▌𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐲-𝐓𝐰𝐨 ━︎━︎ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐟-𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 ▌

━︎━︎━︎━︎"𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐔𝐏 for newt potions too?" Hermione asked, looking at Juniper as she slowly ran a brush through her hair. Juniper nodded. "Well, luckily we'll have that class together. I don't think Harry and Ron signed up for it. I'm excited to have Slughorn teach us, maybe he'll have more enthusiasm than Snape ever did." Hermione watched Juniper, a small frown tugging on her lips. She'd barely spoken a word since they've been at Hogwarts.

Hermione was worried about her. The light that usually danced in Juniper's eyes had dulled, her sarcastic remarks had yet to make an appearance―︎and there had been plenty of opportunities. Juniper was still grieving, Hermione understood that completely, but Juniper was also tearing herself apart from the inside out. Juniper didn't have to say it for Hermione to know that she blamed herself for her mother's death. Juniper was drowning, and Hermione didn't know how to save her.

     Hermione walked over to her. "Come on, we're going to be late." Hermione softly said, causing Juniper to turn and look at her. Hermione gave her a gentle smile as she held out her hand and Juniper took it, letting Hermione lead them to their class. They got there and there weren't a lot of students. They all stood at the back of the class, Slughorn in front of them with a cauldron in front of him as he talked. He stopped and turned when Harry and Ron walked in.

     "Ah. Harry, my boy, I was beginning to worry. You brought someone with us, I see." Slughorn said, looking at Ron.

     Ron gave a smile. "Ron Weasley, sir. But I'm dead awful at potions, a menace, actually, so I'll probably just go."

     "Nonsense." Slughorn smiled as Harry shoved Ron slightly forwards. "We'll sort you out. Any friend of Harry's is a friend of mine. Get your books out."

     "Uh, sorry, sir, I haven't actually got my books yet and nor has Ron."

     "Not to worry. Get what you want from the cupboard." Slughorn said. "Now, as I was saying, I prepared some concoctions this morning. Any ideas what these might be?" Hermione raised her hands. "Yes, Miss. . ."

     "Granger, sir." Hermione finished for him. Hermione walked forwards towards the concoctions. "That one there is Veritaserum. It's a truth-telling serum. And that would be Polyjuice Potion. It's terribly tricky to make. And this is Amortentia, the most powerful love potion in the world. I-It's rumored to smell differently to each person according to what attracts them. For example, I smell. . . leather books, chocolate, and magnolias." Hermione stood there for a moment, her eyes widening as a blush formed on her cheeks at the realization. She walked back over to Juniper, completely unable to look at her.

     "Now, Amortentia doesn't create actual love." Slughorn explained. "That would be impossible. But it does cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. And for that reason it is, probably, the most dangerous potion in this room." He quickly placed a topper on the cauldron, causing the girls that had grown closer to back away.

     "Sir, you haven't told us what's in that one." A Gryffindor girl said, nodding towards a tiny vial.

     Slughorn looked at it. "Oh, yes. What you see before you, ladies and gentlemen is a curious little potion known as Felix Felicis." He picked it up, showing it to them. "But it is more commonly referred to as━︎"

     "Liquid Luck." Hermione recognized.

     "Yes, Miss Granger. Liquid Luck. Desperately tricky to make. Disastrous, should you get it wrong. One sip and you will find that all your endeavors succeed. At least, until the effects wear off. So this is what I offer each of you today. One tiny vial of Liquid Luck to the student who in the hour that remains manages to brew an acceptable Draught of Living Death the recipe for which can be found on page ten of your books. I should point out, however only once did a student manage to brew a potion of sufficient quality to claim this prize. Nevertheless, good luck to you all. Let the brewing commence."

They began brewing the potion and it was extremely difficult, Hermione and Juniper were both struggling to do it―︎although Juniper was half-assing it. She didn't care enough about Liquid Luck to fight for her life trying to make one potion. Hermione's hard looked wild and all over the place and Juniper was stirring the potion with a bored look on her face. In the end, it was Harry who had made the perfect potion and he received the Liquid Luck.

After their classes, Juniper made her way back to her dorm. Hermione followed in behind her, running a brush through her messy hair while Juniper simply laid on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. Not a word was shared between them. Hermione kept shooting Juniper nervous glances and Juniper continued to stare blankly at the ceiling.

     "Who'd you smell in that potion?" Juniper finally asked, her soft voice breaking the silence.

     "As if you don't know." Hermione replied, setting her brush down and turning her body to look at Juniper.

     Juniper frowned. "I wanted you to confirm it. In a way, I guess you have." Juniper paused, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "Are you in love with me, Hermione?"

     Hermione swallowed, part of her had hoped this conversation wouldn't come up, but now it has and she wasn't at all prepared. "Well, you haven't exactly made it easy not to." This made Juniper slowly sit up. Hermione closed her eyes and sighed. "You're so kind, and caring, and you love and protect people so fiercely it's admirable. You're effortlessly funny, and you're so sarcastic even in the worst moments possible and I'd be lying to myself if I said it was annoying when in reality it is anything but. I just. . . I can't help myself."

     Juniper nodded. "Okay."

     Hermione frowned. "Okay? That's. . . that's all you have to say? Jay, I just spilled my whole heart to you and all you say is okay."

     "What do you want me to say?" Juniper asked.

     Hermione clenched her jaw. "I don't know, something other than okay."

     Juniper swallowed, looking down at her hands. "I want to say it back, to tell you that I am in love with you too, but I. . ." Juniper shook her head, looking up at Hermione with tears lining her eyes and a small sad smile on her face. "I am still sitting here and waiting for you to change your mind about me. I am a pathetic excuse for a human being right now. I don't eat, I can't sleep, I have nightmares of my mother's death that keeps me awake at night. And I am so tired, and I feel so numb. And it's like a part of me died when she did and it's been months and I have not found out a way to live without her." Juniper wiped away the tear that fell down her cheek. "You deserve better than me."

     Hermione's anger faded as understanding replaced it. She stood up and walked over to Juniper, taking a seat on the bed in front of her. She pushed hair from Juniper's face, cupping her cheek with her hand. "Jay, you are not a pathetic excuse for a human. You're coping, you're trying to wrap your head around the fact that the woman who has been with you for the past fifteen years of your life is no longer here. No one can blame you for that, not a single soul. But, you do need to understand that you are not alone. I am here for you, Harry and Ron are here for you. You're so used to being this independent person that never asks for help, but sometimes it's okay to ask for help. It's okay to accept the hands that are reaching out for you. You don't have to push them away just to try and prove yourself."

     Hermione gave her a small smile, searching her eyes. "If you are not in a position to respond to me in this moment, I won't blame you, nor will I hate you. I understand what you're going through, and I understand that you need time. But just know, I will be waiting for you, because I am never going to change my mind about you Juniper Black. I haven't for five years, and I'm not going to in the next five. I will not have anyone else unless I have you. So, I will sit here, and I will wait, and I will be your friend until you decide if you want more."

     Juniper's eyes welled with tears once more. "I don't deserve you." She softly whispered, reaching her hand up and placing it over Hermione's. "I can't make you wait like that."

     "But I will," Hermione promised. "I will wait however long it takes."

     Juniper closed her eyes, leaning her head against Hermione's. She grew quiet, allowing herself to mull over Hermione's words. Juniper knew she was in a dark place, that she was only going to drown if she kept going the way that she was going. Juniper was convinced that she was fine, that she didn't need any help, but maybe none of that was true. Maybe she didn't have to do this alone like her brain was begging her to do. "My dad was right, maybe I shouldn't do this alone." She pulled away, meeting Hermione's eyes. Every part of her was telling her that she should just suck it up. People faced death all of the time. They never asked for help, so why should she? Realization hit her at full force. She should ask for help because it was being offered, because it was there. Not everyone had that. So, she searched Hermione's eyes and with a shaky breath she softly whispered, "I need help."

     Hermione nodded her head, giving her a gentle smile. "I'll always be here to help you."

     "Even as my girlfriend?"

     Hermione nodded. "Even as your―︎" She paused, eyes widening.

     "We always make a mess, trying to prove that we don't need each other." Juniper said. "Clearly, we do need each other. I've been a complete mess, and I know that I need you. If it's as a friend, then it's as a friend. But, I'd like it if we were more than just friends."

     Hermione smiled. "I think we've been more than just friends for several months now."

     Juniper softly chuckled. "That is true. I guess I'm just trying to make it official."

      Hermione beamed and leaned forwards, pressing a soft kiss to her lips before pulling away. "Yes, I'll be your girlfriend. Now, you didn't eat dinner, so you and I are going to sneak down to the kitchens, and we're going to get you some food. Alright?"

     Juniper nodded and softly replied, "Alright."

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

━︎━︎━︎━︎𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐏𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐄 made their way out to the quidditch pitch, taking a seat in the stands in order to watch the try-outs that Harry was hosting. This year Ron was finally trying out and so was Ginny. Hermione had brought a book with her and Juniper had brought her journal, silently writing in it and barely paying attention to what was going on below her.

     Harry stood at the front with Ginny at his side. Ron was the only one standing there and paying attention while the rest of the people trying out were talking, messing around, essentially doing everything except listening to Harry. Harry cleared his throat. "Alright. Um. . . Okay, so, this morning, I'm gonna be putting you all through a few drills just to assess your strengths." No one was listening. "Ah. Quiet. Please!"

     Finally, Ginny yelled, "Shut it!" Everyone stopped, growing quiet as they faced Harry.

     "Thanks," Harry mumbled. "Alright, um, uh. Now then remember, just because you made the team last year does not guarantee you a spot this year. Is that clear?"

     The practice started and while Hermione paid attention to the practice, Juniper stared at the words inked out on the pages, reading them over and over again. She didn't glance at Hermione when she heard her mumble a spell. "Cheater," Juniper whispered. Hermione dropped her hand where she had been covering it with her mouth and scoffed. A faint smile pulled at Juniper's lips.

     "It's not cheating," Hermione whispered back. "I'm just making sure Ron gets it. You don't want to hear his nagging do you?"

     Juniper pursed her lips. "No. No I don't."

     Hermione nodded. "Thought so." She continued watching the practice, glancing at Juniper every so often. "What are you writing in there?"

     "What I did for my dad in the first three years we went to school here." Juniper mumbled, reading over the words once again. Hermione gave her a small frown and Juniper glanced at her. "Do you not know?" Hermione shook her head. "Those nights when I would sneak off to the astronomy tower, I would take a journal up there with me and write to my dad, telling him everything that was happening. I haven't given that to him yet." Juniper sat up, frowning. "Maybe I should send him an owl and tell him to find it in my room."

     "And that one." Hermione said, nodding to the journal. "Is that for your mom?"

     Juniper bit the inside of her cheek as she felt tears form, nodding her head. "Yeah." Her voice cracked and she cleared her throat. "Yeah, yeah it is."

     "Is it helping?" Hermione gently asked, glancing up at the practice before looking back at Juniper. Juniper nodded. "Good." The practice ended and Hermione stood up first, letting Juniper grab her things before holding out her hand. Juniper grabbed it, intertwining their fingers as they made it back to the common room with Harry and Ron.

     The fire came to life as Ron took a seat on the couch with Harry sitting on the ground beside one of Ron's legs, opening his potions book. Hermione sat beside Ron's other leg, letting Juniper lean against her allowing Hermione to lazily drape an arm around her waist while she continued to write in her journal. Ron had a proud smile on his face. "I have to admit, I thought I was going to miss that last one. I hope Cormac's not taking it too hard. He's got a bit of a thing for you, Hermione. Cormac."

     Hermione scoffed. "He's vile." She looked down at Juniper who, feeling Hermione's gaze, tilted her head back to look at Hermione. Hermione gave her a small smile and Juniper gave a soft one in return. "Besides, I don't care if he has a thing for me. I'm taken."

     Ron and Harry paused, turning to look at her. "Since when?" Ron asked.

     Hermione's cheeks turned red. "Since last night."

     Harry smiled brightly. "Congrats, you two."

     Juniper turned her head to look at Harry. "Thank you, Harry."

     Ron frowned, confused. "What? Who is it?" The three of them turned to look at him in disbelief. Slowly, Ron connected the dots. He looked between Hermione and Juniper, taking note of Hermione's arm wrapped around Juniper and the way Juniper was leaning against her. "Oh!" Ron smiled. "Finally."

     Juniper rolled her eyes and went back to writing as Harry went back to flipping through his potions book. He paused on a page, leaning towards Hermione and Juniper. "Have you ever heard of this spell? Sectumsempra?"

     Juniper furrowed her brows before shaking her head. "No, it doesn't sound familiar."

     "No, I haven't." Hermione said more sternly. Of course, she was upset that Harry had managed to grab a potions book that had cheats written all along the margins of the book. "And if you had a shred of self-respect you'd hand that book in."

     "Not bloody likely." Ron commented. "He's top of the class. He's even better than you two. Slughorn thinks he's a genius." Hermione snapped her head towards him. "What?"

     "I'd like to know whose book that was." Hermione said, removing her arm from Juniper as a silent signal for her to move. Juniper listened. Hermione moved, pushing herself to her knees and holding out a hand towards Harry. "Let's have a look, shall we?"

     Harry quickly moved away from her. "No." Harry stood and Hermione followed him.

     "Why not?"

     "The binding is fragile," Harry lied.

     "The binding is fragile?" Hermione scoffed.

     "Yeah."

     Ginny snuck up behind him and quickly took the book, walking away from him and opening it. She turned to look at him. "Who's the half-blood prince?"

     "Who?" Hermione asked with a frown.

     "That's what it says right here." Ginny explained. "This book is the property of the half-blood prince." After a moment, Ginny tossed Harry the book.

Harry walked away and Hermione sighed, walking back over to Juniper. Juniper looked up at her and Hermione held out her hand. Juniper closed her journal and grabbed Hermione's hand, letting the girl pull her up before they wished Ron goodnight and went back to their dorm.