Hermione Granger and the Two Lovers

Chapter Twenty-Five

Hermione walked through the Fat Lady's Portrait and found Ron, wearing his school uniform, minus the cloak, and the tie a bit looser.

"You look great!" he said, handing her a pink rose.

"Thank you," Hermione said, blushing. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Ron said, leading her down the staircase.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Ron led her out the door, into the dark, quiet grounds Hermione stopped.

"Ron, we're not allowed outside after dark."

"It's okay," Ron told her. "I asked Dumbledore. He said it was fine, as long as we have a teacher present."

"Which teacher did you get?" Hermione asked curiously.

"I asked Lupin, but since it's-"

"A full moon," Hermione finished his sentence. "He's incapable of watching us safely."

"Yeah, so I went to the next best solution."

"Who?"

"Hagrid," Ron answered happily.

They walked toward the lake. Hermione searched for a sign of a romantic dinner.

"Close your eyes," Ron told her, taking her hand.

Hermione obediently closed her eyes and followed Ron, who was leading her closer and closer to the lake.

Ron stopped and whispered, "Open your eyes."

Hermione slowly opened them.

In front of her was a red and gold blanket, surrounded by candles.

Tears welled in Hermione's eyes as she looked at the romantic setting.

"Is something wrong?" Ron asked concernedly.

Hermione shook her head. "No, it's perfect," she said, wiping tears from her eyes. She suddenly realized that she was wiping at the make-up Ginny had put on earlier.

Ron noticed this too, and grabbed a napkin. He gently wiped at her cheeks, wiping off the running mascara.

They sat down on the blanket, and Hermione stared out at the lake, the reflection of the full moon made it look as though it were daytime.

"Ahem," someone coughed behind them. Hermione and Ron turned around.

Harry and Ginny were holding silver plates, piled with steaming food. Sure enough, Ginny was wearing the white tube top and black mini skirt.

Ron's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything, refusing to ruin the romantic dinner.

"Your dinner is served," Harry said, becoming aware of the silence as Ron stared at Ginny. Harry and Ginny placed the plates in front of Ron and Hermione.

On Hermione's plate was chicken and rice. She looked at Ron, who looked a bit embarrassed. "It's the only thing I know how to make, Mum made it whenever Bill and Charlie had dates over for dinner. I had owl Mum to ask her for the recipe."

Hermione smiled. "You made this for me? Without magic?" Ron nodded proudly. "Oh, Ron, that's so sweet. You could have just asked the house elves to make something."

"Well, I know how you're against house elvf enslavement, so I decided to try making this."

Hermione smiled, not knowing what to say.

"I'm sorry if it doesn't taste good. I asked Harry to try it, and he said it was good, but I don't know if he was just trying to be nice," Ron told her.

Hermione nervously took a bite. Surprisingly, it tasted decent. "Ron, thank you."

Ron's ears turned red as he started eating his food with Hermione.

*~*~*~*~*

After dinner, Ron led Hermione toward the edge of the lake. They sat down on a large rock closest to the water's edge. There was a long silence as Ron held her in his arms.

Hermione jumped as a long, eerie howl broke the silence, followed by a loud crashing of the silver dishes.

Hermione and Ron both turned around to find Ginny on the ground, picking up the silver plates.

"Lupin," Ron and Hermione muttered in unison.

"He's not on the grounds, is he?" Hermione asked Ron.

"Nah," Ron said. "He went to the Shrieking Shack. Even though he's still taking the Wolfsbane, he thinks it's safer if he's away from any people."

Hermione let out a sigh of relief and Ron gave her hand a small squeeze.

"Let's go for a walk," Ron suggested, getting up.

Hermione grabbed Ron's hand and walked with him around the lake.

"Hermione?"

"Hmm?" Hermione sighed.

"I have something to tell you," Ron said, sounding very serious.

Hermione turned to face him, and noticed Harry and Ginny sitting on the hill, leading from the rocks to the grassy field, under a tree, spying on them.

Hermione looked at Ron who looked a bit nervous.

"Hermione, I love you."

Hermione continued looking at him, in a state of shock.

Ron continued, "I've loved you ever since I first met you, and I don't just mean, 'I fancy you,' I really love you."

Hermione's lips trembled and she felt as though she was going to cry.

"Hermione," Ron said putting his hand in his pocket. "Will you marry me?"

Hermione froze. Did he just propose to her? This was what her father meant by getting serious with a boy.

Ron was holding out a beautiful diamond ring, in a red velvet case. Tears overflowed from her eyes as Hermione stared at the ring. She felt torn between her promise to her father and her feelings for Ron.

"Is that a yes?" Ron asked.

Hermione raised her face and looked at Ron. "I want to, so badly, but my father-"

"What about him? Do I need to ask him for permission?" Ron asked, totally determined to do whatever necessary to marry her.

Hermione shook her head and explained, "I promised my father, before school started, that I wouldn't do anything to get myself in trouble, in the way of boys."

"You're not going to get in trouble," Ron told her. "I love you, I would never do anything to hurt you."

"Ron, I've already had one bad experience with a boy! I don't need another. I just can't!" Hermione yelled, running off toward the castle.

"We promise according to our hopes, and perform according to our fears."

-La Rochefoucauld