Unofficial Portkey Archive

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document.write(''); chapter seventeen: Reunion

Ron paced around anxiously in front of the doors to the prison as Draco and Ginny sat on opposite sides of the stairway, pointedly not looking at one another.

" I hate this!" Ron snapped suddenly. " I hate the waiting. What if something is happening in there? Harry and Hermione could be dying, and we have absolutely no idea!"

Draco glared over at him. " That's a cheerful thought, Weasel. And why you're at it, why don't we discuss the death of Santa Claus and the mutilation of the Easter Bunny?"

Ron scarcely seemed to have heard him. " That's it," he said finally. " I'm going around to see if there's another way in."

He took off, leaving Draco and Ginny alone. Ginny glanced over at Draco furtively. " I hope Harry and Hermione are all right," she said.

" I'd rather not discuss it with you."

Ginny glared at him. " Is this the way it's going to be from now on, Draco? Snide remarks and rudeness?"

Draco shrugged. " You're the one who thinks I'm not good enough. So yes, I think that gives me the right to be nasty."

She rolled her eyes. " Oh, very mature, Draco. You're acting like a child."

As if to prove her point, Draco countered, " I know you are, but what am I?"

An angry silence settled between them. Draco rose to his feet abruptly and opened the doors to the prison. Ginny looked after him, a mixture of curiosity and worry in her eyes. " What are you doing?"

" If you must know, Weasel," Draco retorted, " I'm sick of sitting out here with you. I'm going to find a way in to help our friends."

Before Ginny could stop him, he had raised his wand. " Aloha mora!"

There was a crackling noise, and then Draco was hurled back through the air, landing with a sickening thud on the ground.

" Draco!" Ginny screeched, rushing to his side. She fell down to her knees, gingerly stroking his ash-covered face. " Are you all right?"

" I'm fine," Draco snapped back, utterly embarrassed. Quickly, he raised a hand to his hair, groaning as he realized that it was sticking up in all directions. " My hair..."

Ginny looked as though she was fighting back tears. " I think we should get you to a hospital, Draco. There might be some internal damage..."

" Don't worry about me," Draco retorted. " That isn't your place, remember?"

Before she could reply, Ron came running around the side of the building. " I just saw Dumbledore," he informed them, " he says that Harry and Hermione are all right-Hermione's been taken to Madam Pomfrey at Hogwarts, but she should be okay. Dumbledore has Kimmy and Dudley in custody--" He stopped at the sight of Draco and grinned. " Get in a fight with a toaster, Malfoy?"

" Shove it, Weasel." But Draco was smiling. Hermione was all right; they'd gotten there in time. " Come on, then, let's get to Hogwarts..."

Ron and Draco both started to walk away. Still sitting on the ground, Ginny looked up suddenly, her face determined. " WAIT!"

The two men turned back to regard her curiously. Ginny scrambled to her feet, nervously wiping her palms off on her pants before moving to Draco's side. Gulping audibly, she met Ron's gaze and determinedly took Draco's hand.

" I'm in love with Draco," Ginny announced dramatically, " and he's in love with me." She took in a deep breath, bracing herself for Ron's response.

Ron merely stared at them for a moment, then snorted. " Well, duh."

Draco and Ginny stared back at him. " What do you mean 'duh'?" Ginny retorted, clearly confused. " We kept it a secret from everyone."

Ron rolled his eyes. " Honestly, Ginny...the two of you could have come up with a better excuse than running off to work on the paper every five seconds. I've read your article. It's not THAT good."

" So," Ginny said weakly, " you know? Everyone knows?"

Ron nodded, as though it was all perfectly obvious.

Ginny turned to Draco, her face contrite as she began to babble. " Draco, I'm so sorry...all this time, I was afraid to tell my family. I didn't ever mean for you to think I was ashamed of you, or that I didn't love you...I was just afraid of what would happen to YOU if my brothers found out. You know how they can be. I love them, but they blow everything out of proportion and they can be so protective and--"

Draco had apparently been waiting for a break in conversation to interject, but finally he resorted to kissing her soundly to shut her up. " You're cute when you're flustered, Weasley," he complimented, grinning.

She grinned back. " And you're cute when you're covered with ash..." And with that, the two began to kiss once more.

Ron scrunched up his nose. "Agghh...just because I know doesn't mean the two of you can snog in front of me. Geesh..."

***

Harry stared out of the hall window. He had hovered around Madam Pomfrey until she finally forced him out of the room, and now he was waiting out in the hall, anxious to see Hermione again. As he looked down upon the lake, his mind couldn't help but wander to their fourth year at Hogwarts, when he and Ron had been in a row and Hermione had been his only friend. She'd brought him toast, and they'd walked around the lake, trying to figure out the first task for the Tri-Wizard tournament. It was one of his favorite memories.

There was the sound of a door shutting behind him, and Harry turned to see Hermione at the head of the hall. Their gazes met, and in a flash, they were running toward each other, ignoring the cat calls from the portraits on the wall.

" Hermione!" Harry cried as they reached one another. He pulled her into his arms, never wanting to let go. She'd only been gone for a matter of days, but it had seemed like months, and when he thought of how close he had been to losing her...

" Oh, Harry!" Hermione was sobbing now. " I thought I'd never see you again!"

They pulled back and kissed properly. The portraits on the wall whistled their approval, and when Hermione pulled back, she was blushing. Harry affectionately brushed her hair from her face. " Are you sure you're all right?" he inquired. " Has the potion worn off yet?"

"Mostly," Hermione informed him. " I'm still a bit woozy, but I think I'll be all right."

Harry was almost afraid to ask. "And Dudley...I wasn't too late, was I?"

Hermione met his gaze somberly, then shook her head quickly. " No," she said quietly, " you got there just in time, thank goodness."

Harry enveloped her in his embrace again, clinging to her almost desperately. "Promise that you'll never leave again."

"Never again," Hermione murmured, " never never never."

They were interrupted as someone cleared his throat behind them. They turned to see Dumbledore, watching them affectionately. " Excuse me for interrupting," he said kindly, " I just wanted to make certain that Hermione is all right."

Hermione leaned against Harry, smiling broadly. " Never better."

" I'm glad."

Harry took in a steadying breath. " And what about Kimmy and Dudley? What's happened to them?"

" Kimmy is being held in the Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore informed them. "Her trial will be held soon, and I have no doubt that she will be sent to Azkaban. As for Dudley, well...we managed to find some rather interesting illegal Muggle activities that your cousin has been involved in. I feel certain that the proper Muggle authorities will see that he receives his due punishment."

Swallowing heavily, Harry reached out to grasp his hand. " How can we ever thank you?"

Dumbledore shook his head. " I was just wondering how I could ever ask the two of you to forgive me. My part in this was most abominable, and I fear that I will regret it for the rest of my life."

" What will be will be," Harry informed him, echoing the words from Dumbledore's card, " It all worked out in the end, I suppose."

Hermione frowned, seeming troubled by something. " Professor Dumbledore? You don't still believe in the prophecy, do you?"

Dumbledore nodded. " How could I not, Hermione? After all, it has already come to pass."

" Already come to pass?" Harry said, frowning. " But..."

" The prophecy said that your love would bring an end to Harry," Dumbledore explained. " The Harry I first met was a lonely, desperately unhappy young man. The Harry I see now is happy and well-loved. Therefore, it is my belief that the old Harry has-metaphorically speaking, anyhow-come to an end."

" But what about the wizarding world?" Hermione reminded him. " There hasn't been anything that's changed that yet."

Dumbledore smiled at them, his eyes twinkling. " I'd give that about nine months." he said. " Now, if you will excuse me, I must attend to some last minute preparations for the new school year. Enjoy the rest of your honeymoon."

Harry and Hermione walked down the hall together, both seeming a bit confused at Dumbledore's words. It took Harry a moment to understand the gist of what Dumbledore had said. "Nine months? Hermione, you aren't...?"

Hermione's eyes widened. " What? No! At least...I don't think so..."

Awestruck, they met each other's gazed and grinned.

***

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