Chapter 26: Let It Snow

Author's Note: Hi again! As per usual thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. There are some things that I want to clear up from the reviews that I've read though. Firstly –and can I point out that this is completely away from the topic of Harry Potter – two or three people have commented that the bunnies are from energizer adverts, in the UK as I wrote in that chapter they are advertising Duracell batteries. Also another person enquired as to whether I'd be doing a similar story with the birth of Hugo. I'd like to clarify that I will be doing one about Hugo, but once this fanfiction is complete it will be a month or two before anything along the lines of Hugo are published. Anyway, here is chapter 26!

25th December 2005

It was the crying that woke him up. He'd not heard anything like it in quite a while, not at least since James was a few weeks old. The high pitched wailing rung in his ears as he pulled himself out of bed. Ron walked over to where Rose was lying in her cot, fists balled and face reddened as tears were wet on her face. He carefully lifted her out and held her in his arms, at the contact with another human, she slowly calmed down, but the crying continued.

He was surprised Hermione hadn't woken up or heard the noise. Then again, he figured she must have been so exhausted that it hadn't quite reached her ears yet. "What is it Rosie? What's wrong?" Ron asked gently, rocking her in his arms slightly to calm his daughter. It was only when he'd dismissed everything he could think of that he realised that it wasn't him that his daughter wanted right now, it was Hermione.

"Mione? Hermione wake up." Ron said quietly, sitting on the edge of the bed next to where her sleeping figure was awakening.

"Is she... is she alright?" Hermione said, stumbling upon her words.

"I've tried everything I can think of, but I think she wants to be fed." Ron replied, his ears going slightly red in the warm, dim light of the two bedside lamps they had, one on either side of the bed. He handed Rose over to Hermione before she was fed and calmed down. Eventually, she was placed back in her cot where almost immediately she drifted back to sleep.

"She's so beautiful." Ron said as he climbed back into bed next to Hermione. He could vaguely see the outline of her face and the shine of her eyes due to the moonlight that had seeped through the curtains on this Christmas night.

"She really is." Hermione smiled, "I reckon she gets it from you." She added whispering. She reached up towards Ron's ginger hair and brushed it slightly from his eyes.

"The power of being ginger." Ron whispered in response.

"So this is how it is, is it?" Ron added, "First Christmas at less than a day old."

"It's not exactly what we planned, but we can make it work." Hermione replied kissing him, "I promise."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Ron? Hermione?" Ron heard a gentle voice hovering in the air as he gain consciousness. It sounded muffled and far away but he was certain someone else was in the room. It was a voice that he'd been hearing for as long as he could remember, a part of his childhood that he would never forget. Slowly, his eyes cracked open to reveal his mother standing over him smiling.

Molly Weasley had aged since the war, whilst at the age of fifty five, her hair didn't have a strand of grey in yet and it remained the fiery red it always had been. However with time, wrinkles on her face appeared which she preferred to call "laughter lines". As looked down at her youngest son Ron could see his mother's dimples form as she smiled. With a face as bright as the sun on such a cold, cold morning, she beamed proudly at him and Hermione, who was still resting her head on Ron's shoulder as she continued to sleep.

"Mum?" Ron exclaimed mumbling, "What's going on?" He added, starting to see things more clearly. She clearly had tears shining in her eyes.

"Merry Christmas dear." She beamed, "We owled you to check if you were all alright but no one replied, so we were worried about the three of you. It's eight o'clock in the morning. Your Dad is down stairs making you both a cup of tea."

To this Ron climbed out of bed and walked across the room. Upon seeing the expression that his mother wore, he grinned knowing that Molly Weasley didn't realise what was going to happen next. From her expression, he could also gather that she hadn't seen Rose yet, so picking their daughter up out of the cot with a blanket tucked gently into her, he brought the baby over to Molly. "Mum, meet Rose."

Molly Weasley had many grandchildren but the happiness on her face was like a kind of happiness that nobody had ever seen before. Ron was one the few of the children that she had actually ever imagined as a parent. As a youngster whilst he could be insensitive or too humorous at times, he had a big heart, one of the biggest hearts of anyone she had ever met and seeing how he was with Rose after a few moments, she knew he and Hermione would do well. It was obvious that something had been going on between Ron and Hermione before they had found out that Hermione was pregnant. Whatever it was wasn't apparent to her, but she could tell that it was something that Harry and Ginny knew too from the looks that they had shared. But all those looks and clear sadness had gone now.

Looking at her son holding his daughter, she embraced him with not so much power as a normal bear hug as not to crush Rose. Whilst embraced a voice came from the bed behind them. Hermione was sitting up in bed, her bushy hair even frizzier than normal and sleep filling her eyes.

"Ron? What's happening?" Hermione mumbled gradually opening her eyes.

"Morning love, don't worry I'm just as surprised as you are." Ron laughed. "Mum and Dad have come over."

"Hello, Molly. Merry Christmas." Hermione smiled and Mrs Weasley beamed.

"Merry Christmas dear." Molly replied, "Oh, Hermione. We're all so proud of you. You did brilliantly, and she's so beautiful!" She added sitting on the bed at Hermione's feet. The quiet atmosphere was almost blissful as everyone looked at the newborn girl who wriggled slightly in her father's arms before being handed to her Grandmother.

"Does everyone else know?" Hermione asked

"Well, we got your owl last night, and then we told everyone else except Harry and Ginny because they already knew. George and Angelina, Bill and Fleur, Percy and Audrey, they all can't wait to meet her." Mrs Weasley exclaimed. It was at that point that Arthur Weasley entered the room, clearly having not been upstairs with his wife yet, his eyes grew a light at the sight of their youngest grandchild.

"And who is this?" Arthur said setting the two mugs that he had brought up for his son and daughter in law. Ron then came over gently handing Rose to his father, smiling proudly. "Dad, this is Rose."

"She's lovely, she really is." Arthur spoke after a few minutes, bearing a large grin. "Here, Mol." He added passing Rose onto Molly.

"Does she have a middle name?" Molly asked.

"Hermione. Rose Hermione Weasley." Ron said before adding. "Hermione chose Rose. So I chose Hermione."

Molly and Arthur looked between one another smiling before Molly spoke up. "Well, it's perfect."

XXXXXXXXXX

For the next few hours, countless family members had visited the little snow covered house in London to meet Ron and Hermione's daughter. George and Angelina, Bill and Fleur, and Percy and Audrey along with all their children. After all the commotion and excitement had died down, it was the return of Hermione's parents – Helena and Robert that ended their Christmas day.

"Are you sure you're alright to come downstairs?" Ron said, as he reached around her waist to help her up from the bed. Hermione gave him a glare worthy of her 11 year old self that he had met so many years ago on the Hogwarts Express.

"The sooner I get it over and done with, the better." Hermione sighed as slowly she stood up, hissing in pain as she reached her full height, earning a concerned look from her husband. "I'm okay, really." She attempted to reassure and Ron's anxious face lessened slightly.

"Just walk slowly, I've got you." Ron said gently, a firm arm around Hermione's waist as they headed down the stairs after Hermione had changed clothes. When they finally reached the living room sofa, both let out a sigh of relief. "I'll go and get Rose."

Hermione looked around the silent living room. So much had changed since she was last down here. Just over 24 hours before, she had been sat with Harry, watching the television. Now, she was sat silently, listening to the distant sound of Ron cooing and speaking softly to their daughter. So much change, so little time. Their lives had changed completely within a single snapshot of time, but Hermione was certain that it was all worth it. There had never been a lone doubt about that.

A key turned in the lock and Robert and Helena Granger emerged into the house once again. The two of them both wrapped in scarves and gloves carried Christmas gift bags in their hands and joyous smiles on their faces.

"Merry Christmas darling." Helena smiled as she came over to Hermione and gently embraced her.

"Didn't think you'd be out of bed yet." Robert said, kissing his daughter's forehead.

"He thought the same as you, but I practically begged to come down, so he helped and here I am." She replied. "He's just gone to get Rose."

"How are you doing?" Helena asked sitting down next Hermione.

"I'm good. Tired and sore, but other than that, I'm good." Hermione beamed as she looked up to see Ron coming in from the hallway, Rose wrapped in a tiny blanket in his arms.

"Would you mind holding her whilst I get the turkey out?" Ron asked, handing Rose carefully over to Robert, whose face lit up as soon as he held his granddaughter.

The night passed quickly, somewhat uneventfully as well. Harry and Ginny visited once again, with James this time, who took great interest in his youngest cousin. As Ron watched Robert, Helena, Harry, Ginny and Hermione admire Rose, he couldn't help but imagine what she would be like in a mere few years from now.

Flash forward

It had been yet another eventful Christmas Eve. The day before Christmas had always been busy but had been especially since Rose was born a few years before. A day once filled with last minute Christmas shopping, peaceful evenings, meeting up with Harry and Ginny was now filled with purple and pink wrapping paper, balloons and birthday cakes. Today had certainly been eventful, with five candles glowing on top of a birthday cake made by her mother and father in the late hours of the previous night, this was Rose Weasley's 5th birthday.

5 years. 5 years had travelled so quickly. From the moment that Rose was born, Ron and Hermione's lives had been consumed by first steps, first words, other little cousins, the names "mum" and "dad", and only recently, the first day of school. As it reached eight o'clock in the evening, and dusk had come and gone, Ron trailed up the stairs, already tired, to check on his sleeping son – Hugo, and Rose who Hermione had just brought up to bed. He recalled the mane of vivid red hair, nestled against the bushy brown hair of Hermione as she had carried their sleepy daughter up the stairs.

Briefly checking on Hugo, who had been long asleep by now, he quietly stepped into Rose's bedroom. He found Hermione, sat on top of the duvet covers, gently brushing Rose's hair out of her dozing face with her fingers as the little girl slept. Peaceful, tranquil, perfect – that was how she looked, that was how she always was – serene, calm, quiet, and beautiful. That was their daughter. Their daughter.

Upon seeing the small pile of books in Hermione's lap, he chuckled quietly, catching his wife's attention. Naturally, Rose had become a bookworm like her mother. Hugo – not so much, but he was slowly heading the same way. Night after night, Ron or Hermione would read book after book until gradually, Rose would drift off to sleep. Neither minded, because they knew how happy and high spirited this made their little girl.

"How is she?" Ron whispered as Hermione placed the books on Rose's bedside table, and got to her feet.

"Tired, she's so happy though. She really loved today." Hermione beamed and Ron pulled her in at the waist to embrace her tightly.

"I can't believe she's growing up so quickly." Ron added, "It only feels like yesterday that we had such a calamity when she was born." Saying this caused Hermione to chuckle.

"I'll never forget that day, she definitely did it in style though. Typical Ron and Hermione style by that means." Hermione laughed, Ron headed over to sleeping Rose and kissed her forehead gently.

"Come on, let's get the presents ready." He grinned as Hermione sighed, knowing that tomorrow would be even more manic than today was.

Flash forward Ends.

Smiling at the thought, Ron's happiness grew as his daughter was placed in his arms.

A/N: SORRRRRYY! I'm really sorry that it has nearly been two months since I last posted a chapter – I've been very ill and have been taking some of my GCSE's. However, I do finish for the summer on Tuesday so then updates should be more regular. I also want to add that the next chapter will be the final chapter of this story. Apart from feeling that this has come to a natural close and ending, there is only so long I can drag this story out and I think that this is it's limit. Thank you so much for reading and PLEASE REVIEW!