A/N: Prompt thanks to MsBinns to celebrate my 200 followers on tumblr (yay!). Fittingly, this is also in celebration of Hermione's birthday. (also, quick beta-read by MsBinns, cause I suck at tenses...)
40. History
She's read countless books. But it never crossed her mind that her name will be added to the history books one day. That her children will learn about the war they fought and that they'll read about what she's done, alongside Ron, to help Harry defeat Voldemort.
Ron and her have discussed endlessly about the appropriate time to talk to the children about it. It's not that they don't want to tell them, it's just that it's in their past now and they'd rather focus on their present and think about the future.
It had been three years since the end of the war the first time she'd been contacted for an interview to share her side of the story so it could be added to the history books. She had refused then. Not able to face all of her demons still.
But when they asked her again, four years later, as a life was growing inside her womb, she'd thought of her legacy and how she wanted her - their -story to be accurate, she'd agreed.
Rose is eight when she first learns about the Muggle wars. She has a lot of questions. Asking if Grandpa David fought in a war, is one of the firsts. She knows enough to understand that her parents were not born for the Second World War but she doesn't know about the Wizarding Wars yet. Hermione's heart tugs in her chest when she realises that they'll have to share their story with Rose soon. But she's also proud, and reminds herself that they now live in a world more open-minded and safer, thanks to the fights of their past.
No, Grandpa didn't fight in the war. But her Muggle great grandfather did. And Hermione asks her father to help answer Rose's questions. The child decides to conduct an interview and write a report to bring to school the next week. She's very thorough and focused during the whole process and Hermione wonders if her daughter will choose to be a journalist when she grows up. She mentally notes to ask her when they go home. Hermione thinks of Rita Skeeter, still infuriatingly writing, and hopes children like Rose will make better journalists one day.
That night though, as Ron is tucking Hugo in bed in the next room, Hermione announces to Rose that she's going to tell her a story. Ron and her both agree that Hugo is too young to understand yet. He is still having nightmares about the scare Victoire and Teddy gave him when they hid under his bed. Telling Hugo that wars are real and that his parents came close to dying in one, would be the best way to have their son sleep in their bed for the next five years.
Hermione rehearses what she wanted to tell Rose. Tries to find the right words to explain to an eight year old the horror they lived when they were just children themselves.
"You've been learning about wars at school, right?" Rose nods seriously, her red locks shining the darkening room. "Well, while it's true that your grandpa David didn't fight in a war, your grandpa Arthur did. Twice. And so did we."
As if on cue, Ron enters the room, mouths 'asleep' to her, referring to Hugo, and comes and sits next to them. Their daughter sits up straighter, brown eyes wide. Speechless.
"We were just kids you see, but the wizarding world was becoming a dangerous place, filled with wrong ideals and injustice. A very dark wizard lead uprises. Your grandparents Weasley fought against him and his followers the first time. And they won. And the world was peaceful for eleven years. But then he came back, and we had to fight…"
PS : Borrowed David Granger from MsBinns, because 'Australia' is my head canon.
