The Prisoner Of Azkaban - Hermione Granger x OC

The Leaky Cauldron

Harry spent the night at the Montclair household. Neither Oliver nor Henry told their mother about the gigantic dog they had seen, as they believed it would be best to keep it a secret. The next day, they all headed to Diagon Alley to gather school supplies and meet up with Ron and Hermione at the Leaky Cauldron.

Upon arriving at the Cauldron, Oliver and Harry felt an instant uneasiness. The place was filled with peculiar individuals engaging in all sorts of bizarre activities.

"Is this really where Ron wanted to meet?" Oliver asked, hesitantly taking a seat at a nearby table.

"It seems so," Harry replied, joining him and sharing his friend's apprehension.

Oliver noticed, out of the corner of his eye, a man getting up and walking towards them. The man was bald and had a pronounced hunchback, which caught Oliver's attention.

"Uh-oh, looks like one of the freak shows is coming this way," Oliver whispered to Harry, his voice barely audible.

As the man approached, he addressed Harry in a distinctive, peculiar voice. "Harry Potter?" he said, his intonation slightly offbeat.

Harry responded hesitantly, "Yes?"

"Follow me," the man instructed, gesturing for Harry to accompany him.

Harry and Oliver locked eyes, exchanging skeptical glances.

"Um, okay," Harry said, rising to his feet with uncertainty.

"It was nice knowing you," Oliver joked half-heartedly as he watched Harry walk off with the enigmatic man.

Left alone, Oliver scanned the surroundings, searching for something to occupy his time. His gaze fell upon a newspaper resting on the adjacent table, and he picked it up, intrigued.

The headline caught his attention: "Have You Seen This Wizard?" Accompanied by the text was a moving image of a man with long black hair, identified as Sirius Black by the nameplate below the picture.

"Wanted for escaping Azkaban. Considered very dangerous," Oliver continued reading aloud, his eyes widening with apprehension.

Just as he absorbed the grim information, familiar voices echoed through the Leaky Cauldron, drawing his attention. It was none other than Ron and Hermione, engaged in their usual banter.

"I'm warning you, Hermione, keep that bloody beast away from Scabbers, or I swear I'll turn it into a bloody teapot!" Ron exclaimed, frustration evident in his voice.

"It's a cat, Ronald. What do you expect? It's in his nature," Hermione retorted, her tone sharp.

"A cat? Is that what they told you? Looks more like a pig with hair, if you ask me," Ron fired back.

"That's rich, coming from you, you smelly old shoe brush," Hermione countered, her eyes narrowing.

Hermione cradled a cat in her arms, gently stroking its fur. "That's right, little Crookshanks, just ignore the mean little boy," she whispered, offering comfort to her feline companion.

Ron eventually caught sight of Oliver from the corner of his eye, noticing him sitting at a nearby table, quietly chuckling to himself.

"Oliver!" Ron exclaimed, a broad grin spreading across his face.

Hermione swiftly turned around, her bushy brown hair flaring about her, and upon seeing Oliver, her face lit up with excitement.

"Oh, Oliver!" she exclaimed, her smile growing even wider.

"What's up, guys?" Oliver greeted them warmly.

They both joined Oliver at the table, settling in for a chat. Ron eagerly began recounting his summer trip to Egypt.

"Egypt, huh? What's it like?" Oliver asked, genuinely curious.

"Brilliant! Loads of ancient stuff, like mummies and tombs. Even Scabbers had a grand time," Ron replied, affectionately petting his rat.

Hermione, always eager to share her knowledge, chimed in, "Did you know that Egyptians used to worship cats?"

Ron smirked playfully. "Yep, along with a dung beetle. Quite the interesting bunch, the Egyptians."

Harry suddenly came downstairs to join them.

"Oh my god, you survived!" Oliver exclaimed, his eyes widening with relief.

"Barely. I had to speak to the Minister of Magic. I thought I'd be in trouble for what I did to my aunt, but he let me off the hook," Harry said, sinking into a chair beside them.

"So it's true then? You really did blow up your aunt?" Ron asked, his voice filled with a mix of shock and awe.

"Yup, like a hot air balloon," Oliver chimed in, a mischievous grin stretching across his face.

"That was very stupid!" Hermione said, slapping Harry's shoulder lightly. "You could have gotten into a lot of trouble."

"But I didn't," Harry replied, laughing and flashing a mischievous smile.

"You got lucky," Hermione said, her disappointment evident in her voice.

Just then, another man approached their table. He towered over them, bearing a striking resemblance to Ron.

"Hey, kids. Mind if I have a word with Harry real quick?" he asked, his deep voice resonating with authority.

Harry rose from his seat and followed the man, their conversation shrouded in mystery.

"Real popular, that one," Oliver commented.

Hermione scooted closer to Oliver as Ron got up to go get some food.

"It's really good to see you, Oliver. I've missed you greatly," Hermione said, her voice filled with warmth and affection.

"I missed you too," Oliver replied, sporting an affectionate smile. "So, who's my new rival here?" he asked, extending his hand to gently stroke Hermione's cat.

"This is Crookshanks. I got him from the magical Menagerie. He's so cute, can you believe no one wanted him?" Hermione said, planting a tender kiss on the top of Crookshanks' head.

"You're kidding," Oliver said in shock. "Well, at least he has a good owner now."

Oliver's eyes shifted to a bag on the ground next to Hermione, noticing that it was filled to the very top with books.

"Whoa, are you doing some more 'light' reading?" he asked, a playful grin on his face.

"I'm taking up some additional subjects this year. These books are for the study of ancient runes, history of magic, care for magical creatures, divination, and muggle studies," Hermione replied confidently.

"Why do you need muggle studies? Weren't you raised by muggles?" Oliver questioned curiously.

"I just thought it'd be interesting to study them from a wizard's point of view," she said, her eyes sparkling with intellectual curiosity.

"Okay, little miss overachiever," Oliver teased.

Hermione playfully slapped Oliver's shoulder. "Don't make fun of me, you know you love me," she said.

Oliver's face turned a shade of red as he looked away. "Yeah... I do," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.

Caught off guard, Hermione's face mirrored his flustered look as her cheeks flushed crimson. They both found themselves momentarily at a loss for words, their gazes drifting away from each other.

In an attempt to break the awkward silence, Oliver suddenly started whistling a lively tune, hoping to infuse the air with a sense of lightness and ease.

Ron came back and sat down with them, noticing the palpable awkwardness in the air.

"Am I interrupting something?" he asked, his words muffled by a mouthful of food.