Hermione's heart pounded in her chest as she hurried through the snow towards the sound of commotion, Ron a step in front of her. The Weasley cousins were gathered around the side of the shed, most laughing at whatever, or whoever, was in the middle. Only Victoire and Teddy looked panicked, watching the adults with wide eyes as they approached.
Ron broke through the crowd to reach Hugo seconds before Hermione did. His tongue was stuck to the gunmetal-coloured surface of the shed as he made various attempts at yelling, none of them coming out quite as he'd like. Hermione watched Ron tug out his wand and perform a brief spell, freeing Hugo only to have the boy burst into tears. As he collapsed into Ron's arms, Hermione turned towards the children, most of them now scarily quiet as they stared up about her.
"What happened?" she asked, crossing her arms against her chest.
The silence hung in the air, but Hermione quickly zeroed in on her daughter. Rose was fidgeting more than the other kids, and when James reached out to poke at her back, she glared at him but didn't otherwise accuse him or the others of being the masterminds behind Hugo's predicament.
"It was just supposed to be a joke," Rose said, looking at the ground. "His tongue wasn't supposed to actually get stuck to the metal."
"You didn't think his tongue would get stuck to metal in this kind of weather?" Hermione asked, motioning at the wintry skies. Flurries were still coming down around them, dusting the children with flakes.
Rose merely shrugged in response, looking up at her mother for the first time.
"Erm… oops?"
Hermione closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths before she did something she would regret later.
"Let's go," she said, making Rose cringe.
"But it's only two," Rose whined as Hermione began ushering her back towards the Burrow.
"I don't care what time it is," Hermione shot back, looking over her shoulder to see Ron following them with a still distraught Hugo in tow. "We're going home right now, and that's not my fault. Get a move on."
Rose went, grumbling the whole way about how she shouldn't be punished for something that was an accident.
The silence of their house was broken the second they tumbled through the fireplace. Hugo's sobs were only drowned out by Rose's loud and insistent protests over the idea of being punished.
"Rose," Ron said in a low voice that nonetheless quieted Rose instantly, "go to your room. We'll discuss your punishment later."
Rose obeyed, stomping her feet up the stairs and muttering, "Going to my room is a punishment. Discuss it later. Sure."
Hermione rubbed at her forehead. She was already dreading that talk, but Hugo's cries were impossible to ignore at the moment. Though he was physically fine, the shock of it all had been too much. He clung to Ron's robes in a desperate plea not to be sat down.
"It's all right," Ron said softly, bouncing Hugo up and down and patting his back.
Hugo babbled back hardly distinguishable words about his cousins laughing at him. Ron's frown deepened, prompting Hermione to step forward and place a hand against his back as she did the same for Hugo.
"Your cousins love you," she said, pressing a kiss to the back of Hugo's head. "They wanted to have fun, and they didn't do it in a good way. But they love you."
Hugo lifted his head from Ron's chest just far enough to glare at her. His eyes were rimmed in red.
"And they'll be told off by their parents," Ron said, "so on the bright side, you're the only one not getting punished today."
Hermione pinched him in the side, but the words earned a giggle from Hugo, who squirmed to be put down. Ron obeyed, and they watched as Hugo, cheeks still stained from his tears, toddled upstairs to go play by himself.
Hermione watched him go with a frown.
"I can't believe she did that," she said. "And all of his cousins laughing at him. He'll start thinking poorly of himself."
Ron shrugged before wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close.
"It'll be fine," he said. "There were plenty of times I got laughed at as a kid. I reckon Hugo has it easy in comparison. Rose is no Fred and George."
"That doesn't make me feel better."
Ron's arms tightened around her, and he pressed a kiss to her forehead. She wrapped her own arms around his waist too, taking it all in.
Prompts:
HPFC
OTP Boot Camp: Ron/Hermione - snow
Hogwarts Challenges and Assignments
Seasonal - Days of the Year: Humiliation Day - Write about someone being humiliated.
Seasonal - Winter Prompts: (word) wintry
Seasonal - Colour Prompts: gunmetal
Seasonal - Birthstones: turquoise - (dialogue) "Erm...oops?"
Word count: 771
