A/N: This is a short one; I was getting bored myself ;)
15. The End of Sixth Year and the Start of Seventh
Hermione sat in her compartment on the Hogwarts Express as it sped along towards King's Cross Station. She stared out the window at the passing countryside, as Ron and Neville played a game of Exploding Snap! across from her. The rest of spring term had passed rather uneventfully. There were no threats against Hogwarts by Voldemort, and exams passed as normal, what with no OWLs or NEWTs to worry about this year. Quidditch games were won and lost, and the number of searches that she and Ron participated in had decreased since the failed trap. In fact, the number of Harry sightings had decreased substantially, as the wizarding world seemed to be in a state of denial on that particular subject. Harry's disappearance became something you didn't mention, for many reasons. Harry was the embodiment of hope against Voldemort, and people didn't want to think about something untoward happening to Harry. Further, there was the underlying sense of abandonment, that Harry had left the wizarding world when it needed him the most, that people didn't want to address.
Feelings of abandonment were something Hermione often struggled with. Although she had improved greatly (there were times when she could go two whole hours without thinking about Harry), she still had her moments of private introspection, when a whirlwind of emotions swirled in her mind. Her thoughts usually started with worry about Harry's safety and well-being. From there, her feelings would often switch to anger, anger at Harry for leaving her behind while he went off to save the world. Who did he think he was, anyways? Harry couldn't do anything without her; if not for Hermione pushing him to study, Harry would probably still be in third year! And who was there to get Harry through Snape's final test before the Sorcerer's Stone? Who figured out it was a basilisk, or had the time-turner, or who patiently taught him the Summoning Charm? Did he really think he succeed in doing whatever he was doing without her?
After venting, Hermione often fell into a depression. Did Harry even need her anymore? After all, he didn't need her when dueling Voldemort in the graveyard. Maybe he outgrew his need for her? Maybe she was useless to him, and that's why he left her? It was a scary thought, because Hermione definitely needed Harry to take care of her, and she always felt that Harry needed her to take care of him, to make sure he took care of himself. But now, he was somewhere doing something, and he didn't need her. These thoughts often left her sniffling.
Righteous indignation often followed ("well, who needs him anyways! I'm doing fine by myself!"). After that came doubt ("But Harry's never been by himself for so long! He just doesn't realize he needs me!"), and finally back to worry. It was a vicious little emotional cycle. But through it all, no credible leads had been uncovered about Harry. Hermione believed he was just being very clever about hiding. After all, if Voldemort had gotten to Harry, surely he would have proclaimed it to the world. That gave Hermione hope, the hope that she would see her best friend again someday.
Hermione snapped out of her reverie when Lavender and Pavarti entered the compartment, dropping by to say hi. They exchanged greetings, and then Ron flashed the two girls his puppy dog eyes. Immediately, Lavender and Pavarti sat on either side of Ron, doing their best to console Ron over the Quidditch loss – Gryffindor had lost the Quidditch Cup to Ravenclaw that year, in a truly nail-biting final game; it was only by the smallest margin that Cho managed to beat Ginny to the snitch. Hermione rolled her eyes with Neville and had to smirk as she watched Ron. Ever since she had disillusioned Ron of his feelings for her, Ron had shown a newfound confidence around girls. Perhaps it was being keeper and Captain and that Quidditch outfit; Hermione always thought Oliver Wood looked dashing in his uniform. But really, Hermione felt it was the combination that he stopped pining for her, along with the fact that their frequent fights early on forced him to spend time with other people, with no Hermione or Harry to hide behind. Those two things enabled Ron to become more comfortable with other girls. She was genuinely happy for him. As for her own love life, or lack thereof, she was ambivalent. She was still holding out for that perfect love, somewhere out there. Besides, she didn't have that shabby of a dating record: Victor Krum, world-famous Quidditch player and Eddie Carmichael, Head Boy of Hogwarts. She was still young, after all.
Finally, the train arrived in London, and Hermione made her way to the Muggle side of King's Cross Station. She, Ron, and Ginny promised to write. Hermione exchanged hugs with Ron and Ginny and her newest friends, her fellow sixth-year girls, and then made her way to her parents who waited nearby.
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Two events occurred Hermione's summer were bright spots in an otherwise bleak summer. The first event was that Hermione finally learned to apparate. She was incredibly pleased with herself, for apparition was a difficult ability to learn; she had read that only 8% of the wizarding population ever managed to earn their apparition license. Hermione spent one full week at the Burrow so she could practice apparating without alerting any Muggles. Ron, unfortunately, wasn't able to pick it up as quickly, but they both hoped he would learn how to apparate next year. Mr. Weasley himself took Hermione to the testing center, and there was a great feast laid down by Mrs. Weasley when Hermione returned, license in hand. It was truly a happy day for Hermione, only slightly dampened because Harry wasn't there to celebrate with her.
The second event occurred over the breakfast table at Hermione's home. As the Grangers were sitting down to a plateful of ham and eggs, a Hogwarts owl flew through the open window. Hermione freed the owl of its letter, than squealed in delight. Hermione had been named Head Girl! Of course, part of her always expected it, but one never knew for sure. Hermione jumped up and down in glee, sharing hugs with her extremely proud parents. She then dashed off to write letters (her acceptance of the position went to Hogwarts, her happy news went off to the Weasleys, Lavender, and Pavarti). She spent the rest of the day admiring her Head Girl badge as she experimented with different ways of wearing it.
Finally, summer came to a quiet close with absolutely no word about Harry. Someone had reported to the Order that Harry had been spotted near Chicago in the United States, but no trace of him had been found. Voldemort continued his terrorist strikes, attacking various places around the world roughly once a month. With all this in mind, Hermione approached platform 9¾ with a rising hope. Despite her efforts to talk herself out of it, Hermione hoped that Harry would be at Platform 9¾, like always, ready for their final year of school. She imagined that she would be rather upset at him for leaving, but they would apologize and everything would be OK. In her mind, she saw herself tutoring Harry endlessly on all subjects they had learned while he had been away. But all of her hopes were for nothing as she boarded the train and Harry was nowhere to be found.
Hermione had read her list of duties and responsibilities that came with her letter, and after the prefects' meeting, she alternated her time between the Head Girl's cabin, Ron's compartment, visiting with her fellow seventh year girls, and patrolling the corridors. All the while, she tried to suppress the hope that Harry would be at Hogwarts, waiting for her.
The Great Hall was as beautiful as ever as Hermione walked towards the Gryffindor table. She remembered with fondness the first time she walked into the Great Hall, exactly seven years ago. The sight of the enchanted ceiling, on a beautiful night, still took her breath away. If only Harry were there….
Hermione exchanged hugs and greetings with her fellow students, and sat at her regular seat by Ron. Harry's seat was empty; no one had sat in it since his disappearance. She listened through Dumbeldore's opening remarks, and stood when announced as Head Girl, graciously accepting the applause that she shared with the Head Boy, Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff. A stray thought entered Hermione's mind, the thought that Harry should've been Head Boy. Settling herself, Hermione took her seat and turned her attention to the front of the Great Hall as the sorting ceremony began.