Chapter 24 - A Change in the Wind
(A/N -I did sit down and work out the Quidditch cup schedule and results in the alternate timeline to make sure things worked out properly. Actually, if you think about it, this is most likely the order of the matches as they WOULD have happened in canon, if Malfoy's "injury" hadn't caused the first match to be rescheduled.)
"Hermione… What are you doing back here by yourself in the dark? It's been…what, three weeks since I've seen you except in passing in the halls - since before our match with Ravenclaw, right? I don't remember seeing you at Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw today. Gryffindor won, by the way, so they're in the lead for the cup now. Did you even come?"
"Of course I did…to your match, at least." said Hermione in a strangely high-pitched voice, not looking up from the library table where she was trying to read an enormous book about Muggles. "I'm very glad you won that day, Harry, even though that loathsome Malfoy tried to make you fall again…" her voice caught as she said this, "but I need to read this by Monday. I've been spending most of my free time in the library…extra classes, helping Miss Puckle with some research she's working on for Hagrid, you know…doesn't leave much time for Quidditch. I guess that's why you haven't seen me. I'm not all that hard to find, actually…" she said with a weak chuckle.
Harry winced a little as he realized that he hadn't actually looked for her too hard, and with the Marauder's Map in his possession, he really didn't have a good excuse. Since his recent triumph over the Malfoy faction, things had been much more pleasant in the Slytherin Common Room for him, (although much LESS so for the Gruesome Threesome after that 50 point setback, he chuckled), and he had been neglecting his other friend because of his new-found acceptance in his own house. "Time to turn over a new leaf…" he thought.
But as his eyes completely adjusted to the dim candlelight, he noticed something different about his friend. Her skin was pallid, and her bloodshot eyes didn't have their normal energy. "Wait, what's wrong? Have you been crying? Come on, Hermione, you've been studying in this candlelight for too long - you don't have any color in your cheeks. It looks to me like you need to eat something and get outside for a while. I know, come down to the Great Hall with me - late lunch today because of the match, you know, and then we can go outside for a quick walk before it gets dark! Don't make me have to smuggle some food into the library to keep you alive!" he said with a grin. "Wouldn't want to face the wrath of Madam Pince again after our last little scene. Can't imagine how bad it would be if someone brought a sandwich, or, even worse than that, chocolate, in here!"
Hermione couldn't help but grin quickly back at him as she pictured in her mind what Harry had just suggested, but it just as quickly faded. "I'd love to, but I really can't, Harry. I've still got four hundred and twenty-two pages to read! Anyway…I'm still trying to avoid … someone, and he's probably still eating."
"Hmmm…let me guess…" he said, tapping his finger on his chin, pretending to look deep in thought. "Ron's still on about his rat?"
"Right in one, Harry…although it wasn't that hard to figure out." As she saw him trying so hard to make her smile, it almost worked for a second. "It's just…as if he expects me to apologize to him for what he thinks Crookshanks may have done. He won't even consider that his rat died on its own, or just ran off or something…it's been weeks, now. He keeps on bringing up how MUCH he misses his rat…how much Scabbers liked some disgusting treat or another… I just had to…get out of there when he started in again this morning," her voice trailed off with an audible sob and her eyes threatened to spill over again with tears.
Harry, who was honestly pretty convinced that Crookshanks was the prime suspect, was even surer that it wouldn't be a good idea to point out that evidence to Hermione in her current state. <I just know I'd get my head bit off if I said that…>he thought to himself. To her, he said, "Well, I'm glad you didn't go run off to your room instead of coming down here where I could find you. I actually thought you might have been avoiding me for some reason. Hermione, do you think it would help if I said something to him…ask him to give you a break? I hate to see anyone, especially you, crying like this."
"No, Harry, I doubt it. Miss Puckle assures me that he'll grow out of it eventually. I guess I'll just have to trust her on that, though - I don't see it happening any time soon." Hermione sighed, wiped her eyes quickly on the back of her sleeve and said, "Now, did you want to see me about something? Surely you had some reason to come look for me, after all this time?"
"Oh, yeah…well, never mind about that, Hermione. I just wanted to make sure you're okay." She nodded, and silently indicated her books, her quill, and her parchment would keep her company. He continued, "You needn't worry about it…besides, I think you answered my question. See you later…I've got to go do something," he said as he left. Right before she went out of his sight, he noticed her waving goodbye and smiling (for the first time in weeks, truth be told) before she turned back to her studies.
Harry had actually used the map to find her that day, because he had finally decided he was ready to ask Hermione about the Cho "flash" that he had seen. He had thought about it occasionally over the past three weeks, and he had been completely at a loss as to what it meant. But, as he talked to her, Harry had just realized something important. When he "saw" Cho Chang crying, he felt…well, useless… uncomfortable… bewildered, really, as to what to do, as she was obviously upset with him in the vision he had. When he saw Hermione crying in the library, he felt…sad, of course, but …like he wanted to help her, do whatever he could to take away the pain she was feeling. <Better go find Ron and have a talk with him…he really shouldn't be treating her that way! Then, I'm bringing her some chocolate, even if I have to drag her out of here to eat it!>
****
Harry wasn't able to get to see Ron the rest of that day, though, since all of Gryffindor was still in their common room. They were celebrating because they were favored for winning the Quidditch Cup for the first time since Charlie Weasley played for them. All they had to do was beat Hufflepuff, which was expected to lose to Slytherin in the next match, and they would clinch the cup. If, however, Hufflepuff pulled off at least one upset, there could be a tie between Gryffindor and Slytherin, depending on the actual scores of the matches. Since Gryffindor had offered a rematch to Slytherin after Harry's fall during the first match, that was being considered seriously by Dumbledore as a way to resolve a possible tie.
When he snuck back into the library using the invisibility cloak with a slab of Honeyduke's finest chocolate, he was unable to find her at the table she had been working at. When he checked the map, he saw that she was with Miss Puckle in her office, and he relaxed a little. <Well, Miss Puckle surely won't let her starve…I just wish she'd get outside a little more. They must be working on that research for Hagrid that she mentioned…wonder what that's all about?>
The next morning, his planned talk with Ron was completely forgotten in the excited gossip that was surging through the castle before breakfast. Apparently, from the stories Harry pieced together, Sirius Black (who had gotten the password to Gryffindor Tower from Neville Longbottom somehow) had attempted to kill Ron in his bed the previous night. As he entered the Great Hall that morning, Harry noticed a large group of students gathered around the Gryffindor table. At the center of the pack, obviously flushed with all the attention, was Ron Weasley himself. Harry moved close enough to listen for a while without attracting attention. To hear Ron tell it, as he seemed to really enjoy doing repeatedly to whomever would listen, he barely escaped with his life by yelling at Black and scaring him off. Harry found the whole story to be very suspect, starting with the fact that a known murderer would be unable to kill a sleeping boy in his bed just because he yelled, not to mention the continued incongruity of Black continuing to attack a resident of Gryffindor Tower instead of going after his reported prey. "Surely he must have figured out where I am by now? Unless Azkaban addled his brain so much that he can't tell where he's at? Hold on…maybe he's been after Ron all along? No, that makes NO sense whatsoever."
Finally, a few days later, Harry ran into Ron, alone for once, his "pack" of admirers apparently tired of listening to the same story over and over again.
Ron, who thought that he found another listening ear to regale with his adventure, smiled at him. "Hey, Harry…did you hear about what happened to me? I haven't seen you for a while! I was…"
"…attacked by Sirius Black…I know, I've heard." <…more times than I care to, thank you very much!> he added to himself grimly. "How are you doing, anyway?"
"Oh, just fine, Potter! I mean, he must have really been scared when I yelled at him, so…"
"Yes, I know, Ron! I was just trying to be polite."
Ron looked at him with disappointment, but decided not to pursue it from the look on Harry's face as they walked down the corridors together. Harry couldn't get a word in edgewise, as Ron was monopolizing the conversation.
"So, Potter - you heard about this weekend, eh? Hogsmeade again! Oh, yeah, that reminds me," Ron said, pulling a very mashed looking bag out of his robes, where it had obviously been forgotten for a while, "here's those Zonko's tricks I told you about! Fred and George got them for me somehow. Sorry they're a bit…used, but I forgot until just now. By the way, are you going to sneak down there again like last time…with that map you found, you know? Oh, yeah, Potter, I meant to talk to you about something. This last Christmas, Fred and George only got me a single Bertie Bott's Bean each for a present…one of them was corned beef flavored, and the other one tasted like ear wax…bleah! Anyway, when Mum and Dad yelled at them for being so cheap, they said something about having a much better present for me, but a teacher confiscated it so they had to settle for the beans. They also had some excuse about buying an entire box of them each, but by the time they got back to school, those two were all that were left. Later, I cornered them and asked them about what they were going to give me. They laughed, and told me all about the map, thinking I surely wouldn't believe them, I suppose. I pretended that I thought they were just taking the mickey out on me, that there was no such thing as a map like that. That's exactly what I would have felt, by the way, if I hadn't seen you with the very thing that day in Hogsmeade. So, how did you do it, Harry? How did you steal it from the twins? Did you see them with it one day, and set them up to be caught by Lupin? I think you owe me something. Looks like you've got my property somehow!"
"What's this, Potter? Did I just hear Weasley say you stole something from him?" For once, Harry was not glad to hear Professor Snape's voice. "Why would you want to steal something from someone who has so little to begin with?" Snape sneered, looking askance at Ron's too-short, hand-me-down robes. "Although," he continued silkily, "it does sound like something a Slytherin would think of…nevertheless, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, to my office, now! We'll get to the bottom of this! It is times like this that I almost regret banning Draco for the rest of the year! But, considering your father's tendency to ignore the rules, I'm honestly not surprised you're indulging in a little larceny." Harry's eyes narrowed at this, but he said nothing as they walked towards the Potions Master's office.
Snape escorted Harry inside, while having Ron sit outside as was his usual practice to make sure student's stories remained independent. As he closed the door, Harry turned on him and said, with anger rising in his voice, "So…what was that remark you made about my father? The headmaster told me one time that you knew him…and a few other things about the two of you, too."
Snape's voice, none too charming under the best of conditions, got more and more menacing as he spoke. "Potter, I am getting tired of your cheek! Must I remind you that I AM your head of house, and I EXPECT that you will speak to me accordingly? Ever since you were sorted into my house, instead of Gryffindor as was expected by…well, everyone, including me…I have tried to overlook my…shall we say, unpleasant memories associated with your father. I have intervened on your behalf on many occasions, including with the Malfoys and most recently with Flint. But, as time goes on, I find it increasingly difficult to do so. How extraordinarily like your father you are, Potter…"
*****
Afterwards, in Miss Puckle's office, Remus was explaining his recent actions. "Of course you can understand just WHY I had to confiscate the map from Harry, don't you, Harmony…er…I mean, Hermione? Now, what do you want to do with it? It wouldn't do to let Severus have a chance to study it …although I must admit I was pleased to see our Snape Insult charms are still working so well after all this time! Greasy git, anyway - he always wanted to figure out what we were doing with that old parchment all the time. He tried to steal it whenever he thought he could get away with it, and almost succeeded once or twice, so we added those insults just in case he was successful. Eventually, given enough time, he would have figured it out, though…and that would have put your cover story at risk, too, as you well know!"
Harmony nodded, but said quickly. "Remember, Remus, please only call me Harmony. I'd hate to have you slip up when someone might accidentally overhear."
"Yes, I know that, of course…it's just…well, my nose tells me one thing, and my eyes tell me another, and I forget sometimes…sorry! I'm just glad I was able to convince the map that you were Miss Puckle, not Miss Granger. If Snape had ended up working the map, he would have noticed that bit of jimmying right away, most likely. I'm actually surprised Harry hasn't done so…"
****
Harry, however, was at the moment otherwise occupied. Between Snape's tirade and the chewing out he had received from Lupin, he had been in a very bad mood until he saw someone walking towards him, obviously upset.
"Hermione! I was about to say that it was good to see you out and about, but…it looks like you're not any happier than you were the last time I saw you. Is something wrong?"
"Yes…" said Hermione, tearfully. She was holding a letter in her hands and her lip was trembling. "I just thought you ought to know…Hagrid lost his case. Buckbeak is going to be executed. He - he sent me this," holding out the letter.
"Hagrid…Buckbeak? Executed? Huh? What are you on about, Hermione? Oh…yeah, the whole Malfoy fake injury thing…don't tell me anyone actually believed that git was hurt seriously?" He read the damp and smudged letter that Hagrid had written to Hermione, thanking her for the help she had given them. "Oh…I guess they did! So, you've been helping…with the defense, then? Is that why you've been spending so much time by yourself in the library?"
"Well, Miss Puckle's been helping me some, of course. She gave me a lot of good ideas…but yes, I've been spending a lot of time on it."
"But why, Hermione? Yeah, I know that Buckbeak's not really dangerous, and he shouldn't be executed just because Malfoy is too stupid to listen to instructions, but…well, it IS just a hippogriff, you know…I mean, why should you care what happens to it? Hagrid's already got a whole herd, doesn't he? What difference does one more make?"
"Oh, Harry…you don't know much about hippogriffs, do you?" He looked at her, slightly confused. "Miss Puckle told me all about them while we've been working on the case. They are very special magical creatures…they symbolize something that's supposed to be impossible…well, never mind about the details," she said, quickly blushing, "let's just say that it is a really sad thing to have one of them die unnecessarily!"
As he heard Hermione's voice enter "lecture mode", in the back of Harry's mind was a feeling of déjà vu as he realized that he at one time did know more about hippogriffs. "Hermione," he said, "are you sure you've never told me about this before? I seem to remember having this conversation with you…but I don't remember anything else about it!"
"No, Harry, I'm sure I've never…" her voice trailed off as she considered his question for a second. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve and said, "But Harry, never mind that now. We've got to do something! Obviously Malfoy's dad frightened the Ministry into it. You know what he's like. They're a bunch of doddery old fools, and they were scared. There'll be an appeal, though, there always is. Only I can't see any hope…Nothing will have changed."
"Yeah, it will," said Harry, surprising even himself with his conviction. "You and Miss Puckle won't have to do all the work by yourself this time, Hermione. I'll help."
"Oh, Harry!"
Hermione flung her arms around Harry's neck and broke down completely. Harry was quite surprised that she was in his arms, sobbing. As it was, he returned the hug cautiously at first, but then with more …well, participation. He decided pretty quickly, as his senses filled with the smell, sounds, and touch that he was experiencing, that he would be happy just letting her stand there as long as she wanted. Finally, Hermione drew away, blushing, as she had realized what she had been doing.
"Erm… Harry, I…well, I didn't mean to cry on your shoulder so long. Your robe is soaked through! Sorry about that! It's just that…well, I've been so busy…and tired…and no one else was interested…Miss Puckle has her classes to take care of, so she could only do so much. I even asked Ron for some help out of desperation, and you can guess what his reaction was! Stupid rat…it's caused much more trouble than it's worth. Thank you so much for the offer! After last year, I think we do well together…researching, that is!"
As he walked back to his room after escorting her back to the Gryffindor Tower entrance, ("See, Harry, we have trolls guarding our entrance now," she pointed out rather unnecessarily) he realized that it was the first time that he could remember in his entire life where someone had actually hugged him intentionally, not counting the broom closet incident. "Well, it looks like I have another pleasant memory to use if I need to chase off any more dementors!" he thought happily. "Wonder when we're going to do some more… research?"
Fortunately for Harry, Slytherin had their Care of Magical Creatures with Gryffindor, so they were able to work on their plan of attack then. They had heard from Hagrid what had happened at the hearing, and the two of them tried to reassure him that they would do all they could to work together on the appeal. Harry found himself once again looking forward to their library time, working on another special project as they had done during second year.
One day, they were walking back up to the castle with Hagrid, Ron and the rest of the class. Ron was still barely talking to either of them, (having still not forgiven Harry about losing the map himself), but he had been talking to Hagrid and found himself stuck with them as they climbed. Ahead, they could see the Gruesome Threesome, looking back, laughing derisively at Hagrid's emotional state as he ran back towards his cabin, crying in his handkerchief.
"Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic?" said Malfoy, "And he's supposed to be our teacher!"
Harry and Ron both made furious moves toward Malfoy, but Hermione got there first - SMACK!
She had slapped Malfoy across the face with all the strength she could muster. Malfoy staggered. Harry, Ron, Crabbe, and Goyle stood flabbergasted as Hermione raised her hand again.
"Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul - you evil -…"
"Hermione!" said Ron weakly, and he tried to grab her hand as she swung it back.
"Get off, Ron!"
Hermione pulled out her wand. Malfoy stepped backward. Crabbe and Goyle looked at him for instructions, thoroughly bewildered.
"C'mon," Malfoy muttered, and in a moment, all three of them had disappeared into the passageway to the dungeons.
"Hermione!" Ron said again, sounding both stunned and impressed.
"Harry, you'd better make sure you never give him the chance to play Seeker for Slytherin again!" Hermione said shrilly. "You better keep that fancy broom of yours in good shape so he'll never be able to buy his way back on to the team like last time! I can't stand him!"
"We're due in Charms," said Ron, still goggling at Hermione. "We'd better go!"
"Yeah, and I've got Divination, then we switch, right?" Harry said. "See you later, you too! Oh, and Ron, best not get her mad at you - she's got a pretty wicked slap there!" he said with a wink at Hermione. She grinned shyly back at him and waved quickly as they separated to their different classes.
***
"Hey, Harry! Did you hear what Hermione did after you left us today?" For some reason, Ron had seemed to forget their argument about the map in light of Hermione's attack on Malfoy.
"What was it this time?" Harry asked with a grin, trying to come up with the most outlandish scenario he could think of. "Let me guess…she skived off Charms and stormed out of Divination…" As Ron's jaw dropped in astonishment, he said "Wow…does Trelawney know about you? Or did someone already tell you? Because you were spot on, you know!"
"I was only joking, Ron! You're not serious, are you? I mean, when you asked that, I said the first thing that popped into my head…and you're telling me that's really what happened? Hermione, skipping a Charms class AND telling off a teacher, after nearly flooring Malfoy?" Well, some day Hermione's having, eh?"
"Stop it, Harry, you're really scaring me…that's exactly what I was going to say. You really need to go talk to Trelawney about this."
"What, that old fraud? Every time I'm in there I feel like I'll be lucky to see the next sunset, you know. Apparently I have the shortest lifeline known to man, and the Grim is embedded in everything I come in contact with, including my underwear, probably."
"Harry…please, no more mentions of your…well, you know, underwear? I mean, that's an image I can live without. It's bad enough having to share a dorm with other guys you're not related to, you know!"
"Tell me about it. But, before you complain too much, just think who I have for dorm mates…You haven't seen anything until you've seen Crabbe and Goyle starkers…and Malfoy, too, come to think of it…well, never mind that. Blaise, at least, knows to wear a towel when he comes out of the shower. I swear I'm going to have to do a memory charm on myself after we leave Hogwarts just to clear those images out."
"HARRY! Thanks a lot, mate! Now I'm going to be having nightmares myself! Yeah, a memory charm…great idea, thanks! I hear Miss Puckle is pretty good at them. Maybe she'll help us out…without giving us the rest of the treatment, eh?" The two boys laughed, but then winced as they thought of what had happened to Lockhart.
Harry decided to take advantage of the thaw in their relationship. "Ron, can I talk to you about something…well, actually someone?"
"Sure, Harry…what is it?"
Well, it's…Hermione…and how you've been treating her."
At the mention of Hermione's name, the tips of Ron's ears reddened. "Serves her right, Harry! She's always going on about how that…beast of hers would NEVER do something so…natural as to eat a rat. Bollocks! I mean, honestly, to use her favorite expression, I find blood all over my bedsheets where Scabbers sleeps, and on the floor, ginger-colored CAT hairs, and I haven't seen Scabbers since then! Just what AM I supposed to think?"
"Easy, Ron…yeah, I know all that. In fact, truth be known, I agree that makes the most sense based on everything you said. But just WHY do you keep on her about it? I mean, it IS a cat, you know, and like you just said, it IS natural for cats to eat rats…"
"Oh, yeah, that's right, stick up for Hermione, I knew you would! If I didn't know better, Potter, I'd say you have a …thing…for that little bookworm!"
"Sorry? Did you just say you think I have a …thing…for her? That's codswallop! I mean…well, yeah, she's nice and all, but, look at her, she's in Gryffindor and I'm in Slytherin, for starters. It's not like we see each other all the time, like you and her can!" Ron's ears reddened even more at that, and Harry had a crazy thought. "Oh…so that's it, is it? You're the one that fancies her, aren't you? Don't tell me you're jealous!"
Ron muttered something that, if taken literally, would be impossible for Harry to do (even with magic), and stormed off towards the Gryffindor Tower.
*****
Harry, however, had a lot of other things to worry about. While Slytherin had beaten Hufflepuff in their match in February, Gryffindor had ended up losing in March by a score that caused an unprecedented tie in the standings, both in win-loss record (2-1 each) and in points scored vs. allowed, so the Gryffindor-Slytherin rematch was scheduled to take place on the first Saturday after the Easter holidays, winner-take-all.
Never, in anyone's memory, had a match approached in such a highly charged atmosphere. Madam Pomfrey (helped by Miss Puckle) was kept busy sorting out a number of more interesting curses and jinxes.
Harry was having a particularly bad time of it, unfortunately much of it coming from his own house. After his run-in with Professor Snape earlier in the year, he had been relegated back to "persona-non-grata" with most of Slytherin house, Blaise's group still a notable exception. While Malfoy was, of course, still banned from Quidditch for the match, this just increased his desire to cause Harry harm, or, failing that, embarrassment. Harry, of course, hadn't forgotten Malfoy's attempt to sabotage him in the match against Ravenclaw, but it was the matter of Buckbeak that made him most determined to win in spite of Malfoy's best efforts, which seemed to consisted of having Crabbe and Goyle trying to trip him up or hex him when they thought no one was looking. That, combined with the verbal digs from Gryffindor house members (with at least one exception, Harry noted gratefully), made it difficult for him to go nearly anywhere. Harry also asked Professor Dumbledore to secure his Firebolt, since under the circumstances he felt it wasn't safe in his room.
The night before the match, Harry slept badly, having strange dreams about trying to avoid flying dragons, even though he realized he needed his Firebolt to do it and he didn't know how to get it.
He woke up, put on his invisibility cloak, and went outside for a walk to try to clear his head. The grounds were still and quiet. No breath of wind disturbed the treetops in the Forbidden Forest; the Whomping Willow that Professor Sprout had taught them about in Herbology that year was motionless and innocent-looking. It looked as though the conditions for the match would be perfect.
Harry, who was once again getting sleepy in the early morning air, was about to return to his room when something caught his eye. An animal of some kind was prowling across the silvery lawn. It was…Crookshanks? Harry recognized the bottlebrush tail even from a distance. Or was it only Crookshanks? Harry looked closer, and was sure he could see something else moving in the shadow of the trees too. It…was the Grim, Crookshanks trotting at its side. Harry quickly returned back to the castle, even more confused as to what he had just seen.
*****
It was turning into the dirtiest game Harry had ever played. Gryffindor's team of Chasers, who had worked together for years now, began the match scoring quickly and often. Slytherin's new Chaser, on the other hand, was found to have a disturbing tendency to drop the Quaffle whenever a Bludger came near him. This affected Slytherin's strategy significantly, and it took some time before they could adapt their plays. As a result, Harry's teammates started resorting to physical attacks, starting with extra elbowing, followed by the beaters swinging their clubs at anything that moved, regardless of whether a Bludger was anywhere in the area, and direct attacks on Gryffindor's keeper, Wood. This resulted in additional penalties assessed against Slytherin, making the deficit even greater.
After two hours of fierce playing, in which Madam Hooch actually complained about how tired she was of blowing her whistle against both teams (Gryffindor finally resorting to limited retaliation after some of the harder fouls against their teammates,) the score was 300 to 160 in favor of Gryffindor. Harry knew that if he could only catch the Snitch, they would still win the cup by 10 points overall.
And then, he saw it, a tiny golden glimmer, just hovering above the grass. Unfortunately, the Gryffindor Seeker was much closer to that end of the pitch and had quite a head start, having seen Harry react to his sighting. Harry urged the Firebolt downward, but he wasn't sure he could make it in time.
"GO! GO! GO!" Harry wasn't sure, but he thought he heard Hermione's voice urging him on, and he flattened himself to his broomstick and urged it to go faster. He threw himself forward, took both hands off his broom, and grabbed the Snitch right out from under the Gryffindor Seeker's nose, where it had flown at the last second.
"YES!"
****
Harry, while very excited about winning the cup, was even happier at what happened afterwards. After the cup was presented to a smirking Severus Snape once again, Harry walked slowly back towards the castle. From the looks he had received during the presentation, he knew that his presence in any Slytherin House celebration parties that night would not be welcome, even though he was the supposed hero of the match. None of that mattered to him as he walked past the locker rooms, as soon as he heard a quiet voice calling his name from the shadows.
"Harry…Harry, come over here. Shhh…don't let anyone see you, please. It probably wouldn't be too good for me if my housemates saw me with you right now."
"Hermione, is that you?" Harry said as he walked closer and peered into the darkened passageway.
"Yes, Harry. I know this may be strange, coming from a Gryffindor, but I was proud of you today for winning that match. I watched you quite closely, and you never participated in any of the fouling that both teams were doing. You flew brilliantly, you know! Even I could tell that, and, you know I'm not a big Quidditch fan!"
"Hermione…was that you I heard yelling 'GO! GO! GO!' right before I caught the Snitch? I was so shocked that a Gryffindor was cheering for me that I almost fell off my broom again!" he said, teasingly.
"Oh, Harry, don't EVEN joke about that!" she smiled weakly. "Yes, it was me. I didn't know if you could hear me or not. I'm glad you didn't fall off, though!"
"Me, too, come to think of it. Flint's threat to take me down to the dementors still stands, I'm afraid. Thanks, Hermione, for talking to me. You…I mean, it means a lot to me. Is that all you wanted me to come over here for?"
"Well, there is one more thing, Harry…"
(A/N - This chapter is, as you may have figured out from the title, extremely important in not just this year, but for the other two years too. I hope you noticed that I tried to reduce my "canon" breaks, instead writing out most of the key scenes. The biggest section I left out was Snape's scene with Harry and Lupin, but it is just the same as canon. I just had to include Hermione's attack on Malfoy, because I have always loved it! One more thing…no, I don't hate Ron in canon, or in this story. It's just that I think that under the circumstances of this time-loop, I think this is how he would react, especially to Hermione, without Harry acting as a buffer.)