Ron worked later than usual that night. He tied up some loose ends on a few cases he'd managed to close that week and got them filed away. He cleaned his desk, tossing out anything and everything he was certain he didn't need any more and took to restocking his quills, ink and parchment. It was all busy work; he could easily have asked Dennis to take care of it for him so he could leave but he was anxious about going home. His reaction to the news of Hermione's pregnancy was less than it could have been. Much less.

The previous evening, he arrived home and before he even opened the door, he could smell the meal. She'd been busy. It was his favorite; rosemary chicken with roasted potatoes. He opened the door and Rose ran up to him with open arms.

"Daddy!"

"Rosie Posey!" He scooped her up and kissed her cheeks. She rested her head on his shoulder and he carried her towards the scents coming from the kitchen.

"Something smells incredible, Mrs. Weasley." He said smiling when he turned the corner. Hermione was tending to a bowl of steamed green beans; seasoning them with olive oil, parsley and chopped garlic. She raised her eyes and smiled back.

"How was your day?" She asked adding some ground pepper to the bowl.

Ron shrugged. "Same old, same old. Dung Fletcher is at it again. I swear if he ever uses magic for something not even partially sneaky I'll eat a bowl of bubotuber puss."

Rose and Hermione wrinkled up their noses in identical disgusted expressions which made Ron laugh. He placed Rose down on her feet and she scrambled into her bedroom, returning moments later with her favorite doll and a book. She sat in the corner of the kitchen with the doll in her lap and babbled to herself, pretending to read the story.

"So, what's the occasion?" Ron asked, stepping behind Hermione and wrapping his arms around her waist. He sweetly kissed her cheek.

"Do I need a reason to spoil my husband?" She said sweetly.

"No…but something's up. You can't get anything past me. I'm an Auror, you know." He teased.

"After dinner. We'll talk." She replied, turning to face him. She put her arms around his neck and he eyed her suspiciously. A large banging noise from the living room made Ron jump.

"Uh-oh! Daddy!" Rose's voice called out. Ron chuckled and headed off to see what happened. Hermione sprinkled some salt into the bowl of green beans and gave it one final stir before putting it into the refrigerator. As she shut the door, she rubbed her hand over her stomach. Her secret was growing every second, she felt ready to burst.

After dinner, Hermione gave Rose a bath while Ron cleared the dishes. Life was pretty close to perfect. He had a beautiful wife, a beautiful daughter, a fantastic job and he wouldn't change a single thing. He heard Hermione's voice coming from Rose's room – their bed time ritual. Five books of Rose's choosing and three big kisses from each of them. Ron relished his one-on-one time with Rose. She was so funny, so bright; he wouldn't trade fatherhood for the world. He listened closely, waiting for his cue to bring Rose's bedtime bottle of juice but it never came. He finished with the dishes and flopped onto the sofa, wondering why Hermione was taking so long.

When she finally emerged from Rose's room, she was tiptoeing, the signal that Rose was tucked into bed and they had to keep quiet for at least 20 minutes to make sure she was out. After that first 20 minutes, an air raid siren could go off and Rose would sleep right through it. Ron puzzled at Hermione's deviation to their nightly ritual and she put a finger across her lips and winked. She cuddled in next to him and he put his arm around her shoulder. He glanced up at the clock and saw the 20 minute window had elapsed so he assumed it would be safe to talk.

"No stories? No goodnight kisses?" He said, a little sadly; he'd grown accustomed to hearing Rose's little voice say 'Ruff you, Daddy!" as he turned the light out and closed her door.

"Not tonight. I'm sorry, I needed to talk to you." She fidgeted next to him in order to tuck her feet under her bum.

"That sounds…ominous."

Hermione tossed her head back with a hearty laugh, it made Ron even more nervous.

"I'm not that funny Hermione. I did use the right word, right? Ominous? It means I think you're going to tell me awful news?"

"You are funny, my love." She kissed him sweetly. "And yes, you used the word properly but this isn't bad news." She smirked.

Ron nodded his head and smiled nervously. "Well, out with it…" He said smiling.

"You're going to be a Daddy again!" She exclaimed after a couple moments of silence. She laughed and clasped her hands in front of her. Ron shook his head.

"A Daddy…again? When did I stop being a Daddy?" He puzzled. It truly did not occur to him.

"Oh, don't be thick, Ron!" Hermione teased. She took his hand, placed it on her belly and waited. Ron's eyes bulged out.

"You don't mean…" He searched her face for the joke but all he saw was complete seriousness. "Fuck." He concluded.

"What? You're not excited?" She dropped his hand and stood up, crossing her arms over her stomach.

What followed, was not Ron's proudest moment. He told her he felt blindsided by the news. She yelled back that she couldn't understand why, since they'd been trying for two months.

"What do you mean, we've been trying for two bloody months?!" Ron shouted, it was news to him. Hermione turned away from him, he jumped off the sofa and followed her.

"What do you mean 'what do I mean'?! We've been shagging twice a day for two months, Ron!"

"I just thought you wanted to shag me more." He said, shoving his hands in his pockets. Hermione rolled her eyes.

Hermione sniffled and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. "I thought you'd be excited." She whispered. "I'm completely underwhelmed by this response, Ronald."

"Fuck." Ron thought. It was never good for him when she called him 'Ronald' in that tone of voice. Hermione said his name in many different ways; some were sexy, some were terrifying. That flat, emotionless tone meant that she was going to want to be alone. He knew she wasn't going to cry, she was just going to sulk and stew; marinating in her disappointment.

The rest of the evening went about as well as one would expect. Hermione closed herself up in their bedroom with a book and Ron stared blankly at the television. Although he had come across as angry, that emotion was perhaps never farther from his mind. He was scared as hell. All of his insecurities about being a father returned as if they'd never faded away. Two kids. Twice the crying. Twice the little toys everywhere. At least two more years of dirty nappies. He panicked at the thought of Rose – what if she felt the new baby was replacing her? What if she felt neglected because of the wrinkly little interloper? His racing pulse pounded in his temples. His heart was so full of love; for Hermione and Rose. How could he possibly have anything left for a second child?

Somewhere around midnight he got up and checked the bedroom door. It wasn't locked like he expected it to be but when he peeked inside he saw Hermione was awake, still with her eyeballs glued to the pages of her book. She looked up at him briefly only to mark her page, turn the light out and roll onto her side. He didn't want to poke the bear by getting into bed next to her, he decided it might be a better idea to give her space.

"I'll sleep out here." He said quietly, Hermione didn't respond.

Ron's racing mind kept him awake for much of the night. His internal conversation went on and on.

You're being a prick.

I know.

You should be overjoyed.

I'm getting excited about it.

Liar.

Oh, fuck off – I am!

You should have been excited from the start.

She caught me off-guard.

It's called a surprise, you tit.

I should go wake her up and tell her I'm excited.

Not such a good idea.

Yeah, better to let her sleep. Fuck, I'm an idiot.

You're being too hard on yourself.

Am I?

No, actually. You are an idiot.

Two kids.

Your parents raised seven.

Perish the thought. But what about money…

Your parents did it on much less.

True.

Did you really only want one?

I don't know…I never thought about how many we'd have.

Time to get used to the idea.