Daylight

Meeting Theo in the library on the weekends has come to be incorporated in Hermione’s routine. She has grown to appreciate his dry sense of humour, and finds him to be a reliable study partner. Spending time with him she feels very understood, he never pokes fun at her academic achievements, and pushes her to think of her assignments from different perspectives. Though she won't admit it to anyone, she may be starting to develop a small crush on the Slytherin boy. Which is how she finds herself standing in front of the wardrobe with absolutely nothing to wear. Hermione is not a vain witch, but she likes to think she can pull herself together when certain events call for it.

Finally deciding on a pair of brown denims, she adds a white turtleneck and a deep green jumper. Hermione has done her best to stay away from other house colours, but when she saw this at the shop she couldn’t refuse. She adds on the gold necklace with a miniature pendant of her wand that she received from Harry for her birthday, and her mother’s old leather watch. She tossed over adding Theo and Blaise’s gifts, but decided to save them for a special occasion. Giving herself a nod of approval, she grabs her bag and heads out the door. 

When she enters the library, she spots three heads at her usual table. Slowing her approach, she clears her throat so she doesn't take anyone by surprise. Theo and Blaise turn around and give her matching warm smiles, but the third one gives her a look of apprehension. Making her way to her usual seat across from the boys, she takes in the newcomer. He sports short dirty blonde hair and brown eyes, with tan skin, and Hermione wonders why she hasn’t ever taken note of him before. She also wonders what in the world Salazar Slytherin blessed their water with. 

“Hermione, good morning! This is Adrian Pucey, he’s in our year. I was just helping him out with his Potions essay.” Theo says, bringing ease to Hermione’s racing mind. She shoots Theo a smile of appreciation, and turns to give her hand to Adrian.

“Nice to meet you, Adrian. I’m Hermione.” She gives him a polite smile. Taking her hand, he meets her smile with his own. 

“Good to meet you as well, Hermione.” he replies, “I wasn’t aware you were friends with these two puffs” he jests, nodding his head to Theo and Blaise with a laugh. 

The Slytherins’ offence at being called such a name caused Hermione to giggle, and she replied, “Yes, well I do seem to have a habit of picking up strays. Just can’t seem to shake them.” She added the last part in a mock whisper, causing Blaise to shout out in his own defence. This earned them a withering glare from Madam Pince, which of course caused the boys to laugh, and Hermione to go rigidly straight. Giving Blaise a glare for getting her on the librarian’s radar, she moved to unpack her bag. Sensing her shift into study mode, the three boys quickly returned to their own assignments. They stayed in compatible silence for the rest of the morning, only interrupting to assist each other with assignments. 

****

The following weeks press on without issue, Hermione has finally gotten the hang of her time turner, and has completely finished her study schedule. However, all anyone around her can seem to focus on is quidditch. Somehow, the barbaric sport even manages to find its way into her sacred Saturday Study sessions. As Blaise and Adrian argue about who will win their first match of the season, Hermione finds she needs to get away from the quidditch talk. “Theo, would you care for a walk through the grounds?” She stands and motions for him to follow. They haven’t had much time alone together since their first Saturday in the library, but that hasn’t done much to stop Hermione’s growing crush.

As they exit the library and make their way down the corridors, they begin to make conversation. “Honestly, Granger, if I would’ve known introducing you to those two meant I’d never get to spend quality time with you again, I would’ve made them both bugger off much sooner.” he says while they reach the Great Hall doors. 

“I can promise you, Theo, you’re not missing out on much.” She said with a shy smile. 

He turns to face her and grabs her hand, then replies, “Trust me when I say this, Hermione, now that I have you in my life I know without a doubt a large hole will be left should you decide to leave it.” The intense look Theo is giving her causes a blush to crawl its way up her neck. 

Turning to walk, but not letting go of his hand, she replies, “I appreciate your friendship so much. It’s nice to have someone who comes close to rivalling my academic achievements around. Otherwise I fear I’d be bored.” She finishes with a giggle, and turns to see Theo giving her a mocking glare. 

“Comes close? If I’m not mistaken, we received the same marks on that potions essay.” he retorts.

Hermione does her best to hide her snorting laugh, “Oh that is so not fair! Snape hates me no matter what I do! I swear, nothing is good enough for him as long as you wear red and gold.”

Theo meets her laugh with a smirk, “Well then I supposed we’ll have to test that theory! Tell Potter I’m wearing one of his ties to the next class.”

Her eyes go wide, “No way! You, Mr. Nott, will get so much flack from your housemates and I refuse to deal with your dramatics after.” With a laugh, she lets go of his hand, quickens her pace and shakes her head. 

They walk around the grounds, making small conversations, but mostly just enjoying each other's presence. Hermione catches Theo looking over at her multiple times, but not because she was looking over at him, thank you very much. As they come closer to the castle, they sit down in the courtyard to enjoy the last semblance of sun before a harsh Scottish winter. 

“You know, Hogsmeade is tomorrow. So is Halloween.” Theo says as they bask in the sun.

Smiling at the thought of visiting the village, Hermione says, “Oh yes, I’m so looking forward to seeing the village. I’ve heard amazing things about Tomes and Scrolls, I’m hoping to get a peek at our books for next year.”

Theo looks over at her and matches her smile, “Of course you are, swot.” He starts with a laugh, “Would you like to get a butterbeer? With me?” 

“Don’t we currently have a wager happening where your prize is us going to Hogsmeade, Theodore?” She says, giving him a look. Truly, she’s already planning to spend the day with Ron and Harry. For some reason, she feels slightly guilty she didn’t think of Theo when making her plans for the day. 

His smile doesn’t falter, despite Hermione’s swift rejection. “You wound me, Granger. But yes, I’m nothing if not a fair man. You’d best believe I plan on taking you after I win this bet.”

Hermione laughs and stands, “Funny, I do believe I’m currently in first place. And I finally managed to find your name all the way in third.”

Standing with her and moving towards the castle, “Granger! How did you get a peek at rankings, and who could possibly be in front of me?” He says with a dramatic flourish of his hand, causing her to laugh even more. 

“I won’t give you my sources, Theodore. But if you want a chance to beat me, you’ll have to get around Malfoy.” Her face twists at the mention of his name. 

His face darkens, “Yeah, I don’t quite fancy being second to him.” Brightening back up, he continues, “Don’t you worry, Granger. I’ve always got something up my sleeve.” With that, they separate to their respective common rooms. 

****

Hermione wakes up on Halloween day excited for her first trip to Hogsmeade. Quickly getting dressed, she heads for the common room. It’s mostly deserted, but surprisingly, she spots Harry in the corner looking into the hearth. Thinking it’s much too early for him to be awake, she decides to investigate. 

“Harry, what are you doing awake?” She asks while taking a seat next to him on the sofa.

He looks up at her with red rimmed eyes, “Hey, Hermione. Couldn’t sleep, I suppose. Today, well, today is hard. I didn’t grow up with them, my parents, but it's like I feel their absence here, do you know what I mean?” he asks while pointing to his chest.

Hermione frowns, “I’m sorry Harry, I sort of understand what you mean, I’ve lost my grandmother and my uncle. Only, it's not quite the same for me, is it? I can't imagine what it must be like for you. Do you need something from me? I’d like to be of help to you.”

Harry gives her an understanding look, “I suppose my situation is not exactly normal, is it? Being the chosen one and all that rot.” 

Laughing at her friend’s poor attempt at a joke, Hermione stands and holds out her arm, “Come on, let’s get some breakfast.” 

They make easy conversation over breakfast, later joined by Ron. They head to the front courtyard to gather for the trip to Hogsmeade. After two years of staying at the castle, Hermione was ready for this new adventure. The only thing she didn't plan for, is Harry not having his permission missive signed. Leaving them one man down, Ron and Hermione decided to grab Harry some sweets before coming back. For once, being alone with Ron didn't lead to an argument. They floated about the small village and went into every shop that looked interesting. They ran into the twins at Zonko’s, and when Ron wanted to go back into Quality Quidditch Supply, Hermione decided she’d rather go to Honeydukes with Fred. 

They walk around the shop and Hermione can’t help but laugh at his jokes. She offers to pay for his sweets, but he throws down galleons for hers instead. She just gives him a look and they continue through the village. Stopping at the Three Broomsticks, they grab a few to-go butterbeers and enjoy them sitting near the Shrieking Shack. Hermione is surprised at how easy her conversation with Fred flows, considering she’s only spent time with him and George together. As they enjoy the crisp autumn air, their talk moves towards more personal things.

“So, you invited some snakes to your birthday. Any spark there?” Fred wiggles his eyebrows.

“Oh! Erm, well, I’m not sure. I’m more focused on school, Theo is a good friend though. He keeps up with me academically.” She’s not sure why she feels so nervous saying all of this, it's only Fred. “What about you? I saw you owling Angelina over the summer.”

“Passing fancy, I suppose. You know I’m a man of much mystery, Hermione. As far as the ladies go, I think my heart is meant for another.”

“Well, have you told her how you feel? Even if she likes another wizard it might be worth a shot.”

He gives her a wistful smile, “We’ll see, come on let’s get back to the warmth of the castle. I have a feeling a few devilishly handsome wizards have some Halloween tricks up their sleeves.” Throwing her a wink, he wraps his arm around her, and they make their way back up to the castle. 

Walking into the Great Hall, Hermione is amazed at all of the decorations. She immediately finds Harry and gives him the sweets she got from Honeydukes. She feels slightly sorry for being gone all day, but the smile Harry gives her eases her guilt. He tells her of a chat he had with Professor Lupin, and Hermione is glad Harry has met someone who knew his parents. After their bellies were positively bursting with treats, they make their way out and back to Gryffindor Tower. Walking up to the Grand Staircase, Hermione hears yelling and laughter. Looking around, Jack O’ Lanterns are appearing on student’s heads. Grabbing Ron and Harry, she makes a mad dash for the nearest alcove. 

Once they catch their breath, they take a look around and realise there is not much space between them. Hermione realises they are much larger than when they ran around under Harry’s invisibility cloak. She assumes based on the looks on their faces, her friends are thinking the same thing. They share a quiet laugh, and any semblance of awkwardness fades away. With a nod, Hermione peeks around the tapestry, and sees the commotion has died down. Giving Harry and Ron a nod of approval, they move back to the staircase. As they’re making their way back to the common room, they see a solemn Fred and George following McGonagall towards Dumbledore’s office. 

Bidding a goodnight to her housemates, she makes her way back upstairs and gets ready for bed. She tunes into Lavender and Parvati’s late-night gossip session just in case they’ve heard anything interesting. When it’s clear they’ll just be going on about who was seen at Madam Puddifoot's, Hermione bids them a goodnight. Slipping into her crimson sheets, she does her best to not think about Theo going to the tea shop with Daphne Greengrass.