"But it won't always be like this, right?" His hopeful tone must have done the deed as Hermione gave him a short hug.

"Of course not. First we'll get comfortable with us, then they'll know."

"Okay," he said, letting go of her. Just as Hermione made a move to go, Harry stopped her. "Oh, and Hermione, I definitely felt sparks."

"Wha-" Harry pecked her cheek before she could even finish her sentence and proceeded to the portrait hole, leaving a dazed Hermione behind.

CHAPTER 5: Deliberate Stares and Accidental Realisations

"There you are."

"Harry!" Hermione shrieked, her hand going to her heart. "Don't scare me like that!" She'd managed to lower her voice to a whisper while making it sound like she was scolding him.

After waking up at half past six in the morning, Harry had decided to spend the morning in the library with Hermione. He didn't even need to look at the Marauder's Map to know she was there, studying at her favourite table. Of course she was up at six o'clock to benefit from an empty library. Even Madame Pince wouldn't come to her desk before 8 o'clock. So after a quick shower and a stop by the Great Hall, Harry had found her between the aisles about Arithmancy.

"Sorry," he grinned sheepishly. "And good morning." Without waiting for a response, Harry leaned down and pecked Hermione on the cheek.

"Good morning to you, too." Hermione smiled, her cheeks were pink due to Harry's unexpected show of affection. "I didn't know you could wake up early without having the Dark Lord himself interfering in your dreams." It was her way of asking if he had a nightmare. Harry smiled and took the books in her hands.

"This time someone else interfered in my dreams." Hermione raised an eyebrow at his remark.

"Oh, really? Who is it?" She asked, playfully bumping his shoulder with hers. Harry laughed, surprisingly she was in a good mood.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He grinned and bumped her shoulder back.

"Oh, I already know. I just want to hear it from you," Hermione said sweetly as she gave him another book. Harry's grin widened, she really was in a good mood which was great considering the upcoming Arithmancy exam and its effects on Hermione.

"In your dreams, Granger."

"More like in your dreams, Potter." Hermione's retort made him laugh out loud. She really did know who was in his dreams last night.

"You're in a good mood." He changed the topic. It was for the better if they didn't delve into his dreams.

"Yeah, I had a nice sleep. Very pleasant dreams, I must say," she said the last part with a sidelong glance at him.

"Oh, maybe you'd like to tell me about your dreams over breakfast," Harry said as he steered her towards their table.

"I can't come to breakfast, Harry. I have to study."

"I know, that's why I brought the breakfast to you," he said proudly as he showed her their table.

"No, you didn't," Hermione said in disbelief. "Harry! If Madame Pince sees this, we'll be forever banned from the library."

"Don't worry, she won't be here till eight. We have more than an hour to eat and get rid of the evidence." Harry grinned cheekily. He pulled the heavy mahogany chair for Hermione to sit and then sat at the other side of the table.

"Oh, believe me, she'll know. I swear she can smell the crumbs on your shirt from a mile," Hermione said as she eyed the scones Harry was unwrapping from the napkins.

"Come on, Hermione. You can concentrate better with a full stomach." Harry took a bite of the scone and made a sound of pleasure to persuade Hermione. "Mmm… You should try some." He held out another one to her.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Hermione laughed as she accepted the scone. "And don't act like you haven't eaten scones for breakfast every day since first year." Hermione took a bite and her eyes opened wide. "Oh my God! This is so good! Why is this so good?!"

Harry laughed at her reaction and popped the rest of the scone in his mouth. "Could be because they are forbidden."

Hermione rolled her eyes at his answer and took another bite. "Mmm…. Thanks, Harry. I didn't realise how hungry I was."

"I have coffee too," Harry grinned as he took out a flask from his bag along with two cups. "I know you prefer tea at breakfast but you also prefer coffee when you are studying so… I went with coffee…"

Hermione's smile was enough indication that he made the right choice. "Where did you find this flask?" She said as she was examining the warm bottle.

"Well, I transfigured a tea cup at the Great Hall," Harry said, his hand going through his messy hair as it tended to do whenever he felt self-conscious. Upon seeing Hermione's incredulous (and impressed) look, he laughed slightly. "You are not the only one with tricks, Hermione."

"Well, it seems like you don't need that Transfiguration tutoring at all," she said with one eyebrow arched.

"What? No! I do! I certainly do need it. I haven't even started studying yet." Harry's quick response made Hermione laugh. She carefully poured the coffee into the cups and pushed one of them towards him.

"Then start studying now," she said with a serious tone and a pointed look but the glint in her eyes showed him how much she was enjoying her morning with him.

"Okay okay. I'll start. But we are still studying tomorrow, right?" He asked, trying to put on his best puppy dog look.

"Yeah, we will. Just don't look at me like that, I'm trying to concentrate," Hermione said and took another bite from her scone to unsuccessfully hide her amused smile. Mimicking her movements, Harry also opened his Transfiguration book to where he closed it yesterday and hid his own smile behind it.

Things were going great. Actually they were going so great, he was afraid something was going to happen and turn everything upside down. Just like it did for all his life.

After living with the Dursleys for eleven years and feeling like a misfit, receiving his Hogwarts letter was like a breath of fresh air after drowning in the ocean. Just as he thought he was finally going to be with people who are like him, he had learned that he wasn't like them at all, at least not in their eyes. Being the Chosen One, having to face Voldemort at the age of eleven was like returning to that ocean once again. Only this time, he had his friends who kept him on the surface.

Again, just as he thought he was going to have a peaceful life after defeating Voldemort, he had returned a year later and again two years later. It was like his life was a cycle and no matter what he did, he lived the same things over and over again.

But this time was different, right? Voldemort was gone forever, he made sure of that. He couldn't come back to drown his happiness. Not again, not this time. But what if being unhappy was his destiny, what if it wasn't about Voldemort? Was something else going to come up and ruin his life?

Harry's eyes drifted to Hermione. She was taking a sip from her coffee. She always savoured her first few sips. Just like now. Her eyes closed with content as she swallowed. She was so beautiful, Harry was once again baffled at his own blindness. How could he have missed her when she was right in front of his eyes all these years?

"You are doing it again."

Harry shook out of his thoughts upon hearing Hermione's voice.

"What?"

"You're staring," Hermione said, giving him a pointed look.

"So?" Harry responded with a look of his own.

"So, you are making me self-conscious." Hermione rolled her eyes as she opened another book.

"Well, you are making me you-conscious but you don't see me complaining," Harry replied with a smug grin.

"That's not a word," Hermione said, trying to hide her amusement behind her serious face.

"You know what? I think I can understand Krum better now," Harry continued his mission of distracting Hermione. He knew she was going to go back to her studying soon, so he wanted to take as much as he could before having to bury his head in a book.

"What?" She asked this time.

"Watching you study is so… so easy." He was having a hard time finding the right words to explain himself and it was making him regret talking his thoughts out loud.

"Easy? What do you mean?" Of course, she wasn't going to leave it at that.

"I don't know… It's like I can sit here and do nothing else. Being 'more of a physical being', you know?" Harry said, quoting Hermione's words from four years ago.

"Do you know why Viktor and I didn't work out?" Hermione asked with a pointed look above her book. Harry laughed nervously at her meaningful question.

"Okay, I got it. No staring."

"Nice."

After a few minutes of silent reading, Harry reached his endurance limit of a morning study session.

"Do you have much to study?"

Hermione nodded without looking up from the parchment she had been taking notes on.

"Do you mind if I go?"

This time the answer was a negative shake of her head.

"Okay, then. I will see if Ron is awake. We can spend some time flying. If he is talking with me again, that is. I don't understand, it's you who tricked him into studying. What did I do to him?" Harry asked more to himself than Hermione.

Last night when they had returned to the Common Room, Ron wasn't talking with them. Apparently it had taken him four chapters until someone asked him what he was doing and for him to find out there was actually no homework.

"When you see him, tell him to finish the last two chapters. It will be enough revision for the exam," Hermione said, again her eyes were directed at her work.

"And have him hex my bullocks off? No thank you, I'm good," Harry answered as he put his book back in his bag. He hadn't read a single line since yesterday afternoon and although he felt a little guilty about it, he was just not in the mood to study. 'I will do it in the afternoon,' he thought as he stood up and slung his bag on his shoulder. He had one more thing to say. He wanted to discuss this since last night but he didn't know how to bring it up. Especially when she was this engrossed in her studies.

"Did you want to say something?" Hermione asked, her eyes that were glued to the pages before her until a few moments ago were now boring into his own. He had her whole focus.

"Umm… Yes… Hermione, I-"

"You want to tell Ron," Hermione finished his sentence. Harry sighed and sat back down.

"I'm not comfortable with hiding this from him," he elaborated, all the while playing with his fingers that were resting on the table.

"I know. Me, too." Hermione's hand covered his own as she mimicked his sigh. Her hand was a lot smaller than his. 'When did this happen?' Harry turned his hand to squeeze hers lightly.

"So?" He asked, trying to hide the hopeful tone of his voice. He didn't want to pressure her.

"We can tell him, if you want," Hermione said the words he wanted to hear. Harry let out a relieved sigh.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I understand. He is your best friend. You don't want to hide anything from him. Besides it'll be easier if he knows," Hermione finished with a small smile. Harry jumped from his seat and grabbed Hermione's face from both sides, making her cheeks squish.

"Thank you, 'Mione," he said as he pulled her towards him and kissed both of her cheeks.

"Umm… You're welcome," a very flustered Hermione mumbled, her eyes were widened with surprise, her dilated pupils making them seem almost black.

Harry let go of her when he realised his impulsive action was not missed on Hermione's part. 'You grabbed her, how do you expect her to miss that?'

"Umm… A-hem, okay then. I better go and see if Ron is awake. You know, umm, Quidditch and stuff," Harry murmured, he could feel his face burning. He took a step back towards the entrance, "Umm… See you later!" And bolted out of the library, leaving Hermione alone with her books on Arithmancy and thoughts on him.

"She is completely mental, I'm telling you. She takes pleasure in making me suffer."

Ron had been ranting about Hermione for the past hour or so. After having breakfast at the Great Hall (a second one for Harry, the scones weren't as good), they had decided to go flying and Harry was thanking his lucky stars that Ron's anger was not directed at him anymore. Until he started going off on Hermione. Harry had drowned out his voice after a few minutes, concentrating on the sound of the wind whooshing in his ears instead. He knew Ron didn't mean anything bad so he decided against defending Hermione. Besides she was mental. A cute one at that.

"And she also made you study all day yesterday. She has to understand that we all have lives outside the library. We are not fixated on studying our brains out like her."

Harry sighed and once again turned back to his thoughts. She looked so happy that morning when he said he brought her coffee. He made a mental note to do that more often and also to kiss her more often. She always got so flustered when he did that, her eyes widening, her cheeks getting all flushed. Sometimes, he could even leave her speechless and Hermione Granger was never speechless.

"Harry, mate, are you listening?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah! I'm listening." Harry shook himself out of his thoughts. It seemed like Ron was over his daily complaining of Hermione's study habits.

"What are you thinking about?" Ron asked, slowing down his broom to a more comfortable speed for a two-sided conversation.

"Nothing. I was listening to you," Harry lied as he, too, slowed down.

"What was I talking about then?" Ron continued his interrogation. He was finally done with his rant.

"Umm… Hermione?" Harry asked. After all, she was the topic of their morning since Ron woke up. Even the food couldn't stop him from speaking non-stop about Hermione.

"Yeah. Mental she is," Ron said as if he hadn't made that conclusion just seconds ago for the umpteenth time. "And scary."

"And cute." Harry bit his tongue but it was too late. The words had already left his mouth.

"What did you say?" Ron got closer to him as if he couldn't hear him properly over the wind.

"Nothing." Harry tried his luck. Maybe he really didn't hear him.

"You called Hermione cute."

'No such luck,' Harry thought. He could hear the disbelief in Ron's voice despite the whizzing of the wind and that disbelief was what made him stick by his words. "Well, she is."

The disbelief in Ron's face slowly left its place to a smirk, "Mate, do you have something you want to tell me?"

"Umm…" He had something he wanted to tell him but he hadn't planned it to be this early. And without Hermione.

"You fancy her, don't you?" Ron stopped his broom suddenly, making Harry go a few feet without noticing. "Does she know?" He continued without waiting for Harry to come back.

"Umm…" Harry could feel his face burning and he knew it had nothing to do with the abrupt halt of the cold wind.

"Blimey! You are together! Since when?" Ron shouted. His blue eyes were wide open with bafflement. But it was the big smile that reassured Harry that Ron was more excited than angry.

"I asked her yesterday and she accepted," Harry said simply, subconsciously deciding against telling him they were giving a shot at being a couple for only two weeks.

'It doesn't matter anyways. We'll still be together after two weeks.'

"Congratulations, mate!" Ron patted his back, almost making him fall off his broom with the unexpected force. "But you know she is mental, right?"

As he was trying to supress his laugh, Harry noticed a figure walking towards them on the Quidditch pitch. "Why don't you tell that to Hermione?" He grinned before directing his broom to the ground. "I'm sure she has a nice reply to that."

"You told him," Hermione said just as they set foot on the ground.

Harry didn't need to ask how she knew, for one look at Ron's face told him everything. He was grinning from ear to ear while wiggling his eyebrows. Harry elbowed him. He didn't want Hermione to receive detention because she hexed Ron. He also didn't want Ron to end up in the Hospital Wing but at this point the idiot was deserving it with his actions.

"I didn't told him. He realised," Harry felt the need to clarify. She hadn't smiled at him when she saw him and that could only mean trouble.

"Yeah, I have a brain, too, you know? I can think and realise things. Like fake homework and lying friends," Ron interfered. It sounded like he was waiting to say this since last night.

Harry cringed. Things weren't going exactly as he would have liked them to go.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Hermione's apology wasn't something Harry expected. Although the last part made the apology sound more like a scolding, it was still a step towards making amends. "Besides it was for your own good. It's not like you would have studied all of those otherwise." Harry mentally winced. Of course she wasn't going to take a step and not poke Ron when she was close enough. "And-"

"And you wanted to be alone with Harry." Ron's direct words made Hermione redden.

"Actually, it was me who wanted to be alone with her," Harry interjected. He didn't want Hermione to regret her decision of telling Ron.

"I wanted to be alone, too," Hermione replied looking directly at Harry. How could she manage to make him feel like he was standing on fire in the midst of snow with just six words and a piercing gaze?

"Okay, this is too mushy for me. I'm out of here." Ron's voice was enough to pour water on that fire. But before he could open his mouth to say something, anything, to soften the uncomfortable air, Hermione spoke in her crisp tone that she usually reserved for Ron,

"Actually, I remembered now that I missed a chapter, I should go and finish it. You enjoy your day off. And finish the last two chapters, Ron," she added before hurrying back to the castle.

"Hermione forgets a chapter? She has it bad for you, mate." Ron elbowed Harry with a grin as if he wasn't the one riling Hermione up a few seconds ago.

Harry stared after the young woman walking away from him. For some reason, he didn't think Hermione's affections towards him was the deal at all. Not even Ron's provocation was the problem. There was something else that was bothering Hermione and Harry could only hope it wasn't as serious as he feared it to be.

"Check mate."

This was the fifth time Harry had heard Ron say that that night. The fourth one was like 10 minutes ago.

"At least you didn't try to move your knight diagonally this time. That thing is dangerous with that sword," Ron continued, referring to the incident he had with his knight when he wanted the piece to move diagonally for the third time and it had thrown his little sword towards him, his glasses being the only thing guarding his eye.

"Sorry, I just can't concentrate," Harry murmured absentmindedly. His eyes were drawn once again to the portrait hole as it did for the past hour. He hadn't seen Hermione since lunchtime and that was a brief encounter with her eating under five minutes and returning to the library 'to study'.

"She is fine, mate. Don't worry," Ron said as he put the pieces in their places once again. "She'll come any minute and I'll talk to her. I know what's up with her."

Before Harry could object, the portrait hole opened and Hermione climbed in. Harry hid his face behind his hand as Ron winked at him before calling Hermione to where they were sitting. Although he meant well, Harry was afraid that Ron was going to make things worse. He just hoped Hermione wasn't stressed about her exam on top of her disappointment in him.

"Hi," she said in a light tone. If Harry didn't know her, he would think everything was fine. But he knew her and he could see in her features something was bothering her.

She put her books on the floor beside the sofa Harry and Ron were sitting with the chess board between them. Harry made a move to remove the board so she could sit but Hermione shook her head and took one of the pillows.

"No, continue playing, I'll sit here," she said, as she put the pillow down and sat with her back against the sofa. Harry opened his mouth to protest but Hermione chose that moment to rest her head on his leg, leaving Harry gaping like a fish. It wasn't unseen of Hermione to show affection to him in public but this was different. Firstly, they were dating now and secondly, she was cross with him. At least that was what he thought. As Harry's hands itched to run through her wild curls, he forced himself to return to the game Ron had once again started. Seriously how many times the guy had to win to finally call it a night?

Harry made a random move without paying attention to Ron's pieces. His mind was on Hermione. His eyes were on Hermione. If only his hands were on Hermione, too. Harry stopped himself before his thoughts went any further. She was just leaning on his leg. She wasn't even looking at him. Her eyes were closed as if she was sleeping. He could feel her breathing, it wasn't deep enough for her to be sleeping.

"So, Herms, about this morning." Harry felt Hermione stiffen upon hearing the nickname she so hated but apart from that, she didn't show any sign of hearing Ron. "You don't have to worry. I'm okay with you two dating." Harry's eyes opened wide. He looked around to see if anyone heard what Ron had said, his hand clutching the pawn he was just about to move.

"Ouch!" Harry dropped the chess piece and sucked on his finger where it bit him. At least, the few people that were still in the Common Room were at the other side of the room, busy studying with no chance of hearing them.

"Ron, be silent, no one knows about this," Hermione said, she had finally opened her eyes but her calmness was still there.

"Oops, sorry," Ron smiled sheepishly. "But seriously, I'm fine with… you-know-what. You don't have to hide from me."

Hermione smiled politely at him and nodded, "Thanks Ron, that means a lot." And closed her eyes again, indicating the end of the conversation.

Having got the clue for once, Ron didn't say anything else for a few minutes. Until Harry made another careless move that put his king in open danger.

"Check mate!" Ron half yawned half exclaimed. Harry ignored the glare of his king as it got dragged off the board by Ron's pieces. "Seriously Herms, are you fine?"

Harry's hands froze over the pieces he was collecting in order to prevent Ron from starting another game. Little did he know it was his mouth he should have feared. He felt Hermione once again stiffen against his leg.

"Call me that once again and I promise you won't be fine, Ronald." Her words combined with her deathly glare left Ron dumbstruck for a moment.

"Ahem… Okay, guys. I think that's all from me, I'm going to bed," he said and went upstairs after murmuring a quick goodnight.

"You scared the shit out of him," Harry grinned after Ron was out of sight. He moved down to the floor next to Hermione but regretted his decision the moment he lost contact with her body.

"Good. He should be scared," Hermione said seriously, her tone made Harry worry for his redheaded friend. However, that worry was short lived when Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. "He talks too much for his own good."

Harry chuckled as he remembered how he spent that morning. "Hermione?"

"Really Harry, I'm fine," she said, her tone left no room for argument. Harry sighed and turned his gaze to the flames dancing in the fireplace, the crackling of the logs filling the silence.

Between watching the orange-red flames and listening to the comforting breaths of Hermione, Harry gathered his courage.

"I know that isn't the real problem," he whispered, "What Ron said. I know there is another thing that upset you." When she didn't respond, Harry put a finger under her chin and made her look into his eyes, "And I know you are not fine."

After a few seconds of intense gazing (from Harry's part) and careful thinking (from Hermione's part), Hermione took a deep breath and once again leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm still not one of you," Hermione whispered. If her head wasn't resting beside his ear, Harry would have a hard time understanding her. "I know it's not true. You like me as much as you like Ron. We are your best friends. But I can't help it..."

"Hermione…" Harry wanted to object but Hermione continued as if he didn't speak.

"I guess that's what happens when you have two males as best friends. They become each other's best friends and you choose one of them to be your best friend." There wasn't any sort of sadness in her voice. She sounded like she had thought about this a lot ('Of course she did, she is Hermione Granger') and she had come to terms with it.

"You are my best friend too." Harry couldn't let her accept this as her truth. It was not the truth at all.

"Harry-"

"No, Hermione." This time Harry didn't let her talk, "I won't let you think like this about our friendship. You are my best friend. You know what? You are more than my best friend. Ron is my best friend, you are my everything."

Hermione's intake of breath made Harry realise how his words had sounded. He didn't care.

"I don't have many people around me who knows the real me, Hermione," Harry continued. He was somehow glad he couldn't see her eyes when he was saying these things. Although he was more open about his feelings to Hermione, he could still get embarrassed. "You are the one who was with me from the beginning, you are the one I go to for all my troubles, you are the voice of reason for me. I love Ron with all my heart but you are the closest thing to a family I've ever had."

A shiver ran down his spine when he felt Hermione's lips on his jaw. "Oh, Harry…" Hermione whispered. Her voice was so low, it was almost like he felt the words instead of hearing them. "Thank you."

"Also, I'm not attracted to Ron which is another reason for you to not feel like you are the second best," Harry half joked but almost regretted it when he felt Hermione's hot breath on his neck when she laughed silently. Almost… Because apart from the giddy feeling in his stomach, having Hermione close enough to feel her breath was the most amazing thing in the world.

"I'm sorry for reacting like that this morning," Hermione said. Before Harry could release the breath he had held seconds ago, Hermione's fingers in his palm made his breath hitch once more.

Harry cleared his throat. 'Concentrate, Potter. This is a serious topic.'

"It's okay. I understand. We were supposed to tell him together." He closed his fingers around hers. "But I didn't say anything, well, I did say that I thought you were cute but he figured out the rest," Harry admitted.

"You said you found me cute? To Ron?" Hermione asked amusedly. She had raised her head to look at his now red face.

"More like I blurted it out." He smiled sheepishly, his free hand that wasn't toying with hers ran through his hair.

"That's cute," Hermione said, returning her head to its resting place on his shoulder.

A few minutes passed with them staring at the fireplace. Hermione's fingers were still lightly caressing his palm, seizing all of his senses and leaving him no other choice but concentrating on the feelings she was creating on his palm and in his chest.

"I like it when you stare at me."

Hermione's voice made him snap out of his thoughts.

"What?" But the feeling was still there, making it hard for him to concentrate.

"While I am studying… I like it when you stare, that's why I can't concentrate."

This time it was Harry who leaned back to see her face. Her cheeks were pink and the blazing fire was not the cause. "With Viktor, it was just annoying," Hermione continued, averting her gaze from his amused one. "It's different with you."

Harry took a moment to stare at her face, testing the waters to see if she would make him look away. Instead she returned her eyes back to his, challenging him to resume his little game.

"Does that mean I can stare at you when you study?" He asked cheekily, his own embarrassment from a few minutes ago forgotten.

"No," she said pointedly. He could see her lips tugging upwards.

"Maybe I can sneak glances," Harry tried his luck. He was enjoying their little exchange a little too much.

"I said no, Harry," Hermione said with her end-of-the-conversation tone which lost its effect when she once again rested her head on his shoulder. "Okay, you can steal glances but if it distracts me, you'll stop."

Harry laughed at her quick change of mind. "Deal."

He turned his head and lightly kissed her forehead. He couldn't wait for their study date.

A/N: Hi, everyone! Long time no see, huh? Ok, straight to the apologies: I'm so sorry. I know it's been soooo long but life happened and I just went along with it. I'm still going along with it. I hope there are still a few people waiting for this story. I think if you are reading this you are one them so THANK YOU, YOU LOYAL PERSON!

Currently I am studying for a job interview/test (I need positive vibes, wish me luck!) so I won't be able to start writing the new chapter for at least a few weeks but as you can see that doesn't mean I will abandon my story. Don't lose hope, I come back eventually!

Also I'd like to thank all of the readers who left a review (and WILL leave a review *hint hint*), they all mean so much to me! Special thanks to warg14, Lol3hp and ll Euphoria ll, your reviews helped me at a time I felt like I couldn't put two words together.

I don't know if you are still reading this unnecessarily long author's note but if you are, know that I love you and I hope to see you soon(er than five months)!

Take care, bye –xo