Chapter Eight
Scamander Cottage
Hermione hated cabs with a passion. She preferred apparition or Floo than the dirty taxis' she had to take since living with Draco. The one she was in with Joanne smelled distinctly of cigarettes and stale alcohol. She was reluctant to bring her inside of it, but she refused to wait out in the chilly morning for another to come by.
Living with Draco had taken on a different meaning. She put everything on hold, she slept on the couch, and she shared no more kisses. It felt lonely and cold, but it was the best. What if Luna didn't accept?
"Miney, where are we going?"
She smiled down at her and repeated what she told her before they left Draco's flat, "we're going to see a dear friend of mine."
"But who is this friend?"
"Mrs. Scamander. Your dad and I knew her in school. You'll see her soon. We should be there," she said glimpsing out the grimy window of the passing trees. She knew that Luna still lived in her cottage in the woods. Like a fairytale though Luna only saw it as convenient, a closer way to be with the animals she studied on the side, the Muggle ones.
Up a bumpy dirt path not meant for vehicles they went, dust flying up to the windows blocking their view. When the cab halted Hermione grasped Joanne's hand and they went to the yellow stone house.
"Wow," Joanne breathed taking in the blue and gold wildflowers surrounding them in the overgrown grass.
"It's lovely," she agreed unable to put the right kind of emotion in there. She was too nervous. She kept reminding herself that she was seeing her friend, but it had been eight long years since she had. It became less important that Luna accepted her with Draco than it was to just accept her as a friend again. It's not like their first reunion went over so well....
In her fifth year Hermione sat with Ron, Harry, Ginny, Neville, and Looney in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express. In a couple of hours they would be arriving at Hogwarts and she went through another mental checklist of the book she brought in her trunk when Ron broke her concentration.
"Anything good in there," he asked looking at the Quibbler magazine that Harry was inspecting.
"Of course not," Hermione said without thinking, something very odd for her, "the Quibbler's rubbish, everyone knows that."
The flighty look that surrounded Looney like an aura disappeared at once. "Excuse me. My father's the editor."
Shame immersed her. "I - oh. Well... It's got some interesting... I mean it's quite..." She made herself shut up before she dug herself in deeper.
"Uncle Theo could've watched me," Joanne pointed out breaking Hermione out of her revere.
She tightened her hold. "Don't you want to meet my friends?"
"I suppose..."
"Don't worry, you won't be bored. Mrs. Scamander is anything but boring." How true that statement was she couldn't say. Not to Joanne of all people.
Around the side of the house a girl with waist-length dirty blond hair and filfthy overall's came flitting through. She smiled, lightly waving. "Hermione," she greeted in her dreamy voice - dreamy but happy.
Hermione met her halfway and hugged her. It felt good, pieces clicking together - relief. "I hope we haven't disturbed you. I should've sent... A note."
She cocked her head to the side. "You're my friend."
"It's been eight years."
"That doesn't change anything. I'm glad you're here. I've missed you. The Weasley's have too. They ask about you a lot.
Hermione nodded shortly placing a hand on Joanne's head. "This is Joanne."
Luna looked curiously at the girl, and before she could say anything Hermione added, "Malfoy." Recognition brightened in her silver-blue eyes, but otherwise only showed polite interest, the same kind Joanne had for Hermione when they first met.
"Nice to meet you," she greeted her daughter.
Joanne's brows knitted together as if trying to work something out. "Nice to meet you too."
"I have some puppies in the garden, you may go play with them while I talk with Hermione here."
"Sure!" Joanne took a step forward then glanced to Hermione for permission. When she nodded she ran off.
"Puppies," Hermione asked.
"I'm studying their pack habits," Luna explained. "You look good. Better than the last time I saw you. You are with Draco again?"
"I'm not sure," she admitted. "I... I was in a pub on the anniversary and he nearly hit me with his car." Luna didn't gasp, or seemed shocked, just stared at her with curiosity. Hermione liked that.
"Then my house burned down, and I've been staying with him."
"You must have a lot of questions."
"Not really..."
Luna gazed up at the sky her eyes not really seeing it. "Joanne sure is beautiful."
"Like her mother."
"That's nice of you."
"I do have a question, Luna."
"I thought so... What is it?"
"How could you leave?"
She studied her with the first confusion she'd shown. "Why did you?"
"I was being a coward."
"You're not being a coward now." She slid her hand in Hermione's smearing the dirt on her. "I'm sorry for what I did. It was wrong of me. I love Joanne, that's why I'm not there. She was better off with Draco. Two parents should love each other, and I don't love him."
"She still needs you."
"It's too late."
"No it's not. Luna -"
"Please, Hermione," she said unnaturally calm. "I'm not ready to be a mother. I can't be anything that she needs... Not like you. You'd make a lovely mother, Hermione."
That was what she needed to know, but it didn't feel the way she thought it would. She didn't want Luna to give up so easily. "But I'm not her mother."
"You will be. You're fulfilling the role quite nicely."
"I'm just her friend - her father's friend."
"Where is Draco?"
She had a feeling where that was leading. Luna was cornering her in. "At work."
"And Theo?"
"Home."
She kissed her cheek. "I love you, Hermione."
She sighed. "I love you too, Luna."
"I'm thankful that it's you Draco loves, and who Joanne will have as a mother. Mother's are important."
She knew that her mother died when she was nine. It didn't make Luna uncomfortable to talk about it, but to be fair nothing did make her uncomfortable, but it made Hermione so. "Yes..."
"Have you talked to yours?"
"I send cards. I visit on holidays."
"Miney," Joanne yelled from the corner of the house. She ran up in front of her bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Can we get a puppy?"
Hermione laughed. "I think that's something you should discuss with your dad."
"But you live there too!"
"It's not my decision to make, Joanne."
"But -"
"No buts." Hermione ignored the proud twinkle in Luna's eye but was unable to ignore her latest statement.
"I have a puppy that is in need of a good home. His name is Lysander."
Joanne grinned ecstatically at Hermione. "Please, mum?"
It was a blow to her heart, it sent the pieces flying. She blinked several times before she could say anything. "Mum?"
She blushed a furious shade of scarlet that would rival a Weasley, tears shining in her eyes. "Oh... I - I'm..." She shook her head and went running back behind the house.
Luna squeezed her hand. "She's a very emotional child, isn't she? She must get that from Draco."
Hermione was too staggered to laugh at Luna's serious assessment. She hurt Joanne's feelings, granted it was unintentionally, but... She did. A horrible regret filled her. "I didn't expect that..."
"You should talk with her."
"I will, I'll take her home."
"Will you be back?"
She bit her lip hesitantly. Did she want to come back? Yes, she did. "I'm sorry for leaving."
"You were upset. We all handle grief differently."
"I handled it wrong."
"Yes. It wasn't the best way."
Another thing she loved about Luna, what Harry had once called embarrassing honesty, she thought was plain truthfulness. "Will you ever tell Joanne the truth?"
"One day. But I'll never be a mother to her. It's odd," she mused, "it was like fate was snagged when Harry and Ron died. When you left I was in your place for one night. Fate brought you back, and Joanne's turned to be my gift to you."
That was an interesting way to think of it. She wasn't sure she agreed though. It felt more like fate was being a cruel harpy. "I best go fetch Joanne and leave. Would you like to see her again?"
Luna nodded wistfully. "It will be nice to see her as your friend."
"I've missed you."
"Don't go so far away."
"I won't," she promised and turned to walk to the garden.
It was overgrown like the rest of the Scamander land nearly hiding Joanne in its mass. It did hide the small black Chihuahua with a small white patch on its chest. Hermione didn't notice it in her lap until she was beside her, and she nearly laughed. Packing habits among Chihuahaua's.
"Joanne? Are you ready to go home?"
She didn't look up or answer but she got to her feet setting the puppy gently on the ground. Immediately it began to scratch her leg eager to be held again.
"Do you want to talk?"
She shook her head solemnly.
"I think we should."
She shook her head again, and Hermione didn't press her the entire way to Draco's flat. She let her go off to shut herself in her room without a word.
Saying that Hermione felt sad was an understatement. She had hurt the poor girl. She should have just answered in an off-hand tone. But of course she couldn't pull that off, she was a terrible liar, and Joanne was very perceptive.
It was ironic that in her first year at Hogwarts in less than thirty minutes she learned how to fix a broken object. Too bad she couldn't fix Joanne's bruised feelings. If it were possible she would've fixed hers a long time ago.
She took out the ingredients to make dinner barely paying any attention to what she was doing. It wasn't until she realized she was about to bake raw hamburger that she began to start over. That was when Draco walked in. She only paused when his hand was on her shoulder.
"How did it go?"
She sniffed inaudibly and he instantly encased her in his arms. "Shhh, love, tell me what happened."
"Joanne called me mum."
He chuckled like she told a joke. "That's not so bad."
"I didn't know what to say... I told her I wasn't."
He stiffened. "Why did you do that?"
"Because I'm not, Draco!"
"I thought we talked about this? You're as good as her mother."
"No I'm not. I can't be... Her. How can she pretend that she doesn't have a daughter?"
Draco shrugged. "It's her choice. Anyhow, it's not hers that matters here. It's yours. Do you want Joanne for your own?"
She glimpsed to his eyes, soft and intense. "Yes."
"Then marry me, and adopt her. There's not a reason to wait anymore, Joanne obviously loves you. She's ready for this."
"Am I?"
"You tell me," he whispered before he kissed her.
Hermione inhaled his musky scent, the front of his shirt bunched in her fists bringing him closer. Air. Kissing him was pure air. He was unrelenting, pushy, and gentle, and she couldn't get enough of him. But she had to pull back.
"I have to talk with her." Whether Joanne wanted to or not she decided.
"We will."
"I'm the one that made her upset."
"I want to be there for her reaction when we tell her we're engaged."
Hermione smiled. "Okay."
She led the way to Joanne's bedroom. She cracked the door open peeping inside. The girl was sitting on her bed idly twirling her shoelace around her finger. Hermione and Draco walked in.
"Joanne," Hermione said sitting opposite of her. "I think we should talk now."
"I don't want to." She breathed out shakily. "You don't want to be my mum. You don't want me."
"That is not true." She spoke each word forcefully causing Joanne to look through her long lashes at her. "I'm sorry that you think that way, but it's simply not true. I do want you, Joanne. I'd love to be your mum."
"You do?"
"Certainly."
Draco sat beside Hermione wrapping his arm around her waist. "How would you feel if she was? Legally?"
"Really?"
"What do you say to me marrying her, and her adopting you?"
Joanne squealed jumping up on her bed and throwing herself at Hermione who caught her quickly before she fell. "Yes!"
"Then it's settled," Draco laughed as their daughter leapt to the side and hugged him too.
Their daughter... Hermione liked the sound of that. No, she loved the sound of that. She was getting her family. Maybe Luna was right... Maybe it all came down to fate cleaning up the mess it made.
A/N: There'll be sixteen chapters.