Disclaimer: I do not own or claim to own any of J.K. Rowling's characters, places, or ideas.
Comments: Sorry I didn't update yesterday - for those of you who didn't notice, the server was down!
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Chapter 33 – Loving Hate
Thursday was by far the worst day Harry had to go through. He attempted to go to classes, but only made it through half of Transfiguration before Professor McGonagall's praise of Hermione's work ("Absolutely beautiful!") reminded him of Silver, and he had to run out to vomit. Is it just me, or is this getting worse? He wondered as he walked up to Gryffindor tower.
The rest of the day passed uneventfully. Ron and Hermione didn't pester him, and so he simply lay in bed until everyone else came in to go to sleep. He forced himself to fall asleep along with everyone else, although he wasn't quite sure how he managed it amidst all of Ron's snores.
Harry awoke because of a bright light filtering in through the boys' dorms. Ron groaned from beside him, muttering something about 'bloody bright'.
"Harry, wake up," a feminine voice said.
"Do you have any idea what time it is, Mione?" he answered, turning to look at his clock.
"I'm not Mione, and I have no idea what the time is," Silver answered pertly.
Harry shot up into a sitting position. "Oh," he said, gaping at her. By now, most of the other boys were awake, and watching with interest.
She walked up to him and slapped him briskly. It hurt.
"I hate you," she announced fervently.
"I knew th-"he began, but he was cut off by the fact that she had climbed onto his bed and enveloped him in somewhat of a passionate kiss.
Something is very wrong, he thought, But whatever it is, I like it. She pulled away from him, and looked at him with unreadable emotions in her eyes.
"I hate you for going to that party," she said.
She paused to let it sink in, and then continued.
"But that's not all. I hate you for rescuing me yesterday in the library, I hate you for not talking to me this whole time, and I hate you because when you look at me like that it's impossible not to kiss you."
With that, she kissed him once more. He returned the kiss this time, and wrapped his arms around her. She pulled back, but not completely out of his arms. This time, her eyes weren't hard to read. She was looking up at him with the same loving adoration that he was looking at her with. He began to grin.
"I hate you for being so adorable, you know," she informed him.
He began to pull her to him, but she stopped him.
"Wait – I forgot," she said, trying to push him away.
He paused, looking at her intently.
"I hate you for making me love you so much," she finished.
He grinned and pulled her into an earth-shattering kiss. When he released her, she was smiling back up at him.
"So – you forgive me?" he gathered, a bit uncertainly, "Just like that?"
"Just like that," she confirmed, "I'm sorry, Harry."
His heart, instead of feeling as if it were going to break with sadness, suddenly felt as though it were going to burst with happiness. He began to pull her closer, but she stopped him.
"Do you still love me?" she whispered, her lips only inches from his.
"More than I've ever loved anyone," he replied honestly.
She smiled. "Tell me," she requested.
"I love you, Silver whatever-your-last-name-is," he replied contentedly.
"Riddle works," she replied as he pulled her into a kiss.
"How 'bout Potter?" he asked mischievously as he drew away.
"That works, too," she informed him, her lips brushing against his as she spoke.
"Good," he replied, kissing her once more.
This time, he didn't allow her to draw back, but continued to kiss her.
"Get a room!" Ron exclaimed, throwing his pillow at them.
Harry pulled away from her for a moment, but Silver was the one who spoke.
"Shut up, Ron!" she replied, a bit breathlessly.
"Seriously, we don't all want to watch you two snog all night," Ron replied.
Silver sighed as she drew away from Harry once more. "Well, you've ruined the moment now," she told him, glaring at him and pulling away from a very disappointed Harry.
Ron looked a bit smug. "Well, we don't want to hear mush all night either, so just go into the common room anyway," he answered.
Silver gave Ron a withering look as she rose and headed for the door, followed closely by Harry, who also glared at Ron. The fire in the common room was dim, but provided a decent light. Harry sat on the couch and held Silver wordlessly for a few minutes, half of him thinking that it was all a very realistic dream. He kissed the top of her head, and he could almost feel her smile.
"Why'd you forgive me?" he asked.
"I don't know," she answered, which made him a bit uncomfortable.
"I mean, I do, but it's hard for me to say," she corrected herself.
He rocked her slowly, his arms securely around her, as he waited.
"I suppose it's because I can't...well, I can't...can't live without you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Why is that hard to tell me?" he inquired.
"B...because, Harry, I...I'm just not used to trusting people enough to say that," she said, sounding a bit annoyed.
"Sorry," he said, kissing the top of her head once more, "But if it makes you feel any better, I can't live without you, either."
"It does," she said, sounding relieved.
"Every time I heard or saw anything that reminded me of you, I threw up," he informed her, "Twice."
"Oh, Harry," she said, "I'm sorry."
"Well, it wasn't pleasant," he agreed, "But it wasn't totally your fault."
"Fred and George," she sighed.
"Yes, Fred and George," he growled, "Next time I see them, I'll-"
"Do nothing," she finished, "Harry, trust me, they've already punished themselves enough."
"You've seen them?" he asked, surprised.
"Yes, on Monday they were both practically in tears begging me to take you back," she replied.
"Monday?" Harry exclaimed, "How come you waited until now?"
"Because, Harry, I was so hurt," she said, "Even when I realized that it wasn't your fault, I was still hurt. Just the thought of you hurting me hurts...does that make sense?"
Harry thought about it for a minute. "Yes," he said after a while.
For a moment they were silent. Harry was still rocking her, and he felt her relaxing as he did so.
"I'm sorry for running out on you in the library," she said suddenly.
Harry frowned and stopped rocking her. "Why did you do that?" he inquired.
"I don't know," she sighed, "It was too overwhelming – I wanted to kiss you, and I wanted to slap you, and then I saw the look on your face, and it was just too much."
"What did my face look like?" he asked interestedly.
"Hurt," she replied, "Because of me."
"It wasn't you that hurt me," Harry told her, "It was the lack of you."
He began rocking her again.
"Where were you the whole time?" Harry asked.
"The Room of Requirement," Silver replied, "I found it by accident, and Fred and George explained to me what it was."
"Oh," he said, "Did you go to any of your classes?"
"Just Potions," she replied.
Harry groaned at the near-mention of Snape. "I'm surprised Snape hasn't hexed me yet," he moaned.
"My guess would be he hasn't figured out the password yet," Silver answered helpfully.
He couldn't help but chuckle at the idea of Snape standing outside the Fat Lady's portrait trying to guess the password.
"So basically, if I'm ever in the halls with no witnesses, I'm in danger?" he asked amusedly.
"I wouldn't rely on witnesses to keep him from hexing you," she replied.
He laughed. "Yeah, it is Snape we're talking about," he agreed.
"I'll talk to him tomorrow," Silver said decidedly, "Hopefully before he gets you."
"Comforting," Harry informed her.
She giggled, and then yawned.
"I'm tired," she said, beginning to get up.
"Don't go yet," Harry answered, pulling her back to him.
He had just gotten her back, and was not even considering letting her go anytime soon. Plus, he had slept more than enough in the past five days.
"I can't stay awake much longer," she protested.
"Just for a little bit," he said, scooting down into a more horizontal position.
She was too tired to protest, and she laid her head against him sweetly. In less than a few minutes, she was asleep. Harry took in everything about her that he had missed – her scent, the softness of her hair, the peaceful look she acquired when she was asleep, but most of all just her. He eventually fell asleep as well, not knowing or caring what time it was.
It ended much too soon for his liking.
"What are you doing?" Hermione squealed, waking him up out of a dead sleep.
He opened his eyes to find that he was laying on his back, and Silver was sleeping sweetly on top of him. At Hermione's voice, she stirred slightly, but didn't awaken that he could tell.
"Hush, Mione," he answered.
"Harry, you are sleeping, with a girl, on a couch!" Hermione replied, "I should – give you a detention!"
"I would prefer it if you would refer to Silver by her name," Harry replied coolly, "And I won't be taking any detentions unless she comes with me."
"Silver?" Hermione squealed.
"Mione, hush up!" Ron called from the boys' dorms, "We're just getting back to sleep!"
"What do you mean, just getting?" Hermione asked, "It's morning time already!"
"I would hardly call five fifteen 'morning time'" Ron answered, "And yes, just getting, because Harry and Silver kept us up all night!"
Hermione gave Harry a suspicious look that caused him to grin and blush.
"Really, Mione, get your head out of the gutter," he told her, "We were just sleeping. All our clothes on and everything, promise."
It was Hermione's turn to blush. "Well, I never said..." she began.
"But you thought," Harry countered.
Hermione tiptoed over much more quietly and peered at Silver.
"So you two are back together?" she asked delightedly.
"Yep," he confirmed, smiling and running a hand through her hair.
"How?" she inquired.
"Well, at around one o' clock this morning she came in, slapped me, told me she hated me, kissed me, and told me she loved me," Harry replied, grinning.
Hermione giggled as they both looked at Silver, who was stirring once more. "Sounds just like her," she said.
"I heard that," Silver murmured sleepily.
Harry grinned. "How long have you been awake?" he inquired.
"Long enough," she replied, "But I'm not ready to be awake yet."
She snuggled up to him as she said so, and he obligingly secured his arms around her.
"You don't have to," he said, "Because Hermione's going to go back up to the girls' dorms and wait until a reasonable hour to come down here."
Hermione smirked at him as she walked up the stairs, and he chuckled.
"What?" Silver inquired.
"Oh, nothing, just the look Hermione gives people that boss her around," he replied.
"Hmm," she replied tiredly.
He rubbed circles on her back, fully awake, and feeling as if he had slept enough to stay awake for an entire week – during which he fully intended never to let her out of his sight. After a bit, she stirred again, and nearly rolled off the couch. He caught her and drew her back up beside him as her eyes fluttered open. She saw him and smiled.
"Well, aren't you handsome this morning?" she asked sweetly.
He felt himself grinning stupidly in reply. She began to scoot closer to him, but suddenly she jumped up.
"I have to get ready for class!" she exclaimed, heading for the portrait hole.
He rolled his eyes. Frankly, he didn't care if she was 'ready' for class or not, as long as she was with him.
"Where are you going?" he asked curiously.
"Oh, I took all my things to the Room of Requirement," she replied, "I'm going to go and get ready, and I'll meet you in the Great Hall at seven thirty, okay?"
"Whatever you say," he replied agreeably.
He trudged back to the dorms to get ready himself, and was surprised to find that it was only six thirty. Since when did she need an hour to get ready? He had half a mind to go and find her, when he remembered that she was probably going to have a talk with Snape so that he didn't hex Harry into next year when he saw him at breakfast.
"Wake up," Harry ordered Ron, flicking his ear.
"He's back," Ron groaned, much to Harry's amusement.
"Yes, he is," Harry agreed, "And he wants you to know that if you don't get up within the next five minutes, he's going to whap you with a pillow until you do."
Muttering under his breath, Ron complied. When they walked out into an empty common room, he nearly exploded.
"Where is she?"
"Oh, we're meeting her in the Great Hall in about half an hour," Harry replied.
"So you woke me up a half an hour earlier than I needed to be?" Ron demanded.
"Yeah, you looked like you had gotten enough sleep," Harry answered.
Ron just shook his head.
"You know, if you weren't my best mate, I think I would punch you right now," he commented.
"I know," Harry answered, grinning.
Hermione joined them shortly, and Ron became much more good-natured about having woken up, since she greeted him with a kiss.
"Glad you woke up, now, I see," Harry observed wryly.
Ron blushed, and Hermione smiled.
"Where's Silver?" she asked.
"Uh, we're meeting her in the Great Hall in about fifteen minutes," he replied.
"Do you want to head over now?" she inquired.
"Oh, no, she might not be done yet," Harry replied, "She had to talk to Snape about not hurting me when he sees me."
Ron grinned. "Yeah, Hermione tried to tell him you were out because you weren't feeling good, and he docked twenty points from Gryffindor."
"Twenty points?" Harry repeated.
"He said it was for telling a falsehood," Ron replied, doing an excellent imitation of Snape with the last three words.
Harry began to laugh. It wasn't funny that so many points had been deducted from Gryffindor, or that Snape was so mad at him, but he hadn't laughed in days, and he felt compelled to be ridiculously happy. Ron and Hermione exchanged smiles, and then Hermione enveloped him in a hug.
"Oh, Harry, it's so nice to have you back," she sighed.
"Yeah, mate, it really is," Ron agreed, giving Harry an appreciative look.
Harry grinned. "It's nice to have Silver back," he replied, "Beyond nice, in fact."
Ron gave him an odd look, but it quickly disappeared to be replaced with a smile.
"Well, let's go find her," he said, "We'll be a few minutes early, so we'll just have to hope Snape's already gotten Silver's pep talk – or whatever it is she tells him."
Harry laughed. "Alright, come on," he agreed.
They headed down to the Great Hall in good spirits. When they entered, Harry did a double-take. Charisma was the most noticeable thing in the entire room. She had now reached the height of the table, and was beginning to develop shinier feathers and a sleeker coat. She spotted him and gave a squeal, nudging Silver in the back. Silver, who was standing next to the Gryffindor table talking to Parvati and Lavender, turned to look at Harry, and the Great Hall suddenly grew silent. Harry realized that whilst everyone knew that they had broken up, nobody knew that they had gotten back together. He grinned and winked at Silver, who blushed and beamed at him in reply.
He was a bit uncomfortable as he made his way over to her amidst all the stares, but happy all the same. When he reached her, he grinned, put his arms around her, and bent to kiss her.
"Harry, everyone's watching," she protested weakly.
He grinned. "So?" he answered, pressing his lips onto hers.
Somebody gave a whoop, and immediately the entire Great Hall, excepting a selective few, began to echo it. Silver was still blushing when Harry drew away, and the Great Hall was still in an uproar.
"Way to go, Harry!" Dean yelled loudly as they sat down.
Harry blushed. "Uh, thanks," he mumbled.
Something hit him on the back, nearly knocking him into his food. He turned to find that it was Charisma.
"Oh, hi Charisma," he said.
The hippogriff nuzzled him affectionately. Silver smiled.
"She missed you," she informed Harry.
"Yeah?" Harry asked amusedly, scratching Charisma's head.
Silver looked at Charisma for a moment, and Charisma stopped cuddling up to Harry in order to look back at her. Harry got the feeling they were having a conversation of sorts, which made him a bit uncomfortable, but he was relieved when Charisma backed off so that he could eat without her head in his lap. He began to eat hungrily, and as he did so, he observed the Great Hall with appreciation. He had never noticed just how wonderful it was. The enchanted ceiling above gave an excellent imitation of a cheerful, sunny morning, the students all looked so content, the Valentines Day Ball poster hung neatly on the door...
Harry choked on his food suddenly. Ron, Hermione, Silver, and Charisma looked over in concern.
"Are you okay?" Silver asked as he regained his composure.
"There's a Valentines Ball?" he replied.
"Oh, that," Ron said, "Yeah, they hung up that poster on Monday."
"And you didn't tell me?" Harry demanded.
Hermione snorted. "No offense Harry, but you wouldn't exactly have taken the news well."
"Yeah, you probably would have thrown up your entire stomach," Ron said, wincing at the thought.
"Oh," Harry said, realizing that they were right, "I suppose."
He glanced over at Silver, who was doing her best to look completely innocent.
"How many people have asked you so far?" he demanded.
She shrugged, a bit meekly.
"How many?" he demanded.
"Six," she admitted.
Ron choked on his food, and Hermione nearly spit out her orange juice.
"Six?" Harry echoed, "Already?"
She bit off a piece of her bacon on response.
"You didn't say yes to any of them, did you?" Harry asked suspiciously.
She gave him a reproving look. "Of course not," she said defensively.
"What kind of pig would ask you right after we broke up?" Harry fumed, "Who asked?"
"Harry, don't go getting mad," she answered, "I didn't say yes to any of them, so it doesn't matter."
"Oh yes it does!" Harry replied, glaring angrily at every boy he laid eyes on, "They were trying to take advantage of you right after we broke up!"
"Well, it didn't work," she replied calmly.
"Tell me!" he demanded.
She sighed. He then spotted Dean and Seamus, who were looking at him in a rather scared manner and blushing.
"They did, didn't they?" he asked, pointing to Dean and Seamus.
"Well, yes," Silver said, "Dean and Seamus were two of them, but...Harry!"
She grabbed his arm and yanked him back down as he began to stand up, ready to give Dean and Seamus a piece of his mind...and fist.
"The others," he demanded.
"Devin Carter, Kyle Lawrick, Neville, and Malfoy," she answered.
"Neville?" Harry exploded.
"Well, yes, but he admitted afterwards that he only asked me because he was too embarrassed to ask Luna," Silver said, "So don't be mad at him, Harry."
Harry nodded briefly as his eyes searched furiously for Devin, who was a Ravenclaw. He found him, caught his eye, and gave him a menacing look, causing Devin to hurriedly look away.
"Who's this Kyle guy?" he asked.
"Um, I don't really know. He's in Slytherin," Silver answered.
"He's a seventh year," Ron replied, "And he was none too happy when she refused, from what I overheard Wednesday at lunch."
"And Malfoy," Harry said, looking at Malfoy with loathing, "I can't believe he had the nerve..."
"Harry, calm down," Silver said, a hand on his arm.
He reluctantly turned back to his food, although he still felt like punching a hole through Malfoy's face. Ron sniggered suddenly.
"Guess what, mate? I'd say that Snape wants to kill you as bad as you want to kill Malfoy," he commented.
Harry looked up at Snape to find that Snape looked close to foaming at the mouth. Harry was surprised he didn't just jump up, grab his wand, and yell 'Avada Kedavra' while he had the chance.
"Um, I thought you talked to him," he said to Silver, reaching for his wand as Snape continued to give him a death look.
"Trust me, that's a big improvement," Silver replied, taking his hand out of his pocket before he could reach his wand.
Harry groaned. He had never seen Snape look more hateful.
"I can't wait until Monday," he said sarcastically.
Silver laughed. "Why, because we have Occlumency again?" she joked.
"Don't even joke about that," he replied.
She giggled, and he relished the sound. Without warning, he put his arms around her and pulled her into his lap. She looked at him questioningly for only a moment before wrapping her arms around him.
"I missed you, you know," he informed her quietly.
She hugged him tighter in reply. "Me, too," she whispered.
He didn't let her go until the bell rang to get to class, and even then, only reluctantly. As they walked towards class, Hermione grabbed Harry by the arm.
"Harry, I need to talk to you," she said.
He, Silver, Ron, and Charisma all stopped to look at her. She gave an exasperated sigh.
"Alone," she finished.
"Can't it wait, Mione?" he said, looking at Silver pointedly.
"Nope," she replied pertly.
He was about to protest, but Silver stopped him with a hand on his arm.
"I'll save you a seat, Harry," she promised.
He watched her go longingly.
"This had better be good, Mione," he said as she disappeared around the corner.
"Why didn't you ask her to the Valentines Day Ball?" Hermione demanded.
"Uh – she's my girlfriend," Harry replied, "So she's going with me. Right?"
Hermione gave him a look of utmost exasperation.
"Well, lucky for you she won't hold it against you for thinking that," she replied, "But really, Harry, that doesn't mean that she doesn't want to be asked."
"Fine then, I'll ask her," Harry said, beginning to head towards Transfiguration.
"Harry, you'd better do it right," Hermione warned.
He stopped. "What do you mean, do it right?" he asked.
"Make her feel special when you ask her," Hermione replied, "We were talking that morning before the Quidditch game, and she was saying how she would really like to be swept off her feet one of these days."
"Swept off her feet?" Harry echoed, "What does that mean?"
Hermione sighed. "Figure it out, Harry!" she exclaimed.
They walked around the corner to find Ron and Silver waiting for them. They were talking about something, but quickly stopped when Harry and Hermione came into view. The foursome exchanged glances, and then set off for class. The shortened school day passed very smoothly – without one hint of nausea, Harry noticed.
When classes finally let out, Harry was overjoyed. A whole weekend of having Silver to himself once more lay ahead – during which time he would attempt to figure out how to 'sweep her off her feet'.
"Hey, guys, want to see the room I've been staying in?" Silver asked suddenly.
"Sure," Ron replied, "Where is it?"
"It's the Room of Requirement," Harry informed him.
"How'd you find out about that?" Hermione asked interestedly.
"Dumbledore told me," Silver replied, "Actually, it's been quite nice having my own room."
"I'll bet," Hermione said.
The door to the Room of Requirement was already there when they arrived.
"Hey, the door's already there!" Ron exclaimed.
"Yeah, I think it's because I left all my things in it," Silver answered, "But who knows?"
She pushed open the door and the foursome plus Charisma walked into a very nice room decorated in Gryffindor colors. Towards the left wall there was a fireplace, and a single couch and coffee table in front of that. Towards the right wall there was a bed, a nightstand, a dresser, and a closet. On the far wall there was what looked to be a huge dog bed – but Harry assumed it was for Charisma.
"Isn't it nice?" Silver asked, beaming around at the room.
Harry was watching Charisma intently. She was getting awfully big, and he knew it would only be a matter of time before Charisma's castle days were over. He looked over at Ron and Hermione, who were also looking at Charisma. The three exchanged glances. None of them wanted to be the one to tell Silver that her days with Charisma were limited. In the end, they made a silent decision not to say anything.
They helped Silver gather her things and take them back to Gryffindor Tower, and then Harry and Ron waited in the common room while Hermione, Silver, and Charisma made their way up the stairs to the girls' dorms to drop her things off. When Silver came back down, Harry wasted no time in pulling her onto the couch beside him. She willingly allowed him to pull her into his arms, and for a while they just sat there. She buried her face into his chest, and he leaned back contentedly. He noticed that Ron and Hermione were watching them very intently.
"What?" he inquired curiously.
"You two are just really sweet," Hermione replied simply.
Harry smiled and glanced down at Silver.
"You hear that, hon?" he asked, "We're sweet."
She beamed up at him. "Yes, you are," she agreed, kissing him lightly.
Harry smiled and tightened his arms around her, completely forgetting that Ron, Hermione, or anybody else was in the room. All that mattered was that Silver was his again – and he never intended to give her up.