ALSO, since this story takes place in the sixth year, it is now AU because we know what really happened in year six now (or at least, you do. I don't yet). But hey! We can pretend! Now, I'm sure you're all DYING to get to the Chapter by now, so I'll do the reviewer list and then you can get on with it:
Gidget89, skyfire2459, GinnyGin, nobody, Orlandoroxmysox, Any Rose, Shadowed Rains, shatteredangel2006, Jarno, Maraudersrock77, Margaret, yongweeperson, -RWAR-, final-phoenix, and dork1147!
Yes, another quick note before the chapter: honestly people, why do you keep giving me speculations as to how Harry and Hermione could have avoided going to and/or staying in Dufftown? Because, obviously, if they hadn't stayed in Dufftown, there would be no plot to the story! You must understand these things!
NOW, the chapter…
Chapter 11: Waiting
The following Tuesday, Harry and Hermione were on their lunch break when Harry, who had been quiet for several minutes, voiced a thought that had been nagging at him.
"Hermione, I've been thinking," he started. Hermione laughed.
"Oh no, Harry was thinking, something must be up," she said. Harry ignored her.
"What if that owl wasn't real?" he asked.
"Well, Harry, it seemed genuine enough to me," she said, putting down her fork onto her half-eaten plate of salad.
"But, think about it. You know Malfoy. He might be the only survivor, and he's just trying to give us a false hope," said Harry. "Or, the letter might not have been from Malfoy at all…"
"Harry, stop it," said Hermione. "You're thinking too hard about this. First of all, if Malfoy were the only survivor, he wouldn't have the brainpower to send us an owl for the sole purpose of giving a false hope if he didn't even know we were alive. He would most likely just not send anything and leave us feeling hopeless."
"But still, he might not have sent it at all," remarked Harry.
"I'm getting to that," said Hermione. "If Malfoy and the rest of the Potions class didn't survive, then no one would even know that we were not in the classroom and might have had a chance of survival. So Malfoy must have sent it, and it has to be genuine… it just has to be…"
Harry could tell that Hermione was attempting to sound logical when she, too, was worried.
"Hermione, we're both thinking too hard," said Harry gently. He saw she hadn't touched her salad since they had gotten on the subject of the owl. "Why don't you try and eat some more?"
"No, I—I'm not too hungry. Let's just get back to work, we only have five minutes left on our break anyway," she said, checking her watch.
"All right," said Harry, standing. Hermione did so as well, and they both walked back to the kitchen, stopping on the way to let the hostess know that they were working again.
Around two o' clock, when the lunch hour had slowed down, the afternoon host, Greg, came into the kitchen to tell Hermione that he had seated a husband and wife in her section.
"Just when I thought I had a break…" said Hermione. The only people that had been at one of her tables had left a few minutes before then. She sighed and then walked out to where she saw the couple sitting, in a booth on the far wall. As she got closer and she recognized who they were, a feeling of absolute joy yet total dread filled every part of her body.
She was about to wait on Mr. and Mrs. Johnson.
"Hello, my name is Hermione and I will be your server today," she said cheerfully. Both of the Johnsons looked up, Mr. Johnson with mild interest, but Mrs. Johnson with shock in her eyes. Hermione flashed a quick smile to her.
"Can I get you anything to drink?" asked Hermione.
"Yes, I'll just have water with lemon, please," said Mr. Johnson.
"And for you, ma'am?" said Hermione, looking at Mrs. Johnson.
"I'll have the same," said Mrs. Johnson weakly, still looking at Hermione, as though she couldn't believe her eyes.
"I'll be right back," said Hermione, turning around and heading back for the kitchen. Once in there, she calmly got together the two waters and placed them on a tray, but when she walked past Harry when coming out of the kitchen, she quietly said to him, "The Johnsons are here."
"Is that good or bad?" asked Harry to Hermione's retreating back.
"Both!" she replied, as she went around the corner.
"There you go," she said, setting the two waters on the table and giving them each a straw. "Are you both ready to order or do you need a few more minutes?"
"I think we're ready," said Mr. Johnson.
"Okay sir, what will you be having?" asked Hermione.
"I'm going to have the chicken salad sandwich, please," said Mr. Johnson.
"And what side would you like with that?"
"Oh, how about a garden salad? With Ranch dressing, please."
"Okay, and for you, ma'am?"
"I think I'll have the vegetable soup and salad combo, with Italian dressing please," said Mrs. Johnson.
"Would you like your salads brought out first or with your meal?"
"Oh, we're both starving, so could you bring them out first?" said Mr. Johnson.
"Not a problem, sir. I'll be back in a few minutes," said Hermione, turning around and heading back to the kitchen, giving her order to the cook. Harry wasn't in the kitchen, so she talked to a few of the other waitresses while she waited for the Johnsons food to be done. She noticed the salads were prepared about five minutes later, grabbed them, and walked out of the kitchen. When she got to the table, however, only Mrs. Johnson was sitting there. She set the salads down and then looked at Mrs. Johnson.
"Hello, Mrs. Johnson," she said quietly.
"Oh, Hermione dear, how are you? And how's Harry?" asked Mrs. Johnson.
"We're both fine," replied Hermione. She glanced around the restaurant and saw Harry clearing off a table nearby. She caught his eye when he was done and motioned him over to the table.
"You're both working here, then?" said Mrs. Johnson.
"Yes, Mrs. Johnson," said Harry.
"So you two are doing all right? Living all right?"
"Yes, we're great. We sure do miss you and your lovely house, though," said Hermione.
"Well, it seems you've found a suitable replacement for the whole atmosphere of the bed and breakfast," remarked Mrs. Johnson.
"Where is Mr. Johnson, by the way?" asked Harry.
"Oh, he just went to use the restroom," replied Mrs. Johnson. Harry glanced over at the men's restroom door and saw Mr. Johnson coming out.
"Here he comes, I'll just go now," said Harry, and he quickly pushed his cart that carried all of the dirty dishes into the kitchen.
"It was lovely talking to you again, Mrs. Johnson, enjoy your salad," said Hermione, and she, too, walked away. She joined Harry in the kitchen.
"Wasn't that nice, being able to see Mrs. Johnson again?" asked Hermione.
"Yeah, it was," said Harry, loading the dishes into the sink. "Not too enthused about seeing Mr. Johnson, though."
"But Harry, keep in mind that he doesn't remember anything about us," said Hermione.
"Still, the way he treated Mrs. Johnson that night… the way he treated us…"
"I know it was terrible, but now it's as if he hasn't ever heard of us before thanks to your memory charm. Now, we're just two ordinary workers in a restaurant," said Hermione.
"That doesn't change who he is, Hermione," said Harry. "Like Malfoy, for example. The bombing caused him to write a letter to us—whether he was instructed to or not—but that doesn't mean he's suddenly a nice guy."
Hermione was silent for a moment.
"Well, I suppose you're right. He was terrible when he found out who we really were… and he struck his wife just for knowing about it," she said.
"I know. But still, we have to act like we know nothing about it so we don't make him suspicious."
"Imagine how hard it must be for Mrs. Johnson to act like I'm just an ordinary waitress she's never seen before in front of him," said Hermione. "She looked so surprised when I showed up at their table the first time."
"Well, think about it. Wouldn't you have been? I mean, say someone you thought you would never see again just showed up on your doorstep one day. You'd be pretty shocked, wouldn't you?" reasoned Harry.
"Yes, that's true. I just can't get over I actually got see her again. She was so nice to us, and so hospitable." Harry just nodded.
"Hermione, I seated some people in your section!" came Greg's call from the kitchen door. Hermione sighed.
"Here I go again," she said, and she walked out of the kitchen.
AN: Sorry that this chapter was a bit shorter than normal… but hopefully it should be enough to last you guys a week. If all else fails, the week should give you plenty of time to review a lot! Right? So you're going to review this chapter, aren't you? Right now? Come on, you know you want to… better yet, you know that I want you to… so just click that little button down there that says "Submit a Review" and type some stuff in the box and everything will be all well and good, right? Right! So, REVIEW!
-xXx SpicySugar xXx-