The usual disclaimer applies. I own nothing and make nothing.

Chapter 1

Hermione placed the sleeping baby on the sofa in her sitting room, and then quickly did an Evanesco on her now-ruined blouse. Although she had finally gotten used to the nauseating after-effects of using a Portkey, Ares had not been so fortunate.

She glanced around the room and realised there was plenty that she would have to change to make it ready for a baby. It was a very small flat, only four rooms, but, then again, she had originally only planned on having it for a few months. There was barely enough room for her own possessions, let alone all the things she would need for a baby. Other than the handful of nappies and bottles in his diaper bag, she had nothing for him. He would need formula, bottles, clothes, more nappies, and as she looked towards her own bed, she remembered he would need a bed as well.

She sat down on the sofa as quietly as she could, trying to keep from waking him up. As she leaned her head back to try and relax, she couldn't help but think about how drastically her life had changed in just a month.

Her initial plan was to visit her parents and reverse the memory charm, if at all possible. She had arrived in Perth almost a month ago and had spent the first few days trying to find a current address. Once she found the house, she was surprised to find a 'For Sale' sign in the yard and no sign of anyone living at that address. It had taken another two days to find out that they had recently died in a car accident. She barely had any time to grieve when she found out their son, a son that she did not even know existed, had survived the crash and been put in foster care.

She was just about to fall asleep when she heard the faint whimpers coming from Ares. Opening the diaper bag, she quickly pulled out a bottle and a clean nappy. She changed him, and had begun to feed him when she heard her floo activate.

"Hermione? Are you home?" The familiar and somewhat loud voice of Ron Weasley echoed into her sitting room.

She carefully walked over to the fireplace, trying not to wake Ares as she sat on the floor to answer the floo-call. "Yes, Ron. I just got home an hour or so ago. How did you know I was back?"

"Oh, it was Percy. I guess since you were gone you wouldn't know he works for the Department of International Travel. He approved your Portkey to come back home. Can I come over and talk?"

"It's been a long and complicated trip; can I talk to you tomorrow?" They had not spoken since she left for Australia over a month ago, and as tired as she was, she didn't see any conversation involving a baby going over well with him.

"Uh, sure I guess. It's just that I've really missed you," he spoke much softer this time.

"I've missed you too, Ron. But so much has happened since I left, and I really need to get some sleep before we talk. Why don't you come over for breakfast tomorrow? Nine o'clock?"

"Okay, I'll see you then," and she watched as his head disappeared from the fire.

She carefully stood up and carried a still-sleeping Ares towards her bedroom. She looked around her room for a suitable piece of furniture to temporarily transfigure into a portable cot. Transfiguring a baby cot wasn't probably the safest thing to do since a Finite would be all that was needed to change it back, but it would have to do for tonight.

Gently placing him in the cot that she had transfigured from a small chest, Hermione covered him with a small blanket. She pulled off her blouse and as she started to remove her jeans, she remembered the small shrunken box in the pocket. She carefully put it on her dresser. She would wait until tomorrow to open it. It would be too painful too look at tonight. She pulled on her nightgown and then looked over at Ares one last time. As she watched him sleep, she couldn't help but think how having him was going to change her life forever.

'Please let Ron understand' was her last thought as she climbed into bed and sleep overtook her.

-ooOOoo-

Hermione felt like she had just fallen asleep when she heard the cooing and babbling coming from Ares. Casting a quick Tempus charm, she was surprised that it wasn't even seven in the morning. She looked over into the cot and saw a smiling Ares looking back up at her. As tired as she was, she still couldn't help but smile back when she looked at him. Looking at him was almost like looking at her own baby pictures. His resemblance to her was uncanny, except for the difference in eye colour. Whereas she had her mum's brown eyes, Ares eyes seemed to be more gray like her father's.

She softly padded into the kitchen holding him snugly against her shoulder. She pulled the last bottle out of the fridge and gently cast a warming charm on it before giving it to him.

When he was fed and bathed, she laid him on a blanket so she could get dressed before Ron arrived. She had just finished tying her trainers when the floo activated. 'Damn, I haven't even started breakfast,' she thought as she raced into the sitting room, leaving Ares in the cot in her bedroom.

"Hermione!" He almost shouted at her as he stepped out of the floo. "I've missed you so much," he spoke into her neck, his hands running through her curls and then pulling her forward into a passionate kiss.

"I missed you too," she responded somewhat breathless after the kiss. "Let's go sit on the sofa. I have a lot to tell you. I-." But almost as if on cue, Ares started crying before she could even start the next sentence.

"Whose baby is that, Hermione?" His expression would have been almost comical, if the situation hadn't been so serious.

"Let me get him, and then we will talk."

She returned from her bedroom holding Ares, who was now perfectly awake. Ron looked at him and couldn't help the gasp that escaped.

"He- he looks just like you, Hermione."

"I guess he should look like me. He is my brother." She gently sat the baby upright so that Ron could see him better. "Ron, this is Ares. Right now his last name is Wilkins, but I am going to try and get it changed to Granger." She gently stroked his soft curls as she spoke. "He is three months old."

Ron was perfectly still as he watched the baby, not speaking for several minutes. "Why do you have him? Why isn't he with your parents?"

Hermione's smile faded, and she couldn't help the tears that started to fall. "When I went to get my parents, I found out that they had died in an automobile accident about three weeks prior to my arrival. Stupid drunk driver..." she muttered as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I went to the courthouse to get more information, and I found out that they had a son just a couple of months earlier. Then I spent a few days trying to find him. I finally found him in a foster home since my parents had no next of kin listed." She pulled Ares into a hug to try and calm her emotions. "I-I couldn't leave him there. I forged some documents and did a few spells so that I could get custody of him as his next of kin."

Ron's eyebrows shot up as she had finished speaking. "You're going to raise him? Hermione, you are only eighteen. How are you going to work for the Ministry and take care of a baby?"

"I'm not sure Ron, but I'll make it work. I hadn't planned on working yet; I was hoping to go back to Hogwarts and redo my seventh year so I could sit my N.E.W.T.s. But now... I'm not real sure. I thought about asking Professor McGonagall, I guess she is Headmistress now, about sitting my N.E.W.T.s early so I can look for a job."

He looked at the baby and then back at her. He started running his hands through his hair in a nervous manner. "Isn't there someone else who can take him? Don't you have cousins or-or Aunts, or something?"

Hermione's jaw gaped open in surprise and anger. "I only have a couple of distant relatives, who I hardly know. I'm not about to let him be raised by strangers. Why do you think I pulled him out of foster care? He's my brother, Ron. I want to raise him!" Her voice got louder as she spoke.

"But what about us, Hermione? I thought that you wanted to be together! But with a baby...," he stopped talking as he stood up and started to pace the room. "This is just a lot to take in," he said a bit more calmly as he sat back down.

"We can still go out, Ron. I can get someone to watch the baby and -,"

"I just don't know, Hermione. I mean, we are going from me and you," he glanced at Hermione and then Ares, "to the three of us. I just don't know that I'm ready for all of this."

"Please, Ron. I know that this isn't going to be easy, but I really care about you. I want to make this work."

"I'll try. I just may need a little time, okay?" He gave her a sheepish smile and gently clasped her hand in his.

"That is all I'm asking for Ron. You'll see, everything will work out the way it is supposed to." She smiled back at him, glad to know he was trying.

Ron looked down at the sleeping baby, then back up at Hermione. "Blimey, Hermione. It really is scary how much he looks like you. All he needs to complete the look is a book in his little hands."

Hermione swatted at his shoulder. "That's not funny, Ron,"she said, but there was no malice in her voice. There were several moments of awkward silence before Ron shifted in his seat and cleared his throat.

Slowly standing, Ron headed towards the floo. "I really need to go now. I promised George that I would help him in the shop. He really needs the distraction now that- well, he just needs me to help."

"Okay. Tell George I said Hello." She leaned in to him, expecting a kiss as he was leaving. He tenderly kissed her on her forehead as he stepped into the floo.

Hermione had a small grimace as she watched the green flames die down. Although the conversation had gone a bit better than she had expected, the kiss on her forehead had left her feeling unsettled. Something between them had changed during the course of today's conversation, and she was pretty sure it wasn't for the better.

A/N...I wanted to get this up quickly, because the prologue isn't much to go on. But the rest will probably only be updated weekly at the earliest.

Again I want to thank onecelestialbeing for the alpha reading and ideas, and Meladara for both alpha and beta reading my story. It would hardly be presentable without their help.