"We're starting to get… noticed." Hermione had volunteered them as partners in Potions class, and when Slughorn announced he was handing out the ingredients for Amortentia, she nearly rolled her eyes.

"How is this going to be at all helpful in life? This is way too advanced for sixth year students and it's not even going to be on our exams!" she'd whispered to Harry but smiled politely when the professor brought them the supplies with an expression that made both of them slightly uncomfortable for a reason they couldn't put their finger on. Harry, of course, had chosen to supplement with the Half-Blood Prince's book, flipping and researching more than Hermione had seen him do in the six years she'd known him. If she didn't know any better, she'd think he was enjoying himself.

"Noticed how?" he asked as he began to stir the mix of ingredients, a grin coming over his face when steam began to rise. But Hermione quickly slapped his hand away and took over.

"You're supposed to stir it anti-clockwise, not clockwise." The steam began to dwindle, and she frowned, already frustrated that Harry was doing better than her again .

"My book says clockwise." He pointed at the crossed-out instructions in his book with the ever-present intricate handwriting next to them.

"But your book-"

"Made me Living Death."

Hermione took a second before letting out a huff and reluctantly moving her wrist the opposite direction. When the steam began to increase again, she pointed a playful glare at Harry but didn't say a word.

"So how have we been noticed? Who's 'we'?"

"You and I," Hermione clarified. "While you were at Quidditch practice last night, Parvati asked me what was going on between us. She said I'd probably need to make the first move because you don't know what you're doing." Her hand paused and she shut her mouth quickly. "I'm sorry. I have no idea why I said that."

Harry was at a loss for words. He knew that Parvati was right, but agreeing with her would admit that to Hermione. But he couldn't disagree with her without seeming conceited and oblivious of the fact that he'd actually only gotten one date with the girl he'd been interested in, and even then, he'd left early (to go see Hermione, no less). So he didn't respond and let her continue.

"Anyway, she, er… she's just noticed us getting closer, that's all. I told her it was complicated."

"Complicated?"

"It certainly feels like it," she chuckled. "Ron hasn't said anything to you, has he?"

Harry glanced up at his friend, who was working with Seamus across the room and seemed to be standing a little farther away from the cauldron than was necessary. "No. Other than what he said on the train, he hasn't talked about you much at all, really. I think he's afraid Lavender's listening in or something."

Hermione snorted. "He can't possibly be that thick, can he?"

"Maybe you should make a move, then. Be more obvious."

"What, like snogging you in the middle of the common room?"

"I mean, it would get the point across," he laughed, to which Hermione responded by closing her Potions book and smacking Harry's arm with it, though it was paired with a laugh of her own. "Right. Sorry. Paying attention."

"I mean, I know it's been a lot longer than we planned, but it's... kind of fun, honestly."

"I'm actually surprised we've gotten away with it. No offense."

"Harry, you think I can't act?" She said it with a smirk that made Harry a little nervous. "I know how to play this game, okay? I've done it before."

"You mean when you went to the Yule Ball with Krum?" he smirked back.

A faint blush came over Hermione's cheeks. "No! That was… that was not the reason at all I went with Viktor. He asked me and no one else had, so I went with him." She cleared her throat softly. "It was middle school. And… there was this boy I liked called Evan." She read through the recipe again before grabbing a vial and popping the cork. "But he didn't like me, so… I pretended to like someone else so that he would get jealous."

"And? Did it work?"

"No," Hermione laughed. "Almost, but I don't think he really noticed. Or he just pretended not to. Either way, I didn't end up with him. So now, I get to try to redeem myself."

"Well, just do it better this time, then," he teased. "Like… for this potion. What should I say it smells like?"

"You could say my perfume?"

"Right. Hermione's perfume. Not obvious at all."

"Not like that. It's like... Haven't you smelled it?"

"Of course. But it's hard to describe..."

"Oh. Well… it's… I think it's sandalwood and… tangelo."

"No one will know what that means, Hermione."

"Then just say... books or something. And I don't know, what smells do you think about when you think of me?" she giggled. "All I'm thinking about is a litter box."

"I'm not saying you smell like a litter box," Harry laughed. "Maybe if I'm desperate."

Hermione smirked and nudged him with her shoulder.

"That looks beautiful!" Slughorn praised at the end of class once he got to their table. "I'd say the pair of you are the only ones who've successfully accomplished creating one of the most difficult potions to make." He patted Hermione on the shoulder. "All right, Harry? We know Ms. Granger's answer, but what do you smell? I love hearing this from my students." He muttered that last comment to a random Hufflepuff at the table next to him, who just nodded politely.

Harry's eyes cut to Hermione and he cleared his throat before leaning over the cauldron. The liquid inside was swirling and had such a sheen that he almost wanted to dip his finger in it just to see what would happen. "Well, um…" They had been over this; he leaned over the cauldron and took a deep breath. Maybe it was his brain playing with him, but he found he wasn't having to pretend at all. "Some kind of citrus - maybe an orange? Fresh ink on parchment… and…" He sniffed again; he'd recognize that smell anywhere. "Chocolate pancakes?"

Hermione let out a small gasp next to him, but quickly covered it with a cough.

"Excellent! I wish I was so lucky to smell chocolate pancakes!" Slughorn laughed. "Fifty points to Gryffindor!"

He didn't keep them for much longer after class, but the look that Ron seemed to be giving them had Hermione hopeful.

"Did you see the look on his face? Great job on those answers, by the way. Fresh ink on parchment? Brilliant." Hermione was almost giddy at the thought, not mentioning anything until they were back in the common room after class. Ron had walked with them (between them) a little bit, his eyes shifting between his friends, but Lavender had found him mid-conversation and dragged him off. Hermione didn't want to think about where they were going, but she did feel better about the small squeeze Harry gave her hand as he locked their fingers together. It was a friendly gesture either way. Comforting. "I'm going to go change, okay? I'll see you at dinner?"

Harry nodded quickly, catching Ginny out of the corner of his eye. She looked happier than normal, which was always a good sign. "Yeah, I'll see you later." Hermione looked over at Ginny, then back to Harry with a wink. Harry huffed out a smile before heading off.

"Hey, Ginny!" he grinned, reaching out to touch her on the shoulder.

"Oh, hi, Harry! Long time no see," she teased.

"Right. Yeah. I just wanted to make sure you were all right. I know you and Dean were-"

"Yeah, we… worked things out when I found him after I got off the train and I think we both agreed that it was better for us just to be friends." She crossed her arms in front of her, and Harry tried to keep his expression neutral. "I'm sorry about how I acted at Slughorn's Christmas party, by the way. I didn't want to tell you back at home just because I know Fred and George are listening in and keeping an eye on the two of us, but… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten so upset when you didn't do anything wrong."

"Oh, it's… fine. Really, you've got every right to feel however you do. I just didn't like seeing you upset, that's all."

"Thanks, Harry. That's... sweet."

"Would you like to join us for dinner tonight?"

A glint of amusement flashed in her eyes. "You mean you and Hermione?"

"What? No. I mean, yes, me and Hermione, but Luna, Neville... everyone else?"

"It's okay," she laughed. "Thank you for the invite, but I think I'm going to catch up with Susan and maybe Cho. Since break, you know."

"Right, yeah." Harry nodded. "Maybe next time."

"There's dinner every night, so yes," Ginny teased.

"Okay. Good."

"Good."

Ron showed up at the Gryffindor table alone, saying that Lavender had made plans to study with her friends, and he sounded a little relieved. He seemed chattier with Hermione, too, which was a pleasant surprise, and Harry kept quiet most of the time and let them talk. It was one of the few times recently that she hadn't been annoyed with Ron, which was nice to see again.

Harry didn't sleep well at all that night, though. His dreams woke him what seemed like every hour, and he opened his eyes with a start, drenched in sweat. After he'd resigned to the fact that he wasn't getting much more rest, he finally sat up and ran a hand through his hair before stepping out of bed and silently rummaging through his trunk to pull out the Marauder's Map. He'd gotten into the probably not-so-great habit of looking at it when he couldn't sleep, and a part of him knew it was probably subconsciously making sure that no one was in the castle who shouldn't be in the middle of the night. Now, he wondered if maybe he could track down Snape.

His eyes peered over the map, catching all the students in their dorms, a couple professors patrolling the halls, and there he was. Snape was in his office, pacing. He wasn't sure if it was strange for him to be in his office at this time of night, but maybe Snape couldn't sleep either. Harry watched him for a while, but nothing seemed necessarily suspicious about the way he was walking. No one else was with him, and after a while, the feet settled on one spot - maybe behind a desk?

When he was finished with Snape, he briefly checked the girls' dorms to make sure Ginny was still there. He didn't know why Voldemort had targeted her last time, and he wasn't sure if he'd do it again, but he had to keep her safe, no matter what their relationship was. She was still his best friend's sister, which was admittedly a little weird when he thought about the crush he had on her. He hadn't brought it up to Ron because he wasn't sure how he would feel, and if nothing ended up coming from it, it wouldn't even matter in the first place.

Dumbledore hadn't said anything about Snape during their lesson the next day, and he almost seemed to avoid the topic when he tried to bring it up, so Harry had finally stopped trying to find out any information. Between him, Ron, and Hermione, he was sure they could figure it out, though it might take a little bit, even if it meant using the Order as a resource.

He had, on the other hand, found out a piece of information that seemed to be much more important.

"Horcruxes, you said?" Hermione repeated, quickly writing the word down on a piece of parchment when he'd told them the details that night before bed. He'd waited until everyone else was asleep before they took their usual places on the couch in front of the fireplace, though Ron was already in bed, unable to keep his eyes open after eating too much for dinner and telling Harry to fill him in over breakfast.

"Yes. Voldemort had asked Slughorn about them. That's why Dumbledore wanted me to get close to him. To… find out this memory. He said it's been tampered with by Slughorn himself. I need to find the truth. It… may be something to do with objects of some sort. We saw a few of his memories of being shown Helga Hufflepuff's goblet and Salazar Slytherin's locket. And he said he found something about them in the restricted section of the library. Maybe you can look there."

Hermione smirked. "I'll do my best. I feel like I know the restricted section like the back of my hand at this point," she laughed.

"You sound proud of that."

"I… I think I actually might be." Hermione's cheeks pinked. "I'll check it out tomorrow. In the meantime, you need to make a plan."

"Right. Yeah," Harry sighed.

After a few moments of silence, Hermione looked back up. "What are you thinking about?"

He shook his head. "I'm worried about Ginny."

Hermione's expression changed to a somber one and she quickly scooted closer, setting a hand on Harry's knee. "She'll be okay, Harry. She's an amazing witch. She can handle herself after all you taught her last year."

"I know. I know. I just… after Voldemort came after her last time, I… I've been checking on her. On the map. Just to make sure she's still there."

Hermione nodded softly. "I understand. You want to protect her."

"I'll always protect the people I love, Hermione. That includes you. And Ron. And Neville and Luna. All of them." He squeezed her hand. "I just feel like if anything happens to any of you, it's my fault."

"Well, don't. We wouldn't be helping you if we didn't feel the same way, all right?" Her eyes moved to the clock. "We should go to bed."

He just nodded, moving his hand from Hermione's and standing slowly, with her right behind him, not speaking again as they both headed to their dorms. Harry found himself not being able to sleep again, and even though he was trying not to be so paranoid, the Marauder's Map found its way into his hands. Snape wasn't pacing, but he was in another part of his office. Ginny was in bed. And as he was about to close the map, something caught his eye - footprints moving in the halls. It was Malfoy. But quickly, he disappeared.

Harry's brow furrowed, looking around on the map to see if something was wrong, even on the back. Lupin had said the map never lied, but his sudden disappearance didn't make sense. And he couldn't be Apparating. So where had he gone?

After what seemed like hours, and Harry couldn't be certain that it wasn't, Malfoy's set of footprints reappeared where they'd disappeared from. He rubbed his eyes quickly to make sure he wasn't just imagining it, but no, they were there, and heading back to the Slytherin common room. He was starting to get frustrated at this point of the ever-growing list of mysteries that kept popping up and the increasingly few answers they'd been able to get. He might as well start writing them down. Harry sighed, storing the map back in his trunk and attempting to finally go to sleep. He knew Hermione would know if he was tired.

Maybe it was the lack of sleep that caused his terrible failure at getting answers from Slughorn, and Hermione was quick to not let him live it down.

"Maybe the Daily Prophet should start calling you 'The Dim One,'" she teased as she flipped through the book she'd borrowed from the library. They were once again in the common room, sitting on the couch, Hermione sideways with her sock-covered feet resting against Harry's thigh and her back against the armrest. It had been kind of a shock when she'd settled in, but he didn't mind. Aside from their own voices, the loudest noise in the room was the fire crackling in the fireplace. They'd found staying up after everyone else had gone to bed vital to be able to have private conversations about what was going on. And unless Ron wanted to get involved, most of the time, it was just the two of them.

"Nice."

"I'm sorry, Harry," she sighed, marking the page she was on and setting the book down to look at him. "I just… don't understand how you would think that could be successful at all. Now he's going to be even more suspicious."

"Have you found anything about the horcruxes?" he asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

"No, I haven't," Hermione answered. "I haven't even found any mention of that word at all, actually, much less anything about them." She exhaled slowly. "I can't remember any other time the library has failed me like this, and I'm not sure how to feel. But I know there are loads more books I can try. What about you? Have you found anything on the map?"

"Speaking of which, yeah, actually. Now before you say anything, just… let me explain."

Hermione raised an eyebrow, a look of annoyance coming over her face. "If this is about Malfoy again-"

"He's disappearing."

"...What do you mean?"

"On the map. I've watched it. His footprints just disappear and reappear in the same place some time later."

"Maybe it's wrong."

"The map's never wrong, Hermione. Something's going on."

She thought for a minute, then grinned. "Does that mean I have more research to do?"

"You're welcome."

Hermione laughed, shaking her head softly. "You know, you can go to the library, too."

"I know, but you're so much better at it than I am."

"Well, there's definitely truth to that." There was another pause, and Harry could feel her eyes on him as he looked over the map. "Do you think this is still a good idea?"

"What?" he asked as he looked back up at her to see a look on her face he couldn't identify. Maybe regret? Sadness?

"Pretending to do all this. I mean… what if it's pointless? What if Ron doesn't even want to be with me and I'm doing all this for nothing and just wasting our time? It just seems like there are more important things than pretending to fancy each other."

"He does. I know he does. I mean, he's told me."

"Directly?"

"Well… no, not directly, but I know he does. He has to. But what about Ginny? Has she said anything else to you?"

"No," Hermione sighed. "I've tried, but it's like she doesn't want to talk about it. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. But still. I feel…"

"Selfish?"

Hermione nodded solemnly, setting the book on the floor next to her. "Extremely."

"But maybe this is the time to be selfish. Once this starts, we won't get the chance. We won't be able to just be teenagers."

"We've never been just teenagers, Harry."

"You know what I mean. If there's going to be a war, we might as well have some fun before then. I'm sure Ron would love an option other than Lavender, anyway."

"I don't want to be a second choice, though. It won't mean the same."

"Well… let me think about it. I'll ask him. I'll make sure. And then if he says yes, we'll go from there."

"And if he says no…?"

"Then we'll cross that bridge when we get there, yeah?"

"I suppose. Thanks, Harry. I know this is a strange time for all of us."

He patted Hermione's foot, not wondering if it was weird until he'd already done it. "I know. And thank you for being so willing to play along with me, too."

"Well, it's been such a difficult thing, pretending I like you and all," she smirked. "I think I'm going to bed." Hermione stood slowly, trying to shake herself out of her imagination painting pictures of Harry trailing his hand further up her leg (the extra studying and staying up late must be getting to her), and tucked the book under her arm. "Goodnight, Harry."

"Night."

"Would you like to join me for research in the library tomorrow?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"Not really, no." Hermione grinned. "I mean, you do, but I'd love your help. Or, if you'd rather have that discussion with Ron, I'd be willing to let you off the hook. Your choice." Before Harry could answer, Hermione moved up to the dorms.

He couldn't help but notice the way Hermione took a seat across from him at breakfast, next to Ron, and kept looking up at him expectantly. He was glad that the murmur of the student body was unusually loud around them, because otherwise, the silence only interrupted by the sound of their utensils clinking on the plates would have been extremely awkward. Ron's eyes moved between them as he ate, trying to figure out why they were so quiet.

It took Harry making equally as strangely urgent faces at Hermione a couple times before Ron finally spoke up. "Okay, what's going on with you two?"

"What do you mean?" Hermione answered quickly, focusing on her breakfast like that was what she'd been doing the whole time.

"You know exactly what I mean," he laughed. "Look, if this is another… Slug Club thing, you can talk about it while I'm around, you know. I really don't care."

"It's not," Harry answered quickly. "I just… Hermione wanted to know how you and Lavender were doing." He cut his eyes to Hermione for a split second with a smirk, and she nearly choked on her eggs, but quickly masked it with a clearing of her throat.

"Oh." Ron slumped back a little, looking over at Hermione. "I… wait, why?"

"I hear things," she quickly lied. "Rumors, you know. And I was just curious if any of it was true from you before I believed them."

Ron looked around before leaning in closer to her. "What rumors?"

"Why don't you tell me first?"

Harry had to admit she was impressive. The way her mind could jump so quickly from being caught off guard to getting Ron to say what she wanted was incredible. And with barely a pause at that. No wonder he'd been scared of her all these years.

"I mean, I just don't know if you'd be comfortable hearing all of it, you know." He cleared his throat, looking to Harry.

"Oh, please, Ronald. Are you really calling me a prude?"

"No! No, I'll… just try to tone it down a bit. You know, since you're my friend and all." Hermione just rolled her eyes. "I… I can't do it anymore," he finally admitted. "All she wants to do is snog. All the time. It was great at first, you know, but now… my lips are getting chapped! Look!" He leaned closer into Hermione, who found herself backing up a little in reflex, which wasn't something she'd imagined doing in any other context where Ron was leaning into her, but she put that in the back of her mind.

"I believe you!"

"But I just don't know how to get rid of her. She doesn't want to leave me alone. And I… I miss you two, honestly. Plus, she doesn't like you," he mentioned to Hermione, who only scoffed. "Sorry. I don't think she wants you to know that. But she doesn't."

"Why not?" She quickly looked towards Harry.

Ron hadn't been expecting that question, and he swallowed. "Well, you know…"

Hermione raised an eyebrow and shook her head. "No, I don't know."

Ron looked at Harry as well, who just shrugged, then back to Hermione. "It's complicated…?"

"I'm sure I could figure it out."

"She, uh… she thinks you fancy me."

Harry watched as Hermione took a slow breath. He could see the gears turning in her head as she tried to work out the best response. But she didn't flinch. He leaned in a little on his elbows, breakfast long forgotten about. This was just going to be a way of getting him out of going to the library with her, but this was much more interesting.

"And… would that be a deal breaker for her? If I did?"

Harry held his breath, his eyes on Ron. If they noticed him, they didn't show it. Their eyes were locked on each other, and Harry was sure that was the longest time they'd made eye contact without fighting in a while.

It took a few seconds before Ron caught on, but when he did, his eyes widened. "Oh! Maybe, yeah! I think she's jealous of you, honestly."

"As she should be."

"Maybe if she thinks I fancy you too, she'll back off!"

Hermione tried to read his tone, whether he actually did or not, but for once, she wasn't entirely sure she could tell. It was a strange phenomenon, talking to him about this without actually talking about it. Was this a good idea? Was she still trying to be into Harry? Thinking about it was already making her brain hurt, and she couldn't wait to get out of this conversation and into the library.

"It's worth a shot," she grinned.

"Great. Right." He paused briefly. "Okay, how do I do that?"

Hermione just rolled her eyes and let out a small, nervous laugh. This was going to be a lot of work. And things with Harry were about to get a lot more complicated.