Changing the Wizarding World

Chapter 5

Hermione POV

I feel better than I've ever felt before. My skin tingles pleasantly and I can't help but sigh in satisfaction as I stretch leisurely. My hair falls around my shoulders in the comforting scent of my cinnamon shampoo. I open my bleary but soon shoot up as memories flood back... Ron shooting a curse at me, Harry turning from angry to panicked... and now here I am.

I look up as brisk footsteps hurry towards me. Madam Pomfrey shoots me a stern look and orders me to lay back down.
"Miss Granger, I am pleased to see you are finally awake. Your core has undergone... Quite a few changes and it needed time to recuperate-"

"-What do you mean changes? It was just healing itself from the curse obviously, It can't haven't changed."

Madam Pomfrey glares at my interruption and continues with a hint of sympathy lacing her voice that makes my nerves stand on end "Come now Miss Granger, surely you felt the rush of magic when you woke up? I have a feeling you haven't looked in a mirror yet either. I suggest you do so once I am done explaining and have finished checking your vitals."

I nod in confusion and disbelief. Please, surely I would know if I had changed in any way?

"It has been two weeks since your little incident with Mister Weasl-"

"-What!? No you must be mistak-"

"-Miss Granger! Calm yourself down and allow me to talk! It has indeed been two weeks that you have been in a magical coma. When Mister Potter ran off with you before I could get to you, he healed you and brought you here. By pushing his newly acquired magic into you, still laced with the new power of lordship and core strengths, it settled into your core instead of just healing you. It has strengthened your core as well and for some reason has changed your physical appearance slightly."

I feel nausea run through my body and my hands begin to shake. How could this have happened? Just how much had I changed? Ignoring Madam Pomfrey's shouts of keeping still, I ran to the ward's bathroom to find a mirror and gasped as I saw a version of myself that I'd never seen before.

In front of me stood a young woman. I had grown by about 2 inches, my body that had once been short and too lean now had subtle curves. My once frizzy, uncontrollable hair had now smoothed out to soft waves with a golden hue to my usual chestnut brown. My buck teeth were also a thing of the past.  Light muscle definition was apparent in my legs, arms and stomach that made me look like a fighter.

I looked like me, but a version of me that I had always wanted to be, had strived to become. The analytical side of me made me wonder if my core had taken those longing thoughts and channeled them into my new physical appearance. A bright grin lit up my face as I danced around happily.

I whipped around as Harry came crashing into the bathroom. I grinned happily and ran up to him, gripping him tightly but pulling back in confusion when he didn't hug me back.

"Hermione, thank Merlin. They said you would wake up but I was afraid my magic had hurt you somehow... You look- nevermind. I'm going to go now."

He turned abruptly with a frown on his face that confused me even more. Why would he rush to check on me and then leave so suddenly?

"Wait, what? Harry, why are you leaving? It's been two weeks, what's happened?"

His eyes hardened then and his posture straightened as barely contained rage shook through him. "I got the weasel suspended. He should have been expelled but of course our mistake of a headmaster couldn't let that happen. Weasley is lucky I haven't strung him from the Astronomy tower by his vocal chords yet."

He sighed and continued, "Hermione. I'm afraid we can no longer be friends. You are a... misconvenience to me. I can't always be looking out for your safety. You're holding me back."