Hey guys. Really, immensely terribly sorry about the wait, and for another disappointing chapter. I was going to post this on my birthday/thanksgiving. But it was the worst thanksgiving/birthday ever. Ugh, horrible. That and deadly writer's block is going to be the downfall of this story. I'm predicting.
Not an exciting chapter. The next one will be more...adventurous, I should say. I just wanted a carefree, friendly chapter, which I hope you guys like. I'll try and update soon. Thanks for staying with me. Thank you for the support and the reviews. There might not be many of you, but I am grateful all the same. Thank you so much. Try and enjoy.
...
Chapter Six
A good chunk of the leaves were gone from Hogwarts's trees, abandoning bare skeletons behind them. The birds were becoming more and more scarce, their songs and chirps slowly disappearing from the grounds, filling the atmosphere with a new type of silence. Even though the leaves were being scattered across the grounds and the daylight was making shorter and shorter appearances; there was no indication that it snowed a week before. The sun shined brightly, a healthy breeze danced around the towers, students laid in the grass, pretending to do their homework. It was beautiful outside, a glorious atmosphere. And it was the perfect weather for Quidditch.
Hermione wasn't as close with Ginny as she had previously been. Feeling awkward and becoming closer with Donna and the Doctor made that gape bigger. The wall became more obvious when practice started up again. The witch would be reading a book or studying by the fireplace when her friend would stumble in, mud splattered and beat down. Her teammates would follow, and they'd each collapse on a piece of furniture, exhausted. Their heads would loll, and their eyes would flutter shut. A minute or two would pass, and then the Quidditch players would drag themselves to their room to finish the homework they neglected to do before practice. Ginny was the captain of the team, respectively, and she was working her hardest to make sure that Gryffindor won yet again. Because of the hard work and studying that went on, the two women didn't really have time to patch their friendship up. Hermione didn't really blame Ginny for the hard work though.
Rain or snow, heat or chill, the red and gold would fly, practicing whenever they could. Hermione heard from several players that the Weasley girl was turning into another Oliver Wood. That made her laugh. It was nice, seeing this normality. The excitement of waking up on game day, the rivalry between the houses. It was all good, normal fun. Hermione missed it especially. The last Quidditch game she watched was in her sixth year, when Harry and Ginny kissed for the first time. What a day that had been, and really, that was one of the last blissful days she had had at Hogwarts. No, she never been a die-hard fan of Quidditch, but she realized how much she missed it. Hermione found herself counting down the days until the first game of the school year for the lions.
It was Saturday again, and it was Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. The houses cheered when their teams entered the Great Hall, and they soon trotted after them to the Quidditch pitch. Energy was high, colors were flying, and Hermione was planning on a good game. She was going to sit near the Doctor and Donna. They had let it slip that they never actually saw a Quidditch game before. They acted like they didn't even really know what it was. Even though Hermione never really got into the sport, she was appalled. How could you be apart of this world and not know what Quidditch was? The witch insisted that they come watch, and that's why Hermione ended up in the teacher's section of the stadium, whispering the rules to her friends underneath her breath.
Being surrounded by her superiors didn't stop the witch yelling whenever her house scored a point. She jumped up and down, yelling and shouting whenever she saw Ginny dive. The energy of the game didn't pump up just Hermione. Before long, the Doctor was standing up and waving his arms right along with his friend. His face was filled with the excitement of the game, the joy of watching the witches and wizards soar through the air. He practically hung over the side of the teacher's box, open mouthed as Ginny dived for the snitch, missing by inches.
He exclaimed loudly, a sound of frustration mixed with amusement, "That's the third time the…the snitch was it? It keeps vanishing!"
Donna's arms were crossed. She was enjoying the game immensely, but not as much as her best friend. It was just flying cleaning objects, it wasn't that special. Her eyes focused on her friend and his complaining. She snorted at the Doctor's statement, "That's what it does dumbo, it disappears."
"Well yeaah. But it's annoying. Incredibly annoying." The wind was pushing his hair back, making it more defined than usual. A whistle shrieked throughout the stadium, but the Doctor ignored it. Behind him, the fourteen flyers touched down and separated into their teams.
Hermione was leaning against the railing, her back to the game. A time-out had been called, and besides, the Doctor's reaction was far more entertaining than the sport. She tilted her head, "Just like you?"
The Doctor's mouth dropped into a slight O, "Well…not as annoying-"
A cheer erupted from all across the stadium. Hermione whirled around as she saw a blur of red and blue zoom past her. She didn't even notice the time-out had ended. Cheering along with her friends and, for the time being, rivals, she leaned over the side. The Doctor was with her, yelling with all his might. Hermione swore her eardrum ruptured from him alone. Merlin, that man could yell.
Ginny and the Ravenclaw seeker, Hermione couldn't remember his name, were heading straight for the ground. The redhead's hair whipped behind her like a cape, her mouth was tight with concentration. The ground was accelerating towards them with impossible speed. Hermione's mind went blank with anticipation, and she couldn't even begin to imagine what was going through Ginny's head, if anything actually was. The crowd was growing more and more rowdy, pressed against each other to get closer to the field. Both players jerked up, narrowly avoiding the ground.
The stadium was silent for a split second, not sure if the snitch was with the birds, the lions, or if it had fluttered away. The world seemed to slow down, sound disappearing for just a moment. Hungry eyes flickered back and forth between hands, and finally, a flash of a gold wing peeked out under Ginny's glove, which was high in the air with pride.
The Doctor punched the air, his yells of delight crashing with everyone else's. He immediately stopped and pulled at his jacket, "Not like I'm choosing sides or anything." He cleared his throat, grinning.
Hermione punched her teacher in the arm and beamed, catching the proud look on her friend's face. Ginny winked at her bushy-haired friend before her teammates collided with her in midair. The Ravenclaws sunk to the ground sadly, their hunched shoulders making their way towards the locker rooms. Gryffindors across the stands were hugging and chanting, "Go, go Gryffindor. Go, go Gryffindor." The teachers had bemused expressions on their faces, and Hermione swore she saw a flash of gold switch from Flitwick's hand to McGonagall's out of the corner of her eye.
The Doctor was still beaming and bouncing on his toes. Hermione quickly found out that he was the sort to go on about things right after they happened. For the next several minutes, the man twirled around the teacher's box, marveling at Ginny's flying skills as the stadium cleared out. Hermione's smile slowly started to fade. She liked Quidditch, yes. And she did like talking about things even after they happened, Ron pointed that out enough times. But too much discussing wore her down. It reminded her of those nights in the common room with Ron and Harry, the nights she didn't say anything because those boys wouldn't shut up about their sport. She didn't have the heart, though, to tell the Doctor that she didn't really want to talk about the game anymore. She enjoyed the excitement in his eyes.
He leaned against the railing once more, gazing up at that sky that was impossibly blue and lacking of clouds. His Adam's apple bobbed a bit, and his feet kept switching back and forth. One over the other. His lips were pressed together, but he was still grinning. That man never could stop moving. Even though Hermione saw that face everyday, she could never stop watching it. The expressions changed like a flip of a coin. It was so easy to tell what he was thinking because it was ridiculously expressed on his countenance. Although, she noticed, that the emotions that shone through were never of sadness or pain. It was always carefree happiness or light confusion. Little, unimportant things.
Hermione watched him carefully, a small smile on her own lips. He really was something else, and she was immensely glad that he was a part of her life, even if his face expressed too much. The witch sat next to the red head. She was grateful for Donna too. Smart, sassy, beautiful, hilarious, wonderful Donna. God, how she made Hermione laugh. Those morning teas were the highlight of her day. She didn't know how she could survive without Donna cheering her up every morning. Between her redhead and her crazy doctor, Hermione had so many things to laugh about. She didn't know where she would be without those two in her final year of Hogwarts. In the library, probably.
"I wish I could fly." The Doctor announced, "I don't mean planes, or gliders or wings. Imagine me with wings, I'd be like a plucked chicken." He ignored the snort from his companion and the smile from his young friend. "I'd fancy flying though. I've flown before, don't you forget. Flown several times actually. Best flight was at Kitty Hawk. Can't ever forget those two brothers. Horribly cranky. Probably because I stole one of their hats. Anyway-"
"Doctor." Donna hissed, her eyes widening. She remembered that trip to 1903. It was a peaceful and wonderful trip. Maybe a tad cold, but immensely worth it. She got to see the first world's flight. It was one of the only trips were the two of them weren't in danger. The Doctor confessed to the brothers that that year, that place, that moment and their names would never be forgotten. By the way Hermione's eyes flashed with recognition at the name of the small town, Donna figured out that the Doctor was right. The redhead could tell that her young friend knew exactly what brothers the Doctor was rambling on about.
The companions never told Hermione that the Doctor wasn't…well, he wasn't human. In fact, she still didn't know that they didn't have any magical blood. They suspected that she suspected, but by unspoken oath, they agreed not to talk about it. The Doctor's reason for not telling was that it had never come up in conversation, so why mention it now? It was a big thing to hide though, and the red-head didn't want Hermione to keep believing that her beloved Astronomy teacher wasn't an alien with two bloody hearts. And add time traveler on top of that? It's quite a lot to process. She would find out eventually, but the Doctor, for whatever reason, wouldn't let that secret be revealed just yet. Deep down, Donna suspected that he was either afraid of Hermione disconnecting herself from the two of them or throwing the nastiest curse she could cast upon them. After hearing about Hermione's defensive skills, Donna didn't really blame her friend for maybe being scared of her wand.
"Kitty Hawk?" Hermione questioned, her eyebrow cocked. Why did that name sound so familiar? And why, for goodness sakes, did her teacher look like he swallowed a lemon when she spoke up. The Doctor's eyes were a bit wide, his mouth gaping.
"Did I say Kitty Hawk?" He cocked his head, but his slightly pale face gave his nervousness away, "I meant…Puppy Owl. I'm on the committee there. Meet up every five years and talk about owls and puppies. It's good fun…sometimes. I-"
"Puppy Owl?" Hermione glanced at Donna, her eyebrows furrowed. She could tell he was lying, of course he was. The red head's lips were pressed together, trying to keep her laughter from bubbling out. It was so fun to see the Doctor struggle.
"Yes…it's in North Carolina. No, south. No…north. "
Hermione scoffed, "Been around a few places haven't you?" Then she started to laugh. The Doctor grinned and winked at his redheaded friend. Relief visibly shot through the alien, and he smiled at Hermione's laugh. Donna rolled her eyes, slightly shocked that he got out of that pinch. But it was the Doctor, there wasn't a scrape he couldn't get out of.
"Anyway, back to flying. I wish I could do what you wizards do. Fly through the air, whizzing around on little pieces of wood." The Doctor kept rambling about wizards and brooms and just flying in general. Hermione glanced at Donna, an eyebrow raised. She just shook her head, smiling a bit. The witch grinned vaguely, how was Donna not insane yet? Or at least, why hasn't she murdered the Doctor? Seeming to know what she was thinking, the redhead bumped her friend's shoulder, smirking.
"Who says you can't fly Doctor?"
The Doctor raised an eyebrow at his student, "Well, common physics says I can't. I don't have wings, and I'm far too-Oh." He stared at Hermione's expression. Her mouth was turned down, and her lips were pressed together, "You meant…on one of the...broomsticks."
The witch rolled her eyes, a smiling creeping through. An idea sparked. An idea that could either make her day or cause it to be spent in the hospital wing. She nodded her head towards the empty field, "C'mon, let's go."
...
"I don't think this is such a great idea." Hermione mumbled to the redhead, regretting her plan immensely.
Donna just laughed and watched Madam Hooch give instructions to her Spaceman. He was listening intently, his hands gripped onto the broomstick so tight it might snap in half. A slight wind was blowing, and his hair and coat was swooshing backwards. There was a pale undertone to the Doctor's cheeks, and the teenager could tell that, deep down, he was nervous.
Hermione prided herself on noticing that. She gave herself a mental high five, but the witch felt her uneasiness grow. She remembered her first flight, and she cringed when she thought of Neville. Then the image of her teacher flying popped into her mind. The Doctor should not be allowed any flying wooden object. He'll probably make it burst into flames or something. And it'll be the sorceresses' fault. Hermione was about to protest when Madam Hooch walked over.
"Hermione," She said briskly, her yellow eyes bright, "You remember our last flying lesson, correct?"
The witch glanced down as the memory resurfaced. It had been a few weeks before Dumbledore's funeral. During that class, Hermione finally realized why Harry and Ron liked flying so much. It was a rush, zipping through the air, plunging towards the ground. She liked the wind pushing her hair back, even though it took forever to brush the tangles away. She loved the temporary freedom it gave her, the feeling of that you can go anywhere you wish. Hermione never really told her friends that she liked flying now; there wasn't any good place to say it. Besides…she liked the secret. She hoped that one day, the witch could surprise the both of them. What great fun that would be.
The teenager blinked, disconnecting from her thoughts. She looked up at her adviser, "Yes, I remember."
"Good. I have things I have to do, so you'll be in charge of him." She jerked her thumb over her shoulder towards the Doctor, who was swaying back and forth on his broom. He was staring at the sky again, humming under his breath.
"I don't know if-"
"Perfect. You can fly too, and so can she. Be safe."
With a polite nod, Madam Hooch left the stadium. Hermione stood there, sort of taken aback. That wasn't a wise decision, leaving the three of them along. Madam Hooch has always been a bit different though. Shaking away her confusion, the witch walked towards her teacher. Her nervousness was more pronounced, now that she was the one watching him. So if anything went wrong, it was definitely her fault now.
"Ready Doctor?" Hermione crossed her arms, allowing herself to smirk when she saw fear in his eyes for a split second.
"Course. I'm always ready. Never been readier." He bounced up and down on his feet for a moment. "But…I'd be even more ready if someone were to fly with me."
The witch laid a hand over her heart, "The great Doctor needs support?" She asked, feigning shock, "My, my, my, how out of character you've become."
"I don't need support. You looked bored, and I can't have a bored friend. That's just…boring. So I thought I'd be nice and invite you too."
Hermione just laughed and grabbed a nearby broomstick. Taking position next to the Doctor, the witch look over her shoulder at Donna. Her arms were wrapped around her shoulders, and a slightly worried expression was on her face. "Care to join us Donna?" The witch shouted.
"Are you mad? I don't fancy on making a Donna pancake on the Quidditch field, no thank you."
The Doctor's laugh mixed with his student's. He took a deep breath, his long legs tensing. Hermione watched him, a smirk making her eyes shine. Oh, this is going to be brilliant. It seemed like a half hour before the Astronomy teacher finally gained enough confidence to push himself up. A quick glance at his friends, and then he jumped. His eyes grew wide and his smile grew even wider. He floated in midair, he was actually flying, and the shock was clear on his face. The witch nodded slightly, almost impressed. The Doctor turned to smile at his friends, causing his beloved broom to rock.
With a flair of legs and arms, he crashed back into the grass.
Hermione soon joined him. Her loud, annoying, contagious shrieks of laughter had her bending over and eventually falling down. The Doctor was groaning, dirt and grass embedded in his spiky hair. That look of pure terror and shock was embedded into the witch's mind, causing her laughter to never cease. The Time Lord pushed himself up into sitting position, and his cheeks actually flooded with color. His demands for the two girls to stop laughing didn't work. The teenager pushed herself up and Donna stumbled over, slinging an arm around Hermione's shoulder.
It kept getting worse for the Doctor. He jumped to his feet, his mouth in a hard line. "I don't-" His feet became tangled in his fallen broomstick, and his knees gave out. It was a complete mess. A worm found its way into the Doctor's hair, and he was covered in dirt. In retrospect, it wasn't that funny. Maybe because it was the Doctor. Maybe because the they were relieved the Doctor didn't hurt himself. Maybe because this was the first time something remotely funny actually happened to three of them, it was hard to tell. It was the first step into friendship though. Real, lasting, fun friendship. When the cramps subsided and the Doctor was standing once more, Hermione managed to get back on her own broom. Waiting once again for her friend.
"And you wonder why I don't want to ride one of those things." Donna said, smirking.
Laughing, Hermione pushed herself up and spiraled into the air. A wave of panic shot through her body, but she steadied herself. The witch looked down and saw the Doctor biting his lip. She heard whoosh of air, and the teacher actually managed to take flight this time. The teenager wobbled a bit on her broom, and she gasped. It had been so long since she flew, and she was pretty high up. Okay, like thirty feet, but still. Maybe Hermione-
"This is BRILLIANT!" The Doctor's excited face shone. He was visibly shaking in the air, but his grin was a wide as the Quidditch pitch. "DONNA! I'M FLYING!"
Hermione and Donna's laugh echoed throughout the stadium. The Doctor's excitement resembled a five year old's. He wasn't even moving. The Astronomy was floating twenty feet above the ground, determined not to move an inch, he couldn't have been more happy though. Hermione couldn't really blame him. Honestly, she was surprised he actually got into the air. Smirking, the teenager dipped down ten or so feet to meet him.
"Going anywhere Smith?"
"Oi, I am perfectly happy floating right here."
Hermione grabbed his broom and forced it upwards, making it rise about fifteen or so feet. The Doctor yelled, his legs curling in fear. She shook her head, laughing. Stand up to a monster without batting an eye, fine. Fly a few feet above the ground and he was petrified. The witch locked eyes with the Doctor, brown meeting brown, and an idea formed in her head. It was stupid, mad, and it would cause the Doctor's fear to spike a bit more. It would work though, Hermione was positive of that. Besides, she had a back up. She loosened her grip on the broom and swallowed her own fear. This is a bad idea. Hermione found herself not caring about that fact one way or the other.
Her heart pounding in her chest, the witch just smiled. "Alright then." It was like standing on the edge of a high dive, all you needed was enough guts to take that final step. Not breaking eye contact, the witch felt the magic flow out of her broom and she fell towards the earth. Wind whistled in her ear, along with the shouting of her teachers. A nervous laugh escaped her lips, but it was lost in the wind. There was no terror, no fright, not really. Sure, the ground was coming fast, but she would never hit it. The witch was too clever for that. Hermione just had the time to wonder what would happen if she actually crashed into the ground, when a body slammed into her.
Limbs tangled in the air for a few awkward moments before Hermione shoved herself away, flying up. She steered her broom around, and examined a very windblown, out of breath Doctor. The witch smirked, the effects of the free fall hitting her fully. Her heart pounded beneath her chest, and her breath was coming out a little faster than she liked. That was very out of character too, she thought absently. What the hell was going on? She never did things like that.
"What the hell was that?!" He shouted, confusion in his eyes, and worry around his mouth.
The witch smirked through her delayed panic, proud that her plan was working. On inspection though, her idea was unnecessary and really dangerous. Hermione mentally shrugged, she needed a little more danger in her life. The rut she as falling into was becoming pretty boring. She jerked slightly, not necessarily liking the daredevil in her peeking through. She pushed it aside, more focused on her friend's amusing face. The student smiled at her teacher, "Got you to fly didn't I?"
Realization dawned on his face, "You could've killed yourself Hermione!"
"Nah!" She said, adopting the word she heard the Doctor say quite often, "I knew you'd come after me."
"How? How could-"
"You save people Doctor." She cracked her neck and quickly pulled her hair into a sloppy ponytail, her thighs tightening around the broom. "No matter how frightened you are, how afraid you become, you don't let people get hurt on your watch. Besides, I could've stopped myself."
She could hear Donna screaming at the pair of them from however many feet below, and that only made the witch smile. She circled the teacher a few times, her eyebrows raised. The Doctor's mouth was thin as he watched her. She swished away her tail of hair, "Comfortable with flying yet?"
The Doctor's eye twitched, anger still clear on his face. Hermione felt a flash of panic, extremely worried she angered her friend. Then, that ancient and young face burst into that oh so contagious grin. Without saying another word, the Doctor dove towards the earth and shot back up again. Whooping, he flew in nonsense loops and circles, shouting words that were lost in the wind. Excited and laughing, Hermione chased after him. Wind screamed in their ears and made their hair stand up crazy. They tossed the quaffle back and forth and did lame tricks that any twelve year old could do. The witch felt her heart soar, basking in the fun she was having. It only grew when Donna finally decided to join them. She caught on ridiculously quick, speeding past the two of her friends, diving towards the green and pulling up a foot away from the ground. Donna was the main cause for the Doctor's shouting and anxiety, which entertained Hermione to such a great extent.
None of them knew how long they were in the air. The sun was steadily setting, the wind growing stronger and stronger. Stomachs rumbled, heads ached, and fingers were chapped. The three friends didn't really care, but soon they touched down onto the earth and walked stiffly inside. Laughing about how the Doctor nearly fell off his broom when he heard a bird squawk or Donna's face when she hurled the quaffle into the goal post successfully. Hermione was beaming, going over the day in her mind. She had forgotten what good honest fun felt like.
She never had that much fun flying with Harry, Ron or any of them. But then again, she could never fly like she did that day. It had terrified her greatly, being on just a slab of wood. The only reason she learned properly was to put the fear behind her. If Hermione was going to face Voldemort and his followers…it'd probably be a good idea to know how to fly a broomstick properly. And it helped, putting the childish fear behind her. That small, simple lesson helped Hermione feel more of a grown up instead of the girl who left school early. Thinking back on it, she was so extremely glad she asked Madam Hooch about flying. She didn't like imagining how boring this day would've been if she didn't end up on that broomstick.
Her two friends were still chatting happily, and Hermione inserted herself back into the conversation. The Doctor threw an arm around his redheaded friend and one around the brunette. The lights in the magnificent castle were glowing bright, but they couldn't even compare to the beaming faces of the companions. Brushing the horribly tangled hair out of her face, Hermione thanked fate for the fantastic day and the lack of injuries. The Doctor squeezed her shoulder, and she smiled up at him.
"Never thought I'd see the day." A cocky voice echoed throughout the grounds. A voice that had Hermione's heart stopping cold. Her friends stumbled to a stop, both of them noticing the color drain out of her cheeks. The Doctor stiffened at the look on the witch's face. His hearts stopped for a beat, his mouth thinning. "Hermione Granger, flying?"
"And quite well too, I might add." Another, deeper, voice replied. "Must be a miracle."
Hermione let go on the Doctor and turned around. Her heart pounded in her ears as she gazed upon the two boys directly in front of her. A lone tear snaked down her face. Shock and disbelief, mixed with a little worry, clogged her throat. From her peripheral vision, she saw the Doctor reach into his coat pocket. She took a shaky step forward, throwing off the hand that was on her shoulder. Hermione's shoulders lost all the tension in them, and the Doctor and Donna could hear the disbelief and wonder in her whisper.
"Harry? Ron?!"