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It was Hermione’s birthday in three days and they still had no idea what to get her. All the books they had looked at previously had been ones she turned out to have already.
Ron and Harry had got the name of Obscurus books from Ginny and had headed there straight away after work.
They had no time to play around anymore; they wanted to get her the perfect present and for Hermione rare books would be the way to accomplish that.
When they entered the store the display that caught their eye was a fairytale book that seemed to immerse the reader in the story by making the characters based off of them and the people they knew.
Harry and Ron grabbed two of the books— one for Hermione and one for Ginny. It was Harry’s and her anniversary soon so he thought why not hit two birds with one stone.
Leaving the store after paying the exuberant price, the boys took their books to Molly and got her to wrap them. They couldn’t wrap anything if their life depended on it so they always went to her.
Molly approved of the gifts with a smile and sent them on their way.
xOx
Hermione walked into her party with low expectations; no one ever got her anything that really stuck out to her. This year would be no different.
Putting on a smile as everyone greeted her and moved her way through the room conversing with everyone for a few minutes each.
The cake was brought out and they sung happy birthday in varying terrible voices.
When it came time to open the presents, Hermione sat down and smiled as she opened bad gift after bad gift. The money would help her. But everything else like the clothing wasn’t her taste.
The last present was from Ron and Harry combined and she got even moodier. They wouldn’t have gotten her anything special.
That was until she got through the wrapping paper and saw what lay inside.
One of the fairytale books she had been eyeing off for months but could never find the time to get it especially with it being so expensive.
Smiling and thanking everyone, Hermione left her party happier than she had in a while.
Going home and casting the spell provided for the book she sat down to read a few chapters before bed.
Hermione found herself in a beautiful enchanted forest with ogres and trolls all chasing after her. A man on a horse came riding in and sword drawn fought back the ugly beasts.
Pulling Hermione onto the horse behind him, he rode off towards the village.
“Thank you, kind sir,” Hermione heard herself saying.
“You’re welcome dear maiden,” the man’s deep enticing voice fell through her awakening something inside of her.
“I would never have been able to get home safely if it wasn’t for you,” Hermione replied.
Hermione wondered what had gone wrong as the characters of the story were meant to be someone the reader knew. But this man was someone that she would remember meeting.
He was the most handsome man she had ever seen.
She moved through the story the man saving her several times and spending many days walking with her in the village.
He never said his name so she would never know who he was. But he ended up asking her to a ball.
At the ball many suitors tried to get her to dance with them but she only had eyes for the mysterious man and he only had eyes for her.
They ended up getting married and having two beautiful children.
Hermione got pulled from the book at that point and realised she had been up all night reading and was late for work.
What a beautiful story it was and she was left wondering who the mysterious man was. Those books were designed so you knew exactly who each character was.
Studying the spell, she noticed the difference from the ones that she had seen in the shops previously and wondered what mistake the boys had made.
Putting it out of her mind she went into work even though she was late. But the picture of the man stuck with her all day at work.
She got an owl in the afternoon from Molly saying that they were having a family dinner as Charlie had come home for the first time in years.
Hermione was curious to meet the only Weasley that she hadn’t met yet.
She made the effort to dress up for the dinner and was one of the first to arrive. When Charlie arrived with Bill and Fleur Hermione stood there shocked.
Standing in front of her was the mysterious man from the book. What did it mean? Why was he the person in her book?
Charlie tilted his head as he was introduced to her as if he was trying to place where he knew her from.
They spent hours sitting next to each other and by the end of the night Hermione was a hot mess by the time she got home.
The dreams she had that night were erotic and by the morning she was exhausted. Taking the book to work with her she showed it to her boss and friend Luna Lovegood.
Luna worked over it all day and at the end of the day when Hermione came back to her office she sat her down and pulled a translation of the full spell that was cast on the book.
“It’s a different spell from what we put on the books. It’s to show the person what the soul needs in their life. Not who they necessarily already know,” Luna explained, “Someone has reworked the spell.”
Hermione had some things to think about when she got home.
When she arrived Charlie was sitting on her doorstep waiting for her.
“Why do I keep having flashes of you and me?” He asked.
“You had flashes?” Hermione asked, shocked. It was only meant to be her that was in the story.
“According to my whole family, so did they,” Charlie added.
“It must have been the change in the spell that did it,” Hermione muttered to herself.
“What does it all mean? Why am I having flashes of a life I’ve never lived?” Charlie asked.
“Harry and Ron got me a book for my birthday, but someone had played with the spell,” Hermione said, sitting beside him she continued, “It was only meant to show me people I already knew and be only me in the story. But something they did twisted the story and added you and other people to the spell.”
“Why would it add me?” Charlie asked.
“Well from what Luna told me, it’s meant to show us what we truly need in life,” Hermione replied.
They both sat in silence before Charlie spoke up, “I need some time before I can fully process this.”
“I understand, but from what Luna said we will be pulled together from now on,” Hermione said.
Charlie nodded and left.
A few days later he owled Hermione and organised a date. They would see where this connection led them from here.
If they lasted together all well and good. If they chose to go separate ways after they got to know each other that was also okay.