Chapter 1 - A bright idea

21st of December 1997 forest of Dean

Inside a tent tucked away in a small part of the forest of Dean there are two teenagers. The grounds near them has turned white from snowfall and you can hear the chilling winds pass by. Thankfully the tent they lay in is a wizarding one, and that means the inside is bigger with all the proper appliances needed. Yet the comforts a wizarding tent offers mean very little to the people inhabiting it currently.

'This hunt...everything around me feels like it's falling apart. Starting with Dumbledore's cryptic clues, Ron leaving and now the upcoming Godric's Hollow visit. I feel like I am going insane here, especially with the wall that's become between Hermione and I,' mused Harry.

'Something has to change, there has to be a way to unwind for one day from being the supposed saviour of the wizarding world,' he continued his line of thought.

"Hermione," says Harry with his eyes wider than normal and voice brighter than it had been for a long time.

Hermione looked over at Harry curiously, if a little bit tired from all the reading she had been doing.

"Yes, Harry?" she replies.

"Have you ever been to the cinema?" asks Harry.

"Of course Harry, why the question?" asks Hermione with a small frown and a confused tone of voice.

"I've never had the chance to go, the best I got was seeing snippets of some films on the tele," replies Harry. The Dursley's never did like spending time with him or allowing him to sit idly by. Uncle Vernon often liked to tell him he has to earn his keep, after all.

"Oh… I was sure that everyone with muggle upbringing had been to the cinema…but, yes, your relatives of course" with Hermione mouthing the last part under her breath with a certain degree of bitterness.

"I used to go with my parents often before Hogwarts, the last time I went was the summer before 6th year" says Hermione, but she was still a bit confused why Harry was talking about movies right now.

"I just got a great idea you see" says Harry with a hint of cockiness in his voice, with a smirk to go along with that voice. Something he had lacked for a long time.

This caused Hermione to fully turn her focus from a book she was reading on her armchair. "Harry…" says Hermione with a hint of warning, having already deduced where Harry was going with his line of thought.

"Oh come on, I am going insane here, and I know you are as well. Besides, we both know the muggle side, so there should be no problem. We would be just two teenagers going to the movies out of hundreds. There's no way the death eaters would look for us in a cinema," finished Harry with growing conviction.

"You know we are planning on going to Godric's Hollow any day now Harry and you really want to take such a risk before that?" answered Hermione back with a bit of iron in her voice.

"I know, trust me, I know, but they would never expect us to venture to a cinema. Let us allow ourselves this much fun. Especially with us not knowing what awaits us at my birthplace" says Harry and taking a little pause he continued

"Besides, we both know every moment could be our last, and I'd like to at least have gone to the cinema should the worst happen" finished Harry with a quieter voice.

"Don't say that Harry, we'll get through this," says Hermione, but whether she was saying it to herself or Harry she couldn't be sure of that at that moment. But she did understand what Harry was getting at slowly. They had been having a pretty miserable time. 'Especially with that idiot Ron leaving' thought Hermione bitterly.

Lately, she has been questioning her crush toward him more and more after his betrayal. 'I know that the horcrux was affecting him more, but it still doesn't change the fact that he betrayed us. No, nothing good comes from thinking about him right now, rather I can see there is no stopping Harry once he gets an idea. So it's better I start planning how to go through with the cinema visit.' finished Hermione her long line of thought.

"Alright Harry, alright. Even though I know it's a bad idea, let's do it," says Hermione with a determined voice. It also helped when Harry gave her a genuine smile she had missed seeing, causing Hermione to smile back at him.

Harry got up from the sofa and did something unexpected. He went and hugged Hermione with a smile on her face.

"Brilliant Hermione! We should start getting ready then," says Harry brightly.

Hermione was startled by Harry initiating a hug, but could admit to herself that it felt nice to be hugged by him. Especially after a lack of those during these tiring months.

"Okay, I'll dress up as well, and then we'll plan where to go and how we will do it," says Hermione.

After a short time of both dressing up, with Hermione in her blue jeans and a nice beige jumper and Harry having put on a simple pair of black jeans and a black hoodie. Both had their winter coats in their hands. Harry was waiting for Hermione to gather her thoughts, as she had more experience with what they were going to be doing and her plans were admittedly better than his.

"Alright," says Hermione suddenly, causing Harry to focus on her wholly, "the only cinema I could safely apprate to is Phoenix cinema. We need to be careful though as it's only a short distance away from my home which is certainly being watched. We can do it without polyjuice, but we would have to apparate to the female toilets in turn..."

This caused both Harry and Hermione to blush a little bit, but Harry nodded along, after all, what choice did he have.

"Hopefully that doesn't cause any problems, but after that, we head to the ticket booth and buy any film tickets available. Hopefully there's a film starting when we arrive. I don't think we really have a chance in choosing one," says Hermione with a tint of sadness at the last part.

"No worries about that Hermione, the experience itself will be worth it, I'm sure," says Harry kindly.

"Right, thankfully, I have enough money for us to get tickets with popcorn and drinks. At least that part should be done properly," says Hermione with upturned lips towards Harry.

"Actually Hermione, I had almost forgotten about this, but Dudley gave me a 20 quid bill before leaving. Don't ask me why, but the big man has changed lately. So if it's alright I'll pay for it, although I'm not sure if it's enough as I don't know anything about cinema prices," finished Harry with a little uncertainty towards the end.

"Oh that's plenty Harry, and it's good that at least one of your relatives sees you as the kind person you are," says Hermione brightly.

Harry never was used to being complimented, but it did feel nice when Hermione said such words, so he just decided to smile in reply. She then casts a quick tempus charm.

"The time is 11:50, so I am sure there will be a film showing at midday. It's best we get going then," says Hermione.

"Wait, do we need to bring our coats if we're just going to apparate to the toilets anyway?" asks Harry.

"We don't need them, yes, but it would look weird if we didn't have them, so it's best not to draw any more attention toward us than needed" says Hermione back with a little upturned eyebrow.

"Oh, yes, that does make sense" he says back a bit lamely.

"So, no time like the present. But I swear if we get caught and killed because we went to see a film I am going to haunt you forever," says Hermione and extends her hand towards Harry.

Harry smiles ruggedly and replies, "well I'll be right next to you then in death at least," and takes Hermione's hand.

Hermione shakes her head and rolls her eyes, but she can't hide the smile and small blush on her face. After all she had been through with Harry, there was no denying that it was hard for her to say no to him. Besides, after all the rule breaking she had done at Hogwarts, there was a part of her that enjoyed the thrill of danger. If she didn't, she would have never followed Harry in first year to the philosopher's stone.

"Alright, here goes nothing," says Hermione as they apparate away.

Phoenix cinema, London

They both land in an unused bathroom stall, with Harry's bad luck regarding wizarding travel causing him to fall on top of Hermione.

"Ouch" wheezes Hermione as Harry pressing on top of her and the toilet being below her causing her to get squished in between.

"Sorry Hermione" says Harry, trying to get his bearings and slowly raising himself from on top of Hermione. He then offers her his hand, which she takes and gets up herself.

"In and out then," she says with a serious tone of voice. Harry nods right back without any of the playfulness from before.

Hermione then carefully opens the door and peeks outside. Thankfully there seems to be no one around, so she beckons Harry to go out, and they quickly go to the bathroom door.

As they get to the door, it opens with a woman in her late twenties looking at them both. She widens her eyes at first, but then smirks.

"You know there are better places to have your fun," says the woman.

Harry and Hermione are both flustered. It does look exactly like that, with both of their clothes being ruffled after arriving in the bathroom stall.

"We didn't …" tries Harry to say quietly.

"Sure, and I was born yesterday. Well get going, you probably don't want to be seen by other people also," says the woman standing to the side of the door.

Harry and Hermione make a quick exit with their faces flushed and eyes turned downwards. The woman just smiles and mutters 'teenagers these days,' quietly to herself.

Hermione leads them both to the ticket stall quickly, with both of them being silent. They both decide to never talk about what just happened.

"Hello, what are you watching today?" says a young female ticket clerk with an obviously disinterested tone of voice.

"We're both unsure what's popular right now, but what film is starting next today?" asks Hermione, with Harry standing patiently next to her.

"Titanic is starting up next at 12:15, and it was released just 2 days ago," replies the clerk.

"We'll have two tickets to that then please and large popcorn with two medium pops please," says Hermione back.

"Yes, unfortunately the only two seats right next to each other are in the back if that's alright with you?" asks the clerk.

"No, that's perfect actually," replies Hermione, a bit relieved as that's where she wanted to sit anyway so that they had a better view of everyone around them.

"Then your total will be 17 pounds please," says the clerk, having prepared the drinks and popcorn.

"Here you go," finally says Harry after patiently standing next to Hermione as he then hands the clerk a 20 pound note.

"Thank you and here's your change," says the clerk and gives Harry the 3 pounds back "enjoy your date" the cinema worker says with a small smile.

"We're…" Harry starts but cuts himself off, deciding to just give it up and as he grabs both of their drinks and Hermione takes their popcorn and tickets. Hermione's face was a little flushed as the clerk had pointed her smile towards her mostly.

'Really, can't a boy and a girl just enjoy a film together as friends,' Hermione thinks to herself, but she does acknowledge that what she and Harry are doing is exactly how a film date goes. 'Whatever, I may as well enjoy it. Besides, it's Harry, so I couldn't hope for a better person to go with,' she thinks with a small smile.

"Hermione, you can maybe lead me now as you are familiar with the place?" asks Harry a little unsure, causing Hermione to shake her head and focus on the matter at hand.

"Follow me," says Hermione.

They get to a ticket inspector who tears their tickets and then, with a quick "enjoy the film," lets them pass.

"So we'll be in the back, which is for the best. I usually like to be in the middle, but we can do that next time," Harry nods but perks up with the 'next time' comment.

"So there'll be a next time?" asks Harry with a smirk.

"Of course there will be a next time," says Hermione back with a smile.

They then arrive at the theatre, with Hermione in her own element and Harry looking around with a hint of excitement.

"So our seats are in the back row at the complete left," Hermione says, with Harry nodding and following along.

The cinema was fully packed, so they quickly made their way up and after a couple of 'sorry's' as they passed people trying to get to the end of the row they finally sat down, with Hermione taking the seat furthest to the back, so Harry could get the slightly better seat. 'It's his first time, so he should be able to enjoy it as well as he can' thought Hermione.

There was a film trailer running with 5 minutes left until the start of the film. Harry was looking at it with a sense of wonder, as he'd only ever seen the small tele at the Dursley house. Harry then turns towards Hermione and whispers, "by the way, do you have any idea what the film we are seeing is about?"

"Well, going by the film poster I saw, I believe it's about the Titanic ship, which sank in 1912. Interestingly enough it sank on its maiden voyage when it crashed into an iceberg with 1500 people dying as a result," she replies after going on a tangent.

'Leave it to Hermione to have all the answers,' thinks Harry with a small smile.

"Although going by the poster I saw it does seem to have some romance, so I am interested to see what it's really about. Also, it's over 3 hours long, so hopefully everything goes well. We really do need to leave after it's finished though," continues Hermione, getting serious towards the end of her sentence.

Harry just nods, and they both then turn their focus toward the film screen. They occasionally take a few sips of their drinks and Harry has taken hold of the popcorn even though Hermione had it initially. He holds it between them both as they take a few pieces sparingly as they're both peckish eaters.

The film then starts with them both quickly getting a sense for it, with the main protagonist obviously being Jack and the female lead being Rose. They are both fully immersed in what they are seeing with the only contact they have is when they brush their hands against each other when they grab some popcorn, but it soon runs out by an hour and a half into the film, so Harry lays the empty bucket down.

They both blush when Jack decides to draw Rose like 'one of his French girls.'

But when the Titanic hits the iceberg and Rose and Jack start trying to escape together is when they truly get drawn into the film. They both can understand the desperation as they have been feeling exactly that for months with the only person they can truly rely on being each other. They glance at each other a few times, where they smile at each other and then focus back at the film. Both understand the similar undertones. But it's when the ship has sunk and Jack is clinging onto the wooden board where Rose lies that Harry and Hermione grab onto each other's hands as if they are each other's lifelines.

Hermione lays her head on Harry's shoulders as the scene goes on, and Harry does the same, laying his head on top of Hermione's. When they see the boat coming looking for survivors but with it panning to Jack being frozen to death, they both have tears in their eyes. So do the majority of the other film goers. When Rose finally tells Jack that "she'll never let go," Hermione turns towards Harry at that moment.

"Promise me you'll never let go as well Harry, promise me you won't leave me alone," says a teary-eyed Hermione while she tightens her grip on Harry's hand.

"I promise," says Harry back with a soft whisper while also having tears in his eyes as well. He squeezes her hand back in reassurance. He knows at that moment that he will keep that promise as long as he draws breath. 'I promise but if need be I'll do anything to keep you safe Hermione,' finishes Harry the promise in his head adding a small part to the end with the same amount of conviction as the promise he vocalised.

As the film draws to a close they don't immediately leave as they promised. It's because the film was heavier than they thought so they listen to the end credits song and then decide to move out. They take their empty popcorn bucket and drinks and throw it away while they are still holding each other's hands. Neither is willing to let go at that point. They pass the woman who caught them in the bathroom. They don't notice her, but she views their linked hands with a fond smile, 'Ahh young love,' she thinks to herself. It was nice to see a young couple after such a romantic if tragic film.

Harry and Hermione linger around the bathrooms a bit as they want to leave the same way, so they wait a couple of minutes when it's all cleared up. They go in silently with their hands still linked, and they apprate back to their tent in the forest of Dean.

Forest of Dean

After arriving back, with Harry surprisingly landing on his own two feet, they enter the tent and finally gain their bearings.

"So…" Harry starts, "I don't really have anything to compare that to, but that film was absolutely amazing," he finishes.

"I agree Harry, of all the movies I've ever seen, that one was the most amazing one yet. I am so glad that your first experience was a good one. Also, everything went well with no one spotting us, so we can count our blessings on that one as well," replies Hermione back.

Harry nods at her, agreeing it went very well. "I am a bit tired, so I think I'm going to take a small nap on the sofa," he says. The film was long and drained him more than he thought it would, especially emotionally. Yet Hermione is still gripping Harry's hand with no sign of letting go.

She then asks with a smaller voice than usual "Is it alright if I join you Harry?"

The film was tragic and with their own situation thrown in the mix, the last thing she wanted was to be away from Harry.

Harry just nods as he actually welcomes her presence next to his with the same thoughts going through his mind. Hermione was just better at vocalising them, like always. They both go put their coats away and then lay on the sofa. Hermione has also brought a blanket which she bundles around them both. After that she immediately lays her head on his chest and grips around him like a lifeline. Harry is a bit taken aback, but just slowly wraps his hands around her also and lays down with her on top of him.

As the minutes go by, Hermione's breathing slows, and she lulls herself to sleep, feeling safe in Harry's hands. Harry looks down at her, slowly blinking himself. He notices a stray lock of hair on her face and puts it behind her ear with a fond smile he can't keep off his face at that moment. He understands that something changed between them both watching that film. Especially when they made that promise to never let each other go.

'She looks so peaceful sleeping like this,' muses Harry. And as he focuses more on her face, he can't but notice how beautiful Hermione has become.

'She truly has blossomed into a beautiful young woman these past few years,' Harry thinks to himself. He had thought Hermione to be beautiful ever since the Yule ball in fourth year. But unlike when he usually took her good-looking appearance as a fact, there was a small churning in his stomach. Something had truly changed between them with the film they had seen. As Harry slowly drifts to sleep, he feels at peace, he feels at home with Hermione laying in his arms. With a softly whispered 'Hermione…' and a small smile, he falls asleep as well. All his earthly worries lay to rest in the comforting hands of his closest person in the world.