This is my first fanfic ever, so I hope you like it, reveiws would be appreciated since I'm new.

I own nothing at all.

Hermione Granger walked down a hallway, not even sure where she was going. She just needed to be alone for a little bit, angry and alone. What had Harry been thinking, pulling a trick like that with the Felix Felicis? For some unknown reason, Ron had been annoyed with her for a week now and Harry had just made it ten times worse. She had no idea how Slughorn's party was going to go now that Ron was barely speaking to her.

Ever since she had asked him to the party she had been planning how it would be. She had even been reading books on Quidditch in her spare time so she wouldn't sound so hopeless if he brought it up. She would wear the dark red dress her mother and her had bought over the summer. It was a Gryffindor color and Hermione knew she would need all of the Gryffindor courage she had to grab hold of his hand gently and innocently steer him under the mistletoe and give him a light kiss on the lips to see how he would react. Maybe all of Ron's terseness was really just nervousness in disguise. Maybe Slughorn's party would go well after all.

On that hopeful note, Hermione made her way back to Gryffindor tower, where she was sure a party would be in full swing. Ron would be enjoying himself. She would let him have tonight uninterrupted and then tomorrow she would ask him out for a walk and they could talk properly. She gave the password to the Fat Lady and entered the common room to find the party in full swing. She spotted Ginny across the room and was about to go over to her when she noticed that Ginny was staring at something, open mouthed. She followed Ginny's gaze and there was Ron, entangled in a set of arms and lips. Arms and lips that belonged to Lavender Brown.

Her heart gave a violent twist when she saw them, as if it wanted to escape her chest, escape the pain that was rushing through her. All of her anger, her heartbreak, her agony threatened to escape as a scream or a sob, she didn't know which, she only knew that she had to get out of there right now. She pushed her way blindly through the hoards of celebrating Gryffindors, if anybody saw her now, she would never be able to maintain any dignity. She didn't know where she was going, she just knew she had to be alone. She tried a door and it was unlocked, she looked in, an empty classroom, perfect.

She sat down on a desk and found that she was shaking. She was an idiot. An absolute idiot. She thought that Ron had liked her, there had been all these hints and she finally got up the courage to ask him to Slughorn's party and made an absolute fool of herself. He didn't like her, he liked giggly, vapid blondes. She could never be what he wanted. Never, ever, ever. She was about to burst out into tears when she heard footsteps out in the corridor. Oh God, why won't anyone let me be alone? No one could see her like this. Without a moment's hesitation she pulled out her wand and did the first spell she could think of. Instantly a flock of yellow birds started flitting over her head. Bravo Hermione, she thought, because people sit in empty classrooms and conjure up birds all the time.

"Hermione?"

Harry. She was relieved and irritated at the same time. Harry, who knew her better than almost anyone, Harry, her best friend who she was not in love with, Harry who had probably guessed her feelings for Ron and was now coming to console her. Well, she thought indignantly, I'm not some damsel who needs saving. She sat up a little straighter.

"Oh, hello Harry." She said, trying to keep her voice as even and emotionless as possible. "I was just practicing." Harry muttered something about the birds being "really good" and settled into an awkward silence.

Hermione had always been afraid to confide in Harry. Mostly she was afraid because he always had so much on his shoulders, why should he worry about her ridiculous little problems? But right at that moment she wanted to tell him everything, how she was terrified that she wasn't pretty enough, how she didn't know how she was going to stand living with Lavender after this, how she just had her heart broken in the middle of the Gryffindor Common Room by her ex-best friend.

"Ron seems to be enjoying the celebrations." She said, testing the waters.

"Er...does he?" he said. For a moment, Hermione's anger flared, he was going to take Ron's side in all of this, she just had her heart broken and he wouldn't say one bad thing about what Ron was doing.

"Don't pretend you didn't see him," she spat out "He wasn't exactly hiding it, was-"

At that moment, the door swung open unannounced and Hermione was face to face with Ron and Lavender. She didn't want to know what emotions her face gave away in that split second that she and Ron looked at each other.

"Oh." Ron had stopped dead in his tracks, and Lavender let out a giggle and backed out of the room, swinging the door shut. Ron looked away, choosing to look at Harry instead. Hermione just looked at him. How had she ever let this too-tall, gangly, temperamental git break her heart? And why did it still hurt to look at him?

"Hi, Harry! Wondered where you'd got to!"

Bastard, thought Hermione, staring daggers at Ron. She wanted to hex him into the next century, she wanted to punch him in the face, she wanted to cry and cry and be left alone!

She gathered all of her composure and willed her body to be still, her expression blank, she slid off the desk with ease and walked right past Ron. But it wasn't enough. He wouldn't look at her, she needed to say something. Something that proved once and for all that she wasn't hurt.

"You shouldn't leave Lavender waiting outside. She'll wonder where you've gone." It wasn't the stinging remark she wanted but it would do.

She walked toward the door very slowly, not giving into her body's urge to run from the room, run to the farthest end of the castle and leave all of her hurt here. She made it to the door, but for some odd reason as soon as she touched the handle of the door she felt a stab of pain. Lavender was waiting on the other side of that door. She would open that door and see the face of the girl Ron preferred. She would have to walk into her room each night and see Lavender, listen to Lavender. Couldn't have they at least waited until after Slughorn's party? After Christmas? Oh God! She realized with a sudden shock that she wasn't going to be able to spend Christmas at the Burrow. She wouldn't be able to stand it! Ron boasting to his family about his new girlfriend and the rest of the Weasleys looking at her pityingly, like Harry was looking at her now. Even worse, she would be separated from Harry and Ginny and everyone in the wizarding world. It was all Ron's fault! All of it! And here was the bastard getting away with it, scot-free! Well, she could fix that.

Hermione turned around and pointed her wand straight at him. "Oppugno!" she cried, sending those little birds, which had been patiently and loyally circling her head the entire time hurled themselves at Ron, attacking him with their sharp little claws. She hoped that they clawed at his face so that no girl would ever fancy him again. She yanked open the door and ran from the room, trying to hold back her tears and slamming the door behind her.

"Merlin, Hermione!" Ginny Weasley had just searched the most of the castle for her best friend only to come back to her own room, draw back the curtains of her four-poster and find Hermione, her face drenched in tears.

"I'm so sorry Ginny. I... I just couldn't go back to m-my room." Hermione said, in-between sobs.

"It's alright." Ginny sat down on her bed next to Hermione. "You can stay here as long as you like."

Hermione looked at her friend and knew instantly that Ginny was fully aware of what her brother had been up to that night. She had that same pitying expression on her face as Harry had. Hermione couldn't stand it, she let out a fresh wail of pain.

"I thought he liked me, but he doesn't. He doesn't like me at all! He likes Lavender!"

Hermione didn't need to clarify who He was, Ginny had known about Hermione and Ron before Hermione had actually confided in her in Ginny's fourth year and since then Ron had come up quite frequently in their conversations. Ginny could have sworn that Ron fancied Hermione as well, but couldn't come up with any reasonable explanation for the night's events.

"I don't understand any of it." said Ginny out loud, "Ron's never looked at Lavender the way he looks at you. I don't know what he's doing."

"I'll tell you what he's doing!" said Hermione "He's snogging my roommate! That's what he's doing! He's snogging a girl who is such an airhead that the only reason she doesn't float away is because she's wrapped around Ron!" Hermione let her head drop with a thump onto Ginny's pillow and Ginny watched as Hermione's body shook with muffled sobs. She rubbed Hermione's back soothingly, trying to comfort her, but knowing that nothing she could do would be of much help. Hermione turned her head sideways on the pillow.

"I hate her." There was so much pain in Hermione's voice that Ginny's own heart give a slight wrench. "I hate her hair and her laugh and her clothes. I..." but Hermione just broke into another sob. "Why did it have to be her?"

"Who else would you have him snog?" asked Ginny, with a misguided attempt at humor.

"Someone who's not..." Hermione cut off abruptly, as if ashamed.

"What is it?"

"She's prettier than me." Hermione said in a small voice.

"Hermione, anyone can be pretty. It doesn't take any skill or talent to be pretty. Pretty can get you a date for a night with anyone. It takes guts and love and determination and passion and intelligence and strength to make sure that it lasts a lot longer."

Hermione lifted her head from the pillow and looked at Ginny in amazement. "You're right."

"I know I am." Said Ginny, grinning.

"Ginny..."

"Yes Hermione?"

"I've gotten your pillow all wet."