Hey, guys! What are you all up to? I hope everyone's doing well.

Firstly, as always, thank you all for reading the previous chapter. Nevertheless, before we get into this one, there are some things that I need to clear up. I have received countless messages addressing this issue and that one, so I'd thought that I should shed light upon them together in my A/N. So, here they are:

1) Ron and Hermione are NOT prefects in this story. Yes, this story is based on the book, and not the movie, but the plot was not matching up with them being prefects.

2) Hermione is 15 years old in this story, just like Harry and Ron. She may have been a year older in canon, but she's the same age as the other two here.

3) Every major event is based on the book, and not the movie! So, please, keep that in mind.

4) However, even if this story is based lightly on canon, it is still fanon, meaning that the major events are the same, but how they happen is changed. So do keep that in mind whilst reading.

5) Another essential thing to note here is the personalities of the major characters. They were taken from the books, meaning that I tried to portray these characters like they were presented in the books, especially in the case of the main three.

6) Lastly, and most importantly, I would request some of my readers to please be a bit patient. Yes, I am aware of my schedule of updating as much as you are, and I try my best to meet these deadlines. However, sometimes, my work and studies get in the way, which is why I have to upload much later than I am scheduled to do. I am happy that you are keen to read the next chapter, but good things come to those who wait! :D Hence, since I am going to get a lot busier in the following week (My uni is starting!), I would like you to be patient and wait for the next chapter – which I will upload! I am still going to upload two chapters every month, and hopefully, will finish this story in 2021, or in the early stages of 2022. You see, editing takes much more time than writing, and for a grammar freak like me, it takes twice as long. I hope you'd understand 33

So, this is it. I hope this clears up things. I hope none of these points offended anyone, and if they did, you're more than welcome to put your objections down in the comments, so I can hear them out and see what needs to be done.

Moving on, I hope this new chapter meets your taste. Happy reading!


Hermione couldn't believe this was happening. She stared, rigid, at the doors of the Great Hall where Harry had been a second ago. Her heart was beating against her chest like a drum, her head had started to spin, and her vision was wavering. She could barely hear the voices of the people around her, demanding what was wrong with Harry.

She had never experienced a panic attack before. Being gifted with emotional intelligence, she could soothe herself before such a feeling even had the chance to occur. But not today. Today, Hermione understood what real panic felt like.

She was aware of her hands shaking fervently, and her chest heaving out short, shallow breaths. Her body threatened to collapse at any moment.

Voldemort has taken over Harry, her brain suddenly informed her, worsening her condition. This means Harry can do something he'll greatly regret later.

He can even commit murder! Move, Hermione!

But Hermione couldn't move. Her body felt like ice, and she could sense all of her energy draining from her.

At the same time, people kept throwing questions at her.

"I just saw Harry leave. Did something happen to him?"

"Is Harry all right?"

"Hermione, are you okay?"

At last, it was their voices that finally snapped her back to reality. And they snapped her back good.

"It's Voldemort!" she shouted, more to herself than the others, "Voldemort's possessing him!"

She didn't realize her voice had echoed around the Great Hall, leaving a deadly silence in its wake. But Hermione wasn't aware of it. Instead, she sprinted across the passage, following Harry's footsteps and exiting the place altogether.

He was nowhere to be found in the entrance hall. Hermione's heart began to plummet as her senses started returning to her. A particular thought materialized in her head, rooting her to the spot.

The last time Harry was overtaken by Voldemort, he had attacked Dumbledore. What if this time...

Hermione took off down the corridor before her mind could finish forming that sentence.

She bumped into some students in her haste to reach him. "Excuse me," she said hurriedly, ignoring the baffled looks people cast at her.

She couldn't see Harry yet, and her heart sank even lower.

It wasn't that Harry could hurt Dumbledore. She knew he had access to his office and was probably heading over there now, but Harry was no match for a wizard like him – if he could even find him.

That wasn't worrying Hermione. What really alarmed her was the fact that Harry could do anything in this state – things that he would definitely come to regret later, and Hermione didn't want that. Not with all the issues he had to live with at the moment.

She finally found him in the corridor adjacent to Dumbledore's office. She was right.

"Harry!" she yelled, her voice echoing in the otherwise deserted area, "Wait!"

He ignored her call and continued on his tread, but Hermione was not going to let him go so easily.

"Harry," she tried again, grabbing his arm, "Please, listen to me."

This time, he wasn't gentle at all. He violently jerked his arm away from Hermione, causing her to hit the wall beside them.

"Ow!" she cried in pain, massaging her affected shoulder. Harry didn't seem to be feeling any remorse.

"Stay away from me," he hissed at her through gritted teeth.

"You don't understand what's happening!" Hermione countered.

"Yes, I do. I'm taking what's rightfully mine."

"No! You don't want this!" she shouted, "Voldemort is the one who wants this, and you're doing it for him! You're acting like his pawn! This isn't like you, Harry. Please!"

For a moment, she saw a shadow of doubt cross his eyes at these words – but he had regained his angry composure just as quickly.

Instead of replying, he chose to ignore her and continued with his route to Dumbledore's office.

But Hermione refused to admit defeat. She knew the real Harry was still there. She just had to find a way to wake him up.

"No! You're not going anywhere!" she shouted, running up to him and blocking his path.

Harry glared at her menacingly.

"Get out of my way."

"You don't know what you're doing!"

"I don't need to validate my decisions to you!" he sneered at her, "Step aside before you get hurt."

"Harry, please," Hermione said. She was astonished to see that unbelievably, even in this state somehow, Harry could still recognize her. She had to take this opportunity because if he knew who she was, surely he could recognize her voice, too?

"This isn't what you want," Hermione repeated.

"You're right. This is what I need!" Harry snapped at her, "Dumbledore has to learn that he shouldn't interfere in some matters!"

"But you wouldn't want to kill him!"

"Oh yes, I would. He has made me suffer enough. It's time I pay back everything he has done for me."

These words hit Hermione so hard that she almost missed Harry pulling his wand out to attack her.

"St–"

"Expelliarmus!"

Harry's wand went flying into the air. Hermione caught it with her left hand and quickly stuffed it inside her robes.

She had the upper hand now, but it only made Harry even more infuriated. Before Hermione could say or do anything, he had grabbed her by the shoulders and shoved her against a wall. The impact was so hard that it shook her whole body.

"You're very meddlesome, aren't you?" Harry hissed at her, trapping her with his arms on the wall. They were so close to each other that Hermione could easily see the little hazel-like hues in his otherwise green eyes. If the circumstances were different, she would have been living her dream.

But they weren't, and she had to act fast. Harry was slowly losing his grip on reality, and soon, he wouldn't be able to recognize her as well.

"No," Hermione said yet again, this time softening her tone to reason with him, "This isn't you, Harry. You would never think of Dumbledore this way."

"You don't know that."

"Oh yes, I do," she said, pulling her arm up to caress his hand beside her, "I'm the one who knows you the best."

Something strange then happened. The moment Hermione had touched Harry's hand, he stepped away from her, appearing shocked. Their physical contact had somehow repulsed him.

Hermione couldn't understand what was going on, but if this new thing could help Harry, she was all for it.

"Wait!" she said, reaching forward to grab his hand.

"Stop," he said, with a look that showed half-anger and half-panic. Hermione marvelled at it while he yanked his hand away from her. This was incredible. Whatever it was.

"Look at you. You wouldn't act like this," she said to him, seizing hold of his arm. He pushed her away again and tried to leave, but Hermione wasn't going to let him. She rushed forward and took his face in her hands.

This touch affected Harry so strongly that he couldn't overcome it. He sank down on the floor, taking Hermione with him.

"Please," he said with a pained expression, his eyes firmly shut, "Please, just leave me alone."

His beseeching voice almost broke Hermione. But she maintained her resolve and kept her determination up to bring him back. It wasn't Harry who was begging; he wouldn't be impacted this negatively by her touch. It was Voldemort.

"I am trying to help you," she said softly to him, lifting his face so he could be eye-level with her, "Look at me."

Unlike before, Harry instantly obeyed her, his green eyes boring into her brown ones. Hermione sensed something...different in those eyes. It was like another entity living within him.

The thought frightened Hermione. What if she lost him forever?

"This isn't you, Harry," she insisted, peering into his eyes because he had lowered them, "You can never act this way. This is Voldemort acting through you. You can't let him control you. You're stronger than that."

"Let – go – of – me," Harry uttered with indignation, gripping her hands on his face. But she held him more firmly, refusing to let go.

"No, I will not," said Hermione, "You're my best friend. I cannot see you suffer like this."

"You don't know..." he took a shallow breath before continuing. "You don't know anything...about suffering."

"I do," she asserted, "Watching you in pain is suffering for me. I can feel it for you, yet I cannot bear to see you in it. I...I care about you a lot, and...and that is why seeing your pain hurts me more than you could ever imagine. Sometimes I wish...I wish I could erase all of your troubles."

Hermione didn't know how much of this the real was Harry hearing, but she didn't care. She just wanted him back.

To her amazement, these words had done something. They seemed to have sucked out all the energy from the power possessing Harry because all of sudden, his hands dropped from hers and his face took up a focused expression.

This could be a sign – that her voice was finally affecting him. He was nearly here.

"You have to fight him," Hermione said, persistence rising in her voice. If she wanted him to be strong, she had to be strong herself. "You can't let him beat you. This isn't the Harry I know. The one I know wouldn't let Voldemort win easily."

It was working. Hermione could see it in his face.

"Come on. Just a little further," she whispered, linking her forehead with Harry's. She had never been this close to him, but Hermione wanted to make sure that every bit of her voice could reach him. "You're almost here. You have to defeat him. He is not as powerful as he thinks he is. Not in front of you."

She had done it. Harry had lurched away from her, but this time neither in pain nor in revolt. He was now holding his head, a concentrated look settling on his face.

With bated breath and a pounding heart, Hermione watched Harry fight his mental battle. Every second he spent struggling felt like an hour to Hermione. Seeing him like this made her think of the worst possible scenarios, fearing what would happen if they did come to life.

But in the end, it was all over.

Harry opened his eyes, and Hermione could instantly see the real him in them. He had done it. He had subdued Voldemort.

Now that he was back in his bearings, the world appeared strange to Harry. He almost couldn't make sense of it first. It was like waking up from a deep sleep. A long and painful sleep, as his head had felt as if it was being ripped apart by an invisible force. It was still pounding, but as compared to the pain before, it seemed normal.

He looked at his surroundings, disbelief evident on his face for what just happened to him and how he had managed to overcome it – before his eyes found Hermione on the floor beside him.

"Hermione...that was..."

But he stopped for she had started to cry.

"Hey," he said softly, taking her into his arms, "It's fine. I'm okay, Hermione."

He held her tight as she sobbed into his shoulder, allowing her a few moments to calm down.

"Oh, Harry," she cried, "I was so scared. I thought you would never come back. I thought –"

"But that didn't happen, now did it?" he said, pulling her back so he could look at her. "You saved me, Hermione."

"I didn't. It was your strength –"

"And who gave me that strength? You did!" he countered, "It was chaotic in here, but even then I could still hear your voice. You sounded so far away, but your voice became clearer and clearer until I could grasp it to force myself to fight. And why did that happen? Because you remained firm."

Harry did believe this to be true. He had felt it. It was amazing to see that when he couldn't make sense of anything, he could still make out Hermione's voice. He still wasn't sure why that happened, but it was the thing he had needed to overpower the force.

"You were brave, Hermione," he added, attempting to make her smile, but she had lowered her eyes from his.

"I couldn't give up. I couldn't let him win over you, not like this. I –" She took a deep breath to steady her voice. "I didn't want to lose you."

Harry looked at her thoughtfully, before reaching forward and wiping away her tears. "Thank you for not giving up on me. But don't you see? I am okay now, so please stop crying."

The problem was – she couldn't. Her brain kept reminding her of how close she was to the failure of getting him back, and the more she thought of it, the more tears formed in her eyes and fell down her cheeks.

Despite the difficulty, however, she tried her best to compose herself. Once the tears subsided, she asked, "How did it feel like? I mean, getting your mind invaded?"

"Painful," he sighed, observing his hands, "Very painful. It was...I can't even begin to describe it...but it was the worst I had ever felt."

"I'm so sorry you had to go through all that."

"Yeah, well. I'm sort of used to it." He smiled at her. "I mean, this is my life."

Hermione sighed. She had never felt as empathic for Harry as she was feeling now. Suddenly, a thought struck her.

"Do you remember anything that happened while you were...in that state?"

"Some bits, I think" Harry answered, "I was too busy trying to make sense of what was happening inside my head – that things happening outside were more like a blur to me. I remember you taking my wand."

"Oh yes!" She pulled it out of her robes and handed it to him. "Here."

"Thanks for snatching it away from me, though," said Harry, watching his fingers twirl his wand, "Who knows what I would have done if it remained in my hands?"

"Exactly the reason why I took it away."

"Also, that was an excellent display of the Disarming Charm."

Hermione blushed. "You remember that?"

"Well, of course!" Harry grinned. "I can't forget such a mean use of Expelliarmus." He lightly applauded for her. "You made your teacher proud."

Then, after what seemed like a long time, Hermione laughed. Her contagious glee caused Harry to laugh, too.

"I'm glad he is," she said, still giggling, "Even though he was the one I used it on."

Harry lifted his eyebrow. "Sometimes, teachers become targets themselves, don't you know? It's for their students."

"Thank you for becoming my target then," she chuckled, before asking him in a more concerned tone, "How are you feeling now?"

"Much better than before," he said, getting up from the floor with her. "My head still hurts a li–"

"There they are!"

Harry and Hermione turned to look at the source of the sound – to find Ron hurrying up to them with Lavender.

"Where have you been?" Hermione asked the two.

"It's a long story," Lavender said, short on breath, before presenting a potion to Harry. "Here."

"What is this?" Harry asked, eyeing the little brilliant yellow solution.

"It's the Cephalalgia Potion. It will make your headache go away," Hermione explained. Upon her words, Harry took a swig of the potion. Instantly, a wave of something passed his mind, taking the pain with it.

"We couldn't find anyone!" Ron meanwhile exploded, "None of the people from the Order are here! Not even that git, Snape! First, I couldn't believe I was looking for him but even then he had managed to disappo–"

"Shh! Will you keep your voice down?" Hermione whispered-shouted at him, "Anybody can hear you."

"I can't understand why they disappeared so suddenly," Ron fumed on, more or less ignoring Hermione, "We tried to find McGonagall, too! Even she had Apparated!"

"For the last time, you cannot Apparate inside Hogwarts!" Hermione yelled, "Honestly, how many times do I have to tell you?"

"And how many times do I have to tell you that there could be a meeting?" Lavender added, sighing frustratedly.

"But we had checked the staff room, too!"

"Not here! For that Order thing you keep talking about!" Lavender shook her head. "There could have been an emergency meeting or something."

"Emergency?"

Harry had finally spoken up. Hermione was horrified to see that he had drained the whole potion bottle.

"You are not supposed to drink the whole thing!" she gasped, "Only a little is enough."

"But this stuff is good!" he argued, "My headache was not a normal one." He turned to Lavender. "You think it's an emergency meeting?"

"Well, it could be!"

Silence pervaded them for a moment. It was the most plausible explanation, but they all hoped it wasn't too bad of an emergency. Hermione also suddenly started to feel bad for Lavender. She didn't know anything about the Order or Harry's problems but was still helping them out, regardless. They could trust her, Hermione knew.

She opened her mouth to tell Lavender about this when another voice rang out in the corridor, interrupting her greatly.

"Harry!"

It was Cho. Hermione caught sight of her tear-stained face as she ran past them to launch herself at Harry, almost knocking him off-balance.

"Oof! Cho, what are –"

"Are you okay? I saw you – in the Great Hall!" she cried, "Something was wrong with you."

"I'm fine now. There's nothing to be worried ab–"

"You didn't look like yourself. I was so scared for you!"

Behind Cho's back, Hermione rolled her eyes. If she was so worried for him, why hadn't she shown up sooner?

Contemplating her decision, I guess, Hermione thought. She was happy to see that Harry looked a bit hassled with Cho as he said, "I am okay. Really."

Ron and Lavender stifled their laughter, but Hermione didn't find the situation funny. She found it downright sad.

"Are you sure?" Cho said, clasping Harry's hands with hers.

"Yes. I am." He looked past her to smile at Hermione. "All thanks to Hermione here. It was her efforts that made me come back to my real senses."

Hermione smiled back at him, blushing a little, but Cho didn't even turn around to pay her any heed. Instead, she spoke on as if she hadn't heard Harry, "I was imagining the absolute worst. Wondering what might have happened to you."

"It was a little mishap. Nothing –"

But he couldn't finish his sentence. Cho had silenced him with a kiss.

Hermione's mouth dropped open. Seeing this act again, but this time with less distance, was revolting. She placed her hand on the wall beside her for support, her eyes not letting her look away from the harrowing sight.

Lavender and Ron didn't seem to think much of it, though.

"And you hate it when I kiss you in front of other people," Lavender was grumbling. Ron laughed at her sentiment, "I don't think Harry likes it, either."

It was true. Harry looked supremely uncomfortable. Hermione felt sorry for him – and angry at Cho for not being a little considerate with her public affection – if you could call it affection.

"I don't understand you sometimes," said Lavender, positively ticked off now.

Ron shook his head, smirking a little. "You understand me the best. Come here." He leaned down and kissed her.

Now with them kissing, too, Hermione had never felt so single before in her life. But she didn't have to wallow in her feelings for too long as Harry had pulled away from Cho.

"Please give me a warning next time," he grumbled, tending to his lower lip. He didn't like that Cho kissed him out of nowhere, especially since Hermione didn't approve of her and was standing close by. He was determined to show her that Cho was a good girlfriend, but Cho herself was blowing away the chances.

Cho, meanwhile, didn't take his comment nicely. "Cedric liked my sudden kisses."

"Cedric and I are two different people," Harry argued.

She sighed in reply, "Yes, I guess so. But you also share so many similarities with him. Like..." Her eyes welled up with tears. "Like, right now. Seeing you in that state reminded me...of him. Because I thought I could..."

She couldn't continue as she had started to sob.

"Oh, come on," said Harry, awkwardly petting her shoulder, "It's all right."

Hermione sighed. She couldn't help but admit it – but she felt sorry for Cho. Yes, she was unbearable, but she had lost her boyfriend to cold-blooded murder – something that could send people to severe PTSD or even depression. However, Hermione still believed that Cho didn't have to bring him up in every situation related to Harry. They could feel sympathy for her, but Harry still suffered from flashing memories of that night, and Hermione could see that Cho might make him relive them despite his efforts of forgetting them altogether.

Hermione was wandering these thoughts as Harry hugged Cho. The latter buried her face in his shoulder to cry – the same spot in which Hermione had also cried just some moments before. The sight caused a pang of hurt to go through Hermione. It was so hard to stay sorry for the girl who was dating the love of your life.

Meanwhile, Lavender and Ron had also broken up their kiss. Unlike Harry, Lavender was smiling.

"Oh, you should have been a bit mindful of Hermione," she blushed.

"But I thought you wanted us to kiss in front of other people?" Ron asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Yes! But in some situations – oh, forget it," Lavender looked at Hermione before adding, "Sorry."

"No, it's fine," said the other girl. "You guys are cute, anyway."

She really meant it. She was glad the two of them had got together. But the other couple? The one she had now turned her attention towards? Oh, she absolutely detested that couple.

She watched Harry as he comforted Cho. "Don't worry about me. I'm okay. I just need to rest a little bit because I still have a headache. Would you be okay or should I drop you off at your dormitory?"

Cho sniffed, leaning against his shoulder. "No, I'll be fine. My – my friends are here."

At her words, Hermione immediately looked at the end of the corridor – and her mouth dropped open. Sure enough, they were there. All five of them, standing huddled in a corner, giggling. Were they spying on them the whole time? Was Cho's entrance some kind of joke? Or worse, a plan?

Hermione hadn't noticed them before, and judging by the looks of her friends, they hadn't, too.

"Well, that's nice..." said Harry, watching Cho's group absentmindedly, "I guess we'll go then. See you."

Without waiting for her reply, he turned around and left the corridor with Hermione, Ron, and Lavender.

For a moment, there was silence between them, but once they were a safe distance away, conversation erupted, starting from Harry's complaint.

"That was a bit weird...her friends being so secretive."

"They were spying on us," Hermione jumped in, not missing a chance to speak ill of Cho's group, "I wonder how much they had heard?"

"If they were still there before Cho came in, then I'd say quite a lot," Ron added disinterestedly.

Hermione shook her head. "You should tell her, Harry. This behaviour –"

"Oh, I can't criticize her friends in front of her," Harry interrupted, sighing, "They're literally her soulmates. They move like a pack."

As he talked, the four of them ascended the staircase to reach the 7th floor. Many students crossed their path, but they paid the group no attention. They had either forgotten or had not experienced Harry's ordeal.

The three continued to talk among themselves – until Hermione realized Lavender was there, too. The latter had her eyes lowered and appeared lost.

Hermione instantly felt bad. Lavender must be feeling left out.

Ron seemed to have been thinking along the same lines because he draped his arm around Lavender's shoulders. "Sorry for going a bit off track here."

"What? Oh no, it's okay!" She smiled in reply. "You three are best friends, so you have your own things to talk about. I'm just tagging along."

"But you're my best friend, Lavender," Hermione found herself saying, "You are my confidant."

Lavender wasn't trying to show it, but Hermione could tell she was very pleased to hear this. "Really?"

"Yes!"

"Even I can say the same," Ron chimed in, "Sometimes I fear she will steal you away from me."

The girls laughed at his joke. Hermione believed it was awfully nice of Lavender to help them with something she didn't know anything about. She felt like they should tell her. Besides, Lavender was a Pure-blood.

"I think we should tell you," Hermione voiced her opinion to her, "About the Order and everything."

But Lavender shook her head. "You don't need to. It sounds highly important and confidential. You shouldn't commit a breach for me."

"But we can trust you."

"Yes, you can –"

"Hey, you have every right to know," Ron said.

"I agree," Hermione added, observing that it was a little hypocritical of Ron to readily trust Lavender but not Neville.

Ignoring that thought, she turned to Harry, who was lost deep in his own musing.

"Harry?"

"Hmm?"

"We should tell Lavender. About everything."

"Oh. Yes, sure."

"In that case, my fair maiden," Ron declared, "You have to promise that you'll hold your tongue on this secret."

"Of course I will!" Lavender exclaimed, laughing, "It's clearly very important for you guys."

Ron then began to tell her everything in hushed tones. In the meantime, Hermione addressed Harry again.

"So, will you contact Sirius or someone else?"

Harry sighed in answer, "That's what I was thinking about. I feel like...I want to directly talk to Dumbledore about this."

"But... he won't be here. Not with everyone from the Order gone." Hermione shook her head. "I hope it is nothing too urgent."

"I dunno. I guess I'll contact Sirius."

"Yes, you should. That way, you'll also get to know about the meeting – Leo rugiens."

They had reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, which opened as Hermione uttered the password. The four scrambled inside the common room, with their conversations still in full swing...


I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter! Please do review and follow! If you like this story, please do leave a review - a humble request from yours truly :))

See you soon!