Disclaimer: So here we go again, with the stupid disclaimer. Let's just say I didn't own them last time, and I sure as hell don't own them now.

Rating: PG-13, for some random swearing (won't be too bad, though), semi-violent situations, and for basically the fact that there is a boy, and the boy likes the girl, etc. etc.

A Longer Summary Than The Other Summary: Tensions begin to increase in the wizarding world when a terrorist group, not unlike the Death Eaters, threatens to destroy the balance between the Muggle and wizarding worlds. Former Auror, Professor Ron Weasley, is thrown back into action to prevent an ancient, powerful, dark magic from falling into the wrong hands.

Author's Notes: I must be crazy. Oh well…here I go again! The first fic took me 8 months to write, and this one ain't gonna be any faster. ^_~ My biggest fear is that, after all the great reviews and positive compliments and stuff I got on Bury the Hatchet, this fic won't live up to all the expectations. But I'll try my hardest, so don't pelt me with heavy, blunt objects if this fic isn't as good as the last (sequels are never as good as the original anyway…or so I'm trying to tell myself.)

Just for a change of pace, and to try something new, unlike BTH this fic's in…da na na! Ron's POV!

Warning: This fic will contain much R/H goodness. I'm not really an anything-else shipper, so don't expect to see Draco/Ginny or Malfoy/Dobby or Nearly Headless Nick/ Professor Binns. (Brownie points for anyone who can think of creative shipper names for the last two! Hehehe…)

Warning #2: Please keep in mind this fic takes place about 8 years after Ron, Hermione, and Harry graduated from Hogwarts.

Warning #3: It's highly recommended that you read Bury the Hatchet, this fic's prequel, if you plan on understanding anything. I don't plan to go into a detailed explanation of what you missed if you didn't read the last one (and reviewed!). Fin. ^_^

So without further ado, I present to you…

Perfect World

In times forgotten they were written,

Placed under lock and key.

Spread cross the borders of many lands,

Spread cross both earth and sea.

In their words dark magic was poured.

When spoken, the world shall see,

A dark hand unleashed to crush it's foes,

And set our people free.

***

Fate.

What a complete waste of four perfectly good letters. Fate was something unsuccessful people invented in order to blame their unsuccessfulness on something they couldn't control. Fate was a cheesy plot device in Muggle romance movies. Fate was a word in the glossary of a fifth-year Divination textbook. An evil, evil, fifth-year Divination textbook.

Ron Weasley believed that life wasn't simply a pre-made path that you had to blindly wander down. No; life was about choices, not fate. It was your decisions in life that determined what you made of yourself, who your friends were, and if you ended up happy or miserable.

Perhaps it was luck that Harry Potter had sat next to him on the Hogwarts Express almost fifteen years ago. But definitely not fate. Harry made a choice to shun Malfoy and his cronies and become friends with Ron back in first year. Harry and Ron made a choice to try to save Hermione Granger from a club-happy troll back in first year. Even though she was a bit of a pill back then. Thus, the infamous trio was born. Choices, not fate.

It was the choices that they made, plus, of course, Ron's exceptional talent and intelligence, which had kept the trio alive throughout their years at Hogwarts. It was the choices that Ron and Harry made that had led them both to become Aurors, well-known and respected throughout the wizarding world. It was a choice that Ron had made which kept him at Hogwarts last year. It was a choice that Ron had made which meant that he could now call himself Professor Ron Weasley, which, everyone admitted, had an very nice ring to it. It was a choice that Ron had made which brought him together with the same girl whom he and Harry had saved from a gruesome death, in none other than the girls' toilets, fifteen years ago.

Ron Weasley firmly believed that a person was responsible for their own fate. Either that, or he just didn't like the idea of not being in control of his life, as Hermione eloquently put it. This, of course, coming from the same girl who stomped out of Divination class in third year.

It was smart choices and good decision-making which determined your fate. Not a crystal ball, not some higher power, and definitely not some crackpot Divination professor.

Now Ron was faced with another choice. An extremely difficult one at that. But his decisions in life so far hadn't served him too badly: he had a caring family, a job he loved, the girl he always wanted, and free meals three times a day.

He stared into space, his mind working overtime, the decision he had to indefinitely make eating away at his very being. Taking a deep breath, he slowly lifted his head to stare into Hermione Granger's brown eyes.

"I will ask you once more, Hermione," he said slowly and seriously. "…What do you think would look better, the red or the blue?" Frowning, Ron held up two ties.

Hermione sighed impatiently and threw down her quill on the papers she was furiously scribbling away on. "For the last time, Ron!" she replied in an exasperated voice. "No…one…bloody…cares!"

The other members of the staff of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, who were milling, reading, marking, and lounging around the staff common room, all stopped what they were doing in order to murmur their agreements.

It was the beginning of September - the Hogwarts term had only just begun, and most of the teachers, not to mention students, were in a foul mood after their lovely summer vacations had been so rudely snatched away from them. Ron was only just getting into the groove of teaching again; he'd only had to begin a school year as a teacher once before, and the adrenaline of his mission at that time, not to mention seeing Hermione again for the first time in seven years, had kept him going.

Now, though, he was starting to see why the beginning of the school year was often the dreariest for most of the teachers. He had had an amazing summer - half was spent at the Burrow, making up for lost time when he was an Auror, and could rarely visit family and friends for only brief periods at a time. The other half was spent on holidays in Greece with Hermione. His hideous sunburn was only now just fading into a mass of stupid-looking freckles on his still-boyish face, as the temperatures cooled considerably across Britain and the sun settled itself to hide behind clouds for the remainder of the year. But they were definitely worth it; it had been the best month of his life.

Ron ignored the rest of the staff, staring at the two ties and chewing his lip. He placed them carefully on the table he and Hermione were both working at, tilting his head slightly so as to properly judge them from all possibly angles. "I mean, the red definitely says 'Weasley'," the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher contemplated. "Yet the blue…it matches my own sparkling sapphire eyes so well…"

"'onestly," a droning, heavily accented voice said from where it's owner was lounging in an overstuffed, forest-green arm chair. "You are worse zen a woman," Professor Renee Bouchard said in disdain, rolling his eyes.

Bouchard was currently the - hopefully temporary - replacement for Diana Drago, Hogwarts' cold, sarcastic Potions Mistress from last year. Professor Drago, of whom Ron had never been particularly fond (he went as far as blaming an assassination attempt on Albus Dumbledore on her the year before), had left after last year to pursue a career in Magical Law Enforcement as an Auror. Much to Ron's chagrin, after Diana's swift departure he had found out from Hermione that the raven-haired Potions Mistress had taken his place as Harry Potter's partner.

Thus, the staff of Hogwarts had the pleasure of spending the entire school year with a former Beauxbatons Potions Master, "Bright 'N Cheery" Bouchard. The snobby, egotistical, smug Frenchman had Ron almost pining for Diana Drago's cynical comments.

"Shut it, Frenchie," Ron snapped.

"Oh, it eez a knife to my 'eart when you taunt me so," Renee replied in a mocking tone, clutching his heart. Ron heard Hermione stifle a snicker. Whipping his flaming head back around, he glared at his girlfriend, who promptly returned to busily making up lesson plans, a look of innocence plastered on her face. Hermione had lesson plans made up for every day from now until June. Ron was currently free-styling it in all his classes.

"Honestly though, Ron," Hermione piped up after Ron's glare had slowly transformed back into a pensive stare. "God forbid you ever have to make an important decision in life if you're losing sleep over which tie to wear to your brother's wedding." She gave him her I-know-everything-there-is-to-know-about-everything-and-will-now-proceed-to-look-superior look, which, admittedly was extremely cute, but Ron refused to soften. Instead, he sighed impatiently.

"You don't understand, do you?" he asked carefully. "Percy is the very first Weasley to be married. My family will be amalgamating with another as he and his bride exchange vows and bind themselves together in holy matrimony. I am obligated, as his brother, to make a good impression on Penny's family, as very soon they will be incorporated into mine. Because God knows Fred and George won't." Looking important, Ron settled back into his chair.

Hermione stopped writing once again to glance up at the youngest Weasley male, frowning. "I didn't realize this meant so much to you," she said, sounding guilty. "I wasn't really planning on going all out…do you think I should buy something new to wear?"

Ron rubbed his chin. "Yeah, maybe you should, that one red dress of yours is kind of old…"

Professor Bouchard murmured something in French that sounded suspiciously like "idiot", carefully turning a page of the book he was reading in a melodramatic fashion.

"I'm kidding," Ron announced loudly, turning his attention back to Hermione and trying to think of a suitable, mushy line to say next. "You look beautiful no matter what you're wearing," he said, quite proud of himself. Hermione smiled brightly and, blushing while glancing around the room quickly, leaned forward to give him a quick kiss on the lips.

Professor Bouchard sighed loudly from his arm chair. "Oh please, no one wants to see zat."

Angrily, Ron turned around and chucked the blue tie at him. Not missing a beat, Bouchard flipped another page, feigning obliviousness to the tie that had landed on his head.

"Red, then," Ron decided, turning back to Hermione. And that settled it.

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Hoorah! I know this chappie's not that long, but rest assured, the next one is a doozy. ^_^

Yay! I can't believe I finally finished the first chapter! (After much revision.) I have like, six alternate first chapters, and I re-wrote this one like five times. Took me quite awhile. And that's the story of my life.

Alright, I'll be the first one to admit…Professor Bouchard was inspired by Michel from Gilmore Girls. I love Michel. So, forgiveness please from the makers of Gilmore Girls. I said inspired, not ripped off, so I don't think I have to write a disclaimer…

Now, here it comes…you must understand the horrific consequences of not reviewing. The world shall crumble to pieces, fiery demons will plague us all, and Dobby will return in the second chapter and dance naked at Percy's wedding. All of this if you don't review! So you'd better! Or suffer the consequences…

P.S. I know the little poem at the beginning was stupid and didn't make any sense, but it will later. I hope. Sorry.