Disclaimer: This is based off of JK Rowling's Harry Potter. Please don't come after me just for having some fun with her characters.
A/N: I've left my other two stories on hold indefinitely, mainly because I've left their plots behind, as well. I think at this point, it just makes sense to make another plotline I can work off of, and go from there. And so, I came up with...
The Flavor of Life
Summary: Third year Hermione Granger faces a bit of setback when her Time-Turner malfunctions. What will she do when given a second chance?
Chapter 1 The Mistake
"Expelliarmus!"panted Harry, his green eyes flaring in rage.
"Protego!" responded Draco, expertly deflecting the spell into the crowd. The red spell disappeared, and a wand flew out of the crowd and towards Harry. That was just the distraction Draco needed to get off the spell his father had told him to use.
"Sectumsempra," he incanted with a smirk, his wand pointed at Harry's heart. But unlike Draco's last few spells, Harry couldn't get out of the way of this one. He was too focused on the wand flying towards him.
When Hermione heard the spell escape Draco's mouth, she just knew it was dark. That's why she was so glad Harry had such excellent reflexes, so that he could easily sidestep the spell and retaliate with a light spell. Then he'd win without ever stooping to Draco's level. Yet, as Hermione waited a second for the telltale signs of movement, Harry never budged. His eyes were transfixed upwards and away from the spell. Hermione knew that he had heard the spell, so why wasn't he doing anything? That spell had been dark! It could be deadly, especially knowing Draco. Hermione's mind wandering back to the Harry and Draco's fight at the dueling club second year and made up her mind.
She let go of her over-analytical mind for a moment and let her instinct take over. Without a second thought, she pushed Harry out of the way of the spell and found herself in its path. Facing forward, she didn't have the time to jump out of the way. The malicious green light instantly connected with her chest as Harry fell to the ground. Moments later, she crumpled with him as the soft flesh on her chest began to part.
Hermione bit back a scream at the fierce pain. It felt like someone crudely cutting her with a knife, then pulling apart the skin to expose her ribcage. As she prepared for the terrible pain of air hitting her lungs, the cutting suddenly stopped. Her rapid breathing began to settle, and her mind came back to her. Hermione was overjoyed to look up and see Harry looking down at her, and most importantly, completely unharmed.
Hermione wasn't quite as lucky. She peered down at her chest to see blood blossoming darkly on her school robes. Curiously, Hermione wasn't in great pain at this point, instead feeling quite lightheaded. Before even saying a word, Hermione examined the growing cut and was startled to find her Time-Turner in the center of it, dented and soaked in blood.
That was the last thing she saw before she fainted into the comfort of unconsciousness. No one noticed—not even Harry—that her eyes had rolled back in her head. Instead, everyone's attention was transfixed on the Potions Professor who had just entered the room.
"Mr. Potter! Twenty points from Gryffindor for starting this fight!" scolded Snape, his face slightly flushed in fury. Ron's face went beet red.
"But Malfoy called Hermione a mudblood then shot a spell at Harry!" Ron responded. Harry noticed something was wrong with Hermione and was desperately trying to get the attention of Snape. Harry was failing completely.
"Ten points for speaking out of turn Weasley! Do not make me take anymore." But Ron continued on.
"...and then he shot a dark spell at Harry!"
"Will someone please help Hermione!" Harry screamed, interrupting the little feud. Hermione was not responding to anything that Harry did, and Harry assumed that was a bad sign. Snape, still furious, turned away from Ron for a moment to see Harry bending over Hermione, who was now thoroughly soaked in blood.
"Mobilicorpus," Snape said without hesitation. With his robes billowing in his wake, he left the room with Hermione's body floating in front of him.
Harry and Ron followed him to the infirmary, leaving behind a puddle of blood, a smug pureblood, and a crowd with mouths agape in awe of it all.
FOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOL
Harry Potter sat in a rickety oak wood chair in the Hospital Wing, slowly rocking back and forth. It practically a routine for him now: get up, check on Hermione, eat breakfast by Hermione's side, go to class, check on Hermione, eat lunch, head back to classes, check on Hermione and do homework, eat dinner, and check on Hermione before bed. It was exhausting, and Harry was deathly worried for Hermione. She had been out for over a week now because of excessive blood loss. The spell Draco had uttered completely severed an artery in Hermione's chest, cutting off circulation to her brain, which could have caused permanent damage. Depending on how long her brain was deprived of oxygen, she could never wake up out of unconsciousness. The whole situation was too much for Ron. He didn't even come to see Hermione anymore, trying to avoid the harsh reality as though evasion could mean it never happened. That left Harry to hold his silent vigil over Hermione alone.
The tension in the room was palpable. Madam Pomfrey was always grim whenever she walked into the room, a blank expression glued to her face. She had given up scolding Harry to leave days ago, not possessing the heart to keep him away from his friend. Despite any progress, she did not let herself get too happy. Most of the time, it was false hope. She had done all she could do to heal the wounds and restore Hermione's blood levels, so now all they could do was wait.
It took two more days of stress for Hermione to stir. Harry was by her side late on that Sunday night holding her hand when he felt it. Her finger moved, as though Hermione had felt Harry there. When Harry told Madam Pomfrey of the news, she looked crestfallen. She told Harry that unconscious people could often twitch or make movements, it didn't necessarily mean there was any progress. Yet Harry was not deterred in the slightest.
"It felt like she knew I was there, holding her hand," he stated, still clinging on to hope.
"Well, try not to get your hopes up, Harry. I'll admit it's progress, but she could still never come back to us," replied Madam Pomfrey, wanting to believe him. She had been through the same situation too many times before to be misled, though. She knew Hermione's prospects where terribly grim.
"But this felt like Hermione consciously reassuring me like she's done a million times before. I know that touch!" said Harry, still not believing her. Madam Pomfrey smiled sadly before turning to exit the room.
"Wha-what's happening?" a weak voice murmured. Madam Pomfrey stopped and turned around. Harry looked at Hermione but there was no movement. How odd.
The mediwitch stood there for a moment, gazing curiously at the girl before turning around. She left the room and Harry behind, silently staring at Hermione, wishing for something to happen. The Sun silently set while Harry waited, leaving him looking at Hermione's pale face in candlelight. In the dim light, Harry saw Hermione's lips move, and her eyes flutter open.
"Whe—where am I?" asked Hermione, her voice very weak. "Is this the Hospital Wing?" Hermione blinked rapidly, trying to get the room to come into focus. Before Harry could answer, Madam Pomfrey burst into the room, looking prepared and the happiest she had been in days.
"Why yes it is, Miss Granger."
"Why am I here?"
"You took quite a spell in the chest, I'm afraid. You suffered profuse blood loss, slight skin necrosis, and oxygen deprivation in your brain. We'll have to check on your body's functions later to make sure that your brain still in tip-top shape, but for now, your being awake is the best sign I could have hoped for."
"We were worried you would never wake up," Harry added, his eyes filled with tears of joy.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry for making you worry," said Hermione groggily. "I assure you, I never meant to. I was just trying to protect you. But before I catch up on what I've missed, I'm worried about the loss of body functions Madam Pomfrey mentioned."
"Yes-well, I suppose we could check now," said Madam Pomfrey. "I just assumed you would like to talk to your friend, whose been here watching over you for a week now."
"Really?" asked Hermione.
"Yes," Harry answered. "But let's make sure you're in top shape before I really get you angry."
"Angry—why would I be angry?" Madam Pomfrey stepped in before Harry could answer.
"Well, Harry, I'll need you to leave the room while I perform the diagnostic exam. It will just take a few moments, okay?" Harry nodded and left Hermione in the careful care of the mediwitch.
FOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOL
A few hours later, Hermione sat up in her bed, eagerly listening to Harry talk. She was none worse for the wear despite some muscle loss from the week in bed. But otherwise, there was no apparent magic damage to speak of, and Hermione was the same as always.
"So let me get this straight. Draco didn't even get points taken away, let alone expelled, for firing the spell at me?" asked Hermione increduosly .
"Well, Snape reluctantly took five points away for firing the spell, but there's little evidence that the spell was dark. For all they know, it could have been a reductor curse. It had the same effects, anyway," replied Harry.
"Hmmm, I guess that the spell didn't really hit me full blast, which must have made it less incriminating." Hermione sighed. "But now that leaves Draco without punishment. Didn't anyone even mention that the spell was green and did not sound at all like 'reducto'?"
"Yes, well, when Ron mentioned that the spell was not reducto, Snape instantly pointed out that the opinions of the crowd on anything that happened were not trustworthy in any sense of the word. All of the students who were there were quite distraught with the whole scene. And when you have conflicting groups of opinion on what happened, how can you prove either correct short of veritserum?"
"I suppose," Hermione said, still not completely convinced. "I guess I'll just have to let that go, as unbelievable as the whole series of events is. Did Snape get in any sort of trouble?"
"None at all. When Ron mentioned that if Snape had gotten to the Hospital Wing even a second sooner, you'd probably be up and well, Snape countered it was Ron's rage that kept him the Infirmary and docked him another thirty points."
"Oh dear, Snape seemed to have put together quite the evasive tactics on this one, hasn't he? Both Malfoy and him got out unharmed, letting Ron take the fall," Hermione said. "Where is that git, anyways?"
"Ron? Or would you actually be asking me where Snape or Malfory is?"Harry asked with a playful smirk. Hermione glared before grinning.
"Ron... he hasn't been around much, has he?"
"No, not really. He's been avoiding the Hospital Wing as much as possible. He hasn't even been talking to me the past few days."
"Well, that is pretty git-like of him. I guess he's trying to supress the experience," remarked Hermione.
"What?" asked Harry, not catching Hermione's last statement.
"You'd think he'd be courageous like a true Gryffindor instead of hiding. Sometimes I wonder if he should really even be in the House, or if he's just in it because he's a Weasley."
"Hermione! He's brave, for the most part."
"I guess. Maybe he just wasn't ready for being brave emotionally."
"Brave emotionally?"
"Never mind. I'm just glad that one of you could pluck some courage and care about me."
"Ron cares, Hermione, he just has an odd way of showing it. I don't know how to explain it."
"Well not coming to see me isn't any way of showing care I know!" replied Hermione, incensed.
"Exactly."
"What!? What do you mean by exactly, Harry?"
"I think Ron might just be mulling over losing you alone, instead of coming here to see if you're okay. I don't know if you've done that."
"I mull plenty often," Hermione countered.
"But you're not Ron. He just has a different way of showing emotion."
"I suppose that might be true," Hermione sighed. "Hopefully he'll apologize for not coming at least. Otherwise, I don't know if I can forgive him for just forgetting about me."
"Hermione!"
"I'm serious Harry, he'd better if he knows what's good for him."
"I guess I'll prod him..." said Harry.
"No, he needs to apologize himself. No 'prodding,' as you put it. This is completely on Ron's shoulders. If he doesn't demonstrate that he's a mature person, it's goodbye."
"I guess you're set on this then."
"I think so."
"Really."
"Yes, really," replied Hermione, clearly fed up.
"Well then, I guess we can move onto what you missed in class. I've been getting notes from people in Ravenclaw on Arithmancy and Ancient Runes..."
"Oh my! I've been out for a week! I must have so much work to make up," said Hermione worriedly.
"Don't worry, you'll get through it Hermione! Pluck up some courage!"
"Using my own words against me, I see. Well, I really do have a lot of work I missed, don't I? There's courage, then there's being blind to the situation!"
"You do have a lot of work. I won't lie about that. You've missed a test in every subject, including a practical in potions and charms, and a load of homework on top of all that."
"Oh no!"
"But I think I'll help you with most of it. You'll have to do Runes and Arithmancy alone, of course, but..."
"Oh, Harry, thank you so much!" cried Hermione, hugging Harry. Harry stood rigid, patting Hermione on the shoulder before hugging her back.
"No problem."
"I think..." Hermione yawned, "it's due time I get to bed. I haven't had this much action in days and it's taking its toll on me. I'll see you in the morning?"
"Okay," replied Harry, smiling before walking away.
"And Harry?"
"Yeah," he said, turning around.
"Get a good night sleep. You like like shit."
"Hermione!"
"Yes... well, I'm allowed to be honest, even if it is brutal. Please, get some rest. You've been up worrying over me and you definitely deserve some respite."
"Okay. Night, 'Mione."
"Night Harry," Hermione murmured, closing her eyes and falling back onto the stiff Hospital pillow. Moments later, gentle constant breathing filled the room as Hermione fell into a peaceful slumber.
FOLFOLFOLFOLFOL
"Good Morning, Hermione." Hermione stirred, rubbing her eyes and fixing her hair before looking up.
"Harry! Is that you... oh, Ron... good morning, I suppose. Do you know where Harry is?" asked Hermione.
"Is that how you greet me after not seeing me for a week?"
"Yes, actually, when that week was spent with me in the hospital and you off partying or something. You could have at least stopped by!"
"How did you know that I never stopped coming?" asked Ron, trying to get away from being guilty.
"Because Harry was honest with me. He was here when I first woke up when you were Merlin knows where. I honestly can't believe I ever liked you! You clearly never liked me," said Hermione scathingly. She was most pissed that he just avoided her. Whether it be because of his simple emotional state or his actual lack of care, Hermione could care less. Either way, he demonstrated he was a poor friend and even worse potential boyfriend.
"That's not true, I," Ron stuttered, his face flushing, "I—di—did l-like you."
"Did?"
"Yes, did, before you got hurt," Ron admitted.
"How shallow," evaluated Hermione.
"What?"
"You moved on from me in the space of a week, and judging from your tone, you hold little remorse over your expedience. Really, you're just about as shallow as a simple bacteria."
"A what?" asked Ron, clearly confused. Hermione shook her head.
"I suppose you wouldn't know what that is. Well, let me rephrase it for you. If you liked me and moved on within the span of a week, you're about as deep as a piece of parchment."
"Now Hermione, that isn't fair."
"Yes, yes I believe it is. Harry didn't abandon me to go sulk, but you did when you supposedly liked me, romantically I assume." Ron blushed at Hermione's assumption, proving her correct.
"I'm sorry."
"Really, are you sorry?"
"Yes, I'm bloody sorry!" yelled Ron, his face flushing darker red.
"Whatever for?" asked Hermione, playing dumb. She examined her nails, acting as though she couldn't care in the slightest.
"You know what? If you're going to make this hard, I take that back. I'm not sorry. It was a lot to expect me to be in here every day watching over my friend. It was a lot to expect me to even say sorry. But you think you're above that, so you can go..."
"Ron!"
"You heard me. I think this is the end."
"Well, I've never..."
"I'm going to go ride my broom," grunted Ron before his swift exit.
"Are you saying that you value Quidditch over my friendship?" The hospital door slammed as Hermione finished her question.
"I guess that's an affirmative," Hermione quivered.
"Sometimes I just wish I didn't have to deal with that prat," she admitted. She stared at the door for a minute, and a tear silently slid down her cheek. Ron never came back.
FOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOL
After a good half hour of sulking, Hermione got up and looked around the room for clothes. She slipped into her robes before leaving the Infirmary and thanking Madam Pomfrey profusely, who gave her a hug before she left.
"Take care of yourself, dear. I don't think any of us want a repeat of that again, especially your friends," Madam Pomfrey chided softly.
"I'll try my best. And thanks again!" Hermione waved, and Madam Pomfrey smiled warmly and nodded.
Hermione was exerting herself just walking down the hallway, and within a few steps, felt her breathing puck up. She slowly walked down towards the Great Hall and ran into Harry.
"Oh, I was just on my way to see you," Harry said. He ruffled his hair with his hand and smiled.
"I thought it was high time I got out of there and eat a decent meal. Of course, I had no idea my legs would be so weak, but I think I'll make it downstairs okay."
"You sure you don't need any help?" Harry asked. Hermione was puffing as they walked down the hallway.
"I think," she paused for her breath, "I'll be fine. You can go on without me."
"Nah, I think I'll walk with you."
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"You know what, Harry?
"What?"
"Sometimes I wish Ron was as good of a friend as you," she admitted, her breathing heavy. "He did apologize to me, but then he rescinded it. Can you believe that?"
"I guess," said Harry, trying to follow Ron's actions.
"I was acting pretty indifferent I guess," said Hermione, going over the meeting in her head. "So maybe it was my fault. Should I even have expected a response?"
"Yes," Harry said without hesitation. "Ron was just being an arse."
"Really?"
"Yep. I would have probably felt the same way as you, you know."
"Thanks," said Hermione, smiling but panting. "And Harry?"
"What?"
"I think I'll take you up on that help." Harry grinned before taking her arm and giving her support down the stairs.
FOLFOLFOLFOLFOLFOL
They were late to breakfast and Hermione apologized for slowing them down. Harry didn't care, even though they didn't have the time sit down. Of course, Ron wasn't even there when they arrived, which didn't escape Hermione's notice as she grabbed a piece of toast and left for class.
As they neared the dungeon for Potions, Hermione dropped back for a moment.
"I'll be in in a minute," said Hermione reassuringly. She had dropped a book and was bending over to pick it up.
"Okay, see you inside," said Harry, turning his back and walking away.
With no one looking, Hermione pulled the golden necklace out of her robes and began to twist the dial. With a push, she set the Time-Turner into action.
The air crackled, and Hermione disappeared.
That was the last time Harry would ever see Hermione Jane Granger.
A/N: Oh dear, is that a cliff hanger? Well, there was no way I was continuing on that chapter after all that. I think I'm ready for the real fun to begin with the characters.
P.S. : I need a beta (if you couldn't tell), so if anyone would like to beta, please tell me. That would make me life quite a bit easier.