Disclaimer;all characters belong to JK Rowling. I merely twisted the plot a little.
Chapter two; Home sweet Home
Hermione woke to the sound of Hedwig pecking at her window. She let the snowy owl in and read over her letters;
Dear Harry
I hope that things aren't too bad at your aunt and uncles. I know that you have a lot on your mind at the moment and id hate to worry you with this but im not doing to well here. You may not have noticed earlier today at the train station but my father didn't look quite himself.
It turns out that my parents are no longer together. They have been separated for the past few months. This may come as a surprise to you. it most definitely shocked me. I had no idea. My mother left my father for another man and we are going to be moving in with him sometime this week. I haven't met him yet but am already predisposed to hate him as you can imagine.
What's more, my father is moving to Australia. I don't know when ill see him again, or when I will be ready to. I know that these things seem trivial in light of everything that is going on in our world and its selfish of me to be worrying so much about it but I cant help but feel distressed. If I have moved before you get to reply im sure Hedwig will be able to find me. She is a remarkable owl after all.
How are you getting on? That's quite a stupid question I know but writing this has made me feel a little better about things and perhaps it wouldn't do you any harm to express your own feelings likewise.
All my love, Hermione.
Her letter to Ron was much the same. She tied both to hedwigs outstretched leg and rummaged around in her trunk for a treat for the owl before sending her off to deliver them. she could hear people moving about in the kitchen below and though it was the last thing she wanted to do, she got up and dressed before heading downstairs to face the music. After all, she wasn't about to let Crookshanks go hungry.
When she entered the kitchen her mother ran to her and enveloped her in a hug. the first thing she noticed was that she wore a different perfume, she smelled different. Everything, it seemed, was changing. "oh darling I missed you! how was school?" her mother prattled on about exams for a few moments while hermione looked over her shoulder, only half listening as a rather tall, blonde haired, brown eyed man in a sharp suit stood from the kitchen table and made his way towards them. as if sensing his presence her mother turned with a warm smile giving hermione no choice but to face him. "hermione darling this is Liam. Hes been so looking forward to meeting you" Liam smiled showing loads of gleaming teeth. "it's a pleasure. Ive heard a lot about you" he held out his hand expectantly. "that's funny."hermione couldn't help herself "I knew nothing about your existence until yesterday" she didn't shake his hand but walked past him to the cupboard where the cat food was kept and poured out some dry food for Crookshanks before breezing past the lovebirds once more with a tense "im going for a walk" her mother called after her but she made no reply.
It was a beautiful day. She walked the half mile to the nearest play park. As a child she had spent a lot of time here. Everything had seemed so much bigger back then…she sat on a swing, letting the slight summer breeze sway here back and forth a little. Her hair, loose and curly, blew around her face, so she wasn't sure if she really had seen the huge dog at the other side of the park. She tucked her hair behind her ears and looked again. The place where she had thought she saw it, by a bench in front of a large thicket of trees and bushes, was empty. Hermione went back to her swaying.
She wasn't sure how long she stayed in the park. Eventually she knew it was time to go. With one last heavy sigh she arose and made her way home to where her mother was laying the table for dinner. "darling im very disappointed in you for that rude display earlier. Liam has asked me not to mention it but he was hurt. You should really be more respectful. He is after all going to be your stepfather shortly." Hermione felt her jaw drop. "are you insane? You expect me to respect that man?" a cough from behind her made her jumpo. She recovered and turned to find Liam standing in the doorway. "we're going to be spending quite some time together over the coming summer hermione. I rather hope we can become friends." He gave her another of his toothy smiles and she had to fight back the bile that threatened to rise in her throat. "don't bother setting me a place mother. im not hungry."
Hermione searched the house for Crookshanks but the cat was nowhere to be found. She figured he must have been outside somewhere chasing mice. She left her door open in case he decided to come back during the night and went to bed early. Her last thought before sleep took her was of the strange dog she had imagined seeing in the park.
Three days later hermione sat in the kitchen listening to her mother prattle on. Every sentence seemed to begin with "Liam thinks" or "liam says" it was sickening. They were moving to liams place that afternoon.
"Oh and darling, I told Liam about your school." she continued. "He was very understanding about it. I knew he would be." She looked out at her fiancé, who was demonstrating to the movers how best to carry heavy boxes; her expression was so tender, so full of adoration. It was ludicrous. Crookshanks had not returned. Hermione was beginning to worry about him. what if he had gotten hit by a car? As the last few boxes were packed into the moving truck hermione begged her mother one last time to let her wait there for the cat. "nonsence dear. That silly cat is long gone by now. if he didn't come back last night theres no reason to suppose he will tonight. We cant delay. Liam is in a mad rush." When she tried to further sway her mother the woman put her foot down. "absolutely not hermione. Just forget about that ugly creature! We'll get you a new pet, there will be plenty of space at liam's. we might even get a dog."
Hermione had never before been allowed a dog as a pet. It had been hard enough to convince them to let her keep Crookshanks and her mother had never hid her distaste for letting him stay in the house. hermione couldn't just let her cat go without doing something, so she went to their neighbour, an elderly woman who lived alone and had a couple of cats of her own. She asked the kindly lady to keep an eye out and gave her the remainder of the bag of catfood. The woman assured her that she would leave food out for him and would call if he showed up.
It was a long journey. Fields darted by as she stared out the window of the flashy car. Hermione was used to living within walking distance of a large town. This was going to be an adjustment. Liam had described his place as a modest enough house with some land. They entered the gates to find that the drive up to the house was wide and had huge gardens on either side. The driveway was long and curved and towering trees hid what turned out to be a rather large mansion from the road.
Liam pulled up outside the three storied monstrosity and walked around to the passenger door, he helped her mother out of the car before rushing to do the same for Hermione. She opened the door and jumped out before he reached it though. She knew she was being rude, but there was something odd about this man. It wasn't just that he had had an affair with her mother, that he had ruined her family life, no there was something else, something really off about him and his toothy grin.
He opened the front door of the house with great flair. "darling" he said addressing her mother. "why don't you pop the kettle on while hermione and I take a look around?
There was a door at the end of the marble floored hall- the kitchen, and an open arch way on either side of the protruding staircase, these led to the formal and informal living rooms. Both were spacious, and she noticed that neither room had a television. the formal living room, on the right, opened out at the end into a large dining room, with a big mahogany table and high backed chairs.
They entered the kitchen after her mother and he showed her where everything went. It was old fashioned and beautiful. There was a huge black stove at one end the floor was white marble, like the hall. They moved on back out into the hall and up the stairs. Hermione's converse made barely a sound on the rich soft cream and brown carpet beneath her feet on the next floor. "Most of the bedrooms are on this floor" he said. "As well as my office. Your room and the library are situated on the next floor. Your mother told me you enjoy reading so I had the reading room renovated to become your suite." Hermione almost smiled. The house was beautiful, and he was doing his best to make her feel welcome, but it just didn't feel like home. it felt wrong.
They climbed the stairs to the next floor. There were two doors. One, a set of double doors with ornate handles, led to the library. It was amazing. Shelves ranged from floor to ceiling, some were empty, and a large comfortable couch was in one corner, next to an ornate fireplace. There was a rich green rug in front of the roaring fire. Hermione could stretch her arms out wide in the space between the rows of book shelves. The smell of old books was lovely. It reminded her of Hogwarts. "Are you ready to see your room?" Liam asked from the door.
She followed him back out to the other door. He gestured for her to open it. Inside, the first thing she noticed was the large dark brown bed, flanked on either side by matching bedside cabinets. Two dark brown doors with black handles stood at one side of the room, while the other side held a large study desk and bookshelves, a large mirror, and a window that looked out at a beautifully kept lawn.
The floor was carpeted in a deep, soft white, while the walls were a bright turquoise. The two mysterious doors the other end of the room turned out to be a bathroom and a dressing room, complete with a built in shoe rack, dressing table, wardrobes and a large chest of drawers. She had no idea what to say. She ran her hand over the bookshelves and the study desk. The wood was beautiful. looking back she realised that he had left.
Looking out the window she could have sworn that she saw a big black dog at the gate. She blinked and it was gone.