Yes, here it is...the third chapter. I'm not saying anymore! Just read it, and enjoy.

Darkness surrounded her. Her arms, legs, fingers, toes...all her limbs were numb. Her mind was foggy. Who was she? What happened? She tried to move, but the darkness seemed to be pressing in on her. She felt someone shake her, just lightly. She thought she heard a voice...she couldn't tell what it was trying to say. But it seemed to help her think...and remember... She had been opening presents. In the morning. Yes…then…Harry. She gave her present - a Christmas present - to Harry. Then who was she? Harry's friend?

"Hermione..."

She heard the voice, again, though it sounded so far away. Hermione... Hermione. That sounded familiar. Who was Hermione? Oh...right...She was Hermione.

Hermione's eyes fluttered open. Her eyesight was fuzzy; she couldn't see where she was. Every part of her felt heavy and numb. She felt like she was going to throw up. She felt someone shake her lightly again. Her eyesight began to clear, and she figured out where she was.

She was in the Hospital Wing.

Hermione turned with difficulty and saw Ginny, her hand reaching out to touch Hermione's shoulder, which she had been shaking to try and wake Hermione up. Ginny looked scared, but relieved; Hermione was alive.

"Your awake." Ginny said quietly, as though she wasn't very sure about what she had just stated. But then she turned, and said "She's awake," apparantly to whoever was on the other side of the room.

Madam Pomfrey came into Hermione's view as she walked towards her. She was holding a goblet in one hand and her wand in the other. When she got to Hermione's bed she stowed her wand away and held the goblet out to Hermione.

"Can you lift your hand?" Madam Pomfrey asked. Hermione managed to lift her hand up and grip the goblet. Madam Pomfrey looked at Ginny. "Make sure she drinks all of that." She said, rather sternly. "It'll help." Madam Pomfrey watched Hermione for a few minutes. Once Hermione had started to drink, Madam Pomfrey looked approving and walked over to her office.

"Ginny?" Hermione looked at her friend after a few of minutes of sipping the contents of her goblet, which she believed to be Essence of Rue. "What happened? Is it still Christmas?"

Ginny, who had been watching Hermione closely, seemed to take awhile to process her words. "Yeah, it's still Christmas. And…I don't know exactly what happened. You got poisoned."

Poisoned? Hermione thought. Poisoned by what? By who? She didn't ask Ginny these questions. She just waited, and Ginny continued.

"I don't know how…Madam Pomfrey doesn't know how…I was hoping you could tell me." Ginny looked at Hermione expectantly.

These words weren't that reassuring. "I don't know, Ginny."

"Do you remember what happened this morning?"

"No...well, maybe..." Hermione tried to remember. It was quite hard... She knew it would've happened after she gave Harry his present. She went back to her domitory...

She found a late present on her bed, which probably had just been delivered by some of the House Elves. She shook her head, and wondered who sent a present this late. She opened it and revealed a elegant purple box of chocolates. On it was a small note, which read:

Merry Christms

From Harry

Wow, She thought. Harry must've felt guilty about not getting me a present. I wonder where he got these from on such late notice? She wondered for a moment if he had got them from Fred and George's Joke shop, but then realised that he wouldn't play a joke on her like that. She undid the dark blue ribbon that was holding the lid closed. Inside were small, delicate-looking chocolates. She chose one, popped it into her mouth, and then everything was pain and dark, and suddenly she was here.

She told Ginny of this, and Ginny looked sombre. "Madam Pomfrey said that whoever poisoned you hadn't planned on killing you. The poison only stopped you from moving and put you in lots of pain." She looked even sadder for a moment. "You have to stay here overnight, or longer, which means you'll miss the Christmas Ball."

The Christmas Ball. Somehow, Lavender Brown, Parvati and Padma Patil managed to convince Professor Dumbledore to let them organise, and be in charge of, a Christmas Ball. At 8:30 tonight, everyone would gather in the Great Hall and they would dance and have fun. No one had yet seen what Lavender and her friends had organised. No matter what, they knew it was going to be spectacular.

Hermione had completely forgotten about the Ball. "What time is it?" She asked Ginny.

Ginny shrugged. "Lunch time, or around then."

The doors of the Hospital Wing opened, and in came Seamus Finnigan, supported by Dean Thomas. Dean looked around, saw Ginny, and looked unhappy. They had gone out earlier this year, but Ginny had dumped him because he annoyed her too much. Today, he looked even more unhappy to see her.

Seamus didn't look to be in very good shape. He had blood on his face, and it was dripping onto the floor. One of his legs looked out of place, and Hermione grimaced as she looked. He couldn't walk without Dean supporting him.

"What do we have here?" Madam Pomfrey led Seamus to a bed to the left of Hermione's. She cleaned the blood of the floor as she went. Seamus sat down and Madam Pomfrey started to heal his face right away. Ginny, who had turned around to look, got up and walked to Seamus's bed. She looked at him with sympathy.

"What happened?" She asked Dean. He didn't answer her. Once his face was better, Seamus answered.

"Slytherins." Seamus said angrily. "They offended me mum, so I hit one of them."

Dean took over. "And the filthy Slytherins got some more of their friends and ganged up on him. I..." Hermione saw him narrow his eyes at Ginny, as though it were her fault. "Wasn't there." Seamus must've told him what happened, Hermione realised, but she wondered why he hadn't been there. Usually Seamus and Dean were inseperable.

Madam Pomfrey made Seamus lie down and gave him a potion that would help to heal his leg. She then looked at Ginny, then over at Hermione. "You had better get some sleep. No more visitors."

Before Ginny walked away, Hermione said to her quietly, "Ginny. Don't tell Harry."

"Why?"

"I don't want to spoil the Ball for him."

Madam Pomfrey shooed Ginny away. Hermione watched Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas for awhile. They looked like they were arguing. She couldn't here what they were saying. She closed her eyes, and slowly but surely, Hermione fell asleep.

--

It was later in the afternoon when Hermione woke up again. She didn't feel as numb and sore as before. She was still really tired, but she opened her eyes and observed was happening around her. She was still in the Hospital Wing. Seamus was still there too, but instead if Dean at the side of his bed, there was Ginny, smiling and laughing with him. Hermione smiled, and went back to sleep.

Finally, I finished the third chapter. Thank my friend, Nat, for nagging me about it. I'm sorry it's so late. To make up for it, the fourth chapter will be here really soon!

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