Story Title: Time, Interrupted
Chapter Title: Snap
Author: Madm_05
Rating: Strong PG-13/T
Warnings: Malicious Malfoys ahead
Chapter Word Count: 5,745
Date: 12 January 2007
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and everyone else from Potterverse belong to JKR.
Chapter Twenty Three: Snap
Harry and Hermione stood, side - by - side, waiting for everyone to arrive. The sun was shining brightly outside, rays streaking down through the widows in the foyer. The weather was wonderful that day- there a few clouds in the sky and there was a fine summer breeze outside.
A mere seven days had passed since the boggart had made it's appearance. It had been a quiet week, with no one daring to bring up the boggart and the fears it had literally brought to life. They had all wordlessly agreed that they would simply pretend that it had not happened, silently agreeing that the topic was taboo. Not even Harmony brought up that scary day when she saw a pile of broken toys.
The only problems, that Hermione could see, were a few differences in the way Sirius acted. He seemed quieter now, much less boisterous, and more pensive. Hermione had caught him staring at Harry several times, and would promptly sneeze or drop something to make him look away. He was quieter when he spoke, too. It was as if he thought talking softly would keep Harry from turning into the next Dark Lord.
Now I see why I'm not allowed to tell anyone the truth, she had thought. Now that Sirius knows part of the truth, he's acting differently. If I'm not careful, someone will figure out what's going on, then more people will start acting differently, and treating Harry differently, then it's entirely possible he'll still turn into a Dark Lord!
Harry, for his part, had looked as though he wanted to ask her about her Boggart. She could see the questions burning in his emerald eyes every time she looked at him. Why did that man have a scar like mine? Why are you afraid of him? As time passed and the memories faded it was becoming easier to distract him. Luckily, he was easy to distract.
Aside from keeping Sirius from giving too much away and keeping Harry from asking too many questions, the week had been very enjoyable for the children of Grimmauld Place. Because Harry was turning seven on his birthday, Sirius had decided he would have seven chore - free days. Privately, Hermione was sure it had something to do with the Boggart as well, but she didn't argue, since if Harry didn't have chores, it meant she didn't either.
Instead, they had spent their time outside, chasing each other around, and practicing their wandless magic. As far as Hermione could tell, they could fly roughly as fast as they could run. Granted, neither of them were very fast, but the fact that they could fly at all was amazing, and still left Sirius and Remus in awe.
Harry had also begun trying to teach Hermione a little bit of parseltongue. It turned out that it was possible to learn to speak the snake language- she just couldn't understand what a snake was saying. As she wasn't a parselmouth herself, she couldn't hear what a snake was saying at any given time as Harry could, but she was slowly but surely learning to mimic the language itself. So far she had learned the formal greeting for a snake, and how to say 'please don't hurt me'. It wasn't much, but Hermione felt it was better than nothing.
And so on July thirty first, Harry, Hermione, Sirius, Remus, Tonks and little Harmony were standing by the door, meeting and greeting. The entire Weasley clan, along with the last remaining Malfoy, had already arrived, and the group was waiting on the Tonks' to appear.
"Does he really have to be here?" Harry asked darkly, glaring at Malfoy, who glared back.
"Yes, Harry, so be nice," Sirius replied. "You said you wanted to invite the Weasleys to your birthday, and Draco lives with them. It would have been rude to ask the other Weasleys to come and not invite him." He smiled down at Harry. "Besides, it's not every day that you turn seven! You should be excited Harry."
"I wouldn't mind being rude and not invite Draco," Harry grumped. "He's not very much fun anyways."
Hermione smiled fondly at him then nudged her friend and nodded at Ron. "Do you think we should go ahead and ask him to be our friend now?" She asked. Harry's frown deepened, and Hermione could tell that, despite his words a week earlier, he was still hesitant to become fiends with Ron.
It was at that moment, however, that the Weasley twins pulled a rather nasty trick on Ron. Somehow the pair had gotten hold of an ice cream scoop, and dropped a scoop full of ice cream down the young boy's trousers, which resulted in Ron doing a rather exotic dance. He danced from foot to foot, yelping and struggling to remove his trousers and by default the ice cream while his sister and brothers, with the sole exception of Percy, laughed at his expense.
Harry, having fallen victim to more than one of Dudley's cruel pranks, understood exactly what Ron going through at that moment, and rushed to his aid. Striving to save Ron any more embarrassment, he snagged the young redhead by the collar of his shirt and dragged him down the hallway to his bedroom.
No sooner did Harry shut the door to his room did Ron snap at him. "Let me go! Let me go now! You're helping them, aren't you? You're helping Fred and George make me look dumb! I'm not dumb I tell you, I'm not!" Ron huffed.
Harry scowled in reply. This was the thanks he got for helping? He gritted his teeth. "I know you're not dumb, and I never said you were. I just wanted to help you," he said in a matter - of - fact manner. "Now, you're going to need another pair of trousers to wear, since yours have ice cream all over them." He pulled out a new pair of slacks that a little big on him and handed them to the red haired boy. "Here, put these on."
Ron looked at them suspiciously, still wriggling from the ice cream. "They have itching powder in them, don't they? I know they do. You're trying to embarrass me."
Harry bit his tongue. "No, they don't, and I'm not trying to embarrass you. Just put them on already, I'm not trying to pull a prank on you, I promise." With that, Harry turned around to give the other boy his privacy. He could hear Ron muttering and pulling off his trousers when the door opened.
"Harry? What's- oh my word!" Hermione, who had just stepped into the room, whirled around and faced the door at the sight of a half - dressed Ronald Weasley. "Should have knocked, should have knocked," she squeaked.
Ron continued to mutter and dress himself. Harry and Hermione waited patiently with their backs turned, listening to the rustle of cloth. After a few moments, the rustling stopped, but Ron never said anything. They continued to stand in silence, waiting for Ron to tell them they could turn around, and dreading the embarrassment of turning around if he wasn't dressed.
"You have a really neat room," Ron said at last, his voice wistful. "I bet it must be real nice to have a room like this."
"It's alright," Harry replied, turning around.
"Makes it difficult to fall asleep though," Hermione added as she faced Ron. "It's so distracting- you just want to stare at the animals all night." She paused. "Winky?" She called out. A moment later, the little elf appeared. "I believe Ron has something he'd like to ask you."
Ron looked dumbfounded for a moment before he caught her meaning. "Oh, um, would you wash my trousers?" Hermione cleared her throat. "Please," he quickly added.
"Yes sir, Mister Weasley," Winky replied as she picked up the ice cream covered trousers and vanished with a pop.
The three stood in silence, unsure of what to say. "Er, how's the weather?" Ron asked finally.
"It was a bit cloudy, last time I looked out the window, but the sun was shining," Harry replied seriously.
Hermione could help herself as she began to laugh. The situation was too ridiculous. "I can't believe you two are talking about the weather," she chuckled and shook her head. The boys looked a bit sheepish, with Ron's ears turning red while Harry's cheeks became flushed with his embarrassment. Hermione laughed again and smiled at them.
"Well you do have a really neat room," Ron muttered as he looked around. He turned back to Harry. "So," he hesitated. "Do you, I mean, would you like to be friends? I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to. I'll understand, I mean, if you don't want to because I'm not funny like Fred and George or-"
"I'd like that," Harry interrupted, his lips twitching into a small smile. "Come on," he said. "I'll show you my toys," Harry said excitedly.
Hermione looked on for several moments as the two boys talked and looked at the Quidditch figurines. Well, they're not best friends yet, but that will come with time, she thought. There was still a sense of formality in their conversation, but as the boys continued to talk, they began to relax more and more. It would be a long while before they became as close as they were in the first timeline, but she was sure they would get there eventually. It's a step in the right direction. At least I'll be able to get something back on track.
The party wouldn't officially begin for another hour or so, to give everyone time to settle in and, in the case of the twins, cause trouble. The boys would have plenty of time to get to know one another. They had already struck up a conversation about Quidditch. Rolling her eyes, Hermione backed out of the room and into the hallway.
Relieved to get away from what had already evolved into Quidditch talk, Hermione headed towards her room, intending to give the boys some privacy and enjoy a few minutes of time to herself. She truly loved Harry, it was almost impossible to not love the boy, but he could be rather smothering at times. He had gotten better after he had finally realized that she wasn't a dream that would vanish when he woke up.
Hermione blamed the Dursleys for the way Harry acted. The way they treated him, must have affected him, and the effect was only compounded by his still undeveloped mind. She could see it in the way he tried to help with everything, as though he was afraid he would be turned away if he didn't. It was in the way he would scan the room he had just walked into for her, Sirius, Remus and Harmony to make sure they were real and not a dream. It was painful to know that Harry felt like he was in a dream world.
Sighing, Hermione stepped into her room, basking in the glow of silence. She stood still for a moment. Something is wrong, she frowned. The animals on her walls were behaving oddly. The stag was staring at her, prancing anxiously on the opposite wall. The rabbits looked ready to dive for cover at any moment, their ears twitching nervously. The otters were watching her carefully, not daring to move. Deciding that it would be safer if she were not alone, Hermione turned around just as her bedroom door slammed shut.
Draco Malfoy stood in the corner of her room, his body trembling, whether with rage, excitement, or something else altogether, she didn't know. There was a strange, manic glint in his eyes as he stared at her for a long moment. "It's your fault," he said at last, his voice broken and slightly hysterical. "It's all your fault." He pulled a stolen wand out of his pocket. "And now you have to pay for what you've done. I'll make you pay for killing my father you filthy," he gritted his teeth, "disgusting little Mudblood!"
Hermione felt as though she had been hit in the stomach. She couldn't breathe and her body began to tremble. This was wrong, this was all wrong. It's happening again!
The young girl collapsed in a heap as the walls around her began to melt away, leaving behind a hauntingly familiar setting in it's stead. Knick knacks lined the walls, and two suits of armour guarded the door. A small cot was on the far side of the room, properly made as though it had never been slept in. Her necklace was gone once more, and the intense tingling of so much surrounding magic around her left her all but crippled. She was back in Malfoy Manor. Not again!
"That's right, my son," a chilling voice said. "Now try the incantation one more time. This time, try thinking about how much you hate her before casting the spell." Lucius Malfoy sneered down at his prisoner, standing tall in his resplendent robes. "After all," his cold grey eyes narrowed. "She is only a filthy, disgusting little Mudblood."
Distantly she could hear pounding and someone calling her name, but they were so far away… she could only stare, lost, into a pair of cold grey eyes. They engulfed her, trapped her even as the magic around her paralysed her. The pounding continued in the distance.
Her breaths came in short gasps and a deep ache settled into her body. Her fingers ached from when they had been broken. Harry, her mind begged. Where are you? Draco levelled his wand at her. She began to shake even more, suddenly terribly cold…
"Well, what are you waiting for, boy? Go on then, cast the spell. You've done it once, now do it again, and this time, mean to cause pain. She is only a filthy, disgusting little Mudblood."
Draco opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly turned away as Hermione's world began to grow fainter.
Hermione!
Everything was blurring together, making it hard to see properly. There was something green hovering above her, but she couldn't make it out clearly. Everything was fading away, gradually becoming darker and darker until there was nothing…
----
Hermione awoke to a humming sound. There was a dull ache in her fingers, and her head hurt terribly, but she was fine, other than that. Then what seems so off?
"-honestly, Mr. Lupin, I swear I had no idea that would happen. I try to keep a close eye on the boy, but he must have slipped away when the twins were acting up. Oh, the poor dear!" Someone was saying.
"Calm down Molly, and for the last time, call me Remus. It's alright, I understand. You couldn't have left him home by himself, and it would have been horrible to leave him with someone else while the rest of the family came to Harry's birthday. And you didn't know he was going to take Charlie's wand and go after Hermione like that. Come," Remus was saying. "We'll go sit outside in the lobby for a while. Harry and Ron are sitting with her. They'll call for us if something should happen. Besides, since Arthur took Draco back to the Burrow, Sirius and Dora are the only ones watching the rest of your children. They'll probably need some help."
Hermione sighed and forced her eyes open, squinting into the bright light. Taking a moment to adjust to the light, she blinked several times before turning to look around her. She was in St. Mungo's. Again. What luck, she thought darkly. As if I didn't spend enough time in the hospital wing when I was at Hogwarts! I'm getting to be as bad as Harry with all of these hospital trips.
She turned her head to the left and beheld a sight that warmed her heart. Harry and Ron were sitting at her bedside. Ron looked like he was asleep, with a trail of drool dribbling out of the corner of his mouth. Harry was sitting stiffly in his chair, staring at his hands. It wasn't a cheerful sight, per se, but her boys were sitting beside her, waiting for her to get better.
"Hello there," she said softly. Harry's head immediately snapped up.
"Where's the fire, mum? I need my pony," Ron said, his voice thick with sleep as he forced his eyes open.
"Ron," Harry began slowly. "What does a fire have to do with a pony?"
The red head frowned. "You know, I don't know." He shook his head. "So, how are you? You look horrible. Do you feel horrible?"
Harry looked offended for her, but Hermione smiled. Good old Ron. She could always count on him to be lovably outlandish. "I'm fine, really I am. But what happened? I mean, I've been fine all this time, but then I… I don't know. It was as if…" Hermione trailed off, unwilling to think of it.
"The healer said you have postalmatic dress disrober," Ron said.
Harry nodded. "He said sometimes it has a 'delayed onset' whatever that means." He looked at her with sad eyes. "He said your reaction was 'triggered' by something, and that it happens with Horrors all the time." Hermione smiled a little at Harry's continued mispronunciation of the term 'auror'.
"Yeah," Ron nodded. "So, do you know what the trigger was?"
She is only a filthy, disgusting little Mudblood.
"No," Hermione said, trying to keep her voice level, but not able to help the small quiver. "No I don't know. So," she changed the subject. "Have you two been here the whole time?"
Harry gave her a look that said he didn't believe her, but would let it slide this time. "Yes," he said. "Ron and I found you, and we stayed with you."
"It was right scary," Ron said suddenly, his eyes wide. "One minute we're talking about his Quidditch toys, and the next thing I know, he's running off shouting about you needing help." Ron shook his head in awe. "I've never seen anything like that before." His chest suddenly puffed up. "I tackled Draco," he said importantly.
"Sure did," Harry said as he looked at Ron with gratitude. "I went to help you when I saw you on the floor, and Ron tackled him."
Ron shrugged. "I've been wanting to tackle him for to do something to let me do that ever since he pulled Ginny's hair," he said, leaning back into his chair. Harry and Hermione gave him an odd look. Usually Ron was the one picking on Ginny. "What? She's my sister! Just because I don't like her doesn't mean I'm not going to defend her when someone's mean to her." He paused. "It was a nice tackle, wasn't it?" Ron asked, looking very proud of himself.
"Great tackle. Best tackle I've ever seen," Harry said instantly.
Hermione shook her head as she watched them talk about Ron's glorious tackle. The way they interacted amazed her. Earlier she had been relieved that they were talking to each other at all, and now they were the best of friends. And more, Ron was actually being nice to her. I guess the only way for me to make friends with Ron is for him to team up with Harry and save me from something. First the troll, then…
"-I was thinking of biting him," Ron was saying, "But-"
"Shouldn't one of you go get Papa Remus? Or a healer?" Hermione interrupted. She really didn't want to hear about Ron's plan to bite Malfoy. It was disturbing on too many levels to count.
"Yeah," Ron agreed. "Someone should definitely do that." No one moved. "I guess I will." With that, Ron slid out of his chair. "Oh, and Hermione?" Ron said as he paused by the door. "You're okay. For a girl." He concluded, then turned and walked importantly out of the room in search of a Healer or one of the adults.
Harry shook his head. "He's acting like he saved you from a troll or something," he grumbled softly. "I bet he wouldn't even have known you were in trouble if I hadn't told him, let alone help you. At least he's not being mean to you anymore."
"It's not a problem Harry," Hermione said, deciding not to address that particular issue. She reached out and grabbed his hand. "I'm so sorry, Harry. I've ruined another birthday," she said, her shoulders slumped.
"No!" Harry said vehemently. "You didn't, honest. My birthday's not over yet, and you're okay, so it's alright. And you should be allowed out of here soon," he rushed to say. "So we can all go home and have cake!" His voice softened. "It will be a great birthday, because you're going to be fine."
"The world doesn't revolve around me, Harry," she said weakly.
"But you're my best friend in the whole world, Hermione. You're my first friend, and you always help me when I need it, and I wanted to help you. I'm just glad you didn't get taken away again."
Hermione nodded and felt a twinge of pain in her fingers again. Had it really been a year since she had been taken away? With everything that had happened to her, it felt like so much more time had passed. "Indeed," she murmured then looked up at her friend. "not that it would have mattered- you would have rescued me."
"Of course!" Harry grinned, his emerald eyes lighting up. The light dimmed. "Are you going to be alright, Hermione? You scared me."
Hermione swallowed. "I…" She didn't want to lie anymore. "I don't know Harry. I think I'll be okay, but I don't know for sure." She offered him a weak smile, which he returned.
The door to her room opened, revealing Matilda Rosen, Remus, and Ron. "I got a Healer and Mr. Lupin." Ron told them needlessly.
"Hello Miss Granger-Lupin. I'm glad to see you awake." The woman smiled warmly. "Now, I just wanted to tell you that I know you probably want to go home, but you're going to have to wait for a bit. I need to explain to you what happened. It seems you had-"
"A flashback," Hermione interrupted. "I essentially relived a traumatic event. It's a symptom of post traumatic stress disorder. Considering the severity of the trauma I suffered, it will likely be a chronic illness as no real cure, so to speak, has been found." Hermione recited. She flushed a little and mentally kicked herself. She hadn't really meant to say so much- it would give her away for sure. The only reason she knew about the disorder in the first place was because she thought Harry may have been suffering from it after Sirius' death in the first timeline. There was no reason why she should know it now. Foolish! She berated herself. You're going to get yourself in trouble!
"That's right," the Healer said, looking a bit dazed. "My, you certainly do read a great deal, don't you? Such a clever little girl." Hermione had to bite her tongue to keep herself from saying that she was actually going on twenty. "That's exactly what you have. Now, as for treatment." Matilda Rosen began to flip through her paperwork. "I see you are already seeing a Mind - Healer. Hmm."
She turned to Remus. "I suggest you have your daughter meet more frequently with Madame Alfreda. And for her nerves… hmm… I think it would be best for her to have a minor calming draught for her nerves. There's nothing in the potion that will activate the two - part poison in her system, so it will be perfectly safe for her.
"She should take it every morning, and then any time she feels she needs it after that. Hopefully the symptoms will fade over time." The Healer handed him a note. "I trust you can get to an apothecary?" Remus nodded. "Then you and your daughter may leave, if you wish. If she has another episode, you can bring her here, or care for her yourself."
Matilda Rosen nodded to them with a cheery smile and walked out of the room. "Harry, Ron, why don't the two of you go and tell everyone that everything is fine?" Remus asked the two boys. Ron nodded vigorously, obviously pleased that he was given another important task, but Harry looked reluctant to leave Hermione's side. At her nod, he stood and slowly followed Ron, glancing behind him before he left.
When Hermione and Remus were alone, the werewolf made his way to the bed at a slow pace so as not to frighten her. He sat down on the edge of the bed with pain - staking care and slowly reached out and pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry, little Owlet," he said softly. "I should have been paying closer attention to what was going on." His voice was hoarse with self - loathing.
"It wasn't your fault, Papa Remus," Hermione replied, enjoying the feeling of warmth that enveloped her. It had been so long since her father had held her, just like this, and soothed her fears. It had been so long since- Hermione cut off her thoughts. She couldn't afford to dwell on the past. There was too much work for her to do.
She still hadn't decided when would be the best time for her to discover the Room of Requirement. She was still torn. Should she destroy the Horcruxes first year, free the world from Voldemort and break the curse on the Defence position, and trap the school with someone as inept as Professor Lockhart for a teacher? Should she wait until later, and risk not knowing for sure if Voldemort was truly destroyed? There were so many things that could go wrong, as she knew only too well…
"I should have known better, Hermione. It was a mistake. There were precautions that I should have taken to keep you safer," he pulled back and looked down at her. "You're too forgiving for your own good, Hermione. You have every right to be terribly upset with me."
"You didn't do anything wrong, Papa Remus." Hermione said firmly. "If anyone should be angry, it would be Harry. This is the second birthday that I've ruined."
The werewolf began to chuckle. "We're quite a family, aren't? Sirius, Molly and I have been beating ourselves up for not knowing what the little Malfoy was going to do, Harry's been beating himself up for not getting to you sooner, and you're beating yourself because you think you've ruined Harry's birthday." He shook his head. "Hermione, Harry doesn't blame you for anything. I'll bet my wand that he's just glad you're alright. Now," he stood up, lifting her into his arms. "Let's go home and celebrate Harry's birthday, okay?"
Hermione smiled. "Okay, Papa Remus. Let's go home."
Remus grinned. "Home sounds like a good place to be right now. I say we go," he shifted her in his arms and set off for the door, nodding the Healers as he passed them in the hall. Hermione, relaxing slightly, allowed her head to rest on his shoulder as he carried her through the hospital.
"-so everything will be okay. When Hermione and Remus get here we'll all go back to Grimmauld Place and continue on with Harry's birthday. Ah! Remus, there you are," Sirius said. Hermione looked at the group standing with him. Everyone but Mr. Weasley and Draco had come to St. Mungo's with her. "And Hermione," his voice was gentler than before when he spoke to her. "Are you alright, Mini - Moony?"
"I'm fine Uncle Sirius, really. Let's go home," Hermione replied, twisting around to look up at him.
"Yes," Harry agreed quickly, staring off to the left. "Home sounds good." Hermione turned in her adopted father's arms to see what Harry was looking at. She scowled when she saw several healers gawking at Harry and pointed at him. Harry shifted uncomfortably and tried to smooth down his hair.
"I quite agree," Remus and Sirius said at the same time, also seeing the looks Harry was receiving from the staff at St. Mungo's. "Let's get going then," Remus said.
Sirius picked Harry up in his arms and walked down the hall to the exit, followed by Tonks, with Harmony bouncing in her arms, Remus, Hermione, and the Weasleys. "We'll take the Knight Bus again," Sirius said. "It will be quicker that way." Sirius raised his wand arm and hailed the Knight Bus and paid everyone's fare. Molly tried to protest, but Sirius cut her off. "I pretty much dragged the lot of you with me," he said. "The least I can do is pay for your return to my house."
The ride home was exactly as Hermione thought it would be- noisy. The Weasley twins were up to their normal antics and torturing Percy, Ron was trying to convince Harry that the Chudley Cannons were the greatest Quidditch team in the world, and the two eldest Weasley children were talking with their sister, cracking jokes and making her laugh.
Hermione took the opportunity to sit snugly in Remus' lap while he talked quietly with Sirius, Tonks and Molly. It was so nice to have a father again… Hermione pulled herself from her thoughts as feelings of guilt overcame her. She had no right to love Remus more than her own father. It was horrible of her to even consider the idea.
"Are you alright, Owlet? Is it too loud?" Remus asked her softly. Hermione looked up into his concerned eyes.
"No, Papa Remus. Everything is fine," she replied.
He continued to look at her for a moment. "If you're sure?" She nodded. "Very well then. We should be home soon anyways." He turned back to his conversation with the remaining adults while Hermione snuggled closer to his side. It was moments like this when she truly missed her family, and regretted that Harmony would never know them.
Luckily, Sirius and Remus were turning out to be wonderful father figures, and Tonks was always fun to have around. It was a comfort to the young witch that Harmony would have at least some form of family. She shuddered to think that Harmony should ever be trapped with a family like the Dursleys. It was bad enough that Harry had suffered such a terrible fate.
Hermione jumped in her seat when the bus suddenly jerked to a stop. Remus held her close and picked her up before he and the others exited the bus and walked back into Grimmauld Place. The mood was much more subdued than it had been earlier. The twins were strangely silent, and all of them were sombre. Hermione felt guilt creep over her- it was all her fault. They had been so boisterous on the Knight Bus, but at Grimmauld place they were so quiet.
"Well, let's get this party started," Sirius said jovially, bringing a few small smiles out. "Come on Harry, presents first, cake later."
It seemed to break the ice. In no time at all, Fred and George had returned to their childish antics and were relentlessly tormenting Percy. Ginny was trying to get Horace to leave his hiding place under the table, and Bill and Charlie were being surprisingly responsible and helping carry Harry's gifts into the kitchen and setting them on the table. Harry and Ron were still discussing Quidditch.
Sirius led Harry away from Ron and towards his presents, which he bashfully began to open. Remus stood on the far side of the room, still holding Hermione in his arms. Hermione herself wasn't sure whether she was pleased or annoyed. She didn't like that the adults felt she couldn't handle the situation, but at the same time she was immensely relieved that she wouldn't have to participate in the activities. It was still a blow to her pride that the adults kept her apart, even though she knew that, given her current state, she would likely have already had another episode if she were taking part in the party. Being seven doesn't help very much either.
Instead, Hermione watched the scene from Remus' arms, content with her view of what was going on. The first box Harry opened had another set of casual robes for the growing boy. Excitedly snatching the robes, he dashed out of the room, leaving everyone behind, puzzled. A few minutes later, he returned, dressed in his new robes and sporting a grin. He did the same thing with the next box he opened, which contained a set of dress robes, much to everyone's amusement. He rushed off to change four times before he had opened up all of the boxes with clothes.
Hermione smiled from her place in Remus' arms and watched the scene with as much amusement as the adults. Next Harry opened a pack of magical sheet music. It was quite extraordinary. It would record the notes to anything Harry played on his piano so that the music he created would never be lost, since he could never recreate one of his songs. Hermione suspected that, while the gift had been given to Harry, it was actually for everyone else, since they adored his music. Nevertheless, Harry had jumped excitedly and waved his cheerfully about. Ron had been less than impressed, but Hermione recalled that his own musical talents were less than impressive.
After that he had opened up an abundance of wizarding toys and more chocolate frogs than was wise for an already energetic boy to have. The party continued on in much the same fashion, but every so often, Harry would look over and make eye contact with Hermione to be sure that all was well, and she would smile in return.
All in all, Hermione decided, the day wasn't completely horrible. It may have had a bad beginning, but she would face Malfoy a thousand times over to see the light in Harry's eyes shining as brightly as it was when he opened up her gift- a photo album full of pictures of his entire family that she had made with the aid of Remus and Sirius.
Not a bad day, she thought as she watched Harry laughing with Ron, and smiled. Not a bad day at all.
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A/N: I'm so sorry for not updating sooner. I tried to find time, but I forgot that the weeks following Christmas are swarmed with birthdays in my family. I've bouncing from one party to the next. On top of that, college started up again, so time is limited again.
Yes, post traumatic stress disorder can have a delayed onset, though it is rare. There is no cure, per se, for PTSD either, though there are several forms of treatments. Symptoms fade over time, but for more serious trauma, PTSD is typically lifelong.
Hermione's circumstances are unusual. First of all, as I've shown you, Hermione dreams of the Dark Harry every night, so her time with the Malfoys doesn't play into her dreams. She is also in counselling, though there isn't much counselling going on since Hermione isn't talking much. Hermione doesn't allow herself to dwell on what happened, and Remus and the others try to keep Hermione and Harry separate from Malfoy.
Thank you, everyone who read, and special thanks to those who reviewed. Please review!
Cheers,
Madm_05