Hermione flopped back on her bed and let out a heavy sigh. The room was warm with the early Summer night that rolled in through the open window, and she lay on top of her covers in her pajama top and shorts, enjoying the gentle breeze on her skin. Outwardly, she appeared calm. Inwardly, she was in turmoil, deep in thought.

One month ago, on the evening after Fred's funeral, she and Ron had at last made some sort of acknowledgement of their relationship. Her mind drifted back to that night, when he had finally admitted his feelings for her, and she'd shared hers too. Her fingers drifted to her lips, as though she could still feel the imprint of his there through the fading memory. It had felt right, to confess these things when the pain and grief was finally beginning to subside enough from the Burrow's atmosphere. When they were beginning to consider that there actually was a future, and to wonder what it might look like.

Sh shook her head. A whole a month ago. Initially Hermione had been thrilled when, after that night, Ron had suddenly started to interact with his family again. Her heart swelled as she watched him hug his mum more, start conversations at meal times, help with the dishes, take George out for long periods of flying during the days, even tease Harry as he effortlessly destroyed him when they played Wizard Chess. But nothing further had happened between them. They still took their evening walks, but there had been no more kisses, no touching past holding hands, no further mention of where this was leading.

What was hard for Hermione was the not knowing. At times, it seemed as though they were together, and always had been. Whenever they were in the same room, they subconsciously gravitated to one another. But at other times, it seemed almost as though he was trying to see how close he could get without touching her at all. It was driving Hermione mad. She was sure he must be able to feel the heat of her attraction to him radiating off her through the minute slivers of air he left between them, when he stood behind her as she washed up or sprawled next to her on the sofa as she read. But he never made any movement to close that gap. And to top it all off, she was losing sleep over all of this. Her pent-up frustration made it almost impossible to drop off at night, and she lay in her bed wondering if he was thinking of her too, and what he might be doing while he did ...

Hermione sat up, resolve flooding through her. They'd waited long enough, she felt. Harry and Ginny had spent almost every night together since the war, and here she was, pining away. It didn't seem fair. She'd given up an awful lot for the cause, too. And yes, she'd promised to wait until he was ready. But in her opinion, it was about time that she got something that she wanted, for once. She got up from the bed, and opened her bedroom door as quietly as she could. She'd been given Percy's old room, which was thankfully only one floor below Ron's. She snuck up the stairs, avoiding the squeaky step that Harry had not-so-subtley pointed out to her the day before, and suddenly she was in front of Ron's door.

Her heart in her mouth, she raised her fist and knocked gently. Just as she was berating herself for being so anxious, the door flew open, sending her stumbling backwards in surprise. Large, freckled hands reached out, wrapped around her upper arms and pulled her away from the stairs, just as she teetered on the edge. She found herself swept through the doorway and pressed up against something hard and warm. She blinked, and realised it was Ron's chest that she'd hurtled into. When had it become so muscular?

Shaking her head in an attempt to focus, she looked up and her gaze clashed with his. They stared at each other for a long while, before Ron finally cleared his throat quietly and gently released her. She took a steadying breath as he stepped back, still buzzing from their first bodily contact in weeks. She opened her mouth to apologise, but he urgently held one finger up to his lips, motioning her into silence. He turned from her and started to search for something in the pile of clothes next to his bed. While he was distracted, she took the opportunity to observe him. Her eyes roamed over his long red hair, damp from a recent shower and standing up in rebellious tufts. The skin on his arms and shoulders was still slightly pink from what must have been blisteringly hot water, making his many freckles stand out even more than they usually did. His torso was clad in a white vest top that stretched over his back. He was only wearing a pair of black boxers below the waist, and she had to force herself to look away from the way the material clung to his pert backside, cursing the light flush she felt rising in her cheeks.

She looked away not a moment to soon. Ron spun back around, a look of triumph on his face, holding his wand aloft. A sharp flick of his wrist closed the door behind her, locking it with a quiet 'click'. Another flick, and the air in the room shimmered briefly, indicating a silencing charm had been cast. She watched it disapate, impressed by the strength of the spell.

'Hermione?' Her eyes returned to his, reading the confusion and apprehension in his clear blues. 'Everything alright?'

'Yes, fine. I just wanted ...' Doubt overwhelmed her, closing her throat. She shouldn't be up here. This was far too much to be asking of him so soon after ... after everything he had been through. She was being selfish, she needed to give him his time to heal. He would come to her when he was ready, of course he would, why couldn't she just be patient -

'You're thinking.'

'What?' His voice was such an unexpected interruption to her spiralling thoughts that it seemed to completely derail her whole consciousness. She stared at him dumbly, finally registering that he was carefully stepping closer to her again.

'Ever since we were kids, you get this faraway look whenever you're thinking too deeply about something,' he murmered, his voice low and rumbling. He now stood directly in front of her, again leaving that tiny margin of space between them. She watched his eyes trace over her face and felt his warm, minty breath on her cheeks as he continued, 'You know, I always watched for that expression. It meant I could stare at you without worrying you'd catch me at it.'

'You used to ...' Her voice trailed off as his eyes locked with hers again.

'Yeah,' he breathed, with a slightly sheepish smile. 'Sorry if that's a bit weird.'

'Not at all,' she squeaked, and his grin widened. She ploughed on, 'S-sometimes I watch you and Harry playing chess. You always look so intense, when you focus like that.'

'Really?' She nodded, and he chuckled quietly. 'Well, while we're confessing, sometimes I liked to imagine that I was the only one who could break your concentration when you were elsewhere, thinking. I imagined that I would just brush a curl away from your face and you'd be back, just like that ...' He slowly raised a slightly trembling hand, and twined a loose curl around his fingers, gently tugging it as he tucked it behind her ear. She closed her eyes at the contact and let out a noise that was almost a purr.

Something in Ron seemed to give. She heard him groan, and before she could open her eyes, his lips had crashed into hers. His long, strong arms were flung around her, lifting her from her feet as he crushed her to him. She wrapped her own arms around his neck to steady herself, and deepened the kiss. His tongue swept against her lips, and she tentatively opened her mouth, allowing him to gently probe her teeth. Her sudden hesitance seemed to surprise him, and he immediately pulled back, lowering her to the floor.

'Merlin, Hermione, I'm so sorry,' he gasped, his hands returning to her upper arms as he ducked his head to bring his face level with hers, his eyes desperately searching her expression. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pounce on you like that. Fuck, I'm such a twat. I should never -'

'Ron,' she breathed, her face splitting into a smile as she raised shaking hands to cup his face. 'It's OK. I wanted you to kiss me.'

'You- you did?'

'Yes!' She giggled as he continued to look worried. Her fingers smoothed the creases in his brow and down his stubbled face. 'It's why I came up here. Well, more accurately, what I really wanted was to find out where things stand between us now. But I know that it's probably too soon to be talking about things like that, and I don't want to pressure you into anything, so I'm just going to -' She was cut off as he laughed and caught her in his arms again, and suddenly he was swinging her round in a circle.

'Pressure me into anything? Gods, Hermione, when are we going to stop trying to predict what each other might want?' He was still laughing as he sat down heavily on the edge of his bed, pulling her down with him so that she sat straddled across his lap. She chuckled at his words and the laughter that she had been hearing more frequently but still rarely these days, running her fingers through his ginger mop as she did so. He let his eyes droop closed, clearly enjoying the feeling of her playing with his hair.

'I guess that has gotten us into difficult situations before, hasn't it?' she mused, watching his expression carefully. She'd only ever seen this look when he ate certain foods, like Honeydukes chocolates or his mum's toffee pudding, and she was amazed that the slightest touch of her hands appeared to be making him feel a similar state of bliss.

'I'd say that's a vast understatement,' he sighed, one eye peeking open slightly to glitter at her cheekily. She rolled her eyes and tugged his hair, and felt a hot flush race through her body when the noise he let out in response had a less than innocent edge to it. He opened his eyes, meeting her gaze again. Then suddenly he slid his hands under her bum, making her squeal as he lifted her effortlessly. He shuffled backwards on the bed until his back rested against the headboard, then swung his legs up onto the mattress before lowering Hermione back down into his lap. She felt breathless, surprised by his strength, and again a little apprehensive at being in such a vulnerable position. This was uncharted territory for her. Oh sure, she'd been in Ron's room, even sat on Ron's bed, more times in the last 5 years than she could count, but this felt very different

'Hey,' he said softly, tilting her chin with his fingers so that she re-focused on him. 'Is this OK?'

'Yes,' she replied slowly. 'I've just ... I've only ever kissed one other person, so this is all very ... new. Don't get me wrong -' She added hastily, as the worry returned to his face. 'I want to ... to do more with you. SO much more. I just might be a little slow with things at first. And I meant what I said, you know, about this being too soon for you.' Her voice was speeding up, she was rambling, but she couldn't seem to stop. 'I meant it when I said I would wait, you know, and I don't want you to think that just because I came up here tonight that it's now or never, or -' His big hand was suddenly over her mouth, stifling the tirade.

'Alright, that's enough,' he said softly, but he was smirking. 'Firstly, this is pretty new for me, too. I mean, I've done a few things before, but never with the one I actually wanted to be with. I mean you.' His last sentence was said in an overly dramatic stage whisper, and he winked comically at her. Hermione's heart both leapt and sank. It was exciting to hear that he'd thought about her like that, but disappointing to know that he'd gone further with someone else than she ever had. Just how much more advanced was he than her? Before she could think about how to ask, his hands came to rest on her hips, and suddenly thinking was very difficult. She fought through the fuzz in her brain when he spoke again. 'Secondly, I don't think it would be too soon for ... for us. I mean yeah, it all still fucking hurts, but it's starting to become more manageable each day, if that makes sense? And having you close to me always seems to take the sharp edges off it all anyway.' She blushed, her hands sliding down his chest, playing with his vest. 'So, I think I'm ready for us, if you are. And at any time, if it's getting to be too much for either of us, we can put things on pause again. Deal?'

'Deal,' she agreed, but another question bubbled up. 'Ron?'

'Mmm?'

'Why have you ... It seems like you've been avoiding touching me recently ... Why haven't you ...' Hermione twisted the hem of his vest between her fingers, chewing at her lower lip as she struggled to find what she wanted to say. Ron reached up and, with the pad of a rough thumb, gently tugged her lip from between her teeth. He ran his thumb over her bottom lip in a way that lit up all of her nerve endings.

'I'm sorry,' he murmered, his eyes on her lips. 'Honestly, it's been hell not kissing you every chance I got, but I didn't want you to feel like you had to do something, just because it might make me feel better. And I was really worried that if I started, I might not be able to stop myself. I've wanted more with you, so much more, for so long, but I would hate myself if we didn't take this at a pace you're comfortable with. You know?' She nodded, surprised and touched by his honesty.

'Both of us predicting again,' she sighed, her hands running up his stomach to his chest and coming to rest on his shoulders.

'Sounds about right,' he said, his mouth twisting into his characteristic lopsided smile. She smiled back and settling into his lap, but soon after another question rose. She looked up to find him watching her.

'Go on,' he grinned.

'When you say you've wanted more and for so long, what does that look like?'

'Really?' he grumbled, his grin fading and his ears suddenly scarlet. 'You really want me to say it out loud?' Hermione's chest tightened, uncertainty about what she would find out flipping her stomach, but she set her lips and nodded. He sighed and raised one hand to rub it harshly over his face. 'I guess I kind of asked for this. OK well, I suppose ever since I've known what ... what intimacy is, and about - ah Godric, do I really have to say this? All right - about pleasuring myself, there's always been one recurring factor in getting things ... going. And finishing too, I guess you could say ... ' He peeked at her from under his long fringe, his whole face and neck now pink as well.

'Oh my,' she whispered, heat flooding through her body again at his words.

'You asked,' he grunted, looking away from her.

'I-I was just going to say th-that I, um, also felt that way.' The sentence had spilled from her so quickly that it took her a moment to realise she'd said it. The heat she'd felt earlier drained from her and suddenly she was frozen. How could she say such things?

'Seriously?' She looked back at his face, taking in the disbelief plastered across it. 'You mean you would ... you would touch yourself ... a-and it was me?'

'Well, who else would it be, Ronald?' she sniffed, slightly unnerved by his response.

'Bloody hell,' he breathed. 'That's ... that's really fucking hot.' She blushed and hid her face behind her hair, but he reached through the curls and tilted her chin so that she had to look at him. His expression was now serious, even awed. 'Gods, I want you, Hermione. But I need you to set the pace here, and I will totally understand if you're not ready. But you can't stay sitting where you are right now if you don't want this to go any further tonight. I ... I might struggle with that.' The curved grin reappeared, pulling his mouth up and to the side.

'Ron ...' Hermione's eyes trained onto his lips, and she became transfixed. Without thought, she found herself leaning forwards, wanting to taste him again. As she closed the gap between them, he breathed her name into her mouth, causing her to grip his shirt tightly in her fists and press her torso to his.

This seemed to be the signal he'd been waiting for. His hands gripped her hips tighter as he deepened the kiss, his tongue once again sliding between her lips. This time she was more ready for it. She mirrored his movements, and tried sucking his tongue the way she'd read about in the one trashy book she'd borrowed from Parvati a few years ago. He responded favourably, a strangled moan escaping him. His hands slid under her shirt, resting on her ribcage, and she broke their kiss as her head tilted back, enjoying these new sensations. Her arms wound around his shoulders as his mouth moved to her neck, lips and tongue gliding up and down the soft skin, making her dizzy. Suddenly she felt his teeth nip at the sensitive spot over her pulse, and her hips bucked into him reactively.

'Fffuuuuck.'

Hermione froze, not sure whether that was a good reaction or a bad one, and was about to pull back to ask when he murmered huskily into her hair, 'Do that again.' She tilted her hips, this time a little harder, and he grunted as his head fell back against the headboard. She looked into his eyes and noticed with surprise that his pupils were now very dilated. She ground against him once more, and this time it seemed to be too much. Ron growled through clenched teeth, tightened his arm around her waist and pitched forwards, guiding her down to the bed with his forearm behind her. She gasped as she hit the mattress, then again as he pressed his crotch against her. The angle he was at meant that she could feel, in very great detail, his arousal rubbing her centre.

'Oh,' she sighed as he repeated the motion. He let out a low chuckle, but it was unlike any other laugh she'd ever heard from him. This one was dark, sensual ... primal. It sent a shiver from the base of her skull, down her back, through her core and along her legs, all the way to her toes, which curled reflexively. He ground against her a third time, and she breathed out a shaky, 'Ron ...'

'Dammit, woman, this really isn't going to last very long if you keep saying my name like that,' he panted. She looked up into his face and his eyes, still darkened with what she realised now was lust, twinkled down at her.

'Oh,' she said, blushing slightly. 'Well then, why don't we -'

'Whoa, whoa!' Ron grabbed Hermione's wrist. She had been reaching for his waistband. 'That won't improve things!'

'S-sorry,' she stammered, feeling the flush creep further up her neck. 'It's just ... I read somewhere that if a man ... completes ... then he can ... go for longer the second time round ...'

'You and your books,' he murmered, his eyes examining hers. Hermione was sure she had felt something throb against her core while she was talking, but she bit her lower lip and waited for him to direct the next move. 'Well ...' he said slowly. 'I suppose it's worth a try?'

Hermione smiled encouragingly up at him and raised herself onto one elbow to kiss him again. He responded passionately, and she used the momentum to turn them over, so that he was lying down and she was kneeling between his thighs. Together they freed Ron from his vest, then his boxers. As she pulled the elastic down, his full erection sprang back, standing tall and proud from the centre of a small patch of red curls.

'Gosh,' she whispered, her natural curiosity taking over. His shaft seemed thicker and longer than the average diagrams she'd seen, and she marvelled at the way the whole thing bobbed slightly as Ron's blood pulsed through it. Her eyes travelled up to the swollen red head at the tip. She raised one slightly shaking finger and, very gently, ran it along the slit at the top of his head, dislodging a pool of clear liquid that ran down his shaft. She pulled her hand back in surprise as Ron hissed, his hips snapping upwards and his fists clutching at the sheets under him. 'Sorry! Did I -'

'No! No, no, it's fine,' Ron grated out, his breathing heavy. 'It's just ... I've imagined this so many times ... and now it's happening ... just a bit overwhelming.'

'I know what you mean,' she said, smiling shyly at him. He met her eyes and smiled back, visibly relaxing back into the mattress. Hermione raised her hand again, and hovered it close to his length. 'OK?' He bit his lower lip, and after a moment he nodded.

She closed her hand around his cock, barely registering the 'holyshitfuckingfuck' that escaped him as she did so. She was suddenly engrossed in understanding this new part of Ron, a part she had never seen before, a part that seemed so powerful and yet, when she handled it, gave her a sense of complete control. She took her time running her fist up and down it, marvelling at the juxtaposition between hard and soft, and listening to his reactions as she sped up her pace. It seemed she hadn't been at it long before he grunted, 'Oh fuck, gonna - Herm ... io ... neeeee ...' He reached down and grabbed her fist, pumping himself hard with her fingers in time with his last word. He angled the head of his cock towards himself, so that as he came it mostly hit his chest and torso, and only her hand was coated.

She watched his face intently as he released, then as he closed his eyes and enjoyed his after-orgasm bliss. He finally removed his hand and she let his softening shaft fall against his stomach. Her core had become electrified as she'd watched him cum, but while he recovered she busied herself by studying his fluid. She lifted her hand and rubbed the sticky substance between her fingers, examining how it was a little stringy, and creamy-looking. There had seemed to be an awful lot of it as well, more than she had expected ...

'Hermione.' She looked up and caught Ron's expression - somewhere between embarrassment and intrigue.

'Sorry,' she grinned. 'Couldn't resist a chance for research.' He rolled his eyes at her, but she saw him smirk as he rolled away from her to grab his wand from the floor. He cast two very effective cleaning charms, and then dropped his wand again to take her hand. She looked into his eyes nervously. 'Was that ... OK?'

'Bloody fucking hell, Hermione,' he laughed, shaking his head at her. She waited, still not convinced. 'I'm surprised we're not still waiting for me to stop! That was incredible!'

'Really? I've never done anything like that before, so -'

'It was absolutely perfect. But if you really want, I can help you practice,' he chuckled, winking at her saucily. This time she laughed along, and raised her hand to thump his chest playfully. Deftly, he caught it mid-air, and used it to sweep her underneath him again. He captured her lips in a deep kiss, and soon they were both panting again, Ron's long freckled fingers tracing patterns along her abdomen under her shirt, Hermione's small slender hands wound into the ginger mop that she loved so much. Ron kissed a path from her lips, across her jaw and down her neck, making her release a mewling sound that she didn't know she was capable of.

'Want to do the same for you,' he suddenly murmered against the soft skin of her throat.

'W-what?' she squeaked. He raised his head, his eyes roaming her face, taking in her slightly alarmed expression.

'I want to do for you what you just did for me,' he repeated, and the firm, confident tone in his voice filled her with both lust and dread.

'Have ... have you ever, um ...'

'No,' he stated, locking eyes with her. 'I know it seemed like L- like we were all over each other, but we only ever got as far as this.' Ron brushed a rough thumb against the underside of Hermione's breast, and her eyes rolled back slightly as the current of electricity shot through her again. When her eyes found Ron's face, his expression was so serious that her breath caught in her throat. 'I want to do this, Hermione. I want to make you feel as good as you just made me feel, and to know that I'm the only one who's ever done that for you. I promise, if you don't like it or it makes you uncomfortable then we stop immediately. But I'd like to try. You wouldn't believe how long I've wanted to be able to touch you ...' His voice trailed off, and he stilled his hands as he waited for her decision.

Hermione's logical brain kicked in. When she thought about it, any time over the past four years that she had pleasured herself, wasn't it always Ron's fingers that she'd imagined reaching deeper inside her than she could ever hope to? And if he'd never done this before, then he wouldn't know what to expect either, so he couldn't be disappointed by her body or her reactions, right? And overall, this was Ron. If she was going to trust anyone with this, surely it had to be him ...

'You're thinking again,' he whispered softly, brushing a stray curl away from her face. 'If this is all too much too soon, Hermione, then we stop right now and - '

'No!' she cried, louder than she'd intended, making him jump slightly. 'I mean ... no, I don't want to stop. I ... I want you to t-touch me, Ron. I trust you.' His face split into a wide grin and he swooped down to press his lips firmly to hers, before pulling back and cupping her face in his hand.

'I mean it,' he said urgently. 'You just have to say, even one word, and we stop straight away. OK?'

'OK,' she smiled, her heart swelling at the evident concern on his face. He leaned in again, but the kiss was slower, deeper this time. His hands began tracing her torso again, slowly making their way down her hips and to the waistband of her shorts. He sat up and hooked his fingers inside the shorts, then paused, looking down at her. She froze, captured by the look of desire in his eyes.

'I need you to say yes or no, Hermione,' he whispered hoarsely. She shuddered at his tone, and breathed out, 'Yes.' Ron's fingers tightened, and he slowly pulled the shorts down her legs and off her feet, dropping them to join his clothes on the floor. He laid down next to her again, and Hermione could feel the prominent evidence of his arousal pressing against her thigh. It wasn't an unpleasant sensation. Ron's fingers wrapped around her inner thigh, and her mind seemed to go blank. All of the heat in her body raced to the spot where his fingers were searing her skin, making her shiver.

'Alright?' he mumbled into her curls. She nodded, and gulped as his fingers began skimming higher up her sensitive flesh. He reached her core, and she felt his breathing increase as one long finger explored her outer lips. The finger sank between her folds, and Ron grunted, 'Fuck ... so wet ... ' into her ear. Hermione trembled as he continued to stroke up and down her slit, and suddenly he hit her just right. Her hips bucked upwards, hard, and her hand shot out and grasped his forearm for support. In all the times she had done that to herself it had never, ever, felt that ... good.

'Tell me to stop,' he groaned, and she could feel the tension in his arm as he fought his own impulses and kept as still as possible. She turned her head to look at him, and saw again that mix of adoration and lust.

'Keep going,' she whispered, and felt his body relax against her. His hand moved again, once more stroking the length of her folds, and brushing against her clit sporadically. Hermione chewed at her lip, lost in the moment, when suddenly he was gone from beside her. 'Wha-'

'Need to see what I'm doing,' he huffed as he scrambled to kneel at the end of the bed. She bit back a laugh. Ronald Weasley, ever the visual learner. She instinctively pulled her knees up, causing her thighs to part wider, and exposing her core to him. His eyes dropped to her centre, and he growled deep in his chest, forcing his eyes back to hers. She gasped. He looked ... hungry ...

He reached one slightly shaking hand forward and resumed his touching, his eyes following his movements. He brushed her clit again, and this time when she reacted he kept his hand still, muttering to himself, 'There it is ...' Hermione's eyes flickered closed as Ron's fingers continued to dance across her, her hips rolling involuntarily as his touch ignited a white-hot fire in her belly. The fire was spreading throughout her abdomen when the sensation at her core changed, and she yelped and looked down to find that he was now lying on his front, his eyes fixed on her, his tongue returning to his mouth. Oh Merlin, he had licked her. Years of fantasies flooded her mind, nights spent alone in her dormitory bed, with just her fingers and a vibrating wand for company, wondering what this exact sensation would feel like. The reality far surpassed anything she had been able to conjour. And she wanted more.

'Gods, you taste so good. Hermione, if we go any further I don't know if I'll be able to stop myself,' he rasped, a slight desperation to his voice. His hot breath tickled against her exposed folds, and she bit her lower lip hard as she shook her head, signifying that she wouldn't stop him. He groaned, his grip on her thighs tightened, and he dipped his head again. She whined when his tongue flattened out against her, and he began to lap at her slowly, spending more time on the areas that caused her to twitch. Suddenly, his lips sealed around her clit, and he sucked. Her hips leapt off the bed.

'Bloody hell, woman,' he grunted, and threw an arm over her waist to hold her down to the bed. His mouth melded to her again and his efforts doubled. Hermione's hands flew to his head, tangling in his hair and tugging gently. He moaned against her, and the vibration caused her to arch her back. The fire inside her was spreading further up her torso, and she was vaguely wondering where it was going to stop when he slid a finger into her. She came hard, the completion of her fantasy sending her body into overdrive. She clutched at his head as she clenched around him, twitching as her intense orgasm subsided.

Ron had frozen when she had started to cum, which she was grateful for as she didn't know how much more she could have taken. Her body shook as she released him from her grasp, and he slumped to the mattress between her legs, resting his head on her stomach. She waited until her breath returned to normal, then looked down and ran a hand through his tousled ginger mane. He turned his head to meet her eyes, his own gaze was glazed over and he looked content, his ears and cheeks flushed.

'OK?' he asked, his voice low and gruff. She nodded, and smiled as he closed his eyes and almost purred as she played with his hair.

'That was ... it was amazing, Ron. Better than I ever thought it could be. Thank you. But ... '

His head snapped up and he searched her face. 'But?'

'I'm sorry, I don't think I have the energy to do anything else tonight.'

'Oh.' His cheeks turned pinker, and he suddenly avoided her eyes. 'Yeah, don't worry about that. I, uh, may have gotten a little ... carried away?' He rolled to one side and sheepishly pointed at a large wet spot on the duvet below him. Hermione covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her embarrassed giggle. 'Oi, it's your fault you know!' Ron protested, poking his fingers into her ribs and making her squirm. 'You just had to go and look so bloody sexy, I couldn't stop myself.'

'I'm sorry,' she said, fighting to keep her face straight. He shook his head, but he was chuckling as he reached for his wand once more and cast cleaning spells over them both and the bed. Then he crawled up beside her, dragging his duvet over them and settling himself onto the mattress. She turned onto her side, and he slid up against her back, his long legs tucking neatly under hers, one arm wrapping around her hips and pulling her close against him. They lay in silence for a while, enjoying the warmth of the contact. After a while, Hermione yawned, and started to sit up. Ron's arm tightened around her.

'Where ya goin'?' he mumbled sleepily.

'Back to my room. If your mum finds me in here ... '

'Don't care,' he sighed, pulling her back down and nuzzling into her hair. 'Not letting you go, now you're finally mine.' Suddenly it was his turn to sit up, and he gently turned her face to look at him. 'You are mine now, right?'

'Yes, Ron,' she whispered, blinking back tears. 'I'm yours.' He kissed her deeply, then lay down and cuddled into her again. She listened as his breathing deepened as he fell asleep, and when he started snoring lightly she gently disentangled herself from his arms and pulled on her pajamas. She wouldn't have their first night as a couple ruined in the morning by an intrusion by either Mrs Weasley or Harry. She looked down at him, sleeping peacefully, and her heart felt full.

'I love you, Ronald,' she whispered, gently kissing his brow before quietly slipping out of his room.