Hilltop Cottage

A/N: Thanks for all the lovely reviews. MMMmmuah!X

---

The front room of Hilltop Cottage was virtually unrecognisable. After the first day, when Hermione had taken Donovan in his buggy to the local shops to buy food and other essentials, she had been working tirelessly on making the house more family friendly. It had taken some time, and a bit of research, but now, although the cottage remained exactly the same on the outside, the ground floor had been expanded to twice its square footage.



The living area was double the size, with the fireplace on the same wall as it had previously been. Instead of the sofa being opposite the hearth, however, Hermione had transfigured a wooden crate and the old sofa into a corner-seating unit, which ran along one wall. She had wand-cleaned the floorboards and enlarged the old rug, mending it here and there. She didn’t want to get rid of it, because it was part of the character of the house, but the edges had lifted a little. She used a sticking charm to secure it in place. Donovan was only creeping around using the furniture to support himself, but it wouldn’t be long before he was toddling about, and she couldn’t bear the thought of him tripping over the frayed edges.



To one edge of the room she had created a large play space for Donovan, stealing an idea she had seen in the hospital crèche in New York. The floor was cushioned rubber, firm enough to walk on but soft enough not to hurt when he toppled over, as he was wont to do. The most ingenious part was the invisible wards, which Hermione could control with a silent spell. This would keep Donovan inside the confines of the play space, should Hermione need to go up the stairs or into the garden for five minutes. It gave her peace of mind, and he seemed more than happy to sit quietly and play with his building blocks and other Muggle toys she had bought him.



To make life easier, Hermione had added a laundry room and a proper dining area in the kitchen, and taken down part of the dividing wall into the lounge, so that she could watch Donovan while she cooked. All in all, the place was perfect. She did wonder to herself what Severus would think, but she tried not to think on it too much. Inevitably, their paths would cross at some point, but she was in no hurry for that meeting and would much rather be mentally prepared.



Fussing about the room, Hermione plumped the large, green cushions on the new sofa and arranged the few baby pictures she had of Donovan on the mantle piece. Glancing at the clock anxiously, she lifted Donovan from around her feet and sat him into the play space, putting the wards up and adding an adapted ‘Notice-Me-Not’ spell for good measure. This meant that Hermione could see her son, but no one else would until she was ready. She wouldn’t introduce her son to her expected guest until she was sure he would be properly accepted.



Dashing into the kitchen, Hermione opened a packet of chocolate chip cookies and put them onto a plate. She switched on the kettle just as she heard her Floo activate, and glanced anxiously at Donovan when she realised he hadn’t seen this Floo working until now. She needn’t have worried. The child just watched the green flames curiously and cocked his head at the sight of the dark-haired man who walked into the room. Hermione fought the urge to laugh. Sometimes Donovan’s mannerisms were so like Severus it was scary.



‘Hi, Harry,’ she said, smiling brightly as she walked into the lounge.



‘Hermione!’ Harry grinned and pulled her into a tight squeeze. ‘Welcome back.’



‘Come into the kitchen and take a seat, I have the kettle boiled already.’



After the tea was made, they sat at the table in silence for a moment. Hermione didn’t know where to start, so she hoped that Harry would do the talking.



Harry took a slurp of tea and eyed Hermione through his glasses. ‘You didn’t keep in touch,’ he stated, a question in his voice.



Hermione felt her cheeks go pink, and she looked at him in shame. ‘I had good reason.’



‘I’m sure you’ll tell me all about it,’ he said, his tone telling her she had no choice.



Hermione giggled a little nervously. ‘How’s Ginny?’ she said, changing the subject.



Harry beamed at her. ‘We have news, actually. We’re having a baby,’ he said excitedly.



Hermione felt her stomach flip over, but she was genuinely happy for them both. ‘That’s wonderful news, Harry. How is Ginny feeling?’



‘Well, exhausted, for the most part, generally feeling off-colour. That’s how pregnancy is, I think,’ he said.



Hermione nodded at the memory of her first few months. ‘Did the charm tell you the sex of the baby?’ she asked, smiling.



‘The sex of the baby? No, why would it do that?’ Harry looked at her, puzzled.



‘Oh. Well, the pregnancy charms in America must be a bit different, I guess,’ she mused.



‘Well done for changing the subject, Hermione, but what the hell has been going on? I’m sure you didn’t invite me over just for a chat over a cup of tea.’



Harry ran his fingers through his hair, and Hermione was shocked to see a smattering of grey. Harry was still young, but he had lived through more than one lifetime’s worth of trauma. Perhaps this was an outward sign.



Hermione sighed deeply. ‘I had a baby, Harry. I found out I was pregnant, that’s why I couldn’t contact you. I couldn’t lie, so it was far easier to say nothing,’ she said.



Harry choked a little on his tea and looked around himself. ‘What baby?’ he said, seeing no sign of a child in the house.



Hermione chuckled. ‘He’s here; I’ll introduce you in a moment. But Harry, please be gentle. He’s only just turned one.’



She stood and walked to Donovan’s play space, where he had obviously started to get a little bored and was throwing his bricks around, watching them bounce off the charmed walls. Luckily, the Cushioning Charm Hermione had put on the blocks stopped them hurting when they hit him, and all he did was watch them and smile.



‘He’s one? Bloody hell, Hermione, you have a child of one, and you never thought to tell us?’ said Harry incredulously.



Hermione looked as Harry sadly. ‘It was a difficult time for me, Harry. You’ll see,’ she said quietly.



With a whisper, the ‘Notice-Me-Not’ spell dissipated and the charmed walls dissolved.

Harry stared a little disbelievingly as the small, dark haired boy lifted his arms willingly to Hermione and giggled a bit when she nuzzled his face with her nose. She kissed him on the cheek, and he stared back at her with his dark eyes as if he knew everything despite his young age. Hermione walked over to the table and held him for Harry to see plainly.



‘Donovan, this is Harry. Harry, this is Donovan Granger,’ she said happily, waving his little hand at Harry.



Harry let out a low whistle and reached out, shaking Donovan’s hand solemnly and making Hermione laugh out loud.



‘Nice to meet you, Donovan. Has anyone told you you’re the spitting image of your father?’



Harry looked at Hermione pointedly, and she smiled.