Someone To Talk To
Chapter One: Taken
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters or anything else Harry Potter affiliated. If I did, my name would be J.K. Rowling.
Harry had only met Mr and Mrs Granger the day before when they had driven Ron, Hermione and himself to King's Cross Station.
The trio had arrived at Diagon Alley for some last minute preparations for their sixth year at school. Hermione's parents had offered the boys a ride, which they had politely accepted. They struck him as nice, kind people. The sort of parents that you could talk to.
When the news reached them at Hogwarts, Hermione dissolved. As Professor Dumbledore recounted the events, the tears ran unchecked down Hermione's cheek.
Upon her return to the Gryffindor common room, Harry and Ron only had to look at her distraught face to realise that something was terribly wrong. She would not talk to them, instead she walked straight through to her dormitory. That night, that horrible, fateful night, Hermione cried herself bitterly to sleep.
The next morning dawned bright and breezy yet Hermione saw only darkness. Harry and Ron were waiting concernedly at the foot of the stairs. "Hermione, what happened? Is there anything we can...I can do?" Ron spoke first. "It's none of your business, Weasley." Hermione snapped, trying to keep her composure. Harry looked taken aback, since Sirius' death he had been emotionally wounded.
Seeing that her friends only meant well, she relented. "Last...last night, my parents...Voldemort...the house." At this point Hermione dissolved into tears. Sinking down into an armchair, she continued. "He saw you with them Harry, he saw them as someone close to you. So he took them. He murdered them."
Harry's face fell. He was still bewildered and upset after the last year and this was like being kicked while he was down. He sat beside Hermione and offered her the only thing he could, his friendship. Engulfing her in his arms, he drew her into a hug, sharing his body warmth, as she seemed awfully cold.
"I'm so sorry, 'Mione. If I had known...I shouldn't have...if I had only thought. It's my fault..." He broke off.
Ron stepped forward, completely dumbstruck. "What exactly happened? I mean, could the Order have helped?'
Harry stood, thoughts racing through his mind, his face aching with the effort of keeping it emotionless. He strode off, dumping his bag on the floor as he threw himself onto his four- poster bed.
He wrenched the hangings shut and wept. He wept for Hermione, he wept for her parents, he wept for himself and all that Voldemort had done to him.
Author Note: So.... What's the verdict? Does it stay? Should I continue? Tell me what you think by taking your mouse and pressing the little purple button below. I'm not sure about this one. Though the story plans do work out nicely. No flames please, but constructive criticism is always appreciated.