I reappeared in Ginny's and my bedroom and fell onto the bed with heartbreaking sob. I clutched the pillow to my chest and sobbed into it. My heart pounded painfully against my chest and my breath came in great ragged gasp as I spilled my tears onto that poor pillow. I cried and cried, and cried. I'd never cried for so long in my life. I could sense Fred trying to send his emotions my way but I somehow managed to block him completely out-I didn't even feel any pain from the quarter mile distance we had just separated. It was as though I had completely broken our connection off. I was glad I had too, I couldn't handle to feel his happiness right now.
I had been crying for a good ten minutes when I heard the door burst open and what was the unmistakable voice of Fred Weasley.
"Hermione!" He exclaimed, sitting down on the bed next to me and attempting to pull me into a hug. I shoved him away and whipped my wand out from under the pillow and aimed it at him.
"Fred Weasley!" I yelled, my voice shrill and filled with tears. "Don't you dare touch me!" He looked at me in shock as I rose from the bed and walked stiffly to the other side of the room.
Fred rose from the bed and looked at me with obvious confusion. "Hermione, what did I do?"
I glared at him with as much hate as I could muster (Which was quite a lot at that moment). "I saw you with those Witches."
His brow gathered and he looked at me completely clueless. "What?"
"Those witches Fred, I saw them flirting with you." He broke out in his signature cocky grin and I felt my blood start to boil.
"Get a bit jealous did you?"
"WHAT!" I shrieked. How dare he say that, how dare he! He laughed, just enraging me all the more.
"It's okay to admit it Granger, it's perfectly natural." His smile faltered a little as I continued to glare.
"Perfectly natural is it, for an engaged man to go snogging random witches?" His smile dropped and his eyes grew wide.
"I don't know what you think you saw, but I did not kiss that witch. She kissed me, I shoved her away."
I scoffed at him as I crossed my hands against my chest. "Yeah, sure she did. You certainly didn't seem to be putting up much resistance when I saw you." He balled his hands into fist at his side and actually started appearing angry for the first time.
"If you want to go down that road, then what about Krum?" His voice was low and had a dangerous note to it.
"What do you mean? He just said hi." My voice dropped too, and I infused it with as much venom as I could.
"Oh yeah, he looked like he was getting real friendly." He had taken a step towards me and was glaring. I held my grown stiffly and glared right back. Anger making me bold, and far less reserved than normal. I couldn't believe he was accusing me of being unfaithful when I'd actually caught him snogging someone!
"How dare you try and accuse me! I wasn't doing anything! I blew Krum off for you, I blew off a friend I've had for three years because I didn't want you to have to worry about me" My voice had dropped to a disbelieving whisper as I glared at him.
"I didn't ask you to do that!" He yelled back at me. I took a step back and stared at him in utter shock. I was so mad that I actually wanted to hex him, I could feel my wand shooting sparks out as I glared up at him. He was breathing heavily and glaring down at me, daring me to contradict him.
"I did it for you, you selfish, unfaithful, pigheaded prat!" I screamed at him. He let out a bitter laugh and raised his hands.
"Yeah, it's all my fault, because it couldn't possibly be perfect Hermione bleeding Granger's fault!" A surge of anger worse than anything I'd ever felt towards Ron went through me and I raised my hand and slapped him. I slapped him as hard as I could across his face and stormed out of the room. I ran out of the house and into the field, taking refugee under my favorite oak tree.
Fred didn't come after me.
{}o{}o{}
I found out later that Ron was the unfortunate one to find Fred first. He blew up at him and started yelling at him, calling him a faithless git and saying he couldn't believe he had actually left us to die during the hunt for the Horcrux's.
So now Fred and Ron were both furious at me. What's worse, Harry had received a summons from Kingsley and was nowhere to be found. Ginny was the only one who would talk to me in the house.
It had been a day since I had seen Fred at the wedding. A day that I had spent crying, sulking, and generally being miserable. I'd left the house and retreated to my favorite oak tree. Ron wouldn't talk to me, he was still upset I had told Fred that he'd left. Everyone else kept trying to get me to talk, to do something. I couldn't my heart was too broken. All I really wanted was too run up to Fred and tell him I was sorry for being so terrible, but my stupid, selfish pride wouldn't let me.
"Hermione?" A familiar voice called from somewhere to my left. I turned my head and looked over to see my very dearest friend walking towards me. He had his hands dug deep in his pocket and his glasses were slightly skewed. He was walking towards me slowly with a decidedly worried look on his face.
"Harry!" I cried out. I'd missed him so much over the last two days, I'd really needed his advice but he'd been away. I stood up from my tree trunk and just started to cry. Honestly, I bawled. Poor Harry looked like he didn't know what to think as I ran towards him and looped my arms around his neck. I buried my face in his chest and just cried my broken heart out. I was mumbling everything that had happened into his robes as he stroked my back soothingly.
"Hermione, Hermione. It'll be alright." Harry said bracingly as I wept. He kept rubbing my back and gently lowered me to the grown with him. He pulled me into a hug continuing to whisper consolingly to me.
Once I managed to get a grip on my tears Harry leaned back from me and studied me.
"Hermione, what happened? Ron just told me I'd find you outside."
I gave a pathetic whimper and leaned against him, closing my eyes against another wave of tears.
"Fre-Fred." I said, my voice wavering with tears. I felt Harry stiffen next to me and ball his hands into a fist.
"'Hermione, what'd he do to you." His voice had gone low and taken on a deadly tone that I'd only ever heard directed towards Death Eaters. It chilled me to the core and made me hastily continue out of worry for Fred safety.
"We had an argument and both said some truly awful things. It was entirely my fault really but he got so mad. Now I don't know how to make up." The tears filling my eyes broke free and I began to cry again.
"What do I do Harry?" My voice was pleading and broken, I barley recognized it as my own. Harry shook his head and stood up, taking me with him.
"I don't know, but I'm taking you out of here." He straightened his robes and used a drying spell on both of ours to clear the tear stains.
"Come on Hermione, were going for a walk." Then without another word he grabbed my hand and twisted on the spot.
We reappeared in Hogsmeade. It had grown quite dark and I hardly recognized the town. I hadn't been out at night to Hogsmeade since I don't know when. Harry dug his hands in his pockets again and began to walk, and I followed suit.
We were quiet for a while, and I just enjoyed the silent companionship. It was chilly for this time of year, and I cherished the cold breeze that so perfectly matched how my heart felt.
Finally, tired of the silence I asked Harry a question. "Where have you been? What was it Kingsley wanted you for?"
"He's going to pass a bill that lets anyone who fought in the battle of Hogwarts automatically be allowed to start Auror training." His voice was light and he sounded happy. I gushed and told him that, that was grand news and that he'd be a brilliant Auror. Then Harry started talking, and didn't stop. He spoke about quidditch, him becoming an auror, what I wanted to do, how SPEW was going and what I planned on doing with it, how weird it would be not going to Hogwarts in the fall, the idea of a Gryffindor class of 1998 graduation party. That last one made me laugh, something I hadn't done since my fight.
In short, he didn't talk about Fred, Ron, marriages, or anything else even slightly related to that.
Then when we were passing the Shrieking Shack he asked me a question that stopped me dead in my tracks.
"Do you love him 'Mione?" His voice was quiet and calm as he spoke, the reaction he caused in me however, was anything but. My breath quickened and my heart raced. My first gut instinct was to yell 'no' and ask what on earth made him ask something so stupid. But I decided to just be honest.
"I don't really know Harry." I took a few steps further, my hands now out of my pockets and hanging limply by my side. "I know I definitely like him, more than I've ever like anyone else. But I don't know if I love him yet." Harry smiled at me consolingly and took my hand.
"And I've only got five more days to marry him, and ten more days to fall in love with him and you know..." I blushed a little at the end. I loved Harry, he was my very best friend in the whole world, but there were some things I didn't even care to discuss with him.
"Wanna have a go at loving me?" A dark voice echoed from behind a tree to our left and we both turned, wands raised.
A dark figure emerged from the shadows with a twisted grin on his foul dirty face. He was clearly a death eater. I could see the dark mark faintly out lined on his dirty arm. He strode towards us, wand extended and leered at me.
"I could give you quite a go myself, how about you ditch raven here and come back with me. Harry took a firm step towards me, blocking me from the perverted man's views.
"I don't think so." The man took another step forward and suddenly I noticed he wasn't alone. Six more death eaters walked out of the shadows and I knew Harry and I didn't have a chance. I gripped my wand tightly and twisted into the air.
Nothing happened. I was still standing in the dark surrounded by death eaters.
A/N: I promise that Fred and Hermione will get back together, the drama will end! Who do you think should give Hermione away at her wedding? Since her parents are still in Australia. Please Read and Review!