Andromeda was true to her word and arrived back at her home within half an hour. Teddy was hidden comfortably under her cloak but eagerly peeked out of the navy cover when he felt his caretaker step out of the floo. Looking around, he emitted a small squeal of delight as his eyes settled upon a certain bookworm.
Hermione placed her book to the side before standing in front of Andromeda. She grazed a finger along his cheek, but his chubby hand reached up and snatched her finger out of the air.
Andromeda chuckled as her grandson took the witch's finger into his mouth. "Would you like to hold him while I check on the status of dinner?" She wanted to give the pair every opportunity to bond again, and she knew that Hermione was not ready to completely let down her walls if there was another adult still in the room.
Andromeda's question was met with a nod, so the elder witch carefully handed over the gurgling baby before exiting into the hallway.
Once alone with Teddy, Hermione sighed comfortably and adjusted her hold on him. She held him tightly to her chest for a moment, inhaling the once familiar smell of a baby. There was something else there, too: something fruity mixed with a soft musk. The musk made sense. Hermione was sure that it was Harry's cologne since Andromeda mentioned that Teddy had stayed with him all day. The fruity smell threw Hermione for a loop. She identified the smell as something citrus - maybe lemon, but she did not recognize the perfume as belonging to somebody that she knew.
She grasped the constellation quilt strewn across the back of the couch and laid it on the plush carpet. Hermione then sat on the edge of the small blanket and conjured a few toys from the play chest as she placed Teddy on the middle of the blanket.
As she watched him play, the smell of citrus hit her again, and it clicked. Ginny. At least, that would make sense if Harry and Ginny were still dating, but Hermione could not be sure. The realization that she could not even name definitively the person that her best friend was dating abhorred her.
Was separating herself from her friends so significantly really doing good? She could not answer that question, for she did not have an honest answer supported by facts. She had hypotheses, but those were primarily based on emotion rather than logic.
Her thoughts were interrupted as Andromeda reentered the family room. She had changed into clothes that Hermione identified as being muggle. She wore light grey sweatpants with a forest green sweater. The pairing was distinctly Slytherin, but she still emanated softness. Her massive curls were pulled back into a ponytail at the base of her skull.
In that moment, Hermione saw the mother that Nymph had spoken of so many times. She did not see a descendant of the noble house of Black. She saw a grandmother with faint tendrils of greying hair and laugh lines that marked her face.
The older woman leaned forward to press a kiss to Teddy's scalp before settling on the opposite edge of the quilt. "Dinner will likely be another half hour."
Hermione didn't mind the wait. The sun was only just beginning to set outside, which cast the room in an orange glow. "What are we having?"
Andromeda shrugged lightly. "I think Mila said something about a baked chicken dish. I'm not entirely sure. You see, I'm not very particular when it comes to food. I'm content to eat most things."
Nodding in agreement, Hermione smiled. "Any desire to be picky disappeared when Harry, Ron, and myself went on our Horcrux hunt. We ate what we could when we could." It completely changed the way that Hermione looked at food. She viewed it more as a necessity rather than a desirable thing to consume.
"I haven't heard much about that. Harry doesn't speak much about that time-frame, but I don't think food is a problem for him. Any time I go to his apartment, he and Ronald both have food in front of them." This was part of the reason she was glad she kept Teddy with her. The food they were typically consuming was not indicative of good eating habits.
Humming, the younger witch nodded. "They seem to be doing okay." Hermione then began tracing the pattern of Orion on the blanket, silently naming the stars it contained. Rigel, Betelgeuese, Bellatrix, Alnilam. Her face contorted into a grimace as she slowly moved her finger back to Orion's shoulder. Bellatrix. She forced herself to list facts about the star in hopes of distracting herself. It was a Type-B star, which meant it glowed blue, rather than yellow or red. It is the third brightest star in Orion. It was also known as The Amazon Star, originally translated to mean The Conqueror. Hermione removed her hand from the constellation.
Andromeda watched Hermione trace Orion and smiled to herself as her finger located the warrior's shoulder. "Bellatrix means female warrior."
Eyes growing wide, Hermione met Andromeda's gaze, before gingerly replying. "Yes." She drew the word out, not sure if she wanted to say anything more or even continue the conversation.
"As I'm sure you're aware, all members - well, I suppose most members - of the Black family are named after the night sky."
Hermione hoped for a change of subject. She really didn't want to talk about that particular witch, but they could discuss their one common subject. "Nymphadora is not a star, however."
Andromeda chuckled and ran her fingers through Teddy's hair. "That is correct. She was not named after a star. I chose to break tradition because I knew that she would never be accepted into the Black family as long as my parents lived. She was born from the love of a pure blood and a muggle born. I did not want her name to follow the tradition of a family that would despise her very existence."
Hermione nodded solemnly, hand still hovering over Orion's shoulder. "Bellatrix changed that before she died though, didn't she? I heard rumors that you were reinstated in the Black family, that you are a rightful heir again."
A shadow of a smile crossed Andromeda's face before it quickly hid again. "Yes. I don't know if it was an actual act of kindness or if it was just the delusions of a madwoman, but the paperwork was filed the moment that she died." She raked emerald manicured nails across her forehead, as she attempted to stifle her budding headache. "She must have filed the paperwork before the battle. The ministry informed me that the paperwork was only to be completed upon her death."
Puzzled, Hermione laid her hand over the image of Orion. "That doesn't make sense to me. Why would she only have the paperwork finished upon her death?" Hermione felt like she was left with more questions than answers. Why would she not leave everything to Narcissa?
Andromeda laughed humorlessly. "She couldn't face me in life. It would have been nice to have some warning that this was coming. Narcissa's name was on the paperwork as a witness, so she knew this was coming."
This came as a surprise to Hermione. Why would Narcissa agree to reinstate Andromeda? That would mean that her share of the Black fortune would be split in half, if not completely eradicated, since she was now the Head of the Malfoy family.
Then it hit Hermione. "She didn't want Lucius to have access to the fortune, did she?" Hermione imagined that it was a secret between the two of them. It was no secret that the eldest Black sister hated her youngest sister's husband.
The middle sister hummed in thought. "That is likely a motivation for the secrecy, but it is not like Narcissa expected to receive money from me if I inherited everything, which is exactly what happened. She has no claim to the Black fortune without my express permission."
"Perhaps she believed that she could rebuild her relationship with you after the war. Additionally, if the money was in your hands, the ministry would not claim it for reparations, for you were not on the side of the antagonist." Hermione fell silent as she tried to apply reason to the actions of a madwoman, and the logic was stunningly, "Brilliant." The word penetrated the hushed atmosphere, and Hermione felt ashamed with her assertion. How could she admire the mind of someone who was such a monster? Her face felt hot, and she was sure that her cheeks were flushed. She felt utterly ridiculous as she met the older woman's gaze.
Andromeda readily met Hermione's eyes, giving her a small, yet genuine, smile. "It appears that her mind did not dull as much as I might have thought during her time in Azkaban, or perhaps she had a mere moment of lucidity near the end." Andromeda was not ready to accept the fact that Bellatrix had been sane shortly before her death, but the evidence pointed toward that conclusion.
Before they had an opportunity to linger on that discussion any longer, Mila entered the room, tugging on the hem of her charcoal dress. "Mistress Andromeda, the meal is ready for you and your guest."
Hermione found it odd that Mila had not apparated into the living room. From her experiences with house elves, they had exclusively apparated if they were traveling between rooms. It did not matter how far they were going; they always seemed to apparate.
Standing, Andromeda scooped Teddy into her arms and cooed at him softly before turning back to Mila. "Thank you. I am sure it will be delightful, as always. Be sure to enjoy your evening." The elder witch doubted that she would see Mila again before the morning, so she bid her goodnight, as well. Turning back to Hermione, she gestured toward the kitchen. "Shall we?"
Hermione followed the ebony-haired witch into the kitchen, where they enjoyed their meal in a comfortable silence.