AN: Okay, I got this brilliant idea for a one-shot while lying awake in bed one night after hearing the country song "One More Day" and I decided to type it out before I lost my ideas for it. Please note that this is a ONE-SHOT and it will not have any further updates. (I'm emphasizing this because on my previous one-shot I had people tell me to "update soon" and put the story on their story alert list…) This is full of HBP spoilers, so if you aren't finished it yet, DON'T READ THIS!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and no monetary profits are being made off of this story. Also please note that the song "One More Day" does not belong to me and that I may have messed up the lyrics at some point, as I'm going off of my bad memory here…

(Song lyrics are centered and underlined and are not part of the letter or the story – they are merely there for background.)

The song lyrics towards the end of the story are from a different song and are centered in italics.


One More Day

A One-Shot

One More Day, one more time,

One more sunset, maybe I'll be satisfied.

But then again, I know what it would do,

It'd leave me wishing still for one more day with you.

Harry sat at his desk at the Dursley's at eleven o' clock in the evening, two days after he had come home from Hogwarts for the last time, staring at the blank parchment in front of him. He glanced over at Ron, who was currently snoring on a cot across from Harry's bed. As Ron and Hermione had promised on their last fateful day at Hogwarts, they were staying here in Privet Drive with Harry until he was able to move to Godric's Hollow on his birthday. While Ron was sharing Harry's small bedroom, Hermione was sleeping in the guest room.

It had taken a fair amount of threatening and explaining (although more of the former was involved than the latter) from the three friends, but the Dursley's had eventually conceded to let Harry's friends stay there with him, under the condition that they stayed as out of the Dursley's way as possible. Ron and Hermione were only too happy to oblige to this, as was Harry, and the trio spent most of their time gathered in Harry's room, discussing what they were going to do once Bill and Fleur's wedding was done with and the three of them were living in Harry's young childhood home.

But at the moment, Harry was not concerned about Voldemort or his horcruxes. Just at the moment, he was concerned about writing a letter to Ginny. By the time he had started writing, he was trying his utmost not to cry.

Ginny,

The first thing I want to say is I love you, more than anything. It was so hard for me to tell you that we couldn't be together. Like I told you, if only I had noticed you sooner, we might've had ages, but we were only able to enjoy a few weeks of each other's company. But I'm always thinking about you, always. I even had a dream last night, I figure you'll want to hear it.

Last night I had a crazy dream:

A wish was granted just for me,

It could be for anything.

I didn't ask for money,

Or a mansion in Malibu;

I simply wished for One More Day with you.

I dreamed that I could have one wish granted, any wish, anything at all. I didn't wish for Voldemort to be gone. I didn't wish for good to prevail, or anything like that. You want to know what I wished for, in that dream? I just wished I could have spent one more day with you. Just one more day, Ginny, one more day… one more day with you by my side, one more day with nothing to worry about. I would do so much different in that one day…

I'd hold you every second,

Say a million "I love you"s.

In that day, I wouldn't let anything get between us. I'd hold you close to me, give you soft kisses, never let you go… say "I love you" more times than even the gods can count. Ginny, imagine what we could do in just one more day, all the things we never did, just in one more day. Unfortunately, imagining is the best we can get right now. You don't know how much I miss you, Ginny. Even Ron is being understanding about it, and I just saw you a few days ago, coming here on the Hogwarts Express. You don't know how much I want that one more day with you, Ginny.

One More Day, one more time,

One more sunset, maybe I'll be satisfied.

But then again, I know what it would do,

It'd leave me wishing still for one more day with you.

But, then again, once I got that one more day, it would just leave me wanting more. More days, more innocent, happy days when we can't worry about anything. So, it's better this way, isn't it? It has to be better this way… this is the way it has to be. Ginny, I love you, but please, don't forget the times we had in those last weeks at Hogwarts together.

Maybe, someday, when Voldemort's finally dead, if I'm still around, we can be together again, if you're willing to love a murderer.

I love you Ginny,

Harry

Signing the letter with tears now dripping down his cheeks, Harry started to fold it, wishing that he had someone to talk to about Ginny, someone that could understand him. He stopped mid-fold as he realized that the best person in the world to talk to about this was right down the hall…

Hermione…

Harry stood up quickly, still clutching the letter in his hand. He walked quietly to the door and opened it, praying that Hermione was still awake. He walked silently down the hall and knocked ever so slightly on the spare bedroom door, to make the least amount of noise possible – he didn't want to wake the Dursleys. To his relief, the door was opened almost at once, and Hermione was standing there, still dressed and looking very much awake.

"Harry, what--?" she started in a whisper, but Harry shushed her and slipped into her room and closed the door behind him. As he knew that Hermione had already put a silencing charm on the room from when they had first arrived, he knew that he could speak normally.

"Hermione, I need to talk to you," he said.

"About what?"

"Ginny. I wrote a letter to her, but I need you to read it… tell me if you think it's okay…" he said, and handed her the piece of parchment. Hermione took it from him and read it silently. By the time she got to the end Harry saw tears forming in her eyes. Harry only just remembered that he, too, had been crying and hastily wiped his cheeks.

"Harry, I—I didn't know you felt so strongly about her… this is so—so full of emotion," said Hermione. "It's even making me cry," she took a moment to gather herself. "Harry, sit down," she said after a few moments, motioning to the twin bed. Harry did so, and she sat down on the other side.

"Talk to me, Harry. I'm willing to answer your questions… I can see how much she means to you, and I understand your reasoning for wanting to not see her while Voldemort's still around."

Harry talked, all right. He and Hermione sat on the bed, talking about all of Harry's worries and fears, eventually straying from Ginny and moving onto Voldemort himself. Hours later, at two in the morning, when still neither teen was showing any sign of sleepiness, Hermione seemed to break right in front of Harry, and she flung her arms around him desperately. It was a few seconds before Harry realized she was crying, and he wrapped his arms comfortingly around Hermione's shoulders.

"Oh Harry…" she sobbed. "I just can't tell you how much—how much you mean to me… you and Ron both…it'll kill me if you die trying to do good for the entire Wizarding world, Harry, it'll just kill me…"

"Hermione…"

"All the times the three of us have shared together," said Hermione to Harry's shoulder, where her head was laying, "were just so wonderful for me. Before I came to Hogwarts, no one liked me in primary school. Everyone said I was just a bossy know-it-all and there was no one for me to turn to."

Harry was surprised at these statements from Hermione, but listened all the same while slowly rubbing her back, which seemed to be the right thing to do.

"But then, then I came to Hogwarts, and met you and Ron, and I've been friends with the two best guys in our year ever since then…and talking to you now has helped me realize that…"

"Now, I wouldn't call Ron and I the best guys…" started Harry but Hermione cut him off.

"Yes, yes you are," said Hermione, and she hugged Harry even tighter. "I don't know where I'd be if it weren't for you two. You two were the ones that seemed to like the 'bossy know-it-all' that was myself, and I clung to that thought throughout all our years at Hogwarts." Hermione sniffled, then continued. "I've hidden these feelings for so long, Harry, so long… but when we started talking just now I just thought, 'I've got to tell him how I've felt all these years, now he's mature enough to understand…' and I was right, Harry… I'm right, aren't I?" she added hesitantly. Harry pulled away from her and held her shoulders at arm's length away from him and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Hermione, I can't think of a time when you were ever wrong."

Hermione smiled and sniffled again.

"I'm sorry for letting you see me like this, Harry," she said.

"Don't be sorry… you listened to me talking all that time. This was your turn."

"Harry… don't tell Ron about this… at least not without me, all right? Let's just keep it between us for now," asked Hermione.

"Of course. I don't think Ron could handle this information right now, anyway," said Harry with a smile, and he stood up.

"Now that you're here and have kept me company I almost don't want you to leave…" said Hermione, also standing.

"I sort of feel the same way, Hermione… but we've got to go to sleep, or else there'll be awkward questions with Ron in the morning. He wouldn't like idea of me staying in your room all night," said Harry, winking.

"Harry, sometimes you're so silly…" said Hermione. "But you're right. You'd better got back to your room." Hermione and Harry stood and looked at each other for a moment before Hermione hugged Harry again. And in that moment, as he wrapped his arms again around Hermione's shoulders, Harry couldn't help thinking that he'd had many friends at Hogwarts, but Hermione and Ron were by far the best he would ever have in his entire life.

No more talk of darkness

Forget these wide-eyed fears

I'm here, nothing can harm you,

My words will warm and calm you.

Let me be your freedom,

Let daylight dry your tears;

I'm here, with you, beside you,

To guard you and to guide you…


AN: Awwwww, now wasn't that sweet :big smile: I assure you, in this little fic there is no romance between Harry and Hermione. They are strictly very, VERY good friends. I hope I made that clear enough in the story… anyway, just cause it's a one-shot doesn't mean you can't review, people! So please, drop me a review and tell me if this second one-shot of mine was any good!

-xXx SpicySugar xXx-