Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; J.K. Rowling does. Here's the next chapter.
Hermione's PoV
Hermione felt herself land on her feet. She opened her eyes and saw Harry and Ron and, after she cleared herself and her surroundings of dust and dirt, ran forward to engulf them in a hug.
"Whoa, Hermione! It's great to see you, too, but can you not crush us?" Ron and Harry asked at the same time.
Hermione laughed and let them go, just as there was a CRACK and Mr. Weasley appeared with Hermione's trunk.
Mr. Weasley looked confused. "Hermione, I went up to your room to see if you forgot anything, directed by your parents, and there was nothing there, but you only have one trunk. How is that even possible?"
Hermione blushed as everyone, but Ron, who already knew, looked at her curious. "I just put all my clothes, books and anything else besides furniture in my trunk and put the furniture in my bag."
"The small beaded bag during the Horcrux hunt?" Harry asked.
"Yup, that's the one."
"Hermione, I know how smart you are, but there is no way a bed, a desk, two bookcases and a dresser fits in there," Harry said.
"Don't be too sure, Harry. I mean, this is Hermione we're talking about. She had everything prepared for the hunt, Harry: a tent, extra clothes, a first aid wizard kit and gauze. She'd have figured something out," Ron said.
"I used a Shrinking Charm to fit it all in. The bag has an Extendable Charm on it."
"Hmm. I didn't even know there was a Shrinking Charm. Impressive, ," Mr. Weasley said.
"I found out last year in the library in a book called Lost Spells and Charms while I was researching Anim-um-doing homework." Nice Granger, you almost gave away that you're an Animagus right in from of Mr. Weasley.
"Hermione, what do you plan on doing? I mean, you're 19 this year; me and Harry are Aurors-In-Training. What do you plan on doing?"
"I want to go back to Hogwarts to either teach Transfiguration, Muggle Studies, or Ancient Runes, but I also want to go to the Ministry to work in the Courtrooms. I want to see how the trials are done."
"Hermione, you can do better than the court rooms. Why not do a different job?" Ron asked.
"It's either that, or go back to Hogwarts and work as a teacher and not see you 'till summer time."
Ron looked horrified at the thought of not seeing Hermione for 10 months. "Court Rooms' fine," he said hurriedly.
Hermione beamed. She loved Hogwarts, but she loved Ron more and the thought of leaving him for 10 months was unbearable. She'd choose Ronald Weasley over Hogwarts any day. "That's what I thought. I'll go to the Ministry tomorrow to get an interview sometime this week…"
Ron pouted. Hermione knew he had taken tomorrow and Friday off to spend time with her. Surely she wouldn't go to the Ministry with him home for the next four days? "But Hermione, I have the next four days off. Surely you remember?"
Hermione gasped. "Oh, that's right! I forgot, completely forgot. Sorry, Ron."
Ron raised an eyebrow, confused. Hermione Granger forget? It's out of the question! Hermione never forgot anything. "You, Hermione Granger, forgot something?" He asked slowly.
"Yes, I've had a lot on my mind. Harry, Ron, come with me. Ginny already knows. I've just got to tell you two. See you at dinner, Mr. Weasley!" Hermione took Ron's hand, while Ginny took Harry's, and led all three of them to Ron's attic bedroom.
"Hermione, what about lunch?" Ron whined. "I'm starving!"
"You can get it after I tell you this," Hermione impatiently waved her free hand to dismiss the thought.
As soon as they were in there, Hermione put a Silencing Charm on the door and window.
"So, Hermione, what's this about? What do you want to tell us?" Ron asked grumpily, probably because he was hungry and no one in the Weasley family ever turned down food.
Hermione looked into his startling blue eyes, melted, and ran into his arms. Ron wrapped his arms around her waist and held her.
"Sometime today, Hermione. You'd better tell them, 'cause I'm sure as bloody hell not," snapped Ginny.
Hermione looked at her friend. She was mad at her for becoming an Animagus? "Why don't you want to tell them, Ginny? What's the problem?"
Ginny's green eyes flashed in anger. "What's the problem? What you bloody did! It's the stupidest thing you've ever done!"
Hermione felt her anger rise. "Stupidest thing? I think it's bloody brilliant! No one for miles would know its me, Ginny!" Hermione sighed. "I have to tell you something, Ginny.
"When me, Ron and Harry infiltrated the Ministry during the Horcrux Hunt, I found something. When Umbridge took me to the court rooms, I said I had to use the bathroom, but I went to the Minister of Magic's office. He wasn't in there, so I went inside, and went through his stuff." Hermione started crying, tears streaming her cheeks. "In his Top Secret drawer that I opened with a very difficult Alohamora Charm, I found a file called Muggle-born Commissionaire, and my picture from school, smiling up at me, and your dad's picture, Ginny….on the Wanted list….to be executed….along many other witches and wizards on the Wanted list like Mad-eye Moody.
"If I don't do this, Ginny, the Death Eaters, the one's one remaining, Umbridge, and maybe even the Malfoys will come after me to get their revenge because I'm Muggle-born. So, I took matters into my own hands," Hermione sobbed.
"So, what do you need to tell us Hermione?" Ron asked warily, as if he didn't want to know the answer, while comforting her.
Hermione nervously wrung her fingers, twisting and untwisting, and tried to stop crying. "Harry, Ron, I'm….I'm-…"
"Pregnant?" Ron asked sourly, taking his hands off of her, as though disgusted, with his eyes smoldering with anger.
Hermione's eyes shot wide and she started crying again. "What? No! Not at all. This has nothing to do with that!" Hermione gasped between her crying.
"Then get to the point. What do you want to tell us?" Harry asked. "Before we think the worst situation."
"Oh, fine! Harry, Ron, I'm an Animagus."
There was silence for a moment before Ron yelled, "What? How did you do it in ONE year? Harry's dad and his friends took three years to do it…. Prove it. Prove you're Animagi."
Hermione smirked, and Transformed into her otter. She looked up at Ron, Harry and Ginny. Harry and Ron's eyes were wide. She transformed back into herself.
"You're the otter who rubbed her face on my leg. No wonder you growled when I said 'Hermione'! You wanted to tell us instead of us guessing. I knew there was something familiar about that otter! It was Hermione!"
"Ron, I think we cleared that up already. Anyway, I did it in a year because every night I was free to work on the potion. Actually, I was done with it in half a year. By second term, I was an Animagus and already registered."
Ron's PoV
Ron was shaking his head. "You continue to amaze me, Hermione; always full of surprises.""'Just part of my charm', as you say. I don't believe it, but then again, I've never thought anything of myself like that. Anyways, Ginny knew. I told her on the second week of second term. Before I came home last year, I went to Diagon Alley and got some books."
"Big surprise there," Ron muttered sarcastically.
Hermione ignored this. "So, Ron, I was under the impression you wanted to spend time with me tomorrow and Friday?"
Ron nodded. "The next four days actually. Tomorrow we'll look for a house, it you want that is. It you don't, we can do something else."
"No, Ro, that's okay. I want to. Mum, dad and my grandma gave me money worth buying a house."
"Why?" Ron asked.
Hermione glared at him with her hands on her hips. "Ronald Bilius Weasley, did you forget what Friday is?"
"What is Friday, Hermione?"
Hermione glared at him. "My birthday! How could you forget that? I told you yesterday!"
"Oh! Right. I know what I'm doing, 'Mione. Hey, I'll make it special. You know I will."
"Good. I expect it, then. Me and Ginny have to help your mum now. Love you."
"Love you, too. Don't worry. This birthday will be the best you've ever had."
Hermione just kissed him on his cheek and left, closing the door behind her.
"How could I forget her birthday? What am I going to do?" Ron ran his fingers through his hair, anxious, worried and frustrated.
"Don't worry, mate. You'll figure it out. You love her enough to do something special for her."
Ron nodded in agreement. The question was: what was he going to do?
So how'd you like it so far? Don't worry I have a lot more planned out. It'll be a fantastique one. I dreamt it up last night. It'll be awesome.
I hope to see comments, good ones.
