Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Never have and never will.

A/N: This is my first fanfic so it will probably not be the best, but be completely honest about what you think. I have a feeling that I will like reviews :P

"I'm serious!"

"Awe, come on 'Mione, it's not hurting him, see?"

"That's not the point!"

"Then what is?"

"The point is that you two are taking advantage of the first years at every opportunity and it's just not right."

Hermione Granger was frustrated. It didn't seem to matter how many times she tried to explain to Fred and George Weasley how irresponsible it was to take advantage of the first years. They always just laughed it off and told her that she needed to get out more and loosen up.

"'Mione, we're not taking advantage of them," Fred said in a sickly sweet, patient voice that made Hermione want to hex him.

"Exactly, we're paying them to help us with some breakthrough scientific study. And besides, it's not like we don't test them on ourselves first. We know what they do to us, now we need to make sure they have the same effect on everyone. It would be irresponsible to sell products that haven't been thoroughly tested first," George added.

Hermione sighed; she always did like George better of the two twins. She found that he was the voice of reason of the two, and was usually the one to stop a prank if it looked like it was going too far. Besides, the way he explained it, he made it seem a little bit better. Not much, but a little bit.

"Fine, but if anyone you test these products on other than yourselves gets hurt, I swear to you..."

"We'll be in so much trouble we won't know what to do with ourselves, we got it. No one is going to get hurt 'Mione, we promise."

Hermione looked at Fred with a "I-don't-believe-you" expression, but let it go. She really did need to start working on her ancient ruins homework. She turned on her heel and headed out of the doorway, waving absentmindedly to the fat lady. She was deep in thought about the properties of wormwood several minutes later when she heard her name being called. Turning quickly, she collided head on with none other than George Weasley, and crashed to the floor.

"Urg, George!" Hermione glared at him from the ground. "What the hell?!"

"Sorry 'Mione," George helped her to her feet, looking sheepish. "I was just wondering where you were going in such a hurry, the library?

"Um, ya, why?"

"Do you think I could come with you? I really need to work on my transfiguration homework, and it really is nicer having someone to work with." George looked at her with big eyes. "I`ll be quiet, you won`t even know I`m there, I promise."

Hermione laughed. "Sure George, it doesn't matter to me." George lit up like a Christmas light, and practically skipped down the hall beside her, but neither of them said a word until they were settled properly at a table in the library and George had come down from his random spurt of what seemed like a mild sugar high.

"Why didn't you come with Fred?"

"What?" George looked up at her.

"Why did you come with me and not Fred? I thought you two did everything together."

"He didn't have any homework tonight," George shrugged. "He's not going to come to the library if he doesn't have to, its not like its our favourite place," George laughed.

Hermione mused this over. "If that's the case," she started slowly, "then why wouldn't you just do your homework in the common room or something? I mean, it's not like you exactly enjoy hanging out with me, and I can't see how you would think I would be a good person to study with, I'm not even in any of your classes."

George suddenly turned red. " I just needed the quiet, besides, I don't really need someone to help as much as someone to just be there so I'm not alone. We were headed in the same direction, so I thought it might be nice to, you know, get to know you a little better." He turned, if it was possible, an even deeper shade of red. His face now matched his flaming red hair exactly.

Hermione cocked an eyebrow, but other then a grin and a shrug, she let it go, and started to work on her homework. George did the same. "This is really nice," thought Hermione. "I never really thought about George as an individual before, he was always part of `the twins`. He really isn't so bad when Fred isn't around to encourage him to goof off, he's kind of cute actually, not so quick to jump into things and make a scene. With that red hair falling down over his eyes, chewing his lip a little bit as he thinks about a question. He's sitting up straight, which is nice, his head and shoulders sloping downwards slightly, one hand casually scratching a place on his chest. He's got very muscular arms," she noted. "Probably from all the Quidditch. I bet his torso is just as muscular, I wonder what he looks like without a shirt on..wait, what?"

She startled out of her thoughts so suddenly, she almost fell off her chair and George looked up at her quickly. "Are you ok?" He sounded genuinely worried, which made unexpected butterflies appear in Hermione`s belly.

"Ya, I'm fine," she blushed, "I just pulled myself out of deep thought too quickly."

"Ya? What were you thinking about?"

Crap. "Um, you actually," Hermione could feel the heat rising in her face as George's eyebrows shot up. "Um, about how people never really think of you as yourself, but more in terms of Fred and George, the twins. It really doesn't seem fair that no one ever really takes the time to get to know you for yourself, you're really sweet and smart and kind, and it seems a shame that no one really knows that. Also that Fred always seems to take the spotlight from you, so you're shyer then he is." By this time, she couldn't even see George's eyebrows as they were so far up his face. Hermione could feel the heat spreading from her face to her chest, and she started to get up when George's hand shot out and grabbed hers. She looked up into his smiling face.

"Thank-you `Mione. Its nice to know that someone can see me for me, and I'm really glad that its you. To be honest, I didn't come here with you just because we were going in the same direction. I actually came here to ask you something, and I totally understand if you don't want to, but do you think that you'd want to go on the next Hogsmead trip with me?" It was now Hermione`s turn to raise her eyebrows, and George turned bright red again. "I mean, its totally ok if you don't want to, I'm sure you want to go with someone else, um, what if we just went as friends, you know? It wouldn't have to be a date if you don't want it to be.." George was rambling now, and Hermione thought it was rather cute.

"Why don't you?" Hermione asked herself. It would be nice to spend some time alone with him again, and its not like you're seeing or thinking of seeing anyone else anytime soon. Besides, he's obviously not joking about this, and you never know, something could come of it.

"I'd like that George," she said smiling.

"Oh, ya, you know, I totally understand, I mean, its not like I'd expect you to be interested in someone like me, I just thought...wait...what?"

"I'd like to go with you on the next Hogsmead weekend," Hermione grinned as George shot out of his chair and danced around the library, laughing and shouting. Madame Pince stormed towards them with a murderous look on her face, and Hermione decided that it was time to leave. She scooped up her stuff as well as George's, and, handing over his portion, took George by the hand and led him quickly out of the library.

The two of them wandered the back to the common room hand-in-hand, not particularly worried about the time they were taking or the homework that needed to be done anymore. They should have been worried about what would happen if they got caught; Umbridge had the entire school wrapped around her fat finger now, and her eyes and ears were everywhere. All hell would pay if they were caught out after curfew. George had a dumbfounded look on his face and Hermione was grinning from ear-to-ear. It was in this way that they finally entered the common room an hour later and Harry jumped on Hermione.

"He has him! Where were you? I was looking for you everywhere! Come on, we need to go to London, NOW!"

"Ok, Harry calm down! I was just walking with George. Who has who? Why do we need to go to London?" Hermione was confused as to why Harry looked so panicked. He glanced at their joined hands before answering quietly.

"Voldemort has Sirius in the department of Mysteries in the ministry of Magic. He wants him to get something for him, but Sirius won't do it. Voldemort is torturing him! We have to go, now!" The look of intense concentration and anger on Harry's face scared George, he had never seen this side of Harry before.

"Harry, calm down, now tell me what's going on. How do you know where Sirius is?"

"I fell asleep, you know the dreams I've been having the last few months? I never knew where it was leading, but I suddenly realized, the door, the same one that I've been seeing in the dream, its the same one I saw when I was at the ministry for my hearing. Its the door to the department of mysteries! I dreamt that Voldemort had Sirius behind that door, in the room with the glass balls on shelves. He wanted one of the balls, and he wanted Sirius to get it for him, but Sirius wouldn't. Voldemort is going to kill him!" Harry looked like he was close to tears now, and he was breathing heavily.

"Ok Harry, you need to calm down, it could have been just a dream, there is no way you could know if it's real. You could be rushing off for nothing. And even if it is real, how do you know that Voldemort didn't mean for you to see that, to lure you there?"

"Hermione, Sirius is dying! There's no time for this!"

"Ok, but please just check that Sirius isn't at Grimmuld place first, I'm not letting you risk your neck for no reason." She shot George an apoligetic look before hurrying away with Harry.

AN: Ok, there it was, what thinks you? I think im going to skip right to the part where they're fighting in the ministry, since everyone knows what happens anyway. If you have any ideas concerning the direction that you want the story to go, leave me a note. I'll take everything into concideration.