The morning of Valentine's Day dawned faint and cloudy, and noisy, the sound of chattering and giggling everywhere. Hermione was immensely glad for Potions that afternoon – Professor Snape would put a stop to that nonsense fast.
The Great Hall was cluttered with owls at breakfast, swooping down all over the place. Hermione watched to make sure the owl she'd sent dropped off small valentines to Harry, Ron, and Neville – she'd sent them each a chocolate frog and a small card. She did the same for all the boys in her house. There was no need to create drama when it was easy enough to avoid.
She'd also sent a gift to herself – an anonymous delivery of daffodils, that she'd snuck out and clipped from one of the student greenhouses this morning. She acted surprised at the delivery, while Tracey exclaimed over the romance of a secret admirer.
Hermione was surprised to receive actual Valentines, though. Harry had sent her a box of muggle candy hearts, and Neville a box of chocolate cauldron cakes. Even Ron had sent a card, which she supposed let him off the hook for now. But the Valentines didn't just stop there.
Blaise had sent her a cupid made of chocolate, signed "This was perfect for you. I know how much you love the symbolism of the holiday," which had Hermione hitting his arm and Blaise laughing at her, her face red and embarrassed. Theo had sent her a chocolate frog (another exact gift trade), and she'd been surprised that Adrian Pucey had also sent her something – a small chocolate heart, about the size of a chocolate frog.
She was just rearranging her books in her bag to make sure she could fit everything in without crushing them when two large owls swooped down, both carrying large packages. One dropped in front of Pansy, the second in front of Hermione, just where her breakfast plate had been.
Pansy shot her a dark look, tearing into hers and exclaiming at the large box of chocolates, signed "from a secret admirer." Hermione caught her glare, and she wondered if Pansy had been up to the same trick she had – she couldn't imagine anyone actually fancying Pansy.
Her own gift was an enormous heart-shaped box of chocolates, bouquet of flowers, and bracelet from Anthony Goldstein. There was a card, filled with inside-jokes and teasing her, signed with a large flourish – no anonymity about it.
Hermione tucked one of the flowers in her hair, but she avoided touching the bracelet.
"This is a public setting," Hermione hissed to Millie. "What is he doing?"
Millie came closer and examined it.
"This wouldn't count as a gift of jewelry," she said. "It's made of elastic and small, cheap heart charms – steel and colored glass, I think."
"Still," Hermione said quietly. "What's he playing at, sending me this?"
Millie shrugged. "Flirting?"
"We're twelve."
"You never wanted to play grown-up?" Millie smirked at her. "He's probably curious what you'll do with it. I don't think he expects you to wear it."
In the end, Hermione doubled the stretchy bracelet around the bouquet to hold it together like a rubber-band, as if that was its purpose all along. Tracey and Millie were smirking as they followed Hermione back to the dorm room to stash her valentines and put her flowers in a vase.
"The cloak was enough," Tracey said. "What would Goldstein have done if you'd worn the bracelet?"
"Either had a heart attack or danced a jig," Millie said, "depending on if he was serious or not."
"Shut up," Hermione snapped. "Some of the others got jewelry."
"Victoria Vaisey did, and she's been cradle-betrothed to Terrence Higgs since forever," Millie said. "If she didn't get jewelry from him, it would have been a slight."
"Plus, she's the year above us," Tracey added. "You're the only one first-year who got jewelry."
"Millie said it didn't count," Hermione said curtly. "Cheap colored glass and elastic. Doesn't count."
Tracey shrugged, smirking.
"Might not count as a courting gift," she said, "but it still sends a message, doesn't it?"
She and Millie cackled as Hermione dumped her gifts on her bed and ran back out to head toward their next class.
"Ridiculous holiday," Hermione muttered. "I'm glad all that's over with."
However, when Hermione arrived at Potions, there was a small box on her seat.
Turning over the tag, there was no indication of a sender, only the word "Hermione" written in a beautiful script on one side. Carefully looking out for Snape, Hermione opened the box.
There was a beautiful glass butterfly – a monarch butterfly, from the look of it. It was beautiful. Hermione took it out and examined it, surprised at the detail. The color seemed to shimmer almost magically in the torchlight, and, suspecting something, Hermione gently tapped it with her wand.
The butterfly seemed to come to life, fluttering around her in the air, its crystal wings catching the light and glittering. Hermione smiled despite herself, charmed. It was lovely.
After a minute or two, the butterfly landed back on the desk, and Hermione carefully put it back into the box and into a side pocket in her bag. She didn't want it getting accidentally crushed.
A few minutes later, the rest of her classmates joined her in setting up for Potions class. Theo hissed at her, demanding to know why she was smiling, but Hermione just shook her head and kept smiling.
It was a lovely gift, and perfect for her. Much better (and longer lasting) than a box of teeth-rotting chocolates.