Chapter Text
Hermione sighed as she looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She had felt good about she looked earlier, but now…
She sighed and touched up her lipstick and did what she could to make her hair fall in something approaching a style.
It had been a terrible idea to accept his invitation to the monthly Weasley gathering. He had sounded far too reasonable when he invited her and it should have made her suspicious.
“We need to see each other again at some point we may as well do it at the monthly. Besides, everyone wants to see you.”
She had thought that even with the awkwardness between her and Ron she could have fun with the others but it had taken the space of two minutes for her to work out the only people who were actually happy to see her were Harry, Ginny, and George. She hadn’t really expected Mrs Weasley to be happy to see her, especially considering the words that had finally shattered their marriage completely. She had no doubt Ron had at some point shared that tidbit with his parents in the worst possible way. But she had hoped that Mr Weasley at least would be more… positive. Not that he or anyone had been rude, but it had been very evident that all the affection and warmth she had been previously showered with was now transfered to Ron’s new girlfriend, Simone.
Not that she could really complain considering she had sort of told him to do it…
“Just go out and find some simpering housewitch who wants to have a dozen babies and wait on you hand and foot for being a hero, someone just like your mother!”
The words rang around their suddenly silent apartment. Ron’s angry face had told her she’d gone too far but Hermione was too angry to care as she finally voiced the words that had been unsaid but thought and felt a thousand times and then she dug it a little deeper because it felt too true not to.
“Because that’s what you really want in a woman isn’t it? Your mother!”
She’d known at the time it was perhaps a step too far to bring his mother into it but well… He had finally agreed to a divorce and that was what she wanted.
Then it seemed he had taken her advice, for once. Simone was a pureblood witch, a Gryffindor, three years his junior and she seemed to worship him.
She was also stunningly beautiful which seemed to hurt the most. Hermione sighed looking at her reflection. She was pretty, she knew this. She was in fact beautiful. But she was just feeling a bit… plain tonight. She resisted the urge to do any spells to improve her looks before going back out. She would find George maybe, have a dance with him and then escape. It would look like a retreat but it was that or politely making small talk with one of the dozens of Weasleys while Ron strutted around introducing his girlfriend to everyone his hand very firmly on her perky arse as she was ever so demurely wrapped around him.
Hermione made a face and the door opened. She glanced over and saw Fleur.
Quickly stepping to the side she made room to share the mirror with the Frenchwoman. She hadn’t seen or spoken much to Fleur in the last seven years. Fleur and Bill hadn’t made the trip across from France very often, at least until ‘the monthly’ as it came to be known had started. They had attended about two in three, usually when coming over for work.
When Victoire was born they’d made an effort to come each month so everyone could coo over the baby. Hermione had been witness to many a lamentation by Mrs Weasley that her first grandchild was so rarely around. She blamed Fleur. Hermione had quietly suspected the somewhat overwhelming amount of ‘parenting advice’ given to the young couple by the elder Weasleys had probably been a significant contributing factor in their absences. She had witnessed a lot of very subtle gritting of teeth by the Frenchwoman as she politely sat through what could only be described as a lecture about how to put her daughter to sleep.
A situation that may have calmed in time, especially as Percy’s wife had given birth to little Molly Weasley the second barely three months later, but Bill’s death only weeks after his daughter’s first birthday had caused a deeper attachment on the part of the grandparents. Hermione could only feel sympathy for Fleur as Victoire’s arrival always resulted in a loud cry from Molly and Arthur followed by a ridiculous amount of spoiling of the three year old.
“Is there something you want to say to me?” Fleur asked.
Hermione realised she’d been staring and quickly shook her head.
“Sorry. No, I was…” She waved a hand and sighed turning back to her reflection once more. “Just lost in thought.”
Fleur was still looking at her. Hermione returned the look for a second then glanced away again. Fleur sighed.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
Hermione realised the accent had disappeared quite a bit over the last seven years. It was still present, just… softer.
“Fine,” Hermione said quickly.
She checked her handbag searching for anything she could use to give her an excuse to stay in the bathroom a few minutes longer.
“No, you are upset,” Fleur said turning to look more closely at her. “Your ex husband?”
Hermione felt a strange lump in her throat as she continued to pretend to search through the tiny bag. It was pointless to pretend otherwise.
“Why did you come if-”
“Because I didn’t want him to think I was afraid,” she said softly cutting the other woman off.
She felt tears burn in her eyes. Fleur was quiet as Hermione gave up on the pretence with her bag. She looked back at the mirror and saw her reflection. God she looked tired. She saw Fleur still watching her, an understanding seemed to be there. Hermione bit her lip and looked away focusing on her hair again trying to tuck one half behind her ear. It wasn’t cooperating. She found herself talking.
“He asked me to come, said everyone wanted to see me and I thought- I thought things were going back to something more… friendly between us. That we could have fun like we used to, as friends. I thought we could start going back to just friends but then he showed up with her and… well now I feel like an idiot. He asked me here to rub my face in his new hot girlfriend who is nothing like me.”
Fleur nodded her expression shifting slightly as she turned back to the mirror.
“Well for the record, I think he is the idiot. And exceedingly rude. One should not invite one’s ex wife to an event where one is taking their new girlfriend,” she declared.
Hermione smiled and felt a bit better. She heard Fleur sigh as she adjusted her dress a little. Hermione looked at her properly and saw the tension in her movements. They were slow and graceful but her muscles were tight as though she was forcing herself to be slow.
“How are you?” she found herself asking.
Fleur sighed again, deeper this time. Her hands fell to the sink as she stared at her reflection. The expression changing to one of deepest irritation.
“I come so they may see Victoire as they are her grandparents but I… I do not get much from these things. I… I am not their kind of people.”
She looked at Hermione in the mirror.
“I think now nor am I,” Hermione admitted.
Fleur smiled at her. It wasn’t a big smile but it looked far more genuine than the ones she’d seen Fleur give anyone else all night. Fleur looked at her the smile getting a bit bigger and a hint of something almost like mischief came to her face.
“Dance with me?” Fleur asked.
“What?” Hermione asked her face breaking into a surprised smile.
“Dance with me,” Fleur said drawing herself up. “Let us ignore their pitying stares and struggles to speak with us. Instead we shall take what pleasure and entertainment we can with each other tonight.”
Fleur held out her hand.
“I- I’m not a very good dancer,” Hermione admitted.
Fleur scoffed and gave her a brilliant smile that did something to Hermione’s insides.
“That does not matter, I am good enough for both of us.”
Hermione smiled wider feeling lighter as she put her hand in Fleur’s allowing her to lead her from the bathroom.
“We shall make a small scandal and dance too close, non?” Fleur asked giving her a teasing smile and a wink.
Hermione laughed at the wink and a few heads turned. Hermione forced herself not to look. Then Fleur was pulling her into her arms and they were dancing and Fleur was right, she was good enough for both of them. Hermione relaxed further as she let herself be guided through an energetic… something that seemed to involve a lot of spinning her around followed by close hip movement that made Hermione laugh even as her body relaxed into it. Fleur whispered bits of gossip and increasingly ridiculous compliments of Hermione’s body in her ear until she laughed louder and found the time slipping away.
At some point she became aware she was semi collapsed in Fleur’s arms the two of them swaying to the music having found they were both content to simply exist in the moment as the music slowed. Hermione smiled feeling happy. She had never danced for this long before, it was nice.
She told Fleur so and got a beautiful smile in response.
“You should you-”
“Fleur dear,” Mrs Weasley said interrupting them with a very large smile.
They both looked at her little confused. They both became aware the gathering was settling down as about half the people had left already.
“I think poor little Victoire is done for the night. Arthur is just going to tuck her into the bed-”
“Oh no, thank you. I shall take her home,” Fleur said immediately. “She does not do well waking in unfamiliar spaces.”
Fleur quickly left throwing Hermione an apologetic look over her shoulder as she walked swiftly away Mrs Weasley hurrying after her suggesting that Victoire could just stay the weekend.
“She could practice her English,” Mrs Weasley suggested somewhat desperately.
Hermione sighed shaking her head as she watched them go. She had seen enough similar interactions involving Fleur over the years to know she would under no circumstances be leaving her daughter anywhere overnight. Fleur was a very protective parent. At least from what Hermione had seen. She supposed the loss of Bill while Victoire was still so young had done little to assuage whatever fears made her so paranoid about her child being away from her for too long.
“So you and Fleur looked pretty close,” Ginny said sneaking up beside Hermione.
Hermione smiled at her feeling somewhat pleased at the question.
“I see you’ve finally stopped calling her Phlegm. And yes we did. Have we caused a scandal yet?” she asked.
Ginny smiled then made a thoughtful humming noise.
“No, but Ron did stop groping Simone’s ass long enough to be upset about it for a good fifteen minutes. He actually danced with her quite near to you but I don’t think you noticed as Fleur seemed to be holding you very close and turned whenever he was about to come into your line of sight. I think you were too busy laughing at whatever she was whispering in your ear to notice.”
Hermione found her smile growing. She hadn’t noticed Ron. Fleur must have though.
“That was sweet of her,” she said.
Ginny placed a hand on Hermione’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry he’s being such a git about it all.”
Hermione sighed.
“It’s pretty much his usual MO at this point,” she said.
Ginny didn’t argue. Hermione glanced at Ron and saw him sitting with Simone draped over his lap. She quickly looked away and saw Fleur at a nearby table Victoire half asleep over her shoulder. Fleur gathered her things with a wave of her wand as Mrs Weasley continued to suggest she could stay the night as well if she didn’t want to be separated from Victoire.
Fleur shook her head and frowned at something in front of her, Hermione knew she was looking towards the table where Ron and Simone were snuggled together. Fleur turned and gave Hermione a look, then a smile, and the smallest twitch of her head.
“Hermione, would you be so kind as to show me out?” Fleur purred.
“What is she doing?” Ginny muttered.
Hermione made a quick decision and gave Fleur a nod and a smile.
“I’d be delighted,” Hermione said rushing forwards to take the coat and bag from Fleur as her own were summoned with a wave of her wand. “You have your hands full, I’ll carry these for you.”
Fleur gave her a sly smile and nodded.
“Merci.”
They walked out together Ginny giving Hermione a shocked look as they passed. Hermione smiled back. She didn’t fail to notice Ron’s stunned reflection in the mirror near the door. Fleur leaned closer to her as they put on their coats.
“Would you like me to…”
“Whatever you do I’ll go along with it,” Hermione whispered.
Fleur grinned.
“Just what I like to hear.”
She caught Hermione’s free hand with her own and threw her a sultry look.
“Shall we continue our dance elsewhere?” she asked stepping through the door and leading Hermione out into the night.
Hermione laughed and nodded letting the door swing closed behind her. Victoire made a noise of protest at the cold but Fleur murmured softly in French and she was quiet again. Fleur did not let go of Hermione’s hand as she led her to the edge of the wards so they could apparate.
“Thank you for that,” Hermione said.
Fleur smiled at her. It was a very kind smile. Hermione would have attributed many things to Fleur but she had to admit she’d never considered her kind.
Perhaps, she was realising after their evening, this was an oversight of hers.
“It was a pleasure. I must remind them sometimes I am French.”
Hermione nodded and sighed thinking of her cold apartment.
“The night is still young, come back with me for a drink,” Fleur said.
Hermione looked at Fleur surprised. Then she looked at Victoire.
“What about-”
“Victoire would sleep through a harpy’s screams, us having a drink in the kitchen won’t disturb her.”
Hermione bit her lip and looked at Fleur.
“Do you have something else to go to?” Fleur asked a playful smile coming out.
Hermione smiled and shook her head.
“A drink would be nice,” she admitted.
Fleur looked delighted and casually twirled Hermione in close using their joined hands.
“Hold on,” Fleur said.
Hermione laughed and then they were apparating right into the kitchen of Shell cottage.
Victoire woke at the apparition but quickly was lulled to sleep as Fleur carried her down the hallway singing a French lullaby. Hermione watched Fleur with a smile listening to the lullaby for a minute then the quiet click of a door closing at it’s end.
Fleur returned to the kitchen with a bright smile.
“Wine?” she offered.
Hermione nodded quickly and sat at the worn kitchen table as Fleur collected the wine and poured them both a generous glass. Hermione sipped it with a smile. Then she made a soft noise of approval. She looked at the poorly labelled bottle making a note of the vineyard. Fleur smiled.
“My cousin owns a vineyard. He sends me a few bottles, usually the ones that have some kind of label fault since he cannot properly sell them like that, and he is too lazy to just relabel them,” she said in explanation.
Hermione smiled and nodded her approval. She noticed Fleur looked rather tired. Not like she was exhausted but more like she had expended a lot of energy and was now finally getting a chance to relax as she sank gratefully into her chair stretching out a little.
For a minute neither of them spoke both just enjoying the wine and the quiet noises the cottage made as it settled. The sound of waves was distant but pleasant.
“Thank you, again,” Hermione said quietly.
Fleur looked at her curiously.
“No trouble at all. We former wives of Weasley men must stick together,” she said.
Fleur seemed to be recovering her usual, or what Hermione supposed was her usual, calmness. She was not an especially energetic person but the tension Hermione had observed while Fleur was among the Weasley’s seemed to be ebbing away the longer they sat there. It was replaced with a quiet confidence.
“Can I ask a personal question?” Hermione found herself saying.
Fleur, who had been about to take another sip of her wine, looked at Hermione curious. She nodded and brought the glass to her lips giving Hermione a small smile.
“You seem very… tense whenever I see you,” Hermione said.
She tried to figure out what her question was and found nothing came to mind. Fleur nodded then sighed.
“Do you know what happens whenever I bring Victoire to see her English family?”
Hermione thought for a moment.
“She gets smothered in attention from Mrs Weasley,” she said.
Fleur nodded and looked sad for a moment.
“They speak English, and only English. They talk constantly about how she is so precious and a Weasley, and they correct her to the English words whenever she speaks French and I… I do not like this.”
Hermione smiled her understanding.
“She is a French child. She is being raised in France by her French mother, she goes to a French preschool and she speaks French with her friends. Yes, she know some English and she has many English family but she also has French family and I-”
Fleur huffed and Hermione noticed what seemed to be an old anger come over Fleur. Then it was gone replaced by something more sombre. Fleur sighed again.
“Bill was not like his family in a lot of ways,” she said her voice tinged with a deep sadness.
Hermione nodded. Bill had seemed a bit rebellious in his way. She had spoken very little with him but she had liked him, and he had seemed very well matched with Fleur. She knew they had been happy together.
“I think were he still alive some of their… nostalgic ideas of him would be gone but as it is they see Victoire and they think of Bill as they wanted to see him. A brilliant eldest son with a bright future and they think she will go about in her Papa’s shadow. That she will go to Hogwarts, be a prefect like so many of her family, be a dutiful grand daughter who writes to them regularly with tales of school adventures that they will smile over, and that she will come visit regularly to let them spoil her without ever shattering this idea they have of him, and of her.”
Fleur shook her head sadly.
“I’m guessing you will be sending her to Beauxbatons,” Hermione said gently.
Fleur looked at Hermione and nodded.
“We had discussed letting her choose but after everything… I would rather she be taught here where I can have her home on weekends.”
“Beauxbatons students go home on weekends?” Hermione asked surprised.
Fleur nodded giving her a look.
“Believe it or not the French are quite attached to having their children at home. We teach them young to be respectful and then take them everywhere with us. Not seeing Victoire for months would be heartbreaking for me. At Beauxbatons on weekends the students take a portkey to the various pickup spots around the country and their parents collect them and then return them Sunday night or early Monday morning.”
Hermione smiled an old memory surfacing.
“And Christmas…”
“The palace is decorated beautifully and there is a large gathering of students and parents to watch fireworks. It’s part of the Christmas celebrations. There is more… involvement of parents with students at Beauxbatons. Hogwarts was… difficult for me. I missed my family terribly. Especially my sister and well…”
Fleur gave Hermione a somewhat apologetic smile.
“It did nothing to help my temper at the time.”
Hermione laughed.
“I do remember you having some issues with Hogwarts.”
Fleur sighed and shook her head.
“I was angry, sad, and I was struggling to understand with everything in English, and it all kept moving! Why did everything in your castle have to be so cramped and secretive? I was craving sunlight and all I found were moving stairs, tiny windows, hidden passageways, and a forest I wasn’t supposed to enter because it was apparently very dangerous.”
Hermione tried to cover her laugh as Fleur went on.
“And there was something large in the lake and more dangerous creatures so I could not go swimming in it. Not that I wanted to because the water was freezing. I was stuck with only this large open lawn that did little to attract the eye or block the wind, and the only large tree I could see was violent.”
Hermione stopped covering her laughter and let it out as Fleur gave her a look.
“Your school was awful,” she finished smiling at Hermione.
Hermione smiled back and saw Fleur’s smile grow that little bit.
“Beauxbatons has acres of beautiful gardens to walk in and explore, the warm sea to bathe in, and the staircases do not move. Nor are there dozens of strange and vicious creatures wandering about waiting to attack unsuspecting students.”
They smiled at each other for a moment and Hermione felt a warmth filling her up. It had been too long since she spoke to anyone about something that wasn’t work or her divorce.
“Better than Durmstrung though,” she said. “They only light the fires for magical purposes.”
Fleur’s smile was quickly overcome with a look of absolute horror. She picked up her wine shaking her head.
“I would have died.”
Hermione laughed again. Fleur smiled at her as she took a sip of her wine. Hermione did as well. Silence returned to the table but it was, Hermione found, a surprisingly comfortable silence.
“I think I would have enjoyed Beauxbatons then,” Hermione said quietly. “If it’s as you described.”
Fleur looked at her curiously.
“I…” Hermione sighed and rubbed her face feeling an old tiredness reach her. “I was close to my parents when I was young but being away from them so much it…” She wasn’t really sure of the words. Still she tried. “It led me to be quite distant from them no matter how many letters I sent or received. No matter our best efforts to stay connected.”
Fleur gave her a very understanding look.
“People think that just because French children are so well behaved and sent to bed early that we are not involved parents but… Victoire is the most important person in my life. I just do not make her my whole life. She is her own person as am I. My parents are the same. They love me and my sister and we would always spend our time with our parents going everywhere with them. Our weekends were spent as a family catching up on all we had missed. Going out together, playing games… It kept us close. Especially when I was at Beauxbatons and Gabrielle was still at home.”
Hermione nodded.
“Do you intend to do the same with Victoire?”
Fleur nodded.
“Yes. I try to let her have her freedom but I confess a strong desire to keep her close.”
Hermione nodded again and picked up her wine.
“Perfectly reasonable. Especially if she gets nervous-”
Fleur gave Hermione a smile. Hermione looked more closely at her.
“Does she get nervous?” she asked.
Fleur laughed softly and shook her head picking up her wineglass.
“Non. She’ll sleep through anything. Bill and I specifically made sure she would sleep well anywhere because our work often called us to strange places. I just don’t want to leave her with… them.”
Fleur sighed again and Hermione looked over to see her contemplating something in her kitchen.
“Bill was not as… attached to his family as they think. His parents continued assumptions about how he ought to lead his life and how it should look and in what ways… It was not him, nor was it me. Now that he is gone there is no chance to properly dispel those ideas.”
Fleur sighed back at Hermione.
“They thought I was with him because he was handsome and…” She waved a hand. “Cool. But I loved him for his mind. He was clever. I adore cleverness. Anyone can be pretty with enough time and money, but not anyone can be clever.”
Hermione nodded her agreement. She finished her wine and looked at Fleur. She was surprised to see Fleur’s eyes were travelling over her body her expression one Hermione couldn’t quite recognise. She looked back out the window and sighed. She should probably go home but she found herself reluctant to leave.
“Spend the night with me,” Fleur said.
Hermione looked at her in surprise.
“But-” Then she could think of no argument against it except “Why would you want me?”
Fleur smiled at her. It was a very pretty smile.
“Because you are clever, and pretty." Fleur leaned forward her fingers caressing Hermione's. "And I think it has been too long since you were treated as the beautiful woman you are, and too long since I was treated with the tenderness I deserve.”
Hermione looked at Fleur and then she bit her lip.
“I’ve only been with Ron,” she confessed.
“Then let me show you how to please a woman,” Fleur said rising to her feet and holding out her hand to Hermione.