Full Summary: Hugo and Rose had come to clean out the attic of their parents' house. They expected to find old toys and discarded inventions. What they found instead was their parents' love story

Chapter 6: Growing Up

Pairing: Hugo, Rose, Ron x Hermione

Rating: T to M to E and back again (for the whole story)

Chapter Summary: Rose and Hugo are beginning to wonder if their parents will ever take the next step in their relationship. Can Ron gather up the courage to ask Hermione to take a risk?

Papers float in the wind

Choices made and actions forgotten

Trusting her greatest adventure

Building hope with him

Hugo looked around the sitting room at his parents' house. Stacks of letters were on the coffee table and two trunks sat, open, in the middle of the floor. It was hard to imagine those two battered and repaired trunks held the greatest treasure he had ever found.

"Earth to Huggie," Rose teased as she brought a tray full of sandwiches and lemonade into the room. "What has you so deep in thought? This has been an adventure so far."

"I know, Rosie," Hugo took the tray from his sister and looked for a place to set it down. "I just never imagined they could be anything other than we always knew. But, at the same time, so many things make sense now."

"It is strange to see them fight," Rose sighed as she sunk onto the couch. "It is also good to see them make up. The letters are strange extra pieces in a puzzle I didn't know was missing pieces."

"Lunch then letters," Hugo said as he set down the tray and grabbed a sandwich. "I need fuel before I read more of Dad trying to win back Mum."

"Or Mum win back Dad," Rose giggled as she picked up a new picture. "Look, Crookshanks does not look like he wants to be petted."

"Time to tackle another packet," Hugo pulled a bundle of letters from Hermione's trunk. "Lucky bundle number six tied with a blue ribbon. What secrets do you hold?"

"Hopefully, what made Mum take him back," Rose's voice floated up from the depths of Ron's trunk. "Bundle number six needs to get closer to putting them together or I may not be born …"

"Here we go down the rabbit hole," Hugo opened the first letter from packet six. "Pansy, What do I do now …"

Hermione looked around her flat. Ron was everywhere and it felt right. She found a sock under the couch yesterday when she was cleaning and he was supposed to be at the flat soon for dinner. He had already owled to let her know he might be late, but not by much. "Don't disappointment me, Ronald," Hermione whispered as she put plates on the table. He hadn't so far.

Since the night they had fallen asleep on the couch, Ron and Hermione had spent most evening together. Ron usually brought dinner to her flat and they enjoyed evening together. Weekends were spent at his flat or at the Burrow. They each slept in their own flats and took time to be with their friends. It was busy but almost perfect. Hermione had adjusted her work hours so she could be home by the time Ron was done at the store and he didn't huff (much) when she had to do an hour of paperwork after dinner. They were learning to balance work and personal. It felt good.

Hermione was startled by the flash of green in the Floo. "You're here early! Dinner is not done yet," Hermione rushed to the Floo to hug Ron.

"George threw me out of the lab because I kept looking at the clock," Ron mumbled. "I still have design work to do in the new Christmas ornament charms."

"Blueprints or prototypes," Hermione asked, taking his coat from him. "We can look over blueprints and possible spells after dinner."

You don't mind?" Ron looked surprised as she kissed him on the cheek. "What George wants to do with this thing is not making any sense."

"Come, eat," Hermione pulled Ron into the kitchen and sat him at the table. "I'm sure we can figure something out. Just like last week when you helped me with my new case."

Ron spent dinner explaining what George wanted to do with this year's Christmas ornament charm. Hermione listened and asked questions and took notes. By the end of dinner, Ron had sketched out a plan and written a list of spells and charms to look into to make the idea work. "Are you sure you don't want to come work for George and me in R&D?" Ron asked as they took the dishes to the sink.

"As much as I enjoy helping you like this, I love my job at MLE," Hermione kissed his cheek as she set the cleaning spell to work on the dirty dishes. "Besides, I hear the bosses are terrors that never let anyone leave and insist that nothing is ever do right."

"George is a tyrant," Ron pondered as he led Hermione to the sitting room. "But, I have heard the other bloke is not half bad."

"I heard he is a hunchback that never leaves the lab and growls at small children," Hermione began to laugh as she dropped onto the couch. "I hear his employees run in fear when they see him coming."

"Mione, not true," Ron pulled her on to his lap as he found a spot on the couch. "He does come out for dinner and only growls at small children when they interrupt his nap."

Wrapping her arms around Ron's shoulders, Hermione peppered kisses along Ron's jaw. "So who should I believe about the working conditions? The hunchback or the employees?"

"The hunchback," Ron ran his hands up and down her arms. "He is a reasonable man that has learned to break away from his desk. It scares George and so he spreads lies."

Ron turned his head and caught Hermione's lips in a gentle kiss. "Enough talk about work. Time to think about other things."

Hermione sighed as the kiss ended. "What am I going to do with you Ronald?"

"Love me, Mione," Ron whispered against Hermione's kin. "Love me forever."

Hugo looked up from the letter he finished reading. "Dad, the charmer? I am so confused."

"Mum always warned about judging a book by its cover," Rose reached for the first letter in her packet. "I guess Dad could be when he needed to be. Mum always said he had an amazing ability with charms."

"Creating charms is one thing, using them is another," Hugo shuttered as he set down the letter he had been reading. "I do not want to think about our father 'charming' our mother … EVER … EWWW."

"Why not, Huggie? I think it is cute," Rose began to read the letter she had picked up. "George, I need your help …"

Ron was floating. Well, he at least felt lighter. Spending time with Hermione was getting better each day. Last night had been eye opening. He had forgotten how fun it could be to watch Hermione work through a problem. But he wanted more. He wanted to not go to his flat at the end of the evening. He wanted to fall asleep with her and wake up with her. He wanted it all, again.

Hermione was still running scared. He knew she was running scared because she got nervous every time he talked about staying over. It was like she was still afraid she would shatter if she let go of that last barrier. He need to show her that he wasn't going anywhere. But he was going to need George's help and a LOT of luck.

He was going to get scars from this one. Not like scars were something new for Ron. His hands were covered in them for the work he had done for most of his life. He was going to show Hermione exactly what him loving her meant. The skin on his hands might be the sacrifice but George had promised him that the charms would work once he got them set up. Ron was going to tell a story and break down the last walls around her heart or he was going to crash and burn. George had better be right about this.

Hermione looked at the invitation that had just been delivered by Pigwidgen. "Mione. I need to show you something. Meet me at the pond tomorrow night. Ron" What was he up to?

Hermione was beginning to worry about Ron. He seemed so determined to show her he could put her first, he was wearing himself thin. She had talked to George and found out that Ron was coming in early so he could leave to get to her by dinner. Ron had fallen asleep on the couch three nights this week. She loved being curled up with him, but she was starting to worry. It was time to turn the tables on Ron. She needed to take care of him, instead of him always taking care of her.

Operation: Rest Freckles was about to begin. Ginny was her spy and George was supposed to be helping. George's idea of helping was not always the best thing, but Hermione need to get Ron out of the lab and back to his flat. She had wizard to take care of. She still needed to meet Ron at the pond tonight but she was ready to break down the last wall around her heart. Now all she had to do was tell Ron.

Ron looked over the scaffold set up across the pond from Hermione's favorite spot. His hands were covered in blisters from hanging the charms in the proper order along the scaffolding. He could have used magic, but this was something he needed to do with his own hands. When deciding to hand your heart to the love of your life without asking for hers, one should do the work with his own hands and have scars to tell the stories for the rest of his life. If the charms worked the way George said they would, Ron would be tracking a path through their relationship and asking her to share a home with him. His lease was up in a few weeks and he had found a cottage for them to share, if she said yes. Even if she didn't say yes, he was buying that cottage and not giving up. He wanted to build something with her and he needed to show her that she was everything to him.

Hermione meet Ron at their spot by the pond near the Burrow. Ron was nervous. If this didn't work, he was living in a three-bedroom cottage with two bathrooms and a big back yard by himself. "What's going on Ron?" Hermione asked as he shuffled his feet nervously.

"Just sit with me and watch the sunset, Mione," Ron tucked her under his shoulder. "I just want to watch the sun set."

"Okay, we can sit," Hermione settled onto the cushions that had appeared at their feet. "I love watching sunsets here. This pond has always been special."

Ron settled beside Hermione and wrapped her in a blanket and his arms. "I can't imagine being anywhere else, Mione." He kissed her forehead as they settled together and watched the sun dip below the horizon.

"Lumos praeteritum praesens futurum," Ron whispered as he pointed his wand towards the sun set. The scaffolding he and George had made came to life. Ron had picked moments from their time at Hogwarts, the years right after the War and their careers. Their memories filled the dying light and traced their relationship, good and bad, perfect and imperfect. The last charms were the most important, they were the ones that held the key to his future. Hermione gasped as she saw images of the door to her flat and Ron's flat melt together and form the door of the cottage Ron had found. Ron tipped her chin up as the last of the charms faded. "Mione, please, stay with me. Fall asleep with me and wake up with me. Let me in. You own me heart and soul."

Hermione reached up and placed her hand along Ron's cheek. Gently kissing his trembling lips, Hermione whispered "How soon can I see our home?"

Hugo and Rose watched the charms melt two doors into one. "Dad sure knew how to ask a question," Hugo turned the picture over. "Look what he wrote on the back of this."

Rose leaned over and read the inscription. "Asking her to move in with me was even scarier than facing the Dark Lord … I'll never get my heart back."

Scars silvered over time

Choices made and actions forgotten

Trusting his greatest adventure

Building hope with her

Rose handed Hugo the next letter in his packet. "Mum always said Dad could make a charm for any occasion, but that display was incredible. I would of had trouble saying 'No' to him at that point."

"I'm still curious about Operation: Rest Freckles," Hugo laughed. "What was Mum thinking? Getting Uncle George to help with anything was a dangerous idea."

"It seemed to have worked out for Dad," Rose looked at the picture on the top of her next letter. "Wonder what this has to do with Mum's plans. It is a picture of Dad asleep in a pile of blankets and pillows and its titled Mission Accomplished."

"I have no idea," Hugo looked down at the letter in his lap. "Ginny, Operation: Rest Freckles is going to happen…"

Hermione looked around the sitting room of her flat. The last of the boxes had been packed and were sitting by the Floo waiting to be sent to their house. That part was still strange to say. She and Ron had bought a house together. The had signed the papers a few hours ago and Ron was at the lab finishing up some work so they could have tomorrow and the weekend free to move their things and settle in. It was a perfect time to put her plan into motion.

George had created the lab 'mishap' that Ron was working on and Ginny was meeting her at the cottage. Time to set up his surprise.

Hermione looked around the empty sitting room. There were candles around the room and a nest of blankets and pillows in the middle of the floor. The food was warming in the oven and the table had been set. Now all she had to do was get Ron here. She had sent Pigwidgen with a note asking Ron to Floo to the cottage when he was finished at work and George had just sent her a message that Ron was getting ready to leave. Time to get to work.

Ron was surprised by Hermione's note asking him to meet her at the cottage. They were supposed to start moving stuff there tomorrow but he was not about to ask any more questions. This week had been long. George seemed to have found more bugs than fixes on every project they were working on. Ron was tired. He was looking forward to taking the whole weekend to do nothing but move and unpack. He was going to have to talk to George about dividing up some of the work hours because he could not keep working the early mornings. Hermione hadn't noticed him going in early when they were living in separate flats, but she was going to notice after this weekend. As Ron stepped into the Floo, he decided that it was time to add some staff to the lab and let a few talented wizards and witches try their hand at parts of his job.

"Hello, anybody home." Ron stepped out of the Floo and into the kitchen of the cottage. The table was set and the food smelled delicious. "Mione, I'm home."

"Welcome home, Ronald," Hermione walked across the kitchen and kissed Ron on the cheek. "Time to start our first tradition. Dinner for two on Thursday night. No work, no worries, just us."

"Okay," Ron leaned down to steal a kiss before he shrugged off his jacket. "No work, no worries, just us and this delicious dinner."

Hermione guided Ron over to the table and watched him settle in at the head of the table. "Thank you," Hermione said as she sat down beside him. "Thank you for everything. Your faith, your love, our house, Everything."

"You don't have to thank me, Mione." Ron blushed as he looked into her eyes. "I can't imagine not being here with you. You are the best thing that ever happened to me. This journey is only starting and I can't imagine a better travel partner."

"I love you, Ronald Weasley," Hermione whispered as she leaned into Ron's shoulder. "Let's eat and then we can talk"

Dinner was a quiet affair. Ron and Hermione talked about things they wanted to do in the cottage and what they wanted to do when they finished moving in the boxes. When they had finished eating. Hermione levitated the dished to the sink and started the cleaning spell. "Dessert in the sitting room?" she asked as she got up from the table.

"I'd love too," Ron pushed away from the table and followed Hermione into the sitting room. "Looks like dessert is a picnic."

"Another tradition," Hermione sat down in the nest of blankets. "Cookies and kisses by the fire after dinner,"

"I think I can handle that tradition," Ron settled beside her in the blankets on the floor. "Kisses first."

Ron pulled Hermione into his embrace and traced a finger down her nose. Slowly, he lowered his lips to hers. Hermione soon forgot about the cookies and only thought of the kisses that were melting her heart.

"Thursday nights at the Burrow was never about spending time with Gran and Papa, was it?' Hugo looked up from the letter he had been reading. "Mum and Dad just wanted the house to themselves. I guess some traditions are worth keeping."

"Thursday nights were about keeping promises," Rose reached for the next letter in her stack. "Mum always said a tradition kept was a promise fulfilled. So now we know about their part of one of our favorite traditions."

"It also explains why Dad laughed every time we asked to eat cookies by the fire after dinner," Hugo picked up the picture of Ron again. "But it still does not explain this picture. What was Mum up to?"

"I think she was just trying to take care of him the way he had been taking care of her," Rose started to read the letter she had picked up from the stack. "Harry, I didn't think

I could love her more than I did yesterday …"

Ron was in heaven. He had his favorite witch at his side and she was relaxed in his arms. What more could a wizard want?

"Ron, lay down and relax," Hermione said as she shifted in the nest of blankets they had been enjoying. "Let me rub the knots from your shoulders. You have been spending too much time at the lab."

Ron rolled onto his stomach. "Has George been telling on me. I just wanted to get work done so we could spend time together in the evenings."

"I know, love," Hermione began to massage Ron's shoulders. "But there is getting work done and then there is working yourself to death. Going in early so you can work a ten-hour day is still working yourself too hard."

"Someone needs to keep his big mouth shut about when I get in to work." Ron rolled over and pulled Hermione down to his chest. "No more talking about work. More cookies and kissing."

Ron began to nibble a trail from Hermione's ear to her shoulder. "I think it is your turn to relax, my dear. And get a little more comfortable."

Ron's fingers moved to the waist of Hermione's trousers as he continued to nibble at her skin. "This jumper must be terribly hot. Let me help you take it off so you will be more comfortable."

Pulling away from where she was laying on Ron's chest, Hermione let Ron pull her jumper off. As her jumper fell to the floor, Hermione began to play with the buttons on the front of Ron's shirt. "This shirt looks terribly uncomfortable. Let me help you take it off."

Ron watched as Hermione's nibble fingers freed all of his buttons from their holes and traced a path back up to his chest. Her feather soft touch left a trail of fire that ran straight to his soul. "I love the way you touch me," Ron groaned as Hermione continued to trace fire across his skin.

"I love the way you look at me," Hermione replied as she traced kisses over Ron's bare chest. "I feel like the only person in the room when you look at me."

"That's because you are the only person I care to see in the room," Ron pulled Hermione down to his mouth and nibbled at her lips. "Less talking, more kissing."

Ron rolled them over so that he was cradled in between Hermione's legs. He left a trail of kisses along her collarbone and down the outline of her bra. Hermione forgot how to breathe as Ron sucked her lace covered nipple into his mouth. Time seemed to stop as they explored each other's bodies with eager finger and tongues. Clothes disappeared and bodies melted together as Ron and Hermione created yet another tradition, whispers and satisfaction by the fire.

Sleepy and satisfied, Hermione tucked blankets around Ron and settled her head on his chest. "Sweet dreams, Freckles. Take care of my heart because it is yours always."

Hugo looked out the window as Rose finished ready the last letter in Ron's packet. "I think it is time to turn in for the night. I'm glad they finally found a way to balance everything. I can't imagine them not being together and now I don't have to."

"I never thought about where some of our family traditions came from." Rose stood and stretched as she laid the letter she had been reading back on its proper stack. "I'm glad we are doing this. Mum and Dad don't feel so far away anymore."

"I know what you mean," Hugo hugged his sister and yawned. "I have an early morning at the store tomorrow. Do you want to wait until Saturday to tackle the next couple of sets?"

"That sounds like a good idea. Marcus and the girls want to go to Hyde Park tomorrow and I think we need the break."

Hugo stepped into the Floo. "Until Saturday, Rosie. Love you."

"Until Saturday, Huggie. Love you." Rose whispered as she watched the green smoke clear and stepped into the Floo to head home to her own traditions.

And I'd choose you; in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality,

I'd find you and I'd choose you.

-Kiersten White