The Weasleys arrived at Grimmauld Place in the afternoon of the following day when Harry and I had a one hour break from three to four.

"All praise the benign lord." Fred and George Weasley exclaimed when they stepped out of the fireplace and came to a halt in front of Harry and bowed deeply in a comedic way.

"Hey guys, how is it going?" My best friend asked as he and the twins shook hands.

"It's never been greater. Though we heard you had quite a hard time this summer again, ey?" Fred said and Harry managed a weak smile.

"I really had worse. Until yesterday things were actually looking quite good, especially since I always have Hermione to keep me company." He explained, which made the twins turn their attention towards me.

"Ah, if it isn't the brightest witch of her age." George greeted me and shook my hand.

"If it aren't the two pranksters that want to open a joke shop." I cooly countered and they snickered.

"Yes, these days everybody seems to have forgotten Fred and George Weasley.. Now we're just the crazy blokes that have a ridiculously good idea." Fred said with a smirk and his brother agreed with a nod.

"I want to see that joke shop before I call it any good." I declared as I crossed my arms in front of my chest.

"As your big master brain should know, perfection needs it's time." George pointed a finger at me with an amused expression on his face.

"Speaking of brain sizes, can you please tell me that Ron's has grown enough over the holidays to stop believing in his stupid claims about me or Hermione?" Harry asked with a groan and the twins shot each other an amused glance.

"I think you're asking too much of little Ronniekins. Though I think he won't bother you as mum told him he wouldn't get any meals on the days he troubles you too much. And as you know him.."

The fireplace erupted with life and the only female child of Arthur and Molly Weasley stepped out of it.

"We'll have enough time to catch up. Now I think it would be wiser if you gave our little sister her direly needed attention." Fred teased with a snicker before he patted his brother's back and pulled him towards the exit of the room.

"Hey guys.", The redhead girl waved at us before hugging me and Harry, "I'm so glad you're alright, mum told us everything about the Dementor attack. Why must you two always suffer so much?"

"It's alright Ginny, we've survived, we're unharmed.. That's all what matters." Harry said and gave her a small smile, making the Weasley girl blush brightly.

Of course I knew that Ginny Weasley had a crush on my best friend, especially since he rescued her from the Chamber of Secrets at the end of his second year. And who could blame her? Dozens of young women at Hogwarts had a crush on the Boy-Who-Lived. But not a single one had a crush on Harry himself..

"Oh and Hermione, I'm so sorry about the things my stupid brother said about you." She addressed me and I gave her a weak smile.

"There's no need to apologize, Ginny. Ron is the only one who messed things up." I told her and the redhead sighed.

"I know. Hopefully he'll come around in the future." She said.

"If you say so.." My best friend mumbled before the Weasley girl took her leave and headed upstairs to her new room.

The fireplace sprung to life again and forth came my least-favourite Weasley.

"Hello Ronald." I stiffly greeted him and felt the anger rising inside of me just by looking at him, so I clenched my fists and tried my best not to snap at him.

"Long time no see." He responded with a grumpy voice, his eyes fixated on me like I had betrayed him in the past, and I knew that the actual message behind his words was "I had a fine time not having to look at your ugly faces.".

"It's not like we missed you either." Harry retorted with a mean tone and his emerald eyes flashed menacingly at his ex friend.

"Yeah, why should you, St. Potter? All you ever cared about is the girl I'm supposed to be with and the fame you bask in. There never was a place for me in your spoiled life anyway." Ron spat out before grabbing his trunk and making his way out of the room.

"You're right: There is no place for an idiotic twat like you in my life." Harry called after him and I gave him a scolding look, despite the aggravation I felt myself.

"You don't have to insult him at any given opportunity." I told him and Harry snorted as he looked at me.

"You're siding with him now?" He asked with his typical the-entire-world-is-against-me voice and I shook my head with determination.

"No. All I want is that you don't make angry and impulsive retorts that might worsen our relationship with him further."

"That's not even possible."

"But that's not the point! If you constantly show him the finger then I can tell you that he'll never try to be civil with us again." I stated and my best friend gritted his teeth.

"Fine, I'll behave if he does." He growled and I sighed.

"Harry, don't be an immature child! We both know that Ron will never take the first step, so it's up to you to be a man and act wisely."

"What if I don't even want to improve our relationship?"

His words seemed to echo through the room as his orbs of green were focused on my face, enabling me to see the emotional turmoil inside of him.

Harry's eyes had always been so expressive: One look was enough for me to tell how he felt, what bothered him and what he wanted. This time wasn't an exception.

"You really don't even want to try?" I asked in a whisper with slight trepidation in my voice. Sometimes he could even scare me.

"Hermione. I don't know. It's just.."

"Please, do it for me." I gave him my best pout and saw how the tension left his muscles.

"Alright, I'll try.", Harry sighed as I hugged him tightly and felt him draping his arms around me in a protective manner, "I'd do anything for you, just know that."

"I know, Harry. You're my priority number one as well.." I told him and felt him smiling against my mane of hair.

"I've got a friend in here somewhere who can help me out." He cited a verse from New Order's "Chosen Time" and I had to chuckle because of how fitting the text was to our current situation…

In the evening we all cooked dinner together before dining at the large table in the conference room.

"I can't believe it that I've found something Hermione Granger is only average at." Harry flashed me a cheeky grin as he helped himself to a bowl of salad that the twins had prepared together.

"You're mean, Potter." I told him and slapped him lightly on his forearm.

"Well, at least that means whoever is going to marry Hermione will have to cook for the family himself.", Sirius remarked with a snicker, "Which of course is not of concern when your future husband can cook expertly."

He gave his godson a meaningful look that made both of us blush madly.

"Honestly, that man and his allusions.." I thought to myself as I loaded my plate with baked potatoes.

"Hey, don't insult Hermione like that. I didn't say she is a bad cook, just an average one.", Harry pointed his fork at Sirius, "Something that can't be said for you, Padfoot."

The animagus indistinctively muttered something as some people around him snickered and I gratefully squeezed my best friend's hand under the table.

"You're welcome." Harry breathed only for me to hear and I flashed him a quick smile.

"Ey Sirius? Have you actually heard about the joke shop Fred and I want to open one day?" George asked Harry's godfather whose mood brightened significantly at the mention of a shop selling articles for pranksters like him.

"No you certainly haven't. But you gotta tell me everything now that you've mentioned it!" Sirius eyes were sparkling with curiosity and excitement but then Mrs. Weasley cleared her throat.

"You will not help my children realize that stupid idea of theirs!" She shot the Black a threatening glare that proved to be ineffective.

"Why not, Molly? Your lads are of age, they can decide for themselves what they wanna do and what not!"

"Not as long as they're living under my roof!" The Weasley matron declared.

"Well, then it's a good thing they're living under my roof until the start of term." Sirius countered and the twins clapped in approval.

"Yeah, his house, his rules!" Fred and George said in unison and Mrs. Weasley looked really sour now.

"Why did your godson have to give them the money to even start this chaos?!" She shortly gave Harry an unpleasant look before continuing her verbal duel with the prankster.

"Oh, so you have something against Harry now or what?" Sirius rolled his eyes and Mrs. Weasley's mouth dropped open.

"I don't have something against Harry, but I well do have something against his decision to give my immature twins such a huge sum of galleons!" She stated and the animagus groaned.

"And why don't you discuss such matters with Harry himself then, hm?"

"Believe me, I will, but this is all about you, Sirius Black! You laze around the house most of the time, don't have to go on risky missions for the order like other members and now you want to help ruining two of my children." Her face was almost as red as her hair by the time she had said the words and Sirius just threw his head back in laughter.

"Lazing around the house?! Oh, I'm sorry! It's of course my fault that there's a warrant for me and I practically can't leave the house. How silly of me, now that you said it I think I should have remained in Azkaban. And besides, I'm giving my best teaching Harry and Hermione all the things they need to survive in these dark times. That's hardly lazing around." He countered and wildly gestured with his hands, making it apparent how insulted he felt by her words.

"That still doesn't.."

"Good evening, folks." Mr. Weasley entered the dining room with a broad smile on his face and I assumed he just returned from his work at the ministry.

"Arthur.", Mrs. Weasley greeted her husband as she got up from the table and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Sirius Black is trying to help Fred and George with their so called joke shop."

"Not true! We asked him if he could help us." The twins stated in unison and Mr. Weasley sighed.

"Boys, don't you think it's a bit too early for you to get serious about your business? Remember, you still have a year of education in front of you." He told his sons and they crossed their arms in front of their chests.

"We are not even so serious about it right now. That's why we.."

"Want to experiment a lot and then see if it would be possible to produce our products on a grander scale. About planning we're serious." Fred finished George's explanation.

"Molly, they are of age. We can't stop them anyway." Mr. Weasley sighed and his wife gave him a deadly glare.

"You really support them with that nonsense?" She asked and her husband shook his head.

"No. I'm just accepting that I now have two more grown-up sons.", He declared with a touch of pride in his voice before sitting down at the table, "And if Sirius can be of guidance for Fred and George with their ideas, then I think we don't have much to fear."

The twins cheered loudly and Sirius wore a victorious grin on his face as the defeated Mrs. Weasley sat down next to her husband and the meal continued.

"By the way Hermione, the steaks you and Harry fried are really good." Ginny told me shortly afterwards and I shyly glanced at my best friend, who was far more responsible for the achievement than I was.

"Don't sell yourself short Hermione. It's not like you just watched me doing everything. You were of great assistance to me." Harry gave me a pat on the back and the reassuring, radiant smile he wore on his face made me feel a bit giddy.

"Thanks, Ginny.", I thanked the younger girl for her compliment, "Harry and I are a well-practised duo."

I heard a mocking snort from Ronald's seat but tried not to give it too much attention and the youngest Weasley slightly smirked at my remark. Or was that just my imagination? …

"Why must the dishes be done by hand? You could just do them with a flick of your wand, there's no need for us children to waste an hour of our life!" Ginny asked her mother when she had tasked us teenagers to do the dishes.

"If you don't do things without magic from time to time you easily forget how valuable it is." Mrs. Weasley explained and Harry chuckled.

"Don't worry Ginny, Hermione and I have done chores here loads of times with magic, you don't have to do them by hand." Harry stupidly spilled our advantage and within two seconds his facial expression changed from a smile to an I-messed-up expression.

"You will still do the dishes by hand!"

"Wait, we can use our wands here? Wicked." Ron looked amazed and even smiled for a second until his eyes met mine and then he was gloomy again.

"You will do no such thing, Ronald Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley pointed a finger at her son.

"That's unfair mum!" Ginny joined the discussion and the Weasley matron put her hands on her hips.

"There is a reason why the ministry has a restriction for the usage of magic for underage witches and wizards." She stated and the twins snickered.

"Alright, then we'll do the dishes for you. WITH magic." They declared and Mrs. Weasley already wanted to retort but was quickly interrupted by Sirius.

"Molly, this is my house. I'm perfectly fine if the kids use magic to do the dishes. Don't keep your youngsters on such a short leash."

His words were like judge's sentence, and in a matter of seconds plates, bowls and glasses were flying through the room into the kitchen, the Weasley kids all grinning like idiots…

"And? How mad was our beloved mother?" The twins asked Harry the second he had closed the door and my best friend shrugged his shoulders.

"Well.. I think she was more desperate than really angry, so it was okay." He explained as he sat down on a chair in the twins room and Fred smirked.

"I knew you wouldn't cave in.."

"Not that you could have reclaimed your money even if mum convinced you." George finished his brother's explanation and I raised a brow.

"How is that?" I asked and they gave me a mysterious glance.

"It's well hidden." Was their answer and Ginny, who was sitting to my left, chuckled lightly.

"I think mum would still find it if she really put a lot of effort in it." She remarked and the twins sighed.

"Fortunately there are so many other things troubling her that she has no time hunting our gold." Fred said and Harry snorted with a grim expression on his face.

"Yeah, how lucky we all are that Voldemort is back from the dead." He dryly stated and the mood suddenly became very chilly in the room.

"I.. that's not what I wanted to say, Harry." Fred apologized and patted my best friend's back who only nodded in acknowledgment.

"So I heard you've been here a lot of times before to learn how to defend yourselves, can you tell us a bit about that?" Ginny inquired to know and I immediately went into my lecture-mode, seeing a good opportunity to ease the tension from this situation.

"Yes, we started practising our skills here since the second week of the holidays and we've been learning all kinds of things. Like how to duel properly, what spells are useful in what situations, then we also work on our stamina and physical conditions, you get the point." I explained and Ginny's eyes lit up in amazement.

"C'mon, I wanna see a spell!" She demanded and I giggled at the girl's eagerness.

"Reducto!" I exclaimed and pointed my wand at an unoccupied chair that got pulverized immediately.

"Wow!" The Weasleys all sat there with an open mouth and looked at me with a mixture of amazement and fear.

"Alright, I think we should keep our eyes open this year, Fred.", George then told his brother with a gulp, "That witch seems to be a quite dangerous one."

"I swear, if Hermione was a prankster then Hogwarts would be below the lake by now." Ginny stated with an amused grin and I gasped.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean? That I can't control myself?"

"'Mione, remember what I told you last night? You are a little devil, even if you try your best to deny it." Harry joined in with a smirk and I blushed as I remembered how I had felt after his.. stimulating statement.

"Oh, what did you two do last night? Was it steamy?" Fred snickered and I shot him a threatening glare, despite the rosiness of my face.

"Why must all interactions between a girl and a boy be seen as something non-platonic?" I inquired to know but the twins smirk only widened.

"It's not like we're talking about any boy and girl. It's Harry and Hermione, two best friends that seem to be even closer now that they've been glued to each other over the summer." George said with big eyes as he wildly gestured with his hands and Ginny giggled at her brother's statement.

"You can't seriously tell us nothing has happened between the two of you during the summer." She said and when I looked at Harry from the corner of my eye, I saw that his cheeks were just as intensely flushed as mine probably were.

"That's exactly what we're going to tell you.", My best friend replied, "We're still best friends, although I must say we understand each other even better than before."

"Alright, I think we won't get a satisfying answer from them today." The redhead girl declared with a sigh and her brothers shrugged their shoulders.

I just hope we get an invitation to the wedding." Fred remarked before Ginny pointed a finger at him.

"I think we've teased them enough." She firmly stated and I thanked the redhead for siding with me, the intense heat on my cheeks quickly becoming unbearable.

I glanced at Harry and saw him uncomfortably shifting in his seat and when our gazes met, we reddened even harder, if that was even possible.

"Is it true that you have to stand trial for the patronus charm you used yesterday?" Ginny then asked, and I thanked the gods for her deliberate change of topic.

"Yes, and it's the most retarded decision ever.", Harry groaned as he shook his head in disbelief, "And before you ask, it's in two days."

"But there's no chance they'll be able to sentence you to.. you know.." George almost whispered fearfully and gestured towards my best friend's wand.

"I think even the devil himself couldn't make Harry lose this case. The law is as clear as crystal: Even underage wizards are allowed to use magic in situations that are classified as life-threatening. And if a dementor attack isn't the definition of such a thing, then I don't know what is." I explained and everybody in the room agreed with a hum.

"Do you think the press will report about it?" Ginny asked and Harry just snorted.

"I don't give a damn about these lying, propagandistic, conspiring assholes." He cursed and when he caught my scolding glance for his usage of words, he rolled his eyes.

"Hermione, there's no use to paraphrase what they are. You should know best that bluntness is quite effective." Harry told me, his eyes so intensely locked on mine.

"That haircut of his really made his eyes even sexier.." I thought to myself as I tried to not get distracted.

"Yes, I know. I'd still appreciate it if you used other synonyms. The art of good insults is to be expressive with the most harmless words." I lectured him and actually managed to make him chuckle.

"I'll try to remember that the next time." Harry said and I smiled at him.

"Speaking of remembering something, what memory do you use when you cast your patronus, Harry?" Ginny asked my best friend who only gave us all a mysterious grin.

"That's my little secret.", He replied, "But be assured: It's a damn happy one."

"Is he always that mysterious?" The redhead girl asked me with a whisper and I shook my head.

"It's not usual. But nothing unexpected either. Attention-seeking prat." I giggled and my best friend gently tipped his shoe against my leg.

"Hey! I'm not.." He playfully defended himself but I could see it in his eyes that he had taken my words more serious than he wanted people to believe.

"I really can't believe how so many people are convinced by the ministry's lies." He then muttered in a much more serious tone a few moments later and the twins shot each other a meaningful glare.

"Yeah.. even Percy is convinced that you're secretly a necromancer." George admitted and my eyes widened with shock.

"WHAT?!", Harry exclaimed with flames of emerald burning in his eyes, "How can he? I've been sitting with him at the same table at Hogwarts for three years and lived under his family's roof quite a few times, doesn't he know that I'm harmless?"

"The thing is he's too determined to make a career in the ministry to see the truth.."

"So he does whatever makes him stand in the best light." The twins explained and I shook my head with a roll of my eyes.

"Opportunism. I've always hated that." I declared and saw Harry's jaw tightening.

"I'd rather die for my ideals than betray them." He stated and the Weasleys seemed to be taken aback by his harsh words. But he couldn't surprise me with that any more. I knew him too well. His life was a fight with and against the absolutes.

"Mate.. That's hard." Fred told him after what felt like an eternity of silence and Harry wryly chuckled.

"But it's the truth. Have you never thought about such a thing before?" He asked the twins who shrugged their shoulders.

"It's not like we have to face death every second day." They said in unison and my best friend sighed as he rubbed his temples.

"I'm sorry, I think I'm gonna have a headache.." He muttered before getting up and before I could call after him, the door was closed again.

I decided not to immediately run after him, knowing he needed a bit of space to breathe before he could talk to me properly. And I was keen to talk with him about this.

"Uh.. what exactly just happened? Are we to blame?" Fred asked me with an apologetic look.

"Yes and no. You see, Harry has been through a lot, and this summer was no exception. He learned about his role in the war against the dark lord and in general there is so much that is troubling him even besides that.. It's no wonder to me why he sometimes overreacts when he feels triggered." I explained and Ginny looked at me with trepidation in her eyes.

"Sounds like h can be quite scary sometimes." She silently said and I nodded.

"But that's part of his personality as well: A lot of the time he is this incredibly kind, compassionate and caring person, but in everybody slumbers a monster. And Harry has made a lot of horrible experiences in his life. I'd be suffocated by my own misery if I was him." I admitted and even the twins looked shocked at my last statement.

"That bad? What in the name of god did he have to live through?" Fred asked me and I gave him a weak smile as I got up from my chair.

"I think I'm not the one to tell you such things. Now, if you could excuse me, I have a friend to comfort." I declared before I bade the three redheads goodnight and left the twins room.

I went to his room and gently knocked, waiting a few seconds for a response that didn't come.

I then quietly opened the door and peaked inside, an empty room for my eyes to see.

"He didn't go to the library, did he?" I thought to myself as I indeed made my way to the Black Library, a feeling telling me that he was there, despite the fact that the hall of books never were amongst my best friend's favourite places.

"Harry?" I whispered when I saw him lying on the couch in front of the fireplace, a depressed expression etched into his handsome face and he opened his eyes at the mentioning of his name.

"Yeah?" He asked as I sat down on an armchair next to him, his voice exhausted and tired.

"What's bothering you?" I asked with the soft voice I only used in situations like these, and my best friend sighed deeply.

"The world is unfair, Hermione. That's what is bothering me." He stated as he closed his eyes again and I waited for him to continue.

"Here I am, merely fifteen years of age and am confronted with threads a thousand times larger than the problems of two legal adults. How can anyone justify that I have to carry all the burden while other people, more mature people, are blissfully oblivious to the world's problems?" He asked with despair dominating his voice.

"I don't have an answer for that, Harry."

"This is just madness. Oh, Voldemort's back but that's not too bad as long as it doesn't affect my life. No wonder they were shocked at my absolute statement! They have an easy, innocent life and never had to think about survival before!", My best friend raged, "But of course I, the boy-without-parents, without a home and with almost nothing have to kill a dark wizard if I don't want to be killed by him. Oh, how great!"

He was bitter again, so bitter that it broke my heart. But I had to be strong for him now, not the other way around.

"Yes Harry, you're right. They don't have to face a fraction of what awaits you every day." I affirmed and he laughed wryly.

"They don't have a clue what if feels like to be plagued by so many fears, they don't know how it feels to be loathed by one part of society and hunted by the other. They just think I'm a teenage boy like all the others, except for the scar that made me famous." He declared with fury in his voice and I could swear the air around him was crackling as he let go of his frustrations.

"Those people will never understand me the way you understand me." He then stated with a sigh as he opened his eyes and looked at me, his orbs of emerald reflecting the vulnerability behind them.

"It seems like no matter what, people will always overlook me and don't care about my feelings. But you know what?! Fuck them. The only person I NEED is you, Hermione." He declared passionately and I felt my eyes moistening slightly.

"Harry, that's not true.. Other people care about you as well. Just not the way I do." I gently countered but he shook his head resolutely.

"They care about me as a friend. Not as the person I am. Essentially only you and Sirius care for me, Harry the teenager." He told me and I hummed in agreement.

"But what are you going to do about your situation? Just blowing off some steam won't help you in the long term." I tried to nudge him onwards to a more positive conclusion and my best friend shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't even have a choice. As always, I have to accept things the way they are and move on. Is that good enough for you?" He asked as he intently watched my every little movement.

"While I agree that there really is little you can do to change your situation, I think you should rather ask yourself if your conclusion is good enough for YOU." I told him and Harry inhaled deeply.

"Hermione, I care more about your opinion on that than I care about my own."

"Then you should finally start valuing your own opinion more. You should start valuing yourself more as an individual." I advised him and my best friend looked thunderstruck for a few seconds.

"Harry, what do you want to do with your life?" I asked when he didn't respond and his eyes narrowed as he thought about his answer.

"I want to see a time after Voldemort. I want to win this war and live my life in peace for the rest of my days. And maybe, just maybe..", He then stopped his loud thinking for a second, "I can have a family of my own. People that care about me as much as I care about them."

"Alright, now let me ask you something: You have the choice to save a stranger, but die as you do so or let him die and survive yourself. If you save the stranger, his dreams will become true. But if you let him die, it's guaranteed that your dreams will become reality. What do you choose?" I tested him and it didn't take long for his answer.

"That's easy: I of course save the stranger."

"And why don't you save yourself?"

"Because I'm not selfish."

"No, because you don't value your own life enough. There's a huge difference between being selfish and not caring about oneself." I explained and Harry groaned.

"What do you want from me, Hermione?" He asked and I snapped my fingers near his head, which startled him quite a bit.

"You have to prioritize your own needs more, Harry James Potter! Be a more important person in your own life." I said and the raven-haired wizard remained silent.

"You just told me about your dreams. But I can tell you one thing: You'll never see them become reality if you're this selfless all the time. What I'm trying to say is.."

"That I should live my life in a way that ensures that I'll live to see my dreams become reality, I get it." Harry finished my argument before humming in thought.

"Though when will I know that I'm too selfish?" He asked and I had to giggle lightly.

"Believe me, I'll make sure you won't become an egoist." I declared and saw as my best friend grinned with an amused sparkle in his eyes.

"Alright.. and what was the actual reason we were talking in the first place again?" Harry was smiling and I took it as a very good sign that he was coming down from his original outburst.

"You kind of complained how Fred and George have an easier life than you have. Which is of course right." I recapped quickly and my best friend hummed.

"Is it right or wrong to complain about such things?" Harry inquired to know and I chuckled.

"What do you personally think?"

"I think I have every right to do so. My life consists of constant struggles and fights, and other people just give me funny looks when I'm talking about the harshness of my reality.", He justified himself, "Which doesn't mean that I necessarily hold a grudge against the people who act this way around me."

"Strong and confident statement." I praised him and he chuckled.

"I tried to imagine how you would phrase it." He admitted and I blushed, the darkness of the room once again proving to be my ally.

"Thanks..Harry." I mumbled as my heart was fluttering wildly inside my chest.

We remained silent for a few moments and listened to the crackling fire in the fireplace until my best friend raised his voice again.

"Gosh.. this entire argument must have sounded like I can't stand the Weasleys, right?" Harry asked with a mild grin on his face as he stared into the flames.

"Well.. yes. Maybe you should learn to not generalize things when you're angry." I advised him and he chuckled.

"Hermione, I think that's part of being angry. Accusing even the innocent ones."

"No, that's just part of YOUR angry mode." I countered and he shrugged his shoulders.

"Maybe you're right. All I know is that it feels good to leash out at everybody when I'm pissed." He admitted and I gave him a scolding glance.

"That is quite counterproductive still. Remember, not everyone tries to understand you as well as I try to, so you might cause some problems with the wrong choice of words." I reminded him and Harry sighed.

"About that I can agree.", He said and took a breath, "It's still quite hard for me to not leash out."

"I know. I know." I gently took his hand in mine as a way to soothe him and he looked at our intertwined fingers with a small smile.

"Hermione? Can I ask you something?" His voice was calm, yet a small touch of hesitance accompanied his words.

"Anything, any time." I gave him a reassuring smile and he gathered his thoughts for a second.

"Earlier when we talked with Ginny, Fred and George.. You said that I was an attention-seeking prat. I know, I know, it was just a joke, but jokes rarely have no connection to reality, so.. Do you really think that I'm an attention-seeking prat?" He asked, his eyes searching for an answer in mine and his intense stare sent jolts of electricity down my spine.

"Harry, I don't know a person that is more unfitting of the word attention-seeking. You don't seek attention, attention just always seems to find you." I told him with all honesty and he laughed heartily.

"He sounds so carefree when he laughs.. And I'm so happy when he's feeling good." I thought to myself with a merry sigh.

"Hermione, what would I do without you, hm?" Harry asked, his emerald eyes radiating a positiveness that I hadn't seen there in days.

"You would probably get expelled from Hogwarts in two days." I mused and my best friend nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of that.. I think it would be good to look up some wizarding laws, just in case." He said and I crooked my head with a small grin.

"Harry Potter, you aren't suggesting to read more than you have to, are you?" I asked him and Harry returned my smirk.

"I think that's exactly what I'm suggesting Miss Granger. Except you don't feel up to the challenge." He playfully teased and I snorted.

"Keep dreaming, Potter." I retorted and with that we started looking for some useful books…


Author's note:

Unfortunately, I got sick on Thursday and thus had to take a break from writing for two days. But when I started feeling a bit better again on Saturday, I immediately got back to the story so that I could manage to finish chapter 14 today, which I just did. Didn't want to keep you guys waiting.

Otherwise I don't think there is much to say this time. All the topics discussed are easy to get and besides the explicitly mentioned "Chosen Time" there only is the chapter's title, "Complicated" by Avril Lavigne.

'Til the next time!

NewOrderFan05