Haunted Angel

A/N: And so, finally, after a week and a bit, I return but what do I find?!? Guys, I know you probably get this all the time but it doesn't take much to leave a review. Even if it's just a quick sentence, it still makes my day. I'm not a review addict so I'm not suddenly stop uploading chapters because I'm not happy with the amount of reviews. Anyway, enough with my whining. Before I forget, thank-you to those who did take the time to leave a review, I'd name you all personally, but I don't really have the time. You are angels and appreciate your kind words. Hugs and kisses for all of you!

So now that I have that off my chest back to the important stuff. Normally, my chapters are about 1000-1500 words each, which, isn't too bad a length, I guess, but since I have been a naughty girl and haven't updated in ages, I am going to give you guys a treat! This chapter was meant to be split down the middle with a nice cliffhanger in it, I bet you can guess where when you reach it, but I have decided to merge the next two chapters together thus making it longer and hopefully a much better read for you.

My last chapter was extremely sloppy and I was so disappointed with it. The ending was a disaster and I couldn't find the right words for it so I want to make it up for it…

So here it is chapter eight and nine:

Frozen

Kate walked into her boss' office and stood before him with her hands on her hips. It was about the tenth time today that she had caught him staring out the window absently, his mind wandering. He didn't even acknowledge that she was there. He just sat there, a distant look in his eyes, his hand running through his unruly black hair.

"Harry," she cooed as if he was her two-year old child that wasn't paying attention. It brought him out of his thoughtful reverie instantly. "So, who's this girl that you can't stop thinking about?" she asked bluntly, knowing the man all too well. She grinned when she saw the stunned look on his face.

"I - I… How did you know?" Was all he could say. She raised a brow at him stepping closer and placing two hands on his desk, leaning slightly forward.

"Harry, my dear Harry, I've known you for some time now. Honestly, I would of thought you'd known better." Kate lifted a hand and playfully tapped his nose with her finger. "Who is it?"

"Well…"

"Out with it Potter!" she scolded in a mocking tone, forgetting all formalities and sitting on the edge of his desk, swinging her legs like a small child. She heard him mutter something quietly, turning his gaze away from hers, blushing a bright red.

"I can't hear you"

"I don't think she feels the same way," he said in a bare whisper, the words trailing away into almost nothing.

"What do you mean? Have you told her how you feel?"

He nodded slowly, pain evident in his eyes. Kate knew her own had softened and wanted desperately to get up and hold him, pat him on the back and tell him it was all right. But she didn't. She felt immobilized.

"You're in love with her aren't you?" she murmured, not wanting to hear the truth. Part of her still hoped that Harry saw her as a woman and not just as a friend. Obviously, while she had waited patiently, some other girl had swept him of his feet. And then the cow had rejected him! Kate wanted to ring the stupid, thoughtless bitch's neck for the pain that she had caused him. She was so caught up in her own anger and hatred that she almost missed Harry's small nod.

"I love her with all my heart." he told her sighing deeply.

"Well then boy, spit it out. Or do I have to make you talk? Who is it?" she mocked, trying to make light of the moment, to see him smile, even if it was just once. He tried to smile, she could see it, but he failed miserably, making Kate hate the woman who had done this even more.

"I can't - " he started but Kate cut in.

"Okay then, we'll go from a different angle then. What did she do when you told her you loved her?"

"Told me to get out" he mumbled, embarrassed.

"Uh huh, I'm really starting to hate this girl, you know. Why would she do that?" she frowned, trying to get to the bottom of it all.

"Because, I-I um… Because I haven't spoken to her in over six years." Harry told her sheepishly, a hint of a blush creeping up on his cheeks. Kate was stunned as it dawned on her exactly whom he was talking about.

"You idiot!" she cried, cuffing him on the head. "No wonder she told you to get out! If that had of been me I would of thrown something at you. Poor Hermione."

"Poor Hermione! She threw a bloody atlas at me. More like poor Harry!" Kate snickered at the indignant look on his face. She wondered if the atlas had come in contact with his head. It would explain a hell of a lot.

"So… Whatcha going to do about it?" she asked, frowning when he shrugged his shoulders.

"I was thinking about that before you so rudely interrupted."

Kate ignored his comment. "Well, why not be straightforward? I mean, you've wasted a long time being a coward. Take her for a walk somewhere, kiss her and show her how you feel."

"It's not that easy, Kate." Harry retorted, getting up from his desk, packing up to go home. He glanced out the window, at the world just beyond, seeing the shadows outside beginning to lengthen.

"Oh really," Kate jumped up from the desk and hurried after him as he left the room. She caught up with him 5 meters down the corridor, "Harry, if you don't do something now you might loose her forever. The worst thing that can happen is that she'll never talk to you again, but then on the other side of things she could feel the same way. It's worth the risk Harry. Make her see how you feel and don't give up until you get an answer from her. You've known her since the two of you were children, at least, if she doesn't feel the same way you can go back to being friends and move on with your life."

She smiled at him and gave him a reassuring hug. "Go for it Harry, otherwise you'll always wonder but will never know."

All he did was smile at her and then he was gone.

"What have you done Harry?" she whispered, "What have you done?"

Hermione sat in her little yellow Mini Cooper waiting for the light to turn green so she could turn right and into the small street that meant she was almost home. She found herself daydreaming, wishing that she could be anywhere else but here. A loud honking noise stopped her wishful thinking. Startled, she quickly realized it was her turn to move and drove the short distance to her apartment building. When she parked the car, she raced to get properly inside into the heat and out of the chilling draughts and winter breezes. All she wanted was to get back to her room, pour herself a nice hot bath and have a nice sleep. Then, she would write up her resignation. She pondered the plan and decided to scrap the bath idea. It was too tempting to go under the water and never come back up again. Perhaps a cup of hot chocolate would help?

"Oomph…" Her thoughts about food were abandoned.

"Ah, there you are, I was just about to go looking for you."

Hermione felt warm hands pick her up off the floor. She stared up into Harry's eyes, seeing the amusement in them.

"You're laughing at me!" she cried, not wanting Harry to let go of her. He didn't answer her but instead led her back into the elevator she had just come out of. He hit the button for the ground floor. She merely shook her head and went to stop the elevator.

"No. We have to talk," as the elevator doors opened he dragged her out towards the front doors, "Come with me."

Reluctantly Hermione followed, letting herself be taken to a park across the road. It was covered in snow, small children playing in it, their parents watching carefully, while couples walking snuggled together and ice skaters, amateurs and pros alike, found amusement on the large pond in the center of the park. Harry took her away from the people, who were enjoying the snow and its bounty, around the far side of the pond and pulled her up into her arms. Snow fell lightly on her upturned face, tickling her cheeks and nose, getting caught in her eyelashes. She covered her face in Harry's chest, feeling the day's tension seep out of her body.

"Harry- " But she was cut short. She wanted to tell him she was sorry. To tell him that she loved him and that she had for a very long time. She wanted to tell him what had happened today. To tell him every little thing that had happened to her while he had been away. And she wanted to hear about his life. What he had done, how his day was. To hear him tell her that he loved her as well. She hoped beyond it all, that she could see it in her eyes.

As he tilted her chin so he could see her face, she wished that more than anything else. Harry bent his head tentatively touched his lips to hers and pulled away looking for the reaction on her face. He emerald eyes bore into hers, searching them for resistance, then, seeing none, kissed her again. Slowly, he deepened the kiss, demanding entrance with his tongue, feverishly running it along bottom lip. She let him in, giving in to him and loosing all control of her actions. She put her heart and soul into that kiss, telling him how she felt without words. Words alone could not describe how she felt anyway.

It ended too soon.

Harry ran his thumb over her cheekbone and kissed her cheek where his thumb had just been. Then he kissed the tip of her nose. He let go of her and bent down kneeling in the snow.

And then he threw a snowball at her, running out onto the pond. Hermione felt up for the game and chased after him determined to tackle him to the ground and have him begging for mercy.

"Harry Potter! Get your sorry arse back here!" she called after him. He ignored her and continued to run out into the center of the pond. Hermione didn't know why, but something was telling her that Harry shouldn't go out that far.

Then she heard it, an echoing cracking noise that made everyone in the immediate vicinity stop. Except Harry. To Hermione's horror, she watched as the ice beneath his feet collapsed, falling into the blackened waters of the pond. Harry fell with it.

"NO!" she screamed, trying to run out to the where Harry had fallen but a firm hand grabbed her wrist and stopped her.

"Stay here Mam," a burly man commanded her, then stepped carefully out to where Harry had stood and tried to get him out. Hermione prayed that he wouldn't fall in himself.

Draco watched Celicia roll over in her sleep, her face contorted in anguish. She was having another one of her nightmares.

"NO! Please! Not Harry!" she screamed, twisting again. Draco had learnt long ago not to wake her when she was having these nightmares. She would sit up in bed for hours staring blankly at nothing, twitching and shaking, moaning and wailing. If he let her be, she would wake up in the morning and have no recollection of the nightmares at all. But just because he knew not to wake her didn't mean he liked seeing her like this.

He heard his wife scream in pain. Then, abruptly, she sat up.

"Draco," she turned to him, a look of fear on her beautiful face, "You have to get me to a hospital right away."

Draco just stared at her blankly. He watched her face contort in agonizing pain again and he didn't have to be told twice. He scooped her up into his arms and lifted her from the bed.

"Celicia, what's wrong?"

"Draco, just hurry up! The baby won't wait!" She screamed as another contraction racked through her body. "To…Ahhh… a… Mug…Argh… to a Muggle hospital!" she screamed again. He apparated to a back the only Muggle hospital he knew and ran, through the cold slush barefoot, into the emergency entrance. He watched in despair as his wife was taken out of his arms and placed on a bed on some sort of wheels, and raced away from him. He ran after them, dazed and confused. He could only hope that she was all right.

"Harry, please wake up!"

The voice echoed through out his head.

He didn't want to wake up! He was having a nice dream. One where he was standing in the snow kissing Hermione.

"Harry! Wake up please! It's me, Hermione. Please wake up! Don't leave me Harry, I need you!'

Hermione?

I'm coming Hermione! He tried to say. He couldn't wake up. What had once been the white snow turned to blackness and weighed him down and consumed his consciousness. The Hermione that he had been kissing disappeared into the distance and faded into the darkness. He struggled to stay afloat. The darkness was welcoming. It couldn't hurt him; it was so tempting to give up.

"Harry, please, wake up. I can't loose you! Not now, I need you. I love you Harry!" He heard her weeping; her voice distant.

He had to fight. He didn't want to leave her. She loved him.

The darkness couldn't hold him down. It wasn't tempting anymore.

Now he had a reason to live.

Slowly he opened his eyes. The room was lit dimly, his ice-covered clothes thrown on the floor. His body rested on a bed, covered in blankets and hot water bottles.

He was naked.

Hermione still hadn't seen his open eyes. She was rubbing his arms, trying to get heat to his body.

"Harry, wake up!"

"Why?" he mumbled, a small smile on his face. He felt her freeze, and turn slowly to face him.

"Harry!"

She flung her body down on his, wrapping her arm s around his neck, kissing him soundly on the lips.

"Hey. I love you too 'Mione." He whispered in her ear, cradling her in his arms and rolling so that he was on top of her.

He had never thought she was so beautiful before.

"You're okay! Oh God, that's such a relief. This man, I can't remember his name got you out of the water and helped me carry back to your apartment and then I had to get your body temp' back to normal. I was so worried Harry. And so I stripped off your clothes and piled on all these blankets but that didn't work…" she babbled hysterically until he placed a finger on her lips.

"You stripped off all my clothes?" Hermione blushed and nodded, avoiding his gaze. Harry chuckled. "My turn then 'Mione."

A/N: So maybe it wasn't as long as I wanted it to be… Ah well, I didn't have too much time to write all the stuff in my head. I hope you enjoyed it. I'm not going to go on in detail about what happens next. You know it will be smut so what's the point? Besides, I'm intending to keep the ratings on this fict no higher than PG13. Well I have to go and finish the assignment I was supposedly working on whilst writing this.

Tah,

Liselle