A/N:
So this beast consumed my every waking moment at the beginning of the month, and then my betas fine tuned it into the beast it is (almost within the word count limit…RIP 750+ words of deliciousness!)
This is the Secret Santa fic for my giftee, BeaWrites / BeaWeasley here on FFNet and AO3! Some of you may have seen her name before, she helped me co-write Rivals (In Love) Posted over on AO3. If you haven't already, go over there and check it out!
Bea, I hope you enjoy this. As you read, you'll be able to tell which 'bodice ripper' was my favorite to write :3
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy and have a very merry holiday!
Thank you kindly to Kree, Nia, and Paige for the beta! Thank you for reining in my madness XD
Word Count: 10,187
Disclaimers/Warnings: perceived cheating, kidnap, implied spiciness
Summary: Hermione is stuck on a legal team with Theodore Nott and doesn't think he's the best. By helping the Weasley Twins test out a new product, Hermione realizes that Theo might not be as bad as she thought.
Prompts:
THC 2023 Secret Santa
*For Bea* 3
"You're not so bad, I guess"
The shop bell jingled merrily overhead as Hermione entered Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Loud noises and bright lights bombarded her from every direction, but she could only grin at the spectacle. Fred Weasley appeared from behind a particularly tall shelf bursting to the brim with accessories for the Puffskeins in the cage in the corner, wearing an even absurdly taller top hat, in order to greet her.
"Hermione!" Fred called out with a large grin. He approached her for a hug. "What brings my favorite sister here?"
"Don't let Ginny hear you say that," came her retort. "And you know why! You were the one who invited me here. Said you had a proposition for me." She hugged him back happily before pulling back and looking around the store. "You guys seem to be doing well."
Fred beamed at her compliment. "Everyone wants a laugh, every now and then." He waved over George as his twin finished up with a customer. Fred then led Hermione over to a little sitting area lined with bookshelves filled with muggle joke books.
The two threw around small talk until George could join them minutes later. "We asked you here-"
"-for a specific reason. You're-"
"-the smartest person we know, and figured-"
"-you would be the best person to give feedback on-"
"-one of our new products for our Wonder Witch lines."
Hermione pingponged her attention between the two of them, a scowl twisting her lips. "One or the other. You get confusing when you two share sentences," she reprimanded lightly. Her expression softened when the two looked at her abashed.
"Sorry," George said.
"You're a woman, and you're scarily smart," Fred started, "and so we thought you would be the best person to test this out. We've already tested it, so it's safe to consume."
"The problem is that we're guys, so we can't test the logistical portions of this process," George finished. Hermione was quiet for a moment, and then-
"You still haven't told me what this product is yet," she commented, an eyebrow raised.
The twins exchanged a sigh of relief when she didn't immediately dismiss them out of hand. "So we've come up with a new version of the Daydream charm."
"You helped us test the original, and your feedback was invaluable. But this one is a…spicier version," George said hesitantly.
"Spicier?" Hermione asked. She took a seat in one of the two available armchairs and leveled them with a stare.
"Spicier. Like mum's trashy books that she thinks she hides from us," Fred confirmed.
Hermione's eyes widened as the realization hit her. "You…" Her mind blanked as she failed to come up with an appropriate response.
"Yup." The twins shared another look. "We call it the Spicy Soulmate Solution."
"It doesn't actually give you a soulmate, or pair you with someone," George added. "We'll have a disclaimer that states that, in fairly big words. We are not liable for any connections, emotional, physical or otherwise, that happen due to your subconscious."
"The premise of these is that people from your conscious world will be pulled into the daydream to fulfill predetermined roles, like those actors in muggle films," Fred then explained. "People you dislike will be villains, people you like will be allies and friends, and people you love will be family and love interests."
"Any known side effects so far?" Hermione asked, taking the pamphlet that George handed her.
"None that we could tell," Fred stated.
"Besides the cottonmouth," George interjected.
"BUT! That's only because most of the time we would slump with our mouths open during the daydream," Fred argued.
"Okay, so one thing to improve is to increase awareness in the real world around you. Especially if you're taking it somewhere in a communal place, like a shared flat with roommates," she pointed out. Fred and George grimaced at each other.
"Okay, good point." George jotted down a note as Hermione finished skimming the pamphlet. Everything else seemed aboveboard.
"What scenarios do you want me to test? Are they specific to each solution, or is it random every time?" Hermione then asked, curious to how similar to the last experiment this one would be.
"We have one of each of the tropes we have right now: enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, and boy-next-door," said Fred.
"Will you expand into other ideas and scenarios, if this gains traction?" she then asked, accepting the small wooden box from George. She opened it to find three stoppered vials, each a different swirling pearlescent color.
"If you have any ideas–"
"Or access to source material–"
"Then by all means, we would love the inspiration!"
"Sounds good. I'll get you my notes once I've thoroughly tested these."
The twins bowed and scraped as they led her to the door, ladening her arms with various products from the shelves they passed, despite her scowl.
"On the house for being an amazing tester!"
"You are simply divine, Hermione! The best sister ever!"
"Hey!" came Ginny's voice from the side of the shop. "What was that?!"
Hermione laughed as she left, throwing a wave at her redheaded female friend as she stomped over to her brothers. Humming slightly, Hermione left with a skip in her step, the box of vials and other random accoutrement safely tucked into her beaded bag for when she got home.
Hermione didn't get a chance to test anything until the following weekend a few days after meeting the twins at their shop. She had had a few brutal days at work in the legal department of the DMLE, and needed the stress reliever. One of her new coworkers, Theodore Nott, was a particular headache that flirted with everything with a pair of legs, but was scarily smart. If she didn't have a solution, he seemed to, and while she wouldn't mind consulting with him on some of the laws she worked on, everytime she approached him, he would smirk at her with his oh-so-punchable face and say something that would make her forget why she came to him in the first place. The current law that she was working on was a particularly nasty one on werewolves that Delores Umbridge had written up within her first year of lawmaking.
Hermione's eyes narrowed at the thought of that vile woman and what her hatred had wrought.
"Knut for your thoughts?" Nott asked as he leaned in the entrance of her cubicle. Hermione sharply looked up, wincing as a muscle in her neck twinged at the fast movement. She raised a hand to massage the area.
"Just this werewolf law that Umbridge made. She was spiteful," Hermione pointed out as she turned back to the parchmentwork. "Why she thought tighter restrictions would make them less hostile, I don't know. Well, I do know. But comparing her to the muggle dictators of the nineteen thirties and forties would insult those dictators…" Hermione scrubbed her hand down her face before shooting a glare at Nott still posturing in her doorway. "Don't you have something better to do than loiter?"
Nott's responding smirk infuriated her. "I do, but I think I like annoying you better," he replied. Hermione sighed aggravatedly before turning back to him. With an idle thought, she picked up her wand, cast a quick silencing charm on him, and got back to reading through the latest law she was dismantling. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nott open his mouth but nothing came out. Feeling self-satisfied, she covertly watched him leave, presumably back to his own desk and work waiting for him.
It was the small victories over the Slytherin that made working with him tolerable. He wasn't as much of a bigot now as he was in Hogwarts, and even then most of his mockery of her blood status was piggybacked off of Malfoy's taunts.
Now, however, with the new direction the Ministry of Magic was barreling at, people like Nott had to put up and follow along with the new stance on 'Newbloods' as muggleborns were being rebranded, or shut up.
Oh, how she wished she could have seen his face when their boss told him that in so little words.
Work went slowly for Hermione, but all too soon it was time to go home. Nott, annoyingly, had been unsilenced sometime after lunch. Thankfully, he had only graced her cubicle with his presence once, to throw her a bag of biscuits that his house elf had made.
"Sitzy made too much. Time to share the wealth," he joked, ducking away from her as soon as he had appeared.
Hermione had half a mind to toss the cookies straight into the trash, but she also didn't want the house elf's hard work to go to waste. She glared at the wall of her cubicle, where Nott stood, talking with another coworker. The bag of cookies sat, unwanted, on the corner of her desk for the rest of the day.
Flooing to the Leaky for takeout and then taking the Underground to get home, Hermione sighed in relief as she locked her front door, kicked off her shoes, and collapsed onto her couch, exhausted from the week's work. That annoying muscle in her neck twinged again, and she hauled herself up in order to not aggravate it.
Crookshanks rubbed himself against her legs, and Hermione grimaced as he left cat hair on her stockings.
"Alright, you menace! Let's get you fed, then we need to get me fed," Hermione told her familiar of ten years. Crookshanks yowled at her impatiently before sprinting for the kitchen, ready for dinner.
With a grin and her own dinner on the coffee table in the living room, Hermione dutifully went to feed her cat. A quick dinner and shower later and Hermione was ready for the weekend.
"Alright, so the instructions say to be lying down when you drink this. I've already alerted Harry and Ron about my plans for tonight, so they know not to interrupt me." Hermione looked at Crookshanks, who was curled up on the corner of her bed. "Alright Crooksie. You wake me up if anything bad happens, okay?" Crookshanks continued to preen himself, licking his paw before smoothing over an ear. Hermione planted a giant kiss to the top of his head, making him pause in his ministrations long enough to pin her with a several second stare before he went back to preening himself.
Hermione heard the slight purr emanating from her pet and grinned to herself. At least he wasn't too annoyed with her.
She sighed as she looked at the bottle on her nightstand. She was procrastinating.
Flopping into bed and adjusting herself so she was comfortable, Hermione picked up the vial and inspected it. The liquid inside swirled a pearlescent blue, shimmering in the low light of her bedroom.
"Here goes nothing," she stated to the empty air, unstoppering the vial and knocking it back. She had enough time to recork the vial and set it on the table before the effects kicked in.
All at once, it felt like she was falling, and her body jerked, trying to catch herself.
The falling sensation continued until suddenly someone caught me, a scream falling from my lips. The sound of the roaring waves filled the air, as did the shouts of sailors on the ship. Although these men weren't sailors, were they?
They were pirates. And the Captain stood before me as one of his men manhandled me, righting me after someone else had literally thrown me off of the parapet onto the waiting ship below.
"Hello, Miss Dagworth," the captain stated in a sickly sweet voice. He stood, his arms akimbo, posturing for me, and I was wholly unimpressed.
"It's Miss Granger, if you must know," I spat back, jerking out of the pirate's grasp and giving him a small glare. He took the hint and backed off, but hovered menacingly. I turned my attention back to the captain. He stood tall, with wind-tousled brown hair and piercing blue eyes as deep as the sky behind him. His leather coat covered him from nearly neck to foot, his pale linen shirt underneath gaping attractively.
"Oh, I know, Miss Dagworth. But you see, I know more about you than you presume. Why do you think you're on this ship in the first place?" He cackled as the blood drained from my face, realization hitting me as he continued to use my mother's maiden name to address me. "Captain Theodore Nott, at your service, miss!" Captain Theodore took off his feather capped hat and bowed deeply to me. Still in his bowed position, he looked up at me, the feral grin on his face warning me that his intentions were anything but good.
"What do you want?" I asked, taking a step back. I almost ran into the pirate hovering just off to the side and I looked at him, dread sinking into my belly as I realized I was trapped. When I looked back at the captain, he was much closer than before, his hat back on his head, his hands reaching for me. I immediately struggled in his grasp, but he pulled me close with ease, the strength in his hands threatening to rip me apart if I so much as put a toe out of line.
"I want a lot of things, Miss Dagworth. Free reign of the seas, unlimited gold and treasure, and hordes of willing women to fall into my bed. But from you, missy, I want a ransom from your family, and a promise of immunity in these waters for the next five years." His breath was hot on my face, and fear filled me as he leered at me, still in my underthings. I had literally been stolen from my bed in the early morning and dragged here.
I swallowed my panic. Someone would come for me, right? Or they would pay the ransom right away, wouldn't they? "You'll never get away with this!"
"Oh, but my dear," Captain Theodore crooned, pinning my body against his. My cheeks flushed at the feel of him against my soft curves, and I cursed my body for reacting the way it did. "I already have."
His mouth was suddenly on mine, and I struggled in his grasp to get away. A moment later he pulled back, laughing as he released me, wiping the blood away from where I had bitten him.
"Take her to my quarters! I have a surprise for the unwilling maiden," Captain Theodore commanded, pushing me backwards. I stumbled and would have fallen had several sets of hands not grabbed me. I didn't feel safe, however. Those hands pulled and dragged me back, and I was unceremoniously shoved through a door that was then closed and locked.
I pounded on the door futilely. Already, I could feel the ship moving and swaying against the waves. Tears rolled down my cheeks. This was so unfair!
With a gasp, Hermione jackknifed into a seated position, coughing as she came out of the daydream. Her mouth and throat were dry, and she scrambled off of the bed to go to the kitchen for water. After guzzling it down and no longer feeling like she was about to choke, Hermione paused and took stock of herself.
A journal. She needed a journal. She had to take notes.
For one, that abrupt ending was jarring. That scene was nothing close to a full bodice ripper story. That was just the beginning.
Hermione paused for a moment, letting her thoughts gather. The twins could market this product as a per chapter release, instead of all in one go. This stunted scene was proof of that. And that one should have a warning label on it. If that was meant to be sexy, the twins were wrong. That was terrifying. Without humanizing scenes afterwards, there was no way the main character and the villain slash love interest would want to reconcile. Not after that.
But it would make for an interesting story if they did, she mused to herself. She continued to write her notes for the twins, eager to help them improve the product.
"You look like shit."
"Eloquent as ever, Nott, thank you," Hermione snarked, not even bothering to turn to face her coworker hovering in the entrance to her cubicle. There was a beat of silence between them, save for the scratching of Hermione's quill, and then-
"Didn't get a lot of sleep last night?"
Actually, her entire sour attitude today was because of the lack of sleep. Her brain had refused to shut off after that little daydream jaunt, and she had to go through an entire pot of caffeine-free chamomile tea in order to get the scant three hours of sleep that she did.
That and the fact that Theodore Nott, her newest coworker in the legal department of the DMLE, had been the star of that daydream. Sure, he was the villain, and was every bit as vile in the daydream as he was back in their schooldays, however what had really gotten her was that the pirate captain wearing his face was meant to be the love interest to the main character.
And she wasn't sure how to feel about that. The twins had said something about taking names and faces from the conscious world and using them for the daydream, but that…
That was a bit much.
"Something like that, yeah," Hermione said. She continued to focus on her work, and Nott shifted where he stood. Another beat of silence passed, and then- "Can I help you with something, Nott?" She looked up at him, and her irritation must have shown on her face.
"No, everything is fine. Just checking in on the law you're working on for the boss–"
"You know I'm competent and even exemplary at my work–"
"That's not what I was getting at! I just wanted to make sure that we were hitting our deadlines and–"
"Nott, go and keep your eyes on your own work! I'll get mine done and ready to share with the team in time!"
Nott dodged the hex she threw, and with a panicked "See you later!" he fled. Eliza Johnson, a teammate two cubicles down, wandered over with a smirk on her face. The older sister of Angelina Johnson was a Ravenclaw back when she was at Hogwarts, and a notorious gossip.
"I think he likes you," she said with a widening grin.
"I think he's just a nuisance trying to micromanage," Hermione muttered. Eliza gave a small giggle.
"If you say so!" Throwing up a hand in a half wave as she turned, Eliza headed back to her cubicle. Hermione planted her face on her desk, groaning to herself.
Could this day get any worse?
The universe must have heard her words, because the rest of her week got worse. Work piled up, Nott continued to be annoying and stuck his nose into everything, Crookshanks had gotten into something and needed emergency vet services, AND her favorite travel coffee mug had gotten lost in the Floo when she accidentally dropped it right before she went through.
Friday night arrived before she knew it, and Hermione gratefully collapsed onto her bed, ready for sleep. She looked at the Spicy Soulmates Solution vial she had pulled out of the box that morning, intending to use it before bed that night. She just didn't have the energy to go through with it. The pearly green liquid swirled around in the vial temptingly, but she just couldn't do it.
Hermione turned off her light, got under the covers, and rolled over. She could do it tomorrow. Saturday would be a better day for that.
Saturday would, in fact, not be a better day to try out the second of three vials for the Weasley twins. With her friends coming to call and having to go into work to fix an emergency that had sprung up, Hermione finally made it to bedtime with no inclination of doing more than she had to.
Sunday proved to be a much better day overall for Hermione. No one bugged her, nothing interrupted her lazy day of rest, and when dinner came around, she had gotten food delivered. The sun was just setting when she convinced herself to try the next vial.
Laying down on bed, her journal of notes and glass of water on the nightstand next to her, Hermione drank down the second vial of the Spicy Soulmate Solution–the twins really needed to come up with a better name for them–and waited for the effects to consume her.
She didn't need to wait long.
I had to admit, coming to this masquerade gala alone wasn't the worst thing that had happened to me that night. No, it was meeting genius rich-boy Theodore Nott that ruined the night for me. He was so snarky, sarcastic, rude, and downright hunky that I had to remove myself several times from the room for fear of snapping back or jumping him, like the rest of the women at this event.
Besides his pocketbook and looks, I wasn't sure what other redeeming qualities this man had. So I avoided him. Unfortunately this also meant that I avoided everyone else too, including my cousin Lavender whom I had tagged along with. I had lost her in the crowd nearly immediately, and haven't found her since. The natural social butterfly that she was, Lavender flitted from group to group of people, making contacts and connections.
I sighed, grabbing another glass of champagne off of a butler-passed tray.
This gala was for the elite to rub elbows with the elite and to pat themselves on the back as they spent an obscene amount of money on charity. It was only by chance that my Aunt Violet demanded Lavender bring me along, saying it was a good chance to make connections of my own. After my parents had died and I had gone to live with Aunt Violet and Lavender, I couldn't help but feel like a burden.
It's been eight years now, and at age twenty-three, I thought I had made something for myself. I was an administrative assistant to a CEO in a tech company making good money. I was helping around the house with chores and money, and I knew that's why Aunt Violet didn't want me moving out on my own. It was her selfish way of retiring early, but I didn't mind. In my own selfish way, I craved the connection that having housemates ensured. The three of us went out to brunch on Sundays. We did family dinners once a week. We talked.
I didn't want to be lonely again.
"What are you doing out here alone, little Bluebird?" His voice was smooth and sent a shiver down my spine. I turned from the gorgeous view on the balcony to face a man in a plain black tuxedo with a black mask. My own dress was periwinkle, and my mask did indeed have blue feathers with specks of white and tawny down. I did not begrudge him the nickname. But he could have at least come up with something better. I looked him up and down, and immediately knew who he was.
"Just getting some fresh air," I replied coolly, turning back to the gardens.
"You intrigue me."
I couldn't help the snort that escaped. "Congratulations to me?" I turned back to him as he joined me at the railing.
"You are, after all, one of the few women in there not hanging onto my every word," Theodore Nott replied.
"Ah, yes, because every female must be charmed by you," I replied sassily. The timber of his laugh surprised me.
"Oh, you're refreshing," he replied plainly. "I like you. Go out with me?"
I looked at him in horror, and Theodore laughed harder.
"Okay, fair, fair. Let me rephrase this: pretend to be my girlfriend, be seen with me in public, get these other harpies off my back, and I will lavish you with gifts and expensive trips and let you get ahead in your career with no fighting. Kisses in public are expected, and anything in private is a bonus, but not obligated." He held his hand out for me to shake.
"You don't even know me. Why me?" I asked him, turning away from his hand. His hand instead rested on my shoulder, and I couldn't help but shiver at the heat radiating from him.
"Your name is Hermione Granger. You're the head administrative assistant for Sirius Black, CEO of Black Tech Industries. Your dedication to your family keeps you in a cramped three bedroom house, in the smallest bedroom, after your parents died in a car crash on their way back from a gala like this one. You've uprooted your life across the country, downsized your entire lifestyle, all at the tender age of fifteen in order to have someone who still said 'I love you' to you." His smirk as he said all of this infuriated me, and it must have shown on my face, for he continued his little speech much faster now.
"You've inherited fifty percent of your family's holdings upon your majority at age eighteen, and your aunt has sucked that nearly dry in home repairs, cosmetic medical bills and lifestyle changes that weren't needed. The other fifty percent of your holdings you gain upon marrying, but you don't seem inclined to actually find a husband."
His blue eyes pierced through me when I met his gaze, but I didn't shy away. Meeting his eyes unflinchingly, my fury simmered just under the surface.
"Have you been stalking me?" I asked. His short laugh startled me.
"I background check everyone who comes to the galas on my estates," Theodore replied calmly. I jerked back in surprise, taking a quick look at my surroundings.
"This is all yours?" I asked, disbelieving.
"The family estate. Used for the three galas that I throw for charity every year, as well as Christmas and New Years. The rest of the year I live in my uptown house just like any other respectable person."
I couldn't help but laugh. "This house seems like it would have upwards of twelve bedrooms! What would someone even do with all of that room?" I asked. "At least it's a pretty house."
"We've kept the estate in pristine condition, no expense spared." Theodore leaned against the same railing as me, keeping a respectful distance away. The night sky above was starry, just a sea of black dotted with pinpricks of light. "Families used to be big, back in the day. Siblings would live with their families all in the same house. It being big allowed them to still have their own space, but still live in the same house."
"I've always wanted siblings," I replied absently, wistfulness coloring my tone.
"Me too," Theodore replied. There was a bead of silence between us, and for a moment, I forgot how aggravating he was.
"So, Granger, about that proposal–"
I snorted in amusement, looking over at him to have a boyish grin on his face that made my heart flip flop.
"And what do I have to do?" I asked, turning to face him fully again.
"Well, you're on my arm for social events, and get your name out there. You meet other rich men, and when we inevitably break up, you'll have your choice of them to replace me. I'm sure you'll like one of them enough to marry them!" Theodore replied. "And then you'll get your money, you get to move out of your Aunt's house, and you get your little happy ever after!" Theodore grinned at me.
I stared at him long enough to make him shift uneasily as my mind whirled, running each possible scenario in my mind. I already had a guy in mind to marry, but he had been so thick so far that he hasn't picked up on my interest in him. A friend of my boss's godson, he was so consumed with sports and statistics, girls didn't seem to exist to him. But he was a jealous sort, and if I could get him to see that I was a woman when with someone else…
"If we're to make this work, you'll have to call me Hermione," I replied, putting on my most charming smile.
"Theo," he replied, relief in his frame. He held out his hand and I took it, expecting a handshake, but he merely turned my hand and placed a kiss on the back of it. My cheeks flushed at the motion.
"Dance with me, Hermione?" Theo asked charmingly, and I nodded.
"Okay."
Theo led me back into the ballroom and held me close as the first waltz of the night came on. He smirked at me, and I willed the flush in my cheeks to go away. "Showtime, Bluebird," he murmured to me, and then we were off.
What did I get myself into?
Fake dating a billionaire wasn't that bad when he didn't shove his money in your face every five minutes. Theo had an elegance to him that made me the envy of our social circles. I was known as the woman who finally managed to get Theodore Nott to settle down. And being with Theodore ensured that Ronald Weasley finally noticed that I was someone worth noticing.
It only took a month of going on dates with Theo and spending time with him–which I surprisingly enjoyed, if I had to admit–for Ron to approach me at the end of my work day, asking if I was going to a rugby game the following weekend.
A smile on my lips, a flush on my cheeks, and I confirmed that we would be there.
Ron had turned on a charming smile. "I can't wait to see you there."
I went to Theo that night to report my success, but his less than enthusiastic response irritated me.
"You do know that the Weasley family are all social climbers, right?" he asked offhandedly. "The youngest girl is currently seeing Harry Potter. He's your boss's godson, right?"
"Yes, and Ginny is a wonderful person!" I replied with a bit of bite in my tone. The past few weeks she had started to invite me out to places, and we were becoming fast friends. "Why are you worried about them social climbing anyway? Half of the people invited to your galas are trying to social climb," I argued.
"You just have to trust me. I know their type." Theo held me close, and I melted in his arms, thankful for the comfort he could provide. It was hard, keeping emotions out of this arrangement. But every little thing he did, thoughts that he showed me in private, every little piece of himself that he gave of himself willingly made me consider stopping our arrangement and just dating him for real.
What would it be like to fully love and be loved by Theodore Nott?
Weeks later saw the dissolution of our arrangement. Theo was the one to break it off first. He had seen how close I was getting with Ron.
"We're going to create a narrative where I was an arse to you, and Weasley can be there to comfort you. I still don't know what you see in him, by the way. You could do so much better," he complained. I finished collecting my things that I had brought over to his house over the few short months we had faked this relationship before the planned breakup. This would have to be a real relationship if the breakup was real.
Then why was my heart aching as if it was one?
I had plans to meet up with Ron later that night. We would be going on a 'friend' date, that I assumed would transition into a real date as soon as he heard that Theo and I had broken up.
"He's kind, and smart, too! Into sports and their stats…he's going to go far in his field!" I replied, reciting the list of good qualities I made about Ron to defend him to Theo as soon as he found out the redhead was on my radar.
"If you say so. All of my interactions with him haven't been the best…" Theo handed me the last bag I had packed, before pulling me into his arms. "I'll miss you, Bluebird. It's been fun." Pulling back, Theo looked into my eyes tenderly. "Come to me if you need anything. Anytime of the night. I owe you one." Theo winked at me and I grinned back in response.
Pain radiated in my head as consciousness scraped me from the darkness. Voices echoed around me, muddled at first, and then I realized I heard Ron, the love of my life, the man of my dreams. A small smile stretched my lips. It had only been a few short weeks since we had started dating, but he was very affectionate, very attentive. True, some of his displays of affection were grand and over-the-top, but that just made me fall for him even harder. He was funny, attentive, and easy-going enough that I could relax when I was with him.
He must have been talking to a nurse about what had happened. My memories were hazy, but I vaguely remembered being attacked outside of my aunt's home. He must have found me and brought me to the hospital. My fingers reached out and felt for the guard rail that lined my bed–
Only to have my fingers scrape against the worn fabric of Aunt Violet's couch. I stilled, my smile falling as I realized I was laid out in my living room, not a hospital.
The sound of a woman crying echoed in the space. I knew this woman…
"She's going to be okay," Ron murmured to my cousin, Lavender. "Don't cry," he continued softly. I could hear comfort in his voice, and confusion mixed with the throbbing in my head. He…he loved me, right?
"Thank you for staying here tonight. I couldn't do this alone," Lavender said.
"I wouldn't leave," came his response.
"I know. I'm…you're always taking care of me. When no one else did, you took care of me," she said in response.
"And I always will. You're my girl, you know that."
My heartbeat echoed in my ears, my eyes squeezing shut at his words. Had he not just told me that hours previous after our date? This can't be right…
"Even though you've been romancing my cousin the past few weeks?" came Lavender's reply.
"Come on, love, you know it was all for you. You would convince her to not get a prenup before we marry, she inherits the rest of her parents' money, and I take everything in the divorce," Ron replied. "You were the one to come up with the plan."
Rustling came from their direction, and I chanced that moment to crack open my eyes. My vision spun for a moment, and then everything came into clarity.
My heart broke seeing my cousin, Lavender, with the man I thought I was in love with locked in an embrace, kissing each other passionately.
I lost consciousness again.
When I came to again, it was quiet and dark. My head didn't hurt as much, but my heart felt shattered, and throbbed in my chest. Pressing a steadying hand to my chest, I sat up, seeing the living room deserted.
I didn't think. I just moved, my body on autopilot. The front door slammed behind me, my purse plucked from where it had been tossed on the hook near the door. I didn't know what time it was. I just needed out. The rain immediately drenched me as I fled down the walkway and I headed for the main street in town, just a few blocks over. I could hail a taxi cab, and just get away.
He called my name just as I was getting into the cab.
I couldn't. I just…
"Where are you heading, miss?"
I paused for a moment, my eyes locked on Ron's enlarging form as he drew closer, and I gave the driver the first address that popped into my head.
I must have looked a sight, sitting in the back of the taxi as we passed by the shouting Ron, but I didn't care. Him…and her….it wasn't fair! She always got what I wanted, even when my parents were alive. And now she wanted my boyfriend!
Ex, now, I realized. Ron had been love bombing me, as part of their plan. There's no way he would have normally proposed this early in the relationship. I wasn't that kind of girl.
Lost in my thoughts, I didn't realize we had arrived at our destination until the cabby cleared his throat.
"We're here, miss," he stated. I looked at the meter and grimaced.
"Thank you." Reaching into my purse, I pulled out a couple of crumpled bills, straightened them out, and handed it to him. "Keep the change." I know it was only a thirty quid fare, but I handed him forty.
"Are you going to be alright?" he asked, concern lining his face. A small smile tilted my lips.
"Eventually," I replied before exiting the cab. Looking up at the impressive house, I headed up the driveway and stood in front of the door, just staring at the doorbell. Behind me, the taxicab drove off, and then it hit me where I actually stood.
I stared again at Theodore's front door, fresh tears streaming down my face mixing with the rain.
Lightning flashed, thunder following nary a second later, but I was just so emotionally numb, I didn't even jump. With a shuddering breath, I stepped forward to ring the doorbell. Wrapping my arms around me, I couldn't help but divert my gaze, as if the pristine house itself was judging me.
After a few minutes of nothing, I was tempted to just leave. I would be bothering him anyway. Theo was probably in the depths of sleep, and didn't hear the doorbell. If I left right now, I wouldn't have to worry about explaining everything, or him turning me away. I just…
The front door opened up and warm light from the foyer spilled out onto the stoop. I looked up, my arms tightening around myself to stare into the concerned, and then panicked eyes of Theodore Nott. Bare-chested with sleep tousled hair and wearing the pajama bottoms I had gotten him for his birthday, Theo looked good without even trying. And then there was me, soaked and sobbing.
"I didn't know where else to go," I cried. Without a moment's hesitation, Theo stepped forward into the rain, the rain drenching him immediately, and pulled me into his arms, one strong arm wrapping around my shoulders, the other cradling my head gently.
"Shh, you're okay. You're safe now."
Everything was a blur. I was in safety now, and I could finally collapse against him and let him hold me as I cried.
Some time later, I sat curled up on Theo's couch wearing one of his button ups, a towel draped over my shoulders. A now dried Theo softly padded into the room, his lithe body moving seamlessly through the dark space, the single lamp in the corner only accentuating the hard lines of his physique. He handed me a steaming mug of tea, and I took it gratefully. The first sip was bracing, but the second was bolstering, and I was thankful that he kept my favorite blend in stock.
Surprising me, Theo knelt in front of me and cradled my face. I leaned into the touch, my eyes slipping shut as I savored the feeling. It was the first thing I've felt since the pain in my living room, and it was almost startling how gentle he was.
"Bluebird, what happened?"
The dam broke as he whispered the nickname he had for me, and I told him everything. I told him about what I thought was a successful date with Ron and his promise to come over the next day to talk about something serious. I told him about being attacked on my doorstep as well as the conversation I overheard in the living room, the heartbreak over it all, and my subsequent flight from the house.
"And you came to me." Theo stated it more than asked it, but I still found myself nodding to him. He still knelt before me, gazing up at me with worry in those big beautiful blue eyes of his, and I couldn't help the fresh batch of tears that came unbidden.
"You were the first place I could think of. I-I needed space, I needed somewhere safe to think–"
"I'm safe to you?" Theo asked me suddenly. I looked up at him in surprise.
"Y-yes," I replied. His gaze sharpened on me, and I suddenly realized what sort of position we were in.
"Do you trust me?" he then asked, inching closer, his hand back at my jawline to cradle my face.
"Yes," I replied without hesitation, leaning into his touch once more.
"You're not going back to him," Theo then stated, closer still.
"Yes," I agreed, our breaths mingling, and then suddenly his lips were on mine.
Hermione woke up with a pounding headache, and a surprisingly strong case of cottonmouth. With a scowl, she sat up and reached first for the glass of water she had the foresight to leave for herself, and then for her journal that she'd been taking all of her notes in.
Note to the Weasley Twins: The stories are only partial, and thrust into you an already commenced story. There are time jumps that fragment the story. Further changes should have the beginning of the story to help build up the character interactions, instead of just assuming. Perhaps add in a trigger word to pull you out of the daydream prematurely. Physical reactions and feelings, both good and bad, also linger afterwards. She raised a hand and gingerly probed the back of her head, finding tender flesh in the same spot where she'd been hit in the dream. Rubbing her legs together, she scowled further.
Too many physical feelings lingered…
The next day found Hermione bright eyed and bushy tailed, a tray of coffees in hand from the local muggle café on her way to work.
"Well someone woke up on the right side of the bed this morning!" Theodore Nott called out with a grin as she strolled into the office. A flush filled her cheeks, but she merely plucked a coffee from the pile and handed it to him as she passed him.
"Had a really good night," she replied with a wink, ignoring his shocked look as she went through the rest of the legal team, handing out their lifeblood in a cup.
"Okay, who are you and what have you done with Hermione Granger?" Theo asked, following Hermione to her desk and draping himself over the corner of her cubicle. Rolling her eyes, she plucked out her own coffee and sat herself down, pulling the pile of parchment from her inbox closer to her.
"Nothing! I just had a really good night, is all," she stated.
"Did you finally get a date, Granger?" Eliza Johnson from two cubicles down called out.
"Not quite," she replied, her mind flashing back to the vivid daydream the Spicy Soulmate Solution had given her. "But something like it."
"So you're taking date requests now, are you?" Theo asked, calmly sipping at his coffee.
"What of it?" Hermione asked. She knew her racing heartbeat was only because of the last two solutions he heavily featured in it, and in no way was indicative of her real life feelings for him. They were tepid at best, no blazing fire that she wanted from a love interest in her life.
"You want to go get coffee something?" he asked, raising his eyebrow at her in challenge. Hermione raised her own eyebrow in return.
"You have as much chance of getting a date with me as us winning this werewolf law overturn," she retorted with a laugh.
"Bet!" Theo said before slapping her cubicle wall and striding away, presumably to get his own work done.
"GRANGER!" came the shouting voice of the head of their department. With a dramatic sigh, Hermione gathered up a stack full of parchment, her coffee, and the cup of the strongest Darjeeling tea she could find to help appease the raging beast that was her boss. She strode into the open door, tea held out as a peace offering.
The door slammed shut behind her.
The end of the week came quickly, and with it the stresses that came with the job. That muscle in her neck was acting up again, but the end of this week would also bring the Wizengamot session that would put to the test all of the hard work her and her team went through this past month. Their boss would present their findings, law precedents, and suggested alternatives to the members on the Wizengamot and hope it was enough.
Monday morning would show whether this past month was all worth it.
So Friday night Hermione had gone out with her friends to a muggle pub near Hogsmeade and they all had gotten stumblingly drunk, mostly in celebration of the birth of Harry and Ginny's first child as well as Hermione finally being done with her major project at work. She couldn't stop complaining about Theodore Nott and work. Hermione had missed the knowing looks Ginny and Neville had shot each other, but she hadn't missed the teasing Ron and Harry gave her on liking her coworker.
"Com'on, Hermione!" Ron argued. "You have to admit he's an attractive bloke, Slytherin coloring aside." He slurred his words but slung an arm around her shoulders in solidarity.
"Ronald!" Hermione said, coloring. She hid her face in her hands while Harry laughed.
Saturday brought on the largest hangover Hermione could remember ever having. Already striking out Saturday as doing anything productive, Hermione slept most of it off, the warm furry presence of Crookshanks–pressed against her chest in an aggressive cuddle–the only thing keeping her on a schedule. After all, Crookshanks had to be fed at specific times, and he insisted on keeping that schedule.
It did, however, allow Hermione to feel like an actual human being instead of just a puddle of pain.
Sunday morning saw her waking up more closely resembling a functioning member of society, and after a particularly rigorous cup of tea, Hermione sat on her couch, the final vial in front of her.
She was tempted to not take it. The first two were experiences in and of themselves that she could give plenty of feedback on. She didn't need to experience the last, which was labeled "Guy-Next-Door".
Truthfully, she was scared that Theo would feature prominently in it again, and Hermione wasn't ready for what that entailed. Her feelings had been in turmoil ever since that last one that had the fake dating. Logically she knew that the Theodore Nott in real life would never have proposed something like the fake one did, nor would he hold her tenderly when she was emotionally vulnerable. But because that man wore his face and had his voice, it took her a moment to not react to him at work as if he had held her, had kissed her.
Summoning her Gryffindor courage, Hermione bit the bullet and swiped the vial from the table.
"Here goes nothing," she said before downing the liquid. Hermione felt Crookshanks jump up onto her lap right before the daydream swept her away.
Opening my eyes, I took a deep breath to steady myself. I sat in an office chair, my computer screen blinking back at me. Looking at the clock, I saw it was only two hours past leaving time, almost six o'clock. I could probably stay another hour to finish this. The program that I was working on was almost finished anyway.
Lines of code stared back at me, and I yawned. The clock suddenly showed eight thirty, and I blinked owlishly at it. It took a moment for my brain to reboot, and when I did, I looked around me to see I was the last at the office. Again. There was a light still on by the stairwell, but everything else had been turned off except for my cubicle light that shone white on the ceiling.
"Well, at least the code was done," I murmured to myself. Saving my progress and backing it up on the company server, just in case, I shut down my computer and switched off my desk lamp. Using the scant light from the stairwell, I navigated past my coworkers' stations to head home much later than I had planned.
With how tired I was, it didn't register to me that I was starving until the mouth-watering aroma of Chinese food wafted by. I blinked back into consciousness, to find I was standing in the lobby of my flat building, waiting for the elevator.
When did I get here?
I turned to look to find the new neighbor from 406 just entering the lobby, a large brown bag in one arm, the other a white plastic bag. In the few seconds I had before he noticed me, I scanned his figure. A nice button down shirt, slightly tousled hair from the windy street outside, nice fitting jeans, and brown work boots. His face was nice, but exhaustion lined his frame, and I instantly understood.
"Late night?" I asked. He jumped slightly, his head whipping up to stare at me.
"Yeah," he replied with a laugh. "Not too many of those, but on days like today, I have no desire to actually cook."
"I fully understand that. I worked a sixteen hour day today. I'm Hermione, by the way. Apartment 409," I introduced with a smile. The elevator dinged and the door opened. I entered, and then held the door open for him. He gave me a toe-tingling smile as he hurried in behind me, and I suddenly wasn't exhausted anymore.
"Theodore Nott. Apartment 406. Howdy neighbor!" he replied cheerfully. He set the plastic bag on the ground and held out his hand. I took it to shake.
"Nice to meet you!" I pressed the glowing number 4 on the elevator, and the doors shut. In such a small space, the smell of his takeout was quickly becoming overwhelming, and my stomach growled loudly in the enclosed area. "Smells like you're going to have a great dinner tonight," I said, trying to ignore my hunger pains. I would probably pop a freezer meal into the microwave and eat in front of the telly before passing out at midnight.
Theo groaned good naturedly. "Their food is so good, but no matter how little I order, they always send enough for four people." I laughed as the elevator dinged and the doors opened up on our floor. He motioned for me to go first, and I snuck another look at him as he bent down to grab the white bag of food. Subtle muscles rippled under his shirt, and I looked away quickly, to pretend I wasn't just oogling him.
Theo caught up to me easily as we walked down the hallway, and we reached his door first.
"Well, I hope you enjoy! Have a good night, Theo," I stated with a grin before moving on. He's definitely attractive, but he probably had a wife or girlfriend waiting for him.
"Actually, were you interested in some?" Theo asked. I paused, pivoting to look at him. He had set the plastic bag down again. "Like I said, they always send me four times the amount of food that I order, and it's just me in there, so…" he trailed off, looking bashful. I smiled, taking another deep breath of the delicious food that he carried.
"I would love to," I replied. "Wouldn't want all of that food to go to waste." He laughed before unlocking and opening his door.
"After you," he said with a charming grin, and I smiled back. Passing by him closely, I got a whiff of his cologne that made me want to take a second, deeper breath. His hand was warm on my hip as I passed by, the touch small and fleeting. I shot him a look as he picked his food up again to follow me inside, his eyes lingering on the skirt suit I had worn to work.
Perhaps this would be the start of a beautiful relationship.
Coming out of the daydream, Hermione immediately reached for her journal to add more notes for the Weasley twins.
For all of these being 'Spicy Soulmate Solutions', there was a surprising lack of spiciness; a lot were just the beginnings or fragments of the story. Further the plots on some of these stories and they would sell like hotcakes.
Side notes: to avoid real life emotions being affected by the fictitious actions by the characters, perhaps come up with substantial characters with their own personalities and names. Don't want a housewife disgruntled with her husband seeing him cheating in the daydream and then thinking he did it in real life! Or having someone get to know the 'story' version of someone they know in real life, but in real life the person is anything but. We don't want to get people stuck in situations of abuse because of a fantasy.
Hermione paused in her writing, her own developing feelings for her coworker swirling in her. Were these feelings her own? Or were they lingering effects from the storylines in the Soulmate Solutions?
"Merlin, we have to come up with a better name for these," she then said, groaning aloud. She got up to make herself a pot of tea. "Perhaps I should gift the boys a box of novels for Christmas. Make the story writing process easier on them…"
Bright and early Monday morning, Hermione strolled into work with the same amount of anxiety she experienced after every test and exam while at Hogwarts. She physically jumped when Eliza popped her head out of her cubicle as Hermione walked by.
"Good morning, bright eyes! How are you this fine Monday?" she asked.
"Oh, Merlin, Eliza, do not do that! Why are you so perky this morning?" Hermione asked her. "I'm being devoured by nerves right now."
"No matter what happened over the weekend, it's done now and we can't change it, you know?" Eliza replied. As Hermione hummed in agreement, Eliza's grin grew sly. "And how about we talk about things we can change? Like your attitude towards the only guy in the office that flirts with you."
Hermione looked at her, bewildered.
"Theodore! He's been flirting with you these past few weeks. Please tell me you've noticed what he was doing," Eliza commented.
"No, he flirts with everyone. Silvia from payroll–"
"Flirted with him and then refused to have contact with her outside of work for two whole weeks! You're the only one he can't seem to stay away from, and actively tries to ask out, and yet you rebuff him at every instance."
"He's never come out and said, 'I like you, Hermione. Go on a date with me?' Being straightforward–"
"Okay, but would you have actually gone on a date with him if he said that?" Eliza asked knowingly. She looked at Hermione bemusedly. Hermione averted her gaze in response. "Like I thought. And just like he thought! It's why he started to get to know you as a person."
"And be as aggravating as he could be?" Hermione asked dryly. Eliza merely giggled. "Anyway, I have to get to work. While we shouldn't worry about what's already happened, we can at least get started on the next one."
"If you say so!" Eliza sing-songed. "But Hermione?" She paused on her way to her desk. "Give him a chance. We've all changed since Hogwarts, yeah?" Eliza disappeared back into her cubicle. Hermione hummed in thought.
Perhaps Eliza had a point…
"GRANGER! NOTT! GET IN HERE!" came the raucous voice of their boss. Hermione's head popped up in equal parts excitement and dread. The time has come to find out the results of all of their hard work.
Silently, she and Theo made their way to the boss' office, sharing looks of unease as they walked the few steps to his door. Hermione stepped through first, taking note of the champagne bottle and three champagne glasses sitting on their boss' desk. Theo quietly closed the door behind them. They sat down in the chairs provided, and the head of the legal department leveled them with a stare.
There was a long enough silence that Hermione felt the need to fidget as their boss stared them down. His expression screamed that they had failed in their task, but the bottle of champagne and the glasses on his desk suggested otherwise. What was going on?
"Congratulations you two. You and your team have successfully repealed the archaic Werewolf law labeling them as beasts and menaces to society." Hermione and Theo looked at each other in shock before the exhilaration kicked in. She grinned widely at him, and when he returned the smile, it lit up his whole face. Hermione's heart stuttered in her chest at the sight.
"The newly named Lupin's Law will be enacted at the start of the new year, and reclassify werewolves as people with a treatable but incurable disease. The Wizengamot has decided to give all werewolves a year to turn themselves in and get on the registry. In exchange, they will be provided with Wolfsbane every month as well as a secure place to transform during the full moon. Lord Greengrass also insisted on job protection for the werewolves as well, so it is now illegal to terminate employment for any registered werewolf due to their condition." Their boss leaned forward and with deft fingers, opened the bottle of champagne. He quickly poured three glasses before setting the bottle assigned.
"Drink up! The two of you deserve it!" he declared, holding his glass up to them in a toast. Hermione flushed as she reached for her own glass.
"We couldn't have done it without Hermione!" Theo suddenly said from her side. "She was the driving force behind Lupin's Law and getting equal rights for a whole class of people who had no other option." Her blush deepened, and for once she had no words for a few moments.
"Theo was also integral in removing Umbridge's law. He knew exactly where to look to help repeal it and put better measures in place," she declared, holding her glass up to continue the toast and praising.
"And to your team, who all amazingly rose to the occasion and supported the two of you in this accomplishment," finished the boss. The three clinked glasses before they all took a sip. "Due to the success of this case, you and your team are all getting bonuses. Tomorrow, we'll take a look at the list that needs to be done and select the next Umbridge law that needs to be repealed. But until then, you two and your entire team are dismissed for the day. Take this entire Monday to enjoy this victory, for the next one we do will be that much harder."
"Yes sir, thank you sir!" Hermione effused brightly. Theo slammed the rest of his drink before setting the glass back down on the desk.
"I'll alert the team now," he said, turning to leave.
The boss gave Hermione a knowing look, and she reddened. Did everyone in the office know but her?! She hastily set her glass down and excused herself.
Theo wasted no time in telling all eight members of their legal team the great news, and a collective cheer went up at his words. A second one followed when Theo told them about the boss' reward to them.
The team quickly dispersed, several making plans to meet up later to celebrate their victory. Hermione packed her bag up and went to leave, jumping slightly at Theo appearing in the doorway of her cubicle.
"Good work on all of this. I guess you're not as bad as I thought you were," Hermione said lightly, trying to still her heart. Theo's grin widened.
"Well, since we won this battle, care to go for a coffee? I vaguely remember you agreeing earlier, but–"
"No, I don't think so," Hermione replied, stepping forward. Theo's face fell. "How about lunch instead?" He looked surprised at her, and she merely smiled back sweetly. "I'm a bit peckish, and I know this great place a couple blocks away that makes really good sandwiches."
Theo's smile back to her was blinding. He leaned forward to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
"I'd like that."