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Hermione wiped the sweat from her brow as she tried to keep stirring the bowl with egg white tucked underneath her arm while simultaneously trying to read the recipe that hovered in front of her. She had her wand clenched between her teeth just in case she had to cast a wordless spell to save the potato slices from the oven. Normally she’d cast them wandlessly too, but her mind was frazzled from having to think about too many things at the same time.
Just when the sauce on the stove started to sizzle and Hermione outed a helpless shriek, Ginny arrived in a whoosh of green flames and blinked confusedly at the display before her. Not wanting to start her sauce over for a third time, Hermione spat out her wand and pleaded with her friend.
‘Gin, please! Can you stir the sauce for a minute or two and then take it off the fire?’
‘Sure,’ the redhead said before grabbing a ladle and doing as asked, ‘but why are you still cooking? The party is in an hour? Shouldn’t you be getting ready?’
‘Oh Ginny, I have totally underestimated this,’ Hermione blubbered, ‘I can barely cook for two, let alone for a party of twenty. And I still have to pick up Narcissa’s presents.’
The youngest Weasley shook her head, ‘you refused my help when I offered it a few days ago and now you’re in trouble.’
‘I wanted to do this by myself to show Cissa how much she means to me.’
Ginny eyed the state of the kitchen, ‘wrecking half the house will surely do that.’
‘Can you please make fun of me some other time? I need your help. Please.’
Hermione’s friend rolled her eyes before taking the sauce away from the stove and shaking the potato slices in the oven who still needed another ten minutes. She eyed the vegetables that were already steamed and seasoned and frowned at her friend.
‘All your food is ready. What in Merlin’s name are you still making?’
‘Desert of course? What else! I’m trying to make chocolate mousse. It’s Cissa’s guilty pleasure.’
‘You really went all-in, huh? Now what did you say about presents needing picking up?’
‘Yes! I’ve had Cissa’s presents delivered at my office in the Ministry because she’s so damn curious and always opens them in advance if they’re delivered here. Could you maybe get them for me and wrap them?’
‘Sure. Anything else?’
Hermione shook her head, ‘I’m nearly done with this and then it can set in the fridge. I only need a few minutes to get ready after all.’
‘Right,’ Ginny eyed the enormous bush of curls that sat atop Hermione’s head and turned to leave only to return when her friend called for her.
‘Gin, errrrm, about the presents. There’s two, but she’s only meant to open one during the party. The other one is… of a more private nature.’
The redhead smirked, ‘naughty. Don’t worry, I’ll wrap them each in a different paper so you can keep them apart.’
‘You’re a true friend. Thank you and I’ll see you in an hour!’
Ginny pointed at the clock above the heart, ‘thirty minutes ‘Mione. You better hurry,’ she stepped into the Floo and vanished from sight.
Hermione quickly finished her dessert and flicked all the dishes into the sink, something she’d normally never do but drastic times called for drastic measures. A twirl of her wand ordered the pots and pans to start cleaning themselves and a few other waves rid her apartment of dust and clutter. She nodded contentedly, it looked like you could eat from the floor.
A look at the clock taught her that she had twenty minutes before her guests would arrive so she quickly sprinted upstairs and jumped into the shower. Joke’s on Ginny, she thought when she grabbed her bottle of Hellish Hair Hack and lathered her curls that immediately settled in a much more manageable style. After making sure that all the leftover bits of egg yolk were cleared from her face, she emerged from the shower and magically dried herself.
She’d picked out her outfit weeks in advance luckily so only seconds later Hermione ascended the staircase clad in a black jumpsuit with golden buckle that accentuated her amber eyes and suntanned skin. After Narcissa had once told her she liked Hermione better without make-up, the Gryffindor witch had never bothered again. She’d always thought it a waste of time after all.
Just when she finished putting the snacks on the coffee table and lighting the candles, her fireplace announced the arrival of the first guest. Hermione beamed when Andie dusted the ashes off her coat and righted Teddy’s bowtie.
‘Now don’t you two look smart,’ the brunette chirped while kissing Andromeda on both cheeks, ‘he’s becoming a real man already.’
Andie smiled at her twelve-year old grandson and nodded, ‘he’s really looking forward to his second year at Hogwarts,’ she suddenly scanned the room, ‘are we the first ones?’
‘Yes, but I’m sure the others will arrive shortly. I gave strict instructions not to be late seeing as Cissa will arrive in an hour.’
‘She’s always been weird about surprises. She’ll either hate you or love you.’
‘That’s very reassuring,’ Hermione wrung her hands, ‘now Teddy, do you want a butterbeer?’
The blue-haired wizard looked up at his grandmother for approval first before nodding enthusiastically, ‘will James and Victoire be here too?’
‘Yes and so will Louis, Dominique, Albus, Lily, Scorpius, Fred, and Roxanne. Only Luna isn’t bringing the kids as they were on a Safari with their grandfather Newt. And Percy couldn’t make it to the party altogether.’
Teddy shrugged. He got along best with Victoire and James who were closest to his age. The other kids were younger and liked to play different games. Andie accepted a glass of champagne from Hermione and complimented her on the decoration in the house when the fireplace whooshed again.
Ron stepped out with the biggest grin on his face and a very fancy looking Pansy on his arm. They’d only been dating for a while and despite everybody’s initial surprise at the pairing, they really seemed to hit it off. Where Hermione had been too independent in their relationship and sometimes made Ron feel like he wasn’t clever enough, Pansy loved to have a boyfriend who worshipped her and made her laugh with silly jokes.
Despite her parents not being too happy about her dating a Weasley, they also couldn’t ignore the fact that they were purebloods and a part of the Sacred-Twenty-Eight and thus they gave their blessing. Ron was clad in a three-piece suit and radiated confidence while Pansy already made her way to Hermione to greet her.
‘Thank you for having us,’ she whispered while kissing the brunette on both cheeks, ‘I know I haven’t been the nicest to you and seeing as you two used to date-‘
Hermione interrupted her, ‘don’t be silly. You two make each other happy and that’s all I could ask for. The past is the past.’
Pansy smiled gratefully at Hermione before allowing Ron to greet her as well and instead turning towards Andromeda and Teddy. They hadn’t even finished shaking hands and kissing cheeks when the Floo roared again. This time, in quick succession, the rest of the Weasley family stepped through. First were Arthur and Molly followed by George and Angelina with their two children.
Roxanne had barely stepped out of the fireplace or her aunt Ginny appeared with her own gaggle of kids and a rather tired but nevertheless smiling Boy Who Lived. Harry grinned at everybody, still a bit awkward at social situations and made room so the next guests could arrive. Before the hour had passed Minerva McGonagall, who immediately stepped over to Andromeda who’d become her best friend after the war, joined them.
Next were Luna and Rolf, Draco with his wife Astoria and son Scorpius, Anathema Zabini who was Narcissa’s best friend, some of the blonde’s better colleagues, and eventually Neville Longbottom with his fiancé Hannah. Every adult got a glass of champagne while every Hogwarts-attending child got a butterbeer, and the younger ones a pumpkin juice.
‘Gin,’ Hermione whispered to her friend, ‘did you manage to get the gifts?’
‘Of course! Harry was still at work so he brought them and I wrapped them at home. They’re in my bag.’
‘Perfect, now let’s go through the surprise one last time,’ Hermione said before turning to her guests.
She clinked her wand against her glass to draw the attention of the many people gathered in her living room and tried to hide the blush that adorned her cheeks. She always hated speaking in front of a crowd.
‘Thank you all for coming here today to celebrate Narcissa’s birthday. She’ll arrive in precisely twenty minutes thinking we have a reservation at a fancy restaurant. I purposely made the fake-reservation early in the hopes that she’ll go straight upstairs to get changed while we wait for her in the living room. When she enters, we shout.’
Draco raised an eyebrow, ‘you must have a death wish, Granger.’
‘I have been made aware that she can react a little negatively towards surprises,’ Hermione gulped, ‘but I trust we’ll have a pleasant evening nevertheless. Now, I can’t possible be a host to all of you by myself so feel free to help yourself. Snacks are on the table and drinks are in the kitchen.’
An approving murmur shot through the guests before they all shuffled towards the farthest corner of the living room as to not be spotted early by Narcissa when she arrived home. Hermione felt like she couldn’t truly join in the chitchat just yet as she nervously eyed the clock and wrung her hands each time another minute passed. Eventually she asked her friends to stay quiet as the clock struck seven. She knew her wife would be right on time because Kingsley was in on the surprise and had promised to keep the blonde occupied until then.
The crack of apparition made some of the guests jump, but everybody managed to remain silent even though Hermione was sure some parents had cast a muting-spell at their children just to be sure. They heard Narcissa kick her heels away and shrug out of her robes while sighing in relief to finally be home.
‘Honestly that meeting could have been a memo. Bloody fool.’
Everybody supressed a snicker at Narcissa’s exasperation and grinned when she went upstairs. Hermione’s plan seemed to go flawlessly so far. It didn’t take long for the blonde witch to emerge downstairs again and the guests held their breath in unison.
‘Hermione darling?’ Narcissa’s hesitant voice sounded through the house, ‘are you home yet?’
‘SURPRISE!’ everyone shouted the moment Narcissa stepped into the living room and it was only Hermione’s quick thinking that disarmed her girlfriend before she could hex anyone.
Narcissa clutched at her heart, ‘Sweet Salazar, what the hell is going on here?’
‘I… I organised a surprise party for your birthday,’ Hermione shuffled her feet before giving Narcissa her wand back, ‘I also cooked for everybody.’
For a moment a variety of emotions flashed across the older witch’s face before a bright smile broke through and she hugged her girlfriend tightly whispering sweet words of gratitude in her ear. Somewhere at the back of the crowd, Draco huffed.
‘If I ever needed more proof mom adores Granger, this is it. I remember father throwing her a surprise party too and she ignored him for weeks after.’
‘That’s because your father had hired strippers and bought me those damn peacocks as a gift,’ Narcissa snarked back before making her way to her guests and greeting them all warmly.
Relieved that Narcissa didn’t end the evening with violence, everybody made his or her way to the dining room that had been festively decorated. With a slight blush adorning her cheeks, the birthday-witch took her place at the head of the table and marvelled when Hermione summoned the first course. The glasses of champagne disappeared and were replaced with matching wines to go with the menu and soda for the children. The blonde shook her head in disbelief.
‘Darling, you did all this? You barely manage to cook for two usually!’
‘I did underestimate it,’ Hermione groaned, ‘but thanks to Ginny, it all worked out. Speaking of…’ the brunette nudged at her friend, ‘there’s gifts for after dinner as well.’
Narcissa rolled her eyes, ‘we both know you’re more excited to give gifts than I am to receive them, darling. Last time you even opened them for me.’
Everybody laughed before digging in and soon there was nothing to be heard but quiet small talk and cutlery sliding across plates. Narcissa didn’t stay seated at the head of the table for long though. She demanded everybody changed locations between courses so she could talk to all her guests, but despite not sitting next to her girlfriend again, Hermione often caught her looking at her and throwing her a wink that made her blush.
‘Is it time for presents yet?’ Scorpius eventually whined and all the other kids nodded enthusiastically. Every party needed presents after all.
When the adults agreed, Scorpius immediately claimed the opportunity to be the first gift-giver as he called it. He walked up to his grandmother and gave her a poorly wrapped parcel that Narcissa treated as if it was the biggest treasure in the world. She didn’t hesitate one bit to wear the self-made bracelet that fell out of it, causing her grandson to grow a few inches with pride.
Next was Andromeda who handed her sister a gift from her and Teddy and soon every guest held up a present for a now terribly emotional Narcissa. Hermione watched in awe and amusement how her girlfriend adored everything she’d been given and lost some of her eloquence when stammering thank you after thank you. Eventually the last guest saw the wrapping paper from her gift disappear when Hermione cleared her throat.
‘That leaves only me, I suppose.’
Hermione turned to Ginny who had taken two presents from her bag and handed her friend the one wrapped in red, ‘I wrapped the secret one in green to match the Slytherin colours,’ she said and Hermione rolled her eyes.
‘You could’ve also kept the existence of the second gift a secret, Gin.’
Ginny snorted as if that was the most ludicrous thing she’d ever heard before the whole table turned to Narcissa unwrapping the gift her girlfriend got her. The satin bow gave way and the blonde witch opened the box revealing a dildo with intricate designs that was clearly meant to be attached to a harness.
Hermione squeaked. Narcissa raised an eyebrow. Andie howled while Molly covered as much of her grandchildren’s eyes as she could manage. The whole table stared in shock at the sextoy that Narcissa was still holding for everyone to see. It was only when Albus asked what in Merlin’s beard that strange gift was meant to be, that the adults seemed to recollect themselves.
Ginny slapped her own forehead, ‘ah silly me! I think I wrapped this one in red to match the colour of your face in case people found out what it was. The other one was green as in safe for opening in public.’
All the guests roared with laughter as Narcissa quickly hid the thing from underage view while Hermione spluttered furiously.
‘GINNY, you absolute menace! Why did you do that!’
‘I’m married with three kids, ‘Mione. The most action Harry and I see these days is when we manage to fall asleep in bed and not on the couch.’
Hermione buried her head in her hands to hide her crimson blush while Harry merely grinned awkwardly. It was eventually Narcissa who came to the rescue. She flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder before nudging her girlfriend.
‘Well, do give me the second present quickly before I banish all our guests from our house so we can test the first one.’
Accompanied by giggles and snickers, although Draco’s sounded a bit fake, Narcissa unwrapped a beautiful white wool cardigan she immediately put on. She clasped the sleeves in her hands and pressed them against her face, relishing in the softness of the fabric. She looked gorgeous in it and Hermione momentarily forgot her embarrassment from Ginny’s prank.
‘I absolutely adore it, darling,’ Narcissa spoke with a fondness in her voice she only reserved for those closest to her heart, ‘thank you.’
Hermione still got teased about her other present of course, but the evening flowed smoothly just like the alcohol. The dessert had been a success but nevertheless the Brightest-Witch-of-her-Age had vowed to never cook for such a large crowd ever again.
She felt relieved when the final guest disappeared in a whoosh of green flames that matched the greenish colour of their face indicating the alcohol was trying to find a way out again. Together with Narcissa she righted their house back to its original state. Back to back they stood, waving their wands in an almost identical pattern until the last piece of cutlery floated back into the drawer and every piece of furniture was back into place.
‘Cissa,’ Hermione immediately began, ‘I’m so sorry about the first pr-‘
But the Gryffindor witch didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence for velvety lips pressed against her own. When Narcissa withdrew, there was a shimmer of something in her eyes Hermione couldn’t quite name.
‘Thank you,’ the older woman whispered against her mouth, ‘nobody has ever put so much effort into making me happy. And yet, you do it time and time again. With little things such as making me a cup of tea in the mornings. And with big gestures such as this one. I love it. I love you.’
Hermione smiled and summoned the dildo she’d unintentionally showed to all her friends and pointed at the runes engraved in it, ‘these are magical carvings. They allow us to feel as if it were truly a part of us. There’s also other neat tricks it can do such as vibrating or temperature play and you can adjust it in length and girth all you want.’
‘Nerdy talk and a promise of amazing sex. What more could I possibly want?’
Hermione gulped, ‘well… at one point I’d be delighted to do all those things with my wife instead of my girlfriend.’
‘Hermione Granger,’ Narcissa’s eyes widened, ‘you did not just propose to me holding a silicone penis, did you?’
The brunette laughed, ‘no. Not yet at least. But does this mean that you’d be open to it?’
Narcissa tilted her head, ‘are you asking me if I’ll say yes whenever you really do pop the question?’
Upon Hermione’s shy confirmation the blonde surged forwards again and took the toy from her girlfriend’s hands, ‘without a doubt, darling. Yes. Of course.’
They kissed languidly before Narcissa apparated them both to the bedroom and grinned when Hermione started unbuttoning her blouse, ‘well, happy birthday to me.’