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See Chapter 1 for disclaimer.
Several of the longest moments in Harry's life passed. Almost in slow-motion, Hermione's eyelids flickered more, and her hand stretched slightly in his. With another deep breath, her brown eyes opened. Her eyes were Hermione. Honest. True. Kind. Beautiful. They blinked several times, and came to focus on Harry, who was still sitting motionless on the bed, holding her hand in his. Seeing Hermione's eyes created another wave of emotion in Harry. He kept his eyes focused on her face, as she continued to awaken.
"Hi, Hermione." He tried to steady his voice. He tried to make it sound like it always had, every morning for the last seven years. He gave her a slight half-smile, the most he could manage. 'Seven years.' he thought. 'Seven years gone. And she doesn't even know.' He squeezed her hand gently.
She moved in the bed, obviously trying with great effort to sit up, but her attempts were fruitless. She relaxed back where she was, and looked back at Harry. His face showed worry, concern, exhaustion. And something else. In that moment, looking at him, she knew that all the things he had said to her just minutes ago were true.
"Hi, Harry."
This time, he knew it was her. He saw her lips move. She had spoken- and she had known his name. How was that possible? Had he identified himself? He didn't remember. He didn't think so. He looked back at her, and saw the look of earnesty that was Hermione. She remembered who he was. How much else did she know? He hardly allowed himself to hope that she remembered more than his name. He didn't want to set himself up for heartbreak again.
"So. Hermione. How are you?"
He knew it was a stupid question. But what else could he say?
"Well, to tell you the truth, I'm really fatigued. And my head hurts."
A smile cracked his face for a split second. This was not what he'd expected to hear. Maybe 'I don't know who I am.' Or 'Where am I?' Or maybe even 'How do you think I am! I don't know!' But not 'I'm fatigued.' And not 'My head hurts.' For some odd reason, that he found amusing. That she had been through so much, and all she could say was that her head hurt. But then a pang of hurt hit him. She didn't know how much she'd been through. Her feelings were completely here-and-now, because that's all she knew.
She tried again to sit up, and she was stronger this time. Still, she needed some help.
"Uh, Harry, could you help me sit up?" she said, waking Harry from his mini-reverie. He held her waist and supported her as she shifted. He was amazed at how fragile she felt, yet how strong. She settled into a seated position, and Harry removed his hands from her.
"So, Harry. How long have I been here? What's the date? How long has it been since... you know." She inquired, her voice wavering somewhat at the end of the sentence. He gave her this odd look, like she was speaking a foreign language. At the same time, his eyes teared up somewhat and he gazed at her. "Hey. Harry. I did ask a question, you know."
"Hermione." His voice shook. "You... you... remember? You remember everything?"
"Well, yeah. Some of it I would rather not remember, but of course I remember." She spoke simply, very matter-of-fact. For a minute, she didn't understand Harry's sudden outpouring of emotion. But then, she remembered. He thought her memory was wiped out. Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore- hadn't they both said that she was incapable of normal thought. Harry had thought that the old Hermione didn't exist anymore. But then again, he'd also thought that she was unconscious. That she couldn't hear and understand everything he was saying. She smiled inwardly. He didn't know that she had heard him pouring his heart out. She looked back into his eyes, now brimming with happy tears. She could barely hold back her own. "Yes, Harry. I remember. I remember it all. And my mental capacity is fine." Immediately after saying the last sentence, she wished that she could take it back. He didn't know how she knew what everyone was saying about her. She didn't want him to know just yet what she had heard from him. Luckily, he didn't notice. "But anyway, would you care to answer my first question? Then we can go into more interesting things, like how I remember everything. But I really want to know how long I've been here."
Harry grinned. This really was Hermione. Always on task. She couldn't be distracted by anything. He looked down. "It's May 23. It's only been one day." She nodded. Then, a bright flash of realization crossed her face.
"Harry! You defeated him!!! You had to. You're here, and you're alive!!! He's gone for good!! Oh, Harry!!!!" she fell into his arms, giving him a huge hug. She remembered the old prophecy, and how she and Harry had spoken frankly about death before the battle. He had said that f he had to die in battle, he wanted to die fighting. She had told him that she wanted that too, that she would die for the cause. Grimly, she thought about just how close she had come to doing just that. But she remembered what she had done in the battle. She had done what she did, not for her, but for the cause. She knew Harry was the world's only hope. But deep inside, she knew that she hadn't done it just for the world. She had done it for him. She cared for him more deeply than she had ever known. She loved him.
"Yeah, Hermione. He's gone. And it's all because of you. Hermione..." he couldn't look at her, he had to break his gaze. "You took the hit from his wand. All of those curses, they were meant for me. If you hadn't taken the hit, he would have been here... instead of me."
"I know. I know, Harry. I wasn't thinking about what could happen to me. That didn't matter. If I had died, it wouldn't have mattered to me. Other things are more important, Harry, than my well-being. Things like, ooh, the fate of the entire wizarding world being taken over by an evil being. I had to give you a fighting chance." She didn't dare tell him yet the other reason that she had done what she did. Not yet. Although she knew that he felt the same way. She thought back to what she had heard just a few minutes earlier. "No matter what, Mione, I will always be here for you. You broke through my shell. You know the real me. And I love you for it. I love you, Hermione, more than you'll ever know." Again, she smiled inside. There would be time for that. "Well, Hermione, I... I just wanted to say thank you. I--"
There was a loud crash in the hall. Harry jumped to his feet, pulled out his wand, and looked out into the corridor. There was Madame Pomfrey, standing, staring wide-eyed at a very awake Hermione. She had dropped her medical tray. The healer blinked her eyes, and looked back at Hermione, almost to see if she was really there.
"Miss Granger?!?!?"