At the breakfast table, Harry sat with Hermione and Ron, picking at his eggs and toast unable to think of anything but the night before. He was shaking with anger so much that he could hardly keep hold of his knife. Ron looked at Harry and opened his mouth to talk, but just then the flutter of wings filled the room and owls poured in from the windows with satchels attached to their legs and letters clasped in their beaks.

Errol swooped down, wobbling in the air a few times before coming to a stop on its face in Harry's uneaten eggs, and lay motionless.

"Oh great. Embarrass me again, why don't you," Ron heaved, "stupid bird. Sorry about your breakfast, Harry," Ron tugged a note from Errol's beak and read it carefully.

The birds began to fly in at a much slower rate, and then stopped completley. Hermione noticed Hedwig was no where to be found and asked Harry if he'd seen her. "Oh, I'm sure she just wanted to stay out. She'll be back for sure in two days." Even Ron noticed the uneasy waver in Harry's voice.

"It must be time for Transfiguration class," Harry said quickly, changing the subject. Along with other students who were filing out of the dining hall, the three walked swiftly to their first class.

"Today is the day we turn spoons into goblets," Professor McGonagall stood at the head of the class, all students facing towards her with metal spoons laid carefully in front of them on their desks. She turned toward her desk, a metal spoon lying on it like the students' own. She raised her wand into the air and said sharply, "Fertha Verto!" and flicked her wrist towards the spoon.

The spoon seemed as if it had melted on the spot, and then suddenly, it molded itself into a perfect goblet. It shone briskly in the morning light, and everyone applauded. "Now," McGonagall started, "I'd like all of you to try that with your own spoon. Remember, 'Fertha Verto!'"

Harry turned to his spoon lying on the wood desk just in front of him. Still in a state of shock and fury, he raised his wand and said loudly, "Fertha Verto!" swinging his wand down. The spoon melted instantly, then turned itself, to Harry's surprize, into half a goblet and half a spoon.

Ron peered over at the distorted mess and scrunched his nose up, while other kids came to look at what Harry had accidentally created. Ron held up his mush of metal, "It's ok, I'm having trouble too. Here, let me help you fix it." Absentmindedly, Ron flicked his wand, and immediately it exploded into a thousand tiny pieces that scattered about the room.

Professor McGonagall strolled up to Harry's desk. "This is something you want to avoid at all costs," she pointed at Ron's mended wand angrily. She shot her head up and all students looked in the direction she was peering. Pushing her way through the crowd, she stopped to the right of Draco Malfoy's desk and picked up a goblet that looked similar to what Harry had done. "This is also a poor example of paying attention in class," she said, placing the goblet down. Draco frowned at her, pushing his eyebrows close together.

For the rest of the day, Harry wasn't able to concentrate, and it was showing in his schoolwork. In Potions class, he had mixed the wrong ingredients and ended up with a purple, bubbling potion, that's smell turned the whole class orange for the rest of the day. In Defense against the Dark Arts, they learned how to defend themselves from Grounders (small gofer type creatures that attack you from the ground) and Harry could not freeze them in ice for the life of him. All he wanted to do was talk to Ginny about what she had done, and Ron noticed something was up.

"Something bothering you, Harry?" Ron asked in Herbology while Professor Sprout lectured the class.

Harry paused, then shook his head.

After all their classes were over, Ron and Harry sat in the Gryffindor Common room playing Wizards Chess. Ron was beating Harry of course, but Harry still enjoyed himself.

Ginny walked cautiously towards her brother and crush, "Um.... may I - I play?" she said sheepishly. Ron shook his head.

"No way, we're in the middle of a game-"

"Ron?" Harry asked, "Would you mind if she played for a little? I'd like to talk to her about something." Looking disappointed, Ron sulked off to Fred and George who were drawing with markers on Percy's face, fast asleep in front of the hearth.

Ginny sat down across from Harry, looking frightened as usual. Harry opened his mouth about to speak, but then remembered. With him thinking about the incident and how he wanted to talk to Ginny, he hadn't thought about what he was going to say. "Um..." Harry thought aloud, "Well, you see, Ginny." She stared at him dreamily, making him lose his train of thought. "About last night..."

"What about it?" she asked, listening closely.

"Well.... I don't know what you were thinking, but you could have asked me before you did it."

Ginny cocked her head to the side, peering queerly at Harry, "What do you mean? I should have asked you before Neville's flask in Potions class cut me up? Harry, I don't think I could have-"

"No, no. Not that," Harry said, frustrated. "I mean... what you did in the middle of the night." He leaned in closer and quieted his speech. Ginny looked confused as ever.

"What did I do? I was sleeping the whole time."

Harry sighed, "Ginny, I don't want to have to spell it out to you. I know you did it. You know," he looked around to make sure no one was listening and whispered, "the - the kiss."

Ginny looked horrified.

"All I want to know is why you did it," Harry continued.

Her cheeks reddened and eyes widened. She blinked tears from her eyes, and suddenly burst from her chair, running to the girls' dormitory.

Ron excitedly walked over to the table and sat down, "Hey, Harry! Guess what?" Harry's attention swerved towards Ron. "We're all staying for the Christmas break! My parents said that they were going to be out of town, so we're going to stay here with you!"

Harry smiled, but deep down knew sadly that Ginny had stolen his first kiss.