Author's note: To be honest, I really don't know exactly where this story is going. I not only started the story just yesterday, but only first considered actually writing a story at all just yesterday, so that should give you a sense of how long I've spent thinking this over. Therefore, I'm letting whatever happens to the story happen and hoping it finds an interesting path! It's funny, I'm really not even a writer... it wasn't necessarily a desire to write that led me to start this, more my surprisingly great love of HG/MM. Who knew? When I found out this was even a pairing, I was quite dubious. I have since been convinced that these two witches being together is... well, the sock to my Dobby ;))
...That was quite lame, forgive me.
ALSO, I realized I forgot to say that I don't own anything. I'm supposed to say that, right? Well, I don't own anything. Happy reading and please review and critique! :)
Hermione tossed and turned, partly awake, and partly still locked in a dream. Green... emerald green. That was the last thing she saw before she snapped awake, breathing heavily. She had the sense her dream had lasted some time, but the only memory that remained was the deep emerald green that engulfed her whole being.
She sat up. She felt somewhat hot and could tell she had been sweating. Her body was tingling with faint burning sensations. Feelings of excitement, warmth, and pleasure mixing with befuddlement and anticipation lingered in her wake state like little clues of what she had dreamt. She could only connect that vivid of an emerald green to one thing... but that was silly. After trying and failing to remember what her unconscious brain had thought up, she abandoned the effort and attempted to shake the dream from her mind. She glanced at the clock beside her bed. Damn! While not yet late, it was time to prepare for her coming classes and get down to breakfast. At some point, she must have turned her alarm off, although she had no memory of that either. She had hoped she still had a couple hours; she felt exhausted after what seemed to be a night of restless sleep.
Hermione forced herself up and opened the curtains around her bed to find the other girls had gone down to breakfast already. Grabbing her robes, she headed to the showers.
Not fifteen minutes later, she arrived in the great hall, looking properly put together. She had developed a skill for getting ready at an especially fast pace after all the years of Harry getting both her and Ron into time-sensitive, dangerous situations. Or simply foolish shenanigans. You just had to know how to leave a place like a spell from a wand.
She joined Harry and Ron at their usual spot at the Gryffindor table, the boys just finishing their breakfast. Luna sat across from them, looking as dotty and eccentric as ever.
"Morning, Hermione," she said, voice dreamy and far-off. "You look quite nice today," she commented, giving Hermione a dazed, friendly look.
Hermione rather enjoyed Luna's company. She was a sweet person and never failed to be interesting. Although other students saw her as "Loony Lovegood," to Hermione, she radiated a purely warm and safe energy, if somewhat strange.
"Thanks Luna," Hermione replied with a smile. The boys bid them goodbye as they headed towards their first class.
"Professor McGonagall also looks quite nice today," Luna said softly, eyes appearing deep in thought before looking right into Hermione's. The mention of her professor had sent a strange tingle through Hermione's body, leaving her feeling the same odd burning sensations she had felt when lying awake after her mysterious dream. She doubted Luna had noticed, but had a peculiar feeling that Luna was still watching her with a knowing gaze (knowing what exactly, Hermione was unsure), and her words were left hanging in the air.
She was a strange one... What Hermione might give to know what exactly was going on behind those glassy, distant, probing eyes.
"I haven't seen her yet today," Hermione said nonchalantly, unsure if there was a more proper response.
...
"I feel today's air is different. It's thick with magic," Luna said dreamily after a moment of silence, only adding to Hermione's perplexity.
The day passed somewhat regularly, Hermione enjoying her classes for the learning but not necessarily the company of all the people in them. During potions, she had received the very unfortunate news that she would likely have to be Draco Malfoy's partner for the remainder of the term. Despite this damper on her day, she still held hope for an enjoyable afternoon.
All her classes done with but transfiguration, Hermione made her way to McGonagall's classroom, inwardly preparing herself to stay focused and concentrated on transfiguration and not anything else in the coming class period. She found Harry among the throng of students scurrying to their last class of the day. They walked together, Harry regaling Hermione with a colorful description of the trouble he and Ron had gotten in earlier that day. Apparently being savior of the Wizarding World was not something that he let pressure him into becoming any more responsible. It wasn't something he allowed to hold him up to any higher standards. She smiled at his ever-unaltered penchant for trouble.
As they walked down the last hallway to the transfiguration room, Luna joined them.
"Hello," said Luna, airily.
"Hey Luna, how's it going?" Harry inquired pleasantly.
"Quite well. I haven't encountered any nargles lately, and my shoes haven't been stolen since September," she replied cheerfully, as though this were the key to being happy.
"That's..." -Hermione paused, searching for the right words- "wonderful, Luna."
"I think so," the blond-haired witch agreed, sounding satisfied.
They stepped into the classroom with a minute or two to spare. Harry found his seat next to a boy that he got on with quite well, leaving Luna and Hermione in the back of the class, passing the time until the bell rang. They watched as Professor McGonagall came out from her office, strode powerfully to her desk, and sat down, legs crossed, eyes raking over papers, face lost deep in thought.
Luna glanced sideways at Hermione. Hermione looked back at Luna. Luna looked back at McGonagall.
"She looks quite nice today, doesn't she?" Luna said, no longer looking at their professor but rather Hermione.
Hermione studied her professor. She did look extra... enticing this afternoon. Something was just a bit different about her, but what? Hermione blushed, realizing she had not yet responded, and Luna had just watched her observing their professor quite closely. Perhaps too closely.
"Umm, yes," Hermione said, attempting to hide her blush. "Yes, I suppose she does," she finished, trying to sound as casual as possible.
"Do you feel that?" Luna asked.
"Feel what?" Hermione looked over to her, confused yet again. For being Hogwarts' famous know-it-all, she sure felt lost an awful lot of the time.
"The air," Luna continued vaguely. "The air. It's thicker here." She noted Hermione's confused expression and added, "Magic. The magic in the air has grown even thicker..."
Hermione wondered what exactly Luna was feeling that led her to this conclusion. Hermione could not detect the apparent change in the air.
The bell suddenly rang, after what had felt like much longer than two minutes to Hermione. She and Luna parted ways, walking to their own separate desks.
The period passed, Hermione doing a decent job of paying attention, mind straying but a few times to her professor's enchanting movements and exceptionally haunting beauty. Beauty? Not beauty. Poise. Power. Strength. Grace. She had not thought of her professor's beauty. She had not thought of what she might look like under those large, billowing witch's robes. Certainly not.
While she had done a fairly good job throughout the class period and answered or raised a hand in response all the questions that McGonagall inquired of the class, she was still slightly bothered by the fact that the few times she felt herself become distracted and then snap back into the lesson, she saw Luna out of the corner of her eye, watching her curiously, every time, without fail.
Ten minutes later, the bell rang loudly, signaling the end of classes for the week and filling many students with the excitement and joy of being done with learning and free to party their weekend away. Hermione, however, stayed in her seat. She felt excitement too, not to leave the classroom but rather to continue learning and spend time with her professor.
Harry stopped at Hermione's desk on his way out the door, sitting on a chair at her side.
"You performed adequately today, Miss Granger," he said in his stern teacher voice. "But I will continue watching, so stay diligent. Good-day." He gave her a wink, leaned in, and added in a joshingly conspiratorial whisper, "If McGonagall starts picking on you at 'tea-time,' just call me over, 'Mione. I'll sure as bloody hell get my ass kicked, but I will do so fighting for you." He gave her a gallant bow and left the room.
McGonagall had disappeared into her office for a minute, and Luna, one of the last students in the classroom, made her way over to Hermione.
"How was class, Luna?" Hermione asked with a smile.
"Enjoyable, really. It's a fascinating subject, transfiguration," she replied in her usual Luna-voice. "But I found myself becoming distracted once or twice," Luna added, eyes gleaming.
"Oh, really? By what?" Hermione wondered, curious, and thinking back to the times she herself had gotten distracted only to find Luna looking at her.
"By you," Luna stated quite simply. "I found it as fascinating as transfiguration how often you appeared to lose focus on a subject you've always seemed to love."
"I don't know what you mean," Hermione said, slightly defensive. "I wasn't losing focus, nor was I distracted."
"I find they are rather the same thing," Luna said, contemplating. "It is easy to be distracted by something you fancy," she continued, eyes glinting in a knowing, Dumbledore-esque way. With one last look at Hermione, a piercing yet calm look as only Luna could do, she left the now empty classroom.
Hermione remained seated, Luna's words replaying in her mind. It is easy to be distracted by something you fancy.
McGonagall's office door swung open, the tall, lithe woman coming through it. Hermione swallowed. Something you fancy. Did this mean what she thought it meant? Perhaps she should have already realized, perhaps, deep down, she already knew, but Luna's knowing words and eyes had led an understanding to dawn in Hermione's mind. She looked up at the woman slowly approaching her. She felt everything click in her mind. She felt her body react as another unwelcome tingle of excitement and heat swept through it. Oh no. This wasn't good. This was not good.
"Perhaps we could start with a spot of tea and then progress to the incantation epoximise?" her professor suggested. "I know you have a special connection with that spell, now," she added, flashing that teasing grin only seen once before, her finger beckoning Hermione into her office.
This was not good.