Hermione caught up with her boyfriend, who was stood in the courtyard, and hugged him. She was expecting yelling, swearing, maybe even a broken hand which needed healing from hitting a wall. Instead she got silence. This was much worse.

She knew that of course the things Y/N went through affected him. Of course they did. For all his toughness, for all his strength, even for all his macho posturing, he was still only human.

Most of the time he blocked things out. He blocked a lot of things out. He blocked out the torture, he blocked out the physical and mental abuse, not just from his mother but from Jacob as well, he even blocked out the gravity of his destiny. He was the one that would have to kill the most powerful and brutal dark wizard in history. He had to do that. If he couldn't no one would. He was a thirteen year old boy. Hermione hated that there was so much pressure on him.

Most of the time he was successful in blocking it all out- but occasionally, just occasionally, it all came rushing to the surface. You can only turn the pressure gauge so long before it pops.

Others saw him as unbreakable, this amazing powerful wizard, always so confident, always so sure of himself. But Hermione knew better. She knew him like no other. She was the only one to see his vulnerability, the only one trusted enough to see it. Not Dean, not Harry, not even Penny. And it was on show right now. This is how it exposed itself.

Quiet. Silence. Escaping into a head full of doubts. She knew one way to support him through it. One way to make it better. To be there for him. To hold him. To let him know he was loved. For all the protecting he did for her, from bullies, from monsters, from escaped psychopaths- it was her turn now to protect him. Make sure his vulnerability, his weakness as she had no doubt he saw it, wasn't on display to the world.

She smiled at him. Kissed his cheek and took his hand. She led him straight to the seventh floor. The room turned only into a comfy bedroom. It was all that was needed for now. They took off their robes, she put on her bed wear, he stripped to boxers, and they hugged.

She was planning on taking things further tonight, but it wasn't the night for it. Not now. She wanted it to be special when it happened, not a memory contaminated with all the hurt he was feeling after dredging up so much at his therapy session. She just hugged him, her head on his chest, outlining his scar, as he kissed her head and whispered how much he loved her. It was actually a lovely way to finish what had been a difficult day.

—~—

The next morning they had rose early and Y/N had worked out hard, pushing himself to his second year workout intensity. He had fully recovered from his pneumonia now, and wanted to make up for lost time.

Hermione had had a shower in the room of requirement as well. She had considered asking Y/N to join her but was too nervous. Maybe next time. They went down and had breakfast before looking at their timetable.

Double Potions, which also meant double Alchemy for Y/N. As they sat in the class, preparing their ingredients for their Shrinking Solutions, Draco had requested loudly to Professor Snape that Hermione cut up his ingredients as he was injured.

The class went silent, Y/N looking up slowly from where he was cutting and stood up with his scalpel in hand. Hermione quickly grabbed his arm to stop him moving forward and Harry was sure from the look on Y/N's face he was about to stab Draco. Snape's response had shocked the class.

"Parkinson can cut your ingredients Malfoy, and if you think she is too incompetent perhaps you could ask the Headmaster to shift yourself to a more competent house!"

The class were stunned, not at the intense and spiteful vitriol spat by the Professor, but that it was directed at Malfoy, a Slytherin.

No one else spoke after this, the class as silent as a graveyard, save for the gently bubbling cauldrons.

—~—

Y/N was asked to stay after class to discuss something in Snape's office. 60 seconds later he came out looking more tired than he had only a minute earlier.

"You alright Y/N? You look exhausted." Harry asked in concern.

"Yeah, just told not to stab other students. Par for the course" Y/N chuckled. In reality he was three hours ahead of everyone else as he had just sat through a gruelling double Alchemy lesson to go with double Potions. The five Gryffindors headed up to lunch.

—~—

"What have we got next 'Mione?" Lavender asked her friend over a sandwich. Hermione pulled her timetable out of her bag to check it before the paper was snatched by Ron.

"Hermione why has your timetable got more lessons on it? It says you're in Divination and Arithmancy at the same time. And why have you got little love hearts all over it. Look they've got HG loves YL all over the page" Ron laughed.

He quickly stopped laughing as his hand was grabbed and twisted 90 degrees the wrong way.

"Ahh ahh ahh" he cried out in pain as Y/N threatened to snap his arm at the elbow. Y/N's voice deepened and his eyes darkened as he roared:

"What our timetables say is our business not yours. And you ever try to embarrass my girlfriend again I'll rip this arm off and shove it right up your ginger arse. You fucking hear me?"

Y/N let go of Ron's arm and the redhead ran off in embarrassment.

"Fucking arsehat. You ok baby?" Y/N asked Hermione, his tone instantly softening.

"Fine thank you, love" Hermione smiled at her still aggravated boyfriend.

Harry was sat there not sure what to do. Lavender spoke up quickly:

"Sorry about Ron, he's just..."

"An immature cunt. And why are you apologising for him?" Y/N asked as he fiddled with his school bag. He pulled out his timetable and wrote it YL loves HG.

"Now they match babe. Sorry I didn't do it before, feel like a terrible boyfriend."

Hermione giggled and kissed him while Lavender smiled at what he wrote before grabbing his timetable. "Wait you've got even more subjects Y/N, it says you had double Alchemy this morning at the same time as Potions. How is that possible?" Lavender asked confused.

Fear crossed Hermione's face as Y/N answered without missing a beat:

"Snape gave me a reading list after class and he's gonna lecture me later."

Lavender smiled and 'oohh'd' before looking back down at the page.

"Cool, but wait you have a class on Sunday? What's Ghoul Studies?"

"A specialist class. I've told you before about hunting, bits and pieces, right?"

Harry and Lavender nodded. Y/N had disclosed small details about the 'family business' but nothing of real quantity. He continued:

"Ghoul Studies is formal hunter training. Learn how to take down a whole lot of nasties. I'm honestly looking forward to it. Dumbledore's got a specialist coming in just at that time to teach me. Sam Winchester. I haven't met the guy but I have heard of him before. Pretty honoured really."

Hermione smiled and giggled at her boyfriend being so excited before checking her timetable. She looked up at Lavender:

"We've got double DADA with Lupin after lunch."

The group finished their lunch and prepared to head up to class.