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Harry's Dream
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Eleven year-old Harry Potter woke up with a start. Harry had always been a light sleeper, so when someone snuck into the boys dormitory in the middle of the night, he heard them.
"Who's there?" Harry said quietly, squinting into the darkness. Without his glasses he could make the outline of a person. They were a bit short and their head had a wide profile. It definitely wasn't one of his roommates.
"Eep!" the person squeaked. "Oh, sorry, Harry," came a familiar, feminine voice. Harry fumbled to put on his glasses and Hermione stepped into the moonlight and came into focus. She wore vertically striped red pajama pants and an overly large tee shirt that Harry thought must belong to her mum.
"What are you doing here, Hermione?" he asked. She was standing at the foot of Ron's bed.
"I… couldn't sleep," she whispered. "I didn't know what to do. I thought of you and Ron."
Upon further inspection of the situation it became clear to Harry that Hermione had been trying to decide the best way to wake up Ron quietly. "If you want to wake him up, you'll need to shake him," Harry said, getting out of bed. "He's a heavy sleeper, unlike me." Harry walked over to Ron's bed and gave him a shake.
"Oh, no, I don't need you both, I-" Hermione began, but it was too late. Harry had already roused Ron.
"Oi! What do you want?" Ron groaned.
"Hermione's here," Harry said. "She wanted to talk to you."
"I wanted to talk to both of you," Hermione corrected. "Or either of you… whatever, it's not important."
"What's wrong, Hermione, it's the middle of the night," Ron said softly, not wanting to wake up the other boys.
"I couldn't sleep," Hermione repeated. "I can't stop thinking about that thing."
"The troll can't hurt you, Hermione," Ron said. "The professors took care of it hours ago. It's gone."
"That's not it, Ron," she sniffled. "It's there when I close my eyes. It's all I can think about. I actually did sleep for a little bit, but it came for me in my dreams. I usually go to sleep with my parents when I have a bad dream… but they aren't here."
"What can we do to help?" Harry asked, unsure of how to handle the situation.
"I know what to do," Ron said, lifting up his sheet and blanket. Harry was a little confused when Ron froze like that.
"Er… Ron?" Harry bagan.
"Go on, Hermione," Ron said. "Get in."
"I can't sleep with you, Ron," Hermione said, biting her lip.
"Yeah, you can," Ron said. "It's fine. I've got a younger sister. I understand. You shouldn't be alone right now but you need sleep. So get in."
Hesitantly, Hermione crawled into bed beside Ron. "You coming, Harry?" Ron asked.
"Er…" Harry started.
"She wanted both of us," Ron rationalized.
"I… did want both of you," Hermione said, looking hopeful.
Harry shrugged, grabbed his pillow off his bed, took his glasses back off, and then crawled in bed with Ron and Hermione. Hermione, now snuggly tucked in between the boys, visibly relaxed. Harry and Ron drew the curtains and they all fell asleep.
In the Morning
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"Hey, Sleeping Beauty, get up!" Ron said as he let himself into Harry's attic room. Harry chucked a pillow at the doorway without looking and missed Ron by several feet.
"Oi! Watch it!" Ron laughed. "Hedwig's back with letters from Hermione," he said, brandishing the envelopes. "Figured we could open them together." Hermione had been in Greece for only a couple days at this point.
"I genuinely want to hear from Hermione, Ron, but give me…like… five minutes to wake up first," Harry said, his eyes still closed.
"You and Ginny stayed up late stargazing again, didn't you?" Ron smirked, sitting on the edge of Harry's bed and setting the letters down on his bedside table.
"Maybe," Harry said. "It's our thing. We just talk. It's nice having a sister."
"Yeah, yeah, Ginny's great, now get up or I'm gonna just open mine without you," Ron said.
"Can't… Sleeping Beauty, remember?" Harry chuckled, still refusing to open his eyes. "I think Prince Charming has to come and kiss me awake."
"I'll go and get Ginny then," Ron rolled his eyes.
"Don't go telling her I want her to kiss me, she'll get the wrong idea," Harry laughed. "Also, I'm pretty sure it's Prince Charming, not Princess Charming."
"Well, you asked for it," Ron said, bending down. He planted a quick kiss on Harry's cheek. Well, he'd meant to kiss him on the cheek. He'd missed and landed it in the corner of Harry's mouth.
Harry's eyes shot open. Ron had pulled back far enough they could make eye contact. He was flushed slightly but clearly holding back a laugh. Harry had the same reactions. They both burst out into laughter as Harry finally sat up, putting his back against the headboard.
"Did you get that red when you kissed Hermione in hospital after I left?" Harry chuckled.
"Much redder I think," Ron said, scooping up both of the letters and handing Harry's letter to him. "She made Ginny promise not to tease me for blushing."
"Damn, I've really missed her," Harry said as they both ripped at their envelopes.
"Me too, mate," Ron agreed. "It's only been a couple days but it feels like forever."
As Harry opened up his letter, a couple of polaroid pictures fell out and landed in his lap. Ron's letter had also contained two photos. He'd been turned to face Harry so they'd fallen on the bed between both boys.
Both boys' eyes darted between all four photos, the accompanying letters temporarily forgotten. The photos were all of Hermione, clearly taken by herself judging by the distance the camera was from her body. All four were of her at the beach… in her bikini.
Harry wasn't sure if she was trying to show off her scar, her body, or both; but she was definitely accomplishing both tasks.
Hermione wore a broad brimmed yellow sun hat and a two piece black bikini. Her scar was a gash starting at her ribs on the left and ending at her right shoulder. The gash was off center and was present along the inside of her right breast. It would have been directly over her heart if it had been on the other side of her chest. Regardless, it was a wonder she had survived it.
In one of Harry's photos she was biting her lip and smiling up at the camera. He had a clear view of her scar and her cleavage. In his other photo she had removed her sunglasses. Her hat was giving shade to her eyes. She was holding the camera straight on and making a duck face that made Harry want to laugh.
In Ron's first photo she'd taken the photo from the side and at quite a low angle. She was biting her lip again and her hips were on full display, though all her curves had made it into the photo. Ron's second photo, like Harry's second, was with no glasses and straight on. She was smirking at the camera and was also making a peace sign with her fingers.
Harry and Ron's eyes met. They were both clearly dumbfounded.
"She looks… bloody brilliant!" Ron managed to say.
"Oh, wow, yeah she does, when did Hermione grow up?" Harry said, picking up both of his photos and looking closer at them, shamelessly studying Hermione's cleavage.
"Same time we did, mate," Ron said, now holding both his photos and ogling her arse. "I reckon between the tournament and Umbridge you might have been a bit too busy to notice… but I certainly did. Remember how she looked at the Yule Ball?"
"Yeah, she was stunning," Harry said, looking past his photos to stare at one of Ron's. After a moment he realized Ron was doing the same.
"You, uh… you want to…" Ron said, making hand gestures. Harry knew what he meant and they wordlessly traded the cleavage photo for the hips photo. The boys had previously talked about girls during their locker room talks. Harry knew Ron really liked breasts, meanwhile Ron knew Harry liked hips, thighs, and arse.
"How's Hermione?" came a voice from the doorway. Both boys jumped and quickly hid the photos under their letters as if they had been caught with a copy of Play Wizard or something.
"Ginny!" Harry said, his voice a bit high pitched. "We, uh, just opened our letters."
"Yeah, let us read them first," Ron said, sounding a little defensive.
Harry and Ron read their respective letters through.
"Hermione's been sightseeing and hiking," Harry said. "And she said she's already gone to the beach twice."
"She said she really misses us," Ron said. "You too Gin, she told me to tell you she misses you too… she sent us photos."
Harry very nearly slapped his forehead. Thinking quickly he said, "Yeah, she sent us one photo each." Harry revealed his duck face photo… the one where Hermione wasn't being obviously flirty.
Ron caught on and showed Ginny the photo of Hermione just smiling and doing her peace sign but not the more sexy photo with all the cleavage.
"She looks gorgeous," Ginny smiled. "And I'm glad she's not trying to cover up her scar. There's no need to be ashamed."
"We should send her some photos back," Harry said. "Your dad's got a muggle camera in his shed. He showed it to me a couple years ago."
"Are you gonna show off your tattoo?" Ginny giggled. Harry slept shirtless so she was currently getting an eye full yet again.
"Yeah, I figured I would," Harry said. "And you can show off your scars, Ron… you said you wanted to show them to her."
"We've got photos of her, so I suppose it's only fair she has some of us to look at," Ron grinned.
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A passage of time
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Harry, Ron, and Ginny did their chores quickly that morning so they could go swimming after lunch. Ron actually fed the chicken even though it was on Harry's chore list so Harry could have a little bit of time to tinker with the camera and get it working. He'd never changed film in a camera before and didn't want to mess it up.
They took photos before and after jumping in the lake. Ginny picked a photo of herself jumping off the tire swing into the water to send to Hermione.
Harry and Ron both took selfies. Harry's showed off his dragon tattoo and Ron's showed off his scars. Both boys tried to catch their chests and arms at good angles so they're muscles were well pronounced. They'd both opted to send her photos while they were wet instead of dry. The wetness seemed to make both the ink and the scars really pop.
Lastly, Ginny also took a photo of both boys where they were smiling and they each had their arm over the other's shoulder.
After dinner Harry and Ron both wrote replays. Ginny scribbled "Hey Herms! Miss you!" On a spare bit of parchment but hadn't bothered to write a proper letter.
Both letters, the scrap, and all four chosen photos were stuffed into an envelope and tied to Hedwig's leg. Ginny kept the camera and all the unchosen photos. She wanted to make a scrap book.
Harry's Dreams
Twelve year-old Harry Potter sat in the infirmity beside a petrified Hermione Granger. He desperately wanted to hold her hand, but her first was closed so tightly he simply laid his hand on top of her fist, the same way he had every day for the past two weeks.
Thirteen year-old Ron Weasley sat across from him on Hermione's other side. That arm was frozen outstretched, still holding a mirror they couldn't pry from her fingers. Ron laid his hand instead on her shoulder.
The boys had come every day to visit for the past three weeks. They talked to her for hours, mostly about the lessons she's missed.
"She likely can't hear you, you know," Madam Pomfrey said as she walked past. "I swear to you boys she'll be alright once the restoration potion is done. You don't have to keep coming up here to visit. I promise I'll send word when the potion is ready."
"We know, Madame Pomfrey," Harry replied. "But there's a chance she can hear us. You said so yourself."
"Yes, there is a chance," Madame Pomfrey replied. "But that's why I'm playing the music you see."
"We don't care how slim the chance is that she's conscious," Ron said. "We don't want her to be alone."
Madame Pomfrey shook her head but was unable to hold back a smile as she walked away.
The middle of the night
Harry couldn't sleep. He'd laid there for what felt like ages. Suddenly, he sat up, put a shirt on and, before he knew what he was doing, found himself knocking on Ron's door.
"Hey, it's me," Harry said. "Can I come in?
He didn't hear a response so he knocked again before finally opening the door a crack. Harry had no idea what time it was so he wasn't surprised Ron was asleep. The trio had a standing policy that they should wake each other up if they needed something… and right now, Harry needed Ron.
"Harry?" Ron said once Harry had shook him awake. "What's up?"
"I, uh… had a bad dream," Harry said. "Been trying to go back to sleep for a few hours."
"Get in," he said, lifting the sheet. Harry didn't hesitate to get in bed with Ron. Ron put an arm around Harry and was well on his way back to dreamland.
"I dreamt about when Hermione got petrified," Harry said. He let out a sigh.
"You slept in my bed every day for three weeks when that happened," Ron replied.
"Yeah, I did… and that's why I'm back," Harry said.
"She's okay, Harry," Ron said. "You'll see her tomorrow even."
"Ron, can we… talk… about Hermione?" Harry said hesitantly. He rolled over to face Ron. Ron felt this and opened his eyes.
"Y…yeah," Ron said. "What about?"
"I think you know what about, Ron," Harry said. "We've been avoiding talking about it… She's… she's been sending both of us pictures for nearly two weeks. Hermione's not stupid, Ron. She knows she's teasing us… with her body…"
"Do you think she… likes us? You know, like, more than just friends," Ron asked.
"I think so," Harry said. "It's kind of the only explanation."
"Do you like her, Harry?" Ron asked.
"D…do you?" Harry said back. They looked at each other for a moment and wordlessly communicated with their eyes that the answer was, of course, yes.
"I won't fight you for her," Harry said.
"Me too, Harry," Ron said. "I won't fight you for her. I'll never do anything to jeopardize our relationship. I think… I think she should choose."
"But what if one of us dates her and it doesn't work out?" Harry said. "Our friendship might not recover."
"Harry, we've been through so much," Ron said. "Sure we fight sometimes but we'll work it all out. Do you honestly think Hermione would just walk away if dating didn't work out? No, of course not. She'd do everything she could to keep our friendship."
"I hope so," Harry said.
"Worst case scenario she doesn't talk to one of us for a couple months after a break up," Ron said. "but after some time we'll fix things. I know we will. And hey, if it doesn't work out with one of us, she can date the other. Hell, there's a chance she doesn't actually like either of us and we're just being horny about her vacation pictures."
"Ron, no matter what happens, one of us ends up heartbroken," Harry said. "Maybe all three of us."
"Harry, you've told me you fancy loads of people," Ron said. "And you know I fancy several girls too. We've got options. That doesn't sound like permanent heartbreak to me."
"Who else do you still fancy?" Harry asked. "We've talked about this before but I feel like your list has changed over the years."
"Where do I start?" Ron said.
"Hufflepuffs?" Harry said. "I fancy Susan and Cedric still."
"And I fancy Hannah," Ron replied. "How about Ravenclaws?"
"Just one," Harry said hesitantly.
"You still fancy Cho after her friend turned us in to Umbridge last year?" Ron asked, sounding genuinely confused.
"What? No!" Harry replied. "I meant, uh… I meant Luna."
"Oh thank Merlin I'm not the only crazy one," Ron said. "She's insane, but I fancy her too. Not a much as Hermione, mind you."
"I think we both fancy Hermione most," Harry said. "Slytherins?" Harry asked.
"Oh, ha ha, Harry, very funny," Ron said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh don't act like Greengrass and Davis aren't the hottest girls in the whole damn school," Harry said. "And they don't spout off all that pureblood nonsense like the rest of the Slytherins. I still think we should have invited them to join Dumbledore's Army… I'm putting Greengrass on my list."
"Really?" Ron laughed. "Well as long as we're living in Crazytown and we're putting people like Luna and Greengrass on our lists, I'll go ahead and put Davis on mine. Hey, I bet you'd be on Malfoy's list. He's obsessed with you."
"Gross, Ron, don't even joke about that. I don't care how handsome he is, he's vial."
"So you do think he's handsome then?" Ron laughed.
"Uh, moving on. Gryffindors?" Harry asked.
"Lavender and Hermione," Ron said.
"I like Oliver and Hermione," Harry said.
"You still fancy Oliver Wood?" Ron laughed.
"I've told you before he was my bisexual awakening Ron," Harry said. "He kissed me every time we won the cup. I was always too stunned to kiss him back though."
"Bit of an age gap there," Ron chuckled. "Could be worse though."
"Honestly I'd add you to the list of people I fancy… but you don't fancy blokes, so nevermind," Harry said.
Ron hugged Harry a little tighter. "I appreciate you sharing that, Harry. That actually makes me really happy. I'm sorry I didn't feel the same about you. If you were a girl I'd date you in a heartbeat, Harry," Ron smiled.
"I can be a girl for you, Ron," Harry offered earnestly. "What's the word… femboy? Yeah that's it. I'll grow my hair out for you. I'll keep clean shaven too. You're so much bigger than me, I'm basically the size of a girl compared to you. I could wear shorter shorts and tighter shirts…"
"Okay, okay, stop," Ron laughed. "I'm too tired to imagine you looking even more feminine than you already look, Harry. You're honestly built like a flat chested girl. You're making me think things, Harry."
Harry and Ron sat in a comfortable silence after that during which Harry was honestly contemplating being more feminine for Ron. A few minutes later, Harry spoke up again.
"So, we both agree that whatever happens with Hermione we won't fight each other?" Harry asked.
"That's right," Ron said.
"Thanks for talking with me about this, Ron," Harry said. "You really helped me calm down. It's good to know that regardless of what happens, I'm not losing either of you."
