The pages of the book lay unturned, the reader uninterested in the matter printed in it. If the book could speak, it would have cried out that it had been neglected, that it deserved a better place than the lap of a negligent reader. The brown, well tanned hands looked as though they had been made to do an immense amount of work. The reader himself, though, was a handsome boy of eighteen, well-built and famous; but he sat there as though he was a child, nervous about his first day at school. Only one thought ran in circles through his mind, Will she? Won’t she? Will she? Won’t she? The thought was devouring his mind; he was unable to focus on anything else.
The subject of his thoughts was a bushy-haired girl with a passion for books. That was the reason he was sitting there in the library, waiting for her to make an appearance. She had been the only person who had not gone all starry-eyed at the mere sight of him, the only person who wasn’t interested in following him around like the hoards of girls who were sticking to him like glue, trying to attract his attention. She was different. A sensible and more intelligent girl like her was who he wanted to take to the Yule Ball. He wanted to ask her out since the day he had first seen her, but, somehow, he had never mustered up enough courage to do so.
His eyes lay fixed on the door of the library, his mind set on the girl’s face. A sudden noise brought him out of his trance; he immediately tried to appear as though he was immersed in the book lying on his lap. A chanced glance at the door showed another boy coming in and it was one whom he recognised. Freckled face and fiery red hair - he was quite easy to recognise. He hung perpetually around Hermyown and he was the third person in the trio of friends, more of a sidekick, according to Krum. Krum was surprised to see him, of all people, in the library. He didn’t strike Krum as a person who had any interest in books. Well, he thought, some of Hermyown’s interests were bound to rub off on him. Hermyown…How that name made his heart feel… he really couldn’t describe it…It made his heart beat like frenzy, his mind to lose train of its thought. He simply couldn’t comprehend the reason for these weird effects that the mere mention of the name created.
Krum thought of the day that he’d found out her name; it had been the second day of his stay at Hogwarts. He’d singled out a lone girl from the pack of girls which had been perpetually following him around, and questioned her near the lake. The words of the conversation were engraved in his mind.
“Do you know that girl?”
“The one with a humongous pile of books in her hand?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, she’s Hermione, Hermione Granger - better known as Class Insufferable to people around here,” the girl had replied very sarcastically, the feelings of hurt and anger very prominent on her long face.
He didn’t care for that girl; she was just too rude and snobbish. She had just stalked off, too angry and bitter to even talk further.
The freckled boy was somewhere on the next row, presumably searching for a book to help Harry Potter with his second task in the Triwizard Tournament. Victor’s legs were cramped due to sitting there for almost….three hours? He glanced up at the huge wall clock behind the stern eyed librarian’s desk, shocked beyond words at the amount of time that had passed since he had entered the library. He was almost ready to get up and leave for dinner when Hermyown arrived.
He stood up abruptly, and was transfixed to the spot. Then, he suddenly made a move to sit, clearly not knowing what to do. His mind seemed to have deserted him at this crucial moment and he had to depend solely on his motor senses to guide him. The way she walked in, her oh-so confident attitude and the determined look on her face… All of them created a lasting impression on Krum. He couldn’t help but be mesmerised at the sight. She, unfortunately, seemed to be completely uninterested in him as she passed without even giving Krum a second glance. She walked straight to the red-haired, freckled boy sitting in the next row, and she spoke to him in hushed whispers, making Krum feel extremely jealous.
He tried to go a little nearer - attempting to look as though he was trying to replace a book on one of the shelves. Just when he was at a hearing distance, Hermione spoke out: “Excuse me, I think that book belongs to the Defence Against the Dark Arts section, which is exactly opposite to you. This is the History of Magic section, if I am not mistaken. Please replace books at the right place.”
He couldn’t make out her words; he was just carried away by her voice. Victor stood there with a dreamy look on his face, thinking of how wonderful her voice was. It took combined efforts of the freckled boy and Hermione to wake him from his daydream.
Then, he suddenly realised that he was standing there, making a fool of himself. Stammering something in Bulgarian, he walked off to the Defence Against the Dark Arts section to replace the book.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed the freckled boy leaving the library. Victor didn’t know his name; all he knew was that he hung around Hermione, and that was all Krum needed to know. Victor decided it was now or never. Cautiously approaching the row where Hermione was apparently searching for something, he stood there and tried to catch her attention. Miserably failing to do anything on that count, he coughed, and she instantly looked up.
“Do you require any help from me?” she asked.
“Umm…..”
“Yes?”
“Vil you come to the Yule Ballvithme?” He couldn’t help not stopping himself, the ending just accentuating his nervousness.
“I’m sorry, but I didn’t understand that,” she replied after a pause.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he repeated the question.
The silence was palpable and sweat beads were appearing on his brow. He didn’t know if he was quite right in doing what he had just done. Very anxious to know her reply, he looked up at her face.
A deep blush had appeared on her cheeks and she looked away, lost in thought for a moment.
“Since you are the first one to invite me, and I really haven’t a clue on whom I might be going with, I guess I will accept. After all, the main purpose of the tournament is to bring about unity in the wizarding world,” she stated.
Krum didn’t hear any of the conversation after the word ‘accept’. He felt he was on cloud nine, his heart doing cartwheels in jubilation.
She accepted!
Never Once Imagined by Hermoine Jean Granger
Story Notes:
This story was written in response to a challenge in the Fiction Junction of the Beta Forums. The Challenge is as follows: I challenge thee to write a one shot from the POV of Viktor Krum. It can either be romance or humor about an awkward moment with Hermione in the library and must somehow include Ron.
Chapter Notes: I would like to thank Azhure for being the most marvellous beta ever!
Chapter Endnotes: This is my first ever attempt to write romance fanfiction. I would love to know your honest opinions on it.