do double side-along Apparition. He thinks if people know that, it could make her the obvious first target in a Death Eater attack, which could endanger all three of us, so we need to keep it quiet, like we do the Invisibility Cloak."
"That makes sense," Harry said.
"Sure," Hermione said, but her expression was hard to read. She still looked anxious, but it was different somehow, more upset.
"That's it," Ron said.
"Alright," Harry said, and opened the door, clearly eager to get back to Ginny.
Hermione looked as if she were going to say something, but then she followed Harry downstairs. Ron stayed in his room. He wondered if Hermione knew what her ability to Apparate with him and Harry at the same time implied. He wondered if Harry knew that the ease with which he Apparated with Ginny implied the same thing.
xXx
That night, as Arthur and Molly were getting ready for bed, Arthur said, "I talked to Ron."
"How did he take it?" Molly asked.
"Not well," Arthur said.
She sighed. "Oh, dear."
"It's not as though I accused them of anything," Arthur said. "I think the obvious explanation is that Hermione can Apparate with Harry so easily because she used Polyjuice Potion to be him when the Order went to get him from his Aunt and Uncle's house, and I think we both know why she can Apparate with Ron."
Molly sighed. "Yes." She shook her head. "I feel bad for those two. It can't be easy being here after months on their own as a couple."
Arthur shook his head. "I know Molly, but if we were to let them share a room, that would send entirely the wrong message to Ginny."
"But Arthur," Molly said. "You know Harry's been taking her side-along to all those funerals, so—"
"I know," he said. "But she's still underage and I just want…I was so hoping when he broke up with her before he left…"
"I know." Molly pulled back the covers and got into bed. "But I don't think she ever took that breakup seriously, and it certainly didn't take but a second for them to be right back together."
"I want her to go back to school," Arthur said. "I want her to get a few N.E.W.T.s but I mostly want her to get some distance from him."
"We can't force them apart," Molly said. "We shouldn't even try. That'll just bring them closer."
"I know." He sighed. "Of all people though. She's such a bright, beautiful girl, why did she have to choose him?
"He is a lovely young man," Molly said.
"But he's the Chosen One," Arthur said without irony. "Clearly there was some kind of connection between him and You-Know-Who. After everything she went through first year, why would she—"
"Maybe that's exactly why," Molly said. "Perhaps they're drawn together for that very reason."
"Which makes it all the more disturbing, don't you think?" Arthur said.
Molly nodded. "Yes, but I don't think there's much we can do about it."
Arthur got in bed next to her. "How did this happen?"
She sighed. "I don't know."
xXx
Late that night, after Ginny had fallen asleep, Hermione got up and sat in the window. The garden was still full of gnomes every night despite Ron's best efforts. She sighed. Ron. He'd lied to them tonight. She was sure she knew why his father had spoken to him about the double side-along Apparition. She wished she'd told Harry and Ron never to mention it, but it had slipped her mind in all the chaos at the end of the war, and then Ron had announced it at dinner. The three of them needed to talk about what they should and shouldn't say once they were able to talk about the past year. She wished she'd thought to do that right after the battle, but that ship had sailed. She was sure Ron's father had reminded him what her ability to Apparate with them both at the same time implied, not that she thought anyone that knew them actually thought she'd slept with both of them. After all, Ron's parents were in the Order, they knew Ron and Hermione had both taken Polyjuice to act as decoys to get Harry safely out of his Aunt and Uncle's house. Once you'd physically been someone it was simple to Apparate with them. Apparating with Ron was trickier, although at this point she'd done it so many times, it wasn't anymore. But of course, she'd Splinched him once, which he clearly didn't want anyone to know, since George was right, he never took his shirt off anymore. In summers past, he'd run around without a shirt all the time, causing his mother to constantly chase after him casting sunblock charms. A wave of guilt washed over her. Was he just never going to take off his shirt again? Just a couple of months ago, she'd yelled at him for constantly taking it off in front of her as though she was just another bloke. Now she found herself wishing he would take it off on those hot days when he was chopping wood. But the spiral scar on his bicep would raise too many questions that none of them were ready to answer. She felt so guilty for Splinching him. If she hadn't Splinched him, he'd have been better able to fight off the effects of the locket. She sighed and rested her head against the window frame. So many things were her fault.
xXx
The next few days were spent at the Lovegoods' repairing the house and helping Luna with the Quibbler. It was a huge undertaking to send out flocks of owls, and then the next issue had to be started. In the meantime, George and his mother worked construction spells with Ron and Harry while Ginny and Hermione helped Luna. Xenophilius wandered back and forth between the two groups handing out food and drinks. In the evenings, Mr. Weasley arrived to inspect the work, but never had to redo any of the spells. Finally, the structure was sound. As they were getting ready to go, Molly said, "We'll be back tomorrow, dear, to get the inside sorted and then you should be able to move back in."
"Thank you so much," Luna said. "I think it will help Daddy to be back in the house."
Molly hugged her. "We'll see you in the morning."
xXx
Fleur was sitting in the kitchen when they all arrived back at the Burrow. She stood when they came inside.
"Hullo, Fleur," Molly said. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes," Fleur said. "Bill was sent last minute to Algeria to work on a cursed trunk, so I thought I'd come by and see if you needed anything."
Molly smiled at her. "It's good to see you. Stay for dinner. Stay the night."
"I don't want to intrude," Fleur said.
"You're family," Molly said warmly. "That's no intrusion."
"None at all," Arthur agreed.
"I'm glad you're here," Hermione said.
"Where were you all?" Fleur asked.
"At the Lovegoods' putting Luna's house back together," Harry said.
"What happened to it?" Fleur asked.
"It was damaged in the war," Ron said, putting his hand on the small of Hermione's back as he said it.
"We finally finished the structure today," Harry said.
"Tomorrow we start on the interior, if you want to come," Ginny added.
"Sure," Fleur said. "I'm sort of between jobs right now."
"Oh?" Molly said, putting the kettle on.
"I couldn't go to work at the bank during the war and they decided I wasn't needed."
"I'm so sorry," Hermione said, feeling a wave of guilt.
Ron looked at her.
"Don't be. I'm grateful they took Bill back, but then he had a more specialized job than I did. Anyway, I've got a lot of time on my hands right now, so I'd be happy to help at Luna's."
"Good," Molly said as she poured the tea.
Hermione went outside. The kitchen suddenly felt small and way too warm. Ron followed her.
"What's wrong?" Ron asked.
"Nothing. I just feel bad that Fleur lost her job because of us."
"That's not fair," Ron said. "It's not our fault the goblins are prats."
She glared at him. "We broke into their bank and destroyed large parts of the building escaping. That's absolutely our fault and it's understandable that they're angry about it."
"So, you're on the goblins' side now? You think we belong in Azkaban?" Ron said.
"Of course not," Hermione said. "Desperate times and all that, but I do see their side of it. I'm just sorry Fleur got punished because they couldn't punish us."
"Well, there's still time," Ron said grimly.
"True," Hermione said. "It occurred to me that while no one is going to put Harry in prison—"
"We might be fair game in the negotiations," Ron said.
"Well, given that Bill is part of those negotiations, probably not you," she said.
Ron's mouth dropped open. "No one is sending you to Azkaban."
She shrugged but teared up. "I'm the obvious choice if someone has to be sacrificed to calm down the goblins."
"Bill would let us know if it looked like it was going that way," Ron said, quietly. "We'd have warning. We'd leave."
"And be back on the run, really?"
"Yes," Ron said firmly. "We'd go to Europe or America, maybe."
She shook her head. "I couldn't ask you to do that."
"I didn't hear you ask," Ron said. "And you're not going without me." He put his arms around her. "It won't come to that though. They'll get it sorted. Shacklebolt is determined to right this. We'll be fine."
She pressed her face to his chest and breathed him in, taking comfort in the warm scent of him and the feel of his arms around her. In moments like these, she felt so safe, she thought he must love her as much as she loved him, otherwise how could he know exactly what she needed?
He kissed the top of her head and then rested his cheek there. It had been so long since they'd kissed. She wondered if it was odd to crave something she'd had so little of, she leaned back in his arms and tilted her head up, he looked down at her and their eyes met. He leaned in and the back door opened.
"Ron?" Fleur said, "Your mum, oh, I'm so sorry. I'm interrupting."
Hermione wanted to scream. She might end up in Azkaban anyway, if in a fit born of sheer frustration, she killed Ron's entire family.
Ron sighed. "No, you're fine. We were just talking. What does Mum need?"
"I offered to make Coq au Vin for dinner and she said you'd get me a couple of chickens," Fleur said.
"Sure," Ron said, he smiled sympathetically at Hermione. "You might want to go in for this bit. I mean, I know you did the spells for the rabbit, but—"
"I'll go in. I've got nothing to prove," Hermione said.
"Right," Ron said. "I'll only be a tic."
Hermione joined Fleur, who apologized again.
"It's fine," Hermione said.
"Did I hear Ron right?" Fleur asked. "You killed a rabbit?"
"Yes, it was already stunned though."
Fleur grimaced. "I was raised in Paris. You were raised in London. I feel like there are things city girls should not have to do."
Hermione laughed. "Oh, I heartily agree."
"Wine then?" Fleur said. "I brought a case of nice burgundy."
"Definitely," Hermione said.
"If you could chop the carrots, I will start on the onions," Fleur said, handing Hermione a glass of wine. "We will leave the bacon for Ron, that man loves to cook bacon."
"Not as much as he likes to eat it," Hermione said.
Fleur laughed. "Bill is the same. Not so much with the cooking, but definitely with the eating."
xXx
Ron came in with the cleaned and plucked chickens to find Hermione laughing and drinking wine with Fleur while charmed knives chopped onions and carrots on the counter behind them. The tableau stopped him in his tracks. Hermione was laughing, not politely, not nervously, but sincerely laughing, because something Fleur had said tickled her. He grinned.
"Ah, Ron," Fleur said. "I will cut up the chicken if you can start cooking the bacon."
"Sounds good," Ron said. He set the chickens on a cutting board and then washed his hands. The three of them worked together to finish dinner.
xXx
Late that night, Hermione and Ginny were getting ready for bed when Ginny said, "Alright, what am I missing?"
"What?" Hermione said as she got into bed.
"With Fleur, you two get along really well. I like you. You like her. What am I missing?"
"Oh," Hermione said. "I think you just haven't spent enough time with her. Fleur's really great. She and Bill took care of us. We stayed with them for several weeks while I recovered. And it wasn't just us. With no notice, they suddenly had seven extra people staying in their small cottage. Fleur handled all of the medical care and most of the cooking, although Ron started pitching in on that fairly early and Harry, Dean, and Luna started helping then too.
"But not you?" Ginny asked.
"I wasn't well. Besides, my kitchen skills are pretty rudimentary. Ron and Harry are both better cooks than I am. Anyway, Fleur took on all that as though it were planned out ahead of time."
Ginny nodded. "That is pretty impressive. And she clearly loves Bill."
Hermione smiled. "Very much."
"And he's barmy about her too, and Bill's not one to be barmy, so she must be pretty great."
"She really is. You should get to know her," Hermione said.
Ginny got into her own bed. "She's just so prissy and posh sometimes. Such a city girl."
Hermione shrugged. "So am I."
"Yeah, but you're not so…"
"Pretty?" Hermione guessed, with a half-smile.
"What? No," Ginny said. "I was going to say prissy. You're not afraid to feed the chickens or milk the cow. You aren't fussy."
Hermione laughed. "Please tell Ron and Harry I'm not fussy. Actually, can I get that in writing?"
"You know what I mean," Ginny said.
"Not really. I mean, I never fed the chickens or milked the cow any of the other times I've been here and I've stayed here a lot."
Ginny looked at her. "Yeah, I guess that's true. So, what changed?"
Hermione shrugged. "I just need to keep busy lately. Learning chores was a way to do that. To be honest though, I still don't like the chickens."
Ginny laughed but then sobered. "You are pretty, you know."
Hermione shook her head. "You're pretty. Fleur's pretty. On a good day, I look okay, but for several months now, I've just looked haggard."
"Okay," Ginny said. "I'll admit that when you first got here, you looked kind of rough. On the other hand, we'd just gone through a battle so, you know, so did everyone else, but since you've been here and those ruddy funerals are over, you look good."
Hermione tucked her hair behind her ear. "You think? I don't…I don't know…I'm not…I never used to worry about this stuff."
"So why are you now?" Ginny asked.
Hermione sighed. "I don't know. So much is happening that effects my life that I can't do anything about. I'm at loose ends. I don't even feel like myself. For months, I've been on edge. I'm just slow to come down, I guess."
"That makes sense," Ginny said. "Harry's going through the same thing. Ron too, I bet."
"Really?" Hermione said. "Because they seem to be handling it a lot better than I am."
Ginny laughed. "That's so not true. Harry's on edge all the time. Why do you think we're constantly taking walks and tossing the Quaffle around? He can't sit still and he never wants me out of his sight. Sleeping apart is killing him. It's not doing much for me either."
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize he was having such a hard time. Although, given what he's been through, that makes sense."
"I know, right?" Ginny said. "Given the amount of chores Ron is doing lately, he doesn't seem to be managing all that well either."
Hermione sighed. "He doesn't talk to me. If I'm having a hard time, he's there for me, but when I ask how he's doing, he just says 'fine.' The only thing we've talked about is jobs and that he wants a flat."
Ginny snorted. "Of course, he does. It's a nightmare around here."
"And yet," Hermione said, "you and Harry seem to manage."
"Barely," Ginny said.
"Barely is a lot better than we're doing," Hermione said. She hated that she didn't seem able to comfort Ron at all. She took so much comfort from his presence. She wished he felt the same about her, but instead, he seemed to pull away from her. She wanted to reach him. She knew he was hurting. He had to be, but she didn't know what to say, what to do, to make him feel better.
"I think you're probably doing fine given the circumstances," Ginny said.
"I feel like I should be doing more," Hermione said.
"Yeah," Ginny said. "But that's just you, isn't it? Take a breath, Hermione. Things will change soon enough. Enjoy the break while you have it."
Hermione nodded.
"G'night," Ginny said. "Nox." The room fell dark.
Hermione lay in bed for a long time thinking about what Ginny had said. She was right. Things were going to change soon enough. Hermione just hoped they would change for the better.