Author's Note: I feel as if I'd written myself into a corner, or something like that. All of you are expecting a good reason for Hermione's actions, and I fear that the reason I provide isn't sufficient. I'll go more into it at the end of the chapter.
I mentioned before that this story is based on a challenge. It's called "Harry's Broken Broom" and can be found in PK's forum. I haven't followed it very well.
Anyway, this one's a shorter chapter; sorry, that's how the page breaks (get it? Page break? Whoa, where do I come up with them?!). But the next one should be longer, so in the end, it's really of average-length.
Chapter Five
I felt as if I had been blindsided by a raging Hippogriff. I stared at Hermione in shock, and I could only come up with one response: "What?"
But then I came up with another: "Why?" I tried to think of a few more, and I did move my mouth up and down a few times, but my thought processes had come to a screeching halt.
Hermione, on the other hand, had plenty to say. "Harry, listen, okay? It's not as bad as you think; I mean, it's bad, but it's not that bad. Oh dear. You see, Terry's parents are going to buy him a new broom and he was curious about your Firebolt and asked me to ask you if he could try it out for a minute. And I tried, I really tried to ask you before, but, you know, things have been a little…awkward between us, and I could never find the right time. But Terry kept bothering me about it because his parents wanted to know right away, and I know that's no excuse, but I figured with tryouts here that you wouldn't need it and wouldn't miss it, and I could just borrow it for an hour and return it to you. And I would have, except Terry isn't nearly as good a flier as he thinks he is and he crashed. I would have told you right away, but Terry was so afraid that you'd be mad at him and kill him and he promised that he could have it fixed because his uncle has a broom shop and could fix it, but then his uncle said he couldn't do it so I said we should tell you but Terry said he could find another way, and then tryouts ended early and you found out and…and…and I'm so sorry Harry! I've never been more sorry in my life, honest! But it'll be okay, because Terry can get it fixed and then everything will be fine. I mean, it won't be fine right away, but it will be fine eventually because we've been friends for so long and I know that-"
"Fine? Fine?!" I roared, startling her and causing her to take a step backwards. "You actually think that everything will be fine?!"
Hermione wiped at her eyes. "Yes! I mean, no, I mean eventually things will-"
"Things will never be fine between us, understand? Stay away from me, Hermione."
I pushed past her towards Boot, but then I felt her hand on my arm. "Harry, please-"
I moved so quickly she didn't have a chance to react, my face suddenly inches from hers. "Walk out of here while you're still can, Hermione," I said in a low voice, almost a whisper. She stood still for a moment with wide eyes, though if it were from fear or surprise, I didn't really much care at the moment. Then she fled for the door. I looked around at the rest of the people gathered in the room. "And that goes for the rest of you too…get out!"
While the rest of the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were smart enough to bolt, apparently Anthony didn't have the sense to know when to use discretion and when to use valor. "Now, Harry," he said after a moment, in a voice dripping with calm and reason as he gestured about the room, "I think we should call Professor Flitwick now…I mean, don't you think you're enough trouble as it is?"
My hand flexed for a moment as I considered banishing him through the open doorway. But then reason prevailed. I smiled. "Sure Anthony, that's a good idea."
He looked taken aback. "What?"
"Yeah, you should call Professor Flitwick. A student shouldn't be able to just walk into another House and start tearing up the place, right?"
Anthony was smart enough to look suspicious at my sudden change in attitude. Ron, on the other hand, looked as if I'd just said that Quidditch was a silly activity with rules that made no sense. "Er…right Harry, I'm glad you see things my way," Anthony said, moving towards the door.
"However," I said, "I'd hate for Professor Flitwick to find out that the Head Boy and Head Girl attacked a fellow student, in the back and unprovoked, no less."
Anthony turned and looked at me.
"Surely there must be some sort of penalty for that. Do you think they'll lose their badges, Ron?"
Ron stifled a smile and tried to look somber. "Oh, at least! I can't imagine Dumbledore would let them stay as Head Boy and Head Girl after something like that."
Anthony looked between us. "But-"
"And after Hogwarts, surely any potential employer will notice that, though you started the year as Head Boy, you didn't finish it as Head Boy," I continued.
"And," Ron said quickly, "when they find out that you attacked Harry Potter, the saviour of the wizarding world…well, I don't fancy your chances of getting a job once that tidbit gets out."
Anthony just stood silently in place. "Hey Ron," I said, "Would you mind getting the professor? I'd like to get all the punishments over with, and I'm sure Anthony feels the same."
Ron nodded and put his hand on the doorknob when Anthony said, "No wait! I, uh, don't think that's necessary. This is probably something that we can take care of without the professors, don't you think?"
"Good. I'm glad you see things my way," I said, parroting his own words from moments before. Then I stepped closer to him, my eyes narrowed. "Now shut up and get the hell out of here before you start to annoy me."
Anthony blanched and then quickly made for the door, Ron shutting it behind him. I turned back to look at Boot, who hadn't moved from where I had last banished him. "Harry, I'm-"
"So, what happened, eh Boot? Thought you were good enough to take my broom for a spin?"
"I-"
"But you couldn't, could you? It was way too much broom for you to handle, eh? Lost control and crashed, did you?" And then I remembered the time last month when Boot had been in the hospital wing after an accident at Quidditch practice. I remember feeling bad for the guy, having been through more than enough Quidditch-related accidents of my own. I didn't feel bad for him anymore.
"Harry, I-"
"Shut it!" I said, raising a hand to rub my temples. I suddenly felt very tired - tired of all of this, though I was amused to see him flinch when I moved my hand. I just wanted it to be over. And besides, I couldn't think of a suitable way to punish the guy. I didn't want a replacement broom from him, or really anything from him that would remind me of this whole event. I had already flung him across the room a couple of times, and doing something nastier than that really wasn't in my nature (especially since most of the anger that I was feeling had ebbed away). After a tense moment of silence, I looked back at Boot.
"Watch your back, Boot, and take care not to do anything that might upset me," I said and then left the room. Playing mind games with the kid was all that I had the energy for. I stepped into the hallway, which immediately cleared of people. Ron followed and closed the door behind us.
"That's it?" he asked, the disappointment clear in his voice.
"Yeah, that's it," I said as I slumped against the wall. By now, the full weight of what Hermione had done finally sunk in. She actually stole my broom to give to him! And then lied about it when she knew that I was looking for it! And then took points from me when she could have just told me that Malfoy didn't have it! And then she actually tried to stun me when-
"Ron, what are you doing?" I asked curiously; he was fidgeting so much that it distracted me from my thoughts.
He looked anxious. "Well, I'm…um…I mean I'm trying to…"
I straightened, suddenly alarmed. I tried to back up, but I was already against the wall. "Mate…you're not trying to give me a…a hug, are you?"
Ron shrugged helplessly. "I, uh…well…isn't that what friends do when something like this happens?"
I nodded slowly. "Yeah, they do…if you're a girl."
"Oh, right…um, want me to get Ginny then? Or maybe Luna? She's right downstairs; I can just run down for a second and-"
"No, no," I said, waving my hands. "That's all right. Just a friendly - manly - pat on the shoulder should be fine."
Ron gave me an encouraging smile and patted me on the shoulder. "It'll be okay, Harry."
I nodded and put my hand on his shoulder. "Thanks." I knew that it was really the only thing he could say at the moment, but I somehow doubted it would be true. And for the first time in my life, I actually wished there was a cupboard somewhere nearby where I could hide for a bit.
*********
A/N: Okay, here's where I unsatisfactorily attempt to explain Hermione's behavior, at least as how I'd envisioned it. Skip if you're not interested.
For years, Hermione's spent her time worrying about Harry and Voldemort. She's been so focused on keeping Harry alive, that she never really looked at him as anything other than the best friend that she has to keep alive. She hadn't had the opportunity to reflect upon her own feelings of Harry, and whether or not they go beyond friendship. So, that's why she rejected Harry in the first place - she's stuck in that "I think of him as a brother" mentality (which, personally, I feel that Harry's kiss with Cho may have started Hermione on the path away from friendship, but I digress).
In addition, she hasn't had the chance to lead a normal life. Even though she looks down on the antics of Lavender and Pavarti, she's still a girl and likes "girl" things (what those might be, though, is a complete mystery to me). With Voldemort gone, Hermione sees that she is now free to be normal. That's why she starts a "relationship" with Terry Boot. They've never actually dated (which Hermione may eventually tell Harry, if I remember later), but certainly a young girl like Hermione, who's used to being called a bookworm, will feel flattered by the attentions of a guy who's always complemented her intellect and respond accordingly. She's basically just flirting and enjoying the moment, like many teenagers would, rather than think about the future, which is what she's been doing for six years.
So when Terry asks Hermione to borrow Harry's broom, she says sure. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, except Hermione knows Harry probably wouldn't react all that well after she denied his expression of love. So, while she tries to ask, she just can't build up the courage because she knows a) he'll say yes because he's just like that, and b) he'll be hurt by her request. But when Harry has to go through pro scouting and must leave his broom behind, Hermione figures it's the perfect opportunity to just take the broom for a couple of hours and return it. It would have gone perfectly, had not Terry crashed it.
Have you ever had something unpleasant to tell someone, but put if off? And the more you put it off, the harder it was to tell them? Well, that's where Hermione found herself once Harry realized his broom was missing. She couldn't bring up the courage to tell Harry that night (which is why she wanted him to sleep on it so she could think about what to do), and after taking points off in a moment of desperation, it became that much harder to come clean.
I hope that's sufficient. If not, then you're free to say so, but the story moves on regardless.
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