Disclaimer: All characters and things associated with Harry Potter belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers. This writing is for pure entertainment only.

Summary: Set right after the Second Wizarding War. Harry and Ron have just become Auror's, and Harry has taken Teddy into his home. But when Harry goes missing, who is left to take care of Teddy? Ron, with the help of Hermione, is forced to pick up the broken pieces, bringing the new couple only closer together.

CHAPTER 10

Two weeks had passed since Ron had said goodbye to Hermione and taken Teddy back to Grimmauld Place, and Ron had to admit, he was getting the hang of things with Teddy. He still wasn't great at changing nappies, but he had managed to get Teddy to calm down and sleep a bit.

That morning, in particular, Teddy had been great, sleeping in until nearly seven in the morning, which Ron realized was something he would have to be grateful for. Even now, Teddy was playing on the floor under some muggle toy rug Harry had got for him, with toys hanging over his head.

Ron didn't necessary understand the muggle toy, but it kept Teddy quiet enough while Ron made himself breakfast.

Suddenly, an owl flew into the window, and Ron immediately recognized the scrappy little thing as his own owl, pig.

"Bloody hell, woman…" Ron grunted, letting pig in with the letter he knew was from Hermione. She had written him at least once a day if not more since she had returned to Hogwarts, and quite frankly, he was running out of things to say to her since he couldn't tell her about the majority of his day, which was spent taking care of Teddy.

Teddy gurgled and Ron turned to grin at the baby, taking the letter from Pig and waving it so Teddy could see.

"That's right, its Hermione again…" Ron said, opening the letter and reading over it.

Dear Ron,

I hope your week is going well. You seemed a little short in your last letter. I am worried about you. How are your parents holding up? Has Kingsley heard any word about Harry or Ginny?

I would really like to see you soon. Its been nearly three weeks, and given everything else going on, I wish you would find some time to come up here and see me, or meet me in Hogsmeade next weekend.

I am just as worried as you are, and feeling the same pressure. Please don't forget that I love you and I want to be here for you.

Love always,

Hermione

"Bloody hell, Teddy…she wants me to come to Hogsmeade. How can I possibly do that with you? Can't just drag you up there…" Ron sighed, putting Hermione's letter down. He hated worrying her like this, and he knew she was starting to question their relationship, which was something he never wanted her to do. He didn't know how much longer he could go on lying.

Before Ron could think of a proper response to Hermione's letter, however, another owl, this time a large barn owl that Ron recognized as one from the Ministry came in the window, dropping a letter.

Ron picked the letter up and scanned it quickly, putting it down with another sigh.

"And this one is from Kingsley…seems I've got a case to work tomorrow." Ron told Teddy. "What in the bloody hell do I do with you?"

Teddy waved his arms in the air and gave a slight grin at Ron.

"Yeah, I think you're right, Teddy. I think Uncle George would love to see you too…" Ron said as he moved back to his breakfast, knowing George was the only person who could help Ron with Teddy right now.

Hermione sighed, pacing back and forth in the Gryffindor common room. She had sent Ron's owl early that morning, and now it was long after breakfast. She did not understand why he wouldn't have responded by now. Was something wrong?

"Hermione? You alright?" Neville Longbottom asked from the bottom step of the boys dormitory.

Hermione snapped her head up, giving a fake smile. "Fine, Neville. Why?"

"Because I've been watching you pace for a good five minutes…" Neville told her.

"Oh…" Hermione's cheeks grew red. She had been caught.

"So, what's wrong?" Neville asked.

Hermione shrugged. "Its just…well…its Ron…"

"What about Ron?" Neville cocked an eyebrow, obviously regretting he had asked now.

"Well…he's just been…distant I guess. The past few owls I sent him—" Hermione started.

"Well, he's probably just busy. He and Harry did just start being Aurors…and he's probably worried about Ginny. You said she was pretty sick right?" Neville asked.

"Right…" Hermione nodded slowly, recalling the lie that had been told as to why Ginny was no longer in school.

"So, I'm sure that's all it is…" Neville said.

"No…I mean, maybe, but how he's been acting…its just not Ron. Its almost as if he's hiding something from me…I'm worried." Hermione admitted.

Neville shifted uncomfortably. He had little experience with all of this, but he wanted to be there for his friend. "I doubt you need to worry, Hermione. If something was really wrong, Ron would tell you…"

"Or he's too busy telling someone else." Pavati Patel said, as she and Seamus seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Hermione and Neville looked surprised to see her, and Hermione flinched slightly at the other girl's words.

"Sorry…I wasn't meaning to ease drop but…you guys didn't exactly get quiet when we got here." Pavati said.

"Well thanks for giving us your opinion, but I doubt Ron's seeing someone else…" Neville scoffed at the idea and was trying to ease the worry that momentarily surfaced on Hermione's face.

"Well, Pavati's got a point, if you think about it…" Seamus gave Hermione an apologetic look but proceeded on anyway. "I mean, Ron's a famous wizard…helped Harry defeat Voldemort."

"So did Hermione." Neville counter.

"I know that. But I'm sayin'. Lots 'o girls are probably linin' up for him now…what kinda seventeen year old doesn't like that?" Seamus said.

"Ron would never—" Hermione started quickly, but then realized, to her horror, she was actually worried he would cheat. Sure, he had told her a million times he loved her, but she didn't think she was anything special. Ron could certainly find someone more interesting, more…sexy.

"Hermione, come on. You know Ron better then that. You shouldn't even worry about it." Neville said, seeing the look of horror on Hermione's face.

Hermione snapped out of her thoughts and just gave Neville a simple nod before turning and heading up the stairs to the girl's dormitory. She was only briefly aware that Neville was now yelling at Seamus and Pavati, her thoughts still on Ron and all the possible things she now thought he could be hiding from her.

By the time Hermione reached the top of the stairs, her mind was set. She was going home. She was going to see Ron.

Ron carried Teddy in his one arm as he opened the door to George's shop with the other. He was getting much better with Teddy and much more confident in his actions with the baby. He assumed it was because he had spent over a month alone with the child, and still had yet to drop him once. Likewise, Teddy seemed to be getting used to Ron and fussed much less.

"George?" Ron called out.

"Here." George popped up from behind the counter. "What can I do for you, little brother?"

"A favor." Ron lifted his arm with Teddy slightly to indicate what the favor had to do with.

George sighed. "I watched him two nights ago…"

"For twenty minutes so I could run to the office." Ron rolled his eyes. "And anyway, this is important. I just got assigned a mission for tomorrow.

George rolled his eyes. "That mean's I will have him all day."

"George, its not like he's my bloody kid! Don't put this all on me! You said you'd help. That's why I didn't tell Hermione…if you want me to, I will. I mean, it seems silly to keep it from her..." Ron reminded him.

"You heard Kingsley and Mum and Dad...this needs to be between us. Not saying Hermione would run off and tell the world, but if anyone found out Harry or half or family was missin' it could mean trouble for the lot of us..." George reminded Ron.

"Well then take him so I don't tell anyone." Ron said simply.

"Fine, fine. I'll watch him tomorrow…but you need to get me everything I will need. I'm not even going to try and shop for him." George said.

"Fair enough." Ron shrugged. He could handle that; he had actually gotten quite better at going shopping for teddy over the past week or so. The first week had been trial and error, but now he was getting the hang of it.

"Good. Well…go do that now…and then you can drop him off later tonight or early tomorrow morning…" George said.

"I'll let you know which…and thanks. This is saving my butt…and probably my career." Ron admitted.

"Well, can't have you fail out of being an Auror on your first month, can we? It would give the Weasley's a bad name…" George teased.

Ron grinned and rolled his eyes as he gave his brother a wave goodbye and carried Teddy out of the shop and through Diagon Alley into Muggle London. He figured the muggle world actually had better toys and easier nappies to deal with then the Wizarding World so that was where he had done most of the shopping for Teddy. He was grateful now that Hermione had spent a large chunk of the summer exposing him to the Muggle World, because now he was much more confident in it.

Mr. Granger had left the Dentist office he shared with his wife for a quick lunch and a nice stroll around London. The weather was surprisingly nice, and he didn't want to waste the chance to enjoy it. However, he was finding it a little hard as his thoughts were plagued by something else.

Ever since Ron had stopped by to see Hermione off to school, Mr. Granger was having a hard time thinking about his daughter and her boyfriend. He had never hated Ron. Sometimes, he had a feeling his daughter's feelings for the redheaded Wizard clouded her judgment and he refused, no matter what Hermione said, to believe she had been the one to think of the idea to change her parents memories last year; something Mr. Granger was still struggling to get over.

So it wasn't that he disliked Ron he just had a hard time accepting the boy but now Ron had made it even harder. Mr. Granger could not shake the feeling that Ron was hiding something very important from his daughter and the last thing he wanted was Hermione hurt. He just wished he could figure out what it was Ron was hiding.

And as if someone had heard his wish, a certain red head, moving across the street suddenly caught Mr. Granger's attention. He recognized Ron immediately, but was shocked by the company Ron was keeping; a small baby in Ron's arms as he chatted up what looked like a sales girl outside a small shop. The girl was cooing at the baby and Ron was smiling at the pair.

The sight made Mr. Granger want to march across the street and knock Ron's two front teeth out. So that's what he was hiding? A baby?

Mr. Granger was not sure how Ron had kept the fact that he was a father hidden from Hermione, but he was sure that was what Ron had been hiding. It made sense now. No wonder Ron had seemed so distant and tired. He had a completely different life with another girl who wasn't Hermione.

Not knowing what to do quite yet, and not wanting Ron to see him before he had a plan, Mr. Granger quickly hurried back to his office.

The next day, Ron's mission had gone smoothly and before he could blink, the death eater they were after had been captured and he was standing back in Kingsley's office, not a scratch on him, as the Minster of Magic poured him a cup of fire whiskey and handed it to him.

"Still no word on Harry or Ginny, huh?" Ron asked.

Kingsley shook his head. "No…and Ron…I need to ask you something."

Ron glanced up, seeing the seriousness on Kingsley's face. It made him nervous. "Wh…what is it?"

"Your father had been gone from work for quite some time. I can't imagine he is still sitting at home worrying about Ginny…" Kingsley started carefully.

"Well, my mum…" Ron fumbled.

"I went to the Borrow, Ron. Doesn't look like anyone has been there for weeks." Kingsley said, matter-of-factly.

Ron felt his ears grow red. He was certain they were busted. "Oh…"

"Ron, where are your parents?" Kingsley asked.

Ron knew he couldn't lie to the Minister and so he decided it was best to tell the truth. "They went to find Ginny themselves…Mum and Dad…only George and I know."

Kingsley nodded slowly, moving around his desk and taking a seat. "I can't say I expected any less from Arthur or Molly…"

Ron just nodded, not sure what to say.

"Well, maybe its not a bad thing they are off searching as well…since we are seeming to have a bit of a hard time finding them. Its good you told no one else though." Kingsley nodded.

Ron nodded back. "That's what George keeps saying every time I drop Teddy off there…"

"So you are keeping an eye on Teddy then?" Kingsley asked.

"Uh…yeah…at Grimmauld Place." Ron said, realizing that maybe this was something he shouldn't have told Kingsley.

"Well then…I guess we will have to keep your missions local until we find Harry or your family. Wouldn't want you too far from teddy for too many days. Its too much for a young baby like that to handle. They get used to someone and attached…wouldn't want to break that." Kingsley said.

"Err…thanks." Ron said, realizing that he actually was happy about this. Somewhere a long the way, he had actually grown quite fond of Teddy.

"But…unfortunately...there will be quite a few more missions. A lot is turning up 'round Muggle London." Kingsley said.

"Brilliant." Ron sighed.

"Ron, if its too much right now…I understand—" Kingsley started.

"What? No. No this is my career…this is what I want to do. I'll…I'll figure it out." Ron said quickly. He would not give up his chance to be an auror. Not for anything.

"Well, if it gets to be too much…I think its wise you keep this to myself, George, and you for now. Wouldn't want to panic anyone." Kingsley said.

"Right." Ron nodded, wishing Kingsley would have included Hermione in that list. It would make things so much easier for him.

"Alright…well…good job. Keep your eyes peeled and ears open for any word from Harry or your family…and tell George I said hello." Kingsley said.

Ron nodded, moving out of the Ministers office in almost a sort of fog. So much had been relieved in such a short amount of time to Kingsley, that Ron half suspected now the Minister had always known what was going on. Otherwise, how would he be so calm?

Mr. Granger had been in a bad mood since his lunch break the day before, and Mrs. Granger could take it no longer. She could not watch him sit over his evening newspaper and pout without knowing what was wrong. It drove her crazy that he liked to remain silent about what was bothering him. It was so opposite from how she and Hermione acted.

"Alright, enough is enough…what is wrong with you?" Mrs. Grange put down the dish she was drying from dinner and glanced at her husband who was seated at the kitchen table.

"Nothing." Mr. Granger replied, indicating something was definitely wrong.

"Well, we both know that isn't true." Mrs. Granger said, a hand on her hip.

"Fine. Its…its that Weasley boy…" Mr. Granger spat.

"Oh, honestly, that Weasley boy has a name, and Ron is a nice boy…" Mrs. Granger rolled her eyes, assuming that her husband was just having a fatherly moment.

"Not as nice as you think…" Mr. Granger grumbled.

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Granger asked.

"I saw him the other day with a baby…a little baby he was carrying 'round. Bloody hell…does he have a kid? Has Hermione been hiding that from us as well?" Mr. Granger asked.

Mrs. Granger snorted at the obscurity of it. "I highly doubt Ron is a father…"

"Well, how do we know? Hermione bloody cut us out of her life for months…for all we know, its her child!" Mr. granger said, though he knew that was not likely.

"Really? Come off it…Ron doesn't have a baby…" Mrs. Granger said.

"I saw him with a child. Explain that to me…he was carrying it around like it was his own!" Mr. Granger said. "I mean…its possible. Hermione's kept an awful lot from us recently! Maybe she's hiding this from us too! Maybe she doesn't want us to know this about Ron!"

"And I apologized." Hermione's voice filled the room.

Both of her parents had been so caught up in their conversation that neither had noticed their daughter flooing into the living room. Both stopped and faced her.

"Hermione, what are you doing home?" Mrs. Granger asked softly.

"I wanted to come see Ron." Hermione turned a sharp eye on her father. "And what possible secret about Ron could I be keeping?"

"Oh, I don't know…the one about the small child hanging off of him?" Mr. Granger cocked an eyebrow.

"The what?" Hermione shook her head. What was her father talking about?

"I saw Ron with a baby flirting with some store attended in the middle of London a few days ago." Mr. Granger said, his temper so flared from Ron that he did not realize how calloused he was being toward his daughter.

"Dad, that's silly…there has to be a plausible explanation. I mean Teddy—" Hermione started.

"Would Ron really be carting Teddy around in the middle of the day? Doesn't he have work?" Mr. Weasley asked, knowing a little about who Teddy was.

"Well, yes but—" Hermione started.

"And weren't you the one weeks ago saying Ron was acting strangely? Maybe this is why…" Mr. Granger pointed out.

"Yes but, dad…he would never…I mean he wouldn't do something like that…" Hermione said, firmly believing it.

"People do a lot of things we don't think they would Hermione. You for example, decided your parents were too dumb to tell us the truth…swapping our memories was easier!" Mr. Granger had now moved from the subject of Ron to the subject that was truly bothering him.

Mrs. Granger just stood and watched, knowing her husband and daughter both had a temper when they wanted to, and knowing she could do little to defuse the situation.

"I never said you were dumb!" Hermione countered.

"Well, maybe Ron thinks we are and that you are too! I mean, think about it! Your mother told me…Ron stormed out on you, didn't he? Left you in the woods for a few months? Plenty of time to meet someone else and get her in a mess, don't you think?" Mr. Granger lashed out before he even realized what he was saying.

Mr. Granger's words silenced Hermione as her eyes drifted toward her mother who was looking at the floor guiltily. Hermione had confided in her mother in confidence about Ron leaving. Once Hermione could stomach that revelation, that her secret had not been kept safe, she realized the weight of her father's words. Could it be true? After all, Ron had left.

And for the split second that the thought fell across her mind, Hermione was storming to the door. She would find Ron and comfort him on everything she had just learned, and also for why he had been so distant lately.