Harry Potter and the Year of Surprises by erinpotter

Number One

Not Mine

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They ran to the desk and bought their tickets to the central wizarding station. There, they would get a connection to the Auror College. Once on the train, Harry, Ron and Draco fell asleep. Ginny and Hermione tutted at them. Ginny was too excited to sleep and Hermione didn’t think it was practical for them all to sleep. What if they missed their stop? So they sat up and talked for the three hours they were on the train. Ginny expressed her fears of not being able to cope with the work load. She was still only seventeen. All the rest of them were eighteen. Hermione reassured her. She did great in her OWLs and would do brilliantly in her NEWTs. 

‘Hermione, when do we get our NEWT grades?’ Ginny asked.

‘We should get them the day we arrive back at the Burrow. It’s supposedly a week after we leave school, so we spend a week at Auror College then we’ll get them when we get to the Burrow…I hope. I'm so nervous. You know, if we don’t get the required amount, we won't get back to Auror College.’

‘What? You never said that before!’

‘I know, but I just couldn’t. We all need to get Outstanding in DADA or we’re out straight away. Then it depends on the rest of our marks.’

‘Do they know?’ Ginny said, nodding her head towards the sleeping boys.

‘No. I couldn’t. They were so excited. Anyway…’ she said uncertainly, ‘we’ll all do fine! I don’t know what you’re worrying about.’

Ginny nodded nervously. She thought that they would all get Outstanding in DADA, but she was worried about the other scores. She and Hermione would be fine, she was sure, but the boys…she wasn’t so certain.

‘You know, I'm really bored of worrying.’ Hermione stated, randomly.

‘What do you mean?’ Ginny asked, still in a little world of her own.

‘I mean, I've always been the worrier, I've always been the dependant one, and I’ve always been the one who did everything right and was afraid to have a little fun.’

‘No you weren’t. Hermione, I would have killed to have had the adventures you have had.’

‘Yes, but I was only there because Harry needed someone smart.’

‘No Hermione...wrong again. I don’t think Harry ever asked you to be there. Did he?’

‘No…but…’

‘Look Hermione. You’re so lucky. Some people never see the things you’ve seen. You’ve been a massive part of Harry’s life and he wouldn’t have gotten through most of it if it wasn’t for you! Some girls would kill to be in your position.’

‘But Ginny, I'm just sick of being the good one.’

‘Hermione, do you remember yourself at the start of the year?’

‘What?’

‘You went slightly off the rails at the start of the year.’

‘Huh?’

‘Remember when you got drunk and started the whole Gryffindor dares thing?’

Hermione blushed.

‘And when we won that quidditch match and started off the war dance thing?’

‘Oh yeah, that was funny.’

‘Look, Hermione. You’re no angel, believe me.’

‘Yeah,’ she beamed. ‘I'm not really, am I? Actually, if Dumbledore had obeyed the rules, I'd have been expelled in first year! Ha!’