Just chugging along here!! Excited to see their connection and friendship develop. Still a lot of stage setting, but the goop is coming soon!!! Ty so much for reading, y'all!
Hermione and Viktor spent the rest of the morning out exploring the grounds, walking around the lake and along the border of the forbidden forest. When the sun rose to its highest, and Hermione's stomach started to grumble with hunger, Viktor asked if he could accompany her to the Great Hall for lunch. Although the idea of eating lunch with Viktor Krum in front of the entire school made her unbelievably nervous, she agreed - she was having such a marvelous time and didn't want their comfortable companionship to end.
The Great Hall was full when they arrived and students and teachers alike stared at the pair as they made their way to the Gryffindor table, Hermione keeping her head down as they walked. The only empty space was towards the end near the Head Table, in a small space between two groups of first years. They sat closely, their legs lightly brushing together. After Hermione filled her plate with some small sandwiches and fruit, she looked over at Viktor's plate - a towering heap of sandwiches, fruits, a large bowl of soup, and a few scoops of roasted potatoes. He caught her looking and quickly explained himself, "With the training for the tournament and for the next quidditch season, I have to be sure I'm eating enough…" He trailed off a bit, obviously feeling embarrassed by his mound of food, but Hermione placed a hand on his arm and reassured him quietly.
"The soup is my favorite. Come October, the elves make the most delicious pumpkin soup you'll ever try. I'm sure I could eat it for every meal!" Viktor chuckled at that and relaxed under her touch, moving to dig in to his meal. The pair ate in silence, only broken up by the boy's occasional question about Hogwarts and the professors at the head table. By the time they had finished, the hall had cleared out significantly, although quite a few Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students could be seen scattered around the tables. Some were conversing among themselves, but most had taken up to one or two Hogwarts students and seemed to be getting on quite well.
Viktor rose first and offered his hand to Hermione, looking down at her through those dark brown eyes…
They stayed that way for a moment, Hermione completely mesmerized by the boy, before she took his hand and stood from the table. He placed his hand on her shoulder and followed her out of the hall, ignoring the turning heads of the remaining students. They stopped just a few steps outside of the hall and turned to face each other.
"I had a wonderful…"
"Thank you for joining me…"
They stopped abruptly, both a bit embarrassed by their overlap, before Viktor started again. "Thank you, Hermione, for joining me. This morning has been the most peaceful few hours I've had in a long time. I was unsure what to expect, but you have surpassed any expectations I might have had. You are marvelous - kind, patient, wildly intelligent. I only hope to see you again soon."
Hermione was taken aback by his sudden declaration. "I had a wonderful time too, Viktor. It's such a nice change of pace spending time with someone so, well, smart!" Viktor laughed at that, his eyes crinkling with joy. "You have been so unbelievably kind to me, it almost seems like a dream…"
"I must get back to meet my brothers. We have some more preparation before the tournament begins, and I promised Alexander we could fly this afternoon. But I promise to see you soon, Hermione Granger." Another bow, and then Viktor was off out of the castle doors. Hermione stood for a few moments, a bit dazed, before she turned slowly and headed towards the Gryffindor common room.
What if it was a dream? What if I'm back in my bed, just imagining all of this? She continued down the corridor, stopping only when she reached the portrait, and then stepped inside. Hemione's eyes snapped up suddenly, realizing that every seat and space in the room was taken - all of the Gryffindors were catching up and reconnecting after the summer holiday. She looked around frantically for a moment before her eyes landed on a cluster of armchairs in the corner containing Ron, Harry, Neville, Seamus, Lavender, and Ginny. She went unnoticed for a moment, but when Ron looked up and saw her, he shouted from across the room, "Hermione! Where have you been!" His voice was a bit shrill and reminded Hermione of the howler the boy had received from Molly Weasley in their second year. The group of friends all turned quickly to see Hermione blush. Then, determined to make it seem as if all was normal, she straightened and walked over to the group.
"Seamus, it's so good to see you! How was your holiday?" Hermione asked quickly, hoping to avoid the barrage of questions she was sure to endure. Seamus looked around hesitantly before answering while Hermione sat on the floor at the base of Ginny's chair, leaning back and smiling, although she wasn't looking at Seamus. She was looking at Harry and Ron who were both looking back at her with wild, confused looks. Of course, they had seen her at lunch with Viktor.
"Why would he even talk to you?" Ron interrupted rudely, cutting Seamus off as he was telling Hermione about his mothers extended family.
"Excuse me?" Hermione retorted, her face hot with a mixture of embarrassment and frustration. "He wanted to get to know me. Merlin knows why, but I'm not going to complain! He listens to me, Ronald. He listened to me all morning! He asked me questions and was genuinely interested in what I had to say, a nice change of pace I might add." Harry's eyes were wide as he looked back and forth between his best friends. "And he's been a perfect gentleman!"
"But he's the most famous seeker in the world! You couldn't even tell the difference between a quaffle and a snitch if they hit you in the face!" Ron's ears were hot with rage, and Hermione almost responded in stride, but remembered what Ginny had said before - Ron was just jealous.
Hermione took a deep breath and then addressed the whole group, "For an unknown reason, Viktor Krum has decided he would like to make my acquaintance. We spent the morning together, and he was incredibly kind, and I will most likely see him again." She stopped for a moment, hoping that her statement was true - she desperately wanted to spend more time with the boy. "If that bothers you," she glared at Ron, "then you can just figure that out on your own. But it's not like I'm going anywhere! I'm in the library most of the time anyways, so you can just pretend I'm there if it upsets you so much." She made a large humph and settled back against the chair, looking around at her friends expectantly.
It was quiet for a long moment before Ginny broke the ice - "maybe she can ask if he'll show us some moves for next quidditch season, huh Harry?!"
"And maybe a little attention from a man," Lavender emphasized, "will do our friend some good. Although we might have to do something about that hair if you're hoping to impress Viktor Krum." The group laughed at that, although Ron was still sitting sulkily, looking at Hermione under scrunched eyebrows.
