A/N - Welcome to my first attempt at a one-shot! My usual writing style is much more in tune with my main fanfic project, The Final Countdown (which, incidentally, you should feel free to read and review). Having said that, I like what I've written: it's slightly angtsy, but mostly some harmless fluff. Hope you guys like it, please leave a review
"Lily c'mon, let's go play!" Jimmy said impatiently, aching to get off the sofa and go out into the back garden.
"I wanna finish my chapter first," Lily replied, stretched out on the soft white carpet, book open in front of her.
From the kitchen counter, Harry Potter smiled as he watched his two children interact once again, in almost exactly the same way as everyday after school. Whereas his seven-year-old son Jimmy loved to burn off his excess energy outside in the huge garden Harry had helped create, his four-year-old daughter Lily loved to read. It amazed him how much they were turning into their respective parents. Forget offspring, they're more like clones! Ron had told him that more than once, and Harry had marvelled at how much of himself he saw in his son, and how much of her mother he saw in his daughter.
They both had full heads of brown hair, but Jimmy's brown eyes contrasted with Lily's green. They were both always so energetic and eager to do things, and perpetually cheerful. No matter how tiring they could be, Harry wouldn't trade them for anything in the world…it amazed him how he had got through life without them before.
As Jimmy flopped back on the sofa with a loud huff, Harry finished cutting up the vegetables he was preparing for tonight's dinner. While he was cutting up the onion earlier, he'd had to explain to Lily how he wasn't crying. Still, she'd given him a hug and a kiss on the cheek when he scooped her up. She was really sweet like that, even with her at-times-impatient big brother. All those stories he had told Jimmy about Hogwarts were coming back to bite Harry in the ass; he'd already been hearing constantly that his son couldn't wait to start there. To which Harry would always say `don't go wishing away your childhood'.
"Jimmy," Harry called over, "if your sister wants to read, let her."
"But it's really nice outside!" Jimmy protested.
"I know," Harry said, "but don't worry, you've still got hours of that left."
Jimmy nodded, turning back to the Muggle television in front of him. It was a birthday present from Mr. Weasley, so predictably it didn't work that well. Still, Harry had been able to get a few of the Muggle channels up; some of them were actually pretty good.
Harry caught Lily turning the page, "Lily?"
She looked up, "Yes?"
So precocious… "Make sure you don't go starting the next chapter, okay? Your brother's waiting for you."
"Okay Daddy," She smiled back, in a way that told Harry that when she became a teenager she'd have him wrapped round her little finger. But still, at least her mother would be smart enough to see through all that…
"Where's Mummy?" Jimmy asked, out of the blue.
Harry was loading a casserole dish into the oven, so called over his shoulder, "She had to work a couple more hours to fill in for someone. Don't worry, she'll be home soon."
Privately, though, Harry was worried. He knew the kind of hours that his wife would often work. She'd always be up to see the kids off to school but then would have to Floo out pretty much straight after, and not come home again until six or seven in the evening. And that was a normal day. Harry considered himself lucky that he had as much downtime between assignments for the Auror Office as he did; otherwise, his kids would spend most of their time being brought up by friends of the family. He wanted to talk to her about it, but didn't know how to approach the subject. He hardly had the moral high ground, being away for days, a week at most, at a time. Thank God for cross-country Apparition…
The kids miss her all the time…I miss her all the time…something's gotta give…
Lily replaced her bookmark against the start of the new chapter and closed her book; immediately, Jimmy jumped up to his feet and bolted over to the back door, "Race you to the trees!" Lily bundled after him, complaining about her shorter legs.
Harry chuckled to himself, shaking his head. Those two…
He returned his attention to dinner; something to take his mind off the impending argument he was desperate to avoid. Why is it every time I bring this up, it feels like I'm putting my head in the lion's mouth? Of course she wanted a career, of course she wanted to do well, but…at the expense of watching her children grow up? Other than Sundays, the most she saw of them was briefly before school and briefly at night when she helped put them to bed.
Harry thought back to their time at Hogwarts. Even back then she had been single-minded; driven by one thing that caught almost all of her focus. That's not to say that she didn't love her kids; she did. Harry thought she was a fantastic mother…when she was around.
Harry glanced at the clock in the kitchen; of course, it was a magical one that his wife had enchanted. Harry's clock-hand was pointed at `Cooking - For Once' (cheeky mare), and Jimmy and Lily's were pointed at `Horsing Around In The Garden'. Harry could picture Jimmy climbing the tree, and Lily getting in a huff at the bottom before Jimmy would help her up. They could and would sit in those trees for hours, making up stories and using their imagination. His wife's, however, was pointed on `Late Home From Work'. A few times Harry had wanted to try and add the word `Again' to that position out of annoyance, but hadn't figured out how. Besides, it probably had a few anti-modification jinxes built in.
With dinner cooking away, Harry collapsed onto the sofa. His had been a tiring day, but still an enjoyable one. With the kids off school for Easter, Harry had taken them shopping to Diagon Alley, and then to The Burrow, where they had met up with and played with Ron's kids; eight-year-old Ian, six-year old Lisa and three-year old Samantha. Not bad for a man of thirty, Ron had said to Harry with a smug look on his face; Harry wondered if he and Luna were going after Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's record. Or else start some kind of human ant colony…
Harry felt his wristwatch vibrate. He let out a sigh of relief; she's home.
He got up to check on dinner. In moving into this house after she had become pregnant with Jimmy, Harry had made sure that the security measures around it were as strong as those around any other high-profile magical location. Sure, it had been years since Voldemort's destruction, and almost all of his senior ranks of Death Eaters were either dead or in Azkaban, but if Harry's job had taught him one thing, it was that there was always going to be some Dark magic menace out there somewhere. From the closest point that one could Apparate, it took about three minutes to walk up to the house. Because it was too far away to hear someone Apparate in, Harry had his watch charmed to act as a signalling device.
Harry heard the front door click and open, and smiled. As much as he needed to speak his mind about her job, he still loved it when she came home from work.
Hermione Potter stepped into the living room, shrugging off her black suit jacket and hanging it up. Harry noticed immediately how tired she looked; her wild brown hair looked even wilder, and the subtle lines across her pale face, as well as the bags under her eyes, certainly betrayed that. Still, she looked absolutely beautiful to his eyes; just like the day they were married.
Hermione placed her handbag down beside the coat-hook and turned around to notice Harry as he walked over to her. She gave him a tired smile, "Hey."
"Hey you," Harry said quietly as he wrapped his arms around her, drawing her in for a hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sank into him, closing her eyes. After the day she'd had, she really needed this.
"How was work?" Harry whispered into her ear.
"Long and hard," Hermione whispered back.
Harry pulled back enough to cup her face in his hands, smiling, "You look like hell."
Hermione was too tired to chastise him; she simply poked her tongue out at him. Harry leaned in and kissed her gently, instantly feeling the warmth and tenderness that he missed the most from his wife. As she kissed him back, Harry at once recognised the same loving, caring Hermione that she'd always been. He just hated the fact that she just wasn't as full of life these days. As an Unspeakable, Hermione didn't often talk about her work. In fact, she couldn't really talk about her work. He knew she couldn't do anything about that, but he still felt a little self-conscious talking about his work all the time.
"I missed you," Hermione said, with a little smile.
Harry smiled back, "I missed you too."
Hermione pulled back enough to look her husband up and down. In a grey T-shirt and faded jeans, he sharply contrasted her business-like white blouse and black skirt. She sniffed the air, "What's cooking?"
Harry went to check on it, peering through the oven glass, "It's…well, a stew or something."
Hermione leaned over the counter opposite, "Or something?"
"Mrs. Weasley gave me the recipe," Harry explained, "it's got meat and vegetables and things, I didn't ask questions."
Hermione shook her head with a grin, wiping at her eyes.
"Tired?" Harry asked.
Hermione nodded, "…Among other things."
"What other things?" Harry asked. He leaned on the counter across from Hermione. From close up, she did look quite pale.
"Are you feeling alright?" He asked.
Hermione shook her head slowly, "I'm feeling a little out of sorts, I guess." She said glumly.
"Do you wanna talk about it?"
Hermione nodded just as slowly, and nodded back towards the sofa.
Harry crossed over back into the living room; he knew what to do when his wife wanted to moan about something. He flopped down on the sofa and put his legs up, lying back against the armrest. Hermione settled down on top of him, facing up. Harry wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her against him. Even after all these years and two kids, he still loved doing this.
"So…" Harry said, urging her gently, "what's the matter?"
Hermione took a deep breath, "I probably shouldn't be saying anything…"
"If it's making you unhappy, I wanna help." Harry said reassuringly.
"Well, I've been having problems with one of my supervisors."
"Okay," Harry said, "what shall I do, then? Jinx or curse?"
Hermione swatted his arm, "She happens to be my superior, Harry, she hired me in the first place."
"What don't you like about her?"
"She's just…she's so critical about my work."
"Whatever that is…" Harry muttered.
Hermione ignored him, "She's always telling us how important our projects are. But today, she tells me that…Unspeakables aren't supposed to divide their time between work and family. That…work always has to come first."
Harry just listened, holding her protectively.
"And one of my colleagues tells me during lunch that she, my supervisor…" Hermione continued, her voice becoming a little uneven, "…divorced last year."
…So? Harry was trying to work out why this bothered Hermione so much.
"Then it hit me just what a nasty…bitter old woman she was…"
"That's got nothing to do with you, Hermione…"
"And I realised," Hermione said, wiping a tear from her eye, "that…that could be me one day. I could be all cold and nasty…and lonely…"
"That's not gonna happen," Harry said, but Hermione carried on.
"I could wake up one day and find my children have all grown up…"
"Hey c'mon, stop thinking like this…"
"And my husband has left me…and…"
Her throat closed up, and she let out a sob as she began to cry.
Harry turned her over gently and hugged her to him. He rocked her gently as she cried onto his neck. So, he thought, she feels the same way. He would never have been able to guess that. But then, that was classic Hermione; if something was troubling her, she'd try and deal with it herself. Especially if it risked upsetting her family…
"I just…" Hermione sobbed, "I don't know what to do!"
Harry rocked her gently, "Shh, it's okay."
As much as Harry hated to hear Hermione cry, he did appreciate seeing this side of her. When she was stressed, and when she didn't have all the answers, Harry caught glimpses of what Hermione must have been like as a child; clinging to her mother or father for support and guidance. He thought it was adorable in a way…he just hated seeing her unhappy.
When he felt her begin to calm down, he spoke softly, "Why didn't you say anything before?"
"I…I thought it would get better," Hermione said, still shaking slightly, "I thought things would change, that I could…find a balance."
"Okay," Harry said. He didn't want to be mad at her, not when she needed his support.
"I'm really sorry, Harry." She said mournfully.
"Hey, it's alright," Harry said comfortingly.
"It's not," Hermione said, "I kept you out."
"Don't beat yourself up about it," Harry said, "it's not worth it. Not for a piece of…whatever…like her."
Hermione looked up into his eyes; hers were red and teary, "Can you forgive me?"
Harry smiled, "Yeah, I think so." He tucked his fingers under her chin and raised her to him, kissing her gently on the lips. She drank him in, pressing her mouth insistently against his, trying to forget about the tears that were still rolling down her cheek.
Harry shifted down the sofa into a lying position, taking Hermione with him, still kissing her. She opened her mouth to him; his tongue slid against hers. His hands slid down to her butt, squeezing it gently. Harry hated to admit it to himself, but they done much more than this in a while. Merlin, I want her…
Breathlessly, Hermione pulled away and rested her head on Harry's chest, smiling to herself. However, it began to fade quickly, "You didn't answer my question."
Harry stroked her hair, "Which one?"
"What should I do?"
Harry let out a sigh, "Honey, for once this is a no-brainer. You've gotta walk away."
"But…I can't just quit!"
"Well, what's the alternative?"
"But what about my career?" Hermione asked.
"We both know how smart you are, Hermione," Harry said gently, "You can make it to the top of whatever career you want. But you of all people deserve to be happy at the same time."
Hermione didn't offer an argument; she just listened.
"I know you feel…trapped. Like you can't walk away from this job," Harry said, "but you can. Just tell them you wanna spend more time with your kids; they miss you like crazy."
I miss them… "And if that doesn't work?" Hermione asked.
"Then I've still got some pull with the Minister," Harry countered smoothly. He wasn't sure if his `Chosen One' line of credit was still good, but all the high-profile busts he had made in the years that followed were sure to hold him in good stead.
Harry waited for Hermione's response. The fact that she wasn't arguing was a good sign…
After about a minute she looked up at his face and smiled, "Okay."
Harry smiled back, "Great."
She leaned forward to kiss him again, and pulled away to look down into his eyes, "Harry?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you get your hands off my butt?"
"Nope."
"What if the kids see us?"
"They're out in the garden, they're good until dinner."
Hermione glanced at the back door, "And how are my little angels?"
"Driving me crazy," Harry said with a cheeky look on his face.
Hermione cuffed him round the head, "Hey!"
"In a good way!" Harry said quickly.
Hermione sat up, pulling Harry up by the arms. She laid a hand on his leg and squeezed affectionately, "Thanks."
"It's what I'm here for." Harry said, grinning.
"What, to listen to me moaning?"
"Yeah, I'm getting used to it." Harry joked, drawing an evil look from his wife.
Hermione sniffed the air again, "When's dinner going to be ready?"
Harry shrugged, "About half an hour."
"Okay," Hermione said, settling back on the sofa, "what shall we do until then?"
Harry shrugged, "I had one or two ideas."
Hermione glanced down at her husband, "Yes, I can see that."
"Well," Harry said, scooting over closer, "you were saying earlier about something…long and hard?" He said, flexing his eyebrows.
Hermione tried to stop her smile from forming, but failed miserably, "Well…I guess I owe you."
"Fantastic, let's go." Harry said happily, taking Hermione's hand and leading her towards the stairs. Then he heard the back door open quietly…this is not happening…
"Mummy!" Lily exclaimed, rushing forward.
Hermione happily scooped up her daughter and hugged her tightly, "Hi Lily!"
Lily giggled as Hermione kissed her on the cheek, "Have you had fun today?"
Lily nodded, smiling widely, "Daddy took us to Diagon Alley and The Burrow, we played with Ian and Lisa and Sammy!"
Harry smiled at his daughter. He'd never seen any other four-year old that could pronounce every word correctly. Yep, she's her mother's…
"Well, that sounds fun!" Hermione said, "Where's your brother?"
Lily looked around towards the garden, "He's in the tree." She looked down sulkily, "I can't climb it."
"Aww," Hermione said, smiling as she stroked Lily's hair, "well, dinner is gonna be about half an hour, so you go and tell Jimmy that Mummy says he has to teach you, okay?"
"Okay!" Lily said excitedly. Hermione kissed her again and set her down.
She and Harry turned away again towards the stairs again.
"Where are you going?"
Harry grinned, turning around again, "We're just going to…play a game."
"Can I play?" Lily asked, jumping up and down.
"No!" Harry and Hermione said together, a little too quickly. Lily huffed and marched away towards the back door, "Honestly!"
Both her parents cracked up laughing, as Hermione led her husband upstairs…
If either of the kids walked past their parent's bedroom during the next twenty minutes, they would have heard a lot of heavy breathing, moaning, and Mummy and Daddy agreeing with each other a lot…
Wrapped up under the bedsheet, Hermione snuggled up against her husband, her eyes glazed and dreamy. She smiled and kissed him on the neck, "I needed that."
Harry grinned, "I know how you did."
Hermione smiled, "And we're pretending that you weren't gagging for it?"
Harry shrugged his shoulders, "Well…I think gagging's a bit strong…"
Hermione leaned her head up to peck him on the lips, noting the fine film of sweat across Harry's face, and down across his body under the sheet. As dirty as it was, she couldn't help but find it sexy…
Harry's arm was wrapped around her waist, his hand delicately tracing the curves of her stomach, "So…I guess dinner's about ready…"
Hermione let out a sigh, "Yeah…"
"But later on, we could always…"
"Always what?" Hermione asked.
"Put a Silencing Charm around the…"
"No!" Hermione said vehemently, "what if one of the kids wakes up in the night and needs…"
Harry grinned, "Damn, thought it might work this time."
"Rotten git," Hermione said as she threw back the sheet and fished around for her clothes.
"And you married me," Harry said under his breath as he did the same.
Dinner turned out to be one of the most fun mealtimes Harry could remember for a long time. Ironically enough after their coital activities, Hermione seemed more happy and full of life than she had been for weeks, and Jimmy and Lily were excitedly catching her up over what they did that day. They were even happier when she told them that she was going to stay home for a few weeks while she `straightened out' some things at work. Harry was already thinking about what to put in his strongly-worded parchment to the director of the Unspeakable Department…
Sadly for Harry, Hermione had stayed with Lily in her room when she put her daughter to bed. Somehow, the four-year-old needed extra convincing that her mummy was going to be there in the morning.
And so Harry ended up in his bed, with Jimmy asleep next to him in his pyjamas.
Despite that, he smiled.
All was well.
A/N - Sorry about the last line, I couldn't resist.
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