Hermione awoke to find Harry's hand sliding up and down her arm. He was sitting next to her, his eyes pinned on hers.
Before she could speak, he leaned down to kiss her, silencing any protests.
"Ron's at the Burrow," he murmured, kissing her chin and moving down to the hollow of her throat.
"Hmm? Oh, yes…" she whispered, as his tongue flicked out.
She was hot and sticky, her afternoon nap leaving her unsatisfied. Her fingers eagerly curved into his hair, his attentions making her feel wide awake.
They hadn't discussed what was happening between them. It was simply something they needed. Like this, together, they could momentarily leave everything else behind.
"Oh," she moaned when his hands slipped under her shirt, tickling her stomach. "Harry…"
He loved it when she said his name like that, breathy and overcome. He showed his appreciation by kissing her again, his tongue slipping between her lips. He tasted like pumpkin juice.
She arched against him when she felt his hand between her legs, his thumb pressing right where… oh…
A deep throaty sound escaped her mouth and she said his name again, kissing him over and over. He returned her kisses, his hand and fingers still doing wonderful and new things to her down there.
I trust you and her thought was so loud she feared she'd spoken aloud. But it didn't matter-it was true. She trusted Harry with herself, all of herself, to go places with him that would have made her blush to think about. She could feel the way he cared for her in his kisses and touches.
She trusted him.
With her heart?
She closed her eyes and gasped, fingers digging into his back.
With her heart.
She still didn't know.
***
Hermione leaned back against the pillows, a pleasant heaviness settling on her limbs. She could hear the shower rattling away in the bathroom. There was a faint throbbing between her legs; the memory of Harry pressing his fingers against her causing her to blush. But-oh-how she relished it-that moment of completely freedom. She could still feel Harry's lips crushed against hers, the desperation in the room so high she could taste it.
The thought of Ron returning crossed her mind. What could they tell him? Could he even begin to understand?
The shower stopped and Hermione hurried to straighten her hair and clothes. She knew they would not tell Ron-they couldn't even admit it to each other. It was like she and Harry had their own world-one free of war and death. They couldn't mention it or else it would be destroyed.
The bathroom door opened and Harry walked out, his wet hair plastered to his forehead. Hermione hurriedly performed a drying charm, amused that he hadn't done one himself.
"Thanks," he said. "What would I do without you?"
Hermione blushed and dropped her wand, hastily bending down to retrieve it. When she straitened, Harry gave her a crooked smile, eyes dancing with laughter.
"I have a theory," he said, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
"Oh, yes?" she said. "And what's that?"
"We've already found a horcrux."
He looked at her proudly, waiting for agreement.
"Oh… um… what?" said Hermione, disappointed. She'd been hoping he'd finally bring up the subject of them.
"Don't you remember?" he leaned forward, eyes gleaming with excitement. "Last year, at Grimmauld Place, we found-"
Hermione gasped. "The locket! Oh, Harry… do you think…"
"Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I do."
"But then…" her voice was hushed. "Then-you think…"
"Regulus Black," Harry said. "Makes sense, right?"
"Sense…" Hermione repeated. "But, Harry, Regulus Black… he died a long time ago, didn't he?"
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, and hid the locket at Grimmauld Place. Don't you see?"
He stood up and grabbed his wand. Hermione narrowed her eyes warily.
"Harry, you can't… I mean, we can't just rush over there and-"
"Why not?" he said. "That's what we're doing here, isn't it, destroying horcruxes?"
"Yes, but-but… Harry, think for a moment, won't you?" Hermione gestured around her. "It could be anywhere by now-and we can't simply show up at Grimmauld Place!"
"Why?" Harry said, beginning to lose his temper. "I own it, don't I?"
"I know, but-"
"Hermione, we have a real chance here! I don't understand why you're so against this."
"Well, we can wait for Ron, at least, can't we? It's not going anywhere."
Harry glared at her. Hermione tried not to cry. An hour ago, they had been so happy, so wrapped up in each other.
She could see Harry digging in his heels, refusing to heed her arguments. Frustrated, she clenched her fingers together, trying to stay calm.
"I'm going," Harry said coolly. "And it's your choice on whether or not you'll come."
"Oh, but Harry… what will a few more hours matter? Surely if you've waited this long, we can take the time to come up with a plan!"
"A plan?" He took a few steps towards her. "The plan? The plan is to find the locket and destroy it. Don't you get it, Hermione? We don't have hours! While we're in here yelling, Voldemort is out there killing people!"
"Alright, fine!" she said, tears spilling over. She wiped furiously at her eyes. "Let's go."
Without waiting for an answer, Hermione Apparated away, relieved when she found herself in Grimmauld Place's kitchen and not splinched. There was a crack and Harry appeared next to her.
Hermione turned around in a circle, looking around her. The house was empty. No traces of the Order could be seen, leading Hermione to wonder what affect Dumbledore's death would have on it.
"I'm sure they're still functioning," Harry said, echoing her thoughts. "But I don't reckon the house is near as safe as it was. Their Secret Keeper is gone."
He moved around. "Where should we start?"
"Oh, Harry, haven't you learned anything at Hogwarts?" Harry frowned and she raised her wand. "Accio locket!"
A dozen golden chains zoomed into the kitchen, all of them smashing into her chest before dropping to the floor.
"Oof," she whispered as she and Harry bent down to look at them. "Oh, yes," she muttered. "I'm perfectly fine. No need to be concerned."
"Good," Harry said vaguely, pulling out a locket in the middle of the pack. "This is it."
Very carefully, he set it on the table, as if fearing it might burn him. They stood side by side, staring at it.
Hermione rubbed her chest and studied it. "I don't know. I mean, the hard part was finding it, right? Perhaps it won't be too terribly difficult to destroy it."
They exchanged an uneasy look. Dumbledore nearly lost a hand destroying one of them.
"Well…" Hermione said. "What if we… stomp on it?"
Neither of them moved.
"Er…" Harry said, swallowing. "Maybe it's best if we… keep our distance."
"Good point," Hermione said weakly. She raised her wand and she and Harry took a step backwards. "Destructo!"
Her hand gave a nervous jump, misdirecting the spell. The kitchen sink exploded.
"Sorry," she said as Harry muttered a quick "reparo."
She took a deep breath to steady herself. She focused on the locket on the table until it was the only thing in her line of vision.
"Destructo!"
There was a flash of green light, blinding her. She heard her wand clutter to the floor. She pressed her hands to her eyes.
Fire… there was fire everywhere… she was burning. She clamped her hands to her ears and crumpled. It was spreading, taking over every part of her body. She couldn't move.
Fire
It burnt through every particle and cell, leaving nothing behind. She opened her mouth to scream and wail, beg for it to stop, pleaseohplease, stop…
***
The first thing she felt when she woke up was someone stroking her hair. She stayed still, letting the gentle pressure soothe her.
"Harry?" she whispered.
There was a moment of silence and then, "Hey."
Hermione bravely opened her eyes. Harry's blurry face stared down at her. His hand moved from her hair to her cheek, his fingers moving in tiny circles.
"Hermione…" he whispered. He bent, touching his lips to her cheek before kissing her chin and the corner of her mouth.
"You're okay," she said.
He nodded, face still pressed up against hers. She let her fingers slide into his hair, messaging his scalp. He took a deep breath and kissed her, letting his lips linger on hers before he pulled away.
He sat next to her on the bed, holding her hand. She glanced around, relieved to see they were still at Grimmauld Place. She couldn't have been unconscious that long.
"What happened?" she whispered. "How did I…?"
He bowed his head, his hold on her hand tightening.
"I burned it."
Her eyes snapped to his face. "The locket? You-"
"Burned it," he said. "Set it on fire. Turns out that's how to destroy it."
Hermione shivered. "How did you know?"
"You." His voice turned fainter. "I thought at first that your curse had rebounded. But then… it looked like you were having a fit." He swallowed and looked in her eyes, his regret a tangible presence. "You kept yelling that you were on fire… that you were burning… I didn't know what else to do."
She sat up, the pain of the horcrux's attack coming back to her. She slid into his arms, releasing a small sigh when he held her tightly. This-like this-she felt safe.
Harry kissed her shoulder before pressing his cheek to hers.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled.
"Oh, Harry," she said. "It's not your fault."
"You were right, I should've-"
"No," she said, pulling back so she could shush him. "You were right too. There is no manual on how to do this, no instruction book. We're going blind on this, Harry. The only way is to go at it one step at a time."
"Maybe," he said. "But you-I… Hermione-"
"I know." She kissed him, reassuring both of them she was alright.
When they broke their kiss, she let her head fall against his shoulder. "I'm so tired," she said.
Harry rocked her, cradling her like she might break. A wave of tenderness passed through her and she could feel how much he cared for her. Her eyes closed, his hands now rubbing over her back.
She only hoped that one day he would be able to tell her.