CHAPTER 4 – TOAST – RONS P-O-V

The next 2 hours were spent in the living room with Harry writing draft after draft of his letter of application. He was properly freaking out, shows how much he wanted the job really. In my eyes it was a given. I mean, he's the boy who lived, the chosen one, he defeated Voldemort twice. If anything I should be the one worrying.

I told him, I said, "Kingsley's not gonna be turning you down because you misspelled a word or missed out a comma, you were the one who won us the war you prat!"

"I want this on my own merit though Ron. I'm don't want to be just let in automatically, that wouldn't be fair and I wouldn't deserve it!" Harry said, tapping the neatly written piece of parchment with his wand, "There, that's it, done. It's finally done." It folded up and placed itself into an envelope addressed to the minister. I stared at him in feigned disbelief.

"Are you sure it's finished Harry? You don't want to use another 500 checking spells first?" I said sarcastically, "I half expected you to use up all the paper in the bloody house THEN conjure up some more out of the tree's in the garden."

He laughed and I looked in the direction of the staircase apprehensively, "Maybe I should wake Hermione up, then I can send both of your letters together. I doubt Pig would be up for two journeys and Errol will be half dead when she comes back from delivering Dad and Andromeda's letters."

Harry studied the envelope, doubly checking the address and passed it to me, "I could trust Hegwig with important letters like this... I don't think I'm going to be able to replace her."

"I know how you feel mate, but at least she didn't turn into a dodgey looking middle aged man. You don't know how long it took me to explain that one to mum when I got home after 3rd year!" I joked, before the conversation was allowed to turn sour. Thankfully Harry was receptive of it and let out a soft laugh under his breath.

"As for Hermione," He said, If you want to get your head bitten off mate, that's your choice, but I'd never wake a tired Hermione up without a pretty good reason... Could you get her to take a look at that before you seal it?"

I wasn't going to get Hermione to check, but he didn't need to know that if she spotted any errors that would only make him more paranoid. I nodded and Harry strolled out into the Garden where Ginny was feeding the chickens, no doubt he wanted to take his mind off his application, I suspect that he'd never manage that though.

"Accio parchment!" I called, I summoning some pieces of parchment from a desk in the living room and picking up the quill Harry had been using from the coffee table.

I climbed the stairs up towards my room, I thought that It would be polite to knock; but I could hear Hermione's shallow breathing through the door and felt it might be a bit of a rude awakening. I twisted the door handle slowly and pushed it open with a near silent click.

She was fast asleep. I felt a little odd, just standing there watching her without her permission, surely that's something only weirdos do? I remembered the times in the tent when Harry was on watch. I spent hours laying on my bunk trying to work up the courage to wake her up, just to talk on our own for once; without Harry. She looked so peaceful. Her arms thrown up over her head and one of her legs sticking out of the covers at an odd angle, the sight was almost laughable. If only she could see herself now.

"Hermione." I whispered, I felt bad that I had to wake her, but she wouldn't sleep tonight otherwise. She breathed a quiet sigh and rolled onto her side, curling up into a ball and pulling her arms in towards her chest. "...Hermione?"

You'd think she was deaf. I approached the bed slowly, almost on tip-toes and crouched beside the bed leaning in towards her face.

"Hermione!"

In a matter of moments it had happened. She gasped and grabbed her wand from the bedside as her eyes snapped open, she sent a spell which pushed me backwards against my bedside cabinet causing me to bang the side of my head on one of the blunt corners.

"STUPEF...RON!"

"ARGH! Fuck, shit, bollocks. Ow." I yelled, grabbing at my head. She bolted upright on the bed, staring at me in horror as though she had just accidently stood on a defenceless rabbit.

"Ron, Merlin, I am so sorry! I almost knocked you out..." she said breathlessly, ("Really? I didn't notice!") she reached out her arm and pulled me upright onto the bed beside her. She got onto her hands and knees and leant around me, stroking my face and apologising repeatedly before searching my head in attempt to find any terrible injury she might have caused.

"I'm just so used to being on full alert. I've still not got used to the fact that we're safe." She said, pulling at strands of orange hair trying to find any signs of bleeding.

At that moment I didn't give two shits about the throbbing pain hammering continually at the side of my head, all I could think about was her head hovering right in front of my face. How I could smell her hair as it tickled my chin, wanting desperately to pull her by the waist and have her sat infront of me.

"It's nothing Hermione," I said as my eyes caught the attention of hers, "I've had a lot worse in the past few months. A bang on the head is pretty tame compared to being splinched!"

Her eyes flickered with embarrassment as she realised what a compromising position she was in. She cleared her throat and sat back a little next to me on the bed. "Yes, yes I suppose so. Still, I'm sorry... Erm, so, what is it that you woke me for?"

"OH. Yeah, the vicious, unprovoked attack threw me off track a bit." I said as she smiled, I pushed the paper into her hands. "I just wanted to see if you needed some parchment, you know, for your letter to Kingsley. It'll be best to send yours and Harry's together; Pig wouldn't be able to handle two return trips to London, he's a scrawny little bugger, and Errol wont be able to handle anything at all by the time he gets back."

Hermione huffed through her nose and shook her head. "Language." she said in a wearied voice, rolling her eyes. She knew it wouldn't stop me, no matter how many times she said it. "What about your letter?"

I slid down on the bed, laying sideways and leaning my head against the slanting ceiling behind me. "I dunno... I s'pose I don't know if I'm up to it. I mean, Harry is made for a job like that, and then there's me." I shrugged.

"Ronald Weasley! You need to have confidence in your abilities! Don't be such an idiot"

"Oh, thanks, being called an idiot really helps with the whole 'confidence in abilities' thing." I laughed and she nudged my arm with her hand.

"OH, you know what I mean Ron, and don't pretend you don't. Harry might have been the one who ended this war but without you he wouldn't even have got close."

"Without me running away you mean?" I rolled over onto my side, away from Hermione, facing the cabinet that had almost pierced my skull a few minutes beforehand.

Hermione laughed and placed her hand on my shoulder, "You need to let that go Ron, Harry and I have... Now stop sulking and bring me some breakfast!" She pushed me forward, almost rolling me onto the floor.

I steadied myself and got to my feet smiling at her. "I'm not a slave you know, I'm not here to bring you parchment and toast any time you need it. But I suppose if you asked a little more nicely I could oblige."

"Ron could you possibly bring me up some toast... PLEASE... with marmalade?" She nodded her head at me politely.

"That's a bit better, but you do realise it's 3 o'clock in the afternoon right? It's more like brunch... or brinner, I whatever you'd like to call it" I chuckled as I began to slide the door closed behind me.

"...and a cup of tea, 2 sugars." She squeaked, looking throughly pleased to have someone to wait on her every need.

I looked back in and raised my eyebrows. "When it's a house elf it's cruelty, but not Ron...! You'll need to start an organisation for the promotion of Ron Weasley's welfare next! "

"Oh do take your time Ronald, I've got all day!"

Hermione and sarcasm, not often seen together but I had a feeling I had a lot more of this sort of thing to come. She burst out in laughter from behind the door.

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