Harry awoke the next morning and got ready 'today's the day' he thought to himself. He left his bedroom to find Ron sitting on the couch staring at the wall. He looked upset and Harry immediately knew something had happened between him and Hermione. His thoughts seemed to crash in on him and he could hardly breathe. 'Oh God, does he know?' was his primary thought, and he sat down gingerly next to him. He didn't know how long they sat in silence for before Ron finally spoke.
"She wants someone else Harry," he said miserably. "I tried to kiss her last night. I though that's what she wanted but she just leapt away from me like I was diseased…" Harry felt a mixture of anger, triumph, relief and guilt. He didn't know what to say. If he tried to comfort him then he would feel like he was backstabbing him. If he tried to say everything would be ok, he would be lying. He certainly didn't want to tell him to give it another go. He also felt like punching him for kissing Hermione, which made him feel awful. In the end he settled with the best thing he could dome up with.
"I'm sorry mate," he said, and wished that Ron knew how truly sorry he was. Ron nodded numbly.
"I don't want to lose her over this," Ron continued "We're mates you know? I want us to always be mates, but I just feel so angry right now." Harry nodded dumbly and joined Ron in staring at the wall.
"I've liked her for so long Harry," he said "I want to still be friends with her, but I don't know if I can just turn my feelings off. I just…she made me look like a total prat last night. Why couldn't she have just told me?"
"Maybe she didn't think you two could be friends if she told you that. Your friendship means a lot to her Ron. Maybe she didn't want to risk that…" said Harry, hoping that there was some way their friendship could be salvaged.
"We'll always be friends. I just don't know how I can forgive her. If I ever find out who that other bloke is…he'll be sorry. God Harry…" groaned Ron "I don't know if I can handle seeing her with someone else right now."
"Don't worry about that Ron." said Harry. Ron looked up and smiled at Harry, and he felt a stab of guilt pierce his chest. "Just see how it goes. See if you two can try to be friends. It'll be worth it, after all we were all friends before this all happened. We can still be friends." Ron nodded his head in agreement and stood up.
"I'm gonna go to breakfast, doubt I can eat though. I said I'd meet Luna down there…apparently she made me something. Totally mad that one," he said, and he made his way to the door. 'It's really bad if he's not willing to eat because of Hermione' Harry thought, and felt like the worst friend on earth. At the same time his feelings wouldn't go away. Maybe in a couple of months they would, the way they had with Ginny and Cho he thought hopefully. A little voice in the back of his mind said to him 'but will it this time?' he pushed it quickly to the back of his mind of made his way to the Great Hall, wondering if there was any point in trying to eat when he was this nervous.
The trio walked down the hallway on the seventh floor towards the room of requirement. The tension was audible. Ron and Hermione had hardly said a word to each other. 'At least they're not tearing each other's throats out,' Harry thought. They finally came upon the area they were looking for, marked by the tapestry of the dancing troll. They all began to pace up and down, thinking the same thing.
'I need somewhere to hide something…'
After a few paces back and forth, a door appeared. They all looked at each other and steeled themselves to go inside. They walked inside and Ron gasped.
"This place is huge! Look at all the junk everywhere! Look at this! Who do you reckon got whacked with this then, eh?" said Ron excitedly, indicating towards the blood stained axe Harry had seen last year. Hermione smiled at Ron's eagerness and Ron abruptly stopped.
"Well, uh, back to work then." he said stiffly 'Where is this thing?" They walked towards one of the many alleyways and began making their way towards the Horcrux. Harry could feel a ball of nerves in the pit of his stomach. They walked for some time before finding the old blistered cupboard, with the ugly bust on top. Ron looked from Harry to Hermione, seemingly speechless.
"Well," said Harry "It's now or never I suppose." He reached up and took the bust down from the cupboard. He looked at Hermione and Ron and then tried to steady his breathing. He reached his hand towards the tiara…and noticed that the lights seemed to flicker a little. After they steadied Harry began moving his hand forward again. He felt something akin to pin and needles begin to travel from the base of his spine to his shoulder blades. His hand was four inches away, and Ron thought he heard something peculiar moving around the room. A look a fright passed across his face, but Hermione and Harry seemed not to notice. Harry's hand was three inches away…two inches away. The lights began to flicker wildly once more and cast hideous shapes upon the wall. One inch…his fingers brushed against it…
THUD
They stopped and looked around wildly, the room seemed to be much dimmer and the floor was groaning beneath them.
"I, uh, think we should get out of here," said Ron nervously. Harry shook his head in vigorous agreement. He looked around quickly and then grabbed the tiara with one quick swoop. He hadn't even stood up before a sickly cracking sound began to come towards them. Ron and Hermione were frozen to the spot, not wanting to see what was making the noise but unable to look away.
"RUN!" shouted Harry. That seemed to be enough for Ron and Hermione and they spun around quickly and began to follow Harry's lead. Harry shoved the tiara hurriedly into his robes and ran faster. He determined that the cracking sound was coming from the floor…something was breaking through the floorboards. It sounded like the wood was being tortured, screaming until the point of release. A deafening bang filled the room and Harry knew at once that whatever had been trying to get up from under them had done so successfully.
They took a left by a shelf of old sherry bottles and began running wildly down the alley.
"WHAT DO WE DO NOW HARRY?" shouted Ron in panic.
"WE NEED TO FIND THE EXIT! THE DOOR FACES NORTH, SO WE CAN USE OUR WANDS TO HELP!" Harry shouted back.
"SHUT UP!" Hermione shouted. They both shut up quickly, which would have made Mrs Weasley proud.
"I don't think shouting out where we are is really going to help us at the moment." she said crossly. They jogged further up the alley when they heard a strange whooshing sound…and turned in time to see the lights at the far end of the room powering down… They watched with fear and the lights went out alley after alley.
"This is definitely not a good sign," squeaked Ron, clutching onto Hermione.
"We have to run as far as we can while the lights at this end hold out, I have a feeling we're in some serious trouble after that…" said Harry quickly. So they continued to run through the alleys. Before taking turns one of them would murmur 'point me' so that they were going in the right direction. Finally Harry could see the door in the distance and felt relief spread through him…then the lights went out.
'Lumos,' muttered Hermione. Harry turned around to thank her and stopped suddenly as he saw their pale and scared faces. Harry could feel something cold tickling his neck. Without thinking he spun around and thought 'stupefy!' A large crash echoed around the room and whatever had been about to attack them fell into the piles of junk surrounding them. All three of them ran quickly to the end of the alley. Harry could hear nothing but the beating of his heart in his ears. Ron stopped a quickly grabbed the bloody axe with a grim smile, then continued following. As they rounded the corner they stopped as they looked on in horror…
The floor was cracking right in front of them, and deathly white hands began to grab the splintered wood. The crack was getting wider and wider with every second that passed, and arms began to reach out. Harry and Ron leapt over the crack quickly. Hermione held her breath and jumped over the crack too… but no sooner had she become airborne when she felt something grip at her foot. She screamed in fear as she looked down and saw the things in the crack moving excitedly in her direction. Harry spun around quickly and slid along the floor. His legs were hanging over the crack and he could feel a painful pull at them. He grabbed Hermione roughly by the legs and threw her over his shoulder. She landed with a thud on the other side and looked up, horrified to see Harry half submerged in the crack. She rushed over and grabbed his hand quickly, trying to heave with all of her might.
"Ron!" she shouted desperately "Help me!" Ron turned around and his eyes widened at the sight before him. He rushed over to Hermione's side and grabbed Harry's arms. Together they pulled and pulled, trying hard to ignore the yells of pain that were coming from Harry from being pulled to both directions very violently. With a huge yell Ron yanked as hard as he could, and Harry was free.
Harry quickly thrust his wand into the crack. He could feel something grab at his arm and try to pull him in. Breathing quickly he thought 'incendio' and the white hands and arms began to turn a sickly orange colour…the fire spread quickly and as Harry looked back he could see a trail of fire around the room. He stood up frantically and gestured for them to continue running. He could see the door… it was only a couple of metres away! Ron was shouting something but Harry could only think of getting to the door. A metre away and a dull thus pierced Harry's consciousness. He looked around and saw that Ron had swung his axe into a grotesque creature towering over him. Harry looked up with a look amazement and terror. The creatures' face looked like it had been smashed to pieces and stuck back together in an odd way. Its mouth looked like a bloody gash and as it opened its mouth he thought he could hear people screaming within it. Harry ran towards Ron and shoved him out of the way. He grabbed Hermione by the hand and yanked open the door. He thrust Hermione through and Ron followed shortly after. Harry was about to jump out when he felt an icy cold vice grip his leg. He looked down and saw the creatures' hand on his ankle. The hand seemed like it was pulsating, almost like worms crawling under the skin. Harry let out a soundless scream as he rose his wand 'Impedimenta!' he thought wildly. The beasts' hand released from Harry's leg and Harry kicked the disgusting face as hard as he could. It went flying towards the crack in the floor and with an unearthly scream, was consumed by the fire.
They ran back to their rooms, hoping that no one would see them looking such a state. They flung themselves through the door and Hermione quickly sealed it. Harry sat heavily on the couch and closed his eyes, trying to get the image of the burning creature out of his mind.
"What the bloody hell was that thing?" asked Ron. Hermione and Harry both shrugged their shoulders. Ron muttered to himself for a while, Harry could only here the odd words like 'axe', 'take that' and 'bloody hell'. He pretty much got the picture though. Harry looked over at Hermione and tried to see of she was hurt anywhere. Her hair was a bit dishevelled, but other than that she looked ok. Harry felt completely relieved. He closed his eyes and pondered the thoughts that had been flying wildly through his mind whilst they were running for their lives. He felt guilty. He had been worried about Ron of course, but he had kept close to Hermione at all costs. Everything he had done back there, he had done with her in his mind. He thought back to Luna's words the night before but quickly pushed them out of this mind. He wasn't ready to think about that yet. Hermione's voice interrupted his thoughts and he looked up at her and felt a wild urge to just grab her hand and run off with her. He tried to get a grip on himself and was suddenly aware of Hermione looking at him with a slight smiled on her face.
"What?" Harry asked her.
"I asked if you felt up to destroying the Horcrux now. I don't feel comfortable having that thing with us…" Harry nodded his head in agreement and sat up on the couch. He retrieved the tiara from his robes, and they all just stared at it for a while. Harry thought he could feel the magic within the tiara, and then wondered if he was going mad.
"Can anyone else feel that?" Ron asked timidly. They both nodded their heads and Harry felt mildly relieved.
"It's almost like there's magic in here," said Harry "But I thought only people were really magical…" He looked towards Hermione hoping she would know something about it.
"Well you know that there are magical things out there Harry! How can you think it's only people?" she asked him incredulously.
"That's not the kind of magic that this is though," said Harry, "I can feel the magic in here. I've never felt that before…" To Harry's surprise Ron was the one who explained it.
"I was always told that there is magic in everything around us," he said, "Great witches and wizards used to be able to put their magic into objects. So if ever they were weakened in some way they could use the power in the object. But magic Harry, magic is all around us. The most powerful witches and wizards in history have been able to use the magic from the smallest ant to the largest tree. But not just anyone can use this kind of power. You have to get the permission from whatever it is that has the magic you want, and that isn't easy. It's not well practiced for those reasons. I remember Fred and George tried it when we were little and they set their hair on fire…"
Hermione stared at Ron open mouthed, Harry was just amazed by the whole concept and was staring at the floor trying to imagine the great and powerful witches and wizards that he had never heard of. Ron got sick of Hermione's open-mouthed stare and finally retorted with -
"Don't worry, I didn't read a book or anything. My granddad used to tell us all kinds of stuff when we were little…" He blushed a little when Hermione eyed him slightly suspiciously. Harry moved the tiara to the top of his head and could feel his scalp prickling slightly. He tried to make his mind blank and think of nothing but the tiara. He didn't know how long he sat there for, but eventually when the tiara was the only thing that filled his mind he uttered the words
'Liberatio pravus fascino'
Harry felt his energy being drained from his body bit by bit. First his leg felt like he had a jelly legs jinx cast on him. Then his arms started to feel quite numb and his head was getting dizzy. He slumped back into the couch, his energy depleted. He could feel a slight burning sensation from the tiara…but not uncomfortable enough to be painful. Harry's vision swan before his eyes, and just when he thought he was about to pass out the tiara fell from his head and slammed onto the floor. Harry's vision cleared, and he saw a green patch of mould growing on the wall opposite him. He wondered if maybe he was going mad, then Hermione stood up and raised her wand. 'No!' Harry wanted to shout 'Please don't try and destroy it, I don't want you to get hurt!' but when he opened his mouth a groan was all that came out. Hermione closed her eyes and concentrated on the murky green patch. A cold chill filled the air, and then a bright white light flashed from the end of Hermione's wand and collided with the green. They watched, transfixed, as the green turned to a light green, then a dull white. Then finally, it disappeared. Ron sighed deeply and began to shake his head. She turned to the tiara and used the spell Harry had shown her, and purged it of all evil.
"I don't get it," he said looking confused "I was expecting some huge fight to the death! Look what happened to Dumbledore! It was harder getting the bloody thing than it was destroying it. Do you think we did it right?"
"Yes Ron," said Hermione patiently "Of course we did it right. I had a feeling this might happen. I think it was easier for Harry to destroy the soul because Harry was the one that was meant to do it. When Voldemort tried to kill Harry as a baby he 'marked him as his equal.' Not only did he give Harry some of his powers but also he gave him access to the very thing that will destroy him. Harry is the chosen one. I'm not usually into this prophecy nonsense but in this case I'll make an exception. Harry can destroy the Horcruxes because he was meant to do it." She looked at Harry meaningfully and he could see tears beginning to form "You will kill Voldemort Harry, because you are meant to do it. He gave you the power when he gave you that scar, and his mistake will be his downfall." With that she rushed over to Harry and buried her face in his chest and cried. Ron looked at Harry and rolled his eyes. He gave him a look as if to say 'Why do girls always get so emotional?' Harry stroked Hermione's hair, trying to comfort her but look nonchalant at the same time. After a while her cries subsided to hiccups, and eventually she was silent. Ron was feeling slightly uncomfortable at Hermione's emotions and decided that it was about time to get some lunch.
"I'm going to the kitchens," he announced loudly "What do you two want?" They both shrugged their shoulders and Ron mumbled something about having to get a bit of everything, and then left the room.
The second the door shut Hermione looked up at Harry with watery eyes.
"I was so scared Harry. I'm so glad you're ok…" Harry wrapped an arm around Hermione and tried to be comforting…but he was just so tired. He tried to tighten his arm around her but his arms wouldn't move. He felt his eyes closing out of exhaustion but didn't want Hermione to be worried.
"I know," he mumbled "I was scared of losing you. It's ok now though…s'ok…" and with that he fell into a deep sleep which he most definitely needed. Hermione looked at his sleeping face a smiled, feeling lighter than she had done if the last couple of days. She decided to take a walk while Harry was sleeping, so she quietly crept around to get her cloak, and then slipped through the door.
She walked to the lake and was thinking of the times that they had all spent sitting by it when they had been at school. She smiled to herself as she remembered Harry rescuing both Ron and Gabrielle Delacour during the second task of the Triwizard tournament. Just like Harry, always the hero... She heard someone approaching her from behind, and turned around clutching her wand. She wasn't sure whether to put it away or hold it tighter as Ginny stalked towards her.
"Hermione! I was hoping to catch you," she said smiling. Hermione lowered her wand and returned Ginny's smile. "Why haven't any of you come to see me? We're supposed to be friends you know, but you've all been hiding away since you got here!"
"Sorry Ginny. We meant to, we've just had so much to do since we got here that we haven't found the time," said Hermione apologetically.
"But not too busy to see Neville and Luna?" said Ginny, and crossed her arms defensively. Hermione rolled her eyes. She really didn't come for a walk to have an argument with Ginny.
"Neville and Luna stopped by on the night we arrived, but we haven't been going out of our way to meet up with them. Like I said, we've been quite busy." said Hermione, sounding final on the matter.
"He's not been too busy to see Luna though, has he?" said Ginny, her eyes narrowing "Everyone says they're going out now. I don't believe it mind you. You would be walking around here with red puffy eyes if he'd decided to go out with her."
"Ginny, I really don't want to discuss this with you," said Hermione, trying to keep the anger out of her voice "If you want to know why Harry hasn't come to see you then I suggest you go and ask him, not come and make snide remarks to me. We're friends at the moment, nothing more so you needn't worry about it."
"At the moment?" said Ginny and started to laugh, "So you actually think Harry might be attracted to you? Come on Hermione, you're his best friend, nothing more. You'd better start getting over him."
"Ginny," said Hermione warningly "You and I have always been friends, and if you want to keep it that way then you'll stop this nonsense. I'm sorry if you're hurt about you and Harry breaking up, but there's no need to take it out on me." Ginny raised her wand threateningly and pointed it towards Hermione. Naturally, Hermione did the same. They stood there for a few moments staring at each other...
"Ginny," said Hermione angrily "I doubt Harry will find you hexing his best friend very attractive. There's no need for this, put your wand down. We're supposed to be friends, remember?" Ginny stared at Hermione for a while longer, and then lowered her wand quickly.
"He'll come back to me once this is all over. I know he will. I think that you'd better start thinking that way too. It'll hurt you less in the long run." she said furiously and stormed off. Hermione was left standing there rather shocked at Ginny's actions. She had a horrible feeling that things between them were only going to get worse. The happy feeling she had earlier was replaced, once again, with melancholy. She sat on the grass and stared at the lake for a long time, trying to forget everything that was happening around her.
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