Pairing: HermioneArgus (platonic)
Prompt: 730. Captain Hook
Word count: 291
Captain Hook
It wasn't that she liked the man, but she felt sorry for him. He seemed so alone, particularly after the war.
That was his fault, of course; he chose to hate children.
Still, she felt sorry for him.
"Why, Hermione?" Ron questioned when Hermione expressed these feelings.
"I don't know, he just seems lonely." That was the end of that conversation, and as the Weasleys grieved for their lost loved one, Hermione approached the old caretaker.
"Mr Filch," she said politely.
Filch looked up, and upon seeing her face, something washed over him. Relief? Pleasure? She wasn't sure.
Rather than responding, though, he only grunted.
"Mr Filch," Hermione tried again. "I'd like to ask you a question – what will you do while Hogwarts is repaired?"
He only grunted again.
"Mr… Sir… Argus… Mr Filch, I know this may sound weird, but if you have nowhere else to go there are rooms available. We're all in this together."
Filch picked up a piece of what was once a wall and tossed it in his hand. Finally, he glanced up at the young, caring woman before him. "I don't need help," he said bluntly. "Or pity. I'll live."
Hermione nodded, but placed a book beside the caretaker. "If you ever feel lonely, Mr Filch, please read this. It always lets me escape into a world where we don't belong." She walked away, not bothering to glance back. If she had, she would not have noticed that the caretaker obliged to her wishes and picked up the book.
She would never know that until his death, it would become his favourite book, and that he would see himself as Peter Pan, and the world as Captain Hook.
He would never bother to tell her.
This pairing was requested by my lovely boyfriend.
Please PM me for any requests of pairing, characters, etc that you have. I would be happy to write it for you.