Hermione sighed angrily and looked up from her book. He was in the library again, complete with gaggle of giggling girls. She met his dark eyes and a shiver shot down her spine. No one could say he wasn't handsome. Someone pulled a book from its shelf in the aisle beside her. She shut her own and pulled her Potions essay closer to her.

"Hello," Hermione jumped slightly at his voice. She looked at him with a small sigh. There was a snap as the person in the next aisle closed their book sharply. Hermione was beginning to wonder if the book-snapper was following her; often times when he came over to talk to her, someone dropped something or there was a small groan.

"That is it, all of you girls, out!" Madam Pince shrieked. His gaggle shuffled out, but he stood still, looking completely oblivious to what was happening behind him. There were kisses blown and various sighing and complaining. Still, the girls didn't dare to cross Madam Pince.

"Er, hello," Hermione said slowly. She wasn't entirely sure why he was talking to her. He'd made brief small talk with her before, complete with a few random compliments. Hermione didn't know what he was after, why he would waste time with her when there were much prettier girls that were always stalking him. Maybe, just maybe, he was a man of few words who wanted to go out with someone with a brain between their ears. Which definitely ruled out the majority of his following. But why would he ask her?

"I vas vundering if you... If you vanted to go to the Ball vit me," Viktor Krum said lowly. The person in the next aisle dropped their book on the floor.

"Oh, er, yes. I-I'll go with you," Hermione said, surprising both herself and Viktor with her answer. If she was completely honest, she wasn't entirely sure if anyone else that she wanted to go with would ask. She doubted Fred would, and Viktor was as close as she was going to get to a good date. He smiled brightly and took her hand, landing a kiss on it before taking a step back. Hermione's stomach fluttered, but she wasn't sure if it was a good flutter. It felt almost... guilty. She didn't really like Viktor, though he was very attractive and somewhat polite.

"I look forvard to it," Viktor said, "Herm-own-ninny."

Hermione winced, but before she could correct him, he left. She stared after him a long moment, her mind racing. She hadn't exactly expected to go to the Yule Ball with a Quidditch star. A Quidditch player, perhaps, but not a star. Hermione collected her things as quickly as possible and hefted her book bag over her shoulder. She glanced down the aisle to see who it was that would be spreading rumors about her now. She nearly dropped her bag.

"F-Fred, I-" Hermione stopped, staring at him. He looked awful for a second, his hands trembling and his ears red. Why was he in the library?! He never- he prided himself on the fact that he never came into the into the library. Hermione felt completely awful as it hit her; he'd come to ask her to the ball. And she'd just- "I'm so sorry. Oh my- Merlin, Fred, I'm-"

He met her eyes as the guilt compounded inside her. She would much rather go with him than Viktor. He picked up his book from the floor and handed it to her roughly.

"Congratulations on being the most envied girl in school," he said thickly, shoving past her.

"Fred-" Hermione said touching his elbow. "I didn't think you were going to-"

"Forget it," Fred stopped anyways. He closed his eyes, then looked back at her, "Tell him you can't... or that you changed your mind-"

"Fred, I can't do that to him-"

"He can't even say your name right!" Fred snapped suddenly. "He doesn't deserve you!"

"Oh? And I suppose you think that you do?" Hermione asked angrily.

"I don't think there's a soul on this planet who does but-" Fred paused, capturing her eyes.

Before another second passed, Fred had kissed her. Her book bag fell to the ground. It didn't last nearly long enough, before she had realized what had happened, Fred had stepped back.

"I shouldn't have done that," he said hastily, talking more to himself than to her.

"F-Fred-"

"Have a nice time at the Ball with Vicky," Fred managed weakly before sauntering away with his shoulders hunched. Hermione wanted to scream. That was not how her first kiss was supposed to go. He wasn't supposed to walk away like that. She was supposed to grab him by his tie before he could. She was supposed to kiss him back. She'd ruined it.

She glanced down at the book he had handed to her and picked it up. It was Hogwarts: a History. Hermione nearly started crying then. How did he know this was her favorite book? She flipped through the pages, inhaling deeply the smell of old books. She loved that smell. A slip of paper fell out, floating gently to the floor. She grabbed it and her book bag and hurried out of the library.

She leaned against the wall outside and unfolded the paper.

You. Yule Ball. Me. -F.W.

P.S. George reckons I should mention that I look striking in (and out) of dress robes.

Hermione laughed, wiping at her stupid tearful eyes. They had no business being so wet. Twenty seconds. All it would have taken him was twenty seconds. This was definitely his fault. She was going to go with Viktor and she was going to have a good time. Even though she knew she probably would have a better time with Fred...

She headed back to the Common Room by way of secret passage. She froze when she heard voices.

"-won't do that to the daft idiot," Fred was saying. "Merlin I'm so stupid, I should have just asked her! I kept waiting for her to leave-"

"Why not just-" George started.

"Watching her study... I mean she's pretty... You know, when she gets all focused," Fred answered. The guilt building in Hermione's stomach boiled over and she bolted from the passageway. Instead of finding the hall she was expecting, she saw only purple flame. She screamed as it pushed toward her, licking at her skin. She tore back through the passageway, but it dissolved in front of her.

"Fred, no!" Hermione screamed as he burst into purple flames and disappeared. She fell onto her knees as sobs wracked her body. Black crawled around her; she was soon surrounded by fire once more.

"Hermione!"

"Let me out!" She shrieked, running again at the fire. She was thrown back, "No, let me out! Please!"

~m~

"I have to meet Harry in the Three Broomsticks later," Hermione said calmly, grabbing a scarf and wrapping it around her neck.

"Why?" Fred asked with a frown.

"I'm finishing that book I took your page from," Hermione shrugged with a smile. Fred glanced around the Common Room and, seeing that they were truly alone, pulled aside her scarf and put his lips to her neck, "Fred!"

"You're so sexy when you blackmail people," Fred murmured against her skin.

"Stop that," Hermione laughed and pulled on her scarf.

"Who cares about Hogsmeade?" Fred whispered, "We could stay here-"

"Fred, you missed the part where I have things to do in the village," Hermione reminded him shortly.

"Fine," Fred sighed.

"Where's George?" Hermione asked.

"He's watching Quidditch practice then he's got a date with Ange," Fred said. "Apparently she gets frustrated and needs to... You know."

"George tells you too much," Hermione said, shaking her head. She didn't think she'd tell anyone if anything like that... No, that was a conversation that meant nothing good.

"Yes, he does," Fred agreed quickly. He took Hermione's hand and pulled her toward the portrait hole. "But only because I don't tell him anything about us."

"Fred, someone will see," Hermione said quietly, though she didn't pull away from him just yet. They didn't get to simply hold hands very often.

"It's a Hogsmeade day, if anyone asks, we went on a date, and I was too childish for you," Fred shrugged her concern off. Hermione smiled at him, because there was no way he'd remembered. She'd given him the George hint. He was walking past the bloody decorations. She honestly didn't care that much anyways, it wasn't a real holiday.

"Fred, what day is today?" Hermione asked her last chance hint. Fred paused, taking in his surroundings. Hermione stifled a laugh as he hastily resumed his walking.

"It is, obviously really, I'm surprised you didn't know, it's Valentine's Day, love," Fred cleared his throat. "Which is why everything is Umbridge pink. Obviously."

"Oh, obviously," Hermione bit her lip.

"But I, uh, don't believe in Valentine's Day," Fred continued. Hermione waited for his round of excuses. "See, if I have to use one day to make up for all the times I've been a shitty boyfriend, I'm a shitty boyfriend. I should make you feel appreciated every day, not on one day each year. And your birthday. And holidays. Point is, 'Mione, and I feel we've gotten a bit off track, Happy Valentine's Day, love, but I haven't got you anything 'cause I'm a Valentine's anesthetic."

"Aetheist," Hermione corrected. They'd reached their religion unit in Muggle Studies, and he'd spent two hours last night trying to prove he could read her sloppiest handwriting, which, after two hours, was a work in progress.

"Exactly."

"You forgot."

Yeah," Fred wrinkled his nose and grinned, "But you obviously don't care."

"Stop using that word," Hermione said.

"What word?"

"Obviously," Hermione said.

"What's obvious?" Fred feigned confusion and kissed the top of her head, "Honestly, love, you've gone a bit looney."

Hermione quieted and dropped his hand on relfex as they reached the packed Entrance Hall. People were slowly filing through into the cold.

"I'm too childish, remember?" Fred took her hand and pulled her down the steps, though he didn't look any less nervous for a change.

"And I'm too stuck up," Hermione supplied hastily.

They chatted quietly about this and that on their way down to the village. Fred explained a few ideas he'd had for the shop, including Sour Quills and Stick Quills, plays on Sugar Quills. Sour Quills were exactly what they sounded like, but they also turned your face green for a little while as an added bonus. Stick Quills glued themselves between the tongue and the roof of the mouth and stuck to the hand, so that effective communication, either by speaking or writing, was impossible. Fred's miming of this was particularly amusing.

"I just realized something," Fred said as he and Hermione entered Honeydukes.

"What?"

"This is our first date," Fred raised an eyebrow.

"And?" Hermione asked quietly, releasing him to browse through some sweets. "Oh, this one is new!"

"We've been together more than a year and I haven't taken you on a proper date," Fred said, standing close enough to Hermione that she could no longer focus. "I am a shitty boyfriend."

"You are not," Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed him away from her slightly. The door to the store opened as a few customers entered, blasting the couple with frigid air.

"That's the third time I've called myself your boyfriend, and you haven't corrected me yet," Fred whispered in her ear.

"Merlin, do they just pass the Mudblood around?" Theodor Nott said rather loudly. Beside him Blaise Zabini chuckled under his breath.

"Mind if I take a turn Weasley?" He asked.

Fred turned a dangerous shade of red. Hermione, acting as quickly as she could manage, grabbed him by the neck of his robes and shoved him past the Slytherins out of the street. She grabbed his wand, hers was out of her reach in her back, and hexed them as they passed. The laughing stopped immediately.

"How often-"

"Leave it," Hermione ordered, "That smug little Parkinson bitch puts them up to it."

"'Mione, has that happened before?!" Fred demanded, lowering his voice so as not to alarm the people passing him by to the way the world was crashing down around him. Fred pulled Hermione into the alleyway between two stores. She touched his face with a sigh.

"What's the point in knowing hexes if I don't get to use them every once in a while?" She asked quietly. "I can take care of myself."

"You shouldn't have to," Fred kissed her gently. It didn't feel quite so cold when he did that, so he did it several more times.

When Hermione opened her eyes, Fred was gone. She looked around the burning void, but he wasn't anywhere to be found. There was only fire, purple fire, and it was leaping always, higher and closer to her. It jumped onto her at one point, scalding her skin as it crawled from her hand to her elbow to her shoulder up to her head. Hermione arched her back and screamed as it consumed her.

~m~

"Did Ron ever tell you why he's scared of spiders?" Fred asked. They were sitting on the floor in Grimmauld Place; it was the day after Christmas, or the night after. Most everyone had gone to bed. While most the house looked dim and grey, Fred had started a fire upstairs that glowed bright pink, simply because he liked the way Hermione looked under the pink light. He held her feet in his lap while she read half his Christmas present to her. She looked at his voice and for a moment looked surprised that he was there.

"Hmm?" She asked, setting the book down and using the cover to mark her place. Fred had gotten her a book of important politcal position papers that had been drafted over the years. She had no idea where he had found it, but she was halfway through the goblin related section. It really was fascinating to read how people honestly believed something needed to change and were absolutely wrong about how they should go about changing. And the words they used, the language was so convincing. If she'd read this two-hundred years ago, she might have tried to go off and kill a load of goblins too. But she knew better.

"Never mind," Fred said, turning away from her to stare at the fire. Hermione frowned and moved her feet off him, sliding herself closer to him. She leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Happy Christmas," Hermione murmured. Fred repeated her words and kissed the top of her head softly. "What is it?"

"I gave Ron his fear of spiders," Fred admitted quietly, which Hermione already knew. She wasn't sure why he was thinking about it. "I don't even remember it, I don't understand how he could. I... I just remember getting mad. It just happened. Bill says it wasn't my fault, but that isn't how Percy tells it. The way Percy tells it, you'd think I was a Dark Wizard by the age of five."

"Percy is a prat," Hermione reminded him gently.

"Sometimes I- I think that Ron hates me," Fred mumbled, looking down at his hands.

"He's your brother," Hermione jumped away from Fred at the quiet words of Sirius. He stood in the door a moment longer before coming to sit on the floor beside Fred. Fred folded his legs and wrung his hands nervously. "Nice shirt, Hermione."

Hermione blushed. Fred had given her one of his older, smaller (but still far too large), Quidditch jerseys. She mumbled a thank you and stared at a pink spark that had managed to survive off the dust covering the dingy carpet.

"You may think you hate him, you may think he hates you," Sirius says quietly. "But Ron isn't Percy, and Percy will come around eventually, in his own way."

"How would you know?" Fred asked miserably, forgetting for a moment a crucial detail. "You don't have any brothers."

Hermione closed her eyes.

"I don't anymore," Sirius said quietly. Fred realized his mistake quickly enough. Hermione touched his arm, keeping him quiet and making sure he didn't make it any worse. "Reg was a Death Eater. Bit worse than your standard prat. When he tried to leave... He didn't last two days. Bastard was too proud to come to me for help. The Order could have saved him."

"Sirius," Hermione turned to see Remus standing in the door. "I need your help."

"With what?" Sirius asked, standing quickly.

"Your cousin," Remus said. The smile on his face told Hermione a rather strange thing.

"Oh!" Sirius ran out of the room, shutting the door behind him. His excited voice came through it easily, "You idiot!"

"I didn't know what to do!"

"Who are they on about?" Fred asked quietly.

"Tonks," Hermione grinned.

"Tonks?!" Fred laughed and pointed at the fire, "Pink Tonks?"

Hermione giggled and pulled herself closer to him again, "You think I could pull off pink hair?"

"I think you could pull off just about anything," Fred murmured. "They forgot to tell us to go to bed."

"Well, then we aren't breaking rules," Hermione kissed him on the cheek. Fred sighed and continued to stare at the fire. "Freddie, Ron doesn't hate you. I don't think anyone does."

"I know," Fred said, his smile growing as he turned to face her. "I was just thinking about how much you don't hate me."

"I don't hate you at all," Hermione said.

"I know," Fred kissed her.

"You two, bed!" Sirius stuck his head in the door and waited for them to get up, Fred cursing under his breath the whole way. Hermione looked back to the fire, flicking her wand to put it out. It only grew.

The explosion of purple fire shoved her backwards, past Fred and Sirius into the burning place.

"Make it stop!" Hermione begged. "Just make it stop!"

.o0O0o.

*literally crying right now* I'm getting all my feels out. I have zero time right now, about halfway through May we'll be good again but until then, it'll be slow.

I know there's a lot of confusion. I decided to italicize the stuff that happens in the In Between (which is my name for when Hermione is in between memories). I'm not happy with my explanation of the Fred/Ron Teddy/Spider incident, and I threw in some last minute Tonks/Remus stuff cause they're cute and why not. Also writing has been slow because I had to reread my stuff and some of the books to make sure I was sticking to real canon and my Fremione's canon (because I hate inaccuracies).

FredAndGeorgeForever: I added a little bit of that in, but not too much. Sorry :(

Jnk4621: Thank you, I tried to edit it to make it more understandable. The point is that everything in Hermione's mind is sort of blurring, so even she can hardly tell the difference between what has happened and what's happening in her head.

sdrlana21: Ooh, I can do embarrassed Fred next time, I swear, it's just late and I forgot.

gyspywitch19: Dude. Thanks.

Raven that flies at night: Magic. Dark, bad evil magic.

Just 1 Thought: I promise you, I will use those exact lines if you want. Plus, I already had this vision of Fred chasing Williams down and tackling him in the Great Hall, then dragging him out ('cause Williams isn't nearly as strong as Fred) and having a shouting match about it.

Female whovian: Sometimes there are side effects, by products. Emotions and heart stomping sort of fall into that category, but I'm glad you care! Just know that I won't add long term memory loss to the fall out of this, because a) not cannonical, and b) I would cry so much my laptop wouldn't survive the flood. To me, there's nothing worse than not remembering someone you love. Idk why...

Infernalbooks: Whenever she goes into a memory, all she's doing is reliving the memory until the magic gets into it and resets it.

Guest: Thank you!

animelover5107: Thank you, I added Christmas to this cause why not?

I'm a Nerd and Proud: The question of whether witches wear bras was asked. So I spent WAY TO MUCH FREAKING TIME wondering; do witches wear bras? Do pure-bloods, like Mrs. Weasley not, while half-bloods do? Do Muggleborns wear bras at Hogwarts or is there a Wizarding garment that they can wear instead? Do guys have the whole boxers v. briefs thing going on? Is there a bra shop in Diagon Alley? Do witches have access to neglige, or is that not a thing in the Wizarding world? WHY HASN'T JK ROWLING WRITTEN A BOOK ABOUT WITCHES' BRAS?! WHY AM I STILL THINKING ABOUT THIS? DOES IT EVER END? WHERE ARE THE ANSWERS? GOOGLE DOESN'T HAVE THEM!