Chapter Twenty-Seven

Lately, it hadn't been unusual for Harry and Ginny to sit them down in the living room, prepared to give them some news they most likely wouldn't want to receive. In fact, it had occurred once or twice a week with one thing or another – most of the time something to do with their parents.

So the day after Hugo's cousins had returned from Hogwarts, it was no surprise to him when Harry called a 'family meeting'. He ushered his three children, his niece, and his nephew into the large living room, making sure they were seated where they could all see him. Hugo found a spot on the floor, his back resting against the couch where Rose's feet hung.

He thought he knew what this was about. His aunt and uncle thought their children didn't know about Begonia Webb's trial. They were going to break the news. Little did they know, at the Burrow the night before, Hugo and Rose had filled the majority of their cousins in on the news. Some had been surprised, but there had been others – such as Lucy and Molly – who had already known.

Hugo wondered how his cousins would react here. Would they feign surprise, or say they already knew? Knowing them, Hugo suspected they weren't going to sit through the same news twice; especially James.

"You're probably all wondering why we have you in here... again," Harry began.

"Is it to assure us that everything will be okay again?" Rose asked drily.

"Er... yes and no," Harry answered. He directed the next part at his children. "I have no doubt that the three of you have already been informed that a trial date has been decided for Ms Webb, yes?"

All three of them nodded. James' expression was one of relief.

Harry also seemed relieved. "Good, that's one less thing I have to explain."

"Dad, you've been working at the Ministry too long," Albus then groaned before Harry could continue. "What's with all these family meetings and stuff? Why couldn't you tell us this over breakfast? Or wait til dinner?"

"Let us finish, Al," Ginny replied.

"I wanted you all together," Harry added.

"Well, we're here," James cut in. "Spit it out, Dad. There's a Quidditch match starting in half an hour. I want to listen to it. The Harpies are playing."

Harry rolled his eyes at his eldest son, before ploughing on with whatever it was he wanted to tell them. "Alright, well, your mum – or aunt – and I were thinking –"

"– don't hurt yourself, Dad."

"Albus!"

"We thought that when the trial comes about, it's going to be a difficult few months –"

"Months?" It was the most attention Rose had paid the whole five minutes they had been there.

"It's going to take more than one day to solve, Rosie," Harry answered calmly, though Hugo could see the growing irritation on his uncle's face. He just wanted to tell them his news.

"But... why?"

"Because all trials do," Harry answered. "Don't you remember the long, gruelling cases your mum had to work on sometimes? Sometimes they lasted months; years even."

Hugo hoped with all his might that this wasn't going to take years to solve. If they had all the evidence they needed, how long would it take to put her into Azkaban? And wouldn't Kingsley be there too? He knew their parents personally. Surely he could vouch for them.

"Yeah, but –"

"Rose, we can discuss this later, okay?" Ginny interrupted. "For now, can you just let Uncle Harry finish what he is trying to tell you?"

No one said another word. They all watched Harry with anticipation.

Harry seemed slightly put out now, and seemed to have lost his place. If Hugo wasn't mistaken, he looked kind of... nervous. Surely he wasn't nervous in front of his own family? Surely.

"You were saying something about the case maybe lasting months?" Lily offered.

Harry smiled. "Yes, that's right, and we thought that as it's school holidays and we've all been through a rough couple of months –"

You can say that again, Hugo thought.

"– we'd like to take you all on a holiday."

Lily squealed, getting to her feet. She was absolutely thrilled by this news, apparently. "Oh, where to?" she asked.

Ginny smiled. "It's a surprise, Lil."

"Not even a hint?" Albus questioned. "One, little hint?"

Harry and Ginny both smiled, obviously delighted by this response. It sounded like something they had been planning for quite some time now.

"So, where will Hugo and I be going then?"

Everyone's smiles faltered as they all looked to Rose.

"What do you mean, Rosie?" Harry questioned. "You'll be coming with us, of course."

"Yeah, Rosie," James piped in. "I'm pretty sure they did this for you guys in the first place. Mum and Dad never take us on holidays... except to Shell Cottage... and there's only so many times you can see the same beach and still be excited about it." He turned to his parents. "You're not taking us to Shell Cottage, are you?"

Ginny laughed. "No, James. Not this time," she assured him. "It's somewhere none of us have been before. But, as I said, it's a surprise."

"You're excited, aren't you, Rosie?" Harry questioned, watching Rose uncertainly. "James is right, we're doing this mainly for the two of you... to get your mind off the coming weeks."

Rose nodded, smiling. Hugo couldn't work out if it was genuine or forced. "Yeah, I am," she said. "I just didn't realise you intended to include me in this holiday."

"Well, they weren't going to leave you here, were they?" James said. "I mean... imagine the state of the house they'd come home to if you were in charge."

"That's very rich coming from you, James," Harry said with a smile. He turned back to Rose. "You're part of this small family now, Rosie, and as this is a family holiday, it just wouldn't be right if you weren't there. Though, if you'd prefer not to go, I'm sure I could –"

"– no, I want to go!" Rose interrupted. She smiled and this time Hugo was sure it was genuine. "Thanks."

"When do we leave?" No one had actually bothered to find that information out yet, so Hugo had no choice but to ask it.

"In two days," Harry told them. "So, I suggest all five of you get to packing. And pack some warm things."

Everyone got to their feet and slowly drifted out of the living room. Hugo followed behind James and Albus. "Where are they taking us?" Albus said to his brother. "Pack warm things... are they taking us to the North Pole or something?"

"Oh, that would be cool if they did!" Lily exclaimed, catching up to them.

Her brothers laughed. "They're not taking us there, Lil," James said.

"Why not?"

"Because... it's the North Pole!"

"But, Daddy said to specifically pack warm clothes. We already live in England. Where else is much colder than here?"

That got James and Albus thinking and they began arguing as they made their way up the stairs to their bedrooms.

Hugo stopped at the foot, turning around to wait for Rose. She was tailing them all, seeming to be in awe of this news.

"It's just a holiday," he told her.

She laughed. "Yeah, I know, but... they want to take us with them," she said as if this explained everything.

Hugo raised an eyebrow. "So?"

"So... it's just a wakeup call, isn't it?"

"How so?"

"That Mum and Dad won't be taking us anywhere ever again."

"They never did, anyway. They were always working and couldn't find the time to take more than one day off."

Rose nodded. "I know," she said. Hugo waited for a burst of tears, or perhaps a snide remark about it, but it never came. If anything, the smile on his sister's face only got bigger.

"You seem happy about it," he observed.

"They always wanted to take us somewhere for more than a day," Rose answered. "I think they'd be happy we were finally getting a proper holiday, you know?"

Hugo frowned. "Where's my sister and what have you done with her?"

"I finally get it now, Hu," Rose continued. "What they always tried to tell me. I'd be much happier if I didn't let so many things bother me. I've been trying to do that lately and... they were right. I am happier. Mum and Dad are gone, but it doesn't mean we all have to stop living our lives, you know? We can still be happy."

Hugo was speechless. It was like she had gone from one extreme to another. "Uh... alright," he said. "Well... I think I'll just go and pack..." He put his foot on the first step. Rose followed.

Hugo let his sister go past him, who almost danced up the stairs. In that same moment, Harry and Ginny appeared. "Is she okay?" he asked them.

They both shook their heads, smiling sadly.

"She seems happy, though,"

"It's merely a new way for her to block out the pain, I think," Harry said. "Getting angry didn't help her."

"But..."

"I don't think even she realises it, Hu. She's apologised to us for what she's been doing, and ever since then, she's been like this. She probably truly believes she's over it now. We'll keep an eye on her, mate. Don't worry, okay. She'll be fine. It's a step forward, anyway."

Hugo nodded and continued on up the stairs. Don't worry... How was he not supposed to worry? She was his sister.

OOO

The rest of the afternoon was spent in a cheerful atmosphere. The more Hugo packed, the more excited he got. His cousins darted from room to room, shouting new theories at each other as to where they might be going. James even suggested it might be somewhere on the other side of the world. Hugo highly doubted that. If he knew his uncle – and he thought he did – Harry wouldn't want to go anywhere that wasn't in Apparating distance. What if something happened with the case? What if the trial was brought forward? Or pushed back? Harry would want to know, Hugo was sure of it.

And despite what they said, Rose remained in a good mood all through the packing experience. She was the first one to be ready, standing her suitcase up against her wall as Hugo entered. When she saw him, she smiled and welcomed him in cheerfully. It was strange, Hugo had to admit, but he didn't necessarily dislike this behaviour. Perhaps Harry and Ginny were wrong. Perhaps Rose really was moving on.

"Where do you think it will be?" she asked him, swinging on her chair that was sitting by her desk. "This holiday?"

Hugo shrugged. "I'll let it be a surprise," he said.

"You're not just a little bit curious?" Rose wondered.

"A little bit," Hugo confessed. "But... it's a holiday. I'll be happy wherever we go."

Rose's smile faltered and Hugo's breath caught in his throat. Don't start crying, Rosie, he begged.

"I think they wanted to take us places, you know," she said after a moment's silence. "I'd sometimes hear them talking. They'd discuss whether or not they could get time off work and then they'd talk about where they'd like to go and for how long. They tried, I think."

Hugo nodded. "They took us to that lake, remember?"

"That was only for day visits, though. I think they wanted to do holidays like Molly and Lucy get with Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey."

They also had a lot more money, Hugo wanted to say, but he didn't. His family had been well off, as far as he was concerned. Rose and Hugo got things they wanted and needed all the time. It was more than his dad had gotten, so he heard.

"Well, I'm sure they'd be pleased," he said instead. "And also pleased we're not worrying about them for once, either."

Rose smiled, nodding. "Yeah, you're right," she said. "You know, I actually do feel genuinely happier than I have in a long while," she then confessed. "I think it's because it's all falling into place. They're gone, but they're going to be avenged for what happened and I suppose that's the best we can hope for. There's no point wishing for them to come back when that's not going to happen. I spent so long doing that and it almost destroyed me."

And, in that moment, Hugo didn't care what Harry and Ginny thought. Rose seemed happy and she was talking as if she was beginning to move on. The pain was still raw, of course, but each day, it got just that little bit easier to deal with. If they stayed together, then surely, they could get through it. Both of them were strong; he had learnt that these past months.

Hugo walked over to her and threw his arms around her neck. "It's good to have you back, Rosie," he said.

Rose hugged him too. "It's good to be back," she said. "And finally, somebody's taking us on a holiday!"

Another chapter! Yay! And I struck a deal with Joanna - if I keep pestering her to do it, she will beta a chapter a week. So hopefully, if we both live up to our ends of the bargain, this will be updated more frequently.

Your thoughts would be much appreciated!