1998, August 29th
The Burrow had never been quieter.
In the small hours of the morning, the little cottage of the Weasley family was bathed in silence. All around it was darkness, with the shadows of trees swaying slowly in the soft summer breeze. The only sign of life was the flickering candlelight behind the curtains, and the dim flicker of firelight from the single chimney.
Hermione was leaning against the window sill of the second story landing, looking out into the quiet garden beyond the porch. The warm summer breeze stirred her hair, and she closed her eyes for a moment, savoring the gentle caress against her cheeks.
She had been awake much of the night, thinking about Ron. The two of them had grown up together, been through so much together - and yet she still wasn't sure how he felt about her. There was always something between them, this subtle tension... this unspoken attraction...
She sighed faintly, her forehead resting against the open window beside her.
It didn't make any sense why he would want to wait to start a relationship. After everything they had been through, she didn't want to waste anymore time. Life was too short, even for wizards, who lived to be 150 years old. He knew that, he had to. So many of their friends had died with unfinished business. Professor Lupin and Tonks, who left behind a son. Fred who left behind a girlfriend and his family. Colin Creevey, and his dream of working for the Daily Prophet. Even Lavender Brown. She was beginning to think all the 'moments' she thought they had, hadn't been moments at all. Maybe she was reading too much into their relationship.
"You're up early." Harry yawned, wiping the sleep from his eyes as he descended the stairs beside her. "Ginny awake?"
"No." Hermione said groggily, "It's just me for now, Mrs. Weasley isn't even up yet."
"Can't say I blame her, it's 4:30 in the morning. She was up all night comforting Ginny." Harry explained, folding his arms across his chest and standing at her side.
Hermione studied him, his eyes where hers had been, watching the garden gnomes roam about. No one had slept very well all summer. Fred's death took a toll on the family. Nothing was the same. The atmosphere was thick with tension, and laughter was rare.
"Ron awake?" She whispered, a lump pushing its way up her throat. No. She promised herself she wouldn't cry.
"No." Harry said, meeting her eyes before they both looked back out of the open window. After a long moment of silence stretched he spoke again in a whisper, "He told me he talked to you."
Wiping away a tear threatening to fall she sniffed, "We decided it was best to wait, to start anything serious."
He didn't say anything for a moment, then he put a hand on her shoulder, "Are you alright?"
"Yes." She sniffled, her face growing red, "No. I don't know. I mean I understand why with everything that's happened, he needs time to grieve before he can… I get it."
She righted herself, taking a deep breath.
"For what it's worth, I'm rooting for the two of you." He said, embracing her from the side.
She played her head on his shoulder, "Me too."
"Now before we go, there's no telling how many reporters will be there so it's best if we stay in a group. No wandering off." Mrs. Weasley instructed, pulling a small basket from the counter.
"Mum, we don't need herding, we're old enough to take care of ourselves. I doubt some measly reporter will want to go up against the group of Order members who took down the Death Eaters without worrying about meeting the deadly end of Harry's wand." Ron chuckled, causing the rest of them to snicker.
"Fine, but no doddling, we're in and we're out. This is the first time we've been back in society without a fear of being snatched. Just because everything looks fine doesn't mean it is." Mrs. Weasley proclaimed, pushing Ginny's bangs behind her ear. "There are still empathizers lurking about."
"We know mum." Ginny said, pulling her hair from her ear the moment her mothers back was turned, rolling her eyes.
"Remember the apparition point. If anything goes wrong, you meet us there, do not apparate without us. After the summer before last they know where the Burrow is and they could be-"
"Mum."
"Alright, alright." Mrs. Weasley said, "One at a time, here we go."
One by one they each left in a flicker of the floo flames. Mr. Weasley, Harry, then Ron, George, and then Ginny.
Hermione stepped forward, grabbing a handful of the powder, she could feel it sinking into her nails as she allowed the excess to fall back into the small cauldron. Stepping into the fireplace, the words Diagon Alley, on the tip of her tongue.
"Hermione, dear." Mrs. Weasley stopped her.
Hermione looked up to her, her eyes swimming with comfort. She knew this conversation was coming, she just didn't expect it to happen while the floo powder was slowly spilling from her hand.
"Yes, Mrs. Weasley?"
"Don't let it ruin your last year at Hogwarts." She said with a sad smile, "We'll find them."
Hermione didn't move, her eyes fixed on Mrs. Weasley with a soft smile. She nodded and clenched the remaining powder in her hand tighter.
"I won't."
Mrs. Weasley stepped closer, then pulled her into a tight hug.
"I love you all like my own children. You've been through so much. Keep your wand close. Keep your eyes open."
"I will." Hermione nodded, blinking back tears. Her head felt full with everything that had happened over the summer, and she could feel her heart aching with loss.
"Now, make sure to say it clearly, don't want what happened to poor Harry to happen to you too dear." Mrs. Weasley took a step back.
Hermione chuckled and raised the floo powder into the air, "Diagon Alley!"
Hermione was engulfed in flames as she plunged headfirst into the Floo, immediately finding herself in one of the narrow, winding streets of Diagon Alley.
She stepped off the burning coals, her eyes darting from left to right. It had been a while since she had been here, and while the shops and restaurants were still the same, she couldn't help but feel something was a little out of place.
Mrs. Weasley stepped out behind her moments later, dusting the ash from her robes. "Alright, head count."
Just ahead of them, Ron, Harry, George, and Ginny were standing in front of the window to The Broom Shop, peering in at the new Nimbus 2003.
"Oh you have to get it mate, it's our last year on the Quidditch team." Ron said to Harry, who was pulling a pouch from his jeans pocket. "Look, it says speed improvement. You'll be dodging bludgers better than anyone else."
Ginny turned and spotted Hermione and her mother approaching them and smiled widely. It was the first smile Hermione believes she's seen since the battle and it looked genuine.
"They're here!" Ginny said, tugging Harry away from the window, "What took so long?"
"Alright, let's see then." Mrs. Weasley pulled two pouches of galleons from her basket and handed them to her two youngest, "Some for both of you."
Ron took his greedily and shook it in his palm.
"Now don't spend it all on things you don't need. First Flourish and Blotts and Malkin's, and then," She paused, gaining Ron's attention, "And then you can go to the Broom Shop, not before."
"Mum, I'm seventeen, I don't need coddling." Ron said with exasperation, a deep frown set on his face.
Ginny, Harry, and Hermione couldn't help but giggle at his dismay.
"Oh yes you do." She smiled fondly at George behind them, who was peering up at his Joke Shop, his shoulders slumped, "You all will always need my coddling."
Moving past them she began doing exactly that to George, as the rest of them moved to look back into the window of the Broom Shop.
Hermione glanced over at Ron, who was busy counting his coins inside the pouch. Ginny nudged her, pulling her along towards Flourish and Blotts.
"Let us girls get the boring bit over with." She said, pushing the door to the shop open. The bell jingled as they entered and Hermione took in the smell of books and parchment as it slapped her senses.
"I don't know what you mean, this is my favorite bit." Hermione chuckled as Ginny rolled her eyes.
"Yes, well anyway," Ginny said, moving towards the section they needed to browse. "It's going to be odd, us all in the same year."
"Thank you Voldemort." Hermione jested.
The sound of books tumbling over in the next aisle suddenly, had the both of them reaching for their wands. She watched the terror wash over Ginny's face, it was there and gone in an instant, but it had still appeared.
"Bloody-" The shopkeeper swore, moving from behind the counter towards the next aisle. "Do try to keep the books on the shelf."
"Sorry." A voice muttered in response.
"Every year." The shopkeeper said under his breath. "It never fails."
Ginny and Hermione exchanged confused glances before continuing on their search for the books they needed.
"So what's first, Potions or Defense?" Ginny asked, looking down at her supply list, biting the edge of her nail.
Hermione snorted, pulling a copy of Defense of Dark Magic by Cody Hawthorne from the shelf beside her. "Defense since that's the aisle we're on Gin."
"Oh." Ginny laughed nervously, "My bad."
"Here." Hermione handed her the copy and then grabbed herself the same one. "Now the next aisle is Potions, then we'll go to Alchemy, then Herbology, and then." She trailed off looking down at her own lists, "Ancient Runes and Charms."
"You'd think they'd have the decency to alphabetize the aisles." Ginny muttered, leading the way to the next section.
"You'd think." Hermione said, the section of Magical Law catching her eye.
Stepping into the aisle next to them, there was a boy with his back to them, bent over a pile of books, one by one placing them on the shelf. Taking the chance, Hermione waved her wand and the books rose in the air and were gently placed where they were supposed to go.
The boy stood with a sigh, "I could've done that."
"Then maybe you should have." Hermione said softly, "Would've gone a lot quicker."
He turned, a pile of books under his arm. Hermione noticed the volumes first, he was in their year. Though the Potions book he chose wasn't on their lists.
Ginny gasped, "Professor?"
Hermione's eyes went wide as they met his.
The pair stared at each other for a moment before Professor Snape spotted a book behind her head and took a step forward and reached to grab it, his face hovering over hers for a moment, their eyes glued to one another. He smelled different. More earthy, less like a potions lab. She noticed the slight shadow of hair growth on his chin. The only time she'd been so close to him was during class years ago when he was whispering harsh instructions about a particular potion they were working on. He stepped away and looked down at the book in his hand.
Ginny glanced back and forth between the two of them.
"Professor..." She said softly.
"Miss Weasley. Miss Granger." Professor Snape greeted them, keeping his expression perfectly neutral.
"Is it safe for you to be here, uh- sir-, to be in Diagon Alley, I mean." Ginny asked, looking behind him at the shopkeeper who was steadily at work, polishing off a butterbeer behind the counter.
Snape's eyes flickered to Ginny before they were fixed once more on Hermione's. "Possibly not but I needed things and house elves aren't exactly always reliable."
Hermione felt her mouth go dry. She looked away from him and focused on the bookshelf next to her. Pull yourself together. "Yes, well, we have much to do today. Be safe, Pro- uh, be safe. See you at school."
Hermione grabbed two copies of the Potions book they needed and stacked it on top of the Defense book in her hands, before moving to walk past him.
"You'll want to put those back." He said, stepping directly in her way, gesturing to the Potions books she had in a small neat pile. "The reading list hasn't been updated since 1978, that journal is outdated."
"The reading list says Potions by Daley." Hermione argues. "I doubt-"
"Trust me." He said softly, meeting her eyes, "I think I'd know, Miss Granger."
"Hermione." She corrected, holding her chin higher. "If you insist, fine, but you'd better be waiting for a floo call from the Headmistress or Professor Slughorn if you're wrong."
A tense smile tugged his lips, "Fine I'll take the blame if it should be given but it won't."
"Fine." She said, pushing the books back in their place where she found them on the shelf.
"Fine." He said, pulling two copies of the Potions journal he had from the shelf a few feet from where she found hers, and held them out to her. She took them, handing Ginny hers and stacking her copy on top of the defense book, making sure to line up the corners.
He studied her movements for a moment longer before stepping aside. "See you at school."
"See you at school." Ginny said, looking between the two people in front of her before following Hermione out of the aisle. Once out of earshot, Ginny leaned close to Hermione, "What was that about?"
"Hm?" Hermione said, "Oh nothing. He's just an ass."
"That's not the vibe I got." Ginny whispered with a small smirk.
They didn't see him again as they browsed the store. Picking up every book and tome they needed before finally meeting everyone for lunch.
"We bumped into Snape at Flourish and Blotts." Ginny said, taking a big bite of her sandwich, which she had stuffed full with crisps. "He recommended a different potions journal than the one on the list so we got it."
"Poor man, all the things he's been through and to have to live out his teenage years once again." Mr. Weasley said with a shake of his head. "It can't be easy."
"Whatever made him young made him change." Ron said through a mouth full of chicken. "We ran into him at Malkins when we went to be fitted for our robes, he was picking up his as we were leaving. First time I've ever crossed paths with him and him not bite my head off."
"Have you spoken with Kingsley about him yet?" Mrs. Weasley asked her husband, whipping but if mustard from the corner of Ginny's mouth.
"Yes, thanks to Harry here," Mr. Weasley smacked Harry's shoulder affectionately, "There won't need to be a trial. His testimony alone was enough to free him of all charges."
"That's wonderful." Hermione said, then took a sip of her tea.
"He deserves no less." Harry paused, "Not after what he's done for us."
Ron rolls his eyes, "Enough about Snape, let's talk Quidditch."
Hermione closed her eyes, trying her hardest not to roll them. With Ron, every conversation either started or ended with Quidditch, it didn't matter the topic. She was beginning to wonder if they would ever work out together. He found her interests sleep inducing and she found his incredibly exhausting. It's a wonder they were even friends, honestly. As the conversation took a boring turn, Hermione couldn't help her mind as it wandered once again. Would it always be this way? Her, faking her interest in her friends' conversations. She hoped not.