The following morning she took a seat next to Harry, diagonally from Ron, like nothing had happened, and for a moment, Ron thought he'd dreamt the whole talk in the library.

"Well, I slept wonderfully last night," she started. "I don't know about the two of you."

"Oh, mine was alright," Harry answered with a shrug, taking a bite of his food. "So did you figure out what you're doing about Lavender?"

Hermione looked to Ron with wide eyes. "Oh! Um, not really. We thought we had a plan, but I don't know if it'll work anymore, so… we'll have to come up with something else."

"I might just break up with her, honestly," Ron shrugged. "I'm… I think if we do it wrong, it'll just cause more trouble, you know?"

Harry raised an eyebrow, and so did Hermione.

At their silence, Ron continued. "There's too much going on for all this… deception. There are more important things to worry about."

Hermione swallowed softly and nodded, cutting her gaze to Harry before looking at Ron again. "You're right. You know we're supportive of whatever you decide, Ron. If you want to just… take things into your own hands, that's fine, too. Not necessarily quite as fun," she added for good measure, "but perfectly acceptable. We shouldn't meddle if you don't want us to be a part of it."

She took a slow, deep breath at her prolonged eye contact with Ron. She had decided the best course of action would be to just pretend that last night had been a dream, and she needed to somehow try to convince Harry that they didn't need to take part in their plan anymore. Or she'd just have to tell Ron what was going on. Neither one was ideal, but now that Ron knew about her feelings, she'd just have to wait for him to make good on his promise that nothing would change between them. If she played her cards right, Harry would never have to know what happened the night before, Ron would be single, and Harry would be free to pursue Ginny. Did she really even need his help? Last time she saw them together, they were dancing and seemed to be doing just fine on their own.

"Are you all right?" she suddenly heard Harry ask next to her, pulling her from her thoughts.

"Hm? Oh. Yeah, fine. Fine." He frowned, but didn't push. "You have your next lesson with Dumbledore soon, right?"

"Yeah, tomorrow, actually," Harry answered, moving the food around on his plate. "I'm kind of nervous."

"And you still need to get your answer from Slughorn?" Hermione asked, thankful to change the subject.

"Yeah, but I have no idea how I'm going to get it. He's suspicious of me now, so I can't just go ask him again. Every time he sees me outside of class, he avoids me," Harry sighed.

"Well, maybe you could find a different way to ask him? Beat around the bush, you know?" Ron suggested.

"Or maybe you need a little bit of luck."

Harry's eyes snapped to Hermione, silent for a few seconds as he processed if she was saying what he thought she was saying, but she just smirked into her pumpkin juice.

"Well…? How do you feel?" She knew using the Felix Felicis was probably illegal, and definitely against school rules, but if it meant getting life-saving information, Hermione was all for it, especially when she hadn't been able to find anything herself. They'd waited until the common room was empty before Hermione took a seat on the floor next to Ron while Harry sat on the couch, potion in hand, just in case they had to react quickly or something went wrong.

"Excellent. Really excellent." Harry stood quickly with the silliest grin on his face, and Hermione had to stop herself from smiling in return as she and Ron stood, too, focusing on making sure they were all clear on the plan.

"Remember, Slughorn usually eats early, takes a walk, and then returns to his office." She was making eye contact with him, but they were a little glassy, as if he was listening, but not quite paying attention.

"Right," Harry answered, making a move towards the exit. "'I'm going down to Hagrid's."

"What?" Hermione's gaze moved to Ron, who just shrugged quickly. "No, Harry, you've got to go speak to Slughorn!" He looked at her incredulously as he turned back towards them. "We have a plan."

"I know, but… I've got a really good feeling about Hagrid's. I feel like it's… it's the place to be tonight. Do you know what I mean?"

After a pause, "No" came from Hermione and Ron in unison.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing. Or… Felix does." That grin was back on his face again, and Hermione was speechless as he walked out of the portrait hole.

"Do you trust that potion?" Ron asked as soon as he was gone.

"Right now, I don't know. Maybe it'll work out. Or maybe we'll have to come up with another idea."

"It was brilliant, though. Using it."

Hermione smiled softly. "Thanks."

"Well… might as well stay here and wait for him, yeah? You think he'll be long?"

"I hope not. But since he's going off-plan, who knows?" She crossed her arms and took a seat on the couch. After a few seconds, he hesitantly settled down next to her.

"Do you… want to talk about what happened last night?" he almost whispered, making sure no one was around.

Hermione visibly stiffened again, but sighed. "Not really, but maybe we should."

"I'm sorry, honestly. I just thought… with how close the two of you have been and all, I just figured-"

"We've been pretending," Hermione interrupted. "I was pretending to like him so that you would get jealous. It's stupid, I know."

Ron just nodded, not really sure of what to say. "I mean, I kind of was, if it means anything."

She raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Well, yeah. Just because you two have gotten really close lately and I felt left out."

"Left out? We've barely seen you since you started dating Lavender! How do you think we've been feeling?"

"Well, maybe if you hadn't waited so long to tell me how you felt, she wouldn't have kissed me!"

"Oh, so this is my fault now? Feelings don't just work like that, Ron. If you don't like me now, you wouldn't have liked me before." She swallowed hard in frustration, trying not to yell. They needed to have this conversation, and if she left again, she'd just have to talk about it later. Might as well get it over with.

"No, I know, but-"

"Why do you like her?"

"I don't." The quickness and ease of his answer almost made Hermione smile.

"Then what's with all of this? I thought for a second you were trying to make me jealous."

Ron chuckled a little. "Yeah, that was pretty stupid of me, wasn't it?"

"Yes. It was. But… if you still want me to help you get rid of her, I will."

"You don't have to, Hermione. I don't want to… I don't want it to hurt you. I don't want to hurt you."

"It's… not going to hurt me any more than unreciprocated feelings already have."

"Okay, well… if you're sure. What would be the best way to do it, then? I'm just worried she won't believe me."

Hermione sighed softly. "She'd probably prefer quick and painless. Don't pretend to fancy someone else, though. You're right; that'll get too complicated. Just… I don't know, tell her you don't think it's working out anymore or… blame the war, if you want. Tell her you're going to have to help Harry fight and you don't want Voldemort to come after her if you get captured. It's not a lie."

Ron grimaced. "That's so… depressing." Hermione raised her eyebrows as if to say, Yes, well, that's the world now.

"I don't like that she's all over you, but I don't want her to get hurt, either. She doesn't need to be part of this. If he's going to come after anyone, it's us and the people we're close to."

Leaning against the back of the couch, Ron let out a sigh. It was getting real, and once Harry found out what these horcruxes were, something would change, though they weren't sure what.

By the time Harry got back from Hagrid's, Ron and Hermione were asleep on the couch, heads pressed against each other where they fell. The effects of the potion had worn off by now, but he'd gotten the information he needed stored safely in a vial in his pocket. He smiled softly, watching them for a moment before reaching out a hand to gently shake Hermione first. She groaned as she opened her eyes.

"Harry? Are you okay? Did you get your answer?" When she turned to realize her head was pressed against Ron's, she blushed, sitting up quickly and rubbing her eyes.

"Looks like you didn't miss me," he smirked, to which Hermione shook her head, adjusting her hair.

"No, that's… we'll talk about that later. Did you find Slughorn?"

"Yeah, I did." He reached for Ron, waking him up too, who jumped up with a small snore.

"Wuzzapening?" he sniffed, rubbing his face and not even realizing at first how close he'd been to Hermione.

"Slughorn got drunk at Hagrid's," Harry explained matter-of-factly. "It was actually… I mean, it was like it was meant to be, you know?"

"Good, because I really was concerned for a second."

"Well, it worked out." Harry pulled the vial out of his pocket and showed them the memory swirling inside. "This is what we needed. Now we'll at least know what Voldemort's doing. What he's planning."

"That's amazing!" Hermione grinned, looking between the two of them before standing quickly. "Well, I think I should go to bed. We just wanted to make sure you came back in one piece." She hugged Harry quickly. "Goodnight, Harry. Goodnight, Ron." She cleared her throat softly before giving him a wave and heading up the stairs.

"Okay, what happened while I was gone?" Harry laughed as he and Ron headed to their own beds.

"Don't even get me started, mate," Ron huffed, shaking his head. "She told me about your plan."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Did you… think I fancied her?"

"Well, you talk about her enough. I figured you did."

Ron shrugged. "I mean, I just… we've grown up together, so I feel like she's my sister or something by now. I think it'd be weird, you know?"

Harry shrugged. "I dunno. People we've grown up with are really our only options, aren't they?" he answered as they started changing and getting into bed.

"Wait, do you fancy her?"

"What?"

"That wasn't a no."

"No, I don't, I just… I just meant in general. We've been with the whole school since we were eleven. It's not just Hermione…"

"Mmhmm," Ron answered, though he clearly wasn't convinced. "It's alright if you do, though. Or… if you change your mind."

"We've got more important stuff to worry about right now. I'll think about my feelings later." He pulled the blanket over his shoulder, but didn't say much more, feeling that it wasn't the best time to mention his crush on Ron's sister.

The girl… we need the girl.

As bait, yes.

If we take her, he will follow.

Then we can kill him.

And then kill her.

Harry woke in a cold sweat and immediately scrambled for the Marauder's Map, nearly falling out of bed as he did. When he took a glance towards Ron's bed, he was grateful to still hear him snoring. He pulled out the map, careful in his haste not to tear it. He couldn't even imagine the repercussions if he messed it up. His racing heart calmed a little as Ginny's name was safely displayed in the dorms.

But that meant Voldemort had gotten into his mind again, and now Ginny was vulnerable, which is exactly what he was fighting to prevent. Feelings aside, if Voldemort got Ginny, Ron would come along too, which would put him in danger. They had to end this.

The common room had never felt so empty as it did once Dumbledore had asked Harry to join him on a very important journey to the next horcrux. Within the last few weeks, he'd filled him in on some details, and tonight, they were going to destroy it. He heard Hermione come through the portrait hole before he heard her voice, but it didn't stop his heart racing at her words. "It's time, Harry." He had no idea what to expect on this journey, only that it was incredibly dangerous and it would get them closer to defeating Voldemort once and for all. He'd thrown himself into research after the voice he'd heard in his dreams, not telling Ron or Hermione why he was suddenly so dedicated, suddenly more and more paranoid with every passing day.

Thankfully, they'd already gotten rid of two, which was a huge relief considering how difficult they were to obtain. He was ready to get this over with between hexing Malfoy, enduring detention as well as the hospital wing, finally, with Hermione's insistence, getting rid of his copy of Advanced Potion Making in the Room of Requirement, and hours and hours of research the three of them had been doing. But tonight, they were hunting one down, and Harry's stomach was housing a weird mix of fear and excitement. Even on the way there, he was planning ahead and thinking what Ron and Hermione could do at the castle while he was gone. They were silent as Harry headed to the Astronomy tower, where Dumbledore had asked to meet him, until he had an idea.

"Hermione, is the Room of Requirement unplottable?"

Hermione frowned softly, moving a little closer to Harry so they could talk quieter. "If one wants it to be. Why?"

"Well then that would explain why I thought Malfoy was leaving the castle when he disappeared off the map. He was just going to the Room of Requirement."

"Of course," Hermione exclaimed. "And then that would explain the vanishing cabinet as well."

"Yeah."

Ron piped up as they moved out into the courtyard. "Oh! I got a letter from Dad this morning. The one in Borgin and Burke's is still there."

Harry shook his head. "No, I'm telling you I saw it." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. There had to be an explanation as to what Malfoy was planning - what he'd been "chosen" for. A few students were out on the courtyard sitting on blankets on the grass for their free period, and a few of them made eye contact, but it wasn't until he noticed a set of twins that something clicked in his brain. "What if there are two vanishing cabinets?"

"What if there are?"

Harry paused. Though a good idea, it still didn't help. It didn't make sense of anything. "I don't know. But Hermione, I want you to take the map and keep an eye on him and Snape. With Dumbledore gone, Malfoy will be free to do whatever it is he's planning."

"Harry-"

"No, listen to me. Ron, there's a pair of socks in my trunk that has the rest of the Felix Felicis in it. Share it between the both of you. Dumbledore's got the castle protected, but even if Snape knows what the enchantments are, he won't be expecting you to be keeping an eye on him."

"No, you need to take the potion, Harry," she whispered, grabbing his arm as they neared the Astronomy tower, afraid that if they got too close, she wouldn't be able to say goodbye. "You have no idea what you're about to be up against!"

"I'll be fine, Hermione," Harry promised, or at least tried to. "I'll be with Dumbledore. I want to make sure that you two are okay. Don't look at me like that. I'll see you later."

Ron took a deep breath. "Good luck, mate," he said honestly, trying to ignore the tugging in his heart that wondered if this would be the last time he'd ever see him.

Hermione hugged him tightly anyway, and kissed his cheek, a gesture he subconsciously returned, but it only seemed to make Hermione more worried.

"I have to go. I'll come get you as soon as I'm back, okay? I'll wake you up."

"I'm not sleeping while you're gone, Harry," Hermione breathed. "I just need to know you're safe."

"I will be," he replied, hugging her again before finally pulling away to walk slowly towards the Astronomy tower.

Later that night, well after dinner, there was a commotion echoing through the castle, and everyone rushed to evacuate in a panic. In the courtyard they'd just been hours earlier, lay Dumbledore's body. Students and staff alike provided a wide berth, afraid to get closer. Hermione gasped at the sight, clutching Ron's sleeve, and all awkwardness that may have been between them was gone as he pulled her into a tight hug, unsure of what to say himself. He raised his eyes to the sky and swallowed hard at the sight of the Dark Mark the Death Eaters had left. This was war.

Movement caught the corner of his eye and he saw Harry approach, and sighed in relief that he hadn't been killed, too. But now, there were no more clues. They were screwed.

"Harry," Hermione whispered, pulling away from Ron as he passed. Harry didn't need to be alone in this. She watched closely as he had his moment with the body before setting aside her own grief to take slow, deliberate steps towards him. She didn't care what the rest of the school would think; it was almost as if her movement wasn't even up to her. As soon as he hand touched Harry's shoulder, she felt him shudder, the dam holding everything back breaking, and he turned towards her, clutching the locket in one hand and her with the other. She let her tears roll onto him as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him. Her heart broke for him, for all of them, for the school, for everyone watching, for all the information he could have provided to help them win this. Now, she wasn't sure what to do. She didn't want to do anything. For the first time she could remember, she wanted to give up, but hearing Harry sobs into her shirt gave her a renewed will to fight. She had to protect him like he was protecting her.

Slowly, Hermione opened her eyes when she noticed a dim light growing stronger. She wiped her tears on what she could reach of her sleeve to see hundreds of wands being raised towards the sky in grief for their headmaster. She took a deep, calming breath. They would be okay. They would win. They would figure this out no matter what it took because what other choice did they have? Ron made eye contact with her and nodded.

By the next evening, it seemed like nothing had happened. Dumbledore's body had been moved in preparation for the funeral, the staff had begun to clean up the destruction in the Great Hall, and the ink-poisoned clouds had disappeared with the wind. It was quiet. None of them had slept that night, and tired as they were, spent all day with Harry in near silence. Classes had been canceled and everyone kept to themselves in what may have been the most depressing day at Hogwarts they'd ever had, even more so than the day after Cedric's death. They had moved on pretty quickly after Cedric, but losing Dumbledore was a different story entirely. Hushed voices sounded in the halls as teachers tried to figure out what to do. And every time they saw McGonagall, it looked like she was struggling to keep it together, but she didn't crack once.

Ron and Hermione didn't protest when Harry took a plate from the Great Hall at dinner and left, instead quickly following him with their own food up to the Astronomy Tower. Ron winced a little at the top as he glanced down to the courtyard, briefly thinking for a moment that it was probably better that Dumbledore was already dead when he fell. Harry ate quickly and moved to the balcony, two sets of eyes on him carefully. Hermione knew he'd have to talk about it eventually, but let Harry have his moment before setting her plate down and joining him. Ron stayed behind - on one hand, he didn't want to crowd him, but he also knew Hermione was better at this stuff than he was.

She stood next to Harry for a minute before speaking. "Do you think he would have done it? Draco?" Vanishing cabinet and Death Eaters aside, she couldn't imagine him actually murdering someone, not with how he'd been looking lately, and she wondered if that had anything to do with it.

"No." It was the first thing he'd said since he left the day before, and it almost shocked Hermione; part of her wasn't expecting him to answer. "No, he was lowering his wand. In the end, it was Snape. It was always Snape… and I did nothing." She turned to answer, to take his hand, to hug him, to do something, but he was giving her the locket. "It was fake. Open it."

Hermione glanced up at him in disbelief, but he was serious. Sure enough, with shaky fingers, she pulled a piece of paper out of the inside and unfolded it, reading it aloud. "R.A.B. Who's R.A.B.?"

"Dunno. But whoever they are, they have the real horcrux. And it means it was all a waste. All of it."

Hermione took a deep breath. "I think Ron would be okay with it, you know. You and Ginny," she muttered. It had been an unspoken conversation between them in the past few hours that their plan was over. It wasn't worth it. If there was ever a time to not be worried about who you're dating, it was now. They could handle it all after Voldemort was gone.

"I'm not coming back, Hermione. I've got to finish whatever Dumbledore started. And… I don't know where that'll lead me, but I'll let you and Ron know where I am when I can."

"I've always admired your courage, Harry," she teased. "But sometimes, you can be really thick." When he turned to her with confusion, Hermione almost laughed. "You don't really think you'll be able to find all those horcruxes by yourself, do you?" Harry looked back out over the landscape, but she leaned forward to catch his eyes once more. He wasn't getting away from this conversation, hard as it may be. "You need us, Harry."

She wasn't expecting him to reach over and take her hand, but she squeezed his in return before he pulled it back. "I never realized how beautiful this place was." As they looked out into the sunset, a screech in the sky almost brought tears to Hermione's eyes again. "Fawkes," she heard Harry whisper as the phoenix flew over their heads and into the sun.

"What's going to happen to him?" Hermione asked, leaning her head onto Harry's shoulder. She found herself wanting to be as close to Harry as physically possible now that she wasn't sure when her last moment with him would be, and it was terrifying.

"He's free, I guess. I don't know who else he'd go to. I'd imagine he's part of the Dumbledore family. Now that there's none of them left…"

"Maybe he'll come back. Maybe he'll help us again."

"Maybe. I guess we'll have to find out, right? Wherever we are?"

"Wherever we are."