DISCLAIMER: I do not own any recognisable characters.

This story was inspired by AkashaTheKitty's Dramione story, The Bracelet. The story made me fall in love with Theo Nott, therefore creating this "Themione".

Chapter Two – Spirit

The bell rang, signalling the end of the school day, and all the students were busy chatting and slamming their books closed, thankful for the end of another school day.

Usually, Hermione wouldn't be glad that learning was over for the day, but today, she was relieved. Her classes had been… distracted. She blamed it because she just came back from the holidays, but truly, she knew it was for another reason.

The Durmstrang boy had captured her thought process for the entire day.

"Hermione, are you even listening to me?"

Hermione turned around to face her slightly irritated best friend.

"Sorry, Gin. I was just thinking of something. What's up?"

Ginny eyed Hermione's flushed face suspiciously. "What were you thinking about?"

Hermione's peach complexion reddened. "Nothing of importance."

Ginny sighed. "Seriously, Herm. I've known you long enough to know something's up. What's going on? Did you meet a special someone during the holidays?"

Hermione blushed. Ginny squealed.

"Did you?" she practically shrieked.

Hermione shook her head. Technically, that morning wasn't the holidays anymore. But her best friend was practically jumping up and down on the spot because of her eagerness and frustration at Hermione's lack of response, so she decided to ease her some.

"I met him this morning, okay?" Hermione hissed, as she dragged Ginny out of the classroom.

"What's his name? How old is he? Is he from here? How'd you two meet? Oh Herm, you have to tell me!" Ginny shot off. "You haven't had a crush since you and my brother broke up, and you have to tell me everything!"

Hermione glanced around her as the other students stared at Ginny. "Gin, tell me exactly how much caffeine this morning. No, I really don't want to know."

Ginny pulled Hermione to a stop, but she was still jumping up and down on the spot. "Tell meeeee."

Hermione grimaced a little, before pushing Ginny towards the bus taking them to the train station. "Seriously, Gin. Just get on. I'll tell you, I promise."

Ginny huffed, before climbing on, followed by Hermione. Before Ginny could interrogate her again, Hermione decided to ask the questions first.

"So how were your holidays?" she asked, trying to sound subtle about controlling the direction of the conversation. "How're Harry and Ron?"

Ginny made a face. "Harry's going on about Cho, and Ron's going on about Lavender. I wish they'd both stop. Life was so much better when Ron was going out with you."

Hermione flinched a little, but her and Ron were never going to work out, they'd all known that. Then something else Ginny said took her mind off it. "What'd you mean Harry's going on about Cho? I thought you were going to tell him…"

Hermione drifted off, seeing the pain in Ginny's face. Placing a gentle hand on her friend's arm, she said softly, "Ginny, what happened?"

Ginny turned her face out the window. She didn't want to talk about this now, but Hermione was her best friend. She'd want to know.

She sighed, before saying, "I was going to tell him, that night. But then I overheard him and Ron… He was asking Ron where would be a good place to take a girl out. I was so excited, you know, thinking he was going to take me out."

She turned back to Hermione, her eyes glistening. "Ron said Madam Puddyfoot's Teashop was a good place for a first date, then he asked who Harry was planning to take out. Harry said Cho Chang. I left soon after Harry said, 'She's the first girl who made me feel this way.'"

"Oh, Gin," Hermione said, hugging her best friend despite the awkward angle they were seating in. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Herm," Ginny croaked, a tear sliding down her cheek. "They'll be others out there, right?"

Hermione nodded. "Always will be, Gin. Besides, it's not like your ugly or annoying or unpopular or anything. Any boy can see you're a perfect catch, Gin."

Ginny smiled through her tears as she pulled back from her friend's embrace. "Enough about me. What about you?"

Hermione flushed again. "Oh, it's nothing… really!" she added, when Ginny pulled on a disbelieving look.

"Nothing?" Ginny asked sceptically, as they disembarked from the bus and onto the train station. "Herm, this guy must be something if you were packing up on time, for one thing. The Hermione I know would never have packed up before I'd arrived at her classroom."

Hermione cringed. She had packed up the same time as her classmates had today, because she couldn't pull her mind in to write down additional notes from the board. Trust Ginny to have noticed.

Because she had been looking around nervously, trying to find an answer to appease the redhead, Hermione noticed a certain dark-haired Durmstrang boy.

Shoot.

Hermione almost hyperventilated at the sight of him. She cursed herself. How could an insignificant Durmstrang boy make her feel like this?

As if hearing her thoughts, the boy turned around and found her staring at him. Instead of making a face, however, he just continued to look at her… almost wonderingly, searchingly, similar to the look he had given her that morning on the train station.

His friends seemed to notice he was no longer in their conversation, because they all started reclaiming his attention. Hermione noticed the albino one from the morning amongst them. That must be his 'gang', seeing as the boys all seemed to be like the albino; brutish thugs who carried that aura of power.

She turned away from him, hoping beyond hope that Ginny hadn't noticed who she had been staring at.

No such luck.

"That's your dream boy?" Ginny hissed. "That, right there, the one with the black hair and who's staring at you?"

"Gin!" Hermione hissed back. "Stop staring at him."

Ginny finally tore her eyes from the Durmstrang boy, and instead, her fiery brown orbs stared at Hermione in a mixture of shock, anger, and disbelief.

"You can't like him, Herm!" Ginny whispered furiously.

"And why the hell not?"

"Because he's from Durmstrang!"

AN: I just realised the kind of hole I'd just dug for myself by mentioning The Bracelet at the top of the story. So I'd like to take this opportunity in saying that I am in no way as good a writer as AkashaTheKitty, and my Theo Nott is not as lovable as hers. The plot for this story is a bit fast-paced... like boom-boom-boom kind. It doesn't really explain much, it just lets things happen. Theo has some big things to work out, and I know some people hate it when characters all of a sudden change because of meeting a person; but it really does happen in real life.

Anyway, all I can say right now is: keep reading and reviewing. I guess I'll just explain a bit of the plot if I see it might be a bit confusing. Hope you don't kill me all of a sudden if the plot wasn't as exciting as you thought it'd be.

Okay, so here's a section I might start explaining. Hermione broke up with Ron a couple of months ago; she's thrown herself into her work to try and forget what happened. But she's a teenager, right? Going out with Ron seemed to break some hormonal dam in her system, and it turns out she can actually like guys now! Sorry for sounding sarcastic, but I don't like it much when they make Hermione too bookish - she is a teenager, she does have feelings.

PS. The only reason this is rated T is because of language and violence. I'm not into M stuff; sorry.

Review if you want to keep this story rolling.