Disclaimer: I love Harry, sure I do, I don't own him, neither do you (if you're not JKR)! (Bad rhyme, if anyone didn't notice...)

Thanks to all my lovely reviewers; I love you all and you really make my day(s)!

Donroth – See? More is coming already! (Ok, you were supposed to clap your hands and celebrate...)

hikki116 – You stayed up past midnight to read my story? ::blushes:: I'm very flattered. Poor you, you're in school, I'm on summer holiday. ::does victory dance::

Goth Princess – Honestly, I think James is hot. If I was in Harry Potter and in the Marauders' year, I'd have a crush on him (well I kind of might have anyway ;-))!

Kinkythehouseelf – Megafreak doesn't write anything here cause she's so happy after having read your review that she is now dancing around in her room.

nyyfan916 – Aaaaaaa! Honestly, I couldn't help but scream with joy after having read your review. Very quietly, though, so that my family won't think I've gone mad.

Angel of Slytherin – Did it sound like Lily's avoiding her? I hadn't planned on that, but... ::shrugs:: Your reviews always make me so happy (although most reviews does... ::shrugs again::)!

sunni07 – That's exactly my opinion! JKR is too blind and also not creative enough to write a love story between Hermione and James. ::laughter:: Just kidding, she is truly very creative and un-blind (lol) cause otherwise she wouldn't have been able to write such a wonderful book series.

I have 25 people in my author alert. Is that much? Is that cool? I don't know, but I think it is. =)

Author's Note: I had a little debate with myself whether or not to give this an R-rating. I mean, the chapter is not bothering me, but on the other hand I don't get bothered by this sort of things... however, if anyone finds it... bothering, I apologize and please submit your opinion in a review.

Chapter 6 – Just a Memory

Even though she had fallen asleep very late that night, she woke up early, before any of the other girls. She wasn't hungry, but she felt like she was going nuts by lying awake in her bead any more, so she took a shower, got dressed and went down for breakfast. The Great Hall was almost empty, and the only Gryffindor students there were some younger students – Hermione guessed they might have been third years or something.

However, they were sitting in one edge of the table and since she felt she'd rather sit on her own, she walked over and sat down almost in the opposite edge of the long table. She poured up a glass of orange juice and sipped it slowly while disappearing into deep thoughts.

"Hey," someone suddenly said.

Hermione knew to whom the voice belonged, and his presence sent uncontrollable waves of warmth through her body. But she still looked up, only to get lost in James Potter's hazel eyes, as always when she looked at him.

"Hey," she said.

She didn't want him there because she needed to sort her emotions out – something that had appeared to be impossible when he was near her – but she didn't want him to leave. And it was to late now as well, since he had taken her 'hey' as an invitation.

"You're up awfully early," she said, only to fill in the uncomfortable silence with had fallen down.

"And so are you," he said and yawned. "But I couldn't sleep and I was hungry," he continued and filled his plate with bacon, eggs, sausages and god knows what. Meanwhile, Hermione had taken a muffin and was now nibbling at it, while James started to shove food into his mouth. "Is that all you're going to eat?" he asked.

"I'm not very hungry."

Another uncomfortable silence fell between them. Hermione felt tense, she had started to do that lately, but only when he was nearby. It was like there was some kind of electric field around him.

She had only eaten half her muffin, but suddenly she just couldn't get one single bit more down into her stomach. If she tried to eat, she'd throw up, and she certainly didn't want to do that – especially not in front of him.

She was too deep into her own thoughts to notice that he had stopped eating and was watching her curiously.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she muttered. "Tired."

"I wanted to say that... I really like you, Alyssa."

Hermione sighed inside, but was careful enough to not let a sigh slip out of her as well. Why did he have to go and make things complicated? If he hadn't liked her it hadn't mattered that she was so crazy about him!

"I don't know what you feel," he continued after having realized that she wasn't going to say anything. "Especially since you don't say anything..."

"Why does everything have to be so complicated?" she exclaimed.

"Should I take that as a no?"

"No! I mean... that's not a no. I'm a little off colour right now, that's all... I don't know what I feel, my feelings are all messed up because I feel things I shouldn't be feeling but I don't want to admit to myself that I really feel that and-"

"Breathe, Alyssa!"

She took a deep breath.

"However," she continued, this time somehow slower, "the thing is that I feel really strange when you're around and... I shouldn't like you but I do, although I haven't thoroughly admitted it to myself yet..."

"What's wrong with liking me?" he asked, sounding slightly offended.

"... I mean... I'll leave in December so this can end in nothing but a tragedy," she finished lamely.

He said nothing, probably not knowing how to respond to her somewhat cryptic answer. She stared down on the plate, where her half-eaten muffin still was lying, knowing that he was watching her closely.

"I'm finished, I'll go," she said and rose abruptly from the table.

"I'm finished too," he said and stood up as well.

She walked fast, trying to ignore him following her, but he kept up his walking speed as well.

In the entrance to the Great Hall, they met Lily.

"Hi, Alyssa," she said and smiled at Hermione, before noticing James. "Potter," she said, now suddenly sounding much less enthusiastic. "Up early today?"

"Yeah," he said simply.

"See you around, Lily," Hermione said and continued walking, James still chasing after her.

He hurried up on her side, grabbed her hand and forced her to stop. She carefully avoided looking him in the eyes, knowing that if she did so, she'd be lost for another fifteen minutes. But James started to walk, at a high speed, pulling Hermione with him.

"Stop it," she protested.

He couldn't have cared less about her lame protests and continued pulling her down the corridor, his walking speed going higher and higher before Hermione had to start running to not fall over. She stumbled after him up the stairs, puffing heavily after having half-sprinted several stairs up. James did not seem too tired though, but pulled her further down another corridor before stopping in front of a portrait of a knight, which Hermione recognized as the entrance to the Head Boy and Girl dormitory.

"Quaffle Passing," he said, the portrait swung open, he entered and she followed after.

"What are you do-"she said but interrupted herself.

They stood barely inches away, and Hermione felt like she'd gone crazy. She couldn't control herself, she couldn't focus, and all there was was a huge desire to have him, right here and right now. She had never felt like this, she had never known that there existed a feeling as strong as this. Over all, she didn't know that she could possibly feel like this.

If the ordinary, rationalized and logical Hermione had been there, the following scene would have looked different. But the ordinary, rationalized and logical Hermione seemed to have simply vanished out into emptiness. Instead there was a seventeen year old girl who was crazy in love, and just now stood on her tiptoe, kissing the boy like she didn't know she could kiss.

And he kissed her back, first gently like the evening before, but having her in his arms made him unable to control her emotions as well, and the kiss were soon deep and passionate. He slid her arms around her waist, and meanwhile, hers were wrapped around his neck, one of her hands doing a little detour up and messing up his hair even worse than it already was.

The world around didn't exist for Hermione. Neither did the fact that he was twenty-one years older than her, nor the little thing that he happened to be the father of his best friend and was dead in her normal life. In this very moment, they were simply two teenagers in love.

The passionate couple made their way through the room and fell down on the couch. One minute later, she was lying on top of him, eagerly unbuttoning his shirt, while he was struggling with her tie. Yet one minute later, she had gotten his shirt of, her tie was off and he just tore her shirt of as well, showing her black lace bra. His bare skin touching hers resulted in an explosion of emotions. She was in heaven.

A small breeze from the open window dragged her back to reality and she literally threw herself off him and the couch, collecting her shirt from the floor, taking it on and starting buttoning it again.

"Huh?" James said, confused by being dragged out of the wonderful dream so abruptly.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I..."

The main reason why she couldn't do this was that if she did, she would never be able to let go of him to Lily again. She'd have to keep it at another level.

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have... god, sorry, I couldn't control myself..." he said quickly, putting on his own shirt and buttoning it as well.

"It's not your fault," Hermione said. "And I... I want to, but still... I really want to, believe me I have never felt like this before, but... it's just that... this is not a good time."

Tears were burning in her eyes. She suited herself on the couch again, putting her shoes back on, when she suddenly burst out crying.

"Don't cry, Alyssa," he said, patting her awkwardly on the shoulder. "I'm so, so sorry, please don't hate me."

He was awaiting, and she could understand that since she was the one who had pulled the whole thing off. She therefore simply leaned into his arms, which also was the place where she'd rather be. He seemed to be relieved by her still wanting him to hold her, and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"It's not a good time, that's all," she said. "It's not that I don't want to."

He slid his hand up and down her arm, while she was shivering with pleasure. They remained in the same position, half-lying in the couch, for quite a while, before Hermione checked her watch and saw that classes started in fifteen minutes.

"Imagine Lily coming in," she said, chuckling to herself.

"Then she'd really have something to complain about," James said and grinned even wider than Hermione.

"What's up between you guys?"

He shrugged. "She's avoiding me. We had this fight..."

"I heard."

"... and since then, she's been keeping herself away from me. Quite nice, actually."

Hermione rolled her eyes and placed a quick kiss on his chin before exiting through the portrait hole. She hurried back to the common room to pick up her books. Was she imagining it, or was everyone staring? Whispering and pointing at her?

She decided not to care and hurried to her class in Ancient Runes instead, where she slid down on the seat next to Lily, who had saved her a seat as usual.

"You and Potter," Lily whispered. "I didn't believe it when they told me, but obviously...!"

"What?"

"You don't think you're invisible or something? People saw you yesterday."

"They did?" Hermione asked dumbly.

"Of course. Congratulations."

"Er... thanks... I guess."

So, the new romance became the talking point of the week, and practically every girl in the school threw jealous glances at Hermione, which she found very flattering. And James, on the other hand, had suddenly turned into the most perfect guy on earth. Funny, always good-looking, caring, sweet, you name it. She felt like she was in heaven.

She had always considered him being just a superficial handsome guy who could get any girl he wanted and knew about it, but she soon discovered a deeper side as well. Every night they used to go for a walk around the lake, talking about almost anything, or sometimes in silence when they felt that words weren't needed.

He had turned into a gentleman as well. Every evening, after their little walk, he always walked her back to her common room, even if he wasn't going there himself.

"I wish you were Head Girl," James said one evening when they were standing outside the portrait hole, holding each other's hands and not wanting to let go of each other. "Then I wouldn't have to be separate from you for so long."

"It's just a few hours," Hermione said, putting her head to one side and smiling.

"I still don't want to let go of you, Alyssa."

She still got a really strange feeling being called Alyssa. She yet had problems responding to that name.

"I'll see you at breakfast," she said, trying to loosen her hands from his.

"Till then," he began.

"I am," she continued, placing a quick kiss on his cheek.

".... forever yours," he finished, leaning in to give her a last kiss before he let go of her hands, after which she turned around, said the password and left through the now open portrait hole.

Hermione smiled dreamily and walked up the stairs to her dormitory. It was late; after their walk they had been standing outside the portrait hole for almost half an hour as well, talking, and now had all of her roommates gone to bed already.

As quietly as possible, Hermione changed into her pyjamas, brushed her teeth and her hair and went to bed.

Author's Note: Hello all my lovely peeps, now you're here at the end of another chapter. And I'll be gone for two weeks, vacation, so I won't be able to update. But two weeks pass fast, and then I'll come back, filled with ideas and inspiration and next chapter will be even better... or weirder. I actually know what to write in it and it sure will be... creative. ::laughter::

Tip of the Day: Okay, I'm going to start this 'Tip of the Day'-thing. Today I'm 'advertising' a movie, Heartbreakers with Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sigourney Weaver. Great movie.

However, you guys have a nice holiday, a nice week, a nice day or just a nice life and I miss you already,

Megafreak