I don't own Harry Potter.

This is my first Harry Potter Fic. So i have one request...

enjoy.

You know the feeling; it's the one you get when you glance around with emptiness in your chest and wonder. Wonder how you wound up here, sneaking out of school in the darkest of times to find one place where you can forget. Sure you rationalize that this entire façade is to keep you off the street. And as long as you were already breaking rules that up until this year seemed sacred…as long as they are already broken you might as well try and forget the reason you have to be out here. I guess I'm doing a horrible job of explaining why I'm here. You don't even know where here is.

Well this is the story, I'll try to take myself out of it as much as I can…even if it is my tale.

Hermione Gra nger slowly slid her hood off her head showing her face, rather the face that she had created. The polyjuice potion was much more versatile than most witches and wizards realized. When the need arose for her to find a job she quickly deduced that she would need some way to change her form. Changing to the furthest form from her own she was now a blue eyed blonde seventeen year old male. Opting to remain in the outer shell of her cloak she made eye contact with the older man behind the counter. She didn't know why but something about how his eyes sparkled reminded her of Dumbledore.

"Back again Hadley? Very well the pay is the same as any other night."

Smirking Hermione reached out and grabbed her acoustic that had been leaning against the stage haphazardly. Her nightly outings had become an outlet to Hogwarts residential bookworm as

she found herself on stage hidden behind a different face. It was the only place where she could openly flirt with the gender that her heart preferred; however, in a sickening twist the only women attracted to her were straight and technically pedophiles.

The audience of drunken men missed the unmistakably female body language of their entertainer. They had grown accustomed to Hadley showing up almost nightly and performing for a few hours before disappearing without a trace till the next night when he would undoubtedly show up again.

As Hermione played her final chords of the night she found an unsettling peace almost as if she was relinquishing life. She then found herself collecting her earnings and discretely wandering out of the three broomsticks. She could already feel the burn of the poly juice potion as she morphed into her original form at the entrance to one of the passages of Hogwarts. She smiled to herself as the cool night air blew against her skin singing magically to her. As she walked behind the third tree of the forest gently touching the bark and ran a finger from center to North to South then West to East stopping at the middle,

The tree twisted it's limbs contorting in the moonlight to allow her entrance.

'At least my first class is transfiguration so I won't find myself falling asleep again.'

Of course her blunder in transfiguration had been overlooked by McGonagall herself as everyone shrugged it off…as they shrugged her off. For Ron and Harry, Hermione's new distance from them meant endless games of wizards chess and even if Umbridge was an unmentionable noun the lack of Hermione's rants about house elves was less than missed by the boys. Well in Hermione's mind her rants were less than missed. Transfiguration was the hardest of her classes to fall asleep in, the painfully dull class was charms. She had yet to learn a new spell throughout the school year even if she was in an advanced class of only five other students studying spells that Aurous didn't know.

At long last Hermione found herself sneaking out of the dank passage and remaining in the shadows Hermione removed a parchment from the pocket of her robe before slipping into the moon light shinning through the window.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Taking note of Snape's presence less than a floor beneath her she placed her version of the marauders map back into her pocket before moving. Stealing herself for the worst Hermione followed the shadows of Hogwarts to her dormitory.

"Ms. Granger what are you doing out of bed at such an hour of the night? Once again might I interject that studying this late at night is horrible for your health. Don't give me that look it is rather unbecoming for a lady such as yourself.

Well do come in. State the password so that I may open."

"Mimbulus Mimbletonia."

"Goodnight Ms. Granger."

"Goodnight."

Hermione was no more than two steps into the common room when she noticed a presence sleeping on one of the oversized red loveseats next to the crackling fire. Even in the dim flickering light Hermione knew the form of Ginny Weasley anywhere. She couldn't just leave her friend there because no matter how comfortable the furniture in the common room was, beds were infinitely better. Stooping next to Ginny's

prone form she gently touched the redheads shoulder.

"Gin, come on. Time for bed."

Within seconds Ginny transformed from groggy and disoriented to wide awake and fierce.

"Hermione where were you tonight? Merlin's beard I was worried."

Hermione smiled at her younger friend and chose to use her standard excuse.

"I was studying Gin. You know that."

"Bullocks ! I'm not Ron or Harry, Hermione I checked the library and you weren't there. So where were you?"

"I wanted to study outside tonight and I fell asleep missing dinner. I'm still tired and I just want to get some sleep and will breakfast to come faster."

Hermione watched as Ginny's features softened before her eyes. The girl in front of her had a notorious temper and few people knew how to handle it properly. Hermione Granger was one of those people and she knew bringing up her sleep deprived state would cause the Weasley in front of her to see past her anger. They had become rather close over the past years and Hermione had been with Ginny through her recovery after the chamber. She had learned that the red head was far more considerate than most noticed and the little known fact that Ginny was partial to worrying about her friends and family. Hermione used this knowledge often enough and was enchanted with the transformation Ginny's green eyes undertook. The fiercest hardness to swirling concern.

"Don't. There's a sandwich on you're bed and some butter beer. I noticed that you weren't at dinner."

"Thank you."

Ginny nodded before sitting up and gesturing to the now vacant spot next to her and Hermione obliged. They just sat there starring at the fire running through the year with Umbridge the wicked bitch of the west. Then there was the fact that Hermione had never stopped doubling up on her classes, and Ginny was playing on the Gryffindor team this year as a chaser. Somewhere throughout the year they had lost the free time to spend with each other so moments such as these were cherished. The fire was the only witness to the two sleeping girls.

There would be more than enough time to talk about the not so trivial matters later.

The next chapter will be longer and more eventful I just wanted to start off slow. I left many things unexplained but everything will make sense in the next two or so chapters which should be up by Friday.

-gitgsl