A/N: I'm back! And very glad you enjoyed the previous chapter 'cause I didn't have much faith in it… Now, let's see how this one does it, shall we?

Somebody asked why George was trying to stop Fred from kissing Hermione, well it is because he knows what is going on inside Fred and he is trying to protect him as well as Ron.

Good morning Mrs. Weasley

The wedding ended a couple of hours later. Everybody left the house commenting that it had been one of the most perfect parties they had attended. From the bride to the music, all had been fantastic.

Fred and Hermione apparated at their apartment. Hermione had managed to stop Fred from getting any drunker so he was almost sober by the time the party had ended.

"I made a few changes last night. I couldn't sleep and I thought today we would be too tired to do it," said Fred leading Hermione to the bedroom. He had enlarged it somehow so that a king size bed now stood in the middle of the room. It was similar to the one Hermione used to sleep in while she was at Hogwarts: it was a four poster with curtains hanging at the sides, but instead of red these were a pale shade of blue. At each of the sides there was a bedside table with a small lamp on top. The wardrobe looked exactly the same from outside but Hermione knew all her robes and stuff would fit comfortably now. Fred had also added a chest of drawers and had hanged a mirror over it.

"Fred, it looks lovely!" Hermione exclaimed bewildered.

"Harry told me blue is your favorite color," he answered shrugging, but Hermione could tell he was pleased with the compliment. "All your things are in the other room, we can arrange them tomorrow." Hermione had magically sent all her belongings a few days ago.

Hermione nodded, stifling a yawn. Fred smiled and opened the hangings to find a surprise. On top of the bed there was a basket with a bottle of Champaign and two goblets with a note that said 'You'll know what to do with it, have fun!' And it was signed by Lee and Oliver.

Hermione contorted her eyes in disbelief. Fred, on the other hand, looked quite amused. He sat on the bed and indicated that she should do the same. She climbed onto the other side, still baring a look of incredulity.

"I think a toast is in order, to celebrate our marriage," suggested Fred reaching for the bottle.

"I don't know if that's a good idea. You've had enough to drink for a week today, and I don't have much tolerance to alcoholic drinks with bubbles," she said, her voice full of skepticism.

"C'mon darling! What are you afraid of? Not being able to control the wild passion you have for me? Remember that we are married, so we wouldn't be doing anything wrong." He just loved messing with her, she looked so cute when she blushed with embarrassment but her eyes showed that she could kill him only for saying those things.

"Fred!" she started to complain, but he had already opened the bottle and were pouring Champaign into the glasses.

"I've told you before, you need to relax," he said handing him one of the goblets and raising the other. "Here's to a successful mission"

Hermione couldn't resist how his eyes were shinning and she raised her goblet too. Fred finished his glass in one gulp and helped to more. Hermione was taking small swigs, which is an easy way to get drunk without noticing it. No that she would know that.

It wasn't long before she was asking Fred to refill her glass, a bit giggly and with a shaking hand. Fred had more experience with alcohol, and although tipsy himself, he was able to keep his hand and voice steady. Soon, however, they were both toasting for everything they could think of. After drinking to all the members of their families (bare in mind Fred has a large family), friends and members of the Order, they passed onto Hogwarts teachers.

"Here's to Trelawney," cheered Hermione

"Here's to Filch for making my studying years so amusing," continued Fred.

"And to Mrs. Norris for having to stand Filch."

"And to Dobby, bless him!"

"I won't toast to Winky because she drinks too much," said Hermione seriously, but the effect would have been better accomplished if hadn't been staring at an inexistent something in front of her.

Fred grabbed the bottle but it was empty.

"I have bad news 'Mione," he said, turning it upside down.

"Oh no!" She took the bottle and peered into it. "Well, at least we don't have to drink to Snape now."

"So, what do you want to do? Are you tired?" But under the effects of Champaign all the tiredness they had felt was gone.

"No, I want to do something fun. Why don't we go to visit Tonks? She's funny."

"I have a better idea," he said. He knew what he wanted to do and there was no George to interrupt him.

"What?"

"I want to kiss you?"

"Why? There's no one watching."

"I know, but I still want to kiss you."

Hermione stared at him in silence, as if considering her options. "Ok then," she said suddenly, removing the basket with the empty bottle and goblets and placing it on the floor. Then she sat crossed legged in front of Fred with her eyes closed, waiting for him to do something.

"Third time's a charm," thought Fred as he got closer to Hermione and covered one side of her face with one of his hands. Once again his heart was beating faster than usual, and for the first time that night his hand shook as he stroked her hair. Their lips met in a sizzling kiss unlike none they had shared before. Hermione moaned softly as she opened her mouth and Fred couldn't suppress a smile. It was better than he had imagined, in fact it was the best kissed he had ever had. His head was spinning but the only thing he could feel was Hermione kissing him back. He wanted to rest her on her back but was afraid that the movement would break the moment, so he resisted the temptation and settled to enjoy the kiss.

He didn't know how long it lasted, and he didn't care. The only thing that mattered was that, whether it had been a few seconds or a whole hour, it had been a truly wonderful moment. And the best thing was that, when the broke the kiss, Hermione was beaming. This told him that she had enjoyed it as much as he had.

But the lack of movement had brought back the drowsiness. Hermione yawned widely and Fred yawned too.

"I think it's time to get to bed," he said.

"I have to get out of this first," said Hermione completely innocently pointing at her wedding dress.

"You use the bathroom first," he offered, biting back all the naughty comebacks that had occurred to him.

She nodded yawning again and slowly got up and dragged her feet to the bathroom. Fred meanwhile got out of his tux and for a second considered the possibility of sleeping in his boxers. He wasn't used to wearing pajamas but he didn't want to make Hermione uncomfortable either. He compromised by wearing a long t-shirt. Perhaps after they had lived together for a while he could go back to his old customs.

Some time later Hermione returned from the bathroom. Her face was clean of makeup and hr hair was tied in a tall pony tail. She was wearing a bathrobe and fluffy slippers. Before getting into bed, she removed the robe revealing a silk sleeping gown that ended above her knees and had a low-cut neck.

"Good night then," she said, turning of her lamp.

"Night," he replied, doing the same.

Two seconds later Hermione was sleeping peacefully and Fred was snoring loudly. But both had large smiles on their faces.

When Fred woke up the following morning he found Hermione already was awoken. She was still in bed but had a couple of pillows behind her back and was reading the Sunday edition of the Daily Prophet.

"Good morning Mrs. Weasley," said Fred smiling at her.

"Morning Fred," she answered warmly. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yep. In fact I had a wonderful dream. I can't remember what it was about, although I think you were in it, but I have this feeling of happiness that one gets after a good dream. Do you know what I mean?"

Hermione nodded but didn't say anything. She had had a nagging suspicion that Fred was not going to recall what had happened the night before, and that comment confirmed it. But she remembered everything about the kiss. What she did not know was how she felt about it. She was aware of what she had felt while Fred was kissing her, but now that the effects of the moment were off, where was she standing?

"Want some breakfast?" asked Fred getting off the bed.

"Sure," she said, starting to get up.

"No, you stay here and I'll bring it. Finish reading the paper and relax."

In the time that took him to make two cups of tea and some toasts, Hermione had time to reflect that Mrs. Weasley had done a wonderful job bringing up her children, specially considering that there had only been two women in a house full of men. Fred was not the chauvinistic person one could expect to find in such situation. On the contrary, he was considerate and seamed to think that housework was his responsibility as much as hers.

They spent the rest of the day alone inside the apartment. Nobody called in, probably because they thought they needed some time together to organize themselves. And that's what they did. The twins had decided to keep the shop closed for the weekend, so Fred could help Hermione put her things in order. But she refused to let him assist her.

"You've done enough already, and all by yourself," she said. "Now it's your time to relax."

Being a witch really accelerated the process of moving and settling down. In what felt like no time at all she had organized all her books by subject and put them into the shelves Fred had prepared for her. She had brought from her parents' house her old desk, which she placed under the window that looked onto Diagon Alley. When she finished decorating the place, the room was unrecognizable. It had something of the Gryffindor Common Room, its warmness and coziness.

Hermione looked around satisfied with her work. But there was something missing. She felt selfish taking the entire room for herself. She wanted to do something nice for Fred. He had done so much for her and wanted to repay him somehow. Did this idea have something to do with what had happened the previous night? No, surely not… Right?

She left the room and locked the door behind her. Fred was in the living room reading "Wizard Weekend".

"Fred, I have to go to buy something, but I won't take long," she said putting on her cloak.

"Do you want me to come with?"

"No, thanks. It's just that I have to buy something, er- personal." Fred took "personal" as "women stuff" and didn't push the matter.

Hermione knew exactly where she needed to go. Her first stop was Flourish and Blotts. She left fifteen minutes later loaded with a large package. Then she went to a furniture shop that had a sign above the door that read "The Wooden House, the most comfortable and magical pieces of furniture you'll find." There she had something sent to her new home. She instructed the owner to make it appear straight in George's old room. Finally she crossed the brick wall and entered the Leaky Cauldron, where she bought a large cauldron cake. She knew from the years they had spent together at Hogwarts that those were Fred's favorites.

Hermione apparated at the kitchen of the apartment and went straight to the study, waving a hurried "hello" at Fred as she passed through the living-room. The massaging armchair and the stool she had purchased were already there, standing in a corner of the room, opposite to Hermione's desk but facing the window.

She unwrapped the package from the library and arranged the books in a shelf next to the armchair. She finished just a second before Fred knocked on the door.

"Do you need any help 'Mione? You've been here too long."

"No. As a matter of fact I'm finished. Come in and tell me what you think."

Fred did as he was told. "It looks very nice," He said. His eyes traveled around the room but lingered on the shelf opposite to the wall. Standing there were the five volumes of the manual "How to Use Your Charm Work to Prank Your Friends". He moved his face from Hermione to the books with a mixture of excitement and disbelief showing on his features.

"You didn't…" he said in awe. Hermione merely nodded smiling.

"I can't believe it, we've been wanting to get this for two years now, how did you know? How did you get it?"

"You told me last Christmas that you wanted it. And well, let's just say I'm a VIP costumer at Flourish and Blotts."

"I bet you are," laughed Fred, still goggling at the volumes as he had never seen a book before.

"It didn't feel right to take the whole room for myself so I got you this," she said pointing at the armchair. "Now you too have a place to work, and I figured you would be more comfortable sitting here than in a desk."

"Hermione, you are the best!" He said hugging her and lifting her from the ground. This made her giggle.

"But this is too much," he told her once she had both her feet back on the floor.

"No, it isn't. You did many things for me and you deserve this. Take it as a wedding gift. I owed you one for the ring, remember?"

Hermione left Fred perusing the first volume of his new books and went to the bedroom to arrange her clothes and the rest of her stuff. This was a bit more difficult because she also had to straighten up Fred's things. Evidently he had tried to do it before she arrived, but in honest he had done a poor job.

Night had fallen before she had finished. Her husband was still absorbed in the present she had bought him. Instead of interrupting him, she went to the kitchen and settled the table. She wouldn't have bothered him, but after a day of working, her stomach was constantly reminding her that she needed food.

She entered the study, but didn't go much further than the door and leaned against the wall with her hands behind her back.

"Darling," she called in her best imitation of her mother.

Fred looked up from his book.

"What is it, baby?" he inquired, playing along. Both knew it was a bit silly, but they enjoyed the little game all the same.

"I don't know how to tell you this, but… I'm hungry." Fred looked at his watch.

"Is that the time? I don't think I'd ever spent so much time reading. Perhaps I've been around you too much." He joked. "What do you want for dinner?"

"Something that goes with the dissert"

"You cooked dissert?" asked Fred, a mocking suspicious look on his face.

"Nop. I wouldn't want to be a widow after only one day of marriage. I bought one of Tom's famous a cauldron cakes."

"Did you know it's my favorite or was it just a lucky guess?"

"After seeing you curse anyone who even tried to eat the last piece on every feast for five years, one kind of gets the idea."

Once dinner was ready, they sat at the kitchen table.

"Shall I open a bottle of wine?" asked Fred.

"No, I think we shouldn't get near alcohol for a while."

"Oh right!" He sat down in front of her. "I wanted to ask you, do you remember what happened last night? Because the last thing I remember is toasting to a successful mission, and then everything is blank."

"Yes, but we didn't do much," lied Hermione. Although she wasn't sure why, she didn't think it was a good idea to tell Fred what had really happened. "When we finished the Champaign we went to sleep."

"I see. And what about that hmm, interesting night gown?"

Hermione blushed scarlet. "Ginny gave it to me; I don't know what she was thinking."

'She was probably thinking about his brother,' thought Fred and made a mental note to thank her. But he didn't say anything. As much fun it would have been to torment her, Hermione looked embarrassed enough as it was.

He decided to change the subject. "Are you nervous about tomorrow?"

"Yes. I have no idea what I'm going to find there. Of course I read all I could find about the Department of Magical Families, but is rather recent so there wasn't much. When I met Mrs. Hathaway, she didn't say much about what my job was going to be."

"You'll do fine! In fact I'll be surprised if you are not promoted to head of the department within a month," he said reassuringly. Hermione smiled and, in spite of the overstatement, appreciated the vote of trust.

Hermione needed and early night, so she went to bed not long after they had finished dinner. Fred said he wanted to read for a while and he didn't want to bother Hermione with the light. Hermione got into bed, but she knew she would have some troubles dozing off. There were too many things in her mind. On the one hand, she was nervous about starting work the following day; and on the other hand she couldn't stop thinking about Fred and the kissed they had shared the night before.

As there was nothing she could do about her nerves problem, she focused on finding a rational explanation for what had happened. It was true that she had been drunk, but she knew better than to believe that her feelings had been affected by the alcohol. That option discarded, she passed onto the next one. She had been very emotional and sensitive the previous day, with the wedding and Ron not being there. Perhaps that was what she had felt and she hadn't recognized it for what it was.

"Yes, that must be," she thought. "After all, I haven't felt anything like that for Fred before."

But that was not entirely true. For the last few weeks her affection for Fred had been growing steadily and considerably.

"So what? I care for him, but that's all."

"But what about that urge you had to do something nice for him?"

"He's my friend; can't I do something nice for a friend now?"

"When was the last time you did something nice for Ron?"

"Leave him out of this, will you?"

"Have it your way. But what about feeling safe in his arms? Enjoying dancing with him? Thinking he looks cute when he sleeps?"

"I thought we had agreed I was emotional yesterday."

"You agreed on that! You can fool you, but you can't fool yourself!"

"That doesn't even make sense."

"Does what you are saying make any?"

"I do NOT have feelings for Fred!"

"Ok, you don't…Let me know when you leave denial land"

Hermione cried in frustration, but this time she did so out loud. And she chose o do it at the precise moment Fred was entering the room.

"Something wrong?" he asked stifling a yawn.

"No, everything's ok."

"You sure? Cause your face says otherwise."

"Yeah, don't worry."

"Ok, but remember you can tell me anything. That's what husbands are for," he finished with a radiant smile and went to the bathroom.

"Not helping, is he?" Hermione hide her head under the pillows so that, this time, Fred wouldn't hear her small shriek.

A/N: I know some of you will be disappointed because you wanted something "more" to happen between them… But that would ruin future chapters, so stayed tuned and perhaps you'll get your wish!

Another little thing, it will probably take a bit longer to update because my exams are coming nearer and I should start preparing them. I'll do my best to hurry up, but I can't promise you much. Although your reviews DO encourage me to leave my books and get to the computer to type ;o)