Part 1

"See ya, Fred"

"Bye Fred!"

"Bye George, Angelina"

Fred watched as his twin brother and his girlfriend turned the corner together, wanting to be alone for a bit. He watched as he put his arm over her shoulders, and he watched as she leaned closer to him, so that they were practically one person walking, George's scarf covering Angelina's turned away. He knew that it was unfair to be jealous of George. After all, George was his brother, and he and Angelina were happy. And if she was happy, then Fred should be too, right?

"Right" Fred muttered under his breath.

Without looking back at them, Fred turned the opposite way, staring at his feet. "Just keep walking" he kept telling himself. Fred didn't realize that he was in front of the library until he had almost run into a chubby second year boy, who scowled at him and hustled away.

"Git" said Fred.

Wanting to get out of the frigid snow and into the warm library, Fred pushed open the wooden door and went straight to his corner. The corner where he had spent years perfecting the art of procrastination, obvious by the amount of candy wrappers, hidden away in the corner. He was just about to sit down in his favorite chair when he heard a paused, listening. Someone was definitely in his corner, sniffling. Turning the corner, he saw a mass of bushy brown hair, surrounded by a mound of books.

"Uhh…. Hermione?" said , Hermione jumped out of the chair, causing the table she was sitting at to topple over, sending the books sprawling in every direction.

Part 2

"OH no! I'm so sorry, Fred, I didn't mean to… I'm sorry I should have remembered this is your place, I'm sorry," said Hermione hastily.

"Hermione, it's fine. Let's just pick up the books and the desk, okay?" said Fred, grabbing a particularly large book off the floor, labeled " 20 Secrets Smart Witches Know".

" Hermione? Is this- " started Fred.

Quick as a flash, Hermione swiped it out of his hands.

"Nothing. That's nothing." Hermione said with a sniffle.

"Umm… okay."

Neither spoke while they picked up the numerous books spread all across the floor, placing them back on the newly uprighted desk.

" Hermione, " said Fred, after a pause.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine" Hermione said quickly, trying to brush past grabbed her by the shoulders, spun her around, and sat her down in the chair.

"No, Hermione, you're not alright. Now what's going on?" asked Fred.

"I've already told you, nothing!" said Hermione, refusing to look at him.

"That's not nothing. I've never seen you cry before, especially not in the library. Now. What's going on?" asked Fred, determinedly.

Part 3

Hermione paused, still not looking at him.

"Hermione?" asked Fred.

Still no answer.

It was at this point that Fred knew something was really wrong. "

Hermione? It's okay if you don't talk, just nod your head, okay?" said Fred.

After a pause, Hermione nodded.

"Good. That's good. Now. Hermione, is something wrong?" asked Fred.

A longer pause, another nod.

"Okay. Can you tell me?" asked Fred.

Hermione gave a furious shake of the head, bushy hair flying.

"Okay then…. Can I do anything to help?" Fred asked.

After a minute, Hermione slowly, almost imperceptibly nodded her head.

"Okay then, what can I do?" asked Fred.

"Listen. Please." Whispered Hermione."

Well, alright then. I'm listening. Talk." Said Fred, pulling a chair from another table and setting it next to Hermione's.

Hermione drew a deep breath.

"So I-like-this-guy-but-I-don't-know-if-he-likes-me-back-and-he's-really-nice-and-sweet-and-I-really-really-like-him-but- I-can't-tell-if-he-likes-me-back-and-I'm-scared-to-ask-because-I -don't-want-him-to-say-no" Hermione said in a single breath, hanging her head again

Part 4

Hermione finally looked up at him, her big brown eyes meeting his. A

nd Fred couldn't stop staring at her. When had her eyes gotten to big, and deep, and WARM? Fred shook his head, shooing the thought away.

'Theyre like Angelina's eyes.' Fred tried to convince himself, 'you can't stop looking because they're like Angelina's "

"Well," he finally said. " You're in quite a pickle."

Hermione let put a small, quiet laugh.

"Yes," she said, "quite a pickle.".

Part 5

For a while, both Fred and Hermione simply sat there, neither speaking a word to break the silence, sitting across from each other in the corner of the library.

"so," said Hermione, finally breaking the silence. "I bet you think I'm really soft, acting like this" she said, showing a weak smile

."Hermione, of course not"' replied Fred. " you're one of the strongest girls I know"

Hermione scoffed.

" No, I'm serious. Maybe not the greatest PHYSICALLY.."

At this, Hermione let out a bark of a laugh.

Smiling, Fred continued.

" Like I was saying, you may not be the strongest athlete or the fastest runner, but there are other kinds of strong."

"Oh yeah?" asked Hermione.

"Yeah. Like, you're strong at being loyal, and strong at being practical, and at staying calm when someone drops an ink pot on your Potions Essay..."

"That was you? " interrupted Hermione.

" Umm... No?" Fred said, smiling.

"I had to rewrite that whole thing!" said Hermione.

Suddenly, a peaky, wrinkled face poked out from the aisle.

"WHAT IS THIS? NO TWO STUDENTS AT A TABLE! Honestly, SUCH disrespect!" came the whispered shriek.

"Sorry, Madame Pince" Hermione and Fred said in unison.

Grabbing his bag, Fred got up to leave.

"Wait", said Hermione, "I'm coming,"

Together, they walked out of the library.

"It's snowing!" exclaimed Hermione.

"So it is, " said Fred, amused at Hermione's delight.

They walked for a while in silence. F

inally, Hermione spoke."

So it WAS you that spilled ink on my essay?" she asked.

Fred Dismissed the question, waving his hand through the air.

" that's beside the point." he said. "The point, Hermione, is that even if you're not the fastest flier or the strongest player, you're still strong. Just strong in a Hermione-y way" said Fred.

At this, Hermione's cheeked became redder, although it may have just been from the cold.

Part 6

"Bye, Fred"

"See you, Hermione"

Hermione turned to go up the stairs to the girls dormitory, while Fred turned the opposite direction to go up to his. On the third step, he heard a voice.

"Fred?"

Fred returned back to the landing, to see Hermione, popping her head out of the girls staircase.

"Umm… thanks. For listening." She said.

Fred smiled."Well, you're welcome." He replied, giving a slight mock bow.

Hermione grinned, and turned to walk up to her dormitory again.

Later that night, both were lying in their beds, staring at the curtains, unable to sleep, thinking about how nice and sincere Fred had been, about how endearingly flustered Hermione had been when he'd found her in the library, how he had listened to her talk, and how her face had lit up when she'd seen the snow…

Closing his eyes, Fred rolled over. He started to do what he been doing for months whenever he had to go to sleep."'Just think of Angelina's laugh' he thought to himself. That laugh that was like a tinkling bell, high and soft. That sound had always been able to help him sleep. But tonight was different. Instead of hearing a tinkling bell, all Fred could think about was Hermione's barking laugh when he had called her strong….Fred shook his head. This was ridiculous.

Hermione had had enough. Throwing back the blankets, she jumped out of bed, tugged on a robe, and pulled up a chair so that she could sit next to the window overlooking the Forbidden Forest. This had always been able to calm her mind, looking out over the serene dark blues and blacks, hue merging into each other. She loved looking at the stars, and finding shapes in them. She found a huge bright one over to her left, then another on her right, down more toward the horizon, and another right in front of her. She spotted another bright star directly across from the second, on the horizon, and the brightest of all on her upper right. She lazily traced the stars with her finger, back and forth and back and forth, until she realized that the starts, the brightest ones, formed… a W.

Part 7

Rolling over under the blanket, Fred looked out the window into the morning sky. It had rained the previous night, causing the sky to be full of smoky mist, swirling in the wind t make in a large wall of gray. Half awake and half asleep, Fred looked at his watch. When he recognized what time it was, he shoved back the covers, pulled on some trousers, a shirt, and bolted down to the Common Room. He was late. Hopefully, she hadn't left yet….

Hermione opened her eyes a miniscule amount, squinting in the faint morning sunlight. She watched as soft white flakes fell past the window, disappearing below the ledge. Sitting up, she could feel her tense muscles, a result of falling asleep in her chair the night before.. Stretching out her arms, she yawned, and checked the clock on the wall. Giving out a shriek, she tugged on her clothes, stuffed her robe in her bag, and raced down the stairs to the Common Room. She was late. Hopefully, he hadn't left yet….

Part 8

Fred looked around the Common Room. He was just in time. There she was, sweeping down the girls staircase. She looked at him and smiled.

"Hullo, Fred" she said.

"Hey, Angie" said Fred.

"Doing well?" Angelina asked.

"Pretty well, yeah. You?" He replied.

" I'm good" she said.

"See you later, Fred."

"Yeah, bye Angie." Said Fred.

Fred smiled. He hadn't been late. Every morning, 10 minutes after 7, she would walk into the Common Room, and say hello to him. They would talk, ask how each other was doing, and she would go to breakfast. It was a small thing, nothing huge, but it's what got Fred up in the morning, to see Angelina, to talk with her, just for a bit. Smiling, he went back upstairs to get ready for class.

Part 9 (My goodness, this is getting LONG :)

"See you later, Fred."

"Yeah, bye Angie."

Silent, Hermione stood on the staircase, just above the turn that would place her in view of the landing, listening. Every morning, just after 7 o'clock, Angelina would go down to the stairs leading to the Common Room, pause to chat with Fred, and go down to the Great Hall. And every morning, Hermione would lean against this wall, just above the bend, and listen. She listened because she wanted his voice to be the first voice she heard in the morning. She wanted his words to be the first in his head. She knew it was kind of silly, but she also knew that it somehow made her calmer, more ready to face the day. And she loved it. After Angelina would leave, and Fred would go upstairs to get dressed, Hermione would stay on the steps, replaying what she's heard. How he had been, the way he talked, and even the sound of his voice. Every day, she wanted to remember them. Because, maybe if SHE remembered his voice, then maybe, a little bit, he remembered her voice too.

Part 10

Hermione loved walking into the Great Hall. The morning chatter, muted by mouths stuffed with delicious food, the hustle of students, walking in and out and in between tables, and the scratching of quills, as students tried to finish up some procrastinated homework. All were strangely comforting as Hermione walked down the middle row set down her bag, and reached for some English Muffins, which were then promptly knocked out of her hands by a blinding whir of fluffy red fur.

"Crookshanks?" said Hermione, a little confused. Why was Crookshanks in the Great Hall? "Whatcha doin' here, Crookshanks?"

Crookshanks gave a little meow, and looked toward the she saw Fred, trying to look like he hadn't just stopped running full tilt toward the Hall, his hair not quite falling in place, and little short of breath as he walked up nonchalantly toward her table.

"Uhh hey Hermione." Said Fred.

"Hi, Fred." She replied.

"So, eating breakfast, huh? That's cool. I love breakfast, All the muffins, and bacon, and eggs, and juice! All different kinds of juice! Pumpkin juice, orange juice, apple juice,. I like juice. Espeically with breakfast. Did you know that you're suppost to eat a bigger breakfast than any other meal? Fancy that, huh? You know, I always thought….."

"Fred?" Hermoine interrupted.

"Hmm?" he replied, still looking at the table.

"Fred, why is Crookshanks here?" Hermione asked.

Fred paused.

"Well, because you brought him here, I would suppose. Unless he flew here or something, he IS part-kneazle ya know, known for being quite smart and res…" Fred began.

"FRED." Hermione interjected.

"Hmmm?" said Fred.

Hermione stared at him, until he finally looked at her, before continuing.

"Fred, why is Crookshanks in the Great Hall?" she asked."

Oh. Well, umm…. Funny story actually. You'll laugh when you hear this…. " Fred began.

"Try me." Said Hermione, leveling his eyes with hers.

Part 11

Hermione was staring at him. And honestly, it was a bit unnerving. Scratch that. It was extremely unnerving.

"Well, umm…. You know how George and I have those Skiving Snackboxes?" Fred started.

"…Yes." Said Hermione, still not taking her eyes off him.

"So... well… we were trying to come up with a new part to make students have, sort of like a brain surge, so it looked like they had a huge headache, but really it was just a bunch of information zooming into their brain. It's still in the works, mind you, but George and I had the idea, and…" Fred said, starting to ramble.

"And this ties into Crookshanks being in the Great Hall, how, exactly?" asked Hermione.

"Well, you know how Crookshanks is part kneazle and everything?"Hermione raised an eyebrow."Right. 'Course you do. Umm, well, George and I, we figured that maybe if we took some fur, maybe it could add a bit of the brain surge kind of effect, cause they're so smart and every thing….." Fred trailed off.

"… and?" said Hermione, in a carefully controlled voice

."and, well, uh…. We figured he wouldn't miss it, right? Because he has so much, so we, George and I, well, we tried to take a bit. Not a lot, mind you, just enough for a trial. But, uh, Crookshanks didn't really like that too much and uh…."

And when Fred looked up, he was scared. Hermione's face had drained any clue as to what exactly she was feeling at the moment. She was just staring at her hands, as she pet Crookshanks.

"You wanted some of Crookshanks fur?" she asked, chilly.

Fred nodded, slowly, not able to look away at Hermione's hand rubbing the cat's fur.

"And, how did you try and obtain this fur?" Hermione asked, still was getting uncomfortable.

"Uh, well, the usual way, I suppose." Fred said, reluctant to answer.

"Which is?" said Hermione, reminding Fred of Professor Snape.

"…. We cut it?" said Fred.

At that moment, Hermione's hand stopped petting, and rested on a spot near Crookshank's rump. It was in this particular spot, that instead of finding fur, her hand found only skin. Now, Hermione. Was. PISSED.

"FRED WEASLEY! YOU DIDN'T *CUT* CROOKSHANKS'S FUR, YOU *SHAVED* IT! LOOKS AT THIS! ITS *BALD*!"

"Uh.. so it is!" said Fred, faking a chuckle.

"You SHAVED Crookshanks? You SHAVED my CAT?" hollered Hermione.

"We didn't shave ALL of him" said Fred "Just a bit of a trim."

"Fred Weasley, you are SO. DEAD!" screamed Hermione.

Hermione leaped up from the bench, and Fred ran. He bolted out the entryway, out of the corridor, through a secret passageway behind the Blind Witch, and out to the other side of the castle.

"Crap. Crapy Crap Crappity Fliching Crap" said Fred. "This isn't going to be good"

Part 12

The rest of that day, Fred stayed away from any place that he thought Hermione might be. He stayed out of the Common Room, corridors around the girl's bathroom, away from her classroom when Hermione had them, and he especially avoided the library.