Author's Note: Big super duper thank you to everyone who reviewed! 13 reviews from the last chapter Oo More than I could ever ask for hehe :) I hope that you all like this chapter now. It's not really filled with plot -- just warning you now. Anyways, yeah, hope you enjoy :D
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Tears of a Mourning Bookworm
Chapter Seven: Ride of the Express
"Hermione, I've got Crookshanks for you. You left him with me before you got on the train, but I suppose you'd want him back now..."
Neville's voice echoed through the small compartment as the glass door slid open, making a small screeching sound. Neville Longbottom himself stepped into the compartment and looked around. Harry's eyes fluttered open, and Neville's round face looked solemn.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Neville whispered.
"It's okay," Harry replied.
He stretched out his arms as his eyes adjusted to the light in the compartment. He glanced at the figure across from him. It was Ron, snoring. Harry felt something in his lap, and also something on his chest and against the crook of his neck. It was Hermione, sleeping without making any audible noises, although her lips were occasionally moving to form words that were never actually spoken.
"Is Hermione alright?" Neville asked as he lowered Crookshanks to the floor.
The cat leaped up beside Hermione, looked at Harry, and stayed where he was rather getting closer to Hermione. At first, Harry was confused, but then he understood (after all, he'd gained some knowledge from those days at Mrs. Figg's house) that Crookshanks believed Hermione to be Harry's territory.
"Well, now she is," Harry said quietly. He absently stroked her bushy hair and flinched at the sight of her tear-stained cheeks. "Shh," he whispered as an automatic need to comfort her. The volume of his voice was so low that only her silent figure could've been able to hear him if she were concious.
"I feel terrible about what happened."
Harry nodded, not moving his eyes away from Hermione. She looked so peaceful, Harry noticed, as Neville hesitantly sat down next to Ron. Hermione shifted a bit in her sleep and muttered something inaudible. Then, without her own thoughts controlling her, she nestled her face deeper into the crook of Harry's neck. Harry felt a little guilty about not paying too much attention to Neville, because after two minutes of silence, Neville had said,
"I guess I'll see you later, then, Harry."
Harry had finally tore his eyes away from Hermione and looked up at Neville, who was standing up and waving good-bye. "'Bye, Neville."
Hermione was asleep for another twenty minutes before she began muttering audibly in her sleep. "No, don't take him..." she said unconciously, shaking her head, her eyes closed shut. "Take me...No, not him! Take me instead! NO! HARRY!"
"Hermione! Hermione!" Harry exclaimed frantically, trying to wake her up without completely startling her.
Her brown eyes snapped open and searched the compartment until she found Harry's eyes. Her forehead was beaded with sweat and she was gasping for breath. "H-Harry, you're o-okay!" she said weakly, but her voice had a happy tone clinging onto it.
"I'm fine," Harry lied. His heart was beating at an unbearable pace. "W-What happened?"
Hermione closed her eyes and placed one of her hands on his chest, right over his racing heart. "Nightmare," was all she needed to say.
"Oh God, Hermione..." Harry whispered to her mournfully. He couldn't stop his fingers from softly caressing her cheek. Hermione didn't seem to mind it, because she closed her eyes and leaned in closer to him. "About me? Getting hurt?"
The rims of Hermione's eyes got wet. "T-They hurt you. Death E-Eaters. W-Wouldn't take me i-instead."
Harry wrapped his arms tightly around Hermione's waist. She shivered. "If, God forbid, that happens in real life," he said with a firm tone, "you get the hell out and leave me behind. Safe yourself from now on."
"But -- " she began, surprised at the way he was speaking to her.
"No," Harry said in that same firm tone.
Hermione didn't argue that time.
"C-Crookshanks!" Hermione said happily ten minutes later. Harry was glad for the change of mood -- even he could only handle so much saddening truths. Crookshanks took it as an acceptable invitation to sit on her lap. Hermione smiled, and despite how fake it appeared, it was the attempt that made Harry's heart swell.
It was only fifteen minutes after the discovery of Crookshanks that Hermione found a bit of her own personality in the mess of grieving. "We need to get our robes on." Harry was glad that she was acting somewhat like herself.
"Ron!" she shouted as loudly as she could. "Ron, wake up, we need to get our school robes on!"
Ron rocked back and forth for five seconds and then awkwardly sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Wha -- ?"
"School robes," Harry said impatiently. He carried Hermione over to the seat next to where they had been sitting just moments before. He reached for his trunk on the shelf above him, pulled the trunk down, and extracted a set of robes. Then Harry reached back up and grabbed Hermione's trunk, too, and placed it gingerly on her lap. When she raised her eyebrows, he explained, "You must be insane to think that I'd go through a girl's school trunk." With that, she smiled and performed the chore herself, taking out her own set of robes.
"So..." Ron said awkwardly. Usually, Hermione would move over to another compartment with other girls to change, but she was immobile now without her wheelchair, and Harry and Ron couldn't just carry her somewhere with a random, untrustworthy pack of girls.
Harry, with an idea, was able to retrieve Ginny, already in her hand-me-down robes. "Ron and I will go into your compartment with Dean and get changed. Could you help Hermione?"
Ginny nodded.
--
"We're here," Harry said.
He heard Hermione's sharp intake of breath and added, "Don't worry. It'll be alright." Harry wasn't so sure as to how true that statement was.
When the Hogwarts Express came to a complete stop, Harry could feel his pulse increase speed. His gaze was wary as he witnessed the other students leave the train, and he waited until everything was clear when he and Ron helped Hermione get out into the corridor. They left their belongings on the train, because they were due to be sent up to their rooms by nightfall.
As expected, the Hogwarts Express employee was ready with Hermione's wheelchair. He tipped his hat in her direction. "Good day, Miss."
"Here we go," Ron said with a lack of enthusiasm.
Harry shot him a warning look that screamed: not helping.
Twenty minutes later, nobody was surprised that Harry, Hermione, and Ron were a few minutes late to dinner. Still, surprised or not, the other students were eager to cast anxious glances at Hermione; from the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws, she earned sympathy; she gained loathing looks from the Slytherins -- they were upset that she had survived.
Harry was thankful that Hermione wasn't heavy, because he easily carried her from her wheelchair to her seat at the Gryffindor table.
"Hi, Hermione," Lavender and Parvati greeted her. They didn't shoot questions at her like Harry had expected, but they did look desperate to know what happened. For gossiping girls, it was expected.
When Dumbledore made a speech, Harry was only half paying attention, mainly because more and more people seemed to be interested in Hermione. Usually, such excitement would die down after a while. This worried Harry, and he absentmindedly placed a protective arm over Hermione.
"Harry," Hermione's gentle voice said. "What are you doing?"
He glanced at his arm and reluctantly pulled it back to his side. "Sorry," he muttered.
"Oh." She seemed to comprehend his initial intentions. "Oh, I didn't know -- it's okay, Harry, I...Thanks. Why do you think people continue to look at me?"
Her question stung at him. "I don't know," he said solemly, glancing at the other students. "Or maybe...maybe it really hits home, you know, that...that horrible stuff could really happen to...anyone, really."
Harry regretted speaking his thoughts, though, because Hermione began staring at the ceiling and blinking quickly, covering up the fact that she was ready to cry. And through the prepared sobs, she whispered, "It really does hit home."
Author's Note: PRETTY PLEASE READ: Okay, I just have to say that I am madly in love with this story. It's by far my favorite of all my fanfic pieces. I don't want it to ever end, and I guess that's why it's progressing slowly. Thanks for reading. Pretty please review! :D