Unofficial Portkey Archive

Harry Potter and the Infernal Plan Part IV
by Jori

REVISED July 2003

e-mail: Jori@netroenterprises.com

Set during and after their sixth year at Hogwarts, Hermione asks something of Harry that will change their lives forever.

NC-17

Spoilers for all five books. Most of this was originally written well before Order of the Phoenix came out but I decided to go back and do some edits. Some were very necessary while others were more cosmetic.

H/Hr story

This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

***********

It was the day of their outing to Hogsmeade and Harry and Hermione were waiting for Ron outside of the castle. He was fifteen minutes late and Hermione was growing more frustrated with each passing second.

"Are you sure they're coming?" she asked once more. Harry nodded like he did the last two times she asked. The weather had cleared up quite nicely in the past few weeks and he was just happy to be outside without cold rain coming down. It would have been a great day for his team to practice Quidditch but Hermione insisted they were going to Hogsmeade together with Ron. Ginny decided she wanted to come along with them, too. At least that way no one would be comfortable, Harry thought. "I'm going to find them --"

Before she could finish, Ron came out of the castle doors looking rather sullen. "You ready then?" he asked, not really looking at either of them but rather off in the distance.

"Where's Ginny?" Harry asked.

"She changed her mind and decided to go with her friends," Ron said, putting all the emphasis on the word 'friends.'

"That's good, I guess," Harry said, looking at Hermione. She shrugged her shoulders and sighed about the whole thing. While Ron had his moments where everything was fine between all of them, Ginny was still acting quite cold about the whole matter. She had gotten over her crush on Harry years ago but she was upset that neither of them told her they were together.

"I guess," Ron said, dismissing the topic.

They walked most of the way in silence, Hermione's hand occasionally brushing up against Harry's. Each time that happened, Ron looked away. By the time they reached the town, Hermione looked rather distraught and Harry was beginning to think that Quidditch practice would have definitely been a better idea.

"Where would you like to go first?" Harry asked needlessly. Ron was ahead of the group, leading them in the direction of Honeyduke's.

"At least he's predictable," Hermione leaned close and whispered and Harry grinned. Ron turned around right then and rolled his eyes at them.

"If you two want to hold hands or snog or whatever it is you do, just go right on and do it. Pretend I'm not even here," Ron said, turning away from them. Hermione and Harry looked at each other and quickened their pace until one was standing on either side of Ron.

"I don't know what you think, Ron, but we are the same people as before. We're still your best friends and we don't spend all our time doing . . . whatever it is you think we do," Hermione said and Ron looked from her to Harry.

"She's right. That's why we wanted you to come with us today," Harry added.

"We don't want you to feel like you're a third wheel. You're not. We're here as friends just like always," Hermione said.

Ron didn't say anything but instead, disappeared into the crowd of Hogwarts' students inside of Honeyduke's.

"That went well," Harry said sarcastically. He could finally take Hermione's hand in his and she gave his a gentle squeeze of reassurance. "He's fine when we're alone together -- or at least I thought everything was fine. I don't know why he's being so odd today."

"He was okay when we worked on our homework together last night. It will take some time, that's all. The two of you will be the best of friends again in no time. We all will be," Hermione said.

"I suppose so," Harry said, staring through the window at Ron who was laughing away about something with Dean Thomas at his side. Hermione took Harry's hand and pulled him inside. The door had barely closed behind them when they were approached by Draco Malfoy. Behind him stood Crabbe and Goyle, like always.

"So it's true then? You and Granger really are fucking?" Malfoy asked rather loudly despite his foul language, not hiding the disgust in his voice. The whole place fell quiet as if they were waiting for an answer. Harry stepped in front of Hermione before she could get to Malfoy, scared that she might do him some serious harm.

"I don't think that's any of your business," Harry said. By now, most of the students had gathered around them waiting to see what was going to happen next. Harry's eyes met Ron's briefly and Ron looked as if he were afraid that he might actually answer Malfoy's question with an answer he didn't want to hear.

"Everything you do always seems to be everyone's business, Potter. Why should who you do be any different?" Malfoy asked. By now there was no way he could keep Hermione calm. Before Harry really knew what happened, she was no longer behind him and he could feel the anger rolling off of her.

"You never cared this much about anyone I've been with in the past. Why should this concern you?" Hermione said, controlling her voice the best she could. "Maybe you're just jealous that Harry has a girlfriend while all you have is Crabbe and Goyle . . . though I imagine that might be just what you like . . ."

"Shut up, you whoring little mudblood!" Malfoy said while all the students from any house other than Slytherin giggled and whooped at what Hermione had just implied. Crabbe and Goyle had even tried slinking off somewhere before they could be at the receiving end of more barbs but one look from Malfoy stopped them.

"Shut up, Malfoy. You can't talk about Hermione like that," Ron said and Harry turned around to look at him. Ron didn't meet his glance, never taking his eyes off of Hermione.

"I can't believe she's good enough for the likes of you, Potter," Malfoy said, ignoring Ron completely. "The famous Harry Potter is going to settle for a Muggle-born girl. I suppose if it was good enough for your father . . ."

"This has nothing to do with my parents . . . or hers," Harry said. He couldn't help but notice that Hermione flinched when Malfoy commented that he was settling. This was what she was afraid people would say even though she knew he didn't feel that way. Harry slipped his arm around Hermione's and pulled her to his side. "I want to be with Hermione and I don't care about anything else."

Harry turned to look at Hermione and then at Ron but his friend was walking away.

"Looks like someone else wanted to be with her, too," Malfoy said in a whisper, stepping closer to Harry. "You should have let him have her. You're better than this . . ."

"I said I want to be with Hermione and I meant it. Now if you'll excuse us, we have things to do," Harry said, taking Hermione's hand in his, trying to escape Malfoy and the crowd that had gathered around them. The only way to do that was to leave the store.

He and Hermione wandered around Hogsmeade for a while in silence. He squeezed her hand a few times but she didn't say or do anything back.

"I meant it, you know," Harry finally said as they approached The Three Broomsticks. "It doesn't matter what Malfoy says. I do want to be with only you."

"I know . . . it's just hard hearing the things he said. I tell myself it doesn't matter what people think and that it only matters what you think but to hear it spoken. . ." she said, her voice trailing off. Harry knew she was still thinking about Malfoy's words and he couldn't imagine how this day could get any worse at this point.

"You know better than to listen to anything Draco Malfoy says. You know it, Hermione," Harry pleaded and Hermione only nodded as they went inside to get a drink.

**************

The day at Hogsmeade wasn't exactly what Harry had planned and he didn't see Ron again after he disappeared from Honeyduke's. Harry spent the rest of his time in the village drinking butterbeer with Hermione, both avoiding the topic of Draco Malfoy. The other students that came in looked at them with amusement, as if they thought this might have been going on for a long time and now everything was confirmed. After a while, Hermione went off to Dervish and Banges with Parvati and Padma to get some supplies and he came back to the castle alone.

The early evening air was growing quite cold and Harry was standing outside of Hogwarts, watching Hedwig soaring overhead. Clouds were gathering in the sky and he momentarily lost sight of her against all the white. It was then that he saw her diving towards the ground to catch something. Harry hoped whatever it was, she didn't feel like sharing.

Eventually, Hedwig was back soaring around (with no special treat clutched in her talons) and Harry put his arm out, calling her back to him. In less than a minute, she was on his arm, gently nipping at his wrist, quite pleased to see him.

"I know. I'm sorry I've been ignoring you lately, Hedwig, it's just . . . well, things are different," Harry said and Hedwig blinked her big eyes at him knowingly. "The good news -- or maybe the bad news -- is it looks like you and I will be spending plenty of time together this summer at the Dursleys."

Hedwig ruffled her feathers up and looked disgusted at the idea of going to back to the Dursleys again.

"I don't think Ron or Ginny will even have us at The Burrow for a week or two. Ron's kind of upset about a lot of things right now and I don't blame him. I just . . . I miss him. As much as I love Hermione, it's not the same. I really thought . . . I don't know what I was thinking. I didn't think falling in love with her would change absolutely everything," Harry told his owl.

She made soft, soothing sounds and stood quite still on his arm as he stroked her feathers. The look in her eyes made him realize he should have known better. Of course this was going to change everything and not only with Hermione or Ron but it changed everything about himself, too. Loving her somehow made everything that had happened in the first part of his life hurt a lot less and now there was nothing he couldn't survive if it meant getting back to her.

"Hello, Harry," he heard from behind him and he didn't even have to look to know whose voice it was. Hedwig turned her head to look and then turned back to Harry, giving him a soft hoot.

"Come by at breakfast tomorrow. I'll save some toast for you," Harry said to Hedwig before she took off towards the Owlery, leaving him alone with Hermione.

"Did you get the supplies you needed?" Harry asked, turning to face her.

"You didn't have to leave Hogsmeade. You could have come with us. I don't want you to feel like . . ."

"I wanted to be alone for a while, that's all," Harry said and Hermione said nothing more. She knew him well enough now to know that sometimes he just needed to be left alone. She took a step away from him but before she could retreat entirely, he asked her, "You want to take a walk? Go to the lake?"

Hermione nodded and he took her hand in his as they walked silently to the lake. They ended up at their usual spot and after they sat down, she finally spoke again. "That didn't go at all well, did it?"

"It wasn't exactly what I had planned," Harry answered, staring out over the dark water.

"Maybe it's time we do away with any plans," Hermione said, letting go of his hand. "Maybe it's time we slow this whole thing down."

"What?" Harry asked, his head snapping around to face her.

"I'm just suggesting that perhaps we should take a little time off from this," she said and he could feel his heart break . . . no, shatter in his chest. What was she saying? He couldn't quite make his brain comprehend any of it.

"You want to break up?"

"Not exactly."

"Is this because of what Malfoy said earlier because if it is, I'll . . "

"No, Harry. This has nothing to do with that at all," Hermione said, but she didn't sound very convincing.

"I don't believe you," Harry said, trying hard to keep his voice from breaking. Hermione let out a sigh and shook her head at him.

"I have to catch up on my studies, Harry. I've been falling behind lately plus there's your Quidditch. You need to focus on the next big match and on your studies. And I have to start preparing for the N.E.W.T.s for next year and planning what I'll need to do this summer to study . . . and will you stop looking at me like that?" she asked.

"Like what?" he asked, his voice so flat that he didn't even recognize it.

"Like I just broke your heart."

"I think you might have."

"I didn't mean to," she said softly, trying to take his hand in hers. He pulled it away and tucked both of his hands into his cloak. He could feel his wand in there and wondered briefly about a spell that would make him disappear or something that could turn back time ten minutes. That was hopeless. He wasn't that good of a wizard and apparently he wasn't that good of a boyfriend, either.

"If it isn't because of Malfoy, what happened to prompt this?" he had to ask. "Did I do something wrong this afternoon?"

"No, not at all. I was just discussing some of my recent marks with Padma and . . . Harry! She's doing better than I am!" Hermione said, making it sound like this was the worst thing that could possibly happen in the world.

"And you somehow realized that if you didn't have a boyfriend, everything would get better?" Harry asked, his voice not hiding his frustration.

"It's just for a few weeks, Harry. We're not breaking up. I just need to catch up on my class work, that's all," she said, making it sound incredibly simple.

"There are some things you can't take back. Once they're done, they're done," he said and she looked at him, puzzled. "How am I supposed to be just friends with you again after everything? I've lost Ron as a friend and now I'm losing you. If I would have know, I never would have . . ."

Hermione looked crushed when he said that. Somehow, he would have cared more but this was all her idea anyway. How could he be sure that in a few weeks, things would get better? And it hurt that a couple of marks on some papers meant more than he did.

"Harry . . ."

"You're right. This will give me time to get the team ready for the next match. I haven't been a very good captain lately and now I'll have the time to make up more drills for us to run through. Thank you for this. I think you just might be right," he said, standing up.

Anything she might have said next was stopped when they noticed a large number of the owls from the school flying overhead towards Hogsmeade.

"Something must be happening," he said, searching the sky. It wasn't long before Hedwig swooped down, carrying a note addressed to both of them. Harry read it quickly and then handed it to Hermione. "We need to go back to the castle immediately. That's all it says but I can't imagine that they'd call us back immediately if it was something good."

"Nothing has happened here in a long time. What could it be?" she asked as they started their walk back towards the castle, Hedwig flying directly overhead, keeping an eye on them.

"I don't know," Harry said with a shrug, finding it an odd coincidence that the moment Hermione decided to . . . break up or whatever that was . . . that something bad would happen again.

**************

The Gryffindor common room was buzzing with students asking what was going on. Harry sat on the far side of the room while Hermione took a seat at the table. When Ron finally showed up, he didn't sit near either of them but instead settled down near the fireplace.

Not much time had passed before Professor McGonagall stepped through the portrait hole and students quieted down immediately, waiting for her to speak.

"There has been an intrusion in the castle," she said and everyone started whispering. Some of them turned to cast a quick glance at Harry but he didn't care. They always looked his way when something happened. Why should this time be any different? Harry caught Hermione staring at him for just a second before she looked away.

Professor McGonagall held her hand up to quiet them down again and the room fell still.

"Were they caught?" Colin Creevy asked, fingering his camera. "Did anyone see who it was?"

"No, I'm afraid not. As you all know, we have added special security measures on the castle since . . ." she started to say, her eyes traveling over to Harry now, too. He looked down at his feet. Maybe this place really would be better off without him. At this moment, he certainly felt like running away but he had no place to go. ". . . the intruder was in one of the old storage rooms. We did find several blankets and a few pillows hidden away in the room so we think the perpetrator might be trying to stay in the castle."

With that, Harry and Hermione looked at each other and Harry couldn't help but notice the blush rising up to her cheeks. They never did go back to that storage room to retrieve the items they left there on Valentine's Day and now someone had found them. Not only that but the room was broken into by an outsider and that seemed far too coincidental to Harry.

"I can assure you that the castle has been searched from top to bottom and there's no one here who doesn't belong," Professor McGonagall said but that didn't seem to relax anyone.

"I knew it was going too well this year," a third year muttered, casting a quick glance in Harry's direction.

"Tell me about it. I thought maybe this year . . ." someone else started to add before they noticed Harry was watching them.

"No one is to be blamed for this," McGonagall added, casting a silencing glance at the students Harry was staring at. "We all know that things are happening that no one has any control over. I want to assure you that you are all safe at Hogwarts."

Harry sighed, knowing somehow that wasn't exactly true anymore. None of them were going to be safe anywhere and he couldn't help but blame himself. As soon as McGonagall left, Harry hurried up to his room before anyone could say a word to him and crawled into his bed, happy to fall asleep and escape this miserable day.

***********

Arriving late for breakfast, Harry sat alone at one end of the long table, picking at some sausages he had no intentions of ever eating. Hermione was further down the table, staring intently at a book. She did smile at him when he came in and motioned for him to sit down next to her but if she wanted time to study, he was going to give it to her. Ron was at the far end of the table, laughing about something with Ginny and Seamus while they ate. Luna Lovegood tried to sit down near him but walked back to the Ravenclaw table when he didn't pay any attention to her. No one knew that Hermione wanted to stop seeing him for a while so she could study and he didn't feel like telling him now.

Instead, he pushed his plate away and pulled out a scroll, his quill and some ink. If Hermione was going to spend this time studying, he was going to work on a schedule for Quidditch practice. Maybe he would even come up with some new moves for the team to try out. After a few minutes went by, he was still staring at a blank scroll, rolling his quill between his fingers.

"Hey there, Harry," a soft voice said and Harry looked up to find Zoila Witherite standing on the other side of the table, several scrolls tucked in her arms.

"Hi, Zoila," Harry said without much feeling. He didn't really want to be bothered right now and he hoped she'd be able to tell that by the tone of his voice or the look on his face.

"Can I sit down?" she asked, nodding at the table.

"This really isn't the best time . . . I'm working on . . ." but before he could finish, the second year student sat down and smiled brightly at him.

"I've been working on a few things but you never seem to be alone so I haven't had a chance to discuss -- well, it would just be better if I showed you rather than told you anyway. I'm so glad to finally get a chance to talk to you about some of this," Zoila said, still carrying on as she unrolled a few of the scrolls in front of him. They were covered with Quidditch moves . . . hundreds of them.

Harry's eyes moved from diagram to diagram, wondering exactly how long she had been working on some of these. They were all in great detail and he couldn't help but to mutter a soft "Wow."

"Oh! Hold on!" Zoila said, pulling out her wand. With a simple charm, she sent all the diagrams into motion and after a minute, Harry had to look away to give his eyes a rest. He met Zoila's eyes briefly and then she went back into another lengthy discussion about one of her drawings. Harry had to smile because she reminded him so much of Hermione back at that age . . . only Zoila seemed to know everything about Quidditch and not spells and potions. She was also an unusual girl in the fact that she was the only other person he had met besides Madam Hooch who had yellow eyes and Harry never got around to asking if they were related in some way. That would certainly explain Zoila's talent on a broom.

It was then that Harry noticed Ron walking by, craning his neck around to see the sketches but quickly going on his way. He was soon followed by Hermione who kept her nose in a book although she did give him a quick glance before she left the hall. He fought the urge to wave to her and only Zoila's silence brought his thoughts back to what was before him which wasn't easy. He really wanted to gather up his supplies and chase Hermione down the corridor.

"I . . . do you think any of this will help during the next match?" Zoila asked shyly.

"We'll have to try some of them out at the next practice," Harry said, rolling up his own scroll and putting his quill away. "Why don't you pick out a few that you think we could really use and we'll talk about it later."

"This evening in the common room?" she asked, sounding quite happy by that prospect.

"Yes . . . that will work," Harry said, distracted by the time and the fact that he'd never catch up with Hermione now.

**************

"How do you know so much about Quidditch? You know more than anyone I've ever met before," Harry said. He knew children who grew up in wizard families naturally knew more about the game than children who grew up with Muggle parents but Zoila seemed to know everything. They sat together in the common room looking over her many notes and diagrams.

Zoila looked down at the scrolls before her and a slight blush rose to her cheeks. "My mum is a Chaser for the Appleby Arrows and my dad works in the team's front office. I've been around Quidditch my whole life."

"That must have been nice," Harry said with a sigh. It certainly sounded wonderful compared to what he spent most of his life around.

"I learned a lot and my mum and dad help with any questions I might have. They were so proud when I made the team in my second year here. They brag to anyone who stands still long enough to listen all about how their daughter made the team and how the Gryffindor captain is Harry Potter himself. They supported you, you know. Last year when no one believed you," Zoila said and for some reason this made Harry a bit nervous. He shifted around in his seat and she looked up at him.

"They should be very proud of you no matter who's the team captain because you're an excellent Chaser," Harry said, and Zoila smiled a crooked little smile. He looked away to find Hermione sitting on the other side of the room with her nose in a book. He had been so involved working on new maneuvers that he didn't even notice her come in through the portrait hole.

Hermione's eyes came up over the top of the book and met his. Then, looking over at Zoila, her eyes narrowed and her expression grew cold. He wanted to remind her that it was her idea that they spend less time together so she could study and that meant he could talk to anyone he wanted to during that time. Then he wanted to remind her that he missed her desperately and going over Quidditch maneuvers with a second year didn't even come close to spending five minutes alone with her. But instead of doing either, he simply watched her from across the room as she returned to reading her book.

"Are you two . . . did something happen?" Zoila asked, reaching over to touch his arm and shake him out of his thoughts.

"I'd rather not talk about it," Harry said, pulling away from her touch.

"Oh. I'm sorry. Harry, if, you know, you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here. I know, I know . . . you're thinking why would I talk to a second year, you know, about these things but just in case . . . you know . . ." Zoila started babbling away, sounding very much like an ordinary twelve year old.

"I'm fine," Harry said, not feeling very fine at all.

"Oh. Okay. Some of my friends are over there and I'm going to go talk to them. See you later, Harry," she said, getting up to move to a table where a group of second years were working on their homework. The sight of them made Harry miss the hours Hermione, Ron and he would spend sitting around a table working on their homework together and it made him feel quite alone. He wasn't sure how things got like this so quickly.

All he was certain of was if he could go back and erase everything that had happened with Hermione in the last few months, he would if it meant they could all be friends again.

*************

It was Saturday morning and Harry sat alone at breakfast in the Great Hall once again, his Firebolt at his side. Today was their match against Ravenclaw and his stomach was doing flip flops as he reviewed all the new moves the team had been working on. He had no reason to be so worried since they practiced so much in the last few weeks but still, he was.

"Hey, Harry," Cho Chang said as she walked by with some of her fellow housemates. She was dressed in her Quidditch robes already and carried her broom in her hand. "Good luck today."

"Good luck to you, too, Cho," Harry said, smiling at the girl who used to make his stomach feel all fluttery inside. Now there was only two things that did that to him: a tough Quidditch match and Hermione.

Just as he thought of her, she walked through the door, her eyes scanning the Gryffindor table quickly until she spotted him. She walked towards him and he pushed aside his plate of uneaten sausages and eggs.

"I just wanted to wish you the best of luck today," she said, standing rather stiffly directly across the table.

"Thank you," he said, sounding as nervous as his stomach felt. He had been so anxious to talk to her for days but he didn't want to press his luck and interrupt her studies. Instead, whenever he wanted desperately to talk to her, he'd call for a Quidditch practice instead to take him mind off of everything. "Would you like to sit down?"

"Only if you're not busy," she said, looking at all the scrolls before him.

"Oh, no. I'm not busy at all," he said, quickly clearing everything from the table. "How's the studying coming along?"

"Great, actually. My marks have improved drastically," Hermione answered, sitting down and pouring herself some pumpkin juice.

"Oh."

"I noticed you've been practicing Quidditch quite a bit. I hope you aren't ignoring your class work, Harry. You know how important it is," she said and he wanted to smile because she sounded just like the Hermione he knew so well.

"My marks have been okay," he said with a shrug. He didn't really feel like discussing class work with her. Instead, he really wanted to ask if she missed him as much as he missed her. He wanted to know if being apart kept her awake at night thinking about the last time they were together.

He didn't get the opportunity to discuss any of that either because it was time for the mail and a package so large and cumbersome that it required two large barn owls to carry it was dropped in front of Hermione.

She looked rather surprised that she would be receiving something at all and she looked up at Harry. "You didn't send me something, did you?" she asked, a touch of hopefulness in her voice that he didn't miss.

"No," he said, feeling rather stupid that he hadn't thought of sending her a gift over the last few weeks. He had spent too much time pouting over the whole situation instead of thinking of something that could persuade her to give up this thing about studying and come back to him.

She quickly pulled the note from the package and opened it, reading it carefully. Her face paled as she shoved the note back in its envelope just as quickly.

"Who is it from?" Harry asked. "Aren't you going to open it?"

"It's from Drew," she said, not making a move towards the package at all.

"Oh."

"He asked my parents to send it to me. A gift because he misses me," Hermione added and Harry couldn't really tell by the tone of her voice how this made her feel though he knew without a doubt how it made him feel.

"Oh," Harry said again. "I thought that was over."

"Really, Harry, I didn't ask for him to send it. And you're hardly one to complain considering how much time you've been spending with . . . what is her name again?" Hermione asked. Now he could read the tone of her voice very well and she was getting upset.

"Whose name?" he asked, drawing a complete blank.

"Hey, Harry! Ready for today's match?" Zoila Witherite asked from behind Hermione.

"Her name," Hermione said and before Harry could say anything else, Hermione grabbed her package and was off. He wanted to chase after her but he couldn't right now. There just wasn't enough time.

"Did I do something wrong?" Zoila asked, sitting down in the spot Hermione just vacated. The rest of the Quidditch team was now here, except Ron, and they filled in the empty spaces around Harry, all of them grabbing for food and pouring themselves pumpkin juice.

"No, you didn't do anything. Since we're all together, we might as well go over some plays," Harry said, sounding rather dismal. He forced himself to push any thoughts of Hermione away for now and concentrate only on the match before them.

***************

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. It had been years since the last time this happened and he couldn't believe it was happening again. They were calling off the Quidditch match and he tried hard to listen to what Professor McGonagall was saying but he couldn't move past that the match was canceled after all the work they put into it. Not only that, but they were ahead of Ravenclaw by forty points and he was certain he had just spotted the Snitch right before the whistle blew. He forced himself to listen past the protestations going on in his own head.

The entire student body was gathered in the Great Hall as Professor McGonagall went over the latest break in at Hogwarts. This time it happened in the Gryffindor tower. In the sixth year girls' dorm to be specific. Hermione's dorm room. She was sitting with her roommates at the far end of the table and Lavender looked quite nervous about the whole ordeal.

It had happened while they were at the match (though Hermione wasn't in the stands but rather in the library at the time) and they quickly called the game off to account for all the students and to make sure they were safe.

"I assure you we've taken every measure possible to make sure this doesn't happen again," the professor said and a first year Gryffindor student raised his hand. "Yes, Emrys?"

"Did they just apparate in or how . . ." the young student started to ask but the older students chuckled at his question.

"Surely everyone knows you cannot apparate in to Hogwarts," Harry heard Hermione answer from down the table and Emrys' face turned a vivid shade of magenta.

"Yes, we're unsure of how they got in or out so quickly. From now on, there will be a strict curfew and I would ask that until we can resolve this matter, you use caution when traveling around the castle. Try to have a classmate with you if at all possible. And as a precaution we're going to have all the Gryffindors spend the night in the Great Hall. The other houses are dismissed with the exception of the prefects and head girl and boy. Will you please come talk to me once we get the students settled? Professors, please lead your house back to their towers and then return here as soon as possible," Professor McGonagall said and the other houses began to file out of the hall, all of them murmuring about how this could have possibly have happened.

He watched as a very disappointed Cho walked past him with her teammates, each of them looking exactly like Harry felt at the moment (or perhaps worse since their team had been losing.) At least they could go to their rooms and sulk privately. He had to do it in a room full of people. The rest of his team must feel the same way because none of them were speaking to each other for now. Maybe later he'd gather them together and use this time to go over more plays but for now, he just wanted to sit here and be upset.

************

Nearly bored to sleep, Harry was startled into alertness by someone sitting down across from him rather noisily.

"We'll get them next time, Harry," Ron, still in his Quidditch robes, said with a sincere look on his face. Harry had grown accustomed to him only looking disappointed and sullen in his presence lately and perhaps someone else's misery was just what Ron needed to get over it. Chances are since it was Harry's misery, Ron was feeling even even better.

"It should be rescheduled soon," Harry said though no one had even discussed if the match would go on or not.

"I'm sorry about Hermione, too. Tough break," Ron added, not sounding as sincere as he did a second ago.

"We'll work it out," Harry mumbled, unsure how they would ever work it out since they had the rest of this year to go through and all of next year and that meant Hermione would have plenty of school work to worry about.

After that, they sat in silence, neither one of them sure what to say. Harry found it hard to believe that just a few months ago, the three friends sat in this very spot discussing Christmas presents and now. . . now look at them. He also found it hard to believe that not that long ago, he and Hermione thought they could have sex just once and it wouldn't change anything. Instead, it changed absolutely everything.

It was then that he noticed Hermione talking to one the head boy. She nodded her head a few times and then headed toward the door. So far, none of them had even asked to go to the bathroom but he assumed it had to happen sooner or later. Then he thought that this would perhaps be a good chance to talk to Hermione about this morning and about Zoila.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. Watch my broom," Harry said, leaving Ron at the table looking rather puzzled until he saw Hermione open the door and go out. Then he looked disappointed and sullen again.

Harry asked a Hufflepuff prefect standing nearest to the table if he could be excused to go to the bathroom and before she even had the chance to say yes or no, he was out the door and following Hermione.

Only, Hermione wasn't going towards the bathroom but rather she was heading towards the stairs. He caught up to her in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady who didn't look to pleased to see them. There was a dour looking witch in the frame with her and they obviously disturbed their chat.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked.

"McGonagall said we shouldn't travel around the castle alone -- and what are you doing here?" Harry asked back.

"What are either of you doing here?" the Fat Lady asked. "I'm not supposed to allow any students in until further notice."

"Let them in already," the other witch in the picture said in an exasperated tone. "I don't know how you can stand this job. People bothering you at all hours . . ."

"I can't let you in," the Fat Lady said, shushing her friend.

"Oh, please let me in. I really have to get my textbooks. I have a paper due in Arithmancy and that was the only book I didn't have with me when I was in the library and I need it," Hermione pleaded and Harry rolled his eyes.

"When is your paper due?" the Fat Lady asked and Harry knew that Hermione's answer of 'Monday' was a lie by the look on her face.

"Will you let her in if I go with?" Harry asked on Hermione's behalf. Hermione looked surprised by the gesture.

"Let them go and get it over with. If they die, they die," the other witch said and the Fat Lady tried to quiet her again.

"I don't know . . ." the Fat Lady said.

"We both have our wands with us. It will be okay," Harry said, pulling his wand from his Quidditch robes. He was sure that anything on the other side of the portrait hole couldn't possibly compare to what he had already seen in the last few years.

"Yes, we'll be okay if we're together," Hermione added, sounding desperate now.

"On second thought, the two of them do look like troublemakers," the witch said and this time the Fat Lady pushed her out of the frame.

"Password?" the Fat Lady finally asked and relief washed over Hermione's face.

"Winsome," she said and the portrait opened and Harry followed her into the common room.

"You went through all of that for a book?" Harry asked, looking around. "And how did you know no one would be up here?"

"All the professors were in the Great Hall and Filch, too, so I assumed they were finished up here. Are you coming with so you can keep me safe?" she said with a quick eye roll before heading towards the stairway to the girls' dormitory rooms.

"Am I still a girl?" Harry asked and Hermione gave him a questioning glance until she realized what he was talking about.

"Of course you are."

Harry followed her up, taking this opportunity to ask about her package from this morning. "So, what did Drew send you?"

"Why do you care so much?" Hermione asked as they reached the door to the room.

"I don't care. I was just curious."

"And jealous. I don't know why you would be since you seemed to have moved on just fine," Hermione said. Harry followed her into the room and his eyes began scanning around, looking for the package she received this morning. He couldn't see it anywhere.

"What?" he asked as she went through her books, taking much more than her Arithmancy book from the pile.

"You've moved on. I told you that this would just be for a while and somehow, you managed to meet someone else," Hermione said, sounding as if she might start crying at anytime now.

"Who did I meet?" Harry asked.

"That girl you're always with. The one you're always going out to Quidditch practice with. The one with the yellow eyes," she said, turning away from him while pretending to flip through a book.

"Zoila Witherite?"

"Is that her name?" asked although Harry was sure Hermione already knew her name.

"Are you kidding?" Harry asked, unable to believe that Hermione thought he moved on that quickly. And with a twelve year old.

"You're always together."

"Hermione, she's twelve years old," Harry said, his voice going up a pitch, upset that this was even coming up.

"And you're Harry Potter," Hermione said, turning around to face him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Harry asked, not sure how his identity made a difference in this situation.

"If I were a twelve year old girl, I'd want to hang out with Harry Potter," Hermione said.

"When you were a twelve year old girl, you did hang out with him. . . . I mean me," Harry said.

"But now you're sixteen and Quidditch captain and . . ."

"None of this mattered back when you were seeing Krum. He's a world famous Quidditch player and you thought nothing of it. You weren't worried about other girls wanting him so why worry now?" Harry asked.

"He wasn't really my boyfriend. He was a pen pal," Hermione said. She tossed her books on the bed and turned away from him. "Besides, back when we were twelve, you were just . . . you were just Harry. You were just my friend and not my boyfriend."

"I didn't know I was your boyfriend now," he said. He was angry and confused and he still couldn't get over that Hermione thought he'd be interested in Zoila or that she was acting this way over who he was when he had no control over the matter.

"It wasn't supposed to be for a long time. Just until I got better marks. I didn't think . . ."

"Hermione, I didn't meet someone else. And besides that, this was all your plan in the first place. You're the one who wanted time to study and I gave it to you. Apparently, you have no bloody clue as to how much I've missed you," Harry said, walking over to her. He took her arm and turned her around so she would face him.

"You didn't say anything. All these weeks you've done nothing but avoid me," she said.

"That's what you wanted," Harry said, growing more confused as to what Hermione really wanted from him. "You wanted me to avoid you so you could study. You're mad at me because I gave you what you wanted?"

"Yes," she answered.

"I can't believe any of this!" Harry said, adding frustration to the muddle of what he was feeling inside.

"You didn't look like it was bothering you. We weren't together and you simply went on with your life. Quidditch practice seemed more important," she said with a huff.

"Your studies were more important in the first place, so I don't know what you're complaining about," Harry said in turn.

"My studies are important to me, Harry, but you're more important," Hermione said and Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. These were the words he wanted to hear all the weeks they had been apart but now that she was saying them, he didn't feel the happiness he imagined he would.

"When did you reach that conclusion? Once your marks were better than Padma's? And if you're looking for someone to beg you to come back, there's always Drew. Judging from the size of the gift he sent, he must miss you terribly," Harry said and he could tell from the expression on Hermione's face that his words stung.

"Maybe he does. And maybe this whole thing with you was a big mistake! I should have never broken up with him and I should have never slept with you!" she shouted at him.

"Is that really how you feel?" Harry asked, his heart beating so fast he could barely hear his own words.

"No, you silly git! Didn't you hear what I said. I love you and the rest of it doesn't really matter!" she said, taking a cautious step towards him and reaching for his hands. It was then that he realized he had been clutching his wand tightly this whole time. Hermione plucked it from his fingers and tossed it aside.

"Hermione . . ." he started but he forgot what he was going to say as soon as she took his hands in hers and pulled him to her.

"What?" she asked, moving even closer. So close that he could feel her warmth through his Quidditch robe.

"I'm still mad at you," he said, trying to pull his thoughts together and not let her distract him too much. That got a lot harder when she kissed him softly. He didn't kiss her back.

"And I'm still mad at you but I've missed you so much," she said, her words warm against his lips. She released his hands and moved hers to his chest, slowly traveling to his shoulders. He stopped her before she could tug his robes off.

"There's no time for that," he said, using his body to move her closer to the wall. Instead of focusing on his robe, Hermione was now tugging at his pants, trying to unfasten them quickly. When she came to a stop against the cold castle wall, she had a hand inside his pants and pulled him free. The contact made him painfully hard.

"The door --" Hermione started to say.

"No one else would even think of coming up here," Harry said and Hermione didn't say another word about it.

His hands went under her skirt, easing her knickers down until she could step out of them. With her back pressed against the wall, she wrapped her legs around him and he thrust into her. Her fingers were now clutched so tightly to his Quidditch robe he was afraid she might tear the fabric and there would be no way to explain that. There was really no way to explain any of this at this point. A few hours ago they weren't talking and now she was around him, so wet and hot he thought he might melt. That would be even harder to explain.

He wasn't lying when he said he was still mad at her. She'd try to kiss him and he would pull away, choosing to watch her face as he pushed into her as hard as he could. He knew he wouldn't be able to stay upset for long as she looked into his eyes, her own filled with longing. He wasn't ready to see that yet; wasn't ready to forget that she made his life hell for the last few weeks.

With a swift movement, he carried her to the bed and set her down gently, breaking their contact. Hermione looked surprised but before she could say anything, he instructed her to turn over.

"Why?" she asked, her voice breaking.

"I want you to," he answered simply and she did as he asked, ending up in a position she had never been in with him before. He could hear her breathing rapidly now, as if she was scared or nervous. He reached out and caressed her, his fingers touching in a way that made her jump. "Don't worry. I would never hurt you . . . I mean, after the first time . . . I would never hurt you intentionally."

"Will you shut up already! I'm not worried but you better get back inside of me before I scream," she said, her back arching when his fingers reached the right spot. "Or you could keep doing that."

He did just that, enjoying the view of her writhing around as he moved faster. He'd tease her, letting his hand slip away, and she'd moan desperately, moving around until he made contact with her again. She called out his name as she came, burying her face into her blankets to muffle the sound of her voice.

Climbing up on the bed behind her, he quickly slipped into her wetness. She lifted her head up and gasped loudly when he pushed in as far as he thought he could go. Pushing back against him, he felt all her inner walls pulse, making him moan. His hands held onto her hips, pushing her skirt up as high as it would go, and continued to thrust into her. He was dressed in far too much clothing and he could feel the sweat dripping down his brow, droplets landing on the lenses of glasses.

"We have to get back soon," Hermione said, her voice strained. "Go faster."

He did just that, knowing that the next time they were together it would be different than this. It would planned and not just something that happened. Then again, maybe this didn't just happen. Maybe Hermione knew he would follow her.

"Please don't leave me," he said softly and she stopped thrusting back against him. "Not yet. Don't leave me yet."

"No, not yet," she said, sounding hollow and sad. He needed her and although he wanted this to last forever, he was never sure how long their forever would be. Days or months or years . . . whatever it was he needed her.

It wasn't long before he was coming hard inside of her, his head spinning with all the sensations and with the thought of having Hermione back again. The thought of what might happen because she was with him scared him and he tried to shake the fear out of his mind and enjoy the moment.

He pulled out of her and gently tucked himself into his pants. Hermione rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed, her skirt out of place. She picked up his wand from off the bed and slowly moved her fingers over it (as if it was one more thing for her to study) before handing it back to him. She looked very contemplative and opened her mouth several times to speak before finally getting the words out. "You do know you could have almost any girl . . ."

"I don't want any girl. I want you," he said, reaching his hands out to her. He pulled her up and into his arms, holding her tight. He had already gone through this with Ron and he didn't really feel like going through it with Hermione now, too. "You and not some twelve year old. You and not Cho. Just you."

"I know that. I just want to be sure you know it, too," she said.

"Are you sure you want this again? It won't take up too much time?" he asked, scared of her answer.

"I'll try to work on managing all my classwork and this relationship at the same time," Hermione said, casting her eyes down from his.

"It's okay. It's important to you and if you need time, just tell me. Don't break up with me even for a little while. Please?" he asked and she looked back up at him and nodded.

"We have to go. They must be wondering what happened to us by now," Hermione said, pulling away from him and looking around for her knickers. She found them and pulled them back on before going about fixing her mussed up hair. Harry stood behind her, looking into the mirror. His hair was standing up in all different directions, much like it normally did.

She turned around and straightened his robes, tugging them back into place. She messed with his hair, trying to get it to do something it never would.

"Thanks," he said as she pulled her hand away from his hair and ran it down his chest.

"You have no clue, do you?"

"About what?" he asked, confused.

"Nothing," she said, walking towards the door.

"You came up here for your books. Shouldn't you at least take them with?" Harry asked, reminding Hermione that there was a purpose to her trip up here. She turned around, grabbed her books and started towards the door again.

"You better wipe that silly grin from your face, Harry, or else people will wonder what you were doing," she called to him as she walked down the stairs to the common room with him following close behind. He wanted to reach out to her, to stop her and give her a long, hard kiss, but he thought better of it. They really did need to get back.

As soon as they were through the portrait hole, they ran into a frantic looking Ron. "What have you two been doing all this time? People are starting to notice that you're gone," he said, his hands moving as quickly as he was talking.

"I had to get my books," Hermione said, holding out the pile of texts in her arms for him to see.

"You risked your life to get your bloody books? And what about you? What are you doing here?" Ron asked, turning to Harry.

Harry didn't really have an easy answer to that question so he said nothing. Unfortunately, the Fat Lady's guest wasn't as willing to stay quiet.

"You aren't dead? How disappointing. I thought by now the two of you surely would be dead," she said, only to be shushed again by the Fat Lady.

"We have to get out of here before Professor McGonagall --" Ron started to say but never had the chance to finish his sentence.

"Before I do what, Mr. Weasley?" Professor McGonagall said, seeming to come out of nowhere.

The three students jumped at the sound of her voice and turned towards her form moving quickly down the corridor. Even after all these years, Harry's heart still started pounding whenever he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be. Sneaking off with Hermione was definately one of those things he didn't want to be caught doing.

"Before . . ." Ron began to answer but the pinched look on McGonagall's face let them all know they should remain silent.

"I should have known the three of you were up to something. Please come with me so we can discuss this further," the professor said and after exchanging several sheepish glances, they did what they were told.

**************

To Be Continued . . .