Chapter 79
Ginny POV
Being back home at the Burrow for Christmas had brought Ginny great joy. From the delicious smells wafting about the house from the kitchen, to the comfort of sleeping in her own bed, to the sounds of her parents' voices along with the laughter of her brothers who'd come home to visit as well ringing out through the sitting room, it had felt so good to be home. The only thing that was missing was Hermione, and her arrival was still much too far away for Ginny's liking.
On Christmas morning, Ginny was helping her mum prepare breakfast in the kitchen when she heard a knock at the front door. She shared a confused look with her mum, as everyone who'd said they'd be at the Burrow for Christmas were either preparing food in the kitchen or chatting in the sitting room.
"Bill! What a nice surprise!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed.
Ginny dropped what she was doing and ran around the corner to the front door. Bill was standing there, hugging their siblings, with Fleur standing right behind him.
"Bill! Oh, Bill!" Mrs. Weasley wailed, pushing past Ginny and the rest of her children to embrace her oldest son.
"Hello Mum," Bill said with a grin as he was squeezed tight.
As all of the greeting committee whisked Bill, closely followed by Fleur, into the sitting room, Ginny looked around at her family wondering if anyone else had noticed the ring on Fleur's left hand.
"Hello there, Fleur, it's wonderful to see you again," Mr. Weasley said kindly, pulling the blonde into a warm hug.
"It is wonderful to be seeing you again as well, Mr. Weasley," Fleur said politely with a smile.
Ginny was about to point the ring out to the group, when her mum let out a loud shriek, causing everyone to jump.
"Is that – Is that an engagement ring?" she asked Bill and Fleur.
"It is, yes," Bill said, grinning broadly.
"Way to go Bill!" George shouted, clapping him on the back.
"You've got quite fine taste, big brother!" Fred exclaimed with a grin. "I mean the ring, obviously, Mum!" he added as Mrs. Weasley shot him a stern look.
"Come, sit down," Mr. Weasley said motioning for the engaged couple to sit on the well-worn sofa. "Congratulations to the both of you. Have you thought about when you'll be getting married?" he asked, beaming at his eldest son.
Bill looked to Fleur, who spoke up "We were zinking zat ze summer would offer ze best opportunity to 'ave a beautiful outdoor wedding."
"That is a tad soon and you are a bit young… But oh, it really is just lovely you two! Where are you thinking of having it?" Mrs. Weasley asked from the armchair beside them.
"Well… We wanted to ask if we could possibly have it here, at the Burrow? It won't be a large wedding, mostly just our families and a few friends on either side, and we'd certainly help out in any way we could to get the place ready. I've just never found a more beautiful place than right here at home, and Fleur agrees completely," Bill said looking from his parents to Fleur with a smile.
Mrs. Weasley was sobbing with little to no restraint, while Mr. Weasley patted her hands gently, "We would be honored to host your wedding, Bill. Do you have a date in mind?"
"August 1st, if possible," Bill responded.
"Consider it done," Mr. Weasley said proudly, "Come now, Molly, calm down…" he added as he rubbed his wife's back.
"I'm just so – so happy and so – so proud! Our eldest son, engaged to be married and – and wanting to have the wedding at his childhood home!" Mrs. Weasley managed between sobs.
Ginny exchanged genuine smiles with Ron, Fred, and George. It was sweet that their mum was so touched by this, even though she did seem to be going a tad overboard.
Bill looked up at his siblings, "You can all bring a date. And Ron, please let Harry know that he is expected to be there, and that he can bring a date as well."
"Nice of you to give him an eight month head start on getting that sorted…" Ron said sarcastically before Ginny hit his arm with the back of her hand, "Ouch! What was that for?"
"Be nice! Harry's a great catch, he'll surely find someone to bring!"
"How you managed to secure yourself a girlfriend is still a mystery to all of us, little Ronnie," George said as he walked past Ron, ruffling his hair.
"All I had to do was ask…" Ron muttered, trying to smooth his hair.
"Really, that was all?" Fred asked shaking his head, "Did you consider taking her to Madam Pomfrey to have her head examined after she agreed?"
"Boys…" Mr. Weasley warned as Ginny, Fleur, and Bill laughed.
"Alright, alright. Come on George, I reckon that platter of homemade fudge isn't going to eat itself!" Fred said as George followed him into the kitchen.
"That is for this evening, do not lay a finger on it!" Mrs. Weasley warned sternly, getting up to follow the twins. Ron lumbered off and Mr. Weasley went outside to the garage, likely to tinker on one of the Muggle items he'd procured during his time at work.
Ginny looked across the sitting room and gave Bill and Fleur a genuine smile, "Congratulations you two! Really, this is fantastic news."
"Thank you, Gin," Bill said grinning back, "Now that we've got you alone, we actually wanted to ask you something."
"Oh?"
Bill nodded and looked at Fleur before continuing, "Fleur has asked her little sister Gabrielle to be a bridesmaid, and I wanted to ask you as well. What do you say?"
Ginny was stunned, "Really? You want me to be a bridesmaid? What about the others?"
"Charlie will be my best man, and after much thought, the only other sibling I want in our wedding is you," Bill said, giving her a soft smile. "I adore you, Gin, and it'd mean a lot to me to have you be in our wedding."
Ginny nodded, fighting back happy tears. She'd always looked up to Bill so much, with him being the oldest of her siblings. Even though he'd been off to Hogwarts by the time she was one and they hadn't gotten to spend a lot of time together over their relationship, it had always felt special when they did get to interact, and to find out the feelings were mutual was incredibly meaningful to Ginny.
"Excellent, Gabrielle will be thrilled to 'ave anuzzer bridesmaid with 'er," Fleur said, giving Ginny a warm smile.
Ginny nodded politely at Fleur, remembering suddenly that it had been through Gabrielle that she had found out about Juliette being "broken" last year, and by extension had led to she and Hermione finally getting together. While she was slightly curious as to how the Juliette was doing now, at the same time, she didn't want to know, and would prefer that they didn't speak about her during this visit, especially with Hermione arriving in the next couple of days.
"Bill 'ere 'as told me zat you 'ave managed to tie down ze legend zat destroyed Juliette Marat, I am assuming she will be your date to ze wedding?" Fleur asked.
"I – Uh, yes, Hermione and I are dating, and she'll be my date to the wedding, of course," Ginny said as she felt the blush crawl into her cheeks.
Fleur nodded and gave Ginny a knowing smile, "I would say zat I am impressed, but I myself am aware of ze power of ze Weasley charm…" she said, giving a loving look to Bill who smiled back.
Ginny blushed darker now at the beautiful witch's flattering words, and busied herself by fiddling with the Wizard's Chess pieces that were strewn across the coffee table between them to avoid intruding on what appeared to be a private look between the two of them.
"So – Uh, you'll tell me what kind of dress I need to get, then?" Ginny asked once Bill and Fleur looked back at her.
"You will not be needing to get a dress. My parents are wanting to provide ze dresses for you and Gabrielle, along with my wedding dress," Fleur said, "We are zinking gold, will zat work?"
"Of course, yeah, whatever you want," Ginny agreed enthusiastically.
"Excellent! Well, we should probably go try some of mum's fudge before the twins eat it all," Bill grinned while standing and offering a hand to Fleur.
"Ah yes, ze world famous fudge I keep 'earing about. Let's go and try some before we 'ave 'ad breakfast," Fleur said, shooting Ginny a knowing look. Ginny laughed a little, then followed them into the kitchen.
Christmas Day was quite lovely. Charlie and Percy arrived soon after breakfast, which allowed them all to finally open their gifts. They'd each received a new Weasley sweater, which Ginny loved opening every year as she knew her mum had made them out of love. Sappy, perhaps, but Ginny still genuinely enjoyed the gesture. Easily the best gift that was opened all morning was Ron's gift from Lavender. He'd initially been so excited as he tore into it, only to have that excitement replaced with what could only be described as pure horror as he held up a thick gold chain with gold letters that spelled out "My Sweetheart".
"Well, isn't that lovely?" George stated, fighting back laughter.
"What a beautiful necklace Ronnie, and so classy as well! Will you be wearing it on the train on the trip back then?" Fred added with his usual faux-genuine tone.
"Is zis some sort of a joke? Zat is from 'is girlfriend?" Fleur muttered under her breath to Ginny.
"Oh, I promise you it's not a joke at all… Once you meet her, you'll understand…" Ginny responded, laughing a little.
Ron was still dumbstruck, staring at the necklace, "She can't honestly think I'd wear this…"
"Put it on, Ron! Come on, now!" Fred insisted, getting to his feet and trying to take the gaudy necklace from Ron.
"Oh Fred, leave him alone! Ron, it's a very thoughtful gift… What did you send her?" Mrs. Weasley asked, clearly also trying her best not to laugh. Meanwhile, Mr. Weasley, Bill, and Charlie were all shaking as they tried to contain their laughter. Percy was the only one who appeared to find it to be a genuinely good gift, and Ginny wondered if he had sent something similar to his girlfriend, Audrey.
"I… A few Chocolate Frogs…" Ron stammered, again fixated on the heavy gold necklace in his hands.
The entire room gave him the same look of shock and disappointment.
"A few Chocolate Frogs? Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie…" Fred said, shaking his head.
"Oh Ron…" Mrs. Weasley added.
"What? That's a good gift!" Ron argued.
"Ron, how long have the two of you been together?" Ginny asked.
"I don't see how that's relevant…"
"Ron, it's been over two years… What were you thinking? Why wouldn't you get her something a little more meaningful?"
"What? Chocolate Frogs are great!"
"Yes, we know that you think they're great, but does she even like them?" Ginny asked.
Ron was silent.
"I hate to say it son, but I think you deserve that necklace if all you've sent her is a few Chocolate Frogs…" Mr. Weasley said. The entire room laughed as Ron blushed, then Fred snatched the necklace from him.
"Oi!" Ron exclaimed, burning even more red.
"Put it on me George! If little Ronnie won't wear it, I certainly will!" Fred announced with faux-pride as George clasped the thick gold chain around his neck to more laughter from the family. Even Ron couldn't help but join in this time.
"Your family is a bit more 'umerous zan I remember from last year…" Fleur muttered again to Ginny.
"Well, last year Ron didn't receive such a beautiful gift from his girlfriend to give the twins such easy material…" Ginny said with a laugh, "But it's always fairly loud and entertaining when the whole group is together. Are you sure you really want to join this family?" Ginny asked, grinning at Fleur.
Fleur smiled back, "As long as I get to be with Bill, I am fine."
Fleur was growing on Ginny. She hadn't thought much of her during the Triwizard Tournament, as she mostly paid attention to Cedric and Krum during the tasks, but to Ginny, she'd appeared to be tightly wound and standoffish. There was also that slight factor of her being part-Veela, but since they'd first met last Christmas, it seemed that Fleur had kept her promise to Bill not to engage her Veela charm when she was around the Weasleys. Fleur actually seemed to be quite genuine, and she clearly loved Bill, and at the end of the day, Ginny trusted Bill's judgment. Plus, it would probably be nice to have another girl in the family, since she was so heavily outnumbered.
Once they wrapped up opening presents, the rest of the day was spent relaxing. Ginny narrowly lost to Ron in a long, shockingly competitive game of Wizard's Chess, the twins were showing off their newest products to Bill and Charlie, and Fleur had offered to help Mrs. Weasley in the kitchen while Mr. Weasley and Percy discussed Ministry work in the sitting room. Ginny loved having everyone jammed into the small house, it had been far too quiet the past summer when it was just her, Ron and their parents. She also couldn't wait for Hermione to arrive, it'd felt like ages since she last saw her.
A few days had gone by, and Ginny was anxiously waiting by the front door, trying to distract herself by tidying some of the random items that had collected on the nearest windowsill. Hermione would be arriving any moment, and Ginny couldn't think of anything else.
"Haven't you heard? A watched cauldron never boils, Gin…" Charlie said as he walked up behind her.
Ginny anxiously ran a hand through her long red hair, "I know, I know! I just… I can't wait to see her, that's all."
Charlie chuckled, "Can't wait to give her your sweetheart necklace?"
Ginny laughed at this, "Yeah, no. Unlike Ron and Lavender, we typically try to give each other gifts that the other person will actually enjoy."
"Quite a concept," Charlie grinned.
"I know right?"
"So, would that include the significantly classier necklace that you have around your neck? G as in…?"
Ginny touched the necklace Hermione had given her for her birthday and looked up at Charlie, "Ginny…" she said slowly.
"Ah. I thought maybe Gryffindor?" he said with a wink.
Ginny laughed lightly and nudged Charlie, when she heard a knock at the door. Ginny looked up at Charlie with wide eyes.
"Well open it! I don't believe I was expecting anyone to stop by," Charlie laughed at Ginny's sudden nerves.
Ginny ran a hand through her hair one more time, and wrenched the door open. She was so taken by the beautiful girl standing in front of her, she didn't notice Crookshanks dart around her legs into the house, likely in search of Arnold. Hermione was wearing a thick, red sweater, jeans, and a light grey knitted hat, her loose brunette curls flowing out from underneath it. Her cheeks were slightly rosy from the cold, and her brown eyes seemed to twinkle as they looked into Ginny's. She was so beautiful, and Ginny couldn't take her eyes off of her.
"Hey you…" Hermione said with a soft smile. As soon as she spoke, it seemed to break Ginny out of her trance, and she rushed forward, wrapping her arms tightly around the brunette.
"I'm going to go see if Mum needs any help in the kitchen, great to see you, Hermione!" Charlie said before disappearing to the kitchen.
"I missed you…" Ginny whispered into Hermione's hair, still clutching her tightly to her.
"I missed you too. This week has felt long, hasn't it?"
"Blimey, it's only been a week?" Ginny laughed. "Oh no… We're becoming one of those pathetic couples who can't be apart from each other, aren't we?"
Hermione leaned back so she could look at Ginny and kissed her, "That most certainly does appear to be the case, but honestly, I don't care in the slightest," she said, smiling up at Ginny. Ginny returned the smile, before leaning down to kiss her again, a little bit deeper this time as she tried to pull the girl closer to her even though it was physically impossible.
"Oi! Enough of that!" Ron suddenly exclaimed from behind them. Both girls turned to look at Ron, but Ginny kept her arms firmly around Hermione.
"Just because we're bright enough to not get caught by Mum and Dad, doesn't give you the right to give us a hard time." Ginny said firmly.
Ron scowled, "But they did know, you weren't fooling anyone."
"And yet, they didn't manage to ever walk in on us, did they?"
"Yeah, they didn't… I'm still scarred from what I walked in on over the summer… That better not happen again…" Ron muttered.
Hermione gave him a disapproving look as Ginny's glare quickly turned into a smirk, "Then I'd steer clear of my room the next few days…"
Ron shot them a scandalized look as Hermione scolded Ginny, "Ginny!"
Ginny gave Hermione her best lopsided grin and felt Hermione's momentary anger melt away before the rest of her family met them at the front door.
"For goodness' sake, Ginny, get her inside! It's far too cold out to be greeting our guests outside! Hello dear, welcome back!" Mrs. Weasley smiled warmly at Hermione and pulled her in for a hug as the two of them stepped into the Burrow.
Ginny didn't appreciate the sudden separation of herself from Hermione, but acknowledged it as a necessity as it would likely be strange if she held onto the girl while she was greeted by the rest of her family. She'd just gotten so used to seeing her every day at school, that this week-long absence from each other had created a craving inside of her. She felt whole when Hermione was around, and she felt incredible when they were making any sort of physical contact, no matter how innocent it was. Something as simple and harmless as holding Hermione's hand these days made Ginny's entire body warm, and she couldn't get enough of it.
As Hermione greeted the Weasleys, Ginny tensed up slightly as Bill moved to introduce her to Fleur.
"Hermione, this is my fiancé, Fleur Delacour."
Hermione's eyebrows rose in shock, "Fiancé? Is this a new development? Congratulations, and it's lovely to meet you, Fleur. I enjoyed watching you in the Triwizard Tournament a few years back," Hermione said, giving the tall blonde witch a genuine smile.
Fleur nodded at her, "It is a pleasure meeting you as well, 'Ermione. I 'ave 'eard so much about you," Fleur smiled back.
Hermione looked affectionately at Ginny, clearly thinking Fleur had heard about her from Ginny. Ginny gave her a nervous smile back, hoping Hermione wouldn't think anything of it. She'd need to talk to Fleur about this at some point, as she didn't see the need for Juliette to be brought up in conversation at all in these next few days, or ever, really.
"Come on, let's take your stuff up to my room," Ginny suggested, taking Hermione's trunk from her and beginning to lug it up the stairs.
"Make it quick, girls, dinner is almost ready," Mrs. Weasley called after them.
Ron followed behind them, carrying one of Hermione's bags.
"Thanks Ron, that was nice of you," Hermione said as he dropped the bag outside of Ginny's door.
"I was just coming up to remind the two of you… This is a full house… No need for any funny business…" he said, narrowing his eyes at them.
Ginny dropped Hermione's trunk and started towards Ron, "How about you mind your own business and shut your mouth?" she said as Hermione grabbed her by the back of the sweater, holding her back.
"And what have we got here?" Fred asked, as he and George walked up the stairs towards them carrying a plate of their mum's fudge each.
"Why don't you leave the girls alone, Ronnie? Surely Hermione here will treat Ginny with more respect than you have Lavender," George added.
"Yeah, our Hermione would never be caught groping Ginny in the family bathroom," Fred said, biting into a piece of fudge.
"Who told you that?" Ron roared, as the girls laughed. He glared at them, assuming they were the culprits.
"Oi, calm down you lunatic!" Fred said, lightly hitting Ron's arm with the back of his fudge-wielding hand. "Harry told us when you lot came to visit our shop over the summer."
"He's dead…" Ron said through gritted teeth before stomping up the stairs towards his room.
"There you are, carry on!" George said with a smile, as he continued climbing the stairs as well.
"Not too much, though," Fred winked, following George.
Ginny and Hermione blushed slightly and laughed before Ginny bumped her door open with her hip and pulled Hermione's trunk inside, closely followed by Hermione and her bags. Crookshanks came bounding in after them, playfully tapping Arnold on the head, who seemed delighted to see his friend again. The two apparently disliked the week they'd spent apart, as they were often found together in Gryffindor Tower back at Hogwarts. They chased each other around the room for a few seconds before zooming out into the hall, Ginny closing the door behind them. As she turned to look back at Hermione, she found her gazing at her with a small smirk.
"Are you always this attractive when you wear your Weasley sweaters, or is it this year's color that's making you look extra fit?" she asked as she slowly made her way over to Ginny.
Ginny grinned, "Despite being in Gryffindor, green does tend to look good on me. I guess that bodes well for when I play for the Harpies in a few years."
"I love when you're confident about your future. I'm still so proud of you for talking to Gwenog Jones at Professor Slughorn's Christmas party. You were so charming, as I knew you would be if you just let yourself be you."
They were standing just in front of each other now, and Hermione was slowly pushing her hands up under the bottom of Ginny's sweater, running her thumbs across the ridges of her abs.
"You know what else I'm confident about?" Ginny asked softly, trying to keep her breathing steady as Hermione slowly worked her way further up her torso.
"What?" Hermione breathed against her lips.
Ginny's eye flicked from Hermione's down to her lips and back up. She wasn't sure how she'd been able to muster this much self-control, but she was pleased to find she was successfully fighting back the immense urge to crash her lips against Hermione's and forget all about what she was wanting to say.
No – This is important, she thought sternly.
Hermione smiled up at her knowingly as her hands inched up further, her thumbs resting on the bottom band of Ginny's sports bra while her fingers wrapped around her sides. She lifted an eyebrow as Ginny breathed in sharply at the touch and closed her eyes, trying so hard to focus.
"I – I'm confident about you, Hermione. And us. I know that we're young, far younger than Bill and Fleur, but their engagement has got me thinking…"
Ginny opened her eyes to find Hermione staring at her in concern, bordering on fear. Her hands were frozen on the bottom band of Ginny's sports bra, and the smile and single eyebrow lift had been replaced by a slightly open mouth and eyebrows knitted together.
"I'm not saying I want to get engaged or anything, I'm not crazy!" Ginny said quickly. Hermione's face relaxed. "I'm just saying, I'm confident about us, Hermione. Maybe more than anything else. I just… I can't imagine not being with you, you know?" Ginny said earnestly.
Hermione exhaled audibly and nodded, her hands moving around to Ginny's back to pull the younger girl into a hug.
"I love you, Ginny… I'm confident about us too. While I'm obviously not anywhere close to ready to get engaged, I certainly know what you mean when you say you can't imagine not being with me…" Hermione said softly, her eyes shining.
Ginny laughed, "I'm glad you agree, I thought I scared you there for a second!"
"Well, you did! Think about what you said, Ginny! Talking about Bill and Fleur and that their engagement had you thinking… What were you thinking in saying that?" Hermione said, shaking her head in amusement.
"Okay, yeah, good point… To be fair though, I'm not sure you have a right to be scared, seeing as I'm not the one who started all of this talk about the future…"
"What? I haven't – "
"'Compared to the rest of our lives…'" Ginny quoted her, raising an eyebrow and smiling.
Hermione rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile too, "Honestly, you are so lucky you're so cute…"
"I know…" Ginny grinned, leaning forward to capture Hermione's lips in hers for a soft kiss.
"Girls! Dinner's ready!" they heard Mrs. Weasley call from downstairs.
Ginny groaned lightly and leaned back against the closed door, Hermione coming with her as she rested her forehead against Ginny's.
"There will be plenty of alone time for us over the next few days… We'll find time, and I promise, I'll make it worth it…" Hermione whispered against her lips, leaning in for another soft kiss. As she pulled away, Ginny leaned forward to keep their lips connected, making Hermione chuckle lightly.
"Oi, Mum said it's time for dinner!" Ron yelled through the door, pounding on it roughly, "Ow!" they heard him cry out.
"That's what you get for being such a prat!" Fred exclaimed.
"Yeah, leave the girls alone!" they heard George add.
The girls giggled and quickly straightened their clothes before Ginny pulled the door open and headed downstairs for dinner, Hermione's hand in hers.
Hermione POV
After dinner, Hermione and Ginny were snuggled up on the sofa in the sitting room, enjoying mugs of hot chocolate by the fire, when Mrs. Weasley walked in carrying a present wrapped in brown paper packaging.
"Here, dear, this is for you!" Mrs. Weasley said, handing Hermione the gift.
Hermione looked at Ginny curiously, but Ginny just smiled and took a sip of her hot chocolate. Hermione set her mug down and carefully pulled the paper off, her jaw dropping slightly as she realized what was inside.
"You made me a sweater?" Hermione asked, staring up at Mrs. Weasley in disbelief.
"Yes, dear. To be honest, it feels a bit overdue, with you being friends with Ron for so long, but now that you're with Ginny, I couldn't possibly let another Christmas pass without knitting you one," Mrs. Weasley said, beaming at Hermione.
"I – I don't know what to say…" Hermione said, looking from the sweater to Mrs. Weasley. "Thank you, so much. This means so much to me, Molly," Hermione stood to wrap Mrs. Weasley in a tight hug.
"Thank you for taking such good care of my only daughter," Mrs. Weasley whispered into Hermione's hair, "And Ron, of course," she said as she pulled back. The two of them laughed, as Ginny smiled up at them.
"Go on, put it on!" Ginny encouraged.
Hermione pulled the grey sweater with scattered red stripes up over her head. It magically shrank itself to fit Hermione's body perfectly.
"I love the color, it matches my knit hat," Hermione said, giving Mrs. Weasley a smile.
Mrs. Weasley nodded as she admired her work, "Yes, Ginny picked out the grey, and I thought a few red stripes here and there would give a nice pop of Gryffindor color."
Hermione looked at Ginny, who gave her a knowing look in return, "You look incredible. It certainly fits just right," she said with a wink and a raise of her mug.
"Ginny!" both Hermione and Mrs. Weasley scolded at the same time in the exact same tone, making Ginny laugh out loud.
"What? Can't I admire beautiful craftsmanship?" she laughed again and grinned at the two women standing before her with matching stern looks.
"You are becoming more and more like Fred every day, I swear…" Mrs. Weasley said, eyeing her daughter disapprovingly. "This is why I'm so thankful that you've somehow managed to date one of the most polite and respectful young women I've ever met. Hopefully she'll remind you of the importance of manners."
"She's very kind to me, Molly. It's just every once in a while that she gets caught up in a mischievous streak…" Hermione said, "Rest assured, she's very good at taking care of me," she added, winking at Ginny just out of sight of Mrs. Weasley.
Ginny's cheeks burned the slightest bit of red at this and she coughed and covered her mouth with both hands to try and hide it.
"Well, that's good to hear. I'd like to think that at least one of my children will retain the manners I raised them with. God knows it went right out the window with my youngest three boys…" Mrs. Weasley said, shaking her head. "Well, I'll leave the two of you to your hot chocolates. I'm so glad you like your gift, dear. Goodnight you two!" she said as she began to climb the stairs.
Ginny got to her feet and walked over to Hermione, "It really does fit just right," she said as she looked over the sweater, "Do a spin for me."
"No, Ginny," Hermione said, giving her a stern, yet playful look.
"Come on… Please…" Ginny whined, jutting her bottom lip out just slightly.
Hermione sighed and obliged, slowly turning on the spot. When she returned to face Ginny, she found herself pulled into a searing kiss.
"Wha – What was that for?"
"I dunno. Just seeing you in a Weasley sweater… I like it…" Ginny said with a grin.
"Yes, I know you like the fit…" Hermione teased, stepping further in to Ginny and tucking a few strands of red hair behind her ear.
"It's not that. I mean yes, I do love how it fits you… But I like that you're wearing a Weasley sweater…" she said softly.
Hermione smiled at how sweet Ginny was being and touched their noses together before kissing her again, softer this time.
"Funny, I didn't see any mistletoe in here…"
The girls broke apart to find Bill hand in hand with Fleur, grinning as they walked into the sitting room.
"Just kidding, you two are fine," Bill added with a warm smile. Bill and Fleur sat down on the sofa, and Hermione and Ginny sat in the armchairs across from them.
"Is zat a sweater from Mrs. Weasley?" Fleur asked, admiring Hermione's sweater.
Hermione nodded, "It is. Is yours?"
Fleur nodded as well, "Yes, she did it in Beauxbatons colors. She is very zoughtful, zat woman."
Hermione nodded again in agreement as she took in the light blue sweater Fleur was wearing, and was momentarily reminded of Juliette and her Beauxbatons uniform before she quickly dismissed her from her thoughts.
"Ah, I should've brought in some of Mum's fudge. Gin, will you help me make a plate of her sweets?" Bill asked Ginny.
"Uh, sure…" Ginny said hesitantly, giving Hermione an almost worried look.
Hermione looked at her curiously as the two left the sitting room for the kitchen.
"Speaking of Beauxbatons, zere is a question I 'ave been dying to ask you, 'Ermione," Fleur said quickly and in a hushed tone.
"Yes?"
"'Ow did you do it? 'Ow did you turn Juliette Marat into someone 'oo is faithful and 'oo actually put a label on a relationship?"
"I – What?" Hermione managed, completely caught off guard by what Fleur had just asked her.
"'Ermione, you are a legend at Beauxbatons for taming Juliette Marat. No one 'ad managed to get 'er to settle down and be faithful to one person, ever. It was completely un'eard of before you came along. 'Ow did you do it?"
Hermione sat there, at a loss for words. She'd never thought much about the other students at Beauxbatons, or what they would think of her relationship with Juliette. She knew that Juliette wasn't exactly the relationship type, but had been with many girls before her, that had been abundantly clear from the beginning, but surely she couldn't have been the only one that Juliette had ever treated well at all, could she? And why was Fleur bringing it up now, when their relationship had ended over a year ago?
"I am curious because I was one of ze girls zat she spent time with at Beauxbatons," Fleur explained, her tone clearly trying to urge Hermione to respond.
Hermione's eyebrows shot up in surprise at this, and she stared at Fleur, trying to quickly process what had just been revealed.
"Hey there, what did we miss?" Bill asked as he re-entered the sitting room and sat on the sofa beside Fleur, followed by Ginny who sat in the armchair next to Hermione. Bill placed a tray of homemade sweets on the coffee table between them all and grabbed a piece of fudge before leaning back and putting an arm around Fleur.
"I was just asking 'Ermione about 'ow she managed to turn Juliette Marat into a faithful woman," Fleur said casually.
Hermione felt Ginny immediately look at her.
"Ah, yes. The infamous Juliette Marat – the only woman my fiancé has ever been with," Bill equally as casually as he bit into the piece of fudge.
Hermione and Ginny both looked at Bill, then Fleur, then each other.
"Fleur, you never mentioned that you had been with Juliette," Ginny said quickly. Hermione noted how tense Ginny's tone was.
Fleur shrugged, "I did not zink it was important."
"How would you think it wasn't important to mention that you had also dated my girlfriend's ex-girlfriend?" Ginny asked hotly.
"Ginny…" Bill warned.
"What?" Ginny snapped, "You don't find that to be vital information your fiancé could have shared with me while she tried to gouge me for information on my current girlfriend about their shared ex?"
"I did not date Juliette, she was very clear about zat…" Fleur mentioned calmly.
Hermione could feel Ginny's anger building, and she reached across to gently grab hold of her hand.
"I was just wanting to know 'ow 'Ermione 'ere got past ze stage of sneaking around from room to room under the protection of ze infamous Marat Imperturbable Charm… Zat is all…"
"…what?" Ginny asked in a small voice.
"Zat was Juliette's signature spell… We were to keep our romance a secret, so we would only meet under ze cover of ze Imperturbable Charm… A perfect one, at zat… Zat is 'ow she was able to juggle as many girls as she did when we were in school…"
Hermione felt Ginny turn to look at her, and she of course knew why. They'd been using the Imperturbable Charm since they had begun dating to sneak around the school and be together in secret. She'd mastered the Imperturbable Charm with the help of Juliette, who did indeed perform it perfectly while they were together. She'd never found it necessary to tell Ginny who'd helped her get so good at it, but as Ginny stared at her with hurt, betrayed eyes, she wished now that she had.
"Ginny…" Hermione said softly, squeezing her hand gently.
Ginny pulled her hand from Hermione's and stood up quickly, looking around at the three of them before bounding up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Hermione stood to follow her, but stopped when she heard Bill's calm voice.
"Allow me, Hermione…" Bill said as he took his arm from around Fleur and stood, stretched, and followed his youngest sibling upstairs.
Hermione leaned back in the armchair, worried about Ginny and how she must be feeling. Fleur must've noticed the worry on Hermione's face, as she stood up as well and walked over to sit in the armchair beside Hermione.
"I am sorry, I was not meaning to cause an issue between yourself and Ginny," Fleur said genuinely, "I 'ave just never 'eard of such a thing, someone 'aving the ability to not only tame, but break Juliette as well."
Hermione furrowed her brow, "What do you mean by 'break'?"
"According to my sister, last year at Beauxbatons she was very much a broken shell of 'oo she was before she met you."
"What do you mean? How so?" Hermione asked quietly.
"She did not engage with anyone outside of Quidditch. According to Gabrielle, Quidditch and 'er classwork was 'er only focus. A stark contrast to 'ow she previously 'ad spent 'er time, romancing any girl 'oo walked 'er way…"
Hermione felt sick to her stomach. She'd tried not to think of Juliette since they'd broken up, and fortunately it hadn't been difficult to keep her from her mind now that she was so blissfully happy with Ginny, but this sudden reemergence of the girl into her thoughts didn't feel good, at all.
Was this why she hadn't reached out? Was she still struggling with the break-up? That can't be… It's been over a year... We were only together for what, six months?
Hermione frowned as she thought about her ex, who apparently had also been intimate with Ginny's soon to be sister-in-law. Hermione looked over at Fleur, taking in how strikingly beautiful she was, and wondered how gorgeous the other girls Juliette had been with were. She stopped herself from ruminating and refocused on Fleur.
"Is it such a bad thing, that she's focusing on her future?" Hermione asked tersely.
Fleur shrugged, "I am not saying zat ze effect you 'ad on 'er was a bad zing, I am just curious about 'ow you managed to do it. You are a beautiful girl, 'Ermione, do not get me wrong, you just appeared to 'ave such a 'old on 'er while at 'Ogwarts, and zen to 'ave 'er change so much… It is quite impressive…" Fleur smiled at her, and Hermione immediately felt something begin to stir inside of her, and her head started to feel a bit hazy. She shook her head firmly, and again refocused on Fleur, frowning at the woman who was looking at her curiously now.
"I cared about her, genuinely. Before we'd even really begun to spend much time together, I cared about her as a person, and I think that was the difference. I didn't care about her looks or her fame or her money, I cared about her."
Fleur nodded, "I will admit zat in my younger years I did not care much for people beyond zeir looks and what zey could provide for me. With Juliette, I wanted to see what ze fuss was about. I do not 'ave to tell you zat she did live up to 'er reputation in zat regard…"
Hermione felt her cheeks heat up slightly, but retained her frown at Fleur.
"It is admirable, ze change zat you made in 'er. When I look at it from your perspective, zat she is focusing on 'er future and possibly growing up, you 'ave evidently changed 'er for ze better."
"I'm going to go check on Ginny…" Hermione said softly, not wanting to talk about Juliette any longer.
"'Ermione, I 'ope you will accept my apology in my nosiness. I did not mean to make you feel uncomfortable, or upset Ginny."
"It's fine, I just believe the conversation has come to a conclusion, and I don't want to spend any more time on Juliette when my current girlfriend is upset upstairs," Hermione said firmly, getting up from the armchair and making her way upstairs.
Even though she'd tried to assert that what Fleur considered as Juliette being broken was actually her focusing on her future and taking herself seriously, Hermione was still worried about her, and that made her feel uncomfortable. She didn't want to be worrying about a girl she hadn't spoken to in over a year, she wanted to focus only on Ginny. Hoping Fleur would drop this conversation and that her answer tonight had been sufficient enough, Hermione pushed it to the back of her mind as she approached Ginny's closed door and knocked.
Ginny POV
"Ginny…" Hermione said softly, squeezing her hand gently.
Ginny pulled her hand from Hermione's and stood up quickly, looking around at the three of them before bounding up the stairs, taking them two at a time. She could feel tears starting to form behind her eyes and that was the last thing she wanted to do in this moment – cry in front of everyone like a child.
As she shut her door behind her, she walked to the cot she'd now be sleeping on since Hermione had arrived, laid down on it, and covered her face with her arms, trying to will herself not to cry. It was ridiculous that she was so upset that Hermione and Juliette had used the same charm they had been using the past few months, but for some reason, it was still eliciting something in Ginny that she'd hadn't felt in a while. It was a mixture of heartbreak and jealousy, which, while Ginny truly knew it wasn't completely warranted, wasn't something she was easily able to set it aside either. Tears began to leak from her eyes and dampen her forearms, and she pressed her arms into her face harder, trying desperately to stop the tears from coming. She heard a gentle knock at the door, and sat up.
"Who is it?" she managed, hoping her voice didn't sound at all like she'd been crying.
"It's Bill," she heard through the door, "Can I come in?"
Ginny paused, then wiped her tears with the sleeve of her sweater and walked over to open the door. Bill was standing there with a sympathetic look on his face. Ginny turned and went to go sit back down on the cot, while Bill walked over to her bed and sat down across from her. He was giving her the same look their dad often had on his face when she'd blown up at Ron, Fred or George for something they'd done that had then been deemed an overreaction on her part.
"I am not overreacting…" Ginny stated firmly, glaring at Bill.
"I didn't say you were," he said calmly.
"You've got the same look on your face that Dad uses…"
Bill chuckled, "I just didn't want to add to the emotions you're having right now. You're entitled to them. It took me a moment to process Fleur having been with a woman, but the shock wore off rather quickly…"
"I don't care that Fleur was with Juliette… I care that she didn't tell me about it when she was asking about her and Hermione. That was sneaky, and I don't appreciate it…"
Bill nodded, "Fair enough. She should have disclosed all of the information she had when she spoke to you about it, yes… What else?"
Ginny furrowed her brow, "What do you mean, what else?"
"I noticed your anger changed to hurt pretty quickly when Fleur mentioned meeting up with Juliette under the protection of an Imperturbable Charm… Why?"
Ginny looked out her window, unsure of if she wanted Bill to know what she and Hermione had been up to over the past few months at school…
"I know that when I was in school, I often did that exact thing with any girl I was seeing at the time… After all, there's not much privacy at Hogwarts, is there?"
Ginny turned back to find Bill smiling at her sympathetically again.
"Ginny, I have seen the way you and Hermione interact. Surely, your relationship has progressed past holding hands and the occasional kiss. It is none of my business, really, but I think you should go easy on Hermione, if that's why you're upset with her…"
"She didn't tell me she did the same thing with Juliette that she's been doing with me…" Ginny muttered, a pang of hurt hitting her again.
"She doesn't need to disclose every detail of her other relationships with you, does she? Isn't she entitled to keep those memories to herself? If you two were to break up, would you want her telling her next girlfriend all about what the two of you had done?"
Ginny was quiet as she processed this, hating how logical it was and that it drove further the point that she really had no right to be upset, "No…" she mumbled.
"You are entitled to feel your feelings here, but as your oldest, and therefore easily wisest brother," Bill grinned at her, "I advise you to not hold onto it too long, or hold it against Hermione. It is clear that she cares about you, and it would be a shame for this to get between you two."
Ginny nodded slowly, taking in what Bill had said, "Thanks Bill…"
He smiled at her warmly, "Anytime, Gin."
"So… You're really okay that Fleur was with a girl?"
Bill raised his eyebrows, "I would think that you would know I'm far less close-minded than to be bothered by something like that…"
"Good point…"
"Are you bothered by it?"
"What? No. I mean – Not for that reason. I'm bothered that it was Juliette and that she and Hermione both had some sort of relationship with her… It's just odd…"
Bill shrugged, "It has no effect on my relationship with Fleur, so I'm not worried in the slightest."
They heard a light knock at the door.
Bill smiled, "That must be Hermione. I'll leave the two of you to talk. See you in the morning, okay Gin?"
Ginny nodded, "Goodnight, Bill. And thanks."
He nodded and opened the door to show a reluctant looking Hermione, "Goodnight, Hermione," he said with a kind smile as he passed her.
Hermione walked in slowly, giving Ginny a cautious look, "Is it alright if I come in?"
Ginny nodded, "Of course. You'll be sleeping here tonight, won't you?"
Hermione nodded as well, and walked into the room.
"I'm sorry for how I reacted downstairs, Hermione…"
Hermione sat down where Bill had been sitting, on the bed across from Ginny, "Why did you get so upset?"
Ginny sighed, "Juliette's just a hot button for me, I guess… And hearing that you and her had been sneaking around the exact same way we had been felt... Awful…"
"I wasn't trying to hide anything from you, Ginny. Had I known you'd be so upset finding out about it after the fact, I would've told you from the very beginning. Honestly, I just didn't find it to be very important and – "
"Hermione…" Ginny interrupted, "It's okay, really… You didn't owe me any details about your relationship with Juliette, and I know you weren't trying to hurt me or hide anything from me. I guess I just…" Ginny trailed off and looked down.
"You just what?" Hermione asked.
Ginny shook her head, "It's dumb…"
Hermione got up and crossed the room to sit beside Ginny.
"I'm sure it's not, what is it?" Hermione asked softly.
"It doesn't feel like our thing anymore…"
"What doesn't?"
"Sneaking around the castle, using the Imperturbable Charm... It just makes me sad that it's not as special anymore…"
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I never took her to the Prefects' bathroom…"
Ginny gave Hermione a look, "You didn't have access to it back then…"
"It still doesn't change the fact that I never took her there, but you and I went there… I'd also never done what we did in there with her…"
Ginny's face softened at the memory of holding Hermione, their skin pressed together.
"Well… I guess I do like that…" Ginny admitted.
Hermione rolled her eyes lightly and smiled, "Well there you go, then."
Ginny was quiet for a moment, before she looked at Hermione, "When we get back, I want you to take me somewhere you never went with Juliette… Besides the Prefects' bathroom… Somewhere you could've gone with her, but didn't…"
Hermione looked at her, studying her face, before a small, almost mischievous smile made its way onto her lips, "Alright… I know exactly the place, actually."
"Where?" Ginny asked excitedly.
"Oh no, it's going to be a surprise…" Hermione said coyly.
"Hermione…" Ginny whined.
"If you want to feel special, Ginny, you'll just have to wait and see…" Hermione teased lightly, touching the tip of Ginny's nose affectionately.
"Fine…" Ginny conceded, leaning forward slightly and touching her nose to Hermione's before tipping her head and kissing her softly.
"So, are we okay…?" Hermione asked against Ginny's lips.
"Mmhmm," Ginny hummed against Hermione as she moved to deepen the kiss. It had been a long day, and Ginny was tired of talking, and couldn't wait to put her lips to better use.