She didn't get to find out if he was at the party, because it was cancelled. But she knew she would be returning to his house, as she did every summer, just in time to start school. It had never been a big deal to her, going back there. That is, it hadn't until this year. This year, she had stopped pushing her feelings for him to the back of her mind, and she was afraid that they could lead to things that she wasn't ready for yet. She was seventeen, so she could legally do anything she wanted with him, and she wanted to do so much, but yet, she was afraid of what would happen if she did.
Her mom usually packed her things for her, and this year was no different. But as soon as she got on the train to go, she pulled out her wand, and each of her outfits, and began making them look more mature and stylish. She even altered her pajamas and put them in a separate compartment of her suitcase, leaving only one pair unaltered to wear around the adults. Soon, she would be getting off the train, and she would see him again. She looked in the mirror to check out her hair, and realized that frizzy just wouldn't work anymore. With just one wave of her wand, her hair straightened, and blonde highlights appeared in her reddish brown locks. She was satisfied as she put part of her hair up in a messy bun, and sat down.
Finally, the train came to a halt; she picked up her trunk, and stepped off onto the platform. She could see them all, waiting for her, and behind them, she could see his bright red hair shimmering in the light.
"Hermione dear, how are you? Did you have a nice train ride? Oh my goodness! I love your hair!" A tall woman with the same red hair, and welcoming face that she'd always had, had stepped forward to greet her, as her husband started packing the things into their blue Ford Angelina.
"Yes Mrs. Weasley, I'm fine. And the train ride was delightful. I love to look at the view on the way. Hi Ginny! When's Harry arriving?" at this, he stepped forward.
"Um, we aren't really sure that Harry will be coming this year. He's busy trying to, well, you know. How about I tell you on the way to the Burrow? C'mon, they're leaving us. I uh, I like your hair Mione. It's uh, really pretty."
"Thanks Ron. I like yours too. Do you flatiron it now? It looks nice. Very mature…you should have done it before. Oh, thank you Mr. Weasley, but you didn't have to open the door for me. Now, what about Harry?"
"Well, he's really focused on finding Voldemort, and we don't know if he's going to come back to the Burrow this year, let alone return to school."
"Ron! Since when have you said Voldemort's name? I'm astonished! See, I told you that it's not that bad, and fear of the name only increases fear of the thing itself."
"Yeah, our whole family says it now, except for Fleur, but well…who cares about her, right?" Ron smiled as he said this, because he remembered when he had tried so hard to get Hermione's attention the year before by pretending to fancy Fleur.
An hour later, the flying Angelina stopped in front of the Burrow, and the children piled inside the house. Mrs. Weasley informed them that she and Mr. Weasley were going to Diagon Alley to see Fred and George, and Ginny insisted that she was going with them, which meant that Hermione would be alone in the house for about three hours, and possibly even more, because Mr. Weasley was taking his wife to the Ministry to show her his knew office.