~A/N> Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long between updates, but I started doing a new weekly podcast where I
read H/Hr fanfiction. It's called Harmonics and if you want to check it out head on over to my website: www.harmonypodcast.com. Also I've been working on the new Harmony Podcast at
the same time, so I've been very busy. I will be working more on this story since I know exactly where it's
going now. I'm not sure how many chapters it's going to be, but I know that right now the end is nowhere in
sight. Thanks for all the great reviews, I read every one of them and they're almost always fantastic
~coughflamescough~ :p Thanks for sticking with my story, and I hope you enjoy this new chapter. As always, thanks to
Lisa for standing by me through everything I'm doing with the Harry/Hermione fandom and encouraging me every step
of the way. Your friendship means the world to me ~hugs~
Hush little Guardian, don't make a sound,
The Shadocks gonna put you in the ground.
The Irishman's dead and it's all your fault,
Your Charge is next, your love for him means nought.
Hush little Guardian, your death looms near,
Your Soul will be mine and I'll feed off your fear.
"NOOOOOOO!!"
Sitting straight up in bed, Harry turned to Hermione where she lay next to him screaming and covered in sweat, and tried to wake her from whatever night terror had gripped her in such fear. "Hermione, wake up! Can you hear me? Hermione, it's only a nightmare. Wake up, come on now..." He kept shaking her and became concerned when she wouldn't wake. Finally, after a minute more, she opened her eyes and he could see the raw fear in them as she stared at him with an unknowing gaze. Cradling her face in his hands, he stared into her eyes and said, "Hermione, it was just a nightmare. You're still in my room, and you're safe. I won't let anything happen to you."
As Harry gently rubbed his thumbs over her cheeks, Hermione slowly came out of the red haze that the nightmare had created in her mind. It had all seemed so real...Damien standing there singing and taunting her with that...that... song, and seeing Seamus and Harry's dead bodies at his feet...she shivered and closed her eyes as the images refused to go away and then leaned forward to wrap her arms tightly around Harry, reassuring herself that he was still there, and still alive.
Harry was surprised when she wrapped him in her arms and held him so tightly, but he realized that she must have needed reassurance. After a bit of repositioning, he was laying on his back while she lay on her side with her leg flung over his, her head laying on his shoulder and his arms around her waist securly. As she lay there listening to his strong heartbeat, he murmured that she was safe and that he was there for her while stroking her hair. When she became quiet, he looked down to see her sleeping once more, her breathing deep and even. Watching her for a minute more, Harry tried not to let the events of that evening replay once again in his mind and finally he was able to drift off into an uneasy sleep.
~*~
After calming Hermione down twice more during the night since the first nightmare she had, Harry groggily opened his eyes to find Ron and Luna standing by the door to his room, murmuring quietly to one another. As quietly as he could he whispered, "What's up mate?"
"Harry," Ron whispered, surprised that he was awake. "Sorry if we woke you, but Lupin sent us up here to find the two of you. McGonagall needs to talk to us this morning, and there's going to be an announcement of some sort at breakfast." Looking from Harry to Hermione's pale face he asked, "How is she doing?"
"She's woke screaming three times from nightmares," Harry replied softly, sounding as exhausted as he looked.
"I can imagine," Luna said quietly, casting a worried glance toward her friend.
"Why didn't Madame Pomfrey give her some dreamless sleep potion?" Ron asked, sounding a little angry.
"She did," Harry replied. "It didn't work at all, she kept waking up screaming and yelling about Damien. Needless to say, it's been a very long night."
"We'll go then. We're supposed to meet in McGonagall's office at eight, so we'll see you in half an hour," Ron said.
"Right, half an hour," Harry repeated, glancing at his watch.
"See you soon Harry," Luna said softly, and then led Ron out of the room.
Laying back down, Harry forced himself to keep his eyes open, knowing that he couldn't fall back to sleep. Turning toward Hermione, he started to lightly shake her as he said, "Hermione...Hermione...it's time to get up."
It took almost five more minutes of shaking her and calling her name before she slowly opened her eyes, which were very bloodshot. "Whatizit?" she mumbled, dragging her hand down her face sleepily.
Brushing the hair from her face, Harry leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead. "It's time to get up, we have to meet with McGonagall before breakfast."
"Huh?" she asked, still groggy.
When Harry moved his lips down to hers in a brief kiss, her eyes popped open and he drew back to look at her. She brought her hand up to rest upon his cheek, the images from her nightmares flashing through her mind when he said, "I said, we have to meet with McGonagall this morning. In twenty minutes actually."
"It can't be good news," she mumbled, closing her eyes as he took her hand from his face and seeing the crescent moon on her wrist, planted a light kiss there as well. The minute his lips came in contact with her Guardian mark, a sudden burst of images flashed through his mind, causing him to drop her hand in pain. Coming out of the haze he had been creating with his kisses, she looked at him when he dropped her hand and asked, "Harry, what is it? What's wrong?"
"I-I just saw...saw..." he turned so that his legs hung over the side of the bed, his feet resting on the floor, as he held his suddenly aching head in his hands. "Is that what you saw in your nightmares last night?" he whispered.
"What did you see?"
"It was as if I was looking through your eyes, and I could see Seamus and I laying by the feet of some evil black shadow, dead," he whispered, rubbing his temples to try to alliiviate the pain.
Coming up to kneel behind him, she pushed his hands away and started to rub his temples for him. They glowed a light blue for a moment, and he could feel the pain in his head dissapate. "Is that better?"
"Yes, thanks."
Moving to sit next to him, she took hold of his hand and said, "That is what I saw in my nightmares last night. Each time, Damien would sing this awful song, taunting me, while he killed you. I-I could never do anything to stop it. I just always stood there, watching helplessly and I couldn't take it. I don't understand how you could have seen it though."
"I have no idea either. Maybe we should mention it to Firenze or Lupin this morning?" Harry asked.
"We'd better go see Headmistress McGonagall first or we may get into trouble." Looking out the window with a distant look in her eyes she added, "If we're not already in trouble."
Kissing the top of her hand this time, Harry lifted his other hand to put a finger to her chin, turning her face so that she was looking at him. "We're not in trouble for what happened last night. There was no way you could have prevented Seamus's death."
"I know," she whispered, as one tear fell from her right eye to trail down her cheek. "I just wish I could have done something."
"Me too," Harry quietly agreed. After another moment of silence, he got up, pulling her up with him. "We'd better clean up a bit before we go to see the Headmistress."
~*~
Harry and Hermione made their way up to the Headmistresses office where along with Ron, Luna, and Remus, they were told that the school would be closing down until after the new year and that they would be going to Grimmauld Place that afternoon. After that revelation, McGonagall and Remus went on to fill them in with details of the previous night's events concerning Draco Malfoy. Under veritaserum, Draco admitted to remembering nothing between the time he arrived at Hogsmeade to the time Hermione had banished Damien from his body at the dance. They were told that Malfoy would not be punished in any way due to direct orders from the Minister of Magic himself. Obviously Malfoy Sr. still had some pull in the ministry, more than they realized.
The four students walked slowly toward the Great Hall for McGonagall's announcement of the school closing and the impromptu memorial for Seamus that had been scheduled, all lost in their thoughts of their impending trip to Grimmauld Place. Luna had asked if she and her father could also stay at Grimmauld seeing as her Dad put out the Quibbler, a wizarding world newspaper that dared to defy the Daily Prophet and tell the truth about what was really going on in their world, and of course Harry had consented. Sliding into seats near the back of the Great Hall, they were unable to avoid the obvious stares from their fellow students and tried their best to ignore them. Thankfully, McGonagall chose that time to call for everyone's attention.
Of course when the announcement of the school's closing was made, there were various gasps and a sudden din of murmuring erupted. After settling everyone down again, McGonagall started Seamus's memorial, and Hermione could feel her chest tighten painfully. Swallowing a sob, she ducked her head as the tears started to fall, and she felt Harry put his arm around her shoulders in comfort. Finally the memorial was over and they were all told to go up to their dorms to pack their things for the departure of the Hogwarts Express at two that afternoon. As she, Harry, Ron, and Luna were the first ones out the doors of the Great Hall, Ron and Luna started up to their dorms to pack as Hermione and Harry slowly followed, Harry holding onto Hermione's hand tightly. All through the service, all he kept thinking was that if Seamus hadn't jumped in front of Hermione, she would have been the one they were saying goodbye to instead...
"Seamus?" came the hushed whisper from Hermione, pulling him from his thoughts as she suddenly stopped dead, yanking him back as the rest of the student body went pushing by them.
"What?" he asked, looking at her in confusion.
"S-Seamus, h-he's standing over there," she replied, pointing a ways down the corridor toward the deserted classrooms. Letting go of his hand, she started to walk toward the spot where Seamus's spirit leaned against the wall by the door to the History of Magic classroom.
"Hermione, wait!" Harry called, unsure of what to do.
"I'll be fine Harry. Just go pack and I'll come find you when I'm finished."
"Finished with what?"
"I don't know. Just go, I'll be along shortly."
A little put out by her sudden dismissal of him, Harry watched her for a moment more and then turned to make his way up the stairs.
Hermione kept walking slowly toward Seamus, a million thoughts and questions going through her mind. Finally, when she stood about five steps away from him, she stopped and whispered, "Seamus?"
"Yeh didn't think I'd go without saying goodbye now, did you?" he asked, giving her a smile that belied the sorrow she could see in his eyes.
"I figured since I didn't see you last night that you had already passed on," she replied.
"I couldn't," he said. "I had to know that you were alright, and after what happened last night, I was a little lost for a while. Finally I realized how to get back here and I found you in the Great Hall during my memorial."
"Oh Seamus," she sobbed quietly. "I'm so sorry about what happened. I should have been more careful; it should've been me that died last night, not you."
"Don't say that," he admonished in a pained tone of voice. "I won't tell you that I'm okay with being dead, but if it means you get to live, then it was worth my sacrifice. You're destined for greater things, and there are dark times coming for you and Harry." Pausing for a moment, he stared intently at her as he continued, " I-I could see how much the two of you care for each other last night when you were dancing together. The way you looked at him...I knew you'd never look at me that way, and I wasn't going to try to keep you with me when I knew that you wanted to be with him. It didn't change how I feel though, I really do care for you a lot. I don't know how things work in this afterlife stuff, but if I'm able to help you in any way, I will. From what little I've learned since my passing, it seems that you're destined for some pretty incredible things, and Harry...well, he's going to need you by his side through all of the trials he will be facing soon."
Hermione jerked her head up when he said this, tears streaming silently down her cheeks. "W-What do you mean? What trials? And when?"
His smile turned sad as he replied, "I can't tell you that. I'm sorry. Just know that you have to train to be ready for anything. There's going to be a lot of darkness soon and it seems it's up to you and Harry to stop it."
"We're only teenagers...this is all just so unfair," she sobbed, covering her face with her hands.
"It is unfair, but there's nothing that can be done to bring me back. But you and Harry...you have a chance to live long happy lives...just make sure you're ready when the time comes, okay?"
"Okay," she whispered, wiping the tears from her face as more fell. "Seamus? You'll be okay, right?" As she asked her question, a dull light appeared a little ways down the hall from them and seemed to grow brighter the closer it got. Squinting a little at the brightness, Hermione looked at the light and could see a form to it, but there were no features evident whatsoever. A soft, gentle singing seemed to surround them and Hermione stared at the being in awe.
Seamus, who had been watching the light as well, turned back to her and said, "It seems it's time for me to go."
Biting her lower lip, Hermione looked at him and felt her heart break. He looked so young bathed in the light, too young to be dead, and she thought yet again how unfair it all was. Taking a deep breath, she gave him a weak smile and said, "I'll see you soon."
"Try not to make it too soon," he said with a real smile. Reaching out his hand, he gently caressed her cheek and said, "Goodbye Hermione."
Feeling a whisper of a touch on her left cheek, she instinctively leaned into it and closed her eyes. Opening them again, she took another deep breath to keep her tears at bay and whispered, "Goodbye Seamus."
Withdrawing his hand, Seamus turned toward the being of light and said, "I'm ready now." Hermione stood watching, her tears falling, as Seamus followed the being for a few steps and then the two just seemed to evaporate into thin air. Feeling unable to breathe as her head and heart pounded out a mournful rhythm, she sank to the floor and gave in to the torrent of tears that had been begging to be released, mourning yet again for someone who had senselessly died way before their time.
Harry, who had been pacing in the Head Boy and Girl's Common Room since leaving her, quickly ran out the door as he was suddenly overwhelmed with a sense that Hermione needed him. Running down the stairs, he made his way back to where he'd left her and his chest constricted at the sight before him. Hermione was kneeling on the ground bent over so that her forehead was resting on the cold floor of the corridor, her body shaking as the sound of her crying reached his ears. Rushing to kneel down next to her, he wrapped her in his arms and she buried her face in the crook of his neck, crying uncontrollably. Not knowing what else to do for her at the moment, Harry gently ran his hand over her hair while keeping his other arm wrapped tightly around her, all the while murmuring words to her that he hoped would help to calm her a bit. Finally, her body stopped shaking so violently and her breath started to even out as she started to get control of herself. Relaxing completely into Harry's embrace, she closed her eyes and said in a raspy, tired voice, "It's unfair Harry...it's just so unfair. We don't deserve this."
"No we don't, nobody does" he agreed, moving his face just enough so that he could place a soft kiss on her forehead. "We're going to get through this Hermione; whatever is coming our way we will get through it. As long as we're together they don't stand a chance."
As visions of her nightmares the night before flashed through her mind, Hermione shuddered and said, "I hope you're right. I couldn't bear losing you too...you're all I have left Harry. There's only you."
Closing his eyes as she spoke, Harry felt his heart speed up just a touch more at her words, but then the cold hard truth reared it's ugly head. Trying to get the same images from Hermione's dream out of his head, Harry helped her to stand and wrapped one arm around her waist to help steady her. As he looked down at her, noticing how frail and worn out she looked, he felt such an urge to protect her that it was a little unsettling. Realizing that his feelings for her ran deeper than he wanted to admit, he vowed to himself then and there that he would move heaven and hell if he had to if it meant that they both made it through whatever darkness was fast approaching.