Hermione had been shaking with a mix of nerves and anxiety when the Weasley's had returned from their shopping trip from Diagon Alley. While Mrs. Weasley's mood had seemed to brighten with getting a bit of fresh air, Hermione had found herself in the place she had previously been in and paced the entire house in a fit as butterflies clouded her entire stomach. If Harry wasn't to be cleared, or if they found him guilty for something that wasn't his fault, it put him at even greater risk than he already was…

Hermione had nearly fainted from relief when Harry had re-entered the kitchen with a beaming Mr. Weasley, though there was a glimmer of strained worry behind his smile. At the time, Hermione didn't pay it much attention and was more focused on the fact her best friend could return to Hogwarts rather than return to his everyday life at the Dursley's. She and Ron had both nearly squeezed the life out of him with their hugs, and for all it was worth, Harry didn't seem to mind too much.

A few days had passed since then, and as usual, Hermione found herself up in her room reading through one of the books she had brought as entertainment. Given she had already read it three times, the plot twists didn't do much for her now and she found her boredom starting to take over.

A pop from beside her bed caught her attention and she looked over the edge to see Kreacher standing hunched over with a scowl across his face.

"Another letter for the Mudblood," he croaked, passing it up when she stuck her hand out. He had been instructed by Sirius to be just as polite and serving with their guests (especially Hermione) as he was with the Black family. But seeing as the house elf didn't pride himself too much on Sirius' approval, the elf snapped a few comments whenever he could about the Mudblood and blood-traitor's staying in his Mistress' home. Hermione had gotten used to it by now and thanked the elf with a small smile. Kreacher returned it with a glare and disappeared with a snap.

Flipping over the letter, Hermione expected Draco's handwriting to stand out in its silver lettering as usual. Instead, her eyes widened at the printed green letters across the envelope, addressed from Hogwarts itself.

Hermione nearly tore the entire thing in two trying to open it. She barely recognized the small, crested metal falling onto her lap as she read over the letter. As she took its words in one by one, her eyes grew wider, as did her smile. By the time she had finished it, Hermione was practically beaming as she picked the badge up. A large "P" was imprinted on the Gryffindor lion's crest, symbolizing the newly acclaimed roll.

Jumping up from her bed, Hermione nearly sprinted down the staircase, not bothering to acknowledge Walburga's cries of protest. Skipping the last two, Hermione ran towards the kitchen and threw the door open. The group of Weasley's and Harry all turned to look at her now wild hair and flushed cheeks.

"Have any of you received a - " She stopped herself mid sentence as she caught sight of a badge identical to hers in Harry's hand. She couldn't help but give a squeal of delight.

"Me too, Harry, me too!" she exclaimed, rushing towards the group. "I can't believe it!"

Before she continued her excitement, Harry's face fell from neutral into a frown as he shoved the badge into Ron's hand. "It's not mine; it's Ron's."

Hermione's smile fell as her mouth dropped slightly agape and her eyes widened. "Wait…what?"

"That's right, old Ronnie boy's finally got a big-boy badge," George teased, ruffling Ron's hair. Ron pushed it away with a scowl before turning to face Hermione again.

"Are…are you sure?" Hermione clarified carefully, a light blush staining her cheeks when Ron's expression turned defiant and a bit offended. "Not that there's anything wrong with that! I mean, well done, obviously, it's just that's quite - "

"Unexpected, shocking, not-thought-possible," Fred finished for her with a small smirk. Ron sent his brother a glare before turning the same look to Hermione when she didn't answer right away.

"No, not that's not it," she muttered, her eyes darting over to the stove that seemed very interesting at the moment. "He's done loads…and…stuff…."

Ginny snickered when Hermione couldn't finish her sentence, earning her a shove to the shoulder from her older brother. Harry remained silent as Mrs. Weasley suddenly burst into the kitchen with a slightly annoyed expression.

"What's all this racket down here about?" Mrs. Weasley asked, setting down the pile of fresh laundry she had brought into the kitchen with her.

"Brace yourself, Mum, I'd expect you to faint like you almost did with Percy," George exclaimed. "Check out what Ron got in the mail this morning."

Almost sheepishly now, Ron held up the badge for Mrs. Weasley to see. It took her a moment to take in exactly what it was that he was showing her, and her face contorted to shock before she released a squeal much like Hermione had done.

"Oh, Ron, I can't believe it!" she exclaimed, rushing around the table. "My little Ronnie is finally all grown up. I'm so proud of you, my boy, and just wait until your father hears about this! You ought to know what this means, maybe even Head Boy for the future, just like Bill and Percy! A celebration is certainly in order for having another prefect in the family!"

Mrs. Weasley continued her exuberant rant in between almost shattering Ron's bones with a death-defying hug and multiple kisses on the cheek. Ron scowled and struggled to pull away, but Mrs. Weasley wasn't having any of it. Hermione chuckled to herself as George and Fred imitated gagging noises from behind them, and Ginny was nearly doubling over with laughter.

The only one, she quickly noticed, that wasn't in on the fun was Harry.

Standing off to the side of the group surrounding Ron, Harry's expression remained completely flat as a few loose strands of hair fell in front of his eyes, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his pants. She couldn't tell whether they were clenched into fists, or if there was an ounce of pride he had for Ron.

Despite wanting to celebrate with the Weasley's over the victory of having another prefect in the family, Hermione couldn't help but slowly sneak away from the group as Harry slipped out of the kitchen door and headed for the stairs. Giving him a small head start, Hermione followed him out and heard the bedroom door shut.

Hermione released a sigh as she made her way to the second floor and towards Harry's door. She didn't bother knocking, knowing he wouldn't have wanted her to come in either way. Stepping in, she saw Harry on the other side of the room sorting through the assortment of clean robes Mrs. Weasley had given him earlier that morning on his bed.

He didn't bother to turn around.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione quietly shut the door behind her and took a step forward. Harry didn't stop his concentrated sorting when Hermione tentatively asked, "Harry? Are you alright?"

"Congratulations," he stated, his voice distant and cold. "You deserve it Hermione. Prefect, wonderful, woo hoo. Would you like a pat on the back or a new book to go with it?"

The second the words escaped his mouth, Hermione saw Harry's back stiffen and his movements pause. She herself felt the sting that went with them. She watched from the door as Harry released an aggravated sigh and went back to laying out the robes across his bed. This wasn't him, she knew that for a fact.

Taking slow and careful steps, Hermione came around to the other side of Harry's bed. "Thank you," she replied in a voice that was smaller than usual. "Would…would you like some help?"

"No, I got it. Thanks." Harry snapped the words and still didn't look up at her, but Hermione didn't need him to look at her to know he didn't mean them. Not waiting for him to protest, she leaned across and took up one of the thicker robes for the cooler winter months. She watched him as he paused to glance at her folding process before returning to his own pile.

"I'd say you don't have it, seeing as you're sorting your winter robes into your summer ones, and you sorted your ties into your pile of socks," Hermione commented with a bit of amusement. Harry stopped sorting to see if she was right, and his hands fell back to his sides when he realized she was. "Are you sure you wouldn't like some help?"

Harry gave a small nod that was barely there, but she swooped up the opportunity and took half of the mismatched clothes he had piled up. Splaying them out, she began folding them again one by one.

The two folded and sorted in silence, neither wanting to be the first to talk. Occasionally, Hermione glanced up to see Harry's cold expression had fallen away into a bit of regret, and beneath that, an overbearing weight of worry and stress. She was tempted to break the silence, but she knew it would all end for the better if he did so first.

When the two had finally finished neatly placing all of his socks in a stack, Harry released a heavy sigh and rubbed at his eyes beneath his crooked glasses. Fixing them back in place, Harry stared at the edge of the quilt across his bed spread.

"I'm sorry."

Hermione sank down onto the edge of the bed and forced him to meet her eyes. Gesturing with her head to the spot beside him, Harry reluctantly made his way around the bed and took the spot beside her. The moment he sat down, it seemed everything he had held back down in the kitchen and when he had snapped at her poured out at once in one deflating breath.

"I didn't mean any of that, Hermione," he mumbled. "I'm sorry."

"I know," she returned. She took a second before continuing. "I know for a fact that wasn't you a minute ago. If you need, you know you can talk to me about anything."

Harry nodded his head in understanding, but Hermione could see beneath the glasses that his eyes told a different story.

"Do you?" she asked. "Do you know that, Harry?"

"Yeah, I do," he whispered. Harry swallowed and looked down at the near rotting floorboards. "Just a bit hard to say something when everyone else thinks you're lying about it."

"I don't think you are," Hermione began gently. "I don't, and Ron doesn't, or the Weasley's, or Sirius, or Dumbledore -"

"Yeah, Dumbledore's certainly on my side now, is he?" Harry snapped, his frustration suddenly turning on her again. "Not telling me about the Order, not even acknowledging me at the hearing, giving away that stupid badge too somebdoy else even though I'm the one who's got us out of those dangerous situations more than Ron's ever done! And what, that suddenly makes him better than me? Like I haven't done just as much or even more than Ron ever has!"

Hermione remained silent through his rant, and she didn't say anything as she watched Harry's words come back to him again. Recounting each one, he looked like he might be sick. Or sick with himself. Hermione knew better that this frustration wasn't him. It wasn't the Harry she knew, and it wasn't the Harry she had come to love like family. This wasn't him, and he looked disgusted with himself for assuming she now thought of him as better than his friends.

"You don't mean that, do you?" Hermione clarified in a quiet voice. Harry shook his head as he buried his face in his hands and leaned forward on his elbows, letting them rest on his knees.

Gingerly letting her hand come to rest on his back, Harry flinched as if it had burned him. He let himself relax though when Hermione didn't move. She wasn't about to get up and walk out when she knew this wasn't Harry talking.

"I know you've been frustrated and worried lately, Harry," Hermione started carefully. "And I'm sorry I haven't been there for you sooner. But I know this isn't you, Harry. Ron's your best friend, and I'm sure Dumbledore had a good reason to give him that badge. You shouldn't try and beat yourself or Ron up over this. Ron's your best friend, and I know you don't mean those things when you say them."

"Again, I'm sorry I haven't realized sooner the toll all of this has taken on you lately, and I'm sorry everything's been kept so close on the radar. The Order is doing the best they can with protecting you, with protecting all of us, and Dumbledore's included with that. He must have a reason for all of this, and although we don't know what that is yet, he'll let us know on his own time. You just have to trust him, and to trust us."

Harry didn't respond right away as he lifted his head to look at her. She offered him a small smile when his bright green eyes looked up at her to find some truth to her words. He slowly nodded his head in agreement and rose back to his full height on the side of the bed.

"Why is it I found a friend that manages to say all the right things when I don't always want to hear them?" he asked, though a small, teasing grin made its way across his face. Hermione returned it and shrugged.

"I don't know, I guess you just got lucky," Hermione replied, moving her arm to wrap around Harry's side. Harry returned the movement and held her to his side in a hug. "But seriously, Harry, if you ever need to talk, I'll be here. Okay?"

Harry nodded against her and finally pulled back. His eyes trailed down to the badge sitting beside her leg, and his smile both flickered and widened. "To be honest, though, I knew you were going to get it. If they had given it to anyone else, I would have gone to McGonagall myself and told her off for giving it to anyone other than Hermione Granger."

Hermione snorted and shook her head. "Harry, you really are hilarious sometimes. We both know you would have gotten up to her desk and chickened out before you could tell her she was wrong. That would be the argument of the year: Potter vs. McGonagall, who will win?"

"I would forfeit before it even started," Harry chuckled as Hermione burst into laughter. The two shared a laugh together before each reclaimed their composures. Finally rising from the bed, Hermione looked behind Harry at their good work with every robe neatly smoothed and not a wrinkle in sight.

Looking around at the rest of the room, she spotted Hedwig nestled on the top of the wardrobe and a thought occurred to her.

"You wouldn't mind if I borrow Hedwig for a letter or two, would you?" she asked. "I'm sure my parents would like to know, and I've been meaning to write to them lately anyways."

"Sure thing," Harry exclaimed, calling Hedwig down from the wardrobe. She gave a satisfied hoot as she swooped down onto his arm and ruffled her feathers in delight at the opportunity to get out of the house again. Passing her over to Hermione, she gently stroked Hedwig's feathers as the owl simply gave her a calm but curious look.

"Thank you, Harry, she'll be back before you know it!" Hermione exclaimed, heading back towards the door before Harry called after her again.

"Who's the other letter for?"

"Sorry?"

"You said a letter or two," Harry explained. "Who's the other one for?"

"Oh, uh, just a friend," Hermione replied, giving him one last smile before she darted into the hall realizing she had responded a bit too quickly for her own liking.

Harry had started to raise a brow at her in slight suspicion, but he didn't comment or run after her for further information. He already knew who she was talking about, and he had already accepted a while back that she had previously befriended his enemy from school. The thought didn't sit well with him at first, and it still baffled him at times that the two had even made it past the truce. Still, he trusted Hermione, and with that came trusting her judgement.

The other notion he had on the situation was ridiculous, and she already made it clear what Draco Malfoy was to her.

Just a friend.

Hey y'all!

Summerwinds here again, and chapter 4 is here and ready for you guys! I'm sorry this chapter doesn't have much Dramione in it, but I feel like I also need to include the other relationships Hermione holds dear in this story. Don't worry, plenty of Dramione is to come, though!

I apologize for not updating as quickly as I had hoped! I had a huge test coming up and nearly all my available time went into studying for it, and that along with my activities started to cram my schedule and I didn't get a super lot of time to write which is why this chapter is a bit shorter. I may be able to update more over the holidays, but as this is also the time of the year to visit with family and friends, we'll just have to see where it goes!

Anyways, and as always, I hope all of you wonderful readers out there have an amazing morning, afternoon, evening, or night!

And Happy Holidays!

-Summerwinds