Chapter 122: Hermione and Wednesday
"I don't even care about being friends with them," Hermione said, wiping her tears away.
On Sunday morning, she had planned to spend a pleasant weekend in the library. But just after leaving her dormitory, she realized she had forgotten her quill and turned back.
As she reached the door and raised her hand to push it open, the voices drifting from inside made her freeze.
"Studying even on the weekend—no wonder she gets such good grades," Lavender said.
It sounded like praise, but the tone carried unmistakable sarcasm.
"Exactly," Parvati giggled. "If you work that hard and don't show it off, wouldn't it all be wasted?"
"Right, right. No wonder everyone calls her Miss Know-It-All."
Laughter filled the dormitory.
Hermione slowly lowered her hand, said nothing, and walked away from the common room. She suddenly didn't feel like going to the library anymore.
So this was how they saw her.
She stared at the floor as she walked, her mood sinking—only to hear more voices ahead.
"Don't you think Granger can be a bit… overbearing sometimes? Her attitude makes me uncomfortable."
"You're right. She reminds me of those top students back in my Muggle school—the kind who never looked at me kindly."
"No wonder. She doesn't seem to have a single friend, does she?"
Because Hermione had her head lowered, the students talking didn't even notice her standing nearby.
At first, she felt angry—ready to step forward and argue—but then a painful realization hit her.
They weren't entirely wrong.
She didn't have a single friend at Hogwarts.
Even Lavender and Parvati, whom she'd thought were friends, were only friendly on the surface.
Tears slipped down her cheeks. No matter how strong she tried to be, she was still only a first-year witch.
A drop of water fell onto her book.
Startled, she hastily wiped her face with her sleeve and carefully cleaned the book's cover, afraid of damaging it.
She quickened her pace, leaving the castle behind and heading toward the Black Lake, hoping the fresh air would calm her down.
But once she arrived, her heart sank even further.
There were plenty of students around—laughing, chatting, sitting together in groups. Someone alone like her stood out painfully.
She was about to retreat to somewhere quiet and finally let herself cry when she noticed another solitary figure by the lake—someone who looked just as out of place.
Wednesday Addams.
Hermione hesitated, then stopped.
Maybe… they had something in common.
She remembered their shared classes with Slytherin—Wednesday almost always sat alone, detached from everyone else.
Yes, she was a Slytherin—but Hermione recalled their brief interaction on the train. Wednesday didn't seem like the others. And she had even promised to lend her that book.
Taking a deep breath, Hermione gathered her courage and walked over, sitting beside her.
"Good morning, Addams," Hermione said softly.
"Good morning, Granger," Wednesday replied, glancing at her before returning her gaze to the book.
"Are you here to borrow the book?" she added calmly. "I've finished it. If you want it, come find me at the Ravenclaw table tonight."
"Yes—well—no, not just that," Hermione stammered. "I just saw you sitting here alone and thought you might feel lonely, so…"
Wednesday closed her book.
"Lonely?" She stared directly into Hermione's eyes. "Granger, are you pitying me?"
"I—no—"
"Have you ever heard this saying?" Wednesday asked coldly.
Hermione blinked. "What saying?"
"Loneliness," Wednesday said flatly,
"is a one-person carnival."
That line was something Russell had once said to her in passing, and Wednesday thought it described things perfectly.
"But I don't think that way," Hermione said, her voice trembling. "Everyone pushes me away. Even my roommates talk about me behind my back. Some people say I don't have any friends…"
She wiped her tears angrily.
"Who needs friends like them, anyway?"
Hermione didn't know why she'd said so much in front of Wednesday. Realizing it, she suddenly felt embarrassed.
"I'm sorry," she said softly. "Am I talking too much?"
"Granger," Wednesday sighed, "why do you care so much about what other people think?"
"Don't you ever care?" Hermione challenged her. "Even when people gossip about you or say bad things behind your back?"
"Of course," Wednesday nodded calmly. "I've always been like this."
"You're right… but I can't do that," Hermione said, lowering her head, defeated.
"You know I'm Muggle-born. I've always been afraid I wasn't good enough, so I work hard just to prove myself to them."
"And what's the point of that?" Wednesday asked, frowning.
"What do you mean?" Hermione looked confused.
"Are you living for them, or for yourself? Do you study magic to prove something to others—or because you genuinely love it?"
"If you can't even answer that, then you might as well go back to the Muggle world. At least there, you might get what people call 'friends.'"
Hermione gave a bitter smile and wiped her tears away.
"I didn't really have friends in the Muggle world either."
"How fortunate," Wednesday said coolly. "To me, that's a good thing. It means I can do whatever I want, without worrying about anyone else."
Then she added, "You're different, though. You have friends—Russell, Diggory, and the others."
"You're right," Wednesday agreed. "But I don't interfere in their lives, and they don't interfere in mine."
"Like today—Russell went to visit Hagrid. I didn't want to go, and he didn't force me."
"Granger, you should learn one thing."
"What is it?" Hermione asked hesitantly.
"Respect," Wednesday said.
"Put simply—mind your own business."
"I understand," Hermione said, smiling faintly. "Thank you."
She suddenly realized that maybe people avoided her because she interfered too much.
She decided to change—starting now.
"Addams… can I be your friend?" Hermione asked carefully, hugging her book to her chest.
"Hm," Wednesday replied noncommittally, neither agreeing nor refusing.
"I'll take that as a yes," Hermione said brightly.
She stayed beside Wednesday until evening, having nowhere else she wanted to be. When Wednesday finally stood to leave, Hermione followed her naturally.
"Good evening, Wednesday. Hermione. Looks like you had a nice day," Russell said, bumping into them at the Great Hall entrance.
"Try Hagrid's cooking."
Before Hermione could react, two palm-sized, biscuit-like objects were pressed into her hands.
Wednesday glanced at them once and slipped them straight into her pocket—judging that her teeth probably wouldn't survive the encounter.
Hermione, too polite to do the same, took a bite.
"Ow!"
Russell burst out laughing. "You can't eat it like that. Unless you've got a giant's teeth, you'll break something."
Hermione shot him an angry look.
"Russell! How could you do that?"
"Cough—well, it's actually pretty good," Russell defended himself.
"Just soak it in hot milk until it softens, then eat it."
"Does it taste special?" Wednesday asked curiously. "Anything that needs a second step to be edible must have something unique about it."
"Unfortunately, no," Russell shook his head.
"It tastes just like an ordinary biscuit. Hagrid just has… unusual dental standards."
"How disappointing," Wednesday said flatly.
That evening, Hermione did something bold.
Instead of sitting at the Gryffindor table, she sat beside Wednesday.
Wednesday didn't mind at all—who sat next to her made little difference.
"It looks like Ravenclaw is the only house truly following Hogwarts' ideals," Russell said with a grin, glancing around.
"Unity among all four houses, right?"
A Ravenclaw eagle, a Hufflepuff badger (Cedric), a Slytherin snake (Wednesday), and a newly joined Gryffindor lion (Hermione)—all four houses were represented.
"I think Professor Dumbledore should give Ravenclaw fifty points for this."
"Oh? Do you really think so, Russell?" Dumbledore's voice drifted over, cheerful as ever.
"Sorry, Professor," Russell said instantly. "Just joking."
___
"Why is Granger sitting at the Ravenclaw table?" Lavender whispered, confused.
"And next to Fythorne, no less."
She couldn't help feeling jealous.
After all, Russell was handsome, kind, an Order of Merlin recipient—and nearly perfect.
Aside from Slytherin, his popularity in the other three houses was sky-high. And in his circle, there was also Cedric Diggory—second only to him.
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