My Happy Ending

Humour/Romance -PG - fairytale story - ship: Hermione/Krum
Canon based - the things we missed - short chapters

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters or plots - all property of the wonderful JK Rowling.

Chapter 4 - The Rejection

Hermione spent the next few days arguing with herself over if the walk with Viktor Krum had been imaginary or not. She'd never hallucinated quite like that before, not when she had work to do (because she had done at the time), and the fact she instinctively smiled at Viktor whenever she passed him in the corridors and he always smiled back led her to believe that no, she had not been dreaming at all.

She had nearly come to terms with everything that had happened by the following week in potions - she replayed everything in her mind for the umpteenth time just to be sure. Then, deciding that too much thought away from her potion was bad for her education - looked back at her cauldron. Hermione read the passage of instructions from her potions book to inquire what the solution should look like and was pleasantly surprised to find that her potion was a clear blue colour as it was supposed to be. Not even Professor Snape could fault her, for he looked over at her finished potion and sneered but said nothing. Perhaps daydreaming was improving her practical work…she'd have to ponder that one…

Instead Professor Snape had now turned on Neville beside her; Hermione usually sat next to Neville in potions to help him. But today he had not asked for help, or maybe she had been too preoccupied…Hermione ceased thinking about Krum and started to feel guilty. She turned to Neville, he looked a little shaken but all right in general, and he was looking down at his potion that was a greyish lumpy concoction.

"Neville," she hissed quietly, for Professor Snape was still within hearing range, "are you OK?"

Neville looked at her and nodded. Hermione smiled wearily. "You need to add more boomslang skin, and then it will need an extra five clockwise stirs."

Neville grinned as he followed Hermione's instructions; she muttered them out of the corner of her mouth as not to be heard but made sure she was quite clear for Neville. She looked over at Harry and Ron; they were in front of the rest of them and talking about Quidditch…something about the wronski feint? What was that?

"Thanks, Hermione," said Neville as his potion changed to a similar blue to her own, not quite perfect but hopefully good enough for Snape.

"No problem," Hermione replied, still trying to think what the wronski feint was. Why did she feel like she should know? Then Neville said something that drove the words right out of her head.

"Hermione, will -will you go to the ball with me? If you're free that is," Neville fumbled over the words. If she hadn't been so surprised about it she might have wondered why both Neville and Viktor had stammered when asking her to the ball, surely she wasn't that intimidating?

"What - oh!" Hermione felt herself blushing, "I'm sorry, I've already got a partner for the Yule Ball." She felt very bad at having to turn him down, turning down boys who wanted to take her to the ball was not something that had ever happened before, and she hoped she'd handled it well.

"It's all right," said Neville, though he looked distinctively glum, "I'll find someone else - I just thought I'd-" but he didn't continue the sentence. Neville wasn't exactly a charmer but he was very sweet.

"I'm sure someone will love to go with you," Hermione said encouragingly. Neville looked slightly happier. Hermione's cheeks were still burning though, she found herself apologising profusely throughout the remainder of the lesson and offering him her notes so that he could do his potions homework (Professor Snape had decided to be especially nasty and give them two long essays to finish for the following lesson).

The moment the class ended Hermione decided to tackle her homework before dinner, this was usually her plan, because then she didn't have to spend her time worrying about it. She firmly disapproved of Ron's 'leave-it-until-the-last-minute' attitude towards homework and Harry's desire to join him in doing so. Hermione wondered briefly if there would be a good book in the library she could extract answers from (since she'd given Neville her notes) and set off in that direction. She said a goodbye to Harry and Ron who were now talking worriedly about who they were taking to the Yule Ball. Hermione smirked, they sounded almost like the girls in her dormitory, and then she felt bad for thinking it. Pushing that to the back of her mind she strode into the library, Viktor wasn't there - she didn't know why, but could not help feeling a tad disappointed.

There was one flame-haired girl there that Hermione rarely saw spending time in the library, though. Ginny was sitting on her own at the edge of a table, curled over a book that Hermione had read in her second year for light reading. Ginny didn't seem to be finding it quite as enjoyable as Hermione had, though, she looked extremely miserable.

"Ginny?" Hermione asked uncertainly, walking towards her. Ginny looked up.

"Hermione!" greeted Ginny in a voice that wasn't quite her own, "I'm just looking up something for my homework - only problem is, I can't find anything anywhere, tell me, do you have any idea where I can look up the magical properties of gurdyroot?"

Hermione sat down opposite her. She thought for a moment.

"Yeah, you've got the wrong book," Hermione informed her, she got up out of her seat and went to look in the magical plants section of the library. Hermione picked up a book and flicked through it to make sure it was the right one, then she returned to Ginny, "here, this is the right one…Ginny, what's wrong?"

Ginny thanked her for the book and opened it up, looking down at the pages as she answered.

"I've just got a lot of work, that's all, and then there's the ball - that girl, you know the pretty one in my dormitory - Elizabeth? She's going, and she won't stop going on about it, that's why I had to come here." She smiled weakly. Hermione saw straight through her.

"You want Harry to ask you, don't you?" said Hermione gently. Ginny gave a half smile in reply that Hermione understood to mean yes. "I could ask him for you, if you'd like."

Ginny suddenly looked up. "No, don't!"

"I thought you'd say that," said Hermione sadly.

"It doesn't matter," replied Ginny indifferently, "who are you going with, then?"

Hermione replied with a very strange smile, she tapped her nose with her finger.

"Oh, go on, tell me!" said Ginny, smiling again now, but this time not falsely.

"Promise you won't laugh," Hermione said, indicating for her to come nearer, "or tell Harry and Ron," she added as an afterthought. Ginny drew closer.

"Why would I? It's your business," scoffed Ginny at the idea of telling Harry and Ron.

"OK, I'm going with Viktor Krum," said Hermione very quietly.

"What - seriously?"

Hermione nodded. Ginny looked triumphant.

"I told you so! I'm not going crazy after all," she said, then she fiddled with her hair and looked at the book. She sighed - perhaps remembering her own situation, "I'm going to go have some dinner, are you coming?"

Hermione shook her head, she gestured towards the book she'd got out for herself and the quill and parchment she'd got ready. "No, sorry, I've got a lot of work to do -"

"To do with S.P.E.W?" asked Ginny, looking at her and smiling.

"No," replied Hermione honestly, "to do with-"

But she was cut off. Viktor Krum had walked into the library and Ginny had seen him. She turned to Hermione with a smirk and left. Hermione wanted to continue and say homework but the word died in her throat. Ginny stalked off, evidently under the impression she, Hermione Granger, was going to be spending some alone time with Viktor Krum. Hermione watched her friend fondly and noticed her bump into Neville Longbottom as she left the library, they talked for a moment - Hermione had an inkling as to what it might have been about.

She then diverted her attention to where Viktor was sitting - he didn't come to the library as often as he had done before asking her to the ball. He looked very happy to see her and he grinned in her direction, she smiled back. The fan girls were there also, and today - she found their voices rather amusing.

"Isn't he looking at her?"

"Who?"

"That weird girl who told us to shut up once."

"No, of course he isn't! Why would he? I'm standing right here."

"I heard she actually studies, that girl over there…"

"No! You are so thick, Amrita, what do you think she's doing in the library all the time?"

"Er…looking at Krum?"

"No, she isn't, she's looking at books."

Hermione had to disagree heartily. She was finding it extremely difficult to keep her eyes on the page. There was almost a certainty in the fact she was going to find it hard to concentrate on her work now.

Thank yous go out to all the lovely reviewers of the last chapter. The Ball is coming up next chapter, and I'm certainly looking forward to writing it ;) Please review.