Chapter 18 - Hermione's plan

"Ginny?" Harry called out when he hung his coat at their hall stand. He had made it home in time for dinner for the first time this week, and wanted to spend a comfy evening with his wife. Walking towards the kitchen, he heard her voice.

"I can't and won't help you mom. Give them some space and time and they'll reach out to you. You know they love you."

"Don't you tell me what to do young lady. They are my family and it's nearly Christmas." Molly's voice was strained and Harry took a deep breath before he entered the kitchen.

"Molly" He greeted her with a smile and went to hug her.

"Harry, my boy, how are you?" Her smile lit up her face when she saw him. It warmed him every time he saw his mother-in-law, and how happy she was seeing him. Even after all these years, it made him feel as warm and as welcome as the first time he entered the Burrow.

"I'm fine." He answered, when she put her hands on both sides of his face and looked into his eyes.

"Good, good. I need your help with Ginny. She won't tell where I can find Hermione. I'm so worried. I know I overreacted without knowing the full story, but neither her nor Ron are talking to me. How is a mother supposed to help?" She patted his cheeks and turned her body so she could look at her daughter with a glare.

Harry sighed and shook his head.

"I have to back up Ginny here, I'm sorry Molly. Give them some time to come to term with what happened. Even I don't know most of it and can not tell you what I know, in fear of making it worse. I'm just as worried as you are, trust me. I only saw Hermione once and Ron twice since everything went down the hill."

Harry and Ginny could see that Molly wasn't sure if she was to cry or scream. It was hard to see the lively woman hagridden like this. She was what held their family tight together with her love, no matter what happened. Like this, they could see that she had gotten older. Even if wizards lived easily to be over hundred, there were more and more wrinkles in her face and her hair had more and more grey highlights.

"If they don't settle everything for Christmas, we need a dotting grandmother to tend to Rose and Hugo's, mom. They'll need you smiling." Ginny tried to shift her mother'ss focus. When her mother turned around to her, Harry send his wife a smile of gratitude. They both knew Molly would do anything for her grandchildren, even forget to scold their parents for some time.

Hours later, when they had eaten dinner and Molly had left for home, Harry gathered Ginny in his arms and kissed her hair.

"I'm home on time for once and still can't spend a private evening with you."

"Thanks for coming when you did. I love mom, but she drives me crazy sometimes." Ginny snuggled into him and wrapped her arms around his middle. "I love you."

"Even with all the shit that happens because of me? You are a strong woman Mrs Potter. What would I do without you."

Ginny tensed up in his arms, but sighed instead of exploding like she would have done as a young woman. "Not everything happens because of you. Dial down your ego, Mr Potter "

They laughed together and kept standing like they were some more, each lost in their thoughts.

XxX

*Two weeks later*

Everything was set into motion for Hermione's visit to Malfoy Manor. She had drunken a valour potion she had brewed in her room over the last days and her clothes looked perfect. The uneasy feeling and the nagging voice telling her she was deceiving him since she send her letter to meet him were put in a place far away from her brain.

She had decided on robes in a dark green with some gold highlights. The gold embroidery had been done by herself. She had learned the skills from a book for Aquila a few years back. A way to give her girl something more than boring clothes and at the same time protect her.

Her robes spotted a night sky of stars. The constellation Draco had been named after hovered over her heart. On the right bottom Scorpius' and next to his on the left side Aquila's constellations could be seen. It was an exact replica of the southern summer sky at night. Hermione had spend many hours finishing the robes to have her dear ones always near her. It was also the first time she had made such fine clothes for herself and not her daughter. It felt like a safety blanket was wrapped around her.

While the torture she had endured at the Manor was only a distant foggy memory, most of the time she still did have nightmares featuring Bellatrix. They were about the things they did to Draco or what could happen to her kids if Bellatrix ever found them. She scolded herself for getting lost in bad thoughts and squared her shoulders. Bellatrix was dead, she couldn't harm her dear ones anymore. This thought was an endless loop in her head to keep her from having a panic attak.

In her hand she carried a bottle of Elf-made wine she had bought on her shopping trip with Ginny. Her friend had looked at her strangely but hadn't commented. Maybe she was afraid Hermione knew no other way to help herself but drink her problems away.

The day they had spend together in Diagon Alley and later in the Muggle London had been strange but a balm for Hermione. At the beginning they had some trouble to find a safe topic to talk about, but soon Ginny had simply talked about her life and Hermione had been happy to listen.

Her friend hadn't asked her any questions and given her room to get to know her again. Ginny was way more settled that she remembered her.

She still had a temper to behold, but like Molly, she had learned to keep it down until something that really matter happened. All day Hermione had waited for Ginny to scold her and wash her head over what she had done to Ron, but Ginny had bitten her tongue and taken her own advise. She could wait until Hermione talked to her freely.

Finally we are at the more romantic part.

I tried to show just how hard everything was on Hermione and everyone around her until now, but I'm no expert on ptsd, if you want to know more about it I recommend to google it.

A member of my family has been in Afganistan with the army and I used some of the experiences he told me about when he was back home. It isn't easy to adjust back into normal life.