Lover of the Light

The Domino-Effect

Lover of the Light

Chapter Sixteen: The Domino-Effect

One day later...

Hermione had the terrible habit of hiding from the world when something disturbed her. There, she said it. She'd be a liar if she denied that fact, but here she was, being honest. She knew that she'd seclude herself to her dormitory once more, threaten Parvati Patil not to go about revealing her whereabouts again, and just suffer by herself until someone had big enough quaffles to go and find her.

This time, however, she was choosing to embrace the unconditional love and support her friends have been giving her from day one and take the plunge. Regardless of wanting to hide underneath her blankets like she was a little girl, wishing the monsters underneath her bed away, she was going to have to get up, dress herself, and tell them what she needed to.

She was grateful it was a Saturday and she didn't have to hunt all four of them down during the busy school-day and their different schedules. It was almost surprising that she found them all together, entering the castle from their trip to Hogsmeade earlier that morning. She'd been tempted to ask why they were together, but when Blaise handed her an assortment of Sugar Quills and Ron a large box of Chocolate Cauldrons, she knew that they must've stumbled upon each other at Honeydukes and rivaled over what her favorite sweet was. Both had it wrong, by the way. It was Licorice Wands that she fancied.

She put a pause in their sweet-giving and ushered them to an empty classroom with a serious expression. All four of them knowing her and her tempter quite well followed after without a retort. And once she made sure not a single one got lost along the route to an abandoned classroom in the Fourth Floor, all bickering and stomping on the way up the ever-changing staircase and the corridor floor, she flicked her wand, arranging four single desks into a straight line, and ordered them to sit.

"We're not children," huffed Ginny as she obediently took a seat on the desk in the middle of her brother and her boyfriend.

"We're not children," mimicked Blaise, rolling his eyes at the ginger as he scooted his desk far from the three Gryffindors. "Honestly, Hermione, need I be here with them? I bought you your favorite sweets, didn't I? I don't need to suffer this kind of abuse."

Ron snorted loudly, leaning forward to glare at the Slytherin at the opposite end of the row. "Your mere existence is an abuse to us, Zabini. And 'Mione's favorite candies are Chocolate Cauldrons! I told you that in Hogsmeade. I would know, she's my best—"

"Is that a ring on your finger?"

Hermione had been standing in front of the four with her left hand practically smacked over her face. She waited almost two minutes before any of them noticed. And as her brother argued with Ron, both glaring at one another, Harry's eyes glancing between the Gryffindor and Slytherin, it took Ginny's rolling eyes to settle on the brunette before silence fell on them.

That is, silence that lasted less than three seconds.

"—Hermione?"

"—What the bloody hell is that?"

"—I'm going to kill him!"

A resounding use of wandless magic left all four students stuck to their seats. She was going to use a Silencing Charm to hush them all up, but the grave expression on her face made them all zip their lips tightly. (Some glaring at her with haughty disobedience—Blaise, mainly.)

She took a deep breath, looked them all in the eye, and exhaled noisily. "Yesterday, after the three of you left," she glanced at the only three Gryffindors, "Theo and I talked thoroughly about our betrothal. As you know, I didn't want to get married, but after...a deliberate discussion, we agreed that maybe getting married is the best thing for us."