Hey everyone,
So this is a new story for me.
I wanted to explore Hermione's recovery after the Battle of Hogwarts, especially because I'm really interested in the idea that Hermione and Fred could have been in a relationship. So here's my take on that.
Enjoy.
"Here, let me help you."
It is an unfamiliar voice, and a hand picks up her trunk. Hermione looks up to see Blaise looking down at her and he gives a nod. "Alright, Granger?" he says quietly.
She smiles tentatively up at him, replying, "I'm fine, thank you, Blaise. You?"He nods again and is about to disappear into the train when she catches his wrist. "Blaise. I hope we can be civil this year."
An honest smile spreads across his face and he replies, "So do I. I'm sorry about your parents. And I wanted to congratulate you on receiving that." He points to the badge on her chest, reading HEAD GIRL in big letters.
She beams now and says, "Thank you very much. Well, I'll see you around?"
He nods again, puts a gentle hand on her shoulder and then disappears onto the train without another word.
From down the train, he watches as she makes her way back over to the two oldest Weasley brothers, accompanied by one half of the twins and the Weasley girl, who is also returning to Hogwarts. Potter and Weasel it appears are not coming back. They each hug her tightly and gesture over to where they were standing only moments before. He hears George say, "Let me know if anyone gives you any trouble, Mione. I'll write to you next week." Bill and Charlie agree and kiss her on the forehead, before Ginny drags her onto the train.
"Alright, Hermione?" Ginny asks quietly.
Hermione nods, smiling broadly, before hugging her close and explaining, "I have to go to the Prefects' carriage to meet the Head Boy, but I'll come find you later, yeah?"
Ginny nods and Luna appears, dragging her off down the train.
Hermione walks sedately to her carriage, sitting on one of the seats and putting her legs up beside her. Only minutes later, the door slides open and Blaise enters, sitting opposite her. She raises an eyebrow and then realisation dawns on her face. She gives a small gasp and says, "Congratulations, Blaise. Oh I'm so stupid, how could I not have realised?"
He frowns and says, "Granger, the last thing you are is stupid. Thank you though." She smiles softly and stretches her legs out on the seat next to her.
He raises an eyebrow now, and she blushes before saying, "We'll be sharing quarters all this year. I better get used to being comfortable around you."
He smirks and stands up, moving to the door, and saying, "Well, if that's all, Granger, I will see you later this evening."
She nods and replies quietly, "Yes, Blaise, but please. Call me Hermione." He winks at her and walks out, leaving her flustered.
Hermione returns to sit with Ginny and Luna and Neville and when Ginny asks, "So who's the head boy?" she blushes bright red and murmurs her answer.
All three of them raise their eyebrows in question and she repeats, "Blaise Zabini, from Slytherin."
Ginny immediately blushes scarlet and Luna giggles, causing Neville to look around at them in confusion. Ginny explains, "He's the most beautiful boy in the whole school, and Hermione has to share her quarters with him." Neville frowns but as Luna and Ginny dissolve into giggles again, he says nothing, instead pulling out a Herbology book.
A few hours later, Blaise walks past. He nods curtly at Hermione, who smiles back, managing to stop herself from blushing. Following behind him is a small blond boy, who sticks his head in the door and says, "Granger. Congrats."
She nods and he opens his mouth to speak again but she cuts him off, saying, "Draco. I know. It's ok. Let's just put it behind us." He nods and continues down the corridor, but Blaise ducks behind him and sticks his head in the door, winking at Hermione, before walking away.
Ginny blushes scarlet and Neville says, "I just don't get it. I don't get it."
As Ginny begins to reel off all of Zabini's qualities that make him a desirable partner, starting with, "He's a hot Italian," Hermione leans her head against the glass and stares after him, wondering when the Slytherins became human beings.
They had got off the train and into Hogwarts in no time. Luna disappears into a crowd of Ravenclaw girls – her popularity had shot up since the Battle of Hogwarts when everyone saw how amazing she was.
Hermione, Ginny and Neville sit down at the Gryffindor table, and Dean slides up next to Hermione, slipping an arm round her shoulder in a greeting. Seamus kisses Ginny on the forehead and Dennis Creevey walks past, clapping Neville on the arm as he does. From across the hall, old members of the DA raise hands of greeting and Hermione nods again to Draco and Blaise.
Professor McGonagall makes a short speech, honouring those 50 who could not return to join them this year. Blaise looks across the hall to see tears streaming down Hermione's cheeks, as she mentions Lavender Brown, and Colin Creevey, but when she begins to speak of the others who gave their lives, Hermione disappears out of the room in floods of tears. Instinctively Blaise rises and follows her, listening carefully as McGonagall's voice echoes out of the hall, naming Severus Snape, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, and Fred Weasley… The list goes on and on, but he walks out into the Entrance Hall to see the girl sitting on the stairs, weeping uncontrollably.
He slips an arm around her shoulders and she falls onto his chest, not speaking at all. When McGonagall's voice finally cuts out, Hermione sits up to see Blaise gazing at her and she gasps, "Oh Blaise, I'm sorry you had to see that. I hate thinking about the war, but when she was going to mention Fred…I had to get out of there. Because I have to be strong, when everyone else is weak."
He nods in understanding and narrows his eyes, but still doesn't speak, kissing her forehead once and then walking back into the Great Hall and resuming his seat. Hermione sidles back into the hall, slipping her arms around Ginny, who is crying hard. Blaise feels a twinge of pity then, remembering how the girl has lost her brother. McGonagall claps her hands, food appears and she begins to walk around the hall. She puts a hand on Blaise's shoulder and says quietly, "Could you and Miss Granger meet me at the front of the hall at the end of the feast?" He nods curtly and she asks, "Is she ok?" He shakes his head once, but doesn't offer any further explanation, so McGonagall continues to walk.
She walks past the Hufflepuff table, putting a comforting hand on a few students' shoulders. She offers a tissue to Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood at Ravenclaw, and then reaches the Gryffindor table. The loss of this house is by far the greatest and almost all the students are crying or have been. Seamus and Padma, from Ravenclaw, are trying to soothe Parvati, Dean is comforting Dennis Creevey and Neville and Hermione are trying to comfort Ginny. Across the hall, teachers have moved to speak to students, all pretence of actually eating disregarded. McGonagall embraces Hermione and Ginny now, and fresh tears begin to fall down all three women's faces. Neville watches in surprise as Hermione manages to compose herself first and promises, "It'll all be ok. Harry and Ron are working with Kingsley to round up the last Death Eaters, and then the trials can begin."
The other two nod, and McGonagall wipes away her tears, before saying, "Miss Granger, could you meet me at the front of the hall at the end of the feast?" She nods and turns back to her table, moving to bring Parvati into an embrace.
Although it was customary to introduce new teachers at this feast, Professor McGonagall knew that none of the students were fit for that now. Returning to Hogwarts had been difficult enough after the Great Battle; they had lost over half of their number. So instead of welcoming the fresh faces to the school, she dismissed everyone and Hermione and Blaise walked to the front to meet her. "I just wanted to check first that you know where your quarters are?" They both nod, and she smiles tightly before saying, "Now, this is difficult. The tower…the tower of memories isn't officially open yet, but Miss Granger, I thought you might like to go up there. To approve it, before we open it to the student body."
To both McGonagall and Blaise's surprise, Hermione nods once and turns to Blaise, asking, "Will you come with me?" He nods and they find themselves at the base of the tower.
The first floor they go to is pictures of people who lost their lives in the first war. James and Lily Potter are among them and Hermione's eyes begin to fill with tears.
As they climb to the second floor, people who lost their lives in the second war, tears freely fall. He does not recognise them all but she clearly does. Cedric Diggory, Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, Amelia Bones, Alastor Moody, Rufus Scrimgeour, Ted Tonks, Dobby are all names under the pictures. She stops by each one, a smile spreading across her face as she remembers happy memories. He takes her hand then comfortingly and she squeezes it in acknowledgement before leading him up to the third floor.
People who died in the Battle of Hogwarts. Now tears are forming in Blaise's eyes as he sees the number of people who decorate the walls, and she spins to him in agony, saying, "I didn't even know their names. And they died for us." He moves to support her, not knowing what he would do, but she shrugs him off, weeping. Severus Snape, Vincent Crabbe, Fred Weasley, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Lavender Brown, Colin Creevey, and so many more that he doesn't even recognise.
"I wouldn't even know they went here if I walked past them in the street," he murmurs and she nods in agreement.
Every single picture she watches for a full five minutes, tears pouring as she laughs to herself. But when she reaches Snape, she crumples, murmuring, "I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry." The portrait Snape nods once and she nods back. Then she walks on, to Fred's portrait and she literally breaks. The portrait winks at her, and she dissolves in sobs, collapsing on the floor and watching him for ten minutes. Fred doesn't take his eyes off her for the whole period but eventually he gives a shake of his head and she gets to her feet. She takes Blaise's hand again and they walk up the steps to the fourth and final floor.
As she walks inside, she claps both hands to her mouth, gasping, and Blaise can't help but do the same. Every inch of the walls are covered in pensieves, each containing memories specific to one person in particular. She raises her wand to the side of her head and wanders round the room, extracting individual memories to pour into people's pensieves. As he watches, she sends a bolt of memories into Fred's pensieve, which becomes filled with images of them roaring with laughter, hugging and dancing and darker memories which he can't make out, Tonks gets pictures of her wedding and of the first time they saw her baby, Lupin has images of the first time they met, the amazing tuition he gave her and the day he came to announce he had a son, and Lavender has memories of the times spent giggling in the dorms. When she reaches Snape's pensieve, she extracts a single strand of memory, and places it in the pensieve. Thousands of images explode out of it, pictures of him and Lily, images of him teaching, and the agony of all the deaths he faced. Finally his death surfaces and Blaise begins to cry now, full-on sobbing. She nods, but doesn't say anything, continuing her memory tour of the room. When she finally finishes, they walk down to the bottom of the tower, where Professor McGonagall is waiting. She looks at them sympathetically, but Hermione is still too overwhelmed to speak, so Blaise simply says, "It is perfect, Headmistress. Equally moving and respectful. Everything they deserve."
She smiles and asks, "Maybe you could take Hermione back to your quarters?" Blaise nods and puts an arm around her shoulder, guiding her to their dorms.