A/N: Thanks as always for your continued support. We're only about halfway through the story so it's crazy to already have such a great response! On another note, I believe a bit of an apology is necessary. This chapter is being uploaded quite a bit later than I had originally planned—mostly due to writer's block, as well as some other personal things I won't bore you with. However, the next chapter is one of those that have been in the works since last summer, so it should (hopefully) come much more quickly.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, and I don't want to. I just want to continue to sob about its perfection.
"The First Wedding after the War"
29 July 2000
Growing up, the Weasley siblings had often done their very best to drive their mother absolutely mad. Sometimes they viewed it as a sort of challenge—who could do the most ridiculously hard-headed thing and live to tell the tale? Now, nearly a decade since they'd all gone off to Hogwarts and jobs and real life, it seemed there was at last a winner. But who would have ever guessed the winner would be Percy?
When Percy had first announced his engagement, Mum had nearly exploded. The knowledge that one of her sons intended to marry a woman she'd never met had clearly bothered her, and it certainly hadn't helped that the announcement had come at four in the morning following the birth of Bill and Fleur's first daughter. As if this weren't enough, several days later Percy had informed them that they wanted to be married that summer, and therefore the wedding would be held the last weekend of July. This had predictably sent the Weasley matriarch into a tailspin of epic proportions. Unwilling to hear any venue suggestions other than the Burrow, Mum had taken it upon herself to ensure that no child of hers would be wed in anything less than ideal fashion, regardless of how hastily planned it was—or of her personal opinion of the bride-to-be.
Most of the Weasleys had taken quite well to Audrey. She was, after all, just enough like Percy that they were compatible but just different enough from him to ensure that she was likeable. (Not to say they didn't like Percy, of course—but two of him would have been a bit much.) She was equally as intelligent as he was, and they both possessed a considerable amount of ambition. But where he was arrogant and pompous, she was confident and poised. Where he tended to be cautious and deliberate, she was spontaneous and relaxed.
They'd met in a pub a year prior, which was perhaps the beginning of Mum's misgivings. After a night of what Percy had described as "responsible consumption and delightful conversation," they'd begun seeing each other. Percy had neglected to inform his family of this development, which was another cause of Mum's uneasiness, but their relationship had progressed quickly. As Percy had told them, they'd known "fairly early on that we would make a good match." Finally, on the night of Victoire's birth, Percy had been visiting Audrey during a break in her shift when, in his words, he'd "felt the time was right" and asked her to marry him.
Though this was the official version of events, everyone knew it wasn't true. Audrey had confided in Fleur, and George had overheard Fleur tell Bill, and he'd naturally gone straight to Ron, who'd told Harry and Hermione so then of course Ginny had found out, and it was only a matter of time before Charlie was told and nobody was good enough at hiding secrets to keep Mum and Dad in the dark. Because of this, everybody in the Weasley family knew that Percy and Audrey's first meeting in the pub had taken place on the anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts, and Percy had been completely sloshed. According to Audrey, one thing had led to another and she'd ended up in his flat that night—nobody wanted to know what had happened there, but one could only assume. However, instead of going their separate ways in the morning, Audrey had made him breakfast and informed him that she was not that kind of girl, and that she would very much like to go on a proper date. He'd balked, but she was persistent. Eventually, they'd become a couple.
They'd fallen in love quickly. No one was quite sure why, but it was plain in the way they looked at each other. They did complement one another—she was full of surprises, but he kept a level head. They both liked to be in control, but they didn't mind relinquishing a bit of power when it came to each other. Not entirely, though: as Percy had drunkenly admitted to his brothers on his stag night the weekend before the wedding, the main reason he'd asked her to marry him the night of Victoire's birth was because she'd been dropping hints like mad and he didn't want her to beat him to it.
"Sh'saw no reason to wait anymore," he'd slurred after confessing this. "I di'nt wanna either, cos she's brilllll—brilliant. Only bird I ever met like 'er—knows what she wants and knows how to get it, and if I'm lucky nuff to be what she wants…" he'd trailed off, waving his glass about as if trying desperately to make a point that no one else really got. Bill, Charlie, George, Ron, and Harry reacted with an assortment of guffaws and grimaces, depending on how drunk they were.
It was clear to most everyone that the "real story" was probably the reason why Mum didn't particularly like her soon to be daughter-in-law. "Your mum thinks Audrey's pushy," Hermione had confessed to Ron as they lay in his bed cuddling one night (though if Ron were asked, he would never admit that he was a cuddler). "She thinks she seduced her poor baby boy and trapped him, or something like that."
"It's Percy. He'd never be part of something unless he wanted to be, and he's only made about one bad decision in his life. Granted it was a pretty bad decision, but all in all I think he does alright for himself," Ron pointed out, lazily tracing patterns on his girlfriend's back as he spoke.
"Exactly," Hermione agreed. "It might be a bit fast, but I think they're quite suited for each other, really. They're both a tad mental. And Audrey—she's a bit…"
"Aggressive?" Ron offered.
"I was going to say assertive," Hermione said politely, "but in my opinion, that's a good quality in moderation."
"Yeah, but of course you think so. You're a bit assertive yourself," Ron teased, tugging on one of her wild curls.
"I'll show you assertive," she shot back, sitting up from her spot on the left side of the bed and moving to straddle him.
"Please do," Ron groaned appreciatively. Then she kissed him, and the matter of his brother's fiancée was not discussed any more that night.
At any rate, Mum had managed to put aside many of her personal reservations and had insisted upon heading up much of the wedding planning. Audrey had a list of ideas that helped the process along, and the family had somehow managed to throw together a fairly impressive event in just less than three months. When the morning of the nuptials finally came, Ron couldn't help but be reminded of Bill and Fleur's wedding—the venue looked almost identical, and Mum was once again predictably running about ordering various family members to do things. Though the Tylers, Audrey's parents, had arrived the night before, Mum would not hear of them doing anything even mildly strenuous.
It was only now, just over an hour before the ceremony, that everyone was at last allowed to catch a breath. The women had retreated to Ginny's room to get ready and to help Audrey do the same, while the men had gone to Percy's room to make aimless small talk, as their getting ready process had taken them all of about ten minutes.
"Never thought you'd be the next one married, Perce," George said conversationally. "I thought Ronnie here'd beat you to it."
"Shut up," Ron muttered embarrassedly, feeling the heat radiating off his cheeks.
"Ronald's hardly twenty," Percy said indignantly. "I think, given my age and status, I'm far more prepared for such a significant change in my situation."
"I don't know, boys. Your mum and I were married just out of school. It's more a matter of knowing the right person than of being the right age," Dad remarked thoughtfully.
Ron remained silent. He knew he had the right person, but he had no desire of discussing this marriage business at length with his family. He barely talked even about it with Hermione, for Merlin's sake.
"Well, you lot ought to hold off on this marriage and babies stuff for awhile. I can't keep taking off work every other month," Charlie joked.
"Don't worry, I'll still be awhile," George replied. "Why tie myself down when I'm in my prime?"
"Interesting," Bill said, raising an eyebrow. "I have it on good authority that you've invited Angelina Johnson today."
Now it was George's turn to be embarrassed. "Well, can't always go stag at these things…" he stammered uncomfortably.
"Yeah, s'pose Charlie's the only one without a date," Bill said suddenly, turning to his closest brother.
"And that's just the way I like it too," Charlie quipped. "I can scope the field this way. And if that fails, I'll be keeping an eye on Potter and our darling sister."
Harry coughed uncomfortably.
"Best not," Ron said, not about to miss an opportunity to rag on his best mate. "You're bound to see something disgusting and if you try to hex him, Ginny'll hex you first."
"Which is why I think we're all content to let them be," Dad said, giving each of his sons a stern look. "Should he step out of line Ginny will have his head quicker and more efficiently than the rest of us would."
"Indeed," Percy agreed, clearly sick of the chatter. "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to step out to the loo."
"Just don't go downstairs," Bill advised. "Mum will go mental if you see Audrey before she's 'properly ready.'"
"Mum's already gone a bit mental," George said as Percy hastily exited the room. "Sorry, Dad," he added as an afterthought.
"I'm not disagreeing," Dad said carefully, shifting his eyes about as if he half-expected his wife to pop up out of a corner and scold him, "but you lot know things like this mean quite a bit to her, so please just indulge her. It's a big day for your brother and Audrey as well."
The boys nodded once, and then the conversation fell into the more comfortable topic of Quidditch. It wasn't until ten minutes later that Bill commented on Percy's continued absence. After much deliberating over who would be the one to retrieve him, Ron volunteered. Though fetching Percy wasn't high on his list of preferred tasks, he was sure it wouldn't be long before George started to take the mickey out of him again, and he didn't particularly feel in the mood to wait around for that to happen.
The only problem was that Percy was not actually in the loo. Breathing a heavy sigh, Ron began to make his way downstairs. Bill was right, after all; Percy wasn't meant to leave his room until the ceremony was just about to begin, and they had a solid thirty minutes yet to wait. As he hurried downstairs to find his brother, he bumped into someone else.
"Oh! Sorry, Hermione," Ron said, holding out a hand and gripping her arm to steady her. "You look really nice," he added with a smile, rubbing the arm in question affectionately. She really did—she was wearing a pretty yellow dress, and she'd used a bit of potion on her hair to tame it. Rather than appearing to have a mind of its own, it had deflated into what could only be described as "manageably bushy." Ron liked it just fine either way, but when she used the potion it was easier to see her face, which was really the most attractive part of her in Ron's opinion—at least, out of the parts that he could mention in polite conversation.
"Thanks," Hermione replied, blushing. "You do too."
Ron snorted derisively, looking down at his plain black clothes. "Nah, nothing special. But thanks."
Hermione moved her arm slightly so that their hands were intertwined. "Stop it. You look handsome."
"Thanks," Ron repeated, smiling gratefully and squeezing her hand. "So what brings you to this fine stairwell?"
Hermione glanced around quickly before saying in a hushed voice, "I'm sort of searching for the bride. Probably just in the loo, at least I hope. How about you?"
"Looking for the groom," Ron said slowly, worry beginning to creep into his thoughts. "And I've just checked the loo. Empty."
Hermione's eyes widened. "Where do you suppose they are, then? The wedding's meant to start in half an hour!"
"Let's check downstairs," Ron replied, leading her toward the ground floor hand-in-hand. However, their search was once again ineffective, and both Ron and Hermione were now seriously concerned.
"I do hope they're alright," Hermione fretted, lifting cushions off the sofa as if one of them might be hiding underneath.
"Well, let's think. Where would you go if you were about to get married?" Ron asked, glancing out the windows curiously.
"I wouldn't go anywhere," Hermione answered automatically. "Why would I want to miss my own wedding?"
"Maybe they're nervous?" Ron offered. "What would you do then?"
Hermione bit her lip and thought for a moment before answering, "I'd probably want to see the person I was marrying, to remind myself of why I was doing it in the first place."
Ron grinned. "Brilliant, so you think they're together?"
"I don't know," Hermione replied. "Even if they are, we still don't know where."
"If they're together then they aren't trying to avoid the wedding, don't you think? No use going out searching," Ron pointed out.
"No. Even if they are avoiding it, there's nothing we can do anyhow," Hermione replied, sitting down on the sofa and patting the space next to her. She rested her head on Ron's shoulder after he joined her, and he wrapped an arm around her, moving his hand slowly up and down her side.
"Do you think they're avoiding it?" he asked her casually.
"I don't know," Hermione said honestly. "They did jump into this whole thing a bit, don't you think?"
"Maybe," Ron said thoughtfully. "I dunno if the timing really matters though."
"What do you mean?" she asked, moving her arms to embrace his torso.
"Well, take you and me for example. I don't think it matters if I marry you tomorrow or five years from now. We're gonna be together either way, you know?" Ron said. He was thankful she couldn't see his face—talking about things like this still made him blush. The fact that he even had the courage to say it in the first place was a marked change from where he'd been even just a year ago.
"You best not make me wait five years for that hypothetical proposal," Hermione mumbled. The tone of her voice told him that she was just a little self-conscious as well, which comforted him immensely. They were almost always completely open with each other, but the little bit of vulnerability they both possessed reminded him of just how much this meant to both of them.
"I won't," Ron said simply, unwilling to elaborate further.
Hermione was quiet for a moment before replying: "It's different with us, though. We've been friends for the better part of ten years. Percy and Audrey met a year ago."
"You sound like Mum," Ron said teasingly.
"Well don't misunderstand me, I think they're good together," Hermione said hurriedly. "I can just understand if they're a bit apprehensive, that's all."
"Well, they've got about twenty minutes to get unapprehensive," Ron replied, glancing at his watch.
"Inapprehensive," Hermione corrected automatically.
"Same thing," he grumbled, but he continued to rub her side tenderly.
They sat in each other's embrace for several minutes longer before they heard the sound of the kitchen door opening. After reluctantly getting up, they were relieved to discover that it was Percy and Audrey coming into the Burrow. Even better, they were holding hands and looked as though they still intended on being married. It was possible that Audrey's elegant white dress was not quite as pristine as it had been when she'd first put it on, but she didn't seem to mind. She still looked radiant, although Ron was fairly certain that had more to do with the happy smile on her face than with anything else.
"Oh, hello Ron—Hermione," Percy said awkwardly. "We just went for a bit of a stroll. The notion of not seeing each other before the wedding is archaic, after all, but we didn't want to aggravate Mother…"
"Hush, Perce," Audrey said, smiling goofily at him. "I'm sure this lot doesn't mind."
"Not particularly, but the ceremony is meant to start soon so you'd best get back upstairs," Hermione said.
"Who takes a stroll before their wedding?" Ron wondered aloud.
"We wanted to see each other and have a moment before everyone else was watching," Audrey said confidently, still exchanging what Ron considered to be rather disgusting looks with Percy. The look on Hermione's face plainly said that she thought all this was charming, but Ron couldn't handle it anymore. With a meaningful cough, he quickly ushered them all back upstairs, making sure to pass Ginny's room quietly as Hermione and Audrey reentered it.
Upon arriving in Percy's room, they stammered out some terrible excuse for their prolonged absence, but none of their brothers seemed to care. In fact, they seemed to have brought out the firewhiskey a bit early, and were quite preoccupied with toasting to each other's long lives and general happiness. Only Dad was without a glass, but he seemed content to watch the proceedings with amusement and to ensure that no one indulged too much.
"Mum's gonna kill them," Ron muttered under his breath as George proposed a toast to Harry's continued celibacy.
"Well, Ronald, I'm afraid I won't condone any homicide at my wedding, so she'll have to wait," Percy said, taking a glass and pouring a very small amount of alcohol for himself.
"What's got into you, Perce?" Ron asked incredulously, though he too took a glass.
"Oh, don't play dumb. You know what it's like," Percy said, handing the bottle of firewhiskey to Ron.
"How do you mean?" Ron asked, also taking a small amount of the substance. He didn't want to give Hermione a reason to complain when he kissed her, after all.
"Hermione's made you different—in a good way," Percy explained. "Cheers," he added, raising his glass. Ron mimicked his action and they downed their shots together.
"She keeps me in line, that's what she does," Ron said after he swallowed his drink. "And she stops me from doing bone-headed things."
"Yeah, and Audrey keeps me from being an annoying arse," Percy said emphatically, handing his glass to Ron. "Don't let me have anything else to drink. I'm told I'm a mess when I'm inebriated."
"I'm the one that told you that," Ron muttered, placing both of their glasses on the bedside table.
"My point is that our women make us better people, and that's why they're our women," Percy said, a look of disgust crossing his face as George poured himself another shot. "Now, I need to get married before this lot gets any more intoxicated than they already are."
Ron was thoroughly astonished, as this may have been the most heartwarming thing he'd ever heard Percy say, but still had the clarity of mind to hear his mother's frantic footsteps climbing the stairs. Before any of them had much of a chance to think, they'd hid the alcohol, put on their most innocent expressions, and followed their excitable mum downstairs and to the garden. Those that weren't in the wedding party went to find their seats—Ron was pleased to see Hermione had saved him one—and the proceedings began without a hitch.
The ceremony itself was short and to the point, thankfully. Hermione kept her hand in Ron's the whole time and for whatever reason saw fit to make noises that sounded vaguely like "oo" and "aww" during moments that were particularly adorable. Ron, on the other hand, very nearly shielded his eyes at the sight of his older brother actually kissing a girl. Mum seemed to have got over her reservations and was crying openly, while Dad sat at her side with an arm around her. Ron wasn't sure, but his dad may have been dabbing at his own eyes as well.
Soon enough, though, the scenery around them changed and the tent was at once set up for the reception. Ron immediately procured butterbeers for himself and Hermione, earning himself one of her pretty smiles, and they found a table with Harry and Ginny. A small meal was already laid out at each place, and Ron was eager to dig in.
"For all Mum's worrying, that went off smoothly," Ginny remarked as they sat down.
"And she seems to be warming up to Audrey a bit," Ron noted, taking a swig of his drink before tucking in to the chicken that had been provided for dinner.
"I don't know if she ever particularly disliked her," Hermione said. "She just had to get used to her is all. Your mum didn't like me for awhile, back when we were younger."
"That's cos she thought you and I were involved, and none of us liked that idea," Harry said with a grimace.
"Mum always wanted you to be a Weasley, I suppose," Ginny teased Hermione, with a pointed glance in Ron's direction. He blushed and glared at her in return.
Harry cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Anyway, snack table looks good."
"Yeah, just don't take any til the wedding party has or Mum'll throw a fit. Good they provided snacks though; the chicken didn't last long," Ron said as he finished the last few bites of his meal.
"Oh, the Delacours have come with Victoire!" Ginny said suddenly, pointing across the room toward where Bill sat with his wife, daughter, and in-laws. Fleur's parents had offered to watch Victoire during the ceremony, as neither Bill nor Fleur were keen on causing a distraction. Ron smiled at the sight of his eldest brother's new family.
"She's growing so quickly already, isn't she?" Hermione remarked. "Before we know it she'll be going off to Hogwarts."
"Oh, stop it," Ron said. "We've barely left the place ourselves."
"It's been three years since either of us went to school there," Harry pointed out reasonably.
"Look, Percy and Audrey are about to dance!" Hermione said suddenly, interrupting whatever Ginny had been about to say.
"I'd rather not," Ron mumbled. Hermione smacked him smartly on the thigh. "What was that for?" he asked indignantly.
"Your brother's in love," she said in a scandalized tone.
"Doesn't mean I need visual proof," Ron shot back, but he turned to watch the newlyweds nevertheless. The truth was no matter how much he took the piss, somewhere deep down he was very happy for Percy—in the same way he was happy that Ginny had Harry.
"The song they've chosen is a bit cheesy," Ginny remarked in a low tone. Harry and Ron agreed, having to stifle their laughter as the live singer Audrey had insisted upon belted out: "you enchanted me with more than just your wand…" Hermione didn't laugh along, but the slight smile on her lips told Ron all he needed to know.
"I'd ask you to dance, but there's no way I can take this song seriously," he muttered into her ear as other couples began to make their way to the floor.
"It wouldn't be my first choice, but perhaps it means something to them," Hermione said diplomatically.
"S'pose. Good on Audrey choosing her own singer though; this is still loads better than old Celestina," Ron said, taking another sip of his butterbeer. This was still his favorite drink, he mused; it may not have been as potent (or as much fun) as firewhiskey, but it sure went down a lot smoother. Plus, Hermione preferred this. She'd never outright complain when he had hard liquor, but he could tell that she wasn't particularly keen on it. As a courtesy to her, he tended to save firewhiskey for only very special occasions—or nights out with the blokes, of course.
"I honestly prefer muggle music," Hermione replied. "The analogies in wizarding music are a bit much sometimes."
"When do you listen to muggle music?" Ron asked, frowning as he tried to recall why he hadn't known this detail about her life.
"On occasion," Hermione replied vaguely as the song changed. "This one's more upbeat."
"Let's try it, then," Ron said, taking her hand and leading her out onto the floor, ignoring whatever look he knew Ginny must be giving him. He could still see George making kissy faces in their direction across the room, which was quite enough. One might've thought the joke would get less funny several years down the line, but perhaps this was just a result of the alcohol the rest of his siblings were consuming.
Their dancing went much more smoothly than it had the last time they'd attempted it. Ron led with a bit more confidence now, partially because he was no longer scared Hermione would run away if he held her closer than arm's length. He still stepped on her toes every now and again, but she didn't seem to mind. He even twirled her around a couple of times, earning himself a smirk from several of his family members.
Eventually, the music slowed again. "Do you want to keep going?" Hermione asked softly, but Ron had already begun to pull her closer.
"We can risk it," he joked, resting his hands on her waist. She placed hers on his shoulders and leaned her head against his chest, and they began to slowly revolve in a circle. Ron wasn't sure why this counted as dancing, but he didn't particularly have any complaints. This was far easier than dancing to fast music, after all. If he ignored the words of the song, the whole thing was actually quite pleasant.
They didn't speak while they were dancing. They hadn't the last time they'd danced like this either, but now the silence was comfortable rather than charged. What's more, Ron didn't feel as though he was stealing moments with her anymore. He spent nearly every one of his spare moments with her now, and he didn't even need a reason to do so. At once, Ron was struck with the realization of how very lucky he was. For all the hell they'd gone through since the last time they'd danced like this, they were better for it.
"I love you," Ron murmured to Hermione, pulling her body as close to his as he reasonably could without restricting their already limited movement. "I really proper love you."
Hermione laughed lightly. "As opposed to what other way?" she replied, her voice muffled by his dress shirt.
Ron rolled his eyes, though he knew she couldn't see his face. "You know what I mean."
"I love you too. Same way," Hermione replied simply. Ron could hear the smile in her voice. He kissed the top of her head as they continued their quasi-dance.
"We ought to take a break from dancing after this one though," Ron said a moment later, finding himself incapable of being sentimental for longer than a couple of minutes. "I'm thirsty."
"Okay," Hermione said, pulling away as the final chords of the song played and standing on her tiptoes to kiss him lightly on the lips. "I'll grab us some drinks and biscuits if you'll find some seats."
"Deal," Ron said, unable to resist leaning down and kissing her once more, more purposefully this time. She responded with a cheeky smile before she turned and made her way to the refreshment table. Ron could have sworn she was walking with an extra bounce in her step specifically to torture him.
Scanning the room for acceptable table companions, Ron eventually settled on Charlie, who was sitting alone with a bottle of Firewhiskey. This seemed the most promising option; though Harry and Ginny were sitting nearby, they appeared to be thoroughly engaged in a conversation which, judging by the love-struck looks on their faces, Ron wanted no part of.
"Living it up, are we?" Ron teased Charlie as he took a seat next to him.
"Taking a break," Charlie retorted. "Has your lady friend finally gone and left you?"
"She's just fetching some drinks and snacks," Ron said smugly.
"Ah, you've got yourself a good one," Charlie said knowingly. "Best put a ring on her finger before she comes to her senses."
Ron scowled. "You must be the third person today to tell me that."
"That's because we're right," Charlie replied, taking a swig of his drink.
"Well yeah, but it's sort of an 'eventually' thing," Ron mumbled, glancing around him in hopes that Hermione would come and abort this conversation.
"Why wait?" Charlie asked.
Ron hesitated—he'd asked himself this question many times as well. He knew Hermione was the one for him, yet there was something holding him back. Part of the reason was because he was a bit scared of the whole growing up thing, although he had no desire to admit this to Charlie. He did, however provide the other part of the reason. "I just want to have some money saved first," Ron said in a low voice. "And before you tell me she won't care, it's still a problem because I care."
Charlie nodded reasonably. "I s'pose you want to get her a nice ring, a decent house? I don't blame you, so I won't lecture you, but you are right—I don't think she'd care."
Ron sighed heavily, but was saved from responding when Hermione at last returned, holding a bottle of butterbeer and a plate full of biscuits. "Ah, thank you love," Ron said, pulling out the chair next to him.
"You're welcome. I couldn't possibly hold two glasses as well as the snacks so I thought we could just share this bottle," she said. "Hello, Charlie! I haven't really spoken to you yet today."
"No, you've been busy with this one I imagine," Charlie answered good-naturedly, taking a biscuit from the plate without asking. "How're things at the old Ministry?"
"They're going very well, thanks, we've just been given a case on dragons actually; there are reports coming out of a range in Scotland, maybe you've heard of it…"
Hermione was not likely to stop talking anytime soon, but Ron was content to listen. One of his favorite things about Hermione was the amount of passion she brought into everything she did. Just the look in her eyes and the way her cheeks reddened as she talked even more quickly made him want to forget the rest of the evening and take her home.
Not ten minutes later, however, they were interrupted by Percy's voice, which had been charmed to project throughout the room. "Excuse me, if I could have your attention for just one moment…"
Percy stood in the center of the dance floor with Audrey on his arm. Ron reckoned it was the least pompous he'd ever seen Percy look, which was a feat considering he had the eyes of everyone in the room upon him. Audrey did deflate him a bit, and everyone was glad for it.
"I'm not one for long speeches," Percy began. George, sitting next to Angelina Johnson at a nearby table, nearly spat out his drink. Percy shot him a reproachful look before continuing. "Audrey and I would just like to thank you all for sharing this day with us. I would especially like to say a word of thanks to my family—not only for hosting this event, but for their love and support, as I know I haven't always been easy to love. But of course, there's one person that can't be here this evening. I ask you all to raise your glasses to my younger brother Fred. He may not be present, but I can very nearly hear him taking the mickey out of me from wherever he is. To Fred."
"To Fred," the room chorused, many of them teary-eyed. Ron's eyes immediately jumped to George, but he was pleasantly surprised to see how well his brother was holding it together. He smiled as he observed Angelina place her hand on George's. A moment later, the party started up again.
"George looks happier than I've seen him in ages," Charlie commented, clearly having looked in the same direction as Ron.
"Good for him," Hermione said. "I always liked Angelina."
"She's assertive too, yeah?" Ron teased, nudging Hermione's foot with his own. She pursed her lips and stomped on his foot in return, but he could see the amusement in her eyes.
"Weasley men do seem to have a type, don't they?" Charlie mused. "Sorry to leave you two, but there's a brunette a couple tables over who looks like she'd like to dance…"
With that, Ron and Hermione were left alone once again. "Mine or yours tonight?" Hermione asked casually, taking a dainty bite of a biscuit.
"Yours," Ron answered. "I don't want to risk getting in the middle of whatever's going on there," he said, gesturing toward Harry and Ginny, who were still deep in intimate conversation at their own table.
"Indeed," Hermione said. "I wouldn't be opposed to leaving within the next hour or so, if you don't mind. Your mum isn't planning on clearing up until tomorrow, she says, so we aren't really needed, and as everyone else seems to be occupied..."
"I'm ready to go," Ron said immediately, standing up while shoving the last couple of biscuits in his mouth.
"Already?" Hermione asked incredulously, also rising from her seat.
"Been ready since the second you started talking about those bloody dragons," Ron admitted.
"Alright, let's just say our goodbyes then—"
"Do we have to?" Ron whined, putting a hand on her waist and drawing her in close. "I've been waiting to have you to myself all day."
"Didn't realize weddings made you randy," Hermione quipped, raising an eyebrow before prying his hand off her waist and lacing their fingers together instead. "Goodbyes and then we're gone, promise."
Thirty minutes later, Hermione at last made her way out of the tent, Ron following impatiently in her wake. "Just some quick goodbyes, indeed," he complained. "Can we go now?"
"Yes, we can. This complaining isn't exactly putting me in the mood, you know," Hermione retorted as they made their way to the edge of the wards.
"Oh, don't be like that," Ron said, taking long strides in an effort to speed up their walk. For each step he took, Hermione had to take two, which was something that amused him greatly.
"I'm not being any way, I'm just telling you that while you possess many attractive qualities, your grouchiness is not one of them," Hermione responded matter-of-factly, immediately halting as they reached the designated apparition point.
"So focus on the good ones," Ron said, smirking as he drew her into an embrace. Their banter didn't faze him at all. He could tell from the goosebumps that arose on her arms as he rubbed them lightly: she was just as interested in what tonight would bring as he was.
"Who'll do the apparating, then?" she asked as she moved her hands to his stomach, tracing his subtly formed abdominal muscles through his shirt.
"Me," he replied mischievously, drawing back to wrap her hands in his own.
"You'd take us straight to the bedroom if you could, wouldn't you?" she asked wryly.
Ron just chuckled before he gripped her hands tightly and turned on the spot. It had been a fantastic night thus far, but it was only just beginning.
A/N: Wow. I'm not sure how that got up to nearly 6000 words—originally it was looking more like 4000. Again, I'm sorry this took a few days longer than normal. I encountered quite a bit of writer's block with this chapter, and then I went back and forth for awhile about certain parts. Let me know what you think, if you'd like. Thank you for reading. :) The next bit will almost certainly be up before my spring semester begins on Monday!