"We're very sorry."
"If there was another way, we wouldn't have put you through this."
"But please understand. This was necessary."
Nicholas Flamel and his wife spoke in tandem.
As the dizziness died down, Harry and Hermione got a clear look at the two people who claimed they were responsible for the tedious happenings in their lives over the past few days.
The Flamels were glowing in the same blue light that took them on a journey through the Multiverse. The silence and the tension prevailing in the room were thick enough to cut with a knife.
"Herms," Harry turned his head to a side and met Hermione's gaze over his shoulder. "Are you alright?"
But Hermione didn't answer. Her eyes were fuming and Harry could feel her whole body shaking. He knew if he didn't hold her back, she could do some serious damage to the elderly couple in front of him.
"Aargh," she yelled and lunged at them. "You old, crooked, heartless, creatures. How could you do this to us?"
Harry was trying very hard to keep his hold steady on her waist. But she seemed quite strong for a small petite person.
"Do you even know what was going through your minds?" Hermione's screams were resounding in the otherwise quaint place.
"Calm down, Herms," Harry said pulling her back into him.
"It's alright, dear. She needs that," Perenelle Flamel spoke approaching them. "Let it out, my dear. Don't let any of that anger house in your mind." She said pulling both of them into a hug.
Harry's body went still at her actions. His hand stayed beside him, while the other one was holding Hermione in a tight grip. Perenelle moved back and pressed a kiss to their foreheads. "It's good to see you, at last."
Harry and Hermione shared confusing glances. "What's going on?" they asked stepping away from the older woman's embrace. "We need answers."
"Of course," Nicholas joined his wife. "Why don't you take a seat?" He said guiding Harry and Hermione to the nearby sofa.
"You were soulmates," Harry murmured looking at Nicholas and Perenelle who shared the armchair opposite to them. "Professor Dumbledore told me."
"Yes, Dumbledore, my friend," Nicholas said. "Yes we were soulmates, and that's not important. What you don't know is that we are your soul guardians."
"What kind of new hell is this?" Harry grumbled under his breath.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked scrunching her eyebrows as Harry's words went unheard.
"Soulmates are very powerful. Their union is important to achieve greater things. And they need guardians to keep the bond safe. I didn't know what I was going to do until I met Perenelle. She gave me a purpose to live. Without her, the Philosopher's Stone would never have taken birth. I'm nothing without her," Flamel said draping his hand over his wife's shoulder.
Harry gulped seeing how familiar his words felt.
"Soulmates come into this world with a responsibility," Perenelle said with a smile. "After you turned thirteen, we ceased to be soulmates. That gift had passed onto you and we were bestowed with the esteemed honor of keeping your souls safe."
Harry and Hermione looked at each other, the same question ringing in their minds. Harry assured her with a blink of his eye and cleared his throat. "Why is it relevant to our travels?"
"We'll get to that. But before that I need to ask something," said Perenelle. Her husband looked on with a confused expression, but she continued. "Soulmates have a unique way of completing each other. There is a pull between them to recognize the interlaying bond within their hearts. I was just wondering why didn't you recognize it earlier?" Perenelle asked summoning two glasses of Pumpkin juice and handing them one each.
"I always felt that something was amiss," Hermione said unconsciously rubbing the area near her temples. "I couldn't quite place it."
"I felt that too, but only after the war," Harry said casting a sideward look. "That happened only after the piece of Voldemort's soul was expelled from me."
Nicholas Flamel nodded his head as a somber expression crept over his face, while his wife wiped a tear.
"What's wrong?" Hermione asked looking at their saddened expressions.
"If you had bonded early, Harry could've purged Voldemort's Horcrux a very long time ago. Yes, when I discussed with Dumbledore about why the bonding hasn't happened, he told me about the evil Horcrux lodged in your heart," the elderly man said with a grim expression.
"So you tell me, you told Dumbledore that we are soulmates, but couldn't care to tell us. Do you know what we went through to get rid of that piece of Voldemort," Hermione bellowed, the glass in her hand broke, the shards digging into her hand. But Harry felt the pain in his palm. But Harry couldn't move from his spot as he looked at her. The whole living room was glowering red in her anger. "Harry had to die, to purge that Horcrux from his body." Her boiling anger had shattered few windows and the sound was reverberating around them.
Nicholas and Perenelle looked around them in awe while Harry sat there his eyes fixed on her bloodied palm.
"Did you see that Nicholas? They are going to be a powerful couple," Perenelle mused.
Nicholas agreed and turned to Harry and Hermione. "Quite a girl, you got for yourself, young man." His glee turned into a sigh and he continued. "Please understand, we weren't supposed to contact you until the bond was sealed between you. As Guardians that is our restraint. Dumbledore knew and we thought he would've helped," Nicholas said his smile turning into a frown.
"Calm down, Hermione, darling. First, hear us out," Perenelle said standing next to Hermione and smoothed down her hair. Hermione broke down at those words. The older woman gathered her fragile body and gently pushed into Harry's waiting arms.
"Your bodies are still adjusting to this new power. She had been your strength all these years, Harry. Now you need to be hers," Perenelle said placing a kiss on their foreheads. Harry looked at her and gave a slight nod.
Harry worried taking the wounded hand into his. He took out the shards that were still lodged in her hands and ran his fingers on her palm. She winced through the pain. Harry looked at the elderly couple and asked. "I don't have my wand. Could you heal her?"
"You won't need a wand, Harry," Nicholas Flamel said with a smile. "Trust me."
Harry closed his eyes and imagined her smooth blemish free hand in front of his eyes. To his shock, the blood started to seep back into her hand and skin started to mend itself. With a smile, he brought her healed hand to his lips and kissed it gingerly.
Harry's mind was a whirlwind. Hermione's sniffles slowly brought him back to the present. He placed his hand on her wet and warm cheek and brushed the tears. "We have faced many dangers, Hermione. This is nothing. This will pass," Harry murmured.
"But we were together in all of them. Not like this, where we have been wrenched apart and thrown into different worlds. I hated it. Every moment of it," she said slowly letting go of his embrace.
"Sweetheart, no gift comes without a responsibility. And to go to all those places and mend all those broken bonds was yours," Perenelle said with a chuckle.
"Broken Bonds?" Harry asked with a perplexed expression.
"Yes, Harry. When your bonding didn't happen at the right time, it had created a ripple effect throughout the entire Multiverse. You are not the only ones who were affected by that. All the other soul bonds have been disturbed," Nicholas said with a sad smile.
"So every other Harry and Hermione we met, are soulmates too?" Hermione asked with renewed interest.
"Yes my dear, they all are soulmates, but you are their crux, center, and certainty. Yours was the first bond that should have formed. Once you have established that relationship, they would have followed you," Perenelle continued.
"Bloody hell!" Harry said impersonating Ron for a minute, while Hermione's eyes widened.
"Why, indeed it is," Nicholas Flamel said. "Since your Soul Bond didn't form at the appropriate time, that created a Butterfly effect, affecting every other relationship out there."
"And you couldn't contact us until we have realized our own bond," Hermione said slowly catching onto the concept.
"And it was our responsibility to fix all of them," Harry finished following Hermione's lead.
"Precisely," Nicholas said with a smile. "We have been waiting for a long time."
"A very long time, sweethearts," Perenelle said as her eyes misted. "We understand Dumbledore was partially responsible for hindering the bond formation. He had his meaningless fears about Voldemort finding of your bond. We tried to explain that soul bond magic is powerful, but he was set in his own methods."
"Perenelle, there is no point in crying over the lost time," Nicholas Flamel gently chided. "But he confessed his mistake later on to Harry."
"Of course," Perenelle said. "What happened later, Harry? Why didn't you realize until this day, when you were about to pledge your life to other people? Why did it take so long?"
Harry and Hermione looked at each other, any plausible answer skipping their minds.
"Perenelle, it's not wise to dwell on past things. The paramount thing is that they are together here and everywhere else."
"But there were so many instances. When that Weasley boy ran away, we tried to push you together. You were everything to each other, but romantic. All you had to do, was to kiss," Perenelle said making Hermione's cheeks turn into red.
"We had so many things on our mind," Hermione mumbled.
"I know dearie, especially your mind," Perenelle smiled. "And you Harry, why did you have to wait until your wedding day, that too after we have shown the wonderful magical bond between your parents?"
"So you are behind those unexplained memories of my parents?" Harry asked in confusion. Now he understood why he kept on dreaming about his parents which were the main reason to visit them at Godric's Hollow that night.
"Yes, we had to interfere," Nicholas said. "Bonds are strong when you recognized them yourself. But it seemed you needed that little nudge that we happily gave and not to forget, we were running out of time."
"Thanks, I guess," Harry said scratching his neck. "What do you mean running out of time."
"The other bonds needed your help," Perenelle said with a grim expression.
"Did you really have to wrench us apart and throw in different directions? If you had us sat down and talked to us, we would have gladly agreed," Harry said trying to find the reason for their harsh approach.
"I'm sure that would've been a better approach. But our Hermione here would have needed planning and preparing. And we couldn't afford that much of time. We have already lost a few," Nicholas said with a grim expression.
Those words stung like a bee in their hearts. "Lost a few?" Harry asked.
"We have lost two pairs of soulmates," Perenelle said placing a hand on her husband's shoulder.
"We didn't know. We didn't realize anything. Or else we would have acted sooner. We never want to destroy any bonds," Hermione said her voice whimpering.
"It's not your fault. They could be renewed in the next generation. That means you have an additional responsibility on your shoulders. Maybe you could a better job of a Guardian than us," Nicholas said. "Guardians are supposed to be the shadows of the sacred bond within you."
"So all those people in their worlds are bonded?" Harry asked.
"No, not all of them are bonded. But they are on that path. If you hadn't interfered at that time, they would have drifted apart," Nicholas Flamel explained.
"The little Hermione in the first world you've visited, wouldn't have stood up for Harry."
"Prince Harry wouldn't have obliged Hermione's request and thus in the process would've earned an unmitigated hatred from Hermione."
"And the trouble caused by the little photo scandal would have remained the same, if not for your intervention."
The Flamels spoke making Harry and Hermione revisit their recent adventures.
"When Hermione saved you from the werewolf and you destroyed him afterward, they both were set down on a new path."
"And don't you agree with us that if not for Hermione, the evil Bumblebee would've destroyed you."
"And the last dark world was the murkiest of all," Perenelle shuddered. "I can't even stand the thought of what would've happened if you hadn't visited that world."
Hermione pulled the older woman into a hug and Harry had to agree with them. It would have been a dire situation.
Unmitigated reticence followed their words. Hermione moved back to Harry and they sat huddled together. The Flamels took the opposite sofa looking at the current soulmates.
"What happens next?" Harry asked drawing everyone's attention.
"Our job is done here. It's time for us to leave," Nicholas said.
"Wait. We don't know anything about being soulmates. Are there any books? Where do we go for help?" Hermione asked her face contorted in worry. Harry couldn't but chuckle as her usual self, surfaced. He knew then they would be just fine.
"We are not going anywhere, darling. We are here, all the time," Perenelle said touching the place where her heart resided. The older woman looked around and spoke, "This was our home. We had to come here, one last time."
"We are not really here, right?" Harry questioned.
"Of course not. But you already know that" Nicholas Flamel teased with a fatherly affection.
"So the pumpkin juice?" Hermione asked scrunching her eyebrows.
"Your mind is the most magical place you'll ever visit. You can do anything you want and you can achieve anything you wish for," Perenelle and Nicholas Flamel replied. As Harry and Hermione watched the older couple's bodies transformed into blue twirling light. They melded together, danced around them and with a final caress, they vanished into Harry and Hermione, surrounding them in an ethereal glow and filling their hearts with warmth and contentment.
"That was something," Harry said with a sigh.
"It really was," Hermione said wiping a tear from her eye.
"Shall we?" Harry said offering his arm. Hermione smiled ardently and took his hand. As they closed their eyes, they knew where they would be going and they were ready to face anything they would encounter in their own world.
A/N: Thank you so much for the wonderful response. Next, it's going to be back in their own world and the confrontation with the Weasleys.
Special thanks to all those who reviewed: Anderfail, Arnold DeVillena, , LeeArt, pawsrule, EntOfLife, Firesong23, mrfresh, Cheryl, sarcasmismygame, LuckyMascot,BrightSkywalker, KmyD
Anderfail: I checked out the Shadowwalker series by Lorien829, after receiving your review. A very similar premise and interesting storytelling. But I got the idea of this multiverse and their travels from a movie I recently watched, called Coherence.