A/N: I am trying to get these things up more quickly than before, but life seems to keep getting in the way, dang it! Fortunately, I have three ahead written, so I will be posting more regularly in the next few weeks.

Though this is still a marriage bond fic, I really want to try and capture how things would have worked in this A/U as far as the story of the book, so a lot of the fluffy stuff will have a dark undercurrent to it for a while here and somethings are gonna take a darker turn. I am really excited about this and I hope you guys will all stick with me through it!

That being said, this one is a shorty, but it will tie into what is gonna be happening through the next three chapters or so. I promise the next few will be longer and yes, you can expect to see some H/HR action at some point in the near future which I will warn you of in advance.

Once again, Thank you all again for your continued support through reviews, follows, and favorites! I appreciate each and every one of you that have done given me feedback and/or simply stuck with me through my long droughts. I am inspired by your tenacity!

Without further ado...

Hermione stood at the mouth of the tent, pulling her heavy winter cloak tightly around her shoulders, thanking Merlin that she had thought to bring her heavy muggle coat with her. Even with the added warmth, all she could feel was cold lately. Not just the physical type, but rather the biting gnawing cold that settles into ones soul when all hope seems lost. Whispering a soft lumos, she stepped onto the crusted snow and toward the tree where the bundled mass of her companion was huddled, one of the books on Horcruxes cradled in his lap as his head rested against the tree.

Since Ron had left, the two had exchanged terse words in passing. They had given up on watch after a weeks worth of inactivity forcing them both into the tent to endure long drawn-out bouts of silence punctuated by the turning of pages. She wasn't even sure why they had gone on with watch for that long anyway—perhaps out of hope that Ron would come back and they would find themselves back to the way things were before the hunt, before the fight, before the bond. Yet it was useless. Ron was never going to come back. He about all other people she had ever known did not take betrayal of trust well. They would be lucky if he ever even stayed in the same room with them again once this was over, let alone spoke to them again.

Everything about the situation had become awkward—an awkwardness accentuated by the bond they shared. Though the bond was much more fragmented due to their distance, it was also more painful, like sand in an open wound. They could feel the sad coldness that distance put on them settling on them forcing their contact subconsciously. Often the two would find themselves drawing closer to one another, their arms brushing and their legs touching. Neither would speak during such occasions.

It was nothing more than a physical need to complete the bond—a subject both were avoiding like the plague.

Hermione, reaching Harry's side, carefully picked up the book from his lap and gently levitated his sleeping form back into the warmth of the tent. Laying the book down carefully, she strode over to him and carefully removed his outerwear before laying him neatly on the bottom bunk muttering a warming charm over his body to ease the racking shivers. However, the charm didn't stop the goosebumps from raising on his arms.

Training her eyes on his face, Hermione's jaw dropped in shock as she realized his peaceful sleep had turned into something much worse.

"No..." Harry moaned, thrashing against the blankets.

"Harry?"

"...wand..."

She shook his shoulder violently. "Harry! Wake up!"

Instantly, his eyes snapped open and for just a second, Hermione swore she saw a flash of red just before the normal vibrant green took its place. She moved back involuntarily letting her hands drop to her sides. It was only a moment but something about chilled her to the bone.

Immediately, Harry sat up, grabbing hold of her and burying his face in her neck. Hermione froze, her shock still apparent as her arms slowly wound their way around his back. The move felt so innocent, like before the bond when they would hug one another in greeting or parting. His frame was racked tremors as she simply held him quietly rocking him. It had been so long since they had touched in such a way she was reluctant to move from the warmth she felt building in her heart.

"Harry?" she whispered. "What was it?"

His grip on her tightened. "I was in his head—"

He eyes widened in fright and she pulled away quickly holding his shoulders at arms length. "You know you're not supposed to—"

"I know!" He said running his hands through his sweat dampened hair. "But I can't always help it, Hermione! I was asleep for Merlin's sake!"

She was quiet for a moment, already missing the warmth of his arms, yet craving the sound of his voice almost as much. "I know, it's just..." she sighed. "What did you see?"

"He has people. Not just Olivander like before, but others. I saw him watching a couple of Deatheaters drag in a hostage, but he wasn't interested in her."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Who did he have?"

His eyes filled with tears. "I think it was Luna..."

"What! Are you sure?"

He shook his head. "I couldn't be sure. He wasn't focused on her. He was after something else, a wand I think. He is still going on about this wand. He is mad that Olivander doesn't know enough about a wand, called it the Elder Wand..."

"Elder wand?" Hermione's brows drew together. Something about the name struck her as familiar but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"Yeah, he can't find it and he wants it."

They lapsed into a thoughtful silence—Hermione trying to remember where she had heard of the wand before and Harry trying to wrap his head around his most recent foray into Voldemort's mind. Sleep forgotten, Harry got up from the bed and paced back and forth across the tent. Standing, Hermione reached the table and began to sort through her many books.

Something seemed to shift as the two went to work setting about their tasks with more fervor. Both seemed to put the strained nature of their relationship to the side for a moment to focus on the information at hand. It was almost like before as they began to have actual conversations. For the first time, Hermione could feel the cloud of pressure begin to lift just a little. Things were still tense, but it was definitely lessening as they started to feel out the new territory that was their lives without the third member of their beloved trio.

Suddenly it felt like the two of them might be able to pull it off without his help—a sad, yet comforting thought indeed.

Finding nothing in the first book she skimmed, Hermione picked up another from the pile, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth as she immersed herself in the comfortable monotony of research. Things would eventually be alright, she knew as her eyes slid over the page.

Elder Wand, Elder Wand, where had she heard that before...

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