A/N: When this round was announced, I was very excited for the overall theme to be fluff. I hope I captured this in the First Date prompt that I had. Theomione is a rising favorite of mine, so I was pleased to use it for this round :)
One thing of note is that I'm taking the quantity of Educational Decrees from the movies: in the books there are only 28 passed with a pending 29th. In the movies and the OOTP video game, there are at least 136 of them.
Thanks to Hexibora and Rena for the Beta!
Summary: Through an innocent enough study group, Hermione takes the Gryffindor approach and asks her crush out.
Triggers/Warnings: nondescript fistfight in the library (black eye and split lip)
Word Count: 2328
Prompts:
Ministry of Magic Discord Group: This or That
(Word) Revive
QLFC S10R7: Fluff
A Date (i.e. First, Blind, Fake)
Ministry of Magic Discord Group: Word Play
(Word) Hogwash
"Dinner and a Show"
When Theodore Nott, a fellow Fifth Year in Slytherin, approached her to form a study group together, Hermione was understandably wary. With the revival of the Dark Lord, everything had become darker, more hopeless. Mrs. Weasley had insisted on doing all of their Hogwarts shopping, despite Hermione wanting to do it herself. And with Madam Umbridge–because that woman did not deserve the title of Professor, not with how little she was teaching them–trying to subjugate anyone who disagreed with the Ministry's view, Hermione had, at one point, suspected Nott of being a spy.
But like her other Gryffindor classmates, Hermione was not immune to recklessness. Nott was in the top five of their year, and she only stood to benefit from studying with him. She would just have to be careful of what they talked about, in case it got back to the oppressive force that was the Ministry.
The two of them had agreed to meet once a week in the library. To prevent drawing ire or scrutiny from the wrong sort, they chose two tables next to each other, with seats close to each other so that they could exchange notes or whisper questions without drawing attention. This arrangement worked out well for her, and Hermione got to complete her assignments much faster when she had someone intellectual to work with. Don't get her wrong, she loved Harry and Ron dearly, but not having to correct their work or deal with their whining while in the library was liberating.
It was sort of thrilling, to have this acquaintance-ship–because she didn't dare call it a friendship just yet–and keep it hidden from the others. It felt like she knew something everyone else didn't, and learning with–and about–Theo was enlightening. She found out that his father had gone to school with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. She found out that Nott strived for the best grades to try to make his father proud of him–he never was, but it was never a failing on Nott's part; his father's expectations were just too high. She found out that Nott's mother had died when he was very young, leaving him to be raised by house-elves due to his father always being too busy for him.
Hermione had spoken of her lonely childhood, of how she felt the gap between her and her Muggle parents was widening with every year away from them and she didn't know how to bridge that space. She spoke of her dreams and plans for the future. She never talked about Harry or Ron. It always felt like it would be a betrayal of them to talk about them to a Slytherin–someone whom Ron kept reminding them daily was the enemy. Theo never pushed for information on them, either, and always accepted her change in topic graciously if they ever came up in conversation.
Hermione wasn't sure when exactly he went from Nott to Theo in her mind, but it had somehow happened after the first of the Educational Decrees started going up. She had ranted to him in the stacks for at least twenty minutes after ten decrees had gone into effect all in one day, with Theo humming in agreement and making more and more noises of encouragement for her to continue as she lambasted how ridiculous the Educational Decrees had gotten.
"Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six! 'Boys and girls are forbidden from being within six inches of each other.' What does she want us to do in class? Not sit next to our desk partners that we've had since the beginning of the year?!"
"Good thing you and I sit eight inches apart here in the library," Theo had replied, chuckling. Hermione had made a face at him.
"Laugh it up now, Theo!" She had ignored his look of shock at using his first name. "She's going to want to increase that distance eventually!"
Since then, the two of them used each other's first names, and Hermione could almost see herself gaining affection for the Slytherin if their arrangement continued.
Today, a month later since that interaction, was another such day where Hermione spent the first twenty minutes ranting about how unfair Umbridge was, with Theo listening without complaint.
"That toad seems to find joy in the misery and subjugation of others! I don't doubt that she wants to become a dictator over the school, now that the Headmaster was ousted. Did you hear that the Headmaster's office refuses her entrance? I read in Hogwarts: A History that the last time that happened, the castle didn't recognize the change of Headmaster and that the new Headmaster hadn't been sworn in under the oaths that all teachers are required to take at the start of the year," Hermione said.
Theo hummed appreciatively, and Hermione continued on, vaguely registering that he stood much closer than the eight inch regulation allowed by the latest ridiculous Educational Decree, so close they almost touched. Hermione continued to busy herself with reshelving abandoned books to give the impression to passersby that nothing more than that was going on between the two.
"And she keeps targeting Harry unfairly, too! He hasn't been sleeping well, been having nightmares, actually, and his temper keeps exploding at the worst possible moment. We brought up the mention of the toad goading him and then punishing him to Professor McGonagall, but all she said was to keep our heads down and out of Umbridge's way."
"It's hogwash, that's what it is. . Unfortunately, even if I bring it up to my father, he'll just tell me to keep my head low and not worry myself about it. Has your boyfriend even tried to keep his temper in class?" Theo asked, a teasing lilt to his voice.
"He's not my boyfriend," Hermione replied dryly, reaching up on her tiptoes to replace a book. She couldn't quite reach the spot needed, but then Theo reached up from behind her and helped slide the book into place. His body pressed against hers for a moment, and then he was back at a reasonable distance. Hermione felt a loss in her chest that she couldn't quite explain. "No, he feels more like a little brother. You know, someone that I have to look out for. Both him and Ron." Hermione gave a soft laugh as they moved on to the last section, three remaining books in her arms. She walked slowly, hoping to prolong this more intimate time she had with him before they separated to their own tables.
"They do seem to get in a lot of trouble when you're not there," Theo pointed out, snatching one of the books out of her arms and reaching up high to slot it in. Hermione took another book and slid it back into place at chest height, leaving one book left. "So, is it Weasley that you like?"
Hermione shook her head. "No, there's someone else."
"Oh? Gryffindor's bookworm has a secret boyfriend, hm?" he teased, not unkindly. "Krum perhaps?"
Hermione laughed as she shook her head again. "No, Viktor and I decided to part as friends last year. It's safer for the both of us that way. If we meet again down the road, I'm sure we could try once more, but for now there are no plans to." She moved forward and replaced the last book. She turned back towards Theo and tilted her head towards their tables, ready to get to the studying portion of their study group.
"So who's the lucky guy?" Theo asked as he trailed after her. "If I can ask, of course," he added hurriedly. Hermione shot him an amused look over her shoulder before her arms came up to start tackling her hair into a bun.
"I'll take it to my grave," she replied teasingly. "What about you? Is there a future Mrs. Nott?"
"Not at all," he replied, ignoring the upward twitch of her lips at his unintentional pun. "Father wants to arrange a marriage for me, but no one meets his specifications yet. I do like a witch, but I'll never stand a chance with her. Not only is she too good for me, but my father would never allow it." He almost ran into Hermione when she stopped at the end of the aisle, turning to stare at him agape.
"So you don't get to pick your spouse at all?" she asked in horror. He shook his head.
"I'll maybe get one or two vetoes, in case it's someone I would never be able to stand, but after that, it's pretty much whatever my father says goes," Theo replied. He shifted uneasily under Hermione's dumbfounded stare.
"Wait, so you'll just show up one day at your wedding, and you may have met your bride before, you may not, and you won't know until you get down the aisle?" she asked. Her emotions swirled inside of her as she took in his uneasy stance at her line of questioning.
"That's the gist of it."
"So you'll never get to experience your first date with this person, no first kiss with your bride unless it's in front of everyone attending your wedding? No official proposal?"
"Well, when you put it that way, it sounds a lot more depressing than it is. But yes, that's the sum of it all. We are merely tools in any political power play our parents may have," Theo replied.
"I'm sorry." Hermione paused for a moment to gather her thoughts, absently reaching out to squeeze his hand reassuring before letting go, turning and heading towards their tables as her thoughts whirled in her head. Theo followed her silently, a weird sort of mood between them. Settling into their seats, Hermione tried to focus on her assignments but couldn't. She turned in her seat to look at Theo.
"How would you want your first date to go?" she asked. "This witch you said you liked. Where would you take her? What would you do?"
Theo didn't even hesitate before replying. "I would take her somewhere quiet, someplace where we could be ourselves. We could debate over inane topics or research something that interests us both, which wouldn't be too hard when you put two geniuses in a place of learning," Theo said. Hermione narrowed her eyes at him as her mind went into overdrive, piecing things together as he talked. "There would be no barriers between us, nothing to keep us apart, and on this first date we might even get some quality time spent together before getting something to eat."
"Do you want us to call this our first date?" Hermione asked bluntly. There was no hesitation in Theo's retort.
"Do you?"
"Yes," she replied easily. Theo looked taken aback, actually leaning back in his chair as he stared at her in surprise. "Gryffindor, remember?" Hermione said, a small smile on her lips. "Now, answer my question," she demanded.
"Also yes."
"Well, as far as first dates go, this one isn't too bad," she added teasingly. Hermione's heart pounded in her chest, but she couldn't keep her smile off her face at the thought of calling their study sessions something more. Study date might now be more appropriate.
"Have many of those?" Theo asked, visibly recovering. He turned fully in his chair to face her, one hand coming out to play with a loose curl that had broken free from her bun.
"First dates? Just the one with Viktor," she replied, leaning closer.
Voices further in the library caught her attention, and she and Theo turned to look at the disturbance. Two people were arguing a few stacks away, but she couldn't see anything from where they sat.
The sound of books crashing to the ground caused the two of them to jump to their feet and away from each other just as a brawling Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff came into view.
"Out! Out! The two of you are banned until the end of the year!" screeched Madam Pince as she descended upon the fighting students. With her wand she split them apart, one with a blackening eye, the other with a split lip. "I don't care what made you argue! This is a library, not a brawl house!"
Hermione straightened as Madam Pince's gaze swept over her and Theo in their little corner.
"Do I have to worry about you two as well?" she asked, her wand held out threateningly.
"No ma'am!" Theo replied from beside her. Hermione felt him move closer to her, and she willed her cheeks to not heat up at his proximity. His hand groped for hers, and she clung to it tightly, thankful that their school robes could hide the contact.
Thankfully Madam Pince ignored their direct violation of Educational Decree Number Thirty-One–boys and girls are forbidden from being within eight inches of each other–and instead nodded at them.
"Make sure you clean up and return all books to their rightful place on the shelves!" With the flick of her wand, the two groaning boys on the floor were levitated up and away from Hermione and Theo's little corner.
"Yes ma'am!" the two chorused after her. After a few tense moments, Hermione felt her shoulders relax, and she let out a shuddering breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Theo gave a small chuckle from beside her.
"Well, that could have gone worse," he said lightly. He moved back to his table, and Hermione reluctantly let him pull his hand away.
"It could have gone better," Hermione pointed out. "This being a first date and all."
"Well, why spoil the fun?" he asked, turning to start packing his bag. "We just had some entertainment. Care to pair it with dinner? That's what you do in the Muggle world, right?"
Hermione's smile widened as she regarded him. Stepping forward, she reached for his hand again to thread her fingers with his. He squeezed her hand tightly as she stared up at him. "I could go for some food."