It was one of the happiest days of Ron's life. Finally, he had mended his relationship with Hermione in the best way possible. She got to accept him in her life as her lover, and Ron didn't have to sacrifice what he already had for it.
There was still some bitterness at the whole ordeal. But he tried to look beyond. All he wanted now was to stand by Fleur, Hermione, and Amelia and be their support for the rest of their lives.
He was back, he was still young, became an Auror, and had a lovely family. It seemed the best days were ahead. But still, Ron had not seen Amelia and Edgar yet, another important part of his life. They didn't come to the Burrow that night, and Amelia didn't work at the Ministry anymore.
So, after his hour-long meeting with Hermione at the Ministry, he arrived at the Bones family mansion. It was the same as ever, neatly trimmed grass all around, beautiful gardens, and a place fitting for the retired Minister for Magic.
Knock! Knock!
He knocked on the grand doors and waited.
Clack!
As always, the door opened on its own.
"Who?"
No, it didn't open on its own. There was a little boy right there, peeking out of the small crack. His head was filled with auburn, almost red hair, and his eyes were blue as the deep ocean.
Is this?
"Edgar?" Ron asked excitedly. The little boy was as cute as his daughter, and he wanted to grab him and squeeze him in his arms.
"Mummy said not to talk with strangers."
Ah, very good mummy.
"But I'm not a stranger. I'm Ron Weasley, your…" Ron paused there. He didn't know if Edgar knew about his father. "I'm your mum's very close friend."
"No, you're lying. Ron Weasley has gone to the stars. He's the hero in the books."
What books? There are books about me? When did that happen?
"Of course, I went to the stars. But then I missed home and returned after defeating the big bad demon. Why don't you call your mum? She'll know about it."
Edgar took a few moments to make up his mind and slammed the door shut without saying anything.
"He's quick." Ron folded his arms and waited.
"Mum! There's a ghost outside!"
Ron heard the voice once again and the door opened. With a broad smile on his face, he silently stared at the woman's face. Amelia had grown her hair, it seemed, and she was dressed in a beautiful, modest, light gray shirtdress. She looked like a true, middle-aged mum.
"Amelia." Ron greeted her.
"R-Ron." Amelia shuttered slightly, very unusual for her. "I heard you're back."
"Then why didn't you come over?" Ron asked her and stepped into the house. "I'd have loved to see you and Edgar."
Amelia kept her eyes averted and led Ron into the house. "I was… I reckoned it'd be just your family there."
"How have you been? Where is Susan?" He changed the topic to make her comfortable.
"She's at work in the Ministry."
"Ministry? Which department?" Ron asked more. "I'm joining the DMLE from tomorrow."
"Department of Magical Transportation."
"That's good." Ron finally took a seat and stared at the little boy sticking close to Amelia the entire time. "I brought you a gift."
"For me?" Edgar perked his head.
Ron nodded and took out a small, magical toy from the bag. It was a figurine of a wizard, and it could move around, talk, and even fly a little. "It's yours."
Edgar looked up at Amelia first, seeking permission to accept it.
Seeing that, Ron felt utterly proud. The boy had grown up great. His only fear in life was ending up raising a twat like Draco.
Finally, Amelia nodded and Edgar grabbed the figurine. He quickly went to the side and sat down on the rug to play with it.
Run felt depressed at that sight. He missed seven years of contact with him. Seven years that were never going to come back.
"Why did you step down as the Minister?" Ron asked the woman straightforwardly. "I was hoping you'd spearhead the change in the Ministry. Free it from the crutches of rich families."
"It wasn't possible without you, Ron," Amelia said, sitting beside him on the couch. "They feared you the most. Without you, they grew bolder. And… What happened to you was because of me. Because of me, you were trapped, and you splinched yourself trying to free yourself. I took the blame, as I should have, and stepped down."
Looking back, he may have survived if he hadn't splinched himself. He jumped into the Veil with Voldemort because he was desperate, having bled too much. Perhaps, if he wasn't hurt, he could have defeated Voldemort normally.
Ron reached for her hand, his voice firm. "I'm angry. You trapped me, and that felt like a betrayal. Like you didn't trust me. And then, seven years gone—just like that. Everyone's older now, and the little ones, they barely even remember me."
Amelia looked down, sorrowful. She didn't apologize since her mistake was too grave and unforgivable.
"I don't know if I can forgive you for that. You didn't just take seven years from me, you took it from Edgar, Anne, Fleur and my family too. But if I had to do it all over again, I would. We knew death was on the line the moment we stepped into that fight. Whatever came out of it, at least we're all still here—and we won."
Amelia finally looked up at his face. She couldn't find any words to add.
"Since I'm back, I'll need your help cleaning up the mess. I've seen the Ministry, and it's just as rotten as it was in your time. Even the bloody elevator sucks." Ron had grown a personal hatred for the elevator already. "What's the point of a Minister who's powerless? And the Wizengamot—half of them are criminals! Where are the laws? The rules? We're not living in the seventeen hundreds anymore. We need a proper magical constitution, something to stop injustices like Sirius' mistrial from ever happening again."
He had a soft spot for Sirius Black after everything.
"I'll help you in any way you need," Amelia sternly answered.
"Great, let's start with living like a family. I know we don't have anything romantic going on, nor anything official. But for Edgar's sake, let's be good mum and dad—He doesn't need to call me dad or anything—just let me step up for him, yeah?" Ron requested, not wanting to waste any more years of his life. "I'm getting a place nearby, a proper mansion. I'll be living there, so if you or Edgar need me, you'll know where to find me. And don't be surprised if I come round here, too."
"Ghost Ron!"
Ron looked sideways at the kid calling him. He grinned and jumped off the seat. With a wave of his wand, he made Edgar fly in the air along with his toy.
"Come here, I'll show you what ghosts can do."
"Aaaahaha~" Edgar enjoyed floating. "Higher!"
"Sure!" Ron made the boy fly around his mum too. "Faster?"
"Yes!"
Ron obliged and played along. Hearing those giggles was heartwarming. A pretty good reason to live well, get stronger, and clean up Wizarding Britain.
Time to announce my return.
####
A week passed, and Ron joined DMLE as a new Auror. He refused to join any team, however, wanting to first see things as an outsider. In the meantime, he visited Hermione every single day to give her what she wanted.
But that day, he left work early in order to visit Hogwarts and deal with the N.E.W.Ts. Using all his connections, he requested for the exams for all subjects to be taken on the same day. Unlike before, he felt no pressure or nervousness and instead hoped to get it done as quickly as possible.
But first, he arrived at Diagon Alley to get some supplies.
"Mr. Weasley!"
"Can I have your autograph?"
Although it had been announced that he had returned, it did nothing to calm people's enthusiasm. Often some young witches and wizards stopped him to get his picture or an autograph.
Ugh, I feel like that bastard Lockhart.
He was not fake, but it still felt wrong. Still, he needed to maintain his image, so he tried to be as gentle as possible. Just smile, wave, and greet whoever came in his way.
Let's be quick.
He urgently stormed into the potions shop to get the items needed for his exploding vials and other things. His battle style had been proven effective, and he had no plans on stopping.
"Mrs. Malfoy?" He found the blonde-haired woman shopping in the shop too. However, what caught his attention was the boy beside her. It wasn't Draco, it couldn't be. This was a child, clearly as old as Edgar.
The older woman turned around and saw Ron. She looked at the blonde kid beside her, and then back at Ron. She looked visibly shaken. "Mr. Weasley."
No, no, no. She said she was infertile. Ron walked closer to them, scrutinizing the kid. But he looks nothing like me.
______________________
New book on Patreon - Second Chances [Dudley Dursley Story] & NSFW art Dudley X Susan Bones.
P@treon.com/MrPlotThickens Or Subscribestar.adult/mrplotthickens