The Curse of the Lovelorn Locket

Prologue

    The night shading her last few moments seemed to lighten with every passing second, and the cold edges of the foam-laced shallows were creeping closer to the rocks where she sat. Knowing that she hadn't much time left, she rehearsed the words once again in her head, the tip of her wand shaking slightly in her outstretched hand. From the house behind her, she could hear voices... laughing, happiness, the hint of unconditional, blissful love hanging on the end of every word. And somehow, through the haze of it all, she knew that their happiness meant the end of hers, just as it always had. She was never good enough for them (for any of them), and now that her curse had been fully realized, she was going to fade away into nothing, with little or no hope that any would find her absence regrettable. But someone someday would remember her, and then she would take back what she had lost... reaching deep into her robes, she dug around until she found the chain, and pointed her wand at it, taking a deep breath before saying the words...

Chapter One: Back to Magic

    This time, her parents seemed less secure about the prospect of her returning to school. Perhaps, considering the fact that she had nearly died the year before... perhaps they were somewhat justified in their concern, but the manner in which her mother was expressing this concern was causing a great decrease in breath intake.

    "Mum... Mum! Mum, I can't... I can't breathe!" Hermione Granger squeaked, the weight of her mother's hug pressing against her diaphragm, making the words difficult to enunciate.

    The death-grip loosed slightly. "Oh, darling, I just wish you didn't have to go back... I mean, such dreadful things happened..."

    "Mum, I'm fine. Everything's fine, I promise!" She managed a smile. "It's over, remember? The bad-guys--they're all gone!" The extent of what her parents knew about the wizarding world was somewhat superficial, and the details of what had happened leading up to Hermione's near-death were of little consequence to them; they wouldn't have appreciated the magnitude of her saying "Voldemort" in any case. "I'm perfectly safe now, and besides..." Her voice trailed off, and then she pulled her mouth into a large, toothy smile. "I'm Head Girl!"

    Mrs. Granger dabbed at her eyes, returning the smile. "So you are... I'm so proud of you, honey!" With that, she began to sob again.

    At this point, her husband stepped in, putting a hand around her shoulders, and mouthing to Hermione, "You should go while it's happy tears." He winked.

    "Wait!" Mrs. Granger cried suddenly, shoving her hand into her purse and digging around. "I almost forgot... I have something to give you."

    "Oh, Mum! You didn't have to get..." She was interrupted by her mother holding out a small jewelry box, looking at her expectantly. Hermione resigned herself and took the box. Smiling as she pulled the lid off with careful fingers, her mouth dropped open as she examined its contents. Inside, on a bed of blue velvet, lay a silver chain, ending in a delicate heart-shaped locket. It was clearly old, and quite beautiful. "Oh, Mum..." its recipient breathed.

    "It's been in our family for a very, very long time," Mrs. Granger began, a smile lighting on her face. "It's been handed down through daughters, given when each becomes a woman." She reached out and took the necklace from the box, and Hermione turned around so that she could clasp it around her neck. "I'm so proud of you," she said again, tears welling up in her eyes.

    "Thank you... I love you, Mum!" Hermione cried, throwing her arms around the whimpering woman, and then pulling her dad into the fray. "You too, Dad."

    "Go, honey..." Mrs. Granger sniffed, and then her eyes darted to a spot behind her daughter. "Isn't that your chum Ron?"

    Hermione spun around, and waved. "Wait up, Ron! I'm coming!" She turned back to her parents. "I'll take care of myself. I promise."

    They both nodded, and her mother squeezed her hand.

    Taking that as her cue to go, she gave them a happy wave and then bounded over to where Ron was standing with his sister Ginny, his mom and dad, and his brothers George and Fred. The last two had graduated Hogwarts the previous year and were shortly going to begin their own business--a joke magic shop, a dream of theirs for years. Their parents had just been happy that they had earned respectable NEWTs and were able to find some way to turn their interests into some semblance of a career.

    "How was your summer, Hermione dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked politely.

    "Uneventful," she admitted, with a slight shrug, then suddenly remember something and her eyes lit up. "Though I did have time to read the entire Magical Works of Literature series, and I've really just..." Her voice trailed off as she caught a glimpse of Ron rolling his eyes. "Well, what did you do all summer, pray tell?" She threw him an irritated look.

    "Oh, had fun, goofed off, played Quidditch... most certainly did not read." For a moment, he looked as if he were considering sticking his tongue out at her.

    "Oh, seriously, you two..." Mrs. Weasley sighed. "I'd swear you haven't grown a day past eleven, the first time you were here."

    "Boy, they sure don't make eleven-year old girls like they used to!" George piped in with a wink at Hermione, causing a ripple of laughter through the group, and a slight red tinge to appear on her cheeks.

    Quickly changing the subject, she asked, "Is Harry here yet? I haven't seen him."

    "I hope he didn't have problems getting here from the Muggles," Mr. Weasley said with a slight frown.

    "They're simply dreadful to him!" Ginny declared with venom. "I think as soon as Harry's legally a wizard, he should put a hex on their..."

    "Ginny!" her parents scolded loudly in unison.

    She folded her arms across her chest, muttering something like an apology under her breath. Hermione wondered if she still had a crush on Harry. Last year, on her sixteenth birthday, she'd kissed him square on the mouth in front of everyone. She'd claimed later that it was a joke, something for show, and that she'd had a bit too much butterbeer... but Hermione could tell that she'd been crushed when he hadn't followed up on her gesture. Shortly thereafter she'd begun dating Draco Malfoy, in Hermione's guess, to get a rise out of Harry. It hadn't worked, and that relationship had fizzled quickly...

    "There he is!" Fred was pointing toward the entrance to the train station.

    Walking in quickly, Harry Potter emerged from the crowd, carrying Hedwig, and with him was a boy of roughly the same age, though slightly shorter and much rounder, with Harry's trunk. Hermione assumed that he must be Dudley, and he looked extremely sullen.

    The pair ended up beside the Weasleys. "Hallo!" Harry called cheerfully, and, as Dudley set down the trunk, said to him, "Thanks for driving me, Dudley."

    "It was just an excuse to drive the new car," he said, shooting Harry a dirty look. "And to get rid of you as quickly as possible, of course." His eyes fell on Hermione. "Are you Hermione?" he asked. Her pronounced her name "Herm-ee-own."

    "Yes..." she said slowly, wondering how he possibly knew that.

    "You've been writing to Harry," he observed, ignoring Harry's glare. "I never thought he'd have a girlfriend so pretty..."

    "Dudley..." Harry sighed. "Grow up. You know she's not my girlfriend."

    "Oh, fine..." Dudley turned back to Hermione. "Nice meeting you." With that, he turned on his heels and headed back out of the station.

    As soon as he left, Fred and George burst into laughter. "Don't you remember when we gave him that toffee?" Fred said between snickers. "Can't you just imagine... his tongue hanging ten feet out of his mouth..."

    George Weasley shot them a pointed look and they were quiet. "How nice to see you again, Harry," he said, turning to the newcomer. "I trust your summer was... tolerable?"

    Harry laughed. "Yes, I suppose so. The one good thing about being out of the wizard world... no reporters." He grimaced, as though having an unpleasant memory.

    Hermione had no wonder he was sick of reporters by the end of last year. After all, he had only saved the world--vanquishing Voldemort and rendering the few remaining Death Eaters practically defenseless. Now, the only remnants of the Dark Lord were a few mad prisoners in Azkaban, irreversibly stripped of all magical powers. In any case, saving the known world tended to catch the attention of the media, who would have hounded him day and night had it not been for Dumbledore's vigilance in keeping them out of Hogwarts... though they did manage to get in a sufficient quantity of hounding to test Harry's sanity.

    "Don't worry--they've surely forgotten all about you by now, Harry," Ron chimed in, grinning. "There were plenty of scandals over the summer to keep them busy. Did you hear about Fudge's secretary? That was so..."

    "Ron!" Mr. Weasley said tersely, cutting him off. "No idle gossip, please."

    Hermione glanced down at her watch. "We should probably be going," she commented to the group.

    Mrs. Weasley nodded, and quickly pulled both Ron and Ginny in for a hug before they could protest. "Have a great year, you two!"

    "Thanks, Mum," they both mumbled under her tight grip.

    Hermione chuckled at the all-too-familiar scene, and turned to Harry. "So, are you ready for your last year, Head Boy?"

    "Certainly, Head Girl." He tipped an imaginary hat to her.

    Overhearing this, and just having escaped her mother's hug, Ginny commented, "I imagine the two of you were the biggest un-surprise pick in ten years." She snorted. "I can't believe Draco had the gall to complain about your being chosen, Harry. I mean, you only saved the bloody world..."

    "Your language!" scolded her mother.

    "Really Mum..." Ginny sighed, turning back towards Harry and Hermione. "Shall we go?"

    "Bye, Mum! Dad! Fred, George!" Ron called, as he grabbed his trunk and disappeared onto the 9 _ Platform. With polite good-byes to the gathered Weasleys, the other students followed suit. The familiar stepping-into-nothing feeling was comforting to Hermione... as if she were going home.

     After a rather uneventful ride to Hogwarts, the four walked in together, largely because they had stuck together in an attempt to avoid Draco Malfoy, whom Ginny had glimpsed in the next car, and then had promptly hidden behind Ron.

    "Hey Ron..." Hermione whispered as they found seats at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, waiting for the sorting ceremony to begin. "I didn't see your girl on the train... she is coming back, right?"

    "Of course she is," Ron mumbled, and then added, "I wouldn't call her `my girl'..."

    "That's right!" Ginny piped in. "The term is `honey-poo'." She ducked to avoid Ron's playful swing at her head.

    "Actually, Gin, I was going to say, my significant other." He grinned.

    Harry remained silent throughout this exchange, and Hermione wondered if he still had mixed feelings about Ron's relationship. Truthfully, she couldn't say that she particularly approved of his choice either... But really, they were all practically adults...

    "Welcome!" Dumbledore bellowed, as the students assembled. The frightened-looking first years stared up at him nervously.

    Ginny giggled. "I can't believe we all went through that..."

    Hermione shuddered. "I was so nervous, I thought I was going to throw up all over the sorting hat." To this day, she still wondered why she'd been placed in Gryffindor... after reading about the different houses, she had assumed she'd be in Ravenclaw. Perhaps, somehow the hat knew that she'd be friends with Harry, and thus would be inevitably thrown into a adventure after adventure...

    "So, here's to a fun, educational, magical... and safe year!" Dumbledore was saying. Hermione couldn't help but notice that he glanced over to their table at that last bit. Well, it wasn't their fault that evil wizards seemed to see a target painted on her best friend's chest. Perhaps this year, now that they were all gone... perhaps it would be safe. Imagine that. A normal school year. She hoped it wouldn't be too boring...

    "Can you believe we're almost done?" Ron was saying, rubbing his hands together gleefully.

    Harry rolled his eyes. "Ron, as soon as you graduate you'll be wishing you were back in school. It will involve a job, you know. Like... actual work?"

    "I can work!" he replied indignantly. "I'm not sure doing what..."

    "He can always be a professional ladies' man," Ginny giggled, ruffling his hair. "Who would've known my own brother would turn out to be so handsome?"

    "Aw, cut it out, dogface."

    Ginny scowled. "Owl butt."

    "Cat breath."

    "Newt dick."

    Ron couldn't keep a straight face on that one... in fact, no one could. "You're a sister after my own heart," he managed between laughs.

    Hermione shook her head and smiled. "We should probably be getting to the tower..."

"Oh, Hermione!"

    She spun around in her seat at the sound of her name, only to be faced with two smiling seventeen year old girls, each looking more pleased with herself than the next.

    "Why hello, Lavender... Parvati," she said with a nod. She thought that there was something different about them, though she wasn't sure exactly what it was.

    "Did you have a splendid summer?" Lavender asked, sliding in between Hermione and Ginny, who frowned and turned away.

    "Well, I..."

    "We simply have to show you all the marvelous clothes that we... and Padma of course... picked up in Paris when we went last month," Parvati interjected, sitting down on Hermione's other side.

    "It's simply smashing that you're Head Girl, Hermione," Lavender went on, twirling a lock of pale blonde hair around her finger. "After all, if it can't have been one of us--and why would it have been!--we're awfully glad it's you. We expect you'll have all the boys after you this year... we only hope you leave some for us!" She threw a wide smile at Ron, who waved meekly. Harry coughed loudly, obviously trying not to laugh.

    "Well, I... I mean, that's very nice of you, Lavender..." She realized then what was different about them; they looked... older. They looked like women now, which they were, and so was she... so why did she feel so frumpy all of a sudden?

    "You know," whispered Parvati, as if reading her mind. "We learned a few things in Paris... we could give you one hell of a makeover."

    "What a great idea!" Lavender agreed, her eyes lighting up. "I mean, Padma wouldn't let us... so you'd be the perfect person to..."

    "We really have to be going. We have to show the first-years to the tower," Harry suddenly interrupted, standing taking Hermione's arm, pulling her up. She sent him a silent thank-you, and mumbled her regards to the two girls before hurrying away.

    "Well... think about it!" Lavender was calling after her, as Ron burst into laughter from across the table.

    After showing the excited and nervous first-year Gryffindors to the tower and answering some of their questions, Hermione and Harry split up the boys and girls to show them to their dormitories. After depositing the giggling eleven year old girls into their room, Hermione went to her own, pleased to find that Lavender and Parvati weren't there. Her trunk had already been deposited there, so she decided to change into something other than her school robes, since there wouldn't be any classes until the next day. She pulled some pants on under her robes, and then ruffling through the pile of clothes, she grabbed a dark blue shirt and began to unbutton her robes.

    Suddenly, she heard a gentle tap at the cracked door, and before she could answer, it creaked open. Harry stepped into his room, his mouth dropping open as she brought her arms up over her chest, but he saw a flash of a white bra.

    "Oh! I'm sorry," he stammered, turning around. "I'll just go now..."

    Turning pink from embarrassment and taking a deep breath, Hermione said, "It's okay, Harry, just stay turned around for a second, okay?" She quickly finished changing clothes, keeping her eye on him the whole time. "All right... the coast is clear."

    When he turned to her, his face was a matching shade of red. "Gee, I'm sorry... I guess it doesn't do any good to knock if I just barge in like that."

    "It's okay, it's not like I have anything that you haven't seen be..." She began, then let her voice trail off as she realized that she wasn't completely sure about that. He had been dating different girls for years, but she wasn't privy to the details of his sexual behavior. It was a subject that she tried to avoid, in fact. "Let's just forget about it, okay?" she finally finished, then took a deep breath. "What can I do for you, Harry?"

    "Well, actually, I just wanted to talk..." he admitted, awkwardly taking a seat at the foot of her bed. "I mean, I haven't seen you for months, and we barely owled each other. I guess I just missed you." Her shrugged sheepishly.

    Her mouth pulled into a wide smile. "I missed you too, Harry!" She plopped onto the bed beside him. "What do you think this year will be like? No evil to conquer, no worlds to save..."

    "Well, I guess we'll just have to concentrate on our school work! After all, we have NEWTs at the end of the year... and we'll both be busy with Head Boy and Girl stuff... not to mention my being the Quidditch captain again..."

    Hermione laughed. "Oh, you're making my head spin! Perhaps the evil-vanquishing would be easier after all." Looking at Harry, she suddenly noticed that his shirt was missing a button. "Oh my, you're a mess," she chided, then added, "Here, let me..." and muttered a charm under her breath. A new, shiny button popped into place on his shirt, but something else immediately caught the pair's attention.

    Hermione's shirt was glowing.

    "What the..." Hermione murmured, and gasped as she felt something warm against her chest. She reached into her shirt and pulled out the locket that she was wearing, the one that her mother had given her just hours before. It was warm, and giving off a soft, purple glow.

    "What is that?" Harry asked, his eyes widening.

    "It's... it's just a necklace!"

    "Where did you get it? It's obviously charmed or something..."

    Hermione shook her head, holding the chain out from her with a perplexed expression. "No, it's not... my mother gave it to me; she says it's been in our family for hundreds of years. It can't be magic... I'm Muggle-born, remember? Maybe it's a trick or something... or, maybe it's running on batteries."

    Harry raised a skeptical eyebrow. "I don't think so."

    "Well... I tried to open it earlier, but the clasp appeared to be melted shut." With that, the locket stopped glowing, and popped open to reveal a faded photograph.

    The woman in the picture had eyes and hair the color of Hermione's (though this hair was straight). On her face was an appearance of sad resolution.

    But only for a second... because then, her mouth turned up into an ecstatic smile.

    Harry looked up from the picture to Hermione. "What were you saying about batteries?"