Out of the ashes

Hermione laid her head on Cedric's bare chest, listening to the beating of his heart, it was as though their hearts were beating in the same rhythm – as though they were one. Cedric had his arms wrapped around her as he breathed in the most familiar and comforting scent that Hermione always wore – patchouli. He kissed the top of her head and closed his eyes. After a few moments of comfort, Hermione asked quietly, "Ced?"

"Yes, petite bebe?"

Hermione was quiet for a few seconds before replying, "Do you really think I can be ok?"

Cedric felt a wetness on his chest – Hermione was crying silently. He thought for a moment before saying, "Absolutely. Because I will help you. You are strong, and you know you are. Look at everything that has happened, and you are still here."

"That's just it, though. I'm not really here." Hermione replied.

"Of course you are, you're just hidden away somewhere, all we have to do is look really hard to find you." Cedric said. "That being said, I want you to think long and hard before we decide to take off. Search your soul to see if that's really what you want to do."

Hermione pushed herself off Cedric's chest and looked him dead in the eye. "You don't want to come away with me." She said it more as an accusatory statement rather than a question.

"I didn't say that, Hermione." Cedric said sternly. "Listen to me. A lot has happened over the past how-many-months, let alone these past few days. You are tired, and people can do irrational things when they are tired. I understand your reasons for wanting to leave, but we need to talk about it rationally first."

Hermione never took her eyes off of Cedric, waiting for him to continue.

"I know there are bad memories here, but those memories are still going to follow us no matter where we go. Do you think it would not be better in the long run to face them – head on? And you wouldn't be facing them alone – you have a wide range of support if we stay. If we leave, you will only have me – which is completely fine with me – but I don't think it would be what is best for you. I think right now you need your mum and dad – especially with a new baby. I think you need Minerva to confide in, your brothers and sister and Harry to have fun with – Remus, Tonks and Dumbledore to protect you, and me to love you unconditionally."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry for being such a burden to you."

Cedric sighed and sat up in bed, rubbing his face in exhaustion. "Would you just listen to what I am saying instead of attempting to read into the words? There is no hidden meaning behind anything I am saying – Merlin, you can be so infuriating sometimes!"

Hermione stood up and walked to the door. Cedric waved his wand and locked it. "Cedric Diggory, you unlock this god damn door right now!" Hermione shouted.

Cedric stood and walked over to Hermione, wearing a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and nothing else. "Who do you think you're talking to?" He demanded. "We have been over this a million times. I love you. I love you so much that I asked you to become my wife. Why must you think that I have some sort of ulterior motive for asking you to weigh the pros and cons of us leaving so soon? I ask you to do this because I don't want to see you do something that you are going to regret down the line. I don't want to see you throw away the rest of your family, the rest of your education – because you are afraid and want to run away from your problems."

"How dare you." Hermione spat. "I have had to take my problems with me wherever I went. Or in case you don't remember, I had the evidence of my problems under my shirt for the past nine months."

"Yes, but you ran away from the people who could have helped you handle it – you chose to run away and hide, alone." Cedric said.

"Because they had no right to do what they did." Hermione said.

"I agree, but they did what they thought was right at the time. They did it out of love, not hate." Cedric said. "Think about it bebe, you ran away on impulse. You were disoriented enough as it was when you woke, and then you received some harsh news. At some point you regretted your decision because you cried out for help and asked to be brought back."

"I came back for you." Hermione said quietly, facing away from Cedric.

"I think that is what you are telling yourself, but I don't think it is exactly what you believe." As Cedric said this, Hermione turned around to look at him, wondering if there was some truth to his words. "I think that you have had so much pain that you would rather run away with me – someone you have always known to be safe and trusted – than to face your fears and speak to the people whom you feel betrayed you. They didn't betray you, Hermione – everything was in chaos – what would you have done if it had been me, or Molly, or Minerva? You would have fought first – then waited to see what happened. You would not have said 'well there's nothing that can be done, let him go'. I know you felt some semblance of peace, but life isn't peace – you and I both know that – life is hard, but it is worth it. It is worth fighting through – as opposed to giving up, which is what you wanted – and still want to do."

"I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.

What are we holding onto?

That there's some good in this world … and it's worth fighting for."

Cedric continued, "You are a Gryffindor. You would not have been placed there if it was in your nature to give up. Running away will not help things, it only keeps the darkness at bay until it finds you once more – and then you will feel more alone than ever. Why did you choose Morgaine's middle name to be Eos? Because it was the name of a goddess who promised to bring the dawn of a brand new day. If you did not believe that, you would not have chosen that name. You are scared, I get that – but you will be frightened for the rest of your life if we leave now, rather than face your fears with your head held high and determination in your face."

"The hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live."

Hermione leaned into Cedric, as though she could not support her own weight. She was exhausted – mentally as well as physically. Cedric wrapped his arms around her. "You're right." She said softly.

Cedric held her at arms length, "Excuse me? I'm right?" he asked in disbelief. "How do those words taste coming out of your mouth?" they both chuckled.

"I'm tired, Ced. I'm tired of being scared all the time. I'm tired of feeling so lonely. I have grown so weary of my fate." Hermione said.

"It isn't all fate, Hermione. Life can change with every breath we take – with every decision. You can decide to change it. Your fate can be a lifetime of solitude and loneliness – if you decide. Or your fate can be full of friends, family, and happiness – if you decide. Do not allow Malfoy, Bellatrix, or Granger to keep their hold on you – rise above it and do what you were put on this earth to do." Cedric said.

"And what exactly is that?" Hermione asked.

"You were put here to become the most amazing witch of the age – to use your powers to help others – to protect people. You yourself said that you want to be an auror. You are also here to be a fierce friend, lover, and my soulmate. You may not believe it – but people are better just for having known you. You have so much to offer – so much strength and love, I don't want to see you throw that away because you are scared. If you leave now, you may be deserting someone who may need your help in the future – you can draw on what you have been through to help someone who may have gone, or will go through, what you did. That is an amazing gift, bebe. You cannot forget what happened – you never will, but you will be stronger for remembering. No one can run from their past, because it will follow you until it catches up in the end. Embrace the pain. You need to do it for your own sake, as well as our daughter's." Cedric said emphatically.

"You're right." Hermione said again.

"Wow!" replied, Cedric, "Twice in one day!"

"Yeah, don't go getting used to it." Hermione smirked as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss Cedric. She wrapped her arms around his neck as their lips met. The kiss was light at first, Cedric didn't want to push – and allowed Hermione to set the pace. They parted momentarily and gazed into each other's eyes. Something welled inside of Hermione that she had not felt for many months as she kissed him once again – this time more forcefully. Passion welled up inside both of them as their lips crashed into each other, while hands roamed – reacquainting themselves with each other's bodies. Hermione kissed him hungrily, her tongue begging his lips for entrance. Cedric was surprised, but granted access nonetheless. It was a moment that he had been dreaming of for so long, a moment that he missed desperately. Their tongues battled as Hermione intertwined her fingers with Cedric's. Then she did something he did not expect – Hermione took one of Cedric's hands and placed it on her breast. Cedric pulled away from the kiss, both of them breathless, and he looked at her – waiting for her response. Hermione nodded and whispered, "It's ok." She closed her eyes and leaned back into Cedric, kissing him softly, then nipping at his lower lip. He sighed in pleasure – he felt as though they finally found their way back home. He lightly squeezed her breast, feeling her nipple harden under his touch. He tweaked it gently and a small whimper came from Hermione. Both began panting as they kissed passionately. The energy of their magic was crackling around them – a red and gold aura began to glow around Hermione. Cedric stopped, shocked at what he was seeing. He leaned into her embrace and whispered "Do you have any idea how powerful you are? You're glowing, it's beautiful." They continued to kiss hungrily until Cedric felt heat radiating from Hermione – a heat that was more than from their passion. Cedric pulled back again, his heart pumping hard – as he looked at Hermione in panic…it looked as though she were burning from within. Their eyes met and her once brown eyes were now a fiery red. Hermione had a sly grin on her face and in a burst of golden light she disappeared. On the floor, in her place, was a beautiful Phoenix.

Cedric stumbled backwards, unaware if his eyes were deceiving him. 'Maybe this is a dream', he thought. In another flash of gold, Hermione returned to her human form.

"Animagus." Cedric whispered.

Hermione nodded and smiled.

"How? When?" Cedric asked, shaking his head.

"I began working on it the day after I left Hogwarts, two weeks later I was able to successfully do it. I did it in case I ever needed to make a fast getaway…or to hide." Hermione said.

Cedric backed up and sat on his bed, still in utter shock. "I told you that you were powerful. It is supposed to take months to be able to do that." Cedric wondered for a moment about the exact nature and extent of her powers – they seemed to have grown ten-fold since the last time they were together. He wondered how far this power would take her, and what exactly would that mean?

"You think you know…what you are…what's to come. You haven't even begun."

TBC! Please review! I had a really really hard time writing this one, I didn't know where to start – where to take it, so I hope it turned out somewhat alright – it's more of a transitional chapter, setting up for an idea I had, but I'm still having trouble figuring out exactly where to go next – so suggestions on what you might like to see would be deeply appreciated!