Couldn't Be More Perfect

Harry cursed at the top of his lungs as he hopped on his uninjured foot to the clothes-strewed chair in the corner. He sat down and examined his now red pinky toe.

"Dammit!" he muttered trying to ease the throbbing. It was the third time that week he'd stubbed one of his toes with the dresser. Moments later, the swelling went down and he continued with his morning chores.

Hermione was coming over later on in the day and he wanted everything to be perfect. He'd been preparing for this day for two months now. He surprised himself by being very calm at the mere thought of what he was doing. But now that he was only less than nine hours away from putting his plan into action, he was positively terrified. What man wouldn't be?

Using several fairly simple cleaning spells, Harry began to make quick work of his usually messy lounge, kitchen and bathroom. All this while Hermione had been clouding his mind. He thoughtlessly swept the kitchen floor while envisioning his beautiful and clever girlfriend in her favorite blue sundress that hugs her hips so perfectly it makes him squirm. The wind kissing her cheeks a rosy pink as it plays with those long, soft brown curls he loves to bury his face in so much. All the while, the setting sun giving her warm, brown eyes that radiant, golden glow he loved. Of course nothing could compare to having her in the flesh, wrapped in his arms- or the look on her face in the morning when waking up beside him...

There was a sudden loud crash and ear splitting screeches and squawks behind Harry that startled him out of his reverie. He turned to find Hedwig being splashed over and over again into the sink by a saucepan and a soapy sponge. Harry dashed to the rescue and pulled his old owl out, allowing the dishes to continue washing themselves. "Hedwig, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" he asked trying to dry her with a dishtowel. She let out an angry hoot and ruffled her feathers, spraying him with water droplets. She then nipped at the now soggy letter tied to her leg, cutting loose the string and flew off, cuffing Harry on the head as she left.

Harry picked up the soggy parchment and peeled it open. He couldn't make out the running ink so he tossed it on the counter deciding to fix the message later and began to mop up the soaked floor.

Four hours went by with very little progress. The feather duster he'd bewitched to tidy up the lounge had tried to clean out his pot of floo powder on the mantelpiece and left green powder trail all over the furniture. He found a rag whizzing about trying to snap at a stray moth, knocking over picture frames, inkbottles and parchment while it chased on.

The bathroom wasn't any better. Somehow the toilet had over flooded, the showerhead (while cleaning the tile, he supposed) began whirling about as if it were an outdoor sprinkler, soaking all his towels and adding to the flooding. Soaps were zooming around scrubbing the tiles. As Harry first stepped in, a bar of soap stopped right under his falling foot, sending him slipping across and into the tub. Absolutely frustrated with his luck all morning, he put a stop to all the bewitched objects and cleaned his flat manually.

"I'm definitely not having a good day," he said to himself dismally as he hobbled out of the bathroom, having stubbed another toe on the doorframe.

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Another three and a half-hours later, Harry fell back onto his couch, letting out an exhausted breath. He had cleaned his entire flat from front to back and cooked a large dinner all without magic. "I remember this being easier when I was with the Dursleys," he said to himself. Lazily, he turned his head to look at the mantelpiece clock and let out a sigh. "I guess after doing everything by magic for five years makes one appreciate having the power in the first place." He got up with a groan and trudged into the bathroom for a much-needed shower, cursing again for stubbing another toe as he closed the door behind him.

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Hermione glanced up at the graying evening sky as she made her way down the street to Harry's flat. It was beginning to get chilly and she pulled her cloak a bit more tightly around herself as she quickly climbed the front steps of the old building.

She was already a half-hour late. Working to achieve muggle- wizarding relations was a long and tedious line of work. Harry knew that. He understood the importance of renewing these ties and how stressful it could be on her. She knew he wouldn't be angry if she was late. No, she usually the one angry- Angry and disappointed with herself on occasion for allowing anything to get between her and the man she loved.

Hermione quickly rapped on his door and soon heard his quick footfalls before he opened up for her.

"Hello, love," he greeted giving her a sweet kiss on the lips. She smiled, pulling her cloak off and giving him a kiss of her own.

"Hello, yourself. You're handsomely dressed up tonight." She couldn't help but look him up and down. "I thought you said we were eating here tonight."

"You look unbelievably beautiful, yourself," he replied letting his eyes look her over. "We are. It's just that tonight's a special occasion." A mischievous grin creeping onto his face. Hermione smiled despite herself.

A strange aroma quickly filled the lounge as they made their way to the couch. Hermione perked her nose up in the air and sniffed, her face scrunching slightly.

"Err... Harry? Is something burning?" Harry lifted his nose, too and soon his face was scrunching as well.

"Oh no-"

Harry dashed into the kitchen and was soon heard coughing and clashing something about. Hermione stifled a laugh as she heard him groan and curse about the burned... whatever it was. He came back out a few moments later, his shirt smelling like charcoal, a glum expression on his face.

"Well, dinner's ruined," he said patting out some stains on his handsome shirt.

"What did you cook?" she asked, pulling him over to the couch with her.

"It was nothing."

"No, tell me," she smile, trying very hard not to laugh at Harry as he smudged more black charcoal- looking stains across his face in a vain attempt to get it off. She found an ice bucket with wine beside the coffee table with two wineglasses and proceeded to serve them.

"No," he said stubbornly. Hermione handed him a glass and watched over the rim of her own as he continued to swipe hopelessly at the dark streaks on his cheeks. She giggled, making him give her a playful glare. It was probably the fact that those dark smudges made his green eyes stand out with even more intensity because she felt her heart pulsing frantically against her chest. He sipped his wine and continued to rub at his face. "Fancy some take out?"

"Yes, please," said Hermione. "I wouldn't have dared eaten any of whatever you were cooking in fear of being poisoned." She stifled another laugh watching his eyes turn to green slits.

"You keep that up, Miss Granger and you will have reason to be afraid."

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With a hearty groan, Harry got off the couch and pulled a very full Hermione up with him. They walked over a few discarded empty Chinese food boxes, wineglasses and bottle in hand and went into Harry's bedroom. On the way, Hermione glanced into the kitchen and saw two oven pans dumped in the sink and some lumpy gray stuff dumped in the trash.

"I definitely do not want to know what you were cooking," she said. Harry laughed, continuing to lead her into his room.

Once they reached his room, he did not let go of her hand, but continued to lead her outside onto his veranda. She looked about curiously as he set down the bottle and his glass on a small table just inside, then slipped hers out of her hand and set it down as well. He took her hands in his and began to rub light circles on the back of her hands affectionately.

"What's this surprise all about, Harry?" she asked curiously. "You've been avoiding the subject all night."

"I- I know, Hermione. It's just that after all this time, I still don't know how to say it."

"What are you talking about? Is something wrong?" she asked very worried.

"No. No, nothing's wrong. I'm just nervous... Damn- Wait right here."

Hermione gave him a quizzical stare as she watched him go back into his room. He opened a dresser drawer and rummaged around. He pulled something out but suddenly turned to look at Hermione. "No peeking," he called out. She made a frustrated face and lifted her head up to look at the sky. There wasn't the even smallest star in sight. It had become cloudier as the evening went on and Hermione didn�t doubt that it would soon start raining. Making sure Hermione wasn't looking, Harry easily slipped whatever he was hiding into his pocket without her catching not even a glimpse of it.

Harry quickly went back to Hermione and took her hands in his again. Even though the only light was coming from a lamp in his room, Harry's breath caught in his throat as he watched her eyes shimmer with a smile and undying curiosity as to what he had in store. He wished the moon was shining down on them right now to set the mood, but that didn't matter. Hermione was there with a smile on her lovely face and that was all the encouragement he needed. He slipped his hands out of hers and reached out to hold her closer, his fingers intertwining on the small of her back. Her arms snaked up and wrapped around his neck as they began to kiss softly. He put his forehead to hears a few moments later, letting out a sigh.

"Is this what you were nervous about?" she grinned. Harry let out a light chuckle and kissed Hermione once more before pulling out of her embrace.

"Hermione," he began holding on to her arms. She looked up at his adoring green eyes, smiling. "I'm not the best when it comes to putting everything I want to say into eloquent words. You know that. But you also know that I'm in love with you.

Every morning for well over a year I've woken up with the same questions running through my mind: 'What did I do-'" A rumble in the distance startled them both. They both took deep breaths and Harry continued. "'What did I-'" Another rumble in the distance, this time much louder, followed by several flashes of lightning.

"Harry," said Hermione cautiously looking up at the cloudy sky. "I think we better head inside. It's about to rain any second."

"No," he said determined. "I've waited too long for this. Let me say this." Hermione reluctantly nodded and he continued. "What I was trying to say was, 'What did I do to deserve the love of such an understanding, caring, loyal, supporting, beautiful, clever witch? Why did she choose me? Out of all the men on earth, why did this angel decide to come down from a perfect heaven to be with me? A danger-attracting, dinner-scorching git?'" Hermione couldn't help but laugh and blush. Before she could say anything, he put a finger to her lips and continued.

"I thought it impossible to ever find such an amazing woman who would ignore and forget all about my fame and encounters and see me as a person. I was so blind for years, never getting it through my head that you were that woman. Since we were kids, you were the only person- besides Ron, that is- who saw me as a human being. You're the only one whom I could trust- Whom I couldn't imagine my life without. I know this all sounds very cliche, but it's the truth. Every word I say, I say it with all my heart, with every fiber in my being." Harry took her hand in his and slowly got down on one knee. Baffled at first, Hermione immediately caught on and gasped in surprise of the realization. Harry was about to talk, when a heavy, cold rain began to pour on their heads. Hermione started laughing and squeaked as the chilly droplets began to soak through her blouse. Harry was still on one knee and squinted up at the dark sky.

"Oh, come one!" he yelled out to no one in particular. "Just one moment! Give me a break!" Hermione kept on laughing and began to tug at Harry's hand. He was still holding on to her.

"Harry! Let's go inside!" she pleaded. "The water's freezing!"

"No! Everything's gone wrong today and a little rain is not going to ruin this moment. Nothing can ruin this."

Hermione smiled at him, finding it very hard to move from where she was standing. Harry looked so sweet and unbelievably sexy kneeling before her. His dark, emerald eyes were hopeful and full of love behind his water-specked glasses. His raven hair was already dripping wet and his charcoal stained shirt clung to his lean chest. Her knees were growing very weak and if he didn't say something soon, she would be joining him on the floor.

"Hermione, I love you more than life itself. I want to wake up and have your face be the first sight to greet me every morning and the last every night for the rest of my life. I want to be the father of your children and watch them grow up to become wonderful human beings like their mother. I want you to be by my side until the day I die. You're my soul mate and I want to be with you through all the good and bad, through all the joy and misery this world will give us." Tears were already streaking down Hermione's face. Harry took a deep breath and braced himself with everything he had.

"Hermione Granger, will you marry me?"

Immediately she began to cry and couldn't find her voice to answer with. Her free hand grasped her neck as if willing her throat to work.

"Yes!" she squeaked. "Yes, Harry!"

Harry let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. The biggest, most relieved smile appeared on his face. He stood up again and reached into his now clammy and wet pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. Harry pulled the lid back to reveal an exquisite gold ring bearing the most beautiful diamond Hermione had ever seen. Hermione clasped both her hands over her mouth to suppress a gasp. Harry grinned at her reaction and took the ring out of the box. He took her hand in his again and slowly slipped the now wet ring onto her finger and kissed her hand. Hermione couldn't stop crying, her tears mingling with the rain as Harry pulled her in for a long, searing kiss.

"I love you, Hermione," he whispered in her ear, holding her close to him.

"I love you, too, Harry."

"I'm sorry it wasn't perfect-"

"What are you talking about?" asked Hermione, the biggest grin on her face. "This day couldn't have been more perfect." They stood there for a few moments, content with just kissing and holding each other as the rain fell around them. "Harry?" she said, her head perfectly nuzzled under his chin.

"Hmm?"

"Could we go inside? I'm a little cold."