Chapter Text
Chapter 30: Shenanigans
Monday, 1 May 1978
It was Monday morning and the sun was shining brightly outside, the charmed ceiling of the Great Hall reflecting the clear sky outside. The seventh year Gryffindor girls were in the middle of their breakfasts when the Marauders joined them.
The boys lined up beside Hermione and Mary, which was a slightly unusual move – and a rather obvious one. They were up to something. Every Gryffindor sitting near them could conclude that, even without the boys eyeing each other with identical smirks plastered on their faces.
“Do I even want to know what you guys are planning to do?” Lily asked, eyeing them warily.
James gave his girlfriend an innocent look. “I don’t know what you are on about, Lils,” he said, trying to appear nonchalant as he started to fill his plate with bacon, eggs and toast.
Hermione glanced at Remus who sat a couple of seats to her left. He gave her an obscure shrug. Great. So, they were up to something… Hermione thought and sighed inwardly.
“So, Hermione…you seen my brother today?” Sirius whispered next to her, his lips quirking up a bit.
Hermione frowned at him and her eyes were automatically drawn towards the Slytherin table. Of course. That was why they were seated like that, facing the Slytherin table.
She rolled her eyes at the sniggering Marauders. Every Slytherin sitting at their house table was sporting either yellow or blue hair. Very subtle… Hermione thought as she glanced at Regulus, who was looking quite…bizarre with his yellow hair. He and his classmates were just realising what had happened. Hermione suppressed a smile and shook her head in mild amusement.
“Well?” Sirius asked, both he and James eyeing Hermione with an expectant grin.
“Yes, very clever. You charmed their food with what? Colovaria? They probably won’t guess who’s behind this…” Hermione replied scornfully. It would’ve been less obvious if the Slytherins were sporting red hairs as well…
The boys burst in laughter, as did many others throughout the Great Hall when students around them started to notice the new hair colours at the Slytherin table.
“Pair up again and choose someone you haven’t duelled against yet,” Gideon instructed from the front of the classroom.
It was their first lesson of the day and they were having duelling practice again.
Hermione glanced around the room, but before she could take a step towards a group of Ravenclaws, James moved in front of her.
“Do you have the guts?” He asked her with a challenging smirk on his lips.
Hermione arched a brow. “To duel you?”
He nodded. “Only if you’re up for the challenge,” he said smugly and lifted his brows once while grinning at her.
Hermione shrugged. “Okay," she said, trying to sound indifferent. She knew James was very good at duelling, as she had seen him many times during their defence lessons. She also knew she wasn’t that bad herself, but not quite reaching his level.
James winked at her and took his position after bowing to her. Hermione followed suit and then they waited for the professor to make the call for them to start.
“…three, two, one, go!”
As soon as Gideon had uttered the final word, hexes, jinxes and mild curses started streaming from both James’s and Hermione’s wands. Both either ducked the other one’s spells or blocked them with shield charms, while throwing back a spell or two. It was an intense duel, both determined to win it. Hermione could vaguely fathom that every student around them was staring at them and making room for them on the floor, instead of taking part in their own duels.
James threw hexes so rapidly towards her, that sweat started to drip down her neck, her muscles crying from the jumping, dodging and blocking his spells. She noticed that James too was breathing heavily from exertion, but his eyes were locked into hers with perfect focus.
She knew he would win. He was too strong, too quick for her, blocking her spells with such an ease she could only dream of. After a while, he managed to send a jinx she couldn’t block or dodge, hitting her straight in the chest.
She landed hard on her bum from his Knockback Jinx, her wand flying through the air straight into his outstretched palm.
“Ouch!” Hermione hissed, scampering up.
James smirked at her. “Nice show, Dumbledore,” he said with a wicked grin, eyeing her torso pointedly.
Hermione could hear faint sniggering and whooping amongst some of the boys in the class and glanced down. James had severed her shirt from the middle, and her bare stomach and bra were now on display between the torn fabrics.
“All right, people! Show’s over!” Gideon exclaimed hastily, eyeing his students with a stern look. “On with your duels, now.”
Hermione blushed furiously and pulled her shirt to cover herself, while marching up to James, who bit back a grin as he handed her wand back to her. She narrowed her eyes at him as she mended the torn fabric with a swish of her wand while most of the students around them started their duels.
“This isn’t over, Potter," she hissed at him, a scowl edged on her face.
Hermione didn’t miss how Lily sent her boyfriend a couple of scorching glares while Sirius, Peter and Remus eyed the pair with amusement.
James chuckled. “Oh? Well, if you wish to show more, I suggest you pair up with Sirius next time. I know he won’t mind looking at you," he spoke quietly so that no one else heard them, and lifted his brows quickly.
Hermione seethed. “God, you’re arrogant, James!”
James huffed a laugh. “I know. And you know, payback’s a bitch…” he said, a knowing grin on his lips.
Hermione gritted her teeth and refrained from smacking him on the face. So, he was apparently paying back for making him and Sirius snog at the Gryffindor Quidditch party a couple of months ago.
She had to hand it to him…He was patient…
Hermione stayed behind the duelling class, as she had agreed with Gideon that they would practice Occlumency during lunchtime. They had been training the skill every week since January, until the raid. This was the first time after the raid, and Hermione was feeling a bit edgy as she headed towards his office, trying to clear her mind.
“Even without Legilimency, I can see your mind is full of thoughts. Are you sure you want to continue?” Gideon asked hesitantly as they took seats in his office, on different sides of his desk.
Hermione sighed wearily. “Yes, I’m sure,” she said and took a deep breath, trying to clear her mind for the last time, trying to build a wall in front of the thoughts she wanted to shield from him. She imagined a door that was locked, and in her mind she threw away the key.
Gideon nodded, cleared his throat and stared at her calmly while lifting his wand. “Legilimens,” he said softly, a deep frown forming slowly between his brows as he tried to get through the barriers in her mind.
They stared at each other in silence, both breathing heavily, never breaking the eye contact and both shaking from the effort.
After some minutes, the office blurred around her and she was at Hog's Head, standing above Regulus who was kneeling on the floor, weeping, his hands red with blood. Marlene's blood. Then she was vomiting after hearing the news. The next moment, she was upstairs, sobbing on the floor in their sitting room. Then it was the next morning after the raid and she was screaming at Regulus, asking him how could he have stood there and watch her die.
Gideon suddenly sucked a deep breath, breaking the contact, panting as he closed his eyes. Hermione acted the same, physically drained by the mental strain as the office materialised around her again.
“Shit,” he muttered, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyes as he took a moment.
Hermione swallowed, feeling nauseated. Gideon had seen the night Regulus had come to her covered in blood. The night of the raid. He had heard what Regulus had said to her. What he had done. Gideon had felt her agony when she had realised what had happened to Marlene and her family.
They were silent for a moment, both trying to pull themselves together.
“Okay,” Gideon eventually said, his voice trembling as he gave her a troubled look. “Let’s continue. Are you ready?”
Hermione pressed her lips together and nodded, breathing deeply through her nose.
“Legilimens.”
Hermione was exhausted and close to tears when she came to lunch, only having fifteen minutes or so before she would have to be in the greenrooms. She knew she could’ve asked for Gideon to stop and to continue their Occlumency practice on another time. But then she would never make progress. She would probably be in a stressful situation anyway, if there ever would be a time when she would have to use the skill.
“Hey, Hermione…you alright?” Sirius asked with a frown as she plopped next to him and started to add food on her plate.
Hermione made a sound in the back of her throat, meant to be a noncommittal one, that instead came out as a wince. She knew she couldn’t say anything about her meeting with Gideon to the boys. Even though she wanted to. She wanted to tell someone how horrible she felt and how painful it was to relive everything she had seen and felt. But she knew she couldn’t. So, Hermione kept her focus on her plate and started to eat quickly, as her next lesson was about to start soon. The girls, Remus and Peter had already left. Sirius and James were there only ones sitting in their usual spot at the table as they had a free period next. She glanced quickly around the hall – it was almost empty, just a few students scattered around every house table.
“Look, Hermione…” James muttered uncomfortably, eyeing her from his seat, opposite to her and Sirius. “I didn’t mean to be a prick…I’m sorry."
He was clearly regretting his behaviour at their Defence class, after seeing her sullen mood.
Hermione chewed down her food and waved a hand to him, trying to seem nonchalant. “No worries,” she said blankly and gulped her water down before wiping her mouth and standing up. “Sorry guys, I’m late for class,” she said, keeping her voice steady. She stood up and left the Great Hall in a rush, leaving the two bewildered boys to stare at her fleeting back.
She rushed into the greenhouse three just in time and quickly took the empty seat beside Lily.
“Where were you?” Lily asked quietly as Professor Sprout was starting to hand the assignments in front of the greenroom. Lily eyed Hermione before she continued. “What’s wrong? Is it what James did? …I’m going to strangle him,” she hissed venomously.
Hermione’s mouth twitched slightly. “No, it’s not him. And he already apologised. Don’t worry about it,” she said with a tight smile, trying to lock down the nasty memories Gideon had managed to dig up into the forefront of her mind.
Lily stared at her warily for a moment before she spoke. “If you say so,” she muttered. “So, um…would you be up for a girls’ night in?” Lily continued hesitantly, a small cringe curving her mouth.
Last time they had had a girls’ night, was when Marlene had been with them. Hermione could see that that was where Lily’s mind was too.
Hermione sighed. “Yeah, sure. It’s been too long," she said with a small smile.
Lily nodded, looking relieved. “Saturday okay? Or…are you going to console your boyfriend?” She asked teasingly, whispering the last bit.
Slytherin was playing against Hufflepuff the coming Saturday, and of course every Gryffindor hoped the serpents would lose. Gryffindor was leading in the points with Ravenclaw and Slytherin following.
Hermione rolled her eyes. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she muttered quietly and narrowed her eyes at Lily when the redhead gave her a knowing look. “And he hardly is the type who needs soothing. And who’s to say they won’t win?” She asked with a smirk.
Lily snorted quietly. “Don’t let James hear that. Beating Slytherin is the only thing he’s been talking about for the past weeks,” she said with laughter in her voice and put her gloves on.
They were peeling squill bulbs and cutting them into thin slices before they would be dried and used as potions ingredients in their Potions class. It wasn’t a challenging assignment, so the girls continued their chatter while they worked.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lily asked as she put the sliced pieces on a plate.
Hermione glanced at her. “Um, yes…just had a talk with Gideon and the subject wasn’t that cheerful…we talked about the raid,” she said quietly, so that no one but Lily would hear her.
Lily let out a small gasp but gave Hermione a small nod. “I can’t believe it’s been over a month,” she said, looking sorrowful.
“Yeah, tell me about it…” Hermione muttered solemnly.
They were silent for a while.
“You know…I just realised the other day… We’re leaving Hogwarts soon,” Lily said slowly, her expression something between excitement and anxiety. “And…I don’t even know where I’ll go after Hogwarts,” she continued, sounding troubled.
Hermione arched a brow at her friend. “Didn’t you send your application to St Mungo’s?”
Lily nodded. “I did, but what if they don’t accept me?” She asked with a hint of panic in her voice. “And I have to get out from my parents place. Petunia and her fiancé are living there since they’re saving for their own home and I just can’t live there if he’s going to stay there. I hate him. He’s really awful, you know…” she muttered with a frown as she worked with the bulbs.
Hermione sighed inwardly. Oh, she knew exactly how awful Vernon Dursley was. “Yeah, I understand it could get a bit crowded in there. What about James? Have you two considered moving in together?” Hermione asked nonchalantly.
Lily froze and turned to look at her. “Has he said something?”
Hermione chuckled. “No. Why?”
Lily shrugged. “I dunno. I mean, I’d like that, maybe. But I don’t know if it’s too soon…and, well…he hasn’t even asked me,” she prattled hastily and stared at Hermione with a worried look, biting her lip.
Hermione suppressed a laugh and only smiled at her friend. “I’m sure he’ll ask,” she said and nudged her friend reassuringly.
They continued their work and planned their upcoming girls’ night.
Friday, 5 May 1978
As Hermione sat down at the Gryffindor table on Friday morning, she glanced at the Slytherin table after taking a sip of her coffee – and nearly choked on her drink. Regulus was sitting there, having a staring contest with Sirius, who sat next to Hermione. There was something odd about his looks...and something quite familiar…
“Sirius…” Hermione said slowly, trying to keep her tone calm as her gaze shifted to the Black sitting next to her.
Sirius turned to look at her, his lips tugging upwards. “Yes?”
“What did you do to Regulus?” She asked quietly and gave him a withering look.
He grinned at her. “What? I didn’t quite catch that?” He asked with a loud voice.
Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and looked back to the Slytherin table. Regulus’s hair looked exactly like Sirius’s at the moment, exactly the same length and equally shaggy. Regulus was shaking his head in bored exasperation as he ate his breakfast.
Sirius was beside himself with joy. “I’ve always told him he ought to loosen up a bit," he said and winked at Hermione, who rolled her eyes at him.
“Like what you see?” Sirius continued and lifted a single brow.
“Ugh. Please stop. You’re making me lose my appetite…” Hermione growled at him.
The rest of the boys eyed their conversation with amusement while Lily, Mary and Alice were engaged in a conversation about Alice’s wedding.
“Speaking of appetite…” Sirius drawled. “You know, he’s of-age now…” he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
Hermione arched a brow. “And?”
“It’s now legal for him to engage in certain activity…” he continued with a teasing voice, sniggering when she blanched.
James snorted into his pumpkin juice while Remus and Peter chuckled. The girls luckily didn’t hear their conversation. It wasn’t like Hermione wanted for anyone to know about her…relationship with Regulus. But she wasn’t going to just sit there and let Sirius embarrass her.
“For your information, Sirius, he’s been engaging in lots of different activities before this day,” Hermione whispered to him, eyeing him with a pointed look.
“Yuck…” Sirius gagged, making a face, while James, Remus and Peter sniggered at their friend.
Later that night Hermione met Regulus in the Room of Requirement.
“Hey,” Hermione said as she stepped into the Grimmauld Place library and walked up to him.
Regulus was sitting in an armchair, his homework sprawled on the coffee table in front of him. Hermione put her bag on the floor, next to his.
“Hey,” he replied and looked at her as he stood up, his expression unreadable. He took her hand and pulled her closer.
“I have something for you,” Hermione said softly as he leaned forward to brush his lips against hers.
“Oh? Can I have something else first?” He murmured against her lips, a small grin tugging his lips as he placed small kisses on the corners of her lips.
How could she refuse when he asked so nicely?
“Mm-hmm…” she hummed as his lips slowly worshipped hers, his hands fluttering along her sides, rubbing her hips and then skimming up to cup her breasts.
With a whimper, her lips parted, giving his tongue access. Her hands found their way to his shaggy black locks, tugging him closer to her. Her skin burned under his touch as he slid his fingers under her shirt, and then he parted from her momentarily, only to pull the shirt over her head. Regulus wasted no time and leaned back to continue his ministrations, caressing her with his fingertips and ravishing her mouth with his lips, tongue and teeth.
He quickly got rid of her bra and his mouth trailed down to her neck to suck and nip her skin, making her gasp and pull his hair. With a groan he continued cherishing her with his mouth, trailing lower and reaching her breasts. He brushed his lips against the hardened peak of her breast, making her shiver and arch against him. His hand moved to her other breast, tugging her nipple, rolling it between his thumb and forefinger, while he sucked the other one into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the tender tip. Hermione moaned and writhed against him.
A moment later, Regulus dropped onto his knees, watching her with lust filled eyes, his hands on the buttons of her jeans. He slowly opened her jeans and started to peel them off, while staring straight into her eyes with a heated gaze. Hermione let out shuddering breaths as she watched him slid her jeans off. She stepped out of them and then his hands caressed her legs, starting from her ankles, trailing slowly up. His hot breath fluttered over the junction of her thighs as he leaned his forehead against her lower belly.
Hermione gasped as Regulus’s hands neared her apex, rubbing and kneading her thighs. He slowly pulled her knickers down, placing wet kisses on her hipbones, her thighs, and finally, on her sex. He gently lifted her leg on his shoulder, gazing into her eyes as she balanced herself and took a hold of his shoulder with her other hand, while the other was holding his hair with a firm grip.
Hermione’s lips were parted and she could feel her cheeks burning as she took in the image; how incredibly hot he looked, there on his knees, staring at her with hunger in his eyes, while her core was fully exposed to him. He then leaned in closer, his lips and tongue finding her centre. Her body jerked in response to his touch, with jolts of pleasure running through her spine as he swiped his tongue up and down her slit. She moaned. She shivered.
Regulus devoured her with his tongue, circling her clit, dipping to tease her entrance, finally pushing his tongue inside her, making her moan and writhe helplessly against him. His lips sucked her nub as he slid two fingers inside her, massaging the sweet spot inside her he had found long ago.
“Ahh…” Hermione moaned, and Regulus hummed against her sex, his face buried on her flesh, holding her in place with a tight grip on her bum as he feasted on her.
“Reg…” she whimpered, her grip in his hair tightening, her nails scraping gently his scalp.
She shuddered and could feel her core tightening around his fingers, reaching towards a sweet release. Regulus seemed to feel it too as he increased the pace of his fingers and the pressure of his tongue, making her buck her hips towards him and to grind her sex against his face. Regulus groaned as he sucked her clit into his mouth again.
“Oh!” Hermione moaned, trembling as her inner muscles tightened around his fingers with a firmer grip, as waves of pleasure flowed over her. “Reg!” She screamed his name with a strangled voice, her whole body quivering when she came.
He gently lowered her on the floor, on top of a large Persian rug as she was still coming down from her high and panting heavily.
He lay down next to her, still fully clothed, his lips glistening from her juices and a smug smirk plastered on his face.
Hermione glanced at him. “If I had the strength, I’d tell you to wipe that arrogant look off of your face,” she breathed as she eyed him lazily.
Regulus chuckled and quickly discarded his own clothing, grinning down at her, seemingly thrilled to see her gaze darkening after her eyes swept over his body.
He settled himself between her thighs which she eagerly parted for him, holding his weight on his elbows as he looked down into her eyes. Her breath hitched as he slid inside of her wet heat, filling her deliciously with one effortless thrust. Regulus groaned and stilled, bringing his forehead to rest on her shoulder, breathing heavily.
“Circe, I’ve missed you…” he murmured against her skin.
Hermione huffed a laugh. “It’s Hermione,” she said teasingly.
He lifted his head, eyeing her in mock surprise. “Really? Well, fuck me…” he said with a smirk and started to move, flexing his hips, slowly, taking his time.
Hermione whimpered and clutched at his shoulders, the teasing look quickly disappearing from her face, as her eyes clouded with want and her lips parted as she let out small gasps every time he sank into her.
“That’s more like it,” Regulus hummed with a satisfied smirk, as if pleased to make her writhe under him, to want him, to make her hips move to meet his every thrust.
While it felt amazing, Hermione reckoned he still looked a bit too smug for his own good. She moved her hands on his back, gliding them down against his muscles which were flexed from holding his weight above her. She dragged her nails up his back, making him shudder and moan, causing a snag in their rhythm.
“Aahh,” he breathed as his eyes rolled into the back of his head.
Hermione bit her lip to suppress a grin.
His stormy grey eyes locked with hers as he drew back enough to slam his hips against hers again. And again. Something inside him seemed to snap, as if he was no longer able to hold back. Hermione moaned and tightened her inner muscles around him, trying to drag him in deeper.
“Sweet Salazar...” Regulus groaned, pounding into her with urgency they both wanted and needed.
He was taking them both higher and higher, and as his lips latched on her neck, sucking the tender skin below her jaw, Hermione shattered beneath him, convulsing around him tightly, whimpering loudly, his name echoing in the large room. Breathing hard, Regulus’s body shook as he stole two more thrusts before he followed her over the edge with a throaty groan, the force of his release taking his breath away.
Panting, he collapsed on top of her. Hermione enveloped him in her arms, breathing in his scent, savouring the moment. She relished his closeness, his warmth, and the feelings he stirred inside her.
After they both had caught their breaths, Regulus rolled over to lie next to her, staring deeply into her eyes, his eyes filled with adoration.
For a moment, it seemed that he was about to say something, but then he closed his mouth and averted his eyes, making her feel a bit disappointed, making her wonder what it had been about.
Regulus grabbed his wand from the table near them, summoned a blanket and placed it over them.
“You had something for me?” He asked softly as his fingertips skimmed along her curves.
“Well, yes, I have…” she said hesitantly, studying his features.
Regulus merely lifted his brows and leaned over to kiss her lips chastely.
Hermione smiled and reached for her schoolbag which was lying close to them and took a small parcel from one of its pockets. She gave it to him, eyeing him with an uncertain look.
“Happy birthday,” she said softly.
Regulus gave her a delighted smile and opened the gift. He pulled a golden chain out from the box. At the end of the chain was a small pocket watch.
“Oh…thank you,” he murmured slowly, eyeing the watch with a contemplative look.
“Do you not like it?” Hermione asked with a frown, watching his reaction closely.
Regulus glanced at her. “Of course I do, love. It’s just that…a watch can represent different things in pureblood culture. Depending on who is presenting the gift," he explained a bit cautiously, a calculative look in his eyes.
“Oh?” Hermione lifted her brows at him in puzzlement. She had always felt a bit annoyed and left out regarding pureblood traditions. There really were no books where she could learn about them, and while the Weasleys were pureblood, they weren’t really following any traditions or customs, except gifting a watch on witch’s or wizard’s seventeenth birthday. And she wasn’t aware there could’ve been some hidden meanings behind it.
Regulus cleared his throat. “The um...certain gifts, like a watch, that are exchanged outside family, between a witch and a wizard, signify an understanding," he said quietly, his eyes flickering to hers.
Was he nervous?
Hermione stared at him in confusion before she understood. “Oh…Oh! You mean…a relationship or something like that?”
A smile tugged at his lips. “A betrothal," he merely said.
Hermione’s eyes widened and she opened her mouth to say something but Regulus cut her off.
“But you didn’t know that, so…I’m not really treating this that way," he said and smiled at her expression.
“Oh,” she merely said and tried to ignore the mixed feelings of disappointment and relief.
“But really, it’s amazing. Thanks love,” he said and kissed her lips softly before examining the watch more closely.
“What’s…this is not a…” he mumbled at the watch before glancing at her with a puzzled expression.
Hermione smirked. “Yes, actually it’s not just a pocket watch,” she said with a satisfied smile.
“Oh?” He murmured, looking a bit surprised. “I can feel some charms in it. What is it?” He asked, examining the watch with an intrigued look in his eyes.
“It’s a compass. Although it will show you the time as well, but when you hold it in your hands and think of a certain thing, it will change into a compass, and ultimately will lead you to where you want to go,” she explained.
He frowned. “And what should I think of?” He asked, glancing at her before studying the piece in his hands.
“Something your heart desires the most," she said simply and blushed furiously when the clock in his palm changed into a compass, and its red arrow pointed straight to her.
He grinned at her. “I guess it works.”
She averted her eyes in embarrassment and pressed her lips together. “I think I don’t want to stay on the floor, so, um…” she muttered, stood up and gathered her clothes from the floor.
Regulus stared at her as she got dressed, his eyes now giving nothing away. How he managed to do that, to close himself off like that, was beyond her grasp.
Regulus eventually stood up as well and put his clothes on while Hermione was rummaging about her schoolbag and pulling a couple of heavy tomes from it. Her hands stilled before she put the books on the table next to his schoolwork.
“We don’t have to do schoolwork if you’d rather do something else? I mean, it is your birthday…” she said hesitantly.
Regulus smiled at her. “I don’t mind. But…can I borrow a quill?”
“Sure. Although…why aren’t you using one of those?” She asked, frowning at the five quills which were lined neatly on the table.
He rolled his eyes. “I guess my brother thought it was funny to charm every single one of my quills to write arse face when I’m trying to write my name," he said and Hermione tried to hold back a snort. “Makes writing your essays a bit difficult when the professors expect them to be named.”
“I’m sorry Reg…” she said, grinning and looking anything but. “Here, luckily I have always an extra quill with me,” she added and handed him a charm-free quill.
“Thanks.”
“So…what about your hair?” She asked slowly. It was still a perfect copy of his brother’s hair, now even shaggier, if possible, after their activities.
He groaned. “Don’t remind me. Sirius won’t charm it back and I haven’t really found anything that would work on it…” he said with a hint of despair and gestured at the table. Now that she had a better look at the books scattered on it, she noticed they weren’t all school books.
“Oh…” she said, her mouth curving a bit in amusement. The Blacks and their hair…
He sat down on the sofa and pulled the pocket watch from the pocket of his slacks, examining it a bit further. “Revealing charm?” He asked, and Hermione nodded. “Point me charm?” He asked again, and she nodded.
“Do you recognise the spells?” She asked, eyeing him curiously.
“Some of them.”
Hermione was impressed. It wasn’t that easy to detect spells from objects without the help of a wand.
“What else?” He asked.
“A modified Epoximise - a Transfiguration spell that bonds two objects together,” she explained and he nodded.
“It’s impressive," he said earnestly. “You’re very talented,” he murmured with an affectionate smile and put the watch back to his pocket.
Hermione blushed at his compliments. “Thank you. So…shall we look into a spell for your hair, or…?”
“No, he’ll change it back eventually. You want to revise for your NEWTs?” He asked absently, making room on the table.
“Okay,” she smiled.
After studying the rest of the evening, they both decided to stay in the Room of Requirement for the night, opting to go to sleep early, as Regulus had a Quidditch match next morning.
Saturday, 6 May 1978
“Are you awake?” Regulus murmured against her neck as the first rays of the rising sun began to brighten his bedroom between the curtains hanging around the windows.
“Mm-hmm…” Hermione hummed in response, still somewhere between sleep and awake.
Regulus’s hand was resting on her hip and his fingers were lazily drawing patterns on her bare skin. He pressed soft kisses on the nape of her neck while his hand trailed down to follow the curve of her bum. It was a lovely way to wake up, Hermione thought and arched against him as his fingers caressed her skin.
Then his wand started buzzing. Regulus let out a soft groan of frustration. “I have to go…” he said and when Hermione turned to look at him, he leaned down to kiss her lips slowly, sweetly, before he pulled away and stood up from his bed.
Hermione sighed but followed and after they were both clothed, they went back to his library to gather their belongings.
“What’s that?” Hermione asked as she saw a silver envelope, with decorations around its edges. It had been under his Transfiguration book, and she had missed it the previous night.
Regulus took the envelope from the table. “My cousin’s getting married,” he said simply and pushed it into his schoolbag with the rest of his books.
Hermione blanched. Cousin…Narcissa? Narcissa Malfoy? As in, Malfoy Manor. The diary…Merlin!
“Oh. When? Where?” She asked, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically.
Regulus seemed to notice and frowned at her slightly. “Malfoy Manor. June 21st,” he said and gave her a wary look.
“Okay,” Hermione said nonchalantly.
He arched a brow at her.
“Go, now. You’ll be late!” She exclaimed, trying to change the subject.
Hermione could see that Regulus wanted to ask about her sudden interest about his relatives, but he chose not to continue the conversation. Instead he smirked at her. “You’re going to wear green?” He asked, even though they both knew she wouldn’t.
Hermione shrugged. “Perhaps,” she said airily, smiling mischievously and reached up to kiss him one last time before he left the Room of Requirement.
The Slytherin-Hufflepuff match was quite unpredictable. And unnerving. As soon as the whistle was blown, both teams were fighting tooth and nail for the Quaffle. Chasers were searing through the pitch as Bludgers flew in every direction. Several goals were scored by both teams, and when Slytherin made their 28th goal, James groaned loudly while Sirius cursed next to him.
Gryffindor was leading in the points at the moment, and although their team still had one game left, they would now need to score many goals in order to secure the Quidditch Cup. The more the Slytherin now got points, the more the Gryffindors had to score in their next match.
“Fucking Slytherins…” Sirius grumbled, as they saw the Slytherin Chaser, Andrew Higgs score another goal.
James was clenching his jaw. “Pads, if they get sixty more points, we’re tied…”
“I fucking know, mate” Sirius hissed at him. “Fuck. Fucking Reggie better not get the Snitch…”
Hermione and Lily glanced at each other behind them, amused by the boys’ distress.
“You know, Pads, I think he might just get it, look,” Remus said next to Sirius, pointing at Regulus, who was flying through the pitch, his eyes locked into something.
“Fuuuuck!” Sirius and James groaned in unison, drawing a severe look from McGonagall who was sitting in the next Quidditch stand.
Regulus got the Snitch. James, Sirius, and the rest of the Gryffindors wailed in despair, while every Slytherin supporter cheered wildly. The Slytherin team was now leading in the points, making the last, upcoming match important and very interesting.
As Regulus flew past their stand, he slowed his speed notably and gave his brother a quick lift of his brows, a wide grin splitting his face. Sirius scowled and replied by sticking two fingers up at him. Hermione pressed her lips together to suppress the snort that was threatening to come out and heard Lily snigger beside her. The rest of their group eyed the brothers with amusement, and then the younger Black flew back to his team, ready to celebrate their victory.
After the game, Hermione went straight into the Headmaster’s office. They had agreed to meet and talk about the mission regarding the diadem, as well as trying to figure out how Gideon and Fabian would be able to travel to Albania without being noticed by anyone.
“Well, how about this; we’ll go on a small vacation to Corfu, one of the islands of Greece, and we make it seem like we’re there just to have fun and relax. And after making sure we’re not followed, we’ll travel to Albania by boat, in case there’s someone monitoring apparition. We’ll transfigure our looks a bit and start searching for the diadem,” Fabian said matter-of-factly, eyeing the others.
Gideon arched a brow at him. “So, what, you’ll expect us to search through the whole country?”
Fabian rolled his eyes at his brother. “Well, it would be beneficial to know some details of the possible location…” he said with a smirk and turned to look the Headmaster expectantly.
“I will consult the Grey Lady about it,” Dumbledore said, looking thoughtful. “I believe your plan is otherwise sufficient. Since we do not know if there is someone monitoring the people arriving through apparition or other magical transportation or guarding the diadem, it is best to be careful and take as many precautions as possible,” he said grimly.
“When would you leave?” McGonagall asked curiously.
“As soon as the term ends,” Gideon said simply, and McGonagall nodded.
“But what if you don’t find it?” Hermione asked with her brows furrowed. “How long will you be searching for it?”
Gideon glanced at the Headmaster before he spoke. “I suppose a month or two. Otherwise people will start asking questions about Fabian’s absence at the DMLE.”
Hermione nodded. “If we are done talking about the mission regarding the diadem, I have rather important news,” she said anxiously, eyeing the others with a mix of anxiety and excitement.
Everyone stared at her curiously.
“We have a shot at the diary,” she said steadily.
Dumbledore’s brows lifted up. “Oh? By all means, enlighten us,” he said, a hint of surprise in his voice.
McGonagall, Gideon and Fabian all stared at her intently and equally surprised.
“Yes. Regulus mentioned that his cousin, Narcissa is getting married. At Malfoy Manor. And as we’ve discussed, it is a possible place for the diary, along with the Malfoy vault in Gringotts, of course,” Hermione explained quickly.
Everyone was taking in the news, looking contemplative.
Dumbledore was the first to speak. “When does the wedding take place?” He asked hastily.
“June 21st.” Hermione said.
“Thank you, Hermione. This is indeed important news. Since this is a unique opportunity to acquire the diary, we have to form a plan immediately, in order to seize it,” Dumbledore said severely, his fingers crossed on the table and a deep frown lining his brow.
“Well, there’s one option that’s quite obvious,” Hermione said plainly. The others eyed her in puzzlement. “I’ll go with Regulus,” she continued, chewing the inside of her cheek.
“No.” Dumbledore said, shaking his head.
“What? Sir – I mean, uncle, I’m perfectly capable of –“
“Hermione, it’s too dangerous,” Gideon said, frowning at her.
Hermione scoffed. “It’s a wedding. It’s not some Death Eater gathering, and I highly doubt that Voldemort is even invited,” she said dryly.
Gideon shook his head. “You don’t know that. And even if he isn’t, the place will still be crawling with Death Eaters, Hermione.”
Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and glanced at Fabian, who merely shrugged. When she turned to her Head of House, she saw McGonagall eyeing her with her lips pursed.
McGonagall sighed and turned to the Headmaster. “Albus…I believe it could work. If Hermione is in a disguise, she could succeed by attending the party with young Mr Black. She’s the only one who knows what the diary looks like, and…then there is the fact that she has been at the Malfoy Manor before,” she said, cringing a bit in the end and giving Hermione an apologetic look.
Hermione wasn’t disconcerted by McGonagall mentioning her previous visit to the Manor, and was only excited that someone other than herself thought that she could get involved with the mission.
Dumbledore frowned. “Hermione? What are your thoughts on this? Even if I would not like to see you in danger, I cannot deny Minerva has a point. Do you trust Mr Black? Will he protect you if you are endangered?” He asked dubiously.
Hermione nodded. “Yes, he’ll protect me. I trust him," she said confidently. “And I’m ready. I want do to this," she said with determination.
Gideon opened his mouth to argue but the look McGonagall gave him made him close his mouth.
“What about her disguise?” Fabian asked, eyeing the Headmaster before he turned to Hermione. “I mean, you can’t really put on a dress and say your name is Hermione Dumbledore…?” He said with a smirk tugging at his lips.
Hermione worried her lip in thought, but McGonagall spoke before she could think of anything to say.
“Her looks can be transfigured, and they could say she’s a foreigner, on a vacation from France. A half-blood, so that she wouldn’t draw that much attention to herself,” McGonagall said briskly at the others and glanced at Hermione. “You speak French, correct?” She asked and Hermione nodded.
“There you have it,” McGonagall said simply, and everyone was silent for a moment.
“Very well, Hermione. You may take part in the mission in order to acquire the diary. You should go this over with Regulus as soon as possible, but if you can, do not include him in with the information about the Horcruxes. I suggest we keep the knowledge from him as long as we can, since the risk of Voldemort finding out about our operations will increase by the amount of information he has,” Dumbledore said, eyeing Hermione solemnly.
She nodded in understanding. She knew Regulus would find out about them – and everything else soon enough, but it was best that he, and everyone else, was kept from the information as long as possible. The less people knew, the better their chances of succeeding were. And even though she trusted Regulus, she knew that it was dangerous for him to know certain things, as Voldemort was the greatest Legilimens there was.
“After you have discussed this with him, I ask for you to share the plan with us, so that we know of every detail,” Dumbledore said kindly.
Hermione nodded. “Of course.”
“Finally! Where were you?” Mary exclaimed as Hermione entered the girls’ dormitory, coming straight from the Headmaster’s office.
“I was meeting the Headmaster,” Hermione said vaguely and changed the subject. “So, has the Hogwarts’ grapevine already been shared?” She asked with a small smirk as she discarded her robes, which were draped over her muggle clothing, and folded them neatly on the top of her school trunk. Hermione then walked to Lily’s bed and sat on the foot of it, next to the redhead. Alice and Mary were sitting on Alice’s bed, next to Lily’s.
Alice sniggered. “No, we decided to save it for later, just so you wouldn’t miss anything,” she said and winked at her.
They all knew Hermione didn’t exactly enjoy gossiping, but they wanted her to join the talk just for their own amusement.
“But now, into more demanding subjects,” Mary said in a severe tone as she stood up and rummaged through Alice’s bedside table. “A-ha!” She exclaimed as she pulled three bottles of Elderflower wine from the drawer.
Lily and Hermione lifted their brows in a mix of bewilderment and suspicion, while Alice clapped her hands excitedly. Mary filled four glasses and handed those to the girls.
“How did they even fit in there?” Lily asked and frowned at the small drawer of the table.
Mary smirked at her. “Not the only bright witch here, Lils.”
Lily shook her head in amusement, grumbling under her breath something about focusing one’s talent into something that counted.
“Um…what should we drink to?” Hermione asked as they lifted their glasses.
“Hmm… How about…figuring out an ultimate prank which we can pull on the guys?” Mary asked, her eyes twinkling mischievously.
Alice snorted. “I like the sound of that…”
Hermione and Lily nodded in agreement, both grinning slyly.
“But how? What? I mean, it has to be good. They aren’t exactly that moronic, even though you might get that impression of them at times…” Lily said thoughtfully, and Hermione, Alice and Mary giggled while sipping wine from their glasses.
They were silent for a while as everyone thought about possible pranks.
“Okay, how about we break into their dorm?” Alice suggested.
Mary frowned. “Yeah, that’s okay but…we have to actually do something in there, not just break in there…” she said thoughtfully.
“Hmm…how about…invisible ink in their toothpaste?” Alice offered, making Hermione and Mary burst in laughter.
“No, absolutely not! You forget that I have to kiss one of them. And who knows how long it will take to wear out…” Lily protested, gulping her glass empty. Mary flicked her wand and all glasses were filled.
Lily gave Mary a withering look, but the brown-haired girl merely shrugged back innocently.
“Okay, what if we just leave a message for them, that they’ll know we were there. I mean, they pride themselves with the fact that no one can enter there without their permission. They must’ve used some wards on their dorm. Which brings me to the next matter. How are we going to enter there?” Lily asked, eyeing the others and chewing her lip in contemplation.
“I can probably dismantle the wards,” Hermione said and shrugged when the others stared at her with their brows lifted. “What? It’s not like we haven’t gone through basic wards in Defence…” she said defensively.
Although they all knew the boys wouldn’t use basic wards if they truly wanted no one to enter their dorm.
“Okay then, that’s settled!” Mary said enthusiastically, filling their glasses once more.
An hour or so later, the girls were all properly tipsy; giggling at every bit of gossip they had and shared.
They talked a bit about Alice’s wedding and the place she and Frank were going to move after Hogwarts. Frank had apparently been gifted some gold by his aunt, to help the new family of two settle down. Their new home was a decent sized cottage, in a small wizarding village not far from Godric’s Hollow.
Mary told them she would be staying with her parents for a while, as she wanted to save money for her own apartment. She had applied for a secretary position in the Administrative Registration Department of the Ministry and had already been given the job based on her OWLs. She would be starting as soon as the school ended. Mary had also applied for the healer training at St Mungo’s, and would work in the Ministry until the training started – if she would get in.
Hermione listened to their plans and wished she too had everything planned like that. Even though she had secured an apprenticeship, she had no idea where she would be living. With Aberforth? She didn’t have enough gold to live on her own. And she didn’t even know if Aberforth would have enough shifts for her to work during the weekends. She sighed inwardly.
“So…there’s something I’ve wanted to tell you…” Lily said excitedly, her voice slurring a bit. “James asked me to move in with him!” Lily squealed, jumping on her bed in excitement.
“Ooh!” Mary and Alice squealed, both beaming at their friend, along with Hermione.
“To Godric’s Hollow?” Hermione asked automatically, and nearly slammed a hand on her mouth when Lily turned to look at her incredulously.
“How in the name of Merlin did you know about it?” Lily asked in a demanding voice.
Hermione winced. Shit…
“Oh…um…James or Sirius must’ve mentioned the place earlier…I mean, it belongs to his family, right?” Hermione asked, and visibly relaxed when Lily smiled and nodded at her.
“Yeah, it does. And although I haven’t seen the cottage yet, he told me it’s beautiful. I can’t wait to move in with him…” she mumbled, her eyes glazing as she stared dreamily ahead.
Perhaps they had enjoyed a bit too much of the wine…
Mary snorted. “Oi! Stop dream-shagging your boyfriend on every surface of your new place!” She said with laughter in her voice. Lily blushed furiously and the others giggled.
“So, Hermione…You’ve been very secretive about your love life…” Alice quipped, eyeing Hermione suspiciously.
Hermione cringed. “What love life?”
Lily rolled her eyes, as did Mary and Alice.
“Oh, please. Don’t tell me you think we haven’t noticed you and a certain…young black-haired boy ogling each other every other second, thinking that no one notices?” Mary asked pointedly.
Hermione’s eyes widened and she turned to look at Lily.
Lily lifted her hands defensively. “I haven’t said anything,” she said with a shrug.
Hermione sighed and turned back to Mary and Alice. “How long have you known?”
Mary and Alice shared a look. “Since our last Quidditch party,” Mary said nonchalantly.
“What?” Hermione stared them in horror. “Since March? How?”
Alice rolled her eyes. “Well, you do remember the drinking game we were playing? With Veritaserum? And when Marley asked you if you’d been with anyone?” She asked, frowning a bit at Marlene’s name.
Hermione nodded. How could she forget that one?
“Well, since we all gathered it was a recent occurrence, we started to pay attention to you. And soon we figured it out,” Alice said and exchanged a devilish grin with Mary.
Mary and Alice tried to high-five but their hands didn’t really meet. After a couple of tries they gave up and turned back to the others.
“So…you communicate with him through a charmed galleon?” Mary asked, eyeing her knowingly while Alice hiccoughed.
Hermione cursed inwardly and looked down. How could she have been so stupid, so careless? And who else knew?
“Hey. We won’t tell anyone. You can trust us,” Alice said, smiling at her kindly.
Hermione eyed the girls. Her friends. Of course she trusted them. She eventually smiled back and nodded. They continued their earlier discussion about the prank they were going to pull on the boys, trying to think of a suitable time when they could put it in action.