"Charles Weasley, would you please hold still?!" Hermione sighed in exasperation, swatting him playfully on his uninjured shoulder. "We're going to be late to the rehearsal if you don't let me finish."
"I'm trying to figure out how to tie this bloody thing," he retorted, calloused fingers fumbling with the silk tie he was supposed to wear. "Why do Muggles wear these things, anyway? Isn't it going to choke me?"
Her musical laugh eased his annoyance slightly, and he set the tie down beside him. "I'll help you with your tie once I finish fixing you," she assured him, and he felt tingling in the muscle of his shoulder as his tissue knit itself back together. "Only you would catch a talon from a Romanian Longhorn the day of your sister's rehearsal dinner. We can't have you bleeding through your shirt."
Hermione hummed softly as she worked, his flesh healing, and she ran a finger over the scar left behind. Pleased with her work, she brushed her lips along the new mark, and he shivered. "Hermione," he practically whined, his voice a low rumble in his throat. "Don't do that, or we're definitely going to be late."
She laughed again, patting him fondly on the back and then standing and smoothing her dress. "Do I look okay?"
Charlie took a moment to examine her, to really take her in. It had been a week since the fateful night she'd turned up on his doorstep, and Hermione had scarcely left. He'd spent every possible free moment by her side, completely immersed in her, and he couldn't think of a moment in his life when he'd been happier.
"You look perfect," he assured her, and she beamed at him. "I can't wait to show you off."
At that, Hermione looked surprised. Her eyebrows raised and she looked up at him curiously. "Show me off?" she echoed, and Charlie blanched.
"No, I mean–" he stammered. "I just thought–you know, since we're both going, anyway, and we're arriving together, I…"
She smiled softly and shook her head. "I wasn't sure if you'd be ready," she explained, shrugging a shoulder. "After everything. If you wanted to keep it between us until after the wedding–"
"No!" his outburst surprised them both. "Merlin, Hermione… all I want to do is tell the whole fucking world that you're mine. And for us, the world starts with our family, yeah? They should be the first ones to know, and as soon as possible–unless you're not ready?"
Hermione's soft hands curled around one of his, and his throat tightened with emotion at the way she looked up at him. "I'm ready, Charlie," she said earnestly. "Let's go."
The portkey landed them safely on the ground in the woods behind the Burrow. Dusk was falling and Charlie couldn't help but smile at the warm light that emanated from every window in the tall, crooked house. Despite his insistence to stay away, he truly did love this house. He had so many memories here, most of them good, and he couldn't help the fondness that settled in his chest as he reached for Hermione's hand and her fingers laced with his.
It was a warm night and fireflies blinked all around them as they walked to the house. They could already hear the dull roar of the chaos inside, and they shared a little smile between them. "Ready, love?"
Hermione beamed. "Ready," she assured him, leaning up on her toes to give him a kiss.
The last time Charlie and Hermione had been in this house together, he'd practically had to physically restrain himself to keep from drawing attention. He couldn't touch her, could barely speak to her for fear of revealing their secret. He'd been on edge, terrified of making a mess of things.
Now they sat at the dinner table together, his hand resting fondly on her thigh beneath the table. Now they stood on opposite sides of the altar during the wedding rehearsal, making eyes at each other and hardly listening. Now he led her into the night in full view of everyone, taking her up on his broom to show her the stars. Now they sat together at a beautifully set dining table, surrounded by their family, content.
Hermione laughed, then, at something Ginny had said to her, throwing her head back and clutching her chest. Charlie's breath caught at the way her hair glowed beneath the fairy lights, at the way her eyes shone and the way her smile made his heart skip a beat. Without a thought, he reached out, tucking a loose curl behind her ear, the scent of her coconut shampoo wafting toward him on the summer breeze. Suddenly that smile was beaming at him, and he leaned in to kiss her. A chorus of hooting and cheering echoed around them, and he pulled back to see her still smiling at him. "I love you," he murmured below the cacophony of their family and friends.
"I love you, too," she replied, placing her hand on his cheek.
"Looks like we've got another wedding to plan!" The outburst from a slightly tipsy Molly Weasley had everyone roaring with laughter, and the celebrations continued well into the night.