Chapter 1

"Well you know your problem, Harry?" Hermione said, scathingly. Her eyes were flaming and you could almost feel the heat rising from her as she shook with suppressed anger. Harry stared back at her, the same anger emitting from him.
"What's that?" he spat.
"You just don't understand that there are consequences for your actions. You never think, and you're - well, you're an idiot." She finished lamely. Harry was letting out some of the anger he had been bottling up for a long time, and he didn't care how much he hurt Hermione now. What she did was totally unfair.
"Oh, and I suppose you never do anything wrong!" Harry retorted spitefully.
"Perfect-Miss-Granger, never puts a toe out of line and always messes up her friends' lives! Give it a rest, Hermione, you've done enough damage already!" Hermione looked knocked back for a moment, but then glared at Harry, closed to tears.
"If I hadn't told McGonagall, then you would be in serious trouble -"
"I am in serious trouble!" Harry yelled, enraged. Hermione stood forward, and straightened up.
"You would have been expelled, you know Malfoy's father, it would have been the biggest mistake you ever made -"
"Making friends with you was the biggest mistake I ever made!" Harry snarled, but as soon as he had said it, he wished he hadn't. Hermione's eyes widened a little, she clapped a hand to her mouth and her eyes filled with tears. She had never looked more hurt. She grabbed her bag and as she ran, books fell out but she didn't stop to pick them up; she just ran, without stopping, all the way to the girls dormitories.
Harry looked around. The common room seemed deserted, nobody was around and the only sound he heard was the soft crackling of the fire. He slumped into Hermione's usual chair and buried his face in his hands.
"That was mean, Harry." Said a quiet voice from behind him. He looked up and saw Ron standing a few feet from him. He was sure no one had been in there.
"Where'd you come from?" asked Harry in a surprised voice. Ron pointed at the shadow by the portrait-hole, and then looked back at Harry.
"Didn't want to interrupt." He said. Harry nodded, and returned his gaze to the fire, where the flames licked the walls of the fireplace. Ron sat down in the chair opposite Harry and sighed.
"So what happened?" Harry launched into the story of the evenings events. First, how he had met Malfoy in the Entrance Hall and how Malfoy had taunted him about Sirius, about Sirius' death. Then, how he, Harry, had been about to curse Malfoy when Hermione turned up with McGonagall and how Hermione had told her that Harry had been about to do something stupid. And finally, how he had been given a week's detention and fifty points had been taken from Gryffindor. Ron listened intently and didn't interrupt him.
"I mean, it's not the detentions or the points that bother me, it's her." Harry said, heatedly.
"She's supposed to be my friend, not a sneak that goes off and gets a teacher whenever I do anything wrong! Anyway, Malfoy would have deserved what he got!" Ron nodded.
"Yeah, he would have, stupid little git." He added. Harry stared into the flames. His anger at Malfoy had never been greater at that moment in the Entrance Hall. He would have blasted the slimy bit of scum into a thousand pieces if McGonagall hadn't turned up. How dare he talk about Sirius.How dare he mock him.
"But you didn't really mean what you said to Hermione, did you?" Ron asked timidly. Harry tore his eyes away from the flames that seemed to reflect his anger perfectly, and looked at Ron. His face slackened.
"Of course I didn't. Its just she.well - she just goes a bit too far sometimes." Ron let out a long groan.
"Harry, mate, don't I know it." He clapped Harry on the shoulder, and got up. Harry got up too, smiling weakly. They made their way over to the staircase and up to the boy's dormitories. And as Harry got into bed, Ron asked,
"So, are you going to say sorry in the morning?" Harry fell back onto his pillows.
"Yeah, I suppose. Reckon she'll forgive me?" Ron yawned and pulled back his hangings.
"No doubt about it." A few minutes later, Harry heard Ron's snoring. If only he could fall asleep so easily. He knew why he couldn't sleep. Sirius. Malfoy's words rang through his head:
"My father told me all about it, Potter, all about your godfather. If only you hadn't been such an idiot, maybe the ugly brute would still be alive!" and then: "Do you miss him, Potter? Wasn't much of a fighter was he? No one else died, just Black and a couple of golden statues."
Malfoy was half right. If it hadn't been for Harry, Sirius would still be alive. Harry buried his face in his pillow, smothering the cry of rage and helplessness he wanted to scream. He turned over and stared into the darkness; a face appeared there, Sirius' face, smiling at him. Harry stared at the face until it was no more than a blur, then he wiped his face on the sheets.

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