From the Past
A HariPo fanfic
by mew-tsubaki
Note: The 1st of To the Future's companion stories is here! I'm borrowing J.K. Rowling's charries once more and giving them a delighted storyline to star in. So let's start a little before when To the Future begins, and with another special pairing. And REVIEW!!!
*P.S. –Humphrey Blethyn is an O.C., as are Struther Calle, Clee Calle, Amasso Ronan, Tamsin Ronan, and Femia Gibbs.*
----------------------------------------------------------- ^-^3
The Eleventh Tale
The uneasiness did not pass after a good night's rest; it dwelled in the pit of Hermione's stomach for the rest of the week, bothering her so much that she didn't work Wednesday, Thursday, nor Friday. Her birthday had been a quiet event, her parents and Harry taking her out to eat at a new Italian place in London. She enjoyed it, she really did, but…though it was a very miniscule part, a part of her was unsure about her engagement to Harry.
Come Saturday morning, she dillydallied inside Struther and Clee's, not even glancing outside. All the while, she kept her left hand in her pocket. She loved the ring, but Hermione wasn't a lover of flashy things, and she didn't want to show off one item that was just a teensy bit over her threshold. She felt Struther's eyes on her, but –like Clee –he didn't ask her anything.
It was exactly one o'clock when she saw Severus trudging by the storefront. Hermione calmly inhaled and marched toward the door. She waved over her shoulder at the Calles. "See you guys later!!" she called.
"What the-?!!"
The witch paused –and her face drained of all color. She hadn't been paying attention, so when she grabbed the door handle with her right hand, she had used her left to wave to them, thus revealing her enormous rock. "Crap."
Clee rushed over, and Struther came out from behind the register. The son snatched her hand and stared incredulously at the ring. "He proposed?!"
She snatched her hand back. "Yes, Clee, he did," she snapped. "We have been together for a while now."
Struther was calmer than his son. "When did Harry ask?"
"Monday."
"And you couldn't have dropped by?" Clee angrily stated.
Hermione tore her eyes from his oddly infuriated ones and looked at Struther instead. "He was actually going to propose on my birthday, but Crookshanks found the ring and changed Harry's plans."
"Well, good for you," Struther congratulated. "As you said, you two have been a couple for a long time."
"More than two years." She stared at her ring a second longer before hiding her hand back in her pocket. The witch pointed at the wizards with her right index finger. "But keep it secret! This would make headline news in the magical world if it got out."
"The magical Prince William and Kate Middleton," Clee grumbled.
Hermione frowned at him, but didn't say any more. The witch finally exited the bookstore and turned right. However, by now, she could see hide nor hair of the Potions professor. Grumbling herself, she sped up and reached Blood, Breath, and Beyond. Of course, things just weren't going her way today.
Just as she entered, Tamsin appeared at the register. While yes, the bronzed shrimp wore an apron over her outfit, the top she wore was a tight-fitting sweater with a dangerously low-cut V-neck. Hermione caught Tamsin's lavender eyes, and Tamsin smirked. The genius ignored the jab and perused the shelves and aisles. Okay, by "peruse", I mean "searched for Sev".
She spied him tucked away in a chair in the back. He was reading a book –The Dark Magicks –but he did acknowledge her presence, though he didn't glance up. She remained standing, but she gazed at the pile of tomes next to him. "A bit of light reading?"
"Just looking up a warding spell to use against smart arses."
"I wonder –If I dump water on you, will you melt?"
At that, his eyes drifted upward, and he closed his book. "Remind me again why I'm here."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "If you can't answer that, what makes you think I can?"
"Well met." Severus stood and returned the item to its shelf. "Shall we?"
She blinked in disbelief. "We're not going to mull around here?"
"I figured a change of pace was needed," he shortly stated, staring her down as he used to, "unless you care to offer evidence otherwise…?" He stopped walking a meter or two away from her.
Again, she rolled her eyes. "No, I'm just worried that someone might burst into flames if he lets the sun touch him."
"Someone's in a downright foul mood," he observed, his eyes darting up and down her figure.
The witch glared at him. "Oh, so when I'm having a bad, I'm in a 'foul mood', but it's all right for you to always be a Jurassic snark?!"
Severus sighed and frowned. "Move it. We're not standing here so you can make a public fool of yourself."
"Fine, then. I'll just go home!"
"Uh, no." The wizard grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the store. He drew her close to him to keep her teary eyes from public view, and the two of them walked all the way to the end of the road. Severus said nothing as he tugged her outside of Diagon Alley and into the muggle world. He didn't seem to mind the hubbub of cell phones and cars. Finally, he released her hands. "As much as I'll regret this… Tell me what happened."
She shuffled her feet and looked away. "I don't want to."
"Then suit yourself." He began walking away, picturing what would happen next, when his memory from earlier in the week returned. Severus reddened, and tsked. When he had kissed Lily…that one time… She had been upset, too. Sighing and stopping once more, he turned around and walked back to Hermione. "Don't just stand there," he groaned. "At least get out of other people's way."
The witch acquiesced to that and followed him to a nearby coffee shop. They went inside, where it was warmer; however, she did not remove her coat.
It was then that he noticed she wouldn't take her hands out of her pockets. Even noticing, he didn't mention it. Instead, he watched her closely. She didn't sit after he did, but just stood there, looking more nervous and confused than upset. A moment passed before he said it: "Harry again."
Hermione pinked and paled as he had expected. But he didn't expect her to near him and rest her head on his shoulder. Severus's initial feeling wasn't disgust, but the action made him awkward. As he had recalled his memory of Lily Evans –Lily Potter, he glumly corrected –he also remembered last week's appointment with the genius and her reaction to him. Tentatively, he rested a hand on her hair.
Her automatic reaction was to bury her face in his neck and hug his waist –two things to which he was very unaccustomed. But he didn't push her away. "I have a feeling I'm not going to be released any time soon," he commented.
She shook her head in agreement.
He waited a brief moment, and then said, "You… You're attracted to me."
The witch didn't move. Even her chest didn't rise with a usual breath. "I'm…very muddled right now."
"What happened?"
Though it pained her, she showed him her engagement ring. "I said yes, but I have a feeling of uncertainty in my heart."
"Oh." Severus pulled away from her then, and she sat down across from him.
She leaned on her elbows. "He was going to propose on my birthday –this past Tuesday –but Crookshanks interfered, so Harry gave it to me Monday night. But I don't know if I want this! I just said yes on a spur of the moment!!"
"You could've just told him to give you time to think," the wizard stated. "Or maybe you really want that."
"But I don't!!"
He smirked. "And there's your answer."
Hermione blinked. "It- It's not that easy, Severus."
He glared at her. "Why not?"
She averted her gaze. "Because… I have been with him for more than two years, and I do love him."
"So that automatically equates to you having to say yes?" he growled.
"Well, no, but-"
Severus stood. "There is no 'but', Hermione. Even a child could understand that she always has a choice!!" he hissed. He stalked out of the café with her on his heels.
"You have no right to get angry at me!" she scolded him, back to her own anger.
He stopped short, and she bumped into his back. He faced her. "It's all about choice, you git! I choose to be angry at this nineteen-year-old-"
"Twenty."
"-twenty-year-old woman who thinks she's a slave of circumstance and suppositions!!"
"And what about you?!" she countered. "You have a choice to not be angry with me! You have a choice to not care about me at all!!" Her own words hit her like a bucket of ice water to the face. Care? she thought. Severus doesn't care for anyone other than himself.
Her words had hit him, too, like a slap in the face. His blood boiled, and his anger couldn't be contained. …Bugger! he thought. All he could picture was the time James Potter stole Lily from him. That beautiful woman. The one with the deadly beauty-and-brains combination. The one with the outstanding opinions and the strong sense of justice. The one- The one- whom I loved unconditionally, he thought with the utmost grief. Severus shook his head and drew Hermione to him, resting a hand and his chin on the top of her head. "I'm fully aware of my choices," he told her. He held her very tightly, afraid, he realized, that she, too, would fly away. Yes, he understood those fleeting, one-sided feelings very well, but a part of him informed him that her feelings weren't entirely one-sided anymore.
She looked up at him, utterly confused –possibly more confused than before. Her big umber eyes bore into him so deeply.
Severus used his other hand to cup her cheek and cradle it as he kissed her lips. The kiss was very sweet and soft, and he knew it was exactly what they both needed right then. When he drew his head back, he gazed into her eyes again, and that piece of him that told him he definitely had feelings for her –feelings, not love…necessarily, he pondered –unlocked something in him, and he breathed a sigh of relief. The Potions teacher kissed the genius witch's forehead and held her even tighter, for he did not want this one to get away.
----------------------------------------------------------- ^-^3
I won't ruin the moment and say too much, but… KYAA!! DOES SEV LOVE 'MIONE?! YAAY! Okay, you can review now to rejoice with me. Thanx!
-mew-tsubaki
