Unofficial Portkey Archive

Ron walked through the corridors of Hogwarts, searching for Luna and worrying about her the whole time. For weeks Ron noticed that Luna had been acting strangely, not that she already didn't have oddities to her. He knew something was different though. She seemed…..scared. She was always casting him looks of fear and stuck close by him a lot.

Whenever she wasn't by him, Luna would disappear for hours, always to a secluded place in the castle or out on the grounds. Ron would take hours to track her down and when he finally did, she was very quiet and would just cling on to him, as if afraid to let him go.

Ron was starting to get very concerned and had even gone to Dumbledore to question about Luna's antics and other strange things happening around the school. Dumbledore had been vague though, telling Ron to be patient and keep an eye out. He was told to stick close to Luna and not to wander too much at night. Ron was starting to get the feeling that something big was approaching and he was somehow involved, and probably not in a good way.

Sighing deeply, Ron finally reached the seventh floor, headed for the Room of Requirement. It was Luna's favorite place to go and think so he hoped he was right about her being there that day. A few times she would go to a different place but that was a rare occasion.

Ron stopped before the portion of the wall that led to the Room of Requirement and saw that a door handle was already present. Smiling a bit, he turned the knob and walked into the darkened room.

Squinting his eyes in the faint light, Ron saw a few scattered candles were lit along the walls and some couches and squashy chairs were in the center of the room. Dark red tapestries were pulled over the windows and a low fire was crackling in the hearth. Through the darkness, he could just barely make out the outline of Luna, curled up on one of the couches, fast asleep.

Smiling in amusement at his girlfriend, Ron slowly walked toward her form and crouched down in front of her. The firelight played across her features, giving her face a reddish glow and causing her blonde hair to gleam. Ron lifted a hand and ran it softly across Luna's cheek, thinking about how perfect and peaceful she looked to him.

Groaning softly, Luna's eyelashes fluttered. Ron pulled his hand away and watched as Luna opened her blue eyes and stared at him in bemusement.

"Well, hello, Ronald," she said softly, sitting up. The blue blanket that had been on top of her slid off and pooled around her waist, allowing Luna to lift her arms above her head as she yawned.

"Hey," he responded, staring at her intently.

Blinking at him, Luna titled her head and gave him a look of confusion. "Are you all right?"

Sighing, Ron lifted himself up and sat on the couch beside her. "The question is, are you all right? You've been acting very….different for a while now. You can't not tell me forever, Luna. What is going on?"

Luna turned away from him and stared into the fire, staying silent. Her face was expressionless and Ron was desperate to know exactly what she was thinking. She was very still and seemed to be making no move to say anything soon. Frustrated, Ron reached his hand out and touched her face, making her turn her head back towards him. Shock filled him when he saw tears gathering in the corners of Luna's eyes, illuminated by the firelight.

"Luna….." he whispered.

Without a word, she leapt toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging Ron tightly to her. He gasped and hugged her back as she buried her face in his shoulder, crying softly.

At a loss, Ron just continued to hold her, rubbing her back softly. Luna finally seemed to calm down and pulled back from him, rubbing the tear marks from her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, looking away once more. "I couldn't stop myself. I'm just so…so…worried."

"Worried?" Ron asked, furrowing his brow. "What are you worried about?"

Luna pursed her lips and moved down the couch, away from him. Her gaze returned to the fire as her arms fell limply to her sides. Her shoulders slumped and a look of defeat fell across her face.

"You're in danger, Ronald," she said very softly, her gaze never wavering from the fire.

Ron sucked in a breath but no feeling of panic overcame him. He reached his hand out and touched Luna's shoulder lightly, drawing her eyes back to him.

"Hasn't that always been the case?" he responded quietly. "Being the best friend of Harry Potter has had me in danger from day one. I know this but it hasn't stopped me from sticking by Harry." He shrugged his shoulders. "He's practically my brother, I'd do anything for him."

Luna felt tears welling in her eyes and violently shook her head, her blonde hair falling in her face.

"No, Ronald, no. This is different, much different. The danger before was known but nothing was for sure. This is for sure now. You are being targeted. Voldemort wants you…..for something."

Ron's eyebrows rose up in surprise. "What are you talking about? I'm being targeted for what?"

Luna threw her hands up in distress and stood quickly. "I don't know!" she exclaimed, her calm exterior melting for the first time. "I think Ginny saw something. What, I don't know. But you are in danger."

She stopped by the window and gripped the edge tightly with her hands. "And I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you," she ended in a whisper.

Ron shut his eyes tightly and dropped his head forward, trying to control his breathing. Luna's soft sobs suddenly filled his ears and he shot up from the couch and rushed toward her. He quickly wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug, trying to calm her down once more. He could feel her tears soaking into his shirt as she held him to her, so afraid to let him go.

Ron kissed the top of her head repeatedly, not knowing what else to do. Gradually, her tears lessened and her heavy breathing slowed. Ron pulled back from her and lifted his hand up to bring it under her chin, making Luna look at him.

"Please, Luna," he began, "listen to me."

She nodded slowly in acknowledgement.

"I may very well be in danger but that doesn't mean something is going to happen to me. Hogwarts is well protected and Dumbledore is watching over the place very carefully. The chances of me having a run-in with You-Know-Who is slim, I don't doubt Dumbledore's ability to keep me and everyone else here safe. You have to believe that too, Luna. Please, believe it."

Ron looked pleadingly into her eyes, hoping his words had somehow gotten through to her. Luna stared blankly at him for a second before shifting her gaze to the floor. A deep sigh escaped her lips before she nodded slightly.

"All right, Ronald, I'll try to believe it. I just care about you and I don't want anything happening to you."

Ron wrapped his arms around her in a hug and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I know, I know. Nothing will happen to me though. I'll be careful though, just in case."

Luna gave him a small smile and touched his cheek lightly. "Thank you."

Ron grinned back and leaned toward her, brushing her lips lightly with his. Luna sighed again, this time in contentment, before wrapping her arms around his waist and placing her head against his chest. Ron tightened his hold on Luna and rested his chin on the top of her head, rubbing her back softly.

They remained in that position for what seemed like forever, wrapped in each other's arms and thinking only of the one they each loved.

……………………

Ginny ran as fast as she could toward the West End Tower after dinner, hoping she would find Draco there. After the lesson on the Unforgivable Curses, the other Heirs had gone to dinner and Ginny had expected her boyfriend to be there as well. Unfortunately for her, he had not shown up and that had cemented the idea even more in Ginny's head that she needed to talk to him.

Desperately trying to quell any strong feelings of worry, she burst through the portrait entrance and let her eyes scan the room quickly. There was no sign of Draco among the couches and no sign of anything out of place.

Dropping her bag to the floor, Ginny made her way to his door and knocked softly. No answer greeted her and she knocked again, thinking he might be asleep. Again her knock was met with no answer. Furrowing her brow, she turned the serpent shaped knob and crept into the dark room.

Silence filled the large room and Ginny shivered from the cold feeling that passed over her. The dark green curtains were drawn tightly over the windows and the bed was neatly made. Draco's desk looked to have not recently been disturbed and the only thing out of place was the book bag lying in the middle of the floor, a few quills spilling out of it.

Frustration filling her, Ginny walked out of his room and stared at the empty Common Room, trying to think of where he might have gone. A sudden idea sprang into her mind and Ginny walked over to the wooden door by the portrait entrance. Sure enough, the door was slightly ajar. Smiling grimly, she pulled the door open and made her way out onto the roof.

The wind was still blowing and the chill in the air had increased. Ginny wrapped her arms around herself, wishing she had grabbed her cloak and also wishing for Spring to come much quicker. A dusky gray light fell across the balcony, causing everything within her vision to be slightly muted. Only when she squinted and stepped further out of the doorway, did she see Draco, crouched in the far corner with his cloak drawn tightly around him.

Taking a deep breath, Ginny moved forward cautiously, trying to bring up some of her Gryffindor courage. She was silent until her foot kicked a loose piece of stone, causing it to bounce across the floor loudly. Cringing, Ginny froze and watched as Draco lifted his head in surprise and turned towards her.

A gasp escaped her lips when she saw his bloodshot eyes and tear marks running down his face. She started to walk toward him again but Draco quickly covered his face and huddled further against the wall. Slowing, Ginny fell to her knees a few feet from him and felt tears welling in her own eyes.

"Draco…." she whispered, unsure of what to say.

"What, Ginny?" His response was muffled and strained.

Ginny bit her lip nervously and couldn't help but let pleading enter her tone. "Talk to me, please?"

Draco laughed roughly and turned his head to her, his blonde hair falling into his eyes from the wind. He leaned further against the wall and slid his legs out until they were stretched out in front of him. His gray eyes regarded her blankly before he spoke.

"Talk to you? What do you want me to say, Gin? I know why you came here but would you really understand anything that I say?"

"Just don't push me away, not anymore," Ginny replied bitterly.

Draco's gaze softened and he wiped away the last remnant of tears from his cheeks, for the first time not feeling ashamed at his display of emotions. He leaned forward until he was able to grab Ginny's hand in his own, making her look at him.

"I'm not," he said quietly. "I just need some time to….get used to this. I know you're here for me but it's never been easy for me to share my feelings with another person. I never had to because my parents never cared to know about anything."

His features hardened a bit at the thought before he continued.

"I'm willing to try with you though. I need to learn to not be the selfish bastard anymore. I'm not saying I'll change right away or that I'll stop being cold all of the time, but I won't push you away. Not anymore and not of my own choice."

Ginny wiped a stray tear away and smiled gently at him.

"I'm so happy to hear that, Draco," she whispered before crawling forward and wrapping her arms around him.

He hugged her back, burying his face in her tangled red hair. He sighed deeply before pulling away and lifting her chin up so he could look into her eyes again.

"I…I'm sorry."

Ginny gave him a surprised look. "Whatever for?"

Draco looked away. "For treating you so horribly. For keeping so much from you. For not letting you into my life before. For not allowing myself to….to trust you."

Ginny grabbed his face and made him turn his head. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Draco. I understand you have been through a lot and I am willing to wait until you are ready before you explain anything to me. I won't push you, just like you won't push me away."

Draco smiled slightly before pulling her in for another hug. A silence fell over them and Ginny smiled happily into his chest, relishing in his warmth and trust.

The next words he said were spoken with so much anguish that Ginny literally felt her heart almost break.

"He hurt me, Gin. He hurt Rose too."

Ginny tightened her hold on him, feeling an ache within her but also knowing not to speak just yet. He would say things at his own pace.

"He…he would….." Draco paused, fighting for words. "He would take us into the dungeons if we were bad. It was always one at a time until recently. He started taking us down together and if I refused something, he would punish Rose for it. I eventually learned to say whatever my father wanted to hear, just so Rose wouldn't bear my punishments."

His jaw tightened. "The Cruciatus Curse is nothing to me now. He taught me how to handle it by making me bear it almost daily. And Avada Kedavra……."

Draco stopped, his breathing becoming shallower. Ginny began to rub his back slowly to calm him down. Gritting his teeth, he finally managed to make the words spill out.

"He made me perform it on house elves and other creatures so I could learn to perform it and handle it. He said it would teach me disciple and superiority. I hated it. I hate him. I swear I will kill him one day for all that he made Rose and I suffer through. He is no father. I have no father."

His last words were so bitter and hateful that Ginny couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath. She couldn't stop the few tears in her eyes from escaping and spilling on to her cheeks. She hugged him even tighter to her, trying to feel his grief, as if it was a part of her too. Draco clung on to her as well, as she could feel a wetness slowly seeping through her hair.

"I'm so sorry, Draco," she whispered to him, hoping that she sounded comforting in some way.

He placed a kiss on the top of her head and murmured in reply, "I know, I know."

They sat in that position for what felt like hours but neither of the two wanted to move, both reveling in the ultimate closeness that washed through them at the moment. Never before had they trusted each other so much. Never before had they felt something akin to love flowing through their veins.

Ginny finally pulled her head up and smiled gently at Draco, wiping away more tears and staring into his gray eyes. He smiled back and leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on her lips. Ginny sighed and reluctantly stood up, holding out her hand to him. After brushing off their robes, Draco pulled her in for another hug.

"Thank you, Gin, for coming to find me," he said.

"I always will," she replied, burying her face in his shoulder.

And they made their way from the roof to the Common Room, wrapped in each other's arms and knowing that yet another bond had been sealed among the Heirs.

……………………..

Hermione shifted her weight from her place on the couch in front of the fire. She was currently in the Common Room reading a rather large book entitled The Knowledge of Unicorns, which was entirely devoted to telling the reader everything about Unicorns, from their history to the present. Hermione had immediately gotten the book from the library at Illustris as soon as she had learned her Animagus form would be a Unicorn. As always, she found the book utterly fascinating and had already sped through ten chapters since dinner.

Hermione removed her eyes from the small print and squinted around the room, wondering vaguely where Ginny and Draco were. She hoped the young witch had found her boyfriend and was able to calm him down. The lesson from earlier that day had clearly upset him, it had upset them all.

Sighing deeply, she shut the book, suddenly unable to concentrate. Tucking her knees under her chin, Hermione wrapped her arms around her legs and stared absentmindedly into the crackling fire. She had hated learning the Unforgivables today. She truly despised knowing precisely how to perform them, though it was indeed necessary to defeat Voldemort in the Final Battle.

Knowing that she was able to use such evil curses though was what bothered the witch. She hated thinking that she could end a person's life or cause them great pain with just a flick of her wand. She had gone to Hogwarts to learn how to perform good, not evil. And now it seemed like she would be doing just the opposite. Hermione knew in the end though, that using evil would ultimately bring about goodness. She just hated the path that led to it.

Sighing once more, Hermione reached for her book and was just about to open up to the page she had left off at, when she felt something touch her shoulders. Gasping and dropping the book to the floor in shock, she spun around and met the amused eyes of one Harry Potter.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, clutching the place over her heart. "You scared me half to death! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Grinning shyly, Harry moved around the couch and sat in the seat next to her and pouted slightly.

"Aw, I'm sorry, 'Mione. I just didn't want to make a lot of noise and startle you even more." His emerald eyes were wide and innocent like.

Shaking her head ruefully, Hermione reached down and picked up her book. "All right, just don't do it again."

She placed the book in her lap and started to flip through it once more. Harry tilted his head to try and read the title. Once he saw it, he shook his head in amusement.

"Only you, Hermione, would read up that much on your Animagus form."

Merely nodding, she started to immerse herself in the text, almost completely forgetting her best friend and boyfriend next to her. Suppressing a sigh, Harry almost had to chuckle, knowing that he would not want to have his Hermione any other way.

Turning to the fire, Harry frowned at it's glowing depth. One of the logs snapped and crumbled into ash, sending sparks flying. The red and yellow colors played softly off of every surface in the Common Room, giving it an unreal shimmer. It was truly a beautiful sight.

Serious thoughts began to cross through Harry's mind though. His frown deepened as he thought of what had happened to him during the Heirs' lesson with Dumbledore and then what had happened during the Unforgivable lesson. He was worried, very worried. So much was happening to the four and so quickly at that. Harry felt he could barely catch on to everything, let alone use it in the Final Battle.

And then he was worried about his relationship with Hermione. He loved her, he truly did. She was his best friend but also so much more, he couldn't even describe her in words. Harry knew that Voldemort would try and use her against him though, despite her being an Heir. She was the most vulnerable because of her close association to him. Because no matter what the Prophecy of Merlin said, the other Prophecy, THE Prophecy, was still the one that meant so much in the end. Harry would have to be the one to kill Voldemort finally. The combination of the Heirs might weaken him but Harry knew, deep in his heart, he would have to officially kill the Dark Lord.

And this was what Voldemort was afraid of. He knew that Harry had some major role to play and he would do everything in his power to try and stop it. Including using Hermione and anyone else that was close to him. If one of the Heirs was broken in some way, the Prophecy of Merlin could not be fulfilled and the destruction of Voldemort could not take place. This worried Harry to no end.

A hand was suddenly gently placed over his, startling Harry out of his deep thoughts. Turning his head, he saw Hermione gazing at him with a mixture of confusion and sympathy.

"Harry," she started quietly, "are you all right?"

He forced a smile in place and answered back. "Oh, I'm just fine."

She narrowed her eyes and shifted closer to him on the couch. "No, you are not. Something is bothering you. I can see it in your eyes."

Looking down at the carpeted floor, Harry allowed his shoulders to slump and gripped Hermione's hand within his own.

"I just don't want to lose you," he whispered, having no idea he was practically mimicking the thoughts of Luna back at Hogwarts.

Hermione proceeded to wrap her arms firmly around him and lay her head on his shoulder.

"Oh, Harry. You're not going to lose me. Why do you think about this so much?"

Angry at her words, Harry stood up and walked away from her. "Don't say that. I could lose you. Don't you see? Voldemort will use you against me," he snapped.

Standing herself, Hermione looked like she had been slapped in the face. "What are you trying to say, Harry?" she said in a deadly whisper laced with fear.

Harry ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Maybe….maybe this isn't such a good idea. Maybe we should…."

"No!" Hermione interrupted sharply, striding to him and turning him around to face her. "Don't even finish that sentence, Harry, I won't allow it. We've discussed this already, remember? You decided that it would be best for us to stay together. I won't have you back out now."

"He could kill you, Hermione!" Harry exclaimed desperately.

"And he could very well kill you too. How do you think that would make me feel?" Her voice dropped to a strained whisper. "I love you, Harry, I don't want to lose you either. But I don't think I could go on if we let this end and then I had to watch you die, knowing I couldn't spend your last days loving you."

A lone tear fell down her cheek at the thought and Harry could only stare at her in disbelief.

"Hermione…." he began.

"I don't want to hear it!" she said loudly. "Don't tell me we can't be together. Please, just don't say that!"

No more tears fell but Hermione's brown eyes blazed at him with fury. He slowly reached forward and cupped her chin in his hand. Her gaze faltered at his touch but she didn't make any other move.

"Please, Hermione, don't be angry with me," he said while rubbing her cheek with his thumb. "I'm only trying to look out for you. I just don't want to see you hurt, it would be too much for me to handle. I already had to see…..Sirius….."

Hermione put her hand over his as he said his beloved godfather's name. Her resolve crumbled at the lost look on his face and she took a step closer to him.

"I know, Harry, I understand. But you have to trust me and allow me to fight. Allow me to stay with you. As long as we have each other to love, I don't think anything can break us apart or hold us back."

Harry smiled at her finally and sighed. "Why can I never seem to get that thought through my head? You always have to remind me."

Hermione laughed lightly. "That's what I'm here for, Harry. To keep you from worrying too much and to remind you about things. Like your homework."

Harry couldn't help but laugh loudly at that statement. Hugging her to him, he was finally able to say, "Only you, Hermione, only you. We're having a serious discussion and you bring up homework."

Her shoulders shook from her own suppressed laughter and she hugged him back, loving the feel of him next to her. She would never grow tired of it and she hoped to be able to have the feeling forever.

Finally pulling away, Hermione looked up into Harry's eyes, feeling the warmth and love radiating from them. She leaned upward and placed a gentle kiss on his lips before snuggling down into his arms once more.

"I'll never get sick of you kissing me," Harry sighed against her hair.

"Well, I should hope not, Mister Potter," Hermione retorted in a teasing voice, "because I plan on doing a lot of it for a long time."

Harry chuckled. "I was hoping that would be your response."

Hermione reached down and took his hands in hers and slowly backed away from him.

"Come on, enough worrying for tonight. Let's go to sleep. We've had a long day."

Harry nodded and allowed Hermione to pull him toward his bedroom. They entered the darkened room where Hermione quickly lit a few candles with her wand.

"Are you staying in here tonight?" Harry questioned as he searched for his pajamas.

Hermione nodded shyly. "As long as you don't mind."

Harry looked over at her and grinned. "Now, when do I ever mind?"

The young witch laughed and quickly went over to her own room, changed into her pajamas, and returned to find Harry already buried within the covers of his bed, his eyes drifting close. He snapped them opened and looked over at her in the doorway before shifting in the bed and patting the space next to him.

"There's a space right here."

Hermione smiled and crawled under the covers before flicking her wand and causing darkness to fall in the room. She then cuddled up next to Harry as he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. She leaned her head on his shoulder and sighed in contentment, loving how she could feel his breath lightly playing against her ear.

"Goodnight, love," he whispered.

"Goodnight, Harry," she replied, squeezing his arm.

"Love you," he mumbled as his arm tightened around her even more.

"I love you too," Hermione said quietly.

And they fell asleep in each other's arms, happiness filling them and nightmares evading their thoughts for the first time in months.

..................

Author's Note: Oh my!! I am so sorry about the delay again! I promised myself I would start updating faster and then college got in the way! It's incredibly hectic, studying and work are taking up most of my time and even though I love writing this story, I can't focus all of my time on it. I'm trying though, so please, stay patient! I am very sorry about it!
I hoped you enjoyed the new chapter, I know not a lot of action happened but I really wanted to focus on how trust and love were being built up between the three couples. I hope I made H/Hr fans happy, I know you think I've been neglecting out favorite couple! I'll try focusing on them more from now on. But the other couples are just as important so remember that too! I know that the three different scenes seemed to resemble each other a bit but I wanted to show how the three couples are similar and kind of connected. They're all consumed by worry for each other and I wanted to show that. I truly hope you all liked it!
Oh, and one more thing point to make. Someone once made a comment about how Harry and Hermione haven't really gone too far yet in my story especially with their rooms right next to each other. This story is PG-13 and shall remain that way. The focus of my story is not sex so I really don't see a point for it in my story. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before but I wanted to just say it again. This is the farthest you'll see them go in my story. You can imagine anything else you want outside of what I write but that's up to you. I'm sorry if you wanted something like that but that's how its staying.
I promise to try and have the next chapter up soon, its about the sword fighting :). Please please review and I hope you enjoyed!! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews, I still can't believe how many I have! Thank you!!!
Much Love,
PhoenixFirebolt