Blood Magic - Golden Trio Era

20. Teacher and Thief

The next month passed in a blur. Their class workloads were piling up. Amy could manage because she could spend the night working. The strain though was clearly starting to wear on everyone, worst of all Hermione. She was staying up later and going to bed later. Despite Amy's suggestion that they postpone their extra dark arts practice, Hermione insisted they continue. She was straining under the weight of her workload but wouldn't hear otherwise. Amy helped where she could but she wouldn't stand in the way of her girlfriend's ambition. She'd never tell her but Amy had been channeling vitae into the amulet she gave to Hermione. This meant that Hermione needed less sleep and had more energy.

She'd also notice Pansy now shrugged off her ex-friends cruel comments, she no longer grovelled around them desperate for approval. Amy was proud of her. The two had talked a few more times since but still mostly kept their distance.

It was well into February, Harry and Ron were still not talking to Hermione which pissed Amy off. After all they'd been through together, they were so quick to cut each other off. Hermione and Amy were working in the Gryffindor common room on their stacks of homework. A crowd started to gather by the door sounding excited. The girls quickly returned to their work when they saw it was just Harry and Ron. Harry had his broom back. They continued to ignore the two boys approached their table.

"I got it back," said a grinning Harry.

"See, Hermione? There wasn't anything wrong with it!" said Ron.

"Well - there might have been!" said Hermione. "I mean, at least you know now that it's safe!"

"Yeah, I suppose so," said Harry. "I'd better put it upstairs-"

"I'll take it!" said Ron eagerly. "I've got to give Scabbers his Rat Tonic."

He took the Firebolt, holding it reverently as though it were a sacred relic.

"Can I sit down, then?" Harry asked them.

"I suppose so," said Hermione, moving a great stack of parchment off a chair.

Harry looked around at the cluttered table, at the long Arithmancy essay on which the ink was still glistening, at the even longer Muggle Studies essay and at the Rune translation Hermione was now poring over while Amy had a similar pile of essays beside her and was currently working on a long potions essay.

"How are you getting through all this stuff?" Harry asked her.

"Oh, well - you know - working hard," said Hermione. Harry looked her over, she looked tired. The surprising thing was that she didn't look more tired.

"Why don't you just drop a couple of subjects?" Harry asked, watching her lifting books as she searched for her Rune dictionary which Amy passed to her without even looking up from her own essay.

"I couldn't do that!" said Hermione.

"Arithmancy looks terrible," said Harry.

"Oh, no, it's wonderful!" said Hermione earnestly. "It's my favourite subject! It's-"

Before she continued, a strangled yell echoed down the boys' staircase. Silence overtook the common room. They heard hurried footsteps until Ron came storming in carrying a bedsheet

"LOOK!" he bellowed, striding over to the girls. "LOOK!" he yelled, shaking the sheets in her face.

"Ron, what –?"

"The fuck are you doi-?"

"SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!" he was gesturing wildly at the sheet, "BLOOD!" Ron yelled into the stunned silence. "HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?"