Alesco
Chapter Eleven---Book of Days
*
Hermione holed herself up in her bed in the dormitory, her body quaking every now and then every time she relived what Ron had told her today. She could tell how angry he had been, but it was so unlike him. Of course, Ron had an awful temper, but it had never gotten this out of hand. She'd tried to find him earlier, after he ran off, but she gave up.
She had her beloved diary in front of her. She hadn't opened it yet, she just stared at the cover.
Looking at it, she couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry. On one of the corners of the cover, Ron had scribbled, "I'm awake!" It was after she kept nudging him in History of Magic...had it been third or fourth year? No, second. It didn't matter. She rubbed a finger over it lovingly.
He hadn't even realized he was writing on her diary. The only title on it was "Hermione Granger." There were also tiny washed-out dots, that resembled tears she'd cried over the years. Including some she'd cried only minutes before.
So fitting, she thought. I've poured over five years of my life into this book. The love...the heartache.
Mostly the love.
Once she'd learned it, she'd placed a complicated spell on it so that only she could open it. Now she opened the book, but she didn't write. Instead, she sat there, and began to think.
Ron had said that he was upset about Ginny and her many boyfriends. True, Ginny had dated several boys. Hermione hadn't, but she knew several girls at Hogwarts of Ginny's age, and they'd dated just as many or more. It wasn't unnatural.
After thinking about it some more, she realized that neither, she, Ron, or Harry had ever really had steady boy or girlfriend. Sure, Harry went with Cho one time, and Hermione had went with Viktor to the Yule Ball. Hermione now knew that Harry wasn't seeing Cho, and Viktor was only Hermione's friend.
Are we the untouchable three?
No...that's not the case at all, Hermione told herself. I've already been touched. I've known from the first moment I laid eyes on him.
She closed her eyes, stretching out as far as she could on the bed, and put her arms over her eyes. Her heart began to pulse with an intense energy. Could he really love her? Was she the one he wanted to protect?
After all, she'd been hurt badly at the Ministry of Magic. Before Harry gave the call to smash the prophecies, Ron had muttered for her to stay near him. It hadn't worked out that way. Hermione remembered the panic she felt when he wasn't with her and Harry.
In anguish, she tipped her diary up. Oddly enough, it was turned to her first entry. She smiled happily, remembering the very moment she had wrote it. Now, she read it silently to herself...knowing she was going to cry at the end in reminiscence.
*******
Here I am, sitting at the train station staring at the Hogwarts Express, this great old red train that's going to take me to my first year of magical learning! My parents left me on the "muggle" side of the train station, and said good-bye there. I think they were scared...after all, they know very little about where I am going and what I will be doing. Headmaster Dumbledore sent them a very nice letter a month ago, to tell them I would be in good hands. He briefly explained all my subjects--in basic terms of, of course. They still aren't sure this is a good idea, but then there is nothing they can do to stop me from coming.
I had a long talk with my father the other night, and I am certain he understands why I have to come. All my life I have been a "strange" child to them, never totally appreciating other children's company. I think my mum and dad worry the most when I stay in my room and read all night long, instead of go out and have sleep-overs with friends. Well...no more will I have to endure the endless taunts from children who know nothing about me. I am now where I belong--and that is what I told my father.
I didn't tell him that, instead of reading all those nights, I was actually...making things happen.
Okay...what things...well, I could make my pens levitate when I didn't understand a math equation, or I could set a book on fire when I tried to stay awake reading. I started to scare myself.
Thankfully, we received the Hogwarts letter before I told my parents what I'd been doing. They've never known the full extent of my "powers" and I have the feeling they may never ask me.
You may ask why I am sitting here staring at my train...why I haven't boarded yet? I got here an hour early and I wanted to be able to sit and watch all the students arrive and board the train. I wanted to see who else attends a wizarding school. Sure, I've read a lot about wizards and witches and Hogwarts ever since I got my letter, but I wanted to see everything, instead of close myself up in a train compartment.
It hasn't been boring. I saw a sandy-haired boy carrying a toad, and he was being dragged along by an old lady wearing a hideous hat. I only got a glance, but I think part of the hat was a dead animal! Anyway, she was scolding him and he was blushing tremendously, especially when he saw me sitting here, writing in this diary! I gave him a small, piteous smile.
I am greatly interested in all the adult witches and wizards that I have seen. I am most interested since I read "Emily Flangers Career Planning for Witch and Wizarding Professions." It's amazing all of the wonderful careers a witch can undertake!
I suppose, though, it is too early to be thinking of that...but it wouldn't hurt to be looking ahead, would it?
I just saw a very heartening sight. This young, be-speckled, dark-haired wizard (apparently a first year) came stumbling through the barrier to the platform. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was Harry Potter.
I wrote too soon. Right after the dark-haired boy left to board the train, a red-haired boy just came through the barrier, followed by his mother and sister (?). I only say that since they have red hair, too. Then, I saw two red-haired twins come over and talk with them. They said the dark-haired boy WAS Harry Potter, because they saw his scar. How exciting!
The sister wanted to see Harry, too, but her mother said they'd better let him be, then they left. Finally, the boys have boarded the train.
I suppose I had better get on, too. It's time for me to leave my old life behind. I am very excited. I hope I run into the red-haired boy named Ron. He looked very nice. I've always thought having such a large family would be wonderful. Maybe I can learn a bit from him. It would be great to have some friends of my own, people who know about what I am and what I can do--and not think I am a freak.
*******
To her surprise, she wasn't crying. She was laughing. Hermione rolled onto her tummy and outright giggled.
Why was that so funny?
She calmed, and then lay silently on her belly. Ron had been so upset because of his large family, and being "Leftover Ron." And there she was, writing in her diary in first year of how nice it would have been to be part of such a large family.
It still is, Ron. You've got so many people who love you and worry about you, Hermione thought. If only she could talk to him at that moment.
With a sudden shock, she heard someone call her name and walk into the dormitory. She pulled back her curtains.
Ginny was walking toward her bed. "Hey, Hermione. Ron's downstairs. He looks all embarrassed, and says he wants to talk to you. I'd give it to him if I were you."
Hermione grinned. "I presume you already did that for me."
"You bet I did!" Ginny said scaldingly. "He looked every bit as scared as Fred and George every time mum punished them." She laughed wickedly. "It's great to see him squirm."
Hermione shook her head and stood up next to Ginny.
"You love your brother, right?" Hermione asked seriously.
Ginny was surprised, but instantly said, "Sure."
"You should tell him some time." Hermione began to walk out, and Ginny followed. Ginny was silent for a while, and then said quietly, "We used to tell each other every night before bed. It was like a ritual. Then he went to Hogwarts, and life changed." Ginny said morosely, then she brightened. "Maybe we can start the tradition again." Ginny was at the door girl's fifth-year dormitory. Before Hermione continued past her, she eyed her friend and whispered, "I think it would be a good idea, Ginny. I really, really do."
~*~
For some crazy reason, Hermione was scared to enter the common room of her own house. How could she face Ron, after he had blurted out what he did? She'd put two and two together, and there really couldn't have been any other person he was talking about.
She hesitated on the stairs. What about how she'd scolded him the other night, while he was in the kitchens? It wasn't as if she minded him getting food....he hadn't had any lunch. The way he was getting it, and what kind of food he had preferred, had irritated her.
Instead of being patient like she knew she could have, she'd been bossy and argumentative. They'd had to quiet down on their way back to the common room, but still they had argued.
He didn't love her! He couldn't, not the way they acted with each other!
One thing she was sure of...there certainly was desire...and passion...plenty of it, on both sides. But love?
She already knew how she felt. She loved Ron...and she decided it was time to fight tooth and nail for him.
Walking purposefully down the stairs, she kept walking.
Ron was scratching his back, looking at the Gryffindor notice board. Harry had listed the new team members earlier in the day, and Hermione figured that was what he was looking at. For a moment, Hermione thought she'd better make her presence known, but instead she walked up behind him quietly. She was about a foot away when Ron must have heard something, and he turned around. Hermione pushed him against the wall.
Chapter Eleven---Book of Days
*
Hermione holed herself up in her bed in the dormitory, her body quaking every now and then every time she relived what Ron had told her today. She could tell how angry he had been, but it was so unlike him. Of course, Ron had an awful temper, but it had never gotten this out of hand. She'd tried to find him earlier, after he ran off, but she gave up.
She had her beloved diary in front of her. She hadn't opened it yet, she just stared at the cover.
Looking at it, she couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry. On one of the corners of the cover, Ron had scribbled, "I'm awake!" It was after she kept nudging him in History of Magic...had it been third or fourth year? No, second. It didn't matter. She rubbed a finger over it lovingly.
He hadn't even realized he was writing on her diary. The only title on it was "Hermione Granger." There were also tiny washed-out dots, that resembled tears she'd cried over the years. Including some she'd cried only minutes before.
So fitting, she thought. I've poured over five years of my life into this book. The love...the heartache.
Mostly the love.
Once she'd learned it, she'd placed a complicated spell on it so that only she could open it. Now she opened the book, but she didn't write. Instead, she sat there, and began to think.
Ron had said that he was upset about Ginny and her many boyfriends. True, Ginny had dated several boys. Hermione hadn't, but she knew several girls at Hogwarts of Ginny's age, and they'd dated just as many or more. It wasn't unnatural.
After thinking about it some more, she realized that neither, she, Ron, or Harry had ever really had steady boy or girlfriend. Sure, Harry went with Cho one time, and Hermione had went with Viktor to the Yule Ball. Hermione now knew that Harry wasn't seeing Cho, and Viktor was only Hermione's friend.
Are we the untouchable three?
No...that's not the case at all, Hermione told herself. I've already been touched. I've known from the first moment I laid eyes on him.
She closed her eyes, stretching out as far as she could on the bed, and put her arms over her eyes. Her heart began to pulse with an intense energy. Could he really love her? Was she the one he wanted to protect?
After all, she'd been hurt badly at the Ministry of Magic. Before Harry gave the call to smash the prophecies, Ron had muttered for her to stay near him. It hadn't worked out that way. Hermione remembered the panic she felt when he wasn't with her and Harry.
In anguish, she tipped her diary up. Oddly enough, it was turned to her first entry. She smiled happily, remembering the very moment she had wrote it. Now, she read it silently to herself...knowing she was going to cry at the end in reminiscence.
*******
Here I am, sitting at the train station staring at the Hogwarts Express, this great old red train that's going to take me to my first year of magical learning! My parents left me on the "muggle" side of the train station, and said good-bye there. I think they were scared...after all, they know very little about where I am going and what I will be doing. Headmaster Dumbledore sent them a very nice letter a month ago, to tell them I would be in good hands. He briefly explained all my subjects--in basic terms of, of course. They still aren't sure this is a good idea, but then there is nothing they can do to stop me from coming.
I had a long talk with my father the other night, and I am certain he understands why I have to come. All my life I have been a "strange" child to them, never totally appreciating other children's company. I think my mum and dad worry the most when I stay in my room and read all night long, instead of go out and have sleep-overs with friends. Well...no more will I have to endure the endless taunts from children who know nothing about me. I am now where I belong--and that is what I told my father.
I didn't tell him that, instead of reading all those nights, I was actually...making things happen.
Okay...what things...well, I could make my pens levitate when I didn't understand a math equation, or I could set a book on fire when I tried to stay awake reading. I started to scare myself.
Thankfully, we received the Hogwarts letter before I told my parents what I'd been doing. They've never known the full extent of my "powers" and I have the feeling they may never ask me.
You may ask why I am sitting here staring at my train...why I haven't boarded yet? I got here an hour early and I wanted to be able to sit and watch all the students arrive and board the train. I wanted to see who else attends a wizarding school. Sure, I've read a lot about wizards and witches and Hogwarts ever since I got my letter, but I wanted to see everything, instead of close myself up in a train compartment.
It hasn't been boring. I saw a sandy-haired boy carrying a toad, and he was being dragged along by an old lady wearing a hideous hat. I only got a glance, but I think part of the hat was a dead animal! Anyway, she was scolding him and he was blushing tremendously, especially when he saw me sitting here, writing in this diary! I gave him a small, piteous smile.
I am greatly interested in all the adult witches and wizards that I have seen. I am most interested since I read "Emily Flangers Career Planning for Witch and Wizarding Professions." It's amazing all of the wonderful careers a witch can undertake!
I suppose, though, it is too early to be thinking of that...but it wouldn't hurt to be looking ahead, would it?
I just saw a very heartening sight. This young, be-speckled, dark-haired wizard (apparently a first year) came stumbling through the barrier to the platform. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was Harry Potter.
I wrote too soon. Right after the dark-haired boy left to board the train, a red-haired boy just came through the barrier, followed by his mother and sister (?). I only say that since they have red hair, too. Then, I saw two red-haired twins come over and talk with them. They said the dark-haired boy WAS Harry Potter, because they saw his scar. How exciting!
The sister wanted to see Harry, too, but her mother said they'd better let him be, then they left. Finally, the boys have boarded the train.
I suppose I had better get on, too. It's time for me to leave my old life behind. I am very excited. I hope I run into the red-haired boy named Ron. He looked very nice. I've always thought having such a large family would be wonderful. Maybe I can learn a bit from him. It would be great to have some friends of my own, people who know about what I am and what I can do--and not think I am a freak.
*******
To her surprise, she wasn't crying. She was laughing. Hermione rolled onto her tummy and outright giggled.
Why was that so funny?
She calmed, and then lay silently on her belly. Ron had been so upset because of his large family, and being "Leftover Ron." And there she was, writing in her diary in first year of how nice it would have been to be part of such a large family.
It still is, Ron. You've got so many people who love you and worry about you, Hermione thought. If only she could talk to him at that moment.
With a sudden shock, she heard someone call her name and walk into the dormitory. She pulled back her curtains.
Ginny was walking toward her bed. "Hey, Hermione. Ron's downstairs. He looks all embarrassed, and says he wants to talk to you. I'd give it to him if I were you."
Hermione grinned. "I presume you already did that for me."
"You bet I did!" Ginny said scaldingly. "He looked every bit as scared as Fred and George every time mum punished them." She laughed wickedly. "It's great to see him squirm."
Hermione shook her head and stood up next to Ginny.
"You love your brother, right?" Hermione asked seriously.
Ginny was surprised, but instantly said, "Sure."
"You should tell him some time." Hermione began to walk out, and Ginny followed. Ginny was silent for a while, and then said quietly, "We used to tell each other every night before bed. It was like a ritual. Then he went to Hogwarts, and life changed." Ginny said morosely, then she brightened. "Maybe we can start the tradition again." Ginny was at the door girl's fifth-year dormitory. Before Hermione continued past her, she eyed her friend and whispered, "I think it would be a good idea, Ginny. I really, really do."
~*~
For some crazy reason, Hermione was scared to enter the common room of her own house. How could she face Ron, after he had blurted out what he did? She'd put two and two together, and there really couldn't have been any other person he was talking about.
She hesitated on the stairs. What about how she'd scolded him the other night, while he was in the kitchens? It wasn't as if she minded him getting food....he hadn't had any lunch. The way he was getting it, and what kind of food he had preferred, had irritated her.
Instead of being patient like she knew she could have, she'd been bossy and argumentative. They'd had to quiet down on their way back to the common room, but still they had argued.
He didn't love her! He couldn't, not the way they acted with each other!
One thing she was sure of...there certainly was desire...and passion...plenty of it, on both sides. But love?
She already knew how she felt. She loved Ron...and she decided it was time to fight tooth and nail for him.
Walking purposefully down the stairs, she kept walking.
Ron was scratching his back, looking at the Gryffindor notice board. Harry had listed the new team members earlier in the day, and Hermione figured that was what he was looking at. For a moment, Hermione thought she'd better make her presence known, but instead she walked up behind him quietly. She was about a foot away when Ron must have heard something, and he turned around. Hermione pushed him against the wall.