Part 4
By:Hermione L. Granger
Disclaimer:So not mine.
A/N: This part should be long. I was actually going to make this a seperate fanfic, and then decided, hey, it could happen!
"Shit," Hermione cussed out loud, "Why'd I ever listen to Malfoy? I've lost it." She turned around in circles, and sure enough, she was lost. Ron wasn't out here, he never had been. She had fallen for Malfoy's sick little joke. And now she'd be expelled.
"As if things couldn't get any worse," she muttered. First the attack, then the kiss, and now, when things were really begginning to look up, she'd be expelled. Why couldn't of Ron just been out there to meet her, and everything work into happily ever after?
"Damn you Hermione, you got your hopes up," she said to herself. Figuring the safest thing she could do was sit, she sat at the base of a tree, pulling her knees up to her chest. She exhaaled loudly, waiting for someone to find her, hopefully before a true wolf. Glancing up at the moon, she noticed it was full. That was not a good sign. She closed her eyes to wait.
****
"Hermione!" a voice calls. Her head flies up in amazment.
"Harry!" she sobs as she runs at the voice, throwing her arms around it's so familiar figure, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean too..."
"Sh, Hermi I know you didn't mean it. I'm one of the sharpest tools in the shed," Harry replies with a grin.
"And so you are," Hermione answers with a grin, "It was just....when Thomas said...Harry, he told me he hoped I rotted in hell. That I didn't give a damn about him, all I cared about was that damn Harry Potter and his adventures! I didn't mean to yell at you," she finishes sheeply, letting go of Harry.
"I always said that boy would only break your heart," Harry whispers.
"Harry don't..."Hermione began to whisper, but was cut off by Harry's finger covering her mouth. Carefully, he began to move towards her. And what scared Hermione, was her towards him.
****
"Huh?" Hermione said as she sat up with a start. She had fallen asleep at the base of the tree, for about two hours she guessed from the position of the moon. But the dream confused her more than the questions of how she'd get back did. Sure that had happened, all of it up until the kiss. She remembered Thomas telling her she was too involved with Harry and Ron like it was yesterday, her running into the night like it had just happened. And Harry had followed her, but nothing happened. He comforted her, but never kissed her. He'd never do something like that.
"Hermione!"
Hermione's head whipped up in the irony that the voice belonged to the same on in her dream. And just as she photocopied the dream, she ran up to him, hugging him with all her might. Swinging her around, Harry set her down on the ground carefully.
"Are you okay?" he said breathlessly.
"Yea, I'm fine. Harry we aren't going to be expelled are we?"
"Not if we get back to the castle before someone sees us."
"I'm afraid that won't be possible," a voice droned from the shadows.
****
"Professor McGongall, they're gone!" Ron practaclly screamed in the witch's face. Ron hadn't seen Hermione or Harry all night, and now that lunch had gotten here, he was worried. No, more than worried. He was afraid. Afraid with Voldemort around.
"Well maybe someone else saw them," she replied sensably, even though Ron could tell that inside, she was panicing. The Harry Potter, gone? That would be too horrible to imagine. Plus, the best seeker Hogwarts had seen in years.
"I'll....contact Dumbledore," McGongall muttered giving into her fears.
"Don't bother, I'll go see him myself," Ron spat before marching out of her office.
****
Harry could hear his heart hammering in his chest as they ran. Carefully, he watched his steps, if one of them fell, they'd be dead. Pulling Hermione behind a tree, they just barely missed one of Voldemort's blasts.
Sure Harry could of fought him. Again. But he would have lost. Something deep down, a little voice that sounded an awful lot like his dad's told him he couldn't win this time, to run for it. But he and Hermione had been running for two hours now. They had to get away.
Harry prepared to take off again, when he felt Hermione pull on his arm. With amazement, he wached as she tapped the base of the trunk three times, and it gave way to a rather large chamber type place. Not giving it a second thought, he and Hermione dove in.
****
"Mr. Weasley, we'll have to wait until morning," Dumbledore repeated as Ron gazed out into the darkness of the night. Harry and Hermione had been gone for a day now. Where were they? Were they alive? Ron allowed the thoughts to run through his head as he headed back to his dorm, escourted by Nearly Headless Nick.
"Tough break son," was all Nick uttered the whole trip.
Tired and a mess, Ron truged up the stairs to the boys dorm. Normally he'd collapse into bed, but tonight he needed to think. He altered his course for the only shower in the boy's dormitory.
****
"We'll have to wait until morning," Ron muttered, going over Dumbledore's words in his head. In his state, he had forgotten to ask Dumbledore what exactly tommorow would bring. For all he knew, tommorow would be nothing more than classes. Ron sighed as he let the warm water hit his head, and flow down his back. They were all in some serious shit now.
****
"Looks like we're stuck down here," Harry mumbled after a while. For the past 20 minutes he had been studing the walls, looking for a way out. They couldn't stay in here forever. However, Hermione had been worring him. She just sat on the ground, next to her wand that had been lit up, thinking.
"Herm, are you okay?" Harry asked as he sat down next to her.
"Yeah, I'm just thinking. Harry, why was I so weak when you and Ron were in the medicine room? Why did I just act like the pathetic little damesel in distress who couldn't get on with her life with out her knight in shining armor?" Hermione said in a horse voice.
"It's called shock Hermione," Harry answered with a grin, "and I was flattered the way you responded. Now mind you, had you continuely acted like that if Ron and I had died," they both shuddered at this, "I would have been disappointed. You are strong Hermione. You could have moved on eaisly. But the fact that you loved us both enough to mourn, shows that you must care about us. You..." Harry stopped abrubtly, biting his tongue at what he had almost said.
"I didn't care about my parents death?" Hermione asked for him, "No, I didn't. Because they didn't love me Harry. You and Ron do."
"Thanks for making us see that Herm," Harry said as he rose, "now help me find a way out of here, Hogwarts is bound to get worried."
****
"Last night, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger disappeared. Does anyone have any clue on where they might be?" Dumbledore announced at breakfast the next morning. Ron heard a few snickers, and recalled that it was common dirt gossip that Hermione and Harry shagged regularly. With a roll of his eyes, Ron shot his twin brothers looks. The snickering stopped.
Out of the corner of his eye, Dumbledore saw two very uncomfortable young men. Closing his eyes, Dumbledore carfully chose his next words.
"If you have information, but would like to remain annonoymus, please send an owl to me by lunch this afternoon. If you don't, I doubt Harry and Hermione will live much longer," finishing his speech, Dumbledore sat, more of his energy gone now than ever before. Harry had been the son he never had to him, much like James had. And Dumbledore wasn't quite sure if he could handle two deaths.
****
"Alright!" came the words of Harry Potter, floating up the air. He pulled himself through the small hole that had crumbled out of the wall when he had hit it. Turning around, Harry reached out his hand to help Hermione up.
"Ready to find Hogwarts?" he asked with an optimisitic grin.
"Of course," Hermione answered. The sky was a perfect blue, There was only one small thin white cloud in the sky. Forgetting the confusion of the night before, Harry and Hermione blindly set off for Hogwarts, neither truely knowing the way.
****
"Alright!" came the voice of Albus Dumbledore, thundering out onto the crowd. The whole school of Hogwarts was assembled, all in teams of three, ready to look for the famous Harry Potter. The owl sent in right before lunch had explained the plan Malfoy had cooked up. He was currently between Professor McGongall, and Remus Lupin, who had returned when he heard Harry had been missing. Neither looked happy.
"Split up, everyone. Send up green sparks if you find them, send up red if your in trouble. Meet back at Enchanted Lake in two hours if no one's found anything," Dumbledore called. Slowly but surely, the group split up.
Ron was the first one to take off towards the forest, barely waiting for Seamus and Dean. The two chased after him, but Ron was intent, he had even grabbed Harry's firebolt, ready to take off in an instant.
****
Harry and Hermione collapsed behind a tree. They'd be safe for the moment. Voldemort had found them, chasing the two people he wanted dead more than anything deeper and deeper into the forest.
For the past hour they had been chased, hiding for only seconds, maybe a minute at a time. If they were lucky. So far they had been. Something was keeping them safe.
Hearing another blast behind them, Harry and Hermione took off, going into a small ditch. Just in front of them was a cliff.
"Let's jump," Harry gasped, the first words either had spoken in a good hour.
"Are you insane?" Hermione breathed back, "That leads into the Enchanted Lake. Thousands of Muggle souls are in there, and they'll pull you down, and sufficate you if you go in there. They won't let go Harry, we'll die!"
"Are you crazy?" Harry answered, "The fall'll probably kill ya."
Hermione allowed herself to let out a breath of laughter, then looked strait into Harry's eyes. It was the only way.
****
It was over. The whole school had combed every inch of the Forbiddean Forest. With a hopeless look in his eyes, Ron looked over to the cliff, just beyond the Enchanted Lake. Were they there? No one, not even Dumbledore or Hagrid had dared to cross that section of the Forest, eviler things than could lurk in young childs dreams lived there. Unspecable things, events there were cruler than even Voldemort could've imagined. If they were there, they were as good as dead.
Ron looked down at the Firebolt he was leaning on. 'He would've wanted you to have it.' Dubledore's words vibrated in the head. Wanted. Ron would never see Harry alive again, he would never kiss Hermione's smiling face. Hell, he probably wouldn't see his parents again either. If his friends were dead, Voldemort was back. And this time he'd have no mercy.
Letting his eyes wonder over the cliff, he began to stare intently at the edge. Not wanting to think about his friends, he shut everything else out. He was just beginning to cry when he heard it. His eyes snapped up, he could see two people, one with black hair that looked worse than Ron had ever seen it. And Ron had seen Harry looking pretty bad. But holding onto Harry's hand, screaming at the top of her lungs, her bush brown hair being pulled away from her face.
Before he knew what was happening, Ron felt himself flying. Taking a split second, he realized he was on the Firebolt, hurling towards them, faster than he was sure Harry had ever gone. He had one chance to catch them.
****
Hermione grabbed Harry's hand, and the two of them ran for it. Allowing herself to scream, Hermione could feel her hair being lifted, she could feel as if she was flying. Her screams ended as she relaxed, she hadn't felt like this since she was five, jumping off swings at the local playground. But reality grabbed her by the arm. Or rather, Ron did. Where Hermione had been expecting to hit the dead souls screaming below them, Ron's smiling face, streaked with tears, was holding onto her. He pulled his two best friends up, just as Hermione began to feel the pains in her arm.
Ron had put Harry's unconcious form on the broom, using a small spell to keep him on. He then turned around to face Hermione. Without saying a word, he kissed her. She couldn't feel her arm, she couldn't hear the shouts of the school on the shore as the Firebolt slowly moved towards them. Pulling back, Ron looked into Hermione's eyes, then kissed her again.
A/N: Not as long as I expected it to be. I'll have to go back and work on it, but it'll do for now. I'll work on an Epilogue. Thanks for reading!!
By:Hermione L. Granger
Disclaimer:So not mine.
A/N: This part should be long. I was actually going to make this a seperate fanfic, and then decided, hey, it could happen!
"Shit," Hermione cussed out loud, "Why'd I ever listen to Malfoy? I've lost it." She turned around in circles, and sure enough, she was lost. Ron wasn't out here, he never had been. She had fallen for Malfoy's sick little joke. And now she'd be expelled.
"As if things couldn't get any worse," she muttered. First the attack, then the kiss, and now, when things were really begginning to look up, she'd be expelled. Why couldn't of Ron just been out there to meet her, and everything work into happily ever after?
"Damn you Hermione, you got your hopes up," she said to herself. Figuring the safest thing she could do was sit, she sat at the base of a tree, pulling her knees up to her chest. She exhaaled loudly, waiting for someone to find her, hopefully before a true wolf. Glancing up at the moon, she noticed it was full. That was not a good sign. She closed her eyes to wait.
****
"Hermione!" a voice calls. Her head flies up in amazment.
"Harry!" she sobs as she runs at the voice, throwing her arms around it's so familiar figure, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean too..."
"Sh, Hermi I know you didn't mean it. I'm one of the sharpest tools in the shed," Harry replies with a grin.
"And so you are," Hermione answers with a grin, "It was just....when Thomas said...Harry, he told me he hoped I rotted in hell. That I didn't give a damn about him, all I cared about was that damn Harry Potter and his adventures! I didn't mean to yell at you," she finishes sheeply, letting go of Harry.
"I always said that boy would only break your heart," Harry whispers.
"Harry don't..."Hermione began to whisper, but was cut off by Harry's finger covering her mouth. Carefully, he began to move towards her. And what scared Hermione, was her towards him.
****
"Huh?" Hermione said as she sat up with a start. She had fallen asleep at the base of the tree, for about two hours she guessed from the position of the moon. But the dream confused her more than the questions of how she'd get back did. Sure that had happened, all of it up until the kiss. She remembered Thomas telling her she was too involved with Harry and Ron like it was yesterday, her running into the night like it had just happened. And Harry had followed her, but nothing happened. He comforted her, but never kissed her. He'd never do something like that.
"Hermione!"
Hermione's head whipped up in the irony that the voice belonged to the same on in her dream. And just as she photocopied the dream, she ran up to him, hugging him with all her might. Swinging her around, Harry set her down on the ground carefully.
"Are you okay?" he said breathlessly.
"Yea, I'm fine. Harry we aren't going to be expelled are we?"
"Not if we get back to the castle before someone sees us."
"I'm afraid that won't be possible," a voice droned from the shadows.
****
"Professor McGongall, they're gone!" Ron practaclly screamed in the witch's face. Ron hadn't seen Hermione or Harry all night, and now that lunch had gotten here, he was worried. No, more than worried. He was afraid. Afraid with Voldemort around.
"Well maybe someone else saw them," she replied sensably, even though Ron could tell that inside, she was panicing. The Harry Potter, gone? That would be too horrible to imagine. Plus, the best seeker Hogwarts had seen in years.
"I'll....contact Dumbledore," McGongall muttered giving into her fears.
"Don't bother, I'll go see him myself," Ron spat before marching out of her office.
****
Harry could hear his heart hammering in his chest as they ran. Carefully, he watched his steps, if one of them fell, they'd be dead. Pulling Hermione behind a tree, they just barely missed one of Voldemort's blasts.
Sure Harry could of fought him. Again. But he would have lost. Something deep down, a little voice that sounded an awful lot like his dad's told him he couldn't win this time, to run for it. But he and Hermione had been running for two hours now. They had to get away.
Harry prepared to take off again, when he felt Hermione pull on his arm. With amazement, he wached as she tapped the base of the trunk three times, and it gave way to a rather large chamber type place. Not giving it a second thought, he and Hermione dove in.
****
"Mr. Weasley, we'll have to wait until morning," Dumbledore repeated as Ron gazed out into the darkness of the night. Harry and Hermione had been gone for a day now. Where were they? Were they alive? Ron allowed the thoughts to run through his head as he headed back to his dorm, escourted by Nearly Headless Nick.
"Tough break son," was all Nick uttered the whole trip.
Tired and a mess, Ron truged up the stairs to the boys dorm. Normally he'd collapse into bed, but tonight he needed to think. He altered his course for the only shower in the boy's dormitory.
****
"We'll have to wait until morning," Ron muttered, going over Dumbledore's words in his head. In his state, he had forgotten to ask Dumbledore what exactly tommorow would bring. For all he knew, tommorow would be nothing more than classes. Ron sighed as he let the warm water hit his head, and flow down his back. They were all in some serious shit now.
****
"Looks like we're stuck down here," Harry mumbled after a while. For the past 20 minutes he had been studing the walls, looking for a way out. They couldn't stay in here forever. However, Hermione had been worring him. She just sat on the ground, next to her wand that had been lit up, thinking.
"Herm, are you okay?" Harry asked as he sat down next to her.
"Yeah, I'm just thinking. Harry, why was I so weak when you and Ron were in the medicine room? Why did I just act like the pathetic little damesel in distress who couldn't get on with her life with out her knight in shining armor?" Hermione said in a horse voice.
"It's called shock Hermione," Harry answered with a grin, "and I was flattered the way you responded. Now mind you, had you continuely acted like that if Ron and I had died," they both shuddered at this, "I would have been disappointed. You are strong Hermione. You could have moved on eaisly. But the fact that you loved us both enough to mourn, shows that you must care about us. You..." Harry stopped abrubtly, biting his tongue at what he had almost said.
"I didn't care about my parents death?" Hermione asked for him, "No, I didn't. Because they didn't love me Harry. You and Ron do."
"Thanks for making us see that Herm," Harry said as he rose, "now help me find a way out of here, Hogwarts is bound to get worried."
****
"Last night, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger disappeared. Does anyone have any clue on where they might be?" Dumbledore announced at breakfast the next morning. Ron heard a few snickers, and recalled that it was common dirt gossip that Hermione and Harry shagged regularly. With a roll of his eyes, Ron shot his twin brothers looks. The snickering stopped.
Out of the corner of his eye, Dumbledore saw two very uncomfortable young men. Closing his eyes, Dumbledore carfully chose his next words.
"If you have information, but would like to remain annonoymus, please send an owl to me by lunch this afternoon. If you don't, I doubt Harry and Hermione will live much longer," finishing his speech, Dumbledore sat, more of his energy gone now than ever before. Harry had been the son he never had to him, much like James had. And Dumbledore wasn't quite sure if he could handle two deaths.
****
"Alright!" came the words of Harry Potter, floating up the air. He pulled himself through the small hole that had crumbled out of the wall when he had hit it. Turning around, Harry reached out his hand to help Hermione up.
"Ready to find Hogwarts?" he asked with an optimisitic grin.
"Of course," Hermione answered. The sky was a perfect blue, There was only one small thin white cloud in the sky. Forgetting the confusion of the night before, Harry and Hermione blindly set off for Hogwarts, neither truely knowing the way.
****
"Alright!" came the voice of Albus Dumbledore, thundering out onto the crowd. The whole school of Hogwarts was assembled, all in teams of three, ready to look for the famous Harry Potter. The owl sent in right before lunch had explained the plan Malfoy had cooked up. He was currently between Professor McGongall, and Remus Lupin, who had returned when he heard Harry had been missing. Neither looked happy.
"Split up, everyone. Send up green sparks if you find them, send up red if your in trouble. Meet back at Enchanted Lake in two hours if no one's found anything," Dumbledore called. Slowly but surely, the group split up.
Ron was the first one to take off towards the forest, barely waiting for Seamus and Dean. The two chased after him, but Ron was intent, he had even grabbed Harry's firebolt, ready to take off in an instant.
****
Harry and Hermione collapsed behind a tree. They'd be safe for the moment. Voldemort had found them, chasing the two people he wanted dead more than anything deeper and deeper into the forest.
For the past hour they had been chased, hiding for only seconds, maybe a minute at a time. If they were lucky. So far they had been. Something was keeping them safe.
Hearing another blast behind them, Harry and Hermione took off, going into a small ditch. Just in front of them was a cliff.
"Let's jump," Harry gasped, the first words either had spoken in a good hour.
"Are you insane?" Hermione breathed back, "That leads into the Enchanted Lake. Thousands of Muggle souls are in there, and they'll pull you down, and sufficate you if you go in there. They won't let go Harry, we'll die!"
"Are you crazy?" Harry answered, "The fall'll probably kill ya."
Hermione allowed herself to let out a breath of laughter, then looked strait into Harry's eyes. It was the only way.
****
It was over. The whole school had combed every inch of the Forbiddean Forest. With a hopeless look in his eyes, Ron looked over to the cliff, just beyond the Enchanted Lake. Were they there? No one, not even Dumbledore or Hagrid had dared to cross that section of the Forest, eviler things than could lurk in young childs dreams lived there. Unspecable things, events there were cruler than even Voldemort could've imagined. If they were there, they were as good as dead.
Ron looked down at the Firebolt he was leaning on. 'He would've wanted you to have it.' Dubledore's words vibrated in the head. Wanted. Ron would never see Harry alive again, he would never kiss Hermione's smiling face. Hell, he probably wouldn't see his parents again either. If his friends were dead, Voldemort was back. And this time he'd have no mercy.
Letting his eyes wonder over the cliff, he began to stare intently at the edge. Not wanting to think about his friends, he shut everything else out. He was just beginning to cry when he heard it. His eyes snapped up, he could see two people, one with black hair that looked worse than Ron had ever seen it. And Ron had seen Harry looking pretty bad. But holding onto Harry's hand, screaming at the top of her lungs, her bush brown hair being pulled away from her face.
Before he knew what was happening, Ron felt himself flying. Taking a split second, he realized he was on the Firebolt, hurling towards them, faster than he was sure Harry had ever gone. He had one chance to catch them.
****
Hermione grabbed Harry's hand, and the two of them ran for it. Allowing herself to scream, Hermione could feel her hair being lifted, she could feel as if she was flying. Her screams ended as she relaxed, she hadn't felt like this since she was five, jumping off swings at the local playground. But reality grabbed her by the arm. Or rather, Ron did. Where Hermione had been expecting to hit the dead souls screaming below them, Ron's smiling face, streaked with tears, was holding onto her. He pulled his two best friends up, just as Hermione began to feel the pains in her arm.
Ron had put Harry's unconcious form on the broom, using a small spell to keep him on. He then turned around to face Hermione. Without saying a word, he kissed her. She couldn't feel her arm, she couldn't hear the shouts of the school on the shore as the Firebolt slowly moved towards them. Pulling back, Ron looked into Hermione's eyes, then kissed her again.
A/N: Not as long as I expected it to be. I'll have to go back and work on it, but it'll do for now. I'll work on an Epilogue. Thanks for reading!!