A big thank you to all of you for reviewing. And a big thank you to Moonfairy13 who is an excellent writing buddy and helped me with fixing some plot holes. I recommend her wonderful story Fremione and the Weasleys

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WHAT IF

Chapter 14 - Healing Hearts?

In the weeks after the Yule Ball Hermione and Ron had some kind of understanding. They spoke to each other but neither brought up the ball or Viktor Krum. They also were a bit too polite and too formal with each other, and Hermione could tell that it was grating on Harry's nerves.

Harry was back to being a bundle of nerves now that the second task wasn't that far away anymore but no matter what Hermione did or said, he always assured her that he was working on the golden egg. And that he was close to solving the puzzle. Hermione decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and believed him for now. If Harry needed help he would say so in time, she was sure.

The more pressing problem after the Christmas holidays was the absence of Hagrid. Their friend and Professor was absent from their first lesson after the holidays and after a not so amusing conversation with Draco Malfoy and the other Slytherins, the three found out why. Somehow Rita Skeeter had managed to find out about Hagrid's mother and his giant heritage. A massive article about Hagrid and his - unfortunately true - fondness for dangerous creatures had been published by the Daily Prophet and made it's round through the school like wildfire.

Hermione was fuming when she read the article. First Harry, now Hagrid. This woman was a menace! Of course, Harry, Ron and Hermione tried to speak to Hagrid as soon as possible but for weeks he hid away in his hut, ashamed and afraid probably, and refused to see anyone.

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Hermione strolled through the library, searching for a specific book about bonds. In one of the rare books about house elves bonds, she had found a cross-reference to this book and she thought that it might be her best shot on getting further information.

But again, Hermione wasn't lucky. Somehow this book was always borrowed by someone else when she looked for it. It was annoying. Hermione couldn't understand how such a normal and probably boring book as Bonds in Theory and Practice could be so popular.

With a huff, Hermione went back to her table and started with her homework. It didn't take long till Viktor sat beside her, a bright smile on his face, and nodded as a greeting. Since the ball, this had become their little routine. They would meet up at the library, study a few hours, talk a bit in between, and then walk to the Great Hall together. And that was when the troubled usually started.

Since the ball, everyone was whispering whenever Hermione and Viktor were together at some place. But interestingly enough no one made comments towards Hermione. Not even Pansy Parkinson found the courage to belittle Hermione about her appearance as usual. It was an interesting but welcome change. But Hermione knew it rooted in the assumption that Viktor and she were some kind of couple.

A complete false assumption.

While Ginny, Lavender and Parvati were deeply surprised that there wasn't more between them, Hermione thought it was quite okay this way. She liked Viktor and sometimes when he touched her by accident, she became a bit nervous, but deep inside she feared that she would never like him that way. She was still too hung up on her stupid and hopeless crush on Fred.

She just wasn't sure how Viktor thought about all of this. Till now he hadn't tried to touch her in a romantic way or something like that, not since the hand kiss after the ball, but still, sometimes Hermione thought he looked at a bit too long. She just wasn't sure what he exactly wanted from her. Or what she wanted from him. Were they friends - just friends - or was there a potential for more.

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"What do you think of Michael Corner?" Ginny asked. Hermione was walking beside her friend down to the Great Hall. Harry and Ron were still not ready for breakfast so the girls had decided to go alone.

"Hm, I don't know him that well. He's smart, I think, gets good marks. Why?" Hermione sat down opposite from Ginny and saw that her younger friend blushed a bit.

"Well, we…" Ginny put some food on her plate, playing for time. "I talked to him at the Yule Ball. Till then I only knew him from seeing him in the halls, didn't even knew his name before. Only that he is in your year."

"And?" Hermione asked as she watched how Ginny pushed her scrambled eggs around without eating them. The girl's face was almost as red as her hair.

"And he asked me for a date, next Hogsmeade weekend," Ginny whispered, now an even deeper shade of red spreading on her face and neck. Hermione just stared at her.

"I think I want to go." Now Ginny finally looked from her plate, a firm look in her eyes.

"What about your feelings for Harry?"

"They're obviously not gone, but… but I think it's time I make an effort to let go." Ginny took in a deep breath.

"At the Yule Ball, I watched Harry with Parvati. I was so jealous at her because she had the chance to go with him. And then I saw how he ignored her and looked at Cho the whole evening. And I imagined how terrible it would have been for me if I had been his date to the ball. Then Harry would have ignored me the whole time. And suddenly I realised he's already doing that." Ginny threw in a shaky breath.

"To Harry I'm invisible. He knows me as Ron's sister and as a human being, I think he even likes me, but not as a girl. He's not ignoring me on purpose or in a mean way, but in a way he still does. And it hurts. I want to let go and maybe going to Hogsmeade with Michael will help me with that."

Hermione stared at Ginny for a moment, her breakfast completely forgotten.

"What do you think?" Ginny bit her lip nervously.

"I think you're completely right. It's a good thing to let go of someone who doesn't see you. I think it's healthy to move on." Hermione said with a smile but inside she screamed.

Ginny's words had hit her where it hurt the most. Ginny's situation was so painfully similar to her's that Hermione wondered why she hadn't seen it sooner. They were both in love with someone older. Ron was their connection to this person. And they both were probably only seen as some sort of little sister by their love interest. And both Fred and Harry had feelings for another girl. Or at least Hermione believed Fred had feelings for Angelina.

Since the ball, nothing obvious had changed between Fred and Angelina. They were both joking with each other as before, hung around with their usual friends, and were never be seen alone. But since Hermione was hyper-aware of Fred and his behaviour, she saw how he looked and smiled at Angelina. There was definitely adoration and longing in his eyes.

As they finished their breakfast Hermione thought how right Ginny was. Maybe she needed to make an effort to forget about Fred. Maybe waiting for this crush to end on its own wasn't the best way.

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A few days later Hermione was again at the library. And again she tried to find this one, damn book about bonds and again it was not on its shelf. Right now she feared that she would never get her hands on this book.

Frustrated she started to wander along the tall shelves in hope that maybe the book was just at the wrong place. Slowly Hermione eyed all the book spines, read the titles, and grew more and more anxious. She hated not knowing things. And whoever had this book was actively keeping her from getting new knowledge.

"Have you found vhat you're looking for?" A voice behind her suddenly asked and Hermione turned a bit surprised. Viktor had told her after breakfast that he wouldn't be able to meet her today because Headmaster Karkaroff wanted to talk with him.

"Hey," she smiled, "no, unfortunately not. This book is always borrowed. And Madame Pince won't tell me who has it, so I can't even ask the person to bring it back." Hermione let out a small huff and leaned back against the bookshelf.

"Vell, I think today is your lucky day," Viktor grinned widely. Hermione had never seen him so happy before. From out of his bag he pulled a big, leather-bound book. Bonds in Theory and Practice was embossed in golden letters on the dark brown leather.

Hermione let out a squeak. Mortified she clapped her hands before her face as she heard Madame Pince admonition from far away.

"Thank you," Hermione whispered and gingerly took the book in her hands.

"Headmaster Karkaroff borrowed it. I told him I vanted to research something. I have to bring it back in a veek." Viktor muttered, slightly blushing. And without knowing why Hermione also blushed. She couldn't believe he had found this book for her. For her research. For the house elves. Something she deeply believed in. It was the most thoughtful thing someone had ever done for her, Hermione realised while her stomach did a backflip.

"Thank you so, so much," Hermione breathed in the smell of old leather. Then she did something she never planned. She stretched on her tiptoes, the book firmly in her hands, and as quickly as a blink of an eye she pecked Viktor on the lips.

Heat radiated through her body as she comprehended what she just did. Viktor looked stunned. Slowly he blinked down at her, then his face too became bright red.

"I'm sor-" but before Hermione could finish her apology Viktor leaned down to her, one hand softly on her cheek, and kissed her. This time it wasn't just a peck. It was real, full kiss on the lips. Thousands of feelings thundered through Hermione at the same time.

She recognised how soft Viktor's lips were, how gentle he moved them, and how chaste this kiss still was. Hermione felt a bit insecure, she moved her own lips only tentative. The kiss didn't last that long, but it felt like hours. When Viktor finally pulled away, a small smile on his lips, Hermione felt like she was burning up from inside.

"I- thank you for the book," she stammered and hurried back to their usual table. For a second Hermione thought about just packing up and running away, but then she reminded herself that Viktor didn't deserve this.

Slowly she sat down, opened the book and looked up when Viktor took the chair opposite of her. His face was a big interrogations mark. Again heat rushed through Hermione's face as she shyly smiled at him. He first smiled, then they both grinned and opened their books.

They spent the rest of the afternoon as usual. Reading and studying. But this time there were a lot more secret glances, shy smiles and flushed faces involved.

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Hermione spent the night thumbing through the book but it was too much information and too little time. Curiously she searched for the chapter headlines - the book had no index - to evaluate which chapters would be best to read.

General Theories about Bonds and Bondings… History of Bondings…

Bonds between Witches and Wizards… There she stopped shortly to see which subchapters there were. Marriage Bonds; Bonds between Family Members; Soul Bonds…

Hermione itched to read but she had to know first if there was anything about house elves.

Unintended Bonding; Bonds and Dark Magic… But as Hermione turned the next page she discovered that the rest of the pages were blackened. Someone had censored the book. Probably because of the Dark Magic. Disappointed Hermione laid the book aside and snuggled into her blanket. Tomorrow she would read the other chapters.

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"What do you mean, you solved the puzzle? You said you solved it weeks ago?" Hermione shrieked when Harry told her with a proud face that he knew what the final task was. He had come to Hermione and Ron before breakfast to tell them about his little nightly adventure in the prefects' bathroom and what he witnessed later under his invisibility cloak about Snape and Moody. Harry and Ron were, of course, convinced that Snape was planning something, but Hermione was busy with thinking about more pressing matters.

"Does that really matter right now, Hermione? I need to survive one hour underwater and I have no idea how. Help me, please?" Her best friend looked at her and Ron with pleading eyes.

"Of course we will help you," Hermione nodded.

There were only two days left till the next task. Hardly any time at all. Inside Hermine was already screaming. Even if they found a spell in the next few hours, Harry still needed to learn it. And what if they only found a potion? Then they would need time to brew it!

After classes, Hermione, Harry and Ron almost ran into the library and started to collect books. Hermione ordered her friends to collect everything about water spells and charms, potions that transfigured humans, generally transfiguration spells and a lot more. Like headless chickens, Harry and Ron sprinted through the library - earning more than one sharp stare from Madame Pince - and covered the surface of three tables with books in all shapes and sizes.

While Ron and Harry were still searching for new literature, Hermione started to cross read through all the books. She had currently three open in front of her and tried to process as much information as possible.

Right as Hermione was about to get into work mood she saw a person waving at her from opposite the room. She looked up to see Viktor standing halfway behind a shelf.

"I'm going to get another book," Hermione whispered to Harry and Ron. Quickly she pulled Viktor with her behind two big shelves, which contained the most boring books about magical history. Nobody came here normally.

"Vhat are you doing?"

"Harry needs some help with the next task and…" She gestured back to the table. Viktor raised a knowing eyebrow. With wide eyes, Hermione realised that he had known for weeks. His swims in the Black Lake and his researches in the library in the last weeks, the meetings with Karkaroff. Viktor had been preparing for weeks.

"Okay," he nodded, "I just vanted to tell you that I von't be here tomorrow. Karkaroff vants me to stay in the ship till the beginning of the next task."

"Okay, then… Good luck." Hermione whispered. Suddenly it felt strange to talk about the Tournament. Viktor and Harry were rivals, and while Hermione and Viktor were… a thing, Hermione was still helping Harry. At least Viktor had never asked for her help, which made it easier. But now she felt weird.

Before Hermione could start to overthink the situation completely, Viktor softly tucked a curl behind her ear and leaned down slowly. As usual, he gave Hermione enough time to prevent the kiss. For a fleeting moment Hermione thought about the mess it would become if Ron would see them, but then she closed her eyes and the last gap between them.

In the last few days, Hermione and Viktor had shared a few short kisses between the shelves, where no one could see them. It was always short kisses, just pecks, and sometimes they held hands under the table. But that was it, nothing more.

But today the kiss was deeper. More passionate. Viktor pulled her closer to him by her hips and for a moment Hermione lost her balance. Instead, she took a step backwards and leaned with her back against one of the shelves. Viktor buried one hand in her curls while the other rested on her waist. She grabbed his sweater, pulling him closer, and wrapped one hand around his neck. Their lips moved hotly against each other. Their bodies were pressed together. Hermione felt a rush in her veins. Her heart beat like crazy and a nervous flutter took over her stomach. This kiss - this sensation - was so much more intense than before.

And then Viktor's hand travelled a bit lower, played with the hem of her sweater before he touched the naked skin of her stomach. Instantly Hermione pulled away from the kiss and softly laid her hand on top of his. Silently she shook her head a no while she looked Viktor in the eyes. He leaned his forehead against hers.

"I vill see you after the next task. I vill find you, I promise." There was a worried expression in his eyes but Hermione said nothing about it. She gave him a last peck, whispering a Good Luck against his lips, and then went back to Harry and Ron. Every nerve in her body tingled nervously as she sat down again.

"Didn't you want to get a book," Ron asked, looking at her hair.

"I couldn't find it," Hermione answered as she flattened her hair again. Merlin, she hadn't thought about how she looked right now. Hastily she opened the next book beside her, started to bury herself in the research and tried to ignore the curious gazes from Ron. Harry was fortunately too preoccupied with his own worries to question her.

The rest of the day was spent with the three of them brooding over their research without getting anywhere. While Hermione started to get more and more annoyed with every second, Harry slowly became a nervous mess. Ron was no help at all. Frustrated they fell into their beds in the evening. The next day would be spent with research in every waking second.

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"Oh, this is no use. Who on earth wants to make their nose hair grow into ringlets?" Hermione closed the book with a huff. It was starting to get darker outside and dinner would be served soon. In less than twelve hours the second task would begin and they had no way for Harry to master it.

"I wouldn't mind," the voice of Fred sounded. "Be a talking point, wouldn't it?" Fred and George emerged from behind a bookshelf. Both giggled a bit at Fred's joke. Hermione meanwhile tried hard not to look at Fred. She had avoided him since the Yule Ball and her realisation that he would probably never see her as something else than Ron's best friend.

"What are you two doing here?" Ron asked irritated.

"Looking for you," said George. "McGonagall wants you, Ron. And you, Hermione."

"Why?" Hermione asked surprised.

"Dunno… she was looking a bit grim, though," said Fred, while he thumbed through the book with the hair grow charms with interest.

"We are supposed to take you down to her office," George explained. Hermione wanted to protest, to say that it was more important that they stayed with Harry and helped him. But they couldn't do that. She turned to Harry.

"We will meet you back in the common room. Bring as many of these books as you can, ok?" Harry nodded with a terrified look on his face.

Ron and Hermione followed the whispering twins outside. Both Hermione and Ron felt like they were wasting precious time and hoped they could go back to the common room as soon as possible. Hermione already planned for a sleepless night with research and last minute flashes of brilliance.

"Oy, Ron, come here for a minute. There's a new product you should see." George shouted and grumbling Ron followed the order. Not without complaining and bickering, but he did it. Suddenly Fred was beside Hermione and she realised that George had baited Ron away from her on purpose.

"So, Granger, how is it going?"

"Everything is fine. We just need to get back to Harry as soon as possible." She answered coldly. She had decided that it wouldn't do her good to be too friendly with Fred. Polite distance was the best way to get over him. That, and snogging Viktor Krum in the library - which really helped splendidly.

"Yeah, I saw the books. What are you doing? Trying to learn everything for the O.W.L.s in one night?" Fred joked, a smirk on his handsome face.

"No, it's for the task tomorrow." She stated sternly. Polite, but not friendly, that's the best way. For a second Fred's smile wavered.

"Well, good to know that Harry has his own team to back him up…" Now he nervously brushed a hand through his hair. "But actually I wanted to know how it's going with… Krum."

"Why? Want to make a bet about my love life again?" Hermione hissed. Anger flared in her. Fred Weasley had no right to ask her something like that.

"Woah, no…? I thought George made it clear that we only bet on Ron." Somehow the normally cool Fred seemed not so at ease as usual.

"So, why did you ask me if I already had a date if the bet was only about if Ron would ask me or not?" Hermione felt her anger boil. She knew it was childish and if she didn't have feelings for Fred than she would never be so sensitive about the matter. But she couldn't stop herself.

"Because I wanted to know if Ron still had a chance. I tried to give him a push in the right direction but as much as George and I enjoy making fun of Ron, we don't want him hurt. And a heartbreak wasn't what I was aiming for. I didn't want to convince him to ask you if you were already taken. Which you were when he finally asked." Fred explained in a calm voice like it was the most normal thing in the world to get involved in their siblings life. Maybe it was. Hermione as an only child couldn't understand that.

"Yes, I was. And Ron didn't ask me because he wanted to go with me but because he had no other options. So, next time leave me out of your little schemes and bets and pranks. I'm not interested." And soon I hopefully won'tbe interested in you any longer too, she added internally. She huffed. Weasley boys are all incredibly stupid!

"Okay, okay, no need to get your knickers into a twist, Granger," Fred frowned. "But still, how is it going with Krum. Are you and…"

"That's not your business." She cut him off. The last thing she wanted to do was discuss her maybe-relationship with the guy she still had annoyingly strong feelings for. The snogging session from the day before popped into her mind, distracting her for a second. How was it possible that she liked Viktor and liked kissing him but at the same time her feelings for Fred were so much stronger?

"Maybe, but I'm almost his age and I want to be sure that he treats you right." Fred stopped her, one hand on her shoulder. "Hermione, he's three years older than you and maybe has other... desires and expectations than you. George and I worry about you."

"No need to worry about me." Hermione felt how her heart did a happy little flip. Fred worried about her… But only as a little sister! And George worries too, her inner voice scolded.

Brotherly feelings... Trembling slightly she started to follow George and Ron again.

"Are you sure?" With two large steps, Fred was beside her again. "Look, you don't have to tell me, but if you need help someday…"

"Noted," Hermione nodded and then walked faster till she was walking with Ron again. There was an uneasy feeling in her chest. She felt heavy and somehow sad.

When they finally arrived at the Transfiguration classroom where Professor McGonagall was waiting for them, the twins left.

But as Ron and Hermione entered the room they saw that beside Professor McGonagall there were also Professor Dumbledore, Madame Maxime and Headmaster Karkaroff waiting for them. Cho Chang was also there, together with a silver-haired girl.

"Mr Weasley, Ms Granger, wonderful. Now we can begin." Dumbledore announced happily. "Let' start with the explanation first." Calm the Headmaster explained what the next task was and how the Champions were supposed to rescue a treasure each. Hermione tried very hard to look surprised but something about McGonagall eyeing her told her that she didn't do too well.

"As for the treasures, we decided that simple objects would be too easy. So, each Champion has to rescue the person dearest to him." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled amused. "For Ms Delacour, we have her little sister Gabrielle as a hostage. Mr Diggory will save Ms Chang," Hermione thought how upset Harry would probably be about this, "while Mr Weasley is here for Mr Potter. Ms Granger is the hostage for Mr Krum." Hermione blushed as Karkaroff looked down at her, pure distaste in his eyes.

I vill find you, I promise, Viktor had said yesterday, Hermione remembered, he already knew.

"Do you all agree with the terms?" Dumbledore asked after he had explained the spell which would put them asleep for the next hours. Hermione and the other three nodded and then Professor McGonagall started.

A second later everything became black around Hermione and she slipped into sleep.

Okay, new chapter and we're getting closer to Hermione discovering who her soulmate is. I have a few things planned ahead in the plot and I'm kind of excited. I hope you like it as much as I do. And I know you all want to see them together, but it's still a slow burn and if you think the heartbreak till now was bad for Hermione, just wait when she discovers her soulmate. I feel slightly evil for enjoying this so much. Muhaha ;)