Chapter 14: Family Dinner
AN: tardisinthesgc - Hermione isn't Hindi, no. I just imagine that Hermione would be well educated and have cultural understandings. Hermione likes learning and what's more challenging than learning different languages? Or atleast phrases.
AGirlLostInTime - I haven't decided if I will make Hermione fertile yet, we will have to wait and see how the story pans out. The team's just winding Oliver up, seeing how far they can push him. You know? Boys will be boys.
Bluewolf80 - I used some elements from my previous story because I couldn't resist using them again. I used the team and Coach Burton in this story because we have all gotten to know their personalities from my last story and I wanted to use familiar characters. I have tried to make them slightly different though and I hope it worked. I once more gave Hermione the patronus of a lion because I think it suits her better than an otter. And in all the fanfics I've read with Viktor in, they have all been the same with him being a great guy and I wanted to do something different with him as a character. Hermione wasn't really 'attacked' perse, more like scratched. I may have taken it too far with Hermione's past, but I don't think enough fanfics show what trauma Hermione would've likely suffered so maybe I'm over compensating for it.
Here's chapter 14. Not long to go until we're at the wedding.
Puddlemere Stadium - Friday 17th July 1998
"Right everyone, are you ready to start training?" Hermione asked.
"How hard can it be?" Malloy said smugly.
Hermione raised an eyebrow and smirked.
"It's going to hurt isn't it?" Oliver said.
"Yep"
"A lot?"
"Yep"
"Do we have to do it?"
"Yep, but don't blame me. They are the ones that wanted something more challenging. Now as you know, I am a muggleborn. So today we are doing something that is used in the muggle world to build up your stamina and fitness. I am not going to lie, by the time you are done today you will be crawling up the stands"
Hermione waved her wand and removed the disillusionment charm. Everyone looked at the strange items set up in the coach's box.
"I don't get it" Pallie said.
"It's an obstacle course boys" Hermione said looking far too pleased with herself and Coach Burton raised an eyebrow at her. "I'll demonstrate first, then you will do ten laps of it, followed by thirty minutes of drills, followed by another ten laps of the obstacle course. After lunch you will do ten laps of the obstacle course, followed by drills, then ten laps of the pitch on foot and thirty in the air, followed by another fifteen laps of the obstacle course. And if you're still alive, then you can go home early" she said smiling innocently, the team blinked in shock and Coach Burton started laughing.
"You are the best decision I have ever made" Coach said proudly. "That's far worse than anything I would've ever given them" Hermione grinned.
"Malloy's the one that wanted me to be more ruthless" she said smirking. "Let's get to work then"
She walked to the front of the obstacle course and then took a deep breath before she started jumping through the tyres, balancing on benches, jumping with skipping rope, hula hooping, kicking footballs into the net, doing jumping jacks, press ups, pull ups, jumping over the make shift hurdles and ducking under them, crawling under a net, running between cones, hitting four balls with a baseball bat, running around the circuit and then returning back to the tyres.
They all stared at her with their mouths open as she stood there looking completely fine and breathing perfectly normal.
"Well get to work and remember ten laps"
Hermione walked away and stood next to Coach Burton and Quaffle as they watched the team trudge to the start of the obstacle course and they began, with Pallie going first.
"Hey, at least we know your future wife has great stamina" Malloy said with a wink and before Oliver could lunge at him, Malloy took off on the obstacle course laughing and Oliver was grumbling.
"Why does Oliver look like he wants to kill Malloy?" Hermione asked Coach Burton.
"Because it's Malloy" he shrugged. "You'll want to kill him by the end of the week"
Wood Apartment
Hermione felt really guilty by the end of the day. Not for the team, but for Oliver. She would wince every time Oliver groaned in pain and he literally crawled out of the floo into the apartment. Hermione opened the balcony door for Quaffle and then she got down on her knees next to Oliver who was lying on his back on the cool marble floor.
"I'm really sorry, I feel really bad now"
"Don't worry about it, Sparrow" he said waving his hand at her and then he groaned.
"Seriously Oliver, I feel terrible, I won't make you do an obstacle course again" he looked up at her to see her guilt ridden expression.
"Sparrow, it's fine, it's your job to whip our arses into shape and that's what you're doing"
"Go and take a bath and then I'll help you with the aches and soreness"
"Why?"
"The hot water will help to relax and sooth your muscles, I'll make dinner whilst you do that and then I've got something that will help you, so go on. Get crawling"
He chuckled and then groaned before he slowly turned and got on his hands and knees and crawled to his room.
Hermione immediately set to work making stir fry for dinner before she headed to her room with Quaffle.
She was rummaging around in her chest of drawers when Oliver knocked on her bedroom door. She turned and then blushed madly and then turned back to what she was doing and Oliver smirked. His hair was damp and he was clad in a pair of grey tracksuit bottoms and shirtless.
He found her reaction to seeing him shirtless amusing, since she moved in he always wore a shirt around her, otherwise she would get flustered and yell at him, at which he would laugh and smirk and she would threaten to hex him.
"Do you want me to put a shirt on?" he asked teasingly.
Hermione cleared her throat. "Umm, no that's fine. You would just have to take it off again" he raised an eyebrow at her statement but didn't say anything. "Just sit on the bed for me and I'll be right with you"
When she found what she was looking for she made a sound of triumph and Oliver chuckled. She made her way over to the bed with a tub of cream in her hand and kneeled behind Oliver on the bed.
He turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow and her face was flamed bright red. She turned his head back around and he chuckled at her. Hermione opened the tub of cream, rubbed her hands to warm them up, before she gathered the cream and rubbed it into her hands.
"So Sparrow, how are you going to help me?"
Hermione's answer was to pretend that Oliver was one of the twins, and she placed her hands on his shoulders and began to knead and massage the muscles.
"Never mind" he replied with a sigh. Hermione's hands tended to the sore muscles of his neck, shoulders and back before she moved to his muscled arms, soft hands and slightly calloused fingertips.
"I really am very sorry"
"Sparrow, you apologise one more time and I will set Quaffle on you. You are doing your job, if we weren't full of aches and pains then we weren't training hard enough" Hermione smiled at him, and her blush at his shirtless chest had long since disappeared.
"Are you feeling any better?"
"Yeah actually, never would've thought you tried to kill me today" she scowled at him. "What is that stuff?" he gestured to the tub of cream Hermione was screwing the lid back onto.
"It's just some cream, I created it not long back to help ease soreness in the body. I might be a natural healer and I can heal injuries, but you will likely be sore for a day or so after I do so" she shrugged and then got up and put the cream back where she found it.
"So you've now seen all my scars, do you think you can show me another of yours?" she looked at him with an anxious expression and nodded uncertainly.
"I've seen one and it didn't scare me away, I think I can handle seeing them all"
She walked over to him and sat down next to him, she turned so she was facing away from him and she lifted the back of her jacket and top up slightly.
Oliver looked at the dozen small scars scattered around the small of her back.
"What are they from?" he asked as he traced them with his fingers and she shiver under his touch and Oliver noticed and smirked.
"When I pushed Harry out the window, I landed on some glass" she shrugged and then dropped the clothing and turned back to face him.
"Did it hurt?"
"I didn't notice it at first because we were too busy trying to escape the trap we had walked into, but afterwards Harry had to pull the glass out"
"Will you show me another scar, we can keep building?"
"I just showed you over a dozen"
"Doesn't count, they were all caused by the same thing"
Hermione looked at his hopeful expression and looked down at her hands. She lifted her left hand and brought it up to her right shoulder. She pushed her jacket and the strap of her bra and top down slightly to reveal a very faint, almost unnoticeable circular scar on the front of her shoulder.
"It's from first year, courtesy of being squeezed to death by Devil's Snare. There are two types of Devil's Snare and one of them is rarer and has sharp thorns. The one used to deter thieves had thorns and it got stuck in my shoulder" Oliver traced it with his finger and then pulled away.
"One more?" he asked cheekily and then she sighed.
"You're trying to see how far you can push me aren't you?" he nodded without remorse.
She sighed again and then lifted her top to show him the right side of her stomach. He could see several small scars and he traced them with his finger.
"They are from the battle in sixth year, when I landed on the shards of glass" she dropped her shirt and he could see that him asking to see her scars was beginning to take its toll on her.
"I'm proud of you" he said and she smiled slightly. "If we keep going the way we are, I'll have seen all your scars in no time at all"
"I doubt it, those scars aren't the ones that affect me; well they do, but only to some extent"
"So which ones are the worst?"
"The one of my left arm and the one on my back are the worst ones" he nodded and let the subject drop after that, feeling as though he had pushed her far enough for the day.
"So I have a question"
"Go on then" she said flopping onto her back and he chuckled.
"Those rules you told me about, the ones to survive living with Hermione Granger"
"Yeah? What about them?"
"Well you haven't told me anymore and I only know rule number three. Never eat your digestive biscuits unless I have permission"
"You remembered?"
"After you told me about what you did to George, you better believe I remembered" he said amused.
"So you want to know more rules?" he nodded. "Okay, I have about sixty so far. The further down the list you get, the newer the rules are. Pick a number and I'll tell you the rule that coincides with that number. You can have five today"
"How very generous of you" he chuckled and he laid down beside her on his side and supported his head on his hand so he was looking at her.
"Twenty"
"Rule number twenty is give a second chance, but never a third or fourth. If someone has betrayed your trust or hurt you twice, they will do it again and again. I learned that the hard way"
It didn't take a genius to figure out who she was talking about and Oliver quickly changed the subject before she fell into a pool of sadness and betrayal.
"Ten"
"Rule ten is only make promises if you can keep them. You can hurt people by letting them down. My parents worked a lot and they always promised to leave work early or take days off so we could spend time together, but they never did and I remember always being heartbroken"
"Forty"
"Rule forty is if you think someone is out to get you, they probably are" he raised an eyebrow. "Voldemort was out for Harry and Dumbledore and Bellatrix had it out for me, hell, Skeeter has it out for me, but that's okay because the feeling's mutual" he chuckled.
"Four"
"Rule number four is always trust your instincts, they will save your life" he didn't doubt she knew what she was talking about when it came to her instincts. "Last one"
"Twenty-eight"
"Rules are in place for a reason, but don't be afraid to break the stupid ones"
He laughed at her. "So what rules can be broken then?"
"Well rules regarding safety and well being should be followed, but some rules are just absurd. Like when Umbridge was headmistress at Hogwarts. She had a rule that stated you couldn't stand within eight inches of the opposite gender and you weren't allowed to listen to music"
"Seriously?"
"Hmm, there was even a rule that all of Fred and George's products were banned in the school, but I don't blame her for that one, she was tortured. Fred and George were able to disguise their products and smuggle them into the castle. The moment I saw her running down a corridor being chased by one of their Wild Fire Whiz-Bangs was one of the best things I have ever witnessed" she sighed happily and he laughed at her.
"So breaking ridiculous rules is fine, but breaking rules regarding safety is a big no, got it. Okay, one more?"
"I said you could have five" she said amused.
"Come on, please, just one more"
"Fine, just one"
He grinned triumphantly and she rolled her eyes and laughed. "What is Hermione Granger's golden rule?"
"Rule one is always have your wand with you"
"I have a lot to learn from you"
She nodded. "I've been thinking and I think we should buy thank you gifts for everyone. For helping us with the wedding I mean. What do you think?"
"I don't see why we shouldn't. After the wedding?" she nodded and smiled.
Wood Apartment - Saturday 18th July 1998
"Hermione, you look fine" Oliver said amused as she pottered about in the kitchen mumbling and he was leaning with his back against the breakfast bar with his arms crossed in front of his chest.
He was waiting for everyone to arrive for the dinner Hermione wanted to hold. He was wearing a white button down shirt, white trainers, dark blue jeans and a dark blue v-neck jumper that he had rolled up to his elbows.
"No, I'm covered in flour... my hair is a mess... is my dress too short? It feels too short. I'm going to get changed" she went to walk out of the kitchen when Oliver grabbed her hand and pulled her to him and she was pressed against his chest.
She glared at him annoyed and he chuckled.
"It's a good job I don't have my shoes on yet, otherwise I would fallen flat on my face and you would've gotten hexed"
"Fair enough, but you are not changing again. You've already been changed three times. There's not a speck of flour on you, you hair is perfect and you look beautiful"
And she did. She had her hair cascading down to the middle of her back and pinned back from her face and she was wearing a black chiffon knee length, spaghetti strap summer dress and she wore a matching cropped cover up jacket.
"You just don't want me to hex you" she said scowling and he smiled cheekily.
"Of course, I have to stay pretty for the team's sake" she rolled her eyes at him and then accioed her four inch black closed toe heels before she put them on and then she tended to the oven. And as she was doing that everyone began to arrive.
Hermione could hear everyone's mutters, gasps and compliments on the apartment. Mr and Mrs Wood hadn't seen it newly decorated and Percy, Bill and Fleur, Charlie and Mr and Mrs Weasley hadn't seen it at all. Oliver gave them a quick tour and the twins walked into the kitchen like they owned the place.
They both stole food from the counter top and Hermione slapped their hands away and they laughed at her.
"So Mia, why have you called a family meeting?" Fred asked.
"And why have you included Oliver's parents?" George picked up.
"Well they're going to be family and I'm going to tell everyone" she looked nervous.
They froze. "About your past?" they both said stunned.
"Yeah, I think I'm ready to tell them, I don't want them to think that I don't trust them"
"Are you telling them about Horcruxes and your natural healing?" Fred asked.
"And the full moon and your animagus form?" George spoke.
"Just about my natural healing and the full moon, although they've likely figured that part out themselves, I'm not telling them about my animagus form or the Horcruxes. And I told Oliver, he knows. And I also told him that I might not be able to have children"
"And?" they asked quickly and she gave a small smile. The twins shared a smile and a knowing look.
"He said that if it came down to it, we could adopt. He said his parents wouldn't mind that I might not be able to give him an heir by blood, they wouldn't love them any less and neither would he. I tried to get him to petition for a new match, but he refused several times"
"Something between you has changed. We noticed it when we came for dinner on Thursday, but we never mentioned it" George said watching her carefully for a reaction. "What happened?"
Hermione's face showed a myriad of emotions, too many to pick out just one to focus on and decipher.
"We talked for a while and Oliver asked me a question"
"What question?"
"He asked me if I was falling for him" she blushed and the twins smirked.
"What did you say?" Fred teased.
"The truth, well mostly anyway. I said yes"
"But you lied because you're already in love him" George said knowingly and she nodded with a sigh.
She didn't bother denying it or asking how they knew, they knew her as well as they knew each other. She was the third member of their Twindom.
"And what did he say?"
"That he was falling for me too. But I don't understand it though. Three weeks, it's only been three weeks! How can you fall for someone in only three weeks?"
"Mia, it can happen" Fred said putting his arms around her shoulders and she leaned her head against his shoulder. "When we were little, dad used to tell us stories about him and mum. He said that from the moment he laid eyes on her, he knew he was going to marry her and love only her"
"You can fall for someone in minutes or years. You are in the world you belong in now, and things happen differently here" George said. "I remember dad telling us stories as kids about special witches and wizards who were fated to be together"
"Oh yeah, something about magic connecting and what not" Fred spoke looking as though he was trying to search his memories for the conversations.
"Oliver mentioned it as well; his parents told him the same thing. He's not sure if one of those rare occasions applies to us, but he did point out that we are supposedly each other's perfect match" Hermione told them.
"Stop worrying about the how or why and just focus on the fact that you love him. You're lucky, you were matched with someone that you can trust and have a happy future with. Without this law you likely wouldn't have met him" George spoke softly and he stood on her other side wedging her between him and Fred.
"We're not saying that it will be easy for the both of you. You will likely have arguments that end in you hexing him, crying and then running to us and then we'll prank him for making you cry" Hermione chuckled. "But no relationship is easy, especially in this case since you've only had a month of dating before you have to marry, but that could be a good thing"
"It has forced you to do things you were uncomfortable doing. This law took away your choices, but it forced you to get to know each other, to feel comfortable around each other and to move in together, but your feelings for him developed all on their own. As long as you respect each other and work together, you can make this soon to be marriage work"
"You're forgetting about the rules we have to abide by" Hermione pointed out and the twins looked a little ill at the reminder.
"Yes, well, just forget about them. Most of that stuff is common sense anyway" George spoke.
"And don't worry about getting pregnant. If it happens it happens. If it doesn't then Oliver has promised not to abandon you and you can adopt if you wish to. You'll easily be cleared and pass the whole adoption process" Fred said.
"I don't know what I'd do without the two of you" she said honestly and they grinned at her.
"You'd be on a rampage without us to reign you in" George said and they laughed at him.
"What have you done to Skeeter?" Fred asked curious.
She grinned evilly. "I don't think she'll be able to open her mail for a while without receiving an appreciative gift me" they laughed at her loudly and everyone walked in at that point and looked at them apprehensively.
"What are you three up to?" Mrs Weasley asked as you would a child.
"Nothing" they replied quickly, she narrowed her eyes at them and they smiled angelically. She rolled her eyes.
"Where's Quaffle?" Hermione asked, she hadn't seen him for a while.
"I think I saw him on the balcony with a weird looking bunny" Charlie spoke up and Hermione's eyes widened.
"WHAT?" she shrieked and they jumped as she ran the best she could to the balcony and Oliver followed her amused and the others followed confused.
"Oh not again" Hermione whined when she reached the balcony doors and saw Quaffle chewing on Harold.
Hermione stormed over to him. "Quaffle, let go of him now" she said sternly, but Quaffle just wagged his tail. Hermione grabbed a hold of the rabbit and tugged. "Let go" Quaffle looked to be having fun playing tug of war with Hermione.
"A little help here?" Hermione said turning to look at Oliver as he watched amused and everyone else laughed.
"What do I get it if I do?" he asked.
"How about I don't hex you in your sleep and set fire to your broom"
Oliver laughed at her and walked forward. Hermione moved out of the way and he grabbed the rabbit and pulled. "Quaffle, let go" Quaffle didn't listen to him. "Quaffle, I am not playing. Let go"
"You heard him Quaffle" Hermione said amused. "Let go"
Quaffle suddenly let go and sat up straight and Oliver fell backwards, landing on his back on the grass and everyone burst out laughing.
"Did you plan that?" he asked Hermione suspiciously.
"No, I swear, I had no idea he would listen to me"
"Why does it seem like we've been in this situation before?"
"Because we have" Hermione said amused and then she helped him up, before taking Harold from Oliver and fixing him. "This was on my chest of drawers, how did he get it?" Oliver shrugged and then Hermione banished Harold back to her room.
"Well Hermione, you and Oliver have a lovely home" Mrs Weasley said, a little flushed from laughing.
"It was all Oliver's doing; I just took over the place" they laughed at her.
"No, you made the place look better" Oliver said.
"He's right dear" Mrs Wood said nodding. "This place was rather bare and blindingly white and now it looks marvellous"
"All I did was make him come shopping with me to buy some paint, photo frames and cushions" she blushed.
"You decorated the TV room by yourself, I didn't even know until the morning after" he said amused by her reactions.
"Well he decorated my room, the kitchen and had the library put in" Hermione argued.
"Actually I hired people to do it for me" he added and then shrugged.
"Well I am glad to see that even though you are living together, you have separate rooms" Mrs Weasley said approvingly.
"How about we sit down for dinner?" Hermione said, blushing furiously and the twins smirked.
They made their way back to the kitchen. The table was enlarged and chairs were conjured before everyone sat down at the kitchen table and the food was passed around and Quaffle wandered around the table, being fed bits of food by everyone but Hermione. Hermione had made lamb casserole with mash potato and dumplings. And for desert she had made a chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies.
"So Hermione" Bill spoke eating away at his dinner. "Why was a family meeting called?"
"I wanted to talk to you all" she took a breath. "About... about what happened during the war"
Everyone stopped and looked at her shocked, except Mr and Mrs Wood who looked at her intrigued.
"That's always been a touchy subject with you, Hermione" Charlie said looking at her carefully.
"I know, but the twins know and so does Oliver" she looked to her right and Oliver smiled at her encouragingly. "And I think that I'm ready to tell you all too and that includes why I don't talk about my parents" a few people in the room gave her knowing and sad looks. "There are some things that I can't tell you for reasons I can't explain, but I will tell you almost everything" they nodded understandingly. "That's why I wanted you all here tonight. I don't want to keep secrets and I think it will help me come to terms with what happened"
"When are you going to tell us?" Percy asked.
"After dinner. The twins didn't take it well when I told them what happened and I don't want to ruin dinner"
"Okay, after dinner then" Mr Weasley said smiling at Hermione and the topic changed as everyone returned to eating and chatting pleasantly.
"I'm going to write a book" Hermione informed everyone and they looked at her intrigued.
"About what?" Mr Wood asked.
"The war" they all raised their eyebrows in terrifying unison. "People should know the truth and you never know, Hogwarts might make them a part of their curriculum. I never had a chance to clear Sirius' name like I promised him I would. But now I do" they looked at her sadly. "Everyone should know the sacrifices made and what better way than it coming from me. I don't want people writing books about the war that is filled with propaganda and lies. I am a trusted source and was an instrumental part in taking down Voldemort; people know that they can rely on my words when I write them" they smiled at her proudly.
"How are you going to do it? It's going to take a while and now you've got a new job" Percy asked interested.
"Well I'm actually working fewer hours than I was at the shop and after the quidditch season is over we get two months off and then training starts up again in November. So I will have time them, but I already have the foundation of the books"
"Books? I thought you were only writing one" Charlie said.
"Seven, one for each year I was fighting the war. But I kept journals, I have at least three for every year. I just have to develop what's already written and edit it. Simple enough. The Ministry will try and stop me from publishing some of the things I have to say, but I'll ask Kingsley for help" they nodded.
"So Fleur, when's the baby due?" Oliver asked changing the subject.
"I am seven weekz along. I am due February, and I cannot wait for zese hormonez to be ozer and done with" the Weasleys and Hermione looked at her with identical knowing looks. Fleur secretly loved that she was so hormonal all the time and they knew it.
When they finished eating Hermione used magic to clean the dishes and then everyone gathered in the living room taking seats.
Hermione and Oliver sat on the couch with the twins sat on either side of Hermione and Oliver for support. And she began her story, from rampaging mountain trolls in girl's bathrooms to healing Fred at the hospital. She left out certain parts of the story such as the Deathly Hallows and only skimming over the topic of Horcruxes.
When she finished an hour or so later, they were all staring at her with pale skin tones, shock and awe and Mrs Weasley, Mrs Wood and Fleur's faces were tear stained.
"I had no idea" Mrs Weasley whispered. "I had no idea my son put you through so much" she said sadly. "He is lucky he is not in the country because I have a wooden spoon and a stinging hex with his name on"
Hermione chuckled and the twins smirked; they couldn't wait to see that happen.
"It wasn't your fault, Maji. Ron's just oblivious and hot tempered and he has the emotional range of a tea spoon"
"What are these objects you mentioned? Surely they have a name" Bill said confused.
"They do Bill, there used to be less than ten people that knew about them, but now there is less than twelve since I told the twins and Oliver about them. Evidently Harry, Ron and myself already knew about them. These objects are the very definition of dark magic. I was ill for days when I learned about them and the twins and Oliver weren't much better. They allowed Voldemort to have immortality and they had to be destroyed before he could be killed. There are only two people in the entire world that know how to make them. Myself and Oliver"
"You don't want to know how to make them" Oliver said clearly, sensing that someone had the urge to ask how they were made.
"Okay, your natural healing abilities, that's amazing" Charlie said in awe and changing the subject.
Hermione blushed. "I don't know where it originates from, I know I was born with it, but I don't know if I am born with it because one of my ancestors had it and it was passed onto me along with my magic"
"You healed Fred?" Mrs Weasley said with tears in her eyes.
Hermione nodded. "Yes, I did. The potions and spells they were giving Fred would've taken a few days to heal him, so I did it. I healed his injuries, but it took me two weeks to be able to wake him from his coma. A task of that magnitude is very difficult so I had to do it in small doses"
"We saw you, after you healed Oliver I mean" George said thoughtfully. "You were shaking, you looked pale and you had a nose bleed"
"That's because Oliver's injuries were extensive. He had internal bleeding, some organ damage, a broken leg, arm and clavicle and deep tissue bruises. If he had been caught with the spell sooner, his injuries wouldn't have been so severe, but because they were, it took a lot of my energy and magic to heal him. I can heal cuts, bruises and a few broken bones no problem, but when it comes to internal bleeding and organ damage, that's when things get complex. Fred's injuries were partially healed thanks to the potions and spells, but he still had severe injuries and it drained me"
"And the full moon?" Bill said amused.
"I'm surprised no one noticed sooner" Hermione said honestly "especially you Bill"
"I had a feeling that something was different about you. I was attacked your sixth year, but I couldn't be sure what it was that was different"
"Why didn't you tell anyone sooner?" Mr Wood asked.
Hermione shrugged. "There were other pressing matters and I didn't think that it was important. It was only a few enhanced senses and a change in my mood around the full moon. It wasn't exactly life threatening"
"It was to us" the twins said.
"I told you and you still thought it would be funny to wind me up until I hexed you" they shrugged.
"It was worth it getting to see you all huffy" Fred said and they laughed at her scowl.
"And your parents" Mr Weasley said sadly. "You could've told us Hermione"
"No I couldn't. I couldn't tell you because I wasn't ready to admit that they had died. I was ashamed and I didn't want to disappoint anyone"
"Is there anything else?" Mrs Wood asked. Hermione, Oliver and the twins shared a look. "I'll take that as a yes. Is there anything else you want to tell us?" she amended
"No, not yet at least" Hermione and Oliver said together and they looked at each other stunned and the others laughed.
Puddlemere Stadium - Monday 20th July 1998
Before leaving the apartment Oliver had received a letter from the jewellers letting him know that he could pick up the engagement ring he had had made for Hermione. The only problem was coming up with an excuse so he could go to Diagon Alley and pick it up without Hermione suspecting anything.
Training had just finished and it had been a good day. Hermione only made them do twenty laps of the obstacle course and she had explained to the team their weaknesses and gave them new drills to run. Oliver could already see an improvement in the team, both in their playing of quidditch and in their behaviour. And to top the day off with a cherry, Hermione had hexed Malloy with her Bat Bogey hex for being a prat and winding her up. Malloy had definitely learned his lesson and the team laughed until they cried and fell over in the case of Thompson and Pallie.
Hermione walked out of Coach Burton's office further down the corridor and Oliver walked out of the locker rooms freshly showered and with damp hair.
"Hey" she smiled at him.
"Hi, you should head home without me, I have to pick up something from Madam Malkin's before she closes" Oliver said hoping she wouldn't want to accompany him.
"You're going to Diagon Alley?" he nodded slowly. "Great, I'll come with you" Oliver's face fell, but it returned to a smile when he heard her response. "I need to see Fred and George, I need more products for Skeeter and I've designed more products for them" she grinned and he chuckled.
Together they walked to the floo with Quaffle following obediently by their side.
"So what exactly have you done to Skeeter?"
Her answering grin immediately let him know she wasn't going easy and he actually felt a miniscule amount of pity for the woman.
"I've been sending her products in the mail three times a day, well technically the owl post office is sending anonymous gifts to her" she grinned and he laughed.
"Like what?"
She shrugged. "Canary Creams, Ton-tongue Toffee, Puking Pastilles, Self Propelling Custard Pies, Weasley's Snowstorm, Exploding Whizz Poppers and Thor's Thunder Cracker" she grinned at him and he shivered. "I can't remember the rest"
"You scare me sometimes" he muttered and she smiled angelically and he snorted.
Diagon Alley
They stepped out of the Leaky Cauldron floo and made their way out of the pub.
"Shall I meet you back here?" he nodded.
"About an hour?"
"That's fine" she smiled at him. "Plenty of time to gather what I need" he really did pity Skeeter.
"Are you going to be okay on your own?" he asked worriedly.
She smiled at him. "Yes, I should be. There are too many people here so I will blend into the crowd and I haven't seen any photographers" he reluctantly nodded. "Am I taking Quaffle or are you?"
"I will"
"You sure? You said you were going to Madam Malkin's"
"She'll let him in as soon as she sees me"
"Well if you're sure" she kissed his cheek, scratched Quaffle's head and with a goodbye she made her way through the still bustling crowd.
She headed straight for the twin's shop and she entered to see a line from the counter backed up all the way to the door. She smiled and made her way through the crowd and she slipped behind the counter and called for the next person.
"Hey Mia" George said looking relieved.
"You're looking frazzled George" she said amused and she rang the sales up and gave the customer their change before the next customer took their place at the counter.
"We've been really busy today"
"I can see that" she laughed at him, before moving onto the next customer. It took ten minutes to get the queue at the counter back down to zero, but the shop was still bustling with customers.
"It's like you never left" George said with a smile and he hopped onto the counter and swung his legs back and forth.
"I can never truly leave this place, this will always be my home" he smiled widely at her. "And if you need help all you have to do is ask you know"
"You have a job, Junior Coach"
"Coach said I don't have to be there every day, but I go anyway" she shrugged.
"Why hello there, beautiful" Fred said as he waltzed over to them and flung his arm around Hermione and he gave her an overly dramatic kiss to the cheek. Both George and Hermione rolled their eyes and chuckled at him.
"Hello Frederick"
"So, what do you need?" George asked.
"What? I can't come and visit my favourite boys without having an ulterior motive?"
"Of course you can, but not this time" Fred said and Hermione mock scowled at him.
"Fine" she huffed and they grinned triumphantly. "I brought you some new designs for products" they grinned at her. "Just because I don't spend all my time here like I used to, doesn't mean I'm giving up my part of this pranking trio"
"Never thought you would" they spoke grinning.
"It's in your twin blood" Fred said and she laughed at him.
"Now, I need some new products for Skeeter"
"How long are you going to keep this up?" George asked amused.
"When the old hag is on the verge of a mental breakdown. It's only been a week and I've sent her twenty-one gifts so far. But I have much more planned. Now let's see, I need the strongest love potion you can give me and some flirting fancies"
"Why?" they asked.
"For my own amusement of course and I need a few more things too"
The twins shook their heads at her and left her at the counter whilst they gathered the things she asked for and she worked the till.
Fifteen minutes before she was due to meet Oliver she said goodbye to the twins and left the shop and slowly walked towards the Leaky Cauldron.
She was making her way through the bustling crowd and out of nowhere she was pushed and thrown into an alley way between two shops. Someone grabbed her from behind, lifted her up and restrained her against their chest.
"Hello Mudblood" someone spat into her ear.