cleverness | and to this day, when everything breaks, you are the anchor that holds me

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and to this day, when everything breaks, you are the anchor that holds me

As the sun began to deep from its early afternoon high, birds chirped as they flew through the woods, lingering around the Nook and watching curiously as people gathered from around the city. Flowers bloomed from the branches, uncharacteristically bright and large for the season, aided by a touch of magic. Not far from the house, a small babbling brook snaked through the fields, giving pets and wildlife alike the chance to run around and splash in a bit of water. The wedding decor had been designed to blend into the countryside, tables held up by tree trunks, and shade overhead provided by the stretch of vines and blossoms. The scent in the air was subtle and sweet, light floral mingling with the smell of baked goods wafting from the buffet table. At the end of the table stood a large cake, with white frosting and decorated with orange blossoms and clementines. If one looked closely enough, they would notice that one of the fruits was different than the rest, painted a subtle gold, and occasionally flying around the cake with a rapid beating of delicate wings.

The wedding was a small and intimate affair, meant to be more of a celebration than a formal occasion, and guests mingled with wine and cheer before the time came for the ceremony to begin.

Ron had felt as if he was going to lose his breakfast for most of the day. The truth was, he'd barely eaten at all that morning, anxious about the late afternoon ceremony. In some ways, it reminded him of ages ago, of his first Quidditch match as Keeper back at Hogwarts, his stomach was in knots, he felt peaky, and without realizing it that morning, he'd been so distracted by his own thoughts that he'd idly managed to cast a spell that left a small raincloud lingering over his head for nearly an hour before he managed to rid himself of it.

He knew that he was mental for it, for being worried about any of this. He and Hermione had been together ages now. They loved each other, and this was the next thing. There was no doubt in his mind that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with that bloody amazing woman, but there was still the slightest bit of worry that she'd think better of it— of him— and tell him to sod off. He hadn't had thoughts like that, when it came to Hermione, in ages, but somehow it'd all come flooding back in the hours before the wedding.

Even standing there, waiting for her to walk down the aisle, he tried to push those thoughts away, tried not to look too nervous, like his stomach didn't feel like a crumpled bit of parchment. At least, if it all went sour, he only really knew a handful of people who'd turned up today. And Charlie wasn't George or Ginny, so he wouldn't give him too hard a time about it.

But the thing Ron didn't expect, standing there feeling like he might pass out, what he hadn't prepared himself for, was how she looked when he finally saw her. Because once he finally saw Hermione in her dress, walking toward him, this bloody amazing woman who'd chosen him when she could have had anyone, all the worry melted away. The parchment uncrumpled itself, and he was left grinning so hard he couldn't imagine ever being this happy again in his life.

All throughout the morning, Hermione's heart fluttered in her chest. Even as she listened to the guests mingling in the distance, there was something about the day that didn't feel quite real, even as she worked on zipping her dress and arranging her hair just so. While she had asked a guest or two for help on occasion, Hermione spent most of the morning preparing on her own, letting the enormity of everything that had led her and Ron to this point sink in. She had known, practically since their first year at Hogwarts, that Ron was a person whom Hermione would spend the rest of her years standing alongside. But the depth of what they felt for one another, the deepening of those emotions as they bloomed into something deeper and intangible, was something she never could have anticipated all of those years ago.

Now, she couldn't imagine wanting a single day away from him. As Hermione gazed in the mirror, she noticed how it softened her appearance. Her cheeks, dusted pink even without the help of blush. Quietly, she stole a moment to peek through the window, where Ron and Charlie were speaking in the distance. Everything about the day felt right. Everything was coming together, the final missing pieces of the puzzle.

By the time she made her way to the aisle, Hermione was already beaming, fingers trembling as they held onto her bouquet. Petals of light pink and orange lined the path she took, guests turned their heads to rest upon the bride, and sweet woodwind music played in the distance — but in the moment, Hermione only had eyes for Ron. As she came to a stop across from him, she reached a hand out to lace with his own, and silently murmured, I love you.

Ron had spent hours the day before trying to put the right words together, even though he knew that he was rubbish at that sort of thing. Reports, papers… mostly he just tried to get out of doing them, but this wasn't something Ron wanted to skive off. It was more important than almost anything.

In the end, he'd come up with something, and he'd written it out on a bit of parchment that he'd folded up and put in the pocket of his jacket, but he'd begun to think he wouldn't need it after all.

"Hermione, you've been my best friend, my teacher, my soul mate. You've managed to put up with me for over a decade now, and if you were going to think better of it, I s'pose you would've done it by now. Sometimes— right now, especially— I can't believe I've gotten this lucky. I love you, Hermione. You've been making me a better person since we first met, all those years ago as kids. And I promise that— that I'll keep working at it for as long as we're together, which is the rest of our lives, I hope. I promise we'll keep learning from each other, and that I'll always be there.

"A long time ago, I got lost, and it took a little ball of light to bring me back to you, to bring me home again. But I promise to never leave again. You're my home now, and you always will be."

As Hermione listened to Ron speak, she felt her chest grow tight and her eyes mist over, but she did her best to take the whole moment in, committing every detail to memory. The bright blue of Ron's eyes, as clear as the sky above. The way his hair caught the sunlight. The gentle brush of the wind as he spoke, grass waving merrily in the distance. She ducked her head for only a moment, smiling to herself, knowing that she could never forget the way that her heart felt right then, full to burst.

"As a child, I had always been somewhat of a precocious little thing. I knew how to consume books as though I was breathing air, and I kept my nose buried in them, day after day, like they were my entire world. But from the moment that you entered my life, Ron, you showed me that there was so much more to the world than what I could learn in the shelves of a library. You taught me the value of friendship, you showed me what true bravery meant. And what you taught me, above all else, is about love. What it's like to grow together, and what it's like to feel as though there's another person in the world who completes you. Who makes your world whole. Who shows you, every day, how life can be lived to its fullest.

"You say that you feel like you're lucky, but I feel like I've been the fortunate one to have found my soulmate so early in life. And I can't wait to spend the rest of that life with you."

Trembling hands relaxed as Hermione watched Ron slide the ring onto her finger, and she glanced up with a soft laugh. His warm arms wrapped around her, and Hermione pushed herself onto her toes, hand curling against his chest as she pressed her lips to his.

[ gathering for ronmione wedding! let us know if you're requesting ron, hermione, or both! tag in and be merry. ♥ ]

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Billy was not comfortable being here at all. Weddings were weird and he'd never had to go to one before. He knew that he didn't have to go to this one but Hermione had been nice to him and considered her a friend and you had to go to a friend's wedding. It was a rule, he was pretty sure of that.

He'd even picked out a suit, just a black one with a black tie but it seemed to match what most everyone else had on. After the actual wedding part, which was so, so long, he and Steph were seated at the reception.

The fact that Stephanie was here made him super, super nervous. He liked her, maybe more than he had ever liked someone before, and that was scary. Super scary. Scary enough that he had asked her to come with him and be his 'plus one' just to prove that he wasn't that scared of liking her. Which... was weird counter-logic but whatever.

Hermione, please!

"Hey mister," Steph says as she steps up beside Billy. She's his plus-one and she doesn't exactly know anyone else here outside of a book, so they're sticking together. Even if he is being sort of weird. But then again, she's being weird too, considering she's afraid to go talk to the newlyweds in case she just starts blurting out random Hogwarts facts instead of making conversation. "You want some punch? Because I am all over punch patrol."

"Uh, wow. I mean, hi!" he said, giving a bit of a smile. She looked amazing and every time he saw her in the dress he was wowed by how she looked. Billy was kind of surprised that she had actually agreed to go with him. Steph looked like she belonged her, with people all dressed up and having fun while he felt so out of place.

"Yes, punch would be good."

"Uh, wow, hi yourself," she says teasingly and ignores the way her cheeks flush. Definitely had spent way too long trying to coordinate lip gloss to her dress this morning, because she doesn't exactly have lots of fancy dress experience. Somehow all her Wayne charity gala invitations got lost in the mail. "Are we at the most ridiculously pretty people wedding ever or what?"

"We are, but at least you fit in," he said, looking around. He wondered if he would ever be one of these people that looked completely at ease here, like this was normal and didn't bother him. To Billy it was like when they had visited the zoo together, he felt like someone on the outside looking in.

"What do you mean I fit in?" Steph asks as she looks around with him then gives him a look. It's a crowd of ridiculously well-dressed pretty people, but Billy is a pretty person who is, at the moment, well dressed. "I mean, I don't see how you wouldn't fit in. Or why I would."

She's not sure if it's a compliment or an insult. Mostly it's just weird.

"I mean... all these people are really attractive and you're really attractive and don't seem like you're freaking out like I am," Billy said, glancing around. It wasn't a big deal that he'd say she was really attractive, right? Because she had to know just how pretty she was considering, well, how pretty she was.

That and Billy just assumed that everyone was better at this sort of social situation then he was.

"You look just as good as anyone here," she said firmly, because for one, he did, and for two shouldn't have to feel like he has to compare himself. While ignoring the idea that, hey, he thinks she's pretty, because therein lies the ways of feelings and Steph can't handle that right now. "Seriously, you are working the suit. As for not freaking out...I don't know. I just pretend to be awesome and confident so no one will see my creamy awkwardly antisocial center. Maybe everyone else does too, you know?"

"Really? I mean, thanks," he said, momentarily remembering his manners. He felt his cheeks flush a bit at the compliment though and wondered if she was just being nice or if it meant something. Not that it necessarily meant something even if it meant something. Whatever.

"Okay, I'm going to pretend to be awesome too. Toooootally awesome."

"Hell yeah, you're awesome," Steph says with an enthusiastic nod and nudges his shoulder with hers. "You and me, two badass guests at a freaking wizard wedding." She bops her head a little with the music, to complete the coolness picture. "Want to go dance? To prove how not awkward we are."

Billy felt terror grip him at her mention of dancing. He had absolutely no idea how to dance, had never actually danced a step in his life. There was no way he would be anything other than completely terrible at it but she had said that he was awesome and he didn't want to ruin that image by refusing to dance. That would be lame, right?

"Sure. Yeah. Dancing is fine. Totally fine," he said.

She raises an eyebrow at him at the way he says that, positively brimming with enthusiasm, but then just grins and makes her way to the dance floor, clearly expecting him to follow. The music is upbeat and catchy, some tune she doesn't know, but Steph starts bopping to the music once she's out there. It's not exactly graceful, really more goofy than anything else, but she has no dancing shame whatsoever.

Oh. Fuck.

Billy had absolutely no idea how to dance. None. Steph clearly did though and he wanted to at least try and look like he wasn't afraid to do it. He moved around stiffly, doing his best to move to the beat of the music, which he managed for the most part. Every movement felt agonizingly self-conscious though and he felt like everyone was looking at him and thinking how stupid he looked.

How the hell did people do this for fun?

Steph raises her eyebrows at him as she bops to the music. He looks so uncomfortable you'd think he's being told to dance at gunpoint. "We don't have to dance," she points out to him and doesn't tease him for his stiffness the way she would Tim. "Not if you don't want to. Don't worry, it's not mandatory."

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As soon as Hermione had the time to mingle around at the reception, she did her best to keep an eye on each one of her guests, curious to learn about the dates that they'd brought to the wedding. The entire day felt like a hopeful one, with ample opportunity to meet and greet new friends, and deepen existing relationships. Once Hermione spotted Billy off to the side, she smiled, quickly making her way over and brushing a hand against his forearm.

"Is that... your girlfriend?" Hermione asked curiously, having spotted Billy's gaze being directed at a beautiful young woman — one she had nearly mistaken for Elle, at first.

"You think she could be my girlfriend?" Billy asked, surprised. Because Stephanie was way, way above him in pretty much every way. She was gorgeous like all the other people here and not all weird around other people and she was just... really cool. All the things Billy wasn't. Of course, Hermione was gorgeous too and the guy she had married was... well, Ron was probably a super nice guy.

"I mean, uh, no. Steph is just a friend. Congratulations, by the way."

"Why couldn't she?" Hermione asked, raising her brow and sneaking another glance at the young woman. Without seeing her glance back Billy's way, Hermione had no way of gauging the other woman's interest, but the look on Billy's face was still one of unmistakable admiration.

"But a friendship's just as good," she added, quickly brushing aside the matter. Curious though she was, Hermione also didn't want to step into sensitive territory just yet. Smiling, she ducked her head, then reached forward to give Billy a hug. "And thank you. Everything today's been absolutely wonderful, and getting married wouldn't be quite the same without being surrounded by friends. Have you been enjoying yourself? I'm really hoping the food and music are to people's tastes."

Because Steph was way, way out of his league. But he wasn't going to say that because then she'd just argue that Steph wasn't and it would be awkward. Besides, it was her wedding day and he was probably supposed to just agree with her about everything or something. Weddings were still new to him.

"And, uh, you're welcome for having me here," he said, awkwardly hugging her back. Physical contact like that was still not something that he was used to. Not at all. "But it's awesome. It's the best wedding I've ever been to and everything is having a good time. We're all really happy for you guys."

Hermione laughed, ducking her head briefly as she tucked a few errant strands of hair back in place. "I've been to quite a few weddings recently. Most of them back in my world, and fewer here, but enough that it was giving me a little anxiety about how I would design my own. So I'm really happy to hear that you've enjoyed it," she said. More than anything, she was glad that the wedding could be as small and personal of an affair as it was. No one was a stranger.

"How have you been? I feel like we haven't seen each other in quite some time," Hermione said, excited to have the opportunity to bond once more with her friends, uninterrupted from the busy schedules of everyone's lives.

"Oh, uh, I've been good. I got a part time job I can do after school so I've been saving up my money," he said. The idea was to eventually be able to afford his own apartment so that Coraline could move in with Alex. Not that Coraline or Alex knew about this plan just yet but that was probably for the best.

"But yeah, I should stop by the shop sometime to say hi. Uh, so long as you don't mind that I wouldn't be buying anything."

"I won't pressure you into buying anything, and my shop isn't only meant to be a safe haven for customers," Hermione reassures with an easy smile and nod. "You're even welcome to stop by here at my house, should you ever like. Sometimes, I find it's nice to get away from the chaos of the city proper. Out here, there's more space to think... and fewer distractions."

She laughs, shrugging a shoulder. "And I can also offer a home-cooked meal, though in my case... I'm not sure there's much about it to boast about. I'm still learning to make my way around the kitchen."

"Iiiiii am not going to just stop by your house," Billy said. "That would just be weird."

Because not only was she just married but that was not a thing that Billy did. He didn't just stop at someone's house to hang out. If he was invited to come at a specific time that was something different but he couldn't ever remember a time in his life when he just... showed up.

"But if you just happen to bring leftovers to the shop and I just happen to be there, I wouldn't refuse them," he added. He had lived on the street enough that he never turned down free food.

"It doesn't have to be weird," Hermione said with a laugh, though she let the topic go for the most part. She also wasn't the sort of person who would usually show up at someone's place unannounced, with the possible exception over the years of Harry and Ron, who were by far her closest friends. Even then, Hermione had left Privet Drive alone, and the Burrow was only an option after reaching out to Ron's mother for permission.

So she could understand Billy's hesitation, though she hoped it would lessen with time.

"I'll definitely bear that in mind, though. Especially as I continue to try recipes. Ron will generally eat most things I make, but he's obligated now, isn't he?" Hermione grinned. "It'd be nice to get an objective opinion on my cooking. I do at least sample everything myself, first."

"You live outside of town. It would be super weird for me to walk or take a cab all the way out here just to say 'hi'. Especially if you're not at home."

True, he would probably just turn into Shazam to fly out if he were to visit, but he couldn't say that. And it would be ridiculous to get a ride all the way out here on the chance she was home. What if she wasn't home but her husband was? Nope, being social was too much of a hassle.

"But the shop is closer. I'll be sure to stop in more often and tell you your cooking is terrible. I mean, if your cooking is terrible."

"You have a point," Hermione said with a wrinkle of her nose. She didn't like it when it slipped her mind that traveling wasn't always easy for other people. Back in school, she never had to question that much, not having been able to Apparate to and from Hogwarts, and instead taking a lengthy train ride. But the years since made it easier for Hermione to fall into other habits, and expecting transportation to be prompt happened to be one of them.

"I'll definitely start bringing more food to the shop. I recently hired more hands to help, anyway, so it'll be nice to have a few snacks and heartier dishes so that no one goes lightheaded on the job. How about, send me a text whenever you're in the neighborhood, and I'll let you know if I'm around?" Hermione asked, her eyes bright and pleased with the thought.

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