A/N: As always I do not own Harry Potter or the world created by J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. I only own this story that they are taking place in and any Original Characters created for the story. This chapter has been edited by my Beta Mionellsparklockineco and myself to ensure any spelling, gramar and other erros have been resolved and to provide better continuity and life to the chapter.
Hermione awoke bright and early as usual, and she sighed wishing that it was the weekend. She looked about at her dorm mates, who were all still asleep despite the fact that it was already five thirty in the morning. She knew that breakfast did not begin for another hour, so she decided to slip down to the Common Room for some quiet thinking by the fire.
As she quietly made her way down the stairs she let her mind wander over the events of the year thus far. It had been surprising when Harry had decided to switch classes. She was glad that he was giving up Divination, though she herself was still trying her hardest in the subject despite it's stupidity, or perhaps more importantly the teacher's inability to teach effectively without torturing her students by scaring them.
She shook her head to clear it of her disgruntling thoughts of Sybil Trelawney. She quietly sank into the couch in front of the fireplace, barely taking note to the fact that she was the only person awake thus far. She allowed her mind to turn to other matters as she settled down to think.
She had began to notice things over the last few days; Harry kept watching her, though she had always noticed that he would turn away if he thought that she was looking. Thinking of him made her smile softly, she had secretly liked him since first year, though she had always kept her feelings to herself. She doubted that he liked her, though sometimes his looks or just being close to him would send shivers down her spine.
Yesterday she had enjoyed being in his arms as they had walked along the lake. She had tested her theory that maybe he did like her, but she was still confused somewhat by his reactions. He had seemed distant, almost as if he was uncomfortable with how she had cuddled into him.
She sighed; what if he didn't reciprocate her feelings? She could easily see things turning awkward around them if she were to reveal her want for more than friendship, and he didn't feel that way for her. She had contemplated telling him for a while now, but her fear had always held her back.
A quiet sigh behind her made her realize that she was not alone. Turning to look over the back of the couch, she saw the very conundrum that she had just been contemplating walking toward her. She smiled up at him as he sank onto the couch beside her.
"Morning,'' she greeted, as he yawned before smiling back at her.
"Morning," he mumbled, pulling his bathrobe closer.
She pulled her own bathrobe more snugly over her nightgown and continued to watch him as he woke up. She was captivated again by him as she always was, it was so strange that they got along so well. Above all else she knew that she would always be his friend and that she could never jeopardize their friendship.
She allowed her gaze to trail up to his eyes and she saw that he was watching her again, an undiscernable string of emotions flowing across his face. She quickly allowed her eyes to stray away toward the fireplace before they found their way back to him.
"So, potions this morning," he said, as his own eyes quickly averted from hers.
"Ugh." She said; she hated having to go down to the dungeons and be tormented by the great, greasy bat, Snape.
Harry nodded his agreement as their conversation died off. She looked down at her hands now folded in her lap, though she could feel his eyes watching her. She curled up into herself as she pulled her feet up onto the couch.
She wished she could read minds, at least then she would finally know how he felt. She had read a little about Occlumency and Legilimency, but she was unsure how either of those powers really worked. She knew that Occlumency was the power of shielding one's mind from others, though from every description she had seen for Legilimency, it sounded not only hard for the caster but painful for the victim. She knew that she would never be able to forcefully enter Harry's mind, but being able to read the minds of those around them for any dangers could be helpful.
She sighed, "Well, I better go take a shower" she said, knowing that she needed to dress for the day and that a shower would give her time to calm down and organise her thoughts.
"See you later." He said, as she stood and headed back up to her dorm to gather her uniform for the day.
She was just entering the bathroom when she heard the sounds of someone showering in one of the stalls. She quickly claimed the stall next to her unknown neighbor, and slipped inside. She settled her clothes for the day into the locker where they would stay dry, and quickly undressed from her night clothes.
Turning the water on, she stood underneath the steady stream as she felt her body come alive with the heat. She slowly examined her thoughts on Harry again, letting her mind wander over how things could be with them.
She sighed and rested her head against the shower wall. She heard the tap in her neighbor's stall turn off and she heard the sounds of the other girl drying off. Realizing that she'd better hurry, she quickly washed and prepared to dry off and dress.
As she stepped out of the shower stall, she was surprised to find only a single person aside from herself in the bathroom. She was just walking across the bathroom on her way out, when the solo figure turned and smiled.
"Good morning Hermione," Parvati said, as she stowed her toiletry items back into her bag.
Hermione smiled and nodded in greeting, before slipping out the door and across to her dorm to finish putting away her clothes. As she entered the dorm, she was greeted to the sight of her roommates in various stages of wakefulness. She hid a smile as she crossed over and proceeded to pack her clothes into her trunk.
She was just standing to grab her bag and go, when she remembered that she needed to meet with Professor McGonagall that morning before breakfast. Putting a little extra speed into her step, she headed out of the room and down the stairs. She was halfway across the common room when Harry caught up to her.
"Breakfast?" He asked, keeping pace with her as she rocketed toward the portrait hole.
"I have to meet Professor McGonagall first." She said as they exited. "If you want to go on ahead, I will meet you in the Great Hall." She said, knowing full well that Professor McGonagall did not want even Harry or Ron to know about her timeturner.
"You sure?" He asked, as she looked at her watch to see the time. "I don't mind going with you, or even waiting outside the door if it's private."
She smiled, wanting so badly for him to know her secret - it was hard to hide anything from him. She nodded, "You go on, it will only be a few minutes."
He shrugged and replied, "Alright, I'll save you a seat."
She nodded and headed down the first floor corridor as he continued on down the stairs. She arrived at her destination nearly five minutes later, as the Professor was exiting her office.
A/N: Well I hope you all enjoy the new chapter. As I said above, I am sorry that it has been so long since the last update. I have had a lot of things going on in the last few months, but things are slowly going back to normal and I hope to be back on a normal basis now.
