A/N: My first fic, and this without any beta-readers, so please don't flame me too much! But I'd appreciate any comments, feedback, critique, etc.
Disclosure: None of this is mine. None. Absolutely none. (A/N: I think that says it all right?)
~***~
Hermione watched Harry walk off with his uncle, aunt, and cousin. She sighed, she couldn't call them 'his family', even though she knew that they were only family Harry will ever have.
"Stop it, Hermione", she thought to herself, "Ron, Professor Dumbledore, the Weasleys, Sirius, and I will be his family, since we care for him".
She saw Ron and Ginny hug their parents, and watched Fred and George proudly present a toilet seat to their mum. Needless to say, Mrs. Weasley was not impressed and began to scold them, while Mr. Weasley, Ron, and Ginny hid grins behind their hands.
She looked around, and finally found her parents waiting in the back, and it was time to head home, away from witches and wizards, away from Hogwarts, and away from You-Know-Who. She felt a pang of regret at the first two, but was grateful for the last one.
~***~
She plopped down her luggage in her room, and flung herself on her bed looking up at the ceiling. Crookshanks leaped up on the bed alongside her.
"What a horrible year Crookshanks," Hermione half-stated to her cat and half to the ceiling, "first Ron and Harry get in this huge fight, Ron falls for that blonde veela, Victor has a crush on me (I think), and worst of all, You-Know-Who's back at the expense of Harry's pain and blood and Cedric's life." Crookshanks regarded her with deadpan eyes, and lazily laid himself to clean her paws.
Hermione looked at Crookshanks amusedly, and then sighed, "if only I could shrug it off as calmly as you". And with that thought, slowly fell asleep.
~***~
Hermione's summer was pretty slow. Her parents seemed to feel that all their patients needed more serious dental work this summer, rather than their average six-month check-up. Hermione knew they enjoyed the challenge and work, but was silently disappointed that they wouldn't be able to take a family trip like they usually did.
She woke up one morning in the middle of July only to find Crookshanks very alert with his belly to the ground. She looked around to see what it's matter of object was, when she noticed an owl on the top of her cabinet with an envelope in its talon. The tawny owl seemed to regard her cat with a look of slight condescension but dutifully held out her leg so the letter could be removed. Hermione then carried it to the window where it took flight, and Crookshanks gave her a look of disappointment and stalked out of the room with his tail high up.
Hermione sat at her desk, pushed the Standard Book of Spells Grade Four to the side, which she was reviewing the night before, and looked closely at the envelope.
She didn't recognise the long, narrow handwriting, and it was written in a deep red ink.
She opened up the envelope and found,
Dear Hermione,
Your name is easier to spell than it is to say, but I have been practising since we left. I was wondering if you will be taking me up on my offer to visit me in Bulgaria. I understand if you or your parents feel it would not be safe with all that is happening, but I hope you will be able to.
Please write back with your reply
Viktor Krum.
~***~
A/N: Please, please…pretty please…read & review!