It was getting late, and most of the other Slytherins had left the commonroom. Now only Hermione and Thomas were left, watching the fire crackle and smoke from the comfort of black leather chairs.
In her week of living there, Hermione almost considered Slytherin home. She wondered if this was how the place had looked when Ron and Harry had gone undercover there in their second year. Harry… Ron…
Thomas looked up at a soft sound from the Gryffindor girl. She was crying now. "What's wrong?" he asked, surprisingly gently.
"I just... I miss my friends so much... I was going to see them tomorrow... We had a whole school year ahead of us, and now... Now I'm further away from them than I've ever been in my life, I don't even know WHERE, and I just feel... alone." she stopped, shocked that she had said all that to the boy she had met only a few days ago.
"I feel alone very much of the time, Hermione," he said quietly. "Alone among these Slytherins, I mean. I understand so much more than any of them ever could..."
She had no idea why, but she felt the need to comfort him. "I'm a bit of a bookworm, actually, so I've learned a lot of things most others in my year haven't. Especially Ron... Poor Ron, I've always had to help him with his essays..." She smiled sadly. "I wonder what he'll do without my help..."
"You must know far more than I do, being from the future as you are." It was difficult for Thomas to admit that, she could tell, and for some reason felt grateful. "What new things have they discovered then?"
"Well, I don't know what's been discovered here, exactly, or... now, I suppose. But I think the discovery of the Twelve Uses of Dragons' Blood was fairly recent..."
Listening to her tell of a time he may not even live to- he didn't know when she had come from, or even how she had done it- Thomas found himself smiling. He didn't know why, or when he had even started smiling, but he knew that he didn't want to stop.
And suddenly, Hermione Granger didn't feel quite so alone anymore.
there's the fourth chappie done! don't forget to R&R!