Simple But Special

Hermione looked into the fire. For a moment, she was so lost in the cheerful flames that she jumped when she heard Ron call her name. She looked around, half expecting to see the familiar scenery of the Gryffindor common room, and was a bit surprised to instead see her own furniture and décor.

"Hermione?"

She whipped around. "Yes, Ron?"

Ron sat down next to her on the sofa and stared at the fire for a moment as she had. Finally, he sighed and looked at her.

"I realize that the first time I tried this, I did it all wrong. And I realize that that might be why you have not been, well, normal around me since."

"What do you mean?"

"Well after the first time I tried this, you stared at me like I had six heads and then ran away. And well, you never really gave me an answer. So I kind of gave up on it for a while."

Hermione did not like not knowing what was going on. She was getting annoyed.

"Ronald Weasley, what on earth-"

"But you see, I've got everything figured out now. I've worked out all the problems! I know what I'm doing this time. I know what I'm saying."

Well I don't, Hermione thought. She could remember many times where she'd looked at Ron as if he had six heads before running away. What in the name of Merlin was he going on about?

"Champagne?"

Hermione looked up at Ron, very startled, then she looked at the bottle. The label read in a very grand scrawl, Mystique. Since when had he been able to afford Mystique? Mystique Champagne was forty galleons a bottle!

"Did you get a raise at the Ministry?"

"Yeah. I'm glad Dad got me that job. I think learning responsibility, being an office assistant has helped me be more...organized. They might promote me, I think."

"To what?"

"Archives Manager in International Affairs."

"Wow, you're really moving up the ladder. I'm impressed."

"How's thing's at Flourish and Blotts?"

"Oh, fine, they keep saying I should apply for a job at Hogwarts, they said I'd be better suited there. But I'm not ready to go back to school yet."

"I know. Seems like just yesterday we left."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, looking around at the fire, the unopened bottle of Mystique, Hermione's wringing hands, Ron's tapping foot. Finally, Hermione spoke.

"Ron, what is it you want to say? What is it that you got wrong that you want to try again?"

Ron sighed, reached into his pocket, and got on the floor-

Kneeling on one knee.

"Hermione Granger," he said, "Will you marry me?"

He opened the tiny box he'd pulled from his pocket and inside, was the most beautiful gold ring, with a lovely diamond set in the gold.

"Oh, Ron...of course I will!"

He slipped the ring onto her finger and white sparks flew from the diamond.

"I'm so glad this went better than last time."

"That was what you were talking about! Yes, I was so unsure, and I wasn't sure if you were mocking me."

Ron poured the champagne. "Harry knew you'd like that ring. Simple, but special."

"I do love it."

"Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"When I first saw you, when I was only eleven, I knew you were somehow going to change my life."

"I knew you would change mine!"

"How'd you know?"

"You were just so different."

"How?"

"You were simple, but special."

And she fell asleep right then and there, in his arms.