Out of the Shadows

Disclaimer: I own nothing. If I owned Harry Potter, I would be laughing maniacally while rolling in great big piled of money. Since all I have if about five dollars, I somehow don’t see that happened. I also don’t own the song "I Hope You Dance", which belongs to LeeAnn Womack and whoever produced it. So, there. I disclaim everything but the plot, and even that’s not really mine. Darn.

A/N: This is a songfic to LeeAnn Womack’s "I Hope You Dance", this time written by elf. I hope you enjoy it, and please review after you’re done!

Out of the Shadows

Harry slowly descended the stairs leading the boys’ dormitory in Gryffindor Tower. Although it was late, sleep had become a nonexistent phenomenon. As he entered the common room, he didn’t expect to see anyone else in there, so he was somewhat surprised when he saw a curly haired girl sitting in a scarlet armchair, reading a thick tome. The room was bathed in shadows, the firelight flickering across her face. As though sensing him, she looked up, smiling as she recognized him.

"Hi, Harry. What are you doing up?" she asked in surprise.

He shrugged. "Couldn’t sleep." He glanced at the book in her hands. "I could ask you the same. We don’t have any homework, Hermione."

She laughed. "I know, but this book caught my eye when I was in the library. I was reading it in my dormitory, but Lavender and Parvati wanted to go to sleep, and my light was bothering them, so…" She smiled. "I came down here." She motioned to the seat across from her. "Come on, sit down. I don’t bite. I may whack you with my book, though, if you annoy me." Her eyes danced with laughter.

He smiled back, but it didn’t reach his eyes: eyes that were shadowed and troubled, that had shown no happiness or mirth in weeks.

Worried, she asked gently, "Are you okay, Harry?"

He didn’t answer. Instead, he reached across and gripped her hand, gazing steadily into her eyes. "Promise me something, Hermione," he said quietly.

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder

You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger

May you never take one single breath for granted

God forbid love ever leave you empty-handed

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean

Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens

Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance, I hope you dance

She looked at him, bewildered and a little worried. "What is it, Harry?"

He squeezed her hand softly. "Don’t change," he said simply.

"What?" she asked, surprised. Whatever she had been expecting, it hadn’t been that.

"Don’t change," he said again. "Stay the way you are. Read books, joke around, harass Ron and I for not doing our homework. Stay innocent, keep loving life, see the good in everything." His voice rose slightly in urgency. "Live your life like you always have, live you always do. Don’t let this stupid war change you. Don’t let it destroy you. Don’t let the violence and hate everywhere take over your life." He trailed off, staring at the fire, its flames dancing in his eyes. His unspoken words seemed to echo in the room: "Like it has me."

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance

Never settle for the path of least resistance

Livin' might mean takin' chances, but they're worth takin'

Lovin' might be a mistake, but it's worth makin'

Don't let some hell-bent heart leave you bitter

When you come close to sellin' out, reconsider

Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

"And what about you, Harry?" she asked softly. He glanced back at her, a questioning look on his face.

‘What about me?"

"You’ve just told me to not let the war control my life. But what about you?"

He shook his head. "It’s different for me, Hermione."

"Why?" she cried. "Because of that prophecy?" He glanced away, unwilling to look her in the eye. "Well, don’t let it control you. Don’t push us away just because you’re afraid Voldemort will target us. Just because Sirius died doesn’t mean we will, too."

She felt him tense slightly at the mention of Sirius’ name. He said quietly, without meeting her eyes, "I just don’t want you to get hurt because of me."

Her eyes looked pleadingly at him. "Harry, we don’t get hurt because of you, we get hurt because of Voldemort! He may go after us to hurt you, but that’s not your fault. Don’t let what a madman does control what you do. Don’t be afraid to get close to people; don’t barricade yourself behind a wall like you’ve been doing. Harry," she said, waiting until he met her eyes, "it hurts me more when you push me away than when I get blasted by a Death Eater." She squeezed his hand. "Pushing all those you love away is taking the easy way out. But, the easy way always leads to the most pain later on. You’ve never taken that way before, and there have been so many opportunities where you could have." Hermione squeezed his hand again. "You’ve never taken the easy way out before, Harry," she repeated. "Don’t start now. Don’t. Give. Up."

"Why?" he asked angrily, his eyes flashing. "Why shouldn’t I give up? Because if I do, everyone else is doomed? Is that why, Hermione?"

"No!" she cried. "Because we need you, Harry!" As he opened his mouth to respond, she continued. "But not because of the prophecy, Harry. Because you’re our friend, our family. We need you as much as you need us. Don’t you see, Harry?" she asked, her eyes pleading with Harry to understand. "Ron, Ginny, all the Weasley’s and I, we care about you!" He looked away. "And when we see you torturing yourself through your self-imposed exile, it hurts us, too!"

He finally looked back at her, all anger gone from his face, and replaced by misery. "I’m sorry. I never meant to do that." His voice dropped to a whisper. "All I wanted to do was to keep you safe. If that meant giving up your friendship and being miserable, then…" His voice trailed off.

Hermione said urgently, "Pushing us away is what Voldemort wants you to do, Harry! Don’t let him fill your life with hate and bitterness. He wants you to give up, Harry, because then he’ll win! His goal is to make you miserable, so that you won’t be able to fight for everything in the world worth fighting for!" she exclaimed. "Voldemort wants to take away everything important to you, he wants to take away your childhood, your innocence, your happiness. Don’t let him," she entreated. "Please, Harry, don’t give up. Don’t let him win."

"I’m not letting him win, Hermione," he said flatly. "Everything I do is to stop him from winning."

"That’s what I mean!" she cried. "Everything in your life shouldn’t concern him! Your life shouldn’t have to revolve around what Voldemort does or what some prophecy says! You shouldn’t be afraid to live because something bad might happen." He turned away, his features hidden in shadows.

I hope you dance, I hope you dance

I hope you dance, I hope you dance

(Time is a wheel in constant motion, always rolling us along

Tell me who wants to look back on their years

And wonder, where those years have gone)

She quietly continued, "Living means taking chances. We never know what will happen next. Do you want to look back on your life and wonder where your childhood went," she implored, "because you spent all those years focusing on Voldemort and not on your family, on your life? Don’t let him, Harry. He’s done enough to the world already; don’t let him do that too," she quietly finished.

A silence fell upon the room, the only sound the crackling of the fire. After a few moments, Harry slowly stood and walked towards the stairs to his dormitory. Hermione’s face fell. But, a step from the door, he stopped.

"Hermione?"

"Yes, Harry?" she said softly.

"Thank you."

He disappeared up the stairs, and Hermione smiled, a light shining in her eyes. Voldemort hadn’t destroyed her friend yet, and if Hermione had anything to say, he never would.

Dance, I hope you dance

I hope you dance, I hope you dance

I hope you dance, I hope you dance

A/N: So, what do you think? Please, review? All reviews will be celebrated with candy and hot chocolate. Hope you enjoyed!