Chapter 5
Hermione sat with Crookshanks on her lap. Hedwig was perched on the window seal next to her. Harry was upstairs in the dorms, nervous as always. She sighed, her hands absentmindedly running through her cats orange fur.
"Sickle for your thoughts?" A voice startled her out of her thoughts. She looked up and forced a smile on her lips to greet Fred.
"Nothing worth a sickle, I can promise you that." She tried to play it off as a joke, but the frown on his face caused it to fall short.
"You alright, Mia?" Fred had taken to using her family nickname after spending a week in her home the summer after first year.
"Fine." She said, turning back towards Crookshanks and trying not to sigh as her thoughts began to weigh her down.
"Hermione, what's going on?" Fred asked, moving to crouch down in front of her.
She shook her head, trying to will the bubbling emotions down. Ever since she was little, she had this ability to control her emotions. It probably had something to do with her life from before, but it was enough that she could hide anything from anyone. Anyone except Fred. He always seemed to know something was wrong, even if no one else did.
"Nothing, I swear." She said, looking up to meet his eyes and forcing joy into her eyes.
His brows furrowed as he shook his head. "You're a horrible liar."
"How would you know?"
"Cause I can lie and get away with it. You can't."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "The only one who can tell when I'm lying is dad."
"I can tell."
"No you can't."
Fred grinned, causing Hermione's stomach to do tiny flips. "When you lie, your smile tightens just slightly. No one else would notice it, but I do. When you lie your eyes dim, even if you seem happy, I can tell your not. You disappear when your upset. You zone, sitting there with Crooks, quietly. You don't read, or anything. You just sit there, quietly. I notice. You might have everyone else fooled, Hermione Lupin, but I know you better than that."
Hermione starred at him wide eyed for a moment, before sighing. "Just all this stuff about Sirius Black. Dad and Sirius used to be best friends before James and Peter were killed, and Sirius went to Azkaban. Now he's after Harry. Dad's a wreck, Harry is stressed out, and-"
"You're just as stressed out as they are. You're worrying about both, on top of your crazy school schedule." Fred finished.
Hermione took a deep breath, forcing her anxiety down and into a corner where she could forget about it for a while. "Sirius is dads mate, Moony's mate. If Sirius had been innocent, Harry never would have gone to the Dursley's for the first six years of his life. He would have been our other dad growing up. Dad would have been happy. I know he's happy with Harry and I, but there's a sadness to him that I know wouldn't be there if Sirius was there. If he hadn't betrayed dad so badly. I just-" She took another deep breath. Fred reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently.
"I understand."
She looked away from him, holding his hand tightly. It was the only physical indication of her worries. Though she had told him what was going on in her head, she still maintain this calm facade. A facade that no one has been able to break. Yet Fred is able to look through as if looking through a clear window. "Don't say anything to Harry. He's stressed enough." She whispered.
Fred nodded. "Alright."