It felt strange sleeping in a bed they called mine that I had no memory of. I guess I was tired enough to push past the uneasy feeling as sleep came easy and when I came to, a new day had started without me. So, after I woke up, dressed, and made my way downstairs, I felt even more lost with the small segregated groups of my unfamiliar peers staring at me when I made my entrance. Cheeks surely red from the attention, I did my best to ignore them and picked out a seat in a comfortable couch in front of an empty fireplace. It didn't take long before Ronald had saddled up beside me sideways, his legs crossing under him.

"Feeling any better?" He asked. I scoffed, my eyes rolling.

"If by 'better' you mean if I have any returning memories, then no. I don't feel better in the least bit."

I wasn't looking at him, but his red hair was hard to miss out of my peripheral vision and from that I saw him hang his head.

"I-I'm...I mean now, sincerely, how are you feeling?" He sounded dismissed.

"As well as I could be." I answered. "You?" I chanced a look and he straightened up at the attention. Shrugging, he pouted a little and said,

"Same." His eyes flicked over to a far wall and immediately began to stand. "Are you hungry? There's a buffet, I can get you something?" Then before I could answer, was off, piling a plate high with sausages and eggs, toast, and pickled herring. When he brought it back to me I almost hurled at the amount of food that teetered dangerously, almost falling off the plate.

"Please don't expect me to eat all of this." I said, taking a piece of toast and nibbled at it. He shook his head quickly.

"I know you won't." He said. "But I also know you will let me finish what you don't eat, so I grabbed what I wanted as well."

"What else do you know about me?" I asked, unaware that those around us had stopped in their own conversations to lean in closer, trying to hear ours.

"Well...lets see." Ronald's face screwed up as if he was deep in thought. "Your name is Hermione Jean Granger, your birthday is on September 19th and you live in England. You have a cat named Crookshanks-"

"-Crookshanks?" I mouthed silently, wondering why in the world I would pick such a name.

"-you enjoy reading and learning, definitely the smartest out of us-you, Harry and me that is, your heart is made from pure gold and I really wish you could remember all of this." Ronald's voice had lowered and softened a few octaves and pitches as he finished. I could almost swear that he was embarrassed to be telling me anything, like he was afraid he'd say the wrong thing. There were giggles from those around us that stopped the moment I glanced around to stare at them. The groups scattered, some retreating back to the stairs that led to the rooms, a few others going through the portrait that blocked the common room entrance.

"And you?" I asked. "What about you?"

"Me?" He asked.

"Yes, Ronald. Ronald Weasley. You."

He flapped his mouth.

"Well, I'm Ron and you're best friends with my sister Ginny. I like Quidditch and Chocolate Frogs." He shrugged again. "I'm quite simple, really. Not much to explain."

"Hmm." I glanced him over once and turned back to the non-existent fire, taking another piece of toast feeling like there was still something he was holding back from telling me. Deciding not to question him about it, I asked about Harry.

"Harry's known as The Boy Who Lived, he became our best friend in first year, an excellent Quidditch player. We've been helping him defeat You-Know-Who for as long as we've known him."

"The Boy Who Lived?" Honestly it sounded quite silly, and this You-Know-Who guy..."What's the deal with all of this? I understand we're in a war, but the reasons behind it-"

"-Voldemort killed Harry's parents." A girl with the same shade of red hair leaned against the back of the couch.

"Please don't say his name." Ron begged, immediately growing sour. "It's taboo-"

"-and makes no difference anymore whether we say it or not. He knows where we are, we aren't hiding from him." The girl narrowed her eyes at Ron then turned her head back to me.

"As I was saying, he killed Harry's parents and tried to kill Harry, but he survived gaining only his scar on his forehead. Old Voldy's been after him ever since."

I nodded taking in the information slowly, thankful that she had gotten straight to the point; I had a feeling Ron would have stumbled over his words or started on a tangent that would have only confused me further.

"You really don't remember me, do you?" She asked. I bit my lip, shaking my head.

"No. I don't." I answered softly. She looked disheartened for only a second then smiled softly at me, extending a hand.

"I'm Ginny, your best friend and confidante when this one or the other isn't around." She threw her thumb at Ron then waved her hand aimlessly when she mentioned 'the other one.'

"Ah," I looked between her and Ron and could tell the relation quite easily. They shared the same facial features, the same hair, how it didn't dawn on me earlier than this astounded me. Ginny's smile grew and she stood straight.

"Come on, lets walk. I'm sure I can fill you in on anything my brother would otherwise confuse you further about." She ruffled his hair and I stood. Ron watched me, sadly, and for a moment I considered staying there with him, but Ginny linked her arm with mine and pulled me away.

We left the common room via the portrait hole that swung open for us, and the moment it closed with us on the other side, Ginny began to clue me in on everything, and I do mean everything. From our group of friends, nodding at a few of them as they passed us, to the classes we had taken, jokes we had shared, teachers I should know about. I learned she had been dating Harry for the past year which led her to touch on how Harry had saved her in the Chamber of Secrets.

"They mentioned something about that last night...Lockhead or whatever his name was, used that Oblitawhatever spell and erased his memories, too." I mentioned feeling somewhat excited I could share in the conversation rather than just listen. Ginny nodded.

"Lockhart, and yes, he very much obliviated his memories away. He's in St. Mungo's now...that's the wizarding hospital...they say he'll never fully recover." Ginny seemed saddened as she spoke, but visibly shook the emotion away quickly. "Probably best for him and our kind. He did nothing but steal the adventures of others and cover them up with him as the hero."

"Ah." I said.

"As for the Chamber of Secrets, have you been told about it?"

"No." I wasn't sure I wanted to be told about it with a name such as that.

"It held a Basilisk that can petrify you with one glance. You were even petrified by it that school year."

"I was?"

"Mmm." Ginny sucked in a sharp breath. "And if it wasn't for you grasping a note about the beast, I'm quite positive they wouldn't have succeeded. We'd all have ended up dead...or petrified...whichever one old have come first."

Frowning, I didn't have much to say to that, but Ginny didn't seem to care, at least she didn't look any less pleased as we walked.

"You know Ron-" she started quietly. "He's not so much sense as he appeared back there."

"He's not?" Dense? I wouldn't think him dense, exactly. Aloof, yes, but dense just seemed to harsh.

"It's because he likes you." A crooked grin lifted a side of Ginny's mouth and my eyebrows raised.

"This is...good?" I asked.

"Well you have never rejected him. I just figured it would be best to get that out there, let you know before you start thinking him strange. It wasn't exactly a secret before-" she cleared her throat, her eyebrows came together as she refused to look at me. "And if I didn't know better, I'd say the feeling was mutual, though the odds are a bit wonky now, you not remembering and all." Ginny tugged at my arm to keep me from walking further. "I'm just letting you know now that it is fine, should you end up fancying him...though what you'd see in him is beyond me."

"Um." A smile was obviously forced from me. "Thanks?" I said. As far as I was concerned, feelings and dating were the last thing on my mind. A part of me wondered just how well known his feelings for me were, but I hadn't the chance to ask as Snape stepped out from the shadows of the next corner. Ginny stiffened immediately upon seeing him, letting out a small groan.

"Miss Granger." He greeted me, appearing to do the same for Ginny, but his mouth only hung open. His eyes scanned her over once before they snapped back to me, the hairs on the back of my neck raised under his gaze and I wondered if it would be like that every time. "Might I have a moment?"

His eyes darted between the two of us again and I couldn't think of an excuse fast enough before he turned sharply and began down the hallway we had just come from. I dropped Ginny's arm, catching a forlorn look from her before quickening my own pace to catch up with Snape.