Never Too Late

Chapter 8: Thicker Than Water

"Harry Potter!" Hermione gasped as she approached the counter. All five of them had arrived at the Archaic Remedial Center just a few moments prior.

"Immediate Care room 201." The older lady said, looking up from her charts. "Down the hall, up a floor and first door on your right."

"Thank you," Hermione said before hurrying to the elevator. It was still uncommon to see technology is a place of magic, but now wasn't the time for sightseeing and explanations. As soon as the door opened, the three children had beaten Hermione and Ginny to the door to Harry's room. Standing before the closed door was a man with dirty blonde hair and his arm in a sling. The man turned as soon as he heard the commotion.

"Brandon!" said Chris. It was obviously that the three children knew the man. He bent down to give Lily a hug. Alex immediately went to the door but the man had stopped him.

"They are still working on him now." Brandon said with a voice of worry and tiredness. "No one can enter until they give the word."

"I want to see my father." Alex said, aggravated.

"I know you do, Alex. But we need to wait."

"What happened?" Chris asked. Lily left Brandon's arms as he rose from the floor. She went to Hermione and without a second thought, embraced her, continuing with the sobs.

"We were chasing a group of Vagabonds and drove them into a deserted location down by the docks. That is when all Hell broke loose." Brandon cleared his throat before continuing. Hermione and Ginny listened to every word he had to say while Alex sat with his forehead in his palms. "Apparently it was a meeting spot and we got there at the wrong time. The odds were four to one. I took a hit on my arm within the first few tradeoffs." He stopped briefly to adjust his sling. "Harry was kicking ass, of course, like he usually does in fights like these, even though he is a stick-user. We got split up on the opposite sides of the warehouse we were in. The only thing I saw was that the leader of the group rushed me. When he got to me he tried to throw a Lacerating Curse at me. Out of nowhere, Harry appeared in front of me and took the curse in the chest. He stayed conscious long enough to stun the last of the group and then collapsed before me. Back arrived like it usually does, late. I brought him here and called you, Chris. All I know is that he got hit hard."

Chris hung his head down to hide his tearful eyes. Alex's head was still placed in his palms. Lily held onto Hermione tighter. Hermione placed her hand on Lily's back, her and Ginny were dealing with their own tears. The door opened. Everyone looked at the man walking out. He turned to the group with a sad face.

"Are you all here for Mr. Potter?" The man said with a professional voice. Everyone nodded slowly. "Well I am going to be truthful. We've done all we can. All the wounds caused by the curse have been healed. The trauma and severe loss of blood caused him to slip into a coma. He needs a transfusion as soon as possible."

Alex rose from the chair and Chris stepped forward. Almost in unison the two boys spoke, "Take mine."

The doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry but as sons, you share the same blood as your mother." That moment, Lily left Hermione and stood next to her bothers.

"I'll do it." She said, trying to suppress her sobs. "I'll give daddy some of my blood to help him."

The man shook his head again. "I afraid I cannot allow that. You are too young and the amount of blood we need would most certainly place you in the same fate has him. I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?" Alex spoke. His anger was filled to the brim. "Is that all you can say? You're sorry! My father is lying in there dying! And you have to say is that you are sorry!"

"Alex!" Chris said to his brother to try and stop him, but it failed. Alex continued.

"You tell us that we can do nothing, NOTHING at all to help him. Then you tell us that my sister is the only one who can but in doing so, it would kill her! What answers do you have!?" Chris stepped in front of his brother and held him back. "I will not just sit here and watch him die! Not again!"

Chris meet his brother, ear to ear as they hung their heads low. Alex sobbed, "I won't..I can't..not again." Chris spoke no words aloud but still tried to comfort his little brother in their way. Lily now held onto Alex and resumed her tears.

"The only thing I can say to give you hope is that we are currently calling all mundane hospitals and blood banks in this city. It is possible to have a match, even with his rare blood type, but any hope is good right now." The door opened again and two women and a man walked out with a covered tray, to hide the blood that was caked onto it. "You may visit with him, but I must advise you to be calm and quiet." With that being said, the doctor left.

Brandon looked over at the rest of the group. "I need to get back and report everything at the base. This time is for family I think. I'll call later on to check up, aight you three?"

Chris looked up at his father's friend and nodded slightly. He escorted his brother and sister inside their father's room. There, on a bed closest to the window with the shades down, Harry lied, his arms to his side, above the covers. A tube attached to an IV came out of his left wrist. The only sound in the room was the slow rhythm of the heart monitor. The three children approached their father. Lily grabbed her father's hand and held it in hers. His complexion was pale and his skin was cool. She struggled to hold in her crying. Her bottom lip quivered as the stream of tears continuously flowed off her cheeks. Alex had less success with himself. His breathing became sporadic as he saw his father lying there. Lily placed her head in her arms while still holding her father's hand. Chris kneeled down to comfort her.

Ginny quietly shed her tears while gently rubbing Hermione's back, trying to comfort her old friend. Seeing this site took its toll on Hermione. She stood by Ginny behind Harry's children. One hand covered her mouth; the other draped across her stomach. She had so much she wanted to tell him, now she may not ever get the chance. She wanted so much to go to his children and comfort them, but she didn't. She couldn't, is what she believed. She was nothing more than a stranger in their life. "I gotta get out of here," Alex said suddenly, breaking her train of thoughts. He turned and went out the door. He left the hospital as the sun was setting.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ Hermione felt desire as her mouth and Harry's were joined in a passionate kiss. He held her in his arms, tightening them to get her closer to him. Her hands were entangled in his hair, making it messier than usual. She loved him more than anything in the world. She wanted him more than ever.

They broke apart, gasping for air. Their foreheads came together as they stared into each other's eyes. She melted from seeing those emerald green eyes gaze upon her. How she wished things were different. "Harry," she spoke. "I have to tell you something."

"Yes, my love." She had waited forever, she felt, for him to call her that again.

"I'm sorry about that night. I'm sorry for."

Harry placed his index finger over her lips, making her stop apologizing. He quickly removed them and began to speak. "It's not your fault, I was foolish, but what happened in the past is in the past. Just focus on now. Focus on that I love you, Hermione Granger. Always had, always will."

"I love you too, Harry Potter."

"Marry me, Hermione. Become my wife like you were supposed to be all those years ago."

"Yes," she held him tightly. "Yes, I will marry you."

Harry's hands dropped to his sides and he became heavy in her arms. "Harry?" His weight was too much for Hermione and they fell to their knees. "Harry what is wrong?"

She moved her head in front of his to see that he had lost all color in his face. His eyes lost their sparkle and blood trickled from his scar on his forehead. He fell backward, his eyes closed. "HARRY!" She screamed but it did nothing.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Hermione jolted from her dream, tears forming in her eyes. She had fallen asleep in Harry's hospital room due to her deciding to stay rather than leaving with Ginny. She looked over to his bed to see Lily lying next to him on the very edge of the bed. She held his arm around her as she slept. Chris was asleep in the chair next the bed. Alex had not returned and was no where to be found. She quietly walked up to the opposite side of Harry's bed. She held his hand close to her chest. She began pouring all her feelings to him in a quiet voice.

"Always thinking of others and never for yourself, same ol' Harry Potter. The same boy who, with Ron, saved me from the troll, who saved Ginny from the Chamber of Secrets, who saved Sirius and me from the dementors, who saved us all from Voldermort. Now I know, that boy who became a man long ago, who I was in love with, who I still love desperately to this day, hadn't changed. I love you Harry Potter, always had and always will." She wiped away the tears from her face and sniff before going on. "For years I wished that you would return and we could continue where we left off. People around me had thought you were killed and tried to get me to move on, but I knew better. I couldn't.I wouldn't believe that story about you being killed in the Final Battle. I felt in my heart that you were still alive. I tried not listening to my heart and dated Viktor for a bit but he was nothing compared to you. You are the one I wanted to be with, to this day still."

"I know you probably can't hear me. Maybe that is why I am not afraid right now. I don't want to intrude into your life right now. I couldn't nor would I want to, replace your children's mother. The selfish part of me wished that I was her and that they were my children. They are wonderful, Harry, everything that I imagined that our children would be. You are an excellent father to them, just like I knew you would be." She paused for a moment, kneeling down to her knees and placing his hand on her cheek. "They need you Harry. Don't give up. Come back to them. Come back to me." She rose up, letting go of his hand. She moved her head above his, closing the gap between their lips. "I love you Harry Potter."

She gently met his lips and kissed him. Suddenly something happened that she didn't expect, he responded. He opened his mouth and the kiss became more passionate. Hermione was oblivious, only being driven by a desire that had been building for years. Harry gently pressed his hand on her cheek. Hermione finally registered what was going on and stopped. Here eyes widened to see Harry looking back at her with a small smirk. She opened her mouth to say his name but only to fall back into another passionate kiss. Full of joy, neither of them noticed the figure peeking through the door.