Title: Never Lost
Rating: Pg-13, will be R later
Pairing: Fleur/Hermione. If girl/girl relationships bother you, I kindly suggest that you hit the 'back' button now.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Summary: All Fleur ever wanted was to be with Hermione, but she was shot down. It is now their sixth year and Fleur's moved on, but she notices that Hermione is acting very strangely...
Background Story: Fleur is muggle born and she moved to England with her father when her parents got a divorce when she was six. She is in the same year and house as Hermione.
A/N: I thought it would be interesting to try out a completely different story line, where Fleur never went to Beauxbatons, but went to Hogwarts instead. And I'm not writing her character as it's typically written. She's not going to be a graceful, French veela, but I'm writing her as a regular English school girl. I'm not sure where I'm going with this yet, but I've already got a few ideas. I've got chapters 4 and 5 mostly written, but 2 and 3 are still in the works. Let me know if you guys like it and if it's even worth continuing. Any suggestions are always appreciated!
The Hogwarts Express whistled loudly as it gained speed and departed from platform 9 and three-quarters. The cushioned seat Fleur sat on vibrated from the train's movements and she gazed around the empty compartment, wishing someone she knew would come in. Since her dad had dropped her off an hour early, she had been able to find an empty compartment quite easily, but the time to herself was something she did not enjoy. Taking the train by herself was something she never liked to do ever since her first year when she had accidently stumbled into a compartment filled with fifth year Slytherin girls who thought it would be hilarious to torment a terrified first year. Thankfully, a prefect had shown up and escorted her to a compartment with first years like herself. Since then, she made sure she was usually with someone on the train. Those Slytherins had long since graduated, but it was one of those small phobias that stayed with you, like being afraid of the heights because you fell off a chair when you were younger.
An hour had passed since the train's departure and Fleur was dozing off because no one had entered her compartment yet. She figured that all of her friends had already found places to sit, and she did not go off to look for them because she was afraid she might run into a particular intelligent brunette in the corridors. Matt would return soon though. He had found her after he arrived on the train, but had to leave shortly after to fulfill his duties as Head Boy. Fleur began dating Matt in July, after making out with him, drunk, at a party Lavender Brown hosted.
As if on cue, the compartment door slid open, ripping Fleur from her state of half-sleep, and she watched as Matt slipped inside and shut the door with a loud whoosh. He turned around and grinned at his sleepy girlfriend, his blonde hair still shining even though the sun had disappeared behind the clouds outside the window.
"Malfoy's not doing his prefect duties," he told her, completely bypassing any regular kind of greeting, and seeming almost excited at the possibility that he might get to report Malfoy to Professor McGonagall.
"And that makes you happy," Fleur stated matter-of-factly, grinning cheekily, and thinking about how nice his teeth looked when he smiled.
"Oh hell, yeah! I hate that stupid git!" Though he originally came from Ireland, the brunt of his accent had faded since moving to England when he was fourteen. Fleur found the slight Irish accent to be very attractive and hoped that it would not fade away completely. "So why didn't you go find anyone to sit with? You didn't have to wait for me to get back; I would've found you eventually." He went and sat next to her, sliding his arms around her shoulders.
She snuggled into his warm body as her mind was attacked with thoughts of Hermione Granger and how desperately she wanted to avoid her. Over the summer, she had not sent a single letter to her old best friend, though she had received one or two from the other girl in the middle of the summer, which she never read, but immediately shredded into miniscule pieces when she saw who they were from.
"I just wanted to be alone with you, I guess." It was half true, but Fleur was more scared of running into Hermione than anything. Look at what she's reduced me to! Hiding by myself in a fucking train compartment when all my friends are so close by...
Matt's lips twitched into a self-satisfied grin and he pulled her even closer to him so that they were now sharing the same seat as opposed to two separate ones.
She sighed contently, knowing that she had just swelled his ego to the size of a hot-air balloon. "So how was the meeting?" she asked, not liking the silence from the moments before. She did not know why, but long-term quiet between the two of them always turned out awkward, therefore she did her best to always keep a conversation going.
"It's different when you're Head Boy," he said. "Everyone actually listens to you. 'Cept them Slytherin bastards. They're a bunch of ass holes."
Fleur laughed dryly, knowing how true that was. Being muggle born made her very popular to target amongst the Slytherins. During her first few years at Hogwarts, it had really gotten on her nerves, especially when she found out what the term 'mudblood' meant, but after her third year, their comments mattered less and less as she grew more confident with herself.
"But that reminds me," Matt added, his brow furrowing at remembering the message he was supposed to deliver to Fleur, "Hermione's looking for you."
Fleur's head jerked off Matt's shoulder and she stared at him with widening eyes. "She is? Did she ask you if you knew where I was?" she demanded, wondering if Hermione had somehow found out about her and Matt. Before the summer, she and Matt had never spoken to one another, so the only reason Hermione would ask him if he knew where she was is if she had found about them dating, which, to Fleur's dismay, excited her.
"Nah," he answered, shaking his head slightly, causing his wavy, blond locks to fall into his eyes. "I overheard her asking the Weasley boy if he'd seen you yet."
"Oh…" Fleur was slightly disappointed at his answer. This meant Hermione still didn't know about Matt.
"Why do you ask?" he questioned after noticing how disappointed the brunette sounded.
She shook her head and smiled, quickly brushing off her moment of disappointment. "No reason. I was just wondering if she knew about you and me yet because I haven't told her anything about it." There was not any way Hermione could know, Fleur reasoned, because she rarely kept in contact with anyone who was not a good friend of hers during summer breaks. Last year, she had spent the first half of her break vacationing with Fleur at Fleur's mother's house in France, and the only person she had written who was not Harry or Ron was Ginny and she wondered curiously if Hermione had changed that habit this summer.
"Oh yeah, because you two had that falling out last year, didn't you?" Matt said, nodding his head thoughtfully.
"Yeah…"
"What was that about anyway?" he questioned curiously. No one had ever found out about why the two girls had stopped being friends; they just stopped talking to each other, which so many people found hard to believe because the two were normally attached at the hip. There had been some rumors that circulated through the Gryffindor house, but nothing that sounded feasible, like the one he had heard about Fleur being in love with Hermione, which he knew wasn't true. If she had been, then she would not be here with him now.
The compartment door slid open with a bang and two girls jumped in excitedly, shrieking when they saw Fleur and Matt cuddling on the window seat. She almost breathed a sigh of relief that they saved her from giving Matt the 'it's complicated' speech.
"There you are, Fleur!" Lavender exclaimed happily. "We've been looking for you for ages, we have. But no one's said they've seen you."
"I've been sitting here for two and a half hours, Lavender," Fleur grinned as she disentangled herself from Matt and stood to hug the two girls. "How hard did you look?"
"We got distracted in Seamus's compartment," Parvati said, looking slightly apologetic at leaving her friend alone for so long. Fleur had told her about her phobia of train riding last school year when she began spending more time with her and Lavender.
"Hey, Matt," Lavender smiled flirtatiously at the seventh year. Fleur rolled her eyes and sat back down, opting to intertwine their hands rather than snuggle into the blond's shoulder. She didn't mind Lavender flirting with her boyfriend since the bubbly blonde was interested in a new guy every week and didn't take her crushes seriously.
The rest of the train ride passed quickly in the company of Lavender and Parvati. Around three, Seamus came in and they began a game of Gobstones which lasted for more than an hour. Twenty minutes before they were due at Hogsmeade, the girls made the boys wait in the corridor while they changed into their robes, and they did the same for the boys while they changed.
"I've got to go help the prefects get everybody off the train," Matt stated when he felt the train begin to slow down. It was his job as Head Boy to organize the exiting of the train and make sure everyone got on a carriage to Hogwarts.
"Aww," Fleur pouted, clutching his hand tighter, wishing he did not have to leave.
"I'll see you at the feast," he smiled reassuringly, and disappeared after placing a lingering kiss on her lips (everyone focused their gaze on their shoes when he did this).
"You are so lucky to be dating him. He's the best looking boy in our house," Lavender claimed enviously after he left.
Seamus, who had a crush on Lavender, looked very indignant at her statement and he skulked sullenly out of the compartment by himself. Fleur felt bad for him, knowing what it was like to have feelings for someone who did not return them.
"Fleur, you coming?" Parvati asked as her and Lavender made their way to the open door to join the rapidly forming queue of people who were in a rush to get to the feast.
"You guys go on ahead," she said, gesturing them to leave without her. "I'll meet up with you at the feast."
When Fleur had pulled her robes out of her trunk earlier, a picture of her and Hermione had fallen out of the open top compartment of her trunk, which she had completely forgot about. She had quickly pocketed the old photograph before anyone saw and now she wanted a moment to look at it without the questioning eyes of her friends. The middle of her chest began to ache as she stared at the picture. It was taken nearly two years ago, in fourth year, right after the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. They were both smiling broadly and Hermione had her arm wrapped around the blonde's waist, while Fleur's arm was resting comfortably on Hermione's shoulder, and occasionally they would look at one another and open their mouths in silent laughter. Fleur remembered the night vividly. Hermione had been so giddy at Harry's success in the first task and she had spent the entire night up against Fleur's side, claiming, "I just feel like hugging you for some reason. You don't mind, do you?" It had taken all of her willpower not to kiss Hermione that night, even though she desperately wanted to. She had been hyperaware of Hermione's every move, and at the end of the night she climbed into bed and shed silent tears at how much it hurt her not to be with the other girl.
"You need to exit the train now," a voice came from behind Fleur.
She quickly shoved the photograph in her pocket and turned around to face the girl she tried so desperately to get over this summer. Hermione stood before her, looking as beautiful as ever, with her wavy brown hair parted on the left side and falling loose below her shoulders.
Hermione's eyes widened when she saw that it was Fleur that had been in the compartment. Her mouth opened slightly and she seemed to lose her voice because she said nothing more.
Raw emotion slammed Fleur and she almost felt like she was going to pass out from the feelings raging in her chest. Seeing Hermione now, she knew that the months she had spent trying to get over her were worthless; because, once again, she found herself drowning in those caring, brown eyes.
"Okay," Fleur said, surprised at how husky her voice sounded. This was what she had dreaded; she'd dreaded returning to Hogwarts because she knew that she would fall for Hermione again the moment she laid eyes on her. There was some force that inexplicitly, and so very unfortunately, drew her to the other girl. Like an artist with his brush, she could never let go, no matter how hard she tried. She knew that she would run into Hermione sooner or later, seeing as how they were dorm mates, but she had hoped that it would be later, rather than sooner.
A hand grabbed her arm when she reached the sliding door, and Fleur thanked all higher power that her arm was clothed, as she did not think she could stand it if Hermione's hand touched her bare skin. "Fleur, wait," Hermione whispered so softly that she had to strain to hear her.
Jerking her arm away from Hermione's grasp, she turned to the girl and said, "Matthew told me you were looking for me earlier?" Her eyes flashed with confusion and Fleur concluded that Hermione had no idea about her and Matt. "We'll talk later, okay? But this train's going to leave the station whether we're off it or not, so we really should get going." Without another word, Fleur raced off, leaving a very confused and distraught Hermione behind.