A/N: Well since two of the reviewers of Ignored wished for a sequel, here it is. This is dedicated to my own father.
Warnings: Since it's my first time writing Hermione's parents, it might be a bit OOC. And it's a bit longer than Ignored. Oh, sorry about the title. I couldn't think of anything else to name this.
Disclaimer: All characters belong to JK Rowling.
THE CONFRONTATION
Sitting on her favourite chair in her room was Hermione Granger, reading her book with one leg dangling, almost reaching the floor. One of her hands was playing with her hair while the other was holding the book. At times, she would pull on her hair when she got to the interesting part of the story. Or she would scrunch up her face and tilted her head slightly when she didn't think it made sense.
Realising she'd been sitting too long, Hermione stretched her arms and legs. She placed a mark on the page she was reading on and stood up slowly. Her eyes then wandered to the picture frames on top of her bedside table. She walked towards it and took one of the frames. It was a moving-picture of Ron and herself at the Burrow, with him hugging her from behind. Sometimes they would wave at the camera or just stare into each other's eyes.
Smiling, she ran a finger along the face of the picture-Ron. She missed him today – he was so busy with his work on WWW that they couldn't even talk for awhile when Hermione came to visit.
She reluctantly placed the frame down and picked up the other one which was a still-picture of her parents standing outside the house. She started to shed some tears as she saw how happy her father looked on the day this picture was taken. She wished she could see that same smile again. She really hoped that tonight was the night: she would confront him whether he liked it or not.
Wiping the tears off her cheeks, she put back the frame where it belonged. She took a deep breath and walked to the only mirror in the room. Her eyes and nose were red, she noticed. She walked out of her room quietly and entered the bathroom just in front of her door. Locking the bathroom door, she walked to the mirror and tied her hair into a messy bun. She then washed her face, fully hoping that none of her parents would notice she had just been crying.
As she opened the door, she saw her mother knocking on her bedroom door.
"Mum, I'm here."
Her mother turned around to face her daughter. "Oh, Hermione dear. Dinner's ready but I still need help in arranging the cutleries."
Hermione nodded. "Okay, I'll be down in a moment."
The older woman smiled and walked down the hall towards the kitchen downstairs.
As soon as her mother was out of her view, Hermione entered her room again to find Pig perching on her chair. She smiled and dashed towards it. She opened the letter and read:
Dear Hermione,
I'm sorry we couldn't talk properly today. I was so busy that I even had to ask George for lunch. He really didn't want me to have some time to breathe.
Anyway, have you talked to your Dad lately? I know it's only been days after you told me that night, but I think it's time for you to face him. You can't possibly avoid him forever, you know.
Well, my stomach is rumbling now. So I've got to go. I miss you and I love you.
Forever yours, Ron.
P.S: do you want me to come over tonight as well?
Hermione giggled despite the short letter she had just received. She replied an even shorter letter to him as her mother was expecting her downstairs soon. After it was done, she tied the letter to Pig and let it out of the room. Then, she went downstairs.
"Oh, there you are, Hermione," said Mrs Granger right after the daughter entered the kitchen. "I was going to call you again."
"I'm sorry, Mum. I've got an owl from Ron." Hermione then picked up a number of spoons and forks before going out to the dining table. On the corner of her eyes, she saw her father sitting on the sofa, reading some newspapers. She took her time to place the cutleries, hoping he would at least look up and smile. When all he did was continue reading, Hermione inaudibly sighed and re-entered the kitchen.
"How's Ron? I haven't seen him in awhile."
She looked over to her mother who was washing her hands by the sink. "He's doing well. And so is the business." She leaned against the kitchen counter. "In fact, it's doing so well that George's asked him to work even on the weekends too." Hermione lowered her eyes to the floor. "Today was no exception: we only met for less than five minutes. All we talked about was how we're both doing. That's all."
"Don't worry, Hermione," said Mrs Granger, causing Hermione to look up. "I'm sure one day George will give Ron a day off for working hard."
"I know," she mumbled. And continued this in her mind, but knowing George, Ron might only get the day off next year. She sighed again as she looked down. Oh, Ron.
"Is dinner ready yet, love?" asked Mr Granger from the living room.
"In a minute, dear," replied Mrs Granger before standing in front of Hermione. "Are you okay, Hermione?" she asked the question in a low voice so her husband wouldn't hear it. "What's on your mind?"
"Other than missing Ron," Hermione paused, looking away from her mother's eyes, "I miss Dad too." She took a deep breath before continuing, "You know that Dad and I haven't been talking for weeks – it's almost a month actually." Tears started to form in her eyes suddenly. "I miss talking to him, laughing with him, his hugs, his smile, his kiss on the cheek before he goes to work." She placed her hands on her face, tears pouring down faster. "And I miss talking to you too, Mum. We only see each other either before you go off for work or after you return."
Mrs Granger gathered her in her arms. "Oh, I'm really sorry, Hermione," she whispered soothingly. She patted her daughter's back gently. "For everything – for not being with you when you need me, for not being at home as often as we used to." She pulled Hermione's head away. "And I'm sure your father is too."
Hermione nodded. She thought for a while before voicing what's on her mind, "Will Dad ever forgive me for sending you both to Australia? There was nothing else I could do at that time."
"He already did, love, a long time ago."
Hermione wiped her tears away briskly. "Then why hasn't he talked to me yet?"
"Because he thought that you're the one who's angry with him for not talking to you," answered Mrs Granger, helping her brush the tears. Before Hermione could add more, she continued, "I know what you're thinking, but you know your father. He's not one to talk about his feelings unless prompted. Now," she placed her hands on Hermione's cheeks, "wash your face. Time for dinner. You can have a talk with him afterwards."
Smiling, Hermione hugged her mother tightly. "Thank you, Mum." She hurriedly ran to the bathroom upstairs to freshen up. Taking a deep breath, she walked out towards the dining table.
Dinner passed by faster than Hermione had first expected. She walked to the kitchen with her plate and cutleries in hand. After being told by her mother that she should talk to Mr Granger now instead of helping her wash the dishes, she walked back to the dining room to find her father reading the newspapers again. Taking a deep breath for the umpteenth time that night, she approached him with a determination to set things straight with her father.
Clearing her throat, she asked, "Dad, may I talk to you?" Without waiting for an answer, she took a seat on the other sofa next to his.
Mr Granger folded the newspapers and placed it on the table in front of him. He changed his position so he could face his only daughter better. Before he could say anything though, he was interrupted by her.
"I'm sorry, Dad," she said, not wanting to look at him in the eye, "for sending you off to Australia without consulting both of you and Mum first. But I did that because I knew you wouldn't allow me. I knew," Hermione wiped her tears, not realising that she had started to cry, "that you would stay here with me. Or you would probably want me to go with you to some place whereas I wanted to stay." She sniffed. "After I modified your memories and sent you there, I couldn't bring myself to stand up. I had to get help from the Weasleys, especially Ron. He was always there for me whenever I needed him. He still is." She paused. "I spent every single day crying and regretting what I've done to you and Mum. I always had this thought where I wouldn't return to you or you wouldn't remember you had a daughter." Hermione cried louder. "I knew that it might be better if you didn't know, but it's still a hard thing to do." She finally looked up. "Modifying your memories was one of – no, the hardest thing I had to do. I'm sorry, Dad."
Mr Granger then stood up and walked to where her daughter was sitting. He took her in his arms. "I should be the one apologising to you, Hermione love. I'm sorry." He ran his hand up and down her back. "After you told us about what you did back then, I admit that I was a bit angry and disappointed. But I knew the reasons why you did it without our consent, even though it took one night to realise that." He paused, taking a deep breath. "The next morning, I wanted to apologise to you for what I've done that night. But you didn't even come out of the room. And when you did, you only talked with your Mum."
"Because I thought you were angry with me," mumbled Hermione. "And you looked really disappointed in me every time I saw you."
He stroked his daughter's hair tenderly. "Of course not, love. I was really proud of you for being able to do that. I am proud of you." He kissed her forehead. "Your mother and I are."
Hermione pulled away. "So do you forgive me, Dad? For everything I've done to this date?"
"I already have, Hermione." Mr Granger smiled for the first time that night – the first smile Hermione had seen after a few weeks. "Do you accept your old father's apology?"
She laughed, hugging him tightly. "You're not old, Dad. At least not yet anyway."
He also laughed. "Well, thank you for the compliment. But do you forgive me, love?"
Hermione nodded.
A/N: Error or no error [which is clearly impossible], is it worth a review? Well anyway, I hope you enjoy this. Til next time..