Simply fate.

Chapter six

Our three heroes were back to Hogwarts. They were glad to be back, it was as if nothing had changed. But things had change. The school had been rebuild after the battle, it was brend new, but the memories of the war, them, were still quite clear in everybody's mind. Nothing could ever erase that strange feeling. Fear, loneliness, sadness...but most of all grief. Each person at Hogwarts had lost someone, family, friend, lover, or even a teacher. That was actually this kind of mood which was floating throughout the school.

Anger ? No. No one was feeling this way. Even the Slytherins, who were usually mean and deceitful, didn't do anything wrong or nasty. They were not grieving, of course because most of them or their parents were DeathEaters, but they made themselves quiet.

Anyway, Harry, Ron and Hermione were back, as were Seamus, Dean and all of their friends. Speaking of those two boys, the war had... drawn them closer, much closer then they were before. Hermione experienced their, well, closeness. She arrived at the Gryffondor common room, looking for calm place to read a book next to the fire, and this is when she found the two of them, snuggled up in an armchair. She was surprise first, but then she found them so cute together that she just sat down, smilling at them. The two boys stared at her, blushing madly.

Dean and Seamus were not the only ones who the war drew closer. Neville and Luna were a cute, clumsy couple and they spent most of their free time looking for each other's lost stuff in the school. And of course, Ginny and Harry, who were together as much as they could, even if it was only for a couple minutes in the corridors between classes.

Hermione found them adorable but she couldn't help but feeling a little lonely. Of course, she was happy for her friends, but Ron and her were pretty much the only singles left of  their group of friends, so it was kind of weird. While all of the other were cuddling, Ron and Hermione were often left together alone, and we all know that Ron isn't known for his conversation. So Hermione spend most of her time at the library or focusing on her lessons, which she did already though.

But something was unusual at the library. Hermione noticed that loads of Slytherin were spending their time reading. Well, not loads actually, only Parkinson, Nott, Zabini and of course, Malfoy. What was he doing here ?- Hermione thought. He was not here to study obviously, by of the noise he was making with his friends. Then, why ? To annoy her ? Then, if that was his goal, he succeeded, he really was annoying. She could feel him staring at her while she was studying, that's what irritated her the most. That glance. And everytime she looked up from her book, she saw him looking down on his. Merlin's beard ! How could this man be even more annoying than he was already !

The most akward moment of Hermione's day was when she made patrol (Hermione and Ron were still prefect this year). Why was it weird ? Well, imagine Hermione alone with Ron, walking without a word and at some point running into Malfoy and Zabini who were also prefects. At this exact moment, you could feel the tension. Ron staring aggressively at Malfoy, Malfoy looking intensely at Hermione and Hermione staring at both of them, hoping for no fight. Eventually, they all just walked away. This was at this moment that Ron started to talk:

"I don't like the way Malfoy is looking at you." he said to Hermione." It's like he is about to devour you."

"Ron, don't say some rubbish things like this. We all know that Malfoy is not going to do anything to me because he's weak. And if he ever try something, you know perfectly well that I know how to defend myself. I reckon that I have nothing more to prove, have I ?"
«  Alright if you say so but be careful okay ? »
« Yeah yeah don't worry... »
And it was almost the same conversation every evening.
But this night, things were different. Hermione wasn't feeling well so Ron patrolled alone. When he came back, he had the same look on his face as when he first met Aragog. Well, not exactly the same face, because this time he was white as chalk but his cheeks were very pink. And as always, he was incapable of speaking.
« What happened to you ? » Harry asked as he saw his best friend crashing on a settee.
Ron did not answer, he turned his face towards the fire, looking at nothing.
« What's wrong Ron ? » Hermione asked, starting to get worried. «  Did you see a spider ? Or maybe Malfoy did something to you ! »
Ron turned his head in a negative way, still not saying anything.
« Merlin's beard ! Tell us Ron ! » said Harry.
Ron opened his mouth but the only word he could say was unrecognisable.
« What ? Repeat Ron we didn't get you ! » both of his friends said.
« Za...Bini » Ron whispered. « Zabini. »he said more clearly.
« What is the problem with Zabini ? Did he hurt you ? » said Hermione.
Again, Ron shook his head negatively.
« Come on ! Pull yourself together and tell us properly what he did to you ! » cried out Harry who was starting to lose his patience.
« Screaming at him won't help Harry ! » said Hermione. «  Come on Ron, you can do it. Tell us ... »
Finally, Ron looked up at his friends and he said :
« He kissed me. Zabini kissed me. »