Pulling out her wand, Hermione unlocked the door to the flat she shared with Ronald and smiled as she entered the warm atmosphere. Her smile fell as she walked into the kitchen and saw a brassiere that was definitely not hers danging off a kitchen chair. Then she heard a shriek from down the hall. Stomach falling to the floor, she slowly walked towards the sounds coming from their bedroom. She knew what she would see when she opened the door, so using her wand, she began packing her belongings from around the house before pushing open the door.
"Hello, Ronald and ... ah, Padma? Under the circumstances, I can't say it's nice to see you again."
The pair lay frozen in the bed as Hermione walked calmly towards her bedside table and withdrew a magical camera. She took a few pictures before they noticed what she was doing. "Mione! It's not what it looks like!"
"Really? Because I think it's quite clear what was happening. I'll be filing in the morning, do us both a favor and sign so we can be done with this sham of a marriage. Good day Patil."
Turning on a heel Hermione summoned her packed luggage, shrinking it she put it in her concealed wand pocket and walked into the floo. Calling out for the Burrow, she was soon surrounded by scents of food and laughter. Only then did her composure begin to fall.
"Mione? Ron? Is that you?" she heard Molly call but she couldn't find it in herself to respond. Her voice would betray her.
Ginny walked into the living room with a frown on her face but stopped short, seeing Hermione standing dazed in front of the fireplace. "Happy-Mione? What happened?"
Harry came in just behind his wife and Hermione felt her eyes start to prick with tears.
"R-Ron.."
Harry became hard and stalked over to her. "Not again," he groaned as he took her into his arms. Hermione nodded and began to cry into his shoulder. "Mione, I am so sorry."
The floo flared behind her and Ron stumbled out. "Mione, please!" But Harry turned so he was between his best friend and her husband.
"You cheated on her? Again! And on her birthday of all days!" Ginny hissed at him as Harry guided Hermione towards the kitchen. "I can't believe you, Ronald! After everything you two have been through!"
"Shove off Gin, you don't understand!" He hustled into the kitchen, where he froze, Hermione was still tucked into Harry, but he was talking to Molly, who turned to face her son as he came into the kitchen.
"RONALD WEASLEY! You cheated on your wife!"
"Mum-"
"I don't want to hear it! How could you?!"
Hermione pulled herself out of Harry's arms and he wiped her cheeks before kissing her forehead. "Thank you," she whispered as he released her. Turning to face her family, she squared her shoulders, "I'm sorry for bringing this here, Molly. I just needed to get out of the flat, and this was the first place I thought of, but I really want to go home."
"Yes, yes, Mione, let's go home."
"My home is not with you, Ron. Not anymore," she spit at him. "I'm going to Hogwarts." Turning back to Molly she hugged her mother-in-law, "I'm sorry for ruining dinner and leaving, thank you for all of this," she motioned around the decorated kitchen, "I appreciate it."
"Don't be, my dear, I understand. Take these," she used her wand and packed away food for Hermione to take with her. "You need to eat still and everyone should have cake on their birthday." She wrapped her arms around Hermione and whispered in her ear, "You are still my daughter Hermione, no matter what you decide to do." Hermione sobbed into her shoulder before kissing her cheek and extracting herself from the older woman's grip.
Nodding she gave her a weak smile before feeling Harry at her back. "I'm going to make sure she gets to her chambers safely and I'll be back," he told the room.
"Mione! Please! I didn't mean it!" Ron hollered, trying to approach the pair. The twins stepped in his path, effectively blocking him. "She's my wife!" he yelled at them.
Hermione turned as they reached the door and met his eyes, "Not for long."
With that, she left the house out the back door, Harry's hand still on her lower back. Only then did she realize her mistake, everyone who wasn't inside was out in the garden and they were all looking at her with concern. Like the kitchen, the garden was decorated with balloons and streamers, presents piled at one end of the table everyone was seated at.
"Harry, I can't, not right now," she whispered to him, "I will be fine, just keep them at bay for me."
Reluctantly, he nodded and pushed her towards the wards before turning to the table and sitting down, talking in hushed tones. Hermione reached the wards before Harry had finished, and with a loud crack, she found herself outside the gates of Hogwarts. Drawing in a ragged breath, she started up the path to the castle.
She felt like an imbecile. This wasn't the first time she'd caught Ron cheating. Rose had been the only reason she'd stayed when she first found out he'd been seeing other women, and she felt like a fool for not considering the possibility that he would dip back into old habits. Their marriage was far from perfect, it never had been, but she liked to think it had been getting better as they cooped together with losing Rose. Evidently, she was wrong. It wasn't his infidelity that hurt her, it was that she'd let herself be played once more when she knew she wasn't truly happy.
"Mia?"
Her head snapped up and she noticed the two men walking down the path towards her. Internally she cursed herself for not paying better attention. "Draco. Professor." Draco arched an elegant eyebrow and stopped in front of her, Scorpius was sleeping on his shoulder and Hermione reached out to touch his back with a sad smile.
"Mia, what happened?"
"What makes you think something happened?" she countered.
"Let me count the ways. Your eyes are puffy, you called me Draco, and you only left about 20 minutes ago. Surely dinner at the Burrow takes longer than that."
Hermione effortlessly slipped Scorpius out of his father's grasp without waking him, "But catching your husband with another woman doesn't," she whispered just before she buried her nose in Scorpius's hair. She took a deep breath before looking at the two men who were still watching her carefully. Both looked shocked. "You were right, Drake."
"I didn't want you to get hurt though.."
"You truly have changed," she quipped with a smirk as she moved to put Scorpius back on his father's shoulder. "I should have left Ronald long before this, I did it to myself."
Severus was livid to find out the Weasley boy had cheated on the woman before him. She looked like she was in pain, but she didn't look heartbroken, which is what he would expect from someone who just found their husband cheating. He was able to maintain his steely composure as she and Draco spoke, but when she began to blame herself, he couldn't keep quiet, "You can't honestly believe this is your fault."
Hermione turned to him with a small smile, "Not in the way you're probably thinking but Severus, Drake was right earlier when he said I haven't been happy. Ronald cheated on me before, I found out the day I told him I was pregnant with Rose and he promised to shape up for the sake of our daughter. I was naïve to believe him, Ronald has never been one to stay. I should never have married him, we rushed into it after the war and that was my biggest mistake. Who knows what I have missed out on because of my choice to stay."
"Good Mia. You deserve someone who will respect and love you. Not to mention someone who can actually hold an intellectual conversation without needing a dictionary," Draco snickered, and she shook her head.
"I agree. But alas, my marriage just ended. I'd like to wait for it to be finalized before you start being you and playing matchmaker."
"What can I say, I am good at what I do."
Hermione laughed and shook her head. "Bugger off, Malfoy," she quipped, leaning forward to kiss his cheek. Turning to Severus she fought a blush she felt crawling up her neck, he was watching her closely, his dark eyes searching her face, "Good evening gentlemen. Again. Enjoy the rest of your evening."
Hermione choose to stay in her rooms or her office for the remainder of the weekend, house elves brought her meals and ignored her polite protests. She'd declined the offer to have her own house elf, but she couldn't stop them from trying to cater to her anyway, and she gave up trying to get them to stop. Harry and Ginny came to see her Saturday for lunch, but after some coaxing, she convinced them that she was alright and feeling much better already. Hermione laughed heartily when Ginny told her that she had jinxed Ron, so anything he ate would taste like slugs for the next two weeks.
When she arrived in the Great Hall Monday morning, Remus grabbed her into his arms before she could pull out her chair. One second, he was in his seat, and the next, he had his arms wrapped around her.
"Remus," she breathed around his tight hug. He growled lowly and tightened his grip on her, "Moony, I need to breathe." He let her go instantly and she chuckled.
"Are you alright?" He pulled out her chair and put a hand at her back, easing her towards it.
She kissed his cheek before taking the offered seat, "Yes, thank you, sweet wolf."
Teddy took his father's chair beside her and hugged her waist, "I'm sorry, Mini."
"Oh, little wolf, you shouldn't be. You don't need to worry about me, love." She kissed his head, but he scooted his seat closer to her so their seats were touching, and she smirked at his protectiveness. Teddy may not have inherited lycanthropy from his father but he still exhibited certain behaviors that screamed 'Moony' to Hermione.
She turned to her food and saw Severus in her peripherals, "Good morning Professor."
He put down his paper and looked her over before returning her greeting and returning to his paper. It made her smirk stretch a little wider and she tried to ignore the way her heart sped up.
"Aunt Mini?"
"Yes, love."
"Does this mean I get a new uncle?"
Hermione was stunned by his question. He clearly understood the situation enough to know it was a possibility. Remus about dropped his tea, hearing his son's question, "Teddy, that is not appropriate." Remus looked at her, "I'm sorry, Mione, you don't need to answer that."
She chuckled, "I know, but," she looked down at Teddy, whose hair had paled from being reprimanded, "in time maybe, but not right away. Would you mind having a new uncle in the future?"
Teddy focused on his fork while he considered her question. "What about Uncle Charlie?"
Hermione couldn't keep from laughing out loud. Slapping her hand over her mouth, she stifled her laughter, "Charlie?" Teddy nodded vigorously. "Little wolf, Charlie loves his dragons, I doubt he will ever settle down and get married. Plus, I don't think it would be appropriate to marry one of your Uncle Ron's brothers."
Teddy shrugged and nodded while Hermione shared an amused look with Remus. Hermione had just taken a bite of her hash when he spoke again. "What about dad?"
Her bite got stuck in her throat and she had to thump herself on the chest to dislodge it. When Severus handed her a goblet she noticed his hand on rubbing circles into her back and he had the tiniest of smirks but his eyes were dark, something was there but she couldn't quite place it. "Thank you," she coughed. He nodded. "No, Teddy. While I love you and your dad, I'm afraid I don't see your dad in that manner. Nor do I think he sees me that way." She looked at Remus, who was wide-eyed.
"Sorry, Ted," he shook his head, winking at Hermione through his embarrassment.
"Who then?"
"I don't know love. It's too early and it may not happen. Would you be okay if you didn't get a new uncle?"
Teddy looked distressed and started shaking his head vigorously. "No. Uncle Pads says you need someone to treat you properly. Someone smart. Uncle Charlie is smart, and so is Dad. Uncle Pads is smart but you would kill him."
Hermione laughed and nodded, "That I would."
He continued as if she hadn't spoken, he propped his head on his palm against the table as if lost in thought. He was mumbling to himself and Hermione watched him, sharing another amused look with Remus. When Teddy didn't seem to have any more idea, she returned to her food and smirked at Severus, whose lips were quirked up slightly while he read his paper.
"Oh!"
"Did you figure it out?" Remus questioned. Teddy nodded and leaned towards his father to whisper in his ear. Remus's eyes widened and lit with amusement. "I quite agree, Ted," he said as he sat back in his seat. Teddy beamed and looked back at Hermione.
"So, who did you pick?" Teddy shook his head and smiled, growing brighter. "I don't get to know?" He shook his head again. "Remus?"
"I'm not going to tell you," he chided.
Hermione scoffed, "Shouldn't I get a say in this?"
Remus took a long drag of his tea and pretended to consider her question before shaking his head. "Not this time. Teddy is right on the galleons with this. I think this wizard could be very good for you."
"Not fair," she pouted before kissing Teddy's forehead. "Merlin, Draco, and now you two. It hasn't even been a full week and the divorce isn't even finalized." She groaned and ran a hand through her curls. "But I appreciate the sentiment," she kissed Teddy's forehead once more.
It wasn't long after that that they left for Teddy's school, each Lupin kissing her cheek on their way out. When they were gone, Hermione ran a hand through her curls one last time before deciding to charm it into a loose bun.
"Everyone seems to think your happiness will depend on a man, Miss Granger." The statement was silky and Hermione momentarily wondered if he knew the effect it had on people.
"It would appear so. Rather frustrating if you ask me, but they mean well."
Severus let out a low chuckle. "You seem well, all things considered."
"Surprisingly, I feel fine. My marriage is ending, and I know I should be a wreck, but I feel...relieved," she breathed, looking at him to find his eyes on her already. "But if I told them that, they would think I was mad. Harry is already worried thinking I'll-," panic flooded her eyes and she looked over the students again as shame washed through her, "That I will suddenly break down into a puddle of tears and I can only imagine what dinner in two weeks will be like. Honestly, now that I think about it, I think I prefer the attempts to find me a match to the looks of sympathy."
"You are stronger than they give you credit for Hermione."
She looked at him once more and smiled, "Thank you, Severus."
He shivered hearing his name pass her lips, it sounded like heaven coming from her. "Have a good day Miss Granger."
Her eyebrow quirked as he reverted back to proper titles, "You as well Professor."
Severus sat in his favorite winged back chair, playing with a ball of light as Scorpius sat memorized in his lap, occasionally reaching out for the light as it wound its way through Severus's fingertips. Draco sat on the couch beside them, talking to Dotty with a pristine grin plastered across his face. When the elf disappeared with a soft 'pop' Severus spoke.
"You couldn't just let Dotty deliver the invitation?"
Draco shrugged, "This is more fun."
Hermione was walking out of the bathroom, tying the sash on her dressing gown, when a soft 'pop' startled her. Looking down, she gasped and grabbed her chest, seeing the small elf in front of her.
"Hello."
The elf was wearing pink robes with a tiny white apron that had various flowers embroidered on the bottom of it. Her ears perked up and she smiled when Hermione spoke.
"Misses, my Master asked Dotty to offer you a proper invitation to his rooms for tea. Mister Malfoy is there with young Malfoy."
Hearing Draco's surname Hermione understood who Dotty's master was.
"I would love to, Dotty; just let me get dressed." She started towards her wardrobe but a tiny hand gripped her wrist, "Wh-".
The word never made it out of her mouth as her throat closed from the force of the apparition, and before she completely understood what happened, she found herself standing in front of a fire. The grip on her wrist disappeared and she spun around bewildered.
"Dotty?"
She froze, seeing the two men and toddler before her. Dotty was smiling at Draco as he kissed her hand. He hadn't seen her yet. Severus, however, was avoiding looking in her direction and she felt her heart fall into her stomach. This is beyond bloody embarrassing.