On the Shoulders of Giants
Chapter 10: And the Angels Sing
With both Neville and Harry on board with giving Severus a chance (the former reluctantly), Hermione had decided to host a dinner later that week for the three most important men in her life. With this goal fixed firmly in her mind she began to plan in earnest, drawing up lists and crafting a menu that would rival a Hogwarts feast.
Tuesday morning dawned brightly, reflecting Hermione's high spirits. The day found her teaching her first solo lesson under the watchful gaze of Mrs. Bennett. The young teaching assistant led the class in a guided reading of several pertinent chapters from George Orwell's novel '1984' before fielding student questions about theme and metaphor. She finished each class with a homework assignment (two pages minimum for a creative writing assignment encouraging them to sketch their own dystopian future) and provided each student with a list of common dystopian themes from which they could draw ideas.
When the last bell finally rang, signaling the end of the day for both students and teachers, Hermione had to restrain herself from leaping around the room in abject pleasure. Mrs. Bennett beamed at her from her perch near the back.
"You performed admirably, my dear," she gushed, waving her towards the door. "Go, enjoy the rest of your afternoon, I'll tidy the place up."
Hermione blushed under the older woman's praise. "Thank you, I'll see you in the morning," she replied, wasting no time gathering up her things and exiting the classroom.
She was surprised to find Severus already waiting for her on the other side of the door. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of him relaxed against the wall, eyes closed, looking for all the world as if he'd fallen asleep that way. As Hermione approached he cracked open a single eye, then the other, peering at her a bit owlishly. Her responding giggle called to his lips a mock frown and he glared at her, though his eyes also held a touch of mirth.
"Why are you laughing, you tempestuous witch?" Severus' sharp tongue was betrayed by his hands reaching out to take her own, his inscrutable gaze tracking her every movement.
Their fingers laced together and Hermione felt her stomach flutter pleasantly. Without even a cursory glance down the hall to be sure that they were alone she darted forward, pressing a sloppy kiss against the corner of his mouth.
He appeared amused by the action. His lips quirked up slightly at the corners and he asked, "Missed me, did you?"
She nodded absently, brushing her lips softly against his jaw. Finally she spoke. "Curled up against the wall like that, you looked like a sleeping bat," she murmured, pressing a kiss this time against his chin. She continued, "It was a humorous thought."
Severus contemplated her quietly and she fleetingly wondered if he would be offended by the comparison. After a moment under his scrutiny (during which she contemplated disapparition or death if the conversation went south) he began to chuckle, an action that immediately soothed her fears.
She was unprepared for the suddenness of his mouth meeting hers. Hermione gasped and he ran with the moment, sweeping his tongue along the curve of her lips as if asking permission. She wove her arms around his shoulders in reply, pulling him nearer encouragingly.
The moment was nearing perfection, with both witch and wizard wholly enraptured in one another. The hall, the school, and finally the world fell away, leaving nothing but themselves in their own tiny universe.
Through the heartbeat pounding in her ears Hermione could almost make out footsteps. Her head spun wildly. She must have imagined it, surely; she felt in her bones that she and Severus were the last two people on the planet and...
"Ahem."
The pair broke apart with an audible smack. Hermione wheeled around to stare into the face of none other than Ms. Wilkins. The Headteacher graced them both with a wide smirk.
"Ms. Granger, Mr. Snape, how nice to see you both," she commented mildly, as if discussing the weather. "The day has ended. You may be on your way."
Severus was the first to recover from the shock. "Thank you, Ms. Wilkins, I think we shall." He nodded to her formally, tugging a still-frozen Hermione down the hall.
"Have a pleasant evening," the woman called in reply, watching the couple flee the school before chuckling to herself.
"It seems I owe Emily a drink," she mused aloud, before bustling off towards her previous destination.
ooOoo
Hermione was still dazed when they came to the entrance of the school. Severus led her outside and down the stairs before pausing in front of the young witch and resting his hands on her own.
"Hermione?"
Her eyes were wide. "I can't believe the Headteacher caught us snogging," she breathed. Severus' face hardened and he whirled away, coming to rest a few steps from where she stood.
"Are you so embarrassed to be seen with me?" His voice was impassive, but the tension in his shoulders belied the seriousness of the question. Hermione felt as if she'd been slapped.
"Severus, no," she began, rushing towards him to take his face in her hands. He seemed to be holding his breath. "I was so afraid that she was going to fire us, I didn't think..." she trailed off, continuing shyly. "The kissing...that was amazing."
His shoulders sagged with relief and he rested his forehead against her own. "I enjoyed myself as well," he replied quietly, gracing her with one of his heartwarming tender smiles. She felt herself begin to melt into him and forced herself to turn away, lest they spend the evening joined at the lips on the stoop of their employer.
"Would you like to take a walk?" Her tone was deeper than usual, almost throaty, and she felt her cheeks heat up at the physical reminder of his power over her. He smirked.
"That sounds lovely," he agreed, taking her hand and choosing a seemingly random direction for them to travel in.
The pair was quiet for a few long moments, simply enjoying the company of one another as they traipsed along the sidewalk. Hermione broke the silence first.
"I wanted to ask," she started, looking up at him with hope written clearly on her face, "if you'd agree to dinner at Grimmauld place on Thursday."
He appeared surprised. "Is Mr. Potter aware of this invitation?"
"Actually," she said, beaming, "it was Harry's idea."
Severus stared at her like she'd grown a second head. She laughed happily.
"Harry's very interested in burying the hatchet, as muggles say," Hermione intoned. "I've also made it clear that you're very important to me, and that I want all of the important people in my life to get along."
He stopped her then, pivoting to stare at her. "What does that mean?"
Hermione smiled beguilingly. "Well, getting along with someone means that you can stand to be in the same room with them for longer than a few minutes without murdering them," she stated patiently, and he rolled his eyes, quelling her laughter with a long stare.
"You know what I'm asking," he argued bluntly. "You said that I'm important to you. We keep kissing like errant schoolchildren, and when I'm near you I..." his voice lapsed, and when he continued it was impossibly low, full of confusion. "What am I to you?"
Hermione considered the question for a long second before meeting his eyes. "I like you, Severus," she said plainly. "When you're not around, I miss you. I think about you so often that it's actually kind of embarrassing." She toed the ground with her shoe, suddenly nervous. "I want to be with you. I want to go on dates and be a couple," she stated, squeezing his hand gently. "Would you want that?"
His smile was fond. "I don't think I'm what most witches would call 'boyfriend material', Hermione," he replied, lips twisting awkwardly over the unfamiliar words. The young woman chuckled.
"Maybe not." She smiled reassuringly up at him. "It's a good thing I'm not most witches."
"Indeed," he murmured, capturing her lips in another sweet kiss.
It was a long while before either of them moved.
ooOoo
Hermione entered Grimmauld place that evening laden with groceries for Thursday's dinner. She made it only halfway to the kitchen before the assault came.
"AUNT 'MIONE!" The high-pitched voice hit her ears with all the subtlety of a tidal wave and she barely bit back a groan. The next attack was physical, and Hermione found herself swaying, unable to move as Teddy Lupin became one with her legs.
"Well, hello there," she responded, trying to keep the bite out of her voice. "Where's Uncle Harry?"
The young boy's sweet face peered up at her. "I dunno," he said cheerfully. "Do you want to play?"
Hermione felt her irritation begin to melt away. She smiled warmly. "We need to put the groceries away first, Teddy. Do you want to help?"
He nodded solemnly, relinquishing her legs at once. He held out his hands dutifully and Hermione bit back a grin, instead placing a loaf of bread into his outstretched arms.
"Be gentle with this," she instructed firmly. His arms wove around it like it was made of gold.
"I promise," he stated, beaming up at her. Hermione gestured for him to lead her to the kitchen, which he did with an air of importance.
The pair found the missing Uncle Harry seated at the dining room table, along with Andromeda Tonks. They appeared to be deep in conversation, concluding their talk as the others entered the room.
"Oh, I wondered where you'd gotten to," Andromeda mused, her eyes leveled at her grandson. "Are you bothering Aunt Hermione, Teddy?"
The boy shook his head firmly. "I'm helping," he said fiercely, still hugging the bread to his chest. The three adults shared looks filled with exasperation and laughter.
Hermione dumped her parcels on the counter unceremoniously and wove her way to the other side of the kitchen, wrapping the older woman in a brief hug. "If I'd known you were visiting I would have cut my afternoon short and come home," she admonished lightly, taking a seat next to the older woman. "How have you been?"
"I've been well," Andromeda responded. "I was just telling Harry that I've been in contact with my sister."
Hermione wrinkled her nose. "Mrs. Malfoy?"
Andromeda sniffed disdainfully, though the effect was somewhat ruined when the corners of her mouth twitched. "Don't make that face, dear, you'll get stuck."
Harry guffawed, taking a drink of tea. "I think it's brilliant," he stated, beaming at them both. "Lucius is a right bastard, and Draco did some questionable things during the war, but Narcissia saved my life."
"My sister has always been willing to do whatever it takes to protect those she loves," Andromeda admitted. "Though she has made mistakes in the past, the important thing right now is that she's trying."
Hermione had to smile at that. "I'm glad," she said. "If more for your sake than for her own."
Harry raised his teacup in a mock toast. "Hear, hear."
From across the room a huge sigh sounded. The adults turned their attention to Teddy, who was still cuddling the loaf of bread with a petulant look on his face. Finally he cried, "Are we gonna go play or not?"
The sound of uproarious laughter filled the room for many minutes to come.
a/n. I cannot apologize enough for not posting this sooner. This has been the weirdest month of my life (freak snow storms, week-long power outages, traveling, etc) but I'm home, and we have wifi again! Well...sort of, we can't get it to work as wifi so we have to use an ethernet cable, but it works.
I'd like to address the issue of Teddy speaking, as I can see where that would throw some readers. It would perhaps have been better of me to include some classic 'little kid' language, but unfortunately, I find writing in dialects clunky and encumbering and choose not to do so. We're not given a clear glimpse of what wizarding children look and sound like at this age. I find it difficult to believe that their biology would not make it possible for them to be a bit more advanced than the children you and I are used to. My reasoning is based largely on my research concerning Tolkien's works, as he created several races with advanced abilities and lifespans (much like Rowling's wizarding culture). While these conclusions may not fit into a general societal standard, canon does leave this area pretty grey. If this bothered you, well, this will be Teddy's sole appearance in this fic.
Thank you so much for reading, please review!