when i met you

91

After her talk with Harry, Hermione had come up to Alexis and further discussed the idea of Lexi helping as a teacher. It would be dangerous for them all, especially Lexi (as Head Girl), but she agreed this was something they had to do.

On the day of their Hogsmeade visit, they'd told people who wanted to learn Defence Against the Dark Arts to meet in the Hog's Head in the afternoon. To waste their time before they had to go there, Lexi and Cedric spent their morning wandering around the town together.

It was an average day in October, cold, snowing and overcast. So, as you usually would do, the Head Boy and Head Girl decided to make snow angels in the middle of the main street. This had led to many other students and young children joining them and adults yelling at them for being in the way.

When it was time to go to the Hog's Head, Cedric and Lexi met up with Lee and the twins before walking inside. It was an old and musty pub, Lexi never liked it much, expect for the young bartender who worked there.

Along with them were other people like: Angelina, Alicia, Katie, Patricia, Kenneth, Rolf, Amber, Neville, Dean, Lavender Brown, the Patil twins, Cho Chang and her friend, Luna Lovegood, Colin and Dennis Creevey, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner, Terry Boot, Ginny, and other people Lexi didn't know.

"A couple of people?" said Harry hoarsely to Hermione. "A couple of people?"

Lexi smiled at her brother.

The barman had frozen in the act of wiping out a glass with a rag so filthy it looked as though it had never been washed. Possibly, he had never seen his pub so full.

"Hi," said Fred, reaching the bar first and counting his companions quickly, "could we have... thirty-one Butterbeers, please?"

The barman glared at him for a moment, then called for the younger bartender to serve them. Lexi grinned as Holden, the bartender, came out from the back of the bar and started pulling up butterbeers. Holden, smiled at Lexi, they'd come to know each other over the years.

"Cheers," said Fred, handing them out. "Cough up, everyone, I haven't got enough gold for all of these..."

Cedric grabbed two bottles and gave Fred some wizard coins before nudging his girlfriend over to beside her brother. "Why'd he smile at you?" asked Cedric when they sat down.

Lexi smirked at him, "What? You jealous?"

"No. I just —"

"Relax, Ced." Lexi laughed. "He's a mate, we met in third year."

"Hi, Harry," said Neville, beaming and taking a seat opposite him.

Everyone started moving over and taking out chairs. Harry was very clearly nervous. When the chatter died out, Hermione spoke.

"Er," said Hermione, her voice slightly higher than usual out of nerves. "Well—er—hi."

The group focused its attention on her instead, though eyes continued to dart back regularly to Harry.

"Well... erm... well, you know why you're here. Erm... well, Harry here had the idea—I mean —" Harry had thrown her a sharp look "— I had the idea that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defence Against the Dark Arts—and I mean, really study it, you know, not the rubbish that Umbridge is doing with us —" Hermione's voice became suddenly much stronger and more confident "— because nobody could call that Defence Against the Dark Arts —" ("Hear, hear," said Anthony Goldstein, and Hermione looked heartened) "— Well, I thought it would be good if we, well, took matters into our own hands."

She paused, looked sideways at Harry and went on, "And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just in theory but doing the real spells —"