Again this chapter has been reviewed slightly but not by much so you don't have to read until the actual update next week.

A special shout out to my beta ObsessedRHShipper for her awesome feedback and grammar check.

Hope you like this one and remember to R&R.

Adstringo Matrimon

It was weird to walk through a place you recognized from someone else's memories, but Ron made the best of it as he got used to Grimmauld Place. He got a room on the second level, in between Ginny's room and the bathroom. It was bigger than his bedroom at the Burrow and had two twin beds. All in all, his time at Grimmauld had started well enough. Unfortunately, after a full week in this place, he felt more than ready to be back in school or at the Burrow. The only bloody activity that filled his days in this place was cleaning and more cleaning, and had Ron mentioned he had to keep cleaning! He had never thought he would actually miss dealing with the gnomes, but compared to being stuck here, those little garden pests would have been a breeze.

Merlin! How he wanted to be back in school, back in the common room sitting with Harry and Hermione. Hermione… he couldn't stop thinking about her, about sneaking away with her, hugging her, kissing her, and touching her. She was in his mind constantly, and not knowing how she was, or if she was safe, was driving him mad. What about Harry and Mr. and Mrs. Snape? What if they aren't okay? What if Hermione has to deal with Harry's moods on her own? What if they need me?

"I need to see her," he blurted softly as he kicked his dresser.

"Ronald! What are you doing up there? Get to the kitchen! It's time for dinner and you can set the table! And you will explain what has gotten into you!"

"Coming, Mum!"

He left his assigned room annoyed. Mum had told him that they were planning an important family reunion tonight while Sirius was away with Professor Lupin. It was great to be with family, but he actually wanted to be left alone. Alone to miss the girl he loved… to long for her… to remember her.

"Watcher!" exclaimed Tonks as Ron ran into her and Estella at the stairs.

"Oh. Hi, Tonks. Hi, Estella."

"Don't sound so excited to see us," answered Estella sarcastically.

"Sorry, I think I got mum hacked off. I'm walking to my doom."

Estella and Tonks unsuccessfully tried not to laugh at him. Then Tonks said, "Molly has been dying to have you and Ginny around. So, I doubt she'll be your doom so quickly after you've arrived. She's more bark than bite anyway."

"But if she gets close to biting, send her to me. She loooooves me now," Estella teased.

"Yeah, I noticed that," Ron answered. It was true. Since the attack at the Burrow, whenever Estella came over, their Mum practically kissed the ground the Slytherin walked on. It was particularly amusing given how things had been before.

"It was bound to happen. I'm unbelievably charming," added Estella.

"My cousins and their ability to be full of themselves," Tonks stated sarcastically.

"You just wish you were as witty and crafty as your Slytherin family."

"As if! I'm soooo better off as a Hufflepuff! And why don't you just tell Ron why you brought me up here to fetch him, Miss Scardy Snake?" said Tonks in a mocking tone.

"I'm not scardy! This bloody house is just creepy."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll wait for you in the drawing room."

"Fine! Be that way."

"You came to fetch me?" asked Ron confused.

"Not really. I actually came to tell you that I'll be off at the Snapes' for a couple of days. So, if you wanted to say… send a letter to someone… like maybe Harry or someone else… I could perhaps deliver it."

Ron's face filled with excitement. He had actually already drafted letters, one to Harry and one to Hermione. "Yes! Come on!"

Ron practically jumped his way up the stairs and into his room. Estella followed him and didn't waste any time on quietness. Instead, she teased him. "I wonder who it is that you're so happy to write to. Let's see if I get this right. Ron and Hermione sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G, first comes –"

"Oh, shut it!"

"So touchy… here I thought that as Fred and George's little brother you'd be able to put up with my mild teasing. Instead, you're yelling and going crimson… I wonder why… Is it that you've done more than just K-I-S-S-I-N-G?"

"That's none of your business!"

"True, but you just gave me an answer, dear little Ron," she said in a mocking tone. "Speaking of more than K-I-S-S-I-N-G, I need George's book back."

"Really?"

"You're not going to try to tease me about the things your big brother and I will do with that book, are you?" she said sarcastically.

"Umm… I…" he stammered, blushing slightly. He really didn't want to know about what his brother and Estella got to in private.

"I thought so. Merlin, you're like an open book. How you and Hermione have gotten away with keeping this quiet makes no sense. Harry and the rest of Gryffindor must be blind. But, if you got your little romance past Fred and George, you must be able to get it past anyone."

"They were happily occupied with their girlfriends," answered Ron teasingly, handing Estella the letters he had for Harry and Hermione, along with the book.

"True enough," answered the Slytherin as she shrunk all the items and put them in her satchel.

After Tonks and Estella left Grimmauld Place, the Weasleys sat down for dinner and enjoyed a great meal. Molly had not ended up nagging Ron about his behaviour after all. In fact, she had made all of Ron and Ginny's favourite dishes. That, of course, caused Fred to poke fun at his little brother. "Mum, you shouldn't have bothered with special food for Ronnie. He'll eat anything anyway."

"Remember when we were little and fed him mud by telling him it was chocolate?" asked George.

Fred laughed freely and everyone at the table joined in the snickering.

"Bloody gits," murmured Ron.

"Language, Ronald!" admonished his mother. Molly then bustled around the table torn between fussing over Bill's hair, helping Charlie and Dena coo over their soon, mooning over Percy and Gia because it was their first dinner with the family in months, and forcing George to eat more (apparently food was mandatory after facing a Dementor).

Later, Percy began talking to his father about something in the Daily Prophet.

"I don't understand your need to read that piece rubbish. Don't you have cauldrons to inspect for the Ministry or something?" George stated, making obvious that he still had not fully forgiven his older brother.

"It's best to know what the community is thinking of," answered Arthur.

"And Percy is in a much better position at the Ministry now. He doesn't have to deal with cauldron inspections at all," Percy's wife added in a huff.

"Yeah, yeah. But that paper is still rubbish. They know You-Know-Who is back, but they refuse to apologize to Estella and the Snapes. And that Rita Skeeter, calling them cowards for hiding from her interviews, the bloody bint!"

"Language, Georgi!" Molly scolded.

"Right."

"She's just jealous that your Estella gave a personal interview to Witch Weekly instead of her. Your girlfriend was actually smart to only answer pre-chosen questions and stick to personal trait statements instead of too much talking of You-Know-Who," added Percy.

"That's my sneaky girl!" answered George proudly.

After that, the conversation at the table took on a lighter note. At least it did until it was time for pudding.

"Ron, Ginny, you'll have pudding with your father and I in the drawing room and then we'll come back and talk with everyone," Molly stated.

The youngest Weasleys were confused, but they stood and began to follow their parents.

"What's going on?" Ron whispered to his sister.

"How would I know?" Ginny replied.

Both of them turned to their older brothers as they reached the door, hoping for hints about what was going on. Bill gave them an awkward smile. Charlie's grin, on the other hand, was completely sincere, as was Percy's. The twins simply motioned with their heads so they would continue to follow Mum and Dad. But, for once, Fred and George's faces were not filled with mischief and mirth. Their expressions clearly gave away their feelings of concern.

Dena, Liana, and Gia left the kitchen to put little Artie to sleep and give their husbands some privacy. Meanwhile, the older Weasleys waited to see how the announcement turned out.

"How do you reckon they'll take it?" asked Bill, looking at the twins.

"Dunno for sure, but chances are they'll be as mad as I was," answered George.

"At least neither of them is dating anyone right now," said Bill.

"True," Fred replied.

"What happened to that Michael character?" asked Percy.

"That's long over. You're behind on everything," said Fred.

"Sorry! I've been busy!"

"Right," the twins replied with sarcasm.

"Back to topic," Bill admonished. "It doesn't matter if they're not dating anyone. George wasn't either when he found out, but he still went round the bend. We should have a plan in case they take it badly."

"True," Charlie replied. Everyone else nodded in agreement.

"Any suggestions?" asked Percy.

"Well, we should separate into two groups to talk to each of them. You two are closer in age so one of you should be in each group," Bill said pointing at the twins.

"Alright, I'll take Ginny, you take Ron," said Fred.

"Percy, you can go with Fred and I'll have Charlie with me," George added.

"I'll take turns and check on each every so often," said Bill.

"Okay and if –" Charlie had started to say, but he was interrupted by the screams that now reverberated through the house.

The Weasleys ran towards the drawing room and saw Ron thundering out of the place with his face red and contorted in a mix of anger and sadness.

"Ronald!" called their mother.

"That is bollocks!" Ron shouted. "I don't even know this Anna!"

"And I'm not marrying Neville just because you signed a contract!" Ginny screamed as she came out of the drawing room. Her eyes were glistening with tears.

"Gin," George murmured with sadness as he saw his little sister.

"Enough!" Arthur ordered. "You will not shout at your mother or me any longer. We're trying to explain the Adstringo Matrimon contract and be reasonable. I understand it's a shock and we should have told you sooner. We didn't because we wanted Ron to have a chance to meet Anna before telling him. But that has taken too long, so we're telling you now."

Ginny couldn't control it anymore and she let her tears fall as she ran into Ron's arms. "How could you do this?" Ron asked gloomily, holding onto his sister and trying to keep his own tears at bay.

"Everything is going to be okay, my darlings. It is tradition and I know it's a bit of a shock when you first find out, but look at your father and I. We're great together. And Bill and Liana, and Charlie and Dena, and Percy and Gia… they're all doing great."

"You knew about this?" Ron asked looking at his brothers in shock.

"We promised Mum and Dad not to say anything until they did. We didn't even know if you were engaged for sure until a couple of months ago. We actually just found out who you were engaged to today," Bill answered.

Ron's face looked murderous. Traitors, he thought.

"What if we don't want to marry them?" asked Ginny, recovering from her crying fit and separating from Ron.

"Darling, you'll be just fine, I promise. You can spend the summer visiting Neville and getting used to him and how things will be and the Davies will move back to England next month. So, Ron gets to meet Anna."

"I didn't ask that! I want to know what happens if we don't marry them!"

Percy was the one that replied. "If you don't follow the magical contract, you have to face the repercussions. Article five, section twenty-two of the laws governing Adstringo Matrimon indicate that breaking the contract would lead to losing the collateral that the parents used when they signed the contract, in this case the Burrow, and also bringing the breaker of the contract to trial. If found guilty of breaking wizarding laws on the marriage contract, the witch or wizard can and should be sent to Azkaban for a minimum of ten to twelve years."

"Ten to twelve YEARS!" Ron and Ginny loudly exclaimed together. But, suddenly, they were rudely interrupted.

"Stains of dishonour, blood traitors, children of filth!"

Ginny's tears returned in full force and then she simply screamed at her parents, "I hate you!" She followed her bitter assertion by running up the stairwell while still listening to Mrs. Black's insults.

"Shut up!" yelled Bill as he tried to close the curtains to Mrs. Black's portrait.

Ron looked at his sister's form as she disappeared into the upper level. He felt fury like he'd never felt before. He was angry for himself, for his sister, and for… Hermione.

"You ruined our lives!" he declared and then followed Ginny upstairs. Ron tried catching up to his sister, but she ran into her room and slammed the door shut. He followed her example, but right as he was about to close his own door George and Charlie barged in.

"What do you want?" Ron asked, fuming.

"We know how you feel. Let's just talk," Charlie pleaded.

"No, you don't! You are happily married with a kid! You have no bloody idea how I feel!"

"Ron, it wasn't always like that for Charlie or any us," George argued as he and Charlie made their way inside his room and then cast a silencing charm. Ron simply sat on his bed unable to keep his tears at bay any longer.

"I'm sorry, mate," George added. He sat next to him and squeezed his shoulder with kindness.

"I don't love that girl. I don't even know her," Ron whispered.

"We know. It sucks, but it will work out. It took Dena and me a whole year before we made peace with each other. But then everything worked out. Who knows, maybe this girl is perfect for you," Charlie said.

"Yeah right!"

"Ron, I know it sucks, but we're here to try and help. Just tells us what you need and we'll help," George assured.

"Yeah, if you have questions or you need to scream or you want some Firewhisky or if just you have to cry some more, we'll be with you," Charlie added.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" Ron asked. His voice was desperate, even though he managed to stop crying and worked on cleaning his eyes with his sleeves.

"We couldn't. Mum and Dad made us promise. They wouldn't even tell us if you were in fact engaged under the contract or who you'd be marrying. We just figured this might be coming because it happened to us too. If it helps, Bill, Charlie, and Percy didn't tell me until Mum and Dad had broken the news," George answered.

"So, you are engaged to Estella and Fred to Angelina."

"No," George answered. "Fred's fiancé died when she was like seven and mine was killed last year in the train attack. Her name was Chloe Edgecombe. She was in Hufflepuff."

"Chloe Edgecombe, Marietta Edgecombe's cousin?"

George nodded. Ron sat in silence confused. Then he said, "But you were with Estella before the train attack. How did you –"

He was interrupted. "I know I was with Estella before the train attack. Listen, I… well… I was a bit of an arsehole." Charlie gave George a pointed look. "Fine! A huge arsehole, but Estella forgave me and understood my reasons for not telling her."

"How did you manage that?" Ron asked; his voice coarse from his screaming and crying. He wondered, if Estella understood George then maybe Hermione will understand. Wait… Did Estella bloody know this was happening tonight?

"It wasn't easy. She hexed me like no one has before. I didn't fight her either 'cause I bloody deserved it. Then she ignored me and I thought she hated my guts. But eventually, she let me explain and she forgave me," George said.

-x-x-x-x-x- Flashback -x-x-x-x-x-

"I know you... I miss you," George told her.

"You don't and missing me will pass."

"It won't. Ella, I admit you're no picnic... you're cheeky and complicated, a spoiled little brat even. But under that, you're wicked, strong, brilliant... you're the most astounding girl I've ever known and I love -"

She put a finger on his mouth and murmured, "Stop saying that."

"No, I have to get this out," he said taking hold of her hand.

"George, you don't –"

"For the love of Merlin, let me say this!"

She then stayed quiet.

"I... when I was fourteen, my Mum and Dad told me about the engagement. I pretended to accept it, that it was okay. But I was so angry, so upset. And knowing that, for once, Fred and I were not even, that he wasn't in the same bind I was in, made it worse. That night my brothers calmed me down and talked to me. They explained how they had handled it, and that it wasn't Fred's fault. Then Bill took us to a muggle pub in town. It didn't help to get pissed. Worse of all, each of us ended up in bed, with random muggle girls that took all our money in our sleep. Ella, my first time was shit and I barely remember it."

"George..." she mumbled lovingly.

"Then this stupid thing with Fred got started. He dumped Ange, and then Cynthia Wood used me, and then I felt like if I laughed it off, if I tried out as many witches as possible before having to marry Chloe, it would be okay. I convinced myself that it was okay and got used to having just sex and keeping myself at a safe distance from these girls... and joking about it and having the power. I didn't know what it felt like... when I actually fell for one of them. I didn't know."

"Please stop," she said.

"No Ella, you have to know. I wake up every day looking forward to seeing you, at the meetings, in the hallways, at meals, even if you just ignore me. I dream about you. I get madly jealous over you. I wish I could always make you smile, that I could make you happy. I know I have nothing to offer you and I have no excuse for what I did. But I never meant to hurt you, I swear Ella. I didn't know I was falling. I didn't know. But, I'm in love with you. I love you, I really really-"

"Stop it! I never told you why I didn't want to be your girlfriend to begin with! It's bad and I shouldn't tell you and you shouldn't love me," she said firmly and looking at him with sincerity.

"I don't care what it is. Don't tell me anything. I still love you," he assured. Then slowly, he got close, and his lips tentatively reached for hers.

In the past, their kissing could have been described as some sort of primal banter, a chemical reaction that took over and fused them together, or a simple taunt that they both enjoyed but would never commit to. But, that was not true anymore. The soft peck that they shared was cautious and filled with affection, almost shy. George felt his heart beat faster than ever. It was like he was thirteen again and getting kissed for the first time. This kiss was soothing and terrifying, painful and fabulous, beautifully innocent and strongly passionate all at once.

They separated, but kept foreheads against each other. Then he said, "I'm an arse. I should have never gone to Chloe. I'm sorry."

"Letting you be my first was my best mistake," she stated with honesty. Then they shared more sweet kisses, which deepened gradually, until they were snogging each other madly. Eventually they separated. Then they hugged and she spoke again, "This is a really bad idea, George. We can't last and this won't get us anywhere."

"I know. I've just missed you so bad."

"I've missed you too."

-x-x-x-x-x- End Flashback -x-x-x-x-x-

"We never thought we'd be able to be together so we had planned to break it off once I got married. Then the attack on the train happened, and Chloe died, and Estella was hurt… Everything just happened so fast and then I had to deal with mum."

"Mum knew!"

"Not at the beginning. I had to tell her in Godric's Hollow after the whole issue with the potion came up. Remember the row we had before you all left for the summer?"

"But she let you stay."

"No, she didn't. She just couldn't make me leave. I was already of age and since Chloe died I wasn't engaged anymore. So, I stayed at Godric's Hollow with Estella and mum hated it."

"That's why she hated Estella," Ron said, comprehension dawning on him.

"She blamed Estella for the fact that Chloe was killed … mostly because… during the attack, I left Chloe behind to look for Estella," George said gloomily.

"You didn't kill her. The Black Hand did that, little brother," Charlie said putting a hand on George's shoulder.

"I know. Anyway… this is about Ron. How are you, mate?"

Ron sat quietly, his eyes red, his mind spinning, and his heart beating fast due to pure anxiety. He thought of his brothers and what they had shared with him. They had been through a lot. Then he thought of Hermione. How was he supposed to tell her about this?

"I don't want to get married," Ron said.

"I know. I didn't either," Charlie stated.

"But you did."

"Yes, and I was lucky it worked out."

"Would you have gone through with it if Chloe hadn't died?" Ron asked George. "Would have married someone else even though you loved Estella?"

"I don't know. I… I thought about running away. One night, I even asked Estella to run off with me. But she wouldn't do it because we would have wound up in Azkaban."

"What? Why her? Was she engaged to someone too?"

"No, she wasn't engaged to anyone. She told me the older Swansons' relationship was rocky at first because they were engaged through the contract and Esther Swanson didn't want to put Estella or Ely through that. But even now Estella could still get in trouble because of me. We could ask Percy the ponce and get laws recited to us, but I'm sure that if anyone found out that Estella and I were serious for months while I was engaged, I would get a full trial and she'd get accused of being my accomplice. Even worse, if they found out I left Chloe during the attack to look for her, we'd be in big shit."

"Fuck!" Ron screamed in anger. He stood up and paced, feeling caged in this room and with rage boiling inside him. This engagement rubbish could affect Hermione! She could wind up in Azkaban! Fuck, fuck, fuck!

Suddenly, out of nowhere, one of the night tables in the room exploded.

"Bloody hell!" Charlie exclaimed in surprise.

"Is that from your new power?" George asked.

Ron just nodded. He tried breathing to force himself to relax a bit, but he couldn't. This was bollocks! How could this be happening?

"Calm down," Charlie said and then fixed the night table with a quick Reparo.

"No! I won't calm down! Do you have any idea what this means? What it could do to me and…" He cut himself short.

"And who?" asked George.

"If I told you something, could you keep it secret?"

The best way to describe this summer holiday so far was one simple word - longing. Hermione couldn't help it. Any mention of last term, even looking at the summer homework, and just… everything got her to think about Ron. The way his eyes looked when he touched her, the way his hair and skin tasted under her lips, and that silly yet devilish grin that drove her insane.

Hermione couldn't believe that he was her boyfriend. She couldn't believe that she had gotten to share so much with him this year and felt ready to share everything. She trusted him more than she trusted anyone. Lily had said she couldn't visit the Burrow until it was fixed and protective wards put in place. Hermione couldn't wait for that day. If she visited him, they could sneak around without calling attention. She would find a way. The next time she saw him she would kiss him and show him how much she had missed him. For now, she would settle for a letter. She knew Estella was due to arrive tomorrow morning and stay for a couple of days. Hermione was sure he would send letters with her.

She closed her eyes and tried to force herself to focus on sleep, but she lay restless in the middle of the night. She couldn't wait until tomorrow when she would at least get a letter from him. "I love you, Ron," she whispered in bed with a silly smile on her face. Then she remembered their last day together, on the train. The simple memory made her face blush and her body tingle. The way he'd kissed her and touched her and… Her hand found its way inside her knickers and she began to rub intensely remembering him, fantasizing about his hands travelling through her body… his lips tasting her… his tongue licking her rapidly… his large erection in her mouth. She rubbed her clit faster, taking some of the juices that spilled out of her to help with the motions. After a while, she felt it, that burning and tingly sensation that only came to her because of Ron. Hermione bit her lip as her body jerked in her bed; thoughts of her redhead filling her with ecstasy.

"The things you do to me, Ron Weasley," she murmured once her release was over; a mischievous smile adorning her innocent face. Then she cast a cleaning charm and finally drifted off to sleep.

Well, what do you think?