Disclaimer: This is the only one for the story. I do not own any of this. J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros do. That is all.

I can't have you, but I have dreams.

Hermione woke in the Burrow a few days after the Battle of Hogwarts, she should have been sleeping as everyone else was. She was still extremely drained from the whole experience, but she could faintly hear soft music coming from downstairs and knew that it was this that woke her. It was five past two in the morning by her watch and she wondered who on earth would be up listening to music at this hour. Kicking off the covers, Hermione tumbled out of bed and pulled on the dressing gown she kept at the end of her be. Creeping out of the room she was careful not to wake her friend, and silently made her way down the stairs. After all her years coming to stay in this house she knew which steps creaked and which didn't by now, so she navigated her way donwstairs unheard by anyone. When she reached the bottom step of the first floor she could see a faint glow was coming through the underneath of the sitting room door, and Hermione cautiously opened it. The flicker of the fire was setting the room alight, everything was as it normally was during the day except that Fred was sitting at the piano delicately playing the ivory and black keys.

"Fred, what are you doing here?" She stammered quietly, shocked.

"I couldn't sleep" He shrugged sheepishly, "And this helps me sleep"

Hermione sat down on the chair nearest him and watched in awe, her eyes glittering, "I never knew you could play"

"I taught myself how to in my sixth year, it charms the women you see" He winked at her and she chuckled.

"Should've know that was the root of the reason" She smiled ruefully. Fred then started playing a song vaguely familiar to Hermione. The music was beautiful and spellbinding,

"This is a muggle song, Fred" She whispered.

"I know" He murmererd, "I heard it at muggle-born's birthday party a few years back. Nice isn't it?"

Nice didn't describe it in Hermione's opinion, "It's so sad... yet so enchanting" she gushed.

Fred looked at her, different to how he usually did. It was as if he was seeing her differently. He patted the part of the seat at the piano that was vacant and Hermione sat next to him as he began to play the intro, "I don't sing well I'm afraid" He laughed at the mere idea of himself singing, "So you'll just have to listen", he looked nervous.
Hermione looked into his brown eyes, so dark in their colour in the dim glow of the fire. They matched so brilliantly with his dark red hair, "Try" She encouraged softly, scooting closer.
Fred took a deep breath and looked at Hermione uncertainly, Hermione felt herself shiver involutarily, "The female part is first" He said, grinning lopsidedly.

"No way am I singing" She chuckled, "Just sing your part!"

Fred pouted, "But if I have to sing then so do you, Granger. And you know the song needs your part"

His puppy dog eyes made her resolve cave in almost instantly, "Just once, and you will never ever tell another soul about this Fred Weasley" She pulled her thick hair up in a messy bun, so it wouldn't distract her.

He raised his right arm, "Wizard's honour" He said in fake seriousness, trying not to laugh. Hermione smiled and nodded for him to being playing. A quiet fell over them as she listenend to nothing but the music.

She closed her eyes and took a steadying breath, "Leave me out with the waste, this is not what I do. It's the wrong kind of place to be thinking of you. It's the wrong time, for somebody new, it's a small crime and I've got no excuse, and is that alright, yeah? Give my gun away when its loaded. Is that alright, yeah? If you don't shoot it how am I supposed to hold it? Is that alright yeah? Give my gun away when it's loaded. Is that alright yeah? With you..."

Instead of going straight into the male part like the song is meant to, Fred replayed the intro and while doing so smiled crookedly at Hermione, "You Hermione Jean, are a puzzle I hope I never figure out" Hermione felt a small blush creep up on her, "That was gorgeous singing, very surprising, but gorgeous" He complimented, making her blush more. She nudged him playfully, "You're part now, Weasley" Hermione teased.

And so he sang, his voice shaking slightly in the beginning, "Leave me out with the waste this is not what I do. It's the wrong kind of place to be cheating on you. It's the wrong time, she's pulling me through. It's a small crime and I've got no excuse. And is that alright, yeah? Give my gun away when its loaded? Is that alright yeah? If you don't shoot it how am I supposed to hold it? Is that alright, is that alright, is that alright with you?" Fred finished.

He stopped playing and put his hands by his side, they were shaking. His voice was rough and husky, but had a sensitive quality that made it lovely to listen to, not great, not bad, just lovely. Both were nervous and uncomfortable next to eachother now, Hermione shifted ever so slightly away for some reason, and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her looked at her, "Well that was a bit of an intimite moment, eh?" He said, laughing to try and lighten the mood. Hermione felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth, Fred could make her smile whether she wanted to or not.

"Always the joker" She said quietly.

Fred matched her tone of voice, "No, not always... I have my serious moments... But I only use them for special occassions where it will shock people the most, of course" Hermione laughed, a genuine laugh, and raised her eyes to meet his. Then distracted she shook her head and looked away.

"I've always wanted to play" She said wistfully, as she ran her hand along the keys, "My grandfather used to.. but he died a long time ago" Her voice was almost a whisper. Fred looked down at her narrowing his eyes slightly as if hoping he could decipher the girl next to him. Hermione stood up and then headed for the door with her hand on the door handle, she turned back, "Thank you Fred, for playing for me" She smiled timidly at him.

"Hermione" He said suddenly, "Please stay" He nodded at the sofa, "I mean I'm gonna keep playing anyway if you, you know, wanted to stay and listen" He bit his lip, waiting for her reply.

She grinned, "I'd love that"

"But no more singing" He smirked, "You'll have to wait to hear my dulcet tones another time" Sniggering at his joke, she made herself comfortable on the sofa.

"I... I can teach you to play if you want... sometime" Fred offered, shrugging.

Hermiones eyes lit up, "Really? You would?"

"Well I only have a proper grasp on the basics myself, but once you know them you can manipulate pretty much any song and play it. But we'll make it a rule that you must decide on the songs for lessons"

Hermione nodded, excited, "I can't wait! Do we start tomorrow morning? I can do it at anytime, or do you have work?"

Fred shook his head, "I'm not saying when, but you will know"

This answer puzzled Hermione, but Fred began playing a slow, mournful song that had her drifting off to sleep almost instantly. When he finished, Fred stood up from the piano and walked to the sleeping teenager. He gently wrapped her in a blanket, and smiled down at her small figure, "Sweet dreams, Hermione... I'll see you soon"

"Hermione!"

The sound of her name being called, jerked Hermione from her peaceful sleep, "Fred" She mumbled half asleep still, trying to sit up.

"Yes that's what I'm waking you for" Hermione blearily opened one eye, then the other and identified the source of the loud voice was Ginny.

"Sorry if you heard the piano last night" She mumbled, afraid that herself and Fred might have woken everyone.

Ginny raised an eyebrow, "We don't have a piano, Mione. Merlin, you have strange dreams sometimes" She chuckled.

Hermione sat up and looked around the room, blinking as she adjusted to the light streaming in the window, and sure enough there was no piano in the room anymore, "But.. Fred?"

"We must go to St. Mungo's, it's our turn to take over from Mum. There's still no change in him... that coma he's in must be very deep. The Healers said we should try talking to him more and that he hopefully he will come around in his own time..." Ginny said, sounding falsely upbeat as she walked into the kitchen, "And what in the name of Godric Gryffindor are you doing asleep down here by the way?" she called loudly from the next room.

Hermione was shaking her head, thorougly confused now. She'd sat and watched Fred play the muggle song 9 Crimes last night on the piano, and they'd even sung it together, hadn't they? But looking around the room there definitely was no instrument. Hermione was puzzled, but slowly things fell into place it must have been a very vivid dream she had. For she knew Fred had been in a coma for the past three days, after a wall collapsed on him during the battle. He was clinging to life now in St. Mungo's and they were all taking turns of keeping watch over him. But really, if it had been a dream, shouldn't she have been in her bed? And not down here wrapped in a blanket with the embers of a dying fire left in the grate? It was all too confusing for so early in the morning. Putting it to the back of her mind for more thought later, she stood up and followed her friend into the kitchen.
Strange though, she thought, looking over her shoulder at the sitting room one last time, it had seemed so real... so normal... And he had seemed so peaceful. They had both been at ease and relaxed in eachother's company. That's when she decided it was a dream afterall, her and Fred had never relaxed together, or bonded so intimitely. She must have just sleepwalked down here. Yeah, that's what it was, she decided finally, sleepwalking.
A niggling doubt in the back of her mind told her this wasn't as true as she'd like to believe, but she just didn't have time to focus on it right now. She and Ginny had to get to Fred to relieve Mrs. Weasley as she needed some proper sleep.

A/N: So... what do you think? Review please! I really appreciate hearing all your thoughts! I love the song 9 Crimes so I really wanted it featured in a story! Got any song suggestions for Fred and Hermione? I hope you enjoyed this. There's more to come. By the way, each chapter title will be a line from different songs that I feel relate to the chapter. Chapter one = I can't have you but I have dreams, from Brandi Carlile's song "Dreams".

FireboltPhoenix
x