I'm back to "Devotion." Although this story is indeed finished on my computer, I had some major edits to do before posting. That was what the break was for, and also so that I could post my new one, "Something to Talk About." Thank you for all of the reviews! Please continue to review.
See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.
They sat, basking in the afterglow, for a few long seconds, neither of them daring to speak, as if speaking would shatter the moment. Slowly, Hermione pulled her hand away from Harry's face. He seemed to come out of a trance, and shook his head. He looked down, and slid his hand off of her ankle. The aura disappeared. Harry seemed to be hit with a sudden realization as to what had just happened.
"Hermione, I... I don't know what... I'm sor--"
"Shhh," she interrupted, placing a finger over his lips. The moment was heavy, like it bore the weight of fate. Her eyes bore into his again. She knew that it was all true. Every word he had said to her when he thought she was unconscious. Every word that she wanted to say back to him. Every thought she'd had, during those seconds where she was out on the battlefield, dying. It was all true. To apologize would be a lie. She wasn't sorry, and she knew he wasn't, either. There was no reason to be. They were just two people.
In love.
There was no denying it any longer, as far as she was concerned. She had known it all along. This only affirmed it. She had known it forever. The time that she had been waiting for was now. Green eyes met brown again, and they both knew that what they had wasn't wrong. It was right. Completely right. Five words ran silently through each of their minds.
I'm in love with you.
Both knew their thought was true, but neither was ready to say it. Neither knew the other felt the same way. Deep inside, they knew. They had always known. But it's so hard to believe in something so good, something, that for one of them, was so foreign. Harry had never felt this way toward anyone. Love was a completely alien emotion in him, and it scared him. Scared him more than the threat he'd had to live with. He knew death, he'd dealt with it before. He knew pain, and pain didn't scare him. But something about this totally new feeling terrified him. He blinked, and the discomfort was gone. He had broken eye contact, and that eye contact had bonded him to her soul. He wanted that bond. He wanted it more than anything, but for right now, he had to escape it for a second. Glancing around, out of a growing desire to get into a more familiar emotion, his eyes landed on a book lying on his bed next to where Hermione sat.
He shook his head, to try to clear it partially. He spoke, shakily and quietly. "Hey, Hermione, is that your book?"
She blinked. She had been in another world. His words seemed foreign at first, but slowly, comprehension traced across her face. The light that had been in her features faded, and was replaced with a cloud of worry and uncertainty. She looked down. Should she tell him? If it was true, he'd find out eventually anyway. If she told him, would the friendship change? Did she want it to? After what had just happened, wouldn't the friendship change anyway? Was the book wrong? After what had just happened, is it even possible that the book could be... right? She had never considered it. But now, she was thinking differently. Thoughts, both positive and negative raced though her head. Harry, who had, by now, regained his composure, looked at Hermione quizzically. "Hermione? You in there? I asked if this was yours." He picked up the book, and looked it over. The page was blank, except for a disclaimer. "Ooh, Hermione, reading a restricted book... but honestly, what could be so bad that it would need a disclaimer?" He eyed the cover. "Protection spells? What could possibly be in here?"
"You would be surprised." She kept her eyes down. This was not typical Hermione behavior.
He looked at her. "Did you come over here to show me something in the book?"
She shook her head. "I came over to look at your scar," she answered, completely truthfully. He laughed.
"You've seen my scar so many times, it's in the most obvious place on earth. Why now?" Realization came into his head suddenly. "Does the book say something about my scar? My mum's spell?" He tried to read her expression. "Our scars?"
She sighed. "In a way, yes. It does say something about our scars. Not just about our scars, but about us... I can't say it, I don't even know if I believe it yet. You want to know, you read it too. I'm going to sit here while you read it, because I think it's something we both need to figure out together."
"Is it that bad?" His voice quieted. "After living through that battle, and all of the bombs Dumbledore dropped on us afterward, I'm not sure that much can be worse. Can it?"
She laughed uneasily. "Not bad, at least I don't think. Neither of us is going to die or anything. Strange more than anything. I... it just is a shock, and it's something that... well, just read it! But no, not bad, per say."
"Gods, that's cryptic. Can you ever just come out and talk?" He looked down at the page and saw the disclaimer. His intial thought was that books didn't have disclaimers, and he even considered asking Hermione if she'd ever seen a book with a disclaimer before. He reconsidered, however, determining that if it was in a book, Hermione had seen it. Laughing to himself, he glanced down at the page and continued to read.
"Not common knowledge?" he asked, with a bit of sarcasm. "Oh great. I get to know something other people don't know... as long as this one isn't foretelling my death, because that particular bit of information was not a good secret." Hermione giggled. She assured him that it was not a death notice. He touched his finger to the page, and turned it. Another disclaimer.
"At this point, we would like to warn you that the information you are about to discover could change your life forever. You may not want to know. If you still wish to continue at your own risk, turn the page now. We cannot be held responsible for anything that occurs because of your knowledge."
Hermione, who had seen this disclaimer and not taken it seriously once before, bit her lip. He looked more serious now. "Change my life forever? Continue at my own risk? After all the shock I've had, I'm sure that a book won't faze me." But his voice was less assured. He was a little anxious. The book wouldn't have the disclaimer if it wasn't absolutely necessary. He took one more look at Hermione. There were so many emotions in her eyes, that it was impossible for him to tell what this book held. He smiled at her and gave her a reassuring glance, and turned his attention back to the worn book in his lap. He turned the page slowly. His eyes focused on the words, and he began to read silently. The title was in larger letters, and jumped out at Harry.
"Identical Scars: Incidence #6. Harry Potter and Hermione Granger."
It knew their names. How? Did their fingerprints identify them? Or was this identical-scars thing known about them before? Did the book have a record of everyone with this condition? It must have been really rare, for them to only be number six. Curiosity got the best of him, and he read the next few paragraphs. He was only half-surprised at what he discovered.
"History of Incidence #6:
Spell cast by Lily Evans Potter, 72 hours before her death. Directly cast on Harry Potter, her infant son. Spell took effect the second that Lily Potter died. At that second, the second half of the spell took effect. Indirectly cast on Hermione Granger, no relation to the Potters. Harry Potter is of half blood- maternally Muggle-born and paternally pure-blooded; Hermione Granger is Muggle-born. Harry Potter's scar is located on his forehead, and Hermione Granger's scar is located on her right ankle. Scars are certified identical."
Harry looked up at Hermione. "This book knows us awfully well," he remarked. She nodded, and motioned for him to keep reading.
"Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger's scars are perfectly identical. Rest assured, Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger. This book is the only record of your condition, and the Ministry of Magic has no idea. Only those affected by this particular condition know what it means, with one exception. Professor Albus Dumbledore knows what identical scars mean, but he does not know that yours are certified identical."
Harry chuckled. "Now the book's talking to us. Have you ever seen a book that... oh well, actually, with all the reading you do, you probably have," he thought out loud, again. "Hmm, Dumbledore knows? No big surprise. He knows everything."
Hermione smiled, but then spoke with a hint of impatience in her voice.. "Aren't you curious? If you keep stopping, you'll never find out!" He turned his attention back to the book.
"Beware. What you are about to read will indeed change your lives permanently. If you wish to not know, turn back now."
He blinked and read the line again. He didn't have a very good history with life-altering pieces of writing.
"Identical scars from this particular curse can only mean one thing. Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger's scars are no different. We are completely sure that we are not mistaken. Nothing can change fate. Mr. Potter's and Ms. Granger's fates were destined to intertwine. In the case of identical scars, they were destined to intertwine more than most. Hermione Granger is Harry Potter's intended, and Mr. Potter is Ms. Granger's."
Harry looked up at Hermione, puzzled. "Intended? Intended what?" She looked at him, with one of her famous how-can-you-be-so-clueless looks. "Intended. Like in the old days," she insisted. Understanding started to dawn on him, but he was sure that what he was thinking couldn't be it. He noticed that there were only three more lines on the page.
"Intended is a Muggle term that dates back to colonial England. In essence, being one's intended means a betrothal. In short, the scars that Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger have, due to their being identical, foretell the future. Destiny will take its course, and its course will end in one thing."
He was starting to get it now, but he needed to be sure. He turned the page. There, in curvy letters, was a single line of type.
"Destiny welcomes Mr. Harry Potter and his intended, the future Mrs. Hermione Potter."