Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

Chapter 22

Hermione was waiting for Harry's call since what it seemed to be forever. Her fingers were nervously taping over her desk, and her eyes were fixed on her phone. She started to wonder whether she had asked him or not to call her after his appointment with Susan, and right now, she wasn't sure of anything. Maybe that Harry forgot about their discussion about it too, everything was possible.

The young woman didn't know if she was impatient or terrified. She was involved in this situation, and everything that concerned Harry concerned her right now, in a way. Of course, everything between Ginny and Harry stayed between the two of them, along with their relationship with their son, but she was a part of Harry's life right now, and she had the right to know what was happening.

During a second or two, Hermione thought about taking her phone and giving him a call, just to be sure that he hadn't forgotten. But at the last moment, she stopped, furious about herself. Maybe that Harry needed some time to think about it, maybe that he was with James and wanted to be alone with his son, maybe... Maybe the news weren't that good. She bit her lower lip, looking defeated. What if Harry decided to stop seeing her to protect James? She had thought about it, and quite frankly, it scared her. She knew that she would accept anything to speed up the process if it was what Harry truly wanted, but inside, she just wanted to continue to be with him, as every normal couple. It was quite selfish coming from her, she wasn't blind to this fact, and it was so out of character given all the things, all the sacrifices that she had had to do in the past, but for once, Hermione just wanted her fair share of happiness; she just desperately wanted to be like everyone, to have a boyfriend, to be able to take someone's hand in the street without being afraid of what the consequences could be.

For all these reasons, when the phone rang, Hermione jumped. Out of fear? Out of excitement? Out of surprise? All of these.

But mostly out of expectation.

XxX

"Hermione..."

Harry's voice was almost inaudible, and Hermione frowned.

"Yes. I don't hear you well, Harry, if you c–"

"Is it better now?," he went on, much louder this time.

"Yes, perfect," she smiled, not paying attention to the fact that he couldn't see her from where he was.

"Alright... How are you?"

"I'm not sure... Let's say that I had better days in the past," she chuckled. "But you aren't calling me to ask me if I'm fine or not, are you?"

"No, of course," she heard him breathe. "I was with Susan today."

"I know," Hermione managed to say, doing her best to keep her voice steady and clear. "How was it?"

"Short, but enriching. I've already planned another appointment with her to be honest."

"Oh. I guess that it is going to be a long road then."

"Sure it is," Harry sighed. "Look, do you want to come over tonight? This way, we'll have the opportunity to talk further about it."

"Usually, when a man wants to see his girlfriend to have a discussion, it's not a good sign," Hermione nervously laughed.

"We're not like other couples, Hermione, you know that."

She remained silent, but eventually, she sighed.

"Give me half an hour, alright? I'll be at your house for dinner if you don't mind."

"Perfect, I'm waiting for you then. And... Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

These three words were enough to take all of her stress away. Hermione closed her eyes, a smile on her face, and nodded slowly.

"I love you too, Harry. I see you soon."

XxX

When she arrived in front of the door of Harry's house, Hermione took a deep breath before raising her hand to knock. But before she had the time to knock, the entrance door flung open, leaving her speechless. Harry was already at the door, his glasses on.

"How did you...?"

"You are always very punctual," he explained with a grin.

"And what are the glasses for?"

"Bad headache today...," Harry went on before letting her enter. "It's better with the glasses on."

Hermione nodded and got rid of her coat, leaving it hanging next to the door.

"James is already asleep," the green-eyed wizard explained while heading to the living room. "Do you want something to drink?"

"A glass of water is fine, thank you."

For the first time in weeks – not counting the "Molly Weasley's incident" –, Hermione felt quite uncomfortable in Harry's house, despite the fact that she had spent many nights here. She felt like a stranger, but it was mostly because she didn't know what the news were regarding Harry's relationship with Ginny.

"Dinner will be ready in a few moments," Harry stated before handing her a glass of water and taking a seat next to her on the couch. "But before, I want to talk to you about my divorce."

"Alright," Hermione just answered, her voice not as steady as before. "Go ahead, I'm all ears."

"Things are more complicated than I thought they would be. Divorce, in the Wizarding World, is not as common as I thought."

"I know," Hermione gently cut him off.

"You know?"

"Well... I read a lot, you know that," she explained with a smile.

"Yes, sure," Harry shook his head, laughing. "Anyway... Susan explained that since Ginny and I have James, things will be more difficult. Maybe... Maybe," he repeated, as if he wanted to make sure that she heard him the first time, "that we will have to live together for a while."

Hermione blinked several times, not sure if what she had heard was true or not.

"Excuse me?"

"I know, it's insane!," Harry shouted. "But Susan told me that it's just a possibility, and–"

"Why do they want us to live together?"

Harry stayed still for a second, but eventually, he shook his head.

"No...," he began, his voice softer than prior. "No, they don't want us to live together. I am talking about Ginny and I."

"Oh... Oh."

Feeling that her hand was slightly shaking, Hermione drank a bit of water and put her glass on the coffee table.

"I didn't expect that," she muttered, looking at her knees. "I mean... Yes, I read it somewhere, of course I did, but... I don't know, I didn't think that... I just..."

"It was a surprise for me too, Hermione," Harry interrupted her, taking her cold hands into his. "But, as I said, it's just a possibility, nothing is sure yet."

"I remember about this," Hermione went on, not paying attention to what Harry was saying. "I read it in a law book, and..."

She frowned, as if she was trying to focus on her memories.

"Yes," she went on. "It's a very old law, and I remember reading that not a lot of people use it nowadays, they just went through a divorce in mutual agreement. But if one of the person involved in the relationship doesn't want to divorce, they can ask for... trying again, in a way," she concluded in a whisper. "It can work, I read this case ab–"

"Don't," Harry interrupted her, before taking her into his arms, gently caressing her hair. "Please, don't talk about this."

"It's a possibility," she muttered in the crook of his neck, her voice muffled by his skin against her face.

"It's not a possibility."

Hermione got free from his embrace, and took a deep breath to retain her tears.

"You have to do what is necessary for James."

"And that is why I plan to divorce from his mother," Harry retorted. "I know that you still have doubts about your legitimacy to be a part of my life, a part of James' life, but you have to understand that you didn't steal someone place, Hermione. She decided to leave."

"And what if she decides to come back?"

"I'm not going to put you aside, I promise," Harry whispered next to her lips.

"You have a family with her," Hermione insisted, trying not to be disturbed by his closeness.

"And I want to have a family with you," he retorted. "Is it so hard to understand?"

"Yes," she admitted before being cutting off by Harry's lips on hers.

Her protestations died with this kiss, and Hermione eagerly answered to him, opening her mouth to give him the opportunity to deepen this proof of his sincerity.

"I took some time to see it," Harry continued after a long moment, "but you have always been one of the most important people in my life, Hermione. You were before, of course, but as a friend. Now that I have you in my life as a girlfriend, and maybe more one day, I don't plan to let you go. I don't want you to believe that you're a distraction; you're so much more than that to my eyes. I don't want to wait until James is seventeen to be with you, I want you, and I want you now."

This time, Hermione was the one who interrupted him with a kiss.

"I want you too, Harry," she muttered, smiling when she felt his hands under her shirt. "Wait, wait... We have to talk abo–"

"Later," Harry whispered, his hands now searching for her bra. "Later..."

Duuuh, I suck so much when it comes to write these days, it's unbelievable. I have sooo much things to do, I had my integration weekend, a lot of work to do, and I also need to write, damnit. It doesn't prevent me from having a lot of ideas for my stories, thank for small miracles (even if it doesn't help me in the end, duh).

I'm so sooorryyy if I didn't have the time - or the strength since I'm sick as hell since the end of last week - to answer to your reviews, but please know that I'm really happy to know that you're still with me even if I don't post as regularly as before.

I'm doing my best to make this - and the upcoming ones - chapter not so boring, but well, you know, when there is no drama, it's boring anyway. Fluuuff everywhere, a bit of angst, but mostly, the upcoming chapters won't be too dramatic.

See you soon? I hope so! :)