Hi Everyone!
First thing: I am really sorry again about the error of posting the wrong chapter initially. It has been fixed, in case you were waiting!
Secondly: Sorry again for the lengthy delay for getting this chapter up. Still some technical issues we are trying to fix.
Thirdly Yay! new chapter!
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Stay Strong Beautiful People!
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Natstar
SHATTER ME
Chapter 5
Hermione was sitting in her wheelchair when Sirius arrived with Ron, Harry and Ginny the next morning. The healer in charge was about to push her out when they heard voices. The door opened and the argument paused long enough for Harry and Ron to say "Hi Hermione!" before they continued to discuss at length the latest on Quidditch. Ginny sauntered in behind them, giving Hermione a huge smile in greeting.
Ginny was trying to find any opportunity to get out of the house from her mother and 'Phlegm' as Ginny referred to Fleur out of her mum's hearing. She insisted, as being one of Hermione's female friends she had more reason than the boys to visit. At least that was the excuse she convinced her mother to go with Sirius, Harry and her brother. Unfortunately it meant she had to carry the large basket her mother handed her which contained a hand knitted shawl, some novels, a container of her homemade fudge and another of sugar cookies, that her mother would go berserk over if she saw them.
"Hermione." Sirius's aristocratic voice drew her attention. He stood leaning in the doorway giving her a smile in greeting. Hermione smiled almost shyly in return. The Healer looked around at the group, sighing impatiently.
"I will be back in one hour, Miss Granger." Hermione thanked the Healer and watched as she hurried out of the room. Sirius moved aside and shut the door behind her as she hurried past.
"Where were you going Hermione?" Ron asked confused. He grabbed the cookie container and settled on the bed.
"My healing requires that I must endure an hour of physio each day." Hermione explained. She huffed as Ron looked more confused.
"Exercise, Ronald. I have to build up my strength so I can walk without collapsing after five steps." She said exasperatedly, as Sirius grabbed the container of biscuits before Ron could take one and directed him off the bed onto a chair, taking his place settling on Hermione's bed. Ron looked a little affronted.
"How come you and Ginny can sit there and not me?" He asked feeling aggrieved.
"Because Sirius and I won't get crumbs all over Hermione's bed like you were about to." Ginny snorted at her brother, accepting a cookie from Sirius. Harry chuckled from his seat watching as Ginny and Sirius stretched out at opposite ends. Hermione moved her wheelchair next to Ron, who was glaring at his sister.
"Help me into your chair and you can at least have the wheelchair while you're here." She offered as a way to avoid any further grouchiness from him. Ron grinned and stood up. Hermione locked the wheels and carefully put her slippered feet onto the floor. She put out her hands and let Ron pull her up, flinching slightly at the sudden movement, as he underestimated her weight pulling her up.
"Blimey Hermione, you weigh almost nothing." He said shocked at how frail she was and carefully helped her sit on the stationary chair beside Harry. Hermione breathed out hard as she settled onto the chair watching as Ron sat in her wheelchair and tried to move it.
"How'd you get it to move?" He asked as he began searching for the lever to make it work. Hermione pointed next to his hand. He flicked then was off around the room, grinning from ear to ear.
"You will be lucky if Ron gives that back before he goes." Harry said, watching as Ron promptly crashed into the wall. All four burst out laughing at Ron's display. Ron's ears turned bright pink, as he stood up and righted the wheelchair to resume wheeling himself around the room.
"Oh that reminds me." Said Harry, who had a bag by his chair. Harry picked it up and went to the bedside table.
"We went to Diagon Alley first thing this morning and picked up your text books for you." Harry said as he unloaded his bag and stacked the books in easy reach of her bed.
"I can't believe you are still taking all your classes Hermione." Ginny said as she handed him a biscuit. Sirius had started on the fudge. He was looking at the book stack reading the titles.
"I hadn't even considered dropping any of them. All the subjects are so fascinating." Hermione sighed, looking at the large stack of books with admiration.
"I took all those classes. Back when I was in your year." Sirius he mused.
"Really?" Harry looked at his Godfather in surprise. Sirius grinned at his godson.
"So did your dad, and Remus. We all had the same classes in sixth year. Peter pulled out of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. They were the only two classes at the end of school he wasn't in with us." Sirius sat back, reminiscing. Ron had stopped trying to race around and listened.
"I thought you hated classes?" Harry asked; passing a cookie to Hermione as he sat back on the chair. Sirius chuckled and shook his head.
"Truthfully? I enjoyed them immensely. However, if you ever say a word about that to Professor McGonagall I will curse you so that you can't sit for a week." He warned them. They chuckled and nodded for him to continue.
"Minnie refused to allow us to drop any classes. Between the three of us, well four in those days, we were at the top of almost every class. She wasn't about to have some of her best students drop their best subjects." He finished the piece of fudge in his hand and leaned back onto the bed.
"So you did as many classes as Hermione, planned and orchestrated some of the most daring pranks on the school. How did you have time for homework?" Ron asked thinking of how hard Hermione worked for her grades.
"I usually did all mine last minute, much to Remus's dismay." Sirius grinned at Hermione. "He applied the same amount of hard work you put in Hermione, to keep up the high grades. He even created study timetables for us and all."
Harry and Ron burst out laughing. So did Ginny, but she stopped once she saw, seeing the hurt look Hermione directed at her friends. "I did that for Ron and Harry." Hermione sniffed, glaring at Harry and Ron.
"And I really did use it in the end Hermione. It really did help me in the end." Harry having recovered from his fit of laughter first noted she looked a little upset.
"What about my dad?" Harry quickly asked Sirius, redirecting Hermione back to the story his godfather had been telling.
"James spent half his time with Remus studying and me goofing off. I always suspected Remus had helped him with his homework as he did with Peter but I was never able to confirm it. By sixth year though, James had started pursuing Lily in earnest to ask her out." Sirius snorted in memory.
"James did something embarrassing to get her to go out with him didn't he?" Hermione asked Sirius, frowning slightly.
"How did you know that Hermione?" Harry asked her staring at her in surprise. Sirius looked at Hermione. She was feeling rather confused at how she knew that piece of information. She felt as his gaze seem to intensify. He saved her answering.
"I imagine Remus shared the story when he came to visit her, a few days ago." He drew Harry's attention back to him. Hermione was still frowning slightly. She seemed to be trying to chase a thread of memory and it was just out of reach.
"Your dad, with my reluctant help, had spent the whole night preparing the great hall for the next morning when the students came in to breakfast. Peter and Remus had well and truly backed out for this one, I think they feared risk of losing female attention if and when they thought it was going to back fire. When Lily came to breakfast the next morning, as soon as she entered, a series of charms went off first casting a spotlight to follow her where ever she went. As soon as she sat down James had convinced the house elves to prepare heart shaped pancakes. They had gone further than that and made them look like the "be mine" heart candies." Sirius smiled sadly at the memory.
"James didn't know she hated pancakes and tried to swap plates with her best friend, Marlene. All it did was add another stack of pancakes onto her plate; or as we started calling them 'Heartcakes'. It took until half the Gryffindor table all had plates of Heartcakes on their plates each pancake with different messages" The four teens chuckled as they imagined the site.
"The worst part was when James finally came into the Great Hall. He was dressed as Elvis complete with guitar and a spotlight shone down on him. Then music filled the hall and a huge disco ball descended slowly from the rafters of the hall spinning. He sang her 'Can't Help Falling in Love' to her strutting across the top of the Gryffindor Table towards her. He had charmed the guitar to strum the tune."
Hermione and Ginny both groaned in sympathy to Lily. The boys stared at Sirius not quite believing him.
"It got worse," Sirius continued. "James followed with 'Burning Love', literally charming himself so he seemed to be on fire. At this point in time, Lily was yelling herself hoarse at him throwing a pitcher of pumpkin juice on him, to try and put him out. By that stage someone had started everyone chanting 'kiss him'. I may have been responsible for that actually." Sirius scratched his chin as he remembered.
"Then James began his third and last song singing her 'Now or Never' over the noise of the rest of the school chanting. He made it through almost the whole song before she finally gave in and climbed on top of the table kissing him in front of the whole school."
Both Hermione and Ginny sighed in awe and the boys scrunched their noses up. Sirius chuckled. "When the cheering finally died down Minnie came over and said if he didn't want a detention he would provide an encore performance at dinner. Apparently she is a huge fan of The King." Sirius finished his story, chuckling.
He looked at the clock on the wall and reluctantly stood up from the bed. He nodded at Ron who got out of the chair. He held it as Sirius bent and picked up Hermione who protested.
"Sirius! I need to be able to do this myself!" She growled at him. He stood by the chair and looked at her with smouldering eyes. "You will. When you to start your physio shortly."
Before Hermione could say another word he placed her gently on the chair. Hermione's face was hot. She couldn't quite tell if it was embarrassment in front of her friends or something she was trying to tamp down, still denying it in her mind as attraction to Sirius.
They wheeled her to the Physio Room as it was in the same direction they were heading to leave. Sirius pushed her as Ron and Harry reverted their conversation back to Quidditch and Ginny walked beside Hermione, chatting about the events in the burrow. The boys both waved her quick goodbyes, Ginny giving her a hug. Sirius squeezed her shoulder and said he might come by the following night with dinner. She watched as they left before wheeling herself into the room for her day's exercise.
When she was assisted back into bed she collapsed against the pillows. She fell asleep quickly; snuggling unconsciously into the pillows inhaling the faint scent of masculine cologne that lingered on them.