Chance--A Fremione OneShot

Fifth Year: Easter

"'What was the point, we asked ourselves, of disrupting leisure time.'continued Fred. 'No point at all, we answered ourselves. And of course, we'd have messed up people's studying too. Which would be the very last thing we'd want to do.'

"He gave Hermione a sanctimonious little nod. She looked rather taken aback by his thoughtfulness."

—J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 29

***

It was the last day of Easter break, and every student to a one was outside soaking in the final rays of free sunshine. The morning would bring the return of classes, of homework, and of Umbridge on her warpath.

"C'mon, Hermione," Ron complained. "If you don't come with us now, you'll have lost your last chance as sunshine before O.W.L.s are here. Come have a last bit of fun with us before term begins. I'll bet even the Great Toad isn't working today." Ron was laying across a sofa in the common room while Hermione had her books spread out over a table and her notes stacked carefully in neat rows. Harry looked uneasily between his two friends, but neither seemed to notice.

"O.W.L.s will be here before you know it, Ronald. You've got less than six weeks left, and I know you haven't been following your study plan." Hermione frowned slightly but didn't look up from her work.

Ron had the decency to appear sheepish before a grin spread across his face. "If you come out with us, I promise I'll study tonight for two solid hours."

"Nice try, but no. You're just going to go fly around the quidditch pitch while Harry mopes and gives you pointers from the ground. That would leave me studying in the stands, and I'm much more comfortable here."

"That's not true," Ron began, but Harry shot him a sharp look. "Okay, okay. Point taken. We'll see you at dinner then?" Ron sloughed off the couch and straightened his jumper.

Hermione nodded and waved the boys away. Ron took off towards the portrait hole, but Harry lingered back.

"You're sure about this, Hermione? You'll be okay on your own?"

Hermione finally looked up from her notes and met her friend's eyes. "Honestly, Harry," she smiled, "you boys have fun. It's not every day you can actually convince Ron to think optimistically about quidditch anymore. But I want you both studying tonight."

Harry grinned. "We promise. See you later, and don't forget to eat lunch!"

"Yes, all right," she sighed, but a smile still ghosted her lips.

Harry ran off after Ron, and Hermione was left alone in peace. In truth, she'd been using studying this year as a comfort more than her usual habit or—she wasn't ashamed to admit—obsession. She'd nearly exploded on friends, classmates, and even some unsuspecting third years while on Prefect duty one time. Her tensions were on overdrive with the exams coming and with Umbridge doing everything she could to ruin their lives. The DA meetings were a good outlet, but those had stopped over break and couldn't be held consistently to begin with for fear of being caught. Thus, she studied.

Hermione was alone in the common room with her books and her notes, completely in her element. She filled her mind with theories, facts, and dates. The more she memorized, the more she felt her mind stretch and push itself to its limits. The feeling was glorious and could only be topped by a chance to do some practical application. A couple of hours easily slipped by, and before long Hermione's stomach began to growl.

A plat dropped in front of her laden with beans and cheese on toast. She looked up. Fred grinned down at her, the corners of his mouth turned up suspiciously. She stared at him for several long moments.