Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and any of the characters mentioned hereafter. They belong to the incredible JK Rowling. I am not making a single cent out of this. I wish I did, and was.
[A/N: Okay, I know I said it would be angsty… and the first chapter was, hopefully. Anyway, I've decided to change the direction from angst to, well, you'll find out *wink*
Just so you know, I considered making this a different fic, but as I got to writing half of it, I couldn't help but make this the third chapter of the story.
Hope you like :D ]
***
It had weeks, even months, after Harry and Ginny had broken up. He was glad Ginny had gotten over it quickly, and remained to be friends with him. Though, he wondered why she got over the two of them so fast. Then he found out she was interested in somebody else.
Harry still hadn't asked Hermione about her keychain. Not that he didn't have the chance to. He just couldn't, for some reason, bring himself to ask her about it. How embarrassing would it be to admit to your friend you had forgotten to give her the gift she loved so much, he had asked himself several times.
`He must be thinking about someone very special if he turns that ugly thinking about her,' he heard Ron say.
`Huh? What?' said Harry.
There were several bursts of laughter.
`What?' he said again.
`It's your turn,' Ron informed him.
`Oh. Right.'
The Gryffindor boys, Harry, Ron, Dean, Seamus and Neville, wondered what girls and women got out of talking about boys and men. So, Dean had suggested they try talking about girls and women. He was called several embarrassing names after his suggestion, but when he gave them reasons why it would be "fun", such as `Well, the girls talk about us all the time, it's high time we return the favor.' and `It'll help us find out who we want to ask to the Graduation dance, I'll bet-', the other Gryffindor boys gave in eventually.
It was Harry's turn to reveal what he looked for in a girl. Either that, or reveal what he liked most about girls.
`One, or two, mate. Choose wisely,' advised Neville, patting him on the back.
`Er, one,' said Harry.
Ron and the rest of the occupants of the boys' dormitory leaned forwards in mock interest.
`Well,' he began. This had to be the dumbest thing he'd done so far, sharing these kinds of things with his guy friends. He somehow felt like a girl. `I guess I'd look for someone who's listens to me, and won't mind the stupid title I grew up with. I'd want her to be compassionate and independent, who just happens to be someone I can be myself with. Yeah, I think that's what I'd look for in a girl.'
Ron pretended to blow his nose.
`That was beautiful,' he said, dabbing non-existent tears on his eyes. `You should put that in your diary, Harry.'
`Ha,' said Seamus. `You can talk, Mr I-want-her-hair-and-neck-to-smell-like-orchids.'
`Like you can talk yourself, Seamus "I-like-it-when-she-smiles-with-her-eyes" Finnigan,' said Dean almost seriously.
Neville was laughing. Ron quickly turned to face him.
`What are you laughing at, Love-me-with-all-her-heart-and-soul?'
Neville stopped laughing, that is, until everyone started laughing, too.
`Let's never speak of this again,' said Seamus.
`Deal.'
`Like I would!'
`Of course!'
`Never speak of what?' asked Harry, shrugging. He checked his watch. `I've gotta go. Head Boy rounds.'
He stood up, and ran to meet Hermione, the Head Girl, in the common room.
***
'You're 12 seconds late, Head Boy,' said Hermione, pointing at her watch. `Don't make me report you.'
`You're not going to report me,' Harry told her, grinning.
She narrowed her eyes.
`I could report you.'
`Oh, I know you could,' he said, nodding. `I'm just saying you wouldn't.'
`Yeah, well, you're not helping,' she mumbled.
`What?'
`Nothing, nothing. Let's get started, then.'
Hermione turned around, and walked to the portrait hole. Harry grinned. In fact, he understood what she had said, and this is why he was grinning.
Several minutes into their usually quiet rounds, the thought of the keychain popped into his head again. This is so stupid, he thought, I should just tell her and apologize.
`Er, Hermione?' he uttered.
`Hmmm?'
`I'm, er, sorry about forgetting I gave you the keychain,' he replied hurriedly.
He looked at her, and saw that her cheeks were slightly flushed.
`Oh. That's- that's alright. It had been 5 years, and I've never shown it to anyone. Completely understandable,' she said, in the same speed as Harry.
It was quiet for a moment, and it was rather unusual of Hermione to be so quiet.
`Can I ask you something,' said Harry finally..
`You already ha-'
`I mean, aside from the question I've just asked you, obviously.'
She looked at him from over her bright green scarf.
`Shoot.'
`What's so secret about your keychain?'
Hermione looked taken aback.
`Sorry?'
Harry smiled. Truthfully, he had been wondering about it for a while, and he told himself that he'd ask her about it after he had apologized for forgetting.
`You said it was a secret, when I asked you what made it so special weeks ago,' he reminded her.
`Oh. Oh yeah, I remember,' she laughed.
`Knew you would,' he smirked.
Hermione's cheeks were turning rosy again.
`Well?' said Harry, egging her on. He checked one of the classrooms for students out and about at 11-something.
`Er, the reason it's so important is, it was the first present you ever gave me, and it was the most adorable one,' she lied. She thought he'd buy it, too.
`Liar,' grinned Harry.
`What? How dare you call me-' she began, but he interrupted her.
`The first present I gave you was your Christmas present.'
Harry was finding Hermione lying very funny for some reason.
`Oh, of course! The box of pumpkin pasties you ordered from Diagon Alley,' she pretended to recall, trying to giggle innocently.
`So what's the real reason?' he asked, checking another classroom.
She took her time to answer him this time.
`I can honestly say, Harry,' she grinned widely, `that the one of the reasons my keychain is so special to me is because you gave it.' She said all this without blinking, too.
`Right. And what are the other reasons?'
`Oh, I don't think they concern you,' she lied again, successfully this time.
The sentence was followed by another moment of silence in which Harry remembered what he told the other Gryffindor boys earlier that night:
`I guess I'd look for someone who's listens to me, and won't mind the stupid title I grew up with. I'd want her to be compassionate and independent, who just happens to be someone I can be myself with. Yeah, I think that's what I'd look for in a girl.'
He smiled. The person he was talking about wasn't any random girl. It was Hermione.
And it had been Hermione since forever. I've just been to blind to see it, he had reminded himself constantly.
But it was there. He knew it, he could feel it. He loved Hermione.
`Hermione?' he said, not entirely sure of what he was doing.
`Hmmm?' She was busy checking the classroom to her right for any rule-breakers, her back was facing Harry.
He took a deep, shuddering breath, and a step closer to her.
`Hermione, I love you.'
`What?' she asked, turning around. `I thought you just said you-'
Hermione never got to finish her sentence, because Harry did something he had never done before, and kissed Hermione… gently on her lips.
He pulled away biting his lips, scratching his head guiltily, looking anywhere but at her.
`S-sorry, I just… I've been wanting to do that for - for a while, and,' he began explaining.
He had taken Hermione by surprise, and she stared, touching her lips. She looked like she couldn't put two and two together.
`… and I can't stop thinking about you, or how you smell so great in the morning, and the whole day, in fact, and…' Harry wasn't finished explaining his "criminal actions" yet, so didn't notice the grin that was slowly forming at the tips of lips he had just kissed.
`… So, I'm really sorry I kissed you, and I hope you're not angry with-'
Harry never got to finish his sentence, because Hermione had done something she had wanted to do for years, and pressed her lips unto his, wrapping her arms around his neck. He gladly wrapped his hand around her waist, as they both forgot they had another 15 minutes of rounds to do.
The hallway that Harry and Hermione had been expecting soon became empty, as a random empty classroom filled with two "unidentified" persons.
Meanwhile, back at the 7th year girls' dormitory, one four poster bed was left vacant. In the middle of the bed was a keychain, attached to a tiny book with the fading words, Hogwarts: A History.
Someone had purposely left it there.
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