Disclaimer: I own nothing...
A/N: Merlin, editing this story might double it in size! With the rate I'm going, I might have all remaining pre-written chapters ready before New Year's! Other than a very short hiatus during the holidays, you can expect an update every 5-7 days, until we're done with the revised chapters.
And before I forget: Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year's!
Wish me Luck
Chapter 18
"W- wh- what?"
The four young wizards stumbled over their words, four pair of eyes widened to the size of saucers, almost comically fast, and they stared at the petite witch with open mouthed astonishment; on her part, Hermione remained stoic, her cheeks turning a light pink in embarrassment, but her eyes remained defiant, challenging them to question her.
Sirius on the other hand watched them with amusement, his grin showing his teeth, and his eyes laughing; his arm around her shoulders was heavy, familiar. Harry and she held a special spot in his heart; they had saved him, gave him his life back.
Cedric, amidst the chaos in his mind, noted that Black's hug was more fatherly than romantic; obviously, he did care for the young witch, but not romantically. He probably saw her as a daughter or something.
"Are you serious?" Wyatt demanded, eyes on the brunette.
"No, that's me actually," Sirius chipped in, making Hermione roll her eyes in exasperation.
"Please," she mumbled, shrugging his arm off. He waggled his eyebrows at her, and she shook her finger at him. "Name, or canine related jokes, are not funny after the tenth time!"
"I have to disagree with you, kitten," he laughed, patting her head.
Merlin, what was with them, and patting her head!? She wasn't a dog!
She swatted at his hand.
He chuckled.
"As much as I'd love to stay, and chat, I have a meeting to attend. And you," he tweaked her nose when she opened her mouth, "are not allowed to come. Albus' rules; until you are seventeen and have graduated from Hogwarts, you are... honorary members of the Order."
"But what are we doing here?" She asked, and no, she did not whine. Hermione Granger didn't whine, no sir, she was more dignified than that, thank you very much.
"I believe your friends here can explain things to you," the Lord of the House said, now looking pensive, and serious, eyes on his watch. "You will carry kitten's bags up to her room, won't you, gentlemen? She shares with Ginny," he called over his shoulder as he returned to the kitchen.
Hermione tucked a strand of her ridiculous hair behind her ear, and sighed. It was good to see Sirius, but sometimes, he was so annoying!
"He'll never change," she murmured to no one in particular.
"So, Granger..." Scott appeared beside her, throwing his arm around her shoulders again, and smiling cheekily. "Helped any more convicts escape recently?"
"No, just Sirius," she answered flippantly, allowing him to turn her around, and gently lead her up the stairs, not before she bend over and snatched Crookshanks crate from the floor; the part Kneazle hated travelling in that thing, so Tonks had cast a mild sleeping charm on it. It would wear off in an hour, or so, and she wanted to be already unpacked for when he'd be awake. Chances were he'd be cross with her, so she had to find a suitable treat for him.
Behind them, she heard Wyatt, Percy, and Cedric grabbing her bags, and hurrying after them.
"Care to share?" Wyatt asked from behind her.
Sighing, she rolled her eyes.
She did that a lot today.
"Long story short, we had been at Hagrid's, consoling him because Buckbeak, that's the Hippogriff that attacked Malfoy by the way, was about to be executed, and Sirius was after Wormtail," she paused. "You know the truth, right?"
"Yes, yes, Peter Pettigrew framed Sirius, he is still alive, he helped You-Know-Who come back, we know all that," Wyatt sounded impatient. "We want to know your part."
"Not really my part," she muttered. "Harry, Ron, and I played roles in what happened that night."
"And we'd like to know that roles, if you don't mind," Scott squeezed her.
The first floor was, like the rest of the house, gloomy, and dark; three doors lined the walls on each side. When she tried to continue up the stairs, Scott stopped her.
"That's Ginny's room, the first door to the left."
Deciding to get this over with, so she could go to her room, and unpack, she shrugged off Scott's arm, and rounded on them. For a fleeting second, she locked eyes with Cedric; and hastily looked away, her hands tightening around Crooks' crater.
"Well, we didn't know Pettigrew was an Animagus, masquerading as Ron's pet at the time, so we were totally unprepared for when Sirius, in his own animagus form – a huge, terrifying dog, - attacked us, and dragged Ron under the Whomping Willow. We followed after them, and we're led to the Shrieking Shack, where we found Sirius. Remus arrived shortly after, and along with Sirius told us everything. We didn't believe them at first, and then Professor Snape showed up, and he has this huge grudge against them-"
"We noticed," Percy snickered. She threw him a smile.
"Kind of difficult not to, I'd wager." They shared a laugh. "He wanted to have Dementors to the Shack, he refused to listen to reason, blinded by his hatred, I think, so... We, um, we kind of... you know... cursed him."
Stunned silence.
"And how in the seven pits of Hell, did you lot managed to get away without even a lousy detention?" Percy demanded, looking equally parts amused, and bewildered.
"Let me finish," she chided. "Sirius, and Remus used a spell that forced Peter to change back to his human form. They wanted to kill him, but Harry didn't want them to be murderers, so we decided to tie him up, and take him with us to the castle. His presence alone would secure Sirius' freedom, and that was enough for Harry. But in his hurry to come to us, Remus forgot to take his Wolfsbane potion, and when he changed, he was... feral. In the chaos that followed, Peter managed to escape, and Sirius was captured, and locked to Professor Flitwick's office, awaiting to receive the Kiss. Goodness knows, the Minister refused to listen to reason, Snape had him convinced Sirius had tricked us, confused us, with dark magic. We were ignored. But the headmaster... He believed us, so... He told me to use my Time-Turner-"
"A Time-Turner? You had a Time-Turner?" Wyatt looked envious.
"Yes. Professor McGonagall had secured one for my use during my third year. It was the only way I could manage to attend all my classes. Turned out it was a God send. Without it, we wouldn't have managed to save neither Buckbeak, nor Sirius. But we did. We saved Buckbeak, and then we rode him up to where Sirius was held, and after we broke him out, he took Buckbeak, and flew away."
Cedric's look was peculiar; he had heard whispers of her impossible schedule between his younger House mates, and he had suspected something like that, but to have confirmation... The Ministry coveted their Time-Turners as if they were the most precious of treasures; to be allowed to use one, when she was only a student... It spoke volumes of how she was perceived outside of school; he knew the Ministry kept a close eye on the most promising students, hoping to lure them into working for them.
If Hermione's potential had ensured her the use of a highly priced artefact at age fourteen, then chances were she'd have her pick of jobs after her graduation.
She only had to live long enough to graduate.
The morose thought made his face twist, and he scowled; but he couldn't ignore his gut feeling.
Since she became friends with Potter, and Weasley, every year seemed to be full of dangers for the trio; first the Philosopher's Stone in their first year, then the Chamber of Secrets – she had come this close to actually dying! - helping an escaped convict escape... Who knew what else?
Despite her intelligence, she didn't hesitate to put herself in danger in order to save, or help her friends. And that, although admirable, could get her killed.
His temper spiked, his vision turned blurry with anger, and he gritted his teeth; Granger was ready to die for Potter, and Weasley...
The three of them shared a friendship so deep, that Cedric felt jealously flare its ugly head.
Would she be so willing to protect him if given the choice?
Would he ever become as important to her, as her two friends?
A small part of him, the part dictated by logic, scolded him for behaving so irrationally; even if she loved him, he'd never put her at risk, so the point was mute. But the part of him burning with envy and unrequited love, mocked him, reminded him he had been nothing but an arse to her, and the chances of her caring for him, were slim to none.
And she'd never reciprocate his feelings, especially when he was still with Cho.
As for Wyatt... Cedric hadn't had the chance to talk with his friend about Granger, and although last time Wyatt had practically given him his blessings in pursuing her, the blond Hufflepuff knew that it would hurt him if he and Granger became a couple.
Stomping down his self doubts, he took a deep breath.
"-week for you, Granger? Saw any new places? Met any interesting people?" Scott was asking, voice intentionally casual.
Cedric realised he had missed a long part of the conversation, as Wyatt, and Percy had already carried her luggage in her room, and were leaning against the door frame, watching the girl with hawkish eyes.
Wyatt threw him an intense stare, but Cedric simply shook his head mutely.
Hermione looked unsure, timid.
Cedric couldn't blame her; they might be friendly, but Scott looked kind of creepy, looking at her with slightly narrowed eyes, his tone laced with accusation.
"It was lovely. My parents were disappointed we had to end our vacation so soon, but we'll make up the lost time during the Christmas holidays."
Cedric tried to find some hidden meaning in her words, some detail that would prove she had spent the past ten days with Viktor, but he couldn't find anything.
Wyatt rolled his eyes; seriously, he knew what they all wanted to ask her about, but it seemed it would be up to him to bring up the subject. Cedric might throw a fuss, but he knew his friend was itching to know if Hermione thought about their kiss, yet they both seemed perfectly content to act as if nothing had happened between them.
Tough.
"So, Hermione," he crossed his arms, smiling his wicked smile. "What did you think of the third task? Cedric almost dying, and Snake Face's return aside, of course."
Cedric looked ready to murder him, his grey eyes wide and alarmed.
How dare he!? He had told him, had make it absolutely clear that his kiss with Granger was a forbidden subject! What was Wyatt thinking, bringing it up in front of Hermione!?
He wasn't ready to talk about it with her; not before he had figured out what to do with Cho, and had actually manage to convince Hermione he was not, in fact, an utter prick.
And now was definitely not the time!
Wyatt was going to die, and he would be the one to kill him!
Hermione scowled.
"Are you kidding me? The whole tournament was ridiculous! Whoever thought it'd be nice to reinstate it, needs to be locked up for psychological observation! That labyrinth was a death trap! Acromantulas? A sphinx? What were they thinking!? Someone could have died! Someone almost died!"
Sensing she was gearing up for a rant of epic proportions, and he really, really didn't want to hear it, Wyatt raised his hands in supplication.
"Okay, okay, I get the picture. You hated it."
"Damn right, I did!" She harrumphed, sending him a scolding look. "Do you know how scared I was about Harry? Merlin, I think I lost ten years of my life, just worrying about him!"
"Sure, sure." Wyatt nodded.
"So nothing worthwhile happened?" Percy took the mantle, curious despite himself. "Anything to make you... appreciate it?"
Mentally, he went through all the defensive spells he knew; because Cedric would come after them for this, he was sure, and he'd like to have all his limbs attached when he returned back to school.
Hermione regarded him curiously, before a flash of awareness washed over her face, and her eyes hardened.
"No." She answered curtly, and smiled to soften her harsh tone. "Nothing of great importance happened; why?"
Cedric, who had been glaring daggers at his unapologetic best friend, snapped his head to stare at her, his eyes darkening to stormy dark clouds of fury. His teeth gnashed together, two rosy spots of colour appeared on his cheeks, and his hands shook slightly from the effort he was putting forth to contain his emotions.
"Hermione! You are here!"
Ginny Weasley's arrival saved him from making a scene; the younger Weasley flew down the stairs, her long flaming red hair flying behind her, as she threw herself to the older witch's arms, hugging her tightly.
Granger stumbled back, barely managing to steady herself on the wall across her room. She returned the hug fiercely.
"Missed me?"
"You have no idea!" Ginny groaned, breaking away to share a conspirational wink with her friend. "It's not fun being the only girl in a house full of guys!"
"If you say so."
"Hm." Ginny appraised her critically, eyes catching on Hermione's darker skin. "You tanned! Spending time under the sun, did we?"
"It's summer, Gin! And I was by the beach! It'd be surprising if I had stayed pale!"
Ginny batted a hand.
"I want to hear everything." She announced, grabbing Crookshanks' crater from her hands, and inclining her head backwards to their room. "Come in, we have so much to talk about!"
She turned, her hair hitting Hermione on the nose.
"Move it, guys!" The young red head snipped, pushing aside Percy and Wyatt to enter the room. "It's girl talk time. And you are not invited!"
She shut the door to their faces the second Hermione was in the room, and they could hear giggling and hushed voices from inside.
"I don't want to be an insensitive jerk..." Scott started, flicking a speck of lint from his tee. "But it seems like Granger prefers to ignore your... encounter."
"You-"
"Don't start on us, Ced." Wyatt coolly interrupted him. "We told you to go to her, and settle things between you. We told you, you had to make a choice, and stick with it. And you said you didn't want to be with her. You said your kiss was a mistake. So, don't act all indignant, when she chooses to act the same way! You wanted it, so don't complain about it now."
"What did you expect, Cedric?" Percy asked quietly. "That she'll be devastated, pining after you? You know better. She's not like that. You wanted her to forget about your kiss, well, she did. You have no right to be upset over it."
xxXxx
Hermione could have kissed Ginny, when the red head made her entrance.
She knew what Wyatt and Percy were really asking her, and she had no intention of talking about it with Cedric's friends! Especially when he was standing just there, acting as if he had never kissed her!
If he'd wanted to talk to her about it, he'd have said something when they were at Hogwarts; she knew he was hurt when he thought she hadn't visit him, but that was no excuse for his behaviour.
Yes, she still thought about their kiss, dreamed of it, but if Cedric wanted to pretend it had never happened, then so be it.
She wasn't like his fangirls, who would jump at the chance to be his plaything; she had feelings, and she refused to allow Cedric Diggory to play with them.
Ginny's timely appearance had saved her from a potentially explosive situation, and Hermione made a mental note to buy the red head an especially nice gift for her birthday next month.
Among her friends, only Ginny knew Cedric had kissed her again, and she had been the one to help Hermione realise she had feelings for the Hufflepuff, despite her vehement denials. Her friend rightly pointed out that Hermione had been dreaming about the grey eyed boy since their first kiss – damn her self for sharing that little secret with her! - and that she had, in fact, responded to Cedric both times he kissed her.
She might have been determined to deny her feelings, and pretend Cedric was nothing more than a friendly acquaintance, but, as Ginny pointed out, would Hermione ever return Ron's kiss, if her brother attempted to kiss her?
Just thinking about that scenario made her shiver.
And forced her to accept the truth; Cedric Diggory was more than just a friend.
If she was honest with herself, he was everything she could possibly want in a partner; he was smart, mature, kind, loyal, and he had a sense of humour. His love for Quidditch aside, and his impulsive tendencies, at least regarding to her, Cedric was her ideal boyfriend.
Of course, him being handsome, devastatingly so, earned him the attention of pretty much every female student at Hogwarts, yet, from what she had seen, he remained down to Earth, and modest.
Additionally, and she talked from experience, he kissed like a god! She still shivered when she recalled the feel of his lips on hers, and the way he had nipped and bit at her lips.
"What am I going to do, Gin?" She cried, falling to the bed to the right, which sported bright pink covers. Ginny had already made herself comfortable to the second one, the covers neon blue.
"Did he say something? I was busy cleaning the attic with Ron, Fred, and George, and didn't hear you coming."
For the past ten days, Ginny had watched the Hufflepuff champion, intent on catching him unaware, and interrogating him about his intentions toward Hermione, but he was never alone. And whenever she had tried to eavesdrop on his conversations with his friends, or her brothers, he studiously avoided mentioning Hermione. Curiosity prickling her, she had cornered who she thought was the weakest link in the group of four; Scott Grey.
Turned out, Scott was tougher than he looked, and their meeting ended in an impasse.
But what she had heard before she swooped in to save Hermione, proved to her they knew of the kiss, and were tired of Cedric and Hermione dancing around each other; too bad they went right for the kill, not taking into consideration Hermione's temper, and her anger at Diggory for the way he had treated her in the Hospital Wing.
"No," Hermione sighed, rolling to her bed, and spreading her arms. "Not a damn thing. Which is good... Great really. This way, we can forget it ever happened, and move on with our lives."
Ginny might be young, but she was not an idiot.
Hermione was trying to sound brave, and happy, but she detected the underlining sadness, and hurt in her tone.
Not that she had much experience with boys, Michael was her first boyfriend, but she knew Hermione was confused, maybe because relationships were not something you could study from a book.
Insecure, shy, and unsure were three words that described Hermione perfectly when it came to romance; her one and only relationship was with Viktor Krum, and he had come out and directly told her he liked her.
There were no mind games, no pride to get in the way, and no beating around the bush.
Cedric was as different from Viktor, as the day differed from the night.
"And you think this is for the best?" She asked, incredulous.
"Yes," Hermione answered, meekly. Clearing her throat, she stared at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Diggory, and I... We are not... compatible, I guess. He's popular, gorgeous; where I am the plain, boring bookworm-"
'You are Hermione Granger!" Ginny interrupted her. "You are the girl who solved Snape's logical riddle when you were a first year! You figured out what Slytherin's monster was, and how it travelled inside the school! You helped save Sirius' life, and you got Harry through the Triwizard tournament! Viktor Krum, an international Quidditch superstar, who quite literally has his pick of girls, fell in love with you! And did you forget the Yule Ball? Even Malfoy had nothing insulting to say to you! You may not realise it, but since then, a lot of guys are taking notice of you. For Merlin's sake, you had Wyatt Halliwell running after you! You are far from plain, and boring! You are pretty, intelligent, and great! So if you don't stop putting yourself down this instant, I won't be held responsible for my actions, Hermione Jean Granger!"
By the end of her rant, she was panting, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes sparkled with indignation.
"All right," Hermione soothed her, regarding her with weary eyes.
Smiling, Ginny laid down on her bed, and pointed a finger upward.
"You know, it's really a shame you broke up with Viktor. He was such a great guy!"
The door shook, as if someone had crashed on it.
"Ouch!"
They jumped up, glanced at each other, and rushed to the door, throwing it open, and pointing their wands at the eavesdropper. To Hermione's mortification, Percy Smith was kneeling in front of their door, rubbing the back of his head. He smiled sheepishly up at them.
He had been obviously eavesdropping on them.
Oh, Merlin!
"SMITH! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Ginny was furious, red sparks flying from the tip of her wand. Percy raised his hands in surrender, and gulped.
"Sorry...?"
"Not good enough, chap." The red head growled, advancing on him.
"What's going on?"
"Percy?"
"What are you doing, Weasley?"
Cedric, Wyatt, and Scott were standing at the stairs.
Before the girls could utter a single word, Percy twisted his head, and sent a smirk at Cedric.
"Granger broke up with Krum!"
Ginny punched him.
"Ginny!"
"Percy!"
"Don't Ginny me!" She snapped, pointing an accusing finger at a glowering Scott. "He had no right to eavesdrop on a private conversation! And then to tell you what he heard!"
"You didn't have to punch him!"
"He's lucky that's all I did!" She snarled, and then sobered, turning to look at the suddenly pale Hermione.
Had Percy heard the part about Cedric?
"Merlin, Weasley!" He whined, clutching his throbbing nose. "I only heard that last part!"
"Doesn't matter." The petite ginger haired witch glared, expertly hiding her relief behind an angry façade, and turned to go back in her room... only to find Hermione and Cedric locked in an intense staring contest.
"Is this true?" The young man asked hoarsely, his voice raw with emotion.
Hermione felt a tingle ran down her spine. He sounded exactly like in her dreams, sending her heart into a frenzy. Her tummy was filled with butterflies, and she felt dizzy.
"Is it true? Did you break up with Viktor?" He asked again, taking a step closer, and Hermione felt faint.
She wanted him to kiss her, hold her, touch her.
God, but she wanted him!
xxXxx
Cedric felt his heart hammering inside his chest, his blood boiling with wild anticipation, and his stomach twisting. Her eyes, her beautiful amber eyes, were locked on his, looking dazed, as she stared at him.
Merlin, he wanted her.
"Yeah," she finally answered, after what seemed an eternity, and Cedric had to bit the inside of his cheek to stop from crying out in happiness. Hermione seemed unsure, her hands fiddling with the hem of her shirt, and her voice small. "We broke up before the end of the last school's term."
"So you weren't with him in Bulgaria?" Wyatt had to make sure; he felt his heart breaking at the way she and Ced were looking at each other, their feelings written all over their faces. Perhaps this was for the best. Having confirmation that Hermione cared for Cedric gave him the incentive to actually move on, to try to get over her.
Hermione cocked her head to the side, breaking her eye contact with Cedric. "No, I was with my parents. We went to France."
"That's... lovely." Cedric breathed, taking an unconscious step closer to her.
Sensing this might lead to something her friend wasn't comfortable dealing with just yet, Ginny stepped in.
"Okay, that's enough chit chat. This is meant to be a private conversation, and you lot are not invited." She shooed them away. "And you might want to keep in mind that I'm related to Fred and George; one doesn't live with them for fourteen years without learning a thing or two. And, unlike Hermione here, I don't forgive so easily."
With that, she pulled Hermione in the room, and shut the door to their faces.
"Jesus... Girl-Weasley is fucking scary!" Percy muttered, tapping his nose with a wince.
Cedric spared him an amused glance, mind focused on only one person.
Single... She's single.