The next day Hermione was sitting with Cleo and the rest of the Sertori family at the breakfast table when Sam knocked over a glass of orange juice. Unfortunately, it spilled all over Cleo, who was sitting right next to her. Cleo immediately stood up, knocking over her chair and moving the table, causing all of their drinks to spill. She muttered "I've got to go," and sprinted down the hall.
"I'm sorry," Sam apologized to Hermione, "She's always doing that."
Kim sighed. "Why is my sister such a loser?"
"I'd better go check on her," Don said. He rose from his seat.
"Wait! Let me do it, please. No offense, but she won't want to talk to you guys," Hermione said before he went to find her. She flew down the hall to the bathroom. "Cleo," she shouted as she knocked on the door.
"Go away," she heard Cleo mutter.
"Cleo, it's Hermione."
"Oh, you scared me. Sorry, the door's locked."
"It's okay, I'll get it," Hermione told her. She looked around, making sure nobody had followed then took out her wand and muttered "Alohamora," under her breath. The lock clicked open and she stepped through the door, promptly closing it behind her.
"How did you...?" Cleo asked.
"Oh that?" Hermione laughed. "Just a little trick I picked up at boarding school."
"You'll have to teach me sometime," Cleo smiled.
At that, Hermione smirked. "We'll see. Anyways, enough about that, what about you, are you alright?"
Cleo gave her a sad smile. "I'm fine, you know. I just wish..."
"I'll help you with that if you want. Telling Sam I mean."
"But why would you do that?"
"Because I know how it feels to keep secrets from people you love."
"You mean those secrets you and Harry and Ron have?"
"How did you..."
"Oh come on, that comment you made when you first got here?Something about you guys going through things that made you super close? I totally felt that way with my mermaid secrets and Bella and Rikki. You're not normal, either."
"I...em..."
"Relax, you can tell me later. Right now we have bigger things to do. Like get me dried off?"
"Sorry, I totally forgot." She tossed Cleo a fluffy blue towel.
"Funny how you don't seem to notice we're complete freaks," Cleo looked at Hermione.
"I just don't find it too strange, that's all," Hermione answered. Cleo raised an eyebrow.
"Look, Cleo it's not that I don't trust you, it's just I don't know what to say."
"And that's fine. Totally fine. You'll tell me on your own time, I guess. Oh look, I'm all dry." She stood up and brushed off her hands. "I really appreciate you volunteering to help with Sam. So when should we do this?"
"Is next week okay with you?"
"Yeah, but why wait that long?"
"Actually, I was wondering if I could go on holiday with Bella for a week..."
"You're not supposed to leave the country, you know that."
"Yes, but she's going to visit Ron and his family. Apparently she's his cousin. I have to see him Cleo, it's been too long without him. You understand don't you? Remember how you felt when Lewis went away?"
Cleo just stared at her.
"I can see if you can come with...?" she added as a last attempt to get a yes. "You'll get to meet Harry and Ron and Ginny. Oh you'd love them, Cleo! Please say yes."
Cleo sighed. "Fine. If you really want to go that bad, who am I to stop you from seeing your friends? A trip to Britain sounds great, actually. When are we leaving?"
"Well we already bought plane tickets... Do you think you could get one on your own? We'll meet you there and take you to where we're staying." Hermione and the Prewetts would be traveling by Floo Powder, not by airplane, but Hermione did not want to include Cleo in those plans.
"Sure I'll go look right now. When are you leaving?"
"Friday."
"This Friday?" Cleo asked, her voice raising an octave.
"I know, I'm sorry. Look I better go tell Bella," she said as she placed her hand on the doorknob.
Cleo laughed. "And I better go pack. I'll see you later."
Hermione walked outside and Apparated to Bella's house. She tentatively knocked on the door, nervous about what they would say. She was greeted by Mr. Prewett.
"Good morning, Hermione. What brings you here? We weren't expecting you until noon."
"You know how you told Bella she could invite anyone..."
"Yes," he answered, prodding Hermione to continue.
"I invited our friend Cleo so she would allow me to go."
"That's fine. The more the merrier."
"The problem is, sir, she's a Muggle."
"If I remember correctly, she is a mermaid, or whatever it is those girls are. She's just as big a part of the magical community as we are. I see no problem in her coming, though Bella might be angry."
"It'll be okay?"
"Of course. I'll tell Bella if you wish."
"Thank you so much! I'll be back at noon." Hermione turned to leave.
"Hermione wait," Mr. Prewett said. "Are you telling her we're wizards, or hiding it?"
"I'll tell her eventually. Just not before this trip. She seems pretty stressed with her secrets right now, I don't want to pile ours on top. Is that alright?"
"That's perfectly fine. Goodbye, Hermione."
"Bye, Mr. Prewett." Hermione walked out the door and took her time getting home.
While this was going on, Cleo was in the moonpool, too stressed to pack. The pressure of her secret was building on her and she liked knowing that she could tell Sam, but setting a date for it felt too real. What if Sam was disgusted or worse, terrified of her? She wouldn't be able to live with herself.
And then there was Hermione. What was up with that girl? Cleo desperately wanted to know her secret, but didn't want to pry. This trip seemed like the perfect opportunity to find out more. Hermione was bound to slip up around her friends where she was comfortable. Cleo would come home knowing her secret, she promised herself, whether Hermione confessed or not.
A third thing was also bothering her. It was the reason she had feared water so much. Tomorrow was the anniversary of her best friend's tragic death. Cleo pushed this out of her mind. She couldn't take anything else when her head already felt like exploding. She brushed her hair out of her face and laid her head down in the crook of her arm. All the mysteries and secrets and lies in her life suddenly hit her like a tsunami. She burst into tears and remained like that for a good ten minutes. Then she picked her head up, composed herself, and swam back home to pack.