A/N: I was sorry to read yesterday that some of you were disappointed that you didn't get the answer to what they have to do. I laid out the clues in the last two chapters and now here's your answer to what they have to do and the first step to getting there.
Thanks again for reading and most especially for reviewing…the support means a lot to me.
I hope you enjoy this chapter…it's the first time I can ever remember coming close to crying while I was writing…(maybe I'm just in that kind of mood today).
Take care.
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Time Keeps on…
Harry backed slowly away from her and turned the parchment so she could get a better look at it. "See, Hermione? It's all right there. Now it's my turn to tell you to `think about it'." He said, smiling wide, proud of himself and knowing, deep down, that he had to be right. We are going to make one hell of a team, he mused.
Hermione studied his final list for a few minutes before she looked up at him with wide eyes and a look of absolute disbelief, "You mean…?"
Harry nodded. "That's it. That's what we have to do." He answered calmly though his insides were tumbling with excitement.
"But…" She stammered, as she continued to look from him to the parchment and back again, "…it seems so logical, so easy. Are you sure it's going to be this easy?"
"I definitely don't think it'll be easy, there's still a lot we have to do. But I'm sure that's it. If that's not it, then I'm at a loss. I don't know any other alternative."
"We have to release her." Hermione said softly to herself. She looked up at him, "It seems like something we should have realized from the beginning. I mean it's just too logical. I think that's why I'm having trouble grasping it."
"It really hasn't been that long, Hermione, only a few days; it just feels like forever," He said. "Besides, the important thing is that we know now. The hard part is going to be figuring out how to do it."
"Yeah. Do you even have a clue what would've happened to the wands? What do they do with wands after wizards die?"
Harry shook his head, "I don't know." He answered solemnly. "But you can bet we're going to find out. We just need to get you out of here."
"Get me out of here to go where? What are you thinking?" She asked with more than a little apprehension.
"Ollivanders. If anyone would know about wands it would be him, wouldn't it?" He answered logically.
Hermione shrugged and nodded her head. "I guess…but what about Dumbledore, can't we just ask him?"
Harry shook his head, determined now, for reasons even he couldn't yet fathom, that they should do it on their own. There was something about the way Dumbledore had been acting lately that made Harry determined to prove he could take care of himself. "No, I don't want to ask Dumbledore until we have to. We're going to have to get out of here anyway, let's just plan to make that our first stop."
"So why do you suppose you had those dreams? Do you think we have to take the wands to the battlefield to release her where she was killed?" She asked, a little worried now about what this adventure might entail.
"I think the one at the graveyard was just another way of getting me to focus on the events that happened that night…like Cedric being released from Voldemort's wand…" he paused to look at her and his mood suddenly changed to melancholy as he spoke, "you know he talked to me that night…after he was released from the wand. He told me to hold on and he asked me to take his body back to his parents." His eyes were misty but he refused to allow the tears to fall as he remembered his vow to not cry again until this nightmare was over.
"I never knew that." She said softly.
"He did, they all did, even the man and woman, they all told me to hold on," He said, his thoughts once again on that night at the graveyard, "Voldemort and I, we cast spells at each other at the same time and they connected somehow. I saw these tiny lights moving toward me along the connection and somehow I managed to push them back toward Voldemort. When the lights hit his wand, that's when the shadows of the people he killed started coming out…and they talked to me. They told me to hold on and when my mum came out she told me the shadows would protect me until I could get out of there, then Cedric asked me to take his body back to his parents and I promised him I would. Somehow I made it to his body and, thanks to you," he looked up at her then, "I was able to accio the Portkey and return to Hogwarts."
Hermione didn't know what to say. This was the most Harry had talked about the events of that night other than to let them know that Voldemort had returned. She couldn't even begin to imagine the pain he must have felt, first at Cedric's death and then having to leave his parents once again. Her heart ached for him as she watched him struggle with his memories.
Suddenly, it felt as though someone flipped a switch in her head, "Cedric was a good man. See? Even in his death he tried to help you."
Harry looked up sharply at the note of accusation in her voice. "I've never said he wasn't," He said, surprised by her sudden reaction.
"No, but you let him die for you, didn't you?"
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. You let him die for you," She said a little louder as the level of her anger suddenly rose. "You took him there with you and you let him die. You should have protected him and you didn't."
"Hermione?" Harry said softly, reaching for her, his eyes searching once again for any sign of the woman he loved. "Hermione, you know I'd never…"
She looked at him with so much anger in her eyes that he backed away quickly. He studied her for a moment and saw the painful conflict that raged within her. He reached for her again. "Hermione, please…"
Before he could do anything further she began pounding on him, punch after punch landing randomly across his chest. Physically he could hardly feel it as the internal pain began to overwhelm all other feeling. For a moment he just let her go, thinking that maybe it was what she needed to rid herself of some of Cho's anger. Maybe she needed to lash out and he knew, that if that were the case, there was not a more worthy target to be found anywhere.
"You killed him," She cried. "You let him die. How could you come back and live after you let him just die there…in that place meant for you? How could you do that to him? To me?"
Keep it together Harry, keep it together Harry, keep it together Harry, he told himself over and over
again. Gently he grabbed her wrists as she began to tire and her blows came less and less frequently. She was barely
touching him now but her tears were flowing and her heart was aching. She looked up into his eyes and he could see the
raw pain reflected in them. This was no longer an emotion of Cho's but it was not wholly his Hermione either and he
was at a loss for what to do so he pulled her into a tight embrace.
"It's going to be okay." He said soothingly as he began to rub her back. "It's going to be all right."
"But how could you do it? How could you go on living knowing that he was dead? How could you do it…when I couldn't?" She pleaded with him for an answer as she cried softly and the pain in her voice pierced straight through his heart.
Harry didn't know what to say, his heart was clenched in a vise and there were no words in his head that could convey the pain he'd felt, or that could describe the hole that had been in his heart since that night. The lump in his throat tightened its hold as he became aware of her trembling and the cries that wracked her already worn out body. He raised his hand to smooth her hair as he waited for the vise to loosen so his heart could give him the words he needed.
"Shh." He whispered. "It's all right." He loosened his hold on her and gently pulled away from her so he could look into her eyes. She looked defeated, worn out, and sad beyond any measure of the word. "We're going to set this right." He said gently. "Just hang in there for me, okay?" He said as he continued to run his fingers through her hair.
To his surprise she nodded. Her body spent, she moved away from him to lie down on her bed. He lay down beside her and watched her as he continued to comb his fingers through her hair to comfort her. Her eyes were closed but he could tell by the occasional shudder of her body that her mind was not allowing her to rest peacefully.
Please let this be the answer, he silently pleaded to whomever may be listening, please help us find a way.
He alternated between running his fingers through her hair and caressing her cheek until he heard the change in her breathing and felt her body finally relax into what he was sure would be a deep sleep. He gently kissed her cheek before he got up from the bed. He started to walk away to find Madam Pomfrey when he remembered her wand under his pillow. He watched her for a reaction as he reached for it, seeing none, he placed it in his pocket and left to find Madam Pomfrey to find out when he could her out of there.
Thankfully she was in her office. There were very few places she usually went and Dumbledore's office was one of them and he was grateful for the fact that he didn't have to look for her there.
"Yes Harry, how may help you?" She asked without looking up from the parchment she was reading.
"Um…well…" He stammered, suddenly feeling uncomfortable standing there, wanting to question her about Hermione.
She looked up from what she working on and smiled. "You want to know when Hermione can be released?" She asked knowingly.
Harry looked at her suspiciously, "Do you like, channel Professor Dumbledore or something?" He asked apprehensively.
Madam Pomfrey laughed, "No Harry. I do not channel Professor Dumbledore. It's called logic, nothing more. You don't look particularly upset at the moment so I don't sense an emergency, why else would you be coming here to see me?"
Harry released a heavy sigh, "That's good to know," He said with a sense of relief. "Yeah…so…anyway…when can she? Leave…I mean?"
She continued to look at him, "Is there a particular reason why you feel she should be leaving before a week is up? That is what I told you, isn't it? That she would not be released before a week's time?" She asked, concerned that whatever may be happening was beyond anything that Hermione may be able to handle in her current state.
Harry nodded, "Yes, that's what you said, but we know what we have to do now. About Cho…I mean," He added quickly when he saw the look of confusion on her face. "We need to release her from the wand. Hermione has to get out of here so we can do what we have to do to make her well again."
Madam Pomfrey nodded, "Very well, Mister Potter." She said agreeably. Harry could feel the relief washing over him, this had been easier then he thought. "However…" he looked at her with a sense of dread at the thought of her next words, "…I will not allow her to leave until she's gotten plenty of rest and a good meal. I don't for a minute believe that she should leave here before a week's time, but I cannot force her to stay either. But you must take care of her if you do not wish her to end up in St. Mungo's."
Harry quickly recovered from his sense of dread and smiled, "Oh, you can count on that. I'll definitely make sure she's taken care of." He said quickly.
Madam Pomfrey smiled once again and for the first time ever, he noticed her eyes get misty as she spoke, "I know you will Harry." She said quietly. "Now go on back to her. You can take her after she's well rested and gets a good meal. You should probably talk to Dobby and have him fix you something. I've talked to him already about the types of things it's alright for her to have."
"Thank you Madam Pomfrey," He said gratefully as he turned to leave her office.
"Oh, and Harry," She called out to him just as he reached the door. When he turned around to face her she said just two words, "Be careful."
Harry nodded his head and turned to walk back to Hermione. She was still sleeping peacefully so he climbed into his own bed and snuggled up to her as best he could before he drifted almost immediately to sleep.
He was awakened several hours later by a gentle pull on his pocket. Before he even opened his eyes he moved his hand reflexively to cover it, and found nothing there. It took him a moment to register what had been there only a few moments ago…Hermione's wand! The thought brought him back to consciousness almost as quickly as a cold glass of water poured over his head might. He looked around wildly before his eyes caught sight of Hermione holding it in her hands. He watched her as she stared at it. He wasn't sure yet if he would be dealing with Hermione now or if she was still in the state she'd been in when she fell asleep.
"Hermione…" He said cautiously.
She looked at him with sad eyes and slowly nodded her head.
"What's wrong?"
She looked at her wand before turning back to him, "I was just thinking."
He sat up quickly and moved closer to her. "What is it? What's wrong?" He asked worriedly.
"Do you know what I remember? The last thing I did with this?" She asked as she held up her wand.
Harry shook his head.
"The last thing I did was protego," She said softly. She looked at him, her eyes imploring him to understand, "All I want to do is bring it back, you know? I just want to wave my wand and suddenly be protected; you and me…forever under the protection of the protego spell. Why can't it work like that Harry? I'm so tired of feeling this way. Do you know that it's been seven years for me? Seven!" She said, her voice and body both rising as her intensity grew. "I know it's not the nearly 17 years its been for you and I'm sorry to even make the comparison but damn it, Harry…seven years! I know now that I've loved you for at least that long and every pain, every miserable damn time you've had to suffer, Harry, I've felt it and now I feel so powerless. What's the use in having the ability to do magic when you're so fucking powerless to stop the bad shit from happening? Can you tell me that?"
"Hermione?" He said gently, his eyes searching hers. This was so unlike her, he couldn't remember a time when she'd spoken that way and it was more than a little disconcerting.
Hermione relaxed her shoulders and dropped her head back down toward her wand, "Don't worry Harry. It's me," She spoke so softly that he almost hadn't heard her. He reached out and gently began to smooth her hair as he shifted closer to her. She moved her body so she could lay against his chest with her head on his shoulder. He continued to smooth her hair as he pulled her between his legs and wrapped his free arm tightly around her stomach. Her arms wrapped around his waist and for the moment she allowed herself to relax with the knowledge that this felt better than any protego spell ever could.
They sat that way for an indeterminable amount of time, lost in their own thoughts, neither of them speaking. How could they feel so close to nearing the end and yet so far from actually getting there?
"I talked to Madam Pomfrey," Harry said softly, not wanting to scare her as he finally broke the silence that had surrounded them for so long. "She said that after a good rest and a good meal you could leave." Hermione looked up at him with hope in her eyes. "I promised her that I'd take care of you, so you have to listen. Some good rest and a good meal are required and I won't allow you to tell me that you're okay before those things happen. I want this as much as you do, but it would defeat the purpose if we have to risk your health in the process."
Hermione nodded in agreement, "All right, Harry. A good meal," She said. Upon seeing the look on his face she quickly added, "Come on, Harry, I just woke up from a good, long sleep. Don't tell me you're going to make me fall asleep again so soon." She groaned as she laid her head back against his shoulder.
Harry laughed and for the first time in the 2-plus weeks he'd been in the hospital with her, he realized that he had no idea what time it was. He didn't know if it was day or night, he didn't know the day of the week, nor did he know the day of the month. The only thing he was sure of was the season; he couldn't even be sure how long Hermione had been in a coma or how long it had been since she'd awoken. It was the first time in his life he could ever remember time being so insignificant and he took a moment's pleasure in the knowledge. "Hermione?" He said his voice tinged with amusement.
"Hmm?"
"Do you realize that I don't have any indication of the time?" He said as he began to chuckle.
She turned to look at him questioningly, "What do you mean?"
He started to laugh and for the first time ever he felt some inane sense of freedom, "I mean that I have no concept of time right now. I can't tell you the day of the week, the day of the month, whether it's morning or night, or how long you've been here, or…anything!"
She looked at him in amazement as she realized that she had no idea either. She started to laugh, "I think we should probably find out before we go traipsing into Diagon Alley, don't you?"
"Actually, it's kind of liberating. I kind of like having no sense of time. Why don't we go for a walk to the kitchen to talk to Dobby and then we'll take a walk outside to see if we see stars or sun, what do you think?" He asked, feeling peculiarly carefree despite what was to come.
"I think it sounds wonderful," She replied, feeling much the same way he did. "But I want you to walk me to my room first…or, well, as far as you can get me to my room. I need some clothes."
"You've got a deal." He said cheerfully. "Let's go."
Before she could move too far from between his legs he pulled her into a hug, "I love you, Hermione Jane Granger," He whispered softly into her ear sending chills coursing throughout her body.
She pulled away from and smiled, "I love you too, Harry James Potter," She whispered back just before she felt his hand on the back of her neck and his lips pressed firmly against hers in a kiss that took her breath away. When he released her she sighed, "What was that?"
He raised his eyebrows and looked at her flirtatiously, "That, my dear, is how it feels to be kissed by a man who feels a sudden sense of liberation…no matter how short-lived it may be."
"Wow," She said still enjoying the lingering feeling of his lips on hers. "What happens when it's not short-lived?" She asked as her eyes lingered on his lips before slowly rising to meet his.
Harry shrugged his shoulders and raised his eyebrows at her again, "I don't know but I can't wait to find out. Let's go." He jumped off the bed and reached for her to lift her off the bed.
"Harry, I can get out the bed by myself, you know?" She giggled.
"I know, but it's so much more fun this way." He said as he pulled her into his arms once more.
"Oh come on." She said in mock frustration as she pulled away and pulled him by his shirt toward the door. After a few steps she let go of his shirt and wrapped her arms around his waist, "Assuming we can get the wands, how do you propose to release Cho anyway?" She asked as a way to break the threatening silence.
"It's funny you should ask that…" He began as he placed his arm comfortably around her shoulders.
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