Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing of hers!
Chapter 29
"WHAT THE FU-" Ron shouted, rage burning through him.
"Weasley," Hartman warned, eyeing him authoritatively. Ron gritted his teeth and could feel his nails piercing his hands.
"He has no right to be here!" Ron said exasperated. Cormac watched Ron smugly, causing another bout of anger to surge through the redhead. Hartman took a deep breath and placed his hands on the table in front of the Aurors, leaning his weight on them.
"McLaggen has proved himself worthy of a position from his work in Ireland. He comes highly recommended." Hartman insisted, pulling back from the table and straightened again.
"I've heard that some Aurors might have some doubts with our new recruit…"
"You think?" Ron spat, earning himself another glare from Hartman.
"You don't have to be happy with the new addition, but he is now your teammate, and I expect you to respect each other." The head Auror announced to the table, emphasizing the respect as his eyes landed on Ron.
"You expect us to respect the slimy git? How can we do that if we can't even trust him with our lives out there?" Ron said, finally coming from his tensed state, and throwing his fist on the table while leaning forward.
"Weasley!" Hartman yelled, causing Ron to clench his jaw to control his temper.
"That's enough. You'll have to get over your issues from school or leave." Ron stared at the wall and tried to control his breathing, his tightened fist still sat on the table.
"That's all for now. You're dismissed."
Ron was the first to shove out of his chair; the item scraping loudly on the floor. He stormed out of the room and into the corridor where other Aurors, from different departments, were waiting to hear the news. He continued down the hall, until he was stopped by Kensington.
"Is it that bad, Weasley?" Kensington asked, looking ill as he watched the other Aurors exit the room.
Ron nodded his head, not trusting his words, confirming the Auror's fears. He scoffed.
"Unbelievable. They're barmy hiring him!" Ron growled, clenching his fists in fury.
"I would bet they fired his bloody arse in Ireland, and daddy used his connections to get in here." Ron shook his head, Kensington joined him.
"Maybe he won't be that bad." Kensington offered.
"You've never met the bloody prick." The redhead growled.
"Oy, we have to go!" The fellow Auror slapped Ron on the shoulder and headed out.
Ron thundered to his office. He collapsed in his chair and raked his fingers through his ginger locks. He exhaled, trying to calm his temper as his leg tapped on the floor rapidly.
A small knock echoed in the room.
"Ron?" Hermione spoke softly. She had her autumn coat on, looking like she was ready to go home for the day. He brought his hands down and stood, walking toward the witch.
"What's happened?" She asked, concerned.
"McLaggen." Ron muttered. Hermione scrunched her eyebrows, mystified why Ron was mentioning their former schoolmate.
"Ron, I don't understand…"
"He's the new hire for the Special Forces!" Ron yelled exasperated.
"What? But, he doesn't even work for the Ministry…" Hermione spoke calmly.
"He was a bloody transfer!" Ron groaned loudly, looking at the ceiling and shoving his fists in his pockets.
Hermione looked at Ron, not sure that he was going to like what she had to say on the matter. Perhaps he's changed, or maybe he finally grew up.
Hadn't the war changed them all?
But, she didn't feel like arguing, or being angry with him. She didn't have enough energy… she was having a hard time keeping it together to start with.
"I know you're clearly upset. But, Ron, I really need to talk with you-" Hermione spoke, her voice wobbly.
"Weasley!"
The couple jumped, startled at Hartman's demanding voice suddenly in the doorway.
"In my office. Now." Hartman took off, marching down the corridor.
"Bloody brilliant." Ron carped, running his hands through his hair again.
Hermione swallowed the lump in her throat, and willed the tears to stay away, at least until Ron left.
"I'll see you at home, yea?" Ron asked, in his anger, forgetting that Hermione had something to say.
She nodded her head, keeping it lowered. Ron curtly nodded his, and quickly left the room knowing Hartman would not like to be kept waiting.
Hermione took a deep breath, finally looking up after the ginger had exited. She wiped a few silent tears from her cheeks, and readied herself for leaving to the main Ministry Floo.
She left the office and walked purposefully down the nearly empty corridor.
"Granger, what a surprise to see you here." McLaggen approached her as she made her way from the Auror department. Hermione continued to look ahead, walking briskly to the Floo ports.
"I don't have time for this McLaggen." She stated, keeping her tone as professional as she could. McLaggen caught up with her rapidly. As Hermione silently cursed her trivial stride.
"I read you're a mum now, eh?"
"Odd. I didn't know you could read." Hermione snapped, internally berating herself for the childish comeback. McLaggen seemed to enjoy the quip, chuckling to himself.
"Still as feisty as ever I see, and now more experienced as well." Hermione stopped in her tracks at the comment, now facing her prior schoolmate.
"Do not talk about me like that. In fact- don't ever talk about me." Hermione hissed, fury building in her bones. Before she knew it, he spoke again and slid a sneaky hand around the curve of her waist.
"I'm only complementing you. I mean you've filled out quite gloriously; up front and back behind. Perhaps the bastard kid was worth it."
He gestured to her breasts, as his hand slipped lower on her back. Hermione reacted swiftly, not comprehending what she did until McLaggen leaped back with a yelp, his hand burning red and blistering. She whipped out her wand and pushed him in a smaller corridor. He went easily, as the boils seemed to trail up his wrist, and there was now a wand at his throat with a raging witch at the other end.
"Let's get two things perfectly clear. You will never speak that way about me ever again. And if you even think about my daughter I will make sure another part of your anatomy is in just as much pain as your hand is right now." Hermione jutted the wand further into his throat, pushing up the skin it rested against. McLaggen let out a strangled whimper.
"Do I make myself understood?" She hissed venomously. He nodded furiously, wanting the brightest witch of their age as far away from him as possible. She stepped away, lowering her wand, and continued to retreat before she stayed to harm the man further.
"Wait, Granger! It's not stopping! Make it stop!" McLaggen panicked, as the boils and burned skin continued to rise onto his forearm. Hermione smirked pretending she didn't hear anything, as the green flames engulfed her.
"Take a seat." Hartman gestured to the chair in front of his desk. He was already seated and shifting paperwork around on his desk; Hermione would cringe if she saw his version or organization.
"I'll stand thank you." Ron replied, keeping his voice firm.
"Do you have to make everything bloody difficult? Take a damn seat!" The Auror commanded, obviously frustrated with the ginger. At that, Ron begrudgingly sat, making it known he was not pleased.
Hartman watched Ron, taking a deep breath to remain calm while he began to speak.
"Your behavior has been out of line, Ron. You managed to save six men from your team single-handedly, without any fatalities, and you come back and act like this?" The Head Auror gestured to Ron's fuming state.
"How am I to keep any authority over these Aurors if I let you get away with that lip in there!" He raised his voice, unintentionally it seemed, as Ron continued to sit, listening hard, and keeping himself in check. The older man pinched the bridge of his nose with his large hand, closing his eyes.
"You're a damn good Auror, Ron. You have always been the best to strategize and the most determined on the force. That makes for a lethal combination. Even with the recent changes in your personal life, you've still managed to stay focused and seem to be even more driven." He released his hand and sat back in his chair, shaking his head in confusion.
"I just don't understand what you're so riled up about McLaggen for. Has he done anything to physically harm you or anyone else that you know of? Involved in any sort of dark magic? Had connections or relations with the other side of the war?" Hartman listed, hoping his protégé had some excuse for his irrational behavior.
But, Ron couldn't answer. Had he physically done anything to hurt anyone he knew? Even Hermione? Other than to try to snog her, nothing came to mind. And was he really about to tell the head of the Auror department that he was upset with the bloke for trying to snog his girlfriend, McLaggen's technical date, back when they were kids at school?
"Ron, please tell me you have some reason you loathe the man."
"Look, sir, I have never been a fan of him. Yea, he did some things in school to irritate me, but, even now, I get a horrid feeling when I'm around him. Something is wrong there, I just don't have any proof." Ron straightened in his chair and continued.
"I'm supposed to trust the men and women on this team with my life. With this feeling in my gut, I can't. I can't explain it other than that, sir... Just, if you would, look over his transfer papers. Perhaps there's something off there. All I know is, that same gut feeling allowed me to save six Aurors' lives; I'm not willing to ignore it now." Ron raised his chin and finished strong.
Hartman thought for a few moments.
"Ron, I trust you. I know you have something special... and if you feel this strongly about it, then I'll review his papers with a fine-tooth comb to see if everything is in order." Ron felt slightly relieved at that.
"Thank you, sir."
Ron Flooed into his den, surprising his daughter, who gasped, dropping her toys and sprinting toward her father. He picked up the tot, giving her all the love he could and letting her know how much she was missed. After a moment, he headed for the kitchen where he heard hushed voices. He stopped when he noticed Hermione was stirring a pot over the stove, while also speaking with Charlie.
"What are you doing here?" Ron asked, already feeling irritation build within him. Hermione already experienced his agitation at the Ministry and knew it would take little to set him off during the same day. Charlie turned to Ron.
"Welcome back, brother. Hermione needs-"
"Charlie was just leaving." Hermione cut him off, giving Charlie a stare to challenge her. He stared right back, Ron watching a silent conversation being passed.
"Fine. Yea. I was just heading out." Charlie deflated. He shook his head slightly, then walked toward Ron.
"Glad you made it back safe. Bye Rosie." Charlie said softly. Waving to the small girl who reflected his motions back to him. He chose to leave through the front door, Apparating with a snap.
Ron turned to Hermione who was clearly focused on whatever was in the pot.
"Care to tell me what the bloody hell that was about? Why was he here?" Ron asked, hotly. Hermione continued to stir, steam rising as she bent over it. He could see her shoulders rise and fall, taking a calming breath, he imagined.
"Charlie, like the rest of your family, has been helping out. Someone is over almost every night." Hermione spoke, still not turned toward him. Although, there was something off in her voice, that he couldn't place.
"Does he often come alone?" Ron asked suddenly very possessive of the witch next to him. She glanced back at him quickly.
"He has before, but like I said he normally just comes with the family. I told him it wasn't necessary, but he didn't want me to be alone." Hermione crouched down to remove a tray from the oven, speaking quietly.
Ron scoffed at the response, causing Hermione to finally snap; letting the oven door slam shut, and setting the hot tray much too forcefully on the trivet. She quickly took off the oven mitts and threw them onto the counter.
Ron watched, shocked. She whipped around, walking toward him. Her eyes were red and he could almost feel the magic emanating from her.
"I'm going to bed. Dinner is ready for you." She stormed away, not bothering to look at him, entering the bedroom and shutting the door tightly behind her. Ron stood there in awe as he stared at the closed door she was behind. He wasn't sure what had just happened, but, he was far too irritated to acknowledge it.
He sat Rose in her high chair, which she slipped into without resistance. She sat stone-like, staring intently at the door Hermione had gone into. He served himself, what looked like his mum's version of beef stew with fresh bread, and got Rose her portion. As they ate, he realized how much he missed Hermione during those last few weeks they had consistently been dining together as a family. This had allowed him time to realize that he had gone and mucked things up again. He knew Hermione would never hurt him by being with his brother intimately. Yet, the thought still lingered in his head; and it annoyed the hell out of him.
He continued to down his dinner, loathing the silence, when he realized Rose hadn't touched her food. He set his hunk of bread down and picked up a green bean for the tot.
"Rosie, you need to eat darling." The child still had her head turned, focused on the door. Ron sighed, and adjusted her high chair so she'd have to turn around completely to see the door. She looked at him, a panicked look thrown upon her face.
"Love, you need to eat your dinner." Her brows jutted together as she puckered her lips and shook her head rapidly.
"Want mummy!" She demanded, trying to turn her little body around in the chair, not comprehending the safety belt securing her in place.
"You can have mummy after you eat." Ron set the green bean down, and instead offered her a spoonful of stew, making sure only small pieces were ladled in. The tot gave up on struggling to turn around, and when she looked back at her father, he was offering her a spoonful of stew.
"No! Want mummy!" Rose whined, not yet becoming outwardly upset at the situation. Ron groaned and tried to get the cooled stew into the tot's mouth; ending with him being unsuccessful and her being dramatically more upset than before. Tears now began to rush down her cheeks, as she frantically tried to turn around again.
"Mummy!" She blubbered.
Ron gave up on feeding the tot, as they were getting nowhere, and instead, unclasped her from the high chair, and toted her to the bedroom. He hesitated at the door, unsure whether to knock, or just walk in. He decided the wailing tot was enough warning, and walked into the room.
At first, he thought she was really lying there, sleeping under the covers in his massive bed. But as he got closer, and Rose's cries calmed, he noticed the erratic movement of the sheets by her shoulders. Seeing the light drift into the room, she peeked up from beneath the covers, suddenly wiping her eyes, bloodshot and swollen.
Rose squirmed in Ron's hold to be let down, instantly. Surprised that the tot was no longer actively crying, he paced to the end of the bed and released her. Rose speedily crawled up Hermione's legs, to snuggle into her side. He could hear Hermione's shuttering breaths as she enclosed their daughter in a warm embrace, holding the tot closely to her chest. Hermione curled in, almost into a fetal position; the previous one she occupied, and buried her face in her daughter's hair. Another sob wracked her body, as she silently shed tears into her daughter's hair. She stayed like that, as Ron watched silently from the foot of the bed.
He wanted to go forward to comfort the witch. Embrace her, ask her what the matter was, anything.
...Yet, he did nothing, and instead, turned and exited the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.
A/N: Not the most uplifting chapter, but our favorite couple will always have difficult times. I am hoping to get the next chapter up this weekend as well. Please leave a review with your thoughts! Thank you for reading.
On another note, the Romione award voting has begun! I thoroughly enjoyed reading through the choices, and possible found a few new favorites! I am so honored to be nominated. Thank you all for the support!