FIC--Brothers, Chapter 5

[ficsbydeenas]

Title: Brothers, chapter 5 of 5
Pairings: Harry/Ginny, Ron/Hermione
Rating: PG13 with some language
Summary: After the war, all Ron wanted was to have a "normal" life: play Quidditch, share a flat with Harry, and enjoy being a bachelor. Harry's idea of a "normal" life includes changing his relationship with Ginny. But mistakes, angry words and mountains of pride begin to tear Harry and Ron apart until Ginny and Hermione take things into their own hands.
Betas: miss_elisha, redhot_witch and oncelikeshari
Authors: deena_s and fizzmonkeys
deena_s's Author Note: Sorry for the long wait on this chapter. We revamped some of the things and it took some time. This chapter is emotional with some sappy bits, but hey, they're trying to rebuild trust in each other, so that's necessary, folks. There is an epilogue and a special surprise, thanks to thesteppyone who is a goddess in disguise. So read, love, review....

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CHAPTER FIVE

"Even if we never talk again after tonight, please remember that I am forever changed by who you are and what you meant to me"
-Chasing Amy

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I knew practice was going to be difficult to get through today. Coach Samuels nearly took my head off each time he thought it was taking me too long to find the Snitch. The whispers and scowls from the team were enough to make me want to crawl into a hole. And Ron, let’s not forget him. I couldn’t escape his glaring daggers. Every time our eyes met, I felt like I was going to be sick.

I knew he was going to be far more upset with me than any of the others, especially after he’d just played one of the best matches of his life. Who could blame him? After all that hard work he’d put in, not a minute of it paid off…because of me.

I Apparate home almost immediately after practice, not even staying to clean up. I drop my bag and prop up my broom next to the door once I’m steady enough to focus and look around sluggishly, not finding a single sign of Ginny.

“Gin,” I call out, almost believing that she’ll come walking out of my bedroom, letting me wrap my arms around her in a tight embrace. Unfortunately, all that meets me is silence and I can’t help but feel my heart break even more.

Slowly, I make my way to the loo for a long, hot shower, needing something, anything to help me unwind.

After changing into my favourite green jumper that Ginny gave me for Christmas and a pair of jeans, I walk down the corridor into the kitchen to grab a bottle of Butterbeer out of the ice box.

I stop before heading into the sitting room to lean against the doorframe, taking a swig of my cold drink and letting the icy sensation flow down my throat. I rub my eyes wearily, having not got much sleep since Ron left. There have been too many thoughts weighing on my mind, leaving me tossing and turning most nights.

I give a heavy sigh, wishing desperately that Ginny was here right now just to be able to curl up in bed with her, feeling her heartbeat against mine. But I don’t blame her after last night. I had no right to yell at her and I hated myself for things even getting to that point. It’s a wonder she still loves me after everything I’ve put her through this week. I just don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have her.

She’s the only reason I haven’t locked myself in here with an unending supply of Firewhisky, drinking the pain away.

I walk over to the sofa and fall onto it, glancing down at the box of pictures that I notice on the floor. Picking it up, I frown when I realize that the picture of me and Ron at The Burrow is gone.

That’s strange, I know I put it in here last night.

I begin looking around the flat, searching for the picture until I glance up at the mantle to find it standing there with a letter propped against it. I narrow my eyes on the envelope as I stand up to get a closer look.

Harry, I read, picking up the letter and opening the envelope.

Harry…

I wish the way that we left things last night had been different. But I still think that you and Ron need to work things out.

I miss us all being happy. I miss having my brother around. I don’t like being torn between the two of you.

I want both of you to be best mates again. To be happy like you were in this picture…

Don’t you want that? Don’t you miss that?

I’ll see you later.

I love you…always.

Ginny

My arm drops to my side, fingers barely keeping their remaining grip on the letter in my hand. Disappointment settles in my heart as I think about the pain that Ron and I have been causing Ginny. I am such a git.

I lift my eyes to the picture again, feeling the misting tears well up. I’ve never been as disappointed in myself as I am right now. I let things get too far out of hand, let them get so bad that… No, I don’t want to think about losing him. I’ve really botched things up this time, haven’t I? I think to myself, taking hold of the picture.

Suddenly, I feel a familiar jerking tug behind my navel and without warning, the ground disappears beneath me. Moments later I find myself stumbling forward, slightly disoriented, and falling hard onto my hands and knees, my fingers still wrapped around the edge of the frame, pressing hard onto it with half my weight.

Damnit, Ginny. What are you up to? I stand up quickly, wondering to myself where exactly I’d been transported to. But to my surprise, I find something there--wherever there was--that I hadn’t expected to find.

“Ron? Arthur? What the hell am I doing here?” I ask them, utterly confused as to what’s going on.

I glance at Ron briefly to find him averting his eyes from me. Mr. Weasley’s voice is enough to quickly draw my attention back to the situation at hand.

“Harry, so pleased you could join us.”

“Well, apparently I didn’t have much of a choice.” My voice is sharp as I suddenly recall the vision of Ron and me in the picture that I’m still clutching. I watch my soon to be father-in-law flinch at my harsh tone and I scold myself silently.

“Sorry,” I say sheepishly.

With a short nod, he looks at me with concern and sorrow etched in every line on his face.

“Harry… Ron…” he begins and I see Ron’s head jerk up out of the corner of my eye. “We’ve all been talking--”

“‘We all’ who, Dad?” I hear him say in an aggravated manner.

Mr. Weasley huffs audibly, calming what I knew was his slowly flaring temper. “Hermione, Ginny, your mother and I think that you and Harry--”

“Oh, well, that’s nice that the four of you were talking about all of this,” he gestured back and forth between himself and me, “behind my back.”

“Just shut it, Ron.” I roll my eyes and set my jaw as I turn to him. “You’re not the only one they’ve been hiding their discussions from.”

“Well, excuse me. I believe you’ve talked enough about me behind my back with my dear sister—”

“Oh, that’s rich, seeing as you’ve probably been ranting nonstop to Hermione about me since you left the flat!”

“That’s ENOUGH! The both of you should be absolutely ashamed of yourselves.” We both look over at Ron’s dad who is fuming mad by this point. I don’t ever recall seeing Mr. Weasley this angry, nor do I have any plans to be on the receiving end ever again.

“You’ve not only put Hermione and Ginny in a difficult position, but the rest of the family as well. We love you both far too much to take any one side.”

Ron wears a reproving look on his face and I just know he was probably expecting to hear that his entire family was siding with him. And to his surprise, apparently it isn’t true.

Despite how angry I am at his insufferable attitude, I can tell he's hurt and I felt like I’d been the one to hurt him. I never wanted to come between him and his– well soon to be mine, too–family.

“Look,” Mr. Weasley says as I tried to focus my attention back on him. “I don’t know all the details about why you two are at each other’s throats about Quidditch. But I do know that letting a misunderstanding come between your friendship is a big mistake, and one that you’ll both regret if you continue to let things go the way they’ve been going.”

He sighs warily and presses on. “Since neither one of you seem to be big enough to swallow your pride and try to work things out on your own, we’ve decided that you need a shove in the right direction. That’s why you’re here.”

“Erm…” I say with a slight frown. I still don’t know where here is. “Where exactly are we?”

“The broom shed,” Ron answers through gritted teeth. “Apparently they think we need to be in the loony bin with the padded walls and all.”

“After Remus told us about your fight last week, we figured that you needed protection from each other.” Mr. Weasley steps toward the two of us and stretches out his hands. “So, since the two of you can’t seem to discuss this matter civilly, without storming away, it was either tie you up or lock you in. Your mum insisted on being more humane, so lock you in, it is. Which is why I’ll be taking your Portkeys now.”

I hand my picture to him, watching our figures waving back and forth as he takes it, not flashing even the smallest of smiles.

I see Ron slowly lift his hidden hand and I briefly notice that apparently his Portkey is the exact same picture of us at The Burrow. There was that same silly grin on our faces and the same youthful innocence of our friendship.

I glance up to try and read his expression only to find him looking away from me again. I sigh deeply, my shoulders slumping when I hear Mr. Weasley speak.

“Your wands, too.”

“Our wands!” Ron shouts. “No way, Dad. That’s absolutely absurd.”

“Wands now, Ronald! Do not make me take it from you by force.” But Mr. Weasley’s right and I hand him my wand willingly.

Even as much as I don’t like the idea of giving up my wand under any circumstances, whether Voldemort is dead or not, I trust Arthur. And besides, if we are to resolve anything, it’s going to have to be without wands. After all, everyone knows what happened the last time Ron and I had a row—although the hexes had probably been the least of our problems.

Ron grunts, finally giving his dad his wand and we both watch him pass between us, heading toward the door. “What are we supposed to do now?”

Mr. Weasley stops just shy of the door and turns to look at us once more.

“Talk, fight, yell, hit each other… whatever it is that you need to do to repair your friendship. And you might as well give it your best shot because, otherwise, both of you will be stuck in here for a very long time.”

He turns and opens the door, stepping into the cool afternoon air. “Oh, and you might as well not try to Disapparate out. You won’t have any luck.”

“Dad, you can’t do this!” Ron says angrily. “Would you say something?!” He spits at me.

“Work it out, boys,” Mr. Weasley says, closing the door and locking us in.

“Dad! DAD!” Ron yells through the door. “Oh, bloody fuck!” he huffs, storming around the empty shed, one small window allowing the afternoon sun to pour in.

“You just couldn’t say a single word!”

“What the hell was I supposed to do, Ron? Beg your dad not to keep us locked in here?” I shoot back crossly. “He still would’ve done it, especially with the other three in on this ‘plan’.”

We both stand there for a moment scowling at each other until he scoffs and kicks at the ground.

“It doesn’t matter. You could’ve spoken up, you lousy git.” I watch him walk away, swearing under his breath as he looks around a few times. He growls with frustration at the situation that we’ve been forced into.

Neither one of us wants to be stuck in the same room with each other, let alone forced to work out our problems in one sitting.

So what do two thick-headed prats do when their hands are forced into doing something that they don’t want to? Right; refuse to play along.

“Damnit!” Ron yells, violently hitting the wall with both arms then turns around and slams back against the padding.

I can’t help but roll my eyes at him as he slumps down onto the ground and folds his arms across his chest.

“This is complete bollocks,” I mumble quietly as I pace back and forth on the opposite side of the small shed, trying to wear my frustration down. I have to say that I’m more than a little uncomfortable being stuck inside such a tiny place. Too many reminders of a past I’d rather not remember.

I swear, it’ll be a very long time before I ever let Ginny live down the fact that she locked me up in a padded room…with the likes of her stubborn brother, no less.

After a quarter hour of doing nothing but walking about, I sink down to the floor and gaze at my knees as I draw them close, preparing to stick this ‘war of pride’ out for the long haul.

Long haul was an understatement. I figured it would take Ron about an hour or so before he cracked, but he hasn’t uttered a single word in five hours. And no, it’s not because he was able to master some great art of managing his temper. It’s because the twat fell asleep four hours ago.

Believe you me; I know he fell asleep because the wanker snores. All the bloody time, he snores. And here he is, peacefully resting away while I mull over everything that has happened in the past couple of weeks.

I almost let my anger become the better of me a few times during Ron’s little nap. Came very close to taking the cobwebs I’d been eyeing in the corner and laying them on his head.

But I couldn’t do it; I couldn’t be that cruel to my best mate, no matter what kind of troubles we were going through.

The fading light and long rising shadows catch my attention. Merlin, it’s nearly seven o’clock. I really don’t fancy spending the night in this cold shed. And after all the two of us have put Ginny and Hermione through, they’ll no doubt leave us locked in here until we’ve resolved things.

I’m beyond tired of staring at these sodding white walls. I just want to get the fuck out of here.

Pulling myself off of the floor, I walk across the room, searching in the dim light for anything that I could possibly use to try and pick the lock on the shed with.

After carefully scanning the room, the only thing that I manage to find is a long piece of wood that looks like it had been chipped off of something. I sigh regretfully, knowing that this probably wouldn’t work but right now, anything was worth trying to stop Ron from coming up with another reason to yell at me.

Squatting down in front of the lock, I give it a tug for good measure-–hey, you never know-–but no luck. Figured as much. I sigh and narrow my eyes on the keyhole, shimmying the piece of chipped wood back and forth. Without warning, I feel something heavy hit me in the chest and suddenly I’m flying back landing flat on my arse.

“Oof!” I exclaim, feeling as if the breath was knocked out of me. “Shite! What the hell?”

“Whassit?” I hear the groggy voice from the corner yawn as he begins to move about.

“Nothing.” I say, clenching my jaw at the sudden soreness of my arse. “Just trying to pick the lock. Somebody’s got to find a way out of here. I certainly don’t want to be left in here all night.”

We both fall silent for a moment until I whip my head around to glare at Ron as he gives a short chortle.

“Dad told you we were stuck in here. I don’t know why you bother trying.” He suppresses his laughter but I can hear him sniggering under his breath at me as I attempt to pull myself up.

“You think that’s funny, do you?” His amusement slowly fades as I give an infuriated huff. “Look, I don’t want to be locked in here any more than you do. So, how about instead of laughing at me or snapping my head off, you help me find a way out. There’s got to be some way.”

I can see his nostrils flare and his jaw tighten as he stands there, determined not to help me in any way, but at the same time, desperate to get out of the confines of the small room.

We both turn our backs on each other. I begin to look for any exit from the makeshift cell as he tries to concentrate on opening the window; both of us are still too bloody full of pride to own up to anything and be the first to apologise.

A hissing sound of mist makes me frown and my head swings ‘round when Ron’s screams suddenly fill the broom shed. I bolt upright about to run over to him when he turns around revealing his bat bogey covered face.

I press my lips together in a comical smirk as he claws furiously at his face, a string of incoherent curse words escaping his lips as giant bogeys continue to attack him.

“Geroff… bloody… I’ll kill… sodding…”

It’s becoming increasingly hard to hold back my laughter and I stand there, almost shocked, when the bogeys suddenly disappear as quickly as they appeared. I watch Ron lean over, clutching his knees in desperate attempts to catch his breath.

That’s when realisation hits me and I burst forth with laughter.

“What are you laughing at?” Ron says, glowering at me. “If you’d been attacked by bat bogeys instead of just being knocked on your arse, you would’ve had the shit scared out of you, too.”

“No,” I continue laughing heartily. “Fred and George.”

“What?” he asks with an angry look.

“I forgot that they were working on that. They were testing it out a few weeks ago.”

“You mean this was all my brothers’ idea?”

“Yeah,” I add, taking a deep breath. “And my guess is, they’ve got this whole shed rigged with traps in case we try to get out.”

“Those wankers! Siding with Mum and Dad…”

“My guess is they were probably taking up more for Ginny, which is probably one of the reasons they included that little gem.” I smile up at his brooding face and chuckle again. “C’mon, you’ve got to admit that was pretty good.”

I watch the tension in his body relax slightly and hear him snort with laughter. “Yeah, it is a brilliant idea. …Instant bat bogey without the worry of a wand. Definitely sounds like Fred and George.”

We enjoy a laugh together and my mouth pulls into a small grin. I really miss this, laughing with Ron.

As quickly as the moment had started, he flinches in thought and goes silent, putting up his defense again. My smile fades as I watch him, knowing that he was trying desperately not to let me think that I could just forget about everything that’s happened over the last week. How could I? It’s been one of the worst weeks of my life.

With another deep breath, I brace myself and decide to take the first step.

“Listen, Ron…about the deal with Eliot--”

“I don’t want to talk about that,” he says, quickly shutting me down.


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"Truth and tears clear the way to a deep and lasting friendship."

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He just had to bring that up, didn't he?

“I know that you don’t, but at least give me the chance to set the record straight.”

I turn my back on him, more to keep my composure than anything else. “Yeah…well, you’ve done that already.”

“You wouldn't give me a bloody chance! Don't you get it? Samuels actually wanted you on the team.”

I spin around and glare at him, furious at him. “That’s a fucking lie and you know it! He let the whole bloody team know how pathetic of a Keeper I am.”

“Oh, shut up, Ron!” he screams, the rafters shaking as he begins to lose control of his magic.

Please, Merlin, don't let him blow me up.

He takes a deep breath. By the look on his face, I can tell he's trying to reign in his temper. “If you’d paid enough attention this week, you would’ve seen Samuels watching, rather awestruck, at how well you’ve been playing. And for your information, I am telling the truth. They did want you on the team. I was just a bonus.”

I watch as he paces around the small shed and I try to wrap my mind around what he just said. Me? They wanted me?

He stops pacing and stands right in front of me.

“The day I had the meeting with Mr. Eliot, he told me that they had been watching your tryouts and that it looked very promising…which made me ecstatic because I knew you’d be thrilled.

“But then I was told that they thought it may 'concern' me to know that they were also looking at another candidate for the position. I knew something was going on when they said that. And that’s when they told me that if I signed as Seeker, they could almost guarantee you a contract with the team.

“So, I asked them,” he continues, resuming his pacing around the room. “‘What if I don’t accept your offer?’ Then Eliot says, ‘well, the chances of Mr. Weasley joining the team will not be as good as we hope.’” Harry actually does a pretty good impression of the bald-headed man.

My mouth opens and I want to say something, but I just can't. How could they put him on the spot like that?

“What was I supposed to do, Ron? They knew we were mates. They used you to get to me.”

"You should’ve said ‘no’.” He knows that I hate it when I don't earn things on my own. I could've gone to another team.

“How could I when it was our dream? We’ve been talking about playing Quidditch together for AGES! I knew that taking the deal wasn’t a good idea. I knew that you were going to be angry with me if I accepted. But I also knew that this kind of opportunity – for us to play on the same team – may never present itself again."

Hell, he looks like he's gonna cry. I still can't manage to say anything.

“I just wanted us to be happy. I wanted us to have our dream.”

He shrugs his shoulders and suddenly looks defeated, a look I've rarely ever seen. I let him continue without interruption.

“But apparently I was wrong in thinking you would be happy… seeing as you appear to be even happier now.”

“What?” Is that my voice? I've only ever sounded that way when I was sick or…poisoned.

“According to your mum, she’s ‘never seen you happier’… ‘a weight’s been lifted’ and all that," he says, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Those were her words exactly. I heard her telling Ginny last night.”

“What?!”

Happier than I have been in years? A weight's lifted off me? What the bloody hell is he talking about?

I find it hard to believe that Mum thinks I'm happy without having Harry as my friend. She's been listening to me moan about it for the past five days. The only one in my family that's really happy right now is Charlie…

Wait a buggering second here.

"What?!" My voice is only a squeak as I put the pieces together, shocked at Harry's misunderstanding.

"Is that all you can say?" he sneers. I really hate it when he sounds like that.

"When did you hear my mother say this?" I ask, calmer than I have been in days and feel the hint of a smile fighting its way to the corners of my mouth.

"I already told you…last night. She was talking to Ginny—"

"It's Charlie, you dolt! The only one who's been floating on air lately is Dragon Boy." Harry's mouth falls open, silent, and I take the opportunity to continue. "He asked Magdalena to marry him finally. Never seen him act so giddy."

"What?" Harry's eyes dart back and forth between me and the door.

"Is that all you can say?" I shoot his words back at him with glee. "Bloody hell, Harry, why would I be happy about not speaking to my best friend?"

"Charlie…Ginny…what?" Clearly, he's been affected by landing on his backside more than I thought.

"Spit it out, Harry! I swear to God that if you say 'what' one more time, I'll break your nose again. And the third time's a charm!"

I watch as he shakes his head, apparently clearing the cobwebs from his brain. "She, uh, Ginny tried to tell me that…but, well, er…"

"You didn't believe her," I finish for him. "Is that why she's been screaming like a Banshee at everyone?" He nods. "Thanks, Harry. Thanks for making my parents' hair go grey."

"It was already grey, Ron," he answers, trying to hold back a chuckle. "I think the twins have to take responsibility for that."

"True, but you've given me practice at what it's gonna be like after you're married. Ron's left out again," I admit to him, actually a bit relieved that it's out there now. "I just didn't think I'd lose you so soon."

"Ron…I don't know where the bloody hell you got that idea from, but get rid of it, quick!" Harry furrows his eyebrows and takes a tentative step toward me, not taking his eyes off mine. "You've been my friend longer than anyone."

"I know. But you'll have less and less time for me and soon, we'll just see each other at family gatherings and be virtual strangers." I slide down the wall I'm leaning against and put my head in my hands.

"Ron, is that what's been bothering you lately? You think we won't be friends anymore?"

See, that really makes me think he uses Legilimency on me.

I lift my head and feel the lump in my throat grow painful at my attempt to stop from crying. The words stick in my throat and I can't say anything. It literally hurts to talk.

He sits down next to me on the floor and I just know he's looking at me.

"I'd never do that to you. You're the first person I could ever call my friend. You accepted me for who I am…not for what I did when I was little." He cocks his head to the side and I look away, my tears flowing freely now.

I feel like shit. I assume my very best friend in the world will forget about me when he gets married and then, oh fuck, I accuse him of selling out to give me a career. I don't deserve to even be Harry's friend.

"And Ron, I don’t think Hermione will let us be strangers, and for that matter, neither will Ginny. You're stuck with me no matter what happens," he says, nudging me in the ribs with his elbow. "Not only am I'm marrying your sister, but I'm getting the whole crazy lot of you, too! How do you think that makes me feel?"

"Like a wounded ferret in the middle of a pack of hungry Hippogriffs?" Before the last syllable is out of my mouth, Harry busts a gut laughing and is almost rolling on the floor. I can't help but laugh along with him, my tears forgotten.

"Oh…th—that was g—good…" he spits out between laughs, holding his gut. I let him roll around on the floor for a while before interrupting.

"Seriously, Harry, all the things we planned on doing together are…pffft! Up in smoke!" I dramatically wave my hands in the air, emphasizing my point. "I was looking forward to doing all sorts of bachelor stuff with you and now…we can't." I sigh heavily, feeling myself deflate.

"We both have girlfriends, Ron. What kind of bachelor stuff can we get up to when we're with them?"

I can just picture them after his statement: Hermione looking down her nose at us as we come home pissed…Ginny losing her temper at Harry if he as much as looks at another woman…damn, I hate it when he's right.

"Ron, you were my best friend before you'll ever be my brother-in-law. I'll never let anything get between us. You should know that," Harry reminded me.

"It's just…damn it, Harry!" I get off the floor and start pacing. "I don't know what's going on with me. It's like I can't function right if you're not around. You're my better half…"

"Ron, I really think Hermione would have a problem with that statement," he deadpanned. He's barely hiding the smile that I know is just itching to come out.

I roll my eyes. "You're such a schmuck, Harry. You know what I mean, right?" He had better, because I can't have him thinking I'm…well, I won't go into that.

"Yeah, I know what you mean because I feel the same way. You're more than my friend, Ron, you're my brother. That feeling'll never go away."

I hear him walk over to me and he stops just behind me.

"I s'pose you don't fancy trying to find out what else the twins cooked up for us in here, do you?" I ask, looking up to the window.

"No. If I know them the way I think I do, those two were only the tip of the iceberg, y'know?"

I nod and grimace. "So how do we get out? Are we just supposed to wait until someone decides to let us out for a piss break? 'Cause I really gotta go. I didn't even shower after practice, so I'm pretty ripe."

"Dunno," he begins, "beats the hell outta me. We could try yelling, I reckon."

I look up at the ceiling of the shed and notice something that literally frightens me. "Uh, look up there, Harry…" I point out the beach ball-shaped object lying among the rafters. "Isn't that…?"

"Uh huh. Yep, it's a Temper Snuffing Sludge Ball. And if I remember correctly, it explodes if things get too loud." Harry looks at me and smiles. "Ever wonder what the sludge looks like?"

"Not on your life." I punch him in the shoulder, reminding him of the stupidity of the remark.

Before Harry can answer me, my father pops back into the shed, a wide smile on his face.

"So, I understand you two have settled things?" He claps both Harry and I on the back, pulling us into his sides.

"What's that supposed to mean? Were you listening in?" I ask, although I have a sneaking suspicion he was.

"Well, er…yes," he manages to spit out. "Fred and George, well, they came up with an improved variation on the Extendable Ears…they can be used remotely. Brilliant, actually." I watched as my father blushed at his admission.

"So glad that they've been able to research on us today," Harry said, full of sarcasm. "Now can we please have our wands back and get the hell out of here?"

Dad fumbles around in his pockets, dropping the Portkey he used to get inside. "Ah, yes, here you go." He hands us our wands back and with a wave of his own, the door opens, the light of the sunset temporarily blinding Harry and me.

Harry and I stumble out of the shed to shouts and applause. I look up to find Hermione, my parents, sister, Charlie, Fred, George and Magdalena all standing in front of us, each of them wearing stupid grins.

I watch as Ginny makes up the distance between her and Harry in four quick strides, reminiscent of their first kiss back at Hogwarts, launching herself at him and attaching her mouth to his. Much like that original kiss all those years ago, I watch helplessly, knowing that my relationship with him will forever change.

"So things are better?"

I look up to find Hermione at my side, her hand stroking the roughness of my cheek. I close my eyes, savouring the sensation of her touch.

"Yeah. We're good," I tell her softly and turn to kiss her quickly on the lips. "You should know…you lot were eavesdropping on us." I tweak her nose and give her a crooked smile.

"Well, we wanted to make sure you two wouldn't kill each other."

Shit. They heard it all…everything…me calling Harry my 'better half' and me crying. Merlin, I'll never hear the end of it from the twins…

As if Fred has read my thoughts, he shouts, "Hey, Gin-Gin! You better give Ron his better half back. We can't have Ickle Ronniekins all depressed now, can we?" Fred and George burst out in fits of laughter while they run over to Harry and try to pry him away from Ginny.

"Yeah, Gin…Let's leave them alone for a bit longer and see what they get up to!" George grabs Harry around the head and grinds his knuckles into his head playfully.

"That's enough now, boys," Mum chastises in her motherly tone. "They've had quite the few weeks." She sidles on up to me, putting her arm around me, and I put mine around her waist, kissing her on the cheek. "I'm so glad you two have worked things out. It was very tense these last few days."

"Sorry, Mum." I walk back to the house, my arm holding my mother close, walking slower than the others so I can take in the scene in front of me. Harry, Ginny and Hermione are talking animatedly with each other while the twins throw back their heads in laughter, most likely at my expense. I smile as I watch Charlie take Magdalena over toward the pond, pretty confident that I know what they'll be doing over there.

"So what are the two of you up to?" Dad asks from the other side of Mum.

"Oh, nothing, Arthur. Just walking and admiring my family," she says wistfully.

"Ah yes, nothing better, dear. Nothing better."

I couldn't agree more.

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