Ginny straightened the curtains once more and looked out the window for the millionth time. They weren't due for a few more minutes, but she couldn't help checking, just in case. The burrow was full to near capacity. After Harry's owl, word had spread quickly in the family, leading to lots of visitors. Bill and Fleur were upstairs, Percy would stop by after work, and of course Mum and Dad were home. And yet here she was, the only one tidying up. Well, not exactly the only one.

"Mum, please don't hover behind me, it's distracting."

"Sorry dear," Molly Weasley said, turning to dust down an end table. She was only feigning interest in the housework. "Tell me again exactly what Harry said."

"I've already told you," Ginny said with a sigh. "They found Hermione, they're bringing her here, and she has a child."

"Yes, well, that's the part I can't quite wrap my head around. Does she have a husband? Is she raising this child all on her own? How in the short time she's been gone did she manage to meet someone and have a baby?"

Ginny looked at her Mum, unsure of how far Molly's naivete might go.

"Mum, it is possible, you know… maybe she was pregnant before she left."

"No," Molly said with a gasp. "It couldn't be. That would mean the father was…. Oh no, you can't think that."

"I think quite a few of us think that," said George Weasley from behind the pages of the "Evening Prophet." He was perched on an armchair, his feet propped up on the coffee table. He sat there, casually reading the paper, as if oblivious to the melee going on around him. But Ginny wasn't fooled. He was anxiously waiting for the chaos to ensue, his favorite environment for the Weasley household.

"Get your feet off the table, young man." Molly swatted at George's feet and he sat up at his mother's insistence. Two seconds later his feet was back up on the table.

Ginny turned her attention back to the window and saw three familiar figures apparate into the clearing in front of the burrow.

"Well, whatever the answer, we won't have to wait long to get it."

Molly and George rushed to the window at Ginny's declaration and they all peered outside together. Sure enough, there were Ron and Harry guiding a scared-looking Hermione toward the house. And in Hermione's arms was a little girl in pigtails.

"Look at her hair," Molly whispered.

"Red," George and Ginny said together.

"They're here!" Molly shouted throughout the house. Footsteps could instantly be heard running around the various stairwells of the burrow. Angelina Johnson slid down the banister and into the living room, landing just before her husband, George. Arthur walked in from the den where he had been fiddling with a muggle hair dryer he'd recently acquired, and Bill and Fleur walked down from the guest room. Bill carried his young daughter Victoire on his shoulders.

"Eet ees so exciting!" Fleur gushed. The whole group was a mirrored image of excitement, as everyone bustled about the room trying to find a spot. As the front door opened down the hallway, the group froze in a mock casual pose, just in time for the reunited trio to walk into the room.

There was a pause as the two groups, one large one smaller, took each other in. No one seemed to know where to look, least of all Hermione, who settled on staring at her feet. The silence continued as all of the Weasleys, both new and old, took in the sight of the forgotten Hermione.

Finally, Hermione looked up, took a deep breath, and said a quiet, "Hello."

"Oh, my dear, I can't believe it's you." Molly pulled Hermione to her in a crushing hug. "I can't believe we almost lost you. Oh, you darling girl, it just hasn't been the same without you. Let me look at you. Have you been eating?"

Molly pushed Hermione away from her again to get a good look at the young woman, as Ron rolled his eyes over Harry's shoulder. Looking at Hermione once more, Molly noticed, as if for the first time, the child Hermione carried.

"Hi," the girl said in a sweet child's voice. "I'm Wose."

"She means Rose," Hermione said, smiling down at the child. "She's having trouble with R sounds."

"Oh," Molly said nicely. "Hello Rose. I'm Molly Weasley." The two shook hands, with Rose grasping one of Molly's fingers to say hello. Clearly charmed, Molly motioned to Hermione to ask if she might hold the girl. Hermione nodded and passed the child off, looking toward the rest of the Weasleys once more.

"Hermione." She quickly turned her head to find the source of the voice. Ginny took a step forward from the group, looking unsure if she should keep moving or stay in place.

"Ginny?" Hermione's cry was a question and a shout, as if Hermione were surprised to find her friend there. Ginny took another tentative step forward, warring within herself. She was no longer sure if she was supposed to be angry with Hermione or not. She had deceived them all and Ron had been so upset. But it had been so long and Ginny hadn't realized before how much she'd been missing her best friend. Giving in to the longing, Ginny took two steps forward more quickly as Hermione reacted and rushed forward herself. The women embraced each other in a giant hug, both laughing and crying at the same time.

"Great," Ron whispered, though no one seemed to hear him.

"Oh, I've missed you so much," Hermione said, still crying and smiling.

"We have so much to catch up on," Ginny said, stepping back from the hug. "Look." Ginny held out her left hand where the diamond engagement ring sat.

"Oh my…Ginny," Hermione looked quickly over her shoulder to Harry. "Harry?"

Harry smiled shyly and nodded and Hermione gave a squeal of joy, pulling Ginny back toward her in a hug. The rest of the family began slowly with their own reunions. George shook Hermione's hand, causing a small explosion between their palms. He sheepishly showed her the WWW shake shock product, then pushed Angelina forward to say hello. Fleur and Bill gave their own hugs, having grown fond of the girl during her time at Shell cottage. Hermione knelt down to coo over Victoire, playing nicely in a playpen with Rose now. Then, Hermione turned to Arthur, who had stood quietly in the back, watching the display.

"Hi Mr. Weasley, it's nice to see you again."

Arthur walked slowly forward, the effects of war and death making him slower but no less amiable. He gave her a small smile then wrapped his arms around the girl.

"Welcome home, Hermione," he whispered in her ear. The room exploded in noise again, each person congratulating the next on the luck of it, recovering a treasure from a war in which so much could never be brought back.

No one seemed to notice the lone figure who had slunk out of the room and into the back yard, Ron wanting absolutely nothing to do with Hermione's grand return.

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"Fine bloody time for a party. It's not like anything monumental has happened, not like there's anything worth celebrating. But look at that lot, putting out the cakes and roasts like it's the prodigal daughter returned."

Ron scowled at the scene from his seat on the front porch. Mr Weasley had set up a small tent in the yard and heated the interior, claiming the house was too small to accommodate the whole dinner party. Mrs Weasley had laid out a long table underneath and covered it with trays and trays of food, more food than she prepared each Christmas. Some family. They were traitors, all of them.

Ron swirled his glass of fire whiskey, glad at least that everyone seemed to be getting the hint and was leaving him be. There was no way he was getting drawn into it, you wouldn't see him folding any napkins into swans for the party.

"Ronald Weasley! You get inside this kitchen and start helping this instant, young man!"

The sound of his mother's voice shook him from his thoughts, and he dutifully walked back inside with a sigh.

"What?" Ron asked as he entered the kitchen.

"Take these bottles and get them chilled." Mrs Weasley handed him several bottles of elder wine, taking the glass of fire whiskey from his hand. "And don't you 'what' me!"

Ron rolled his eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day, then walked to the kitchen table. He set the bottles out in a row and retrieved a few more from the pantry, then set about cooling them down with his wand. He was just about finished when the sound of a baby's voice distracted him.

"Victoire, I can't play now," Ron said patiently, looking down to where a small toddler was pulling at his pant leg. But it wasn't Victoire, it was Rose. Ron bent down to eye level with the little girl, studying her face as if for the first time. It made him catch his breath.

When Ron and Harry had first seen Rose at Hermione's cottage, Hermione gave them a short story about some village bloke who had run out on her after discovering she was pregnant. She'd made a joke that she'd always had a thing for gingers, a joke that did not make Ron laugh. When he'd first seen Rose he'd felt something similar to what he was feeling now. This child was…familiar to him. Her hair was an unmistakable color, though it had Hermione's thickness. Her small, upturned nose was all Hermione but the eyes were cool blue. Almost as if…

But that was impossible. He and Hermione had never been together, not that way. After the battle they'd spent those first few weeks growing closer together and taking comfort in one another. They'd confessed things to each other and shared some knock out snogging sessions. She'd even told him…told him that she loved him.

But then she left. So it was obviously all a lie. And either way, he and Hermione had never been intimate, so he needed to get all thoughts of this child out of his head.

"Rose, don't run off from me again!" Hermione swooped into the space and snatched up her daughter, burying her nose into the red curls as if she'd been genuinely frightened for the child's well being.

"It's fine," Ron said awkwardly. "I wouldn't have let anything happen to her."

Hermione looked up at him at these words, as if seeing him there for the first time. She nodded slowly in response.

"I know you wouldn't."

Ron let his eyes roam up and down the picture in front of him, a grown up, mature Hermione holding a bouncing redheaded toddler. He'd seen this image before, so many nights in that tent during the hunt thinking there would never be an end, needing a picture of the future to remind him of what he was fighting for. Those days, he just knew if he'd had a Mirror of Erised in front of him, it would have shown him this image he was looking at now.

"Oh Won-Won, I'm so glad you're back!"

Both Ron and Hermione turned at the squeal. Before them stood Lavender Brown, clapping her hands and making a beeline for Ron. Ron looked mildly embarrassed but accepting as Lavender pulled his face to hers and began smothering it with kisses. Hermione watched the display, her skin drained of color and a look similar to disgust on her face.

"Don't ever go away for so long again! They wouldn't even let me see you in recovery, and by the time I heard what happened you were gone!" Lavender paused in her monologue to turn to Hermione. "Ooh, and Hermione, I just can't believe you're here! Ron and I haven't seen you since Hogwarts. You have to tell me absolutely everything that's happened in your life!"

"Um," Hermione looked down at her hand to where Lavender was gripping her, "okay?"

"Oh, sorry, you must be confused," Lavender said with a giggle. "Ron and I are together, we have been this whole time. You'll be seeing a lot of me around here."

Hermione looked at Ron then, searching his face for some sort of confirmation. Ron was staring straight ahead, looking at neither woman. She couldn't tell if he looked ashamed or triumphant.

"Gosh, and look, you have a baby!" Lavender leaned down to get a better look at the child. "Oh my, wow, Hermione she looks just like…"

Lavender stood straight up, her eyes flying to Ron and then looking back at Rose. Her gaze continued to dart between the two for a few seconds, as if trying to piece together a puzzle. You could actually see the moment she made her conclusion.

"Hermione," Lavender said slowly, "who exactly is the father of this child?"

Hermione huffed in indignation.

"Well that's a very personal question to be asking, Lavender."

"Lavender, relax," Ron said quietly. "She's not mine."

Ron looked at Rose almost wistfully as he said it, then looked away as quickly as he could. A crowd was beginning to form in the kitchen. Percy and Audrey had just arrived and had been on their way to greet Hermione, but stopped short when they noticed Lavender's irate face. Mum and Ginny walked in then to get more food to bring outside, and Bill and Harry sat quietly at the kitchen table now, folding napkins into swans.

"I find that difficult to believe!" Lavender shouted in response. "Look at her! And, and, how old is she? She looks almost three. What other redhead was Hermione swooning over three years ago?"

"Actually," Hermione said, with as much confidence as she could muster, "she's two."

"Hermione," Harry said suddenly. "I think we're all a little confused here, as well. She does look quite a bit like, well… you know."

Harry waved his hands helplessly in front of him, as if hoping he wouldn't have to spell it out. Ron continued to bore his gaze into the wall in front of him. He wouldn't look at anyone, and then this whole mess would be over. His jaw was clenched, and he knew it was because he was trying to keep himself from shedding the tears welling up behind his eyes.

"Harry," Hermione whispered, helplessly. "I told you. I told you it was someone else, and he left me."

"I know, but, well, look at her."

"I know perfectly well what my daughter looks like, thank you very much!"

Ginny stepped into the middle then, placing an arm around Hermione in support. This was hard on all of them, but turning on each other wasn't going to help things.

"Hermione, would you mind if I did a spell?" Ginny asked quietly. "I did a lot of nursing after the final battle, and I know a quick charm that could help put this all behind us."

"Wh-what kind of spell?"

"A paternity spell."

Hermione looked wildly around, as if trapped and looking for help.

"I, I don't think that's a great idea," she said. "I don't want magic used on my child."

"It won't harm her," Ginny said. "You can trust me."

"I think that's perfect," Lavender said, a note of venom in her voice. Hermione looked at the blond witch, fear in her eyes but also something else, that look she got before a challenge or a great row.

"Okay."

Ginny slowly pulled her wand out and hovered it over little Rose. Rose looked intrigued by the object, while Ginny looked like she might be sick any moment. Ginny chanted a few words that produced a thin line of gold smoke, swirling around Rose's stomach. Ginny then pointed the wand at Ron, muttering the same incantation, a gold swirl of smoke beginning around his own stomach. Ron watched in fascination as the two lines of gold grew and began reaching out toward one another. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach, not sure of what he wanted the test to find. Hermione, standing next to him with the baby, looked just as terrified. Finally, the two lines of smoke met and twirled together, wrapping around one another until suddenly the bright gold color tuned to black, and then disappeared all together.

"Well, we can all rest easy," Ginny said, looking almost disappointed. "Ron Weasley is not the father of this child."

A/N: Thanks for reading and please vote and comment!