Chapter 2
Harry slumped back on his bed, the tears he hadn't shed in long time started to fall. He felt as if his heart stopped, he felt dead like all the other souls he'd come across during what he thought was a successful mission. He wondered what the mission had cost him.
"Harry!" came a deep familiar voice. Harry wiped away the tears and plastered on a smile he hoped did not betray the lost feeling he felt inside.
"Ron, all right there?"
"You git…" Ron stopped mid sentence when he saw how Harry looked. His sunken eyes, gray pallor and bloodshot eyes stopped Ron from continuing with the rest of his tirade. Instead he grabbed Harry and gave him a fierce hug.
"Ron, stop it. You're suffocating him!" Another familiar voice called out from the doorway. It was sweeter and definitely feminine and when Harry looked, and definitely pregnant.
"Hi Lavender, you look…well," Harry finished although it wasn't the word that initially came to mind. Lavender laughed at the distressed look on Harry's face.
"It's all right Harry. I know I look as big as a house." Harry smiled.
"It's good to see you both."
"I'm glad you're home, Harry. We've been worried, but we didn't give up hope. We knew you'd come back in one piece, right love?"
Lavender rolled her eyes heavenward. She didn't think it was a great time to point out that Ron had been worried sick every day since Harry left. Not only was he worried about Harry's safety, but he was worried about Hermione's well being as well.
"Right, Ron." She winked at Harry.
Harry already knew what a ball of nerves Ron could be so he didn't mind that he was trying to act as if he hadn't been worried about him.
"The rest of the family is coming in tomorrow. We just found out from Dumbledore this morning that you'd come back, so we came here as soon as we could. Of course it took us a while seeing as Lav here can't run." Lav elbowed Ron for the remark.
"Only joking love. I know you can still out run me if you wanted to."
"How are you feeling Harry?" Lavender asked seeing the sad look in Harry's eyes.
"I'm still trying to recover. I've been out for almost four days. I just woke up actually."
"You know what I mean. Have you seen Hermione?"
"Yeah."
"It'll be all right mate. That git doesn't have a chance with her now that you're back."
"What?" Harry sat up quickly.
Lavender slapped Ron again for his bad timing. Lavender was trying to hold Harry down while trying to keep herself balance. Harry didn't have enough strength
"Sorry." Ron said.
"No, no. I'm okay. I'm Okay!" He screamed in frustration then realized his folly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scream at you. Will you please explain what you mean Ron?"
"Er… just that there's this bloke, a mediwizard, that's been er… sort of dating Hermione."
Nothing could compare with the hurt, anger and helplessness that filled Harry's being. He felt betrayed. They were still husband and wife, dammit. How could she do that to him? He thought his head would implode. Hermione's been dating and he'd been gone for over a year.
He was trying heart to piece the information together while Ron and Lavender sat quietly. Ron felt guilty for bringing the deadly look into Harry's face. He thought he'd seen the last of those look when Harry had defeated Voldemort. He didn't think anything else would put that look back into his face, but he was wrong. The way Harry looked scared him. He looked as if he was ready to do damage to anyone and anything. Ron swallowed. Harry looked as if he could kill someone.
"Harry? Are you all right, really?"
"I'll be fine. I just need to think is all."
"Harry, when you want to talk, we'll be here. We have over a year of catching up to do. But we can do that when you're feeling up to it. I bet I can beat your pants off in quidditch, now." Ron tried to lighten the mood.
"You can try," Harry answered also trying to keep things light though deep inside he was a volcano ready to erupt.
"We'll be staying here in the castle for a few days. Professor Dumbledore was kind enough to give us a room. He said he didn't want to tire out Lavender too much seeing as she'd about ready to pop." Another slap came from Lavender.
"We'll be nearby if you need us, Harry." She leaned down and gave him a kiss on the forehead.
"Thank you both."
Hermione was a mess. She thought she was finally putting her life back together, and then Harry showed up out of the blue. She didn't doubt that he was dead, but she did doubt that he wanted to go back to her. She spent endless nights crying herself to sleep in self pity. But, at that moment she felt confused. She looked at herself in the mirror. Was she kidding herself? Was Harry telling the truth or was he playing dumb about how long he's been away? Where did he go? What did he find? So many questions still unanswered, and she realized she didn't really give him a chance to answer any of them.
"Hermione?" came a voice from the fireplace. Simon's head peered out of the fireplace. He always wore a gigantic smile that reminded Hermione of Lockhart, but without all the ego. His blonde hair hung just above his shoulder with slight waves. His blue eyes always sparked. Anyone who met him liked him instantly, except for Ron. Ron thought he was just too happy for his own good. That alone made Ron suspiscious.
Hermione didn't want to deal with Simon at that moment, but she knew she had to. It wasn't like her to be rude to anyone just because of her own personal problems. She lowered herself down on the coffee table so that she was face to face with the head staring at her out of the fireplace.
At the sight of her tear stricken face and sad look, Simon became alarmed. Hermione had become such an important person in his life ever since he'd met her about eight months before. He thought she was the most beautiful and most intelligent woman in the world. He'd just moved to England from America when he met her in the arms of a very old man. He thought it funny every time he recalled that day. He actually thought she and Dumbledore were married. He was quite glad they weren't because he knew from the moment he saw her that she wanted her.
"Oh, Hermione. Are you all right? Are you hurt? Do you need me to come over and take a look at you?"
"No, I'm fine. I just hadn't been sleeping very well, is all."
"Do you want me to make you a sleeping drought?" It was a silly question really. He knew that Hermione could whip up a drought for herself if she wanted to.
"No thank you." She was polite, but was reaching her own breaking point.
The knocking on the door cut their conversation short. "Listen, Simon. Thank you for your concern and there's really no need for you to check on me constantly. I'm doing great, really. I have to get the door."
"I like checking on you. I know it's a little late in the week, but do you want to go to dinner?"
"I'm sorry Simon. That's really sweet of you, but I have a lot of things on my mind and I really need some time alone and with my family."
"Oh, all right. Some other time maybe?"
"We'll see." The knocking on the door grew louder. "I really have to see who that is. Bye." She cut her floo connection quickly.
She yanked the door open and was ready to reprimand whoever had been banging on the door until she saw Lavender and Ron.
"All right there, Hermione?" asked Ron ever acting like her big brother.
"I'm all right." She gave them both a hug and a peck in the cheek. "What are you doing up and about Lav?"
"I don't want to hear it, especially from you who didn't listen to me a while back. Besides the mediwizard thinks it's a good idea to have lots of exercise. It's supposed to help for a faster delivery."
"Of course. How is everyone? I haven't much time to visit once the lessons start."
"You could ask them yourself tomorrow. They'll all be here to visit Harry." Ron once again put his foot in his mouth. He realized his mistake when he saw Hermione's eyes water.
"Ron, you have the biggest mouth." Hermione had to smile at that even when her tears weren't cooperating. The comment coming from the mouth of Lavender who'd been the worst gossip back when they were still going to school was something she found a bit funny.
"It's okay, Lav. Really. I just need some time right now."
"Oh and I bet Mr. smiley face was just ready to make you feel better when you told him all about your problems, wasn't he."
The comment made her angry and Merlin help Ron, but he was about to become the punching bag for verbal venting.
"You have no right to say that to me! You weren't the one who was left alone to deal with a pregnancy and difficult delivery without so much as how are you! You weren't the one left wondering whether your husband is alive or dead or just plain didn't want to come back to you! You weren't the one who had to wake up every morning wondering if today is the day your husband would come home. You weren't the one who cried herself at night because your heart had been cut to shreds by the one person you thought would never do that to you!" Hermione's faced flushed and started to heave. She vented out a bit of her frustrations at last. But she knew immediately that she'd done the venting on the wrong man.
Ron stood speechless. He knew Hermione suffered. He knew because he'd witnessed her suffering first hand. He admired her for being so strong during those trying times. He never dreamed that underneath all the control was a volcano ready to erupt. Guess she reached her boiling point, he thought.
Lavender sat quietly on the couch. She rubbed her stomach to soothe the babies within. She already knew she had twins. As a woman, she sympathized with Hermione. But as a person with the foresight, she knew that Hermione would suffer even before she did.
She remembered the day Harry bade them goodbye. When she touched Hermione's hand, the contact brought on a vision. She saw Hermione's suffering. She told no one, not even Ron. She couldn't bring herself to tell Hermione what she would go through. She wasn't sure herself when her vision would happen. She didn't want to warn Hermione of something that might still be years down the road.
She knew too well how her visions could be misinterpreted, so she kept it to herself. She wondered if she did the right thing.
"I'm sorry, Hermione."
"No, I'm sorry Ron. I shouldn't have taken it out on you. You and Lavender have been there for me when I needed you. Even, Draco, Ginny and Neville have been there for me. Everyone actually has been there for me, except for the one person I really needed most."
Just as she spoke Harry popped into their midst. He looked at Hermione and crumpled to the floor.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews. This should not be as long as the other two, but we'll see. Happy Graduation to all the graduates and Happy Belated Mother's Day to all the moms and Happy Father's Day to all the dads. Oh, and Happy Memorial Day too.
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