Half an hour later, Wendell came over as promised, his cheeks flushed pink from the crisp winter air of Victoria's Park. Twenty minutes after that, Linda Martin, Jane's close friend, arrived at the front door with Hermione's gift in tow. She politely greeted her therapist, though she couldn't help but notice that woman acted a little strange around Lucifer.
The moment he gave her a knowing grin and offered a casual wave, Linda flushed deeply, her eyes darting away in temporary embarrassment. Still, the atmosphere remained bright as everyone sat down to enjoy a grand, warm breakfast before the present opening commenced.
"Well, that was a lovely breakfast, Lucifer," Jane praised afterward, resting her fork down on the porcelain. "Hermione told me that you knew how to cook, but I honestly didn't know just how well you handled the kitchen until today."
"Thanks, Jane," Lucifer said smoothly, offering her a charming smile.
"And what did you say this dish was called, boy?" Wendell asked from the head of the table, wiping his chin.
"Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuits with crispy Hash browns on the side," Lucifer answered effortlessly, "It's an American style recipe, because I know British people traditionally refer to what I call cookies as biscuits, so I wanted to clear up vocabulary."
"Well, it was better than what I had prepared for me by 'Amenadiel' the other day," Linda piped up, smiling giddily at him over her teacup.
Lucifer simply waved his palm carelessly at her in acknowledgment.
Upon hearing that 'familiar' name leave Linda's lips, Hermione's ears immediately perked up, leaving her lost in a wave of internal doubts. She still hadn't received a straight answer to the burning question she had formulated terms ago: 'I always have the persistent feeling these two know each other from the descriptions Linda used earlier....'
"Well, you all are very welcome for the breakfast, and thank you, Jane, for letting me use your ingredients," Lucifer said, his tone sounding almost apologetic to the host,"I'll be sure to pay you back for the cost."
"Oh, nonsense, Lucifer! They don't cost that much to begin with, so put your wallet away," Jane laughed heartily as she spoke.
"Well, if everyone is finished eating, I think we should get straight to opening the presents," Wendell chuckled, shifting his chair back, "Hermione looks impatient to tear into her holiday boxes under the tree."
It was entirely true, Hermione's eyes had been darting around the room quickly, her fingers twitching as she desperately wanted to leave the table for the colorful pile of gifts that had gathered under the pine branches "What?" she asked bashfully when she caught the adults gazing at her childish posture.
"It's the truth, pumpkin..."
"This is a side of your personality I've not seen in quite a while, Hermione," Lucifer teased, as he leaned back in his chair to look at her blushing face.
"Sh-Shut up, Lucifer," She playfully scolded, her cheeks burning pink as she stood up from the table and marched quickly toward the main sitting room.
Lucifer let out a laugh as he stood up from the wooden chair, going straight after her quick strides. The adults followed in a relaxed huddle a few moments later, Hermione's mother being the last one to clear, probably staying behind to clean up the dirty plates from the breakfast table. 'I should have cleared the table first,' he thought with a brief touch of internal chivalry. 'Upsetting her mother's kitchen isn't the best tactical move.'
He lowered down onto the soft floor rug right next to Hermione in front of the glittering Christmas tree, watching as her fingers grabbed the very first wrapped present labeled with her name. Lucifer noted he had two distinct presents waiting underneath the branches for his own hands: one was Hermione gift to him, and the other was a collective box from her family.
He would have been fine with receiving no material presents today, personally; having Hermione Granger fully in his life was more than enough to satisfy him.
The more colorful boxes she eagerly tore through, the more it became littered with assortment of winter clothing, but she was profoundly glad to be receiving the thick layers for the school terms. Jane did step forward to point a finger at one specific, small wrapped box, instructing her daughter in a tight whisper to not open it until she was alone in her room tonight, so Hermione quickly set that mysterious item aside for later.
Linda had also gotten her a premium basket of beauty products, full of delicate polishes and creams if she ever felt inclined to apply light makeup or paint her nails for the common room. Hermione was genuinely grateful for the addition and would put the supplies to good use, knowing very well she would never find the nerve to buy them herself with how expensive, mall brands could be.
Finally, the grand pile dwindled down until it got to the absolute last present Hermione had left to open and it was a remarkably small, velvet-lined box from Lucifer.
Her breathing hitched slightly as her fingers touched the lid, thoughts racing over his previous morning hints. 'He did say that it was a ring...'
"Go on then, pumpkin, don't keep the room waiting," Jane chuckled softly from the sofa, nudging her daughter's shoulder with a playful smile, "We all want to see what your American Casanova managed to find for you this year."
xxxxxx
"You're not proposing to my granddaughter, are you?" Wendell asked Lucifer from the sofa, his brow furrowing as a sudden, protective worry took hold of his expression.
"No, sir. Not yet, at least," Lucifer answered smoothly, a wicked glint in his eyes.
The casual delivery of the line instantly turned Hermione into a stuttering mess. Her hands flew up to cover her burning cheeks. "L-Lucifer! Th-That's not f-f-funny!"
"I'm not laughing, pet," Lucifer smirked, his fingers adjusting the ring which had been given by Lilith.
"Okay, that's enough of that," Wendell said hastily, waving his hand dismissively to shut down the topic before his blood pressure could spike at the nickname of being a dog. He knew very well that he was acting more like Hermione's defensive father than her grandfather right now, but he firmly considered it his family duty to look after her.
"Go on, Hermione, stop stalling and open Lucifer's present," Jane urged daughter now marched back to her cushions, eyes dancing with maternal curiosity.
Hermione carefully pulled the small, velvet-lined box closer into her lap. She noticed a delicate, handwritten note attached to top of the paper, her voice dropping into a soft whisper as she read the words aloud: "For the best, the most intelligent witch I know. Merry Christmas..."
Her heart did a violent flip against her ribs as she broke the tape. She lifted the lid of the small box, and her breath caught as the light hit the glittering object inside: a brilliant blue Ruby ring, its gold band pulsing with a faint, warm trace of hidden protective magic.
"Lucifer... it is beautif---"
When Jane caught a clear sight of the heavy stone glinting in the light, her eyes went wide, "Lucifer, how much did that piece of jewelry actually cost? And I remember those earrings you gave Hermione last year for Yule Ball. How much did you spend on them?"
"You honestly don't want to know, Jane," Lucifer said dryly, turning his face away to stare blankly at a silver ornament on the Christmas tree.
"A ring today and matching earrings last year?" Wendell asked, leaning forward over his knees to get a better look at her left hand from seat, "It's real jewelry, boy, you've got to tell us the numbers. They aren't clever fakes, are they?"
"No, not at all," Lucifer said hastily, his tone level as to why he would even think, he tricked the Grangers with such.
"So what are we looking at here... a 'few' thousand pounds?" Jane pressed, her dentist's mind trying to logically calculate the market value of the gold. His stone-cold lack of an immediate answer got the adults needing to know the exact monetary number.
"Well, don't leave in a state of suspense, mate," Mark chimed in from the corner, his blue eyes greedily on flawless cut of the ruby. He knew a lot about asset valuations from his time on trading, and was trying market cost of that size, "Christ, Jane... that's an uncut Burmese stone. If that's real gold, you're looking at a piece that would easily run a few thousand pounds at London auction. Where did an underage secure capital for that kind of acquisition?"
"Tell us the truth, Lucifer. How much did you pay for both pieces?" Jane asked, her arms crossing over her dressing gown.
Up on the sofa, Linda Martin was watching the entire interaction with a peculiar expression written across her features. As a trained therapist who had spent years treating Hermione Granger after the traumatic car incident, her eyes didn't miss the faint, electric trace of connection between the two children.
Lucifer closed his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh into warm air, "Just over seventy thousand pounds for the ruby ring, and fifty-four thousand pounds for the earrings last year."
An absolute, dead silence befell the sitting room. Mark's jaw practically went slack, "Blimey, your old man must be a titan in the foreign market to let you parade around with that kind of liquidity." Thoroughly outghasted by the casual display of wealth, misinterpreting the Lord of Hell's generosity as elite American corporate leverage.
Jane froze on the sofa.
Hermione practically cradled the small velvet box in her trembling hands, terrified of dropping. Her eyes darted down to the emerald necklace resting against her collarbone, the one he had casually given her during their second year. "H-How much was necklace?" she whispered, her throat tightening.
Lucifer let out a second sigh, rubbing his temple. "Just under forty-nine thousand..."
She genuinely thought she was going to begin hyperventilating right there. The white-gold bracelet currently resting safely up in her bedroom drawer didn't feature a precious gem in its wiring, so felt safe in assuming that it wasn't even a tiny fraction of the exorbitant price of other jewelry her boyfriend had carelessly handed over the terms.
"Lucifer," She said his name quietly, her eyes looking up into his face with overwhelmed emotion, this had broken her reputation, she was at this point, nothing but really a gold digger, "I--I can't possibly accept this level of wealth.... You shouldn't have spent so much on... on me..."
"Don't be ridiculous, Granger," Lucifer said shifting across rug, sliding close to her side until shoulder stopped trembling stance, "You are the most important person in my existence... I would gladly give you the literal moon if it were not for Gabriel guarding the airspace."
His voice richly devoted that caused both Jane and Linda to let out a soft sound of nervous giggles, "There is nothing, I won't buy for you pet. Especially if your heart desires it."
Hermione lost her remaining self-control. Disregarding the adults watching them, she reached and connected her lips straight to his in a teary, breathless kiss.
When she sat back onto her heels, a brilliant smile broke through her choked tears, "You... are unbelievable, Lucifer Morningstar..."
"I'm sorry about the secrecy earlier... I was genuinely afraid of telling you price and causing a scene," Lucifer said, a trace of nervousness breaking as he scratched his right cheek slightly, unknown to his own pride, habit looked cute in Hermione's eyes.
"No, don't worry about it at all," She said softly, turning back down to the glittering gold band, "Put it onto my left hand right now!"
Lucifer took the warded promise ring out of its velvet cradle. Hermione happily extended her small left hand, and he smoothly slid it onto her finger. She looked down, which now shined beautifully with a deep red glare in the center, a few tiny tears of pure joy forming in her orbits as she squealed in delight. "Ehehe, I'll also start wearing those earrings I can after I get my ears pierced this week!"
"And when were you planning?" Wendell asked his granddaughter, his voice tight, why didn't he know about any of this beforehand?
"Sometime before our Christmas break is over, Grandpa," Hermione stated with clarity, giving the old man a sharp look that clearly iterated she wouldn't budge from her decision.
Wendell could only let out a defeated sigh, realizing he had lost the argument before it even started properly, "Okay... you are old enough to decide for yourself," he muttered begrudgingly.
"Oh, thank you!" Hermione stood up fluidly and rushed forward to wrap arms tightly around her grandfather's shoulders to thank him for approving the piercing.
Lucifer didn't miss the warning glare he received from Wendell over her bushy curls, but at that moment, he couldn't find to care a bit. He was far too glad to see Hermione happy about being able to wear his gifts without relying on 'Concealment charms;' Mr. Granger could be wishing death upon for the rest of the winter, and he wouldn't care.
"Okay, Lucifer," Hermione said happily after she went back and sat down directly in front of his knees, reaching down to grab small wrapped present she had prepared for his holiday. "Open yours right now!"
xxxxxxx
Lucifer took the wrapped package and placed in front of his boots, opening the paper carefully. Inside resting was something he was not expecting to see in this Muggle household. "My copy of Classroom of the Elite, Volume 1..." He looked up into her face, but knowing look written across her features silently instructed him to not open the main box in front of Mark's eyes. He quickly caught the hint, playing along with a dry chuckle, "Thank you, Hermione. You didn't have to return the text so quickly, but thank you... I had actually been missing the plot of this book lately," he joked.
"It was a fantastic psychological read for a light novel, Lucifer. I'm just glad you loaned it to me," Hermione thanked him with a smile. He then reached down to open the larger, heavy box prepared by her mother and grandfather, tore the paper off, inside was a solid-gold pocket-watch resting on satin cushions.
Lucifer looked between the two adults, his eyes softening, "You both didn't have to spend to get me something this..."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous, we wanted to get it for you," Jane said warmly, her eyes crinkling , "You are easily the best thing to ever happen to our daughter's life. Being her very first friend... I only wish we could have gotten it better to match your tastes."
Lucifer took the watch out of its confines, sliding gold chain securely into his pajama pocket, "Thank you, both of you. I appreciate it immensely."
"Treat Hermione right, boy, and you will always be warmly welcomed under our household roof," Mr. Granger stated, his voice was quite serious but fair.
Lucifer's eyes went briefly distant for a fraction of a second, remembering the physical fallout that had occurred at the end of their third year when the Dementors had breached the lake. Sensing the sudden drop in his posture, Hermione gently placed her warm hand over his knee in a comforting grounding gesture, silently mouthing the three words across the short space: 'I love you.'
xxxxxx
Later that night, when the house had finally gone quiet and Hermione was safely alone inside the privacy of her locked bedroom, she carefully unwrapped the final, mysterious present her mother had set aside for her hands. Based on the way Jane had acted during the delivery, she almost hadn't wanted to break the tape.
She tore the decorative paper off, revealing another standard clothing box beneath the surface, which she expected. What she did not expect to see inside the tissue paper, however, was an incredibly intricate, lace lingerie set resting on the silk.
Her face instantly flushed out of pure embarrassment as she pulled the delicate fabric out of the box to get a better structural look at measurements.
"What in name of Holy... was Mum thinking when she purchased this?" She whispered to the empty room, her heart racing, looked down at her own developing curves in mirror, then back up to lace, "Well... I suppose I might as well see to fit properly..."
She made double sure her brass door lock was tightly turned before she disrobed herself, leaving skin entirely bare in warmth of room, before she cautiously pulled the tight lingerie over her thighs and chest.
Hermione walked slowly over to her long mirror and looked at her reflection, feeling a little ridiculous and exposed under the fabric. But as she adjusted the straps, figured it wasn't her own opinion that mattered tonight.
"Lucifer... his opinion is the one that matters... I should wear on a special occasion for him," She murmured softly, her fingers tracing the lace.
Hermione gave her reflection a long, hard look in the glass, biting her lip as she tried her best to look seductive and desirable. But no matter how hard she tried to project confidence, her persistent self doubt flared up, and she couldn't find herself looking even semi-attractive, let alone genuinely desirable compared to the sleek pure-blood girls at school.
She let out a disappointed moan, taking the lace lingerie back off her skin. But instead of pulling her pajamas back over torso, she decided that a warm bubble bath down the hall was what stressed nerves required to calm down.
She gathered a clean set of underwear and her cotton night clothes into her arms, carefully unlocking bedroom door. She stepped out into dark hallway, moving with caution to not make noise, given that she was currently walking nude through the corridor. Hermione carefully checked the parameters; the hallway was empty, and no one was currently inside the washroom.
She stepped inside, turning the warm lights on, and ran the tap water into porcelain tub, adding a generous amount of scented soap to create a mountain of white bubbles.
After the temperature was to her desire, she slid her body into the water, letting out contented sigh as the warmth hit her skin, easing the residual tension from Ministry trial.
As she leaned her head back against the rim, watching the steam rise toward the ceiling, her mind drifted back to the hallway. She quietly decided to herself that only thing which could make this holiday night better would be if Lucifer suddenly walked through that door, caught her starkers in the tub, and offered to wash her breasts.
xxxxxx
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