A/N: Hermione bashing in this chapter. You have been warned. Also, this one is kinda short… I didn't want to add on at the end because it didn't really flow. I hope you enjoy anyway! Review!

Chapter 34: Insight

Luna's words echoed in my head for the rest of the day. True, Hermione had been acting odd, but until Luna mentioned it, I'd just written it off as typical girl behavior. I mean, it's not like I had any experience with that sort of thing. I'd always wondered what it would be like if Hermione wasn't my friend. I guess now I know.

The rest of the day was spent sneaking covert looks over Granger's way to see if I could pick out any unusual behavior. While there wasn't anything too noticeable, I had to admit, she was acting pretty strange. It wasn't like Hermione Granger to glare at anyone who's last name wasn't Malfoy, but there she was sending serious daggers in Lavender's direction. Hmmm… suspicious.

"Hey, Granger." I said, sitting next to her on the couch, "You didn't pick up any stray diaries did you?"

She glared at me and stormed away.

"Does that mean 'no'?" I called after her.

I heard a door slam somewhere.

"Well… so much for that idea."

Lavender bounced over and sat down next to me. "I thought she'd never leave! What's with her, anyway?"

"I don't know." I answered truthfully, "I was going to ask you the same thing. Has she been like that since the feast?"

"You mean short-tempered, stuck-up, and self-righteous?"

"Umm…"

"She's been like that since first year Harry, where've you been?"

"Has she?" I wondered, more to myself than to Lavender.

"You really haven't noticed?" she replied, amazed. "Wow. Harry, Hermione Granger is the single most stuck-up, condescending, holier-than-thou prat in the entire school. It's worse than Malfoy the way she looks down her nose at all of us, clinging to her books like they're the only things worthy of her attention. She thinks she's so much better than the rest of us! She's always puffing out her chest and sticking her hand in the air when one of the professors asks a question! And Merlin forbid that they call on someone else – she gets all offended and shoots off the answer before anyone else can say anything!"

"Granger… she's just… really enthusiastic about learning, that's all." I said in her defense.

"She's an attention whore and you know it. She's like a puppy– a pat on the head and a 'good Hermione' will make her day, and she can't stand it when people pay more attention to someone else. That's why she doesn't like Malfoy – he doesn't think she's worthy of anything except maybe his contempt. It's why she doesn't like Ron; it's why she doesn't like you. Neither of you are particularly impressed with a girl that can't do anything except recite verbatim from a textbook."

"Well… who would be? It's not that hard – anyone could do it."

"Exactly. Anyone could do it. But the teachers just shower her with recognition and praise for doing what anyone could do, and she expects the rest of us to do the same. She is so infuriating!"

"Who is?" Neville asked, settling down on the other side of me.

"Hermione Granger, that's who!" Lavender answered.

"Yeah, she is pretty annoying." He agreed, nodding, "But I bet you'd be annoying too if you didn't have anything but books to keep you company."

"That's her fault. We invite her to hang out with us and she just looks down her nose and says that she's got better things to do. There's only so many times a person will take 'no' for an answer before they just give up."

I sighed. "True… maybe she should have gone to Ravenclaw. She'd probably have a better time there."

"She was supposed to. She talked the Hat out of it."

I stared at Lavender. "Seriously?"

She rolled her eyes. "You didn't really think that she belonged here, did you? She asked to be sorted into Gryffindor."

"Why?" Neville asked, just as confused as I was.

"Because she wanted to be the girlfriend of the Boy-Who-Lived, that's why. Clearly things didn't go the way she planned."

"I thought she liked Ron…" I mused.

"If she does she'd better watch out – I hear Lovegood's not one you want to cross."

We found out the next day how right Lavender was.