Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

A/N: Enjoy. :)

Chapter 10: The Confrontation

Cold.

There is nothing but the cold wind in my face as I looked around the barren wasteland.

Cold.

It sent shivers to my spine as I remembered my greatest fear. Dementors were swooping down on me and I got ready to conjure my patronus.

Cold.

I am slowly losing myself, drained of happiness and slowly draining out of life.

EXPECTO PATRONUM. But nothing happened. Now I know the feeling of being robbed out of happiness. It wanted me to give up, to just. . .die.

Cold.

My body was cold. I am slowly drowning myself with the memories that tried to haunt me. . .everyday.

I tried to move, to run away from the cold fear that was threatening to envelope me.

Then I saw her, being hit by a curse. I ran, ran as fast as I could to reach her side. There was no pulse.

I tried to shake her, forced myself to believe that she will wake up.

NO! This was not happening! I couldn't lose her, not now. HERMIONE!

I gasped. Someone was shaking me.

"Harry, wake up! Harry, you have to wake up!" I opened my eyes and sat. It was just a dream. I shivered as I recalled the encounter with the dementors and was surprised when I saw Hermione standing beside the bed. Thank Merlin she's okay!

"What just happened?" I blurted.

I took my glasses from the bedside and looked at her closely.

She looked at me with utmost fear in her eyes and I suddenly understood, it was those nightmares again. I had to do something, or else they may allow me to reveal my innermost feelings for the girl standing here before me. "I don't know Harry, one minute I was tending to Teddy and then I heard you screaming. When you suddenly called my name, I rushed towards your room and tried to wake you up."

That was close, so close. I was angry at myself on why I kept on producing these bloody nightmares. I stared at the floor and clenched my fist, unable to meet her gaze.

"You think I'm pathetic now, don't you?" Frustration and anger welled up inside me. Why were they always about her? Were they trying to warn me? Will something bad happen again?

Hermione cupped my cheeks and forced me to look at her in the eyes. I hesitated, but when I saw her pleading eyes, I decided to meet her gaze.

"No Harry, not one bit." I tried giving her a nonchalant face and sighed as I looked away.

After she learned about my nightmares, Hermione and I never talked about them again but she always kept an eye on me, watching over me. There were times that she would enter my room just to see if I was okay I swear, I never felt more secured in my life. The two of us were more than comfortable with each other's presence by now, and every day, I would tell her a bit of my hopes and plans. She would smile at my efforts, if there was something I truly love about her it was when everything was going wrong, she was still there for me, believing in me when I didn't even believe in myself.

I didn't tell her yet about the events that occurred after Snape's death, which would have to wait. Truthfully, just trying to remember those events makes me want to choke up.

Upon seeing the sincerity in her eyes, I already knew that she was telling the truth. I muttered a hasty sorry for my actions and she went to sit beside me with a smile.

"Are you ready for today?"

I looked at the clock. It was already five in the morning. This was the day that Kingsley scheduled my speech, Harry Potter was coming out of his shell at last. And then, this was also my last day with both Hermione and Teddy because I would be leaving for Hogwarts after a week.

I sighed, suddenly feeling sad that the life I learned to live with was now coming to an end. "I don't. . .really know Hermione."

She put her hand on my shoulder. "Everything will get better."

My lips curved into a small smile and felt the sudden need to tell her something that could relieve me of my load. Days ago, I told myself that I wouldn't open up until the time was right. But now, I felt that I needed to let go of the nightmares that kept gnawing my insides when I was awake and the memories that always shrouded my mind.

A lot of time, I felt dead inside. I had no will to do anything for myself, I was stranded. After the war, only dead bodies visited me every night. I felt like I didn't deserve to be happy, happiness is for the living, after all. However, when I was with her, I felt alive. Like a fire started inside me and suddenly, I realized what she said, maybe I did deserve some happiness. . .and maybe, I did have something to live for.

Now, I realized, there was no other person who I could tell this to, but her.

"Hermione, do you remember what happened after Voldemort announced that I was dead?" Hermione looked at me intently, her face in a frown.

"Yes, I was very shocked. I didn't want to believe that you could do such thing. Well, that turned out wrong, didn't it? Because you were alive."

I looked at her intently, my face set in a grim line, silently telling her that it wasn't the case. "No, I died."

Shock and horror spread all over her face as she tried to comprehend my words. Blood drained out of her features and she looked pale. I sighed and continued my tale, which I should have told long ago. "What Voldemort said was true, I really died, voluntarily, I made the decision myself. He killed me with the killing curse." She looked at me, her eyes wide while trying to knit the facts together.

I lifted my shirt and tossed it in my bed so that she could see the small mark where Voldemort hit me in the junction between my chest and my stomach. She gasped when she saw it, a small disfigured scar where the spell hit. And slowly, hesitantly, she traced the scar while trying to hold back tears.

"But. . .why? I mean surely you have thought about it before going towards where he was? How did you survive?" I laughed bitterly at her and resumed to telling my story. I looked at the ceiling, reliving the moment it happened as I closed my eyes. I didn't want to see her expression after I reveal the past part of my story.

"I was. . .the last horcrux. When I was a baby, the night that Voldemort tried to kill me was also the night that he transferred a part of his soul to me. He wasn't aware of it, but that still didn't change anything."

Hermione nodded at the revelation, her face scrunched up in concentration. I knew she figured it out somehow, when I told her I died, and I began to tell her what happened. What I saw on the pensieve, how I finally accepted that my death was a part of Dumbledore's plan, that I reunited the three hallows and used the stone to see my mum, dad, Sirius and Remus again, how I died at the hands of Voldemort, met Dumbledore on the King's Cross and how I finally came back.

Throughout the story, Hermione only listened with silent understanding. There were times when she would cup her mouth as the weight of my words enveloped the room. Finally, I told her, "I never thought I was going to live."

I tried to give her a small smile, make her understand that it was now. . .a part of the past. But when I looked into her eyes, I knew that it still didn't change the fact that I almost died. She tried to stifle a sob and before I knew it, she was holding me tightly, like her life depended on it. "I'm sorry. I never knew you had to suffer like that, I'm so sorry."

I chuckled at her reaction. Truthfully, I felt better after I had chunked some of it off my chest. "It's OK, I am alive and that's what matters right?"

She looked at me, her face still brimmed with tears. No words were needed at that moment, as if the communication came from our hearts was enough to understand what we felt. Pure relief and adoration and care were all I saw from her as I tucked a stray hair under her ears.

I swear, she never looked more beautiful.

"Well, this will be our last day with Teddy so why don't we make the most out of it?" She laughed and threw a pillow at my face and the mood shifted. The next thing I knew, we were already running around the house, throwing pillows at each other and leaving the oblivious elves in panic.

Morning passed easily but I didn't really notice. What mattered to me were the moments that I got to spend with the both of them. After our eventful pillow fight that left feathers around the house, we went to see Teddy, who was asleep inside Hermione's room and took the opportunity to get ready for the day.

After helping Hermione get Teddy ready for our little walk, we left the house to the elves and went to Diagon Alley, where we enjoyed Florean Fortesque's ice cream and looked around the shops. People stared at us while we walked but truthfully, I didn't care a bit. We ate lunch at the muggle restaurant we always enjoyed and talked a bit about things we wanted to do next time we're together.

When we finally decided that it was time to get ready for the event that would take place this afternoon, we apparated to the Ministry of Magic. While walking towards the atrium, the place where I would be delivering a speech, Hermione looked at me, the joy she felt was radiating from her eyes. "We looked like a real family, didn't we?"

I laughed at her statement and took a look at little Teddy, who was happily gurgling bubbles with his mouth. "Yeah, we really do. Those blokes looked at us like we would be sprouting antlers any moment, wait 'til rumors started roaming around." We laughed together and Teddy, noticing our happiness, morphed his hair color from black to bright pink, as if he was telling us that he was happy as well.

After a few minutes, people from the wizarding world gathered on the meeting place. I met Ron and Luna and was surprised to see them together as the crowd began to grow. We exchanged some pleasantries with the people we knew and some of the Ministry's officials and I felt too uncomfortable when people started asking me various questions. I didn't really understand how Ron could handle it.

The time finally came and I was very nervous as I stood before everyone at the stage that was magically conjured just for this event. As I stood there, I didn't exactly understand what I felt. I looked at everyone's faces, which was a mixture of excitement, expectations, curiosity and who-knew-what. Then I saw Ron and Hermione, I nodded at them and exhaled as I pulled myself together, trying to let go of the nervousness that was building on the pit of my stomach.

And I started to speak, remembering Hermione's words, "Just tell them what you want them to understand."

"Good afternoon to all of you and thank you for coming here. As you may have known, I tried to hide from the news after the war. Maybe it was because after finally getting through a lot of pain of losing the people you loved and the discomforts of having yourself at the spotlight, I wanted to have some time of peace. Thankfully, I acquired it and it was enough to give me the courage to face the crowd again. Spending time with them was enough to get you back on your feet after. . .everything. But enough of that."

With a smile, I looked at a distant place and closed my eyes. Flashes of events filled my mind as I remembered the small details of my life, from receiving my letter to the very day I defeated Voldemort.

"My life was not something everyone expected. I didn't grow up in the fame and fortune you might have thought I had and Hogwarts was my first real home. I kept on looking forward to seeing it every year. But a lot has happened in the seven years that I was in Hogwarts, the last ones being the most difficult of them all. In my journey towards the end, I have been very blessed that my friends stood by me and supported me all the way. Many have died to build this world we live in today and I knew a lot of them. I also bore witnessed the death of some and it was never an easy encounter. Even today, it was hard to accept that there were people in our lives that we would never hold or see again, but we kept on wishing them to be with us today. Know them, for they fought valiantly in the war, remember them, for they have given their lives just to provide us with a better tomorrow."

I looked at the crowd and flashes of my life suddenly came running down on me. When I finally saw the place where the Weasley family was located, I smiled. They gave me the first real house that was cozy enough to call a home, a family that never failed to warm my heart with the hospitality and love that they freely gave. Sure, they were not perfect, but it made it more better, right? "To Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who showed me what a family was and taught me one of life's greatest lessons. It doesn't really matter if you're not rich, for as long as you have your family who loved you, it would all be okay. Thank you for showing me what a real family was like. You treated me as one of your sons and thank you for the care that you never failed to give. I would be forever grateful to my second parents who gave me such kindness and love." The crowd applauded and cheered as I clapped my hands to honor them. I looked at Mrs. Weasley's crying face and smiled at her. It was enough to show them through these words how grateful I was to be given a chance to know them.

"Then, to my brothers and sisters, siblings who were related to me, not by blood, but by the love and care they have shown. Meeting them has been the beginning of a great adventure. They never failed to make me think that life was great, even with all the misfortunes. Thank you George, for the humor you always give to make everyone happy during those dark times that didn't even allow us to smile. It has always been you and Fred who made a good laugh, even at the darkest of times. To Ginny, Bill and his wife Fleur, thank you for being with me until the very end. Even when you were at the brink of getting killed, your desires to fight for a better tomorrow never failed to give you courage. Thank you for being with me as I fought my greatest battle, for fighting alongside me and for showing me bravery and loyalty that was always hidden in each and every one of us."

Everyone cheered as I tried to think of what to say to the two people who made me who I am today. The ones who supported me in almost everything and the ones who even decided to leave their families just to help me. "To the two most loyal people I have known. They were always by my side in every step of the way, always reminding me who I was, Harry. They were my rock, the light when everything was dark. During those times that I have no one to lean on to, I always find strength in them because I knew that they were there with me. Without them, I would never have succeeded in defeating the Dark Lord. To Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, thanks for being the greatest best friends a man could ever have."

I smiled at the both of them, remembering the hardships that we have faced in order to defeat Voldemort. It was because of them that I got this far, from defeating a troll which formed an unbreakable bond between us to destroying the pieces of a madman's soul. Then, I tried to look for a friend and when I spotted him wearing his usual furry, brown coat, I laughed. He was the first person who became my real friend. His fascination for monsters and creatures always made me smile, but then, realizing it, he was always compassionate about everything he did. He was very loyal and loved both the people and creatures close to his heart. "Without this person, my Hogwarts life will not be the same. He taught me interesting bits and pieces about magical creatures but I still couldn't understand why he was so fascinated at them. But really, he was the first friend I really had and he was the one who showed me the different side of my life I didn't know. You're a great professor Hagrid, because you love to teach your students how to care, not only for their fellow wizards and witches but also for the creatures that were always thought of as lower beings. You showed many of them great kindness and treated them with equal respect. Because of you, many have realized the value of others. Keep on inspiring others and teaching them the value of the lessons you taught us."

Hagrid looked at me and smiled, a great big tear escaping from his eyes. I returned the favor and looked at everyone as I went to the last part of my speech. "Lastly, to all my friends: the Order of the Phoenix, D.A. and professors who have always taught me how to become a great student and an even greater person. Because of you lot, my stay in Hogwarts has always been eventful. Thank you for teaching the true meaning of magic. How would I ever survive this war if it wasn't for your help?" I grinned.

"Harry Potter became who he was today because of the help of many wonderful people in this world. They have taught me many things. And even if some of them weren't here right now, I want you all to know that I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for these people. Know their stories, for theirs was greater than mine."

I took by bow as I stepped out of the stage and looked for my friends. It was then that I realized that life will never be the same without them. And while I kept wishing for the others to be here and celebrate these moments with me, I knew in my heart that they were with us in every step of the way.

Because love was like the wind, you couldn't see it, but you could always feel it.