Chapter Text
Hermione would remember that night for the rest of her life. It had been as beautiful as it had been strange. Beautiful for the dreamy landscape of the starry sky above the Burrow; strange for the unseasonably cool night breeze in the middle of August. But later, she would associate these two adjectives with the events that took place in the privacy of this room.
Summer vacation was coming to an end for the students of Hogwarts. Within a week, everyone would be back at school and back to the lectures and reprimands of their teachers. The atmosphere would certainly be different this year following the tragedy that had occurred at the end of the Triwizard Tournament. That was what Hermione was thinking about as she sat alone in the attic of the Burrow, watching the stars through a small window.
Hermione had loved being able to spend her vacations with Harry, Ron and the rest of the Weasley family. She got along well with Ginny, and she genuinely liked Fred and George, even though their characters were diametrically opposed to hers. This house was a little piece of heaven, and in a way, it felt like home to her as well. Spending time with her friends had been a breath of fresh air for her. She knew that this year was not going to be easy, and that she would have to be strong for them this time again .
However, here, in this dusty attic, Hermione was alone. And like every night since her eyes had saw Cedric Diggory's lifeless body, she let her darkest thoughts wash over her.
Again that night, she could not find sleep, and had taken refuge in this place in search of quietude. When she closed her eyes, nightmares assailed her. In these dreams, the same fatal fate befell her friends. It was difficult to accept them as mere dreams. For Harry had said it; Voldemort was back. Tragedy was bound to follow.
Hermione hadn't told anyone about her nightmares. First, because of her Gryffindor pride, but mostly because she didn't want her friends to know how terrified she was. She knew what image Harry and Ron had of her: Hermione Granger, the one who had all the answers and faced monsters and tests with her head held high. They thought so highly of her, how could she tell them how helpless she was?
Just as she laid her head on her knees, a voice came to pull her out of her thoughts.
"You're not asleep?"
She turned and saw the red hair and long legs of Fred Weasley standing in the doorway. He was still wearing the same clothes from the day before, gray jeans and a brown short-sleeved shirt, and was watching Hermione from his tall height.
"I couldn't sleep," she replied. "You too?"
"Yeah, same thing. My brain is boiling way too much for that."
"Right," she said with a friendly laugh. "It's thinking about the best way to give poor Percy hell.
He laughed too, and she smiled. Their relationship was like that. Fred was the troublemaker who couldn't live without making a mess of things in his trail, and Hermione was the one who scolded him, trying as best she could not to laugh at his antics. There had always been a certain tenderness between them, although they hadn't been alone much. Fred was always accompanied by George, and Hermione by either Ron or Harry, so these moments were rare.
Fred sat down next to Hermione and contemplated the sky filled with constellations too. He only looked away from the window to talk to Hermione.
"I can't believe it's our last year at Hogwarts, for George and I," said Fred. "I'm sure dear McGonall will miss us, even if she'd like to pretend otherwise."
"It's going to left a void for her, not having to chase you around the halls anymore," she chuckled.
"Is it going to leave a void for you too?" he whispered with a smile heavy with innuendo.
She playfully punched his shoulder, and he feigned pain as he laughed. Fred never failed to live up to his reputation as a player. But he always kept his tone light and joking with Hermione, so she knew not to take his words too seriously.
They laughed for a moment, in unison. Hermione found comfort in the presence of the tall, noisy redhead she had been with for several years now. When the discussion died down to only become silence, Hermione said in a more serious tone than she would have liked:
"I sincerely hope this year goes well."
Fred's eyes turned to her, and he didn't miss the look of sadness that tightened her features and clouded her brown pupils. The sight made his heart ache. Without even thinking, he put his hand on hers. The pupils of the girl raised towards him of surprise.
"Are you okay?" he asked in a low voice.
She wanted to tell him yes, that everything was fine and that he didn't have to worry. That's what she had always done, after all. But tonight, with him, she couldn't. It was as if the warmth of his hand was melting away all her defenses.
So, in an infinitesimally small voice, almost like a whisper, she said:
"I'm scared, Fred."
She instantly lowered her gaze, afraid that Fred might read more of her torment through her eyes. She had never opened up to anyone like that, and she already regretted it. However, before she could say anything to make up for it, she felt Fred's strong arms pull her close. Instantly, the gentle warmth she had felt on his hand spread throughout her body.
"It's going to be okay, Mione," he said. "Everyone's here for you." He pulled away slightly so that they could each look into the other's eyes, before adding, "I'll always be here for you. Forever."
The girl's heart quickened. His words sent a strange buzzing through her belly that felt like a swarm of butterflies. Fred's eyes fell on the two pink petals that made her mouth, and she did the same with him.
Then, as if driven by an instinct buried deep within each of them, their lips crashed into each other.
The kiss began shy, but from the moment their lips opened and their tongues met, an unknown passion poured into their respective gestures. It was unexpected, and Hermione never thought she would ever kiss Fred like that. And yet, it felt so... right. As if this moment had been destined to happen for a long time.
When Fred put his hand on the back of her head to pull her mouth closer to him, she knew she had just plunged head first into a pit from which she'll never be able to emerge. And when he inevitably had to break the kiss to catch his breath, she knew she wanted more. Much more.
They remained silent for a moment, staring at each other. Fred's hand moved to caress her cheek. Their chests rose and lowered in one after the other, and neither seemed to want to pull away from the other. This kiss hadn't been enough. That fire inside them demanded to be satisfied in another way.
Without a word, Fred gave her a look that she could easily understand.
Do you want to? he asked quietly.
Hermione nodded, though she too remained silent. And with that simple signal, they kissed again, and she forgot everything else. The worries and her common sense would have to wait until the next morning. With no clothes on, no exterior audience, it was only them.
That night was destined never to happen again. The next day and the days that followed, neither she nor he spoke of it again. This moment together had meant nothing, whatever the feelings that each of them would desperately try to repress during this year filled with emotions.