Chapter 2

The next day, Harry was let out of the hospital wing with a warning from Madam Pomfrey "The next time you get hurt, don't count on me giving you pain relief potions." She said, but it was obvious to both Harry and Hermione that she wasn't sincere.

Almost everyone, bar the Slytherins, came up and apologized for treating Harry so badly and told him that they believed him when he said he didn't enter the tournament. The only person that didn't do this, which was quite strange, was one Ronald Weasley.

The fact that Harry and Hermione were now a couple seemed to not surprise anyone. The relationship seemed to be held in high regard, despite the fact it had only started 24 hours before.

That night, the newly minted couple sat close together in the Gryffindor common room, looking into the fire as they talked about everything and nothing. As the night wore on, Hermione was determined to ask Harry about the scars on his back, but she wanted to make sure no one else was in the common room to hear. She didn't want him to feel embarrassed. She had read a book the previous summer on abused children after she had felt her suspicions deepen during third year.

Hermione remembered how when she and Harry had been sitting and talking during the time-turner incident, she had noticed how Harry seemed to skirt the subject of summer and his family, switching the subject around so that it was more focused on her. Troubled deeply by his evasiveness, she researched her suspicions and found that Harry exhibited most of the traits attributed to those who were abused; he was quiet, he never seemed to really care for himself, he always seemed as though he was starved after the summer, and he was almost always quite gun shy when it came to people touching him in any way, except for Hermione herself. When Hermione had read this, she felt her heart break for her closest friend. She couldn't fathom how anyone could do such a thing to such an amazing person. She'd told her mother about her fears and research, and her mother had told her that she needed to talk to Harry. Her mum told her that if Harry was okay with it, he could stay with them over the summer break. Deeply grateful for her mother's advice and offer, Hermione thanked her and said that she would try and get Harry to open up about his past, but at his own pace.

After their discussion, her mother gave her a knowing smile and asked Hermione "So, how long have you loved your best friend?"

Blushing just the tiniest bit, Hermione replied "I don't even know, Mum. At least since the end of second year, if not longer."

Her mum's smile grew as she drew her only child into a hug. "Well, he's very lucky to have such an amazing girl so smitten with him."

Hermione smiled a bit at the memory. Her mum had teased her relentlessly the rest of the summer over her crush.

Shaking her head clear of the memory, Hermione looked around the common room as the last few people headed up to their dorms. She turned around to look at Harry, who seemed to be reading the Defense book. Well, Hermione thought, no time like the present. She shifted her body into a more comfortable position facing him, and prepared herself for a long discussion. Seeming to sense the change in the atmosphere, Harry marked the page he was up to and looked at Hermione.

"Harry, when you were in the hospital wing, unconscious, Madam Pomfrey turned you over to put burn salve on your back and… and there were other scars there. Harry, I know that you didn't get them from the dragon. Harry, please tell me where you got them." Hermione said softly, reaching out to hold his hand. He took a shaky breath, trying to calm himself. Harry squeezed her hand and thought to himself 'This is Hermione. She would never laugh at you or hurt you. She'll understand. ' Bracing himself, Harry looked into her eyes and saw all the compassion she had for him, all the concern for him, and he knew that he had to tell her the truth.

"Hermione, you know I don't have a great family life with the Dursleys, but I haven't really told you everything." He stared at her and saw the grim acceptance of what she had known. She squeezed his hand, encouraging him to continue. And so he did. He told her everything that he could think of that she should know, from his aunt hitting him with a frying pan, to his uncle whipping him bloody for messing up breakfast, to his cousin and his gang playing 'Harry Hunting'. He even told her about the cupboard and the room he was allocated, which had locks and a cat flap to keep him in. She listened in horror and disgust, holding on to his hand the entire time.

At the close of Harry's story, Hermione wept. She wept for the loss of innocence he suffered, for the utter torture he endured from his so-called "family," and her rage at the injustice of it all. She took him into one of her famous hugs and cried for him.

Harry held her close to himself, feeling like a ton of bricks had been lifted off of his shoulders. He looked at Hermione, feeling his love for her swell, and kissed her on the cheek. She snuggled even closer to him. He wiped the tears off her face and sighed, feeling a little guilty for making her cry.

"Don't you dare feel guilty, Harry." Hermione said, almost reading his mind. "I asked you to tell me what those scars were, and you told me. If anyone should feel guilty, it's those relatives of yours." She looked at him hard, then her eyes softened and she kissed him, pouring all of her love and care into the melding of their lips. Tentatively, she brushed her tongue against the seam of his lips, and he immediately granted her the entry she sought after, their tongues dueling. The snogging session ended when there were two shadows looming over them, clearing their throats.

"As much as we enjoy watching you two snog-"

"We wanted to tell you both something." Fred and George said, both looking thoroughly amused at the blushing teens.

"Okay. Shoot." Harry said, peeved at having the moment interrupted.

"Well, ickle Ronniekins-" Fred started

"Seems to still be a prick, but no news there." George said, shaking his head at his younger brother's behavior.

"He was absolutely raving about how you shouldn't have survived the dragon." Fred said, looking more serious than either Harry or Hermione had ever seen him.

"We think that he's a lost cause and wanted to warn you both that he seems to have-" George started, looking just as serious as his brother.

"Gone dark. He might try something stupid." Fred finished, watching the couple.

Harry sighed, knowing that he had lost one of his friends due to their own jealousy. It stung, but Harry knew that if Ron hadn't come around by now, he wasn't a real friend. Hermione squeezed his shoulder, knowing just how much this must've hurt him.

"Well, thanks for the heads up, guys. I appreciate it." Harry said, the hurt evident in his tone. Fred and George sighed, slapping Harry on the back.

"Don't worry mate, we'll still hang out with you." George said

"Yeah, you can't get rid of our lovely faces that easily!" Fred said, grinning. Harry chuckled and bade them goodnight as they headed up to their dorm.

"I guess that's the end of our friendship with Ron." Harry said, turning to Hermione. She nodded with sympathy and rested her head on his shoulder. She truly hated the redhead in that moment for hurting her Harry.

The next few days passed with ease, the couple spending nearly every moment together, only separating to either sleep or use the bathroom. Despite their belief that they were as close as possible, they grew even closer.

During one of their Transfiguration classes, Professor McGonagall announced that the Yule Ball would be held in the castle. While the boys all groaned and the girl's all cheered, she started speaking about the dance and how important it was for the fourth years and up to go and not embarrass their school. When she dismissed the class, she asked Harry to stay behind for a moment. Giving Hermione a nod, he walked over to the Scottish professor.

"Mr. Potter, I just wanted to inform you that the champions and their dates must open the ball with a dance." Professor McGonagall said. "Now, although I'm certain you will have no trouble finding a date," she smiled slightly at this, "I wanted to implore you to practice dancing. It would do you no good to step on your date's feet and make a fool of yourself." She finished warmly. Harry, somewhat nervous about dancing in front of everyone, thanked her and left to go to his next class. Now, all he had to do was ask Hermione to the dance, which would be relatively easy, but he wanted to do it right.

So, after his last class, he ran over to Hagrid's hut and to told him of the dance and asked him if he could have some flowers. Surprisingly, Hagrid gave Harry some red roses and wished him luck with asking Hermione to the dance. Before dinner, Harry walked into the common room to find Hermione sitting on the couch, reading Hogwarts: A History which made him smile. While she was preoccupied with her favorite book, Harry knelt in front of the fire place, facing her, on one knee.

"Mione?" He asked softly, trying to tear her attention away from her book gently.

She looked up at him and gasped lightly, her cheeks flushing with color as she saw the flowers. "Harry?" she asked, her voice shaking a little with excitement.

"I was wondering if you would do me the honor of accompanying me to the ball, Ms. Granger." He said, smiling softly. She chuckled lightly at his antics.

"Why, Mr. Potter, I would love to accompany you to the ball." She replied, smiling at him as he got up, smiling broadly, and handed her the flowers. She leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on his lips. Everyone in the common room watched the tender moment, some even "aw-ing." The boys all wolf-whistled when the kiss finished, and the girls all clapped. Both Harry and Hermione blushed until they were as red as a tomato.

Hermione would have to say that Harry could be quite romantic, and every girl in the castle would be hard-pressed to disagree.

AN: Ta-dah! This chapter went up faster than I anticipated, and it's most likely due to all the awesome reviewers and readers. So thank you. Give yourselves a nice big pat on the back, my friends. I have to mention that i was going to upload yesterday, but the minute I went to upload, was down. Just my luck. Again, I must warn you that I might not update frequently, but I will write until I finish. I'm quite prone to writer's block, but I can get over it when I have all you amazing peeps reading and reviewing. If you have anything you would like to share with me, ideas, criticisms, etc., please feel free to share with me via reviews or PMs. I'm always interested in what everyone thinks or has an idea about. Also, I was thinking of putting in a Hogsmead visit, but I wasn't sure if it would work. Please tell me what you think about that idea. So, the Yule Ball will be next chapter, and maybe the second task. Maybe. But, I digress. Again, thank you for all the support.