A/N: Thought I should let you all know that after this chappie, there's only going to be one more. I want to thank you all for reading and reviewing this story. Believe it or not, the first chapters sat in my computer for months. I wasn't sure whether you guys were going to like it or not. I'm glad I finally took the courage to post it. It's been great to see you actually liked it.
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13. I Need You
Harry was going through a similar agony.
The last two weeks had been very difficult for him. At first, he thought his mind was playing games with him. A repetitive dream was driving him insane. More than a dream, it was more like an image: The image of a beautiful witch with gorgeous chocolate brown eyes and bouncy curls.
In his dream, the image of Hermione wouldn't do anything, not even talk to him. She'd just walk around, look at him, play with her hair, any nonsense thing. What had Harry on edge was that the Hermione of his dreams would be wearing only one thing, the blasted black thong.
Harry thought he was turning into a perverted lunatic.
The dammed thing still sat in his nightstand's drawer. He hadn't taken it out afraid of his own reaction to the devilish thing.
"Being with her was such an unexpected thing that my mind is still trying to process it," he had strongly tried to convince himself But then, why did Hermione continue to invade not only his dreams, but also his thoughts? He could try and place all the blame on his subconscious for dreaming nonstop about her, but what about when he was awake?
There was one more thing he couldn't explain to himself the - also unexpected - jealousy he felt whenever he thought of Hermione and Charles, or anybody else for that matter. Of course there was the brotherly affection that makes you look critically at your best friend's boyfriend, but this was totally different.
Was he falling for Hermione? Could that be it? Harry was certain of one thing; he didn't want her out of his life. He just couldn't take it.
The three weeks didn't see Hermione had seemed to him like months, years! He had missed her. He had missed her so much. There had been occasions before when they went months in a row without seeing each other. And he had missed her, yes, but not like this, to the point that it ached him not to have her around.
One question, though, would quickly come to his mind when analyzing his feelings for her. Was one night enough to fall in love?
He was just thinking about that when the door of the room suddenly opened. Harry had been standing by the window, not able to sleep, still wearing his own clothes. He had taken off the shirt he had on earlier, leaving his white cotton undershirt. As soon as he heard the door opening, he turned around.
There was Hermione.
The room was only illuminated with the moonlight that came thought the open window. Still, he could see her quite clearly. She was barefoot wearing a light, soft pink night gown that went down to her middle thigh.
Without saying a word, Hermione walked in and closed the door behind her. She didn't move for a few seconds, staring at him silently. Finally, she walked up to him.
Harry was speechless. With Hermione standing next to him, he could see how the moonlight reflected on her tanned skin, giving it a soft glow. He loved to see how the breeze played with her curls, which she had down.
But most of all, he could smell her scent. It was intoxicating. Harry closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. The most wonderful sensation filled his mind. He then opened his eyes to confirm that in fact she was standing there next to him.
Hermione looked right into his green eyes and tried to tell him with her own eyes just how much he meant to her. She looked at his broad shoulders and his firm chest.
Oh, how much she loved him!
Taking a step closer to him, she broke the silence. "I need you," she said in a desperate way.
For all response, Harry opened up his arms to her. She quickly went to him and grabbed hold of his shoulders as his arms closed around her waist. She buried her head in his chest and felt how the warmth and the scent of his body invaded her senses.
After a while, Harry took a hand off her waist and placed it under her chin, bringing her face up. They looked right into the other's eyes. There was no need for words. Their eyes spoke for them.
Slowly, Harry lowered his head and covered her lips with his. Soon after, Hermione's arms found their way into his raven hair. They kissed each other with so much need. A dance of lips and tongues took place as they tried to get as close as possible. Harry's hands caressed her bare arms and played with her curls.
The need to breath made them pull apart for a few seconds. But as soon as a little oxygen reached their lungs, they plunged into each other again.
Then, Hermione took a step back from him. Harry was about to pull her back into his arms when he saw her reaching for the hem of her night gown. Slowly, she lifted it up to finally toss it aside.
Harry gasped. Underneath her silky gown, there was nothing else covering her flawless body. He took a few seconds to admire her and take in as much detail as he could.
Finally, the urge to touch her was too much to resist. He took a step forward, encircled her in his arms and kissed her with all he had.
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Hermione's mind slowly began to wake up, but she refused to open her eyes. She had had the most wonderful dream. She had dreamed about Harry making love to her. She could still feel his hands caressing her body. She could still feel his lips on hers… hang on!
Her eyes suddenly opened wide. She quickly sat up. "It wasn't a dream!" her mind yelled at her.
She took a look around. She was in Alfred's bedroom, not in the usual guestroom she'd always occupy. Hermione looked to her side, thinking she'd find Harry there. But he wasn't.
"It did happen, right?" she asked herself. "It wasn't a dream."
She then noticed her night gown on the floor. Her body was only covered by the white sheets. "It did happen! But then, where is he?" she thought.
"Harry?" she called out, but no reply came.
Her breathing started to accelerate. "Calm down," she told herself. "He might just be in the kitchen."
With that idea in mind, she wrapped the sheets around her body and left the room. She looked around for him. She even called out his name a couple more times, but he wasn't in the house.
Hermione stood in the middle of the sitting room, desperately trying to hold back her tears. But the emotion she was filling was too intense; she couldn't hold them any longer. Her knees gave way as her tears started to roll down.
"Oh god!" she said as she hugged herself. "How could I be so stupid?"
She had been so wrong to think that he could feel the same way. He had left. He had done it again. But it had felt so real to her. His eyes had been so full of emotion. Could she have read it wrong? Could she have made a mistake?
"Then why did he take me?" she thought, but she immediately responded to her own question. "What else could he do? I went into his room and offered it to him."
Hermione had promised to herself that she wouldn't cry anymore for him, but she had totally failed. Her whole body started to shake as loud sobs escaped from her mouth.
Suddenly, the glass door that led to the beach opened and Harry walked in. He was wearing one of Alfred's t-shirts, which was drenched with sweat. His wet fangs stack to his forehead.
As soon as he stepped in, he saw Hermione on the floor, wrapped in a bed sheet, crying. In two steps, he was kneeling at her side.
"Hermione!" he said urgently, grabbing hold of her shoulders. "What's wrong?"
Hearing his voice, Hermione looked up. Harry was there! He hadn't left! With that realization illuminating her mind, she threw herself into his arms.
"Baby, what is it?" he asked concernedly while he gently stroked her hair.
It took Hermione a few seconds to calm down and regain the ability to speak. "You're here," she finally managed to say, though her voice was barely audible.
"Of course, I'm here," he repeated not sure of what she had meant by that. Then, it dawned on him. "Oh, Mione!" he said as he gently pulled her away to look at her face. "You thought I'd left, didn't you?"
Hermione didn't reply. She simply looked down.
"Baby, I'm so sorry," he said bringing her back into his arms. "I went for a run in the beach." Hermione pulled away from him.
"I woke up quite early and I thought about going for a run in the beach," he said as he dried her tears with his fingers. "You were sleeping so peacefully, I… I didn't have the heart to wake you. I was sure I was going to be back before you'd be up."
Hermione slowly began to feel how life was coming back to her, but she still needed to clear things out. "So…" she said. "Harry, you…"
"I care about you Hermione," he interrupted her. "More than you think, more than I even thought. I haven't been able to take you out of my mind since… well, since that day."
Hermione looked down with a half smile on her face and a little more color on her cheeks. Of course, she knew which day he was talking about.
"It just took me a while," he continued. "To realize what I really felt. That day Hermione, I discovered how much I need you, and not just to save my ass when I'm in trouble as I always thought. I need you to breath, to live."
She smiled at him. Once again, tears started to fill up her eyes. This time, however, it was out of happiness.
"These weeks without you," he said as he caressed her face. "Have been hell for me not only because I missed you lots but also because I kept dreaming about you and your blasted… thong."
Soft giggles came out of her mouth. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The emotion that was filling up her heart was too intense that she covered her face with her hands.
"Please, don't cry anymore," he quickly said. "I hate to see you like this. And I hate myself for making you go through this."
Hermione lifted up her face so he could see she wasn't crying anymore. "I'm just so happy," she said. "I can't believe this is true."
"You'd better believe it," he added, cupping her face with his hands. "Because you won't be able to get rid of me anymore." After that, he placed a soft kiss in her lips. Hermione quickly responded to him placing her arms around his neck.
After they broke apart, Harry held her by the elbows and helped her to stand up. But since her hands were still on his neck, the sheets didn't lift up with her body. They pooled around her ankles.
Harry looked down at her and smiled.
Not caring about it, Hermione stood on her tip toes and kissed his lips. Soon after, they ended back on the floor as he decided to show her right there just how much she meant to him.
---------------------------------------------------
Harry and Hermione enjoyed a couple of wonderful days in the beach house. Since Hermione had already made plans to go back to London the following Sunday, Harry decided he could stay with her until then.
"What about Moody?" Hermione asked him, knowing that he was supposed to report back to headquarters.
"Don't worry about it," he said pulling a strand of hair away from her face. "I'll deal with it when we get back home."
They totally enjoyed those days at the beach. Getting up late, not precisely because they'd sleep in, but well… let's just say their nights had been quite busy. The truth was not only their nights were restless, but any time of the day was fine with them.
Being alone in a somewhat isolated place gave them the freedom to enjoy and experience their sexual relations freely. There was no room left in the house where they hadn't done it.
When their bodies needed a brake and some fresh air, Harry and Hermione would go to the small town and walk around the spotless street or have something to eat at the small café.
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On their last night at the beach house, Harry and Hermione were at the beach, sitting in a blanket placed on the sand. The sun had been gone for a while, but they were still sitting there, admiring the scenery.
They had been quiet for a while, just enjoying the wonderful sensation of having the other by their side.
Harry turned around to see her face. She was smiling. Lately, it seemed like that smile was always on her face. She looked so beautiful with the soft glow of the moon, her cheeks rosy from the wind hitting them, her curls flying freely.
He slowly raised her hand and caressed the side of her face. Her smiled widen as she looked at him from the corner of her eyes.
"How could I've been so blind?" he asked himself. All of his adult life, he had been looking for someone to make a life with, someone to love, someone who'd love him back. He hadn't realized before it but when he had gone out with a girl, he had always measured her up to Hermione.
It was as if his subconscious would be screaming at him the direction he was supposed to take. But he had been so dense not to see it.
What he had been looking for was there next to him. It had always been there. Hermione always gave him what he needed. She had been his best friend, his ally, his adventure companion, his conscious' voice, his teacher, his savior in several occasions, even a bit of a bad influence.
She had been by his side in the toughest of times and had put up with him during his outbursts. She had cried for him, smiled with him, fought with him. There was just no him without her.
After all these thoughts had invaded his mind, Harry realized there was only one thing left for him to do. He moved around to face her and took her hands in his.
"Hermione," he said softly. She turned to face him as well. "I love you."
Hermione opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She tightened the grip on his hands and swallow hard. "I love you, too," she finally managed to say.
She was about to get closer to him and kiss his lips when he spoke again.
"I want to ask you something," she stopped at midway and sat back to listen to him. "It may sound like it's too late to be asking you this but I'd figure you were never really given the choice before."
Hermione looked at him curious to know what he wanted to say. Seeing his expectant expression, Harry chuckled a bit, perhaps out of nerves. Getting a bit closer to her, he finally spoke.
"Would you… would you like to be my wife?"
Hermione looked at him and was about to laugh, but his expression was so serious she decided not to. "But Harry," she replied. "I already am your wife. The divorce didn't go thought without my signature…"
"I know that," he interrupted her. "But you were forced into it. I want to know Hermione if you, here," he placed a hand over her heart, "are willing to be with me for the rest of your life."
Hermione looked right at his green eyes. "Of course I do," she said in a whisper.
He leaned down and caught her lips with his to seal their promise with a sweet kiss.