Note: this story is set after OOTP. So everything before that is canon.

"Goodness, Ron!" Hermione reprimanded from downstairs. "We can't keep your mother waiting all day!"

With a childish sulk, Ron stomped down the stairs, his hands in his pockets with a glare at the impatient woman. She couldn't give him five minutes! With a return glare, Hermione collected her disheveled hair in a bun and adjusted her rucksack irritably.

"Blimey, woman!" Ron cried, throwing his hands in the air. "We aren't meeting the bloody Minister of Magic. It's just my parents!"

He couldn't understand why everything had to be so formal around his parents. They didn't care what time they arrived, as long as they arrived.

"Language, Ron!" Hermione admonished irritably. She tilted her head towards her daughter pointedly. Ron grimaced. "I've been telling you to get dressed since nine. And besides, it's rude to keep them waiting. We promised them Hugo!"

After his meeting with Albus Dumbledore, Ron had returned to his cabin and had spent the night awake with his daughter, Rosè. In short, they had caused chaos in the kitchen. Ron had been teaching her various spells: cooking spells, dueling spells, and defensive spells. But Rosè had been unable to pronounce the words correctly; after all, she was only four years old. Startled by the sound of broken dishes and lopsided countertops, she had cried miserably into her father's arms.

Ron, however, had stifled his laughter in her hair as he patted her back reassuringly. Hermione, too, had woken up. When she caught sight of her once beloved kitchen, her features had begun to redden and she had just opened her mouth to scream when the pain in her belly had stopped her. Twelve hours later, she had given birth to a boy that she named Hugo. Thus, his parents had invited them for a large family gathering, where they would meet Hugo for the first time.

"Alright, Alright," Ron muttered, strapping his cloak around his shoulders. When he finished, he bent down to strap Rose's cloak and addressed her quietly. "I didn't sign up for this, you know?" Rosè looked bemused.

Ron sighed.

Bloody women!

"Did you grab your clothes? You know we're staying the night."

"Yes."

"All the lights are shut off?"

Ron pinched his nose.

"Yes."

"Your wand?"

Ron reached inside his robes and pulled it out, almost shoving the object under her nose.

"Good. You've finally learned some responsibility, then."

Ron tilted his head back in annoyance and groaned. He was a bloody Auror! Of course he knew where his wand was! He silently vowed to never allow this woman to carry another child again. Hermione was a nightmare before and after her pregnancy. Huffing, Ron glared down when Rosè elicited a small giggle. The bickering of her parents was always a source of amusement for her.

"Let's get out of here before I lose whatever sanity I have left," Ron stated, holding the door open for the lovely ladies to pass through, his face drawn into a scowl. As Hermione attempted to pass, she abruptly stopped and narrowed her eyes at him.

"We're taking the car," she declared, confirming his worst fears before she passed.

Ron was gobsmacked.

As soon as he had passed his Muggle driver's license test, Hermione had outright refused any form of Magical transportation. She believed that Flooing and Apparating produced negative affects on the children, especially when accompanied with the feeling of suffocation or perhaps the fear of accidentally Splinching them. She didn't think it was healthy at all for the children, especially new-borns. But Ron thought her theory was ridiculous. He was born from a magical family who had regularly Apparated and Flooed along with the children. He, himself, was proof enough. But Hermione remained stubborn.

Rubbing his forehead, he reckoned that he shouldn't try to reason with her.

At least, not today.

Sighing wearily, he shut the door, muttered a protection spell, and left with his cloak billowing behind him. In the stillness of the night, he listened to the sounds of chirps and the howls of the residents of the forest. He circled towards the back of the cabin where the Ford Angila was parked. Hagrid had found the car smashed against a tree in the Forbidden Forest. There had been no life left in her. Thus, Hagrid, knowing the passion that Ron's father had for Muggle objects, had furtively brought the car to Arthur, unbeknownst to Molly. Ron remembered that his father had worked day and night to fix the blasted car.

Wincing, Ron wished that this father had never fixed it.

Behind the cabin, Ron found Hermione tucking Hugo into the backseat.

"Can you buckle Rosè in for me?" she inquired, pushing back locks of bushy hair. "I'm rather busy at the moment."

Despite his annoyance with her, he nodded.

As soon as they finished, the two took their respective seats in the front, Hermione tucked in the passenger's seat. She furrowed her eyebrows impatiently, waiting for him to start the car.

"Well?" she inquired agitatedly. "We don't have all day!"

Ron grunted as he turned on the engine. Swallowing his anxiety, he reached for a button, internally praying that she would agree.

"Can't we just -?" he begged.

"No."

"We'll get there faster!"

"No, Ronald."

"We don't want to be running late, do we?"

"You can tell your mother that when we arrive."

Ron slumped dejectedly.

Swearing under his breath, he turned his body around, placed a hand on Hermione's seat, and reversed out of the cabin. As they left, a comfortable silence fell over the family as they watched the enigmatic shadows of the mountains and the dark blanket covering of the land. While the light of the mornings revealed all truths of the land, the night concealed it behind a veil of nothingness, leaving the observor to interpret the moving shadows of the night.

With a start, Ron suddenly recalled that he had not told Hermione of what had happened to Harry. But as he glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes, he realized that he did not want her to dwell on it. Though she had irritated to him to no end today, she still seemed content as she watched the capricious pictures of the outdoors. And since they were attending a family gathering, such dreary news would ruin her day. Ron decided to keep the information to himself for now.

But the thought of Harry was enough to bring his own mood down.

Was Dumbledore right? Had Harry betrayed them? Was ten years with Voldemort really enough to change him? He wondered how Voldemort had managed to convince the most stubborn person alive to join forces with him? Harry was so stubborn that he was the only one in his Year who had managed to resist the Imperius Curse. He was also prone to defying authority, even going as far as rejecting his own Headmaster's orders.

What had changed?

With dread in his heart, Ron realized that he would never know the answer until he found Harry. But since Voldemort's location was unknown, then Harry's, too, was forever unknown.

"Daddy," Rosè whispered tiredly, startling him out of his thoughts.

Ron looked at her questionably through the rear view window. Though it was dark, he could see that she was blushing.

"I've really got to go," she said bashfully, biting her lip. From the passenger's seat, Hermione threw him an exasperated look.

Ron shook his head and sighed.

They both knew what that meant.

After the delay, they continued their ride to the Burrow. To Rose's irritation, Hugo had started to whine and wiggle in his seat irritably. Hermione tried to give him several words of assurances since she couldn't reach behind the seat to tend to him, but they fell on deaf ears. As the car started to become too noisy, Ron squinted into the distance and nearly crashed the car in his relief when he glimpsed their destination. The Burrow was practically glowing, with floating lamplights and luminescent trees to illuminate the place. In the distance, Ron spotted the shadow of his brothers as they helped Molly set the table in the backyard.

"Ah, we made it!" he exclaimed merrily, his loud tone rousing Rosè from her slumber. She sat up when she saw the lights and eagerly urged her father to stop the car. Hermione smiled at her daughter's excitement. It had been too long since they had attended family gatherings.

As Ron turned off the car, he heard cheers in the distance as his family welcomed him and his own family home. As he exited the car, he was immediately tackled to the ground by the twins.

"Look here, George! Our ickle Ronnikins is all grown up!" Fred swooned, pretending to blow his nose on a handkerchief.

"I see it now, Fred. Who will take his place as our only younger brother?" George cried out. He stole the handkerchief from Fred and blew on it. He then tried to rub the handkerchief on Ron's face, but Ron shoved it away in disgust.

"Gerroff me, you gits!" Ron exclaimed, batting their hands away.

Although they annoyed him to no end, he could not suppress the grin that was slowly forming onto his features. But they seemed distracted as Hermione brought young Hugo to his uncles.

"Fred, George," she addressed them with a smile and gestured to the child in her arms. "I'd like you to meet Hugo. Your nephew." For the first time, however, they were speechless.

They looked at each other in horror.

"Hugo?!" they exclaimed simultaneously.

"That doesn't sound very Weasley to me," Fred remarked sourly and shot a glare at Ron.

Ron appeared indignant.

"I'm not naming my son after you!" he shouted, remembering the conversation that he had with the twins. Fred gasped and placed a hand to his heart.

"Oh, brother," he cried out, his voice strained as if he was in pain. "You wound me. C-Catch me, George. I might be dying." He tried to lean against his brother, but George side-stepped him which caused Fred to tumble down into the dirt.

"Traitor!" Fred shouted at his twin.

With a cry, he tackled George and they both started to wrestle with each other. Ron and Rosè laughed at their quarrel. Hermione rolled her eyes amusedly, trying to sooth the waking child in her arms.

"What's all the fuss here?" said a flustered Arthur Weasley. Ron chuckled at the sight of his father's disoriented look and lopsided spectacles. Arthur had only heard the shouts coming from outside and had inferred the worst. But as soon as he caught sight of the twins locked into a quarrel, he relaxed. But as he caught sight of Ron and Hermione, his eyes widened dramatically. "At last, you're here! Molly and I have been fright with worry. And where is little Hugo?"

Hermione smiled fondly at her father-in-law. She walked to him and placed the child in his arms. His hand traced across the boy's cheeks. He looked up with unshed tears in his eyes, he reached up and embraced her.

"It's a lovely name," he whispered, his voice clogged with emotions.

And Hermione was relieved.

"Oi, where's my share in all this?" Ron interjected, his arms crossed in mock-offense. Arthur laughed. He knew that Ron didn't really take offense in getting shoved to the side. But as Arthur moved to embrace Ron, the twins, eager to take the mickey out of Ron, started to shower him with affection instead.

"You did well, Ronnikins!" gushed Fred, who had Ron's head tucked under his armpit.

"We're so proud!" George said, ruffling his brother's hair affectionately.

Arthur and Hermione laughed as Ron tried to detangle himself from his brothers.

"Let's just hope this little bugger doesn't turn up like his father, shall we?" interjected another voice. Ron glared at his older brother, but Bill simply laughed at him. Delighted to see her uncle, Rosè tackled her uncle Bill into an embrace. In response, her uncle lifted her up and gave her a slight twirl.

"Alright there, Rosè?" said Bill with a warm smile as she shrugged timidly in response. "Dominque's waiting for you upstairs. Said she's got a surprise."

But Rosè looked at him curiously. "What is it?"

"Dunno, do I?" He lied effortlessly. She pierced him with a suspicious look before running off to find her cousin.

"Nice save, Bill." George complimented with a wink.

His brother simply smirked.

"Wait until Mum sees this," Bill commented, glancing down at the squirming child in his father's arms. "I reckon she'll have a fit."

Molly Weasley was always emotional after the birth of a grandchild.

"She already has," Ginny walked in, and Ron startled at the sight of her. He hadn't seen her since her marriage. He looked behind her and found her loathsome husband, Winston Bridges, standing in the doorway of the Burrow chatting with Percy. He absolutely detested that man. "She heard the car shut off. She's coming now." Then, she walked up to Ron, batted away her other brothers, and swept him into an embrace.

"Congratulations, Ron," she whispered.

Ron unconsciously tightened the embrace. She had forgiven him despite his displeasure at her wedding. His little sister would always have a special place in his heart, but that didn't mean any of her spouses earned that title, too. When she pulled away, Ron spotted unshed tears in her eyes as she moved towards Hermione and likewise embraced her.

"We've left poor Molly alone in the kitchen," Arthur interjected worriedly over the brotherly quarrels and the cooing women. "She's already spent the day preparing the meal. Let's help her set the tables, shall we?"

They all nodded.

As they ventured inside, the residents of the Burrow erupted into cheers and whistles when they saw Ron and Hermione enter. The males stood up to shake Ron's hands as the females kissed Hermione's cheek. Molly, suspecting their arrival, peeked out of the kitchen. Her eyes widened at the sight of her son.

"Oh, you're here!" she exclaimed with a hand to her mouth. Ron rolled his eyes fondly as she stepped towards them and swept them both in an embrace. As she drew back, Ron was not surprised to see tears in her eyes. "For a moment, I thought you wouldn't make it." Hermione transferred Hugo to his grandmother.

"Sorry we were late, Molly," she apologized with a glare at Ron. "Ron held us up, so we had to take the car." With a return glare, Ron slumped his shoulders and groaned in defeat.

But Molly wasn't listening. Her attention was fixed onto the infant.

"He looks just like you," she addressed Ron with a whisper. Like Arthur, her voice was clogged with emotion as she stroked the feathery texture of the hair. Ron simply smiled when she looked up.

After collecting her emotions, Molly berated herself, returned the child to Hermione, and strode back to the kitchen. As soon as she returned, Bill, Fred, George, Ron and their wives offered to help her. Though she was appreciative of the help, she hesitated at the twins, knowing they would cause trouble. But in the end, she relented. As the brothers travelled back and forth, they used spells to balance plates on their heads. Or, in Fred's case, balance a plate on each finger. Bill simply levitated the plates and silverware while Ron summoned a cloth and draped it around the table. The women simply carried the plates the traditional way and implored Hermione to rest.

As Ron worked outside, however, Bill caught the twins' eyes and grinned.

Eyes narrowed, the older brother flicked his wand casually, and sent a dozen forks and knives towards Ron. Suddenly, Ron found himself pressed against the wall with silverware stabbed into his robes, holding him up.

"Oi!" he shouted indignantly, trying to detach himself. "You could've killed me, you bastards!" But Bill, Fred, and George cackled with laughter.

"Shame that didn't happen," a new voice interjected. Ron wrinkled his nose disgustedly as his grinning brother, Charlie, approached. "But I don't think Hermione will appreciate it much if we did."

"She bloody well not!" Ron warned.

Suddenly, his brothers stopped teasing him and looked behind Charlie with eyes filled with horror. Curious, Ron followed their gazes and a smirk formed onto his features.

Apparently finished with the kitchen, Molly Weasley was standing in the field with her hands on her hips, her flaming red hair aloft with the wind, and her snouts wide with anger. Standing behind her with a smirk, however, was their younger sister Ginny, who had apparently ranted on her brothers. Her brothers looked alarmed by the sight of their mother. They couldn't even muster the strength to glare at their traitorous sister.

"A fine example you're setting for the children!" she admonished with a red face. To emphasize her point, she gestured to the children who were laughing at the sight of their uncle Ron, especially young Fred and George. The twins had thought that it would be funny to name their sons after each other. Fred had named his son George while George had named his son Fred. "You've all grown and married! I shouldn't be scolding you as if you were still children."

Ron watched in amusement as his brothers bowed their heads and said collectively.

"Sorry, Mum."

"Sorry for setting a good example," Fred whispered, causing those close to him to snicker quietly.

"I heard that, Fred Weasley!"

"Fred? But I'm George," he lied, outraged as his parents sat at the head of the table. "Honestly, woman."

"You're not George. You're Forge!" said George with a shake of his head. "Honestly, Gred."

"But I'm George!" said George's son, playing along with his uncles.

"And I'm Fred!" interjected Fred's son.

The table erupted with laughter as the family tucked in for dinner. The backyard hummed with conversation as Ron looked around at the various guest. There was Remus Lupin, his wife and son, Ginny's husband, who was locked into a conversation with Percy, Angelina and Katie, the wives of Fred and George, Fleur, and Audrey, Percy's fiancé. Despite the fear of being separated by the war, everyone seemed content. Moments like this made Ron wonder where Harry could have fit in, had he not betrayed them.

Would he have joined in their family gatherings?

While attending Hogwarts, Ron had an irrational fear that, when he and his friends finally graduated from Hogwarts, that they each would forge their own paths and separate from each other. Hermione had proven that wrong by marrying him.

But Harry . . . Harry had scared him the most. Quiet as he was, his friend was reckless. Harry didn't know how to stay in one place. His endless curiosity had driven his thirst for adventure. Furthermore, the fact that he was the most wanted man alive had intensified Ron's fear of losing his friend. Harry was always in danger of being taken away.

Ron had feared that, when the time comes, Harry would forget about him. Perhaps even leave the country. Or perhaps be taken by death. But Ron would never know what his friend would have done. Harry had never even gotten the opportunity to graduate from Hogwarts.

Sighing miserably, Ron felt Hermione's hand slip into his. When he glanced at her, she awarded him with a questioning but concerned look. But Ron shook his head and mouthed "Later."

As the children grew tired, everyone stood up to help Molly clean the table. When they finished, they all gathered in the living room beside the fireplace. They, mainly Fred and George, shared stories regarding a certain product in their joke shop that caused the consumer to elicit animal sounds.

They claimed that they had to escort a teenager out of the shop after he started barking at anyone who entered the shop and another obnoxious girl who had started snorting like a pig to her mother after every sentence. The twins had stood up and demonstrated their stories, which caused the whole room to explode with laughter. Slowly, the room began to empty as one by one, they fell victim to sleep. Thus, Molly laid a large blanket on the floor for the females and the children, and ushered the males upstairs.

"Is everyone comfortable?" Molly inquired worriedly to the girls, with Arthur standing behind her. "I'm not missing anyone?"

"We're alright, Molly," said Angelina, tucking young Fred under the blankets. "You get some rest. Don't you have a hoot about us."

"But-"

"I'll take this," Arthur interjected, steering Molly by the shoulders. "Upstairs. Good night, girls."

"Oh, Arthur," Molly huffed at him and shook her head, "What if they need something?"

But the rest of the argument was muffled as they made their way to their bedroom. As soon as they were gone, Hermione turned to Ginny, eager to hear more information about her wedding.

"Well, Ginny?" she prodded the red-haired girl. Ginny looked up at her questionably as she placed a hand behind her head, "How was your wedding?"

But Ginny winced.

"Er – well, I suppose?"

But Hermione frowned at the response. That didn't sound good.

"Ginny isn't used to settling down, Hermione," Angelina interjected with a snicker at the glaring red-haired. "Married life is beyond her."

But Hermione was both startled and amused.

"Is that true?" she addressed her sister-in-law, who had drawn her pillow over her blushing face in her embarrassment. "Oh, Ginny," she said fondly, shaking her head. "You'll get used to it. You'll see."

"I'll hold you to that." Ginny promised in a muffled tone, which caused quiet giggles in the room.

They continued to converse into the night until they heard one of the doors creak open. They stifled their laughter when they heard Molly scolding the boys upstairs. Sure enough, Molly had woken up to ensure that everyone was comfortable when she opened Ron's bedroom to find all of the boys awake, casting various spells and curses at each other. They had placed a Silencing charm in the room. But Molly sent them to bed with a promise that if they didn't wake in time for breakfast, she wouldn't let them have dessert. They begged her to reconsider, but Molly was stubborn.

Sure enough, the next morning, they missed breakfast.

So, this chapter was a bit light-hearteded, but it's going to get darker from here.

R&R!