The Burrow

It was September 19 and Ron wanted to do something special for Hermione. She knew he was baffled, that she simply wanted a family dinner at the Burrow. Hermione had tried to explain that after all they had gone through lately, she just wanted to celebrate that all of them were together and safe now; that being surrounded by family was always special to her. He had rolled his eyes, shaken his head in bafflement, and said, "If it'll make you happy, that's what we'll do."

So now they were outside as the sun started to get close to the horizon, a long table filled with all her favourite magical people. All of the Weasleys and their significant others were sitting around the table, eating and bickering, Ron sitting next to her, his foot hooked around her ankle so that his hands were free to eat and gesticulate. Hermione focused a moment on that point of contact, rejoicing that he had done it, another sign of his recovery. She had always appreciated how it kept them connected in the most demure way possible; no one would take a second look, yet it was intimate. It was a way of touching and sensing each other that was unique to them. She smiled and looked at Ron, surprised to find that he was looking at her as well.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked in a low voice. "You look very happy."

"I'm thinking about us," she replied. "I'm so happy everything has finally settled, and we can finally carry on with our lives."

Ron leaned in and kissed her cheek, provoking a few comments from their family.

"Oi! No kissing at the table! I want to keep my food in my stomach, thank you very much!" Percy teased.

"Sod off!" Ron replied, although he was smiling again. "No wonder you don't have a girlfriend, if kisses gross you out! Good thing Hermione and I are going for a walk, so that you can finish your meal in peace."

Ron took Hermione's hand as he stood up, pulling at her to come with him. "I wasn't aware we were going for a walk," she commented.

"Now you are, love," Ron winked at her, and led her out of the garden and into the fields, leaving behind all the teasing that suggested what they were really up to with their supposed walk.

They strolled for a few minutes, hand in hand. Soon, Hermione was sure she knew where he was taking them: to their favourite tree next to the pond.

"You were done eating, right?" Ron asked, seemingly just thinking of it.

"Yes, don't worry about it."

"Good," he said, and fell silent again.

They arrived at the tree, its thick trunk shaped in such a way that it offered the perfect support for Ron's back. He sat down and got comfortable, as he always did. Hermione sat in between his legs, laying against his chest. She rested her hands on her belly, waiting for his hands to cover hers, their fingers instinctively intertwining. His hands were warm as they lay on hers, his body radiating heat, protecting her from the evening chill. The sky was a beautiful mix of blue, violet, orange, and pink, the last of the sunlight shining against the thin clouds. The pond was dark, yet perfectly reflected the multiplicity of colours above them. Pleased, Hermione let out a sigh of pure happiness.

"This is lovely," Hermione commented.

"Yes, it is," Ron said.

"It's the perfect seal to everything. I'm so happy to finally say, hey, it's all over."

"Yeah. Harry signed the last of the paperwork at the Department yesterday morning. I finished all of my own before coming here. Whilberg and Thomson need to attend an Ethics, Strategies and Management of Auror Team Efforts workshop, and you and I have been cleared from everything. The Dark Wizards are heavily guarded, waiting for their trial. All's good. We can finally say we can forget about the whole thing."

They fell silent for a few more minutes. Hermione's mind had started to wander when she felt Ron clearing his throat behind her.

"Yes?" she asked.

"I think... I think that now that everything is solved, we can start deciding what we want to do," Ron replied. She turned her body so that she could look at him, his arms still around her.

"What do you mean?"

Ron looked at the horizon for a moment, then back at her. "We've been together through a lot, Hermione. Ever since I met you, things have not stopped happening to us."

She laughed. "I've noticed, yes. So?"

"So I think we should have something happen that is entirely our choice," he continued explaining.

Yet Hermione wasn't completely sure she was following his logic. "That sounds brilliant. Do you have something particular in mind?"

"Yes. I was thinking that we could set up a wooden arch of some sort over there," he said pointing to the dock. "We could set chairs there in the sand, so that the guests can see everything but we would still be sort of the focus. You know what I mean?"

Hermione had a good idea that she understood what he was talking about, but was afraid to say it. If she was wrong, it could lead to a very awkward conversation. Finally, with her voice in a higher pitch than usual and hating herself a bit for it, she asked, "Wooden arch?"

"Yeah, I don't know the name of those things, but I think one would look pretty. We can put flowers around it- or not, if you don't like the idea?" Ron added almost as an afterthought.

"I like flowers," Hermione said, unsure as how to proceed.

"Good. Then we can have a big dinner in a big tent, like we've done before. We choose the cake and the food to be served, though! Would you like that?"

"Ron, do you... I mean, are you talking about..." Hermione was overwhelmed in confusion, pure happiness, and excitement. She wasn't able to continue.

"Our wedding, love. Marry me. Soon. I don't want to wait anymore," he finally explained, taking her left hand and kissing her engagement ring. "We've waited long enough. What do you say?" he asked, his eyes shining with hope and enthusiasm.

"Some in our families will be upset at the short notice," she said with a smile so big it almost made her facial muscles cramp.

"I don't bloody care."

"Your mum might want to have an input in our food choices."

"Our wedding, our choices."

"Do you have a date in mind?"

"October 31. It's a Friday."

"And the anniversary of the day we became friends. The start of it all."

Hermione was overcome with happiness. Ron had obviously been thinking about this, planning for this. Despite all the troubles and difficult experiences, she felt like the luckiest witch on earth.

"Say yes, Hermione."

She kneeled in between his legs, and wrapped her arms around his neck as his wrapped her waist. She kissed him enthusiastically, giddy with joy at the prospect of their near future. "Yes! I said yes to you before, and I'm saying it again. I want to marry you as soon as possible. I would marry you tomorrow, Ron. I'll marry you in a month. As long as we're together forever, I'd wear an orange dress if it made you happy."

"Well, if that's not a great idea!" Ron said, laughing, teasing her. His eyes were sparkling with the same delight she felt. One of his hands started pinching her bum, as he added, "I'll wear an orange tux, and we can enchant the tent to be orange as well. It'll be glorious! Orange cake, orange everything..."

"Stop that! I was joking," Hermione complained, squirming against him.

"Too late," he continued. He calmed down a bit, and his hands stopped the pinching and started to caress instead. "Then, when we're done partying, we'll go somewhere special for our wedding night. I'll want to remember that night forever, love."

"Sounds good to me," Hermione said, her body starting to tingle as she thought of the sort of things she imagined crossing Ron's mind.

Hermione was suddenly very glad at her choice of clothes for that day. She was wearing a shirt and a cardigan, and even though she hadn't thought much of it when she picked them, they would certainly offer good access. She found that she really wanted him to have access to her at the moment.

One of Ron's hands was still fondling her buttock, and the other came up to open the outer layer of clothing, then softly wrapping his hand around her breast on top of her shirt. She shuddered as his thumb rubbed her nipple, making it pucker up and become deliciously sensitive.

"I'm planning to explore every bit of your body that night, Hermione," Ron said, his voice slightly husky. "I want to memorize every spot and freckle."

"I like the way you think," she replied.

He bent his head to kiss her neck and suck on her earlobe. "I am good at strategizing, after all," he commented as he kissed her jaw, manoeuvring her legs to be straddling his hips.

"You are good at many things," she stated, relishing in the way her body had started to hum in anticipation.

"If I could only tell that to my fifteen year old self," Ron said with a low chuckle. He ran his fingers along the shirt's neckline, stretching the fabric so that his fingertips would tease the top of her chest. "To have known back then that I would have you shiver against me, like this. That I would marry you and have you want me like this."

Hermione knew that in a way, he was asking for permission to take her here in the open. It wasn't the first time, but she appreciated that he wanted her to be comfortable with it, not worrying on whether they were going to get caught. She was feeling happy and reckless and aroused enough to think, to hell with it, and simply reached for the neck of her shirt and pulled down forcefully. She caught both shirt and bra, freeing her breast. Ron didn't need any more incentive or instruction. He lowered his mouth to suck on her nipple, his other hand pulling at the clothes covering its pair. As soon as it was possible, he switched breasts to play with it, lapping at the brown, wrinkled bit of skin.

She could feel him getting hard under her. She started rubbing herself against him, the movement stimulating them both. He grunted, his hands reaching around her to grab her ass, his fingers softly following the seam of her jeans down to her crotch. He did it a few more times, knowing how she loved the soft teasing against her core.

"Let's get rid of these trousers," Hermione requested, and they both ditched the heavy material as quickly as possible. She was naked from the waist down, but he had had simply pushed his pants and underpants over his knees. He had fallen a bit from the sitting position, so that his back was still curved against the trunk of the tree but his pelvis was fully resting on the grass. She straddled him again, taking his member in her hand. Swiftly, she lowered herself and licked its head, to then wrap her lips around it.

"Bloody Merlin," Ron said, gasping. His hand grabbed her hair and gathered it away, so that he could see what she was doing. She sucked on him, enjoying the little noises he was making. She licked the length of him a few times, and then straddled him again, her hand still holding to him.

She wanted him in her, but chose to prolong the torture of it a bit more. She positioned his penis against his taut belly, and started riding him so that she could rub her clitoris against its length.

Soon they were both panting, his hands around her waist grabbing her hard enough to leave marks.

"Now, love, please," Ron begged, and she matched his need. She stopped, taking him in her hand and positioning him so that she could take him all in.

She barely noticed the sigh she let out when she felt him parting her flesh. She started moving, increasing her speed slowly until she was riding him hard, moans and groans filling the air. When her legs started to fail, he pushed her backwards to a forty-five degree angle, almost losing the connection as he kneeled for leverage. One of his hands rested on the floor behind her, his other arm surrounding her waist, holding her in place. She hooked one of her arms around his neck as her other hand reached back behind her for support, her legs locking behind his back. It was the first time they were in this particular position, and as he started to move in her, she realized how perfect it felt.

"Good heavens," she murmured as her climax started building in her. It didn't take long. Just a few more strokes and she was gone. "Holy- Ron!"

He didn't respond, but his ragged breath told her he was getting close to his own release. He kept pounding into her, until soon she felt the warmth of his orgasm filling her.

They collapsed together, a tangle of arms and legs and raspy breath.

It was almost fully dark now. The breeze was cold, and Hermione felt a shiver go through her of a totally different nature than before. She sat up and cleaned herself, then started getting dressed. Ron followed her example, pulling his trousers up to his waist. "Next time we come here, I'm pretty sure I'm going to get a hard on just looking at this tree," he commented off-handedly.

Hermione laughed. "Potentially inconvenient, if we're not alone at the time."

"Oh, don't worry about it. Haven't you noticed they never come here if we're alone?"

Hermione thought back to the many times they had come to this particular place "Are you implying... did someone see us?!"

"Nah, nobody risked it, because they all knew from the very beginning. Didn't you hear them just now?"

"Yes, but I thought they were just being childish!"

It was Ron's turn to laugh. "Childish? Ha. Don't worry about it. They all pretend it's just teasing. Mum definitely believes it's just teasing and chastises them for it." He got up and lent a hand to Hermione to help her get up. He then pulled her to him, hugging her. "Really, don't think about it. I say we go back now, and pretend all we did was plan our wedding. Alright?"

"Alright," Hermione replied, making a conscious effort to push the worry out of his mind. She dearly wanted to think of their wedding instead. She smiled. "I love you."

He kissed her. "I love you, too. Let's go," he added, pulling her hand and taking her in the direction of the house. "We have an announcement to make."

AN: That, dear readers, is the end to this story. I hope you enjoyed it! Although there are things I would like to change, I still really enjoyed the process. Thanks again to the amazing Pili, for being such a supportive beta and friend. Also, thanks to the hubby (honouraryweasley12), Otterandterrier, and Diva-gonzo for their help at different parts of this story.

And of course, thanks to all of you who have favourited this story or my profile, and especially to all of those who have taken the time to leave a review. Each and every one of them has put a big smile on my face! I shall reply to all recent reviews tomorrow.

I'm a better writer than I am a fanartist (take that however you want, lol), but I did draw a little (smutty) piece to go along with this chapter. I'm definitely and amateur, but I like it well. Go and check it out at my Tumblr blog! (aloemilk dot tumblr dot com).

ps: This story will have a sequel one day. I can't really say when, since first I want to finish and publish Love Me Forever. This story should be able to stand on its own, though!