Dribble/Fan Fic: Pain is Only Human
Six long years. Six years of adventure. Six years of friendship. Six years of waiting. Six years. Time certainly flew.
Hermione pressed her face against the glass, feeling a ripple of numbness wash over her cheek. She bit her lip as she looked out onto the countryside, no matter how much of a brave face she put on, Hermione could feel an empty gaping hole in her heart.
Pain. She thought, All I can feel is pain.
Rubbing her robe sleeve over the window to clear away the mist, she sat silently. She didn’t feel like the bright, young teenager she usually was. Pain changed her, Hermione felt older, and when she touched her hand it felt like ice. A shiver was sent down her spine as she saw her copy of Hogwarts: A History peeking out of her book bag. She quickly shoved it back into the bag as memories came flooding back, catching her unprepared, she fought back tears as it hit her.
She may never see Hogwarts again.
Her heart ached as she remembered levitating her first feather at twelve. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she remembered telling Ron it was pronounced ‘Levi-o-sa’ not ‘Levio-sarr’ She remembered him thinking she was such a bossy boots with untamable hair and her smile faded.
Hermione felt a sudden rush of anger, and was sure that a blood vessel had popped in her forehead.
“How dare he!” She muttered under her breath.
“How dare he what?” Hermione looked up to see Ginny Weasley pulling the compartment door shut and standing in front of Hermione looking at her with a mix of fascination and concern.
Hermione stared at the ground, intent not to look at Ginny, incase she read her mind, which was something that the youngest Weasley was very capable of.
Shuffling her feet, Hermione answered softly, “Nothing Ginny. It’s nothing.”
“Oh it’s something alright,” Ginny stated placing her hands on her hips, “Tell me.”
Hermione sighed, Ginny was not going to let go.
“I don’t know.” Hermione said, looking up into Ginny’s sharp brown eyes that were analyzing her.
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
Hermione didn’t respond, Ginny raised her hand up and slapped Hermione across the cheek.
Hermione drew a sharp breath, trying to fight the pain that was spreading like wild fire across the side of her face.
Hermione remembered what her mother told her,
‘When you don’t have anything nice to say, count to ten to make the pain go away.’
Hermione started counting, One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Sev-
“I can’t take it anymore!” she burst out, “It’s pain. All pain, all the time.”
Ginny looked very guilty, and pained herself. She opened her mouth to speak the wisest words Hermione had ever heard: “Pain doesn’t make a person, even though it is only human.”
Hermione felt instantly better, and popped a bertie bott into her mouth. She spat it out and looked over to Ginny,
“Bogey flavoured.”
The two girls threw back their heads and laughed.
Harry and Ron appeared, “What’s so funny?!”