A/N: Hi there! :D I've been pushing myself lately to try and write something else than romance, because I suck at it. So yeah, there's some of it in here, but I tried to focus on hurt. Yadayada, read and review.
Loss
"We can get through this somehow, Harry, I know we can." Her voice broke at the end and the tears started to flow once again. She just couldn't keep them at bay any longer. What she had said had been said to deaf ears, as Harry shut himself off to everyone once the news of his best friend's death reached him, and he was now nothing but a cold and empty shell.
Hermione leaned into his chest as she hugged him for whatever little comfort he had to give. It somehow felt nice to have someone near when everything looked so dark and impossible. They had lost Ron, their best friend, the last third of the Golden Trio, the youngest male Weasley, and now it just seemed so hopeless to continue on, even though so many depended on both Harry and Hermione to stay strong and not show how much this war had actually hurt them.
But they were both lost as they stood in the Great Hall of Hogwarts, surrounded by both living and dead persons they know, all crying over lost ones, comforting each other and cleaning up after the fight. Harry slowly encircled Hermione in his arms as it finally occurred to him that she hugged him. He felt numb. Just plain numb, as it all flooded into his mind.
"Oh, Harry!" Hermione tightened her hold around his neck and burrowed her face in the crook of his neck. Ron had been her first love, her first kiss, and now he was gone to never come back. She missed his eating habits, his slow mind, his stubbornness, and his sweet smile. A whole new flood of tears came when she realised she would never experience another one of their fights, or have him look at her again with his blue eyes, or have him beat her at Wizards Chess.
Their relationship based simply on shared loss and the need for comfort that they found in each other. Though it became easier over time, the emptiness would always be there to remind them of what they had lost in the war. The Weasleys tried so hard to put it behind them and just be grateful that they hadn't lost any other family member. But the sad faces that graced Hermione and Harry was enough to make them all mourn all over again. It came to a point where Hermione and Harry stopped their visits to the Burrow, just so that they could move on and didn't have to waste their time on them.
"Harry?" Hermione called from their shared kitchen. After the way, the two found a certain comfort in each other, and while it wasn't real love, it was enough for them.
"Yes?" Harry called back as he moved from in front of the TV to go see whatever his girlfriend needed. He entered the kitchen and took a look around; it was a right mess, with flour covering every surface, empty eggshells filling the sink, and, what Harry believed to be every kitchen equipment they owned, dirty or filled with some disgusting mass. What in the world had Hermione been doing, and why hadn't he heard? "Merlin, what went wrong?"
Hermione took a look around and let a sob escape. "I thought I would make something nice for...his birthday." It was indeed March 1st and their lost friend's birthday, but they had never celebrated it the last few years.
Harry was quick to gather the sobbing brunette in his arms and whisper things in her ear. He knew she still felt something for their friend, as he also knew she just couldn't cook as well as she thought she could.
"It's okay, 'Mione. It's okay," Harry whispered over and over again, and slowly the sobbing stopped, the tears put on hold and the girl in his arms raised her head to look him in the eyes. Hers were bloodshot from all the crying, while his were filled with worry and sadness. Harry gave her a quick peck on the lips, told her to go relax with a good book, and then went to clean up the kitchen himself - with magic, as to save time and effort.
What did you think? I really did try, but I don't know about the outcome. s: Anyway, click the button just down there (arrow down), and write your thoughts! :D
