Thanks to 93 Diagon Alley because she's a brilliant witch and took the time to beta this for me.
Chapter Thirty-Eight: In which Hermione learns the truth.
"Everything's going to change now isn't it?"
"Yes." - Hermione and Harry, "The Goblet of Fire"
"Harry!" she cried out, not wanting him to get in trouble over that stupid word. It really didn't bother her.
"Go on, then, Potter," Malfoy said quietly, drawing out his own wand. "Moody's not here to look after you now - do it, if you've got the guts -"
For a split second, they looked into each other's eyes, then, at exactly the same time, both acted.
"Furnunculus!" Harry yelled.
"Densaugeo!" screamed Malfoy.
"NO!" Hermione cried out. Before she could do anything else, the jets of light shot from both wands, hit each other in midair, and ricocheted off at angles — Harry's hit Goyle in the face, and Malfoy's hit Hermione.
Hermione didn't see what happened to Goyle because her mouth was suddenly burning, and her lips were bleeding from where her already too large teeth had just cut them.
They were growing insanely fast into fangs!
"Hermione!"
Neville had turned towards her, trying to tug her hand away. Ron was crossing towards them, and Harry was looking horrified.
Panic stricken, she felt them and let out a terrified cry. They were past her chin now! What would Fred think? He already was hardly talking to her!
"And what is all this noise about?" a soft, deadly voice asked.
Snape rounded the corner, glaring at the Gryffindors, and Hermione let out a horrified squeak. "Explain."
"Potter attacked me, sir -"
"We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry shouted.
"- and he hit Goyle - look -"
Snape examined Goyle, whose face now resembled something that would have been at home in a book on poisonous fungi.
"Hospital wing, Goyle," Snape said calmly.
"Malfoy got Hermione!" Ron said. "Look!"
He forced Hermione to show Snape her teeth - she was doing her best to hide them with her hands, though this was difficult as they had now grown down past her collar. Pansy Parkinson and the other Slytherin girls were doubled up with silent giggles, pointing at Hermione from behind Snape's back.
Snape looked coldly at Hermione, then said, "I see no difference."
She stared at him for an endless second, willing the tears welling up in her eyes to dissipate, but it was for nothing. He was right, she was already hideous! She let out a whimper and turned around, sprinting back down the hall, barely aware of the voices she could hear yelling. Neville, Harry, and Ron had exploded at their potions teacher angrily, all rising to her defense. She couldn't stop the tears streaking down her face as she ran unseeingly down the hall.
She rammed into a warm body and nearly fell down. Two hands grabbed onto her arms, steadying her.
"Hermione?" No, no no! Not him, not Fred, not now!
She gave another whimper, looking up at him, her teeth now past her navel. His eyes widened in horror and she let out a sob before wrenching her arms out of his hold and dashing back down the hall.
-o-o-o-
"You look fine, Hermione," Madame Pomfrey reassured her for the tenth time. Hermione didn't respond. She just frowned at her reflection. She couldn't believe what had just happened. How had she let Fred see her like that?
"Hermione?" She looked up from the mirror to see a red-head walk in the room. She froze for half a second, but then realized it was George.
"Yeah?" she said quietly, fighting the urge to cry. She had hoped it was Fred. She hated him being upset with her, and she had no idea why he was! She was crazy about him, and the most she had said to him in the last few weeks had been a whimper. Her teeth had even been several feet long.
What had she done to tick off a higher power?
"I heard what happened, are you okay?" He sat down beside her, brushing her hair back so he could see her more clearly.
"I'm fine," she answered, still whispering.
"Did you hear what happened after you left?" She shook her head, brushing a tear away. George pulled her into a hug, and she leaned against him, taking comfort in his familiar arms.
"Neville, Harry and Ron lost points for the language they used; Seamus and Dean actually had to stop all three of them from hexing Snape."
Her mouth fell open at that. She could understand Harry and Ron; Harry was already tense and angry, with an extremely short fuse, and Ron was always a hot head.
Neville though, Merlin love him, was a completely different story. He was terrified of Snape. Had he really done that?
"Yeah, I know. I thought Neville was going to blow a gasket. I had no idea he knew some of those words," George said, chuckling. She managed a small smile.
"Your teeth!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide. She tensed, sitting up and frowning as her hand went to her mouth in worry.
"What?" she whimpered out. Very few people knew how self-conscious she was about them.
"They're smaller!" He looked at her in disbelief. She was really getting worried when he gave her a warm smile, instantly making her feel better. "It looks nice, your smile seems bigger now." She blushed, letting out a happy little laugh.
That, she told herself as she gave George a grateful hug, was why he would always be her best friend.
-o-o-o-
It was late before Hermione got back to the Common Room. Ron and Harry were sitting on opposite couches, Neville was sitting between them, looking awkward. She gave them each a hug and settled down between Neville and Harry, letting out a quiet sigh before she pulled her S.P.E.W. notebook out.
She opened it up and glanced at the first page before her mouth dropped open in happy shock.
Under the three names she had managed to get - Harry, Neville, and Ron - a fourth name had been added; one that brought tears of happiness to her eyes.
Fred Weasley. She stared at the words, her mind barely managing to connect the fact that he had written his name down sometime since this morning for an organization he honestly thought was stupid.
She was barely aware of the fact that the portrait door had swung open and the twins were stepping through it. It wasn't until she heard Fred's laugh that she realized they were in the common room. She stood up abruptly, dropping her book to the ground in her haste to get up. She was crossing the room to him, her heart in her throat as she reached him. She threw her arms around his neck and for the first time in weeks, she kissed him.
He dropped a box of sweets he had been holding and wrapped his arms around her, holding her to him as tightly as she was holding onto him, kissing her back with abandon.
"Oi, cut it out, you two! We have first-years in here," George said by their side, laughing heartily. Fred and Hermione broke apart, brushing brightly. Nearly everyone in the common room was staring at them.
"Come on," Fred said, his voice surprisingly quiet. "Let's get away from all these nosy sods." She nodded her head, feeling nervous again as he took her hand and linked his fingers with hers. She followed him out of the portrait hole, deciding to let him speak first.
"Mind if we go for a walk outside?" She glanced at him, still feeling self-conscious.
"No, I don't mind at all." She briefly wondered if he realized it was raining.
"I'm sorry," he said suddenly, sighing heavily. She wasn't sure what he was apologizing for, if it was about the fact that he had been ignoring her, or if it was something else. "I've been a right git."
"Yes, but I'm sure it was partly my fault."
"It wasn't really. I mean, I was angry that you were happy we couldn't get in," he admitted, risking a quick glance at her. He hadn't let go of her hand yet, and she took that as a good sign.
"I wasn't happy you couldn't get in, I was happy you wouldn't get hurt. I couldn't have handled it. I'm going barmy enough with Harry being in it; I couldn't handle my absolute best friends - the two most important people in my life - being in danger. Like you said, I don't do well with stress."
"That wasn't the only thing, though." He sighed again and began to explain what had him and George so upset, and Hermione felt her blood start to boil.
"You mean to say that foul, loathsome, evil….prat!...cheated you and George out of your money?" She couldn't think of a bad enough word for Bagman right now. She was beyond angry. They had made it outside now, and Fred paused before stepping out into the rain. He reached into his robe and pulled an umbrella out. He opened it up and held it over his and Hermione's heads before stepping out into the rain with her. It was getting dark, and the rain made the whole castle feel almost supernatural, more magical. There was something oddly romantic about the rain, Hermione decided.
"Yeah. We fell for it like right gits, too. That's why I'm angry; why I was so upset about the stupid tournament."
"That's just silly though, the two have nothing to do with each ot-" Fred cut her off, his eyes flashing in annoyance and anger. It wasn't directed at her, she could tell that now.
"You don't get it, do you, Hermione? I wanted to join because of you and George! I can't afford anything. I want to be able to provide for you. I want to be able to take you out to nice places and buy you nice things, but I can't." She stopped walking and turned fully towards him, bringing her hand up to his arm.
"Fred, I don't car-" she started.
"Don't say that," he interrupted, shaking his arm out of her hold. He looked furious with himself, and hurt and vulnerable. It cut Hermione to the core. "I know you'll say it doesn't matter, but it does to me. I've been taken for everything I had, and I don't have any hopes of ever getting it back. The only thing I own is this stupid umbrella," he finished resentfully, glaring at the offending red umbrella as though it was its fault he and George were broke.
"I happen to like this umbrella," Hermione said softly, placing her hand on his shoulder again; he was still avoiding her eyes, though, so she went on. She felt so much better now, so much more sure. This was Fred, she knew what he needed to hear, and she knew just what to say. She let her feelings for him fill her up as she stepped closer to him, placing her other hand over his heart. "And I am fine standing under it with you. That's all I need to be happy. I liked you before you had any money. I liked you as the bumbling little nutter who thought snipes were attracted by cawing. I like the man that can't help but set fireworks off, the man who invents trick sweets and gives them to gits because they pick on his friends." She felt a rush of excitement when he offered her a slight smile.
"Don't you see? Money's never mattered to me." She smiled softly and stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around his torso and leaning her head against his chest. "Besides, this umbrella has other advantages."
"Like what?" he asked, sounding as though he was having trouble speaking. She could hear his heart rate increasing, and it made her smile to hear the steady thumping.
"We have to stand close," she murmured into his chest. She didn't have to see him to know he was grinning as he wrapped his arms around her.
"That is a nice advantage…" They stayed quiet for a long moment, just holding each other. Fred had charmed the umbrella to stay up by itself.
"You know, I don't have any money either," Hermione said thoughtfully, deciding that would be the best way to lay that silly fear to rest.
"Yeah but-" She shook her head, pulling away from him so she could see his face.
"No, it's not different. It doesn't matter to you, does it? It's the same with me. I simply don't care if you're rich or not." She placed her hands on both sides of his face, smiling at the slight stubble she could feel. "It's you I care for, not your money," she whispered, before kissing him again.
A/N: It's after the twentieth again, so I'd like each of my readers to go to the twin exchange (you can get to it through the link in my profile) and vote for their favorite story in the September Challenge. My entry was 'Handcuff Horrors' (a non romantic Draco/Harry fic).
Thanks!
Lastly, since you've read this far, why don't you just go down a little bit more and hit that blue button? I only need a few words ;) I'm not hard to please!