"Good Morning, sunshine." Ginny said two weeks later as Aissa began to cry at about three a.m.
"I'll take her." Severus said as he walked through the open door. The two rooms decided to keep the doors open so that someone would always hear Aissa. Draco and Severus had been very good about helping the girls in every way with her.
"Thank you, baby." Hermione said as she warmed up a bottle. "Here."
"I think that we're going to go for a walk." Severus said to Aissa.
"Where to?" Hermione asked.
"Probably just around all the rooms of the house." he said as he swept the baby out of the room.
"He's such a good Daddy." Ginny yawned as they both fell back to sleep.
*By the Breakfast Table*
"What would you like to do today?" Jonathan Granger asked Hermione the next morning.
"You haven't been out of the house since you got here." Rebecca Granger added.
"I think we should get you to somewhere." Draco said.
"I would like to stay around because of Aissa." Hermione said, taking a bite of pancake.
"Why don't the four of you go riding?" Jonathan suggested.
"That sounds good. It's such a nice day." Ginny said.
"I can send Arthur out to saddle up some horses. Who do you think should ride what?" Jonathan asked.
"Can we all ride horses?" Hermione asked the other three. They all gave concent.
"I assume you want to ride Vulcan?"
"Yes. I think we should put Severus on Irish Lion, Draco on Capricorn, and Ginny on Diablo." Hermione said, remembering her red roan horse, Vulcan.
"I'll go tell Arthur." The Male Dr. Granger left the room and went outside.
"Thanks Dad." Hermione called.
"I think I have a nurse ready for Aissa when you go back to school." Rebecca said, "Do you remember Sadie?"
"Of course!" Hermione cried, remembering her nursemaid when she was little.
"She's coming to take care of Aissa."
"That will be wonderful, Mum. Thank you."
"Sorry to remind you, darling, but I got the owl last night that the Vodzak's memorial will be dedicated at sundown today." Severus said, pulling Hermione's chair out for her as she stood up. The funeral had been hard enought. But now the wizarding community had decided to dedicate a bit of land on top of a cliff looking out onto the Bulgarian Gorges and lakes.
"It had to be sometime." was all she said. Rebecca Granger looked at the man her only daughter loved and smiled. He would be good for her.
"Are you ready to go?" Draco asked, anxious to be on a horse again.
"Ginny and I are going to go put proper clothes on. Maybe Severus could transfigure you some." Hermione said, leading Ginny out of the room.
"Women." Draco said.
*In Hermione's closet*
"Wow, Hermione, you have a lot of clothing." Ginny said as they stood in the walk in closet.
"I know." She said, rifling through the hangers, "Here you go. It's a pair of jeans and a pair of riding boots. Size seven, right?"
"Yes, I think so." Ginny said, pulling off her pajama pants and sliding into the jeans. They were slim fitting and straight legged. The ends perfectly tucked into the knee high black boots. Hermione found another pair of pants, knakis and a pair of brown boots and put those on too. "Would you like me to pull your hair back?"
"I think that I am just going to braid it." Hermione said, pulling out a stretchy yellow long sleeved shirt. She tucked it into her pants and put a brown belt on.
"All right. What kind of shirt should I wear?" Ginny asked, looking down at her "I think Dorks are hot" shirt.
"How about this?" Hermione said, handing her a black mandarin necked blouse.
"This is nice. Thank you."
"Any time." She said as she put the band around her waist length braid.
They went back down the stairs and outside to the stable. Draco and Severus were sitting on two bales of hay, Severus in a white shirt and grey pants and Draco all in black.
"Are you ready?" Arthur, the stable boy asked, leading four horses at the same time out. Arthur and Hermione had been friends for a very long time. He was Elizabeth's son and he was three years older.
"Yes. Thank you, Arthur." Hermione said, as he gave her a boost onto Vulcan.
"Which one do I ride?" Draco asked.
"Well, Ginny, you're on this white one with the brown spots, Draco, you're on the white and grey dappled one, and Severus, you're on the palimino." the other three mounted the horses and Hermione started down the country dirt road with them in tow.
They did not know that this would be their last afternoon together in peace for a while.
*In the Day Room, four hours later*
"Hermione, you're going to have to get ready soon. Sundown is four hours earlier in Bulgaria than it is here." Ginny said, looking up from her journal. Severus and Draco were playing Muggle chess and Hermione was reading.
"I know. I'll get Aissa ready after I do." Hermione said, sighing.
"I can get her ready if you'd like." Severus said, taking one of Draco's rooks.
"Thank you, darling." Hermione said, closing her eyes. Ginny and Draco exchanged lookes. "I think I'll run a bath."
"That will be good for you." Draco said.
"Are you saying I smell?" she asked.
"Yes." he replied, taking one of Severus' pawns.
"Just checking." she replied, laughing. She opened the door and went down the hall to her room's en suite bathroom. She opened the taps and went to her quiet closet. She sighed and pulled down a set of dark purple dress robes. She got the matching pair of shoes and chose an amythyst necklace. Opening Aissa's trunk of clothes, she found a little blue robe that matched her eyes. She also found the baby's bonnet which she put aside with her clothing.
By this time the bath was almost full so She shed her clothes an got into the tub. It was deep, it came up to her chin when full. Now it only came to her shoulders. Hermione did not like wasting water when she could. She sighed again and loosened her wet braid. Thinking about her friends Amanda and Jacob made her cry. Amanda had gone to Hermione's grade school and been one of her only friends until Hermione went to Hogwarts and Amanda went to Durmstang, where she met Jacob and Viktor. Viktor. That was just another mistake in Hermione Granger's life.
After she had washed her hair and body, Hermione got out of the tub and towled herself off with a big fluffy towel. She ran a brush through her hair, making it flow straight down to her thighs. Turning on a muggle hairdryer, she blew her hair straight.
An hour later she emerged back into the Day room fully dressed.
"You look beautiful, Hermione!" Ginny cried, looking at the exquisite purple robes.
"Thank you. Can you call for Aissa?"
"Sure." Ginny said, going out the door.
"Are you coming with me, Severus?" Hermione asked her boyfriend.
"I can't, love. I wish I could but there is a death eater meeting that I have to be at soon. Draco and I will be leaving in a few minutes. Ginny will be here with Drs. Granger."
"Will you be back tonight?" Hermione asked, tears filling her amber eyes.
"I hope." He said, wincing at the burn from the mark on his arm.
"Severus?" Draco called.
"I know. I'm coming." he replied, kissing Hermione's cheek, "I love you."
"I love you too." she replied, but he had already apparated.
