Harry just snorted. "Malfoy bought his way in, and Ron got his because he was my friend," he said dismissively. Hermione nodded the truth of that, and the four in the compartment chatted amiably about whether they should continue the DA or not.

They arrived at Hogwarts without having an encounter with Malfoy, to everyone's surprise. In fact, the worst aspect was that all four of them could see the thestrals, which reminded them all of Sirius, leading to a quiet carriage ride up to the castle.

Once they made it to the Great Hall, they found themselves in the unique situation of eating without Ron; it was the first time Harry or Hermione had eaten without him. In spite of the possibility of becoming friends gain, it reminded Harry and Hermione keenly of the recent betrayal and they barely paid attention to their surroundings. Fortunately, Neville and Luna were aware of this and watched out for them.

Neither of the two gave the sorting any attention, instead whispering small comforts to each other in their minds. They didn't even notice that the food appeared on the table until Neville gently reached across the table and shook Harry. Luna probably would have done the same to Hermione, but she was at the Ravenclaw table.

That didn't stop her from watching worriedly as Harry and Hermione ate mechanically, with lost expressions. She was grateful to Neville for getting them to at least eat, but she was worried about how they were going to take Dumbledore's news/question; after all she could only see possibilities, and there were many for this.

Her fears came to naught, however, as Dumbledore approached them at the end of the feast. "Ah, Harry my boy," he said cheerfully, "would you and Hermione mind having a chat with me?"

Harry glanced at Hermione who was looking dejected, before turning back to the Headmaster and giving a slight nod. Dumbledore pretended not to notice how sad they looked, and found himself desperately hoping this would cheer them up as he led them to the same room Harry had been in two years before when he was told he had to enter the Tournament.

Leaving his thoughts, he turned back to the teens with twinkling eyes, beginning, "I think we need to discuss arrangements for the year, Mr. and Mrs. Potter." He laughed gently at their surprised looks. "There is a book recording every magical birth, is it really a surprise to find there is one on Bonds?" He asked, amused. Not waiting for an answer, he continued, "Now, you may not be aware of this, but there is a charter for married couples in the school; after all, separating a Bonded pair is foolish, and what with the gender restrictions in the general dorms, it wouldn't be allowed."

"Where are these accommodations, sir?" Hermione asked, her curiosity fully aroused. "There's no mention of them in Hogwarts, A History."

"It is on the fifth floor, directly across from the prefects' bathroom," Dumbledore replied. "It is guarded by a portrait of Richard Rahl," he added. "You can set the password to anything you would like. Have a nice night," he finished, walking away swiftly.

Harry and Hermione shared a glance at his abrupt departure, but shrugged it off. Turning to leave, Harry wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulder, and Hermione wrapped her arm around his waist, leaning her head on his shoulder. Fortunately, they didn't pass anyone, and soon stood before the portrait, who smiled at them.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Potter," it said cheerfully. "The Headmaster told me you would be coming. Any ideas for the password?"

Harry glanced to Hermione, who nodded, knowing what was in his mind. "Sirius," Harry said clearly, ruthlessly quashing any sadness. He smiled gratefully at Hermione, who had squeezed his waist tighter in a gesture of comfort.

The portrait of Richard decided not to ask, and quietly swung open to let them in. The couple walked in, engorgioed their trunks, changed, and crawled into bed gratefully; neither wanted to think about the rest of the year with an estranged friendship. They were soon in the first restless sleep since they had started sleeping together.

The next morning, they woke still feeling tired and full of foreboding-though neither knew why. They reluctantly got up, showered, dressed, and headed down to the Great Hall. It wasn't until they got there that they realized they had no idea who the new Defense teacher was. They decided to ask McGonagall when she gave them their timetables after breakfast.

As they unenthusiastically picked at their breakfast, it occurred to Hermione to wonder just what they were feeling bad about. It wasn't as though they hadn't expected this. If anything, it had gone better than they had hoped; Ginny was definitely backing off, and Ron seemed to be much less jealous. They had been worried about it possibly taking weeks or even months to get to this point! Realizing that things could have gone that way, she felt much better, and pushed her realization to Harry, who seemed to brighten at the thought she sent his way.

Grateful for the positive outlook, Harry turned to Hermione to give her a swift smile and a squeeze of her hand, which he didn't think he'd let go of since they were both dressed. He was about to thank her aloud when McGonagall walked over with their timetables and a smile that was unusual on the usually stern face of the Deputy Headmistress.

"Hello Harry, Hermione," she greeted them, not seeming to notice Harry's slight frown. "Here are your timetables, and I look forward to having you in my class," she said in a more businesslike fashion, beginning to turn away.

"Professor," Hermione began before McGonagall could completely depart, "who is the new Defense Professor?"

McGonagall seemed a bit puzzled at the question. "Ms. Granger, weren't you paying attention at the Welcoming Feast?" She asked in her usual stern manner, sighing when Hermione shook her head. "Professor Slughorn took over teaching Potions, so I'm sure you can work out who is teaching Defense," she said gently before walking away.

Harry and Hermione were both unsure which baffled them more-McGonagall's quick changes in mood, or the news that Snape was teaching Defense. Hermione was the first to realize the possibilities of a new Potions teacher, and chased after McGonagall, dragging Harry with her. "Professor," she called again. Not wanting to embarrass Harry, she waited until they were close enough not to be overheard before continuing. "Would Professor Slughorn be willing to accept a student with Exceeds Expectations?" She asked quietly.

McGonagall looked to Harry, since she knew he was the one Hermione was asking for. Upon seeing his hopeful look, she replied, "Indeed, Miss-Mrs. Potter, but Harry still needs the required text."

Now Harry jumped in, saying, "I have the book, Professor, Hermione was going to tutor me." McGonagall simply nodded to her favorite students before magically altering Harry's timetable to include Potions, and then walking away to continue handing out the timetables.

Hermione took a moment to hug him in excitement before confronting him about his earlier frown. "Harry, why did you frown when McGonagall said nothing but 'hello' to us?"

Harry frowned slightly again at the reminder. "Because," he replied, "everyone who greets when we're together-which I hope is almost always, by the way-greets me first. It just seems backward to me," he confessed, blushing slightly.

Hermione just beamed, enjoying his reply. "I don't care about anyone else's opinion, I just want yours," she felt the need to reply.

Harry wrapped his arms tightly around her, saying, "Well, it's a good thing I'll always put you first, then." Releasing Hermione's body from the hug, he quickly reclaimed her hand and got down to schoolwork. "So, shall we examine our timetables?"

Hermione nodded, pressing herself close to Harry so she could enjoy his presence more. She waved her wand to summon their timetables, and began studying it. She stifled a chuckle at Harry's groan. "We have Double Potions and Double Defense today," he grumbled. "And we have to get separated for Divination and Arithmancy! Double of a class I hate, Double of a teacher who hates me for my father, and being separated from you," he said, ticking them off. "I hope whoever made this schedule is having a good laugh, 'cause I'm going to kick their a-butt," he hastily amended at the look on Hermione's face.

Thinking quickly, he gave a bow, asking with a smile, "May I escort you to the dungeon, milady?"

Hermione clamped down on her amusement and retorted, "What kind of girl do you think I am?" Harry just raised his eyebrow, receiving a playful smack on the arm for his sense of humor. He wasn't complaining, though, because soon after, Hermione grabbed that arm and leaned against him; with a pretty girl leaning on him, he had no reason to complain.

The rest of the day wasn't as bad as he had expected; he found he actually liked Potions when the teacher wasn't Snape, and in Defense Harry was already confident enough in his abilities that Snape couldn't even say anything about them. The worst part of the day was Divination; he still sat at the table with Ron, (which was awkward) and he was separated from Hermione. Hermione only had to deal with the separation. To the surprise of them both, they had a lot more difficulty with it than they had anticipated. They both rushed from their class when it was over, eager to see each other.

As soon as they sighted each other, they hugged, both breathing a sigh of relief; neither knew what they were so worried about, but there was no denying that they were both very nervous when the other wasn't near them. While they were hugging, Harry whispered in Hermione's ear, "Should we go to the Chamber to get it out of the way quickly?" Hermione nodded against his chest, causing Harry to smile. Gently-and reluctantly-pulling away, he grabbed her hand and headed to a familiar bathroom.

When they finally reached the room with the dead basilisk, Hermione gasped and clutched Harry tightly. Harry was focusing on the possible transformation, and barely registered it. Although he was still nervous, when Hermione had told him that the stare only worked on humans and spiders he had relaxed much more.

Absentmindedly, Harry took the bottle from Hermione, raised it, said, "Cheers," and gulped it down.