Trailblazing & Stargazing - Chapter 36

Trailblazing & Stargazing - Chapter 31

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53573164/chapters/148190509

On Saturday morning, Hugo had a guitar lesson and Rose met with some friends from her primary school. Hermione stayed at home and read a book, trying not to think about the upcoming conversation with Ron.

In the afternoon, the three of them went to Central London for some shopping in the muggle shops, went to the cinema to watch ‘The Croods: A New Era’, which had them laughing the entire time, and stopped for dinner at a small kebab restaurant not far from their home. Hermione enjoyed spending time with her children, they were growing up to be beautiful humans. Once home, after Hugo had gone to his room to play his guitar again, Hermione asked Rose to stay with her for a moment.

“I know it’s none of my business.” She began, clearing her throat as it felt constricted. “And I won’t ask you questions. But I want to make sure you’re fine and you’re being careful, with Scorpius. In case you’re having, or planning to have, sex.” Hermione looked into her daughter’s eyes, trying to see something, anything, in them.

“Mum! Do we really have to talk about this? It’s embarrassing!” Rose visibly cringed. “Can’t I talk about this with Auntie Ginny? Or Auntie Fleur, maybe?”

“Rose, I’m not here to ask details. You have your friends for gossiping and swooning over boys. And I’m sure Auntie Ginny and Auntie Fleur will be more than happy to help if you have more… practical questions. I understand that talking about such things with your mother may be uncomfortable. Even though I do hope you know that, if you want to, you can talk to me, about anything. I’ll never judge you, I want to be sure you know that.” She paused, waiting for a sign from Rose. When she nodded, mildly exasperated, Hermione continued. “I’m here to make sure that whatever you chose to do, or not do, you are prepared. Do you know how to cast a contraceptive charm?”

Rose shook her head. Hermione demonstrated the wand movement and recited the incantation and then asked Rose to do it. She managed it on her fourth attempt. Hermione made her try again a few more times, just to be sure.

“Good. Now, we should talk about consent.” She said when she was happy with the results.

“Mum, we’ve already talked about consent. A million times.” Rose whined.

A snippet from chapter 1 of Trailblazing & Stargazing

Voldemort was dead. Again. They had made it back to present day, safe and sound. The children had gone back to Hogwarts. The grownups, including none other than reformed Death Eater, former school bully, overall nightmare of their childhood Draco Malfoy, had spent a few hours at Grimmauld Place going over the latest events. Harry and Ginny seemed to have finally accepted that Albus was a Slytherin and Scorpius Malfoy was his best friend. They were going to have to deal with the ferret more in the future and were trying to digest that. Ron still didn’t like Draco one bit, but Hermione appreciated the fact that they had both been civil to each other. 

She dreaded the moment Ron would realize that Scorpius had a huge crush on Rose, and the feeling was probably mutual, although Rose herself didn’t seem to be aware of that just yet. She thought Malfoy had changed dramatically, long gone was the spoiled racist brat he had been in school. The war had changed him, just like it had changed them, and the whole tragedy of his wife’s blood curse and subsequent death had left deep scars on him. He was now a generous man and he was still trying to atone for his sins, most of society had forgiven him but he couldn’t seem to forgive himself. Scorpius was a nice kid as well, he looked just like his dad at that age but had a kind smile instead of a mean smirk. He’d grow up to be a good man, without his father’s traumatic past. Draco was a good dad, much unlike Lucius.

Hermione and Ron apparated back into the garden and walked inside their empty two-story brick house. When they had married they had chosen to live in a muggle town on the outskirts of London, similar to where she had grown up. They had muggle technology, like a fridge and a TV, and magical commodities such as floo connection and owl post. Both she and Ron had gotten driving licenses and the children had attended muggle primary school, together with the Potters, before going to Hogwarts. They had the best of both worlds and Hermione really wanted to make it easier for other wizarding families to do the same.

“I’ll make some tea. Are you hungry?” asked Ron, nervously threading his hand through his slightly thinning, but still very brightly ginger, hair. 

“Yes please! I’m starving, really! I’m too old for battling evil wizards, I’m afraid.” Replied Hermione sitting down on the sofa. 

Her hair was still wild, as if it struggled to contain her energy, but some strands here and there were turning grey and she had a few thin lines at the corners of her eyes. She was never one to care about glamour charms or muggle make-up. She showed the signs of her age proudly, she had earned every one of them through the pain, joy, loss and achievement she had gone through in her 41 years of life. Not that she was old, but society always expected women to look like horny teenagers and she would have none of that rubbish.

She picked up one of the many scrolls of parchment her personal assistant had left on the coffee table, as per previous agreement, for her to review. The wizarding world hadn't stopped while the Golden Trio was traveling through time to prevent history from changing for the worst, she had to keep up. She took her job as Minister of Magic very seriously, she was trying to change the future, thank you very much.

Ron handed her a steaming cup of tea and, not finding any room on the table, sat down balancing a plate of samosas on his knee. 

“You know I love you, right?” he said with a deep sigh while nervously tapping his fingers on a cushion. 

“Of course I do, I love you too Ron, you are my best friend.” Her eyes never lifted from the parchment as she replied and took a samosa from the plate. She took a bite, enjoying the spicy goodness within and then sipped her tea, still reading. 

“You are my best friend too ‘Mione.” He stopped for a second and swallowed air, his Adam’s apple slightly bobbing. “That’s why I think we should get a divorce.”

Timeless by alexandra_emerson is, in my opinion, a true masterpiece. It kept me on my toes the whole time, and the sheer amount of planning this story must have taken is humbling.

Hermione Granger and the Dramione Shippers - Chapter 3

They ran through the gates and up the hill, they rushed though the entrance hall and, when they reached the Headmistress’ office, they found all the other professors talking loudly over one another. When Minerva saw Hermione and Malfoy she shouted “QUIET!” And everyone was silent at once. 

“Hermione, Draco. I suppose you encountered the same… difficulties as the others.” She looked at them with a pinched expression.

Hermione placed the seven books on the desk, still catching her breath. “It would seem so. I thought we should read them. I bought two sets.”

“Very well, I need to speak to the Minister about this. I will see you all at dinner. I hope to have some updates by then.” 

The professors dispersed, Hermione went to her room and took a nice warm bath, with a generous amount of her lemon and rosemary bath salts because she needed to clear her head. Once she was more relaxed, clean, dry and perfectly dressed, in muggle jeans and a blue sweater, because even in full summer the Castle tended to be chilly in the evening, she sat on her sofa and started reading the first book. “Harry Potter and the Philosopher stone.”

She had just finished reading chapter six, and had had the ‘pleasure’ of reading ‘She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth.’ When she realized that it was time to go to the teachers’ room for dinner.

“Bossy.” She thought. “I’m not bossy, at all.”

She entered the teachers’ room, everyone but Minerva was already there. The professors were talking among themselves about the day’s unforeseen, even though professor Trelawney claimed to have had a vision last week, events.

Malfoy was alone, sitting in the same chair he had occupied in the morning. She sat beside him and he asked. “How far have you read?”

“We just arrived with the Hogwarts express. You were introduced much earlier than I was, chapter 5 ‘boy with a pale pointed face’ and then a whole conversation to introduce us readers to your snootiness.”

“I don’t have a pointed face!” He huffed in protest.

“Not now, maybe. But you were a pointy-faced little ferret in first year!” She giggled.

“And what did the author have to say about you?” He asked with his signature smirk.

“Nothing you haven’t said to me yourself: bushy hair, big teeth, bossy voice. I’m basically being bullied all over again. By a book, no less! A betrayal if ever there was one!” She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Red Asters - a quick Dramione one shot, full of feelings. Sad tears, happy tears, all the tears. Keep your tissues ready, don't tell me I didn't warn you.

He had always been beautiful. Even when his features had been pointy and his face distorted in an angry sneer, she had always known he was objectively beautiful. His hair was so distinctive of him, she could spot him anywhere, in a crowd, from a distance, as he zoomed in the sky on that bloody broom all her friends seemed to love. She always knew where he was. Sometimes, in class, she would find herself staring into the back of his neck, where the silvery white of his hair met the pearly white of his skin, as if hypnotized. Nobody ever noticed, luckily, but she blushed anyway when she snapped back to reality, barely in time to prevent her fingers from brushing against his skin. His eyes, though she didn’t have many chances to look into them, if not when they were spitting venom at each other, she knew their unique shade of grey was another tassel added to the overall beauty of his face. She appreciated the beauty of the box, even though it seemed to contain only hatred and spite. Somehow, though, he had always been sure that, digging deeper, beauty and kindness could be found within him, too. She felt it in her bones.

When everyone had laughed at the poem the gnome had sang to her best friend in second year, she had blushed furiously, knowing she had been this close to doing something similar. To this day, she still remembered the silly poem she had written and immediately incendioed. Writing poetry was not one of her talents.

He smirks and he sneers,

He hangs with the worst peers.

But his hair shines like goblin wrought silver,

When he looks at me, I feel my heart quiver.

The things nobody says

Chapter 2 is now up

She slept less and less every night. She managed to focus on work when she was in the office, but as soon as she was done for the day, she would start spiralling. Episodes like the one she’d had when she first found out started happening more often. By the end of the third trimester, she had at least one a day when Steve was away and two or three times a week when he was home.

Until, one day, she had a very ugly episode at work. She panicked after one of those endless, useless, meetings that could have been an email. She was about to leave the conference room, thinking how it had all been a waste of time and she should have left hours ago. A voice in her head had said that if the babies had already been born she would have been in trouble. She would have been late picking them up from day-care and, if that happened too often, social services would have to be called and her children would be taken away from her because she was a terrible mother. Then, her children would hate her forever and they would get into bad friendships, and then they would get addicted to drugs or alcohol and they would get in trouble with the law and end up in jail and it would all be her fault.

She collapsed on a chair, her pupils dilated, her breath frantic. She tried to get back in control of her body but people where all over her, touching her, telling her what to do, shouting over one another. An ambulance was called and she was taken to a hospital. After her breathing and heartrate had been brought back to normal, she had been taken to the psychiatric ward.

Great, now everyone would think she was crazy!

I listened to Things without Remedy on Spotify and I absolutely loved it. The story is well structured, the writing flows easily, it has everything. Also, the acting in the poetic is amazing. I am absolutely and completely in love!

@dhrmonth week 2 - romance tropes - day 14 - free day

A soul bond one shot. Hermione takes us through memory lane as she remembers her life.

Trailblazing & Stargazing - Chapter 21

“Granger.” Zabini and Nott said in unison, slightly nodding in acknowledgment. 

She held out her hand to each of them in turn and, of course, they did the pretend kiss instead of shaking it like normal people. Pureblood etiquette! She managed not to roll her eyes. She should give herself another Order of Merlin First Class just for this incredible act of self-control.

“Zabini, Nott. A pleasure to meet you. Your muggle tuxedos are perfect, I suppose Pansy helped?”

“I can’t speak for Blaise, but I’m always perfect.” Smirked Nott. Hermione laughed, Draco snorted.

Zabini rolled his eyes. “Nott, if it weren’t for Pansy, you would have come here looking like my Great Aunt Cornelia when she comes back from vacationing around the world wearing bits and bobs from every country.”

“Now I absolutely need to meet her!” Chuckled Hermione.

“Three Snakes and a Lioness, I could write a story about this and become even more famous than Beedle the Bard” came Pansy’s voice. She was wearing a long black dress, with a high slit and a high neckline, the bodice was covered in lace. Her eyes quickly met Hermione’s who nodded imperceptibly.

“This is Agathe Fournier, my girlfriend.” She looked her friends in the eyes and squeezed Agathe’s hand. Agathe was rather petite, her hair was a light shade of brown and it was tied in a low bun at the nape of her neck. She was wearing a pink dress, with a corseted top and a full tulle skirt that reached her calves. She smiled timidly.

“Hello Agathe, I’m Hermione. I’m so happy to meet you.” Hermione shook her hand vigorously.

“Nice to meet you Hermione. Pansy told me you are her first client here in Britain.” Unlike Fleur, Agathe barely had a French accent.

Draco took Agathe’s hand and brought it towards his lips without actually kissing it. “Enchanté. I’m Malfoy. Draco Malfoy.”

Hermione barely held back a snort. She could actually picture Draco as a wizarding James Bond. Nott and Zabini pretend-kissed Agathe’s hand, introduced themselves and greeted Pansy.

“Pans, are all witches this beautiful in France? Because I’m thinking of moving there if that’s the case.” Theo whispered, all too loudly, in his friend’s ear.

“The witches of Great Britain would be devastated to lose you, I’m sure.” Scoffed Blaise from behind.

Pansy rolled her eyes. “If you behave, I might think about introducing you to someone. Salazar knows it’s about time you two gave up your rakish ways.”

“You sound like my mother, Pans.” Laughed Draco as they reached their seats in the center of the Grand Tier.

That same evening, after supper, Draco enters the Slytherin common room, black robes billowing behind him in a rather impressive Snape impersonation.

"Snake meeting in the den!" Shouts his sonorused voice.

One by one all Slytherin students file into the common room. Draco waits, brooding in a corner, arms crossed. When they are all accounted for, Draco speaks.

"Flint! Why did you tell Professor Granger about the ring?"

"I thought..."

"Yes, in the future, please refrain from thinking. All of you."

The students lower their gazes.

"Your job is to talk about me when Professor Granger can hear you, not tell her I want to marry her! I have to at least take her on one date first!"

A seventh year raises her hand, Draco nods.

"We talked about how handsome you are, she was sitting beside us on the Quidditch stands when you were acting as referee. She ogled you after we said your arse looked good."

"Thank you, Avery. See? That's what I want from you! No more mistakes."

PART 1

TO BE CONTINUED