DISCLAIMER: I don't own Harry Potter.
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Chapter 7: First Visit
"-you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it." -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
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July 1991
(Hermione and Cedric's past)
Drs. Robert and Jean Granger of Number 5, Otter Rd, Pembroke Gardens, London, were dentists and considered in the middle class. They had a dental practice not far from their home, and during their free time, they participate in charity works. They believe that education and healthcare were for everyone. Their compassion, love for learning, and kindness were passed on to their one and only child, Hermione.
Hermione Granger was a brilliant child. At the age of two, she started reading. When it comes to books, she wasn't picky. She read everything she could - any book that was allowed for her. She was always on top of her class and was accepted in Benenden School, an all-girls secondary and one of the most prestigious schools in the country.
But Hermione Granger did not believe that she was a normal kid, not because of her level of knowledge, but because of the strange things she could do. These strange things happening was Hermione's another reason why she read anything. She wanted to know if there were children out there like her who could make things flow in the air, change other people's hair colours when they made her angry or upset, and make them fall from a tree.
She wanted to know if there was really such thing as magic.
She wanted answers, but she couldn't ask her parents. She couldn't tell them about the things she could do to others. She didn't want them to be upset or think of her badly. She loved her parents and so far, they were the best for Hermione. She didn't have friends at school, but she could always talk to her parents about anything. Except for magic.
So, when an old woman by the name of Professor Pomona Sprout (about her Grandmother Rose's age) visited their house and told them that Hermione got accepted in the school where she was teaching, her parents were shocked. But Hermione felt relieved and nervous at the same time when she heard the name: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Witchcraft.
She was a witch, that's why she could make strange things.
"What do you mean our daughter's a witch?" asked her mother unhappily, but she was trying to compose herself. Dr. Jean Granger was famous for her patience, especially to her young patients who were afraid of dentists.
"Please, Dr. Granger," said the professor politely, "I hope you won't take it negatively. Being a witch is not a bad thing, contrary to what your community believes about it. Yes, I have watched films and read books about magic in your community." Professor Sprout smiled sincerely.
"Please, if I may ask you, Professor," she said politely. The three adults in the room turned to her. Her parents were looking anxious while the professor remained calm.
"Yes, dear?"
"If... if there's a school for witches and wizards and they get accepted at the age of eleven, what happens to their magic before the proper education?" she asked hesitantly. Maybe it was her parents' look that made her stammer. Or maybe the possibility that Professor Sprout would say real witches and wizards don't hurt people.
"There's what we call 'accidental magic', Miss Granger. Young witches and wizards perform accidental and uncontrollable magic. That is absolutely acceptable because our magic doesn't fully consume us until thirteen years old. Therefore, children below eleven can only perform simple things, nothing serious that could harm others severely. It is our mission and duty as teachers to teach you how to use your magic properly as early as eleven years old."
"Baby, you didn't perform this accidental magic, did you?" her father asked gently.
She gave him a sad smile. "I... I could make plates flow in the air when I'm alone in the kitchen," she admitted for the first time. "When I got very angry at my classmates for teasing me with my hair and teeth, their hair colours changed... and one of them fell off a tree." She could feel tears falling from her eyes, and she was being pulled by her mother to her side.
"Oh, dear child. Don't blame yourself about it," comforted the professor, reaching from the other chair to pat her knee. "You didn't know, and for sure, it scared you. But like I said, it was nothing serious. One of your classmates might have fallen from a tree, but was she or he injured?"
Hermione met the professor's kind face. "No. We were all shocked that he was fine. But he was scared." She felt a little relieved.
"But, Professor, if this is the first time you're meeting Hermione, how did you know she can do magic? No one in our family was magical. She's the first," said her father.
"A new name appears in our magical book in Hogwarts as soon as a magical child is born," the professor explained.
"I still cannot believe this," her father shook his head.
Hermione's mum gave the professor an apologetic look.
"Maybe you could show us some magic, Professor?" asked Hermione, knowing her father wouldn't believe it until he witnessed one.
The professor nodded kindly and her gloved hands reached out in her purse. She was dressed like a normal person - a flaxen dress suit, and a matching hat which made her look like the Queen Mother, especially with her silver hair. Seconds later, she was holding a black wooden stick.
"A wand," Hermione gasped. She saw something like that in movies. So real wands exist.
"I brought someone with me today, a friend's son who is incoming third-year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." She waved her wand to the chair beside her, and Hermione gasped when she saw a boy appeared.
He, indeed, looked older than Hermione, around thirteen years old. The boy had brown hair that looked smooth and silky, and that made Hermione remember a shampoo TV advertisement. He had grey eyes - the first set of grey eyes Hermione had ever seen; a Patrician nose, and beautiful jawline. He was wearing a casual shirt with thick yellow and black stripes, denim trousers, and a pair of black trainers. He looked like a normal kid, just like the boys in Hermione's primary school.
"Hello," greeted the boy kindly, looking at her, then her parents, and back to her. "I'm Cedric Diggory."
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Cedric looked around the living room. It was his first time in a Muggle house. He heard a bit about Muggle houses from one of his classmates, Madeline Hepburn, a Muggle-born like Hermione Granger. He was amazed by the pictures on the mantle of a little girl with wild brown hair, button-like nose, and almond-shaped chocolate brown eyes. The girl's parents both have brown hair and eyes, but Hermione Granger looked a lot like her mother in Cedric's observation. He stared at the pictures curiously.
How come they aren't moving? He wondered. And what's the fireplace for if they don't have Floo powder?
"What are you laughing about?"
He turned to Hermione. She didn't look angry or offended. She was merely curious. From the fireplace, he returned to his seat. "The fireplace," he replied honestly. "What do you use it for?"
Hermione frowned as if he asked something very obvious. "To keep ourselves warm, especially in winter?" she asked. "Why? What do you use a fireplace for?"
"Communicating with someone and traveling," he replied, feeling embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I - "
"No, no," she waved a hand.
He relaxed on his seat.
"So, you use it for traveling..." she said carefully. "How?" It sounded more like a whisper.
"We have Floo powder. All we have to do is to stand inside the fireplace and get a handful of the powder, then throw it," he demonstrated, "and shout our destination."
"Wow," she said in awe. "But how do you keep yourselves warm?"
"Warming charms," he replied timidly.
Hermione nodded. Her eyes turned to the door, and he mimicked her. Hermione Granger's parents still had questions and concerns about the magical community and Hogwarts education, so the adults retreated to the dining room, leaving him and Hermione in the living room. Cedric gathered that her parents weren't prepared for the fact that they wouldn't be able to visit Hermione at least every month.
"In Benenden, parents are allowed to visit their children every month," Hermione told him. "Is it true that Mum and Dad will not be able to see the castle because they're Muggles?" she asked.
He nodded sympathetically. "I have a classmate who's like you: a Muggle-born. Her parents cannot see where Hogwarts is even if they live in Scotland, too. The castle is heavily protected and hidden from the eyes of non-magical people, Aunt Pomona told me."
"Do your parents visit you?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "Parents are allowed to visit, but not encouraged to come and see their children regularly. Maybe on special occasions only. But we communicate every week."
Hermione frowned again. "Letters? Or a fireplace?"
He laughed, but Hermione did not look offended. "Letters. We send them via owls."
"Owls? But aren't they nocturnal?" she asked, looking shocked.
"Maybe only non-magical owls are nocturnal. But our owls fly day and night when they have letters to deliver. Just make sure they don't get too tired, so no to letters every day," he explained.
Hermione looked down at her hands on her lap. Suddenly, she found her nails interesting. "I wish there's a book I could read about Hogwarts and your community."
Cedric suddenly felt downcast for the girl. Madeline said it was hard for her, too, because Professor McGonagall did not stay for too long in their house when she delivered Madeline's acceptance letter. But Aunt Pomona and Ced had been at the Granger residence for more than two hours now, and his Head of House was patiently answering every question.
Then he remembered that once Madeline got sorted in Hufflepuff, Professor Sprout instructed everyone to help her adjust, not only in school but in the wizarding community as well. She assigned a foster family for her - the Abbotts. So Henley Abbott, who was two years ahead of them, looked after Madeline like a sister.
Maybe they don't do such things in other houses, that's why Cho Chang had been crying last year when the Slytherins bullied her. Her housemates did not defend her; only Marrietta Edgecomb.
Then, an idea came to Cedric.
"I can lend you some of my books, like Hogwarts: A History and Magical Villages in Britain," he offered.
Hermione Granger looked up to him as if Christmas arrived early. "You would?" she asked.
Though he was a bit taken aback because it wasn't a big deal, Ced smiled kindly. "Of course. Let me ask Aunt Pomona what's the best way to send you the books."
"Thank you. I appreciate it," replied Hermione. "You're very kind."
"Don't mention it," he replied casually. "In Hufflepuff House, we are expected to help each other always. No one gets left out."
Hermione frowned. "Hufflepuff?" She slowly said it, as if it was foreign in her tongue.
And so Cedric Diggory explained to Hermione Granger about Hogwarts' four Houses, but he didn't tell her yet how the students get sorted.
"What if I want to be in Hufflepuff?" she asked after.
He grinned. "Then, all you have to do is ask."