Third Times the Charm

by Breanie

Part 3 of the Kismet Trilogy: Voldemort is dead. And while Harry and his friends turn their attention to the future and their new careers, not everyone is willing to move on. It all comes down to this. The cemetery in Godric's Hollow. Three elusive Death Eaters. One Resurrection Stone. One person from the past. All leading to a choice that just may destroy Harry.

34. The One With Romione's Epilogue Part One

Author's Note:

Fanfiction is still not fixed! But I am still posting weekly both there and on Ao3.

Reviews and Comments: To Zarathos Morgenstern: Yes, everything is working out well for everyone. Thank you! I don't have a beta anymore unfortunately as Dusk is super busy! But I'll tell her you still think she's great lol. Thank you! To minerdude: Thank you! Yes, Sadie shares a birthday with you and their wedding apparently lol. Thank you! To Quill will 1981: Thank you! Theo and Bas finally have their family and it is much deserved. I hope you find time to read the Luna epilogue soon as well! Thank you! To scrappy8: Yes, Bas is all right! Thank you very much! To Sets: It was an intense chapter. Armani cuddling with Theo was what made him worry the most. We will catch up with Charlie and Aydin, yes. Soraya being their surrogate is so her in my opinion. Thank you very much! To Cassiopeia Anastasia Black: Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the long chapters and yes, sometimes things happen in life as much as we'd all love it to just be roses. Thank you very much! To MrsHJSnape: Thank you! That was just a typo and I fixed it! Thank you! To Elora Donovan: Yes, fanfiction has been awful lately and I really hope they get things sorted out soon. Thanks for loving Luna and Rolf meeting and yes, we'll see them again a time or two. There is definitely a baby boom after the war! Thank you very much!

To MissKaylee: Thank you! Yes, something bad was bound to happen but Bas is okay! Theo definitely had some more nightmares after everything, but Bas helped him get through it. They finally got their family. I love that you named some Sims after Theo and Bas! Thank you so much! To akshutalankar: Theo was definitely not staying home when he found Harry and Ron were going to rescue his man. Harry teasing Theo was definitely a long time coming. Thank you very much! To Guest: Nope, Lily looks just like Ginny. Thank you! To alix33: Thank you! To Read and Fly: Thank you for saying I am closing everyone's stories so beautifully, I am trying my best. Luna and Rolf are very cute, I'm so glad you enjoyed them. I love Theo and Bas so I'm happy to know their epilogue was so good. Thank you very much! To Finnspa23: I love Harry shocking Rossi with his power lol. Thank you! To Guest: Thank you! Having Harry and Ron save the day was fun. Thanks for rereading and ha, part two will be interesting too, promise. Thank you! To saucyswimmer: Thank you for saying "this chapter was just a rollercoaster of beautiful emotions from comedy (Harry's blowjob joke) to agony (the rescue) to overflowing joy." Thank you so much! I did change Albus' middle name to Fleamont, but we'll see more on his name choice in the Hinny epilogue part two. Thank you! To GeorgeR: Thank you very much for saying this story is "absolutely captivating." I officially wrote the ending today. I still have a few scenes to finish up, but the ending is officially written. Thank you!

To darkhk: Thanks for loving my Theo! Thank you! To EnigmaticEmperor: Yes, Julian was Ciara's friend. Theo's enthusiasm during Bas' proposal was all I could picture lol. Yes, we will see Drastoria in chapter 39. Thanks for loving Harry and Ron teasing Theo. I love having Misha's contacts helping Harry as it kind of brings it all full circle. Harry just kicking ass was what I wanted. Sorry, Blaise and Soraya are not the pairing. Theo is godfather to both Albus and Scorpius. Thank you so much! To Sloopyqueen4: Thank you very much for sticking around and I hope you enjoy where they go! Thank you! To Chelsea Greenwell: Thank you! It's fun making them their own short story and yes, Ron and Hermione's epilogue is next! Thank you! To bandhoez9194: You're welcome for that wakeup lol. Sorry to have left you in a mess of emotions, but yes, Theo and Bas finally got married! Thanks for loving them and their three babies! We'll see more of them! Thank you! To marauders_mowopapr: Thank you! Harry is definitely Harry fucking Potter who can break wards and eviscerate dementors without breaking a sweat lol. Thanks for loving the Theobas epilogue!

To Tmr_Potterhead250: A LOT OF GLITCHES on FF lol, but yes, I am aware. According to ff, no one has read Third Times the Charm since chapter 28 LOL. Thank you! I'm so glad you loved Theo and Bas from the beginning (I have too). First love can sometimes be the only love, but more often that not, it's not what you need. Theo found that in Auror Arsehole and he treasures it. I do think Bas compliments Theo perfectly, thank you. Having Theo hold James was twofold, one it introduces us to baby James and two, it did give them that segue into their own discussion on family. "Sometimes being in a long term relationship and surrounded by people who are married or having babies can make you feel forced into thinking about something you're not ready for." I definitely agree with this and that's why we see them communicating and not letting Sadira's constant asking about them getting married become a thing. Theo's job is exactly what he needs and he'll be so great at it. I loved having Julian come and work for him! It was a nice way to bring it full circle, I thought. I couldn't imagine Theo not answering before Bas fully asked him lol. Showing how comfortable the boys are with each other was important and I thought it needed it not only for Theo, but for Harry and Ron too. Had to have some little scare lol. Glad you loved the search in the tunnels, and absolutely had to show BAMF Harry Potter. I loved having Albus be conceived at Theo and Bas' wedding lol. Yes, Soraya wanted to be their surrogate. Thank you very much for loving the Kane-Notts! Thank you!

To MotherofKatie: Sorry you forgot about the Luna chapter, but yay because you had two to read lol! Thanks for loving Theo and Bas' story. Soraya is definitely the best. Having your kids made with love from others is definitely the best. Those kids are definitely going to be grow up knowing "about all life has to offer." Thank you so much for saying these epilogues are so fulfilling. Thank you! To corneliastreet_28: Thank you very much! To AQuickRead91: Ha, Bas would definitely have a lot of his own adventures to fill a book lol. Thank you! To Emltct (Emmathomas1992): Yes, Theo and Bas babies! They definitely deserve a happy ending. Thank you for loving Theo as an uncle and a godfather times two. Thank you! To GoodNameChoice: Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the epilogues and yes, Albus Fleamont, not Severus. Thank you! To X_crafter: Thank you very much! Yes, I wish we could Kudos each individual chapter for sure! Thank you! To MABK_Potter_Fan: These epilogues are definitely so full of feelings. Thank you! Having major anxiety over Bas being missing was definitely my intention, poor Theo, and only a month before the wedding! But yes, they got their happily ever after. Thank you very much!

To some_random_fan: Thank you! I'm happy to know my Theobas delivered! I do plan on writing a Draco centric chapter (39) and I hope people like it. Thank you very much for calling this a masterpiece. You're too kind! Thank you! To katelyn453: Yes! Theo and Bas finally get married and have three babies! Thank you! To kyciona: I'm glad you've been waiting for Harry to ask Theo to blow him LOL. It was a joke I couldn't resist bringing up again. Harry offering to go search for Bas, of course Theo didn't have to ask! It's what makes them so great. Thanks for loving Theo and Bas as much as I do! To Mrs_Norway: Thank you very much! I'm trying not to do a general and they lived happily ever after, though there is still a lot of that too. Thank you so much for saying "this was everything: Perfect happiness, scary, and everything in between." Thank you! To skyreader_183: Thank you so much! I love showing Harry as powerful and Rossi just blown away by it. Thank you very much!

My posting schedule: Weekly.

As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!

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CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR:
Kismet Trilogy Epilogues:
The One With Romione's Epilogue,
Part One

January 2002…

Ron finished work for the day and headed home to the flat he shared with Hermione above Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. He and Hermione had lived here for almost three years and he loved the little place. It was small, but it worked for them. He changed out of his Auror robes into bright orange Chudley Cannons sweats and headed into the kitchen to get started on dinner.

He and Hermione had worked themselves into a habit of whomever arrived home first was responsible for dinner. Ron didn't mind, he found that he rather enjoyed cooking. He decided tonight was a pasta kind of night and hummed to himself as he worked. Moving back in together had taken them a while and when Ron first moved into the flat, Hermione spent the first six months still living with her parents despite spending most nights at his flat. When they decided to take the step, they knew this time they were truly ready and Ron was grateful they'd done that. To him it made it more special that they were finally living together and only proved how much they belonged together. It was why these little domesticities they performed for each other always made him smile — she was his home.

He'd just gotten the sauce simmering when there was a knock on his front door. Before he could even move, the door flew open.

"Oi, Ronnikins!" Fred exclaimed as the door closed behind him.

Ron crossed his arms in front of his chest and lifted an eyebrow. "You know, the point of knocking is to wait for the person on the other side to answer."

"Huh? I always considered it to be an announcement that I'm about to grace you with my incredible presence," Fred replied with a wide grin. He took in the bright orange sweats with the black writing down the leg and wrinkled his nose. "Orange is not your colour, mate."

"Piss off," Ron said.

Fred hopped up onto the counter where Ron was working instead. He dipped the spoon into the sauce for a taste. "Nice."

"Can I help you with something? Or did you just come by to annoy me?"

"Can't a brother just pop in for a visit when he wants to?"

"Not you."

Fred laughed. "All right, fair point. I need a favour."

Ron lifted an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Can you and Hermione please take Felicity and Finley tonight? Please, please, please, please!" Fred begged.

"Why? Everything all right with Fiadh?" Ron asked.

Fred nodded. "Yeah, but we just need some alone time. The new baby is coming soon and we just really need a night to ourselves to get some last minute baby prep done. Please, Ron! I'm begging you! Mum can't do it because she's working on a huge order with Hannah. Bill and Fleur have their hands full with Vic and Fleur's been pretty nauseous throughout her whole pregnancy. George has to run the shop and Angelina's working late. Percy and Audrey are taking Molly Anna to her parents for a family dinner. Ginny has a match which Harry is attending and bringing Teddy. Donal and Siobhan are busy with something happening in Tara and Fiadh says asking her other siblings is a waste of time as they think our twins are too rambunctious. Help!"

Ron chuckled. "Girls of yours, a little rambunctious? I'm shocked."

"Your sarcasm isn't appreciated," Fred said. "Come on, Ron! Fiadh's due in a few weeks and we have a few things to do for the new baby and we just need some time to ourselves. Please? Just for one night? I know you're off tomorrow. We'll pick them up after lunch. Promise."

Ron sighed and turned to stir the sauce in the pan. "Fine. One night."

Fred hopped off of the counter and grabbed Ron's shoulders, grabbing him in a tight hug. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"Yeah, yeah," Ron said. "What time are you bringing them by?"

"An hour?" Fred asked.

Ron nodded. "That should be fine. I'll get the spare room ready."

"Ron, you're a lifesaver, honest!" Fred exclaimed.

"Well, I am their favourite uncle. It only seems fair."

Fred clasped Ron on the shoulder. "You keep thinking that, mate."

"Oi! I am!" Ron bellowed.

Fred winked and headed for the door. "Absolutely. Until Harry's in the room."

The door closed behind Fred and Ron scowled. That was kind of true, but he didn't need to think about that. After all, if Harry wasn't around, he was definitely the favourite uncle. There was just something about his best mate that babies and kids loved. To be fair, he understood it. He checked the sauce again and then headed into the spare room to make sure there were clean sheets on the bed. He'd just stepped back into the kitchen to check the sauce when Hermione came in, her bag slung over her shoulder.

Ron walked over and took the bag from her, leaning down to kiss her. "Hey."

"Hey," she said, moving into his arms and resting her cheek against his bare chest. "Mmm, you smell good."

"I showered," he said.

Hermione chuckled. "Well, I'm sure that helps. What are you making?"

"Spaghetti and meatballs," Ron said. "I wanted something easy and comforting. Um, by the way, we're taking Felicity and Finley overnight."

"Oh? When?"

"Erm, in about forty minutes?"

Hermione's eyes widened. "What?"

"I know," Ron said, his hands running up her back. "Fred just left like twenty minutes ago, begging. No one else is available and he and Fiadh have things to do in preparation for the new baby and blah blah blah, he was desperate. Are you upset?"

"No, of course not," Hermione said. "I love those girls. It just… wasn't what I was expecting for the evening."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, me neither. I was thinking you'd come home, I'd get you naked, and we'd maybe shag right here in the kitchen."

Hermione chuckled and kissed his cheek. "Definitely not happening now. I'm going to go change. Did you get the bed made up for the girls?"

"Yes, all taken care of," Ron told her. "Did you get a hold of the real estate agent?"

"Yes," Hermione said, urging him to follow her as she changed.

Ron stood in the doorway to watch her and when she unzipped her skirt, he licked his lips.

"No," Hermione said, her lips twitching when she caught her boyfriend's eye. "You just told me that Fred's bringing the girls over. We don't have time for that."

"We could," Ron said, his long legs reaching her in seconds as he pushed his knee between her legs. "I'll be quick."

Hermione pressed her palm against his bare chest. "I'm sure you could be."

She shrieked when he knocked her legs out from her under and she fell back onto their bed. Ron's wide grin was all she saw before he lowered his head to kiss her knickers.

"Ron…" she breathed.

"I'll be quick," he promised, moving her knickers over so that he could lick her properly.

Hermione squirmed against him, pleasure shooting through her. "Ohh… yes…"

Ron dragged his tongue into her, sliding a bit further down the bed to get a better angle and Hermione's legs went over his shoulders to hold him place. He had no intention of moving. He worked her over with expertise, knowing exactly what his witch liked and by the time she was crying out his name, he was pulling his own sweats down and sinking into her.

Hermione's nails dug into his back when he did and they both groaned. Ron came moments later, groaning loudly as he did before he collapsed on top of her. Hermione's fingers brushed his damp hair as she let out a contented sigh.

"Worth it," Ron said, kissing her chin.

Hermione chuckled. "I certainly don't have any complaints."

Ron kissed her brow before he sat up. "You might be able to steal a quick shower before Fred shows up. Then when the girls go to bed, maybe we can talk about round two?"

Hermione, still dressed from the waist up, moved to unbutton her blouse. "We'll see."

Ron kissed her cheek again and tugged up his sweats. "That means yes."

Hermione laughed as Ron left her in their bedroom and headed out to the kitchen to check on his low simmering sauce. Fifteen minutes later, Hermione was dressed in dark grey tights and one of Ron's old Gryffindor jumpers that hung down to her knees. She'd pinned her curls up into a messy bun and was rolling thick woollen socks over her feet just as there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Ron called out half a second before the door burst open and in ran the two bundles of energy that were Finley and Felicity Weasley.

At three and half years old, they were definitely rambunctious.

"UNCLE RON!"

Ron put the spoon down and turned in time for the two adorable whirlwinds to slam their little bodies into his legs.

"Hi, Fe, hi Fin."

Felicity's brown hair was more of a Weasley red in the light, but looked darker in the shadows. Her big hazel eyes were full of happiness when she hugged Hermione. Finley in comparison had a brown hair, that only looked red in the sun and her mother's sharp green eyes. They both had their mother's triangular face and while their ears weren't quite pointed, they did look more fae-like then witch.

"Auntie Mine!" Felicity screamed, running to Hermione when she caught sight of her.

Ron thought that was actually the cutest thing ever. None of their nieces could quite spit out the name Hermione so Aydin had started a trend by calling her Auntie Mine and it had stuck. All of the girls called her so and even now that Aydin was old enough to say Hermione, she was still Auntie Mine.

Fred passed Ron two little shoulder bags. "Thanks again for this. Fiadh and I will owe you one."

"It's no problem," Hermione said, picking up Finley when she came to greet her. "Ron and I love having the girls over. Do you and Fiadh have a lot of things left to do before the baby comes?"

Fred sighed. "Seems like we're ready and then we think of ten more things. Plus, Fiadh could just really use the rest. She's starting to get antsy and a bit grumpy. A night off is exactly what she needs. I'm going to try to get the stuff done and let her rest, but we'll see how it goes. Anyway, I'll be by to pick them up just before lunch tomorrow. Thank you both again."

The girls hugged Fred goodbye and promised to be good for Uncle Ron and Auntie Mine before Fred closed the front door behind him.

"All right," Hermione said, crouching down so that she was eye level with the girls. "Why don't you girls go put your bags in your room and then we'll have some dinner? If you eat a good meal, there will be a surprise after."

Finley and Felicity shrieked in glee and took off running.

"Walk, girls!" Hermione said, smiling when they immediately slowed to a brisk walk.

Ron wrapped his arms around Hermione from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Surprise?"

"I'm thinking on it," Hermione said.

He laughed and kissed her cheek. "I love you, Hermione Granger."

"I love you, too."

When the girls came back, they settled them at the table for spaghetti and meatballs, smiling as they talked and laughed all through dinner. They did eat very well, so Hermione told Ron to leave the cleanup for later before she had him help her charm the whole living room to look like a princess castle. She transformed their clothes into little ballgowns and then her and Ron took turns reading a story aloud and using their wands to do magic for reenactments as the girls oohed in delight. They asked for their nails painted so Hermione worked on Felicity's, who wanted bright pink, and Ron did Finley's who wanted a deep red, despite Ron trying to convince one of them to do orange instead. Hermione wasn't even surprised to see that Ron had done a better job painting their nails than her. The man was a constant surprise.

They finished off the night with a Muggle animated film (Beauty and the Beast) and gave the girls popcorn. They fell asleep on the sofa halfway through the movie and Ron and Hermione each picked them up and carried them to bed, tucking them in. Hermione closed the door, leaving it open just a crack before she wrapped her arms around Ron.

"I know we tease Fred about his girls behind a little rambunctious, but they're adorable."

"They really are," Ron agreed. "And they're good kids."

"Yes," Hermione said, kissing his cheek. "You tackle the living room and I've got the kitchen?"

"Deal."

Fifteen minutes later, they were curled up on the sofa as Hermione filled Ron in on what the real estate agent had said.

"I don't know," Ron said. "I just haven't really loved anything yet."

"Me neither," Hermione agreed. "When we find it, we'll know."

Ron knew that she was right, but he was looking forward to them finding a house together and taking a new step in their future. Once they found the house, he was going to work on how to propose. It was time and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Hermione Jean Granger as more than just his girlfriend. He wanted her to be his wife.

But first, they had a few more things to deal with and finding a house was one of them.

~ KE: Romione I ~

It wasn't until May that they finally found a place they both loved. It was well over a century old and in Cambridge. They both loved the idea of being close to the city, but not wanting to live directly in it like they had in their Diagon Alley flat. The house was built in the style of Queen Anne with red brick and white trim, windows and doors outlined in thick and intricate white columns and a black and white diamond path leading to the door. It was a terraced house, but they were on the end and to their surprise, they'd found it in a magical neighbourhood in Chesterton.

The house was two levels with three bedrooms and two bathrooms and it was only a little more than they were looking to pay. It needed a bit of work which was why the price was a bit lower. Ron fell in love with it at first sight from the back garden to the living room with the side study.

"It's a bit more than we were looking at," Hermione said, biting her bottom lip.

"I know," Ron said. "But we'll talk to the bank and we'll work it out. Let's put on offer down."

Hermione nodded, excitement in her eyes. "All right, let's do it."

It turned out that they didn't need to talk to the bank. Hermione's parents insisted on helping them with the house and refused to take no for an answer.

"You're our only child, Hermione," Jean insisted. "It's our job to help with big milestones like this."

"We'll pay you back," Ron told them.

Greg waved him off. "Weekly dinners will suffice just fine."

Two weeks later, they were told the house was theirs if they wanted it. Ron was thrilled and a week later, they had signed papers and made plans to get the keys by the end of the month. It meant a bit more budgeting, but they knew that this was the home they wanted to make theirs.

With both of them working at the Ministry of Magic, they made decent money. Ron did well as an Auror and Hermione's new department had really come to appreciate her; she'd even been given a raise this year. He loved going to work every day as an Auror and he loved living in the little flat above his brothers' joke shop, but he couldn't wait to make a real home with the woman he loved in their house.

Living above Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes wasn't a bad place to live, but from the constant bustle of the city around them and the constant explosions and loud noises from his brothers' experiments below, they needed a change. Cambridge was the perfect place for that as it was a city on a smaller scale and their neighbourhood was full of families, including Eric Baxter.

Ron's Auror partner had a house five homes down from where he and Hermione had purchased theirs. Baxter was an A3 in the Dark Arts Unit of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and had moved into the house in the magical village of Libershire Way which oddly enough translated to Book Division or Book Land Way (as Hermione had informed him in her excitement). Baxter was living with his grandfather, Clifford Baxter, whom after losing his wife last year needed assistance. Ron was excited to have a friend close by as the house definitely needed a little bit of work.

He found himself itching to get the keys and get in there so that they could start making it truly theirs. The house was a step in the right direction of their future and Ron took it as a sign that it was time for him to take that next step as well.

Harry's eyes widened in surprise when he told him. "Really?"

"Why are you surprised? Do you not think we're ready? Merlin's beard, Harry, we just bought a house together!"

Harry shook his head. "What? No, of course I think you're ready! I'm just… I don't know. You've never really said it before."

"I didn't think I had to," Ron said. "Hermione's it for me, mate."

"I know that," Harry said. "And I can't imagine you two not together, I guess I just didn't really think about the fact that you weren't already married."

Ron chuckled. "You're so oblivious, do you know that?"

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, yeah. So, do you have a ring?"

Ron shook his head. "No. I don't even know what kind to get her or even where to start looking if I'm honest. I should get on that."

"Uncle Siri and Uncle Rem like this little shop in Wales. That's where Gin and I bought our wedding bands. We can go there?"

"Maybe," Ron said. "Is it weird that I want to talk to her parents first? I mean, Jean and Greg have been really great to me, Harry, especially after Australia and Hermione loves them to pieces. I think asking her mum might give me some ideas as to what I'm looking for. Is that cheating?"

"I don't think so," Harry replied. "If Uncle Siri hadn't given me the Potter ring, I have no idea how I would have chosen a ring for Ginny."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, you would have been hopeless."

"Not hopeless," Harry said. "I would have found something. Uncle Sirius and Uncle Rem would have helped. And Theo, he would have helped me."

"Exactly. Hopeless on your own," Ron teased.

Harry started to deny it before he shook his head. "Yeah, that's probably true. Well, what are you going to do about a ring?"

"I'll think on it and get back to you," Ron said.

Harry smiled, giving his friend a look. "She's going to say yes, mate."

"I know," Ron said. "Well, I mean I hope she does."

"When do you get the keys to the house?"

"Next week," Ron said. "You'll help us move?"

"Of course," Harry promised. "Just name the day."

When Ron left Harry and headed home, he was thinking about his friend's words about the ring, wondering if maybe he should talk to Sirius and Remus about the place in Wales. But a few days later, he found himself leaving during his lunch hour to head to Heathgate and to see Greg and Jean Granger.

After returning from Australia and dealing with trying to reacquaint themselves with their lives, they'd returned to work for two years before deciding to retire. They sold their practice to their coworkers and had been retired for almost six months now. They were making plans to travel more and to do things that they hadn't done before.

Ron knocked on the door and gave Jean a bright smile when she opened it. "Hi, Mrs Granger."

"Ron, how lovely to see you," she said in surprise. "And for the hundredth time, it's Jean. Come in."

Ron stepped into the house, leaving his shoes on the mat as she led him into the kitchen to sit at the table.

"To what do I owe this lovely surprise?" Jean asked, moving to put the kettle on. "Is everything all right with the house? With Hermione?"

"Oh, yeah things are great," Ron assured her. "We get the keys next week. Once we're settled, we'll have you and Mr Granger round to dinner. Thank you again for your help with it all."

Jean put some biscuits on the table. "That would be lovely and of course we're going to help. There's no question about it."

Ron reached for a biscuit before he let out a slow breath. "I love your daughter."

Jean's lips twitched as she let out a small smile. "I know that. It took her a while to see it, but I've known that for years."

"Good. I mean, yeah," Ron mumbled before he caught himself. "I'm sorry, I'm mucking this all up. I… I want to ask her to marry me."

Jean's eyes widened. "Oh! Oh!"

"Is that a good oh?" Ron asked, suddenly feeling even more nervous than before.

"Yes," Jean said with a soft smile. "Do you think that you need to ask my permission?"

"No," Ron said. "Hermione's much too headstrong and opinionated for that. I guess I just… I wanted you to know that I was planning it and yeah…"

Jean smiled just as Greg came in through the back garden.

"Ron! Lovely to see you, chap!" Greg exclaimed, shaking Ron's hand before he took a seat. "Is Hermione here?"

"No, she's at work," Ron said. "I thought I'd pop by on my lunch break for a chat."

"Ron wants to ask Hermione to marry him, Greg."

Greg's eyes widened before he nodded. "Well, it's about bloody time, don't you think?"

Ron gave him a sheepish look. "I'm only twenty-two, Sir."

"Yes, but you've been living with my daughter for eons," Greg said. "Hasn't he, Jean?"

"Oh, stop bothering the boy, Greg! He's nervous enough to ask her as it is."

"Wait, he hasn't asked her yet? What are you waiting for?"

"No," Ron said on a strangled laugh. "I haven't even found a ring yet. I just wanted to come over and tell you of my intentions."

Greg smiled and slapped Ron's shoulder. "I always liked you, Weasley. You have our blessing to ask our Hermione to marry you, of course!"

"I appreciate that, Sir," Ron said, surprised at the relief he felt hearing those words.

Jean smiled and passed them all cups of tea as she spoke. "As to the ring, I might have something."

Ron's eyebrow quirked. "You do?"

She nodded and then disappeared upstairs, leaving him alone with Greg.

"Don't look at me," Greg said. "I have no idea what goes through that woman's head. How's the Auror business?"

"Good," Ron said. "It keeps me busy."

"Unfortunately crime does that," Greg said. "Retirement's been interesting that's for sure. I spent my morning bird watching. Did you know that there are over six hundred different types of birds in England?"

"I didn't, Sir."

"Fascinating," Greg said. "It's something new I'm trying as Jean says reading comic books at my age is embarrassing. What does she know?"

Ron chuckled. He knew how much Hermione's father loved to read comic books and he figured if Jean Granger was trying to change her husband now, it was far too late. They both looked up when Jean came back into the kitchen with a small wooden jewellery box in her hands.

"Here it is," Jean said with a smile. "It belonged to my mother, Marie. She died when Hermione was six, but Hermione always admired it when she played in my room. It was her wedding ring."

Ron looked closer as Jean handed him the ring. It was old, but very beautiful. Blue sapphire was definitely the right choice for Hermione. It was a thin white gold band with a beautiful hexagonal blue sapphire centred between two pear shaped diamonds with two small diamonds next to the pear-shaped one.

"That's beautiful," Ron said.

Jean smiled. "Isn't it? Our Hermione always did look beautiful in blue and she's mentioned more than once that your eyes are like sapphires, Ron. Will you consider using this?"

Ron stared at the ring in surprise. "I… really?"

"I think she'd love it."

Ron stared down at the ring, his heart racing. He could picture slipping it on her finger easily, watching her eyes light up when he did. It was perfect. "Yeah, I think she will, too."

Jean beamed at him, carefully closing the lid on the wooden box and passing it across the table to him. "Ask her."

Ron smiled at them, his eyes on the ring box before him. "I will."

When he left Heathgate, he was feeling even more ready to ask the woman he loved to spend the rest of their lives together. Now, he just had to plan the perfect way to ask her.

But first they had a new house to deal with.

~ KE: Romione I ~

Ron was excited when he showed Harry the ring. He hadn't expected to have a ring so quickly, but looking at it made him smile. Now he had to work on how and when he was going to propose. Harry whistled when he saw the ring.

"Blimey, that's definitely Hermione. She looks great in blue."

"You think?" Ron asked, admiring the ring again.

"Definitely," Harry agreed. "She's going to love it. Plus, it belonged to her grandmother. That's going to mean a lot, mate. When are you going to ask her?"

"I don't know," Ron admitted. "I think I want us to be settled in our new place first. It would be nice to maybe do it in the house or something. The house needs a bit of work still so maybe in a few months?"

"You'll know when it's the right time," Harry assured him. "There's no rush on it."

"Well, how did you do it? You made a picnic, right?"

"Yeah," Harry said. "Then we went for a fly and the moment just felt right. I kind of wrote a poem. It was lame, but she loved it."

Ron wrinkled his nose. "I could do it like Percy and put it in a wine glass over dinner."

"Don't be like Percy," Harry said. "That was a bloody lame proposal."

Ron chuckled. "Yeah, it was. The ponce. My proposal is going to be epic!"

Harry laughed. "Is it?"

Ron waved him off. "Just you wait. I'm going to outshine all of you with the most epic proposal that I will be named the King of Proposals."

"Ha, first you have to come up with something."

Ron knew that his friend was right, he just needed to think of some way to propose to the woman he loved in the right fashion. He wanted it to be special to them and he wanted to show her that he'd put thought into it, not just drop the ring in some champagne. In the meantime, he hid the ring in the back of his closet in a box full of his Martin Miggs comic books and worked instead on their plans to move into their home.

By June, they had the keys and were making plans to fix the place up. The inside needed some fresh paint, the hardwood floors needed to be refinished, and the kitchen was a tad out of date. All things they knew going in and their plan was to get the kitchen updated before they moved in. The first weekend they both had off, they had base paint ready and were tackling the main floor of the house which consisted of the living room, the side study overlooking the garden, the kitchen with the half dining room, and the laundry. The second floor had three bedrooms and a bathroom.

"Do we need this little side study?" Hermione asked, standing in the double glass doors that separated the smaller room from the living room and overlooked the garden in the back. "I suppose we could put a desk in here, maybe some bookshelves and use it as a work away from work?"

"Maybe," Ron said. "But if I had a desk to do work that means I'd have to bring my work home and that sounds dreadful."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes, I know how you feel about homework, Ron. But really, we could set it up as one. I might like having use of the desk for when I'm working on something or another? Or we could talk to Greg about taking the wall down and expanding the living room?"

"Sure," Ron told her. "We'll put it off for later. Right now, let's just get the rooms painted and the kitchen done and then we can move in."

"Yes, that's a much better idea," Hermione agreed, bringing her hands together. "All right, let's get the rollers and brushes out and you can open the paint cans."

Fifteen minutes later, they had open cans of base paint out, a ladder up and were ready to go. Hermione wanted to paint their first home the old fashioned way. Ron thought doing it without magic sounded painful, but he'd relented because she pouted her lip at him and looked so disappointed that he wasn't interested. He loved how excited she was to get going. Ron fought with the roller for a moment or two longer than necessary, but he soon got the hang of rolling the strange wheeled-sponged-contraption up and down the walls to deposit the paint. It was oddly soothing, he thought. He turned to say as much to his girlfriend and found himself distracted by her.

She was too bloody cute.

Hermione was wearing a pair of his boxer shorts and one of his old Chudley tee shirts with a bandana tying her curls back. They had music playing on the wireless and Hermione was moving to the beat as she dipped her paint brush into the paint, singing along gleefully to some Muggle singer known as P!nk who wanted to get the party started.

"Again, it would be easier to just use a painting charm," Ron called out as he watched her dip her brush into the paint can.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I know, but this is our first real home, Ron. It's ours and I want to take our time and… just humour me, all right?"

He grinned as she stepped up onto the ladder to work the brush along the edge of the tape and he tilted his head to admire her round arse as she shook it to the beat. Maybe there was some benefit to doing it the Muggle way after all. He grabbed a brush himself and moved to the other side of the room and got to work.

They worked in companionable silence for over an hour, singing along to the radio as they worked. When Ron's stomach gave a loud grumble, he hopped down from the ladder.

"Hey! Let's take a break and get some food."

"Not yet," Hermione said. "We've only just started."

"Yeah and I'm hungry," Ron said.

"That's nothing new," Hermione replied. "Just a bit longer, please?"

Ron grumbled but agreed. Half an hour later, his stomach was gurgling in protest so he left her to keep painting and went to pick up takeaway.

"Come eat!" Ron called out when he came back, unloading the food onto the floor of the living room where they were going to picnic.

"Just a minute," Hermione said.

When a minute passed and she made no move to come over, Ron strolled across the room and picked her right up off of the ladder.

"Ron!"

"Nope, break time," he insisted, slinging her over his shoulder.

She squealed and he slapped her bottom.

"Food. Now."

Then he dropped her unceremoniously onto the floor.

Hermione scowled up at him. "What is wrong with you?"

"I'm hungry and you need to eat."

"Why are such an arse?"

"Why are you so stubborn?"

Her lips twitched slightly. "Fine. We'll take a break."

"Good answer," Ron said, plopping himself down onto the floor next to her.

"But don't think you can just manhandle me whenever you want," Hermione continued. "You can't just boss me around."

"Oi, pot meet kettle."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I don't boss you around."

"Um, yeah you do. And Harry too. And sometimes Neville."

"I do not!" Hermione insisted.

"You do too," Ron said. "It's part of your charm. Mostly. It's also annoying."

Hermione scowled. "You are an arse."

Ron leaned in and nipped at her mouth. "And you love me."

"Why are we even arguing?" Hermione asked, exasperated.

Ron wiggled his eyebrows. "Because we like it."

Hermione's lips twitched. "What's wrong with us?"

Ron tugged her into his lap and kissed her cheek. "Nothing. We're perfect." He picked up a chip from the container. "Chip?"

Hermione ate the fry from his fingers. "I'm not bossy."

"Sure you're not."

"I'm not," Hermione insisted. "I'm… strong willed."

"Uh-huh."

"And opinionated," she continued. "But that doesn't make me bossy."

"Actually, it makes you a bossy little swot," Ron told her. "And for some reason, that drives me mad with lust."

She squealed when he slid his hands around to grab her bottom and squeeze. "You're mental and I'm not a swot."

"A little one," he teased.

Her lips twitched as she reached around him for another chip. "Well, if I'm a swot, you're a pig."

In response, Ron shoved a handful of chips into his mouth all at once. "Oink, oink."

Hermione snorted. "Charming."

Ron swallowed and passed Hermione her Greek wrap. "In all seriousness, we're doing a decent job in here, don't you think?"

"Yes," Hermione agreed. "I know it seems silly to you to paint it all the Muggle way when we can just use our wands, but… it feels more like we're making it ours this way, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does," Ron said, looking around at their progress. "We're working towards making it ours. We'll get the base coat done this weekend and then we need to finalize our paint choices."

"I know, I don't want everything to be white," Hermione said. "Mum and Dad's living room is just so… boring. I don't know what I want, but something a bit more… cheerful?"

"Chudley orange?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer."

Ron huffed. "Fine. Well, I did rather like that blue you picked."

"Blue Lagoon?"

"Er, maybe?"

Hermione smiled. "We could do the ceiling white and maybe even the trim, but paint the walls the blue. Or Fleur suggested we only paint one wall blue and leave the others white."

"Only one wall? Why?"

"To make it pop more," Hermione said. "An accent wall. The couch we picked out is dark grey so if we added bright throw pillows and maybe an area rug… let me think on it."

"I think I like that idea," Ron admitted. "I like blues. It's warm and cozy, but what if we do two walls? This one with the window looking out front and that one with the doors into the side study room thing. We can do the other two the same white as the ceiling and then we can paint the hallway the same blue leading into the kitchen across the way."

"Yes," Hermione agreed. "And we're going to do the kitchen cabinets dark blue with the wood."

"That will look wicked," Ron said. "And then our bedroom can be orange?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I said I'd consider a shade of orange, Ron. We're not painting our bedroom walls the same blinding orange as your bedroom at the Burrow."

He grinned. "We'll talk about it."

In the end, they decided to paint their master bedroom a deep beige almost taupe with white trim and the one wall where their bed sat was a dark burnt orange. It took them two weeks to get everything painted and then Neville and Greg came by to give them some advice.

Ron never would have imagined that he would find himself friends with someone like Gregory Goyle, but he and Neville had become close since Serendipity had opened in Apricity Lane next to Sophistication by Pansy. Greg worked in construction and had a surprisingly talented hand in home renovations. He helped them update the kitchen, paint and rebuild the cabinets in a dark blue, and put in a wooden countertop for them. He got them a good deal on a new gas oven and assisted in showing them how to work the charms on the ice box. The bath needed a whole new overhaul and Greg did all of the work himself, putting in a new clawfoot tub and shower head along with a new toilet and sink.

"We'll have you and Pansy round to dinner once we're settled," Ron told him. "We really appreciate all of this work, mate."

Greg nodded. "It was an easy fix. You'll want to paint the bathroom now that's the renovation's done, but it looks good."

He gave them tips on how refinish the hardwood floors to keep them looking pristine and told Ron that he would come over and help him replace any of the floor boards that needed to be replaced. It still surprised Ron to find himself not only trusting the Slytherin, but being friends with him.

By July, the house was painted and they had officially moved in, but were sleeping on their mattress on the living room floor until the bedroom was done. It was one of the last rooms they painted and Hermione told him they needed to air it out a bit before they slept in a freshly painted room. They bought all white bedding for their bed, but Hermione picked out bright orange throw pillows and an orange throw to toss on the end; claiming that they would put it all together once their bedroom was set up.

"Hermione, have I ever told you that you're the perfect woman?" Ron asked, staring at the orange wall in happiness.

"Don't ever forget it," she teased. "But no, we're not hanging up a poster of the Chudley Cannons in our bedroom."

"No comment," Ron said and when she tilted her head to give him a stern look, he smirked. "How do we feel about the bathroom?"

"No," Hermione said, making him laugh.

Ron stole a kiss before he pulled her down on the mattress in the middle of the living room floor. "Fine, we'll talk about it."

Hermione pushed him off and over, crawling on top of him and straddling him on the bed. "No, we won't. Now, take off your shirt."

Ron grinned and whipped his shirt up and over his head. "Much better idea."

Hermione leaned in to kiss his neck and his hands slid down to grab a firm hold of her round bottom. "You love my bottom, don't you?"

"The word you're looking for is arse and yes, it's bloody fantastic," he growled, squeezing it.

Her cheeks flushed at his words before she bent down to kiss him. When their lips met, it only reminded Ron of all they've been through together. He loved the feel of her lips on his; loved how good she felt against him. And yes, he really, really loved her round bistable arse. He flipped her beneath him, making her eyes widen in surprise. Then he turned her again so that he could run his hands all over her backside.

He tugged her trousers down, smiling at the pretty pale blue lace that cupped that perfectly round bottom, burying his face in it with a smile. He did bite it, just hard enough to make her squirm.

"Merlin, this is why we work, Hermione. Two best looking arses in all of England are right here in this room together."

Hermione rolled her eyes. That was hardly true, but she chose to ignore that comment. "You are an arse, Ron Weasley."

He slapped his hand over her bottom in response before he shimmied down her trousers the rest of the way as she pulled his mouth back down to hers.

Kissing Ron was exactly what she needed. Being with him, kissing him… it was everything. Some days she wondered how he put up with her moods, but when he smiled or said a stupid joke, she was positive she fell more in love with him every day. She ran her hands down his muscled back and around over his abs.

One of the best things about Ron becoming an Auror was that it kept him in incredible shape and she wasn't ashamed to admit how much she liked it. His biceps were covered in freckles and when she ran her fingers through his golden red chest hair, she gave it a small tug.

"Bloody hell, woman," Ron said, nipping at her mouth. "No tugging."

"You like it," she said, flicking his nipple.

His response was a groan as his hardness pressed into her hip. "I like everything you do to me."

His words had come out in a growl that shot lust straight through her. He tugged at her shirt, tossing it over her head before he buried his face in her tits, fondling her through her bra. Hermione reached for his jeans, unbuttoning them and shoving them down his legs. His boxers came next and Ron licked his lips as he looked down at her.

"How are you so gorgeous?"

Hermione blushed. She knew she'd grown into her looks, but gorgeous was never a word she would use to describe herself. Her hair was too wild, her hips too wide, her bottom too big. But when Ron looked at her in moments like this, she'd never felt more beautiful in her life. After two years of living together, she couldn't wait for them to make this their forever home together.

Ron's fingers tugged at her bra straps and she moved to help him automatically (he still couldn't get her bra off without ripping it). Once it was on the floor next to them, his mouth wrapped around her nipple and she let her hands roam down his back, enjoying the feel of his strong muscles there. She let her hand move lower until she was cupping one of his firm cheeks and thought her boyfriend really did have one incredible arse.

He moved onto her other breast so she danced her finger down his crease and gently circled his hole. Ron's hard cock pressed harder against her hip and she smiled. Oh, yeah, he definitely liked it when she did that.

Ron more than liked it. In fact, Hermione's hands on his arse was one of his favourite things in the whole world. He loved it more than he was willing to admit. It was why he moved his lips to her soft stomach, moving his arse out of her reach before he finished much quicker than he planned on. But when his mouth found her hot and wet, a groan escaped him.

Yeah, this definitely had to be quick.

He used his tongue and fingers, tasting her and drawing out every gasp. When he felt her finally lose control, he sucked her into his mouth and she cried out his name as she finished. Ron kept working her until she gripped his hair and pulled him away.

"I need you," she whispered.

That was all the words he needed. He crushed his mouth to hers and lined himself up with her. In one quick thrust, he was buried deep inside and they both groaned. Then her fingers slid into his mouth and he groaned again, sucking them furiously as he pumped into her in a steady pace. When her fingers left his mouth, he crushed his lips to hers and then one of those wet fingers slid down his crease and a tip slid into him.

Ron cried out in ecstasy as the orgasm slammed into him almost without warning. Hermione kept fingering him, going deeper as he pounded into her and when her brown eyes lit up, she followed him over the edge. He collapsed on top of her with a grunt as her finger kept teasing in and out of him.

"Bloody hell, woman. Why does that feel so fucking good?"

Hermione kissed his cheek and squeezed his arse before sliding her hands up his back. "It just does."

Ron managed to lift his head enough to meet her gaze. "I love it. Give me a minute to catch my breath and then I want you to sit on my face."

Hermione flushed. "Ron!"

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Like you don't want that just as much as I want to do it."

She bit her lip and he grinned. Yeah, he definitely wanted to marry this woman and he suddenly knew exactly how he was going to give her the perfect proposal.

~ KE: Romione I ~

August 2002…

Ron had spent the last week working out every detail of his plan to propose to Hermione. He was incredibly proud of the work he'd put into his proposal and was positive that he was making it the most perfect moment. Now that the two of them had finally settled into the house with most of the big things taken care of, he knew that he just had to find the time to ask her. He recruited Bill and Harry to help him get things just right, but it was something that he really wanted to do on his own and he wanted to do it in a way that was perfect for the woman he loved.

"How did Dad propose to you?" Ron asked Molly when she popped by to fill up their ice box with food (she ignored her children's protests that they could in fact cook for themselves).

Molly smiled at her youngest son with affection. "Ron, are you thinking about proposing to Hermione?"

He shrugged. "Maybe. I just want to make it special for her. I love her, Mum."

Molly's eyes twinkled. "I know you do, dear. The two of you get on so well. All of my children have chosen well. As to making it special, just tell her that you love her. It doesn't need to be some grand gesture. You could ask her over dinner at the Burrow?"

Ron wrinkled his nose. "Nah. I don't want it to be all public. Hermione's not that girl. How did Dad propose?"

"I told him I was pregnant."

Ron blanched. "Oh, right."

Molly chuckled. "We would have gotten there on our own, I know that without a doubt, but the pregnancy made it happen a little faster. We made plans to get jobs and find a flat together and then I was pregnant and… Merlin, I remember it like it was yesterday…"

Arthur's mouth opened in shock, his eyes widening to saucers under his long red hair that was pulled back into a low pony at the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, what did you just say?"

"I said, I'm pregnant, Arthur. November."

"November," Arthur repeated.

"Yes. The baby will come in November."

"Baby. In November."

"Yes," Molly insisted. "Are you just going to repeat everything I say? Arthur, what are we going to do? Do we know how to take care of a baby?"

"Of course we do," he snapped. "Gideon and Fabian are almost ten years younger than you, Molly, and I have nephews and bloody hell, we're getting married."

"What?"

"Married, Mollywobbles, keep up," Arthur said.

"We're not getting married."

"Of course we are," Arthur said. "You're pregnant."

"Marriage isn't the solution to that!"

"No," Arthur agreed. "It's not. It's the next step."

"Arthur…"

"No," he said, shaking his head and taking her hands in his. "I figured I'd ask you in maybe a year, once we were more settled. I reckon we'd marry in another two or three, have that first baby in maybe five, but life decided to throw that plan out the window. I love you, Molly Prewett. You're the only woman for me and if the world wants us to start our family now, than that's what we're doing. We're having a baby. Are you with me?"

"I'm with you," Molly whispered. "I love you, Arthur."

"I love you, too. Now, are you going to marry me or what?"

"Yes," she said, laughing when he picked her up and spun her around under the tree by the Black Lake at Hogwarts. "I'll marry you, Arthur Weasley."

"So we did," Molly told him. "It was small ceremony that summer and it was perfect for us. You'll figure out how to propose to Hermione, Ron. You just need to think about what you want that moment to be between you. Do you want to be romantic? Do you want to make it special in some way other than the proposal? Think about what she would like. No matter what you decide to do, it will be a moment you both never forget."

It was a week later when Hermione mentioned to Greg about taking the wall down between the little room off of the back and the living room again that Ron knew exactly what he was going to do. He told Hermione that he would finish the floors and take care of that room while she was away and he got to work.

Hermione was spending the last few days of July and the first few days of August in Paris with her mum, visiting her mum's best friend and Hermione's godmother, a woman Ron had only met once named Monique Rousseau. Jean insisted on Hermione coming with her so that they could catch up and have a nice girls holiday and Ron urged Hermione to go. When she left, he called Greg back to the house along with Harry and Bill to help put his plan in motion.

The four of them worked as a team to finish the hardwood floors on the staircase and throughout the rest of the house as every room except the bathroom was hardwood. Then Ron told them of his plan. Greg helped him design it and immediately got to work building shelves as Ron, Bill, and Harry worked on painting the small room. They painted the ceiling an eggshell white and the walls a deep teal before they put the white bookshelves Greg had built right into all four walls of the small room, making the white of the wood pop out against the teal walls.

With Fleur's help, Ron found a white and teal area rug to put in the middle of the floor with a white suede chair and a teal throw that Molly knitted for them out of the softest material. Then, he found teal and white stripped fabric so he covered couch cushions as Greg built a small love seat right into the wall beneath the bay window with more shelving lined around it. Ron hung white and bronze diamond shaped hanging lights around the room and added a wooden ladder with rolling wheels to help his short wife reach the top shelves.

Fleur helped him pick out throw pillows to match and helped him spruce up the little love seat and chair. The double glass doors leading into the small room from the living room made it look bigger with the bay windows looking into the garden. He placed some of her books on the shelves around the room but he knew that she would want to organize it herself before he finally found the finishing touches that he was looking for. Then he dug out the ring with a grin.

Harry shoved his hands into his pockets when Greg and Bill left and took a final look around the room. "Looks great in here. She's going to lose it when she sees it. I mean, building Hermione a library? Pretty much means you're completely mad about her."

"I am," Ron said. "Completely mad about her that is, but yeah, it's time for me to ask her. I've had the ring for months now."

"I know," Harry said. "All right, well I reckon it looks like you've got it planned. You'll do it when she gets home tonight then?"

"I think so," he admitted. "I'm feeling a bit nervous."

Harry chuckled. "I remember the feeling. Even when you know she's going to say yes, it's kind of nerve-racking. I reckon that's not going to go away until you pop the question. Just don't forget about the ring. It's easier to do than you think."

"Ha, I won't," Ron promised. "Then I guess we'll tell everyone on Sunday?"

"Good idea," Harry said. "Gin and I have a surprise to share with you all at dinner on Sunday anyway so the pressure won't all be on you."

Ron lifted an eyebrow. "What kind of surprise? How come you won't tell me? You've been mentioning this surprise every day this week. What happened on your holiday? I'm your best mate, you have to tell me!"

"I will. On Sunday," Harry said.

"Why won't you tell me now?" Ron demanded.

"Because it drives you mad that I won't," he teased.

Ron scowled. "If she's pregnant, I'm calling godfather status."

Harry chuckled. "See you on Sunday, mate."

Ron waved his best mate off, wondering again what it was that Harry and Ginny were going to be announcing. He wouldn't be surprised at all if they were pregnant. They'd been married for two years already and despite the fact that they lived together, they were still all over each other all the bloody time. Honestly, he was shocked they hadn't gotten pregnant yet. He shook the thoughts from his head and he waved his wand to clean up the last bit; then he carefully wrapped the book box he'd made last night and placed it on the chair in the home library. He ran upstairs to shower and change, finishing up with minutes to spare as Hermione walked in the front door.

She dropped her bags by the front door and stepped out of her shoes, smiling when she saw him coming down the stairs.

"I love my mum and Merlin knows I love my godmother, but I'm glad to be home."

Ron leaned against the staircase and grinned at her. "I bet. It's because you missed me terribly, isn't it?"

"Well, that goes without saying," she teased before her eyes zeroed in on the floors and widened in delight. "Oh, Ron! The floors look amazing."

"I know. Greg did a bang-up job. Bloke's really talented. I gave him his final cheque today so we're all paid up for his work. But, I have a surprise for you. Close your eyes."

"What did you do? Why do I have to close my eyes?" Hermione asked, giving him a skeptical look, looking around the cleaned up living room and into the kitchen. "Ron, please tell me that there's not going to be a giant Chudley Cannons poster somewhere in this house. Merlin, the mattress is gone. There is, isn't there? You turned our bedroom into a Chudley Cannons room, didn't you?"

Ron chuckled. "Oh ye of little faith. Close your eyes and trust me."

Hermione sighed, but she did as he asked. She only made a small note of protest when he covered her closed eyes with his hands and carefully walked behind her as he guided her through the house towards his surprise.

"Where are we going?"

"Almost there," Ron said with a grin as he stopped her in front of the open glass doors between the living room and their new library. "Perfect. All right, you can open your eyes."

Ron moved his hands away and her sharp intake of breath made his heart clench.

"Ron…" she breathed. "Oh… oh, Ron!"

Ron leaned against the doorjamb and crossed his arms in front of his chest as he watched his girlfriend hurry inside, her eyes wide in astonishment as she took in the small personal library he'd put together just for her.

"I thought that we were going to make this an office or take the wall out or…"

"This is better," Ron told her.

"So much better," Hermione breathed. "Oh my gods! I've always wanted my own — I have a ladder! And it moves!"

He chuckled as he watched her stand up on the ladder and sail it around the walls with a squeal of glee.

"Greg helped me build the shelves," Ron said. "I asked Fleur for advice on the love seat and whatnot. Harry and Bill helped me put it all together. Do you like it?"

Hermione turned her big brown eyes on him and they were swimming in tears. "Do I like it? Ron, this is the… gods, I love you!"

"There's one more thing, on the chair there," he said, gesturing towards the white suede chair where he'd wrapped her leather-bound brown and gold edition of William Goldman's The Princess Bride in a blue bow.

Hermione frowned as she approached it. "My book?"

"Open it," Ron urged.

Hermione bit her bottom lip as she carefully untied the bow and opened the book. When she did, she realized that it wasn't actually her real book at all, but only a disguise. Inside the book-box was filled with pink and purple tulip petals; nestled on top, was an open black velvet ring box with her grandmother's ring.

Hermione gasped and when she spun around, Ron was on one knee behind her.

"Hermione Jean Granger, I may not be the smartest or the bravest or bloody hell, even the most handsome of blokes, but I have a great arse and a killer smile and as one of your favourite book heroes always says — as you wish. I don't know if this is the right way to do it, but I built you a library to fill with the stories you love so, will you marry me so that we can start a new chapter of our own tale?"

Tears filled in Hermione's eyes as she nodded. "Yes! Yes, Ron! Oh, Merlin, yes!"

"Really?"

"Yes, you git," Hermione said with a laugh, grabbing his face and kissing him. "Gods, I love you and this was perfect. Better than perfect! Oh, Ron, you built me a library!"

Ron kissed her again before he rested his forehead against hers. "That's going to give me major points, isn't it? Best proposal for sure."

She chuckled, slipping her arms around his neck. "You have no idea how many points."

He grinned before he reached around her for the ring and held it out. Hermione passed him her trembling hand and he smiled. "I told your parents I wanted to ask you to marry me and your mum brought this out; said you were always meant to have it."

Tears spilled down Hermione's cheeks as he slid the ring onto her finger. "It was my grandmother's and it's… it's perfect. I love it and I love you, so much!"

Their lips met again and when she pulled away, he groaned.

"You're going to set up your books now, aren't you?"

Hermione jumped to her feet with a huge smile. "Just a box or two to get us started."

Ron caught her before she could run off and pinned her back against one of the empty shelves before he dragged his thumb down her bottom lip. "How about we order some takeaway and I'll show you how I also have the bed all set up in our room?"

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh, do you now?"

Ron scooped her up bridal style, making her laugh. "I do and I don't think you know how much I want to see you wearing nothing but that ring."

Then he carried her through the living room into the hall and up the stairs to their master bedroom where their bed was finally set up against the burnt orange wall. He dropped her onto the fresh bedding before crawling over her. Hermione kissed him deeply, her fingers sliding up the back of his neck and into his thick hair.

"I love you, Ron Weasley."

Ron grinned down at her. "As you wish."

Hermione bit her bottom lip. "Keep that up, Auror Weasley, and you're about to get very lucky."

He chuckled. "Trust me, that's my plan."

Then he covered her mouth with his, feeling happier than he could possibly imagine.

~ KE: Romione I ~

Ron and Hermione announced their engagement at a family dinner at the Burrow that Sunday, the first one back since Harry and Ginny had taken a holiday celebrating their own second wedding anniversary. After much ado and praise, followed by Molly's overexcitement at the prospect of Ginny being pregnant (which she wasn't) and her less than thrilled reaction over the fact that Harry and Ginny had each gotten each other a puppy (instead of a baby) everything died down and Ron cleared his throat to yell out above the noise.

"All right! All right! Now, that we've met Harry and Ginny's new puppies and talked about me and Hermione having a winter wedding, I think it's time that we talk about the important stuff," Ron insisted, giving his brothers smug looks across the table.

"And what's more important than planning your wedding, Ronald?" Molly asked.

Ron waved his mum off. "Nothing much, Mum, except for one thing — I'm calling for a vote. I think we can all agree that I'm the Weasley who gave the most romantic proposal ever, right?"

Fred snorted. "Pretty sure that's a lie. No way was ickle Ronnikins the most romantic."

"Nothing from you," Ron said. "You haven't even proposed to your girlfriend."

Fred stuck his tongue out at his brother. "Git."

"I don't know," Ginny said, smiling at her husband. "Harry set up a romantic picnic before we went for a fly on his broom. Then he wrote me a cheesy poem while he proposed during the sunset. That's definitely up there for mad romance."

Ron waved her off. "Yeah, yeah, Harry's a contender! But I definitely beat out Percy!"

"I thought the ring in the champagne glass was very classy," Percy said, pushing his glasses up his nose.

"It was," Audrey said, tapping her husband's cheek. "He took me out to a romantic dinner and told me how much he loved me. It was perfect."

"I don't know," George said. "I think I win, I mean, I got Ange to propose to me."

Angelina laughed. "And it worked for us, but I wouldn't exactly call it romantic, George."

George gasped. "How dare you! You even gave me this gawdy ring!" he exclaimed, wiggling his hand with the pirate ring on his finger.

Angelina picked up his other hand, the one that held his gold wedding band. "I love this one more."

He grinned. "I'm a kept man and I like it."

"Wait," Ginny said, holding up her hands. "Ron keeps going on about how he had the most romantic proposal, but I don't think we've even heard how he proposed."

"What's important, Ginny, is that I win!" Ron declared.

Hermione rolled her eyes before everyone looked over at her. "Well, he built me a library."

Fleur's lips curved. "Oui. He even came to me for some advice. He worked very 'ard at it."

"Pft!" Fred said. "A library's not a proposal!"

"It wasn't just the library," Hermione said. "When I walked in and saw it, he had my favourite book charmed to look like a box and wrapped with a bow sitting on the chair. When I opened it, my grandmother's ring was inside. I turned around and he was down on one knee…"

"Aww," all of the women said collectively.

Ron puffed out his chest. "I'm the best, right? You have to admit, that was genius!"

"I don't know," George began. "You know, I don't think we ever actually heard how Bill proposed."

Fleur chuckled. "Oh, zat was very sweet. I was naked."

Harry blanched. "Bill! Don't you know that's the first rule of marriage proposals? Don't be naked."

"I wasn't naked," Bill said with a chuckle. "She was."

"Bet that was spectacular," Fred said before his girlfriend pinched his ear. "Ow!"

"That's your sister, you git," Fiadh said.

"In-law and she's beautiful!" Fred insisted.

"She really is," Angelina agreed. "All right, so Fleur was naked and spectacular — go on."

Fleur chuckled. "I was waiting for him in his flat. 'E came in and I was standing in ze doorway of his bedroom, completely naked except for my 'eels. I remember 'e closed ze door behind 'im, turned and saw me, and dropped his keys to ze ground."

"She was spectacular," Bill said. "Gorgeous and breathtaking. I think I said something like wow, wish I always came home to this."

"I told 'im we could discuss it," Fleur teased.

"Then I walked towards her and I didn't plan it, but I fell to my knees before her and touched her thighs and said, 'we should get married.' I believe Fleur said 'what' in response." When his wife laughed, he kissed her palm, his eyes on his wife full of love and adoration. "We should get married. I love you. I love us. Let's do something about it, Fleur. Let's get married."

"And I said, but I'm naked."

Ginny laughed. "Seems like a good answer."

Bill grinned. "I told her that her current attire was what inspired me most and that I loved her and wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. Then I asked: Will you marry me?"

"I told 'im oui. Zen to use his tongue for something other zen talking while 'e was down zere."

Fred and George wolf whistled at that.

"When did you get the ring?" Audrey asked.

"I had it in my wardrobe," Bill admitted. "I'd been planning to propose, I just didn't know when. So, after I did as I was told, we celebrated."

"Twice," Fleur corrected. "Zen 'e carried me to ze bed and took ze ring box out of a drawer. 'E crawled between my legs and rested 'is chin on my stomach, popping open ze ring box and said, 'in case you doubted I wasn't serious. I love you, Fleur. Marry me.' I said oui again and 'e put ze ring on my finger and zen we celebrated a third time."

"Aww," all the women said again.

"That is sweet," Harry agreed. "But being naked makes it not as romantic."

Percy looked pensive. "All right, Harry has a point. I went for classy and dignified. In a fancy restaurant, with expensive champagne. Much classier then being naked on the floor of your flat."

"I built Hermione a library and proposed on bended knee with her grandmother's ring in a book box designed to look like her favourite book," Ron insisted.

"Which he even quoted," Hermione said, smiling at her fiancé. "I was very surprised."

Angelina lifted her wine glass as she leaned back in her seat. "All right, I'll give it you, Ron, that's pretty bloody romantic. You gets high marks for that."

"Higher marks than a picnic, a cheesy poem, and a sunset proposal?" Ginny demanded.

Angelina wrinkled her nose. "Well, no… bloody hell. George, our proposal sucked."

"Hey, you asked me, woman!" George said. "Maybe you should have put more effort into it."

Fleur chuckled. "As romantic as 'arry's was, I theenk Ron's was a touch more so because 'e made it personal to 'Ermione."

"Harry wrote me a poem," Ginny repeated.

"Which we're still waiting to hear three years later," Fred said.

"Never," Harry vowed.

"And we had a picnic on our very first date together," Ginny continued. "So Harry basically recreated our first date as part of the proposal."

"Aw," Audrey, Angelina, Fiadh, and Fleur said together.

"I did?" Harry said before he caught his wife's face. "I mean, yeah right, I did."

Ginny gave Ron a smug look. "We win."

"Please, Harry had no idea what he was doing," Ron protested. "He totally didn't even know that he was recreating your first date."

"No, I uh, definitely did," Harry said, his cheeks heating.

Ginny kissed her husband's cheek. "It was perfect."

"All right, all right," Bill said, holding up his hands. "Show of hands. If you thought Ron's proposal to Hermione was more romantic than Harry's to Ginny."

"Wait!" George exclaimed. "Before we vote, I need to know something essential to the voting."

"What?" Ron demanded.

George smirked and exchanged a look with his twin. "Did you mention, even once, anything at all, about your backside?"

Hermione bit her bottom lip and Fred snorted.

"Bloody hell, Ron! You can't even propose to your girlfriend without mentioning the perfect curve of your arse?"

"You think it has a perfect curve?" Ron asked.

Bill rolled his eyes. "This is stupid. I vote Harry just because Ron's a tosser."

"I vote us," Fleur said, kissing her husband's cheek. "I thought you were very romantic."

"Even though you were naked?"

Fleur smiled. "Especially because I was naked."

"Oi! Just because I made one teeny tiny mention of my fantastic arse doesn't mean my proposal was less romantic!"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ron, does it really matter? It was very romantic and perfect to me."

"Yes! I want these gits to admit that I outshone all of them," he insisted.

"You did," Hermione whispered, cupping his chin and kissing him softly. "I love you."

Ron's eyes softened. "All right. We know it was the best and that's what really matters."

"Exactly," Hermione replied.

"But I still think that we should vote to be fair," Ron bellowed.

Hermione turned to Harry. "Life with them will always be interesting, won't it?"

Harry grinned and pecked Hermione on the cheek. "Yeah, absolutely guaranteed."

"Good," she said, smiling as her fiancé attempted to talk over his brothers. "I can't wait."

When they got home that night, Ron was gleefully telling her how all of his sister-in-laws clearly thought his proposal outshone all of the rest despite no one actually agreeing aloud. Hermione waited until he sat on the bench near their front door to take off his shoes before she sat on his knee.

"Are you done gloating now?

"Maybe," he teased.

"It was perfect, Ron. You were perfect. It's the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me. Not just the proposal, but the library and… gods, sometimes you just blow me away with how sweet and considerate you are. I don't know what I did to deserve to you."

Ron gripped her chin and pecked her lips. "I'm the lucky one. Most brilliant witch in the world and you choose me? It's more than I could ever ask for. I love you."

"I love you, too," she said kissing him.

Ron wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. "So Mum's coming over tomorrow?"

"Yes," Hermione said, leaning into his warm embrace. "For tea along with my mum so that we can start talking wedding plans."

"Fun," he teased. "So, a winter wedding?"

"A winter wedding," she repeated, her lips curving. "Next year hopefully."

"Next year for sure," Ron said. "I want to marry you as soon as possible."

"I want to marry you soon too, but weddings are a lot of work. Not to mention it's going to be hard to find a balance between keeping it more traditional and less magical so that my Muggle relatives can attend. Not that I have a lot of family like you do or anything. Harry offered us their home and I know that Theo would let us use Norfolk, but I think both are too big for us, don't you? Mum and I already started talking about who we can invite and who we might have to reconsider because of us being magical. I don't have a very big family so we need to come up with a reason why I can't invite my uncles, aunts, and cousins."

"No," Ron said, kissing her brow. "You're not reconsidering anything. We don't need a magical ceremony, Hermione. We can do the wand binding part separate and the rest… it can be entirely Muggle."

"What?" Hermione whispered, her eyes widening in surprise.

Ron shrugged, brushing a curl behind her ear. "Hermione, it's your family. What's another Weasley wedding to us? There will probably be another one in another year; there's six thousand of us. I want your family to be able to come and enjoy themselves. Let's do the whole thing the Muggle way."

"Really? Do you really mean that? What if I told you that at Muggle weddings its men who wear the wedding dress?"

Ron wiggled his eyebrows. "I'd rock the fuck out of it."

She laughed. "You're ridiculous. I love you."

"So, that's a no on the dress then? I think I'd look bloody amazing."

"You would," Hermione agreed. "But no, I'm going to wear the dress, all right?"

"Plonker," he said, standing up with her in his arms. He swung her over his shoulder with ease and slapped her bottom as she squealed. "I'll leave the planning to you. Only thing I want is all of my brothers by my side."

"I can agree to that," Hermione said. "But put me down!"

"Why?" he bellowed. "Now you can look at my arse more closely."

Hermione slapped it, loudly and he yelped. "I'm going to kick this arse in a second, Ron Weasley."

Instead of putting her down, he used one hand to open his jeans, shoving them and his boxers down and kicking them off.

"There, now you can admire it in its truest beauty," Ron said as he headed up the stairs.

Hermione slapped his bottom again and he yelped.

"Don't bruise the bastard!"

"Put me down, you fool!"

He did, tossing her down onto their bed so that she bounced. Crookshanks, who had been sleeping on the bed, let out a sharp meow and bounded out of the room. They both ignored the cat's bruised sensibilities as Ron ripped his shirt off.

"Oh, look. I'm naked. You should be too."

Hermione laughed as he began to tug at her clothes, kissing exposed skin as he did. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Hopefully ride me nice and hard," he said, pinching her nipple. "Then we can talk about round two."

She laughed, sliding her hands through the reddish gold curls on his chest. "I think I can make that work."

~ KE: Romione I ~

September 2002…

Hermione was just leaving the office of Na'eemah Hickey that afternoon when she ran into Theo coming down the stairs. She raised her hand in a wave and he beamed at her, linking his arm through hers.

"Well, hello there, Hermione. Let me see this ring I keep hearing about!"

Hermione held her hand out to him with a smile. "It was my grandmother's."

"Gorgeous," Theo gushed. "Sapphires suit you the same way that rubies do Ginny. It's simple and perfectly you. How have you been? Have you decided to join Ginny and I in hot yoga yet?"

She chuckled. "I know you two keep getting on me about that, but I don't know if it's for me."

"It is. You'll love it. I'm picking you up tomorrow at half past six. No arguments."

She smiled. "All right, I'll check it out. What are you doing here?"

"Just wanted to talk to Harrison about something. He's passing me a new potential client so we had to go over some things."

"That's right," Hermione said, her eyes widening. "You're opening up your own mind healing office in a few weeks."

"Two and a half to be exact," he admitted. "I'm terrified."

Hermione squeezed his hand. "Don't be. You're going to be wonderful at it."

"Thanks," he said. "Healing Hearts & Minds is going to be slow at first, but if I end up taking on this patient from Harrison, I'll have two whole patients of my own. Not a lot, but it's a start."

"A great star," Hermione assured him. "Focusing strictly on children is a remarkable thing, Theo. You should be proud of yourself. You'll have more patients eventually and maybe you'll even have to hire on some new help."

"Here's hoping," Theo said, crossing his fingers. "Anyway, I'm meeting Na'eemah in fifteen. Is that where you're coming from?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes. Just finished."

"It's looking good on you. Almost as much as that ring does," Theo surmised.

Hermione smiled. She could agree with Theo on that. When Hermione had finally forced herself to take that step, it had taken more out of her than she'd expected. Ron had gone with her to make the appointment and she'd been grateful, but actually going to her first session of mind healing; walking through those doors and being willing to talk? No, she had to do that all on her own.

It had been terrifying.

She remembered it like it had been yesterday instead of being over three years ago. She'd walked like a zombie into Na'eemah's office when her name had been called and then taken a seat in the chair.

"Good afternoon," Na'eemah said kindly. "I'm Na'eemah Hickey and you're Hermione Granger?"

"Yes."

"The same Hermione Granger who's listed as a war heroine?"

"Yes."

Na'eemah nodded. "Welcome. I need you to know that this is a safe place and there's nothing you can't say to me that won't stay strictly between us. Taking this step to come here and to ask for help, that's step one, but actually opening yourself up to talking to someone, that's step two and it's even harder."

Hermione nodded, fiddling with her hands in her lap.

"Why don't we start with what brought you here today, Hermione?"

"Nightmares," she whispered. "Mostly. Sometimes panic attacks."

"Those are all normal reactions for anyone who's lived through a war, let alone someone who fought in the trenches of it."

She nodded again.

Na'eemah adjusted the red glasses she wore perched on the end of her nose. "Is it the war itself?"

Hermione let out a slow breath before she spoke. "Some of it. It's… everything."

Na'eemah didn't ask for more and the silence stretched between them for a few minutes before Hermione finally spoke again and this time, the words didn't stop. It had been exactly what she needed.

Hermione had been visiting the mind healer since the early spring of '99 and where as she didn't need to go weekly now, she still kept in touch once every other month for a check in or when she felt like she needed it. Ron had been incredibly supportive of her and had even joined her for a few sessions which she found not only was extremely beneficial to their relationship, but helped her relax in ways she hadn't realized she needed.

"Yes, it is," Hermione said, turning her attention back to Theo. "And you?"

"Oh, I'm full of rainbows," he teased. "But sometimes my nightmares are a bit jarring, especially when Bas is out of the country."

"Is he?"

Theo nodded. "He is. Obviously I can't know where, that's rare when I do. I believe he's in Asia right now. At least I've got the continent. Hopefully no more than another week. Anyway, I have to go, but tomorrow morning — hot yoga — you're coming!"

"I'll be there," she promised, smiling as she watched him hurry off.

Theo and Sebastian were great together and Hermione knew that Sebastian Kane was amazing at his job, but Hermione had no idea how Theo handled him travelling for weeks at a time. She worried enough about Ron and Harry being Aurors here in England and couldn't imagine how worried she'd be if they worked out of the country in such top secret cases.

She left St Mungo's and headed out to Heathgate to meet her mum for late tea. Her grandfather on her mum's side was visiting from France and she'd promised to pop in. He'd been a widower since his wife had died from breast cancer when Hermione had been six, but despite his daughter living in England, he'd refused to move from the small cottage he and his wife had lived in most of their lives in Avignon. Hermione had always loved visiting him there. He was a baker, mostly of bread, and always smelt like warm yeast.

When she stepped into the house, the last thing she expected to find was her father's parents there as well. Helen and Hugo Granger opened their arms at the sight of her and she hugged them tightly.

"Nan! Nonno! What are you doing here?"

"I invited them," Greg said, tugging his daughter into his arms. "They wanted to see Émile so I figured we could all have dinner together."

Hermione turned to her other grandfather now, taking in his shock of white hair and tall, lean form. At ninety-five years, he looked frailer and skinnier than she remembered, but his big blue eyes were full of joy when she wrapped her arms around him.

Émile Clement squeezed his granddaughter tightly and kissed her head. "There she is! Let me see Marie's ring."

Hermione held her hand out to show her grandfather and he beamed. "Thank you, Grandpère for letting me have it."

He waved her off. "Marie wanted Jean to have it. It makes sense it went to you."

They ushered her inside and Jean told her to call Ron over to join them all for dinner. Ron had only met Émile once before and when her mum began talking about her uncles and cousins who still lived in Avignon, Hermione couldn't even remember the last time she'd seen them. Greg had an older brother named Garth who was a minister at St Martin's Church in Canterbury. He was eight years older than Greg and had never married. The woman he'd been engaged to had been killed in a car accident a month before their wedding and Hermione's mum had told her that Garth had never gotten over losing his Annie. Helen and Hugo had always been around when she'd been a kid, but her mums two older brothers lived in Avignon with their families and they just didn't keep in touch with them as often.

Jacques was the eldest along with his wife Nell and their two daughters, Elise and Adeline. Next was her uncle Luc and his wife, Louise. They had one son, Christian and one daughter, Chloe. Chloe and Hermione were the same age and had more or less grown up together, but once Hermione had been accepted to Hogwarts (or private English boarding school as they had been told) they had lost that closeness since Hermione couldn't exactly share her magic studies with her cousin.

Seeing her three grandparents all in the same room, reminded her that this was her whole family. It was hardly as big and boisterous as the Weasleys and they certainly weren't as close. Why, she hadn't even had to do anything about her grandparents' memories when she sent Jean and Greg to Australia because dropping them a few postcards had been enough to hold off any questions they might have had.

"Hermione, dear, are you listening?" Jean asked, dragging her daughter from her thoughts.

"Yes, sorry, Mum."

Jean smiled. "All right, let's talk wedding plans."

Hermione gave her mother her full attention so that they could do just that. Once Hermione had told her mum that that she and Ron were going to have a completely Muggle wedding, Hermione's mum had pretty much taken over the reins. Her uncle Garth was going to marry them in his church in Canterbury next December and it seemed like everything was falling into place from there.

They agreed to keep it small-ish, which didn't sit well with Molly who wanted to invite all of the Weasley cousins, but she and Ron had convinced her that since they were going to have a Muggle ceremony, smaller was better. Hermione's family was under twenty people so inviting Ron's brothers, sister, sister-in-laws, nieces, his grandparents, and a few friends and coworkers… it was more than big enough. St Martin's Church wasn't huge inside so they did have to take that into consideration.

The one thing that Ron did want was all of his brothers standing up with him and Hermione knew how important that was to him. Harry would be his best man and then his groomsmen would be his five brothers. The problem for Hermione was that she didn't have a lot of close friends. Ginny was going to her Matron of Honour and the only other person she really felt close to which still surprised her was Luna.

"It's perfect then," Ron assured her. "Charlie's single so he can pair with her."

Hermione smiled at that. Ron was right, she could use her new sister-in-laws to be as the rest of her party and Luna could pair with Charlie. Of course, planning a winter wedding was something else entirely as Hermione explained how she wanted blue and silver. Ice blue, well more like a teal for the bridal party, and Ron would wear a black tux.

Hermione was determined to make this wedding everything she imagined and more and between arguing with Molly over why it had to be small and arguing with her mum about decorations and flowers, she was worried she was turning into a bit of a bridezilla and they'd only been engaged for a few months.

When her mother got her cousins involved, she swore she spent half the time arguing over why she wanted this instead of that. The stress was driving her mad and she found herself going home and stress eating chocolate more times than not. When she admitted as much to Ginny, her friend laughed.

"I know, trust me. At least you weren't constantly being told why it was the wedding of the century," Ginny said. "Do you know how close I was to whisking Harry off and eloping?"

Hermione chuckled. "Gods, you mum would have killed you."

"Oh, we never would have heard the end of it and I'm glad we didn't because our wedding was perfect, but the stress of it… thank Merlin, Mum and Zee took care of most of it or I never would have survived it."

"That's just it," Hermione said. "I don't want my mum and your mum to take over everything. It's my wedding, I want to be in control of it."

Ginny snorted. "Good luck."

That didn't exactly reassure her.

They spent two weeks shopping for bridesmaid dresses before they found the perfect dress. Hermione knew she was driving her future sister-in-laws crazy with her indecisiveness but she wanted them to have the perfect dress. When she found it, she knew it was exactly what she'd been looking for. They were a bright teal with a heart-shaped cut above the breasts, tight at the waist before it fell down into a long flowing tulle bottom. Translucent lace covered the chest and up in a sweetheart neckline of lace and long sleeves. Hermione knew the colour would look wonderful on all of her bridesmaids and when she had them all try on the style she knew that it would be perfect.

The bridesmaid shoes were found by Audrey and Hermione had to admit, they were gorgeous. They were a shade darker than the dress, heeled closed-toes that sparkled in silver. They were expensive, but as Fleur said with a bright smile, every woman deserved Jimmy Choos. The shoes cost more than the dress, but Hermione loved them and she couldn't wait to see them all standing up there with her.

The groomsmen were going to wear greyish-silver suits, with a lighter grey waistcoat underneath, white shirts and a tie the same colour as the bridesmaid dresses. Ron's tux was black with a white shirt, teal waistcoat, and a teal bowtie. The black tux fit him like a glove and for once it had been Hermione who commented on how great his arse looked in his black trousers.

Ron had wiggled his eyebrows at her. "These are just the trousers, wait until you see the whole ensemble."

Hermione grinned. "I can't wait."

She tried to keep her temper in check and her stress levels low as they worked on decorations, food, wine, music, and all of the other million and one things she needed to focus on, but as things started to fall into place, there was one thing that wasn't.

Suddenly, they were getting married in four months, and Hermione still hadn't managed to find the most important thing — her dress.

Hermione, Ginny, Jean, and Molly had been looking for dresses for months and they'd found some truly stunning wedding gowns, but none of them really felt right for her. Every time she tried one on, she waited for that feeling, the one that told her this was it and every time she was disappointed.

"We're going to have to cancel the wedding," Hermione told Ron when he came home from work that night.

"No," Ron said.

"Ron, I still haven't found my dress!"

Ron gave her a sympathetic look. "You will. We're not cancelling the wedding. You know I'd marry you in a ratty bath robe."

"That's not the point," Hermione insisted. "It's our day and I want to have the perfect dress and I want to feel pretty and… I need a dress, Ron! We're getting married in four months and I still don't have one!"

"Hermione," Ron said, grabbing his fiancée's arm. "Breathe. You'll find one."

"What if I don't? What if December comes and I still have nothing? What am I supposed to wear? How am I supposed to show up without a wedding dress? It's a disaster!"

"You'll find a dress," Ron assured her. "You need to relax."

"Don't tell me to relax!" Hermione snapped. "This is a big deal and you're acting like it's not!"

"I'm not."

"You are!"

"Bloody hell, woman, I'm not going to argue with you over this!"

"We're not arguing!" Hermione shouted. "You're not listening to me! I don't have a wedding dress!"

"You'll find a bloody dress, Hermione," Ron shouted back. "Now take a deep breath and stop freaking out!"

Hermione let out a slow breath and then another before she snuck a look at him. "I'm sorry. I'm stressing."

"Just a little," he teased, pulling her into his arms. "Look, I get it. You're worried, but you have plenty of time left to find the dress. I know you will. You just have to stop stressing yourself out over it. I need you to be happy when you marry me, not on the verge of collapse."

Her lips twitched. "Of course I'll be happy to marry you. I just… I want it to be perfect."

"Nothing's perfect, Hermione," Ron said. "But I know the day will be, do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because we'll be saying I do."

Hermione's eyes softened. "Yes, you're right."

"I'm always right."

"I wouldn't go that far."

"I definitely would."

"I just said we're not arguing."

"Then stop arguing with me and accept it."

"I'm not going to just accept it because it's not true."

"It is."

"It's not."

"It is."

"It's — bloody hell, Ron!"

He grinned. "Look at that, I made you swear."

"You're infuriating," she said, her lips twitching.

"And you love me," he said. "Now, stop worrying and take off your shirt."

"How will that stop me from worrying?"

Ron wiggled his eyebrows. "Because it will."

Then he covered her mouth with his and it turned out her fiancé was very good at turning her mind off, even if only for a little while.

Hermione made plans to go dress shopping again the next weekend and despite guidance from Molly, Jean, and Ginny, the real problem was that Hermione really didn't know what she was looking for. It was why when her mother pulled her upstairs with her cousin Chloe to try on a dress two weeks later, she wasn't overly optimistic.

"Mum, I don't know," Hermione began. "Just because I love Gran's ring doesn't mean her dress would suit."

"Oh, shush, Hermione!" Chloe said. "You look so much like Gran did when she was young. I think you should try it on."

Hermione bit her lip, still unsure as they unzipped the cover holding the dress. Hermione dutifully pulled her shirt over her head and stepped out of her trousers as her mum helped her step into a gown that was made of silver and white lace. The pointed lace sleeves covered half of her hand and left her shoulders and neck naked as it fit like a glove over her breasts, tapered at the waist and then flowed down into a beautiful ballgown.

Chloe gasped. "Called it."

Hermione touched the material and tried not to roll her eyes at her cousin's antics. The dress was beautiful and it fit her as if it was made for her. She certainly felt like a princess and when she turned to look at herself in the mirror, the feeling of awe that came over her surprised her.

"Here, let me help Auntie Jean," Chloe said, coming around to button up Hermione's dress where Jean was struggling.

"Buttons are too slippery," Jean said, smiling at her daughter as Chloe finished.

Jean rested her chin on her shoulder as she met Hermione's gaze in their reflection. "If you don't love it, we'll keep looking, but sweetheart, I think this is your dress."

Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes as she took it in. It was gorgeous and very much a gown for a royal ball. She felt like Belle or Cinderella and when she said as much, Chloe laughed.

"You look like it. God, Gran's dress was made for you, Hermione."

Hermione placed her hand over her stomach, the white gold, sapphire, and diamond engagement ring winking at her over the silver.

"It fits perfectly."

"Almost," Jean said. "You're a bit shorter than your grandmother was, but if we find the right heels, we might not have to taper it at all."

"I want it," she whispered, surprisingly herself.

She had her grandmother's engagement ring and now she was standing here in her grandmother's wedding dress and it just felt right. She only had a few memories of Marie Clement, but she knew that she looked very much like her mother's mother. They had the same hourglass figure, the same full breasts and wide hips; the same dark brown hair, the same brown eyes, though Hermione had unruly curls that came from the Granger side and according to Jean, a bigger bottom. But the similarities were uncanny and standing here now in this dress, Hermione knew that it was perfect.

"God, my mum would have loved seeing you wear her dress. You know she was disappointed that I didn't wear it," Jean admitted. "But I was stubborn. I thought it was too old fashioned for me, I wanted something modern. But you… oh sweetheart, you look beautiful."

"I can't believe you found this, Chloe," Hermione said, smiling at her cousin. "Thank you. I love it."

"You love it as in…?"

"Yes," Hermione said, smiling at herself in the mirror. "Yes, this is my dress."

Chloe squealed and hugged her. "You're going to be such a beautiful bride! I'm insanely jealous!"

"It will be your turn one day," Hermione assured her.

Talk turned to wedding colours again and plans to go for final fittings for bridesmaid dresses and shoes and Hermione changed back into her clothes. They returned downstairs and Hermione told her grandfather that she was going to wear his wife's dress and he beamed at her.

"Marie would have loved that," he assured her.

Ron made it just before dinner was served, apologizing for his tardiness and saying he had gotten caught up at work.

"What is it you do again?" Émile asked.

"Ron's in law enforcement, Grandpère," Hermione said.

"Right, right," Émile said, waving them off.

When they finally headed home, Hermione curled up on the sofa under Ron's outstretched arm as Crookshanks settled on Ron's lap, she sighed.

"I have a dress."

He kissed the top of her head. "Oh yeah? And?"

"I felt like a princess when I put it on."

Ron chuckled. "Well, I don't know if I'm a prince charming, but I'll do my best."

Hermione smiled and tilted her head up to kiss him. "You're so much better than my prince charming, Ron Weasley. You're my hero."

Ron pulled her closer with a grin. "I'll take that."

A week later, Jean found a simple tulle veil that fit into a silver and pearl hair comb tiara that would fit in her hair, but Hermione's stress levels were rising again when they were two months away from the wedding and she still hadn't found shoes. It was why the last thing she expected when she came home from work one Tuesday in early October was for Luna to be sitting cross legged on her living room floor playing with Crookshanks.

"Luna!"

"Hello, Hermione," Luna said, playing with a string of yarn for Crookshanks to deal with. "Ron let me in before he left. I'm sorry for the surprise visit, but I brought you your wedding shoes."

"What?"

Luna gestured to the shoe box on the coffee table. "Trust me."

Hermione dropped her purse on the sofa and moved to pick up the box. She carefully opened it, not sure what she was expecting to find inside, but the gorgeous heels that were staring up at her were definitely not what she'd been expecting.

"Luna…" she breathed.

Luna gave her a dreamy smile. "Rolf and I found them in this tiny shop in Lyon, France. The moment I saw them, I knew that they were yours. They were even in your size. I think they match that vintage dress just right, don't you?"

Hermione wasn't sure she had words. Luna had always been a bit eccentric, maybe even a bit strange and if she was honest with herself, Luna would be one of the last people she would ever go to for fashion advice, but these shoes were absolutely stunning. Hermione carefully slipped her feet into them, shocked to discover that they fit perfectly as she stared down at what could only be described as glass slippers. They had rhinestones down the transparent back of the clear heel and the toe had blue and white crystals across the top while the rest of the shoe was completely clear. She felt very much like Cinderella.

"Like I said, they were yours when we saw them."

Hermione smiled brightly at her. "These are perfect. I can't believe you just found them out of the blue like that. Luna, thank you! How much were they?"

Luna shrugged. "Consider it a wedding gift. Now, I must run along. I only wanted to drop those off, but Rolf's waiting for me. He's going to give me at least two orgasms before we head out to Vienna."

"Oh, erm, that's nice."

Luna smiled. "Oh, it's more than nice. I assure you. See you soon."

Then she skipped off, a smile on her face, leaving Hermione with the perfect shoes in typical Luna fashion. Hermione was happy to see Luna still so happy with Rolf almost three years later. The two of them just worked and she loved that they travelled all over the world together.

She boxed the shoes back up and hurried off to Heathgate to see her mum and to try on the dress and shoes together. She found her mum in the kitchen with a tea towel full of ice over her forearm.

"Mum! What happened?" Hermione exclaimed, rushing over to check on her mother's arm.

"Oh, it's nothing," Jean said, waving her daughter off. "I wasn't paying attention and I burnt myself on the kettle."

Hermione lifted the towel a bit to check out her arm and grimaced at the deep red. "That looks painful, Mum. You have to be more careful."

She pulled out her wand and carefully healed it for her mother who gave her a grateful smile.

"Thank you, dear," Jean said, running a hand over her healed arm in awe. "What brings you by?"

"Oh, I found my shoes. Well, my friend Luna did. I wanted to try them on with the dress."

"Oh, let's go upstairs and see then!"

Jean's face was priceless when she stared down at the shoes and when Hermione wore them with the dress, tears filled her eyes.

"Oh, you look like a princess, Hermione!"

Hermione laughed. "Little too curvy for that, Mum, but I do feel pretty beautiful."

"You look gorgeous," Jean said. "When Ron sees you, he will be struck speechless."

Hermione waved her mum off. "Please, Ron always has something to say, but I do think he'll love it. All right, that's one more thing done."

Jean wiped a tear from her eye. "I can't believe my baby's getting married."

Hermione hugged her mum and even after they put away her shoes and her gown and were having tea in the kitchen, Jean was still blubbering about. When Greg entered the kitchen, she jumped to her feet.

"Wendall! I thought that you were coming home hours ago."

Greg frowned. "You asked me to go to the market."

Jean gave him a baffled look before she laughed. "God, I am a mess."

Jean moved to grab the bags from her husband's grip and Greg pulled his daughter into his arms.

"Hi, Jellybean. Are you making your mum cry?"

"I tried on my wedding dress with the shoes I found. She called you Wendall."

Greg gave her a half-smile. "She's been doing that sometimes lately. It was my name for a while."

Hermione nodded, but she wasn't sure she understood. Her parents hadn't been Monica and Wendall in over four years and for her mum to just pull it out again rather out of the blue seemed odd.

Greg kissed her forehead. "Don't overthink it, Jellybean. Wedding stress is getting to her."

She hugged her father tighter and then she went to help her mum put away the groceries. Greg went to his study and Hermione gave her mum a look.

"Mum, why did you call Dad 'Wendall?'"

"Hmm?"

"Wendall. You called him that instead of Greg."

Jean laughed. "Why would I do that?"

Hermione frowned. "I don't know, that's why I'm asking."

Jean waved her off. "With all of the wedding stuff, I'm just tired. Don't worry about it, dear."

Hermione supposed that was true. Jean had been doing a lot to get everything ready for them the first week of December. She finished helping put away all of the groceries and then said goodbye to her parents to head home. She still had a lot of her own wedding stuff to deal with and she couldn't wait.

~ KE: Romione I ~

November-December 2003…

While Hermione was dealing with last minute wedding plans, Ron was doing his best to keep his eye on his best mate. Thankfully between Higgins, Tonks, and Baxter, the four of them were doing what they could because Harry was a wreck.

Sure, he was doing his best to keeping up appearances, but Ron knew him too well to buy that line. There was one of thing that Harry did better than anyone and that was love Ginny and Ron knew that if someone had been sending messages like this to Hermione, he would be even more unstable than Harry was.

The two of them had finally achieved their dream of becoming full time Auror partners and while they'd had a few cases here and there to keep them on their toes, this one was obviously taking precedence. Ginny had a stalker and while serious enough on its own, it had grown even more so over the last few weeks and the trail of dead ends that had followed was driving Harry around the bend.

"Maddox, please," Harry begged. "There has to be something you missed; something that we're not seeing."

"There's not," Maddox King said for the tenth time. "I wish I had better news for you, Potter, but there's nothing more here for us to work with. You'll have to find me more evidence if you want me to give you more. Right now, my hands are tied."

Harry stormed out of the Aurors Inquisitors Unit and Ron followed, grabbing his friend's arm when they reached the stairwell.

"You have to take a second and breathe," Ron began. "I know that this is eating at you. Hell, it's eating at me! She's my sister and some fucker is toying with her, but if we don't keep our head, we're not going to find him."

Harry let out a strangled breath, his green eyes full of emotion. "Ron, we have Aurors on her and he's still bloody watching her! How is he doing it? Why is he doing it? If he… if he touches her…"

Ron squeezed Harry's bicep. "We'll get him, Harry. I promise we'll get him and he'll go to the crypt."

"Not if I kill him first," he whispered.

Ron only quirked an eyebrow. "Bold of you to assume Ginny would leave you any scraps."

His lips twitched slightly at that and Ron smiled.

"There's the look. Mate, I want him dead too, but that's not our job. I know it's your wife and all that jazz, but you're not a killer. Besides, if you do that Ginny will kill you for going to prison and then I'll have to do something equally as stupid so I can go to prison too. It's too much of a hassle."

"Why would you go to prison?"

Ron gave him a pointed look. "Because even locked up you'd find trouble."

"You know, I haven't found trouble in years. My life is tame now."

Ron snorted. "Sure it is."

They headed back to the bullpen to do more work on the case before they met with Candace Billings of the MPU to do their daily check in of what was seen, heard, or done while keeping an eye on Ginny (as usual nothing out of the ordinary).

"Hutchins even used a revealing charm," Billings said. "He pulled your wife into our circle and checked the surrounding area for any sign of an invisibility cloak or charm. Nada. However this guy is keeping an eye on her, he's good."

Ron knew that it didn't reassure Harry in any way.

Which was why when Ron arrived in Diagon Alley two weeks later at his partner's request, the sight of Hutchins handcuffed on the ground wasn't what he expected to find.

"What in bleeding hell…?"

"It was Hutchins," Theo said from where he was holding Ginny in his arms.

"It was…" Ron started to say that didn't make sense but as he looked at the MPU Auror down on the ground, it suddenly did.

It really did by the time they got him into interrogation. A search warrant gave them access to his flat and the photos he had of Ginny were well into the hundreds and deeply disturbing. He even had a diary that recorded her every move for the last five months and included every interaction that they'd ever had. He was obsessed with her and convinced in his delusional mind that Ginny felt the same. Arresting him was downright satisfying.

Ron told Harry to go home to his wife and promised to finish up the paperwork. They both needed time together and for once, Ron didn't mind doing the work. When he got home, he found his wife hanging up the telephone she'd insisted they install with a frown.

Ron took off his Auror cloak and hung it on the hook by the door. "Hey, is everything all right?"

Hermione bit her lip. "I think so. Maybe I'm just overreacting."

Ron moved to pull her into his arms. "Tell me."

"It's… my mum has been acting strange."

"Strange how?"

"Well, remember how I told you how two months ago she called my dad Wendall? There's been little things like that that I've noticed since then and today she said it again. Then she asked me if I was coming home from Hogwarts for Christmas."

"Why would she ask you that?"

"I don't know," Hermione said. "Dad says that she's been stressed with all of the wedding planning and I know that's true, but what if she's experiencing some kind of side effect from me obliviating them?"

Ron's eyes softened. "Hermione… she's not." He cupped her face in his large hand, making her tilt her head back to look up at him. "You're the smartest witch I know. Hell, you're smarter than everyone I know. There's no way you messed up that spell. It's been over four years and they're both fine."

"Well, yes, but —

"Stress is a real thing. Look at what you were like when you wrote your OWLs or your NEWTS. Merlin, I had to remind you to eat. We forget things. It's human nature."

"But what if it is because of the spell?"

Ron pressed his lips against her forehead. "Then we'll fix it."

"I love you," she whispered, snuggling into his arms. "Thank you for always knowing just what I need."

"I do my best. Speaking of my best… we caught Ginny's stalker."

Hermione's hand slapped against his chest. "And you're just telling me now!"

"Well, you looked sad."

"I don't care if I looked sad! News like that — thank goddess! What happened?"

"It was Eman Hutchins"

"Hutchins… as in the Auror who was keeping guard on her?"

"Yup."

"How?"

Ron quickly launched into what had happened and how Hutchins had gotten it in his head that Ginny belonged with him.

"Oh gods," Hermione whispered. "How's Harry dealing with that?"

"I don't know," Ron admitted. "I sent him home to be with Ginny, but knowing him he's going to blame himself. From what we understand, Hutchins never even knew who Ginny was until Harry told him about her. Of course that's not Harry's fault, but we both know what he's like."

Hermione sighed. "He's going to hold himself personally responsible. Thank Merlin he has Ginny. She'll help him put into perspective."

"He's going to talk to McCraight some more too. He needs to get his head on straight with the baby coming in a few months and him blaming himself over this isn't going to help things."

"No, it won't. What about Ginny? Was she hurt?"

"No," Ron said. "She took him down and Theo finished him off. For a little thing, she's downright scary."

Hermione chuckled. "Yeah, she can be. Gods, if I hadn't cancelled on them this morning to do last minute wedding stuff with Mum, I would have been there at the yoga studio."

"It was Ginny rejecting his flowers that apparently set him off," Ron told her. "I'm grateful that you weren't there. It's bad enough that he tried to kidnap my sister let alone put you in his line of fire."

"He only wanted her," Hermione told him. "I doubt he would have hurt me."

"If you'd gotten in his way, he would have," Ron said. "By the time we brought him into interrogation, he was mental. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets an insanity plea."

Hermione frowned. "That's almost sad."

Ron snorted and kissed the top of her head. "Only you would feel pity him."

"I don't pity him, it's just… if he does have some kind of mental illness that made him act this way, it's sad. That's all I'm saying."

"And I adore you for that," Ron said, tilting her head up to kiss her. "Now, let's go upstairs and practice our honeymoon."

Hermione let out a strangled laugh. "Practice our honeymoon? Really?"

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Practice makes perfect."

Hermione laughed as he stood up with her in his arms and carried her upstairs to their bedroom. When he covered her body with his, she smiled up at him and Ron thought he could hardly wait until he made her his wife.

~ KE: Romione I ~

7th December 2003…

The wedding went off mostly without a hitch. Hermione's uncle Garth performed the ceremony and when Ron's eyes caught hers as her dad walked her down the aisle, he had tears in them when he looked at her. Her own eyes filled at the sight of it and she furiously blinked them back, grateful that Luna and Ginny had insisted she use a charm to prevent her makeup from smearing. Ron looked incredibly handsome, his thick red beard curving with his wide smile and his blue eyes looking at her like she was his everything.

It was more than she'd ever dreamed of.

She accepted Ron's hand as she stood in front of him in the old church and they promised to love, cherish, and take care of each other until death do they part. When his lips finally touched hers, she felt perfect.

Then her new husband of exactly one minute winked and whispered, "Told you it wasn't a fluke."

Hermione laughed, the sound surprising her, before she pulled Ron's face back down to hers and kissed him again to the sound of applause from their guests. They had the reception at the Canterbury Cathedral Hall, and it was just perfect for them. There were a few mishaps since Fred and George swapped some of the desserts for WWW sweets, but Bill helped take care of that before Hermione's family started asking too many questions while Molly lectured her sons.

"For Merlin's sake, you two are grown men and married! I shouldn't have to keep an eye on you two anymore!"

"I'm sorry, Molly," Fiadh said, holding their youngest daughter, Forest, in her arms. "He snuck them past me."

Molly waved her daughter-in-law off. "It's not your fault, dear. I shouldn't have forgotten that despite my boys being married, and one of them being a father of three, that they still need constant adult supervision."

George scoffed. "How dare you? We're the picture of innocence!"

Angelina elbowed her husband in the gut hard enough to steal his breath. "Do anything else to throw a Bludger in your brother's wedding and I'll take your leg."

"Hey!" George protested. "You can't! You wouldn't let me bring my cane!"

"Because your cane has an artistic rendition of my tits on them," Angelina exclaimed. "It's not wedding appropriate. Behave."

"Ange…"

Angelina gave her husband a look that made Hermione bite her lip and she thought, not for the first time, that George Weasley had definitely met his match with his wife.

When the DJ began to play, Hermione linked her hands behind Ron's neck as their song started. Her cousin Chloe had teased her when she fell in love with the song from the animated movie, but when she played it for Ron, his blue eyes had darkened and he'd said yes before the song even made it to the second verse.

"Yes. You're my beginning, my middle, and my end," he whispered before he kissed her lips.

Then he'd swept her into his arms and they danced in their living room before making love on the sofa.

Hermione smiled up at her husband now as the words washed over her. The DJ played a slowed version for them and it was perfectly them. She never felt happier than when she was standing in Ron's arms:

We were strangers, starting out on a journey
Never dreaming, what we'd have to go through
Now here we are, I'm suddenly standing
At the beginning with you
No one told me, I was going to find you
Unexpected, what you did to my heart
When I lost hope
You were there to remind me
This is the start
And life is a road and I wanna keep goin'
Love is a river I wanna keep flowin'
Life is a road now and forever wonderful journey
I'll be there when the world stops turning
I'll be there when the storm is through
In the end I want to be standing
At the beginning with you

Ron spun her out as they practiced at the end; then he dipped her and kissed her. When he pulled away, they were both smiling and ready to start their new beginning together.

~ KE: Romione I ~

March 2004…

Ron decided that being married definitely had perks. Of course, living together was basically the same, but now he could come home, find his wife and order her around whenever he wanted.

"Did you just demand that I sit on the counter and spread my thighs?" Hermione repeated, an eyebrow rising.

"No, I said take off your trousers and your knickers first, wife. I'm hungry."

Hermione's face flushed. "If you think for one second that I'm going to let you order me around — you're mistaken."

Ron took a step towards her, unbuttoning her trousers as he did. "I knew you'd make me do all the work. Can't I be the bossy one for once?"

Hermione's lips twitched. "I'm not bossy."

"Are too," he insisted.

"I'm not!"

"Let's agree to disagree on this one, love."

Hermione made a harumph sound and Ron pushed her trousers down her hips. "You still can't come home and just demand that I serve myself up to you."

Ron slid his hand into her knickers and let a finger stroke through her. The sound she made had him smirking. "Really? Because it seems like you're more than all right with it; soaked with excitement actually."

"Arse."

"Tut, tut. Listen to that language." At her scowl, he pulled his hand out and brought his finger to his lips. "Get up on the counter, Mrs Granger-Weasley."

Hermione had decided to hyphenate her name and Ron loved it. He loved that she wanted to take his name while still keeping his own. In fact, every time he called her Mrs Granger-Weasley, it turned him on more than he could express.

Hermione looked like she wanted to argue with him, but instead she stepped out of her knickers and her trousers and unbuttoned her blouse. Ron's mouth watered when she stood there in nothing but her bra. He always loved her curves, her round bottom, her thicker thighs, her gorgeously full breasts. Yes, coming home to this was definitely the best thing ever.

When she still made no move to hop onto the counter, Ron simply grabbed her by the waist and lifted her. She squealed, but then his big hands spread her legs and her breath came out in ragged huff.

Ron's lips twitched before he fell to his knees. "This is definitely the best thing to come to."

Then he used his mouth.

Hermione's fingers clutched his dark red hair, her head hitting the cupboard behind her. Merlin, when Ron got like this all she could do was hold on and go along for the ride. Being married somehow made all of this better. She loved it when he called her wife. It gave her a little thrill that she couldn't quite explain and as his tongue moved inside of her, her thighs clamped a little tighter around his head to hold him in place, his gorgeously thick beard rubbing against her thighs. When she came, she cried out his name and he stood up, a smug look on his face.

"Told you to listen to me."

Hermione smacked his arm lightly. "You're such a prat."

"You love it," he said, pulling her closer to the edge of the counter as Hermione unfastened his trousers.

When he slid into her, they both groaned, foreheads together as he took what he wanted. Then he covered her mouth with his for a long, deep kiss.

"Mmm, best welcome home ever."

Hermione chuckled. They cleaned themselves up and got dressed before Ron opened a bottle of wine and poured Hermione her favourite glass of red, helping himself to a beer.

"How was work today?" Hermione asked, taking a sip of her wine with a smile.

"Long," Ron admitted. "Wasn't much happening so it was mostly desk work. You?"

"The usual, but Aidan did share some news."

Ron lifted an eyebrow. "What kind of news?"

Hermione cleared her throat. "Well, as you know, he's been working hard to balance being a single dad to those girls since Julia died and he's hinted that he's been seeing someone, but he hasn't actually said anything officially. Then he told us today that he's engaged."

"Wow? Really. Good for him. How old are his girls now?"

"They'll be two in June."

"So, who's the lucky lady?"

"That's just it," Hermione said. "It's your cousin. Tiberius."

Ron's eyes widened to saucers. "What? Tiberius! Are you bloody joking?"

"No," Hermione said. "He came by the office today and Ron, they're very much in love."

"I don't doubt it. I just can't… bloody hell! Tiberius attended Hogwarts with Bill and from what I've heard, slept his way through the female population. I never even knew he liked blokes," Ron replied.

Hermione shrugged. "Aidan didn't know he liked blokes either, but like Aidan said after he left, sometimes you just meet the right person and your heart tells you what's best. They're planning on having a small ceremony this summer and Tiberius is adopting the girls."

"Wow," Ron said, shaking his head. "Just wow. I have to tell Bill."

Hermione laughed. "Don't you think that you should let Tiberius do that considering he and Bill are close?"

Ron scoffed. "That's not the Weasley way!"

Hermione watched him bend down to pick up Crookshanks when the cat curled around his ankles, scratching the squished face of their cat on the top of his head absently. "Of course it's not. How's Harry doing?"

"Better," Ron assured her. "Hutchins' final paperwork happened today. He was sentenced to five years in the crypt for stalking and an attempt to kidnap. It's not as long as we'd like, but hopefully it will be enough to set him straight. Now he's just worried about Ginny and the baby. Blimey, I still can't believe my little sister is having a baby."

"Less than two weeks until she's due," Hermione said. "The two of them are going to be great parents."

"Yeah, they will be," Ron agreed. "Of course, Sirius is still insisting that he's too young and good-looking to be a grandfather which I think is funny."

"He's going to be a wonderful grandfather," Hermione replied. "You watch, he'll take to it like it was what he was born to be."

"I have no doubt," Ron said. "Speaking of babies, I've been thinking that I might want one."

Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. "You want — now?"

Ron shrugged, moving to cage her in against the counter. "Not right this second, but with how excited Harry is and with George and Angelina expecting their first and Fred and Fiadh expecting their fourth, it's got me thinking that I might like to make a baby with you."

"Well, I…"

Ron pressed his lips to her forehead. "No pressure. I love you and if you want to wait another five years or ten, I will, but I just want you to know that I've been thinking about it."

Hermione stared into his blue eyes and hers softened. "Do you think we're ready?"

"Is anyone really truly ready?" Ron asked. "We have our house. We both have good jobs that we've settled into. I don't know, but I think maybe we are. I know we've only been married a few months, but we've been together a hell of a lot longer and… I want to make a family with you, Mione."

Emotion bubbled up inside of her and she swallowed it down, trying to make sense of what she was feeling. Part of her was absolutely terrified at the mere thought of having a baby as her brain screamed that it was much too soon, but another part of her, the part that remembered how devastated she'd been when she thought she'd been pregnant and hadn't been… yeah, she wanted to make a baby with this man.

"I can see you internally panicking," he teased.

"I'm not not panicking," she admitted. "Internally or otherwise I… I want that, Ron, I do, I just… I don't know."

"That's okay. We have to both want it. If you're not ready, you're not ready."

Hermione brushed a finger over his thick ginger beard. "How are you so perfect?"

"It's my winning personality and great arse."

She laughed. "Of course it is."

Ron pecked her lips. "I just want you to think about it, yeah?"

"I will," she promised.

"Good," Ron said. "Now, let's figure out what we're having for dinner. My appetizer wasn't filling enough."

Hermione gave him a stern look that made him laugh and slap her bottom and she thought life with Ron was almost perfect.

~ KE: Romione I ~

Life with Ron was definitely good. Harry and Ginny welcomed their first child on the fifth of April, the first Weasley grandson whom they named James Sirius Potter. He was completely doted on by everyone, especially the Weasley matriarch who was completely over the moon at the fact that her only daughter had given her the first born grandson. August brought two more grandsons, first was Fred and Fiadh's fourth, Fox Fabian Weasley on the ninth and then ten days later, on the nineteenth came George and Angelina's first, Gideon Aaron Weasley.

Between welcoming the new babies and watching the ever-expanding Weasley horde grow, Hermione found herself thinking more and more about her husband's words. It was why when they left the Burrow after the first family dinner welcoming Gideon, did she grab her husband's hand and hold it tightly in her own.

"I'm ready."

"Ready for what?"

"A baby."

"A — really?" Ron goggled, his eyes wide in astonishment. "I mean, are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Hermione told him. "Maybe it's baby fever with all of these new boys coming into the world, but Ron, I want to make a baby with you."

Ron's smile was wide enough to break his face as he picked her up and spun her around, making her laugh. "We're going to have a baby!"

Hermione laughed. "Well, not just yet, but yes, we are."

He grinned and put her on the ground only to scoop her up bridal style. "We'll work on that."

Then he ran up the stairs to throw her down on their bed so that they could get to work on making it a reality. The next few months were them constantly trying, working with when she was ovulating and keeping track. Each time the test came back negative, Hermione couldn't help the swell of disappointment from pooling in her gut.

Ron wrapped his arms around her from behind and kissed the top of her head. "It'll happen, Mione. I know it. We just have to be patient."

Hermione knew that Ron was right, but it still made it hard when it seemed like everyone around them was having babies. When Ron came home from pub night and told her that Greg had shared that he and Pansy were expecting again, she wanted to cry. She knew that these things took time, but sometimes she felt like it just wasn't going to happen for them.

In the meantime, they attended the small wedding of Aidan Cross and Tiberius Weasley in September, smiling as Tiberius took on the surname Cross and adopted little Devyn and Ivy to be his own daughters. The two men were very clearly in love and it brought a smile to her face. Theo and Sebastian finally announced their engagement in October with plans of marrying the following year and in November, Greg and Jean Granger decided to take a six month trip around Europe.

Ron and Hermione celebrated their first year wedding anniversary and Ron surprised her with a trip to Italy. They were going to stay in Harry and Ginny's place off of the Amalfi coast for a week to welcome in the new year and it was exactly the break they both needed. Hermione kept in touch with her parents through the communication mirrors and while her mother's strange behaviour before the wedding had seemed to taper off, she still checked in with her dad.

"She's fine, Jellybean," Greg said for the umpteenth time. "We're just getting older which means we forget things. It's human nature. You worry too much."

Despite her worries about her mum before the wedding, Jean's lapses in memory mostly seemed to settle. Hermione noticed that she forgot little things sometimes or messed up names of people she'd just met, but otherwise it was so minuscule that she barely noticed. Her father was probably right, it was just human nature.

Or so she thought, until a week before they were supposed to leave on their trip, her mother somehow drove her car into the tree by the house.

"Your father took the car in," Jean told Hermione when she rushed over to make sure her mother was all right. "I told you, it was nothing. Just a small bump on the head."

"What happened?" Hermione demanded.

"There's something wrong with the car," Jean said. "It wasn't working properly and I had it in reverse, but it drove forward instead. Like I said, it was a glitch andDad took it in to get fixed."

"Mum, are you sure that you just weren't distracted and accidentally put it in drive?"

"Of course not!" Jean exclaimed. "I'm not an imbecile, Hermione!"

Hermione thought better than to say anything else so when her dad came home with the car and claimed everything was running fine, she pursed her lips.

"Dad, she got confused."

Greg waved her off. "You're worrying too much. Accidents happen, Hermione. I'm sure your mum was overthinking about something and we just have to be grateful it was only a tree. She's fine, the car's fine. Don't worry about us."

"Dad, just… maybe don't let her drive if you rent any cars on your trip."

Greg gave her a look. "She won't. You know she doesn't like to drive in a foreign country, but she's fine, really."

Hermione wanted to believe her dad, but when she went by again a week later to help them pack up for their trip, she found her mum struggling with the buttons on one of her cardigan.

"Let me help, Mum," Hermione said, moving to assist her.

"Buttons are so slippery," Jean said. "My fingers are getting in the way."

"Must be," Hermione said with a smile. "There, all set."

When she wished her parents well on their trip and waved them off the day after the new year, she really hoped that she was overthinking things. Ron told her that if her dad was convinced, she had to trust him and she knew that he was right, but part of her was still concerned that she was at fault because of the memory charms she'd put on her parents. It had to be the only reason for why Jean seemed to be so off lately.

It was why when the test came back positive in early February, she stared at it in complete shock.

Ron's voice calling out that he was home was enough to jolt her out of staring at the stick in her hand. She headed downstairs, her eyes still on the pregnancy test as she found her husband in the living room.

"There you are," Ron said. "Listen to this, Baxter caught a case in Diagon Alley this afternoon. When they went to investigate the disturbance, the place was totally rigged. He arrived back at work completely covered in gold glitter! It was bloody hilarious."

"Ron —"

"— and then Harry and I are trying not to laugh, but he looks so bloody ridiculous as he's trying to explain how this place was booby trapped —"

"— Ron —"

"— and he's got gold glitter hanging off his bloody eyelashes and it's totally frosted the tips of his hair and it turns out, it was a total prank by some kids. Can you believe it?"

"Ron."

"What?" he asked. "Are you even listening to me? This is comedy gold, love."

Hermione waved the pregnancy test in her hand.

Ron frowned. "What's that?"

"I stopped by a pharmacy today to pick it up."

Ron's brow furrowed. "That's a Muggle potions place, yeah?"

"More or less," Hermione said. "This is a pregnancy test."

Ron's eyes widened. "A… what do you mean?"

"Well, it's… you see, you pee on it and it tells you if you're pregnant."

Ron took a step closer to her, his blue eyes zeroing in on the stick in her hand. "You pee on it and… did you?"

She nodded, biting her bottom lip. "I did."

Ron stared down at the stick. "And what does it say?"

"It's positive," she whispered.

"Positive?" he repeated.

"Yes."

"So that means…?"

"I'm pregnant."

Ron's face broke out into a huge grin, grabbing her face and kissing her passionately. "We're pregnant?"

"We're pregnant," she said, grinning back at him.

Ron beamed at her and pulled her down into his lap on the sofa to kiss her again. "Hermione… we're going to be parents."

"I know," she said. "Do you think we're ready?"

Ron brushed her hair back behind her ear with a huge smile. "If Fred and George can do it, we definitely can."

She laughed and captured his mouth with hers.

They were definitely ready.

~ KE: Romione I ~

Announcing it to the family was as always a fun challenge. FIrst of all, getting a word in with the Weasleys was hard enough, but when Ron finally bellowed out, "Oi!" Hermione felt the pressure as all eyes turned to them.

"If you lot would shut up for two seconds, we have news."

Bill raised an eyebrow. "Good news?"

"We're pregnant," Hermione blurted, her face lighting up.

Molly squealed and the next thing she knew everyone was moving up to hug them and congratulate them on their upcoming bundle of joy. Harry and Ginny immediately insisted that Hermione go see Padma at Carmenta's Clinic.

"Seriously, she's the best," Ginny said. "When Harry and I have another baby, I want her."

"Another baby? Got something to share?" George asked.

"No," Ginny said, giving her brother a look. "Jamie's not even a year old yet."

George scoffed. "Like that would stop you. Pretty sure you two were shagging an hour ago in the loo."

Ginny stuck her tongue out at her brother, but didn't deny it before she asked Hermione when she was due.

"The end of August," Hermione told her as Molly squealed in excitement about another summer baby.

Hermione exchanged a look with Ron and thought that the next few months were going to be very interesting.

Hermione spent her free time listening to classical music for the baby and Ron kissed her bump every time he came home or woke in the morning; Hermione thought it was the sweetest thing in the world. When they found out that it was going to be a girl, they were excited.

"I hope she looks just like you," Ron said.

Hermione grimaced. "Merlin, I hope not. I want her to have red hair."

Ron chuckled. "Red hair's almost a given with my family."

They shared the news with her parents through the communication mirror since Greg and Jean were enjoying their holiday somewhere in Greece when they announced the news. Greg told her how they went shopping and how he'd lost Jean in the crowd for almost an hour.

"It was so big in this market, we just got all turned around," he said with a chuckle.

But Hermione couldn't help but frown over that and this time, she was determined to research side effects from the charm. She went to Flourish and Blotts and purchased three books on the subject of memory charms which was where Ron found her when he came home.

"What are you doing?" he asked, plopping himself down onto the sofa.

"It says here: If a memory charm is performed improperly, it can erase significant portions of an individual's memory and cause brain damage in the frontal lobe. This includes forgetfulness, mixing up words, mixing up hot and cold temperatures, as well as language difficulties from using the wrong words to forgetting words entirely," Hermione read aloud. "When removing a memory charm, if the charm is not done with perfection it can often bring on signs of brain damage within months of removal."

Ron frowned. "Hermione, do you think that your mother has brain damage?"

Hermione slammed the book shut on the table. "I don't know! Ron, I just know that she's not acting like herself! Dad said that she got lost in the market."

"Hermione, they're in Greece. She's never been there before. It makes sense that she might have gotten turned around."

"And she burnt herself on the kettle."

"That was over a year ago and I burnt myself on the kettle last week."

"What if I gave her brain damage?"

Ron sighed and reached out to take his wife's hand. "Do you think you did?"

Hermione bit her bottom lip. "No. I know I performed that charm perfectly. I'm positive I did!"

"So why are you stressing yourself out over this?"

She sighed. "I can't explain it, Ron. There's just these little things that have been happening and… I'm worried."

"We'll keep in contact with your parents while they're on this trip and when they come home, we'll assess her, all right?"

"With a healer?"

"If you want," Ron said. "But try not to get ahead of yourself. It could be nothing."

Hermione definitely didn't think it was just nothing, but there were no other incidents that her parents shared when she spoke to them. They didn't return to England until June and by then, Hermione was hugely pregnant and so grateful to see her mum, she burst into tears at the sight of her.

"Oh, now, none of that, dear," Jean said, pulling her daughter close. "There was no way I was going to miss the birth of my granddaughter."

Jean hurried up into the room that Ron and Hermione were using for a nursery to see the progress and Greg draped an arm over his daughter's shoulders.

"My beautiful, Jellybean. You look radiant."

"You have to say that," Hermione told him.

"No, I don't," Greg said. "If you looked ugly I'd keep my mouth shut."

Hermione laughed and leaned into her father's shoulder. "I suppose that's all right then. How was Mum on the trip?"

"Nothing to worry about," he said, kissing the top of her head.

But when her parents left, Hermione leaned into Ron, worry in her voice.

"You noticed it, right?"

Ron let out a small sigh. "Yeah, I did. She asked me how Hogwarts was and then when I brought her out a tea, she told me she wanted coffee. When she drank the coffee, she said it was a strange tasting tea. They were just little things, Hermione."

"They might be little, but it's not just one thing, Ron. I'm worried that I messed up her head somehow. I think that we need to bring her in to St Mungo's."

"Hermione… they don't treat Muggles there."

"But this is the exception," Hermione insisted. "Ron, I put a powerful memory charm on her and it's affecting her brain."

Ron held her close and let out a slow breath. "I know that you think that's the cause, but you don't know that."

"There's nothing else it could be," Hermione replied. "It's the only thing that makes sense. We need a healer to take a look."

"Is your mum going to go for that?"

"I don't care," Hermione declared. "She's going to be a grandmother soon and I need to make sure she's ready for that, no matter what."

"All right," Ron relented. "Let me talk to my cousin and see if he knows someone who would be willing to take a look."

"Thank you," Hermione whispered, snuggling herself into his arms. "I just need to know for sure."

When Ron asked Tiberius about it, he shook his head.

"Ron, you know that we don't deal with Muggles. Even if this is a side effect from a memory charm, we only treat magical beings," Tiberius explained. "I can take a look, but the brain isn't my speciality."

When he left, Harry nudged Ron's shoulder. "What's that about, mate?"

"Hermione's mum," Ron began. "She's been forgetting things and Hermione is worried she damaged her mind in some way with the memory charm. The problem is St Mungo's doesn't treat Muggles."

Harry frowned. "Why would there be side effects now? It's almost six years later."

Ron shrugged. "I have no clue. We don't even know if it is a side effect, but you know how Hermione worries. She noticed it when we were planning our wedding, some little things, and we kind of put it off as wedding stress. But now… you know what she's like, once she gets something into her head; she's stubborn."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, that she is. Hey, I can ask Xander? He's a friend of Uncle Siri's and he's the one who removed the Horcrux from my brain ten years ago. The only thing is, it might take a while because he lives in Greece."

"We can wait," Ron told him. "Please, reach out. I don't want Hermione to keep worrying about this with the baby coming in two months."

"I got it," Harry assured him. "I'll send him an owl and get back to you."

By the time July came, Xander Papakonstantinou was finally able to come to England. He was more than happy to help Harry out and met Ron and Hermione at the Grangers' house in Heathgate.

"This is silly," Jean insisted when Xander explained what he was there for. "I'm fine."

Xander gave her a wide smile. "It never hurts just to make sure, Mrs Granger."

Hermione squeezed Ron's hand on one side and her father's on the other when Xander took Jean into the living room to run a few tests. It took him almost forty minutes and when he finally emerged from the room, Hermione let out a long breath that she hadn't realized she was holding.

"Well?"

"Mrs Granger told me that I could share with you that there's absolutely no residual side effects from the memory charm," Xander said. "The only thing present from what I can see is just a small smidge of a magical signature that is always present after a Muggle is subjected to magic."

"So, she's all right?" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes full of tears.

Xander closed up his healer bag as he spoke. "You can speak to your mum and check in."

Hermione let her father help her to her feet as she hurried into the living room to see her mum and Ron stood up to shake Xander's hand.

"Thanks again for coming out here like this. My wife's worried and you know how healers don't mix with Muggles," Ron said.

Xander nodded. "I understand. It's a pleasure to do a favour for a friend of Harry's. As I said, there's no residual damage or side effects from the magic, but she should go see her own doctor."

"Why? Is there something there?" Ron asked.

Xander pursed his lips. "I recommended she see her own doctor just to be sure. It's always a good idea just to get everything checked over."

Jean came out a moment later a big smile on her face. "See. I told you that I was fine. You lot were worried for no reason."

"We love you," Greg said, kissing his wife's cheek. "Let us worry."

Jean waved him off. "Now we can worry about more important things like this new baby we have coming next month. Are you going to tell us the name yet?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. Ron and I want to wait."

"Plus, we keep changing our minds," Ron added.

Jean smiled. "All right. We can wait."

Ron watched Hermione hug her mum tightly and he hoped that Jean took Xander's advice because he was starting to think maybe Hermione was right and there was something more going on that they weren't seeing.

By the time August arrived, Ron and Hermione were definitely getting excited to meet their new daughter. Between last minute changes to the nursery, which they'd agreed to paint light purple with a literary theme of a mix of Winnie the Pooh and Alice in Wonderland, and last minute check-ins with Padma, they were both feeling anxious. Luna made them a dangling book to hang over the cot and painted a white rabbit with a stopwatch on the wall standing at the edge of the hundred acre wood. They had "drink me" painted on bottles in one corner and Dean painted flowers on the walls with red roses to give off more of the theme.

Jean had purchased a giant stuffed Tigger and Piglet that were a metre tall each and the bedding was all Winnie the Pooh themed. Ron had never heard of either story before but when Hermione shared it with him, he agreed it was perfect for their little girl.

The week of Ginny's twenty-fourth birthday, Hermione finally went off work. Ron found her in the nursery folding baby clothes and slipped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"Hey, how was your first day home?"

"Long," Hermione admitted. "I read for a bit and had a nap. How was work?"

"All right," Ron said. "Harry had some news. Sebastian's missing."

"What?" Hermione exclaimed, turning in her husband's arms. "What do you mean missing?"

"I mean missing," Ron said. "He was out on a mission and he didn't check in. I don't know anything else, but I know that there's a team looking for him."

"Oh my gods," Hermione whispered, placing her hands over her stomach. "Theo must be losing his mind. They get married in less than a month."

"I know," Ron said. "They'll find him."

But when Ron went into work a few days later and found Harry sending a letter off with Hedwig, he lifted an eyebrow.

"When are you going?"

Harry gave him a look and urged him to sit closer to him. "I don't know if I am, not yet."

"But you want to."

"I want to help," Harry admitted. "I know it's not our job and I know that the MIA has more experience in this kind of rescue thing, but fuck that, Ron. This is Sebastian and Theo's losing his bloody mind and… there has to be something we can do."

"What did you have in mind?"

Harry dragged a hand through his hair. "I don't know. I just sent a letter out to Stepanchikov. He took over as Head Auror from Papa when he retired. MacGregor told me that Bas started out in Russia so I thought if anyone might know what the case is that they're working on, that would be it."

"And you think this Stepanchikov will help us?" Ron asked.

"Us?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you? Where you go, I go, mate."

Harry gave him a grateful look. "I'm hoping that he will even if just because of my connection to Misha. I'm waiting to hear back and then we'll see. Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll find him quickly before we even have to consider it."

They didn't and a week later, Ron found himself kissing Hermione goodbye and heading to Italy to help Harry recruit one Joseph Rossi for help. With the help of the former MIA agent, they were able to find Sebastian and Durant who had gone missing while attempting to rescue Sebastian. By the time they returned to England, Robards was livid.

"Who's dumb-arse idea was it to go gallivanting off to bloody Russia and poke their bleeding noses in MIA territory?" Robards demanded.

"That would be mine, Sir," Harry said.

Robards' eyes narrowed. "And Weasley?"

"I followed him, Sir."

Robards let out a harumph. "Just because Potter jumps doesn't mean you have to follow, Weasley. The MIA is trained to work with governments all over the world. What if something happened over there? The two of you had no bloody jurisdiction and no bloody business being over there!"

"He's our friend, Sir," Harry began.

Robards stared at Harry, his eye twitching. "You might be the Chosen One, Potter, but if you ever pull a stunt like this again you'll be the Fired One. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Sir," Harry said.

Robards let out a slow breath. "You're both suspended for two weeks without pay for going off half-cocked to solve a crime that you had no bloody business getting involved with in the first place and for falsely calling in sick while pursuing this."

"Yes, Sir," Harry and Ron both replied.

Robards pursed his lips. "Good. Dismissed."

They both turned to leave and Robards stopped them just before they got to the door.

"And damn good work, both of you," Robards growled. "But if anyone asks, I'll deny it. Now get out of my bloody office."

Harry and Ron grinned at each other as they closed the door behind them.

"He loves us," Ron said.

Harry chuckled. "Sometimes I'm not so sure. I knew we'd be in hot water, but I didn't expect to be suspended."

"Me neither," Ron admitted. "But that's your fault. We've both become too accustomed to you getting away with everything and me by default."

"I don't get away with everything," Harry replied. "That's an extreme over-exaggeration."

"No, it isn't," Ron insisted. "Ah well, look at it this way, it will give you more time to spend with my godson."

"And you with Hermione," Harry said. "Go home. I can't wait to meet my goddaughter."

"Who says you get to call godfather status?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Please."

Ron grinned. "You could at least act surprised when I get around to asking you."

Harry shrugged. "I'll think about it."

Ron gathered up his things and said goodnight to Harry before he headed home to see his wife. When he told her that Robards had suspended them, Hermione gave him a stern look.

"Suspended? I thought that you and Harry had permission from Robards to help with the MIA investigation?"

Ron grimaced. "Oh, um, yeah, I might have embellished on that part."

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes widening. "You aren't in school anymore! You can't just run off half-cocked and solve crimes wherever you bloody feel like it!"

"I wasn't," Ron insisted. "We just wanted to find Sebastian."

Hermione's eyes softened. "I know and I'm so happy that you brought him home. I can't imagine how stressed out Theo's been with the wedding in two weeks."

"And you? Are you going to be cross with me for going to help rescue him?"

"No," Hermione admitted. "But I do wish you'd think before you acted."

He chuckled. "Where's the fun in that plan?"

Hermione grimaced when she laughed and put a hand on the small of her back.

"You all right?" Ron asked, his brow furrowing.

"My back's been sore all day," she admitted. "I'm sure it's nothing."

It turned out to be something.

The next day, Ron called for Padma and when the witch arrived at the house, she informed them that Hermione was getting ready to have their baby. Harry and Ginny arrived with James to sit with Ron and he was grateful for their presence after Hermione kicked him out of the bedroom. Molly, Jean, and Greg popped in too as Ginny took James home to get him to bed.

Sixteen hours later, on the thirty-first of August, their daughter was finally born at a whomping four a half kilograms. She was a chubby adorable baby, not to mention the largest Weasley grandchild by far (before her it had been Gideon who'd been just under four kilograms).

"Rose," Ron whispered as Padma placed the little girl in her father's arms. "She definitely looks like a Rose, doesn't she?"

Hermione gave him a sleepy smile from the bed. "Our little Rose."

"She's perfect," Ron said, his eyes on the perfect lips red peach fuzz on the top of their little bundle of joy. He leaned in and kissed Hermione's forehead. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Hermione whispered. "Go introduce our daughter."

Ron grinned and carried his daughter down the stairs to where his family had gathered with a wide smile. "Everyone, I'd like for you to meet the newest Weasley: Rose Jean."

Jean was the first one up to sneak a look as Ron passed Rose into her grandmother's arms. "Hi, Rose. I'm your Grandma."

Molly and Greg looked down at her from either side of Jean and Ron smiled at the sight as Harry put an arm over his friend's shoulders.

"How's it feel, Dad?"

"Indescribable," Ron admitted, grinning at his friend. "I can't believe I'm a dad."

"Welcome to the club," Harry said. "Now, give me my goddaughter."

Ron chuckled. "You know you should really wait until I ask you officially and shit."

"All right, all right," Harry said. "Go on then."

"Piss off," Ron grumbled. "You already know that I'd never choose someone else over you."

"Exactly," Harry said. "Gin and I obviously get first godparent status."

"I never said anything about my sister being involved."

Harry stuck his tongue out at him. "Please."

Ron snorted as he watched his best mate head over to sneak a peek at his goddaughter with a smile. Life was pretty perfect right about now.

~ KE: Romione I ~

Being new parents, no matter how prepared they were, was a lot of work. Being parents as opposed to an aunt and uncle was a big difference. Rose was a good baby, but Hermione was positive she decided she needed attention the very second she closed her eyes. She was grateful for Molly and for her parents who stopped by almost daily to help out.

Jean and Greg watched Rose while Ron and Hermione went to Theo and Sebastian's wedding. Hermione only attended the ceremony before returning home and insisting that Ron stay to celebrate with their friends since Rose was only eleven days old. Even being away from her for only three hours had been hard and when she returned to take Rose from her parents, she couldn't help but frown. Seeing her mum every day since Rose had been born was really starting to show that there was something off about her. Watching her mum hold her granddaughter and talk to her made her question even more if Xander had really been sure that there was no permanent spell damage.

At first it had just been forgetting a few small things or calling Greg by the name Wendall, but then sometimes when she told stories she would mix up names. She kept calling Rose by the name Hermione and every time she reached for a nappy, she could never seem to recall what the word for it was.

By October, Hermione was really starting to worry and after weeks of begging, her mum finally agreed to go see their family physician. The physician, a woman named Dr Amber Adams, insisted on running through a bunch of tests to discover what it was that Jean was experiencing. She was sent for neurological examinations, CAT scans, and put through multiple cognitive tests.

It was enough tests that Hermione dove into research into Muggle medicine and the results she found were all things that she needed to worry about. From what she could tell, it sounded like her mother was experiencing some form of dementia and it terrified her.

"Hermione," Ron began when she told him what she found. "You have to let the doctors run their tests. Your research doesn't prove anything."

"But it makes sense," Hermione insisted, tears in her eyes. "She struggles with buttons. She forgets little things and keeps calling Rose by my name. The whole thing with the car, getting lost in the market, calling Dad by the name Wendall… I'm telling you, Ron, something's wrong with her and I think this is it."

For the first time in her life, Hermione hated that she was right because in January of 2006, Dr Adams finally gave her a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. Hermione stared at her mother as Greg told her that the disease explained her short-term memory loss, her language and comprehension difficulties, and in why it was taking her longer to do routine tasks.

Greg squeezed his wife's hand, bringing her fingers to his lips. "Hermione, it doesn't mean anything yet. Jean's still healthy and these are only little signs. Until things escalate, Dr Adams told us that we can keep our life the same."

"It's a mild case," Jean said. "Which means you don't have to worry about me. I have lots of time left to get to know my granddaughter."

When her parents left, Hermione immediately jumped back into research mode. She took Rose with her to the library at Cambridge and logged onto the internet first before diving into books on what she needed to know about the disease. All of the books told her the same thing, there was no cure and deterioration could happen quickly or slowly.

She spoke to Na'eemah about it at her sessions and her mind healer made her an appointment with a neurohealer where she could ask questions, but magic wasn't the solution. Alzheimer's had no cure, magical or Muggle, and no matter who she spoke to the answer was the same — ten years maximum life expectancy.

Ron found her crying when he came home and he immediately took Rose from her arms, snuggling the baby against his chest before pulling Hermione into his other side.

"It's going to be all right," he whispered, kissing her temple.

"She's going to die," Hermione sobbed. "She's going to forget who I am and there's no charm or magic spell that can make me change that."

"I know, love," Ron replied. "I'm so sorry. But we can't dwell on that, all right? Right now, she's doing well. Spend your time with her, let her get to know Rose. She still has years left."

Hermione knew her husband was right, but it didn't make her feel any better. She hated not being able to fix this. With all of the magic in the world, why was it that they couldn't cure an illness like his?

"Hermione, if they had a cure for this kind of damage, Neville's parents wouldn't have spent their lives in St Mungo's. The brain is a funny thing," Ron said. "As much as magic can do, disease is still an unknown. Look at all of the people who die of Dragon Pox or cancer… it's not fair, but we're not invincible."

It hardly made her feel any better, but after talking with both of her parents, they agreed that maybe hiring someone to help out around the house was for the best. It would be one less thing for Jean to have to worry about. In the meantime, Hermione spent a great deal of her time either at Heathgate or having her mum at the house to get to know little Rose.

The way her mum's face lit up at the sight of her granddaughter made Hermione grateful that she and Ron were able to give her mum this.

It was why a few months after Rose's first birthday when Hermione discovered she was pregnant again, they were thrilled. This one had come as a bit of a surprise to them as they hadn't been trying. When they learned that they were having a boy, Ron beamed at her.

"One of each. It's perfect."

Two months before their son was born, her grandfather on her father's side suffered a massive stroke and died before arriving at the hospital. Greg was a wreck and Hermione did everything she could to comfort her father while dealing with her own grief at seven months pregnant. When Helen Granger died a few weeks later of what the doctor's called a broken heart, Hermione sobbed in Ron's arms.

On top of losing her grandparents, her mum's condition had worsened. She was getting more and more forgetful of little things like leaving the oven on or forgetting her keys in the lock of the door. She'd gotten lost three times driving home from the market and when they told her that she couldn't drive anymore, she'd cried. They had to hire a nurse to help out more around the house as Greg's grief was too much for him to be able to help his wife with the things she needed.

On the thirteenth of July, 2007, Hermione and Ron welcomed their son into the world whom they named Hugo Harry Weasley after the grandfather she'd just lost. Greg cried as he held his grandson, thanking them for honouring his father's memory in that way. Jean held her grandson in awe, but kept calling him Rose. Hermione tried not to let it show that it bothered her.

After Hugo, Ron and Hermione spoke about having more children, but they ultimately decided that they were pleased with two. They talked about Ron going to get a vasectomy in the upcoming months and Ron agreed to make an appointment soon.

Harry and Ginny were expecting again in the fall and Ginny asked Harry if he would get a vasectomy as well. Hermione decided that she was doubly glad they'd discussed it as just before Rose's fifth birthday she found herself pregnant again.

"Bloody hell," Ron said when she told him. "You were already pregnant when I agreed to get fixed? How's that for a surprise?"

Hermione nodded, biting her bottom lip. "What do you think, Ron? Can we handle one more?"

Ron dragged a hand through his red hair and wrinkled his nose. "Guess we have to, but I have to admit, one more sounds pretty bloody great."

"Yeah?"

Ron pulled her close and kissed her forehead. "Yeah."

"What are the chances that this last one will not be the chubbiest baby known to man?"

Ron winked at her. "Want to bet this one tops out at an even five kilograms?"

"I will kill you, Ron Weasley," Hermione said with a scowl.

On Ron's thirty-first birthday, Hermione gave birth to their second son whom they decided to name Granger Ronald Weasley as a way of keeping Hermione's surname in the family (who thankfully didn't quite reach five kilograms but was pretty bloody close). A month later, Harry and Ron were both going to get their procedure done.

Hermione smiled at her friend when he showed up that morning with a smile.

"Hi, Hermione. Is Ron ready to go?"

"Are the two of you really going together?" Hermione asked, an amused smile on her lips.

Harry shrugged. "Moral support and all that."

"I need Harry's support," Ron said as he came down the stairs carrying Hugo. "I'm about to be neutered."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You make it sound so drastic. It's just a little snip."

"Yeah, well, it's down near some important bits."

"Mmhm," Hermione said, giving her husband an amused look. "Just remember that my important bits pushed out three wildly large children. At least yours will be quick and not go on for hours."

Ron grimaced. "Way to make me feel guilty, woman."

Harry scooped up Rose when she came running towards him. "Hi, Rosie."

Rose hugged Harry tightly before telling him all about her day at school. He listened attentively and Hermione couldn't help but smile. She loved how Harry always gave his full attention to whichever or whomever's child decided to tell him their life story. He was truly a great uncle and father.

"Say goodbye to Uncle Harry, Rose," Ron said. "We have to go if we're going to make our appointment."

"Bye!" Rose said as Hugo called out the same.

Hermione took Hugo from Ron, admiring his cinnamon curls and reminding herself she needed to take him for a haircut before they became too unruly. She kissed her husband goodbye and snorted when he told her to make sure they had ice for his bollocks.

"I love you. Go get snipped."

Harry laughed. "Ginny said something similar when I left."

"They're both evil, Harry," Ron said as the front door closed behind them. "Absolutely evil."

Hermione turned her attention to the kids and urged them to go play so that she could clean up the kitchen from their breakfast. Ginny sent word that Ron was at their house icing his bollocks with Harry while whining and she laughed at her husband's antics.

~ KE: Romione I ~

June 2011…

When Granger was three months old, Hermione, Ron, and Greg realized that it was time for them to make a decision about Jean. That summer she was moved into a nursing home as she was no longer capable of staying in her own home without twenty-four/seven supervision. Her memory had grown worse. She couldn't shower herself anymore and half the time needed help getting dressed. She didn't talk very much and when she did, it often didn't make sense. The quiet tone of their visits as Rose and Hugo tried to get their grandmother's attention was getting harder and harder to bear.

"Grandpa, how come Grandma doesn't talk anymore?" Rose asked.

Greg pulled Rose up onto his knee. "Even if she doesn't talk, Rosie, she listens. Never stop talking to her, all right?"

"All right," Rose said.

Hugo pulled out a big storybook and decided to read to her and Hermione thought it was the sweetest thing she'd ever seen. Their visits were only twice a week and each one was harder and harder to sit through.

When Greg showed up during breakfast one Tuesday in October, Hermione dropped the pitcher of juice on the floor the moment she saw his face.

"I'm sorry, Jellybean," he whispered, pulling his daughter into his arms. "They called me this morning. She passed in her sleep."

Ron herded the kids, who wanted to know why mummy was crying, as Hermione clung to her father, grieving the loss of her mother who had only been fifty-nine years old. Ron took the kids to school, taking Granger with him to give her a moment. Then he called in for both her and him.

When they buried Jean Granger a week later, the relief Hermione felt was almost as strong as her grief and it only made her cry into her husband's arms that much harder.

Ron held her close, kissing her temple, giving her the support she needed most. When her godmother, Monique came to hug her she commented on how beautiful her family was.

"Jean was so proud of you, Hermione," Monique told her. "Three grand babies for her to love, a loving husband, a full time career… you did her proud. Never forget how much she loved you."

"I won't," Hermione promised.

She hugged her father tightly, who promised he was all right and then she turned to Ron, burrowing herself in his warm, strong arms once more.

"Thank you."

"For what?" Ron asked.

"For always being here," Hermione whispered. "Sometimes, I don't know how I would survive without you."

Ron smiled and kissed the top of her head. "You'll never have to find out. I love you, Hermione Granger-Weasley."

"I love you, too."

And when Ron wrapped those strong arms around her, she knew that everything was going to turn out okay.

---

End Author's Notes:

I've mentioned Hermione's godmother before as well as her Nan and Nonno, but the others were mostly just a family tree I made years ago and never found a way to implement.

Family trees mentioned in this epilogue:

Émile Clement (1907) m. Marie (1939):
1. Jacques Clement (1944) m. Nell (1967):
a) Elise Clement (1969)
b) Adeline Clement (1973)
2. Luc Clement (1948) m. Louisa (1973):
a) Christian Clement (1975)
b) Chloe Clement (1979)
3. Jean Clement (1952) m. Greg Granger (1975):
a) Hermione Granger (1979) m. Ron Weasley (7 December 2003)
i) Rose Jean Weasley (31 August 2005)
ii) Hugo Harry Weasley (13 July 2007)
iii) Granger Ronald Weasley (1 March 2011)

Hugo Granger m. Helen (1939):
1. Garth Granger (1942) (lost his fiancée Annie) never married
2. Greg Granger (1950) m. Jean Clement (1975):
a) Hermione Granger (1979) m. Ron Weasley (7 December 2003)
i) Rose Jean Weasley (31 August 2005)
ii) Hugo Harry Weasley (13 July 2007)
iii) Granger Ronald Weasley (1 March 2011)

Fred Weasley and Fiadh Alexander:
Finley Artha Weasley (16 October 1998)
Felicity Ciara Weasley (16 October 1998)
Forest Georgina Weasley (7 February 2002)
Fox Fabian Weasley (9 August 2004)

George and Angelina Weasley (1999):
Gideon Aaron Weasley (19 August 2004)

Harry and Ginny Potter (2000):
James Sirius Potter (5 April 2004)
Albus Fleamont Potter (1 June 2006)
Lily Luna Potter (3 November 2007)

Pansy and Greg Goyle (1996):
Grayson Gregory Goyle (28 September 1997)
Gabriel Gregory Goyle (28 August 1998)
Gavin Gregory Goyle (28 April 2000)
Grant Gregory Goyle (28 January 2002)
Giselle Galilea Goyle (30 June 2005)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the lyrics to At the Beginning from the animated film Anastastia.

Playlist can be found in my pinned post on tumblr along with Ron and Hermione's wedding board, courtesy of the amazing Ellieoryan7447.

Hoped you enjoyed my little Romione epilogue. We'll see more of Harry and Ron in the next chapter. As you can see, there is some mix and match here.

Thank you very much and please review!