Hermione was in the library … as usual. Though, to be honest she really had no reason to be there, her homework was done, she was ready for her classes the following day and she had all the notes she needed to start her potions essay. It astounded her when she realised she may actually be getting bored of the library. She gave in to the idea and closed the book before her, adding it to the pile on the desk beside her before standing to return them to their shelves.
She was struggling to reach the shelf where her copy of 'Carnivorous Magical Creatures' belonged when a voice startled her and she dropped all of her books, one, the heaviest by the feel of it, on her toes
"Ow! Oh Merlin's – ow!" she whined
"I am so sovvy" clutching her injured foot and mortified Hermione looks up slowly
"Viktor Krum" she whispers in surprise
"Hervmynonny Granger" he smiles down at her before bending to pick up her books, she's still biting her lip to keep from laughing at his pronunciation of her name
"Close enough" she smiles "thank you" she tells him as he begins sliding her books on to shelves
"It is no pvoblem. Especially since I frightened you and caused you injurevy" she smiles awkwardly and takes a book from the pile he's holding to return it to its place
"What brings you to the library?" she wonders. He definitely doesn't seem the type, though she's sure he must be smart for the goblet to have picked him. When he doesn't answer she glances at him to find him looking from her to the last book in his hands
"I vondered- vell I, I vas hoping you vould accompany me to the Yule Vall?"
"What?" she exclaimed
"Ah! Zis damn accent!" he growls, his jaw ticking in frustration
"No, no, I understood" she assures him "but me?!"
"Yes, you" he chuckles "vhy is that so hard to believe?"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes I am sure" he laughs, Hermione frowns "am I to take that as I vill be going alone?"
"No, no" she shakes her head
"Did somevun alveady ask you?"
"No, I would like that, to go with you"
"Yes?" he grins
"Yes" her smile matches his.
Hermione is taken away with just how charming he is, she's not some silly fan girl, she doesn't even like quidditch but he really is very talented and anyone can see how handsome he is. They've stayed in the library, wandering amongst the stacks just chatting, she can't believe how much he makes her laugh and she feels lighter than air. When he pulls a face, sucking in his cheeks, puckering his lips and going cross eyed, she bites down on her hand to keep from making a sound. Under all that brooding silence, sullen scowls and intense seriousness she sees he's really nothing short of wonderful.
"Stop stop" she pleads, trying to contain herself "my sides hurt"
"I'm glad that if I am ever to cause you any pain, it vill be from laffing too hard" Hermione sobers quite quickly at his words and reluctantly admits it's time she left
"I'm sorry Viktor, I have to go" he nods in understanding and reaches for her hand
"Then may I please, kiss your cheek? To say goodbye" she nods confidently and the corners of his mouth quirk up before he dips down to brush his lips over her cheek. He pulls away slowly and their eyes meet, they stare unblinking for a few moments and then lunge at each other. Their lips clash and Hermione finds herself pinned to a wall. She doesn't know when she lifted her legs and wrapped them around Viktor's hips and she doesn't remember lifting her hands to cup his jaw but she doesn't care, it feels amazing. Every nerve ending in her is alive and receptive to his touch, her skirt is already bunched around her waist when his hand glides up the outside of her thigh and she wishes he weren't so hesitant to grab her ass. She lifts her hips to encourage him and he groans, she feels the reverberations on her tongue. The sound seems to waken him from the trance they were in because suddenly he's pulled back and she's devastated "you had to be going" he reminds her in a low murmur and she comes back to earth still panting. He kisses her softly again when she drops her legs from his hips "vhen can I see you again?"
"When are you free?" she answers dreamily, earning a grin
"Vhat is your schedvul for tomovow?"
"I have transfigurations, herbology and defence against the dark arts, I'll be free by lunch"
"Then lunch it is, perhaps a tour of the gvounds? If you'd be so kind"
"That sounds nice" she agrees, kissing him again, then once more. They almost get carried away again but this time she stops it, shaking her head to clear it
"Until tomovow Hermynonny" he bows, kissing her knuckles gentlemanly
"Remind me to teach you how to say my name" she laughs
"It vould be for the best I think" he calls after her.
Hermione makes her way back to the Gryffindor common room in a daze, grinning like the hopelessly giddy schoolgirl she was. Maybe the library wasn't so boring after all.
-x-
She can't believe no one notices her excitement when she gets back to the common room, she's practically humming with electric energy and bounces as she walks. It carries right through the evening and when she finally gets into bed she can't settle no matter what she does.
Her sleep isn't restful but when she remembers what kept her up, she's glad to be a little drowsy. She brushes and flosses her teeth almost too thoroughly that morning and allows an extra fifteen minutes to do something with her hair. It's smoother than usual but she really doesn't want to be too obvious.
She gets to speak to Viktor again much sooner than she had thought she would. She sits at the Gryffindor table in the great hall with Ron, Harry, Ginny and Neville, she can't stop smiling as she eats her fruit
"Whatta you grinning about?" Ron asks, displaying a large amount of ground up sausage as he does so
"Lovely" she grimaces
"Well?" he prompts
"Can a girl not smile when she wants?" she retorts
"Not first thing in the morning" he grumbles. As Hermione rolls her eyes a small paper plane flits over and lands neatly on her empty plate. Discreetly, she snatches the parchment from its spot and opens it in her lap, in a neat print it reads
'My morning is much brighter for having seen you. I count the minutes until we can be together this afternoon. Viktor' it's most unlike her but she lets out a girlish squeal. She glances over her shoulder, towards the Slytherin table where the Durmstrang boys have been sitting and spots Viktor immediately, because he's already staring intently at her. She blushes, remembering their heated moments yesterday and he winks at her
"Oh not you as well" Ron groans, breaking her trance "poor Harry's already lost Cho to Cedric, we don't need you making gooey eyes at him too"
"Ron" Harry hisses and Hermione turns to see between her and Viktor, is Cedric Diggory
"I wasn't making gooey eyes at Cedric" Hermione rolls her eyes, he wasn't the champion she had a date with this afternoon.
Her classes dragged, she enjoyed them as she always did but she was anxious to see if Viktor really was as amazing as she remembered. After defence against the dark arts she was happy enough to skip lunch all together in the hopes of finding Viktor earlier. Turns out he was the one to find her
"Hominny" it still wasn't perfect but it was better she laughed "how is my beautiful Hominny?"
"Hello Viktor" she hugged him quickly while they were alone, students started to file in to the corridors and she took his hand pulling him away from where it would be busiest "come on".
They strolled through the gardens first, it wasn't exactly warm out so they were alone while most were eating in the great hall
"From vhat I can gather, you are an exceptional vitch?" Viktor asks, lacing their fingers, she shrugs
"I'm just a bookworm. I'm really no better than anyone else who bothered to study"
"I don't believe you" he smiles "but your modesty is vefreshing"
"From what I can gather you're quite an exceptional quidditch player?" she jokes
"Meh" he shrugs "I caught a snitch once" she laughs at his joke and he tugs on her hand, bringing her closer so he can loop his arm around her
"I saw you play in the world cup" she tells him "I'm terrified of flying but the way you do it is quite beautiful"
"I have a confession to make" Hermione looks up at him in question and he drops his gaze "I vecognised you"
"What do you mean?"
"I have been thinking about you since the vorld cup. I saw you and … vell" he grins "that Wronski Feint vasn't planned"
"You mean to tell me, I almost killed you?!"
"So little faith in me?" he teases, burrowing in to her neck with his nose
"I didn't know you then"
"Then it is settled, I vould like you to come and vatch me play again, as my guest"
"I think I'd like that very much. Providing you don't crash or fall off your broom or anything"
"Good" he smiles widely, then gets distracted by something over her head "vait here" he pecks her cheek and jogs down the banking, making his way towards a freshly bloomed patch of daffodils. Panic overtook her as she realised the pretty flowers were nestled directly under the whomping willow. As the trees branches come to life she yelled the first thing that come to mind
"Accio jacket!" it was a stroke of pure luck that Viktor happened to fly back towards her a few metres before the jacket ripped from his body and landed in her hands. The largest knotted branch at the top of the tree struck the ground, barely inches from Viktor with a crash leaving him in shock "Viktor!" she helped him clamber to his feet after stumbling down he banking to him. Then together they moved further away from the tree, out of the reach of any pesky branches that might reach them "are you alright?"
"I'm fine, are you hurt?"
"No. I'm sorry, I should've warned you, I didn't think"
"Nonsense" he grins, cupping her cheek "vhat's life vithout a little excitement" she laughs airily and presses her lips to his roughly. He turns to face her fully and plants his hands on the ground each side of her. She's eager and pulls him over her so he's on all fours as he peppers kisses down her throat "this sort of excitement I could get used to" she feels him grinning against her jaw and strokes the hairs at the back of his neck
"Maybe not somewhere quite this public though" she giggles
"I don't mind if you don't" he teases. After a quiet minute of laying on the grass, Hermione stops stroking his neck
"What's your favourite colour?" he lifts his head from her shoulder and looks her in the eye
"Vight now, the chocolate of your eyes, the rose of your cheeks, the pink of your lips" his serious tone makes her blush and she bites her lip nervously
"You're very charming Viktor"
"I believe it is you that brings it out of me. Vhich is odd vecause I used to find myself so tongue tied avound you"
"You don't have a favourite colour then?" she laughs
"Ved, I like ved" he grins
"Like your uniform?"
"No, zhat's too bvight. I think you call it bvurgundy. Vhat colour does the mysterious Miss Gvanger like?"
"I don't really have a favourite" she muses "although I am becoming quite fond of red" she adds, referring to the crimson colour Durmstrang wear under their winter coats. Thinking about the cold she shivers
"I am sovvy, it is varmer here zan in Bulgarvia. You must be feezing"
"A little" she admits
"Come on, let's get you inside".
They end up outside the Gryffindor common room, where she'd normally be now and he takes both her hand in his
"I've had a vunderful time vid you today Hominny" she smiles
"I forgot to teach you my name"
"Teach me now, so I can pvactice all evening"
"Her – my – o – nee" she enunciates it slowly
"Her – my – no – nee" he tries
"Her – my – o – nee" she repeats, her smile growing
"Her – my – nee"
"Almost" she grins at him "her – my – o – nee"
"Her – my – o – nee"
"Yes" she giggles
"Hermyonee" he beams "Hermione"
"Well done Krum" she leans up on to the balls of her feet and kisses the corner of his mouth
"I vill keep pvacticing for you"
"Will I see you tomorrow?" she wonders
"I vould like that. Perhaps, we could eat bveakfast together? If you vould like?"
"I- yes alright. What about- what about your fan club?" he groans
"It is verse 'ere. I can't seem to escape them. You do not have to eat vith me if they bother you"
"No I'd like to, maybe we could go a bit earlier?"
"Alvight, I'll be vaiting. Until tomorrow Моят скъпоценни красота" at Hermione's puzzled look he hurries to explain "until tomovow my pvecious beauty" they kiss hungrily for a few minutes until a woman in one of the paintings clears her throat "goodbye"
"Bye".