I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters, and they are the copyright property of their owner(s).

*Please read this first!*

I am by no means one of those "Ginny doesn't deserve Harry, Ron doesn't deserve Hermione" people. I LOVE that Ron ended up with Hermione at the end of the book, and that Ginny ended up with Harry, and I really don't think it should've have ended any other way.

However, I don't think this concept has been explored. There are all sorts of post-seventh, Harry-Hermione romances, but none of them take place during the story, so I thought I should give it a go. The italicized part at the beginning is from the book, and after that, my story takes over. Everything that happens before this part is the same as the book.

For people who want to situate the part in the book, in the black hardcover version with the picture of the three of them in the vault in Gringotts, its on page 268-69.

For other people, it's during chapter 16; Godric's Hollow, when they are looking for Harry's Parents' graves.

I am very open to ANY type of constructive criticism, like how I'm developing the characters, if I'm changing their personalities, etc. The absolute last thing I want to do is take away from this great story.

The headstone was only two rows behind Kendra and Ariana's. It was made of white marble, just like Dumbledore's tomb, and this made it easy to read, as it seemed to shine in the dark. Harry did not need to kneel or even approach very close to it to make out the words engraved upon it.

James Potter, born 27 March 1960, died 31 October 1981

Lily Potter, born 30 January 1960, died 31 October 1981

The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

Harry looked down on his parents' graves. He felt his knees tremble underneath him, and a tear drip down his cheek before his legs gave out.

"The last enemy that shall be destroyed his death." He said, his voice only powerful enough to manage a whisper.

"I know." Said Hermione, crouching down to be even with him. "But it's not like the death eater idea."

As much as it bothered him, Harry couldn't deny that the idea swept through his mind. It seemed like an insult to their memory to think of them in the same light as the death eaters.

Hermione continued. "You once told me something Dumbledore told you in first year. When you were in the hospital wing, after the battle, in the dungeons. Remember?" He looked blankly, waiting for her to elaborate. "'To the well organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.' They're referring to life after death. Life beyond death." She sensed her words had an immediate affect, so she continued. "Can you imagine your parents not somewhere? Even in essence? Just because they're dead, doesn't mean they're gone. Same with Mad-eye, Sirius, Dumbledore. Everybody."

Harry turned and looked her in the eye. Tears were still pouring down his face, and Hermione wiped them away with one of her hands, holding his hand in the other. He felt like all of the sudden, her words made everything disappear, and there was only this graveyard, the sparkling snow on the pine trees, the sun shining on the tombs of his father, and his mother, and he and Hermione were alone in the world...

And then their lips touched, and he and Hermione were locked in the bliss of the snow-covered graveyard for what seemed like an eternity. He felt her cold, pale hand in his own, and the back of her neck in his other.

There was a loud noise behind them, from the bushes out side the church, and they broke apart. "Just an animal, I think." Harry said.

Hermione was unconvinced. "Homenum Revelio." she said, but nothing happened. "Nothing. I think we should go." She got up, and Harry took her hand and rose too.

"We have to find Bathilda Bagshot." He said, trying to focus. "Do you have any idea what she looks like?"

"Er, short, grey haired, fairly frail looking woman." She said, as they turned to leave the graveyard, and immediately saw a woman, about close to the end of the graveyard who fit this description perfectly. "That looks just like her!" she mentioned in a whisper.

She began to move faster, but Harry grabbed her hand. "Stop." He said. There was a confused look on her face, so he explained. "Did you not just do a human presence revealing charm?"

Hermione drew her wand, and repeated the spell, with the same results. "Harry!" she whispered. "Is she not human?"

The woman was staring at them, still about forty feet away. She began walking towards them.

"Stay put. Hide your wand but keep it ready." He told her, still clutching her hand. She was now within the range of his voice, so he spoke. "Who are you?"

Nothing. She kept approaching.

"Who are you?" He said again.

She spoke with a hiss. "Are you Potter?"

Hermione gave a small, barely audible scream.

"Yes." Harry replied.

"Come." She said, beginning to move away.

Harry didn't move. "Do you have something for me?"

Hermione whispered directly into his ear. "Harry, I think that was parseltoungue!"

"Come." The woman said again.

"We know you're not Bathilda." Said Harry, and then repeated it in parseltoungue.

The woman just stared back at them, no expression on her aged, wrinkled face. Hermione revealed her wand, and said "Specialis revelo." A red mist filled the space between them. They weren't sure what this meant, but knew it couldn't be good.

The woman walked towards them again. "Harry..." Hermione said, with a sound of worry in her voice. The fake Bathilda began to move faster, and it seemed like her face began to change. It was deforming, like she was taking polyjuice potion, except if she was taking the potion, her face would be moving from one thing to another. Here, it seemed like her face was just disappearing.

She was very close to them now, and Harry drew his wand and yelled, "Stupefy!"

The woman was lifted off her feet and launched backwards. When she rose, her body peeled away, revealing a giant, green snake, with slit-like eyes and green pupils that could terrify someone just by looking into them.

"We can't go!" Harry yelled. "We'll never get another chance like this at the snake!"

It lunged at them, but they managed to get out of the way. "Harry! We can't kill it, we have nothing to kill it with! Let's go!"

Harry racked his brain, determined to see some way, but none came to him.

"He'll be here soon!" Hermione yelled. "We have to go NOW!"

Harry caught Hermione's eye, and in the split second, the snake lunged and clenched his giant jaws on Harry's left leg. He fell to the ground, and his wand went sailing out of his hand. The snake backed up for a second strike, but Hermione acted with unbelievable speed. Lunging forward, she yelled "Accio Wand!" Harry's wand flew right into Hermione's hand, and and she used both, saying "Stupefy!"

The combined force of the double spell blasted the great snake ten feet back. Hermione raced to Harry's side, grabbed his hand, and they disappeared.

"Enervate." said the high, cold voice, pointing his wand down on the great snake. His rage was border line uncontrollable. How had this boy managed another escape?

It must have been a companion... Snape told him about the boy. He spends his time with the blood-traitor Weasley and the mud blood, know-it-all Granger. Nagini will know if he was aided.

"My lord..." said a voice from behind him, but Voldemort ignored it. The pleas only angered him further, and he must return to the task at hand. He has to trace the wand, and he knows what the next step is.

The face of the tall blonde man was the last thing Harry saw in the dream before he awoke to a panicked Hermione working over him. He was lying on a little hill on the edge of a lake. He felt the sting of the ditanny on his injured leg. "Harry?" She said, frantically. "Can you hear me?"

He sat up. "It's you-know-who again. He was there, we just missed him. He's looking for something - a wand - he didn't specify any particular person's wand, he's just trying to find it. He knows a tall blonde man had it."

Hermione looked confused for a second, but eventually decided that Harry didn't need another occlumency lecture, so she changed the subject. "We're at Lake Windermere, in Cumbria." she said, replacing the ditanny in her bag. "I came camping here once with my mum and dad."

Harry tried to stand, but was rather unsuccessful, toppling back down painfully right away.

"It might take a day or two to heal. I'd try and stay off it for a while."

He sensed the subject floating around in the air, so he came out and said it. "Would you like to talk about what happened?"

She sat silent, looking over the water. He could tell she was struggling to find the right words. "I suppose there's no better time for it, and I realize you probably know what I'm about to say anyway. I was hoping it could wait, and that after he was dead, if I was still alive, I would tell you." She turned and looked at him. "And maybe after that, you could make a descision. But I thought you were head-over-heals for Ginny, so I wasn't even sure about telling you afterwards. And now, you know already, so it's too late."

He didn't make any change in his expresssion.

She took a very deep breath, before saying, "I'm in love with you, Harry, I have been for a very long time now."

Harry sat still for a second, weighing the gravity of what she just said. "I think I have also." He said, registering the confused look on her face.

"You think?"

"Well, I've never admitted to myself until the moment. I've always thought that you could be someone who I could see myself spending the rest of my life with. For as long as I can remember, you've been with me - every step of this war, you've been by my side. I guess the connection has always been there."

She looked very relieved. "So what now?"

"We still find the horcruxes, we still have to figure what wand you-know-who is looking for, and we still have to kill him." He said, in a very matter-of-fact tone. "Except, now I'm in love with you."

And with one step, he quickly closed the gap between them, and kissed her on the mouth once more.