DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. ROWLING.
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Chapter 33:
September 19, 1977
(eighteen years ago)
"Happy birthday, Hermione!"
Hermione literally jumped when she opened the common room door and saw confetti and heard James, Sirius, and Remus.
She placed a hand on her chest. "You startled me!"
James approached her with a bunch of sunflowers, handing them to her, and placed an arm around her shoulder, squeezing her to his side. "Hope we didn't ruin your day," he chuckled. "Let's go down for breakfast."
She gave them all a sad smile. "Thank you, boys. You're the best," she told them rather emotionally.
"Anything for the Head Girl," Sirius said, giving her a wink.
She rolled her eyes. "I will still give you and Amelia detention if I caught you snogging in the hallways."
Sirius laughed loudly. "My pleasure, kitten. I will go on detentions just to have a good time with my lovely witch." He even patted her on the head. "You go ahead, I'll wait for Amy."
"It's your fault, James," she told her friend as she, James, and Remus started walking down the spiral staircase.
"Me? Why?" James asked innocently.
"You're the Head Boy, and yet, you're tolerating him!" she accused.
"But Sirius is good at hiding from me," he reasoned, and Remus laughed which only meant the Head Boy was lying.
"Well, use that pretty map of yours," she reasoned.
"Hermione, I can't. Marauders' oath: we won't use the map for Head Boy and Prefect duties, right, Remus?"
Remus snorted and shook his head. "I don't know anything about that oath, James."
Hermione grinned and pulled away from James's hold to loop her arm around Remus's arm. "You're really the best, Remus. We always see eye-to-eye."
"Hey! I always wait for you every morning since last week!" complained James.
She smirked at him. "I didn't ask you to."
"But Snape and those Death Eaters might corner and hurt you!"
Hermione stopped walking, released Remus's arm, and turned to James.
"For Merlin's sake, Jamie, you don't have any proof that they are Death Eaters," she whispered harshly.
"I always see them on the map," James countered. "They're meeting every night in one room inside the Slytherin House... for hours! It's never happened before."
"Maybe it's a study group," she suggested. "If they're Death Eaters, they should have the Mark, right? Have you seen any of them Marked? And I'm sure Headmaster Dumbledore will know if there's a Death Eater in the castle."
James's facial expression hardened. "Still. Death Eater or not, those Snakes might still hurt you."
Hermione couldn't help the tears in her eyes. She wiped them using her shirt sleeve. "Thanks, Jamie. But don't worry too much about me..."
James's facial expression softened and he took her hand and squeezed it. The Head Boy only let go of her hand when they reached the Great Hall.
"Happy birthday again, Hermy," Remus and James said together before leaving her at the Ravenclaw table.
