Back To Your Heart

Hey! Just a few lil words before we start. I don't own J.K. Rowling's characters/locations/words/plots etc – I am just a huge fan of her books. I do own the plot (such as it is – I highly doubt anyone would want to steal it) and any extra characters I may decide to introduce to the proceedings!

The characters may differ slightly from the way they are portrayed in the books, but I'm going to try to be as true to them as I possibly can. Of course, sometimes I need to change them to fit in with the story but I hope you'll understand why and enjoy the changes.

I would love it if you read this story and decide to review it – I really do appreciate people who take the time to let me know what they think, although I don't appreciate being flamed, so please don't do that. If you don't like the fic, feel free to offer some constructive criticism, but I'm not in the way of accepting abuse without reason. I suppose there will always be 'diehards' who have their own ideas of characters and plots, but everyone's fics are different and I'm not even sure this one will be any good. I haven't decided if I'm going to stick with it, so if you do want to read more please let me know – I might edit it at some point too if I really don't like it!

Other than that, sit back, relax and give it a shot... It might not be so bad, and if it is, it'll probably get better! ;)

TeenyBash x


Hermione sighed, sitting on the window ledge and watching the other three girls arguing. They'd been standing in the middle of the floor, screaming at one another for the past twenty minutes, all while Hermione had been attempting to do a little studying. Fat chance of that, she thought as Parvati Patil grabbed her twin sister's lipstick and threw it through the open window behind Hermione. All action ceased for a moment while the girls stared, hardly believing what had just happened, before once again, it all kicked off and Hermione had finally had enough. She jumped down from her unwelcome vantage point and left the room, knowing full well that her absence would not be noticed for a long time.

Hermione wasn't sure where to go. If she had been back at school, her first instinct would have been the library, where she could have peace and quiet to get on with her work. College, however, was having a strange effect on Hermione so far. For some reason unknown to her, she just didn't feel as motivated or bothered about her grades. So many major events had taken place during her time at Hogwarts that she would have been forgiven for realising some things are more important that marks, but Hermione knew that wasn't the main reason for her sudden change of heart.

She was bored. Bored of being boring. Boring old Hermione who was no fun and who spent all her time reading, studying or working herself up about someone breaking the rules. While she still had a strong element of boring old Hermione in her, she recognised another girl struggling to come to the surface and show the world she wasn't the same person they thought she was.

Hermione had been so deep in thought, she hadn't paid much attention to where she was wandering, and when she looked up she found she was in the college dining hall. It was after dinner, so there weren't that many people around, but there was always a steady supply of snacks available, no matter what time of day or night.

As Hermione crossed the floor, intending to buy a sticky chocolate cake and eat it greedily in front of her stupid roommates, she heard someone behind her call her name, and spun around to see Ginny, one of her best friends, coming towards her.

"Hey!" Ginny said as she hugged Hermione. "God, I'm sorry I haven't been up to visit yet, but things have been so hectic! How are you doing?"

Hermione shrugged. "I'm ok."

Ginny didn't look convinced, and asked who Hermione was sharing a room with.

"Lavender, Parvati and Padma," came Hermione's dull reply, and Ginny looked horrified.

"Ugh, what a crap combination! Poor you! Didn't they think to put you with someone remotely intelligent?"

"Like you, you mean?" Hermione grinned, and Ginny laughed.

"Well, now you mention it, yes!" she replied. "Anyway, I don't suppose you've seen my brother recently, have you?"

Hermione was about to shake her head, when her gaze alighted on a familiar pair of boys sitting in the corner, with a not-so-familiar pair of girls. She bristled slightly but put on her 'couldn't-care-less' face for Ginny's benefit. "Apparently, he's over there," she said coolly, and Ginny followed her line of vision, before turning back with an even more disgusted expression on her face.

"What is going on? Is there some sort of law stating that just because a guy is in college, that automatically makes him attractive?"

Hermione laughed. "If there is, I know nothing about it." Why should she be bothered that the two people she had considered to be her very best friends, Harry and Ron, had barely bothered to say two words to her since they'd all arrived for term. Hermione was well aware of their ongoing bet to see which of them could 'bag' the most girls – their terminology, certainly not Hermione's – and had decided it was best to leave them to being twits, if that was how they wished to spend their time. She didn't really recognise the same people she'd spent seven years at school with; it was as if they'd never even met, sometimes. And they seemed to be having a ball without her, whereas she was stuck, night after night, with the braindead posse in her drab room.

"It'll be alright, you know." Ginny had been watching Hermione closely, and a small smile was creeping over her lips. "He'll come back to you."

Hermione stared at Ginny as if she was the maddest woman she'd ever met. "What?" was all she could say.

"Ron," Ginny continued, the smile becoming much wider as Hermione blushed deep red. "Oh come on, Hermione, don't think I haven't noticed you two! I swear to God, I said to Harry that if you didn't wake up and get it on, we'd have to lock you up for a few hours and let chemistry do its stuff. Don't give me that look," she added sternly when Hermione tried to appear affronted. "You know it's the truth. And maybe things didn't work out exactly to plan at school, but that doesn't mean you have to give up! You're not someone I ever thought would give up."

"Really?" Hermione replied lightly, although she wasn't really annoyed at Ginny. She was annoyed at the fact Ginny was right, and the fact Ron had a blonde girl practically sitting on him now – with no attempt being made to fight her off. "Well, maybe I've changed, Ginny. Things change. He's obviously not remotely interested in anyone with an IQ over 70, so why should I waste my time? I have better things to do."

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Like what?"

"Like...helping Padma retrieve her lipstick," Hermione said quickly, before grabbing a cake, paying for it and quickly leaving the dining hall, Ginny giggling in her wake at the thought of Hermione caring a toss about lipstick.