Hermione found that while she enjoyed having time to spend with her parents, she wasn't fully relaxed until they were at the airport. Although, relaxed might not have been the right word. She couldn't keep a grin off her face and almost jumped up when they were called to board the plane.
"Calm down Hermione," Mrs Granger admonished.
"Sorry Mum," Hermione said. "I'm just excited."
"I think the whole airport noticed, darling," Mr Granger said. "But I guess that's normal in airports."
Hermione nodded, knowing that airports were full of wonderful hellos, heartbreaking goodbyes and tonnes of people just trying to get somewhere. It was certainly an interesting place to spend time.
"Well, this is the first time we'll have been to Bulgaria," she said.
Her parents shared a look. They smiled knowingly at each other before turning their full attention back to her.
"As true as that might be, don't think we don't know exactly why you're excited," Mrs Granger said.
"I think it has to do with a certain Bulgarian boy," Mr Granger added.
Hermione blushed, her cheeks turning bright pink. "Maybe. But he is the reason we're going."
Hermione's parents looked like they were trying hard not to laugh, as they boarded the plane. They sat down, Hermione in the window seat. Her parents were next to her.
The first hour passed by relatively quickly, and both of Hermione's parents fell asleep. They were lulled into slumber by the gentle movement of the plane, and the gentle roar of the engines. Hermione, on the other hand, was too excited to sleep.
Checking that her parents were fast asleep, she pulled a pen out and her sleeve down.
How are you? She wrote.
Doing well. I am looking forward to seeing you. When are you going to be here?
Hermione shook her head. Surely he couldn't have forgotten. She had written to him just the day before, and his mother had floo called that morning. She was fairly certain that he knew they would be there at five in the afternoon his time.
If you can't remember, I'm not going to tell you. But we should be there by the time you get home from practice.
I know when you are supposed to be there. But I was hoping that I might have gotten a chance to see you at the airport.
Hermione smiled. She was excited to see Viktor. She could hardly wait, but she knew that flying always made her hair a bit messier than normal. Which was a concern for her.
As wonderful as that sounds, I would like the chance to brush my hair before I see you. And maybe my teeth.
I would love to see you, even if you were covered in mud and toads were hopping out from your hair, he wrote.
Hermione blushed at his words, and the implication clear for her to see. He had basically said that no matter what he would hold her close as long as she would let him. And she knew that she wasn't likely to ever let him go.
You might, but I would be horrendously embarrassed. Just be prepared for the biggest hug ever when I see you. I missed you.
She knew her words were rather contradictory. She wanted to see Viktor, but she also wanted to look decent. But she knew that if he were to be at the airport, she would drop everything and run into his arms. It was probably a good thing her carry on was a backpack.
I will see you as soon as I can.
Hermione pulled a book out of her bag and attempted reading. By the fifth page, she accepted the fact that she couldn't focus on the words and looked out the window.
The view was incredible. She could understand why her boys, save Neville, loved flying. It was peaceful, quiet, and beautiful. She could appreciate it knowing that she didn't have to focus to avoid plummeting to her death.
She pulled her knees up to her chest. Airline seats weren't exactly the most comfortable seating, but she was fairly sure that they were nicer than being on a broom. And the option of sleep was nice. That was a recipe for disaster on a broom.
She watched the land passing underneath them with fascination until the plane started to descend. It was slow, but the pressure changed just enough for her parents to wake up.
"What?" asked Mrs Granger. "What's going on?"
"Calm down Helena. We're just about to land," Mr Granger said.
"You slept most of the way here," Hermione said.
Mrs Granger slowly came to her senses. Waking up in a space that was obviously not her room, or somewhere she had stayed at least one night before, was always a bit of a shock to her. Hermione had an easier time with it, most likely due to Mr Granger's uncanny ability to fall asleep practically anywhere and wake up unfazed.
"Guess it's a good thing I woke up now," Mrs Granger murmured. She stretched her arms up, trying to get some of the kinks in her spine out. Sleeping anywhere that wasn't flat always made her sore.
Hermione wanted to bolt out of her seat the minute the plane touched down. The only thing keeping her from doing so was the fact that she'd flown more than a few times and knew the rules by heart. That and her parents would get upset if she climbed over them when the door wasn't even open.
After what felt agonisingly long, the doors opened and they were allowed to leave the plane. Hermione was courteous, mostly because she wanted other people to reciprocate her actions. She almost sighed in relief as they entered the terminal.
Ivanna and Dimitri Krum were waiting for them. They looked incredibly dignified and incredibly muggle. It was strange to see how well they fit in and stood out at the same time.
"Velcome to Bulgaria," Mr Krum said. "It vill be vonderful to haff you in our home."
"Thank you," Hermione said. "This is such an honour for us."
"We really appreciate it," Mrs Granger said.
"It vas the least ve could do," Mrs Krum said. "After all, Viktor vould haff done something crazy if he could not see Hermione."
Hermione blushed but knew it was true. After all, she was ready to do something drastic herself, and she was due to see Viktor as soon as he got home from practice.
She was mostly silent as the parents chatted in the car on the way to the Krum's home. Part of it was introspection. She wanted to know why she was looking forward to seeing Viktor as much as she was. And part of it was that she didn't trust herself not to give her parents incriminating evidence for the future.
They pulled up to a stately but elegant home. It was huge, but it seemed to fit Mr and Mrs Krum perfectly. Hermione, couldn't quite fit her mind around the idea of it. It seemed that the Krums were more wealthy than she had realised.
She was in a daze even as Mrs Krum led her around and showed her to her room. It was larger than her room at her home, and looked far more comfortable, even if it lacked touches of her personality. The room was decorated in a soft spring green with light brown accents. Occasional pops of yellow pulled everything together without making it feel monochrome.
"This is amazing," she whispered.
"You might vant to clean up before Viktor gets here," Mrs Krum said. She then led Mr and Mrs Granger to their suite, one floor up.
Hermione moved to her suitcase and pulled out some clothes that were slightly more appropriate for the environment that she had found herself in. She pulled them on, and then brushed through her hair. Deciding she looked decent she walked out of the suite.
The house was huge. It was so big that Hermione wasn't exactly sure that it could be called a house. And she had no clue where anyone was. She wandered out and attempted to make it back the way that they had come.
Somehow, she made it to the foyer without incident. She stood and twirled around, enjoying the swishing of the skirt around her. It felt appropriate, and she was alone. She could act a little immaturely if she so wished.
The door opened, and Viktor entered the foyer a heavy quidditch bag on his shoulder. He dropped it just in time to catch Hermione as she practically flung herself into his arms.
"I missed you," she said.
"Me too," he said into her hair. He pulled her back to get a good look at her and then smirked. "But perhaps you vere right. This vas vorth the vait."
"You were right too," Hermione said. "No matter what, I'll come running to you."
He leant down and kissed her. Softly at first, but he pulled her closer and found that his happiness at seeing her again was expressed in it. And he could tell exactly how much she had missed him.
"I hope I'm interrupting something," Mr Granger said.
Hermione blushed as she took a step back, though she held onto Viktor's hand.
Mrs Granger elbowed her husband gently in the arm. "Be nice," she hissed. "Viktor, it's lovely to see you again," she said more loudly.
"It is vonderful to see you again Mrs Granger. And Mr Granger," Viktor said bowing to them.
"Your mother said that dinner was going to be ready just after you got home," Mrs Granger said. "We were trying to find our way to the dining room, but this house is so big. I'm afraid we got a bit lost."
"Oh then, follow me."
Viktor led them through the hallways to the dining room, sending his bag zipping up to his room with a spell. Before they even got to the dining room, delicious smells filled the air.
"Thank you," Mr Granger said.
"Is easy to get lost in this house. I haff done so many times," Viktor said.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You live here. How on earth would you manage to get lost?"
"Is easier than you think. Especially vhen you spend months away for school. And then quidditch practice. Makes it easy to forget which vay to go."
Hermione knew that it was possible. She always had to spend the first week of school reacquainting herself with Hogwarts. But she had always assumed it was because of the nature of the school to change. Moving staircases didn't help anyone.
Ivanna Krum entered the dining room and waved her wand, causing the table to fill with food. It all smelled delicious and looked even more appetising than the smell. Hermione could feel her mouth water.
"This looks amazing Mrs Krum," Hermione said.
"I figured it vould be good for you to try some traditional Bulgarian food," Mrs Krum said. "And I know Viktor is excited."
Hermione turned her attention back to her boyfriend. He was looking at the food hungrily, obviously seeing something he liked. She smiled. While the quickest way to a man's heart wasn't necessarily through his stomach, she knew that she was going to have Mrs Krum teach her how to cook some of Viktor's favourite foods.
A/N: Yay for the summer. I'm enjoying writing without constraints. But fifth year is coming. And that means Umbridge. I'm both excited and terrified by her. She's probably the villain that scares me the most in the series. But I'm still excited to write her. And have Ron get mad. Because while I love Ron, he's a great friend to Harry most of the time, he's still a teenage boy with the emotional range of a teaspoon.