Chapter 3- Molly
Hermione settled into her new routine. She had always enjoyed learning and she loved school. She made some very good friends who seemed to genuinely care about her, not who she was, or what she did, although they did ask a lot of questions about the war and about Harry Potter. She told them that Harry doesn't like a lot of fanfare but that she would arrange for them to meet Harry. Her classes were tough, but she thrived on them. She always loved a challenge.
She had only been here for a short time when Harry and Ron came to visit her. They saw that she was lonely, so they came the next weekend too. This helped because Hermione thought the weekends would be the loneliest for her. They kept her up to date on everything that was happening back home.
On the second visit they went out for a bite to eat, and when they got back to Hermione's house, they were sitting on the sofa talking.
"Hermione, I saw Fred last week. It was the first time I'd seen him since you told us about the baby and I punched him in the mouth. It looked like he thought I was going to hit him again."
"I didn't know about that. Why did you do that? I told you to leave it be."
"I couldn't help it. We were sitting there and when he walked up to our table like he had something to say and sat down with us I punched him. He fell off the stool he sat on and got up confused. He demanded to know what I hit him for and he threatened to beat me. I just told him it was one that I owed him for. I guess he assumed it was from when we were kids and he tormented me because he just told me not to do it again."
"Oh, Ron. You didn't need to do that especially when you hit him once before when I first left. I don't want you fighting with your brother."
"He deserved it and more. I would do it again, too."
"I would, too. Hermione." Harry added.
"Please don't." She pleaded with them. "I don't want your relationship with Fred to suffer because of me. Please promise me it won't happen again."
"I can't make that promise." Ron told her. "I will try, but I can't guarantee anything."
"I'll take that as you won't promise, but please try." She told him. "By the way, I've got some good news for you."
"Oh ya, what is it?"
"I talked with your parents. I told them everything. They tried to get me to tell Fred, but I made them promise they won't say anything. Your Mum said she will come stay here with me a little bit now and then and she'll be here to help me when the baby is born."
"That's great. Mum loves you like a daughter, so I know she would love help you out."
"She's going to come the week after next or a few days and help me get some clothes together, which is totally unnecessary since I know how to transfigure clothes, but she seemed to want to do it so I acted like I needed her to."
"You have such a good heart. You'll make her feel needed again. I think she was a little lost when we all left home."
"Oh, and Harry?" She asked.
"Yes?" He asked back.
"A few of my friends at school want to meet you so bad, so I told them next time you are here I would arrange it. I know you are going to be mad because you don't like all the drama."
"I love it." Ron said.
"Well, I don't. You can just tell them that you were wrong to promise something you can't produce for them." Harry said.
"It doesn't have to be this week. It can be on another visit." Hermione told Harry, then looked at Ron's amused face and told him, "And you need to stop. No wonder he won't do it, with you carrying on like that."
"Too bad I won't be here to see it. The Auror office is going to do some training and we got separate weeks. I'm off four days this week, while he is in training, and he's off four days next week, while I am in training. So, I'll come over Friday afternoon this week."
"And I'll come Friday afternoon next week." Harry told her.
"What kind of training?"
"Just routine things. They want to keep us on our toes."
"I would love the company."
It seemed to Hermione that she had more company than she ever did in her life. Ron and Harry left Sunday afternoon and all too soon it was Friday and Ron was back.
They enjoyed each other's company and Hermione explained some of her studies to Ron. Since he was an Auror, it could help him to know some deeper meaning behind the laws. He seemed to genuinely like learning this stuff.
"I've been thinking of taking some schooling to advance myself in the Auror program. Maybe you can study with me?"
"I'd love to Ron. You find out what you need and we can go get the books and study here."
"But only when we are alone. I don't want anyone to know. At least for now."
"Ok, I promise. Anyway, I think Harry will visit a little less now that Ginny is no longer playing Quidditch."
Ron left Sunday afternoon and Molly arrived Monday afternoon.
Hermione had classes in the mornings, but her afternoons were usually spent studying or working on the book, which was coming along nicely, so she took a little break from her afternoon studying, since she was way ahead of the class anyway, so she could enjoy Molly's visit.
The first afternoon they went shopping. "Mrs. Weasley, I have to tell you that I thought you were going to show me how to transfigure my clothes so they fit better. I never knew there were special clothes for pregnant women. The outfits you helped me pick out are so comfortable. Thank-you."
"No need to thank me Dear. These clothes will grow along with you and they will cover the pregnancy. No one at your school will know unless you tell them. If you get tired of them, we can go get you some more. And I think it's time you stopped calling me Mrs. Weasley."
"What would you like me to call you? She asked Mrs. Weasley, "Now that we have gotten me some new clothes, let's get you some." Hermione told her.
"You can call me Molly or Mum, or whatever you are comfortable calling me. After the baby is born you will start calling me Grandmum in front of the baby. It's how it always goes." She told Hermione with a laugh. "There's no need for us to get me clothes."
"Yes, there is. You shouldn't have to pack clothes each time you come over. I want you set up a room at my house for you to feel free to come and go as often as you'd like. You won't ever need to pack any clothes. If you feel like coming over, just come on."
"I don't know what to say."
"No need to say anything, let's just get you some clothes so the closet in your room won't be so bare, and you need a couple Muggle outfits in case we go out to the Muggle stores or something."
The next day when Hermione came home from work, she found that Molly had been cooking. The meal was so delicious. Hermione knew Molly was a great cook, but she outdid herself this time and Hermione told her so.
"Thank-you Dear. Cooking is something I learned as a young mother. I had too many children to go out to dinner and I like cooking, so this is mainly self-taught out of necessity."
"I hope to one day learn to cook something half as good as this. Maybe you could give me some pointers?"
"I'd be happy to."
"The Healer told me to keep up my exercise, so I was thinking we could go to the botanical gardens. Would you like that? Then this evening we could heat up some of this left-over food."
"Yes, I would love to go. Let me go get a fresh dress on. I have so many new ones it will be hard to choose."
Every path through the botanical garden brought new and beautiful flowers forward. The breeze through the trees felt wonderful and it carried the scent of the flowers they were nearest too.
"I don't know that I have ever seen such beauty in my life." Hermione told Molly.
"Nor have I, Dear. I was thinking that I could make a flower garden by the lake. It wouldn't be anything as nice as this, but it would be something I could enjoy."
"You could have a sitting area there and one of them stone fireplaces that could envelope you with heat on a cool night. It would be a great place to sit and read a good book."
"Or do a little sewing. I think I will do that. Maybe you could come visit and enjoy it with me?"
"You know I couldn't do that. What if I ran into Fred?"
"You never know what the future holds. I'm hoping this will work out for you two. In fact, I saw him last week and he looked a little down. I asked him if he was alright and he said he was, but George said he was lonely."
"Please don't do that."
"I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable. I promised you I would not say anything to anyone, and I won't, but I can tell you my thoughts and observations, can't I?"
"Yes. I'm sorry. It's just that this is so hard for me. I feel like I should at least tell him. Give him a chance to decide. It's not right him not knowing his baby. But if he decided to stay with me, I would never know whether his decision was because of me or the baby, and I can't live my entire life thinking it was because of my baby."
"You know Dear, that there are some families that start out just like this and they grow to love each other. I don't know if you know it, but the marriages in the magical world are not like the ones in the Muggle world. The Muggles change partners all the time, we don't."
"I just don't know. I'll think on it and see what I come up with. That's all I can promise, right now." Hermione told her as walked through the beautiful flowers.
"You do that Dear, and we can discuss it more when you are ready. What do you want to do tomorrow before I leave?"
"I don't know. Harry said he will be coming tomorrow after he gets off of work, instead of Friday, so maybe I can make you both dinner before you leave. Unless you have something else in mind? It won't be anything as good as you are used to, but at least you can take the afternoon off to relax."
"That will be fine. I'd like that."
The next evening after Molly left, Hermione told Harry, "Do you think that you would stop by to meet my classmates."
"Hermione, why? I don't want to."
"Everyone wants to meet the famous Harry Potter. But I promise I'll make it quick. If you could stop by Monday when classes are ending, I can introduce you and then tell them we have to go."
"Ok. I don't want to, but I'll do it." He told her. "Now come on, get up."
"Why?"
"Molly told me that you are supposed to exercise, so are going to go on a bicycle ride."
"Bicycle?"
"Yes, you were raised by Muggles, so I assume you know how to ride? I'd rather ride my broom, but I know how you hate brooms."
"Of course, I know how to ride, but we don't have bikes."
"Are you a witch or what?"
"Sometimes I forget simple things. But it will be dark soon, maybe we should go tomorrow."
"We'll only go for a short ride today."
That week was a very good week for Hermione. She was busy the entire week, but now it was time for her to get back into her studies, which wasn't hard as she was still ahead of her classmates.
Hermione was excited for Molly's next visit, but she didn't know when it would be. Hermione had a surprise for her. Hermione had put in a request with the Magical Transportation Department to get a Portkey set up for them to travel between each other's homes without having to put in request each time. Since they were in separate countries, they had to do paperwork each time. Hermione thought Minister Schacklebolt and Minister Schmidt, the Romanian Minister, had something to do with it going through so quickly, as they both had to sign off on it.
The next weekend Hermione was alone. It was her first weekend alone since she moved in. On Saturday she studied a little and went on a walk. She found a little bookstore near her house. She browsed through the books and ended up buying three of them, but when she got home, she did not feel like reading, which was strange in itself. She finished the book she was working on and took it to the Flammel's so they could go over it. If they approve it the next step would be to take it to a publisher. When she got back, she decided to do a little studying. She didn't want to waste her weekend.
By Monday her melancholy mood was gone and she was back to studying with gusto. She assumed Ron and Harry would be coming on Friday, but was surprised when Molly and Arthur showed up.
"Ron and Harry could not come so Arthur and I have come to keep you company." Molly told her.
"I don't expect someone to come every weekend. I know you have lives that you need to take care of."
"Nonsense, Dear. We don't mind. And I wanted Arthur to see the gardens so he can see what is inspiring me."
"Why don't we go tomorrow afternoon, so we can be there when it gets dark? I hear they are lit up like a fairyland at night."
"That will be lovely."
"Have you eaten? I ate a little while ago, but I can fix you something. "
"We ate dinner earlier, and were just talking about the garden when we got Ron's owl telling us he couldn't make it, so we decided to go to the Ministry to get a portkey and come ourselves."
"Speaking of a portkey." Hermione told them getting up and getting a plant from the table in the corner of the room. "I requested a portkey for us to travel back and forth and the request was approved. This plant is yours and I have one too." She said pointing to the other plant. "The leaves are portkeys for us. You simply need to pluck a leaf off the plant and yours will bring you here and mine will take us to your house. The plant will grow a new leaf when one is plucked. We don't need to get a portkey at the Ministry anymore."
"That's incredible." Arthur said. "I've heard of people getting permanent portkeys, but I never knew anyone who did. Can I ty it?"
"That's up to you. You can take your plant to your house and pluck a leaf when you want to come back."
He gave Molly a kiss on the cheek and plucked a leaf of and he vanished. In a minute he was back.
"Splendid. No problems at all."
"Make sure to tell Ron and Harry. This will make it easier for them too."
"Arthur, come see our bedroom. Hermione fixed it up for us."
"I apologize, Mr. Weasley. It is a bit girly. I figured Molly would be coming over more often and I wanted to make it comfortable for her."
"No worries Hermione. Molly will be coming over a lot. She enjoys spending time with you."
"I enjoy spending time with her too." Hermione told them.
Molly looked at the nightstand and saw a pile of books and laughed. "Hermione are you trying to get me to read as much as you?"
"No Mam." She said laughing. "I found a few books on gardens at the Ministry bookstore that I thought you might like."
"And I will. Thank-you."