Mine
Title: Mine Prompt/Day: Day 5 - Baby Rose or Hugo does not sleep Tumblr name: Rating: G Brief summary: A newborn Hugo refuses to sleep. Can Rose be the answer to the young parents finally getting some sleep? Any possible triggering/warning tags: None.
Ever since the day she was born, Rose Weasley-Granger was a blessing to her young parents. Quiet, undemanding and easy to please, life was bloody brilliant with her around, or so her Dad thought.
As she grew, Rose showed great curiosity about the world around her. Even as a toddler, she absorbed every book and every story. When she came across bridges, cranes, or muggle vehicles — she always asked how or why.
Ron was more than happy to indulge her, taking her out for walks, and trips to the museums, places his wife teased him about as he’d always claimed he hated them before Rosie. And when Hermione discovered that she was pregnant again, he braced himself for the incoming questions the now three-year-old might have.
But none came.
Rose accepted that her baby brother was growing inside her mother, her curiosity replaced by the excitement of finally getting a sibling, just like the rest of her cousins. And that was that.
As Hermione’s stomach began to grow, Rose was obsessed and developed an instant love for the life inside. During family cuddles, Ron would often find himself elbowed out of the way so that Rose could get access to the baby bump.
“My baby,” Rose would say to anyone who would listen, splaying her hands across her mother’s belly and giggling as it rewarded her with a kick in response. “My baby. In there.”
⁂
As soon as Ron and Hermione brought Hugo home from St. Mungo’s, Rose claimed him as her own.
But Hugo was unlike his sister.
Restless from his first day in the world, the baby refused to settle, and the parents soon found themselves struggling to sleep or cope with two small people with very different demands to look after.
Ron found himself calling on his mother more than ever, pleading with her to take Rose, something he and Hermione agreed never to do.
Bereft every time they parted the siblings, sending Rose away came with its own problems. She would kick and scream as they forced her into the Floo network, tears marking her face and a look that told her Dad she’d never forgive him for this.
⁂
“I don’t know what to do,” Hermione fretted on their fifth morning with baby Hugo. It had been another night of not sleeping. She bounced him in her arms; his face bawled up. He wanted to be latched to her all the time, yet he rarely fed, meaning she was not getting a break.
Ron looked on desperately. They were out of their depth. Noticing that Hermione was about to give up completely, he held his arms out.
“Let me take him, love. I know I don’t have boobs, but he’ll just have to cope for a bit. You’re so frazzled. Why don’t you go and get a shower, and I’ll try and calm him down. Then when you’re ready, we can try feeding the terror again.”
“Okay,” Hermione whimpered, her entire body sagging against the pressure of not being able to calm her baby.
Taking the bundle of blankets from his weeping wife, Ron pressed a kiss to the top of her head and pushed her towards the bathroom. As soon as she was gone, he started to pace the bedroom floor, following in Hermione’s footsteps. With a million nieces and nephews, Ron had an arsenal of tools to try and help soothe his son, and he was willing to try them all. Hugo must be exhausted with all this crying; maybe he just needed a decent amount of kip.
The roar of the Floo activating distracted Ron from his mission, and he shifted the aggravated baby into one arm before heading down to greet their visitors. He arrived in the living room just in time to see his mum and daughter tumble from the green flames.
“Daddy!” A bundle of bouncy red curls threw herself at his legs, almost knocking him off balance. Her grip was vice-like but comforting. At least one of his children liked him, despite her regular protests at him ‘sending her away’.
“Hugo still not settling down, love?” His mother clucked, peering at the red ball of anger in Ron’s arms.
“Nah, I reckon he’s pissed off that we took him away from Hermione’s womb. He was so comfy in there, getting fat and sleeping. He’s just trying to punish us for it.”
Scooping up her granddaughter, Molly settled on the sofa. “Well, he was over two weeks late; it was about time he came out. Not like his sister, hey Rosie? Perfectly on time and lovely ever since, weren’t you? Where’s Hermione?”
“I’m letting her take a shower. She’s probably trying to drown herself in there, just for a breather.”
“Want me to take Hugo for a bit?” Molly glanced up, a hopeful look on her face. It didn’t matter how many grandchildren the Weasley’s popped out; each and every one was special and exciting.
“Su—” he started, eager for a break from the annoyed newborn, but he was rudely interrupted by his daughter.
“No. Mine.” Rosie’s arms were up in the air, demanding a cuddle from her brother.
“Oh, I don’t know, Rose.” Ron frowned. “Your brother still isn’t a happy bunny, and he’s very noisy. Why don’t you help Nanny cuddle him instead?”
“No, Daddy. My baby.”
Ron was surprised that Rosie hadn’t used accidental magic to summon her brother to her. The adamant look on his daughter’s face, with furrowed brows and curls that crackled with electricity, reminded him of Hermione, and he chuckled. He knew his daughter wouldn’t give up until she got what she wanted.
Glancing at his mum, Ron shrugged and, with her help, placed the baby into Rosie’s arms.
“Aww baby,” Rose cooed, the hand not supporting the baby’s head reaching across to stroke Hugo’s cheek. “My baby. Poor ‘oo-go.”
To Ron’s amazement, the baby calmed down almost instantly. Two bright but unfocused eyes searched the room for the source of his comfort. Something must have assured him that it was close by because Hugo closed his eyes and finally settled down to sleep.
A clammer on the stairs broke the silence, and Hermione burst into the room, a towel wrapped around her body and hair, her eyes wild with fear.
“He stopped crying — what happened? Is everything okay?”
“Rose sorted him out,” Ron stated before collapsing into the armchair and closing his eyes. “Now shhhhhh before you wake the beast up.”
Forcing his eyes open, his heart almost stopped as Rose continued to coo over the baby. He thought he couldn’t love anyone as much as he loved Hermione until these two tiny people were thrust into his life. He just wished they would always be this quiet.
The silence wouldn’t last long. Rosie’s arms were small, so she wouldn’t be able to support Hugo for the rest of the day. And he guessed it wasn’t ethical to allow their three-year-old to look after her brother forever. As parents, they’d need to step in eventually.
Sensing his thoughts, Molly smiled over at him. “Time for your shower, I think, Ronnie. And then maybe the two of you can take advantage of the quiet to have a nap. Rosie and I have things under control. Isn’t that right, sweetheart?”
“Yes, Nanny. Mummy, Daddy. Go!” Rosie beamed up at her grandmother.
“You heard her. Off you go.”
Shaking his head and marveling at the way his daughter already had him under her thumb, Ron got to his feet. He was desperate for a shower and a decent sleep. Placing a hand on the small of his wife’s back, he steered her towards the stairs.
“You heard the child. It’s time for us to have a break."
