Chapter Twenty- Four

Love Binds

It was where she belonged, this little nook was hers, and hers alone. His chin, resting upon her head, one strong arm encasing her in love. The other held a small book and he read it aloud to her helping her to forget the pain and sufferings of their own story.

'"-the gentle fine is this: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand to smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss".' he paused and was silent for a moment, 'Im sorry Hermione, but this Romeo guy is a right ponce- nobody speaks like this.'

She bit back a laugh and pushed herself up onto her elbow to gaze down into his perplexed blue eyes.

'Now they don't, but Shakespeare is an art to be appreciated Ronald. It's the story behind the words you should pay attention to,'

'Well fine. If an ordinary bloke said this bollocks to an ordinary girl there's no chance she'd swoon about and reply with,' he glanced back at the book, '"Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch, and palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss". Merlin! Women are hard enough to understand anyway, what's all this dung about? Bloody pilgrims, she's talking to, what's her name?'

'Juliet,' Hermione supplied grinning.

'Yeah, her. Juliet is talking to Romeo about bloody religion before he tries to kiss her, what's that about? And is he even trying to kiss her? I can't bloody tell with all these bloody big words.' he ranted, glaring at the book in disgust. At this, Hermione, burst into a fit of laughter and found herself rolling around on the bed, disregarding any hope at educating her delightful boyfriend.

'Well I'm glad you find me so amusing,' he grumbled. Sensing danger, Hermione calmed herself down and peaked up at him through her hair. He was slouched back against a pillow half naked with tousled hair and staring quizzically at the small book in his large hand. He had never looked sexier.

Abruptly she pulled her self up, threw one leg over and straddled him. Slowly she lent forward and plucked the book from his hand and casually dropped it on the floor; receiving a raised eyebrow.

'Sacrilege,' he murmured, as his palms slid up her legs and settled on her hips. Hermione shrugged coyly and lent forward towards his lips.

'So if you wanted to kiss me, dear Ronald. What would you say?' she whispered.

'Um,' he said, momentarily stumped.

'What would you say to me? Hm?' Hermione murmured, as she trailed kisses down towards his ear.

'I would tell you that you're the most beautiful woman in the world.'

'What else?' she nibbled softly on his ear and felt his hips shift slightly.

'I would say that I would want nothing more than to kiss your sweet lips.'

Suddenly he rolled her and Hermione found herself beneath him, trapped and gazing into twinkling blue eyes.

'But I wouldn't specify which lips,' he wickedly whispered against her lips. Hermione gasped slightly and Ron took his opportunity to kiss her. The kiss deepened as their need for one another grew stronger and when Hermione's small tongue darted into Ron's mouth, he heard himself moan and pulled her closer to him. His kiss is slow, tantalising and distracts her from life. She raises her arms above her head and Ron, taking the hint, smiles against her lips and slowly pulls the nightgown over her head and drops it on top of the book.

'Sacrilege,' Hermione admonishes. He rolls his eyes and brings one hand up to cup her breast as the other ties into her hair.

'Exquisite,' she sighed, arching her back and rolling her head slightly.

Ron grinned into her neck and slowly moved his mouth down and began to give her left breast attention. Hermione moaned and rolled her hips into his, begging with her body. He slid one hand down to graze her inner thigh and Hermione groaned and slammed her head into the pillow before pulling him into a harsh kiss.

'If you wanted me to kiss your lips Hermione, what would you say?' he asked mischievously. Her brows knitted together a moment before uplifting as she gathered where his thoughts were.

'Well?' he chuckled and kissed her upturned lips softly. She bit her lip before replying with a grin.

'Get to work,' and promptly she pushed his head under the covers. Laughing Ron sunk between Hermione's raised legs, kissing her inner thighs lovingly. Hermione found herself burying her hands in his hair and surrendering to the pleasure as his mouth reaches the apex of her thighs.

'Oh!' she cried out as he suddenly kissed her, there. Her back arches from the bed as his tongue circles her clitoris. It was too much, she needed him, now. Pulling him up from under the covers Hermione kissed him harshly as he slowly sank into her, exulting in both of them moaning into one another's mouths.

'Merlin, Hermione,' Ron groaned into her neck and she closed her eyes, savouring the pleasure.

'Oh God,' she cried, her hands gripping the bed frame.

'Fuck,' he growled with his eyes squeezed shut.

'Come for me, Ron.' She urged.

'Hermione,' he breathes.

'Now, with me! Now!' she cries.

Together they reached such a high, that afterwards they were momentarily stunned.

Once they're breathing and heart rates had reduced to a normal rate, Ron propped himself up and smiled down at the beauty before him.

'I bet Shakespeare never wrote that.' He grinned.

Hermione laughed and shook her head.

'See, who needs all that pansy language when you can just get straight to the point?'

'Who indeed.' Hermione murmured as she nestled back into her nook.

They remained in companionable silence for a while, enjoying one another's affectionate kisses. Sighing, Ron glanced over at the clock on the bedside table.

'What time is it?' Hermione groaned.

'Past one in the morning.' Ron replied, his eyebrows drawn quizzically. Hermione's eyes darted towards Ginny's empty and she abruptly sat up.

'Do you think they're still at?' she asked worriedly.

'Merlin, I hope not. They've been at it all day!'

Hermione swiftly hopped out of bed and shrugged on her light blue robes.

'And now you want us to go and check on them, don't you?' Ron sighed. Hermione didn't reply, she merely looked at him with still flushed cheeks and crackling hair.

'Okay, okay.' He said, pushing himself out of bed and pulling on his black robes. Hermione cast a quick cleansing charm to dispose of embarrassing liquids and scents from their clothing and skins.

'Ready?' Ron asked her smiling slightly. Hermione nodded, and together they quickly made their way out of the bedroom and down the stairs towards the basement. As they jogged down the last few Hermione saw that the basement door had been left open; sharing a confused glance with Ron they skidded to a stop just before the door. There were no screams, nor any animated conversation; just silence. Dreading what he may find, Ron stepped into the room and glanced around.

'They're not in here,' Ron called out to Hermione. She joined him in the basement and folded her arms, contemplating.

'There's blood,' Ron murmured, crouching down to the floor and tracing the drops with his fingertips.

'Oh, Ron, you don't think-' she left the question hanging.

'Of course not,' Ron said brusquely, rising and brushing off his hands, 'they're probably just resting or something.'

'Well, she is.' A voice from beyond the threshold stated.

Ron and Hermione wheeled around, wands at the ready. Hart stepped into the room and raised his eyebrow at the two of them.

'Really? You expected a Death Eater at headquarters?' he smirked.

Neither lowered their wands.

'When we first met what was wrong with me, in your opinion.' Ron asked.

'Many things, you weren't properly attired, you had bacon dangling from your mouth, you couldn't run up a hill without ending up crawling-'

'Alright,' Ron grumbled holding up his hand as Hermione stifled a laugh behind her own. The coldness in Harts eyes lessened slightly for a moment.

'Where are they then?' Ron asked.

'I believe they are in Potters room.' Hart replied, polishing an apple on his robes.

'Have they found anything?' Hermione asked instantly. Hart bit into the apple and slowly chewed as his thoughts churned.

'I don't know.' He finally answered.

'Right.' Ron growled. He strode past Hart, knocking his shoulder on the way out and marched up the shallow stairs, grumbling the whole way.

'Why do you antagonise him so?' Hermione asked Hart.

Hart grinned and shrugged.

'It amuses me.'

Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed past him following Ron up the stairs.

'Well, I find it funny.' Hart said to himself.

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Harry sat.

Ginny slept. She slept peaceful. Probably for the first time in months, Harry thought as he lent forward slightly to brush a lock of hair from her face. As he did he was pleased to see how much it had grown back over the past six months, and then saddened to have missed it. Sighing, he sat back into his conjured armchair and surveyed the young woman on the bed. There was no doubt that this was his Ginny; the Ginny that had kissed him in broom closets and knew his mind better than he himself knew it. She had come back to him, but for how long. He wanted, no, needed to decipher a way to banish the darker part of Ginny's soul for good. He just didn't know how. He ran a hand through his hair in exasperation and sighed again as he glanced over at the clock, ten to one. He knew he needed to sleep, but did he trust her enough to sleep? No, not yet, he thought.

'Harry, Ginny moaned into her pillow.

'Yeah, Gin?'

'Shu' Up,'

Harry laughed.

'I've been as silent as a church mouse.' He replied.

'Not your voice,' she whined, 'your stupid head,' she tapped the side of her head tiredly with eyes tightly shut.

'You can hear me even asleep?' he inquired. She popped open one eye and raised an eyebrow.

'Always, can't you?' she asked.

'Nope, never.'

Ginny propped herself up on her elbow to see him better. How strange, she thought.

'Not really,' Harry said, 'I did some research while you were, um, away,'

Ginny's eyes dropped for a moment at his last word, before they lifted back to his own.

'We haven't really, talked, about the past six months Harry.' Ginny whispered. He looked down at his hands.

'There's nothing to talk about, you wasn't yourself.' Harry murmured.

'Harry,' she sat up on the bed and looked at him expectantly, 'Harry, what did I do?'

He merely gazed at her a moment before shaking his head.

'Harry, tell me.'

'We're not having this conversation right now,' Harry growled, pushing up from his chair and walking over to the window.

'If you won't tell me-'Ginny sprang out of the bed and began to pull on her robes, 'then I will just have to find someone who will!'

Harry whirled around and strode over to her. Grabbing her shoulders he hissed at her, 'DO you want to know what you did? Really?' he shook her slightly.

'Yes!' she yelled, shoving him away from her.

'You killed people Ginny! Slew them and then traipsed over their corpses laughing.'

'How many?' she whispered, her face pale. Harry stared down at her in pity.

'We lost count Gin,' he said brokenly. She sank down into the armchair and Harry sank with her. You lost count, she thought.

'We tried Gin, we tried everything to bring you back; and then one day, they stopped trying.'

'Why,' she cleared her throat, 'why did they stop?'

Harry grasped her hand tightly in his and tried to gather his thoughts, flashes of the day springing into his mind. Ginny gasped and pulled her hand from his.

'I killed Percy?' she gasped. 'I killed my own brother!'

She put her face into her hands and sobbed, deep, wracking sobs that made Harry's heart ache.

I killed my brother, killed him, dead, me, my fault, he's dead, Percy, I killed my brother, how did I?

She lifted a tear streaked face, grabbed Harry's face with her small hands and delved into his memories. Realising what she was trying to do, Harry tried to pull away.

Ginny no, he thought; his own memories flashing before him like a film rendition of the past few months, until they stopped on one fateful memory.

He ran through the streets frantically, pushing against the tide of people running from the very person he was trying to get to. Ginny. He could hear the unforgivable curses ringing out, bouncing off the old bricks of Muggle London. Ron and Hermione were close at his heels.

'Hermione, have you been able to set up that anti-apparation barrier yet?' he yelled over his shoulder.

'Yes, it's done. Nobody is getting in or out now,' she shouted back against the wind.

'Watch out!' Ron bellowed, shoving Hermione to the ground and kicking his legs out from under him in unison. Just in time to see the sickly green glow of the Avada Kedavra, curse sail over their heads and strike a young Muggle boy hiding in a doorway.

'Damn,' Ron muttered, as the boy fell.

'You can't save everyone,' Hermione said softly.

They were up and running again a second later. As they entered the square, he took in the scene quickly. Hart was duelling three Death Eaters at once by the phone box, Tonks and Remus fighting others on the library steps, Arrel using the trees to entangle Death Eaters before crushing the life from them, Neville and Iris battling upon the fountain and finally Percy Weasley battling his own sister; shielding a Muggle family of three behind him. With battle cries, Ron and Hermione joined the fight. Ron threw a dagger and instantly killed a Death Eater sneaking up on Iris, Hermione threw herself into the fray by duelling the Death Eater that had shot the Unforgiveable at them moments before. He ran towards Percy, to aid in him in his family quarrel. Barely had he splashed through a fountain of blood before Percy was struck down by a simple Diffindo. Ginny's specialty.

'No!' he roared as Percy's body hit the ground and Ginny obliterated the Muggle family in the corner. Ginny's eyes locked with his from across the battlefield and there was such a gleeful joy in them that he was nearly sick on the spot.

'Potter's here!' she shrieked to her lackeys, 'away!'

Upon hearing these commands all the Death Eaters pulled on a necklace and were Portkeyed away.

'Until next time, darling Potter,' she laughed, before blowing him a kiss and vanishing.

'No!' He cried, falling to his knees.

With a cry Ginny pulled herself from his mind and fell into his arms.

'I told you that you didn't want to know,' Harry murmured as he held her tight.

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'Stupid, tosser, fancy talking prick.' Ron listed off the profanities as he stalked the upstairs hallway.

'Ron,' Hermione called from the bottom of the stairs. 'Ron, slow down.'

He stilled and waited for her to join him. In through the nose, out through the mouth he thought.

'Ron, you know he likes to rile you up,' Hermione said as she placed tentative fingers on his shoulder.

'I know.' He sighed, 'doesn't mean I have to like it.'

'No, it doesn't,'

She pulled him into a soft kiss.

'Better now?' she asked. Ron merely nodded slightly, a small smile gracing his lips.

'Good, come on, let's find Harry.'

'He's probably in our room,' Ron decided and set off down the corridor towards his and Harry's room.

'Do you think they have found anything?' Hermione asked as they began to climb the stairs to the third floor.

'Must have,' Ron threw over his shoulder, 'otherwise, Harry wouldn't have let her leave the basement. He says that she's back but you know Harry, he won't stop.'

'Not until all doubts have been banished from everyone's mind.' Hermione agreed.

'Exactly,'

They reached Harry and Ron's room and paused outside the room a split second. Ron slowly pushed open the door and peered into the darkened room. It took his eyes a moment to adjust before he registered that the shape on an armchair was Harry, with Ginny curled up in his arms quietly sobbing. The two in the chair hadn't noticed them and neither were very sure as of what to say. Harry was stroking Ginny's back and she clung to him with her shoulders shaking.

'Hush Gin, it wasn't you.' Harry murmured. This only caused Ginny's sobs to intensify. 'Come on my fiery tornado.' Harry dropped a kiss to her red locks and squeezed her tighter. 'Be strong.'

Ginny lifted her face to Harry's and stared at them. Something seemed to pass between them and Hermione knew they were speaking telepathically. Harry lifted his hand and wiped away the tears from her cheek. Ginny nestled her cheek into his palm and closed her eyes. Harry nodded.

More telepathy, Ron thought.

Hermione tugged on his arm and beckoned him with her head. We shouldn't be watching this, her eyes said. Ron mutually agreed and allowed him to be pulled from the room and softly closed to door, just as Harry bent and captured Ginny's lips with his own.

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Harry heard the door gently shut and knew Ron and Hermione had been checking on them.

Have they left? Ginny thought. Harry nodded. Good.

She kissed him harder and Harry held her tighter as their kisses grew more intense. Her hands played with the small hairs at the nape of his neck as she straddled him upon the chair and resumed kissing him.

Harry, I want you to make me forget everything tonight, she thought to him as her tongue stroked his.

What do you mean, Gin? He thought as his hands tangled in her hair. She stopped kissing him and looked him directly in the eye.

'Make love to me, Harry.' She said it simply, no emotion. Make me forget.

She bent and began to kiss his neck and Harry allowed himself to enjoy the bliss of the sensations she gave him for a few seconds before stopping her.

'No, Gin.' He murmured and stroked her cheek softly. 'You don't need that tonight.'

He picked her up and carried her to the bed, despite her half hearted protest.

What you need tonight is to sleep, and be held.

He climbed into bed beside her and pulled her close.

And that is what we're going to do.

Ginny nuzzled her face into his chest and inhaled deeply.

You smell like home, she thought. I'm glad to be home again.

Sleep Gin.

He began to hum a melody in his mind, filling her own with a sweet melodic tune. Sending them both into sweet dreams.

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