Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and any of the characters mentioned hereafter. They belong to the incredible JK Rowling. I am not making a single cent out of this. I wish I did, and was.
[AN: This was just a plot bunny that wouldn't leave me alone in the middle of the night. It threatened never to let me sleep again if I didn't write it. Being a fan of sleep (most of the time), I had no choice but to comply with its demands and make this fanfic. I do apologize for any typos, or incorrect grammar. Please bear with me, my eyesight has become blurry now, and I don't even WEAR glasses! lol.
Inevitably inevitable
`Liberation and the Magical World… Liberation and the Magical World, where are you?' Hermione muttered to herself, as she searched the shelf for her book at the library. It was a beautiful Saturday evening, and she had planned to borrow several books, maybe even do a little bit of light reading, before dinner.
The library was empty, except for two fifth year students studying for the O.W.L.s, a group of giggling second year girls, and Madam Pince, the librarian. Hermione rolled her eyes at the second years, before returning to her book hunt.
`Excuse me,' someone said behind her. She turned around to find herself face to face with one of the second years. The others were staring at them as though waiting to see what would happen.
`Yes?' said Hermione politely, she was, after all, only a second year, and as Head Girl, she should set an example.
`I was, er, wondering if my friends and I could interview you?' she said, glancing at the floor.
Hermione was taken aback.
`Interview? Me?'
The girl nodded fervently. `Yes, if you don't mind,' she said.
`Whatever for?' Hermione asked, putting the other books she had already been holding, to her side.
The girl looked at her shyly, then at her friends. They gave her encouraging looks.
`My, er, my friends and I were wondering if we could interview you for an article for our magazine,' she blurted quickly.
`Magazine?' smiled Hermione. `Aren't you a little young to be working for a magazine?'
`Oh no,' the girl insisted. `This is only for our year. We've started our own little school magazine.'
Impressed at the second years' ambition and determination, Hermione considered the girl's request.
`Hmmm. Well, all right, I guess I have time,' she said, looking at her watch. `I'll just look for my book later.'
The girl lit up, and so did her friends.
`Great!' she exclaimed. `Please, follow me. I'm Lisa, by the way.' She led Hermione to her group of friends, and their table.
`Wow, Hermione Granger actually sitting with us,' said a girl with braids. Hermione smiled despite herself.
`So, do mind if I ask why you chose me for your article?'
`Sure,' said tallest girl. `We thought that our readers should get a genuine account of the relationship between you and Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived,' she said professionally. `And I'm Anne.'
Hermione forgot to breathe, and stared at her as thought she were mad. Relationship between Harry and her?
`My name's May, and our first question is,' said the girl with a ponytail, clipboard all ready, `how long have you and Mr Potter been dating?'
`Excuse me?' Hermione asked, shocked. `Me and Harry? Dating?'
The girls nodded.
`We're not dating,' she explained.
`You're not?' said Lisa.
`No, we're not,' Hermione repeated.
`But… I… thought you were?' said a girl with braids.
`We all thought they were, Hailey,' said the one with long hair.
Hermione raised an eyebrow disbelievingly. `What would give you that impression?'
`Eye-witness accounts, and our own,' Anne told her.
`Eye-witness accounts of what?'
`Oh, you know, long, loving gazes, you fussing over him, cheering him on at Quidditch matches, him following what you say… the usual,' May told her matter-of-factly.
Hermione found all this unbelievable. She couldn't, for the life of her, know why these students thought she and Harry were an item. They completely took their every day interactions out of context.
`Is it true that you first displayed more-than-friendly feelings for Mr Potter three years ago, at King's Cross, by kissing him on the cheek?' asked one of the girls. Hermione couldn't tell which, she was busy wondering what on earth was happening.
`Er, yes. I mean, no. That wasn't a display of anyth-'
`Was Mr Potter really beside himself two years ago, when he thought you had died at the Ministry of Magic?'
`What?'
`Are the rumors true that Mr Potter has secretly proposed to you last week, and you're planning to get married next year?'
`Wait, wait, wait, WAIT!' Hermione yelled.
`Shhh!' hissed Madam Pince. `There will be no yelling in my library, Head Girl!'
She gave the librarian an apologetic expression. Then she turned to the young reporters.
`Let's get one thing straight before I clear off, looking extremely harassed: Harry and I are NOT dating,' she whispered fiercely. `Whatever rumors you heard, they're not true.'
`Even the one about Harry getting a week's detention from Snape after a seventh year Slytherin hit you with a hex earlier this year?' Lisa asked humbly.
`Yeah, that's the one where Harry punched this boy, Malboy, in front of the teachers-' piped up the girl next to Hermione.
`Kate's right. And even though Malboy unfairly hexed other students, Harry only snapped when you were hit, right? Right?' All the girls faced Hermione, who had suddenly gone very quiet.
She smiled slowly. `It's Malfoy, not Malboy. And, no, that's not a rumor. Harry really did get a week's detention from Snape after he had punched Malfoy in front of him. Not a very Head Boy-ish thing to do, really,' she added, smiling even more at the thought. `But that doesn't mean he likes me.'
`As long as it's the first time he's done that, then we'll consider your statement,' said Anne.
`Well,' Hermione said, tilting her head and looking to one side. `it's not exactly the first time. Harry's stood up for me loads of times, and so has Ron, and if you think that I like both of them, you've got another thing-'
`Oh, no,' Kate grinned, shaking her head. `We know he's madly in love with Luna Lovegood, from Ravenclaw.
`Okay…' Hermione said slowly. `But I must insist that Harry and I aren't dating, so you shouldn't write an article about us.'
`All right,' said Lisa, much to the disapproval of her friends. `But you have to answer us poor, naïve second years just one question. Off the record, of course,' she added.
Hermione wasn't so sure. However, since it was off-record, and since they were very nice to her …
`Sure. What is it?'
`How long have you been in love with Harry Potter?' Lisa asked her.
`What makes you think I'm in love with him?' Hermione said, almost speechless.
All the girls grinned gleefully.
`You blushing at the question, among other things,' Lisa revealed, grinning as widely as her friends. May and Hailey clapped with each other, giggling.
`You… girls don't know what you're talking about-' said Hermione, shaking her head. `Well, look at the time, I've got to go meet my friends. Nice talking with you all.' She stood up, gathered all her things, and made to leave the library, but Kate stopped her.
`Wait,' she said. `Before you go, I think you should have this.' She gave Hermione a piece of paper. `We found it at the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. You don't have to open it now, though...'
Hermione smiled at her, then at Lisa and the others.
`You didn't tell me the name of your "magazine",' she teased.
`It's called Shippers Monthly,' said Kate
`Very original,' said Hermione, pocketing the piece of paper.
`That's authentic, by the way!' Lisa yelled, and Madam Pince raced to their table. The last thing she saw was the librarian scolding the group of girls.
***
As Hermione made her way to the Great Hall, she wondered how the second year girls knew of her secret feelings for Harry. Was she that obvious? She must be, if they were about to write an article about Harry and her.
She sighed.
If only it were that easy. He may have done almost everything they had said he did, but she had no proof Harry even felt anything remotely close to how she felt.
A staircase away from the Great Hall, Hermione remembered the piece of paper. She took it out of her pocket, and opened it. To Hermione's astonishment, it said:
Harry loves Hermione
But it wasn't the words that shocked her. It was the penmanship. She recognized it at once: it was Harry's.
A smile broke across Hermione's face, and she suddenly felt a great need to see him, not even knowing what she'd do. What if it wasn't his writing?
Then again, Lisa said they were "authentic".
Finally deciding to find out if the rumors were true, and to find out what would happen if she did something most non-friendly, Hermione entered the Great Hall unceremoniously.
***
There he was.
She found Harry sitting on the Gryffindor table, nursing a bruised arm, and talking to Ron. With very little hesitation, Hermione marched herself right up to young Mr Potter, and before he knew what was happening, kissed him passionately.
Harry was so shocked that he didn't get a chance to even close his eyes, or put his flapping arms down. Hermione pulled away to find most of the school body applauding and cheering, whereupon she bowed her head embarrassingly, and blushed a very deep shade of red. She had momentarily forgotten that the rest of the school were also having dinner.
It took Harry about 2 seconds to fix himself up, and think about how to react. Not that he needed time to think about it. He did the only most obvious and natural thing for him, and, initiated a tender kiss between the two of them. His hands were holding her waist, and she had her arms around his neck.They ended their second kiss smiling lovingly at each other.
Ron's jaw could have reached the floor.
Suddenly very aware most of the Great Hall was staring at himself and Hermione, Harry stood up, grabbed her hand, and left the Hall to several cheers.
`What was that?' Ron asked in a high-pitched tone, clearly appalled.
`Isn't it obvious, Ronald?' said Luna absentmindedly, who had just arrived at the table with a grinning Ginny. `That's what happens when someone realizes she's fallen madly in love with her best friend who was already deeply in love with her, and had just found out she returned his feelings mere seconds after she had kissed him.'
Ron looked at her incredulously. Ginny was giggling, and the few people that were listening to the conversation were trying to laugh silently.
`What?' he said, still high-pitched.
`In other words, Ronald,' Luna replied distractedly. `that's what we Homo Sapiens call, "inevitable".'
***
`Did you get that, Lisa? Did you write that down?'
`I got it, Kate. "That's what we Homo Sapiens call inevitable." Luna Lovegood is brilliant!' Lisa said in awe.
`I agree. Our next article should be about her and Gryffindor Keeper, Ron Weasley. They're so cute! We can call it, "Keeping the Moonlight",' said May.
`What about this month's article?' Hailey asked her friends.
`What else? "Inevitably inevitable",' said Anne.
***
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