April 6th
Six days till Laura and Lily's birthday
Dumbledore's resting place
She lands on the tomb and immediately transforms back to her human form. Taking her time, she lets her hands feel the white marble, her mind arguing with her that she shouldn't violate Albus Dumbledore's rest. Shit. It would be easier if she knew for certain that the Elder Wand is there. But there's no way of knowing without opening it. How does it open, by the way? She frowns, her mind blank. She never payed attention to the spell that closed it off… because I never thought I would be doing this.
Hermione walks around the tomb, it's cold and dark still, but the moonlight gives her a perfect view of the Lake, of the tomb and of the Castle a little further away. She thinks about Lily and Laura, probably asleep on their beds, maybe already dreaming about their birthday, maybe thinking about their father, about their reunion. Even if Harry's not the same anymore, his love for the girls is solid, his intrinsic instinct of protection towards them unchangeable. I can't focus on that right now.
So, she focus on the tomb, there's no opening to it, no lid, nothing, it's just a big block. Biting down on her lip, a list of spells goes through her mind, but none of them good enough. She grunts, coming to the conclusion that a Bombarda will have to do it. She asks herself if she should wait, if she should talk to Minerva, ask for permission or something, but she knows that Harry won't do that, he'll just take what he wants and waiting a day could be decisive. Taking a deep breath she raises her wand.
"I'm sorry." She whispers. "Bombarda Maxima!"
Chunks of marble fly around, some sinking into the Lake, others turning into dust immediately. Hermione waits as still as possible while the smoke from the explosion subsides. She's anxious, her heart beating fast, afraid of what might be inside the tomb. She finally leans in and to her utter surprise, the image in front of her brings some kind of peace. Dumbledore looks exactly the same as she remembers, strong spells protect him against the natural decomposition and his expression is serene. Well, at the same time it's a little morbid. However, Hermione knows her former Headmaster went in peace, she knows he did what he believed was right even if some of his decisions were a little - a lot - questionable. At the time she felt angry at him for not revealing everything, for not helping Harry properly, for just leaving them clues and hoping they would do exactly what he expected, but now she understands his actions, now that she's the adult, the one that sometimes - all the time - makes these questionable decisions, she can see how difficult it is to live up to the image of perfection. To the image of myths and legends. And I'm very far from that.
The Elder Wand is there. Laying by his side. It's beautiful. She feels drawn to the wand, her hand acting on its own, already reaching for it. And then she feels him, Harry. The connection hitting her hard, but she doesn't care, she reaches for the wand and closes her hand around it. A brand new sensation takes over her as she lifts the wand from the grave. She knows he's right in front of her, the open tomb between them. She points the wand at him and Harry crosses his arms.
An insufferable sneer on his face. "So, you destroyed Dumbledore's tomb." He says and she wants to laugh at the absurdity of the situation.
"I guess I did." Her voice is cold. She's not feeling very affectionate towards Harry right now and she lets it show on their connection, trying to do the same as him, she exposes herself only to a certain extent. His eyes widen the moment he feels her and the way their magic struggle around them is surprising, it's like her magic is fighting his for dominance and vice versa. And of course they are, Hermione can tell they're not kindred anymore. She pushes harder into the connection.
"You can't beat me, Hermione." He says calmly but she sees his jaw and arms tensing.
"I can try."
With the connection like this, she knows exactly when he's about to cast that same binding spell on her and she stops him, raising the Elder Wand and murmuring a counter spell. She tries petrifying him, but the same way she just did, he already knows what she's about to do. Hermione ponders closing off on the connection, but decides to stay put. If he's not doing it, I won't either. Harry wants them to share their connection and Hermione is ready to play his game. He tries a little jinx on her and she stops him again. She tries hexing him and he stops her the same way. There's a smile on his face. A malicious smile.
Hermione tries not thinking too hard on the hex she wants to perform, she tries acting on instinct, maybe surprising him and, apparently, he thinks the same thing because both their spells connect in the air, right in front of them and Hermione feels a sudden pull followed by a sharp pain. She screams, not exactly understanding. Harry is trying to muffle his own scream, but she knows he felt it too.
They both lean on the edge of the tomb, Dumbledore as a silent witness to their standoff. "What happened?" She asks and it takes him so long to say something she doubts he even listened to her, but he says:
"I have no idea." His tone is soft, closer to the Harry she's used to, and she foolishly lets herself hope. But the agonizing pain she feels when he tries closing off to her on their connection is shattering. Her scar starts bleeding and she can see his is doing the same. Harry grunts and the pain goes away. "I-" He looks baffled and Hermione quickly understands. She tries, but she can't close off to him either and Harry screams as she forces her magic to disentangle from his. "Stop! Stop!" He pleads and she does, both breathing hard. "We can't force it. It might kill us." He says.
"Yeah? So we stay like this? Forever?"
Harry slams his fist against the white marble. "This last spell must have locked our magic together."
"Is that even possible?"
"Apparently it is." He says through gritted teeth and a silence follows. She never heard of something like this.
They look at each other, so much passing between them. Their connection is wild and untamed, their magic constantly fighting for dominance. Hermione dreads the situation because she can tell that Harry's indeed stronger than her and what happens if he finds a way to dominate her magic completely?
"I think we should come to some kind of truce." Her words echo between them, so similar to ones he said to her a long time ago in New York when they reunited. He doesn't answer and she takes that as an agreement, so she goes on, "We don't try using magic against each other and we don't try any kind of bullshit while we're in this situation. I don't want to hurt you, Harry."
He snorts at her words, clearly not believing her, but he says, "Okay, fine."
They both relax a little and the connection settles, their magic pushing gently onto each other. She would never say it out loud but the sensation is kind of pleasant. Harry nods his head and pockets his hands, his whole posture different now.
"But I still want that wand." He points at the Elder Wand in her hand and she feels his intention clearly but she's unable to move because in a blink he apparates right in front of her, pressing his body against hers and pressing her against the tomb. He holds her arms and she feels desperate, there's no way of her winning against him in some physical encounter, she has to be realistic, he's way stronger and bigger. But she can tell he doesn't want to hurt her, his only goal is to take the wand. She tries breaking free from his grip but he doesn't let her, his face close to hers.
"Let me go."
"Give me the wand."
Without giving it much thought she apparates, but Harry anticipates her move and stops her. Hermione stays put but her arms are free from him now. Harry towers her and she waits, thinking about a way to disapparate or to transform into Athena so she can fly away.
"Did you have a good laugh at my back while meeting me as Athena?" His voice is cold again, his eyes showing anger and betrayal. She purses her lips, her resolve from the hours she spent watching the orbs crashing down coming to her.
"I did." She says and shrugs. "I think the day you told me everything you went through while I already knew was the day I laughed the hardest." Her tone is strange even to herself, filled with venom. Hermione watches as his eyes go crazy, as he loses his temper.
"And how do you feel now that I don't fall for your tricks anymore?" He leans closer to her, his lips almost touching hers. She lowers her eyes.
"I don't give a fuck."
Harry sets his jaw and tries taking the wand but she's faster, her opposite arm blocking his. They both look stunned by what she just did, Hermione herself can't understand how she managed the move. Harry tries again, with his other arm and she blocks him again. What the hell. Her mind is on automatic and her body is acting on its own, she's fighting Harry, physically blocking his advances. I never learned how to do this. She can't tell if it's just pure instinct or something else. Harry grunts, frustrated, and uses both arms to grab her, but she shoves him, delivering a kick to his side.
He's shocked. She lifts her hand, worried about him, but he acts fast, really pinning her against him now. "Is this another ability you kept hidden all this time?"
"No, I never-" And she stops, finally understanding. "I borrowed it from you." She whispers more to herself than to him. Harry blinks, catching up with what she's saying. Their connection. Apparently they can share anything through it… she absorbed his knowledge in combat and acted without realizing it.
"This connection is a curse." He says. She doesn't react.
"It truly is." Are her words.
He has an expression of total confusion. "Fuck, Hermione."
Then his lips crash down on hers. She doesn't move at first, totally surprised. But slowly she opens her mouth, their tongues dancing an old song. It feels absurd. They're kissing. Hermione feels herself exhaling profoundly, marveling in the feeling of him, in the perfection they're together. It feels so damn good. She wondered if something like this would happen and it did sooner than she anticipated, but even if it's amazing, even if she can feel her Harry while kissing him, she can't lose focus. Harry's lost inside their kiss, his hands already on her hair, tugging it a little. Her hands, however, are still by her side. I'll give him another reason to hate me. She kisses him with passion and then, her right knee hits his crotch with full force and he releases her immediately, swearing and grunting. She doesn't look back at him, transforming into Athena, she flies away with the Elder Wand.
April 7th
Five days till Laura and Lily's birthday
Animus Mansion
Hermione drinks her tea slowly, savoring each sip and marveling in the bitterness of it. Her connection with Harry - the magical part of it - is there since yesterday, since they 'locked' their magic together. So far he's following their truce, he didn't try to close off to her and she didn't either. However, she knows how it must be driving him crazy. Hermione can feel each and every single spell he casts. And he's been busy, for sure. If she casts more than ten spells on a normal day it's too much, Harry on the other hand is apparating nonstop, hexing and jinxing without restrain. She doesn't know what he's doing or where he is, but he's up to something.
She snorts and rolls her eyes when she senses him performing a few domestic spells, one to make the bed, other to wash the dishes and one to clean the floor. "That's just lazy."
"I don't remember asking for your opinion."
She bites on her lower lip. Their situation is… strange. Harry still hates her, it's crystal clear how much, but at the same time, the kiss they shared, the kiss he initiated haunts her. And now they have this new kind of understanding where their magic is connected nonstop. In a way it brought them closer, at least she feels closer to him. It's nice, even if his magic is dark and volatile.
Yesterday, after she came back with the Elder Wand, she hid it carefully and told Draco, Ginny and Ron what happened. They obviously were angry she went alone, but relieved she got the wand.
Hermione stops her mug mid motion, she can see from her kitchen window that Marga is standing outside her house, a gentle smile playing on her lips. Her heart starts beating faster and she nods at the woman. She was waiting for this moment. Marga gestures to the door and Hermione lays the mug on the counter, breathing slowly as she walks to the front door.
Her hand stops at the knob. She's about to face the Wicked One, the woman that almost strangled Harry, the woman who tricked her masterfully. But now it's my turn. She puts a smile on her face and swings the door open.
"Marga! Come in." Marga greets her and Hermione steps to the side, welcoming her enemy inside her house. "I have to say I didn't expect to see you here." Hermione won't offer her something to drink or a place to sit, she can't be extremely nice the same way she can't be a total bitch.
"Hermione, I'm glad to see you so well. I heard about the attack."
"Of course you did."
Marga raises an eyebrow. "And Harry was sent to Azkaban!" Marga waits for her to say something, but Hermione simply can't, so the woman goes on, "I guess you know that the blond one came to me."
"Yes."
"Well, I got Harry out."
"I heard it was Cho Chang who did it."
"Yes, following my orders."
Hermione crosses her arms. "Last I knew Chang was working with Jack. You know both of them invaded my house and attacked me and Harry."
"Chang was pretending to work with Jack, she's on our side, Hermione." Right, liar.
"Well, I don't like her, but I'm glad she got Harry out of there. Is he with you?" Hermione asks and then not holding back, "He hates me now, did you hear?"
Marga pretends to be shocked. "No, how come?" She walks a little, leaning on her cane. That she doesn't need. "I saw him briefly after Cho rescued him, Azkaban was rough on him." Why is she here? "But give him some time, I'm sure things will go back to normal."
"Draco said you left the island." Hermione changes the subject.
"I did and that's exactly why I came, and to see how you were, of course." Her whole face wrinkles when she smiles. She looks so harmless. "I'll give you the coordinations to my new location, I figured it was best to leave that place, I fear my enemies might know about it." They sure do. Hermione smiles.
"Well, Marga, I'm honored you chose to come here yourself and not to send an owl," She smiles tightly, "It's never a bad thing to be cautious."
"Yes, yes," Her eyes linger on Hermione, but apparently she doesn't find anything else to say, "I guess I'll be going now, I have things to do. And to answer your question, Harry's not with me, I think he's been living with Cho somewhere." Marga waves her hand and Hermione doesn't react, her face a mask. "He won't come back until those crazy charges against him are dropped, I think." She looks at Hermione pointedly.
"I already took care of them… it's his escape that brings uncertainty to most wizards and witches now."
"Yes, well." She shrugs. "Take care, Hermione, I hope to see you soon, dear."
Hermione closes the door behind Marga and watches as the old hag apparates. She lets out a heavy breath and screams in frustration. A lot of what just happened bothering her, but she doesn't have much time to think about it as Draco appears on the foyer.
"What do you want?" She spats at him.
He frowns. "You called me here."
Hermione sighs. "Stay there." And she walks away.
She comes back with the Elder Wand and hands it to Draco. He eyes her, not understanding. "I need you to perform a spell on it."
"A spell on a wand? And why me?"
"Harry's going to know if I do it. And yes a spell on a wand, I want to disguise the Elder Wand as my own."
Draco smiles a little, "Smart. Okay, let's try." As he tests a few charms, Hermione tells him about Marga's visit. "Why do you think she came then?" He asks.
"I'm not sure. Maybe she wanted to see how I was with her own eyes. Maybe she wanted to check if I knew who she really is." Hermione suggests another charm since none Draco tried worked.
And he finally succeeds, bringing the Elder Wand to eye level, they examine it. It looks exactly like Hermione's. Draco hands her the wand, a shadow passing through his face and he clears his throat. "Be careful with this wand." She nods, understanding what he means. Just by holding it she can feel immense power. "What are you doing today?" Draco asks her since it's Sunday.
"I want to go back to my research about the prophecy and-"
"Hermione, Marga in fact ruined your lives together, Harry hates you and I don't see that changing any time soon. I mean, he destroyed the bottom half. Harry. The man who would swim in lava to retrieve it." Draco sighs. "In a way it's over, don't you think? Maybe it's time to… let go?"
She crosses her arms, appalled. "No." She shakes her head, she can't accept that, she just can't. "Do you really think it's over for Marga? Do you think coming here and telling me that Harry is living with Cho Chang is her revenge?" She snorts. "I don't think so."
Draco agrees, partially. "We're worried about you." He says. Ah, so that's the problem. "I mean, you're working like crazy, you avoid talking about Harry and… you never talk about the baby."
Instinctively she puts her hand on her belly. "I'm fine, Draco. Really."
He watches her for a long moment and then says, "Fine. Come by later? For dinner?"
She nods and he squeezes her hand a little as goodbye.
Knocks on her door wake her. She jolts in place, she fell asleep while reading, something that only happened a few times before, when I was pregnant with the girls. She tries rubbing away the sleepiness, yawning. I'm knackered. Whoever is at her door keeps knocking impatiently and she freezes. No one ever knocks on her door. She walks to the front door realizing it's already dark outside. I should go to Draco and Ginny's soon. She stops at the door and a chill runs down her spine. She knows who's on the other side.
She opens it and Harry is there, his eyes narrow. "I'm a little offended I can't apparate inside anymore." He says. Her mind is working slowly. I'm hungry. She's actually famished.
"What did you," She yawns, "expect?" His eyes narrow further at her and he snorts. "What do you want?"
Lifting both hands in the air as a sign of surrender, he says, "I want to talk, no need for you to kick me in the nuts." She rolls her eyes and takes a step to the side, allowing him in. She closes the door and starts walking to the kitchen, another yawn filling her eyes with tears. Merlin. I want to sleep. Her hand rubs her belly a little. Are you hungry, little one?
Harry is following her inside, watching her carefully.
"So talk. Don't mind me, I need to eat something."
To her immense surprise, the scene is as domestic as it gets, it doesn't seem they want to strangle each other at all. Harry sits and she sits by his side with her plate: a piece of an old broccoli pizza and some fish and chips. Harry scrunches his nose at her choices. She yawns again before digging in.
"Oookay." He says, a frown on his face. "We're at an impasse." She nods, not bothering to answer him. Her food is missing something sweet. She gets up and fetches a banana. Harry opens his mouth, totally unsure. She ignores him and sits back down, the sweetness of the fruit mixing just right with what she's eating. For a moment she forgets he's even there, her mind focused on the food and trying to stay awake. "There's no way of us hurting each other, and I have to say I was anxious for it." She glances at him.
"Though luck, huh?" She keeps eating.
"You have the Elder Wand."
"I do." She smiles. "It was so easy to fly away with it." He purses his lips.
"And I can't see my daughters," He's angry. "You prohibited Minerva to let me in."
She nods. "Of course I did, Harry. You're an Azkaban fugitive." She sees as his eyes turn colder and his magic swirls wildly inside their connection. It's clearly a touchy subject for him so she presses it further, wanting to hurt him. "How was it, by the way? Azkaban." She chews and waits for his answer.
He raises both eyebrows. "Oh? Are you concerned about me?" He waves his hand, "It was good actually, warm, cozy, a lot to eat, old friends to see and it opened my eyes to a lot of things." He sets his jaw and she feels bad about her question.
It's sad how things are between them, she wants to hug him, cradle him, talk about what he's been through, tell him about her own coma, tell him she finally knows for sure who the Wicked One is, tell him about our baby. But she says, "Good, I heard Azkaban builds character."
"I want to see Laura and Lily." He cuts her. "I want to go back to my house, to my life. And you can do that for me, Hermione, you're Minister after all."
Hermione raises an eyebrow and goes to the fridge, she wants something citric to go with her food, maybe some squeezed lemon? Yes, perfect. She flicks her wand and the glass appears in front of her. "And that's not lazy?" Harry says, but when she turns back to sit, he has his eyes as wide as possible.
"Fine. I already cleared out your name, Harry, in case you haven't seen all those endless interviews I gave." She takes a sip on the lemon juice and closes her eyes, this is good. Then she bites the banana. "But there are things out of my reach. I demoted Darkwater, but he wants your head, not to say that a few Aurors would kill you for what you did to one of your own in Azkaban. I heard the man almost died from the Sectumsempra." She yawns again. "People don't trust you anymore." She shrugs.
"Well, so I guess you'll just have to deal with them." She purses her lips. "I know you can do it."
She wants to say to him that Marga should be the one cleaning his name since she was the one that started it all, but she keeps eating. "I want you to have in mind, Harry, that I'm only doing this for Lily and Laura." She turns to him. "Because they love their father and they need him. There's no other reason for me to care. It's clear that you want me to suffer and pay for all the harm I did you and I'm not exactly worried about your well being anymore." She gives him an ironic smile, playing his game.
"It's their birthday soon." He states. Hermione watches the sky outside, it's darker and if she doesn't go to Draco and Ginny's soon, they will come to see if she's okay. She turns to Harry. He needs to go. "I want to throw them a party at the Manor." Hermione opens her mouth and squints.
"I'm not sure Minerva would allow them to leave Hogwarts."
"You know she would." He fists his hands. "Let me do this." She can see it hurts him to ask for her permission and she smiles.
"I'll think about it."
Harry purses his lips and watches her, his cold eyes going from her face to her plate. "There's one more thing I want."
"Oh?"
"I want all charges against Cho to be dropped."
Hermione laughs out of pure disgust. "No way." Harry squints.
"Come on, you have nothing on her, it's just your petty jealousy."
"She and Jack invaded my house and held me prisoner. She attacked me."
"No one knows about that except our inner circle. Drop the charges on her."
His protective tone is what breaks her. She's been cool so far, dealing with her emotions and his hatred, but she finally explodes, Marga's words about Harry and Cho echoing inside her. "Fine! Is that what you want, Harry? You have it, have it all, do as you wish with your life. Marry Chang for all I care!" She closes her mouth shut, aware she crossed a line. She showed she cares.
He smiles and it irritates her profoundly. "Maybe I'll. Marry her, I mean."
Hermione smiles tightly, the food sour in her mouth, her heart aching. "I do wish you all the best in the world." She finishes eating and takes the plate to the sink, she hears him getting up too and coming to stand behind her. "You should go now. I have things to do. And don't worry, by tomorrow you'll have all you want. As far as it concerns your position at the Ministry as Auror, you'll have to talk to Draco." She turns, he's so close she leans against the sink to support herself, her breathe short.
"You think I don't see it?"
She frowns. "See what?"
"You're pregnant, aren't you?" She's as still as possible. "The yawning and the crazy eating. The way you rub your belly without noticing." His eyes soften a little and it breaks her heart. He looks at her expectantly, his hand slowly reaching out and touching her belly. The contact is warm and Hermione puts one hand over his. He's waiting for an answer and she watches him.
"Yes, I am." She says softly, sharing the secret with him. She smiles a little.
Harry opens a dashing smile, his face brightening up, his whole posture changing. Yes, come back to me, Harry, back to us. "Hermione, that's-" And then he stops. Suddenly and abruptly his whole expression changes, his warmth replaced by coldness, his hand leaving her belly, his jaw setting and an incredible turbulence on their connection hits her. "It's Jack's, isn't it?" He lets out a bitter laugh. "I guess now you can have your precious family with him." He practically spits the words. Hermione opens her mouth, ready to put some sense into his head, but he turns his back to her, pressing both hands against his head, he then says, "I hate you, Hermione. You are nothing but a liar, an insufferable know-it-all. I don't know how I even loved you someday. I never should have gone after you when that troll invaded Hogwarts!"
If he'd slapped her it would've hurt less. Don't cry, Hermione. Don't. He finally turns to look at her again and there's a hint of regret and confusion on his eyes, but she's fuming now, hurt and angry. She raises her index finger and touches his chest, pressing against him. "Just stay the fuck away from me, do you understand?" She doesn't know him anymore, she can't see Harry there, it's like he went away and an impostor took his place. "I have no interest in deceiving you anymore, isn't that what you're accusing me incessantly in your head? Accusing me of lying, of fooling you, of abandoning you, of manipulating you? Yes, okay, if you want to see things that way, fine. Fine. You already made up your mind, there's no use for us to keep talking. I'm done!"
Their magic behaves strangely around them, and Hermione can almost feel an oppressive wave of electricity soothing her, so she lowers her finger, Harry's expression changes too, a glimpse of the man she loves appearing, a lonely tear running down his face. He's about to say something, but the unmistakable apparating sound echoes in the house, then Ginny's voice calls to her. Harry closes his mouth and distances himself from her, just in time to meet Ginny at the entrance of the kitchen.
Hermione can see Ginny's conflict. She wants to hug him, but she stops herself, her eyes going to Hermione. Harry too seems unsure but he strides away without saying another word and they hear him banging the front door strongly.
The moment she knows he's out of the house, she crumbles down, crying. Ginny just hugs her until she stops.
April 10th
Two days till Laura and Lily's birthday
Malfoy Mansion
…precautions and answers are expected from Minister Hermione Granger (32), it may be the darkest time we are living in since You-Know-Who's era. After escaping from Azkaban and harming one of his fellow Aurors, Harry Potter (31), had all charges against him dropped, not only that, Head Auror Draco Malfoy (31) reinstated his close friend as Auror. It is difficult to understand, after everything that happened, how Mr Potter can walk freely. It is known he is back to his Manor which he now shares with his girlfriend, Cho Chang (32), another wanted witch that had all charges against her dropped. This series of events are alarming and must not be ignored by the Wizarding Community, and we ask you, dear reader: Can we trust those in power? Head Auror Malfoy and Minister Granger should be the ones persecuted and questioned, their actions in favor of those close to them in disregard of the safety of our community is outrageous. Can we even be sure Minister Granger is the war hero-
Hermione snatches the paper from her hands and toss it into the fireplace. "Honestly," She says, "Don't read this garbage, it will take years off your life." She sits by her side and sighs. Draco is coming from the entrance. Ron is at the kitchen preparing a sandwich.
Ginny looks at her, since the day she cried in her arms, Hermione hasn't even mentioned Harry's name or acknowledged his existence. She didn't tell Ginny what happened between them that day, but she can imagine a few things. Draco told her that Harry was acting like a maniac when he went to talk to him about his position as Auror. Hermione had told Draco to do as he wished, if he thought reinstating Harry was the right thing to do she had nothing to say about it. But Ginny knew Hermione couldn't ignore him forever, he was indeed throwing a party for the girls on Friday. At the Manor. With Cho as his girlfriend. Ginny purses her lips, trying to stop herself from asking.
"You can ask me, you know?" Hermione says, guessing her thoughts. "I can almost hear you thinking." Hermione turns to her. "I'm fine with it, okay? This is how things will be from now on, in fact, how they always should have been. Harry living his life and we coping to give the girls our best, regardless our relationship status. And you know what?" She widens her eyes, clearly not fine with things. "I hope he's happy with Chang. They deserve each other."
"But-" Ginny is afraid she might say the wrong thing, "What about the prophecy?" She asks because Draco said to her that Hermione was still holding on to it.
"It's over, Gin. Everything is over. I have no desire in reconciling with Harry." She shakes her head and Ginny watches as she rubs her belly gently, "And if we're not together, there's no prophecy, no threat, no nothing. Things are actually better than ever."
Yeah, I can see that. Sure. "Well, what about the bottom half?"
"Who cares about that? It's destroyed, gone." Hermione waves her hand and Ron sits with them. Draco must be upstairs checking on Aria. Dominic is at his playroom, probably playing video games, a muggle habit he developed and Ginny allowed.
Ron takes a huge bite on his sandwich and says with his mouth full, "I understand him hating you, Hermione, but what about us?" He gestures from him to Ginny, "Since he escaped he hasn't spoken a word to us." He shakes his head, taking another bite. "I don't like this new Harry."
"Tell me about it." Draco arrives with Aria in his arms, the baby has her little gray eyes open. "Look who's up!" He rocks her a little, smiling. Ginny's heart swells and she glances at Hermione, her expression dark as she watches Draco. "Whatever happened to Harry, changed him. He doesn't like us anymore, he doesn't consider us his friends anymore." Draco continues, "He made that perfectly clear when he demanded to be reinstated."
"So why did you, Draco?" Hermione finally asks. "Reinstated him?"
Draco sighs. "I guess for the same reason you did everything he asked of you. For the girls." Hermione nods and then shrugs.
"Yeah, well. I know you don't believe me, but as long as he treats the girls with love and care, it's fine by me."
Ron is about to say something but Dominic enters the room, holding a few papers. "I made drawings for you!" The boy comes closer to Hermione and sits by her side, showing her his creation. "This is you, aunt Hermione." Ginny glances at the figure he's pointing. Dominic's Hermione has a pointy hat, a cloak and a badge that reads 'Minister of Magic', long hair and big brown eyes. "These are Laura and Lily." He drew two girls that look exactly the same with Hogwarts robes. They're holding hands with Hermione. "And this is uncle Harry." Dominic's voice is sad and his representation of Harry is also sad, the man is far away from the three and has a frown on his face. Hermione smiles to the boy.
"Thank you, Dominic. I loved it." She kisses his head and they hug tightly. Dominic goes to Ron's side, showing him another drawing.
Loud knocks on the front door catch their attention. Draco is the only one standing so he gives Aria to Ginny and heads to the door. Ginny turns to Hermione. "Do you want to hold her a little?"
Hermione smiles and takes the girl in her arms, rocking her gently, playing with her tiny hands and making silly sounds. "She's so beautiful." She says to Ginny.
"Of course she is. She looks exactly like her mother." They laugh and right at this moment Draco comes back to the room. Ginny freezes. Harry and Cho are walking behind him, holding hands. She can actually feel Hermione stiffing by her side.
"Hello, everyone." Harry says, his voice strange and his eyes glued on Hermione holding Aria. Cho's expression is so smug that Ginny wished she could slap it off her face. There's an awkward silence between all of them. And it's Dominic the one who breaks it.
"Uncle Harry!" The boy goes to him, hugging his legs with fervor. "Where were you? I missed you!" Ginny is sure Hermione's not even breathing by her side. Harry opens a big smile and hugs Dominic back.
"Hey little guy! I missed you too." Ginny could swear on her life that Harry has tears on his eyes.
"Uncle Harry! Can we play some video games, please?" Dominic asks, excited.
"Actually, son," Draco cuts him sharply. "Uncle Harry said he's just passing by, aren't you, Harry?"
Harry clears his throat, looking a little thrown off at least, "Yes, I-" Aria starts crying and Ginny turns to Hermione, but Hermione nods shortly and gets up with Aria, rocking her and walking out of the room, humming a lullaby. Ron shakes his head and goes after her. Ginny holds a smile as she sees Harry's crestfallen expression.
"Yes, Harry?" Draco asks.
"I wanted to deliver in person the invitations for the party." He hands one invitation to Dominic and a few others to Draco. Harry shrugs. "I thought it would be nice to have them as a memento."
Ginny comes to stand by Draco's, examining the invitation. It's really nice and well thought, a few magical owls and snitches fly around as you open it, everything doubled since they're twins. She gives Harry a warm smile. He loves his daughters, regardless. And to her surprise he smiles back. "They're really nice, Harry." She says.
"Yeah, I-" He begins, but Cho tugs at his hand.
"We need to go, love."
Ginny snorts at the word and Cho gives her a dirty look. Ginny notices Aria is not crying anymore, but Hermione is nowhere to be seen. Harry lowers his head.
"Yeah, okay. Bye, Dominic." He gives the boy another hug and nods curtly at them, but Ginny sees his eyes searching for Hermione.
And Hermione only comes back when she hears the front door closing, Aria asleep in her arms. Ron's eating another sandwich behind her. "What did the happy couple want?" She asks. Ginny hands her the invitation and takes Aria from her arms. She watches as Hermione feels the paper and marvels at the incantation on the smalls figures. Hermione doesn't say a word, but she presses her lips together, her chin giving away the immense effort she's doing not to cry. She then closes her eyes, pockets the invitation and sighs. A whole new expression on her face. "So, what's for dinner?" She asks as if nothing had happened.