Chapter Thirty Four
"God, I've missed you," Harry whispered. His eager lips were pressed to Hermione's arched neck as his hands wandered under her thin white shirt.
Moments ago when Hermione had walked through the door at Grimmauld Place, Harry wasted no time snagging his arms around her waist and pulling her in close. It had been three days since they'd last seen one another, and the time away had been almost unbearable.
As Harry trailed hot kisses down Hermione's collarbone, she hummed with pleasure, her mind having gone blank when she really needed it not to. She felt his fingers find the top button of her pants, and she stiffened. She needed to put a stop to this before they got carried away again. She'd come to see Harry with a purpose, and shagging in the entrance way was certainly not it.
"Harry... " she said breathlessly, hoping he caught the hint of seriousness in her voice. She lightly pushed her hands against his chest. "I didn't come here for this."
"I know," Harry smiled as he pulled away slightly. "You want to talk."
He stared into her eyes, almost challengingly, and before she could respond, he slowly slipped his hand under her waistband, his fingers creeping down further into her soft knicker.
Hermione groaned, her head falling back, and Harry gave a small laugh. He gently pressed his lips under her earlobe.
"You told me you were done talking," he whispered, his hot breath hitting her skin and sending a chill up her spine.
He slowly pushing his index finger into her.
Hermione buckled.
"I... l - "
"You what?" Harry asked, feigning innocence as he slowly moved his hand ever so slightly.
"I... we..." Hermione willed herself to form a coherent sentence. "Talk. We really... need to talk."
Harry didn't push further with his teasing, despite how much he enjoyed seeing her flustered.
"Alright," he sighed.
He slowly removed his hands from Hermione, hoping whatever it was that she wanted to discuss wouldn't entirely spoil their afternoon together. He had a feeling she'd finally processed the implications of what they'd been doing late at night in Sirius's old bedroom.
Hermione blushed as she hastily straightened her shirt and fastened the button on her pants.
The pair silently moved to the dining room where they sat down across from one another at the large wooden table. Harry looked at her with a raised eyebrow, waiting for her to start.
"I think there are some logistics we need to work out," she said firmly, relieved that they had some distance between them. She could finally think straight.
"Alright," he nodded.
"Until we know exactly what this thing is, we keep it to ourselves. It'll stir up a fair amount of chaos if it gets out, and that's the last thing we need."
Hermione was surprised by the words leaving her own mouth. What was she doing? She had fully intended to end it with him this afternoon, but instead she was asking to be his dirty little secret?
"I think that's a good idea," Harry agreed, slightly surprised at how calm she was being.
"There's also work to think about," Hermione said with a small frown. "I'm your boss."
"I know," he said with a faint smirk. "Think of all the office sex."
"Harry!"
"I'm just joking," he said quickly, noting that she looked less than amused. "I'm not sure what we should do."
"I don't either," Hermione sighed, and then cast him a worried look. "It'll be bad though. I can't imagine how relentless things will be if we're found out."
Harry paused for a moment.
"What if I stepped down as Head Auror?" he suggested.
"Harry - "
"No, hear me out. If I stepped down, I could still be employed as a Senior Auror, but I wouldn't be your direct report. There'd be someone in between us. The Ministry's rule is that two people can't be in a relationship when one person is the supervisor of the other. So if I step down -"
"We technically wouldn't be breaking any rules."
"Precisely," Harry smiled with a nod. "Then we can disclose in a closed chambers meeting with the Wizengamot."
Hermione chewed her bottom lip and she contemplated Harry's idea. It would certainly help matters, but he was fantastic as Head Auror. She didn't want anyone else in the role. She didn't trust anyone else.
"I can't ask you to give up a position you've work so hard for," she said.
"I think it might actually do me some good," Harry replied with a small shrug. "I've been meaning to take a step back for a while now. McGonagall's asked me a few times to guest lecture at Hogwarts for Defense Against the Dark Arts, and I've always been too busy. With less responsibility at the Ministry, I can finally take her up on that."
Hermione was torn. His plan allowed the two of them to go public should they ever want to, but it was also going to be a huge change, one she wasn't sure either of them were ready for. Was he really willing to give up being Head of the Department?
"What?" Harry asked her, his face crinkled with worry. "You look like you have something to say?"
Hermione sighed again.
"It all sounds really... nice... but Harry, you need to think about this for a while. It's your career and you've worked so hard for it. What if things don't work out between us?"
"Then I'll just have to make the best of it," he answered calmly.
"Harry - "
"But if it makes you feel better, I won't make any decisions for a few days."
"Thank you," she said with a small smile. She tucked a lose strand of hair behind her ear and sat up taller in her seat. "There's something else."
"Okay?" Harry gave her a quizzical look.
Hermione took a deep breath, trying to slow her rapid heartbeat. She really hoped he would understand.
"Ron's moved back in."
"What?" Harry asked, his eyes widening.
"Only temporarily," Hermione replied quickly, then adding, "To help with Rose."
Harry shot her a skeptical look.
"Does he know that?"
"I told him I wasn't interested in rebuilding our relationship," Hermione said quickly, purposefully leaving out that Ron had suggested they get back together. "Whether he chose to hear me... well who knows."
Harry shook his head, frowning.
"You should tell him," he said. "That you're seeing someone."
"Is that what we're doing?" Hermione asked, deflecting from his suggestion.
"Well if not then our greeting earlier was probably a tad inappropriate, don't you think?"
"Right," Hermione said sheepishly, a blush creeping to her cheeks.
"We're something," Harry said definitively. "More than just a fling. After these past ten days... well there's no denying that, is there?"
"I... I suppose," Hermione admitted quietly, then more confidently added, "We are."
"Ron deserves to know that you've moved on. Of course he doesn't need to know it's with me."
"I'll tell him eventually... just not now," Hermione said. "It won't be long until Rose's back at school and then once he's moved out I can break it to him gently."
"If you think that's best."
"I really do."
Hermione could tell Harry didn't agree with her. She just wasn't ready yet to have another tough conversation with Ron. Her family was in a fragile state, and the last thing she wanted to do was throw another grenade into their delicate situation.
Harry stood from his chair, and nodded towards the hall.
"Come on, let's pick up where we left off."
...
It was later than Hermione planned when she appeared in the living room fireplace. She ducked under the mantle and quickly scanned the main floor, noting that the table was set for four and a roast was cooking in the oven.
Seeing no one around, Hermione exhaled a sigh of relief. She desperately needed to hop in the shower and wash away all traces of what she'd been up to.
"Where've you been?"
Hermione jumped. She spun around and saw Ron walking out of their main floor bathroom. He gave her a questioning look and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
"What?" She asked, her mind not having registered what he said.
"You look flushed," Ron clarified, noting her jumpiness with a curious expression. "Were you outside?"
"Oh," Hermione blushed, adverting her guilty eyes from his gaze. "No, I was just rushing to get home, that's all." She turned her back to him and pretended to busy herself by sorting through the mail on the nearby end table. "The food smells great by the way. Sorry I'm a bit late. I didn't realize you planned on cooking."
"Don't worry about it," Ron replied, waving his hand. He walked into the kitchen and took out a wine glass from the top cupboard. He filled it halfway with Chardonnay and handed it to her. "Supper won't be ready for another hour. I figured we could have a cocktail together. It's Saturday after all."
"Sure," Hermione said with a hesitant smile. "That sounds nice."
She sat on a stool at the marble kitchen island as Ron poured himself a firewhiskey on the rocks.
"There's something going on with Rose," he said, his elbows resting on the counter as he leaned across the island towards Hermione. "She's been hold up in her room ever since she got home."
"Oh... well, she's been through a lot, Ron."
Hermione was also bothered by the dark cloud looming over their daughter, though she at least knew why.
Ron straighten his posture and took a small sip of his drink. He frowned, his eyebrows furrowed with worry.
"This is different," he said. "Something else is bugging her. I know it."
Hermione exhaled loudly. As much as she didn't want to tell Ron, she knew he deserved to know. If the shoes were reversed, she'd be irate to learn he'd been keeping a secret concerning one of their children from her.
"If I tell you something, you have to promise you won't make a big deal out of it," she said, shooting him a serious glance.
Ron narrowed his eyes, and his heart quickened with anticipation.
"What is it?" He asked hurriedly. "What's going on?"
"Ron, promise me," Hermione said forcefully.
"Yeah, yeah, I promise. Now out with it."
Hermione braced herself, hoping Ron would be able to control himself and act rational about the situation.
"Rose is a bit... heartbroken," she confessed gently.
"Heartbroken?" Ron balked.
Hermione winced, noting that his hands were tightly gripping the side of the countertop.
"Yes," she confirmed as calmly as she could manage. "She and uh... Scorpius... they were sort of a thing this summer."
"A thing?"
Ron's entire face went red and his jaw clenched tightly.
Hermione sighed.
"Yes, a thing."
"What the bloody hell does that mean?" He shot wildly.
"You know very well what it means. You were a teenager once too," she replied with slight irritation. "I've been meaning to tell you for a while now, and I should probably also mention... I caught them snogging on her bed a few weeks ago when they thought no one was home."
Hermione didn't think it was possible, but Ron's face turned even redder.
"Snogging? On her bed!?" He fumed. "They're only fourteen!"
"I know, Ronald," she said with exasperation. "Trust me, I wasn't thrilled about it either. Rose and I had a long talk afterwards."
"I can't believe this," Ron muttered to himself. "I'm going to kill that ferret!"
Hermione rolled her eyes. This was exactly the reaction she expected from him.
"You will not," she said sternly, giving him a cross look. "Scorpius is already feeling guilty enough and besides, he broke things off. Thats why she's been so upset."
"Stupid git."
Ron took a long gulp of his drink.
"He was trying to be noble."
"Certainly wasn't being noble when he was secretly pawing my daughter all summer", he muttered, and grunted in displeasure. "I thought Rose was better than this."
Hermione could relate to his sentiment. After all, she'd completely gone mental when she'd found out about the two. Yet, given everything that had happened, she couldn't help but feel sad for them.
"You'd best not bring any of this up with her if you're just going to scold her," Hermione said with a warning tone. "She's hurting in more than one way right now, and she doesn't need you adding salt to her wounds."
"Alright, alright," Ron said, his hands up defensively in the air.
A brief silence fell over them.
"I should take a quick shower," Hermione said after a moment, rising from her seat. "You're good?"
"Yeah," Ron said. "Or at least I will be."
Hermione gave him a small smile before heading towards the stairs.
When she got to her room she flopped on the bed, feeling relieved. She just successfully discussed one sensitive matter with Ron, and she hoped she'd soon have the courage to discuss another.
...
Harry sat on the sofa across from Ginny in an uncomfortable silence, an untouched cup of tea on the coffee table in front of him. Ginny smiled weakly at him, her arms stiffly crossed and pressed tight against her midsection. They'd just had a meal with their children, the first time the five of them had been together in sometime. Immediately after the plates had been cleared, James, Albus, and Lily had all hurried upstairs to their rooms, desperate to get away from the uneasy aura that radiated from their parents.
Harry cleared his throat awkwardly, unable to stand the silence between him and Ginny any longer.
"That went alright, don't you think?" he asked hesitantly.
"They hardly said anything," she said quietly, staring down at her tea.
"Yeah... " Harry said, scratching his head. "But maybe that's a good thing?"
Ginny shot him a sorrowful scowl.
"Or maybe not," he added quickly.
"We've destroyed their world," she said sadly. Tears formed in the corner of her eyes. "They're devastated."
Harry swallowed hard, not sure what to do or say to comfort his soon to be ex-wife.
He really didn't think the kids had taken the news that badly. Sure, they hadn't said much and looked disappointed when he'd told them were filing for divorce, but they'd almost seemed to have known it was coming. How could they not after the horrible summer everyone had been through?
"Hey," Harry said gently, leaning forward in his seat towards Ginny. "Things don't have to be dire. We don't have to be those bitter divorced parents. We get to choose how this all plays out."
He offered her a genuine smile, hoping to ease her pain, even if only slightly.
"I guess," Ginny sniffled, wiping away a few tears from her cheeks with the sleeve of her sweater.
"It's going to be alright," Harry soothed. "Why don't we let everyone sit with the news for a few days and then we'll talk again."
"Whatever you think," she said quietly.
Silence fell over them once again.
"I should probably get going," he said after a beat.
As he put his jacket on, he noticed Ginny staring at him with a harden expression.
"Is it serious?" she asked, a hint of distain in her voice. "You and her?"
Harry stopped in his tracks and his stomach lurched. He was hoping they could avoid a confrontation about Hermione.
He sighed and shrugged.
"Honestly... I don't really know."
Ginny continued to stare at him intently.
"But you'd like it to be?" she asked.
"Yeah," Harry replied softly, unable to meet her scrutinizing gaze.
She gave a curt nod, her eyes swirling with a mix of emotion. She turned her back to him and picked up his untouched tea from the coffee table.
"Have a good night, Harry."
He paused momentarily to swallow the large lump in his throat, and then taking her dismissive tone as his cue, he moved towards the door to leave.