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The scent of sugar and cinnamon were the first things to greet Hermione as she stepped into Grimmauld Place, stomping the slush from her shoes before casting a quick spell to dry herself. The sky couldn't seem to decide if it wanted to snow or rain, resulting in a mess outside, mud and slush mixing all along the sidewalks and streets.
"I'm so sorry I'm late!" She called, working off her top layers and unwinding the scarf from around her neck. She hung everything up on the rack by the door before meandering toward the stairs leading down to the kitchen.
The sight that greeted her there was adorable, Teddy sat at the table, face covered with splotches of flour as Harry worked on pulling decorating supplies out of a bag. "Oh, hey Hermione," Harry grinned at her as he caught sight of her. She smiled back, slipping closer and pressing a kiss to the top of Teddy's head, earning a happy giggle from the small boy.
"Auntie Mione!" He crowed, looking up at her, tilting his head back as his hair sprung up into brown curls to mimic her own. She grinned and ruffled it all over again.
"Hello my little munchkin," she crooned with another smacking kiss to his forehead before she moved to put her own bag down on an empty chair. "Seems like I missed the baking. Sorry about that."
"Pff, that was by design," Harry snarked back with a wave of his hand as he set the last of the tubes of icing on the table around Teddy. "Didn't want you burning all our dough up."
"Hey! I'm not THAT bad at baking." She said with a huff, mock-glaring at him as she sat down beside Teddy. Harry and his godson shared a conspiratorial look, both knowing she was, indeed, that bad at baking. It wasn't the prep work so much as the fact that every time she tried, she'd get too distracted by whatever book held her fancy and miss the timer, letting everything burn to a crisp. "Oh, shush." Teddy broke into another round of giggles, Harry chuckling along.
"But you can help decorate!" Teddy chirped, leaning into Hermione's arm with a bright smile. "We made so many different shapes! I'm gonna do a Christmas Tree and a Santa and a snowman and a-"
"Save some for the rest of us, Teddy-bear," Hermione teased, gently poking his little nose and making it scrunch up. He pouted a moment later. He'd been trying to get the hang of changing more than his hair now that he was growing older (he was almost seven, he often proclaimed with pride). He had confided in Harry that he wanted to be able to do animal noses like his mother had been known to do, and Harry had turned around and told Hermione.
They had quietly been building up his confidence every time he failed to manage it in their presence. This time Hermione decided not to call attention to it, instead pressing a smacking kiss to the top of his head before settling in.
“Tea, ‘Mione?” Harry asked as he moved toward the kettle. It was a forgone conclusion, hence the water already having been heated. So when she confirmed, he poured it out into two mugs and brought them to the table.
“Are you excited for Father Christmas, Teddy?” Hermione asked as she pulled the mug to herself and took a slow, blissful sip. He nodded, giving a toothy smile.
Harry chuckled, taking his seat across from the pair of them. “Why don’t you tell your Aunt Hermione what you’re hoping he’ll bring you this year.” He took a large gulp of his own tea, hissing at the burn on his tongue. Of course he simply took another gulp immediately after.
“A big-boy broom!” Teddy crowed excitedly. “The new model for big kids, the Meteor 2000! It’s so, so, so cool! It goes eight feet up and goes so much faster than my silly kiddie broom!” Hermione felt her heart drop. She still, after all these years of being in the magical world, was not a fan of flying. Nor of her friends flying. She dealt with it, they all loved it, but the thought of her sweet little man getting on a broom with that much freedom gave her heart palpitations.
“Oh… don’t you want to stay on the ground with me?” She cooed, trying to hide her own panic at her thoughts. Luckily, Teddy didn’t seem to notice the strain in her expression. She did not look forward to having to watch Teddy fly on that death contraption, because from the look on Harry’s face she knew that ‘Father Christmas’ definitely came through on that wish.
“Nope!” Teddy chirped innocently.
“Why don’t we mix our frosting, hmm?” Harry suggested, seeing the minor panic on Hermione’s face finally. Setting his mug back on the table, he moved to get the mixing bowls he already set up, gently patting her on the shoulder on his way over. She sighed and let herself slump back a little, taking comfort in the small gesture.
They got to mixing up their colored frosting, Teddy claiming blue immediately. He started humming something that must have been a Christmas song loudly as he violently mixed the blue into the frosting.
By the time the timer went off for the cookies, little fingers were stained blue at the tips and quite a bit of frosting had been consumed as a ‘taste test’ between the three of them playing around. “Cookies!” Teddy crowed excitedly, making Hermione laugh. She ruffled his hair and got up to help Harry, waving her wand to cool them quickly before the pair of them set out to get the cookies onto a few different plates and carry them over to the table.
Harry set a plate with a Christmas tree, a Santa, a snowman, and a reindeer in front of Teddy. Hermione’s heart warmed, realising he’d definitely paid attention to Teddy’s rant about his favored shapes earlier. Unsurprising. Harry had long proven himself to be an amazing godfather to Teddy, always offering to have him over to give Andromeda breaks, teaching him to fly, giving the sweet boy all the love he’d never had growing up.
Once they were done, Teddy got to pick one to eat, they set aside a few for Father Christmas, and the rest got put away. He munched on his prize, one of Hermione’s perfectly decorated bells, while Hermione and Harry worked on cleaning up the kitchen. “Can we watch Grinch?” Teddy asked as he nibbled away at the sugary treat.
“Of course, kiddo. ‘Mione can you go get that set up? I’m going to throw dinner in the oven.”
Teddy crammed the last quarter of his cookie into his mouth so that he could follow Hermione upstairs to the den. She scooped him up, making him burst into giggles, and plopped him down on the couch before kneeling before him. Plucking the wand holding her hair in its messy bun, she gave a quick flick and cleaned the blue from his fingers, then pressed kisses to the tips of them with a grin. “Okay, Teddy Bear, you get all cuddled up and I’ll get the movie ready.”
“‘Tay!” He chirped, slapping the pillows to ostensibly fluff them up. She turned to get the television ready, grabbing the tape from the selection of kids movies Harry had collected over the years. After popping the VHS into the player, she grabbed the remote and moved quickly to cuddle up with Teddy on the couch. “Hurry up, Uncle Harry!” Teddy called loudly enough that Hermione winced.
Only a moment later, Harry hustled up and took his spot on Teddy’s other side, pulling a throw over all of their legs. “Sorry, sorry. Hey, it’s still the ads,” he ruffled Teddy’s hair.
“I like the ads,” Teddy said with a pout.
“Sorry, buddy.” Harry responded with a completely straight face.
They made it about halfway through before Harry had to get back up and pull dinner from the oven. Teddy was so enraptured by the over-the-top caricature of the Grinch stomping around on screen that he didn’t even notice. Soon enough Harry was floating their full dinner plates back into the den behind him, sending one with chicken nuggets and catsup to land in front of Teddy and then taking his and Hermione’s own in hand.
“Thank you, Harry,” Hermione murmured, gently nudging Teddy to sit at the low table. He barely blinked, so entranced, but began eating his meal obediently. “Smells good.” She said once she was convinced Teddy would easily finish his meal whilst watching.
Harry had made her favorite, a shepherd's pie and she dug in with gusto. She let out a happy little sigh, thankful that Harry was such a good cook. She wasn’t always comfortable knowing where he acquired the skills, but she reaped the rewards of it anyway. “Your favorite,” Harry chimed, a knowing smile on his face.
“Mmhmm,” She hummed around a mouthful of food, keeping her lips shut. He chuckled, gently patting her knee before starting to eat. They watched the movie side beside on the couch, balancing their plates on their laps. It was adorable to watch Teddy so enraptured by Jim Carrey’s acting, the way he giggled and cackled and tried to recite the lines he had learned when he first decided this was his favorite Christmas movie ever about four years ago.
By the end of the movie, everyone had finished their meals and it was time for bed. “Can Auntie ‘Mione read me the Christmas book?” Teddy pleaded as Harry started to usher him upstairs.
“Of course I can, Teddy-Bear,” Hermione called as she ferried the plates back down to the kitchen. “Just get in your jammies and brush those teeth and I’ll be right up!” She could hear Teddy cheer triumphantly and couldn’t stop the smile that overtook her lips as she headed down to clean up.
More often than not she preferred to wash the dishes the muggle way, but with an excited little boy waiting for his story, she decided to flick her wand to make them clean themselves, then twisted it up into her hair once more.
By the time she made it up the three flights of stairs, Harry was ushering the vibrant boy into his bedroom. “Teeth are all brushed, jammies are on, and we’re ready for a story.” Harry noted as he pulled back the covers for Teddy. The boy clambered up onto the bed and snuggled in with his little plush wolf before turning those big eyes of his on Hermione. She didn’t even question Harry’s use of we, only quirking a brow as he set up on the nearby beanbag on the floor.
She grabbed up the book from the little bookshelf and settled into bed beside Teddy, reclining back against the wall. Teddy blinked sleepily and cuddled up closer, watching as she opened the book and studying the pictures as she began. “‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring. Not even a mouse.” Hermione began.
It was no surprise that Teddy had drifted off by the end of the tale, the sugar crash hitting hard. She had to work hard to extract herself without disturbing him, his little head slumped against her middle and his free hand clinging to her jumper. Once she managed to unentangle herself, she leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. “Good night, Teddy Bear,” She whispered before retreating. Harry quickly replaced her, pressing his own kiss to the very same spot.
“Love you, buddy.” He murmured.
“Love you dad,” Teddy’s words were slurred with sleep. He turned over and snuggled his wolf, not realizing how his words impacted Harry in that moment. Hermione gently grasped Harry’s hand and led him from the room, the door snicking shut behind them.
“Are you okay?” She asked, concern creasing her forehead.
“I… yeah, I’m… conflicted,” He muttered, continuing down the hall. She followed. “I mean, I knew he may feel that way, and I’m happy he feels so safe and close with me. I just don’t want to replace Remus.”
“You aren’t, Harry,” She soothed, reaching out to grab his hand once more. She gave it a comforting squeeze and tugged until he turned to face her. He was on a step lower than her, evening out their height. “Harry, he never got to know Remus, or Tonks. It’s normal for a kid his age to think like this. And it isn’t your fault.”
He swallowed hard, but nodded. “I know.”
“You’ve helped Andromeda raise him since he was a baby. You are, in all the ways that matter, his dad. Remus will always be his father, but you’re the one who is here. And he loves you for it. You do everything to make him feel loved.” She pressed on, wanting to be sure he understood that this was ok. It was a good thing.
“I know,” he repeated.
“And, honestly, you’re an amazing dad. You-”
She halted her speech as he lifted his hands to cradle her jaw, a soft look on his face. “Hermione, I know. Thank you.” He said, voice quiet and yet somehow so very loud. His thumbs, rough from years of quidditch, brushed along the apples of her cheeks and she took a shuddering breath, feeling off somehow. “You know, you may as well be his mum. You’re always helping too. Always here to read him a story, to get him to laugh, to soothe his tantrums…” Her throat bobbed and her cheeks heated. Of course she did those things, she loved Teddy. She would be lucky to have a kid like that. But before she could open her mouth to say those things, Harry started leaning in.
It felt like her heart simultaneously stopped and sped up, faster than a cheetah.
“I’m going to kiss you now. Is that okay?” he whispered, eyes searching hers as he stopped millimeters from her lips.
She was floored, feeling like she missed something, somewhere. And perhaps, if her brain was working properly right now, she would be asking about a hundred questions. But as it was, her brain had stalled in order for her heart to gallop about in her chest, so instead she muttered a weak “Yes.”
Her eyes slid closed as he pressed forward the last bit and then his lips were on his. Warm, and softer than she might have imagined. A slight scratch from the scruff of his stubble as he tilted his head to get a better angle. He kept cradling his jaw as his lips gently, carefully massaged against her own and she fisted her hands in the front of his jumper.
Hermione’s eyes stayed closed a moment after his lips parted from hers, brain still trying to work out what just happened. He chuckled and brushed a thumb over her lower lip. “You okay?” He murmured, wrapping one arm around her back and tugging her into him. She automatically relaxed into his hold.
“Yes. I just… where did that come from?” She murmured, pressing her forehead into his chest. The familiar scent of him calmed her even as her mind began to race.
“Oh, it’s been coming for a while. You know, you’re the smartest person I know but sometimes even you can miss clues.” He said as he stroked her back languidly. “You’re my best friend, Hermione. And that will always come first. But I won’t deny that I want more, if you’re willing to try with me.”
He gave her a moment, knowing very well she needed to work through it. Her eyes closed as she thought over everything she could have missed, all his little cues. Everything felt like it had been normal. But perhaps… a little more. He’d been more free in initiating little touches and hugs for a long while now, months, perhaps even close to a year. He’d started insisted on more meals together, bitching and moaning about the downsides to their work to blow off steam… And though she hadn’t always noticed, she had caught his stares once or twice, though she often assumed she’d had ink splotched on her skin as usual.
Then she took the time to examine her own feelings. Worries that if things didn’t work out their friendship would suffer. Those were quickly discarded because she knew their friendship was too strong to break if they ended up calling it quits. But did she see him romantically?
She’d long since known he was handsome, even in school she knew he was fit. But for a long time he’d said she was like a sister, and she had settled into that spot with ease, letting herself focus on Ron. Ron and her had tried and didn’t work out, but they remained friends. But she and Ron were too different. Opposites may attract but they were volatile near the end, always fighting, never bending to try and work things through. But with Harry, she knew that though they had their differences, their core values were the same. And the most important part was the mutual respect they held for each other. They each knew when the other needed space and gave it freely.
“Okay. Let’s try.” She said finally, tilting her head back up to look at him. And his answering smile set her heart alight once more.