Hermione still felt it in the sideways glances, the lingering hugs, the hand that brushed her sleeve or her back. The fire still burned in her veins. She had once commented that Ginny was fire and herself was ice, but Ginny had thrust her tongue in Hermione's mouth and then declared that Hermione made her body burn, so the metaphor didn't stick.

But they weren't children anymore, and fire plus fire only brought pain anyway. Hermione was not about to let a childhood fling ruin the beautiful families they had both built. Ginny could be the fire. Hermione would be the ice.

.

"Hermione!" Ginny would run to hug her on the holidays, molding her body around whichever child Hermione was holding, and Hermione would catch the scent of her hair - vanilla - and her heart would yearn and her blood would burn. She would pull away and press on a smile to match Ginny's, and then she would shy away from her touch for the rest of the evening.

They were friends, so shopping trips were frequent. Sometimes they would take a baby or two, and sometimes Molly would insist they had the day to themselves.

"What should we do?" Hermione would ask, and Ginny would grab her hand and drag her off on an adventure, like when they were kids. Hermione would watch the enthusiasm dance over Ginny's face and she would feel the fire burn again. So she would focus on the way Ginny's ears stuck out just a little too much, or the stray strand of her flaming hair until she felt the cold again.

Sometimes one of the babies would cry, and Ginny would croon and joke until everyone was all smiles, and she was such a good mum that Hermione would feel the ice melting and have to walk away.

Sometimes she hated herself so much for feeling the way she did. She loved Ron, she really did - but how could she love them both at the same time? What was wrong with her? She would cry in the bathroom because she didn't understand and Ron - bless his sweet, well-meaning heart - would call Ginny over, and Ginny would hold her on the bathroom floor, and Hermione would feel worse when she eventually left.

.

"That's a beautiful dress, Lily," Hermione smiled as the little girl twirled, and Ginny wiped away a tear. She smiled sadly over her shoulder to Hermione.

"My baby's growing up," she whispered, and the ice Hermione tried so hard to keep around her heart shattered. She wrapped her arms around her friend and kissed her beautiful neck where it met her beautiful shoulder. Ginny entwined their fingers and kissed Hermione's hand. "She's so beautiful," she mumbled.

"She looks just like you," Hermione whispered back.