Under the Stars

| Chapter 10 |

Hermione Granger walked along the long, white sandy, beach, her body exhausted from the long airplane ride there. She wore her school uniform still; her robe, though, she shed a long time ago. The sand was soft beneath her bare feet but it became wood as she walked out along one of the docks. A yacht floated in the water at the end of the dock, two people were running amongst the boat parts laughing and talking. She smiled as she came up on the boat and watched her parents flirt with each other. Her parents, unlike many of her generation, loved each other so much and each day was a new adventure for them.

Minthe Jean Granger threw her head back in laughter as Hermione's father said something in her ear. Hermione's mother was beautiful in her human form and was even more beautiful in her mermaid form. In her human form, Hermione's mother had long, flowing, brunette hair like Hermione's and her eyes were chocolate brown, but in her mermaid form they were emerald green and she could control which color she wanted and this time she had minty green eyes. This usually hinted to her being very happy. Hermione could remember only a couple of times where they were brown with anger. Minthe's structure was sharp and elegant and she moved gracefully like she was floating through the air. She wore a white shirt, which looked suspiciously a lot like Hermione's fathers, and beneath it a black bikini.

Theocydes Jason Granger had a smirk on his face; his sharp blue eyes were glowing with happiness. His diving suit was still hanging off of him around his hips, the water trickling onto the deck of the boat. Her father was fit and handsome, but his chest was covered in scars. Hermione use to trace them when she was younger and could sit on his chest without crushing her father. She would outline creatures and objects she could see within them and tell her father about them. She smiled at those memories. Her father, though, never told her what they were from, and she never pushed it. Her mother seemed to know and would glance down at them with sadness in her eyes when she thought no one was looking.

Suddenly, Theocydes wrapped his wet arms around Minthe's waist, pulling them backwards, "Mom! Dad!" she gasped in horror as she watched as they both went overboard. She knew that they wouldn't be hurt, but she was still worried about them. She rushed across the boat to the starboard side, getting down on her knees underneath the railing. Bubbles rose to the surface where they had sunk.

Theocydes came up first, his head thrown back with laughter. His blue eyes connected with his daughters, "Hermione, you're here at last!"

Minthe came up next, her legs gone and in their place was a long aquamarine tail like Hermione's own, "Hermione, my darling," her accent was thick and British. Minthe gave a smirk, a mirror of her husband's own, and stretched her hand out to her daughter. Hermione grasped it and with one swift movement, Minthe pulled her daughter down into the water with her.

Hermione screeched, the water muffling her voice. Minthe and Theocydes laughed and watched as their daughter came back up to the surface, her legs gone and a tail in their place, "Mom!" Hermione gave a loving glare to her mother, who simply laughed.

"Hermione!" she mocked her daughter teasingly.

"So, Hermione," Theocydes swam over to his daughter, his head bobbing above the water, "Tell me. How's school going? You're last letter wasn't really descriptive."

Hermione looked down bashfully, "I know. I'm sorry, but school's been going great," she responded.

"We received your grades from Hogwarts," Hermione's mother said, her voice dangerously low. Hermione looked at her mother in confusion, but then glared at her when she began to laugh, "We are very proud of you, Hermione. Your grades are magnifico."

"Hermione," Hermione's father called for her attention, a smirk on his lips, "Your mother and I have some news for you," Hermione waited for her father to continue, scenarios flooding through her mind, "We found her."