Picnic amongst the stacks

[shh_blaise]

Date: 5th April 2005
Characters: Blaise, Hermione
Location: the library
Status: Private
Summary: Blaise and Hermione catch up.
Completion: complete

Blaise lay back on the floor and looked up at the ceiling, folding his arms behind his head. He shifted, not quite comfortable, and leant forward once more, cracking his neck and rolling his shoulders

Comments

[shh_hermione]

"Things with Roger are going well. It's not perfect and easy, which I think is fortunate because the things in life that are really worth it tend to require hard work and a little effort. He and I both have difficult pasts and trust issues, so I'm sure you can imagine what it means for us to just trust each other and let things happen," she said, smiling slightly as she thought about Roger

[shh_blaise]

Blaise nodded in understanding at Hermione’s comments about her and Roger. She was smiling which was good. He got the impression that whatever happened to her during the war had affected her a lot more than she let on, well at least to him or anyone she didn’t know well. So, if Roger made her happy and that past fade a little, he was pleased

[shh_hermione]

"Whyever would I feel guilty?" she asked curiously. "I certainly have no control over how someone does or does not feel, so it's not anything to do with me if he happened to have feelings he said could be love while I just considered him a friend. No, there was no guilt in that respect, as I'm not likely to live my life or make decisions based on such a thing

[shh_blaise]

Blaise shrugged. “No you’re right. It’s not. But it just seemed to me when you were talking about him that you were doing it more for him than for you.” Blaise started to lift out the plates and the rest of the containers holding the food. “And if you asked Roger out then it simply seemed to me that you were more certain of your own feelings than you perhaps realised. It doesn’t matter any more how you got to here though, the fact is you’re here and my only concern is that you’re happy and Roger treats you right

[shh_hermione]

At Blaise's tone, she arched a brow and met his gaze. "As you said earlier, my only concern is that you're happy and treated right," she said simply. "My opinion of Terry, such as it is, shouldn't matter at all if you're happy, so I do my best to keep it to myself

[shh_blaise]

Blaise looked away for a moment, his eyes resting on the kitten as she lapped at the milk

[shh_hermione]

"Then it's settled. I would hope that if you had reason to worry about Roger hurting me, you'd let me know, as well," she said simply. "However, you deserve to be with someone that doesn't require a constant wearing and changing of masks. If that's Terry, great. If not, I just hope you're not hurt, regardless of who does the hurting."

"Now, tell me about these pasta dishes. I'm starving and this conversation has, once again, become far too serious for lunch," she told him, not bothering to be subtle about changing the subject. She could be when necessary, but Blaise knew her well enough now, better than just about anyone except the boys and Roger, that she didn't really have to bother unless she felt like playing with him.

"The library is starting to look quite good, by the way. I noticed some of it when I arrived," she said. "Roger does excellent work. Once you're ready, we can start bringin in the books we've copied. At last count, I had over five hundred copied or donated, which shows how busy Ron's been working that press."

[shh_blaise]

“I wouldn’t hesitate,” Blaise replied firmly. He’d also make certain her two boys knew too and Merlin help Roger then