Chapter 20: Ester's Path

He should have been working, should have been doing anything except sitting there alone in a study room torturing himself with thoughts of her. It annoyed him to no end that he had just come off a several months relationship with Hermione Granger, a relationship that had, if nothing else, for a short time made him believe that there could be someone else out there for him. But here he was alone, again, thinking of her. Wanting her and knowing like before that he would probably never have her.

As if to mock his torment a soft knock came at the door and her voice penetrated the silence as she stuck her head through the small gap and called his name. Catching movement from the corner of her eye she turned her head to find him sitting at the table. Her eyes lit up and her voice brightened. "There you are." She said as she stepped into the room and used her foot to nudge the door closed. "I've been looking for you."

Bjorn felt his mood sour even more. He didn't have the patience to deal with this now. Turning away from her he began gathering his books together and stuffing them in his bag. Ester took a few steps farther into the room as she continued talking.

"I wanted to come and thank you." She began. "For what you did for Hermione." She stopped when she was at arms length away from him. "I'm so proud of how mature you've handled all of this. It was the right thing to do."

Bjorn bristled with her every word, his eyes narrowing to slits. "I didn't help her because I was mature or because it was the right thing to do." He glared at her over his shoulder. "And I certainly didn't do it because you came and yelled at me."

Ester's face contorted into a look of mixed surprise and curiosity. "Then why did you?"

"Because," he took a deep breath and turned away from her to continue filling his bag. "After I told you to get the hell out of my room and to leave me alone, Hermione came and explained why she needed my help."

"But I thought…"

"You see…" Bjorn rose to his feet and pointed at her with his index finger. "There it is again. Your problem. You think too much." He abandoned his task so that he could turn and fully look at her. His arms crossed in front of his chest. "You over analyze everything, trying to see how it works into the path. I helped Hermione because she came to me and explained how she felt about him. How she's been in love with him for years but too scared to do anything about it. That's why I helped her. Because I know what its like to care for someone and be unable to tell them. I didn't help because of all the logical reasons you gave me about being mature or… or it being the right thing to do and mostly not because it would help lead her down her 'proper path'."

Ester stiffened with indignation. "What's wrong with steering people down their proper path?"

"Nothing when you use it sparingly like Rane does!" Bjorn threw his arms out with exasperation. "Why can't you be more like her? She doesn't let it interfere with her life."

Tears of fury swelled in her eyes. "I'm not Rane." Ester shouted, her fists clenched angrily at her side. "And I wouldn't want to be!"

"I'm not asking you to." He shouted back, running his fingers through his sandy hair in frustration. "I just want you to relax a little. Stop taking your gift," he said with a sneer,"and all it entails so seriously. You don't have to make it your life."

"I can not logically turn my back on what I know is the proper path."

"Damn logic then!" he shouted angrily. "And damn the path! That's not what this is about."

"Then what is it?" she shouted back. "We have this argument all the time but you never tell me what 'it's' about How am I supposed to know if you don't tell?"

"You want to know?"

"Yes."

He took a deep calming breath, trying to force his temper into submission. "It's about your inability to make one decision without consulting the path to make sure your actions won't deviate from it."

"That's not true." She denied emphatically.

"It is. Everything is calculated and logical with you. You never let your emotions come out. I don't even thing you know what anger, or rage, or betrayal or even love feels like."

"That's not true!" she screamed, tears leaking down her red cheeks. "I'm feeling anger right now!"

"And what about betrayal or love? Do you know what those feel like?"

"Yes! Damn it! I do! I felt it every time I was forced to watch…" she clapped a hand suddenly over her mouth when she realized what she had almost told him. Eyes wide with panic she spun on her heel to run away and hide herself in her room, but before she was able to take two steps Bjorn clamped his hands around her arms and forced her to turn back around and face him.

"When you were forced to watch what?"

She turned her head away in shame as tears continued to slide down her cheeks. "Nothing."

"Ester, don't do this." He gave her a slight shake, forcing her to look into the depths of his gray orbs. "Don't bottle everything up inside." He pleaded. "For once in your life tell me what you're thinking. I want to know what's going on inside your head, and I don't mean the logical part. I want to know what you're feeling right now, this very minute."

"I… I…"She stammered.

"Ester!" The pair turned their heads as one toward the door at the sound of Hermione's broken voice calling for her. "Ester! Where are you? I…I…re…really ne…need to talk."

Ester pulled out of Bjorn's grasp thanking what ever higher power there was that Hermione had come around just when she had and given her the excuse she needed not to finish this conversation. She wiped fiercely at her cheeks trying to erase the trace of her tears as she walked purposefully towards the door, ignoring Bjorn calling her name from behind.

She pulled open the door calling Hermione's name. Seconds later Bjorn watched her step back to admit Hermione to the room, hands covering her face as she cried, her shoulders shaking violently with her tears.

"Hermione?" he stepped toward her, instantly on guard. "What happened?"

She looked up at him with eyes swimming with tears. Her lips quivered as they parted to speak. "He didn't want me."

Bjorn felt his heart clench for the heartbroken girl. "Come here." He opened his arms to her and with little thought Hermione stepped into them, burring her face in his chest, accepting the comfort he offered. "Shhh." He soothed as he stroked her silky hair. "It's all right."

"No it's not." She shook her head, never raising it from his chest. "He doesn't want me anymore. He's moved on."

"I'm sure that's not true." He spoke in a soothing voice.

"It is." She pulled away far enough so that she could look up at him. "He told me there was someone else."

"Lavender Brown?"

"No." Her tears came back with a vengeance. She tucked her face into his shoulder again, "I think he said it was Rane."

"Rane?" Ester gasped with surprise, reminding the pair that she was still in the room. "Rane Voitekh?" Hermione nodded, not bothering to lift her head from Bjorn's shoulder. "But that's impossible." Ester blurted out.

"Of course it is." Bjorn agreed, continuing to run a soothing hand through her hair. "How could Ron get over you so quickly?"

Hermione smiled up at him weakly, thankful for his attempts to ease her.

"That's not what I meant." Ester continued as she stepped away from the door. "What I meant was that when Rane wrote to me she said that she had re…"

"Shut up, Ester!" Bjorn barked, stopping her short. "For once could you stop with logic and the path and just be a friend?"

"But…"

"No." He shook his head once, giving Ester a withering look. "If you're going to stay it's going to be to give comfort not advice."

Hermione's tears ceased as she looked curiously between her two friends who were glaring daggers at each other over her head. "Did I interrupt something?"

The two continued to stare angrily at each other for another minute before Ester decided to look away from his cold gray eyes. "No." She assured Hermione, taking her arm and pulling her to the sofa, pushing her gently into a seat before taking the one next to her. "Why don't you tell me what happened?"

Hermione pulled her feet up onto the cushions so that her knees were pressed close to her chest. She wrapped her arms around them and tucked them under her chin.

"Everything went as planned." She turned her head to flash Bjorn a small thankful smile. "Your portkey brought me right to my parent's house." She gave a short snort of laughter. "You should have seen the look on their face when I appeared out of nowhere, a small heap on the floor."

"And the letter?" Bjorn prompted his curiosity getting the better of him. He and Hermione had worked on that spell several hours before she had achieved it to her satisfaction.

A slightly smug gleam came to her eyes. "He landed right where I wanted him to." Her smile faded slightly. "He thought I was a Death Eater though. I had to spend ten minutes convincing him that it really was me."

"Well you can't be to careful." Ester conceded. "Well you can't." She insisted when Bjorn glared at her with disbelief. "Anyway," she turned back to Hermione. "What happened after that?"

Hermione lowered her head meekly. "I apologized and he seemed to forgive me."

"Then why are you so sad?"

"Because," she swallowed audibly. "I was too late. Like I said he's already moved on. He told me that he couldn't let me hurt him again, that…that he doesn't trust me. Oh God." She buried her eyes in her knees. "I really ruined things, didn't I?"

"No." Ester said sternly as she placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure it's really not as bad as it seems."

Hermione turned her head to look at her friend. "Ester, he said he doesn't believe in the One and Only anymore."

"What?" she started with surprise.

Hermione nodded sadly, her eyes filling with tears again. "He said that he doesn't believe anymore and that someone as sensible and logical as I shouldn't either." She half heartedly wiped away her tears. "I did that to him, Ester. I hurt him so much that it caused him not to believe anymore."

"The One and Only?" Bjorn questioned, his confusion evident in his scrunched up eyebrows.

Hermione nodded sadly. "He used to believe that he would only ever fall in love once and that he would love forever." She closed her eyes. "Maybe he's right. Believing in one and only's isn't sensible or logical."

"Hermione." Ester snapped, taking hold of her friend's face and forcing her to look at her. "Don't you ever say that. Believing in things like One and Only's is not illogical or insensible. Where would this world be if we didn't believe in true love and one and only's and good concurring over evil? It would be a very sad and lonely place to live in."

"But…"

"No." she said sharply, letting go of Hermione's face. "Did he actually say that he no longer loved you?"

Hermione sucked her bottom lip in and gnawed on it as she thought back to the conversation she had had with Ron no more then two hours ago. "No, but I didn't exactly give him the chance."

"Did he ever begin to say it?" Ester persisted.

Hermione's brows scrunched as she focused hard on her memory. "No, I don't think so."

"Then chances are he wasn't going to tell you which means it's probably not true."

"But he said…"

"That he had gotten over you." Ester finished for her, causing Hermione to go silent. "He's hurt, Hermione. He's hurt and he's angry. And when you're hurt like that you'll tell yourself anything if you think it will make the pain go away. He probably has himself half convinced that it's true. But that doesn't mean it is." Hermione glared at her skeptically. "Let's just take a look at you for an example then." Ester scooted closer. "If I, or anyone else, had asked you two months ago if you were in love with Ron Weasley, what would you have said?"

Hermione's cheeks flushed a brilliant shade of pink. "I would have denied it. I would have told you that you were crazy for even suggesting it."

"Exactly!" Ester beamed. "But you didn't really, did you?"

"No." She conceded. "I didn't."

"So what makes you think it's any different for him?" she persevered. "He fought for you for over four months. Don't you think he deserves the same effort?"

"What? Do you think he's testing me?"

"I don't know. I've never met him. But if he is, and you do nothing, then you've failed. And I've never known you to fail at anything. So don't start now."

Hermione sucked her bottom lip in in her usual pose of deep concentration. Slowly she lowered her feet to the flower and sat straighter. She looked from Bjorn to Ester several times before she pushed herself to her feet and walked determinedly towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Bjorn called after.

Hermione stopped in the doorway and looked back at the two. "I'm going to write Ron a letter."

"What?" Ester's eyes scrunched in confusion.

"Ron and I agreed to write to each other so that we can reestablish our friendship and gain trust back." She explained. "Ron wrote a letter to me everyday, and I'm determined to do the same. Starting today." And with a reasonably confident smile she turned and left the room, closing the door soundly behind her.

Ester and Bjorn sat silently for a few minutes after Hermione had left; neither looking at each other and neither saying anything. While Hermione had been with them Ester wasn't forced to linger on what Bjorn had said. He was right of course. She did avoid dealing with emotions. She had learned long ago what happened when you tried to ignore the path in favor of feelings. In most cases it usually caused more pain then was necessary.

"You did well."

"What?" Ester's hazel eyes snapped to Bjorn's gray ones.

Bjorn rubbed at the back of his neck. "With Hermione." He explained. "You gave her exactly what she needed." He looked down to where his fingers were picking at invisible flecks of dust on his trousers. "I know you were still guiding her down her proper path," his lip twitched up in the corner in the first remnant of a smile she had seen all evening. "It's impossible for you not to. But you were also conscious of her feelings." He glanced up at her with a mischievous smirk. "I'm proud of you."

Her laughter escaped in a rush of air ending with a groan. "I'm sorry Bjorn." She propped her elbow on the arm of the chair before supporting her cheek on her fisted hand. "I know I avoid using emotions and that I'm too serious and focused."

"No." He moved forward in his seat. "I shouldn't have said that. I was out of line."

She shook her head sadly. "No you weren't. You were right." She turned away from his steady gaze to study the pattern in the rug that separated them. "Bjorn?"

"Yes."

Her skin heated further, turning a brilliant shade of scarlet. "I felt betrayed every time I was forced to watch you and Hermione together." She spoke in a voice so soft he hadn't heard.

"What?" He prompted, moving his entire chair closer, leaning in so that he could hear her.

"You said I didn't know what betrayal felt like." she spoke a little louder and a bit more forcefully this time, finding it easier now that she had said it once out loud. "But I said I felt betrayed every time I was forced to watch you and Hermione together." She looked up to see that Bjorn was staring at her with a mixture of surprise and… perhaps it was just wishful thinking on her part, hope on his face. "Bjorn?" she questioned when he continued to stare at her saying nothing. "Would you please say something?"

Her heart clenched in her chest when he rose to his feet. For a moment she feared that he was going to leave without saying anything. But instead he took hold of her hands and pulled her insistently to her feet. When she was standing, staring at him with wide eyes he directed her hands over his shoulders before releasing them so that he could wrap his own around her waist. There was just enough time to see him flash her the most heart stopping grin she had ever seen before his lips had captured hers.

She made a sound of surprise in the back of her throat as her eyes drifted closed and her arms tightened around his neck, pulling her body closer to his. All too soon he was pulling away and Ester whimpered in protest. He chuckled as he leaned his forehead against hers, his eyes closed tight as well. "Do you have any idea how long I've wanted to do that?"

Ester lips spread into a smile so wide her cheeks hurt. "Perhaps as long as I've wanted to do this." And she tilted her head slightly to the side, capturing his lips this time in a hungry kiss of her own, one he was all to willing to oblige in.

She felt his tongue run along the seam of her lips and she let them part sending her own tongue forward to meet his. His arms tightened instinctively as he bent at the knees slightly to get a more secure grip before straightening and lifting her off her feet.

Ester broke away from his kiss while her arms wrapped more securely about his neck as she tucked her head into his shoulder and giggled. "Bjorn put me down." She squealed when he started to turn in a circle.

He stopped abruptly causing her arms to tighten. He turned his head to the side and nuzzled his nose against her chin. "All right." And before she was certain what was happening he was falling backwards, landing on the sofa behind him, arms wrapped securely around her waist. They landed with an oomph, Ester sprawled across his lap.

"Insufferable ass." she scolded as she tried to force a severe look on her face, pushing herself up to look at him. But one look into his piercing gray eyes found her loosing further ground under the powerful charm of his smile.

Bjorn tossed his head back and laughed. "Insufferable ass?" She nodded her head, her lips pressed tight together to keep from laughing. "Let's see how insufferable I can be."

Ester's eyes widened in horror as the wicked smile that only meant one thing took over his handsome features. "You wouldn't." she said straight faced.

He smirked smugly, his fingers moving on her waist. "Wouldn't I?"

"Bjorn no!" She screamed trying to lunge away from his nimble fingers but found that she couldn't for her arms and legs were tangled with his. Struggling to extract herself from their twisted limbs, her body withered under the torture of his tickling fingers, broken gasps of laughter escaping her lips. "You…you promised." She barely managed to gasp through her laughter, her body twisting from side to side, trying to escape his questing fingers.

"But I'm an insufferable ass, remember."

"I'm sorry!" She screamed when his fingers found their mark right above her hipbone where Bjorn knew from experience that she was most sensitive. "I didn't mean it. You're not…not an insufferable ass!"

His fingers instantly ceased their torture and settled comfortably on her hips. Sighing with contentment Ester settled her head on his shoulder, giving his arm a painful jab before wrapping her arms around his chest completely, comfortable in a way that is only possible after years of being friends.

"Ester?" Bjorn asked as he lifted his hand and watched the strands of her hair slip through his fingers. "Can I ask you something?"

She tilted her head up so that he could look down at her. "Of course."

Bjorn continued to run his fingers through her hair as he contemplated how exactly to phrase his next question. "Am I a part of your path?"

"What?" Ester pushed against his chest so that she could look at him better.

"Am I a part of your path?" he repeated.

"Bjorn, what kind of question is that?"

His fingers found their way to her hair once again, having lost the touch when she jerked away in surprise. "Ester, I've been in love with you for a very long time. If I found out later that you kissed me or that you were with me because you felt obligated…"

Ester pressed a finger against his lips quieting him. "I'm going to be honest with you, Bjorn. Completely honest." She sat back and waited for him to straighten into a sitting position before she continued. "I can't read you."

"What?" Bjorn's head snapped up with surprise. "I thought you could read everyone. You use to read me all the time."

"Yes I did." She agreed. "I use to be able to read you like a book when we were younger. Remember?"

He nodded. "Of course I remember. It drove me crazy. I could never keep a secret from you."

"And yet we still remained friends." Ester lips twitched in a sort of half smile. "Well as we got older and my feelings for you began to change I was able to read you like I do everyone else less and less, until my ability was almost gone. I can still pick up basic things, strong thoughts and emotions. But I can no longer see your path."

"I don't understand." His face was cross with bewilderment. "What does that mean?"

"That means that as I fell more and more in love with you, your path became more entwined with mine. And as you know I can't read my own path."

His eyes widened with understanding. "Which is why you can't read mine anymore."

"Exactly."

Bjorn tilted his head to the side as he ran her revelations over in his head. "So you have known for a while that we were meant to be." It wasn't a question it was a statement.

"I guess you could say that." her head dropped low so that it almost touched her chest.

"Then why haven't you said anything until now?"

"Because," she shrugged a diminutive shoulder. "I needed to know that you didn't feel forced into anything. I needed to know that you were with me because that was what you wanted, not what you felt you were obliged to do.

Bjorn took Ester's face gently between his hands and tilted her face up until she met his eyes. "You would have let me go down the wrong path if that's what I had wanted, even if it meant it wasn't your path?"

"Our path. And yes." Her eyes misted with a light sheen of tears. "I would have."

Bjorn pulled her in for a tender kiss, lingering at her lips a moment before pressing a kiss to her brow, the tip of her nose her cheek. "You really are the most amazing person I have ever met." He finally said, holding her face steady before his. "You know that don't you?"

She tried to shake her head but his hands stopped her. "I'm nothing special." She insisted. "I'm…"

"You're amazing." he maintained capturing her lips in another kiss, drawing her into the warmth of his arms. "Don't you ever forget that."

Ester pressed a kiss into his neck and murmured softly. "I love you, you insufferable ass."

Bjorn chuckled with amusement as his arms tightened around her. "And I love you, you infuriating logical girl."

There eyes caught and they felt themselves being drawn magnetically towards the other. Their lips were a breath away from each other when the sound of emphatic clapping came from the other side of the room. The pair turned their heads slowly to see Maj, Thora and Yorick standing in a clump just inside the door that they hadn't heard open, clapping wildly, faces beaming.

"It's about time!" Thora shouted above the racket. Ester blushed with mortification as she hid her reddening face in the crook of Bjorn's shoulder, feeling them shake with the weight of his laughter.

"Come on, Ester." He nudged. "Let's really give them something to cheer about." And when she looked up at him with curiosity he swept in and kissed her with such passion she feared she might be burned. But as she settled into the kiss she decided that sometimes fire tasted rather good and would be well worth the blaze.