He had always been told by his mother that beggars can't be choosers as her way of getting him to do something she wanted him to do. It worked practically every time. Still, it was that evening after getting back from Hogsmeade, just before dinner, Angelina had come up to him after practice, in tears, and truth be told, the sight made him slightly guilty about what he'd said to her before going on his date with Hermione, but only slightly.
"J-Jake," she had stuttered his name out in between her crying, feeling humiliated saying it in front of a crowd, but she pressed on, "I-I'm s-s-sorry for trying t-to make y-y-" she hiccuped, "-you choose between your g-girlfriend and Quidditch... b-but I n-n-need you on the team... we st-stand no chance w-w-without you..."
The sight of her was completely pitiful, and she hadn't thrown him off the team like she'd threatened to do. He looked around at everyone, then back to his Quidditch Captain, "Angelina... I don't mind going to practice, I really don't, but I don't appreciate forced practice on a Hogsmeade Weekend. It's the only time I get away from the school with Hermione that's not Christmas Break or Summer Break..." he exhaled slowly, "if you want me to stay on the team, I'll stay on the team, okay? But no more practice on Hogsmeade Weekend for the rest of the year, okay?"
Angelina, despite her tears, smiled, "Okay, I'll not ever force you to practice again, Jake, you've proven your skills as Seeker, I shan't try to force you to practice again." She gave him a friendly embrace, which he didn't return, and she let go, smiling and going into the Great Hall.
Hermione sidled up right beside him, grabbing his hand, "I guess you're still on it," she smiled up at him.
"Honestly, I'm glad I'm still on the team," he smiled at Hermione as they walked into the Great Hall together.
*******
A couple of days later, Monday Evening at Dinner, some of the Gryffindors were positive about Harry getting his story out. He had told a few of them, mainly just the ones in the D.A., and they were in higher spirits than usual.
"Can't wait to see what Umbridge thinks of you going public," Dean said, sounding awestruck still. Seamus was right beside him, and was obviously hearing every word Dean said, despite munching on food and barely looking away from it.
"It's the right thing to do, Harry," Neville said, opposite Harry and Hermione. He was pale, paler than usual, but went on in a low voice, "It must have been... tough... talking about it... was it?"
"Yeah... it was tough, reliving that evening again..." Harry mumbled, "but people have to know what Voldemort's capable of, haven't they?"
"That's right," Neville said, nodding fervently, "and his Death Eaters too... People should know..."
Neville left his sentence hanging in the air, returning to his baked potato, but even without finishing it, Hermione and Harry knew what he wanted to say. Seamus looked up at them, but Hermione saw him look quickly back down at his plate after he caught Harry's eye. After a while, Dean, Seamus, and Neville departed for the Common Room, leaving Harry and Hermione at the table to wait for Ron and Jake, both of whom had yet to have dinner because of Quidditch Practice.
She was getting a bit worried about him, because he had only missed dinner once because of Quidditch Practice, and that was just after Harry had been banned from Quidditch.
Cho walked into the hall with her friend Marietta. Hermione glanced sideways at Harry and saw him give an involuntary motion. Cho never looked towards the Gryffindor Table. Hermione looked back to Harry, "You know... I know what you said about Cho, but you were a bit tactless with how you handled speaking to her."
" Me , tactless?" Harry asked, slightly outraged at Hermione, "One minute we were getting on fine, next minute she was telling me that Roger Davies asked her out, and how she used to go and snog Cedric in that stupid tea shop - how was I supposed to feel about that?"
"That tea shop isn't stupid. I once thought it was, but it's not... and you see," Hermione said with the patient air of one explaining that one plus one equals two to an overly emotional toddler, "I know you tried to explain that you were coming to visit Jake and I both, but since she thought you were just coming to see me, you should've told her differently after the confusion first started," Hermione said, "you should have said that it was really annoying, but I'd made you promise to come along to the Three Broomsticks, and you really didn't want to go, you'd much rather spend the whole day with her, but unfortunately you thought you really ought to meet me and would she please, please come along with you, and hopefully you'd be able to get away more quickly? And it might have been a good idea to mention how ugly you think I am too," Hermione added as an afterthought for Harry's lost benefit.
Harry gave her an odd look, "But... Hermione, I don't think you're ugly... far from it."
Hermione's face burned with embarrassment, "Regardless, you upset Cho when you said you were going to meet me, so she tried to make you jealous. It was her way of trying to find out how much you like her."
"That's what she was trying to do? Was it the same with you when Jake was talking to all those other girls last year?" Harry asked as Ron plopped onto the bench opposite them, covered in mud and looking grumpy. He quickly pulled every dish within reach towards him.
Hermione became silent and looked down at the table, "I never tried to find out how much he really liked me... I admittedly did try to make him jealous when I said yes to going to the Yule Ball with you, and when I agreed to be your hostage."
"Well, he threatened me with severe bodily injury if I didn't bring you back from the Second Task..." Harry trailed off.
"D-Did he really?" Hermione asked, thinking how sweet that was of him to be that concerned with her safety.
"Yeah, and of course I agreed to, what else was I going to say to him?" Harry asked, laughing from hindsight.
Jake came in moments later, not looking nearly as bad as Ron. He proved to be starving, though, when he forcefully took two plates from Ron, as well as seven others not already claimed.
Harry turned to Ron, "So, how was Quidditch Practice?"
"It was a nightmare," Ron said in a surly voice.
Hermione looked at Jake, "Was it that bad?"
"Eh, not as bad as the rest of the team makes it out to be, but... Angelina was practically in tears by the end of it. I think the only thing that gave her some reprieve was my abilities as Seeker."
After dinner, Jake and Ron went off for baths, Jake deciding to use the Prefect's Bathroom, but he said he wouldn't be gone nearly as long as he wasn't as filthy. Harry and Hermione returned to the busy Gryffindor Common Room and their usual pile of homework, but Hermione's was significantly less. Hermione had just finished her new star chart when Fred and George turned up.
"Ron and Jake not here?" Fred asked, looking around as he pulled up a chair and, when Hermione shook her head, he said, "Good. We were watching their practice... They're going to be slaughtered in any match Jake doesn't find the Snitch quickly enough."
Hermione had a large stack of Ancient Rune books, and asked from behind it, "Has Ron saved a goal yet?" She peered over the top of Magical Hieroglyphs and Logograms .
"Well, he can do it if he doesn't think anyone's watching him," George said, rolling his eyes, "So all we have to do is ask the crowd to turn their backs and talk among themselves every time the Quaffle goes up his end on Saturday."
Fred got up and moved restlessly to the window, staring out across the dark grounds, "You know... Quidditch was about the only thing in this place worth staying for."
"You're still not worried about your N.E.W.T.s?" Hermione asked.
"No, George and I have more important things to worry about. The Snackboxes are ready to roll, we found out how to get rid of those boils, just a couple drops of murtlap essence sorts them, Lee put us onto it..."
"And what happened to Lee? Murtlap essence soothes and heals cuts and abrasions," said a familiar voice to Hermione. She turned and saw Jake walking into the Common Room.
"Well, he-" George was about to say, but the sight of Harry and Hermione violently spazzing out told him to not reveal the truth, "he - er - got cut in Charms class."
"Well, he was right to tell you. I've had to use Murtlap essence more times than I'd like to admit," Jake said, sitting down beside Hermione. His words caused her to look at him with concern, but she said nothing.
"I dunno if I even want to watch the upcoming match... if Zacharias Smith beats us, I might have to kill myself," Fred said.
"That won't happen, I will not let Hufflepuff win," Jake said coolly.
Hermione felt a shiver go down her spine with the way he said it, "You know... that's probably the only trouble with Quidditch this year specifically... It creates all this bad feeling and tension between the Houses, which normally isn't problematic, but with Voldemort back and his return being denied by the Ministry, and we have this horrid excuse for a Defense Professor here... and it's our O.W.L. year... and the D.A., I just feel that it's an unnecessary layer of stress that's not needed right now."
"I hate to say it, because I do love playing Quidditch," Jake said, "but you are right, Hermione." Instead of getting out any homework, because he had already finished it, he offered to help Hermione since she had a lot of Ancient Rune's homework to do.
*******
During the Quidditch Match at the end of the week, it was a Slaughter fest against Gryffindor, but that was mainly because of how bad the two new Beaters were in an actual match. Kirke and Sloper were dreadful, more so than Ron was at goalkeeping, but that wasn't saying too much. The match lasted ten minutes, but a lot can happen in ten minutes. Just to add some flair and excitement for the Match with how quick it was, Jake did stand up on his broom, much how Harry did in his very first Quidditch Match back in First Year, and he zoomed around like that for the last half of the match, jumping off from a ten foot drop to catch the Snitch, and rolling to his feet, giving Hermione a close experience with a Heart Attack. She switched between kissing him and scolding him after the match ended, Gryffindor at One-Hundred and Seventy, Hufflepuff at One-Hundred and Twenty. Because of how bad the Beaters were for Gryffindor, that let the Hufflepuff Chasers run free basically, so that was the main reason he tried to end the match quickly.
Even though the victory was scraped by, Gryffindor still partied afterwards, celebrating Jake for saving Gryffindor from an embarrassing defeat. Hermione voiced her dissatisfaction with him, "You're an idiot, you know that? What were you thinking standing up on your broom like that? And then jumping off to grab the Snitch! Why!?"
"The match was boring, and I wanted to add some flair to it, lift the mood of the Gryffindor Spectators with some theatrics. You've seen matches against Hufflepuff in the past, they aren't the most exciting. I wouldn't have jumped off my broom if I wasn't sure I'd land safely," he answered her. It didn't really liven her mood, but it did make her lean into him on the couch, so it was a win-win for them both.
Harry and Ron were sitting across from them, Ron still flustered about not saving any goals, and they were congratulating Jake on ending the match when he did, "For a small moment, I thought Summerby was going to get the Snitch, or one of their Beaters would knock you off your Firebolt..." Harry said to him.
"Nah, I was keeping an eye on everyone, nothing was escaping my sight," he said with a smirk, "although, I can't wait until you can play again..."
"Jake, I've got a lifelong ban..." Harry said dismally.
"You're just banned for as long as Umbridge is here," Ginny said, coming up to them and sitting on the couch arm next to Harry, "I think next year I'm going to try out for Chaser, since both Angelina and Alicia are leaving at the end of the year."
Ron was moping on the couch next to Harry, "I wish Angelina would let me resign..."
"She says Ron's got it in him, he just has to bring it out," Jake followed up.
The entire ten minutes the match went on for, the Slytherins had sung 'Weasley Is Our King,' but because of the theatrics Jake put on, it distracted from the singing. It was a toss up for who would win the Quidditch Cup, but Slytherin was the favored Team.
Ron got up and went to sulk in a corner just as Fred and George showed up, "I haven't got the heart to take the mickey out of him, even," Fred said, looking over at Ron's crumpled figure, "mind you, when he let the Twelfth Quaffle go in," Fred then made a wild motion with his arms, and it looked like he was doing an upright doggy paddle, "Well... I'll save it for bigger parties, eh?"
Ron soon went up to bed, practically dragging himself up there. Harry went up a while later, saying it was out of respect for Ron so he could pretend to be asleep.
Angelina had come up to Jake in tears, but for a completely different reason. She was thankful he'd saved the match for them, and couldn't contain her emotions within herself.
"I was wrong to almost take you off the team," she said, "you're a valuable asset to the team, there is no doubt about that."
"I just did what I had to, well, maybe not entirely true... I didn't have to stand up on my broom, and I didn't have to dive off of it to catch the Snitch, that was partially because of how bored I was five minutes in, but mainly to take the heat off of Ron. The Slytherins were relentless again, so I did what I could to draw away from their stupid song," Jake said, causing Hermione to shake her head partway through.
"Regardless of your reason, thank you for saving us from a humiliating defeat," Angelina went up to bed, tears still falling, but more thankful of him than ever before.
Soon it was just Jake and Hermione in the Common Room, a mess from the party still present. He stood up and waved his hand, causing everything to either disappear or get fixed from being damaged and going to where it belonged, "You're amazing," Hermione said, standing beside him.
"Not as amazing as you are, Hermione," he said as he turned to face her.
"Oh please, I'm nowhere near as amazing as you. I can't do wandless magic, or non-verbal magic. I'm not a Descendant of a famous Wizard like Merlin, I'm not Magically Powerful... I'm not even as intelligent as you are..." Hermione sighed.
"You know who you are, Hermione?" He asked her.
She shook her head, looking up at him, not sure what he was getting at.
"You are the single most important person in my life. You are my anchor, the one who keeps me grounded when I'm furious beyond belief. If not for you, I'd have killed Malfoy, Parkinson, Snape... they'd all be dead if not for you," he said quietly.
Hermione stood up on her toes and brought him closer to her, kissing him for a few seconds, "I'm so fortunate to have you as both my best friend and my boyfriend," she said after pulling her lips off of his, with great reluctance.
"Not many can say that their best friend is their significant other, I guess we are both fortunate in that regard," he smiled down at her.
For a moment, she felt like his eye was looking right into her soul.
*******
The following Monday, the four of them entered the Great Hall at exactly the same moment as the Owl Post did. Hermione was not the only person eagerly awaiting her Daily Prophet : Nearly everyone was eager for more news about the escaped Death Eaters, who, despite many reported sightings, had still not been caught. She gave the delivery owl a Knut and unfolded the newspaper eagerly while Harry helped himself to orange juice, Ron grabbed one of everything in reach, and Jake ate some toast with jam on it.
An owl suddenly and without warning landed with a thud in front of Harry, and was a bit stunted, "Who're you after?" He asked it, languidly moving his orange juice from underneath its beak and leaning forward to see the recipient's name and address, reading it aloud for his friends to hear:
Harry Potter
Great Hall
Hogwarts School
He frowned as he made to take the letter, when suddenly three, four, five more owls had fluttered down beside it and were jockeying for position, treading in the butter, knocking over the salt, and each attempting to give him their letters first.
"What's going on?" Ron asked in amazement, looking up from his plate as the whole of Gryffindor table leaned forward to watch as another seven owls landed amongst the first ones, screeching, hooting, and flapping their wings.
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed breathlessly, plunging her hands into the feathery mass and pulling out a screech owl bearing a long, cylindrical package, "I think I know what this means - open this one first!"
She handed it to Harry, who promptly ripped off the brown packaging. Out rolled a tightly furled copy of March's edition of The Quibbler . He unrolled it and gave a little chuckle.
"It's good, isn't it?" Luna asked as she drifted over to the Gryffindor Table and now squeezed herself onto the bench between Fred and Ron, "It came out yesterday, I asked Dad to send you a free copy. I expect all of these," she waved a hand at the assembled owls still scrabbling around on the table in front of Harry, "are letters from readers."
"Probably not all of them positive," Jake pointed out.
"That's what I thought," Hermione said eagerly, "Harry, do you mind if we-"
"Help yourself," Harry said, feeling slightly bemused.
Ron, Hermione, and Jake all three began to start taking and ripping open envelopes.
"This one's from a bloke who thinks you're off your rocker," Ron said, glancing down his letter, "Ah well..."
"Wow, that was fast," Jake commented, reading his, "This woman recommends you try a good course of Shock Spells at St. Mungo's," he said, crumpling up the letter, "Honestly sounds like it could be somewhat enjoyable."
"You're such an idiot..." Hermione sighed, "This one is from a Witch who says she believes you about Voldemort!"
"This one's in two minds," Fred said, joining in on the letter soiree with great enthusiasm, "Says you don't come across as a mad person, but he really doesn't want to believe You-Know-Who's back so he doesn't know what to think... Blimey, what a waste of parchment..."
"Here's another one you've convinced," Jake said, " Having read your side of the story I am forced to the conclusion that the Daily Prophet has treated you very unfairly... Little though I want to think that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned, I am forced to accept that you are telling the truth... Well hey, you've got some support after all!"
"Another one who thinks you're barking..." Ron said, crumpling up the letter and tossing it over his shoulder, "but this one says you've got her converted, and she now thinks you're a real hero - she's put in a photogr-" Ron stopped talking and quickly folded the parchment back, his face more red than his hair. He quickly slid the parchment over to Harry when a falsely sweet, girlish voice rang out.
"What is going on here?" Umbridge asked from behind Fred and Luna, her bulging toad's eyes scanning the mess of owls and letters on the table in front of Harry. Behind her, Jake saw many of the students watching them all avidly. "Why have you got all these letters, Mr. Potter?" She asked slowly.
"Is it a crime to receive mail now, Umbridge?" Jake asked, but he was merely ignored by her. 'Maybe she is afraid of me...'
"Well, Mr. Potter?" She asked again.
He clearly hesitated, obviously having wanted to keep it quiet, but that was kind of impossible now; a copy of The Quibbler would surely come to Umbridge's attention sooner or later, "People have written to me because I gave an interview," he said, "about what happened to me last June."
"An interview?" Umbridge repeated, her voice thinner and higher than ever, "What do you mean?"
"I mean a reporter asked me questions and I answered them," Harry said, "Here," he threw a copy of The Quibbler at Umbridge.
She caught it and stared down at the cover. Her pale, doughy face turned an ugly, patchy violet, "When did you do this?" She asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"Last Hogsmeade weekend," Harry said.
She looked up at Harry, incandescent with rage, the magazine shaking in her stubby fingers, "There will be no more Hogsmeade trips for you, Mr. Potter," she whispered, but anyone immediately nearby could hear her, "How dare you... how could you..." She took a deep breath, "I have tried again and again to teach you to not tell lies. The message, apparently, has still not sunk in. Fifty points from Gryffindor and another week's worth of detentions."
"The thing is," Jake said, getting her to look at him, "they're not lies. Your boss is scared shitless about losing his place as Minister that he's blinded himself to the truth."
"Another Fifty points from Gryffindor," Umbridge said in a shaky voice, clutching the magazine to her chest as she walked off back to the staff table.
"No detention for me?" He asked loudly.
She stopped for a second, and by the movement of her head, she looked up at the ceiling, then proceeded to continue back to the staff table, many students looking at her as she did.
"Why is she so afraid of giving me detention? What goes on in them?" He asked Harry.
"It's just Lines..." Harry said, dodging the question.
"It's more than just Lines ..." Jake said, knowing something was up, but he couldn't quite figure out what. He eventually dropped it when it was clear no one was going to give him a clear answer.
By mid-morning, enormous signs had been put up all over the school, not just on House notice boards, but in the corridors and classrooms too.
————— By Order Of —————
The High Inquisitor of Hogwarts
Any student found in possession of the magazine
The Quibbler will be expelled. The above is in accordance with
Educational Decree Number Twenty-seven.
Signed:
Dolores Jane Umbridge
High Inquisitor
Every time Jake or Hermione saw one of the signs, they beamed with pleasure, and Harry had to ask why, "What exactly are you two so happy about?"
"Oh Harry, don't you see?" Hermione breathed in before speaking again, "if she could've done one thing to make absolutely sure that every single person in this school will read your interview, it was banning it!"
Naturally, Hermione had been quite right. By the end of the day, even though none of them even saw a corner page of The Quibbler , practically everyone in school seemed to be quoting the interview at each other; Jake could definitely hear it in whispers as they queued up outside classes, discussing it over lunch, and in the back of lessons. Hermione was explaining to Harry, what she'd already explained to Jake just before Ancient Runes class, about how she used the girls toilet just before the class, and every cubicle had girls talking about it.
"And then they spotted me, and obviously they know I know you, so they were bombarding me with questions," Hermione said to Harry, her eyes shining brightly like they had when she told Jake about it, "and Harry, I think they believe you, I really do, I think you've got them convinced!"
Meanwhile, Umbridge stalked the school, on the prowl for any student who might have copies of The Quibbler in their pockets and bags, so she had them turn them all out. Every student was a few steps ahead of her, bewitching the pages to only be pages of the magazine when they were looking at it, and snippets of text books when anyone else looked at it.
She stopped Jake one morning just before class and demanded he turn out his bag. What she didn't know was that he didn't have one, not one she'd find, at least, "Sorry to break the news to you, Professor Umbridge, but I don't carry a bag with me."
"I see you pull things out from your robes, Kidd, so please turn out your robes," she said sweetly.
"I'm not Seventeen, Professor Umbridge, if you force me to do that, that's sexual harassment, and I'll have to report you to whatever Wizarding Authority I can," he said as neutral faced as ever with a hint of humor behind his tone of voice, but every student around them burst out laughing, even Hermione had to cover her mouth from laughing so hard, she began snorting.
Umbridge looked quite embarrassed, "Fifty Points from Gryffindor!" She yelled and practically stomped off.
The teachers were forbidden from talking about it because of Educational Decree Number Twenty-six , but they found ways of expressing their feelings about it all the same. Professor Sprout had quietly given Gryffindor Twenty Points when Harry handed her a watering can; a beaming Professor Flitwick had pressed a box of squeaking sugar mice on him at the end of Charms and whispered, " Sshhh !" Before hurrying away; and even McGonagall had a way of showing her appreciation by not making anyone who couldn't get their newest Transfiguration Spell done in class, have homework to work on it and no written assignment either. Jake and Hermione were amused more than anything at the kind treatment Harry was receiving.
What seemed to make Harry's day most of all, though, was that he and Cho were on speaking terms again. He said he wasn't sure if he'd ever fancy her again, but he was glad to have no bad blood between them. He did say he regretted having made her cry again and harder than ever from his interview, but she had shaken her head and told him that she needed the closure she got from it and it had to be said for the Wizarding Population of Britain and Ireland. She had also given him a kiss on his cheek, which he enjoyed, but it still didn't make him feel like he fancied her again.
Even Seamus had come up to Harry outside of Transfiguration in an unexpected motion, "I just wanted to say," Seamus mumbled to him, "I believe you. And I've sent a copy of that magazine to me mam."
To really put the Cherry on Top, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were in the library, talking to Theodore Nott, and as Harry browsed the shelves, Jake saw Crabbe and Goyle crack their knuckles threateningly, and Malfoy was whispering something no doubt malevolent to Nott. If for some reason any of the four tried to make a move on Harry, he'd step in, otherwise he was staying in his seat with Hermione and Ron at the table. It was obvious why they were angry, Harry had named all of their fathers as Death Eaters, which was true.
"And the best bit is," Hermione said gleefully as they left the library, "they can't contradict you, because they can't admit they've read the article!"
Somehow, it had gotten even better when Luna told them over dinner that no copy of The Quibbler had ever sold out faster than the one with Harry's interview, "Dad's reprinting!" She said as her eyes popped excitedly, "He can't believe it, he says people seem even more interested in this than the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks!"
"Well, Harry is the most popular Wizard in Britain, so it makes sense really," Jake said, and Luna admitted that that was true.
Hermione whispered to him, "He's not the most popular, though... I mean, maybe at this moment he is, but he's not you, Jake."
"Did you ever read The Quibbler , Hermione?" He asked, avoiding her statement, "I remember that Skeeter said she was going to publish something about us. Maybe she didn't do it in this copy of The Quibbler ?"
Hermione scowled at him, "I did read it, but neither of us were mentioned."
An Owl flew into the Castle at Dinner time, and many were excited when they saw it, but It didn't land in front of Harry. The Owl landed in front of Jake, and it had a copy of The Quibbler , "Luna... did your dad...?"
"If he printed a new Issue of The Quibbler , then he didn't tell me," Luna said.
Jake accepted the magazine from the Owl, and it flew away. It was indeed The Quibbler after he unrolled the magazine, and he saw that the front cover was him and Hermione, sharing a kiss. Hermione saw it as she was sitting beside him, and her face burned with mild embarrassment:
AN END TO THE MOST NOBLE BLOODLINE?:
THE SOLE LIVING MEMBER OF THE LONGEST RUNNING
WIZARDING BLOODLINE, JAKE KIDD, FINDS LOVE IN
HIS BEST FRIEND, THE ATTRACTIVE AND EYE-CATCHING
HERMIONE GRANGER
Jake smirked as he read the title, then opened the magazine to the first page where there was a short excerpt that was written by Skeeter, followed by many pictures of him and Hermione since Third Year, 'Colin? Did he take these?'
Yes, you read the title right, Pure Blooded Wizard Jake Kidd, 15, has fallen in love with his best friend at Hogwarts, Hermione Granger, 16, known for being a Muggleborn. It is currently unknown how the Wizarding Community of Britain at large has reacted to this proclamation of love between Merlin's only living Descendant, and a Muggleborn Witch.
It's no secret that Jake is incredibly protective of his girlfriend, even before they announced their relationship, and he can back up his protective nature over her with a magical fierceness that only a Descendant of Merlin could pull off.
A Ministry Witch commented about their relationship, saying, "I think that the love shared between these two teenagers is something to be admired. Nothing like Blood or Social Status has gotten in the way of their love, and it never will."
As Controversial as this is, an end to the Wizarding World's Most Noble Bloodline, one must remember that mingling with Muggles is the main reason we as a species have lived for so long into the modern era. Half-Blooded Witches and Wizards are, of course, the most common kind of Witch or Wizard you will find, and it seems that this is no exception for the future that Jake and Hermione have together.
As he finished reading the magazine article, Umbridge appeared somewhere behind him, "Kidd, I do believe copies of The Quibbler are illegal."
"Oh, this has nothing to do with Harry, if that's what you're worried about," he turned to look at Umbridge.
"Really? Let me see it, then," Umbridge demanded, so Jake handed it to her.
"I will be needing that back, it being the first edition of the newest issue and all," Jake said in a lofty tone.
Umbridge quickly flipped through it, snarled nose ever present, "You and Miss Granger are together?" She asked in a high pitched voice. She hid it well, but Jake saw her look at him with something new in her gaze, disdain and disgust.
"That is correct, Hermione Granger is my girlfriend, the most important person in my life," he said loud enough for a large majority of the Great Hall to hear. After a seconds pause in the sound, cheers were heard from most of the Great Hall, even the teachers, most of them, clapped or congratulated the two teens in some way on their relationship.
When she saw The Quibbler had nothing to do with Harry whatsoever, she tossed the magazine back to Jake, and marched her short stature back up to the staff table. Jake turned to Hermione and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.
Later that evening in the common room, just after dinner, Harry was regarded as a Hero; daringly, Fred and George had put an Enlargement Charm on the front cover of The Quibbler and hung it on the wall, so that Harry's giant head gazed down upon the proceedings, occasionally saying things like "The Ministry are Morons" and "Eat dung, Umbridge" in a booming voice. Hermione wasn't as amused as everyone else, as she was trying to finish up what little homework she had left. After an hour, Jake was fed up with it himself, and was amazed Hermione was still down in the Common Room. The talking spell placed on the large photo of Harry had started to wear off, and figuring no one would miss it, he ignited it in a glorious display of flames, which produced more than a few sighs of relief.
"Thank you," Hermione said, rubbing both sides of her temple, "if I had to listen to that much longer, I'd have gone mad."
"I'm surprised you're still down here," he said to her, rubbing circles on her upper back.
"I told myself I would try and stay down here for as long as you were, but I wasn't sure if I'd have been able to go for that long," she said, thoroughly enjoying his hand on her back.
He unintentionally took her words the wrong way, and had to close his eye and mentally calm himself down.
Harry turned in early, saying he was exhausted and disappeared up the Boys Staircase, with Ron not far behind him. Hermione leaned into Jake, having gotten her homework done a few minutes ago, her breathing steady as she closed her eyes, feeling like she could fall asleep against him, "When that particular issue of The Quibbler gets out, how do you think people are going to react when they realize what our relationship means?"
"Who cares how they react, what they think... it won't change anything," Jake whispered to her.
Hermione smiled, knowing he couldn't see it, "I'm glad you said that... I love you."
"I love you too," he said and kissed her hair. He closed his eye, feeling tired himself, and soon both of them were asleep on the couch. He was content knowing no one would bother them, or they'd risk facing his unprecedented wrath. It was true that when that issue of The Quibbler would publish a week later, both he and Hermione received many letters congratulating them, and several malicious letters to Hermione for trying to end the Most Noble and Most Pure Bloodline, but she cared little for their opinion, as she and Jake loved one another more than anything else, and nothing would change that.
*******
The following day, Harry explained to both Hermione and Jake a dream or vision that he had about Voldemort and Rookwood, and how Avery received some sort of punishment for feeding false information to Voldemort.
"So that's why they killed Bode..." Hermione said after a few minutes, "when he tried to steal this weapon, you both said something funny happened to him, right?" They nodded, "There has to be some sort of Defensive Spell on it, or some reason why he couldn't take it... but whatever the reason, maybe it's why he was in St. Mungo's? You said the Healer told you that he was getting better, and they couldn't have that, so they sent Devil's Snare to finish him off quietly. The shock of that weapon probably made the Imperius Curse lift from him, and once he'd gotten his voice back, he'd have told everyone and anyone who'd listen about what happened to him. And it would be easy for Lucius Malfoy to put the Imperius Curse on him... he's never out of the Ministry, is he?"
"He was even hanging around that day I had my hearing," Harry said, "In the - hang on... he was in the Department of Mysteries corridor that day! Your dad said he was probably trying to sneak down and find what happened in my hearing, but what if-"
"Sturgis," Jake said slowly.
"Sorry?" Ron asked, looking bewildered.
"Sturgis Podmore, he was arrested for trying to get through a door, and I'll bet it was a door into the Department of Mysteries... I don't think it was under the Order's supervision, and I don't think he was doing it of his own free will, either. I'll bring he was Imperiused by Lucius Malfoy that same day, and was tasked with getting in there to get Voldemort the weapon, whatever it is, and then he was caught and thrown in Azkaban," Jake explained.
"Of course, that makes sense," Hermione agreed with him, "he did have Moody's Invisibility Cloak, and Lucius Malfoy probably heard him when he Imperiused him, how else would he have known Sturgis was there?"
"And now Rookwood's told Voldemort how to get the weapon?" Jake asked Harry.
"I didn't hear all of the conversation, but that's what it sounded like," Harry said, "Rookwood used to work there, maybe Voldemort'll send him to do it?"
"Probably so," Jake said.
Hermione was looking at Harry carefully, "Harry... are the Occlumency Lessons that difficult? I mean, I know it's Snape teaching you... but you haven't gotten any better about them?"
"No, it's abysmal and depressing almost with how Snape is during the lessons. Every time he stops prodding in my mind, I don't get the chance to recover before he launches another assault on my mind..." Harry trailed off.
"He should only be doing that when you've gotten the hang of Occlumency... is it so much of a bother to Snape that he's trying to just rush you through it?" Jake asked.
"It could be..." Hermione said, then turned to Harry, "I know how difficult it is with Snape, but please work at it? You're supposed to try and stop the visions from Voldemort-"
"I know, okay!?" Harry said rather heatedly from the turn the conversation took. "I'm trying... but Snape he-" Harry stopped himself before he got too loud.
The rest of the day for Harry wasn't that great, but it was mainly from dreading his Occlumency Lesson that evening with Snape again. Because Jake had saved Gryffindor from defeat, there wasn't any laughter from the other Houses, but the Slytherins did still sing "Weasley Is Our King" in the corridors, which prompted Filch to ban it by the end of the day out of pure irritation.
Something happened in their last Divination class, Harry and Ron said, that they were moved inside because Firenze was banished from the Forbidden Forest for his continued fraternization with humans. This changed Firenze a bit, Harry said, he acted different from last year and the first few months of this year. Hermione briefly wondered why, but neither Harry nor Ron had an answer for her.
It soon neared the end of the month, and it was closing in on Jake's birthday. Hermione was wondering what she should do for him, and she had a good idea what she was going to do.
She wasn't going to cross any previous line they had drawn, but she was going to definitely give him a glimpse of the future. She also had a two-piece bathing suite, because she wanted to go swimming in the Prefect's Bathroom later that night with him.
At Lunch, Hermione told Jake to meet her in the Prefect's Bathroom at Ten o'clock that night and she knew he'd try to be early, so she resolved to get there at Nine and wait. She had on her lingerie that her mother bought for her at Christmas, and had put it on that morning, wearing it underneath her uniform the entire day. It felt weird wearing them for more than a few minutes, but she pressed on, because this day was important, it was the first Birthday Jake would be enjoying with her as a couple. She sighed when she realized she had to wait until Sixth Year for that, but it would be worth the wait.
She had been right about him arriving early, it was Nine-Thirty when he arrived, and she wished just once he'd be punctual instead of early. He looked over at her, a pair of swimming trunks in his hands, "Hey, Hermione," he greeted her.
"Hey, Jake, so... I-I have something t-to show you... come sit over here, a-and close your eye..." she stuttered out. She hated herself at that moment for stuttering.
"Okay," he said calmly. She hated how calm he was, not even a stutter escaped from his lips.
He sat down, closed his eye, and waited. Hermione removed her clothes, leaving on her lingerie, and she could feel her body blushing from the embarrassment, "Y-You can o-open y-your eye..."
He opened his eye slowly, and he was absolutely blown away at the sight. Hermione, his girlfriend, was standing before him in seductive lingerie, and it was doing something to him. Something he hadn't felt since he and Hermione were together at Merlin's Tower.
"D-D'you l-l-like wh-what y-y-you see?" She stuttered out.
He didn't quite honestly know what to say, she had him at a loss for words.
His intent gaze caused her to squirm, "W-Well, s-say someth-thing, I-I-I feel rid-diculous..."
"Hermione... you look so..." he paused, trying to find the word that best described her, "I don't even know if there's a word to describe how absolutely beautiful you are..."
She wanted more than anything at that moment to drown herself in the pool sized bath, "St-Stop... y-you're just s-saying that..."
"I don't say things I don't mean, Hermione, and if I do then I retract it immediately," he said, sending a shiver down her spine, "you are always the most beautiful girl in any room, and right now is no exception."
"But I-I'm the only g-girl in here..." she said, stuttering less than before.
"And even if you weren't, you'd be the single most beautiful girl in this room, everyone else be damned," Jake stood up and walked over to her, "they don't matter to me the way you do."
Hermione threw her arms around his neck, bringing him down to her level, and she kissed him with an almost lustful desire. It was a few minutes when she finally stopped, "Sorry, I don't know what came over me..."
"You don't have to apologize to me," he smirked as he looked down at her, "so, are we still hopping in the pool? Because unless you brought a swimsuit, this might be a bit more temperature rising than I initially prepared for."
"That's a weird way to phrase that, but I did bring a two piece swimsuit, let me go change and I'll join you in the bath," Hermione said, her confidence returning to her completely. She grabbed her two piece and went around a corner into a changing area, when she heard a splash, 'He's fast at changing,' she noted, and when she was changed into her swimsuit, she placed her lingerie with her other clothing and joined him in the water, "Happy Birthday, Jake," she said, swimming over to him.
"And what a wonderful Birthday it's been, Hermione," he smiled and shared another loving, passionate kiss with her.
*******
As April arrived nice and rainy, Umbridge continued sitting in on every Care of Magical Creatures lesson, which Harry said made it difficult to give Hagrid Firenze's warning about something, but Firenze hadn't elaborated on what that warning was.
Harry finally managed it midway through the first week of April, saying he lost his copy of Newt Scamander's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and doubled back to Hagrid's to give him whatever Firenze's warning was.
The teachers all began to remind everyone that their O.W.L.s were drawing ever nearer. All of the Fifth Years, minus one, were suffering from some stress to varying degrees, Hannah Abbott being the first to receive a Calming Draught from Madam Pomfrey after she burst into tears during Herbology and sobbed that she was too stupid to take exams and wanted to leave school now.
On the opposite end, Jake was the most calm about his O.W.L. examinations, and Hermione just couldn't comprehend it, but seeing how he handled homework, she ultimately wasn't that surprised. He was doing better than anyone in every class, which also didn't surprise Hermione, and he continuously got points for Gryffindor, so she couldn't entirely complain.
It was the week before Easter when they finally moved onto Patronus Charms, everyone keen to start learning these ever since Jake and Harry showed theirs to them, he did notice, however, that two students were missing from the meeting, "Now, as stated last time," Harry said, "not everyone will be able to do the Patronus Charm, and of those of you who do, even less will manage a Corporeal Patronus. It works best with a Happy Memory, but just a Strong and Powerful Memory will work. Some defining moment in your life that has incredible meaning to you."
A chorus of the Charm was said, and many Patroni were cast, but a few on their second or third attempt managed a Corporeal Patronus, " Expecto Patronum ," Jake said, his Alligator swimming through the air above them, making noises as it did. It soon came to rest near him, "Now it's easy to cast a Patronus, or fail in doing so, when there is no threat, but remember, these are meant to ward off Dementors and Lethifolds mainly as there are no other counters to them, and it's far different trying to cast one in front of a Dementor, harder in fact."
"Oh, don't be such a killjoy," Cho said brightly, watching her silvery swan soar around the Room of Requirement, "They're so pretty."
"They are, but they are meant to protect you," Jake said patiently. He looked over and saw Hermione producing Incorporeal Patroni. She closed her eyes, took in a few deep breaths, then he heard her say the words again.
" Expecto Patronum !" She said, and to her glee, a Corporeal Patronus in the shape of an Otter formed, and ran quickly around her before spreading about the room, running across the entire length of Jake's Alligator, before coming to a rest on its head. She walked up to Jake, "I think they both know."
He smirked as he looked at the Alligator and the Otter, "I think they do as well." His Alligator was patient with Hermione's Otter, it seemed, as the Otter played around on its back and head, and the Gator didn't even flinch or seem bothered by it.
"What we really need is a Boggart, that's how Jake and I learned, because our Boggarts were both Dementors at the time-" Harry started to say.
"But that would be really scary!" Lavender said, shooting puffs of silver vapor out of the end of her wand, "and I still - can't - do it!" She added angrily.
Neville was failing as well, as his attempts proved to be feeble wisps of silver smoke.
"Harry, I think I'm doing it!" Seamus yelled, who had been brought in for his first, and unknowingly last D.A. meeting, "Look - ah - it's gone... But it was definitely something hairy, Harry!"
"Don't be discouraged if you can't do it, this is incredibly advanced magic, and like I said, not everyone can do it," Jake reiterated, hoping to console mildly some of the ones who couldn't produce a Patronus. The door suddenly opened, but Jake saw no one.
He suddenly heard Harry speak, "Hi Dobby, how are you - what's wrong?"
He walked over to see what was going on, "Harry Potter, sir," Dobby squeaked quickly, trembling from head to toe, "Harry Potter, sir... Dobby has come to warn you... but the House-Elves have been warned not to tell..."
Jake's heart skipped a beat, he knew exactly what Dobby meant, "We have to clear out, no-" the door was impacted with the Explosive spell, Bombarda , and many students gasped. It crumbled a bit, and he extended his hand, his eye glowing red, but the door did not repair, 'Shit...'
The door was hit again, crumbling a bit more, he extended his hand again, but he didn't think of a spell, he just held his hand out, and the door's splintered pieces held in place. He looked to his right as another spell from outside impacted the door, but it was holding in place despite the pieces separating from obvious cracks.
'I need a room for everyone but me to hide in, and I need the door to disappear afterwards until this room is empty,' He thought of a fool-proof way of making sure no one else was discovered. It was already obvious someone was in the room, but only one person had to be found, "Everyone, to the door over there, hurry!" He yelled to his students, all of whom ran and hid in the room. Harry and Hermione were the last ones to the door, but Hermione turned when Jake didn't move.
"Jake! Come on!" She yelled.
"Someone has to take the fall for this," he told her.
She started to walk back to him, "I won't let you take the fall yourself!"
"I'm not giving you a choice!" He said, the door not going to hold for much longer, another Bombarda hitting it.
"But, Jake-" Hermione still pressed on towards him.
"GO!" He yelled, thrusting his free hand towards her. Again, he didn't think of a spell, he just thrusted his hand and Hermione was flung off of her feet and landed in the room, being caught by several of her peers so she didn't hit the floor.
Jake turned from the door after it disappeared and he dropped both his hands, the door's pieces falling apart, and not only Umbridge walked in, but several Slytherins did as well, Pendragon among them. "Well, aren't you in a serious bout of trouble, Mr. Kidd," Umbridge smiled evilly.