Silence filled the room as both Harry and Hermione collapsed into their chairs. Both were too in shock to say anything. Hermione was shaking her head, unable to process everything that she has just heard.

"Hermione?" he asked, after ten minutes of silence. "Hermione, please say something."

"Say what?" she asked, standing up from the chair she was sitting it.

"Anything."

She walked around McGonagall's office, her mind going into overdrive. Harry pressed his lips together, wondering if Hermione was mad or not.

"Only us, right?" she asked, as though she were in disbelief. "Only something like this could happen to us."

"What do you want to do?" he asked her softly, standing up next to her. She shook her head.

"I really have no idea."

"Do you want to get a divorce?"

"You heard what he said!" she cried, throwing her hand towards Dumbledore's painting. "Divorce will only be in the books. We'll still be bound."

He closed his eyes, frustration building in him. She turned away from him, her mind deep in thought.

"We have to figure something out."

"What'd you do that night?"

She turned to him in shock, her eyes becoming wide while her cheeks turned a dark shade of red. He took a step back, instantly regretting saying that to her.

"Me?!" she cried, pointing her finger to her chest. "I saved your life that's what I did! I did whatever it took to make sure that you would be ok!"

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Are you blaming me for this?"

"No," he said, resting his hands on her shoulder. She instantly calmed down. "I am not blaming you for this. I just want to know what happened."

"I told you. All I did was heal you."

He dropped his eyes "What do we do?"

"I have no idea," she repeated once again. "How do we tell everyone?"

"We tell them the truth," he said softly. "Whether they believe that or not is up to them."

She nodded, stepping away from him. She started biting on her fingernail as another thought crossed her mind.

"If the bond is trying to get us to do that, why hasn't it happened yet?"

"It's already tried, remember?"

"Before that," she replied, her cheeks heating up as he reminded her of their previous activities. "We've been married for four months and nothing has happened. Dumbledore said that it would do anything to make it happen. Why didn't it happen before then?"

"Maybe the war focused our attentions in other places."

She let out another sigh and turned away from him. He closed his eyes, trying to figure out what to say to her. Eventually he stood up and wrapped his arms around her, and he was shocked as she wrapped hers around him and buried her head into his chest.

"All of this happening isn't going to change anything between us, is it?" she whispered, and he shook his head.

"I hope not. I don't know what I would do without you, Hermione."


"Is something bothering you?" Ron asked, as he and Hermione sat outside. She shook her head.

"No."

She and Harry have agreed not to tell the Weasleys until they felt that the time was right. They had left Hogwarts several hours ago, but now, as the sun was beginning to set, she felt horrible for lying to Ron.

'He deserves to know.'

"I just need to talk to Harry."

"Not me?" he asked, and, although he tried to hide it, she could detect the sound of hurt in his voice.

"I promise I'll talk to you."

She stood up before he could say another word. She quickly strode into the house and hunted for Harry, growing more frustrated when she couldn't find him. She walked up to his bedroom and pounded on the door, waiting for a minute before it finally opened.

"Hermione?" he said, and she could hear how tired he was.

"Were you sleeping?"

"I must have fallen asleep. Is something wrong?"

"We need to tell them," she said, stepping into the room when he stepped aside. "I can't take lying to Ron anymore."

"I know," he said softly, closing the door behind him. "Let's go talk to them right now."

"Thank you," she said, and watched as he grabbed his wand before leading her downstairs. "Ron's still outside."

"We'll talk to the out there. It'll be quieter."

She nodded, and watched as he turned to go find Ginny. She started on the path back to Ron and rubbed her face, wondering where to begin with this.

"What's going on?" Ron asked, as Hermione walked back up to him.

"Harry's on his way out with Ginny. We need to talk to the both of you."

"About what?"

"Just wait a few minutes."

He nodded, and grabbed hold of her hand. They waited for a moment before Harry and Ginny joined them.

"What's the matter?" she asked, as she and Harry sat next to them. Harry and Hermione both took a deep breath.

"We have to tell you something," she started, "and you're not going to believe it."

"Seriously, you guys, what is going on?"

"Harry and I are married."

Silence filled the air as the two siblings looked between them. Harry and Hermione waited for the outburst that was sure to come, but it never did.

Instead, laughter filled the air.

"That was a good one," Ron said. Hermione closed her eyes.

"We're not kidding! We've somehow been soul-bonded!"

Their laughter began to die down as they saw the looks on their faces. Ginny looked between them in shock.

"You're kidding, right?"

"We're not."

"Are you sure? How'd you find out?"

"Kingsley and McGonagall. That's where we were at this morning."

"Where's the proof?"

Harry gave her the book of records. They opened it, and their eyes went wide.

"You're not kidding," Ron said quietly.

"We're really not."

"How-how did this happen?" Ginny asked.

"We really have no idea. Christmas Eve Harry and I were attacked by Voldemort's snake. When I was trying to heal him, that's when it occurred. Neither one of us had an idea."

"That is, until McGonagall and Kingsley told us."

"How did they find out?"

"Kingsley spotted someone from the Ministry trying to give the information to the Daily Prophet. I don't know how they figured it out, but they did."

"You can get a divorce, right?"

"That's just it," Hermione said, turning her eyes away from her boyfriend. "We can get a divorce, but the bond will keep us together. We would always be able to feel each other."

"So what, exactly?" Ginny asked sharply. "What are supposed to do?"

"We don't know," Harry replied quietly, trying not to look at her. "We've been trying to figure out what to do, too."

"I think a divorce is the best option," Ron said, and Hermione turned towards him. "You may still be bound together but you can be with whoever you want."

"Unless the two of you don't want a divorce," Ginny said, narrowing her eyes at them.

Everyone in the group fell silent after she had said those words. Harry gave Ginny a look while Ron closed his eyes. Hermione couldn't tell if he was frustrated, mad, or just trying to figure everything out just like she and Harry were.

"Ginny!" Harry said sharply. She turned to him.

"You act like we wanted this," Hermione said, feeling hurt that Ginny thinks that she would betray her. "This wasn't our faults. It just happened."

"It just sounds a little off to me. You're just magically married and neither one of you have an idea?"

Hermione stood up, biting her lip to prevent herself from saying something that she didn't want to. She turned and walked away, and Harry turned back to Ginny.

"Why did you say that? Can't you see how hard this on us without your help?"

Ginny looked at him in shock and he stood up and followed Hermione. He caught up with her quite a ways away from where they talked.

"I don't want to talk," she said, slowing her pace. He placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her back towards him.

"Let's get away for the night and talk. I think we need to figure something out."

"And go where, exactly?"

"Grimmauld Place."

"Do you really think that's a good idea?"

"Clearly we don't need to be around either one of them right now until we sort this out. Let's get away for the night and cool down and we can talk."

She nodded, averting his eyes. They went back into the house and packed an overnight bag before they took off to Grimmauld Place.


"It's not any different," she said, looking around. He dusted himself off and nodded in agreement.

"I'm still trying to figure out what to do with it."

"What do you mean?"

"It's mine. Sirius left to me. I gave it to the order, but now that the war's over its mine again."

'You'll think of something," she said. She plopped onto the couch and let out a frustrated sigh.

"It could have been worse."

"I guess it's a good thing we didn't tell them about all of it," she said, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Do you want a divorce?"

She looked up at him and thought about it for a minute. She then closed her eyes as she made her decision.

"Yes," she said quietly, and he nodded in agreement. "I think it is the best option."

"Then we'll file for divorce."

"Thank you," she said, wrapping her arms around him.

"Only we could get ourselves into something like this," he joked, and she laughed in response.

"That's way too true."

"We can go to Kingsley tomorrow morning and ask him what to do."

She nodded, resting her head on his shoulder. He had one arm wrapped around her waist, while his other hand rested on the back of her head.

"I still need to get my parents."

"I'll go with you," he whispered, and she pulled away to look at him.

"You don't have to."

"I want to."

She pulled back to look at him, and smiled softly as she saw the look in his eyes. His hair was sticking up in every direction, and she noted that he had to be at least six-foot-tall by now.

And she couldn't figure out why she was looking at these things, but she was.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, and she nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. I didn't have a lot for dinner."

"Let's see if there's anything to eat," he replied, and they took off towards the kitchen. They spent the next few minutes looking around but was unable to find anything to eat.

"There's a muggle store not far from here, but I don't have any money."

"I have some," she said, reaching into her bag. "It should be enough."

"You're brilliant," he said, grinning at her.


"I didn't know you could cook," she said, watching as he worked at the stove.

"Picked it up along the way, I guess."

She laughed slightly as she mixed the salad together. She then put some onto the two plates and watched as he put the chicken onto the plates before they moved to the table to eat.

"This is delicious, thank you," she said, cutting into her piece.

"How are you doing with all of this?" he asked. She shrugged her shoulders, taking a bite of her salad as she did so.

"I've been married to my best friend for four months while falling for my other best friend. I'm doing great with this."

"I'm sorry, Hermione."

"You act like it's your fault. Neither of us did anything wrong. It was just a bizarre incident."

"We'll get the divorce and we can live our lives."

"Thank you," she said, taking another bite of her food. "Dumbledore said that we would be connected if we completed the bond."

"Yeah, so? We're not going to complete it."

"What if we're already connected? What if we have been and it just hasn't shown yet?"

"It's possible," he replied, dropping his fork on his plate. "Anything's possible."

"I'm sorry I'm just trying to figure this out."

"That's why we came here, right? To figure all of this out."

"Yeah," she said, playing with her food. "So, is it wrong to refer to you as my husband now?"

"Sounds weird," he laughed, and she laughed back. "I guess you're my wife now."

"Until we get the divorce, anyway."

"Then you'll be my ex-wife."

"That sounds nice," she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes as she did so. He grinned at her.

"Come on. You don't want to be known as the ex-Mrs. Potter?"

"Why do you assume I would take your name? What if I made you take mine?"

"I would take it."

"Really?" she asked, nearly dropping her fork. He nodded.

"If that's you would have wanted, I would have become Harry Granger."

"That sounds so weird," she laughed. "I think Hermione Potter does sound better."

He laughed again and shook his head. She laughed as well, feeling more and more comfortable with Harry as the time went on.

They finished their dinner and retreated to the living room. Hermione was feeling exhausted. She had barely slept the night before as she was up all night worrying about the talk with McGonagall.

She glanced over at Harry and saw that he was falling asleep as well. She let out a small laugh and shook him awake.

"I think we should go to bed."

He nodded, and they both retreated upstairs. Hermione closed behind her and put her pajamas on, her mind reeling from the night she had spent with Harry. She laid on her bed and stared up at the ceiling, suddenly feeling wide awake.

'How is this possible?'

She sighed as she got under the comforter before she turned to look out the window. The moon was shining through the glass as the stars twinkled in the dark sky. She closed her eyes, hoping to fall asleep.

No such luck.

She let out a frustrated groan as she threw her covers off and got out of the bed. She walked to the room next door and began to knock on the door before she hesitated, wondering if Harry was still awake or not. After a moment she knocked, and she heard his call of "come in" through the door.

"I'm sorry if I woke you," she said, as she closed the door behind her. "I can't sleep."

"Me, either," he said, closing one of his books. "I don't understand how I was so tired downstairs and so awake right now."

"My mum always told me that, when I couldn't sleep, it was because I was thinking too much. That might explain why we're both awake right now."

"I always figured it was because Voldemort was breaking into my head again," he said with a shrug. She laughed, shaking her head as she did so.

"At least you don't have to worry about that anymore."

"Thank Merlin."

He patted the seat next to him and she sat, resting her head against the backboard as she did so. He stretched out, flexing his muscles as he did so.

And she couldn't seem to look away.

"Have I ever said thank you?" he asked, turning to her.

"For what?"

"Everything. I wouldn't have gotten past this war without you. I know I tried to turn you away, and that was wrong of me. I was afraid of something happening to you or Ron."

"And we were afraid that something would happen to you, too. You need to realize that you don't need to do everything alone. I know that's hard to get through this thick skull of yours."

He laughed, and she couldn't help but to smile back.

"You're a great friend, Harry."

"You're a better one. Everything you have done you did for me. I should have listened to you more."

They stared at each other, unable to turn away. Something was pulling them towards one another, and they couldn't seem to break away. She reached her hands up and pressed them against the side of his face, staring deep into his green eyes as she did so.

They both leaned in until their lips met. It was slow at first, but after a few minutes her arms flew around his neck, and his hands settled on her waist. The need for oxygen broke them apart, and he moved his lips to her neck.

"Harry!" she moaned, running her hands through his hair. His mouth moved to her ear, and she shivered.

"What do you want?" he asked, his voice husky with desire. He rocked his hips against hers, and she let out a gasp of pleasure. She threw her leg around his waist to pull him in closer.

He pulled away from her neck and she stared at him. His green eyes were dark with lust, and his face was flushed. His hair was messier than normal from running her hands through it.

It was clear that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him.

"I want you," she whispered, pulling him back to her lips.

He flipped them around so that he was on top and she was laying underneath him. She struggled to remove his shirt, while his hands moved all over her body. Neither had control of their thoughts as arousal and desire took control of both of their bodies.

"You're beautiful," he whispered after he threw her shirt to the ground. Her chest heaved as his hands moved over her body.

"Make love to me," she said, and he did what she asked for.