Chapter 9

The night was still rather young when they found themselves sat occupying a small table in a rather crowded muggle tavern. Storm had seemed quite familiar with the landlady and had toddled off to the bar as soon as they had arrived. It had made the older woman wonder just how many times she'd been to this place.

As she found a cozy spot next to a small fire burning in a large brick fireplace, she pondered on just how it was that Storm occupied her time while she was alone. She wondered if she came here often just for something to do. Though she hadn't been left alone with her thoughts for long.

Storm had wandered back to her within minutes, four pints being expertly carried without the aid of magic. A small grin had been tugged across her features as she made eye contact. She made sure the glasses were all securely on the table before flopping down next to the brunette with a huff, settling with ease against the back of the bench seat.

"Do you come here quite a lot then?" Hermione questioned as she moved to lean forward and grab one of the glasses for herself. This was something they'd done quite a lot, every Saturday at least since they had met. She eyed the liquid with thinly veiled interest. It wasn't like anything she had seen before, not since she was young anyway. Her father rarely drank, though when he did his beverages looked much like this one.

"It's Lager Hermione" Storm spoke, rolling her eyes playfully as she nudged the older woman with her elbow gently. "Not a potions exam" She laughed then as she grabbed her own beverage, leaving two glasses still untouched. The liquid bubbling away from the bottom in the most intriguing manor. The glasses weren't the usual tankards, they were slim and had a logo on the front and base.

"Well, it's new. It's not like we have these in our world" Hermione retorted, though her tone held no malice. She watched as Storm drained half of her own glass quite easily before pulling it away from her lips once more with a satisfied sigh.

"Try it then, see if you like it" Storm encouraged, her own dark eyes settling on her companion. Long fingers moving to play with a paper coaster that had been on the table when they got there.

Hermione took a moment to watch more bubbles rise to the surface and join the thick layer of foam at the top of the light amber liquid. They seemed to be originating from the small logo that sat at the bottom of the glass and the entire thing sparked her intrigue once again. She raised the glass after just a second longer, and took a tentative sip.

The taste that met her wasn't quite sweet like butterbeer, and it was very fizzy. The bubbles burned her nose a little as she inhaled the scent when she pulled it away again. It was definitely not what she was used to, that was for sure. She could feel the younger woman watching her closely for any sign of distaste, sure if she decided she didn't like it Storm would be back up to the bar without a second thought.

"It's not bad" She started honestly. She hadn't really known what to expect when the Shifter had brought the beverages over to their small table. But she was definitely surprised, the flavor wasn't quite as strong as she had been used to. She supposed the beverages they had in their world would always be very much worlds apart from those the muggles indulged in.

"Do you want something else?" Storm asked, though her question was answered as she watched the older woman bring the glass back up to her lips and take another few hefty swigs. She was quietly relieved that Hermione wasn't really that picky. She had always pegged the older woman to be quite uptight, but actually when it came to mundane things Hermione was quite easy going.

"You know, when we were in school I always thought you were quite haughty" Storm spoke honestly, although a little absently. She had a look in her eyes that told Hermione she wasn't quite all in that moment. She looked like she was almost entirely somewhere else.

"I thought you were arrogant and annoying" Hermione replied, her lips twisted up on one side with the smallest of smirks. She wasn't lying, she had often berated the redhead for keeping Storm's company. A little fact she often felt a little guilty for, especially when she saw just how close they actually were. She did not deny the fact that during their last year at Hogwarts, if it wasn't in a book or it didn't have red hair she wasn't interested.

Something she regrets now, though she always let that thought go. There was little she could do to change the way things had been back then. But that didn't stop her from wondering if she'd be sat somewhere entirely different right then, if she had gotten to know Storm. A sneaking suspicion was that yes, yes she would be.

"I know, Ginny told me" Storm laughed, her own smile as wide as can be. Her eyes crinkling up at the corners as she watched the shock wipe the older woman's smirk away. "She also said you thought I was bad news, and honestly Hermione after I saved your life that kinda hurt" Storm teased, an eyebrow raised as she watched Hermione raise her head and straighten her shoulders.

"Well, you wouldn't have had to save my life if I hadn't of had to save yours first" Hermione quipped a little arrogantly, though the smug smirk that was threatening to take her lips betrayed her. She hadn't really saved Storm's life; she hadn't really known what she had walked in on. At that point nobody knew she was a Shifter. After that had come out, she was sure she would have been able to handle herself.

"I wasn't in danger; I was handling the situation just fine. Keeping those guys busy, and away from others for as long as possible" Storm explained, though the sheepish smile that had taken the place of the grin she had been wearing told a different story.

"Is that why you were bleeding from at least three different places, badly might I add" Hermione quipped, an eyebrow raised in challenge. "I for one, don't think that's the case. I'm actually surprised you ran away without passing out" She laughed a little in disbelief at the memory.

"I did pass out" Storm admitted quietly, "after I left you, I got hit with rubble from a collapsing wall. Cho found me and dragged me into a classroom. I'm pretty sure that's why I'm sat here now" Storm spoke honestly, her eyes flicking down to the table in front of them a little awkwardly.

"I had no idea" Hermione spoke just as quietly then. It seemed there was still an awful lot she didn't know about. Though she supposed it was fitting that it had been Cho to help the shifter sat beside her. She had never seen them interact, and the idea of it was quite a bizarre one. But she supposed things had been much different during that year they had left Hogwarts to the Death eaters.

"I wouldn't expect you to have known" Storm smirked, shaking her head a little bit as she rubbed the back of her neck a little awkwardly. "I mean, unless you'd followed me like a little weirdo" She laughed then, an eyebrow raised as she teased once again. "Like those three times" She added as an afterthought.

Hermione couldn't help the blush that creeped up her neck once again at the mention of those three incidents. She wished she'd never reminded the Shifter of them, it seemed they gave her quite the cause for her own amusement. "Honestly Storm, you just can't let that go" She rolled her eyes then, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Why would I let that go Hermione? It's hilarious" Storm stated as a lopsided grin took her features. "I had completely forgotten the look on your face. Like I said you were quite haughty back then, I was sure you were going to drag me to my dorm by my ear the first time" She admitted with a laugh as she nudged the older woman.

"I did contemplate it! I honestly don't think I thought about hexing anyone as much as I'd considered hexing you." She stated as a matter of factly, draining the contents of her first glass before she reached for the other. "I don't think anyone ever gave me so much trouble."

"Don't deny you were just jealous I hadn't been sneaking around with you" Storm prodded playfully, nudging her with her shoulder as she laughed again. "Sure they did! You just didn't secretly fancy any of them" Storm winked seriously before laughing out loud once again, clearly amused by herself.

"Seriously though, do you not remember when that sixth year offered his services to you?" Storm questioned as she sat back once again, shifting to get a little bit more comfortable in her seat. Her dark eyes turned towards the rest of the tavern's patrons.

"Do you mean the time I had to give you detention for trying to put a sixth year's head through a wall and threatening to provide him with your own services?" Hermione quizzed, though as she pulled the memory to the forefront, she realised Storm had actually come out of nowhere to defend her. She hadn't been able to appreciate the gesture at the time. She'd been startled into action by the violent reaction.

"Well, obviously. But he definitely deserved that. He'd been talking about you quite loudly in the common room before that" Storm stated simply, shrugging her shoulders as she disclosed the information. "It was absolutely disgusting Hermione; you just don't talk about anyone like that. If you'd have heard what he and his little gang of pals had been saying you'd have wanted to hex him yourself." She muttered, the tone of annoyance flitting into her voice as she recalled the incident as if it had happened yesterday. Her bottom lip poking out just a little into what could only be described as a petulant pout.

"You had quite a few admirers that last year. I don't think you realised" She stated simply, flicking her eyes back over to the older woman briefly. Her pout still quite evident as it tugged her features downwards. Hermione couldn't quite place the expression. She almost looked genuinely pissed off by that fact. It wasn't like she'd lacked admirers for herself, there seemed to have been a boom especially after word had gotten out that she'd been signed to the Harpies with Ginny for the season after they left.

"I was aware. Obviously, it was just harmless for the most part, though it was a nice change from the bullying we'd had previously" Hermione stated with a sigh. After the war she'd had a much different reaction from the rest of the student body. Beforehand they'd been almost outcast save for a select few in Dumbledore's army.

Being friends with Harry had definitely come with its downfalls. Not all of which centred around a murderous madman and his band of equally mad henchmen. The taboo of Voldemort had much of the wizarding world looking at them as if they were insane, or even just fame grabbing so and so's.

"I suppose so." Storm stated a little nonchalantly. Her shoulders shrugging again as if she was entirely disinterested. "Speaking of, that man is looking at you" She muttered into her own drink, dark eyes narrowed slightly and very much trained on a muggle that she had spotted watching them a little too closely.

Hermione followed her line of sight and as her own gaze settled on the man in question, he nodded his head once in some sort of greeting from across the space. Hermione smiled a tight-lipped smile then as she felt Storm go so entirely rigid next to her. The younger woman's body solid as she squared her shoulders in obvious distaste.

The older woman made a snap decision then, looping an arm around the Shifter's own. Pulling the younger woman close to her in a way that had become so familiar to them both. Storm didn't question it, she allowed herself to be re-positioned and turned her back to almost shield the older woman from the unwelcome gaze.

Hermione had pressed herself almost flush to the Shifter's body then, the palm of her hand meeting a beer warmed cheek before sliding down to the side of the younger woman's neck. She lent in a little obviously to speak into Storm's ear. "Is he still looking?" She questioned, though she guessed he probably wasn't. There was nothing friendly about the position they had assumed, and Hermione had hoped that he would take a hint.

Storm didn't really move at all, though she had relaxed into the shorter woman's body exponentially. "I have no idea" Was the response she got, muttered absently, almost airily. Storm moved then and for a moment Hermione thought she was going to move away. But instead, she was caught entirely off guard by the dark stare that had captivated her as soon as she'd made eye contact.

The next moment seemed to pass so slowly and so quickly all in the same breath. Storm lent in and pressed their lips together so tentatively, so gently Hermione was unsure if it had actually happened at all. The feeling was almost too much, and an eruption of butterflies flooded the very depths of her stomach.

She had doubted this would ever really happen again and was sure if it was going to, she would be the one to make the first move. Storm had been so good at pulling away, so entirely practised at keeping her hands and feelings to herself. The touch was more than welcome, and Hermione chased the lips that had just seconds earlier been on hers as soon as they had been pulled away. She had run her fingers up into the longer hairs at the nape of Storm's neck, her nails dragging against the sensitive skin that she met there.

The fact they were very much in public hadn't really crossed her mind, part of her really no longer cared who knew what they were doing. Storm hummed into her mouth as soon as the kiss had been deepened, large hands had splayed long fingers across her back as she was pulled in so maddeningly close. It was as if the dam had been broken and she was just grasping at whatever it was she could get.

Storm was the first to pull away after what had felt like an eternity, heavy breathing filling the small silence that consumed the air around them. It was as if all the noise in the tavern had disappeared into space around them. Though she hadn't gone too far away, something Hermione found she was grateful for.

"Did you want to go home?" The brunette questioned then, her voice firm but quiet. Their proximity calling for nothing more than a whisper. She could see the conflict pull itself across Storm's face, and the way she shifted a little uncomfortably in her seat as she tugged down her t-shirt a little further in the front. The action causing Hermione to raise an eyebrow.

"We really shouldn't be doing this again, it won't end well" Storm grumbled, though still made no move to pull herself further away. Instead, dark eyes fluttered shut and a sigh escaped her lips as the fingers still at the nape of her neck slipped further down to drag across tense shoulders. Something Hermione knew always got her. She moved a little once again, tugging her t-shirt into place over the crotch of her jeans.

"I was wrong, Storm" Hermione started, a soft sigh escaping her lips as she ducked her head to catch Storm's eyes as they fell to their laps. Making sure she was heard as she spoke, making sure Storm knew she was well aware of what she had done. She wanted what she was about to say to have weight, to impact the Shifter and reassure her.

"I was just afraid I was moving on too quickly; I was afraid that I was going to miss out on something. I didn't think I could give you what you wanted." The older woman continued, watching Storm's expression with keen eyes. She looked as if she was concentrating hard, her brows furrowed together as her dark eyes bore holes into Hermione's own. She looked as if she was trying to see through the words that were being spoken, to gauge what they meant.

"But then I realised that actually, I had been ready a long time ago to get out and get away from that situation. I realised you never actually asked me for anything other than my company, and you didn't expect anything I wasn't ready to give." She continued tentatively, choosing her words as carefully as possible while still stroking the back of the younger woman's neck and shoulders in long languid strokes.

"I just, want what we had and I want what we can have Storm. I don't want it to be a secret either. It's not fair for someone so lovely to be kept hidden. I just want you and everything that actually entails, properly." She finished with another sigh, the unchanging expression the younger woman wore was starting to cause the butterflies she had felt before to change. She was growing more nervous with each silent second that ticked by. Her dark eyes flicking rapidly across features still unwavering.

It was a good moment before Storm's lips twitched up into a crooked smirk that lit her entire face up. It was mischievous and the nerves changed once again to curiosity. "Well, that was unexpected" Storm laughed, shaking her head as she moved to run her hand through her hair. Brushing it back and out of her face.

Hermione pulled back; her own features twisted with astonishment. She had expected just a little more than what she had received in response. "Is that all you have to say?" She questioned, whacking the younger woman's arm as Storm started to laugh again. Though the way the younger woman leaned across to plant a kiss to her cheek told her all she needed to know.

"I thought we were going home?" Storm replied as she grabbed Hermione's jacket to hand over to her. "Unless you've changed your mind?" She quizzed with an eyebrow raised, the same mischievous smirk still pulling at her lips.

"Obviously not" Hermione quipped as she took her offered jacket to shrug on. Watching as Storm shrugged her own over her shoulders, dark eyes flicking back to her every now and again. Though the smile never faded, something that told Hermione she had definitely done the right thing.

"Does this mean I get to hold your hand and rub it in that guy's face?" Storm questioned seriously as she stood up, hooking her thumb over her shoulder to gesture to the guy still quite clearly watching them. "I mean, you know" She added with a shrug of her shoulders, her grin growing wide enough to split her face as Hermione just rolled her eyes and offered her hand. Her other going to the crook of Storm's arm to hold her close to her side.

"You're really impossible, do you know that?" She questioned once they made it outside into the night. The evening air was frigid, and the small banks of grass that lined the road had already began to ice over.

"I'm not impossible Hermione, I'm right here" Storm grinned, motioning down towards herself as she led the older woman away and into a deserted side street where they could apparate from safely. "What made you change your mind?" She questioned then, genuinely curious about what had inspired the U-turn. She had been convinced she'd have to live with the fate she had been laid.

"I realised I had taken you for granted, and once you were gone it really showed me exactly what I had was exactly what I actually want" Hermione spoke honestly, affording the younger woman that. She had nothing she really wanted to hide anymore, she was happier than she had been in years. If not, the happiest she'd actually ever been. Even the boring mundane things were things she wanted to do, and looked forward to doing with the younger woman.

"I'm really glad, Hermione." Storm spoke then, rounding to stand in front of her as they came to a stop in the abandoned street. The streetlamps lighting the area in a dim, orangey glow. The shadows dancing around them the only ones to bare witness to their conversation. "I really hated having to stay away" She admitted with a sigh, moving to rub the back of her neck a little awkwardly. Something Hermione noticed she did if she was nervous, or unsure of what to say. Something she did when the bravado came down and it was just Storm left.

"I hated it too" Hermione spoke quietly as she tilted her head to the side just a little bit, regarding Storm with a curious expression. Her fingers balling into fists around the exposed material of Storm's t-shirt at her belly in an attempt to pull her closer. "I regretted it as soon as it happened, I don't want to ever see that expression on your face again. Not because of me" She spoke again, determination evident in the tone of her voice.

"That's okay, there's no right way to navigate things like this. We just have to do what we think is best at the time. I know you didn't intend to hurt me. I won't hold it against you" Storm's reply was serious until the very end. Her lips had quirked up again and she had nudged the brunette a little bit in teasing. Clearly there were no hard feelings there.

"You're far too understanding" Hermione responded as she lent up to press a gentle kiss to the hinge of the Shifter's jaw.

"Only for you" Storm admitted a little sheepishly, "Are you ready to go?" She questioned then, noting the slight shiver in the older woman's shoulders. Pulling her closer in an attempt to share body heat. Her wand already in her hand, hidden beneath the sleeve of her jacket.

"I am, it's far too cold" Hermione admitted, stepping just a little bit closer to the younger woman. In mere seconds they were being pulled from all angles, and then they weren't. The sloshing of the sea filled the air and the smell of salt water hit her nose almost instantly. Though that wasn't exactly what had caught her attention.

"Storm, that's not your wand in your pocket is it?" She questioned, her suspicions from earlier all but confirmed by the foreign presence pressing into her hip. She thought she had noted a difference when the younger woman had come up from the sea earlier in the day, but hadn't quite dwelled on the thought at the time.

She'd never been really allowed close enough for that part to really be a reality during the weeks Storm had decided to shift that particular bit of her anatomy to avoid certain cycles of the other. The Shifter had always kept her distance, and grumbled if she'd gotten too close. There had been morning's where she'd disappeared to the bathroom in an awful hurry before Hermione had even woken, only to come back looking incredibly uncomfortable.

"Nope, is that an issue?" Storm questioned seriously, though even in the dark the blush that had swept across the bridge of her nose was evident. Hermione had been surprised she hadn't made to move further away, to hide herself once again.

"Absolutely not" Hermione spoke with a grin, grabbing the younger woman's hand before she had time to answer. Her own wand at the ready as she pulled the Shifter into the house through the ever-open door. Flicking her wrist in quiet command towards the sliding glass, listening as it squeaked shut behind them. This little development definitely meant she had done something right, meant that Storm wanted to share that little part with her.

The act itself was exciting, and definitely new. But the trust she had been allotted, the openness she had been given was even more so. Curiosity hit her, and she could feel the younger woman's pace quicken along with her own. It was definitely a step in the right direction.

A/N: Hello! Quick question for those of you actually reading this. I'm unsure if I should include smut scenes where Storm has her… little pal… If we all catch my drift. Is this something we want to read? Please let me know! Hope you enjoy.

Kass.