Thanks for the feedback, appreciate every one of them. It makes butterflies fly around my chest every time I read one.
To the reviewer asking about the Quills, I double checked for you, and they are called Black Quills. Thanks for making me rethink it! That's totally what I need.
Large AN at the end with a few questions…
No, I don't own them. Wish I had the twins, but eh, whatcha gonna do?
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The pop of Apparition filled the foyer of Grimmauld Place, startling Kreacher so badly he caused the tea tray he had been carrying towards Ginny and Harry to topple over and make a great mess on the sitting room carpet.
"Kreacher!" Harry groaned, but Ginny waved her fiancé's concern away, going to meet whoever had appeared. The house elf sullenly began to clean up, apologizing under his breath. Ginny ignored both of them, turning the corner to see a frazzled Hermione standing near the door, like she hadn't quite figured out where she was yet.
"Hermione? What is it?" The bushy haired witch looked up at her friend, her eyes wide, and hands clasped together tightly. Ginny took a quick look over her, but her clothes were fine and unruffled, and she didn't seem like she was in any physical pain. Her eyes were what was beginning to frighten her, wide and glossy, like she was in a daze. "'Mione, what happened!"
"I think I just got engaged."
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They reached the flat's door and Fred reached round her to open it so she wouldn't have to move Treacle. She tried to ignore his hand brushing along her side, and forced herself not to run into the room. Instead she took a few calm steps in and bent down to allow Treacle ample room to jump away and begin roaming around the flat. As the kitten took the time to sniff at everything, Hermione took the time to wonder if Treacle had ever been in the flat before, or if Fred had only allowed her up here because she had been holding her.
"Did you want to help me make something? It'll be quicker than ordering." Hermione peeked at him over her shoulder, already moving to the kitchen. It wasn't very big, with an island counter doubling as the dining table with four taller chairs around it. The sink, stove, and fridge were all along one wall, with two flat cupboards beside the sink. It was built comfortably for two, suiting Fred and George's constant working companionship.
"May as well, though I should warn you, I really don't know how to cook real food." He whispered this last bit right next to her ear as he stepped closer, overcoming her smaller strides to the kitchen. A pretty blush covered her face, making him grin after he turned to face his kitchen once more. She joined him soon after, immediately washing her hands, though she had to search for soap before noticing the hidden bottle stuffed behind an empty bottle of Firewhisky. He decided to ignore the small glare she shot at him, knowing she already figured it was George that was in the kitchen more than he anyway. Treacle decided then to join them, jumping up onto the island to be nearer to Hermione. She didn't bother to ask for directions around the kitchen, opening multiple cupboards and the fridge, eventually pulling ingredients together.
"How do you even know what to do?" Fred finally asked her, once she was beginning to mix some kind of red sauce. He gave up on even pretending he knew what was happening when she added wine to the sauce pan. "Are we getting the pasta drunk then?"
She turned to give him a quick playful glare before setting the sauce on a lower heat, and turned fully to face him once again, "No smarty pants, it makes the sauce taste different. And it's fancy." He wiggled his eyebrows at her, making a delightful blush stain her cheeks.
"Trying to seduce me with alcoholic pasta Miss Granger?"
"What if I am?" He paused when she said this, goofy grin falling away. "And the pasta is not alcoholic." He shook himself from the moment of shock to again tease her about the food.
"No, you are. But I won't bring it up; I know it's a soft spot." She only rolled her eyes at him, draining the pasta with a wave of her wand, while she manually finished the sauce. Once she had finished, Fred took out two plates from the higher cupboard and placed them delicately on the island and then Accio-ed two wine glasses from above Hermione's head by the stove. She ducked naturally, like she had done this hundreds of times, and it made his stomach clench.
"Alright, try this then," she served a large scoop of sauce covered pasta, with a large amount of cheese on it. She paused, and then decided to add another scoop to his plate. He grinned; glad she knew the Weasley stomach systems so well. "Double drinks now? Alcohol pasta not enough for you?" She teased, but he only smiled, pouring a bit of wine into her glass.
"May as well make the most of this. Some liquid luck may be necessary."
Hermione swallowed her sip of wine, "We are wizards, if we really need luck we can brew some up. We'll be fine." He sighed, fighting the need to grin at her no nonsense attitude.
"Will we? 'Cause I'm honestly still freaking out 'Mione." She finally looked him in the eye, and he noticed how wide hers were. She was frightened too, but hiding it much better than he was. "And you're as frightened as I am." She nodded, taking another sip of wine, cringing when she sipped too much at once. She nodded, looking down at her plate, her fork twisting a strand of spaghetti around until it unfurled and began again in the other direction.
"I'm surprised I'm still sitting here to be honest. I've been so nervous to talk to you; I don't even want to come out today because I knew Ginny would take me here. I really didn't remember it was your birthday today." She smiled to herself, still not looking up from her plate. The tight feeling in his stomach relaxed as he watched her fiddle next with her napkin, which she had set for herself and hadn't bothered for one for him. She couldn't seem to settle her fingers, but he continued to watch her hands move about nervously. Finally, after she had neared shredding the napkin, he reached across and laid his hand onto hers, settling the movements to a halt.
"So if we're both so nervous about this, why don't we just get this out of the way and talk about this?" She stopped, pulling her hands to her lap, where unknown to him, she began fiddling with her fingertips.
"That would make sense, wouldn't it?" He only nodded, smiling gently at her and stood up, lifting his plate to dump it in the sink to deal with it later. She followed him closely, leaving her plate on the side of the sink instead of adding to the mess. They walked into the living room, Fred taking control of the couch immediately, sprawling out from end to end. Hermione didn't stop to ponder the arrangement, taking the seat right next to his head, one turned just right to face the fireplace.
"How do we start?" Hermione asked, not seeing the smirk cross Fred's face. He was sure not knowing how to handle this was killing the little bookworm inside her.
"How do we start every conversation? We talk, topics come up, we converse about those topics." she tapped the side of his head, but otherwise ignored him. Instead she continued to watch the fire dancing in the grates.
"Are you upset I was matched with you?" It was so unexpected a response, Fred couldn't seem to make his lips form words, gaping like a fish at the young witch. She wasn't fiddling nervously, or blushing after showing her feelings without another thought.
He finally snapped to attention, sitting up right in front of her on the couch, "Why in the name of Godric would you think that? Did I say something to make you think I wasn't happy about this?"
She seemed surprised, "You're happy? In this situation, being forced together without consent or properly dating before even thinking of being together forever; and you're happy? Because that's what we're doing Fred, we have to be in each other's company, all the time, and eventually need to start, erm, a family." Now her cheeks turned a light pink, but he didn't even register it.
"Hermione," he grabbed her hands, keeping them firmly clasped between his, leaving barely an inch of space for movement, "I need you to look at me right now," she looked away from the fire, large brown chocolate eyes hitting his face immediately, "We are going to do this. You may think I'm saying this because I have no choice, but in all honestly, and you can ask George if you'd like, but I was ecstatic when I saw your name. I was so incredibly happy when I actually realized what pulling your name out of that envelope meant for me. It means your mine to impress. You're the one I get to see every day, laugh at inside jokes with, and make crazy alcoholic dinners with," Hermione couldn't stop the giggle slipping from between her lips. He smiled at her and continued, quieter than before,
"And you will be the one I get to kiss good night, and give a kiss to in the morning." He wasn't sure if he was even saying this aloud, he had said this so silently. Judging by the delighted smile on her face, she had definitely heard him. "And I know we're too young, but we're going to have a baby together. And I'm insanely happy you are the mother of my future child. Our wedding too, I don't care how common or lavish you want it, I'm going to show up regardless, because it's you I'm marrying. Not some stranger I met, but the girl I've fancied for years." He couldn't look away from her, the chocolate brown getting misty with tears, and a small grin couldn't seem to disappear as she listened to him.
Hermione's heart was beating so heavily, she could hear it thudding in her ears. Everything Fred was saying was sending small shock waves throughout her body, her stomach tingling in anticipation. Anticipating what exactly she didn't know, but she was hanging off every word he was saying. This was insane; Fred Weasley was not supposed to fall for her, the know-it-all Prefect who disliked most of his pranks. He was gorgeous; his Weasley-esqe hair was grown to just under his ears, he had always been fit from years of Quidditch, and she secretly delighted in the fact that he was only slightly shorter than Ron. She had always hated the fact she had to crane her neck back to look Ron in the eyes. This man was not fit to fall for her. But she couldn't stop the selfish part of her that wanted him to like her, because it would make it so much easier to admit she fancied him as well.
"Oh Fred," she finally said, but to him it sounded like she was distressed.
"Hermione, wait, just please," he kept her hands in his; giving them a squeeze, "listen. I just want you to know how I feel, because this still has to happen, but if we're going to be awkward and-"
Hermione wrestled one of her hands out of his and clapped it over his mouth, "Fred, stop. I know." He frowned in confusion, his eyes scrunching up into slits. "I do too." He pushed her hand away, frown receding.
"You do what?"
"I fancy you too." The frown came back, and he sat back as if to look her over for an oddity.
"No, you fancied Ron. I asked him, he said he was going to ask you eventually so I backed off. George had to remind me a few times, but I stayed away." She smiled at him softly, her eyes melting once more in front of him.
"I had a small crush on Ron in fourth year, but that went away in almost the same year. Though, my crush on you started the year before that anyways, so I suppose you still win anyway." He blinked owlishly at her, not having anything to say to that. "Fred, I've liked you for years too. But I never said anything because everyone expected me and Ron to be together. It got to the point where I expected it, and I leaned on it. I even kissed him in the middle of the Hogwarts battle. But when we heard about this law, we both snapped out of it, and told each other we wouldn't work and told Kingsley not to match us up. When he asked who I would like, I didn't say anyone, and it wasn't until we left his office did I feel like a right prat. I should have said your name Fred; but it wouldn't have been fair to you, we had never said anything to one another about this, and I couldn't believe I had thought of that,
"When I pulled your name out of that envelope, I could have fallen over or launched myself across the table and kissed you. This is the best partnership we could have hoped for in this situation, Fred. And I'm not upset, or sad. I'm happy, and I can't wait to start now that I know you think the same thing." Fred was completely silent, still blinking at her like he couldn't quite see her in front of him. Finally, without another moment of hesitation, he leaned in and captured her lips with his. She gasped quickly, but kissed him back without question. This is what they were waiting for; this was what she had wanted for years. They continued to snog for several minutes, ignoring the darkening windows looming behind them. She couldn't pull herself away from him, her lips were beginning to feel chapped, but then he used the tip of his tongue to line her bottom lip, and she opened for him with a sigh. Once he moved away and trailed down her neck, she opened her eyes and really noticed how dark it was in the room.
"Fred, we should stop." he groaned, but his kisses slowed down gradually to laving one last soft kiss in the crook of her neck and shoulder. They stayed entwined, and Hermione realized they had both moved to lie on the couch.
"That was probably a bit much for a first kiss, yeah?" she giggled at his mumbled question, directed mostly into her shoulder. She silently congratulated herself on wearing the vest Ginny had made her buy today I one of the Muggle shops that had hit before arriving in Diagon Alley.
"Probably, but who cares?" He sat up slowly, resting his head on his hand, and wrapped his other around her waist, leaving his fingers to trail her hip. She didn't even try to stop the shiver running through her.
"Hermione Granger, who knew you, could be so conforming?" She laughed softly, but didn't say anything further, lifting her hand to touch his hair, moving it away from his eyes. They didn't say anything, sitting in the silent living room until Hermione noticed they were actually still alone.
"Where's George? Shouldn't he be home by now?" Fred snorted into her hair, nuzzling her ear once before lifting his head up to look at her.
"At Angelina's, where I'm sure he will be staying for the night and most of tomorrow." She blushed again, but turned her head away so he wouldn't see it. The flat was now completely dark, the only light coming from the half open bathroom door. They didn't say anything, just lay together and held one another.
"Hermione?"
"Yes?"
"I honestly don't know what to do now without scaring you away." He smiled at her nervously and she grinned back, sitting up a little to relieve the pressure on her back from the couch arm. He shifted with her, eventually sitting up to sit face to face with one another. "I want to ask you to stay over, but I'm thinking that's not going to happen. Which is fine! Just, letting you know what's going on in my head, as we are being completely open with one another," he babbled on, the grin beginning to grow on his face, making her push him away, his laughter getting louder as he fell away.
"You jerk, that's not nice."
Fred sat up again, kissing her lightly, and she fell into him before sitting up in embarrassment, "Sorry, but I thought opening this with a joke would work for us." She leaned back, looking into his eyes once more.
"Opening what, what are we doing, I think I missed something." She was incredibly confused, but his nervousness was making her stay silent. He moved to sit extremely close to her, dropped her hands back onto her lap. She watched him wipe the palms of his hands against his jeans and suddenly had a bad feeling hit the pit of her stomach.
"Hermione," he whispered, but she fought the urge to lean in to hear him better, "I know we literally just got comfortable with one another, but I know this is something you would want were our situation any different. You're the type of witch that likes order, and I know for a fact you even organized Ginny's school trunk before we left for Hogwarts each year,
"But now that we're on the same level, and I know we can make this work together, I want to make this Muggle-official for you as well." He slipped off of the couch, kneeling on front of her, laying his hands on her knees.
"Fred, are you-"She stopped with a small choke, as he felt under the couch, and pulled out a small red velvet drawstring bag. It wasn't ornate or very large, but it still caused her to catch her breath instantly. "Oh Merlin," she whispered, lifting her hands to cover her mouth, in case she said something to ruin the moment for him.
"I've really no idea how to do this properly, and I'm sure I've royally screwed this up already, but Hermione, will you marry me?"
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"What did you say!?" Ginny practically screamed into her friend's face, handing her another cup of steaming tea, the bushy haired witch cradling it gratefully in her hands. Hermione shot her friend a sarcastic glare and wagged her hand in front of her, showing the flashy white gold band around her finger. "Right, I know, but I still want to hear the rest of the story!"
Hermione sighed, playing with the string of her tea bag as to waste time, "I said yes," Ginny squealed rather girlishly, and propped her chin up on her hand.
"And? Did you shag?" Hermione choked on the sip of tea she had finally taken, putting the mug back on the table and purposely glaring at her red haired friend now.
"No! No of course not, I came here!" Ginny looked rather put out, but bounced back quickly with more questions.
"Did you think about it though? I shagged Harry after he proposed." Hermione put her tea down, completely finished with even trying to drink it any further.
"Gin, I really don't want to know that about my best friend! He's practically my brother." Ginny shrugged but then screwed up her nose in disgust.
"Now that I think of it, I don't really want to know about one of my brothers doing that with you. Never mind, let's promise not to mention that type of thing anymore." Hermione nodded in agreement, and they even shook on it, both girls thoroughly disgusted. They drank their tea in silence for a few moments before Ginny broke out into giggles. Hermione looked at her strangely, before dissolving into laughter as well.
"We're getting married 'Mione." Ginny whispered through a giggle, laughing even harder once she managed to say it. Hermione chuckled too, calming down much faster than Ginny.
"Yes, and we're not even twenty."
"Oh Merlin, we're a mess. Let's clean ourselves up and send you back home, eh? It's been a long night for you I suppose." Hermione nodded but couldn't help asking, though it could be considered rude,
"Can I not stay here tonight?" Ginny gave her friend a pitying look and shook her head in the negative.
"Sorry Hermione, the place still hasn't been cleaned properly. The only room really livable is mine and Harry's; Kreacher only managed to upkeep that one and the kitchen." Hermione nodded in understanding, not wanting to inconvenience the house elf nor her friends.
"No that's fine; I'll head back to your mum's. Our room is still good to use. I'll see you both later, tell Harry bye for me." Ginny nodded to her, and watched her friend Apparate out of the house. Harry came around the corner almost instantly, wrapping an arm around her waist as she continued to stare at the empty chair Hermione had vacated.
"She's happy, don't worry about her. It takes her a while to process some things, that all." Harry mumbled into his fiancées ear, feeling her nod and relaxes in his grip before leaving a few kisses up her neck.
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The Burrow was still lit up warmly, the chimney billowing out dark gray smoke that smelt rather like Floo Powder. Once she had gathered herself, Hermione began the small trek up to the front stoop. Her mind was racing and her hand felt distinctly heavy, but she couldn't make herself look at the ring too closely. It didn't feel real enough for her to get happy about this big step her and Fred had taken. Mrs. Weasley must have heard her drop in, as the matronly woman was standing in the open doorway with a puzzled look permanently imbedded in her brow.
"Hermione dear, are you quite alright?" She allowed herself to be collected into a quick hug but nodded to the woman, not wanting her to worry over her.
"I'm fine Mrs. Weasley, just thought I could stay the night here. Grimmauld isn't very clean yet for guests." Mrs. Weasley tutted over this, but pulled the girl into her home, enveloping her in instant warmness.
"Well, bustle yourself up to your room dear. You're looking a bit peaky. Had tea with Ginny then?" Hermione nodded her assent, already moving to the grand staircase that would take her to a warm bed, "Good, have a good sleep dear, I'll be making blueberry muffins tomorrow." Hermione smiled behind a yawn, secretly glad to be receiving a favourite breakfast choice. Her appetite had been growing over the last several weeks, and she was very proud to say most of the weight had gone to her chest, something that had never happened while growing up.
Once she reached to lofty room on the second floor, Hermione immediately slumped down to the cot before revaluating and slinking into Ginny's much larger, comfier bed. She groaned in a pleased way, and fell to sleep rather quickly, soft snores soon escaping. It was hours later, once Mrs. Weasley had been shooed to bed by her husband, and the remaining Weasley boys had gone off to their own beds, Fleur already settled hours before hand, did the Burrow kitchen door squeak open. A freckled hand shot out to stop it in its tracks, the ominous squeak silencing itself immediately. A lanky, broad set of shoulders shuffled into the kitchen, re-latching the locks on the door, and placing the correct Safety charms over the threshold. Once finished, the red haired boy made his way across the kitchen, through the living room with the dimmed fireplace, and made his way up the stairs to the second floor. He took extra care when passing by his brother, Charlie's, door as the man tended to sleep lightly from years of dragon taming. Once cleared, he opened the next door on the right, swinging it open gently to reveal one small mound on the bed in the center of the lovely blue room. He toed his shoes off as he shut the door, the latch catching with a soft tick, undetected throughout the rest of the house. Once encased in the room alone, he removed his jacket before crawling steadily across the bed, landing next to the soft pile in the center. Reaching a hand out, he poked the soft cheek peeking out of the mound of bushy brown hair. She twitched gently and squinted out of one eye, keeping the other firmly closed as she checked out what had been bothering her.
"Fred, what are you doing in my bed?" The red head grinned, leaning into leave a quick kiss on her cheek.
"I thought it would be rather obvious," Hermione scoffed, pushing his face away, but he only lay next to her, leaving only his hand on her side. "Kidding Granger, I just wanted to sleep. The flat was too quiet." Hermione relaxed, a small grin pulling at her lips at the thought of Fred coming to her without another thought when he was lonely. She nodded and shuffled over to make room for his much larger body, missing his pleased grin as he nosed his way under the coverlet, leaving a respectable amount of space between them. He replaced his arm over her waist, keeping a small amount of space between them still as he whispered a soft good night. He leaned back and used the other pillow, leaving Hermione with her own to use. He waited a few minutes, and began to drift off when he heard a soft scoff and shuffling from the witch next to him. In the next second, his face was filled with bushy hair and a small body was squished into his side. Her arms wrapped around his waist, making his own arm tighten around her body, almost completely circling her.
"G'Night Fred," she said not too quietly and fell promptly back to sleep. With one last large grin, Fred nestled down in the bedding, and fell asleep with his witch.
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Aww, I'm so proud of myself for getting through that incredibly mushy scene. I especially liked how I started this off with a cliffie, made me feel good about myself. I thought for a moment they may have been moving too fast, but later convinced myself it went smoother than I thought. Opinions?
Thank to every single reviewer who's said such wonderful things about this story so far. I don't usually go out of my way to personally respond to a review unless it has a pressing question, in which I will answer you as soon as able.
If anyone has any type of scene they like or dislike in Marriage Law fics, please tell me now or forever hold your peace, as we will soon be coming to the weddings. Cheesy or not, let me know and I work 'em in classily.
Thanks, AJ