Hermione Granger was deep into her book, the rest of the world fading away as it usually did when she engaged in her favorite pastime. It was because of this focus that she nearly fell out of her chair when a voice called out from behind her. "What are you reading Hermione?"
Spinning around, using that time to catch her breath and try to slow her heart, the bushy-haired witch looked up at her friend and current focus of study, Harry Potter. "Oh uhm… just doing some research."
He frowned slightly, before raising up his head to peer over her at the book she had invested in. "Research into what?"
Despite her efforts being primarily to help him she wasn't sure how he would react, especially since she hadn't figured out much that would be of use.
"I uhm…"
"Hermione, is everything okay? You know you can tell me anything, right?"
She both cursed and praised his ability to lower her defenses with just a few simple words. "I was just… looking into your situation, the apprenticeship I mean."
His gaze returned to meet her own, and for a moment she was truly afraid she had pushed too far, had damaged their friendship, but then his expression became that warm, love-filled one she had grown to enjoy a bit too much. "I really appreciate you doing this for me."
A smile formed on her face without her consent, and she quickly pulled out a chair, inviting him to sit next to her. He did so, and immediately she began her summary. "So, it looks like what your sisters heard was mostly true. These types of contracts do exist in the Magical world, they just aren't terribly common for those without money and connections. There are some, like your father, who are just naturally talented and are offered it but those are fairly rare."
Harry nodded, clearly following along with her thus far, "Is it always wizards?"
"From what I've read so far, yes. Witches can have apprenticeships, but they aren't as formal and rarely use contracts."
A frown was quick to form on his face as he leaned back into the chair, "Figures."
She bit her lip, debating whether to proceed with her next thought or not, but the Gryffindor inside got the better of her. "I… don't think it's like that, not exactly. It seems like this is fairly new, at least in terms of how old Magical society is. It feels like it was designed to help wizards whose education might be ignored, not point out we are different."
"But witches don't need contracts."
That had her silent once more, and after a moment Harry let out a sigh, "I'm not… I'm not mad at you Hermione, really, I'm not. I'm thankful you are doing this for me, the situation just bothers me that's all."
"I…" she trailed off, knowing she couldn't exactly lie and say 'I know how you feel' or 'I understand' because she didn't. There was nothing keeping her from a career here, nothing holding her back or telling her she wasn't good enough just because of how she was born. She hadn't told someone would help only if there was something in it for them. "I'm sorry."
It was all she could manage, but it was the correct thing to say if his softening features were any indication.
****
There was an unusual silence between them, the girl noted, and she immediately hated it. They were best friends, they should be able to share anything, everything, but there was something different now, something that wasn't quite between them but noticeably present.
"You can ask, Ginny, I know you are curious."
The redhead flinched slightly, before letting out a sigh. "I know I shouldn't, I know it is supposed to be a family secret but…"
"But I know and I'm not part of their family." Luna replied effortlessly and without a hint of anger. "Harry does have them, but I don't think he would mind as long as you can keep it a secret too."
That gave her pause. Could she keep a secret? For most it would be an obvious 'yes' but for someone who had grown up with such a close family, with no privacy between her, her sisters, and Ron.
It was a foreign concept.
She shared everything with them, from advice to hand-me-down clothing. Keeping a secret from them, from any of her friends…
"Maybe… maybe some other time. I don't want to hurt anyone."
There was something else that lit up in her friend's eyes, maybe it was pride, maybe it was happiness, Ginny wasn't quite sure. "We can still talk about him if you want."
The shift in tone was far more comforting, allowing the youngest Weasley to relax, "What does he like to do for fun?"
****
It was one of the things he hadn't quite gotten used to, but at the same time was grateful and impressed by. Common rooms were not hidden.
Password protected? Yes.
But secret? No.
It encouraged the Houses to get along, to create friendships between them. Thus, while there was some surprise, it wasn't as much as it could have been when a voice called out to the few present in the Slytherin area.
"Hey Harry, you about ready to head up?"
The boy turned to where his sister stood at the entrance to the common room before giving a nod, "Yeah, just let me grab a cloak, be right back."
Before he had taken a step, however, Riddle interrupted, "Where are you going?"
A frown immediately formed on his face due to her tone. He had believed they were over the 'creepily possessive and demanding' stage, but apparently not.
"Amy is the Seeker for Gryffindor. I'm going to watch her first game."
"Saturday is reserved for us."
There it was, that tone that made him feel like an object rather than a person with the ability to make his own decisions. "No," he almost growled, "we agreed sometime on Saturdays for lessons, not that the entire day was booked. I will have the entire evening free."
She frowned, but a moment later had said nothing and Harry took the silence as an indication that he was right. Turning, he continued towards his room. Once he had left the woman turned towards the two sisters, still standing near the doorway.
She didn't look apologetic in the least bit, Grace noted, "He should be studying, not wasting time with Quidditch."
Amaryllis gave a huff, followed by a roll of her eyes, "Harry studies all the time and can out duel any student at Hogwarts. He's allowed to take a break every once and a while."
"We have an agreement…"
"Yes," the redhead interrupted, earning the narrowing of the Head of House's eyes, "I am aware, but it also doesn't mean you own him or every minute of every day. We thought he should just know about his options, other than witches who are older than his parents."
Before she could respond Harry reemerged, glancing between the two. "Something wrong?"
"No, of course not Harry, you look really nice today by the way. Ready to go?"
He nodded towards his sister, before walking around the professor and departing with the younger girl, earning a glare of contempt from the one left behind.
A/N- From tomorrow onwards I will be uploading 2 chapters a day on patr*on till month end ( so it would be 50+ chapters ) cuz my exams got over and soon start working on new novel.
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