Chapter Text

Chapter Five

~ September 12th, 2008 ~

Harry flipped through the finished paperwork for the donation from Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. Most departments in the Ministry of Magic ran off of donations from outside magical corporations and businesses. It provided the ministry with a necessary added income and gave the businesses involved a massive tax break. Bigger departments were highly coveted by bigger companies. The bigger the department, the bigger the donation that can be given, which meant a far larger tax break as well. 

After Harry had denied Malfoy Corporation's scheduled donation, the spot had opened up to many new businesses. He, as the Deputy Head of the Emergency Response Department, had been flooded with requests from various companies. He felt rather like the prize cow at the slaughterhouse. Everyone wanted a piece of him. It made sense, since the ER Department had a budget that was comparable to the Auror Department. 

He’d decided to go with the Weasleys twins. While he rather hated their younger brother for obvious reasons, he had always been amiable with the twins. He’d been supportive of their venture into building their own joke shop and the meagre monetary support he’d lent them when he first came of age had resulted in a flourishing business. 

This was a good opportunity for them. The ministry had recently raised the taxes on non-essential services and he knew it was going to hit the Weasleys hard. The tax break would counter that nicely. 

There was a knock at his door. He looked up as his receptionist ducked her head inside. "You have a visitor, Healer Potter."

"My next appointment isn't for another thirty minutes."

"This isn't your four o'clock. It's Miss Weasley?"

Harry fought not to sigh. He didn’t like unscheduled appointments. Harry set aside what he was working on and tucked it into his drawer.

“Send her in, Alice,” he said with a wave.

Alice nodded and her little head of straight black hair disappeared. Ginny entered only seconds later. She strolled in all long legs and flowing red hair. There was something about the glint of her hair and the tilt of her chin that always made Harry think of his mother. He swallowed down the queasy feeling in his stomach. 

Susan was engaged to Colin Creevey, he’d learned the day before. Daphne was still an option, but the contract attached to her was less than desirable. The only other compatible name still on his list was Ginny Weasley. He knew he could marry anyone in the program, but marrying someone on his list meant he at least had a shot at happiness with them. Ginny was starting to look like his only option and it was making him feel sick with anxiety. 

“Healer Potter,” she greeted him with a little smile and a flip of her hair.

He smiled tightly. “Miss Weasley.”

Ginny came around his desk despite his annoyed face and perched herself up on the edge. She leaned back and crossed her legs. Her short skirt showed off her long, pale legs. She was beautiful, it was simply a fact.

But she wasn’t Hermione and that was just the start of the reasons why he didn’t want her.

Harry leaned back in his chair and turned his head to look over at her. “What can I do for you?”

“You can buy me dinner,” she responded with a flirtatious touch to her voice. 

Harry looked away. “I’ll likely be working late tonight.”

“Oh, come on.” 

She leaned forward and Harry found himself about as attracted to her as he did any woman that wasn't Hermione. Which was to say, there was very little interest at all. And with Ginny, the attraction was less than most girls. It wasn’t her fault. He just couldn’t stand the fact that her brother had fucked his witch.

“Work can wait for tonight,” she goaded. 

Harry remained unmoved. She sighed and leaned back. 

“You know, I am trying.” 

He looked up at the tone of her voice. It was different. The sexual undertone had disappeared and her playfulness was put aside. When he looked up at her, she looked more real than she had since they first started talking a few weeks back. 

“I’m here because I don’t want to be miserable. We could be good together, don’t you think?”

Harry tilted his head. The Magical Matches Unit certainly thought so and they were never wrong. 

“I suppose we don’t really know anything about each other.”

“So, let’s get to know each other. I mean, the ministry thinks we’re good enough for each other for marriage. Let’s see what they see in us and then we can talk about the rest of it.” 

She smiled and Harry fought down a feeling of unease. 

“Dinner?”  She slipped off his desk, clearly thinking she’d won the argument and that sliver of normalcy he’d seen in her disappeared once more. “Seven? I’ll meet you at the Leaky.” 

At a loss for anything else to say he simply shrugged and nodded. He could get through a single dinner. In a few days, he’d be given his third list of magical matches. They changed every few weeks depending on who was in or out of the program. Ginny had been on it for two lists running so far. He was sure she’d be on it again but Merlin did he hope the other options would be better.

“Seven,” he agreed tightly.

Ginny smiled brightly. She whirled around and strode from the office with a bounce in her step. The door closed behind her with a sound of finality.

God, he needed a drink after that. Maybe several. 

Harry ran a hand down the side of his face. He didn’t want to marry Ginny Weasley. He didn’t want to marry Daphne Greengrass either.  

Harry swore under his breath. He just had to wait it out until he could see what his options were in a few days.

He stood and grabbed his jacket from the hanger by the door. He needed to get the hell out of here before he continued his downward spiral of marriage misery.

Harry opened the door as he shrugged his jacket on. “Alice? I’m heading out-” 

-He froze at the sight of the woman sitting in the waiting chair outside his office. 

Hermione Granger. 

Harry nearly swallowed his tongue at the sight of her. He hadn’t seen her since he left her in his father’s hands at St. Mungos. 

It had taken everything in him not to ask after her when he’d seen his father that night. James hadn’t said a thing and Harry had honestly been too scared to bring it up. He didn’t want his father to find out Hermione was his magical match and get involved. His father meant well, but he tended to get a bit wild when magical matches were involved. He’d almost sent an owl over to the Diggory’s last year when Delilah had realised her match was Maggie Diggory, a girl two years younger than her in Hufflepuff. 

Harry had convinced the man to wait until the ministry had at least passed the new law allowing homosexual relationships in Wizarding Britain. Harry had a sneaking suspicion that the law was going through so quickly with his father’s added influence.

“Hermione?”

She smiled softly at him. “Hi. I have an appointment,” she gestured to him, “but I can reschedule.”

“What?” He looked down at himself and remembered he was leaving. “No, no! It’s fine.”

She stood and he couldn’t help but admire how pretty she looked in her little pink dress. Her tanned legs looked long beneath the short cut of the skirt. He vividly remembered how perfect those legs had felt when they’d been wrapped around his waist. 

God, he was a fool for this girl.

“I can come back tomorrow,” Hermione was saying. “I don’t want to make you work late.”

“How about tea?” He nodded towards the lift. “I was going to grab a cuppa. Join me?”

Her cheeks tinged pink and he couldn’t help but think she was lovely. “I’d like that.”

Harry nodded at his assistant. “Head home whenever you’re ready, Alice. See you tomorrow.”

“Have a good night, Healer Potter.” 

Harry pressed a hand to Hermione’s back and led her towards the lift. He racked his brain, trying to remember if he had known that it was Hermione that had scheduled an appointment with his department. Why had she scheduled an appointment with him? She didn’t work for the ministry and ministry officials were primarily who he met with. 

Harry barely contained his curiosity as they left the Ministry of Magic and exited out onto the muggle London street. Hermione looked up at him expectantly.

“There’s a place down this way,” he suggested. 

She nodded and he led her towards the pub he normally went to for a lunch out. Harry led her to a booth and sat across from her. 

His heart hammered in his chest. He couldn’t believe he was actually here, right across from her. She was just sitting there with the plastic-covered menu in her hands, looking it over with that serious look on her face she had whenever she read over anything. She was a vision. 

Hermione looked up with an embarrassed little smile. “I know you probably meant just a drink, but I’m starved. Would you mind if I ordered a burger?”

A grin stretched across his face. “I could eat.”

Her smile turned pleased and she looked back at her menu. He studied her while she read. She looked good. She always looked good. Her dark curls fell down around her shoulders in long ringlets. Her fringe was clipped back on either side by two little clips with flowers on them. 

Hermione looked up at him with her big brown eyes and smiled brightly. She set her menu down. 

“I’m set on the burger. It sounds delicious.”

“The burger here is fantastic.”

“Do you come here often?” she asked with a little tilt to her head.

He nodded. “It’s my go-to place when I want to eat out.” 

The waitress arrived then and took their orders. He ordered a pint with his burger and Hermione got a lemonade.

“So,” he began after she left, “you scheduled an appointment with the Deputy Head of the Emergency Response Department?” 

Hermione looked away. “I- uh, I scheduled an appointment with you .”

Harry tried not to show how pleased that statement made him. “What can I do for you?” he asked in a low voice and smiled at the flush that appeared across Hermione’s cheeks. 

“I- uhm…” She released a short breath and her shoulders slouched. “I have a lot to say and I want you to wait and listen and- and not make any decisions until I’ve fully laid everything out. It’s important to make an informed decision. Especially when there are so many factors involved and I don’t want you to think I have any serious expectations. I mean, I obviously have some, but I’m an adult and it’s not like I can’t figure it out myself. It’s just that this really is the best-”

“-Hermione?” he asked before she could really start rambling.

She looked up at him with her doe eyes and glossed lips. “I’m pregnant.”

Harry’s eyes widened. He stared at her for a long moment and wondered if he was dreaming. Was this real? Was this actually happening?

“Please don’t be mad,” Hermione whispered.

He shook his head. “What-?”

“-I was on the potion, I swear. And- and we did the spell.”

He blinked quickly to keep up with her frantic ramblings. “How would you get pregnant if you were on the potion?”

“Ron dosed me with fertility potions.”

Harry felt the small bubble of happiness in his chest pop. Ron. Right. Of course it was Ron’s. Harry ran a hand through his messy black hair. 

“Right. Okay. I’m not sure how I can help here. Did you need a lawyer or-”

“-The baby’s yours,” she confirmed firmly. “I didn’t sleep with him.”

Harry felt his heart leap in his chest. It took everything in him not to break into a laugh and the sudden remembrance that he was already enlisted in the Magical Match Program certainly killed his joy once more.

“Well, this is… complicated. I’ve registered with the Magical Matches Program. I can only marry someone else in the program.”

“I am in the program.”

Wait, Harry thought, what? That wasn’t possible. If Hermione were in the program, she would have been on his list. They were actual magical matches. It was basically impossible that she wouldn’t be on his list. Why wasn’t she on his list? Was it recent? He was about to get his next list of matches. Was she going to be on it?

“Ron signed Hugo up for the benefits program,” Hermione explained. “But that requires the parents to be married – though, I suppose, not specifically to each other. I was forced to sign up and Ron requested that we get married. I have less than two weeks before we’re supposed to sign a contract.”

Harry didn’t know what to say. Was she only telling him about the pregnancy because she needed a way out of a marriage with Ron? It was a possibility. While he was mildly put out, he wasn’t a man to look a gift horse in the mouth. The situation was a bit more complicated than just that, though.

“Have you spoken to a lawyer about this?” he asked tentatively. 

He didn’t know if she knew about her connection to Lord Nott yet and he didn’t want to be the one to burst that bubble. 

“I saw Lord Nott about it. He’s acquiring a lawyer for me.”

He tilted his head. “He’s not representing you himself?”

Hermione fiddled with her fingers. “Apparently – well, it turns out – you see-”

“-You’re related.”

She looked up at him with wide eyes. “You knew?”

Harry nodded. “The Head of House can feel when a member of their family is hurt or in danger. When you broke your hand, Lord Nott immediately knew without having to ask. He looked like he was in pain too.” He shrugged. “It was just a hunch.” 

She let out a short breath. “Well, you are right. My father was Lord Nott’s firstborn son. He was a squib and memory charmed before being placed with a muggle family.”

Harry frowned as he considered that. That was a far closer familial relation than he’d been expecting. It was strange that Lord Nott hadn’t kept tabs on his son. In most families, the Head of House did that since the generation following the squib was so often magical.

“That makes it illegal, you know,” he said instead of voicing his other train of thought, “what Ron did to you. It’s illegal to use fertility potions on a half-blood or pure-blood without consent.”

Hermione nodded. “Right, but taking him to trial will take longer than the two weeks that I have. Lord Nott and I agreed the best solution is to make sure I don’t marry Ron at all. I have to marry someone in the program and it’s best to start with my list of magical matches and you… you are at the top of the list. And I’m-” she gestured to her stomach, “-pregnant with your baby.”

Hermione swallowed visibly and met Harry’s gaze seriously. “I understand this is a lot,” she continued, “but I felt that it made the most sense to come to you first. Regardless of what you decide, I want you to be involved in the child’s life as much as you like and-”

“-I want to marry you.”

Hermione froze. She stared at him with wide eyes. “Really?” she whispered. Her eyes teared. “For the baby?” she continued in a trembling voice.

Harry looked down at the wooden table. It wasn’t for the baby – well, not entirely for the baby – but should he really tell her that? He couldn’t tell what she was feeling, only that she was emotional about his decision. Was she happy? Disappointed? 

He took a deep breath and met her teary-eyed gaze once more. “At the risk of looking like a complete idiot… I- I’ve been head over heels for you since we were at Hogwarts together.”

Hermione’s mouth twisted. “Is that a joke?”

“Not even a little bit,” he breathed. “While the drama surrounding the circumstances isn’t ideal, I do need to get married as well. I like you, we work well together – proven through our years as prefects together and our time as Heads in our seventh year. We also work well together in more… intimate circumstances.” 

Hermione blushed prettily at that and he couldn’t help but smile. 

“And, we’re having a baby,” he finished, still feeling like he was dreaming.

“So… so, we’ll get married?”

He nodded. “We’ll get married. Sooner is probably better. We can have a small, private ceremony with family this weekend and then a bigger one later on. Did you want to do it before you start showing?”

She shook her head. “That’s not necessary.”

He shrugged. “I’ve always wanted a nice wedding. But if you don’t, that’s fine. I won’t make you do something that makes you uncomfortable. Lord Nott will likely expect it of us though. My own parents as well.”

“Oh, well…” She looked up as she fiddled with her fingers. “I suppose I wouldn’t… hate it.” 

She shot him a tentative smile. Harry returned it with a wide one of his own. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. 

“There’s also the issue of my son? I’d like to keep custody of him. Lord – my grandfather – is going to help me build a case – for the worst case scenario. Ideally, it’ll be unnecessary but- well, either way, Hugo will remain in my care.”

Harry thought that over. He wasn’t surprised by her position. From what Remus had told him recently, Hermione was an incredibly loving mother. It made sense that she wanted to keep custody of her son. Actually managing that though, wasn’t going to be simple.

“Custody will be harder to get than suing Ron for potions abuse,” he told her.

She nodded. “I’m aware. But right now, I’m still nursing Hugo, so he can’t take him away when we get married. I hope that’s not a problem for you?”

He frowned in confusion. “What’s not a problem?”

“Having- having Hugo around.”

He smiled and shook his head. “Not at all. I love kids. I almost became a children’s healer, actually.”

Hermione took a deep breath, one he could see was of a great amount of relief. “Good. That’s good.”

The waitress arrived with their food and the two dug into their dinners. They talked more about the plans Hermione had already made with her grandfather. Harry told her he would have called on the Potter family lawyer to help, but he had passed away recently. Hermione wasn’t very bothered by his lack of ability to help.

“I looked up his history before I went to him,” she told him. “Lord Nott – my grandfather – is an incredibly accomplished lawyer.”

Harry nodded. “His name strikes fear into the hearts of many solicitors and barristers alike. His son is making a name for himself as well.”

She nodded as she swallowed her bite of food. “In criminal law, right? We haven’t spoken since I learned everything, but last I checked he was a prosecutor.”

Harry nodded and sipped his beer. “I think so. He put away Ernie Hemsway last year. It was a big deal.” 

Hemsway had been a pure-blood wizard found abusing half-blood and muggle-born magicals in his basement. He was some sort of psychopathic serial killer, a rare thing to find in the magical world. The case had made international news and the lawyer Hemsway had made it look like the man was going to get away with it. Theo had done a remarkable job in the case and put the man away for life.

They changed the subject soon after and continued talking as they ate their dinners. Harry ordered another beer and Hermione had a cup of herbal tea. The hours whiled away and Harry could honestly say that he didn’t notice.

“Hugo does this little thing now,” Hermione was telling him, “where he blows me kisses.”

“He blows you kisses ?” Harry repeated with a smile on his face.

“It’s the cutest thing,” she agreed. 

Their plates had been cleared away hours ago and Harry’s second beer had been taken too. They’d ordered a slice of chocolate cake to share with their evening teas.

“He’s gotten so big,” Hermione continued. “It makes me sad when I think about it.”

“He’s got a long way to go,” he assured her. “He’s still just a baby.”

“Did you work with kids at all in your healer training?”

Harry shook his head as he swallowed a forkful of cake. “No, I went to the ICW and got my healing mastery while I became a Hit Wizard. I worked as a field medic for them before I came back to England. Then I worked with the Emergency Ward at St. Mungos under my father for a bit before I transferred over to training and deployment with the ministry.”

“The Emergency Response Department, right?” She waved her fork as she spoke.

He nodded. “It’s a separate division of Aurors that respond to magical and non magical emergencies like fires, storms, and magical accidents. I train the Aurors in the basic healing they need and organise relief teams. I’m always on call for specific level emergencies and can get called in for others. There’s a bunch of boring management things involved as well.”

“Aren’t you also an Auror?”

“Technically,” he said with a nod, “but I don’t do Auror field work or anything like that. I do have the ability to arrest and detain, but that comes mostly from my credentials as a Hit Wizard. Any magical at my level is required to be a Hit Witch or Wizard and my specific position also requires me to be a healer.” 

He pointed at her with his fork. “But I do have experience with babies. I have three younger sisters. The youngest, Daisy, is now ten.” He smiled at the thought of his little sisters. “You should meet my family, actually. Would you be free for dinner tomorrow? You should bring Hugo and your grandfather.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Lord Nott too?”

Harry tipped his head to the side. “He is your family.”

She made a face. “He feels like a stranger.”

“The more time you spend with him, the less it will feel like that. The family magic will help develop the bond between you all.” 

Hermione didn’t look convinced and Harry grinned. 

“It sounds weird to call him grandfather now, but it’s also very new. Give it a few weeks. The more time you spend with him, the faster it will feel like normal for all of you.”

“Well, I don’t expect I’ll spend much time with him at all if I’m about to be marrying into your family at the end of the week.”

He nodded. “Yes, but it sounds like he’s going to be quite involved in the case regarding Hugo’s custody, so there is that.”

“I suppose.”

“It’s going to be okay,” he told her with calm, confident assurance.

Hermione’s shoulders slowly released the small tension they were holding. She smiled softly at him.

“Thanks. I’m just…” She shook her head. “The idea of losing my baby is just… I can’t even imagine.”

“You won’t,” he told her. “I’d find a way to put Weasley in jail first.”

Hermione’s eyes widened and a smile teased the edges of her lips. “Dare I ask how you’d go about that?”

He shrugged. “Honestly? I’d probably ask the Weasley twins to help me. They’re rather estranged from their family. Mrs. Weasley didn’t take to them dating Lee Jordan.”

Hermione’s eyes widened and she nodded slowly. “Understatement of the century. I can still hear her horrified screeching.” Hermione shook her head. “I suppose, since you’re still friends with them, that sort of thing doesn’t bother you?”

He shook his head. “Muggle-born mum, remember?” 

She nodded even though polyamorous relationships weren’t exactly the norm in the muggle world. Though, that really hadn’t really been what Harry was referring to, she knew. It was the homosexual aspect of the triad relationship that had put Mrs. Weasley into a furious tizzy. 

Harry shrugged. “Love is love.”

“I completely agree.”

“And you’re really close with Nev, so I know you don’t care.”

Hermione blinked widely at him. “Yes… I didn’t realise you were friends with Neville?”

Harry grinned at her. “Nev’s my godbrother. We grew up together.”

Hermione looked shocked and he chuckled.

“We kept it quiet at school. We didn’t care about house rivalries, but others did and Nev was a sadly easy target.”

Hermione looked down at her tea with an uncomfortable expression on her face. He assumed she knew he was referring to her ex. Ron had taken the Gryffindor versus Slytherin rivalry very seriously. Harry had mostly stayed out of it, but he had heard about all the silly battles that had gone down between Weasley and Malfoy.

A thought occurred to him.

“Can I ask you something?” 

She looked up at him and nodded. 

“What did Malfoy say to get under your skin so quickly?”

Hermione blushed and looked away. “I hardly think it matters.”

“Probably not, I was just curious.”

Hermione stirred her tea and for a moment, Harry didn’t think she was going to respond. 

She looked up and said, “Ron cheated on me.”

His eyes widened and she waved her hand.

“It was a long time ago. I was stupid and decided to forgive him. I thought it was a one off – it wasn’t.” She shook her head at herself. “We broke up for a short time after I first found out and I was just so angry. I wanted to get back at him. So I…” 

She gestured and her cheeks turned red. Harry leaned forward, eyes wide.

“You slept with Draco Malfoy?”

Hermione’s blush deepend. “It’s not my proudest moment.”

“I’m not judging you.”

And he wasn’t. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t slept with people he didn’t have feelings for. If Harry were being honest with himself, Hermione was probably the only person he’d slept with he did have feelings for. 

She sighed. “It was just a hard time. And I was really upset. It’s not really an excuse, but there we have it.” She shrugged. “He said some things during the interview.”

Harry felt his body tense. His eyes narrowed. “He propositioned you?”

“What?” She made a face. “No. He asked…” She shook her head. “He implied I was sleeping with one of the Notts.”

He stared at her, aware that there was something else she wasn’t telling him. He bit his tongue, not willing to pressure her about it if it was making her uncomfortable. He made a face as he thought about the awful things Malfoy could have and likely had said. They’d shared a dorm for seven years, he knew how crude the other man could be about witches, let alone muggle-borns.

“He was only average.”

Harry looked up, eyes wide. “What?”

She shrugged. “You needn’t look so upset. I’m not about to run off to Malfoy for another somewhat average lay.”

Harry snorted. “That’s not- I mean, I’m happy to hear it, but I wasn’t thinking that.” He eyed her, the obvious question sitting in the air between them. “How was I-?”

“-Fantastic.”

Harry smiled widely. “Yeah?”

She blushed and nodded.

“I wanted to owl you after my birthday,” he revealed.

A small smile spread across her lips. “I would have owled you first,” she admitted and Harry wanted to punch the air. 

“I don’t think your owl could beat mine in a race.”

She laughed. “We’ll have to race them. For science.”

Her eyes twinkled and her lips curled into a devious little smirk that was far too sexy for his blood pressure. She was radiant. He wanted to pull her into his arms and bury his face in her curls. He wanted to live in the ever-present scent of tulips that surrounded her. 

“We should have sex again.” 

Her eyes widened at his statement.

Harry leaned forward, his eyes smouldering as he said, “We were drunk last time. Who knows what it’ll be like sober? We need to test it out – for science.”

The waitress arrived before Hermione could respond. He wondered what her response would have been. From the twinkle in her eyes and the smile on her lips, Harry was rather positive he was going to get a yes out of her.

He asked for the check and the waitress disappeared once more.

“It’s late,” she told him and he fought not to sigh, “and I have to pick Hugo up. Rose and Remus have kept him longer than I said I’d be gone. I don’t want to worry them. I haven’t- I haven’t told them about everything that’s happening yet.”

“You haven’t? You’re close though, you said.”

She nodded. “I never would have been able to handle motherhood without them. It’s not a single person activity. It takes a lot and they have given endless support to me and Hugo. They’re- the closest thing I thought Hugo would get to grandparents for a long time.”

Harry smiled sadly. “And look at him now. Loads of family. More than he’ll ever know what to do with.”

She smiled and brushed her unshed tears away. “You’re right. It’ll be good for him.”

“Do you want to tell them what’s happening? Rose and Remus?”

“Not tonight.” She glanced at her watch and so did he. It wasn’t all that late at all, but for a baby, it was probably just about bedtime. “But now that I have a solution to the Ron dilemma, I can. I didn’t want Remus to kill Ron,” she joked.

Harry bit back the comment that Remus definitely would kill Ron if he thought it was what Hermione wanted. And knowing Remus, the man would never get caught. They would probably never even find Ron’s body. Sirius and James would help him. Probably his mum too, if Harry thought about it. Harry would help too.

“I should head out,” Hermione said.

He nodded and pulled out his wallet. “That’s fine.”

“Oh, let me-”

“-Hermione, at least let me pretend I took you out on a date?”

She laughed and set her purse aside. “That’s fair, I suppose. Did you…” She hesitated. “You could come meet Hugo, if you like?”

Harry looked up from where he’d set a collection of bills on the table. His eyes widened at her request. She wanted him to meet her son? He was honoured. While she might be about to start a custody battle for Hugo, it wasn’t as if she really had to allow Harry to be very involved in the boy’s life at all. A lot of people would have probably wanted distance between Harry and the baby until later. 

Hermione, on the other hand, looked desperate and hopeful. “I mean, you don’t have to and I-”

“-There’s no other place I’d rather be.”

It was the right thing to say if Hermione’s pleasantly surprised expression was anything to go by.

Once the bill was paid, he got out of the booth and held out a hand to help Hermione up next. He pressed a hand to her back and led her through the now crowded pub and out into muggle London. 

“There’s an apparition point just over here,” he told her.

Hermione nodded and allowed him to guide her to the magically hidden alley. 

“Hogsmeade, right?”

“Hugo will be at The Three Broomsticks,” she confirmed. “There’s a door round back we can take up to the flat.”

Harry nodded. He knew the door, having been to Remus’ and Rose’s home several times over the years. He wrapped his arms around Hermione as he pulled her in to apparate. Her scent of tulips wafted up around him and he savoured the smell – the feel of her in his arms. Her arms locked behind his back and he turned on the spot.

Hermione stumbled and groaned when they landed. Harry steadied her and kept her from toppling over.

“Alright?”

“Yeah,” she replied weakly. She stepped back and he kept a hand on her arm, worried about how pale she looked. “Apparating just gets a whole lot worse when you’re pregnant.”

Harry felt his stomach swoop. In all the talking, it’d completely slipped his mind. She was pregnant . He was going to be a dad. He quickly did the calculations in his head. She’d be just about five or six weeks now. Nausea would be kicking in about now.

“Have you been taking your potions?”

Hermione nodded as the colour slowly returned to her face. “My healer wrote me the prescriptions after… after you brought me to St. Mungos.”

He blinked in realisation. That was when she’d found out she was pregnant. Almost two weeks ago, he thought and swallowed down his annoyance. She had likely been an absolute wreck about it. He didn’t really have much room to be a little upset about not knowing sooner. She had enough things to worry about. And really, how could he be upset with how things were ending up?

He was going to marry Hermione Granger. They were going to have a baby. 

He was fairly certain now that this was all a dream. He never wanted to wake up.

“This way,” she said, bringing him out of his thoughts.

Hermione led him through the backdoor and up the private stairwell to the flat above the bar. The Lupins’ home was cosy and filled with the numerous books that Remus had brought along with him. It wasn’t a massive space, taking up only half of the second floor, the rest utilised for storage for the bar below. But it was comfortable and more than enough room for Rosmerta and Remus. 

Hermione entered the flat with a light knock on the door. She peeked her head inside and the sound of crying released into the hallway.

“Awe, baby,” she soothed as she opened the door wider.

Harry followed her inside and closed the door behind them. Remus was pacing in the kitchen with a crying baby in his arms.

“I’m so sorry,” Hermione told the baby. “I know I’m a little late.”

She kissed the crying baby’s cheek and he immediately quieted down a little.

Hermione looked up at Remus. “Thank you so much. I’m sorry I’m late.”

“It’s fine. I think you’re just in time for bed, really.”

“His things?”

“Bedroom.”

She disappeared deeper into the flat. Remus looked over at him and raised an amused eyebrow.

“Did you two run into each other outside?”

“We had dinner,” Harry told his uncle with a sly grin.

Remus raised an eyebrow as he grinned back. “Oh? I thought it was a one-off?”

Remus bounced Hugo as he started to fuss louder again. Harry joined his uncle and ducked his head to say hello to the baby. Hugo’s brown eyes immediately caught on Harry. He reached out for him with a cry of distress.

Harry took the baby, a little surprised at the infant’s desire to be in his arms. He thought about it as he bounced the baby and realised it made sense. Hermione was pregnant with his kid. Her baby was a Potter and so she would be generating low levels of Potter magic because of it. Harry couldn’t feel it himself, but Hugo was young enough that his magic would be sensitive enough to do so. Harry’s magic probably felt comforting to the baby because he also recognized it in his mum.

“Harry,” Remus said and Harry's head snapped up at the admonishing tone of his uncle's voice. The werewolf was giving him a hard look. “You're in the program.”

“I- yes?”

“Hermione isn't. And asking her to join it could force her to lose custody of Hugo. I'm not sure what game you think you're playing, but it isn't going to end well for Hermione or her baby. I suggest you reevaluate.”

Harry blinked once as he processed his uncle's words. Hermione had said that Remus and Rosemerta were like grandparents to Hugo, he hadn't realised that the two might be like parents to Hermione. He was surprised at his uncle choosing Hermione over him. Mostly, he was pleased. He felt warm inside to know that Remus and Rosemerta loved her so dearly. It was the least of what Hermione deserved.

“I'm not playing games,” he assured the older man gently. “I promise you. In the morning, everything will be explained. Trust me, Moony.”

Remus’ brows drew together but he nodded once, tightly. 

Hermione returned and smiled with happy surprise when she found Hugo in Harry’s arms. Her smile froze when she reached them and her eyes darted back and forth between the two wizards.

“Everything alright here?”

Harry raised his eyebrows at Remus. The werewolf tilted his head.

“You'll be by in the morning for breakfast?” Remus asked but it came out more like an expectation. 

Hermione didn't even blink. “Of course. Usual time?”

“Sounds good, love.” Remus pressed a kiss to the top of her head and then kissed Hugo’s cheek. He raised an eyebrow at Harry. “I'll see you soon.”

“No doubt about it,” Harry returned easily.

Hugo made a noise of distress as he rubbed his eyes. 

“Don’t worry,” Hermione soothed, “we’re going home now. I think I have everything.”

“I’ll owl you whatever I find thrown under the couches,” Remus told her.

Hermione smiled. “Thank you again. See you in the morning.” Hermione turned back to Hugo. “ Come on, baby. Let’s go home ,” she said in French.

Harry grinned at the sound of it. He remembered her whispering to herself in French as she worked in the Heads Office during their seventh year. He’d been so curious and had started to learn it so that he could hear what she was saying, desperately hoping in his teenage mind that it was about how fanciable she found him.

It was about schoolwork, of course. But learning French had served him well when he worked in the ICW. He’d gone from a beginner to an intermediate by the end of his career. He wasn’t fluent, by any means, but he liked to think he’d be able to keep up if she wanted to bring their child up with French alongside English.

“Night, Remus,” he bid as he followed Hermione back downstairs. 

Remus’ farewell followed them back out into the early night. 

The sun was already set, but that had more to do with the time of year than any general late hour.

“Dare I ask what that was about?” 

Harry hummed. “Remus knows I'm in the program and that I can only marry someone else in the program.”

“Ah. Wait. Was he giving you the shovel talk?”

“Pretty much.”

“He's your uncle!” Hermione laughed.

“Yeah, sure. But he loves you like a daughter.”

Hermione smiled gently and looked away. They continued on in silence. Hugo cooed and snuggled closer to Harry.

“He likes you,” Hermione told him happily.

Harry grinned at the baby before turning his smile on her. “I can’t blame him. I’m pretty great.”

She laughed. “And so modest.”

“It’s one of my best qualities,” he quipped, “and I have plenty of them.”

She shook her head at him. Hugo began to fuss and squirm again as they made it back to her building at the edge of Hogsmeade. Hermione led them up to the third floor and immediately stopped at the sight that greeted them.

Ron Weasley was waiting on her doorstep.

“Ron?”

He turned and his eyes widened at the sight of Harry standing there beside his ex and holding his son. Harry didn’t blame him. He’d probably be stunned too, in the other man’s shoes. 

“What’s going on here?” he demanded more than asked.

The ginger’s shoulders drew back and he sniffed as if looking down his pointed nose to Harry. Harry kept his expression carefully neutral. He knew from experience that Weasley had a short temper. Even the barest hint of humour or annoyance on Harry’s part was liable to set the other man off.

 “What’re you doing here?” Hermione asked instead of answering.

Weasley made a face like he smelled something bad. His eyes flickered away from Harry and focused on Hermione. “Mum wanted you and Hugo to stay at the Burrow for the next night or two. We’ve got a lot of planning to do.”

“The Burrow ?” Hermione responded, her shock betrayed by her voice. “I haven’t been there in months. Why on earth would I stay there?”

“To help with the wedding!” Weasley responded, irritated. He glared past her to Harry. “So, you can fuck off then, alright?”

“Ronald!” Hermione snapped. “I’ve told you not to swear in front of Hugo.”

Weasley rolled his eyes and huffed loudly. He opened his mouth to respond, but Hermione cut him off.

“I’m not going to the Burrow. You can’t just come here and take me away to a place I’ve hardly been welcomed.”

“Mum’s welcoming!” Weasley argued.

Hermione scoffed loudly. Harry looked down to cover his amusement. 

“Please, your mother hates me.”

“Well, she’s happy now, so will you just-”

“-No. Go home, Ronald.”

Weasley’s brows furrowed. “Did you not want to plan the wedding? Isn’t that what girls like? All the frills and flowers?” He sighed and waved a hand at her. “I should have known you wouldn’t like any of that pretty stuff. You never really cared about appearances until well after school.”

Hermione stepped forward. “You mean I didn’t care how I looked while I was grieving for my parents? Honestly, Ronald, how insensitive can you be?”

Weasley narrowed his eyes and his cheeks flushed red. His eyes shifted to Harry just behind Hermione where he was still holding Hugo. 

“Alright, I think that’s enough of a show.” He stepped forward and gestured for Harry to give him Hugo. “Hand over the kid and get out of here, Potter.”

Harry didn’t move. He turned to Hermione to see what she wanted him to do.

“Harry was invited, you were not. I think you should be leaving, Ronald.”

“Invited?” Weasley snarled. His face turned an even darker shade of red before he roared, “What? You’re fucking him?”

Hugo cowered into Harry’s chest and began to cry.

“Alright,” Harry soothed.

He stepped back and gently jiggled Hugo as he murmured quietly. The baby clutched his jacket as he continued to cry. Harry looked over the baby’s shoulder at the couple that had dissolved into an all-out shouting match. 

“We’re getting married!” Weasley shouted.

“Over my dead bloody body you absolute slime-ball !”

“Fine, then! Give me my son. I’m taking him home.”

“No, you bloody well are not!”

Harry turned away and continued to soothe Hugo. On a whim and not really sure if it’d work, Harry sent a tendril of Potter magic to the baby. Hugo gasped wetly and turned big brown eyes on Harry. He blinked widely before curling into the older wizard’s chest with a soft sigh. Harry continued to gently sway back and forth, shushing softly as he blanketed the baby in soothing Potter magic.

“Mama,” Hugo whimpered.

“Mama’s right here,” Hermione said. 

She held out her hands and Hugo immediately stretched towards her. Hermione sighed as she snuggled her baby to her chest. She pressed a soft kiss to his head. 

“Oh, you poor thing, you’re going to be so tired by the time you get in bed, aren’t you?”

Harry looked around to make sure that Weasley was gone. “What did you say to get him to leave?”

She shrugged. “I told him that I’m breastfeeding and if he took Hugo, his mother would kill him for me.” She looked up at him with a devious little grin that did bad things to Harry’s blood pressure. “As much as Mrs. Weasley and I do not get along, she’s fiercely protective of anyone she considers a Weasley.”

Harry nodded. “And if Weasley forcibly took Hugo while you and he still had a strong magical link, he would severely hurt Hugo’s magic.”

“Exactly,” she responded triumphantly.

“That doesn’t mean he won’t come back with his father and order you to go to the Burrow with Hugo. Disobeying would also hurt Hugo’s magic.”

Hermione's triumph fell away in a flash and Harry felt bad for doing that. “Is that true?”

He nodded. “But they can’t do that if they can’t find you. Fancy a stay at Tetwell?”

“What’s Tetwell?”

“The Potter family estate. I’m staying there with my family while I take on more responsibilities as my father’s heir. There’s more than enough room for you and Hugo.”

Hermione swayed Hugo gently while she considered that. “I don’t want to be a burden?”

He shrugged and nodded. “I can take you to Lord Nott instead, if you’d rather?”

The face Hermione made at that suggestion showed how little she liked that idea.

“I know you'd rather go back to the Lupins, but something tells me Ron would find you there. And I would prefer you being closer, if it’s all the same.”

Hermione and Hugo stared up at him together with matching brown eyes. Hugo had his mother's dark curls and long eyelashes. They were beautiful and Harry couldn’t help but imagine that their baby would look the same. 

Their baby . The thought sent a thrill through his body. 

“I wouldn’t mind visiting Tetwell,” she agreed softly. “As long as you’re certain I won’t be a burden?”

He smiled warmly. “Absolutely, positive.” He gestured to her door. “Did you want to pack a few things?”

She nodded and he followed her into the apartment. The second Harry passed over the threshold, he frowned. An odd tingle of magic passed over him. It wasn’t her security wards, which she had lowered when he entered. This was something separate.

Hermione went around the tiny apartment, baby on one hip and wand in hand as she quickly pulled together a bag. 

Harry turned and eyed the door frame as he tried to pick apart what magic was lingering on the home. There was a picture on the wall beside the door. Harry stepped closer and recognised the adolescent face of Hermione standing with her parents. 

Hugo Granger stood tall and proud with dark hair and dark eyes. He looked just like his father, Lord Ted Nott, and even like Theo as well. Helena Granger was a short, curvy woman with dark skin and curly brown hair. She was stunning as she stood with her small family, all three of them smiling widely.

Harry picked the picture off the wall and something immediately fell to the floor with a little clink . The final ward he’d felt fell around them.

“What was that?” Hermione asked, purse in hand and ready to go.

“A ward,” Harry responded as he knelt down. 

He grabbed what had fallen from behind the hanging picture. It was a small circle, the size of a coin and made of copper. It was pressed flatter than wizarding money and looked similar to something out of an ancient magical society.

“It was tied to this coin. Spells need a conductor like this sometimes.”

“To make it continuous,” Hermione explained and Harry looked up, suddenly remembering that she was a spell creator . “The disk acts as a conductor to ensure the spell remains in place unless the conductor is disturbed.” She shook her head. “I didn’t put that there.”

Harry turned it over in his hand before pocketing it. “We’ll take a closer look at Tetwell, let’s get Hugo in bed before we pass the point of no return.”

Hermione smiled. “Appreciated.”

He held out a hand and couldn’t help but feel incredibly pleased when she stepped into his embrace. He gave a small warning before turning and apparating them to his family home.