George's decision to reinforce the Granger's home wards occupied his mind frequently, and eventually his twin was fed up with listening to his intermittent comments on the subject.
"If you really think it ought to be done now, why don't you just tell Dumbledore you're going to do it before Hermione gets home, as opposed to after?"
"He might think it's… weird? I don't know, Fred!" George responded in a huff.
"Merlin, George, just go do it. You'll feel loads better and I won't have to listen to you harp on. You're almost as bad as Hermione…"
George scowled at his twin before making the decision to write to the Grangers and see if there was a time in the near future where he could come over and renew and reinforce their protection. Remus had told him that the Grangers were very nice people, and very accepting of Hermione's world and friends. They knew the basics of what was going on in the magical world, and while they worried for her safety often, they respected her right to chose where to spend her time and energy. They reminded her often to be safe and cautious, doing their best to parent a magical child who lived in a world much different from the one they had grown up in, but were very proud of her for the stand she was taking; they had, after all, raised her to be a compassionate human being that fought for injustices such as the ones she was passionate about. They were also incredibly grateful to the Order for keeping her safe, and lending their talents to keep them personally out of danger to the best of their abilities.
The only person Hermione knew of whose patronus had ever changed was Tonks, and she had plenty of reason to believe that it was out of unrequited love.
The moment Hermione acknowledged that fact, after she had walked numbly back to the common room and ascended the stairs to her dorm, the floodwaters broke.
There was no use denying it any longer.
Try as she might, her entire being had accepted her feelings except for her conscious brain. Her magic had accepted it, her subconscious had welcomed it, and her heart ached in understanding.
Things were so very different to what they had been in September, weren't they?
She couldn't do anything about it now but busy herself in her studies. She hardy had time to wallow in her tears and sadness and confusion. It was O.W.L.s season and she had work to do. Hermione found herself remaining rather quiet in the days that followed, her nagging of Harry and Ron slowing to a crawl.
She often made detours to the loo on their trips from the library to the Great Hall to the common room, in order to shed a few pent up tears and relieve some stress. The boys were just happy she wasn't nagging them anymore, and so they left her largely alone, hoping to extend the grace period a little longer.
Friday finally arrived, and Hermione prayed that she would make it through her Ancient Runes exam in one piece so that she could sequester herself in her dorm and forget about trying to look okay and act okay when she was far, far from it.
Unfortunately, the exam went okay except for one glaringly obvious mistake that she could not shake. She returned to the common room in a horrible mood, but she hardly had the patience and clarity to control herself. She was at the utter end of her patience between not sleeping enough, trying to study more, not eating enough…
"How were the runes?" Ron asked innocently, yawning and stretching his limbs languidly.
"I mistranslated 'ehwaz'," she bit out harshly. "It means 'partnership' not 'defense', I mixed it up with 'eihwaz'."
"Ah well," he started, rolling his eyes and Hermione's blood boiled close to the brim. "That's just one mistake, isn't it, you'll get -"
"Oh, shut up," she snapped. "It could be the one mistake that makes the difference between a pass and a fail. And what's more, someone's put another niffler in Umbridge's office, I don't know how they got it through that new door, but I just walked past there and Umbridge is shrieking her head off – by the sound of it, it tried to take a chunk out of her leg -"
"Good," chorused the boys, and she fixed a glare on them.
"It is not good! She thinks it's Hagrid doing it, remember?" she could feel her voice starting to take on that annoying high pitch shriek she detested so much and she tried to reign it in. "And we do not want Hagrid chucked out!"
"He's teaching at the moment, she can't blame him," dismissed Harry and she seethed.
"Oh you're so naïve sometimes, Harry, you really think Umbridge will wait for proof?"
Fed up, Hermione turned on her heel and stomped her way up to the girls' dorms, slamming the door behind her as she went.
The moment she reached her own dorm, hot angry tears started to run down her cheeks and she sunk to the floor.
"It's lovely to meet you," the petite woman greeted him. She had a clarity about her that George immediately recognized from spending so much time with Hermione. She was eloquent and precise with her words and whip sharp, he could tell upon first setting eyes on her. Hermione had inherited her small upturned nose and the freckles smattered across the tops of her cheeks. He hadn't known what to expect of course but the fact that she also looked quite a lot like her father was more of a shock. From him, she received the way her eyes crinkled when she smiled widely, and the squaring of her shoulders.
It was odd to see these features in other people; he had come to love those parts of her and it was unsettling to know now where exactly they came from.
"And you," he nodded, shaking both of their hands firmly. "I understand you have a variety of charms and wards on your house -"
"Though don't ask us to name them," Mr. Granger laughed jovially. "Hermione always corrects us, you see, when we say them wrong."
"Ah," George nodded knowingly. "She has a way with correcting people, doesn't she?"
"You're a friend of hers, then?" her mother inquired, inviting him over the threshold and leading him down a hall and into the kitchen. Her father shut the door behind him and followed the pair into the back part of the house.
"We went to school together, yes. Ron is my younger brother," he offered by way of explaining how he had come to know Hermione, his cheeks darkening.
That made it sound so simple, and he supposed that's how it had been in the beginning and for years after meeting her.
But it felt dishonest now, in a way that he hadn't expected. It felt just as bad as a lie, downplaying their relationship – whether friendly and platonic as it had been or… what it was by the time he'd left Hogwarts.
"Ah, yes," her father nodded again. "Now, this may sound odd but we hardly ever get the opportunity to ask about these things, you see, and Hermione never talks about them much – you know how she is -"
"Robert," Hermione's mother scolded, shaking her head and turning to fill the kettle.
George was perplexed and he looked back to the man for an explanation.
"Helen," he countered. "This is a perfect opportunity, darling, to ask someone who might know."
"What is it?" George pressed, confused.
"Well, are Ronald and Hermione… more than friends? We can never get a straight answer out of her -"
Bile rose up in George's throat as the implication sunk in and he fought the urge to respond with a fervour they would hardly understand, considering the situation.
She was his, dammit. Not Ron's.
"That could be because she doesn't know herself, Robert. We've talked about this. She's only fifteen. He's only fifteen. I doubt very much that either of them knows what's going on between them. Cream or sugar?" she directed the last bit at George and he shook his head.
"We've asked Professor Lupin before, you see, and he didn't have any insight into the goings on with the teenagers, he said. He didn't know either way," Robert continued.
"To be honest, my brother is daft as a fencepost about girls so I doubt very much he knows what he wants or how to get it anyway," George uttered. "But, erm, no, I don't think he fancies Hermione."
"Ah, too bad. I always got the impression she harboured something for him," he accepted a steaming mug from his wife and blew on the vapours.
"Perhaps she's growing out of it as well," Helen commented idly, filling the brief silence.
"This is… a bit odd," George started. "Wildly unconventional, really, and she'll be quite ticked off with me for saying this, I'm sure, but…"
"Yes?" both parents prompted him.
"Hermione and I… we've grown quite close and it's not entirely – well, I'd like to think she likes me as well – this is so absurd – she's going to kill me," he finished with a sigh.
"Oh, my dear!" Helen cried out. "Oh Robert, you've put George in a rather unprecedented position, haven't you? I told you to leave it alone," she grinned at her husband widely.
Robert ignored his wife's words gleefully.
"You fancy my daughter then, do you?" he asked, and George was quite sure the older man was taking particular pleasure in George's predicament.
"I think I'll just get on with the wards and quit digging myself a hole -" he sidestepped, rising from his seat. "You know how Hermione is."
Robert grinned even wider at George's use of the line he had used earlier and both parents laughed but didn't push for more information, letting him set to work around their small brownstone.
Just when she thought things might be levelling out – her Arithmancy exam had gone spectacularly and all three of them figured they'd done at least decently on the Potions exams – the Astronomy practical had come and near the end… She hardly wanted to recall it. She was still so saddened and enraged and scared. Scared for everyone in the castle. Umbridge had tried to get Hagrid taken off the castle grounds, and in the kerfuffle Professor McGonagall had been hit with four Stunners.
Somehow, Hermione managed to clear her mind and concentrate on the History of Magic exam in front of her. And then –
A startling scream caused the whole Hall to jump and turn, eyes wheeling to spot the cause.
Hermione's heart sunk when she saw Harry on the stone floor, skin pale and sweaty, eyes panicked. That was never good.
A/N: WELL NOW.
Hi, hello, how does the almost-winter find you all? Hopefully happy and well, considering recent events.
1) I keep saying this but we're almost done.
2) Come find me on tumblr and say hello. I'm doing a Christmas Card send out to those who request one through my ask box, so don't forget to put your name/address in so I can send you some Christmas Cheer. Last year I sent out 143 of them and I'm seeing if I can break that record this year.
3) I feel like I'm grieving the end of this story like it's my own CHILD and Merlin, it's difficult.
4) I love you all, just remember that.
5) Don't forget to leave me a note and let me know how you are/what you thought of the chapter. Reviews are highly encouraged and appreciated.
xoxo