Disclaimer: JK Rowling rules my world. I wouldn't dare steal anything from the Queen.
Previously:
"Harry! You should be ashamed of yourself!" she heard a smooth, feminine voice issue from the mouth of the pretty blonde sitting next to Ron. Harry grinned. The brunette sitting next to her smiled at her and gave Hermione her hand to help her up. Hermione frowned and pushed herself up and dusted herself off.
"Nice meeting you guys. I have some business to attend to. See you later, Harry. Bye, Ron." She said, trying to get out of her position as it hit her: she was about to spend the day with her two best friends and their girlfriends. That did not sound like a good day to her. As she left, she smiled. Those trendy, giggling females certainly were going to think twice before messing with her friends after the show she just put on. She laughed at the thought they might think she was a little nuts and strode out the door and into the swirling snow in high spirits.
"I don't need anythi-ing, just to hold you in my arms. You can't leave! I've got you! No matter what you do, you're mine," she sang gaily as she passed by the joke shop. Something caught her eye. She turned to see three redheads waving furiously at her in the shop window. She laughed at Fred, George, and Ginny Weasley's antics and ran in the store.
"Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" said a bright red banner in the back of the store. "For Hogwarts, training, and beyond."
"Ginny!" she shrieked.
"Hermione!" Ginny shrieked back. "I haven't seen you this happy in so long! What's new with you?"
"Erm—Well, Harry's back, and I got a job teaching Transfiguration at Hogwarts!"
"Oh my gosh! No way!" Ginny said. Hermione nodded happily.
"What's with the grins?" George asked. "Did you use one of the products again, Ginny? You know those make you-"
"No, George, Harry's back! And Hermione is the new Transfiguration professor!" Ginny squealed. Fred grinned and offered his hand.
"Good going, Hermione." Fred said. "Or Professor Granger, I should say." Hermione smiled, shook her head, and then his hand. George offered his hand and she shook his, too. She felt something hard in his hand. Too late, she took her hand away. When she looked at it, it had the word LOSER on it in red. She pulled her wand out of her robes and tapped her hand. LOSER was still written there, shinier than before if anything.
"How do I get this off?" she asked Fred.
"Can't tell you. We're honor-bound by the Marauder's code, which is unbreakable." He responded solemnly.
"Sorry I asked." The twins broke out into their infamous twin grins. Ginny rolled her eyes and pulled Hermione out the door and into the white wonderland outside.
"So, Hermione," Ginny said, "How's Harry? What's he doing for a living?" Hermione shrugged.
"Being an Auror, I guess. He hasn't really mentioned it."
"Oh."
"But, to answer your first question, he's doing great. I think he and Ron met a great pair of girls and they're going to go to a club today. Not my idea of a great day, but…"
"I know! Ron's been looking forward to this forever! Every night he goes, 'Boy, wouldn't it be fun if I could go clubbing with the Boy Who Lived?' It's so annoying!"
"Exactly!" Hermione agreed. "But, since they're going to have a guys' night out, want to have a girls' night in?" Ginny squealed and nodded.
"I'd love to! Can I invite Luna? I'm sure Neville won't mind her gone one night." Hermione almost doubted this; ever since Neville and Luna had married, it was like Neville was scared to be on his own again. True, Luna had helped him regain his memory, and she had given him confidence; but really, you'd expect someone to not be so dependent. Oh well, that was just Neville.
"Sure. Oh, and bring whatever you want. If the guys come home drunk, we'll give them a free makeover." Hermione winked at Ginny and she laughed. "I have to be going. See you at seven, okay?"
"Bye, Hermione!" Ginny yelled after her as she strolled off into the gently drifting snow. She hummed a little, glad that her life was finally getting together. She hadn't been this happy in ages, and she was sure she could pin it on Harry's arrival. True, she still got that weightless feeling in her stomach whenever she thought of Harry, but she figured she was just glad to see him. Anyway, it was going away and did not happen often, she rationalized. She realized that she was finally putting away the uncomfortable emotion that was love toward her best friend.
She twirled in the falling snow, watching her robes flare up then settle again. Giggling like a little girl, she danced her way back toward her house, happily anticipating the warm cup of hot chocolate that she would have once she got there. Slowly her home loomed closer and closer, the inside looking bleak and dark. Hmm, she thought, I thought we left the lights on. Oh, well, Harry must have turned them off before he left. She approached her house, feeling unapprehended wariness. She took her key out of her robes and inserted it in the cold lock. The door creaked open as she stepped inside. She shivered as she felt the cold inside the silent house. Somehow, she did not remember the furniture arranged like this. She said Lumos and the lights came on. She gasped. The couch was overturned; the bookshelves were dumped on the floor. Her cabinets were hanging from their hinges and her table was broken. Though she was scared of what she might find in the bedrooms, she decided to tap on the Gryffindor bravery and see how bad it was there. Her bedroom was a mess. The sheets were in a ball on the floor and her cosmetics covered the floor. She found the cold had been coming from her windows, which were smashed. She groaned. Buying this flat had cost all she had; this was sure to cost the same, if not more. She opened her closet to find all her clothes still racked neatly. Why would her whole apartment be torn apart except the closet? She left her room to check out Harry's. Inside, it was pretty much the same as it was last night. She had a sudden thought, and then whipped around to reenter her bedroom.
What if she had interrupted the vandal in his search of her home? Most likely he would have Apparated out. Her theory seemed correct as she examined it more. He probably was going through her room when she opened the door and had not gotten to Harry's room or her closet yet. But then…why hadn't she heard anything? Usually, a wizard made a small popping noise as he Apparated. So…If they hadn't Apparated, they were still in the house, and that meant that they were in the room she was in. Suddenly, it hit her: She had to get out of the house, now. The intruder might have been a regular, every-day intruder, or they could have been a former Death Eater, or someone else who had the incentive to kill her. She didn't dwell on these thoughts but rather dashed out the door and into the darkened, snow-filled outdoors.
Once outside, she did not stop running until she came into the warm yellow glow of the Three Broomsticks. She looked inside but didn't recognize anyone, so she decided to Apparate to Ron's house. She disappeared with a faint pop and reappeared outside a tall, poorly built house. Smoke rose in lazy grey clouds from the brick chimney. She knocked on the door. It opened, and she fell inside.
"Soon"… blush. No excuses, I know…sorry.
Anyway, I do have more written, so the next part SHOULD be coming out soon, but finals are this week. Cram time!
For your pleasure (laughs), I have a sample from the next part:
"Silence. For ten minutes. Ten long, excruciating minutes. Why couldn't she think of something to say to her best friend?"
Thank you for reading )
insanehpluver
