Background for chapter:
Dean/Hermione
Set in their third year
Dean fells torn between the him he shows in the muggle world and his life at Hogwarts
Hermione walked down to her spot by the lake, only to find someone already sitting there. She was shocked; it was nearly 10pm. Once she got closer, she found that the person was Dean Thomas. She was about to turn to go somewhere else, but he stopped her.
"I was beginning to think you wouldn't show up," he said, scooting over on the rock. She looked at him curiously but sat down next to him. He was still in his uniform, minus the robe and tie. She felt underdressed with her thin pajama bottoms, tank top, sweat shirt, and flip flops on. He looked deep in thought.
"Don't think no one's noticed that you keep sneaking off at night. Harry told me and Seamus to follow you last week." Dean said, noticing her confused expression. Seeing her shocked one, he responded, "He wanted to apologize to you right after he blew up. But you know how Ron is; he hasn't given Harry anytime to talk to you. He's concerned about you, you know."
"Yeah, well, Ron always has been a right git," Hermione said, ignoring the part about Harry being concerned for her. He was always concerned for her, she knew that. Remembering the first thing her said, she asked, "Were you waiting for me?"
"Yeah, I was only hoping you would show up. I mean, you've come down to this spot every day since Harry and Ron stopped talking to you."
"Did you want to talk to me?" Hermione was slightly surprised. Sure, she talked to Dean before, but he had never sought her out to talk to her at school. The only person who ever did that was Harry.
"How do you do it?"
"Pardon?"
"You forget, Mia, that I know the you from the muggle world. We've been neighbors since we were three. You act the same here as you do at home. Maybe in the first year you didn't, but after that, you definitely did. Since day one here, I've felt like I haven't been able to be myself around anyone but you. And that rarely happens because you're mostly getting Harry and/or Ron out of trouble. I'm so tired of pretending to be that 'quite guy in Gryffindor'."
"Dean…"
"I just feel like the real me wouldn't be accepted. The real me certainly wouldn't be well liked, after all between Harry and Ron, Gryffindor can't take another trouble maker."
"Two things. One, Harry does not go around making trouble, it usually finds him," seeing the look Dean gave her, she added, "okay, oaky, there are the occasions where Harry does go looking. But those usually happen when nobody will listen to him but me, and sometimes Ron. Okay, the second thing is, one must dare to be himself, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be."
"Jane Austin?"
"Actually, I saw it on a bumper sticker. The point is, you shouldn't care what others think. I like the real you. In fact, I miss him very much."
"Thanks. To tell you the truth, I really missed the real you at the beginning of first year. I really missed you last year when you were petrified."
"I was thinking about that the other day. Madame Pomfrey told me, when she woke me up last year, that Harry never left my side unless he absolutely had to. She also said that Ron was occasionally with him. She wouldn't say who else visited me. Do you, by any chance, know?"
"I might have. I was so scared. You're one of my best friends. You and Seamus. And then, suddenly, you were gone. I couldn't help thinking that I should have been petrified inside of you. That I should have been that one laying in that bed. I lost you for a good amount of second year. I was there whenever Harry wasn't. I couldn't stand to see you so hopeless. When Pomfrey said that you would be able to hear me, I started telling you what had happened in our classes because I knew you would want to know."
"I had this dream, while I was petrified, that I was in a Sleeping Beauty like fairy tale, and my prince came. But when he kissed me, nothing happened, and he started crying. Was that prince you?"
"Maybe. I was out of my mind in how much I missed you. That was my best idea on how to wake you up. It always worked in the movies."
"That was the best dream I had during that time. The rest just replayed what had happened or would happen."
"Thank you, Mia."
"For what?"
"For listening."
"Your welcome, Dean. I'm always here for you."
"I know."
