"Daddy, Hugo and I are hungry," said little Rose Weasley as she came into her parents' study.
"Alright, what would you like?" asked Ron, he stood up as soon as his five year old son stumbled into the room.
"Mummy's macaroni and cheese, please!" said Rose as her father, brother and herself made their way to the kitchen.
Mummy's macaroni and cheese, Rose's voice echoed inside Ron's ears. Ron began to feel the nervousness in his stomach.
Hermione never used magic when she was in the kitchen, not even to get ingredients from the pantry – that's why her cooking tasted so much better to Ron. He was never good in the kitchen without magic, he was never taught. So Ron always cooked with magic, unless Hermione was there to guide him.
"Daddy, what do we need from the pantry?" asked Hugo, already halfway inside it.
"Macaroni, of course," said Rose matter-of-factly, then sticking her tongue at her brother playfully.
"I know that," muttered Hugo, he rolled her eyes at his know-it-all sister, but then stuck his tongue at her playfully as well.
Ron sighed and ran his hand through the ginger hair he shared with both his children. Rose already seemed to know all the ingredients they would need for Hermione's macaroni and cheese, she practically bossed Hugo around to get all of them.
"How much water do we need in the pot, Daddy?" Ron heard Rose ask.
He shook his head out of this thoughts and replied quickly before his children started to waste water, "How about, while I boil the water, you two wash up and set the table, so we can surprise Mummy when she gets home."
The idea of surprising their mother after a usually stress-filled day at work had Rose and Hugo grinning from ear to ear.
Ron was nervously hovering over the stove as his children were in the loo washing up, he had almost forgotten to add salt and cooking oil to the water, but didn't. Macaroni and cheese was the first dish Hermione taught Ron to cook, it was the easiest she could think of and she figured it would be easier for him to remember the few steps it had.
Several minutes of stirring passed and the macaroni was cooked. As Rose and Hugo began to set the dinner table for four, Ron drained the water from the pot and after the table was set, he let his children help him complete Hermione's macaroni and cheese. He grated the cheese and cut a fourth of a small block of butter and after Rose and Hugo added the cheese, the butter and a half cup of milk, the three of them stirred the contents of the pot together.
"Yay, I can't wait until Mummy gets home, she'll be so impressed!" said Rose excitedly. Hugo was just as excited, but mostly because he couldn't wait to eat and Ron couldn't wait to be rewarded with proud kisses from his wife.
"No need to wait much longer," said Hermione coming into the kitchen to the delicious smell. She had been home for a while, watching her husband and children prepare dinner for her.
"Mione, when did you get home?" asked Ron, shocked that he hadn't heard her floo in.
"Just in time to watch all of you finish this delicious smelling dish!" Hermione gifted her daughter and son with forehead kisses, then she brought the pot over to the dinner table and served the four of them.
After dinner, Ron and Hermione cleaned the kitchen and washed the dishes without magic. After everything was cleaned, Hermione turned to face her husband with a smile playing around her lips.
"That was absolutely delicious and I am so proud of you," said Hermione before pulling Ron into her for his well-deserved kiss.
He was going to have to learn to cook more dishes without magic if he wanted her to shower him with praises of kisses again, but Ron didn't seem to mind one bit.