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 9: Babies
Pairing: Hugo, Rose, Ron x Hermione
Rating: T to M to E and back again (for the whole story)
Chapter Summary: Rose and Hugo think they know what the next packet holds. Could packets tied in blue and pink mean anything else?
Papers forgotten on her desk
Sleep forgotten and cries answered
Little feet her greatest adventure
Growing a family with him
It was Sunday afternoon and Hugo was looking at another packet of letters. They were almost at the end of the story their parents had left them and the story had been quite a ride. He really wasn't sure that he wanted the ride to end but he was pretty sure he knew most of the rest. Mum and Dad got married in the last packet so they were almost to the part of the story where he and Rose made an appearance. Hugo settled into the couch with packet nine from Ron's trunk on his lap to wait for his sister.
Rose hung her coat on the hook beside the Floo before she walked into the sitting room. Hugo was asleep on the couch with a packet of letters on his lap. "Starting without me, little brother? I didn't know you were that eager to get this over with."
"Whaa … Just waiting for you,' Hugo mumbled as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Just decided to call dibs on Dad's letters today. We are almost to the end."
I know,' Rose said as she pulled the packet labeled nine from Hermione's trunk. "Blue and pink ribbon on this set. Maybe a clue to what this packet is about?"
"That would be my guess," Hugo played with the ribbon on his packet. "They have fought, loved, moved in together and gotten married. What else is left?"
"Babies and old age," Rose sat beside Hugo on the couch. "We know the stuff between those two events because we lived them with Mum and Dad."
"My bet is on babies," Hugo smiled and pulled the ribbons. "No time like the present to find out. Open yours so we can get this show on the road."
"Okay, oh mighty impatient one," Rose pulled on her ribbons. "There is a picture on top of my stack. The ribbons were definitely a clue."
"It looks like Dad is kissing Mum's very pregnant belly." Hugo held up his first letter. "Hello little one, I cannot wait to meet you …"
Hermione was going to die. She had been throwing up every morning for the last week. She was also being stubborn. Ron wanted her to see a Healer about her stomach. "Mione, you should not be this sick every morning. Please go see the Healer. Please."
Hermione was finally able to leave the loo and get ready for the day. She only had a few things to do at the office and then she could come home and go back to bed. Looking at the clock on the mantle, she realized that she was going to be late for her meeting with Draco to coordinate cases between the Aurors and MLE. Grabbing a piece of parchment and calling for Pig, Hermione scratch a quick not "Running late. Be there by 11am. - H"
Hermione looked at the note before she sealed it. "Running late … running late … RUNNING LATE," Hermione collapsed onto the couch and the note fell to the floor. Hermione wasn't just late for a meeting with Draco. She was going to have to make a stop at the chemists to get a test but she was fairly certain why she was getting sick every morning. With shaky hands, Hermione managed to send Pig to Draco with her message and gather her things. She had work to do.
Ron was surprised to see Hermione sitting on the couch when he got home. She was supposed to be working late tonight because she had been going in late all week. "Love, why are you home so soon? Are you feeling okay? Look at me, Mione." Ron placed a finger under her chin and made her look him in the eye.
"Nothing's wrong, my dear," Hermione answered and gave him a tired smile. "I decided to come home early and try to rest. See if that would help my stomach settle."
"Did it work?" Ron asked, concern coloring his voice. "I worry when you look this tired. Did you go see the Healer?"
"No need to see the Healer right now," Hermione said as she handed Ron a slender box. "But you will need to take next Tuesday off. I have somewhere to go and I want you to come with me."
"Going with you next Tuesday is no problem, love," Ron sunk to his knees in front of Hermione and kissed her gently. "What's this? Did I forget an anniversary?"
"Not exactly, dear heart," Hermione sighed and returned Ron's kisses. "Just open the box. It has the answer to all your questions."
Ron looked at the box he held in his hand. Slowly, he untied the ribbon around the box and lifted the lid. Staring down into the box, Ron asked, "Why is there a white stick in this box? What does a stick have to do with you being sick? The only white sticks shaped like this are … Mione, are you … are we … " Ron dropped the box and reached for the hem of Hermione's jumper. Gently lifting it, Ron placed a shaking hand against Hermione's stomach.
Bending forward, Ron whispered kisses along the path his hand has trace. "Hello little one …"
Rose was furiously wiping tears from her cheeks as Hugo finished reading the letter. "Oh my, Dad was the sweetest. I never thought about how they would feel when they found out I was coming."
Hugo turned over the picture Rose had found on top of her stack of letters "Not much longer little one. I will love you to the moon and back… Dad."
"I never knew these letters existed," Rose leafed through the stack on her lap. "It looks like Mum wrote letters to both of us through each of her pregnancies. I always wondered why she encouraged me to write letters while I was waiting for omy little ones to arrive."
"Anna kept a journal with each of her pregnancies," Hugo wiped a stray tear from Rose's cheek. "I wrote a letter to each of my little ones the night that Anna told me they were coming."
"I may have to get you to finish reading this one," Rose looked at Hugo as she picked up the first letter in her stack. "My precious surprise, Please forgive your Mum for being a little slow in realizing you were on the way …"
Ron had settled Hermione into their bed after a quiet dinner. She seemed to droop with the excitement of the day and he wanted to make sure she was rested. Ron stared out the windows and let his thoughts race around his head. He could not believe the gift he had been given. He was going to be a father. Ron watched the stars twinkle in the night sky. Life was good.
Ron suddenly felt tired. All the worry of the last few weeks and the surprise of Hermione's announcement finally caught up with him. Pulling back the covers, Ron joined Hermione in their bed. He curled around her as she mumbled in her sleep. "Rest, love. I'm right here,' Ron said as he settled her head onto his shoulder. "Just rest. We are going to wish for it soon enough."
Ron spent the next hour watching his pregnant wife sleep. His pregnant wife. How could the Fates seen to have blessed his with a beautiful and brilliant witch of a wife and given him the greatest treasure a man could ever have, a child? He could not seem to stop touching her flat stomach. His imagination let him envision her with a little baby bump and then an even bigger bump. Hermione rolled away from his side on resettled facing the wall. Ron curled around her, wrapping her in his arms. He kissed her wild curls and place his hand over her stomach. "Go to sleep little one, I love you and your mum."
The next morning, Ron and Hermione began planning how to tell their friends and family that they were expecting. The one thing they could agree on was waiting until the baby's due date and health had been confirmed by the Healer before telling anyone she was pregnant. Hermione wanted a little more time to process everything before Hurricane Gram entered their life. They could not agree on whether to find out the gender of the baby. Hermione wanted to know as soon as possible so that she could plan. Ron wanted to wait and be surprised. His argument almost made sense. "Mione, some of the best things in my life were the results of surprises. Why would I change the trend by not letting this little one surprise us with who he or she will turn out to be."
"I am not spending the next seven months calling this child it," Hermione grumbled as she stalked down the hall to the bathroom. "Come up with a nickname that we can use until the baby gets here if you are going to be stubborn about this. I am going to go into the bathroom and hug the loo until my stomach decides to be civil."
Ron managed to keep from laughing until the door closed. "I heard that … oh Merlin, make it stop …" drifted from the bathroom.
Ron ran to the kitchen to wet a washcloth and get a glass of ginger beer and some crackers. He did remember Ginny talking about how it helped settle her stomach when she was pregnant with James. He was going to have to talk to Harry soon about what it was like to live with a pregnant woman. He was going to have to figure out a lot of things really soon.
"I have just become a huge watering pot," Rose sniffled as she put the letter she was reading on the stack of letters that had already been read. "The ups and downs of bringing life into the world. I think every mother feels this way waiting for their first little one."
"Don't leave out the dads," Hugo said as he took a picture off the top of his stack. It was a picture of Hermione looking out the window of their bedroom and rubbing her swollen belly. "All my dreams and wishes wrapped up in one package. Are we sure Dad didn't catch some of Mum's pregnancy hormones?"
"No. Dad was just always sentimental," Rose said as she got up from the couch. "I need a snack. How about you, little brother?"
"I could use a break and a snack," Hugo answered as he followed Rose into the kitchen. "Do you have a blue ribbon sticking out of the middle of your stack? I do and it looks like is there as a divider."
"I'll look when we finish this snack," Rose took a sip of her lemonade. "I'm sure they have a reason if it is there. Blue and pink around the outside of the packet, blue ribbon in the middle. I'm sure there is a purpose."
Scars traced on his hands
Sleep forgotten and cries answered
Little feet his greatest adventure
Growing a family with her
Hugo and rose spent the next hour reading and laughing over the letters their parents had written to Rose before she was born. Ron had one the battle to keep the baby's gender a surprise and Hermione still managed to plan her way to a Gryffindor themed nursery that would have worked for a boy or girl. Matter of fact, there were pictures of baby Rose asleep in her crib, curled around a stuffed quaffle.
"Mum did let Dad have some input in the nursery," Hugo laughed at his sister hugging the plush quaffle. "There is no way Mum would have put anything broom or quidditch related into her child's room. I don't think I can think of a time when she didn't turn pale as a ghost at the mention of a broom ride."
"I remember having to chase you down to get my quaffle back," Rose laughed as she set the picture on the growing pile. "I think I am taking this one home the frame and set on the mantle."
"I've reached my blue ribbon, Rosie," Hugo stopped laughing and picked up the letter under the ribbon. "Have you reached yours? Why am I so nervous about opening a letter?"
"I'm at my ribbon, too," Rose lifted the ribbon and set a finger on the letter below it. "You are nervous because these letters are probably about you. And all these letter have come with pictures. I remember baby Hugo."
"Time to find out what is really here," Hugo opened the first letter and began to read. "My little spark, Please treat your Mum well …"
Ron watched Hermione sprint from the bed and head for the loo. It was 6 am. Ron's sleepy brain began to connect dots. The last time Hermione ran to the loo before the sun was above the horizon, the healer had informed them that she was two months pregnant. "Wait a minute, the last time this happened …" Ron sat straight up in bed.
"Love, are you okay?" Ron rolled out of bed and began to walk to the bathroom. "I'm going to get a wet cloth and some ginger beer."
"Oh … Merlin … no food …" Hermione groaned from the bathroom. "Call ... the … Healer … "
"I will call Mum and the Healer as soon as you are back in bed," Ron said as he set the glass of ginger beer and pack of crackers on the bedside table. "I think we both know what the Healer is going to say. There is only one other time in our lives that you have been sick like this."
"I am not pregnant, Ronald Weasley," Hermione looked up at her smiling husband as he bent down to hold her hair back from her face. "It is not in my long term plan. Rose has to be older before we have another child. All the books say three to four years is the best age gap for siblings."
"You, my beautiful, stubborn witch, have made the dash for the loo every morning this week," Ron gently pick up Hermione and carried her back to their bed. "You are pregnant. Drink your ginger beer to settle your stomach and go back to sleep. I have Floo calls to make."
Ron wandered into Rose's nursery after making a call to his mum. Walking over to the crib that held his sleeping daughter, Ron watched her snuffle and roll over. "Hello Princess Prickle Pants. Mum is not feeling good so you are going to spend the day with your Gram."
Ron moved around the cottage quietly as he gathered the things Rose would need for her day at the Burrow. He might even try to talk his mum into keeping Rose overnight. Who was he kidding? He was going to have to kidnap his own child from his mother tomorrow night. But, he was not going to complain. That meant more time for him to enjoy celebrating a new baby with Hermione.
After he called the Healer, Ron woke up Rose and got her ready for the day. Hermione was still sleeping and knew she need her rest. "Kiss Mum on the cheek, Princess. It's time to go see Gram," Ron lowered Rose so she could place a wet kiss on her mother' cheek. "Morning baby," Hermione mumbled as Ron kissed her forehead.
"Go back to sleep, love," Ron whispered as he straightened. "Mum is keeping Rose for us and you have an appointment with the Healer at 11. I'll be back in a flash."
Hermione snuggled deeper into the covers and rolled away from Ron. "I'm not pregnant, you stubborn wizard … it's not in the plan right now …"
Ron closed the door quietly before he began to chuckle. He grabbed Rose's day bag from the table by the Floo. "Time to see Gram. Mum is going to be a really grumpy witch later. The Burrow."
Ron and Rose disappear in a puff of green smoke, leaving Hermione to dream of plans and possibilities.
Hugo set down the letter he had been reading. "How is it that Dad figured it out before Mum? It sounds like she just refused to believe what was right in front of her because it did not fit her plan."
"Mum was always a firm believer in sticking to a plan once it had been made," Rose sighed and opened the letter she had been holding. "She hated having to change things in the middle of a plan. She would start grumbling about Weasley men and their infuriating ability to destroy her perfectly laid plans every time something had to be changed in her master plan.
"Well, at least Dad and I were predictable," Hugo started to chuckle. "Need a plan destroy, just give us a ring. We will blow that thing out of the water."
"I don't think Mum shared your enthusiasm," Rose started to read the letter she held in her hand. "My unexpected little one, I guess you are my reminder that life never goes as we plan …"
Hermione stared down at the test the Healer had sent her to the bathroom to take. She had to be seeing things. There could not be two lines on that little stick. Her husband was not right. She had a plan, by Merlin, and this was not penciled in for at least another year.
"Mrs. Weasley, are you okay?" the Healer called through the door. "I need you to come out of there and hand me the test. You cannot hide in her forever. We have plans to make based on what that test says."
Hermione slowly opened the door and handed the test to the Healer. "I hate it when he is right," she mumbled as the Healer escorted her back to the examination room.
"Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.," the Healer beamed as she closed the examination room door. "It looks like Rose is going to become a big sister in the fall. Stop by the reception desk on your way out set up your first prenatal visit in six weeks. Ginger beer and crackers by the bedside table will help with the morning sickness until it passes and get plenty of rest."
"Thank you," Ron shook the healer's hand as he gathered Hermione into his arms. "I think I am going to take her home and put her back to bed. I think Hermione has had enough excitement for the day."
Hermione did not remember much about the trip home. Ron dusted her off as they stepped out of the Floo and pointed her in the direction of their bedroom. "Back to bed with you. I'm going to bring you a cup of tea before I Floo Mum."
"Tea sounds good," Hermione sat down on their bed and took off her shoes. "Maybe if I go back to sleep, I will wake up from this nightmare. Plans are meant to be followed, Ronald."
"Love, babies don't follow plans," Ron set her cup of tea on the bedside table and lifted the covers. "Back to bed with you. Healers orders."
"I am not sleepy, dear heart," Hermione tried to argue with Ron as he tucked her under the covers. "But if you insist, I guess a nap won't hurt."
Ron stood at the door until he heard Hermione sigh in her sleep. She was going to stubborn about this pregnancy, but he was ready for it. He dropped a handful of green powder and stuck his head in the Floo, "Hello, Mum … You'll never guess what the Healer said …"
Hugo and Rose set the last of the letters on the stack in front of them Hugo picked up the last picture from his packet. It was a picture of three hands touching a pregnant belly. He turned it over and read the back. "Just saying hello to our little spark. I'm taking this one home to frame. I love what Dad wrote on the back of it."
"That sounds fair," Rose said as she looked up at the clock. "It's getting late. Want to wait until next Saturday to do the last package?"
"Okay, big sister," Hugo stood and kissed his sister cheek. "Until Saturday …"
"The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new." and so in you the child your mother lives on and through your family continues to live… so at this time look after yourself and your family as you would your mother for through you all she will truly never die."
-Osho
"A man does not need to be flawless to be a perfect father, but the commitment to his family is a precious responsibility."
-Paul Young