Hey! I didn't take forever this time! Go me! Anyways, here's chapter twenty one!
Thanksgiving Cook Out
Hermione's POV
"Are you positive it's okay we come?" Kylie asked nervously, rubbing her hands together.
"Yes, Kylie, for the tenth time; I'm positive." I laughed.
"Why are you so worried?" Benny asked, ruffling his sister's hair. She smacked his hand away, scowling at him as he laughed.
"I just don't want to impose." She said, crossing her arms.
Right now Kylie, Benny, Sam, and I were heading out to the Quidditch pitch. Daddy Sam had talked to Dumbledore about letting him throw a cookout for Thanksgiving for the family and our friends. Dumbledore had readily agreed and helped Daddy Sam get grills, picnic tables, food, drinks, utensils, and outdoor games. Daddy Sam gave everyone permission to invite anyone they wanted to celebrate the holiday.
"You're not going to impose, Kylie. Daddy Sam said I could invite anyone; there will be a lot more kids there. Don't worry, you're welcome with open arms." I reassured the girl and she sighed in relief.
"Okay." She said, still slightly nervous. Since the day I met her I've learned that she was a really fun girl, very energetic, but when it came to being with groups of people she shied away into a shell. I inwardly hoped that this cook out would be a way to make her loosen up.
When we neared the Quidditch pitch the smell of hotdogs reached my nose.
"What's that smell?" Benny asked in awe, also smelling the hotdogs.
"Hotdogs." I said simply, only to get blank stares from the three of them.
"What?" they asked.
"It's a muggle food. Aren't you half-bloods?" I asked. With halving a muggle parent I was sure they would know what muggle food was.
"Yes, but even most half-bloods don't know what muggle things are. They usually choose to live in wizarding towns for more protection. You know, so that the muggles don't get suspicious or accidentally see magic." Sam explained and I nodded.
We finally reached the pitch and I smiled at the sight. Music was playing loudly, but not too loud so that Hogwarts can hear it. On the left side were the grills and food tables that were filled with both muggle and wizarding food. Daddy Sam, along with Carlisle (the Cullens came to join), Jasper, Hagrid, and the man I remember as Kingsley were all around the grills cooking the meat. Emily was at the food table serving and preparing the food with the help of Esme, Alice and McGonagall where Embry, Quil, and Jared were currently pigging out.
In the middle there were picnic tables spread out. Claire, Susan, Parvati, and her sister, Padma, were sitting at one while Marcus, Percy, and two boys I didn't recognize were at another. To my great surprise and pleasure I saw the elders all sitting at another table, chatting happily. They all waved when they saw me, smiling widely. I waved back happily and turned my attention back to the set up.
Behind the picnic tables was a tennis court where a game was going on. Leah, Bree, and Luna were playing against Brady, Jake, and Paul. I laughed as I watched Brady swing at the ball, only to have it fly pass his head and hit Paul in the back of the head with his racket. To the right of the picnic tables there was a soccer game going on. Dean, Neville, George, and Colin were playing against Seth, Seamus, Fred, and Lee. I guess the boys taught the wizards how. Neville shot a goal past Seamus and his team cheered him on.
Not too far away Rosalie, Taylor, Alex, Hannah Abbott, and Daphne Greengrass were all sitting in the grass. Rosalie was doing Taylor's hair into a braid while the other three did each other's nails. They were all giggling madly as they talked excitedly.
A few feet away Harry, Draco and his friends, Theo Nott and Blaise Zabini, were flying around Emmet and Edward. Emmet also had a broom in his hand and Blaise was attempting to show him how to ride it. When he mounted he kicked off the ground, hard, and went flying into the air. The boys all yelled in panic as Edward laughed. The broom flew from under Emmet and plummeted towards the ground, slamming hard on his back. The boys ran to him, worried, as Edward fell to the ground in laughter.
"Hey guys." A deep voice yelled and I turned to see Daddy Sam waving us over. We walked over to where the men were grilling and Daddy Sam bent to hug me. "Great turn out, hey?" he said and I nodded.
"This is awesome!" Benny exclaimed and we laughed.
"Daddy Sam, these are my friends; Benny and Kylie Simons and Samantha Mitchelle." They all waved, but Sam's eyes were glued to the soccer field nervously, obviously looking at a certain red head.
"Pleasure to meet you three." He said cheerfully. "Would you guys like something to eat?"
"What are you making?" Benny asked curiously.
"Well on the grills we're making hotdogs, burgers, chicken, steak, sausage, ribs, and pork." Daddy listed. I watched as Benny's eyes grew wider and wider with each thing he listed.
"I'll have one of each!" he said, practically bouncing with excitement. Kylie rolled her eyes as the men laughed.
"You got it kid." He said and began filling a plate. Us girls left Benny to his food and walked over to the food table.
"Hey Emily!" I said and she smiled down at me.
"Hey girly. What do you think of the cook out?" she asked, handing Kylie, Sam, and I plates.
"It looks really fun. I didn't think it would be so packed!" I exclaimed and she laughed. I looked at all the food and gasped when I saw a certain dish. "Emily, you're a saint!" I said as I ran to the bowl of Macaroni and Cheese. I heard her laugh as I packed my plate with macaroni.
"Macaroni and cheese is Hermione's ultimate favorite food." She told Sam and Kylie, who giggled. "She could live off the stuff if she had the choice."
"Of course! It's amazing!" I said as if it was obvious and they laughed again. Suddenly, Benny came running to where we were standing, a plate in each hand full of meat.
"Have you guys tried this stuff?! It's absolutely, fantastically, amazingly, out of this world! We really need to get our parents to buy this stuff!" Benny said, hoping from foot to foot in his excitement. Kylie groaned as she observed her brother bouncing in excitement.
"This isn't going to end well." She said and I snorted. She glared at me and opened her mouth to say something when three voices interrupted her.
"Mia!" they exclaimed and I turned to see Quil, Embry, and Jared walking towards us with plates in their hands. As they neared, Quil suddenly tripped and his food went everywhere as he landed flat on his face.
"Quil!" I exclaimed and we all ran over to the groaning boy. "Are you okay?" I asked as he lifted his head. As he turned in my direction I noticed he wasn't looking at me, but behind me. I turned to see that it was Kylie he was staring at with wide eyes as he lies on the ground, not moving an inch. Said girl looked at him in return in worry and nervousness. Benny, realizing who Quil was looking at, stepped slightly in front of his sister in big brother mode, narrowing his eyes.
"Oh my." I heard Emily say softly as she looked between the two. I cast a confused, questioning look, which she caught, and immediately turned to Quil. "Oh my! Quil, honey, are you okay?" she said as the boys helped the boy up.
"Y-Yeah I'm fine, I'm fine." He stuttered, shaking his head. I reached up and flicked a chip off his shoulder. He flashed me a small smile and dusted himself off.
"So, Mia, who are your friends?" Jared asked, smirking.
"Oh, these are Samantha, Benny, and his little sister Kylie." I said, pointing to each one. I could of sworn I heard a faint 'Kylie', but decided to ignore it.
"Well, pleasure to meet you! Right guys?" Jared said. Embry gave a bright 'Yup!' as Quil just nodded, blushing and looking at his feet. What was up with him? I guess he's still embarrassed about his little fall.
"So I see you like the meat." Embry said to Benny, pointing to the plate of food in the boy's hand.
Benny immediately put on his large grin and said excitedly, "Yeah! It's all so amazing! I've had chicken, sausage, and pork before, but never hotdogs, burgers, or ribs! The hotdogs are my favorite." He gushed and Kylie groaned again. I noticed Quil's eyes snap to the girl in worry and narrowed my eyes slightly before returning my attention back to the other boys. I saw that both Jared and Embry's eyes were wide as they stared at the boy.
"Benny, man, you haven't lived! Come along and let us introduce you to a thing we like to call pizza." Jared said and Benny's eyes shined at the thought of new food and he followed the boys to the other side of the long table. Quil gave us one more anxious glance before following after the boys.
"Oh god, they're going to turn him into a muggle food loving monster!" Kylie yelled and Sam and I snickered as Emily laughed warmly. We bid her goodbye and went over to where the boys were playing soccer, practically having to drag Sam over there.
"I don't want to go! Fred's over there!" she said, digging her heals into the ground in attempt to stay put.
"Sam, come on!" I grunted, pulling her as hard as I could without using demigod strength. "He's not the freaking boogie man! There's nothing to be scared of!" I said, pulling a little harder. We finally reached the pitch and Sam stopped struggling when she saw the boys walk towards them. She instead looked down at her hands, avoiding all eye contact.
"Hey Hermione and friends! What are you lovely ladies doing on this beautiful day?" Seamus said, flashing us a smile. I rolled my eyes.
"Oh nothing much, just dealing with a food hyper friend, a face planting family member, and having thoughts of burying a Scottish brother in the garden over there. You?" I said nonchalantly. Everyone laughed as Seamus' eyes grew slightly.
"So who's winning?" Kylie asked.
"Seth, Seamus, Fred, and Lee." George said glumly, crossing his arms. Fred laughed at his brother and patted his back.
"Of course we are, we have the most handsome, charming, and sexiest person on the team." Fred said, puffing out his chest. Sam risked a glance at Fred's voice and blushed before looking down again. Fred and George caught this and gave the girl a curious look.
"You're right Fred." I said. "You guys are so lucky to have Seth." They laughed again as Fred pouted, even Sam giggled, and Seth sent me a wink which I returned.
"So, you guys want to play?" Dean asked and the boys nodded. That gave me a brilliant idea.
"Sam does!" I shouted, pushing said girl forward. She stumbled, not expecting the attack, but regained her footing. She looked at me wide eyed before looking at everyone else.
"I-I," she stuttered. "I-I . . . um . . . I n-never really s-said . . . um w-well." She stuttered desperately.
"Sam's really good at soccer." Kylie added, a smirk lighting her face. "She's team captain of her summer team. She's a pro!"
"We call her!" Fred and Lee yelled, startling Sam. She looked anxiously between the two, hands fidgeting.
"No way! We get her! You're already winning." George shouted.
"Too bad, Georgie, we called dibs." Fred said, crossing his arms and putting his nose in the air. The twins argued some more, making Sam more and more anxious as she watched the two. I felt a little sorry for putting the girl on the spot, but it would give her a chance to be around Fred.
"Fine!" George yelled a moment later. "You win." Fred and the others cheered as Sam looked like she was going to have a panic attack.
"Calm down." I whispered to her. "Both Kylie and Benny have told me how good you are. This is your chance to impress Fred." I said and she started to take deep breaths. After a few moments she nodded, looking less tense, but still nervous.
"Let's get this party started!" Lee yelled and they raced back onto the field. Seth stopped when he saw Sam not following.
Smiling gently he approached the girl and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Don't be so nervous. I'm sure you'll be great. And anyways, it's just a friendly game, nothing serious. And if there's any time you want to stop just call out. If they give you problems I'll give them hell." Seth said comfortingly. Sam looked up at him and slowly nodded. With a hand still on her shoulder, he led her to the field, winking back at Kylie and I.
"Did we do the right thing?" Kylie asked.
"Yes, look." I said, pointing to Sam. Fred was currently talking to the girl happily, gesturing wildly with his hands. "I think she'll be just fine." And with that we walked away. We visited the other groups, playing a few rounds of tennis where Kylie shot the ball right at Jakes groin making him groan and us laugh, talking to the group of girls in my year, and meeting Brandon Li, Taylor's brother, and Adrian Pucey, both fifth year friends of Marcus and Percy.
"Hey, Hermione, I'm going to ask Miss Rosalie to braid my hair." Kylie said a little while later.
"Okay, I'm going to go see the boys." I said pointing to the boys flying. She nodded and we split up, going to our destinations.
Before I reached them I noticed two figures walking towards the pitch. Looking closer I saw that it was Snape holding the hand of a little pale girl with log, black hair and dark blue eyes. Zoey. I ran over to them and smiled. "Hi Professor Snape!" I said, smiling up at him.
"Miss Uley." He said politely, nodding down to me.
"What are you doing here?"
"Your father asked me to come. Said I was welcome to bring my daughter."
"Is this Zoey?" I asked, smiling warmly at the young girl who came up to my chin. She beamed up at me, giving me a toothy grin with one of her teeth missing.
"Yes it is. I thought it would be good for her to be around some kids." Snape drawled.
"Hi!" Zoey said cheerfully, waving up at me. I laughed and waved back. "I'm Zoey. I'm nine years old." She said, letting go of Snape's hand to show me with her fingers.
"Nice to meet you Zoey. I'm Hermione. I'm twelve, but I don't have enough fingers to show you." I said and she giggled.
"Uncle Sev! Zoey!" a voice yelled and I turned to see Draco, Blaise, Theo, and Harry running over. It was Draco who had yelled as he hugged Snape before giving Zoey a tight hug and twirling her around. She squealed with joy. He placed her down and smiled atthem both.
"Uncle Sev?" I asked.
"Snape is Draco's Godfather, but he calls him Uncle Sev since he's more of an uncle." Blaise explained, coming to my right. He held out a hand. "Blaise Zabini. The shy one over here is Theodore Nott." He introduced. I shook their hands.
"Hermione Uley."
"Oh trust me, we all know that." Blaise said and I smiled innocently.
"Uncle Sev, I want to show you these new tricks that I learned on my broom. Please!" Draco begged, giving the puppy dog eyes.
"Well . . ." Snape said, looking down at Zoey who looked back at him innocently.
"Hey, Zoey." I said, drawing her attention. "Would you like to play with me?" I asked and the girl's eyes widened. Her head snapped to her father.
"Can I? Please daddy?" she asked. After a moment he nodded and she squealed hugging him before coming and taking my hand.
"Keep her out of trouble." Snape told me.
"Yes sir." I said, saluting him. I turned and started to march away, a giggling Zoey at my side, copying my move. I lead her to a box of toys. "What's your favorite color?" I asked.
"Purple!" Zoey said happily.
"Mine too." I said and reached in the box, pulling out a sparkling, purple Frisbee. "Do you know what this is?" I asked and she shook her head. "This is a Frisbee. When you throw it, it soars through the air and the other person catches it. To throw it, you flick you wrist gently and let it go." I explained, showing her. She copied my movement. "Good job. Want to try?" she nodded in excitement.
We started throwing the Frisbee back and forth. It took a while for Zoey to get the hang of it, but she soon got the hang of it and we were throwing it farther and farther away from each other.
For the rest of the day Zoey and I played with the Frisbee, Taylor, Brandon, and Kylie joining in towards the end. I grew to really like Brandon. He was very nice and had a great sense of humor. I could tell how much he loved his sister by watching him interact with her, constantly making her laugh and bringing out a Taylor hardly anyone gets to see.
Later that night everyone gathered to get food for dinner and we all sat at the picnic tables. As Snape and Zoey ate, Zoey rambled on about all that happened when we were playing, bringing out a very rare smile on Snape's face. After everyone ate we huddled around the campfire that was set up in the middle of the pitch. Billy started the night by telling the traditional tribal stories which everyone was hooked to. Afterwards everyone told a story; the pack told stories about our time with them, the twins told a story about how they turned Ron's teddy bear into a spider, Seamus told a story about how he turned into a elephant because of 'accidental' magic and chased the wolf boys, even Snape told a story about how Zoey got Draco to play tea party with her and made him wear a dress and tiara. Everyone laughed as Draco blushed and glared at his godfather. I looked at everyone's laughing faces and wondered how in the world I came to be so lucky.
At that moment I knew exactly what I was thankful for. I was thankful for the love I wished for for so long that I finally have. I'm thankful for the family and friends that I know will never abandon me. I'm thankful for my life.
Hey guys! So, there you go! What did you think? I honestly didn't plan the cook out, the thought came just as I got on my computer. I actually like this chapter. Tell me what you think! Adorable Zoey? Excitable Benny? Crushing Sam? Imprint Kylie? I need to know people!
Remember to vote on my poll!
Truly Yours,
-Olivia Rose