A/N: Ahh, so sorry! Anyway, I'd like to thank everyone for the favorites/alerts. It really means a lot to me!
Mummification: Thank you for the review! I'm glad you're still enjoying the story!
xOrax: Haha, sorry! I normally hate cliffhangers, but I couldn't resist it this time! I hope you like this chapter! :)
Ok, now onto the story! Enjoy!
~Chapter 25~
Previously: "Don't say anything, just grab some ornaments and let's gets our decorating on," Santana told her playfully. She did as she was told and couldn't help but gaze affectionately at the other girl. Once the tree was decorated and the gifts were passed out, everyone sat by the fire debating over which Christmas special they were going to watch. While Rachel was arguing strongly for White Christmas, Hermione discreetly moved to sit next to Santana, who glanced around the room to make sure no one was paying attention before putting her arm around the wavy-haired brunette. The older girl smiled and rested her head on the raven-haired girl's shoulder. They sat there quietly as the rest of the glee club continued to bicker and couldn't help but chuckle when Brittany decided she'd had enough and skillfully snatched the remote out of the tiny brunette's hand. The blonde dancer grinned triumphantly as she turned on her movie of choice. As the opening music began, the entire group fell silent as It's Christmastime, Charlie Brown started to play. Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
"Hey, Mia, wanna get that?" Will suggested with a knowing smile. The British girl groaned and removed herself from the Latina's protective embrace. She dragged her feet to the door and swung it open. As soon as she saw what was on the other side of the door, her jaw dropped.
"Harry! What are you doing here?" Hermione screamed, throwing her arms around her bespectacled friend.
"Hey, Mione," he smiled lifting up the girl and spinning her around. "There's someone else to here see you," he sang playfully. A figure suddenly appeared from behind him.
"Ginny!" She squealed, embracing the younger girl. "How are you?"
"I'm doing well, missing you lots of course. I, um, started dating Neville actually."
"Did you really? That's great! Speaking of dating. How're you and Luna doing?" The wavy-haired brunette directed at Harry.
"We're doing very well, we're going on three years," he beamed, turning a light shade of pink. "Everyone sends their love and we do come bearing gifts, but I recommend that you open them once all these people leave," he informed her with a chuckle.
"Oh! I forgot about them. Come on then." She pulled her friends into the other room. "Harry, Gin, this is Rachel, Finn, Puck, Brittany, Mercedes, Sam, Quinn, Tina, Mike, Artie, and Santana. They are all my fellow glee club member. Oh, and the two adults quietly bickering over there are Sue Sylvester and my uncle, Will. Guys, these are my oldest and dearest friends, Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley."
"It's nice to meet all of you. We've heard a lot about you. Which one of you is Santana again?" Harry questioned with a smirk, earning a slap upside the head from a blushing Hermione. The Latina slowly raised her hand and titled her head as she stared at the flustered brunette. "Ooh, very nice, Mione," he teased with a wink.
"Oh, shut up, you. I don't mean to be rude, guys, but these two and I have a lot of catching up to do. We'll join you in a few minutes." The trio sat at the table in the next room and began talking in hushed whispers. "So, um, how's Ronald?"
"He still refuses to get his head out of his ass and nobody really speaks to him unless they have to," Ginny replied nonchalantly. "Everyone hates him for what he did to you."
"Well, there was a reason why he was the only person who didn't know about my sexuality for a long time," Hermione muttered with a small frown.
"Yeah, imagine if he knew about you and Fleur in fourth year," Harry mused out loud, trying not to laugh at his best friend's embarrassment.
"Or you and Cho fifth year."
"Or you and Ginny the summer after fifth year."
"Or you and Daphne in sixth year."
"Oh, and we can't forget about those Muggle twins you hooked up with before you left to go hunt down Horcruxes."
"Bloody hell, I'm awful," the former prefect groaned, hitting her head on the table.
"No, you're not, Mione. You were very chivalrous in all of your 'relationships'. I mean, that was one of the reasons why you were so popular with the ladies," snickered The-Boy-Who-Lived.
"Yeah, I would know from experience," the red-haired girl teased.
"Ok, can we please stop talking about my past sexual experiences?" She shrieked loud enough for the group in the next room to hear. She turned bright red and began grumbling angrily to herself causing her fellow Gryffindors to snicker.
"Oh! We've got good news! We caught Dolohov and Greyback!" Harry informed her happily.
"That's great! What about Bellatrix?" Hermione questioned eagerly.
"Um, about that, Mione…she was recently spotted in Washington D.C.," the green-eyed boy muttered sadly.
"Are—are you serious?" The brown-eyed witch stood up and began pacing. "No, no, no, no, no. This can't be happening. I was supposed to be safe here! What about all my friends? She wouldn't even give them a second thought before she—"
"Um, Hermione, is everything ok?" Santana questioned warily before stepping into the room.
"Yeah, I'm fine." The raven-haired Cheerio gave her a disbelieving look causing Hermione to sigh and approach her. "Really, San. I promise you I'm fine. Just got some unexpected news. Go hang out with the others. I'll be back soon." The younger girl grasped the taller girl's hand before nodding slowly and disappearing back into the other room with a sigh.
"She really cares about you, you know," Ginny said to her gently.
"What? Oh, yeah, she's a great friend," the wavy-haired brunette responded distractedly.
"Oh, honestly, Hermione. You can see it in both your guys' eyes. You both clearly want to be more than friends," the redhead spoke matter-of-factly with a roll of her eyes.
"Yeah, Mione, you always deny your true feelings when you're getting close to someone," Harry interjected.
"I thought I was supposed to be the know-it-all," she replied with a playful glare.
"Don't worry, you will always be our favorite know-it-all," the dark-haired boy chuckled earning a slap to the head as the three Gryffindors burst out into uncontrollable laughter.
"Merlin, I've missed this," the brown-eyed girl told them truthfully after they fell into a comfortable silence.
"We've missed you too. I really don't want to leave tomorrow afternoon," the youngest Weasley mumbled sadly.
"Will you guys come see us perform at Regionals?" The older girl pleaded with wide eyes.
"Of course we will, Mione. We'd love to see you perform. Just let us know when it is and we'll literally pop right over," her best friend assured her, causing the brunette to grin.
"We should probably go back into the other room. I don't want to be a terrible hostess," she said to her friends with a bashful grin.
"Uh huh, sure. Harry and I both know you just wanna get back to your fiery Latina," taunted the red-haired girl. The former prefect rolled her eyes and pulled her two friends into the next room. When Santana saw her, she met her eyes, smiled slightly, and motioned for her to sit back down next to her. Hermione returned her smile with a blush before walking towards her, much to the amusement of her fellow wizards.
"Wait, Mione, why don't you sit on Santana's lap, so Harry and I can squeeze onto the couch too," Ginny suggested with a smirk, earning a glare from her former lover. The Latina all too eagerly pulled her British friend into her lap and wrapped her arms around the older girl.
"See, Mione? Santana doesn't mind," Harry joked as his friend turned an even darker shade of pink.
The trio hung out with the New Directions for several more hours until Finn pointed out that they all should get home before their parents got upset. Everyone hugged Hermione goodbye and left until only the dark-haired Cheerio remained.
"I guess I should get going," she told the British girl dejectedly as she pulled back from their embrace. She looked up at the ceiling with a sigh and tilted her head. "Mistletoe? Where the hell did that come from?" Hermione spun around to glare at her snickering friends as Harry quickly hid his wand.
"Um, we don't have to—" the slightly taller girl began.
"No, I want to. I mean, you do still owe me that kiss from Sectionals, Granger," the Latina smirked, stepping closer to the older girl. They leaned closer and closer and just when their lips were about to touch…
"Lopez! Get moving! I don't care if Christmas is tomorrow! We have Cheerios practice at dawn!" The voice of the cheerleading coach rang out, startling the two girls and causing them to jump away from each other. Santana began growling angrily to herself in Spanish, earning a giggle from the wavy-haired brunette.
"I'll see you soon, Santana," the other girl promised before quickly kissing the other girl's cheek. The cheerleader froze and grinned goofily before waving and hurrying after Coach Sylvester.
"Somebody's got it bad," Ginny called out in a singsong tone.
"Oi. Quiet you. Leave the singing to the glee club," she retorted good-humoredly. "C'mon, let's get to bed," she murmured with a small frown.
"Your nightmares haven't gotten better, have they?" Harry inquired sadly. The brown-eyed witch shook her head glumly as she led her friends to her bedroom and cast a spell at the bed to make it larger. The two Quidditch players looked at her, worry clearly etched on their faces. Hermione ignored their stares and plopped down on the bed. Harry and Ginny climbed onto the bed and settled on either side of her, each throwing an arm around her. The three Gryffindors fell asleep quickly unaware that Will was watching them with tears in his eyes, happy that his niece had found such great friends in the wizarding world.
The next morning, Harry and Ginny were awoken by delicious smells coming from the kitchen. They climbed out of bed and groggily made their way to the other room only to find Hermione and Will singing and dancing while preparing breakfast. The two Gryffindors glanced at each other and couldn't help but smile at their friend's carefree attitude. As the relatives spun around and noticed the others' presence, Hermione grabbed Harry while Will took Ginny's hand and they all began to dance together.
"It's great to see you singing and dancing again, Mione," Harry informed her happily as the four finally sat down to eat.
"Yeah, well, I have the people I've met here to thank for that," Hermione responded shyly.
"So I guess there's no way for us to convince you to come back, is there?" Ginny questioned with a sad smile.
"Being here is good for me. I miss you all more than anything, but right now, this is where I need to be. Will is my only family now and I want to spend as much time with him as possible. Besides, he'd be completely lost without me here," smirked the wavy-haired brunette.
"Hey!" Will cried out indignantly as he flung some confectionary sugar at his niece.
"Oh, you did not just do that," growled the former prefect as she grabbed a big handful of eggs before hurling it at the hazel-eyed man who ducked out of the way causing Harry to be the victim instead. The bespectacled boy playfully glared at his best friends before a small food fight broke out between the four. Several minutes later, everyone collapsed to the ground as laughter rang out in the small room.
"Look at this mess!" The choir director called out between laughs.
"Oh, don't worry about that, William," Hermione assured him with a chuckle as she pulled out her wand and waved it to clean up the mess.
"I love magic," the curly-haired man said with wide eyes.
"So do we," the three Gryffindors replied simultaneously with wicked grins as they pointed their wands at him.
"Ok, well, before you three turn my head into a pumpkin or something, why don't we go exchange gifts?" Will suggested before hurrying into the living room.
"I really like him, Mione," Harry informed her genuinely as Ginny nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, he's great, isn't he? I don't know what I'd do without him. He's so much like Mum and he was of course the one who got me into music in the first place," beamed the brown-eyed girl as she and her friends joined Will in the other room.
Several hours had passed and before they knew it, it was time for Harry and Ginny to apparate back to the Burrow.
"I really wish we didn't have to go," Ginny pouted as she embraced her former lover.
"I know, Gin, but I'll see you guys in a couple months at Regionals," Hermione informed her with a large grin before kissing the taller girl on the cheek and turning to her best friend. "Harry…" she murmured softly as a tear slid down her face. The former Gryffindor seeker wrapped his arms around her.
"Promise me you'll be safe, Mione. The Order and the Aurors are looking for Bellatrix, but I want you to promise me that you'll be ok," the raven-haired boy told her.
"I promise, Harry. You be safe too though, ok? You always have a knack of getting into trouble," she teased as he kissed her forehead.
"Yeah, yeah. Love you, Mione," he muttered before pulling away.
"Love you too. Tell Luna, Neville, and the rest of the Weasleys I say 'hello' and 'thank you', ok?"
"Yes, ma'am," the Quidditch players replied with a mock salute before disappearing with a pop. Hermione stared at the spot where her friends had just been until she felt an arm wrap around her shoulder.
"You ok, Mia?"
"Yeah, Will," she responded before turning around to hug him. "Thank you for calling them. Thank you so much. You really are the best uncle in the world."
"It was nothing, sweetheart. I only wish I could do more," the hazel-eyed man spoke sadly.
"Will, you've done so much for me over the past couple of months and you made this Christmas so much easier on me, so thank you for that. I don't think you know how much I love you," the British girl informed him with a watery smile.
"I love you too, Mia. And I hate for ruining the mood, but we need to get going if we're going to get to the Hummels in time for dinner!" Will said frantically as he began rushing around the apartment causing his niece to giggle. As Hermione fastened her coat and grabbed her hat, she felt her phone buzz. She took it out and read the message.
"Merry Christmas, princesa! Want to go ice skating tomorrow? :)"
"Happy Christmas to you as well, San! And I'd love to, but don't you have Cheerios practice? Won't Sue kill you?" She typed out her reply, chuckling to herself.
"Yeah, probably, but you are so worth that risk ;)," the latest message from the Latina read and Hermione couldn't help but think that maybe things were finally going to be okay again.
A/N, part II: Please don't hate me for denying them yet another kiss. There will be one soon, I promise! :)