"Hope I'm not too late," Hermione announced as she walked through the Floo connection. Harry looked up from where he was bouncing Teddy on his lap, chai and biscuits arranged on the table with heating charms to secure them in place.
"You know I wouldn't have noticed anyway," he laughed, handing Teddy to her waiting arms. The baby gave her a gummy smile, and his hair shifted into curly brown tufts. She adjusted him in her lap to be sitting up and facing Harry.
"Well, it's the principle of the matter," she said, then went to boop Teddy's nose, "I want to spend as much time as I can with the two of you." Harry rolled his eyes; Hermione hadn't been half as prompt as she was until he started to take joint custody of Teddy with Andromeda. She came here to see Teddy and Harry as just a bonus.
"You mean Teddy."
"Same difference," she laughed brightly. She secured her hold on the baby with one arm and finished drinking the tea. She broke her chocolate cookie in half to share a piece with Teddy.
Soon enough, the little boy began to let out a small yawn and fell asleep in place as Hermione stroked his hair. Harry levitated him into his day crib and turned back to Hermione.
"Now I know we've been talking a lot more about recovery and whatnot, but it's now time that we start implementing it at a more active level," Hermione withdrew a small bottle from her satchel.
Harry stared at the iron tablets Hermione had set down on his oak table.
"And why can't I take a potion to fix my iron deficiency in one go?" he crossed his arms childishly.
Hermione rolled her eyes before repeating the explanation she had given him in their last meeting.
"Your nutrient deficiencies and weakened immune system after your second death with Voldemort have made it practically impossible for your body to ingest potions. You'll have to do everything the muggle way for the next few months."
"Not even the hangover potion?"
"You shouldn't even consider drinking, Harry," Hermione fixed him with a glare. Harry politely concealed that he had raided the Black family's wine stores only last weekend and planned to open them again.
"Fine," he huffed and painstakingly opened the bottle, enjoying the look of pain that came over Hermione's face. If she was going to watch him suffer, he might as well make a grand show of it.
He put a single pill in the cap and filled his mouth with water. Then he slipped the capsule into his mouth to take in both the water and medicine simultaneously. He grimaced at the taste, but Hermione looked satisfied.
"Now," she made a grand pause to pull out a leather-bound notebook with printed flamingos. Harry blinked once. Then twice at the bright pink monstrosity.
"You don't actually expect me to journal in that, do you?" he grimaced as Hermione presented it on the table. She continued to look at him expectantly.
"Aw bloody hell, you actually mean it," he ran a hand through his hair.
"Writing down your thoughts and experiences is one of the most important steps to processing events, and Merlin knows what the fuck we've been through." Harry smiled at the rare curse and patted the book.
"I'll try, although I can't promise you more than that," he said. Hermione's face lit up with a smile, and he felt his own insides turn warm at that.