A/N: Woo! I'd like to thank the wonderful seven people who reviewed the first chapter! I was actually really nervous that people wouldn't like the story, but they were all very positive! Thank you!

Elvyn-Light: Here's the second chapter. Where's my muffin? ;-)

Mariana: Yes, tacos are the best thing in the world. But quesadillas are a very close second.

Chapter 2

"Hermione…"

Hermione looked up and down the corridor to where she heard her name. Her eyes were red and puffy and it was hard for her to see. She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting there crying, but she knew she must have fallen asleep

"Hermione?" the voice called again.

The owner of the voice had gotten closer and Hermione could now see a familiar head of red hair jogging towards her.

"Hermione, I'm so sorry!" Ginny exclaimed as she knelt to the ground and hugged Hermione tightly. She hugged her back and slowly began to cry again. Ginny made soft, calming noises and rubbed her hand up and down Hermione's back trying to sooth her.

Ginny couldn't help but feel like part of this was her fault. It had been her brother…her arrogant, pig of a brother that had caused all this. She knew her brother could be stupid, but this was utterly mind-blowing. How could he sink so low?

"Hermione, you know I have several brothers and I certainly wouldn't mind killing a particular one off for you," Ginny joked.

Hermione sniffled and laughed. She pulled away, wiping her eyes and looking at her friend. "Thanks Ginny…"

"Anytime. Hey, I bet you're hungry and dinner's about to start. You wanna head down to the Great Hall?"

"Oh no, I couldn't," Hermione replied. "He'll be down there and I…"

To Hermione's surprise, Ginny laughed at this. "Don't worry about it Hermione. Ron's gonna be unable to make it to dinner tonight…"

Hermione stared at her. "Why?"

"Because he's in the hospital wing…he's a bit…" Ginny paused, a slight smirk upon her face. "How do I say this…ah…his brain is a bit fried…"

Hermione was very confused, but before she could ask anymore questions, Ginny had pulled her to her feet and was dragging her down to the Great Hall.

"Why won't you tell me exactly what happened?" Hermione asked as she and Ginny went down a narrow staircase.

"Because…I'd rather Harry tell you," Ginny replied.

"Harry? What does Harry have to do with this? What'd he do?"

Ginny remained silent, but a sly grin remained on her face. They finally reached the Great Hall and made their way over to where Harry was sitting, staring down at his plate and fiddling with his green beans.

"Hi Harry," Ginny said brightly taking the seat across from him.

Harry looked up to greet Ginny, but hesitated when he saw Hermione with her who had taken a seat next to Ginny. He wasn't sure if she was still upset with him from the library. Hermione smiled a bit at Harry and he took this as an "all clear" signal.

"Hey Ginny…Hermione…"

"Hey Harry. What'd you do to Ron?" she asked quickly.

Harry choked and looked at her, wide eyed. "Er…"

"Go ahead Harry! She wants to know all about it…" Ginny said encouragingly.

He looked at Ginny, then to Hermione and he couldn't help but let a small grin appear on his face. "Well, remember that time I blew my aunt up because I was angry?"

Hermione nodded her head. She became very anxious as a grim picture formed in her head. "Well, the same thing happened with Ron, except I didn't blow him up…"

Hermione's eyes widened. "Then…what happened?" she breathed. At this part, Ginny started laughing hysterically and nearly fell out of her seat. Harry looked at her and grinned even wider. Then he looked back at Hermione.

"The top of his head caught fire…" If it was at all possible, Ginny started laughing even harder and finally fell out of her seat. By now, they had half the table's attention. Hermione didn't say anything for a long time. Harry became slightly afraid. He wasn't sure if Hermione would appreciate him setting Ron on fire. But finally, after a tense, pregnant pause, Hermione burst out laughing. Harry finally exhaled a sigh of relief.

"You should have seen it!" Colin exclaimed. "It was blazing, flames ten feet high! Too bad I didn't have my camera with me…"

"But Harry, when did this happen?" Hermione asked, trying to contain the huge smile crossing her face.

"Er…after you left the library. I headed back to the common room, waiting for one of you to show up. Well, Ron finally did. We both said a few words and I guess I got too angry with him…" Harry said, trailing off at the end of his sentence and looking away. Hermione had noticed that he had turned a bit red.

"Well, I guess I'm gonna head back up to the common room," he said, getting up to leave the table.

"Wait! I'll go with you…" and Hermione got up as well and both of them walked out of the Great Hall.

They walked quietly for a while. Harry had his hands in his pockets and kept looking around everywhere except at Hermione. Hermione was looking down at her feet, thinking once again, about all the things that had happened. She thought about what Harry had done. The corners of her mouth twitched and a small smile appeared on her face. She knew Harry hadn't really meant to set Ron aflame, but it was still a very nice act of friendship.

"Thanks Harry."

Harry's wondering eyes came to a rest on Hermione as she spoke these two simple words. He was glad he could help, even if it was somewhat of an accident. "Ron's an idiot. He deserved what he got."

Hermione laughed, but it wasn't the usual laugh of mirth. It was a dry, bitter laugh. She was laughing at the unfairness of it all and why, in school, they never taught us what we needed to know…like how to deal with despair or someone breaking your heart. Harry, of course, recognized this immediately. He stopped walking and so did Hermione. He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her directly in the eye. She had never seen his eyes look so intense before.

"Hermione, Ron really is a fool for messing up like this and I certainly can't deny that. He was dating the smartest, most talented witch in Hogwarts and he ruined it by going off with some other girl who could never compare to you."

Hermione stood there, a bemused expression upon her face, while she let Harry's words sink in. He had let go of her and had resigned himself to looking down at the floor, finding his shoes especially interesting. He was surprised, but happy, when Hermione finally hugged him.

"Thanks Harry."

Harry wasn't sure what to say and decided to leave it that. He hugged her back, a bit more tightly than usual. His mind wondered about the future, the rest of the school year that is, and what else may happen to the trio. Would things ever be the same again? Or would things continue changing? What would things be like between him and Hermione? Realizing where his thoughts were going, he pulled away from Hermione quickly. He coughed and looked away nervously, mildly ashamed of himself. He chanced a glance at Hermione and noticed confusion in her eyes. Was that a hint of hurt he detected as well?

"Are you alright?" she asked.

Harry coughed again. "Yeah…I'm…I'm fine. Let's keep walking, shall we?" He turned and started walking down the corridor again. Hermione fell into step beside him.

Once again, there was silence between the two. They finally reached the portrait and Harry muttered the password, "Twiddledee." After they both entered the empty common room, Harry turned to Hermione who had walked in behind him.

"Hermione, I'm sorry, for everything that's happened," he said quietly.

"Don't be ridiculous Harry! None of this was your fault!"

Harry didn't know how to explain it. It did feel like it was his fault and he didn't know how to make her understand that. He looked down at the floor feeling insufficient. Hermione stepped towards him and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm going to bed Harry. Don't beat yourself up over this."

Hermione sighed and walked over to the staircase leading to the dormitories. Placing a hand on the railing, she turned and looked back at Harry.

"Goodnight Harry."

He looked up and turned around to see Hermione smiling at him at the bottom of the staircase. He smiled back.

"Goodnight Hermione."

Disclaimer: The phrase, "In school, they never taught us what we needed to know…like how to deal with despair or someone breaking your heart…" is from a song by Brand New called Seventy Times 7. It was perfect and I had to fit it in there. Check it out sometime.