Disclaimer The Harry Potter universe and all the characters in it belong to J. K. Rowling. No infringement intended, just borrowing.
Chapter 6 - A breakfast surprise
Hermione opened her eyes the next morning and instinctively reached for Harry. Alas, he was not lying next to her. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept so well, and wondered if it had to do anything with the fact that they had fallen asleep in each others arms. She had never felt closer to him, spiritually or physically, than she had last night. She hoped it hadn't been a dream.
Hermione got out of bed, put on her bathrobe and went out into the hall. She heard the shower running in Harry's bathroom. She went into her bathroom to get ready for the day.
Later, showered and dressed, she sat in the kitchen with her morning tea and toast, reading The Daily Prophet when Harry entered. He was also showered and dressed with his hair still damp, sticking out from the top of his forehead.
"Morning, Hermione," he said, smiling at her. "Sleep well?"
He usually asked her that question, but given the circumstances last night, it made her feel a little bit exposed.
"Um, yeah. Harry," she replied looking away from him to sip her tea. He went about making his breakfast.
"Do you want eggs, Hermione? I'm making a cheese omelet - I'm really hungry this morning."
"Sure, I'll have a plain omelet, if you don't mind."
Harry prepared the food, then handed Hermione her omelet and sat down to dig into his.
"Mmm, this is good, if I do say so myself." Harry said, sounding chipper.
Hermione looked up at him quizzically as he was usually not a morning person and she wondered if he was still somehow under one of Ginny's spells. Then she noticed something odd.
"Harry, did you look at yourself in the mirror this morning?"
"Why, does my rugby shirt clash with my jeans?" Harry joked, feigning vanity.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "No, it's not your clothing - it's your face….your scar - it looks like it's faded a bit."
"What?" he asked, putting down his fork, staring back at her.
"I said your scar looks like it's faded." She stood up. "Come, let's go look in the hall mirror."
She grabbed his hand and they walked over the mirror. Harry looked at his reflection and stared at his scar for a good minute.
"I don't believe it! It looks much less red than it usually does." He said in wonderment.
Hermione beamed at him. "Yes, it does."
"What does it mean, Hermione?"
Hermione wondered if it was time to tell Harry about her horcrux theory.
"Let's go back into the kitchen."
After one more incredulous gaze at his reflection, they returned to the kitchen. Hermione told him to finish his breakfast and ran to the library to retrieve The Horrid History of Horcruxes.
Hermione rushed back and placed the opened book on the table in front of Harry.
"Harry, please read the passage I have highlighted."
She sat down and watched him intently as he read, waiting for a flicker of recognition to cross his features. The flicker came, but she also saw his expression change from one of curiosity to solemnity.
"Hermione, it says here I have to die."
Hermione shook her head, alarmed at his reaction. "No, no, reread this sentence!" She jumped up from her seat and pointed out to Harry what she meant.
"At this time, a human hosted horcrux can only be destroyed or removed upon death or a transformative experience not requiring the use of magical charms or spells."
"What does that mean, a transformative experience?"
"I think it means love." Hermione replied simply, trying not to blush.
Harry sat there for a moment, looking lost in thought.
"So, you think that your kiss last night, after I had my nightmare, is the reason my scar is fading?"
Hermione nodded, her heart beating faster. "Yes, it's the same reason why it stopped hurting the first time I kissed it."
"And the tingling?" Harry asked.
"I think the tingling could've signaled the beginning of your scar's healing."
Harry looked at the book again. "The passage says that the scar can be removed from this transformative experience. How come it hasn't completely disappeared?"
Hermione thought very carefully about how she would phrase this answer. "Harry, it doesn't say that the experience happens overnight. It can take a while to, um, develop."
"So if you keep kissing me - er, my scar, it will eventually disappear?"
"I hope so." Hermione replied, noting his stammer.
You're hoping to kiss more than his scar, eh? Her conscience teased.
Pipe down, will you?
"Harry, I'm not 100 percent certain that it will work, or even that my theory is even correct. I've read through that book several times trying to find more information about the transformative experience, but there are no more references to it. It's been very frustrating trying to figure this out."
"I'm sure it has….listen Hermione, I think that your theory might be right. I remember something Dumbledore told me in his office the night of Sirius' death. He pretty much told me that love is what will save my life. It was my mother's love that saved me from Voldemort in the first place. He even hinted there is a room in the Department of Mysteries where the power of love is kept under lock and key."
Hermione thought about the implication of this information and how it might help them in the future. She felt validated by Dumbledore's revelations but still felt that Harry was missing the point. Her love was only going to go so far and Harry would need to reciprocate her feelings in order to finally get rid of the horcrux. She decided maybe it was better for him to come to conclusion himself rather than to force it.
"That's certainly interesting information, Harry," she said, gathering her dishes and bringing them to the sink. "I'm going to Flourish & Blotts today," she announced, hoping to change the subject to something a bit more mundane. "I'm going to look for Ginny's love spell book. Do you want me to pick up anything for you?"
But Harry didn't answer. He was still at the table, staring at his half-eaten food. As she washed the dishes and put them away, she hoped she had given him a lot of food for thought.
Later that morning, Hermione apparated to Diagon Alley and walked purposefully into Flourish & Blotts; a place she had visited many times before, mostly to buy her school books but she also had gone there a few times on her own.
When she walked in, the sales clerk recognized her immediately as she was a good customer. She asked him if they had Under Your Spell.
"Do you have the author's name?"
"No, unfortunately I don't. The title is a bit longer than that, it's called "Under Your Spell - How to Get Your Heart's Desire with Magic." She replied, a bit sheepishly.
The clerk eyed her knowingly. "Ah, love spells. Is there a young man at Hogwarts you have your eye on?"
Hermione blushed. "No, I'm just doing a research project. Do you have the book?"
"Right, research project." He motioned towards a far back corner of the store. "There's a whole section over there on love spells. I'm not familiar with that title but they all sound alike to me. Help yourself."
"Thanks." Hermione said and hurried over to the back of the store where there was an entire wall of books devoted to nothing but love spells and potions. Hermione scanned the titles, noting that they ranged from basic (Love Potions 101) to cheesy (Sexy Seduction Spells) to silly (Spellbound - How to Get Your Man to Worship You). And then she spotted what she was looking for - Under Your Spell.
She eagerly pulled the book from the shelf and noticed that it was a newer edition than the one that Molly gave Ginny and the book was quite a bit thicker. She then turned to page 201, but there was no spell on that page, instead the author was waxing poetic about all the different types of wizards she had snagged using her potions.
Hermione sighed; she would never know what was on that page unless she was able to get her hands on Ginny's copy again, perhaps Ron could help? She decided to pick up the book anyway; it might make for entertaining reading.