Chapter 54
Hermione was exhausted as she headed up the stairs to the dorms, but the image of Fred could still be seen in her mind's eye and his words resounded in her mind. "Because," Fred said as they drew away, and he winked at her. "He's going to reallymiss you..."
So much had happened in the last 24 hours, and she was both physically and mentally exhausted and Fred thought it was funny to spring that on her? She thought Oliver had made it perfectly clear earlier in the year when Sirius Black had first broken into the castle and ravaged the Fat Lady's painting, subsequently leading to the students sleeping in the Great Hall that they were nothing more than friends.
Sure the way Oliver had kissed her cheek the night of his birthday had confused her, but he still hadn't come out and treated her any different, really. He still talked to her like a friend or big brother would talk to their sibling, she thought. She really didn't have anything to base that on other than the way the twins talked to Ginny, but the way Fred had said it, it sounded like more.
She had just flopped on her stomach on her bed, her eyes closing as she welcomed sleep when she felt something scratching along her arm. Opening her eyes, she glanced over and saw a paper cat rubbing back and forth against her arm. She blinked and pushed herself up into a sitting position and the paper cat crawled into her lap like a clumsy kitten, circled once and fell open as it laid down.
Hermione read over the letter from Oliver once, and then again, blinking. Was he really asking what she thought he was? If so, she could not allow it. It was just too much. Pulling her wand out, she tapped the letter and some of it faded away, wanting to keep Oliver's secret about not letting the twins or anyone read the whole thing. She scrambled off the bed after pocketing her wand again, and hurried downstairs to the common room.
"YOU!" she called out loudly, pointing to both of the twins as she moved closer, beckoned to them before holding up the letter.
"US!" the twins called back as they met her halfway, looking at her curiously.
"What is this?" she asked, holding out the letter to them. "What is he trying to do?"
"I don't know," George said, shrugging his shoulders as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. "What's it say?" he asked as he peered over his brother's shoulder as his twin took the letter from her.
Fred read over the letter and turned to his twin with a smile. "Looks like our Ollie wants to ask her out to the Quidditch World Cup, if you ask me," he said. "What do you think, Georgie?"
"Looks like it to me, too, Freddie," George said as they both looked back to see Hermione had paled slightly.
"Ask me out?" Hermione reiterated, her voice quivering slightly.
"To the Quidditch World Cup," George said.
"As in..." Hermione blinked, looking at both of them in turn.
"A date," Fred said with a smile.
"No," she said and took the letter back. "No," she said, and shook her head, backing up, her mind replaying every conversation she'd had with Oliver since Halloween. "I can't... I can't let him do this."
"What?" Fred asked.
"Why?" George added.
"B-because," Hermione said, still shaking her head. "It's - it's too expensive. I've seen the cost of the tickets."
"Oh, is that all?" George asked with a grin, causing Hermione to blink in surprise.
"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion.
"Well," Fred said. "If that's your only reason for turning him down and not going, our dad's trying to get tickets from work. We could ask him to see if he can get an extra one. Dad works for the Ministry so he'd get his tickets for free."
"IF he can get them," George said.
"Yeah, if they're not all sold out already, that is," Fred said.
"Oh, no," Hermione said, shaking her head. "I don't want to be a bother."
"Wouldn't be a bother," Fred said.
"Yeah," George said. "He's already getting an extra for Harry, and we'd all go."
"Except for mum," Fred said.
"Why wouldn't your mum go?" Hermione asked.
"She doesn't like crowds," George said.
"Yeah, but -" Hermione began, and made a face.
"We know," Fred said. "Lockhart..."
"We remember," they both said with a groan, making her laugh.
"So... shall we ask dad?" George asked.
"Or do you not like Quidditch enough to go with Ollie?" Fred asked.
"Okay, fine!" Hermione said, and rolled her eyes. "But only if you really don't think it would be an inconvenience."
"Of course not," George said with an incredulous expression.
"We'll all be going," Fred said.
"Bill's coming in from Egypt," George said.
"And Charlie from Romania," Fred added.
"Then Ginny, Ron," George said.
"Yours truly," Fred said motioning to himself and his twin.
"And Percy," George said, and he and Fred shared a groan making faces causing Hermione to laugh again.
"The point is," Fred said, "really, with Harry's ticket, it would be like the whole family were going, so in truth, there would really only be one extra one, so no problem at all."
"Unless," Hermione said. "Your dad can't get them if they're sold out. Hey, are your brothers really coming home if he can't get tickets?"
"Probably for a little while, yeah," Fred said.
"Yeah, mum would kill them if they didn't come by and see her," George said with a laugh.
"So how about this," Fred said.
"What?" Hermione asked.
"We make a deal," Fred said.
"What kind of a deal?" Hermione asked, looking at them with suspicion as they both eyed each other before looking back at her.
"We'll ask dad to try and get one more ticket," George said.
"But if he can't," Fred said. "You suck it up and go with Ollie."
"But -" Hermione began to protest but Fred held up his hand and shook his head.
"He was asking you about Quidditch because he wanted to ask you to go," Fred said.
"And it is his last year here," George said.
She looked at them shrewdly. "Is this all a set up?"
Fred and George blinked and looked at each other and then back at her. "We've no idea what you're talking about."
Hermione laughed and shook her head. "No, of course not," she replied.
"You'd better let him know," Fred said and shooed her away.
"Right," she said, lifting the letter in the air before she turned on her heel and headed back up to the dorm with a smile.
While she felt energised from the mental gymnastics involved in the conversation with the twins, by the time she reached her dorm, she decided that Oliver would have to wait a while, her exhaustion returning full force when she once again laid eyes upon her bed. Her mood was pleasant after the conversation, and she fell asleep with a smile, but when she woke later on she didn't recall dreaming.
Over the next two days, Hermione got to relax. Many times she could be found in the common room curled up in one of the chairs with a good book. She'd just returned to reading one evening after looking up from her book to glance around the common room to see the twins approach Harry and Ron where they were playing a game of wizard chess.
"Hello, Hermione," Fred said, coming up on one side of her chair.
"Hello," Hermione replied, not looking up from her book though she'd jumped when he startled her.
"What are you doing?" Lee asked, plopping down on the couch next to her chair, leaning over the arm toward her.
"Reading," Hermione replied, and gazed up at him with a roll of her eyes before going back to her book and turning the page.
"Want to go on an adventure?" George asked from the other side of her chair.
"Not really," Hermione replied airily as she turned another page. "I think I've had enough adventure for this year, thank you."
"Ah," Lee said from the couch, and looked at his hands, picking idly at a hangnail, hiding a smile as he saw Hermione glance his way. "That's too bad..."
Hermione looked up at him, and then glanced at the twins out of the corner of her eye.
"Are you sure?" George asked.
"Even if it's for Ollie?" Fred asked.
"What?" Hermione asked, wrinkling her brow in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"We," the twins said, coming around the side of the chair and sitting on the arms as Lee pushed himself off the couch and came over to them bending down so they were in a huddle.
"Have a party to plan," Lee said with a grin as George revealed the Marauder's Map from his robes.
"How did you get that?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"Borrowed it," George said.
"From Harry," Fred said.
"And you've never been caught?" Hermione asked, looking at them sceptically.
"Nope," Fred said.
"Never," George answered.
"Not when they've had that," Lee replied and nodded toward the map.
Hermione sat up and snapped her book shut. "Let's do it," she said with a grin.
"That's our girl," Fred said with a wink as George held out his hand, taking hers and pulling her to her feet. She laughed as he did so, and allowed her book to fall back into the chair as she followed them after they made sure everyone else was distracted.
"So tell us," George said once they were out in the hall while Fred activated the map and Lee caught the edge of the Pink Lady's frame with the back of his hand as he exited so that it didn't close all the way, and they could still get in if the Fat Lady went visiting or fell asleep; all without a password.
"What?" Hermione asked as she kept close to Fred and George as they used the map to guide them through the castle, sometimes using a passage that she'd never taken, to avoid the patrolling teacher, ghost, or prefect.
"Well," George said, lowering his voice when Fred held up his hand to stop them, and they ducked into a nearby alcove and waited as Peeves passed. "It's all just confusing really," George said once the trouble making poltergeist had left.
"What is?" Hermione asked.
"He means you and Oliver," Lee said, catching up to walk with them.
"Wait, what?" Hermione asked, wrinkling her brow and looking at George and Lee in confusion. "Oliver and I? We're friends, what's confusing about that?"
Fred held up his hand again and they paused, and hid in the shadows, crouching down to stay out of sight as Filch passed them in another hallway on the next floor. After he passed them and before Fred gave the signal to continue, George held up Hermione's wrist so that her bracelet caught the moonlight that streamed through the windows above them.
"Well, there's this," George said. "It must have cost a pretty knut."
"Not to mention the rare book, in first year," Lee said.
"Or knowing that you lovedHogwarts: A Historyand gave you your own personal copy," Fred said as he waved them on.
"And then let's not forget your gifts in return," George said.
"Something Oliver wanted, but never thought he would get," Fred said.
"What?" Hermione asked.
"The Official Guide to the Quidditch World Cup," Lee said, making the 'p' pop at the end.
"So," Hermione said after a moment. "We just know what each other likes. What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing's wrong with that," Fred said, leading the way down the stairs to the second floor where they stopped again and had to hide as Percy passed them on his rounds.
"Then what's the problem?" Hermione asked as they continued downstairs after Percy was gone.
"That's what we're wondering," George said.
"It's obvious to just about everyone but you two that you like each other," Lee said.
Hermione rolled her eyes as she followed them down to the ground floor. "Where are we going?" she asked, in confusion as they headed across the entrance to the Great Hall.
"It's a surprise," Fred said.
"And you're avoiding the question," George continued
"Come on," Lee said, peering at the map in Fred's hands. "We gotta move, Snape is coming."
Hermione hurried to follow Fred, Lee and George to the doors of the Great Hall where they opened them just enough to slip inside the darkened hall where Hermione stopped with a gasp as she looked up at the enchanted ceiling which shined brightly with a clear view of the Milky Way.
"Quiet," Lee said. "Here he comes."
Lee held the door to prevent it from creaking as he eased it closed, leaving it open just enough to see Professor Snape pass by on his rounds.
"Okay," Fred said. "Coast is clear."
"Are you coming?" Lee asked when he noticed that she'd stopped following them.
"Come on, let's go!" the twins called.
"Coming," Hermione called and hurried to catch up with them. She followed them back out into the entrance hall and continued straight across, keeping the main doors on their left. From the narrow hallway, they made the next left, and then a right to a set of stairs she hadn't seen before.
"So," Fred said as they descended the stairs.
"So what?" Hermione asked.
"You're avoiding it again," George said.
Hermione rolled her eyes and groaned. "Of course we like each other," she said. "We're friends."
Reaching the next junction, they made a right and entered a larger room where Hermione noticed a large portrait on the Eastern wall of a bowl of fruit.
"Where are we?" Hermione asked again, thoroughly confused.
"Just watch," Lee said with a grin as Fred and George stepped up to the portrait and tickled the pear.
The pear squirmed and laughed and turned into a large green door handle that they pulled and opened the portrait to a large room filled with the loud clamour of pots and pans.
"Welcome," Fred said, holding out a hand.
"To the kitchens," George finished.
Hermione, Lee and the twins were swarmed by house-elves. They were ushered to a large table and given food and drink. They spent an hour there, planning the food and drink for the party for Oliver. Once everything was done, the house-elves wished them good night, sending them off with their pockets stuffed with cookies and other treats. Their mission a success, they tiredly made their way back up through the castle, letting themselves into the tower.
"Thanks for helping, Hermione," Lee said, heading off to his dorm with a wave. "Goodnight."
"We're still not done with this conversation," George said, heading off after Lee.
Hermione laughed and shook her head.
"Yeah, we want to hear the rest of it," Fred said with a yawn. "But not tonight. Goodnight Hermione."
"Goodnight," Hermione called heading for her own dorm. "You're welcome, and thanks for the adventure."
The remaining days flew by and before she knew it, it was the night of the going away party for Oliver. She had worried about it since she accepted the invitation from the twins, and even though they hounded her on their adventure to the kitchens to plan the party, and she saw those poor house-elves, she had to admit, she had a good time with them and Lee. Not that she needed an invitation considering the party was in their house common room.
What had her worried though was what was she going to wear. She'd never really been sociable when she was younger. She'd known she was different from the other children her age long before she came to Hogwarts when she preferred reading over games of imagination or physical games like hopscotch, tag, or hide-and-seek. To be honest, it was a relief when she got her letter, because she would finally be somewhere she fit in.
That was short-lived though, when she met her classmates — at least the ones her age — and learned that they were mostly like the Muggle children who had made fun of her for some reason or other. Especially Ron, who had called her a nightmare, and who this year, blamed her cat for the disappearance of his rat.
She paused and shook her head. The insufferable boy still hadn't apologised, even when they found out that his rat was not a rat at all, but the man who had betrayed Harry's parents to their death. He'd lost his rat anyway, when the man ran off, escaping their custody and the Dementors that were waiting for him.
Most of all, she felt sorry for Harry over the whole incident. With the man's escape, the hope of him getting to live with his godfather instead of his horrible relatives had been dashed, and his godfather was now on the run. Even though Harry had wanted to go with him, she had to agree that his godfather was right; a life on the run wasn't really a life at all. In the end, she was glad that his godfather had made Harry stay behind. She didn't know if she could cope with Ron if she had to do it on her own.
She shook her head again, coming back to the present and looked in distaste at her limited wardrobe that she'd dumped out of her trunk and across her bed. What did one wear to a party? She'd never been to one before, at least not a real one. She didn't count Sir Nicholas' deathday party. She didn't think any of the clothing she had would be appropriate, but she had little choice.
In the end, she chose a pair of comfortable jeans and a soft, grey jumper over a plain pink t-shirt so that she could remove the jumper if she got too hot. She cast scourgify on her white tennis shoes but the spell did little to hide their worn appearance. She ran a brush through her hair, paying attention to the back after she had seen how unkempt it was when she and Harry had watched Harry and Ron and herself in Hagrid's pumpkin patch from the edge of the forest.
It wasn't long before she tossed the brush aside as a lost cause though, when all it did was make her hair frizzier. With a breath of frustration, she grabbed a hair tie from her trunk and tied it up in a messy ponytail instead, relieved that it didn't make it worse, before heading downstairs to the noisy common room.
She felt out of place through most of the party. She wanted to run and curl up with a book by the fire for most of it, but she forced herself to smile, and drink some butter beer as well as eat some of the food that the twins had managed to procure on the adventure that she and Lee had accompanied them on. It still awed her how it mysteriously arrived on the tables set up on the common room like a buffet table even though the house-elves had shown her how the tables worked.
She wandered around the common room going from group to group making idle chit-chat with other students, wondering who was going to be Quidditch captain the following year, who would be the next Keeper, hoping that Oliver did well after he left Hogwarts and knowing that he'd be missed.
"So," George said, coming up behind her on her left, causing her to start.
"So?" she asked, fighting to maintain her smile.
"We never finished that conversation," Fred said, coming up on her right.
"That's true," Lee said, heading her off.
"Guys!" Hermione said in exasperation. "Really?"
"Yes," Fred and George said, ushering her to a corner.
"Really," Lee said.
"Look, guys," Hermione said. "Yes, I like Oliver, and yes, he likes me. We're friends. He's seventeen now -"
"Eighteen," Lee corrected, causing Hermione to blink.
"And I'm fourteen," she said. "And he's leaving and I don't want to hold him back."
"Really?" Lee asked, looking doubtful. "It's only four years difference."
"I should be asking you that," Hermione said, poking him in the chest.
"What do you mean?" Lee asked.
"I seem to recall you protested when I joined you guys during my first year," Hermione reminded him.
"It's true, mate," Fred said and George nodded.
"Sorry," Lee said, looking chastised.
"No," Hermione said. "You were right, it may just be four years difference but while we're in school... I don't know, it just feels like too much. Maybe... someday..."
Hermione finished with a shrug.
"What?" Lee asked.
"Well, like I said, we talked about it," Hermione replied.
"And?" the twins asked.
And we're friends, Hermione thought, but from the looks in her friends eyes, she knew that wouldn't be enough for them. She sighed, rolling her eyes and said, "I think both our feelings could be changing., for good or bad, I don't know for sure, but Oliver said not to rush things until we know for sure. Besides, she said, sighing again, "No one really knows what the future holds. He might end up with a girlfriend -"
"Doubt it," the twins muttered.
"You might if you didn't drop Divination," Lee said.
"Oh, please," Hermione said and rolled her eyes again.
"We just want you to be happy," the twins said, gently shaking her shoulders.
"Yeah," Lee said with a sigh. "Both of you."
"Thank you," Hermione said with a smile.
"Come on lads," Fred said.
"I think we've taken up enough of our girl's time," George said.
"Enjoy the party," Lee said as he left with the twins to mingle.
Really, she hadn't seen Oliver but from a distance most of the night because the common room was so crowded, but as the party died down, the students making their way to their beds or to finish packing before the train ride the next day, Hermione found herself sitting on the stairs to the dorms, sipping on the last of her third butterbeer of the night, when she saw Oliver wave at her.
She waved back, and he grabbed a butterbeer from the nearly empty table as he passed and headed over to join her.
"Not much of one for parties, huh?" he asked as he sat down next to her on the steps.
"Not really," she agreed, and took a sip to hide her nervousness at how close he was sitting.
"Truth is," he said before looking at her with a grin. "Me neither. I have to admit though, the twins did a good job with it."
"Yeah," she said. "That they did." She ducked her head to hide a smile that he wasn't aware of her adventure in party planning. "Didn't know you had so many fans, did you?"
"Nah," he said, shaking his head. "But I suppose it will only get worse from here."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, looking at him curiously.
"Well," Oliver said as he leaned back against the stairs before sitting up again when he realised how uncomfortable it was to have the edge of the stone step digging into his back. "If all goes well," he continued. "I'll be joining the Puddlemere United team."
"Have you heard back?" Hermione asked.
"No, not yet," Oliver remarked.
They fell into companionable silence for a while and Hermione sighed, tiredness creeping up on her. She felt comfort in Oliver's presence as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and couldn't resist moving closer, resting her head against him, and breathing in his scent. She had never been this close to him before, at least not consciously, and her mind did mental gymnastics trying to memorise and place his scent. She smelled something like freshly mowed grass that she attributed to his time spent outside. She could feel his breath on her face when he looked down at her and felt his chest rumble as he chuckled softly and picked up the fragrance of spearmint that she assumed was from his toothpaste.
"What's so funny?" she asked, looking up to see him smiling down at her.
"Nothing," he said with a laugh, but she arched her brow at him, knowing it wasn't the truth.
"Really?" she asked, scepticism lacing her voice.
"Okay," he said, relenting and tried not to laugh again. "Are you - are yousniffingme?"
Hermione blushed and ducked her head. "Yes," she admitted quietly, feeling her face heat. "Sorry."
He chucked again and pulled her closer. "It's okay, I don't mind," he said, drawing her close enough that he could cup his wrists with his arms still around her shoulders, and gave a gentle squeeze.
"I - I was just trying to memorise your scent, that's all," she admitted with embarrassment and peered up at him.
"Oh, and why's that?" he asked.
She sighed heavily, shifting his arms but was glad he didn't let her go as she got comfortable on the step.
"Well," she said. "It's going to be awfully lonely around here without you. I thought maybe if I memorised your scent, I could recall it and the loneliness might not be so bad."
"Are Ron and Harry still that bad?" he asked, looking at her in concern.
"Harry's not, no; but Ron still hasn't apologised for his behaviour this year in regards to Crookshanks, even though we found out the truth about Scabbers, and he saw it with his own eyes."
"Well, you know you'll still have Lee and the twins, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, I know," she said, her voice carrying a forlorn note. "At least until they leave a year ahead of me."
"Yeah, that's true I suppose," Oliver said, and released his hold on her, taking a sip of his butter beer though he left his other arm still around her shoulders. "Are you regretting your decision from your first year?"
"A little," she admitted sheepishly. "But I still think I made the right decision. Harry could have gotten himself killed again this year. Would have if I hadn't been there. Did I tell you that during the Dementor attack on Sirius at the lake - the first time around - that he attempted to protect Sirius so they turned on him and tried to perform the kiss?"
"No," Oliver said and shuddered slightly as a chill ran down his spine. "No, I think you left that part out. I remember you said that they attacked Harry and Sirius, but I thought you just meant feeding on their happiness."
Hermione shook her head.
"It was probably for the best," she said. "Who knows what the twins would have devised if I told you about that when they were here," she said, taking note that they were now alone in the common room, and wondered when the twins had actually gone to bed.
"That's true," Oliver agreed. "They were teasing you with trying to grab the Time-Turner, but who knows what they would really do with something like that."
Hermione just nodded.
"You know I still expect to hear from you right?" Oliver asked. "I'm only an owl away."
"I know," Hermione murmured and then stifled a yawn.
"Come on," Oliver said with a chuckle, and nudged her. "Off to bed with you."
"But I'm comfortable," Hermione complained.
Oliver laughed aloud at that.
"You're comfortable sitting on the hard stairs?" he asked.
"No," she said and shook her head. "I'm comfortable right here," she said and rubbed her head against his shoulder and chest, making him chuckle once more.
"Come on," he urged again. "It's getting late and we have to leave in the morning."
She groaned. "And I have to finish packing."
"What?" he asked in surprise. "I thought you would have packed a long time ago."
"Well, Iwaspacked," she said with a blush. "But then I couldn't figure out what to wear for the party."
"Ah, the party," he murmured and shook his head. "Yes, the infamous, dreaded party."
She smiled and then stifled another yawn.
"Okay, that's it," he said. "Off with you now. You know, I'd carry you up to your bed myself if I could."
"There's always the boys' dorm," she murmured tiredly.
He blinked, looking at her in surprise, but then noticed how glazed her eyes were, and wondered if she was still dealing with the exhaustion of the events she'd told him, Lee and the twins about concerning the Time-Turner adventure, or the effect of the Time-Turner itself, and wondered if she realised what she'd said. He shook his head briefly to clear such thoughts away.
"I honestly don't think you want to see my dorm mates that early in the morning," he said as he stood, guiding her to her feet under her protests, and gently pushed her toward the stairs leading to the girls' dorms.
"But I don't want to go," Hermione whimpered, causing a smile to steal over Oliver's face.
"We'll have time on the train tomorrow, I promise," he said, and gave her another gentle push. "Good night."
"Good night," Hermione called and shuffled tiredly up the stairs to her dorm.
The next morning however, she'd overslept and was in a hurry to finish packing her trunk before the house-elves came to collect it along with her dorm mates', taking them down to the train for all the departing students. She ended up cramming all her unpacked clothing into her trunk in clumps rather than taking the time to fold them properly, something she'd never done before. She'd always taken such care with her things, but she didn't want to leave anything behind, and wasn't sure when exactly the house-elves would be up to get the trunks. Her dorm mates had already left, going down to breakfast, leaving their trunks neatly behind, their beds made as if waiting for new students to arrive, while her side of the dorm had looked like it had exploded from her search for a proper outfit last night.
The sun was high in the sky by the time she had finished, and she found out that the students were lining up to head to the train station by the time she got downstairs, meaning she'd missed breakfast completely.
"There you are," Ron called when he saw her coming down with Crookshanks finally corralled and put into his carrier. She'd found him hiding under one of her dorm mates' beds, likely scared out of his wits over all the commotion of their impending departure.
Hermione groaned inwardly but turned to see Ron and Harry moving to meet her by the stairs. She glanced around but didn't see Oliver, Lee or the twins and wondered if they'd already headed toward the station. She forced a smile as she joined Harry and Ron and headed to the train.
All the compartments were full when they finally found their seats, and she was disheartened that she'd missed so much time with Oliver, but remained with Harry and Ron, watching at the window as they chatted idly on the trip back home to King's Cross Station.
Hours later, after the train pulled into the station, Hermione was exiting the compartment and heading down the crowded aisle of the train. She'd just stepped onto the platform when someone grabbed her shoulder. Turning, she saw Oliver standing there looking apologetic.
"I'm sorry we didn't get to spend more time together," he said, moving to stand close to her so that she could hear him over the noise of the students and parents around them.
"Me too," Hermione returned and blushed. "It's my fault really. I overslept."
"Promise you'll write to me?" Oliver asked. "I want updates on how you're doing."
Hermione nodded. "I promise."
Oliver reached out and trailed his fingers along her cheek and down her chin causing her to look up at him in surprise. Oliver smiled and leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead as she blinked at him owlishly.
"Oliver!" a feminine voice sounded over the din. "Oliver, sweetheart, over here!"
He pulled back from Hermione at the sound of the call with a flush of embarrassment and smiled down at Hermione. "I'd better go," he murmured. "That's my mum." Hermione nodded dumbly, her eyes fixed on him. She felt his hands fall to her shoulders and then turned as they trailed down her arms and to her hands, giving them a gentle squeeze before letting go. "Write to me," he said again, and she nodded once more.
"I promise," she answered and watched as he disappeared into the crowd. She stood there looking at the place he'd disappeared from for a moment before she turned and gathered the trolley that was waiting for her with her trunk and Crookshanks carrier on it, and headed off the platform and into King's Cross Station to find her parents. "I promise," she murmured again, closing her eyes and inhaling as she recalled Oliver's scent from the night before, made stronger by his closeness just moments ago. It was a fragrance she'd remember for the rest of her life, no matter how far apart their lives took them.