Professor Granger

Chapter 47: Community

            AUGUST 30, WEASLEYS' WIZARD WHEEZES: DIAGON ALLEY

Hermione held tightly to Draco's hand as they weaved through the swarms of people. Kids slid under their elbows, racing through the aisles and spiraling staircases of the joke shop.

"Professors!" Fred and George shouted in unison from a staircase above them. 

"Hi boys!" Hermione called out, waving. 

"Fred. George. Business is looking great," Draco nodded gruffly to them beside her.

"Yeah, Hogwarts reopening really worked out for all of us- didn't it," Fred smiled, looking out over the chaotic store.

"I can't wait for these students to give Ron hell in Hogsmeade," George laughed as he watched a small boy accidentally set off a crackling sparkler.

A loud bang came from a higher floor, making Fred and George look up with a jolt.

"That isn't..." Fred turned to George, looking concerned.

"It might be..." George stared back at him, equally unsure.

"We'll see you later," Fred and George shouted in unison, both bounding up the stairs.

Hermione laughed and shook her head, turning to watch the shop's bubbling excitement.

"Flourish & Blotts next?" she turned to Draco, wide eyed and hopeful.

Draco smirked and nodded, sliding his arm over her shoulder and turning for the door.

Hermione pulled tightly against Draco as they stumbled onto the cobblestone street, dodging a nearby gaggle of teenagers. Diagon Alley was bustling with back to school shopping. Now that Hogwarts was reopening, the familiar chaos of the street seemed to finally return in full swing.

Flourish & Blotts was filled with bustling families carrying towering stacks of schoolbooks. Hermione smiled as she caught sight of a young girl with dark brown curls stare at a page of a book as if it were the most fantastical thing she had ever seen.

"There's a new book on wolfsbane I wanted to find," Draco glanced around the shop as they paused at the bustling entrance. 

"Go look- I'll find you in a bit," Hermione smiled, eyes lighting up as she glanced around at the towering bookshelves.

Draco nodded, pulling her in for a quick kiss before sliding away into a crowd of people that were turning onto the staircase. Hermione wandered to a nearby table, lifting a book into her hands and turning it over as if to examine it- her eyes however, remained on Draco. She watched as he reached the top of the stairs. He turned his head slightly, catching her gaze on him. Hermione saw the flash of his smile before a large old man stepped in front of him, lifting a bookcover into the light to read it.

Hermione wandered through the shop, arms collecting books into a teetering stack as she went. She had just found a quiet nook with a bookshelf dedicated to dragons when Draco appeared, smiling with several books slung under his arm.

"I see you've been busy," Draco nodded with a smirk as his eyes glanced over her books.

"And I just found a dragon section," Hermione grinned, setting her books onto the floor. 

Draco nodded his head, placing his books on top of her stack. "Let's see then." 

He stepped forward, arms wrapping around her waist as his eyes turned to the bookshelf in front of her.