Warning: This is an exposition chapter, there is no sex, only secrets.

This is a work of fiction. The characters and locations are the properties of their respective owners. I own the story line.

Chapter 3- Surprise Confessions

Hermione flitted around the living room to make sure that everything was ready for her guest. She was running through her mental checklist when the doorbell rang. She almost dropped the bottle of wine she was holding. She took a deep, steadying breath and castigated herself; she and Ginny frequently got together when Ron, Harry, or both were out of town so she shouldn’t be this nervous. Hermione straightened her blouse and smoothed the front of her skirt. “Ginny!” Hermione said when she opened the door. Her sister-in-law smiled and handed her a platter. “Ooh, brownies.”

“Mum’s mint ones,” Ginny said in a tone that seemed to be tempting Hermione.

Hermione uncovered the platter and nicked one. The small bite she took threatened to send her to the floor in heavenly bliss; chocolate was such a rare treat for her that it always had a very strong effect on her. “What did you add? Molly’s aren’t this rich.”

“I used two kinds of chocolate.” Hermione thought she could kiss Ginny, of course that would not be the best idea given the effect that the chocolate and the wine was likely to have on her. She put the brownies on the coffee table and poured wine for her and Ginny. The two women began to chat about what had been going on in their lives in the two weeks since they’d last had a chance to visit.

“How’s work going?” Ginny asked as she leaned back and propped her feet up on the coffee table.

“Troubling,” Hermione replied as she toyed with her glass. “I’ve got this case I’m arguing next week before the Wizengamot, and it’s very difficult.”

“Worried you won’t get the conviction?”

“No, conviction is going to be the easy part; there’s a ton of evidence. Presenting the arguments without inviting a host of quiet laughter and embarrassment will be the hard part.”

“Oh?”

“A wizard is being brought up on multiple counts of Unforgivables and sexual assault.”

“You have my attention,” Ginny said as she leaned forward. “If it’s an Unforgivables case it should be pretty straight forward; either he did or he didn’t. Are there survivors?”

“A lot, but most of them are Muggles, so we can’t use them. The reason we caught him was he picked up a Squib and she told her sister about it. He was using the Imperius Curse to get women to agree to some really bizarre sexual practices.” Hermione took a deep breath. “The worst part of it is that I had to go through all of the evidence: stacks of photographs, hundreds of pages of journals and recounted stories. Then there were the books he was reading. It never ceases to amaze me how much effort people put into studying sexual behavior.”

“Did you finally find something that you wouldn’t read?” Ginny teased her.

“No, I read some of it. I wish I had stuck to the evidence and stayed out of his head. There are some really deviant people trying some seriously twisted sexual practices out there.” Hermione noticed that Ginny seemed to be hanging onto her every word.

“What kind of stuff did you find?”

“A lot of stuff on body part fetishes, spankings, voyeurism, bondage, group sex; most of the usual stuff, that wasn’t so bad. He had whole bookshelves on the psychology of domination and submission though. Some of that stuff is just sick.”

“Only some of it though, huh?” Ginny eyes seemed to twinkle as she leaned back. Hermione was afraid that she would blush and Ginny would ask to see the new additions to her bookshelf. “Did you find something useful in your reading?” Hermione was struck full force by the memories of some of the things she wished she hadn’t seen.

“That is not even funny, Ginny. This man is a seriously sick individual. If all the women had been willing participants, the ministry would not have even gotten involved. He saved the worst of it for the women who refused him though, he dominated them and made them do things they would never have willingly consented to.”

“Sorry,” Ginny said with a shudder, “I shouldn’t have teased. I didn’t realize what he was doing.” Ginny took a deep breath and seemed to turn completely inward for a moment, almost like she wasn’t even in the same room with anyone. “People like that should be dealt with severely.”

Hermione realized she needed to change the subject before Ginny started to brood. “How about that party at Fred and Angelina’s?” she asked experimentally.

Ginny seemed to transform as a blush stole onto her cheeks. “Oh my God! I can’t believe I acted like that in front of my sisters-in-law. I’m sure they must all think of me as some kind of brazen hussy now. At least Penny and Percy had left by the time everything got really crazy.”

“Are you referring to the bra incident?” Hermione asked, a slightly embarrassed grin turning the corners of her mouth.

“The cucumber dare.”

“I still can’t believe Lee made you do that in front of your brothers!”

Ginny laughed and turned a bit red. “I figured it was better to embarrass myself in front of my brothers and their wives than to call mum and ask her if those noises that kept us up at night as kids were really the ghoul. I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, but I really don’t need those mental scars. Besides, it’s not like Angelina, Alicia, and Katie hadn’t seen me do it before.”

“They what?” Hermione spluttered and choked around her wine.

“This goes no farther than you and I. You cannot tell this to Ron.” Hermione nodded, that wouldn’t be a problem. The idea of discussing Ginny’s sex life with Ron was just too disgusting, and she was sure that Ron would feel the same. “Are you sure you want to know this? This involves sex with Harry.”

Hermione and Ginny had come to a tacit agreement years ago that they would not discuss sex, what with Ron and Ginny being siblings and all. There were also things Hermione felt she was better off not knowing about her other best friends. However, she was planning on breaking that taboo tonight anyway; so best to get it out of the way with something rather inconsequential like this. “I’m a big girl. I think I can take it.”

“That’s what you think!” Ginny blushed a deep crimson. “Oh my God! Please tell me I didn’t just say that.”

“You did.”

“Note to self, don’t drink wine and talk about sex; although I probably should have figured that out last weekend.” On that point Hermione would definitely agree. More people had learned more information about her sex life last weekend than she had divulged in all of the years that she had been having sex. Ginny drained her glass and asked for a refill. Hermione went and got another bottle.

“Well, I guess I should start from the beginning. Harry and I jumped to the physical part of our relationship a whole faster than you and Ron did. I don’t think it was a conscious decision, but Harry’s more physical by nature, he always has to be doing. Anyway, one night I decided to get him off to see if that would calm him down a little. It did, he was like putty in my hands afterward.” Both girls giggled. “Okay, poor choice of words there.” Ginny turned and stretched out on the couch and stared at the ceiling as she talked.

“Well, then Harry wanted to reciprocate. I’ve never been able to fault him that, he is very attentive.” Hermione nodded sagely, it had taken Ron a few months to remember to be attentive after they had gone all the way. He had been great before then, but once they had done the deed, he started slacking in other areas. She had too though, she didn’t give him a blow-job for six months after the first time she let him inside her. She had thought they were beyond that part of their relationship.

“Things went down that road for a couple of months, but after the first couple of times I went down on Harry he stopped letting me. I asked him why, and he made up this excuse about wanting to be able to kiss me more. It sounded fishy to me, but that was his story and he was sticking to it. One night I didn’t give him any choice. I wanted to give him head; I rather enjoy it. I watched him as I did it though, and he seemed to grimace an awful lot. So, I asked him about it, and he said my teeth were scratching him.”

“I’ve heard some guys like a little teeth.”

“It wasn’t ‘a little teeth’, it was a lot- on every stroke. I just couldn’t open my mouth wide enough.”

“Oh?”

Ginny shifted a bit uncomfortably. “Harry is… thick. Not terribly long, maybe even shorter than average, but incredibly thick. I was upset. I wanted to be able to please him like he pleased me. I didn’t know what to do, so I turned to the sexpert.”

“Angelina,” Hermione said then laughed as Ginny nodded. Angelina had long been recognized as an expert on all things sex related. She and Fred had kept a casual, devil-may-care relationship through school. She had dated several other boys as well, and had developed a little bit of a reputation. She was careful to stay away from the ones that were spoken for though, so she had never engendered the hatred from other girls that a “woman of loose morals” usually did. They both laughed as they talked about it, because Molly had actually used that term to describe Angelina just before she and Fred had announced their engagement.

“You know,” Hermione said, “I heard she put herself through business school by working as an exotic dancer at a club in London.”

“That’s not entirely true,” Ginny responded. “She only started going to school after she realized that neither Fred nor George knew the first thing about running a store. Her, Katie, and Alicia bailed the boys out when WWW almost failed. After that, the girls became partners and Angelina went back to school to learn how to run a business. She’d been working as an exotic dancer because it appealed to her.” Hermione crinkled her nose. The idea of being naked in front of anyone other than Ron gave her the heebie-jeebies.

Hermione decided it was time to steer the conversation back to the necessary topic and away from gossiping about her in-laws. “That still doesn’t answer my question as to why Lee thought it was so funny that you demonstrated your ‘technique’ on a cucumber though.”

Ginny took a deep breath and sighed. “Like I said, I went to Angelina for advice and she said we needed a trip to the kitchens for training materials.”

“What did you end up with?”

“Half a dozen cucumbers.” Hermione couldn’t stop the vaguely disgusted expression that danced over her face.

“Better than zucchini, I hate zucchini. Anyway, it took a few days, but I eventually developed a technique. On the last day though, the most embarrassing thing happened. Lee and Katie walked in unannounced and I’m sitting on Angelina’s bed with this cucumber in my mouth. I was so surprised I actually bit it in half.” Hermione tried to stifle her giggle and failed.

“Laugh it up. Lee laughed too until Angelina told him to drop his drawers.”

Hermione sat bolt upright. “She did what?”

“Yeah, that was my reaction. Turns out he was there because he was my final lesson. He’s about the same size as Harry. He, um, well, Katie was supposed to give him a blow job and I was supposed to watch.”

Hermione was horrified. “You mean there was a public display?”

Ginny nodded. “I don’t think it was the first. As a matter of fact I’d bet Galleons to Sickles against it. Anyway, she did and I watched.” Ginny smiled. “I learned a lot that day. That night, I almost had to pin Harry to the floor to keep him from running up to thank Angelina.” Ginny began to giggle profusely; she had to set down her wineglass before she dropped it. After a long minute, Ginny finally got control of herself.

“What about you? Learn anything interesting about your husband?” Ginny suddenly affected a mock innocent look. “Oh, wait a minute, we all did!” Hermione arched her eyebrow. Ginny had just given her the perfect opening.

“Funny you should mention that.” Her voice was perfectly even and seemed to have a sobering effect on Ginny, who suddenly gave her a suspicious look.

“What do you want?”

“I want you to hear me out before you say anything.” Ginny leaned back into the sofa, but said nothing. “Ron and I had a long talk last Sunday.”

“Really?” Ginny interrupted. “Harry and I spent the day, well, yeah.”

Hermione nodded sagely, “Us too.”

“Really? I never pictured you two as the all-day-sucker type.”

“We really don’t do it very often. Every couple goes through that phase though. Ron and I went through it when we moved in together. Last weekend was the first time we spent a whole day in bed since our honeymoon.” Hermione noted the odd expression that crossed Ginny’s face, so she said nothing else on the subject. “Anyway, Ron and I started talking; telling each other stuff we had never told each other, sharing fantasies, likes and dislikes, and a whole lot of other stuff. It was really good for us, we both learned a lot.”

“I don’t mean to sound selfish, but how does this pertain to me?” Now it was Hermione’s turn to be embarrassed. How could she put this? She had tried several scenarios as she worked around the house this afternoon, but none had really worked out like this. She watched Ginny for a clue, but her sister-in-law maintained an impassive expression, although Hermione thought it looked deliberate. She took a deep breath and plunged right in.

“Your brother isn’t the only one with a threesome fantasy.” The mask fell away from Ginny’s features to be replaced by a look that was at once pensive and intrigued. “The difference is that mine involves Ron and Harry.” She watched Ginny very carefully, but was totally unprepared for the reaction she got.

“Oh,” Ginny said, sounding almost disappointed.

“What?”

“I thought you were going to ask me to be the other girl.”

Hermione was shocked, at first she couldn’t answer. “Ewww!” The idea of Ron being excited with his sister in the bed was so repulsive that Hermione had never even contemplated the idea. She got up and walked into the kitchen so that she could rinse her glass and wash her hands. Ginny followed shortly behind.

They said nothing as Hermione got herself a glass of ice water. “Sorry about that Hermione.” Ginny stood at the sink, rinsing out her glass. Hermione looked over at the tall, statuesque form of her sister-in-law. She never ceased to be amazed, Ginny could look so small when she was sitting, or even reclining, but when she stood she had a good seven inches on her. She had managed to inherit the Weasley height like Ron, but without ever having gone through the gangly stage that he had suffered.

“It’s all right, Gin.” However, Ginny didn’t answer, just nodded a little bit. She seemed to be upset about something, but Hermione couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She thought about all the things she knew about Ginny, and tried to figure it out. It was an epiphany when she realized it. “You don’t think that I was rejecting you, do you?” Ginny had long had questions about her own self-image; many of them were borne out of Harry’s initial rejection of her.

“It’s stupid. I know why you were disgusted, I mean, I was too. It’s just that your reaction was so… strong, that I felt like you were saying I was…” Ginny stopped and wiped her eyes.

“Never, Gin. I wish I could be more like you! You’re tall, statuesque, beautiful and voluptuous. You look like a World War II pinup girl. Real men salivate over women like you. You’re the stuff their fantasies are made of!” Hermione had even caught herself thinking of Ginny’s generous hips and well endowed chest during the week now that she had begun considering the idea of sex with women.

“Do you really think so?” Hermione looked up to see Ginny looking down at her very intently.

“Yes, I do.” She could feel Ginny drinking in her words, then the feeling changed. Instead, Ginny was drinking her in. She looked up into Ginny’s eyes and saw the invitation- the request that lay there. The possibility, and her reaction to it, made her uncomfortable. If either took a step forward then they would kiss, and if they kissed she would be tempted to give in to it. They would end up on the floor, or on the couch, or in the bed. She could not allow that to happen. She would be sharing herself with someone other than Ron and she wouldn’t be able to tell him about it; that was cheating. They both agreed that being part of a threesome with the other was very different than sleeping with someone else outside.

With a monumental force of will, Hermione turned and walked out of the kitchen. Ginny followed her and returned to her seat on the couch across from Hermione. The two women did not meet each other’s gaze, for they both knew what would happen if they did. Finally, Ginny broke the silence. “Have you ever been attracted to another woman?”

Hermione thought for a long time before she answered. Not because she had ever looked at another woman that way, but because she was trying to figure out where the conversation was headed. “I can’t say I’ve ever been attracted to a woman. Of course I can’t say I’ve ever been attracted to a great number of men either.” She smiled broadly as Ginny looked at her. “Your brother has occupied a great deal of my romantic curiosity.” Failing to draw a smile from her friend, she reversed the question. “Were you ever attracted to another woman?”

“Yeah, but I never said anything about it.” Hermione watched as Ginny dipped her finger in her wineglass and ran it around the rim. “Have you ever been curious about what it would be like to have sex with another woman?”

“Yes and no,” Hermione answered slowly. She sensed that Ginny needed more, some kind of validation. She leaned forward and looked at Ginny, waiting until she had her friend’s undivided attention. “You cannot breathe a word of this to anyone. That especially means Harry.” Ginny crossed her heart and held up a hand. “I’ve never been that curious because my first ever romantic encounter was with another girl.”

Hermione was relieved to see that Ginny was very surprised by this revelation. She was worried that everyone would somehow just know that she had done things with Lavender, especially after the New Year’s Eve party. “She taught me how to kiss. She was the first person to ever feel me up. She showed me how to masturbate. I tasted… girl cum, she licked it off my finger and I did the same.

Hermione noticed that Ginny was leaning forward ever so slightly, her nipples were hard and pushing against her blouse. Hermione could see deep into Ginny’s cleavage and wondered what it would be like to kiss and lick those beautiful, large breasts; to feel them smashed against her. She mentally shook it off. “I got over it pretty quick, because I started dating Ron shortly after that.” Ginny seemed to relax back against the couch again. “There have been a few times I’ve wondered what it would have been like if we’d done more together; but I put all that behind me.” Ron’s fantasy had gotten her thinking about it again, and sometimes at night she tried to remember the taste of licking Parvati’s juices off Lavender’s tongue, but it had been long ago. She gave Ginny a hard look, as though to say, ‘I told you mine, you better tell me yours.’ “Have you ever had any experience with a girl?”

She watched Ginny shift uncomfortably and fiddle with her glass before she answered, but she waited patiently. “I’ve never done anything with another woman, but I’ve wanted to for so long though.” Ginny threw back the rest of her wine and poured herself another glass. “I used to lay in my bed and play with myself while thinking about this other girl. What it would be like to touch her, taste her, feel her against me. She used to make me so hot, and I always wanted to say something to her, but I was always afraid she would laugh at me, or worse, reject me.” Hermione was suddenly very conscious of the fact that Ginny wouldn’t look at her.

“Did you ever have opportunities?”

Ginny licked her lips and swallowed. “Yeah, several, but I was too scared. She was so pretty, and so… sexy. She didn’t even know how sexy I thought she was. She had the tightest body and the most beautiful arse.”

Hermione hesitated, wondering if she dared ask the next question, pretty sure she knew the answer. She lost her nerve and asked a different question instead. “Did you ever see her naked?”

Ginny nodded her head slowly. “Lots of times.” She seemed to curl in on herself, as though trying to disappear into the couch. “There was this one time, I was in bed and I was watching her get ready for bed. She was wearing red, see-through underwear. She had bought them for her boyfriend. The way the light was, I could see right through them, and make out every curve and shadow of her arse. She bent over to take them off and I could see everything. It was amazing, she was a little damp and I got so turned on that I gasped as I stuck two fingers inside myself. She turned around and looked at me, but I pretended to be asleep. I felt her watch me for a long time, so I didn’t move a muscle. I wanted her to pull my covers down and see how much she turned me on. She didn’t though, she just finished getting ready for bed, turned off the light and crawled into her own bed. I lay awake half the night fingering myself to orgasm after orgasm thinking about how pretty her pussy was and how much I wanted to taste it.”

Hermione smiled to herself, she had been right. “I remember that night.” She would always remember that day. Amid fumbling fingers and earnest endearments, she and Ron had shed their virginity in the tree house out beyond the garden.

“Don’t hate me, Hermione.” Ginny cried and sniffled.

“Never, Ginny.” She felt bad for her friend; pining was a lonely affair. She got up and moved to the other couch where Ginny was sitting. She took her glass of wine and set it on the table, then drew Ginny to her shoulder as the girl started to weep. “I could never hate you, Gin. You’re my best friend in the world; you know things about me that nobody else knows. You’ve always been there for me when I needed a friend.” She brushed Ginny’s hair back from her face. “I’m sorry I could never give you what you wanted.”

“I’m sorry,” Ginny sniffled, “I should have just kept my mouth shut.”

“Shhh,” Hermione whispered as she patted Ginny’s back and stroked her hair. She knew it might make the relationship between her and Ginny awkward, but she would do her best to put it behind her. “It’s alright, Gin; everything will be all right.” Hermione could feel the warmth of Ginny’s skin through her skirt as her friend lay down on the couch and rested against her. She tried not to notice the pale beckoning skin of Ginny’s neck against the rich, flame red of her hair, the siren’s call of the generous breast, or the gentle sway of her waist before the flaring of hip into a well-rounded arse. She deliberately turned away from all the possibility that was just a gentle touch or word away. It would be a long night, and sleep would be elusive with no husband here to snuggle against; but she could not take that step, no matter how much she wanted to, nor how much Ginny wanted her to. They sat there, enveloped in painful silence for a long time until Ginny mumbled something.

“What did you say?” Hermione whispered.

“It’s okay, you can ask him,” Ginny replied. “I just ask one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“If he says yes, someday I want you to think about it, about maybe, maybe you and me, maybe just once. Maybe even me and you and Harry if you…”

Hermione steeled herself to keep from saying yes right then, to avoid that touch that would be the signal of her crumbling will. “Alright, Ginny,” she whispered, not trusting her full voice, “I’ll think about it.”

———-

“So, what’s it like playing for Wood again?” Ron asked Harry. The two men were sitting in the Captured Snitch pub at the Central England Quidditch Round, a centralized arena for Quidditch matches.

“It’s good. There are days, especially during road games that it’s like being back in school again.”

“Those were the days,” Ron said nostalgically. “I mean, not the whole ‘are we going to live through the year’ part, but I miss the closeness we had. Me, you, Hermione; there was nothing we wouldn’t do together.”

“Well, there were a few things!” Harry responded. Ron chuckled and leaned back in his chair. He took a long draw from his Butterbeer Extra.

“Tell me, did you ever think about Hermione… in that way.” Ron noticed Harry giving him a narrow eyed, speculative look. “I mean, before you got involved with Ginny, and before Hermione and I.”

“Well, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t, but then so did Dean and Neville and a few other boys. Why?”

Ron took a swig and plunged ahead, knowing that he had long ago left tact behind. “Have you thought about her like that since?”

Harry set his beer down and leaned forward. “What are you playing at?” he asked in a quiet voice. Suddenly, there was a loud bang as several Puddlemere fans crashed through a table in their exuberant celebration.

“Let’s go outside.” Ron picked up his bottle and motioned for Harry to follow him.

“So, suppose you tell me what this is all about,” Harry said after they were outside, walking across the lawns surrounding the pitch.

“We were,” Ron paused, trying to be diplomatic about this even though it was completely contrary to his nature, “a great threesome. Really great, maybe the best ever. We were… always there for each other. Always… filling each other’s needs.”

“Ron, you lost me again. Why don’t you just come right out and say what you’re trying to say.”

Ron stopped and turned to face Harry. He ran his fingers through his hair and took a long draw that drained his bottle. He visually measured the distance between them, about three feet. He swallowed, and plunged ahead. “What would you say to being this close to each other?” He waved his arm back and forth between them. “With Hermione naked in between us.”

“Say what?” Harry asked in a surprised voice, taking a step back. Ron looked at his friend intently and wondered if that were excitement or revulsion dancing in Harry’s eyes.

“Hermione has this threesome fantasy that involves me and you.” Harry gave him a questioning look, then tipped his own bottle up and drained it. “Apparently she’s had it for a long time, but it was just one of those bizarre fantasies you think is never going to happen.”

“You mean like seeing your wife’s arse in the air while her face is buried in another woman’s quim?”

“Yeah, something like that.” Ron watched as Harry twirled his bottle in his palm. Harry seemed to be thinking very seriously about something.

“You know, my wife will probably say-“

“Yes,” Ron interrupted. “Hermione talked to her last night.”

“So you asked her before you asked me?” Harry sounded a little indignant.

“Hermione said it would work better. Her thinking was what if you said yes and Ginny said no? It’s not worth the fights it would cause.” Harry turned and started to walk slowly, as though in thought. Ron walked beside him. Neither man said anything for a long time.

“We’d be a trio again,” Harry said thoughtfully. “Just the three of us fulfilling each other’s needs, as you so eloquently put it.”

“Yeah, more like us fulfilling her needs… or wants anyway.” They had walked around the complex twice now.

“So it would just be us pleasing Hermione, and vice versa?” Ron assured him that was the plan as they crossed over the fence and sat down beside one of the manicured gardens. The two fell into silence again as they stretched out on the grass.

“Ron,” Harry said without looking at him. “Have you ever thought you knew somebody, and then suddenly seen them in a whole new light?” Ron answered with an affirmative grunt. “Sometimes, it changes your whole perspective on life. Makes you wonder about new things, question old thinking.” Harry paused. “You know about Remus and Sirius, right?”

“Yeah, Hermione pointed it out to me.”

“How did she… never mind. Smartest witch in the world, of course she’d figure it out.” Ron made a noise of agreement. “I found out about it when I moved in with them right after school. Shook me up pretty bad at first. I didn’t understand it. I mean, how could one guy want to… do that, with another guy?” Ron couldn’t agree with Harry more on that point.

“I was talking to Remus about it. He told me that if you really care about someone it doesn’t really matter. It’s about pleasing your partner, not about what equipment they have.” Ron furrowed his brow trying to follow Harry’s train of thought. This conversation was taking more strange twists and turns than any conversation he and Harry had been involved in since they finished school.

“I guess what I’m saying is that if I agree to do this I don’t want to be told what I can and can’t touch.” There was a pause. “Are you okay with that?” Ron lay very still for a long time, staring up at the emerging stars. This was a wrinkle he hadn’t counted on and it made him more than a little uncomfortable.

“Are you switch hitting these days and not telling anyone?”

“No. It’s just that, well, I’m kind of curious. I’m not saying I will, but I want to know that I can.” Ron could feel Harry’s eyes on him now. He turned on to his side to look back. “Ron, I wouldn’t ask this of anyone else. I’ve never said a word to anyone; Ginny doesn’t even know. But you and Hermione and I have been through everything together, there’s no one else I would even consider asking this of. The three of us have never been just about two of us doing for a third. We’ve always been there for each other, whenever we needed it. We’re a threesome, not a two on one.”

Ron fell back and looked at the sky for a long moment. Harry was asking him for this, not just as a gratification thing, but as an expression of friendship and who they were. He and Harry had been the best of friends for more than half their lives; the three of them were a trio. What had started out as a deal to satisfy his wife was now spiraling into something much bigger. Could he overcome his own reticence and prejudices? Did he care enough about Harry to be there for his friend, to give him this?

“I won’t guarantee that I won’t get squicked by it, but… well… okay.” The two men lay there for a long time; wondering how much their friendship had just changed.

“Thanks.” There was another pause. “Could you not say anything to Hermione?”

Ron sat bolt upright and stared at his friend like he’d grown a second head. “Not bloody likely mate! Do you have any idea how wobbly she’d go if I knew that was going to happen and didn’t warn her?”

Harry wouldn’t meet his gaze, a sure sign that he wasn’t sure of himself. “I don’t know if it’s even going to happen. I’d hate to have Hermione’s perception of me destroyed because of something I might do.”

“Harry, you know she’s even less likely to judge you for this than I am. She’s always been the better person. If I can live with this, you know she can.”

Harry turned and looked at him. Ron hadn’t seen that look on Harry’s face since they were in school. “Please, Ron, don’t say anything. If I think it’s going to happen I’ll tell her, you too.”

Ron sighed and dropped on to his back again. There was no help for it, Harry had invoked the only claim he had on Ron, the bond of friendship formed in years of hardship. “You realize you’re asking me to keep a secret from Hermione. I think that may actually be harder to do than the other thing…but I’ll do it.” Ron took a deep breath and blew it out slowly as he watched the blinking of the stars. “Got any plans for next weekend?”

“I’ll get back to you tomorrow. I have to check with my social director.” They were quiet again for a long time. Then, in an attempt to get back on normal footing, Ron asked Harry about the dive that had almost splattered Harry all over the Cannons’ goal post. Soon enough they were talking Quidditch and everything seemed almost back to normal.

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