CHAPTER NINETEEN
Summary: Hermione Granger, one of the brightest minds of her generation, makes a decision that will ultimately change her future plans. At twenty-three, she finds herself moving to a strange town that's a hell-mouth for supernatural beings, pregnant, and in way over her head. And the father of her unborn child? The tall, dark and handsome werewolf, Derek Hale. Rated M for a reason.
Disclaimer: I do not own canon events and characters, they belong to J.K Rowling and the creators of Teen Wolf and MTV. This is purely for entertainment purposes and I am not making a profit from the posting of this. This is set after Season 3, and everything from season 4 onwards doesn't happen; so no deadpool, Beast, Dread Doctors, Wild Hunt or Hunters. Allison still died, Liam will still be appearing, and there is no Kira or Malia. Derek is 22 and Hermione is 23. I'm fudging the time line a bit, too.
Page count: 13
Hermione froze and Derek did the same beside her, before she let out a groan and her head tipped forward.
"Brilliant, just what I need," she sighed.
"This is my last warning, step away from the body and put your hands in the air!"
Derek let out a grumble from beside her before he slowly stood to his full height and turned around to face the one that had caught them. He supposed he probably should've listened to Magic's warning, but then, because of his barking he hadn't heard someone approaching as the loud sounds had drowned out everything else.
"Sheriff," Derek spoke coolly.
Hermione groaned once more, it wasn't just a police officer, but the bloody sheriff as well! Only she would have that luck.
"I should've known I'd find you here," the sheriff replied.
Derek shrugged his shoulders and slipped his hands into his pockets. "I don't go looking for bodies."
"No, you just find them."
"Actually, the dog found it," Derek said, gesturing to the barking dog with his head before he let out a growl and Magic quickly settled down.
"Step away from the body!" The sheriff spoke and Hermione didn't have to look to know that he had a gun trained on her back, and she felt Derek's presence flare up around her protectively.
"How else am I supposed to examine the body?" She replied, not looking at him and keeping her attention on the body.
"You're not,"
"Sheriff, I suggest you lower the gun," Derek interrupted her before she could retort. The tone of warning in his voice was unmistakable and his body tensed, his hands clenching into fists in his pockets at trying to contain his wolf. "I won't be held responsible for anything that might happen."
"You know I'll arrest you."
"I do, but I don't care. My wolf isn't taking kindly to you holding my girlfriend at gun point."
Even she heard the sheriff falter slightly, and she wondered why everyone had such a reaction to finding out she was his girlfriend. It wasn't that farfetched, was it?
When she heard heavy footfalls she turned to look over her shoulder, briefly catching sight of the middle aged man with brown hair and light brown eyes, before two familiar teens came into view. They both came to a stop beside the sheriff, one of them perfectly fine, the other leaning over with his hands on his knees and his breathing coming out in pants.
"I told you to wait for me in the car," the sheriff told him.
"You know I never listen, Dad," Stiles panted.
Hermione blinked in surprise, before she shook her head. Well, now she knew where Stiles got his interrogation skills from.
"Hermione!" Scott spoke, his eyes widening and darting between her, Derek and the body.
"Hey, Scott, Stiles," she replied with as big a smile as she could manage, given that she was on her knees with her fingers stuck inside a dead teen's body.
"What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing," she replied.
"Lower your gun or I won't be able to control myself," Derek interrupted, a growl wrapping around his words and the teens' eyes widened when Derek's eyes flashed blue.
"I'm fine, Derek, he's not going to shoot me."
"You don't know that," he replied, keeping his eyes on the sheriff.
"I do," she said.
She removed her fingers from the body and then tried to stand up but growled in frustration when she couldn't do it without losing her balance. Derek spared a brief moment in his glaring at the sheriff to help her back to her feet and the moment she turned around, three pairs of eyes widened at seeing her prominent baby bump as her coat was unfastened and it fell open.
"Oh My God!" Scott muttered. "Now it makes sense."
"You're pregnant!" Stiles cried, looking a little faint.
"Yes," Hermione offered him a smile. "Eighteen weeks."
"Eighteen weeks!"
"Yes, pregnant."
"Pregnant!"
"Eighteen weeks pregnant," Hermione confirmed.
"I knew it," Scott spoke, shaking his head. "Werewolves don't share food, but I saw you let her take food from your plate," he said quietly, not expecting her to hear him. "It's yours, isn't it?" He said louder this time for them all to hear.
Derek rolled his eyes. "She is my girlfriend."
Stiles let out another cry and Hermione had to stifle her laugh at his disappointed look.
"Your girlfriend!" Stiles cried once more.
"My girlfriend," Derek confirmed.
"His girlfriend!" Stiles turned his eyes to her.
"His girlfriend," she nodded.
"You're pregnant!"
"Yes, eighteen weeks pregnant and Derek's the father," she said slowly, seeing as he seemed to be having a hard time processing the news.
Stiles' eyes darted between her and Derek, before his eyes rolled into the back of his head, he swayed on his feet and he collapsed to the ground like a sack of potatoes, fainting.
"Oh Dear," Hermione spoke, worry crossing her features but neither Scott, the sheriff or Derek looked surprised.
"He's fine," Scott said, not looking at her but at her stomach.
She shifted uncomfortably and cleared her throat. "Right, well then, since I'm pregnant I know the sheriff's not going to harm me," she said.
Slowly the sheriff seemed to come back to his senses and he lowered his gun, but he didn't put it back in the holster.
"Sorry, Sheriff, we haven't met yet, I'm Hermione Granger, and I'm not letting you interfere with this, I have my orders and you're not going to stop me from seeing them through."
"Orders?"
"Yes, orders," she replied.
"She works for her government," Scott told the sheriff. "She won't tell us what she does because it's classified."
Hermione nodded. "I'd show you my badge but I left it at home. I wasn't expecting to need it."
"You have a badge?" Derek asked her, looking surprised.
"Of course I do," she replied, turning her head to give him a smile. "Is someone going to wake him up?" She asked, gesturing to the heap on the cold ground.
Scott shrugged before he kicked at Stiles' shoe and the teen bolted up right, shaking his head as he brought a hand to the back of it. His eyes landed on her stomach again.
"Girlfriend, pregnant, broody werewolf," he muttered incoherently.
Scott snorted and the sheriff let out a sigh, before Scott helped Stiles to his feet and slapped him on the back of the head to bring him out of his shock, which seemed to do the trick.
"What are you doing here?" The sheriff asked her.
"I'm guessing the same as you, only I got here first. My dog brought us here," she said, nodding to her dog the way Derek had earlier. "But how did you know to come here? We're in the middle of the woods."
The two teens shared a look with the sheriff and she and Derek snorted.
"She knows geniuses," Derek spoke, his body relaxing slightly now that Hermione no longer had a gun pointed at her and she leaned her body against his arm.
Their eyes widened and she snorted. "It's true, I do," she nodded. "It's my job to know,"
"What do you mean by that?" Scott asked, narrowing his eyes slightly on her.
She looked up at her Derek questioningly.
"It's up to you," he shrugged his shoulders.
She sighed and brought her hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose before she thought better of it when she saw the blood covering her fingers.
"Fine, follow me," she instructed, moving over to Magic, releasing him from being bound to the tree and she and Derek made to head back to the cottage. "Leave the body, my people are already on their way to ensure it'll be taken care of."
She didn't need to look to know they followed her.
~000~000~000~
"You live here?" Stiles asked her, looking up at the now two story cottage.
"Yes, I do," she replied, subtly flicking her wand to remove the wards to allow them access.
Derek took the keys from his pocket and opened the door, allowing Hermione to step inside first, he followed after her and then others after him. Hermione released Magic from his lead and he bounded out of the living room and to the kitchen.
As Derek moved over to the arm chair, Crookshanks darted across the room almost tripping him up.
"Damn it!" He cursed. "Watch it you little monster," Derek growled.
Hermione saw the two teens trying to stifle their laughter.
Crookshanks meowed at him before he jumped up onto the back of the couch and Hermione picked him up and held her against him, Crookshanks purring as he butted his head against her chin and then he looked to Derek and hissed at him. Derek sent a snarl back in reply and Hermione rolled her eyes whilst the teens pulled a face at seeing how ugly her cat was, she was used to such a reaction.
"They've been like this since they met," she told the three guests before she put Crookshanks down and he walked out the room and into the kitchen and Hermione followed, where she washed her hands and sent a quiet patronus to The Ministry to alert them of the body and her suspicions on the one responsible.
She returned minutes later with a tray in her hand, with coffee for Derek and the sheriff, a glass of orange juice for herself and two sodas for the teens, which she placed on the table before handing the coffee to Derek and he pulled her to sit on his lap seeing as the other three were taking up the couch.
She wasn't blind to the way the three guests blinked in surprise at the motion, nor was she when they did it again as Derek's hand slipped to rest against her stomach and he buried his nose against her neck, nuzzling at her and making her giggle until she slapped at his arm.
"Stop that," she told him with a scowl. He mumbled something but he did pull back to sip at his coffee. "My badge," she said, throwing it to the sheriff and he caught it, flipped open the case and frowned down at it.
"This doesn't say what department you work for," the sheriff said.
"You're right, it doesn't," she replied, giving him an innocent smile and Derek snorted at her. "But that doesn't matter, all that matters is that I've proved I work for my government, that I'm working this case and that the one responsible is caught. I've already informed my people and they should be taking care of the body any moment now, and I believe I already know who did it."
"That was quick," Derek commented.
She shrugged. "Judging on the width, length and depth of the wounds, there's only one thing I know that has claws that match that description, and no, it's not a werewolf. The claw markings were too big," she said, turning her attention to the others.
"How do you know about werewolves?" Scott asked her, sitting forward in his seat and absentmindedly petting Magic when he bounded back into the room and sat himself at Scott's feet.
"I've known since I was a child, I grew up with the knowledge. My government is aware of the existence of the supernatural and before moving here my job was to ensure that supernatural beings were protected against hunters and their identities remained secret from the public so they could live normal lives. If a supernatural being broke the laws and harmed a human they would lose our protection and hunters would likely find them, but there's nothing we can do for that. We make it clear what the laws are; we're not responsible should they be broken. We also keep track of hunters and if they went after innocent supernatural beings I was sent out to warn them that should they continue they'd face the consequences, if they didn't listen they were thrown in a specially made prison just for hunters."
"So you're not a hunter?"
Hermione sighed and Derek snorted. He'd come to the same conclusion when they'd re-met but now he knew it couldn't be any farther from the truth.
"No, I was the opposite. Without sounding too arrogant, I was really good at what I did and because of it I was headhunted and brought over here to work for the American branch of my government. Seeing as Beacon Hills is a hell-mouth for the supernatural, I was placed here to monitor supernatural activity and to investigate any suspicious deaths, like the one you've just witnessed."
"So it is supernatural?" The sheriff asked, while Scott and Stiles still seemed to be surprised by what she'd divulged.
"No, it's not," she replied.
He frowned. "But you said the one that did it had claws."
"I did, but that doesn't means it's supernatural. I'm bound by the laws of my people and should I reveal something I'm not supposed to I'll be thrown in prison. Our existence would be threatened if the public discovered us, it's the reason we're so secretive. But there are other things in the world other than the supernatural and humans."
"Are you saying you're different, too?" Stiles asked her, sitting forward on the couch and looking as though he were about to interrogate her.
"Yes, I'm different, but I'm not supernatural. I have certain abilities and capabilities that make me different, which is why I said I work for my government."
"Such as?"
"I can't tell you,"
Stiles scowled at her and Derek snorted. "He's not going to back off until you tell him something," Derek pointed out.
"Fine," Hermione sighed. "One of the abilities I possess is that if I should wish to, I can teleport to other places. Short distance travel is easy; long distance travel requires several breaks in-between to recharge my battery, so to speak."
They all stared at her as if she had two heads.
"I don't believe you," Stiles said.
"I can't demonstrate, once I reached the four month mark of my pregnancy it became too dangerous to teleport, and I'm not risking it. For the next six months I'm grounded and can only travel by means of my car."
"You knew, didn't you?" Scott spoke. "You knew about me?"
She nodded. "I did, yes. I knew about you before we even met, I just couldn't put a name to the face until we did meet. My government has a record of every supernatural being in existence and we have it so we can ensure your safety by sending out agents to make sure you're safe from hunters. If word pops up about the existence of the supernatural an agent from another department is sent out to debunk those rumours. All we have on you is your name, supernatural being status and a last known location, which may or may not be your address. The last known address we had for Derek is the old Hale House, but that doesn't matter, we can easily track someone if we need to. You're in the system for your own safety and nothing else. Only a select few have access to the records, me being one of them as I have a high security clearance."
They all sat back into the cushions of the couch and their eyes fell back to her stomach.
"How long have you known each other? Where did you meet?" Scott asked.
"A while and it's none of your business," she replied.
Stiles scowled at her and opened his mouth to retort, but Derek beat him to it. "I wouldn't wind her up if I were you, I know who she is and what she's capable of," he warned. "And she seems to have taken on some wolf traits thanks to the babies."
"Babies?" The three guests said in surprise.
"Twins," Derek and Hermione both confirmed.
Stiles looked like he was about to faint again.
"I've got a pack again," Derek muttered, burying his face back against Hermione's neck and this time she just rolled her eyes, while the other three looked highly uncomfortable.
"Well, now that you the truth about me..."
"We don't know anything," Stiles interrupted.
"I think it's best you leave, I'm starving and meal times around here aren't pretty, especially when I can't decide what I want to eat and my hormones have me bursting into tears. I doubt you want to be here to witness that."
"No, thanks," the sheriff spoke, pulling himself to his feet and gesturing for the teens to do the same, despite Stiles looking as though he wanted to stay and interrogate her some more. "So if I find you in the woods with a dead body?"
"Leave me to it, I'm doing my job just as you are. You deal with humans and I'll deal with the supernatural. It's one less thing for you to worry about. At the moment I'm relying on my colleagues to deal with the dangerous side of the job," she spoke, patting her stomach lightly. "But once I'm no longer at risk of putting the babies in harm's way I'll be on my own."
Hermione stood from Derek's lap and ushered them out of the cottage before erecting the wards around the property once more.
"That went well," Derek commented, drinking the last of his coffee and reaching over to put the mug on the table. "So, what it is?"
"Hippogriff, they wander into the Muggle World all the time. I don't know what that kid was doing in the woods, but hippogriffs are prideful creatures. If you don't bow before one it'll take it as an insult and it'll attack you. It's not their fault, it's just the way they've always been, it's like a bear protecting her cubs; you can't blame her for it. It's just an accident. The other agents will track the location of the hippogriff and see it's taken back to the Wizarding World," she explained.
She picked up the tray from the table and moved into the kitchen with Derek following behind her.
"Are you alright with them knowing about us and the twins?" She asked him.
He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face before coming up behind her at the counter and wrapping his arms around her, resting his chin on her shoulder as he watched her make a start on cutting the vegetables for dinner.
"I'm not ashamed of you or the babies," he told her honestly. "I just wanted to be cautious. While the Hale Pack has allies we also have enemies, too. I wanted to protect you for as long as I could and if people didn't know about you or the babies, then you were safe. I suppose I can no longer protect you, you're too far along now to hide the pregnancy and my wolf's far too protective of you for it to be a platonic relationship between us, even if you are the mother of my babies. People are going to notice if they haven't already and I'm just going to have to get used to the fact that I can no longer protect you by keeping us or the babies a secret."
~000~000~000~
One week later...
"You definitely want pizza?" Derek asked, slipping on his leather jacket and picking up his keys.
"Yes,"
"You're not going to change your mind?"
"No,"
"I'll get a cheese burger, too, then."
"That's probably a good idea," she agreed with a nod.
He snorted at her. "I'll be back soon, don't get into any trouble while I'm gone."
"You know I can't promise that," she replied, lazily turning a page in her book as she lounged on the couch.
"Unfortunately, I do," he shook his head, before he clipped the lead to Magic's collar and left out the door.
In the last week things had been quiet. Hermione received word several hours later that the hippogriff had been caught and returned to the Wizarding World, and since, things had been quiet. Hermione and Derek still took daily walks through the woods but with Hermione tiring quite easily, they didn't trek as far as they used to. They spent most of their time reading books from her library or cuddled on the couch watching TV and Hermione had never been more relaxed.
They hadn't run into Scott or Stiles whilst they visited town but Hermione didn't expect to since it was always during school hours, and Derek hadn't heard from Scott either, not that he was expecting to or that it bothered him.
The nursery was almost complete, too. All that was left to do was change the colour of the walls and purchase the clothing, which Hermione was waiting to do until they were able to discover the gender of the babies, and it wouldn't be that much longer a wait.
As Hermione turned another page in her book, her fireplace roared to life and she startled before calming herself. There was only one person who had access to her floo network, and when she saw them step out, Hermione frowned in confusion but a smile lit her face as she pushed herself up from the couch.
"Andy? What are you doing here?" Hermione asked, approaching the older woman and pulling her into a tight hug.
"Merlin, Dear, you've gotten so big," she spoke, sounding surprised as she pulled back from Hermione and she looked down at her stomach.
Hermione sighed and patted her stomach. "I had my first scan a few weeks ago, it turns out I'm having twins."
"Well, that certainly explains it."
Hermione nodded. "Derek received the brunt of my annoyance for a good while," she said. Andromeda chuckled at her and shook her head. "What are doing here? Not that I'm not happy to see you, of course."
"I wish to speak to you about something," she replied.
Hermione's smile dropped from her face and her eyes carefully scanned the older witch, finally noticing that Andromeda looked exhausted, she had more wrinkles than she remembered her having and her cheek bones stuck out a little more than they used to. In wizarding age Andromeda was barely halfway through her life expectancy so for her to look older than she was had Hermione worried.
"I'll make some tea," Hermione spoke.
She led Andromeda out of the living room and through to the kitchen, where she quickly made a pot of tea and sat next to Andromeda at the kitchen table. The older woman gratefully accepted the hot beverage, took a sip and turned to face Hermione.
"Where's Teddy?" She asked.
"With a sitter," Andromeda answered. "I've been to the hospital this afternoon for a routine check up."
"What did the healers say?"
Andromeda gave her a tight smile. "Oh, the same as usual."
"You're lying to me," Hermione frowned.
"Of course I'm not, Dear," she denied, sipping at her tea. "I'm visiting as I wish to discuss something with you."
Hermione's eyes trailed her face before she shook her head. "Okay, what is it?"
"I've been contemplating moving," Andromeda said. Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Teddy has been different since you left, he doesn't laugh or smile as much as he used to and I know he misses you, and I understand why. It's your pack bond. It may have been severed with the loss of Remus..."
"But Teddy can still feel the remnants of the bond, no matter how young he was when it was severed," Hermione said in understanding.
"Yes, and I hate to see him suffering so. I think it's best if I do the same as you and move across the pond, maybe even to Beacon Hills so we are close by," she said. Hermione's eyes widened. "But I wouldn't just be doing this for Teddy, I have nothing keeping me in Britain and moving might be what we both need, a new start if you will."
"But what about Harry and Teddy?" She frowned.
"Dear, Harry hasn't been to see Teddy in a long while, but he came by last week. He wished to inform me that Ginny's recently found out she's pregnant, nine weeks."
Hermione made a noise of surprise. If Ginny was pregnant Harry had no right to be so judgemental about her own circumstances.
"He came to tell me that he wouldn't be able to visit Teddy as he would be too busy focusing his attention on Ginny. I admit, I may have lost my temper and threw him out on his behind."
Hermione snorted, it was the least he deserved.
"That was the last straw, he's replacing Teddy with his child and I understand that this is his first child, but with his decisions come consequences. Teddy is too young to understand and he's been very upset since I told him Harry wouldn't be coming to see him."
A growl slipped from the back of Hermione's throat and Andromeda raised an eyebrow.
"Sorry," Hermione said sheepishly. "I'm taking on wolf traits thanks to the babies, Derek reckons they'll disappear once the babies are born."
Andromeda shook her head and chuckled at her. "Teddy has been through so much in his life, and I won't be having Harry upsetting him. You are what he needs, Dear, and I know you have a life here now, so I thought it best for the both of us to come to you. I have seen how happy you are since moving here and I'm hoping that Beacon Hills can do the same for Teddy."
Hermione bit her lip, seeing Andromeda's reasoning. "Andy, please tell me the truth, how are you?"
The older witch sighed and sipped from her tea before reaching over to cover Hermione's hand with her own.
"I have not been well for a long time, Dear," she admitted. "During the war Bellatrix sent me a package when she discovered that Nymphadora had married Remus. The item was cursed." Hermione gasped and she felt tears welling up in her eyes. "It was my own fault, I had thought I'd cast all the Detection Charms but I was wrong. The curse is attacking my magic and weakening it. For years the healers have been treating me and have been able to stabilise my magic and stop the curse from spreading, but over the last year their treatments are no longer effective. Within a year or two my magic will be gone and I will be a Squib."
Hermione's tears fell down her face and she gripped Andromeda's hand tightly.
"I have come to terms with it, Dear," she said with a sad smile. "Not only is my magic weakening but my body, too."
"Which is why you look older, you're ageing," Hermione said quietly, realisation dawning on her.
While she was barely midway through her wizarding life, Andromeda was already nearing her fifty-fourth birthday, she would have the life expectancy of a muggle, and that was if losing her magic didn't kill her first.
"That's why you want to move here, you're worried you won't be able to look after Teddy."
Andromeda gave her another sad smile. "I'm not getting any younger, Dear, in fact I'm getting older. I can't keep up with the little bundle of energy and when he gets older, it's going to be harder for me."
Much to Hermione's confusion, Andromeda removed her hand from Hermione's and dug into the pocket of her robes, pulling out an envelope that looked to be a few years old with the creases and colouring, and she placed it on the table.
Hermione looked down at it, seeing her name written across the front and she'd recognise the hand writing anywhere.
"Remus," she whispered, reaching her hand out and pressing her fingers over the handwriting.
"This was the last thing he ever wrote," Andromeda said. "I haven't opened it as I was told to keep it safe until the time was right, and I feel now is that time. It was Remus' and Tonks' wish that you, Hermione, be given full custody and guardianship of Teddy should neither of them survive the war, and, if something were to happen to me."
Hermione blinked, a tear falling down her face and Andromeda reached out to wipe it away.
"Not, Harry, but you, Dear. Remus knew that you would love and protect Teddy with every fibre of your being and magic. He knew that as pack, no bond would be as strong as the one you would share with Teddy. Kingsley is aware that should anything happen to me, you are to be granted custody. Remus made it his last wish that Teddy would be taken care of by you should it be necessary. With my illness worsening and my body weakening, I fear that I might not survive and even if I were, without magic I would be unable to protect Teddy and teach him everything he needs to know. I know you have a lot on your plate already with you expecting your own children, but I also know that if anyone can do this, it's you, Hermione."
Another tear fell and she brought her hand up to wipe her face with her sleeve.
"Okay," Hermione sniffled. "But I want you to move in with me."
"Oh, Dear, we couldn't possibly intrude," she said to Hermione.
"You can and you will, it's not an intrusion. There is more than enough space here for you both; I've had contractors in to remodel the cottage ready for the twins coming. You can take Derek's old room and Teddy can take the room by the nursery. When the time comes and we happen to need more space, I can just call the contractors back. Here I know you'll both be safe and I can make sure you're both taken care of."
"How will your boyfriend feel about this? He lives here, too, does he not?"
"I don't think he'll mind too much," Hermione replied. "I talk about you all the time and I know he wants to meet Teddy. Derek being a werewolf and having lost his pack much like I did, he knows how important the pack bond is. He knows what Teddy is to me and he'll never deny me the right of being with my pack. It may surprise him but he'll understand."
"Where is he?"
"He's taken Magic for a walk and then he's going to get lunch. You should go home and pack up so you we can get you settled as soon as possible."
"Dear, I thought about moving, but not in doing so tonight," Andromeda said amused.
Hermione shrugged. "I really miss Teddy and I know you, you'll have gotten your affairs sorted long before you told me of your wanting to move over here."
Andromeda chuckled. "As always, you know me so well. Teddy has been confused as to why I've been packing away the other rooms."
"Well, Derek's room is fully furnished but if you'd prefer to bring your own furniture that's your decision, but you'll have to bring over Teddy's for his room. While you're gone I'll set to changing the colour of the walls and I'll explain everything to Derek when he gets back."
"And he won't mind?"
"He won't mind, trust me, I know him."