AU! No war!

Written for Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

House: Thunderbird

Class/Task Number: Divination. Omens: a message changing the course of someone's life.

Bonus Prompts:

(setting) Divination classroom

(object) book

(object) teacup

Word Count: 3303/4500

Tea-Leaf Readings and Letters

When Hermione's tea-leaf reading starts to come true, she is scared of her future. Harry helps her overcome her insecurities.

February 1998

"Look into your future, my children…" Sybill Trelawney's voice echoed through the dimly-lit Divination classroom. The seventh-year students blinked as the fumes of the sandalwood incense sticks drew them in.

The Divination classroom looked more like a cross between someone's attic and an old-fashioned tea shop. At least twenty small, circular tables were crammed inside it, all surrounding chintz armchairs and fat little pouffes. Everything was lit with a dim, crimson light; the curtains at the windows were all closed, and the many lamps were draped with dark red scarves. It was stiflingly warm, and the fire which was burning under the crowded mantelpiece was giving off a heavy, sickly sort of scent as it heated a copper kettle. The shelves running around the circular walls were crammed with dusty-looking feathers, stubs of candles, many packs of tattered playing cards, countless silvery crystal balls and a huge array of teacups.

Harry yawned as he rubbed his eyes before he started to flick through his Divination textbook. Ron groaned and dropped his head onto his arms. "Merlin, why do we torture ourselves with all this?"

Harry mumbled, "It's because we have no other choice… Tell me what you see in your teacup again."

Ron sighed and swivelled the dregs of his tea in the little pink teacup. He drained the liquid and squinted at the dregs left behind through bleary eyes. "Uh, I see the sun… It's at the top, by the way."

Harry consulted his textbook and nodded. "So, you're going to have... good luck. You're going to be rich."

Ron snorted and retorted, "I've seen that symbol a thousand times before. Looks like your Inner Eye is still not working, Harry."

Harry smacked his arm and the two boys grinned at their little joke. Professor Trelawney hobbled over to them and said, "Children, what have you Seen in your teacups? Tasseography is an ancient art, you know… Only the true Seers are able to See everything."

Harry muttered under his breath, "And she's definitely not one of them."

Ron muffled his laughter behind his hand and handed his teacup to Trelawney. "I saw the sun in my cup. It means good luck. For the hundredth time."

Professor Trelawney stared at the teacup, irritated that the boy was right, and handed it back to him. "Very well, now it's your turn, Mr Potter. What do you see in yours?"

Harry turned his teacup upside down and let the remaining liquid drip down onto the saucer. He tilted his head to the left and squinted at the confusing shape in his teacup. He turned his head to the right and cautiously poked the soggy dregs with his finger.

"No, Mr Potter, don't touch it! Merlin, you're impossible! Leave it now, you can try again tomorrow," she muttered, waving her hand at Harry.

Before the class could end, Trelawney walked into the middle of the room and called out in her eerie voice, "Today, I'm giving you a different assignment…"

Ron and Harry could hide their disappointment, but Trelawney went on as if she hadn't noticed the two boys groaning. "As Valentine's Day is approaching soon, I want you all to do a tea leaf reading for love on someone who doesn't take Divination. You will prophesy and answer their biggest love questions in class. Your subjects will be here in our little class next week and you'll do a live reading on one of them."

Lavender and Parvati excitedly chatted about their project as they walked down the stairs. Ron ran to Lavender's side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Could you do my project too?" he asked her.

Lavender stuck her tongue out at Ron and shook her head. "No, Ron. You need to learn how to do your homework yourself… and even if I wanted to, Hermione's forbidden me from doing anything for you."

Ron groaned and muttered, "Sometimes I think Mione's turning into Mum…"

Parvati giggled and said, "Besides, Ron, we're supposed to do the readings in class."

Ron grimaced and nodded. He went back to Harry and grumbled, "Do you think Mione will come to class with us?"

"She'll chew you up and spit you out before you even ask her that question. There's no way in hell she'll agree to do a love reading of all things," Harry said, shaking his head.

Surprisingly, Hermione agreed to come with the boys to Divination class next week. Harry and Ron gaped at her with disbelief when she said, "I'm going with Lavender and Parvati, but you two can do your tea reading on me too. It's not like it's going to be true."

"Wh-what? You're coming to class? Are you okay?" Harry asked, placing his hand on Hermione's forehead to check her temperature. "You don't feel warm to me…"

"I'm fine, Harry… I owe Lavender for something… She's making me come to class with her," Hermione explained, blushing at their disbelieving expression. "Don't look at me like that, guys! I don't believe in all this, you both know that…"

Harry and Ron nodded to shut her up before she started her tirade on how Divination didn't work at all. She was more comfortable in the world of logic and facts.

The next week, Harry and Ron entered the Divination classroom once again, but with Hermione this time. They settled down on the fat, little pouffes and waited for Trelawney to make her dramatic entrance.

"I hate this place," Hermione grumbled, picking at a stray thread in the tablecloth.

"Us too, but we can't drop this class, Mione. It's the only place we can sleep with our eyes open," Harry said, grinning as he placed his bag beside him.

Trelawney's voice was soft as she called out, "Welcome back to class, children. I see you've brought a few guests along with you… And… we have Miss Granger with us, too... How… exciting."

Hermione made a mocking expression behind Trelawney's back and her friends snickered under their breath. "Let's just get this over with," Hermione mumbled as she turned towards Lavender.

"Who wishes to go first? Yes, Miss Brown, of course! One of my few students who can truly See…" Trelawney cooed as she waved her hand at Lavender.

Lavender beamed and stood up, grabbing Hermione's arm and dragging her to the middle of the classroom with her. "I'll be doing a tea leaf reading on Hermione, Professor."

"Interesting. Very well, let's start, Miss Brown. Miss Granger, please take a seat," Trelawney instructed and made Hermione sit down.

Hermione gritted her teeth and looked at Lavender. "What am I supposed to do?"

Lavender shook her head and said, "Nothing much, sit here and look pretty." She poured some tea for Hermione in a beautiful blue teacup and handed it to her. "Drink this, but leave one teaspoon of tea behind."

Hermione drank her tea and handed it to Lavender, thinking about how this was a waste of time. She could be studying for her Ancient Runes test instead. She yawned and waited for Lavender to finish writing her message for Hermione.

"Should I read it out loud, Professor?" Lavender asked when she was done.

"Of course — unless Miss Granger has a problem with it," Trelawney replied.

"No, no problems at all," Hermione said in a saccharine-sweet tone, smiling at Trelawney.

Lavender pursed her lips to hide her smile and cleared her throat before she revealed the message the loose tea leaves had given her about Hermione's love-life. "Your cup doesn't have any liquid in it — that means you won't experience heartbreak. Your tea leaf stalks are tall… which indicates a man. Your tea leaves resemble a… horse and a necklace. The necklace is also in the middle… That means that you've got admirers who haven't revealed their feelings yet. The horse is in the middle of your cup — that means you're soon going to get what you've always wanted. In this case, it's a man. So, overall, the message is that you've got a male admirer, someone you've always wanted, and they're soon going to be your lover."

Hermione stared at the teacup with both disbelief and annoyance. When Lavender had mentioned a man, she had thought of Charlie Weasley for some unknown reason. But when she said that she had a male admirer who she wanted, she reminded herself that Divination was fake.

"Can we do the reading on Hermione too?" Harry asked, grinning at the barely-disguised irritated look in Hermione's eyes.

"Of course, Mr Potter. Miss Granger can use multiple perspectives on her love-life," Trelawney said sweetly.

Hermione's shoulder stiffened but she sat still, as Ron and Harry poured her more tea and waited for her to finish it. "What do you two see in that now?" she grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

Ron grinned and said, "Lines, Mione, lines."

"And what do the lines tell you?" Hermione asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

Harry quickly consulted his textbook and read, "Lines represent changes in your life. Possibly, you're going to have a new lover."

Hermione huffed under her breath and asked, "Anything else, O Mystical Ones?"

Harry peeked into the teacup and looked at Ron. The two boys quickly discussed their readings and Harry said, "That little blob looks like a woman — you see the chest?"

Hermione cleared her throat and said, "Harry, please… just get on with it."

Harry blushed and said, "Okay, so the woman represents romance, the lines represent change, and there's a large ring there too… That means a new lover. So, you're going to start a new romance with someone and it's going to be a positive relationship that could potentially head for marriage?"

Ron nodded and said, "Yeah, what he said."

Hermione stared at the dregs and said, "But I see a jug there. What then?" She tried to confront them, not wanting to believe the message at any cost.

Ron looked through the book and grinned. "It's that middle one there, right, Mione?"

"Yes."

"That means people will tell you the truth. For our love reading, that'll mean your admirer's going to ask you out!" Harry exclaimed, grinning at Hermione's expressions.

"Fine, now let me leave. My work here is done," Hermione mumbled as she stood up and hurried out the door, her heart and mind warring against each other at the messages they had given her.

She didn't believe in Divination, but their readings had made the small, slightly-irrational part of her want to believe in it. She had had a crush on Ron's older brother for a long time, but she was aware that he only thought of her as a sister and nothing more. They had started corresponding over the years, but there was no way Charlie Weasley was romantically interested in her.

No matter how much she tried to push the tea leaf reading out of her mind, she found herself daydreaming about it coming true in the middle of Transfiguration. Professor McGonagall brought her back to the real world by rapping loudly on Hermione's desk.

"Miss Granger, are you alright?"

"Yes, Professor. I'm sorry, I was just thinking…" Hermione blushed at getting caught daydreaming.

"Very well, please pay attention," McGonagall said, walking to the front of the class to show them what they were doing that day.

'I need to do something about this reading… It's messing up my head!' Hermione thought angrily as she walked out of the class.

At the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, she had forgotten about the reading — or at least had put it out of her mind for the time being — when an unrecognizable owl flew to her with a letter tied to its leg. It hooted loudly and pecked Ron's hand when he tried to remove the letter for Hermione.

"Ouch! It bit me! Mione, take it yourself!" Ron snapped, sucking on his bloody finger.

Hermione rolled her eyes but untied the letter from the owl's leg. She fed the owl a little bit of her food before it flew away with a soft ruffle of its wings. Hermione unfurled the parchment and read it to herself. Her eyes widened when she saw the contents of the letter, and her face reddened with anger.

"Who tried this pathetic prank on me?" she snarled as she fisted the letter in her hand. She glared at Harry and Ron before she turned to Lavender. "Was this your work? Because I didn't know you could be so cruel!"

Hermione scrunched up the letter in a ball and threw it at the table. She picked up her things and stormed out of the Great Hall in tears, leaving her friends to gape at her surprising actions.

"What is it? Let me read it," Ginny said, picking up the fallen letter.

"Are you sure we should read it? It's Hermione's letter…" Neville stammered, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

Ginny scanned the letter and gasped. She covered her mouth as she tried not to laugh, and then she turned to Harry and Ron. "Read this," Ginny said, amused.

Harry and Ron quickly read the letter. It said, 'Yes, I am drunk and my friend has hexed me to speak only in haikus. But what I say now is the truth and nothing but the truth, believe me. I have been charmed by your gorgeous face and by your intelligent mind. When you hugged me then, my heart soared with happiness and my soul took flight. Your eyes shine brighter than a Hungarian Horntail's fire, it is true, my dear. Your hair reminds me of a soft pillow to place my head on to rest. I love and I want to run my fingers through your wonderful brown locks. Every time I see you, I fall in love with you all over again. All I want to do is to love you and show you the joys of our world. I love every inch of you and I want to show you how much I do... Be my Valentine this year and for the rest of our lives, my sweetheart. I have always been yours, your Charlie Weasley, yours to hold and yours to love.'

There was a postscript at the end which read, 'You're welcome, Granger.'

Ron checked the letter again and said, "Hold on, is this Charlie's letter? Our Charlie?"

Ginny laughed and said, "Yeah, it is… He's been crushing on Hermione ever since the Quidditch World Cup — you remember how he tried to get her on his broom?"

"That's kinky," Harry said, snickering at Ginny's phrasing.

"Harry, no! Go talk to Hermione! She thinks you guys pranked her," Ginny said, shoving Harry away.

"Fine, I'll go," Harry said, shaking his head and running out of the Great Hall. He checked the Marauder's Map and found Hermione in an alcove near the Astronomy Tower. He reached the alcove and found her huddled in the alcove, crying her eyes out.

"Hey, Mione…" He awkwardly slipped inside the alcove and sat down beside her. "What's wrong?"

"You know perfectly well what's wrong!" Hermione snapped, trying to wipe her tears away. "Don't pretend!"

"If you're talking about Charlie's letter, then no, it's not a prank. We wouldn't do something so inconsiderate," Harry said softly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

Hermione whispered, "This can't be true, Harry… I really like him… He couldn't possibly like me back…"

"You like Charlie? Okay, I didn't expect that…" Harry admitted sheepishly. "But if he's written you a letter while he's drunk — and you know Charlie's not a bad guy, Mione — he definitely likes you."

"You don't think it's an effect of the hex?" Hermione whispered, scared of his reply.

"Of course not! Remember I used the same hex on Malfoy last year? Malfoy didn't randomly start liking someone, did he?" Harry pointed out.

Hermione whispered, "Should I write back to him? I'm scared, Harry… I've never done anything like this before…"

Harry smiled and replied, "You won't know what happens until you send your letter, Mione…"

Hermione swallowed and nodded shakily. "I'll write back… Thanks, Harry."

Harry grinned and ruffled her hair. "By the way, did you notice something? Lavender's and our reading — it came true! Your male admirer's admitting his feelings for you — and you like him back!"

"This is just a coincidence, Harry…" Hermione muttered, but they both knew it didn't feel like a coincidence.

"Do you think it worked? Oh, Merlin, I shouldn't have written that letter to her! She's going to think I'm a creep! Merlin, this is my fau — no, wait, this is your fault, Sammy! You told me to write that letter — while I was drunk! If she never replies to my letters anymore, I'm going to kill you!" Charlie roared at his best friend, yanking out his wand and readying himself to hex Sam.

Sam put his hands up defensively and cried, "Mate, you've been obsessed with the witch for years — and I'm not even exaggerating! Don't you think it's time for you to either be that Gryffindor you were or pick your shit up and move along? Maybe you could find a better witch who —"

Charlie yelled, "I love her, damn it! There's no better witch out there for me!"

Sam grinned and said, "Then, be a Gryffindor and — hey, you've got a letter!"

Charlie paled when he saw the owl flying towards him. His hands shook as he untied the letter and cautiously read it, his eyes widening as he scanned it. When he finished reading, he threw his head back and laughed heartily. He whooped as he shoved the letter into his pocket and screamed, "I've got a date with Hermione! Yes!"

He jumped to his feet and lunged at Sam, knocking him down to the ground and peppering quick kisses all over his face. "You'll be my best man, I swear!"

"You're not getting married, doofus!"

"I will, one day!" Charlie howled with excitement as he ran to tell the rest of the dragon reserve that he had finally scored a date with Hermione.

February 2007

"Whoever hugs Mommy first wins!" Charlie yelled as he dropped his bags and ran towards the house. Two smaller pairs of feet thundered across the pavement as they shrieked and ran after their father.

"Mommy!" they screamed as they sprinted up the stairs and into Hermione's study.

Hermione shrieked as she was thrown off her chair and onto the ground with the force of Charlie and her children's sudden onslaught of hugs and kisses. "Merlin, you guys scared me!"

"Mommy, I win!" Matthew yelled, his brown eyes shining with excitement.

"No, I won!" Charlie cried, trying to shove Matthew away from Hermione. Hermione laughed at their dramatic antics.

"Why can't I ever win?" Jasper grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest, his lower lip trembling.

"Cause you're only four! I'm five!" Matthew announced proudly.

"Boys, no fighting. Go grab your stuff!" Charlie ordered, picking both boys by the backs of their shirts and pushing them towards the door. They giggled and rushed down the stairs.

"Those two are worse than dragons!" Charlie grumbled, wrapping his arms around Hermione's waist and burying his face in her curls.

Hermione giggled and shook her head. "You can handle dragons, but not your own children! You know... I never thought I would ever get married to you — not that I'm complaining… I didn't believe Lavender's tea leaf reading — and I still don't — but I really wanted to."

"Wait, what tea leaf reading? You never mentioned this! Tell me!" Charlie cried, trailing his hand down her back.

Hermione smiled and said, "It all started with…"

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