AN: Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
New Year's Eve was the most obnoxious day of the year. It was another day when the world ignored his wish to be a loner. Instead, he had to attend a party which lasted far too long and involved too many drunkards.
At least he had been allowed to celebrate Christmas on his own terms. He'd spent a couple of hours at Edwina's dinner out of gratitude for the invitation, and to assuage Neville's fears that he had no social life outside of Hermione. Thankfully, Neville did not spend the dinner encouraging Severus to face his feelings for Hermione, though he did encourage him to tell her how much he missed her. Little did he know Severus had already written her several letters with updates on her feline and stating how happy he was she was enjoying Australia with her family. The rest of the day was spent relaxing with Crookshanks on his lap, rereading Hermione's letters from Australia more times than he would admit aloud.
From her letters, it was clear she was as happy as one could be amongst relatives she did not often see. For this, Severus was grateful. For a moment he wondered what it would be like to have an extended family who wished to see him, people who would greet him with warmth and show genuine interest in his life. The daydream was pleasant, even as the pain that his own extended family wanted little to do with him sunk into his soul.
New Year's Eve demanded more socialization from Severus. Every year, Lucius had a party, and refused to accept that not everyone was as keen on making connections as he was. Lucius would not take no for an answer when Severus told him he had his own New Years Eve plans and had little patience for his soiree. Given that Hermione had come home late the night before and taken back her feline, he could not hide behind watching Crookshanks. She was too exhausted to speak with anyone, so he could not claim to have plans with her. Then again, Lucius may not know that, making it a lie Severus could try...
Lucius smirked in response. "Bring her with you."
That was unacceptable. Several times, Hermione had mentioned never wanting to see the Malfoy Mansion again. Even at his most desperate, Severus was not going to subject Hermione to being in the place where she'd been tortured. The last thing he ever wanted was to harm Hermione emotionally, even if it meant facing Lucius alone. Thus, he came without her and counted down the hours until midnight so he could return home and read his latest romance novel.
All around the ballroom, the elves carried flutes of Champagne and glasses of sparkling water. Severus took a glass and began sipping his second glass of Champagne. Despite the fact that there were fifty people, few dared to converse with him. He was not upset in the slightest. The last thing he needed was an asinine conversation with someone whose name he would forget by the next morning. It was better to people watch than endure drunken seduction attempts.
Across the room, Ginevra and Draco presided over the festivities, their smiles wide. Every few moments, they would sneak looks at each other, their eyes glistening. Even Severus couldn't help but admire and envy them. Despite their families' objections, they were together. Judging from Ginevra's choice of sparkling water, they were expecting another little Malfoy. As romantic as their expressions were, Severus only hoped they could look away from each other long enough to see Scorpius was dancing much too close to a Christmas tree with glass blown angels ornaments for anyone's comfort.
"Will you spontaneously combust if you smile during one of these events?" Lucius slapped Severus on the back before putting an arm on his shoulder.
Severus coughed and gasped.
"You could attempt to look as if you're capable of having a good time, and not appear as if someone is torturing you within an inch of your life," Lucius continued.
Severus caught his breath.
"It wouldn't kill you to enjoy the music and talk to a few people."
"How can I do that? The violinists are out of tune," Severus grumbled before glaring at the quartet across the room.
"Now Severus, nobody from the Viennese Academy of Music would dare play out of tune," Lucius furrowed his eyebrows and lowered his voice. "Not with the amount of money I'm paying them."
"Indeed, they tremble at the thought of your wrath and your one star review."
"If they don't they should," Lucius' smile returned. "Enough about them. How was your Christmas?"
"Silent and uneventful, just as I like it."
"Indeed, though you missed an orange hair on your robes."
"I did." Severus spun around searching for it. So help him if Crookshanks left behind any other unpleasant surprises. It would be the last time he shared his last piece of ham with the beast.
"Relax," Lucius laughed. "There is no hair. I had to see the look on your face though."
Severus glowered at his friend.
"It is sweet that you're willing to risk your robes for Ms. Granger's feline. I would never risk fine robes for anything of that sort."
"It's not me being sweet, but her being practical," he brushed off his robes in case a clump of orange hair had been left behind. "Nobody else will watch Crookshanks because he alternates between crankiness and neediness. Even Neville will not tolerate his shenanigans, not after he are all his catnip."
"And you don't fear for your potions ingredients?"
"Crookshanks and I have an agreement. If even one of my ingredients is touched, there will be no treats."
"Don't tell me you actually talk to him."
"I do, and he understands me better than most of the people in my life," Severus lowered his voice, "unlike you, he listens."
Lucius put his hands over his heart. "I always listen to you."
"Not as well as that cat does," Severus argued. "Unlike you, he respects my wish to be left alone during the holidays."
"Whether the cat listens to you or not, it is kind for you to care for Ms. Granger," Lucius noted. "Especially when it comes to her career prospects."
"I am only doing what is proper," Severus' eyes softened. "She deserves that position more than anyone else."
"That remains to be seen," Lucius answered. "But it is good that she's gotten as far as she has. It makes things more interesting given the other options."
"How many other candidates remain?"
"Hermione is one of four finalists."
Severus lowered his voice. "I know you cannot tell me the names of the others…"
"But I can neither confirm nor deny that they are all former members of Dumbledore's Army who are just as interested in reliving their glory days as they are in teaching. They may be, they may not be."
He put his head in hands, "Please tell me Ernie MacMillan and Terry Boot are not two of the candidates."
"I can neither confirm nor deny that." Lucius' eyes gave him all the knowledge he needed.
"Just great," Severus pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I also cannot confirm or deny that nobody in Slytherin made it past the application phase."
"Of course they didn't."
"I did not tell you anything one way or the other, but I can tell you that I suspect the trend of not hiring Slytherins will continue to be a theme under Minerva's tenure."
"I would not doubt that."
"I really should find some type of scandal on her," Lucius examined his manicured fingernails. "It would make our lives easier, or at least add some variety to the new employees."
"Not everyone who disagrees with you needs to be blackmailed into submission."
"True. There's always bribery, though that is far more costly. I do like saving my money."
"Indeed you do."
"That being said," Lucius cleared his throat. "How are the flying lessons going?"
Severus cracked a smile. "She can fly."
"She can?" Lucius' eyes gleamed in interest.
"Indeed, she can go quite high, and she is learning to accelerate nicely."
"Can she land?"
"Not at the moment."
Lucius shook his head. "She's going to need to learn how to land to be of any use as a professor."
"We are getting to that point," Severus argued.
"You need to get there as quickly as possible. Right now, the committee is looking at holding the demonstrations in late February or early March. We need an accomplished flyer by then."
"She is progressing nicely."
"Great, how long until she learns how to land?"
"It will take as long as it takes."
Lucius groaned.
"Do not rush us," Severus snapped. "I cannot accelerate her progress, lest she regains her fear of flights and refuses to take to the air again. If she does that, none of us will get what we want."
"I cannot argue with you on that point," Lucius admitted.
"No, you cannot."
"Still, I do find it amusing that you are going above and beyond for Hermione when the rumor is that you have captured the attention of Ms. Judith Turner."
"Yes," Severus drawled. "She is intriguing, though I see her as nothing more than a casual acquaintance."
"Only a casual acquaintance?" Lucius raised an eyebrow.
"Indeed," Severus replied.
"Why would have dinner with someone who was only a casual acquaintance and could not improve your career prospects?"
"I need someone somewhat tolerable to date in order to prevent Minerva from trying to set me up with more atrocious dates. Judith Turner seems to fit the bill."
"While I can appreciate the sentiment of not wanting to go on another horrid blind date, I know enough of Judith Turner's reputation to know she does not do anything casually."
"Then dating me will be a new experience for her."
"Do you see the relationship going anywhere?" Lucius drew closer and continued in a low, quiet voice, "Or does your interest lie in Ms. Granger?"
A cold chill raced up Severus' spine as sweat began to form. That smile and gleam in Lucius' eyes never led to anything pleasant. What if Lucius was seeing a relationship between him and Hermione which did not exist, one which Severus was unclear whether or not he wanted to exist? Would he stop at teasing him about it, or would he share his suspicions with Hermione? Would she have false hope that she could have a relationship with Severus, or would she be so disgusted by the thought of a relationship with Severus she expelled him from her life forever?
"Excuse me?"
"Ginevra," Lucius scowled. "Did you never learn the rudeness of interrupting people in the middle of an important conversation?"
"Did you never learn the rudeness of making your guest uncomfortable for your own amusement?" She asked.
Severus relaxed.
"Severus and I are having a discussion which does not concern you," Lucius snapped.
"Fine, but this article may be of great interest to Severus, something he should attend to sooner rather than later," Ginevra pulled out that evening's edition of The Daily Prophet and handed it to Severus.
"What could be so important in that rag?" Lucius asked, less in hostility than in genuine curiosity.
"Something which demands my immediate attention," Severus threw the paper into Lucius' arms. "Thank you Ginevra. You have proven very helpful."
"Don't think anything of it," she answered. "I knew you'd want to do something about this."
"In that you are correct," Severus replied. "Give my regards to Draco and tell him I regret leaving early."
"I'll give him your regards, but I won't lie in saying you regret leaving early."
"That would be wise." Severus took one last look at her before rushing to the coat rack, hoping he was not too late to help alleviate the situation.
It was a dangerous game she was playing.
Scattered about Hermione's bed were articles detailing Judith Turner's business, her life in New York, and her philanthropic efforts to help burn victims. If one looked at these, one would swear she led an idyllic life without a trouble in the world.
If one read these documents carefully, they'd assume her life began at twenty-one as well.
There was nothing about her life prior to her creating her first skin care product. No mention of her parents, her childhood hometown, friends from her youth, or her university. It was as if Judith had appeared from the sky for the sole purpose of making Hermione's life miserable.
What was she hiding?
Before Hermione could meditate on the problem for long, an owl hooted at the window. Groaning, Hermione used her walker to move from the edge of her bed to the window. Upon seeing the newspaper, she raised an eyebrow. She pulled out her wand, cast a lumos, then looked at the headline.
Her chest constricted as her heart ached. Every muscle in her felt heavy. Tears filled her eyes as the paper fell to the ground.
Ron Weasley and Lavender Brown Expecting Their First Child in July