Happiness
Chapter Four - Holding On
Disclaimer: I'm not stealing them, I'm just borrowing 'em for a bit.
A/N: I wasn't going to write another part to this series, but it just sort of crept up on me. In case you failed to read the summary and the previous three parts, this is f/f slash. PG-13 for language. Flame if you like.
We are one, We are strong, The more you hold us down the more we press on ~ What If, Creed
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Hermione pulled the front door open and slipped silently into the front garden. From the end of the path, she looked back at the house warily, but all was quiet. She heaved a sigh of relief and took a few steps down the road, out of sight of the house, should her parents happen to look out from behind the closed curtains. She waved her wand hand in the direction of the road…
BAM!
And boarded the Knight Bus, heading for London.
Diagon Alley had seemed the only logical place to meet. A little unimaginative, perhaps, but safer than anywhere in muggle London.
She couldn't believe she was doing this. Goody-two-shoes Hermione Granger, sneaking out of her house in the middle of the night. She would never have wanted it to be this way, but it had to be. She would be back by the morning. Back before they even realised she was gone.
As she sat on one of the bus beds, she shook away encroaching feelings of guilt. It wasn't as though it was her first choice to do things like this. It was their fault entirely.
At seventeen, she felt old enough to make her own decisions about her life. She and Ginny had been dating for several months now and most of the school knew about it, so Hermione had decided to tell her parents. It wasn't as though she had told them anything terrible. From the way they had reacted, you would have thought she had killed someone, or got pregnant or something.
They had always told her she could tell them anything and they would stand by her. She felt so stupid for believing them. It wasn't that they had disowned her or anything. In fact, they had pretended to be very understanding. Hermione had been so relieved that they were taking it so well. That is, until they dropped the bombshell.
She wasn't allowed to see Ginny any more, because the girl was obviously "a bad influence". Hogwarts had been informed that, during term time, they were to be kept apart because of "personal reasons". Hermione was grounded for the rest of the holidays to prevent her seeing "that girl".
Of course she had protested. She had reasoned and cried and shouted, but to no avail. It was "for your own good", they told her. After all, "this whole gay-thing is just a silly faze".
Hermione felt like screaming. What the hell did they know?
Well they weren't going to stop her. Her relationship with Ginny was the best thing that had happened to her for a long time, and she wasn't going to lose it. Having seen what had happened with the Grangers, Ginny had decided against telling her own parents just yet.
So now they were reduced to this. Secret meetings in the dead of night. They lived so far apart that it wasn't like they could just pop round to each other's houses anyway, but at least they wouldn't have to sneak around like this.
The Knight bus screeched to a halt and Hermione made her way through the Leaky Cauldron, tapped the wall with her wand and walked into Diagon Alley. It was beautiful by night, with twinkling, multicoloured fairies artfully arranged to cast a glow over everything.
On the bench outside Florean Fortesques sat Ginny, shivering in a moth-eaten cloak and looking worriedly from side to side. She jumped to her feet when she saw Hermione and the two girls embraced.
"Missed you," Ginny whispered. Hermione held her close and fought back hot tears. It just wasn't fair. If she had had a boyfriend, her parents would have only been too pleased for them to meet up.
"Let's go somewhere warmer," she suggested, noting Ginny's icy hands. "You look like you could do with a Butterbeer."
They were heading back to the Leaky Cauldron, when Ginny gasped and dived into the nearest shop, the apothecary, pulling Hermione with her. They stood among the vats of potent herbs and bottles of gooey potions breathing hard.
"What was that all about?" Hermione hissed.
Ginny was peering cautiously out of the window. "Susan Fletcher, friend of my mums. If she caught me here at this time of night…" she made a throat-slitting motion with her hand. "I'd have been grounded 'till I'm thirty!"
"Kind of like I am, you mean?" Hermione asked wryly. "So maybe the Leaky Cauldron isn't such a great idea. Is there anywhere around here that's a little less public?"
Ginny though for a minute. "There's a bar and some clubs further down," she said doubtfully. "But they're all over-17's only. We'll never get in."
"You forget that I am seventeen," said Hermione. "And you will be in a few months. They'll never know."
Ginny grinned weakly. "I never knew you had such a rebellious side, Hermione," she said, smirking.
Ten minutes later, they were outside again. "You're not coming in here if you can't cross the age line," the wizard at the door told Ginny sternly.
"Aww, please?" Hermione fluttered her eyelashes at him and pouted. "For me?"
"More than my job's worth sweetheart," he told her, firmly shaking his head.
"Your loss. All the other places let us in!" Hermione knew she was beginning to sound childish, but it was a very cold night and they hadn't long before they would have to set off home.
"Go find one of them then."
"Fine!" she grabbed Ginny's arm and stomped away. She turned to Ginny. "Now what?"
"How am I supposed to know?" Ginny snapped peevishly, pulling her cloak tighter around her shoulders.
"What's with you?" Hermione asked.
"What do you bloody well think is wrong with me?"
Hermione sighed. "Well, I'm suffering too here, probably more than you are because it's my parents who've turned against me, and I'm not complaining!"
"No, because you're just little-miss-perfect, aren't you?"
"Fuck off."
"Ok, I will!" Ginny wrenched her arm away from Hermione and marched up the road. Hermione watched her for a moment, feeling defiant, but then remorse washed over her. She raced after Ginny's retreating figure.
"Ginny, wait!" The other girl stopped in her tracks and whipped around.
"What?"
Hermione faltered. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."
Ginny stared at her stonily and Hermione's heart lurched painfully. Then the other girl's expression crumbled like a mask. "I'm sorry too. It's just so hard…"
"I know." Hermione wrapped her arms around Ginny and they held each other tightly. When they pulled apart, Ginny giggled nervously.
"I've left tear-marks on your robe."
"Hermione smiled and they began to walk together. "We mustn't argue. We have so little time together as it is."
"You're right, as always." Ginny sighed. "Now where are we going?"
"Here," Hermione said suddenly, stopping abruptly. They had arrived outside a small, cosy looking place with a menu in French pinned to the window.
"I bet it costs a bomb," said Ginny doubtfully.
"I could lend you…" she broke off at Ginny's pained expression. "Where else is there then?" They stood in silence for a moment, then it dawned on her. Hermione broke into a grin, grabbed Ginny's arm and dragged her down a nearby alley.
"Hermione…? What the fuck…?" Ginny's voice petered out as they emerged at the other end of the alley and found themselves surrounded by greenery. They appeared to have arrived in a small park, with trees and grass and a duck pond. More fairies rested in the bushes, casting a glittering light and a few couples were wandering around or sitting on the benches.
"How did you know about this?" Ginny gasped and promptly tripped over her own feet.
"Found it last summer." Hermione giggled. "Now shhh…" She leaned in and the two girls' mouths met. Hermione was in heaven. She seemed to have been waiting forever to do this again…
"Hermione Ann Granger! What in God's name do you think you're doing?!" An angry voice pierced their bubble of happiness. Hermione broke away and felt her stomach flood with ice. She looked up fearfully and uttered one word.
"Mum."
To be continued…
What did you think? Good, bad or ugly? I have some great ideas for the next part, but do you think I should continue? Please review, it only takes a second!
