Ch 52: Christmas Traditions Old And New

The next morning Ron popped over to see Harry and Ginny that morning. Harry hadn't known Scorp was Draco's son, but was not as rattled by the development as Ron had been. As Ron got slightly more worked up talking about it, Harry started chuckling.

"Why are you laughing about this?" grumbled Ron.

"Well, Ron. Honestly I was just thinking that this time last year you were in a coma. And since you had no wife or girlfriend, you were stuck with the likes of me sitting vigil by your side. And I was hoping you'd come out of it, but for once I wasn't sure. And now, well, now you are in madly in love with a wonderful woman and you are fretting over whether your children's friends have appropriate families. It's just quite a contrast to last year."

Ron smiled. "I know. It's actually enough to make my head spin if I let myself think about it too much. And if I didn't miss Fi so damn much I would be tap dancing in the streets I suppose. The next two days are going to be hard ones, but I think once Hugo gets through them I will be able to celebrate a little more."

When he got back from seeing Harry, he and Rose found time to play Wizard Chess together while they talked a bit more on how handle things with Scorp. But they'd also talked about how Ron wanted to get to know the boy more so he could try to judge him on his character instead of his father's, whether it was by having him over during the holiday or if they could spend time together when Ron was up at Hogwarts for his work with the older students starting in January.

By the afternoon, they had broken off in pairs or by themselves to do last minute shopping and wrapping for the Christmas holiday. Hugo surprised all of them and asked if one of them could take them to Hermione's parents' house for a few hours. Hermione said she would absolutely drop him off, and shot Ron a questioning look, but all he could do was give her an unknowing shrug back. But, as he'd gone in with a confident smile and seemed in a good mood, she decided not to worry about it.

Christmas Eve morning the four of them headed over to Hermione and Rose's house. They made pancakes, and Ron delighted in showing the children the maple syrup he'd brought them from America. Hugo laughed, saying it was a good thing his mummy hadn't known such a thing existed. They cleaned up from breakfast and headed into the living room to start decorating. Ron had put the tree up in the stand the day before. Hermione had insisted they stick with the traditional muggle lights, which had given Ron a run for his money the day before when he tried to get them on. Hermione had been amused at his struggle and had rearranged a number of the strands before they started with the ornaments.

As Ron was rummaging between the boxes of ornaments Hermione and Rose had and the box of Hugo's ornaments when Hermione said, "Ron, can you turn around for a moment please?"

"Huh?" Ron asked as he stood up and turned around. He was surprised to Rose and Hugo each looking mischievous and holding a gift bag. "Did you want to put the gifts under the tree now?" he asked.

"No. These are for you to open now actually," Rose said.

Ron looked at them in confusion.

"I talked to your mum," Hugo pronounced. "And she said the only tree she thought you'd ever had was at their house."

"Right, and he told me," finished Hermione. "So, I thought since the three of us were all bringing our own ornaments to our first Christmas tree as a family that you should bring some of your ornaments too. So, one bag has ornaments from your childhood. And one bag has new ornaments for us to celebrate some things from our first year as a family of four."

Ron was shocked. "I can't believe you did that. It's perfect. Bloody brilliant and perfect."

Soon they were going through the ornaments, mixing Hugo's Christmas cows, Ron's Chudley Canons, Rose's handprint ornaments she'd made as a child and Hermione's souvenirs from her travels overseas. Then they added new ones Hermione had picked up over the year, including some from Mallorca, one that was a painted wooden cut-out of Rose and Hugo's primary school, a train that looked like the Hogwarts Express, an owl, a chess piece, a fishing pole, and a picture of Hugo and Ron standing in front the set Hugo had painted for the school play. By the time they had finished, the tree was full of mementos that were special to each member of the family.

Ron stood back to take in the site and was quite overcome by how touched he felt by it. He'd never given any thought to not putting up his own tree. Between work and spending time at Harry and Ginny's or The Burrow, he'd simply never seen the point. But, Hermione had shown him a different approach to a Christmas tree. While his mum had always covered it mostly with sparkly baubles and stars, this tree was more like a living scrap book that celebrated the lives of the family while also celebrating the holiday. And he truly felt like an equal part of the family, not simply the person showing up for the holiday like he had before, even if he'd never realized it.

Hermione noticed his reaction and came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Happy Christmas, Ron," she whispered.

"Happy Christmas, love," he said as he kissed her.

The kids did more decorating, and soon the house was covered in wreathes, nativity sets, bows and Father Christmas figurines. Hermione was cooking some favorite appetizers in the kitchen, and Ron was trying to help her despite not knowing the recipes. Instead, he was donned in a snowman apron and lining up the Christmas cookies on the trays. Ron had apparated back to the other house a couple times to fetch some forgotten ingredients, but between the two homes they had everything they needed for the meal. By the time her parents arrived, the house looked thoroughly festive, warm and lived in.

Hermione's mum had asked if she could be in charge of the memorial moment, and all had agreed to let her figure out how to remember the missing Creeveys. Not too long after Hermione's parents had arrived, Hugo and Jean had shoo'd everyone else out of the living room while they got things ready. Hermione and Ron were surprised but pleased that she had involved Hugo in the process but were slightly nervous to see what would happen.

Eventually Jean and Hugo came into the kitchen to fetch everyone. "Can you follow us to the other room? Be careful, as we have the lights off, so it is quite dark in there. But just hold hands and we'll walk in together and hopefully no one will knock the tree down," said Jean.

Hugo took Ron's hand and they headed into the living room. Ron found himself standing between Hugo and Hermione in a circle with his new family around a small table.

"Hugo and I brainstormed together on the best way to remember the family members that we lost this year," said Jean. "And we wanted this to be a way to remember that they are still with us in so many ways, and that they wouldn't want us to be sad on a day that has traditionally been such a fun and relaxed day for our families. As we talked about it, we came up with a few things that Hugo and I hope will allow us to remember them, honor them and celebrate them while still being able to actually celebrate this wonderful holiday. So, as we stand here in the dark, let's first remember that it only takes a tiny amount of light to overpower the dark. But even vast amounts of darkness cannot overpower the light. So, what we will do is recall the light that each of these incredible and amazing people brought to our lives. First I want to remember Collin. It's been almost twenty years since we lost him, but we will never forget his zest for life. Hugo, what would Collin do if he was here?"

Suddenly a camera flash went off, momentarily blinding everyone but also causing ripples of laughter to go through the room. Jean struck a match, lighting one candle, and the room filled with light from the tiny, flickering wick.

"Exactly," Jean said with a smile. "Collin would be taking pictures to the point of driving us all mad. But I think he would want us to enjoy the moments together and find ways to remember them in the years ahead as he always helped us do."

As his eyes adjusted, Ron noticed that there were five red candles and six green candles in a circle on the table, and that Jean had lit one of the red ones for Collin.

"Next we'll remember Janie. Janie was my best friend, and the one person I had known my whole life. We saw each other through amazing times and gut wrenching times. But, bloody hell, we loved Christmas Eve. We made up this family event when we were little as a way to actually enjoy the holiday, and then we fiercely kept it going, and I will absolutely keep it going for her as long as I can. So, in honor of Janie and her last minute Christmas chaos that I knew her to love, I offer this," she said as she sprayed a squirt of perfume in the room which Hugo, Hermione and Rose instantly inhaled and smiled. "And also this," she said as she popped a bottle of champagne, everyone yelping and giggling as the bubbles overflowed onto the carpet. And with that, she lit the second red candle.

"Third, we will remember her adorable and adoring husband, Peter. Lord help me that man was obsessed with milk. The only thing he loved more than good English dairy products was his family. So, for Peter, we will have a quick shot of milk." With that, she turned and got a small tray off the table behind her that had six fancy cordial glasses filled with milk. She passed them out, and each person raised their glass and drank their milk. When she'd finished hers, she lit the third red candle.

"Next is Dennis. He was such a diligent, loving soul. He took such incredible care of his parents after his brother died, fell madly in love with his wife, and then doted in his son. But he was dairy obsessed as well. So, I have small slices of stinky Stilton cheese for each of you. Don't crinkle your nose like that," she admonished, "you can swallow it with a swig of champagne and you'll be just fine."

Most of them held their noses and downed the stinky cheese, but Hermione's dad clearly loved it. Jean lit the fourth candle.

"Finally, we honor Fiona. She was a passionate soul. She always, always, always worked to do what was right. She worked hard to find justice after her parents died. She worked tirelessly to bring justice to a world most of us didn't know was there. And she loved her husband and son more than anything in the world. But speaking as a dentist, that woman had a serious sweet addiction. So, to honor her, I offer you something I never ever allow in my home. But, never the less, here is a chewy caramel that is all sugar and butter and will rot your teeth."

Ron smiled as the group fumbled with their caramel wrappers and popped the chewy candies in their mouths. Jean watched the group and lit the last red candle.

"Now," she started, but was still struggling with the caramel stuck to her teeth. She sucked it off and tried again. "Now, with the light from their five candles, this room is now glowing in a lovely soft light. But these five amazing people have not just lit our homes, but the light they had in their lives remains here because they shared it with us. We can keep their light and life and love reflected and alive and shared even if they aren't here themselves. So, if you would each take a green candle from the circle. And, as you look at the five red candles, I want you to take a moment to say thank you or I love you or bloody hell, I wish you were here or whatever it is you need to say to each of them in your heart. And then, I want you to think about how you will reflect the love and life and legacy of each of these wonderful people in your own life. Once you've finished that, take your candle and light it from one of the red ones."

Ron smiled at the wonderful ceremony Jean had pulled together. Then he turned his gaze to the candles. He hadn't really known Dennis' mum and dad, but he remembered being awoken to her Christmas dinner the year before from his coma. He smiled remembering Collin at school. Even after he'd been petrified, he still attacked every day with an unabashed zeal Ron had admired. He thought of Dennis and how much more he appreciated him now that he'd walked a year in his shoes. He couldn't imagine the past year if Hermione worked auror hours. He hadn't appreciated that enough when Fi was alive. But, Hugo was a testament to the amazing job Denis had done. Fi. His heart still broke thinking of her and their years together. But he was grateful her voice was still in his head. He knew what she would say to Hugo about different things. And he'd never known how much she'd had to miss and sacrifice to be an auror. And now knowing that, his appreciation and admiration of the witch he'd loved as a partner and a little sister for decades had only grown. Looking at the five flames in front of him, he thanked them again for giving him the incredible gift of Hugo and asked for their help in doing it right. As he looked again, Rose and her grandfather were lighting their candles. Soon he did as well, and then he helped Hugo as Hermione and Jean each did theirs. When they were done, the room was bright with candle light, and each face was smiling in the warm glow. There were a few wet eyes, but no one looked somber. The tears were tears of fondness and love.

"Alright, we are going to sing Janie's favorite annoying carol and then we will commence our regular festivities, alright?"

All nodded, and soon they were singing, "So bring us some figgy pudding, so bring us some figgy pudding…." When they were done, there were hugs all around, as well as smiles. They moved the eleven lights over to a side table, and Hermione headed to the kitchen to bring out the food. Hugo sat for a moment looking at the candles, and then hopped off into the kitchen to help. Ron looked up at Jean.

"Thank you," he said, hugging her. "That was absolutely brilliant. It was perfect for Hugo. Just what he needed. And probably just what I needed too. I could never have come up with anything like that. Actually, I wish someone in my family could have come up with that twenty years ago when we lost Fred."

She smiled and hugged him. "Thank you, Ron. That means a lot to me. I loved them so much. And I wanted to remember them, but I knew Janie would not be happy with me if I had everyone in tears today."

"I know," Ron said, nodding. "Fred – well, he spent his life making people laugh. It was his soul mission in every waking moment of his life. And when we all cried about him being gone it felt like a betrayal. You don't want to forget, but you don't want to betray. This was bloody brilliant."

She smiled again and kissed his cheek. "Good. I had hoped it would be what we all needed today. Now, let's drink this champagne and let me watch you beat everyone at that crazy chess game of yours."

In the hope of creating new family traditions, the kids had lobbied that they all sleep in the magically expanded bed together like they had when Ron came home from the hospital. Hermione had finally relented but insisted the kids had to go upstairs about an hour before bedtime.

"Why?" whined Hugo.

Rose laughed and said, "Well, she always used to say she needed time for Mummy Magic. But now that she knows she really is magical, you'd think she wouldn't need as much time."

Ron laughed out loud at this. But Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Hermione, we know there isn't really a Father Christmas who is going to come down the chimney," said Hugo earnestly.

"Well, you know, this time last year I didn't believe in people coming through the fireplace either, but now I know better about that too, don't I?" she said with a wink. "But, Father Christmas or not, muggle or magical, parents need some time to sprinkle a little something special on the holiday. So, up to bed both of you. We'll be up in an hour or so."

"But we're not tired at all," said Hugo in the earnest argument of a young boy who still believed he could win this disagreement.

"That isn't the issue you goofball," said Ron. "Look. You two go upstairs and play a game or read a book or something. Or just stare at the wall a bit. You're both very smart. I'm sure you'll figure something out. We'll be up in a bit."

With the kids out of the way, Ron turned back to Hermione. "So, yeah, I actually have no idea what this Mummy Magic is or what we are doing, I was really just following your lead."

Hermione laughed out loud at him. "Well, even though it has been a while since Rose believed in Father Christmas, I still put out a few unwrapped gifts from 'him' in front of the fireplace. And I always wait until she goes to bed to pull out some of the gifts and fill the stockings. It's always too much, but what can I say – up until this year she's been an only child."

"Got it," he smiled. "So, how can I help?"

"Well," she said. "This all may be easier now that I can actually use magic. But, we need to assemble a few things. I had told you about that mural set for Hugo, right? It's sort of a large wooden frame that we have large paper rolls to go over. So, if you could put that together it would help. I'll go pull out the rest of the gifts and fill up the stockings, ok?"

The two got to work, and Ron was a bit flabbergasted at how complicated the instructions were to assemble something that looked so simple. If he was having trouble putting it together with magic then how the hell would any poor muggle bloke ever get it done? Eventually Hermione came over and helped him. They finally gave up on the included diagram, and Ron transfigured the odd hardware that came with the set to a few small screws he quickly secured to the frame. After they set up the mural kit for Hugo and the lovely books Hermione had gotten for Rose, they sat on the couch briefly to take in their work basking in the light of the tree lights and fireplace. Hermione leaned against Ron as moved his arms around her to hold her in an embrace.

They just sat peacefully for a few minutes until Ron said, "How did you ever pull all of this off on your own and without magic?"

"I told you," she laughed, "it's Mummy Magic. Well, and I only had one child."

"I think you're amazing. And the kids will be thrilled."

"I suppose we need to go upstairs now," Hermione sighed.

"Nah. We can have a few minutes of quiet first." With that, he kissed her slowly. They both knew they didn't have time for anything past kissing. But, the kisses were slow, sweet and sensual like in the early days of their relationship.

Finally Ron pulled back a bit and rested his forehead against hers, and Hermione said, "Now we really have to go up."

He kissed her nose and helped pull her up off of the couch, and shut off the lights with his wand. They headed upstairs to Hermione's old room where they found the kids still very much awake and excited to see them.

"Can we read together tonight?" asked Hugo.

"Actually, I think that's a great idea," agreed Ron. "Let me expand the bed and get changed while you guys figure out what we should read."

Soon the four of them were having a family slumber party in the magically expanded bed. And as the kids finally bedded down to go to sleep, Ron read to them from a book of Christmas stories Hermione had found. When he realized all three of them were asleep, he curled up himself, grateful for the gift of family.

Hugo was, not surprisingly, the first to wake up. Unfortunately, it was at 530 in the morning. His jostling on the bed soon had everyone else awake as well. But, Hermione reminded them that her parents were not coming over until 830, so they all needed to go back to sleep or go to one of the upstairs bedrooms and read quietly while everyone else went back to sleep. Hugo tried to go to sleep again but eventually gave up and went to Rose's old room to read books. But, the jostling and crawling in and out of the bed kept everyone else awake for a while as well. Just when Ron and Hermione had finally fallen back asleep, Rose announced that it was time to get up anyway.

Hmm, Ron thought to himself. Now I finally understand why my siblings always look so exhausted by the time they get to The Burrow on Christmas afternoon. He threw on a jumper and headed downstairs to make some tea for everyone while they waited for Hermione's parents. Just before 830 her heard them come in, bringing more bags of presents with them. Eventually, Hermione declared that the kids could come down the stairs and into the living room. With her father taking pictures, the kids rushed down, and soon Christmas chaos ensued.

An hour or so later when the chaos had finally calmed down, Ron sat amidst the piles of ripped wrapping paper and discarded tissue paper and bows. He couldn't remember ever having that much fun on Christmas morning, even when he was a little kid. The kids had loved their presents, and he had been blown away that the kids had conspired with Jean to surprise both he and Hermione. To say he and Hermione had been shocked when they unwrapped their boxes would be an understatement. Inside, they found decorated picture frames for her office, his office and the house. But inside the frames were photos – magical photos no less – of Hermione and Ron dancing at Dennis and Fiona's wedding, a picture of Hermione, Ron and Rose talking after the service at Hugo's baptism, as well as a picture of Dennis, Fiona, Ron and Hugo from that day. Then there was the picture from the night they went to the work gala in March. There was a picture of Rose and Hugo from Mallorca. And finally, there were a picture of the four of them from Hugo's birthday party.

"How in the world did you manage this?" Hermione asked, wiping a tear from her cheek.

"Well," Jean said with a proud smile on her face. "Hugo called me about a month ago asking for my help. He said he thought his brilliant grandmother had some old pictures from the times Hermione and Ron could have met before this year, and could I go through some of the old boxes of things I had from their house to see if I could find anything. And somehow, there were these amazing magical photos from both the wedding and the baptism."

"And then Hugo sent me an owl," said Rose, "asking how we could get copies of magical photos made. And I reminded them of the photo from the night you both got so dressed up. And then I wrote to Harry and asked him to call my grandmum, and they were able to work it all out to get the copies made."

"I had no idea these pictures even existed," said Ron in a shocked voice. "This – this is just incredible."

"Oh, and there is one more piece," smiled Jean. "But these are only muggle. I called Nicola, who just so happened to have taken some pictures with her phone the night of the work gala. So, here you go…."

Ron and Hermione opened up the last package to find two still muggle pictures of them on the dance floor. The first was of the moment they finally looked in each other's eyes just a few minutes before their first kiss, and they were clearly very taken with each other, but their body language was stiff and nervous. But the second picture was clearly taken after their first kiss when they returned to the dance floor. They were dancing together, holding each other close while staring into each other's eyes with clear smiles donning their faces. Amazed at the gift, Ron looked over at Hermione with a smile that went from his lopsided grin all the way to his sparkling eyes, and she was beaming back at him, recalling that moment that had changed everything for them.

They'd both tripped over themselves trying to thank everyone for such an amazing gift. And Ron had said to Jean later that her thoughtfulness really made his gift of earrings look lame. But she had laughed, patted his cheek and said, "Ron, the way you make my little girl light up is the best gift you could ever give me." He'd blushed all the way to the tips of his ears, but he appreciated it all the same.

They'd had a large breakfast after that, and were now getting ready to head to The Burrow for the afternoon and evening celebrations there. Hermione's parents were going to be joining them, which Ron thought could end up as an utter disaster, but Hermione insisted that they would love the chaos and being around the kids even if they would have to search for them in the gaggle of children that would be there. "Besides," she'd reminded him, "if the worst thing is that we have a few awkward culture shock moments because our parents actually like each other despite different backgrounds, then we are in good shape." Ron had tried to prepare everyone that Christmas at The Burrow was exponentially more chaotic and bizarre than normal, but they'd all ignored him.

I tried to warn them, he thought as he stepped through the floo into the living at The Burrow. He'd sent the kids through first, and then Hermione had floo'd with her mum, followed by Ron with her dad. Every single one of his siblings was there with all of their children. And several of his sisters in law had their parents or siblings there as well. There had to have been at least fifty people there, a third of which were below the age of twenty. And, since George was there, pranks would surely be abounding. Ron had pleaded with his brother to not prank Hermione's parents on their first visit to The Burrow, but he really had no confidence that George would abide by his wish on that one.

The kids quickly ran off to join their cousins, and Ron began introducing Hermione's parents to people throughout the room. Soon Jean was off with Molly and her father had been cornered by his father. He thought he should go offer assistance, but Harry and George intervened, placing a drink in his hand and dragging him onto the back porch.

"Relax, ickleRonniekins," declared George. "It's Christmas for fuck's sake. You look like you're wound tighter than a coiled spring. It's not like they haven't met Mum and Dad before. They were fully aware of the nut barn they were coming to."

Harry laughed, "It's not that bad! And they were fully aware of what they were getting into. They are delightful people, as are your parents. Relax. How did this morning go? Did Hugo do alright?"

"Actually, this morning was brilliant. Jean put together this incredible thing last night where we took a moment to remember each of the Creeveys. But it was done in this wonderfully fun way where we are all smiling and laughing instead of crying. And it seemed to really set the mood for the rest of the holiday. Hugo just rolled with it, talking about his parents and grandparents here and there but also just being a nine year old boy at Christmas."

"That's fantastic. Sounds like we could have used Jean twenty years ago," said George.

"That's exactly what I told her," agreed Ron.

"So, what'd you get Hermione? I'm assuming we'd know by now if it was ring," said George.

"No. Not yet on the ring. She knows it won't be until after the anniversary of the accident. But we'd agreed to keep it small at Christmas because we want to go on another trip soon if we can. So I got her a few books on obscure magical history I've never heard of that Sally Sparrow had recommended, which she liked. But the real winner of the day was what the kids worked with Jean to surprise Hermione and I with."

"What was that?" asked George, as Harry smiled knowingly.

"Harry knew," Ron laughed. "Apparently Jean dug through the old pictures at Dennis' mum's house and found that there were actually pictures from the few times Hermione and I had met over the years. Magical photos even, as I think they used Collin's camera. But there were pictures of us dancing at Fi and Dennis' wedding, me meeting Rose and chatting with them at Hugo's baptism and such. And then she talked to Hermione's boss and got muggle photos of us dancing at the gala event we attended this year when we finally figured things out between us. I have to say – it was pretty incredible. And they made enough copies so we could each have a set at our office as well as at the house."

"That's brilliant!" exclaimed George.

"Absolutely," Ron agreed. "Definitely a welcome surprise. But, George have you heard about the less welcome surprise we learned about when the kids came home from Hogwarts Friday?"

"What," asked George looking between Ron and Harry.

"It's not that bad," sighed Harry, "it turns out that Al and Rose and one of Al's housemates named Scorp are best friends."

"What's wrong with that?" asked George.

"His full name is Scorpius Malfoy," said Ron in a flat voice.

"Oh shite," laughed George, trying not to spill his drink. "I'd put a thousand galleons on Fred being behind this. That is fucking brilliant."

Harry chuckled as Ron got slightly redder. "Wasn't exactly my reaction," said Ron.

"Well, it is odd," acknowledged Harry. "But I guess it shows we have done such a good job with raising the kids without bias against the Malfoys that we had to explain to them why we reacted the way we did when we found out. So, that made for some uncomfortable conversations Friday and Saturday. But, didn't you say his wife, Astoria, was incredibly nice and helpful?"

"Yeah," admitted Ron. "She helped Hermione onto the platform Friday when we were all running late. Astoria actually invited us all round for dinner – well – before we figured it all out anyway. I am sure Draco would have been a bit surprised to see us all on the doorstep."

"But," cut in Harry, "according to both Rose and Al, Scorp is a great kid. He has certainly proved himself a good friend over the last few months. He was one of the few who stood by Rose when all those let them be friends and figure things out themselves, and maybe even get them together over the holidays."

"I know, I know," muttered Ron, holding his face in his hands.

"Please, please can I come be chaperone when you take Rose over to Malfoy Manor for a play date?" begged George, trying to swallow his laughter.

Ron merely smacked him upside the head and went back inside. Harry just laughed as George muttered, "Oh yes, this has Fred's signature all over it."

With so many people, they had to magically extend the table to wind through the kitchen and living room, and even then it was still a squeeze. But, Molly insisted that everyone sit at the same table for Christmas Dinner, so they all sat snuggly together. Wearing the requisite paper crowns they tucked in to beef roast, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, an array of meat pies and a whole slew of sides brought by the various guests. Following the main meal, tray upon tray of tarts, puddings and cookies floated out from the kitchen. While Hermione had been to celebrations at The Burrow before, she was quite amazed at the production. But her parents had eyes as large as golf balls as they took in the unbelievable scene around them. But they also had delighted expressions as they took cookies from the floating trays, so Hermione was sure they were enjoying themselves. Ron found himself between Percy's wife and Teddy Lupin, but was able to catch Hermione's eye down the table. She smiled at him, nodding her head to her happy parents and their beaming kids.

By the time they got home that night, Rose was barely able to keep her eyes open, and Hugo was fast asleep in Ron's arms. While the slumber party in Hermione's old room was fun for one night, Ron was happy to carry the sleeping Hugo to tuck him into bed in her spare bedroom while Hermione helped Rose get to sleep in her childhood room. As Ron came back out of the guest room where Hugo was sleeping, he saw Hermione watching him from the hallway.

"Everything ok?" he whispered, closing Hugo's door.

"It's perfect, actually," she said quietly, tucking her arms around his waist. "It's just – I love watching you in Dad mode. You've been amazing today. Bit of a turn on, honestly," she said blushing.

He laughed, kissing the top of her head. "Come on you barmy witch, let's go to bed."

They crawled into her bed, now back to its normal size. Ron closed his eyes as soon as his head hit the pillow, exhausted from the emotional overload of the marathon day. But his eyes popped open as he felt her lips on his ear.

"You were serious?" Ron asked, his voice betraying his surprise.

"Hmm," Hermione sighed as she moved her lips down his neck and moved her hands under his shirt.

He was still slightly shocked by her amorous mood, as he couldn't quite remember her initiating things like this before. But as she shifted her leg to straddle him, all other thoughts flew out of his mind as he moved his hands to her hips. She tugged at his shirt, pulling it up over his head, and she pulled off the vest she had on. He reached for her breasts as she quickly leaned over for her wand, casting a silencing spell around them. Soon, the rest of their clothes were gone as well, and Ron had rolled her over onto her back. He hovered over her, taking her breasts in his mouth while she rocked against him. He smiled, moving his hand and tongue down to the part of her most screaming for his attention.

As Hermione finally reached her climax, he kissed her gently, nuzzling her softly as she slowly came back to earth. But soon she looked up at him with lust filled eyes and said, "Please, Ron, I need you now."

He was happy to oblige and had soon entered her, rocking gently into her as he held her gaze. She shifted her legs, wrapping around him and pulling him deeper into her. The move caused Ron to groan in pleasure, and he found himself thrusting harder into her, urged on by the moans and sighs coming from her. The feel of her around him, and the love piercing him with her eyes brought him to release quickly, and he spilled into her, collapsing in relief.

"Best Christmas ever," she said, kissing him softly.

"My thoughts exactly," he said, stroking her bare back.

"Remind me tomorrow to tell you how amazing you are. But now, I am going to go to sleep."

He smiled, kissing her softly. "I know you don't want us to sleep naked with the kids across the hall."

"I'm too tired to put clothes on, and you feel so damn good."

"Is that what you'll tell Hugo if he comes in with a nightmare?" Ron chuckled as he reached for his pajama bottoms. He shimmied his pants on, and then grabbed his shirt. But instead of putting it on himself, he slipped it over Hermione's head, pulling her arms through. He laughed again as he heard her mutter, "bloody kids."

But when Rose bounced into their room early the next morning, Hermione simply muttered, "thank God you didn't listen to me." Ron just laughed.

(A/N: Thank you to all of you who have taken the time to review or PM me about this story. While I have been writing far enough ahead that I don't necessarily incorporate the thoughts into this story, I really do appreciate the feedback as it helps me with future writing. I have already started another (long, long multi-chapter) fanfic story, but this next one isn't AU. But - getting a note that lets me know you are reading and enjoying my story just makes my day! So - thanks...carrytheotter)