Accio Ring!

A Harry Potter Fan-Fic

Summary: Ron is preparing himself for the most crucial moment of his life: asking Hermione to marry him. What could go wrong? One-Shot

Author's Note: It's not anywhere near my best. But this idea actually comes from my very first version of The Other Weasley. It didn't work, so it was nixed and I started afresh. But I loved this idea and it wouldn't go away. I just feel like it's so Ron. And I've been so stuck with my other stuff, I just needed something to work on. So here it is. This world and its characters belong to J.K. Rowling, even Ron Weasley (*sobs*)

Major thanks to my beta, Rebecka Alanna. You rock!

"Finally! About time you two got hitched!" roared Ron as Ginny proudly showed off her ring. He grinned at his best friend, whose face beamed with happiness amid the congratulations. He watched his mother tackle the happy couple in a hug that Ron knew to be a death grip.

"Cheers!"

Hermione, Mrs. Weasley, and all the girls gushed over Ginny's ring, screaming about how utterly perfect, how absurdly gorgeous, how beautifully cut. Leaving the women to it, Harry joined the men at the kitchen table.

Ron clapped him on the back. "So, mate, how'd it go?"

Harry grinned. "It was the most nerve-wracking thing in my life."

"Even after You-Know-Who?" asked Bill.

"Even after Voldemort," Harry agreed. "For a second, I thought she was going to say no."

Ron guffawed. His sister had been in love with Harry since she was ten years old. There was no way that she would ever have said no.

"Guess she didn't," grinned Bill, watching his baby sister beam with joy.

Harry's eyes strayed too towards the lovely redhead. "No," he said softly, "she didn't."

"So that's how it went?" George teased his future brother-in-law as he balanced his two-year-old son and daughter on his lap. "Go on, tell us all the botching you did with it."

Harry's cheeks warmed. "I didn't botch it... that much," he chuckled. "Stumbled a bit trying to get down on my bloody knees. Rushed the words a mite. Nothing that none of you blokes didn't do yourselves." All the men assembled had to grin at that, each taken back to their own proposal nights. Harry's smile turned sly as he nodded towards Ron. "Ah, but there's one thing I didn't do: at least I didn't forget the ring."

The other boys roared with laughter as Ron flushed crimson. They were never going to let him forget that.

The night Ron had decided to ask Hermione to marry him, everyone all had gathered together at the Burrow for dinner, a few weeks before Christmas. His parents, Bill and Fleur with baby Victoire, Charlie, Percy, George and a pregnant Angelina with baby Fred, Ginny, Harry, and Hermione were all there. Amidst all the eating and talking and joking and eating and laughing and wiping away a few tears (Christmas would never be exactly the same without Fred's firecrackers) and eating some more, Ron had tried to remain as calm as possible. He had decided he would ask Hermione that night, or else.

The problem was, he had accidentally told his mother of his plans. And she had told everyone, naturally. And everyone kept making little jokes and winking at him. He had planned to ask Hermione inside, but there was no bloody way he was going to do it with all these people. He'd barely mustered up the courage to buy the ring; expecting him to do it in front of these people was asking too much.

It was starting to snow heavily, when he had asked Hermione to take a walk with him. She had smiled and invited Ginny and Harry to come along, but both bowed out, smirking knowingly.

He had snuck a glance at the bundled-up figure beside him, who smiled at him beneath all her layers. Ron felt his heartbeat quicken. Hands in his coat pockets, he thought back to the first time he had met a little bushy-haired, pushy know-it-all and how she had shoved her way into his heart. He had gone from irritation at her perfectionistic ways ("It's Levi-Oh-sa, not Levio-SA") to gratitude for her friendship to genuine admiration to jealously over every guy she looked at, driving him to date Lavender. He hadn't realized he loved her until the moment that the monster of jealousy reared its ugly head when he had thought she was in love with Krum, or even worse, when he thought she loved Harry.

He had sighed heavily, remembering his relief when Harry had told him that he and Hermione had no feelings for each other besides those of a brother and sister. At that moment, Ron had felt something reach into his coat pocket and a gloved hand take his own. She laced her fingers through his, and squeezed gently.

Looking down, he saw Hermione, his Hermione, smile up at him. She looked so breathtaking in the fading light, with snowflakes clinging to her eyelashes and hair, with her cheeks flushed with the cold. He felt a rush through his veins.

"Hermione…" he breathed as he lowered his face to kiss her. She smiled as their lips lightly touched. He smiled in return and she threw her unclaimed arm around his neck, as he pulled her tighter to him.

Kissing in the snow was nothing like kissing in the rain. In the rain, you are pelted with splashes of wet, plastering your hair to your face, until you have to stop to find some place to warm up. But in the snow, only little tiny, delicate spots of cold flutter down, resting on your head and shoulders, not disturbing what heat might be developing.

As always when he kissed Hermione, Ron had felt the familiar pulse through his brain and heart. Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine.

He couldn't get over that she was his. He had loved her for so long, it was so difficult for him to wrap his head that she wanted him. He had broken the kiss to look at her. She had grinned as he gazed into her chocolate-brown eyes.

Suddenly, she bent down and scooped up some of the freshly fallen snow. Ron had looked at her questioningly. Her eyes twinkled in merriment and mischief, as she launched the cold wet stuff into his face. Squealing, she turned and ran away, her boots kicking up snow. Grinning, Ron had charged after her and had caught up quickly (his three years with the Chudley Cannons and four years of constant Auror-training paid off). She had made the mistake to turn around completely to see how close he was, right as he had tackled her to the ground, twirling her artfully so she landed on top of him.

"That's not very gentlemanly, Mr. Weasley," Hermione giggled as they hit the snow.

"To hell it is, Mrs. We-Miss Granger." Ron stopped himself just in time. But he had almost called her Mrs. Weasley. And he hadn't proposed yet! He tried to correct his mistake by covering it up with a kiss.

"I love you, Ronald Bilius Weasley," Hermione told him once they broke the kiss, and he had seen that she meant it. That had given him the courage to ask what the most important question of his life. He had jumped up, pulling her with him.

"I love you too, Hermione Jean Granger."

She had smiled beautifully as she pulled him down to her level to kiss him again. Ron smiled as his heart hammered in his chest and his pulse began its familiar beat.

Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine.

Mine.

He had broken off before they could deepen the kiss. Slowly he had knelt down in the snow and she had gasped softly. He had reached into his coat pocket, hoping his voice wouldn't come out as shaky as he felt.

"Mione, I love you…I'm not good at the whole speech-thing. But you are the most beautiful, smartest, caring, wonderful person I've ever met. I love you. And I have for longer than I'd care to admit," here he had paused, thinking that that had not been the best thing to say. "Wait, that came out wrong. I've loved you for a very long time and I plan on loving you for the rest of my life. Hermione Jean Granger, will you—will …err…"

Ron had fumbled with his coat pocket, and, not feeling the small black box, had looked in his pocket. Where was the bloody ring? He had been planning to pull out the ring at this moment—but he couldn't find it! Blind panic had reared up through him. He thought his heart was going to stop. Bloody hell, he thought, now I've gone and blown it. She'll think I'm the biggest git ever; she'll laugh at me and won't want me, 'cause who wants a bloke who lost the engagement ring. Ronald Weasley, you are the biggest failure ever. He had felt his ears redden and kept his head bowed in humiliation.

"Ron, what's wrong?" asked Hermione gently. She had knelt down next to him. Concern shone in her face.

Breathe in, breathe out. "Well," he had mumbled, not looking up, ears and face still burning crimson, "I was going to ask you to marry me. But I can't find the bloody ring!"

Hermione had laughed here, but softly. Ron braced himself for the hysterical laughter and the refusal.

"Ron, look at me."

He had shaken his head like a stubborn little boy.

"Ron," Hermione said gently, "Ring or no ring, I'd still like to answer your question."

His head shot up to look at her. "Wh—what?"

She kissed his cheek gently. "Why don't you try again?"

Ron had looked at her and feebly smiled. She knew him so well. And she hadn't laughed at him yet, or run away.

"Well," he said, taking a stab at gallantry—and failing miserably, "Ring or no, Hermione Granger, will you marry me?"

Hermione had laughed happily and threw her arms around him. "Yes!"

Joy, thicker than the blood in his veins, had coursed through Ron as he stood up, pulling her with him. He picked her up and spun her around and around in the winter night, until dizzily they fell to the ground. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek and soon they were rolling around in the snow, laughing and kissing.

Finally, both of them frozen and tired, Hermione said, "I guess we should go inside."

"Cold, Mione?" Ron had carelessly asked, slinging his arm around her shoulder. Then, memory had hit him with avengence. "Oh no! What are they going to say about me forgetting the ring? I'll never live this down." He sunk back to the ground, head in his hands.

"They knew? They all knew?"

"Yeah," muttered Ron, "I accidentally let it slip to Mum. The rest of them figured it out, before even Mum got to them. George said it was because I was acting buggered all morning. It was worse because you were late. Mum threatened to Summon you…" He broke off mid-sentence as a brilliant idea took hold.

"Summon! That's it! Accio ring!" he cried. In a matter of moments, they heard a crash as the the ring hurtled towards them through the snow. It hit Ron square in the forehead. Hermione had giggled as she took her glove off so Ron could slide it onto her finger. And there it sparkled, claiming her to be his.

"Oh Ron," she breathed, "It's beautiful."

"You are beautiful, Mrs. Weasley," he returned as he kissed her.

At least he hadn't messed up that line.

Ron returned from his trip down memory lane as he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. His brothers and Harry were laughing, recalling how they found the little black box with a hole in it, from where the ring had burst, and how they had watched the ring rocket through the kitchen before breaking the window over the sink, which gave Mrs. Weasley hysterics.

Ron turned to Hermione, who smiled and kissed his cheek.

"I love you, Ron, even if you forgot the ring," she whispered.

Oh, well, he thought. At least, she was still wearing the ring.

Reviews are lovely :)