Written for Quidditch League: Season 5: Ballycastle Bats Keeper: Write about a character acting chivalrous, or another character acting chivalrous to your character

i.

Hermione made sure to reign in her anger as she was bumped with enough force to splay half of her stack of paper on the floor. It was the third person today, and she scowled fiercely in the direction of the retreating boy's head. Hermione didn't think he had even noticed her in his rush.

Most of them didn't. Hermione knew because none of them took even a second to turn back, their minds already on whatever their goal was.

Cursing them at the back of her mind wasn't going to help her pick up the parchments, but she could easily do that at the same time. With a heavy sigh, Hermione crouched to pick up the fallen paper while taking care not to tumble the small stack that had managed to remain within her grasp.

She didn't expect someone to crouch next to her. She didn't expect that person to help her.

Hermione definitely didn't expect that boy to smile and leave without a word afterwards. If you could even call it a smile, it was a small quirk of his lips that could easily have been mocking.

She did, however, catch sight of his lazy blue eyes. Eyes that were now stuck to the back of her eyelids, ensuring she didn't forget him. Hermione might not be able to pick him out of the crowd he disappeared into, but Hermione knew that she would never forget those eyes.

ii.

Suddenly, he was everywhere she was—in several of her classes, in the corridors, near the table she sat at with Harry and Ron at lunch—and Hermione felt terrible about the fact that he was always alone. Harry and Ron had found her, and somehow found her likable enough to continue being her friends (although, Hermione sometimes thought it had to do with the fact that she helped them with their homework as well).

This boy, however, was kind, yet had no friends. Hermione didn't believe that it was simply because he wanted to be alone. She had believed that at first as well, or at least she had convinced herself of it.

Harry and Ron had taught her otherwise, and Hermione thought that she would like to extend the gesture to this boy.

"Hello, I'm Hermione Granger. Thank you for helping me the other day."

He had walked in early, so Hermione had decided to take her chance before the class filled up.

"It was no problem," the boy replied. "I was surprised no one else stopped to help you."

Hermione laughed sheepishly. "I was surprised to have help at all, especially since Harry and Ron weren't there."

"I take it Harry and Ron are your friends?"

"Yes, you should come meet them sometime. In fact, why don't you join us for lunch? Harry and Ron definitely wouldn't mind." Hermione paused for a moment, realising that he hadn't offered her his name, and maybe he wasn't as open to the suggestion as she had originally thought. Maybe he had just been kind and didn't want anything else to do with her. "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to!"

"I would like that." He smiled suddenly, and Hermione had to frantically try to stop the sudden heat that threatened to swallow her. "I'm Gellert, by the way."

"It's nice to meet you, Gellert! Also, I hope you don't mind if I joined you. It looks like my usual seat is taken." Hermione hadn't expected to take so long to introduce herself, but she was also embarrassed enough to half-hope that Gellert would say 'no'.

Gellert grabbed his bag from its sprawled position on the second half of the table, and gestured for Hermione to join him.

Hermione would never admit that she hadn't been able to concentrate at all in that class.

iii.

"Hermione!" Ron's frantic waving grabbed her attention almost immediately after stepping into the cafeteria.

"He's energetic, isn't he?"

"He isn't always like that. You should see him when he realises he has to finish his homework. You'd think he hadn't slept in a week."

Gellert laughed lightly, making sure to keep close behind Hermione as they avoided the larger crowds. "You'd think he knew better than that by now."

"Most people don't, so you can't really blame him. Even I sometimes procrastinate on some homework," Hermione joked.

"I don't believe it. Miss Granger, I believe your friends may be a bad influence on you!"

"Harry, Ron, this is Gellert. He's the one I told you about the other day. Gellert, this is Harry and Ron."

Harry stood almost immediately. "Nice to meet you, Gellert. Thank you for helping Hermione. I've told her that she should put her loose pages in a file or bag before, but Hermione is Hermione."

Ron sniggered as Hermione glowered at Harry. She didn't need him embarrassing her in front of Gellert!

"I'm sure she has her reasons," Gellert remarked. "Even if that is good advice, but it's nice to meet the both of you. I think we also share a class or two?"

Ron laughed sheepishly. "I haven't paid much attention to the people I don't know in my classes, sorry."

Hermione took a seat, and Gellert quickly followed suit.

"I hope you don't mind me joining you? I know Hermione asked me, but I'm not sure if both of you are alright with it…?"

"We trust Hermione's judgement, and she hardly needs to ask us every time she wants to do something. I think she'd sooner hit us than ask our permission for everything." As if to prove his point, a crumpled ball of paper hit Harry's head.

"You were just asking for that one, Harry," Ron informed him between chews. "You can join us whenever you want, Gellert. The more the merrier!"

The little nub of worry that had grown within her dissolved as Harry and Ron easily accepted Gellert. It really would have been terrible if they didn't like each other.

iv.

Hermione had invited Gellert to dinner. No, she had invited Harry and Ron as well, but had conveniently helped Harry plan something else for the two on that night.

Gellert didn't know yet, and Hermione hoped that he wouldn't be too mad. They had been dancing around each other for weeks, and Hermione had to know if Gellert had simply been going with the flow, or really meant all of it.

Hermione had to know if they should remain friends, or if she should hope for more. One of the options would disappoint her, but Hermione was willing to accept either.

"Hermione? Is no one else here yet?"

"Oh, Harry and Ron had already planned something. I think they may have gotten the dates a bit confused or something?"

Gellert chuckled. "Was Ron left in charge of planning? If he was, I wouldn't be surprised." Their eyes met for a long moment. "So, it's just the two of us, then?"

Hermione noticed that Gellert looked slightly apprehensive at the idea. "If you would prefer to cancel, it's completely okay, but we're all the way here already."

"Ever the logical thinker, Hermione. What would we do without you?" Gellert teased, all signs of his earlier apprehension disappearing. Hermione wondered if she had imagined it.

"Let's go in, then?"

The Leaky Cauldron was a small diner whose patrons were usually students from the schools in the area. It wasn't by any means a fancy restaurant, but Hermione had taken a liking to the food served at the diner, even if it had nothing on Mrs Weasley's cooking.

Hermione knew that she couldn't just come out and ask Gellert either. That was simply rude—and Hermione would be far too embarrassed by it if she was wrong. She knew with certainty that at some point, she had fallen for the somewhat quiet yet intelligent boy.

For all of Harry's and Ron's trust in her judgement of people, she also trusted their judgement. Neither boy accepted just anyone. Draco Malfoy was proof of that, and Hermione was dreadfully grateful to not have to spend long hours with the blond boy. Chances were there would be a broken nose at some point, and it wouldn't be hers.

They'd just settled at their table for two, menus tucked beneath their elbows, when Gellert's amused eyes met hers.

"Hermione, you know that if you'd just asked me to go out with you alone, you wouldn't have had to gone through all this trouble? I enjoy your company."

It may have been possible to make water sizzle with how hot her cheeks felt. "Well, I wasn't sure you'd accept…"

His warm hand settled over hers on the table.

"I haven't told you this before because it's a bit embarrassing, but I wasn't there that day by accident. I'd been admiring you from afar for ages. I'd been looking for a chance to introduce myself to you, but when the time came, I found I couldn't even say a word. You have no idea how glad I was when you started talking to me in class that day." Gellert's earnest expression melted Hermione's heart into a puddle that lay somewhere near her toes.

"I like you, Hermione Granger." Their eyes met, and Hermione could clearly see that he meant every word. She thought Gellert was be able to see the reflection of his own emotions in her eyes as well, because his smile was bright and disarming. "Will you be my girlfriend, Hermione Granger?"

"I think you already know my answer, Gellert, yes."