"Ginny, I feel myself growing older waiting for you!" Ron bellowed up the stairs at Grimmauld Place. He was looking forward to this night out with his family but Ginny was taking forever to get ready.

"Blimey, mate, your wife needs to get a move on."

Harry chuckled, "She'll be down in a minute, mate."

"So where are we going, anyway?" Ron asked.

"A Muggle pub in Kensington that one of Ginny's teammates told her about."

"Isn't Kensington a bit posh?"

"Well just be on good behavior," Harry said with a smirk.

"You two scrub up nice," Ginny said with a smile as she descended the stairs.

"About time, sis," Ron said as he walked for the front door but Harry was speechless at his wife's appearance. She looked stunning and he had to remind himself that she was married to him. How did he get so lucky?

She kissed her husband on the cheek and whispered in his ear, "Like what you see?"

"How am I supposed to keep an eye on Ron all night when you look so amazing? Between keeping other blokes away from you and just wanting to snog you all night, I'll be quite distracted."

"Just think of it this way, if the night is a success, you'll get handsomely rewarded."

Harry growled and grabbed Ginny's waist, "Sod it, they can go out, let go upstairs."

She giggled and kissed him and then headed for door.

An hour later Ron, Harry, Ginny, George, Charlie, Bill and even Percy were settled in at a table at the Kensington Arms pub. There were lots of laughs and Charlie was finishing a story about going to a Muggle pub with Bill and Fleur

"And that was the last time Fleur came out with us! We spent the night fighting off every bloke in the place."

"So that explains why our lovely sister-in-law didn't joint us tonight? Bill gets a bit jealous!" Ron laughed.

"You're one to talk," George said, "your jealous streak is legend."

Ron looked a bit confused but then remembered he'd been jealous about Harry's fame. "I grew out of that after the war."

"Ha, ask Herm, ouch!" George shouted and then looked at his sister who stomped on his foot and glared at him. At that moment George realized he almost spilled the beans.

"Right, Ronnie, you're all grown up now. A toast to Ronnie's maturity!" Everyone cheered and were relieved to find Ron oblivious to George's near gaffe.

"Come on, bro," Ginny said to George, "let's go to the bar and order another round."

They got to the bar and Ginny ordered another round of lagers. "Bro, you have to watch yourself,"

"I know Ginny, that was close. I'll slow down. It's weird, acting like she doesn't exist. She and Ron were such rocks for me after Fred. Pretending she's not a part of us, is harder than I thought."

"I know," Ginny said, "And hopefully we won't have to pretend for much longer." She hugged her brother and noticed a woman at the bar and something was a bit off about her. Ginny looked closer and then noticed the signs of a glamour charm.

"Go back to the table George, ok, they'll bring the next round. I'll be over in a moment."

George turned back towards the table and Ginny took a stool next to the glamoured woman.

"I didn't think glamour charms were your specialty. But I must admit, this one is pretty effective."

The mystery woman stayed silent so Ginny continued, "But this is a bad idea, Hermione."

Finally, the woman, a disguised Hermione, looked at Ginny, "I just couldn't help myself. I haven't seen him for more than a moment since before they left on that mission. I miss him. And," she continued with embarrassment in her voice, "A small part of me hoped he'd remember this place."

Ginny sympathized with her friend, "I know it's hard but you should go home. I fear this will only make you hurt more. Seeing him but not being able to speak to him."

Hermione sighed, "You're right. I know you're right."

"If only everyone just realized that at the start, things would be so much easier." She smiled and Hermione even chuckled. Hermione waved down the bartender to close out her tab. And then she gasped, "Ron's coming this way. Merlin, he looks handsome tonight."

"Keep it together Hermione. Go, I'll cover your tab." As Hermione got off her stool, she noticed that Ron did not turn to his sister but to a beautiful blonde at the other end of the bar. He said something that she couldn't hear and the blonde laughed and nodded her head. Then Ron flagged down the bartender and ordered the woman a drink.

"Ginny, he's" a lump in her throat stopped her from continuing.

"Go home. Now. I'll handle this." But tears were already falling from Hermione's eyes and Ginny didn't want her to make a scene. "Go to the loo, I'll meet you there." Ginny guided her towards the ladies' loo and marched back to the table.

"I leave you idiots alone for 5 minutes and Ron is buying a girl a drink!"

"Gin, relax," Charlie said, "the bird caught Ron's eye and he's going for it. But look at her, he doesn't stand a chance."

"Really," she said and she glanced at her brother at the bar, "They look pretty cozy to me."

Bill laughed, "Who knew Ronnie had game?" This elicited a laugh from the table and a smack of his arm from his sister.

"Can you keep an eye on him while I try to calm his wife down?"

"Hermione?" Harry asked, "She's here." The group starts looking around the pub.

"She came, in a glamour charm. Not her smartest moment but she desperately wanted to see Ron. And she did! She saw him hitting on a blonde at the bar. Now she's distraught in the toilet. So, again, can I trust you lot to keep an eye on him?"

The men all looked a bit sheepish, feeling for their sister-in-law. "We got him, Ginvera, promise." Percy asserted.

"Finance? Beauty and brains," Ron smiled at Christine, the Muggle woman he bought a drink for at the bar. Charlie dared him to have a go and he, along with his brothers, never thought Ron had a chance. But she'd been quite receptive. She was gorgeous; great figure with shoulder length blonde hair and stunning blue eyes.

"Well, you're brains and brawn, I suppose, working in a special law enforcement division."

"Don't give me too much credit," he laughed, "there's more boring paperwork involved than one might think."

She laughed and placed a hand on his arm. "You are refreshing, Ron. Most blokes brag about whatever they do but you seem very grounded. And I find that very attractive," she moved in closer and whispered, "And I've always fancied a ginger."

"I guess it's our lucky night then," he responded in a low husky voice that Christine definitely liked.

"Hermione, please, don't worry. I'm sure she politely accepted the drink and blew him off. It is Ron, after all."

Hermione was pacing in the ladies' loo, "Ginny, he's your brother! You don't see what other women see. Ron is handsome and fit and funny but not arrogant or pushy and over bearing. Girls like that. I've seen women flirt with Ron and sure he was oblivious to it but I wasn't. And did you see her? She's gorgeous! I can't compete with that!"

"You don't have to compete with her. He's your husband."

"Except not really. He doesn't know me; he has no idea we have a life together." Hermione let out a small scream, "I knew we should have told him right away. I don't care with that healer says, keeping this from him will blow up in all our faces. Especially mine!"

"Hermione, you're upset and you have every right to be. But I beg you, go home. Staying here will lead to nothing good. I'll get a grip on this situation and we'll have brunch tomorrow. Please, go home."

Hermione looked at Ginny, who looked so worried. She was right, nothing good would come from staying. She took a deep breath, "Ok, I'll go home."

Ginny let out a sigh of relief, opened the door to the loo and their eyes were met with the vision of Ron and Christine snogging in the hall outside the loos.

Ginny let out a gasp which broke the two apart. "Oh, hey, sis."

Hermione, still in her glamour charm, looked at the couple with a mixture of anguish and anger. "Gin, who's your friend?"

Hermione stared at her husband and even though she wanted to be angry, how could she?

"No one, just met in the loo. Have a good night, Ginny." And Hermione scampered out of the doorway and headed for the pub's back door. Ginny assumed it was to apparate home.

"Ron, what are you," she started as she shifted her attention back to her brother.

"Gin, can you tell the others thanks for a great a night. Christine and I are going to a quieter place to talk." They smiled at each other and Ginny knew that smile. That smile meant, find a place to snog in private. She'd smiled at Harry that way more than once.

"Ron, can I talk to you for just a moment?" She looked at Christine, "Excuse us."

She pulled Ron back towards the main room of the pub where she ran into Bill and Charlie, "There you are. We've been looking for you mate."

"You guys are doing a stellar job," Ginny glared at her oldest brothers and even though she was their baby sister that glare made them nervous. But she turned back to Ron, "Look, I agreed you needed a night out but we can't let you run off with some stranger you met in a pub! Not to mention she is a," and she whispered, "Muggle."

Ron laughed, "Gin, since when are you so uptight?"

"She may be right, Ron, you are a week out of hospital. And I know you feel fine but the healers," Bill argued.

"Are barmy," Ron retorted. "I'm fine, better than fine. This has been an amazing night now don't ruin it by being all overbearing on me. Ok? I'm a trained Auror, I can take care of myself."

He leaned over and kissed Ginny on the cheek, "Thanks for everything, Gin. And if I don't make back to Grimmauld Place tonight, don't worry, I'll be back at the Burrow for dinner tomorrow." He winked at her and nodded to his brothers and walked back over to Christine.

"Ready, love?"

She beamed at him and took his out stretched hand. George, Percy and Harry watched in shocked as Ron left the pub with the Muggle woman.

Ginny glared at her brothers, "What a disaster!"

Hermione was damn lucky she didn't splinch herself when she apparated to her flat. Because try as she might she could not hold the mixture of tears and anger at bay. Once she was safely in her flat, she cast a quick silencing charm and screamed. She screamed out of anger that she saw her husband snogging another woman; out of frustration over their situation; annoyance with her in-laws for planning this stupid night out. But mostly she screamed out of fear. Fear that was she going to lose her husband. The chances of this seem to be getting stronger by the day. And he'll find someone new and more beautiful who's less up tight and more fun. And he'll marry her while Hermione pines away for a lost love and lose her extended family in the process.

She sat in her lounge, horse from screaming and exhausted. She laid down on the couch but before she succumbed to another night of crying herself to sleep, she locked her floo and upgraded her wards to allow no one in. She didn't want to be found by Ginny or Harry and told, again, that everyone was going to be ok. Because nothing was going to be ok.

"She locked her floo! And blocked me from apparating!" Ginny huffed in exasperation.

Harry watched his wife, pacing in the lounge like a caged lioness. Though he knew his mind shouldn't wander this way, he couldn't help but find her incredibly sexy.

"Harry! Are you even listening to me?"

"Sorry, love. I know you're worried about Hermione. So am I but she clearly wants to be alone. Let her be."

Ginny threw herself down on the couch next to Harry. "You should have seen the look on her face when she saw them snogging. It was a combination of heart break and fury," she leaned her head in his shoulder, "This just keeps getting worse for her."

Harry nodded and again felt guilty because he was here with his arms around the love of his life while his best friend is alone.

"We have one more week. Next Sunday we're revealing everything to Ron and the next step can start."

"Hermione thinks we should have ignored the healers and told him from the start. I'm starting to agree with her."

Harry thought about that. "We can second guess our choices all we want but it won't change them. We listened to the healers. And let's be honest, it was a Muggle in a pub. Maybe they snog a little bit, it's not like the beginning of a relationship."

Ginny nodded but didn't feel any better. "I'm worried about her."

"Me too," he caressed her silky hair and they remained silent until the sound of an owl hooting in the kitchen called their attention. Ginny sprinted to the kitchen and noticed it was Hermione's owl.

"Thank Merlin!" She took the note and gave the owl a treat before he retreated from the window.

I won't be making our brunch tomorrow. This is no one's fault; I'm not angry with anyone. I just need to be alone.

Love,

Hermione

"Well, that's that." Harry said, "Let's just give her some space. It's late, let's get to bed." Harry led his reluctant wife upstairs.

The next morning all the Wesley siblings got a thank you note from Ron for the night before. He had a great time; it was just what he needed and he was looking forward to seeing everyone for dinner at the burrow that evening.

Angelina looked at the note, "Well sure sounds like your brother got lucky. I knew that pub night was a mistake."

George gulped and immediately felt guilty for Hermione. "Maybe it was."

When Ginny and Harry arrived at her parents Sunday evening, Arthur requested their presence in the shed. When they got there, the rest of her brothers were there minus Ron.

"Anyone care to explain what happened last night?"

No one volunteered so Arthur continued. "Well Ron said he had a lovely time. He was grateful to have family who care about him so much. Then he proceeds to tell me about a lovely Muggle woman he met. Gorgeous and brilliant, works in Muggle finance, not that he understands what that is exactly. He said they even have a date for Tuesday evening, to go to a Muggle Italian restaurant that she loves. He really likes her. So, now would anyone care to explain?"

The siblings were dumb founded. "It was supposed to be a simple night out at the pub and now your brother is apparently dating a Muggle. We need to fix this, immediately. Any suggestions?"

"Dad, this is my fault," Charlie said, "I encouraged him to approach that girl. I never thought it would go this far. I mean, honestly, she's out of his league."

"Some would say the same about Hermione," Ginny replied, "Dad, can you reach out to that Healer, ask if we can move up the plan to tell Ron the truth? It seems the only way to squash this before it starts."

"Yes, I'll owl her. And not a word to your mother. She will not react well."

They all agreed and left Arthur's shed. Harry and Ginny walked together. "This just keeps getting worse," she said.

Harry couldn't help but agree.