Hermione looked around the group gathered at the Hog's Head. It was strange to see so many people there since the pub was usually empty. The Three Broomsticks was much more popular, and looking at the glasses it was easy to see why.
She listened as they discussed names for their group, and fiddled softly with the parchment she had prepared for their group. It was jinxed so that if anyone told Umbridge about their practices, the rest of the group could tell who it was. It was a rather unfortunate curse.
Viktor had taught her a few things over the summer, and on the few times he managed to see her. He wasn't able to be there that weekend. There was a game going on in Romania. But Hermione wasn't upset. She was grateful that she could focus solely on the task at hand.
She wrote the title Dumbledore's Army across the top of the paper. She had to admit, Ginny was fairly smart. Now she just had to figure out a place to start working. She didn't have an idea, but the castle was huge. Surely there was space.
A number of people signed up to learn from Harry. Hermione was impressed. She knew he had practical skill, even if he didn't like to do his homework. But she couldn't blame him for that, too much. He had a lot on his plate, and homework wasn't always the most important.
Afterwards, they headed up to the castle. Hermione felt a surge of adrenaline rush through her.
"It's rather exciting, breaking the rules," she said.
"Who are you and what have you done with Hermione Granger?" Ron joked.
She laughed as she elbowed him gently in the arm. "I'm the same girl I've always been. I think I was the one who stole supplies from Professor Snape in second year."
"I had forgotten about that," Harry said. "I guess you've been just as much a trouble maker as the rest of us."
"Someone has to keep the two of you alive," she said wrapping her arms around Harry and Ron.
"And it has to be you," Ron grumbled.
They walked up to the castle, talking about lesson plans, and ways to keep away from Umbridge. Hermione already had an idea brewing in the back of her mind, but she needed to go to the library to check a few things first.
She left the boys and wound up standing in the stacks of the library, unsure of what she was doing. It was all so strange. So surreal. And there was no guarantee it would work.
"Reading something?" a third year Hufflepuff girl asked.
Hermione wanted to snort. "I'm trying to figure out where I would find what I'm looking for. But I'm not even sure what that would be," she admitted.
"I'm looking for a book on dragons," the girl said. "Everyone says you know the library better than anyone. And you're less scary than Pince."
Hermione smiled. She did know the library better than most of the rest of the student population, save for some of the higher level Ravenclaws. But she was the only one who Madame Pince trusted alone in the place. And that was a rather high measure of status in her book.
She helped the Hufflepuff find a book that fit her specifications. She was reading up since the Triwizard tournament. She was determined to be the next champion if they ever brought the event back.
Hermione was impressed. It took a lot of dedication for someone to come to that conclusion, especially since the tournament hadn't really been discussed since the previous year. And with Umbridge, people didn't do a lot of talking about it.
It probably had a lot to do with Madame Maxine and Umbridge's strong distaste for anyone who wasn't a full blooded wizard. Hermione thought that was a load of codswallop since she'd done some research and found out that Umbridge herself was a "half-blood," but there wasn't much she could do about that.
She found a book on basic defence, thinking that if she could figure something out for helping first years things would go smoother, and headed back to the common room. She almost walked into Malfoy, though she ducked up the stairs just in time.
Malfoy might have been a prefect, but that didn't make Hermione any more comfortable in his presence. If anything, it made him even more intolerable to be around.
It was dinner, and Hermione was itching to get back up to her dorm. She had picked at her food but was making an effort to eat, even though she really didn't want to. She really wanted to get back to her room, her planning, and her standing conversation with Viktor.
She had gotten into the habit of sleeping later, even though she had tried very hard not to. But with all the homework she had done and the questions that came after dinner, it had just been easier to stay up later.
Neville noticed her downcast expression, and her swirling her food around on her plate. He scooped up more chicken and potatoes and pushed it in front of her.
"Eat," he ordered.
Hermione stabbed a potato and shoved it in her mouth, but not before sticking her tongue out at Neville. He meant well, but she didn't like being told what to do. Especially when she knew that she should already be doing it.
"I just don't want to have to deal with your boyfriend if he finds out you haven't been eating. Who knows what he'll do."
Harry paled a little at that comment, but Ron kept eating. Nothing in the world, short of Molly Weasley or some natural disaster, could separate Ron's attention from food. And everyone in Gryffindor knew it.
Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron and dutifully went on chewing and swallowing before speaking. "I doubt he'd do anything to you guys. Viktor would probably be more concerned with shoving as much food as possible down my throat."
She grimaced before popping another potato into her mouth. It wasn't a great way to phrase things, even if it did get her point across more effectively.
Harry and Neville shared a look.
"I still don't want to be around when that happens," Neville said.
"Even if we aren't in the wrong," Harry added.
Hermione cut her chicken into small pieces and smiled. She knew that her boys, all of them, were fond of each other. Even if Harry and Neville had a healthy dose of fear when it came to Viktor. He was rather strong, even if he only used it for quidditch purposes. Most of the time.
"I still don't think you'd have anything to worry about."
"Even so," Neville said, "I'm going to do the best I can in getting you to eat."
Hermione rolled her eyes and made a big show of finishing off her food. She then gathered up her things and retreated to her dorm.
Viktor?
She waited a moment before checking her arm. Even though they were almost always waiting for each other, it was still anxious to wait and watch for the words forming on her arm. Much better to try and do something for the first few minutes.
How was your day?
Pretty good, she wrote. It's rather strange to be doing something so out of the rules, but I guess somebody has to do it. Especially if we want to pass our exams.
That's the Hermione I know.
Hermione rolled her eyes. You know all of me. Better than just about everyone else.
There's a reason for that.
The same reason that you let me visit you for the summer? she teased.
And the one you wear around your neck.
Hermione reached to the necklace that she never took off. She was fairly certain that there was some sort of protection spell on it, though she wasn't sure if that was for her or the jewellery. But it was made of high-quality materials, which meant that it wasn't going to rust soon, if ever.
I'll have to thank you again for that. It's probably the most beautiful piece of jewellery I've ever owned.
She would have said it was also the most expensive, but she didn't feel it was the best time to say something like that. And she wasn't sure how he would take it.
It was chosen with a beautiful lady in mind, Viktor wrote.
Hermione couldn't stop the blush that spread over her cheeks. She wanted to. She did manage to keep the sigh in, but only because she didn't want Lavender barging in and demanding to know what was going on.
You, sir, flatter me.
It's not flattery if it's true.
Alright, she conceded, that's enough talk about me. How was your game today?
We won, by about ten points. If it had gone on longer, we would have lost. But I'm glad we didn't. Your dad seemed to like it.
What's he doing in Bulgaria?
Your mother's on a trip here with the ministry. She's managed to convince our ministry that the statute of secrecy could be doing more harm than good. But as for how to get rid of it, no one's quite sure how to proceed.
Hermione pulled her sleeve down and made a gargling noise as she flopped down on her bed with a thud.
"Hermione?" Lavender asked. "Are you alright?"
"No," Hermione said. "I just found out that my mother is intent, and working on, upsetting the world as we know it. And she's growing ever closer to reaching her goal."
Even though the curtains were closed, Hermione could almost see the confusion across Lavender's face.
"Isn't your mum a dentist?" she asked.
A/N: Sorry for being absent lately. I have been working on this. But everything seems to be catching up to me in some sort of sense. I'm just really tired. Hopefully I'll get the next chapter up soon.