A/N-There's not much to say here, except thanks for all the great reviews and keep them coming :)...
Disclaimer: I'm not J.K. Rowling, but you probably already know that based on the femmeslashy fluff of the last chapter.
In the days after their engagement, Hermione and Ginny decided that they would try to keep it under wraps until they could announce the engagement to the entire Weasley clan and Harry at once. In such a tightly knit group, if they told one person, it had a way of getting to everyone else within the hour. They also ran the risk of the media somehow catching wind of the impending nuptials before the couple had a chance to inform everyone.
Keeping the secret wasn't difficult, since they didn't see many of the Weasleys aside from Harry and Ron outside of the frequent family parties. They just agreed to keep their rings on the nightstand by their bed when they were going out or to work. Aside from that, they tried to act the same as before. Apparently they weren't acting the same; Ron, of all people, started to notice a difference in their behavior. He brought it up as Ron and Hermione grabbed a quick lunch together in a ministry break room on a Friday a week or two after the proposal.
"So," Ron said to Hermione through a mouthful of ham sandwich, "you've been weird lately."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, refraining from commenting on Ron's dining etiquette and lack of tact.
"I mean you and Ginny, you've been all lovey," Ron said after swallowing his mouthful of food, "for awhile there you were acting, well, normal. Now when I'm with you two it's like when you first started dating, really affectionate and all over each other, like last night when we were over at Harry's. It's weird."
"First of all, Ron," Hermione said after taking a sip of water, "you didn't even realize it when we first started dating. And we are not all over each other. We're in a relationship, and as such, we enjoy each other's company."
"You know what I mean. You're acting like people do when they first start dating," Ron said as he balled up a piece of scrap paper on the break room table and tried to toss it into a nearby rubbish bucket.
"If that's what you think, that's fine with me," Hermione said breezily as she got up to throw away Ron's makeshift ball, which had sailed far to the left of its mark. She didn't want to protest too much and raise more suspicion. She had also been in a very good mood since the engagement and had become less inclined to quarreling with Ron.
"That's another thing," Ron said as he looked intently at the back of Hermione's head while she got her things together to return to her desk in the magical law department, "You've been nicer to me. You know, you're in a strangely good mood. You haven't snapped at me for nothing in almost an entire week."
"I never snap at you without reason, Ron," Hermione said very matter-of-factly, "and if you want me to bitch at you, I'd be happy to oblige."
Hermione hoped that the swearing and the threat would deter Ron from his line of questioning. As much as she trusted Ron, she found him incapable of keeping a secret from his mother, so she couldn't let him catch on. The tactic seemed to work, as Ron shrugged and got up to get his things together to return to his desk in the magical law enforcement department.
"I'm not complaining," he said a bit defensively, "it was just an observation, that's all."
"Alright," Hermione said, a few briefs stowed under her arm, "well, I have a busy afternoon, so I should get going. See you at the Burrow tomorrow though?"
"Yeah, see you there," Ron said, as he sorted through his papers. When Hermione disappeared out of the room, Ron looked after her for a moment. He briefly considered an idea before dismissing it and returning to the task at hand.
Ginny finished a daylong quidditch practice around six, thoroughly exhausted and wanting nothing more than to devour a huge meal. Fortunately for her, Friday was the night that she and Hermione had set for date night. They weren't always able to make that their date night, but on this particular evening they had decided to go to a muggle restaurant in the heart of London. They figured it would be the best place to go for some privacy from the prying eyes of the newspapers and magazines that had started following the girls with increasing frequency.
After showering and donning a light, casual sundress and pulling her hair back into a ponytail, Ginny reached into a secret compartment in her locker. She took out the ring that Hermione had bought her at a muggle jeweler the day after her impromptu proposal. She slipped the ring on her finger and admired the sparkling diamond for a second.
She was suppose to leave the ring on their nightstand, out of view from the world, but after Hermione left for work, Ginny couldn't help but sneak the ring into her pocket. She knew it was reckless, and if anyone found out before her mother, there would be hell to pay. Ginny just couldn't help it; the memory of that night made her unreasonably happy that she liked to have a reminder of it with her. It had been a spontaneous decision to propose at that moment, so Ginny remembered fumbling around for the right words, second guessing herself at every turn. Everything had ended up perfectly in spite of that, or perhaps because of that.
When Ginny arrived at the small, crowded restaurant, she was seated by a perky blond hostess and left to peruse the menu. For the first time in quite a long time, she had arrived before Hermione. It didn't necessarily worry her too much, since Hermione was known to get caught up in her work, and she had been through a particularly tough week at the office. A few minutes after Ginny took her seat, Hermione entered, looking quite stressed for a Friday night date.
"Hello there," Ginny said as she stood up to give Hermione a quick peck on the lips, "How was work?"
"Fine," Hermione said distractedly as she sat down and cast a look in the direction of the door, which had just opened, "it was lovely."
"Really?" Ginny asked, puzzled by Hermione's response. She had assumed that Hermione's demeanor was somehow related to work, and had rarely heard her use the word 'lovely' when describing her current assignment.
"Yes, really," Hermione said, sounding a bit annoyed as she suddenly put her hand over Ginny's which was resting on the table, as if to hold it.
"Alright," Ginny said, perplexed by Hermione's odd behavior, "is everything okay though? You seem a little out of sorts."
Hermione glanced sideways in the direction of a small table where a single man had just taken a seat before answering.
"I was followed here from the ministry," Hermione said, "you see that man sitting a few tables over? He's been tailing me for awhile now. That's why I was late. I tried to lose him. I took the most roundabout way to get here and he stayed with me."
"Bastard," Ginny muttered angrily, "are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine," Hermione said sounding as though she were on the verge of tears, while being careful to make sure her mannerisms were as neutral as possible, "I'm just so fucking sick of these reporters."
"I know, they shouldn't even be following us around muggles," Ginny said, making a motion to put her hand on Hermione's cheek, though Hermione would not release the hand, "what's wrong now?"
"You need to take that ring off," Hermione said, "he almost saw it when he walked right behind you. I don't want your family finding out about our engagement in some gossip magazine that will probably get the story wrong."
Ginny nodded and put her hand back on the table. As she went to put the napkin in her lap, she slipped the ring off under the table and put it in the small purse that she carried with her more for show than anything else.
"Let's not let this ruin our good time," Ginny said as she took up the menu and smiled across the table. As much as Ginny wanted to scowl and be in a foul mood over the invasion of privacy, she was determined to not let it get to her. "I hear that they have great food here and I'm famished."
Hermione nodded looked at a menu, though it was more a scowling than anything else. Ginny noticed that her body seemed as tense as before despite her agreement that they should try to ignore the man, who was paying an inordinate amount of attention to them.
"Now Hermione," Ginny said jokingly, "I like angry sex as much as the next person, but I think you actually have to be angry at me for it to work properly. Otherwise you'll be seeing that balding, slightly overweight man, and that's definitely going to be a mood killer."
Hermione smirked reluctantly at Ginny and wrinkled her nose at the thought of such a scenario.
"That might put me off sex forever," Hermione said, then added as she leaned in closer to Ginny, "does all of this sex talk mean that I'll be getting some tonight?"
"Only if you play your cards right," Ginny said, as she took a sip of the water the waiter had just brought them.
"Do I ever play my cards wrong?" Hermione retorted, cocking an eyebrow flirtatiously. Though Ginny could only see Hermione's eyes over the menu, they seemed to have regained their usual passionate sparkle.
"No, I don't think you do," Ginny responded. After pretending to think back, she shook her head and added, "no, definitely not."
The pair continued their dinner in easy conversation, laughing and talking as they usually did on their dates. If something was going to ruin their date nights, it certainly had to be more than the presence of any middle aged man.
A/N-I forgot to mention it, but I have a poll up in my profile about a possible future project. I'd appreciate your vote if you get a chance to check it out.
Optional question: What do you think of the media's obsessive coverage of celebrities (the kind of coverage we see in this chapter)?
Reviews are like sunshine in my exceptionally rainy and cloudy summer. Keep the sunshine coming! :o)