UFM Ch 62: We Can Really Pull This Off
He awoke to her moving before dawn.
"Where are you going?" he asked groggily as she slipped from his arms and stepped out of bed. "Harry said he and your mum arranged everything with our jobs and Hugo's school so we're all off today."
"I know," she said. "And that was brilliant. But we are still very, very naked with both of our kids in the house. So I am getting us some clothes so we can sleep a bit less naked."
Ron grinned as she threw some pants and pajama bottoms at him. "Good. So you're coming back to bed?"
"Just for a bit," she said as she stepped into some white cotton knickers and slipped a shirt over her head.
"Where else could you possibly have to be?" he groaned as he pulled her now-clothed body close to his so he could spoon up behind her.
"Just want to take advantage of having all four of us home together, I guess. And you know me, I probably couldn't stay in bed past eight if my life depended on it."
"Remind me to start mentoring you in that new skill," Ron mumbled into her ear. They lay there for a few minutes, but he could tell her breathing wasn't falling back asleep.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked quietly.
"How could you tell I wasn't sleeping?"
He shrugged. "Dunno. Just knew," he said quietly as she started to run her fingers along his forearm.
"We're getting married," she said.
"I heard," he grinned. "Remember, I was there too?"
She was quiet for a few moments and then said, "You know how we spent all that time talking about how we wanted to focus on our marriage and not worry so much about the wedding?"
"Mmm hmm," Ron said in a neutral tone, worrying if this was the change Harry and George warned him about.
"Well, I really did. And then I woke up this morning and realized I didn't know a single thing about magical weddings. Are they the same as muggle weddings? I mean, I guess I went to Dennis and Fiona's wedding, but nothing seemed different about that to me. Was that pretty typical?"
Ron tried to dig through his tired brain to remember the details of Fi's wedding all those years ago. "Honestly the only thing I remember from that wedding is you," he laughed. "But, in general magical weddings are really similar. When it is all magical people in attendance they do a bit more with magic and stuff like that, but in general it's the same thing. But, there are a lot of weddings where someone marries a muggle or, like with Dennis and Fi where they were raised muggle so there are a lot of muggle people in attendance."
"What kind do you want?"
Ron was caught off guard. "Honestly hadn't thought about it."
"What have you thought about? I mean, when you picture our wedding, what do you envision?"
"Hermione we could have the smallest or the biggest wedding ever, and as long as it ends up with you and I married at the end, I will be perfectly happy. We can do whatever you want."
"That's not what I asked," she said forcefully. "What I want to know is that when you picture our wedding day, what do you see? This is one of those things where I really want you to have an opinion. I'm not asking out to pick out dresses or flowers or anything. I just want to know what pieces bubble up to the top for you as important pieces."
"Ok," he said, now realizing he couldn't duck the question. "Give me a minute to think." They lay there in the dark ask he breathed in her curls and ran his fingers over her arms, feeling her breathe against him. Finally, he said, "When I picture our wedding day there are only a few things that pop out. Most importantly I see you, and you are beaming and radiant, and your dad shakes my hand after he walks you down the aisle, and we share a moment. And I see the kids who are smiling, and the four of us are all involved in the ceremony somehow to make it special for the whole family in addition to just us. And I see Harry and George there, probably harassing me like I did to them at their weddings. And George probably brings a flask in and he says something about what Freddie would have said to me if he'd been there. Ginny is there, and she is thrilled for me but doesn't want to show it. My mum is crying, and my dad is quietly smiling. And I get to dance with you. And I think that's about it. Everything else fades to the back."
"That's perfect," she said quietly.
"But, I want to know what you want. What do you picture?"
"I picture getting ready with Rose and Mum, and then Dad walking me down the aisle. And I picture holding his arm, but only being able to see you looking back at me. And I want to have some really pretty flowers that Rose and I get to carry. And I want the person who marries us to be someone we know. Someone who knows our story and understands us, not some stodgy old wizard I've never met. And I picture it being pretty small – where the only people who are there with us are the people we really love and have in our lives. I don't want to have fake conversations with strangers on our wedding day. And I love the idea of dancing with you. And I also want a chance for Rose to dance with you while I dance with Hugo, and maybe you dance with your mum while I dance with my Dad. But – well – I don't even know if this is just a muggle thing, but at almost every wedding I've been to the bride throws her bouquet and the single women are supposed to try and catch it, and then the one who catches it is supposed to be the lucky one to get married next. And as the old single lady who attended so many weddings, I hated that stupid tradition. I am not throwing a bouquet. Is that a magical thing too?"
"No," Ron chuckled. "You don't have to throw anything."
"Good. So, yeah – that's about it. Something small and simple, but meaningful and lovely."
"That sounds brilliant," Ron said.
"Do you really think we could pull off a small but lovely wedding?"
"Hermione, we can pull off anything we want. But, yeah – we can have a small wedding if that's what you want."
Hermione was quiet for a while, so Ron spoke up. "Care to share what's running through that brilliant mind of yours?"
"Um, well – I was wondering how we could pull it all off and not have the Rita Skeeters of the world get in our way."
Ron sighed. "I am sure we can figure that out."
"What was it like when word got out about Ginny and Harry being engaged?"
Another sigh. "It was a bit much. The papers were all over them. I mean Ginny was a huge quidditch star and Harry was, well, he was Harry."
"How long was their engagement?"
"Can't quite remember. I think I remember Mum fussing about how ridiculous it was to pull together the wedding in less than 12 months or something."
"What if we pulled it off?"
"Pulled what off?"
"Well, what if we just had a tiny wedding before the whole thing has a chance to get away from us?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I don't want to elope, because we both clearly want our families there. But, what if we sort of surprise most of them with it."
"Sorry, love, I don't think I'm quite following what you're saying."
"OK," Hermione said, sitting up so she could look at Ron while she spoke. "When is Rose home next? Easter holidays, right?"
"Yeah," said Ron, sitting up as well. "I think it's in like four or five weeks."
"Well, what if we got married on Easter? Surely your mum is planning on having the usual crowd at The Burrow. Everyone will be home from Hogwarts. The spring flowers are gorgeous. We would just need someone to marry us that day at your parents' house and make sure my parents are there and such."
"You want to get married in four weeks?"
"Why not?"
"Well, I have absolutely zero knowledge of what it takes to pull off a wedding. But I've just heard people fuss about it for all these years, so I assumed it was some hard thing."
"Well – yeah – if we let it be. But, maybe we don't even tell most folks until the night before. I'd need some help finding a dress, and I know Rose would want a beautiful dress too. And your mum will be cooking up a feast for Easter anyway. We could just add a cake – and we could bring that if need be. We'd need someone to take pictures. And the only thing would be finding someone to marry us."
"You want to have a surprise wedding at The Burrow where we don't tell people we're getting married until they get there? Won't you feel a bit, I don't know, like it isn't your special day or something?"
"I'll be marrying you, Ron. It will be an amazing day."
"You're serious about this."
"Dead serious."
"Huh. You know, we just might be able to pull that off."
"Well, who can perform marriages?"
"Usually it is a stodgy old wizard. But, I think there are a number of folks who are allowed to do it. You know – I bet Kingsley could do it."
"Kingsley? Like the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt? That Kingsley?"
"Well, yeah. He was in the Order in the war. We worked closely together for years. He doesn't necessarily know you, but he knows me and knows our story in a general sense. Or I could at least ask him who else is allowed to do them."
"What about McGonagall?"
"What about McGonagall?" Ron asked in a confused voice.
"Headmistress McGonagall. She seems to be one of the few people who knows both of us pretty well. And she certainly knows our story. And while she isn't necessarily what I would describe as a friend, she obviously cares for you very much. And I think she cares for me too, as well as our kids. And she knew Dennis, Collin and Fiona. She might be a good choice if she is allowed to perform the ceremony."
"Ok, so yeah. Not that I had ever in a million years pictured McGonagall as a part of my wedding, but it could actually work. But, we need to figure out first if she can perform marriages and second if she could come at Easter before we pin our hopes on it."
"So let's pretend for the sake of argument that she says yes. Then what?" Hermione asked.
"Then we do it. When is Easter?"
"I believe it is April first this year."
"Oh. That's a problem," Ron said in a defeated tone.
"Why? You don't think marrying me is funny?"
"It's the twins' birthday – well, George's anyway. Sort of a tough day for him and my parents."
"Oh. Yeah. That makes sense. Well, what if we do it the day before? We make sure the key people can be there. And everyone else is just bonus. If you don't want to do it at The Burrow we could do it at Shell Cottage, or at one of our houses for that matter."
"Would be hard to do it as a surprise then."
"Well. We could tell people we are having a party that day and to hold the date. And then we could tell them at the last minute – or not at all – what it really is."
"Would it be ok if I asked George? I would swear him to secrecy. And if he is ok with us getting married on the first then we would do it Easter. Otherwise we could do it the weekend before maybe."
"Um, alright– I think that would be ok. He might jump at the chance to honor Fred with pulling surprise over on your mum."
Ron chuckled. "Fred would think it is a bloody brilliant plan."
"Would Harry be hurt he didn't know ahead of time? Or what about our parents?"
"Well – we'll probably need to let a few people in on it to keep things running smoothly. Maybe we tell Harry and Ginny a day or two ahead of time. And we need to tell your parents a day or so ahead of time. And then we tell my mum at the last minute because otherwise she will go into crazy wedding prep mode for the next month."
"Why tell my parents early?"
"Because if it were me walking you down the aisle I would need a day or two to prepare myself so I didn't sob the whole way down."
She gave him a sweet smile and kissed him chastely on the lips. "You are sweet."
"What about getting your dress and everything. Don't you want Rose and your Mum to be a part of shopping for that?"
"Yeah," Hermione said thoughtfully. "I really do. But, what if we go off and do that in the next few days. I mean, I'm no seamstress or anything but we do know magic, right? And they can just think I am really excited for right now – they don't need to know the details quite yet. But maybe we fill Rose and Hugo in on it when Rose comes home for the holiday."
"Yeah – let's get the date thing worked out first."
"Exactly. But I really think we can do this. And we may be the first couple ever to have a wedding with fewer people in attendance than our engagement party!"
Ron laughed, "I love you."
"Well good, because it would be quite absurd to marry me otherwise."
"Alright – so you go off with Rose and your mum and find a dress. I'll hunt down George and then I guess I'll get Hugo and I some dress robes."
"You don't have to wear dress robes."
"I don't?"
"Ron – you can wear whatever you want."
"You'd marry me if I was in my ratty old sweatpants and a Chudley Canons jersey?"
"Oh I'd marry you. I'd tease you about it for the rest of our lives, mind you, but I'd marry you."
He laughed, "Ok, I'll come up with something in between a Canon's jersey and dress robes."
"I'll be in a white dress I'm sure, but it won't be some crazy wedding gown with layers of crinolines and toile and whatnot."
"I don't actually know what all that is, so I'll just take your word on it."
She laughed again, leaning into him. "We can do this, Ron. Let's do it. It will make it a crazy few weeks, but then we'll be married. If we let our friends and families talk us into a long engagement this wedding could turn into a three ring circus, not to mention a media frenzy. And if we keep it really small with basically just family then it will be easier for me to not include Nicola."
"Are you sure? We can include her, or anyone else you want there. It's not just my massive family and your parents."
"No, I'm sure. I just want our family at the wedding – and if you want to include Hagrid, Neville and Luna as family I am fine with that. But let's just do it. I love being your fiancé. But I really want to be your wife."
He stared into her eyes, struck with love for her and gratitude for having found her. "Let's get married," he grinned and then kissed her. Their kisses became more passionate, and they let the moment engulf them and once again were lost in each other.
After a relaxed morning as a family, Hermione, Rose and Jean headed off to go on a dress shopping adventure. Hugo and Ron headed over to Diagon Alley. First they walked over to Honeydukes so Hugo could spend the pocket money he'd brought. Then they walked over to see Mr. Walsingham and just given the man a quick recap on how it all went, which seemed to make the elderly jeweler quite pleased. While Hugo was messing with his bag of candy, Ron mentioned quietly to the man that they may end up getting married sooner rather than later. Mr. Walsingham assured him he could have the rings ready as soon as one week if they needed them. Ron thanked him and assured him they'd have a bit longer than that, but that he and Hermione would come by soon. Then they swung by Flourish and Blotts. After triple checking that he wasn't being watched or followed by any reporters or photographers, he picked up a couple books for Hermione on the history of magical wedding rituals, modern magical wedding culture and other similar books he could never imagine reading but he thought she would enjoy. To make his wedding-themed purchases slightly less obvious, he let Hugo pick out a few books on magical art and a few stories they could read together. He quickly shrank all of the books down and stashed them in his pocket, and then he and Hugo set off for the joke shop. Being a school day, it was rather slow in the shop, and George was surprised to see them.
"Have you lost your witch already?" he teased.
"Not yet," said Ron before sending Hugo off to meander through the store so he and George could talk privately. "I actually needed to talk to you alone a moment, do you have a minute?"
"Yeah," said George giving Ron a funny look. "Everything alright?"
"Oh yeah. More than alright. I just – well – here," Ron cast a silencing spell so Hugo or anyone else who happened to wander in wouldn't overhear. "You know how last night you said Hermione would say she wanted a small wedding but then would lose her mind?"
"Yeah. Has it started already?" said George knowingly.
"Well, just the opposite actually. She wants to get married really soon in a small wedding. But like really soon. And we were trying to figure out how to have the feel of eloping but with our families there. And being the bloody brilliant witch that she is, she figured something out."
"Sounds brilliant. So what's the problem?"
"Ok. Do you swear not to say a word to anyone – not Harry, not Angie, not anyone?"
"Ok. But now I am intrigued."
"Well, Hermione had this idea to have sort of a surprise wedding at The Burrow one Sunday."
"How is it a surprise if you two know about it?"
"It wouldn't be a surprise to us. It would be everyone else who would be surprised. Everyone would come expecting dinner as usual, but then we'd suddenly turn it into a wedding."
"OH MERLIN THAT IS BLOODY BRILLIANT! I LOVE YOUR WITCH! Can you picture Mum? She will fucking have kittens right there in the living room when she tells everyone to wash up for dinner and Hermione comes down the stairs in a wedding dress. Oh please, please, please do this. It's fucking brilliant."
"Well, we were thinking of doing it on Easter Sunday."
"Even better! Then all the kids will be home from Hogwarts."
"Right."
"It's brilliant! So what's the problem?"
"Well, as it turns out, Easter this year is on April 1st."
"Ahhh. Now I see the issue, but-"
"George - I don't want to steal the day, or make the day harder or weirder or whatever so I wanted to talk to you first. If you have any hesitation we thought we could do it the Sunday before Easter, but then we'd just have to pull off a wedding in three weeks instead of four and the whole honeymoon thing would be harder and-"
"Ronnie– breathe for fuck's sake. It's fine. Actually, it's more than fine. It's bloody fucking fantastic. Freddie would have thought it was the most bloody brilliant prank ever in the history of the universe to pull on Mum. I mean seriously – on Easter and our birthday you will be tricking Mum into hosting a wedding! It's ingenious! So, on behalf on Freddie and myself, I grant you the temporary use of our birthday. Now, it is a big day for the shop but I always get someone else to work that day anyway. SO please do it. It will have me in smiles on our birthday for the first time in decades."
"Are you sure, George? Like really, really sure? Hermione was just as adamant as I was that we not mess this up and make it hard on you."
"No – it's great. It is a fitting tribute and fabulous timing. Just promise me I get to be there when you tell Mum."
"Done. But you can't tell anyone anything. We won't even tell the kids until a few days ahead of time. And, well, I told Hermione we needed to tell her parents a few days ahead of time too so her dad can have a chance to pull himself together to walk her down the aisle."
"See – spoken like the father of a daughter. Well done on that one, mate."
"Thanks. I'm catching on quickly."
"What did Harry say?"
"He and Gin don't know. Literally you are the only one who knows aside from me and Hermione."
"You chose me over the Chosen One? Really, I'm touched ickleRonniekins…."
"I figure we'll tell them a day or so ahead so Gin can help with the flowers, and Harry can help you with chaos control once we drop the bomb."
"Who is going to do the wedding?"
"Well, don't laugh…"
"Oh who?" grinned George, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
"Hermione wants McGonagall."
George fell to the ground laughing at this pronouncement. Ron left him there, laughing to the point of tears coming down his face.
"Ta George…remember...not a word."
George didn't stop laughing, but did wave him off as Ron left with Hugo.
Jean had been pleasantly surprised to get the call from Hermione that morning that she wanted to go look at dresses with her and Rose.
"I know you are usually supposed to have an appointment ahead of time, but it's a Friday morning, so maybe we'll be able to go in a see some places."
Jean had taken that as a green light and had immediately gotten on the telephone to arrange two different appointments at salons – one of which had been free and one of which had just had a cancellation. When they'd arrived at the first appointment, the sales lady began walking them through the process asking about the wedding and the style of dress Hermione was looking for. A bit overwhelmed at the whole process, it took her a moment to be able to formulate her thoughts.
"We haven't finalized a date yet," Hermione said honestly. "But overall I am looking for something rather simple for a smaller wedding. I want to feel beautiful and bridal I suppose, but I don't want to be in a dress that requires layers of crinolines or anything."
Rose smiled at her Mum. "But could you try one or two of those one anyway just for fun?"
"Ok," Hermione acquiesced. "Guess it couldn't hurt."
Soon the sales clerk had brought out several dresses for Hermione to look at and try on while Jean and Rose sat on the velvet couch in front of the giant mirrors awaiting the fashion show.
The first dress Hermione tried on made her laugh. "I look like a wedding cake!" she declared before she came out of the dressing room. She lifted up the poofed skirts and came out to show her mum and daughter, who both started giggling.
"Well, you are beautiful, but I don't think that is the right style for you," admitted Jean.
Several dresses later, Hermione began to get frustrated. Each one was too sparkly or too poofy or too elegant. Jean and Rose had liked several of the dresses, but Hermione realized they of course didn't know the event Hermione was picturing in her head. So, she kept pushing the sales woman for more casual dresses or more simple lines or fabrics.
"You sound like you are just looking for a simple white dress and not a wedding dress at all," sighed the sales lady.
"Huh," said Hermione. "Maybe I am." After that realization she declared she was done trying on dresses at that store, but wanted to see Rose in a few bridesmaid dresses. Rose had fun trying on the different styles and colors. But in the end, nothing seemed to be quite right.
The second store wasn't much better, with many, many fancy gowns, but no simple white dresses like the kind Hermione was picturing. As happens, all three women were getting frustrated with their lack of progress. Finally, Jean declared that they all needed a break and took her daughter and granddaughter out to a leisurely lunch. After eating and drinking some tea, all three felt more sane and ready to think about dresses again as they ordered a decadent dessert.
"Well, Mum. I have a very good idea of what you're not looking for. But, can you close your eyes and tell me the kind of dress you are seeing in your head?" Rose asked.
Hermione couldn't argue with that request, so she closed her eyes and tried to picture herself on her wedding day looking in a mirror. She began to describe the dress in her mind, how it looked and felt and how the fabric would flow. When she finally finished, she opened her eyes to see both her mum and daughter staring back at her with damp eyes and smiles, which made her immediately tear up as well.
"Sorry," she apologized. "I didn't mean to make us all cry. That dress might not exist anywhere, so maybe I need to come up with a few back up plans."
"No," said Jean emphatically. "I have waited almost forty years to get to buy you a wedding dress. There will be no compromising. We can make that dress a reality. It sounds like a simple style, so really what we need to do is find the right fabric and then a seamstress. This isn't brain surgery, Hermione. But it will be one of the most memorable days of your life, and I really, really, really want it to be perfect."
"You really think we could get someone to sew it even if we don't have an actual pattern?" Hermione asked.
"Yes. I do. What is the point of living just outside of one of the largest, most international cities in the world if we can't find some lovely lady who can sew a dress for us if we throw enough money at her?"
Hermione and Rose burst out laughing at this, and the ladies shifted their conversation from complaining about wedding dress stores to sketching Hermione's dress on some scratch paper.
"Oh my God! I know that dress!" exclaimed Jean.
"What? Where is it?" asked Rose.
"It's in a movie. Rose, you probably haven't seen it. But, Hermione, I think you did. Remember, Diane Lane's character in Under The Tuscan Sun? She had the fabulous Italian crepe white dress that she wore? It was a tea length hem, flowed amazingly when she walked and had that lovely faux wrap top with tiny cap sleeves on it. Sort of 1940s meets modern woman if I recall. She was simple, classy, modest and yet sexy as hell, which is rather what you are going for, right?"
"Yes! You're right! That would be perfect, Mum!" Hermione said. They quickly googled the dress, and Rose agreed that with a few minor adjustments it would be perfect. Soon they had called a friend of a friend who knew a talented seamstress, and they called her immediately. From there, the ladies all headed directly to the fabric store and then to the seamstress. In what Hermione considered a burst of brilliance, they decided to get Rose a similarly styled dress in a beautiful green. Each dress would have a tiny belt, and Hermione's would be a very pale green silk. Then Hermione reasoned she could just do green and white flowers or add any color and it would look lovely. Not to mention it would make her engagement ring pop.
By 430 that afternoon, Hermione found herself standing on a short stool in the very floral living room of the seamstress. She was being measured in more places that she had realized she even had. And then she heard her mobile ring.
"Sorry," she apologized to the elderly woman kneeling in front of her. "But it's my fiancé and he probably expected us home hours ago. I need to answer it."
The old woman shot her an unimpressed glance, so Hermione adjusted her tactic. "Rose, honey, will you answer it for me?" Rose grinned and grabbed her mum's phone.
"Hello, Ron," she said cheerfully.
"Hey there, Rose. How are you ladies doing?"
"Well, after watching Mum try on what had to be at least 200 frilly, sparkly, poofy gowns, we all realized that the right dress for Mum wasn't in any of those wedding dress stores."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. So we decided to design it ourselves."
"You did? Really?" Ron asked, remembering that they were planning to get married in just a few weeks.
"Yeah, we have an incredible plan, the dress will-"
"Rose! Don't tell him what it looks like!" protested Jean grabbing the phone.
"Sorry, Ron. This is your future mother in law. I'll promise you she'll be gorgeous, but I am not going to let Rose tell you what it looks like. There have to be some sacred surprises in life, and getting to see your bride coming towards you in a fabulous dress on you wedding day is one of them."
"Ok, Jean," Ron grinned. "That sounds brilliant. Of course, I think she's gorgeous in everything, so I already know I will be standing there like a bloody idiot."
"As you should," laughed Jean. "Anyway, I am assuming you're calling because you were checking we hadn't all gone missing or that your fiancé ran off or anything."
"Well, something like that. I was just checking in, trying to figure out what time you lot thought you might be home."
"Well, we are not going to rush this lovely seamstress. So, it could be a while still."
"What if Hugo and I hunt down Michael and the three of us have dinner for you three when you come home? Nothing elaborate, because it will be done by us blokes of course, but it will be all ready and here for you when you get here."
"That sounds like one of the many reasons why my clever daughter must be marrying you," Jean laughed. "I would think planning for dinner at 7 would be smart, but you would be my favorite future son in law if you had a few nice drinks waiting for us as well."
"Consider it done, Jean."
"Good man, Ron. Good man."
"Do I get to talk to Hermione now?"
"No. I fear if I let her move even a centimeter she will bleed to death from all of the pins that are currently around her whole body. But trust me, I'll give her your love and all that."
"Alrighty then," Ron laughed. "Well, I hope the process remains as unbloody as possible. Never knew dress shopping could be so dangerous. Do try to bring my fiancé home in one piece, alright?"
"Will do, Ron. See you in a bit."
When Ron crawled into bed later that night, her pulled the exhausted Hermione close to him.
"If I never try on another dress again it will be too soon," she groaned.
Ron smiled into the back of her neck. "You don't have to wear a dress, love."
"No, we figured it all out. And I'm happy with the plan. Well – at least with what I think it will look like. But I am so tired. There were certainly many times today I questioned our 'get married in a month' plan."
"We don't have to do that if you don't want, Hermione."
"Oh I want it. Hopefully my most exhausting part is behind me now. Now we just need to talk to George about the day and see if McGonagall is up for it, I suppose."
"Well George was all for it."
"Really?" Hermione said, eyes popping back open. "You talked to him today?"
"Yeah. I took Hugo over to Diagon Alley this morning. We saw George, and he loved the idea. Thought Fred would think it was brilliant but made me promise to allow him to be there when I tell Mum. But Hugo and I had a great day. I wanted to tell Mr. Walsingham that you loved the ring. And I gave him a heads up we may need the wedding rings soon, and he said he only needed one week's notice, but that we would both need to stop in."
"I hadn't even thought of rings," gasped Hermione. "Wow, I guess there are so many things I didn't even think to think about. I guess I should go get some-"
"books?" Ron cut in with a knowing laugh.
"Don't tease," she protested. "I've never been married; I don't have a zillion siblings who have been married before me; and I know absolutely nothing about magical weddings."
"I know," he grinned, rolling out of bed. "S'why I got you these," he said, handing her the bag from Flourish and Blotts.
She sat up in bed and looked in the bag, a smile breaking out across her face. "You bought me books on magical weddings?" she said in a small voice. "Ron! That is perfect! Thank you," she said, kissing him sweetly.
"You're welcome. I know the next few weeks are going to be a bit on the crazy side. And if I know you, which hopefully I do since we are soon to be married and all, when life gets crazy, you need more and more books."
"I suppose I am a little predictable in that sense," she said as she yawned. "And if I wasn't so thoroughly exhausted I would start reading one of them right now. But I don't know that I could keep my eyes open."
Ron grinned at her as she yawned again. "Here, lay down. I'll rub your feet a bit."
"Really?" she mumbled happily.
"Yeah, really," he said.
"You do know I am too tired to have sex after this like that first time you rubbed my feet, right?"
"Hermione, I am not giving you a foot massage to trick you into having sex. Though, yes, I do enjoy that particular memory. Just lay back. You are tired and your muscles are all tense. I just want to take care of you."
She was too tired to argue with him, and soon she was laying on her stomach while he massaged the muscles in her legs, shoulders and back. He worked her muscles and soon felt her slip into a deep sleep under his fingers. He smiled, kissed her head and brought the covers back up over her and crawled in next to her, sighing with a smile, blissfully content with his life.
The four of them had spent a quiet Saturday together, and after breakfast Sunday Hugo went to go play with Lilly while Ron and Hermione flooed back to Hogwarts with Rose. After smothering her in hugs, she left the Headmistress' office and headed back to her dorm.
"Professor McGonagall," said Hermione quietly after Rose had left the room. "Can we ask you something in confidence?"
"Well I would hope so," replied the elder witch.
Ron laughed, "Yes, we have had more than a shared moments together over the years. That's a little bit of why we wanted to talk to you."
The headmistress simply raised one eyebrow at the newly engaged couple, which even after all these years had the uncanny ability to silence Ron is his steps. Hermione suppressed a smirk watching his reaction.
"Well, we are hoping to avoid the media circus that seems to try to follow us around and that Harry and Ginny deal with when they were engaged. So, that said, we are hoping to get married in a relatively short period of time."
"That sounds perfectly rational."
"Good. I thought so too," continued Hermione. "And the fewer people who know about the actual plan, then the better the chance of the Rita Skeeters of the world not finding out and having the chance to run everything off the rails."
"Right," agreed Professor McGonagall. "All of this makes perfect sense except for what you need from me."
"I promise. I'm getting there," assured Hermione. "You see, we are hoping to actually surprise the family with a wedding. We will have it all planned for a day when Molly is already hosting a family dinner and then just happen to show up with flowers, a cake, a wedding dress and someone to conduct the ceremony."
"That's brilliant," declared the older woman. "Just please don't tell Molly I thought it was a good idea to spring this on her."
"Oh we promise," assured Hermione. "But the thing is, we want to get married on Easter."
"Easter? In four weeks?"
Ron and Hermione nodded.
"Isn't it on April 1st this year?"
Ron nodded. "I asked George. He is the only person who we have told the plan to. Obviously we needed to be sure he would be ok with the day."
"And?"
Ron gave a small laugh. "Actually, he said Fred would have thought it was the most bloody brilliant prank on Mum ever in the history of the universe."
"I would have to agree with his assessment of how Fred would have seen this particular situation."
"And then when I told him the second part he laughed even harder."
"What is the 'second part' that so entertains your brother, Mr. Weasley?"
"That we would like you to marry us. We're hoping you would be willing to conduct the ceremony that day."
The older woman's expression remained stoic, but Hermione thought she saw several emotions flash across her still eyes, going from shocked to touched to amused and finally to serious. "You would think, Mr. Weasley," she said curtly, "that after almost thirty years that I would bloody well learn to never be surprised by the things that come out of your mouth."
At that, Hermione and Ron burst out laughing, soon to be joined by the professor.
"So you'll do it?" asked Hermione. "It is important to me that only the people we care about, and who care about us, are there at our wedding. I don't want some stodgy old wizard I've never met to marry us. You have played such an incredible role in both of our lives, separately and together. And you are a huge part of Rose's life, and will be in Hugo's - not to mention in the lives of Collin, Dennis and Fiona. It would mean so much to us if you would agree to do it."
"I am quite touched by your asking," said McGonagall earnestly. "And yes, of course, I would be honored to conduct the ceremony. Are you sure you prefer having a stodgy old witch instead of a stodgy old wizard, Ms. Granger?"
Hermione laughed again, but nodded her head.
"So who else besides your brother and myself know of this little plan?"
"No one," they said quickly.
"Not even Mr. Potter or the children?"
"No," said Ron emphatically. "We will probably tell Harry and Gin the Thursday or Friday before so they can help us with the last minute details. And we'll probably tell the kids and Hermione's parents then as well. But I think it best not to tell my parents until that morning. I have let the jeweler, Mr. Walsingahm, know we will probably need our rings rather quickly. But, he doesn't know the details."
"Oh, Alfie Walsingham is as trustworthy as they come. Your secret is safe with him," she assured. Then her face broke into a full grin. "The idea that your brother and I are the only ones in on this plot is absurdly amusing, I assure you. I never thought I would find myself on the same side as him in such a scheme. Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely enjoyed many of the surprises pulled off by both of your brothers, their spectacular exit from Hogwarts probably being at the highest spot on that list. But to be on the plotting side, well. Let's just say it is thoroughly delightful."
Ron could barely control the giggles threatening to break out. "I assure you, his response was quite similar."
Hermione smiled. "Thank you. Thank you for agreeing to this. It really does mean a lot to both of us."
"Well, it means a lot to me that you would ask. I am sure we will talk more before the big surprise day. Just let me know if there is anything you need me to bring or prepare ahead of time."
Ron nodded, but Hermione reached out and engulfed the shocked witch in a tight hug. "We will. Thank you again," she gushed. Ron once again tried to hold in his laughter at McGonagall's bewildered expression at the sudden affection. Hermione stepped into the floo first, thanking the professor again.
As Ron turned to step in behind her, he smiled at his old teacher who quietly said, "I could not have imagined a more surprising or a more perfect match for you, you know."
He grinned. "I know. It's a bloody miracle," and then disappeared into the flames.
(A/N: Thoughts? What does everyone think of the surprise wedding idea? Can't wait to hear...thanks for reading...carrytheotter)
