Hello. This Holiday season was ridiculous. I quit. I would much rather be writing...

Thank you to all who Followed, Favorited and Reviewed last chapter. SeverusSnape'sLove, Helen, pianomouse, aliceindeepdarkwonderland, and GinnyPotter6891; you all are wonderful. =)

Hermione's POV

The next night Hermione had tried to go down to dinner with the rest of the school, but the looks that were being thrown in Harry's direction were just too much for her to take. She grabbed Ron and Harry's arms after they had taken some hasty mouthfuls of food and lined their pockets with dinner rolls and the trio made their way back up to the common room.

It had been an… interesting day. Hermione slumped into one of the chairs by the roaring fire and sighed.

The day hadn't started off very well; it had been rainy and very grey. Double Charms and Double Transfiguration had almost made her head spin, even though she had been the only one to successfully perform the vanishing spell. Care for Magical Creatures had been quite enjoyable until Malfoy had sparked Harry's temper. And Herbology had been fine until Professor Sprout had added another essay to the growing pile of homework from the day.

"Bollocks… I'm going to have to leave soon for detention," Harry muttered as he checked his watch. He winced a little as he rubbed his scar.

Ron hadn't noticed the painful expression on his friend, but he sounded sympathetic at the reminder of the detention, "It's alright Harry, we'll just see you afterwards."

"Yes, maybe we can all try to get some of this homework done when you get back," Hermione offered him a encouraging smile as Harry handed off his school bag to her.

"Brilliant," he sounded dejected, but there was a hint of a smile on his face as he looked at Hermione, "something to look forward to."

After Harry had left, Ron made a comment about needing fresh air and bolted from the common room before Hermione could say a word.

She dragged all three of the school bags that she was now guardian of and took over one of the study tables. Hermione removed another Defense book from her tote and began reading about the importance of shield charms.

Hermione didn't even notice Fred approach her table until he quickly kissed the top of her head and loudly banged the neighboring chair as he sat down.

"More Defense?" the wizard asked as Hermione found a scrap of parchment to bookmark the page.

She nodded, "Of course. Only way I'm going to learn anything this year. Unless you want to teach me some dueling spells?"

Fred snorted, "Sorry, Granger. I'm alright at Defense, but I would definitely not be confidant enough to teach anyone. Charms maybe, Defense Against the Dark Arts… no."

"Well, are you and George going to be alright with your N.E.W.T.'s?" Hermione felt a bit of guilt and panic as she remembered that the fifth years weren't the only ones who had to worry about larger than normal amounts of homework and pressure from ministry tests.

"Don't worry about us; we'll be fine. No one expects us to do well on those anyway," Fred winked at her and began skimming through the Defense book.

Hermione felt her eyebrows furrow and she was a bit embarrassed by the aggravated edge she heard in her own voice, "I expect you to do well." She quickly adjusted her voice so it only sounded a bit annoyed now, "You and George are brilliant. And I know this year doesn't mean much to you both academically since you're hoping to open a shop... but I hope you will still take your classes seriously. And no matter how good you are at Charms, I'm sure you could still learn something from Professor Flitwick."

Fred's smile basically took over his entire face by the time Hermione had finished her rant, "You are very cute when you're cross."

"Oh Merlin…" Hermione felt her cheeks heat up immediately and she quickly tried to hide her face.

"Sorry, sorry… I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," Fred chuckled lightly as he scooted his chair closer to hers and wrapped an arm around her. "Thanks, Hermione… for thinking so highly of me and George."

Hermione pulled back slightly so that she could see Fred's cheery brown eyes. She noticed that his eyes had little golden flecks offsetting the light brown color that he and George shared. Hermione bowed her head a bit; she found herself unnecessarily shy, "Sorry if that was too forward. Harry and Ron complain I get too bossy at times."

"Well, I like that you're bossy; embrace it Granger." Fred leaned in a little closer, "I wouldn't have you any other way."

Hermione was surprised by how relaxed she suddenly felt. It might have been a little relief, but it was mostly happiness at the prospect of being accepted just as she was. She closed the short distance between them and pecked Fred right on the mouth.

"Come on Fred, stop snogging your girlfriend and get your arse over here," George sounded a little short as he spoke, but Hermione saw the small smile he quickly offered her before he turned on his twin. "We need to test out the Fainting Fancies and see if they affect everyone the same."

"How are you testing that?" Hermione asked, a bit afraid of the response.

Fred gave her a tight one armed hug before standing up and joining his brother, "Have to test them on others and see if they react the same. Don't worry, we enacted the same rule Hogwarts has for quidditch; no firsties. Everyone knows the risks, they're all being compensated and we have Lee and Katie standing by with healing spells and antidotes."

Hermione frowned.

"We wouldn't test them on other people if we didn't think they were safe. We just need to know that the products are strong enough to deliver the advertised result on everyone," Fred smiled, but Hermione noticed that he didn't add any witty comments to his explanation.

"You're sure?" She appreciated the seriousness approach he was using; Hermione felt calmer about the idea but was still a bit wary.

"Promise."

Uhg... I really think I will be taking the holidays off next year. They are far too stressful...

Please Follow, Favorite and Review!

***I could really use some reviews... even though the Fanfiction site is being a butt and not actually posting them.

Always,

Misha

Ps. Check out my other stories too! 'Thrown Back' and 'Penelope Jackson.' Or if you need more Hermione and Fred in your life, try out 'Begin Again,' which is now complete!