#background ronmione

[acciotaylorswift]

lucky

A/N : I think this fic took the least amount of time, despite the fact its not actually too bad a size for a one shot, sooo…. uh yay

*:･ﾟ✧*:･:･ﾟ✧:୨⎯lucky⎯୧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ*:･ﾟ

Hermione’s day was going, in a word, poorly.  

Very poorly

She couldn’t fall asleep until 3 am, So she automatically didn’t want to get up. Almost any other Saturday she’d be able to stay in bed a few more hours, but today was a Hogsmeade weekend. Not only that, but today she’d get to see Ron.

As she did get up She realized it was quite cold, she had forgotten a warming charm last night and her wand was almost across the room. 

fun.

She got up and dressed, and left for the common room to study a bit before the Hogsmeade trip

And then, of course, on the second to last step, 

She tripped.

She hit the floor and bent her wrist an odd way, nothing bad, but she was still in pain, Though more embarrassed than anything. 

Luckily there were only a few people in the common room and gladly were mature enough to either stiffle their laughter or they didn't find it funny.

”You alright, Hermione?” A sixth year girl asked

“Yes—fine.” Hermione answered as she got up and picked up her books

She walked over to her Favorite chair and sat down, opened a book, and started reading up on a subject of Transfiguration that she was oddly enough, having trouble with.

She couldn't get it.

So she went from annoyed to angry in the span of 30 Minutes, As a result of that, she couldn’t focus.

A couple more people came downstairs and one other Seventh year Girl asked Hermione

“Hey, I don’t mean to bother you, but do you get this?”

And of course it was exactly what she didn't get.

She was already pissed about how people always labeled her as the line for something being hard. It's like if Hermione doesn't get it on the first try, people label it as impossible.

She calmed herself down before answering and said “No. sorry.” She didn't mean for it to still sound so cold but it did. That was bad enough before someone else asked her the exact same thing about the exact same subject. 

“No— I don’t, Sorry.” She said, quite tense

It seemed as though everyone came downstairs in a pack about to leave for 

Hogsmeade so Hermione kept her eye out for Ginny as they were planning to walk together, Ginny was about the last person downstairs before They all left.

“Hey, sorry i'm late, Julia took forever in the shower,” Ginny said as she rolled her eyes 

“Oh. Okay— Whatever.” Hermione said as she tried not to get angry at the both of them

Although apparently it came out wrong Because Ginny said “Wake up on the wrong side of the bed and fall into a pit of sticks?”

“Very funny,” Hermione said before she Recapped Her morning to Her. Then added “I think I have bad luck this morning.”

“I thought you didn't believe in luck and stuff like that?”

“Not sure anymore.” Hermione said with a short laugh

“Maybe you used up all your luck this week.”

“What on earth could that mean?”

“Maybe the fact that Ron and Harrys Auror training break lines up perfectly with our Hogsmeade weekend?”

Hermione contemplated. “Fair, but still, Ron said Your Guys’ Mum wants to see him first and somehow Harry managed to get out of it So I won't even get to see Ron until later!”

Ginny took a moment Before saying “So you're mad about having to be a third wheel for about an hour?” 

“Maybe? I think I'll just spend some time alone before He gets here though.”

Ginny made an Mkay sound and it was fairly quiet the rest of the walk. 

Hermione and Ginny parted when Hermione saw a New-ish bookstore in Hogsmeade, And she wanted to go check it out.

There was a short line to get in and Hermione figured it'd move quickly, it was a bookstore anyway. She stood there for 10 minutes and the person in front of her was moving very slowly, there wasn’t even anyone in front of him anymore. 

She got angry again.

She looked around for nothing specific but did find something that caught her eye so she went to the desk to buy it, almost everyone in front of her had five books or more and there was only one person in the store who was running from helping customers to checking them out which was quite a process when there was a long line.

She had been in the line Almost Thirty minutes now, and the line was hardly moving, she really didn’t want to spend the entirety of this trip in this bookstore (which felt utterly ridiculous of her to think)

So she put the book back and left.

Now, despite the fact it was -4 degrees, she needed to cool down. 

That's how mad she was.

so she got an idea. steering off of hogsmeade, she made her way up a hill, felt that the snow was soft, and let herself fall into it in a starfish-like position.

Common sense told her that this was a bad idea, that she could get frostbite or something, but it felt good actually.

she didn't know how long she was there until she heard Harry's voice “What is she doing?” Hermione guessed Ginny gave a shrug before saying “It seems she needed to cool down figuratively, so she’s now a starfish in the snow, literally.”

“I still feel like punching someone.” Came Hermione's muffled voice from the snow

“Why did you need to cool down?” Harry asked

“Multiple things” Hermione said, still muffled

“I wouldn't press it.” Ginny advised to harry in a loud whisper

“Hermione, Hermione, Hermione” Ginny and Harry said as they jumped around her.

“Hermione, Hermione, Hermione”

Hermione was now smiling, but she would never admit it.

“Hermione, Hermione, Hermione,” A third person joined in,

“Hm, I like that voice,” Hermione said, turning her head.

“Hey, love,” Ron said.

“Hi,”

“If you still feel like punching someone, Let it be one of them.” 

Hermione laughed, a sort of laugh Ron could only make her sound.

He helped her up and her arms flung around his neck to hug him.

“I missed you.” Hermione said quietly 

“I missed you too.”

Just as she was about to give him a kiss, a snowball flew across their view. 

“Damn it! I missed!” Ginny said angrily.

Ron gave Hermione a far-too-fast-for-her-liking kiss, and used his wand to send about a dozen snowballs toward Ginny and Harry

“Hey, Those could’ve knocked me over!” Ginny Yelled.

“That’s the point!” Ron yelled back, Before Harry began yelling as well “Why’d you throw them at me?! She was the one who threw the one at you!”

“Because you are far too associated with her for my liking.” Ron answered sportively 

They all laughed, and as they tried to pelt each other with snowballs, Hermione Remembered just how lucky she really was to have all of this, to have all of them.

[danpuff-ao3]

wanna hear your thoughts about Lily (Evans)/Narcissa 😁

Pahn!!!! Thanks for the ask! 😁 I do love me some Narlily! (Though I prefer Cissily, but most people use Narlily I think so I shall too!)

1.) What made you ship it?

It first occurred to me when it appeared as a background ship in crowthing's Starlight. And my only thought was "um, yes????" Then I found a Snegurochka fic with Narlily called The Lost Prophecy About the Woman in White and I was like "definitely yes."

2.) What are your favorite things about the ship?

The aesthetic, ngl. Blonde hair and red! Blue eyes (my preference) and green! Hot ladies being hot together.

Also like...two women from such different worlds. Narcissa, the pureblood, the aristocrat. Lily, the Muggleborn from Cokeworth. Slytherin and Gryffindor.

So if we think about Lily as being super feisty and fierce and independent, and Narcissa being this elegant graceful lady abiding by the status quo...and Lily sort of breaking the spell a bit. And trying to convince Narcissa to be herself and live for herself. But the Black family loyalty is strong. The idea of tradition versus progression and freedom. The things they can learn from each other. Being so charmed by each other, in spite of their differences, and in spite of how "wrong" it is.

Oh oh! Also the drama potential of Narcissa standing up to her family, or even if she doesn't and their secret is found out????

Then all the possibilities in wartime of spying and using each other for information. The infidelity once they're married to Lucius and James. Also the idea of them getting their shit together and raising Draco and Harry as brothersssss. 🥹

Idk there's so much potential and the "opposites attract" line and the "quasi enemies-to-lovers" aspect is just sooooo appealing to me!

3.) Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

Probably the fact that I prefer all the questionable elements haha!

ship asks

answered: Dramione, Snarry, Jegulus, Jily, Dron, Starbucks, Riddledore, Snupin, Remadora, Fleurmione, Snack, Snumbledore, Scorbus, Jeddy, Moonchaser, Snamione, Ronmione, Tomarrymort, Flintwood, Narlily, Snape/reader or OCs, AD/GG/TMR.

[ao3feed-romione]

Seven Days of Adoration

Seven days of Adoration by Mioheartsronmione

Seven days in the Weasley house, with just the Weasley family and Hermione, what could go wrong?

Apparently everything. Hermione really REALLY liked Ron.

Words: 835, Chapters: 1/7, Language: English

Series: Part 6 of Ronmione !!

Fandoms: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M

Characters: Molly Weasley, Arthur Weasley, Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger, Granger Family, Weasley Family

Relationships: Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley

Additional Tags: Minor Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Background Relationships

Read Here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/43120663

[sanichkaa]

Every once in a while, I really want to read Drarry but I’m always worried that then there will be Ronmione in the background and I just can’t handle it.

[scarheaded-ferret]

Hey my Dude, I was wondering could you write a Drarry Soul mate AU? So when you meet your soulmate you get their first name on your wrist/forearm. Also could you add background pairings ron x Hermione and ginny x Luna? Thanks!

Sorry for the wait!! I love soulmate au’s :^D, here you go my dude (this one is long oof):

Harry stepped up to the small platform in the robes shop, where a young blond boy was getting fitted for what looked like various sets of robes. Harry felt a strange tingly feeling on his wrist as he looked at the boy, that soon spread throughout his body. It kind of felt similar to what he felt when he received his wand. Harry looked down at his wrist to see two words inscribed on it: Draco Malfoy. Harry pouted, it looked like a name. But why was there a name on his wrist?

The young boy on the small platform gasped and Harry looked up into bright grey eyes.

“What’s your name?” The young boy demanded. Harry didn’t really have a good feeling about this, but he told the boy anyway.

“I’m Harry Potter,” He said. The boy’s eyebrows rode up, and a look of fear washed over his face before he ran out of the shop. Harry watched him go, confused by the strange interaction. The woman who was fitting the boy sighed, and told Harry to step up for his own robes. Harry would have to ask Hagrid what the name on his wrist meant.

***

Tears welled in Draco’s eyes as he raced to the wand store his mother was at. It wasn’t Ollivander’s, but rather a smaller, more expensive chain that fixed and restored old and broken wands. He found his mother immediately and tugged on her robes.

“What is it, my darling? What is the matter?” She said, cupping his cheek. Draco shoved his wrist in front of her and her eyes widened. “Oh- oh dear, we mustn’t tell your father. Draco, you mustn’t tell anyone. Do you understand?” She asked, and Draco nodded. She wiped the tears from his face and once they had gathered their things they apparated back home. A house-elf was sent to retrieve Draco’s forgotten robes.

Draco had grown up his whole life hearing about soulmates. The one person who you were destined to love. When you first met them, their name would appear on your wand wrist, revealing the person who were meant to love and be loved by. He had read all the stories as a child, until his father had reprimanded him and told him to read books more fitting for “a boy his age”. Draco had never let the stories leave his heart though, and he constantly had his mother tell him the story of her soulmate.

Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black had met before they could properly hold a wand. They had met at one of the parties hosted for pureblood families, and had remained friends since. They went through the proper courting and got married almost immediately after Hogwarts. A perfect love story.

Yet not every human was a good person, just because they had a soulmate didn’t mean that they stopped being a bad person. Lucius was quick to inform Draco as a child that unless his mate was a pureblood girl from a nice family, he would not marry them. Draco had cried at the thought of being separated from his soulmate, but his mother reminded him that his soulmate probably would be a nice pureblood girl, whom he would love very much.

Draco now sat on his bed, sobbing into his pillow as his mother stroked his back soothingly.

“Father won’t let me marry Harry Potter, won’t he?” Narcissa shook her head sadly and continued to rub Draco’s back.

“It’ll be alright my love, perhaps you and young Harry could simply be friends? Not all soulmates are in romantic relationships,” Draco sniffed and nodded his head. His mind eased by the thought of he and Harry becoming friends. Maybe he could be with his soulmate after all.

***

When Harry showed Hagrid the name on his wrist, Hagrid had chuckled softly and patted the top of Harry’s head.

“Why s’ just yer soulmate, figures you’d get stuck with a Malfoy, but I bet he’ll turn round for yer sake,” Harry was confused. Soulmates were made up, weren’t they? He used to hide behind the couch and watch the movies that Dudley watched if he got the chance, and sometimes they were about soulmates. But apparently in the wizarding world they were very much real, and Hagrid had told him about how every wizard and witch got their soulmate’s name tattooed magically on their wrist when they first met them.

“So this- Draco Malfoy, is my soulmate. Even if it’s a boy?” Harry asked. Hagrid nodded.

“Wizards are a tad more- accepting than muggle folk, no one can control their soulmate, and it’d be rude to keep em’ apart. But some purebloods like to have their children marry for money or a good name” Harry nodded slowly, assimilating this.

“But- if he’s my soulmate, why did he run away?”

Hagrid seemed lost in thought for a moment.

“Ye should ask him that when ye get to Hogwarts. I’m sure he’d be happy that Harry Potter is his soulmate, eh?” Hagrid nudged him and laughed, Harry smiled and dug into his ice cream. He had a soulmate, he thought as he took a bite, a soulmate named Draco Malfoy.

***

Harry had been on the train with Ron when a bushy haired girl stormed into their compartment, asking about some other boy’s lost toad. Ron hadn’t responded, and had dropped the carton of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavoured Beans that he was holding. He pulled down the sleeve of his jumper and gasped at his wrist.

“Are- are you Hermione Granger?” the girl, Hermione, looked at him inquisitively.

“Yes? And you are?” She asked. Suddenly, a confused look ran over her face, and she too looked down at her wrist and gasped.

“I’m Ron Weasley! I think we’re-”

“Soulmates,” she finished for him, beaming as she sat across from Harry and Ron.

“I guess we better get to know each other, I read up on soulmates before I got here, my parents are muggles,” She told him. She then turned to Harry, who was smiling softly at the pair with amusement. “You’re Harry Potter!” she said, looking at his uncovered scar. Harry nodded at Hermione and shook the hand she held out to him.

“Er- nice to meet you,” He told her.

“Have you found your soulmate already, Harry?” She asked. Ron looked at him too, still grinning from the excitement of finding his soulmate.

“Yeah, uh here,” Harry held out his wrist and Ron promptly choked on a bean.

“Draco Malfoy? Oh, that’s rotten luck, the Malfoy’s are a bad sort, all blood purists and snobby,” Harry frowned, he didn’t like to hear his soulmate being insulted, but he trusted Ron more than Malfoy, who he had actually never met. Just then the compartment door opened, and the subject of their conversation peered in.

“It’s true then, Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts,” He smirked at Harry, and his eyes narrowed as they flicked over Ron.

“You- You’re the boy from the robes shop, we’re soulmates,” Harry tried to smile at him.

“Yes,” Malfoy agreed. He stuck out his hand, “I think as soulmates, we should be friends, you wouldn’t want to be with the wrong sort now,” Malfoy said, glancing distastefully at both Ron and Hermione. Harry became angry at that, these were his first friends and Malfoy was insulting them. Soulmate or not, it wasn’t right.

“I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thanks,” He said, and winced as hurt took over Malfoy’s face.

“Fine then, should’ve known you’d be a lousy soulmate anyhow, Potter,” Draco spat. With that Draco strode out of the compartment, two large boys following close behind. Harry never did get to ask him why he ran away.

***

Their rivalry continued throughout the years, both choosing to ignore the fact that they were soulmates. It was his 4th year and Harry was thinking of someone to ask to the yule ball. He approached Ginny, but found she was going with Luna Lovegood, a Ravenclaw in his year and Ginny’s soulmate. Harry was happy for Ron’s little sister, but couldn’t help the flash of disappointment in being denied a date. He ended up going alone to the yule ball, and though Ron and Hermione made sure that they spent most of their time with him and not just each other, he couldn’t help but feeling a pang of loneliness.

He glared at Malfoy, who was spinning Pansy Parkinson around gracefully, his blond hair wasn’t slicked back, but fell in loose strands that framed his face elegantly. Harry just wished that he had a soulmate who could actually love him, not one who insulted his friends and had tried to ruin his life on multiple occasions. Not many knew that they were soulmates, for neither Draco or Harry were eager to tell others. Harry just wished that Malfoy could actually love him.

***

It was his 6th year, and Draco sobbed into his arms as he curled into himself tightly in the hospital wing. Potter, his supposed soulmate, had just torn him open- on purpose. Draco couldn’t help but pine towards the Gryffindor throughout his years at Hogwarts. He knew that after his mistake on the train, that Potter would never be his friend. So Draco took to trying to get a rise out of Potter every chance he could, just to see his reaction.

Two days ago, however, he had just wanted Potter to leave. Draco’s home had been overtaken by that monster, and his parents could be killed any day now. Not that Draco cared too much about his father. Only his mother, yet, if his father wasn’t there, there wouldn’t be anyone to protect her. The bloody cabinet he was supposed to fix wasn’t working, and the last thing he needed was Potter barging in and disrupting his breakdown.

The pain he felt as Potter slashed his chest open had been more than physical. It proved that his soulmate hated him, that there wasn’t anyone out there meant to love him. And it hurt. Draco cried himself to sleep in the hospital bed that night, luckily there were no other occupants in the wing with him, so there was no one to disturb him.

Draco woke the next morning to feel a pressure around his hand. He jolted up and looked down to see his pale fingers entwined with darker ones. His eyes followed up along the arm of what could only be Harry Potter, and was met with the Gryffindor’s sleeping form. His glasses were askew and his hair was a mess, but then again, it always was like that.

Draco slowly extracted his hand and rolled over, pretending that it had never happened. He must still be woozy from the pain potions, or maybe he was dreaming. Draco pinched himself and looked behind him, but Potter was still there.

Draco turned back round and closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep, hoping that Potter would leave before he would wake up. Draco was confused. Why was Potter holding his hand? They were soulmates but- Potter hated him. Maybe the bloody git feels guilty for treating you like a practice board for a Diffindo charm. That was a pretty likely option for Potter, who Draco had watched throughout his teen years. It’s just guilt, his hand probably fell or something, and it just ended up that way. Yes, that seemed like a more logical option for Draco, and he fell asleep once more.

When he woke up, Potter was thankfully gone and Snape had come for him.

***

Harry winced as he was pushed to the ground in front of Malfoy.

“Is it him, Draco? Is it Potter? Look again,”

“I- I can’t be sure,” Draco responded shakily. It was Potter, though, but he sure as hell wouldn’t let his father know that. Potter’s bright green eyes were slightly hidden behind the hexed bubbles that covered his face, and they gazed up at Draco. Draco gave one more look at Potter before standing and going back to his mother. She gave him a concerned look and he shook his head. She knew he was lying.

***

Harry needed to get to the forbidden forest, he had already said his goodbyes to Ron and Hermione. But he needed to find someone else now. It was his luck that he spotted the signature white-blond color of his hair in the sea of running students, and Harry quickly grabbed him. Malfoy froze and put his wand under Harry’s neck until he saw who it was and slowly lowered his wand. Yet his eyes were still wide and fearful.

Harry didn’t say anything. But he leaned in and kissed Draco chastely. Draco stumbled, but leaned into the kiss quickly.

“W-why?” He asked Harry shakily.

“I need to die,” Harry whispered. Draco’s mouth went agape and he opened his mouth to say something but Harry kissed him again. “I’m sorry,” he said, and then he ran away.

***

It was over, Voldemort’s corpse lay at Harry’s feet and Draco’s heart soared. In what felt like just a minute ago, Hagrid had carried Harry’s limp form into the courtyard, but then he had jumped up and ran at Voldemort, killing the Dark Lord with a simple Expelliarmus. Draco started to run towards him, but was jerked back violently. He turned around to be met with a glaring Auror. Draco shut his eyes as they apparated. He hadn’t even had a chance to say goodbye.

***

Harry watched in horror as they brought Draco out. He had only stayed a week in Azkaban, awaiting his trial, yet his hair was already dirty and matted, and there was a series of fresh bruises and scars that dotted his face. Harry guessed that they hadn’t even allowed him to clean up after the battle. When they called him up, Harry stood and proceeded to tell the Wizengamot how Draco was forced into his role as a Death Eater, how Draco has saved his life, and how Harry had saved his. He left out that they were soulmates, and soon Draco was released on one month’s probation and house arrest. Harry didn’t get the chance to talk to him afterwards.

***

Draco kept his head down as he walked into the Great Hall for his 8th year. He sat at the table specifically designed for the returning students, and refused to return Potter’s stare from the other end of the table. The speech McGonagall presented was lighthearted and told of equality, how no prejudices should be held, the war was over, etc.

Draco just wanted to get to his dorm as quick as possible. He barely touched his food before he stood and silently walked out. He ignored the whispers and glares that followed him and made his way to the 8th year dorms that were located on the previously unused 3rd floor corridor.

He made his way up to where the boys dorms were, and searched to find the one that had his name on it. There were four boys to a room, and only four rooms in the hallway, so it wasn’t hard to find his own. Dread engulfed him when he saw his name listed amongst Weasley’s, Boot’s and Potter’s.

Draco pushed through the door and went to the bed where his trunk was sat. He changed into a white t-shirt and pajama pants, and slid into his bed. He made sure to close the curtains and cast a silencing charm, in case he had a nightmare. He knew it would be unlikely- considering that Draco would probably not be able to fall asleep that night.

***

Harry picked around his food until he heard Hermione scoff.

“Go after him, Harry,” she told him softly. Harry looked up at his best friend and furrowed his brows.

“He wouldn’t want to talk to me,” He told her.

“Like hell he wouldn’t, the git’s been in love with you since forever, and so have you,” Ron told him. Hermione clucked her tongue at his swearing and swatted his shoulder. She turned back to Harry.

“You shouldn’t outright force him into anything, but maybe befriend him. After all, me and Ron didn’t start dating until 6th year,” Harry nodded and bit his lip before rising and walking swiftly out of the Great Hall. He was gonna befriend Draco Malfoy. He was finally gonna befriend his soulmate.

***

3 months later…

Draco curled into the warmth that was his boyfriend as they lay cuddled together in Draco’s bed. Harry’s head was tucked under his chin, and had wrapped himself around Draco like a koala bear. Draco ran his hand through the strands on Harry’s neck and leant his head down to kiss his head. Harry groaned softly and shifted beneath him. Draco watched as his eyes fluttered open, and he smiled sleepily at Draco.

“Hullo, love,” He muttered and Draco kissed him softly. It was 3 months ago that Harry had begun to sit with him at meals and classes, offered to have a seeker’s game on the pitch, and study in the library. After a weak of his badgering, Draco complied and the two did almost everything together.

It was on Halloween that Draco had found Harry curled up by himself on his bed, crying softly. Draco had remembered the significance of that date for him, the date of his parent’s deaths, and had pulled Harry into his arms. Draco had wondered why he wasn’t with Weasley and Granger, but found that Harry had told them to leave him on his own. Yet, he hadn’t pushed Draco away and although Harry was shocked at first by the gesture, he had leaned into the comfort. They had fallen asleep like that, and the next morning Harry had kissed him as they got up together. They had been dating ever since.

“Good morning,” Draco whispered. Harry let his eyes close again and he tucked his head under Draco’s own once more.

“What’s the time?” he muttered into Draco’s neck.

“Half eight,” Draco said softly. He twirled one of Harry’s curls round his finger. “We need to get up,” He dislodged himself from Harry and laughed as Harry grunted in discontent. He began to get dressed and Harry rose a couple minutes later.

They walked down to the Great Hall together. Before they ate, Draco’s mother’s barn owl swooped down in front of him and dropped a small letter. She was still on house arrest and he wrote to her weekly. She was aware of his relationship with Harry, and had been surprisingly supportive. Apparently Lucius’ opinion on the matter was irrelevant now that he was in Azkaban for life. Draco tucked away the letter to read later and pulled a cup of tea towards himself.

He turned and watched as Harry piled a meager amount of food on his plate. He tsked and put another spoonful of potatoes and eggs on his plate, as well as another scoop of beans on Harry’s toast. Harry sighed and rolled his eyes but a smile flickered at his mouth.

Draco looked up as he sipped his tea and faintly smiled at the sight in front of him. Ginny Weasley had closed her eyes and was leaning her head on Luna’s shoulder as Luna read aloud from a book of magical creatures in the America’s. Ginny would smile every now and then and ask Luna to repeat a fact, which Luna gladly recited. He turned to spare a glance at Harry and found his boyfriend beaming at him.

“They’re happy, aren’t they?” Draco whispered, returning his smile softly.

“Yes, and so are we” Harry said as he leaned in to kiss him.

[headcanonsandmore]

Gentry and Gentlemen,  Chapter One

Summary:  Hermione Granger has just begun a new position of governess at Ottery Manor in the Devon Countryside, a world away from her upbringing in Regency-era London. There she meets a redheaded blacksmith man named Ron Weasley. Sparks may just fly between the middle class city woman and the working-class country man with a genuine and heartfelt charm all his own. (Jane Austen Romione AU)

Tagging: @hillnerd @nagemeikenu @acnelli @aimless-twig @femaledoubleagent @thehufflepuffpixie @adenei @abradystrix

~~~~~~~~~~

                   Read on FFN.                                      Read on AO3.

~~~~~~~~~~

The Regency period is full of stories about dashing military officers and their lovers, titled men and women, and the romantic misadventures of the landed gentry. Almost always of young ladies of the gentry and their aristocratic suitors. Of money, land, and upper class goings-on. The sort of stories that have become synonymous with high romance, retold countless times since.

This is not one of those stories.

 *

 The stagecoach trundled along the country lane. It was the middle of April, and the Devon countryside was quickly losing any vestiges of the winter. Trees were growing green, bees were pollinating all manner of plants, and the lane was fast becoming dusty due to the lack of rain.

‘Oh, really, good sir!’ giggled a lady, her aristocratic manner evident in her voice. ‘You are a delight!’

‘My pleasure, good lady,’ replied the gentleman, a large tall man with a similar way of speaking. ‘I find myself inclined to be such when in the company of such an amiable person as yourself.’

There was a loud crack, as one of the stagecoach wheels hit a hole in the lane.

‘My apologies, ladies and gentlemen!’ exclaimed the coachman from above. ‘The roads have not been repaired after the winter rains!’

‘You’d think the locals would have done something about it,’ complained the gentleman to his lady friend. ‘But I suppose that is to be expected of being so far out from respectable society.’

The woman sat across from the couple stared out of the window, a slight frown briefly appearing on her face. Her fellow passengers did not notice this, and had made no attempt at conversation with her for the entire journey from Exeter. But she was somewhat glad of that.

She was a young woman, in her mid-twenties and, unlike the pair sat across from her, was not wearing the latest fashions of aristocratic society. Her dress was well-worn but functional, as befitted her position. Her hat was smart was simple but sturdy. Her face was impassive, yet strong, and her eyes - a dark brown- were piercingly intelligent. A parasol, far from new, was placed sensibly across her lap. Her shoes, polished but faded from use, were the sort worn by practical working women since time immemorial. However, in contrast to all this was her hair; an enormous bushy mane that strained against the many pins she had used to keep it in place. It was the sort of hair that you couldn’t help but notice, and it was perhaps for that reason that the young lady had chosen to keep her hat on in the coach despite the heat.  

‘Final stop; Ottery St Catchpole!’

The coach trundled to a halt, and the coachman (whose name was Mr Jones) climbed down, pulling the small set of steps out from under the coach door. The gentleman helped his lady companion down, and the two of them sauntered away with their bags without so much as a thank you to the coachman.

Sighing to himself, the coachman turned.

‘Er… my apologies, Mr Jones,’ came a voice from within the coach. ‘Could you help me down, please?’

‘Of course, miss,’ he said, before helping the young lady down to the ground. ‘Allow me to help you with your bags as well.’

‘Thank you.’

As the coachman pulled her bags out from the luggage racks, the young lady stared down the street. The gentleman and his lady friend were laughing loudly to themselves outside one of the shops.

‘They were awfully rude, weren’t they?’

‘Afraid so, Miss,’ replied Mr Jones. ‘Many from London feel that Devon might as well be on another planet.’

‘I hope you won’t judge me by their behaviour.’

‘Oh, of course not, Miss…er… my apologies, my memory isn’t what it once was…’

‘Granger.’ Hermione Granger said, giving a small curtsy. ‘And thank you for keeping me company on such a pleasant journey, Mr Jones.’

‘My pleasure, Miss Granger,’  Mr Jones said, tipping his cap. ‘I’m surprised that such a pleasant young lady like yourself is travelling all alone, truth be told.’

‘Well, you see, I’m on my way to a new place of employment.’ Hermione said. ‘Ottery Manor; perhaps you know it?’

‘Oh, yeah, Miss. Very prominent local gentry.’

‘I am due to take up the post of governess for the young children,’ Hermione elaborated.  

‘A governess, you say?’ Mr Jones said, looking very surprised.

‘Yes, I recently achieved my qualification, you see.’

‘Very impressive, Miss. Er… just a word of warning, if you please?’

‘Whatever for?’

‘Well…’ Mr Jones looked rather uncomfortable. ‘You are… that is…’

Hermione sighed. She had been expecting this.

‘Mr Jones, I am well aware that the colour of my skin is perhaps not what the locals are used to.’

‘Oh, no, miss; that’s not what I meant!’ Mr Jones replied, shaking his head quickly. ‘Good gracious, no! Plymouth isn’t that far away, and we’re used to seeing people from all over the world popping through. It’s just… the gentry round here… aren’t quite so relaxed about it as the ordinary people are.’

Hermione smiled. Mr Jones was a sweet old man who clearly wanted to warn her as best he could, even if he didn’t quite have the terminology correct.

‘Thank you, Mr Jones; you are very kind.’

‘My pleasure, miss.’

‘Could you… point me in the direction of the manor house?’

Mr Jones nodded, pointing along up the narrow winding street of Ottery St Catchpole.

‘You can’t miss it; the big house on the hill.’

‘Thank you.’

As Hermione made her way through the main street, she was aware of just how much of a different world this was to London, where she had lived most of her life. For one thing, people walked far slower and had a relaxed attitude in their comings and goings. One could certainly tell that the pace of life was slower.

Within a few minutes, Hermione had left the village, and headed along the country road up towards the manor house. The lack of rain had meant that dust was virtually inescapable, but Hermione preferred it to the mud she had been concerned about. She wouldn’t have wanted to make a first appearance with her best clothes dirtied. That would be most distressing. She, after all, was being entrusted with the care of the children of the local landed family, and ought to be presentable in a way that acknowledged that responsibility she was being granted.

Her stomach began to squirm, as her nerves became agitated. She had largely avoided thinking too much about it when she was travelling but, now that she was so close to the manor, she couldn’t help worrying. What if she wasn’t qualified for this? What if the other staff members didn’t like her? What if she-

‘NEIIIIIGHHHH!’

Hermione’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted, as a large horse rounded the corner of the lane, galloping as fast as it could, and heading right towards her. It was tall, brown, and looked startled, its eyes wide.

Hermione’s bags slipped from her hands as she stumbled backwards, but the horse was already barely seven feet away. With a cry, Hermione tripped over the uneven ground, her hat flying off her head.

The horse reared up on its hind legs, and Hermione found herself frozen on the ground. Hoofs began to fall.

‘WHOOOAAA!’

Suddenly, the horse was no longer there.

Coming to her senses, Hermione pulled herself to her feet, and collected her bags together.

A man, roughly her age, was stood with the horse a few feet away. The first thing of notice was his height, at least a foot taller than Hermione. His head was framed with short, red hair. Freckles covered every inch of skin that was on show. He was wearing a rough work shirt that was tied up to his elbows, and a pair of trousers that were slightly too short on him. A pair of tough work boots, that had clearly seen better days, completed the ensemble.

‘Sssshhhhh, Tiff….’ He soothed, stroking the horse’s neck slowly. ‘It’s okay, girl… no-one’s going to hurt you…’

‘Good grief!’

Another man had joined him.

‘Good thing you’re such a fast runner, mate!’

‘I try my best,’ replied the redheaded man. ‘Good thing we managed to catch her before she reached the village.’

As the horse was led away by the other man, the redhead turned and, spotting Hermione, ran forward.

‘Miss, are you alright?’ he exclaimed, coming to a stop in front of her. There was a splodge of dirt on his long nose. ‘Tiffany got spooked earlier, and we only just caught up with her. I’m so sorry; are you hurt?’

‘I’m… I’m fine, thank you,’ Hermione said, as a pair of bright blue eyes stared down at her. ‘Although I think my hat must have blown away in the wind.’

The redhead man looked around, and pointed up into the branches of a nearby tree.

‘You mean that one, with the nice bow?’

‘Yes, but-’

The man was up the tree in a flash, and was soon leaping down next to her again, holding her hat.

‘There we go,’ he said, handing it over. ‘Maybe a little dusty, but that’s the heatwave for you.’

‘Thank you,’ Hermione said, placing the hat on top of her bushy hair. The two of them began to walk up the lane. ‘I appreciate your concern, Mr…’

‘Weasley,’ the redhead said, smiling. ‘But there’s enough of the Weasleys around here, so you can just call me Ron. Everyone else does; it’d be confusing otherwise.’

‘I… I don’t think that would be appropriate.’ Hermione said, as she bent down to pick up her bags.

‘Why? We’re all people, aren’t we?’ Mr Weasley replied. ‘Oh, let me help you.’

‘Yes, but I’m…’ Hermione stammered, as her load was lightened considerably. ‘Well, I’m starting at the Manor as the new governess.’

‘Oh, you’re the teacher everyone’s been gossiping about!’ Ron said, cheerily. ‘Miss… Granger, if my memory’s correct?

‘W-why, yes!’ Hermione exclaimed, suddenly feeling rather embarrassed. ‘Er…gossip, you say?’

‘Yes; the scullery-maids have been talking about nothing else for the past week,’ Mr Weasley replied, keenly. ‘Well, that and the summer fete. But, yes; a posh lady governess from up-country coming down to our little neck of the woods! They’ll be delighted to meet you!’

Hermione felt her cheeks flush.

‘I’m not nearly as posh as all that, Mr Weasley,’ she said, primly. ‘So I hope I don’t ruin their expectations when they see me.’

‘Why? You sound posh to me.’

‘No… I… I mean… well, look at me.’

The redhead stared at her in confusion, and Hermione felt she needed to elaborate.

‘Surely they were expecting someone less… exotic?’

Mr Weasley blinked.

‘You are from London, aren’t you? That’s pretty exotic.’

Hermione found herself suddenly laughing. Not the usual polite laughs she had been taught as a girl, but a full, unrestrained laugh, full of accompanying snorts.

‘London… exotic?!’

Mr Weasley grinned at her, his cheeks dimpling under his freckles.

‘If you’re born and raised in Devon, it is,’ he said, cheerfully. ‘Besides, I bet that’s the first time you’ve laughed in a good long while.’

‘Why… yes, it is,’ Hermione replied, smiling. ‘However could you tell?’

‘I hear tell of the aristo’s who take the stagecoach routes down from London. I gather they aren’t much in the way of humorous conversation?’

‘You would be correct about that. But where do you hear that from? Mr Jones the coachman?’

‘Old Jonesey? Oh, yes; lovely old soul. I’m the… well, the blacksmith and the odd-job man for the estate, so I’m in and out of the village a lot.’

Hermione nodded, trying not to notice how well the redheads shirt seemed to fit him. She supposed blacksmiths were all rather… muscley.

Ottery Manor stretched out before them. It was a double-storied building, with fine windows and a pair of thick oak doors. The house was arranged around a central courtyard, so that two wings of the house stretched out in front. A small fountain marked the middle of the courtyard, and the centre of the house was covered in fine ivy. Grounds stretched out around the house in all directions, full of trees and well-trimmed lawns. Hermione could make out some distant greenhouses and vegetable gardens on the periphery.  

‘You like the ivy?’ Mr Weasley enquired, pointing at the plant as they walked up the main pathway towards the house. ‘Me and my brother Bill -he works in the gardens- pruned them just last week; rather a nice effect, eh?’

‘Yes,’ Hermione replied. ‘Are all your siblings employed as members of staff here?’

‘No.’ the redhead said. ‘Percy -he’s the intellectual one- he works in Plymouth in an office. Fred and George -they’re the youngest brothers aside from me- work in the post office a few villages over.’

‘Any sisters?’

‘Just Ginny. She’s the youngest. Mum did want her to get a good job as a scullery maid, but Ginny’s always been more outdoorsy. She works in the gardens most of the time, but she sometimes helps me and Charlie in the forge.’

‘Charlie is… the main blacksmith aside from you, then?’

Mr Weasley laughed.

‘Yes, he’s always been good with animals, so he handles the shoe-fitting. I’m a bit of a jack-of-all-trades, myself; that’s why I’m the odd job man as well.’

‘There is nothing wrong with being multi-skilled,’ Hermione said, earnestly. ‘Most men in London would love to have a wide array of talents.’

Mr Weasley laughed again, his cheeks dimpling again.

By this point, they had reached the courtyard but, instead of heading for the front door, Mr Weasley lead her around one wing of the house and into a yard of sorts. Hermione could hear horses neighing nearby, and presumed that the stables weren’t that far away.

‘You’d best come through the servants entrance,’ Mr Weasley said, leading her up the rear side of the wing and stopping before a door, which was left open. ‘Not a good idea to get on the bad side of the footmen on your first day. Especially the head footman; he’s a right killjoy about these things.’

‘Well, I am a servant, technically.’

‘I know,’ Mr Weasley said, sighing. ‘But, if I had my way, we wouldn’t have to worry about separate entrances. We’re the people who actually keep this place going, not the aristo’s using this place like a retreat for when the season ends in London.’

Hermione felt rather shocked at Mr Weasley’s words, but she opted not to say anything. She could certainly understand his frustration, but she had never met someone who was so open about it.

‘The gentry often have friends and relatives down from London, then?’

‘Yes, but you probably won’t have to worry about them,’ Mr Weasley said, encouragingly. ‘They tend to stay away from the children if they can help it. This time of year, most of them are living the high life in London society; they shouldn’t be arriving here for another couple months.’

‘Well, I lived in London most of my life, but I already rather like it here in Devon.’

The redhead turned to look at her.

‘Really? Why?’

‘Well, judging from what I’ve seen so far, it’s quieter, for one thing. The pace of life in the city is far too extreme. Out here, you can hear the birds in the trees, see the bees in the hedgerows, smell the…’

‘Muck on the fields?’

Hermione laughed.

‘You’re very amusing, Mr Weasley.’

‘I try,’ the redhead said, his cheeks dimpling as he smiled. ‘Not very often I get the opportunity to make a woman laugh without making a prat of myself first.’

‘Oh, I-I’m sure all the local girls adore you.’

‘With five older brothers? I barely get a look in,’ Mr Weasley chuckled, his ears going a little pink. ‘But, thank you, miss.’

‘My… my pleasure, Mr Weasley.’

‘Mr Weasley, I trust you haven’t been frightening the new governess.’

A man had stepped out from the servants entrance. Judging by his dress, he was a footman of some description. His hair was surprisingly greasy, and he had a long, hooked nose. His voice gave an indication that he had taken elocution lessons to disguise a midlands accent.

‘Oh, no, sir!’ Hermione exclaimed, as the two of them deposited her bags near the door. ‘Mr Weasley came to my assistance when my hat blew astray on the front drive.’

Mr Weasley grinned at the footman.

‘Wouldn’t be a gentleman if I didn’t do so, sir.’

‘Mr Weasley… you are not a gentleman, and never will be. You are a commoner, and you would do well to remember it,’ the footman said, looking unkindly up at Ron over his long hooked nose. ‘Now, Miss Granger, if you would accompany me this way…’

As Hermione followed the footman, she happened to look back over her shoulder. Mr Weasley caught her eye, and mouthed “what an oily-haired git, eh?”. Hermione bit down on her lower lip to stop herself laughing.

 *

 On reflection, Hermione was rather embarrassed that she’d been so nervous about her first meeting with her employers. The lord of the manor seemed disinterested the entire time, while his wife asked a few questions about Hermione’s teaching qualification. In fact, Hermione spent most of the meeting nodding politely while the lady discussed the difficulty in finding a good governess in the local area, and that they appreciated that Hermione had come such a long way.

She was then escorted by the head footman back to the servants entrance, all the while wondering if all lords and ladies were so… underwhelming as people.

‘Thank you, but where should I-’

But the footman had already walked away.

Hermione looked around, her nerves building again. She didn’t know her way around, and she hadn’t even been told where her lodgings would be. Maybe she should-

‘All finished?’

Mr Weasley had poked his head through the door.

‘Y-yes,’ Hermione said. ‘But… well, where should I put all my…’

‘Oh, I’ll help you,’ Mr Weasley replied, cheerfully. ‘I can’t go into the women’s quarters, but I can let the scullery maids know that you’ve arrived.’

Turning, he knocked on a door.

‘Parvati? Lavender? The new governess is here; can you help her move her things into the women’s dormitory?’

There was a loud squeal from inside the room.

Rolling his eyes, Mr Weasley opened the door, and poked his head around it.

‘Oy; are you two finished?’

A few moments later, two women appeared from behind the door. Both of them dressed in the same simple uniform, and both roughly the same age as Hermione. They also both seemed to be very giggly.

‘Hello, Miss Granger!’ said one of them, who seemed to be of Indian descent. ‘Nice to meet you; I’m Parvati, and this is Lavender.’

Lavender, a girl with blonde hair that was pulled up under her bonnet, smiled.

‘Sorry we couldn’t meet you at the gates,’ Parvati said. ‘Me and Lav got a bit… distracted.’

There was a snicker from Mr Weasley. Lavender laughed, and slapped him playfully on the arm.

‘Anyway,’ Parvati continued, and Hermione was confused as to why the girl’s face had flushed at Mr Weasley’s comment. ‘We’ll help you take your bags up to the dorm.’

‘I wouldn’t want to cause you any trouble-’

‘Oh, it’s no trouble,’ Lavender said. ‘Besides, we never get to talk to anyone from London; do you know what the most recent styles are?’

‘Er…’ Hermione trailed off, as the two girls hurried along the corridor. She was about to follow, when she realised that the tall redhead was still there. She turned to face him again.

‘Thank you for all your help, Mr Weasley,’ Hermione said, giving a quick curtsy. ‘I am most pleased to make your acquaintance.’

‘As am I to make yours, Miss Granger,’ the redhead replied, his freckled cheeks dimpling once again. ‘Although, like I say, “Ron” is fine. There’s half a dozen Mr Weasleys here, so it just saves time.’

‘In that case, I will call you that,… Ron.’

The redhead grinned, before leaving to run across the wild grass nearby in the direction of the stables. The shirt Ron was wearing was, indeed, rather tight on him, and Hermione couldn’t help but notice how his muscles strained against the fabric as he ran, the sunlight reflecting beautifully off his red hair.

Hermione smiled, as she turned to follow Parvati and Lavender along the corridor. Ottery St Catchpole was shaping up to be a rather wonderful place to live.

~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for reading, everyone! Hope you liked it! If you want to keep up-to-date with the series, please subscribe on AO3 or FFN, or ask me to add you to the tag list on Tumblr.

[peteswormtail]

Family

The phone kept ringing as the couple was sleeping peacefully.

"Ron, answer the phone," Hermione mumbled but the boy shook his head.

"You do it. I can't even fucking use it."

She finally managed to get up and pick up the phone, next to their bed, and Harry's worried voice came straight into her ear.

"Hermione, thank God!"

She looked confused, "Harry, what is it? Is there something wrong? Is it your scar?"

Ron quickly sat down, fully awake as she glanced him a worried look.

"It's Ginny, she's giving birth now. We made it to a muggle hospital."

Hermione felt tears coming down her cheeks, "Oh my God, this is- We're coming right now, give me the address!"

She took a piece of paper from her desk and a pen and wrote something down. Then hung up the phone and looked at her boyfriend. He had that awesome sleepy face that made her heart skip a beat every time, and his hair was still messy from the fun they had earlier.

"Ginny is giving birth." She said and he stood up, shocked.

"What the fuck? Why are you saying it like that?" Ron said, starting to dress up.

"How should I tell you? Get a move!"

They dressed up as fast as they could and Hermione took his hand, "Ready?" He nodded.

They Apparated at the beginning of a road, Hermione looked over at the piece of paper in her hands and then at the sign just above their heads. "It's here. Come on."

After walking for some minutes, they found the hospital. "Fuck fuck fuck." She heard Ron sighing, he stopped walking as they were about to enter.

"Do not swear! Besides, you have no reason to feel anxious, it's not like you're the one giving birth." She chuckled and he put his hands on his pocket, looking down.

"Hey, what is it?" She noticed his dreadful face and hugged him as tight as she could.

"I don't know. Is she going to feel some sort of pain? Are we going to watch her?"His ears slowly turning red.

She smiled, "Well, it will hurt a little bit, but it will be worth it. As for us, we won't be watching. Only Harry, if he wants to."

Ron took a deep breath, kissed his girlfriend softly, and then nodded as they walked into the hospital.

"Hi, my sister is giving birth. Can we see her?" Hermione could tell he was nervous, he always was when he was in any contact with the muggle world.

"Hello, sure. Name?" The nurse smiled at them nicely.

"Ginevra Weasley." He said, smiling back.

"Third floor, first door. Congratulations!"

Hermione thanked her quickly and they ran to the third floor. They found Harry sitting on a chair, his head in his hands. He stood up as they walked in.

"Hey, thank you for coming." He hugged Hermione and then Ron, "Sorry for waking you up."

"How is she? Is the baby born? Is she hurt? Did you see her? Did she get hurt?"

"Ron!" Hermione gave him an angry look and he apologized, sitting down.

"She's in the delivering room."

"A fucking what? Oh my god, why the fuck didn't you go to the fucking St. Mungo? Fuck." Ron looked pale and scared, and the thought of his sister in that "delivering room" doing who knows what muggle things only made him feel worse.

"Because it is 4:00 in the fucking morning, Ron, and she screamed in her sleep. She scared the shit out of me, you weren't there! I didn't know what the fuck to do so I just Appareated with her in this fucking place because it was the closest to our house. Do you know how hard it was to Appareated?"

Hermione shook her head, switching her eyes from Harry to Ron, "Guys please, we should not be fighting! Ginny is giving birth, please." She looked at Ron with an imploring look and he sighed.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I'm... i'm such an asshole." They both chuckled and hugged.

"I am sorry too."

"Thank you very much, can we focus on Ginny now?" Hermione brought them both to reality as they nodded.

They sat down in silence for minutes, maybe hours. Ron's fingers were intertwined with Hermione's, their hands shaking and his forehead pressed against hers.

"Who's the father?" A doctor came out of the door and smiled at the three of them. Harry stood up and raised his hand. "Come with me." He looked over at Ron and Hermione who smiled at him and then followed the man into the room.

"Shit, it's taking too long." Ron laid his head on the wall and Hermione smiled.

"It will be worth it, I'm sure." She said, looking at him carefully. God, he was handsome.

"I love you." She kissed him, trying to calm down his fear.

"I love you." He responded to the kiss, pressing his lips to hers once again.

As soon as they pulled away, they heard a scream coming from the door Harry had entered some minutes before.

"Fuck! Is that Ginny? What is happening?" He put his head on his hands.

"It's normal, Ron. Seriously, you are not taking this well-"

"Hermione, it's my fucking sister screaming like a crazy bitch!"

"It's what she's supposed to be doing! Stop overreacting! Next time don't come at all!"

"Next time? There won't be any fucking next time!"

Hermione opened her mouth to say something but words died in her throat. She closed it again, while she started to feel hurt right on her chest and her eyes were starting to get wet. She stood up and went sitting far away from him, crying silently.

There won't be a "next time"? Didn't he want any children with her? Was that only a stupid relationship for him? Didn't he see a future with her?

After what seemed to be an hour, Harry came out of the door and smiled at them. By the look on his face, they could tell the baby was finally born.

"You can come in." He said after giving them a weird look, wondering why there were sitting so far away from each other.

Hermione started crying as they entered the room. Ginny was sitting in a bed with her baby in her arms. She was crying and sweaty and yet she looked like an angel.

"Fuck." Ron whispered and, while Hermione was walking over Ginny, he stopped far away, near the door.

"He is... he is so... oh my God." Hermione was speechless, maybe for the first time in her entire life.

"Do you want to hold him?" Ginny said gently and Hermione nodded.

As soon as she took the baby in her arms, Ron started to cry. Harry patted him on the shoulder and Hermione looked at him confused, but not angry anymore.

"Ron, are you okay?" Ginny asked, smiling.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He sighed and wiped off a few tears.

"Come here, I won't bite you." His sister leaned her hand out and he took it as he approached her bed.

"You were so brave and handled it better than me." He left a kiss on her forehead and she laughed.

"I can imagine."

He glanced at Hermione, who was on the other side of the room, talking to Harry and cuddling the baby in her arms.

"You want that, don't you?" Ginny smiled at him and he sighed.

"I don't know what you are talking about."

She giggled, "You started crying as soon as she took the baby in her arms. Don't lie to me, I'm your bloody sister." They both laughed.

"I think I fucked up." He said, glancing again at his girlfriend. Merlin, what had he done to deserve her? Did he really deserve her?

"Then go and fix it." She grinned and pushed him towards her.

"Hey." He said, joining Hermione and Harry.

"Got it." Harry smiled at both of them and went to check out his girlfriend.

Ron looked at Hermione while she couldn't take her eyes off the baby. He still hadn't looked at him, he didn't want to.

"You should take a look, it's your nephew after all." She said, her tone sounded angry but she kept smiling at the baby.

"Hermione, please, don't make this harder."

"I'm not doing anything." She didn't dare to look at him.

"Why are you acting so cold?" He tried to reach for her arm but she took a step back.

"I'm not," She said, "Hey baby, hey cute." She smiled at the baby.

Ron's mind flew a hundred miles away from earth. Suddenly he could see Hermione in that exact position, except for the fact that the baby in her arms was theirs. She was smiling and crying at the same time, she was sweaty just like Ginny. He knew he was the luckiest man alive. Then his mind flew again. This time, two little redheads were sitting on the couch, next to an older version of Hermione and Ron. They were happy and smiling, all four of them. They had a family. His mind flew once more and this time brought him back to reality.

"I want one."

Hermione stopped moving as he spoke and finally looked at him, "What?" She couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"I want one of these." He pointed at the baby and finally managed to look at him, "Fuck, he is cute."

"Don't swear in front of the baby, Ron!" She hit him on his arm, giggling.

"At least you're not angry anymore." Ron raised an eyebrow and she shook her head.

"I wasn't angry. It's just... You said there would be no next time, so I thought you wouldn't want to get through this all over again."

"That's not what I meant at all! I, fuck, I love you, Hermione! How could you think such things? Girls' minds, I swear." He looked down at the baby.

"Do you want him? The baby."

Ron shook his head, "No, no. He looks safer in your arms, I'd probably drop him-"

"Oh please, don't be such an... idiot." She whispered the last word.

Hermione put the baby in his arms and he took a few minutes to look at him. "He is so bloody tiny. Look at his nose. And his tiny little hand."

Hermione couldn't hold herself and started crying again as Ron smiled at the baby and started calling him in a bunch of ridiculous silly names.

She took a step closer and put a hand on his shoulder and the other one on the baby's head, "I want one too."

His eyes widened open, "You do?" She nodded, wiping a few tears off his cheeks.

"Imagine this tiny little thing walking around the house, and sleeping between us at night, calling you mum."

Hermione smiled between sobs and kissed him, careful not to hurt the baby. "God, did you plan your future?"

"From the first time I met you in that bloody train."

The doctor came into the room, catching the attention of the four of them. "Sorry to interrupt, but we need the baby. We'll be bringing him to you in three hours."

Ginny nodded as Ron walked over to the doctor and gave him the baby.

"I'm so tired." She said before yawning and Harry giggled.

"You should get some sleep."

"Harry's right, Gin. You should rest." Hermione caressed her hair and smiled at her.

"We'll see you tomorrow with the rest of the family, okay?" Ron said and squeezed Hermione's hand.

"See you tomorrow," Harry said as they walked out the door.

Ron put his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder, "I'm tired too."

"We'll be home soon." He held her tighter.

They walked out of the hospital and, after making sure no one was around, Apparated home.

"Merlin's sake, it's 6:00 am." He said, looking at the watch in their living room.

"Ronald, your shoes, please." She gave him a suicidal look and he quickly took off his shoes and placed them near the door.

"Sorry love."

She shook her head, "It's okay. Are you hungry? Should I make breakfast?"

"Breakfast? You were tired just two minutes ago."

"I know but it's morning now. Maybe I should just stay awake and go straight to work."

Ron put his arms around her, "You are not going to work."

She looked at him confused and put her hands on his chest, trying to pull away from him, "Why? Ron, please, I'll be late."

"Just take a day off, it is worth it. You haven't got any sleep and your nephew is born, we should celebrate all together!" He held her tighter as she tried again to take a step back.

"Please..." He continued and Hermione sighed.

"Fine."

He smiled like a baby and she couldn't help but kiss that smile. "I love you." He said between kisses as his lips moved from her face to her neck.

She let out a moan, "I thought I took a day off to get some sleep."

"Or we could make a baby."

She suddenly stopped him.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" He asked and she shook her head.

"I mean... You were serious earlier at the hospital?"

He pulled away from her, "You... you weren't? Oh, fuck."

"No! That's not what I meant! Of course I was serious, I just didn't think you were." She put a hand on his cheek.

"I was. Look, I'm sorry about what I said when we were fighting, I was nervous and wasn't thinking straight. You know I lose my shit when I'm nervous and mad. But I was serious later, I fucking burst into tears when you took the baby in your arms."

She kissed him softly, smiling, "Ron-"

"And did you see Harry and Ginny? They were so happy. I want that with you-"

She kissed him again and didn't let him finish as he put his arms around her waist and she took off his shirt. "I want all of that with you too, Ron. Let's start with the baby."

He lifted her and she put her legs around his waist as they made their way to the bedroom.

--

"Oh, God." Hermione let out a sigh and rolled over in the bed, smiling.

"That was a bloody fuck."

She hit him on the chest, "Ron!"

Ron chuckled and turned around to look at her gorgeous girlfriend, "Do you think we can make it?"

"Well, probably not on our first try, so don't expect too much from me." She said, still trying to catch her breath.

"I'm not expecting anything from you, don't say like that! You can do whatever you want and when you want to, it's your body after all."

She kissed him and rested her chin on his bare chest, "Thank you, love."

"But please let's try until we pass out."

She laughed and nodded, "I promise I'll try my best to make you happy and give you the family you want."

"Hey, I don't want you to say these things. You already make me happy every fucking day. You are my family. This," He gestured to their apartment, "Is already family for me. Our daily life is family. Kids will be one of the many reason."

She looked down, "What did I do to deserve you?"

He caressed her hair, "I'm the lucky one here."

"Let's say we both are."

They smiled at each other.

Art Credit: viria13 on DeviantArt.

[gameofdrarry]

Wizards Hearts Recs: Secret Relationship

Wizards Hearts was a four-month-long Drarry reading fest. Players were given a playing deck of 52 tropes, and were asked to find 52 different fics to read and comment on to fill their decks. To prevent the same few fics from being read, fics were restricted to only being used for the game three times before being considered ineligible for further points. The tropes and submissions list can be found here.

Check out the masterlist of fics for this trope below the cut!

Goodness and Justice Have Dwelt in Your Heart  by violetclarity Rated:  Mature Words:  1952 Tags:  Secret Relationship, Dark!Draco, Angst Summary:  “But sooner or later you would regret having consecrated your love to me, for you do not know my soul.” // An upside-down remix of Wolves and Lambs Look Not by LowerEastSide. Read on AO3

📜 just tell me when it’s alright by M0stlyVoid Rated:  Explicit Words:  23,002 Tags:  Secret Relationship, Rimming, Oral Sex, Anal Sex, Forced Orgasm, Possessive Behavior, Jealousy, Bite Kink, Bruise Kink, Light Dom/sub Summary:  Harry’s been fighting tooth and nail for any bit of normalcy he can get his hands on. He’s sick of feeling like something’s wrong with him, tired of feeling different. He thinks he’s finally gotten to the root of it, and has settled into a routine that makes him happy. Naturally, that’s when Draco Malfoy walks back into his life and upends it once again. Has Harry bitten off more than he can chew with his former rival? ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 fine i'll hold my breath / til i forget it's complicated by teatrolley Rated:  Not Rated Words:  10884 Tags: Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, there's a lot of shagging, and a lot of unresolved emotions, because these two dudes are idiots, but we love them, and they love each other, Oops, its complicated though, OR IS IT Summary:  Harry and Draco become friends with benefits, and Harry thinks it's more complicated than it actually is ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 The Difference Between a Cat and a Comma, Or, The One Where McGonagall Has Sass by shilo1364 Rated:  Teen and Up Words:  18600 Tags: Mentor Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts Eighth Year, background Ronmione, Transfigurations, HP: EWE, Pre-Slash, Pre-Relationship, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Coming Out, Secret Relationship, Humor, Fluff and Humor, No Smut, No Sex, Ginny is Harry's best friend, harry is annoyed at Ron and hermione, Harry/Draco and Ginny/luna double-date, Inspired by a Tumblr pun, Thestrals, tea with Hagrid, Transfiguration (Harry Potter), Tie-Switching, Great Hall Relationship Reveal Summary:  Eighth year at Hogwarts is going to be boring. That's what Draco Malfoy thinks when the Wizengamot makes attendance a condition of his pardon. After all, after letting Death Eaters into the school, failing to kill his headmaster, and being forced to serve a homicidal madman, how could finishing up his education *possibly* be interesting? Answer: a coveted Transfigurations advanced study position, Minerva Mcgonagall's surprising fondness for him, Thestrals, tea with Hagrid, tutoring Harry Potter, Granger and Weasley's excessive PDA, and the perplexing nature of sleight-of-hand double-dates with Harry, Luna, and Ginny. And then, of course, there's righteously indignant (if misinformed) Weasley, Draco's own insecurities and flair for dramatics, and a long-suffering Kingsley Shacklebolt. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Parseltongue, Quidditch, and Smut, Oh My! by cassie_black Rated:  Mature Words:  14392 Tags: Fluff, Smut, Sexual Content, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Parseltongue, Secret Relationship, Angry Sex Summary:  Hot boys, ball games, and snake talk! (A very late Christmas present for the lovely nursedarry!) ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Still Life by orphan_account Rated:  Mature Words:  3011 Tags: London, POV Harry Potter, i guess!!! Summary:  N/A ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 I'll Tell You A Secret (Just Don't Tell) by nerakrose Rated:  General Words:  18331 Tags: Coming Out, Domestic, Fluff, Cute, Community: trope_bingo, Curtain Fic, Secret Relationship, Car Accidents, But no one dies, HP: EWE, Forced coming out, Muggle Life, Draco Malfoy in the Muggle World Summary:  Harry and Draco are living a fairly normal life with a fairly normal relationship, except for the part where it's, well, secret. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Code-Cracking For Gryffindors by Saras_Girl Rated:  Teen and Up Words:  4065 Tags: N/A Summary:  Harry should know better than to conceal mysterious body art from dorm-mates who pay no heed to what happened to the cat. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Too precious to share by slowroad Rated:  Mature Words:  1667 Tags: Romance, Fluff, Humor, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Established Relationship, Secret Relationship, HP Fluff Fest 2020 Summary:  Harry and Draco are several months into their eighth year at Hogwarts. They have been in a relationship for a while now, but no one knows about them and they are happy to keep it that way. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 On The Couch by Frayach Rated:  Explicit Words:  26035 Tags: Desperation, Soul-Searching, Passion, Therapy, Voyeurism, Infidelity Summary:  It’s a Mind Healer’s worse nightmare to lose a patient to suicide, but Mind Healer Nick Nichols can attest to the fact that a murder/suicide is even worse. If only Dr. Freud had come up with a sure cure for love. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Curiosity, Wonder, Spontaneous Delight by cloudings Rated:  Explicit Words:  114710 Tags: Hogwarts Eighth Year, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, but its more like, enemies to friends with benefits to lovers?, Enemies with benefits?, Porn, Blow Jobs, Accidental Voyeurism, Voyeurism, Scars, Masturbation, Masturbation in Shower, Fantasizing, Flirting, if it seems like there are too many gay characters in this I say fuck you, Getting Together, coming to terms with sexuality, Sexuality, Bisexual Harry Potter, Gay Draco Malfoy, Lesbian Ginny Weasley, Improper Use of the Imperius Curse, Dry Humping, Making Out, Secret Relationship, Sneaking Around, Draco Malfoy Speaks French, as he should, Drinking, Partying, Jealousy, Anal Sex Summary:  After Harry hears some rumours about Malfoy, he becomes more and more curious until he just has to get some answers. Malfoy is more than prepared to give him anything he needs, just as long as he gets something back in return. Harry’s not sure why he’s surprised that it’s something moderately illegal. In which Ron continues to get far too many eyefuls, Hermione has had quite enough with everybody, and Harry’s not sure why enemies to friends to friends with benefits isn’t enough for him. OR Harry becomes incredibly curious, and somewhere along the line ends up accidentally falling in love with Draco Malfoy. Because of course he bloody would. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Twist of Fate by Oakstone730 Rated:  Teen and Up Words:  302209 Tags: Canon up until Epilogue, Triwizard, Book 4: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Redemption, Forgiveness, Angst, Memory Loss, Secret Relationships, obliviate, secret boyfriends Summary:  Draco asks Harry to help him beat the Imperius curse during 4th year. The lessons turn into more than either expected. A story of redemption and forgiveness. Pairings: HP/DM (Slash) Timeframe: 1994-2002 Goblet to 4 yrs post-DH EWE Rating T for language, high angst, content. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Breakin' the Rules by orpheous87 Rated:  Teen and Up Words:  3146 Tags: Implied Sexual Content, H/D Sex Fair 2020, Auror Partners, Auror Harry Potter, Auror Draco Malfoy, Gay Draco Malfoy, Bisexual Harry Potter, Secret Relationship, Blood Loss, Blood and Injury, St Mungo's Hospital, Fluff, Coming Out, Happy Ending, Hurt Harry Potter, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE Summary:  Harry and Draco are Auror partners. They're in a relationship that they've been forced to keep secret due to relationships between Aurors being forbidden. Harry is okay with this, as he hasn't come out to anyone other than Draco, but after a mission goes awry, their relationship is exposed. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Little Talks by Femme (femmequixotic), noeon (noe) Rated:  Explicit Words:  11351 Tags: N/A Summary:  Draco's been shagging the Head Auror for months now, and he's sure it's just a fling. Until Harry asks him to a Quidditch match, that is, and things go horribly wrong. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 You Look the Way I Feel by yourdifferentoctober Rated:  Explicit Words:  108693 Tags: Hogwarts Eighth Year, Mental Health Issues, Getting to Know Each Other, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Hand Jobs, Blow Jobs, Semi-Public Sex, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Top Harry Potter, Orgasm Delay/Denial, First Time, Praise Kink, Bottom Draco Malfoy, Snogging, Slow Burn, Slow Build, Enemies to Lovers, Sexual Tension, Falling In Love, Jealous Harry Potter, Possessive Harry Potter Summary:  Draco returns for his eighth year at Hogwarts in an attempt to salvage whatever he can of his future. His plan: sit as many N.E.W.T.s as possible, distance himself from the Malfoy name, and keep out of trouble. Of course, with his father on trial and at risk of unthinkable punishment, not to mention the anxiety-fueled "episodes" that have been plaguing him since summer, the school year doesn't go so smoothly. Especially when Harry Potter keeps seeking him out. ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 Magnetism by Queenie_Mab Rated:  Explicit Words:  26028 Tags: Illustrated, Chaptered, Adaptation, Rimming, Anal Sex, Veritaserum, Bad Poetry, Bets, Drunk Sex, Drunken Confessions, Blow Jobs, Mistaken Identity, Bottom Harry Summary:  Muggle Romance Novelist Draco Malfoy is exiled in the Muggle world after the war, but as fate would have it, the chemistry between him and Harry Potter draws them together, no matter how much Draco resists. Adapted from the manga/anime, Gravitation by Maki Murakami ❤️ Read on AO3

📜 In Secret by Rei382 Rated:  General Words:  2119 Tags: Secret dating, Secret Relationship, Christmas, did I ever say how much I love arthur?, No I did not?, well now is my chance Summary:  Harry and Draco are secretly dating. At least, they think it's secretly. ❤️ Read on AO3

[lower-east-side]

first line game 🖋

Rules: List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favorite opening line. Then tag 10 of your favorite authors!

Thank you for the tag @glittering-git!!! Going back 20 fics takes me to April of 2018. I think the only pattern is that my first lines tend to be pretty short. There is very little punctuation other than commas and periods. Almost all refer to a person, either describing or them doing something. Yet only one begins with dialogue (the single Devilman fic, and incidentally the nearly-complete sequel also begins with dialogue.) Over time, I think I show improvement! I’m not sure how representative of my writing this is, however, as I’m more concerned with an opening paragraph rather than lines. 

All of these are Drarry, complete, and rated E unless otherwise noted.

1. You’ll Love (To Let Go) -- It was the noise that woke Harry up.

2. King's Crossing (WIP) -- All the trees were bending down to hold him in their arms.

3. New Chevrolet In Flames (Devilman, M, Ryo/Akira) -- “Not again,” Akira groans as Ryo pulls up to the curb.

4. The Company of The Rose -- Brunch, according to Pansy, was the most important meal of the day.

5. Let's Kiss and Make Up -- Washing up just isn't the same without him.

6. Table Ten -- Every Thursday night was Open Mic Night at the cafe.

7. don’t say you love me, that’s extortion -- Harry is only allowed to say it when Draco is asleep.

8. Cryptography -- With a whir and a snap, the sides of the cube fell into place, and a warm glow filled the room.

9. Harriet Evans and the Happily Ever After (G, Ronmione with potential Drarry) -- It was bedtime in the Granger-Weasley household, and there was a change to the routine.

10. More Than Friends (G) --The door to the compartment slid open, and Ginny slipped inside.

11. Turncoat -- (G) When the smoke had cleared and the Horcrux dissolved, Harry, Ron and Hermione stood shell-shocked outside the Room of Requirement.

12. Taphonomy (T, Lucius/Narcissa) -- She’s holding another person in her body, and yet she’s never felt more alone.

13. To Keep the Heart’s Action -- Vampires are disgusting.

14. Variation -- The Malfoy Heir lives in Malfoy Manor.

15. House Cup Blues -- In front of the hourglasses that displayed House Points, two students stopped — or rather, one student stopped and the other ran into them.

16. all the good that won't come out (T, Daphne/Pansy, background Drastoria) -- The bookshop is Daphne’s refuge from the world.

17. In this world (we’re just beginning) (T) -- It’s not like Harry hasn’t seen the latest Muggle fashions.

18. Does Your Heart Beat Slower (M, Dransy) -- Pansy has never seen the Manor looking so gloomy.

19. Really Good, Indeed -- Sometimes, Harry and Draco still liked to fight.

20. Electric Demons in Love -- It had to be Dark Magic.

As to picking a favorite... hmm. I like the ones that make you guess a little bit, like #1 (what noise?) or #7 (allowed to say what?)  Overall, though, I’ll have to go with 12. It’s very sharp. What do you guys think?

This has illuminated how much I don’t like the opening line of my Big Bang, and that I really need to make it punchier. That’s what editing is for!

I never tag a lot of people on these (ten whole tags? hahaha social anxiety says no) and this is a lot of work so feel free to ignore, but I’d love to see first lines from @phenomenalasterisk @sunflower-swan @candybarrnerd 

[ravenslightwrites]

Happy Evil Authors Day! *Yeets story into the great beyond*

Pairing: Dramione, background and beginning Ronmione Rating: M Tags: No major archive warnings, but consensual infidelity is featured in the initial chapters

Summary: Time has never been on Hermione's side. For a witch so results-oriented, she's dreadful at breaking down the passage of time into achievable tasks, goals that are meant to help guide her on her path to long-dreamed-of successes. Instead, she's found herself a drone on the slippery corporate ladder, desperately clinging to her marriage with both hands lest one more thing slip through her fingers, but neither she nor Ron can bear the pain their failed attempts wrought on each other any longer. The finality of goodbye too definitive for the both of them, Hermione proposes a six-month break from the trappings of their relationship to discover the parts of themselves they lost along the way and learn the people they've grown into. With the heavy weight of her own failures balanced precariously on her shoulders, Hermione embarks on a journey to find the love that she lost so long ago—for herself, for her career, and even for the relationships she's watched crumble along the way—even if it means changing everything she's grown to hold dear. Chapter 1 can be found on AO3 

[levi-supreme]

Hey Rei! Anon here!

I wanted to talk about this post. I won't tag the person who made it, but I was interested in your opinion on it. They bring up a great point in their tags as well.

I know for me I get really drained from writing. Not because I feel it's a chore, but writing, reading, editing, rereading and writing again can get quite exhausting and I feel that I don't even really want to read anyone's work after that.

This extends to me struggling to read other's writing who normally I might read, but can no longer do just because of being tired of words.

Anyway, I was wondering if you or other people felt this way as well since the post does have a lot of notes. Happy Tuesday!

Hi!!!!! Sorry I took so long to answer this T.T I'll answer below the cut because I'm prone to verbal diarrhoea lol!

A little background info, I started reading fanfics since 15 or 16, and I read loads of fanfics written of/about kpop idols (character x character, character x oc), Harry Potter (mainly Ronmione, AU, and canon-divergence), Digimon Adventure (the original 1998 characters hehe), and Final Fantasy (Cloti for life!!!!).

I wrote my first BTS fanfic in 2016, I write kny fics but I did not post any, and I only started writing for snk (specifically Levi) in 2021 after mustering the courage and getting over the shyness and anxiety lol.

I consider myself as a reader more than a writer because I don't think I'm good enough to be called a fanfic writer haha. Still, I'll give my comments in two parts. First as a writer, and next as a reader!

As a writer

I totally get what you mean!! Like, the constant brainstorming, writing, planning, and editing, it burns people out, and I feel like that too. Sometimes I feel like I am in the right headspace to write. But when I open up my Google docs, my drive suddenly just goes away.

And sometimes as a writer, I feel like I don't want to read fanfics for mainly two reasons:

1. I don't want to remember what I read in others fics and accidentally use it in my own fics.

Unfortunately my memory is pretty good lol, and I don't want to remember a scene, a line, or an idea that I read from a fic, and accidentally use it in my own writing.

And seeing as how I literally only write for Levi, and I tend to read more Levi x reader fics, I never ever want to risk the chance of me liking and remembering something that I've read, and then using it when I'm writing my own fics. I know to most this is just a small thing, but to me I feel like this is something that I should avoid in order to give that fic writer the respect and credit for writing something so good.

2. I don't want to read other people's writings and inadvertently compare it to my own.

I'm not sure about you, but despite the cheerful, friendly, sweet image I may give off to all of you, I'm actually very self-conscious and feel very inferior in terms of writing. I always have this feeling that my writing sucks, I'm mediocre, and no one likes what I'm writing.

Of course confidence is something that needs to be built and it takes time. But then, I don't want to read works of other writers (especially those that have a good number of audience/have really good 'representative' writings/are what you call the more 'popular' writers) and then comparing it to my own writing, because I know I will unknowingly tell myself "lmao haha you can't write something as good as that can you?"

And also, I feel like if I have a certain idea that I want to write, but I already see it being written, I'll feel demoralised to write it. I will think that oh, people might compare my writing to someone else's, and obviously mine going to be the inferior one.

As a reader

Also, I don't know about you, but I feel like fanfiction has changed a lot. Or maybe, it's because I've grown up and the type of fics I enjoy reading are now different.

Back when I was still an avid kpop fan, the amount of fanfics I've read were SO many, and they're all in different genres and AUs. Coffee shop au, spy au, police/mafia au, office au, magic au, super power au, canon-divergent, etc.

Yes these tropes are still being used in writing for anime fanfiction, but it just feels so... different? Like, the fics I read about a kpop character x oc/Ronmione/Cloti/Squinoa (Squall x Rinoa from FFVIII) feels so different from those written for anime characters.

But as a reader, I feel like these are the reasons why I don't see myself reading a lot of fanfiction nowadays.

1. The fics are chaptered/long fics are time consuming.

I'm not saying they're bad, I actually LOVE long fics. But then, I feel like I need to be in the right time to properly read them because just like reading a book, I want to be able to read these chaptered/long fics without distractions.

I feel like since these chaptered/long fics are like reading a book, I want to really enjoy the writing and imagery, so if I'm not in the correct 'mood' I find myself unable to focus and enjoy the fic as much as I want to.

2. There's nothing I like available.

I don't know about you, but I'm aversive to a lot of dark content and popular tropes. For one I really don't like the daddy kink, sugar daddy/baby kink, stepcest. I also can't stand like any rough play/three or more some/sex pollen and more. Yup. I know I am very vanilla. But do I care? Lmao no. It's my preference and it's who I am.

I love reading fluff and the occasional hurt/comfort and smut, but somehow that's about it. And I'm not bashing anyone, but there's so many fics with dark content, and then resulting in me having nothing to read. Of course the writers are free to produce whatever content they want. It's for their audience who love those tropes and ideas, but I just happen to not be one of them.

So, it just ends up with me not having that many things to read eventually, and somehow I just re-read old stuff that I really enjoy.

3. I have no time.

I mean... like okay yes it's an obvious answer, but I really don't have the time? Shift work (12hrs and above) is a pain in my ass, and I have to study too, and fulfill my duties as a daughter and as a girlfriend. WHERE TO FIND THE TIME???? I don't even have a lot of time to sleep lmao, don't talk about reading fanfics haha.

Bringing back to point 1, I can read like short fics but when it comes to anything 5k words and above I'm like "Okay let's kiv this first I'll read it again next time" and therefore, I have too many fics tagged under my 'save for later' tag T.T

I don't know if I answered your ask or not anon I'm so sorry if I didn't, and I made you read through paragraphs of crap.

And also disclaimer: I'm not spilling the tea on anyone, and these are just my own thoughts and opinions. Please also remember that I am actually very pessimistic and inferior, and I really tend to always think of the bad stuff first before the good lol, which may make me sound really cynical and negative here.

And if you've read until here, thank you for standing by my verbal diarrhoea <3

[dramionediscussion]

Lol sorry. (The hermione in fics where is not about dramione) I used the eye roll emoji. And the ones I’ve read she’s trying to break up the main pairing (at least not outright) but she is always trying to be in their business. Like all she does is study in the background or be only with Ron (yes sometimes it’s Ronmione in the background) or she just wants to know everyone’s business even if they don’t want to tell her. But sometimes they just write her as a nag and hence the eye roll emoji

YES!!!!! That’s exactly how she was in the one I read. It was a Hansy fic, and I can’t remember what happened to Ginny, why she and Harry weren’t together, but Hermione was with Ron and they hated Pansy!

She and Ron didn’t care to make friends with Pansy even after Harry tried over and over to make them accept his girlfriend. Hermione and Ron kept “running” into them out on dates and inviting themselves to eat with them. Her and Ron came over to his place to “hang” and oh surprise we didn’t know Pansy was here! They kept telling Harry he can do better. And when Harry had enough, Hermione took it upon herself to figure out if Pansy did something to him because how dare Harry not listen to Hermione! 

I also accidentally read a Scorpius/Lily Luna one thinking it had background dramione like some other dramione fics. But nope she was with Ron and she decided to have a “talk” with her niece about dating that Malfoy boy, and got angry when Lily didn’t want to listen!

Those authors did her so dirty!

- Lisa

[ao3feed-harrydraco]

by JET_Playin

There was a time, not so long ago, when we lived in peace. The year was 1988 and my husband, Lucius, was a respected war hero. We were celebrating the fifth anniversary of the fall of Lord Voldemort and, that night, no star burned brighter than that of my sweet Draco, our darling son. Lucius, fearful of vengeful Death Eaters, arranged for us to depart for Paris shortly after the ball but Draco begged to stay. So, I had a special gift made for him, to make the transition easier, for both of us.

Words: 41363, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Anastasia (1997)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, Ron Weasley, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Hermione Granger, Pansy Parkinson, Narcissa Black Malfoy, Lucius Malfoy, James Potter, Lily Evans Potter, Aberforth Dumbledore, Bellatrix Black Lestrange, Peter Pettigrew

Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anastasia AU, Memory Loss, Canonical Character Death, Angst, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Getting Together, Explicit Sexual Content, Flashbacks, background Ronmione, Background Wolfstar

[professorsparklepants]

Here's the entire Ronmione tag on Ao3 with every single other (romantic) pairing filtered out so you don't have to trudge through the eternal swamp of background pairings looking for decent Ronmione content

[obsidianarchives]

Black Wizard History Month 2019 Round Table

Every February at Black Girls Create we celebrate Black Wizard History Month, a celebration of the Black characters of Harry Potter, Black Potterheads in fandom, and magical Black folks everywhere. This year our month-long turn up included live tweets, a live show of our #WizardTeam podcast, and fanfiction hosted through our Hogwarts BSU project.

Fanfiction is a large part of fandom, and in many cases can be a place for marginalized fans to see and write themselves into the stories they love. Hogwarts BSU is a project specifically for Black writers and artists to write stories centered around Black characters, history, and magic in the wizarding world. As a way to wrap up a jam-packed month, we decided to host a round table with a few of the writers of the pieces that came out during this year’s Black Wizard History Month.

How did you get into Harry Potter?

Bianca Ramos: When I was in 7th grade, my younger cousin was assigned books 1-3 in school. It was during the conservative Christian outrage and my family asked me to pre-read them for him since I was a "reader." I knocked them out quickly and was hooked.

Delia Gallegos: Growing up, the books always peaked my interest in the library, even though I was only 5 or 6 years old. Our household was pretty religious, so my mom was wary about letting me read them. One summer, my cousin lent me Sorcerer’s Stone while we were at my grandma’s. I only got a chapter in but I knew I HAD to read it. After a lot of begging on my part, my mom relented and agreed to let me read it under the condition that she could read the first one out loud to me. The rest was history!

Constance Gibbs: I started reading Harry Potter when I was in sixth grade and someone was reading Chamber of Secrets. I can’t remember if I read that one first or if I went to Sorcerer’s Stone, but I read all three that were out at the time and had my grandma take me to pre-order Goblet of Fire, which was about to come out. I’ve been hooked ever since.

Porshèa Patterson: In 6th grade, my then-bestie told me about the series but had already lent the first book out. That summer I picked up the books from the library after learning I'd never see this bestie again due to me changing schools. Thus, Harry Potter became my new best friend.

Have you read fanfiction before? What draws you to it? Or what kept you away from it?

Bianca: I didn't read fanfiction before getting into everything going on here at Black Girls Create. I don't know why. I guess I just never found myself on that side of the internet. Now I think I’m more open to it.

Delia: I’m a long-time fanfiction reader. I first started after the 5th book came out. At the time, it was just a matter of Harry Potter sparking my imagination and there being no material to satisfy it. So, I turned to the internet. Now, engaging with Harry Potter and the fandom in a creative way is almost second nature to me.

Connie: I didn’t start reading Harry Potter fanfiction until sometime after the series was over because I didn’t want to spoil the series as it was coming out. I think I tried in 2007, when the series first ended, but it didn’t stick. But a few years later, I read a few post-series stories. Usually shippery ones involving Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione, but I went through a big Lily/James Marauders Era phase and I occasionally read Remus/Tonks. For the romantic stories, as we discuss on #WizardTeam often, there wasn’t a lot in the text, so it’s nice to see others’ varying but often similar interpretations on how the canon relationships could have gone with more effort put into developing them. Plus I’m a fuzzy Hufflepuff.

Porshèa: I'd started reading fanfic during the lapse between books 4 and 5, began integrating them into canon thanks to some very vivid dreams, then promptly stopped reading because there were too many books to go for me to have those problems.

What made you want to start writing fanfiction?

Bianca: I was inspired by revisiting Harry Potter through #Wizard Team, by the short stories on the site, and the complete gas up I received when I shared my ideas in the Slack. The team is a wonderful place to bounce around ideas and everyone is really supportive.

Delia: I was really young (probably too young, admittedly) when I started reading fanfiction. I started writing it on a whim. It was very much, “Hey I want to do that, too!” so I did. Being that young, you really don’t care that you don’t know how to plot a story or that you haven’t even really finished learning about grammar. You just do it because it seems fun.

Connie: I’d never written fanfiction before Hogwarts BSU/#Wizard Team. I was content to lurk in whatever fandoms I was reading fic for. I think wanted to give it a try because of something Robyn and Bayana said on #WizardTeam, and that’s where my first fic, Do Black Wizards Nod, came from. The idea of whether the Black students give each other the nod and how they would deal with that. Then I kept getting prompts or fic bunnies and it feels so much easier than when I try to write original works.

Porshèa: I've recently taken to writing fanfic because I want to fill in the holes within the fandoms I love. I'm empowered to do so because of the community that BGC has curated, the validation of headcanons, and understanding that we're the best at crafting stories from our individual lenses.

What was your inspiration for your piece?

Bianca: The complete ball drop that was History of Magic in North America and J.K. Rowling ignoring valid criticism. Like most American fans, I was excited to see the wizarding world expand to include us. However, the fact that racism — RACISM — something that plays a major part in the development of the three largest countries here, isn't even recognized on a small scale is insulting to readers. You can't tell me that a country with a history as bloody and messed up as the U.S. has wizards of every racial background being besties. It's not realistic. I also understand that maybe J.K. Rowling felt unqualified to talk about it, but I believe it can be done in a way that is both careful and makes sense.

Delia: I’ve been preaching the good word of Deanmione since February 2018. Since coming aboard the ship, I’ve been surprised to find that I am pretty much the only person sailing on it. The existing fanfic of the pairing is sparse. So when To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before came out on Netflix, I fell in love again with the story (I had read the book) and the gears in my head started turning. Then, when #WizardTeam started on Half-Blood Prince, I realized that was the perfect fit.

Connie: I’ve written a few things now, but I like thinking about the Black students forming a group and watching out for each other. I was never part of a BSU, but in high school and college I went to predominantly white schools and found myself most comfortable around my peers of color. In high school it was just natural, gravity, but I think in college I sought it out more deliberately. So I could relate to Blaise’s desire to find/start a group to help him feel less alone on campus. I remember that feeling, though I can’t say I consciously channeled it when I wrote Umoja. Other inspiration included the idea of honoring Kwanzaa in a way that helped me connect with the holiday more than I do in real life, and finding a creative way to use each principal to tell a story. And further inspiration comes from Delia and the rest of the team being instigators.

"...if you want something written about Black wizards learning within the wizarding world to be done well, you've gotta roll up your sleeves and do it yourself."  -- Porshèa Patterson

Porshèa: The inspiration for my piece comes from the wandless magic conversations throughout the books — specifically when it comes to powerful wizards and house-elves — the disappointment that is Magic in North America, and Uagadou. All of the missing elements in these spurred me into writing, because obviously if you want something written about Black wizards learning within the wizarding world to be done well, you've gotta roll up your sleeves and do it yourself.

What are some things in Harry Potter canon that you would like to explore or fix?

Bianca: As mentioned before, we can fix History of Magic in North America. I think that exploring the wizarding world here could be pretty awesome. I'd love to see stories of Indigenous wizards, Mexican wizards, or a story of Japanese American wizards and wizard immigrants (especially if they are written by someone in that community). Why did they decide to come here and what have they experienced and endured since? Also, we need to get rid of that "Cursed" play and Dumbledore and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day prequels.

Delia: I started as a Harmony shipper, believe it or not. I read others, but that was my OTP. I was just so underwhelmed by the romance in the books. Since the series finished, my biggest sore spot has been the Epilogue. They went through so much trauma. How did they work through it to get to that happy ending? How on EARTH did Hermione end up with emotionally stunted Ron (sorry Ronmione shippers, it’s all love)? Why is Harry not the DADA professor? I'd also love to fix Leta's story. I wish she could have a fully fledged story that isn’t based in tragedy. A story where she lives and is happy. She deserved better.

Connie: Like Bianca said, the global wizarding community is one thing I wish we could fix in canon. Jo did such a poor job of thinking of anywhere outside of Europe and it really hinders the story when considering how global both the fans and the Muggle world, even in Britain, are. I also wish we could remove Fantastic Beasts and Cursed Child from existence. I wish Fantastic Beasts starred an actor of color for Newt and that it was romps in the jungle searching for beasts and perhaps treasure. I wish they were adventure stories set in the ‘20s a la Indiana Jones or the Mummy franchise and not…what it is.

Porshèa: While there's a lot that needs to be fixed — see everyone else's answers — I think I only have the patience to 'fix' the ways in which Black American communities practice magic, the integration of magic and modern tech — because there are too many Muggle-borns for this to NOT be a thing — and wizarding higher education.

Are there Black characters in other media you would want to write fanfiction for?

Bianca: As of right now, no.

Delia: I don’t really see myself writing outside of my own original work and Harry Potter fanfiction. Potter is the only world besides those of my own creation that I know well enough to write in. But who knows!

Connie: There have been so few Black characters that I relate to, and I find myself not reading fanfic leading them very often. I’ve read only a few characters that were Black in other fandoms, Abigail Mills from Sleepy Hollow and Chidi from The Good Place more recently. I think I also read some fic starring Tucker from Danny Phantom (throwback!) who the fans thought had good chemistry with Danny’s sister Jazz. But there are few characters in other properties I feel drawn to enough to write, which really makes me sad. Hopefully I get more characters to want to play with and can expand my fic reading beyond shiny white people problems (or anime characters, as was my fanfiction beginnings). Perhaps some day I’ll be drawn to Doctor Who fic for those Black characters, but it hasn’t quite happened yet.

Porshèa: There is a character from the A Song of Ice and Fire series that I relate to heavily, though we know very little about her. My goal is to start on a fanfic for her after completing the Founding Home series.

Do you think Black characters get enough love in fan spaces? Why or why not?

Bianca: It depends on who the story was written for. In predominantly white stories with white main characters, Black characters are usually thrown in as an afterthought, and it shows. The same goes with color blind casting and not adjusting the story to make sense for a person of color. On the other hand, you get stories written for Black characters and characters of color like in Scandal or Pose and there is this level of care that is woven into it that changes how the characters are viewed. Fans can't help but fall in love with a fully fleshed out character.

Delia: You can read Mel’s Critical Companion piece from this month for the long answer. The short answer is, no. At best, in fandom, Black characters are often overlooked, save for when they serve a headcanon for a white character. At worst, they are overly harshly scrutinized or rejected, even though they are often one character of color out of dozens of white ones.

"At best, in fandom, Black characters are often overlooked, save for when they serve a headcanon for a white character."  -- Delia Gallegos

Connie: Definitely not. I get sad when I think about how I perhaps perpetuate this lack of love by not talking about those characters enough or, more to the point here, not reading fic starring them. But also, those characters only have a few stories on the fanfic websites or don’t get as much screen time or development to work with. Or perhaps they’re not put in situations I want to think on too often, leading me to not even go looking for “fix-it” fic where writers fix whatever bad thing happens to them. And I think the stories I like with predominantly Black characters are in recurring works where I’m waiting to see where the actual author takes them. There may be something to the idea of me just being happy they exist and not wanting to mess with them too much. Two book series I think of are the Shadowshaper Cypher by Daniel José Older and Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. The worlds are so new and I’m just so happy to get these great characters that I’m not looking for anyone else’s take on them just yet, but maybe that will come down the line. In more established franchises, I definitely think Black characters don’t get enough love in the fandom nor by the writers/producers.

Porshèa: What they said. I do love that the actors who portray the token Black faces call out the Black fan appreciation they get, especially when Luke Youngblood and Alfie Enoch pointed out that they'd realized that the Black fans made a point to seek them out within the films during BGC-led panels at LeakyCon.

What is a character or theme in Harry Potter that you want to write about or explore in the future?

Bianca: I have a list of things that I would like to write about in Harry Potter, and it seems to grow everyday. New schools, founders, and histories. I'd also like to flesh out some characters like Mrs. Zabini.

Delia: I think even after To All the Wizards I’ve Considered Before is finished, there will still be more to be told of Dean and Hermione.

Connie: I’m interested in exploring more Blaise/Desiree as a flourishing Black couple in the wizarding world and what challenges in their relationship they may have to overcome. Also just showing Black love cuteness. I think beyond the BSUverse, Robyn and I keep trying to come up with some post-First War detective story, perhaps involving an original character or Kingsley.

Porshèa: After Founding Home, I'm going to (someday) flesh out my Parvati, Lavender, and others boss witch writers story, and my Dumbledore and Prince ‘90s fashion-off story. More after that, maybe?

Make sure to read our guests and other writers’ pieces on our Hogwarts BSU page. If you have fic you would like published, or if you would like to participate in Black Wizard History Month in the future, feel free to check out our submission guidelines or hit us up at weblackandnerds@gmail.com. Thanks for reading, and we hope to see you next February and all the months in between!

[headcanonsandmore]

Gentry and Gentlemen, Chapter Three

Summary: Ottery St Catchpole is looking forward to its annual fete, and Hermione Granger knows exactly who she wishes to accompany to the festivities. And it seems that the feeling is mutual. However, the greatest plans do so often go astray...

Tagging:  @abradystrix @lytefoot @hillnerd @fivenamereveals @femaledoubleagent  @nagemeikenu @acnelli @aimless-twig @thehufflepuffpixie @adenei @kember-writes @rosalindthe2nd @shybrunettepainter

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             Read on FFN.                                       Read on AO3.

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‘Hello, you two, I-OH MY LORD!’

Hermione Granger stood, staring in shock at the sight before her. Lavender and Parvati were sat on Lavender’s bed, their arms around each other. Their lips were enflamed, and Lavender’s cheeks were flushed with colour.

As the children of the lord and lady were in Plymouth for a few days, Hermione had spent most of the day doing errands around the house, most of which involved sorting through her ladyships library (or, as Hermione privately thought, a very sad and very small collection of textbooks). She had just finished her final task, and had come back to the room she shared with Lavender and Parvati, intending to rest her feet for a while and read a little of her book.

‘You really ought to knock,’ Parvati said, looking rather irritated. ‘What if we’d been up to something more private?’

‘B-b-b-but…’ Hermione stammered, feeling her face burn as she closed the door quickly behind her. She hurried across the room. ‘Were… were you two kissing each other? As… as lovers do?’

‘Y-es,’ said Lavender, with the air of someone explaining to a temperamental toddler that two-plus-two-equals-four. ‘Parvati and I are lovers, Miss Granger. I would have thought you would have surmised that much, given that you share a room with us?’

‘L-lovers?’ squeaked Hermione, sitting down on her own bed. ‘I… I thought you were simply very close friends!’

‘We literally share a bed most nights,’ Lavender said, chuckling at Hermione’s confusion. ‘Although, to be fair, we were close friends before we became lovers. Pretty sure most close friends don’t get up to what we get up to behind closed doors-’

‘Lav!’ Parvati said, sounding flustered.

‘Oh, she’s from London; surely she knows about women falling in love with other women.’

‘I… I have heard rumours,’ Hermione said. ‘But… well, it’s not really a subject of polite conversation.’

‘Really?’ Lavender said, sounding surprised. ‘How strange. This has been common knowledge round here for a long time. Both for between women, and between women, not to mention people who prefer both. It’s perfectly normal; Ron’s best friend ended up snogging Neville Longbottom at the last village fete.’

‘Oooh, that’s happening soon!’ Parvati said, grabbing Lavender’s hand. ‘Let’s go! We’ll be allowed the evening off!’

Hermione stared at them. A fete? There were festivities in London like that, but Hermione had always found them too noisy and dangerous. She had heard many tales of people having this money stolen.

But… this was Devon. And Ottery St Catchpole was a smaller place.

‘You… you are allowed the evening off for the fete?’ she asked.

‘Of course,’ Lavender said. ‘His lord and ladyship understand the local custom, even if they’d rather we be sweeping the floors as usual.’

‘I wonder if Ron Weasley is going,’ Parvati said, casting a knowing look at Hermione. ‘He usually does. Never goes with anyone, though.’

Hermione felt her heartrate begin to increase at the implication. Going to a fete, with Ron Weasley? That would be wonderful, indeed, but surely he would have better offers for companionship than with the bookish governess-

‘Oy,’ said Lavender, pointing at Hermione. ‘I recognise that look. You are doubting whether Ron would like to go with you.’

‘Really?’ Parvati said. ‘I always got the impression that he rather liked her company…’

Hermione’s face flushed. That… that surely couldn’t be true, could it?

                                                            *

 The evening meal swiftly arrived, and Hermione found herself trying to ignore the hubbub of conversation around her during the washing up. Most of the discussion was regarding the village fete.

Not that Hermione was listening, of course. Especially not when Ron Weasley waved off attempts by one of the cooks to set him up with their daughter.

As the staff slowly filtered away, Hermione took what was becoming her normal seat by the fire, and rested awhile.

Ron sat down next to her, yawning.

‘Long day?’ she asked.

‘Very,’ Ron said. ‘I’ve spent half the day helping everyone out with their clothes for the fete.’

‘You… you sew?’

‘Mum’s doing,’ he said, grinning. ‘She said she was sick of my brothers ripping their clothes all the time and she being the only one who knew how to fix them. Ginny refused to learn, so I ended up picking it up.’

‘I… I see.’

Over Ron’s shoulder, Hermione could see Parvati and Lavender. They both mouthed “ask him”, and closed the kitchen door behind them.

Hermione took a deep breath, to steady her nerves.

‘I… I did hear that the village fete was happening soon.’

‘Oh, yes,’ Ron said, cheerfully. ‘Always a good time. Local traders go around with their wares, and usually a dance gets going. Probably not very impressive compared to what they do in London, but…’

‘No!’ Hermione exclaimed. ‘I… I would rather like to go.’

There was a slight pause.

‘W-well,’ Ron said, his ears turning slightly pink. ‘Maybe Lavender and Parvati could accompany you. I am not accompanying anyone, but I am sure you would not want to be seen going with the odd-job man-’

‘I… I never said that,’ Hermione said. ‘I am sure… well, I am sure I would have a wonderful time. If… if you were to accompany me.’

Ron’s mouth broke into a large smile.

‘Really? You… you would like me to accompany you?’

Hermione nodded, feeling her cheeks flush.

‘That’s wonderful!’ Ron exclaimed. ‘I… I consider it an honour, Hermione.’

‘As do I, Ron,’ she replied. ‘As do I.’

She stood up, gave a quick curtsey, and hurried over to the door. As she opened it, she looked back over her shoulder.

Ron was smiling at her, his cheeks dimpling again. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle in the firelight.

Hermione gave a small wave.

‘Goodnight, Ron.’

‘Goodnight, Hermione.’

Hermione smiled happily, and left the kitchen.

She was halfway along the corridor, but she could have sworn that she heard a loud cheer echo from the kitchen she had just left. Her cheeks flushed happily at the voice she knew to be Ron’s.

                                                           *

 ‘My family are having a get-together this afternoon. Would you like to come?’

Hermione stared at Ron. It was shortly after breakfast the next day.

After returning to her shared room, Hermione had spent the next hour having Lavender and Parvati first squeal over the news that Ron was accompanying her, and then fuss over what she ought to wear to the fete. All the while trying to ignore the happy nerves that had erupted in her stomach at the thought that she would be spending special time with Ron. It was… the beginning of a courtship, wasn’t it? She wasn’t sure, but she hoped so.

Whatever it was, she found herself unable to stop smiling. Especially when she caught eyes with Ron at breakfast and saw his eyes sparkle again.

‘Your… y-yes, I’d love to!’ she exclaimed, happily. ‘Is… is it really appropriate for me to be there?’

‘Brilliant,’ Ron replied, grinning widely. ‘Of course; everyone around here knows the Weasleys. And my mum’s been wanting to see you for a while.’

‘Have… have you mentioned me to your mother?’

Ron’s ears turned red.

‘N-nothing bad,’ he stammered, looking embarrassed. ‘Just… well, you’re the new governess and all.’

Hermione smiled.

‘Where is your family home, anyway?’ she asked.

‘Er… it’s a little out of the village,’ Ron said. ‘You may have heard the other staff members mention it… “The Burrow”?’

‘Oh, yes!’ Hermione said. ‘I think Lavender and Parvati mentioned it; lovely old cottage, with chickens outside?’

‘That’s it,’ Ron replied. ‘My childhood home. I’ll… I’ll meet you outside the staff entrance at… say, two o’clock?’

Hermione nodded, happily. Ron smiled in return, and left the room.

The very next moment, Hermione was immediately frogmarched by Lavender and Parvati back to their shared room. Hermione found herself sat down on one of the beds, while Parvati rummaged through the small wardrobe.

‘We need to get you fixed up for the Burrow,’ Lavender said, her eyes sparkling with creative delight. ‘Parvati, you sort her clothes, and I will help Miss Granger with her hair and face.’

‘W-what’s wrong with my hair and face?’ Hermione said, raising her hands to her cheeks.

‘Nothing,’ Lavender said, emphatically. ‘You’re beautiful, and we want to keep it that way.’

Hermione smiled, as Lavender and Parvati began to fuss around her. She really appreciated all they were doing for her.

                                                           *

 ‘Hello, Hermione, I… wow.’

Ron stared at Hermione as she left the servants entrance to meet him outside. Lavender had carefully styled Hermione’s bushy hair, so that it felt both elegant and relaxed, while Parvati had styled one of Hermione’s summer dresses, capturing a calm peaceful aesthetic that Hermione had never been able to convey before.

‘What? Do… do I look unusual?’

‘N-no!’ Ron exclaimed, his blue eyes sparkling. ‘Certainly not. You look… well, beautiful.’

Hermione felt her cheeks flush.

‘T-thank you, Ron. You… you look very handsome.’

The two of them walked around the house and down the main drive, heading for the country lane beyond. Despite the sun, Hermione didn’t feel too warm, even though she was walking faster than normal due to Ron’s larger stride.

‘So…’ she began, as they walked along the lane, but turning off onto a different path before reaching the village. ‘How many of your siblings are coming to this get-together?’

‘Most of us who can,’ Ron replied, smiling. ‘Ginny will be there, because she still lives at home. And Charlie, of course. I think the twins said they would be there, but Percy is working in Plymouth still and cannot travel home very often. Not sure about Bill, either; he and Fleur have got their children to think about.’

The path was stretching before them around the other side of the valley.

‘That is a shame,’ Hermione said. ‘I was looking forward to seeing you with your nieces and nephews.’

Ron’s ears turned pink.

‘I am really nothing special,’ he said, blushing.

‘Nonsense,’ Hermione said. ‘I imagine that you are the favourite uncle to all.’

‘You’re too sweet, Hermione.’

‘As… as are you, Ron,’ she replied. ‘But you need to learn not to be so harsh on yourself.’

Ron smiled.

‘If you teach me, then maybe.’

Hermione grinned, as they turned the corner.

The Burrow was stood before them. It was as Hermione had expected; a sweet-looking, older cottage, with chickens clucking around the yard. The sun was still high in the summer sky, and the water of the Tamer river glistened in the distance.

‘It… oh, it is magical…’

‘Thank you,’ Ron said. ‘Tell that to my mum; she’ll love you.’

Speaking of whom, Mrs Weasley had appeared in the doorway. She was a short, very motherly sort of woman, with a kind face.

‘Hello, dear,’ Mrs Weasley said, pressing a kiss to Ron’s cheek. ‘Oh, could you help your father with getting the table sorted around the back?’

‘Course,’ Ron said, cheerfully. ‘Oh, mum; this is Miss Hermione Granger. The new governess I was telling you about.’

‘Welcome to The Burrow, Miss Granger,’ she said, smiling.

‘Thank you, Mrs Weasley,’ Hermione replied, dropping a quick curtsy. Ron smiled at them both, before disappearing around the side of the house. ‘It is a pleasure.’

‘Ooh, you are as lovely as Ron said!’

Hermione felt her face burn.

‘He… he has mentioned me?’

‘Of course,’ Mrs Weasley said, smiling. ‘He’s always talking about how intelligent and witty you are. I must say, he’s very taken with you.’

‘R-really?’

‘Absolutely. Now, please, you must join us all around the back.’

Hermione felt her heart beat faster, as she followed the Weasley matriarch around the cottage and into the huge field behind, where a table had been set on the grass. It was already half-covered with various foods. Several different redheads were milling around.

‘This is Ginny,’ Mrs Weasley said, leading Hermione over to where a young redheaded woman was stood. Like all the Weasleys, she had freckles covering every inch of skin. ‘Have you met before?’

‘Er, I think we met briefly during my first couple of days,’ Hermione said, dropping a curtsy to Ginny. ‘A pleasure to meet you.’

‘And to meet you, Miss Granger,’ Ginny said, dropping a curtsy in turn. ‘Ron’s told us a lot about you.’

‘So I’ve been told. Oh, did Ron pass on to you that Miss Lovegood sends her regards?’

Ginny’s freckled face flushed.

‘Er… y-yes,’ she mumbled. ‘Luna is… well, very dear to me.’

Oh… Hermione thought… that’s what Ron meant…

She decided not to enquire further, but instead smiled again.

‘I’m sure Miss Lovegood holds you dear to her as well.’

Ginny smiled.

‘Yes, I believe she does.’

‘Miss Granger, we presume?’

Two identical redheaded men were stood nearby, their mouths fixed into knowing smirks.

‘You would presume correct,’ Hermione said, primly. ‘I presume you are Fred and George?’

‘The very same!’ said one of them. ‘Has Ron mentioned us, then?’

‘Yes,’ Hermione replied. ‘I believe he said that your mother once -and I quote- “caught my twin idiot brothers getting up to no good with two young ladies in a hedge-”’

‘RON!’

Ron snickered at the embarrassed expressions from his twin brothers.

‘Now, boys,’ Mr Weasley said, trying not to laugh. ‘Fred, you help Charlie with bringing the fruit out and, George, you cut the bread.’

The twins cast angry looks at Ron, before going off to their assigned tasks.

‘Sorry about them,’ Mr Weasley said, apologetically, to Hermione. ‘Ron doesn’t normally bring women home, so they don’t often get the opportunity to try and embarrass him.’

‘Er… I see,’ Hermione said, trying to ignore the fact that Ron’s ears were turning their tell-tale shade of pink.

The awkward silence that followed was mercifully stopped short.

‘Food is served, everyone; sit down!’

Mrs Weasley was walking out of the Burrow, carrying a large plate.

There was a great scraping of chairs upon the ground, as everyone sat down. Mr Weasley placed the plate down, and a huge cheer went up from the assembled redheads.

‘Now, all that remains is that we start-’

‘WAIT!’

Everyone turned.

Harry Potter, Ron’s best friend, was charging up the garden path, running at full speed towards the table.

‘Harry?’ Ron said, climbing to his feet as the dark-haired man stopped before them and stood, panting for breath. ‘What’s happened? Is something wrong?’

‘The… the ladyship’s brother has caused a massive scandal in Plymouth!’

‘Oh, we already knew that-’

‘No, more than we thought!’ Harry gasped, wiping his hair off his forehead to reveal the large birthmark -or so Ron had told her- in the shape of a lightning bolt. ‘He’s… he’s pulled the children and their aunt into this!’

‘The children?’ Hermione said, hurrying forward. ‘The last I heard, their aunt had taken them for a prolonged stay in the city; what’s happened?’

‘That aristo who was after the money has turned up in Plymouth,’ Harry continued. ‘The children are being kept as collateral until her ladyship’s brother can repay his debts!’

Ron groaned.

‘Wait, why are you telling us this? What’s it got to do with us?’

‘Her ladyship is demanding that Miss Granger go to Plymouth to rescue the children.’

‘What?’

‘Do they not have bailiffs for this kind of thing?’

‘No; her ladyship and his lordship want this to be kept as private as possible.’

‘So… they’re sending Miss Granger to clean up their own mess?’

Hermione swallowed.

‘I have to,’ she said, quietly. ‘It’s my duty to look after the children. They didn’t ask for any of this.’

‘Oh, dear,’ Mrs Weasley said. ‘And it was looking to be such a nice get-together as well…’

‘My apologies, Mrs Weasley,’ Hermione said, turning to the redheaded woman. ‘I’m very touched by how kind you all have been to me today, allowing me to join your family gathering. I am deeply grateful.’

‘Oh, it was a pleasure, Miss Granger,’ Mrs Weasley said. ‘But are you sure you have to go? No one would blame you if you stayed a few more hours.’

Hermione shook her head, sadly.

She gave a quick curtesy to them all, and bade her goodbyes. She walked around the house, and headed up along the lane. She needed to pack her bags, and then head by coach to Plymouth-

‘Hermione, wait!’

She turned, and her mouth fell open at the sight that met her.

Ron was riding a horse up the lane towards her. The sleeves of his work shirt were rolled up to the elbow, and his brow was set in concentration. The horse seemed familiar… of course, it was the horse Ron had stopped from trampling her when she had first arrived at Ottery Manor!

‘Ron?’ she gasped, shocked, as he eased the horse gently to a stop. ‘What-?’

‘It is a long way; riding will take less time than walking.’

‘Riding-?’ Hermione exclaimed. ‘I… I can walk to the village on my own; I do not need to hurry that much.’

‘No; I mean I am coming with you to Plymouth,’ Ron said as he climbed down from the horse, before looking uncertain. ‘I mean… unless you would prefer to travel alone. I should not have presumed.’

Hermione felt her heart well. What a good and kind man.

‘I… Ron, that’s so thoughtful, but I… I really should not be forcing you into this.’

‘You are not forcing me,’ Ron said, shaking his head. ‘I would be happy to.’

‘But…’ Hermione said, as Ron helped her climb up to sit on the horses back. Her dress mercifully didn’t prevent her from sitting face-forward. ‘Do you not hate the aristocracy?’

‘I… well, I am not doing this for the aristo’s.’

Ron’s eyes were earnest as he stared up at her.

‘O-oh,’ she stammered, feeling somewhat faint all of a sudden. ‘W-well, I greatly appreciate you accompanying me, even if it is not to the village fete as we originally hoped.’

Ron smiled, as he climbed up to sit behind Hermione. His arms slotted around her side to hold the reins. She could feel his soft breath on the back of her neck, sending shivers down her spine.

‘Well,’ Ron said, quietly, so that only Hermione could hear him. His voice was comforting and life-affirming, like a warm hug. ‘I will be your companion from this point onwards, Hermione.’

Hermione smiled. Maybe this task wouldn’t be as difficult as she had initially feared.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~

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