Summary: Hermione and Fred are separated by war, their relationship and recent engagement completely hidden from everyone. Terrified for each others safety both still have to play their separate parts.
Pairing: Fred/Hermione
Out of interest, did you guys like the 1st person perspective? It just felt right to write the last chapter like that as it was more action than usual.
There was now no time to stop, no breaking. Harry, Ron and Hermione had been awake for what felt like days, while it hadn't been long it felt like weeks since they'd left Shell Cottage, since she'd left that note for Fred.. And now they were back in Hogwarts and it felt like it was the end, that this was the final stand. They had to destroy the cup, find the diadem, and kill the snake. And then, Harry had to kill Voldemort.
'Not much to do, then..' Hermione mused, a half smile on her face which she couldn't get rid of. Neville was alive, and well, though his injuries were thrown into far greater clarity as the corridor became more light and we all winced as he started to tell us what had been happening.
"Here we are." We reached a large portrait and it suddenly dawned on Hermione where they were headed. Where in Hogwarts they could go to, and not be detected..
"Oh my god." Ron's words summed up the entire trio's thoughts as they surveilled the room. Hermione noticed her old school friends faces, and with a pang, realised what they had been doing. As Neville, Seamus and Lavender, who threw a smile her way, started to explain what had happened a dull pang came to her heart. The inhabitants of the room thought that the trio was here to save them.
"Hello, everyone." They were interrupted from having to explain what was going on and Harry paused in the middle of his attempt to calm them at the entry of Luna Lovegood, who serenely entered, Dean Thomas, who gave a cry of excitement when he saw Seamus, and Ginny, George... Hermione's heart raced as she realised who else was about to come out of the portrait hole.
Ginny leapt toward Neville and encircled his neck with her arms. But Hermione only had eyes for one thing.
"Fred." She murmured, and his blue eyes met hers the second he came in. For a moment he seemed as if he was about to stride toward her, but then he stopped, and they exchanged glances for a minute. George looked between them, knowing exactly what they were thinking.. Was it wise to reveal them now? She stepped back, as if to signal not, and tugged her eyes away from Fred. Harry was explaining to the room at large why we were here.
"Cho will take you Harry, won't you?" Ginny winked at Hermione, who smiled weakly back, and Harry turned to Ron and Hermione, a look of determination on his face.
"I'm going to check this out. You guys stay here, okay?" The two of them nodded, and Luna and Harry left the room. Hermione looked around, and people instantly started clamouring for answers from Ron and herself, from Luna and Dean.. She stepped backward as Ron started to answer them, clearly loving being reunited with everyone, especially Dean, Neville and Seamus.
Hermione stepped over to the twins, who both looked at her evenly.
"This is it. The end." She said after a moment, and George nodded. Fred gestured toward his twin.
"George knows." She nodded, and smiled, and looked up at her future brother-in-law. He winked at her.
"Can't believe you two kept it such a secret." He said, before tactfully heading over to talk to a couple of the other Gryffindors. Fred beckoned Hermione behind a bookcase, where they were basically obscured from view, just for a minute.
"Are you okay?" He asked. She half nodded, and smiled.
"We've made it this far.." She started, and he returned her statement by nodding.
"There's going to be a battle. I don't know how much I'll affect you by telling you things now." Hermione quickly said, and he nodded, standing back on his heels for a moment.
Hermione suddenly made a clear decision. She was going to share her life with Fred, and wanted to share just a little of what she was going through, the burning worry she'd had.
"He knows we're here. You have to promise me Fred, that you won't be the hero. I, we've done that so much so far. We have our parts to play and I know that, but please, we need to live through this.." She faltered.
"I know I sound selfish." He gathered her up in his arms.
"Not at all baby, not at all.." He soothed, stroking her hair. Hermione backed away from him slowly, gesturing behind her with her head.
"Hermione?" Ginny was looking at her, a small smile on her face. Hermione nodded, then suddenly a ridiculous thought entered her head.
"Why the hell did you bring her?" She said to Fred and George, giving her close friend a small smile but still looking back to them.
"She's not of age. You knew what this could become." Hermione said, her voice becoming dangerously annoyed and Fred looked nervous.
"I wanted to come, Hermione." Ginny returned, looking frustrated. She gestured around her.
"I've earned the right to fight here just as much as everyone else, 'Mi." Her friend nodded calmly, George's hand patting Hermione's forearm awkwardly. Suddenly the entrance opened to the room, and Harry seemed to be seeking Hermione out. He was shocked, and after a minute so was she.
"When did your parents arrive?" She said to Fred in an undertone, and he looked around at everyone else.
"And the rest of the order.. We left a note."
"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school... We're fighting!" Harry said with a terrified look on his face and with a cry, the remaining members of the order along with many students started to surge out of the door Harry had entered through.
"Ginny, you can't fight, don't be ridiculous." The angry look on the redheads face showed that she had probably taken up the same argument that Hermione had just left.
"Has anyone seen Ron? Or Luna, actually.." Harry trailed off. Neville stood beside him with a frown on his face.
"Ron said he was going to a bathroom..." Hermione stared at Neville, shocked. Then she turned to Harry, both of them looking at each other, minds working..
"He's going to get fangs?" We said simultaneously and Hermione grinned.
"Which means he's told Luna.." Harry surmised. Cho had taken Harry up to Ravenclaw tower, leaving Luna to speak to Ron, and Hermione hadn't really been accessible..
"We need to get going to the hall, Harry.." The Weasley's left a disgruntled Ginny in the room alone while they all travelled down to the great hall. Hermione found her mind wandering as they walked through the halls, not sure exactly what was to happen next. She was with Fred again, and had a massive urge to just stay with him, but at the same time they needed to find Ron, needed to finish what had been started.
"This will be okay." Fred sat unnoticed beside her at the Gryffindor table but shrieks and cheers from other students soon alerted the entire hall to their presence. Under the table they joined hands for a source of mutual comfort as McGonagall began to run through the evacuation plan, but then Hermione uttered a hiss of terror and Fred in turn squeezed her hand as Voldemorts voice bellowed through the hall.
"Give me Harry Potter. You have one hour." The end of his speech haunted us all, and Hermione rooted through her robes for whichever wand she could find... Just in case.. Beside her Fred was doing the same.
"You may lead your house out, Miss Parkinson.." People had stood up for Harry, Hermione's constant fear and mistrust of people had been beaten by how the students of Hogwarts still innately fought for goodness. Fred quickly stood up after that, and with no way to give Hermione a proper goodbye, merely squeezed her arm before heading off to the front of the hall.
"We need to find Ron. And the diadem." Hermione said to Harry, and they ran out of the hall together. She'd added their actual quest as an afterthought - it seemed inconcievable really that the three of them would do anything without the other after the time they'd had. Fortunately, they ran into him, minus Luna, rather quickly. He had an arm full of fangs.
"How did you get in the chamber?" Hermione said as greeting, and he shrugged, offering a sort of hissing noise. Harry smirked, and started to explain to both of them where he thought he could find the horcrux, and we started running again, to the fifth floor. It was almost as if he was heading back toward Ginny, Hermione mused as they headed up the stairs and toward the room of requirement.
"Why did you take Luna? And where is she?" Hermione puffed at Ron as they ran after Harry, and he looked awkward.
"I didn't think I could destroy the cup on my own.." He muttered. She patted his shoulder as we came to a stop.
"She went straight to the hall. She heard the announcement." Ron explained to Hermione in answer to her question about Luna and Hermione nodded, worry crossing her face.
"Luna's the same age as Ginny." She stated, which appeared to confuse Ron.
"Her parents aren't here to stop her." Harry led his two best friends into the room of requirement with a steely look on his face. Hermione nodded solemnly. She had wanted to stop Ginny fighting for more than just the fact that she was too young. She wanted the youngest Weasley to live.
The room was full of things, books, old potion sets, clothes.. Clutter, really. I winced.
"It's on a stone head.. with a wig on it too.." Harry turned to Ron and Hermione determinedly.
"Split up." Hermione instantly headed toward the left side of the room and started to search. Hopelessly.. Until a voice was heard by the trio.
"What you looking for Potter?"
Hermione watched the subsequent exchange between Malfoy, Crabbe and Harry with a frown on her face. Until Crabbe started to wave his wand...
"Like it hot?" Hermione screamed, recognising the flames instantly. She turned toward the exit but Harry, Ron and Hermione and the opposing trio found themselves surrounded.
"Turn it off, you idiot!" Malfoy yelled at Crabbe but his friend merely stared at him, and then around at the flames, terror flickering through his eyes.
"Get to the door!" Harry hollered, and Hermione shook her head violently.
'Please don't let me die here, Vincent Crabbe kills me.. Fred...'
"We can't, Harry, they're everywhere.." Hermione's mind flew through possible solutions.
'We've come this far.. I need to live, for Fred..'
"We have to get up.." Ron suddenly said.. Then he looked around.
"Up, UP! There's brooms!" Harry shouted, and grabbed two incredibly ancient looking brooms from beside him, and seized Malfoy, pulling him on, throwing Ron the other one. Ron hoisted Hermione onto his broom and after a moment, the two of them pulled a shaky Goyle onto their broom.
"Where's Crabbe?" Harry shouted toward the others, and Ron shook his head.
"Go Ron, GO!" Hermione shrieked, and the two of them flew toward the door, heaving Goyle, and the door flew open...
"What the hell is his problem?" Ron stormed the second they got off the broom, but Hermione was looking into the door.
"HARRY! HARRY!" She shouted, but after a second, Harry, clutching a burning circle in his hands and a terrified Malfoy clutching his waist. They got off the broom and Malfoy rushed over, checking Goyle..
"Crabbe.." He muttered looking toward the room again.
"He's dead." Ron said, but Hermione and Harry were watching the diadem in Harry's hand.. crumble.
"That's one more." Whispered Hermione, and Harry nodded.
"We're close." He returned.
"Snake." Hermione said, a look of steely determination in her eyes. Harry nodded, and now joined by Ron, they walked a little down the hall, right into the middle of a duel between Fred, George, Percy and a few death eaters.
Seeing Fred fighting terrified Hermione, and she grabbed Harry's wrist. He looked at her in surprise, but then his eyes seemed to be calculating.. Ron had his wand out and Hermione and Harry followed suit, Hermione's eyes never leaving the darting, spell working body of her fiancée.
"You're joking Perce! You're actually joking!" Fred stepped backward, and time stood still for Hermione as a badly aimed spell hit the wall behind him.
"NO!" The agonised, terrible scream left Hermione so suddenly as she anticipated what was about to happen and trio, Weasley's and death eaters alike turned to look at her as she directed her wand to the wall, acting in the split second that she had, but the others didn't.
"BOMBARDA." She screamed, and the wall, rather than fall onto Fred, blasted in the opposite direction, throwing him to the side and tiny pieces of rock raining down on him. She ran toward him, wincing at the battered, bruised body that she came to, closely followed by Fred.
"It was all I could think of." She gabbled to George, and he pulled her into him, hugging her to him.
"I know, I know." He whispered, as we held Fred between us..
"It would have fallen straight onto him.. Instead he was just caught up in the blast.. Excellent thinking Hermione." Percy thought, but she did not acknowledge him, instead staring at Fred's face for signs of life.
Was he dead?
Harry, Ron and Percy, the death eaters flung aside with the anger they'd exuded, stood and watched the three of them, Fred' bruised body held by the two people that cared about him more in the world. Hermione Jean Granger, secret fiancée had loved Fred to such an extreme that she'd known he was in danger of dying before anyone else, had had the time to act when the others hadn't. But whether she'd done enough was something George and Hermione could not yet dare to find out.