Prompt: Summer before 6th year. Ron goes to Ginny's room and finds Hermione sat on the floor giggling while a silver otter is swimming around her. He stays in the doorway watching her playing and petting her patronus because "she just looks so cute". After a while she -and her otter- notices so he -and his terrier- joins in. They ended up talking and laughing and playing with both patrons and having fun and feeling, for one evening at least, that they're first-year-kids again-

Era: Early HPB
Rating: K

To Be A Kid Again

Ron needed an escape from the neverending chores. The endless cleaning, the stress of wedding preparations, not to mention the dark memory of the previous year was starting to get to him.

It didn't help that Harry wasn't here yet, and Ron couldn't help but worry about him. He and Hermione hardly had time to write to him, and Ron wanted more than anything to know how he was doing after the Ministry and Siris's death.

He was on his way to his room, to get a moment of solitude to try and take his mind off of everything when he heard a laugh from behind Ginny's door. Ron paused to listen. It wasn't Ginny's laugh, but Hermione's. It bought a smile to his face as he hadn't heard her laugh in forever.

The door was ajar, so he approached it and peered inside. Hermione was sitting cross-legged on the floor, smiling at her otter patronus as it swam around the room.

Ron wanted to join in on the fun too. He pulled his wand out from his pocket and muttered the incantation, Expecto Patronum, while focusing on the joy of seeing Hermione so carefree and present. His silver terrier erupted from his wand, and bolted into the room to chase her otter.

"Ron!" laughed Hermione, and he followed his terrier into the room. She smiled up at him and motioned for him to sit down next to her.

Ron lowered himself to the floor by Hermione, and leaned his back against the bed. The pair watched as their patronuses jetted around the room, Ron's terrier jumping and nipping at the otter who swam in circles above the ground.

"How have you been?" she asked, while watching her otter play.

"Honestly? I'm sick of this place, and wish I could talk to Harry."

"I know, me too," she replied.

The pair smiled and laughed as their patronuses dodged between them. "I was looking for something to get my mind off of everything, and then I saw you in here," said Ron.

"It's a lot, isn't it? Dealing with everything after the Ministry. Sirius's death." Hermione shuddered.

"I know. Sometimes I wish we were first years again. Our problems were so manageable."

"I wish that too." Hermione giggled as Ron's terrier nuzzled up against her leg. "Feels kind of like that now, though, don't you think?" she said as she reached out to pet it.

"First years who can conjure patronuses? Sure, Hermione," he said.

"No, first years just having a little bit of childlike fun," she clarified as Ron's terrier bounced away from her. "After this past year, I wish I could be a child again."

"I know what you mean," he said.

They sat there for a while, enjoying the simplicity of the moment, before inevitably having to face the business of the Burrow again.