Always

RON

I walked out of the coffee shop and down the street to the apothecary where Kat worked with Blaise and Mal… Draco… I should start calling him Draco. I told her I was going to try so I thought I could start by bringing a peace offering of coffee and chocolate croissants. I backed into the shop holding the tray of coffee and croissants. I paused in my steps.

“Well, this is awkward”, I said with a small laugh. “I, uh… brought coffee and chocolate croissants… to say I’m sorry”, I finished awkwardly. I placed the food on the counter and rubbed the back of my neck. Kat walked over to me and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

“That was very nice of you mate”, Blaise said. He patted me on the back and dug in the bag for a croissant.

“Your lovely lady here, also brought us breakfast to apologize”, Draco said with a smile. Then he did something that surprised us all. He reached a hand to me. I looked at Kat before reaching for Draco’s hand and gave it a quick shake. Kat smiled at me as she popped another piece of scone in her mouth.

“This was sweet of you”, Kat said to me, reaching up to wrap her arms around my neck. I held on to her waist and pulled her into a hug.

“I told you I would try, and I do owe them an apology”, I said. I kissed the top of her head and stepped away from her. “I’ll see you at home”, I said to Kat. “Fellas, have a good day”, I said, nodding my head towards Blaise and Draco. With a wave I was out the door and walking towards the joke shop. I walked in and re-locked the door as we weren’t ready to open just yet.

“How did it go?”, Fred asked me.

“I think it went well. We shook hands and I said sorry”, I told him. I reached the journal with our inventory numbers. “What do you need me to do?”, I asked. Since I had been gone for a week, the shop was closed while my brothers took care of me. Financially, we could handle it, but that meant the shelves were bare.

“There are some boxes by the door, can you start by putting those away please?”, George asked, walking towards the office where made our jokes. I saw him open a notebook and read some notes before he started back on his project. I picked up a couple of boxes and walked back into the shop to stock the shelves.

What seemed like days, but was really only hours, I finally finished stocking the shelves with the finished jokes and products. I walked into the office and made sure George didn’t need any help with the project he was working on. He was working on a companion journal. They worked together and were meant for couples or families that were long distance. What was written in one, would show in the other as well. An easier way to communicate in secret. I wiped my hands on the back of my jeans and headed back to the front. I grabbed my things and started towards the door.

“Oh!”, I said, doubling back to the office. “Fridays, I would like to take off early. I want to start date nights with Kat again. I think we need to get back to where we were before… everything”, I said to my brothers. They nodded to me.

“Of course!”, Fred said.

“Gotta keep that spark alive”, George said.

“Alright, see you fools tomorrow!”, I shouted as I headed out the door. I was leaving a little early today, so that I could be home before Kat got there. I knew she had a meeting with Narcissa, Angelle, and Hermione for dinner so they could work on their project. I had the car today as Kat was using her magic to travel today.

KAT

“Seriously guys? Did you not stock anything while I was gone?”, I asked. They both shrugged at me. “You might as well turn that sign to close and lock the doors. It is going to take all day to get this all back in stock”, I said with a sigh. I headed to the backroom and began to work on some potions. Draco joined me a few moments later while Blaise worked on the previous month’s ledger.

What seemed like days, but was really only hours, I was stocking the shelves with the freshly made potions. I had a few other potions going in the back, but they would not be ready until the morning. I wiped my hands on the back of my jeans and headed back to the counter. I grabbed my things and started towards the door.

“See you fools tomorrow!”, I shouted as I headed out the door. I was leaving a little early today as I knew I had to go meet Narcissa, Angelle, Kayce and Hermione for dinner and tea as we discussed the next steps in our plans. I used my magic and landed outside Narcissa’s front door. I smoothed my hair back into place. I already felt bad enough that I was wearing jeans, I wanted to make sure my hair at least looked good.

“Come in dear, come in, you’ll catch a cold out there in all that chill”, Mippy greeted me. I let her take my coat and lead me to the smaller dining room.

“Thank you”, I said to the elf. Narcissa stood and drew me into a hug. I gave her a kiss on the cheek and moved to greet my friends.

“I’m sorry for my appearance. I just came from the shop. Those boys took care of nothing while I was gone”, I chided as I sat down.

“Don’t worry about it dear, men are useless sometimes”, Narcissa said. She had a stack of papers in front of her. She handed a few out to each of us. “To start we are going to need to find a location for our school. This will help us set our budget. I have found a few locations, I think will be suitable, but obviously I would like all of your opinions”, Narcissa said.

“I talked with my professors. I was trying to figure out how big of a building, how many rooms, kitchen, bathrooms, staffing, etcetera that we would need. Do you happen to know what the need is in this area?”, Angelle asked.

“I can reach out to Neville, and see if he has numbers from the school of those who are in need of homes or safe spaces. That might help us find the best location for us”, I started making a note in my notebook.

“I have a meeting with the Mister on Wednesday to talk about the Ministry funding at least part of it, or what they are willing to do to assist us”, Hermione added. We nodded at her and began discussing other things. By the time tea was served we had decided on the theme of a party for a fundraiser and who we think might be a good fit to teach for us. After a while I yawned behind my hand.

“Oh my gosh! I am so sorry. It has been a very long day”, I stated.

“You haven’t had any more nightmares?”, Hermione asked quietly.

“No, not since I’ve been back home”, I replied, standing, and leaning over to kiss Narcissa goodbye. “We’ll meet again in a week?”, I asked.

“Yes, that sounds good. Go get some rest. Love you sweetheart”, Narcissa said, giving me a tight squeeze. Mippy helped me into my coat, and I used my magic to get back home. Ron greeted me as soon as I got inside. He brought me a drink over to the couch and plopped my feet into his lap. He rubbed my feet, and I closed my eyes and let out a small moan

“Long day?”, he asked, but before I could answer I was snoring and fast asleep.