So, here's the final chapter of this little fic – sorry for the slight delay in getting this posted, I wrote it over 18 months ago and didn't realise how rough it actually was. Anyway, I got it sorted and ready to post before I head off to London for the weekend (Going to see The Cursed Child again)

Thank you SO much for the lovely replies to my last chapter, so many more of you seemed to find it this time. I shall try to remember to reply to people after this chapter, but won't be until next week.

Anyway, here you go, hope you enjoy…

Chapter three

"Daddy, can I have an ice cream?" Hugo asked me as he held onto my hand and we headed down the street, away from the school, towards the point we usually Apparated home from.

"Ice cream?" I looked down at him, "we haven't even had dinner yet buddy," I pointed out.

"Oh," he replied and then, "what we having for dinner then?" he asked.

I sighed, realising I still had to make something once we got back. "I don't know," I answered.

"I'm hungry," Rose moaned from just behind me.

"Me too, honey," I answered, just as my stomach growled. It had already gone past our usual dinner time and now I was tired – I really didn't want to have to get home and start cooking. Maybe instead of playing daft games with the kids, I should have prepared something earlier that we could have just heated up once we got in. I tried to think of something that would be both really quick and tasty to have. Then it came to me. "I know," I decided, "how about we get pizza to take home?" I asked the kids.

"Yes!" Rose exclaimed, excited at the idea – Muggle take-a-way was a rare treat.

"And...can we get ice cream too?" Hugo looked up, eyes as brown as his mother's pleading with me.

I smiled and gave in. "Sure, we'll buy a tub to take home for pudding, okay?"

"Yay!" he grinned and skipped on, dragging me behind him as we walked past the park – our usual destination – and towards the small cluster of convenience shops at the end of the street.

After I'd ordered the pizza – a large pepperoni for Hermione and I to share, and a medium cheese and tomato between the kids, which I would no doubt finish off for them - we nipped to the corner shop next door for the ice cream, before returning to the pizza place to wait for our order.

"Daddy, I'm tired," Hugo whined and climbed into my lap.

"I know, it's been a long day for you, huh?" I asked, wrapping my arms around him as Rose slumped next to me. At this rate, I just hoped I'd be able to get them home and fed before they both fell asleep on me!

We hadn't been home long, having just sat down at the kitchen table with the pizza's, when we heard the Floo whoosh into action in the lounge.

"Mummy!" Hugo squealed and went to get down from the table.

"Hold it, buddy," I caught him. "Sit back down and eat your dinner. Your mum will find us in a moment."

He huffed, sliding back onto his chair as he picked the cheese off his slice of pizza with a pout.

"I'm home!" Hermione called, heading down the hallway towards the kitchen. "I am so sorry I'm late," she added, stepping through the door.

"Mummy!" The children chorused enthusiastically, both clamouring for her attention.

She went over to give them both a hug and a kiss, before moving on to me and softly pressing her lips against mine. I sighed, contently – it always felt good to be back together, under the same roof. "Glad you're home," I tugged her back to steal another kiss. Had it only been 8.30 this morning that I had last seen her? It honestly seemed like it had been days ago!

"Me too," she sighed wearily, padding around the kitchen in stockinged feet – her shoes already been discarded. "Are you only just having tea?" she noted as she got herself a drink. "I thought your Mum was going to feed them?"

"She was supposed to, but...my dad wasn't feeling well, so Mum didn't want the kids over. My useless siblings were all inconveniently busy with their own lives. And your parents were going out, so I had to take them both with me to the sc..."

"How did you know my parents were going out?" she cut me off, taking a seat at the table.

"I called them, on the phone," I told her smugly.

"Really? You managed it all by yourself?" she asked, looking amazed.

"Sure..." I began to say, before I caught the look my daughter was giving me. "Well, okay, Rose turned it on for me, but I managed to dial them by myself." I poked my tongue out at Rose.

"Aww, well I'm still impressed, dear," she smiled, giving my hand a squeeze before spinning the pizza box around to face her.

"I'm sorry it's only pizza, just that by the time we left, we were all getting hungry and I didn't feel like cooking this late."

"I'm so hungry, I don't care what's for dinner," she sighed, pulling a slice of pizza onto her plate. "I hope you two were good for your Dad tonight?" she eyed the children.

They nodded big greasy smiles at her. "Uh huh. We did play at school," Hugo informed her.

"Yeah, they were fine. They'd got a classroom set aside with stuff for kids to do and staff to watch them."

"Well, that was lucky. So, how did it all go?" she asked. "Tell me everything," she looked eagerly as she ate her dinner.

"Oh, erm...it was fine," I shrugged. "No...major problems or anything," I added evasively and picked up my glass.

She gave me a funny look and I knew that simple response wouldn't satisfy her - she was thorough that way. "Hmm, well, that sounds...hopeful. I think. But we'll talk later then," she decided and I knew she'd be wanting a full report – maybe I should have taken notes?

"Anyway, how did your hearing go?" I asked, tactfully changing the subject.

She sighed and paused to wipe her mouth on a serviette. "It was pointless really. I mean it wasn't all that important or even urgent. Just some Pureblood elder who had been caught dealing in dark artefacts, throwing his weight around the Ministry and demanding he was entitled to a speedy trial," she huffed, obviously annoyed about it. I suppose I would have been too if I'd had to work almost three hours overtime when I had other plans.

"Still, did he get what he deserved?" I asked hopefully.

"Not really. A hefty fine, but he's loaded so that won't bother him. And a ban on trading full stop – which won't stop the likes of him and I keep telling them that!" she rolled her eyes. "Anyway," she waved her hand in front of her, "I don't want to talk about work now that I'm home with my family. Tell me about...oh, Rose, your hair looks pretty," she had only just apparently noticed it. "Who did that for you?"

"Daddy did," she smiled, running her fingers down her ponytail, looking rather proud of it.

"He did?" she looked at me, surprised.

Really? After all these years she still gave me that look of astonishment when discovering I could achieve something on my own. Really?

"Well, it looks lovely. Maybe daddy can do your hair more often if he ca..."

"No!" both Rose and I blurted out at the same time.

"Oh, well...okay then," she frowned, confused as to what that outburst was for. "Tell me about your day then?" she asked the children. "How was school?"

Both of them began to ramble on with different stories at the same time and Hermione somehow did a clever job of being able to follow each of their stories as well as ask questions or make the appropriate comments, without interrupting either. It was a clever skill she had and something I had yet to grasp. Though, I noted happily, most of their tales were full of what we'd been up to since we got home, rather than anything that had happened at school. It touched me that time with me obviously meant a lot to them and was memorable.

"And...daddy did lots of swearing!" Hugo ended his story.

"Tell-tale tit!" I hissed and poked my tongue out at him.

"Oh, he did, did he?" My wife turned her eyes on me, head tilted to one side in that way she looked at me when I had done something to annoy her or she was upset with me.

"He did put money in the jar though!" Rose stuck up for me. "But he said we were going to bank erupt him!" she laughed.

"Bankrupt," Hermione automatically corrected her misuse of words.

"Yep. And...there is no paint on the chair in the lounge!" Hugo shook his head, looking rather proud of himself.

"Hugo!" Rose hissed. "Daddy said that was a secret!" She nudged him.

He nudged her back, "I know, which is why I said there wasn't!" he hissed in reply.

Rose turned to me and gave me a dramatic eye roll as though she was exasperated with her little brother. Hermione just looked confused.

I suppose there was no wonder Hugo had trouble keeping Magical secrets at school when it seemed he hadn't exactly grasped the concept of what a secret was. For not the first time I wondered if we were expecting too much of them – something I'd discuss with Hermione again later, I decided.

"Can I have ice cream now?" he asked then, pushing away his plate where he had mostly only eaten the toppings off his pizza, his plate was littered with crusts. If it wasn't for his red hair, I might question where he was truly a Weasley, given his lack of appetite. Or maybe it was just all those biscuits he'd snaffled earlier!

"Is he okay?" Hermione asked as she slid the bookmark between the pages of her book and set it on her bedside table whilst I slinked back into our room after responding to the plaintive cries of our son.

"Yeah, he's just a big soggy," I replied, quietly closing the door behind me.

"Oh no," she sighed sadly, "he hasn't had an accident in over a year."

"No, he didn't pee the bed," I mumbled as I shuffled out of my slippers. "He just managed to knock his glass of water off his bedside table all over himself and the bed. I think the unexpected shower woke him," I chuckled as I climbed back into bed beside my wife.

"I see. But he's okay now?"

"He's fine. I got him changed, dried the bed out and he's all tucked up fast asleep again," I replied, snuggling down under the covers and shuffling closer to Hermione.

She smiled as I took her in my arms, laying her head on my chest, finally at peace. After we'd finished dinner it had been a whirlwind of tidying the kitchen, listening to the kids read their school books, getting them both bathed, reading them a story and putting them to bed. Once it was quiet, we'd both been busy trying to catch up on some paperwork we'd brought home. So, this was the first real time we'd had for one another since she got home and the first chance to talk.

"So, how did it really go tonight?" she asked, her fingers tracing the writing on the top I was wearing to bed – an old Chuddly Cannons T-shirt.

"Okay, I think." I sighed. "I mean, I felt like a complete arse most of the time, just really awkward and stuff. But, both their teachers said the kids are doing fine, praised them a lot – Hugo is ahead of his classmates with writing and stuff, Rose the top of her class in lots of things. They both said they were happy and mostly well behaved in class, making friends and how Hugo has settled really well." I told her the stuff I knew she'd want to hear.

"But?" she asked, knowing there was more that I wasn't saying. "That's all good to hear Ron, but I know there's more you're not telling me."

I exhaled slowly and rolled onto my side to face her as she did the same. "Our kids come across as weird to them."

"Is that what they said? That our kids are weird?" she looked horrified.

"No. They actually said Hugo is an asset to the classroom and Rose almost a model pupil...if she could just control the temper."

"She gets that from her father."

"Perhaps," I reluctantly agreed. "But...they kept picking up on things...that seemed unusual to them. You know, Magical things."

"Such as?" Hermione tried to stifle a yawn.

"Well, they showed me a painting that Hugo had done earlier of me and him...flying...on broomsticks!" I told her, waiting for a reaction.

"Oh dear," she failed at trying to suppress a giggle.

"Yeah, I finished up telling her it was just a game we played in the garden, pretending we had brooms," I groaned, remembering the entire conversation and how anxious I'd felt.

"Well, that sounded feasible, so that was a good save," she commented. "Did she seem satisfied with that explanation?"

I nodded. "I think so – she probably just thinks Hugo has a good imagination. But, if you think that was impressive, just wait, because I had to make up a lot of crap tonight! Hugo also told his teacher that his Uncle works with dragons and that he has a real dragon egg at home. So I told her that my brother actually works with dinosaur fossils and Hugo gets them confused. I thought I'd got away with that, but then she bloody asked me if Charlie would go into the school and talk to the kids about dinosaurs. Could you imagine Charlie doing that? Talking fondly about his favourite dragon breed or showing off his latest burn?" I shook my head.

Hermione was giggling now. "Oh dear. I am sorry I lumbered you with it all."

"Oh, but that's not all, love," I shook my head. "Rose has been arguing with her teacher about the fact a postman never comes here, but owls deliver our post instead. Apparently she got rather upset with him when he told her that wasn't possible. She's also painted a picture of Elsa for pet week. And she had another burst of Magic because she was angry with someone."

"She didn't stab someone else with a pencil did she?" Hermione's eyes widened in panic. Neither of us wanted to deal with the teachers or irate parents over something like that again.

"No...nothing that bad. And thankfully what happened looked just like an accident, but he noticed something weird about it. Rose fell out with another girl over the last skipping rope, the teacher intervened and told Rose she'd have to wait for her turn. So, your daughter used the rope to tie this girls legs together, making her trip over."

"My daughter? She's yours too, you know!"

"Nope...setting things on people to attack them is something you'd do. I haven't forgotten those canaries, you know!" I poked my tongue out at her.

She had the grace to look ashamed of that, even though she knew I was merely joking. "So, I take it this rope moved via Magic and tripped the girl up, right? I don't see how he can think our Rose had anything weird to do with that. What did he say exactly?"

"Just that he claimed he saw the rope move on it's own. I suppose because Rose was pissed off with her, he thought she had something to do with it. Don't worry, I stuck up for Rose and pointed out how absurd that was. I think I managed to make him feel like an idiot for thinking such a thing. But I still think he's suspicious."

"Hmm," Hermione thought. "I think we'll be having a nice long chat with our children again this weekend and remind them about keeping secrets of the Magical world. When people get suspicious, they start getting nosey and that's the last thing we need."

I nodded in agreement as I reached for her hand across the sheets. "Do you...ever consider that maybe we ask too much of them? I mean, they're only little kids and we can't expect them to always remember not to mention anything, especially when it's just a normal part of their life to them," I shrugged one shoulder.

Hermione stared at me. "But, you finally agreed that Muggle schooling was doing them good!" she exclaimed. "You said we made the right choice."

"Yeah, I know. But, I'd hate for them to think they had to conceal part of themselves or that they were going to get into trouble if they did let something slip. They're only kids."

"Who said they were going to be in trouble? We'll just have a fun chat and remind them what they can and can't say."

"I suppose," I relented, not wanting to get into a fight at this time of night. "I guess at least they're still at the age where most people think it's nothing more than a wild imagination," I shrugged again.

"They'll be fine Ron, you worry too much."

"Can't help it, they're my kids," I mumbled in reply. "Oh, and by the way, Hugo's teacher fancies you!"

"He does not!" she replied, incredulously.

"Oh yes he does. What was it he told me when I left? Oh yeah, that if you have any questions or concerns you wanted to discuss with him, he will always make time for you. Always...he said."

She rolled her eyes at me and jerked the duvet up a bit more. "That doesn't mean anything. He was just being helpful."

"Yeah? Well you didn't see the look of disappointment on his face or how he gazed at the door hopefully when I wandered into his room alone. He so fancies you!"

"You don't...no!" she gasped and buried her face in the pillow. "Oh, that is so embarrassing, how can I face him again?"

"Well, I don't know, but you could always go and have a chat with him," I said through a splutter of laughter. "You know, since he always has time for you," I teased.

She lightly punched the top of my arm. "That is not funny Ron!"

"No," I agreed, "it's not. Maybe I should go and have a little chat with him, remind him that you are a married woman."

"A happily married woman!" she corrected me, snuggling back into my arms. "I am sorry I wasn't able to come with you and left you to deal with it all on your own. It sounds like you did okay, though?"

I sighed and cuddled my wife. "I guess."

"Well, I plan on making it up to you. This weekend, Saturday night we can..."

"Get that dinner out we missed tonight?" I asked, raising as eyebrow hopefully.

"Well, yes we can do that too. But, I was also thinking that I could convince my parents to have the children for the night, or yours if your Dad is feeling better. Then, we could have a nice meal out before coming home to enjoy an uninterrupted night of adult...fun!" she smirked at me.

My eyes widened as I gazed at her with an open mouth – thinking Christmas had come early. "Or, we could just skip dinner and..."

"Ron!" she groaned and rolled her eyes as she giggled against my chest. "We'll see," she added then and I kissed the top of her head, squeezing her closer to me.

"Can't wait," I grinned as she raised her head from its resting spot on my chest to softly kissed my lips.

We snuggled for awhile, content in our warm cocoon and the rare peace in the house. "By the way," she suddenly spoke, "why were both you and Rose so opposed to you doing her hair more often? It looked really nice."

I groaned and pressed my head back into the pillow, hoping she'd never ask. "Let's just say I had a few problems...and, we got into a bit of a mess. I've never really tied up girls hair before and...it wasn't easy."

I felt her lips curve into a smile against me. "How much of a mess?" she wondered, sounding amused.

"We...broke two of the hair bobble things. One got stuck in her hair and I had to cut it out. I finally did what you saw with Magic." I mumbled.

She laughed. "Poor Rose," she shook her head slightly.

"I know, she was so brave, bless her. I doubt she'll ever let me touch her hair again though," I added and we both chuckled.

Yawning, I reached over to turn off the lamps, enveloping our bedroom in darkness. "Night, love," I whispered, kissing her once again as her eyelids drooped and a lazy smile graced her lips.

"Night, I love you," she murmured in reply as she settled herself in bed, turning so that her back pressed tight against my chest and I wrapped her in my arms.

"Love you too," I replied, burying my face against her neck, breathing in her gentle scent and relaxing into sleep.

"Ron," she spoke into the darkness after a few minutes, just as I was starting to drift off.

"Hmm?"I replied, sleepily.

"What did Hugo mean about there not being any paint on the living room chair?" she asked, curiously.

Damn! I was hoping she'd missed that earlier or at least forgotten about it. Not knowing what to tell her, I stayed quiet, hoping she'd believe I had fallen asleep and forget to ask me again.

"Ron?" she hissed my name again when she got no reply.

The only answer she received was a loud snore as I succumbed to the sleep I'd been faking.

Please leave me reviews if you liked it.

I shall be back soon with more writing – I have a few offerings in various stages of writing, I need to get back into the routine though as I haven't been doing as much lately – seem to have too much going in my head right now to concentrate.

Until next time...