A/N: Surprise! I'm impatient, so you get to enjoy the fruits of my anxiousness-that's how the saying goes, right? ;) Anyway, I'm super eager to get this out to you all, so I'm updating today! I'm also changing my updating schedule a bit. Instead of updating on Saturdays, I'll be updating twice a week until this is all posted: look out for updates on Fridays and Mondays now!
This chapter is still setting up the plot a bit, so there's no Draco yet! I promise you'll get to see him in the next chapter. :) As always, thank you so, so much for reading and to TheOtterAndTheDragon for her beta work. Your feedback means the world to me. Although I write mostly for myself, it's super rewarding to hear that someone out there enjoys the stories lol.
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The next day, the bell above Weasley's Wizard Wheezes chimed as Hermione strode through the doors. Though her work day had been trying, she was sure that it was bound to look up soon. As she made her way to the front of the store, a loud bang caused her to duck behind a display of singing quills.
Cautiously, she peered over the display—all the quills singing God Save the Queen in varying pitches. A large plume of smoke issued from the back room of the shop, where she presumed George was testing products. Sure enough, as she resumed her trek back to the counter, George stumbled out of the back room, large splotches of ash all over his face.
"Hermione! Fancy seeing you around here. Anything I can help you with?" George crowed. He bustled around the counter and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and Hermione stifled the urge to wrinkle her nose at the smell of burnt hair that invaded her nostrils. George seemed to sense her apparent disgust and leaned away with a laugh.
"It's good to see you, George. I actually do have a question, if you've got the time," Hermione answered.
With a wink over his shoulder, George replied, "For you, Hermione, I've got nothing but time." He spun on his heel and darted down the aisle from which she had come. Puzzled, she watched him flick his wand and clear the ash off himself and flip the sign on the door to closed. He bounded back towards her and grabbed her wrist, pulling her behind the counter and through the door into the back of the shop.
Verity, one of the other shop employees, was staring into the remnants of a smouldering cauldron. The girl threw a distracted wave at Hermione before she resumed vigorous note-taking over the cauldron.
George crossed the room and plopped onto the dilapidated leather sofa that Hermione suspected doubled as his bed, if the crumpled afghan on it was any indication. He scooted to the side and patted the cushion next to him. Hermione followed suit and sat down, albeit in a much more dignified fashion than George had.
"Alright, Ms. Granger," George drawled with a waggle of his eyebrows. "What can I do for you?"
Hermione fidgeted, feeling a little foolish with herself. "I was actually hoping you could help me develop a potion for an event I'm putting on."
George looked at her sceptically. "You want my help. Making a potion." He leaned over and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. "Are you sure? This, coming from the girl who reported Fred's and my products to Professor McGonagall at Hogwarts?"
She couldn't help but feel a little scolded. "That was a long time ago, George. And—" she interrupted his impending protest. "I only reported you because you were testing on first years! Those could have been dangerous!"
"I'll have you know that Fred and I tested all of our products on ourselves before we gave them to anyone else," he said. Hermione barely stopped her exasperated sigh. "But, I guess that's beside the point. I assume what you need now is important?"
Hermione bit her lip. Was it important? She supposed it was to some people. To her. But important to everyone else? Probably not. But who didn't enjoy a little bit of light-hearted fun every now and then?
And if it helped her get a decent shag…
She shook her head. "I wouldn't say it's important in the 'saving the world' importance category, but it's for an event that I'm holding. A dating event." She felt a blush spread over her cheeks and down her chest. George's amused grin told her that it had not gone unnoticed.
"So, you need my help creating a potion for a dating thing that you've created? Is this some strategy to get back at Ron for embarrassing you in front of the entire wizarding world?" George arched an eyebrow at her. "Not that I blame you, Hermione, but that seems a little out there, especially for you."
Hermione groaned. "That sounds a lot more nefarious than it actually is. I just— I'm trying to help others, so they're not alone. It might be a little selfish—" she shot a glare at the grin that snaked across George's face "—but it's also to help people, too. You know, help them find love and connections, so they're not dealing with the fallout of the war alone."
"Hermione, it's been five years. Well, nearly five years. We're moving on." He looked at her incredulously. "I appreciate that you want to help others, but you can't think that meddling in everyone's love lives is seriously a good idea, right?"
Hermione scoffed and stood up. "I'm not doing this to meddle in everyone's love life, George. I just think it'll be something fun to take everyone's mind off the anniversary coming up. And I need your help if I'm going to be able to do it properly."
George tapped his fingers on the arm of the couch, then nodded once and patted the cushion next to him. "Alright, alright, I'm in! On one condition." She crossed her arms and stared at him sceptically. "I want in. I want included in this date thingy. Free of charge, in exchange for my help. Besides, a little meddling never hurt anybody."
"Famous last words." Hermione levelled a stern frown at him, and he raised his hands in surrender. She smiled and clapped her hands. "Alright, here's my plan."
Hermione stared at George expectantly. She'd outlined the plan for the dating game for the Hogwarts alumni, and, amidst question after question from George about the logistics of the event, had finally reached the part where she needed his help. She leaned forward and balanced her elbows on her knees to keep herself from bouncing them up and down in anticipation.
"Well, do you think you can help me?" she inquired.
George chewed on his lip. "So, what you're needing is some kind of potion that helps determine compatibility between a witch and a wizard?"
Hermione shrugged. "More or less. I was hoping for something similar to Amortentia, but without having to ingest the potion and accidentally becoming crazy love-struck people towards our 'one true love.'"
George stood from the chair and crossed over to a cluttered desk. After a few moments of digging through piles of marked up parchment, he extracted a clean roll, a quill, and a small pot of ink. Charming it to follow him, he crossed the room and plopped back down onto the couch beside Hermione and began to scribble notes.
"So, we've got approximately how long for each date?" he asked.
Hermione squinted. "Well, most of the time the dates last about three to ten minutes. Since we already know basic information about each other, we won't have to worry about the awkward introductions that they normally include, so I was thinking about five minutes. Long enough to talk for a few minutes and determine if the couple wants to pursue a date outside of the event, but not so long that it becomes infeasible to continue on with all the dates."
"Practical as always," George chuckled. "Alright, so it sounds like we can brew a cauldron of Amortentia and then find a way to isolate the fumes. Then, each person would be able to sniff the fumes at the beginning or end of the session and determine if what they smell matches their partner?"
"Do you think that would actually work?" Hermione inquired.
"Well, I don't see why not. You'd just have to keep the actual process of it quiet so that no one tries to sway the results and come in smelling like something they normally wouldn't. Instead of having the chairs right next to each other, you could have separate tables to avoid cross-contamination with scents. Then there would be no question whether or not the person that they're partnered with is compatible with them." George shrugged. "There are definitely more sophisticated ways to achieve the process, but this seems like the most effective way to go about it in such a limited time frame."
Hermione frowned, trying to work through her qualms with the idea. It wasn't that it was a bad idea, but she just wasn't sure if Amortentia was actually a good idea. The potion would smell like who you were actively in love with. Though she was reluctant to admit it, she was afraid the potion might still smell like Ron.
Fingers snapping in front of her face brought her out of her reverie. "You're thinking too much, Hermione. What's going on within the formerly bushy head of yours?"
She bit her lip, unsure how to answer George. She didn't want him to try to play matchmaker to get her and Ron back together—that boat had sailed long ago, and she had no desire to try to reel it back in. As she warred with herself, her mother's favourite saying came back to her: honesty is the best policy. She took a breath and looked back at George.
"Honestly?" she asked. At his nod, she went on. "I'm afraid that it might still smell like your brother. I don't want to be with him anymore, but…" she trailed off and looked down at her hands.
"But sometimes he's the first person you want to tell all the good things and the bad things to before you remember that you're not together anymore?" George finished for her. He smiled at her crookedly, and Hermione was struck by how strong he was after suffering so much loss in such a short time. He'd lost Fred in the war; he and Angelina had broken up shortly after because he'd fallen into a depression that none of the Weasleys had been able to pull him out of; then he'd rebuilt Weasley Wizard Wheezes from the ground up. Only after he'd immersed himself in the shop with Ron for months did he finally start to seem like the old George.
Hermione hadn't been close with him before the war, but she'd found herself becoming closer to him when she'd dropped by to see Ron on her lunch breaks. It was easy to talk to George when he was in the mood to talk. They both shared a bitter resentment for the war that had taken family from them.
She cleared her throat and looked up at him. "Yeah, that's it exactly. Sometimes it's like I forget that he used to be my best friend before we broke up. I want to tell him all these things, but I feel like I can't because we ended on such a bad note. Does that make sense?"
He nodded and looked down quickly, but she couldn't miss the flash of longing and loneliness in his eyes. Yes, George was strong, but he felt pain like any other. "I get that way about Angelina, which is ridiculous because we meet for lunch at least once a week or so. I don't know, it just feels different. Like she wouldn't want to hear that stuff because I was a git after we broke up."
"Well, if it helps, Ron and I didn't end on a great note. I quite literally kicked him out on his arse." Hermione tried to hold back the laughter, but George's gleeful guffaw made it slip forth.
"We're quite the pair, aren't we?" George mused. He was silent a minute before he looked up at Hermione with a rare, serious expression. "I still love her, you know? I just got a little lost up here for a while." He gestured to his head.
Hermione knew. Everyone did, and Angelina made no secret about the fact that she still loved George. Maybe this night was exactly what George needed to give him the courage to get her back. She tapped the quill against the parchment for a moment before she let a smile steal across her face. "Tell you what. You're going to come, free of charge, in exchange for your help with the potions. And I'll make sure Angelina is there."
George looked conflicted. "I don't know, Hermione. I don't want to force her—"
"Stop it," Hermione scolded, forcibly stopping herself from rolling her eyes. "You and I both know that no one is going to force her to be there. Use this chance and win back your woman."
He sat there for a moment, staring into space before he nodded quickly. "Right. I'm gonna get her back! I mean, how can she resist all of this?" He pulled a puppy dog face and fluffed his hair theatrically. A mischievous grin lit up his features. "And you're going to get a date too, Ms. Granger." He waggled his brows at her.
"Well, that is the point of this whole thing, isn't it?" Hermione grinned back at him.
"Ahh, it is, but you're not going to get just any old date. You're going to find a date with someone that you wouldn't go for normally." George corrected.
She grimaced, unable to think of anything but the last time she'd dated someone unexpectedly and spent the whole of Slughorn's Christmas party running from him. "I don't know, George. It's hard enough to date someone that I know from Hogwarts, what with the whole being Harry's best friend's ex-girlfriend. Most people won't touch that with a ten-foot pole." She slouched down in her seat and glared at the parchment.
"What if I can promise you that you'll have a good selection of eligible bachelors to choose from?" George goaded. "Come on, Hermione, you at least have to try."
She stared up at him, unsure what he was insinuating. Still, she did want to try dating again, and not every date could end in magical fireworks and a bloody fantastic shag. She closed her eyes and sighed. "I can't believe I'm agreeing to this, but alright." George whooped and swept her up into a hug, spinning her around. Her eyes snapped open when he sat her down, and she pointed a finger into his nose. "No trying to get your brother and me back together, though."
George laughed and saluted her. "Yes, ma'am. What's that the Muggles say, scout's honour?"
"That's the boy scouts, but yes. Do we have a deal?"
"Oh, we have a deal, alright." He waggled his brows at her then clapped. "So, let's get started on this potion! I've already got a brew of Amortentia together to study its effects for a product, so that shouldn't be too difficult to capture. You just research a way to capture the steam, and I'll get started on the Felix variant. Do you want to keep the luck properties?"
"I don't think so, at least not entirely. I don't want these matches to be made artificially. If you think there's a way to isolate the different properties to maybe balance the luck and the confidence, then I think that would be the best route. We should also limit its effects somehow to within the hour." She pulled a worn piece of parchment from her back pocket and handed it to George. "This is what we're working with for the dragon trainers. Do you think you can use this as a base for starting?"
He took a moment to study the parchment before he nodded. "Hmm, I do love a good product challenge, but I think I can work with this. As for limiting the length of time it's effective, you might just recommend that everyone take smaller sips or only give out a little. Leave it in their hands how much they want to ingest since it isn't exactly approved yet by the ministry.
"That's a good idea," she mused. "They could take only a little for a partner they might be a little more nervous about than others, or they could take a larger dose to last the whole time."
"Exactly! I might try to find a way to brand this as a Wheezes product if the Ministry will partner with me."
She beamed at him. "I think we can work on something."
Two hours later, both Hermione and George were sweaty, hungry, and thoroughly satisfied with their progress. Hermione had found a way to isolate the Amortentia fumes in an old potions book, and George thought he had perfected the Felix variant. They both stood over the potion, peering into its bubbling silver depths.
"It looks rather unsuspecting, doesn't it?" Hermione asked.
George grinned at her. "The best potions do. I think it'll work, though. I don't see any reason why it shouldn't since I pretty much followed the directions to a T. I just added a little bit more peppermint than your original recipe called for."
Hermione frowned. "You don't think that'll cause problems, do you?"
"It shouldn't," George reasoned. "I can test it if you want me to."
Hermione thought for a moment. Though she was usually against giving others untested potions, she had to admit that the majority of George's potions hadn't maimed anyone. She warred with herself for a moment. "I'm trusting you on this one, George. You're sure that nothing will happen because of the extra peppermint? You remember what Snape always said; don't deviate from the directions."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember what the greasy-haired git said. I truly think we'll be fine. They might just be a little more confident than normal, and is that really a bad thing?"
Despite her better judgment, George's placations quieted the anxious schoolgirl of her youth who had to do everything according to the directions. "Alright, we'll use it. Want to help me bottle everything up? I've already got the Amortentia fumes bottled." She gestured to a small case of rounded vials next to her.
"Sure thing!" With a wave of his wand, a set of cylindrical vials floated toward them and carefully set themselves down next to George. He and Hermione both took one, and they filled the vials together in amiable silence. Verity hummed away behind them as she took notes on the still smouldering cauldron.
Hermione couldn't help but enjoy the companionable silence she and George shared. The Weasleys had once felt like family to her, but Molly had been decidedly frosty toward her since the breakup. Someday she hoped that she and Ron could be friends again, but she was grateful to have the friendship of at least one of the Weasley boys. She'd missed their particular brand of ridiculous in the few months she'd distanced herself from the family.
Lost in her thoughts, the bottling of the potion passed quickly. She placed the last of the stoppered vials in the traveling container George was lending her and waved her wand to help George clear up the workstation. The work was quickly finished, and she packed her things up to leave.
"Everything okay, Hermione?" George questioned her. Even Verity looked up at her with eyebrows pinched together in concern.
"Hmm? Oh yes, I'm just lost in my thoughts. You know how it is," she tried to play off her brief stint of melancholy, but George called her on the fake smile.
"You know, by now we're good enough friends that I know when you're not telling the truth," George said.
She shouldered her bag and sighed. "I'm okay. Just a little nervous to do this. It just seems really final, you know? Ron and I aren't together anymore, but I just don't want to ruin our friendship when it comes down to it. I just hope that we can find a way to be friends again someday."
George nodded and clapped her on the shoulder. "Ickle Ronniekins can be a spoiled prat when he doesn't get his way, but I'm sure that you two will work out a friendship someday. You both just need to take some time away from each other, and you can work your way back to friends."
Hermione smiled up at him. Not for the first time, she wondered how she'd missed how wise George could be. "You're right. It'll be okay!"
"There's the smile! Now, get home cause I'm sure you've got a lot of work to catch up on after being here all day. The event is next Saturday, right?"
"Right!" she confirmed. "I'll be sending out fliers via owl this week and hanging up adverts in the Leaky and Three Broomsticks." She backed away from George and waved goodbye to him and Verity.
All in all, it had been a pretty productive day. She had her potions, she had at least two other people interested in the dating event, and she was finally doing something to take control of her life back after floating in limbo for the last few months. What could go wrong?