A/N: I'M SOOOOOO SORRY! I've no excuse really…please don't hate me?! I must warn you though, I've done my best to take care of any errors in this chapter, but I'm far from perfect. For those spelling/grammar freaks out there, read at your own risk. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: It's not mine. Harry Potter is property of Warner Bros. and J.K. Rowling and I'm sure a lot of other people. Please don't sue…:-(

Pairing: H/Hr

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 5

Hermione groaned as the heat from the sun warmed her face through the window. For a moment she cursed the east facing window of the sixth year girl's dormitory. Of course, it was then that she realized that her dormitory did not have an east facing window.

With a slight groan, Hermione opened her eyes to see…nothing. Lifting her head a bit, she was surprised to hear another person mumble next to her.

"C'mon Ron…just another five minuets." Harry said, snuggling further into the soft couch.

That was Harry's voice. What was Harry doing next to her in bed? Suddenly, flashes of the night before rushed back into Hermione's jumbled mind. Oh my.

"Harry! Please Harry, wake up," whispered Hermione. She felt around for his shoulders to shake him awake. Of course, due to her sightlessness, her hands landed on his chest…his toned…hard…very manly chest. Bloody Quidditch must have built him up some. This is nice.

"What! What is it! Lemme' at him Hermione!" With a look of shock, a now very awake Harry Potter bolted from the Gryffindor couch. When his eyes were able to focus (since in the midst of last night's emotional upheaval he had forgotten to take off his glasses), he saw a rumpled looking Hermione looking down at him.

"Yes Mr. Potter, protect me from the evil demons of Morning Breath!" Hermione giggled.

Blushing slightly, Harry reached for his wand and preformed a small freshening spell on both he and Hermione. "That was mean. There's no way I can respond to that much wit this early in the morning."

"I thought it wise to wake you before anyone came upon us in such a…compromising situation Harry. I can almost hear the taunting from Ron."

When Hermione heard only silence, she looked up expectantly at Harry. Sure she couldn't actually see him, but at least he knew that she was waiting for an answer.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked softly, remembering Hermione's small breakdown the night before.

"Yes, thank you. I don't know what happened to me. I guess deep down, I never said good-bye to my sight, never noticed how much it made an impact on my life. You know Harry, that old adage is true. You never really know what you have..., right?"

Harry smiled, sat up slightly and pulled Hermione into a hug. There wasn't anything romantic about the hug, no wild passion or deep dramatic explanations. He simply needed to know that his best friend was really there. That was it.

Hermione's face was slightly shocked when Harry suddenly hugged her tightly, but it only took a moment for her to smile slightly. No matter what happened, she would always have him.

"Poppy, I think I have the cure for the Granger girl." Severus Snape was a very proud man. He had spent his life in pursuit of greater status, whether it be within the walls of Hogwarts or the inner circle of the Dark Lord. The cure for Miss Granger was one of the hardest potions he had ever had to brew, yet he had done it.

"That's marvelous Severus! Come come, we'll summon her immediately. Oh my, she'll be so happy."

"If Potter had been smart enough not to play with a text that was not his own, this catastrophe would never have happened. The boy blatantly disregarded the rules, was dishonest about his academic 'success', and puts another in danger only to receive a slap on the wrist." Snape sneered at the injustice of the matter. The bloody boy (for he was merely a boy) had the magical community wrapped around his fingers and had yet to learn to take responsibility for it.

"Come now Severus, we all make mistakes. Harry has had to face many difficulties these past years, and if Albus is correct, there will be many more to come."

"Hermione! Hermione! Where the bloody hell are you woman?" Ron Weasley was many things, but patient he was not; unless of course he was playing a hardy round of wizard's chess with a Mr. Harry Potter.

"Goodness Ronald, what is it this time?" Hermione was about to head down to the kitchens for a snack when Ron had come barreling through the portrait. She figured that he had either turned some first year into a slug and was unable to do the reversal spell, or he had finally noticed that Harry had turned Ron's hair a frightening shade of vomit green. Harry had whispered about the practical joke to her when he had walked her back to their common room.

"Madam Pomfrey told me that she needs to see you in the hospital wing. She looked really happy Hermione!" Ron knew that he shouldn't have raised her hopes up like this, but he couldn't help but be excited about this new development.

Both made their way down to Madam Pomfrey's office. Even though he knew that she could very well make it to the ground floor by herself, Ron couldn't help but to stay one step behind Hermione, making sure she got down the stairs alright.

"Where is Harry anyhow? He's usually attached to you right now…or any part of the day when he isn't in class or at Quidditch practice." It was a peculiar sight when Harry wasn't present when Ron had rushed into the common room.

"He got detained in detention with Professor Sprout. She caught him and Seamus trying to tickle the wailing ivy vines into detaching from their roots. I think they had a mind to put the vines in Snape's class, making them wail each time Snape tried to teach." There was a hint of amusement in Hermione's voice when she recounted the tale. At first she had been angry that Harry would think of doing such a ridiculous thing when Snape was already so mad at Harry. However, when she had heard the pure excitement in his voice, she didn't have the heart to scold him.

Ron opened the hospital wing's door for Hermione, allowing her to enter first. Both felt a sense of anticipation when they heard the smile in Madam Pomfrey's voice, "Welcome Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley! It is indeed a happy night!"

A/N: I'll admit it now, I've had this chapter finished for months now, but wanted to type out at least two more…alas, that did not happen. I'll try to have the next chapter out quicker, but I make no promises!