Hey everyone I am trying to consistently update. Disclaimer is simple I don't own them and wouldn't it be scary if I did.
Dumbledore's fury seemed larger than life and palpable as they both sat heavily in the chintz chairs he had made appear in the room. Dumbledore himself sat down with a sigh before both of them on the edge of his desk. Both Harry and Ron were very familiar with this office after all they had gotten into trouble and been sent here enough times to have it memorized. He stared hollowly at the both of them as if he wasn't quite sure who they were to even begin with. His mouth opened slowly and his voice made him sound older than either of them had ever heard him sound. "Explain to me Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley why you were the only two standing over an unconscious Hermione Granger. Might I add that she was lying there in a pool of obviously her own blood?"
They looked at him then shared a look between themselves and seemed to be deciding who should speak first. Harry shifted slightly in the chintz chair and turned to further face Dumbledore his bright green eyes were dulled from anger and other emotions that swirled like a myriad in his eyes. "She was coming down the path as we were leaving from hagrid's. Hagrid told her that he would be back in a moment and that he needed to get Fang out of his garden. She continued down the path a little towards us." Here he stopped and shifted his eyes back to Ron who took a deep breath and continued the story, "We made a joke at her and jokingly shoved into her. She fell really hard and started to cough and after a minute or so she started to cough up blood and she passed out at that point. She'd been out for a few seconds when Hagrid showed back up and called Fawkes and then you. That's the entire story sir." Dumbledore didn't know what to say to the boys part of him wanted to tell them the truth and to set the record straight the other half of him wanted to punish them for what they had done. Settling on a mixture of the two he replied to their stares, "You both have detention this week and next weekend. No discussions Mr. Weasley this is not optional. I would ask that you leave Ms. Granger alone for the remainder of your stay at Hogwarts. That is all you may leave."
Dumbledore rose and waved his right arm allowing the door to fly open easily. Moments later they exited the oddly decorated and even junkier office than it had been in previous years. Ron waited till Harry had already left standing there for a moment longer than necessary, he turned back to face Dumbledore and his eyes betrayed a slight guilt and more that Dumbledore could only guess as to what it was , " Will she be all right Professor?" He stared back at Ron his quizzical blue eyes meeting eyes just as vibrant as his with just as many questions. "I do not know the answer to that question Mr. Weasley."
Ron left no happier than when he had entered into the office. A tiny part of him wanted to rush off to the Hospital Wing and apologize a thousand and one times to Hermione to pledge his undying love for all eternity but as none of those options were plausible he refrained from them and decided on a long walk near the forest's edge, as being the best thing for him. Harry had walked through the winding corridors his mind lost elsewhere. After finally making his way to the common room he headed in and paused momentarily as he scanned the room looking for Ron. Finding him missing he started to head to the front couches but spotting another Weasley a more feminine one he declined. Ginny was snuggling with some bloke that Harry had never seen before it was making his stomach turn so he headed quickly up the winding stairs to his bed to lay down. As he entered the room he stopped to consider that nothing had really changed in appearance in this room for years. Yes, occasionally a poster might be changed or so but other than that it all looked the same as it had all those years ago it seemed. Harry opened his curtains to the four poster he'd called his bed for years and fell willingly into the softness of the sheets. He closed his eyes allowing himself to fall back through all the painful memories that he'd hidden for years.
Ginny the single word brought up a million memories and feelings from the shy little girl he'd saved from Tom Riddle to the gorgeous woman he had fallen in love with. He thought back to all the beautiful memories they'd shared together including the first time he told her that he loved her with his whole heart and soul.
Ginny and Harry were seated in the fore couch of the Gryffindor common room talking in low tones and watching the fire slowly die before them. He held her in his arms reveling in the feeling of holding her firmly against him and feeling her warmth radiate through his body. He started to say something but a part of him however small was loathe to end the comfortable silence between them but he knew in a corner of his heart it was the right time to tell her. They hadn't been dating long in the least bit but as far as Harry was concerned he'd loved her in silence for years. He whispered the words to her quietly and she shifted to look into his eyes trying to see for herself if what she'd just heard was real or merely her imagination. She was met with burning green eyes alight with first and truest love. She smiled a watery smile and heard him say for one more time the most precious words to her, "I love you."
If only life had been so kind as to allow them to stay in that wonderful moment but reality was slightly more bitter to the taste. Harry could recall there many rows with perfect clarity. She was jealous and how could she not be he did spend a lot of time in Hermione's presence but it had never occurred to him how much that could hurt Ginny. Harry had seen for the first time then the depth to which his love's insecurities had truly gone. Yes, Ginny had been loved her entire life but she'd never been loved in the way Harry loved her and she was frightened of losing him to someone else. He had understood entirely and had set about to correct it until that fateful night.
Coming in sore and tired from a rough batch of brutal practices he was muddy and bruised. Quickly making his way up to change he came make down the stairs gingerly and moments later settled into a comfy half of a couch enjoying the warmth of the fire compared to the bitter chill of November nights. Only then did he realize that Hermione was the other occupant of the couch and it was obvious to Harry that she had been crying and rather heavily at that. Best friend to the rescue that he was he scooted closer to her. "Hey herms what's wrong," he asked softly. He knew that she and Ron had broken up not that long ago and that it had shattered a part of Hermione entirely. I there was anything else that could have had her that upset he didn't know what it was and he was rather afraid to ask. She tried to smile through the falling tears, "Nothing wonder boy I'll be fine." Not taking that for an answer he pulled her closer wrapping his arms around her in a gesture of big brotherly love. Only a few minutes later did Ginny walk in and to her, her worst nightmare had come true. She wouldn't listen to reason and refused to speak to Harry at all. She felt betrayed and he just grew angry at everyone.
Nothing had ever been solved from there he though bitterly. He and Ron had stayed friends and Ginny was still keeping her distance. Harry and Ron had at that point turned on Hermione and become as brutal to her as possible. Harry no longer had cared whether it was logical or not to blame Hermione. He had simply begun to blame her and she had quietly allowed them too. He'd watched from afar a part of his heart aching to see his once best friend hurting so badly. Harry might never admit it to anyone but he'd seen how much Hermione had just slowly died within. He'd seen the pain hiding in her eyes and he could see how alone in the world she'd become. She had no friends because everyone in the school had blamed her for splitting Harry and Ginny up in the first place. As Harry drifted off to sleep his dream were littered with haunting images of Hermione though his mind was to tired to determine whether they were past, present, or possibly future.
Lying still in a sterile bed Hermione drifted through old memories in her heart. She was lying still as though she was only sleeping. She felt like she was walking a long and narrow lane she'd never seen before and was becoming lost in the mist. She bitterly and despairingly wondered if she would ever make it home and even if she did, did she truly have a home anymore?
End chappie
AN: So another one bites the dust. Next chapter we'll go into what's going to happen to Hermione and the next chapter will be very long since it will tell in further detail a lot of the flashbacks. Soon the plot will thicken immensely. Has anyone else noticed this has all (all the present actions I mean) taken place in the span of like three days? Good I suppose, that'll mean a very long story over all because I'm spanning the year and a bit further on. Blah review at will, my stuffed trowa will bite you. Flames will be used to roast marshmallows and burn bad pictures of me.
