Chapter 19
Hermione
It was the second term of her last year at Hogwarts, and the feeling was bittersweet. The strangest part about it, perhaps, was that she was more content than she had been since… First year? Danger no longer lurked around the corner. Lord Voldemort no longer posed a threat to the wizarding world at large, or hunted her best friend. She was excited about the future, and the feeling was such a novelty to her. Hermione was in love for the first time in her life, and was addictive- she couldn’t get enough of Theo. She remembered how Harry and Ginny had been once the war was over and they finally got together officially. Hands all over each other constantly, one of them always next to the other no matter where they went. The undisguised longing they stared at each other with– it had been nauseating to witness, but Godric, Hermione understood it now. She almost felt guilty for being so intolerant of her friends’ honeymoon phase. She knew now– there was no better feeling than this, to surrendering oneself to the sweetness of every moment—letting go of everything else and simply existing in the warmth of someone else's touch, knowing that the world outside could wait while you lived in this intoxicating bubble.
As she had predicted, the whispers and stares had gradually faded to almost nothing over the last few weeks. Not that it had bothered her much to begin with– unfortunately, Hermione had become fairly accustomed to being the subject of people’s gossip, what with her association with The Chosen One. Theo, however, was used to flying under the radar– she remembered her conversation with Parvati and Fay at the beginning of the school year, when neither of them had any idea who Theo was. The poor boy was certainly well-known at Hogwarts now, whether he liked it or not. Gradually, their friend groups had started to meld together, though there was still some tension here and there.
Harry and Malfoy seemed to actually enjoy each other’s company– once they got past their childhood grudges, they realized their humour was very similar, and they both had a love for Quidditch, so conversation flowed easily between them. Ginny and Theo got on quite well– Theo was a good sport and didn’t seem to mind her crass humour, even when she made jokes at his expense. Ron was still unsure what to think of the Slytherins, but he didn’t complain about spending time with them, which was enough for Hermione. She’d even gotten to know Blaise a bit, and liked him well enough. Neville and Luna were friendly to Malfoy and Theo as well, and it made Hermione feel a strange sense of pride at the way some of her fellow eighth years had managed to give each other second chances. Hermione had noticed, suddenly, that she and Harry would occasionally perch on the Slytherin table in the midst of a conversation with Theo or Malfoy, and the Slytherins would do the same at their table at times. She even caught McGonagall noticing and giving an approving smile once or twice.
Hermione and Theo had become rather skilled at sneaking into each others’ dorms. They knew the best times to do it, learned the Head Boy and Head Girl’s rounds schedules, and had even borrowed Harry’s Invisibility Cloak a few times. They still studied in the library together nearly every night, although there were some evenings they didn’t do much studying. Hermione insisted on sleeping by herself a few nights a week, as much as she craved sharing a bed with Theo. She wanted to maintain some semblance of independence and solitude, as much as she loved her boyfriend. She didn’t want him to eclipse everything else, and she could see how easy it would be to let him– because she wanted him to. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to end up like Lavender Brown during Fourth year. She shuddered at the memory of the girl hanging all over Ron, blowing him kisses from across the room, leaving love marks and lipstick all over him. No, Hermione thought– she was very much in love with Theo, but she would sooner swallow a jar of Flobberworms than be reduced to a brainless, lovesick, codependent little bint.
Still, Hermione dreamed of the day she would come home to Theo every day– that they’d share a bed at night and wake up to each other in the mornings. For some reason Hermione knew without a shadow of doubt that her future was with Theo. They hadn’t even discussed it much, but she felt with a strange certainty that they would be together. She knew he would never try to stop her from working, for going after her (rather lofty) ambitions. He loved her as she was, and it was truly the best feeling in the world– she’d never felt so empowered and appreciated. He praised her like his life depended on it, and Hermione loved it, despite herself. “I’ll never look at another woman for as long as I live. They’d never come close to you, Hermione,” “I think you look the most beautiful when you’re reading. I could watch you all day,” "I could listen to you talk about Ancient Runes for hours. You're so bloody brilliant," or more recently– “Do you know that all you have to do is look at me and I’m hard?” Hermione supposed it shouldn’t come as a surprise to her that she had a bit of a praise kink. She knew she was in the quintessential throes of young love– all tangled limbs and breathless smiles, like the world outside didn't exist—just the heat of hands on skin and stolen kisses in shadowed corners.
Despite being decidedly obsessed with her boyfriend, Hermione still maintained the same fervor and enthusiasm for her classes. She and Theo still partnered together in Charms, which Flitwick was quite in favour of despite the very unsubtle way the two of them looked at each other. They sat together in every class they shared, and it somehow didn’t seem to affect either of their performances. They were rather formidable, when they worked together– the two brightest minds in your year, McGonagall told them when she ran into them in the hallway together one day.
It was a chilly Tuesday afternoon when Hermione walked out of her Defense Against the Dark Arts class to find Theo waiting for her. She smiled at him and rolled her eyes as he approached, already holding his arms out to take her books. That Pureblood upbringing could be quite persistent– but she found that she really didn’t mind, antiquated as it was.
“Hey, Hermione!”
She turned to see Zacharias Smith waving her down. “Sorry– I just wondered if you wanted to get together one night this week?” He said.
Hermione looked at him blankly. She heard Theo clear his throat. “Er– sorry,” Smith said. “For the project, I mean.” His eyes darted to Theo, who seemed to tower over him.
“Oh! Of course– sorry. Yes, I could actually do tonight if you wanted?” Hermione said.
“Tonight works. Let’s say seven in the library?” Smith offered, smiling.
“Sounds good to me!” Hermione chirped, giving the Hufflepuff a friendly nod as she began heading towards the Great Hall.
Theo raised an eyebrow at her. “You’re working on a project with Smith, then?” Hermione tried not to smile when she realized he sounded a bit jealous.
“I am. Ward has us working in pairs to neutralize dark objects. We’ll have to do quite a bit of research first– I’m honestly not very familiar with dark magic. But DADA is Smith’s best class, so I suppose I got rather lucky being paired with him. My other options weren't great, honestly,” she said. Professor Caelan Ward was new to Hogwarts this year, a former member of the Order. He was on the younger side– maybe in his early 40s, and full of energy and unconventional teaching methods. Hermione was genuinely enjoying his class so far.
Theo’s demeanor seemed to shift, almost imperceptibly. If Hermione weren’t so attuned to him she probably wouldn’t have noticed the way his jaw tightened and his eyes flickered with something she’d rarely seen in them before, but he still smiled pleasantly at her. “I can assure you, Hermione, he’s the lucky one. If anyone’s going to make that project a success, it’ll be you. Smith might be good at showing up, but we both know who’ll actually be doing the heavy lifting,” he said, his voice dipping just a fraction, as if he was measuring his words.
Hermione tilted her head thoughtfully. “Maybe so, but I don’t have any qualms with Smith, at least as of yet. I guess we’ll find out if he can hold up his fair share of the workload. You don’t mind if I work with him tonight, though?” She bit her lip. “I know we were supposed to study together.”
“Of course I don’t mind,” he said quietly. “Can I see you afterwards, though?” Something about the quiet, controlled tightness in his posture gave Hermione pause. He was definitely jealous– maybe a little insecure, but he wasn’t possessive, not at all. It was nothing like the almost toxic way Ron had behaved when Viktor had asked her to the Yule Ball, but it was there—the faintest shift in the air, just enough to make her notice. And it made her heart flutter in a way she hadn’t expected. Theo wasn’t controlling or manipulative in his jealousy– the restraint, the respect, the way he handled his emotions so thoughtfully, only made her love him more. It was as if, in his quiet, subtle way, he trusted her completely, and the vulnerability he allowed himself to show only made her want him more.
“I love you, Theo,” she said, reaching for his hand. He looked slightly surprised for a moment, then smiled. “Yes, of course you can see me afterwards. I’ll write you in the notebook when we’re finished?” She soothed.
“Okay. And I love you too, Hermione. As you very well know,” he replied, squeezing her hand. She pretended she didn’t see him give Smith a once-over as they passed the Hufflepuff table. Gods, he was sexy when he was jealous.
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That evening, Theo insisted on walking her to the library. She would’ve found it suspicious if he wasn’t the type to walk her to every class and back to her dorm every night– a true Pureblood gentleman, she thought, only rolling her eyes a little bit internally.
“I’ll see you later. Happy researching,” he said, planting a kiss on her forehead.
As she turned towards the entrance, she noticed Smith was already waiting, leaning on the doorframe. “Evening, Hermione,” Smith said smoothly, his eyes drifting over to Theo. “Hope I’m not interrupting anything too important?” His tone lingered on the word important, as though implying she could have been doing something far more entertaining.
Theo’s posture didn’t shift, but Hermione could sense a subtle tension in his shoulders as he glanced at Smith.
“I’ll be fine, Theo. Really.” She smiled at him reassuringly.
Theo gave her a look, as if silently checking if she really was, before nodding. “Alright, then. I’ll leave you to it.”
Smith’s eyes flickered to Theo for a moment, and a small smirk tugged at his lips. “You know, it’s impressive, Nott. Most blokes wouldn’t be so… trusting.” He leaned slightly toward Hermione, his voice soft but pointed. “Not that you need supervision, Hermione. I’m sure you can handle your work just fine, but—” Hermione wrinkled her nose slightly. Since when had they been on a first-name basis? Smith gave Theo an almost dismissive glance before continuing, “I guess I just didn’t realize you needed an escort to do schoolwork. Bit intense, that’s all.”
What was he getting at? Hermione shifted uncomfortably. “I’m not sure what you’re implying, Smith. I’m just here to work on the project.”
“Of course,” Smith said, eyes darting between Hermione and Theo. “I guess that’s the price Nott has to pay for dating the Brightest Witch of Our Age, isn’t it?”
Hermione held her breath, bracing for the choice words Theo was sure to throw at Smith. She’d expected tensions to flare between Gryffindors and Slytherins, but weren’t Hufflepuffs known for being kind? She didn’t know Smith well at all, but she’d never heard of him being such a… well, a prat. To her surprise, Theo took a deep breath, seeming to steady himself. He gave Smith a cool nod.
“I’d say it’s a price I’m more than happy to pay,” he said evenly, his voice calm. “Hermione, if you’re alright here, I have some studying to do myself. I’ll see you later?” Theo turned to Hermione, an unspoken check-in, a quiet reassurance. She nodded at him, hoping to convey that she just wanted to get this over with.
Hermione couldn’t help but compare him to Ron, sometimes, imagining the way the latter would have handled this situation. Knowing the fiery redhead, it almost certainly would have involved some bloodshed. But Theo had handled it with the grace and composure of a man– a man who, despite his own insecurity, trusted her so deeply that he wouldn’t fly off the handle– that he respected her enough not to embarrass her, but that he wouldn’t hesitate to step in if she felt even the least bit uncomfortable. As he walked away, Hermione turned to watch him. There was something so incredibly magnetic about his restraint, the maturity in his decision to never escalate things—no matter how many times Smith, or anyone, really– pushed him. He wasn’t trying to prove anything; he wasn’t trying to make a show of it. He was simply being Theo, quietly confident in their relationship, subtly protective, and it caused a slow, steady heat to begin coiling low in her stomach. Theo's calm determination to never let someone else’s petty provocations break the quiet balance they had– it made Hermione’s heart race.
Even as she and Smith poured over books, she couldn’t help but let her mind wander, wondering what Theo was doing at this moment. Hermione obviously knew she was attracted to him– that much was abundantly clear, but the way he had handled himself tonight had set something in motion in her, somehow. She was conscious of the poor attempts at flirting Smith was engaging, but she couldn’t even bring herself to care. All she could think about was getting back to Theo and showing him how proud of him she was. Showing him how sexy he was, how badly she wanted him. When they were finally at a good stopping point and she was closing up her books, Hermione was horrified when Smith turned to her, eyes roving over her body in a way that he probably thought she didn’t notice, but was actually atrociously unsubtle.
“So you and Nott– is that a casual thing?” He asked.
Hermione looked at him in undisguised distaste. “No,” she said simply.
“Ah– it’s serious, then? I’ve got to say, Granger– Hermione, I expected a little more out of you. Isn’t his father like– a known Death Eater?” Smith said with an air of misplaced confidence.
Hermione willed her temper from flaring at his words. “First off, yes– it’s serious, Smith, not that it’s any of your business. And secondly, although this is also none of your business– regardless of who his father is, Theo is one of the kindest, most accepting people I’ve ever known. Not to mention he was incredibly composed when you tried your best to provoke him earlier. Honestly, you’d do well to take a page out of his book. I'll see you in class. Goodnight, Smith,” she snapped, grabbing her books and stomping out of the library.
When she reached her dormitory, Hermione was flushed with anger at Smith, but also with an almost desperate want for Theo. She glanced at the clock, huffing in frustration when she noticed the time– past eleven. She wondered if Theo was already asleep. Yanking out her notebook, she wrote a message to him.
Are you awake? I just finished in the library. Need to come see you.
She waited several minutes, changing into her pyjamas and brushing her teeth– and there was nothing. Hermione paused only for a moment before taking a deep breath and casting a quick Notice-Me-Not charm. She knew she would be in loads of trouble if she were to be caught, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. As she made her way into the Slytherin dormitories, she held her breath, as she always did. Although she felt perfectly safe once she was in Theo’s room, Hermione could never quite shake the feeling of discomfort when she snuck around in the dungeons- as if she wasn't really meant to be here, for more reasons than just the fact that she wasn't a Slytherin. Theo, being the brilliant boy he was, had figured out how to disarm the wards around his dormitory so that only Hermione could get past them, so she was able to slip in easily.
When she opened his door, her suspicions were confirmed– he was fast asleep. She smiled as she yanked off her pyjama pants, leaving only her favourite oversized shirt and her knickers. She pulled down the covers and crawled underneath, pressing herself into his sleeping body. He was so warm, sending heat through her body, which was still freezing from her journey to the bottom of the castle. Without fully waking, he turned into Hermione and pulled her closer, his cheek pressed against her forehead.
“Theo,” she whispered, leaving kisses along his jawline.
“Hmm?” He said sleepily, nuzzling into her lips.
She smiled. “Wake up,” she said, her kisses becoming more urgent.
Theo’s eyes opened then and focused on her. “What’s wrong?” She could hear the alarm in his voice, and suddenly felt a bit guilty.
“Nothing– everything’s fine,” she assured him, smoothing back his hair. “I finished up late at the library and I wanted to see you,” she whispered. “Rather badly,” she added, biting her lip.
Hermione could almost see his mind working. “Yeah?” He asked, his voice still sleepy, slightly husky.
“Yes,” she said, her lips finding his. “All I could think about the whole time was getting back to you,” she whispered. Hermione was practically burning for him. She felt like she might die if she couldn’t touch him.
“Hermione,” he said breathlessly as she pressed against him. “All I can ever think about is how badly I want you. It’s a wonder I get anything done at all,” he said, smiling as he kissed her. As their lips moved together, she felt his hand reach up her shirt, warm against her breast.
She let out a quiet moan. “Do you know how bloody hot that was, Theo? The way you handled Smith– I honestly could’ve sucked you off on the spot,” she panted, shocked at the words that were coming out of her mouth.
“Fucking hell,” he groaned, his hand gripping her ass as he squeezed. “You might give a bloke like me ideas if you come crawling into my bed saying things like that.”
“I like ideas,” Hermione said, her breath hitching as his fingers grazed her between her legs, where she was already soaked. “I have plenty of those myself.”
“Such as?” Theo asked, beginning to kiss the spot below her ear, causing her skin to prickle under his lips.
“Such as wanting you to fuck me,” Hermione said, too aroused to care how vulgar it was.
Theo pulled back for a moment. “Hermione–”
“Please,” she said, eyes fixed on him. “I want to. I want you,” she said breathlessly.
“Fuck,” he swore. “Okay. Gods, yes. I don’t–”
“Neither do I, Theo,” she said against his ear. “I’ve never done this either. Remember?”
He nodded. There was something dreamlike about the way he looked at her, like by waking him in this way, his guard was fully down– his eyes still heavy with sleep, unshielded and unguarded, as if the haze of slumber had stripped away his usual restraint. The intensity in his gaze was raw, trusting. When she reached into his briefs and found him fully hard, she wrapped her hand around him, squeezing lightly. He melted into her touch, moaning unashamedly. Without her needing to ask, he reached into her knickers, his fingers gently probing into her.
“Gods– you’re so wet,” he said.
“I’ve been this way since you left me in the library,” she said, kissing his neck and relishing in the way he groaned at her words. “It’s– this is all for you, Theo,” she whispered.
This seemed to undo him even more, because he yanked her knickers down– more roughly than he normally would, and Hermione gasped. She loved seeing him like this. She continued rubbing her hand along his cock until he placed a hand on her wrist, pausing her. “Do you really want to do this?” He asked huskily.
“Yes– please,” she begged as he continued to tease her with his fingers.
Theo moved on top of her, using one hand to pull his briefs off and the other to steady himself against the pillow. His eyes fixed on her, he pressed against her, and she felt the fire in her belly grow stronger at the sensation. He reached up to cup her face as he continued to push inside of her, inch by inch. “Is this okay?” He asked, his breaths coming in quick succession.
She nodded. “I want more,” she replied, her hips rising to meet him. She gasped as he entered her fully– the sharp pain mingling with the fullness, the pleasure of feeling him inside her. He froze for a moment, waiting for her permission, for her to let him know she was okay. Hermione writhed her hips against him, desperate for friction. “Move,” she moaned. And he did. Gently, at first– he pulled back slightly and then thrust into her, never taking his eyes off her. The way his lips parted, the slight furrow of his brow, the flush of his cheeks– Merlin, she loved this man. She reached up, running her fingers through his hair, using the other hand to grip him right above his hips, feeling his muscles move as he worked against her.
“Do you need me to–” he asked, already moving his hand down, raising his hips slightly to allow his fingers to find her clit. Hermione pressed her mouth against his shoulder, stifling a noise that threatened to wake his housemates. His fingers worked against her as he continued to move in and out of her, beginning to pick up speed. Hermione felt the edge of her orgasm close by– could feel herself tensing, the hot wave of pleasure beginning to course through her.
“Theo– I’m going to come,” she panted, digging her nails into his back.
“Look at me,” he said– as he always did, and Hermione locked eyes with him, allowing herself to fall into the deep emerald green, soft and endless. Is it always like this the first time? She asked herself as she came undone around him, surrendering to her own bliss. She felt him come too, letting out a groan and pressing his face against hers, his hands laced into her hair, until he stilled on top of her. Hermione pressed a hard kiss against his cheek, lingering for a few seconds. He pulled out of her at last, rolling off her and immediately pulling her to his chest.
“Was that as good for you as it was for me?” Theo asked, and she could hear the edge of vulnerability in his voice.
“That was incredible,” she said, leaning into the crook of his neck. “I didn’t know the first time could be so– erm, perfect.”
Hermione could feel him grinning without even needing to look. “Careful, you’re going to give me a complex,” he teased.
“It’s well-deserved,” Hermione said. “And besides, if it means you’ll keep coming back for more, I’m okay with a complex.”
“As if you’d need to do anything to keep me coming back to you, Hermione. I can’t believe I get to do that with you again,” Theo said, his hand rubbing circles on her back. “If I knew all it took was politely telling Zacharias Smith to go fuck himself, I’d have done that ages ago.”
Hermione giggled. “Apparently that’s the key to getting in my pants. Who knew?”
“We should get some sleep,” Theo said as he tucked her against him. “I love you, by the way. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” he murmured.
Hermione smiled as she closed her eyes, the rhythm of Theo’s breaths lulling her to sleep, his arms wrapped around her.