Falling Down…
Author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, known under the pen name of Lewis Carrol, was famous for his published works in the genre of literary nonsense. His iconic juggle of fantasy and logic is also reflected in his contributions to maths. Hermione would have bet galleons that Ole’ Charlie Boy would have loved general relativity. Tragically the don from the University of Oxford wasn’t alive to witness Albert Einstein’s deduction in 1915. The new theory proposed gravity couldn’t be described as force alone, but in conjunction with the curvature of spacetime, caused by the uneven distribution of mass.
It made her giggle thinking of the mad mathematicians, for personal reasons, ruminating on the flexibility of space and time.
The most significant interaction between objects at the macroscopic scale determines the motion of planets, stars, galaxies, and even light. In its basic concept, she appreciated the simple undeniable fact of objects being forced towards one another.
Gravity wasn’t prejudice, acceleration is the same for all objects.
Although there were startling differences between the young girls, one curiously tumbling down after a bushy white tail, and the other plunging under a malevolent willow tree. When gravity first took them both down they were scrambling for twisted roots, grasping for anything to stop the velocity. Mr. Carrol’s leading lady pondering on latitude and longitude. In her lackadaisical decent she perused a portrait and a whilst floating on the parasol of her skirts. Hermione’s cognizance had her acting on instinct, using what knowledge she remembered to catch two wanted men and save her best friend's life.
Chasing a mystery sent them all equally stumbling into the unknown, altering them forever once they found the bottom.
They all ignored the familiar feeling of developing madness and it was startling; stumbling into wonderland, asking questions that unraveled space as we knew it and her meek heart falling for Lord Nott.
Falling Down from Colleagues
Falling Down to Friends
Falling Down as Lovers
November, and Theo’s proclamation that she was now HIS, had everyone seeing a new side to the usually aloof Slytherin.
Physically he was pulled into her orbit.
She was a supernova and he was a humble celestial body.
His center of gravity was forever altered.
The sudden claim on her should have had her running for the hills. Her reputation as a war heroine had suitors idolizing her, putting her on a pedestal. She enjoyed the praises and adoration but their energy always gave her an icky feeling.
She wanted to be worshiped like all fair ladies do.
Sweet words or kind gestures are so freely offered, but a true knight would be dedicated to her alone.
Simply because it was at HER altar that they chose to lay their sword.
Until now no one had ever declared ownership of her in such a way. It was common knowledge for anyone who read Rita Skeeter's articles that Hermione was a serial dater. The men she went out with usually only made it on one or two dates before she cut them off. Besides her friendship with the chosen one, he hadn’t heard of her becoming close to anyone the way that they had been growing closer.
Theo had learned to be exceptionally patient when he had to be.
Most of the Slytherins in their year had a crush on Hermione, especially after the Yule ball. She was a formidable witch and the years had been very good to her. Her hero status made her even more untouchable, the forbidden fruit. It was obvious to anyone who had been paying attention, that she was no longer available. Theo made it clear he was courting her but taking things slow. He was a rich man but he knew he could not afford to fuck things up by rushing or overwhelming her with his customs.
Opting to keep things pretty much the same in their routine. The morning treasures were no longer left unattended at her desk, instead, they were held hostage by a finely dressed wizard who waited patiently outside her office door.
“I’ve found I have a terrible time concentrating if I don’t get my daily doses of you.” He had her cornered, one hand buried in her hair holding her still, the other holding her hip against the wall while he devoured her neck.
“Mmm Theo wait- Theo that’s- uhhhhhmm!” He tried kissing her on the mouth but she just turned her head to the ceiling, “Ransom is paid, you’re literally driving me up the wall! I - Theo!” His hands had migrated up her chest from her waist. Bright green irises were swallowed by the pupil as he was popping the first two buttons of her white blouse open.
“Caaaaaraaaaa Miaaaa.” He admonished her as he leaned down to kiss her breasts as they were now on display for him. Today she wore a nude lacy push-up bra, he began mumbling into her cleavage, “… muggle fashion……ο θάνατος μου…. At least visit me in my library…”
This bright witch had enlightened the dark wizard, growing up he found comfort and safety in his solitude.
His survival instincts told him to re-ward her flat, better yet to just move her into the estate. He had never been in an actual relationship and under his father’s operant conditioning, once he claimed a witch, marriage was on the horizon. He wasn’t scared to fall from the graces of pureblood twisted society, to end his family’s fucked up legacy but he didn’t want to scare her off.
He resisted smothering her as much as he could, she appreciated that he was discreetly overprotective in his constant need to know of her whereabouts and eating habits when they weren’t together. On one of their lunches, he took her to buy muggle cell phones finding them to be the simple and fun solution. Effectively ending the numerous concerns for his owls' welfare and complaints about her knees from his many floo calls.
When asked about the device he raved about the ingenious muggles inventions. What he didn’t mention was that he could ceaselessly tease her through text, or call her when he just needed to hear her calming voice for a second.
Patiently aching to wake up together, to get ready for work in a shared closet, fix them a proper breakfast, flooing into the office together…
Slowly... Naturally… Falling Together…
Their morning snogs ended with a pouty Slytherin relinquishing her to fix his hair and vanish any lipgloss transfers with a flick of his wrist. Pocketing the White acacia wand, preferring to use his hands to set her back to rights. Saying he needed as much skin-to-skin contact as possible.
Lunchtimes were now ensconced in his office. The week after Samhain he tried sitting in a restaurant with her, but at that point in the day he was itching like an addict. He often had to stop himself from pulling her into his lap at every opportunity, letting his hands cartograph her topography. Needing her physically closer, to be able to touch her and kiss her as he pleased without any wandering eyes. They either held a healthy debate or a heated snogging session depending on how their days were going; on one occasion they debated while they snogged. Nevertheless, the congregation was always accompanied by his choice of takeout, since he knew what she ordered from everywhere now.
The ONLY thing that hadn’t changed was the dedication to their careers. It was mutual that they would give leniency when a case became the nucleus around which the other functioned.
Today she was standing in front of the Wizengamot introducing the education bill she had been working on for the past 3 years. Shuffling her parchments for the 17th time making sure they were all in order, she couldn’t help her nerves.
It was just the introduction for Circe’s sake, she was just calling out the title then there would be a chorus of yays or nays.
*knock knock*
“Darling?” Thick dark curls peeked through the door first followed by his mischievous smile. After seeing her nervous expression his face dropped and he swung the door open, to reveal what he deemed the “winning suit”.
When she first encountered The Winning Suit they were still just friends. He had come straight to her office in celebration of a finalized divorce. Honestly, any competent lawyer would have won with the clear evidence of the husband's infidelity. Stubbornly he held the claim it was all The Suits’ doing, and that muggle fashion had its own kind of magic.
In her opinion it was borderline inappropriate for court, the shirt was double-breasted, cream silk, with brass buttons and a deep v. The pants were dark brown that matched the darkest shade in the plaid patterned jacket. The jacket was one of her favorites it had the academic tan suede elbows, he paired the outfit with Alessandro Demesure's leather loafers. She joked that he won cases because the jury was dazzled by his fashion sense.
After barging in laughing and cheering he pulled her into a spinning hug. He gently sat her back down, profusely apologizing for stealing her time. His hands were palm to palm, in a supplicating gesture, he asked her to join him at dinner to celebrate properly.
From the moment he had slammed her door open startling her, his whole being was rolling on his adrenaline, her fear swept away by his excited laughs. Rushing to her and grabbing her up like she was the most important thing to him she was crushed against his toned chest muscles and suddenly she was aim naive schoolgirl giddy and blushing. Once he set her down gently, she let herself be swept away in his happiness, it was one of her favorite dinners
“Why are you in your winning suit? I didn’t see your name on the court schedule today. Are you attending a different court?” She stood as soon as he came in and was running her eyes all over him.
Confusion passed his features as he walked over to her and started twisting and neatly arranging the wild curls by the front of her face.
“As if I wouldn’t help bring in any extra luck today. I cleared my schedule so we could get rid of all this nervous energy afterward.” The promise of pleasure in his voice sent tingles across her skin.
“Theo I can’t just take the rest of the day off. If it’s accepted I have to prepare my arguments. I already know there will be pushback to not even allow it to pass this session. Theo this bill could change the future. It is the reason WHY I chose this career.” She was pacing to combat her racing thoughts. The worst thing about a high-functioning brain is its ability to overload you with 1000 ideas at once and you physically can’t get them all out as fast as they are rushing through.
The Slytherin used his natural self-preservation techniques to distract her from overthinking. Instead of letting her further dent the carpet he just hugged her securely, as he escorted her to the courtroom. Reminding her that it is important for her to celebrate all her victories, no matter how small and in his support Theo offered to take her out for dinner. Instead of falling into the anxiety she easily agreed, they hadn't slept together since Samhain. Maybe he would invite me to spend the night?
It was accepted into the debate set in 2 weeks. Knowing the counselors would be recalcitrant, she was up against monstrous odds. They were going to push back on her radical ideals, only wanting to do the bare minimum of changes to placate the masses. Hermione was awarded an Order of Merlin: First Class for Circe's sake! To stand in a world that upheld the same ideals, that allowed Riddle to slaughter the innocent, would be disgraceful to those who died under Voldemort's terror.
After the war when it came to light that Albus Dumbledore used Harry as a pawn for the greater good, the golden trio swore to each other no one would use them OR their actions for propaganda or meager campaigns for unity. They fought for TRUE equilibrium, for every being's voice to be heard in the democratic republic.
Her stomach was tying itself in knots over the imminent debate, and the intrusive thoughts threatening to anchor her head just above water. A mind healer told her the cyclical feelings she had been experiencing, since well before the war, were imposter syndrome.
Watching his witch as she overthought herself sick, made his instincts kick in. Telling him to take away her worries and fuck her in the safety of his library. Against his rationale, he respected that she needed to stay in order to get ready for the debate.
“Hermione you have to eat to keep your body healthy, let me get you out of the office for a bit, we can floo to mine for a long lunch?” He waggled his eyebrows trying to take her mind off of her heavy thoughts.
“Oh! I forgot to mention Harry owled this morning asking me to meet him for lunch. He knew about my court date and scheduled meetings with investors so he could come see me.” His witch was so on edge she was nibbling on her lower lip while looking over the stacks of papers scattered across her desk. He had learned not to mess with her chaos piles, she knew exactly which papers were there.
The caveman part of his brain was grunting immediately. Her no-go. Instead he opted to try to appease his inner neanderthal, “Am I allowed to join in on this lunch party?”
The pouty tone in his voice made her stand up and walk into his bubble, placing her hands softly on his chest muscles, “I only ever get to see Harry so often now. His plate is so full between owning and being a seeker for Dobby’s Defenders. I’m very proud of him for expanding the world of quidditch. It was quite genius of him to use the muggle idea for cheerleaders.“
The small warm hands on his chest, the encroaching smell of coconut and blood orange eased the itching under his clothes. “I understand, I’ll walk you there and order some food to go.”
The sports bar was lively and loud with various games on large tvs. Once they walked in she spotted Harry and gave Theo a light departing kiss.
“‘Mione!” Her best friend had stood up from their table and gave her a crushing hug before ushering her into the round padded booth.
“They loved the idea of a quidditch bar with the waitresses dressed up in our merchandise.” He excitedly began telling her about the meeting he had yesterday. Nodding along politely while he went into the details about opening a similar establishment. She started chewing her bottom lips as she looked over the menu and tried to decide on a sauce flavor for her boneless chicken wings.
“Since when do you allow the guard dog treatment.” Harry had nodded to where Theo was watching her from the bar.
Slapping his shoulder lightly as she chuckled, “We eat lunch together everyday, he’s a gentleman wanting to escort me to a new venue.” Her voice was prim but varied sweetly as she ordered teriyaki wings with crispy chips and a pineapple soda to drink.
After the waitress left with their orders greedy spectacled eyes kept glancing behind her should towards the bar. “You trained him well, he is CONSTANTLY vigilant.“ She could tell her friend was worried (even though he was trying to keep things light). Shoulders tight, elbows placed up on the table, his fingers laced together as if trying to hold himself steady. Harry cleared his throat lightly before he began speaking softly, “In all seriousness, I am well within my rights as your honorary brother to have my opinions.”
The brown-eyed witch looked back over her shoulder caught the green eyes that had not left her figure. “Harry I don’t fully understand it but…this energy… That is what has been missing from all the other guys. I needed someone who is obsessed with ME- not the brightest witch of our age. I mean… he brings me breakfast, he knows what I order from any cookery, and when I get sucked into my Saturday research vortex he happily joins me.”
“Mione, we can see you’re safe with the guy, obviously. Look how protective he is. Nott is still a snake, and you’re my best friend so don’t be mad when I say I asked around about him. Unanimously sources confirmed he isn’t one to date, he’s bred to follow pureblood customs as the new Lord Nott; marry and have a son.”
“Harry, he doesn’t carry those beliefs anymore!”
“So he’s not courting you?”
Plates clattered on the table in front of them as the waitress came back with their food. She chattered away blissfully unaware of the tension, letting them know to wave her down if they needed anything else. They both stared at each other with one eyebrow raised in a draw. Hermione didn’t answer and took the opportunity to dig into her meal. It was quite delightful and she was very glad she made a good choice. She secretly smiled to herself thinking about HER wizard.
Bringing napkin up to hide her growing smile, her brain was misfiring, warm blood had migrated to her cheeks. From an outside observation, it looked like she just had a spicy wing. Theo walked over to the booth, placing muggle money on the table as he grabbed her jacket and coat. His possession over her further muddied her brain, making her worries float away as she accepted his outstretched hand which pulled her into a hug.
“Uhm bye, I guess? I’ll floo call you later this week before I leave town?” Harry was still seated. Casually sipping a large frosted ale, eyeing the once-dark wizard in front of him.
“Potter you must get a mobile, I can’t have my witch on the ground making calls.” Theo kissed her on the head as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He was trying to be nice but he didn’t even get to kiss her that morning because she was so anxious and focused. Then he had to leave her at the imposing doors with only a chaste kiss and the hints of her coconut shampoo as she flurried to the podium.
Now with her rosy cheeks, grinning like a school girl. she was completely melting into the muscular chest where her muffled voice replied, “I can owl you with my number, it is so much more effective for long-distance communication.”
Harry just nodded and watched the Slytherin as he held the back of Hermione’s neck as they made it through the crowd to the exit.
Theo wasted no time apparating her back to the ministry. He had her up against the door before it even clicked shut.
Kissing her neck.
Nipping along her jaw.
He kept murmuring sweet nothings to her.
Reminding her just how good she was for him. How lucky he was to consume her time.
Theo took an extra 11 minutes than the allotted 30 for her lunch breach but she didn’t mind. His promise of a full weekend together left her floating in the clouds for the rest of the day.
At 5pm she went to his office so they could leave together but he needed to finish up a bit of work. He walked her down to the floo encouraging her to go home for a nice shower.
“I’m remiss not to be able to join you, love. Though I do want you to start getting ready in my absence.” The grip he had on her jaw was hard but he was holding her when he could whisper against her lips. “I want you looking luscious for me baby, it might be you on the dessert menu.” He squeezed her arse and then smacked it roughly before the lift doors opened. Then like a proper gentleman, he extended his elbow and guided her to the floos.
Flooing over to her flat feeling nervous, he was arriving 30 minutes later than she expected him. Hermione detested tardiness, in a previous lunch he was on the receiving end of her comprehensive lecture topic; The Importance of Respecting Her Time. Theo had no qualms about throwing Draco under the bus. When Theo tried to leave at 5:15 he stood in the doorway, blocking the exit. The prick had come to his office only to ask him mundane questions and chitchat.
Finally being allowed in her space for the first time, intentionally examining all the details. Expectedly the pale yellow walls were mainly covered in floor-to-ceiling shelves holding her personal library. The only furniture in the space was a large brown nest-looking chair, a low glass-top coffee table, and a white leather loveseat that sat under the bay windows across the cozy room. His body lingered near the fireplace and his eyes turned to inspect the only decorations in the room which were the picture frames nestled on the mantle.
The largest holding her dual master's in muggle and magical law and her bar exam certificate. On the far end sat a small moving photo nestled in a gilded silver frame. It was a candid shot aimed at her profile as she studied the raindrops rolling down the window pane. She was sitting in a pink armchair, his immediate thought was that she only had a sweatshirt on. Not that he could confirm otherwise, no pants were visible under the large fluffy orange cat in her lap. And he was distracted from further research as the object of his observation came down the hall.
“Now THAT is a celebration dress, Angel!” He started a soft clap as he made his way around her to get a full view.
Lavender forced her to buy the beige bodycon dress the last time they were in Muggle London. She had to admit even while it was still on the mannequin, the dress was almost perfect for her. Despite what her fellow Gryffindor said about it being a boring color, it only needed a few minor alterations with magic. The crew neck dress easily became her new favorite, Hermione added a sleeve that was a bit too long so it comfortably ruched at her wrist. Since it was floor length and the fabric was soft stretchy it paired well with her 4inch ballet style Mary Jane’s.
Her wizard hadn’t changed, “I’m a strong believer in The Suit, it’s versatile.” he just slipped off the jacket and held it folded over his forearm. But his hair has all pushed back as if he had been running his hands through it for the past few hours.
“Shall we milady?” His deep bow made her smile wide as she returned with a mimed curtsy of her nonexistent poofy skirts.
“Oh, fine sir, we shall.”
She had never entered a restaurant through the floor before be he assured her they had a reservation. The room was enormous the wall adjacent to the floo was an aquarium full of colorful creatures. All of the seating was for couples, with small intimate booths covering the main floor. The host greeted them, despite his acne he had a bubbly personality and looked very nice in his crisp black button-down. After escorting them towards the wall to the left which had slightly larger tables enclosed in sheer periwinkle curtains. Before he leaves he introduces their waiter Aaron, who hands over a thin sturdy menu. Excitedly explaining to an inquisitive Theo that the food was Vietnamese / British fusion.
Trying out new restaurants was something Theo enjoyed and she just let herself revel in his happy energy. The wizard had a sly grin as he perused the new options, “Darling would you let me order a few things for us to share?”
“Of course, you’re like a kid in a candy store! You order whatever you know I’d eat.” Leaning forward a bit she slid the menu to the side. Her fingers began to circle the rim of her water glass. Theo looked better than any dessert, his brown curls all pushed back, chest muscles on display for her since he slid his jacket off. She let herself get lost in the memories of being pressed underneath that chest while he was rocking in and out of her.
“Achem-“
Shite. Caught red-cheeked.
Damn him for making her blush from the memory of his cock.
She excuses herself to use the restroom and notices a bar on the far wall as she makes her way to the marked door. She took her time washing her hands and retwisting the stubborn curls that framed her face. Just as she’s walking out the door pushes open to reveal a witch whose ugly insides foreshadowed any of her expensive charms.
“See that’s more fitting for you dear, we can recognize you with your signature rat’s nest.” Pansy Parkinson tittered as she made her way over to the mirror.
Hermione wasn’t going to let a petty girl ruin what was supposed to be a celebration dinner between her and her boyfriend. Boyfriend the thought makes her wide smile return pushing away any negativity. When she comes out of the little hall her hopes disintegrated. Theo was standing up, greeting the gang of snakes outside their privacy curtains. Sighing heavily she decided against going straight over instead of making her way to the bar. Luckily the wall was covered in mirrors so she had a clear view of them watching her as she ordered a a shot of tequila with a lime. The alcohol had the opposite effect she wanted as she made her way back to her date she felt like she was shrinking down under the weight of their gazes.
Draco lets his eyes linger all over her.
It made her hyper-aware of the skin-tight dress.
Theo pulls her to him turning her so her back is to the curtains, effectively blocking her from the group for a moment. “Mia they invited us to join in a private room in the back, but it’s your dinner so it’s up to you.”
She nodded demurely, he reached back to his chair to grab the brown plaid jacket. Theo waved to the waiter and explained the change of seating. Once they were ushered into the large room Hermione sat back and took in her surroundings. The Slytherins had followed Theo and ordered one of everything for the table, glasses of champagne were passed out.
She put a small hand up to stop the drink from landing in front of her when a deep aristocratic voice startled her.
“Granger, you are celebrating aren’t you?”
Hermione didn’t mind a dinner with Theo’s friends, but she didn’t have the mental energy to deal with Malfoy tonight.