How to Play Nice by WeasleyForMe
Bill finds out that his new work assignment has him paired with Hermione. Can he learn how to play nice with her? Bill/Hermione
I included a little part in this chapter just for Orange-Coyote!
Bill and Hermione trudged from the Ministry of Magic apparition point to the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, carrying an enlarged cage of pixies between them. The caged crate had been magically stretched to its maximum size to accommodate the fifty-seven Cornish blue pixies they had stunned and captured.
"I didn't think it would be this heavy," Hermione groaned as she upheld her end of the crate. The chattering pixies inside slammed into the bars trying to escape.
"We're almost there. I can carry it the rest of the way," Bill replied, sliding his free hand along the edge of the container until he reached her hand.
She stopped walking for a moment before releasing her grasp. "Bill, we've only just reached the atrium. We aren't even close to the office yet. Are you sure?"
"Positive," he replied, seemingly unfazed by the additional weight he had to carry.
Hermione watched as he kept up with the same pace they had been walking before and spoke evenly as he strode along.
"Now, do we need to fill out any processing forms for these?" he asked glancing down at the carrier.
"Unfortunately yes we do. You know the Ministry doesn't make anything easy," Hermione said with a sigh, holding open the elevator doors for Bill. She pushed the button for level four. "You can just head home for the day if you like. I'll work on the forms and such."
"I'll stay," Bill told her as he turned to gaze down at her. "Don't give me that petulant look! Am I not occasionally worth putting up with?" he asked, lifting the heavy cage a little higher and nudging her shoulder with it.
Hermione giggled and rolled her eyes. "Yes, but only occasionally," she said with a smirk, noticing the way Bill's muscles filled out the sleeve of the garish jumpsuit.
"That would hurt if I didn't know that I'm already becoming one of your favourite two employees."
"I only have two employees," Hermione said flatly, trying to hide her smile.
"Regardless, I'll stick around and help you sort everything out," he concluded as the doors slid open. He just wasn't ready to go home for the evening yet.
As they wound through the confusing corridors of level four, they finally found the office they needed. It was a good thing too; Bill's arms were starting to tire. "Here we are," Hermione said, and Bill set the crate on the floor in the front office. Hermione took the appropriate paperwork from the clerk, and together, she and Bill started to fill everything out at a small table.
After a few minutes of filling out forms and regulatory guide sheets, Hermione closed her eyes and ran her hands through her still unruly hair. Bill was remembering exactly how her small hands felt as they glided through his own hair just a short hour ago. He watched as she tipped her head back, the top buttons of her jumpsuit straining across her breasts as she stretched. "Mmm," she moaned, reaching her arms straight up before relaxing back into her normal seated position. "It's a good thing you're here," she told him, picking up her quill once again.
"It is?" he managed, his voice sounding strained to his own ears.
"I don't fancy filling out all of this on my own after all," she told him with a laugh.
Swallowing hard, Bill nodded and returned her smile, realizing he had barely done anything other than write his name since they sat down; she was too bloody distracting. He sat up straighter in his chair and forced his eyes downward toward the papers.
Hermione looked at him from the corner of her eye. When he wasn't being difficult, he was really quite enjoyable to be around. Fleur must have been mental to let him get away, she thought. Having Bill around all the time would be great. Hermione's mind drifted to thoughts of never having to carry anything heavy or climb onto her kitchen counters to have to reach anything ever again. She looked at his messy hair and grinned; he was easy on the eyes too.
"Hermione, do we meet these requirements?" he suddenly asked, turning his hazel eyes on hers.
"Pardon?" she sputtered, embarrassed to have been caught checking him out.
Bill held out one of the forms for her. "Maybe you should fill that one out, because I'm not sure about the Ministry requirements," he said, handing it to her.
Getting her bearings back, Hermione breezed through the paperwork with Bill and handed everything over to the clerk.
"What's on the agenda for tomorrow?" Bill asked as they made their way back to the atrium to leave for the day.
"More paperwork," she said with a frown. "If you can handle it."
"So no need for this lovely jumpsuit?" he asked, and she just had to laugh.
"Wear whatever you want. Except for the jumpsuit," she told him, crinkling her nose at her own attire. "I've got to run up to my office. Have a great night."
"See you tomorrow," Bill said with a grin as he left for the evening.
Hermione found herself at work again early on Tuesday, and by the time Bill arrived she was already frustrated. He arrived to find her scribbling on some parchment and mumbling to herself.
"You all right?" he asked, and she jumped a little in her seat.
"Yeah, just already annoyed," she muttered. She took a moment to admire how he had dressed in a pair of black trousers and a light green dress shirt unlike his usual jeans and tees.
"Must be, you aren't even listening to the Wireless," he noted, plopping into one of the chairs across the desk from her. "Can I try to help you?"
Hermione slid a stack of parchment across the desk to Bill. "There is a new report we have to fill out when dealing with Muggle affairs. I have to write a few press releases for the Muggle Prime Minister by the end of the day, but they each have this LSM-25 report that goes with them now."
Bill took the pages from her and nodded. "Yep, the LSMs. Been working with these for awhile."
"You have?" Hermione asked, and her mood instantly brightened.
"Sure. Every time a curse breaker visits a Muggle inhabited location site, these need to be in effect," he said, handing the parchments back to her nonchalantly.
Although she hated to admit she needed help, Hermione asked, "Could you explain it to me?"
Bill picked up his chair and carried it over next to Hermione's. "First, you'll need to fill in the incident number right there at the top," he said. His arm rubbed against hers as he showed her where to write, and Hermione felt an electric chill run up her spine.
She bit her lip and scrawled down the numbers.
"Next, we'll go down the form step by step. Section one deals with the charms that you had to use." Bill explained every section to her, answering each question that arose.
By the time she started one of the LSM-25 forms on her own, Dennis had arrived with coffee and doughnuts. By the afternoon, the three of them were crowded around her desk, finishing the press releases.
"This one is finished. You just need to proofread it and sign it," Bill told her. For the third time that day, his skin touched hers and she had to wait a minute for her pulse to calm down. Bill caught her eye and smiled.
"Do you guys think the Prime Minister would use the word 'wonky'?" Dennis asked them in complete seriousness.
Bill and Hermione burst into laughter as Dennis looked between them, still awaiting an answer to his question.
"Dennis, why don't you let me finish that one," Hermione said, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.
Dennis shrugged and handed it across the desk. "I'm going to sort your office memos," he said, disappearing to the front office.
Bill and Hermione continued to work side by side, occasionally sharing a thought or asking a question. By the time she looked at her watch and saw that it was after four o'clock, she threw down her quill.
"I'm going to be late for dinner!" she said, jumping up.
"Dinner?" Bill asked, hoping she wasn't going to see Zacharias again.
"Yeah, I told my parents I would meet them at five thirty. They live in Surrey though, so I've got to get a move on." She dumped some parchments into her bag. "Ready for another field assignment tomorrow?" she asked.
"Whatever you say, boss," he said with a wink, standing and leading the way out of her office.
"Well then, I say tomorrow we are going to get a little dirty. You may even want to wear your jumpsuit," she told him earning a hearty laugh.
"You just can't get enough of me in that jumpsuit, can you?"
Hermione turned slightly pink and brushed past him to get to her parents' house on time. "Good night, Bill," she called, unwilling to comment on his question.
Another day spent working with Hermione was another day Bill went home invigorated. He always left her feeling like he'd spent a day debating with an intellectual equal. She was someone who would keep him on his toes. She was a new challenge.
He had to admit, he was more than a little relieved that her date with Smith had gone so poorly and that she wasn't seeing him again. There was no way he would ever be the sort of man Hermione deserved. She needed someone who would work every day to keep her incredible mind inspired, someone who would make a point to challenge her. If Bill were being honest, he would agree she deserved someone like himself.
He sat in his kitchen, picking at his dinner. More than once while sitting next to her, he let himself touch her. He couldn't help it.
He picked up the photograph of Hermione from his wedding and watched her twirl. Even their arguments at work had started to take on an almost appreciative tone. Frankly, he had gotten to the point where he didn't start the fights with her because he was angry, rather he just wanted to get her flustered. It was almost flirtatious. She would inevitably fight back, invade his personal space and then turn pink. It was the most intimate thing he had done with a woman in a number of months, and it made him want to kiss her.
"What is wrong with you?" he scolded himself aloud, setting down the picture. "You shouldn't be thinking about her this way. You're too old, and she's your boss." He turned the picture over and took his plate to the sink, but he couldn't escape the thought of her.
A cold shower was potentially his only option.
:D I hope you enjoyed it! Things are heating up nicely for them, it seems. Don't forget to review!