Disclaimer: Not now and not ever will I own any of the Harry Potter Universe! It’s all JKR.
Hermione smiled up at Ginny when the redhead handed her a steaming cup of coffee. She hadn’t had much sleep the night before. She’d been in her office researching magical birth rituals until very late- or very early, she thought to herself ruefully.
“You need a break,” Ginny admonished, as she sat down next to her on the couch. Hermione sighed, putting down the two heavy volumes that she’d been skimming. She knew that Ginny was right. If she didn’t give her eyes a rest, she wouldn’t be able to concentrate for too much longer.
“I can’t help it, Gin. This is all I can do for them,” she whimpered. She looked around at the stacks of books and parchment. Dumbledore had Madame Pince send her every book on magical births that the Hogwarts library had. There were literally books everywhere.
Harry, Ron, and Ginny had showed up first thing that morning for research duty. No one had complained once. Hermione suspected that Harry warned them all to say nothing negative about Draco- in fact, while they had asked questions about Louisa, no one had even said a word to her about him.
The two boys had returned to work after lunch. Ron had only been able to take the morning off from the Ministry. While no other Muggle-borns had been attacked after Louisa’s kidnapping, there was still a lot of clean up to be done. The magical children now knew they were witches and wizards far earlier than they should have, by Ministry law, anyway. It was Ron’s job to talk to them about their new responsibilities, especially maintaining the secrecy of the wizarding world. Plus, the children were traumatized because they had been kidnapped. Then memory charms had to be placed on any Muggles who’d gotten involved.
Harry had work to do for the Order. Now that so many of the Muggle-born children had been identified, Dumbledore insisted that adequate protection be provided for them. So Harry was working with some of the Aurors to devise methods for keeping the children safe.
Ginny, however, had taken the entire day off to be with Hermione. And Hermione was extremely grateful to have her dear friend with her.
“Hermione, when did you first find out about Malfoy? When did this all start?” she asked gently. She had stayed clear of his name all morning but now she sensed that Hermione might need to talk about her feelings.
Hermione closed her eyes. She remembered the precise moment that she found out. It was one of her favorite memories- one of the kind that brings with it a flood of warmth and longing. Ginny looked at her friend expectantly, wondering if Hermione would actually answer the question.
With a mournful sigh, she began, “I had to go to the infirmary in the middle of the night- that stupid cut had started bleeding again- you remember that duel with Parkinson. Anyway, I had woken up because it was burning- and I could feel the blood all over my nightgown and my sheets.”
Ginny nodded- she’d never forget that particular duel. Pansy Parkinson had snuck up behind Hermione, hexing her so that she lost her balance and fell down a flight of stairs. Hermione had only managed to return one hex before the other girl had taken her wand and hexed her a few more times. Ginny had seen the entire thing from the above. She had pulled out her own wand to disarm the Slytherin but the girl had moved behind one of the wide stone columns. By the time Ginny had reached Hermione, she was semi-unconscious and beat up pretty badly. She was bleeding profusely from a gash on her forearm. Ginny shuddered as she remembered dragging Hermione to Madame Pomfrey. McGonagall had been so incensed that she had taken 150 points from Slytherin and had given two months of detention to Parkinson.
“Well, I was nearly at the infirmary when I heard a muffled noise- it sounded like crying. I walked towards it until I saw a doorway. The door was partially open, so I took a closer look. I could see Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore- someone was standing with them, too- but I couldn’t see who it was. Madame Pomfrey was holding a tiny baby in her arms. I was so overwhelmed by this image- I could hardly breathe! So then I made my way to the infirmary. Madame Pomfrey was already there when I walked in. She didn’t say anything about a baby and I didn’t ask,” Hermione explained. She took a few sips of her coffee before she continued. Ginny looked at her friend, noting her slightly glazed over eyes.
“The next morning, I got the first letter. The father was desperate. He begged me to help him place the child in the Muggle world. I knew he was talking about the infant I’d seen the night before. That night, I borrowed Harry’s Invisibility Cloak. I had to see the baby again. I don’t know why.” She took a deep breath.
“The door was closed and I couldn’t hear anything so I decided to wait for a bit. So while I was waiting by the door, I heard footsteps. I stepped back up against the wall. I saw him then. I saw Draco. He went to doorway, muttered a really advanced unlocking spell, and then waited as the door opened. I decided to take my chances, so I followed him in before the door closed. It was definitely some sort of nursery with cribs and rocking chairs. Madame Pomfrey was there and she whispered something to him and then left. I stood in the corner “ I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. He picked up the infant and sat in a rocking chair. He just held the sleeping child close. He didn’t say anything. But his face- it was like I’d never seen him before. He was so peaceful- so unguarded. He sat with the child for hours- I sat there with him.” Hermione’s eyes were shinning now, tears threatened to come down. Ginny placed her arm around her friend’s shoulders, giving her a gentle squeeze.
“Right then at that moment, I committed myself to those two. I knew I would help them- I’d always be there for them,” she breathed. Hermione got up then and walked over to her desk. With her wand, she tapped her bottom drawer and said the unlocking incantations. The drawer slowly rolled open. Gingerly, she picked up the stack of letters.
“I’ve kept all the letters he’s sent, Ginny. Every single one. And there are two letters in here from Louisa now,” she paused. She looked through some of the letters.
“I’ve been through so much with them- look, here’s when she took her first steps,” she said, holding up a yellowed piece of parchment. “And he sent this one when she said her first words- ‘Daddy’ and then shortly thereafter, ‘broom,’ “ and here’s when he needed to take her to a dentist- I suggested my own parents! He’s asked me everything, you know- I found that home for her- I’ve helped him with all kinds Muggle things- forms and paperwork and even just explaining simple stuff like toys- I’ve even sent her birthday presents!” Hermione’s voice was getting louder now. Ginny could see that she was nearing hysteria. She quickly walked over to her desk.
“Hermione,” was all she said. She put her arms around her friend. Hermione wanted to cry- she urgently wanted to let go of some of her burning emotions.
“Why did he leave me? Why did he take her?” she moaned over and over again, leaning her head into Ginny’s shoulder. Ginny patted her back soothingly.
“I don’t know. I don’t know. But Dumbledore thinks that they’ll come back, ’Mione. And you’ve got to pull yourself together- they’re going to need you again.” Hermione looked up into Ginny’s eyes, feeling stronger already.
“You know exactly what to say to me, Ginny Weasley.” With a deep cleansing breath, Hermione leaned down to put her precious letters back into her desk drawer. She locked it and then stood up and walked back over to the couch and picked up the two volumes she’d last been reading.
“I’ll save my tears and my questions. Right now I have work to do.” She sat down and began reading again. Ginny watched her friend, her own throat constricting just a bit. She wondered how long Hermione would be able to hold up. Hermione was a Gryffindor after all. But she seemed perilously close to breaking down. For her sake, Ginny found herself ardently wishing that Draco Malfoy would return soon.
As if she had heard Ginny’s wish, Hermione said, “He never called me Mudblood again after that first letter, you know. And no Slytherin came near me for the rest of the year.” Then she returned to her reading, leaving a wide-eyed Ginny to stare.
The afternoon wore on. Hermione and Ginny tirelessly made their way through the texts. They had come across many rituals that could have resulted in the magical birth of a child, though none of them without some kind of input from a mother. Even the few spells that they’d identified that would have allowed a human to be born outside of the womb required the flesh of a mother. Finally, Hermione put down the book she’d been holding.
“I need to know more about Louisa’s birth. I can’t do this without talking to Draco- not only is he not trusting me or talking to me- but he’s just not here.” She nearly threw the old text across the room in frustration.
At that moment, green flames erupted in the fireplace. Hermione and Ginny turned to hearth to see the sparkling blue eyes of Albus Dumbledore peering at them.
“Hermione, Ginny. Good evening. Hermione, would you be so kind to join me at the Headquarters? The sooner the better.” Hermione nodded at the old wizard and he disappeared from the fire with a small popping noise.
“Hmmm… wonder what that’s about?” Ginny pondered.
Hermione, who was now too numb to think about anything else, began to gather her notes. Unceremoniously, she shoved everything into her briefcase. She picked up her robes from the back of the couch and slid them over her shoulders. Ginny watched as Hermione vainly tried to close the clasp of robes that were now on backwards. She smiled a little at her brokenhearted friend.
“Neatus,” she intoned, pointing her wand at Hermione. Hermione’s robes quickly turned themselves right side out while her clothes straightened out their wrinkles. She watched as the purple smudges on the delicate skin under her friend’s eyes slowly disappeared, along with the swollen puffiness. Hermione’s frazzled hair transformed into luscious shimmering curls. She smiled at her dearest friend.
“You look human again, dear,” she declared, in a voice that sounded surprisingly like Mrs. Weasley’s. Hermione glanced in the mirror behind her. Then she gathered her friend in hug.
“Thanks, Ginny. Thanks for everything. Do you mind locking up?” she asked, now turning to walk into the anteroom.
“Not at all. Hermione, I’m going to run a few errands and then pick up some dinner. I’ll get Ron and Harry to meet us over at Headquarters, okay? How about Thai take-out tonight?” she asked.
“Better get a lot then if the boys are coming,” she teased. She looked at Ginny again, sighing. Then she concentrated on her usual Apparition point and was gone just a few seconds later.
As she soon as she Apparated behind the shed, she felt some of her resolve begin to crumble. She leaned her back against the side of the shed for support. As she did, she paused for a moment to look up into the dark lavender of the sky.
“Beautiful,” she mumbled to herself. She stayed for another minute, trying to pull herself out of what could easily become a downward spiral. She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders, and crossed the park. As she approached where the house should be, she thought about the address. She watched as it seemed to rapidly emerge in front of her. She walked up to the front door. She hesitated before knocking. Usually, Moody or someone else would have already opened the door to usher her inside.
She knocked lightly. When no one came, she fished around in the inside pocket of her robe for the old brass key. Quickly, she turned the key in the lock and let herself in. She hated being in 12 Grimmauld Place alone.
The darkened foyer confirmed her suspicion that no one else was home. She sighed, taking out her wand.
“Lumos,” she whispered. A warm cheery light exploded from her wand. She said another lighting spell and waited until she saw more, if faint, glowing points coming from the hallways. She took off her outer robe and hung it on the ancient coat rack. She was careful to make as little noise as possible.
Shortly after Sirius’s death, the old portraits of his family members had ceased to speak. While they could still be counted on to glare at the Order members or anyone of mixed blood, they refrained from actually speaking. The portrait of Sirius’s mother was still covered with heavy musty curtains, though.
Hermione knew that the portraits would not start yelling at her but she still kept quiet.
I’m so alone now, she thought. She sank down on the bench in the foyer. She could go no further. She sat there, letting the oppressiveness of the house weigh upon her.
In her mind, she replayed the scenes from the previous day. She remembered watching Draco as he walked into her office, taking in his handsome good looks. With shame, she pictured his hand grasping hers, stopping her from unwittingly drinking from the sugar dish. She recalled his momentary nervousness when he inquired about whether or not Ron or Harry could really be her secret admirer. With pain, she reflected on how angry he was after they’d talked to Ron and before they’d gone to Louisa’s home. She had shared in his devastation when they couldn’t find Louisa. With clarity, she remembered holding him in her arms and that amazing moment of reunion between him and Louisa. And finally, she recalled the horror of watching him disappear with the child.
She pulled her knees into her chest, clasping her arms around them, and hung her head. She’d couldn’t think of another time when she’d felt so alone- not alone but abandoned, she thought.
She didn’t know how long she sat there, lost in her thoughts. She felt as if she was standing at a precipice, looking down into a dreary future- a future without them and a future without love.
Noises from outside snapped her out of her reverie. Ashamed at herself for her despairing thoughts, she quickly stood, hoping that Ginny’s spell would continue to hide her miserable condition. She heard a knock at the door. Taking a deep breath, she crossed the foyer to open the door.
There stood Draco and Louisa.
With a small yelp, Louisa rushed at Hermione, who was already bending down to her knees. She pulled the child into a bone-crushing embrace. Tears that had been threatening to spill all day now came in a torrent. Hermione could barely breathe. She just held the little girl, great sobs coming from deep within her chest.
Draco gaped at his daughter and Hermione. The pain of guilt was threatening to consume him. Hermione would never betray him or his daughter. He felt the depth of her love and commitment to them as he watched her hold Louisa. He suddenly felt too overwhelmed by his own emotions. He had to put a hand out to the doorframe to steady himself.
He knew in that moment that he loved Hermione. With that knowledge, he felt as though he’d finally come home.