A/N: Same disclaimers as always.

viraha - (n.) the realization of love through separation [hindi]

He met her on his first train ride to Hogwarts. She seemed nice, didn't ask questions about his scar like most of the rest, and just generally treated him like any other person. He loved it. They talked about many things; how their lives were so different, he growing up with Muggles, her living in a manor house, and their shared excitement to be going off to Hogwarts. They promised to stay friends, regardless of what houses they might end up in. Both suspected that they wouldn't go into the same house; they were just two very different people. And so it was: he became a Gryffindor, she a Hufflepuff.

That first year, they made time to get together; mostly at meal times, but occasionally she could convince him to bring his friends to the library so they could all study together. Second year, they got together less frequently, partially because her house blamed him for the petrifactions, partially because she was afraid to go anywhere with anyone during that time. Third year, they were busier than before due to classes, and with him not allowed in Hogsmeade, she barely saw him at all. It was in fourth year that they fell entirely out of contact, and when her housemate was killed at the end of the year, she couldn't make time for him through her own grief and the grief of Hufflepuff. It was, in retrospect, one of her greatest regrets.

For the first time she could remember, she didn't even try and send him an owl during the summer. While she hadn't been as close to Cedric as many others, she still thought of him as an older brother. All of the Puffs took his loss hard, so it just felt natural for her to grieve with them, completely forgetting that Harry had watched him die, and might just appreciate some support from her, or anyone else, right then.

She watched him during fifth year. He seemed colder to everyone, and the influence of the Ministry wasn't helping. That awful toad was insistent on making Harry's year hell, and nothing could be done about it, not even by her aunt. Susan was glad that she could join up with Harry's Defense group, as she needed someone at this school who knew what they were talking about to help her understand the subject. At year's end, the Battle in the Department of Mysteries was all anyone could talk about, though Susan was disinclined to believe some of the wilder stories out there. She tried to get close enough to talk to him about it, but she saw the despair and heartbreak in his ever-expressive eyes, and just ran away in tears before she could even speak to him.

It was that following summer that she met the Dark Lord face to face, barely able to escape her home as he murdered her aunt, the last blood relative she had left in the world. While staying with her friend Hannah, she realized that now, she probably understood more about Harry's world than most others ever would. Even thinking of Harry brought warm thoughts to her, memories back when they were close friends, promising that no house rivalry would keep them apart. Someone, she realized, that she needed to be near more than ever. She needed a friend, she needed a protector, she needed…Harry. She'd had a very good friend, and in the intervening years she'd worked very hard to push him away, she realized. She resolved to get back her friend this year, come hell or high water.

Of course, Harry being Harry, her task wasn't going to be easy. Every time she thought she had a foolproof excuse to talk to Harry about something (anything!), he would find a way to not talk to her. Many of the times, he was being called off for a meeting with a Professor. Some of the times, his friends would eye her suspiciously, and usher her away from him. Only once did he directly say no to her, claiming a very bad headache right before the Yule. She believed him. Rather, she believed that the Harry she once knew wouldn't put her off without a very good reason. On the night the Death Eaters invaded the castle, Susan saw the anguish written on Harry's face before she even saw where the Headmaster landed, and knew what had happened. Torn between her friends and going to him, she was enveloped in a hug by many of her housemates, yet again leaving Harry so close, yet so far from her. She promised herself, on the train ride back to London, that she would not leave Harry alone again.

She and Hannah talked late into the night after arriving home from sixth year. It was during that conversation that she finally admitted, to herself and to Hannah, that she felt something more than just friendship for Harry. She had been far too close (and too young) first year to even think about it, but as she was around him less and less, she missed him more and more. The few moments she had been able to have even a little bit of time with him during fifth and sixth year had very nearly overwhelmed her. Something about him drew her in, the rush inside of her when he was near better than even her most favorite sweets. She wanted to reconnect in the worst way, and only hoped he felt something similar for her; she was afraid she couldn't accept anything less without shattering.

Seventh year began, and when the tables were sat for the Sorting Feast, there was no sign of him or his best friends at the Gryffindor table. That night, Susan wept into her pillow for hours, despairing that she might have missed her chance to tell him she loved him. In the depths of her despair, though, she found a nugget of strength: Harry wasn't gone, he would come back when the time was right. She had seen him do it before. When Hogwarts needed Harry Potter, he didn't back down, even when he very easily could have. He would be back, and when he was, she would be ready. That thought carried Susan through that year, giving her a reason to improve her spell casting and Defense training. When Harry returned, it would likely be for a fight. And she would be ready.

As Susan has predicted, battle came to Hogwarts. And with it came Harry Potter, a bit more ragged than she remembered, but still ready to fight for what he believed to be right. As the group gathered in the Room of Requirement prepared for the upcoming fight, she pulled him aside for a brief moment and laid her soul bare to him. He stood in shock for a moment, and in that moment her heart fluttered, on the verge of breaking, as she was afraid that she had said too much and scared him away.

He wrapped her into a big hug. "I've been waiting for you to say that. I need to talk to you, but I have to do this right now. When this is all over, come find me. I love you." With that, and a quick kiss, he dashed off.

Left in a daze momentarily, then sporting a big goofy grin, she followed him into the fray, feeling better than she had in years.