Naturally Yours

It was about 6pm when George Weasley walked into an Irish pub in Muggle London feeling depressed and lonely. He sat down at the bar and was about to order a drink when he heard a familiar voice. He turned his head and saw Hermione Granger sitting a few seats away from him receiving a glass of what looked like whiskey. Knowing that Hermione wasn't much of a drinker, he knew that something was wrong. He looked around and didn't see his brother anywhere so he decided to go and make sure that she was okay.

He walked up to her, but she didn't take any notice of him. "Excuse me, but it this seat taken?" he asked her politely.

"No and I really don't want any company right now so you best be on your way," she snapped.

She never looked up at him so he was sure that she would not have said that to him if she had seen who he was, but he could see that did not wish to be disturbed. "Okay then. See around, Hermione," he told her as he started to walk away.

She jerked her head up and saw George walking away from her. "George, wait. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."

He turned around and smiled at her. "It's okay, Hermione. I'm having a bad day too."

She smiled in return. "Want to talk about it?" she asked.

"Sure, but I need to get a drink first." She nodded in agreement as she finished her drink. "How 'bout you go grab us a table while I get us some drinks," he suggested. She nodded and headed towards a table while he turned to the bartender. "Can I have two glasses of whiskey and one pint of ale, please?" he asked the bartender. She nodded and handed him his order. He paid for the drinks and brought them to the table. He handed Hermione her drink and took a sip of his ale.

"So what happened to you, George? Why are you having such a bad day?" she asked him after she took a sip of her whiskey.

He sighed and took another sip of his ale. "Well, Alicia and I broke up earlier today," he began. Hermione's eyes grew wide, but she refrained from asking him any questions because she knew that he was going to tell her. He took a deep breath and began his tale.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(earlier today)

George and Alicia had just sat down to eat an early dinner at a restaurant located in Muggle London. A waiter came over and took their order. Once he had their order, the waiter went to place their order.

"So how was work today, dear?" George asked her. She smiled at him and the two of them talked about their jobs and how things were going for each of them. It was when their dessert arrived that the evening took a turn for the worse.

Each of them had a secret; a secret they both planned to reveal to the other that night. The only problem was that each other's secret was the complete opposite of the others. "I have something to tell you," they both said in unison. They both smiled. "You go first," they both said again. This time, they both laughed.

"You go first. I insist," George told her.

Alicia took a deep breath and began to reveal her secret. "George, we have been together now for four years and I have enjoyed every minute of them." George beamed at her. She smiled, but continued in the same voice. "I have come to realize, over the past year or so, that I am not the same person I used to be." George's smile began to fade. "I know that this will come as a shock, but it is something that you need to know now." She took a small sip of her drink and looked him straight in the eye. "I'm gay," she told him softly.

George choked on the piece of pie that he was eating when she had said that. "Excuse me?" he asked her once he regained his ability to speak.

"I'm gay," she told him in a more confident tone. "It wasn't because of you; you didn't do anything wrong. This is just who I am and I can't continue denying it to myself and to everyone else any longer. I am really sorry for this, but I thought that you deserved to know. Can we still be friends?" she asked him hopefully.

George nodded, but couldn't bring himself to speak. He took out his wallet and placed the bills necessary for the check on the table.

"What is it that you wanted to tell me?" Alicia asked as George stood up from the table.

He looked at her with sadness and hurt evident in his eyes. "It doesn't matter now. Good bye, Alicia," he said. With those last few words, George left the restaurant.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~BACK TO PRESENT~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And that's how I ended up here. The restaurant is only a few blocks away from here," he told her gloomily.

"George, I'm so sorry. I couldn't imagine how you are feeling," she told him apologetically. He nodded, but didn't say anything. He only took a sip of his drink. "What were you going to ask her?" Hermione asked. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I was just curious," she added quickly. She didn't want George to think that she was forcing him to tell.

He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. He slid it over to her. "I was going to ask her to be my wife," he told her as she opened the box.

She gasped when she saw its contents. "George, this is absolutely gorgeous," she told him. This is the ring I was hoping Ron would buy for me, she thought to herself.

A single tear slid down her cheek as she thought of Ron. Instinctively, George leaned over the table and brushed the tear away with his thumb. Hermione's body grew surprisingly warm from his touch; something that confused her. George immediately sat back in is chair and looked at his hands. He had no idea what made him do that.

To break the awkward silence, George asked Hermione if she wanted another drink. "Sure, but I'm buying this round," she told him as she stood up and walked over to the bar.

George watched her go, feeling oddly content with himself. He was enjoying Hermione's company; something that he never really thought possible. She returned a few moments later carrying two drinks. He looked at her and smiled. "So what's your story? I told you mine," he said to her.

Hermione's smile started to fade when he asked her why she was so upset. "All right, I'll tell you." She took a sip of her drink and then took a deep breath.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(earlier today)

"You're going shopping with my sister?" Ron asked as Hermione grabbed her coat. "How long will you be gone for?"

"Yeah. We won't be gone too long, two hours the most. Do you want to come with us?" she asked.

"I'd love to sweetie, but I have a lot of paperwork to do," he told her as he looked at his desk, which was covered with a bunch of papers. "Maybe next time though."

"All right. I'll see you in a couple of hours then." She kissed him and then apparated to Ginny's flat. Ginny wasn't ready yet, so Hermione made some tea. Ginny asked Hermione if Ron had proposed yet. "No he hasn't, but I do hope that he does soon. I know that we've only been together for three years, but we have loved each other for so much longer." Fifteen minutes later, Ginny was ready. The girls got ready to apparate to Diagon Alley when Hermione couldn't find her purse. "I think I left my purse at home. I'll go back and get it and then come right back," she told her friend. Ginny nodded and Hermione apparated back to the flat that she shared with Ron.

She grabbed her purse and was about to apparate back to Ginny's when she heard a voice coming from the bedroom. It wasn't just any voice though; it was a woman's voice. It couldn't be a co-worker; they wouldn't be in our bedroom, she thought to herself as she suspiciously made her way to the bedroom. She opened the door and was too shocked to do anything.

Ron was lying naked in bed with Lavender Brown. Hermione opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. Ron saw the look of betrayal in her eyes. "Hermione, it's not what it looks like," Ron began.

Hermione finally found her voice. "Not what it looks like? Then what in the bloody hell is it? Because I can tell you what it looks like to me," she cried. Lavender went to open her mouth, but the look that Hermione gave her made her change her mind. "Don't you dare say a bloody word," she screamed at Lavender. She then turned to Ron. "How could you?" she asked as tears began to form in her eyes.

Hermione pulled out her wand and both Ron and Lavender flinched in fear that she was going to hex them. With a flick of her wrist, all of her clothes and books flew out of the closet and drawers and shrunk in size to fit into her trunk. She picked up her trunk and left the room without another word.

She had made it as far as the living room when Ron came running after her. "'Mione, wait!" he called.

She stopped dead in her tracks, but refused to turn and look at him. "Don't you ever call me that again, Ronald Weasley. Do you hear me? You have no right to ever call me that again," she told him in a voice barely above a whisper. Without another word or look, Hermione apparated to Ginny's flat.

"What's with the trunk, Hermione?" Ginny asked. Not wanting to tell her the truth yet, Hermione did her best to lie to her best friend.

"Ron has to work overnight tonight and I didn't want to stay at home alone. Can I stay here?" she asked hopefully.

"Well, Harry was supposed to stay over tonight, but I can tell him to come another night," Ginny old her.

"No, Ginny. You barely see Harry as it is because he is always away on missions. Don't worry, I'll find another place to stay tonight, but I won't be able to go shopping with you today. Can we go tomorrow?" Hermione asked.

"Sure. Are you okay, Hermione? You look upset about something."

"I'm okay, I'm just tired. I'll come by around noon tomorrow; that way the two of you can sleep in," Hermione told her with a wink. Ginny laughed at her friend's comment.

Hermione apparated to Diagon Alley and went into the Leaky Cauldron. She got a room from Tom and went to put her stuff away. The first thing she wanted to do when she entered her room was cry her eyes out, but she knew that she had to be strong. Then she decided that she needed a drink instead. Normally, she would just go downstairs to the bar in the Leaky Cauldron, but then she realized that Ron could easily find her there if he had gone looking for her. She decided to go out into Muggle London instead. She changed into some Muggle clothes and left the Leaky Cauldron. After walking a few blocks, she came across a pub called the Irishman. She went in and sat at the bar.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~BACK TO PRESENT~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And that's," she finished her drink in one gulp, "how I ended up here," she said gloomily.

"I'm going to kill that good for nothing prat for what he did to you," George growled.

"Don't bother. He'll get what he deserves. Don't you worry about that."

"How long are you going to be staying at the Leaky Cauldron?" George asked her.

Hermione was not expecting him to ask her that, but she answered it anyway. "I guess I will stay there as long as I have to; until I can find another place that I can afford. I was planning on starting tomorrow since I have the day off from work,' she told him. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was going to say that you could move into the spare bedroom that I have in my flat. When Fred moved out, I had Alicia move in to help me with the rent, but she obviously doesn't live there anymore," he told her.

She was rather surprised by his offer. She hadn't even thought about living with George. "Well, I hadn't actually thought about it. I just don't want you taking pity on me."

"I'm not doing this out of pity, 'Mione. I'm just trying to help out a friend; who in turn is helping me out," he told her. In truth, the idea of living with Hermione would have never crossed his mind before now, but seeing her in this state and knowing that she was somewhat going though the same thing he was made him feel like this was the right thing to do.

Hermione was shocked, but not by George telling her that he wasn't doing this out of pity. She was shocked because he had called her 'Mione when no one other than Ron had ever caller her that. Oddly, she liked the way it sounded coming out of his mouth. "I'd love to move in George. I guess I'll come by tomorrow afternoon, after I have gone shopping with your sister," she told him as she went to get up.

"That's fine with me. You could always stay tonight too, that way you wouldn't have to stay at the Leaky Cauldron. You could go and get your stuff and meet me back at my flat," he told her. "But that's only if you want to," he added quickly. For some reason, and he couldn't put his finger on what it was, he wanted Hermione to stay in his flat tonight.

Hermione smiled at him. "Sure. Let me go get my stuff. You still live above the shop, right?" she asked him.

"Yeah. I'm gonna head over there now and make sure that they second bedroom is somewhat presentable. Give me a yell when you get there so that I can come unlock the door for you. I'll see you then, 'Mione," he told her as he stood up. He had at least six inches on her when he stood upright. He dropped some Muggle money on the able, flashed her the famous Weasley smile and then left the pub.

Hermione's gaze followed George until he was out of site. Once he was gone, she shook herself back to reality and grabbed her coat and purse. As she walked back to the Leaky Cauldron, she pondered the conversation that she had had with George back in the pub. I wonder if he even realized that he called me 'Mione. If he did, I wonder what he meant by it. Only Ron ever called me that. She stopped her train of thought when she reached the Leaky Cauldron. She went up to her room to collect her things and then went back downstairs to return the key to Tom.

"You won't be needing the room then, Miss Granger?" he asked her when she handed him the key back.

"Not tonight, Tom. I have found another place to stay," she informed him. He nodded and they said their goodbyes before she left. She made her way down the cobblestone road of Diagon Alley until she came to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. George was waiting there for her.

"Hey. I was just coming down to unlock the door for you," he told her with a smile. "Here, let me get that for you," he said as he grabbed her trunk. She told him that she didn't need help, but he insisted. Once they were upstairs, George showed Hermione where her bedroom would be and where the loo and kitchen were. When they entered the kitchen, Hermione's stomach began to rumble.

"You wouldn't happen to have anything to eat, would you?" she asked hopefully.

"Of course; mum usually sends me home with leftovers because she knows that I don't like to cook," he told her as he began to pull tuff out of the fridge. "Why don't you go get settled and I'll call you when it's ready." She nodded and headed for her room. Once she was out of the kitchen, George set to work in the kitchen.

In her room, Hermione put her clothes away and changed into her favorite pair of sweats. She soon smelled a sweet aroma coming from the kitchen and went to investigate. She entered the kitchen to find George just setting the table. "I thought you said you couldn't cook," she said as she sat down at the table.

George looked at her and smiled. "No, I said that I don't like to cook. I never said that I couldn't cook," he told her with a smirk.

"Then I'm impressed," she told him. He smiled at her as the tips of his ears went slightly red.

"That was the point," he muttered, mainly to himself. Hermione had heard what he said, but chose not to acknowledge it.

The two of them sat and ate while they discussed their living arrangements and Hermione was given a key to the shop so that she would be able to get in and out of the flat since the only entrance was inside the shop. After that, they moved into the living room and talked about anything and everything they could think of. Both were pretty amazed at how much they actually had in common. Eventually, they both retired to their own rooms, thinking about how their lives seemed to finally be turning around.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, Hermione woke up to the smell of eggs, bacon and toast. Her first thought was that Ron had made her breakfast, but reality quickly sunk in and she remembered what had happened the day before. She slipped out of bed ad put on her oversized sweatshirt that came down to her knees and made her way into the kitchen.

"Morning, beautiful," George said in a cheery voice. "Would you like some breakfast?" he asked as he set his own plate down on the table. She blushed at his first comment to her.

She smiled and nodded, but walked over to where he was standing. "I'll get my own though. Sit down and eat yours," she told him. He smiled at her and sat down at the table. He had just started eating when she sat down with her own plate. "Don't you have to work today?" she asked him.

"Yeah, but I don't have to be downstairs until eleven. What are you doing on your day off, 'Mione?"

He called me 'Mione again. "Well, I have to be at Ginny's by noon, but I am going to go sooner. I want to buy myself some new stuff for my bed and a few new pieces of furniture."

"You don't like the way my flat looks?" he asked in a mock hurtful tone.

"It's not that at all, George. I'm just gonna buy a bookshelf or two and maybe a few Muggle appliances."

"Muggle appliances?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

"Don't worry; I won't completely transform your flat. You will like what I do though, trust me," she assured him. She flashed him her best smile and then got up from the table. "I'm gonna go get ready."

He watched her retreat to her room and a smile crept its way onto his face. This is going to be interestingly fun. He stood up and began to clear the table.

"Bye, George," she called from the living room.

"Bye, 'Mione," he called. He heard a faint popping noise which told him that she had left. Moments later, he heard another popping sound followed by heavy footsteps. And then, Ron walked into George's kitchen looking completely exhausted. George had to will himself not to try and beat his brother to a bloody pulp for what he had done to Hermione. "What's up, little brother?"

"I know that this is a long shot, but have you seen Hermione anywhere?" Ron asked him with a pleading look.

All though he did not want to lie to his brother, George knew that Hermione wouldn't want Ron knowing that she had moved in with him last night. He knew just as well as she did that Ron would jump off the deep end and blow the entire situation out of proportion and think that Hermione has been cheating on Ron with him this whole time. "No, Ron. I haven't. Why are you looking for her anyway? Did the two of you have a row or something?" George asked, knowing full well why Ron was looking for her.

Ron appeared to falter a bit by George's question. He wasn't sure if he wanted to tell his brother about what had happened the day before. "Yeah, you could say that."

"Well, little brother, I haven't seen her. I would have no reason to." George hated lying to his brother, but he knew that now was not the time to tell him about what had happened yesterday.

"Where's Alicia? Isn't she still normally here at this time?" Ron asked.

Oddly, the mention of Alicia's name didn't bother George as much as he would have thought it would. "Actually, she doesn't live here anymore." Ron raised his eyebrows in response. "We broke up yesterday."

"Why?"

"Let's just say that she finally realized that she preferred witches to wizards."

"Oh, I'm-" Ron began, but was interrupted by a popping sound and then a very load and familiar voice.

"Ronald, Bilius Weasley! How in the name of Merlin could you do that to Hermione" came the voice of their very angry mother. "I am in my right mind to hex you!" Both George and Ron were surprised to see her in George's kitchen yelling at Ron for what he did.

"Mum," Ron spluttered as he began to turn red, "What's the matter?" Ron knew, as well as George did, what was the matter. Ron was trying to play dumb with his mother.

"I came here because Ginny told me about what happened last night between you and Hermione and I came here to find you," she yelled. "Hello, George," she said to her to her other son in a calmer tone.

"Hi, mum. What are you doing here?" George asked her.

"I'm here to ask my idiot of a son why he cheated on Hermione." Ron paled at her statement and George just raised his eyebrows.

"That must have been some row, Ron," George told him with a hint of anger in his voice.

"Shut up, George," Ron mumbled. "How did Ginny find out, mum?"

"I had stopped over there to say hello and Hermione was there telling Harry and Ginny what happened," Mrs. Weasley told him.

"Hermione is at Ginny's?" Ron asked as he made to grab his wand.

"You will not go over there, Ronald Weasley. She does not wish to see you at the moment, not to mention the fact that both Harry and Ginny will kill you if you go there now," Mrs. Weasley told him.

"Fine, then I'll go home instead," Ron said bitterly.

"If I find out that you've gone to your sisters, so help me Ronald Weasley," she warned. He simply nodded and apparated back to his own flat. "George, how come you didn't seem surprised at what I said earlier?"

"Because Hermione had told me last night."

"When did you see Hermione last night?" she asked him. He then told her about what had happened the night before and how he had accidentally met Hermione in a Muggle bar. He also told her about what had happened between him and Alicia and how he let Hermione stay in Fred's old bedroom last night. "Well, I'm just glad that neither of you did anything stupid last night."

"Yeah, it's a good thing we accidentally met up last night," he told his mother. "Just don't tell Ron that Hermione is living here yet. He'll flip out and think the wrong thing."

"I completely agree," she told him. This is going to be very interesting. She thought to herself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~AT GINNY'S~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione apparated to Ginny's to find both her and Harry sitting in the kitchen. "Hey, Hermione," Harry said as he hugged his best friend.

"Hermione, Ron was just here looking for you. He said that he had been worried about you since last night. I thought you told me that he had to work an overnight last night," Ginny said to her friend.

Hermione grimaced when Ginny said that Ron had just been there. I just missed him... thank Merlin. Hermione sat down at the table and poured herself a cup of tea. "I caught Ron cheating on me with Lavender Brown last night," Hermione told them. Surprisingly, it didn't bother Hermione as much as she thought it would when she talked to Ginny and Harry about it.

"What!!!" Harry and Ginny both exclaimed. They both wanted to say something else, but neither of them could say anything.

"I'll tell you what happened," Hermione told them. They both nodded, still unable to speak, and Hermione launched into the story of how she had left Ginny's to get her forgotten purse when she heard a female voice coming from the bedroom. She told them of how she caught them literally in bed together and that she had left the flat shortly thereafter. She told them of leaving Ginny's a second time and going to the Leaky Cauldron for a room and how she decided to go to a Muggle bar and get completely trashed. She then told them about how she ran into George there and a very brief overview of his problem. She told them everything that had transpired the night before, with the exception of moving in with George.

"I'm gonna kill that stupid prat when I get my hands on him," Harry growled.

"No, Harry. I'm gonna kill that git of a brother of mine," Ginny told him.

"Which brother are you talking about, Ginerva?" her mother asked. The three friends jumped when they heard Molly Weasley's voice as she entered the kitchen.

"What are you doing here, mum?" Ginny asked.

"I just came over to say hello. Hermione, what's wrong dear?" he asked when she noticed the younger woman's tears.

Taking her cue from Hermione, Ginny told her mother everything Hermione had just told them about what had happened the night before. "When I get my hands on that boy, there will be hell to pay," Molly said. "Do you know where he went from here, Ginny?"

"He went to George's, Mrs. Weasley," Harry told her. Without another word, she was gone.

"Bloody hell," Hermione said once Molly was gone. Ginny and Harry each gave her a questioning look. "While I was talking to George last night about our problems, he offered for me to move into the spare bedroom in his flat. He figured that since Alicia moved out, he would need someone to share the rent and that it would save me the time and money of a new flat."

"Well, that's surprising," Ginny said. Harry nodded in agreement. "How has it been so far?"

"It's actually been surprisingly fine. He even cooked me breakfast this morning and dinner last night."

"My brother cooked for you?" Ginny asked. Hermione nodded. "My brother, George Weasley, cooked you both dinner and breakfast?" Hermione nodded again.

"I didn't know George could cook," Harry added.

"I know. I didn't think he could cook either, but he told me that he just doesn't like to do it often," Hermione told them. "Hey, I need to go buy some stuff for my new room and maybe a few Muggle appliances for the flat. You still coming with me, Ginny?" Hermione asked her.

"Yeah, just let me get my purse." Muggle appliances? I have got to see this. She left the room to get her purse. "You want to come too, Harry?" she asked as she reentered the kitchen.

"Sure I'll come. I also want to go back to George's so I can see his face when he sees his new flat. Remember Ron's reaction when Hermione 'Mugglefied' their flat?" he asked with a laugh. Hermione and Ginny joined him when they both thought about that. The three friends apparated to Diagon Alley, where they first went to Gringott's so that Hermione could get some money exchanged, and then went out into Muggle London.

"Oh yeah, don't tell Ron about me living with George just yet. He might think that I have been cheating on him all this time with his brother," Hermione told them. They both agreed as they walked into an electronics store.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George had just finished the books for the day and walked up to his and Hermione's flat. That sounds weird, he thought as he opened the door. When he walked into the living room, he barely recognized it. "Bloody hell," he said as he looked around the room. He heard laughter coming from the kitchen. He found Hermione, Harry and Ginny sitting at the table waiting for him with dinner already on the table. "What's all this?" he asked.

"I made dinner for the four of us. Besides, consider this my way of smoothing over the changes I made to your flat," Hermione told him.

He smiled and sat down across from her at the table. "That's one way to go about it." The four friends ate a delicious dinner. "Harry, come show me what that big box does in the living room," George told him as he stood up and stretched. He picked up his plate and began to walk towards the sink, but Hermione told him to leave it. "Thanks, 'Mione," he said with a smile before disappearing into the living room.

Hermione blushed as both Harry and Ginny raised their eyebrows questionably at her. Taking his silent cue from Ginny, Harry followed George into the living room. Hermione stood up and began doing the dishes.

Ginny sat at the table, looking at Hermione with an amused look. "'Mione, huh? Since when did he start calling you that? No one but Ron ever called you that," Ginny said.

"I know. I don't know if he even realizes that he's been calling me that," Hermione told her.

"How many times has he called you that?"

"Three times last night and three times today."

"Interesting. How do you feel about him calling you that?"

"Well, that's the weird part. I don't really mind it when he calls me that. I actually like hearing him say it," Hermione told her as she sat down next to Ginny.

"I wonder how he feels... since you obviously like my brother," Ginny said slyly.

"Ginny! How could you say that? We're just friends."

"For now," Ginny muttered. "Let's go see how the boys are doing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~MEANWHILE~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Harry entered the living room, George was staring at the television. Harry showed George how to turn it on and the two men sat down on the couch. "Hey, George. Can I ask you a question?" George nodded his head. "Did you realize that you called Hermione 'Mione a little while ago?" George's ears went slightly pink. "I take it you did. Can I ask why you did?"

"Honestly, I don't know, Harry. I didn't think about it when I called her that. It just naturally came out."

"I see. George... do you fancy Hermione?" Harry asked him. George's ears turned so red that it was impossible to tell them apart from his hair.

"Bloody hell, Harry. I don't know what's wrong with me. Ever since I met up with her in that pub, I can't stop thinking about her."

"Wow, George. How do you think she feels?"

"She probably only thinks of me as a friend. Why would she see me as anything else?" George asked him gloomily.

"You don't know that for sure, George."

"I'm just a prankster, Harry, and she's a Healer. We're not exactly the perfect pair."

"I think you should let her decide that for herself, George. You never know."

"It's not like I'm gonna tell her, Harry. She just moved in here; I don't want her to think that the only reason I asked her to move in with me was because I wanted to shag her."

"You're right. I hope you do it soon though. I think the two of you would make a great couple."

George was about to say something when Hermione and Ginny walked in. Ginny yawned and looked at Harry. "I think we should be off, Harry. We both need to be up early in the morning." Harry nodded and rose from his place on the couch. He gave Hermione a hug and he shook George's hand, giving him a wink. Ginny hugged her brother and then Hermione, giving her a wink.

With two pops, Ginny and Harry apparated back to Ginny's flat. Hermione noticed that the television was on and she smiled. "I see you have been watching the television."

George smiled and made himself comfortable on the couch. "Yeah, I did. You want to watch something?" he asked as he gestured for her to sit down.

"Sure, but I'm going to go get changed and fix a snack first. You want a drink or something?" she asked as she headed towards her bedroom.

"Yeah; grab me a butterbeer, please," he called after her. "I'll see what's on." He flipped through the channels and soon found a scary movie. Not long after, Hermione came back in with two butterbeers and a bowl of popcorn. "What's that?" George asked, gesturing at the bowl.

"It's popcorn. It's a Muggle movie favorite. Trust me, you'll like it," she told him as she offered him the bowl. He took some and ate it; he liked it. "I told you," she said as he went to grab some more.

The pair settled down to watch the movie that George had found. There were a few times when Hermione would grab onto George's arm, but neither of them really seemed to mind. Eventually, they both fell asleep; Hermione had her head in George's lap and he had one arm draped over her waist and the other in her hair. The two of them looked very peaceful, comfortable and happy just the way they were.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, George awoke first and found Hermione sleeping peacefully. He smiled to himself, but did not wish to wake her. He laid his head back on the couch and closed his eyes, trying to take a mental picture of the two of them the way they were. Hermione awoke to realize that she had fallen asleep on the couch with George and that her head was in his lap. She was afraid to move because she did not want to wake him up. The two of them remained on the couch and in the same position for quite some time; both fully awake and aware of where they were and how they were situated.

Eventually, George knew that he would have to get up, as did Hermione. George had decided that it was time to get up and moved slightly, causing Hermione to move. She sat up and blushed as he smiled at her. "Morning, 'Mione." She mumbled a good morning to him and went into the kitchen to make some coffee. He got up and decided to take a shower.

Once she started the coffee and prepared a light breakfast for the two of them, she headed towards the bathroom to take a quick shower. George had just stepped out of the shower and was in the process of drying himself off when Hermione walked in.

The two of them stood frozen for several minutes, just staring at one another. George finally realized that he was standing there completely naked and quickly wrapped his towel around his waist, a blush creeping over his entire body. Hermione realized that she had been staring at his naked body and quickly averted her eyes. She left the room in a flash, leaving a disappointed George alone in the bathroom.

He quickly dressed and left the bathroom. He found Hermione standing in front of the kitchen counter. He walked up behind her and placed his hand lightly on her shoulder, causing her to jump.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, 'Mione," he told her with hurtful eyes.

Hermione was too afraid to look at him. The image of George completely starkers was still fresh in her mind and it was causing thoughts and images to run through her mind and body. "Why do you call me that?" she asked him in a voice barely above a whisper.

George was glad that she hadn't turned around because she would have seen his entire face and neck turn the same color as his hair. "I don't know. I just... er, it sort of comes out. I can't help it. It just seems natural for me to call you that, I guess. It sounds nice too," he told her as he looked at the floor. "If you don't want me to call you that anymore, I won't."

A tear slipped down her cheek as she turned around to face him. He looked up and met her gaze. They both stood there in silence for a few moments, neither one looking away. Finally, Hermione smiled at him. "I like hearing you say it," she told him in a rather strong voice. He smiled back at her, his eyes lighting up. She could tell that he was relieved to hear her say that. The two of them stood there and stared at the other, neither one really knowing what to say or do.

"Would you like some coffee?" she asked him in order to break the awkward silence. He nodded and she turned around to pour them both a cup. When she turned around to hand him his cup, he knocked it all over him. He had moved directly behind her while she had turned around and she had not heard him do so. The two of them were now drenched in hot coffee. "I am so sorry George."

She moved to get a towel, but George grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him. "Don't worry about that right now," he told her just before he claimed her lips with his own. At first, she was too shocked by his move to react to the kiss. Not long after the kiss was initiated, she surrendered to the electricity that was shooting through her body and the feel of his lips on her and his body pressing up against hers.

The kiss quickly became more passionate as the two of them gave into all of their feelings and emotions. Hermione brought her arms up around his neck, threading one hand through his hair. George snaked his arms around her tiny waist and pulled her even closer to him.

When he had finally got tired of bending over, he lifted her up and placed her on the tabletop, which was the perfect height. She instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him even closer. George's lips left hers as he began to place chaste kisses down her neck, stopping at the slope of her neck. He nipped at her skin, causing her to moan his name. He smiled at what she had just done and continued his assault.

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WARNING: This section contains more graphic content. This is your only warning.

She threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling on it slightly. He looked up at her and smiled before claiming her lips once again. Hermione began to run her fingers down his face to his broad shoulders, then down his chest until she had got to his belt. She quickly undid the buckle and pushed his pants to the floor.

Feeling her run her hands down his body caused him to moan into her mouth. He then brought his hands from her waist and began to roam her body. He found that the shirt she was wearing was actually his and it was way too big on her. He began to lightly tug on the material, until her entire right shoulder and breast were exposed to him.

She slid her hand underneath the material of his boxers and found him very much aroused. She felt him gasp into her mouth as she took his arousal into her hand and began stroking him. As she stroked his hard flesh, he felt a series of shivers run through his body. To help calm down a bit, he took her exposed nipple into his mouth.

She groaned as he sucked on her nipple. She began to stroke him harder, feeling him moan on her skin. The two of them were so much involved with what they were doing that they didn't hear a loud crack come from the living room. It wasn't until their uninvited guest came into the kitchen that they became aware of their presence.

"What in the bloody hell is going on here?!" Hermione and George broke away from each other to find an extremely angry Ron standing in the doorway.

THE END

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