Word Count: 8,920
A/N: I spent some time wondering if I should divide this into 2 chapters but with the wait for this chapter and feeling if I broke it off in the middle it just wouldn't be right…I kept it together! So happy holidays to you guys with this really long chapter! Hope you enjoy and thanks to everyone who has stuck around so far! ALSO, I think you guys are really gonna like this chapter. haha
Chapter vii – Calendestine
in the beginning it was never meant to be addictive but time progressed and we needed more. we needed more. we just needed more of our touch, our smell, our love. our everything.
One offer to be someone's date to the ball was enough to knock Hermione to the ground, figuratively of course, but two was very well enough to confuse her for the duration of her life. Hermione stood in the hallway in front of Neville Longbottom who had asked her a most peculiar question. She had found him to be a nice friend despite his troubles with some of his classes. She was even willing to help him because he was nice to her and never mean.
"You want to go to the ball with me?" Hermione questioned incredulously and Neville nodded once again in a nervous manner. She thought the notion was very sweet of him and could see that he had tried to work up a bit of courage before coming to her. Her response left her feeling a bit bad for her rejection but she could not answer any other way. She was caught thinking of Viktor's invitation that happened only two days before.
"I'm sorry Neville but I've already been asked by someone on Friday and I agreed to go with them. I'm really sorry." Hermione frowned before she squeezed his hand in a friendly way and dismissed herself to the library. She wanted to get an early start on the load of homework that had been assigned that day, it was definitely a Monday by the looks of the load that had been dumped upon all of the students. To be fair Thursday began the winter holidays and Wednesday was technically their last day of classes which left them ample time to finish, she knew this but rather get most of it done as soon as possible.
When Hermione finally found Viktor he sat at a table near the back part of the library behind one of the many bookshelves. He appeared to be tinkering with several objects that chimed softly when touched by this wand. She had not seen him work on this project before and wondered if it was for school or something personal to him since Christmas was nearing.
"Hey Viktor, what have you got there?" When Hermione slid into her seat and placed her books on the table casually Viktor turned his head to greet her with a slight smile. He carefully placed the objects, which appeared to be connected together with strings and unified at a base with a hook, in the center of the table so she could see better. Upon closer inspection she could see several intricately carved figures and she widened her eyes at the detail.
She could see what appeared to be a tiny, metal replica of the dragon Viktor had faced a few weeks back, the Chinese Fireball. It had a static portrayal of fire expelling from its nostrils and bristling scales that would send a shiver down someone's spine. The pointed, wicked looking tail was in a defensive position as if it had something protected under its inanimate stature. Very reminiscent of the way the real life one had attempted to protects its own unborn young.
It was accompanied by what a figurine of one of Beauxbaton's Abraxan winged horses in mid-gallop. Despite how small it was there was a fierce determination set in the horse's facial features and an accurate depiction of the equine's muscles. She thought this very fitting, especially of the way the actual creatures behaved. Hermione remembered seeing them for a very short time under Hagrid's watch earlier in the month alongside Harry.
The third she recognized easily after her experience watching the world cup months earlier. It was a veela in its harpy-like state. Instead of looking angry or full emotion there was a sense of calmness, perhaps even a sense of sadness, carved into the ornament. Its partially extended wings were wrapped around its body which seemed to have mimicked that of a hug in Hermione's opinion.
Hermione almost gasped as she saw the final statuette in all its surly but well intentioned glory. She knew that she could have recognized the half-Kneazle mess of fur anywhere. It was Crookshanks. The carved version of her cat did very good to capture the way his fur gave him a lion-like vibe and that of a proud creature. She even swore she saw his eyes blink in the slow, lazy way it did when he appeared to be in deep concentration.
Hermione knew she had been silent while she studied the carvings but Viktor chose not to interrupt her review of his project. She looked for too happy and enthralled for him to dare have a thought for him to have done so. When she finally looked up after taking time to look-over each of the four creations Hermione realized it was a mobile. She was quite confused as to why he was making it or where he had gotten it from. There were many questions she wondered at this point but it seemed Viktor was happy to have obliged anything she spoke.
"That cat has a very strange likeness to mine." Hermione motioned towards the figure who was still sitting motionless in the spot it had been placed.
"Is Crookshank. I saw your friend G…inny? chase him ot'er day. He almost got notes dirty but was fun to see strange cat. He is very…smart and likes the chin rubs, eh?" Viktor smiled when Hermione had a look of horror on her face at hearing he had found her cat. At first she thought he had been in her room because that was where he mostly stayed when during the winter months, Hermione did not want him roaming around too much in the cold in fear that he would freeze. Then she realized if Ginny had chased him he must have gotten out.
"Oh you've met Crookshanks. He can be a bit…strange but if he let you pet him he must have liked you. He is very wary of some." Hermione loosened the scarf around her neck. Crookshanks was a very good judge of character and if he had accepted Viktor's touch as easily as it sounded then that was excellent news to her. Viktor nodded to her and bag that had been sitting beside him and carefully began to load the mobile into it so it would not be ruined.
"So may I ask what you're making a mobile for? It was amazingly carved by the way." Hermione questioned further as the figurines were hidden from view. Viktor seemed to have no issues as he complied to answer her question.
"Working on it for seester, eh I mean sister. Letter from home has mot'er saying she is not sleeping well so I wanted to do somet'ing in my free time." Viktor explained happily and with that Hermione learned that Viktor was not one to leave a problem unsolved if he could help it. She understood that he was very driven. She ultimately thought it very sweet of him to try and solve the problem his younger sibling had.
"How old is she? She must be fairly young." Hermione asked and received a shake of the head from Viktor.
"Very young, only five months now. She was very tiny when born but have not seen her since t'en." Viktor looked a bit dismayed momentarily before he saw the mood changed in his face, "Do you have other children in house…what is word? Sibling?"
"Sadly, no, I was born an only child but I have many cousins. Many are much older but a few are younger than me but what about you? Do you have any other siblings aside from your sister?" Hermione smiled sadly. She had wished once upon a time that she might have had even one brother or sister but her parents never had any more children.
"T'ree brot'ers. I am oldest of all. T'ere is Nayden who is 12, Achim who is 10, and Naum who is 8. If you cannot tell sister, Collie, was not…planned." Viktor chuckled lightly and Hermione rolled her eyes and included the familiar shake of her head. There was a bit of an age gap between Collie and Naum and even Viktor and Nayden. She was sure that their family loved each other nonetheless.
"Its lovely to hear about your family. I would have loved to have even one brother or sister but no such luck."
"Well you can take couple of mine, dah?"
"Viktor!" Hermione looked at him rather excitedly as she tried to hold back the building laughter. There was always something about her time with Viktor, visits that occurred more often and had started to linger longer and longer. Despite their three year age different they seemed to get along with very little disagreements or discrepancies.
She enjoyed hearing him talk of his family and elaborate on how it was for him to be the oldest, how his parents leaned on him often times to help out. He confided to Hermione that even though he loved his family dearly he felt there was something that separated them from him. Viktor even expressed to her that he could not pin point the exact reason rather it be his rising fame within the quidditch world or how he was far older than the remainder of his siblings which caused most of their attention to be diverted to the younger children.
The two did their best to keep their voices down so that the librarian would not fuss them out or a lurking fangirl would stumble upon their study session. Their discussions ran till it was time for supper in the great hall. The hours spent in each other's company passed far more quickly than either realized.
Wednesday was a relatively quiet day for Hermione until study hall came about. She had been sitting with Harry and Ron where she assisted both with their assignments. Very perceptive of when Professor Snape had started to linger about their group she would go mute. Hermione hated being on the opposing side of Snape's wrath and after the previous situation that included Malfoy, the professor himself, and her teeth she was very wary and easily upset by his presence.
She scribbled furiously in her notes hoping to finish the required formula that needed to be solved quickly. Hermione knew that Ron was not going to be easily taught the correct answer because of his stubbornness. Then when he started conversing with Fred she knew he was hopeless in even concentrating long enough to get an answer down, wrong or right. Their interactions, which landed Fred his date with Angelina, seemed to spark something within Ron.
Only 30 minutes later did the trio fully complete their assignments, all thanks to Hermione, and went their separate ways.
When Hermione thought back on it, things really did not go downhill till after dinner. She had just gotten done with helping one of the younger years who were more than willing to thank her for the help of getting around. It made her smile on the inside.
Harry, Ron, and Ginny were already sitting around the lit fireplace. When she plopped down on the couch she caught the annoyed look Ginny held and rolled her eyes because she knew Ron must have said or done something to make her look so.
"You two missed dinner, rather unheard of." Hermione pointed towards both boys, received a horrid groan from both, and a loud laugh from Ginny. Now she was really intrigued as she waited for further information on just what held them back from getting the night's grub.
"Both got turned down by the girls they've tried to ask. Rather expected from how they've been acting, especially Ron, eh Hermione?" Ginny nudged her brother harshly before focusing back on Hermione. Her hair, tied back in a very loose ponytail, was falling in her face.
"All the good looking ones taken, Ron? I guess you'll have to lower those standards of yours or better yet the girls will have to lower theirs." Hermione, in all truth, did not feel bad about making the jab because it was true. Ron had acted quite haughtily about the type of date he wanted with absolutely no regards to some of the girls' feelings, including hers. She was not sure, though, if Ron simply tuned the better part of her comment out or plainly disregarded it because the look in his eyes was reminiscent to that of the way he looked in their study hall session earlier in the day.
"You know, Neville's right, you are a girl…" The moment Ron opened his mouth to speak Hermione would have bet there was an 80 percent chance she was not going to like it and with each word that passed that percentage rose higher and higher until it blew out any proportion she could have thought of. There was an annoyed twitch in her eyebrow when he finished and an acidic look buried deep in her eyes.
His comment was short and stout but it burned all the same against her ears. Ginny gulped only knowing this would lead nowhere good but she was never in control of the situation to stop it from the get go. Harry, clueless as always, only ever so slightly began to catch on to the brevity of what Ron said and how it came across.
"That's well spotted of you to say now isn't it?" Hermione's previous smile twisted to that into something mixed with a sinister and fake look. She was not sure if she should grin and bear what he had to say to her or bite his entire head off in one swift sentence. Falling the former thought she rubbed the back of her neck, the ache in it growing fairly quickly.
"Well, you can just come with one of us, it's not like you've got a date and th-" Hermione's plan had gone out the window at that point because she could no longer hold her tongue. She did not deserve to sit and try to comprehend his stupidity as a boy. There was a miniscule thought that Ron really did not understand the way his words came across but that civil thought was discarded in a split second.
"I don't think so."
"Oh come on Hermione, we really need a partner because it's going to look ridiculous if we show up without one." Ron looked positively impatient and surprised at her. As if he had the nerve to be impatient with her.
"I…can't come with you even if I wanted because I've already been asked." Hermione was treading on thin glass because she did not want to reveal that she had even been asked to them but there was no other way to get Ron off her back. She absolutely refused the thought of revealing who in fear of how Ron would react regardless of how shady it looked on her when she did not provide an actual name.
"No you're not. We all know that you told Neville no and you only said no was to get rid of him." Ron shook his head disapprovingly because he believed she was lying to him and as friends they did not lie to one another. The last bit to Hermione was the final straw. Hermione was not like that, she was not superficial, and she was not like Ron.
"Oh did I? You know that just because it has taken you three years to realize I'm a girl doesn't mean that no one else has realized!" Hermione felt absolutely livid at this point, her perfectly peaceful day was ruined now thanks to the idiot beside her. It was taking all her willpower at this point not to hex him and that was only because Ginny was in the room and she would rat her out to Molly. She knew Harry would be too scared to say a word against her.
"Alright, alright we know you're a girl. Is that good enough, will you come to the ball now?" Ron smiled. Hermione took a deep breath, quenched her anger momentarily, and responded as clearly as possible.
"Listen up you and listen good! I've already got someone and even if I didn't the last person I'd go with would be you." Hermione stood up from the couch and left the area. She was fuming and it would certainly take a while for her to cool down if Ron did not find another way to set her off even worse. Ginny was in entire disbelief at what she witnessed and looked between the doorway Hermione had stomped out of and Ron.
"She's totally lying." Ron spoke in a nonchalant tone, as if the anger Hermione held was not evident in the slightest to him.
"She's totally not." Ginny responded promptly before she shook her head in a disapproving way, "You know I knew you were idiot but I didn't realize you were this bad."
"Are you still upset with Ron?" Ginny sat on the edge of her bed beside Hermione, it was Friday now. She peered over to the letter Hermione was writing, no doubt it was to her mother. Ginny was writing her own, though she had to keep a bit of the drama that had been occurring lately out of it.
"Very much so but I figure if I dwell on it only I will be dragged down by it. If I just show up to the dance with Viktor then the look on his face will be that much more satisfying. Let him think I don't have a date just the way I don't think he's a git." Ginny was quite surprised at how independent Hermione had grown. She was still very much a part of Ron and Harry's lives and helped them as much as she could but she was more resilient now.
"Good. He deserves it with the way he's been acting throughout the school year. Have you got your dress robes yet? My mother had to owl mine since they weren't on my list originally." Ginny was very curious of what Hermione planned to wear. When she thought back there was never an occasion she had seen Hermione dressed up for so this would be the first. It excited her.
"I'll show you mine if you show me yours?" Both girls snickered and proceeded to dig for their dress robes. The Yule Ball was in two days and all the girls in the dormitory were beyond excited, Ginny and Hermione were no exception to this.
When Hermione saw the dress Molly Weasley had gotten for her daughter she thought it was a peculiar dress at first but found it very fitting for Ginny. The color was a delicate pink that would reflect nicely off of Ginny's pale skin. It seemed to be a very wispy dress, the few layers lacey pink and white tulle did not touch the ground when she put it against her chest, where she spun around happily. The dress did have sleeves that cut off right above the elbow as well.
"Yours are positively wonderful Ginny. I know you're going to have such a wonderful time with Neville." Hermione was beyond happy to know that Neville had took her hints after his rejection to seek out Hermione. Though she did not believe any romantic relationship would evolve from this ball she knew both would have fun and Neville would treat her friend right.
Hermione pulled out a small box from her trunk and tapped it softly and murmured a charm as she did so. The box quickly grew to full size and she snapped the clasps open that held it shut. When she removed the dress from its container, the material practically popped up. The material was a pretty periwinkle blue that was easy on the eyes due to the lightness of the color. It had flowy bottom that swished similarly to the way Ginny's dress had done and was due to the attached petticoat-type inside. The dress did not poof out that much but there was a slight bounce in the tulle of the dress. The neckline accented the shape of her body and the sleeves matched the way the bottom half of her dress danced.
"Oh my, Hermione, your dress is gorgeous. You're going to look beautiful and I don't know if Viktor will recognize you in it, I don't know if anyone will but we're going to have so much fun Hermione, oh I'm so excited!" Ginny rambled on as she went up close to see the dress Hermione had picked out months earlier with her mother. It had been a special moment for them to bond over and Hermione was grateful as there were not many moments like these between her and her mother.
"I'm slightly worried it would clash with his own dress robes. He informed me they're red." Hermione frowned as she looked downward at the dress then looked back to Ginny.
"I think it will be fine, the color is so soft that it won't clash but stand out. It will stand out in a good way so don't even worry." Ginny reassured her and helped her to carefully place the dress back in the container she had somehow fitted it in before. It was shrunken to be the size of its previous state and placed back in Hermione' trunk. The two girls fell asleep soon enough each eager for the next day to pass and turn into Sunday.
The morning of Christmas, Hermione was not shouted or forced out of sleep. She was simply stirred awake by the ending of a rather peculiar dream. She could remember quite clearly that the dream did not have a point but she remembered who was in it with her.
Viktor.
He continued to invade her thoughts more and more as of late, though she was less inclined to be upset by this within the last month. At first it did bother her that a stranger had become such a distraction to her, but now she could certainly call him a closer friend. It was true that she did not share the same sort adventures with him that she did with Harry and Ron, but Hermione could say that she shared a different connection, a more mental one.
When they talked it was on a higher level, a more intuitive association between the two. Slowly but surely Hermione had grown accustomed to her time spent with Viktor on most days. He had been more than willing to satisfy her curious questions of where he lived and what it was like venturing into a strange school. In return she would answer questions of her own home, the world with no magic, and they even managed to set aside time that Hermione would help Viktor learn the English language. While a rare treat, he even taught her words of his own tongue.
Her vivid dream, though, had left her to wake up in a peaceful state. Hermione had been in the air, that much was true, where she thrashed about in a wickedly active thunder storm. Lightning struck out of the blindingly bright sky wildly around her, each one caused her to flinch away until she had backed into something. For a moment the storm had faded into dark, angry clouds and pouring rain accompanied by an almost instantaneous change in the sky's color from light to dark. She remembered feeling terrified for a moment that and she swirled around.
She floated for a time as her emotions seemed to calm, her dream seemed to keep the being's identify a blur, until she found Viktor right in front of her. Any sign of the previous weather had faded and the sky returned once again to a tranquil blue, fluffy white clouds adorning it. Then she looked down and they were on brooms. Oddly enough she was not startled in the dream like she would have been in real life.
When Hermione had looked back up she could see that Viktor was farther ahead of her now but looked back at her and beckoned her to follow. She took off with no trouble, eager to keep pace with the Bulgarian. They were not going at a break-neck speed but simply cruising around in the endless sky. Before she knew it, though, Hermione had flown into one of the many clouds that had strolled about and before she could get back to Viktor she had woken up.
Hermione laid awake in her bed replaying the all too short dream in her mind. She was unsure of how much time had passed but she was drive out of her revelry when she heard Ginny harshly whisper to her.
"Hermione? Are you wake?" Hermione heard the shuffle of covers and turned over in her bed. Light filtered through their windows' curtains that were partially open. She could see it reflect off Ginny's hair which appeared rich in color until it faded darkly when she stepped out of the light. The girl hobbled over in a groggy state because she had just woken up and the excitement of Christmas would never let her fall back asleep.
"Of course Gin." Hermione half-smiled at the squinting third year. When said third year outstretched her hands she knew it was time to get up. She allowed herself to be pulled out of bed, her own covers fell to the wayside. The bed would be made later she decided.
Hermione sat next to Ginny and across from Harry and Ron where she their company along with a few other Gryffindors that had stayed at Hogwarts for the holidays. Breakfast had ended hours ago and it was not yet time for lunch. The group, along with many others from the different houses and even different schools, had lingered in the room for when the owls came through to bring the mail.
When the owls came flying in she watched with a childish smile, so many this Christmas and many were quite interesting to watch the way they behaved. Hermione would never tired of watching them soar in, to see the different breeds that came through the windows. When a letter was dropped off in front of her she recognized her mother's handwriting, figured that was it for her, and went back to watching the numerous owls enter the great hall.
When she believed all the owls were done flying in, she was caught off guard by another one of the captivating creatures. This incoming owl was different, quite larger than the rest that had flown by her and that only became more evident as it confidently glided downwards, towards her. Hermione watched as the magnificent owl gathered it wings in a great big flap to slow itself before the very lengthy, white box clasped within its talons dropped against the wooden table tabletop with a thud. The eye-catching bird landed on the table as well not a moment later where it chose to nudge the box a smidge closer to Hermione, even with a well-sealed envelope in its beak.
Hermione was quite thrown off by the owl before her, it almost respond to her the same peculiar look she had given it. The creature had a large, rounded face with strikingly right eyes that were surrounded by a thick ring of black. Its size was far bigger than most of the owls she was accustomed to seeing and the bars of black reflecting over its off-white face almost entranced her.
Well aware that many of the eyes of the group were on her she look the letter from the owl to which it softly but happily hooed in response when it saw that it's job of delivering the parcel and it's accompany letter were finally done. The hypnotizing owl lingered for a moment longer before it moved away from the group, spread its wings in one swift movement, and took to the air to find its home.
"Never seen that owl before…who's it from Hermione?" Ron pipped up, the genuine curiosity in his voice almost surprised Hermione. Ginny leaned against her shoulder while the 15 year old undid the foreign seal and removed the small note from within.
Merry Christmas Hermione. Please take these as thanks.
V.K.
"It, uh, doesn't say. Just a simple Merry Christmas. I've never seen the owl before either, quite a striking look don't you think?" Hermione told a half-truth to her listening friends, allowing only Ginny to peak over and see what the actual card said. Both girls understood that who the initials belonged to and were eager to see what was within the box.
"That owl was huge, no way was it from around here. Maybe you've got a secret admirer, eh Hermione?" Ginny threw out the last tidbit in such a nonchalant way that Hermione had to hold back an annoyed twitch ready to spring on her face. Instead she rolled her eyes even when she heard Ron snort at the implication.
Hermione removed the cover of the box and she practically gasped upon seeing the three carefully placed quills. The first was a simple quill that had the feather of a swan, these quills lasted the longest out of most. It was a delicate white, untarnished by anything and practically ready to be used. The studious girl figured she could write the reply to her mother's letter with it. The second quill had a feather which was a faint blue and almost appeared to shimmer as she moved it. It was a rather short quill but still beautiful nonetheless.
When she looked at the final quill she was amazed at the amount of detail in the feather. It matched the look of the owl that was previously there. The gradient went from white at the beginning and an almost transparent brown towards the end. The only interruption in the smooth coloring came from the random strips of solid brown.
The gifts were so unexpected that Hermione almost had no clue what to do. Viktor must have gotten them together within the last month but he had done such a wonderful job. She was surely going to have to thank him the next time she saw him.
Later in the day when they had all migrated outdoors to enjoy a bit of the snowy weather Hermione sat off to the side with Ginny and Angelina. The three girls were bundled in their thick snow-proof coats to keep the cold from seeping into their bones. Teeth chattered and arms shivered as they discussed the yule ball which would be occurring later that day.
"Hey Hermione, I heard you're going with Ron. That true?" Angelina pipped up with half a smile, though she was mostly focused on the impending snowball war between the groups of boys that occurred in the not too far distance. This was the first that Hermione had ever heard of that rumor though for a moment she did not consider it surprising. Something about it seemed…expected and for a long moment it left her wordless.
"Far from it actually." Hermione allowed her head to drop into a slightly tilt, the thought that was produced in her mind had faded. She pretended to watch the snowball fight but blinked furiously when snowflakes landed on her eyelashes every so often, their solidity fading into an annoying moisture that clung against the edges of her eyes. As if she had cried without any of the pain behind it.
Their trio was soon invaded by Cho but she was welcomed just fine by the three. A group of four Durmstrang boys joined the Hogwarts groups and an all-out battle with the snow began eventually forcing the girls to build their own snowbank while they watched everything occur helplessly. Hermione had spotted Viktor within the group almost as soon as she had a good clear look of his face from behind the makeshift snow bank. He appeared to have his emotional shield down as he goofed around in the white powder with the fellow students, the bare hint of a smile on his face as compacted snow was thrown about.
Viktor's face was flush as was hers but while his was due to the chilling temperature her reason was from a far different reason. The heat grew in her face and they were barely within ten feet of one another. Ever since Viktor had taken her aside to request her as his date to the ball she had to do her best to contain her blossoming emotions around him and even out of his presence. The heat in her face always grew unbearable, she could never find the time to eat as she always felt full of an untamed excitement, and the bare hint of nervousness always pricked at her fingertips.
When it as time for the four to leave and prepare themselves for the Yule Ball the snow fight had subsided enough for them to pass through and wave goodbye without causality. Viktor looked surprised for a moment when he realized Hermione was one of the girls walking through. His expression was quickly masked understandably as neither had told a soul, save for their closest friend, as to who they had decided to go with. Hermione's smile, truly meant for Viktor, was easily passed off towards Harry, Ron, and the other familiar faces.
One thing, however, Viktor could not shake himself from doing was watching as they walked away, watched as Hermione walked away. He was so entranced with the way her hair bounced and how her hands swayed in such a carefree manner he was tackled straight to the ground in a blindsided maneuver by his fellow Durmstrang student.
"Got crush, eh?"
"Are you sure Sleekeazyis going to fix my hair?" Hermione incredulously questioned Ginny. With fair point, Hermione's hair always appeared quite untamable, the waviness of the hair even more unpredictable after it was brushed. The other simply scoffed at her doubt and continued to get the hair potion ready for use. Ginny did not originally have the bottle to tame her mane, the object of persecution had been, thankfully, gifted by Angelina.
"Duh. Now be quiet so I can fix it." After being mildly reprimanded, Hermione promptly kept herself from speaking another word for the next hour and a half. When Ginny was finally done Hermione was quite curious to see what her hair looked like. It had been done in an up-do, swirled and held up by crystalline-like pins. There had been several ringlets kept down that hung over her shoulder. When Ginny gasped she became slightly worried and her eyes bulged.
"You better stop that before they pop out. You…look…wonderful! Well your hair and makeup does but we still need that dress on." Hermione had teamed up with Ginny when they did their mildly applied make-up but the hair had been all Ginny's doing.
"You've barely done anything with your hair though? I mean it looks lovely but you're not going to put it up like mine?" Ginny had styled her hair in a way that rang out simplicity. Partial bits hair had been pulled back into decorative braids, flowers sparingly used to accent while the remaining portion of her hair was down like normal, flattened straight.
"I don't see why I need to be that dressed up. I'm only thirteen plus I'm not the one dancing with a champion now am I? And I'm sure I'll have plenty more opportunities to play dress up." Ginny presented a cheeky smile and Hermione gaped for a moment. Hermione slid out of the chair she had spent far too long in and proceeded to stretch. Her legs ached from the chair's hardness and she was itching to put her dress on. Having decided to sneak a glance at the room's clock she almost blanched when she realized the ball would be starting soon.
"I see the clock too, now c'mon your dress is a two witch job. I'll zip you up and then you can zip mine up after." Hermione slid off her shirt and shorts leaving her in nothing but a bra and undies. Neither were bothered by the almost-nakedness of each other at this point after having spent several cramped sessions together through the years. With half the dress on, Hermione needed to unhook her bra before she could slip the sleeves up. She did not need it as the dress had a bra built in for convenience.
When everything was said and done and both girls' dresses had been zipped up. In normal circumstances Hermione had argued against having a full-length mirror, it took up space she had argued many times. However, this time she was thankful it was there. She had allowed Ginny to get a good look of herself.
"Ginny, you're going to have such a nice night with Neville tonight. I'm honestly glad he asked you to accompany him." Hermione smiled sweetly as she hugged Ginny. Their dresses swished as each girl moved into the close contact.
"Me too. I've thought about what you said about just branching out. I really don't have that much confidence with guys do I?" Ginny frowned momentarily but Hermione was not about to let her delve into any sadness. She needed to stay happy, confident, and proud tonight.
"Now you've got much more than you did at the beginning of the year and if worse comes to worse you can ditch guys, okay? I hear most are pretty sour to begin with. Now go get down there and find Neville. I'll be down in just a second, need to check on something." Hermione hugged on her tightly one last time and ushered her out the door without another word.
There really had not been anything else that Hermione needed to check on. In truth, Hermione was nervous. Initially she had assumed she was just nervous about being by Viktor but she quickly realized that was not the case. It was being in front of everyone that sent jitters down Hermione's spine. What would people say or think of her? What would they do to her? Hermione swallowed as she looked into the mirror and breathed in deeply. She knew that whenever she was around Viktor she had a sense of calm, that he gave her a difference sense of confidence.
Hermione decided that she would rely on the calming aura of Viktor to get through the night, after all it did not matter. It was just Viktor and Hermione. As she left her room, the periwinkle material of her dress waved in continued motions with each of her steps. When Hermione had passed through the commons room so she could exit out the portrait there had been quite a few people lurking in the commons room, something she did not expect. In an afterthought she realized most were third year and younger and probably wanted to admire the way those going had dressed up. She did spot two or three that were her age and even older.
They all stared as she walked through and she found she could do nothing but timidly smile and quickly avoid eye contact with them. It seemed her walk through to the exit was far longer than any time she had taken the route and she heard many whispers as she finally stepped out of the exit.
"Was that Hermione?" "She was absolutely gorgeous!" "Who's she going with!?"
When the words hit her ears she was left with mixed emotions and hurried towards the stairs. Hermione was a bit worried about being late and when there was no one around it only solidified her thoughts. When she peaked around the corner it was done in a very timid way but near the base of the stairs she saw Harry, Fleur, Cedric, and their accompanying dates. She gulped understanding that it was now or never.
Hermione descended the stairs and three steps down she caught the eye of Viktor. He had mouthed something to Professor McGonagall when it appeared that his voice faltered. She could see the hitch in his breath when he had seen her come down unexpectedly. Deep down her own breath was prepared to falter, in fact she nearly missed a step, when she saw him. Unbeknownst to the two, McGonagall watched the interaction between the two and at first the entire look of shock was quite expected but there was a simple sort of smile that relaxed itself onto her face as the two came to greet one another.
There had always been a nagging feeling in the pits of her gut when Hermione was around Viktor. Hermione never knew what it meant and had always done her best to shrug it off and ignore it. Tonight she could do so no longer. She understood what that feeling had been trying to provoke.
Hermione Granger found Viktor Krum attractive.
Nobody but her sub-conscious knew this, and would continue to, and she was unsure of what the newly-realized information meant for her. When she finally met face to face with Viktor he kissed the knuckles of her hand and offered his arm. She wrapped her arm around his willingly and he led her in place with the other champions. They were decided to be the third to enter, right before Harry and Padma.
Harry and Hermione's eyes met and she could see his complete realization take place in that moment. He smiled supportively to her and she returned it. When she turned around the doors of the Great Hall opened and Fleur started the walk alongside her chosen date. Soon enough all the couple followed suit and were encompassed by two sides of students from all three schools. Hermione did her best to walk alongside Viktor with a bright smile, nerves nipped at the edges of her toes still. People stared, but at who she could never tell and would never care to.
When they hit the floor where the school's orchestra prepared to start the opening waltz she was focused on nothing but Viktor's face and guiding posture. Then the music started and it was like no other existed around them. They found their steps easily and their dancing flowed without flaw. Hermione spun, her dress's length extended outwards slightly in a glorious sight that was akin to the way Viktor's cape mimicked, and he lifted her into the air proudly, an uncommon smile graced his lips that was meant for her, only her. It seemed all too quickly that their time was invaded by others who continued to join in on the dance until the floor was packed.
Their dancing did not falter and their connection was never severed as they remained in sync for the remainder of the opening waltz.
For one night in her life since Hermione began her education at Hogwarts she allowed herself to be free from worry, free from distraction, free from Harry and Ron. In fact, Hermione almost forgot that she attended the same dance with them as she was so busy being the focus of Viktor's attention. When the classical music had died down and Professor Flitwick had announced the guest performance by the Weird Sisters, she had immediately been wrapped up in hitting the dance floor for the second time that night.
The music almost started immediately as many of the attending witches and wizards crowded around the stage and began dancing to the upbeat tempo. Hermione was feeling exhilarated as she was twirled around in a silly way by Viktor and let a laugh slip that only accented her already formed smile. She looked up to Viktor as she bobbed her head to music shyly, Hermione never often found time to dance and never really had opportunities to, and saw that he his smile was so great she could see his teeth lighting up his face with how white they were.
Both students continued dancing together and even joined in with the group near them. Hermione noticed that Fred was hanging around with Angelina right next to him and they seemed to be having a wonderful time. Ginny was right next to her with Neville as well and the girl continued to giving her cheerful, giddy looks. When the songs changed none took a break, everyone was all too caught up in the good time they were having.
Hermione was so caught up in the moment she had not even realized Harry nor Ron were separated from their group, off by one of the tables looking so sour it was unbelievable. Ron looked more upset than Harry and perhaps the second claimed Hogwarts' champion was only acting so because Ron held him back to sulk.
Time seemed to blend together and mid-way through the fourth song Viktor and Hermione had pulled away from the group to get drinks for themselves. They laughed and smiled as Viktor pulled her in the direction of the drink table before she saw Harry and Ron at a table where Ron looked superbly put-off.
"Wait, Viktor. Would you mind if I went check on Harry and Ron? They're looking positively awful tonight." Viktor nodded and swept her hand upwards in a casual way before he kissed the top of her hand with a playful smile that crept on his face afterwards. Hermione could not help but blush and do her best to take a deep breath as he walked away to get drinks for the both of them. She was blown away at how lovely the night had gone, how amazing she felt the entire time. There was a moment when she smiled thinking about how oddly Viktor had danced during the upbeat songs but she had danced no better.
Hermione realized she was simply content to be spending time with Viktor and if they had a few laughs along the way that was more than enough for her. A part of her was nervous as she felt she was treading into uncharted territory for herself but it also gave her butterflies to think about it. When she pushed these thoughts aside she headed towards the table and sat beside Harry with an enormously goofy smile.
"Seems to be rather hot tonight." Hermione who looked deliriously happy appeared the complete opposite of Ron who was a mere two seats away from her. Harry seemed unsure, he was mostly confused but he knew of the reasoning behind Ron's idiotic behavior while Hermione did not. When no response came it did not deter Hermione.
"Viktor has gone to get drinks, would you care to join us? The dinner is starting soon too. I figured we could all sit with one another." Hermione held an eager look in her eyes and the way her smile grew. Harry saw no issue with this but he was interrupted far quicker than he could get a word out.
"No we would not care to get drinks with you and pretty boy. I'm sure you'll be just fine on your own, after he gets what he wants that is." Ron responded promptly with a tone so sharp that it cut through the happiness on Hermione's face in the blink of eye. Hermione's eyes narrowed suspiciously at him. Vaguely she understood why he was acting so but there was no call for such behavior especially insinuating such behaviors.
"Excuse me? There was absolutely no call for saying such things!" Hermione frowned but despite her urge to get loud she kept her voice at a normal level.
"No call? He's using you Hermione and you're too bloody blind to see it. Boys like him only want one thing and it's not friendship. I bet he's got the ego of quidditch pitch I don't see how you were dumb enough to go with him."
"R-Ron!" Hermione stuttered at her friend's implications about Viktor's character and her ability to judge character. Harry was wide-eyed too at this point and seemed to near a point where he felt it best to step in.
"Now Ron, I think you need to cool down-" Harry was cut off this time by the angered one of the trio. His face seemed to match his hair at this point.
"No, don't you try to defend. You agreed with me! You know he's a foul git who's only good for quidditch and girls." Ron whipped his head to face Harry in a second and the look on his face was pure aggravation.
"Now you stop it right now Ron! Viktor is a wonderful person and you'd better stop saying otherwise because aren't even friends. You're not allowed to judge him like so! And for the record, maybe you should have just plucked up the courage to ask me but now I'm surely glad you didn't. Some time ago I'm sure I would have liked to go with you but not anymore." Hermione blurted out the entirety of her feelings and stood up abruptly. She looked as if she could have said a lot more to the bumbling ginger but she held her tongue and walked off.
Truly Hermione wanted to hide in the shadows and cry. She wanted nothing more than to be to herself and delve into her feelings, to figure out what she was truly felt. The better part of her nature screamed not to.
Viktor had done nothing wrong and deserved to not have her abandon the night. Aside from that when Hermione had gotten back to Viktor, two drinks in his hand, he saw that all was not right. They had spent the next twenty minutes off to the side where they discussed what had happened and why she had appeared so rightfully upset.
At first, Viktor had wanted to smack Ron upside the head, to straighten out the ideals Ron had fabricated about him and about how he would treat Hermione. Hermione was sure Viktor had spent a good ten minutes alone to ensure that was not and would never be true. That he would never use her.
Hermione knew the truth, that it was not in his nature to act so.
When dinner had been called they were forced to sit at a table with the other champions. Hermione was rather pleased with this seating arrangement as her feud was with Ron and not Harry. Though some of the comments caused her to be very confused with Harry. Ron said that Harry agreed with him and Hermione wondered how true it was. Did they spend most of the ball contemplating on how worthless Viktor was? It troubled Hermione but she dared not focus on it or else Viktor would have spent the remainder of the Yule Ball trying to fix the situation when nothing else could be done for the night.
While they ate, though she felt like she barely ate anything, they talked, and talked, and talked. The time passed so quickly that the courses of food were done before she realized and they were allowed to go back to the dance floor or head in for the night.
Due to their attracted connection with one another they sat for a little while to finish their discussion of where Viktor lived and more on his family. They returned once more to the dance floor and spent the remainder of their energy through dances and smiles. When a slow song had come along unexpectedly Hermione was unsure though Viktor took her by the waist after a moment of uncertainty from himself.
They simply swayed back and forth slowly where they were locked to the beat. There was something about this moment to Hermione that left her speechless. Whether they realized it they did have a few spectators, both teachers and students. When the song ended Viktor realized that the end of the ball was close and he offered to escort her back to the Gryffindor Portrait.
As they walked back rather slowly, of course, neither was willed the night to end. It had been far too enjoyable, excluding a certain incident earlier in the night, for both. With no one around, save the paintings and their portraits, the pair turned to face goodbye.
Hermione had always wondered if she would be kissed or ever kiss someone. She wondered what the moment would feel like, what she would do. She wondered if it felt like this. Trapped in the orbit of Viktor's space she felt herself being pulled closer and closer, as if she were in a sort lull. Her eyes were wide with curiosity for a moment as his eyes shifted and he breathed in deep.
When their lips connected, their eyes shut. They saw nothing, they heard nothing, but they felt everything. She stumbled in her kiss to him, her first kiss to him, her first kiss to anyone but he did not mind. The way their lips melded to together turned into a harmonious duo within moments, Hermione was a gifted learned after all. The surge of emotion built in the pit of her stomach surged and she could feel the nervousness and heat surfacing in her face together in one mixed set of feelings.
That night Viktor was gifted with Hermione's first kiss, her second kiss, and her third kiss. He was gifted with understanding she was genuine and true. They parted ways for the night both in very good moods.
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