A.N.: Hey guys, what's up? So first off, as always, time to answer your reviews.

To Arnold DeVillena: I figured all of that would start now, so that way by the time it comes for the end of Third Year, those feelings will have developed. Still trying to decide if I want them to get together when they go back in time with the Time Turner or after the First Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

To Cheryl: I thought that I would introduce Luna now, so that way I can elaborate more on her character. I thought that she should have had a more major role than what she had in the books, and now is my chance to make that so.

To ElizabethAnneSoph: I have always liked the stories where the Grangers were nice to Harry, so I thought that there was no other way that I could portray them in this one.

To Red Phoenix Dragon: I do not think that I will go so far as to have Lucius attack Hermione's parents right now. You have to think, this is a time when Voldemort related events were at the bare minimum. They do not start to pick up for another two years in the series. As to Harry and Hermione seeing Thestrals, they never actually saw Quirrell die. Harry hit him with a stunner, then was assaulted by Voldemort's soul. Neither children actually saw the death of their DADA professor. You will find out who was in the flying car soon enough.

To Riniko22: I think it was more of a wanting to stay with people that were familiar to her. She could have noticed, but decided that these newfound friends were better to be around than some boat ride across a lake.

To serenityselena: We will just have to see exactly what Dumbles has done and what he has done to get out of it.

To lisicarmela: Alright, I do not know if you read English, so I am going to do my best to translate into Spanish since that is what I read the review in. So here goes my attempt at a language I have not studied since I dropped it two years ago. Gracias por la revisión, espero que continúe disfrutando de la historia más en el futuro.

To Firemnwnb: I do not think she should have been on the boats, I think she should have been right where she was during the chapter. Normally, she would have been on the boats, but as I said earlier, friends are more important that a boat ride.

To Gime'SS, gabrieljuarezl, gisel, and Irmorena: Thanks for the reviews. Plenty of more chapters are on the way.

Now that those are done with, I will let you guys get to reading the chapter. So, feel free to leave a review, send a PM, and of course, enjoy. Until next time, OPKILLERFROST, out.

Once inside, the four friends followed all the other students to the Great Hall. That was, until Professor McGonagall noticed the Luna was a first year. They all got an earful for not following rules, and were lucky that term had not started yet, otherwise they would be losing a serious amount of points. Saying their good-byes, the Golden Trio found seats at the Gryffindor table and waited. That was when Harry saw something that he thought he would never see again. Dumbledore was at the Staff Table.

"How the bloody hell is he here? I thought that they arrested him?" Harry said

"Language, Harry. I agree, though. He was arrested in front of the whole Wizengamot. How did he get the charges dropped?" Hermione said

"Guys, this is Dumbledore. We should know by now that there are thing that he is able to keep from us." Neville said

Ten minutes later, the First Years walked in, Luna among them. They all sat and waited while they were sorted and, when it finally came to Luna's turn, all three Gryffindors turned to the front to pay attention to where she would end up. After what felt like forever, the hat yelled out its decision.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The three of them cheered while Luna made their way over and sat across next to Neville. The rest of the Sorting went by, and Harry noticed that Ron's little sister was sorted into Gryffindor. That was when Harry noticed something. Where was Ron? He should be at the Sorting with the rest of them, so why was he not? Harry got his answer when Professor Snape walked in and whispered into McGonagall's ear, and they both left in a hurry. After that, Professor Dumbledore stood up and declared the beginning of the feast. Everybody started to dig in, and Hermione noticed something different in Harry that she did not see the previous year. He was not eating as much. He also was not as scrawny. It seemed that just after one summer with the Grangers, he was able to stop looking like the sickly kid he used to be and start looking a little healthier. She liked the way he looked now to how he looked then. Back then, he could have passed for a kid that lived on the street. Now he looked like he had a proper home and guardians. That was when she started to noticed other things about her best friend. For the first time, she noticed just how bright his green eyes were. Then there was the way that his raven colored hair just never seemed to lay flat. God, she could just stare at him all day. Wait, where are those thoughts coming from, Granger? He's your best friend! But he's so good looking. I just want to stare at him all day. Before she could stare at her best friend too long, Harry looked up, forcing her to look away. She would not get caught staring at her best friends. She would not have him thinking weirdly of her just because she suddenly started to get a crush on him. That was not going to happen.

Harry was staring at Hermione. Why was he suddenly seeing her in this whole new way? Why was he now noticing just how beautiful her chocolate brown eyes were, or how when the light hit her hair just the right way, it made her look like an angel? How was he not noticing this before now? Harry was scared what these new feelings meant for their friendship, but he kind of liked it. This feeling was something that Harry had never felt before, and Harry was not sure that he wanted it to go away. Before Hermione could notice his staring, he looked away, but kept stealing glances at her all throughout the rest of dinner. Once desert was finished, Dumbledore stood up and started to speak.

"Ahem- I have a few start of term announcements to make. First off, I would like to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart."

There was a large amount of clapping, particularly from the females in the room. It seemed that Hermione was the only one that was not interested in the fact that the man had been made a teacher.

"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students. Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has kindly asked me to remind you that there is no magic to be done in the hallways. Quidditch trials will be held during the second week of term. Any student who wishes to play for their house team should talk to Madam Hooch. That is all the announcements for now, but before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!"

That was how they all spent the next five minutes. The Weasley twins ended up singing the song in a tune that was pretty much the exact opposite from the previous year. While last year's song had been a funeral march, this year they sang to the tune of Metallica's "Battery". How they knew that was beyond anyone's guess. While they Weasleys were not horrible to muggles, they were still purebloods who almost never came into contact with the muggle world except for outside of the village not far from their home. Once the song was over, the prefects led everybody to bed. Hermione hugged Harry goodnight, and then the Golden Four split up, Hermione and Luna going to the Girl's Dorms and Harry and Neville going to the Boy's. When Neville and Harry got to the Second Year's room, they found Dean and Seamus talking to Ron excitedly. That was when Harry noticed for the first time that night that Ron had been missing all night.

"Hey, Ron. Where have you been?" Harry asked

"You mean you haven't heard?" Dean asked

"Heard what?" Neville asked confusedly

"Ron drove a flying car to school!" Seamus said

"That was you?" Harry asked

"Yep!" Ron said proudly

"You do realize you could have taken the train instead of flying a car into the Whomping Willow. I can't even imagine the trouble you must be in for doing that." Harry said

"All I have is a detention tomorrow. Technically term hadn't started yet, so I couldn't get in that much trouble for what I did. But you have to admit that it was really cool flying a car to school, right?"

"No, it was idiotic. What if you hadn't been able to find your way to the school? What if you had been seen by Muggles? Does you mum even know that you flew the car to school? Imagine what she'll think when she finds out what happened."

At this, Ron blushed and hung his head. "I didn't think about that. I just overheard you and Hermione telling Neville and Loony Lovegood that the barrier was clo-"

Ron didn't get to finish his sentence before Neville pushed him against the wall, his forearm against Ron's throat.

"What did you just call her?" Neville hissed

"L-Looney- Looney L-Lovegood!" Ron choked out

"NEVER call her 'Looney' again! DO YOU HEAR ME?!"

"Y-yes!"

Neville let go of Ron and stormed over to his bed before jumping on and pulling his curtains closed. Harry knew that he would find out why Neville had reacted like that, but that time was not now. For now, Harry was going to ignore Ron and get ready for bed. So that is exactly what he did.

0Oo.-

The next morning, Harry awoke to the sound of a large crack. He sat upright and pulled his glasses on, only to see Neville standing over Ron, who was on the floor below a cracked bed post.

"I thought I told you never to call her 'Looney' again." Neville said

"I didn't think that you would hear me!" Ron said

"I don't care if I'm not around. DON"T CALL HER 'LOONEY' EVER AGAIN!"

After that, Neville stormed out of the room. Harry didn't know where his friend was going, but he knew that he would catch up with him during their first class. As mad as Neville could get, he would never miss a class. Ignoring Ron's groaning from the floor, Harry got up and started to get ready for the day. Once he was showered, dressed, and had all of his school supplies, he left the room and started to head to the Common Room. At the bottom of the stairs, he could see Hermione waiting for him. Harry felt his stomach do a somersault.

Merlin she's beautiful.

Dude! That's your best friend!

Yeah, but look at those warm brown eyes.

You live with her during the summer!

Even better. Now I get to see her year round.

I'm losing this battle aren't I?

Yup.

Harry walked over to Hermione, who gave him a hug as soon as she reached him.

She's getting hug friendly, isn't she?

Don't think too much of it, she's just being friendly.

"Do you know what's wrong with Neville? He came storming down here, blew right past us, and left through the portrait hole. Luna went after him, but I don't know where they went." Hermione said

"Yeah, Ron kept calling Luna 'Looney Lovegood'. Do you know why?"

"Not a clue. That's the first time that I've ever heard Luna called that. Neville must have heard it before to have such a reaction to it."

"You're telling me. The guy blew up and started to yell at Ron, even threw him against his bed and broke it when he heard what Ron said. And that was after Neville pinned Ron against the wall and threatened him when Ron said it last night."

"Yes, well, we know that Ronald Weasley is not the brightest crayon in the box."

"Ain't that the truth."

Together, we walked from the Common Room down to the Great Hall, where Neville and Luna were already eating their breakfast, although Neville looked like he was still angry. When they sat down, neither Neville nor Luna said a word. Nobody spoke until after the morning post arrived. Right as Ron sat down, a bright red envelope fell into his bowl. He froze where he stood, not daring to move. Everybody started to look at him like he had just been handed a death sentence.

"Look it! Ron's got a Howler!" Seamus yelled

"What's a Howler?" Harry asked

"Usually, people hate it, but right now- right now it is the best thing on the face of this planet. You're gonna get to see what Howlers do in a couple of seconds." Neville said

Sure enough, a second later, the envelope lifted itself out of the bowl and folded itself until it made the shape of a pair of lips.

"-STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU. YOU WAIT TILL I GE HOLD OF YOU. I DON'T' SUPPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE. LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME. WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU COULD HAVE DIED. ABSOLUTLEY DISGUSTED. YOUR FATHER IS FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK. IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME."

After that, the letter tore itself up, and Ron's face turned a deeper shade of red than his hair. Before anything else could happen, Professor McGonagall started to walk down the table, handing out schedules. After looking at theirs, the Second Years saw that they had double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Harry's day started to turn worse before they ever reached the greenhouses. Because of the fact that Ron decided that aviation was the best way to get to school, with the Whomping Willow as his landing strip, Professor Sprout had to put splints on some of the branches. Not only did that suck, but who else decided to help her than Gilderoy Lockhart?

"Harry! I've been wanting a word- you don't mind if he's a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?" Lockhart asked

Despite the fact that Professor Sprout looked like she did mind, Lockhart started to steer Harry away from the greenhouses.

"Harry. Harry, Harry, Harry. When I heard- well, of course, it was all my fault. Could have kicked myself. Don't know when I've been more shocked. Flying a car to Hogwarts! Well, of course, I knew at once why you'd done it. Stood out a mile. Harry, Harry, Harry." Lockhart said

"Professor, what are you talking about?"

"The car you crashed into the Whomping Willow. I knew that the Weasley boy was caught in it, but I knew that, being such good friends, he would take the fall for you. Harry, you need to learn to be more responsible."

"Professor, that was Ron Weasley, not me. He is the one that flew the car into the Whomping Willow. I don't know where you heard that I was in that car, but I took the Hogwarts Express to get to school. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get to Herbology."

Harry walked in right when the class began, so he was not technically late. Professor Sprout even gave him five points for being on time, just because of the fact that he blew of Lockhart. The rest of the class proceeded as normal, well, as normal as it can get in the wizarding world. They were potting Mandrakes that day, and Neville was the best of them all. The highlight of the class was when Ron passed out after seeing the Mandrakes for the first time. After the class, they washed the dirt off of them, and then headed to Transfiguration. Their task for the day was to turning beetles into buttons. This ended up turning into a contest between Harry and Hermione to see who could make more buttons. When the lunch bell rang, it turned out that Hermione had beaten Harry by one. They argued about it the whole way down to the Great Hall.

"Oh, come on! How can you say you are better when you beat me by one?" Harry said

"I still beat you, which means that I am better than you." Hermione said

"But it was by one. You got lucky that you got your first one done before I did!"

"It's not luck, it's skill. Now quit complaining and let's go eat lunch."

Harry tried to keep the appearance that he was annoyed, but it was impossible when she looked so cute. She was smiling and biting her lip, something she did when she knew she was being cheeky. Harry fell for her charm immediately and started to smile, following her into the Great Hall, where they planned to meet with Luna. Unfortunately, she was not there all throughout lunch. With nothing else to do in the Great Hall, they ate their lunch in near silence.

"What do we have this afternoon?" Neville asked Hermione when she pulled out her schedule

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed the schedule from her hand and looked at it. "Why do you have 'HP' written in hearts all around the page?" Neville asked

Hermione snatched her schedule back and stuffed it into her bag. "We have Defense Against the Dark Arts."

After that, they all got up and left for the room that just last year was filled with the smell of garlic and always had the curtains drawn. Now, the only thing that was from the previous year was a skeleton of a dragon that hung across the ceiling. When they stepped in, Lockhart was nowhere to be seen, and he did not show up until five minutes after the class began. He made a dramatic entrance from his office, coming down the stairs talking about himself. Then, he set pixies on them, without telling them how to deal with them. If it were not for the fact that Hermione had forced Harry to read his course books for the next year, he would have no idea how to deal with them. After the rest of the class ran from the chaos, he and Hermione stuck their wands in the air and yelled the incantation for the freezing charm. Once all of the pixies were put back into their cage, they all left the classroom and went back to the Common Room.

"Can you believe that man? How can he set pixies on a class, without knowing how to handle them? He's lucky you guys knew how to freeze them." Neville said

"I know! I wanted to have faith that he's a good teacher, judging by what he's done, but it seems like he doesn't know a single thing about teaching anybody about anything. How could Professor Dumbledore have hired him?" Hermione asked

"This isn't the only questionable thing that he's done. Remember where I lived for ten years of my life?" Harry said

"Touché."

They went into the Common Room and spent the rest of the day talking about the questionable things that Dumbledore had been up to over the years. The one that they talked about the most was about how he managed to get out of being convicted and managed to continue being headmaster.

"How do you think he managed it? I mean, I know that he's the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared, but he's still just a man. He should have been thrown in Azkaban for what he did. I mean, blackmailing Lupin, sending me to my mother's sister, he's done so many things that so many people would be arrested for, and yet he's able to stay at this school. How does he do it?" Harry said

"I don't know. He's hurt you so much, and he's just able to get away with it. I hate it, but there's no way to defeat him. Dumbledore just has too much power in the wizarding world to be brought down right now. Maybe in a few years we might be able to take him on, but what two twelve year olds with muggle parents have of standing up to the most powerful wizard alive?" Hermione said

"What about me? He's you guys are my friends too, and nobody messes with my friends and gets away with it. My grandmother is one of the most influential people in the Wizengamot. Well, one of the most influential besides Dumbledore. She'll find a way to take him on and beat anything they throw at her. She's one of the bravest people I know." Neville said

"Neville, she may be fierce, but she's not enough to beat Dumbledore. The man was able to be arrested, get out of it, and continue being the Chief Warlock of the freaking Wizengamot. How the bloody hell are we supposed to beat that?" Harry asked

"Harry! Language!" Hermione said

"Oh, come on. With all the things that I have said, and you're concerned about any profanities I might be saying? After badmouthing multiple professors, conspiring to break school rules, as well as nearly getting killed, you are concerned about profanities?"

"Yes. The way someone speaks says a lot about someone's character. You shouldn't curse."

Harry and Neville just stared at her for a minute before both just thought that they should just accept the fact that Hermione still cared about a lot of things that nobody else really gave a crap about. That was just the way things were.

"But still, Dumbledore is untouchable right now. The Minister still relies on him too much to want to put him in Azkaban. As long as the minister relies on him for advice, then Dumbledore will never be arrested and brought to justice. The only way that Dumbledore will be brought off of his pedestal is if the Minister somehow lost his faith in him, and I don't see that happening anytime soon. So we're crap out of luck." Harry said

"Yeah, I guess we are." Neville said "Hey, has anyone seen Luna?"

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her since this morning. She wasn't at lunch. Where do you think she is?" Hermione asked

"I don't know. Can you go check the girl's dorms?" Harry asked

"Yeah."

And so they waited for a couple of minutes while Hermione went to check for Luna in her room. When she came back, she had a confused look on her face.

"What's up?" Harry asked

"Luna wasn't there, but the other first years acted like they knew exactly where she was, the way they were giggling when I asked about her." She said

"Well, I guess the only way that we'll know where she went when she comes back to the Common Room." Neville said

As if some Fate was listening, Luna came back into the Common Room. The only problem was, she was missing most of her uniform and she was crying. Immediately, everybody in the Common Room started laughing. Neville ran forward and gave her his cloak to cover her up, looking at everybody else around him.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?! YOU TAKE JOY IN SEEING SOMEONE TOTALLY HUMILIATED AND FORCED TO TEARS?! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!" Neville screamed, leading her up to the boy's dorms

Harry and Hermione shared a look, and silently decided that they should just leave Neville and Luna alone for now. Neville was hot-headed when it came to that girl, and it would probably be best if they didn't do anything to aggravate him right now. Already, they knew that it was best not to get between Neville and Luna when he was pissed off. Unknown to them, everybody did the same to Harry and Hermione when they were pissed off.