A/N: Alrightie… I decided to work on chapter nine as soon as I could. Which is right now, apparently. So let's get to it! (glares at the plot bunnies) They are being no help whatsoever. They look kinda starved, which is bad…

Dedication: I dedicate this chapter to dark-sky-night, she guessed correctly first; of course, several other guessed correctly, but I'm feeling lazy so I won't mention all of you, but you all get yourselves cookies! Oh no, it's not wishful thinking it shall be a reality! MWUHAHAHA!! Trust me; my sick and twisted mind does not lie when it comes to these things.

Disclaimer: Don't own it, so don't sue me! I only own Maerin and the plot (whatever that might be… I have no control over it…)

Chapter 9: A Little Heart to Heart

Naruto found it incredibly easy to track the young wizard; he might not be an expert at tracking, like Kiba and Akamaru, but following Harry was just too easy. It made him wonder whether all wizards were as lax about this kind of thing.

He followed Harry through the twisting corridors, keeping his distance, yet remaining close enough to follow him. Eventually, they entered the library. Harry settled into a secluded table hidden behind the many shelves; Naruto paused for a moment, but then followed, silently taking a seat beside the wizard.

"Hey Harry, you seem kinda on edge…" Naruto began; he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Is it something you'd like to talk about?"

"It's… it's just that I can't stand when they argue like that…" he ground out, slamming his fists onto the table; Naruto didn't wince, but his frown deepened. "They're always at each others throats! They can never go a day without arguing! It's just so GOD DAMN FRUSTRATING!"

Naruto leaned his chair back, "Well, maybe they like each other? I don't know, honestly, it's more like how me and Sasuke argue."

Harry shot Naruto a glare, but didn't answer the first question, "I noticed."

Grinning, Naruto continued, "Consider him and me friendly rivals. We used to fight over everything... but now, we mostly squabble over who's stronger."

Softening his glare, Harry elaborated, "Ever since Hermione first became friends with us, she and Ron have argued over the smallest things! It just gets on my nerves; some days I just want to smack them over the heads and tell them to quit it!"

"I'd pay to see that!" Naruto replied with a laugh, nearly toppling out of his chair. The vulture-like Mrs. Pinch came over and ordered the two raucous boys to leave the library. The pair grinned at each other before leaving the library.

"Back where we used to live, I used to pull all of these stupid pranks when I was little," Naruto was explaining. "Of course; it got me in trouble a lot of the time, but it was mostly a bid for attention."

"I hate attention," Harry replied. "People look at me funny, talk about me behind their backs... it gets annoying. Although, I am kinda happy that it's not like last year."

"Why what happened last year?" The two boys were meandering their way back to their common room, not noticing exactly where they were headed.

"No one believed me that Voldemort was back. Thought me and Dumbledore were raving mad because of it," Harry shuddered. "Then there was Umbridge... her detentions were awful." He held up his hand so the torchlight reflected off the words scarred there, 'I must not tell lies'.

"Whoa... even my punishments back home weren't that bad..." Naruto's voice fell. "But the way everyone treated me seemed like punishment enough... they'd ignore me; treat me coldly. I was... I was an outcast."

Harry watched the normally upbeat and optimistic blonde's mood change, "Why? Did something happen?"

"I never knew my parents, you know. They died shortly after I was born..." Naruto whispered. "I've never known what happened to my mother... but my father he..." Naruto's voice trailed off. "It's because of his death that the people hated me so..."

"So you're an orphan?" Naruto nodded, Harry gave a sad smile, "Then we have something in common. My parents died protecting me from Voldemort..." he looked down. "It's because of a prophecy that was made before I was born."

Naruto looked up, surprised; they were standing in front of the Fat Lady.

"Password?"

"Hokage," Harry answered absently. The portrait swung open and the pair climbed in.

Dinner had only wrapped up a few minutes earlier, so the pair had the common room to themselves for a short time. Pulling out their Transfiguration homework, they settled down in the comfy armchairs closest to the fire and started to work.

Naruto was about halfway through a passage on Vanishing when the portrait slammed open, and the other Sasuke, Gaara, Ron, and Hermione arrived. Nodding at the two shinobi, Naruto returned to his work. He tuned out Ron and Hermione's apologies to Harry; who merely grunted as acknowledgment that he'd heard them.

It didn't take long for the common room to fill up with other students. Sasuke and Gaara had arranged themselves with their Transfiguration books on floor around the arm chairs, while Hermione had retreated to a table in the back. Ron had filled the last empty arm chair and was absently reading through his notes.

Harry and Naruto, who had started early, finished before the others. Naruto leaned over the arm of his chair to read Sasuke's essay over his shoulder. Sasuke shot a glare over his shoulder at the invasion, but said nothing.

"You spelt vanishing wrong," Naruto pointed out casually. Sasuke growled at him, but fixed the mistake anyways. Naruto grinned. "How was dinner? Anything interesting happen?"

"That idiot Malfoy tried to ambush us on the third floor," Sasuke commented, rolling up his parchment and gathering his books and notes, putting them back into his bag. "We didn't hurt him permanently. Just messed with him a little?"

"Define 'messed'."

"You remember those pranks you used to pull? Remember that dye that would not come off?"

"Yeah..."

"Let's just say he's sporting a new look." A savage grin spread across Sasuke's face. Naruto cringed inwardly a little, but grinned on the outside.

"Ha! I was right! You do have it in you to be a prankster!" He slapped Sasuke heartily on the back. The two wizards gave them strange looks.

"Care to clue us in mate?" Ron asked.

Naruto laughed, "It's nothing really! Sasuke was just telling me how that little ass Malfoy is sporting a whole new look!"

Harry raised an eyebrow, "Is it permanent?"

Sasuke stood up, his bag slung over his shoulder, "Let's just say it won't be going away anytime soon..." He left the group there to debate his meaning. Gaara followed him shortly afterwards. Ron gaped after them and at Naruto who was still grinning like an idiot.

"That bloke never ceases to amaze me..."

"Just stay off his bad side," Naruto advised. "He can be scary if he wants to."

"I believe you there..." Ron replied, Harry smiled before he gathered his things up to head upstairs for bed.

God. I started this chapter a LONG time ago. And umm... I still have writer's block. It won't go away and it's starting to tick me off. The writer's block seems to only be attached to this story and at this point in the story. My thinking is, if I can get beyond this part to where my ideas are, the writer's block will go away!

I apologize for the shortness. I'll try and write a longer chapter for next time, think of this chapter as a character building one. Once again, I'm sorry about the length... it's the writer's block.

Thanks you guys for all the reviews! And I apologize to my hundredth reviewer, next chapter will be dedicated to you, for now, however, I have some other things to work on. But I'll try and work on this story too.

Kat.