"There you go, Miss Granger!" She was sweaty and breathing heavy, but she felt more accomplished than she ever had. Well, that was a lie, but she was in a state of near bliss. When Harry left, she discussed the terms of her release with Madame Pomfrey and the mediwitch said that if she managed to walk two laps around the hospital wing, she would be released. Despite her exhaustion, she'd done it. She'd managed to make it around the hospital room not twice, but three times. That third time was a bt much and she was paying for it, but she'd done it. Her hair felt heavy on her shoulders, a frown coming to her face as she wondered when the last time she'd cut it. It had lost all of its former bounce with the added weight as well. She'd likely need to go to Hogsmeade for more clothes, maybe send her parents her measurements to get new clothes from the muggle world as well.
"I'll get your bags ready." She jumped at the sudden voice, turning to see Neville Longbottom watching her from her bed, a smile on his face. She hadn't even heard him come in, she'd been so focused on getting out of the hospital wing wo that she could finally be of use to her best friend. In that moment, she realized that she had been so caught up in wondering about Harry and if he was alright, she didn't even think about the others that had been hurt. Ron, Ginny, Luna, and Neville. They'd all fought for their lives against bloody Death Eaters and lived to tell the tale and all she could think about was Harry.
Her mind briefly wondered to her sandy haired friend, and how he was likely doing after Bellatrix had placed the Cruciatus curse on him, but she didn't know how to bring it up to him without making him think about his parents. So instead, she smiled and nodded, rolling up her magically adjusted jeans. She'd done her best with what she could, but there was honestly so much she could do, as she was not a seamstress. There were only ten days or so left in school, so she could her throat, she slipped on her trainers, allowing Neville to help her to her feet, bidding Madame Pomfrey a goodbye. She wanted to meet Harry in the common rooms, surprise him even.
It took them almost an hour to climb the stairs to Gryffindor tower, but Neville was so patient, she could have kissed him. When they reached the portrait, the Fat Lady was missing, which usually meant she had gone to be with her friends, but Neville seemed to relax at the very sight, looking to her. She raised an eyebrow, but she figured he had something to say.
"Hermione, this past week has been a little strained after everything that happened at the Ministry. Ron and Ginny are upset about you not telling them about your family before it all and he and Ginny have been refusing to come see you in the hospital wing." She felt as if she had been slapped in the face. It had stung and she could understand that they would have likely been upset about her deception, but hering it come from Neville was entirely different. She found herself hurrying to explain something to him, to make him know that she hadn't intended for anyone to find out about it a how traumatizing her experiences with her family were.
"I never meant for it to end up like that. I didn't want anyone to treat me any differently just because of who my mother and father were. I am proud of my mum and dad. I'm proud of our our three bedroom house. I'm grateful for my hippie mum and my straight laced dad. I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world, you have to believe me!" He held up his hands, his eyes widening.
"I don't think you're some blood supremacist, Hermione. My nan said she met your grandfather once when the news reached her. She said that he was a right bastard, always treated your grandmother as if she was subhuman or something like that." She nodded, but replayed his response in her head, freezing when he made his way towards the portrait, the Fat Lady having had returned sometime since he's started speaking.
Grabbing his arm, she turned him to face her. "Once the news reached her?" He coughed, cheeks tinting as he watched her facial expression change. It would have been comical, watching the lanky Gryffindor go back to being so shy after literally pulling her out of the darkness of her mind, but it reminded her of the scared boy she met on the Hogwarts Express just four years prior, her first friend in the wizard world.
"Well yes," He cleared his throat, "When Harry pulled Ron out of the common room to tell him about it all, he kind of," His eyes widened as he did what could be laughably described as a visual representation of an explosion. Nodding, she let him know that she understood. The infamous Weasley temper had reared its ugly head. "He called you a liar, said that the Dimitriou family was well known for their cruelty and blood supremacy. He said that your parents were avid supporters of You Know Who and if they raised you, you were no better than Malfoy, no better than any of the Death Eaters that we fought in the Department of Mysteries." She was speechless. She'd anticipated Ron's anger, but not that. Ron was her friend, she was even beginning to think that she was possibly falling for the gangly redhead. Just hearing that alone, she'd be surprised if Professor Dumbledore didn't hear her heart shattering from his office.
Realizing that her mouth was open, she closed it quickly, clearing her throat and looking at Neville. He gave her a look in questioning, possibly asking her if she was alright. Whether he was asking or not, she nodded, watching his back as he walked towards the portrait, whispering the password and allowing them entrance.
She'd never been more grateful for an empty common room. Everyone was likely in the great Hall for dinner, but she found that she had no appetite, hurrying to her dorms and climbing into bed, pulling the curtains closed, silencing it just in time for the tears to fall. Her friends didn't trust her, they called her a liar, and worst of all, she saw it coming. Being a Dimitriou was already causing her to lose friends and she hadn't even officially claimed it yet. Grabbing her pillow and pulling it to her chest, she buried her face in it and continued to cry her eyes out.
The next morning found her in Professor Dumbledore's office, absolutely livid at the words the man had just spoken to her barely minutes before. Her eyes blazed as she curled her fists into balls, unable to speak. After closing her eyes and counting to ten, taking a few calming breaths for good measure, she finally managed to quell her growing anger enough to speak. "Headmaster," she started, unclenching them when she realized that her posture could be seen as more than a bit aggressive and not at all what she wanted to happen.
"I'm not some invalid. I was hurt, but there are people who were damaged far worse than myself in the fight," she said, remembering Neville once more, how he had been crucio'd without thought by Bellatrix. Just thinking of Bellatrix brought back emotions that she wasn't entirely sure she was ready to deal with. Why had she stopped her from doing the right thing and ridding the world of that monster? Shaking her head to rid herself of the thoughts that were forming, she looked over to the old man, who looked at her like she was some sort of China Doll.
"Madame Pomfrey cleared me to leave the hospital wing, I'm taking my potions, as well as the one for pain in moderation. I need this." The last sentence came out much shakier than she would have liked, but it was true. The headmaster said that she was being sent home! She missed her parents dearly and eagerly awaited a letter from them. She longed to hug her mum and show her that everything was alright, knowing that she was likely worried sick, but Harry needed her at Hogwarts.
They would be taking him to those awful Dursleys and she wouldn't hear from him likely for a whole summer, seeing as she would be in Greece with her solicitor and her mum and dad, hopefully Harry as well. She planned to take full advantage of the library in the ancestral home, very much prepared to scour it for day on end for anything that would help Sirius' condition.
The elderly man sighed, his half moon glasses sitting on his nose as he stared up at her. "Miss Dimitriou," she gasped at the very sound of it coming from his mouth, but he ignored it, continuing on as he was. "You have been injured. There are only ten days left in term, as I'm sure you are very much aware. I don't see the harm in giving you the permission to leave early, as your condition is worrying. Madame Pomfrey agrees that it is a good idea as well." She resisted the urge to scream, knowing that if she pushed any further, he would have her petrified and carried out. Instead, she stood, swallowing the bitter pill that had shown up in her throat and nodded, bidding him good day an leaving the office as soon as was socially acceptable.
She'd been dropped off at the Headmaster's office by an older student, but as she left the Headmaster's office, an escort wa the furthest thing from her mind. How dare he?! Madame Pomfrey had given her the clear to leave, said that she was doing a good job! Why, then, was she being sent home? She stopped, feeling her hair beginning to grow heavy with the sheer amount of sweat she was producing, trying to walk back to the Gryffindor tower. Three flights was as far as she could get in her inner temper tantrum before it was time for her to sit down. In that moment, she cursed Dolohov for incapacitating her in such a way that she would have to depend on others just to get from one place to the next.
"Hullo, Hermione," She looked up from her inner monologue to meet the gaze of Luna Lovegood. A bit of envy flashed through her as she eyes the girl up and down, at full strength after they had endured so much. She looked down to see the Ravenclaw's extended hand, resisting the urge to smack it away, grabbing on and allowing the younger woman to pull her to her feet. Smiling in thanks, she made her way towards the Gryffindor common room, not so much worried about Luna knowing the location of their common rooms, as the blonde had often proven herself to know things that not many people wouldn't know if they never paid attention. Plus, after Sirius snuck in, the location had been revealed to all anyway.
"You know, you have an awful lot of Tinkerminnies around your head?" The former brunette lifted an eyebrow at that, fighting against the urge to ask her what the bloody hell she was talking about, but she decided against it, smiling wearily and listening to her ramblings until they made their way to her common room. She thanked the blonde and made her way inside, her muscles screaming in protest as she walked up the stairs, throwing herself onto her bed as soon as she entered the room, her mind wandering to later, when classes were over. She'd try to speak with her friends, get everything out in the open. As she allowed her mind to wander, she felt herself drifting off to sleep, her mind swirling with the thoughts of what she would even say to her friends.
Saturday morning found the auburn haired woman on the Hogwarts grounds, watching Harry and Ron skipping rocks on the Black Lake. Ginny was with them Since she rose, she'd wanted to talk to Ron alone, but she could never find him, nor could she make it to the common room early enough to catch him getting ready. The potions that she was taking had her waking much later than usual. She wasn't able to keep track in the Hospital wing, as she wasn't anywhere near a clock, and a tempus charm was the furthest thing from her mind. Before she could stop herself, her hand raised in the air, gathering the attention of the three Gryffindors, two of them looking at her like she was some strange creature, and the third smiling widely. Making her way down, she ignored her burning lungs in favor of stepping down the steep hill, resisting the urge to pump her fist when she made it to the bottom.
"Alright there, Hermione?" She nodded, her hand clutching her locke as she bent over, squeezing her eyes tight as she caught her breath. Pulling out her wand and aiming it at her legs, she cast a pain relieving charm, her head spinning at the sudden lightheadedness that came along with said charm.
"I'm glad I caught you all. I've been missing opportunities for the past two days." Harry raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Two days?" She nodded, straightening her posture. "I was released from the hospital wing last night, Neville walked me up. Madame Pomfrey said if I could walk two laps around the hospital wing, I could come back to the common room. I was asleep by the time classes were over, and with my potions, I wasn't able to catch you all before classes yesterday and I slept through dinner. The house elves brought me some food. I didn't want to take it at first, but that made it very clear that they wouldn't leave if I didn't." Through her whole talk, her eyes didn't leave Harry, which seemed to invoke the rage of the youngest Weasley siblings.
"Five years." She looked up at the sound of Ron's voice, her eyes widening as she watched him trembling slightly. "Five years of friendship, and you couldn't even tell us?!" She frowned. "I didn't tell anyone, the only people that knew were my mum and dad, honest." It was Ginny's turn to scoff. "Yeah right. You couldn't wait to blab it out. Gryffindor's Princess is nothing but a snake hiding in the lion's den. You lied to us. You pretended to be enamoured by our home, you feigned ignorance about not knowing anything about the wizard world when you're nothing but a pureblood princess who grew up with a silver spoon in her fucking mouth!" Hermione couldn't believe her ears. How could they say such a thing. She was enthralled by the Weasleys, they were the nicest people she had met in the wizarding world, especially to be purebloods.
"It's a crime to be ashamed of the people that birthed me?!" she felt her anger growing as she glared at the two redheads. "My father was a monster. He preyed on the innocent and tortured the weak! What did you want me to do, come here with a collection of family photos like it's fucking Muggle show and tell?!" Her fists were shaking as she pointed a finger at the youngest of the Weasley brood. "Do you know how it feels?!" She knew she should have stopped, kept her information to herself, suffer with her own demons, but it was as if the faucet had been opened and refused to close.
"Do you know how it feels to look at your father and see nothing but shame in his eyes that you were ever born? How it feels to hear your mother punished every time you don't get something right? To be constantly reminded that you're a failure for ever being born a woman? To be constantly reminded that you were given a name befitting of a strong male heir to constantly remind you that you are not good enough?! You are so lucky to have the parents that you do and all you can think about is MONEY?! Your father would ever hesitate to tell you how much he loves you, to hug you, keep you happy. Your mother would give her last to see you smile, to keep you from all hurt, harm, and danger! I would trade every sickle to my name for a father like Arthur Weasley! Or a mother like Mrs. Weasley! He murdered my mother at sea, pushed her off of a life raft so that he could save himself. He," she froze, eyes widening in horror as the images flashed before her eyes. Lyra lying on the ground, screaming and convulsing, the green light, her lifeless eyes. "He tortured her on our floor. In the great ancestral home that I was told to be proud of, the great ancestral home of the Dimitriou, home to Stavros and Adad, the last living descendants of Merlin." She heard Harry's gasp at that tidbit of information that she'd kept from him.
"I curse his name every day," she continued, her feet moving forwards, hazel eyes blazing as she stared at the two of them. "I curse them all. My ancestors, my mother and father, all of them! How dare they take her away from me?!" She felt strong arms wrapping themselves around her, her arms moving wildly as she tried to fight them off. "Get off of me," she screamed, banging on their forearms and kicking at their legs.
"It's okay, Hermione. I've got you." She felt as if all fight had left her at the sound of her brother's voice, her hands clutching to her chest as she sobbed freely, not caring who witnessed it. It hurt, yet it held no feeling as well. It was as if her heart had been scraped raw and put in display for all to watch as it spurted and shuddered. She felt him spin her away from the two redheads, protecting her from their gazes, hiding her from their judgement. She was so hurt, so scared she would lose her best friends. She was so angry that they would dare doubt her loyalty. When she finally was able to collect herself, she pushed Harry away, furiously wiping her eyes as she walked away, not sparing any of them a second glance.
"Aww, is the poor wittwe Gryffindor Princess upset?" She didn't need to look up to know who was following her as it was likely the only person stupid enough to do so. She'd gotten a good grasp on her tears, enough to reign in her tears and sadness, but what was left was sadness and bitterness. She wanted to make someone hurt as much as she was hurting. She wanted someone to feel her pain, and who better than Pansy Parkinson? Turning her gaze to the Slytherin, she couldn't help but notice that she was alone, something Hermione didn't witness so often.
"Why, Parkinson, it's hard not to notice you without Malfoy's cock in your mouth." She felt shame gathering in her stomach at daring to make a sick joke about what she knew was the Slytherin's biggest insecurity, but she couldn't help herself, she wanted to hurt her. And not just her, anybody. It was the reason she left the Gryffindors, thankful that Harry didn't following her. When she was in the mood she was in, and knowing what she and everyone knew about Harry, she would have said something she couldn't take back, but with Parkinson, she was fair game, even though she knew it wasn't right.
As soon as the words left her mouth, the Parkinson heiress pulled out her wand, but Hermione was just as fast, and they stared each other down, wands extended, curses just on the tips of their tongues. They stared each other down, Pansy face set in a sneer and Hermione's set in a hard glare. Neither moved and neither tried to speak, both just glared at one another, eagerly waiting on the other to make the next move.
Thankfully, no moves needed to be made, as they were interrupted by none other than Professor McGonagall, the woman's hard stare causing the both of them to quickly separate, Pansy walking away from the fight with only a few points taken off of Slytherin, Hermione being left with her head of house. The woman was quick to take away twenty points from Gryffindor, as opposed to the five that had been taken from Slytherin, meaning that the woman had likely heard what Hermione had said, her cheeks reddening with shame. not bothering to say anything else, the woman motioned for her to follow, meaning that her parents were likely there to pick her up.
"Oh Hermes!" She barely made it into the room before she was pulled into her mum's arms, not expecting the tears that fell from her eyes at the feeling of being reunited with her parents. Her knees immediately felt weak, but the older woman refused to let her fall, her wild hair obscuring the view of Hermione's trembling lips and watering eyes, rocking her from side to side as she rubbed her hands in comforting circles in her daughter's back.
When she had finally stopped crying, she left the safety of her mother's dark locks, her eyes going to meet the remaining occupants of the room. In the corner of the room stood Professor McGonagall, sniffing slightly, a sign that she'd likely been crying. Next to her mum, was her dad, a smile on his face as he placed a hand on her shoulder, never having had been one for public affection. His hair, once a deep ebony, shone silver and she could only think that it made him much more handsome.
"Are you ready to go home, my love?"She nodded, not even bothering to acknowledge the Headmaster standing by the floo with a smile on his face, that same twinkle in his eye that had been there since she was eleven years old. She allowed her parents to lead her to the floo, not offering her instructors another look at the green flames enveloped them all. Once they appeared in her parents' living room, she hurriedly made her way to the couch, where her father pulled her fully into his embrace, his worry reaching her very magic, a sign that he was much more concerned than she had originally thought, causing her to hold onto him all that much tighter. "I'm safe, Dad. I'm alright." When she felt a wetness on her forehead, she squeezed hi tighter than she ever had.
In my mind, I can honestly see Martin Freeman's face when I think of Hermione's dad and for her mum, I see Taraji P Henson about at the same time, I see Michelle Hurd. I guess I like the beauty of Taraji, but all in all, I love her spirit, and how she is so unapologetically strong, determined, and successful. But I think appearance wise, I'll do Michelle with the spirit of Taraji, though picturing Taraji in her mum's style feels like an aesthetic that I'd flaunt for years to come.