Chapter 32

After the fanfare of the engagement party, Ron had to admit that he was rather unimpressed by the wedding. The party had to have had at least three hundred people there, but the wedding was much smaller and more intimate. Only close family had been invited, and by the looks Audrey's mother gave the Weasleys as they arrived, Ron was certain that she thought only Audrey's close family should have come.

Ron had never been in a church before — he had no need to — but the glass windows and the old-looking walls were the things he liked the most.

Other than that, the only other decorations was a bouquet of flowers tied at the end of each row, and at the front were a few as well.

Hermione, who had attended a number of weddings in churches, also thought the lack of "wedding vibes" was off-putting compared to the party.

Our wedding will be much more interesting than this, he found himself thinking, though he kept the thought to himself. As much as he wished things could have been different, the shop still had the ring, and he'd only managed to pay off around fifty Galleons of the four hundred he owed. In fact, he'd mentioned his plans to no one (aside from George, who he'd been forced to tell) — not even to Harry — and planned to keep it that way until he could actually ask Hermione.

In part, because he felt a little embarrassed over the whole thing, but mostly because he just really wanted it to be a surprise. Ginny and Hermione weren't gossips by nature, but Ron couldn't help but think they talked about a lot when they were together. And Harry… well, he didn't quite trust Harry to keep a secret. Not that he thought Harry would deliberately tell anyone, but it would potentially come up accidentally in a casual conversation with Ginny.

It was better if Ron kept it to himself. That way, he could only frustrate himself.

Maybe he was in a sour mood over the whole idea of a wedding, but Ron also found the ceremony rather boring. Was this how all Muggle weddings went? There was a lot of talking, a lot of readings, and a lot of other stuff he really didn't understand. It was also long and Percy and Audrey really didn't do much.

Even Hermione, who he remembered seeing cry at Bill and Fleur's wedding, looked rather bored. Towards the end of the ceremony, she looked at him and smiled. Ron had been watching her for some time now, but when their eyes met, he almost felt as if they were agreeing, We are not getting married in a church.

Well, at least they were on the same page about the whole thing.

For the remainder of the ceremony, Ron's mind trailed to what his own wedding would look like. He really only knew of them being held in gardens of wizarding properties, though would that even be manageable with a whole Muggle side to accommodate for? He'd never been to a wedding until now with a wizard side and a Muggle side, and it seemed that Percy had not been fussed about abandoning any form of tradition on his side.

Gone were the days where Percy was so pompous, so arrogant, about being a brilliant, highly respected wizard. The war had changed many of them, and it seemed that for Percy, being less of a prat was how he had changed.

Even so, Percy must have really loved Audrey to go through all of this for her.

Ron looked at Hermione again, who had returned her attention to the front. Well, he supposed he understood. He was at a point where he'd be willing to do just about anything to get that ring early.

After everything was done, they all stood up and clapped as Percy and Audrey left down the aisle of the church. It was odd seeing Percy dressed in anything other than Ministry robes, but he'd turned out all right, Ron supposed.

And Audrey looked rather nice too, wearing a traditional white wedding dress (according to Hermione), her hair done up, makeup on. He wouldn't call her stunning, but she definitely wasn't attractive either.

"Once again, the perfect couple," Ginny said as they slowly exited the church. She and Harry had been sitting in the same row as Ron and Hermione, Ginny next to Hermione. "That was the most boring thing I've ever sat through, and I spent five years listening to Professor Binns ramble on about goblin wars. They're going to live happy, boring lives together. It'll be bliss… for them."

Everyone laughed quietly as they stepped outside. It was an overcast day, but the rain had held off. Percy and Audrey were already posing for photos in the church garden.

"You know," Ron said, leaning closely to Hermione as he watched his brother and his new wife, "Percy taught Audrey a lot about our ways, but I reckon she's taught him more about hers. He looks so natural standing there, surrounded by all these Muggle things, as if he's lived it his whole life. That, or he's a damn good actor, and that I highly doubt."

Hermione smiled, her eyes also focused on the happy couple. Ron placed an arm around her shoulders and drew her towards him.

He felt, more than saw, her open her mouth to say something. He waited, but when nothing came, he said, "Is everything alright?"

Hermione nodded, still smiling. "Yes," she said. Her eyes continued to watch the photographer, thoughtful.

Ron wondered if she was wondering when that would be her. It was hard to tell with Hermione, but he did know she wanted to get married. He just didn't know if she was one to ponder the idea or fantasise about it. Maybe she just wondered when he was going to ask her. Or maybe she was considering asking him instead, fed up with waiting.

"I want to be the one to ask you," he said without thinking.

Hermione turned to face him, smiling, but said nothing. He could see in her eyes the question of when but he couldn't tell her. If he did, all she would say was a ring didn't matter, and then probably tell him off for buying something so expensive to begin with.

I could just do it, then give her the ring later.

But no, he'd committed now. They'd just have to wait.

"We have to do the photo thing, apparently." Ginny came over to them, Harry slightly behind her.

"Now?" Ron asked, breaking himself from the moment he found himself in, where it was just him and Hermione and they were engaged.

"Yep," Ginny said. "All the family and what not. Percy's calling us over."

Ron looked back over to where his brother was, and sure enough, there was Percy beckoning them all over with a rather irritated look on his face.

Ron looked back at Hermione, and like before, there was something unspoken between them. They grinned.

When we get married, things are going to be a lot more relaxed.

…

By the time the photos were done — an hour and a half later — Ron's feet ached. He'd been standing for just as long, despite being required in only a handful of the photos — Hermione even less. In fact, Molly had gotten into a rather heated argument with Audrey's mother over partners (except for Fleur) being in any of the photos at all.

"The others aren't married, no children tying them together. Next year, we'll look at these photos and they'll be split up."

"They are part of the family," Molly argued. "Both Harry and Hermione are like children to me."

Ron found it rather amusing that someone didn't want Harry in a photo with them. Even now, Harry was still stopped on the street occasionally for someone to talk to him or get an autograph.

Harry didn't seem to mind, though. He watched the two women argue with a look of amusement. He was probably thinking how refreshing it was to not be wanted for a photo.

Eventually, Molly won, and Hermione and Harry were both allowed one photo to mark their presence at the wedding.

Now, they sat in the reception hall, which was the same place the engagement party a few months back had been held. Apparently Audrey and Percy (or maybe Audrey's mother) had a fascination with the place.

It was decorated as elaborately as the engagement had been, but not more so, which was again a disappointment to Ron. They were even seated in roughly the same spot as before, minus Bill and Charlie who Percy had asked to be groomsmen.

"That woman," Molly huffed, glaring in the direction of Audrey's mother, "is a piece of work. Not wanting Harry and Hermione in the photo…"

"Well, we technically aren't family," Hermione said in her matter-of-fact voice.

"You're as good as," Molly said fiercely, looking between Hermione and Harry. "Both of you. Anyway, it was Percy's photos as much as Audrey's…"

"They're just photos, Mrs Weasley," Harry said. "It really doesn't matter."

"It's the principle," Molly said, and she continued to cast scathing looks towards the woman she apparently now considered her enemy.

Ron shared a look with Ginny and Harry, who were both fighting back laughter. No one had really cared about the photos.

"Percy looks like he's settled right into this whole Muggle life, though, hasn't he?" Ron said, turning to look at his brother, who was not the Percy he knew. He was calm, hardly flustered, and looked as if he belonged amongst all these people with televisions and telephones and couldn't Apparate an inch from where they stood.

"He has to, doesn't he?" Ginny said. "I mean, Audrey can't suddenly become a witch, so he has to become a Muggle."

"Yes, well, as long as he doesn't completely forget who he is," Molly said, and her voice took on a hint of desperation.

"Who? Percy?" Ginny said. "Forget he's the Head of Magical Transportation? Never. He just has a touch of Muggleness to his life now. It's good for him. Will bring that ego down a notch when he can't work an oven."

"Like you know how to work an oven," Ron said. "You know less than I do."

"Yes, but I don't need to," Ginny said smugly.

"Neither do I," Ron retorted.

"Oh, look, here comes Bill!" Fleur interjected, nodding towards where her husband was escaping a few curious people, staring and pointing at the scars running down his face. He looked nowhere near as comfortable as Percy, but offered everyone a polite smile as he passed them. Occasionally, he pointed towards Fleur and the rest of his family as an apparent attempt to reach them faster.

"Oh, 'e is popular," Fleur said, though Ron couldn't work out if she was pleased or irritated by that fact. He did notice that it was a lot of other women who were stopping to talk to him, maybe attracted to a man with battle wounds.

From beside her, Victoire — who had acted as a 'flower girl' in the wedding ("It's traditional in Muggle weddings," Hermione had explained), sat in an elevated chair. She'd remained relatively quiet since arriving, but upon seeing her father approaching, she let out a delighted squeal and cried, "Papa!"

"Shh," Fleur said as a few heads turned.

But Victoire slammed her hands onto the table, bouncing up and down in her seat as Bill drew closer and closer. She wore a large smile.

"Hey!" Bill said brightly, grinning at them all. "How is it over here?"

"I'm a little hungry," Ginny said, "and Mum has declared Audrey's mother her mortal enemy. But other than that, we're good."

Bill chuckled. "I don't know how Perce will do it. I probably couldn't."

"Yes, well, you're lucky you 'ave me," Fleur said, shooting some more gawkers a look that could rival Molly's.

Bill looked at her, slightly alarmed, but he was distracted by another squeal from Victoire. She stuck up chubby arms for him to pick her up. Bill obliged.

"Papa," Victoire giggled, snuggling into him.

Ron couldn't help but smile. Victoire was a pretty good kid… for a baby, he supposed. She had inherited her mother's hair and facial structure, and good looks. She was only a Weasley by name.

He didn't see his niece often, but when he did, she was demanding and bossy and wanted all the attention on herself. Also like her mother.

But, she was pretty cute, and she had taken a liking to Ron for some reason. Whenever she saw him, she stuck her hands out for him to pick her up.

At first, it had made him nervous, but he hadn't dropped her yet, so that was something. And he had to admit — he rather liked holding her.

Hermione said they were adorable together.

That being said, Ron was more than happy to pass her off to Bill or Fleur after a few minutes.

"I hope you're behaving," Bill said with a smile.

"She is a delight, as usual," Molly said. She beamed. If anyone was prouder than Victoire's parents, it was her grandmother. Apparently there was something special about a first grandchild — something that Ron doubted any future children could live up to (except maybe for the last, whenever and whoever that would be).

Victoire continued to smile up at Bill, giggling every so often.

"Are you stuck at zat table all night?" Fleur asked.

"To eat the food, yes," Bill said. "I'm free to roam otherwise."

"Muggle weddings are weird," Fleur complained. "Separating husband and wife, husband and daughter…" She frowned towards Percy and Audrey for a moment, and then sighed, returning her gaze to Bill. "At least sit for ze moment." She patted the seat beside her that Arthur had just vacated in an attempt to engage Audrey in a conversation of some kind.

Bill collapsed with a sigh.

"It can't be that bad, can it?" Ginny asked. "Over there?"

Bill looked at her. "Percy and Audrey are fine. It's the other guests." He lowered his voice. "Her mother…"

Ron snorted. Molly looked delighted.

"Don't be rude," Hermione said, though she, too, was smiling. Her own parents being Muggles had done little to impress Audrey's mother.

The conversation drifted to other things after that — about who was going to win the Quidditch season this year, would Ginny play for the Harpies, and what was happening in Auror training or Hermione's work.

Eventually, the first course arrived, and Bill placed Victoire back in the chair and left a disgruntled Fleur to tend to their daughter.

After the food had been eaten — Victoire flinging the last of hers behind her, some landing on some old man dressed in a suit — Ron looked to Hermione.

"Wanna come and get a drink with me? I need you to help me choose something decent. I don't understand these Muggle drinks."

Hermione nodded, smiled, and stood up.

Once they were a distance away from the table, heading towards the bar, Hermione said, "I don't know what the options are, but I suppose a —"

"I really just wanted to get you alone for a moment," Ron said, and he stopped walking, turning Hermione to face him. Some people walked by carrying drinks of their own, but they blended in well enough that no one paid them any mind.

He kissed her, to which she responded, smiling against his lips.

"But do you want that drink or not?" Hermione asked.

"I do, but you taste much better." He kissed her again, but after a moment Hermione pushed him away and grabbed his hand.

"Come on," she said, dragging him towards the bar. "I'll get us something I think we'll both like."

While Hermione ordered the drinks (something about vodka) Ron looked back over to the table they'd just come from. Victoire was bouncing up and down in her chair, a loud shriek escaping her in that moment, which travelled all the way over to them.

Ron laughed. He really did like Victoire, and he liked being around a little kid. At first, he'd taken on the uncle duty hesitantly, then confidently, and even more recently (maybe around the time he decided that he really was going to marry Hermione) little moments passed him where he thought maybe he could do it himself.

Of course, they were usually fleeting moments that were wiped from his mind the moment Victoire threw a fit over nothing, but as he watched Fleur attempt to placate her daughter, the once fleeting thought lingered a little bit longer, only disrupted by Hermione passing a glass into his hand.

"Be warned, it's strong, but not Firewhisky strong," she said, then followed his gaze over to Victoire. "She's happy tonight, isn't she?"

"I think she's great!" Ron said, beaming.

"You mean the same child you just last week called the devil's spawn?" Hermione said, amusement on her face.

"She bit me!" Ron said. "And it hurt. Of course I'd say that then." He took a sip from the drink — that to his eyes looked like water — and almost choked on it.

"I told you," Hermione said.

"That's revolting!" he exclaimed.

Hermione shrugged.

Ron looked back over at Victoire again, opened his mouth, then closed it. This topic seemed a little too advanced for them. He took another sip of his drink and winced. How could Muggles stand this stuff?

He looked at Hermione to tell her she'd chosen poorly, only to find her watching him in a way that gave him the feeling she knew exactly what he had just stopped himself from saying. Was it possible to hide anything from her?

The good thing was, she was smiling, and didn't look at all unnerved.

"You can say it, you know," she said warmly. "We're adults, we're in a committed relationship with long term goals. You can talk about it."

Ron once again opened his mouth, then shut it again. He frowned. "Er… alright." Another sip from the drink, just because it was something to do. "That… I mean, having kids one day… that's something you see?"

"Of course," Hermione said. "Didn't we mention it a while back that it was in our plans?"

"Yeah, but it was more in passing. As a maybe. A possibility, not something we definitely agreed upon."

Hermione shook her head. "I haven't changed my mind."

"Neither," Ron said quickly. "I like the thought of it." He smiled affectionately at her.

"Me too."

"In the future, of course!" Ron added hurriedly. "I don't mean now, or anything, in case you were wondering. I just mean… if I'm going to have kids — which I'd like to, I think — I want it to be with you… in the future."

"How far in the future?" Hermione asked, and Ron was surprised by her curiosity. It almost sounded as if she wanted him to say something like "maybe soon." She had a glow about her. He studied her a moment before answering.

"I dunno," he said after a moment. "It's not something I think about every day, or every moment. But I think I could do it. I mean, I think we could do it."

"I think we can, too," Hermione said, smiling and sipping from her drink, which she seemed to enjoy more than Ron did.

He laughed.

"What's so funny?" Hermione questioned.

"Oh… nothing, really. It's just, here we are, talking about big things. I seem to have a really bad habit of making really big decisions at events like these.".

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.

"I mean, that every time there's a lot of people around, and there's a lot of people in love, it reminds me of how in love with you I am, and I start planning our future more and more."

"We've only been to one wedding before this one," Hermione said. "So unless you made some big decision at Bill and Fleur's wedding about us, what other opportunities have you had?"

"The engagement party," Ron said without thinking.

"What big decisions were you making there?" Hermione prompted.

Ron hesitated. He shouldn't have said anything. He also had a habit of speaking without thinking, which always got him into a lot of trouble.

"Just… things," he said after a moment. "Things I want to do with you. It… it didn't really work out as I'd hoped, though."

Hermione was silent for a moment, and then, her tone taking on an air of cheerfulness, said, "You know, Ron, you really are quite the romantic. If you'd shown this side of yourself while at Hogwarts, we might have had many more years together."

Ron turned back to her, smiling.

"I love you," she said. "And I look forward to the moment we decide it's the right time to make big decisions. Because I want to make them all with you."

Ron's heart skipped a beat. Maybe two. Maybe even three. All he knew was her words awoke something inside of him. What was she trying to say?

"You're ready for those big decisions now, aren't you?" he said.

She smiled. "Some of them, yes."

He grinned. "Then so am I."

This chapter is here to set up the next phase (next 6 or so chapters), so I know it's a little uneventful, but hopefully makes sense in the coming chapters :)

Thank you all for your lovely reviews so far! It really makes my day checking my emails and seeing them!