MORALITY ⟶ Angelina Johnson [1]

Chapter Nineteen

The way Hermione Granger looked at Saros as he attempted to comfort her in the corridor, made him feel as if he was some odd creature that had only been first discovered at that very moment. She hesitated to take the tissue from his hand as if it was tainted with poison and while some people would have been offended by her reaction, Saros couldn't find himself blaming her. After all, only minutes prior did his little brother, have the audacity to call her a "mudblood" in front of people with no remorse whatsoever. She probably figured that he was no different from Draco since they came from the same home.

However, Saros continued to sit there, holding the tissue out to her, trying to come across as sincere as possible. He was still in shock himself that his brother had so openly used the term and the fact that Professor Snape had openly insulted Hermione right in front of other students. And yet, there was no justice done because Draco walked free and no one was around to reprimand Professor Snape. Watching Hermione as she kept her hand covering her face to hide her protruding teeth, Saros knew that she needed to get to the Hospital Wing. But she looked in no mood to go anywhere.

"I'm sorry for what my brother said," he said quietly, " I know that doesn't mean much, simply because he should be the one apologising to you...however, I don't think that's very likely anytime soon, so I'll take it upon myself."

Hermione uttered something but with her hexed teeth, it was difficult for him to understand what she had said until she took the time to say it incredibly slow for him to make out what she was saying.

"Why are you being nice to me?"

It was a valid question, Draco had never been nice to her or her friends, and Saros could count encounters on his fingers where his father hadn't come across as friendly in the company of Harry Potter and his company. She had every right to question as to why Saros suddenly had a change of heart that was different from his family's views because he had never come to her defence or anyone else's before.

He didn't have an answer for her, at least, not a short one because if he went into all the events that had caused the turning point for him, he reckoned that they would be there all day.

"We should get you to the Hospital Wing," he said after a minute or so, " your teeth are going to start causing you some pain if they haven't started already."

Standing up, he offered his hand to Hermione and she just watched him for a few seconds, contemplating whether to take it or not. In her mind, it could have very well have been a trap, she didn't know Saros that well but he did come from the same family as her bully. Not to mention, taking one of his hands meant that she had to remove one that was covering up the sight of her teeth. However, Saros continued to stand there, holding his hand out to her and waiting patiently with a calm expression.

And finally, she gave in and took him up on his offer.

After helping her up and getting her walking in the direction of the Hospital Wing, Saros led the way, his back facing Hermione for the most part as she kept a very close eye on him. They travelled along without another word exchanged between them and when they arrived at the Hospital Wing, it was hard to tell if Madam Pomfrey was surprised by the state of Hermione's teeth or surprised by the idea of Saros being the one to accompany the girl. Either way, there were other students that needed tending to that had arrived before Hermione and giving Hermione a potion to numb her sore gums she promised to return when she was finished with the others.