Enjoy the party!
Chapter 17
The Birthday Party
Sunday, 3rd August 2003
"And what's the matter with you?" Ron heard. Looking to the side, he saw Sirius, a beer in his hand, drop onto a chair next to his. Harry sat on the other side.
"What do you mean?"
"You look quite thoughtful and quieter than usual."
"Don't bother," said Harry. "I've already asked him, but he says there's nothing to tell."
"Hmmm," said Sirius, watching Ron. "Pining for some girl, maybe?"
Ron groaned. "Not you too, please, I've got enough with your godson's interrogations."
Sirius grinned. "Sorry, but it's obvious something's bothering you."
"Can you two drop it?" asked Ron with a groan. "How was your trip?"
"Trying to change the subject?" said Sirius, smirking. However, he let the matter drop and leaned back before answering, "It was fun, and quite relaxing. I missed Molly's cooking, though."
"Yeah, I know the feeling," nodded Ron. He looked at Harry and Sirius's beers. "I need one of those as well," he declared. He swissed his wand, and a beer flew out from the kitchen window and towards his hand.
"Ron! You almost hit me in the head, you idiot!" yelled Ginny from the kitchen.
"Sorry!" shouted Ron, chuckling.
Harry smacked his arm. "Be careful with my wife, prat, I'm rather fond of her head!"
At this, Sirius broke into raucous laughter. Harry blushed.
"I didn't mean it like that, you pig!" he shouted at his godfather.
"Shit, Sirius, don't put those images in my head," growled Ron. "What've you been up to this week?" he asked him, eager to forget about the joke.
"Just catching up with Lupin," said Sirius. "We had dinner with him and Tonks on Friday to celebrate Harry's birthday, because they left yesterday for Spain."
"Good."
"Yeah, though quite boring when compared to your week. Harry told me you managed to capture a couple of Dark wizards from Canada."
"Yeah. Nasty ones, those two," nodded Ron. "Did Harry tell you about their —?" he started to ask, but was interrupted by a yell from Fleur.
"You zree, come for ze plates and cutlery and finish setting ze table!"
"Duty calls," said Harry merrily, jumping to his feet. They left their beers on the table and headed for the kitchen windows, where Fleur gave them plates, forks, knives and glasses. Going back to the table, Ron caught sight of Charlie and Bill, coming back from a walk around The Burrow, Victoire's bouncing happily on Charlie's shoulders.
They were finishing setting the table when Fred, George, Katie and Alicia came out. They talked for a bit, the newcomers greeting Sirius and asking him about his trip. Ron, however, disconnected from the conversation when he caught sight of Hermione coming from the gates. She must have Apparated outside instead of using the Floo. Fuck, she looked so lovely, wearing a black, flouncy skirt that reached just above her knees and a thin, red, sleeveless blouse.
He hadn't seen her since Friday morning, when they had met to talk about her interview with Dumbledore. Hermione had been really pleased about how it had gone, and she had explained to him the ideas they had come out with regarding conflictive children and odd cases like Morgana's. Ron had been happy to hear that Dumbledore had promised they would look into Morgana's case and make sure she felt comfortable, and that she could even attend classes while staying with Ophelia if so she wished.
She had gone see Morgana and Ophelia upon coming from Hogwarts, and they both seemed to be doing well, given the circumstances.
They had kept the meeting very professional, and though Ron had been dying to ask her to go out for drinks of something, he had refrained.
But today Percy would be back at last, and, hopefully, they would no longer be an item. He only wished he knew what that would mean for him.
"Hermione!" shouted Angelina, noticing her arrival, and everyone turned to look at her. She blushed a little under all the attention, and smiled a bit shyly.
"Hi, everyone."
"You came," said Harry, grinning.
"Well, I promised you I would, right?"
"Yeah. Hermione, this is my godfather, Sirius Black. Sirius, this is Hermione Granger, Percy's girlfriend and a brilliant addition to the Legal Office."
Sirius smiled at her and shook her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said. "I heard quite a bit of you from Ron."
Sirius arched an eyebrow at this. "From Ron?"
"We work together in a proposal she's making," explained Ron quickly.
"Ah. Well, I hope you're treating him right," said Sirius jokingly. "He's like my second godson. I owe my freedom — and my life! — to him and Harry."
"Well, he needs to be kept a bit in line, but yes, I'd say I've treated him well," replied Hermione, also joking. While everyone laughed, Ron tried to act normal and not think about how fantastically Hermione had treated him. After a few days without touching her, however, it wasn't easy.
"Well, and this is Charlie," introduced Bill when the laughter died down. She gave him a quick hug, and Ron could notice Charlie was quite astounded.
"I'm going to go say hello to Mr and Mrs Weasley," said Hermione, moving towards the house. Once she disappeared through the door, Charlie looked at Bill.
"She's really Percy's girlfriend?" he asked, still in awe. "When you told me he had brought her here, I was imagining someone like McGonagall. How the hell did that happen?"
"Search me," shrugged Bill.
A few minutes later, Ron's mum called them to help bring the food out, and soon they were sitting at the table. Ron ended up sitting in front of Hermione, who was between Angelina and Sirius.
"Isn't Percy coming for lunch?" asked George, looking between his parents and Hermione.
"I just know he's coming today, but I have no idea about the time," she responded, not looking at anyone, and Ron could tell she felt a bit embarrassed because of that. I mean, which girlfriend doesn't know the time her boyfriend will be back?
However, no one at the table showed any surprise.
"He probably is finishing some stupid report before coming," commented Ginny with a roll of her eyes. "He never puts family gatherings before work."
Ron forced himself not to snort.
"Well, there's plenty of food for him, when he arrives," said Ron's dad.
"Yes," nodded his mum, though it was clear she wasn't happy. She hated when people arrived late at family gatherings, especially celebrations. "Anyway — why don't we start with a toast?"
"Mrs Weasley, truly, there's no need —" started to say Harry.
"Oh, Harry, dear, you and Ginny will get your toast with the cake," she replied, looking at him a bit awkwardly. "I was thinking of Ron and Hermione, and the amazing deed they did with that poor girl," she explained, her voice full of pride. "I went yesterday to visit them, and Ophelia looked so — so alive. I hadn't seen her that way in since poor Charles died and she lost the baby. I think she and that girl will be very good to each other."
"What are you talking about?" asked Charlie.
Before Ron or Hermione could say anything, Harry launched into an explanation of who Morgana was.
"Wow," said Charlie, looking at Ron approvingly. "That's fantastic. Well done, little brother."
Sirius smiled. "Well, I wish I could say I'm amazed, but I've known what a good heart Ron's got since the moment I met him."
"It was all Hermione's doing," said Ron, feeling both elated and embarrassed at the praise.
Hermione looked embarrassed as well, clearly not liking being the centre of attention. Besides, it must be hard for her to be admired by his family when she knew she was going to break their hearts a bit. She tried to smile, but he could tell she was making an effort not to cry. Ron itched to touch her, to comfort her, but he knew he shouldn't, so he focused once more on his food.
"It was a joint effort," said finally Hermione. "I went to see her on Friday afternoon as well, and yeah, they seemed to get along quite fine, considering. Ophelia told me they were planning on going on a holiday next Tuesday or Wednesday, after — after Morgana says goodbye to her parents."
"They'll be extradited to Canada on Monday, right?" asked Ron's dad.
"Yes," nodded Harry. "They'll spent the rest of their lives in prison there."
"Well, hopefully, that girl will be able to escape the same fate, and that's thanks to Ron and Hermione," continued Ron's dad. "So — let's have that toast." He raised his glass, and everyone else did the same. "To Ron and Hermione!"
"To Ron and Hermione!" the rest of the table chorused. Hermione gave them a shy smile, then her eyes met Ron's for a fraction of a second. Time seemed to stop at that moment, and Ron felt charged, but just an instant later she looked down at her plate and the moment passed as if it had never happened.
Lunch continued, between loud conversations and laughter, and though Hermione talked and participated, it was obvious, to Ron, that she didn't feel comfortable at all. Once lunch was over, Ron's mum brought the cake and, after singing 'Harry Birthday' to Harry and Ginny (led by an eager Victoire) everyone gave them their presents.
"Well, Boy-Who-Lived, dear sister," said Fred after the toast, "time for a birthday Quidditch match, don't you think?"
"You have to ask?" replied Harry with a wide grin.
"Okay, everyone, who wants to play?" asked Fred.
"Not me," said Hermione.
"We'll watch while 'aving a drink," Fleur told her. "Let zem play zeir silly game."
Hermione laughed, then nodded. "Sounds good, but I've got to go to the loo first," she told them as she got up. She disappeared inside the house.
"Well, let's make the teams," said Ginny. "I choose Harry for mine."
"What!?" exclaimed Angelina. "You know that's forbidden!"
"Our birthdays, our rules," stated Harry, smirking. "And I want to be with her for once."
"But none of your birthdays are actually today, are they?" pointed out Bill.
"Irrelevant, the celebration is today," replied Ginny. "Besides, the other team can have Charlie, so don't whine."
"Okay, okay," accepted Fred. "Come on then, gents, get ready!"
"I need to get changed," said Ron. "I can't play in these jeans. I'll see if I have something here and if not I'll pop into my flat for a moment."
"Okay," said Harry.
Ron hurried towards the house and climbed up the stairs. When he reached the landing where the bathroom door was, however, he made a brief stop and looked at the closed door. He considered knocking to check on Hermione but, in the end, he decided against it and continued towards his old bedroom. He looked into the wardrobe and found an old pair of shorts along a few threadbare t-shirts. He took off his jeans and the current t-shirt he was wearing off and was about to put the shorts on when he heard someone approaching his room.
"Ron?" he heard Hermione ask timidly.
"Er — yeah, it's me," he answered. A moment later, she appeared at the door. She looked him up and down and blushed.
"Oh, you're changing! Sorry," she said.
"It isn't as if you haven't seen me like this before," responded Ron calmly. "What's the matter?"
She stepped into the room, avoiding his eyes. "Nothing."
"Come on, Hermione, I can tell something's bothering you."
She approached the window and looked out of it. "I want to go home."
Ron frowned. "Why?"
"I love your family, Ron. Really. And every minute I stay here I feel like I am deceiving everyone. I'm — I'm taking part in this celebration, as if I were part of the family, when we both know I won't be here ever again." She let out a sigh. "Where the hell is Percy!? He should be here by now! Then we could go and I could put an end to this farce once and for all."
"Hermione …"
"After — after I break up with him I'm going to take a couple of weeks off. I had planned to start my holidays the week after this one, but I'll start tomorrow. I need to get away, clear my head and all that."
"Oh," he said, a nasty feeling creeping up his body.
She turned to face him. To his surprise, her eyes were wet with tears.
"I'm — I'm s-sorry for all the mess I'm going t-to cause."
"I'm as part of that mess as you are, Hermione. And it's not just your fault, Percy —"
"What Percy is doing has nothing to do with me cheating, Ron," interrupted Hermione. "I told you once — two wrongs don't make one right."
"I know, but —"
"But nothing!" she snapped. "I — I didn't have s-sex with you just because Percy wasn't paying me enough attention, Ron! There was something about you that just —" She shook her head, blushing a bit. Ron took a tentative step towards her.
"When they know the truth no one will hate you," promised Ron. "They'll understand. And no one has to know about our — our affair."
She looked at him. "I don't want to cause more trouble, Ron. I don't want your Mum scolding Percy or anything like that," she declared.
"But he deserves —"
"But nothing," she repeated firmly. "I'll take the blame. Your family is so close, and I don't want to cause your parents any pain," she said. Another tear slid down her face, and her upper lip trembled.
And then, suddenly, she was embracing him, her face pressed against his bare chest as she sobbed silently. Ron stood still, shocked, then, tentatively, put his arms around her.
"It'll be okay," he said, trying to sound reassuring. He moved his hands over her back, relishing her closeness, and he felt hers on his shoulder blades, her fingers moving over his skin, leaving gooseflesh on their wake.
She looked up, directly into his eyes.
Then moved her hands to the back of his neck and pulled his head down for a kiss.
Ron responded at once. He didn't know if this was the last time he was going to feel her lips against him, her body flushed against his own, but if it was, then he was going to commit every inch of her to his memory. His hands moved to cup her ass over her skirt, and she moaned into his mouth.
"This is wrong," he heard her mutter against his lips. "Gods, this is so wrong. Why did you have to be in just your pants?" she asked. "Why do you have to turn me on so much?"
"Why don't we find out?" he replied, and kissed her again. She moaned once more and let her own hands to slid under the waistband of his pants, cupping his buttocks and squeezing them with relish. An intense, overwhelming desire coursed through Ron's body and he felt his cock harden completely.
He pushed her against the wall as the kiss deepened. He knew they should stop, that his family was out there, that they were waiting for him to play Quidditch, but the only thing in his mind was Hermione. This could be the last time he had her like this, and he wasn't going to waste it.
"You make me so fucking horny," he grunted as they make a break to get some air. "Do you feel how hard I am, Hermione?"
"Yes. Yes, gods, yes," she responded, kissing him again.
Ron slid his hands down her thighs and grasped fistfuls of her skirt, pulling it upwards so he could get under it. He put them back on her ass, caressing her roughly over her silky knickers. She moaned again and rocked her hips against him.
After a bit, he moved one of his hands to her front and slid it under her panties, cupping her already wet pussy. He began to rub her, allowing her to grind against his palm, then curved a couple of fingers and shoved them inside her.
"Oh, gods! Ohhhh!"
"Missed this, did you?" he growled.
"Yes. Ron, yes! Fuck, don't stop. Don't stop."
Stopping was the last thing in his mind. She could feel how wet and tight she was and his cock throbbed in envy of his fingers.
He moved his lips to her neck. "Open your blouse," he demanded.
She moved her fingers to the buttons and, hurriedly, she unbuttoned them, creating a path for Ron to follow. He moved his lips from her neck to her chest, to her cleavage, then knelt on the floor and kissed her flat stomach. With her blouse open, he looked up, his lips still pressed against her soft skin. She was watching him, her face just over her silky red bra.
She was so incredibly hot.
Moving his hands to her legs, he lifted her skirt, slowly, until he revealed her matching silky red panties. He pressed his lips against her pussy over it, and she let out a gasp.
"Hold the skirt up," he told her, his eyes fixed on hers.
She did as told, and he moved his hands to her thighs, caressing them before pulling her panties down. She stepped out of them and Ron traced her slit with his tongue, relishing her scent and taste. They didn't have much time, however, so he began to lick her with fervour for a couple of minutes, eliciting delicious moans from her, then got back to his feet.
At once, she kissed him, hard, tasting herself on his tongue, and her hands went to his waist. She freed his cock and gave it a few stroked, making him groan in pleasure.
"Ron, please."
He grabbed her by her ass and she jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist. She positioned his tip at her entrance and then they stayed still for a moment, looking into each other's eyes.
Then she pushed down, impaling herself on his cock, and both groaned in pleasure. Ron squeezed her ass, relishing her tightness. That first thrust, which stretched her pussy to force it to take his dick to the hilt, was always pure bliss.
"The bed," she whispered, taking him out of his reverie. "Take us to the bed, Ron."
He was going to move them there, but, before he could take a step, she talked again. "Wait! The door!"
He looked at it. Yes, fucking with the door open would be a bad idea, even if everyone else was outside, so he approached it. Hermione closed it, and then he took them to the bed while she used her hands and feet to push his pants lower, giving him more freedom to move. He sat on the bed, with her straddling him, and she kissed him hard and began to ride him with purpose.
"Fuck, Hermione …"
"Gods, Ron … Gods, you feel so good … So good …"
"Unghhh …"
She sped up, one hand on his shoulder for support, and used the other to undo the front clasp of her bra. The cups fell, and her perfect, round tits bounced free, drawing a groan out of Ron.
"Suck me," she breathed, moving up and down his shaft. "Suck me, Ron."
Ron latched his mouth around her right nipple, sucking greedily, taking as much of her boob as he could into his mouth. She moaned louder, riding him harder, frantically, aware that their time was limited.
Ron tried to commit everything to memory: her ass in his hands, her breast in his mouth, her moans, her wild hair, her expression of pleasure, her hot, wet pussy moving up and down him …
There was nothing else in the world but them.
"Ron … Oh, Ron, I'm so close … Gods, you feel so good and big inside me, I — I'm going to come … Gods, I'm going to come hard!"
"Cum for me," he grunted before moving his mouth to her other breast and sucking with equal fervour.
She sped up, slamming down hard a few times. He clenched his eyes shut, the pleasure almost overwhelming, and then came, strongly, powerfully, clamping down on him and soaking his crotch with her juices. He forced himself to open his eyes and looked at her face. She had her head bent backwards, her mouth open in a silent scream as she orgasmed. Ron bucked his hips in response, wanting to help her along, eager to throw her onto the bed and pound into her pussy mercilessly until he exploded deep inside her.
However, she had other plans, and, when he made a gesture to lay her onto the mattress after giving her a minute to regain her breathing, she grabbed his shoulders and stilled him.
"No. I want to be the one making you cum, Ron," she declared, giving him an intense, burning look.
"Do it, then. Fuck, Hermione, you're killing me," he groaned, thrusting upwards.
Hermione resumed her movements, but, instead of going fast and hard, as he needed, she used slow, sensual movements, taking him deep before moving up again until only the tip was inside her. At the same time, she arched her back and pushed her tits onto his face. Her buried it between them, and she pressed both globes against his cheeks.
"Shit, Hermione … Fuck, you're killing me."
"Slow, Ron," she whispered softly. "Enjoy it. Let it build."
"Fuuuck …"
Squeezing her ass harder, he took her tit into his mouth again, sucking, and looked at her face as he did it. She was watching him, almost enraptured, as if she, too, were committing this moment to her memory.
Was she saying goodbye?
The thought was almost unbearable, yet he couldn't dwell on that, the way his cock and balls were throbbing with need.
And then she sped up, suddenly, slamming down powerfully. Ron groaned, his arousal growing.
"Hermione!"
"Cum for me, Ron. Cum inside me," she almost pleaded.
It was as if she had finally opened the floodgates, and he couldn't resist it anymore. He exploded, burying himself to the hilt in her and thrusting madly as he emptied himself inside her eager cunt. She pressed him to her, hugging him as he finished, whispering words of encouragement as he shuddered in ecstasy.
Fill me, Ron, yes … Give me everything … Enjoy me, enjoy my pussy …
With one, last groan, Ron fell on his back, panting, exhausted after the incredibly intense release.
"Fuck, Hermione …"
She smiled at him, her hands caressing his chest and stomach. He closed his eyes to savour the feeling, but opened them again when, less than half a minute later he felt her get off him.
"We must go back," she told him, and, just with those words, their bubble, and the magic that had surrounded them, broke, leaving something akin to coldness in its place.
"Yeah," he nodded, getting up.
She cast Cleaning and Refreshening Charms on them, then put on her panties and fixed the rest of her clothes while Ron put on his shorts and t-shirt. When he finished, Hermione was next to the window, peering through the curtains.
"Everyone is still out there," she said after a moment.
Ron nodded. They exited his room and climbed down the stairs together. He felt the need to say something, and, when they were almost at the bottom of the stairs, he turned to look at her.
"That was fantastic, by the way," he said. He knew it was a stupid thing to say, and not really what he wanted, but —
She blushed prettily, giving him a smile, and he couldn't resist it. He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the lips.
"WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING HERE!?"
Ron's blood turned to ice at once. In front of him, Hermione was looking over his shoulder and she had turned as white as a ghost.
Ron spun around fast and stared at a livid Percy (when the fuck did he come back?), who was watching them from the door to the kitchen. Ron tried to adopt a calm demeanour, remembering all his training about dealing with stressful or dangerous situations. Hermione, however, had never had such training.
"Oh, gods!" she exclaimed.
"Percy —" started to say Ron, raising his hands in a calming manner.
"Don't you 'Percy' me, Ronald! You — you were kissing my girlfriend! YOU WERE KISSING MY GIRLFRIEND!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Lower your voice, will you?" Ron asked, taking a step forwards, while, behind him, Hermione was chanting, "Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods!" non-stop.
"LOWER MY VOICE? HOW DARE —?"
The front door opened with a bang, slamming against the wall, and Bill, followed by Fred, George and the rest of the family, barged in.
"What's all this yelling?" asked Bill, approaching Percy, his eyes shifting between him and Ron and Hermione. "What's wrong? We thought someone had got hurt!"
Oh, fuck! thought Ron. Oh, bloody fucking fuck …
Could this turn any worse?
"It's Ron," hissed Percy, his voice full of venom. "He's having an affair with Hermione!"
"What!?" exclaimed Ron's mum, coming to the front. "What stupidity is that, Percy? Ron would never —"
"HE WAS KISSING HER!" spat Percy, pointing an accusing finger at them. "I SAW IT!"
Everyone focused their eyes on him, and Ron felt his ears burn.
"Ron?" said his dad.
"I —"
"Oh, gods!" sobbed Hermione, burying her face in her hands.
Ron's mum gasped in complete shock. Hermione's sob had been as good as a confession.
"Is it true?" demanded to know Ron's dad, looking at him with such disappointment that Ron felt as if someone had kicked him right in his bollocks.
"Well, technically, but —"
"Technically?" interrupted Percy, his tone scathing. He let out a mirthless laugh. "Technically, he says! I saw him shove his tongue down her throat, right on the stairs! And by what they were saying, that's not the only thing that happened up there!"
More gasps and whispers arose from the assembled group of family members. Ron saw Fred and George staring at him open-mouthed. Harry, on the other hand, was looking at him with an odd expression.
"Ron, what do you have to say for yourself?" asked his mother, who was sending daggers at him.
"What can he say?" responded Percy, not letting Ron talk. "Oh, but I know what this is about!" he exclaimed, looking at him with the same distaste he would show a particularly nasty bug. "I've been saying it for years! He's nothing but an insecure, lazy, envious piece of shit! He's so jealous of me! I knew he would screw this, but not even I expected him to fall so low as to go after my girlfriend to sabotage me!"
Ron stared at him, open-mouthed. Sabotage him? He thought this was about him!?
"You don't know —" he tried to say, but Percy cut in again.
"I know too well! You never were able to keep your hormones in check, acting as if you were a randy teenager with those girlfriends of yours! It's no wonder all of them dumped you after a while, even though none of them could be called bright! And when you found out you had to work with Hermione, you decided to go after her, to satisfy your urges and to ruin my career, to cause a scandal just before the election!"
"It's my fault!" shouted then Hermione, tears streaming down her face. "It's my fault! It was me who kissed him!"
Ron turned his face to look at her, his look asking, 'what the fuck are you doing?' but she didn't return his gaze, and he realised she was determined to take all the blame to avoid more drama among his family.
"You shut up!" shouted Percy. "Stop defending him! Of course, I'm not considering you blameless in this! I thought you were a proper woman, with high morals, despite your obvious invitations for me to stay at your flat! But you turned out to be nothing but a slag!" he spat with pure distaste. "I helped you move! I got you your position! But you couldn't have everything you wanted from me so you decided to spread your legs for him!"
There was a loud gasp, and Ron saw red.
"YOU REPUGNANT ASSHOLE!" he yelled, and he felt his magic wake in his body, eager to explode. "SHUT UP! Don't you dare call her a slag! Don't you ever dare to insult her!"
Percy took a step back, caught by surprise by the force of his anger, but he soon recomposed himself and attacked again. "I call her what she is! Of course you defend her! She wasn't cheating on you!"
"I defend her because, contrarily to you, I do care for her!" he blurted out.
"What?" he heard someone say. Realising what he had said, he felt his ears burn. Looking down, he saw, from the corner of his eye, that Hermione was staring at him open-mouthed.
"You care for her and I didn't?" hissed Percy. "Oh, that's rich! Must I remind you again that she was my —?"
"SHUT UP!" Ron yelled again. "You might have deceived everyone, Percy, even Hermione, but not me! I know everything, so you'd better not dare call her your girlfriend!"
"You know everything!?" Percy replied derisively.
"Yeah, I do! You never cared for her! You USED her! You wanted a great project, something with great impact that would help your position as Kingsley's second hand! And then you read about her proposal! I talked to people in International Cooperation, they told me you found about her, that she wanted to come here! You asked about her, and realised she was brilliant and would be an incredibly asset! And then, to ensure her loyalty towards you, you decided to date her!" He looked at Hermione. "His favourite assignment has never been Arithmancy! Everyone here will tell you that he always loved History of Magic because it was the way to 'find more about those that held power in the past and learn from their mistakes!'" he revealed, mimicking Percy's most pompous voice. He looked back at Percy, glaring. "And since when have you read Muggle fiction books, Percy? All you told her to get her to like you were LIES!"
Percy, who clearly didn't expect this, looked away, recoiling. Hermione was now staring at him with wide eyes of disbelief.
"You were ready to tie yourself to her, right? To keep her with you in a loveless relationship just because it would help you soar, maybe to become the next Minister once Kingsley decides to leave the office!"
"That's — that's preposterous, I never —"
"Stop with the lies! Yes, I was with her, and yes, she cheated on you, but you lied to her from the beginning! You know nothing about her except that she's smart! Do you know she prefers to wear her hair down? No! You always insisted for her to wear it tied because it gave her a better image in front of the most conservative people at the Ministry! You never cared about meeting her parents, or doing anything she liked! You didn't even care whether she was ready to come here a month ago! But you wanted her to meet Harry, right? You wanted them to meet, thinking Harry would be the one assigned to help her with the proposal. That way Harry's name would be associated to it as well, ensuring it would pass and be on the front page of newspapers! Harry is your fucking brother-in-law and you didn't have qualms in using him, so don't you dare blame me for doing anything with a girlfriend you never cared about, especially giving the shitty way in which you've always treated me!"
"I treated you the way you deserve!" replied Percy, changing tactics. "As if you didn't use Harry to become an Auror! When I think of all the money wasted in your 'education,' when those of us that really cared about it had to do with barely the minimum!"
"Percy," said then Ron's dad, who looked as if he was seeing his two sons for the first time, "Ron gave us a lot of money from his Order of Merlin award."
"What?" asked Percy, shocked. "No, that's —"
"It's true."
A tense silence fell over the room.
"I'm s-sorry," said then Hermione, her voice weak and shaky. "I'm so s-s-sorry. I — I never wanted to hurt anyone." She managed to look at Ron's parents and the rest of the family. "You treated me like one of your o-own, and I betrayed your trust." Then she looked at Percy. "Percy, despite — despite everything, what I did was wrong and I — I — I'm sorry!" she finished, breaking down. Sobbing loudly, she ran towards the door. Sirius and Fleur, who were just in front of it, moved aside to let her pass.
"Hermione!" shouted Ron. "Hermione, wait!"
But either she didn't hear, or she ignored him, and continued running until she reached the edge of The Burrow.
"Fuck!" he shouted. Feeling weak and drained, he sat on the stairs and buried his face in his hands.
A tense, thick silence fell over the living room.
"Mummy?" he heard Victoire say in a low voice. "What's up? Why was Aunty Myknee crying?"
"Why don't we go outside a have more cake?" responded Fleur.
The girl mumbled something. Ron lifted his head in time to see the two of them leave the house.
"I'll accompany you," said Sirius, following them.
Ron's mum dropped onto an armchair, looking confused and shocked.
"I can't believe this," she said. "We're family. Family!" She looked at Ron. "You got involved with your brother's girlfriend! And you," she addled immediately, rounding on Percy, "I raised you better than to use people that way, or call women names like 'slag!'"
Percy frowned. "I am the victim here, Mum! She cheated on me! And him," he added, pointing at Ron, "has no sense of loyalty or —"
"Loyalty?" hissed Ron, getting to his feet. "Did you say loyalty? You?" He took a step forward. "You, who abandoned us? You, who only tried to make amends after the breakout, when it was obvious Fudge was going to fall and we were on the right side? Be thankful that Harry has a heart of pure gold and doesn't know how to hold a grudge! And I should show you loyalty? To the brother that doesn't miss a chance to tell everyone what a failure I am? That I am lazy, incompetent, unworthy?"
"I —"
"I stood all that shit for years, because yeah, you were my brother and I didn't want Mum and Dad to suffer. But know what, Perce? Fuck you! Fuck — you! You say I'm trying to sabotage you? It's you who have been working against me since the day I joined the Aurors! Like that time I was supposed to accompany Kingsley and his staff to Paris, and you manoeuvred to Stonewood was assigned! Or when you tried to convince Knowton that Harry and I shouldn't be partners, because I would only distract him!" Upon hearing that, Harry, who didn't know about those events, gasped loudly. "I let that go, because Harry and I were still partners and I never cared about acting as bodyguard, but this is the last straw! When the hell is going to enter your fucking head that I don't envy you? I have never envied you! The last thing I want in my fucking life is to be like you!"
"That's rich, taking into account you went after my girlf—" started to reply Percy, ignoring the rest of Ron's accusations.
"She was going to break up with you!" shouted Ron. "She realised that you didn't really care about her, you moron! She would have broken up with you, but she felt she owed you, and then you left! Only that she didn't really owe you anything, right? Because you were just using her, just like you use everybody!
"But you know what?" he continued after taking a deep breath. "You haven't got to worry, because Hermione is going to finish her proposal, and after the way we helped Morgana Coulthard, it's going to work, and yeah, you might still get your name associated to it!"
Percy stared at Ron, who was now panting, open-mouthed.
"Fuck it," he said, shaking his head, and walked towards Harry and Ginny, who was staring at him in utter shock. "Sorry. I — I didn't want to screw your day," he told them. Harry could only nod, while Ginny just blinked, and then Ron marched through the door.
"Ron! Ronald!" he heard his mum yell. "Ron, wait!"
"Mum, I can't be here right now. Sorry, but I need to go."
And without giving her time for a reply, he ran towards the gate, and then Apparated straight to his flat.
The moment he stepped out of the flames he took a deep breath, then yelled, "Fuck, fuck, FUUUUUUCK!" almost at the top of his lungs. Breathing heavily, he headed for the kitchen, opened a cabinet, grabbed the bottle of Firewhiskey and took a long gulp straight from the bottle. Then, with his throat still burning, he hit the counter with his fist, clenching his teeth as he thought about Percy.
He stood there for a few minutes and, slowly, anger gave way to worry. Worry about Hermione. Being caught by Percy, exposed in front of his entire family … there couldn't be anything worse for her.
He wanted to go and see her. Fuck, he needed to see her. Shouting that he did care about her had forced him to face a truth he had been trying to ignore for a while: he wasn't just attracted to Hermione.
No, he fancied her. Truly.
Perhaps even more than that.
But — did she feel the same? It was obvious she was attracted to him, yes, but — enough to contemplate —?
To contemplate what? a voice asked him in a derisive tone. A relationship? And how would your family take that?
He felt his body deflate, and took another gulp of Firewhiskey.
There wasn't a chance they would take it well. You don't hook up with the ex-girlfriend of your brother, as simple as that. Even less if such girlfriend has cheated on said brother. And if she cheated with you …
Shaking his head, he pushed those thoughts away for the moment. Whichever might happen in the future, he needed to talk to her. It was his fault — at least partially — that she was in this mess, he owed it to her to at least try to offer her some comfort. He put the bottle back in the cabinet and, gathering all his courage, he walked towards the fireplace, grabbed a handful of Floo powder and threw it into the hearth, calling 'Hermione Granger's flat!' However, when he tried to put his head int the flames, he found that she had blocked it.
"Fuck," he muttered. He thought about what to do. If she had blocked the Floo, it was clear she didn't want to be bothered, yet he couldn't just let things be. He needed to check on her. So, he exited his flat and Apparated near her building. He used his wand to open the front door and took the lift to her flat. Once there, he rang, but without response, so he decided to knock.
Nothing.
"Hermione?" he asked, pressing his forehead against the door. "Hermione, please, it's me, Ron."
No response.
"Look, I understand if you don't want to talk or see anyone, but at least let me know you're fine. Then I'll leave, I promise."
An entire minute passed.
He let out a sigh. He contemplated using his wand to check if she was inside, then remembered he had cast extra charms the day she had brought Morgana, so it wouldn't work.
He called again, then waited for a few minutes. Convinced that she at least would have said something, he concluded that she wasn't home and left, dejected.
He went back to his own flat, and walked in with his head hanging so low he didn't notice there was someone there already.
"There you are."
Startled, Ron drew out his wand and pointed at the couch, where his best friend was sitting, arms folded. Harry arched an eyebrow at him.
"If I really were a Dark wizard, you'd be already dead."
"Shit, Harry … What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to talk to you."
Ron looked around warily. "You came alone? Without Ginny?"
"Are you worried about her?"
"Should I be?"
"Well, she's quite shocked. All of us are, to be honest."
"Yeah, I guess."
"I think we should get something to drink," suggested Harry.
Ron nodded and went to the kitchen, then came back with two beers. He gave one to Harry and dropped onto one of the armchairs.
"So — Hermione," said Harry after half a minute.
"Yeah."
"I knew there was something different about you, and almost sure you were seeing someone, despite your continuous denials, but I never imagined …" He fixed his eyes on him, a hurt expression on his face. "Why didn't you tell me?"
If Ron hated something in this world, was lying to or disappointing Harry. He couldn't stand his gaze and lowered his face, fixing his eyes on a spot on the floor between his feet before answering. "What was I supposed to say, Harry? 'Hey, Mate, yes, I'm shagging Hermione. You know, Percy's girlfriend.'"
"So you shagged her, then?"
Ron felt his ears burn. "Yeah."
"Even today, at The Burrow?"
He was sure his ears were steaming now. "Yeah."
"Holy fuck, Ron …"
Ron dared to look at his best friend. "You invited her to come!" he exclaimed. "She didn't want to, because she wanted to break up with Percy!"
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Are you telling me it's my fault?"
Ron let out a growl of frustration. "No, I'm not saying that. Look, it wasn't as if we planned this, okay? I went to change, but she saw me and told me how bad she felt for being there when she was going to break up with Percy, because she thought everyone would hate her after that, and it was as if she was disrespecting our family. And — well …" he trailed off.
"You decided to comfort her?"
"Fuck, Harry, don't be an asshole, will you?" he replied, glaring at him.
Harry sighed. "It's just — fuck, Ron, this is — this is a lot. I mean, you told me you hated her barely four weeks ago!"
"I know! Don't you think I know? But well, she's not at all like I thought at first. She's really amazing. And she deserved better than to be used by Percy."
"Yeah, that was quite a fucked-up thing, what Percy did. But, despite everything, he's still your brother."
"I know."
Neither of them said anything for a while, both sipping their beers, until Harry spoke again. "So — now what?"
"What do you mean?"
"What are you going to do? Date her?"
Ron snorted.
"It's a valid question, Ron. You practically confessed you loved her."
"I think 'love' is quite a strong word."
"Fancy, then. But the question is still valid. Are you going to date her?"
"Are you going to tell me I shouldn't?"
"You shouldn't."
Ron lowered his gaze once more. "I know."
"But you want to, right?"
"Yeah," he admitted.
"Did you go to see her?"
"Yes, but she wasn't at her flat," he answered. Then added, "Well, either that or she didn't want to see me."
When Harry didn't respond, Ron glanced up at him, and saw he was looking off into space, a thoughtful expression on his face. "What are you thinking about?"
"I think she was good for you."
Ron gaped at him, shocked. "What?"
Harry looked at him. "What you heard. Besides the cheating and all that, I think she was good for you. There were times when you looked happy in a way I hadn't seen you in a long time, Ron. And — I dunno, but the way you handled Morgana's situation — you never used to be kind and understanding towards anyone related to the Dark Arts. Which is comprehensible, after what we experienced. That's why it is so remarkable the way you acted with that girl."
"I guess."
"And Hermione … she looked more relaxed, more — human, for a lack of a better word. I think you could make a good couple."
"Is this your way to give me your blessing?" he joked.
Harry laughed. "You don't need my blessing, Ron."
"But you don't think I should date her."
"Well, no, you shouldn't. But you're talking to a guy that spent months pondering whether fancying your best friend's sister was right. And in the end I went for it."
"That's hardly the same, Mate."
"I know. But what I'm trying to say is that happiness is hard to get, and you deserve it, Ron. Okay, yes, you fucked up. But we all do, and, after all, it's clear Percy considered her an asset, not a girlfriend, so it's not as if his heart will be broken." He made a pause and stared at Ron. "You stood next to me during the worst moments of my life, Ron. And I'll be by your side in this. It won't be easy with your family, but I'll support you, no matter what."
Ron felt his eyes moisten. "Thanks, Harry," he managed to say, his voice hoarse. "And again, I'm sorry. I know what I did was wrong but —"
"Don't," interrupted Harry.
"What?"
"You don't need to apologise to me."
"I know. But — I'm aware what we did was wrong. Even though I don't regret it. And I lied to you, and —" he shut up and shook his head.
"Ron, it's me who has to apologise to you."
Ron's head snapped up to look at his best friend.
"You? Why?"
"I think I never gave the way Percy treats you the its real importance, Ron. Yeah, I knew you didn't get along, and that you often rowed, but I just — I guess I thought of it as a sibling rivalry taken a bit to the extreme. When Percy came back … Well, your mother was happy, and I simply didn't want to be the cause for more drama, not with you still in the hospital. It was easier to forget and not hold grudges. But seeing you both today, seeing your rage, the things you said … You wouldn't have laid a finger on any of your other brothers' girlfriends, no matter how much you liked them. The fact that you got involved with Hermione … It shows how deep your enmity goes. What you said about him trying to prevent us getting partners, or directly interfering in your assignments … That's — that's really fucked up."
Ron nodded. "I know."
"I'm sorry if you ever felt I wasn't supportive enough. But I didn't know those things. Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell anyone?"
"I don't blame you, Harry," said Ron with a sigh. "I chose to keep all that bottled inside. You said you didn't want more drama … Well, neither did I. It was easier to keep things hidden and pretend."
"Well, that exploded right in your face, right?" Harry joked, though there was no mirth in his expression.
"Yeah."
They both fell into a comfortable silence for a moment, until Harry spoke again, "It's unfair."
"What?"
"The way he treated you. You're a fucking war hero. I didn't mind when he basically called me a liar and — Well, okay, I did mind," he admitted. "But I could live with that. But you're his brother! And you're my best friend. I can't stand anyone being so mean to you."
Ron felt another rush of affection for his best friend invade him, and he smiled. "Another reason why it was easier to pretend," he said after a moment. Then his expression turned serious again. "Were they very angry when I left?" he asked.
Harry took a few seconds to answer. "Shocked, more than angry, I think. Well, Percy of course was angry, but he left barely a minute later than you. I think he didn't want to face your parents, either."
Ron nodded.
Harry finished his beer, got up and approached Ron, patting him on the shoulder. "I've gotta go home," he told him. "We must finish packing, and I'm pretty sure Ginny's already climbing the walls."
"Yeah."
"You'll be okay?"
"Yeah."
"If you need something, you'll send me an owl, right?" said Harry, his tone full of concern.
"Harry, I'm fine, really," Ron assured. "Go and enjoy your holiday with your wife."
Harry nodded, then, after giving him one last glance, vanished into the fireplace.
Silence fell over Ron's flat, and he just stayed there, sitting, with still a half-full bottle of beer on his hand, his brain warring between what he should do and what he wanted to do.
And without a clear winner.
Well, it's over! And with a bang, right? I hope you didn't really expect Percy to appear just at that moment. Ron and Hermione grew a bit complacent, having not been caught after many times.
I wanted the break-up (though not explicitly stated, it's obvious it's over) to happen with them being caught. I know you all think Percy is a bastard, and he is, but, as Hermione says, 'two wrongs don't make one right,' and what Hermione and Ron was doing was wrong, and they had to face the consequences. Call it Karma if you will
I hope you liked the final confrontation, with Ron defending Hermione and basically admitting how much he cares for her, and the verbal fight with Percy. I know all of you want to know their full backstory, and I promise you will.
Just to finish, let me say that, despite them being caught is the climax of the chapter, the final scene, with Ron and Harry, is almost the favourite in my mind. Some of you have commented on how odd it is that no one seems to do anything about Percy's treatment of Ron, well, now you know: he hid the worst part from everyone. He has a heart of gold, Ron!
Please, tell me what you think and see you on Wednesday!