Chapter 1
Hermione and Ron looked over at their best friend, who was sitting in an armchair, staring blankly at the roaring blazes. This was, as it became more evident, his weekly routine. He would sit there and stare at the fireplace at least once a week, trying to contemplate the aftermath of the Department of Mysteries. Harry had become somewhat depressed since the start of summer, and it was always Hermione that made him feel better about things. In fact, she made him feel so much better that they were now "officially" a dating couple. Ron had come across this shocking news when he walked in on them having a snogging session in his room back at the Burrow over the summer holidays. True, Ron had had a little thing going on for Hermione, but once he saw how happy they were together, he couldn't get angry with them. However, there were times when their snogging became a little inconvenient – Ron would look at them, feel too lonely, left out, and awkward, so he would always go for a walk to clear his mind and think of other attractive girls he could hunt. Back at the Burrow, it would be by the little creek near his backyard, but here at Hogwarts, it was always down by the Lake where there was absolute solitude.
Many times, he and Hermione would argue about the best way to go about cheering Harry up. Ron argues that leaving him alone is the best choice, while Hermione constantly repeats that talking to him about it will let him "reveal his true emotions". According to Ron, this is absolute rubbish. Their arguments would always, somehow, go off topic.
"Bah! You women always want to talk and cry! We MEN prefer to keep it to ourselves, to prevent us from future embarrassment!"
"Hah! I would hardly call YOU a man! You don't have a trace of facial hair, not even stubble on your face!"
"Now that's just insulting! I do so have stubble!"
"Yeah, where?"
"Right here! On my chin! See, SEE!?"
Now, looking at Hermione's concerned face, Ron realized that another one of these arguments was about to pop up.
"Oh, Ron! I'm really worried, should I go talk to him?"
He already knew the answer to prevent another speech on how revealing your feelings is good for your health. So, instead of telling her to leave Harry alone, he replied,
"You should, go talk to him, cheer him up."
She smiled at him, and walked over to the armchair in which Harry sat and perched herself upon the armrest. As he saw Harry rest his head into Hermione's lap, Ron stood up, ready to leave the common room. Just as he reached the common room doors, he turned around and saw Hermione mouth,
"Leaving already?"
[She sure has a very strong intuition for a girl], he thought, and nodded, before disappearing through the common room doors and out into the corridor.
Hermione and Ron looked over at their best friend, who was sitting in an armchair, staring blankly at the roaring blazes. This was, as it became more evident, his weekly routine. He would sit there and stare at the fireplace at least once a week, trying to contemplate the aftermath of the Department of Mysteries. Harry had become somewhat depressed since the start of summer, and it was always Hermione that made him feel better about things. In fact, she made him feel so much better that they were now "officially" a dating couple. Ron had come across this shocking news when he walked in on them having a snogging session in his room back at the Burrow over the summer holidays. True, Ron had had a little thing going on for Hermione, but once he saw how happy they were together, he couldn't get angry with them. However, there were times when their snogging became a little inconvenient – Ron would look at them, feel too lonely, left out, and awkward, so he would always go for a walk to clear his mind and think of other attractive girls he could hunt. Back at the Burrow, it would be by the little creek near his backyard, but here at Hogwarts, it was always down by the Lake where there was absolute solitude.
Many times, he and Hermione would argue about the best way to go about cheering Harry up. Ron argues that leaving him alone is the best choice, while Hermione constantly repeats that talking to him about it will let him "reveal his true emotions". According to Ron, this is absolute rubbish. Their arguments would always, somehow, go off topic.
"Bah! You women always want to talk and cry! We MEN prefer to keep it to ourselves, to prevent us from future embarrassment!"
"Hah! I would hardly call YOU a man! You don't have a trace of facial hair, not even stubble on your face!"
"Now that's just insulting! I do so have stubble!"
"Yeah, where?"
"Right here! On my chin! See, SEE!?"
Now, looking at Hermione's concerned face, Ron realized that another one of these arguments was about to pop up.
"Oh, Ron! I'm really worried, should I go talk to him?"
He already knew the answer to prevent another speech on how revealing your feelings is good for your health. So, instead of telling her to leave Harry alone, he replied,
"You should, go talk to him, cheer him up."
She smiled at him, and walked over to the armchair in which Harry sat and perched herself upon the armrest. As he saw Harry rest his head into Hermione's lap, Ron stood up, ready to leave the common room. Just as he reached the common room doors, he turned around and saw Hermione mouth,
"Leaving already?"
[She sure has a very strong intuition for a girl], he thought, and nodded, before disappearing through the common room doors and out into the corridor.