Harry Potter and all related characters and places are owned by JK Rowling - I just make them dance for my own amusement.
Been a little while, hasn't it? This chapter was pretty hard to crack, but I think it turned out nicely. More on the way soon!
~xxx~
"Bonjour, mon amour."
Hermione couldn't quite believe it. After what had felt like an eternity, she was finally back where she belonged. Fleur looked the same as ever; toothy grin in place, her silvery blonde hair hanging down around either side of the younger witch's head, curtaining her from anything other than that gorgeous face she had longed to see again. Fleur continued to smile, and leant down again, peppering Hermione's neck with gentle kisses. The brunette let out a laugh and encircled the other girl's waist with her arms. "I was beginning to think you'd lost the ability to speak," she teased. The blonde's head popped up again.
"Why talk when we should be making up for all ze time we 'ave lost?" the older girl said, resuming her worship of the other witch's neck. Hermione just rolled her eyes, but found them fluttering shut as Fleur hit a rather sensitive spot. She could feel the desperation in the blonde's movements, and tightened her hold, leaning her head up to allow her girlfriend greater access. Had she been thinking clearly, she probably would have mused on the fact that not fifteen minutes ago, she was still at her house in England. But she was most definitely not thinking clearly; not with a ravenous Fleur Delacour on top of her. A sudden boldness overtaking her, Hermione rolled the pair of them over, pinning the blonde beneath her. The part-Veela let out what could only be described as a growl, but grinned at the brunette's actions.
"Mmmm now zere is my petit lion…" she purred. Hermione leant her head down, narrowing her eyes.
"Little?" she asked dangerously. "I'll give you little, Delacour."
However, whatever she was about to do – she hadn't quite decided – was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Apolline regarded the couple with an amused expression, and Hermione could already feel her cheeks burning. "As much as it pains me to break zis up," she said. "It is nearly time for dinner." Hermione could feel Fleur's arms tightening around her possessively. Noticing this, her mother shook her head and continued to smile. "Zere will be plenty of time to reacquaint yourselves later, ma petit," she teased. "Now come along." She closed the door, and Fleur looked back up at Hermione, who smirked.
"Well then," she said. "We shouldn't keep them waiting." Though how she wished that they could do exactly that; something Fleur seemed to agree on.
"I would almost zink you did not want to be alone wiz me," the blonde replied haughtily, scowling up at the other girl, who just continued to smile.
"Think of it this way; the sooner we have dinner, the sooner you can steal me away again," the younger witch said. Fleur quirked an eyebrow.
"You seem raz'er forward, 'Ermione," she said suspiciously. "Are you after some'zing?" The brunette shook her head, glancing away briefly.
"No, I just…" she paused, betraying her feelings. "I missed you, Fleur. I really…really missed you…" The blonde gave her a warm smile, and reached up to cup Hermione's cheek. Instinctively, Hermione leant into her girlfriend's touch.
"And I missed you, ma chérie," the part-Veela said. "But we are togez'er again; zat is all zat matters." The bushy-haired girl broke into a smile again, and nodded. "Now zen; downstairs, dinner, zen I will take you up on ze offer of stealing you away."
"And I need to call my parents," Hermione said. "They'll want to know I got here alright."
"But you only left zeir 'ouse a short while ago," Fleur pointed out. Hermione smiled; she sometimes forgot that like Ron and Ginny, Fleur was a stranger to the muggle world.
"Well muggles can't get around as easily as we can," she said. "So to get from England to France would be quite a long trip. It's normal for them to contact people back home to tell them they got there without incident."
"Fair enough," Fleur said, shrugging. Hermione just rolled her eyes at the other girl's dismissiveness. Clearly being away from Hermione had diminished the blonde's interest in muggle-related topics.
"Come on then," the younger witch said, pulling back and kneeling over Fleur. "Dinner."
"…you know…I raz'er like being down 'ere wiz you up zere…"
Hermione just glared.
~xxx~
When they eventually arrived downstairs – Fleur had ended up pinning Hermione to the door and claiming another rather long kiss – the blonde led Hermione to the dining room. Her reunion with Fleur had almost distracted the brunette from the fact that she was in quite possibly the grandest building she had ever seen, and as such she found herself momentarily stunned as they entered. The room was enormous, with tall, ornate windows running along one side of it. Occupying most of it was a lengthy table; had it been any longer, it would have been approaching the size of the House tables at Hogwarts. Hermione wondered briefly just how often it was ever fully occupied, but was distracted from further observations when a blonde-haired blur slammed into her, knocking the air from her lungs and causing her to gasp.
She was vaguely aware of Fleur laughing somewhere behind her, and looked down to find an excited face staring up at her. For someone so small, Gabrielle was surprisingly strong; Hermione felt as though her ribs would break if she were hugged any tighter.
"Gabrielle, lâches la!" Apolline's voice called. The brunette looked up to see Fleur's parents seated together at the far end of the table, both wearing very amused expressions.
"'Ermione!" the youngest Delacour squeaked. "I missed you!" She seemed rather pleased to have said it in English.
"And I missed you too," Hermione replied, placing a gentle hand upon Gabrielle's head.
"Gabrielle, let ze poor girl go," Apolline said, shaking her head in amusement. Reluctantly, her daughter did as asked, before scampering out of the dining room. Fleur frowned.
"Where is she off to?" she asked.
"'Er friends are still 'ere," Fleur's father replied. "Zey are 'aving a picnic outside."
"Zen if Gabrielle is allowed to eat wiz 'er little friends, why can I not eat in my room wiz 'Ermione?" the blonde asked, folding her arms. Her girlfriend had to stifle a smile; it was amazing how well someone usually so elegant and poised as Fleur could behave like a petulant child.
"Because you are an adult now," her mother said, waving a hand. "And besides, 'Ermione's neck does not constitute a proper meal."
The brunette's face went positively scarlet. She had almost forgotten that Apolline's reaction to the relationship between herself and Fleur was less one of acceptance or approval, and more one of downright encouragement. Hermione stared at her feet for a moment; it was a testament to how close Fleur's parents already felt to her that they didn't even bother with a formal greeting, preferring to skip right ahead to the embarrassing comments only parents were capable of making. However, her head snapped up when a realisation dawned upon her. Fleur an adult? That meant…
"Fleur…" she began quietly, turning to her girlfriend. The blonde seemed to know what was coming, and returned her gaze apprehensively.
"'Ermione, my birz'day was a week ago," the part-Veela said, forcing an apologetic smile.
"Why…why didn't you tell me?" Hermione replied, consciously trying to keep her voice calm in front of Fleur's parents.
"What good would it 'ave done?" the blonde asked. "You would 'ave only been more upset zat you could not spend it wiz me." She blinked. "I mean…I 'ope you would 'ave…"
"…I suppose you're right," the younger witch replied, shaking her head. "But…I haven't got you anything…I didn't even know…some girlfriend I am…"
"Oh 'Ermione," Apolline said, shaking her head and smiling. "Fleur 'as not even received 'er gifts from us yet. She only returned from Beauxbatons ze day before last, and we all decided it would be best to celebrate once you were 'ere."
"'Ermione, you being 'ere is better zan any gift you could buy me," Fleur said softly, placing a comforting hand upon Hermione's shoulder. At the head of the table, Fleur's father chuckled.
"I told you she would say zat…" he said. The brunette gave a small smile and nodded. She would decide how best to make it up to Fleur later, but not in front of her parents.
"Come along, you two," Apolline said, gesturing at the two seats opposite she and her husband. "Before your dinner gets cold."
"Of course," Fleur said, moving forward and pulling Hermione's chair out for her. The bushy-haired girl couldn't help but smile, not quite able to decide whether Fleur was being chivalrous of her own accord, or simply to please her parents. Either way, the gesture was appreciated. As she sat, she took her first look at the food upon her plate, and her smile only grew.
"Ah, bouillabaisse," she said, glancing at Fleur who was grinning back.
"Fleur told me zat it 'as some sort of 'special meaning' for ze two of you," Apolline said, with an eyebrow raised. "Whatever zat means."
"Oh, yes, it…ah…was sort of how we met again," Hermione explained, smiling at the memory. "Well, it was definitely how Fleur and Ron met for the first time, at least."
"You 'ave no idea how close I came to just sitting down beside you," the blonde said, twiddling her spoon thoughtfully. "But you seemed raz'er nervous."
"Well of course I was nervous!" the younger girl said. "You just turned up out of nowhere – I thought you were a muggle, remember?"
"Mmm, so long ago…" Fleur mused, smiling.
"Are you two going to eat anyz'ing at all?" Fleur's father asked with a laugh.
"You 'ave retold ze story of 'ow you and Maman met more times zan I can count," the blonde pointed out, finally starting her food. "I believe we are allowed."
"You know," Hermione began, swallowing a mouthful of her stew and finally acting on something she had realised. "You don't have to speak English for my benefit; I can speak French."
"Oh, of course," Apolline said kindly. "Forgive us, 'Ermione, we do not mean to imply anyz'ing about your grasp of our language. But-"
"Maman 'as banned me from using my native tongue," Fleur cut in irritably. When Hermione frowned in confusion, she continued. "I 'ad wanted it to be a surprise, but I suppose you would not stop asking about it if it went unexplained." A small smile crept onto her face. "I 'ave a job now. In London."
"Oh Fleur, that's wonderful!" Hermione said excitably. She wanted to hug the blonde, but their current positions made that more than a little awkward, so instead she settled on placing a hand upon her shoulder for now. "Where is it? When do you start?"
"Gringott's," the part-Veela said. "Noz'ing zat special, but ze pay is good. I start ze day after you leave for 'Ogwarts."
"And so Fleur 'as to get into ze 'abit of speaking English wiz'out 'esitating," Apolline explained. Hermione nodded in understanding.
"Well, I think your English is already fantastic," she said fondly. She remembered one of their last conversations at Hogwarts, where Fleur had shown her ability to perfectly mimic a British accent, leading to Hermione realising just how much she enjoyed her girlfriend's accent. "So, does that mean you'll be coming back with me when I leave?"
"Exactly so," Fleur said. "And I would very much like to meet your parents-" She shot her mother a glare. "-seeing as I was not allowed to collect you myself."
"Fleur, you 'ave never even seen 'Ermione's 'ouse," Apolline pointed out. "You would 'ave ad no idea where you were going."
"Actually I wanted to ask about that," Hermione said, turning to Fleur's mother. "How did you know how to get there?"
"Oh, I once visited a friend 'oo lived not zat far from where you do now," she explained. "I recognised ze street name on ze details you gave Fleur." Hermione nodded, and returned to her food. It was a testament to how quickly she became accustomed to muggle life again that she was still a little taken aback by how fast everything was happening. She still hadn't been there for even an hour, and already she was having dinner with Fleur's parents. Then again, her own had been preparing theirs not long before she had left.
"Could I use your phone once we're done?" Hermione asked a few minutes later. "It's just my parents will want to know I'm okay."
"Of course," Fleur's father replied with a nod. "I will take you to ze study as soon as we are finished."
"Papa, why don't I do zat?" Fleur asked. "'Ermione is my guest after all."
"And it is your turn to 'elp clear ze table," Apolline said with a small smirk. "You don't want to ignore your duties in front of your mate, do you?"
Fleur just grumbled and went back to her food. It was interesting observing her and her family at ease. While Hermione had been able to do something similar at Hogwarts before the Third Task, it was somewhat more relaxed here; and the teasing was all the stronger. As they continued to eat, Fleur's parents questioned Hermione about her end of year exams, and her academic prowess in general – clearly something Fleur hadn't elaborated on, other than telling them the oft-repeated assumption that Hermione was the best witch in her year. They were clearly very interested, especially Apolline; then again, given her focus on the idea that Veela find 'mates', it was unsurprising that she wanted to find out as much as possible about her.
When they had finished, Fleur begrudgingly stayed behind to help her mother clean up, while her father escorted Hermione from the room. She was led to a relatively small room, with every inch of it's walls covered by bookcases, aside from gaps for the door and a small window opposite it. Dominating the floor was a large wooden desk, upon which sat neat stacks of papers. In fact, it reminded Hermione somewhat of Professor McGonagall's office – littered with points of interest, but all of them neatly ordered and in their rightful places. Beside the papers, there was a rather ordinary looking telephone, and Hermione gave a grateful smile as Mr Delacour stood to one side to let has past.
"Can you find your way back on your own?" he asked, to which she nodded.
"Yes, thanks." Fleur's father nodded, and left Hermione in peace. She quickly reached for the receiver and – briefly pausing to remember the prefix required to call from France – dialled her home number. Just as it had when speaking to Fleur only the previous day, the act of simply using a telephone felt oddly alien to her.
She waited a few moments as it rang, before her mother's voice answered. "Hello?"
"Hi Mum," Hermione said brightly.
"Hello Hermione," Mrs Granger replied warmly. "How is everything?"
"It's fine," the brunette said. "Sorry I didn't call sooner – we had dinner pretty much as soon as I arrived."
"That's okay, dear. Your father and I were just finishing dinner ourselves." As her mother spoke, Hermione eased herself into Mr Delacour's chair. "How's Fleur?"
"Oh she's fine," she said. "Very pleased to see me, as you can imagine." She was very glad her mother couldn't see how red her cheeks were becoming at the memory of Fleur's 'greeting.' "You should see their house, though," she continued. "It's amazing – it's like some of those old mansions we went on tours around on holiday."
"Well you did say they had a lot of money," Mrs Granger said. "I expect whatever guest room they have you staying in is bigger than our entire living room!"
"Oh, yes it is," Hermione replied, biting her lip as she pictured her mother finding out she was sharing a room – and bed – with Fleur.
"So how long are you going to be staying?" her mother continued. "I take it the wizarding community doesn't need to bother with immigration control and passports?"
Hermione laughed. "No," she said. "I imagine we'll be back a week or so before term starts. I think Mrs Weasley might invite me to stay at the Burrow again, but I'll make sure I get to spend at least a couple of days at home before that."
"'We'?" her mother repeated, and Hermione grinned.
"Well…Fleur has a job in London now," she explained. "So when I come back, she'll be coming with me."
"It'll be lovely to finally meet her," Mrs Granger said. "Well, keep in touch, and just make sure you tell us when you're coming back before you decide to turn up on the doorstep."
"Alright," the brunette replied with another laugh. "Give my love to Dad."
"Have fun, dear." There was a click, and Hermione place the receiver back down. She sat there for a moment, unable to stop smiling. She gave the study a quick examination, but decided not to linger, lest her curiosity get the better of her. Making her way back to the dining room, she was greeted with an empty room. She stood there awkwardly for a moment, before Apolline appeared through a door on the opposite side of the room.
"Ah, zere you are," she said, smiling as she tucked her wand away. Hermione assumed she had been using it to do the washing up. "I zink Fleur 'as gone up to 'er room. Make sure you tell 'er she is very rude for not waiting for you."
"It's fine," Hermione said, chuckling. "Dinner was delicious, thank you."
"You are very welcome," Fleur's mother replied with a nod. "I 'ope you enjoy your stay 'ere." She paused, and her smile faded somewhat. "Fleur 'as…missed you greatly, 'Ermione. More zan she will probably admit." She shook her head slowly. "You are ze best zing zat 'as ever 'appened to zat girl of mine," she continued. "I do 'ope you will forgive me for urging you to per'aps show it a little more."
"Um…what are you saying?" the brunette asked, rather puzzled by Apolline's words. It sounded almost as though she was being accused of doing something wrong.
"Simply zat Fleur is a little worried zat she is putting too much pressure on you," the woman said. "By 'er own admission she can be raz'er forward-" Hermione mentally agreed, distinctly remembering the time she and Fleur had worked on her Golden Egg clue, the entire duration of which the blonde had spent completely naked. "-and she 'as said she worries you will feel compelled to do zings wiz 'er zat you are not entirely ready for."
Hermione found herself rather baffled; she was pretty sure she was the one setting the pace of their relationship: not once had she felt forced into anything, at least not seriously – Fleur did like to tease, after all. Still, the implication that Fleur was the only active party in their relationship seemed to stir something within her, and it wasn't very happy.
"Well then," the brunette said, feeling a rather strong and sudden urge to get back to her girlfriend. "I had better not keep her waiting."
"'Ave fun," Apolline said, her eyes twinkling as Hermione headed from the room. Hermione noted with some amusements that Fleur's mother had echoed the farewell her own mother had given. She remembered the way up to Fleur's room, and quickly reached it again. The door was closed, and she found herself unsure of whether or not she should knock. Deciding to take the bolder option, she simply opened the door, and was met with a very bizarre sight.
Fleur's legs were sticking out from under her bed.
At the sound of Hermione's entrance, the legs disappeared, and the blonde's head popped up from behind the other side of the bed. "Oh, zere you are," she said, using the bed to help herself back to her feet. She looked down at herself, finding her blouse hid ridden so far up that her stomach was visible. "Oh, pardon." She pulled it down. "I was trying to find an earring. I could 'ave sworn I 'eard it fall when I pulled some of my cloz'es out." She gestured at the bed itself, upon which what could only be Fleur's school trunk was sat, half empty. "I 'ave not 'ad a chance to unpack since I got back."
"Do you need some help?" Hermione asked, closing the door behind her. "Get it done quicker?"
"Zat would be very 'elpful, merci-" She caught herself, and let out an irritable sigh. "I mean, zank you."
"Oh you don't need to worry about that around me," the brunette said with the wave of a hand. "Besides, I enjoy the French pet names."
"Oh?" Fleur's tone instantly became much warmer. She stepped around the bed, a definite sway in her hips, and encircled the other girl's waist with her arms. "Like zis, ma chérie?"
"Mmmmm just like that," Hermione said, rather startled that her own voice had involuntarily dropped into something resembling a purr. The two came together in a brief kiss, before Hermione stepped back, still smiling widely. "So then, birthday girl," she began, still surprised at the confidence she seemed to be exuding. "I still need to get you a present."
"Really, 'Ermione, you do not," Fleur insisted. "You not knowing was my doing, and I will accept zat."
"I wasn't asking," the brunette said, flashing a wide smile. She stepped further into the room, her eyes wandering for a spark of inspiration. They settled upon the desk, where Fleur's schoolbooks were now sat, neatly piled up. She moved closer, and regarded them for a moment, before carefully sliding the entire pile to the side. Beneath, the drawings she had seen earlier were still sat.
"Oh, 'Ermione, please do not look at zose…" Fleur said, tentatively stepping closer. Hermione was intrigued now – as her own confidence grew, Fleur's almost appeared to be waning, as though they both drew it from the same pool. Then again, the top drawing was probably a little embarrassing, even for someone as headstrong as Fleur. "I can explain zat," she went on. "You know I much I missed you, and-" She stopped as Hermione held up the drawing of herself, looking at it carefully. Where she had earlier only felt confusion at the image, she now felt the beginnings of an idea.
"You never told me how much of an artist you were," the bushy-haired girl said delicately. She had to admit, she herself was feeling a little prickle of embarrassment at the picture now; it did feature her naked body, after all. Still, that wasn't going to deter her.
"Oh, zey are just doodles," the blonde said, scratching the back of her head nervously. "I can get rid of it if you would like…"
"I think that would be best," Hermione said, turning to face the other girl. Fleur's own cheeks were rather red; a definite rarity, and something that only served to make Hermione's smile grow. "Because before we leave, you're going to draw it again." She bit her bottom lip briefly, glancing at the picture. "And this time, you'll have me as your model so you can make sure you don't forget the tiny birthmark on my left breast."
Fleur looked as though she might explode with glee.