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"The Porcelain Doll"
"Hermione, pass the chicken." Ron Weasley demanded of his best friend, looking ravenously at the platter of steaming food. Hermione rolled her eyes. Ron was always hungry.
"You should use your manners more, Ron." She said, as she passed the hot chicken to the red head on her right. He just nodded his content as he grabbed four chicken legs at once and instantly began gnawing at them.
"It's as if they haven't eaten in years!" Ginny Weasley, Ron's sister exclaimed from across the table. She was talking about Ron and Hermione's other best friend, Harry Potter. The two boys were eating food furiously. Ron was on his third helping of chicken, and Harry was on his second. The girls looked each other and rolled their eyes.
Soon, every plate was cleared and the platters had disappeared. Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, had said his opening remarks and dismissed them all to their dormitories. Hermione excused herself from her friends and ambled slowly through the castle, taking the long way to the Gryffindor Tower. She took time, reminiscing about when she was younger. The tall brunette was turning 16 years old in just a few weeks. She remembered back when she had been 4, and her grandfather had come over with a wrapped box with a big blue bow. Blue had always been her favorite color since then. A nice, warm, periwinkle blue. The box had been opened last of her presents, and it had been well worth the waiting for. Inside was a gorgeous porcelain doll with long, dark, eyelashes and soft, blushing, cheeks. Hermione still loved that doll.
Hermione sighed softly, remembering that she no longer had "dolly". The huggable doll had been lost the summer of her eighth year. It was a mystery as to where it had gone. She shook her head sadly and found herself at the portrait of the fat lady.
"Password?" The elegant woman inquired of her. Smiling smally, Hermione said the password and was let into the big common room of the Gryffindor Tower. The room was lit by fire and soft lanterns. The windows were wide open letting in small drafts of cool autumn air. The big, floppy, couches were filled with students talking and recollecting their summers. She noticed Harry and Ron over in the corner, brooding over a game of chess. She joined them and took a seat in a deep Garnet bean bag chair.
"Knight to E4." Ron said, a smile forming over his lips. "Checkmate." He smirked, sitting back and placing his arms behind his head in a boastful fashion. Harry looked confused. He couldn't figure out how Ron had beat him this time. He was still scratching his head when Hermione said,
"Boys, it's pretty late, I'm going to bed. Good night."
"Night Hermione." They said, as they set up for another game of chess. In the words of Harry,
"A Rematch." The female of the trio shook her head at their antics, and she climbed the winding stairs to the 6th year girls' dormitory.
She was the only one in the dorm at the time, so she changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. But not before brushing her teeth. Brushing her teeth had always been important. Her parents were dentists, of course. Hermione pulled out her diary, and a peacock feather quill with dark green ink. She saved her good quill and ink for her book. She entered the days happening's into her diary every evening. It was one of her favorite things to do. It always made her feel better.
Tonight 'Mione was writing about the train ride. It had been smooth, with no run ins with Malfoy or any other Slytherins. They had stayed in their part of the train, which was surprising. Hermione, Ron, and Harry had just talked about their summers, and they ate some candy. Ron had a bad lunch again, but they had split the pumpkin pasties and chocolate frogs with him. Harry had been especially nice, and he gave Ron a booger flavored Bertie Botts Bean. All in all it had been one of the better train ride years.
Hermione yawned sleepily as she placed the quill and ink in the bed side table and put the deep blue book under her pillow. But she didn't put it away before she retied the perfectly periwinkle blue ribbon around it. It had belonged to her doll.
"Hermione, are you awake?" A girls voice called softly into the room from the doorway. It was Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil.
"Hi girls, I was just about to go to sleep..." Hermione explained, trailing off.
"Oh! It's okay, we'll be quiet then." They said. Hermione smiled gratefully at them before turning over and turning out the lamp next to her four poster bed. She drew the curtains and snuggled down under the dark red covers. The bed was warm and perfect. The brunette fell asleep instantly, and dreams of sugarplum fairies filled her head.
The next morning came quickly, and Hermione was ready for it. She awoke early in the morning, to the chirping of the birds outside of the open window. The other girls of her year slept through them, but Hermione, the ever-light sleeper, could not. She had dressed in her Hogwarts Uniform and headed down to breakfast after brushing her teeth and grabbing her bag of books. When she reached the Great Hall she sat in her normal seat and found her schedule. It was filled to the brim with classes, as usual. The super-student nodded her approval of the schedule and placed it in her satchel. She piled some scrambled eggs and toast onto her plate and began to eat, taking a small swig of pumpkin juice ever few minutes.
Harry and Ron entered the Great Hall a few minutes later, looking very tired.
"How late did you boys stay up, anyway?" Hermione asked, without looking up. They rubbed their eyes and glared at her, before sitting down and grabbing some food for their rumbling stomachs. "Here are you schedules." She said, handing each of them crisp pieces of parchment. Ron glanced at his and threw it into his bag. Harry looked once and then twice.
"I can't believe I have to take Advanced Potions with the Slytherins!" He exclaimed angrily. "When will they quit putting us with them? How come the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs are always together?" Harry had a knack for doing terribly in potions when he was in front of his worst enemy, Draco Malfoy. He finished his breakfast quickly, with a 'don't talk to me' face on. After he was done, he stormed off back to the dorm to grab his books. Hermione and Ron glanced at each other, trying not to laugh.
"Well I'm off, I've got Herbology with the Ravenclaws." Ron said, casting a small look at his schedule.
"I've got Advanced Potions with Harry and the Slytherins." Hermione said with a small frown.
"Good Luck!" The red-head said sympathetically, before walking away towards his first class.
Hermione made her way down to the potions classroom in the dungeons. She walked down the cold hallway and stopped before the big stone door. She took a deep breathe before entering the first class of the year, Advanced Potions for the mentally insane.
Authors Note: Not exactly the longest chapter, and kind of a cliff hanger and joke at the end. I hope you don't mind terribly. I'll update soon. Thanks for the reviews, I almost forgot I even wrote that story until I saw the review notifications in my email! I hope you liked it. As always, Constructive Criticism?