16/05/06:- Thanks for telling me bout the huge grammar mistake I made, I wasn't sure about it but stupidly just went with it. Really should have paid more attention to 'Penny and me' by Hanson, that may have given me a hint. Anyway I couldn't leave it how it was, so I've changed it. For those who haven't read the chapter before and have no idea what I'm talking about, just have a quick look at the reviews for this chapter, that'll set you straight! Cheers, Step ;)
(Original AN:) Hiya, bit of an interlude from the madness, thought this was well short but it's not, reads quite quickly though. Erm...not much more to say really, again, thanks for the reviews always much appreciated. The next one really will be a while (I know I said this one would be but hey!) because I haven't even started to write it yet and the next few days are hectic as hell! Hope you like this one. Please R & R ;)
Step
Chapter 31
Hermione was sat cross-legged on the hard wooden floor, gazing at the stars out of the skylight. Their house had an attic which had been converted into a bedroom by the previous owners. Her and Harry had yet to decide what to do with it so it was, at present, quite a large empty space, with only a couple of boxes which held some of their stuff from Hogwarts, and a few books that Hermione didn't have room for in her bedroom.
The full moon was shining through the skylight, she stared at it and briefly thought of Remus and Tonks who would no doubt be wishing this night would be over, but quickly her thoughts returned to where they spent most of the time, with Ron in St. Mungo's. It was during tea that she had suddenly gone cold inside and she no longer felt hungry, or even capable of eating another bite. She had excused herself from the table, apologised to Ginny for not being able to eat the substantial snack she had made for the three of them to eat before they went to bed, as she did so, and disappeared into the attic.
As ever when she wanted to be totally alone she had made the hatch imperturbable and had put silencing charms around it so she couldn't hear any attempts Ginny or Harry made of getting her to come down. She knew how much it frustrated them, but at the moment she didn't care, all she could think about was the huge revelation that had come to her fifteen minutes earlier.
When they had apparated back to Hogsmeade they had collected Ginny from the pub. She had been sat in the corner with Hagrid, who had insisted on buying her drinks for the time she had been there. In some ways it was a comfort, talking about school and reminiscing about the good times she'd had there, but her mind always took her back to the cave outside the village.
When they had got home Harry had explained to Ginny what had gone on in the cave between him, Hermione and Malfoy. She had been as amazed by Malfoy's request as Hermione and Harry, and unsure of how she should feel about the revelation of her brother's condition.
Out of the small window Hermione couldn't distinguish any specific constellations, but still she stared at the single stars thinking she might feel better if she believed that wishing on the first one she had seen would help.
She shifted position so she was now led on the hard floor, her arms crossed above her head, wand in hand and eyes closed. Her stomach was squirming and there was nothing she could do to make it stop. As she thought that thought again, tears welled in her eyes and after another few seconds they ran down her temples into her hair but she didn't make a sound, she didn't shudder with sobs, tears just left her eyes and made tracks down her face.
As she laid on the floor, eyes closed to the space around her she was blissfully unaware of the commotion happening outside the window, not that she'd have seen anything if she had opened her eyes.
When Harry and Ginny had been unable to get into the attic Ginny had had what Harry thought was a stupid idea but she wasn't going to let it go, so he had given up. The skylight which Hermione had been gazing through was the only way into the attic as Hermione had made the hatch impossible to get near, 'I hate her being so bloody clever sometimes!' Ginny had exclaimed in a moment of frustration, hence the plan she had come up with. It involved a broom, (namely Harry's Firebolt) an invisibility cloak, (again Harry's) and someone going through the skylight on said broom and under said invisibility cloak, (namely Harry).
Five minutes after Harry had given in to Ginny he was hovering outside the window, granted it looked bigger than he thought, but he was right in thinking it was smaller than Ginny had made it out to be. For another minute he hovered, trying to determine the best way to get into the attic, but after realising there was no safe way to do it with the window as it was, he raised his wand and banished the glass.
Hoping Hermione wouldn't realise there was a breeze now filling the room he laid low on his broom and managed to manoeuvre himself through the now glassless window and touched down on the wooden floor, unbelievably without Hermione opening her eyes.
He pulled off his cloak and dropped it on to the floor and then leant his broom against the wall, he let go and the broom slid sideways and landed with a loud thump on the floor.
Hermione's eyes snapped open and she sat up in a fraction of a second and threw her wand arm forward and silently cast the disarming spell. Harry's eyes widened as his wand left his hand, hit the ceiling sending red sparks in every direction and then landed with a clatter on the floor behind him.
'Jesus Harry! What the hell are you doing? How did you get in?' she demanded.
'I flew through the window!' he said, slightly shocked by the speed and ferocity of her actions.
'You what?'
'I flew in to the room through the window, there was no way I could get in through the hatch so Ginny decided I should get in through here.
'Did either of you think that the reason I made the hatch impenetrable from that side was that I wanted to be on my own?' she subconsciously wiped the tears of her face with the sleeve of her jumper and looked at the floor.
'Yes Hermione we did,' Harry replied in a matter-of-fact tone.
'Well thanks for taking my feelings into consideration.'
'Oh don't take that tone Hermione, you know why I'm here, and you've got to admire the trouble I went to, to get in!' he said with a smile on his face.
Something inside her smiled, but she couldn't make her face mirror the feeling. Instead she turned her attention to Harry's wand, which was still led a few metres behind him. She waved her own and summoned Harry's to her and then held it out for him to take.
'Thanks,' he muttered.
He sat down opposite Hermione on the floor and looked at her, his expression softened as he noticed her bloodshot eyes.
'H why have you been crying?' he asked her softly, 'I thought you'd be happy after what happened tonight. Things couldn't really have gone much better for us, could they?'
As Harry's words met her ears, tears began to fall again, this time accompanied by a small sob that left her mouth before she could get her hand to it, to stop its escape. Harry quickly moved forward next to her and put his arms around her, enveloping her in a hug. She grabbed on to him like her life depended on it, and cried into his shoulder.
'Oh Hermione, don't cry. You're making my shoulder wet for one, and for another…Ron hates it when you're upset.'
On hearing Ron's name Hermione had taken a deep breath and tried to compose herself, it worked a little, her breathing levelled out but tears still fell from her eyes.
'That's the other thing he made me promise him you know, to comfort you and to try and make you smile if you were upset and crying, because he hated seeing you sad. That's why I'm here and ignored your obvious attempts to shut yourself away, I wouldn't be doing what he asked if I let you shut yourself away and get all upset. Which is exactly what you were doing wasn't it.'
She nodded into his shoulder, not trusting herself to make a dignified sound just yet.
'Well then, it's a good thing I risked giving one of our neighbours a shock then isn't it, not that that would have happened, I'm too good!'
She couldn't help but utter a small laugh at his comment. She pulled back and wiped her face for the second time.
'That's better, now what's got you this worked up?'
Hermione breathed deeply, taking a second to compose herself.
'I…er…I realised something when we were eating earlier. Malfoy…he told us that Ron was hit by that spell and the only way to revive him is to use those three counters with a Death Eater present. Well…what if it takes three Death Eaters to do it? What then? There's no way in hell that two other Death Eaters are going to come forward and volunteer for the job are they? They'd rather die than help the Ministry or us. So if…' she breathed in a shuddering breath, 'so if it doesn't work with Malfoy then that really is it. We're out of options, and he'll be in that everlasting sleep until the day he dies.'
'Hermione…'
'Please Harry, don't tell me there's another way, we both know there isn't.'
Harry hung his head, he wanted to contradict her, but he knew she was right. His thoughts mirrored those Ginny had had earlier. Sometimes he wished Hermione wasn't as clever as she was, a realisation like this was something she didn't need.
'It seems I've become talented in stunning you into silence,' she said quietly, her tone saddened.
'I just don't know what to say to make you feel better. I'm trying to think of something, anything that would help, but nothing's coming to me.'
'There's nothing to say, unfortunately it's just one of those things we'll somehow have to learn to accept.'
'How can anyone learn to accept that?' Harry whispered, almost to himself.
On hearing his words Hermione started to cry again, there was nothing she could do to stop the tears falling.
'Oh Hermione I'm sorry, I just…don't know what to say.'
'That's…that's ok.'
She twirled her wand with her fingers and stared at the floor. Harry put his hand on her shoulder trying to comfort her.
'Look Hermione…I know…I know that things could go spectacularly pear shaped when we try and revive Ron, but there's still a chance that it'll work. I know I normally tell you to try and not get your hopes up, but there is a real chance that this might work. Malfoy's just going off the general known vindictiveness of the Death Eaters in thinking there might be more to it-'
'Well he'd know all about that, which is why what he said scares me. It scares me so much because it sounds exactly like the kind of thing that Death Eaters would do, doesn't it?'
'Well yes…it does, but there might be a more practical reason why they might not have done. What if they couldn't guarantee that a Death Eater could be present if one of them or their family or friends was hit with it? They'd still want them to be reawakened wouldn't they? So they might not have done it for that reason.'
Hermione looked at him, she wanted to believe what he said, and in some way it made sense, but it didn't get rid of the gnawing sensation at the back of her mind that refused to go away with any amount of reasoning.
'I want to believe you Harry, but I don't think I can.'
'I understand that, but can I suggest we cross that bridge when we come to it? There is absolutely no point in worrying ourselves about what might not happen.'
Hermione looked up at him reproachfully.
'I know that's the easiest thing to say and the hardest thing to do,' he added at the look on her face, 'but will you please try, for Ginny and I. Please?'
Hermione smiled.
'Ginny and me,' she corrected, almost apologetically.
Harry smiled.
'Dammit! That's the last time I try and be smart.'
Hermione laughed, 'Yes, we wouldn't want youstraining yourself now would we?'
Harry raised his eyebrows, 'Well I can see you're feeling better! Now, will you come downstairs and put Ginny out of her misery?'
'Yes I will.'
'Good.'
Harry stood up and held his hand out to Hermione. She grasped it and their combined efforts helped her stand. Harry turned around and picked his broom and cloak off the floor. Hermione walked over to the hatch and lifted the charms that were on it. Before she opened it she turned to Harry who was stood behind her.
'I will try Harry, I promise.'
'That's all I ask Hermione. That's all I ask.'
