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Chapter Ten

I'm going to kill him. It was Ron's only thought as he cradled Hermione's trembling body against his own. True to his words, Ron had been trailing behind her in case she fell, which was lucky since he barely had time to think before she had come hurtling towards him. Ron had reached out immediately, catching Hermione in midair. The force of impact however had sent them both sprawling down a few feet before they steadied themselves shakily on a protruding ledge. Still entangled in eachother's arms, the two had half-crawled and half-dragged one another until they were both pressed safely into a small cave on the cliff, shielded from the harsh winds.

"What the hell happened?" Ron demanded, slowly gaining consciousness about the scene that had just materialized before his eyes. Hermione and Harry had been talking and all of a sudden Harry had—no, Ron told himself, Harry wouldn't do something like that. Hermione, still shaken from her recent exchange with Harry burrowed into Ron's warm robes, reveling in the security of his tight embrace.

"I don't know what happened—we were just talking!" Hermione sobbed, suddenly finding her voice. Ron's heart reached out to her—he had never seen her more frightened. She still trembled beneath his grasp, a grasp he had no intention of loosening any time soon. When she was so close, Ron could feel the violent beating of her heart, like the wings of a hummingbird, brushing against his chest.

"Shhh, Hermione's its okay," Ron whispered comfortingly, smoothing down Hermione's hair. She looked up at him, fat tear coating her chalk-white face.

"Oh Ron, I was so scared," she mumbled miserably. She had calmed considerably but he could still feel the rhythmic pounding of her heart against his chest. When she was so close to him Ron could smell her shampoo, the familiar smell of her robes, her warm breath lightly gracing his neck like a feather. Ron could barely resist catching her lips in his own, as they had only hours before. She nearly died and all you can think about it making out with her? Way to woo a woman Ron, he chastised himself silently. Still, he could barely contain himself. His insides were turning over as if completely entangled. He almost felt as if he had to kiss her before—before what? Ron asked himself. Would I really die if I didn't kiss her? It almost seemed plausible, Ron decided as his pulse quickened. He had been fighting so hard to maintain his emotions that he hadn't even noticed that Hermione had drawn her head of his robes, turning to stare straight into his eyes. She looked confused, as if trying to decipher his emotions. Then, as if caught in slow motion, Hermione leaned forward, catching Ron's lips in a very welcome thank you.


The kiss lasted seconds, but when they pulled apart it took both Ron and Hermione a minute to regain their bearings. Ron looked at Hermione, blinking away his surprise. She stared at him a moment, a gentle smile playing on her face before her features became dark again, a shadowy veil pulling across her visage.

"We should keep our heads clear. That was bad" Hermione chided but Ron couldn't tell if she was talking to him or herself.

"You're right," Ron agreed, albeit he was somewhat hesitant. The last thing he wanted to do was discourage any of Hermione's advances. Still, he wanted to appear too eager.

"Right," Hermione added after a moment as if trying to convince herself. She exhaled slowly, gathering her bearings, gently tucking a strand of unruly hair behind her ear. "We need to figure out what's wrong with Harry." Ron nodded, returning to his former plan of murdering the git. After a minute, Ron decided to rethink his plan, putting his plot temporarily on hold until he actually knew the whole story. After all, maybe all he needed was a sound thrashing.

"Maybe it was an accident," Hermione suggested but even she sounded skeptical of the idea.

"No way Hermione—stop excusing it," Ron objected loudly. "That was no accident. He deliberately pushed you. Plus, he wouldn't have kept climbing if it were an accident. He never even looked back." Hermione glanced up and sure enough, Harry's cloaked form had disappeared from the cliff side. Hermione's mouth fell into a little "o" of surprise. She had half-expected Harry to be clamoring down to the landing where she and Ron had taken refuge. "You don't think—you don't think he's under the Imperius curse do you? I mean, that's loads better than suddenly deciding to push your best friend off a cliff." Ron suggested. Hermione bit her lip. Ron's idea did sound plausible, but—but what? Hermione asked herself. It was his eyes, Hermione thought suddenly, that look in his eyes was just too…unnatural. I've never seen anything like it before. It couldn't have been Harry. It was…evil. "Hermione? Do you think it was the imperious curse?" Ron repeated gently, staring into Hermione's eyes. She had a faraway look to her face, as if she had become lost in thought. Ron reached out, taking Hermione's arm in his and ultimately knocking her from her trance. "So, we've decided on Imperious then?" Ron pressed. Hermione looked at him blankly, shaking her head.

"I don't know what's wrong with Harry, or where he is, but I do know that the man up there was not Harry."


"Where do we go from here?" Hermione looked around, smoothing out her robes and wiping the mud from her hands. She didn't know what she had expected to find at the top of the cliff, but this wasn't it/ Stretching out before them was a heavily wooded forest, thick with tall, dark trees that stretched back as far as Hermione could see. She sighed heavily, already exhausted from the climb.

"Well, we either go above it or through it and seeing as our brooms are stowed down there, I'd say we only have one choice." Ron blanched visibly but gritted his teeth. He did not want to appear scared now, especially when Hermione looked so determined.

"W-what if there are spiders in there?" Ron stuttered before he could stop himself.

"I'm sure there are. Big ones—probably big enough to eat you whole," Hermione remarked dryly, but when Ron turned towards her, horror written across his features, he found that she was smiling. He broke into a grin of relief. Hermione blushed slightly, brushing her hair back once more. "Sorry," she said with a guilty smile, "I couldn't resist." Ron laughed, casually slipping an arm around her waist. Ron had thought for hours—long before her fall—about how to orchestrate a move like that. Still, he found himself wishing he had just forgotten it when Hermione stiffened visibly and pulled away.

"Ron, no," she said, her voice void of any of its former playfulness. "We have more important things to worry about." Ron was hurt and suddenly felt guilty. Relax, it isn't like you're a sexual pervert—she was leading you on and it was just an arm! It wasn't like you tried to get her to strip down! Ron rationalized.

"Why can't we?" He found himself asking in a sudden burst of boldness. Hermione was taken back at his question.

"What—what do you mean? We have much more important things to figure out right now! I can't have you pawing all over me when there could be an evil force—,"

"Me? Pawing all over you? God Hermione, all I did was put my arm around you—it's not like I tried to shag you right here and now! You were the one who threw yourself at me down there!" Ron bellowed incredulously.

"I threw myself at you?" Hermione shot back hotly, "I would never! It was a moment of weakness! I was thanking you!" Ron scoffed.

"Well I never saw you thank McGonagall like that when she gives you a good score or house points!" Hermione rolled her eyes.

"McGonagall'sscores or pointshave never saved my life! Besides—you, well, I know you don't really mean it!" Ron stared at Hermione as if she had started speaking in a different language.

"What do you mean, I don't mean it? Of course I do! I love you! I want to be with you all the time! I have to be with you or else I go insane!" Ron exaggerated, smacking his forehead in frustration. Hermione ignored the wetness around her eyes, plowing on relentlessly.

"Ron you can't love me like that! Don't be ridiculous, that kind of love doesn't exist. That love is fake, don't you get it?" Ron stared at her blankly.

"Fake? What are you talking about? None of this is fake—,"

"Ron don't be so daft! These things that you're feeling aren't real—they can't be! Its lust—pure, unbridled lust! It's all bottled, brewed, whatever you want to call it—it isn't real!" Ron was practically shaking with annoyance.

"Have you gone completely bonkers, Hermione? What are you talking about?" He roared over Hermione's rant. She sighed, venting her own frustrations.

"It's a potion Ron, a bloody potion! You're not in love with me; you're in lust with me or whatever you want to call it. The point is, it's all fake and it's tearing me apart." With a tiny sob of defeat, Hermione turned away from an awestruck Ron and began advancing towards the forest.