Previously in Chapter 13: After an unfriendly encounter with an over-furious Harry, Hermione returns to her house from Grimmauld Place and faces a horrible situation-her parents have divorced. She encloses herself from the world and blames herself for the separation, sitting in her room and not a tear coming down her cheek.

Chapter 14 – Transformation

The snowfall had finally stopped at Red Oak Drive on Christmas morning like a person stopping to relax after a long journey, which was a good thing, because if it had kept on snowing at that rate, average sized people would've been able to be buried in it. The trees' branches in front of Hermione's room window were toppled with snow that was thicker than the branches. It was perfect Christmas weather outside, but inside, it was a different story.

Hermione wished the previous day had all been a dream, but when she heard a crash downstairs in the kitchen, she knew it wasn't. She suspected that her Mum had broken some chinaware while packing. It had been already decided what she was taking with her to her temporary apartment, which were most of the kitchenware, most of the showcase pieces in the sitting rooms, two of the three cars, and maybe Hermione. What was staying behind in the house was the furniture, Dad's office supplies and computer, and maybe Hermione.

It was obvious that she still hadn't decided who to live with. How could she? If she stayed with one parent, she would miss the other. If she chose one parent over the other, the other one would get hurt, no matter how much they tried to hide it. Even though she could alternate between them, it still didn't feel right…She still couldn't believe that her mother was moving to France. France, where her parents lived. And of all days to leave, she had to leave on Christmas.

She felt like staying secluded in her room forever and just lie on her comfy bed and read books all day until vacation ended, but she knew she couldn't do that. She would have to go downstairs at one time or another and face her parents with a decision, and besides, she was hungry. Nothing had entered her mouth since the chocolate chip cookie the previous afternoon. Maybe she ought to sneak down to the kitchen to grab a bite…

But she couldn't. Her Mum was in the kitchen packing and she wanted to avoid a situation as long as possible, so she climbed lazily out of her bed and went to the sitting room farthest away from the kitchen where their Christmas tree was. It shined with red, blue, green, and yellow lights that gave off light to the assorted ornaments on the tree like little white angels, colored balls, gold and silver ribbons, and a big peacock feather placed on top. Underneath the tree lay boxes of presents, and she separated them and began to open hers.

She had gotten 200 pounds from her father, which she thought would be very useful in the future, and an enormous make up gift set from her Mum, which she doubted she would use. She never more makeup, and her mother knew this.

The last presents she opened were a set of books about Ancient Runes from Harry. She opened each and every book and was fascinated by the amount of information was in them, and decided that they would be very useful during this vacation. The last present, which she suspected was from Ron, was a small manila envelope. She eagerly opened it and found a glowing card inside with red poinsettia flowers fluttering and gold ribbons glowing on the front. She opened it and red the bold red words:

With a kiss on the lips

And hand in hand

We are one forever

In heart and mind.

And after the month of December,

Command me in any way

For I am at your service, my princess

Boss me around or harass me, for I will obey.

For two weeks this will last

And after this I will still be your knight in shining armor

Just walk beside me and hold my hand

And I'll shower you with glamour.

Hermione smiled as she finished reading the poem. Ron must have been low on money to buy a present out of a store, but she didn't care. It was the sweetest poem and the most fun gift out of them all. So he was going to be under her command for two weeks. There were so many ways she could take this as an advantage. She could use him to help her with S.P.E.W or make him do all of her Head Girl duties, and a bunch of other things that were swimming inside her head.

Her parents' presents drew her attention again and her mind went back to the decision she had to make. Mum or Dad, Mum or Dad, Mum or Dad…

She could still switch between them, though…but it would be like throwing a rag doll back and forth with no value. She wanted to see her parents together, not apart. If she'd only been able to do something a long time ago….

Hermione thought for a long time and finally made a decision. Still wearing her cloud print pajamas and overgrown sweatshirt, she strolled downstairs and approached her mother, who was bent over a high cardboard box with three-part china dishes and decorated bowls.

Hermione made a sound to have her presence acknowledged. Her mother raised her head and stood straight to face her.

"Well?" she said coldly, crossing her arms, "finally out of your room and acting like a grownup?"

Hermione ignored her question, "What time are you leaving?"

A glint of hope shined on her mother's face and the coldness disappeared in a whiff. She glanced at her watch, "Probably around eleven or twelve. You'd better pack your things quickly."

There was no way Hermione could pack all of her books and clothes in two hours, and she wasn't even sure if she wanted to.

"Maybe…maybe I should just stay here for the rest of the vacation," and as she saw her mother's fallen face, she hastily added, "Only because there's no way I could move all of my things right now. When I come home from Hogwarts, I'll decide who I'll live with first…and then I guess I can switch between months…"

It seemed reasonable to Hermione, but her mother had an expression on her face that said that she wanted to keep Hermione forever; but of course she wasn't going to say that out loud.

"Alright then." said Mum with great effort and went back to stuffing newspaper into bowls, and Hermione left without any emotion showing on her face.

…

Horrible. Just plain horrible. This was the worst Christmas vacation that she'd ever had. She felt like she was trapped in a cookie jar with no way out. With every morning, new clouds collided with the horizon but didn't shine in Hermione's eyes. She had asked her father if she could go back to Grimmauld Place, but he said that she should stay here and spend time with him. Worrying that she wouldn't have fun, he made fruitless attempts to get her mind off of things by taking her shopping at the mall and letting her buy anything she wanted (she didn't buy much except for a couple of books). They also went to the theater but Hermione found herself yawning and falling asleep in her soft seat. They went out to dinner many nights and even went to the local park one afternoon for lunch, but she didn't find much enjoyment in these things. Before, there had been three people in her family, and now there were two in her already small family. It was like the missing wheels to a bike.

She often thought about her Mum, like when she was in the bath and body shop she and Mum used to go to so much. Hermione could just imagine Mum standing next to her toxicating herself with strawberry and apple body spray. When Hermione would be tossing a salad for Dad, she'd remember one time when she'd sneakedinto the kitchen for some hidden candy and her Mum had made her throw it all out.

Her Dad didn't say much about mum or elaborated on what had happened, and Hermione wasn't stupid enough to ask. Perhaps he thought that she wouldn't believe him no matter what the reason, and she had to admit to herself that this was partly true. Dad mostly asked her how school was going and how her friends were. Happy to get off the subject of sadness, she told him she was going out with Ron. All her father had to say on this subject was, "What a nice boy."

Ron had written to her twice during the week to check up on how she was doing, and Hermione didn't write back because she just got lazy. She didn't think she could put down the big news on parchment and decided she would tell Ron at Hogwarts. They must have been having the time of their lives at Grimmauld Place, all together as a big family and laughing and enjoying themselves. A pang of jealousy hit her when she thought of this.

Basically, it was quieter than ever at their house on Red Oak Drive, and when her Dad was at work, all Hermione did was read. In a book about Advanced Magic, she read the experience and level of magic could reach to a level where you didn't have to articulate a spell in order for it to work. She thought back to her first night at home when she'd closed the door with only a raise of her wand. Her magic surely had to be advancing if she could do magic by just pointing at the object with her wand.

But there were only so many books a person could read, even for her. Out of sheer boredom, she started experimenting with her makeup set. She applied some foundation and eye shadow and sparkled her lips with some lip gloss. Her face looked more even-toned and slender, but not so fake that she looked like a Barbie Doll. She could definitely get used to this.

It was her last night at home and once again she was in her room sitting in front of her dresser. Over the vacation, she had become very self conscious and found herself often staring at herself in the mirror, and right now she was doing the same thing. She noticed that her curly bushy hair just didn't sort her personality anymore. Straight hair would suit her better, being plain, simple, and dull, with no life to bounce.

On impulse, Hermione took a pair of scissors and cut off scraps of her hair. Before, her hair had reached down her back almost to her hips, and now it brushed her shoulders softly. Hermione gazed down at the locks of hair on the floor and realized what she had just done. She honestly didn't know what had come over her. Her hair fell down unevenly and appeared even frizzier.

In the next hour, she spent her time evening out her hair with her wand after she'd wetted it. The final result was that her hair went past her ears but didn't touch her shoulders, and it had returned back to her frizzy and curly state. Looking in the mirror, she found a completely different Hermione staring back at her.

…

Hermione made entry into King's Cross with slight relief, knowing that she wouldn't have to deal with problems at home. She could just pour herself in school and studying as usual.

It was another freezing morning; the temperature was as cold as that of Antarctica and the gusty wind swept past her and left a chilling feeling around her neck, not having any hair to shelter it anymore. With her short straight air, she looked much older in her robes.

Hermione and her father rushed through the solid barrier between Platforms nine and ten, and found themselves in another world. The brick-red Hogwarts train faced them, with steam poofing out from top.

"I still can't figure out how no one out there noticed that we just walked through a wall." said Dad from behind her.

"I guess they don't look close enough." said Hermione, walking ahead to find a seat in the back of the train. She wanted to be alone in the train so she wouldn't have to deal with anyone. She knew that they would ask for an explanation for why she had to leave Grimmauld Place.

"Okay, Dad," she said as she reached the rear end of the train, "it's time to go."

He hugged her tightly, "Do your best, honey, and try not to get in trouble."

Se definitely couldn't promise that since she didn't exactly have a clean record for the past six years at Hogwarts. She stepped in the train with a last wave to her Dad and found an empty compartment and settled herself in it. She doubted if Ron, Harry, and Ginny were on the train yet since they always took forever to get ready.

Hermione stared out the window and about five minutes later, the train started to move. The magical platform vanished from her eyes and now she faced green steeping hills and a lake underneath the tracks.

From her left side, she heard a few familiar voices.

"Everywhere is full." She heard Ginny say, and then Ron said, "Where's Hermione?" She heard their footsteps close in on her compartment.

Of all the compartments on the train, they have to come in this one…

Expectantly, the door slid open and Hermione turned her face toward it. For some reason, she got a swelling feeling in her stomach as she saw Ron's worried face. Tears were coming on for the first time in weeks; she tried desperately to hold them back.

Ron immediately sat next to her, "Where in Merlin's name have you been? Why didn't you answer to any of my letters?"

Hermione's throat clogged up, barring her to say anything. It was just too much. Everything from two weeks ago came rushing back to her like a smoke bomb, and she exploded. She sobbed continuously on Ron's shoulder, not noticing the looks of horror on Harry and Ginny's faces. Ron beckoned them to go away and they did, leaving Ron and Hermione alone.

She grabbed a hold of Ron and cried and cried. Ron, on the other hand, looked really uncomfortable, not knowing what to say. Finally, after his shoulder became wet, he managed to voice out a question, "What happened?"

Through significant snobs and gulps, she told Ron the whole story. Ron didn't say anything until she finished, or he just didn't know what to say even when she was talking. When she finished, Ron opened his mouth but suddenly, the compartment door opened. A lady stood there with a rolling cart piled with all kinds of food.

Ron gave out a sigh of relief and said, "Uh…do you have any water?"

"Certainly." said the woman, and poured out some water into a glass and handed it to Ron while giving Hermione a curious look.

"Thank you." said Ron, and the door closed, "Here."

Hermione gulped in the water and a cooling sensation filled her stomach. She stopped crying but still heaved deep breaths.

Ron patted her on the back, "Don't worry, Hermione, it'll be okay. I mean, yeah, it's bad that your folks split up, but you'll still be seeing both of them." He said awkwardly.

"Separately, and what about when I go to France? I won't be able to see you." said Hermione, caressing Ron's ear.

"You can Apparate, remember?"

"Oh yeah," she said. She hadn't thought of that, "maybe I can just stay with you forever and won't have to go home."

Ron smiled. "I think that's the cause of your problems, not the solution. Your parents were somewhat right saying that you don't spend enough time at home."

"So you're taking their side now?" she said, pulling her arm away.

"No!" he protested, "But you've spent the last two or three summers with us, and I don't think they split up because of you."

"Then why else?"

"They probably got into a fight about themselves. Did you even bother to ask them why they got a divorce?"

"No. I didn't think it was necessary."

"Maybe you should. It's really strange that they split up, isn't it? Divorces aren't exactly common."

Hermione made an amusing noise, "You're kidding right? Divorces are so common in this age that it's scary."

"Well, they're not common in the wizarding world." contradicted Ron.

"That's definitely a good thing." Hermione said in a gloomy voice. She wondered where Harry and Ginny had gone off to.

Ron gazed at her.

"What?" said Hermione.

"You cut your hair," he said, stroking a hand through her hair, "it looks nice. No more bushy head."

"I didn't know what I was thinking. I think I went crazy for a while and just took some scissors and slashed it off." said Hermione truthfully.

"There's nothing new about that. You're always crazy." said Ron, trying to cheer her up.

"Cute. Very cute." She said with a hint of a grin.

"And what's this?" said Ron, wiping the black marks underneath her eyes.

"It's called mascara."

"Even Ginny doesn't put that rubbish on. Since when did you start putting makeup on, eh?"

"Since I had absolutely nothing to do at home." Hermione answered, "Can you call Harry and Ginny in now?"

"Are you sure?" said Ron, looking concerned.

"Positive." said Hermione, giving him a peck on the cheek.

Ron left the compartment. Hermione took out her wand and pointed it to her face, "Scourgify!" She felt her wet face clear and dry up. She lifted up Crookshanks, who had been curled up asleep on the floor, and went back to her seat.

The door opened again and came in Ron, followed by Harry and Ginny. Apparently Ron had told them what was up because they didn't raise any questions, but kept on staring at her.