It was a blustery afternoon. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, illuminating every part of the room with its golden rays. Little specks of ever present dust danced about, and when the sunlight caught them they formed swirling patterns.
"Oi Hermione, lighten up," Parvati nudged Hermione. She looked up from her book and threw such a fierce glare at her that she backed away.
The others were all drinking. Hermione didn't get what was fun about that. Was it really fun to loose control over your actions? No, it was not. It was not the least bit amusing. They weren't drunk enough yet to start running around the neighborhood shouting that they were going to the beach, but they were getting there.
Hermione was reading.
Dean, Alicia, Parvati, Harry and Ron were sat across the room, sporting bottles and glasses, and in Alicia's case, two bottles. In spite of having gone through one already, Alicia made her way through them easily.
"Where did you say Oliver was?" Harry asked to nobody in particular as he downed his glass. Dean made a sound of approval and tried to drown his glass as well, but missed his mouth by a few inches and ended up pouring it on the carpet instead. Hermione winced.
"Gone for the tryouts of the Wimbourne Wasps," Alicia waved a hand through the air.
"'Mione!"
Hermione snapped her book shut irritatedly. Why was it that people assumed you were 'doing nothing' when you were clearly reading a book? Hermione stood with a huff and made her way to the kitchen.
Pansy, Ginny, Blaise and Luna were all bustling about.
"Yes, Ginny?" Hermione walked over to stand next to Ginny.
"Heads up, Granger!"
Hermione barely had time to duck her head to dodge the stack of dirty plates that had come zooming her way. They landed neatly on the sink.
"A bit of a warning next time, Parkinson," Hermione shook her head as she laughed. Pansy mock bowed as she continued mincing carrots at lightning speed, her dangly earrings swaying and tinkling.
"I got you a pair," Luna traipsed over. Hermione smiled warily, not knowing what would come next.
Luna placed a pair of Spectrespecs on Hermione's nose. Instantly, her normal vision was overlayered by swirling pink and blue patterns. It made her head swirl at first, but once her eyes had adjusted, it wasn't that bad.
"Thanks Luna," Hermione said, now genuinely smiling.
"We should all take a picture wearing those before me and Luna leave," Blaise suggested. He was elongating the table to accomodate all of them before moving it to the garden.
"Oh, yes, great idea," Pansy muttered.
"Oh, maybe we should even get the silver robes we bought the other day!" Blaise called over his shoulder to an excited Luna, "you know, add a bit more jazz-"
"The Spectrespecs are fine," Pansy said pointedly. Blaise chuckled and left through the back door with the table levitating behind him.
"I really don't know what I'm feeling, actually," Luna said airily, as she strung a necklace of butterbeer corks around Pansy's neck, "I can't wait to get started on the expedition, at the same time I don't want to leave England."
"Loony, we're wizards, you can come and go at any time," Pansy rolled her eyes and passed Hermione the flagon of stew. Hermione took it carefully so as not to slosh stew down her front.
"Am I supposed to keep it on the table outside?" Hermione called back.
"No, no, dump the entire thing over your head, it'll be a great look," Pansy shouted back, stabbing a piece of pumpkin pie with the knife.
Hermione glared half heartedly at the back of Pansy's head while Ginny guffawed.
"I'll take that," Blaise took the stew from her, so Hermione turned back to carry another dish to the table.
She balanced two large plates of treacle tart in her hands, and Ginny added another plate at the last second.
"Thanks," Hermione muttered sarcastically. As she set the plates on the table outside, Blaise conjured chairs.
"You're conjuring out in the open, you pompous arse," Pansy smacked him upside the head as she walked past with a tray laden with pumpkin juice.
"The property is warded, you slick-haired reporter!" Blaise shot back while massaging his head, but Pansy only looked disapprovingly at him. The others began coming out, and they settled around the table.
There were many people and the table was large, naturally there was a lot of shouting involved.
"Good thing you both decided - one minute Ron, you have enough potato already - to leave on a weekend," Ginny said, ladling stew into her and Harry's bowls, "I wouldn't have been able to make all this for if it would have been on a working day."
"Thanks for the meal, though, really," Blaise said, his speech muffled by all the food shovelled in his mouth.
"Blaise," Luna said, bringing him a glass of water, "you'll end up getting good in your airway."
"Thanks, love," Blaise muttered, accepting the glass. Pansy made a disgustedly face and caught Hermione's ask, and have her an are-you-serious look. Hermione only smiled back.
"So how long will you guys be gone for?" Parvati asked, passing the plate of mashed potato to Ron for the fifth time.
"Maybe two or three years," Luna said dreamily, "I'm awfully excited. Rolf said his great great grandfather spent years traveling and learning about magical creatures."
"He's an airhead," Blaise said into his glass of water.
"Jealousy doesn't look good on you, Zabini," Ginny called from the other end of the table.
"Come off it, it's adorable!" Harry gushed, pulling an overly exaggerated expression. Blaise scowled at him.
"Zabini, the tart, I've been yelling at you for the tart for the past minute!" Parvati huffed, and Blaise finally passed a plate to her.
"'Mione," Harry said from across her, and he paused to pass on a glass of juice to Alicia before continuing, "what happened to your resumé? Did the Ministry approve you?"
Hermione's smile faltered.
Her eyes flickered over to Ron, who was seated beside Dean. His eyes flashed menacingly, as though daring her to tell them. Hermione gulped, mentally scolding herself. Why was she afraid of him?
Because he had raised his hand on her twice, one part of her whispered. She grimaced.
"I've decided to wait," Hermione said thickly, swallowing the large lump in her throat. She prayed that nobody noticed the change in her demeanor.
Ginny's smile was replaced by a look of mistrust. She looked over to Ron, who had returned to his food and was chatting away with Dean. Ginny looked back at Hermione, the question evident in her eyes. Hermione shook her head and tried for a smile.
Harry noticed too. He started pointedly at Hermione all throughout the remaining time, and Hermione kept her eyes directed away from his piercing green ones. She concentrated on keeping her food down.
"Pans, when we were supposed to meet at Diagon Alley tomorrow?" Blaise asked, helping Luna cut a piece of particularly resilient chicken.
"Half past one," Pansy said, looking disgustedly at Blaise and Luna, who were looking at each other with such adoration they may as well have been sharing a heated kiss. Pansy rolled her eyes, "Draco said he'd meet us there."
Hermione zoned out of the conversation. She could feel Ron's burning gaze on her every few seconds, but she didn't dare look up for fear of having a breakdown.
Why couldn't he see that she loved him?
Did he not love her enough to respect her freedom?
"...portkey leaves around seven in the evening," Blaise was saying. Hermione swallowed the remaining food in her mouth with the help of some water as she found herself unable to do so herself.
"Here's to not seeing your annoying face for the next two years, Zabini," Dean raised a glass, "and Luna, good luck on the expedition."
Luna beamed at Dean while Blaise grumbled moodily.
Sooner than Hermione would have liked, everyone started leaving. Ginny received many thanks for the lunch, Pansy even went as far to suggesting that they have lunch like this again some time soon.
Then it was only Hermione, Ron, Harry and Ginny.
"Why don't you boys begin cleaning up?" Ginny said, giving Harry a meaningful look.
"Sure," Harry nodded, and began clearing the plates away.
Ginny led Hermione into the house and upstairs into the master bedroom, where she proceeded to lock and ward the door.
"What was that?" Ginny asked, crossing her arms across her chest and looking at Hermione with narrowed eyes.
"What was what?" Hermione feigned complacence, and began picking at the bedsheet.
"Did Ronald ask you not to go to work?"
Hermione closed her eyes and heaved a sigh.
Ginny's expression became even more stern, "He did, didn't he?"
Hermione still said nothing. The silence settled like a thick and uncomfortable woolen blanket over her.
"Why would you listen to him?" Ginny waved her arms about, "Who does he think he is, telling what you can and can't do?"
"He just doesn't want to be alone," Hermione said stupidly.
"Nobody, absolutely no one, wants to be alone," Ginny said, cruising her arms once more, "do you think I like being alone after Fred? Mum and dad, you think they like having to be alone? They don't, but neither of them are reacting the way Ron is."
"He has a different way of coping," Hermione shrugged, tears beginning to well up in her eyes, "I want to support him, Gin. I really do."
"Even when he's not supporting you?" Ginny asked, astonished and very angry.
"That's what love is," Hermione muttered.
"No, that's what a toxic relationship is," Ginny said matter of factly, "you're giving the relationship everything you've got, but he doesn't give a bloody damn. You shouldn't either."
"I'm not him," Hermione stood, "look, I'll do anything to support him. I don't want him to face his mourning time alone."
Ginny looked sadly at her, and Hermione couldn't take it anymore. She turned away.
"You're too good for him, 'Mione," Ginny said in a quiescent voice, "and I'm not saying just because of our sibling rivalry. He doesn't deserve you."
Someone knocked on the door.
Ginny huffed and gave Hermione a few seconds to compose herself before opening the door and snapping, "What?"
Harry stood, looking dishevelled and shocked, "Malfoy attacked Gringotts. They've ordered a search on the Manor. Patronus message just now - Podmore is head auror for the investigation. We're needed."