The first time that they met was in Greece. She was visiting her grandparents. He was at a special training camp. They might not have ever crossed paths, except that she walked into him.
"Sorry," Hermione spluttered in English. She had momentarily forgotten that Greek was the better choice for talking to people on the street.
"Is alright," he responded. "Vas not looking vhere I vas going."
Hermione sagged with relief. "You speak English. I was worried that I was going to have to explain myself. And my Greek isn't that great yet. For all that my grandparents are Greek, it doesn't mean that I get a chance to use the language frequently."
The boy couldn't understand half of what she was saying. She was talking much faster than he had expected, and it was obvious that English was her native tounge.
"I am sorry. I must be going," he said before walking off.
Hermione stared at him as he walked away. She might have only been ten, but she had a feeling that they were going to run into each other again.
It turned out that she ran into him again much sooner than she expected. It was hardly a week after she had first bumped into him when she saw him on the street. Her mother was window shopping, and talking with her father.
She slipped away, being sure to keep in sight of them. It wouldn't do for her to be snatched when she was close enough for them to hear her if she shouted.
"Hi. I'm Hermione," she said.
"I do not understand," the boy said. "Is that Greek?"
"So you speak English but not Greek. And you're in Greece?" Hermione said. She crossed her arms over her chest. "What part of that makes sense?"
He shrugged. "Am here for sports training. Best program is here, and coach speaks enough Russian I can understand."
"Then you're Russian," she said.
"Bulgarian," he corrected. "My name is Viktor Krum."
"Hermione. Hermione Granger." She extended a hand to him, and he gave it a hesitant shake.
"Vould it be alright for me to call you something else. Your name is hard to say."
She shrugged. "I know. My mum calls me Mya when she doesn't feel like saying it. I guess you could use that."
"Mya. I vill write to you soon. But I haff practice now," Viktor said before leaving.
Hermione watched Viktor leave. It was strange. He was at least three years older than her, and he didn't even ask for her address. She frowned, thinking he was strange and forgot about him until his first letter arrived two weeks later.
A/N: So I have this head canon that Hermione's Greek. It makes sense for her hair, and her name. The name Hermione is Greek. It's the name of the daughter of Helen of Troy. I know it's used in Shakespeare, but a lot of his plays were set in Greece.