I wrote this a while ago-I adore Hermione, and I was interested in writing a short character study centered around her decision to Obliviate her parents. It's nothing earth-shattering, but I think I picked up on a new different facets of Hermione's influences and motivations. I could carry it on, but that all depends on feedback! Enjoy!
Hermione had never thought of herself as a soldier.
A crusader, maybe-a lover of justice and equality. But not a fighter.
After all, Hermione was largely unathletic; being short-waisted-and-full-breasted practically rules out all forms of running (how ironic that was!), and she was largely disinterested in team sports (although rooting for Ron and Harry at Quidditch often made her excited and proud and exhilarated). She worked best alone, unbothered, free to revel in the satisfaction of a job done well and completely.
Hermione was confrontational, perhaps-but only when she knew she was right, which was (admittedly) often; although since Hogwarts she had grown out of her know-it-all, show-off stage of preadolescence. That had dissipated when true fear was realized in the solid form of Voldemort and the unfolding of his new rise to power. Something shifts in a person when she realizes she has to use her studies and knowledge to protect those she loves, not just to gain good marks and the approval of her authority figures.
She supposed the full transformation from student to soldier occurred when she put the Memory Charm on her parents. She cried before she did it-loads and loads. That was one of the reasons she made sure that she waited until they were sleeping-she didn't need any awkward questions about her puffy eyes. But when she crept into their dark room and lifted her wand over their sleeping heads, she felt a stony shield come down over her heart. They're strangers to me, now, she thought. They must be. She looked down at their slack, peaceful faces, steeling herself. She left without a backward glance.
Hermione slipped out into the night, her jaw set. The night was humid, but she pulled her jacket tightly around her. The chill was coming from within, the stone radiating out through her veins.