TrInItIsPelL- Thank you! =) And I'm not quite sure which pairing it's going to end up as...hmm, we'll see how things go...
Harder to Breathe
Chapter 3Harry really had no idea where he was going, nor did he care. His vision was clouded with an angry red haze. It amazed him just how irrational Ron could be. If he had stayed in that dorm a moment longer, he would have knocked the irate redhead to the floor. Then again, Harry could see why Ron was upset. Everyone knew that he was in love with Hermione. No, Harry thought, don't feel guilty. Ron had never acted on his feelings, not for all the years they had known Hermione. Just because Ron continued to ignore his emotions didn't mean Harry had to.
Harry had admitted to himself that he had feelings for Hermione that went farther than friendship. For him at least, their affair was more than a physical attraction. Hermione had blossomed into a beautiful young woman, but it was more than that. Harry wondered why it had taken him so long to realize what a truly wonderful person Hermione was. It seemed as though that was the one situation where Ron had recognized something so long before Harry. The only problem, aside from Ron being absolutely furious, was that Harry didn't know whether or not Hermione felt the same way.
Having been lost in his thoughts, Harry did not realize that he had ended up in the dungeons. He stopped upon hearing himself splash through a small puddle. He groaned and looked up at the ceiling, where a crack was leaking some foul-smelling water. Harry brushed some stray hair out of his face and sighed with annoyance. Of all places, he had ended up in his least favorite part of the castle. At least Snape was nowhere in sight. Harry turned and proceeded to exit the dank hallway when he heard footsteps behind him. Before he could turn back around, a certain unmistakable drawl met his ears.
"Potty lost his way?" sneered Draco Malfoy.
Harry turned, taking a deep breath. He definitely did not need any trouble from Malfoy at the moment. "You think being in seventh year you would have grown out of calling me 'Potty'," Harry replied contemptuously.
Draco walked towards Harry, that insufferable smirk plastered on his lips. Harry would have cursed him on the spot if he weren't so sure that Snape would appear the moment he did so. "The name just suited you so well I figured you'd never outgrow it," Draco said.
Harry scowled. "Well, ferret," Now it was Draco's turn to scowl. "If you're done insulting me for the day, I think I'll be leaving."
"What, can't handle a little name-calling Potter?" Draco taunted.
'Just turn around and leave,' Harry told himself. Responding to Draco would just be playing in to what he wanted. But Draco had a knack for getting under his skin. "I can handle name-calling just fine Malfoy. I just can't stand to be around Death Eater scum for prolonged periods of time." Harry knew that one would strike a nerve; Lucius Malfoy was currently in Azkaban for his crimes as a Death Eater.
Draco's jaw tightened. Harry could see the malice in his cool gray eyes. For a second, Harry was afraid that Draco might actually attack him.
"Watch it Potter," Draco said harshly. His hand moved towards his pocket, where Harry could only assume his wand resided. Harry reached towards his own wand in his back pocket, just in case Draco tried anything.
But before either boy could remove his wand, heavy footsteps came resounding through the hall, and a dark figure appeared behind Draco.
"Potter, I sincerely hope you were not thinking of casting a spell in Mr. Malfoy's direction." Snape's voice, dripping with disdain, was easily recognizable as the hook-nosed man stepped into the light. Harry noticed Draco casually move his hand away from his pocket. As if Snape would punish his own student anyway.
"No, Professor," Harry said, putting his arms down by his sides.
Snape's thin lips curled into a cruel smile. "Twenty points from Gryffindor," he said callously. Draco grinned.
"For what?!" Harry exclaimed before he could stop himself.
Snape sneered at him. Harry wanted to hit the greasy man. "For attempting to hex one of my students," Snape replied. "Now get out of my dungeon before I take more points from you Potter."
Draco was looking at Harry with great amusement, but Harry did not give him the satisfaction of an upset facial expression. He turned and strode out of the dungeons, doing his best to ignore the mocking laughter that echoed behind him.
That encounter had done nothing to alleviate Harry's frustration. If anything, it intensified it. He resumed his aimless wandering of the castle, losing himself once again in thoughts of Ron, Hermione, and what he was going to do about the both of them. First of all, he needed to find Hermione before Ron did. Ron was going to have one monumental row with her no matter what, but Harry figured it would be better if she were prepared. As if in response to his thoughts, Hermione rounded a corner and appeared in Harry's line of vision.
"Harry!" Hermione called, heading towards him. As she got closer, she noticed troubled expression Harry wore. Comprehension dawned on her face. "Oh no...how...just now?"
Harry took Hermione's arm and led her off to the side of the corridor. No one passing by needed to hear what was going on. "Did Ron catch you on your way out?" Harry asked.
Hermione nodded slowly. "I told him I was looking for Crookshanks..."
"Yeah...I told him you were looking for a quill. I also happened to be putting on a shirt at the time. He jumped to conclusions, accurately, and well, we had a rather loud and angry argument," Harry explained.
Hermione bit her lip in concern. "No one heard you, did they?" she questioned nervously.
"Not at first...but Seamus and Dean came up about halfway through. I think they probably know. I doubt they would say anything," Harry assured her. Though he wasn't entirely positive himself.
"Is Ron still up there? What did he say? Was he terribly upset?" Hermione began throwing questions out at Harry.
"Of course he was upset Hermione. What do you expect? He called us both lousy friends and told me I was no better than Malfoy. And as far as I know, he's still up there blowing steam out of his ears," Harry replied, slightly irritated. Was Ron all Hermione could think about at the moment?
"What are we going to do about him? He's going to be mad for some time—"
"Hermione!" Harry interrupted. "What are we going to do about us?"
Hermione paused for a moment. "Us? I don't know...I mean, Ron knows now, which is what we were worried about. I suppose the question is do we continue on because we no longer have to hide it, or stop because Ron is thoroughly miserable?" said Hermione.
Harry honestly did feel bad that Ron had to find out that way, but he didn't want to break off his "relationship" with Hermione. He wondered if that made him selfish. But then again, if Hermione didn't want to break it off either...
"What do you think?" Harry asked her.
Hermione seemed torn in two directions. She had a distressed look on her face, and she was tugging anxiously at some loose strands of hair. Harry couldn't help but feel a little bad about himself, in lieu of the fact that Hermione hadn't immediately assured him that she wanted to continue seeing him. He waited for her response, hoping she would tell him that she most definitely did not want to break it off. But her answer was not what Harry was expecting.
"I—Harry—I have to...I have to go," Hermione stammered. She gave Harry a doleful look before turning and heading off down the hall, leaving him alone and perplexed.