So Much for No Strings Attached

Chapter 3 The Letter

Harry blinked in surprise looking quite stupid as the black owl ruffled its feathers and held out its leg for Harry to take the letter. This unfamiliar owl had come as a massive shock to Harry and had actually managed to sway Harry's thoughts away from Lucius Malfoy; a fact that Harry was glad of. He was staring to think he had a school girl crush on the Malfoy Lord. Harry reached out for the letter pulling the letter of the black owl which flew away back to whoever its master was and then he opened the letter and was about to read it.

But Ron interrupted him before he could even look at the first word, 'who's it from?' demanded Harry's red headed friend not even bothering to look up from his food as he was still chewing his mouthful of bacon.

'Dunno,' Harry truthfully admitted.

'Honestly, Ronald, give him a chance to read it,' Hermione bit out sharply giving Ron an eye roll.

Ron completely ignored Hermione still talking to Harry. 'Well open it then,' Ron snapped impatiently as always.

Hermione who wondered who could possibly be sending Harry letters apart from Sirius realised something distinctly odd was going on so looked up from her book on Human Transfigurations. Hermione watched as Harry began to read the letter that he had just received from the anonymous person. As Harry's eyes slid from the first to line to the second his eyes widened making his bright green eyes look even bigger than normal. There was surprise in those green orbs and something else; something that looked very much like longing.

But longing for what Hermione didn't understand. Who was the letter from? And why did the longing appear all over his face. Because the look of wanting something didn't end in his eyes it travelled all the way over that open face. Was this why Harry had been acting so oddly since November really? Hermione had thought it was nerves about the tournament. But this letter and Harry's facial expressions told her something else was going on. But what Hermione Granger couldn't phantom because the longing that Harry had on his face didn't fit with the scene.

Then she thought about Harry's disappearance from the Yule Ball. Maybe he had a lady friend. But then surely he would have told her at least. Okay Ron might have laughed at him but he was about as evolved as a bacterium so that wasn't anything to worry about. But then if it was girl why hadn't Harry told them? Unless it was a Slytherin Harry was seeing thought Hermione with a sense of unease. But that couldn't be right. Could it? Hermione decided to keep a watch on Harry to see if there was anything suspicious going on then she would act.

Ron, who did not have half the observational skills as Hermione, decided to interrupt Harry's reading for a second time hoping he'd get an answer this time. 'So whose it from?' asked Ron.

'No one,' Harry said too quickly. 'It wasn't for me I'll find McGonagall to get it to the right person.'

Harry said all this in a rush not noticing the stares of two thirds of the Golden Trio and the other Gryffindors around him. Harry then quickly folded up the note making sure to be very careful not to crush any of it or let anyone find it or see any part of what was written on it. Harry sure as hell did not want people knowing who was writing to him. He may be very confused in his feelings but that didn't mean that he was going to let his feelings be known to the world. That would be hugely embarrassing for the both of them.

Ron and Hermione both tried to get Harry to show them the letter and Ron tried to grab the letter off him. Hermione didn't stop him even though it was very rude to take a letter that was personal to someone else whether it was - as Harry claimed but Hermione didn't believe - for an unknown person or a letter he didn't want anyone to know he had. Hermione thought that the idea of it being a very personal letter which added credence to the Secret Girlfriend Theory that she would talk to Ginny about later to see if the thirteen year old had any insight on the matter.