Shipping A5 - Friends to Lovers
Fall Bingo B2 - Teaching
Setting A4 - Vancouver
Stacked With: SoC; PP; LL; NC; ToS; BAON; FPC; Cluster; MLG; AV; ER; Shower; Fence; Star; SHoE; O3; SN; T3; Mea; TY; Ship War; Ship Bingo; Fall Bingo; Settings Bingo
Individual Challenges: Short Jog (Y); The Real MC; Two Cakes (Y); Eating Cake (Y); Chef MC; Gryffindor MC; Hufflepuff MC; Magical MC x3 (Yx3); Neurodivergent x2 (Yx2); Rian-Russo Inversion (Y); Ethnic & Present (Y); Disabled (Y); Small Fry (Y); Human Companion; Setting Sail (Y); Hold the Mayo (Y); Zed Era (Y); Old Shoes (Y); Green Acres; Culturally Inclined; Tastebuds; Tell My Story (Y); Go Fluff Yourself; Colors Galore; Adult Activities (Y); Kidder (Y)
Primary & Secondary Challenges: Queen Bee; Jet Fuel; Second Verse (Dog Star; Hot Apple; Corvid Brain; Rock of Ages; Deadliest Catch; Spinning Plates; Unwanted Advice; Sneeze Weasel; Nontraditional; Found Family; Not a Lamp; Ladylike); Chorus (Some Beach; Vid Tangent; A Long Dog; Tomorrow's Shade; Mouth of Babes; Machismo; Fizzy Lemonade; Odd Feathers)
Tertiary & Generic Challenges: SHoE (Onus); O3 (Orator; Olivine); SN (Rail; Ameliorate); T3 (Tether); Mea (Anthenaeum; Rampant); TY (Enfant)
Warnings: Mentions Past Bullying & Trauma
~o0o~
Hermione made it through her exams and was relieved it was over until the next semester. She started working full time again with Cedric so he could save up his last few paychecks to go somewhere new. She wasn't exactly telling him to leave, but she wasn't asking him to stay, either. He couldn't get a good read on her where he was considered. He knew she liked him, but… oh, he was probably just projecting his own feelings onto her and that wasn't fair of him. He'd be better off bowing out before she got uncomfortable.
It was just him and Manny for this morning shift. Hermione took Rose for a mother/daughter day out. It was the day after Christmas and they weren't busy, but they would be closing early to have the first day of Hanukkah together for food and games. Just the four of them.
"I hear you're leaving soon," said Manny while they sat and waited for customers to arrive.
"Er, yeah," said Cedric. "Hermione said that she would be alright and I don't want to overstay my welcome."
Manny hummed. "Why not just… stay?"
"It's… complicated."
"Because you're falling in love with my daughter?"
Cedric tensed. "Am I that obvious?"
"Nah, I just have a lot of life experience," said Manny. "But I see how you look at her and Rose, too. Has Mimi told you much about her childhood?"
"Not really," he said. "I can tell it hurts her and I don't want to pry."
"Before she went to Hogwarts, she spent half the year with me and half the year with her Mom and stepdad in England," said Manny. "She got bullied really bad there. She was happiest here but I didn't want to hurt her mom's feelings by demanding full custody. Her problem was because kids and teachers are horrible to those different, not because Roger and Bea were mistreating her. If I knew she was a witch though, I would've insisted she go to school here."
"Why didn't you?" he asked. "Know she was a witch, I mean."
"She never had accidental magic outbursts when she was with me," he said. "And how do you tell a woman you were only married to for a couple years that your Mom is a witch, but you weren't? She lost her mind when I admitted I was gay, I think the witch thing would have made her cut Mimi off from me for good."
"Oh. Yeah, she said she found out about the magic thing when she was thirteen," said Cedric. "And that she was furious."
Manny nodded. "If she had known, she could've had a good start on her education. And maybe she wouldn't have been called the m-word so much. And she could've stayed here. Though…" He chuckled. "You should've seen the look on Bea's face when she learned her sister had a witch for a daughter, too. This is partly why I think the Statute of Secrecy is too strict. It causes a lot of stress to have to hide yourself and so much heartache can be avoided."
"Good point," said Cedric. "I can tell Hermione is happy here. She's really mellowed out. Every time I saw her she was stressed out but that's probably because she was trailing after Harry and Ron the whole time." He rubbed his neck. "I wish I knew her then. Or even thought twice about her. Maybe things would've been different."
"Maybe. Maybe not." Manny looked over at him. "I think she likes you too, but she's afraid of being hurt again. If you want to be with her, be absolutely certain. Cause I refuse to see her go through another heartbreak."
"The last thing I want to do is hurt her," he said. "I just… I don't know… What if I'm kidding myself?"
"Well, maybe if you leave you'll find out what you really want," said Manny. "Let's just get through the holiday."
Cedric nodded and looked up as a family came in. He got up and pushed all thoughts not of work from his mind. He could decide what to do after the holiday.
After they closed, Hermione and Rose came to pick them up. Cedric climbed into the front seat and did a double take.
"Your hair!" he said. "It looks good!"
Hermione smiled. "It's Dominican tradition to get a new hairstyle for the new year."
Her hair had been woven into two thick plaits with purple hair added in and gold clasps. Rose's hair was done in teeny tiny braids and twisted into the buns she favored.
"Both of you look amazing," he said. "I think that spa day did you good."
"Oh, we needed it," said Hermione. "My knots had knots, but Viktor sent us a gift card."
Viktor…
"I didn't know you were still in contact with him," said Cedric.
"I like Chicho Viktor," said Rose. "When he and Tía Zaza visit they take me to do something fun."
"Esperanza is my cousin," said Hermione. "She went to Uluru for three years then Castelobruxo for six. She and Viktor met shortly after I had Rose. They recently moved in together and they'll be getting married. I don't think he quite understands that Hanukkah is small, practical gifts, but he is rich so maybe a head-to-toe spa visit is his idea of small and practical."
"Maybe."
"Oh, I meant to tell you, you got letters and parcels from your cousins," she continued. "Luna and Fleur. I can't believe I never knew they were your cousins before."
"Well, Luna is by blood, Fleur is due to our mums being best friends," he said. "I don't think anyone really cared to find out how I knew them."
Hermione parked. "Let's light the first candles and get dinner going. Rosie, ready to make sufganiyot?"
"Yes!"
Hermione's kitchen was a tight squeeze with four of them, but Cedric had made it clean and ready to go the night before after she had made the dough for the sufganiyot with Rose. The restaurant had been open that day so people could get food. They didn't celebrate Christmas, why wouldn't they keep it open for people who were alone or away from home to gather and have a good meal?
The air was thick and warm with the scent of slow cooking brisket. Quite a bit of the meal had been prepped by Cedric and Hermione the night before so they wouldn't have to wait so long for dinner. Hermione turned on her stereo and put on her favorite Selena CD. She was gaga about Selena.
Cedric got to work making the spinach filling for the knish while Manny got the latkes going. Hermione taught Rose how to roll out the dough and cut it into rounds while the oil got hot. Cedric, Hermione, and Manny took turns taking candid shots. The camera was on its own stool so it could easily be found.
Before long, they were in the living room with their plates and out of view of the messy kitchen. They talked as they ate, Cedric told them the story about the time he set off the sprinklers in his motel room after lighting too many candles and Manny had plenty of stories about Hermione as a child. Rose was antsy, glancing over at the pile of presents they would be opening across the eight days. Cedric was surprised to see a pile for him as well.
"That was good," said Hermione. "I made a lot of brisket so we can have it for leftovers. Sandwiches, noodles, tacos."
"What's a taco?" Cedric asked.
"You've never—?" She scoffed. "Alright, I'm making tacos tomorrow."
Rose bounced in her seat.
"Anybody for seconds?" Hermione asked.
Rose flushed pink.
"How about another glass of wine?"
"Mama! Pleaaaase?"
"Alright, go on and pick."
Squealing happily, Rose ran over and selected her presents from each family member. She had six. One from Hermione, one from Manny, one from Cedric, one from Roger and Beatriz, one from her Tía Paulina (Hermione's younger sister), and one from Tía Esperanza and Chicho Viktor. It added up to a lot of presents over eight days, but Cedric knew that Hermione had to do quite a bit of penny pinching over the years and that this was the best way for Rose to get new clothes and toys.
Hermione got up to distribute the other presents. Manny had three, she had four, and Cedric had four this night with Fleur's and Luna's gifts, but would have two the following nights from Hermione and Manny.
"Socks," said Hermione. "How thoughtful! My feet are always cold."
She was genuinely pleased. Cedric had found a pack of ones decorated with stars.
Rose adored princesses and was thrilled that the big box she got from Tía Esperanza was full of fluffy tulle skirts.
"Esperanza is a clothes designer," said Hermione. "Her talent is actually getting recognized since she started dating Viktor."
"Oh yeah? You know, I do think I remember seeing an article about them dating," said Cedric. "I just assumed it was simply gossip."
Rose threw her arms around him. "A real witchy hat!"
"Oh, I want one!" Hermione gushed, admiring it .
He'd found them for a good price at Kilokilo. They were made of straw and had been decorated with flowers. Rose's was a pretty blue with pink and purple flowers. The one he bought Hermione was yellow with pink and blue flowers. Both fastened under the chin with satin ribbons so they couldn't be blown away by the wind.
Hermione looked over at her present pile to see a hat box the same as Rose's. She turned to Cedric and her eyes gleamed excitedly. He winked and grinned before turning to open his own gifts. Manny had bought him a pair of work boots and Hermione gave him a pack of shirts, both of which he was happy about.
"Hm… maybe shoes weren't the best idea," said Manny.
"Oh, my gosh." Hermione grabbed the camera and turned it to Cedric, giggling madly. "Show everyone your lovely gift!"
Cedric turned towards her and stuck the boots at the base of his legs. His prosthetics had long been removed and the whole effect was comical.
After the wrapping paper was cleared and they had a plate of sufganiyot and a pot of tea on the table, they put on Hermione's favorite holiday movie Last Holiday. Manny was in the armchair, which meant Hermione and Rose sat on the couch with Cedric. Rose, who had a very long day, zonked out fifteen minutes in.
Cedric actually enjoyed the movie, though he was horrified by the initial premise. He mostly focused on Hermione scooting closer to him as the movie progressed.
"I'm going to go ahead and go," said Manny. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye, Dad," Hermione whispered. "Be safe."
"I will." Manny kissed Rose on the head, then pressed his forehead to Hermione's. He squeezed Cedric's shoulder as he passed and let himself out. He would be by again tomorrow for candles, dinner, and gifts.
After the movie ended, Hermione woke Rose up to brush her teeth and ready for bed. Cedric eased into his chair to get going on cleaning up in the kitchen.
Hermione joined him and washed the dishes despite her new manicure.
"You shouldn't have to ruin it," said Cedric.
"They'd be destroyed in a day anyway," said Hermione. "Food industry will do that. Besides, the kitchen sink is too high up for your chair and I know you need breaks from your legs."
She left no room for argument, so he helped by drying the dishes and stacking them on the kitchen table to be put away.
Eight nights passed, he had new clothes, a new cushion, decorative spoke guards for his chair, and memories he would treasure until he died. He didn't want to leave. It wasn't fair. Why couldn't this have been his life? Why didn't he meet Hermione when they were younger? Why didn't they fall in love? Get married? Have a kid or two?
He couldn't stand it. If he kept playing pretend, he thought he might go insane. He had to leave.
The tourism dwindled and he announced that he was moving on. He half hoped that he would be asked to stay, but they weren't the kind of people to keep someone if they weren't happy.
He packed up his possessions and the three of them saw him to Kilokilo. It really was a beautiful magical center that made its home in the center of a long dead volcano. It was hundreds of times bigger than Diagon Alley and had businesses, restaurants, schools, residential buildings, not to mention events and market days.
"If you ever want to visit," said Hermione. "Just… go ahead and visit. No notice necessary. Maybe you can swing back around for the Multicultural Festival here. It's in July."
"Thank you," he said. "I'll… I'll keep in touch."
"You don't have to go," said Rose. "If you don't like the couch, I can give up my room."
His heart twisted in his chest.
"It's alright," he said, kneeling down. "I'll be around to visit. I promise."
"Pinkie promise?"
He hooked his little finger with hers and shook on it. "Promise."
He straightened back up.
"I can't thank you enough for your hospitality," he said. "Really."
"Anytime, Ced," said Manny.
He needed to leave before his resolve broke. Quickly, he went inside the portkey office.
"Do you have any discount portkeys?" he asked.
The clerk checked and nodded. "We have one for Vancouver, Canada."
"That's just fine," he said. "How much do I owe you?"
He told Hermione where the portkey was going and that was that. This would just be a memory. A wonderful memory.
~Three Days Later~
Canada was… nice. Cedric imagined that had he gone here first he probably would have stayed a full two months, maybe three. It was bitterly cold, though. Of course, it was January. He had almost forgotten what it was like to be cold like this and he didn't care for it one little bit.
He paused on his walk along the wharf and sighed heavily. What was he doing? He was such an idiot. If you aim at nothing, you hit nothing. If Hermione didn't want him, that was fine, but he still wanted to be a part of her life. He wanted to laugh with her and play games with Rose and talk with Manny.
He wanted to go home.
Apparating to the nearest magical center, he hurried to the portkey office and anxiously waited in the queue.
"Kauai, Hawaii, please," he said when it was his turn. "One way. Soon as possible."
"Okay, your portkey will leave in two hours, please be on the platform touching your portkey at that time and have a wonderful day."
Cedric nodded and went to wait by the platform. He tried to read a book, but kept anxiously checking the clock. He didn't dare move from this spot until it was time to go.
By the time he reached Kauai it was dawn again and he apparated home. Hermione would no doubt be there getting ready for the day. He moved as fast as his legs could carry him to the porch and wished he had the model that would allow him to run. He knocked on the door and took a step back.
Hermione opened it and looked shocked to see him.
"Cedric—"
"What if I wanted to stay?" he rushed out. "What if I wanted to be with you? To be a family? If you don't have the same feelings towards me, that's alright. I like what we have here even as friends. Oh, my God it's hot!"
"You're wearing a winter coat," Hermione pointed out and tugged him inside by the backpack straps. "Get out of those before you pass out."
He shed his backpack and half his layers. His heart was beating so fast he thought it might fly out of his chest. He inhaled deeply and raked his fingers through his hair. That's when he spotted the suitcase.
"Going somewhere?" he asked.
"Yeah, I was going to go after you," she said and shyly looked down at the ground. "I mean… I regretted letting you leave the moment you were gone and Rose was beside herself, so I sent her to my dad's last night so I could pack. I was just about to leave to purchase the next portkey to Vancouver but… you're here."
"Yeah," he said and ran his knuckles down her cheek. "I don't want to be anywhere else."
Hermione threw her arms around his neck and the sudden shift in weight caused his knees to buckle.
"Here I go!" he said, crashing to the ground.
"Oh! Are you alright?" Hermione gasped, pushing herself up. "I'm so sorry! You didn't hit your head, did you?"
"I'm okay," he chuckled and sat up, unfolding his legs so they were stretched out in front of him. "I know I'm probably gonna keep living on your couch and that might make things weird but… do you want to go out with me?"
"Yes, I do!" She rested her hands on his cheeks and pressed her forehead to his. "I had convinced myself that you were staying just to be nice. You always were a nice person."
"Maybe at first, but then I realized I was falling for you," he admitted. "I will warn you, I haven't been on a genuine date since I still had both my legs, so I'm not sure how anymore. Though… if I'm not being too forward… may I kiss you?"
She smiled. "You may."
They met halfway. Her lips were soft like he dreamed they'd be. They melted into each other and he wondered once again what took him so damn long to find her.
"We'll have to pick up Rose from school together," said Hermione, pressing her forehead to his. "Until then, want to do something fun?"
"Like what?" he breathed.
"We can take a nap," she whispered. "And not get interrupted."
"God, yes!"
Hermione got to her feet and held her hands out to help him to his.
"We'll clean that up later," she said, gesturing to the winter gear as she led the way to her room.
He hadn't really been in it before, though he had passed by to check on her or call her for dinner. It wasn't very big, but she had arranged the space well. The walls were painted a sage green and the brown floor had a fuzzy white rug, which Etta was sleeping on since Rose was away. The white furniture looked second-hand, but still had a timeless design. She had numerous plants hanging around in copper pots that reminded him of the Hufflepuff Common Room and a wicker chair with a zebra patterned cushion facing a vanity for her to do her hair and makeup at. She had a dresser and an empty space for a second one. Rather than a standard headboard, hers had bookcases and drawers, which really didn't surprise him.
The nicest section was the window seat facing the front of the house. She had enchanted the windows to show a flower field twinkling with fireflies so she wouldn't have to sleep in complete darkness but wouldn't be disturbed by a nightlight like Rose used.
Cedric sat down on the edge of the bed and removed his legs before laying down. He groaned softly.
"Wow… this is nice," he said. "Where'd you get a bed like this?"
"Mattress Firm."
Hermione pulled something out of her sleeve and dropped it to the floor before rolling over and cuddling up next to him. Cedric wrapped her up in his arms and sighed contentedly.
He fell asleep almost instantly.