Unofficial Portkey Archive

Author's Notes: First of all, I want to thank everyone who has been kind enough to review the first two chapters of The Final Prophecy. They are great, and I hope you will keep them coming with each new chapter that comes out. One of the reviews I recieved asked me to title each chapter so they won't get lost..*g* Well, from here on out each of the chapters will be titled. I hope that helps.

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Chapter Three: The Lost Prophecy

Running down the hall, Hermione ran into her room shutting the door behind her. Closing her eyes, she stepped away from the door. What was wrong with her? Why had she acted like a scared cat? All Harry had wanted was to make sure she wasn't still angry with him, and she had reacted like she had this really big secret. Groaning out loud, she walked over to her bed and sat down. Jumping at the sound of knocking on her door, Hermione's head jerked up and her eyes snapped open.

"It's open," She said as she tried to calm her racing heart.

Stepping into the room, Ron surveyed Hermione. She had that deer in the headlights look about her. "Why are you in here? I thought you were going to stay with Harry?"

Swallowing hard, Hermione nodded her head. "I was, but Snape showed up with Harry's potion. He needs his sleep," she said glancing down at her hands.

Frowning, Ron walked up closer to her. "What's wrong, Hermione? You're not acting like yourself."

Glancing up, Hermione smiled at Ron. "Noting is wrong. Why would anything be wrong," she asked shrugging her shoulders.

"What did Harry say that made you run like a scared deer?"

"He didn't say anything to make me run out of his room…It was me," she said sighing sadly.

"You? What do you mean it was you," Ron asked sitting down beside Hermione on the edge of her bed.

"Nothing, never mind. It doesn't matter really," she said shaking her head.

"You didn't tell him did you," Ron asked watching Hermione closely.

"Tell him what, Ron? What are you talking about," she asked while trying to ignore her racing heartbeat.

Sighing, Ron shook his head. "Hermione, you never were a good liar. Why do you think I left you and Harry alone?"

Swallowing, Hermione tried to think of something to say. "I…I…How long have you known about my feelings toward Harry," she asked knowing she couldn't deny her feelings anymore.

"I got my suspicions during our fourth year, but I didn't really know for sure until last year. I could see how much Harry cared about you by the way he stayed by your bedside all day and all night after we got back from the Department of Mysteries. He worries about you more than himself."

"That's because we're friends. He probably doesn't even like me the same way."

"You won't know unless you talk to him and tell him how you feel."

"That's easier said than done Ron, and you know it. You never told me how you felt about me."

"That's different Hermione, and don't change the subject. We're talking about you and Harry not me and you."

"No, it's not different, Ron. You wanted to be more than friends once and so did I, but you never told me and I thought you weren't interested in being more than friends with the way you treated me. Not to mention the amount of fights we had on a daily basis. What was I supposed to think?"

"It doesn't matter now. It's in the past and you've moved on, but if you don't tell Harry soon history will repeat itself. Harry will move on and he'll leave you with only a close friend but nothing more."

"I know, but I just don't know how to tell him," Hermione said dropping the subject of her and Ron. He was right about it being in the past. She felt bad for him, but at the same time she was thankful that he wasn't treating her terribly because nothing ever changed between them other than them becoming closer friends.

"You had a great opportunity tonight if you hadn't run scared," Ron teased smiling down at her as he stood up and started toward her bedroom door.

"Sod off Weasley, and stop teasing me."

Chuckling, Ron nodded his head. "Sure, I'll stop teasing you about telling Harry when you actually do tell him," he said ducking as a book came flying toward his head. "Sweet dreams, Hermione," he said before quickly leaving her room.

Standing up, Hermione walked over and bent down to pick up the book she had thrown at Ron. It was the first one she had put her hands on, but she didn't recognize the cover as she stood up straight with the book in her hands. Walking back to her bed, she sat down and opened the book to the first page. Reading the title, she frowned. "The Book of Souls," she read out loud. This wasn't her book. Where did it come from, and how did it end up mixed in with her books? Turning the next page, Hermione began to read the ancient writing.

******

"YOU INCOMPENTENT FOOLS!! How could you allow Potter to slip through your fingers like that," Voldemort thundered in anger.

"Master ….we lost track of the boy after you sent us after him."

"You lost track of him?! How could you lose track of him when I told you exactly where to find him?!"

"We're sorry, Master. It won't happen again."

"That is where you're absolutely correct! AVADA KEDAVRA," Voldemort cast watching the two Death Eaters hit the ground dead.

"My Lord, you're still weak. You must rest to replenish your strength," Lucius said stepping over the bodies in front of him.

"Do not tell me what I am, Lucius," Voldemort hissed turning his blazing red eyes toward Lucius.

Instantly bowing his head, Lucius stopped in front of his Master. "Forgive me, Master. I am only concerned for your well being. It took everything you had to free yourself from Dumbledore's trap he had captured you in a few months ago."

"Yes, but his trap couldn't hold me for long. I'm stronger than ever before, and soon Potter will be mine!"

"Yes, Master, Potter will be yours. Do you know where the boy is?"

"No, but it doesn't matter. He will be back at Hogwarts soon. Has your son agreed to help in our plan?"

"He has, my Lord. Draco is very eager to see Potter crumble at your feet. He will tell me everything that takes place this year at the school."

"Excellent, now what have you found out about Potter's friends? Weasley and Granger I believe you told me their names are," Voldemort sneered walking over to his chair by the fireplace.

"It is, my Lord. Weasley is a Pureblood. His Father is Arthur Weasley. He works for the Ministry of Magic, and I have no doubt he also works for Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix. As for Granger, she is a Mudblood. I don't know much about her family yet, but I will."

"And Potter cares about them a great deal from what I saw in the Department of Mysteries," Voldemort said tapping his long bonny fingers together.

"He does indeed, my Lord. According to Draco, Potter is rarely seen without them."

Smiling slightly, Voldemort nodded his head. "It seems this night is starting to look better."

"How so, my Lord?"

"I may not have Potter in my grasp, but I now have the information I need to bring him to his knees," Voldemort said laughing.

******

"Hermione, wake up. Hermione, it's time for breakfast."

"What? Oh, Harry, is it morning all ready? Hang on, what are you doing out of bed," Hermione asked sitting up in her bed.

"I'm not that bad off, Hermione. I'm able to walk around," Harry said smiling at her. "Hey, what's this," he asked picking up the black bound book from Hermione's bed.

"I don't know really. I found it last night after I left your room."

"The Book of Souls, what's in it?"

"I haven't really read that much of it yet, but what I have read talks about an ancient magic that can be very powerful to any wizard who taps into it."

"Why is it only limited to wizards?"

"I don't know. I'll let you know when I get to that part of the book," she said holding her hand out for the book.

"It's a deal," Harry said handing the book back to Hermione. "Why did you run out of my room last night anyway," he asked still holding on to one corner of the book.

Pulling the book gently out of Harry's grasp, Hermione looked down at her feet. She knew her face was bright red from embarrassment. "It doesn't matter."

Reaching forward, Harry gently lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. "It does matter to me. You know you can tell me anything, Hermione," he said looking down at her with a smile on his face.

"I know I can, Harry," she said feeling her face become hotter.

"Then talk to me, Hermione," he probed gently.

"I can't tell you, Harry. I'm afraid I'll ruin our friendship."

"You can't ruin our friendship, Hermione. Why do you think you'll ruin it?"

"If you don't know now, then there's no sense in answering that question," Hermione said stepping back away from Harry's soft touch.

Frowning, Harry watched Hermione walk over to her night stand with the book in her arms. Something was bothering her and it had to do with him and their friendship, but what could she say to him that would ruin…. "Hermione, I know what you want to tell me," he said softly as the light bulb went off suddenly in his head.

Placing the book on her night stand, Hermione glanced up at him. "You do," she asked quietly.

Walking up to her, Harry gently pushed some strands of her soft chestnut hair behind her ear. "Yeah, I do. I never realized before just how much you mean to me, Hermione. If anything happened to you, I would go mad. I was so scared when I saw you fall back at the Department of Mysteries. My first thought was that you were dead and that it was my fault. I didn't even think to check for a pulse when I could. It was Neville who did that, and when he said you were alive I felt so relieved I couldn't see straight," he said softly never realizing his thumb was brushing gently against her cheek.

Swallowing hard, Hermione held Harry's gaze as he finally told her what she had wanted to know months ago. When she woke up in the hospital wing the first person she had see had been Harry. She had asked him what had happened, but he wouldn't tell her. Raising her hand, she laid it over Harry's hand smiling as she squeezed it.

"Harry, I don't blame you for what happened. It's not your fault."

Nodding his head, Harry glanced down at their joined hands. "I still felt bad."

Pulling Harry, Hermione sat down on her bed watching him sit down beside her. "Well, there is no reason to feel bad now. It's all over and I'm fine."

Looking up at her, Harry felt his heartbeat quicken. She looked so innocent, and was that her shampoo he smelled? Blinking, Harry shook his head and licked his dry lips. He was so close to her that Harry realized she had become very still. Leaning back he felt his face become hot from embarrassment. "Sorry about that," he apologized.

Dropping her gaze, Hermione smiled as she blushed. When he had moved forward toward her the first thought she had thought was that he was going to kiss her. Instead, he had smelled her hair. "It's all right," she said softly glancing over at her open door hearing the commotion from downstairs. "It sounds like Mrs. Weasley has breakfast ready. I guess we better go," she said standing up.

Fear suddenly gripped Harry as she stood up. He felt like he was losing an important opportunity to tell her how he truly felt and what he truly was afraid to tell anyone else. "Wait, please," he begged quietly grabbing her hand suddenly with his own. "There's something I need to tell you…Something I should have told you months ago," he said looking up at her with a pleading look in his emerald eyes.

Nodding her head, Hermione sat back down on the bed. "All right," she said watching Harry closely.

"Remember when Neville said the prophecy orb was destroyed back at the Department of Mysteries?"

"Yes," she said waiting patiently for Harry to continue.

"That orb was lost but I know what the prophecy says," he said pausing to see her reaction.

"How," she asked furring her brown eye brows together.

"Dumbledore was present when the prophecy was spoken sixteen years ago. When we got back, he told me what the prophecy said."

"What did it say," Hermione asked feeling dread take hold of her heart suddenly.

"The most important part of the prophecy is that in the end only me or Voldemort will survive the last battle because neither one of us can live with the other lives," Harry said starring deeply into her brown eyes.

"Harry, you'll defeat him in the end….I know you will," she said trying to keep the tears that had suddenly appeared in her eyes from falling down her cheeks.

"Seeing one solitary tear slid down her cheek, Harry reached out and brushed it away with his thumb. "I'm not so sure about that. The prophecy also said I have a power that Voldemort doesn't have. According to Dumbledore it's my heart, but I don't really know what that means."

"Love, Harry. You have a compassionate heart which is something Voldemort doesn't have."

"Maybe, but how is that a power Voldemort doesn't have? Love can't do anything."

"It can though, Harry. Love is a powerful weapon," she said watching him.

"Is it," he asked as he unconsciously leaned forward toward Hermione.

"Yeah," she said softly closing the distance between them and closing her eyes as their lips brushed against each other.

Closing his eyes, Harry leaned into the soft kiss. He couldn't believe he was actually kissing his best friend, but at the same time the action felt so right. Hearing a soft moan come from Hermione caused Harry's body to instantly respond.

"Hey, Hermione, are you…oh Bloody Hell, I should have knocked first."

The second Ron's voice echoed in the room Harry and Hermione instantly broke away from each other. Clearing his throat, Harry looked up at Ron as he rose to his feet and moved away from Hermione's bed. "Hey, Ron, sleep all right," he asked stuffing his good hand into his pants pocket.

"Yeah, I did actually. Look you guys, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to walk in on the two of you," Ron said as his ears and cheeks turned a bright red.

"It's all right, Ron. It's probably a good thing you walked in when you did," Hermione said smiling as she stood up and walked into the center of the room where Harry and Ron were standing.

"All right, I'll see you guys downstairs for breakfast," Ron said walking out of the doorway leaving Harry and Hermione alone once again.

"So," Harry said looking over at Hermione.

"So," she repeated smiling up at him.

Returning the smile, Harry pulled his hand out of his pocket and ran it through his messy black hair. "So, where do we go from here?"

"I don't know. I know where I want this to go, but it really depends on you. If you want to take a chance on us, then I'm with you. If you want to just remain friends, then we can do that too, but I need to know from you."

Sighing, Harry nodded his head in understanding. He just didn't like being the one to decide where their relationship went from there. He knew how she felt about him, and he knew how he felt about her. The problem was Voldemort. He would be putting her in greater danger if they were a couple, but at the same time he couldn't be around her day after day without holding or comforting her.

Taking one step to close the gap between them, Harry tilted her chin up toward him. "I want to be with you, Hermione. I think I always have since I almost lost you."

Crying out happily, Hermione threw her arms tightly around Harry's neck and kissed him. A few minutes later they broke apart breathless. "Are you sure? I don't want you to feel pressured, Harry."

Chuckling, Harry shook his head down at her. "I'm positive, Hermione. This is what I want," he said kissing her forehead. "You're who I want," he added knowing it was the truth.

"You're who I want too," she said as tears of joy slid down her cheeks. Wiping them away, she smiled up at him. "We better head downstairs before Mrs. Weasley sends up someone to find us," she said heading for the stairs.

"Yeah, that wouldn't surprise me. Especially, with the way I look right now. You know Malfoy is going to have a field day when he sees me," Harry said following behind Hermione as she walked down the stairs toward the first floor.

"I know, but we'll deal with Malfoy when the time comes," she said as they walked into the living room together.

"There you two are. I was beginning to get worried about you. Come sit down and eat before your food gets cold," Molly said motioning with her hands for the two teenagers to go sit down at the table.

Smiling at Hermione, Harry walked over to the table and sat down next to Ron. "It looks great, Mrs. Weasley," he complimented as he picked up his fork.

"Thank you, Harry, dear. Eat up now," she kindly ordered before walking back into the kitchen.

When his mum was gone, Ron looked at his two best friends. "Is everything all right with you two?"

"Everything is fine," Hermione said as she sat down across from Harry and Ron.

"Would you be all right if Hermione and I started seeing each other?"

"Why wouldn't I be, Harry," Ron asked putting his fork down.

"I just didn't want you to feel left out or anything," Harry said also putting his fork down.

Understanding what Harry was trying to say, Ron smiled before laying a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Harry, I'm happy for the two of you. It became pretty obvious how the two of you felt about each other. It just took time for you guys to see it too. I'm not angry or jealous. I'll admit I was jealous in the beginning, but it was my own fault that Hermione and I never became a couple. Don't worry about me, Mate. I'll be fine as long as I know the two of you are happy."

Smiling, Harry nodded his head as he looked over at Hermione. "We're happy, Ron."

"Then that's all that matters," Ron said smiling before picking his fork up again.

Stepping into the house, Minerva glanced over at the table. Seeing Potter, Weasley, and Miss. Granger, she felt her eyes swell up with tears. How could she possibly teach those three this year knowing what was to come?

Glancing over at Minerva, Albus smiled slightly. He knew she was worried about Harry, but it made his heart glad to know how much she cared about the orphaned boy. "We don't know the entire prophecy, Minerva. It may not be as bad as we think."

Tearing her gaze from the students, Minerva frowned up at her close friend. "How can you be so calm at a time like this, Albus? Potter isn't going to survive the final battle with You-Know-Who. We are going to lose him and the Wizarding and Muggle world will never be safe."

"We don't know that for sure. Sybille was only half-way through the prophecy when she snapped herself out of it."

"What if she wasn't, Albus? What if that was all of it," she asked in a quiet whisper fearing the worst.

"If that was the entire prophecy, then we really don't have anything to fear."

"What? Are you mad, Albus?"

Chuckling, Albus shook his head before looking over at Harry through his half moon glasses. "No, Minerva, I am not mad, but our Mr. Potter knows the future isn't written yet. His destiny might be set, but the out come is not. Prophecy or not, Harry is strong willed. He will not give up without a fight. This I am sure of."

"I hope you're right, Albus. He's our only hope."