Chapter 39 – Ron's visit at the Burrow

"Rose, Hugo!"

The voice of the Weasley Matriarch could be heard through the house, while she hurried towards her grandchildren. Ron had picked them up from Hogwarts Express and brought them right over.

The Burrow was warm and filled with various decorations for the upcoming holiday. There were hollies woven together to swag on the walls and a Christmas tree, still without decoration, set up in a corner.

It was the first time since his divorce Ron was back home with his mother. He had avoided contact for weeks now and was happy to use the children to put a stop to any talk about his ex-wife. There were still many letters at his family home from his mother he hadn't even opened. They piled up on the kitchen counter after he took them from the owls Molly insisted on sending towards him.

Just the letter Hermione had sent him had been read, why he wasn't sure himself.

He had been so angry after seeing her in Hogwarts. She had talked like a snotty know-it-all without any capability for empathy. Since she had wanted the supposed best for their children his thought might be harsh, but Ron couldn't help himself. It had felt like a punch in the groin to see how detached Hermione was.

His anger had cooled down when he got her short letter the next day. It wasn't much, just a short plea to take care of the children on Christmas, to have fun with them and a written apology for her behaviour. It hadn't made it right, but at least she had made an effort. Ron guessed that was all he could hope for after seeing her reaction up close. The woman he had met was broken and had thrown his world into chaos.

He was used to go to bed before her and wake up after she had left for work. The silence at home was nothing new when he spent time there. But to wake up in the middle of the night and find the bed empty and cold? To see the food he cooked untouched the next morning? The coffee table that lacked towers of papers from her work?

Small things drove home that she truly left him. To go to work to see all the happy faces buying items to make them laugh seemed to break him. To spend Christmas with his family without arguing with Hermione appeared virtually impossible. All he wanted to do was to be a child again and curl up into a ball in his bed and shout, rage and cry. Merlin knew he had always felt better afterwards when he was young.

"I'll see you in a few days. Have a good time with grandma." Just like that Ron was gone and left behind his mother with tears in her eyes, while his kids looked at the spot he had stood moments ago in shock.

Rose stormed up the stairs and threw the door closed behind her so loud that it could be heard all through the Burrow. Even the small spider in her cobweb Molly had missed while cleaning the house fled to hide in a hole in the wall.

"Can you look after her grandma?" Hugo inquired sadly and took a few steps away from the red haired woman. He knew his sister would take it much worse than him that their dad left them like this. Where Hugo never wanted as much attention from his parents, and preferred to spend his time with a good book, Rose was different.

She thrived on attention and loved to spend as much time as she could with her dad. She was a daddy's child for as long as Hugo could remember. Hugo wasn't as emotional as her and found his dad a bit taxing from time to time. His mother was stricter than their dad and got lost in her own thoughts often, but her quiet company was more welcome. He loved his parents, but there was nothing more annoying than their loud arguing when all he wanted to do was finish his book and sleep.

He knew it hadn't always been like this, but for him his parents' break up was something that could make his life easier. It would take time, but Hugo was sure everyone would be much happier afterwards. Where his sister looked at the here and now, Hugo was focused on the outcome. He tried to see the situation from the outside and judge it without involving too much emotions. He didn't like or agree with how his parents handled it, but he tried to understand.

He felt bad for his dad, nonetheless he could understand that the situation was new and hard on him and Ron would settle into it eventually. His mother might be off even worse with her misplaced memory, but it wasn't her fault it happened.

Rose was a lot more sentimental even if she hated to crack. The opinions of others mattered a lot to Rose and she suffered from it at school a lot since their mother housed in Hogwarts. The whispered rumours, the suspicions in the Daily Prophet and the pity in the eyes of their classmates rattled his sister more than she let on. Hugo wasn't sure if she had told anyone about her situation, by the way her best friend watched her he was inclined to think that she hadn't. That's why he had hoped that Lucy was able to talk to Rose. Maybe there would be a chance while the holidays now.

Molly watched Hugo for a few moments before she got up.

"Sometimes I wonder about who's the older sibling."

Hugo smiled at her and took his trunk to get it up the stairs but Molly waved him off.

"Just take a book my dear and settle down here. Let your grandma take care of the rest."

She hugged him again tightly and Hugo knew it was more for herself than him and let it happen, even if he didn't like the way he struggled to breath.

AN: I feel for Ron...