Chapter 1: All Grown Up.

For the first time in several weeks, Hermione Granger saw her fellow best friends striding towards her on Platform 9 and 3/4. 'Wow, they have changed a lot' she thought.

Ron Weasley had grown a couple more inches which made him a tad more lanky. He stood a good 3-4 inches taller then Hermione. His many freckles on his face had not changed though his face had matured into a young man. Though lanky, you could tell that he had been toning up during the summer for the upcoming year of Quidditch.

While studying Ron's features, Hermione found that her cheeks had turned a light shade of red. Ron wasn't a little boy anymore. And as this thought strayed into her mind, she felt butterflies dancing up and down in her stomach. It had only been last year when Hermione had heard many rumors of the crush Ron had developed on her. It was fortunate that Hermione returned the same feelings and at this thought, she smirked to herself. She then turned to her other best friend which was the boy walking beside him. He went by the name of Harry Potter.

Though Harry had been through a lot, what with dueling with Voldemort the year before, he looked quite healthy. He now stood a couple inches higher and his brilliant green eyes seemed to shine brighter then usual. His untidy hair stood on its end more crazily this year but this look somehow made him look more attractive.

"Harry! Ron! Over here!" Hermione squealed on the tip of her toes. They both turned to look at her and smiled. It was her 7th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and she was quite keen on it beginning. Hermione was now 17 and she had matured quite a bit. Her usual bushy brown hair and slimmed down into loose curls that lightly framed her small yet determined soft face.

She lightly pulled down her light blue tank top over the smallest bit of flesh that was seen over her low-waist jeans as both her friends made their way towards her. She had suddenly become quite aware of her body's shape and the patches of it that were being revealed to the world. It hadn't only been Ron that made her nervous though. She found that her gaze had lingered on Harry and it had been awhile before she looked away.

"Oy! It's great to see you again" Harry said happily as he caressed her into a hug. He pulled her off her feet and swung her around in a circle. Hermione giggled slightly and relaxed against Harry's arms which were hugging her.

"Why the enthusiasm to see me Harry? I thought it was only Cho that you wanted to hug these days," she replied in a happy yet bitter voice. The moment she said it though, she instantly regretted it. 'Shit, why did you say that?' Hermione thought furiously. And as though Cho came out as cue, she walked out of the barrier between the muggle world and magical world, hand in hand with her new boyfriend, Derrick.. Hermione felt Harry's grip on her tighten as he set her back down on the floor. Hermione felt a twinge of jealousy as Harry looked longingly at her so she stepped away from him.

"Good job Hermione," Ron snapped, "that was brilliant." Hermione turned towards Ron, slightly hurt that he had just insulted her.

"Oh shut it Ron. I am truly sorry Harry. Completely and utterly sorry Harry. Please, please, please don't take what I said to mind...I didn't mean it," Hermione pleaded.

"It's alright. Good to see she's moved on. I'll move on too then I suppose. Hell, I have moved on! I've got loads, and I mean loads of other lovely girls out there waiting for me, don't you wait and see," Harry said quickly. He seemed to have fallen into his own world as he suddenly became dazed. Hermione gazed away from Harry and looked at Ron with a worried expression on her face. He half smiled at her apologetically coming to his senses and realizing that he had just insulted the girl he liked.

"Your right Harry. There are many other girls out there for you, and they'd be lucky to have you," Hermione said convincingly. Harry seemed to snap out of his trance at this comment and smiled at Hermione.

"You are completely right," Harry said, "no wonder you're the brains of our trio." Hermione smiled back honorably.

"Yeah...brains...trio...OUR trio...brilliant you are, Hermione, If I say so myself," Ron said hurriedly, looking from Harry to Hermione as though trying to get a comment in.

"Er, thanks Ron," Hermione replied unsure of what to say. Ron's ears went slightly red as the conversation came to a very uncomfortable silence. Suddenly, the bell sounded on the train to signal the students to at last aboard the train.

"Well, we better get in shouldn't we? Wouldn't want to fly to Hogwarts in a car again," Harry said, breaking the silence. He grabbed his luggage and began to trudge it towards the train.

Hermione looked at Ron who looked back at her. They both grabbed their luggage and followed close behind Harry, talking in a very loose conversation.

"Where is your mum and dad? Ginny?" Hermione asked as they boarded the Hogwarts express.

"Well mum and dad are on some special Order trip right now. Only had time to drop me off before leaving. Wouldn't tell me a damn thing that's happening though. Acting as if I'm not old enough to know what's going on even though I'll find out anyways," he complained.

"Oh, but Ron, you aren't of age to know what's going on yet," Hermione pointed out.

"Technically speaking Hermione! Technically speaking. But you know we'll find out sooner or later," he fought back. Hermione smiled. Ron had to be the only person she knew who would fight back with her. It somehow came off as a turn on.

"Ron, you are impossible," she giggled, "but what of Ginny?" Ron instantly stiffened up.

"Well, mum and dad let her go off with Dean. She's too young to be with a boy like him! He is a bloke and he isn't good enough for her. She could do better, she could. Why can't she go off with Har- Hey!" Ron laughed as Hermione hit him over the head.

"Now you need to stop with Ginny and Harry going out. It will never happen. Ginny has clearly moved on and Harry wouldn't go for her."

"But I-"

"Honestly Ron, give it up- You have to trust your sister. That's why she didn't want to tell you about Dean and her in the first place," Hermione said knowingly.

"She should be able to trust me," Ron said, his voice now getting louder and a bit more angrier, "I'm just not fond of the boys she picks!"

"I thought you and Dean were friends," Hermione replied annoyed, her temper rising.

"Well we are, but for my sister! No way!" Ron yelled back, his ears going red.

"WELL I don't know why your yelling at me Ronald. I'm just pointing the facts out to you," Hermione replied angrily. She saw Harry turn into a compartment and she followed him in, ignoring the look of anger on Ron's face.

As soon as she marched into the compartment she slid the door shut and fell down into the seat opposite of Harry. Ron marched to the compartment door and was about to open it when a voice called him over to the compartment besides the one Hermione and Harry were in. He scowled at Hermione before walking away.

"Heard you and Ron having a row and decided not to get involved," Harry said to Hermione while looking out the window, "I decided I did do quite a lot of yelling last year and didn't need to get involved with more."

"He can be impossible sometimes!" she muttered. He turned to look at her and saw that her eyes were shining with tears.

"He can be immature sometimes," Harry replied sympathetically, "but it's nothing to cry over. That's just Ron for you." Harry smiled at Hermione and she smiled back. He had clearly matured over the summer and knew what to say at exactly the right moments.

He leaned forward and brushed away the tears that had begun to fall down Hermione's face. The moment Harry's fingers had touched Hermione's skin, she felt a sudden bolt of butterflies erupt in her stomach. She looked at Harry's brilliant green eyes and wondered what kind of feeling had just overcome her.

He sat back on his seat and let his fingers slide through his already untidy hair. As he pulled his hair back, he revealed a thin yet long lightning-shaped scar on the right side of his forehead. Hermione snapped her gaze away from him and looked down at her pants.

"Well, you've changed," Harry began. Hermione looked up and saw him grinning at her through his glasses. She giggled.

"How so?" she asked.

"Well, you certainly look older, and that's a compliment, trust me. But you're personality has changed as well," he said.

"Uhm, really? How?"

"Well, you didn't lose your temper with Ron for awhile and usually you lose it after about 3 seconds." Hermione took this as an insult but when she looked at Harry, she saw that he grinning and took it as a compliment.

"Well, thanks, you look older too Harry. Good things too. Tru-"

"Well what do we have here? Potter and Granger flowering each other with compliments. Awww how sweet," a cold voice drawled out. Hermione and Harry turned towards the door and saw a very attractive, tall, nicely toned 17 year old with blonde hair that fell into his face leaning against the door with his two cronies, Crabe and Goyle, sniggering in the background. Hermione studied the features of the boy who was leaning against the door who went by the name of Draco Malfoy. Hermione's heart began to pound a bit quicker as she acknowledged how good looking Malfoy had become but snapped out of her trance and went instantly to action.

"Aww, look Harry," Hermione started mockingly, "Malfoy is jealous about the fact that he himself will never get any compliments from any girl since he looks like a ferret." Harry let out a laugh at Hermione's comment as she smiled brightly at Malfoy. He looked taken back by her compliment but came back to his senses.

"Shut up you filthy little mudblood. As if I would want something as bushy and ugly as you to be giving me compliments," he drawled back.

"Get out," Harry snapped standing up with his wand pointing at Malfoy.

"Aww, look Crabbe, Goyle, Little Pottey's mad that we insulted his lil ugly girlfriend!" Malfoy mocked.

"I said get out! Unless you want a nice tail to go along with that ferret face you have," Harry growled.

Malfoy scowled. "Better watch out what you say to me Pottey. You're looking at the new Head Boy. Guess Dumbledore finally came to his senses when he made the right person Head Boy." Hermione gasped.

"Surely, your not...Head boy?" Hermione cried.

"Did I stutter mudblood? Yes I am Head Boy so you better watch what you say to me too. And as Head Boy, I advise that you pull up your shirt," Malfoy said, his eyes darting down to her chest. Hermione looked down at her tank top to see that her cleavage was being revealed. She threw her hand on her chest and walked straight up to Malfoy.

"You better watch what you say to me too Malfoy," Hermione warned, "because I'm Head Girl. Got it?" Hermione was a few inches away from Malfoys that she could feel his heat protruding from his body onto hers. And for some odd reason, she felt chills go up and down her spine as her heart began to pound faster. She didn't understand if what was happening to her was because Harry was about to inflict a spell at Malfoy, or the fact that he was so close to her then.

"Well, this will clearly be an interesting year Granger. Might want to pull up your jeans a little bit too," Malfoy whispered in a lustful tone. His eyes darted down and back up her body to her eyes. His cold blue eyes were piercing into her soft brown ones but she didn't move. She was about to tell him to "Get out", when another voice took the chance to.

"Get out!" Ron roared, his wand pointed at Malfoy's back. He seemed to have been standing there the entire time. Malfoy smiled maliciously at Hermione before turning on his heel and marching out of the compartment with his 2 cronies following him.

"Idiotic ass hole," Ron grunted as he slammed the door shut and sat down next to Harry. Hermione collapsed opposite the both of them, a look of relief on her face that Harry and Ron had just stood up for her.

"You've been made Head Girl Hermione! Why didn't you tell us?" Harry started, a look of surprise on his face.

"Oh I completely forgot! I surely thought Dumbledore would have made you Head Boy Harry, but I suppose he didn't make an exception for you because I read in Hogwarts: A History, that only prefects could be made into Head Boys or Girls," Hermione sighed.

Harry shrugged. "The less I have to cooperate with the rules, the better. We are going to make our last year at Hogwarts the best and make Malfoy's life hell since we'll never have to see his ugly face again-"

"Oh Harry promise me you won't! You know what Malfoy's like. And Ron's dad and Malfoy's dad see a ton of each other. Whose to say that the same won't be for you and Malfoy. Besides, this year he has a ton of authority, he'll just turn everything around that he does and make it look like it was your fault," Hermione pleaded.

Harry grinned. "Okay, we wont go THAT tough on him, but we will give him a hard time, won't we Ron?" But Ron didn't answer. He seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.

"Ron?" Harry nudged him in the ribs.

"Ow, Oh yeah, yeah, EXTREMELY hard time. Uhm, Hermione, don't Head Boy and Head Girl spend an tremendous amount of time together?" Ron asked cautiously.

"A tremendous amount of time and yes, they do. Why do you ask?" Hermione asked curiously. Ron began to fidget around with his pants and his ears and neck turned a light pink color.

"Well, it's just, I didn't like the way he looked at you," Ron confessed, "it seemed that he somehow wanted something from you. You know, a lust for the type of things he could do to you."

"Oh Ron, don't worry. I'm a big girl. I won't let that ugly ferret touch me or anything."

"Yeah Ron, she can handle herself. But you will tell us if he touches you or tries to do something to you right?" Harry asked. Hermione paused for a couple seconds before nodding.

"Well its set then. Ron, you and me should go change into our robes. I'm getting sick of having to pull these pants up. Even with a belt they are too big," Harry said as he stood up and walked out of the compartment. Ron looked at Hermione for a couple of seconds before standing up and beginning to walk to the door.

"Ron.." Hermione began. Ron stopped and looked back at her.

"What?"

"Uhm...Nothing..no nothing nevermind," Hermione supressed. He smirked at her before walking out of the compartment in trail of Harry. Hermione sat back on the seat. She had thought about what Ron and Harry had said about Malfoy touching her, and she couldn't understand why she had paused to give them the answer that she would always go to them if he ever tried to pull something on her.

She began to bite her nails furiously in deep thought. She still couldn't stop thinking about how close Malfoy had gotten to her. Why had her body gone all haywire like that?

'Hormones' she concluded. But since when did she care about Malfoy?

'Well, he has gotten a lot more attractive' she argued to herself.

'Yes, that's it. Who wouldn't get nervous around an attractive boy?' Hermione concluded to herself with a sigh. She began to twirl her soft brown hair around her right index finger as she stared longingly out the window. She somehow still couldn't get out of her head how close Malfoy had been to her and thought curiously what would have happened if she had happend to plant her lips lightly on his.

(( Yah so this is my first chapter...trust me it will get better. I got so excited for this one section that I already typed it out cause well..lets just say Hermione gets a little dirty with someone...uhm yeah, reviews? ))