Disclaimer: If this was mine, I'd be awfully rich, and we would be happy for HHr happening.
A/N: My reply to the "You can't take my child" challenge by Natsky, you can find it here: http://talk.portkey.org/index.php?showtopic=26363&st=0 . I hope you'll like the story, and I feel I need to alert you, Ginny won't be particularly likable here. I don't think that's a problem, but anyhow, I told you beforehand, ok? lol. Now, on with the story…
Credit for the original plot of the story goes to AnasellaEmm, who wrote the story A Wonderful Caricature of Intimacy on fanfiction.net.
As usual, thanks to my great beta Gingercat, and I hope all of you had a good Easter!
Fight for Custody
Chapter Eight: First Two Months
Harry and Hermione had spent their first night as a married couple in their usual bedroom in the flat. The two of them had claimed they didn't really have time for a honeymoon, with both their jobs and Bea to care for, so they would settle for a very nice vacation in the summer to make up for it.
There had been some protesting, especially from Molly who had suggested they leave Beatrice with her and Arthur for at least a few days of relaxation, only the two of them, but the newlyweds had decided not to impose on her.
The truth was that in the honeymoon they would be expected to do whatever it is that newlyweds do, and while Hermione would have been more than happy to comply, she knew to Harry this was only a fake marriage.
As for Harry himself, he knew Hermione had loved him in the past but she had told him she didn't love him anymore, so even if he had happened to have blossoming feelings for his best female friend, he wouldn't risk the stability of their six months marriage expressing them.
"And anyhow, I don't have any blossoming romantic feeling for Hermione" he stubbornly repeated himself as a mantra.
The fact he definitely wanted to shag her silly like true newlyweds do seemed to not count, in his line of reasoning.
So, that night they went through their usual routine of putting Bea to bed, although the little girl had been so excited that her Daddy and Mummy had got married that she didn't seem so keen to go to sleep. Of course, being her age, she had scrunched up her nose in disgust every time they had kissed, not understanding how a girl could kiss a boy. "Boys are yucky" was the last thought floating through her mind before sleep finally took her.
Then, Harry and Hermione had undressed, worn their nightclothes and slipped into bed themselves.
However, a significant breakthrough was made that night, one that might seem little to some and yet held lots of meaning.
That night, Hermione and Harry didn't start the night on opposite sides of the bed, but comfortably cuddled together even before falling asleep, both with contented smiles on their faces, unbeknownst to the other.
--
It had been two weeks since the wedding, and Hermione was home with Bea, having just come back from school, while Harry was still at work.
Suddenly the bell rang, and Hermione went to open the door.
She expected it to be Harry, so she was mildly surprised to face a young blonde witch with a notepad in her hand.
"Hi, are you Mrs. Potter?" the other woman politely asked. Hermione nodded.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm from the Ministry for the probation regarding the custody of Beatrice Julie Potter, my name is Elisha Cutgrass" she said, extending her hand, that Hermione politely shook, then the brunette invited the other witch inside.
"I have some questions for you, Mrs. Potter, and for the little girl too" she said, following Hermione to the living room.
"Of course" Hermione nodded, smiling, but being incredibly nervous inside. This was it, they needed to make a good impression on the woman. A good start was always profitable in this kind of thing.
Hermione unconsciously wiped her hands on her trousers, as they were sweating profusely.
The blonde seemed to notice. "Nervous, Mrs. Potter?" she asked with a smile. Hermione gave an half smile, and the other witch actually chuckled.
"It's perfectly normal" she explained. "So, you got married with Mr. Potter just recently, am I mistaken?"
"No, you're not mistaken. Two weeks ago, to be more precise"
The woman scribbled something on her notepad, and Hermione held her breath. Had she said something wrong?
"But we have known each other for a long time before that" she blurted out, trying to rectify the situation, in case she had messed it up.
"I'm aware of that, Mrs. Potter. Few don't know your maiden name, and fewer ignore the role you played in You-Know-Who's demise" the blonde replied.
"So, would you mind telling me something about how your married life is going? It's not easy to step into a marriage when the other already has a child, am I right?"
"Oh, well, actually it hasn't been so hard. See, I'm the teacher at Beatrice's school, and she seemed to warm up to me since the very first day, and I can definitely say I immediately got a special liking for her. Not that I am unfair and give her special treatment…" Hermione babbled, and the other witch motioned for her to go on.
"I know what you mean, Mrs. Potter" she interjected, and Hermione nodded.
"Right. So, when Harry told Bea that I would live with them, she was very happy, and this has made stepping into the role of her step-mum more easy. She's really an adorable little girl" Hermione said, and her eyes warmed as she started talking about the raven haired girl who was right now in her room.
Miss Cutgrass wrote down something more during this time, and finally asked Hermione if she could meet the girl.
After a few more questions to which Bea replied a bit shyly, not completely liking this stranger, the inspector from the Ministry was about to leave when the fireplace sprung to life, and Harry stepped out of it.
He smoothed the soot away from his clothes, and finally looked up. As he did, Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a welcome kiss.
"You're here, Harry" she said, and then whispered, only for him to hear, "She's the inspector from the Ministry"
Harry suddenly understood why she had kissed him, and felt somewhat dejected. Every day his attraction for Hermione was growing more, and he felt a rush of strong affection for her every time he saw her with Bea. He had started asking himself if maybe he hadn't made an huge mistake years ago when he was still in school.
However, now wasn't the time to dwell on it. He kissed her back, before addressing the other woman.
"So, whom do I have the pleasure to meet?" he charmingly asked, and the blonde blushed the tiniest bit.
"I'm Elisha Cutgrass from the Ministry Department for Families" she replied, and Harry chivalrously kissed the back of her hand.
"Pleased to meet you, Miss Cutgrass" he said. She took the occasion to ask him a couple of questions too, and didn't miss the way Harry's arm went instinctively to seek Hermione's waist, pulling her at him.
She inwardly smiled. They seemed to be a very well matched couple, even if not everyone in her Department thought it so.
"Mr and Mrs. Potter, I will leave you to care for your daughter. I've already imposed enough on your hospitality for today. You will receive visits once a week, and from different personnel of the department. Now, take this as a friendly advice, but be aware than not everyone will be open minded toward the two of you" she said, before nodding to the couple, smiling at little Bea who had by now been picked up by her father, and she then left.
Hermione had the distinct feeling they would be in for tougher times soon, regarding the Ministry visits.
--
Another month had gone by, and Hermione was starting to go crazy. Living with Harry, sharing a bed with him and having to pose as the loving wife every time they were in public or when a visit from the Ministry occurred was eating her inside.
It was not that she didn't want to do it, or that she didn't love Harry. She did, which was exactly why this was killing her inside. This was her dream, to be married to Harry and be loved by him, and she knew in four and a half months this would be over.
He had never expressed more than friendly and thankful feelings to her when they were alone. She didn't know why, but some little part of her had hoped being forced to live with her as a wife, albeit a fake one, Harry would start noticing her in other ways. It seemed he wouldn't, though.
Being frustrated, Hermione wasn't in her best of moods when she woke up that morning.
She trudged into the kitchen, where Harry was fixing breakfast for all the three of them.
"Slept well, Hermione?" he asked with a smile. She grunted.
He frowned, and turned toward her.
"Something wrong?" he asked, concerned.
"I'm fine" she said, sitting at the table and pouring herself some coffee.
"You aren't fine, Mione. Something is bothering you"
Yeah, I want you to shag me silly and tell me you are in love with me, but apart for that I'm fine, Harry! she thought, rolling her eyes.
"I'm fine" she repeated, and he sighed.
"I wish you'd tell me, Hermione" he said. That was the last straw.
"It's not your fu---ng business!" she shouted, before hurrying out of the kitchen. She didn't even notice Bea looking at her with wide eyes, which were soon filling with tears.
Harry noticed, though, and went to pick her up, his own heart breaking for the little girl who had to witness their spat.
"Daddy, why was Mummy angry?" she asked, as he wiped away her tears. "Will she go away now?"
"Honey, no, she won't go away. She won't leave us, you can be sure of that" he soothingly said. "People argue, but then they make up, darling. It's just the way life is" he said, and the little girl nodded.
"Now, what do you say we have a very nice breakfast before Mummy takes you to school?" he suggested with a smile, and the little girl nodded.
--
In the bathroom, where she was making herself ready, Hermione banged her head on the wall. She hadn't meant to snap at Harry that way, it just had been too much. She wanted so much to tell him she still loved him more than herself, and yet he seemed so happy with how the things were between them, she didn't have the heart to tell him and maybe make things awkward for the following months. They needed to give the impression of a strong married couple if they wanted to secure Bea's custody to him.
When she was finally dressed for the day, she went to the kitchen to apologize, but she found Harry had already left.
"Daddy was called for an emergency" Bea explained to her, and Hermione groaned. Now they would have to go through their day without having made up from that row.
--
To make things worse, that afternoon a visit from the Ministry occurred.
When Hermione opened the door, she found herself facing an old hag, and she had the instant feeling that the visit wasn't going to go too well.
And she was right. From the first moment the older witch did everything in her power to make Hermione uncomfortable, and the brunette was more nervous than ever, because Harry could come any minute and they still hadn't settled their argument from the morning.
The worst, however, came when the hag asked Bea some questions.
"So, deary, how do you reckon your parents get along?"
"This is not something you should ask her" Hermione angrily interjected.
"Why not, Mrs. Potter? Afraid that she might reveal some secret?" the hag almost smirked.
Hermione was speechless.
"So, Beatrice, tell me what you think of your parents' life together" the older witch insisted.
The little girl looked at her mother, then finally spoke in a tiny voice.
"This morning they fought, and Mummy shouted at Daddy, then she left the room"
Hermione paled. She wasn't even aware that Bea had witnessed that. This old spiteful witch was already set to report the worst possible about them, what would happen now?
Almost dreading it, she looked at the witch's face and sure enough she found an expression of triumph there.
"Tell me more, deary" she cajoled Beatrice, who told her exactly what she had witnessed.
"So you curse in front of the child?" the old hag accused Hermione. "And fight in front of her?"
The brunette was panicking, she didn't know what to say. Luckily, someone else spoke.
"I'd daresay anyone can make a mistake" the angry voice of Harry Potter boomed into the living room from the doorway. Hermione looked up and saw him glaring at the old hag.
She had never been more happy to see him.
"Oh, Mr. Potter. Your daughter here just finished telling me about your lovely morning exchange of opinions with you wife" the witch said with a false smile. "I'd not say that fighting in front of a child, swearing and leaving the fight unresolved is a little mistake" she added then.
"Then you can blame me for that. It was me who left before we could straight our differences, because I was called into the Ministry, for an emergency. Since you work there too, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about" he said.
"Well, then I'd advise being more careful in the future, Mr. Potter, if you really want to keep custody of your daughter" she haughtily said, before leaving.
Once the front door of the flat had slammed shut, Hermione let the tears fall.
"I'm so sorry, Harry" she sobbed, and he hugged her tightly. "Shh. It's nothing" he soothed her, and Bea was crying now too, having the distinct impression that she hadn't done the right thing telling that ugly lady what she had seen.
The two adults spoke comforting words to the girl together, and she clung to Hermione's neck.
"Mummy, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble" she sniffled, and Hermione kissed her on the forehead.
"It's not your fault, pumpkin" she said, and Harry reassured his daughter that she had done nothing wrong.
That evening, dinner wasn't as cheerful as usual, all of the three of them wrapped in their own thoughts.
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