Chapter 26

I shot up. Someone was upstairs. I looked over to my left, expecting to see Ron alert too. Then I remembered, with a sickening lurch, that Ron had left only hours ago. I shook him from my head. I could hear the intruder crossing over to Rose's room. I started to feel sick. This was what I'd been afraid of. The intruder from May 2006 popped into my head, and I grabbed my wand from my bedside table. Nobody was going to hurt my Rose. No one.

I crept out of bed, my heart beating, and out of the room. The intruder wasn't in the Hallway. They'd gone into Rose's room. I gently tip toed across the hall to her room and stopped just outside Rose's room. The door had been pushed wide open. I listened carefully, in case the intruder was doing something quietly. I realised, with a funny jolt, that Rose was still asleep; I could still hear her breathing quietly. But then, I could also hear someone else breathing. It was deeper, definitely a man, and he sounded like he was upset. Keeping my wand alight, I tip toed into Rose's red and gold room.

Rose was still asleep, just as I'd left her earlier. She smiled in her sleep, and squirmed comfortably. I smiled for a second, until I realised that there was some one else in here.

His red hair was terrible; messy and tangled. His blue eyes were focused on Rose adoringly, but also sadly. Tears were dripping down his cheeks, falling past his long nose and freckles. One hand was holding onto Rose's cot, like a mother would cling onto a lost son. The thought made me feel queasy, as Molly had gone through that during the war when she lost Fred. He was wearing a coat that was too small for him, as well as a pair of trousers, which were equally ill fitting.

Ron.

He didn't look at me. Just at Rose. My heart stopped beating so fast. I knew that there was no way that Ron would ever hurt Rose. He'd kill himself if something happened to her. Ron finally looked up, and almost jumped when he saw me. I didn't say a word. I didn't need to. Ron let go of Rose's cot. I thought that he'd apparate away, but I was wrong. He just stood there. I decided to break the ice.

"Ron, I'm sorry." I whispered. He moved silently towards me. His eyes were red from crying. He stopped just inches in front of me. "Ron?"

Without warning, Ron leaned in to kiss me. I gladly returned the kiss. We broke off after only a few seconds, and my lips felt all tingly. I ran a hand through his hair, which was sopping wet. I realised that it was raining outside.

"Ron, are you OK?" I asked, pulling his head towards me. I kissed his forehead gently. He mumbled something. "What?"

"No." He mumbled. He took a deep breath. I noticed that he was shivering, as his clothes were drenched in rain.

"Come on, we'll find you something warm to wear." I gently took his hand and pulled him out of Rose's room and into ours. I sat him down on the bed and gently removed his coat and shirt. He was soaked through to the skin. I passed him another shirt and a clean pair of boxers, which he took gratefully. I stood in front of him, and waited until he was done changing. He was still cold, and so we both settled underneath the covers again.

"What happened?" I asked. "When you apparated?" He just shook his head, before talking.

"I'm sorry I overreacted." He said.

"I'm the one that overreacted." I told him. "Ron, what happened?"

"Well, I apparated to no place in particular, I just wanted to get away." He held me close against him. Suddenly, the previous events were forgotten, and I cuddled back into him. "I regretted that a lot. I thought that you'd hate me for sure. But I couldn't face coming back after I'd apparated. So I just wandered around. And then, after a while, it hit me what I'd done. I remembered you saying that you were sorry, but my brain only really just registered it. Then I felt truly upset. I thought about Rose, and about how much I'd been a jerk, so I wanted to apparate home again. But then, it started raining, and I couldn't focus. So I walked."

"You didn't know where you were- and you walked home?" I asked, and we both smiled weakly at each other.

"I know, it sounds weird, but that's what I did." I pulled him closer to me. "I needed to make sure that you and Rose were safe. I think that's how I managed to apparate back." I nodded.

"Ron, please forgive me."

"For what?"

"For saying that you were a bad father, because you're not." I considered even more what I'd said. "And for saying that you didn't want the baby. I never even asked you what you thought, I just did what I wanted." He held me closer. "But most of all about the bad father comment."

"Yeah, that hurt quite a lot." He started sniffling. I cupped his head in my hands and made sure that we were looking each other in the eye. His blue ones were in danger of crying, which made mine want to water too.

"Ron, I'm pregnant, I have hormones all over the place. And I was angry, I thought that you were ignoring me. But, no matter what anyone says, you're a perfect dad to Rose, and you will be for all our other children." It happened before I could register it; he crashed his lips against mine and pulled me close to him.

"I love you." He breathed.

"I love you too Ron." I breathed back. Now, that was a kiss that took ones breath away.

"Hermione, I'm sorry about earlier. I was shocked."

"I know."

"It's just…you know, such a big thing. Especially after what happened in May." I clung to Ron.

"Ron, what do you think? About the baby?" Ron didn't say a word. Then…

"I'm going to be a dad again!" He all but yelled, not wanting to wake Rose up. I let out a giggle. "Oh, Hermione, I love you so bloody much!" Without warning, he pulled me out of bed and swung me round and round and round. Now, that was the reaction that I wanted. His lips were all over me, stopping at my stomach. His lips just rested there, pressed against my abdomen. I could hear him whispering words of love towards the foetus in my womb. The thought made me cry with happiness. Ron and I spent the night like that.

The next morning dawned bright and rainless. I opened my eyes and found myself spread out on Ron's chest. I could hear him snoring gently. I looked up at him and saw a smile on his face, which brought one to mine. I closed my eyes again, and decided to pretend that Ron and I were frozen like this. Well, I would of done just that, if Rose hadn't decided that she was hungry.

"I better go get her." I yawned at Ron, who had woken up when Rose started crying. He nodded, before shaking his head.

"No, I'll go get her, you stay here." Before I could argue, Ron slipped out from the bed and bounded out of the room. I gave a content sigh, before getting up myself. I looked at the clock on my bedside table. It was already seven o' clock. I groaned. It was Friday, and Ron and I had to go to work. I suddenly remembered that I was meant to be meeting Ginny at lunch. I thought back to her letter, and smiled to myself. I had a hunch…

I climbed out of bed, pulling on a dressing gown. I went downstairs, and went over to Pig, who was sleeping with his head under his wing. I let him sleep a few more minutes, while I described the previous night with Ron to her. I left out a few select details, but other then that, it was a full account. I woke Pig up with a gentle prod. He opened his eyes, looking a little annoyed, before he saw the large letter in my hands. He suddenly started hooting excitedly while I tied the letter to his leg. He took off immediately. I watched him leave, before returning upstairs to get dressed.

I decided to drop Rose off at Molly's for the morning, and then, during lunch, I'd go and collect her. I decided that if I managed to get all my work done before lunch, then I'd be able to do my usual thing and take the afternoon off.

As the clock struck quarter past twelve, I sighed and started packing away all my papers, before I flooed to Molly's. She was in the middle of preparing lunch for someone who was obviously staying for a little while. I looked into the kitchen, and saw Angelina sitting in there. When she saw me, she beamed weakly at me. I just smiled back at her.

"Hello, Hermione!" Molly said, coming to hug me. "Would you care to stay for a quick cup of tea, dear?" I shook my head.

"Sorry, I promised Ginny that I'd meet her for lunch." I checked my watch. I was almost five minutes late. Damn. "Where's Rose?"

"Living Room." Molly answered, before sitting next to Angelina. "Angelina, are we talking about the same George here, because-?" I left the kitchen before I could hear too much. My stomach lurched a little. Trying my best not to feel queasy, I went to the Living Room, and saw Rose on the floor. Then, with a jolt, I realised that Fred and Roxanne were both there too.

"Auntie Hermione!" Roxanne yelled, reaching her arms up to hug me. I, knowing I had no choice, leaned down and hugged her. "Are you staying for lunch too?"

"I can't, Roxie, I'm meeting Aunt Ginny in Hogsmeade now." Roxie just nodded and bit her lip, before she carried on playing with Fred. Fred looked just George, funnily enough. I picked Rose up, called a quick good bye to Molly and Angelina, before Flooing to Hogsmeade.

Ginny was already there, sipping just a plain water. I walked over to her.

"Hi," She said. She looked thoroughly relieved to see me.

"Hi. Where's James and Albus?" I asked.

"Harry's looking after them." She said quickly. I just nodded. "Hermione, if I tell you something, you can't tell Ron, not until I'm ready. Or mum. She'd kill me for not telling her straight away." I nodded. "Hermione, you won't believe it! I'm pregnant too!" I almost screamed with excitement.

"That's brilliant Ginny! Congratulations!"

"But, the thing is, I haven't told Harry." My face must of dawned with understanding, because Ginny nodded and grimaced.

"Oh, Ginny, why not?"

"Well, I was going to, until you told me what Ron did." She glared at me as if it were my fault.

"You asked me to tell you!" She sighed.

"I know. Merlin, what should I do?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?" She shook her head, and I sighed. "Tell Harry. The longer you go without telling him, the worse it will get." She just nodded.

"Thanks Hermione. Do you have to get back to work?"

"No, I've got the afternoon off to look after Rose." Rose yawned loudly, before grinning her little baby grin up at Ginny, who beamed.

"She really looks like Ron," Ginny commented. "Merlin, they look really alike." I nodded, beaming.

"Ginny, don't you have to go to work?" I asked. She shook her head.

"I'm working from home." She smiled. "You know, helps me look after all my children. All three." We both shared a smile at this. "So, how is Ron, after this morning?"

"Better then Angelina," I muttered. She looked at me enquiringly. "She was at Molly's when I went to pick Rose up. With Fred and Roxanne." She looked shocked.

"What did Angelina say?" I didn't really want to tell Ginny about what I'd heard about George; after all, he was her big brother. I shook my head.

"I-I don't know." I lied feebly. "Well, Molly said something to Angelina about "it not being the same George" but that's it." Ginny tried to shrug it off.

"Well, I better be going, I have to finish an article about some shifty person discovered in Knockturn Alley." Although I knew that she was really going to pester Angelina and Molly about George, maybe even confronting George in the end.

As soon as Rose and I had arrived home, I knew that we were both going to be bored stupid. I decided to go and floo to Molly's, to see if Fred and Roxanne were still there, and maybe to see if I could talk to Angelina and Molly over a cup of tea until Ron would be arriving home. Leaving a quick note for Ron, saying that I'd be at The Burrow, Rose and I flooed to The Burrow. Immediately, a kind of quiet met me. That was not normal for the Burrow. Normally, there would be screaming children running in, out and around the house. I saw Fred's and Roxanne's feet disappear as they climbed the stairs. I could hear voices coming from the kitchen, and so I went to see what was going on. Putting Rose down gently on the floor, leaving her to play with some discarded toys, I crept over to the kitchen, ready to knock and let Molly and Angelina know that I was here, when I stopped dead.

"-Molly, I'm serious! I heard him with my own ears!" Angelina still needed help from Molly?

"Angelina, dear, George would never-"

"Molly, I heard George saying to Lee about that woman. The woman who he saw last weekend." My heart thumped. "I'm sorry, but George is having an affair!" I almost burst into tears for Angelina. George, having an affair?

"Oh, Angelina, you heard him say this?"

"Yes! Molly, I know that he's your son, but I heard him with my own ears!" I heard them both crying. I wiped my own tears away.

"But, Angelina, he loves Fred and Roxie, he does…and you, he loves you as well!"

"I know that Fred and Roxie are his world, but if they find out…oh, Merlin." I heard her collapse into sobs. I heard Molly crying as well. I decided that I couldn't listen anymore. I went back to The Living Room, picked up a giggling Rose, and flooed home. I spent the rest of the afternoon sad, and crying.

"Hermione?" I shot up. I picked Rose up off the floor before Ron could come in, hoping that he'd mistake my tears for joy. No such luck. "Hermione, why are you crying?" I passed him Rose, and told him what I'd heard in The Burrow.

"George is cheating on Angelina." I told him. His eyes widened. "I heard them talking in the kitchen at The Burrow. Even your mum can't deny it, Ron." I let a few more tears escape my eyes. Even Ron looked close to tears.

"But, George…He wouldn't. He loves Angelina, and Fred and Roxanne, more than anything." He let a few tears drip, before wiping them away, and making Rose giggle. "It just…doesn't seem like George."

"Angelina said that he was away during the weekend, and that she overheard…" I couldn't finish. "Oh Ron, I never imagined that George, or any of your brothers, or their wives, would ever…" I trailed off in disbelief. "Ron, what are we going to do?"

Phew, another chapter done! Don't worry, no seperations will happen...As far as I know. But, I can promise, every loose end will be tied up by the end of the story.

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Chapter 27 up...well, you know the drill.