A/N: A quick thank you to all those who took the time to leave a review. We managed to respond to most of them, so be sure and check them out when you get a chance!!
This is sort of a filler chapter- but we get an appearance by the always lovely *snickers* Ginny and all that fun stuff.
And thank you to Harmony and Catianna Granger for pointing out a rather big oops on our part- pumpkin pie to you for being more observant than us!!!
Ron set the price sheets aside as he rang up the sale for a teen. "Headed to Hogwarts?" he asked.
The surly looking boy rolled his eyes and stared at Ron as if he was the stupidest creature on the planet. "School started weeks ago," the boy said crossly.
"Well sorry," Ron was going to throw in an extra gag or two but decided against it. "Whatever you do, don't give that cream puff to someone you like," he called a bit snidely, knowing a teen like that would do the opposite.
Ginny Weasley stared at the front door to her brothers' joke shop and wondered if she was making a mistake in visiting them. Draco had left her here a few moments ago as he had to go to Gringotts and she'd told him she was just going to do some window shopping. As if on instinct, her feet had led her to her twin brothers' joke shop. She hadn't seen them in such a long time. If she was being honest, she'd missed them all more than she'd thought possible.
Ron busied himself with setting up a shelf of new gags that Fred and George had left him with when the bell over the door rang. He turned around with a pleasant smile on his face which died immediately when he saw who it was. "Hello Ginny," he said coolly.
"Ron," Ginny said in an equally icy tone.
"What do you want?" Ron asked.
"I wanted to see Fred and George," she said, folding her arms. "Are they here?"
"No actually they're not, and they probably wouldn't want to see you anyways after what you did to Mum," Ron replied.
"What I did to Mum?" she asked. "I think her youngest son had a hand in it, too. Wouldn't you say?"
"Don't you dare try and pin this on me Ginevra," Ron said, using her full name which he knew she hated. "You're the one who decided she needed to shag Malfoy then steal money and jewellery from other people to frame someone!" Ron kept his voice low. "You have no idea how many nights she's cried over you choosing to live with that prat instead of coming home and facing up to your actions!"
Ginny's face fell at the mention of her mother. Though she'd told herself she had no regrets other than getting caught, she knew that one of the main reasons she didn't go home was because she didn't want to see the disappointment in her mother's eyes. "Is she okay?" Ginny asked weakly.
"She's getting better," Ron replied shortly. "She'd be a lot better if you'd owl her or even just go see her."
Ginny let out a hollow laugh. "You wouldn't believe the number of letters I've started to her. I...don't know what to say, Ron. Despite what you may think of me, I don't like that what I did caused her pain. I'm not so heartless that I get enjoyment out of making her sad."
"Right," Ron replied doubtfully. "I'm sure you thought of that repeatedly when you stole from people and framed Harry for it. The only thing you're sorry about is that you got caught."
Ginny sighed. She and Ron stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. "How's Dad?" she finally asked. "Still going crazy over Muggle stuff?"
"The same as always," Ron replied. "Look I'm really busy, so if you've got nothing other than to try and make idle chat then-"
"I'm leaving in a couple of days," she interjected.
Ron regarded his sister for a moment. "Where to?" he couldn't help asking.
"Sydney," she replied. "Draco's going to go to school and I'm going to get a job at one of the hotels there."
Ron raised an eyebrow. "You're leaving just like that?"
"No reason to stay," she said simply. "I'm the black sheep of the family, remember?"
"You should still go see Mum and tell her goodbye." Ron said sternly.
"Its better this way," Ginny reasoned. "She'd only try and talk me into staying and..." Ginny began to sob as she thought about leaving the only home she'd ever known to fly to a place where she knew no one. She hadn't even told Draco how frightened she was.
Ron felt himself soften a bit as he came around the counter and surprised both of them by giving Ginny a hug. "Look Gin..." he said. "If Malfoy treats you bad you know you can always come home right?"
Ginny wrapped her arms around her brother and nodded. "Do you remember what we used to say when Fred and George would gang up on us?" she asked softly. "We used to say 'It's you and me against the world'. Sometimes I wish I could go back and change things. D-do you ever feel like that?"
"Sometimes," Ron replied. "Sometimes I really do."
Ginny stepped out of Ron's embrace and wiped a tear from her cheek. "I really am sorry, Ron. And not just for getting caught...for all of it."
"I am too." Ron ruffled her hair like he used to. "I miss you Ginny. I know if you decided to visit Mum wouldn't toss you out on your ear. I don't think at this point she'd even lecture you. She'd just be happy to see you and know you're okay."
Ginny gave him a hopeful smile. "Maybe. I'll try and stop by before we go." She absently wiped another tear from her cheek and looked at her brother. "So how are you doing?"
"Great," Ron said. "Luna and I are really happy together, Harry and Hermione have moved in with one another and Neville and Cho are working through her pregnancy together."
"Things are as they should be then," Ginny said. She wondered how things would have been if she hadn't turned out the way she had. She'd probably be mentioned in that little group, too. But, as Draco often told her, it didn't do anyone any good to go thinking about what might have been or what could have been. He was always telling her to live in the now and to think about the future. It was easy for him to say, she thought sombrely. "I really should go," she said softly.
"Keep in touch will you?" Ron asked as she turned to leave.
Ginny had her hand on the door and she turned slowly around. "You'd read my letters, would you? Wouldn't throw them unread in the fireplace?"
"Of course I wouldn't." Ron replied.
"Okay," Ginny said with a smile. "I'll write you, then. Goodbye, Ron."
"Bye Gin," he said, watching as she left. He sighed when she disappeared and busied himself with the display again only to hear the bell ring once more. "Forget something?" he asked.
"No, I don't think so," a familiar voice said from behind, that was most definitely not his sister's.
"Luna!" Ron grinned. "I didn't know you would be coming by here today!"
"Neither did I," she said with a mischievous smile. "But I had an interview nearby and it finished early so I thought I'd check in and see what you were up to."
"Not much," Ron led her behind the counter. "But you'll never believe who just came in here!"
"Oh! I love guessing games!" she said excitedly. "Was it Dolores Umbridge? No, she's in Azkaban. Let's see... Parvati Patil? No, never pictured her for a joke shop..."
"My sister," Ron interrupted her. "Ginny was just here."
The smile faded from Luna's face. "Ginny? What on earth was she doing here?"
"Apparently she and Malfoy are moving to Sydney and she wanted to see my brothers before she left. I think I convinced her to go see Mum before she took off." Ron sighed and sat down. "She told me she's sorry for everything that happened."
Luna looked unconvinced. "And you believed her?"
"Luna she's my sister," Ron replied. "No matter what she did... I still care about her. She was crying when she said they were leaving. She's obviously terrified about moving away."
"I'm sorry," Luna said sincerely. "It's hard not to think the worst wherever she's concerned. But, it sounds as if you made some progress with her."
"I hope so," Ron said. "I mean... I do miss having her around despite what she's become like... she's still a Weasley deep down and she's a family girl." he blew his fringe up. "I hope she's happy with that prat is all. If he mistreats her I'll have no problems finding them in Sydney and castrating him."
"You know you're quite handsome when you're in protective mode," she teased.
Ron grinned at her. "And apparently I'm quite handsome in naked mode too according to a certain blonde I know and love." he leaned in for a kiss.
"Well, you'll have to make do on your own Saturday night," she said a few minutes later after she'd been properly snogged. "Girls night out, remember?"
"Yeah I know," Ron groaned. "It'll be a long lonely night for me. Harry and Neville will be out of town and you'll all be doing girly things."
"You're probably right," she said. "Are you all alone here? I was hoping to steal you away for a quick lunch."
"I am," he replied. "Fred and George are in Hogsmeade for the day checking out that shop."
"Oh, well," she said, looking at her watch. "I probably wouldn't have been able to spend more than a few minutes with you anyway. I have to get back to the office and finish my article. I'll probably just pop next door and get a sandwich. You want me to bring you something by on my way out?"
"If you want to," Ron replied. "I don't want you to go out of your way."
"It's right next door, silly," she said with a giggle.
"All right then," he gave her another kiss. "Thanks."
"I'll be right back," she said, not bothering to ask what he wanted. She knew his tastes pretty well by now and there wasn't much that he wouldn't eat.
When she came back minutes later with a sandwich Ron was so grateful he pulled her into the back room for a very thorough snog. "You are just what the medi-wizard ordered Ms. Lovegood," he grinned.
"It must be love," she teased, as he planted kisses along her neck. "You haven't even looked at your sandwich."
"It's most definitely love," Ron replied as he pulled his lips from her skin. "You taste better than any sandwich ever could."
"Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?" she asked.
"Can't I just be romantic for a change?" he asked, pretending to be injured.
"By all means, Ronald," she said. "Though the back room of a joke shop isn't the most romantic setting in the world…" She cupped his face in her hands. "But I've always believed that it didn't matter the setting. All that matters is who you're with and anytime I'm with you...that's romantic enough for me."
Ron grinned before he kissed her again, letting his hands wander down her backside, bringing her shirt back up with his fingers. Just as he was about to pull it off her that blasted bell rang from the front of the shop. "Hey you! You told me to give this cream puff to someone I liked!" the sullen teenager was back.
Luna laughed as Ron groaned in frustration. "Foiled again!" she said, straightening her blouse.
"Later?" Ron asked.
"Later," she agreed.
*** *** ***
Later that evening, Hermione let herself into the flat and yawned. She dropped her bag by the door and knew that she should probably study a little for her transfiguration exam tomorrow, but she was so drained from the charms research she and Gordon did that she couldn't bear to look at another book tonight. She resolved to get up an hour or two earlier than she usually did to do some last minute cramming for the test.
As she climbed the stairs toward the bedroom, she yawned again. She could hear her nice, comfortable cosy bed calling her name. To her surprise, the bedroom door was open and Harry was sitting in bed going over some of his training books.
"Hey," she said, smiling when she saw him. "I didn't expect you to be home."
"I've been home for awhile," Harry replied.
"Early night?" she asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and taking off her shoes.
"Kind of..." Harry turned the page. "They let us out so we could start looking over these new books."
Hermione nodded and went into the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. A few moments later, she came back into the bedroom clad in pyjama pants and a camisole top. "How's Neville?" she asked, clearing away some of Harry's books so she could climb under the cover.
"He's fine, just sore." Harry replied. "Cho was massaging him after you ran out this afternoon."
"I didn't run out," Hermione said defensively.
"You looked like your arse was on fire," Harry replied.
Hermione laughed. "Did I?"
"You did," Harry marked his page. "Not that I was really looking or anything..."
"We actually accomplished quite a bit tonight," Hermione said. "But Gordon thinks we should work on it some more this weekend. I've got plans with the girls on Saturday, but he's going to come by on Sunday and we'll try and muddle through the rest."
"Hmm," Harry was less than impressed by the fact that Gordon would be in their home while he wasn't.
"I would have been home sooner, but he and I just got so wrapped up in what we were doing," Hermione explained. "I honestly think he could do this stuff in his sleep, he's that talented."
"That's great," Harry turned off the light on his side of the bed.
Hermione turned off the lamp on her side of the bed as well and closed her eyes. A few moments later, she bolted up quickly. "Harry?" she asked, nudging him.
"Hmm?" he asked.
"Could you set the alarm for five instead of seven?" she whispered. "I need to get up a couple hours earlier." She heard him sigh heavily. "The clock is on your side," she pointed out.
"Fine..." he grumbled. He was exhausted himself, both from fending off Megan's advances and his studies. He didn't have to start until later the next day and now he would be woken up early.
"Is anything wrong?" she asked, barely making out his figure in the darkness. She could hear him jabbing impatiently on the buttons of the alarm clock.
"No, I'm just really tired." Harry said. "That silly bint at training isn't making things easy either."
"What did good old Megan do now?" Hermione asked.
Harry finished setting the clock and lay back down. "She's just annoying. To be honest, even if I wasn't with you she's not the type of person I'd look twice at."
"She does have excellent taste in men," Hermione teased as she turned on her side.
Harry smiled. "What can I say?" he boasted.
"I think Cho's right," Hermione said, trying not to laugh. "We might have to think about building on to accommodate your ego."
"Sod off," Harry reached over for her. "When I get back next week we'll pick a night to celebrate your birthday all right?"
"If you and Megan don't have plans," Hermione said giggling. Harry decided to retaliate by tickling her.
"You'd better watch what you say Granger," Harry replied amidst her laughter.
"Stop, Harry!" she said chortling. "You know I hate it when you do this!"
"Do what?" Harry asked devilishly.
"T-tickle me," she said before hiccupping.
Harry started laughing. "I told you to watch what you say."
Hermione reached beside her and grabbed a pillow and promptly hit Harry upside the head with it. "And you should watch what you do," she said, rolling with laughter at the stunned expression on Harry's face.
"What are you going to do about it?" he challenged.
"This," she said boldly, grabbing hold of his t-shirt and bringing him down on top of her.
Harry kissed her hungrily as he'd been dying to all day. When they'd been set to do laps at training he focused his mind on her, imagining she was at the finish line cheering him on. "I missed you today," he murmured as her hands began to travel over his skin. "You have no idea how much."
"Show me," she whispered.
Harry did as she said; kissing her with a passion that surprised them both. "I thought I was tired," he said softly. "But I think you've just given me a second wind."
"Have I?" she said proudly. "I was just thinking the same thing about you."
All thoughts about her test tomorrow and the research she'd done tonight began to fade away as she again felt Harry's lips on hers.
His hands trailed down over her smooth skin, lifting up the camisole she was wearing. He kissed wherever he exposed her to the air, making her body lift up and down in pleasure.
Hermione's head rolled back onto the pillow as she felt him work his way down to her pyjama bottoms and slowly began to ease them from her body.
Harry tossed her clothing to the floor, moving back on top of her as he kissed the valley between her breasts, cupping one with his hand as he moved his mouth over the other.
She let out a slight moan as she wondered if he was deliberately trying to torture her with how slow and meticulous his every movement was. Harry let out a gasp as she moved her hand down, running her finger delicately along his manhood. "Hermione..." he choked.
"What?" she said softly.
"Keep doing that..." he was barely able to let the words out of his mouth before she leaned up and kissed him as hard as she could.
Hermione wrapped her legs around his hips as they exchanged long, wet kisses. She tightened her legs around him as she felt him slide slowly inside her.
He thrust deeply into her, his mouth firmly affixed to hers as they moaned together. Harry felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise as she shuddered around him, his name escaping her lips in a mixture of a sigh and gasp.
"Merlin, Hermione I love you," he said his voice gone husky.
"I love you," she whispered breathlessly into his neck.
Harry collapsed on top of her as she said that, rolling off to her side. Hermione moved willingly into his arms as his fingers stroked through her hair. "You tire me out woman," he joked, his eyes closed.
"My pleasure," she said sleepily.
*** *** ***
Harry awoke feeling quite satisfied the next morning. He stretched himself luxuriously and smiled at the sleeping figure next to him. He brushed back a few strands of her hair so he could look at her. Harry was glad she'd finally dropped the situation with Isabella and Cho, and her idea that she wasn't pretty enough- if she had seen him in his gawky phase she'd have probably turn and run the other way. He turned back around and reached for his glasses, then blinked as he slid them on, hoping what he saw on the clock was wrong.
"Shit!" he said aloud. "Hermione wake up!"
"Hmmm?" she said sleepily. "Five more minutes." With that she closed her eyes again and snuggled closer to him.
"No Hermione- it's eight thirty!" Harry said. "The bloody alarm didn't go off and your exam is in a half hour!"
Her eyes shot open just then and she looked at him squarely to see if he was having a go with her. Just then, she looked over his shoulder and saw the time. "I thought you set the alarm!" she exclaimed, pulling the cover back and getting out of bed.
"I did!" Harry replied. "It's bloody stupid though you have to hit this button then that!"
She didn't answer him fearing that talking would take up valuable time. At the moment, she was so angry at him she couldn't see straight. With breakneck speed, she threw on a pair of knickers and her bra. She walked over to the closet and couldn't resist shooting Harry an irritated look.
"I'm sorry!" Harry was contrite. "I really thought I'd set it correctly!"
"Yeah, I'm sure you did," she retorted sarcastically, pulling a red jumper over her head. "Do you have any idea why I wanted you to set the alarm? I have a huge test in less than twenty minutes that I am not prepared for in the slightest. But as long as you can enjoy your lie-in...What harm's done?"
Harry sighed. "I'm sorry I said that last night and I'm sorry I messed up the alarm!" he said. "I honestly thought I had it set for five. I wouldn't intentionally do this to you Hermione." he crossed his arms.
Hermione sat down on the edge of the bed to put on her jeans. She looked at him and she could see that he was genuinely upset about the mistake. "I know you didn't," she said, her tone much softer. "It's my own fault. I should have stayed up last night and studied, but I was so bloody tired when I got home... and then we…"
Harry relaxed. "You'll do fine, I know you will." he replied. "You're the smartest person I know."
She shook her head. "I wasn't very smart last night, not at all."
Harry reached for her and hugged her briefly. "You'll do fine." he said, giving her a quick chaste kiss. "That's for luck."
"I'm going to need it," she said with a slight smile. "I'll see you later." She quickly put on her shoes and grabbed her cloak and bag and left the room without a glance back at Harry.
Harry fell back against the pillows, feeling terrible. Even in his bad mood last night he should have set the alarm right... and then she had kissed him and it had all gone to hell from there.
Hermione made it to her class just in time. The professor was just about to close the door when she called out to him and luckily, he'd allowed her entrance. She struggled to catch her breath as she took her seat beside Gordon who gave her a concerned look. She gave him a slight smile before turning her attention to the professor.
In all her years as a student, she'd never dreaded taking tests. She knew as well as anyone that there was always a first time for everything. She just hoped that this wouldn't be the first test she'd ever failed. As she scanned the questions, a sense of panic came over her. This was going to be bad. This was going to be very, very bad.
*** *** ***
Lavender was sitting in a booth at The Leaky Cauldron with her sketch book waiting for Seamus to arrive. They were meeting here for an early lunch. Lavender had chosen this place since it was near Madam Malkin's. If the morning was any indication of how her day was going to go, Lavender knew the day would be perfect.
Madam Malkin had just told her that she was going to allow Lavender to design some dress robes for the winter collection. She'd been so excited about the opportunity; she'd brought her sketch book along so she could jot down some ideas while she waited for Seamus.
Seamus hummed cheerfully as he entered The Leaky Cauldron. He called out a hello to Tom as he saw Lavender sitting near the corner. "Hallo Lav," he said, sliding in across from her.
"Hi," she said beaming at him. "You'll never guess what happened to me!"
"What?" Seamus grinned at the overly large smile on her face. "Something good I reckon?"
"Yes," she said happily. "Care to venture a guess at who will be helping design the winter collection of dress robes for the well-dressed witches and wizards of the greater London area?"
"You're kidding me!" Seamus's jaw dropped.
"I couldn't believe it when Madam Malkin told me," she said. "And you, Mr. Finnigan, should feel quite honoured as you were the first person to hear my good news."
"I am quite honoured," Seamus smiled. "This is absolutely fantastic!"
"When I was hired, I thought I was just going to help her sell clothes," Lavender said, leaning back on the bench seat. "I can't believe she's actually going to let me design...this is like my dream come true. And she really cares about what I think, Seamus. She listens to my ideas and she actually thinks I have some talent."
"That's the best news I've heard all day," He looked at the pad in front of her. "Are those your sketches?"
"Yes," she said, blushing a bit. Instinctively, she closed the book, but was taken aback when he grabbed hold of her hand. "You really want to look at them?" she asked shyly.
"I do," Seamus nodded. "Please?"
"Okay," she said, handing him the book. "But, they're just rough ideas...not anything I'm committed to yet. And keep in mind that I'm a beginner so..."
"Come here and sit next to me so you can explain everything," Seamus interrupted her as he moved over. Lavender slid in next to him and as they flipped through her sketches she told him anything he might have wanted to know about the drawings.
He couldn't help but notice how animated she was when she was talking about something she loved, and it made his heart beat faster. Since she had finally let go of any inhibitions she might have had about their relationship, they had begun to have a wonderful time doing things together.
"This one here," she said, pointing to a beautiful set of periwinkle blue robes, "is something I've actually been working on for Hermione's birthday. I'm planning on giving them to her on Saturday. I've been working on them for ages."
"That's gorgeous," he said, squeezing her hand which he had taken into his a few minutes before. "She'll absolutely love those."
Lavender looked down at their joined hands and felt even happier, if that was possible. "You have really nice hands," she heard herself blurt out.
"What?" Seamus asked, laughing.
Lavender blushed. "Merlin, did I say that out loud?"
"Yes," Seamus's eyes twinkled. "Very good of you to think I have nice hands."
"My dad used to say that if you wanted to tell the character of a man, you should look at his hands," she explained. "When you held my hand, I just...noticed that yours were quite nice...like you."
"Thanks," Seamus smiled. "You know, I just realised I forgot to do something."
"What's that?" she asked, closing up her sketch book.
Seamus leaned forward and before she could even comprehend what was going on, he kissed her. "I'm very proud of you Lavender," he said when they broke apart.
"Really?" she asked, feeling a goofy smile spreading across her face, both from his compliment and the way that kiss made her feel.
"I am," he cupped her cheek. "I know you've been working towards something like this, even if you never said anything about it."
"You're the only other person I've showed my sketches too besides Madam Malkin," she admitted.
"Once again, quite honoured." He gave her another quick kiss.
"I've just gone on and on about myself and haven't even bothered to ask how your day's been," she said, resting her head on his shoulder. "How's the world of film school, young Mr. Finnigan?"
"Just grand," Seamus answered. "I've got a class in lighting techniques at three which I basically feel like I'm teaching. I learned a lot more at Hillsdale than I thought I did."
"You're really talented," Lavender gushed. Suddenly her eyes grew large and she grabbed hold of his arm. "You know what would be so cool? What if some day, you were this big time director and I was this world class costume designer? We could work together!"
Seamus laughed. "I fear you'd hate working for me love. I'm a bit of a slave driver on the set."
"I think I could handle you," she said matter-of-factly.
"Oh you do, do you?" Seamus asked.
"Yes, I do," she replied. "You wouldn't even know what hit you."
Seamus grinned even wider. "You'd be taking on an awfully big challenge Ms. Brown."
"Oh really?" Lavender said, raising an eyebrow at him. "Well, I think I'm up to it. Because, I'll let you in on a little secret, I'd know just what to do to shut you up."
"What's what?" Seamus asked, still grinning.
"This," she said, tilting her head toward him and giving him a kiss. When they broke apart a few moments later, she grinned triumphantly at him. "What do you think of that?"
"Shut me up again please," Seamus replied.