The Sun’ll Come Up Tomorrow (Rose, G)
Author: kitty-mrowr
Title: The Sun’ll Come Up Tomorrow
Rating: G
Word Count: 1,583
Pairing(s): Gen; Rose Weasley, Hermione Weasley
Warnings: N/A
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: Things don’t always go according to plan, but one thing is constant: Rose can always count on her best friend-her mother.
Author's Notes: This was written in response to Gen Prompt: 55. There were so many different directions Rose and Hermione both wanted to take me in, but in the end I could only go in one, so I hope it turned out alright! Thanks to the hp_nextgen_fest mods for providing such a great fest! And thank you to open_atclose for such a fantastic gen prompt. I hope you enjoy!
Day One.
When Rose waltzed giddily into the kitchen, her mum was just finishing drying the dishes. With a smile on her freckled face, she drew her wand-because she was old enough to do so outside of school, now-and magically dried the few remaining plates from dinner. Her mother, predictably, turned on Rose and sternly reminded her that she didn’t allow magic in the kitchen because cooking and doing the dishes by hand built character.
“But, mum,” said Rose, who was normally in agreement with her mother on most accounts, “who needs character when Douglas from down the road just kissed me outside in the garden!” This was obviously a big deal. This was obviously something that required more attention than the dishes.
This was obviously something that worried Hermione Weasley a great deal.
And, still, mother sat with daughter at the freshly polished kitchen table while Rose told her mother everything from the way the wind had tousled the brunette’s hair to the way his lips had tasted like spearmint toothpaste as though he’d been prepared to come over and kiss her in the garden when he’d left his house. Rose even told her mother how she was pretty sure he was the one and that this time she knew it because she thought Douglas was fitter than Teddy Lupin and that must mean he was the one, right?
That was the thing about Rose and her mother. Hermione was stern and bossy and very particular about how things ought to be done but Rose just looked at her mother and saw her best friend. Her mother was the only person in the world who could set aside everything else and listen to her when she was happy and hug her when she was sad and offer her keen bits of insight when she was feeling confused.
Rose assured her mother that that meant she’d make sure Hermione was the first to know when Douglas popped the big question.
Day Four.
“They’re supposed to call three days later, right? Three days, that’s what James told me. He said blokes are supposed to wait three days before they owl-though Douglas would have to call because he’s not magic. He should be calling today, right? Mum?” Rose was currently pacing in the hallway between the living room and the bedrooms. Her nails were short and jagged now from having bitten them down in worry and her auburn hair was falling in strands from her haphazard ponytail. Good thing she only expected Douglas to call since she was in no state to be seen by the new love of her life.
Hermione stopped a few steps from her pacing daughter, eyebrow arched as she shifted the weight of the laundry basket from one arm to the other. “You shouldn’t listen to your cousin, Rose. Sometimes boys don’t follow a code, you know? Take your father for example. He definitely did not owl after three days. He took seven years to make the first move and then another year to make the second.”
“But, mum, I can’t wait seven years! Or one! He’s supposed to call today. He has to call today!”
“Just be patient, honey. I’m sure he’ll call soon.” Hermione hoped he called soon, before Rose wore a hole in the carpet or worked herself into a fit, whichever came first.
Rose stopped pacing and picked up the phone, held it to her ear to listen for the dial tone and set it back in the receiver thrice in succession before turning toward her mother and frowning. “The phone works, right? I mean, Daddy didn’t break it, did he?”
Rose’s mother chuckled and moved forward to rest one hand lovingly against her teenaged daughter’s rosy cheek. “No, sweetheart, he didn’t break it. He’ll call. In the meantime, go do something fun like reading one of those books we picked up yesterday. It’ll happen sooner than you expect if you stop waiting for it.”
And with that, Hermione moved on to take the folded laundry back to its owners’ bedroom and Rose slumped off to her own room to wallow in her impatience. Her mother was right. She had to be right.
Day Five.
“Mum, I think Daddy did break the phone.”
“We’ve been through this, Rose. The phone is fine. Why don’t you just go see Douglas?”
“Mum! I can’t just go see him! He’s supposed to call. If he isn’t calling, I don’t want to see him.”
“Alright, then. Why don’t you help me set the table for dinner?”
“But what if his phone isn’t working? Maybe I should go see him. What if he broke his leg tripping over the phone cord which, in consequence, also broke the phone? I should go see him!”
“If you want to go see him, Rose, go see him. Just make sure you are back for supper.”
“Mum, I can’t go see him. What if that makes me look desperate?”
“You won’t look desperate, honey. There’s nothing wrong with a girl taking the initiative.”
“No- I can’t do it. He should call.”
“Alright, let’s set the table while you’re waiting for him to call-”
“But what if he’s waiting for me to make the second move?”
“Rose, do you want to go see him, or not?”
“Yes!”
“Then go and be back in time for supper.”
“But, mum-”
Day Ten.
The house’s fireplace lit up with green flames as Hermione returned from a long day at the office. A quick meal, a glass of wine and a hot bubble bath were in order after the day she’d had at the office. One step into the living room and a look at her eldest child, however, clued her in that this plan was not going to be happening that night.
There sat Rose, hugging a pillow as her face blotched red with crying. “Mum, I went to see him.”
Hermione was simultaneously glad that Rose had stopped waiting for a boy to call her and instantaneously heartbroken for her daughter that the meeting had obviously not gone according to Rose’s hopes. She crossed the room, setting her briefcase on the coffee table as she did so and sat down on the sofa next to her daughter. She reached out her arms and pulled Rose tightly against her.
Rose let her head rest against her mother’s shoulder as she recounted the events of that afternoon. She’d convinced herself that something must have happened to Douglas to prevent him from calling. She’d convinced herself that she was too independent to sit around waiting for someone to call when she could just as easily walk down the street to see him. So she’d gotten dressed up and walked to Douglas’ house. Before she’d made it all the way, though, she’d spotted a familiar face rounding the corner. Douglas. And his arm was around a muggle girl that worked at the local grocery. Rose knew this because she’d been there the day before to pick up ice cream and the girl had been the one to ring her up.
She’d been very close to convincing herself that the store clerk must have been a good friend of Douglas’, or maybe a cousin, until the pair had stopped and shared a rather romantic looking snog.
Rose paused in her story and looked up at her mother with red and puffy eyes. “Mum,” she started with a small voice, “what do you do when someone stops loving you?”
Hermione thought for a moment, as she squeezed Rose’s shoulder consolingly. “Well, you cry a little. You cry and finish off the ice cream in the freezer and watch old black and white films with your mother. Then you wait for the sun to come up. Because when the sun comes up, he can see the flock of angry canaries coming straight for him.”
For the first time since she’d seen Douglas snogging another girl, Rose gave a small laugh and wiped at her face with the back of her hand. “If you’ll get the ice cream, mum, I’ll pick out the film.” And maybe, just maybe, with the help of her mother, her best friend, she’d be just fine when the sun came up. And the sun would come up; it always did.
Title: The Sun’ll Come Up Tomorrow
Rating: G
Word Count: 1,583
Pairing(s): Gen; Rose Weasley, Hermione Weasley
Warnings: N/A
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: Things don’t always go according to plan, but one thing is constant: Rose can always count on her best friend-her mother.
Author's Notes: This was written in response to Gen Prompt: 55. There were so many different directions Rose and Hermione both wanted to take me in, but in the end I could only go in one, so I hope it turned out alright! Thanks to the hp_nextgen_fest mods for providing such a great fest! And thank you to open_atclose for such a fantastic gen prompt. I hope you enjoy!
Day One.
When Rose waltzed giddily into the kitchen, her mum was just finishing drying the dishes. With a smile on her freckled face, she drew her wand-because she was old enough to do so outside of school, now-and magically dried the few remaining plates from dinner. Her mother, predictably, turned on Rose and sternly reminded her that she didn’t allow magic in the kitchen because cooking and doing the dishes by hand built character.
“But, mum,” said Rose, who was normally in agreement with her mother on most accounts, “who needs character when Douglas from down the road just kissed me outside in the garden!” This was obviously a big deal. This was obviously something that required more attention than the dishes.
This was obviously something that worried Hermione Weasley a great deal.
And, still, mother sat with daughter at the freshly polished kitchen table while Rose told her mother everything from the way the wind had tousled the brunette’s hair to the way his lips had tasted like spearmint toothpaste as though he’d been prepared to come over and kiss her in the garden when he’d left his house. Rose even told her mother how she was pretty sure he was the one and that this time she knew it because she thought Douglas was fitter than Teddy Lupin and that must mean he was the one, right?
That was the thing about Rose and her mother. Hermione was stern and bossy and very particular about how things ought to be done but Rose just looked at her mother and saw her best friend. Her mother was the only person in the world who could set aside everything else and listen to her when she was happy and hug her when she was sad and offer her keen bits of insight when she was feeling confused.
Rose assured her mother that that meant she’d make sure Hermione was the first to know when Douglas popped the big question.
Day Four.
“They’re supposed to call three days later, right? Three days, that’s what James told me. He said blokes are supposed to wait three days before they owl-though Douglas would have to call because he’s not magic. He should be calling today, right? Mum?” Rose was currently pacing in the hallway between the living room and the bedrooms. Her nails were short and jagged now from having bitten them down in worry and her auburn hair was falling in strands from her haphazard ponytail. Good thing she only expected Douglas to call since she was in no state to be seen by the new love of her life.
Hermione stopped a few steps from her pacing daughter, eyebrow arched as she shifted the weight of the laundry basket from one arm to the other. “You shouldn’t listen to your cousin, Rose. Sometimes boys don’t follow a code, you know? Take your father for example. He definitely did not owl after three days. He took seven years to make the first move and then another year to make the second.”
“But, mum, I can’t wait seven years! Or one! He’s supposed to call today. He has to call today!”
“Just be patient, honey. I’m sure he’ll call soon.” Hermione hoped he called soon, before Rose wore a hole in the carpet or worked herself into a fit, whichever came first.
Rose stopped pacing and picked up the phone, held it to her ear to listen for the dial tone and set it back in the receiver thrice in succession before turning toward her mother and frowning. “The phone works, right? I mean, Daddy didn’t break it, did he?”
Rose’s mother chuckled and moved forward to rest one hand lovingly against her teenaged daughter’s rosy cheek. “No, sweetheart, he didn’t break it. He’ll call. In the meantime, go do something fun like reading one of those books we picked up yesterday. It’ll happen sooner than you expect if you stop waiting for it.”
And with that, Hermione moved on to take the folded laundry back to its owners’ bedroom and Rose slumped off to her own room to wallow in her impatience. Her mother was right. She had to be right.
Day Five.
“Mum, I think Daddy did break the phone.”
“We’ve been through this, Rose. The phone is fine. Why don’t you just go see Douglas?”
“Mum! I can’t just go see him! He’s supposed to call. If he isn’t calling, I don’t want to see him.”
“Alright, then. Why don’t you help me set the table for dinner?”
“But what if his phone isn’t working? Maybe I should go see him. What if he broke his leg tripping over the phone cord which, in consequence, also broke the phone? I should go see him!”
“If you want to go see him, Rose, go see him. Just make sure you are back for supper.”
“Mum, I can’t go see him. What if that makes me look desperate?”
“You won’t look desperate, honey. There’s nothing wrong with a girl taking the initiative.”
“No- I can’t do it. He should call.”
“Alright, let’s set the table while you’re waiting for him to call-”
“But what if he’s waiting for me to make the second move?”
“Rose, do you want to go see him, or not?”
“Yes!”
“Then go and be back in time for supper.”
“But, mum-”
Day Ten.
The house’s fireplace lit up with green flames as Hermione returned from a long day at the office. A quick meal, a glass of wine and a hot bubble bath were in order after the day she’d had at the office. One step into the living room and a look at her eldest child, however, clued her in that this plan was not going to be happening that night.
There sat Rose, hugging a pillow as her face blotched red with crying. “Mum, I went to see him.”
Hermione was simultaneously glad that Rose had stopped waiting for a boy to call her and instantaneously heartbroken for her daughter that the meeting had obviously not gone according to Rose’s hopes. She crossed the room, setting her briefcase on the coffee table as she did so and sat down on the sofa next to her daughter. She reached out her arms and pulled Rose tightly against her.
Rose let her head rest against her mother’s shoulder as she recounted the events of that afternoon. She’d convinced herself that something must have happened to Douglas to prevent him from calling. She’d convinced herself that she was too independent to sit around waiting for someone to call when she could just as easily walk down the street to see him. So she’d gotten dressed up and walked to Douglas’ house. Before she’d made it all the way, though, she’d spotted a familiar face rounding the corner. Douglas. And his arm was around a muggle girl that worked at the local grocery. Rose knew this because she’d been there the day before to pick up ice cream and the girl had been the one to ring her up.
She’d been very close to convincing herself that the store clerk must have been a good friend of Douglas’, or maybe a cousin, until the pair had stopped and shared a rather romantic looking snog.
Rose paused in her story and looked up at her mother with red and puffy eyes. “Mum,” she started with a small voice, “what do you do when someone stops loving you?”
Hermione thought for a moment, as she squeezed Rose’s shoulder consolingly. “Well, you cry a little. You cry and finish off the ice cream in the freezer and watch old black and white films with your mother. Then you wait for the sun to come up. Because when the sun comes up, he can see the flock of angry canaries coming straight for him.”
For the first time since she’d seen Douglas snogging another girl, Rose gave a small laugh and wiped at her face with the back of her hand. “If you’ll get the ice cream, mum, I’ll pick out the film.” And maybe, just maybe, with the help of her mother, her best friend, she’d be just fine when the sun came up. And the sun would come up; it always did.