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CHAPTER 34.
The news of Hermione's engagement spread like wild fire, and by the time the two girls reached the great hall for dinner, before any of the other order members had arrived, it was the main topic of conversation.
Sitting at the end of the griffyndor table, and leaving enough room for the others when they arrived, Ginny asked Hermione about the details, how Charlie asked, where, when, etc.
Once the others arrived, and dinner began, Hermione was pulled into a conversation by Tonks.
"I hear you can out drink Remus." She said without preamble, making the others around them nod vigerously.
"She most certainly can." Lupin intoned, there was a bark from the shaggy black dog next to him, Sirius still being in hiding, even though his name had been cleared, it was agreed that having him publically in a school full of children so soon after his aquittal would not be wise.
"Excellent," Tonks said grinning, "We shall have to test this at the celebration party later on." She said, a mischevious look in her eye, that was reminicant of the Weasley twins.
Apprehension coursed through her, "Not trying to get me drunk are you Tonks?" She teased lightly, her innocent smile was all the conformation needed.
"In that case, i'll need to get more hangover potion." She said, making the others laugh appresiativley.
Charlie grinned evily at Harry, "Maybe you should take it easy this time, wouldn't want the students finding out about the 'boy who can't hold his drink'." He teased, much to the orders amusement, Harry grimaced as several students laughed, and started to whisper to eachother. He groaned.
"Mione, would you mind if I killed your fiance?" Harry asked.
"Sorry Harry, I'm rather fond of him." Was her dry responce.
"Even if I get you a new one?" He whined jokingly, "I'm sure viktor would..." Harry was cut of by the twins, who wore identicle evil smirks.
"HERMIONE, HOW MANY TIMES DO WE HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN VIKTOR KRUM." Fred said, very loudly, gaining the attention of the whole hall.
"YES, NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES HE BEGGS YOU TO GO AND VISIT HIM IN BULGARIA." George finished, sealing the finall nail in her coffin with a resounding bang. The order were all laughing, but the students had taken to whispering feverishly.
"Brilliant. Thanks you two." Hermione grumbled at the twins, who mearly smiled angelially.
"No problem Mya." They sang together.
"You know, I remeber now why i didn't miss you both at school." Ginny said conversationally, making the order laugh.
Charlie just chuckled at the cute pout on his fiance's face, wrapping her in a hug and kissing the top of her head, laughter still reverbarating through him.
After dinner, Hermione and Charlie were barred from the north wing untill the party that evening. Both relishing in their alone time, they went straight to the fourth floor, to their room.
"Why the piano?" Charlie wondered aloud, as they arrived, divesting themselves of their shoes and jackets.
"For me i think, though i haven't played in a while." Hermione admitted, looking longingly at the instrament.
"I didn't know you played Mya?" He intoned, obviously shocked.
"I never told anyone, not even Harry or Ginny knew." She had wanted to avoid having to perform for anyone, and that was what inevitabley happened whenever anyone found out she played.
"Would you play something, you don't have to, but i'd like to hear you." Charlie whispered, looking at her almost shy, like Hermione could say no to that look. She crossed to the grand, lifting the lid and pulled out the stool.
She did some scales to warm her fingers, before flowing smoothly into her favourite piece.
She had been tought by her Grandmother, who had always had a soft spot for Chopin, something that has rubbed of on Hermione.
The sound of Chopin's Tristesse, Etude Op. 10, no. 3, sent Hermione spirialing back to memory's of her childhood. She closed her eyes as her fingers moved over the keys, remebering the movement as if it were a dance.
As the song drew to a close, hermione bowed her head over the keys slightly, her eyes opening and a smile spreading across her lips, she had missed music.
She flowed seemlsly into the next piece, The Dark World, from one of her father's favourite symphonies. It was a complex piece, and one that looked and sounded extreemly impressive. She closed her eyes again, and smiled as she pictured her fater's happy face, he always loved it when his little girl played for him, especially his favourite song.
That song too drew to a close, fading into nothingness, the sustain on the final note tappering into silence.
"That was amazing." Charlie said softly, Hermione jumped, not having noticed him come to stand behind her.
"You liked it?" She smiled.
He nodded vigerously, "We are getting you a piano, I could listen to you play every day." he finished surley.
Hermione beamed, and moved from her posission on the bench towards him. That had been the first time he had alluded to their furure together, and she was thrilled.
The moved backward slowly, still not touching, stalking eachother, hunter and pray, untill they reached the large bed, then collapsed onto it together, in a tangle of lims.
They wasted no time devesting eachother of their clothes, ripping and taring roughly in their need, before falling back onto the bed again.
Their love making was fast, and passionate. It was them begining as they ment to continue, it was raw, solid and eternal.
They spent their afternoon in bed together, before having to move for their party that evening.
At half past five, there was a knock on the room of requirement door, Hermione just stared at it, non plussed. When the door swung open, she saw Harry and Ginny, holding the Maurader's map, aaaaaand she understood.
"This is nice." Ginny said, inviting herself in, and dumping some baggs onto a table.
"C'mon in Gin." Charlie said dryly, making Harry and Hermione chuckle.
"Thanks." was Ginny's reply, she was rumaging through baggs, pulling out various articles of cloathing.
"Here." She handed a little black dress to Hermione, "For tonight, from Tonks and Fleur."
She then left shoes, and an oufit for Charlie, before saying, "You have half an hour." And pulling a bemeused looking Harry from the room.
"Time to get dressed then." Charlie said, winking at Hermione, it never stoped making her blush, he loved it.
Hermione pulled on matching black lace underware, black thigh high stockings with seams, which ran all the way up the backs of her shapley leggs, all of which Charlie heartily approved of. She then looked at the dress, and baulked.
"Crikey." She said. The dress was short, very short, barley covering the tops of her stockings. And it was tight, form fitting really, as if it were pinted on. She pulled it on to see.
The spagetti strapps did nothing to hold the dress up, they were just decoration on her slim shoulders, blending in with her lace bra strapps. The neckline wasn't terribly low, but with the tightness of the dress, it didn't need to be.
It clung to her every curve, and stopped at mid thigh, leaving her increadibly long leggs visible. The dress was completley plain, except for a golden zipper which went down the back, all the way to the top of Hermione's bum.
Where the hell was she going to put her wand, she couldn't hide it in the dress, for it would show easily, and she couldn't even strap it to her thigh, for they were exposed.
With her pendant tucked into the front of the dress, nesstled between her clevage, her curls tumbling about her shoulders, and the black heels that Ginny had worn to Slughorn's party, Hermione felt extreemly exposed, yet strangely confident.
"Where do they come up with these?" She asked, looking at Charlie, only to notice he was staring at her hungrily, having frozen mid way through buttoning up his plain white shirt, which had the sleeves rolled up to bare his fore arms.
Hermione giggled, and walked over to him, swaying her hipps seductivley. She reached up and buttoned the shirt, her fingers brushing against the muscules of his abdomen and chest with fether light touches.
His hands came to rest over hers as she did the last button, she looked up at him. He was gazing at her adoaringly, as he leaned forward to kiss the tip of her nose.
"You look ..." he trailed off, not having the words.
She smiled, and leaned up to kiss his lips softly, tenderly, her arms sliding around his neck. She felt tiny when his lardger, warm hands spanned her waist, meeting at her lower back, holding her close to him.
They were interrupted by a knock at the door, Ginny.
"Ten minutes." She shouted, before walking away. Charlie grumbled something about his 'baby sister', but pulled away from his love, and proceeded to tuck his white sirt into his black slacks. He looked eddable, if Hermione did say so her slef.
"You ready?" Charlie asked, wrapping an arm around her slender waist, resting a large hand on her hip.
She quicky gathered all the clothes they had worn earlier, and banished them back to Charlie's room with her wand, which she then looked at, wondering were she could put it.
"Any suggestions?" She tuned to Charlie, who looked her over, a familiar look in his eye, one that made Hermione weak at the knees.
"Here." he said after a moment, pulling a wand holster from his arm, it bacame visible after it lost contact with his skin, it was similar to the one she had given Bill for christmas. He pointed his wand at the holster, and replacated it, protective enchantment's and all.
He put his holster back on, and handed the spare to Hermione, who proceeded to strap it to her thigh, now that it would be invisible. When she straighned up again, she was hauled into Charlie's arms.
"What do you do to me witch?" He rumbled huskily against the collumn o her throat, "I can't wait to get you out of this dress again later." He promised lowly, making hermione moan slightly.
He pulled back, straightening up, "C'mon, we're going to be late, and Ginny would kill us."
They met with few people on their way back to the north wing, it was a while before cerfue, and so many students were still ambling aout. Everyone they passed stared at the beautiful young coule, but neither of them noticed, to content in their own private universe.
They entered the Order common room to shouts and cheers of "Congratulations." And it did't take long for the party to be in full swing. Hermione was surprised by the turn out, not only the entire order, but many teachers, including Snape, and Neville, Luna, Ginny and Harry.
"You look splendid." Came Fleur's throaty voice, Tonks nodded her agreement smugly.
"It's all thanks to you," Hermione bowed deffarensially, making the thee women chuckle, "Where do you come up with these dresses anyway?" She asked curiously.
Fleur patted her nose conspiratorially, whilst Tonks threw her head back and laughed.
She danced with everyone that night, but went back to Charlie every other song, loving the feeling of being in his arms. Much to everyone's amazement, Ginny succeded in getting Harry to dance, something the twins would tease him for mercylessly for years to come, she had no doubt.
As the night wore on, it became apparent that Tonks and Sirius had taken it upon themselves to try and get Hermione drunk, something that wasn't working out well for them so far.
"Does she have the constitution of a Russian sailor?" Tonks asked her older cousin in disbelief, Sirius laughed shaking his head, "I told you so, don't know how she does it."
As the party wore on into the early hours of the morning, everyone had gotten steadily drunker. Tiny professor Flitwick had fallen asleep in an empy punch bowl, whilst Mcgonagall, Sprout and Mrs Weasley had taken to singing love ballads, very loudly and drunkenly. Hagrid was playing eye spy with a not at all drunk professor Dubledore, and a dreamy looking Luna, everyone gave that group a wide birth.
Hermione and Charlie where both curled into an armchair in a quiet corner of the room, Hermione having kicked off her heels, and curled up on Charlie's lap. They were both watching Ginny try to convince a very drunk Harry to get a Hungarian Horntail tattood onto his chest, it looked to be working too.
"Five galleons says he wakes in the morning with a tattoo." Charlie whispered into her ear, making her giggle, but nod all the same, really she couldn't lose no matter the outcome of this bet, money, or the experience of seeing the boy who lived realise he drukenly got a tattoo.
"Speaking of tattoos," Hermione began, "I found another protective rune inscription, it took some fiddling, but it works for couples, allerting one if the other is in mortal danger." She explained, pulling out her wand, and conjuring a piece of parchment from thin air.
This tattoo was diffrent to the one Charlie had made, it consisted of a line of runs, running vertically, with small characters it was about eleven inches long.
"I like it." Charlie enthused, looking over the tattoo, "Here." he said, baring the underside of his left fore arm for Hermione to mark. She did so, then kissed the skin.
She got off his lap, standing in front of him in the darkened corner, "Down my spine?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow daringly, making Charlie groan as he levelled his wand agaist her back.
The tattoo blossomed, running from the base of her neck, down her spine, inbetween her shoulder blades. It came to a stop some three inches above her lower back, dissapearing beneath her dress, the black ink against her pale skin was one of the sexyest things Charlie had ever seen.
He pulled her back onto his lap, her bum landing on his hardening length, making them both groan quietly. "That is one of the sexyest things I have ever seen." He mumbled huskily, and he nibbled on her ear lobe. He placed his hands firmly on her hips, and ground them down onto him, making them both shiver.
Their moment was interupted by the twins, "Did you just do what i think you just did?" George questiooned drunkly, Fred looked confused, as if trying to figure out what his brother had just said.
"Never mind that George," fred said drunkenly, "Did you both just get the tattoos on yous selves." he hiccoughed slightly.
Hermione and Charlie, who were both too buisy laughing at the drunken twins to say anything, just nodded, tears of mirth running down their faces.
"Where they funny tattoos?" George asked stupidly, missunderstanding their laughter, this just made them laugh even harder. The twins looked at eachother and shrugged, before staggaring drunkenly away.
The party disbanded in the early houres of the morning, with a few order members climing the stairs from the comon room to their suites. Many however where crashed out on the floor, and in one case in a punch bowl, in the common room itself, waking up tomorow should be good, hermione thought.
She and Charlie went back to the room of requirement, where, true to his word, he took great delight in gettng Hermione out of her dress, ripping it from her wiling body. She stood in her underware and stockings, looking at her new tattoo in the mirror, grinning happily, it was beauiful. The elegant runes were small, and not packed too closley together. They balanced delicatley along her spine, as if they had blossomed there naturally.
Charlie came to stand by her, running his fingers teasingly up her back, then down the tattoo. When they made love that night, he paid special attention to her new ink, kissing along her spine lovingly, tenderly. Cementing the magicall bond it had created between them.