Chapter 4
“You’ll be there? Before supper?” Hermione asked, stomach churning.
“If you want us there before supper, we’ll be there. If you’re having fun with your friends, we’ll wait and get you after supper,” Marlene’s response was patient, as it had been for the past two days of Hermione’s nervous questions. Nothing calmed the girl down either, and they were discovering that the only way out was going to be through.
“Before supper,” the little repeated.
“It’ll be a good day, sweetheart,” Marlene soothed, continuing to French braid Hermione’s curls away from her face. “You’ll see your friends and professors… Tell me what lessons you’re attending today.”
“Transfiguration with the Slytherins, free period, Ancient Runes, lunch, free period, double potions with Slytherins then I leave.”
The woman tried not to laugh as Hermione’s tone changed, like she thought she was being casual while mentioning that she wanted to come back here for the millionth time.
“Busy busy day!”
“Used to have even more classes,” she grumbled.
Marlene just sighed, trying not to mess up the braid.
Hadn’t that been a day. Hermione’s casual mention of her time turner had only come up days before when they’d started to get serious about her going back to school. She’d been with them for 23 days, Marlene a constant presence in the manor while Sirius and Remus went back to work. The men had significantly reduced their schedules in order to spend time with Hermione, something that’d been no issue with either the Ministry or Hogwarts.
She spilled the beans casually as they sat down to go over her Hogwarts schedule to prepare for what was going to change, including the addition of the Lower Level Practical, or LLP, that all littles and caregivers took part in. It wasn’t hard to miss that something was off, not when she listed off every class that there was for a third year to take, nary a free period in her schedule.
The poor girl had been perplexed at their incredulous reactions, explaining that Professor McGonagall had given her the time turner when she was unable to narrow down her desired classes. By the little’s explanation, it was clear she understood that the devices were rare and not to be messed with, but like most toddlers, she didn’t fully comprehend it.
Once they’d assured her that nothing was her fault and she wasn’t in trouble and put her down for a nap, Sirius stormed back to Hogwarts to have a stern conversation with his once-favourite professor.
Needless to say, Hermione’s time turner privileges were revoked and the girl had thrown an absolute fit once they informed her of that fact. It was the first tantrum that she’d had, and, honestly, it had felt overdue. The girl had started by looking betrayed before moving into a full blown sob fest, screaming and crying and banging her fists and feet on the floor like a toddler. And, in the very same way they’d treat a toddler, Sirius calmly informed Hermione that they’d be there when she cooled off.
As promised, they were there on the couch reading their books as her sniffles tapered off over thirty minutes later.
Remus, teddy bear he was, had chosen to sit on the ground in the danger zone of Hermione’s flying limbs instead of on the couch, and was the one that the girl crawled to just moments after she calmed down. Crawling into his lap, he could feel that her pull-up was sagging, but disregarded it in favour of accepting the girl’s worn out affections.
She’d pouted for days, only calming when they’d compromised that she drop only two classes. It had been a struggle, but eventually she decided on Care of Magical Creatures and Divination.
Hermione didn’t like Divination anyways, and both Remus and Sirius pushed hard for the girl to drop Hagrid’s course, not that they shared that with her. She folded like a house of cards, happy to be able to continue with Arithmancy and Ancient Runes.
Marlene was dreading the girl’s coursework making its way home. She had been a good student at Hogwarts, but hadn’t taken on half the course load that Remus, and now, Hermione had picked up. The witch had more than enough to do managing her household, and was content to do charms work in her increasingly rare spare time.
But now, as Hermione headed back to school, Marlene felt the same loss that she did when Ophi was off to Hogwarts. She knew, however, that if everything came together, Hermione would come home with them for good. Littles weren’t like neutrals or caregivers, they’d never start their own families and develop lives independent of their chosen or biological adults.
A majority of littles ended up bonding with caregivers who were older than them, whether at Hogwarts or through the foster system. That made it easier for the little one to settle in, especially for Hermione where she’d need so much specialised care and attention. Marlene was also grateful that their son was already older, not having to make the difficult decision between taking in a little that they loved or having a biological child.
It would be interesting to introduce Ophi to Hermione, but as weird as it was on parchment, it would work in the same way it had in wizarding families for generations. He’d become a brother, a big brother, to Hermione, guided by the loving care of his fathers, regardless of his classification. Marlene was pretty sure he’d be a neutral anyways, which made everything easier.
The simple truth was that Ophi would continue to grow, physically and emotionally, while Hermione had reached her peak. She’d never ovulate, never find a spouse, never move out on her own. It wasn’t considered a loss, not in their world, but Marlene knew that the girl had grown up in a society that put emphasis on success equating to a traditional pathway. Graduation, career, marriage, children.
They’d be there for Hermione through it all, and knew that their beloved extended family would do the same. She couldn’t wait for Hermione to be wrapped up in the loving embrace of their family members, confident that the girl would receive more attention than she ever had once she met her two sets of grandparents and many dccc, many aunts and uncles.
“There we are! Ready to go back to school,” Marlene smiled, wanting the girl’s nervousness to dissipate.
Hermione stood up from the little yellow vanity chair that was stationed in front of the small mirror in her room, smoothing down her plaid school-issued skirt and twirling around to look at herself.
“No one will see anything, sweetheart,” Marlene promised. They’d taken her measurements for new sets of little friendly uniforms, something that’d led to a difficult discussion on some of the tougher changes as she went back to school.
Littles were given a caregiver companion who’d meet up with them and ensure that they made it to class as well as the loo. Due to her intelligence, Hermione immediately decried the suggestion as being a babysitter, something that she bucked against. They’d finally compromised that she could choose her companion, the girl picking a fifth year Gryffindor, Angelina Johnson, who was always kind to her.
Sirius was only slightly uneasy at having a non-seventh year support Hermione, but relented in the face of the girl’s nervousness over having someone she didn’t know talk to her regularly. The man also knew that he’d be checking in as often as possible, especially when it came to making sure Hermione had downtime.
Naps were a battle that no one seemed to come out on top of. Some days, the little would fall asleep without complaint, and others, she’d commit to quiet reading or TV time and stubbornly keep her eyes open, with the caregivers knowing full well she’d be a cranky terror by the time they sat down for supper.
Getting her down for a nap at Hogwarts was a hope they all had, thinking it may be easier once there were other littles doing the same thing. Monkey see, monkey do, and all that.
“Ready?” Sirius called up the stairs, voice echoing through the huge house. A manor, Hermione had come to find out. It had belonged to Sirius’ favourite Uncle Alphard, who had moved to a smaller property in the heart of London and bequeathed the beautiful estate to his nephew. She still hadn’t fully explored the manor, especially the outside parts where there were rolling hills and even a large pool with a waterslide!
“Coming,” Marlene called back, voice quieter than her boisterous husband. “Give me a squeeze, I’m going to miss you today!”
Hermione settled onto Marlene’s hip when the woman picked her up, easily giving her a big squeeze and kiss on the cheek.
“My sweet girl,” Marlene crooned as she walked, pleased as punch over Hermione’s affection. “I can’t wait to hear all about your fun day seeing your friends and going to class!”
Tummy twirling like a spinning top, all Hermione could do was soak up the affection. She wasn’t sure how to feel about going back to school, the loss she’d felt only weeks before at being plucked up from her normal life now felt like a blessing. She was loved, she could learn here at the manor and be just fine. But she knew that going back was what she needed to do.
After a few rounds of hugs and a forehead kiss from Remus that she would love more of, she was scooped into Sirius’ arms before he popped into the Floo.
They stepped out into his quarters, a set of rooms that she’d never been in before.
“Sorry to disappoint you, sweet girl, but my quarters are pretty droll seeing as I go home every night that I’m not in the little’s dorm,” he explained. The room was done up in deep maroon and gold with a set of drum kits decorating one wall and heavy wooden bookshelves on the others.
She saw the countless books written up on classifications and smiled a bit as she remembered the conversation she had with him in the library after sneaking books from the restricted section.
“Would you have let me take your books if I asked?” she questioned.
“Our stickler of a headmaster wouldn’t allow it,” the man pouted exaggeratedly as he placed her on the ground. “Now, let’s get you to class. Angelina should be out in the classroom. And there she is! Hello, Miss Johnson!”
“Morning Professor Black, morning Hermione!” the pretty fifth year beamed, waving her quidditch calloused hand. “It’s been a while! How are you feeling about being back?”
Hermione hadn’t even realised that she had stepped behind Sirius, clinging to his robes like she really was a shy toddler.
They gave her a moment to collect herself, not prodding her to answer immediately. It was something she appreciated immensely, and endeared Sirius to the fifth year as someone he could trust with his little girl.
“I’m excited for class,” Hermione said once she was ready, moving to Sirius’ side but not letting go of his robes.
“I know you’re going to have a lot of people excited to have you back,” Angelina smiled. “We’ll get you to class now, yeah? Anything you want to talk about before we head out?”
Hermione looked up to Sirius, not sure what the answer was.
“I think we’re all set,” the man nodded, looking down at the increasingly pensive Gryffindor. “I’ll see you soon, hm?”
She made a noise of affirmation, taking her now magically lightened school bag over her shoulder.
Sirius thought that she’d never looked smaller, and it took everything he had not to scoop her up and dash back to the Floo. More than any other little, she needed to be in school. She was bright and brilliant and driven, this was where she needed to stay, no matter how much he loathed that fact.
“See you at lunch, pup,” he smiled. At least he hoped he smiled.
“Bye,” she whispered, looking at him with wide ‘help me’ eyes as she followed Angelina out of the room.
The halls of Hogwarts were even more bustling than she remembered, hordes of students laughing and jostling about as they made their way to class.
Angelina peppered her with unobtrusive questions as they walked, keeping her mind off of the fact that she’d see her classmates in just a few moments.
When they finally made it to Professor McGonagall’s room the older girl patted Hermione on the back, whispering assurances in her ear.
Hermione steeled herself, saying goodbye to Angelina before walking into the room.
The gathered students, both Gryffindors and Slytherins, went silent at her entry, eyes wide as they stared at the first classified student in their class.
“Hermione! You’re back!” Harry’s voice called, a bit deeper than she remembered, and he got up from his chair to run and give her a tight hug. “I missed you!”
She let out a near-hysterical sigh of relief at that, relieved and surprised at his warm welcome. “I missed you too.”
“Come sit, come sit,” he took her hand and dragged her over, surprisingly powerful for the skinny, yet lanky boy he still was.
“Oi, ‘Mione! Finally back. Don’t think a little’s ever been out as long as you have,” Ron called, voice as loud as ever from his perch next to Harry’s stuff.
“Weasel, shut your trap, won’t you? Some of us value the ability to hear,” Draco Malfoy called from the other side of the room. “Room over here if you want, Potter.”
Harry just looked at Hermione, who shrugged, before grabbing his things and moving them over to where the Slytherin sat. She dutifully followed behind.
“Welcome back, Granger,” Malfoy nodded, the first semi-kind thing he’d ever said to her. It wasn’t that Draco Malfoy was mean to her, it was just that they never really had any reason to interact. She had formed a bit of a camaraderie with another Slytherin, Theo Nott, though, if you called sitting at the same table in the library so that you could share books such a thing.
Professor McGonagall chose that moment to sweep into the room, giving Hermione a soft smile before starting her lesson.
Class flew by, and before Hermione knew it, she was packing up her books. The Gryffindor head of house asked her to stay, something that’d made Hermione nervous until the woman gave her a kind pat on the back and let her know that she was there for anything Hermione may need.
Angelina walked in as they were wrapping their conversation up, bright smile on her face as always.
“Ready to go?” the fifth year asked. “I thought we’d visit the little’s dorm so I can show you around?”
“I’m not sleeping there,” Hermione replied immediately. Had something changed? Did Sirius decide they no longer wanted her?
“I know,” Angelina interjected quickly, trying to stop the girl’s spiralling before it began. “Even if you don’t spend the night at Hogwarts, the little’s dorm is always open to you. There are toilets, showers, baths, and rooms where you can just chill out or do coursework. It’s good for you to know where it is!”
Hermione just followed the girl upstairs, eyes wide as they came across a portrait with an old man holding countless colourful balloons in his hand.
“Mr. Dooger-Clooger, this is our friend Hermione. You’ll be seeing her around here a lot!”
“Pleased to meet you, Miss Hermione! Welcome to our little slice of heaven.”
The portrait opened at that, a set of stairs sliding down for them to walk up.
Hermione was a bit flabbergasted at the room they walked into; it was large and just as modern as Sirius had mentioned.
“Well hello there!” Angelina beamed, waving to a pair of Slytherins that Hermione didn’t recognize.
“Ang,” the boy smiled back. “How’s it going?”
“Going well, showing Hermione around the dorm. Pretty cool, i’nt it?”
She nodded, eyes flickering with interest to all of the books and puzzles and toys she saw.
“Oh! You haven’t met Adrian or Graham yet.”
“Nice to meet you, Hermione. I’ve heard so much about you. I’m Adrian Pucey and this is Graham Montague,” the Slytherin smiled. His housemate was focused on a handheld toy, not even looking up at the introduction. “He’s a bit focused on a new Switch game that came out, his da promised he could play after his Potions exam this morning.”
Hermione had absolutely no idea what a Switch was. Clearly a video game of sorts.
“Well, looks like the boys are busy, why don’t we go take a look around?” Angelina suggested. Hermione looked at the few, presumably, little students who were seated at a table colouring. They were giggling and chatting, something that had her heart hurting a little. Would they want her to play with them, or would she be alone in another new place?
“What’s that?”
“Oh, that’s the playroom!” Angelina beamed, beckoning Hermione towards the half open door.
The girl gasped at the sight of a huge indoor playground complete with monkey bars, slides, swings and everything she could dream of. There were only two littles in there, a large caregiver hovering nearby as one of them attempted monkey bars.
“I can play?” she asked quietly, tracking the movements of both playing students.
“You can play any time you want,” Angelina promised before tilting her head. “Unless you’re supposed to be in class or asleep!”
Hermione giggled at that, nodding firmly. Of course she wouldn’t skip class! And she wouldn’t be sleeping here, so that wasn’t a problem either. The chances of her going to the playground were pretty slim in the first place, she didn’t have any friends and she didn’t have the bravery to play like a little, either. It would solidify the thing that she was weakly bucking against, happy to be contented and beloved at the Black Manor, but desperate to look like the ‘normal’ Hermione now that she’s back at school.
“How about we go to the bathroom before settling down for a bit?” Angelina suggested.
Hermione blushed, but agreed. She really did have to go!
A couple hours later, after Ancient Runes, Hermione’s stomach was both growling with hunger and full of rumbling butterflies at the thought of going to the Great Hall for a meal.
She was pleased to see Sirius come get her instead of Angelina, immediately burrowing into his embrace without a care for who saw her.
“Hi puppy,” he greeted, a small smile on his face as he rubbed her back gently. “How’s your morning?”
“Good,” she mumbled into his robes.
“Ready for lunch? Need to potty?” he asked, wanting to prod the girl along.
Hermione let out a whimper, panicking a bit. She had never been the centre of attention before, and didn’t want to start now. Especially not for something as embarrassing as being a little! The first little in her year, no less.
“Hey hey, none of that,” Sirius soothed, bending down to take Hermione into his arms. The classroom was empty, not that he’d care, as he attempted to calm the girl down. If it was up to him, he’d head back home and cuddle the girl up on the couch with Marley and put a movie on until she fell asleep, but he knew he needed to get her comfortable with being back at school.
“Scared,” she whispered, voice cracking as she placed her head in the crook of his neck.
“I bet it feels scary, but there’s no reason to fret. Your friends still love you, because you’re still the same Hermione. Nothing’s changed that matters, hm?”
“Everything changed.”
“Nothing that matters. You’re still smart, sweet Hermione from Gryffindor. That hasn’t changed and will never change. I bet Harry and Neville are wondering where you are.”
“You think?” she asked with wide eyes, nearly breaking his heart in half.
“Oh, I know so. Why don’t we go see them?”
“You stay?” she asked.
He smiled, “You don’t want old Professor Black sitting with you, silly girl.”
“I do!”
“How’s this? Sit with your friends for lunch and if you really miss me, we can sit together tomorrow. Okay?”
“Okay,” she answered after a long, thoughtful pause. Sirius smirked at the girl’s agreement, glad that she was so amenable to listening to the adults she trusted. It made his life a lot easier.
Lunch was far smoother than she had imagined, Neville and Ginny and Harry keeping her entertained with a lot of questions and funny stories. Hermione stuck to a chicken sandwich and asparagus for lunch, not wanting to eat anything she’d need silverware for. Her motor skills were completely off, making her a bit nervous to even try wielding a knife and fork.
There were buckets of little friendly silverware set in the middle of every house table, and she kept eyeing them wearily, like they’d magically pop out of the bin and levitate over to her before she could say no.
Eyes were on her the entirety of the meal, something that Sirius noticed even if Hermione didn’t. Merlin bless the girl’s obliviousness to anything and everything that wasn’t school or studying.
Sirius honed in on how his son was peering over at Hermione in the subtle way that all students were watching her. The boy had the classic Gryffindor bluntness all three of his parents had. He wouldn’t put it past him to talk to Hermione himself to try and discern what was going on, but Sirius was going to do everything he could to ensure that their meeting was perfectly curated.
He stood up a couple moments before the meal would end, walking to the Gryffindor table like nothing was out of the ordinary.
“Hi Professor,” Seamus Finnegan squeaked out like they'd been doing something wrong.
“Mr. Finnegan, everyone,” he nodded his head. “How’s it going?”
“Good,” his godson smiled, the least awkward of the bunch. Hermione was looking up at him with doe eyes, like he’d forgotten about her and the past week they’d spent together.
“Now, lunch is about finished. Hermione, mind helping me with something?” he asked, counting on the girl’s eager nod. He had contemplated telling a lie, but knew the girl wouldn’t be able to sell it on her end, earnest little thing she was.
She nodded slowly, standing up from the table on legs that were wobbly to his keen eyes. Her gaze was a bit glassy, the telltale sign of her being tired and heading towards cranky from the time that she’d spent at their house, something he counted as a win.
“Here we go,” he smiled, easing her school bag over his shoulder as he started walking, the little nearly glued to his side. Not giving into his instincts, he didn’t grab her hand in his own, wanting her to move at her own pace.
“What are we doing?” she asked quietly as they headed into the corridor, thumb rubbing her lips unconsciously.
“Going upstairs to just rest for a bit. I’m tired!” he let out a theatrical yawn, loving the giggle he received in return.
“You nap?” she asked.
He nodded, “Only if you nap with me.”
“Oh…” she frowned, thumb sliding between her lips now. Sirius sounded tired, but she didn’t know if she wanted to nap with him. Not when she had work to do still…
“You can think about it,” he replied, starting in on a story about his morning spent teaching first years about the history of classifications.
The little’s dorm was shockingly packed, students giggling and running around and playing with each other. She wrapped herself around Sirius’ arm at the sudden uptick in noise, feeling shy and nervous and overwhelmed.
“C’mere,” he comforted, picking Hermione up and pulling her to rest on his hip while he began the daily routine of getting Hogwarts’ littles to nap. A majority of the sixth and seventh year caregivers were on hand to help settle the youngest littles down for their nap and then entertain the older littles with quiet time, either reading or participating in another equally lowkey activity.
“Hoho! If you can hear me clap once! If you can hear me clap twice! That’s a good job! Stay seated and give me criss-cross applesauce if we’re going to nap. Now, stand up and give me two wiggly hands in the air if we’re going to have quiet time. All righty, let’s get our magic mats out and our peepers closed. If anyone needs to potty or has a question, ask a friend. Let’s get rocking, little’s dorm!”
Hermione didn’t understand anything that Sirius said, burrowing into the crook of his neck at the feeling of eyes on her. She stayed in her face-cocoon while he walked around and spoke quietly, not even realising that she was falling asleep until she woke up a long while later.
Sirius smiled at the even, huffed breaths on his neck once he had all of the sleeping littles laid out on their mats and tucked in, the blankets and stuffies that they brought from home wrapped around them while some of the school’s oldest caregivers watched on, often reading books for class or pleasure while they did.
Realising that Hermione was asleep in his arms, Sirius did a quick spell to magic a nappy onto the girl in place of her pullup. She was having accidents in her sleep, normal for most littles in the two-and-a-half to three-year-old headspace the girl fell into, and he didn’t want her first day back at Hogwarts to be marked by embarrassment over an accident she was unable to help. Magicking nappies on wasn’t a normal practice due to it not being an exact art, but it was worth it in this moment.
Pleased to find all napping littles settling down, Sirius took time to place Hermione on one of the cosy bed mats, covering her with a soft, freshly laundered blanket from the overflowing basket of soft comfort items for littles who didn’t have one.
“All good, Professor B?” Preston Prewett, a seventh year caregiver, asked.
“All good,” he repeated, sitting on one of the long leather couches in the room, eyeing all of the sleeping littles. It was like clockwork, the way that they fell asleep every day, something that amused the professor but also reminded him how important routine was.
“Did the little lion go home with ya? Heard she was classified,” the boy asked casually. His father’s twin was married to Dorcas Prewett, the head healer in St. Mungo’s Little Division, making it unsurprising that he’d already heard what happened with Hermione. It wasn’t a secret, no, but Sirius and the staff of Hogwarts and St. Mungo’s had no business or desire to invade a little’s privacy either.
“She did,” Sirius confirmed, feeling no need to hide the fact from one of his seventh years. “Gotta long way to go, but I think she’ll be just fine.”
“They all are,” the boy grinned wryly, looking like his father. “You havin’ her join the LLP?”
Sirius sighed, “They all have to, we’ll just take it slow. They’re always bugged out at the beginning, but she’ll be just fine.”
“Well, I’ll be there if ya need anything sir.”
“Thanks, Preston,” Sirius smiled at one of the few students he was on a first name basis with.
The lower level practical was a class that Sirius led for all classified littles and caregivers in third to fifth year, with sixth and seventh years having their own class, the upper level practical.
The two classes allowed for littles and caregivers to interact without the eyes of neutral students in a controlled environment. Even littles who’d grown up in the wizarding world had a big adjustment to be made, and caregivers needed space and time to grow confident in their authority. Sirius both loved the LLP and dreaded it, knowing that they were always a moment away from a temper tantrum or hurt feelings.
Hermione wouldn’t have the class until later that week, and they were going to ease her into it slowly, knowing just how anxious it’d make her.
Sirius knew that the girl had been hurt before, especially by him, and was determined to do right by her moving forward.
xxx
Hermione loved potions, but she was more than ready to get out of there by the time Professor Slughorn told them to start cleaning up.
Harry let out a laugh at the speed with which Hermione cleaned up her station, marvelling at how fast she moved.
“Got somewhere to be?” he asked, brow raised.
She turned to him with wide eyes, nodding.
“Goodnight Harry!” she waved cutely, slinging her bag over her shoulder and moving out of the classroom.
Sirius wasn’t in the hall, nor was Angelina. Was someone not supposed to come get her?
She couldn’t remember the conversation that she had when she woke up from her nap, either, focused on her sniffling as she woke up in a private room and realised she’d wet herself. Sirius had cleaned her up, much to her shame, and promised her that she was fine. His hug as he picked her up was the only thing that made her feel better, mortified at losing control over herself. It was the first time that she didn’t complain about wearing a pullup, knowing that maybe, somehow, she did need protection.
Unsure of what to do, Hermione made her way upstairs, trying her best to remember where the little’s dorm was.
“Hello there,” a silky voice called out as Hermione turned down yet another hallway, thumb stuck in her mouth and tears streaming down her face. She’d not seen anyone in a few minutes, assuming they were all at dinner. She was supposed to be eating with Marley and Remus and Sirius, but she was just lost in this big school she thought she’d memorised!
Whirling around, Hermione saw Professor Snape, a Slytherin who taught the older students potions. Overwhelmed, she just stared at him, sucking her thumb.
“Are you lost?” he asked, voice softer than she’d heard it before. She nodded. “Why don’t we head to the Floo together? Is that where you’re going?”
She nodded again, moving over to his side. Thank goodness he was here to help!
Hermione weirdly felt better to realise that she was on the wrong side of the school and on the wrong floor as well, but was anxious the closer they got to the little’s dorm.
What if they had forgotten about her? What if she was so late that they had decided to eat supper already?
Lost in her spiralling thoughts, Hermione was shocked to see the portrait to the dorm open in front of her. There were a couple littles and caregivers inside eating on the floor, like they were having a picnic, and a few heading back to the long hallway of rooms.
“We’ll follow them back,” Professor Snape instructed.
They soon found themselves in a large Floo foyer, the only one available for students in the school, with littles waving as they hopped in after a relative’s head popped out of the flames to wave to Sirius, confirming that it was safe for the little to head home.
It took him only a moment to notice Hermione, a grin growing on his tired face.
“You found her!” he exclaimed, picking up Hermione as the last student popped into the green flames.
“I did, I believe Miss Granger was just a bit turned around,” the man nodded, a grimace-like smile on his face as he handed over a folded and ancient-looking piece of parchment. “Good evening.”
“Thank you, Severus,” Sirius said, sounding stiff and receiving an equally robotic nod in reply, something Hermione didn’t understand. “Ready, pup?”
“We go,” she whispered into his neck, hoping no one was mad at her.
“Oh! Welcome home!” Marlene’s voice sounded only seconds later, and Hermione let out a happy squeal as she was shifted into another pair of arms, kisses peppered on her face as the woman got a hold of her.
“Missed you,” she said, eyes filling with tears she didn’t understand as she looked up at Marlene’s beautiful face.
“Oh my darling girl, I missed you too! I think someone else missed you too. Hmm… who could it be?” Marlene asked in a melodic voice.
Hermione smiled up shyly at Remus, the man patiently waiting next to Sirius, already dressed down in a pair of joggers and a sweatshirt.
“Remus,” Hermione whispered into her ear, both male animagi able to hear her full well.
“That’s right! Remus wants his hugs,” Marlene handed Hermione over to her husband, loving the way she clung onto him immediately. She looked tiny in his arms, melting as he crooned in his calming voice about how much he missed her.
“Why don’t we get changed into something comfy?” Remus asked, starting to walk without waiting for an answer. It was a part of parenting he’d forgotten, the way that he narrated everything he did, acting as though he was asking questions when he was only letting Hermione know what was about to happen.
“I’ll do the same,” Sirius sighed, running a hand through his long hair.
“Bath?” Hermione asked, brow furrowed.
It was the first time she’d asked about taking one, and none of the trio was sure if it was a good thing or bad thing.
“Would you like to take one, pup?” Remus asked, halfway up the staircase.
She nodded, a quick jerk of her head. The girl didn’t ask for much of anything, so they were quick to praise her for asking.
“Well then, once we finish supper we can take a nice bubble bath!”
She smiled at Marlene’s words, resting her head on Remus’ shoulder. The day had been long and stressful, and she was grateful for the chance to unwind.
“Hermione?” Remus asked, voice a bit loud. “You there, sweet girl?”
She shook her head, not realising that she’d zoned out. “What?”
“Do you need the loo?”
She thought for a second and nodded.
Remus fought the urge to hover after placing the girl down and seeing how slowly she moved, clearly exhausted from her first day back at school.
He went into her room to grab a soft dress that was sitting on her dresser, knowing that if they put her into pyjamas, she’d fall asleep. Toddlers thrive on routine, and they could tell Hermione did as well.
“All done,” the girl called softly a moment later as she turned off the sink.
“Good girl,” Remus praised with a smile, delighting in the cute little look Hermione gave him. “Ready to change?”
She nodded, lifting her hands up in the air childishly. Remus was a bit surprised at how easily she fell back into letting them take care of her. He’d been uncertain if she’d return back from her first day at school frustrated with her situation or in need of comfort, and it was already clear that she fell into the second category.
“Do you know how to write out Ancient Ruins with a quill?” she asked as he was pulling her dress over her head, straightening it out over the still-dry pullup she was wearing.
“I do,” he confirmed. “It was one of my favourite subjects at school, though it was a bit tricky to learn.”
She pouted, nodding as he lifted her back up. “It’s hard. I don’t like quills.”
“Hm, well, why don’t we try and practise?” Remus suggested, already thinking of the writing implements that littles are allowed to use at Hogwarts in lieu of a quill. He knew that Hermione would be upset if he offered her those before giving her time to practise.
“Please,” she rested her head on his shoulder, rubbing one small hand on his back in thanks.
The awkward move made him smile, knowing how hard the girl was trying. It was clear that she hadn’t grown up in a home that provided physical affection, which was the exact opposite of the Black-Lupin household. They were bringing her into it slowly, though all of them wanted nothing more than to squeeze her and pepper kisses all over her face. It was a close thing, though.
“We’ll make some time this weekend for it,” he promised.
“I come?” she asked, eyes wide in his peripheral vision.
“If you’d like to, you can certainly spend the weekend here,” he confirmed, repeating something they’d told her many times. Whether it was uncertainty or the short attention span of a little one, he didn’t know, but he was a patient man and happy to repeat that they loved her and wanted her as many times as she needed to hear it.
“I don’t want to stay at school,” she frowned.
“Why’s that, muffin?” he asked back as they walked into the bustling kitchen, elves levitating dishes over to the table.
“Everyone looked at me today.”
“That’s tough, isn’t it? Do you know why they looked at you?”
Hermione shakes her head.
“Well,” Remus sucked in a breath as he sat down, arranging the little so that her legs bracketed his thighs. “You’re the first person to be classified in your year, which is a pretty neat situation.”
The girl gasped, clearly outraged, and Remus noticed his spouses covering their mouths to try to hide laughter at the adorable expression.
“Neat? It’s awful! No one knows what I’m going through.”
“That’s right,” Remus conceded. “But you know what? They’ll know soon. Everyone turns 14 at some point, and then you’ll all be going through this together.”
“I don’t like it,” she pouted, dropping her head dramatically into Remus’ firm chest.
“More birthdays are just around the corner, princess,” Marlene crooned. “Papa is right, everyone will be classified soon.”
Remus can feel Hermione stiffen in his lap at that.
“Papa?” she asks, voice uncertain.
“I’m sorry, Hermione,” Marlene’s cheeks are dusted with pink at her slipup. “We don’t want you to feel pressured into staying with us, or seeing us as parents, but we love you and see you as ours.”
The girl was quiet, thinking loud enough and hard enough that even Sirius was shifting in his seat with uncertainty.
“Dinner?” a perfectly croaked interjection by the elves that the adults ran with.
Hermione was quiet for the rest of the meal, and Remus could see his wife’s tortured expression clear as day.
It wasn’t until Sirius had started rocking Hermione with a warm bottle in hand that she spoke.
“What if Ophi doesn’t like me?” she asked quietly, milk dribbling down her chin as she pulled away from the bottle.
Sirius let out a thoughtful hum as he cleaned her up. “Why wouldn’t he like you?”
“I’m in his house.. Taking up lots of your time. What if he’s a little and needs you?”
“Then he’s a little and he needs us,” Sirius doesn’t wait before replying. He doesn’t need to think his words through, he knows that amongst the three adults, there was more than enough love and attention to go around. “But, my dear, we are pretty confident he isn’t a little.”
“You don’t know that,” she frowns, pushing the nipple of the bottle away with her pouting lower lip.
“You’re right,” Remus agreed, smiling softly from where he was standing in the doorway. “There’s no way of knowing for a few more years, but that’s the point, isn’t it? There are a few more years until we have to worry about Ophi’s classification. Why waste our time worrying?”
“Because…” Hermione stops to think, worrying her thumb against her lips. “I don’t know.”
Marlene could tell that the girl stopped short of sharing her real thoughts, but to Remus’ point, there was no use worrying right now. They had a little girl to put to sleep.
“You’ll see just how much we mean it when we say you’re stuck with us soon, puppy,” Sirius smacked a kiss onto the girl’s freshly washed curls. “Just you wait.”