The Burrow- June 1999- Friday night Fandom time
Hermione had a brief moment of silence, and she was using it to pack. She liked staying at the Burrow, but it was sometimes very, very difficult to get a moment's peace. She sometimes thought Mrs. Weasley did that on purpose, especially now that among Ginny and the trio, everyone seemed to have paired off. It must have occurred to her that for anyone to get up to any trouble, all someone had to do was swap a room, so there wasn't a lot of privacy these days just to be safe.
For the moment, Hermione was enjoying the quiet as she piled books and clothes into her bag while Crookshanks occasionally took the opportunity to peer into it, causing her to shoo him away lest he fall in. She wasn't leaving until tomorrow, but she knew better than to put this off until the last minute. If she did that, she'd never have the chance. Maybe that was the real reason for all the activity; if she was too distracted to leave, maybe she wouldn't at all.
She'd made up her mind, though, and she was even looking forward to her time away. Ron and Harry were busy with Auror training, Ginny had her own thing, and Hermione had yet to settle on anything. She could always just start some further schooling just to do so, but she didn't want to get stuck in a field she didn't truly love, and she wanted to focus on something specific. She just didn't know what that specific thing was yet. So, for now, rather than sitting around and waiting for inspiration to strike her, she was going to actually do something. In another reality. Where time moved differently. Where she might not know anyone there anymore. Maybe people here (Ron) wouldn't quite understand why she was doing it, but it felt important that she did. Besides, for as much as she'd miss Harry and the Weasleys and her parents who she felt deserved an entire year of her time back, she was excited about starting something new.
She'd barely gotten anything done before there was an extremely fast knock on the door, followed by the door opening and Mrs. Weasley poking her head inside. "It's just me," Hermione said automatically. She'd been used to this drill for longer than she wanted to admit.
"Oh, Hermione dear. What are you doing up here all by yourself? It's your last night here," Mrs. Weasley told her. She probably only added that last part to give herself long enough to make sure Hermione was, in fact, by herself.
"I'm just trying to get some things done before it gets too late," Hermione explained. "I'll come down in a bit."
"Well, all right. Don't be too long, there are plenty of people who want to see more of you before you leave," she said kindly, but she did leave the door wide open as she turned to go.
Hermione stared at it for a moment, calculating how long it might be before someone just so happened to be sent up here for her, and sighed. Maybe she should have just left from her parents' house.
For the moment, Hermione was enjoying the quiet as she piled books and clothes into her bag while Crookshanks occasionally took the opportunity to peer into it, causing her to shoo him away lest he fall in. She wasn't leaving until tomorrow, but she knew better than to put this off until the last minute. If she did that, she'd never have the chance. Maybe that was the real reason for all the activity; if she was too distracted to leave, maybe she wouldn't at all.
She'd made up her mind, though, and she was even looking forward to her time away. Ron and Harry were busy with Auror training, Ginny had her own thing, and Hermione had yet to settle on anything. She could always just start some further schooling just to do so, but she didn't want to get stuck in a field she didn't truly love, and she wanted to focus on something specific. She just didn't know what that specific thing was yet. So, for now, rather than sitting around and waiting for inspiration to strike her, she was going to actually do something. In another reality. Where time moved differently. Where she might not know anyone there anymore. Maybe people here (Ron) wouldn't quite understand why she was doing it, but it felt important that she did. Besides, for as much as she'd miss Harry and the Weasleys and her parents who she felt deserved an entire year of her time back, she was excited about starting something new.
She'd barely gotten anything done before there was an extremely fast knock on the door, followed by the door opening and Mrs. Weasley poking her head inside. "It's just me," Hermione said automatically. She'd been used to this drill for longer than she wanted to admit.
"Oh, Hermione dear. What are you doing up here all by yourself? It's your last night here," Mrs. Weasley told her. She probably only added that last part to give herself long enough to make sure Hermione was, in fact, by herself.
"I'm just trying to get some things done before it gets too late," Hermione explained. "I'll come down in a bit."
"Well, all right. Don't be too long, there are plenty of people who want to see more of you before you leave," she said kindly, but she did leave the door wide open as she turned to go.
Hermione stared at it for a moment, calculating how long it might be before someone just so happened to be sent up here for her, and sighed. Maybe she should have just left from her parents' house.