Anything (Male Reader x Hermione)

Break Up

"I'll bet you wish you hadn't given up Divination now, don't you, Hermione?" asked Parvati, smirking. It was breakfast time a few days after the sacking of Professor Trelawney, and Parvati was curling her eyelashes around her wand and examining the effect in the back of her spoon. They were to have their first lesson with Firenze that morning.

"Not really," said Hermione indifferently, who was reading the Daily Prophet. "I've never really liked horses." She turned a page of the newspaper, scanning its columns.

"He's not a horse, he's a centaur!" said Lavender, sounding shocked.

"A gorgeous centaur . . ." sighed Parvati.

"Either way, he's still got four legs," said Hermione coolly. "Anyway, I thought you two were all upset that Trelawney had gone?"

"We are!" Lavender assured her. "We went up to her office to see her, we took her some daffodils — not the honking ones that Sprout's got, nice ones. . . ."

"How is she?" Hermione asked.

"Not very good, poor thing," said Lavender sympathetically. "She was crying and saying she'd rather leave the castle forever than stay here if Umbridge is still here, and I don't blame her. Umbridge was horrible to her, wasn't she?"

"She was also mumbling about how great Dumbledore is," Parvati added.

"I've got a feeling Umbridge has only just started being horrible," said Hermione darkly.

"Are you trying to divine the future from your Daily Prophet?" Parvati asked.

"No, I'm just smart enough to recognize that the more powerful she gets, the more sadistic she gets."

"Well I can't see how things could get worse," Lavender commented, following Parvati's lead and looking at herself in the back of her spoon.

"Of course, you don't," Hermione mumbled.

"How's your thing with that Slytherin going?" Parvati asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You're his slave, no? My parents sometimes talk about slavery back in India, which is still very much alive. Seventy-one percent of slaves in India are female. It's usually very abusive. Are you alright? You know you can trust us."

"It's nothing like that!" Hermione said calmly, making sure to keep the newspaper in front of her face. "It's just chores, House-elf work, except I need to do it or I'll be punished with detention-style punishments."

"That's much softer than Ron made it sound," Lavender commented. Hermione's grip on her copy of the Daily Prophet tightened until her nails poked through.

"What'd he say?" She asked through clenched teeth.

"Well, after you left the other day, during Harry's party, Lavender asked Ron about why, and he explained that whatever-his-name-is makes you go to him, makes you let him touch and hold you, stuff like that."

"That is absolutely, categorically untrue," Hermione assured the girls.

"I thought he was being dramatic," Lavender said, fixing her hair, "but Seamus and Dean seemed to go along with it."

"What'd they do?" Hermione demanded.

"Nothing. They just complained about how unfair life is with each other," Parvati waved her hand as if waving away a bad smell. "Very annoying."

"I better explain that Ron is wrong," Hermione said, starting to stand up, but Lavender stopped her.

"Explain it later. Look who's heading our way!" (Y/N) was walking straight towards her. When he reached her, he bent over to talk in her ear.

"Can I talk to you by the house points counter?"

"Sure," Hermione said, getting up and walking out with (Y/N). (Y/N) stopped by the counter and leaned against the wall.

"I've been selfish," (Y/N) said, looking down at Hermione.

"What do you mean?"

"I do have . . . strong . . . feelings for you, but I'm going to die, and it feels like I am leading you on."

"No," Hermione said flatly.

"What?"

"I'm not letting you break up with me, especially not over something so stupid!"

"Just go back to waiting for Weasley to grow a pair. That way, when I die, it'll be like nothing changed." Their argument was starting to attract attention, but no one dared to question the couple.

"Well, you aren't dead, and you've had an effect on all of our lives, so even IF you die, we'll never forget you. You won't die, though, because Trelawney is a fraud, and you're too good of a father to leave Maia." Hermione stood on her tippy-toes and kissed (Y/N)'s cheek. "See you tonight, Master," she whispered before walking back inside.