Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own the magical world of Harry Potter. If I did, my life would be different, as would the lives of the Harry Potter characters. The Weasleys would have already inherited a large fortune, Snape and Draco would have been smoked ages ago, Ron and Hermione would already be dating, and I would have a mound of muggle money sitting in front of me as we speak. And would I waste my time posting on fanfiction? Oh, no. I would be earning money off this. However, as we speak, I am only earning satisfaction. Wow. My disclaimers are getting longer and longer…

A/N: I apologize for the disclaimer. If any of you actually read it, anyway. Here is the long-awaited meet the kids chapters. I'll let you sit on this one a few days before posting again so you can feel the love. Or tell me I'm evil incarnate…

Ron Weasley had never been so nervous in his life. You'd think he would have worried more about O.W.L.s or getting passed through by the auror board or even getting sorted all those years ago. No. Meeting two little two-and-a-half-year olds was worse. His children. Bloody hell. Never in a million years did he think he'd have kids by the age of twenty. Twenty. Damn. How had Hermione managed it? He'd had a hard enough time with his family, and Ginny was seventeen. How did she at eighteen deal with two little infants?

He didn't realize quite how nervous he was until George came up behind him. "Oy, Ron! Don't wear a hole in the floor, okay?"

Ron stopped and looked down. "Oh. Sorry."

"It'll be okay, Ron," George soothed. "Hermione said she would talk to them first."

"I know. I'm just nervous. What if they don't like me?"

"I'm sure they'll like you." George smiled. "I can't believe you're a dad, Ron. And before the rest of us, too. Didn't we teach you how to do a contraception charm ages ago?"

Ron blushed a deep scarlet. "We weren't thinking, okay?"

"Oh, you were thinking, but not with your head."

Ron cuffed him. "Bugger off, George."

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it is. If it makes you feel any better, Alicia and I had a scare one time. It's easy to get caught up in the moment. So she got the potion. Of course, Hermione always seemed like a good girl, so…"

"Yeah," Ron said, answering the question George was too afraid to ask.

"I thought so. So…how was it?" he asked mischievously.

Ron's fist found George's face. George's nose gave with a loud crunch and blood began to flow down his face.

"Budy hwell!" George cried.

"DON'T YOU DARE ASK THAT ABOUT HERMIONE LIKE THAT! SHE IS NOT JUST SOME SLAG, GEORGE WEASLEY! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"

George nodded. He then ran to go find his wand. Ron looked down at the floor. "Scourgify!" he said, cleaning up the blood. "Stupid wanker," he muttered.

Fred soon came barreling into the room. "What the hell did you do that for? George's nose is in three pieces!"

"He was asking about my sex life."

"So? He's your brother." After a look from Ron, Fred finally caught on. "Oh! He asked about Hermione, huh? That was dense of him; you've always been quick to beat the hell out of everyone who said anything against Hermione. Even if it's just in your imagination."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think you know that, Ron," Fred said nonchalantly, going back to check on George.

Ron knew it was nearing time. He apparated to the designated site—a small flat in a muggle London near Lupin's house. How Lupin got Tonks to agree to live in a muggle neighborhood was beyond Ron. She must really love him.

The flat was small and white. Like a hospital, Ron thought, and shivered. Not a very welcoming environment. He waited impatiently, once again pacing.

Then he saw the flash of light. Suddenly three people were in the room: Hermione, her hair slightly mussed, lying on the floor holding two little redheaded girls.

"Okay, girls, here we are." Hermione picked herself off the floor, and dusted her derrière off. "This is not exactly a cheerful place, but it works."

Ron was met with two curious stares, one blue, one brown. "You?" the blue-eyed one asked.

"Yes, this is your daddy," Hermione answered softly. She looked up at Ron. "This is Jane," she said. "And this is Molly," she said, indicating the brown-eyed girl.

"Red!" Molly said loudly, pointing to Ron's hair.

Ron smiled. "Yes. I have red hair too." The Weasley tradition continued. Both his daughters were cursed with his flame-red hair.

He moved closer to them and held out his hand. "Hello."

Molly looked at him anxiously for a moment. She looked up at Hermione, who nodded. She them reached out and grabbed his hand.

"What's your number?" she asked him, pulling him down to her level.

"Um, I don't understand," Ron said, looking up at Hermione for clarification.

"She wants to know how old you are."

"Oh. I'm twenty."

"Mummy's older. Her number twenty-one."

He looked up at her. "You're already twenty-one? I forgot your birthday is in September."

"Which is why I got to appartate before you. And do magic at home." She grinned.

"Shut up." Ron turned to Jane, who had not spoken since asking if he was indeed her father. "Hello, Jane."

She moved behind her mother, burying her face in Hermione's robes.

Ron felt hurt. He looked up at Hermione. "What did I do?"

"Oh, nothing. Jane's not very trusting. She's the mean one, too. Takes after you, I imagine."

"Oy! That's not true!"

"Who was the one who called me mental?"

Ron shook his head. "Yeah, well, now I've seen mental, so I'll never call you that again."

Hermione frowned. "I know."

Ron looked at them. "When's their birthday?"

"March. About a week after yours."

"Oh. Right." He could have done the math himself, he supposed, but he still wanted to ask.

"They're both good little girls. Really smart."

"Of course they are. They're your children." Ron was shocked by the amazement in Hermione's voice.

She laughed. "Yours too. Jane has to be pushed a little, but she's just as bright as Molly."

"I like their names, Mione," Ron said softly. "Mum would be really happy."

"I know. So would mine."

Ron sat down on the floor beside Molly. Hermione followed suit. "I've missed a lot, haven't I? Who walked first? What were their first words? What're their favorite colors?"

Hermione sighed. "Molly walked two days before Jane. Both of them said mummy first. Molly's favorite color is purple. Jane's is orange. She is your daughter through and through."

Ron laughed. "A Cannons fan in the making."

"Don't you dare! I can only put up with one quidditch-obsessed individual at a time."

Jane peeked around her mother. "Kiddwich?"

"She doesn't know what it is?" Ron asked, horrified. "Have you been raising them as muggles?"

"Yes. I was raised as a muggle. What's wrong with that?"

"Do you want them to be like Harry when they get to Hogwarts?"

"They can read like I did."

"That was just you. They have to know something. I mean, they are half-bloods."

Hermione sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'm just waiting for them to get a little bit older."

"Hell, Hermione! You can't put it off forever! Will you treat it the same way as telling me I even had children?"

Hermione recoiled like she'd been slapped. "That's not fair," she said, tears welling up in her eyes. "You can't keep bringing that up. You could have asked…"

"Hermione, I never was good at common sense. You know that. Besides, I thought at least one of us would have remembered."

"Yeah. We were just so caught up…" She paused. Ron was horrified when she began to sob.

"Hermione? Mione? Are you okay?"

Jane came barreling out from behind her mother. "You bad! You make Mummy cry. Bad! Bad!" She started slapping at him, earning one pretty good shot at his head.

"Ow! Hey!" Ron was further perturbed when Molly began to come at him too. "Hermione! Tell them it's okay!"

Hermione just continued to sob. Ron couldn't figure out what to do, so for lack of a better idea, he disapparated. It was a cowardly thing to do he knew. But he didn't care. Not now anyway. He needed more firewhiskey. And a cigarette. Lots of them.

A/N: Okay, there was the 'Ron meets the kids chapter.' Would that it could have been all happy and sappy, but alas, no. We've still got a way to go. I don't know when chapter 16 will be up, so bear with me.

Thanks to all of my reviewers and my betas jwoods471 and JohnCardy87. Check out their stories, please. They want reviews too!