dennisud: actually it's pretty real enough. My great-uncle and his wife were forced out of their home by the government so that they could expand the road. I'm not sure if they do that in England. But they sure as hell do that in US. And it's stupid!!! But they do have a better house now.

pyroeyes: You are right on target. Haha. Nice job.

Gandalf the Grey Edelwiess: Omygeezus! Haha. Nice rant!

Breed43214: yeah, if you read at the top of the 1st page, I had put that I had wanted Hermione's bday after Harry's. It was for a reason, tho. Because their mothers had bumped into each other. And they connected. So it was all for a reason. And Kyle XY NEEDS to come back. I have the 1st two seasons. I want to get the 3rd and final. Haha.

'Harry's thoughts to Hermione'

'Hermione's thoughts to Harry'

Thanx for your reviews!

Chapter Two

Bound

Charlotte Granger came into the room to wake them. She watched the little boy sleep. Why did he look familiar? That black, messy hair. Those emerald-green eyes. No, it couldn't be. Could it? Six years ago when she ran into Lily Potter at the toy store, she had met her and her husband. Her husband had that same look, same hair. And she had those sparkling, majestic green eyes. Potter. That was the boy's last name. They said that their little boy's name was going to be Harry. How weird is that?!

This was Lily and James' Harry!

What happened to them?! What happened to make him be forced to live with them? What happened?!

She left the room in her thoughts, forgetting to wake them up.


Harry woke up to the clicking of a door. He groaned as he felt he had had the best sleep in his life and he didn't want to get up. But he had to. He had to make breakfast for his relatives. He made to get up, but was stopped by a weight on his chest. It was pressing down on him, hurting his back against the bed. He opened his eyes and put his glasses on.

'Where am I?' he thought.

He looked down at the weight and saw bushy hair. And he heard her calm, rhythmic heartbeat. He smiled softly and moved to slip out of bed without waking her. She gripped his arm, hurting it as he had a bruise on it from Dudley hitting him with a cane.

"No..." she murmured not wanting him to leave. She was still asleep. "...stay."

"I have to go..." he said and slipped his arm out, and leaving the room. Her heartbeat getting lower and lower.

He arrived to the kitchen to find Jacob and Charlotte in there. Jacob was making food, it looked like. Harry checked the time. It was seven o'clock in the evening. He looked confused. But then he remembered. He was tired and wanted to sleep.

They looked at him. Charlotte had a strange look on her face. Harry looked nervous under their gazes. "Um, hello..." he said with a small wave.

"Hello, Harry," Charlotte said with a smile. "Did you sleep well?"

"Erm, yes, very well, ma'am..." Why was she being so nice to him? No one was ever nice to him.

He heard Hermione's heartbeat as she came down the stairs. He looked and saw her walking over to him. He smiled slightly at her. She smiled back. She looked so pretty even after she woke up with her brown hair messed up. She walked into the kitchen just as her father finished making their meal. "Dinner's ready!" he called.

He set four plates on the counter and the three Grangers went serve themselves, thinking Harry was behind them. Hermione was the first to sit down. She looked and saw that he hadn't moved. He was staring at the food as if he wanted to eat it all. "Harry, you can eat, you know?"

He looked at her and the elder two Grangers sat down at the table. "Yes, Harry, get yourself a plate. Go on," Jacob said.

Harry was hesitant. "You-you want me to eat with you?" He was surprised. The Durselys never asked him to eat with them. He'd never sat at a dinner table before, except earlier that day when he ate breakfast here with the Grangers. But he was half-conscious at that time.

The Grangers looked at him like he was crazy. "Yes, of course. Come, get yourself a plate and sit down with us," came Charlotte's soft voice.

Harry nodded and went get himself a plate. There was some roast chicken that were already cut up. He put himself two small pieces of it. A small glob of mashed potatoes. And three green beans. It seemed good enough to him. He sat down at the table across from Hermione, in front of the china cabinet, that had beautiful plates mounted on it.

They had not started to eat. He realized they were waiting for him. He felt guilty for taking such a long time. They looked at his plate and he blushed, not looking at either of them, embarrassed beyond compare.

Hermione sighed and took his plate from in front of him. Harry thought he did something wrong. He thought she was taking it away from him and he couldn't eat it. He looked down to the floor and didn't look up until the plate was put back in front of him.

With more food.

There were more pieces of chicken and green beans. And a big dollop of mashed potatoes. He looked up at her and she looked at his food, gesturing him to eat it. He smiled, grateful that she did that.

"Okay, now that that's taken care of," Charlotte said. "Let's pray."

'Pray? What's pray? The Durselys never prayed.' Harry looked and saw that the three Grangers had linked hands together and Charlotte and Jacob were reaching for his. He, going along with it, took their hands. He watched as they bowed their heads and closed their eyes.

"God, please bless this food we're about to eat. Thank you for this lovely food. And thank you for bringing Harry into our lives," Charlotte said. He looked at her. What was she doing? "Amen."

"Amen," the other chanted back and they dropped hands and began eating.

Harry loved the food he was served. He tried not to look like a pig, like he did earlier.

"Harry, I was wondering if you would like if I took you shopping tomorrow for some clothes?" Charlotte asked.

He thought about this. He already had clothes. And Aunt Petunia never bought him new clothes. He always had his cousin's hand-me-downs that were ten sizes too big for him. "Why?" he asked and then regretted it as it sounded a little rude. "Sorry," he muttered blushing.

"It's okay. Well, I figured you'd want some new clothes. The ones you wore today seemed too big and dirty. Although, I washed them so that you'd have something to wear tomorrow," she said.

'She even washed for me?! I always did the washing!' Harry thought to himself. What was happening? Why was he being treated so...nice?

"And," she added. "we're going to take you to see a doctor to get you checked out." Harry nodded.

He had never been to the doctor before. He wondered what it was like.

Throughout dinner, Hermione stared at him. Wondering how could a nice boy like him was hit all the time. She hated his relatives. She hated them. She just wanted to hold him and never let go. She wanted to take his pain away from him.

After dinner, Hermione went take her bath, while Harry went to the guest room and sat on his bed. Waiting for her. He would never call this "his room". He felt as if it was too sacred to. He sat on his bed and just stared into space.

He wondered why he could hear Hermione's heartbeat and it seemed to get stronger as he could hear it loud and clear from the bathroom. It was the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard, like her voice.

A few minutes later, he heard the door open and saw Hermione standing there. Her hair was wet and she was in fresh pajamas. "Hey," she smiled.

He smiled back as best he could. "Hi..." his voice was cracking, from lack of use.

She sat down next to him and something caught her eye. There was red and brown on his back, soaking through the pajama shirt. She looked curiously at it and touched it. He flinched in pain.

She withdrew her hand. "I'm sorry. Harry, there's blood on your shirt."

Harry closed his eyes, as if in pain. His wounds opened up. He got blood all over Mr. Granger's pajama shirt. He was going to be beaten for sure. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen," he apologized.

"Why are you apologizing?" she asked.

"Because I got blood on your father's shirt," he said simply.

"Harry, we don't care about that. We care that you're okay," she told him with a strong tone.

He nodded, going along with it. He decided to bring up the subject about her heartbeat. "There's something I need to tell you. For some reason, I-I can hear your heartbeat."

She looked at him confused.

"I know it sounds crazy-" He was cut off.

"No, it's not. I just didn't know you can hear mine. Because I can hear yours, too," she said with a smile.

"You can?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. It's...beautiful."

"Thank you. Yours is, too. Why-why can we hear each other's heartbeats?" he asked.

She chuckled. "I've been asking myself that for a year now. I don't know why. Do you-do you think we were...destined to meet?"

"What does that mean?" he asked. He had never heard that word before.

"Do you think we were bound to meet? It wasn't by chance that we met. We were bound to meet," she asked him seriously.

He stared at her. Did he? Did he believe he met her by chance? Probably not since he could hear her heartbeat. "...yes, I do."

She smiled. "Me, too." She looked at his back again. "Come on, I need to get a good look at this."

"W-what?" He didn't want her to see his back. Her father was okay because he had gave him a bath, but Hermione was special and he didn't want to lose her. And if losing her meant that she would never speak to him or even look at him again after seeing his wounds, he didn't want her to see his back. "N-no." He shook his head swallowing hard. "Y-y-you don't want to see it. Believe me. You wouldn't want t-to talk to me or even look at m-me anymore." He began to stutter, fearful of what was going to happen.

She touched his arm and a shot of electricity went through them. But neither of them paid attention to it. "It's okay, Harry. I won't judge you. What they did to you was wrong and it is in no way your fault. Besides, I already saw it last night. But I want to see it again. I want to see if they hurt you worse."

He nodded and hesitantly stood. He stood in front of her, facing her. He took a deep, shaky breath, and let it out slowly. His hands went to the buttons on his pajama shirt. Slowly, but surely, he unbuttoned it. Hermione gasped as she saw the wounds on his stomach. Bruises. Cuts. Harry took the shirt off gingerly, wincing as it brushed an open wound. The shirt fell to the ground and he turned for her to see.

Hermione's hands flew to her mouth as she saw the raw cuts, bruises, and wounds on his back. With a shuddering breath, she gently touched one. He shivered at her warm and soft hand. He closed his eyes at the contact. He was getting uncomfortable and yet, at the same time, comfortable. It was like he loved her touch so much, he was afraid of doing something stupid. It worsened when she traced more of the wounds, getting a little bit of blood on her hands.

When she spoke, Harry heard tears, "We can't wait until tomorrow, Harry. We have to get you to the hospital now." Withdrawing her hand, she ran out the room to get her parents. Telling them Harry needed to go to the doctor now and seeing his back, they agreed.

Jacob didn't know why he didn't say anything to his wife about the wounds. He saw them, but he guessed he was just in too much shock to say anything. Harry put the shirt back on and they raced to the hospital.

When they arrived to the emergency room, there weren't that many people there. So they didn't have to wait long. Harry looked around the white room. This was the first time he'd been to a hospital. It was cold and smelled strange. He wasn't sure if he could stand the freezing temperature.

After about ten minutes, Harry was called in. The whole family went in with him. Harry was told to sit on a cushioned table. He'd never heard of the thing. A cushioned table?! And to sit on it?! A man in a white labcoat smiled at him. He had a friendly smile and a friendly face. He smiled back slightly. "Hello, Harry. My name is Dr. Jay Sinclair. You can call me Dr. Sinclair, though. Let's see what the damage is. Take off your shirt."

Harry did as he said reluctantly. Once he took it off, the coldness reached him full blast and he began to shiver. Hermione noticed this and interlaced her fingers through his. He smiled at the warmth. Suddenly, there was a bright light emanating from their interlocked hands. Dr. Sinclair and the two other Grangers were shocked. The two children came soon after.

What was happening?


In a castle in Scotland called Hogwarts, one old wizard was jolted and an intrument on his desk glowed bright. It was the Soul Bond instrument. It glowed when two Soulmates interlocked hands. He waved his wand over it. Two names came out of it.

Harry James Potter

Hermione Jane Granger

He ran from his office to his collegue's. "Minerva!" he called.

The old witch came running from her bedroom. "What is it, Albus?"

"It's Harry Potter. He's been Bound."

Minerva McGonagall widened her eyes and gasped. "Are you sure, Albus?"

Albus Dumbledore nodded. "We must go see them. They must be confused."

Minerva nodded and left to get her Muggle clothes on, as she had already dressed for bed.


The light didn't go away. Harry felt a pain in his back and he yelled. This was worse than the beatings. Why was this happening to him? Why was there so much pain?

'Calm down, Harry. It's okay,' he heard Hermione's voice in his head.

'Was that...?' he thought to himself.

'Harry...is that you?' he heard it again.

'Hermione? I think I can hear your thoughts!' The pain in his back was getting worse and he yelled louder.

'It's okay, Harry, I'm right here. Shh,' she thought to him, soothing him.

He began to settle down. And the light went away. There was something different about the two six-year-olds. They looked...well, different. Like they aged a few years. Their clothes didn't fit much anymore and Harry was a little bit broader. Hermione was beginning to show small signs of developing breasts. Charlotte and Jacob gasped as they saw their little girl and the boy.

Dr. Sinclair looked at Harry's back confused. "I thought you said there were wounds back here."

"What?" The Grangers went to Harry's back and looked at it. It was true. The wounds and bruises were gone. There wasn't even a scar. Hermione looked at his stomach. The wounds were gone there, too.

Harry took off his glasses, finding them blurry. And finding that he could see perfectly without them. The only mark that was still on his body was the lightning bolt shaped scar. He didn't know why everything else was gone, except for that.

"W-what happened to us?" Hermione voiced.

"I-I don't know," Harry replied.

"I can tell you," came a voice from the door. They looked and saw an old man and woman. The old man had the longest beard Harry had ever seen. The woman had a very stern look in her face.

The old man waved his hand and Dr. Sinclair became very confused and he walked outside. The old man and woman walked in. "I am Albus Dumbledore, and this is Minerva McGonagall."

They had strange names. Very strange.

"So, how did this happen then?" Harry asked eagerly.

"You two are Soul Bonded. Bound is the casual term for it," Albus Dumbledore said.

"What does that mean?" Hermione asked.

"It means that you two were destined to meet. It was written down in a book called The Book of Soul Bonds years ago. It is the sort of like a marriage in our world," McGonagall replied with a thin, tight smile.

"Married?!" came Charlotte's shocked voice.

"Your world?" Hermione said at the same time.

"Yes, I am a witch, just like you. And Harry is a wizard, just like Albus."

"Like...magic?"

McGonagall nodded. "Yes, like magic."

"Prove it," Harry said with a glare. He didn't trust them.

Dumbledore whipped out his wand and waved it twice in front of Harry and Hermione. Their clothes suddenly got larger and fit them better. They widened their eyes. "Now, do you see?"

Harry was hesitant again, but nodded.

"How old are you two?" McGonagall asked.

"Six," they chorused together.

The wizard and witch looked confused. "Six?! You look ten to me! The Soul Bond must have pushed far beyond the age expectancy."

"Yes, yes, I think that it is so," Dumbledore agreed staring at them.

McGonagall looked at the Granger parents and told them, "Usually, Soul Bonds age the Soulmates. But it's only about a year older. These two were changed to age ten."

"What does this mean?" Jacob asked.

"It means that they are very powerful. Especially together."

"You still didn't answer my question," Charlotte said a little miffed. "They are married?!"

The two elders nodded slowly. "Yes, they are. They can feel what the other is feeling, hear each other's thoughts, taste what each other is tasting, hear what each other is hearing, and sometimes see what each other is seeing. They are Bound."

"But there is only one way it can be completed. Of course, seeing as these two are way too young, it can't be done for another few years. Preferrably eleven or twelve more years," McGonagall added to Dumbledore's explanation.

'Heard that, Harry? We're married!' Hermione thought to Harry.

'Yeah,' was all he said. He was too shocked.

"Completion?" Jacob asked.

"Yeah, you know, completion, like a consummation in a marriage," McGonagall said blushing a bit.

Charlotte and Jacob widened their eyes more. "Oh, no is that not happening!" Jacob yelled.

"Of course not. They aren't going to do anything. But they will when they're older," Dumbledore reassured them.

Harry and Hermione had no idea what they were talking about. They just looked at each other and shrugged.

"Will they continue to age?" Charlotte asked.

"No, but they will continue to grow normally. Since the two are almost seven, by next year, they will look eleven."

The wizard and witch answered mountains of more questions. Harry and Hermione didn't pay attention. They were too engrossed in each other.

'I can still hear your heartbeat, Harry.'

'Yeah, me, too. Why has this happened?'

Hermione felt a little hurt. Did he not want to be married to her? Harry felt her insecurity. 'No, that's not what I meant at all. I meant why did this have to happen to us? I'm just a lonely, abused fucker.'

Hermione gasped at his nasty word. 'Harry, don't say that! That's a bad word! And you're not. You're my friend.' She reassured him with a gentle squeeze of his hand. 'And no one can take you away from me.' Harry had a weird feeling inside of him. It must have been coming off of her. It made him feel happy, but he wasn't sure if he liked the foreign feeling.

Harry turned to Dumbledore with a very important question. "Were my parents like this?"

"Yes, best pupils I've had at Hogwarts, which is the school I am Headmaster at. You two will go there when you are eleven," he answered.

"Why did they leave me?" Harry asked curiously.

"Leave you?" McGonagall asked confused.

"Yeah, my Uncle and Aunt told me that they didn't care about me and didn't want me so they dumped me on their doorstep."

"That's a lie. They were murdered. By a mass murderer. Named Voldemort."

Harry became angry. He'd been lied to. He'd been cheated out. He'd been deprived of parents.

"It's true, Harry. We met them," Charlotte said with a smile.

"We have?" Jacob asked confused.

"Yes, do you remember when we were pregnant for Hermione and we went to that toy store and I ran into Lily Potter and we talked for a bit?" she asked him.

He hesitated and nodded, recalling that day.

"Well, this is their son, Harry," she looked at the six-year-old with a dreamy gaze on her face.

"They told me that hated me and didn't want me. Nobody wanted me."

"They wanted you, Harry. They did. They were so happy you were coming. And when we bumped into each other, you two," she gestured to her daughter as well. "kicked like crazy." They smiled and knew that they were destined to be together even from the womb.

"Yes, Harry, your parents were murdered. Minerva and I were the ones that brought you to your relatives' home so that you could live amon-"

"Wait!" Hermione interrupted. He face of pure disblelief and anger. "You were the one who sent him there?! He barely got out of there alive! If it wasn't for me, he'd still be there, half-dead, waiting to die!"

"I'm sorry. Please, forgive an old wizard," Dumbledore said sincerely.

"You're going to have to do better than that. You didn't even have anyone come check on me?" he asked.

Dumbledore shook his head ashamed. "No, I'm sorry, Harry. Really and truely."

"I'm not going to forgive you. It's going to take a while," Harry said.

Hermione turned to her parents. "Can we please go?"

They nodded and ushered them out.

The two six-year-olds were still holding hands and they could still feel the magic in their palms, spreading throughout their bodies. The two magical beings watched them leave.


"NO!" he called out in his sleep. He could still feel the pains on his back, his torso, his arms, his legs, his pelvis, his face. As if they were still there. He was trying to fight off his uncle from his blowing belt. "Please, stop! That hurts!"

"Harry, wake up!" he heard and felt someone grabbing his arms. He tried to fight them off. "No!"

"Harry, wake up!" His eyes shot open and he gasped, bolting upright and panting. Hermione was sitting on his bed, looking very worried. "It's okay. You're fine. Shh. It's okay." She stroked his sweaty face tenderly, like her mother used to do when she had nightmares. He relaxed and leaned into her touch, feeling at peace. "They can't hurt you anymore. I promise." She crawled over his legs to the other side of the queen bed and wrapped her arms around him in a comforting hold. He relaxed under her grasp. She kissed the side of his head. "It's okay." He grabbed her arm for something to hold onto.

And she just held him. Just like that. For a while until he calmed down.

"Th-they killed me this time," he cried. "Beat me to the death."

"They can't do that. Not while I'm around," she reassured him.

"I don't deserve someone like you as a friend. You are too perfect. No one likes me. I'm a nobody," he said wiping his eyes.

"I like you. And you deserve me. Apparently, we're married so you're going to have to deal with it," she chuckled followed by Harry.

"I like you, too," he said with a weak smile. She kissed his cheek. 'Really, I do' he sent to her.

She smiled and sent back, 'Come on, you better get some sleep.' "Goodnight, Harry." She let him go.

"Goodnight, Hermione." He laid back down in his bed and Hermione tucked him in and kissed his forehead. She left the room. When she got back to her room, she closed the door and slid down it to the floor.

And wept.

TBC...


Hey, there was ch. 2. Harry and Hermione may seem like their intelligence is over their age, but they're now "10" years old. So they're mind is kinda gonna grow with that.

Hoped you like this chapter.

Pleez review!

DREWHHR