Harry Potter - Fanfiction

Year 5 - Christmas Holiday

It's the morning of our departure back for the Christmas holidays and Tracey and I head down for breakfast.

Walking into the Great Hall we see the usual decorations of thick streamers of holly and mistletoe crisscrossing the ceiling, frost covered trees line the walls of the hall and enchanted snow is falling from the ceiling.

"Nyx." Hermione waves from the Gryffindor table.

"Let me go save us a seat before we're seated next to Parkinson again," Tracey says with a smile.

"Thanks Tracey," I answer, walking off towards my sister and taking a seat next to her.

"I'm not heading home for Christmas anymore," Hermione whispers to me.

"Okay... And why are we whispering?" I ask in a soft voice as well.

She leans in and whispers into my ear, "come find me on the train, I'll ensure we have an empty cabin."

Sending me into a frenzy of befuddled questions in my mind.

After breakfast we all begin the tedious packing of our trunks and ensuring we have everything before heading out towards the Hogwarts Express and occupying the empty cabins.

Tracey and I manage to find the cabin Hermione is in at the end of the train as it begins to shuttle along the track, while we make ourselves comfortable, the hills becoming a mere blur, when I notice Hermione glancing cautiously at Tracey.

She must have been hoping I'll come alone.

"You wanted to say something earlier?" I ask Hermione.

"It's nothing." She shakes her head. "It can wait."

"Hermione, whatever you want to say can be said freely. I trust her," I state firmly.

Tracey sleepily leaning against the window. "I can leave if you want," she says softly.

"No, if I trust you that means my sister can trust you as well," I answer her.

"Are you sure? It's about certain events," Hermione says softly to me.

Tracey straightens up and looks Hermione dead in the eye. "I take it this has to do with a certain You-Know-Who. So firstly, it is getting rather tiresome that just because I am in Slytherin that I am immediately associated with him, I don't see you making the same judgement over your sister, so I expect the same courtesy."

Hermione is at a loss for words and stares blankly at Tracey.

"Secondly, neither my parents nor I support him in his stupid quest for conquering Purebloods. My parents honestly just want to be left alone by him. So, whatever is going on with your gang, I really couldn't care," she says in a monotonous voice.

"What she said," I say happily to my sister.

"Oh, well," Hermione says taken aback.

"See, why would I risk being friends with someone that's associated with him," I say to Hermione.

"Err, you're friends with Malfoy..." Hermione answers matter-of-factly.

"Okay there I have to agree with your sister," Tracey smirks leaning back against the window and gazing out of it.

Hermione looking quite happy that Tracey has agreed.

"He's just, shush okay, he's just a different case on its own so leave him out of it," I say shaking my head, taking a breath in and out so that I can think clearly again. "Now, what did you want to tell me?"

"Right, Mom and Dad aren't meeting us when we get back," she says quickly. "Dumbledore informed me this morning that there was an incident with Mr. Weasley and he's allowed the Weasley's and Harry to go back to, err, London so they can go visit him at St. Mungo's."