Well, after that sexy encounter, things only get…hotter, shall we say…
Chapter III: Fire
"Ronald!"
The normally serene blonde was breathing heavily and shouting his name in ecstasy over and over. The redhead in question was quite preoccupied, however, rhythmically taking her to new heights with each passing minute.
That afternoon, the Cannons had secured an important victory over Puddlemere United, that sent the team in the runner up position, which gave them a shot at the top spot for the season. To celebrate, the players were rewarded with a three-day holiday to do as they pleased. As a result, downing generous amounts of firewhiskey was the chosen activity for tonight.
The rowdy bar, at which the occasion had taken place, was also where Ron Weasley, the player of the match, crossed paths with Luna Lovegood. What she was doing in a bar full of drunken men was a detail that had escaped him a long time ago. From word to word, and from toast to toast, they had mysteriously ended up in one of the rooms the bar offered to travelers, and the particulars around that event were also quite foggy in Ron's head. Currently, however, everything in the world felt right - right now, Luna Lovegood was his.
**
Harry woke up, feeling rather more tired than he usually did in the mornings. For a moment, he stared blankly in a daze at the opposite wall of his bedroom, in an attempt to remember the events of the previous night.
And recall them, he did.
Hermione.
The mere thought sent shivers down his spine. He had, to put it simply, been unfaithful in his marriage for the first time in five years. Oddly enough, however, he didn't feel remorse, not even guilt.
Harry
Someone knocked on the door. Startled, Harry jumped, and rushed to see who the newcomer was. He nearly tripped over a chair, as he was passing through the kitchen.
Ginny was standing at the front door, appearing to be really tired and agitated. As soon as Harry opened the entryway to their flat, she walked in haughtily, without even a sideways glance at him.
"Hey," Harry attempted a nervous greeting.
"Don't talk to me right now," his wife snarled in return. "Draco!"
The sleek figure of Harry's arch-nemesis from Hogwarts appeared in the doorway.
"Malfoy!" Harry was outraged, all sleepiness evaporating in a second. "He's not coming in this flat!"
"Oh, step aside, Harry," Ginny pushed him against the wall to let the newcomer in.
"What is the meaning of this?" he asked, confused and angry.
She paused for a second. "You better sit down, Harry."
"Bad news, I take it," he replied icily.
"In a way," Ginny nodded curtly.
"Don't weave useless stories, Ginny. Tell it to me directly, "Harry said.
"Are you sure? I mean, I don't know - "
"Ginny," Harry's tone of disappointment ceased her ramble immediately.
She took a deep breath. "Draco and I are involved romantically."
Indifference. Disappointment. These words fully described Harry's feelings about Ginny's revelation. Her long absences between the rare times he saw her fueled his suspicions, and now they were confirmed.
A bitter smile appeared on Harry's face, and Ginny looked on apprehensively.
"Quite alright," he said forcefully. "Then this is where we part ways."
"You aren't mad?" Ginny asked disbelievingly.
"Of course I am," he replied. "But for now, take him and go."
"Hopefully we can still talk…" Ginny ventured, testing Harry's already thin patience further.
His self-control was waning. "Maybe. Now, please, get out of my sight," he added in a deadly quiet.
Wise to avoid the worst of Harry's anger, Draco and Ginny hurriedly made their way out the front door.
"Oh, and Malfoy," Harry called after them. The blond enemy turned. "Fuck you," he said.
"Go to hell, Potter," came the reply that concluded any further exchanges in the more than awkward situation.
Harry closed the door behind him, and walked into the kitchen, where the steaming pot of coffee he made earlier was now waiting for him.
Life was full of surprises. It was not everyday that one's wife walked in, declaring she had started a successful affair - of course, he was no less innocent. Only, he wouldn't reveal it to Ginny yet. Certainly, he was eager to begin the divorce proceedings, and hopefully, they would end successfully.
But Draco Malfoy? Regardless of the fact that he had been on the Light's side during the war, he was still a cold-blooded bastard. The thought that Ginny would choose him over someone else, someone better, was truly appalling…but then, Harry reminded himself that he couldn't really hold an opinion in the matter of Ginny's choice, because he was the one being chucked out…
Hermione was his other dilemma at the moment. Harry knew Ron was very temperamental, and he would not take kindly to the knowledge that his best friend had taken his wife out for an unforgettable night. Frankly, this worry became the more distressing priority with time; Ron would not be away forever.
**
They were walking around the room; Luna was outraged for the last half hour, and her anger had reduced Ron to nothing more than a blubbering mess.
"You're what!" Luna was shocked.
"Married," Ron repeated sheepishly.
"And you didn't tell me!" Luna kept steaming. "You know, you deserve a really sound pounding right now…"
"Yes, yes I know…" he started to defend himself, but it was too late. A loud slap resounded, as Luna's palm made contact with Ron's face.
The impact nearly threw him off his feet. Straightening back up, with his cheek throbbing painfully, Ron looked defiantly at Luna.
"Look, let me explain," he said. "I'm not sure about my marriage anymore. Hermione, she is…different."
"Different?" Luna asked, more calmly, despite her hard gaze and set jaw.
"Yeah…she's been more distant and snappish every time I see her. But then, I see her only about once every two weeks."
"Well, there is your reason," Luna replied harshly. "You aren't exactly a great husband."
"No, I'm not," agreed Ron. "But I don't think that's because of me. Hermione and I have never exactly seen eye to eye. Because I see her more and more rarely, each time there is a more violent argument between us; but to be honest, I'm not prepared to give up my Quidditch career either."
"So what will you do?" Luna asked again. There was a glimmer of something else in her eyes that Ron noticed…was it hope?
"I don't know for now," he replied heavily, "but divorce I'm certainly considering."
"If you ever want to talk to me," Luna told him softly, "here."
She handed him a slip of parchment, onto which her address was written.
"Thanks," the redhead said. "I may need this sometime in the future…"
"Certainly," she answered forcefully, "and I have to be going for now. Hopefully I'll see you soon."
"Yeah, definitely," came the reply.
Luna opened the door, and with one last glance at Ron, closed it behind her.
Ron was truly baffled. Yes, he felt ashamed that he had betrayed Hermione's trust. There was absolutely no doubt that his antics of the previous night would not sit well with her, once she understood the reality of the situation; and knowing Hermione, her cunning mind would be quick in providing crystal clarity to the details.
Yet, the nagging feeling that he had made a mistake in marrying Hermione overwhelmed Ron. Guilt rattled him at the thought, but suppressing it would not be a resolution. He knew Luna would consume his thoughts every waking hour. In fact, the desire to meet with her again soon, burned within.
There was, however, still the problem of telling Hermione the events of the previous night. Perhaps, Ron thought, if he consulted with Harry on the best coarse of action would be a sound first step. Immediately approving of the idea, Ron planned to pay his best friend a visit the following day.
**
Harry was busily writing a letter to the head of the Auror department, in an attempt to secure a few days' break, in order to begin piecing his life back together and deciding how to handle the precarious and unpredictable prospect of admitting to Ron about his sexual encounter with Hermione. Hastily scribbling the last few lines of the rather vague and generalized letter, Harry took the owl from its perch next to his desk, and sent it out the door with his instructions.
Several hours followed, during which Harry found the task of focusing on his work too challenging to overcome. He decided to seek a conversation with Hermione, who worked a few floors below.
Standing up, he heavily walked out in the corridor, and in the direction of the lifts. During the time he waited for the doors, ideas, each more feeble than the last, chased each other around his mind, in regard to bringing up the topic that intrigued him, but simultaneously, found undesirable to discuss.
The doors opened again on Herminone's floor. Harry stepped out uncertainly, and deliberately walked as slowly as possible to her door; his determination to talk to Hermione was not in agreement with his will, which kept trying to convince him to turn back.
A light knock sounded on her door. Looking up from the deeply boring regulations book that was currently occupying her time, Hermione called for the person outside to enter.
She was not mildly surprised, when the answer to her fantasies walked in the cabinet. He was awkwardly standing, looking down at his shoes, evidently nervous about something.
"Harry?" Hermione managed to recover her voice ability first.
"Hey," he said quickly. "Hermione…"
However, his voice betrayed him again.
"Are you alright, Harry? Has anything happened?" she asked with growing concern.
"Well, of course," Harry answered. "You and me just slept together a fortnight ago. I don't think that's a light matter, especially when we're both married…or were…"
"Were?"
"Well, we are still bound legally, but…" Harry paused. "But that's not important right now. Has there been word from Ron?"
Hermione's eyes suddenly became downcast.
"Yes," she said solemnly. "I received an owl from him earlier today. He's coming back tomorrow."
"Great," Harry spat under his breath, as the prospects of the inevitable confrontation were appearing more and more bleak as the hour of the meeting approached.
Keeping the secret would not be an option for long. The knowledge tormented both Harry and Hermione, and their preoccupation with it would not be unnoticed by their friends. A decisive plan was needed.
"Who should break the news to him?" Harry asked, but unexpectedly continued. "No, it should be me…it's my fault after all…"
"No, Harry, it is not your fault," Hermione corrected him calmly. "I was willing, and so were you - otherwise I could have stopped you."
"Without a doubt," Harry reaffirmed with a slight smile. "But that does not solve the issue at hand."
"Then we both do it," she said with a hint of finality in her voice.
"You do realize this could mean he hates us both for the rest of his life," Harry replied warningly. "An event of this magnitude would traumatize him, and any effort at reconciliation would be in vain."
Hermione had considered Harry's point previously, and quite well too.
"I know," she said heavily, "but I cannot continue like this, Harry. My future includes you in it, and that is what is worth most to me."
Harry paused to let the words sink in. He fully appreciated Hermione's admission, because the feeling was mutual between them.
"Fine then. We'll tell him, but not right away…"
"Yes," Hermione agreed, "not right away. But then, how would Ginny take it? Ron is bound to tell her, and she is more dangerous than he is."
"That isn't important as of the moment, Hermione," Harry told her severely.
She did not pursue the subject, sensing the bitterness and anger burning in Harry's eyes when she looked into them.
He bid her farewell, and walked outside in the corridor, consumed by his own thoughts, not even pausing to reply to the enthusiastic greeting of an esteemed colleague that had been promoted to a rookie Auror only the previous day.
For pretending normalcy was not going to be an easy task to accomplish, because the passion that had been ignited, would not be extinguished as it only became increasingly powerful…
A/N This is without a doubt the most complicated plot I've ever attempted…'twill be interesting to see how it plays out, because it's never been so tangled and confused from the beginning…but believe me, I'm really enjoying writing this story…
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