The Aftermath - Chapter 5
Hermione returned to the cottage after talking with Ben and Lucy to find Harry sprawled out on the sofa watching TV. Harry put the remote on mute when Hermione came into the living room and moved over so she could sit down.
"How was your walk?" he asked tentatively.
"It was just what I needed," she replied. Hermione took a deep breath. "Harry, about Lucy's party…I was wondering if you would be my date."
Harry's eyebrows rose. "Your date?"
"Well, I ran into Lucy during my walk and she told me that she's inviting her surfer friends. She said that they can be a little aggressive and I thought it might make me more comfortable if you acted as my date," Hermione fibbed.
"You mean, pretend to be your boyfriend in case those guys try to hit on you?"
"I suppose so, yeah."
"I guess I could….but what if there's some girls I want to talk to? If I'm supposed to be taken, then what's the point?"
"Well, Lucy doesn't have many single girlfriends…but I suppose if there's someone you really want to chat up, I won't stop you."
"So why are we going to this party anyway if not to meet new people?" Harry asked.
"I just thought it might be fun for us to meet some of her friends. And you should meet Ben, he seems really nice."
"Wait, you met Ben? I thought you just ran into Lucy."
"Well, she was with him - he's a nice guy and it might be nice for you to make a new friend while you're here."
"Sounds like you really want to go to this party, Hermione," Harry said.
"I do."
"Okay, we'll go. And I'll pretend to be your guy if anyone tries to pull a McLaggen on you."
"You mean Cormac McLaggen?" Hermione asked, embarrassed that Harry brought up his name. "Whatever made you think of him?"
"I remember you went with him in sixth year to Slughorn's Christmas Party to make you know who jealous and you spent the evening avoiding him. Although I don't really understand what the big fuss was about since you know who wasn't even there."
Hermione blushed. She did want to get back at Ron but she also remembered how extreme Harry's reaction was to her flirting with McLaggen. She wondered if hadn't been a bit jealous.
"That was a long time ago, Harry. I wasn't quite myself in sixth year."
"Yeah, I noticed."
Well at least he noticed something, Hermione thought.
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Saturday night finally came. Hermione spent quite a good deal of time getting ready. She used some hair potion to get her hair to fall in sleek ringlets, instead of a frizzy mess. She put on make-up, something she usually avoided unless it was a special occasion. Nothing too drastic, just eyeliner, blush and some lip gloss. She also went the day before to get a pedicure and had gotten her toenails painted a dark red color to match the dress.
She tried on the cherry printed sundress with a pair of low heeled sandals she bought on her shopping trip. Lucy's party was going to be in the Leibowitz' back yard; it was a warm night, so she didn't need to bring a sweater.
Harry knocked on her bedroom door. "Hermione it's close to nine, shouldn't we be going soon?"
She scrutinized herself in the mirror. She did look nice, she had to admit. Lucy's words came to mind, you -only a better version of you.
Hermione took a deep breath and opened the door, where Harry was standing with an impatient look on his face.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes, I am." She grabbed a small purse that she had picked up the previous day after the pedicure.
"Is that a new dress?" Harry asked. "I've never seen it before."
Hermione smiled to herself, he had noticed. "Yes, it's new."
"Did you buy it during your shopping trip with Lucy?" Harry asked.
Hermione nodded. "What do you think?"
Harry shrugged. "It's nice, I guess. Just not something I would picture you in."
"What do you picture me in, Harry?" Hermione wondered aloud.
Harry shrugged again. "I thought you would be more casual tonight, considering that you don't want any guys chatting you up."
"So you don't think it's me?" she asked.
"I don't know, I'm not really the right person to ask about fashion," Harry said, gesturing to his own outfit, which consisted of a polo shirt and a pair of jeans and trainers.
"You like nice to me, Harry," Hermione said, a bit flirtatiously.
"Erm, thanks, let's go," he said, a bit uncomfortably.
They walked next door to the Leibowitz house and followed the noise to the back yard. The backyard was huge with a large deck decorated with Chinese lanterns. There was also a pool and a few guests were swimming. A boom box was playing rock music.
Lucy, dressed in a tank top and a long flowing skirt, was mixing some drinks behind the makeshift bar when she saw Harry and Hermione approach.
She put the drinks down and greeted both with quick hugs. "I'm so glad you both made it!"
"Well, you know, we traveled a long distance to get here," Harry joked.
"Where are your grandparents? Do they know about this party?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, they know about it, but they aren't home. They went to visit some relatives in Sydney this weekend. Hermione, I love that dress on you," Lucy raved, a bit too obviously. "Don't you think it looks nice on her, Harry?"
Harry nodded, while Hermione felt a bit embarrassed.
"Do you want some drinks?" Lucy asked. "We have beer, mixed cocktails, juice or water."
"I'll have a beer," Harry replied.
"I'll have the same," Hermione agreed, hoping to calm her nerves.
Lucy retrieved two bottles sitting in ice and handed them to her guests. "The tops are twist off, you don't need a bottle opener. Ben is in the kitchen preparing some snacks. Harry, why don't you go into the house and introduce yourself? Maybe he needs some help with the trays?"
"Sure, no problem," Harry said, figuring the two girls would want to gossip with each other. "I'll be right back."
When Harry had gone into the house, Lucy turned to Hermione. "So how's it going with him?"
Hermione shook her head. "I don't know, he seemed to like the dress but he also doesn't think it's me."
"Well, probably because he's never seen you in a dress like this. See those guys?" Lucy asked, motioning her drink towards a group of four guys dressed in long shorts and t-shirts.
"Those are my surfer friends, and I think they're all wondering who the hottie is wearing the cherry print dress."
Hermione glanced towards the guys and Lucy was right- they were all looking in her direction. One of them, with wavy blond hair and a deep tan, smiled at her and raised his beer.
"Oh that's Justin. You better watch out for him- he's a big flirt," Lucy said. "Hey, you know, he's the perfect guy to get Harry jealous."
"Lucy, just so you know….I kind of told Harry a white lie to get him to be my date tonight. I asked him to pretend to be my boyfriend to prevent any guys from being too forward with me."
Lucy laughed. "Oh Hermione! What am I going to do with you?"
Just then, Justin walked over to where Lucy and Hermione were standing. "Hey Lucy, great party. Who's your pretty new friend?"
Hermione blushed.
"Hermione, this is Justin."
She held out her hand to him. "Nice to meet you, Justin."
Instead of shaking her hand, Justin lowered his lips to the top of her hand, looking up at her with his brilliant blue eyes. "The pleasure is all mine."
Hermione felt herself flush at the contact. She knew he was laying it on a little thick, but she couldn't help but be flattered at the attention she was receiving.
"Are you from England? I dig the accent," Justin said as Hermione pulled her hand back.
Hermione nodded, "Yes, I'm from Oxford."
"What brings you to Australia?"
"Holiday, with a friend."
"And where is your friend?"
"He's in the kitchen with Ben."
"He?" Justin asked, eyebrows raised.
"Harry, he's a friend from home."
"Just a friend then? Not a boyfriend?"
Hermione shook her head, grateful that Harry was not at her side at the moment. "I'm single."
"Well, what do you know, I'm single, too," Justin said with a smile.
"Yeah, but he hardly lives like a monk," Lucy teased.
"Well, what can I say, I enjoy the company of women. But maybe it's time for me to settle on just one." Justin said, staring at Hermione. "Why don't you come sit down with me, and let's get to know each other better?"
Hermione gave Lucy a nervous look, but she nodded encouragingly. "Okay."
Justin led her to a quiet corner of the yard and they sat down on a couple of lawn chairs.
Meanwhile, Harry emerged from the kitchen with Ben, carrying trays of snacks. Ben had been telling him the story of how he met Lucy and how happy he was that she was his girlfriend. Harry found himself a little jealous of Ben, not just because he had Lucy, but he seemed to have his future planned out. Despite this, Harry found it hard not to like him. Something about Ben reminded him of Neville.
He looked around the yard for Hermione. He saw Lucy walking towards them, to help with the food.
"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked.
"I think she's talking with Justin," Lucy replied.
"Who's Justin?" Harry asked.
"Justin Moy," Ben answered. "He's a notorious flirt, with a new girlfriend every week."
Harry shook his head. "I don't understand Hermione at all. She asked me to be her date tonight and pretend to be her boyfriend. Then the first thing she does is goes off with some strange guy?"
"You just don't understand women, do you?" Lucy asked, shaking her head.
"Apparently not, Hermione always said I was clueless with girls. She was always giving me advice with my girlfriends."
"And did you follow it?" Ben asked.
Harry nodded. "Yeah - she's the smartest girl I know. I wish I knew why she is acting so silly. I suppose it could be the stress…"
"What kind of stress?" Lucy asked.
Harry didn't want to say too much. "She's just having a rough time with her family right now…anyway, maybe I should go and check on her, make sure she's okay."
"I think that's a great idea," Lucy said, smiling at his concern.
Harry scanned the yard and saw Hermione seated on a lawn chair, sipping her beer and looked to be listening intently to whatever Justin was saying to her. He saw Justin move his chair closer to Hermione, his face a few inches from hers. For some reason, Harry didn't feel comfortable with this and frowned as he saw her laugh and toss her curls around.
Then he saw Justin touch a lock of her hair and tuck it behind her ear; he was definitely making his move. He looked like he was about to lean in closer when Harry interrupted them.
"Hermione, sweetie, there you are," Harry said in a cheerfully fake voice.
Justin pulled back and looked confused. "Sweetie?"
Harry approached Hermione and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hermione is my girlfriend. I'm Harry Potter."
"Sorry mate," Justin said, standing up. "I thought she was single."
"Well, she's not, we're practically engaged," Harry said, tightening his grip on Hermione's shoulder.
Clearly embarrassed, Justin made a beeline to where his friends were watching.
An angry Hermione stood up and pulled out of his grasp. "Harry, what do you think you're doing? I was having a perfectly nice conversation and you come along and ruin it."
Harry snorted. "Conversation? Hermione, the only thing he wanted to converse with was your lips! And what the hell is going on? You ask me to pretend to be your boyfriend to protect you from guys like Justin and then the first thing you do is go and try to hook up with him. What is going on with you?"
"What's going on with me?" Hermione said, her voice rising. "Harry, why do you think I wore this dress tonight? Why do you think I flirted with Justin?"
Harry shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe you've gone mental?"
Hermione was incensed. "Mental? Maybe I was mental to think that someday you wouldn't want to pretend to be my boyfriend but actually want to be my boyfriend!"
She stormed off and left the yard, leaving Harry thoroughly confused.
==================================
Hermione sat alone on the beach, shivering, and staring out at the moonlit ocean. The temperature was a lot colder than it had been in Lucy's yard, but then again she was flushed at the attention she was receiving, plus the warm feeling of the beer in her belly and finally her rising anger at Harry.
She wiped her tears away and hugged her knees closer to her body, trying to keep warm. She wished she had thought to bring her wand with her so she could've performed a warming charm.
At that moment, she didn't hear them approach but someone had gingerly placed a sweater around her shoulders. Startled, she looked up and saw Harry standing behind her, looking down at her with a mixture of concern and trepidation.
"I thought you might be cold, so I brought your sweater," Harry explained.
Hermione looked down. "Thanks," she paused. "How did you know where to find me?"
"Well, I went back to the cottage after you left the party but you weren't there, so I figured you came down to the beach."
"You always know where to find me," Hermione gazed up at him for a moment.
Harry took that as invitation to sit, so he sat down on the sand and hugged his knees to his chest, mimicking her position.
"Hermione, what happened back there?" he said gently. "First you ask me to pretend to be your boyfriend and then get mad at me for doing what I was asked. And what was all of that about your wanting me to be your boyfriend? Did you mean that?"
Hermione shook her head, ashamed of herself. She was behaving like a lovesick schoolgirl, and she hated herself for it.
"I'm sorry, Harry. For the way I behaved. I should've just told you how I was feeling instead of playing some silly game."
"And how are you feeling?" Harry asked.
"Harry, ever since we've come to Australia, my feelings for you have changed."
Changed? She had always loved him. That wasn't the right word.
"Well, not changed, exactly, more like they've deepened. I think I'm falling for you."
Harry's eyes grew wider in the moonlight. "So you meant what you said. You do want me to be your boyfriend."
Hermione nodded. "Yes, I do. But only if you want it, too," she took a breath. "I suppose I wanted to get dressed up tonight and flirt with somebody else to gauge your feelings. Lucy thought if I wore a nice dress, I would get your attention."
"So this was Lucy's idea?"
"Kind of, but I went along with it. I guess I was tired of you thinking of me as your bossy, bookworm best friend."
"Is that what you think, Hermione? Is that how you think I look at you?"
"Well, isn't it? Since we've been here, all you talked about was finding some girl to take your mind off things. You never once considered that I could be that girl?"
Harry shook his head. "Hermione you have to understand something. For the longest time, in my mind, you've been Ron's. I knew it since fourth year, at the Yule Ball. That row you had when Ron was jealous that Krum had asked you. I knew then that someday, the two of you would get together. And then you did."
"But, Harry, it didn't last long, did it? Ron and I are all wrong for each other."
"I know that now, believe me. But in my mind, it's hard for me to think of you as anything else. I guess it's something that I have to get used to."
Harry took a deep breath and looked at Hermione. "But you have to know that there is more to you than just a bossy bookworm who helps me out of a jam or lets me copy her homework."
"Yeah?" Hermione asked, hopefully.
"You're amazing, Hermione. Everything you did for me last year, giving up school to come with me on the Horcrux hunt, wiping out your parents' memories, staying when Ron deserted us, Godrics' Hollow…"
Harry paused and he was transported back to last Christmas when Hermione stood beside him in the snow, holding his hand, conjured up the flowers and then they left with their arms around each other. She had seen him at his most vulnerable, understood the despair he was feeling and pulled him back from the dark abyss. He was suddenly overwhelmed with a feeling of deep affection for her.
Harry looked at her again, amazed that he had never really let himself feel what Hermione meant to him.
"Everything you've done for me, I don't even know if I could ever pay you back. I thought maybe by coming here to Australia, I could stand by you the way you did for me. But I haven't been doing a very good job, have I? Instead of being supportive, I've been a git, complaining that I don't have a girl."
"But Harry, you have been supportive. You went to see my dad, didn't you? You've listened to me and given me feedback on my plan to restore their memories. You've been a good friend, that's all I can ask for."
"But what if I want to be more than that to you?"
Hermione's breath hitched in her throat. "Is that what you want, Harry? Do you want to be more than just my best friend?"
"I think I do," Harry answered. "Hermione, will you go out with me?"
"You mean on a date?" she asked, not quite believing what was happening.
Harry nodded. "Yeah, I think we should go on a date."
Hermione smiled. "I would love to."
"But this time, no parties. Let me take you out to dinner, and maybe to the cinema?"
"Sure, when?"
"Tomorrow night?"
"Sounds like a plan."
Harry stood up and held out his hand to Hermione, who now had a big smile on her face as she took his hand, interlacing her fingers with his.
"Shall we go home?"
"Yes, but can we make a stop at Lucy's first? I want to apologize to her for leaving her party without saying goodnight."
"That's fine, as long as you stay away from that Justin bloke."
"Justin who?" Hermione smirked.
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