Who: Oliver Wood and Hermione Granger What: Manly men sometimes aren't that manly and have to talk about feelings... Where: Hermione&Ron's flat When: backdated to Weds afternoon Rating: low
Oliver was wide awake again, like he had been most nights for the last month. Sleeping softly by his side was Penny, her arm tucked under her head. They had a routine of spending the evening together, cooking dinner, talking animatedly about Penny's new shop, kissing, and eventually Penny would fall asleep. Oliver loved watching her; it filled him with a sense of peace that he didn't have in his own mind. Most nights when Penny slept by his side, Oliver sat awake, thinking about anything except what haunted his dreams.
For the last month, Oliver had slept fitfully during the day, in snatches and bursts. In his dream he watched, over and over, as his mother was killed. He saw the flash of green light, and no matter how much he reached to save her, no matter how hard he tried to scream out a counter-curse to block it, he would stay frozen, forever out of reach of her and his scream would be a silent one. His voice would only return when he would see her fall, his mother's beautiful face contorted in anguish and astonishment, and then his dream would end with his own screaming bringing him to the waking world.
Oliver longed for relief, and knew he had to talk to someone about what he was going through. He loved Penny so much, but he couldn't bring himself from shattering their perfect little love by causing her worry over him. To Penny, he always kept a strong exterior, and as much as he knew Penny would be supportive and loving, he also knew that she would internalize his pain, and he wanted to spare her that. When Hermione offered to talk, Oliver jumped at the chance. He couldn't talk about this with George, as much as he was close to him, or to his mates like Miles and Lee. Even his other female friends like Katie and Alicia were not quite right for a serious talk of pain and suffering. Somehow, he thought Hermione could help him.
After the morning dawned, he kissed Penny goodbye and she headed early to make arrangements about the store. He spent the morning in a restless sleep, and rose at noon to bake the lemon biscuits he had so recently mastered. After tasting to ensure they were as good as the batch he had made with his father and sister the weekend before, Oliver put them in a box to bring them over to Hermione. After a shower and a quick once over to be sure he was presentable, Oliver apparated to Hermione and Ron's flat. Taking a deep breath, he thought to the night several months ago he was at this exact same spot, waiting to talk to Hermione about joining the DA and taking a brave stand. What a difference a few months make, he thought to himself.