Minor Thing

by K-trina Puffinstuf

Hermione sipped her tea alone at the enormous dining room table in Number Twleve Grimmauld Place. It was the beginning to what was meant to be the happiest day of her life. The dress, sparkling pure white, was hanging in the bedroom they had been staying in since the end of the War, and the bridesmaids' dresses were a deep velvety green. The bridesmaids themselves were still fast asleep in various rooms of the house, and as for her husband-to-be, well--Harry had thrown him a massive stag party and no one had heard from them since last afternoon. She mused to herself that he was probably terrified to actually tie the knot and was getting a major case of 'cold feet'. A smile passed over her face quickly as she stared blankly across the room, her eyes glimpsing a small portrait at the end of the room.

She had seen the portrait many times before, but that did not stop her from setting down her tea and approaching the small framed photograph. Upon seeing it, the photograph with the four happy faces staring up at her, waving enthusiastically, she immediately felt tears prick her eyes. She pinpointed him immediately, his dark hair long and raven-black--unmistakable. Never in a million years would she have guessed that she could have had such a close friend when she needed one so desperately...

--

Tears fell down the girl's face like rain as she tore up the stairs at breakneck speeds, clutching the piece of parchment in her hand tightly. Her body shook with immeasurable melancholy--anger, fear, hatred, and sadness enveloped her person as she threw herself into the dusty room on the topmost floor of the Black Mansion. She heard a loud rustle, knowing that she must have awoken Buckbeak from his slumber, but she didn't care. She ripped the parchment open and forced her eyes to read the rest of the letter.

Hermione--

I can not make you understand why we can not see each other anymore. It is very hard. I feel like that when we are together we are very happy and have a strong love. But it can not continue. My parents say that...

Hermione crumpled the paper back up, her resolve to finish the letter annihilated. Sobs racked her body as she thought of Viktor, his poor English skills, and how his writing skills were nearly as bad by comparison. She thought of how he could never get her name right, butchering it with his gorgeous, Slavic voice. Viktor Krum, the first boy (man, rather) that ever saw something in her...

...that they want me to do things that you would not agree with. The things we talked about once before, I am sure you recall. I can not put you into that danger. I do not want your blood to be on my hands...

"Then don't do it!" she said to the parchment hoarsely, tearing it as she crunched it between her hands and threw it across the room. She sat down hard again the wall next to Buckbeak's little sleeping nest. She held her throbbing head in her hands and cried until the tears wouldn't come anymore. Buckbeak sidled up next to her curiously, awkwardly bowing in front of her face. His bright yellow eyes gazed into hers, and he let out a little squawk. She lifted a hand to pet the creature, stroking his feathers softly. The petting calmed her nerves ever so slightly. She leaned her head on the hippogriff and let more tears flow forth.

"Viktor," she whispered through her tears. "Why him too? Why is everyone involved in this war!" Through it all, she calmly noticed that she was, in fact, talking to a hippogriff. She leaned her head up against the wall and stared at the ceiling. "This is so..." She trailed off. There were no words for heartbreak.

Buckbeak clicked his talons against the floor and nudged his head into hers. "What will I write back to him, huh, Beaky?" she said to the half-bird, half lion, now crouched on it's haunches. He crooned a mournful note and looked towards the doorway, cocking his head to the side inquisitively.

Hermione, too, looked in that direction. "Is someone there?" she asked out loud nervously. She got to her feet, pulling out her wand instinctively. At first, there was a stumbling noise and then coughing. Suddenly, a head poked out from the doorframe. Buckbeak ran careening over to the door to greet his master playfully. Hermione held a relieved hand to her thumping chest.

"Hi, Sirius," she said, feeling rather silly, covered in dust, tears, and hippogriff feathers. Feeling awkward and sheepish, she made to leave the room. "I was just coming up here to--"

"Buckbeak," he said, while petting the hippogriff's head roughly, "is a great friend when you need someone to talk to." He strode over to Buckbeak's feed bags and filled them with fresh food (consisting of dead weasels and ferrets). "But," he said, eyeing the teary-eyed girl who was making to help him with the feed, "you look like you need more than Hippogriff Therapy. What has happened?"

She sniffled softly. Tears began to well in her eyes again. She looked upward to help prevent the flow of them down her cheeks. She did not want Sirius to see her going absolutely ballistic over something as trivial as being dumped; after all, to Sirius, she really was the 'cleverest girl in her year'. "Oh, well," she said, biting back a torrent of tears. "It's not really a big deal. I just needed to be alone."

Sirius looked at her knowingly. He shook his head and said, "What boy could possibly want you to feel this way?" He placed a hand on her trembling shoulder gently as she looked up at him, confused.

Hermione looked slightly defeated as she turned her eyes towards the animal that was now tearing up his dead rodent dinner. "It is that easy to tell?" she said, wiping tears away from her eyes quickly with a sniffle.

"Hermione, understand that you are speaking to a man who has been locked up in the unhappiest place on earth for thirteen years with only his worst memories to accompany him," he said quickly. "I know real pain when I see it," he said bitterly. "Worse," he said, consciously more gently, "I know the pain of love when I see it."

The tears came forth from Hermione's eyes like waves. She turned into the man suddenly and grasped him tightly, crying into his chest. "V-V-Viktor is to become a... s-s-said he couldn't see me anymore c-c-cause..." She could not go on with words, and continued to sob into Sirius.

The man leaned his head onto hers, stroking her hair soothingly. He did not say a word to the girl, and let her emotions flow without stopping right through his sweater and onto the skin of his chest.

--

Hermione found herself dabbing tears away from her face as she put down the photograph. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ginny yawning and stretching at the other side of the room. Upon seeing each her, Hermione plastered a sheepish grin on her face and pushed the photograph aside as she greeted her friend.

Ginny welcomed her with a sisterly embrace. "You're up early on your big day!" she said cheerfully. "Having your last morning to yourself, eh?" When Hermione didn't respond promptly, she looked at her face concernedly and scanned it quickly. Small tears still continued to form in the corners of her eyes, and she blushed slightly. "Wait... have you been crying, Hermione?"

Hermione allowed a sheepish grin to cross her face. She wiped away her tears and said, "It's nothing, really."