Welcome to the last 'Timelines' chapter! I had fun (most of the time heehee) writing it and I hope you enjoy! I am definitely not a time-travel expert at all so if you find any holes or issues, then plz ignore! lol (I'll leave the cool time travel stuff to my nitpicker internet friend JonRiptide from now on) Anyway, thank you all for reading 3
& thanks to Cheesy who I forced gladly offered to beta this yet again- Thank you!
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Rose must've been even more exhausted than Ron had realized, because she ended up sleeping for over ten hours. Harry had come in from watch around sunset and the three of them had a small dinner together, talking quietly amongst themselves even though they had cast a silencing charm around Ron's bunk where Rose still hadn't moved an inch.
He and Hermione had filled Harry in on everything while Harry sat there, stunned, listening to the past and present events that had taken place. He looked down at Ron and Hermione's intertwined hands and asked them if they were now officially together and they looked at each other, their eyes questioning. They hadn't discussed it really, but when he saw the hopeful look in Hermione's eyes, Ron quickly turned back to Harry and told him that yes, they absofuckinlutely were.
On one hand, Harry seemed happy for them, and told them that honestly it had been a long time coming, but Ron could tell that it made him nervous as well. Ever the observant one, Hermione then launched into a speech about how nothing was going to change between the three of them, and that they were still dedicated to Harry's mission to end this war.
As Ron watched and listened to her as she went on, he found it so hard to hold himself back from grabbing her and snogging her like there was no tomorrow. He managed to restrain himself though, knowing that Harry probably wouldn't appreciate it very much if he did that. She was just so beautiful and sexy when she was that determined and worked up about something, and he knew that life in the tent was about to be much harder than it had been before. If he had to wait for moments of privacy before acting on what he wanted to do with her, he would slowly go mad. It had been easier before, because he hadn't known that she felt the same but now that she did, he was sure to suffer when he couldn't get his hands on her.
Even though it wasn't late, Harry had decided that he was tired after all of the excitement of the day and had gone to bed, leaving Ron and Hermione alone. They then both went out on watch together, huddled close as they once again shared many kisses between sentences, as if they were making up for lost time. They had quietly talked about past events and misunderstandings that had gotten in the way of them ever admitting their feelings for one another, both of them willingly opening up, wanting to get years of hidden feelings finally out.
There was a lot of laughter and a lot of tears as well, and Ron held her close through both. It was such a relief to finally, finally be on the same page with her, and despite the fact that there was still a war going on and despite the fact that their future together was so uncertain, Ron had never felt happier as he did while Hermione told him almost everything that he had ever dreamed about her saying to him for years.
Ron even grudgingly came clean about the locket, wiping her tears away as she cried through the story. Although it was certainly implied often, neither of them went as far as to say the 'L' word to each other. After talking for hours, Ron was almost positive that she loved him just as much as he loved her, but neither of them said it outright. He wasn't exactly sure why they didn't, but figured that maybe they were both a little overwhelmed with all of the new information that they had been given, and it would probably be a bit much along with everything else.
After a few hours of talking, Ron could tell that Hermione was past her limit as she could barely keep her eyes open. He walked her inside the tent and led her to her bed, ignoring her laughs of protests as he tucked her in snugly, wrapping her with her blankets like a burrito. He had wanted nothing more than to just crawl into bed with her and hold her to him as they laid together, but he resisted. He gave her a few more loving kisses before squeezing her hand and forcing himself to stand up and head back outside.
As he sat down against a tree, he sighed and pulled close a jar with a small blue flame that Hermione had made earlier, a dopey smile on his face. Even though he probably should be, he was not tired at all, his brain going a million miles an hour in many different directions.
He was only out there for about half an hour before he saw movement at the mouth of the tent. He watched as Rose clambered out, her small body wrapped with two thick blankets. He waved his hand in greeting as she slowly headed towards him.
"Daddy?" she said groggily as she rubbed her eyes, obviously having just woken up.
"Hey kiddo," he said cheerily, earning him a surprised, but happy smile. "Do I call you kiddo? In the future I mean?"
Rose nodded. "Sometimes, but you call me all sorts of funny things - especially when you're happy…"
Ron sat up straighter. "Tell me more of what I'm like? Am I as much of a git as I am now?"
He watched as Rose's eyes narrowed just a bit as her mouth dropped open. "You're not a git."
He laughed. "Okay okay fine! What am I then?"
Rose shrugged. "You're you."
Ron didn't know quite what to make of that, but he hoped that it was a good thing. He cleared his throat. "Besides the whole thing-with Hermione, you know, am I a good dad? A good person?"
Rose nodded, giving him a smile. "Yeah, you are."
Ron watched her expression change as she then stared hard at the ground, her eyes watering. He knew that she was worried about not being able to get back to her own time. They all were worried of course, but she definitely had the most to lose- her whole life was in a completely different time. To be as young as she was and having to think about all of this, Ron didn't blame her at all for how upset she was. Still not very good at it, he stood up and walked over before sitting next to her. He put his arm around her and pulled her close into his side and was relieved when she visibly relaxed.
"Tell me a funny story - something that happens in the future?" he asked, trying to take her mind off of the serious stuff.
She was quiet for several moments as she appeared to be thinking of what to say before he saw a smile break out on her face. "One time, Uncle George used a spell to turn your hair bright blue and you went almost three hours before you realized it." She giggled. "You couldn't understand why everyone was acting funny around you, but it was because they were trying not to laugh."
He chuckled. "Please tell me it was not in a public place?"
Rose shook her head. "It was at The Burrow. We were all there for Sunday lunch."
Ron felt tears suddenly spring up behind his eyes. What he wouldn't give to go home and have a nice lunch with his family. Life lately had helped him keep his mind off of them, but he really did miss them more than he could ever openly admit. Even though he saw Bill for a while, he figured it didn't count as his guilt had been consuming him and he hadn't been able to enjoy the visit at all.
Rose must have noticed that something was wrong when he didn't answer. "You haven't seen anyone for a while, right?"
"No, I haven't," he said sadly.
"It's almost over," Rose told him, obviously trying to reassure him but Ron could tell that there was trepidation in her voice as well.
"So there's going to be a battle at Hogwarts?" he asked. She had told him earlier, but he hadn't pressed for details. He knew that if it was a 'battle' then they would certainly be losing people. His thoughts went to his family, hoping desperately that he hadn't lost any of them. She had already mentioned several of them, but not all. "Who do we lose?" he asked cautiously, and suddenly Rose looked extremely nervous as she opened her mouth.
"Wait, stop," he said hurriedly. "We'll have that conversation another day. It's been a bit much already," he finished, seeing the relief on Rose's face. He knew that it had to be hard for a child to have to be the bearer of bad news, and hounding her with questions like that was pretty awful of him. He knew that he had to be more mindful and remember that she was just a kid. While he was eager to have all of the answers, he knew that she wasn't keen on giving them all and he didn't want to push her anymore, at least right now.
"Where do we live?" he asked, knowing that it was a safe question.
He felt her perk up. "We live in a house that's near London and we both love it. It has woods behind it and the neighbors are spaced out pretty far, so it's pretty private. You let me decorate my room however I want, and we have a television that we watch occasionally even though the rest of the family thinks it's odd."
He smiled. "Sounds divine."
He knew that Hermione had grown up without any siblings and that it had been lonely at times. He hoped that Rose wasn't lonely but she went on and answered his unspoken question. "We do see the family a whole bunch though, and I have a whole lot of cousins."
Ron let out a small laugh. "I bet Mum is absolutely in heaven with a bunch of little grandchildren around."
Rose nodded. "She loves us all. She even says that she loves us more than our parents."
She giggled as Ron let out a fake huff of offense before laughing himself. "What does dad think about it all?"
"He loves it too, but I think we wear him out. He plays a lot with us you see, but he gets winded because he's old."
Ron nodded as he chuckled. That seemed about right. Besides the horrible fact that Hermione wasn't there in the future, the rest of what he knew made him feel happy. He knew that no matter what though, he would never truly be happy if Hermione wasn't there to share it with him. His thoughts now on his future wife, he looked towards the quiet tent. Rose followed his gaze.
"Did you tell her?" she asked him, and he could tell that although nervous, she wasn't angry about the prospect.
He nodded. "Yeah, I did. I wasn't going to, but- well it just popped out." He wasn't about to go into details of how it had happened after he had pretty much attacked her future mum with all of the desire he had kept hidden for years-although the reminder of it put a big goofy grin on his face and Rose looked at him, confused.
He shook his head, wanting to change the subject before he made a fool of himself. "I don't- date anyone do I?" he asked, grimacing at the memory of his first girlfriend and how well that relationship had gone.
Rose shook her head."No, never. Even when other people tried to get you to."
Ron smiled to himself. He would definitely be telling that to Hermione later, hopefully earning him some brownie points and some extra snogging sessions.
He then started asking her all sorts of personal questions, trying to get to know her better. What was her favorite color? Animal? Food? What were her hobbies? What was their relationship like? She told him how close they were, and that he put her first over everyone. He knew that she hadn't felt like that lately though, with his obsession over trying to save Hermione. He tried to explain that to her as best as he could, only going on what he probably would feel in the situation. Once Rose started talking, she showed no signs of stopping. They ended up talking for hours. Soon the sun was coming up and still, Rose went on. It amused him how much she talked once she got started on a subject, much like Hermione. She was just like Hermione, and yet much like him as well. The thought of it still boggled his mind.
He knew that he should have been tired as he had been up for almost 24 hours now, but he wasn't. He knew that sometime today he would be taking Rose to Bill's and the thought suddenly saddened him, especially since he had just spent the last several hours getting to know her more and didn't want to just leave her. Rose must have had the same thought as she suddenly seemed melancholy, staring at the rising sun, not saying a word.
She suddenly stood up. "I need to go use the bathroom," she explained to him before making her way into the tent.
Ron sat alone for several minutes before he heard a horrible scream coming from inside the tent. He leapt up and ran to it as fast as he could, his feet crunching in the snow before barreling inside towards the noise.
Panicked, he took in the sight of Rose hysterical on the floor, her hands on either side of her head as she continued to wail, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. Hermione was already kneeling down next to her, her hands on Rose's shoulders, trying to get her to tell her what was going on. When Hermione realized that Ron was there, she turned and looked at him, her eyes wide with fright. Harry also ran up behind them, and as the girl continued to whimper, the three all looked around at each other, not having a clue as to what to do.
Thankfully it didn't last long and less than a minute later, Rose started to sob into her hands, but was otherwise silent. Hermione instantly sat back, and motioned Ron over. Still not completely used to doing so, he gathered the girl in his arms and picked her up, walking her over to the bed and laying her down as her body shook.
"Rose, are you hurt?" he asked. Rose pulled her hands away from her face and looked at him a moment before throwing her arms around his neck.
"Daddy!" she cried, now lightly crying onto his collarbone as he rubbed her back.
After a few seconds, she lifted her head and turned her tear-soaked face around until she spotted Hermione.
"Mummy!" she cried, leaving his arms and jumping into Hermione's.
Ron watched as Hermione's eyes grew wide, unused to this behavior from her future-daughter but held on tight to her, rubbing her back as he had done.
A moment later, Rose slowly pulled herself away, her face sorrowful. "I'm so s-sorry that I've been so m-mean to you. I didn't kn-know you." She wiped her eyes, turning to Ron with a big smile. "Daddy, you did it!" she said gleefully. "I remember so much more now! Mum's alive, and I have-I have a brother!"
Ron couldn't help the small cry that came out of his mouth as his eyes welled up with tears. His eyes went from Rose to Hermione- had he really done it?
Hermione smiled tearfully back at him as she scooted closer on the bed and he couldn't help himself as he grabbed her and brought his mouth to hers, his hand on the back of her head, holding it in place as he kissed her passionately.
"Ew! I also remember that I hate when you two do that. It's disgusting!" he heard Rose say.
"I couldn't agree more Rose," Harry said from behind them, his voice teasing.
Ron and Hermione then broke apart, and remained forehead to forehead as they stared at each other.
"I did it," he whispered onto her face, feeling incredulous.
She slightly nodded, her eyes not leaving his. "I told you that you would, Ron."
"Would this be a good time to tell you that I'm madly in love with you?" he asked her as he watched a tear fall from her eye.
"I love you too." she whispered and he quickly leaned in to kiss her again.
"Uhm- you guys," Harry said nervously.
They broke apart again to look at him and wordlessly, Harry gestured to Rose who was still sitting on the bed. She was crying again, but silently this time, her face looking devastated and Ron suddenly felt extremely guilty for forgetting that she was even there.
"Everything's...fuzzy. I feel like I'm forgetting my old life as I'm remembering my new one." She paused. "What if I can never get back?" she looked to them, her eyes traveling back and forth between them as if one of them might have the answer.
"Rose-" Ron started, not knowing what the hell to say to ease her conscience. "We don't know, but I promise you that we will do our best, and we-"
"Rose!"
Ron was interrupted by a voice calling from outside. A voice that sounded just like-
"Bloody hell," he mused as Rose's eyes grew wide and she jumped up, running straight to the mouth of the tent and exiting before any of them could comprehend what was even happening.
All at once, the three of them jumped up and chased the girl outside. With his long legs, Ron was out of the tent first, hardly believing the sight that was now in front of him.
It was him. He was older, but Ron was happy to see that he didn't look old. He was holding onto Rose, her face pressed into the side of his neck as he held her as if he knew exactly how to do so. He was broader than Ron was now, and Ron was astonished to see that even though it was short, he had a full beard.
Ron felt Hermione run out and stop right beside him and take his hand, her eyes wide, taking in the sight as well. Harry was there too, standing on Ron's other side. Ron was still frozen in shock as the older version of himself gave a lopsided grin to the three of them as they stood there silently.
"Hey," he said nonchalantly as if it were an everyday occurrence to travel back to the past and see yourself and your two closest friends as they had been as teenagers.
Harry merely nodded, Ron didn't say or do anything, and Hermione smiled and said a small 'hey' back, her cheeks darkening just a bit. Ron turned and looked at her, his eyebrows furrowed.
'Older Ron' let out a small laugh. "Merlin, we were so young."
Rose lifted her head then and looked towards them, her face beaming, relief over all of her features.
Harry was the first to form words. "Hey mate! I hope that I look as good at that age."
'Older Ron' chuckled. "You wish Potter."
"You did it?" Hermione said quietly, speaking to the older version of himself. "You saved me?"
Ron watched as the man in front of him's eyes softened. "Yes Hermione. I'll always save you, love."
Ron's hand tightened on Hermione's as she stared at the man in front of her with a gobsmacked look of wonderment that he hadn't quite seen her make before. No. No way was he actually feeling jealous of his future self. The idea was ludicrous but he definitely was feeling it and he felt his jaw tighten in irritation.
The 'older' version of him let out a small laugh as he stared at Ron, seeming to know just exactly what he had been thinking but fortunately said nothing about it. Instead, he held up his hand. "I really do have to get going. I have a worried sick Hermione waiting for us at home- so if you have any questions, now is the time to ask them before we go."
"How did you do it?" Hermione asked quickly, her face changing to one of intrigue.
Older Ron shook his head. "Sorry love, definitely not enough time to explain that bit," he smiled, seemingly genuinely sorry.
"So what happens now?" Harry asked.
"After I leave, everything that has happened these last few days will fade from your mind, it will be like it never even happened. You won't remember Rose, you won't remember anything that you said or did while she was here, and you won't remember me."
Harry looked petrified. "We took notes," he said hastily, "Will we still have them?"
Ron knew that Harry was alarmed with the thought of losing all of the information that they had learned from Rose about the horcruxes, and he felt it as well.
Older Ron shook his head, "No mate-sorry," he said as Harry groaned loudly in frustration.
Ron then thought of something else and felt his heart drop, suddenly feeling panicked. He and Hermione had just admitted everything to each other! They were together and he sure as fuck didn't want to lose the amazing progress that they had made. "I won't remember kissing Hermione?" he yelled out angrily. "Telling her that I love her?"
Older Ron shook his head sadly. "No. It will go back to just how it was before."
Ron must have looked as dejected as he felt because 'Older Ron' added. "It's ok. Trust me, you two will find your way to each other eventually. You always do."
"Let me down," Ron heard Rose say, as she leapt down and made her way to them. She gave them all a quick hug. "Thank you all for taking care of me, even though it was obvious that none of you had any idea what you were doing."
Ron couldn't help but laugh as he reached down and ruffled her hair playfully. "I'll miss you kid. I'll look forward to meeting you again one day, you know, when I'm ready."
Rose smirked at him in a way that made her look so much like Hermione that Ron couldn't believe he had ever questioned it before. She gave him one last hug before she turned around and made her way back to her dad as he once again lifted her up.
"Yes. Thank you so much for taking care of her," Older Ron agreed, smiling at them all fondly before his face fell as he stared at Hermione. He grimaced. "Bad things are about to happen and I wish like hell that I could change them for you, but I can't. Even though you won't remember any of this, I want you to know," he gave Ron a pointed look, "that everything is going to be ok."
Ron clasped Hermione's hand even tighter as Rose looked wide-eyed at her dad before looking at Hermione as well.
Incensed, Ron opened his mouth to demand him to elaborate further, when he saw that the two people were slowly starting to disappear right in front of him as if they were turning into air.
Desperate, Ron turned and grabbed Hermione's body and pressed his lips to hers. If he really wasn't going to remember any of this, he wanted to go out with a bang. For that moment, he felt such bliss. Hermione's lips moving against his felt so new, and yet strangely familiar, as if he had been kissing her all of his life. When they finally pulled away and looked at each other, he knew that she felt the same.
"They're gone," he heard Harry's voice say from beside him.
Ron's hands dropped to his sides as he turned to Harry and he felt Hermione do the same. "Who's gone?" he asked, confused, looking at the spot that Harry was staring at.
Harry shook his head slowly. "I...I don't know," he answered, his eyebrows now furrowed in puzzlement.
"Why the bleeding hell are we all even out here right now?" Ron asked them. "It's bloody freezing!"
Harry shrugged his shoulders as if he didn't know either and when Ron turned to look at Hermione, she was studying his face in a way that made his face heat up. She was standing much closer to him than usual, and he stepped away from her a bit, not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable. She must have noticed at the same time as he did, as she took a small step back as well. He watched as she swallowed, her own face heating up as she turned her head away from him.
"What was that look for?" he teased, leaning over to slightly nudge her shoulder with his, not daring to pull her now shivering body to his as he desperately wanted to.
She looked at him again, her face flustered. "I just suddenly had a really weird thought about…" she trailed off.
"Well, what was the thought Hermione?" he pressed, even though he could tell that she was embarrassed.
She bit her lip nervously. "Well-for some odd reason, I was just- I was wondering, I mean- have you ever thought about growing a beard?"