Fury Little Problem {A Harry Potter Fanfic}

Chapter Fourteen: Hold at All Costs

"Thanks for the tip Cedric."

Harry watched the older boy walk away, wondering if the help he offered was sincere or not. Cedric seemed like a genuine like-able guy, the ideal image of what a Hufflepuff should look like. Harry couldn't help but feel skeptical about his intentions because of the older champion's drive to win. He even had to admit that even though he was over his crush with Cho Chang, her dating Cedric was still a sore spot for Harry.

Regardless, he decided that he would broach the subject with Ron and Hermione, which was another challenge in and of itself. After their spat at the Yule Ball, both of his best friends had been avoiding each other. It was true that they weren't as hostile as they would normally get, but the aversion was still something that grated Harry's already stressed nerves.

The end of January brought forth two things that caused two conflicting feelings inside Harry. First off was that the full moon was nearing and there was no relief in sight for the discomfort that came along with it. Unfortunately, his symptoms were not missed by Hermione and he could feel her worrying eyes on him whenever he first entered the same room as her. Deep down he was touched that she cared so much and wanted to look out for him, but at the same time, her attention was somewhat aggravating especially considering that under the moon's effects, he was ultra-sensitive to smells and he could practically smell the anxiety coming off of her.

On the other side of the spectrum was that the second match of the interschool Quidditch tournament was later that day, so he was able to focus on the match as an anchor to try and stave off his more basic instincts. Even with Quidditch practice occupying a lot of his free time, the frequency of it added to the stress, so being able to just watch a game was a breath of fresh air.

As he moved along the corridors of the castle, he caught the familiar scent of his bookworm best friend. He was able to pick out her natural smell very easily due to their increased time together and was able to determine that it wasn't coming from the direction of Gryffindor Tower. Following it, he figured that there was only one other place that Hermione could be. The Library.

-HP-

"Hey Hermione."

Hermione looked over the pile of books currently in her arms and saw the source of this voice heading her way.

"Hello Harry. Would you mind helping me with som-"

Her words were cut off when she accidently stepped on a random piece of parchment and lost her footing, sending all of her books into the air. Harry reacted quickly and caught her around the waist and managed to catch all her books with the other hand.

"Wow. Thanks Harry."

"Don't mention it." It was after a moment or two that he realized that his arm was still around her waist and removed it as if he had been burned. Her brow furrowed as he turned around and headed towards their usual table. Harry had been acting strangely around her ever since the Yule Ball. She immediately feared that maybe he didn't mean the kind things he said that night and felt weird around her.

She hoped he didn't.

What he said to her that night were the nicest things that anyone had ever said to her. Even though she had a wonderful time with Viktor, the confrontation with Ron had spoiled the evening, almost completely ruining it. If it wasn't for Harry's intervention, the night would have neem a total bust. She was unsure of how that night effected their relationship or even how to approach talking with Harry about.

As soon as the thought returned to her head, she banished it as quickly as it had manifested. Harry didn't need any sort of distraction this year because of the tournament. She decided to resolve the issue as soon as their fourth was over.