She flipped through the pictures; tears silently coursing down her cheeks. They had been so happy, so full of life.
Where was all that now?
Harry came into the room, looking worried. He sat down beside her, and slid a comforting arm around her shoulders.
"Hermione, what's wrong?"
She put down the picture album, and turned to face him, anguish in her eyes. "I think I'm beginning to forget," she whispered, sounding much younger than she actually was.
Harry gave her a sympathetic hug. "Remember what you can, Herm. Remember everything you can. Hold on to the memories."
She leaned against him and closed her eyes, bringing back the past.
*~*~*
Hermione had gone to Hogwarts not expecting to make any friends. In her years at elementary school, she had always been the odd one out, the studious one, the one who wasn't at all popular.
This was why she was so surprised when she did meet someone.
Her first year at school, she was hurrying to her next class when she crashed into someone. She fell back to the floor, her books scattering all over the empty hall.
The next thing she knew, she was being pulled up by another, her books being shoved back into her arms. She managed to catch the look in his eyes before he hurried away, and the intensity of it shocked her.
The bell rang, and she ran off, not forgetting a thing
Later, she found out that his name was Draco.
I might've liked him if he wasn't a Slytherin, she thought to herself. He seems different from the rest of them.
She had many more encounters with him over the next few years, none of them pleasant. Yet afterwards, when she glanced at him, she found that he had been watching her a curious look on his face.
The next year, she had finally had enough. At their break time, she stormed over and sat down across from him. He didn't move at all.
"Why do you keep watching me?" she demanded.
"You're different from the rest of them," he replied, not at all explaining what he meant.
Yet she seemed to understand. "So're you" she told him.
He looked up at her then, and gave her a half smile. "I know"
And they sat there silently, until it was time for class once again. They walked together, still silently, developing an unspoken understanding.
"I like you" she said finally.
He gave her another half smile and ambled off, leaving her to stare after him.
He understood her. She didn't think anyone ever would. He seemed to be able to read her thoughts; he could tell when she was distressed. And he always knew how to make her feel better.
She loved him so much it scared her.
Once they skipped class and walked around outside, feeling the invigorating breeze all around them. The wind rippled the fresh smelling meadow, creating currents that ran through the grass.
They stopped and sat, under the shade of a huge maple tree. He rummaged through his pockets and came up with a Chocolate Frog. He searched again and came up with a knife.
She wasn't surprised.
Taking the knife, he swiftly sliced the candy in half, and offered one half to her. She accepted, and they sat, letting the syrupy sweetness of the chocolate melt in their mouths. The rich luscious texture tasted like heaven, and slid smoothly down their throats, leaving a sugary trail of melted cocoa.
"Are you going to let me kiss you?" he asked afterwards.
She nodded, and their lips met.
Everything grew quiet and still and perfect.
They could talk for hours. Of course, they didn't really needed to tell much about themselves. Somehow the other just...knew. Sometimes, they just rested in silence, just enjoying each other's presence.
There wasn't much of a need to keep their relationship secret. In their eyes, there was no one at school who was really important; there was no one they needed to keep this from. They just never broadcasted it across the school.
It took a few weeks for people to notice. And when they did, there were whispers following the two everywhere. Rumors started, and travelled quickly. They ignored the talk, and went on being happy.
Her friends hadn't known. They had seen the change in her, how she had basically floated into the common room each night, but they hadn't known why she was so happy.
"Hermione," Harry asked her one night, "are you sure this is safe? I mean, this is Draco Malfoy we're talking about."
She had given him a look of disdain. "I know him better than you ever could. Don't tell me what to do."
They had all backed off after that.
Summer came quickly, and the holidays came even quicker. Before they knew it, they were sitting on the Hogwarts Express, treasuring their last moments together.
"You'll come see me, right?" she asked him.
"I'll do the best I can" he replied. But he didn't sound so sure.
The train reached London much faster than they wanted it to, and soon they were hugging tightly, never wanting to let go.
But they had to.
"Who was that?" Hermione's mum asked her as they entered their car.
"Just a boy, Mum, just a boy," she answered, not wanting to talk.
The rest of her trip was in silence.
July was tedious; each day seemed to drag by. She passed the time by writing long letters, and doing her summer homework. But she finished that all too quickly and was left to stare at the wall.
About the middle of August, she asked him to visit and meet her parents.
He told his father he was going out for the day. Lucius didn't ask any questions.
She met him in Diagon Alley, and they flew, by broomstick, to her house. They stopped outside her house.
"You're scared," she said, watching him carefully.
"I'm not scared" he protested.
"Yes you are" she insisted. "I can see it in your eyes."
"And I thought I'd learned to hide it" he grumbled. "You know me too well."
She laughed.
"It's just that they're Muggles," he said quietly.
"And they're not much different from us. They just don't have magic."
"Exactly" he mumbled, letting her pull him inside.
The whole thing went better than he thought. Her parents had been pleasant, and she had been right. Their customs weren't that much different from what he was used to.
September soon rolled around, and once again, they were sitting on the train, only this time it was to Hogwarts. They shared with her friends, who still glanced at them suspiciously. It made him feel uncomfortable.
Happiness came easily to them, and they drifted through the school, caught in their own little world. Now, nobody mentioned how different they were, the students had learned to accept it.
They had thought that it would last forever.
Soon, it was December, and everyone was making preparations for Christmas. Teachers came around, making lists of who was staying and who was going home. They both were going home.
"You can come visit me this time" he said, as they sat in the Three Broomsticks, sipping hot butterbeer. It was the last Hogsmeade weekend before the break, and students were running around, buying last minute Christmas presents.
She was nervous. "Are you sure they'll like me?" she asked.
"I don't care if they don't," he said stubbornly. "I love you and that's all that matters"
They finished their drinks and left the shop. As they opened the door, a flurry of snow swept in, forming puddles on the floor. They hurried outside, and stopped, unsure of where to go next.
"Let's head back" suggested Hermione, pulling her cloak tighter around her. "It's getting late."
He shook his head. "I think I'll stay a bit longer. You go on."
And she left, heading up the snowy hills, leaving deep footprints behind her.
He watched her. He could almost feel her beside him, her head against his shoulder. He smiled, and this time it was a real smile, genuine and true.
He was far too excited to head into some small shop so he just walked around in the snow, not feeling cold at all.
He didn't know that the Ministry was looking for someone. A tall dark man, who had just escaped from St. Mungo's. If he had known, he would have been more careful, he would have turned around when he heard the scream. But he was too deeply absorbed in his own thoughts.
He thought about Hermione, how much he loved her. He wanted to announce it to the world; he didn't care who knew about them. He wanted them to know.
He felt a sharp pain in his back; he saw a green flash from the corner of his eye. Already, he was missing them, his mother, his father, Hermione most of all. He felt a terrible sadness, one that cut into him like nothing else.
And then, he floated into nothingness.
*~*~*
"So how'd he die?" Harry asked.
She opened her eyes slowly, adjusting to the bright light in the room. She hadn't realized that she had been speaking aloud the whole time.
"It was the guy they were looking for," she said, her voice cracking. "He was a crazy lunatic who wanted to get revenge on the Death Eaters for killing his brother. And he thought that Draco looked so much like Lucius..." She trailed off, unable to continue.
Harry nodded. "You feel better now?"
"I don't know" she replied. "I mean, it's already been two years, but all I can think about is what happened. I shouldn't have left him that day. Maybe I could've offered some kind of protection."
"Do you want to be left alone?" he asked her.
She nodded, and he left, gently closing the door behind him.
She wasn't ready to move on yet. She wasn't ready to leave that part of her life, go on like it never existed. Yet time had already gone on without asking her opinion, and she had had no choice but to follow.
At least the memories would stay with her forever.
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling.
AN: School is evil. Mostly the science teachers. For giving me tons and tons of projects and tests and things. Ugh. And I just noticed something. As of today, I've been writing on ff.net for a year...Review? =)