Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Harry Potter! Enjoy this Dramione.

Something wasn't right. Hermione was set to spend time with her good friends, Ron Weasley, Ginny Weasley, and Harry Potter the summer before they returned to Hogwarts to finish their 7th year. They decided to finish the year that was skipped due to the war and defeating Voldemort. She also found out that she was going to be Head Girl. Also, she and Ron were finally making progress at becoming a couple. She felt that it was going to be a welcome change after the tumultuous past few months. Everyone was slowly healing and repairing the damage from the war.

It was June and Hogwarts was set to start at the beginning of September. She had sent letters to her friends at the Weasley's home, The Burrow and had not received any replies. She puttered around her room in the home she shared with her parents. She went downstairs and stepped into the kitchen. Her parents were at the kitchen table having breakfast. She was so grateful that they had made it through the war unscathed. It still saddened her that she had to erase their memories of her when she had them sent away to Australia, but it was the right thing to do. Thankfully, everything was pretty much back to normal. Mrs. Granger smiled when she saw Hermione coming toward them.

"Good morning dear. Come sit and eat."

"Thanks mum." She took a bagel and got a mug of tea.

"Hermione, what are your plans this summer? Are you going to visit the Weasleys and Harry?"

"Well, it is the strangest thing, I have not heard from any of my friends. I am a little worried. I wonder if I should just go over to The Burrow and make sure everything is okay."

"Yes, maybe it would be good to check on them. I am a bit surprised you haven't heard from them."

"Okay, I will go after breakfast."

The Burrow

"Harry, I feel like shit. This is the second letter she has sent and we still have not replied. Someone needs to let her know." Said Ginny.

"I know we need to tell her, but how? She is one of my best friends and after all we have been through, this is the last thing she needs to hear." replied Harry.

Ginny and Harry had assumed that Ron and Hermione were finally going to become a couple. Ron had other ideas. He told them that Hermione was okay, but not "girlfriend" material. She felt like a sister to him. He had started dating Misty Goldenrod, a witch who was a barmaid at a pub in Hogsmeade. Ginny and Harry did not like Misty and felt that she was only with Ron because he had been part of the Golden trio. Misty was attractive at first, with shoulder-length straight brown hair and black eyes, with a petite figure. This impression ended when she opened her mouth. She had absolutely no tact and was about as subtle as a garbage truck. It took every bit of restraint Ginny had not to haul back and knock out a few of Misty's teeth when the daft girl made rude comments about Hermione being so plain. Harry figured Ron was with her because of the sex. He knew Hermione would never consent to sleeping with Ron until they were married.

Ginny heard a knock at their front door and answered it. She was shocked when she saw Hermione standing there. Hermione hugged her and said "It has been way too long! Is everything okay? I decided to drop by since I had not heard from any of you."

She saw Harry and they embraced. Ginny took a breath and said, "'Mione, we need to" Before Ginny could finish the sentence, Hermione was going up the stairs and saying, "I cannot wait until I see Ron!" When she reached the door to his bedroom, she wondered why it was closed in the middle of the day. She knocked softly and did not hear anything except for faint murmuring. She decided to open the door and was greeted with a sight. Ron was butt naked and on top of a nude young woman she had never laid eyes on. Her breath caught and she closed the door. She could not believe what she just saw. Now she knew why she had not received any replies. She slowly made her way down the stairs. Harry and Ginny were waiting for her.

"We tried to tell you. We are so sorry, Ron is such a git! Hermione, the last thing we wanted to do was hurt you!" Ginny spoke on behalf of her and Harry.

Hermione sighed and said, "I understand the position you and Harry were in. I am not upset with you. Ron and I were never "official". I guess he can shag anyone he likes, I suppose."

Ginny embraced her and said, "That girl he is with is trash! My mother would have a fit if she knew Ron had her in his bedroom. I don't know what is wrong with Ron. He has been on a power trip since the war ended. His head will soon be too big to fit in here!"

In spite of what she had just witnessed, Hermione had to laugh. Ginny was such a character and did not hold her tongue. She decided that she was going to go home; it was a mistake to come here. She told Ginny and Harry goodbye and they promised to write. She now had no plans for the summer and wondered what she was going to do until school started.

Hermione returned home and wondered why she was not as upset as she thought she would have been after seeing Ron with someone else. Probably after all the atrocities she had witnessed in the war and what she had been through, this was something she could handle. At that moment, Hermione decided she was tired of always being the "good girl" and doing the right thing. It was time that she started living and having fun.

She explained to her parents that she would not be visiting The Burrow this summer because of Ron's current dating situation. Her mother was a little disappointed for Hermione; she always knew that her daughter had a crush on Ron.

Hermione went up to her room and opened her laptop to check emails and Facebook. She still loved the technology of the Muggle world despite being a witch. She noticed that she had an email from Natalie Dupre. She had met Natalie a few summers ago at a Young Witch/Wizard Convention that had taken place at a hidden location in New York City. They hit it off immediately and had kept in touch through the years. Natalie attended a wizarding school located in the New Orleans, Louisiana area. She opened up the email and began reading:

Hermione,

How are you? I was thrilled to find out the war has ended and the Dark One was defeated. Everyone here is in awe of you and I am proud to let them know you are my friend. I can imagine that things have been quite hectic, but the reason I am writing is to ask if you would like to come spend time with my family and me this summer. I will even send the plane ticket, lol! It has been way too long since we hung out, please say yes!

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Natalie

Hermione smiled and said softly to herself, "Looks like my summer won't be so bleak after all." She typed a reply to Natalie:

Natalie,

It is so great to hear from you! I would love to visit you and your family, thank you so much for the invitation. Your email was such a pleasant surprise considering my current situation. I will tell you all about it when I see you. You do not have to send a plane ticket, I will take care of it. Looking forward to seeing you, it HAS been way too long.

Hermione

Hermione told her parents about Natalie's invitation and they told her they thought it would be a good idea for her to visit her friend. Her parents were a little worried since she rarely left the house and seemed sad. They noticed how excited she was to hear from Natalie. If that is what it took to lift her spirits, they were happy to let her go to the United States.

Mrs. Granger helped Hermione get the luggage she needed for her trip. She sat on her daughter's bed and watched as Hermione sorted through what clothes she was going to bring. She noticed that Hermione did not have much of a wardrobe and decided it was time to do something about that.

"Hermione dear, when was the last time you went shopping for clothes?"

She had a sheepish look on her face and laughed a little. "It has been awhile, Mum. It is okay, I have enough clothes."

Mrs. Granger picked up a faded T-shirt with stains. She shook her head, "No, this will not do. I feel like such a bad mother! Let's go shopping. Hermione, you are an 18 year old girl and you need to dress like one. You cannot go on a holiday with old pants and T-shirts. You need fun clothes!"

"Okay, Mum. You talked me into it. I just never was into all of the fashion trends, but I have decided that I need to update my image. Change is good."

"Great! Well, how about we get your hair trimmed and new makeup? Let's have a girl's day. We can get manicures and pedicures too!"

Hermione was a little shocked that she was actually looking forward to this. Normally, she was never one to get excited about new clothes or makeup, but something woke up in her. Hermione was ready to take on the world with a whole new outlook. She was tired of being the wallflower and it was hard to admit this , but she was also sick of being a "doormat". She thought about all of the times she helped Ron with homework, if you define helping as doing almost all of the assignment and now felt used especially after seeing him with his new girlfriend. The more she thought about it, the more pissed she became. Yeah, she needed to make a few changes. Hermione Granger was not going to be "Miss Perfect", "Bookworm", "Know-it-all" or even "Mudblood". Ugh, that made her think of Malfoy. Hopefully, he would not be returning to Hogwarts. She was not going to let anyone walk all over her. She remembered a quote from an old movie, "Risky Business" starring the muggle actor Tom Cruise. The quote was "Every now and then say, "What the fuck." "What the fuck" gives you freedom. Freedom brings opportunity. Opportunity makes your future." That was it, she decided at that moment, "What the fuck" was her new motto from this day forward.

I am back! This idea has been in my mind for a few weeks. I want Hermione to be a "bad ass" and have flaws. Someone commented in my last story that she was way too perfect and I agree. It may take a little while for Draco to come in, but I want to build up to it. He will be mentioned. Enjoy and please review. Hope to add more over the weekend, but I am studying for 3 tests too!