"Thatś not true," said Harry sharply, taking his hands away from his eyes. He fumbled for his glasses on the table, and put them on. "I´m just busy, thatś all."

"And I´m not busy? I´m Head Girl, Harry, and I´ve got extra classes and study groups, and I still have time for you. I have nothing but time for you, but you don´t seem to want to spend any time with me."

"Hermione," Harry said tightly. His eyes behind his glasses were cold and removed, and his jaw was set in a hard angry line. He had never looked at her before like that. Are we having a fight? she thought numbly. Is that what this is? But everybody fought. This seemed like something else.

"Hermione, let it go."

"Is this about this summer?" she asked, her voice cracking. "I know we went through hell, Harry, and I know how awful it was — "

"You don´t know," he said, and his voice was like the ice that sparkled on the windowpanes.

" Then tell me."

Harry seemed to hesitate for a moment. He was sitting with his back against the armchair now, leaning away from her, hair wild and disarranged, flushed from kissing and from anger. His eyes met hers, and held and for a moment, just a moment, she felt the old connection spring to life between them, as vibrant as a living thing.

Then Harry looked away, and it was gone. "Just let it alone, Hermione," he said. "Please."

"No," she said. "I won´t do that."

"Then we have nothing to say to each other," he said, and got to his feet.

Hermione looked at him in disbelief.

"Harry-"

"Just leave me alone!" he shouted, and the shock of Harry shouting, actually shouting at her, stunned her into silence. She sat where she was, not moving, as Harry grabbed his red cloak up off the back of his chair and stalked out through the portrait hole.

* * *

Harry barely registered his surroundings as he flung himself down the stairs, through the darkened hallways, and through the front doors of the school. He was too full of unreasonable rage, born out of a pain so inarticulate and blinding that it might as well have been physical. His hands still tingled with the feeling of Hermioneś skin under his, and his mouth still tasted of hers, and he still saw the expression in her eyes when she had looked at him from the floor. Then tell me!