A/N: Let me start off by apologising profusely for not posting anything last week. As always, life and sickness have been in my way and have completely hindered my writing. I am so so sorry. I'm hoping to smash out a few chapters this week in order to post on a more regular schedule in the future.
In saying all that, I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. As always, I love to see your reviews/favourites/follows come up in my emails :)
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter affiliated words/settings/characters etc. are property of JKR and I make no money off of this story (or anything else, really).
Chapter Five – An Unwelcome Meddler
Every day for two weeks, George and Hermione spent the first half of the day preparing the joke shop for its reopening. Every afternoon, they took a trip back to the day of the Battle of Hogwarts to relive Fred's death. Some days they cried, some days they were horror-struck to the spot, mostly they revelled in how close they were to their other half.
Today seemed no different. Hermione pulled on a comfortable pair of jeans and an old, stained t-shirt, waving her wand at her hair, magically forming into a messy bun amassed on her crown. She popped the kettle on as she headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth and brewed herself a steaming cup of tea to begin the day. She decided to take a walk to the twin's' shop today, rather than flooing – it was a lovely day close to the end of the summer – picking up a few ham and cheese croissants for herself and George's breakfast. As she continued her walk further, reaching the wizarding world and ultimately Diagon Alley, she waved demurely at the few people who recognised her, calling out brief hellos to old school friends. Not many people were out in the streets, many families still keeping to themselves, rebuilding what little was left after the war. It was a little eerie to her, where throngs of witches and wizards used to bustle every day, only a sparse few remained, although she could've sworn she felt eyes on her wherever she turned, shaking it off and chocking it up to heightened senses from the war.
Hermione reached the shop and stepped through the wards, Unlocking the front door, she took a moment to appreciate the vibrancy of the shop with the summer sunlight streaming through the large front windows. Then, sealing the door shut behind her, she made her way up the staircase and into George's flat.
"Hermione!" she was greeted as she dusted off her shoes, however the voice was far too feminine for George. She looked around for a moment until she spotted the source. Angelina was standing in the kitchen, putting down her mug and rushing forward to greet the younger woman in a warm embrace, "I have missed you so much. I've been so worried about you, I felt so guilty not being here for you."
"Nonsense Angelina, it's really good to see you. I'm sorry I haven't come to see you sooner. How's your dad doing?" Hermione returned the hug and smiled at the woman in front of her, truly happy that she was here.
"He's on the up and up. Looks like he's actually getting better. I don't want to get my hopes up yet, but the mediwitch who visited last night said that all signs are pointing to a full recovery – a reaction to the new, experimental treatment that he was trying." Angelina was beaming, "Dad's glad that the potion can help other people in his situation. I'm just glad I have my dad back, really."
"Oh, that's wonderful news Angie!" Hermione pulled her into another hug, "I'm so happy for you and your family."
"Thanks, 'Mione." Her voice quietened, "George was telling me how much you've helped him with the shop and everything, I'm so thankful to you for being here for him while I was with my dad. I know you're both taking Fred's passing quite hard, but I'm glad you've had each other."
"It's okay, really. We both understand what the other is going through right now, more than we thought was possible." Hermione waved her hand over her engagement ring to make it visible again, "It's hard for me… for both of us. I don't think we're ready to let go yet, but maybe one day…" She trailed off, "At least he has you to keep him in the present."
Angelina took Hermione's left hand in her own two and they both looked down with the engagement ring sparkling up between the two of them, "It's okay for you to be sad. It's okay for you to be broken. He was everything to you, and you to him." Angelina looked back into Hermione's eyes which had started shining with tears, "But you have to promise me that one day, when the time is right, when you're ready, you will move on with your life. Fred would have wanted you to be happy – even without him." Hermione looked ready to protest, "Don't forget him or any of the memories that the two of you created together – I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that when you are ready, you need to let go."
Hermione nodded at the girl in front of her. It warmed her heart to have a friend as understanding as Angelina, "I promise. Thank you." She whispered, and the two girls embraced once more, Angelina patting soothing circles on Hermione's back.
George stood in the hallway, listening to his girlfriend's kind words. In that moment, he knew he needed to marry her, but now was not the time. He stepped into the living room and smiled at the girls, "Hermione! How long have you been here for?"
"Not too long. I was glad to find Angie here, though." Hermione brushed some escaped tears from her face quickly, then smiled at Angelina.
"I've been replaced already." George muttered, placing a hand on his heart in mock anguish.
"Lay off the theatrics, George. I bought breakfast on my way." Hermione held out the bag of croissants.
George came around to sweep her into a welcoming hug, "You can replace me whenever you want!"
"Are you staying for breakfast, Angie? I have enough for you too." Hermione asked as George released her.
"Unfortunately not, I just came to tell George the good news about my dad in person, and you were a welcome surprise. I have to run some errands today, then I'll be round to the Weasley's for dinner tonight. I assume I'll see you there?" She looked to Hermione for confirmation.
"Oh it's Sunday today, I completely forgot! Of course I'll see you there. It'll be great for you to be back. As soon as we finish up in the shop, we'll floo straight over." Hermione replied. Angelina hugged Hermione and kissed her boyfriend goodbye, then descended the stairs and the jingle of the shop's front door signalled her exit.
"I really am glad that the two of you get along so well." George said as he put the kettle on to make them some coffee.
"Any other girl would have been jealous that we've been spending so much time together, but she truly understands that we have a purely platonic relationship and she trusts us both." Hermione commented.
George brewed the coffee and set the table for their breakfast, "I'm going to marry her one day." He said quietly, as he bit into his croissant.
Hermione smiled at him, "I know."
By the time the pair made their way into the workshop, it was almost ten o'clock. They'd been bouncing ideas off of each other throughout breakfast, talking both of their plans for new products and the shop's reopening, along with the impending task of not letting Fred die. George drew back the curtains and walked over to the desk, unlocking the drawers to retrieve the journals that they had kept for the products and thumbing to the correct page. Hermione set to work taking stasis charms off of the various cauldrons against the back wall, making sure each cauldron's contents were still progressing correctly.
"I'm going to make a checklist of products we still need to restock." Hermione walked to an empty wall, where she conjured a whiteboard and marker. As she set about writing the list, she made a few more columns with batches that were in progress and stocked items. Each item that was fully stocked had been projected to last a month, using their records from before the war to cast their projections.
"Alright, I'll get started on some of the WonderWitch items, you can start on the pyrotechnics." Hermione stated, as she moved over to a fresh cauldron.
The pair worked in amicable silence, concentrating on their own various products, occasionally asking each other's opinions.
"Hermione," George began.
"One second!" She stirred her cauldron thrice anti-clockwise, once clockwise, then drew her wand in an intricate pattern over the bubbling liquid. A puff of smoke rose from the cauldron, pink in colour and shaped as a heart, before it dispersed in a shower of glitter, settling back in the potion.
"Looks like the Love Potions are ready." George waved his wand at the whiteboard to move the item into its correct column as Hermione set to work charming the labelled bottles to fill themselves with the perfect amount of potion.
"Alright, what were you going to say?" Hermione walked over to George.
"Are we going back today?" George looked up at Hermione, who was peering at a small, innocent-looking, floating spark.
"I don't see why we wouldn't, unless you would prefer not to." Hermione replied.
"I was only wondering because you told Angelina that we'd head to dinner after we were done in the shop." George said, pulling Hermione back from the spark.
"I wasn't sure if you wanted her to know, and with everything going on with her dad, I didn't want to overload her with our… issues, too." Hermione sighed.
"Yeah, I thought we could tell her after dinner tonight. Do what we used to do and come back to the flat for a nightcap. Now that I know everything's alright with her dad, I'd feel more at ease with her knowing about this." George wrung his hands together.
Hermione nodded resolutely and looked up at the clock, "I think it's time for us to grab some lunch." She stated, reached for his arm, and the two walked together back up to the flat.
After a lunch of sandwiches and juice, the pair apparated to their regular spot in Hogsmeade, before making their way up to the castle, chatting about the shop. When they reached the alcove where they usually departed, George stopped Hermione before she began twisting the dial.
"I think I'm ready today. I feel a bit more…" George waved his hands around, looking for the word.
"Desensitised is how I generally put it." Hermione offered, scratching her arm where a bug just landed.
"You always were very eloquent with your words, Miss Granger." George smiled, then regained his train of thought, "I do think that we should observe today, properly. I want to be able to discuss theories and possible outcomes with you. I know you've been doing this for much longer than I have, but maybe a fresh set of eyes will help."
"You don't need to explain yourself, I agree with you wholeheartedly." Hermione began to twist the dial on the time turner, "And if it doesn't work out like that, it'll still be fine. We have plenty of time."
The familiar rush of time travel greeted them and they were standing in the same place, over two months prior. Quickly, the pair made their way up to the abandoned, darkened classroom and Hermione pulled out a notepad and pen from her beaded bag.
"I think our ticket will be in timing and numbers. Our best bet is going to be taking out the death eaters, and two of us will be much better than just me. How would you feel about using a confundus charm on Percy?" Hermione rattled off.
"I mean, I'd prefer not to, and if we dressed in the clothes we wore on the day, I don't think we'd have to. Showing ourselves won't be an issue, as long as we remain in character of our past selves. It wouldn't be uncommon to see the two of us together." George stated, clearly having thought about this.
"That sounds fair. Although I was running around helping Harry during the Battle, what if someone notices?" Hermione worried.
"That just means you're not going to bump into yourself. We know every single person witness to this event up here, and it's only Percy, Fred, and the death eaters – whom I assume we will be harming to no end." George countered. He placed his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look up at his gentle face, "Don't worry."
Hermione nodded in silence, but nervously tapped her pen against her thigh. Her brain was working in overdrive trying to discern different scenarios and options she didn't have prior, due to her being alone. It was becoming more real the more her and George returned, and she knew that she was so close to either success, or complete failure. George reached for her anxious hand, gripping her wrist and stilling the movement, then in one swift movement, he pulled her into his chest for a long hug. He kissed the top of her head and stroked soothing circles around her shoulder blades.
"I used to watch Fred do this to you when you got all worked up over something." George spoke into her hair, "You used to start tapping your fingers, or fidgeting with whatever you were holding at the time. It always happened around exams, or if you were mad at Harry and Ron – Ron more so, I dare say." He chuckled, his body shaking both of them. Hermione stayed quiet but smiled at the observation. George continued, "Fred was the only one who could calm you down – even when you were fighting with each other. If he pulled you close to him and rubbed your back like this, you'd be fine. Your breathing would return to normal, and you'd stop fidgeting. It was some magical way of decluttering your brain." George pulled her closer for a brief moment in a tight hug, before releasing her to arm's length and looking directly into her eyes, "Hermione, this is real. We're going to have to accept the outcome either way, but we're going to be fine, no matter what happens. You and I are going to get through this together, and all I need you to do is keep that brain of yours from exploding. It'll be the only thing that keeps us alive."
Hermione smiled, placing a hand over George's, resting on her shoulder, "Thank you, George. It means a lot that you're here for me, and I'm here for you too."
The pair turned to look into the hallway where Fred was about to appear, but froze in horror when they saw a silhouetted figure in the classroom with them, eyes gleaming with disgust.
Hermione whipped out her wand, but George stepped in front of her, blocking her path, one arm flung out protectively across her torso.
"Do your worst." He challenged.
The figure drew their wand, quickly casting a lumos.
Hermione and George were dumbfounded.
"You!?"
A/N: Sorry (not sorry) for leaving you on a cliffhanger! Please forgive me :)
Who do you think it is? Leave me your ideas/theories/where you think this story is going exactly, in your reviews. I'll be keen to know if you can pick it, and how/why.
See you soon! xx