"The Wallaby herb is poisonous if used incorrectly, that's why its not commonly found in health remedies," Hermione answered loftily. Herbology wasn't her greatest subject, but she fought the urge to keep her hand down unless she was positive of an answer. "No answer is better than a wrong answer," she thought. This question was different though; Ron had thoughtfully given her an "Encyclopedia Herbolica" book set for her birthday the past summer. She had flipped through it a bit during the summer, when she was at home; but left it there when she went to the burrow for the end of the summer holidays.
"Thanks Ron," she muttered to him, looking through her notes for a blank parchment. He didn't answer, and Hermione was positive he had heard her because he was sitting extremely close to her. So close in fact, that she felt a little surge of discomfort. It wasn't that she didn't like Ron; Hermione just liked to have a little space, that's all. "Ron?"
"Uuuuh, yes Hermione?" He said looking at her this time, he couldn't just ignore her twice in a row.
"You're a little close...." she said this time looking up from her notes.
"What? Oh.. Oh, uhh right. Sorry." He felt his cheeks burn a red as fierce as his hair as he moved his chair over a little bit. Trying to avoid her eyes he pulled out another blank piece of parchment and started to copy down what Professor Sprout was saying. He could feel her still looking at him, so he lifted his head up to look at her. "What?"
Hermione just laughed. "Oh Ron, your so sensitive. Nothing, I don't want anything."
Ron grew if possible more flush than before. "Oh heh, heh," he said chuckling nervously. "Umm, Hermione? Did you get question number six?"
Hermione rolled her eyes knowing what was coming. "Yes I did."
"Uhh do you think I could, err see the answer?"
"No. Ron, you have to do it yourself or you will never understand it."
"But I don't want to understand it."
Hermione pushed her piece of nearly full parchment over towards Ron, as she sighed heavily.
"What?" Ron asked knowingly of what she was sighing at.
"Oh nothing, Ron. I was just wondering why my friends have to be so.... well.... stupid." At that very moment, Harry accidentally tipped the bottle of ink in front of him all over himself. Quietly snickering Hermione started proof reading her parchment before Professor Sprout assigned them the duty of potting the fall flowers in green house three.
"I just don't get how I'm going to do it," Ron sighed as he fell backwards onto his dormitory bed. "I mean why is it that I have to go and wear my heart out on my sleeve? I mean common Harry, don't you think she has got the point yet? Really, how more obvious can I be about it? Can't she just catch on and ask me to do something?"
"Common Ron stop doubting yourself. If you want to ask her out just do it." Harry said boredly opening his trunk. Ron's obsession with Hermione got a little old about four years ago, in their third year, when it began. Harry got some owl treats out of his trunk and shoved them into his pocket. "Want to come up to the owlery with me? I have got a letter I want to send."
Ron sighed again as he pulled his pillow over onto his head. "Yeah I guess. I really do need a break."
"A break from what?" Harry laughed. Ron was one of the laziest people he knew, and always seemed to be wanting to do nothing.
"Life." Ron grumbled as he got up.
"Hahaha. Hey how about we check out the flying conditions out on the quidditch pitch? I really need to schedule our first practice."
"But we just got back from summer holidays, don't you think you could postpone practice for another week or two?"
"And have us loose the quidditch cup for the first time in the seven years we have been here? No thanks Ron, besides you don't want to remember your last year at Hogwarts by being quidditch losers." Harry opened the door and started to walk out, "You coming or not?"
"Yeah, I guess I am," groaned Ron picking up his gangly figure that really hadn't changed much since he began at Hogwarts, except for him having grow about two feet, he was still the same red headed gangly freckled Weasley that he had ever been. Looking over to the door, he noticed Harry was gone, and ran off after him.
"Pass the orange juice 'mione please." Harry said between bites of toast. Not only was it the first weekend back at Hogwart's, but Gryffindor's first quidditch practice. "Flying conditions are ideal this morning."
"Want some juice while I have it Ron?" Hermione asked pushing her hashbrowns around on her plate with her fork.
"Uhh, what? Err, no thanks. Uhh Harry I think I'm going to go get our brooms out of the dormitory. See you at the pitch in a bit." Ron quickly muttered as he ran off.
"Well he really go out of here fast, was it something I said?" Hermione asked turning to Harry.
"Uhh, well no. He's just.... I think just really excited to practice this morning. You know Ron, ever since the Chuddly Cannons made it to the play-offs this year he's been obsessed more than usual about quidditch," said Harry thinking quickly. He couldn't tell Hermione about Ron's feelings, they were there for Ron to tell, not him.
"Oh, ha ha okay."
Harry got up suddenly looking at the big clock in the great hall. "Aww shit. We are going to be late. I booked the pitch for nine and it's five to. Shit shit shit." As soon as Harry stood, the rest of the Gryffindor team took that as their cue to leave. Ginny got up with Mazie and Reilly, her two fellow chasers, and the fourth year keeper got up at the end grabbing an tangerine as he left. "Sorry 'mione. We will catch up with you later okay?"
"Uh, yeah sure. I will be around," Hermione sighed picking at her hash browns again. She hadn't been eating much lately. Everything she seemed to put in her mouth tasted like dry grainy sand. A little skinnier then when she had left Hogwarts the previous year, Hermione got up. She noticed that Harry had dropped some papers out of his robe onto the ground under the table and bent over to pick them up. "Gryffindor Quidditch Strategies," she read to herself. "Why could Harry just keep track of his things?" she wondered as she shoved the papers into the front pocket of her robe and headed towards the quidditch dressing rooms.
Peeling around corners as fast as she could Hermione finally made it to the quidditch dressing rooms. Knocking on the locked door she became inpatient. "Are they not in there?" she wondered. "Of course they are in there. It's been like five minutes since he left to get ready." She sighed heavily looking at Harry's messy handwriting and diagrams sketched all over the side of different plays.
"Well, well, well who do we have here?" a voice interrupted from behind her. Turning flat on her heels Hermione spun around looking Draco Malfoy square in the face.
A/T: Well there it is, chapter one. I know what I'm doing this time…. And i'm actually going to do it. So review and such.
Looove ya
Laura Took