Disclaimer-- I don't own the characters
Never in a lifetime could Hermione ever have predicted the dramatic turn her life had taken in the past hour and a half. She had hoped, she had dreamed, yearned even, but she never thought that all of her dreams would come true. First she had been offered the position of Arithmancy professor at Hogwarts, and that had been a dizzying enough shock. Now the man she loved was down on one knee in the very halls she had once patrolled as Head Girl. Her eyes blurred with joyful tears as she gazed at the breathtaking ring in his hand. Her gaze shifted as he raised his head to reveal eyes…
Hermione was unceremoniously ripped from her dreams by a loud crash punctuated with an equally loud string of rather creative cursing.
"Harry?" she asked, sitting up in bed and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Damn, I'm sorry Hermione. I only knocked over a lamp, go back to sleep."
She shook her head. "Where's Ron."
Harry crawled into the room's other bed and sighed. "He's entertaining another in his strand of girls in her room. I doubt we'll see him before morning." Hermione shook her head. It didn't surprise her anymore. Ever since they'd left the Burrow nearly a year before to search for horcruxes there had been an endless stream of seedy and shabby motels, and with each motel Ron added a new girl.
"I suppose everyone deals with things in their own way," she said quietly.
Harry sighed again and ran a hand wearily over his face, a face that had seen too much in so few years. "I suppose so. I can't say that I blame him after the way things went tonight. A dead end, another one. It seems as if all we run in to these days is dead ends. Now all I want to do is try to warm up and get some sleep. Good night."
"Night."
They remained quiet but neither of them slept. After twenty minutes of deadening silence Hermione spoke up.
"Oh for heaven's sake Harry I can hear your teeth chattering. Would you get over here before you freeze to death?" She heard the rustling of covers and felt him slide into her bed, careful to take up the least amount of space possible. "I don't bite Harry; now please slide over here so we can both get some sleep."
Harry smiled a bit as he did what he was told, settling in against her back. Hermione allowed herself the barest of smiles as she felt his arm drape around her waist. "Night Harry."
"Night Hermione."
In the dead of the night Hermione woke as Harry began to thrash around and cry out in his sleep. Jumping to action as she always did, Hermione quickly woke him. He sat up and when he saw Hermione there he crushed her to his chest, struggling to calm his jumping pulse.
"The same dream?" she asked gently.
He nodded. "The same. The final battle, everyone was gone, Ron, the rest of the Weasleys, and you." His eyes met hers and she saw the fear there. "It was only me and him, and I couldn't move. I couldn't save anyone else and I couldn't save myself."
Hermione brought her hand up to his face and shook her head. "It won't happen Harry. When the day comes we'll all be there to the end. We'll make it and you will win."
Harry took both of her hands in his. "How do you know? How can you be so sure about this Hermione?" He released her hands and fell back against the pillows. Hermione settled in against his chest, pressing her ear to his heart, her breath syncing to the beat.
"I just know Harry. I've seen what you can do with a wand, and more importantly with your wits. I told you once that you're a great wizard. I meant it then and I mean it now. I know that you'll be able to win. I have faith in you."
It took a moment for Harry to register all that she had said. "I wish I had your faith in me Hermione."
She looked up at him with determination gleaming in her eyes. "Then I guess I'll have to have enough faith for the both of us." On impulse she turned her head and pressed a kiss over his heart. "And I do."
She settled back against him and didn't see the tears in his eyes. "You have no idea how much that means to me. Thank you."
"You don't have to thank me. Let's get some sleep."
When Ron entered the room at seven that morning he felt a slight pang at the sight of his two best friends curled together. Harry lay on his back with one arm hitched around Hermione's waist. Hermione lay on her stomach next to him with one hand curled up next to her head, which still rested over Harry's heart. Her other arm crossed his body and rested gracefully on the bed. With a sad smile Ron shut the door and decided to go see if Sabrina was up for some breakfast.
When Hermione woke a while later she took a moment to study Harry before he stirred. She knew that her life had been forever changed by the man she saw in front of her. She actually dreaded the thought of what she might have become if Harry and Ron hadn't saved her from that troll so many years before. She imagined she'd be dreadfully boring without the two of them. No, despite all the danger and scars of both a literal and figurative nature she wouldn't change a moment of the experiences she'd had with Harry Potter.
As she contemplated Harry woke and looked down at her. He smiled as everything she'd told him the night before flashed into his memory. As natural as breathing, he pulled her to him and kissed her. The world spun and Hermione's body turned to jelly. As he pulled away her eyes fluttered open and she couldn't hide the surprise in her eyes.
"That just somehow felt right."
She nodded and took a couple of slow, deep breaths to steady herself before she pressed her lips to his. Lost in a heady rush of feeling, Harry sat up and took her with him. He wanted to hold her. When they drew apart Hermione held on to him for dear life.
"What now?" she asked her voice still breathy.
He pulled her back so he could look her in the eye. "Now we win."
As she gazed into Harry's eyes Hermione stifled a gasp. It was then that she realized that the eyes from her dream had been the color of the world's purest emerald.