Chapter Three

A/N: This is my first fanfic and I really want some kind of response from it. I'm not going to beg for reviews like some authors do but I really would like some. Even if you only review on one chapter whether it's the first one or just one you like really well or didn't like. Some of the character might be a little OOC but can't always get the characters exactly like they are in the books.

Diclaimer: I don't own anything that's familiar, obviously.

We walked until Charlie spotted a bushy haired girl bent over a book at one of the tables. "Hermione." He greeted her.

"Hey, Charlie. What's up?" She said looking up from her book.

"Is that any way to talk to your professor?" Charlie teased.

"So you've decided to take the position, then?" Hermione asked. I was starting to get really uncomfortable, they were talking like old friends despite the obvious age difference.

"Yeah, it's really hard to say no when you have both McGonagall and my mum nagging at you. Besides no I get to nag Ron about not grabbing you while he had the chance." Charlie said with a smile.

"We both know that Ron has already started Auror training along with Harry. Surprisingly, he's actually doing well with it too. He's getting serious with Lavender too. Don't ruin it for him. I might still be mad at him for cheating on me he was still my friend for seven years and if you haven't noticed I don't have too many of those." Hermione scolded.

"I've brought you a replacement for Ron, he's a git anyway. I thoroughly approve of this one, she's got a pet dragon." Charlie said, finally stepping from in front of me so Hermione could see me.

"Hi, I'm Hermione Granger." She introduced herself after rolling her eyes at Charlie.

"Allyssa Ashburn." I said shaking her out stretched hand.

Her eyes caught the blue form on my shoulder and her eyes widened. "Is that really your pet dragon?" She asked.

"Yeah. Her name is Ice." Hermione gave a chuckle at the name. "I was wondering if you could help me find a book about her breed considering I know absolutely nothing."

"Why didn't you research before buying it?" Great she now thought that I was totally stupid.

"I didn't know I was getting a dragon. Apparently this kind of dragon picks one person and attaches themselves to them forever. Actually I guess choose isn't exactly the right word. They just have one person, they don't choose. The only other information I know about it is that they hatch on the day that their person gets their magic." I might've sounded a little defensive but what the hell I felt a little defensive, she implied that I was stupid enough to buy a pet before being fully capable of taking care of it.

"So you don't know the specific name of the type of dragon?" Hermione asked looking frustrated at my lack of knowledge even though I'd given her my excuses. It wasn't like I was going to let her suffer in the cage some more so that I could research and see if I'd be able to take care of her, by the time I was finished with my research the store owner might've had to give in and let the dragon trainer kill her. I just shook my head in response to her question. So Charlie told her the breed of dragon and I thought, how sad is it that he knows more about my pet than I do?

"They're very rare so there isn't very much information available about them but I have come across some books that mention them, but no books that are dedicated to just them." Hermione said, a thoughtful frown on her face.

"Well, if you get those books for Miss Ashburn I'm sure that would be enough information for now." Charlie answered for me. "In the mean time I have to go and tell Mum that I've given in and am going to teach, let's just hope that the rumors that the position is haunted aren't true."

Hermione laughed a little as Charlie left the library. "So how long have you known Charlie?" I asked wondering why they seemed so close.

"Umm. I only met him twice before his mom convinced him to come home during the holidays this year, because the war is over and she wanted all her kids close by, I guess. She's been nagging him all summer to take the job she even got McGonagall on it when she started to doubt that he wouldn't give in with just her." Hermione explained. Seeing my still confused look she explained further, "My best friend, Ron, is his youngest brother. After the war everyone expected that Ron followed through on his 'feelings' that he had toward me. I think he acted to please his mom but I found out a couple months in that he was cheating on me with Lavender Brown. They'd dated back in fourth year and everything but no one expected him to do anything about it after that." She sighed. "Anyway, everyone in his family was and kinda still is pissed at him for doing that to me."

I nodded. That must've sucked. She didn't seem too upset about it now though, I guess you get over things though. "You sound like you're over it, but that doesn't make it any less wrong. So he's going out with this Lavender person, but what about you?" I didn't want to ask any uncomfortable questions but I didn't want her to think I didn't care. I really wanted to have a friend here, even if they weren't in my year.

"No, not yet. Sure I've gotten plenty of offers and everything, being a war heroine does have some perks but none that have interested me. They're all either hot and dumb or intelligent and as attractive as a toad." She shrugged. "Besides they are all so immature."

I smiled at the last bit. I had the same thoughts constantly about the guys at me other school. My friends had dated some guys but I couldn't understand why they put up with them when they were so immature and always so annoying. "So which category does Ron fall under?" I asked.

"The first one. Well, he's not really attractive but he isn't smart either." She looked confused.

"So he's kinda got the worst of both worlds?" I asked jokingly.

Hermione laughed. "Yeah, but he's sweet. I don't know why I really liked him all that much now that I look back on it."

"You said war heroine, what do you mean?" I felt really embarrassed having to ask but I'm new to all of this so I really hoped she wouldn't make fun of me for it.

"You know there was a war don't you?" She looked totally surprised by my question but she didn't burst out laughing at least.

"Yeah I know there was a war I just don't know any of the details." I answered.

"How could you not? It was only a year ago."

I looked away and sighed. "I'm from America. My magic only came a couple months ago."

She looked even more confused. "If you're from America then why are you going to school here?"

I sighed again. "My mom works with the US government. She helped to make sure that the US didn't asked too many questions about what was going on over here during the war. They owed her a favor and when I got my powers she asked that I be sent to a good school where she knew someone she trusted would look after me. During the whole war she'd been talking to Severus Snape so that she knew what was going to happen so that she made sure she could be there to sort out the confusion. Because he's a teacher here they sent me here."

She looked surprised. "You're mom trusts Professor Snape? After he was a spy and killed Dumbledore and everything?"

"Yes. He explained everything that was happening and I think that she's the only one he told everything to because if he told everything to someone over here it would affect the plans he and Dumbledore had made and would make Dumbledore's sacrifice completely useless. Did you even know that Dumbledore was dying anyway because of the curse that started in his hand?" How is it that I seem to know about this stuff when she was apparently one of the key factors in defeating Voldemort, or whatever his name was?

"No, he never told anyone that." She said quietly. She looked away and waved her wand and books came off the shelves and stacked on the table next to her. "These are the books that will give you the information that you want." She said as she handed them to me.

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad or anything I just . . . I don't know what I wanted to do but Snape doesn't deserve to be condemned after everything he's been through." I sighed and started to turn around before I looked back at her and asked, "Umm. Because of my unusual pet I've gotten my own room and I was wondering if you would mind helping me decorate?"

Hermione looked up and smiled. "Of course I'll help. It's okay. I just… Never mind."

I smiled at Hermione and started toward my rooms. To my surprise I actually remembered my way back. When we were back in front of the portrait again I realized that I'd forgotten to change the password before leaving. "Molly." I told the portrait and it opened. Hermione raised an eyebrow at my password. "What? That was the password before and I forgot to change it before I left." I defended.

Hermione shrugged and followed me through. I put the books down on the small table by the couch and gently put Ice on the back of the couch. Hermione's eyes were drawn to Ice. "She's so cute, it's hard to believe that she could be so dangerous." Hermione said.

"Well she almost fried Charlie arm off when he tried to touch her. She growled at Snape when he went to grab my arm to apparate us here." I said with a shrug.

"Really? From what I've heard about Charlie he's a natural with dragon and always has been."

"I don't know what it is but she really doesn't like him. She likes him even less than Snape." I told Hermione, earning a shocked look that I just shrugged off. "Now, where's-" I didn't even get to finish my sentence before Sam came bounding in. She stopped suddenly when she saw Hermione. She looked back at Ice and some silent communication went on before Sam stopped first at me to get a pat on the head and a scratch behind the ear before going up to Hermione and jumping up on her leg trying to get her attention.

"Hello." Hermione said to Sam as she crouched down to pet her. "She's adorable. What's her name?" Hermione asked when she stood up.

"Sam." I answered. Hermione looked like she was about to ask another question before the girl in the portrait interrupted and said, "Professor Snape is here to see you."

I frowned. Why would Snape be here to see me? "Let him in." I replied.

"Miss Ashburn it seems that both of us have forgotten that we ever made it to the last and most important item on you supply list; a wand. So we have to go out again to get one." Snape said a he entered the room. Once he was in he said, "Hello, Miss Granger."

"Hello, Professor. I could take Allyssa to get her wand if you have other things to do." Hermione offered.

Snape nodded. "That would be good." With that Snape left the room with his robes billowing behind him.

I looked at Hermione, honestly I was confused. Why would the Head Girl agree to take me shopping? It wasn't as if she didn't have friends, true none of them were back yet but still. From what Charlie had said it wouldn't surprise me if she wanted to go and spend some more time in the library preparing for the upcoming year. She had some big exams coming up at the end of the year that I didn't doubt she was already studying for. Yet she had just volunteered to go with me to get a wand. "Why?" I finally asked.

"Why what? Why did I just offer to help you? I did that because you asked me to help decorate and I doubt that you expected to have to do this much decorating, so if I go with you instead of you going with Snape then we can buy some decorations." Hermione answered with a smile.

I eyed Ice as I thought about this possibility. She wouldn't like having to be around people. Maybe I could get some kind of bag to carry her in instead of her riding on my shoulder all the time. That way she wouldn't attract so much attention and people would always want to touch her if they didn't notice she was there. The only problem would be that she might not like riding in a bag. "We'll get the wand first and then we'll see if it's a good idea to do extra shopping." I told Hermione.

She looked confused for a second before she followed my gaze to where Ice was flying around Sam and playing with her new toy. They were actually getting along which was good because it would get really annoying if they didn't. She nodded in understanding but she still looked confused. "Why does she have to come along?"

"If she's not in my presence then she could get very agitated. I can't have someone else watch her because she only liked me. Trust me, if I wouldn't put her through being around so many people if I didn't think she might hurt herself if I left her alone." I told Hermione. Then I thought of another problem with her plan or leaving the castle at all, "Ice doesn't do well with apparating. Is there any other way we could get to Diagon Ally?"

Hermione nodded. "We could take the floo but I don't know how well she'll react to that either."

"Well, you never know until you try. You go first to show me how and then I'll have a talk with Ice and tell her that it's okay and that it won't be bad. So you might have to wait a moment or two before we come through." I told Hermione. I really hoped that Ice would be okay with this form of travel because I don't that muggle transportation would be very convenient in the wizarding world.

"Okay." Hermione said with a nod. She walked over to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of the green powder from the box beside it. She stepped in the fireplace, said, "Diagon Alley" and threw the powder down. Green flames erupted and when they went down Hermione was gone.

"That doesn't look too scary." I said to Ice who must've been listening to our conversation because she was now perched on my shoulder. "Just like I said before. This might seem a little scary but if you do anything you might end up hurting yourself or me." She nodded just like a human and then I did the same thing Hermione did. The next thing I knew I was standing in the middle of a busy street.