AN: Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
Hermione gritted her teeth and threw the letter onto the ground. She considered incinerating it outright, but knowing her luck, it would rematerialize. Whether she liked it or not, she would have to respond to this letter sometime today.
Music blared from the house next door. Melonie danced on her porch, reveling in the cool evening breeze. The rain called for a yacht rock playlist, one that included Rupert Holmes.
To him! Him! Him! What's she gonna do about him? She's gonna have to do without him! Or do without me, me, me!
Hermione made two fists as every muscle in her body constricted. It was bad enough that Severus would be there, but he was going to bring his girlfriend along. Hermione would sit across the table from the woman who would kiss him that night, never suspecting that Hermione ached for him. For all Hermione knew, they would kiss in front of her, just so she'd regret her decision to let him go.
Don't know what he looks like! Don't know who he is! Don't know why she thought that I would say what's mine is his!
On Friday, this nameless woman would get a face, a name, an identity. No longer would she appear as a shadow of Cindy. This woman wouldn't be an abstract excuse for not playing cards on Fridays. She'd be real, all too real.
I don't want to own her! But I can't let her have it both ways! Three is one too many of us! She leaves with me or stays with him! Him! Him! What's she gonna do about him?
Change the genders, and the song fits Hermione's situation perfectly. It was terrible enough that she'd messed everything up by telling Severus to forget the most beautiful moment of her life. Now, she would have to reap the rewards of her actions by watching another woman hang on him. His current girlfriend would not make the same mistake Hermione had made. Their kiss would be proof of that.
Sure, Steven would be there, but that only made it worse. Not only would Hermione be exposed as a liar, but she would have to admit she'd kissed one man while dating another. Worse, she'd have to admit she only dated Steven because he was a safer version of Severus. She was too frightened to go after Severus, so she settled for him. After being cheated on, she didn't think she was capable of doing that to another person, especially one as sweet as Steven. Still, she had kissed Severus while dating Steven. She wanted Severus to be the only other man she ever kissed. How could she let Severus talk her out of breaking up with Steven? Her life would be so much simpler if she'd listened to her heart and pursued Severus from the beginning.
She remembered why: he wanted to be with his girlfriend because she was less complicated, less tainted by the war, less needy, and less insecure than Hermione was.
Her body temperature swelled along with the music. Without thinking, Hermione shouted along,
It's me or it's her! Her! Her! What's he gonna do about her? He's gonna have to do without her! Or do without me! Me! Me! No one gets to get it for free! Time for me to make the man see it's me or it's her!
As the music died down, Hermione panted. Then tears came to her eyes. All she ever wanted was Severus' love. Right now, she wanted to apparate to his house and plead with him to make love to her, to forget everything she said about forgetting their kiss, to love her for the rest of their lives. Of course, he wouldn't do it. Why would he choose Hermione over his perfect girlfriend?
Why did she have to make such a mess of her life?
She waited for the next song to scream along with, but the porch was silent. Instead, there was a soft knock on the door.
Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes and straightened her posture. After sniffing and clearing her throat, she strolled to the door and opened it.
"Hey, I heard you screaming through your window. Are you doing okay?"
Hermione swallowed. Great, now even her noise complaint of a neighbor thought she was a complete wreck. This day kept getting better and better.
Melonie's eyes were soft. "Would you like to talk about what's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong." Hermione forced herself to smile. "I just like that song, so I sang along. It's no big deal."
"There's liking a song, and there's yelling it out."
Hermione bit back the comment that there wasn't a morning that Melonie didn't scream out the lyrics of her songs.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to talk to someone since the song seemed so personal to you," Melonie's voice was still soft.
Hermione blinked before examining her neighbor. A genuine smile crept across her face as a plan took shape in her mind. "I would love to talk to you, Melonie. Please come in."
Melonie nodded before entering. As Hermione closed the door behind her, she took note of her long, flowing hair, which held the answer to all her problems.
"Is everything going okay?" Melonie wrung her hands.
"I'm fine now."
Melonie swallowed.
"Would you like some tea?" Hermione asked. "It's rude to converse with someone without a beverage."
Melonie shivered. "I wouldn't mind a little tea. It's a little cold in here, but I have always liked a good tea."
"Great, I have peppermint, black, and green tea."
"Uh, don't you have sweet tea, or maybe some Twisted Tea?"
Hermione frowned. "No."
"Oh." Melonie squirmed.
"Would you like a soda? I have Coke, Sprite, Dr. Pepper, and Mountain Dew."
Melonie's eyes lit up. "I'll take a Dr. Pepper."
"Excellent choice." Hermione led her to the kitchen. "I will have a Mountain Dew."
"That sounds good." Melonie stepped inside the kitchen and stood in front of Hermione's table.
Hermione began scrounging around the refrigerator for soda. "Do you remember when I asked you for your hair?"
"Yes," Melonie drawled.
"I said I'd give you a book for each strand of hair."
"Yes, which I appreciate. I've learned so much about singing, and I have some great ideas for what to see in Seattle this weekend." Melonie answered.
"Seattle?" Hermione handed Melonie her Dr. Pepper.
"Yeah," Melonie's eyes glistened as Hermione shut the refrigerator door. "I just made reservations at Canlis for Friday night. My boyfriend can't wait to join me. We're going to have a blast!"
"Okay." The can hissed as Hermione opened it. "So you will be gone on Friday?"
Melonie nodded and opened her soda can.
"That's fine. I can work with that." Hermione tapped her foot.
"Work with what?"
"Your hair."
Melonie cocked her head.
"Can I borrow a strand of your hair?" Hermione asked.
"Excuse me?" Melonie took two steps back.
"Yes, I need your hair."
Melonie's eyes grew.
"I have an important event where I need to be Helen and Hermione," Hermione continued. "It's going to be difficult to juggle both identities, but I have a plan. If I take enough trips to the restroom and use enough Polyjuice, I can change from one person to the next until the evening is over."
"You want to Polyjuice yourself to look like me, then to look like yourself?"
"Yes." The plan sounded stupid coming from Hermione's mouth, but she was too desperate to care.
Melonie exhaled.
"I know it sounds convoluted, but if you're in Seattle, it could work. I can just bounce back and forth between your form and mine. I'm sure I can think of some excuses for why I'm gone. You and your boyfriend won't know a thing."
"No."
Hermione closed her mouth.
Melonie's voice was firm. "I'm not giving you a strand of my hair, and I'm not helping with this headache-inducing plan."
"I know you don't want to help me..."
"Good, I'm glad we're clear on that."
Hermione opened her mouth to say something else.
"No is a complete answer," Melonie added. "I'm not helping you, and that's final."
Hermione searched for a counterpoint but came up empty.
"If you need to hide who you are, then Steven isn't worth your time."
"No, he is worth my time. I mean, I think he is, but there's Severus, and he's with her on this double date, and I can't stand to see him and his girlfriend. She's an idiot, I just know it. I have to make him see she isn't worth it. I have to make things okay with Steven. I have to…" Hermione groaned and put her head in her hands.
Melonie's eyes softened as she sat beside Hermione. "What happened?"
Hermione stared at the other woman. Under normal circumstances, she would tell her neighbor to turn her music down and go gossip with someone else. Still, Hermione needed to talk to someone. Ginevra knew Steven, so she would be no help. Her mother would say something trite like, 'Tell the truth and be yourself.' Given that Melonie was the only person who could remain neutral, she was her only option for a real conversation about all this.
Hermione took a deep breath. "I'm happy with my boyfriend; at least I think I am. Steven is wonderful. He's a gentleman, intelligent, kind…"
"But he isn't your poker buddy."
Hermione shook her head. "Am I that obvious?"
"To anyone who hasn't seen you come home from a poker game, no," Melonie answered. "Still, sometimes I'm awake when you return home from your poker games. You are practically floating on air. You can't stop smiling. It's clear he makes you happy."
"He makes me happier than any man has ever made me."
"Are you afraid you messed it up?"
Hermione nodded.
Melonie hummed.
"We kissed," Hermione whispered.
"Great, I mean," Melonie gulped. "You were with Steven at the time, weren't you?"
"And Severus, my poker buddy, is with another woman."
"I see." Melonie scratched the table.
"I wanted to break up with Steven to be with Severus, but he talked me out of it. Then, I don't know." Hermione shook her head. "I got scared and confused. I wanted to be mature about the whole thing, so I did the stupidest thing imaginable. I told Severus just to forget the kiss had ever happened."
"And now you can't stop thinking about it."
Hermione groaned and put her head in her hands.
"Have you tried telling Severus that you've changed your mind, you can't stop thinking about him, and you want to be with him instead of Steven?" Melonie asked.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because things aren't that simple." Hermione lowered her hands.
"Why not?" Melonie asked.
"Because he's with someone else, and now." Hermione slid the letter towards her. "Steven, Severus, his girlfriend, and I are going on a double date."
"Oof." Melonie glanced at the letter. "That's rough."
"Yes, and now not only will Steven know I'm a fraud, but I'll have to watch Severus and his new girlfriend be affectionate with each other. My mistake is going to be thrown back in my face. I won't have a boyfriend, and I'll watch the man I love be in another woman's arms."
"If you do nothing, that's exactly what will happen," Melonie answered.
Hermione took a sip of her soda, her stomach in knots.
"If you do something, though, you might be able to salvage the situation." Melonie took a gulp of her Dr. Pepper.
"What can I do?"
"Well, first, you have to accept that you will lose Steven once your lie is exposed. Most men don't like being lied to, and even fewer like the idea of their girlfriend kissing another man behind their back."
"True."
"That will just leave you, Severus, and the other woman, right?"
"More or less."
"Great." Melonie grinned. "You'll have the chance to show him that you're the best woman for him."
"How?" Hermione huffed. "No man has ever considered me better than any other woman. In fact, men tend to leave me for another woman."
"I have a feeling Severus is different."
Hermione licked her lips.
"I mean, he kissed you back, didn't he?" Melonie asked.
"Yes," Hermione's body warmed at the memory of his lips against hers. If he would kiss her again, she'd be the happiest woman in the world.
"Then he feels something for you, unless he's a player."
"Severus isn't a player," Hermione snapped. "When he loves a woman, he loves her, and only her. It's one of the things I love most about him."
"Then you have nothing to worry about," Melonie answered. "If he isn't a player, then he kissed you because he wanted to, not because he was a dirty, rotten cheater who does that to every woman he meets."
"True," Hermione admitted. "He wouldn't kiss a woman he cared nothing for."
"That gives you an advantage because you've known Severus for years and she hasn't. You know how to make him happy, whereas she does not. He wants to be with you, but he doesn't think he can be with you because you told him he couldn't be. That can be fixed, though. Once you show him that he can be with you, he will run to you and never look back."
"You make this sound so simple."
"Because it is," Melonie raised her hands. "You love him. If he kissed you, he loves you too. Let him know you love him, and you two will be together forever."
"Just like that?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.
Melonie snapped her fingers. "Just like that."
Hermione stared at her, trying to make sense of her words. Could it be that simple? Had they been overcomplicating things this entire time and been unaware of it?
"Look, I don't know what all you've all been through, but someone somewhere convinced you that you weren't worthy of happiness. That isn't true." Melonie leaned towards Hermione. "You deserve to be happy with the man you love. He deserves to be happy with the woman who loves him more than any other woman ever could."
"What if he decides to be with her and there's nothing I can do to stop it?"
"Then you can say you tried to win his heart."
Hermione shook from a blast of the AC.
"I don't think that will happen though," Melonie continued. "I think Friday night will be the most memorable night of your life, assuming you play your cards right."
"I am improving my card playing skills." Hermione's lips curled up.
"You are?"
"Yes, my books are helping me master poker." Hermione took another sip of her Mountain Dew.
"I can't promise you that a book can tell you how to handle this, or that everything will work out." Melonie straightened her posture. "But I can promise that if you don't fight for Severus, you will regret it for the rest of your life."
"You're right, I will." Hermione relaxed. "There's nobody worth fighting for more than him."
"Then fight for him the best way you know how."
"Oh, I know how to fight for him." Hermione stretched her hands, the memory of how he moaned during her massage fresh in her mind. "I know very well how to fight for him."
"Good," Melonie replied.
"Thank you." Hermione's eyes were soft. "I needed to talk."
"Anytime," Melonie replied. "Don't worry about Severus. Love always has a way of working out."
"Indeed it does." Hermione took a sip of her Mountain Dew, relieved that even at her lowest points, she had friends who would help.
Melonie took a sip of her Dr. Pepper, relieved that she had accepted that all-expense-paid trip to Seattle from that rich redhead who had come to her house yesterday morning.