The Founding of Pigwarts III – Chaos Is Served
Chapter 25: Dramatic Entrance
It wasn't till lunchtime that the Professors of Pigwarts realized something was wrong, and they wouldn't have noticed it even then if Marvin McArvin hadn't broken the Universal Code of Laws Making It Easier for the Student, which, among other things, clearly forbade notifying one Professor about the absence of another, because that could result in extra homework for the cancelled lesson.
But Marvin McArvin was either unfamiliar with the Code or momentarily forgot it, because he went to ask about the well-being of their teacher and whether the next lesson would take place or not.
And because of this the other Professors realized that something was wrong.
"Something is wrong," Harry said, frowning. "It's not like Hermione to miss her lesson."
"You have a point," Ginny agreed. "If it were anyone else I'd say they just forgot, or didn't bother to come, or something like that, but with Hermione..."
"It's impossible," Harry finished the sentence. "Do you think something bad happened to her?"
"Or she just slept in," Blaise shrugged. "Happens to the best."
"You know, now that I think about it," Millicent remarked, "I haven't seen Draco today either."
"You think they are in this together?" Neville asked.
"That's plausible," Ginny admitted. "He's probably the only one able to make her miss her lesson."
"Are you saying he did something to her?" Harry exclaimed darkly, always ready to believe the worst of Malfoy.
"Yes, but not in the way you mean it," Ginny gave her husband a glare of warning.
Millicent let out a short amused and slightly evil laughter,
"Once Daphne gets back, we'll know exactly what she walked in on."
Marvin had approached the Professors during lunch in the Great Hall, and that's where they were now – not all of them, for some preferred eating in the privacy of their office or someone else's office or down in the kitchen - discussing the matter among themselves, some getting worried and others not, but all curious and impatient for Daphne to return from her mission to Hermione's and Draco's room. When she did return, there was a look of uncertainty on her face, which made those who had been worried before worry more now, and everyone doubt the one explanation they had come up with. If Daphne had walked in on something, she would be grinning from ear to ear, or at least smirking. But perhaps she just wanted to deliberately scare them with that look.
"Did you find her?" several voices demanded from her the second she reached the table, and the apprehension escalated when she shook her head.
"I didn't even get into the room at first. Lola was blocking their door, and she didn't let me in. She even called me a bald hydra, and that's my insult! Well, I told her she was lame and a few other things, but she still refused to let me in."
"Who's Lola?" Harry asked with a puzzled expression, while Blaise inquired,
"Did she tell you why she didn't let you in?"
"Lola's a mirror. And she told me she didn't want anyone to disturb Hermione," Daphne replied to both questions.
"So Hermione was in the room?" Ginny spoke with relief, which didn't last for long.
"No, she wasn't," Daphne declared. "When Lola didn't let me in, I fetched my broom and flew to her window... it was open, but the room itself was empty. There was no one in there, nothing. No message. No evidence of a fight or duel either. But I did find..."
She paused then, and the silence that followed was most ominous.
Ginny was about to yell at her friend for making a dramatic pause in such an ill-suited place, but then she realized with horror that it wasn't a dramatic pause at all, if anything, it was a tragic one, that it was actually something so bad that Daphne didn't want to say it.
"What? What did you find?" Harry asked, his voice shaking slightly.
"I found her wand on the bedside table."
As if on cue, all the Professors shifted closer to each other and lowered their voice, and even Blaise and Millicent were looking a bit troubled.
"This is bad," Harry said. "She might be in danger. It's not like her to miss her lesson, and if she's not in her room, but her wand is there... she always carries it with her, we all do..."
"And Draco is gone, too," Millicent frowned, making clear what really bothered her about this situation.
"If he did anything..." Harry began murderously.
"He didn't," another voice cut in, and turning their eyes towards the source of it, they noticed only now that Vincent was sitting at the table as well, so quiet had he been before that they had forgotten his presence.
"And how do you know?" Milla asked, frowning.
"Because he would never do anything bad to her. Not even now," Vinny stated with absolute conviction. Being this certain of the things he considered true was something he was so good at that others found it hard to argue with him, even if they didn't believe him.
"But his missing, too," Harry insisted.
"What do you mean even now?" Ginny frowned, catching the puzzling phrase from his words.
Milla sent her friend a long penetrating glare,
"Vinny, do you know something we don't?"
"I... I'm not supposed to talk about it," Vinny said, hesitating. "I promised Draco I wouldn't tell anyone. But now that Hermione is missing..."
"What do you know? Tell us!"
"I think someone should fetch Draco," Vincent sighed. "He should know about it. And he can then answer your questions as well."
"Daphne," Ginny began, and there was no need for her to say anything else.
"Daphne the Errandier at your service," Daphne announced, giving a small bow. "Where is he?"
"In my room," Vinny supplied, and she quickly left the Hall again.
"I'm telling you it was still Malfoy!" Harry repeated stubbornly.
"And you should stop doing it!" Ginny snapped. "This is much worse, you idiot. If Draco is still here, it means they are not together, which means Hermione is alone somewhere and could be in real danger. I think we have a serious crisis here. If someone was able to breach the wards and take Hermione, it can signify danger to all of us, and all the students."
"We must get the others at once," Neville continued. "We shouldn't frighten the students yet, but we have to make sure that they are safe."
"I suggest you start by checking the wards," Vinny advised, once again shocking everyone with his spurt of intelligence. "You should be able to detect if they have been breached."
"Technically, yes," Ginny said after a moment of slightly embarrassed silence. "But the thing is that it was Hermione who took care of the wards, and since we all know how good she is at this thing..."
"You don't know what wards she set?" Millicent asked incredulously.
"Doesn't matter," Blaise spoke quickly. "There are wards on this place from the time it was the Malfoy Manor, and I doubt Draco has taken them down. I'm not even sure he can remove some of them. But he can definitely check those wards when he gets here, or perhaps he's already doing it now."
The ominous silence rang a while longer, filled with the noises and chatter of the carefree students that had no notice of any crisis other than their undone homework.
"Or perhaps it was someone inside the castle," Millicent proposed.
"You mean a student?"
"Not any student," she remarked darkly.
"Oh, don't start with that Vampires crap again," Harry got angry. "Hermione could have been kidnapped and you are here talking such nonsense."
"I'm just staying open to all possibilities," Millicent snapped. "Unlike you, who only considers the one with Draco doing something to her, because then you can say you were right about him and everyone has to admit it, and you can finally get rid of him. You don't care about your friend at all, just about framing my friend!"
"How dare you!" Harry began, about to jump to his feet, but was stopped by Ginny clutching his arm, and hissing to him,
"Sit down, Potter, and shut up. Look, Daphne and Draco are already coming."
They were indeed, and they were both looking sour, only in different ways. Apparently Daphne hadn't told him anything yet, because his expression clearly said that he didn't want to be there at all, and from her face they could read that he had made it difficult for her to drag him there.
"Well, what is it?" Draco growled, reaching the table and glaring at everyone sitting at it. "What is so important that you couldn't handle it without me?"
He was angry in a situation that should have made him pleased, the knowledge that the others couldn't do without him and needed his help being a wonderful boost to his ego. But now he was just grumpy and bad-tempered, and would be even more so once they told him their problem.
Actually, Daphne was afraid he would simply run away to look for Hermione as soon as they told him about it, and that's why she hadn't said anything before, and that's why she didn't tell him everything now either.
"Draco, can you check the wards on this place for any possible breach?" she said instead.
His expression changed, from just angry at being disturbed to being suspicious as well, and Daphne knew at once that they couldn't keep him in the dark for much longer. Especially not with the Gryffindors and their horrified looks.
"What's wrong?" he demanded to know.
"Her—" Harry began, but Daphne was shift enough to cut him through.
"We have a bit of a crisis here," she said, "time is of the essence."
He gave her a dark look, but nevertheless complied, closing his eyes and remaining perfectly still for a moment. Then he drew his wand and made a few complex movements with it, opening his eyes just in time to see the tip of it glow in soft green light.
"The wards are intact," he declared then. "Both mine and Hermione's. Will you now tell me what's wrong?"
"Her—" Harry tried again but didn't have more luck than before.
"You better sit down," Daphne said. "And promise you won't react in a thoughtless way."
"I'm not some Gryff—" Draco began, but then stopped, as this was the very clue he needed to make the connection between Daphne's reluctance to tell him anything, Harry's cut off words, the idea that the wards might have been broken, and the looks of fear, horror and concern on most of the faces.
"Daphne," he spoke in his soft dangerous voice, turning to her, waiting for the confirmation.
"Don't do anything stupid," she repeated before telling the truth. "We don't know where Hermione is."
She stopped for a moment to see if he was about to do something stupid, but when he just stood there and listened to her, she quickly went on,
"She missed her lesson, she isn't in her room, and she has left her wand behind. Don't do anything stupid."
"I'm not going to rush off to find her, if that's what you fear," Draco replied calmly, so calmly that Harry wanted to smash his face in, even more than usually. "Where's the rest of you? Weasley, and Luna, and Susan, and Terry. Speak to them. They might know something about her."
"Your concern about her astounds me," Harry muttered acidly, making sure to say it loud enough for him to hear.
Completely ignoring him, Draco snapped his fingers, calling out a name.
At once a small house-elf in a flower-patterned pillow-case appeared in front of him, smiling and bowing,
"Bonny at your service, Master. What can Bonny do for you?"
"Bonny, can you please check if Miss Hermione is in the Castle at the moment?"
"Of course, sir. Bonny will do it right away," the elf spoke, and announced almost immediately, "Miss Hermione is in the Castle."
"Thank you, Bonny, you may go."
The rest of the Professors had been watching this exchange with a variety of expressions, although they were relieved to hear that last statement.
"House-elves can do that?" Ginny wondered aloud.
"Why didn't you ask her where she is?" Harry wanted to know.
"Because they can't do that," he said, a faraway look in his eyes. "But if you talk to the others..."
--
The door of the Great Hall banged shut. Before anyone could react, it banged open again. It's hard to make a dramatic entrance without banging the doors open, and it's hard to bang open doors which are already open.
Aware that every gaze in the Hall was on her, and trying not to be bothered by it, because she was making a dramatic entrance here and being embarrassed didn't contribute to it.
Having spent the whole morning with Oh No, she had left the Goblin with a new determination to make everything right again, a new spirit to act cool while doing it, and with more than 15 yards of air beneath her. Somehow, with the help of him and his chocolate cake, she had been able to banish all the terrifying thoughts from her mind while flying, and had been rather shocked at how much easier it was when she was not screaming and squeezing her eyes shut.
The impossible had happened. Hermione had learned to fly. And had deliberately missed her lesson to do it. She did feel rather guilty about that.
But now was not the time to fret about it. Now was the time to march proudly into the Great Hall, the broom on her shoulder, and show 'Boss' exactly what she was capable of. She had had the gall to doubt her ever being able to do it; of course, Hermione had doubted it herself after the wet end of her first attempt, but that didn't count. Ginny had thought she couldn't do it, and now she was going to prove to her that she was wrong. Oh, she knew how much Ginny hated being proved wrong.
"Everybody, listen up, I have an important announcement to make," she declared in a loud and clear voice. "The trials into the Quidditch teams are being held this Saturday at noon at the Pitch. First, there will be the trials for the position of team captain – all who are interested in competing for the position should communicate with their Head of House and have their name written down. It's the job of the Head of House to pick the best Captain for their Quidditch Team. Once the captains have been appointed, it's their turn to hold the trials and choose the rest of the players. There will be a schedule about who gets to use the Quidditch Pitch and when, but it shouldn't take more than the two days to form the teams. After that it's time to draw lots on the two teams facing each other in the first game of the year, which will take place in three, maybe four weeks.
That's all for now. I hope you are all excited and eager about getting started with the tradition that some students have considered the best of Hogwarts. Thank you for listening, and don't forget to enroll your names with your Head of House."
She smiled for a little, watching the bustle her announcement had caused, and could see the excitement and even slight shock in the eyes of the students who quickly turned to their neighbours to talk this through. She didn't know why there were surprised – surely they had expected there to be Quidditch.
But the students weren't the only ones surprised at this news.
"She didn't even mention the importance of keeping up the good studying in face of all the excitement," Neville whispered.
"This weekend?" Ginny couldn't believe her ears. "But that's in less than four days. She can't learn to fly in such a short time."
"She actually sounded okay with the idea of forming Quidditch teams," Harry was astonished.
"Of course I'm okay with Quidditch teams," Hermione said, having stepped up to the table. "I'm even delighted by this; I've never had a Quidditch team before. And I can pick the captain myself. Which by the way means that all of you have to be there for the trials, but you'd have probably come anyway, since you've all been star players of it.
"As to studying in face of all the excitement, it sounds a bit hypocritical of me to demand that from the students after I've missed a lesson myself for a similar reason, but don't worry, I'll still make sure they keep up their schoolwork. In fact, I better get my notes and then get to it."
It was only when she made to walk away from the table that the people at it found their voices.
"Hermione!" Ginny cried out, then lowered her voice a bit. "Where the hell were you? We were all so worried about you!"
"We thought you might have been kidnapped," Neville added.
"I had to fetch a depressed Draco to check the wards," Daphne pouted.
"Who, by the way, wasn't at all concerned about you," Harry remarked.
"You weren't by any chance kidnapped by a student, were you?" Milla asked.
"By a vampire kid, she means," Blaise mouthed so that Millicent didn't see him.
"I went for a stroll," Hermione shrugged. "I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself."
"You missed your lesson!"
"You left your wand behind!"
"You missed your lesson!"
"You already said that!"
"It's worth saying twice," Ginny stated, daring Daphne to argue.
"I lost track of time," Hermione grinned sheepishly, but she didn't seem disturbed or guilty as hell like she should have been in such a situation. "It's just one lesson, and they are good kids. A little freedom and leisure is not such a bad thing."
"Okay, who are you and what did you do to Hermione?" Ginny demanded, wondering whether they should consider this possibility for real.
"I just realized there's more to life than studying," she replied, her gaze a bit far-off, sounding as if she was hinting to something only she knew of, or at least most of the Professors didn't.
"Are you sure you are okay, Hermione?" Harry asked in concern. "It's not like you..."
"I'm just not the bookworm I used to be," she sighed wistfully, but the sparkle in her eyes belied the tone. "Pity."
"But where were you?" Ginny repeated her question, more curious now that her friend seemed reluctant to tell her.
"Oh, just around and about. Got some fresh air."
"Did you go flying?" asked Vinny, perhaps the only person who had noticed the broom in her hand.
"Why yes, Vinny," she turned to him with a bright smile. "It's so nice of you to notice. I did do some flying."
"You didn't fall into the lake again, did you? Becca Jo said she had to rescue you yesterday."
"No, I didn't fall into the lake again," Hermione said patiently, her smile dropping just a bit. She didn't like to be reminded of the incident of the previous day, or of the previous day at all. She was much happier not thinking of some of the things that had happened then; not yet, anyway. "Thank Becca Jo for me, though, will you?"
"I will," Vinny promised.
"You fell in—" Ginny began, but she cut her through.
"I better get going then, if I don't want to miss two lessons one day. That would be unforgivable," she said, heading towards the nearest window. She flung it open and was about to climb out of it under several shocked gazes, when she suddenly remembered something and walked back to the table.
"And if someone wants to have a little game of Quidditch after class, you are all welcome to join me."
--
Hermione's friends took her up on her offer, if only to make sure she really was their friend. Out of those Professors fortunate (or unfortunate) to skip lunch in the Great Hall that day, only Ron came. Susan and Terry both looked like they didn't care much for Quidditch, and Luna, who did receive an invitation from Blaise, sadly informed him that she was in a hurry to her weekly CIA meeting.
Everyone who had been present in the Hall when Hermione made her dramatic entrance despite the already open doors, showed up at the Quidditch pitch after lessons. Harry, Ginny, and Ron had brought their brooms while other people just seemed to have come to watch. Millicent declared that she had come to watch and laugh, dragging the not at all reluctant Blaise and Vinny with her. Even Neville came, to cheer for his old house mates, or perhaps to keep his longing gaze on Millicent.
Daphne had had considerably less trouble fetching Draco this time – all she had to do was send him a suspicious look and comment on him not coming to watch his own girlfriend. He had acted all sly and sneaky then, but Daphne felt it was only to throw her off something important. After all, Hermione going missing, (or on a stroll, like she said,) and Draco being irritable and gloomy at the very same day couldn't have been just a coincident. Besides, Vinny had said something funny before, that she hadn't paid much attention to then, something about not being able to tell because he had promised Draco. Which sounded awfully like he knew something, which in turn suggested that there was something to know.
Well, she would squeeze it out of Draco later. Vinny took things like loyalty and promise very seriously, and wouldn't tell her anything. She could trick him into saying something, but didn't want to sadden him, since she knew he always felt really guilty afterwards.
The three quarters of the Fantastic Four, even though equipped with brooms, half-expected it to be a big joke and actually wished it was. A Quidditch loving and lesson missing Hermione wasn't a concept easy to grasp for them, but to their surprise and apprehension she was already there, waiting for them, broom over her shoulder and smile on her face, standing beside something that looked suspiciously like a chest holding the rest of Quidditch equipment.
"So, how's it going to be? Two-on-two?" she rubbed her hands together, looking way too excited.
"Ye-e-es," Harry drawled hesitantly, turning to the others for support.
"Perhaps we should throw the Quaffle around for a while?" he suggested when that support didn't come. "To get us warmed up and all."
"Sounds good," Ginny and Ron agreed.
"Alright," Hermione nodded enthusiastically. "Who's with whom?"
"Umm," Harry said. "You pick."
"Me and you against the redheads?"
"Sounds fine," Ginny and Ron agreed.
"Okay," Hermione said, walking to the chest to open it, then glare at the contents for a while.
"The big red one," Ron said helpfully.
"I know that," she snapped in mild annoyance, picking up the big red ball.
Well, that was it. Her first Quidditch game. She inhaled nervously, trying to remember all Oh No had told her – think happy thoughts, think chocolate thoughts, don't show the ground your fear and it won't bite. She closed her eyes and recalled the memory of the cake; she opened them again and saw the big crowd of teachers, all here to watch her, and some here to laugh at her. Well, she would show them all. Let them watch! She didn't care.
"You start," she said to Ginny, giving her the ball.
Under their intent stares, she levelled the broom, climbed over it, and pushed herself off the ground. Well, this was it. Time to fly or fa— fly better.
--
To her great relief, her worries about flying were soon gone from her mind, replaced with new troubles. It seemed like Quidditch wasn't as easy as she had expected it to be. Catching and throwing the big red ball with only one hand turned out to be a bit tricky. First, she kept her right hand consciously on the broom, trying to play with her left. Later she did the opposite; the broom obeyed to her commands much better than the ball. But even then it wasn't certain that she caught the stupid thing. This made her frustrated enough to let go of the broom handle and catch it with both of her hands, and that seemed to work as long as the ball was thrown straight at her and she didn't need to fly after it.
She also regretted picking Harry, because both redheads had an experience with the Quaffle, Ron was good at catching it, and Ginny was good at catching, throwing, and stealing it, whereas Harry just threw it right at Ron, right past her, or let Ginny take it from him. Of course, even Harry was better at it than her, which made her more and more frustrated as Ginny kept scoring and she wasn't even able to catch the stupid thing.
Out of breath after the last dash for it and it still slipping out of her hands, Hermione decided she had had enough of this part of Quidditch. After all, there were three more balls in that chest, and she could have better luck with those.
"Enough of this red ball," she cried out to the others, "I want to try the others out, as well."
Ron and Harry flew to her at once, Ginny still speeded to the goals to throw the Quaffle through the central hoop.
"There's too few of us to play with all the balls," Harry explained. "We'd need at least two more people."
"We could take Malfoy," Ron suggested.
"And who else?" Harry said, frowning at the idea of having to play with Malfoy.
"Daphne," Ginny stated resolutely, joining the others.
"Can she play?" Harry asked, still frowning.
"She's a quick learner. Besides, there's nothing hard to it. It's not like an Arithmancy problem."
Hermione snorted at the comparison, unable to disagree more. I could solve an Arithmancy problem with one hand any day, she thought wryly, I could solve it with no hands and eyes closed, if someone read it out to me and wrote down the answer.
Out loud she said something else,
"How about we practise with just those three balls first, and then try all four?"
"Okay," Harry agreed. "But we'll just take one Bludger and the Snitch."
"Sounds good," Hermione said, trying to smile with as much excitement and enthusiasm as she had displayed before the game. She feared her expression was little more than annoyed and tired.
When Harry and Ron had gone down to fetch those balls, Ginny hovered closer to her.
"That's some pretty okay flying," she admitted. "Have you known it all along, and just played dumb?"
Hermione opened her mouth to deny such a lie, but then thought better of it. After all, if Ginny considered her sneakier than she was, then it was all in her favour.
"Maybe," she replied cryptically.
"Practising behind out back, you sneaky woman," Ginny shook her head.
"Maybe," she repeated. "Or maybe I learned it just this morning."
"Or maybe you found a spell that made you fearless," the redhead winked.
Hermione frowned, a bit miffed that she hadn't come up with that idea, and for a while wondered whether it would help. She could go look for it in the Library later.
"Get ready," Harry shouted to them. "I'll release the Bludger."
--
By unspoken agreement, Harry and Ron assumed the role of the Beaters, while Ginny and Hermione looked for the Snitch. Hermione was a bit angry about that, as well, since now she couldn't use Harry's skills and had to play against Ginny, who had played a Seeker before. But looking the boys swing the bats at the Bludger, she didn't desire that position either. As a Seeker, she could keep both hands on the broom most of the time, and didn't need to do much more than fly around and look for the little gold ball. She didn't get why everyone had been so proud of Harry and his adeptness of it, as from her point of view, being a Seeker didn't require much skill.
Peeking at Ginny, she was happy to see that she hadn't spotted the Snitch yet either. So she could continue circling the pitch at her leisure. Well, that was rather nice.
"Duck!" someone yelled, breaking her peace and comfort.
Slowly and reluctantly coming out of her thoughts, she looked around, frowning,
"Where?"
She didn't see any ducks, and she didn't realize what was so important about them anyway. Well, Daphne did have an unhealthy obsession with ducks, but that was her problem.
A second later Harry rammed right into her, pushing her to the side, and swinging his bat so close to her face that she felt the movement in the air.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" she screamed at him.
"Hermione, you were..."
"Foul!" she cried out, paying no attention to his words. "That was a foul! I know that rule! Do I get a penalty throw now?"
Harry stared at her blankly for a moment, then sighed,
"No one will get a penalty. We are in the same team."
"Then why the hell did you hit me? Are you trying to kill me?"
"No," he explained patiently. "But the Bludger would have hit you much harder if I hadn't pushed you away first. Didn't you hear me scream 'duck' to you?"
"Oh, so you didn't mean the bird," Hermione said absently, regaining her anger in just a moment,
"But why the hell did you hit that bludge thingie at me? You should hit it at Ron, he's the other Beater, isn't he?"
"Hermione, do you know anything about Quidditch?"
"Of course I know," she snapped, irritated that he was questioning her knowledge. "You dragged me to your games all the time."
Harry shook his head,
"I need help with this one."
--
Together, Ron and Harry had got the Bludger back into the chest, and were now huddled together with Ginny, discussing something. The Snitch was still loose, and Hermione looked around for it, even though it wasn't technically fair for her to catch it now.
Her good mood and excitement was almost gone; getting an overview of the Quidditch basics had been embarrassing, as it hinted that she didn't know anything. Of course she knew that stuff, she had just forgotten it for a moment. She knew the basics. She wasn't a complete dummy, Quidditch-wise. Catching the Snitch felt like redeeming her lapse of memory, and there wasn't anything better for her to do anyway.
She scanned her surroundings but found nothing. Reluctantly, she turned to face the crowd, searching that part of the pitch as well. She didn't see the Snitch, but she saw Daphne waving to her invitingly. Perhaps she had noticed the Snitch?
Curious, Hermione flew to her side.
"What are they discussing there?" the girl wanted to know, pointing at Harry, Ron, and Ginny.
"Merlin knows," Hermione shrugged, frowning. She wasn't very fond of any of those three at the moment. Giving her a lecture – how dare they!
"It'd be nice if he told me, too," Daphne said. "By the way, did you see the duck? I was looking everywhere, but couldn't see any."
Oh, great, Hermione thought, I'm as bad as Daphne.
"I didn't see a duck," she replied simply, not in the mood to explain. "Do you like the game?"
"I'd like it more with a duck," Daphne said diplomatically. "You?"
"I didn't like the Quaffle part much," Hermione confessed. "But being Seeker is okay. Don't have to do anything, just fly around and keep my eyes open."
There was a slight cough from Daphne's side, and the girl turned her head, hiding a smirk,
"You all right, Draco? Not catching a cold, are you?"
Hermione froze, clutching her broom tighter. She hadn't noticed he was sitting with Daphne! She knew he had come, but at that time she had wanted to keep thinking happy thoughts, chocolate thoughts, and tried not to care of any of the big crowd coming to watch and/or laugh at her.
Now she was quite far from anything happy and chocolate, and that was a regret in itself. But she still remembered her determination from earlier, the resolution to make everything right again, and whack everyone who tried to stop her with a broom. Well, now was the time as good as any, or perhaps even better, if Harry and others continued trying to kill her.
She hovered to the empty seat on Daphne's other side, and jumped off the broom, offering it to the girl,
"Go see what they are discussing there."
Daphne got the hint, was tempted to ignore it, but for some reason decided not to.
"I think I'll go talk to Blaise and Milla instead. She's got that expression again that something evil is going to happen to someone, and I'd better make sure it isn't me," she explained, hopping over the seat in front of her. "Good luck with the rest of the game, if they ever stop their discussion. I'm sure you'll catch the Snitch before Ginny."
Hermione smiled, thinking it was good if someone believed in her, even if it was Daphne.
"So, what you think of it?" she asked casually, taking a seat and keeping her eyes on the Quidditch pitch. On the loose Snitch, she was telling herself, lucky to have such a wonderful excuse.
"Potter sucks. Weasley and Potteress are rather good, actually."
She found herself unable to argue, since she was thinking along the same lines. Of course, she was still angry at Harry for colliding with her like that – it was definitely a foul! - but they were also losing here, big time, so it had to be his fault, somehow.
She feared her next question, but couldn't leave it unspoken,
"And me?"
She didn't dare breathe, waiting for his answer, but he was taking his time and she was forced to still do it.
She got nervous and wondered why it felt like his answer meant everything, and why the hell did he take so long to give it.
She was tempted to repeat her question or blurt out something else, but resisted. She wanted to hear his answer. She needed it, dammit.
"You have an excellent broom," he said at last.
Surprised at such a reply, she was even more surprised when she felt no anger at hearing it; after all, he had made it quite clear to her what he really thought of her playing. But he was right. She sucked at it, worse than Harry.
So much for showing everyone what she was worth.
So much for showing him what she was worth.
But even that didn't make her angry, just sad. She looked at the broom – he was right about that, it was an excellent one. Ron, and perhaps even Harry and Ginny, would go green with jealousy if they looked at it long enough to realize what they were looking at. Ron's twin brothers had already done that, and this was an even newer model. Straight from the factory, not yet released to those people who happened not to own half of the company that produced them. It was indeed an excellent, outstanding broom, and Hermione was attached to it.
But not because it was such a good broom. Because it was his broom. And she was not going to give it back. She would need it, if those three ever stopped talking, which at the moment seemed questionable.
"Yes," she said in an almost whisper. "It is an excellent broom."
She was thinking about all those times they had gone flying together, him threatening, tricking or enticing her onto the broom, and her screaming at him first, but then relaxing. She loved flying with him – she felt safer with him in the air than alone on the ground.
"Where and when did you learn to fly like this?" he asked softly. "Daphne said Ginny said you have been practising behind our backs, but Vinny said that you..."
"Fell into the lake, yes," she finished, wondering when during the game did Ginny have time to chat with Daphne; but then again, she had been caught up with her own problems and thoughts most of the time.
"I... I left the Castle last night," she continued. "I had to get away, it just... I had to. I stayed with a friend and we talked about things, and he said he had an idea to free me from my fears. We tried it out in the morning, and it seemed he was right."
The thought of Oh No made her smile a bit.
"I didn't know Quidditch was this difficult. I thought flying was pretty much all I needed to do. I'm so awful at it. But at least I'm not required to play it myself, just referee. I'll find some book and learn the rules, and it'll be fine."
She still hated the fact of how much she sucked at it. If she'd known of it before, she would have never suggested a game with her friends. And now so many people had come to watch her, and Millicent would get a big laugh out of it.
"It's not bad for your first time," he spoke. "Catch the Snitch and everyone will applaud to you. Even if being Seeker requires no skills whatsoever."
"Easy work and good pay," she said, grinning a bit. "I can see why you liked it."
"I just wanted to beat Potter."
"Don't blame you," Hermione muttered under her breath.
"He was looking out for you. Getting hit by the Bludger would have hurt you more."
"So they keep telling me."
"They're right," he said, a sharp edge to his tone. "You have to pay more attention. I don't want you to... get hurt."
This was it. This was the right moment. Hermione almost flinched with the realization.
"Then why did you leave me last night?" she asked, finally turning to look at him, and seeing with satisfaction that he hadn't expected the question. "You can't just say the things you did and then walk out on me. I had the right for a final word of my own. I deserved an explanation. I still do."
She saw him open his mouth and quickly went on.
"And your accusations were all wrong. I'm still not sure what happened, but you were wrong when you said that I didn't trust you. I do trust you, I really do. I'm just confused about this whole mess, and I don't think it's unreasonable for me to want an explanation. Of course, I'll figure it out sooner or later on my own, but it would still be nice if you told me."
"Hermione," he began.
"Hermione!" Ginny called from the center of the pitch. "Come here – we've figured it all out now!"
Hermione's eyes narrowed at such an awful timing. Damn that Ginny. Dammit! Both Potters were worth her anger, and would soon feel it, too.
"You better go back," he said, and she knew their conversation was over. Dammit! But she had no choice but to get up, climb back to her broom, and rise off the ground.
She looked at him for a moment, wondering whether he'd let her kiss him, or whether she should say something deep and meaningful instead.
"Hermione," Ginny shouted again, and nothing good came to her mind.
With a sigh, she turned to leave, only to feel him grab her hand. Her heart missed a beat and she looked back in surprise.
"You did it, Hermione. You showed them all."
A dreamy smile on her lips, she speeded towards her three friends, two of whom she couldn't stand at the moment. Soon the game continued, and she had already flown a few lazy circles around the pitch, when she suddenly realized that the persistent tingle in her palm was caused by something other than just his touch.
She felt a little guilty when everyone applauded to her, looking rather stunned at such end to this game. Harry and Ginny were speechless, but Ron patted her on the shoulder, saying, "Good job!"
She felt a little guilty taking credit for something she didn't do. But not too much.
Note: I don't think I'd be any good at Quidditch. Or flying a broom. I actually love heights, but my balance keeping is beyond awful. I could probably fly upside down or something, but I think it'd be uncomfortable.
Anyway, some new Pigwarts extra stuff up. I added a list of students (with some information) to the table, you can click on any name in the table and it takes you to the list. I also tried to make some kind of lesson schedule, basically which teacher has a lesson when with which students. Blah. The link is on my profile so you can check it out - it's quite a mess, though. I only have Monday and Tuesday there at the moment, because none of my chapters has been about either Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. Also, a few teachers (Susan and Terry, I think) are not listed there, because I've mentioned nothing about their lesson plans. Blah. Oh, and there are four lessons each day, two before lunch and two after lunch, so reading the table from left to right it shows the lesson from the first to the fourth.
One more thing, how would you feel about a timeskip? I'm thinking of doing one, fast-forwarding time up to the first Quidditch match. I realized that the new teams need some time to practise, but I have ideas that require the Quidditch match. The next chapter's going to be about Milla, but after that I'd like to do the skip.