Hermione woke up to the feeling of the couch cushion vibrating under her and the sound of muttered curses. When she opened her eyes she saw TJ scratching with bloody fingers at the edges of the glass box she'd put his drugs in. "Dammit, just open. Fuck," he muttered even as he tried to dry his fingers against his dress pants, leaving brown stains in the grey weave. He really had left right after the funeral.
"TJ," she said, softly as to not startle him.
It didn't work and he looked up at her with wide shame-filled eyes. "Please," he begged. He offered her the box that was covered in bloody streaks from his fingers where he'd dug at the corners and edges. "Please, I'll stop. Just one more line. One more. I can't, I can't..." His hands were trembling and when she didn't immediately take the box from him his expression crumbled. He threw the box across the room where it hit corner first into the drywall and wallpaper, leaving a sharp hole. The glass didn't shatter. He practically pouted, "Fuck!" He stood and stomped over to the box.
"Don't try to stomp it open, you'll only hurt yourself more."
"What the fuck did you do to it? Why won't it...? Why can't I..." he huffed a little irritated, restless breath. "Please."
The Floo flashed green and TJ jumped back, startled as two people stepped out: Harry and George. George took one look at TJ and the glass box of drugs on the floor near his feet and he sent a disapproving look at Hermione. "Come on, Hermione, you're just torturing him." He waved his wand at the box and it disappeared, Vanished.
"No!" TJ shouted, dropping to his knees to pat at the floor where the box had been. "Where—? What'd you do with it?" He asked, anger and desperation laced through his voice.
George had put away his wand and held up his hands as if to warn TJ from charging him. "I made it go away. You can't have it." TJ stood and glared, he'd puffed up his chest, letting his shoulders hunch forward. He looked terrifyingly like Bucky Barnes as the Winter Soldier. The look didn't scare George though, who was just as tall and even stockier than Harry. He could probably put TJ on his arse without his wand. "You don't scare me, kid," George said. "I know what you're going through, all right? We'll get you through it even if we have to tie you down and keep you unconscious for most of it."
TJ's face lost the intimidation and he looked at Hermione, another plea in his gaze. She shook her head. "You've got to, TJ."
"I don't want your help!" He shouted at all of them.
"You do, mate," George told him, lowering his hands. "You wouldn't have come around if you didn't want help."
"I realise you probably don't want to sit still right now," Hermione said even as she gestured for him to come to her, "but let me clean your hands, okay?" he followed her suggestion and returned to the couch to sit next to her. Hermione conjured a bowl and filled it with water and Harry handed her a flannel that he'd summoned from the bathroom. Hermione held her hand out and TJ offered both of his hands to her. As she started cleaning each of his fingers with deliberately slow, meticulous strokes she spoke. "TJ, this is George Weasley, one of my ex-brothers-in-law. George, this is TJ Hammond. One of the US President's twin sons."
George came closer and leaned against the side of the couch behind Hermione. "Fraternal or identical, mate?"
TJ looked up at him like he was confused before answering, "Fraternal."
George grinned and nodded. "You missed out on the fun prank of switching places, then. Fred and I used to drive Mum and all our professors crazy with that."
TJ's expression relaxed a little, his lips tilting into a smile. "Yeah, guess we did. We're different in every way anyway; everyone would have been able to tell even if we were identical. I'm the fuck up."
Hermione thumped the finger she was cleaning and frowned at him. He looked down at her and shrugged. "It's the truth."
"Are you close with your twin?" George asked. Hermione smiled at how relaxed his voice was. Although they were seventeen years past the Battle of Hogwarts, George had spent several years tied to a bottle of firewhisky. It wasn't until Angelina had staged an intervention in the early 2000s that he had sobered up. He'd relapsed at Ron's funeral but the next time Hermione had seen him, two months later he was sober again. She'd been a part of that first intervention but she didn't know what had helped him clean up the second time. She probably should ask him one of these days.
"Yeah," TJ answered as Hermione set the flannel on the table and pulled her wand to start healing the little cuts her box had cut into his skin. "Doug and his wife just had twins last year. Boy-girl. They're awesome." He smiled as he brought up his niece and nephew. Hermione liked seeing that joyful little quirk of his lips. "How about you? You and yours close?"
George's voice didn't waver as he answered, "We were. He died in the war seventeen years ago."
TJ's smile fell. "Oh. I'm sorry."
"You didn't mean anything by it, I know that. I named my son after him."
Harry must have slipped away because he was back, wearing an apron around his waist. "And he's just as much a prankster as his namesake. My son's the same way. You allergic to anything? Figured I could start on dinner."
TJ answered in the negative and then turned back to George. "You've got a kid?"
"Yes, two," George said, laying over Hermione's shoulders—she grunted at the additional weight—and showing off his wallet that held pictures of his family. Angelina, Fred, and Roxanne. "Fred's ten, Roxy's six, she'll turn seven in September." TJ smiled at the pictures even as George said, "Budge up, Hermione," and pushed her over so he could sit on the couch between her and the arm. There wasn't much place for her to go without falling into TJ's lap so she tried to stand. Before she could, TJ hooked his hands under her wrists and pulled. She flopped onto her stomach over his lap with a little umph.
"Really Granger? Didn't think you were into that," George teased and smacked her across the arse with his palm. It stung and she yelped before scrambling up and away from them both.
"George!" she said, rubbing her backside against the sting. She knew her face was flushed with embarrassment at his actions.
"What?" he said, grinning. He winked at TJ. "It's fun. That's how Angelina helps when I'm itching to reacquaint myself with the bottom of a bottle."
Hermione might have sputtered but TJ's eyes went wide. "What, really? Spanking helps with cravings?"
"Sit back down," George told her, reaching out to grab her hand. "Your boy's curious." He pulled her into the nonexistent space between them and then proceeded to talk over her objections. "It's more than just spankings. You've heard of BDSM, right? It can be a lifestyle or just bedroom play, but yeah, Angelina's my dom."
* . * . *
Hermione was shocked, overwhelmed and intensely embarrassed by the end of the conversation when Harry called them to dinner. From TJ's wholehearted enthusiasm and focus, it seemed he was much more excited about the prospect. She wasn't sure why she had been included in the conversation in the first place and said as much as they were heading into her dining room where Harry had laid out a beautiful if simple spread.
"Because you're going to be his dom," George answered. "Looks great, mate," he told Harry.
"Umm, what?" She decided she must have misunderstood but went with the change in topic, "Yes, Harry, thank you so much for dinner. Is Ginny—?"
"We sent her and Angelina and the kids to Mum's for dinner, don't worry about it." George waved away her concern. "So," he said, picking up his fork and skewering his first bite. He turned his attention back to TJ. "I know you're interested but we're going to have to wait until the drugs are completely out of your system before I let you two run off without guidance. Eat."
TJ's trembling had lessened while he was focused on George talking but now it had come back. He held his fork but he didn't look particularly hungry. "I'll just... it's better if I don't."
"We'll give you a potion for nausea if you need it. You need something on your stomach. Now eat, Harry's a good cook."
Hermione let her shoulders relax as George continued to take control of the conversation. It confused her when she analysed his behaviour with what he'd revealed and overshared regarding his sex life with Angelina. He wasn't submissive any other time. The conversation must have continued around her as she ate and contemplated where she would start her research. She wanted to make sure whatever George was leading TJ into, it wasn't going to hurt him.
"Earth to Granger," George called to her. "I know you're already thinking about research and what you're going to have to know to get started. Don't worry about it too much. I mean, I've got some books to get you started on the basics but it's something you'll have to work out between the two of you."
"What do you mean between the two of us? I'm not—George this isn't—We're not—" She inhaled to gather her thoughts and tried again. "George, TJ's gay. We're not together. I lack certain anatomical parts—"
"Breasts are awesome, though," TJ interrupted. Hermione flushed again even as George and Harry laughed. "Please Hermione? I'm really interested and—"
"You don't have to fuck each other if you don't want to," George said. "It doesn't even have to be sexual. I mean it is between me and Angelina but... you know, now that I think about it, you might not be the best person for the job."
Hermione huffed and picked up her glass to take a sip of water. "What makes you say that?" she asked, feeling somehow insulted though she wasn't quite sure why when she hadn't particularly liked the idea to begin with.
"Well, with how dominant and in charge you are all the time, you might be more submissive in this sort of situation and two subs aren't going to help for the sort of thing TJ needs. He needs someone to take care of him. Tell him what to do, someone that he can give all control over to and just relax and trust that his dom is going to take care of him and make sure everything is okay. I mean, you might not be able—"
"—I can do it," she said, irritably. He shut his mouth and a smirk formed on his lips as he looked to the other men at the table. Her gaze dropped to that smirk and she knew she'd played right into his trap. "Fuck you, George," she said without heat. She angrily pushed her food around on her plate with her fork while the three of them laughed at her expense.
After their laughter died down, George's face turned serious. "No, but really, I mean it. You might not have what it takes to be a dom. He just needs someone he trusts to do this for him otherwise it won't work. And he came to you today for help."
"I do trust you," TJ said softly. He looked up at Hermione and gave her a small smile. She returned it knowing that she'd give the whole thing her all. She wanted to help him as much as she could.
TJ ended up eating way more than he thought he would. He even offered to do the dishes after dinner. Hermione took the time to do a quick internet search on her mobile to get herself familiar with what cocaine withdrawal would look like. After reading some of the results of her search she realised he was probably going to need someone with him constantly for a little while.
"Harry?" she called as he and George were telling TJ goodnight. "I don't think I'll be going into work for the next week or two. Can you let my secretary know tomorrow morning?"
"Sure, sure. You've got that if-things-are-this-important emergency contact scale with her. Things should be fine. I'll be back by in a few days to check on you." He pulled her into a tight hug. "Text me or send a Patronus if you need me, all right?" he whispered. She nodded.
When George and Harry were gone in a flash of green through the Floo, she turned to TJ. "You know what's coming, right?"
"You mean withdrawal? Yeah. Nightmares, chills, inability to concentrate and a whole lot of sleeping." He inhaled deeply. "Desperate cravings. I don't know where to get any blow here, either. I mean, I'm sure I could find someone but..."
"But you're not going to because you're going to be with me. You're stuck with me for a while, TJ."
He nodded. "I just sort of assumed you had a spare room." He looked a little ashamed as his presumption but Hermione just smiled at him.
"Would it be too forward of me to ask if you'd like to sleep in my bed? I can wake you up from the nightmares and I might have a few potions or spells to ease the symptoms."
He smile was sheepish but he nodded. "I think I'd like that."
* . * . *
The next week and a half was utter hell for both Hermione and TJ. Hermione was exhausted from keeping up with another person when she was so used to only needing to take care of herself. The hardest part was when TJ would start begging, whether for another line of coke or for other things that she couldn't give him, like pain medication.
George had sent along his books and while TJ slept, Hermione read. When he was awake, Hermione encouraged him to express his thoughts and not be ashamed of them. Lots of ashamed murmurs of "not being good enough" and "it would be better for everyone if I just died" followed. She reassured him as best he could.
She was happy to be a witch because she didn't have to worry about razors in her bathroom but she worried about knives in the kitchen. She made sure everything she fed him didn't need a knife to the point of pre-cutting it all. He asked her once if she did that for everyone or if he was a special case. She answered that she didn't have guests often enough and thought he would appreciate it. He gave her a look that said he knew what she was doing but he didn't call her on it.
When he cried about muscle cramps and pain she was able to alleviate some of it with magic. When he wasn't sleeping, he sat on her couch and skipped through his Netflix queue on her laptop. Hermione made him shower regularly—every two days because of the sweating—and she ended up seeing more of his body than she was prepared for when he collapsed from muscle cramps in the shower. She sat in her soaking clothes on the floor of the shower with him while he cried and shivered. She towelled him off as he sat on the lip of her bathtub. He cried harder when his penis stayed flaccid despite her presence and her sodden clothes. She just shushed him as gently as she could and tucked him into cleaned sheets in her bed when she was done. She had read that the inability to get erect was a symptom of withdrawal but she didn't know if he knew that.
Hermione did remember to send a text to Doug from her own mobile several days into her vacation and TJ's withdrawal, reassuring the man that his brother was okay.
Finally, over two weeks after TJ had shown up on her porch he woke up naturally, without a nightmare or chill or cramp the entire night. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. Hopefully, the worst of it was past them now. She had stretched her vacation longer than she should have and even had Harry bring her some of her paperwork to work on while TJ slept.
Hermione was in the kitchen cooking a light breakfast of eggs and potatoes when TJ came downstairs, showered and dressed and smiling. "Good morning," she said to him even as she plated the meal. "How are you feeling?"
"Better," he answered. "Had a boner this morning." The smile on his face was somewhere between ecstatic and naughty and she couldn't help smiling back.
"So it was a very good morning, then."
He glanced down at his plate. "Yeah." There was a pause as they started eating and then he looked back up at her. "Thank you." He took a swallow of water before continuing, "Going through this shit is hard. You made it bearable."
"I'm glad I could help."
They ate in comfortable silence for the rest of the meal, TJ offered to do dishes when they were done. She knew he knew she could wash the dishes with a flick of her wand but for some reason, he seemed to not mind doing them so she let him. She stood by him and dried and put them away. The simple domesticity of it gave her a warm, happy feeling.
"There's something else you can do to help, you know," he said as he washed the last dish. He said it quietly and only glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes.
"What do you mean?"
"I saw the books you were reading. I read a bit over your shoulder when I could concentrate long enough. I want to do some of those things."
Hermione's face felt hot as she remembered some of the things she'd read about. Different types of whips and floggers, handcuffs, orgasm denial. What did he read and did he realise how aroused some of those things had made her? She wasn't sure if she hoped he'd noticed or not. How embarrassing. "I thought that sort of thing would be for when you were stressed and had a craving."
He set the last dish in the drainer instead of handing it to her, he grabbed her hand and tugged her into his space. He turned and pinned her against the sink and counter with his body. He had to hunch a little to press a kiss against her neck. "What if I said I was having a craving now?" he whispered. His proximity and the way he mouthed at the skin of her neck had her remembering how long it had been since she'd been intimate with anyone. Her breath caught as he nipped at her ear. "Come on, Hermione," he wheedled.
He sucked at the skin of her neck and she might have moaned a little. It took more restraint than she thought she had to say, "Stop, TJ." He pulled away and stepped back, biting both lips.
"Sorry," he said, fidgeting for a minute before starting to turn. "I'll just... umm, go watch Netflix or something. Maybe go for a walk or..."
She reached out and caught his elbow to stop him from bolting. "I," she started but she needed to take a deep breath and calm herself before she continued. "I have to go to work later, I just didn't want a visible love bite. I've got something of a reputation to uphold. I didn't mean..." she swallowed and realised she hadn't actually met his gaze and corrected it. "I didn't mean for you to stop completely."
The worry lines around his eyes faded and a smile returned to his mouth. He licked his lips and she couldn't help following the movement with her gaze. His lips were red from his attention to her and his own abuse of them. He hunched a little and moved towards her, slowly so she could tell him to stop or pull away. Then he kissed her. At first, it was a simple little chaste thing but his lips were even softer and gentler than she expected. "Oh," she murmured before he stepped back into her space and opened his mouth, to kiss her more thoroughly. "Mmmm," she vocalised as their tongues met. His kiss was playful and energetic and Hermione entertained the idea of skipping work entirely.
A throat cleared from the doorway into the kitchen and TJ broke the kiss and looked in that direction. Hermione blinked a few times before she turned around to see Ginny leaning against the door frame with her arms cross. The look on her face was smug.
"Another ginger?" TJ asked with a smile.
"Yep, another Weasley," Ginny confirmed. "You've only met one of us so far, haven't you?"
"Yeah, George was cool. How many of there are you?" He hadn't moved out of Hermione's space and the longer he didn't move the more she noticed the hand on her waist and how hot he was next to her.
"I've got four living brothers. You've also met my husband, Harry."
Hermione cleared her throat and stepped back. "Ginny this is TJ, TJ, Ginny Weasley Potter."
"Harry said you needed to go into work today and I was told there might be a babysitter available...?"
TJ smiled and nodded. "How many and how old?"
Ginny returned the smile. "Two boys and a girl. Eleven, nine, and seven. They're going to drive you batty. I have to head to the office to turn in my weekly reports. Are you okay with three kids this age or would you want help? Normally I'd just drop them off with my Mum."
"Mrs Weasley is awesome. She'll probably adopt you." Hermione smiled in reassurance. She knew he was an adult but he was also just coming off withdrawal and she worried he'd slip right back into the drugs. Having Molly watch over him while she was at work sounded like a great idea to her.
He looked nervous even as he looked down at her. "Your ex-husband's mom?"
"Hermione's part of the family. Mum'll love you. She took one look at Harry, scrawny and orphaned and loved him immediately. Mention you've struggled like George? She'd tuck you into the family and smother you with love. Just don't hurt Hermione here and you won't have to worry about the Weasley wrath." Ginny said. "Come on, I'll take you through the Floo, introduce you to my kids and then we'll head on to the Burrow. Plus you're Muggle and Dad'll love you."
"Arthur's not working today?" Hermione asked. She put her arm around TJ's waist and steered him towards Ginny.
She shrugged, "He's semi-retired now anyway and since you've expanded the budget for his department he can take a half day if he wants."
"Well, of course, he can." Before they left, Hermione reassured TJ twice more that he'd be fine with the Weasleys and that she really did need to go to work. When they had gone through the Floo, the house felt dreadfully empty. "What am I getting into?" she asked herself in the silence. She sighed before heading upstairs to dress.
