Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, but I bow to her intellect and offer this humble work of fiction. This is all hers (except for my original characters)---I am just borrowing it. No profit is being made from this story.
Alesco [to grow, to mature]
Chapter One---Hogwarts Express
*
Harry looked out the train window, as the sun began to slide beyond the western horizon. He swallowed, and turned to his two friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, who were sitting across from each other in the compartment.
Presently, Ron was nibbling at the leg of a chocolate frog he had captured in the forefinger and thumb of his right hand. Harry had the feeling that the mind of his best mate wasn't on the food in his hand. He'd seen that far-away expression enough times to know that Ron was thinking of something far more important than sweets.
Harry's gaze wandered to Hermione, who had her face in a book, as usual. This time, though, he was fairly certain he hadn't seen her turn one page, and her eyes were glazed over. She was only pretending to read.
He frowned, and began to tap his foot audibly. Hermione instantly looked at him, pulling a frown. He crossed his arms. she turned back to her book, and Harry continued to tap his foot.
Ron grunted and shoved the rest of the chocolate frog in his mouth, and chewed noisily.
Ron sighed after he swallowed. He cleared his throat, a sure sign he was trying to think of something to say. For a very long, awkward time, silence reigned.
It was Harry's turn to give Ron a frown. Finally, Harry blurted, "Okay....okay. I admit that I was harsh. But I am so bloody tired of hearing you two gripe with each other. I've got plenty of other things to deal with...than your emotional-"
Hermione swiftly closed her book and placed it down beside her, causing Crookshanks, who was napping peacefully against her thigh, to wake and glare at his owner grouchily. Hermione ignored her cat and said to Harry sternly, "Okay, Harry, we've got your point. We're perfectly aware of everything you're dealing with. We've got things of our own to deal with. If you've read the "Daily Prophet" lately, you'd realize how much I worry about my parents......" Hermione's voice faded, as if her rebuttal had lost it's emphasis. "What about you, Ron? Don't you worry about your brother all the time?" She said, looking at the ginger-haired boy across from her.
The tips of Ron's ears reddened, as if he regretted her including him in the discussion. "Well....yes, I do." He turned to Harry, as if he was struggling with an inner conflict. "Even though Percy has always been a git, we thought he'd see the error of his ways. Since he hasn't contacted us....I guess we're all worried that something far more serious was happening...." Ron's voice faded, similar to Hermione's.
Harry pursed his lips and felt his brow furrow. Since Voldemort was back, everyone thought that Percy would surely reconcile with his family. As that had not happened, Harry sided with the Weasley's...in that something sinister was effecting Percy's judgment. Percy was a stuffed shirt...but he wasn't stupid.
"And, uh, Harry..." Ron started nervously, and glanced briefly at Hermione. "Hermione and I..have little spats all the time. We spoke about it during the summer, and we agreed we need to let off steam every now and then." Ron ventured a glance at Hermione, his face glowing a very bright red. Hermione was also blushing, and she turned to Harry and nodded briefly in agreement.
"We tried to make a truce, but it didn't hold. So if you don't like listening to us argue, then you don't have listen." Ron said the last sentence in a rush, as if he was afraid Harry might actually hear it.
Harry held his breath for the briefest moment before exhaling. He was a bit surprised by that omission, especially coming from Ron. He had a sneaky suspicion that Hermione had enlisted Ron with the task, since Harry saw her smile at Ron from the corner of his eye. It made him wonder, only in passing, what went on in the said conversation. He had to admit that Ron and Hermione had been acting a little strangely every since he'd arrived at the Burrow two weeks ago. They'd barely spoken to one another, until getting ready to leave for school that morning.
....Earlier that morning, on the train.....
Harry thought the awkwardness between Ron and Hermione had passed, as all three had sat in the compartment, at that time occupied by Ginny, Neville, and Luna. It had been crowded, as Hermione was squished between Ron and Harry. Harry and Neville had been involved in a "how did your summer go?" conversation, until Harry began to notice Ron and Hermione exchanging heated words in tense, whispered, and husky voices.
"I said, get that animal off me, he's getting hair all over my jumper."
"You were the one who persuaded him up here, you enjoyed having him on your lap while you were petting him."
"I didn't expect him to stay on my lap the whole trip, I thought you'd let him sit with you-"
"He's on both our laps now, Ron, and he's too big to just sit on me alone-"
"I don't care....my legs are asleep and I'm sweating too! Your cat's like an oven!"
Harry gritted his teeth. Neville was looking at Harry with a rather worried expression, and Harry realized he hadn't heard a word of what he'd just said to him. All the while, the argument grew in emotion and volume.
"Why don't you just grab him and put him on the floor yourself? You have arms too, you know!"
"Last time I tried that, he gave me three long bloody gashes! No thanks!"
Hermione had let out a very heated, exasperated groan. She had grabbed Crookshanks, who, miraculously, was fast asleep, and put him on the floor. Shaking and orienting himself, he had meowed defiantly, and then curled up on the floor.
"Okay, is that better? Maybe next time, you won't invite him up here if you dislike him so much!"
"I don't dislike him! I just don't like it when he's such a tremendous pain!"
"Okay, whatever, Ron...." Hermione had continued to mutter angrily. Harry began to notice that Luna was no longer in the compartment, and Ginny was giving Neville a raised eyebrow. As Ron shouted furiously at Hermione, Ginny had nodded toward the door and Neville followed her out of the compartment.
When they were gone, and the door was closed, Harry had finally had enough...
"SHUT UP, both of you!" Harry hollered.
Ron and Hermione stopped shouting at once in mid-sentence.....
~*~
And that was when Harry had began to shout. Looking back, he couldn't remember what he had said. It had not been nice. He remembered hearing himself shouting words that Dudley and his friends had used when they'd been bullying him...words he thought he would never let his mouth utter. How could he have ever been so stupid to alienate his own friends?
Surely, he would have learned lessons from last year. He'd shouted too much at people he cared about...and that energy could have been used for more productive ventures.
The worst thing about it all was that he'd enjoyed shouting his frustrations. Maybe that was what Ron meant...that sparring with Hermione was a mentally cleansing experience....
Harry swallowed, and looked up. "Fine, Ron. If I so much as hear you two say anything remotely spiteful to one another, I'll leave you alone."
He turned to stare out the window again. Dark fluffy clouds were closing over the waning sunset.
Shortly, they would be arriving at Hogwarts...Harry's only home.
~*~
Milling with the huge crowd of students that were pushing their way into the Great Hall, Harry idly fingered the wand handle that was in his pocket. He accidentally stepped on Hermione's foot.
"Ouch." Hermione said softly.
"Sorry." Harry said thickly.
"That's all right." Hermione's voice was strained. Harry shoved his wand farther into his pocket, and instead started fiddling with his tie.
"You're going to muss it up, you know." Hermione said, a tinge of humor in her voice.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Hermione remained silent. Harry released his tie and turned to her, and realized she had no idea he was looking at her. Her gaze was fixed resolutely on the back of Ron's head. Ron had already forced his way into the Great Hall, no doubt out of sheer hunger. When Harry turned back to look at Hermione, she was now focused on him.
"You know, Harry..." Hermione began, an awkward hitch in her voice. Harry had a funny feeling about the look on her face.
"You don't have to say it." Harry stated, feeling his face burn...and not really knowing for sure why.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, now puzzled.
Harry shrugged, and made a funny gesture toward Ron. The entire queue had finally made it through the doorway, and Ron was already sitting at Gryffindor's table. He had an impatient look on his face.
Hermione's brow screwed up. Finally, she tugged at Harry's arm, stopping him from joining Ron at the table.
"What I was about to say was...." Hermione paused, then continued. "I used to feel so bad every time Ron and I had an argument. Then this summer, I realized that I didn't really feel so bad every time we fought. It's like, when I'm at home, my mum and dad are with me, everything is fine. Even though things happen that upset me, I don't get angry...I keep it inside. And when I'm here at Hogwarts, I just try so hard to be the good student. Do you understand what I am trying to say?"
Harry shrugged again, and thought he sort of knew what she was getting at. "A little...I think."
"What I mean...is that I don't take Ron's anger as seriously anymore. I mean....he's just that passionate type of boy..." She blushed. "He's the kind of boy who's ruled by his emotions. I have come to that realization, so I am not going to take it personally. At the same time, I can fight with him, and know he won't take it personally. We talked...and we realize that's just how we get along. I know it's weird...but it makes sense."
"Ron already explained this on the train." Harry stated, shrugging for a third time.
Hermione breathed in sharply, and exhaled as if relieved. "Okay. I wasn't sure you totally understood him. I just wanted to make it clear to you that he's not really hurting my feelings all that much any more."
Professor McGonagall walked swiftly past them, saying a quick hello and politely asking them to take their seats. Harry glanced at Hermione, who was now smiling and appeared relieved. They both sat down, eagerly awaiting the feast.
Ron turned to them, an excited look on his face. "Hey, there's a new DADA teacher."
Harry and Hermione focused on the teacher's head table. A relatively young looking, curly brown-haired woman was sitting in the chair normally reserved for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. She wore elaborate pale blue robes and a matching, quirky witch hat which resembled a beret.
Hermione brightened and said softly to them, "Oh, yes. I remembered Dumbledore saying something about her when he visited the Burrow this summer to place new wards. She's apparently American, and graduated from the Guthrie Institute of Magical Learning in Boston...about eight years ago. That's one of the most elite schools in the States. Apparently, she passed with top scores on her final exams. You know, Americans don't have the O.W.L.S and N.E.W.T.S. like we do."
Harry studied the woman, and was about to ask Hermione if she knew more, when the doors opened, and the hall grew silent. The first year's sorting ceremony was about to begin....
Alesco [to grow, to mature]
Chapter One---Hogwarts Express
*
Harry looked out the train window, as the sun began to slide beyond the western horizon. He swallowed, and turned to his two friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, who were sitting across from each other in the compartment.
Presently, Ron was nibbling at the leg of a chocolate frog he had captured in the forefinger and thumb of his right hand. Harry had the feeling that the mind of his best mate wasn't on the food in his hand. He'd seen that far-away expression enough times to know that Ron was thinking of something far more important than sweets.
Harry's gaze wandered to Hermione, who had her face in a book, as usual. This time, though, he was fairly certain he hadn't seen her turn one page, and her eyes were glazed over. She was only pretending to read.
He frowned, and began to tap his foot audibly. Hermione instantly looked at him, pulling a frown. He crossed his arms. she turned back to her book, and Harry continued to tap his foot.
Ron grunted and shoved the rest of the chocolate frog in his mouth, and chewed noisily.
Ron sighed after he swallowed. He cleared his throat, a sure sign he was trying to think of something to say. For a very long, awkward time, silence reigned.
It was Harry's turn to give Ron a frown. Finally, Harry blurted, "Okay....okay. I admit that I was harsh. But I am so bloody tired of hearing you two gripe with each other. I've got plenty of other things to deal with...than your emotional-"
Hermione swiftly closed her book and placed it down beside her, causing Crookshanks, who was napping peacefully against her thigh, to wake and glare at his owner grouchily. Hermione ignored her cat and said to Harry sternly, "Okay, Harry, we've got your point. We're perfectly aware of everything you're dealing with. We've got things of our own to deal with. If you've read the "Daily Prophet" lately, you'd realize how much I worry about my parents......" Hermione's voice faded, as if her rebuttal had lost it's emphasis. "What about you, Ron? Don't you worry about your brother all the time?" She said, looking at the ginger-haired boy across from her.
The tips of Ron's ears reddened, as if he regretted her including him in the discussion. "Well....yes, I do." He turned to Harry, as if he was struggling with an inner conflict. "Even though Percy has always been a git, we thought he'd see the error of his ways. Since he hasn't contacted us....I guess we're all worried that something far more serious was happening...." Ron's voice faded, similar to Hermione's.
Harry pursed his lips and felt his brow furrow. Since Voldemort was back, everyone thought that Percy would surely reconcile with his family. As that had not happened, Harry sided with the Weasley's...in that something sinister was effecting Percy's judgment. Percy was a stuffed shirt...but he wasn't stupid.
"And, uh, Harry..." Ron started nervously, and glanced briefly at Hermione. "Hermione and I..have little spats all the time. We spoke about it during the summer, and we agreed we need to let off steam every now and then." Ron ventured a glance at Hermione, his face glowing a very bright red. Hermione was also blushing, and she turned to Harry and nodded briefly in agreement.
"We tried to make a truce, but it didn't hold. So if you don't like listening to us argue, then you don't have listen." Ron said the last sentence in a rush, as if he was afraid Harry might actually hear it.
Harry held his breath for the briefest moment before exhaling. He was a bit surprised by that omission, especially coming from Ron. He had a sneaky suspicion that Hermione had enlisted Ron with the task, since Harry saw her smile at Ron from the corner of his eye. It made him wonder, only in passing, what went on in the said conversation. He had to admit that Ron and Hermione had been acting a little strangely every since he'd arrived at the Burrow two weeks ago. They'd barely spoken to one another, until getting ready to leave for school that morning.
....Earlier that morning, on the train.....
Harry thought the awkwardness between Ron and Hermione had passed, as all three had sat in the compartment, at that time occupied by Ginny, Neville, and Luna. It had been crowded, as Hermione was squished between Ron and Harry. Harry and Neville had been involved in a "how did your summer go?" conversation, until Harry began to notice Ron and Hermione exchanging heated words in tense, whispered, and husky voices.
"I said, get that animal off me, he's getting hair all over my jumper."
"You were the one who persuaded him up here, you enjoyed having him on your lap while you were petting him."
"I didn't expect him to stay on my lap the whole trip, I thought you'd let him sit with you-"
"He's on both our laps now, Ron, and he's too big to just sit on me alone-"
"I don't care....my legs are asleep and I'm sweating too! Your cat's like an oven!"
Harry gritted his teeth. Neville was looking at Harry with a rather worried expression, and Harry realized he hadn't heard a word of what he'd just said to him. All the while, the argument grew in emotion and volume.
"Why don't you just grab him and put him on the floor yourself? You have arms too, you know!"
"Last time I tried that, he gave me three long bloody gashes! No thanks!"
Hermione had let out a very heated, exasperated groan. She had grabbed Crookshanks, who, miraculously, was fast asleep, and put him on the floor. Shaking and orienting himself, he had meowed defiantly, and then curled up on the floor.
"Okay, is that better? Maybe next time, you won't invite him up here if you dislike him so much!"
"I don't dislike him! I just don't like it when he's such a tremendous pain!"
"Okay, whatever, Ron...." Hermione had continued to mutter angrily. Harry began to notice that Luna was no longer in the compartment, and Ginny was giving Neville a raised eyebrow. As Ron shouted furiously at Hermione, Ginny had nodded toward the door and Neville followed her out of the compartment.
When they were gone, and the door was closed, Harry had finally had enough...
"SHUT UP, both of you!" Harry hollered.
Ron and Hermione stopped shouting at once in mid-sentence.....
~*~
And that was when Harry had began to shout. Looking back, he couldn't remember what he had said. It had not been nice. He remembered hearing himself shouting words that Dudley and his friends had used when they'd been bullying him...words he thought he would never let his mouth utter. How could he have ever been so stupid to alienate his own friends?
Surely, he would have learned lessons from last year. He'd shouted too much at people he cared about...and that energy could have been used for more productive ventures.
The worst thing about it all was that he'd enjoyed shouting his frustrations. Maybe that was what Ron meant...that sparring with Hermione was a mentally cleansing experience....
Harry swallowed, and looked up. "Fine, Ron. If I so much as hear you two say anything remotely spiteful to one another, I'll leave you alone."
He turned to stare out the window again. Dark fluffy clouds were closing over the waning sunset.
Shortly, they would be arriving at Hogwarts...Harry's only home.
~*~
Milling with the huge crowd of students that were pushing their way into the Great Hall, Harry idly fingered the wand handle that was in his pocket. He accidentally stepped on Hermione's foot.
"Ouch." Hermione said softly.
"Sorry." Harry said thickly.
"That's all right." Hermione's voice was strained. Harry shoved his wand farther into his pocket, and instead started fiddling with his tie.
"You're going to muss it up, you know." Hermione said, a tinge of humor in her voice.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Hermione remained silent. Harry released his tie and turned to her, and realized she had no idea he was looking at her. Her gaze was fixed resolutely on the back of Ron's head. Ron had already forced his way into the Great Hall, no doubt out of sheer hunger. When Harry turned back to look at Hermione, she was now focused on him.
"You know, Harry..." Hermione began, an awkward hitch in her voice. Harry had a funny feeling about the look on her face.
"You don't have to say it." Harry stated, feeling his face burn...and not really knowing for sure why.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, now puzzled.
Harry shrugged, and made a funny gesture toward Ron. The entire queue had finally made it through the doorway, and Ron was already sitting at Gryffindor's table. He had an impatient look on his face.
Hermione's brow screwed up. Finally, she tugged at Harry's arm, stopping him from joining Ron at the table.
"What I was about to say was...." Hermione paused, then continued. "I used to feel so bad every time Ron and I had an argument. Then this summer, I realized that I didn't really feel so bad every time we fought. It's like, when I'm at home, my mum and dad are with me, everything is fine. Even though things happen that upset me, I don't get angry...I keep it inside. And when I'm here at Hogwarts, I just try so hard to be the good student. Do you understand what I am trying to say?"
Harry shrugged again, and thought he sort of knew what she was getting at. "A little...I think."
"What I mean...is that I don't take Ron's anger as seriously anymore. I mean....he's just that passionate type of boy..." She blushed. "He's the kind of boy who's ruled by his emotions. I have come to that realization, so I am not going to take it personally. At the same time, I can fight with him, and know he won't take it personally. We talked...and we realize that's just how we get along. I know it's weird...but it makes sense."
"Ron already explained this on the train." Harry stated, shrugging for a third time.
Hermione breathed in sharply, and exhaled as if relieved. "Okay. I wasn't sure you totally understood him. I just wanted to make it clear to you that he's not really hurting my feelings all that much any more."
Professor McGonagall walked swiftly past them, saying a quick hello and politely asking them to take their seats. Harry glanced at Hermione, who was now smiling and appeared relieved. They both sat down, eagerly awaiting the feast.
Ron turned to them, an excited look on his face. "Hey, there's a new DADA teacher."
Harry and Hermione focused on the teacher's head table. A relatively young looking, curly brown-haired woman was sitting in the chair normally reserved for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. She wore elaborate pale blue robes and a matching, quirky witch hat which resembled a beret.
Hermione brightened and said softly to them, "Oh, yes. I remembered Dumbledore saying something about her when he visited the Burrow this summer to place new wards. She's apparently American, and graduated from the Guthrie Institute of Magical Learning in Boston...about eight years ago. That's one of the most elite schools in the States. Apparently, she passed with top scores on her final exams. You know, Americans don't have the O.W.L.S and N.E.W.T.S. like we do."
Harry studied the woman, and was about to ask Hermione if she knew more, when the doors opened, and the hall grew silent. The first year's sorting ceremony was about to begin....