Disclaimer: The Harry Potter series belongs to J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros. Inc., Scholastic, Bloomsbury, Raincoast, and any other affiliated party.
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"Listen! My lover! Look! Here he comes, leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills."
Song of Songs 2:8
Chapter 9: Reunited
"Stupefy!" Draco slumped unconscious. Still feeling a little frightened, Hermione wearily glanced up at the young wizard.
"H...Harry?" she whispered.
It was Harry all right. He looked a looked older, stronger, and far more confident than when Hermione had last seen him two years previously. Harry slowly turned and gazed down at her, his emerald green eyes still as mesmerizing as Hermione remembered.
"Hermione..." he said. His eyes glanced down to her legs or rather, her lack of legs. He gasped and clutched his chest. "Oh my God..."
The first thought that crossed Hermione's mind was, 'He's going to reject me. He's going to reject me because I'm a freak! I'm a legless freak! Oh Harry...' Hermione buried her face in her hands and burst into tears.
Far from rejecting her however, Harry kneeled right next to Hermione and pulled her into a strong hug. He whispered, "I'm so sorry. I should've been here. I'm so sorry," over and over again, tears starting to fall from his eyes. Overcome with relief that Harry wasn't going to reject her, and an even stronger joy of being back in Harry's arms again after such a long time, Hermione threw her arms around Harry's neck and cried full out on his shoulder. After remaining in that position for about a minute, Harry gently picked Hermione up and carried her to his broomstick nearby, Hermione's arms still wrapped around Harry's neck. She was afraid that if she ever let Harry go again, he would disappear from her forever.
Harry's Firebolt took off into the air, flying away from Malfoy Manor. Hermione was seated in front of Harry, facing him and still crying into his shoulder and her arms wrapped around Harry's neck. Harry had his left arm wrapped tightly around Hermione while his right steered the broomstick. They flew away into the night.
* * * * * * * * * * *
The sun shone through the window, illuminating a sleeping Hermione's face. Harry sighed as the light gave her an angelic glow. 'She's become even more beautiful than I remember,' he thought. Sure she had no legs, but that didn't matter for how Harry felt for her. It still broke his heart to see her without any legs since it was a symbol of how much she had suffered while he had been away. Harry silently cursed himself for not being able to be next to Hermione when she needed him the most.
They were in a hidden bunker near Liverpool that kept them hidden from the Death Eaters. Hermione was sleeping peacefully on a comfortable bed, her nightgown fully repaired. Harry was sitting in an armchair right next to the bed. He was wearing his usual clothes, with the exception of his hat and gloves. He gently stroked Hermione's bangs and kissed her forehead. Hermione's eyes fluttered open.
"It wasn't a dream," she said, a smile forming on her face and her eyes watering up. "You really are here."
"And I always will be from now on," said Harry.
"Thank you for saving me. The thought of what might have happened if you hadn't shown up then scares me."
"You're welcome," said Harry as he started to stroke her golden brown hair.
"How did you find me?"
Harry grinned and pulled out the bracelet with the three gems. He explained to her what it did. "While you were in Europe and I was here in Britain," he said, "the dark magic was too strong for me to actually figure out where you were. However, when Malfoy brought you back to England, you were actually close enough for me to be able to trace you to where you were."
Hermione smiled at Harry as he put the bracelet away. He cupped her cheek with a smile on his face. The smile faded away into a look of concern. "Hermione, what happened to you?" He briefly glanced down at her missing legs before he turned his attention back to her face.
Hermione sighed and explained everything that had happened to her from the moment Harry had disappeared two years ago. Harry held onto her hand and squeezed hard when Hermione mentioned the time when she first woke up and realized she had no legs. Finally, Hermione had finished, tears still streaming down her face. Harry sat next to her on the bed and gently cradled Hermione's head as Hermione leaned on Harry's chest.
"I'm so sorry, Hermione," said Harry. "I should've been there with you. If only I was here, none of this would've happened."
Hermione said nothing. A part of her wanted to accuse him of that being true, but for now she was so happy to be with Harry again that she didn't want to accuse him of anything. Still, there was something she needed to find out.
"Harry, where were you these past two years?" She glanced into his emerald eyes, her cinnamon ones burning with her question.
"I was in the Himalayas," said Harry with a matter of fact tone. Hermione's eyes widened in surprise as the gears in her head started turning.
"You're a Battle Wizard?" she asked. Harry grinned.
"I guess it's always up to you to put two and two together," he said. "So, you know what a Battle Wizard is."
Hermione nodded. "Of course, I've read about them in many books including 'Hogwarts: A History'." Her eyes started to shine with concern. "Are you really a Battle Wizard?" Harry nodded. "Can you do all the things they're rumored to do?" She swallowed and whispered, "Can you temporarily raise the dead?"
"Yes, for a month at most." Harry looked down at Hermione where her legs were missing. "Hermione, you were all alone when you needed me the most. I was away getting trained as a Battle Wizard without ever knowing how much you were suffering. I won't blame you if you hate me."
"Harry I could never hate you. I love you too much."
Harry suddenly sprang back, his eyes wide. Hermione looked at him confused. "What did you just say?" asked Harry.
"I said that I could never hate you because I..." Hermione suddenly gasped as she realized what she had just said. Harry just sat there speechless. Hermione turned away, buried her face into her hands and started crying. "Harry I'm so s-sorry. I-I can't believe I said that. I mean how c-could you ever love a legless freak l-like me?"
"Hermione, you're not a freak," said Harry. "Just because you don't have any legs doesn't change the way I feel about you."
Hermione looked up, her eyes red and puffy from crying. "W-what?"
"I love you too," said Harry, his green eyes sparkling with sincerity. "When I was away, I missed you so much that it felt as if my heart had been torn out of my body. I was devastated when I came back and failed to find you. And I was crushed when I realized how much suffering you had gone through. And I promise that I won't ever leave you again."
"Promise?" whispered Hermione. When Harry nodded, Hermione let out a sob and threw her arms around Harry. They hugged each other for a while before they pulled away a little. Herrmione's cheeks were burning and she could see that Harry was also a little nervous. Slowly, they leaned closer and closer to each other until they're lips met.
Fireworks exploded inside of both of them as they kissed each other passionately. Both Harry and Hermione had waited two full years for this moment and when it had finally come, it was better than anything either one of them could've imagined. Harry felt his knees lose their feeling and he was thankful that he was on the bed next to the girl he loved. Hermione had tears of joy rolling down her face. The passionate kiss continued for some more time until the need for oxygen finally forced them to break apart for moment before they went back to kissing each other. They just continued kissing in that hidden bunker that day, blissfully isolated from the rest of the world.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, at Parselrock, Voldemort was gathering his group of assassinators known as the Killer Elite.
"Death Eaters," said Voldemort. "Now is the chance to crush the resistances to our reign once and for all. Since Harry Potter is not at Hogwarts right now, the school is at its weakest point."
"What is your command, master?" asked one of the many Death Eaters.
"Each of you gather all of your mightiest forces you have and crush the school once and for all. Kill everyone that is there and don't let anyone escape. This will be our last chance to finish them before Potter comes back."
"With all do respect my lord," said another Death Eater, "why is it so important that we finish the school off while Potter is not there? Would it not be more convenient if the school and Potter were destroyed at the same time?"
Voldemort slowly got up and walked up to the Death Eater. He suddenly pulled out his wand and said, "Crucio!"
The Death Eater screamed in pain as the curse ripped through his body. Finally, the Dark Lord took the curse off.
"Do any of you know what a Battle Wizard is," hissed Voldemort. The other Death Eaters remained quiet. "Imagine a being with enough power to wipe a city off the face of the planet. Imagine a being so powerful that he can't help but feel absolute confidence when he takes on a challenge. That's what Harry Potter is now."
The Death Eaters remained quiet as Voldemort started pacing back in forth in front of his throne.
"Thousands of years ago, There were hundreds of Battle Wizards on Atlantis, the ancient home of the wizards. However, after the great disaster, it was decided that there would only be one Battle Wizard per generation. There immense power became a legend of fear amongst wizards. And the most frightening thing about them is the fact that a Battle Wizard can only be defeated by another Battle Wizard."
The Death Eaters all shuddered as the Dark Lord stopped pacing. "Now do you understand why you must crush Hogwarts while Potter is not there? I trust that none of you are that foolish," he said. "Now go! And may victory go to the Dark Order!"
The Death Eaters all gave out a large cheer as Voldemort started laughing his high pitched laugh. He caught sight of Draco Malfoy standing nearby his throne, in between his two cronies, Crabbe and Goyle.
"Do not despair, young Malfoy," said Voldemort. "You will soon get the mudblood back. After all, you want her to be the mother to my heir."
Draco bowed low before leaving with the other Death Eaters.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Outside, across the Thames River from Parselrock, the rider on the stag was watching the Death Eaters and their dark forces leaving the fortress, led by the Killer Elite.
"They're going to go attack Hogwarts," muttered the rider. The stag nodded and started to nudge his head toward the north.
"I know," said the rider. "We need to get back to the school as fast as we can." The rider turned the stag around and started galloping away toward the north. Faster than the wind, the stag sped toward Hogwarts.
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A/N I have a confession to make. Even though I attend college in Portland, I am currently taking a semester off and am residing in Japan right now. That's why I update at slightly different times than other people. Of course, it gives my American readers to read the new chapter first thing in the morning (lol). Well, this story is really moving along. Please R/R.