xv: Facing Fears

"DADDY!"

The voice of four-year-old Hugo echoed around the bathroom and carried downstairs to where Ron was reading one of his more boring work reports. Not at all sorry to be abandoning it, he leaped up and strode across the room, ignoring Hermione's disapproving look.

Rose was walking past the bathroom as Ron reached the top of the stairs. "Get Mum instead - there's no point in asking Daddy to get rid of that," she told her brother, smirking.

"What could there possibly be that your mother could sort out and I couldn't?" Ron asked indignantly, coming along the corridor to meet them.

"A spider," Rose said, sniggering, and Ron's heart sank. "Daddy's terrified of them. Even more than you, Hugo."

Ron couldn't believe that he was being made fun of by a six-year-old. Rose stood there watching as Ron took a deep breath. He had two choices. He could go and get Hermione, who would get rid of the spider in an instant, but then he would never hear the end of it, from her or his kids. Alternatively, he could go in there, face his fears and retain his dignity.

He swallowed. "Don't be so ridiculous," he said, pushing past Rose and entering the bathroom, where Hugo was cowering in a corner of the bathtub. It was hardly going to be an Aragog. All he had to do was pick up a tiny spider and take it out into the garden. "Where is it, Hugo?"

Hugo pointed towards the far corner of the ceiling, where a minuscule spider was spinning a web. Ron shuddered. Even the tiny ones had those horrible skittering movements.

How shall I do this? he thought reluctantly. Then he had a brainwave. "I'll be right back," he told Hugo. "I'll just get my broom to reach up and squash it with."

"No!" Rose protested vehemently from the other end of the corridor. "What has it ever done to you? You can't just kill it!"

Not for the first time, Ron realised how remarkably similar Rose was to her mother - Hermione would have said exactly the same. He shook his head exasperatedly. "I can understand house elves, but not bloody spiders," he muttered under his breath. "Fine," he said to Rose. "What do you want me to do with it, then?"

Rose thought for a moment. "Well, if you won't just leave it in peace where it is—" she glared at Hugo "—then take it out to the garden."

"Okay," Ron said reluctantly. Taking it out to the garden would involve being around it for a larger amount of time. "How do I get at it?"

Rose looked at him like he was stupid. "Use magic?"

Of course. He was completely losing his head. Over a spider. Deep breaths. He tried to figure out the best way to do it. If he cast a spell to break the web, the spider would probably fall down and he could reach it, pick it up and carry it outside. Or alternatively he could levitate it so that he didn't have to touch it. But then he'd still see it floating around...

"Can't you just ignore it?" Ron asked Hugo desperately. "It's only little. And you wanted a pet. Maybe it can be your pet! I'm sure spiders are very... friendly," Ron said, wincing.

Both of his children looked at him like he was from another planet.

"Didn't think so... levitating it is," he told himself, shuddering, but contenting himself with the thought of telling Hermione he'd done it. "Listen, I'll give you both three Sickles if you don't tell your mother that I was going to kill it," he said quickly.

Hugo looked ecstatic, while Rose whined, "Only three Sickles?"

"Four, then," Ron compromised, and Rose looked satisfied. "Right... ready?" he asked them, more for his own benefit than theirs - the image of the spider's legs flailing as he levitated it made him feel slightly queasy. Hugo nodded eagerly.

"Wingardium Leviosa," he said, and trying his best to look at the spider as little as possible, he walked very briskly and levitated it along the corridor, down the stairs and out of the back door.

"What did Hugo want?" Hermione asked as Ron re-entered the sitting room. "I was just about to get him out of the bath, actually - he's been in there for ages."

"Oh, just for me to get rid of a spider from the bathroom," Ron told her nonchalantly.

Hermione looked at him incredulously. "And you did?"

"Of course I did. It was hardly an Aragog," Ron said, echoing his thoughts from earlier. "I just levitated it out of the back door into the garden."

"Really? You didn't try and kill it?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

"No!"

A smile spread onto Hermione's face. "I'm proud of you, Ron. It's great that you're not letting yourself pass your irrational fears onto the children."

"Hey!" Ron protested indignantly. "It's not irrational! If you'd seen your teddy transform into a big hairy spider at the age of three, you'd be traumatised too!"

She snorted. "Ron, we've definitely seen more traumatising things than that in our time."

"Maybe for you," Ron muttered, although he knew how stupid it was.

"If you say so," said Hermione, amused. "Shouldn't you get back to that report? Or are you too traumatised?" she teased.

Ron scowled. First he was being mocked by his six-year-old daughter, and now his wife. Next time Hermione complained about the decision between arranging her books in order of title or size, he resolved that he would have a lot of fun teasing her.

A/N: Just a little silly one for you, since I've decided I write too much serious stuff. :) For the OTP Boot Camp (prompt: fear) and the Weekly Shipping Challenge.

I've had a lot going on in the last few months, hence the lack of writing you've been getting from me, but looking at the review count and all the lovely comments on this story in particular keeps me wanting to write, so endless thanks for that. *love*