Venom and Velvet

The Hogwarts Express

3. The Hogwarts Express

Hermione rose with the sun the morning of September 1st, finding herself incredibly eager to leave for Hogwarts. It seemed like it had been so long since she had been excited to go somewhere rather than afraid.

Ginny was still asleep, which was no surprise to Hermione. She had tried to wait up for Ginny, but when the clock struck one o'clock and Ginny still hadn't returned, Hermione had given up and gone to bed. She trusted that she would be filled in on all the details later.

Hermione walked down the flights of stairs as quietly as she could, trying not to wake anyone. When she reached the kitchen, Mrs. Weasley was already there, sitting at the table and staring out the window without appearing to really be seeing anything. Her eyes were blank and she was absentmindedly stirring a cup of tea with a spoon.

Hermione took another step, intending to head out to the garden without disturbing Mrs. Weasley, when the floorboard under her foot let out a loud creak. Mrs. Weasley jumped, startled, and looked around to see Hermione standing there.

"Oh, good morning, dear. You're up awful early." Her voice was flat, and Hermione was reminded of George in the Leaky Cauldron. How terrible it must be for her, losing a son and watching another slip away into nothingness, almost as if Fred's death had turned George into a ghost.

"Good morning, Mrs. Weasley. I'm sorry I disturbed you. I didn't know anyone else was up."

"I just don't sleep very well these days. It's nothing to worry over," she gave Hermione a small, sad smile. "Would you like some tea?" She beckoned Hermione to the table and motioned for her to sit down. With an effortless wave of her wand, she had set the kettle going and a pitcher of milk was pouring itself into a teacup.

"Sugar, dear?" She asked, still not focusing on anything in particular.

"No, thank you." Hermione said, unsure of what to do. Should she try to spark a conversation or just sit in silence and let Mrs. Weasley keep thinking?

When the finished cup of tea landed on the table in front of her with a light clink, she resolved to sip it quietly.

They sat that way for some time until they started to hear shuffling from upstairs.

"The others must be starting to get up," said Mrs. Weasley, her eyes coming into focus for the first time that day. "I'll start breakfast if you don't mind going ahead and making sure Ginny wakes up, Hermione, dear."

"Of course, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said, pushing away from the table and heading to the stairs. There was a heaviness in her chest, grief for Fred, sympathy for the people he'd had to leave behind.

Ginny was just beginning to stir when Hermione opened the door to their room.

"Good morning, Ginevra," Hermione said with a tone of mischief in her voice. "You sure were out of bed past curfew last night."

Ginny sat up, blushing furiously.

"Oh, um, yeah. About that-" she started.

"Hold on," Hermione giggled. "Maybe you should tell me later. I wouldn't want to risk your mum finding out about anything you're about to tell me, because I have a feeling she wouldn't approve."

Ginny's face flushed an even brighter shade of red, her skin almost competing with the vibrance of her red hair. She nodded, rising from her bed, stretching, and waving her wand lazily so that the worn blankets and sheets smoothed and folded and the pillow fluffed itself. Milo immediately jumped up on the pillow and curled up, closing his eyes. His mannerisms reminded Hermione more of a dog than a kitten, but she liked that about him.