"Can We Still Be Friends?"
Chapter 4: "Through the Looking Glass"
by: Gwendy
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all its characters are the property of author J.K Rowling. This fanfic uses but does not stake claim upon any of the characters so don't sue me!
Warning! This fanfic depicts a Harry/Hermione ship or Harry/Hermione love team so if you're not comfortable with this couple, please discontinue reading.
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"Harry! Oh, Harry!"
"Blimey! Is 'at really 'im?!"
"Quick! Take him to the Hospital Wing!"
"Bloody hell!"
"He's going to be fine, children..."
"'ang in there, 'arry..."
A mixture of different voices echoed in Harry Potter's confused mind. The voices sounded distant...like it was coming from the other side of a tunnel. Everything was pitch black. Harry couldn't hear anything...couldn't feel anything. It was as if all his senses were taken from him.
Then, the image of Hermione's tear-streaked face appeared in his head, waking him from his slumber. He opened his eyes but only managed to open it in small slits. His vision was blurry. He squinted, gradually gaining his focus little by little.
Feeling a presence beside him, Harry painfully tilted his head sideways. He could see a head of disheveled brown curls, resting on his bedside. That's when he felt a hand around his: Hermione's hand.
"Hermione..." Harry called, his voice hoarse and whispery. Slowly, he reached over to touch her hair lightly only to end up moaning in pain. His body ached all over, reminding him of what had happened hours ago. Recalling how Draco had mercilessly hit Hermione made his blood boil.
"H-Harry!" Hermione breathed. She was awake at last. Harry squinted again but he couldn't exactly make out the features Hermione's face. Then he realized he didn't have his glasses on.
"Glasses..." he croaked.
"Y-You're eyes are...are too swollen for that," Hermione stammered, quickly standing up and pouring a bottle of purplish liquid into a glass. Then, to Harry's surprise, Hermione put her hand behind his head, the other around his shoulder, and helped him prop himself up.
"Here. Madam Pomfrey told me to have you drink this once you wake up," she held the glass up to Harry's lips. The liquid sizzled and hissed, giving out a strange, burnt smell but oddly enough, it tasted just like water. Harry finished the potion and immediately, all the pain fled from his body.
"Thanks..." Harry laid back on the fluffy pillows. Even though the pain was gone, he was still weak. He shifted his gaze towards the window. A full moon peaked from behind the dark clouds, the stars bright and twinkling.
"Moon...how long...how long was I out?" Harry turned to Hermione for an answer. Silence. He reached for his glasses and put them on. The spectacles were broken but he still managed to focus on Hermione, who was sitting on a stool, her fists curled on her lap. She had her head down, her shoulders shaking..
"Hermione..."
"You IDIOT!" Hermione cried, suddenly throwing her arms around Harry, knocking his glasses off in the process.
"Idiot! Idiot!" Hermione repeated, pounding her hands on Harry's chest. "How could you have done that?! With all the blows you received, Malfoy could've killed you! Didn't you ever think about that!?" she sobbed, tears streaming down her face.
"I only did that to protect you," Harry replied, his face darkening. "When I saw him hit you, I...I just lost myself! I wasn't going to let that scumbag get away with it!"
A moment of silence fell upon them. Harry felt Hermione's arms tighten around him. Then, she pulled herself up.
"Protect me?" she asked in a confused tone. "Why would you do that? I thought..."
"Thought what?" Harry asked.
"I thought you hated me..."
Another stretch of silence. Harry opened his mouth to speak but no words came from them. His mind was in complete disarray. What gave Hermione the impression that he hated her?
"Huh?" Harry mused. "Hate you? Why would you even think that?"
Hermione sat back on her stool. From what Harry could see, she was wringing her hands together, her tears glistening under the moonlight.
"Because I kissed you and I know I shouldn't have because you're my best friend and I know you're never going to take an interest in me and it's my fault I ruined things for both of us," Hermione gushed out in one breath. Then, she inhaled deeply and added, "I'm really sorry...I shouldn't have assumed..."
"What?!" Harry exclaimed. "But I was the one who kissed you! Isn't that why you hated me and avoided me all week long?!" Harry's emotions where in turmoil. Thinking back to that fateful night, he was definitely sure he had moved his face first. His reflection in Hermione's eyes, her heart-shaped lips, her body against his...all of that had gotten to him...hypnotizing him into doing what he did.
"Huh? But I was sure that I..." Hermione's words hung in the air as she and Harry stared silently at each other. The truth was out. Both of them, it seemed, had kissed each other at the same time. A strange feeling overwhelmed Harry, a feeling he knew Hermione was also experiencing at that very moment. It was a mixture of peace, contentment, and another emotion which made both of them blush heavily.
More out of nervousness than practicality, Hermione grabbed Harry's glasses from the bed and chanted, "Occulus, Reparo," and in an instant, the broken specs were fixed.
"You're always doing that, aren't you?" Harry smiled.
"I don't know why I do it..." Hermione chuckled, her cheeks showing a rosy tint. "You look so good without them..." she reached over to put the glasses on Harry but the wizard held the witch's hands in his.
"If you really think I look good without them..." Harry pulled his arms down, taking Hermione's hands along with him. "...then I guess I can wait a while before putting them on..."
"Harry..."
"Hermione...I...I don't want to be just your friend..."
It must've been the moonlight...or the sparkle in Hermione brown eyes. Perhaps it was because of the way they held each others hands...or how close they were to each other. Regardless of those factors, it all led to one thing. Before Harry even knew it, he was holding Hermione in his arms, his lips pressed softly against hers. He felt Hermione arms tighten around him. Wonder overwhelmed Harry. Hermione did love him. He could feel it in the way she kissed him back, in the way she held him. Harry felt the same way he did on the night of their first kiss...like he was no longer in the hospital wing...or Hogwarts for that matter. He felt like he was in another place...a place were no hate or sorrow could ever come to darken his world. A place were only he in Hermione basked under the glow of a feeling he had come to know as love.
Harry opened his eyelids as slowly as he pulled his face away from Hermione's. There was that look again. Hermione was looking at him as if it were for the first time. A smile rippled on her beautiful face, melting Harry's heart.
"Oh, Harry!" Hermione threw her arms around him again. "I never thought...I thought you'd never..."
"Like I said. I don't think you're ugly..." Harry interrupted. "I think you're beautiful inside and out. And..." he tightened his embrace around his former best friend. "I...I can't love you as a friend any more...I mean I don't want to love you as a friend...I mean..." Harry swallowed, trying to find the right words to say. "What I'm trying to say is...can you be...can I be...can we be..."
"Sure, Harry" Hermione answered softly, still smiling. "I'm willing to take the next step..."
"W-well..." Harry chuckled to himself, resting his back against the headboard, his new girlfriend still in his arms. "That was easy. And by the way, Hermione..."
"Yes?"
"What exactly made Draco hit you like that?" Harry asked, scanning the whole room, his eyes sparkling with a glint of anger. "Is that git still in here?!"
"Not anymore. He left hours ago," Hermione suddenly turned serious. "The reason he hit me because...I learned about his secret relationship with Ginny."
"WHAT!??!"
"Shhh!" Hermione put a finger on Harry's lips. "I saw them last night by the lake. I was hiding behind a tree," Hermione swallowed and continued. "They were about to kiss when Draco sort of sensed someone was watching. That's when he saw me. And that basically led to the confrontation we had today."
"Did he tell Ginny that he saw you?"
"I don't think so. But after today, I doubt she doesn't know."
Harry was left speechless. He leaned back on the headboard, stroking Hermione's hair. Everything was happening so fast that he was still in complete shock. The revelation of Ginny and Draco's relationship isn't helping one bit.
"Harry?"
"Hmm?"
"What should we do about Ron? Ron...Ron fancies me and..."
"Yeah...I know," Harry sighed deeply. Then, he thought of Hermione's revelation about Ginny. "But somehow...I don't think we'll be his problem once he learns about Romeo and Juliet..."
THE END
Author's Notes: Well, I really hope you enjoyed that. I might do a sequel, but I'll see if I can get the time to do so. Took a lotta work to make this fic. It's my first so please be gentle in sending out your comments. You can e-mail me at quillsnspills@yahoo.com and visit my site at http://quillsnspills.portkey.org