Saturday morning came quick for Harry. It seemed that he had just closed his eyes and then he was awake with the sunlight shining in his face. He reached out and pulled the covers off of his body. After swinging his legs out of bed, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and stretched.
Today is Saturday Harry thought. His eyes widened a bit. Today was the day he was taking Hermione out. Even though he was somewhat of a clueless male, he knew he should get dressed up for today. He was doing something special for his best friend.
After grabbing a long and relaxing shower, Harry stepped from the tub and grabbed his towel off the rack. After drying off and putting his boxers on, Harry shaved his face so it was smooth and then he brushed his teeth. Once he was done, he cleaned up the bathroom and left it.
Walking to his closet, he opened the door and searched through his clothes. After picking out a pair of fitting but loose jeans, he picked out a white t-shirt to go under his white dress shirt. Once he was done with his shirt, he put his belt on and laced up his casual dress shoes. He grabbed his wand and his money pouch and left his dorm.
Hermione was standing in front of the bay window, looking out over the grounds that were illuminated by intense sunlight.
"It's beautiful out," Harry said gently. At the sound of his voice, Hermione jumped a little bit, but relaxed as he wrapped his arms around her midsection.
"It is," Hermione agreed.
"It's almost as beautiful as you," Harry said, resting his chin on her shoulder. A slight smile played on her lips.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"You're welcome," he said. He pressed a kiss to the side of her head and then let go of her. "Are you ready for breakfast?"
"Yeah," Hermione replied. With one last look outside, she turned and left the Common Room with Harry beside her.
"Morning," Ron said quickly as he sat down at the Gryffindor table. He began piling food on his plate.
"Morning Ron," Hermione said. Harry nodded at him and put a couple of pancakes on his plate. After applying peanut butter and syrup, he took a bite.
"What are you two doing today at Hogsmead?" Ron asked. "Because I thought we could head to a few shops and then to the Three Broomsticks."
"Harry's taking me to Hogsmead," Hermione said. She poured herself some pumpkin juice and then glanced up at Ron, who was looking at Harry with a raised eyebrow.
"It's a special day today," Harry said. "I thought I could do something nice for her."
"What's today?" Ron and Hermione asked at the same time. Harry looked at Hermione, an incredulous look on his face.
"Are you kidding me?" he asked. Hermione shook her head. He laughed before saying," It's your birthday." Hermione raised both of her eyebrows but then smiled.
"It is isn't it," she said. Harry nodded.
"You're eighteen today," he said.
"Thanks for remembering," Hermione said, a smile on her face.
"Why wouldn't I remember it?" Harry asked, an amused look on his face. She shrugged.
"Hey, Ron and I both forgot," Hermione said. Harry laughed.
"I guess," Harry said.
"So you two are going by yourselves?" Ron asked. Harry and Hermione looked at each other.
"That's what we planned," Harry said. Hermione nodded.
"Okay," Ron said.
"Is that okay Ron?" Hermione asked. Ron looked at her.
"Yeah, that's fine," he said. Both Hermione and Harry could tell something was wrong with Ron for the rest of breakfast, but neither of them pressed the issue. After Harry and Hermione left the Hogsmead, Ginny came over to her brother.
"So are they dating?" she asked snottily. Ron glanced up at his younger sister, an annoyed look on his face.
"No, he's doing something nice for her because today is her birthday," Ron said.
"Then why are you all mad? Ginny asked.
"Because I forgot her birthday. I didn't even think to get her anything ahead of time either," Ron said. "That's a little upsetting that I forgot my best girl friend of seven years birthday."
"Oh, well, no need to get upset about it. It's just Hermione," Ginny said. Ron stood up and looked at his sister.
"Ginny, whatever the hell your problem is, get over it. I'm sick of your attitude. If you're upset that Harry doesn't talk to you, maybe you should've rethought using Amortentia on him. And maybe instead of hating Hermione, who's just being a good friend to him, you should try fixing what little relationship you have left with Harry. Hermione's done nothing wrong here. We've been best friends since we were eleven. And if you can't realize that even if you two were dating Hermione would still be his number one priority aside from Voldemort, then you don't deserve to date him," Ron said. "Get over it because at the moment, I can bet Harry won't ever talk to you again. He's that upset and hurt and truthfully, I'm ashamed to call you my sister. It's just low to use that on someone." With one last disappointed look at Ginny, he left the Great Hall for Hogsmead to try and calm down.
"So, what do you want to do first? We can do anything you like," Harry said. Hermione smiled.
"Noble's," she said. Harry smiled.
"How did I know that would be first?" he asked. He offered his hand to her and the two of them walked off to the bookstore.
"Did you find anything?" Harry asked as he found Hermione perched against a wall with a book open. Without looking at him, she nodded. But then she closed the book.
"Yeah," she said. She put the book back on the shelf. "But it's too expensive. I would be spending almost all of my money."
"That's why you have me. I forgot to tell you I'm buying everything today. I let the store owner know so he could charge my account in Gringotts," Harry said. He grinned and plucked the book back off of its shelf.
"You have yourself a new book," he said. "Now, I know you want more than one. If you didn't you would be Hermione, so go find some others." He gave her a little push towards other shelves and smiled as she looked back at him.
Eventually, Hermione was finished and Harry collected her books. He brought them to the check-out counter and the store owner wrote down the names of the books.
"Thank you, have a nice day," he said.
"You too," Harry and Hermione replied. They walked out of the door and Harry took the bag from Hermione's hand. Hermione looked at him and he smiled.
"I'm at your beck and call today," Harry said. "Do you want to go to Scrivenshafts?" he asked.
"Sure," Hermione said. The two of them walked a few stores down and then entered the stationary shop.
"Well, what do you want to do next?" Harry asked as they stepped out of Scrivenshafts. Hermione shrugged.
"That's all I actually wanted to do today," she said. "And anyway, you've done too much, even if it is my birthday." Harry shook his head.
"Nah, it's not enough," he said. "Come on, I'll take you to get ice cream and then we can head back." Hermione laughed but let her hand slip into his as he led her to the ice cream parlor.
"Good?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded. "What kind did you get?"
"Lemon," she said. Harry scrunched up his face.
"Is it sour?" he asked. Hermione laughed and shook her head.
"Taste it," she said. She lifted her ice cream up to his face and he leaned forward to take a bite.
"It is too!" Harry said as he swallowed. Hermione laughed again.
"No it isn't," she said.
"Maybe not to you," Harry grumbled. Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, well, what did you get?" she asked him. Harry grinned.
"Strawberry-banana," he said. This time, Hermione was the one to scrunch up her face.
"Ew," she said. He shook his head.
"It's good, taste," he said. She took a bite and then made a face.
"Ew, no it isn't," she said.
"To me it is," Harry replied.
"You're weird," Hermione said.
"You're weirder Miss. Lemon," Harry replied with a smile on his face. Hermione rolled her eyes. Harry finished his ice cream and then put his free arm around her shoulders.
The two of them reached the castle soon enough and they headed to the Heads Dorm to put away Hermione's stuff.
"Bush Hall," Harry said. The portrait of Cliodna opened and the two of them stepped into the Common Room.
"Are you having a good birthday so far?" Harry asked as Hermione came down from her room.
"Yes," she said. She sat across from him on the couch with her knees in her chest. She rested her chin on top of them.
"Good," Harry said as he crossed his legs Indian style. "Your parents said to come to dinner tonight."
"When did you get a hold of them?" Hermione asked.
"It was in the conversation yesterday when you weren't in the room," Harry said. "We're expected a six."
"What are we going to do until then?" Hermione asked.
"Well, I don't know. What do you want to do?" Harry asked.
"I think I might want to take a nap for a little while," Hermione said.
"Come here then," Harry said. He opened his arms and stretched out to the length of the couch. Hermione climbed up beside him and rested her head on his chest.
"Accio Quidditch through the Ages," Harry said softly. A few seconds later, the book whizzed into his outstretched hand.
"Relax," Harry whispered to Hermione. A second later, she sort of molded into his side and a few minutes later, her breathing had evened out and Harry knew she was asleep.
Almost two hours passed and Hermione was still asleep. Harry was halfway through his book when the portrait opened.
"Mr. Potter," McGonagall said. Harry leaned his head back against the couch arm and looked at the Headmistress.
"Yes," he said.
"There is a staff meeting that you and Miss. Granger ought to attend so you can send word to the prefects," McGonagall said. "Where is Miss. Granger?"
"Right here asleep," Harry said, pointing to Hermione. "I'll get her up. Is the meeting in your office?"
"No, it's in the antechamber off of the Great Hall," McGonagall said. "And by the way, you two are nice together." Before Harry could correct the Headmistress, she was off. Her last phrase rang through his head a couple of times before he dismissed it and woke Hermione up.
"We have a meeting," Harry said. "I'm going to take off my dress shirt. I'll be back in a minute." He slipped out from under her carefully and went up to his room to hang up his shirt.
He came back down a minute later and it looked like Hermione had nixed her blouse and opted for a t-shirt too.
"Nice nap?" Harry asked as they stepped out of the Common Room. Hermione yawned and nodded.
"Yes, excuse me. You're pretty comfortable," she said, smiling up at him. Harry grinned back and took her hand in his. McGonagall's phrase rang through his head at the precise moment. You two are nice together Harry thought. He glanced down at their intertwined hands and then back to the path in front of him. Her hand does sort of fit mine…and I like it he thought. Oh what am I saying? This is Hermione, my best friend.
"You okay?" Hermione asked. Harry blinked and then looked down at her.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking for a moment," Harry said.
"You sort of spaced out," Hermione said. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, everything's fine. I was just thinking," Harry said. He kissed her cheek for extra measure. "I promise."
"Okay, just making sure," Hermione said. The two of them reached the antechamber and entered.
"Good, we can get started," McGonagall said as Harry and Hermione took a seat around the table.
"I've been informed that there will be a Ministry worker attending school from now until the end of the school year," McGonagall said. Harry suppressed a groan. "She will arrive by tomorrow afternoon. I do not know who it will be though." It sure as hell better not be who I think it is Harry thought. He shared a glance with Hermione, who looked as though she thought the same thing.
"I need everything to be at its best. I do not want this school shut down. It is a home and hope to many students and teachers. If this Ministry worker assesses the teachers, I need you to be firm but nice with the students and I need all classes under control," Headmistress McGonagall said. She turned to Harry and Hermione.
"Now, you two play an important role in the upcoming months. I know you both have things to do, and I will cover for you when needed, but until then, I need you both to be extra attentive to your duties. I know classes will add to the difficulty of the year, but when you do your rounds, make sure you get every single space on that floor. Make sure your prefects to the same thing. And most of all, make sure each and every one of the prefects and you set good examples to the students," McGonagall said. "This school is the last hope for many people, and I won't let them down."
"Yes ma'am," Harry and Hermione said respectfully. McGonagall nodded.
"Very well then, you both may leave," she said. Harry slid his chair back from the table. He left the antechamber with Hermione behind him.
"I've been thinking," Harry said as the two of them entered the Heads Common Room.
"What about?" Hermione asked.
"The Horcruxes," Harry said as he perched himself on the edge of the table. Hermione leaned against the back of the couch and looked at him.
"Do you remember the summer of fifth year when we cleaned out the house?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded. "Do you remember that locket that we found that no one could open?" Once again, Hermione nodded.
"Well, I looked at the note again left by whoever took the real Horcrux, and they said that by the time the note was read, they would be dead. They signed the note R.A.B," Harry said.
"Those initials rang through my head and I figured I might as well start looking at the dead death eaters. I came up with one person, and it makes perfect sense if you think about it," Harry said. "Sirius' brother Regulus was a death eater and Sirius had mentioned that he tried to run once he found out what he was getting into. He was killed as soon as he was found. So, I looked up the Black family tree and the only person that matched the initials was Regulus. Regulus Aeolos Black." Hermione gasped.
"The locket is at Grimmauld place then," Hermione said. Harry shrugged.
"I don't know for sure. Mundungus cleaned the place out to sell and then there was always Kreacher. Who knows where he hid stuff," Harry said.
"We should go see," Hermione said. Harry nodded.
"Yes, we should. But not today, it's your birthday. We can do it either tomorrow or we can do it sometime next week," Harry said. Hermione nodded.
"Next week is when we should do it," she said. "I've been doing some reading on the Horcruxes and I might have found something." Harry raised an eyebrow.
"Really, what?" he said.
"Hufflepuff's Cup," Hermione said. "You said Voldemort stole it from Hepzibah Smith after he had killed him. Well, I looked into Smith's background and I found a possible location. Hufflepuff had liked the mountains and such, and it's rumored that she had a cabin in the Western Alps towards Switzerland. It's possible that Voldemort found it and hid the cup there because it hasn't been documented that the cabin has been found."
"Wow," Harry said. "So we have two leads on the Horcruxes. I think we ought to go to McGonagall about this and tell her we might be gone most of next week, depending how fast we get this done. She said she would cover for us." Hermione nodded.
"That's settled then," Hermione said. "We should tell Ron tomorrow." Harry nodded.
"Okay. We should head to your parent's," he said after he checked his watch. The two of them walked to the fireplace and FLOOed to the Grangers.
"Hello dear, happy birthday," Elizabeth said as she hugged Hermione.
"Thanks mum," she said. She hugged her father next as Elizabeth gave Harry a hug. David and Harry shook hands and the four of them made their way to the kitchen.
"How has your day been?" David asked his daughter. He busied himself with getting the plates and silverware out. Harry stood from the table and immediately began to situate the utensils.
"It was good. Harry and I went to Hogsmead together and he bought my stuff for me and we got ice cream," Hermione said. Harry smiled at her as he put a plate on the table. She smiled back.
"Well dear, you still have our presents to open after dinner," Elizabeth said to her daughter. Hermione smiled.
"Okay," she said.
"But until then, let's eat," David said.
Dinner was a cheerful affair. As the night went on, Harry decided that he liked Hermione's parents more and more. They were fun people who loved their daughter and they weren't afraid to tease with humor. It was everything he had ever pictured a family to be. And by being with the Grangers on such an occasion made him feel like he had another family. He was happy when he was around David and Elizabeth, and of course Hermione.
"Well, present time," David said. The dishes had been done and put away. The four of them had made their way into the living room and David handed Hermione her presents.
"Thanks mum, dad," she said as she opened the first one. It was a music box that had a ballerina on it. When she wound it up, it played a song her mum used to sing to her when she was little.
"You're welcome sweetheart," her mother said. Hermione opened the next one and it was a scrapbook of her youthful days and then when she progressed through Hogwarts. Some pictures only people at Hogwarts could have taken and Hermione assumed her parents had asked Harry for pictures of her at school.
"Thanks," she said as she smiled. "It's really sweet." Harry took something out of his pocket.
"I think I'd be a bad best friend if I didn't get you anything," Harry said with a grin. He handed her a long but small box.
"Harry," Hermione started.
"Open it," he cut her off. She looked once more at him before taking off the wrapping paper. She opened the box and stared at what was inside it.
"Harry it's gorgeous," she said softly. She took the necklace out of the box and looked at it. The chain was silver and it had a silver heart with a sapphire in the middle of it. He smiled at her.
"Just like you then," he said. "Do you want me to put it on you?" Hermione smiled and nodded. He leaned over and took the necklace from her hands and gently unhooked the clasp to put it around her neck. He hooked the clasp back up and leaned back to look at her.
"Thank you," she said softly. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, lingering a little more than she should have.
"You're welcome," he said in return. The kids turned their attention back to David and Elizabeth and conversation ensued. But as the conversation went on, Harry's hand found Hermione's and their fingers locked together. The only thing that rang through his hand was one phrase. You two are nice together.
&---&---&---&---&
Chapter 8 is up. The Horcruxes have finally made their appearance and they won't really be going away anytime soon.
Hermione's birthday made an appearance for once, even if this is just fan fiction. It kind of sucks that her birthday is hardly ever mentioned, so I decided to fix that little issue. :]
Thanks, WarriorPride23, 9 pages.
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