This one shot was written for the MAYhem challenge for the HMS Harmony Discord Server. It was originally posted on Archive of our Own on May 20th 2022.

PROMPTS: In which Harry and/or Hermione find or send a message in a bottle / Where Harry and Hermione both pine for each other.

BONUS: Rivals to Lovers

Harry Potter was sad.

No, that was an understatement. Harry Potter was heartbroken.

The reason for this laid at the feet of one stubborn, hard-working, intelligent and sometimes annoying Ravenclaw girl by the name of Hermione Granger - not that she knew it. Ever since they had arrived to Hogwarts as young, excited and hopeful students for their First Year, he and Hermione had formed an intense academic rivalry that amused everyone in the school but annoyed both of them. Hermione Granger liked to believe she was the brightest student in their age. Harry wanted to prove her wrong, to show he was the best student. He made an arse of himself along the way. Hermione did not like it. Not at all.

Now, Harry regretted having acted like that. If he could go back in time, he would instead try to become her friend, make her see that they weren't all that different and would work great together. But he couldn't travel back in time. And, it was too late to do so in the present.

Harry Potter recently figured out that he was in love with Hermione Granger. He still did not understand how he figured it out, simply that he did. But, he knew it was the truth – his heart and mind wouldn't shut up when she was in the same room as him.

But, if there was one thing Harry was as sure about as his love for Hermione Granger, it was the fact that said girl happened to dislike him immensely.

Hermione had made it obvious by the end of their first year that she didn't like him at all, that she saw him as an arrogant idiot. At the time, Harry had only grinned and thanked her for the compliments, which really didn't help his case. But, back when he was eleven, Harry didn't care much about what Hermione Granger thought of him. He simply found it amusing how annoyed she could become simply because he had a better grade on a test or answered a teacher's question first. He even went as far as to tease her whenever she graded lower than him.

It was only fair she ended-up returned the favour, after all. When Harry figured out he was in love with her, and that she hated him, it had shocked him. Hermione quickly caught on to that fact upon seeing how distracted and silent he had become. The most popular boy in the school who couldn't seem to shut up was suddenly moody and only speaking when teachers asked him a question. So, she teased him for it.

"Why so silent today, Potter?" she had asked. "Actually, don't answer that. I'm just thankful. If you're distracted, then it means you'll fail the exams and I'll take back the number one spot!"

Had it been any other day, Harry would have grinned and bantered back until she walked away with a huff. But, this time, all Harry saw was a reminder of her dislike of him. So, he didn't say anything and only walked away, not looking back to see how the Ravenclaw interpreted his silence.

Now he was here, walking around the Black Lake deeply thinking about said Ravenclaw girl. Harry let out a sigh as he kicked a small rock away. He didn't know what to do about his feelings. He could try to ignore them, pretend he didn't love her and go back to the way things were before. But, he could not hide the fact that fuelling Hermione's dislike of him again made him sick in the stomach.

With another sigh, Harry decided to sit down. Finding a big rock near the edge of the lake, he sat down on it, using it as a bench. As he looked at the lake, a thought crossed his mind.

'I wonder if Hermione like swimming.'

Harry shook his head. 'Stop thinking about her!' he told himself, knowing he would never get the answer to any question he had about her.

As he looked at the surface of the lake, Harry noticed a flash of light come from it. When he stood up and looked closer, he found a strange glass bottle floating. Frowning, he summoned it and caught it with the grace only a Quidditch Seeker could have. Looking at the bottle, he wondered where it had come from. Had someone thrown it in the lake? If so, why? It wasn't like there was a message inside, after all.

Harry suddenly chuckled at the thought. He found it amusing to think that someone could throw a bottle with a message in the lake. He knew nobody would do it. What reason could they have?

As he brought the tip of his wand to the bottle to vanish it, he suddenly stopped, a strange thought in his mind. 'What if I was the one to send a message?' It was stupid but Harry thought it could be amusing. If someone ever found it and read it, it would give them a mystery to solve – if it was their thing, that is.

Dropping the bottle next to him, Harry grabbed his school bag – which he had brought outside with him – and took out a piece of parchment and a self-inking quill. He brought the tip of the quill to the parchment before stopping.

What should he write? He had no idea what subject would interest someone to read. But, then again, he reminded himself that it was unlikely anyone would ever read this message. What mattered was what he wanted to write. What was that?

The answer came quickly: his struggles with Hermione. Despite common misconception, Harry did not have any close friends. Sure, he was popular and friendly with the majority of school, but he had no actual friends. He could thank his fame as the Boy-Who-Lived and his rivalry with Hermione for that. The fact he was spending all of his free time studying at the library to stay ahead of her or practising Quidditch on the pitch meant he had little to no time to socialize with people. And that wasn't counting on his fame which made him practically unapproachable. Since he had no family left, it meant he really didn't have anyone to confide to about his love for his academic rival.

So, Harry decided to write his message about her. He wouldn't name himself or Hermione, however. While he wanted to confide to someone about his struggles, it did not mean he wanted a stranger to know about him and her. So, he did not write names.

After a few minutes, Harry was done. He quickly rolled the parchment and shoved it in the bottle before sealing it. Then, he threw it in the lake and sent a Banishing Charm, ensuring it would float far from him. Once he was done, he put his wand back in his pocket and let his mind to wander back to Hermione. Within minutes, the message was all but forgotten.

Unbeknownst to Harry, the very girl he was thinking about was also sitting around the lake all alone. Hermione Granger had walked outside and sat down near the water to clear her mind. There was one reason why she wanted that: because she kept thinking about that damn Gryffindor. It wasn't an unusual occurence but, this time, he could not be blamed for it.

While she pretended otherwise, Hermione quite liked the rivalry and banter she had with Harry Potter. She knew he was the reason why she pushed herself so hard to learn. By proving she could be better than him, Hermione was reaching her full academic potential. While the banter between them could be annoying at time, Hermione had recently come to appreciate it and Harry for how amusing and sometimes distracting it could be.

Because Hermione Granger did not have friends, and that was a known fact across the school. Sure, she was friendly with the girls in her dorm and the other Ravenclaws but, that was about it. Nobody else really gave her a second glance. Nobody but Harry, that is.

Unfortunately, Hermione didn't know whether or not Harry actually cared about her. Intelligent, handsome and athletic, Harry had the image of the perfect well-loved boy who was friends with everyone in the school, even the teachers. While it meant a lot to Hermione, his rivalry with her might be nothing more than a footnote in his day to day life.

Hermione sighed dejectedly. Another reason Harry Potter haunted her thoughts was because of how silent and recluse he had become these last few days. To her surprise, Hermione found herself genuinely concerned for him. Even more shocking was the fact she didn't feel the concern for a friend, but the concern for a loved one.

Hermione might not be a social person but it didn't mean she couldn't figure out what her emotions felt. Thus, she quickly realized that the reason she felt such concern for Harry was because she genuinely liked him in a romantic context, even loved him!

At first, she had been shocked by that discovery. But then came the realization that a relationship with him would never happen. After all, she was nothing but his rival. Harry was seen as the biggest catch by the other girls in the school. Why would he date her, plain old lonely Hermione Granger when he could have bombshells like Susan Bones, Lavender Brown or Daphne Greengrass who all fancied him?

When faced with that realization, Hermione took the decision to ignore her feelings for him and pretend nothing was wrong. She would be less disappointed and heartbroken if she didn't get her hopes up.

Hermione thought she was handling things pretty well. It wasn't until earlier today that she made a mistake. By pretending nothing was wrong, she insisted on continue the banter, not realizing until too late it could be harmful.

As they walked out of Charms, Hermione decided to comment on his lack of attention like she or Harry usually would. "Why so silent today, Potter? Actually, don't answer that. I'm just thankful. If you're distracted, then it means you'll fail the exams and I'll take back the number one spot!"

Hermione expected him to say something in return, to feed the banter. What she didn't expect was to see a flash of hurt in his eyes before walking away without a single world. And, suddenly, Hermione felt horrible. She realized that whatever Harry had on his mind was definitely serious and that her words, while said for the purpose of banter, had done nothing but hurt him.

This was why Hermione had come to sit by the lake today. She regretted having teased Harry on something that was obviously very serious. However, she didn't know where he was – or how to apologize to him.

As she thought about him or her struggles, Hermione noticed a shiny object float at an incredible speed in her direction. It was so fast she first thought it was a strange fish. It wasn't until it made landfall next to her that Hermione saw it was a bottle. At first, she was annoyed, believing someone was littering. But, when she made to grab it and report its existence to a teacher, she found a roll of parchment inside. Curious, she opened the bottle and caught the parchment. She unrolled it and found a message.

If you are reading this, then I guess it means you found my strange message and are wondering what it is and why it exist. Well, I was sitting around the lake when I found an empty bottle floating on the surface. At first, I was planning to vanish it but I got the idea of writing a message in it like the muggle tales of sailors leaving notes behind. I thought I could do the same if only to clear my mind. I don't have anyone to confide to and I need to take it out my system.

You see, there's something I can't stop thinking about. I'm utterly in love with a girl. The problem is that this girl hate my guts. I can't really blame her because I've been an arse to her but it hurt to think she can't stand me while I dream of nothing more than to kiss her and tell her I love her. But I can't. All it would do is earn myself a slap in the face and a look of pure loathing from her. I don't think I could handle it.

I don't know what to do. I could pretend nothing is wrong and continue being an arse but the thought of annoying her even more makes me sick.

What should I do?

Hermione stared at the message in shock. By the way the ink had not fully set, it was obvious it had been written very recently. It mean the person who wrote it was very likely to still be sitting around the lake. And the problem he shared, it was so similar to her own. The boy who wrote it – because her instincts told her it was a boy – lived through a similar problem as her. He loved someone who was unreachable.

Hermione could not do much about her problem. She had taken the route of pretending nothing had changed. But, the boy who wrote the message said he couldn't do the same. If she couldn't help herself, then she might at least help him. She could give him a few words of encouragement, tell him everything would be fine. All things she would love to hear from a friend right now.

Hermione quickly took out a pen and paper and wrote an answer. Then, she shoved her message in the bottle, sealed it, threw it in the lake and banished it in the direction it had come from. Then she waited, hoping she would get a message back.

Harry was about to stand up from his seat and return to the castle when he saw the bottle float back in his direction. He immediately cursed, remembering the message he wrote.

"God, why did I do that?!" he angrily said aloud. "Anyone could read it and figure out I wrote it! Or, they could share the note to everyone and the entire school would know in minutes! I'm such an idiot!"

Harry angrily summoned the bottle and caught it. He was about to vanish it when he saw the note inside and gave a double take. There wasn't parchment inside but paper! Someone found his note, read it and answered it!

He wondered what he should do with that knowledge. For an instant, he almost vanished it but, eventually, the urge to read it became too strong. Harry unsealed the bottle and read the message.

Hi! I found your message and I can say I'm sorry for what your going through. I'm going through something similar. There's a boy I like. He's quite popular but I'm not. He has many friends and even more girls fancying him – including me. Unfortunately, I'm neither attractive nor his friend so I know he would never look at me twice.

I can't make my own situation better, especially since I think I accidentally hurt him earlier today – meaning he probably doesn't want to talk to me. But, I can help you. I don't really have friends so there's nobody to tell me things I would love to hear right now.

So I will do the same for you. I don't know who the girl you like is but I doubt very much she hates you. Hate is a strong word. Maybe she dislike you but that doesn't mean there is no way she can't fall in love with you. I once heard someone say that Lily Evans – Harry Potter's mother – disliked James Potter a lot. Yet, they fell in love, married and had him. So, maybe your situation with the girl you love is similar. Maybe she will fall in love with you and you will be happy.

I might not have a chance with my boy but I hope you do with your girl.

Harry stared at the letter in shock. Someone had answered him to tell him everything would be fine. Not only that, but the girl who did spoke of his parents and how his mother apparently disliked her father before they fell in love. He didn't know that! Nobody had even told him so! Did his father truly go through a similar experience as he currently did? If his mother had disliked then come to love his father, does that mean he has a chance with Hermione too? The person who wrote the message seemed to think so.

Harry suddenly felt hope and was very thankful to whoever wrote the message. He decided he would change his attitude, stop being a prat while also show Hermione he genuinely cared about her. Maybe she would realize she liked him too and would fall in love with him. He didn't know if it was going to work but, he could always try. He had nothing to lose, really.

But first, Harry needed to thank whoever had written him these kind words. He put the sheet of paper in his pocket before using his quill and parchment to write another message. Then, he threw the bottle in the lake.

Hermione only had minutes to wait before the bottle returned, this time with another roll of parchment inside. Her hands trembling slightly, she took out the parchment and read it.

I don't know who you are, but thank you for your message!

In all honesty, when I wrote it, I did not expect an answer. I was ready to go back inside when I saw the bottle and your paper. Your words are very encouraging, especially the tale of Lily and James Potter. I had no idea she didn't like him before they first began dating! It's giving me hope, a lot of it, and I can only thank you for that!

As for your problem, you shouldn't lose hope as well. If the girl that might hate me can fall in love with me, what make you think the boy you love couldn't do the same with you? Considering the girl I love sometimes act like I'm nothing but an annoying footnote in her life, I think the boy you love has a higher chance of falling in love with you, in fact.

And, if you feel insecure about your image – because you called yourself unattractive – then I'm telling you that you shouldn't worry about it. As a boy, I can say that, while we act shallow, most of us are anything but. "Plain girls" like you are often very attractive in their own rights, even if they or other boys don't often see it. Considering you were ready to comfort me, a total stranger, I would say it speaks a lot about your character. If your boy doesn't care because he's too shallow to see how beautiful you are, then just tell me and I'll make him understand what he's missing on by rejecting you.

Hermione blushed as she read the message. The boy on the other side liked her reply and thanked her in return. Not only that, but he called her attractive and subtly told her not to put herself down! Hermione liked speaking to that boy. It felt like she had a friend. She wanted to thank him but didn't know how.

But then, she had an idea. Why not meet in person? Perhaps they could bond on the fact the person they loved didn't love them back and help each other achieve their goal? She wanted to be his friend. He seemed very kind.

It did not take her long to compose a short reply. She quickly wrote "Thank you for your kind words. Do you want to meet in person? If you do, I'll wait in the middle of the wooden bridge that leads to Hagrid's hut." before sending the bottle back. Then, she stood up and made her way to her destination.

Hermione arrived on the bridge first. She waited for the boy to arrive in anticipation. She had no idea who it was and took to looking at every one that happened by to see who would stop and meet her. After a while where nobody showed up, Hermione sighed, believing he chose not to meet her. She turned to look at the ravine bellow her. It was as she thought to return inside with her disappointment that she heard his voice.

"Granger? What are you doing here?" Harry Potter asked. Hermione had a mental groan. Of course she had to be found by him while waiting for someone else. He hoped he wasn't angry with her earlier comment. He didn't want him to tease her in return. She really wasn't in the mood for it.

"I'm meeting someone here." she told him, not turning to look in his direction. She expected a small laugh from the boy she loved – or any form of amusement. What she didn't expect was for him to let out a shocked gasp.

"Y-You are?" he stuttered.

"Yes. Why do you care?" she asked coolly.

There was a moment silence before he answered. "Because I'm also supposed to meet someone here."

Hermione's head snapped in his direction in shock. It was then she saw it. The empty bottle in his hand. Harry Potter, her rival and the boy she secretly loved was the same boy who she had confided in!

"It's you?" she gasped in shock. "You're the one who wrote those messages!"

Harry gave her a small nod. "And you're the one who wrote back." he said quietly.

It was Hermione's turn to nod. But then, she was suddenly hit with an awful realization. Harry was in love with someone else!

Hermione felt her heart break at the thought that the boy she loved loved someone else. As to not show her despair, she tried to act nonchalantly and asked "Who... who is the girl you were talking about? That you love?"

Harry suddenly looked incredibly nervous. "Me? Love a girl? I don't know where you've got that from." he said idiotically.

"Potter." she warned.

"I mean, if we were the share who we love, shouldn't you share first since you're the one who asked?" he continued nervously.

"Harry!" she exclaimed, silencing him. She stared at him as he hesitated to say something. Then, his shoulders slumped and he looked down to his feet.

"It's you." he admitted with a small voice.

Hermione's jaw fell off. Harry loved her? She was the one he wrote about in his messages? Suddenly, it all seemed obvious, the way he was complaining about how the girl he loved hated him because he made an arse of himself. She could suddenly associate that with her initial annoyance and dislike of him in their younger years before she came to appreciate their rivalry. She realized she had given the wrong impression to Harry, that he believed she hated him despite it not being the case. And now he stood in front of her, looking down because he was afraid of – what was it he said? - being slapped and looked at in pure loathing.

And Hermione knew she couldn't let him think that any further. She had to tell him she also loved him.

"Do you know who I was talking to in my messages?" she asked quietly. Harry shook his head. "It was you."

Harry looked up at her, his green eyes full of shock. "Really? You're not joking, are you?" Hermione shook her head.

"I'm not. It was you I was talking about, the popular boy who half the girls in school fancy, the one I accidentally hurt earlier." She took a deep breath and said "I'm sorry for that, by the way. When we walked out of Charms earlier, I made fun of the fact you were sad and distracted and I didn't realize my words hurt you until it was too late. I'm sorry." she said, her turn to look down at her feet.

There was a moment of silence. Then...

"You're the reason why I was down. I kept thinking about how you didn't like me and how we didn't have a chance with each other." he said, taking a step toward her.

Hermione looked up straight in his eyes and let out a quiet gasp. She suddenly saw confidence and love in his eyes where, earlier, she saw fear.

"Do you remember what I said in my first letter?" he asked, taking another step toward her until their faces were only inches away from each other's. "How I want to kiss the girl I love and tell her I love her?" With short breaths and her heart beating erratically, Hermione answered with a quick nod. Harry smiled. "Can-"

"Yes." she immediately answered quietly in a small gasp of anticipation. Harry didn't wait any further and kissed her.

Hermione thought she was dreaming. The boy she loved was kissing her! His lips on hers made her spine tingle. They were so pleasurable, so satisfying that it was all she cared about for the moment. She was in so much joy, the kiss representing everything she wanted and now had.

Harry let go of her lips. "I love you." he told her.

Hermione grinned. "I love you too." she returned. And then they kissed again.

She knew the rest of the school would be shocked when they would enter the Great Hall for dinner hand in hand. But, she did not care. She had her boy, and he had her. It was all that mattered.

(It didn't mean she would let him stay at the top of the list of best students in the school, however.)