Hermione's Heart

HERMIONE'S HEART, PART 5: Auld Lang Syne

New Year's Eve found Hermione getting ready for a night out on the town - at Cho's house in London. She had spent the last two days at the Chang residence. As Cho had told Hermione, Mrs Chang was obsessed with security. The elegant Georgian rowhouse had been faultlessly restored, and stood in glittering contrast to its shabby neighbors. Hermione suspected, however, that none of the passersby could see the house. Cho confirmed that her mother had hired security wizards to enchant it. Mrs Chang constantly changed the entrycode, so coming and going from Cho's house seemed almost like being back at Gryffindor tower to Hermione. Mrs Chang was friendly to Hermione, but seemed preoccupied with work, resulting in the girls having liberty to roam Muggle London quite freely. Reflecting on the wide variety of places Cho had shown her, Hermione felt they had put this freedom to good use.

"How do I look?" Cho emerged from her dressing room.

Hermione made a small choking noise. Her first thought was one of intense thanks that Harry was not present to see Cho in this outfit. She wore slim-fitting black leather trousers and a clingy top with a plunging neckline. Cho stepped into finely-made leather boots with a heel and zipped them up. The boots came to her ankle, and she adjusted her trousers over the boots. Then she straightened, shook back her hair, and smiled at Hermione. The flashy outfit, combined with Cho's dark red lipstick, made her look older than she was, and even more sophisticated. Hermione looked down at her own clothes and suddenly felt very young.

Cho strode over to her walk-in closet, pulled out black satin robes, and put them on. Hermione's eyes widened even further. Cho could never have worn such robes at Hogwarts, although Hermione felt quite certain that, had she done so, Cho's legions of admirers would no doubt have increased. These robes were much more tailored than their school uniform, coming in at the waist with princess seams and accentuating Cho's stylish figure. Lined with silver, the fashionable robes looked like something out of Witch's Wear Daily.

"Will your mother let you wear that out?" Hermione finally managed to sputter.

Cho smiled saucily. "She ought to - she's a buyer for Madam Malkin's, which is where I picked these up." She twirled around so that the robes flared out around her. "Don't worry, she just thinks we're going out to a Muggle club. And in Muggle London, we couldn't get into any place good. I'm not putting on the robes until we're out of the house and at Diagon Alley."

"I know but -" Hermione swallowed - "leather?"

"Mum doesn't care. She and Dad are going out themselves. They'll never notice. Just fold your robes over your arm so it looks like a coat."

Hermione followed Cho downstairs and bid her parents a hasty goodbye.

"Don't you girls need your coats?" called out Mrs Chang.

"Got 'em!" said Cho, gesturing to her black robes tucked under her arm. "Don't wait up!"

Hermione didn't start to breathe easily again until they were at the tube stop. Cho, however, seemed unfazed. "I can't wait until I've got my license to Apparate," she complained, tapping her toe impatiently as they stood on the platform. "This Muggle transport takes way too much time."

But to Hermione, time seemed to be going by very quickly. Soon they found themselves outside the Leaky Cauldron, and with a quick tap of Cho's wand, they were inside Diagon Alley.

"Come on." Cho grabbed Hermione's arm and whisked her through the noisy pub and courtyard of the Leaky Cauldron. Nobody noticed the girls, having started the New Year's celebration several hours ago. They continued down the cobbled street, Cho looking intently at the shop numbers.

"What are we looking for?" panted Hermione.

"Club called Pandora's. It's pretty far down - almost into Knockturn Alley."

"Are you sure it's a good idea? They probably won't let me in - I'm only sixteen."

"Relax, you're with me." Cho gave Hermione a look that made her glad indeed to be Cho's girl.

As Cho had predicted, Pandora's was at the very edge of Diagon Alley, on a dark, dingy corner. Cho took a deep breath, then flung open the door and propelled them forward.

They were greeted by a burly witch who looked to be about ten years older than either of them, with cropped blonde hair and blue eyes. "Can I see some ID?" she asked, her eyes flicking over Cho appreciatively.

Cho produced some. The witch examined the card and handed it back to Cho. "What about her?" she said, tilting her head toward Hermione, who was feeling younger than ever in her blue velvet dress robes.

"She's with me," Cho replied, giving the other girl a wink and a smile.

"Alright, but just this once." The witch stamped their hands and let them pass through to the rest of the club.

Hermione clung to Cho's hand as they wound their way through the crowd. Loud dance music blasted overhead, and smoke drifted toward the ceiling. As Hermione's eyes adjusted to the dark, she noticed that this was a bar populated only by witches. "Where'd you find out about this place?" she shouted into Cho's ear.

"From Glinda, that witch who runs A Spell of One's Own. You know, that bookshop in Hogsmeade? I saw a notice about a dance and she told me about it."

"Have you been here before?"

Cho shook her head. "I just turned seventeen in September. This is the first chance I've had."

"Hey, Hermione!"

Hermione froze. Who would be here that would recognize her? She saw a hand waving from a table at the back of the room. "I don't believe it!" she gasped. Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet were sitting there, beckoning her and Cho over.

"Never know who you might meet here," grinned Cho, and led Hermoine to her old school mates.

Hermione hadn't seen Katie and Alicia in two years, not since they'd left Hogwarts. And she certainly hadn't expected to see them here. They looked good, she thought. Both had cut their hair - Katie's was very short - and they were smiling, laughing, and - Hermione had to look twice to make sure - they were holding hands.

Although Katie and Alicia looked just as surprised to see Hermione, they welcomed her warmly. "Hermione Granger! You're about the last witch I thought I'd ever see here," announced Alicia.

"What's that supposed to mean?" muttered Hermione, not sure if she was being made fun of.

"Nothing." Noticing Hermione's rising flush, Katie elbowed Alicia. "How did you get in?"

"My womanly wiles," Cho tossed her head.

The girls now turned to look at her. "Well, you're no surprise," declared Katie, and the conversation quickly turned into one big Quidditch update. Seeing Hermione's bored look, Cho broke off explaining her last match against Hufflepuff, and excused herself to get them some drinks.

"Can't have a New Year's Eve party without some fizz," Cho declared, setting down glasses for them all, and led them in a toast.

Hermione started to feel more perked up after the drink, and soon the foursome took to the dance floor. Cho was an excellent dancer, far better than any of the boys at Hogwarts. Indeed, many of the patrons at the club seemed impressed as well. Hermione kept noticing women looking Cho up and down in an appraising manner. As for herself, Hermione could hardly tear her eyes away from her girlfriend. She liked dancing well enough, but somehow, other things kept coming to mind.

"Let's take a break, I'm hot," she whispered, and pulled Cho towards a dark corner.

Once apart from the crowd, the two girls couldn't keep their hands off each other. Hermione lost all interest in returning to the dance floor, and forgot that there was anyone else even around.

"A-hem." The two girls broke apart and beheld a plump, older witch looking down at them with an expression of both amusement and displeasure. "Not that I want to discourage young love," she said, continuing to eye them both, "but we can't have those sorts of goings-on here - last thing this club needs is to get slapped with lewd conduct charges. Especially involving our younger patrons," she added, giving Hermione a significant look.

Cho wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and gave the woman a cheeky grin. "We'll behave ourselves. Promise."

The witch did not return the smile. "Mind that you do," she said, and slouched away.

"Maybe we should go back -"

"Shh!" Cho cut her off with a wave of her hand. "Look!" she hissed.

Hermione looked. "Madam Hooch?" she gasped. The short, grey-haired figure of the Quidditch coach appeared, shaking soot from her robes as she stepped out of the club's fireplace. "And Professor Sprout, too?"

"Be quiet!" Cho pulled Hermione and herself back into the darkness of the cloakroom, hoping the two teachers would not come their way. Receding footsteps told them the instructors had gone downstairs to the basement.

"Wow," whispered Hermione, peering around the corner after them. "D'you think Professor McGonagall is here, too?" she wondered, experiencing a thrill of hope and apprehension at the prospect.

"Forget McGonagall, we've got to get out of here before someone sees you. That's two close calls. Besides," she added, whispering into Hermione's ear, "I've got other plans for us tonight."

They said a quick farewell to Katie and Alicia, then bolted out the front door and into the cold winter night. At first Hermione was glad for the evening air, following the heat of Pandora's. Despite the close shave inside, she felt strangely elated, and it wasn't just the champagne that was making her feel so light-hearted. Swinging Cho's hand, she continued happily down the street and pulled Cho around the corner of the building, out of the glare of the street lights.

"Looks like you've got the same plans I do," murmured Cho, surprised but pleased at Hermione's boldness. Hermione was kissing her with a force she'd never before shown, and Cho responded in kind. Her hand was up Hermione's robes, who placed a hand against the wall of the building for support.

Just when Hermione was beginning to understand the point of the snap-crotch panties she'd seen earlier in a shop window, a racket down Knockturn Alley distracted the girls. Raucous voices echoed down the empty streets, sounding strangely like -

"Draco Malfoy?" Hermione wondered aloud. Grabbing Cho, she crept along the darkened side of Pandora's and into a pitch-black alcove. Sure enough, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were lurching down Knockturn Alley, looking more than a little tipsy and shattering the quiet of the night with their lewd songs. Hermione crouched behind the dustbins until well after they'd passed. "What are they doing out drinking?" she hissed. "If Dumbledore only knew -"

Cho pointed out that Hermione would be in a bit of trouble herself if Dumbledore found out her whereabouts and drinking habits that evening. "Let's go home for a nightcap," she suggested, pulling Hermione to her feet and dusting her off. "We need someplace more private, anyway."

The girls moved quickly through the streets, heading directly for the Leaky Cauldron. "Do you have any Floo Powder on you?" asked Hermione, eyeing the fireplace. "That would be a lot quicker." Suddenly the prospect of all those transfers on the Tube looked very long indeed.

Cho shook her head. "Mum might see, if she's back already. If she sees us come out of the fireplace, she'll know we've been somewhere in the magical world and she thinks I'm not old enough to travel here on my own." Cho made a face. "Even though I am seventeen now."

The girls entered Cho's house quietly. Although the living room fireplace was still burning, only embers remained. Cho's parents were asleep in their respective armchairs. Pointing to them, Cho removed her boots and tip-toed up the stairs.

"She did wait up," she said once they were safely in her room. "Honestly, she still treats me like a first-year."

Hermione sat down on the bed and was immediately joined by Crookshanks. She ran a hand absently across his back and was about to gather the cat into her lap when Crookshanks let out a loud hiss.

An answering hiss came from across the room, where a slim black cat crouched near the door.

"My mother's cat," said Cho, walking over to retrieve him. "I think he's been hiding under her bed the whole time you and Crookshanks have been here. Guess he finally got brave and came out to investigate." She scooped him up into her arms.

"What's his name?"

Cho gave an evil little grin and chucked the cat under the chin. "Smut."

Hermione laughed. "Not really?"

"Really. But you're just a little pitty cat, aren't you?" Cho cooed to Smut, who squirmed, his eyes still on Crookshanks, who was now switching his tail back and forth. Cho opened the door and set the cat outside; he promptly bolted down the hall.

"Now where were we?" she murmured, coming over to the bed and pushing Hermione back onto it. Grinning up at her, Hermione pulled Cho close.

"Oh, one more thing." Cho sat up for a minute, cheeks very flushed. She was beginning to learn that her snug leather ensemble didn't breath very well, which could lead to one feeling unpleasantly warm and damp. She glanced over her shoulder and flicked her wand in the direction of the door, placing a privacy charm on it. Then she leaned over Hermione again. "Just to make sure we're not disturbed," she explained, and proceeded to ensure that Hermione had a very happy new year.

**

Hermione woke early the next morning, just as the sun was breaking over London on the first day of the new year. Cho was sleeping next to her, and Hermione blushed to herself when she glanced about the room and saw the assortment of clothing draped over bedposts and on the floor. Then her gaze traveled to the girl at her side, her bare shoulders just showing above cotton sheets of a very high thread count. The sheets were soft, but Cho was softer; Hermione reached out a hand, then drew it back. She wasn't sure she wanted to wake Cho just yet. Unable to sleep anymore, Hermione crept out of bed and pulled on a bathrobe Cho had loaned her, then walked over to her knapsack.

Thumbing through the contents for something to read, anything to take her mind off the many thoughts currently racing through her head, Hermione came across the slim volume she had crammed inside, the book given to her by Professor McGonagall. Extracting it from her bag, Hermione examined the book more closely. The leather binding was old, and stained with age. She opened the cover, and a crisp piece of parchment fluttered into her lap. Picking it up, Hermione began to read.

Dear Miss Granger

, the note began.

You asked me a question several months ago that I fear I did not answer perhaps as straightforwardly as I should have done. I trust this book will answer your questions.

Best wishes,

Minerva McGonagall

Hermione stared at her teacher's elegant handwriting, her precise signature. A question she had asked...Then Hermione remembered the evening she'd had tea with Professor McGonagall, when she'd asked if Minerva had ever been married. She turned to the first page, and saw a sepia-toned image pasted into the pages. It showed two young women, dressed in what Hermione recognized as Hogwarts robes, waving at her. One witch had a high forehead, and her dark hair was pulled back from her face. With a shock, Hermione realized she was looking at a very young Minerva McGonagall. The dark-haired girl had her arm around the shoulders of another witch, with light hair and a freckled nose. She, too, was laughing and waving. Their hats were askew, and that of the light-haired witch sat at a particularly rakish angle. Standing to the side was a wizard, but his robes were not those of a student. His eyes twinkled in an oddly familiar way. "Dumbledore?" gasped Hermione. Below the photo was neat cursive writing Hermione recognized at once. Growing more interested, she picked up the book and wandered to a chintz-covered armchair. She glanced at the bed to make sure Cho was still asleep, tucked her feet under her, and began to read.