I woke up the next morning feeling very tired; I think I expended too much energy thinking last night - I'm not used to such effort. I went down to breakfast with Ron and Hermione like usual, except this time I purposely lagged behind a bit so I could observe Hermione's arse. I had never done that before, and it was pretty fun. It was also pretty difficult, what with her wearing her robes and all, but I had a pretty good imagination to make up for it.
Breakfast was going along fine until Ron started asking about that Goddamn Ernie Macmillan. I'd forgotten that we were supposed to talk about it, and I realized that I didn't want to hear anything about their date. I lost my appetite and claimed that I had forgotten something back at the dorms. Ron looked a little ticked off, obviously expecting my support when grilling Hermione. It usually takes the two of us working together to talk to Hermione about things like this; she's too smart for just one of us and usually ends up having us agree with her without knowing it unless we're careful. I gave Ron an 'I'm sorry' look and fled the Great Hall, but not before noticing Hermione's predatory look at Ron. Poor guy. Over the next several hours, while I should have been doing homework, I devised my plan. I tried to think what Lockhart, Krum, and that Goddamn Ernie Macmillan had in common, and frankly I came up blank. So, I decided to take them one at a time.
Gilderoy Lockhart. What was it about that flake that Hermione liked so much? Okay, true, I've heard that he's a decent-looking fellow. Not that I noticed that myself, you understand; it's not like I look at a guy and have any opinion whatsoever on things like that. Not that there's anything wrong, mind you, if somebody does do that, all I'm saying is that I don't. I just happened to overhear a bunch of girls talking about him, that's all. Clear?
Good. Okay, where was I? Oh, right. Lockhart. Unfortunately, there wasn't much I could do in the ways of improving my looks; I was sorta stuck with what Mamma and Big Daddy Potter gave me. For the briefest of seconds I considered using a glob of Sleekeasys on my hair to get that wavy thing Lockhart had going, but I think that crosses the line between hygiene and primping. Maybe Hermione was impressed by all the things he did (which, at the time, we actually thought he did)? At first, I didn't think this would help me, since Hermione's been by my side for all of my 'adventures.' But then I realized that she really hasn't, at least, not in the end. It's always been just me at the end, from first year all the way to the time I beat Voldemort like an old drum. Though, in third year we were together throughout, but that was all right, since I think I already milked the whole 'Harry can cast a corporeal Patronus' thing to death. And though I told both Ron and Hermione the after-action reports, I usually kept the details to the minimum. Maybe if she knew all the details, perhaps embellished a bit, she would see me in a new light? Sounds like a plan to me.
Now I just needed the perfect moment to bring up the past adventures; it would sound a bit forced if I just went up to Hermione and said, "Hey, remember that time when I was tied to a tree by Death Eaters and saw Wormtail cut off his own hand? Good times…good times." So, I waited until after dinner, when all the Gryffindors were hanging around the fire, just chatting away. Hermione was there too, though she was splitting her attention between the conversation and an Arithmancy book.
"…ours is the best," Dean was saying. "You gotta admit: the lion's pretty wicked."
"An eagle's not bad," Pavarti said. "Very majestic."
"Yeah," Ron said. "But I feel bad for Hufflepuff. I mean, honestly, a badger? What can you do with that? Do badgers even growl?"
"Well, it's better than a snake. Eww!" Lavender made a face of disgust.
I saw my chance. "If you don't like snakes, you would have absolutely hated the basilisk I killed back in second year."
All right, I admit it, I wasn't exactly Dr. Smooth with the transition there, but I was getting pretty antsy. We'd been chatting for an hour now, and I was getting desperate. A period of silence followed, where I fear that I made a tactical error, but I knew I could always count on one of the Creeveys.
"Wow, Harry," Colin said in his usual excited voice. "If you hadn't killed the basilisk, I'd probably still be petrified!" Okay, technically not true, since Professor Sprout would've still grown the Mandrakes, but who was I to argue? After that the questions came fast and furious. I was pretty sure that I would get that reaction, since apart from Ron, Hermione, and Dumbledore, I never told anyone about the crap I've been through. My housemates were more than curious and very, very eager to hear the story. For once, I was glad that the Creevey brothers were nearby. Usually they're pests, but they definitely helped 'The Plan (name pending),' since the little guys could be counted on to gush on about anything I did or said, no matter how trivial ("The casserole tastes good today." "Really, Harry? You think so? That's awesome, Harry! You're the best, Harry!").
Since Ron was there, I was careful to make sure his part sounded more heroic then it actually was; Ron still got a bit jealous at times. Rather than say how Lockhart was defeated by a broken wand, I made Ron sound more proactive, which wasn't hard since really all he did at the time was just sit there. Our housemates were more than obliging, gasping and being very impressed with me slaying the dreaded basilisk and defeating the enchanted diary. Even Ginny was impressed, since she had been unconscious until the end. Occasionally I would throw a glance over at Hermione, and I was a little disconcerted to see her frowning most of the time. Hopefully that was because of the Arithmancy. After about an hour regaling the Gryffindors with my tales of bravery and taking questions, Hermione closed up shop and said she was tired. I excused myself from the others and chased after her.
"Hermione!" I called out, catching up with her just before she reached the steps to the girls' dormitories. "Are you all right? I noticed you seemed a bit…frowny back there."
Hermione sighed. "I just…it's nothing Harry. Good night."
She turned to go up the stairs, but I caught her arm. "What is it, Hermione? You can tell me. Please."
She looked at me a bit apprehensively. "Now, don't get me wrong, Harry, but…but I guess I never expected you to be like that."
Huh? "Huh? Like what?"
"I don't know…just being so proud about your accomplishments."
"I shouldn't be proud?"
"No, no," she said quickly. "You should be proud, you've done so many great things; saved so many lives."
Now I was really confused. "Then what-"
"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I never thought you'd…boast so much. I always saw you as the quiet, humble type, who didn't need that kind of attention to make yourself feel good." She must've seen my face fall, for she added, "Maybe I'm just tired, Harry. I'll see you in the morning."
I watched her walk up the stairs and then I slumped onto the stairway leading to the boys' dorms. She seemed so…disappointed in me. What happened? What went wrong? Lockhart always went on and on about his accomplishments! 'The Plan (name pending)' seemed to backfire; I think I lost points with her tonight. I looked back at the group of Gryffindors by the fire, and got even more depressed as I was sure they would want to talk about the basilisk some more. Without saying anything, I trudged upstairs to my room. Today was definitely a bust, but there was always Plan B.
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A/N: Wow! Talk about being overwhelmed by reviews! I'm used to getting eight to ten per chapter at the most over on fanfic, so my head is swimming a bit. Thanks everyone who reviewed, and I hope you enjoyed this next bit.