Hello my lovelies! BEFORE YOU KILL ME I am soooooooooo sorry this took me so damn long! College has been a bitch and it's so hard to find available time to sit down and write. Also this chapter was really hard to write for me. I don't know, I just kept getting stuck and not knowing where to go. But at the end of the day it came together and turned out to be one of my favorite chapters yet. Sooo I hope you guys are excited and love this chapter! A lot happens so enjoy!
Rose hummed contently as she looked at the open pages of the book sitting on her lap. She was currently sitting in an armchair closest to the fireplace in the common room. Over the past few months she became an expert in ignoring the chatter of her annoying housemates. Her eyes skimmed the pages of her book but she wasn't actually taking in the words. Her mind was too busy thinking about the past month and a half.
After the whole troll incident Harry had apologized for Ron's behaviour. He explained how he didn't approve of Ron's actions towards any of them and made sure the redhead knew it. Ron apparently hadn't liked that very much and deemed Harry a traitor. He's been ignoring him since, instead hanging out with Lavender and Parvati.
Hermione, being the kind-hearted person she is, immediately shooed Harry's apologies away, telling him he had nothing to apologize for, and welcomed him into their group with open arms.
When November rolled around so did the first Quidditch game. A horrible game at that. Rose didn't just think that because Slytherin lost. She could care less. No, it was Harry's almost death experience that ruined it for her. She could still remember the horror she felt looking up at his dangling body and the anger that coursed through her body as she heard her House laugh at him. Her anger only intensified when Hermione informed them all after the game that it had been Snape who was cursing his broom. It took all five of them to hold her down and stop her from trying to kill him. It was then that Harry had decided to tell them all about all that had happened. From the secret package to seeing Snape's bloody leg and hearing him talk about the three-headed dog. Hermione couldn't believe a teacher would be up to no good, but Rose had no problem believing Snape would be up to something sinister.
After the game Harry had gone down to see Hagrid with Hermione, Dean, and Seamus. The next day at breakfast Hermione had excitedly informed Rose and Theo of their discovery of a man called Nicholas Flamel and how he had something to do with whatever was under the trap door.
After a few weeks of being friends with Harry, Hermione had told Rose that Harry had told her some about his home life, which didn't sound too pretty. Or as Hermione had put it, "His relatives sound absolutely horrid!" They had spoken to the boys and the group as a whole had agreed to look out for Harry.
As she thought about horrid home lives she looked across the room to where Theo was doing his homework at one of the tables. Theo never talked much about his family. The only thing she knew about his family was that his father worked for the Ministry of Magic, his mother had her own fashion line, and he was an only child. But the little signs he showed told her all she needed to know. The way he spoke of them, with a short clipped tone and very vague details. How he never made eye contact when speaking about them. How he always looked uncomfortable whenever anyone talked highly about their families or understanding when Harry sometimes speaks of his horrid relatives. It was the same signs Hermione, Dean, or Calvin gave when the subject of their fathers were brought up.
Rose didn't pry about Theo's homelife, which she could tell he appreciated. All she could do was hope that it wasn't too bad and hope he'd open up about it eventually.
Rose moved her eyes to look at the frozen water of the lake through the windows in the common room. It was now the middle of December and tomorrow they would be leaving to go home for vacation. Rose smiled slightly, happy to be going home to see her family. Hermione had practically been buzzing with excitement all week. Not only was she excited to see her family, but her mother and Remus had allowed her to invite Harry to stay with her. Hermione had told them of everything that Harry had told her and Jocelyn had immediately demanded that she invite him to stay with them, not that Hermione had argued seeing as she was going to ask anyways. Harry had been positively surprised and grateful, having a hard time believing that anyone would want him around. He didn't even write home to ask, explaining that his relatives probably wouldn't even reply. Since then Harry's excitement for this vacation almost matched Hermione's. Almost.
Dean, Seamus, and Theo had also gotten invitations to visit and spend a few days at Hermione's during the vacation. Dean and Seamus had immediately agreed while Theo explained that they would be going away for vacation. Rose highly suspected that he was lying, but didn't comment on it.
"Wriley," a smooth voice came from her left and Rose turned to see her fellow first year, Blaise Zabini, looking down at her.
"Yes?" she asked, letting a little bit of her surprise slip through the mask she put on. She learned her second day here that having a mask while in the Slytherin House was important. If they didn't see your emotions they had no weapon against you. Blaise, like Theo, was very mysteriously quiet. Rose never saw him hang out with any of the other Slytherins in their year. Actually now that she thought about it, she never saw him hang out with anyone at all.
"Your friends, the red headed twins from Gryffindor, are outside waiting for you," he informed her, his expression blank. "I said I'd come in and let you know they were here."
Rose stared at him, surprised that he was being so kind. No other Slytherin would have helped them or even informed her. Since she and Theo had shown where their loyalties lied the Slytherins either deliberately ignored them or went out of their way to be cruel. So Rose was shocked that Blaise would be kind enough to not only help Gryffindors, but to her as well.
"Uh, thank you," she said kindly, giving him a small smile. He didn't return it, but nodded politely and walked away, heading back outside with his school bag flung over his shoulder.
Rose shook herself out of her shocked faze and stood. Placing her book into her bag she waved to Theo before following Blaise's lead and leaving the common room. Outside the entrance stood Fred and George with their usual happy-go-lucky grins.
"Well hello, She-Snake!" they said together. Rose rolled her eyes at the nickname they had deemed her a few days after meeting her.
"What's up?" Rose asked curiously.
"Well we figured," Fred started.
"With us leaving tomorrow," George continued.
"We should leave Filch,"
"A little gift,"
"Before we depart!" they ended together.
Rose shook her head at their antics. It amused her to no end, but she would never let that show.
Rose smirked as she looked at their devious expressions. "What did you have in mind?" she asked, and their grins grew wider.
xxXxx
Hermione grunted as she exited the library, her pile of books so high she could hardly see beyond them. She had spent the last few hours searching for any books that could help her find out more about Nicholas Flamel. And also some light reading.
Hermione gasped as she turned a corner and suddenly bumped into a hard wall, causing her to fall on her behind and her books to fly everywhere. Hermione moaned in pain and rubbed her back as she sat up and pushed some books off of her. She looked across from her to see that the wall she had ran into was actually a person. A boy, to be specific, who looked to be a first year like her. He was slim and dark skinned with a neatly shaved head. She looked down at his robes and almost groaned. He was a Slytherin.
"I'm so sorry," she rushed to say, not wanting to hear him lash out at her. She got to her knees and scrambled to pile her books up again. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
"It's okay," a low voice said, causing her to stop and look up at him, surprised at how soft his voice was. "Are you okay?"
The question threw Hermione for a loop. All she could do was stare at him as if he was speaking another language. Besides Rose and Theo, no other Slytherin had ever been nice to her. So as the Slytherin looked down at her with a polite, non hostile expression on his face, she couldn't help but be shocked.
He let out a small huff that sounded vaguely like a laugh. "Anyone in there?" he asked, tapping her forehead once before moving his hand back into his pocket.
That shook her out of her thoughts and she looked down, blushing a bright read. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," she stuttered as she scrambled again to pick up her books. She looked up again when she saw him place the last two of her books on top of her pile. "Thanks," she said quietly.
"No problem," he said, standing straight and offering her his hand. She was hesitant, but she took his offered hand and allowed him to help her up. "It's Hermione Granger, right? Resident bookworm?"
Hermione met his eyes looking for the usual cruel tint she always saw in the other Slytherins' eyes, but all she found was polite curiosity. She nodded, causing her curls to bounce and fall to cover half of her face. She huffed in annoyance and quickly brushed them away.
He let out another small huff of a laugh and looked at her pile of books. "I get you're a bookworm and all, but isn't this a little excessive?" he asked.
Hermione, not knowing how to handle his light teasing, looked away and shyly said, "It's just for some research and light reading."
He raised an eyebrow as he took in the stack. "Light?" he asked quietly, more to himself than to her. She blushed and looked away again. "Where are you heading?" he asked, turning back to her.
She raised both of her eyebrows at the sudden question. "Uh, my common room," she said hesitantly.
The boy nodded before taking a little more than half of her pile of books into his arms. "Lead the way."
Hermione's eyes widened at what he was trying to do. "Oh, no, that's okay," she said quickly, shaking her head. "You don't have toㅡ"
"It's no problem," he interrupted. "Besides, we can't have you causing anymore accidents, now can we?" he asked jokingly.
Hermione couldn't help the small smile that shyly came to her face at both his teasing and the kind gesture. She scooped up the rest of her books and hesitantly began to lead the way to the Gryffindor common room.
They walked in silence, which surprisingly was peaceful and not awkward. Hermione was still trying to come to terms with the fact that a Slytherin was willingly helping and being kind to her.
When they got to the fourth floor their peaceful silence was disturbed by a loud bang. Hermione gasp, barely stopping the books from falling from her grasp. At the sound of running footsteps, laughing, and yelling, the two turned to look at the other end of the corridor. Suddenly the Weasley twins and Rose came bounding around the corner, laughing as they ran down the corridor.
"Rose?" Hermione asked, confused.
"Mia!" Rose yelled joyously as she ran by. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm kind of running for my life! See you at dinner!" With that said she and the twins disappeared around the corner at the other end of the hall. Soon after Filch appeared, dyed pink from head to toe and leaving behind pink sparkles on the ground as he ran.
"Filch?" the boy scoffed in astonishment.
"Move," Filch growled as he barreled past them and disappeared around the same corner as Rose and the twins.
The two stared after them for a moment, still processing what just happened.
Suddenly the boy turned towards Hermione and said, "Your friend is quite the character."
Hermione couldn't help but snort. "That's the understatement of the year," she laughed and his lip twitched in a small, amused smile.
As they continued to make their way to the seventh floor the boy asked, "Are you excited for Christmas vacation?"
Hermione glanced at him. She was slowly getting used to his kindness, but the opening for conversation still surprised her a little.
"Yes, actually. I miss my family so much. I can't wait to tell them about all of this. Well, my mum anyways."
He raised an eyebrow. "Aren't both of your parents muggles?" he asked.
Hermione nodded. "Yes, but my father died when I was little. My mother is now dating a wizard, so he knows all about Hogwarts."
The boy nodded, a look of sorrow coming to his face. "I'm sorry to hear about your father." Hermione shrugged, starting to feel uncomfortable, like she always did when speaking about her father. "I lost my father, too," he added.
Hermione looked at him, shocked he'd share that with her. "I'm sorry," she said. The boy matched her shrug and she smiled a little. "How about you? Are you excited for vacation?" she asked, changing the subject.
The boy shrugged and looked away. "I'm staying at Hogwarts." Hermione looked at him in surprise. "Mum's….busy."
Hermione could tell just by his tone that he didn't have the greatest feeling towards his mother. She didn't ask, but her curiosity was peaked.
He cleared his throat and continued. "I don't mind though. I could use the peace and quiet."
Hermione hummed in agreement. "Plus, I heard the castle is beautiful on Christmas," she asked, trying to help. His lip twitched again as he nodded.
"How long have you known Rose?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Since I was eight," she replied. "Her father is my mom's boyfriend's best friend. She's actually the first friend I've ever had."
She saw him look at her in slight surprise from the corner of her eye, but was grateful when he didn't comment on it.
It was then that they reached the Fat Lady portrait.
"This is it," she said with a sigh. She placed her books down beside the portrait and the boy piled the rest on top of them. She turned to face him, this time smiling at him with ease. "Thank you. I really appreciate your help."
"Well, I couldn't have the brightest witch I know injuring herself trying to go up those stairs with a mountain of books," he teased lightly and she blushed. "You're welcome. Have a good vacation, Granger," he said softly. He gave her a departing nod before starting his trek down the corridor towards the stairs.
Hermione stared after him, her mind working on overload. She didn't know what made her yank a piece of paper and pen out of her bag and write on it all the while running after him, but the next minute she was yelling out, "Hey, wait!"
The boy turned in surprise as she came to stand in front of him. "Yes?" he asked.
"You never told me your name," she said softly.
He huffed out another short laugh. "Blaise. Blaise Zabini," he said.
Hermione nodded. "Blaise," she sighed. "Well, Blaise, here," she said, handing the piece of paper to him. He took it and saw that there was an address written on it. He raised an eyebrow and looked up at her in question. "You may be looking forward to some peace and quiet, but I for one know how lonely that can become. So if you ever want to talk to someone, don't be afraid to send me a letter," she explained, smiling kindly. Blaise stared at her. It was him that was now shocked at the kind gesture. "Thanks again. And have a great vacation."
With that said she shot him one more smile before making her way back to the entrance, not noticing that he kept his eyes on her until she disappeared behind the portrait with her books.
Blaise looked down at the scrap of paper in his hand with her address quickly scribbled on it. He held it tightly as he read over it again and again, still not believing what had just happened. He started to slowly walk back to his common room, still focused on the words on the paper, and wondering if he'd actually take her up on her offer or not.
Blaise sighed. Maybe some human interaction wouldn't be so bad.
xxXxx
Hermione was practically buzzing with excitement as she sat in the compartment on the train heading home. She looked around at all of her friends and couldn't believe how her little group of four had grown to eight with the edition of Harry, Seamus, Fred, and George. Rose was once again trying her luck with Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans while an amused Dean sat beside her laughing his butt off every time she got a bad one. Which was a lot. Fred and George were next to them playing a game of Exploding Snap with Harry and Seamus, who sat on her bench across from them. And beside her sat Theo, who was quietly reading a book.
She worried about Theo, who didn't show any excitement to be returning home. Then again, he didn't show much excitement for anything. But he seemed to be especially gloomy to be returning home, which worried Hermione greatly.
Hermione leaned into his side as she looked outside from her window seat. Theo, who before hadn't been used to caring touches, was now used to her affection, so he barely blinked as she rested her head on his shoulder. He'd never admit it out loud, but he grew to like her gentle affections, having gone all his life without any. He knew he worried her, but he appreciated her stubbing her curiosity and letting him tell her on his own accounts. And he couldn't help but be warmed a little at her worry for him. Again, another thing he wasn't used to.
"If you ever get a free moment, you know you're always welcome to stop by," she said quietly.
Theo smiled slightly and chuckled lowly. "Yes, I know. You've only told me a hundred times."
Hermione swatted his chest as he laughed. "Jerk," she said as he continued to chuckle.
They fell back into a comfortable silence and Hermione looked outside at the passing countryside. She was beyond excited to see her family. She missed her mom's love and care, and especially her cooking. Nothing, not even Hogwarts, beat her mother's cooking. She missed Remus and their Wednesdays in the park. She missed Calvin's humor. She missed Kingsley's and Armelle's playful bantering. She missed the bookshop. She just missed home.
She felt a foot nudge her leg and looked up at Rose. "We're slowing down," she said excitedly. Hermione looked outside and grinned when she realized Rose was right.
We're almost home
xxXxx
Just like her daughter, Jocelyn was also buzzing with excitement as she waited for the train to pull into the station. How much she missed her baby girl. She looked at Armelle, who was smiling widely. Jocelyn knew just how close her best friend had gotten to the young Rose, and the past few months had been just as hard on her as it had been for Jocelyn. With his arm slung around Armelle's waist, Kingsley stood with a wide grin as he talked to his sister, Annaliese, who was also waiting excitedly for her daughter.
Beside the three stood Calvin, who had come home for Christmas three days prior. Not much had changed about him other than the growing scruff on his face, which made him look more grown. But his childish excitement was still very present as he practically bounced where he stood. Jocelyn smiled sweetly as she looked at him. She knew how hard it was for him to part from Hermione for so long. The longest he'd been apart from her before had only been a week when he and his mother went on vacation to America. The past three days he'd been home he had been counting down to the day he'd see Hermione again, which made Jocelyn's heart warm.
And finally she turned to look at Remus, who stood on her left holding her hand tightly. His eyes never left the tunnel that the train would be coming through. His eyes showed his anxious excitement and longing. Hermione may not have been his daughter by blood, but Jocelyn knew that he loved her as if she was. It was plainly obvious to anyone that even glanced at him that he missed her just as much as Jocelyn had.
Jocelyn's eyes snapped to the train tracks as the sound of the train pulling in reached her ears. She watched as the train came to a stop and suddenly the platform filled with loud, rambunctious chatter as kids reunited with their families.
Jocelyn looked at the kids piling out of the doors anxiously.
Come on, baby. Where are you?
xxXxx
"Excuse me! Coming through! Can't you see we have an excited bookworm trying to get through? Move it!" Rose yelled as she tugged Hermione by her arm through the crowd of people with one hand, and Dean with the other. Hermione had a tight hold on Theo, dragging him along, as Dean held onto both Harry and Seamus. The twins followed behind them, laughing in amusement.
Finally the eight were able to break through the crowded doorway and pile onto the platform. Hermione breathed a breath of relief, hating the feeling of being claustrophobic. She saw Theo do the same and smiled knowingly at him.
"Hermione! Rose!"
The two girls immediately looked up through the crowd and almost instantly spotted their families.
"Mum!" they both shouted and started to race through the crowds. Theo and Dean shared an amused look before grabbing the girls trunks along with their own and followed the two with Seamus and Harry trailing after them.
Hermione could have cried at the familiar warmth of her mother's embrace as she jumped into her welcoming arms. Jocelyn picked her daughter up and hugged her tightly, laughing joyfully at having her daughter back into her arms.
"Oh, I've missed you so much!" Jocelyn sighed.
"I've missed you too, Mama," Hermione whispered.
Jocelyn regretfully let her go. Almost immediately Hermione was snatched up again and she laughed and squealed as Calvin planted kisses all over her face as he hugged her tightly.
"Calvin!" she squealed.
"Hermione!" he mocked her. He sighed happily and smiled fondly down at her as he held her bridal style. "I missed you, little one."
Hermione smiled back up at him. "I missed you too, big one." Calvin let out a booming laugh. He gave her one more kiss before placing her back down on the ground. He turned towards Rose and yelled, "Brat!" before sweeping her up like he did Hermione.
As Rose tried to get free from Calvin's grasp Hermione turned to Remus. Her face lit up as her eyes met his. Merlin how she missed Remus. Without a second thought she ran to him and leaped into his open arms.
He groaned happily as he held her tightly to his chest, never wanting to let her go. He hadn't realized how much he had missed her until he had her in his arms again. The scent of vanilla hit his nose and he sighed contently at the familiarity of it. His little girl was home.
"I missed you so much," Hermione said into his chest. "It was a hard three months."
"I missed you as well, my dear. More than you know." Remus gave her one more tight squeeze before reluctantly letting her go.
Hermione smiled up at him sweetly before turning to her friends. "These are Rose and I's friends. This isㅡ"
"I'm Dean!" Dean interrupted her, bounding forward to wrap an arm around Hermione's and Rose's shoulders. "I'm their funny and ridiculously handsome best friend. Pleasure to meet the people that had to deal with these two for the past eleven years. Bless your souls. "
Hermione and Rose both shrugged off his arms and whacked him behind the head. He winced, but the teasing smile never left his face.
"Saw that coming. But still worth it," he laughed, causing the rest of them to laugh.
"Oh, I like you," Calvin laughed.
"You would," Rose scoffed. "He's basically a mini you."
"Well," Dean said, walking to stand beside Calvin, "then he must be a great guy! And if I look like him when I get older, looks like I'm set."
Calvin put his hand to his heart and started to fake cry. "You're officially my favorite person in the world."
Dean followed his lead and started wiping fake tears away. "That's the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me," he sobbed, and the two dramatically hugged each other.
Rose let out a tortured moan. "There's two of them! We can't win!" she groaned.
Everyone laughed, Dean and Calvin eventually joining.
"Okay, okay," Hermione continued. "This is Theodore," she said, hooking her arm through his. He glared at the use of his full name. "I'm sorry, this is Theo," she corrected and his expression softened to a light smile.
He turned towards Jocelyn and Remus. "Pleasure to meet you both. Hermione speaks very highly of the both of you," he said politely.
Jocelyn's heart immediately melted as she looked down at him. "Oh, I've heard many things about you as well."
"All good, I hope," Theo said a little nervously.
Remus laughed. "Nothing but," he said.
Theo smiled a little and Hermione squeezed his arm reassuringly. Jocelyn didn't miss the fond look Theo and Hermione shot each other and she could feel herself getting giddy at future possibilities.
"Next to Theo is Seamus."
"Pleasure to meet you both. Especially the woman that made such a beautiful young lady. I can see where she gets her beauty," Seamus said charmingly with a large grin.
Hermione shook her head, but couldn't help the blush that came to her cheeks. Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed his shoulder as her mother laughed, amused by his charm.
"And lastly, beside him is Harry."
Harry looked at them shyly. "It's nice to meet you. Thank you for letting me stay with you this vacation."
"It's a pleasure to have you, Harry," Jocelyn said sweetly.
"Harry," Remus said softly as he stared at the young boy. He felt like the breath had been knocked out of him when bright, innocent green eyes met his. "You look just like your father," he said softly. "But you have your mother's eyes."
Harry looked up at him with wide eyes. "Y-You knew my parents?" he asked, his voice cracking.
"Knew them?" Remus chuckled, going down on one knee so that he was eye to eye with Harry. "They were my best friends."
If it was possible Harry's eyes widened even more. "Really?" he asked in wonder.
Remus nodded. "Really." he remembered Hermione telling them in her letters that Harry didn't know anything about James and Lily, something that made Remus very mad. "If you'd like, I can tell you some stories about your parents during vacation."
"I would love that," Harry said immediately. "Thank you."
Remus smiled at him and patted his head as he stood up.
Jocelyn smiled at all of them. "Well it's been a pleasure to meet all of you. It's obvious the girls have made some great friends," she said kindly. Words couldn't even begin to describe how happy she was that Hermione finally found friends that accepted her for who she was. "I hope to see you all during the vacation. But now I'm sure your families are missing you."
"Yes, I better go find me mum," Seamus said. He hugged everyone, Hermione extra tightly, before wishing them a good vacation and taking his leave.
"My family will be in the train station, so if you don't mind, I'll follow you out," Dean said.
Jocelyn nodded and turned to look at Theo, who shifted uncomfortably.
"Um," he started hesitantly. Before he could continue there was a loud crack behind him and they all turned to see a small, big eyed, grey skinned creature looking up at them nervously. Behind the kids the adult females and Calvin gasped in surprise, never having seen a house elf before.
"Master Theo!" the creature squeaked, looking at all the people surrounding him nervously. "Bippy is here to take Master home."
"I'm sorry," Jocelyn interrupted, stepping forward and placing a protective hand on Theo's shoulder. "If you don't mind me asking, who are you?" She really wanted to ask what the creature was, but she wasn't that rude.
"This is Bippy, my house elf," Theo introduced almost embarrassingly.
Hermione looked up at her mother. "I'll explain later," she said, and Jocelyn nodded.
She looked back at the small creature. "His parents aren't coming to pick him up?" she asked in confusion.
Bippy shook his head, staring at her nervously with wide eyes. "Master and Mistress Nott very busy. They send Bippy to gather Master Theo."
Theo blushed in embarrassment. "I-It's okay, Mrs. Granger," he said when he caught sight of Jocelyn's angry expression. "It's not that big of a deal. They have a welcome home dinner planned to make up for it."
Hermione looked at him, and she could tell by the way he looked down and shuffled his feet that he was lying. Her heart clenched, wondering if there would be anything pleasant waiting for him when he got home.
Dean, deciding to break the awkward silence, walked towards his friend and patted him on the back. "Have a great Christmas, mate," Dean said cheerfully. "Try not to miss me too much, yeah?"
Theo snorted and hugged him briefly.
Rose scoffed and pushed Dean out of the way. "Puh-lease, he's just as excited as the rest of us to be rid of you," she said as she quickly hugged him.
Dean put a hand to his heart. "You wound me with your lies," he said, but his smirk gave away his amusement.
Theo watched fondly as the two bickered before turning to Hermione. He sighed sadly before he drew her into a tight hug.
"I'm going to miss you," his admitted quietly so only she could hear, unaware that a werewolf was only a few feet away and could hear his every word.
"It's only two weeks," Hermione said just as softly.
Theo sighed and hugged her even tighter, not wanting to let go and lose what would probably be his last bit of affection for the next two weeks. "Two weeks feels like two years in my house."
Hermione frowned sadly as he reluctantly released her. "Remember to write," she said sternly. "I want a letter at least every other day, if not every day."
Theo gave her a small smile as he chuckled lowly. "Whatever you wish, princess."
Hermione smiled warmly and gave him another quick, warm hug.
Theo smiled before turning to the adults. He bowed slightly and said, "It was a pleasure meeting all of you."
Jocelyn smiled at him warmly. "You're welcome over any time this vacation, sweetheart."
Theo looked surprised when she called him 'sweetheart', but nodded thankfully.
With a goodbye wave towards Harry, and one last smile towards Hermione, Theo took Bippy's hand and with a loud crack he was gone.
Hermione sighed and Remus placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Come, my dear. Let's leave." Hermione smiled and nodded.
The group started towards the barriers before they were stopped by a loud "Hey!"
Rose and Hermione squealed as they were lifted into a pair of arms.
"You weren't about to leaveㅡ" George started, looking down at Hermione in his arms with a playful, accusing glare.
"Without saying goodbyeㅡ" Fred continued, giving Rose the same look.
"Were you?" they finished together.
"Of course not!" the girls said together.
The twins placed the girls down and looked at each other.
"We're starting to rub off on them," Fred said, smiling widely.
"That we are, my brother. That we are," grinned George.
The girls proceeded to introduce the twins to their families, who immediately took to the two, especially Remus and Calvin.
"You two remind me of this one over here," Jocelyn laughed while motioning to Calvin, who grinned. "Will you be coming over some time this vacation?" she asked.
Fred and George grinned. "We'd be honored to visit the home of such an exquisite creature!" they exclaimed, winking at Hermione, who rolled her eyes.
With that they departed with promises to visit during the vacation. The group made their way through the barrier and came upon another large group of people that consisted of a beautiful dark skinned woman who was obviously the mother of the five small children that stood around her.
"Dean!" the kids all shouted and started to run towards him. The oldest looked to be about eight, while the youngest looked to be about three.
Dean laughed happily as he met his siblings halfway and was tackled to the ground. The kids all squealed and yelled as they all tried to hug their brother. His mother smiled happily before looking up at the group he'd been walking with.
"Hello, I'm Carina Thomas, Dean's mother," she introduced warmly, "You must be Dean's friends," she continued, looking down at Hermione, Rose, and Harry.
Hermione nodded politely. "I'm Hermione, this is Rose, and Harry. And these are my parents Jocelyn and Remus," Remus' heart jumped as she referred to him as her parent, "Rose's mum, Annaliese, and her uncle, his wife, and her son, Kingsley, Armelle, and Calvin."
"It's a pleasure to meet all of you, especially you three. Dean has told me so much about you guys."
Dean, who finally untangled himself from his siblings, gave his mother a tight hug before facing the rest of them. "Not all good things," he said teasingly, looking right at Rose, who stuck her tongue out.
Carina tutted. "Nothing but good things, I assure you," she said kindly and Rose grinned.
"You obviously didn't get your personality from your mother. She's too likable," Rose said with a smirk and Dean playfully grinned at her.
The oldest of Dean's siblings, a boy who just reached Dean's shoulders, snorted. "I like her," he declared.
Dean rolled his eyes. "You would," he laughed. "This is my brother Tito, he's eight."
"Call me TT," Tito said, smiling charmingly and Rose knew where he got that from.
"Beside him are the twins, Dominic and Cierra. They're seven." The two waved happily. "Then there's Ivory, she's four." Ivory gave a toothy grin. "And lastly, baby Evie, whose three." A small girl peeked from where she hid behind Ivory and looked at them shyly.
Jocelyn smiled warmly. "It's very nice to meet you all."
Carina smiled and fondly put her hand on Dean's shoulder. "I hate to take you away, but we really must be on our way. Derrick will be home soon and I still have to cook your welcome home dinner." Hermione remembered Dean telling them about his stepfather, Derrick, who was basically Dean's father.
Dean nodded. With a large grin he bounded forward and brought Hermione, Harry, and Rose into a big group hug. "I'll see you guys soon. Try not to miss me too much!"
Hermione and Harry laughed while Rose rolled her eyes.
The Thomas family said a final goodbye before making their way out of the station.
Hermione sighed happily as she looked up at Jocelyn. "Home?" she asked
Jocelyn smiled. "Home."
xxXxx
When they left the station Annaliese and Kingsley had taken Rose home so she could get settled in her room with promises to return later for dinner. When they arrived at the Granger Residence Harry couldn't stop looking around. Their house was only slightly bigger than the Dursley's, but it was a lot warmer and welcoming. Hermione had immediately dragged Harry upstairs to settle him into their guest bedroom and show him her room, Calvin trailing behind them. As they did that Jocelyn had started on dinner with the help of Remus and Armelle.
"So, what do you think of Hermione and Rose's friends?" Armelle asked.
Jocelyn smiled gently as she put a large pot of water on the stove to boil spaghetti. "They're all so precious. It's a good group."
Remus sighed and lent against the counter. "Young Theo's reluctance to go home worries me."
Jocelyn hummed in thought. "So you caught that," she said with a sad sigh.
Armelle snorted. "Hard not to."
Remus nodded. "I fear to know what's waiting for him at home. I remember his parents from school. They were never the nicest people."
"Did you see his face when I called him sweetheart?" Jocelyn asked, shaking her head sadly. "It's as if such a small term of endearment was foreign to him."
"Probably is," Armelle said. "Luckily it's only for two weeks."
Remus remembered what he heard Theo say about two weeks feeling like two years in his house, and cringed. He could only hope that these two weeks wouldn't be too bad for the boy and sent a silent prayer out to him.
xxXxx
"This will be your room," Hermione said as she led Harry into one of the two guest bedrooms they had.
Harry's eyes widened as he took in the room. It was an average size room, nothing too big, but to Harry it was the biggest room he'd ever stayed in. Sure, his dorm at Hogwarts was much bigger, but he shared that with four other boys. He'd have this entire room to himself. To Harry this was a gift.
"Wow," he almost whispered, taking in everything from the queen size bed to the dark oak desk in the corner. "Are you sure? I mean, I have no problem sleeping on the couch or on the floor," he said hesitantly, lightly touching the top of comforter.
Calvin, who'd been watching Harry's reaction closely, snorted. "Mama Lynn would sooner burn down her bookstore than let a guest sleep on the floor."
Harry turned to them with a shy smile. "Thank you. It means a lot that you'd let me impose on your vacation."
Hermione shook her head. "You're not imposing, Harry. I want you here. And you'll always be welcome here."
Harry looked teary eyed as he quickly looked away. "Thanks," he said quietly. Hermione nodded, smiling softly.
Calvin decided then to disrupt the moment. "Well, come on kiddies! Mama Lynn made some of her homemade eggnog yesterday and I haven't been allowed to drink any until you kids got here."
Hermione's eyes widened in excitement before she rolled them at him. "That's because you always drink it all."
Calvin raised an eyebrow. "Because it's the best eggnog ever," he said as if that was explanation enough before turning and running from the room like an excited child.
Hermione snorted and turned back to Harry. "C'mon Harry, you can unpack later. We have to go get some eggnog before the big oaf drinks it all!" she exclaimed before grabbing his hand and dragging him behind her as she ran from the room. Harry laughed as he ran beside her, knowing this would be the best vacation he's ever had.
xxXxx
The next four days proved Harry's predictions to be correct. He'd never had so much fun in his life. The next day after he'd arrived at the Granger house the Granger girls and Remus had taken Harry all over the town. They first took him to the local mall where they proceeded to buy him a few winter clothes because Jocelyn had been horrified to find out that he didn't have any. Harry had gone to decline, but after seeing the determined expression that he often saw on Hermione, he knew it would be futile.
After the mall the group went out to Hermione's favorite cafe for lunch. They spent that time getting to know Harry more and he even learned more about Hermione. For example, how she loved to dance and used to do ballet when she was younger, and how her favorite thing to do in the winter was to ice skate. It was during this lunch that he began to realize that there was more to Hermione than just books and school work.
After lunch Harry got to witness just how good of an ice skater Hermione was when they took him to the ice skating rink. There they met up with Kingsley, Rose, Armelle, and Calvin. He watched, amazed, as Hermione effortlessly glided along the ice like she was born to do it. She and Rose helped him learn how to skate, though he didn't grasp the skill as well as the rest.
Later that night everyone followed to the Granger's house to have dinner that was followed by a movie in the living room. After they watched The Nightmare Before Christmas Remus ended the night by telling Harry the story of when James fell for Lily. Harry went to bed that night for once not having any nightmares.
The next two days went about the same, both days Harry trying something new. He got to see Jocelyn's bookstore, Hermione and Rose took him to play in the park, Remus took the kids to see a play, and Calvin taught him how to play basketball, which he ended up being surprisingly good at. And at the end of every day Remus would tell Harry a different story about his parents that always resulted in him going to bed happy and content.
Christmas Eve was a calm, but exciting day. Both Harry and Hermione helped Jocelyn make cinnamon pancakes for breakfast. Rose and her family joined them halfway and the group went to the park for the Christmas Eve Festival. The festival was an annual party that the town held every year. People danced, sang, played games, and ate lots of food. Hermione, Rose, and Harry spent spent most of the day dancing around crazily to the music, having a blast. When the night fell they headed back to the Granger's, where they watched old Christmas movies and ate Christmas cookies.
Soon it was Christmas and Hermione woke that morning to a beautiful black owl pecking at her window. She recognized it immediately as Mal, Theo's owl, and bolted out of bed to open the window. True to his promise, Theo wrote to her everyday in the four days that they've been home. He hardly talked about what was going on at home with his parents, instead always asking about her and how her vacation was going. This worried Hermione greatly, but she never commented on it.
Mal swooped around her room as soon as she opened the window, doing two laps around before landing softly on her bed post. The owl chirped softly and Hermione gently petted her wings.
"Hello, girl," Hermione said, untying the letter from her foot. "The window is open in the kitchen," she said. Hermione's mother kept it a habit to open the window every morning for Mal to come through so she could feed her. Jocelyn had adored the creature as soon as she set her eyes on her, and the same went for Mal.
Mal chirped twice and affectionately nipped at her fingers before swooping out the window.
Hermione sat on her bed and opened the envelope. Hermione took out the letter and read the familiar loopy handwriting of her best friend.
Hermione,
Merry Christmas. If I know you you're probably bouncing in excitement and impatiently waiting for the day to start. I don't think I've ever met anyone who has as much Christmas spirit as you. I'll admit, it is kind of endearing.
Thank you for the eggnog chocolate chip cookies, I don't think I've ever tasted anything so amazing before. I can't believe your mother came up with such a recipe. Has she ever thought of opening her own bakery? Just a thought.
Things here are fine. Boring actually. I read all day, which is always a good source of entertainment, I guess.
How's Harry and Rose? Is Harry as excited for tomorrow as well? I know this was a big deal to him.
Wish everyone well for me. I hope you have fun today.
Your Friend,
Theo
Hermione smiled as she read his letter. She wished he could come to visit her this vacation, but Theo said it'd be impossible because of how busy his family was this vacation. Hermione frowned. She knew it was a lie, but she'd be patient and wait until he was ready to tell her the truth. Well, as patiently as Hermione Granger can.
There was a knock on the door before Harry stuck his head in.
"Merry Christmas, Hermione," he said happily.
"Merry Christmas, Harry," Hermione smiled, setting down the letter in a growing pile before pulling out a piece of paper and a pen.
"Another letter from Theo?" Harry asked, stepping into the room and walking over to her desk.
"Yes," Hermione said. "He hopes you're having fun," she said, looking up at him with a smile.
Harry's smile grew. "Tell him I'm having a blast," he laughed. "Your mum sent me up to get you for breakfast. We made pancakes that look like Santa," he said happily, his eyes lighting up.
Over the past few days it had become the norm to see Harry helping Jocelyn cook in the kitchen. When she had learned that he could cook she was over the moon. That was until she learned that his aunt forced him like a slave to cook for the family from a young age. But he reassured her that it was the one chore that he actually enjoyed to do. But since that day Jocelyn made it her mission to make sure he had the most fun possible while in the kitchen.
"Okay, I'll be down after I send out this letter," Hermione replied.
Harry nodded and ran out the room.
Hermione shook her head and laughed at his excitement. She was so proud of her family for making him feel welcome and at home.
She looked back down at Theo's letter and contemplated what he might be doing right now. As she started writing his letter she only hoped that his Christmas was going better than she was thinking it was.
xxXxx
It was not.
Not at all.
Theo winced as he tried to move himself into a more comfortable position on the couch. But the bruises on his sides and the scars on his back prevented him from gaining any comfort at all. Theo was used to pain, but this had been the worst it's ever been.
When he came home he was prepared for his father's usual anger at anything and everything that had to do with him and his mother's usual disgust at just the sight of him. But what he wasn't prepared for was how worse it had seemed to had gotten over the few months.
He never saw the first blow coming. As soon as his house elf had apparated them into his manor his father was in front of him and the next second he was on the floor by his father's blow to his side. Theo had screamed in agony and surprise. But it didn't end there. His father continued with blow after blow of non-stop pain, yelling out insults. Theo in his shocked and distressed state only caught a few of his father's harsh words, like "disgrace" and "failure".
When his father finally let up Theo could hardly breathe. Blood was sputtering out of his mouth and he was crying in pain as he clutched his sore body. He managed to inch his head up a little bit to look at his father, who was still screaming at him, and caught sight of his mother behind him. As he met her eyes all he saw was pure disgust and loathing in them, even more intense than usual. He looked away, not able to look at her anymore, and looked back at his father. Finally the ringing in his ears seemed to clear up and he could finally hear what he had done to deserve such anger and disgust.
"ㅡpieces of trash from the streets! You dare disgrace the Nott name by socializing with such filth?! Low lifes like the Weasleys and Wrights?! And what is this I hear about you not only befriending, but fraternizing with a mudblood?! A MUDBLOOD?! You disgusting little ㅡ you bring such shame to this family! No son of mine will roam around with a filthy, little mudblood! This ends today!"
As his father continued to rant and scream Theo just lied there, mulling over what his father had said. Hermione. This was all about Hermione. His father had heard word of him associating with "her kind" and betraying "the noble house of Slytherin".
Theo growled as he recalled all the hateful words his father had spit at him about Hermione that night. How dare he. How dare that disgusting, hateful man speak so foul about sweet, beautiful Hermione. He didn't even deserve to speak her name.
"You are to never speak to them again!" his father yelled, bending down to scream in his face. "Especially not that mudblood! Do you hear me, boy?! If I hear that you continue to associate with such trash, I swear I willㄧ"
"No."
His father paused and moved back as if he'd been slapped in the face. He looked down at Theo, his face blank. Behind him his mother's eyes widened.
"What?" he said dumbly, his face still blank.
"No," Theo said with more force, finally looking up at him. "I will not stop speaking to my friends."
"Your friends?" his father asked softly, and suddenly his expression became deadly. "Your friends?!" he roared.
Theo gulped a little, but refused to back down, Meeting his father's eyes he held his head up as much as he could.
"Yes," he said strongly, "my friends. My friends who I love very much and will NOT abandon because you do not approve. They are my family, and my loyalty lies more with them than it ever will with you, father."
Theo had gotten quite the beating that night, but he didn't care. He finally stood his ground against his father, and he will continue to no matter the consequences. His friends literally became his world. They were the light in his very, very dark world. He'd be damned if he let his father take that away from him.
This thought led him to look down to the letter in his hands. He smiled, momentarily forgetting his pain. He read over the curly script of his name on the front that he had gotten so used to seeing. With a happy sigh he tore into the envelope and opened the letter inside.
Dear Theo,
Merry Christmas! You're right, I am absolutely bubbling with excitement! Why wouldn't I? It's CHRISTMAS! The most wonderful time of the year!
I'm so glad you liked the cookies. I'll try to bring some to school for you.
I'm very sad that you couldn't join us this vacation, but there will be many more vacations in the future! I hope your vacation picks up a little. No one deserves to be bored on Christmas!
Harry's having so much fun! Calvin takes him to play basketball every day and he's so good! It's surprising because he's so tiny! I know that you probably have no idea what basketball is, but i'll explain it to you when I see you! Remus is having the time of his life having Harry around. You see, he was best friends with Harry's father, so it means a lot to have him around. He tells Harry different stories of his school days every night, which makes Harry so happy.
I miss you so much! It feels so weird not to be around you. There's no one here I can discuss with about a book I read. I can't wait to get back and see you!
I hope you have a great Christmas. And I hope you like my gift!
Love you!
Hermione
Theo sighed contently as he reread the letter over and over again. One more week. One more week until he can go back to Hogwarts and be with her and his friends again. He just had to hold on for one more week.
Could he take this torture for one more week?
He reread Hermione's letter and couldn't help the smile that grew on his face.
Yes.
For her, he could.
xxXxx
Tap Tap.
Hermione looked up from tying her shoes to see a big, black hawk sitting on her window sill. Cautiously she made her way to the window, and when she was close enough she noticed a letter attached to it's leg. She slowly opened the window and watched in awe as the hawk glided around her room before landing softly on her shoulder.
"Hello," Hermione said softly, running her fingers through his feathers. The hawk nipped softly at her fingers before sticking out his foot with the letter attached, Hermione untied the letter from his foot and he flew to sit on her desk.
She kept an eye on him from the corner of her eye, still confused, as she opened the letter.
Dear Granger,
You gave me a kind invitation to write to you and I thought it rude not to comply. I hope your vacation is going well and that you are having fun with your family and Potter.
You were right (no surprise there). Hogwarts is quite beautiful decorated for Christmas. You were also right when you said it could get quite lonely. Not many people stayed for Christmas, so it's very quiet here. But I'm used it, so it's not unnerving. I'd rather be in the quiet castle than my daunting manor.
But onto a lighter topic, I hope today is great for you. I could hear your excitement for Christmas all the way from the Slytherin table during meals. I hope my writing to you was no inconvenience to your morning. Have a great day with your family.
Merry Christmas,
Blaise Zabini
Hermione smiled softly as she read Blaise's letter. On the one hand she was excited that he had taken her invitation to write to her, but on the other hand she was sad that he was spending Christmas alone in the big, vacant castle. She huffed angrily as she put down his letter. It's Christmas! she thought. No one deserves to be alone on Christmas!
With a determined frown on her face she exited her room and stomped down the stairs into the kitchen. When she entered the kitchen her mother was cooking breakfast while Remus sat at the counter reading the Daily Prophet and drinking coffee.
Remus looked up as he heard and smelled her enter, ready to greet her, but her expression caused him to pause. He suddenly found himself filled with amusement, knowing that her expression meant she was geared up to fight for whatever it was she wanted.
"Good morning, my dear," he said, placing down the paper. "Merry Christmas."
Hermione's expression immediately softened and she smiled softly. "Good morning. Merry Christmas Moony, mum." Almost instantly her expression hardened again and Remus chuckled.
"Merry Christmas, honey," Jocelyne said, finally looking up from making pancakes. As soon as she saw Hermione's expression she shared an amused look with Remus. "Is something wrong, sweetheart?"
Hermione looked at her for a moment before turning to set her eyes on Remus. Remus almost groaned, knowing that by the end of this conversation Hermione would be getting whatever it was that she wanted.
xxXxx
Hermione smiled widely as she took in the scene surrounding her. It was after breakfast and Rose and her family had joined them to open presents. They had all gathered into the Granger's living room and were preparing to open presents.
Kingsley was standing near the fireplace sipping on wine and laughing with Armelle, who sat on the other chair beside him with her own glass of wine. In front of them sat Rose, who was eyeing her pile of presents hungrily, clearly impatient to get started. Beside her sat Harry, who was eying his own pile in awe, looking as if he'd never seen presents before. Probably never has, Hermione thought sadly. On the longest couch sat Remus with Jocelyn leaning back against his chest.
Hermione sat on the floor right in front of the tree. She looked up at the tall, heavily decorated tree. She remembered the day they decorated it fondly. Decorating the tree was Hermione's favorite part of Christmas. It was a tradition that she and her mother would make a new ornament to hang on it every year. They would also spend all day decorating it. Decorating the tree the past few years had been especially special because their small family had grown, which made the day that much more fun.
Hermione looked up at Calvin who, as he's done every year, sat beside her on the floor to watch her open her presents. Like he did every year, Calvin wore a crazy, ugly Christmas sweater that lit up more than the Christmas tree. Hermione giggled as she watched the reindeer on his sweater prance around his torso, something he had Remus charm to do.
Calvin looked down at her with his usual wide grin and pulled her into his side. Hermione sighed contently and snuggled into his side, instantly comforted by his presence.
"Okay," Jocelyn said, turning away from her conversation with the adults and turning to the kids. "Who's ready to open their presents?" All the kids immediately perked up, although Rose did give her a look that asked if she was seriously asking that question. "Alright," Jocelyn laughed. "Who wants to go first?"
The impatient Rose ended going first. She started with the gifts she got from their friends first. Fred and George had given her a huge box of pranking supplies, some specially made by them. Kingsley groaned as he watched her eyes light up, and Remus laughed. From Dean she had gotten both a few boxes of Bertie Bott's Every Flavoured Beans and a painted picture of her on the train gagging over a bean she just ate while he was beside her laughing. Rose narrowed her eyes menacingly at the picture, but you could see the small amount of amusement she was trying to hide. Both Harry and Seamus put their money together to buy her some Quidditch gloves and gumballs that looked like Quaffles. Her most expensive gift came from Theo, who bought her a few gold beads that she could put on her braids. Once Armelle had confirmed the the beads were made from real gold, Rose had hurried to put a few in her hair.
Then she opened the gifts from her family. Her mom and dad had bought her a bunch of new clothes and a new pair of combat boots. Kingsley and Armelle had bought her a new leather jacket that she had been eying the past year. From Jocelyn and Remus she had gotten a few jewelry pieces that matched the new clothes she'd gotten. Calvin had gotten her a few muggle pranking supplies, which caused Kingsley to groan again. Hermione, whose gift she had left for last, had given her a metal bracelet with little diamonds on it that had a quote engraved in it;
Friends by chance, sisters by choice
Love Hermione
Next Hermione insisted that Harry open his first. First he opened his gift from Jocelyn, who'd hand knitted him a scarf that was Gryffindor colors and had his initials in gold at the ends. Kingsley and Armelle had bought him a few new clothes, Armelle always distressed by the too big, dirty clothes he always wore. Calvin had bought him his own basketball, promising to teach him some more about the sport.
Then he opened his gifts from his friends. From Fred and George he also got pranking supplies along with some sweets he decided were not worth trying. Seamus and Theo had bought him a bunch of both wizard and muggle candy that was sure to give him a cavity. Dean had painted him a picture of him hanging from his broom at his first Quidditch game with a comically scared expression painted on his face with the rest of them in the stands behind him wearing the same expression. They all laughed as they looked at the picture. Hermione and Rose both chipped in to buy him a broom polishing kit.
The last present he opened came from Remus. Remus had gotten him a scrapbook of all the pictures he could find of Harry's parents. As Harry flipped through the pages his eyes started to water. When he finished flipping through tears were streaming down his cheeks as he looked up at Remus. He whispered a quiet, yet very heartfelt, 'thank you', and Remus nodded with a soft smile.
"Okay, Hermione," Calvin said, smiling down at her, "your turn."
Hermione smiled and started with the gifts she got from her friends. From Fred and George she got a book on pranking. She shook her head and laughed, knowing they meant it as a joke since she'd never get involved with their pranking. Next was Harry, who had gotten her a big box of Sugar Quills, much to her pleasure. When she opened Seamus' present she burst out laughing. He had given her an adorably ugly stuffed troll doll. With it came a note:
My mum helped me make it for you. So you always remember my heroics.
Shay
Hermione laughed, imagining the proud look on Seamus' face as he wrapped this present. She shook her head in amusement and set the doll down beside her, moving onto Dean's gift.
From Dean she also got a painted picture, one that made her tear up a little. It was a scene she remembered very well. It was a few days after the troll incident, Hermione and her group of friends were spending the day outside near the lake. They were all sitting in a semicircle in front of the big oak tree, laughing as they all looked out to the lake. Hermione smiled as she looked down at the painting, her body filling with warmth.
Next she opened Rose's present. Inside a small, purple box was a ring. In the place of where the jewel would usually lie was instead a little glass dome that was filled with sand. Hermione looked up at Rose in question.
Rose held up her hand that wore the same ring. "I guess we had the same idea," she laughed sheepishly. "It's full of the sand from the sandbox in the park. To remind us of where and how we became friends."
Hermione's eyes began to tear up again and she quickly put the ring on her finger. Hermione got up and ran across the room to hug Rose tightly.
"I love you."
"I love you, too," Rose replied.
Hermione went back to her seat and stared at the last gift she had from her friends. Theo's. It was a small box, but shined a bright, glittery silver with a purple bow. Opening the box she gasped when her eyes landed on what was inside.
"Woah," Calvin said, looking over her shoulder.
Hermione carefully took the object out of the box and delicately held it in her hands. He had given her a barrett, bot not one of those cheap, plastic ones you could buy at the store. No, this one held a beautiful, glass rose the glowed a bright purple. The color seemed to brighten as she took it into her hands. Inside the bright glass rose sparkly particles swirled and floated around the pedals, almost like they were dancing around inside the glass.
"Oh my," Jocelyn gasped, leaning forward in her seat to take a closer look. "That's beautiful."
Hermione looked down into the box and found a note lying inside.
I hope you like the gift. How bright it shines depends on your mood.
Merry Christmas.
Theo
Hermione smiled, still unable to believe that someone would buy such a beautiful, thoughtful, obviously expensive gift for her.
"Here," Calvin said, gently taking the clip from her hands. He pushed her hair over her hair softly and clipped the rose in place. Jocelyn smiled as she watched her daughter beam as she looked at her reflection in the mirror above the couch.
"Okay," Jocelyn said softly. "Family time."
Hermione smiled happily and started with Kingsley's gifts. She squealed excitedly as she unwrapped course books for Transfiguration for years two through seven. Kingsley boomed loudly as Rose shot him a glare.
"Great, now we'll never see her again!" Rose exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air.
Hermione snorted. "Don't be ridiculous, Rose," she said. "I'll be finished with them two days tops."
Harry grinned as Rose groaned once again, and Hermione laughed.
Next she opened her gift from Armelle. From her she got a winter set of clothes. Armelle had bought her a burgundy coat with burgundy colored gloves, scarf, and hat.
"Mine next!" Calvin yelled excitedly, thrusting his clumsily wrapped gift into her hands.
Hermione giggled at his goofy manner and unwrapped his present. She gasped as she uncovered a scrapbook. The cover was a light brown leather with a picture in the middle. She recognized the picture immediately as one of her favorites. It was taken on her eleventh birthday. Calvin had demanded that she take a picture together. Just as Jocelyn had gone to snap the photo, Hermione, in all her grinning glory, had taken her piece of cake and smashed it into his face. What surprised Hermione was that the picture was moving, so she got to watch the entire scene. She flipped through the scrapbook, watching all the pictures of her beloved memories with Calvin move about, replaying each memory. Some pictures she recognized, others she'd never seen before. She stopped on one picture of her four year old self sleeping peacefully on a teenage Calvin's chest with him looking down at her affectionately. She watched as he placed a soft kiss on her head.
"Remus charmed them for me," Calvin said quietly, looking at the pictures from over her shoulder. "Just so you don't forget about little 'ole me in the big wizarding world."
Hermione looked up at him and smiled sweetly. "It's impossible to ever forget about someone as amazing as you, Cal," she said.
Calvin smiled softly down at her, that same adoring look he had in the photo adorning his face again. He hugged her into his chest and kissed the top of her head.
Jocelyn stood from her seat and walked to where they sat on the floor. "My turn," she said, crouching down in front of Hermione. She removed her hand that was hidden behind her back and presented a small, black leather book to her. Hermione took the book in her hands and looked at the cover. In gold engraved script read: Property of Daniel Granger.
Hermione's head snapped up to look at her mother, her eyes wide. "What is this?"
"This, sweetheart, is his journal your father started in high school. He would always whip it out whenever something he found exciting happened," Jocelyn said fondly. "I was waiting for the right time to give it to you. I had a good feeling about this Christmas, so I decided it was time."
Hermione clutched the book to her chest tightly, as if scared it'd disappear if she let go. "Thanks, mum," she said, throat thick.
Jocelyn kissed the crown of her head before going back to her seat.
Remus smiled widely as he stood from his seat. "Ready?" he asked Hermione.
Hermione raised an eyebrow in question. "For?"
"Your present, of course," he laughed.
Hermione's eyes lit up. "Yes!" she said excitedly.
Remus laughed again, this time tossing her her new coat. "Good. Then let's get going."
"Going?" Hermione asked, confused as she put on her coat and gloves.
Remus grinned and helped her put on her hat. "Yes, going. Your present isn't here." He looked around at the rest of the occupants in the room. "Why are you all still sitting around? We're all going on a trip."
Immediately everyone jumped up and scurried around to find their coats. Once everyone was dressed in their winter wear Remus took Hermione's hand and led her out the door.
xxXxx
"Our bench?" Hermione asked.
Remus had led the group to the park and stopped them in front of his and Hermione's bench. Hermione looked at it fondly, but also a little disappointedly. She loved their bench, she really did, but she didn't completely understand what her present was.
Remus laughed as he looked at her expression. "Look at the back," he said, nudging her forward.
Hermione looked at her confusedly. She slowly made her way around the bench. She gasped as her eyes immediately landed on the gold plaque that was now attached to the back.
Property of Remus Lupin & Hermione Granger.
The first chapter of a very beautiful story
Her mouth dropped open as she read the engraved plaque. Her eyes connected with Remus' over the bench, and he smiled nervously. In an instant Hermione had sprinted around the bench and jumped into his arms. She hugged him tightly around the neck.
"I love it, I love it, I love it!" Hermione gushed into his neck, still hugging him tightly.
Remus hugged her just as tight. "And I love you, my child," he said softly. He gently placed her back on her feet and kneeled down on one knee in front of her. "Listen, Hermione," Remus said nervously, which instantly made Hermione nervous. Remus only called Hermione by her first name if it was a serious matter. "I love you very much. Have so since the day you sat beside me on this bench. I love you like a father would his daughter. And I know that I am not the father you were originally given, but I believe everything happens for a reason. I believe I was given to you to love and care for you like a father would so your father could rest peacefully in heaven knowing that his baby girl is safe. And I believe you were given to me so I can finally live a happy life full of love, and you and your mother have more than given that to me. Hermione, I know I'll never replace the father you lost, and I never will try to. But I'd like to be a father figure that you can look up to, if you'll let me."
Hermione had tears streaming down her cheeks as he finished his speech. She was speechless. She loved Remus very much and had already unintentionally started calling him dad. Could he be a father to her?
"Yes," she sighed softly, nodding her head. "Yes, you can be." She threw her arms around his neck again, hugging him tightly as she buried her face in his neck. Remus' arms encircled her waist and hugged her tightly to his chest, his own tears slipping as he hid his face in her curls. They stayed like that for a few minutes before they finally separated.
"With that said," Remus said, standing from his kneeled position and moving in front of a teary eyed Jocelyn, "I can now do this." Remus kneeled down once again on one knee in front of her and she looked down at him in wonder. "Jocelyn, I make sure to tell you this every day, and today is no different. I love you. I love you so much. The day you and Hermione entered my life was the day my world got so much brighter. You gave me a reason to wake up in the morning. You learned my furry little secret and instead of running away you took me into your home and made me feel loved. You helped me see that I'm not the monster I believed I was. I didn't think there was hope in love for me, but then, once again, you changed that too. I've never truly loved anyone in my life as much as I love you and Hermione. Now that you're a part of my world, I couldn't imagine it without you. So with that, I have one question for you." Remus pulled out a little black box from his coat pocket and popped it open. Everyone gasped as they caught sight of the white gold engagement ring with a big, pretty diamond on it sitting perfectly between two cushions. "Will you marry me?"
"Oh, Remus," Jocelyn gasped, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth. She looked down at the ring with wide, glossy eyes. "I-I don't know what to say."
"Yes might work," Calvin, who now stood behind Hermione with his hands on her shoulders, stage whispered.
Jocelyn started nodding frantically. "Yes! Of course I will!"
Remus grinned widely as he slipped the ring on her finger. He stood and took her into his arms, hugging her tightly to him and kissing her as everyone around them cheered.
When they finally separated Remus had a stupidly big grin on his face.
"I planned this Christmas with the intention of finally getting the family I dreamed for. I got a daughter," he bent down to place a kiss on Hermione's head, "a loving soon-to-be wife," he placed a sweet kiss on her lips, "and now there's only one thing missing."
"A dog?" Calvin asked excitedly.
Remus laughed. "We already got one," he winked and everyone laughed. "No, something else." To everyone's surprise, except for Jocelyn's, he walked over to Harry and for the third time that night, kneeled down on one knee.
Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You going to propose to me too?" he joked, laughing slightly.
Remus grinned. "Yes," he said, and Harry's eyes grew wide. Remus laughed, "but in a different way."
Harry's eyebrows scrunched together as Remus pulled a packet of papers out of his coat jacket and handed them to him. Harry warily took the papers and looked down at them. As he read the first few words on the first page his eyes grew wide and snapped up to look at Remus, who wore a serious expression.
"Adoption papers?" he asked, his voice croaking.
Hermione and Rose gasped. Hermione stared at the boy in front of her, watching his expression wane between confusion and wonder.
Remus nodded. "If you'd like to, Harry, I'd love for you to be a part of my family too. It was wrong for Dumbledore to send you to the Dursley's knowing the kind of people they were. If I had known where you were, Harry, I would have come get you sooner. But I'm here now, and I want to right a terrible wrong. So with your permission, I'd really like to fill out those papers."
Harry stared at Remus incredulously. "B-But what about the Dursley's? Don't they have full custody of me? There's no way they'd give that up, especially since they're being paid."
"They're being paid?" Rose spat angrily.
Remus smiled mischievously at Harry. "Let's just say it wasn't hard for them to give up their custody."
Flashback
"Who are you and what are you doing in my house?!" Vernon Dursley screamed angrily as he entered through his front door. Hiding behind him was his wife, Petunia Dursley, and his son, Dudley Dursley. In front of them, looking in the cupboard beneath the stairs, was Remus.
Remus looked up nonchalantly, and grinned almost nastily at the three people standing in the doorway. "Dursley's," he said cooly, "just the people I wanted to see."
"Who are you?!" Vernon screeched again. "And how did you get into my house?!"
"Name's Remus Lupin. And magic of course." Remus grinned as Vernon went an ugly shade of purple at the mention of magic.
"Lupin," Petunia spat disgustingly. "You were one of Lily's freak friends."
Remus glared at her. "If by freak you mean wizard, then yes, I was."
"What do you want?" Vernon snapped.
"Oh!" Remus said, as if he'd forgotten about something extremely important. He pulled out a packet of papers from his coat and held them out. "I'd like you to sign these papers to give up custody of the young Harry Potter."
"You're out of your bloody mind!" Vernon chortled. "That boy may be useless, but he brings in money. If you think I'm giving him up you're absurd."
Remus had to work hard to swallow down the growl that threatened to escape his throat. Instead he laughed. "I'm sorry, you must have mistaken me. It was not a request, but a demand. You see, if you refuse to sign these papers I will have you arrested for child abuse and neglect. I'm sure the authorities would love to see Harry's little cupboard under the stairs."
Vernon stuttered indigenously. "And you will be arrested for breaking and entering!" he yelled.
"Actually he won't," a voice boomed, causing the Dursley's to jump. They swivelled their heads to see Kingsley exit the kitchen, sandwich in hand. "I am Kingsley Shacklebolt, Head Auror; The wizard equivalent to a muggle police officer. I have a warrant here to search your house after hearing the abuse statements of Harry Potter himself. We take child abuse very seriously. Especially after having Mister Potter checked by our Healers, who were able to uncover the years of physical damage you've done to this young boy's body over the years. And while searching your house we were able to find the cupboard under the stairs where you kept him. The cupboard is in the exact state Mister Potter described to us, and it clearly shows your neglect with the urine stains and rotten food hidden under the floorboards." Kingsley took a bite from the sandwich he was holding. "It's not looking too good for you, Dursley's," he said through his chewing.
There was a long, silent pause as the two wizards stared down the Dursley's. Vernon looked ready to explode, while Petunia looked like a nervous dog ready to run. Dudley stood between them, looking more confused than he usually does.
"So, you have two options," Remus said calmly. "Sign the papers, or go to wizarding jail. It's simple, really."
Vernon snarled. "That little shit deserved what he got!" he burst angrily.
Suddenly Remus was in his face, a strong hand clutching the front of Vernon's shirt, choking him. Petunia screamed, and Dudley watched with wide desperately tried to pry Remus' hands away, but he was no match for the werewolf's strength.
"Watch what you say about my pup, Dursley," Remus growled, their noses almost touching. "You're hanging by a very thin string with me. The last thing you want to do is piss me off." Remus' eyes flashed gold, and the sputtering Vernon's eyes widened. "You might just meet my furry side."
Remus let Vernon go and he fell to the floor gasping for breath. Petunia raced to his side, wrapping her thin arms around his large form and gushing over him. Remus looked down at the pair with a pleasant smile, as if he hadn't just almost choked the life out of someone.
"So," Remus said, once again holding out the stack of papers, "how about we sign these papers?"
End Flashback
"Oh my God," Harry said in awe. "You did that?!"
"Wait, wait, wait. Hold the phone!" Rose exclaimed angrily. "You're telling me that they did all that crap to Harry, and they get to walk away scott free?!"
Kingsley laughed. "We said they wouldn't go to wizarding jail. We didn't say anything about muggle jail," he said with a mischievous grin. "They were arrested the next day."
Calvin laughed. "Kick ass, Kings and Rem!" he exclaimed, ignoring the swat his mother gave the back of his head.
Rose grinned happily. "I remember now why I'm so proud to be related to you." Kingsley laughed and brought her to his side.
Hermione smiled and walked to stand beside Remus. "Now I remember why I'm so glad to call you my father." Remus' eyes teared up a little at her statement and he brought her to his side as well, still on one knee.
They all turned to Harry, who was still looking at Remus in wonder.
"So, pup," Remus said gently, "what do you say?"
Harry stared at him then flicked his eyes to Hermione. Hermione smiled at him gently, nodding her head a little. His eyes then turned to Jocelyn, who had moved to stand behind the two. She smiled at him warmly, happy tears still in her eyes. Finally he looked back at Remus, and he smiled hesitantly.
"I'd be proud to call you my father, too."
A huge grin came to both Remus and Hermione's faces. Remus laughed joyously and hugged both of them tightly as those around them cheered happily.
Hermione looked at her family that surrounded her, wondering how in the world she had gotten so lucky. By far this was the best Christmas she had ever had.
It's not over yet, Hermione thought.
xxXxx
Blaise strode cautiously through the corridors, his pace slow and leisurely. He was certainly in no rush to get to the Headmaster's office. Though no one would be able to tell by looking at him, Blaise was incredibly nervous. He couldn't think of a single reason why Headmaster Dumbledore would call him of all people to his office. He hasn't done anything wrong since he's been at Hogwarts. He kept to himself, head down, never spoke unless spoken to, and always stayed in the shadows. Could he be failing a class? No, definitely not, he thought, shaking his head in denial. He and Theodore Nott were tied in third in their class. Blaise was sure that wasn't it.
As Blaise turned a corner he came face to face with the gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office. His heart jumped into his throat. Blaise didn't like not knowing things. Not knowing why Dumbledore suddenly requested his presence, especially over Christmas break, was killing him.
I guess I'll find out, he thought. "Mars Bars," he said lowly. The gargoyle jumped to the side and Blaise began to climb up the stairs that were behind it. When he reaches the door at the top Blaise heaved a big sigh before raising his hand to knock. However, before his fist could make contact with the door it opened.
"Ah, Mister Zabini!" Dumbledore said cheerfully from behind his desk. "Glad you could join us."
"Granger?" Blaise said in surprise, completely ignoring Dumbledore and the other unknown man in the room, instead zeroing in on the girl sitting in one of the chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk.
"Blaise!" Hermione said happily. She hopped out of her chair and skipped over to him. Much to his surprise she brought him into a tight hug, her little arms wrapping around his neck. He stood there awkwardly with his arms hanging limply at his sides, not knowing what to do. Luckily, just as quickly as she had embraced him she just as quickly let him go. Blaise didn't know why, but he found himself wishing it had lasted a little longer. He wasn't one that usually received hugs from others, and he sure as hell never gave them out.
Blaise snapped himself out of his thoughts and looked at her. "What's going on? I thought you went home," he said hesitantly.
"I did," Hermione confirmed.
"My pup demanded that we come and get you today," the man said.
"Me?" Blaise asked, surprised. He turned to Hermione. "Why?" he asked.
"For Christmas, silly," she said in a 'duh' tone, as if it was so obvious. Suddenly her face softened. "No one deserves to be alone on Christmas."
Blaise stared at her in wonder for a moment. Here was this girl that met him once and hardly knew him, but was inviting him to spend Christmas with her. He wondered how Merlin could have possibly created someone so giving and kind.
Suddenly he looked at his feet. "I don't want to impose on your Christmas, Granger."
"You wouldn't be imposing, son," the man said, giving the boy a kind smile. "The more the merrier. Besides, her mother made enough food to feed the neighborhood," he laughed.
Hermione smiled. "Yeah, and besides, she already made a bed for you."
"A bed?" he asked incredulously. "Why would I need a bed?"
"Well, where else are you going to sleep the rest of vacation?" she asked. "You didn't think we were going to get you then dump you back here after a few hours, did you?" Blaise stared at her. That's exactly what he had thought. Hermione sighed dramatically. "Of course not! I want you to stay with me for the rest of vacation. It the holidays! The time to have fun outside of these castle walls! So what do you say?" Hermione asked excitedly, shooting him the puppy dog eyes.
Blaise continued to stare at her and her wide, pleading eyes. No one had ever begged him to hang out with them before. No one had ever even wanted to hang out with him before.
"Okay," he said without a second thought.
Hermione squealed and hugged him again, this time for a little longer. This time Blaise awkwardly patted her on the back, though warmth filled his body at her affection.
"The house elves will take care of packing your trunk for you, Mister Zabini," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling brightly. "I think Miss Granger is pretty eager to take you home."
"I'll say," the man laughed. Clapping his hands together he said, "Alright kiddies, lets hit the Floo."
Hermione rolled her eyes at him before turning to Blaise. "Ready?" she asked.
Blaise looked at her wide, hopeful eyes and nodded. "Yeah," he said softly. He was finally ready to not spend a Christmas alone.
xxXxx
Blaise officially decided that kindness ran in Hermione's family. After arriving home with Hermione and the man who had introduced himself as Remus, Hermione's mother had immediately swooped in and hugged him tightly in welcome as she introduced herself. Blaise immediately recognized the bright spark in Jocelyn's eyes that matched the one in Hermione's.
As soon as they had arrived Jocelyn announced that dinner was ready. As everyone filed into the kitchen Blaise was met with one of the biggest Christmas meals he's ever seen. There was everything from turkey, to ham, to mashed potatoes, to veggies. Every delicious thing you could think of Jocelyn had put on that table.
"Told you," Remus had whispered to him as he passed, and Blaise suppressed a grin.
As they sat to eat and gathered food on their plates Blaise became acquainted with the others of Hermione's family. Calvin tried his hardest to get Blaise to laugh, though the most he got out of the boy was a small smile, though Blaise was very amused on the inside. Calvin took this all in stride and vowed that one day he'd get Blaise to laugh. Blaise got to see another side of Rose than the facade she put on in the common room or in class as she jokingly argued with Calvin to leave him alone and how he was such a 'dope'. Much to his surprise, Harry tried on more than one occasion to start a conversation with him, and Blaise found it surprisingly easy to hold a conversation with him.
Blaise found himself drawn to Jocelyn above all. Maybe it was because of the amazing meal she cooked that tasted ten times better than anything he's eaten at Hogwarts. Or maybe it was the way that she fretted over him, making sure he had enough food and that he was comfortable. Possibly it was the way that she always made sure he was included in a conversation and felt welcome. Or the way she always seemed to have a bright smile on her face no matter who she was speaking to. Or maybe it was the way she was just so different from his own mother, so incredibly different, that drew him to her. Whatever it was, he couldn't help but be jealous that Hermione had such a wonderful woman in her life to call a mother.
After dinner was said and done Jocelyn handed out mugs of hot chocolate and blankets and the group made their way outside to the front steps. Blaise took note of how the streets were filled with people. As they sat down Hermione explained how the neighborhood gathered outside to watch the Christmas lights show.
Blaise watched with wide eyes as the houses across the street began to light up with bright, colorful lights. The lights flickered on and off with the beat of the song "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". His eyes widened even more as the lights connected across the houses to make an image of reindeers pulling santa in his sleigh across all the houses. Blaise watched the show with glee that was hard to keep from his expression.
"Wonderful, isn't it?" Jocelyn said, and Blaise jumped slightly, just now realizing that she was sitting beside him. Jocelyn smiled kindly. "I've been going to these shows since I was a little girl. It's my favorite part of Christmas. When I had Hermione I was only too excited to continue the tradition. I hoped that when she grew up she'd continue it with her own family." Jocelyn smiled down at him gently, wrapping his blanket tighter around him. "I'm glad that you were able to experience our tradition with us this year, Blaise."
Blaise's heart contracted as he looked up at her and her kind smile. He looked down almost shyly before meeting her eyes again.
"Thank you for letting me," he said quietly.
Jocelyn shot him another gentle smile before bringing him into her side. Together they continued to watch the show.
Whatcha think? Worth the wait? I think so, I'm pretty proud of this chapter. I know it took FOREVER, but I'm happy I took my time with it. PLEASE review! I've been craving your reviews for MONTHS! Let me know what you think!
Until next time!
Oliviaa Rose
