Accidentally in Love

Chapter 9: Truly, Madly, Deeply

It didn't take long for Harry to pack. He didn't know how long he'd be gone, but he never travelled with a lot of baggage, so it was fine. It wasn't hard to find something for the tracking spell. He had her letter as well as several other souvenirs that reminded him of her. Trivial things like a hair tie and a pen she used a lot for writing. But not matter what he tried, the tracking spell wouldn't work. She'd blocked him. Harry didn't know if he should be angry or impressed. So much for being reasonable. He'd obviously underestimated Hermiones jealousy. Strangely it satisfied him a lot to know that he mattered enough to her to make her act this childish. He wouldn't admit it, but it made him happy in a twisted way. But it also complicated things. Leave it to women to make things harder than necessary.

Harry sighed and disapparated to Sydney. It was one of the most popular places in Australia and as good as any other point to start looking for Hermione and her parents. It was noon and the sun was shining brightly. He had to squeeze his eyes shut and was surprised. He'd totally forgotten about the time difference and had expected to arrive at night. Another thing he wouldn't tell anyone.

As he didn't know where to start, he walked to the next library, looking for a telephone book or any kind of indexes. Sydney was great. He really enjoyed the walk and couldn't stop grinning. It was a sunny day and the city was full of life. And nobody knew him. It was awesome. Whenever Harry went through the streets of London, there would always be someone who knew him. People started chasing him for autographs, everybody wanted to talk to him, they asked him questions that made him feel uncomfortable and everybody wanted to touch him. Harry had never shaken so many hands in his whole life. It was tiring. Especially because he always had to be polite and kind but sometimes he just wanted to scream. That's why he started to wear his invisibility cloak whenever he left the house. But nobody cared about the "Chosen One" in Sydney. It was great to be just some random guy for a change.

Harry finally arrived at the library and asked for help. He knew that Hermiones parents were dentists and he remembered that they thought their names were Wendell and Monica Wilkins. So he started searching for dentists with those names. But that was easier said than done. There were lots of Wilkins and to make sure to find the right ones, he would have to go to every city and check every index. That would take much too long. He didn't have that much time. He didn't know when Hermione would leave Australia for good. Maybe she was home with her parents long ago and he was wasting time.

"Let me find you…" he whispered. "Mione, please…"

ooooo

Meanwhile, Hermione was standing in front of a nice house with a pretty front yard. Her heart was beating fast and she was nervous. She had tried her best to forget about Harry and Ginny, but she couldn't. Instead she'd made her way to Newcastle as soon as possible and now that she was standing here, she felt overwhelmed. How would her parents react? Would they be angry? Hermione snorted. They would be furious. But hopefully they'd understand. She didn't regret a thing. She walked up to the door and rang the doorbell. Better not hesitate any longer.

Hermione heard heavy footsteps and then the door opened and she looked into the familiar brown eyes of her father. He looked at her confused, as if she looked familiar but he couldn't quite tell why.

"Can I help you?" he finally asked and Hermione felt tears in her eyes. It took everything she had not to hug him. She hadn't been sure if she'd ever see him again. Being now right in front of her, made her all weak and teary.

"Can I come in, please? There is something I need to tell you." She said low and he nodded, still a little frown on his forehead.

Hermione followed her father into a nice, bright living room.

"Wendell? Who was at the door?" a woman's voice suddenly sounded from the kitchen and Hermiones heart was beating even faster.

"It's a girl, Monica. She might need help." Her father shouted and looked at Hermione expectantly.

Before she could say anything, her mother entered the living room, a cup of coffee in her hand and a surprised expression on her face.

Hermione stood up and looked at her parents longingly and they both looked back at her confused. Before things could get even stranger, Hermione took out her wand and said the spell to restore her parent's memories. The confusion in their expression got even bigger and then understanding set in. When they woke up from their trance, Hermione's mother made three huge steps and hugged her firm. For the first time in ages, Hermione let herself be pampered. She spend the next hours explaining, crying and apologizing. Even though her parents were quite angry about being robbed of her most important memories, they still understood. And they were relieved to see that Hermione was safe.

Hermione's parents didn't go to work that day. Instead they spend every minute together. They wanted to know everything that had happened and they spend hours just talking. Later on her mother was cooking Hermione's favourite dish and they were having a great dinner. And then finally her parents asked the question that Hermione had been fearing all the time.

"Where are your friends? Where are Ron and Harry? How come they didn't accompany you?" her father asked confused and Hermione took a big bite of her pasta to cover that she didn't really want to answer that question.

"Ron is home with his family and Harry… He's busy restoring the new Ministry. They wanted to come, but this was something I wanted to do by myself. You can meet them when we go back." Hermione said as cheerful as possible. Her parents exchanged a long glance.

"Hermione…we actually thought about staying here. We have a really great practice with very nice patients. The house is perfect and you can always apparate to visit." Her mother finally said, touching her hand.

Hermione was surprised. She'd never expected her parents to feel like staying in Australia. Finally she nodded. If this made them happy, why should she object?

"Sure. Sounds great." She finally replied and they kept talking about the future. Hermione told them she wanted to visit Hogwarts for one more year to finish her education. Afterwards, she'd try to find a job that made her happy. It was a nice and pleasant conversation and finally it was late enough for Hermione to excuse herself and go to bed. She was tired. Relieved because of her parents' reaction, but still tired. And she couldn't stop thinking about Harry. She'd blocked the tracking spell, because she hadn't wanted him to find her. She didn't want to hear his excuses. But she missed him so bad, it nearly hurt.

Hermione tried to sleep, but she couldn't. Finally she went downstairs and sat down outside in the back garden. The sky was different in Australia. Clearer and somehow wider. It was beautiful. The grass was still warm and she enjoyed the feeling of eternal summer. She could understand why her parents felt like staying.

"What's wrong, Honey?" her mother's voice suddenly sounded behind her and Hermione winced surprised.

"I just couldn't sleep, Mom. Probably just jet-lagged." She said smiling and her mother sat down next to her.

"I also couldn't sleep. The simple thought of what you've been through nearly drives me crazy. The fact that you could have died and I wouldn't have even known, that's so hard to cope with, it makes me cry. We should have been there for you, Hermione. We are your parents, we are responsible for your sake. Promise that you will never again play with our memories. Please, I need you to promise. Forgetting you is the worst thing that ever happened to us."

Hermione gulped. She felt guilty. Her motives had been honourable, but she could only imagine how her parents must have felt when they realized that she'd manipulated them in such a way. She nodded. "I promise, Mum."

Her mother nodded and put her arm around her shoulder.

"And now tell me what's wrong. What happened with your friends? What's with Ron and Harry?"

Hermione glanced at her mother surprised and she laughed at her daughter's expression.

"Oh please, it's offending that you think I could be that blind. I have been young and in love myself, dear. I sense a broken heart ten miles away. What happened?"

ooooo

The next days passed in tension. Harry and Ron were nearly talking as usual, but Hermione kept quiet. She couldn't stop being confused. The only times she was alone with Harry, was when Ron was sleeping. However, they never did anything inappropriate except holding hands. They didn't talk about the future and didn't make plans. Actually they didn't talk a lot at all. Harry had locked up completely and kept his distance and Hermione felt as if she was standing next to herself, looking at her actions, but not really feeling them. She was losing Harry. She could see it in every glance, feel it in every touch. He was giving up on her.

Ron on the other hand, tried everything to make her forgive him. He touched her whenever possible, agreed with whatever she said, tried to be close to her all day. It was as if he was trying to make up for all the time he'd been a dick, even in the past. He was cute, attentive, and affectionate. Hermione couldn't deny that she would have given in to him if this change in person would have happened a couple of weeks ago. Now it was tiring and irritating and it made her feel confused and overwhelmed and a bit angry. And with every day passing, Hermione got angrier. But not at Ron. She was angry at Harry. Harry who had acted as if she was special to him and who now kept his distance as if she had the plague.

Some days passed like this until Hermiones temper finally gained the upper hand and her composure crumbled.

It was a quiet evening and Ron was already sleeping soundly. She'd been standing outside with Harry, trying to keep a conversation running, trying to do anything to make him act like his usual self, but she only got short answers and he hardly looked at her. Finally she couldn't take it any longer. She used a Muffliato spell on Ron and started shouting at Harry.

"What the hell is wrong with you? You go and do all these cute things and say these perfect lines and then you act as if I'm special and now that Ron is back you pretend nothing happened and you don't even look at me? Are you serious?"

Harry looked at her surprised but his expression turned nearly immediately into one of indifference.

"Mione, we have more important things to do. We need to find the Horcruxes and we don't need any kind of relationship drama complicating this mission. It's too important and too many people depend on us being successful. Besides, Ron is really sorry about what has happened and will do anything to make it up to you…"

Hermione got so angry, she started shaking.

"WILL YOU STOP THIS BULLSHIT HARRY POTTER! I'M NOT SOME STUPID IDIOT NOT UNDERSTANDING WHAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY SAYING! YOU WANT ME PRETENDING NOTHING EVER HAPPENED AND TO JUST GO BACK TO RON AS IF I'M SOME ITEM THAT CAN BE TOSSED AROUND!" She shouted, not caring if anybody would be able to hear her. But as fast as her anger had come, it also vanished. "So in the end it didn't mean anything to you…"

The last words were a mere whisper. She turned around and wanted to go inside. Hermione didn't want Harry to see her tears. She felt so stupid. She'd given everything to him and now he acted as if she should just crawl back to Ron as if nothing ever happened. Who did he think he was?

Before she could enter the tent, he grabbed her arm and turned her around, being so close to her that her heartbeat increased rapidly. She'd never seen such a look in his green eyes. So much pain, so much hunger, so much need. Hermione couldn't even say something. He was holding her arm so firm, it nearly hurt.

"Don't you dare telling me what you mean to me. You don't even have the slightest idea." Harry whispered husky, his face so close to hers, that she could see the golden flecks in his green eyes, even though it was already dark outside.

"Then tell me." She asked low, her heart still racing.

Harry closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them again, there was pure torture in his gaze.

"It will break him. I saw it. The locket shows your biggest fears. His biggest fear is you and me being together. It will destroy him. And not being with you will destroy ME. Don't you see? But I can't let that happen, Mione… I just can't. I'm a dead man. Let's be honest for once. The chances for me to survive this crazy shit are close to zero. There is no future with me. No chance at happiness… But with Ron… Ron could make you happy. One day, when time has healed those wounds, Ron will be able to make you happy. I can't destroy this chance out of pure egoism. Not if it means that I will leave you heartbroken and alone. I can't do that. So don't you dare to ever say it didn't mean anything to me, when in fact you and those days we had mean everything."

Hermione felt as if liquid fire was running through her veins. She crushed her lips on Harry's and threw her arms around his neck, savouring the feeling of his body so close to hers. She couldn't stop the tears from falling, but she was holding on to Harry and their kiss as if she'd die as soon as they would break it. She didn't care if Ron saw them. She didn't care about anyone else than Harry. Even though his words about Ron made her stomach ache, her heart was overwhelmed by love. Love for Harry and nobody else. She tried to put all of her feelings in that kiss and Harry didn't push her away. If possible he hugged her even closer, deepening the kiss and causing a sweet sensation in her belly. No matter how messed up things were, in this moment Hermione knew that nothing would ever truly be able to separate them – not even death.

ooooo

"Hermione?" her mother asked worried and she came back to reality with a nod.

"Sorry… I…" Hermione started to apologize, but didn't quite know what to say. Maybe she'd overreacted. Maybe she should have at least waited to give Harry a chance for explanation. She didn't know why Ginny was with him the other night. Maybe they'd just been talking. If Ron was mad at them, Harry didn't have a lot of real friends. Maybe she'd been an idiot for blocking the tracking spell and acting like a child.

"You're zoning out again, Hermione. I wish I would know what goes on in that brilliant mind of yours. Will you finally tell me what happened? With you and your friends, I mean."

Hermione sighed and nodded.

"I'm not sure if we're still friends, to be honest…" she said low, a painful expression on her face.

Her mother nodded understanding.

"When you became friends with those two, I always waited for the moment when the line between friendship and love would start to blur. You know most people try to convince themselves, that it's possible to be just friends with the opposite gender, but that's not true. In friendship, there is always love. And sooner or later these feelings surface. It was just a matter of time. This is about the dark haired boy, isn't it? Harry?"

Hermione nodded surprised. Her mother's words had touched her in a way she didn't expect. Jean Granger normally wasn't the type to give advice in matters of love.

"So, what happened?"

Hermione told her mother everything. She didn't mention the parts where she and Harry had sex of course. It was gross talking to your parents about this kind of stuff. But she mentioned how Ron had left, how she and Harry had gotten closer and how things had become really complicated when Ron returned. How they were always torn between wanting to be together and worrying about losing Ron's friendship forever. How finally Hermione had decided to leave for Australia all by herself and how she'd gone back to see Harry just to find him with his ex-girlfriend. She didn't talk about the battle of Hogwarts. About the pain and the fear and the nightmares. This was something she wasn't yet ready to share. Especially because she knew that her parents would feel guilty if they knew what she'd really been through.

She couldn't stop talking and it felt good. It felt good to let all those feelings out and to talk about Ron and Harry without being careful not to hurt anyone's feelings. Finally Hermione stopped and both of them didn't say anything for a while.

"It was time to get all this stuff off your chest. I bet you feel better now." Her mother said with a smile and Hermione snorted.

"Actually, I really do. Do you think I overreacted? Did I… should I have given him a chance to explain?" she asked her mother frowning.

"How would you feel if this was a big misunderstanding and Harry would just disappear without letting you explain?" her mother asked in return and Hermione sighed.

"That would suck." She admitted low.

"I guess you have your answer. Let him explain. You can still hex him if you don't like his explanation. Or send him to your dad. He'll give him a root treatment he won't forget."

Hermione laughed and squeezed her mother's hand. With a swing of her wand the blockade that made her untraceable was gone. If Harry was looking for her, he should now be able to find her.

Author's note:

So chapter 9 is ready and I really hope you like it :-) Thanks for the reviews I got on chapter 8 so far and thank you for the congrats. It made me happy. Let me know what you think about the story so far and keep reading :-) Thank you!