The torches that hung on brackets flickered brightly in the darkness. Hermione's lone figure cast a long shadow as she emerged from the staircase onto the seventh-floor of Hogwarts.
Quietly, Hermione crept down the corridor as she took a familiar, though recently abandoned, pathway. It was an indecently late hour, but a desperation stirred within her.
From farther down the hall came an almost imperceptible yet entirely unmistakable thud.
Hermione darted behind a marble monument of Barnabas the Barmy. The sound had emanated from the concealed entrance to the Room of Requirement. In an instant, the bricks slid away to reveal a rather plain wooden door. Peering between Barnabus' legs, Hermione spotted a blur of blonde as it streaked out of the room, running down the corridor.
It could only be one person, Hermione thought. As she stood up, she made a mental note to not mention this to Harry. The last thing she wanted to do was heap more kindling atop the paranoia bonfire.
Approaching the space that had once more transformed into a blank wall, Hermione paced back and forth three times. She closed her eyes and focused. On the third turn, she heard a soft click.
In front of Hermione was a finely polished mahogany door. She turned the brass knob and entered. With a slight smile, she looked around the room. It was exactly to her specifications, just as she had hoped.
It was a small room, but cozy and circular. It was dome-shaped with a large stain-glass window on the ceiling. The window was lit by its occupants- stain-glass fish in oranges, yellows, and reds who continually swam and flickered in a lazy circle. A couch formed a large ring in the center of the room. At the nucleus of it all was a cauldron and a discreet black table with a silver tray. On the tray were a variety of ingredients in bowls and bottles.
Wordlessly, Hermione approached the cauldron as a disciple to an alter. She set down her rucksack, removing a very worn copy of Advanced Potion-Making. Flipping it to the required page, Hermione cursed loudly. The Half-Blood Prince was silent on the subject of the potion she wanted.
There was no annotation, not a single scrawl across the page that was entitled "The Draught of Peace".
"Once again confirming my theory that this Prince fellow was barking mad," Hermione muttered, tossing the nicked book onto the couch behind her.
In theory, however, there would be no need for any deviations to the potion. She had asked the Room of Requirement for the exact ingredients to the Draught of Peace as well as an understandable list of instructions.
Taking the bottle of powdered moonstone, Hermione poured it into the cauldron. The liquid inside immediately turned into a soft green just as Advanced Potion-Making promised.
An hour later, a frazzled yet satisfied Hermione emerged from the room, a vial of white liquid in hand.
The following morning, as the rest of the girls eventually filed out of the dormitory, Hermione reached into her rucksack and produced the vial. Taking a small sip, she closed her eyes and laid down. She pulled up her nightgown slightly and found her clitoris.
Immediately, Hermione felt herself being sluggishly tugged down. She took a deep breath and slowly circled her clitoris. Sliding perfectly into her mind danced several visions. Her and Ginny entwined behind a tree by the lake, moaning together in bed, being penetrated on a wintry night.
Already, Hermione was squirming, her chest rising and falling. She let out a soft moan. Her fingers traced up and down her soft pussy, brushing past the lips of her sex. Hermione looked down and before her was Daniella, her hair in magnificent blue curls that streamed down her back.
This vision of Daniella looked at her intensely, her tongue running along Hermione's creamy thighs as her fingers gripped her legs tightly.
"Let me take care of you," Daniella whispered softly, planting a kiss on Hermione's throbbing clitoris.
"Oh, Daniella," Hermione said with a shudder.
As Daniella stroked Hermione with her hot tongue, Hermione closed her eyes. She latched onto Daniella's soft curls.
"I've missed you so much," Hermione moaned.
"Don't close your eyes," Daniella warned between kisses and licks.
Hermione was indeed finding it more difficult to keep her eyes open. Her sex was splendidly warm, though, as if she were dripping honey. It was a languid, beautiful pleasure.
"Look at you," came Ginny's voice, hissing into Hermione's ears. Her voice was disembodied, seemingly coming from nowhere.
"Look at you lying there, you little whore," Ginny hissed again, "Do you like when Daniella licks your hot cunt?"
Daniella was completely naked, her soft womanly curves swaying from side to side as she pleasured Hermione.
"You like a good fucking, don't you, my kitten?" Ginny's voice purred.
"Hermione!" Luna suddenly cried, "Don't close your eyes!"
Suddenly, Luna was on top of Hermione. Daniella had vanished and in her place was Luna, who wore a translucent blue bra and thong.
"Come again?" Hermione asked, not in the least bit surprised to find Luna here in the Gryffindor house.
"You can't do this!" Luna cried, shaking Hermione, "You can't fall asleep like this!"
"What do you mean?" retorted Hermione in a slurred defense.
"She means that you took too much Draught of Peace, stupid," replied Yesenia, who was laying naked against Hermione.
"And can we please lose the nightgown? Since when did sexual fantasies ever involve clothing?"
Hermione nodded and stripped off her silky nightgown. Yesenia and Hermione were now naked, pressed together. Their breasts were soft against each other. Hermione examined the splash of freckles on Yesenia's face as her hands swept down the Ravenclaw's body.
The two met in a heated kiss, getting entangled. Yesenia moved her hips deeply into Hermione's, softly biting Hermione's bottom lip as she did so. Yesenia's pussy was wet and it turned on Hermione.
"Does my kitten like it when pretty girls touch her?" Ginny's voice asked once more.
Yesenia was lost in the crook of Hermione's neck, alternating between biting and sucking. Yesenia's passion for Hermione was needful and crazed. She brought her mouth to one of Hermione's generous breasts. Her tongue encircled it savagely, flicking up and down with heavy taps.
From the side of Hermione's bed came Luna, who was standing up as if she had been pushed off.
"Hermione! Please don't do this!" Luna pleaded, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Don't do what?" Yesenia asked as she penetrated Hermione with her recently achieved length.
"OH!" Hermione gasped.
"No! No! No!" Luna roared, trying to push Yesenia off, "She mustn't, Yesenia!"
"But look how much she likes it!" Yesenia cried, driving Hermione's hole with another lustful stroke.
Hermione's eyelids fluttered. She nodded in ecstasy.
"You take a pounding quite nicely, don't you, my 'Mione?" Ginny asked.
"Oh, she's getting so close, Luna. Isn't it nice to watch her?" Yesenia asked Luna as she closed her eyes, her hardness sliding smoothly in and out.
Hermione's breasts bounced and Yesenia grabbed one, throwing her head back in pleasure. Hermione drew up her legs so that they rested onto Yesenia's shoulders. This allowed for deeper penetration, which caused both girls to groan achingly.
"Oh Merlin! You feel incredible, Hermione!" Yesenia gasped.
"Oooh, please!" Hermione answered, enjoying being filled by Yesenia.
"Ron, WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?" Ginny's voice screamed.
Hermione opened an eye. In Yesenia's place there was Ron. He was deep inside her.
Hermione howled, using her feet to forcibly shove Ron off of her.
Ron fell off the bed. He re-emerged fully clothed, his face ashen in panic.
"Hermione?" Ron asked, "Hermione? Can you hear me?"
He was now shaking her shoulder hard, rattling her skull.
The dull, tugging feeling of the Draught was dissipating. Hermione looked at Ron, who was standing fixated beside her bed. In his hand, he clutched the white vial.
Hermione looked down at herself. She was still under her covers which had not been disturbed.
"Ron, it's impossible for boys to come up here! What are you even doing here?"
Ron threw his hands up, "Right, why don't we start with how'd you get up here?"
"You didn't answer my question," Hermione remarked coldly, bringing the covers up to her neck.
"And you haven't answered mine," Ron replied quietly, holding up the vial.
"Hermione," Ron continued in an uneasy tone, "you of all people should know what a dangerous potion Draught of Peace is if you don't brew it properly! Blimey, You-Know-Who is doing who knows what and here you are thinking you can just doze off, dreaming up fantastic sex with McLaggen."
"Out! Now!" Hermione yelled, "I don't care how you got up here, but-"
"So who was it?" Ron interrupted, "If it wasn't Cormac?"
Hermione raised an eyebrow, "How long have you been standing here watching me?"
"Was it Zacharias?"
"You are completely clueless, Ronald! Only a twat like you could have gone this long not knowing I've been shagging half the girls in this place!"
There was a long silence.
Ron stood, eyes bulging, a lump in his throat.
The silence continued.
"Girls?" Ron croaked, "Is that what you- I mean- are you-?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. She motioned for him to sit on the bed, which Ron complied with immediately.
"Ron," Hermione said after a sigh, "I don't know what I am, but what I do know is that it was a complete nightmare watching you snog Lavender."
"What? Was it 'cause you wanted to snog her?" Ron asked, flinching backwards.
"Are you out of your skull?" Hermione roared angrily, slamming her fist on the bed.
"Right, nevermind," Ron muttered understandingly, eyes avoiding her gaze.
Hermione ran her fingers through her hair. She slid her fingers to her temples and rubbed them sorely.
"Ron, you blurt out whatever comes first to your mind, even if it's hurtful or ignorant or downright piggish."
Ron knitted his eyebrows and opened his mouth, then closed it again. There was a heavy silence between them, as if the wall they had tried for so long to dismiss had been fortified by their avoidance.
"Look," Ron said in a serious tone, his voice barely above a whisper, "If it's the jokes I make, I swear I'll stop. Reckon I only did it 'cause I wanted a go with you but saw how the other blokes were lining up. Couldn't really see myself up against Krum or McLaggen."
Hermione held her breath. What Ron had just admitted had been stunningly clear to her for ages, but it still gave her pause. Could this moment of clarity justify anything? Thinking it over, Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head.
"No," she said.
"Hermione?" Ron asked in a small squeak, "Hermione, please, I didn't know that you-"
"You knew, Ronald Weasley!" she snapped fiercely, her fists balled, "And don't for a single moment try to tell me you did not."
She was crying now, but she didn't care. She wiped her running nose with the back of her hand.
"Tell me what I should do!" Ron cried, a hand pulling at his hair.
Hermione choked out a laugh, "Right, and what would I say? To not be so petty? To never make sexist remarks to me or your sister? To quit acting like you don't deserve anything just because you're too damned a coward to try? If I really have to tell you THOSE things, Ron, then it is far too late for you."
She looked into his eyes, her lips tight. He had been stunned, his face drained of color, tears streaking down his freckled face.
"Being in love with you has been the cruelest burden, Ron. I want you to leave, because you have thoroughly broken my heart."
Hermione brought her hand up to her face and began to sob in earnest.
His face contorted in agony, Ron shook his head. Without another word, he ran out of the dormitory, slamming the door closed. Hermione was left alone, having never cried so bitterly.
