A/N: Hopefully things will be cleared up for you guys in this chapter!! Hope you enjoy it, and thanks for the kind reviews:) Btw, I posted a one-shot just before. You can go and check it out if you want:) Thanks, neni =)
Chapter Three
Flashback
As Harry left for the bathroom, Hermione watched him walk with a smile playing on her lips. 'How in the world did i get so lucky?' She thought, however her mum's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
"Hermione honey, we see the love that there is between you, but we can't help but be worried about you," Robert bumped Helen "-and we want you to stop seeing him," he said bluntly.
Hermione sat with her jaw on the ground, surprised and shocked at her parents' audacity to even consider such a thing.
"Mum, Dad... I know you are concerned about me but there is no way... absolutely no chance of me breaking things off with Harry!" she informed them, "I mean it, I haven't been this happy since... since forever! I love him with all of my heart."
"You are only seventeen, how do you expect to know about love?" Robert asked her, his anger getting the better of him.
"If I remember correctly dad, you were not even three years older than me when you proposed to mum!" she said in a forced whisper, in fear of Harry coming back and overhearing this crazy conversation.
"Hermione listen, we are only worried about you! As we've asked before, how do you know you're safe with this Lord's supporters still running around the Wizard world? I'm sorry, but I'm going to agree with Robert on this one and ask you to break up with Harry," Helen told Hermione, her voice holding a finality that left no room for discussion. However, when had Hermione ever settled with a No answer?
"You are unbelievable!" She exclaimed, "I will surely not! Harry is my present and future, he's always been there for him, even when I didn't know I needed him! He needs me mum! I need him..." she trailed off, but quickly shook her head remembering her debate with her parents. "If you can't accept me being with Harry then... then I guess you don't care about me as much as I thought you did," she said. Despite the words she just voiced, she knew they weren't true. She understood their concerns but how dare they tell her... no! Order her to stop dating Harry?!
"Hermione, I was afraid that this would be the way you handled this so... I'm sorry honey but if you don't stop seeing Harry, then we'll be forced to take you away from that school." Robert told her and his voice held a triumphant glee yet it was filled with sorrow.
"WHAT?! NO... no you can't do this to me! I beg you! I can take care of myself!" She tried to argue.
"Really? Then explain how you got hurt each year you've been to Hogwarts?" Helen asked in a whisper. Seeing Hermione averting her eyes from her, she continued in a sad voice, "You see love? Oh honey don't cry this is for the best," she tried to console her daughter, but Hermione help a hand up, and quickly wiped her tears as she heard Harry's footsteps.
As soon as Harry walked into the dining room, he could feel that he walked into something serious. 'What went on around here?' he thought. He went to sit down and put an arm on Hermione's shoulders as he saw her red-rimmed eyes, but she hastily stood up and gave him a peck on the cheek and told him,
"We need to go Harry. Dobby needs you back at the house. Something about redecorating," Albeit Harry didn't believe a word that came out of her mouth, he reluctantly agreed and saw their farewells.
Not a moment after they arrived at Grimmauld Place, Harry held out a hand and grabbed Hermione's wrist before she could walk away.
Sighing in defeat she turned around ever so slowly and perplexed emerald green eyes met anguished cinammon ones...
End of Flashback
Hermione woke up with start and bolted straight up in her bed. 'Why did I dream about that? Not again I can't take this anymore,' she wondered to herself, 'You still love him dear,' 'I...I... I can't! I just can't! I'm not going through this again, I'm going to go and have some breakfast,' she told herself, as that little logical voice sighed and said, 'Whatever you think is best dear...'
Shaking her head, she began to walk down to the Great Hall and not a moment too soon, a certain raven-haired boy came inside at the same moment as her. Their eyes met, and Hermione felt that she was on fire. Knowing that she was blushing (as was he), she started to walk over to the Gryffindor table. They sat down and Hermione groaned inwardly. 'Merlin did he have to sit next to me? Well, it feels good to have him close again...no don't think like that! You know you cant...' she reprimanded herself.
"Hey 'Mione can you pass me the salt?" Ron asked, while both his hands were cupping Lavender's soft ones.
'How can I tell him no when they're acting so sweet?' Hermione thought when she thought of snapping at him. She handed him the salt but jumped as Harry bolted straight up.
"Oh Merlin the match is going to begin in 30 minutes and I'm not even ready! See you guys!" he shouted and went to go away when he felt a hand over his. He looked down and saw Hermione's small hand, so he turned his head and locked eyes with her cinnamon pools.
'Never again,' she thought, 'will I ever look into those eyes,' she concluded as she felt her resolve walk out the door, and she got up to walk him to the locker rooms, as she had done numerous times before. He gave her a shy lop-sided grin and they walked out of the Great Hall hand in hand.
"You think they'll come over whatever it is that's keeping them apart?" Lavender asked Ron,
"I'm sure they will," he replied with a toothy grin and leaned in for a kiss before he too went to the locker rooms.
Harry and Hermione reached the changing rooms far too soon. They had walked in silence, each lost in their thoughts about each other.
Harry was plucking up his courage to ask the question that plagued his mind day in and day out.
"Hermione?" he gingerly asked,
"Mmmm?"
"I... well.." he was at lost for words, so he decided to change his question, "Why did you walk with me?" he asked, but too afraid to look in her eyes.
"Well... I don't know. I mean, we can't break tradition now can we?" she asked him, with a smirk adorning her lips. He smiled back and muttered no in reply.
"'Mione listen... I... Do you still love me?" he saw her hurt look and decided to get this over with, "Did you ever love me?" he went on and Hermione looked up to see that he too wore a look of hurt. 'Too much hurt for him, Merlin doesn't he ever stop hurting?' she thought sadly and decided to do something that she knew that later she would regret.
She opened her arms and enveloped him in a huge bear hug. Harry burried his head in the hollow of her neck, taking in the way she smelt. Hermione ran one hand up and down his back and the other got lost in his jet-black hair. And they cried. It was simple. They cried for each other, they cried for their love and mostly they cried for their dream and hopes and their unknown future.
Harry brought his head up, and Hermione looked up at him. Ever so slowly, they closed the gap that was keeping their lips apart.
'This is it, I'm going against my parents. I'm going to kiss him. It's been too long,'
'Way too long...' Harry's thoughts agreed, although he hadn't heard what Hermione was thinking.
Their noses touched, and both felt a jolt of electricity and gave each other a smile that melted hearts. Harry could feel her quick and hot break on his lips and he yearned to touch his lips with hers. Hermione longed for his lips, and she was only an inch away. But something inside of her made her stop. If you don't stop seeing Harry, then we'll be forced to take you away from that school. She gave a sob and quickly she tore herself from Harry's strong arms. Giving a muffled apology, she ran away with tears streaming down her face, and Harry hung his head so low that his neck probably broke ten times over. As he walked back into the changing rooms, Hermione felt her heart breaking into million of pieces both for him and for her. But this time she didn't bother to pick up and mend the pieces because she knew that it was no use... She tentatively walked away with her hands craddling her head, and the tears came out freely
-->