Title: Flat Hunting
Author: drcjsnider
Rating: PG-13
Pairing/Characters: Ron/Hermione
Summary: Ron and Hermione have a hard time finding a flat to share.
Word Count: 1609
A/N: All characters belong to JK Rowlings. This was written for 9t9 for helping me out with my lj account.

"No way!" Ron exclaimed. He and Hermione had been flat hunting for several weeks and although he was anxious to finally move in with her, this was out of the question.

"I don't see why you have a problem with the place," Hermione huffed. "It's a lovely flat."

In all honesty, Ron did not have a problem with the aesthetics of the flat. It was well maintained, it had been recently painted, and the bathroom had been updated. It was only its location that made it completely unacceptable and so he informed his girlfriend.

"What do you mean its location is unacceptable? It's on Diagon Alley close to everything!"

"Yeah, but do you realize what's below it?" he asked her.

She looked confused. "You mean Flourish and Blotts?"

"Right. There is no way I'm going to live above a bloody bookstore with you!"

"Why not?" Hermione pouted. "Have you developed an allergy to parchment or do you really have a good reason?"

"Actually, Miss Smarty-Pants, I have two good reasons," Ron informed her. "First, if we lived here, I'd never get you away from the blasted books. There would always be something new for you to read, always something you could be researching. I can barely get you to pay attention to me now and that is without you being surrounded by tons of books you've never read."

"I pay attention to you!" Hermione protested.

"Bah," he snorted. "Just last night I had to nuzzle your ear and grope your arse just to get you to put down the report from work you were reading."

Hermione laughed. "No, you git. The only way I got you to stop listening to the wireless and grope my arse was acting like I was more interested in reading a report than snogging you."

He raised an eyebrow at her and shook his head. "You're mental. Next time you are feeling frisky just tell me. I promise I'll never turn down an opportunity to shag no matter what's on the wireless."

She blushed. "So does that mean we can take the flat?"

"Absolutely not!"

Rolling her eyes, Hermione asked, "What's your second reason?"

"Well, I suspect that if we were living above a bookstore you'd expect us to maintain a certain level of decorum so not to disturb the patrons downstairs."

"Certainly," she replied. "You can't expect people to find enjoyable reading material if they are constantly being distracted by loud noises."

"Then we are definitely not moving here. There is no way I'm giving up hearing you scream my name when you orgasm just so some swots can find 'enjoyable reading material,'" he smirked, wrapping his arms around her waist and planting kisses along her neck.

"Ron!" Hermione reddened, pushing him on the chest slightly. When he captured her lips in a deep kiss, however, she stopped nagging him to move in above the bookstore.

-0-0-0-

"You have got to be kidding me," Hermione grumbled looking out the window of the flat Ron wanted them to rent.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and slowly turned her away from the view. "Don't look outside yet. Get a feel for the place first."

Hermione glanced around the flat and was silently impressed by its size and the open floor plan. In addition to a great room with a large fireplace, it had a modern kitchen, two bedrooms – one for her and Ron, and one for a library, and two large baths. Its biggest selling point, however, was a huge bank of windows than ran along one side of the flat, flooding the place with light.

"Admit it," Ron gloated, "this place has everything for which we've been looking."

"The flat is very nice," she replied dully.

"Then how come you aren't more enthusiastic about it?"

"It is so far away from everything. It will take us ages to Floo between here and the Ministry, or the Burrow, or Diagon Alley."

"That is one of the things that makes it so great. When we leave work it will be like we've gone off in our own little universe where it is just you and I."

She smiled up at him. "That's so sweet, Ron. Will it just be you and me on game days too?"

"Ur… what do you mean?"

"On days when the Chudley Cannons have a home game will it just be you and me together in our own little universe?"

Ron turned toward the view and gestured outside. "Luv, we can't waste this on game days! We'll have to have Harry, Neville, Dean, Seamus, Luna, my family, the former Gyffindor players, and our work colleagues over for the home games."

Hermione looked out the window and couldn't help but shudder a bit. The flat they were considering was in a high-rise condo that over-looked the Chudley Cannons' Stadium. She could just imagine the place packed with hundreds of rowdy Quidditch fans every other weekend making it impossible to get any work done. At least now, when Ron wanted to watch Quidditch, he and Harry would just get tickets and do some male-bonding for a few hours, while she could go into the office or hole up in her study. If they lived here, however, it would become the party spot – it would be like living the Gryffindor Common Room. She sighed quietly.

"It won't be bad sweetheart," Ron grinned wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I hear a ton of Quidditch players have moved in here. Maybe you can hang out with Oliver Wood's wife."

"Do you think Victor has a flat here for spring training?" Hermione asked, trying to sound innocently curious.

Ron stiffened and peered down at her face intently. "Maybe we should keep looking."

Hermione tried not to smirk, but she couldn't completely hide it. "Sure, if you think that's for the best."

-0-0-0-

It had been three months. Three long and frustrating months and still Ron and Hermione had not found a flat to rent. Everything they had looked at had some problem or other – some were too small, others were too expensive, a few didn't allow pets, and several were managed by Malfoy, Inc., which neither of the two war heroes would acquiesce to living in.

Hermione rubbed the palms of her hands over her eyes. "I give up," she muttered.

"Me too," Ron groaned, not bothering to lift his head from table.

Harry, George, and Percy laughed at them. The three youngest Weasley boys and Harry had moved into the Burrow after the war to provide some comfort to Molly and Arthur, and each other after Fred's death. Now almost a year-and-a-half later, however, Ron was ready to begin making a life with Hermione.

"Shove it, you gits." Ron grumbled. "We are all in the same position; none of us have a place to be private with our girlfriends."

"Hey!" Percy spoke up. "That's not a problem for me."

"Yea, cuz you don't have a girl, Perce," Ron laughed.

"It's not a problem for me either!" George exclaimed.

When everyone at the table turned to look at him, he shrugged and gave them a big grin. "Angelina just got a flat of her own."

"Way to go mate!" Ron smiled in return, clapping him on the back.

"I have Grimmauld Place if I ever want to be private with Ginny," Harry contributed.

When his girlfriend's three older brothers began to glare at him, Harry choked. "Not that we need any privacy or ever have any intention of seeking privacy," he explained, a bit shakily.

"I should hope not," Ron groused.

Hermione pushed her chair back from the table. "I'm going to home."

"But, Hermione," Ron protested, "it's been weeks since we've been alone together!"

"What do you expect me to do about it, Ron? I can't conjurer a flat from thin air."

"I can," George informed them.

When Hermione's and Ron's heads whipped toward him, he couldn't help but smirk. "Well, not exactly conjurer one. But there is an empty one sitting above the Wheezes in Diagon Alley. Why don't you two take that one?"

"No one has lived there since Fred…" Ron began, only to let his sentence trail off.

"Yeah, but it's about time that changed. I suspect Fred would find this a good cause," George smiled, looking a bit nostalgic.

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked.

He nodded in response. "It makes a lot of sense. Ron is already helping out at the shop on the weekends. This will make it easier for him to travel between jobs and still spend some time with his girl. It is just the right size for the two of you. Keeping pets is no problem. And, you'll have the extra bonus of having a charming, handsome, discerning bloke for a landlord."

Hermione glanced at Ron, who smiled and gave a slight nod. She hopped out of her chair and wrapped her arms around George's neck. "Oh, thank you! This will just absolutely perfect."

"Besides if you happen to be around a bit more often to help in the lab that is just an added benefit," he grinned back at her.

"You'll let me into your lab?" she asked, shocked.

"Sure, but only if I never have to hear about how irresponsible my inventions are."

"I don't!"

Ron, Harry, and Percy all snorted in response.

"I wasn't talking to any of YOU," Hermione glared. She held her hand out to George. "It's a deal."

As George shook Hermione's hand, Ron smiled broadly at his brother. "Of course, it would have been even better if you'd thought of this two months ago, before we wasted weeks hunting for flats all across London."

"Perhaps," George responded, his eyes twinkling brightly. "But then Angelina would have never found out about and moved into the flat overlooking the Cannons stadium."

The End