Hermione spent the rest of her week working on getting Charlie's bill passed through the Wizengamot. Thankfully, the majority voted in favor of the bill and it passed seamlessly.
The combined dragon reservations in Wizarding Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Romania, and even Russia agreed to it. Each reservation sent two or three dragon tamers to help Charlie set up the new reservation in Britain. Because the reservation was for immature dragons, babies, and eggs that had been found, abandoned, poached, or trafficked, they only needed ten handlers to work under Charlie as the head of the reservation. Charlie began vetting the tamers that were sent by the other reservations and picked the best of them to offer jobs to, as well as four Aurors that Hermione handpicked for the job of retrieving the eggs and immature dragons that had been poached and trafficked, citing that they had each spent at least one year working in the DRCMC. The tamers and Aurors all agreed to their job offers and with the help of magic, had the new British Dragon Reservation set up and ready to open on Monday.
Hermione and Charlie worked together on setting up the new bill with the other countries, working with the Ministers and representatives sent from each country to come to terms that were acceptable to them all. They agreed that the immature dragons at each reservation and the eggs would be sent over the next two months with Charlie attending to each move with his team of tamers and the Aurors would work through the Ministry in a new sector of the MLE and the DRCMC to find any and all eggs and baby dragons that were being sold on the black market and tracking down any eggs that had been reported stolen or missing.
Hermione's week had been busier than she'd expected once Charlie's bill had been passed and she was very grateful for Lavender when she finally got back to her office late Friday evening to find that she had gotten Hermione dinner and written out multiple notes front he meetings she had attended in Hermione's place while Hermione was in other meetings. Hermione sat at her desk, removed the stasis charm from the meal Lavender had gotten her, and began going through the notes she'd left.
Hermione only had a thought or two about one of the meetings that Lavender had attended for her, but otherwise agreed with everything Lavender had written out and sent notes to everyone that had been party to the meetings to inform them that she was either on board or not, as per Lavender's notes. For the meeting she wanted to discuss with Lavender, she sent Lavender a note requesting a quick meeting the next morning, reassuring her that everything was fine, she just wanted to ask about a few notes and that the meeting would be no longer than an hour so Lavender wouldn't be stuck at work for the weekend. She was surprised when Lavender sent a note back saying she'd be there, noting that it was almost ten o'clock at night. Hermione soon left the office, warding it behind her and heading home for the night. She was so exhausted that she neglected to notice the bouquet of honeysuckle* sitting on the sideboard in her office.
Neville's week went by much quicker than he'd expected. He didn't have too many orders for the rest of the week, so he preoccupied himself with researching meals that were good to cook for a first date. He'd found that many people preferred to go with some kind of pasta for a romantic date. He knew Hermione loved Italian, but he didn't want her to feel like she was having just another daily meal. So he continued his research. He even spoke to his Gran and his Great-Uncle Algie, they both recommended a few dishes that they liked. Gran even suggested he pick something he and Hermione could make together, something fun. He wasn't sure, but as the week drew to an end he knew he needed to make a decision sooner rather than later.
Friday afternoon he decided to send Hermione another bouquet, he thought it was likely she wouldn't see this one if he sent it to her house, so he sent it to her office. Lavender sent a note back to him to let him know that Hermione was in meetings with Charlie and foreign dignitaries, but that she would leave the bouquet somewhere she would see it. Neville sent a note back thanking her and asking her if she knew what food Hermione really enjoyed but didn't eat often. He was pleasantly surprised when Lavender sent him a note almost immediately telling him that she loved pizza but that she refused to eat it much because she thought she would get fat. Neville scoffed at that and decided that he and Hermione would be having homemade pizza for their date the next evening. He went out and bought all the ingredients and even prepared the dough that evening to make sure it had enough time to rise before the date.
Hermione got to her office at 9 in the morning on Saturday and unwarded it for when Lavender arrived. Upon entering her office, she finally noticed the bouquet on the sideboard and smiled. She didn't need to look up the meaning of this one as she already knew it. She sniffed the honeysuckle before moving over to her desk and going back over the notes of the meeting Lavender had attended with Adrian Pucey. His family emergency had caused him to move their meeting to Friday after his uncle and mother had ended up in the hospital, followed soon after by his second uncle. Going over the notes, Adrian was undecided if he wanted to take his family seat in the Wizengamot or give it over to his younger cousin. His cousin was currently a student at Hogwarts and wouldn't be able to officially take the family seat until he graduated in three years.
Hermione was just finishing up looking over Lavender's notes when Lavender came into the office.
"Good morning, Minister!" Lavender greeted her with a wide smile.
"Good morning, Lavender." Hermione smiled wryly at her.
"So, what did you want to discuss?" Lavender asked as she took a seat across from her at the desk.
"Just the meeting with Adrian Pucey. You wrote that he hadn't decided if he would take his family seat or let his cousin take it when he graduates. Did he say why? Or give any indication of which way he was leaning?" Hermione asked.
Lavender hummed, "Not really. He mentioned the war and that he wasn't living in his ancestral home and that his uncles might get better."
Hermione frowned, "Can you schedule a meeting with him first thing on Monday morning?" Lavender nodded, making a note of it in her day planner that was connected to Hermione's, when Hermione spoke again, "And maybe another one Monday afternoon with Arthur Weasley? I asked him to come by earlier this week but he never showed, so I'm assuming he'll show up for an official meeting."
Lavender noted this down as well before saying, "I'll send official meeting notices to both Pucey and Mr. Weasley before I head home. Are you ready for your date this evening?"
Hermione glanced up at Lavender at that and huffed a laugh, "I suppose so. Neville is coming to my new house and he said he wants to cook dinner for me. I didn't know he could cook. And I don't know what I'm going to wear…I suppose if it's at my house I should dress comfortably, right? I haven't dated since before Ron and I got together, and I don't think it really counts when I only dated Viktor for three months in fourth year."
Lavender smiled, "I understand. I would say dress comfortably. And don't be worried about anything. If you get uncomfortable, tell him and Neville will understand. He's been in love with you for ages, he won't hurt you."
Hermione was feeling much better about everything after she left work. Lavender all but shoved her out the office door and into the lift, telling her to go to the spa Parvati and Padma had opened in Diagon Alley. Hermione reluctantly did as Lavender demanded and floo'd from the Ministry to the Leaky Cauldron. She said hello to Tom before making her way down the Alley to Namaste. Hermione thought the name of the spa was a bit on the nose for the British-Indian twins to have chosen for their business but she kept that opinion to herself. She entered the spa and was immediately greeted by Parvati who smiled excitedly at her.
"Lavender sent her Patronus, I've closed the spa for the morning, so you won't be disturbed," Parvati told her as she ushered her into a changing room, handing her a robe and offering her a bikini if she was uncomfortable with nudity.
Hermione accepted both the bathrobe and bikini and Parvati left the room to give her time to change, telling her to meet her in the hall once she was ready. Hermione changed quickly and wrapped the bathrobe around her tightly before meeting Parvati in the hall. Parvati lead her down a few halls before opening the door to what seemed to be a Hammam-style spa. Parvati left Hermione to soak in the scented pools for twenty minutes before collecting her and having her sit in a steam room for another fifteen minutes.
After the steam room, Parvati moved Hermione to a room that was heavily scented in incense, where Hermione learned that she would be getting a massage. Parvati called in her best masseuse and gave Hermione the list of massages that she could choose from. Hermione ended up choosing to get a full-body Swedish massage as well as a hot rock massage to finish. Parvati also told her that she would be getting a facial, manicure, and pedicure after her massages.
Hermione couldn't remember the last time she'd allowed herself to indulge in this kind of pampering and decided that she would have to at least make this a semi-annual thing, especially if she remained Minister of Magic for the foreseeable future. Usually, the Minister was only replaced if they died in office, were impeached by the Wizengamot, or stepped down. She wasn't planning on dying or stepping down any time soon, so long as the Wizengamot continued to be on side, she would be keeping the office for a while longer.
The massages, facial, manicure, and pedicure only added to Hermione's current blissful state and she refused when Parvati tried to say the whole thing was on the house. Hermione paid the small amount Parvati consented to let her pay and left after hugging Parvati and thanking her for such a wonderful morning. After she left the spa, however, Hermione stopped at Gringotts and had the goblins transfer the full payment her spa day would have cost to the Patil twins' business vault. Hermione thanked the goblins and left after making sure the transfer had been completed. She knew Parvati would send her a letter, possibly even a howler when she discovered the payment but Hermione thought they deserved it.
Once she had successfully pushed Hermione out of the office and into the lift, Lavender marched back into the office, warded Hermione's office, and took a seat at her desk. She sent a quick Patronus message to Parvati at the spa and told her that she was sending Hermione there because she needed to relax. Parvati sent a Patronus back saying that she would take care of Hermione and give her the full VIP treatment she deserved.
Lavender smiled at her wife's hummingbird Patronus, the one that matched her own. When they'd first learned the Patronus charm in school, neither of them could conjure a corporeal one. However, during the war as they'd practiced together and finally admitted their feelings for one another, they'd finally both been able to conjure a corporeal one, it was a surprise to them though, that they had matching Patroni, but they knew then that they were meant to be together.
Once she was sure Hermione would be well taken care of, she turned back to her work. She wrote out both official meeting summons' for Adrian Pucey and Arthur Weasley. She set the summons' aside to send them when she left. She then drafted a quick note to Neville to let him know that Hermione would be dressing casually for their date that evening and that he should as well, that way he didn't show up overdressed.
After she was finished with that, she made sure that everything was set and ready for the next week before she left and warded the entire office behind her. She made her way to the Ministry's owlery where she attached the note for Neville to a smaller owl and sent it off before attaching the summons' for both Pucey and Mr. Weasley to two larger owls. After watching the owls take off and making sure they didn't get intercepted before they left the Ministry wards, Lavender left and made her way home to check on Padma, knowing that Parvati was most likely going to close the spa for the rest of the day after she finished up with Hermione.
Hermione made her way home after leaving Gringotts. She decided to change into a pair of muggle denims, a long-sleeved tee shirt, and a pair of sneakers before leaving her house once again and walking down the street to Harry and Ginny's. She let herself in and listened until she could pinpoint which room Harry was likely in. She found him in the kitchen feeding James lunch.
"Afternoon, 'Mi," Harry grinned up at her as he helped James, who was still learning how to use silverware properly.
"Afternoon, Harry. Hey there, Jamie," Hermione smiled, dropping a kiss to James's hair as she moved passed his high chair and towards the cupboard above the stove to make a cup of tea.
"Gin's at practice, so it's just me and the little man today. You having a good day?" Harry asked as he continued to help the three-year-old.
"It's gone really well so far, actually," Hermione murmured as she made her tea, before devolving into a play-by-play of her morning for Harry.
"Sounds like it's been good. I've heard good things about Parvati and Padma's spa, do you think Gin would like it? Christmas is coming up." Harry said wiping James' face once he'd decided he was finished eating and demanding to be let out of his high chair.
"She would, but Christmas is in just under three months, you've got plenty of time. But you might want to check with Parvati and make sure she can go while she's pregnant." Hermione said as she pushed Harry out of the way to get to her godson, who was cleaned up and reaching for her.
Harry rolled his eyes and moved, taking Hermione's tea from her, "You're probably right. Can't believe Ginny and I made this little monster and he still prefers Auntie Mimi to his own parents."
Hermione laughed, picking James up and rubbing her nose against his, "You can't blame him," she winked at her pseudo-brother, "I am as sweet as sugar."
Harry groaned, "Sweet as sugar, my arse."
James giggled as Hermione tickled his tummy, as he dug his hands into her curls and tugged on them as she made faces at him. Hermione turned and stuck her tongue out at Harry before taking James out of the kitchen and up to the library, Harry followed carrying her tea. He entered the library not too long after her to find her cuddling on one of the couches with James, reading to him out of one of the muggle books she insisted on buying for James every chance she got. He set her tea on the side table nearest to her and took a seat on the couch across from her. She read quietly to James until he fell asleep, gripping her hair in one fist and sucking his thumb, curled up on her chest.
"So, Neville reached out to me the other day asking about your favorite foods," Harry smirked softly at his best friend.
Hermione gave him a small smile, before giving him a sideways look, "And what did you tell him?"
"I told him that you didn't have any favorites currently. But that's neither here nor there. What I want to know is, are you ready to be dating again?" Harry studied her face carefully.
Biting her lower lip, Hermione tried not to beam at him, "I am.." before she could stop herself she added, "He's my soulmate."
Harry looked about unsure and opened his mouth to speak again, when Hermione continued, "I checked the Book of Bonds in the DoM. He is my soulmate, and I'm thinking he will have a birthmark that matches mine."
Harry blushed at her mentioning her birthmark, his having seen it during the war while they were on the run being an accident didn't stop her from teasing him about it, even ten years later.
Nodding, he cleared his throat, "If he does, I do not want to know about it."
Hermione smirked, containing her laughter so she didn't wake up James.
"Well, if the Book of Bonds confirmed it, then I have no reason to object. Just make sure he treats you right. I don't want you to get hurt again." Harry said, with a stern look.
"It's Neville, Harry," Hermione smiled, "You know he would never intentionally hurt anyone."
Harry conceded her point, "It is Neville, I'll give you that. But you will tell me if he hurts you, accident or not."
Hermione rolled her eyes, but nodded, "You know I will."
Harry sat back in his seat, pleased with how their conversation had gone. Harry watched his sister and his son for a few moments in silence before standing up and gently extracting the sleeping toddler from Hermione, prying his hand open to release her hair. Hermione smiled and sat up, waving her wand to reheat her tea as Harry left the room to put James in his room for his nap time. Hermione curled up on the couch and sipped at her tea. Harry rejoined her and they sat and talked about work for a little while until Ginny arrived home from the Harpy's practice.
"Oh, Gin! Welcome home!" Harry grinned as she came into the library.
"Thanks, love. Hey, Hermione." Ginny greeted the duo, "Is Jamie napping?" Ginny asked as she kissed Harry in greeting.
"He is. Hermione read more of Alice in Wonderland to him and he was out like a light. I'm going to take a chance and say he's not going to be our most academic child." Harry joked.
Hermione rolled her eyes, as Ginny shook her head, smiling at her husband. Hermione stood from the couch and stretched, "Well, seeing as you're home from work, I'm going to head home and get ready for my date. Neville's supposed to be over around 7."
Ginny grinned, "I expect all the details over brunch on Sunday."
"Gin, we're having the monthly Weasley family brunch on Sunday," Hermione reminded her friend.
Ginny scoffed, "I still expect all the details. I'm sure mum, Angie, Audrey, and Fleur would all love to hear about it too."
Hermione grimaced, "Gin, we're keeping it a bit of a secret for a bit before we tell people. I am still the Minister, and I've only been divorced officially for a month."
Ginny sighed but nodded, "Fine, I'll keep it to myself."
"Thank you," Hermione smiled, squeezing Ginny's hand quickly as she pecked her on the cheek, "I'll see you guys tomorrow at the Burrow."
Hermione left number 12 and strolled down the sidewalk toward her house. She smiled as she stopped outside of number 14 and simply took in the sight of her home. Ron had insisted on buying the most pretentious home they could afford. She'd hated how gaudy and over-the-top it had been. She was glad that the Wizengamot ruled in her favor in regards to all the assets they'd amassed throughout their five-year marriage, as most, if not all, of them, had been purchased with galleons from her vault as Ron would often spend his monthly salary on frivolous things and funding his affair. She was proud of her decision to purchase number 14, as it comforted her to know that Harry and Ginny were only two doors down from her, and it was much less pretentious than her previous house.
She didn't realize how long she'd been standing outside until someone tapped her on the shoulder. Jumping slightly, she turned to find Neville.
"Oh, Neville! You're here!" Hermione smiled.
Neville grinned, "You did say 7, right? I'm actually a few minutes late.'
Hermione's eyes grew wider for a moment, "Oh, my. I hadn't realized it was already 7! I'm so sorry, I was over at Harry and Ginny's. Please, come in." She walked up to the front door and unlocked it. Neville waited for her to step into the house before he followed her.
"You've got a nice home, Hermione." Neville complimented as he looked around the foyer and living room.
"Thank you," Hermione smiled, before she lead him into the kitchen, "This is the kitchen. You can set your bag down there." She pointed to the granite-topped island in the center.
Neville set his grocer's bag on the island and seemingly conjured a small bouquet, handing it to Hermione with a small grin, "While I unpack, you can look up these flowers."
Hermione bit her lip, nodding and gently taking the bouquet from his hand. She put the flowers in a small vase and sat at the island, picking up the book about flowers.
"Hmm, Angelica, commonly known as wild celery, means inspiration," Hermione read quietly, "Apple Blossoms mean preference. And Aster means a symbol of love."
Neville looked at her through his eyelashes, as he finished unpacking the ingredients from his bag. He enjoyed the way her cheeks slowly turned pink as she blushed.
Clearing her throat, she stood, "Thank you for the flowers." When he waved off her thanks, she asked, "What's for dinner?"
"We're going to make pizza," Neville told her, watching her face. He watched the emotion in her eyes change from curiosity to excitement, and that made him feel as though his heart was singing.
"I haven't had pizza in a long time! It's one of my favorites, but I've never made it myself before." Hermione smiled, excitedly at him.
"Well, there's always a first time for everything," Neville grinned, as they took turns washing their hands at the sink. "I made the dough last night, so we just have to shape it. But first, I'm going to make the sauce. While I do that, could you grate the parmesan?" Neville asked.
"Of course." Hermione grabbed the cheese grater from a cabinet above the counter. She unwrapped the parmesan and set the grater on top of a cutting board, and began to grate the hard cheese.
Neville gathered the ingredients for the sauce. He gathered a bottle of extra virgin olive oil, three cloves of garlic, five tomatoes, salt, basil, oregano, and, to Hermione's confusion, sugar. He cubed and seeded the tomatoes before setting them aside in a bowl beside the stove. He began heating two tablespoons of the olive oil in a saucepan, once the oil and the pan were sufficiently heated, he began sauteeing the garlic. After a few minutes, he added the tomatoes, half a teaspoon of salt, 5 basil leaves, and half a teaspoon of oregano to the saucepan, and turned the stove down to let the sauce simmer.
He turned to find that Hermione had finished grating half of the parmesan and had set it down to watch him.
"See something you like, Minister?" Neville grinned cheekily at her.
"Possibly, Mister Longbottom." Hermione retorted with a coy smile.
He chuckled and began cutting the dough into six smaller pieces. Once the dough was cut, he sprinkled flour across half of the island and began rolling out the first one, doing his best to make it as round as possible. Feeling adventurous, Hermione also began kneading one of the pieces. She got it into a fairly round shape and decided to try a move she'd seen in movies, and tossed the dough up into the air. It only made it a few inches and she was able to catch it. Neville laughed at how excited Hermione was as she caught it, that he decided to give it a shot and tossed his dough into the air. Unfortunately, he wasn't as coordinated as Hermione apparently was, and the dough ended up landing on his head instead of his hands. Hermione couldn't contain the laughter that bubbled up and out of her throat.
It took a moment, but Hermione was able to get most of the dough off his head and out of his hair. They tossed that dough in the rubbish before continuing to shape the rest of the dough. She kept trying to contain her laughter, but looking at his embarrassed smile, she couldn't help it.
After a few minutes, he added a pinch of sugar to the pizza sauce and stirred it, before letting it simmer for another fifteen minutes. By the time the dough was shaped, Hermione had calmed down enough to use her wand to bake the dough to where it would be after approximately five minutes in the oven. Neville used a spell to blend the sauce once it was finished simmering. They ladled the sauce onto the pre-baked dough and then Neville handed Hermione some burrata, which she tore and placed around her pizza before sprinkling parmesan on top. Once they'd topped the pizzas with the cheeses, they baked the pizzas with magic.
They spent the rest of the evening, sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace in Hermione's home office, trying each of the pizzas, two of which were plain cheese, one that was a caprese-style pizza, one that was what Neville called an American pizza that had pepperoni, red peppers and jalapenos on it, and the last which was a normal pepperoni pizza. They also enjoyed two bottles of wine from Hermione's collection, which she'd inherited from her parents when they'd passed shortly after she'd restored their memories after the war. She and Neville discussed a multitude of things before the conversation turned toward their bond.
"You seem a lot less freaked out than I imagined you'd be," Neville admitted.
Hermione nodded and launched into her explanation, "I was a bit overwhelmed, but I'm not all that surprised by the existence of soulbonds. Draco and Ron have a soul bond. It was the only reason the Wizengamot granted us the divorce. According to the law, the only reason wizarding couples who went through a traditional binding ceremony can only divorce if one or both find their intended soulmate. As Minister, I could have changed the law to suit my needs, but that didn't seem fair. So, I checked the Book of Bonds and saw that Draco and Ron were soulmates. Draco proved it by presenting his family Soul Journal to the Wizengamot."
Neville's eyes widened at this new information but took a deep breath, letting it sink in, "I see…I'm glad you're not upset about it. I am sorry I didn't tell you about it sooner. I didn't want to pressure you into being with me…I didn't want to take away your choice."
He sounded apologetic and Hermione smiled gently at him, taking his hand in hers, "Don't be. I understand and I appreciate that. It means a lot to me that you cared enough about me to not force anything to happen between us. I will say, that I am happy that you're my soulmate. I think somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it the moment we met."
Neville smiled at that and nodded, "Like a strange fluttering, almost like you can't remember something that you've forgotten but you know you've forgotten something important."
"Yes, exactly," Hermione beamed at him.
They continued to talk about the soulbond until Neville realized that it was almost midnight.
"Oh, Merlin, it's quite late. I think I've overstayed my welcome," he said, as the clock on the mantle chimed.
"Oh, Godric, I didn't realize it had gotten so late!" Hermione gaped as she began to clean up the area they'd been sitting in.
"Let me help you clean up and then I'll head home," Neville offered as they carried their plates and wine glasses into the kitchen.
"Oh, no, don't worry about it. I can clean this all up later. You should head home before Augusta starts to worry," Hermione assured him.
"Are you sure?" He seemed a bit skeptical, but when she nodded and began, gently, pushing him toward the front door, he relented. He turned to face her as she opened the front door and he took a step out the door, "I had a nice time tonight…"
"I did too…" Hermione smiled at him, they were almost the same height as him standing a step lower than the front door, "Oh, before you leave, I have to ask, do you have a birthmark?"
Neville blushed almost as red as a beetroot before nodding, "I do."
She grinned as his reply came out in a high-pitched squeak, "Me too."
As if it were possible, his blush deepened and she winked at him saucily, before kissing his cheek and closing the front door with a quick, "Goodnight, Nev."
It took him a moment to process what had just happened before he murmured, "Goodnight," and walked down the street in a slight daze to the apparition point.