Darkness Falls

Twenty Nine

1994 – Third Year

The Gryffindor common room was filled with chipper students, beaming from ear to ear due to the result of the Quidditch match. They had won the house cup, every member of the Quidditch team was exhilarated as Harry Potter had once again successfully caught the Golden Snitch.

Hermione sat alone on the sofa besides the fire, smiling to herself as she watched members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team receive praises off each student as they made their way around the room, all the while her mind flickered between the present and past recent events.
Her focus throughout the game had not been on her house team, instead they had been on a certain member of the opposing team and how moments before the match, she had found herself in a supply cupboard with her favourite Slytherin.

It would quite possibly be one of her happiest moments, that is until the memory of Professor Snape turning up intruded her thoughts. Her cheeks heated at the memory of her Professor's embarrassed and irritated face as he opened the door to his supply cupboard to find the two of them panting somewhat and flustered.

She let slip a groan as she sat forward, resting her elbows on her knees whilst her head dropped into her hands that moved to her face and began to rub at her temples. She tried desperately to block the embarrassing memory from her mind, when she felt her seat shift slightly, signalling that someone had sat down heavily on the sofa beside her.

"Did you know, you're the only person in here that hasn't said congratulations to me." Fred teased as he sat back on the sofa, his arm stretched out behind her, draping over the length of the back of the seat.

"Us." George added as he sat down on the other side of Hermione, "Quite frankly, I think its rude."

"My apologies. Congratulations boys."

"Then she adds insult to injury." George sat back to look at his twin.

"Boys, she calls us."

"I would have said Gent's if I thought you resembled anything remotely close to that." Hermione said with a smirk.

"My my, she just doesn't stop." George faked offence before he stood tall, looking down at her with his hand on his chest as he continued the act of being hurt by her words.

"Sometimes, you're just too harsh Hermione." He said before he moved away from her, all the while looking back and shaking his head, eventually getting lost in the crowed.

"He wasn't being serious, was he? I didn't really offend him, did I?" Hermione asked, her confidence in George's ability to take a joke wavered slightly.

"It would take a lot more than stating the obvious to offend one of us, Hermione, not everyone is as sensitive as my youngest brother." Fred spoke, causing Hermione to relax and smile back at him.

Fred's face grew serious as he glued his eyes to Hermione's, the concentration in his face made his gaze that more intensifying. It became uncomfortable for her quickly as she averted her eyes from him, looking back at her friends who had begun to start celebrating with drinks.

"Are you not wanting to partake in the festivities?" Hermione asked, not turning back to look at him.

"I think I've had just enough for the time being, perhaps later. I wanted to speak to you about something." Fred told her. He leant forward to rest his arms along his thighs, hanging his head low he stared down at his feet and inhaled deeply before he spoke again.

"I had originally wanted to talk to you on my birthday, but well... when I finally built up the courage, I couldn't find you."

Hermione's back stiffened at the mention of the twin's birthday, a night she remembered very well but wished she had drank enough, like her fellow students, to have forgotten the conversations she overheard.