DISCLAIMER: All belongs to JKR.
A/N: I don't care how much I read OR who says what. I will proudly slip under the water with H/Hr if I must. Harry and Hermione have it. Regardless of what JKR says, H/Hr the only way to go and I refuse to give up…even when it's over.
H/Hr FOREVER!
Hang in there and keep the faith! If nothing else, we've got them here…and they're AMAZING! Thanks to all the authors here for their stories and to the readers for all your reviews. Much love to all…keep it up!
P.S. Also, anyone wanting a bit more `Discovery' please not that I do plan to finish that story. I'm working on a story with both of my lovely partners as well which combine theory with story. I think you'll enjoy them.
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The end of their sixth year had come on gone. Harry and Hermione were staying with the Weasleys, helping with the final preparations for Bill and Fleur's upcoming wedding. Harry was feeling a bit out-of-sorts what with his recent breakup with Ginny. He wasn't sure any longer if the Burrow was the comfortable place it had been the summer before and he was anxious to be on his way to Godric's Hollow.
He spent many hours pondering the reasons for his sudden, almost obsessive, attraction to the youngest Weasley. Yes, she was pretty. Yes, she had, for the most part, a sense of humor that kept him laughing despite the goings-on of his rather cursed life. But those were things that Harry assumed had always been there. Why, suddenly, was he unable to shake the thoughts of her that had begun to plague him day and night?
As much as he thought, pondered, wondered, considered, fretted…you name it, it all seemed to boil down to that first potions class when the flowery smell reached his nose. He remembered associating it with the Burrow but having no conscious idea of where exactly at the Burrow he had smelled it. It was a light scent, reminiscent somewhat, of the days when his Uncle Vernon was away at work and he was free to sit amongst the flowers in his Aunt's garden and daydream. Life was peaceful for him during those times and, so long as he didn't dwell on the reasons he enjoyed being out there and alone, they were all he had to treasure from his days with the Dursleys.
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"Oi, Ginny…"
"…where'd this come from?"
Fred and George's exuberant voices brought Harry abruptly from his current reverie. He'd been slipping in and out of conscious thought since the train ride back from Hogwarts. His short stint at the Dursley's had given him nothing but ample time to think on his own odd behavior throughout the past year…he was no closer to discovering the reason.
"It's perfume," Ginny said, reaching for the bottle.
"Where'd ya get it?"
"Found it, why? How's it your business?"
Fred took the lid off the bottle and took a whiff of the fragrant perfume before passing it to George with a smirk.
George eyed Fred cryptically and Fred nodded his head, his eyes wide and the smirk still comfortably on his face.
"This is the…" George began.
"…gift Ron gave Hermione last year." Finished Fred, with a knowing look.
Hermione snatched the bottle from George's hand. "I've been looking all over for that," she exclaimed, casting her eyes downward and away from Ron's pained expression. "How'd you get it?" she asked, looking directly at Ginny.
"Found it upstairs," she said, shrugging her shoulders casually, "thought it belonged to mum or something, so I took it. You got it back now, what difference does it make? Besides, I didn't use that much." She looked up to the twins in hopes of redirecting everyone's attention to them. "And how did you know Ron gave it to Hermione last year?"
This time it was Ron's turn to bow his head. His cheeks burning red as he looked sheepishly at Hermione. "They gave it to me. I needed a gift and didn't have any money. Asked Fred and George. They were right glad to give it to me though," he added quickly, turning the attention back to the twins.
"So, right then," Fred said.
"All's right now, isn't it?" said George.
Hermione studied them curiously and felt a sudden sense of dread. "What's in that bottle?" she demanded.
"Perfume, right George?"
"Yeah, just, um, perfume, Fred. So far as I know."
Hermione stood and though she was quite a lot shorter, she looked at them challengingly. Fred and George took a hurried step backward.
"Well, it was just a joke, really…"
"…yeah, Hermione, just a joke. Ha ha ha and all that."
Hermione was suddenly seething and the tension in the air was thick. Everyone cowered as Hermione took a step toward Fred and George. "What. is. in. that. bottle?" she demanded again.
"Just a bit of a uh…"
"…lovepotion," Fred finished on a cough.
"WHAT?" Hermione and Ron yelled together.
"We thought it might be a bit funny, you know…"
"It's not strong really…"
"It's right mild, is what it is!" exclaimed Fred.
"…compared to what we sell now," George added proudly.
Ginny was giggling softly where she sat and Hermione cast her sharp look that shut her up instantly.
Harry watched in silence, fascinated by Hermione's strength.
"Love potions have to be ingested to work," she stated. "You didn't really believe I'd eat this did you?" She held the bottle up between them.
"Well, you do…"
"…except when you buy it…"
"…at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!" they finished together.
"So all this time," Ron said gasping, "Hermione's been wearing a…a love potion?" He swallowed hard.
"We thought it'd be a bit funny…"
"Hermione's always jumping on us about testing our stuff…"
"…thought it'd be good fun to test one on her."
"So," Hermione said, dropping her head in an expression of defeat, "what you're telling me is that I can't even get someone to fall for me when I wear a love potion. Is that it? Because I certainly haven't seen anyone beating down my door."
"No," Fred and George shouted out together. "It doesn't work like that…"
"…it doesn't work that way."
"How do you mean?" Hermione asked sullenly.
Fred looked at her curiously. "Are you in love with someone?"
"Excuse me?" Hermione said loudly. "What would that…? Why?"
Harry sat up straighter, suddenly more interested than he'd been up to this point. All eyes were on the three battling it out in the middle of the Weasley living room.
Fred took a deep breath. "You're a bright witch. Think about it."
"Love potions can't create real love," Harry said quietly from where he sat. He looked up at the twins questioningly, "They can't overpower it either? I saw it overpower a Muggle once."
"Muggles are different, Harry," Fred replied.
"And we didn't make our love potions to overpower the real thing. If a witch or wizard is in love with someone else, it won't work,"
"Can I see that, Hermione?" Harry asked, holding his hand out for the bottle.
Very slowly Hermione handed him the bottle. Harry grasped it in his hand and twisted off the lid, he recognized the flowery smell the moment it reached his nose. He lowered both the bottle and the lid, his eyes never leaving Hermione's. "Have you worn this?" he asked softly.
Hermione nodded, feeling a bit uneasy about the look in Harry's eyes. "A little, everyday last summer. Until I lost it, anyway. Why?"
Harry returned his attention to Fred and George. "What if it did work? What if a witch or wizard is in love with someone else yet fell for the wrong person anyway? How does that happen?"
Harry vaguely registered the gasp from where Ginny sat.
The twins looked down at her with narrowed eyes before returning their attention to Harry. "S'pose there're several ways."
"Some a bit tricky though."
"You got the real stuff, you could put them together…"
"…increase the potency."
"But the real stuff, wouldn't you have to ingest that?" Hermione interrupted, fascinated once again by the twins' gift for magic.
"Not with what we got in there," Fred replied.
"The real stuff'll just give it a boost. We do that for customers on occasion…"
"…when they ask special."
"Is there any other time?" asked Harry.
Fred and George looked at each other and shrugged. "Reckon if you were a bit overwhelmed already."
"Like you Harry. If a girl was wearing this around you,"
"…what with all you got on your mind,"
"…you'd probably fall right for it."
"A bloke like Ron here'd fall instant…"
"…mind's a bit blank, you know."
Ron opened his mouth to argue when Harry put up his hand, preventing any words from escaping.
"Why?" Harry asked. "Why would I fall right for it?"
"What's going on, Harry? Why all the questions?" Harry turned to find Hermione's hand on his arm and her brow furrowed in worry.
With barely an acknowledgment he turned back to Fred and George. "Say, for example, I was in love. Why would it affect me if someone other than that person was wearing it?"
"Maybe your defenses are down," Fred said, trying to keep his voice light.
"Or maybe," Hermione interrupted, "the girl wearing it is obsessed with you to the point that she not only made it stronger by adding real love potion to it, but played mind games with you as well."
Harry shook his head. "What are you talking about, Hermione? Mind games?"
Hermione looked pointedly at Ginny. Ginny dropped her head.
Harry stood up abruptly and faced Hermione. "Forget about it. It doesn't matter anymore. Fancy a walk?" he asked her, looking down at the bottle and screwing the lid back into place.
"Sure…yeah," she replied hesitantly, her eyes searching his face for any sign of what he might need from her. She assumed he wanted some sort of consolation for falling for Ginny when he was so obviously in love with someone else. "I'd like that."
Harry set the bottle down and led the way toward the door, Hermione trailing close behind him. Once outside there were a few moments of awkward silence as they put distance between themselves and the Burrow.
When Hermione felt she could no longer take the silence, she put her hand on his arm to halt his steps. Harry continued to study the ground. "Harry, what is it? What's on your mind?" she asked gently.
"That perfume."
"Why? I don't understand."
"I smelled it you know," he said, finally chancing a glance at her. "That day...in potions. I remembered it from the Burrow, but I didn't know why."
"But I was wear…" Hermione paused as the realization struck her "ing it at the Burr…oh."
"I smelled it on Ginny later. I thought it was her..."
"Want to know what I smelled that day?" Hermione interrupted. "The third thing, I mean."
Harry looked at her and nodded his head. "Yeah...yeah, I do. What was it?"
"I don't know."
"What kind of answer is that, Hermione?" he said, chuckling softly.
"It's hard to describe really," she said with a faraway look on her face. "All I know is that it smelled like...like you."
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