~A/N> I finished it! I wasn't sure I would get this chapter done today, but I stayed up until three
o'clock this morning working on it. I haven't missed a Saturday yet, and I didn't want this to be the first
:) I hope I did the part with Hermione's Mum in it justice, I know a few reviewers are looking forward to that part
and I worked hard on it. I also made this chapter quite a bit longer than the last, it's almost 3300 words long. I
had a few reviews that asked how Edna got to Flourish and Blotts. . .I couldn't find anywhere on the HP Lexicon if
muggles used the floo or not, so for the sake of my story, they do. Hermione taught her Mum how to use it in case she
needed to see her. I hope that doesn't make the story less believable. A huge thank you to Poppywillow who chatted
with me this morning and kept me awake while I finished the chapter, and then proofread it for me afterward. Thank you
for all of the great reviews on all the previous chapters, you guys are the best!! :)
Christmas morning dawned cold with the sun shining on the fresh snow, making it sparkle like diamonds laying on the ground. Hermione woke up to the smell of kippers, bacon and eggs, something she wasn't used to waking up to. When she walked downstairs in her robe and slippers, her hair still tousled from sleep, her eyes grew wide as she walked into the sitting room and saw a giant pile of presents around the tree . . . a pile that hadn't been there the night before. Walking into the kitchen she was greeting by Edna handing her a hot cup of tea and saying, "Happy Christmas my dear!"
"Happy Christmas," Hermione replied sleepily. "You know, I wouldn't swear to it, but I think Santa visited us last night."
"Yeah, Harry Claus," Edna replied with a giant smile that reached all the way to her eyes, "I heard him sneak back down last night about an hour after we all went to bed. I don't know how he could see to walk over the giant pile of presents he was carrying."
"Huh," Hermione said in reply. Somehow the idea of Harry sneaking down the stairs with an armload of presents didn't really surprise her that much. Waking up a little bit after drinking some of the tea, she set her cup down on the table and asked, "Edna, why aren't you using magic to make breakfast?"
"To tell you the truth, I'm a little nervous about seeing your Mother this morning and doing it the old-fashioned way is helping to ease it a bit," Edna replied.
"You're not the only one," Harry mumbled sleepily as he shuffled into the room, "I actually had a nightmare last night where I went to give you a kiss and you turned into your Mum."
"Hmpf," Hermione replied grumpily while glaring at him.
Walking up to her he bent down and said, "I'm just joking luv, Happy Christmas," and then kissed her on the cheek. Doing the same to Edna, he graciously accepted the cup of coffee she handed him and plopped down onto the chair next to Hermione's. It was hard to believe that this small table set for a cozy breakfast for four had been large enough to seat over twenty people last night; the dinner party already seemed as if it had occurred days ago. After taking a few sips of the strong black liquid Harry smiled at Hermione and said, "You know, in the last month you've lost your sense of humor."
"You try carrying around a baby in your stomach all day and see how bloody jolly you are about it," she replied, still grumpy.
Without saying anything in reply, but with a smile on his face that said he was up to something, Harry got up from the table and walked into the Sitting Room. When he walked back into the Kitchen, he moved his chair closer to Hermione, sat back down, and extended his hand toward her. When she looked up from staring at her cup, she saw that he was holding out a small box wrapped in shiny red and green paper. With a questioning look, she took the box from him and said, "What's this?"
"It's a present," he replied, and when her expression turned testy he hastily added, "that will hopefully bring back your beautiful smile."
Looking unsurely at the beautifully wrapped gift, she slowly tore the paper away and opened what seemed to her to be a jewelers box. Finding a red felt hinged box under the paper, she lifted the top of the box and gasped . . . inside lay a gold ring with the image of a woman holding a child and in between them there was a small blue jewel that sparkled as she stared at it. When she looked up at Harry he said, "I remember you saying that the baby is due in March so that means that Aquamarine will be the baby's birthstone. And if he or she decides to be early or late, there's a spell you can perform to change the stone."
Hermione stared speechlessly at the beautiful ring and surprising both herself and Harry, she lunged toward him and wrapped her arms so tightly around his neck that she was cutting off his airway. Not daring to say anything in fear of her letting go, Harry wrapped his arms around her as much as he could. Harry realized that the shoulder her head rested on was becoming wet and when he pulled back so that he could look at her he saw giant tears cascading down her cheeks.
"Please don't cry," he asked quietly, "I hate to see you cry, no matter what the reason."
"I-I'm s-sorry," she sobbed, sniffling loudly, "it's just that . . . it's so beautiful . . . no one's ever given me such a thoughtful present before."
"I'm glad you like it," Harry said with unrecognizable emotion in his voice, "I wanted this Christmas to be special."
"It was already special," Hermione replied quietly, "I get to spend it with you."
Forgetting that Edna was in the room, Harry leaned down and kissed Hermione, putting every emotion he was feeling in that moment into the kiss. When he heard a sniffle, he reluctantly broke the kiss and looked up to see Edna standing near the sink with tears in her eyes, pretending that she didn't notice them. When Hermione looked behind her to see what he was looking at, she noticed Edna crying too and the two of them got up, walked up to her and wrapped her in a three-person hug. "You guys are so wonderful!" she blubbered, tightening her grip on them, "If you ever hurt each other I swear I'll curse you both!"
The three of them started laughing at Edna's jokingly-made threat and then as she got back to breakfast, Harry and Hermione went upstairs to get ready for what could be the morning from hell.
~*~
Exactly thirty minutes later, Jane Granger knocked on the door of Harry and Hermione's flat. She was trying to tamp down the anger she felt; the taxi driver had laughed at her when she said that she wanted to be let out in front of the address Hermione had given her. The vile man had made a remark about being given a false address and when she had asked what he was talking about and pointed out the flat, he had just laughed even harder. Looking around the quiet neighborhood they lived in and taking a deep calming breath, she couldn't help but remember the run down flat her and her husband had first lived in after they had married. It seemed that maybe this Harry bloke had some money if he could afford such a nice home at such a young age.
When the door opened the first thing she noticed was the look of happiness on her daughter's face. Feeling a bit of jealousy join the anger at the fact that her daughter seemed to be getting along fine without her, Jane plastered a smile onto her face and accepted Hermione's invitation to come into the flat. Handing the presents and her coat to Harry when he offered to take them, Jane looked from him to her daughter and said, "The strangest thing happened . . . the taxi driver seemed to think you gave me a false address."
A small smile broke out on Hermione's face as she replied, "That's because the flat is unplottable." When her Mother's expression turned to one of confusion Hermione explained, "There's a magical spell cast on the building so that mug- . . . non-magical people can't see it unless they know beforehand that it's there."
"Well, that's . . . different," Jane said uneasily. Wondering just how many buildings there were in existence that she didn't know about, she followed her daughter into the Kitchen and couldn't believe all the food that was spread out across the table. There were three different types of eggs, bacon, sausage, kippers, and toast, amongst other things she didn't recognize.
Taking the seat that Harry had so graciously pulled out for her, she looked toward Edna when she asked, "Mrs. Granger, would you like some juice, or tea perhaps?"
"Tea please," Jane answered, watching the other woman prepare the tea as if she herself lived there. As another pang of jealousy hit her, she looked at Hermione and asked, "Does Edna live here too?"
"No Mum," Hermione replied, "She stayed with us last night so that she wouldn't have to spend the holidays alone."
"Must be nice," Jane muttered under her breath, but it was loud enough so that everyone in the room heard her.
Clearing his throat, hoping to break the awkward silence, Harry asked, "So, Mrs. Granger, how has your Christmas been so far?"
"It could be better," she replied, and then turning to Hermione she said, "Your Aunt Millie came to visit yesterday . . . I swear, that woman hasn't changed a bit since your Father's funeral. Can you believe that she hinted that I must have done something to your Father to cause his untimely death? I mean the nerve of her . . . "
"Mum," Hermione interrupted, trying to keep a hold on her temper, "It's Christmas. Can we please not speak badly of Daddy's family and enjoy breakfast?"
Looking a bit embarrassed, Jane said, "Yes, of course, I'm sorry." After eating quietly for a few ticks, she looked at Hermione and asked, "So how have you been feeling? Is the child healthy?"
Realizing that her Mother was completely ignoring Harry and Edna, Hermione replied through gritted teeth, "The baby and I are doing great Mum, thanks to Harry and Edna. They take wonderful care of us and make sure I eat healthily, instead of snacking on all the sweet things I've been craving lately."
"Oh, you know how bad sweets are for your teeth," her Mother replied immediately, "I'd think you'd remember that after the way your Father and I raised you to stay away from them."
"Yes Mum, I know that you and Dad raised me to stay away from sweets," Hermione replied, sounding very tired all of a sudden. Sighing, she stood up slowly and said, "Excuse me, I need to use the loo."
As she made her way out of the kitchen, Harry got up too and followed her out, spearing the back of her Mother's head with an angry glare. Edna, who had stayed quiet up until this point, looked at Jane Granger and asked, "How daft can you be?"
"Pardon me?" Jane asked, shocked by the woman's angry tone of voice.
"Hermione is the most thoughtful, sweet, hardworking, wonderful girl I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Over her better judgement, she asked you to come here this morning to share breakfast with us . . . she knew you'd probably be the same spiteful woman she left behind, but she invited you anyway. And how do you repay her kindness? By acting like you wished you were anywhere but here!" Taking a deep breath, Edna stared down the surprised woman sitting next to her and added, "From what I've seen, Hermione cares for Harry very much, and he returns her feelings. She's working six days a week, even while her ankles are swollen and her back is hurting her, and she still does as much around the flat as Harry will let her. All she wanted was to be on good terms with you again in the hopes that you, she, and the baby could be a family and get along."
"How dare you speak to me like this!" Jane replied, now angry, "She is my daughter, not yours, and I don't see what business this is of yours."
"I know very well she's not my daughter, but sadly I treat her more like a daughter than you do," Edna fired back at her. When Jane didn't say anything right away, Edna said in a quieter voice, "I had a family of my own once. My husband's name was Charles, he was an Auror for twenty-five years, and we had a son named William. Charles and I were married for sixty years." At Jane's raised eyebrows she explained, "People with magical abilities live much longer than people who don't. Anyway, William followed in his Father's footsteps and one day they went to work as usual and that was the last I saw either of them alive. . .William was only thirty years old." Sniffling a bit and wiping angrily at the tears in her eyes, she said quietly, "They were killed by Death Eaters at the start of the Second War . . . I didn't even get to say a proper good-bye."
"Death Eaters? Second War? Wha- . . . " Jane started to ask, but at the look of utter despair she saw on Edna's face she said, "Never mind, I don't think I want to know. I'm sorry for your loss, but I don't see why you're telling me this."
Edna's sadness dissipated quickly as she looked at Jane with a mixture of disbelief and astonishment. "Why . . . I'm telling you this because I lost my family and there was nothing I could do about it."
"There was nothing I could do about Daniel's death either," Jane answered defensively.
Edna sat shaking her head slowly back and forth, trying to wrap her mind around how this woman, a woman that gave birth to an intelligent girl like Hermione, could be so dense. Sighing, she said, "I know there was nothing you could do about your husband's death Jane, I wasn't implying that there was. I was trying to make the point that I lost both my husband and child, but you only lost your husband. If you continue to treat Hermione like it's her fault your husband is gone, you're going to lose your child too . . . and your Grandchild."
Jane sat there staring at her and she watched as comprehension dawned in her eyes. "I don't blame . . . she wouldn't keep my Grandchild away from me . . . I didn't think she'd stay gone so long," Jane rambled, trying to comprehend everything Edna was telling her, "When I threatened Hermione with moving out, I never thought she'd actually do it. I love her, she's all I have left. When I found out she was pregnant, I was scared for her, and I admit I was disappointed too. She is so smart, and she has the ability to do whatever she puts her mind to. I just wanted the best for her . . . I wanted her to finish her schooling, go to the University of her choice, and I wanted her to be able to live her dreams . . . her Father and I both wanted that for her."
"That's what we want for her too," Harry said, startling both women, "She can still achieve all of her dreams, it's just going to take a little longer than she thought it would. With our help, love, and support she can still go to University and find a job she will love. First though, we get to enjoy that little baby she's carrying around, we get to watch it grow and hopefully be a part of his or her life."
Jane turned around to see Hermione standing very close to Harry, holding his hand, and when she saw the tears in her daughter's eyes a wave of guilt washed over her. Looking down at the floor shamefully, she said, "I'm sorry Hermione, I didn't mean to come here and ruin your Christmas, I just wanted to spend time with you."
"I know Mum," Hermione replied, her voice a little shaky, "You never mean to act the way you do, it just seems to come naturally for you." When Harry squeezed her hand and looked from her to her Mum she said, "Why don't we finish our breakfast so we can open presents? Edna, Harry and I are supposed to be at the Weasley's in four hours."
Nodding her head, Jane turned back to her plate and continued to eat. Harry noticed the defeated look on the woman's face and when he looked at Hermione he saw that she was trying to avoid looking at her Mum. When he looked at Edna she just shrugged her shoulders with a look of surrender on her face. Shaking his head sadly, he knew that if Edna was unable to get through to Jane, no one could.
~*~
After they finished eating, Harry and Edna cleared the table (without using magic so as not to stress Jane out any more than she already was) and the four of them made their way into the sitting room. "May I be Santa?" Edna asked with a big smile and twinkling eyes, trying to make things as normal as possible.
"Absolutely!" Harry answered happily. He and Hermione sat on the sofa together as Jane took the chair next to it and Edna headed toward the Christmas tree and the presents piled underneath.
As Edna sorted through the presents, putting them into four separate piles, she said, "I thought I told you two that you didn't have to get me anything?"
"Did you really think we'd listen?" Harry asked laughing.
"Of course we're going to get you presents Edna, it's Christmas," Hermione added, laughing along with Harry. Edna gave them an admonishing look as she handed them each a present, and then turned to Jane and handed her one too.
Surprised, Jane looked at the small tag on the top of the brightly wrapped gift and read aloud, "F-from Harry." She looked at Harry and said, "You really didn't have to get me anything, thank you."
"Like Hermione just said, it's Christmas," Harry replied with a smile that looked forced.
Edna handed out all the gifts, making small piles in front of everyone, and once she sat in the chair on the other side of the sofa they all started unwrapping them. They showed one other each present after it was opened, commenting on how much they liked it (whether they did or not) and thanking each other profusely.
Harry opened one of his gifts from Hermione and looked at her, his eyes wide. "Did you make this?" he asked, holding up a burgundy knit sweater with the Gryffindor house symbol on the front in gold.
"Yes," she replied, smiling brightly, "I've been working on it the past few months after I turn in for the night so you wouldn't see it."
"I love it, thank you," Harry said, and then gave her a hug. Both sat there enjoying the hug, totally oblivious to the completely opposite expressions the two other women in the room wore . . . Edna's was one of pride and happiness, Jane's one of apprehension and longing.
After all their presents were opened, they all talked politely for a little while and then Jane gathered up her presents and said, "I guess I should be going, I'm supposed to go to your Uncle Stanford's house for dinner tonight, and I'm sure you need to get ready for your dinner with the Weasley's."
"Yes, we will need to be going over there soon," Hermione replied as Harry and Edna not-so-subtly went into the Kitchen to let them talk alone. Walking up to her Mother, Hermione carefully hugged her, pulled back and said, "I've missed you Mum."
"I've missed you too," Jane quietly replied as her eyes became bright with tears. Sniffling a little she said, "I hope you enjoy the rest of the holiday."
"You too," Hermione said, unable to sort out the jumble of emotions she was experiencing, "Maybe we could meet for lunch one day soon."
"I'd like that," Jane said with a small smile, "Would you please tell Harry and Edna thank you for me? I really did enjoy being here this morning with all of you, even if I didn't do the best job of showing it."
"I will," Hermione said, and after sharing one last hug, her Mum walked out the door. After hearing the door close, Harry and Edna walked back into the Sitting Room and walked up to her, giving her a much needed hug.
"We survived!" Harry said after he hugged her.
"Yes, but your Mother almost didn't," Edna said with a very serious expression. When Harry and Hermione started laughing, a smile broke out on her face and she said, "You two are terrible, you know that?"