Everything was a mess. Deatheaters finally broke into the castle and the Battle of Hogwarts began. Hermione was running with Harry and Ron through the corridors, throwing spells at enemies and looking all around for injured friends. Another thing caught her gaze. Those brown depths peered into her eyes and she suddenly remembered all her "torturing" at Malfoy Manor and how boys "rescued" her and they disappeared from the beautiful black-haired witch, who found her way into Hermione's heart so quickly and surprisingly for both of them. She suddenly remembered those little details of how Bellatrix looked so good in that corset or how her hair tickled Hermione on her neck... She remembered but need to say that the black-haired witch hadn't left her head or heart since then.

Bellatrix saw her and suddenly felt alive again. Her eyes sparkled when they met Hermione's. Anyway they needed to run on and fight. They will hopefully meet again after all this madness ends. They have to.


Hermione felt like her soul was ripped into pieces. Harry left them and went for sure death. Tonks was dead. So were Lupin and Fred. And Colin and Lavender. And Bellatrix was God-knew-where. Hermione didn't know if there still was a hope inside her at all, but what she knew for sure was that if she saw the dead body of Bellatrix, she would die too.

She gazed around the Great Hall. Many injured, many dead. Suddenly everybody went silent because they heard McGonagalls's heart-breaking cry "NO!". All left-alive ran out and saw Harry lying dead in Hagrid's arms. Ginny, Hermione and Ron cried out a desperate "NO! HARRY, NO!"

Bellatrix's heart stopped for a while when she heard Hermione. At least she was alive and wasn't one of the dead bodies lying on the tables in the Great Hall...

Hermione's gaze met Bellatrix's for the second time that evening. A small weight was lifted from her heart, but she still felt like dying...

Suddenly after Neville's speech Harry fell from Hagrid's embrace, stood up and started fighting. That made everyone's hope grow, pouredpowerinto their veins and they fought bravely again.

The battle moved to the Great Hall. Harry was somewhere under invisibility cloak, Ron fought in a group of his classmates and Voldemort had against him McGonagall, Kingsley and Slughorn. Hermione heard unmistakable cackle and turned around. The killing curse just flew between Ginny and Luna.

"NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!" Mrs Weasley shouted obviously in unstoppable rage. Hermione was more scared than ever in her life. She ran to them and grasped Molly's arm. "NO, no, please!". Molly looked at her "Are you insane?! Let go of my arm!" she shouted and torn herself from Hermione's grasp. Hermione felt helpless and tears appeared in her eyes. She jumped on the table and stood in front of Bellatrix.
Molly was shocked and thought Hermione was either under Imperius curse or went totally insane.

"Leave her be," Hermione whispered just as loud to have Molly hear her.

"Go out of the way, Hermione!" Molly was too angry to keep calm.

"NO!" Hermione shouted in return and lifted her wand. Bellatrix stood beside her and directed her wand at Molly too.

Bellatrix and Molly fired a curse at once, but Hermione threw a shield spell between them.

Voldemort's sudden maniacal laugh made every pair of eyes in the Great Hall focus on him. Harry pulled down the invisibility cloak. He asked everyone not to help him, because it had to be that way. Everyone was silent and watched the life depending fight.

Harry won. Voldemort fell dead. The Great Hall started cheering and hugging each other. Hermione grasped Bellatrix's forearm and apparated to the Astronomy Tower.

As soon as they were there, Hermione let go of Bellatrix and turned away to look at Hogwarts surroundings. "I thought you would be safe here," she whispered.

Bellatrix was at loss of words, but she knew she has to say something or she will lose Hermione again.

"Thank you... I-... Hermione..." Bellatrix stuttered. Hermione turned back to her. The loving look in her eyes made Bellatrix talk. "I missed you. I don't know how it happened, but the... experience we had together... I couldn't get you out of my head since that... I thought about you all the time," Bellatrix said and added shyly "and not in sexual way..."

Hermione smiled. "Me to... I love you, Bella." Bellatrix melted. She took a step towards Hermione and when she didn't step away, Bellatrix took her into her arms.
"I love you too, 'Mione," Bellatrix said and kissed Hermione into her hair. "I love you too."