Houses Comp Year 2, Round 2
Ravenclaw, HoH, Short, Prompt: He looked down at what was left of their money - fifteen galleons and twenty-five knuts., WC: 681
AU, Ron fell in love with Lavender.
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He looked down at what was left of their money - fifteen galleons and twenty-five knuts.
"Daddy! Daddy!" Arabella called to her father, leaping up at the front of the store and making eyes at the teddy bear that stared at her from the window display. It was soft, Ron could tell even from a distance. But, it was also expensive. That much he knew. He had seen Harry and Ginny's children with that sort of bear, and they were at liberty to spend money on their children. Yet, Ronald Weasley could hardly afford to pay the rent. And he wouldn't accept any sort of charity. "Daddy, look at it!"
"Coming, pumpkin," Ron replied, jogging lightly towards his daughter. He figured he must look like a complete idiot, one leg limping ever so slightly from a worn-out war injury, and his face still scarred from the thoughts that had literally wrapped themselves around his head. There were other parents around, staring at his slightly ragged jeans and sweater combination. He was no Remus Lupin, but he knew he didn't compare to other families who had two incomes. He only had what he could earn from the shop, when he wasn't looking after his daughter.
"Daddy, it's so soft. It's sort of like the ones the others have!" The others meaning his sister and best friend's children. "Can we go in and have a look, please?"
He could never refuse her eyes. They were exactly like Lavender's. Light brown, soft, unchallenging. And her hair, a shocking ginger much like his. She was different from the blonde and brunette children in the crowd, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Except, for now, she was giving him that look. The look that got her anything he could afford - which was not a lot.
"A look, only," he gave in.
Arabella rushed into the store, her small seven-year-old hands pushing the wooden door below glass panes. Resigned, Ron followed her inside, able to keep an eye on her easily, what with her flaming curly hair and glowing disposition. Within seconds, she had discovered the shop attendant, asking about the bear in the window. Ron noticed the man's disdain immediately - resting behind his eyes was that same look he got from most people. Judgement. About how his daughter was dressed in a handmade sundress, dirtied at the hem. That Ron's shoes were peeling away at the floor. The way in which the two of them held themselves.
"Did Sir want to buy the bear for his daughter?" the attendant asked, smiling politely, knowing they didn't have enough money to pay. Before he could even ask how much it was, the other man was telling him the price. "It's thirty galleons."
Ron let out a heavy breath, a hand glued to his hair in disappointment.
"That much?" he asked, half-whispering so his daughter wouldn't hear. Even after her mother had been gone four years, he would only ever protect her from the truth of their financial situation. "Could it be knocked down at all?"
"Unfortunately," the attendant began, "That is the fixed price."
"Dad..."
Her voice was quiet and soft, but he heard it anyway.
"Daddy, it doesn't matter." She was walking in his direction, tiny hands twisting in her dress. "I have other dolls."
"I know honey, but..." His words died in his throat as his daughter clasped her hand in his for comfort. Her eyes were wide, staring up at him. The attendant was scowling, but that didn't matter. Voice cracking, he managed, "I'm sorry." Then leant down, face to face with the small girl who was so similar to him, and so painfully similar to her mother, who he had loved so very much.
"I know you're sad, Daddy," Arabella whispered, as though it were a secret. "You don't have to hide it."
Ron smiled sadly. She was so much smarter than he had anticipated. "I'm okay. I just miss her."
"Me too."
Together, they left the shop and returned to the modest flat above Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, greeting George as they passed.
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Thanks for reading!
