Hermione approached the old bar wearily. She had just gotten into a huge fight with her boyfriend, Avery, and had stormed out of their apartment, not bothering to hold back the tears of pain brought on by Avery's hitting her and causing her to fall and hit her head on their coffee table.
Slowly, dimly, Hermione took in her surroundings. The bar looked to be an old establishment, with an interior foggy from the smoke of many cigarettes. There looked to be rooms in an upstairs part of the establishment. She wandered over to the bar, ordering and draining down her drink before her eyes fell on a large piano at the back of the room.
"Do you mind?" She asked the bartender, nodding towards the instrument. At his sign, she rose and walked over to the large piano, carefully tuning it before starting to play a slow, almost melancholy tune that had poped into her head.
Carefully, knowing she could not sing as high as the professional who sang the song, she lowered her voice an octave, giving her and almost pleasant, husky song when she sang. For all her many talents, singing was definitely not among the things Hermione was good at, despite her love for the art.
It was not the real song, Hermione realized. She had been unconsciously tweaking the word to fit her own situation. " I thought there was something in the wake of his smile, seeing something in the look in his eye. I built a love, but that love feel apart, a little piece of heaven, turned to dark." She sang soulfully
One red head by the name of Fred Weasley had seen a sobbing woman with dark brown, almost black curly hair and a livid bruise on her face and decided to follow the young woman. He had waited outside to bar she had wandered into until heard the sound of piano playing and the faint sound of singing.
Tears clouded Hermiones vision as she continued to play her melody, not caring where she was, all she could see was memories, flashing before her eyes. Memories of Harry and Ron, and the other Weasleys, of victor and of the war, of her parents, and of Avery, Avery threatening her, of Avery Hitting her, of forcing her to do things she hadn't really wanted to do, like taking an old woman's purse out of her buggy at the store and other such petty crimes, but still she had stood by him. Why, she wondered. Because e Avery, for all his faults, every once in a blue moon, acted like Ron Weasley. But was that worth getting abused for? The next verse of Hermiones song sprang from her lips with passion. " And there are voices that want to be heard, so much to mention, but I cant find the words, the feel of magic, the beauty that's been, when love was wilder then the wind."
Tears streamed down her cheeks, thinking of the way Ron had given up his own life so she could continue her, and about how much she missed him. " Ill listen to my heart, when comes calling for me, Ill listen to my heart, there is nothing else I can do, I don't know where I'm going and I don't know why, but ill listen to my heart before I tell him good bye. Listen to my heart mmmmm, I don't know where I am going, and I don't know why, but Ill listen to my heart, and tell him goodbye."
She kept her eyes closed as she played the song once more, not bothering to sing along, just letting her nerves work themselves out in the music. She was dimly aware of someone sitting down beside her, but didn't acknowledge them until she was finished.
"Hello Fred" Hermione said when she looked up, taking one of the two drinks he was holding and drinking it slowly.
"how did you know I was Fred? How did you even know who I was at all?" Fred asked surprised. Hermione snorted into the Pepsi cola he had brought her. "Please, I practically lived at your house every summer for almost seven years, it wasn't t6hat hard to learn the difference between the two of you. Besides, if it had been George he wouldn't have bothered with the drinks, and would have went strait to braiding my hair."
" Hermione? Wait, why would George play with your hair?" Hermione sighed. "It relaxes me. We learned a lot about each other when I was arguing with Ron and you where out with your girlfriend."
"Oh" Fred said dumbly.
Hermione chuckled lightly and Fred put down his drink before setting down his drink and standing to braid Hermiones hair. Set et out a low mone of appreciation before quietly asking "Fred, can I stay with you for a little while?" When he didn't respond she went on to explain her entire situation. Fred finished braiding Hermiones hair when she finished her story, and when she turned around to face him Fred said "Sure Maya, anything, but why didn't you just leave him and come back to the wizarding world?"
Hermione turned away, ashamed, admitting " I threw away my wand after the final battle when, you know, Ron died."
Fred's face broke into a wide smile and he withdrew a long wand from the breast pocket of his jacket saying " I knew I recognized this from somewhere."
Hermione gave Fred a bear hug, snuggling deep into his chest and the comfort he offered as Fred held her close.
Fred smiled contentedly into Hermiones hair, and held her tighter to himself. Yes, he would take her home and give her a place to stay, and when she was asleep, he would get George to help him murder the ass that had almost ruined Hermione Grangers life, and then maybe, he could help her rebuild her life, and from there? He smiled, remembering hermiones song "I don't know where I'm going, and I don't know why, but Ill listen to my heart."