~A/N> O-kay...I know the chapter I posted yesterday wasn't the most thrilling, action packed I've ever
posted, but not every chapter can be. To those of you that mentioned that both Lily and James were Head Boy and
Girl...I know. My story is Alternate Universe, so it will not follow the books much at all. To those of you that asked
for more H/Hr interaction, I think this is the chapter you've been waiting for. Now, I have been updating one
chapter every week, but this is my last pre-written chapter and I'm posting it today because it answers a few
questions and will hopefully make up for the last one. I'm going to try to keep up with the chapter a week updates,
but I do have two boys to raise, two podcasts that I do (one audio and one video), a website to maintain, two live
journal communities, and this story. I know there are some authors on this site that have been updating two or three
times a week, but that's not me. I take my time with my chapters and I make them the best I can. I check spelling,
grammar, and the continuity of the story to make sure that you guys get the best chapter to read I can give. I'm
sorry if one update a week is not enough, or not every chapter is enthralling, but I'm doing the best I can. And
the reason there's not been much H/Hr interaction so far is because I've been trying to build up the main
storyline, which starts with the fact that H/Hr don't even know each other in the beginning. This is only the
beginning, there is so much more to come, and from here on out there will be a lot more H/Hr fluffy moments. I hope I
have responded to everything left in the reviews...unfortunately I don't have time to respond to every one of them.
And as for Hermione in this chapter, no, she is not OOC. She is very in character for this story and in coming chapters
you will come to see why. Thanks for reading and I hope this chapter fulfills your H/Hr fluffy moments request
:)
After promising Firenze that she would practice her relaxation exercises that night, and silently thanking whatever
deity was listening at the moment that lessons were over for the week, Hermione walked over to where Harry and Remus
were. When she heard mention of Ginny she got a tight feeling in her stomach and tried not to dwell on it.
"I'm ready to go back to my room now," she said quietly as she walked past them. Turning back to look at
Remus, she said, "I'm sorry for all the mistakes I made tonight. I don't know what 's wrong with me,
but hopefully by Monday things will be better."
"I'm sure they will," Remus replied with a reassuring smile. "You've had quite the week; maybe a weekend of relaxation will help settle things down a bit."
"She's going to see her first Quidditch match tomorrow," Harry said. "If you still plan on coming to watch, that is?"
"I do," she replied. "You piqued my curiosity, even though I fear I may have a heart attack watching you and all the other players buzzing about on those brooms."
"They'll be just fine," Remus said. "Harry's Dad James played as well. I remember how much Lily would worry about him during the matches and then they'd always celebrate together afterward."
"If this has anything to do with them celebrating together in the Heads Common Room, I'd really rather not hear it," Harry said, grimacing. When Hermione looked at him with a confused look on her face he said, "I'll uh-maybe tell you some other time."
Remus laughed at Harry's discomfort and said, "So Hermione, we'll see you Monday evening then?"
"Seven o'clock, in this room, right?" she asked.
"Right," Firenze replied as he walked up. "And make sure to bring the Notebook, we'll need to go over a few of the things in there and add some information that you've learned about yourself so far."
"I'll see the two of you Monday then," she said. "And again, I'm sorry about tonight. I'll work harder Monday."
"Don't think on it anymore," Remus said. "Just go relax, and have a fun weekend."
"I'll try," she replied, and with a smile, started to make her way down the corridor to the stairs. When Harry started walking behind her she turned slightly and asked, "So how come you're here? It's not past curfew, I could have made my way back to my dorm by myself."
Thrown off guard by her forwardness, Harry was quiet for a moment before replying, "I came to find you, to see if we could talk."
"Aren't we talking now?" she asked, a trace of humour lacing her question.
"Well yeah, but I meant..." Harry placed his hand on her arm gently and when she stopped to look at him he asked, "Would you like to go for a walk around the lake with me?"
Hermione studied his face for a moment, wondering if it would be a good idea to spend time with him alone, and before she could think it to death she replied, "That sounds lovely."
Harry smiled and guided her out the front doors of the school, the two of them walking silently side by side, taking in the crisp autumn air. Hermione looked around at all the trees that surrounded the castle, their leaves ranging in colors from red to yellow to brown, seeming to glow in the early evening light. She loved this time of year, when mother Earth seemed to be cleansing herself so that everything could blossom anew in the spring. She didn't know what it was, but she always felt more at peace when she was outside then when she was cooped up inside somewhere. It was like the wind blowing her hair about was the blood flowing through her veins and the rotation of the earth was the beating of her heart. She was so in tune with nature sometimes, she felt as if she could just jump into the air and fly away to someplace safe, where nothing could ever hurt her again.
"Hello? Still with me?" Harry asked from beside her, startling her from her thoughts.
"Yeah, sorry. I just love being outside," she replied.
"Me too. I never got to go out much when I was growing up. My aunt always made me stay inside doing chores while my cousin got to go out and play," he said, surprising her with his admission.
"You had a horrible childhood, didn't you?" she asked bluntly, her turn to surprise him with her question.
'Yes," he answered. Without thinking about why he felt like telling her everything, he explained, "My aunt and uncle didn't want me around, and they treated me like something that shouldn't have been allowed to be born into this world. I'm just thankful that this summer I can go out on my own. I don't know yet where I'm going to go, probably back to Grimmauld Place until the battle with Voldemort comes, and then if I defeat him I'll see where I end up."
As they started walking around the lake, Hermione reached out and took hold of his hand, surprising him again. "Not 'if'- when," she said, squeezing just a little bit to emphasize her point. Harry nodded quietly, not wanting to start up that argument again and they continued to walk in a comfortable silence, still hand in hand. As he thought about how easy it was to be with her, how right it felt to hold her hand in his, she said, "Um, about Sunday, after the funeral...I'm sorry I left the way I did."
"That's okay," Harry replied. "It's understandable with the day you had, and I asked you about something you obviously didn't want to talk about."
"It's not that I didn't want to," she said. "I didn't even know I had that mark on my wrist before you pointed it out, Harry. I have no idea where it came from or how I got it. Firenze seems to think that it's the mark of the Soul Guardians and that it appeared after the Shadocks passed through me."
When she shivered at the thought of those horrid beings she'd encountered, it was Harry's turn to squeeze her hand in comfort. As they continued to walk, Harry turned her right hand over, the one he was holding, so her wrist was exposed and he could see the crescent moon mark again. Tracing the outline of it with his finger, he asked, "So, just finding out about the mark was the only reason why you left in such a hurry?"
Hermione shivered again, this time from the fire his touch was sending through her body, and then quietly gathered herself for a moment before answering. "No, there was another reason, but I don't think now is the time to tell you the rest. I hope you won't be mad at me for not telling you; I'll tell you when I know the time is right."
"Well, you are my Soul Guardian," Harry said, smiling at her as he pulled his finger away from her skin, leaving her feeling disappointed. "If you feel it's not the time for me to know, then I guess I can try to be patient and wait."
"Thank you," she replied, smiling back as she felt her heart skip a beat as their eyes met, briefly. As they continued on with their walk and were almost halfway around the lake, Hermione looked over to a patch of trees that was close by and stopped, causing Harry to jerk back a bit since they were still holding hands.
"Why'd you stop?" he asked, turning to look at her, only to find her staring into the grouping of trees to the side of them.
"Can you see her?" Hermione asked, staring into the trees.
Harry turned and could see a ghost-like form walking toward them that had...could it be?....wings on her back. The feathers were silver with black on the tips, and their shape reminded him of Buckbeak's wings when he had went for a ride on him during his third year. "I can see her," he whispered, in awe of what he was seeing. "Is that an actual angel?"
"I don't know," she replied, unknowingly stepping in front of him, acting as a shield. Looking at the being that was now only a few steps away from them she asked, "Who are you and what do you want?"
"Do not be afraid, my children, I mean you no harm," the being said with a smile. Looking from Hermione to Harry she explained, "My name is Ancelin, and I was sent by Micah to pass on a message to you."
"H-How is it I can see you?" Harry asked as he stepped out from behind Hermione and stood by her side, her hand now held tightly in his.
"Because I want you to see me," she replied in a gentle tone of voice. "You have seen enough evil in your young life, Harry Potter. You deserve to have some proof that there are still those of us on the side of Good that stand behind you and protect you. There are many of us that are glad that Hermione has finally found her way to you."
Harry stared at her, trying to take in the fact that she had just touched on a subject he had been thinking about a lot lately; he had been wondering if Good even existed anymore outside of Hogwarts. He kept having recurring thoughts and nightmares that he and Hermione were the last people on Earth fighting on the side of good and it made him feel a fear such as he'd never known before. He kept thinking it was a sign of sorts, but Ancelin had just put some of those fears to rest, for now at least.
"What is it that Micah wants us to know?" Hermione asked calmly, as if such occurences happened to her every day.
"He wants you to tell Firenze that tomorrow is the day he has foreseen and that he will need to take the necessary measures he was told of before," Ancelin stated, looking from her to Harry.
"Tomorrow is the Quidditch match," Hermione replied. "Is something going to happen during the match?"
"I am afraid that I have told you all that I know," Ancelin answered, a sadness coming over her porcelain features. "If you are afraid that this is what the message means, then you should perhaps take precautions yourself and work on all that you have learned so far."
Hermione stared at her for a moment, opening up her heart, soul, and mind, and a warmth spread throughout her. She could hear a very quiet, airy voice telling her exactly what she would need to do in case anything did happen the following day. Basking in it, she smiled at the angel before her and said, "Thank you."
"You are most welcome," Ancelin replied. "Use that warmth and strength to take care of Harry. He is more to you than you know." And with that she was gone.
"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Hermione mumbled to herself, but she said it loud enough that Harry heard her.
"Saying what? That I am more to you than you know?"
She looked at him and saw the Cheshire Cat grin he was wearing. "No, to 'take care of you'. I know I'm your Soul Guardian, but geez, doesn't it hurt your manly pride that everyone wants a girl to protect you?"
"Not really," Harry replied quietly. Looking at her with a suddenly serious expression on his face he said, "This may not sound manly, but it's kind of nice to know that someone has my back for a change...someone I know I can trust to always be by my side."
Hermione stared at him in shocked silence for a moment, and finally recovering she replied, "I think that's the most manly, intelligent thing I've ever heard."
Harry gave her his heart stopping smile then, and smiling back at him she asked, "Now, weren't we going for a walk?"
~*~
The next day came too quickly as far as Hermione was concerned. She had been up most of the night, studying everything that Aradia had mentioned and practicing the spells as much as possible. She and Harry had tried to talk to Firenze the night before, but they couldn't find him anywhere, so she would have to make sure to talk to him before the match about what Ancelin said. She wanted to make sure that if anything did happen that put Harry into any kind of danger, she was ready to protect him.
The last time she had checked her watch, it had been four in the morning, and she had awakened with her head laying on the back of the sofa with an open book laying on her chest. Thanks to only two hours of sleep and a crick in her neck, she was not in the best of moods when Harry happily strolled in at six-thirty in his Quidditch gear, whistling and carrying his broom.
"Good morning sunshine," he greeted with a smile that was much too big for that time of the morning.
"The sun's not even up yet," she replied grumpily, causing him to quirk an eyebrow at her in question. "Why are you here so early?"
"I'm here to make sure Ron gets up in time for breakfast, the others I don't have to worry about," he replied. Walking over to sit next to her he asked, "Rough night?"
As tired as she was, she still noticed the different robes he was wearing and she had to admit, he looked good in whatever they were. "Uh, you could say that," she replied, trying not to stare as he sat down so close to her that his arm brushed hers when he turned to prop his broom up against the sofa next to him. Trying to ignore her body's reaction to that small amount of contact she explained, "I was up until four going over everything I've learned so far."
"If I had known you were staying up late to study, I would have stayed up to help you," Harry said, looking at her and noticing the dark circles under her eyes.
"I didn't need you to help me, besides they were spells you wouldn't be able to do," she answered. "And you have your Quidditch match today. By the way, is that your uniform that you're wearing?"
Harry looked down at the maroon and gold robes he was wearing and replied, "Yeah. I just have to put on my arm and leg protectors and my gloves, and I'll be ready to play."
Hermione damned her imagination as a picture of what those protectors looked like, and what he'd look like in full uniform. Closing her tired eyes and pinching the bridge of her nose, she took a deep breath and willed the sudden surge of heat that infused her body at the image and her overactive libido (which had, to date, never even existed before) to calm down before she embarrassed herself in some way...like reaching over to run her hand over the tight fabric on his chest or leaning over to kiss his lips that looked so very inviting all of a sudden...
Hermione growled deep in her throat and stood up quickly, making her way to the window she had stared out so many times before. She could physically feel him draw closer as he walked up behind her and asked, "Hermione, are you okay? Other than being exhausted, I mean."
"I'm uh-I'm fine," she replied, catching his reflection in the glass. The vision of him towering over her, so close behind her, caused her breath to catch for a second. What the hell is happening to me? she thought frantically as she pressed her head onto the cool glass of the window, blocking out his reflection and cooling her hot skin. It had to be the lack of sleep or the Soul Guardian connection...but being his Guardian shouldn't make her feel this...drawn to him, should it? At the moment she felt like a lioness on the hunt for a mate and it was a very unsettling feeling, one she really didn't need today.
When she stayed with her head pressed against the glass for a while, Harry reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, the contact making her breath catch in her chest. "Are you sure that there's nothing bothering you?" he asked, his voice coming out deep and husky sounding, breaking through the last string of restraint that she had.
Turning quickly to face him, she said, "Actually, there is something bothering me." And surprising the both of them, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. This kiss was so much different than the first one they had shared; that one had been tentative and exploration. This one was pure heat and attraction, and when Harry immediately responded Hermione was assured that she had not been the only one that had been experiencing the feelings that she had. His arms wrapped around her waist tightly, pulling her flush against his body. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him with such an urgency that she shocked herself with the intensity of it.
Suddenly they heard two male voices coming from the dorms and they separated quickly. Looking toward the stairs, they saw Ron and Dean stepping onto the top step as they started to make their way down to the common room. Harry and Hermione were both breathing heavily, and when Hermione looked back at him she couldn't look away. His eyes were such a brilliant color of green at the moment, and she finally realized what the saying 'The eyes are the windows to the soul' meant.
"Hiya Harry, hullo Hermione," Ron greeted, as did Dean. Mumbling their hello's, they broke eye contact to look at the boys and Hermione only hoped that her face didn't look as guilty as she felt at the moment. What the hell had she done? You kissed him, that's what you did. And what a kiss! her subconscious answered for her. Ignoring it, she tried to pull her attention back to the conversation the three boys were having but her mind was full of thoughts and questions.
Realizing that Ron and Dean were walking out the portrait hole, she looked at Harry and tried to smile, but found that she couldn't. He was standing there just staring at her, and she just stared back at him, wishing that he would say something. Finally, he said, "I think that maybe you and I should talk about this later, after the match. I have to get to breakfast and my team has practice right after."
"Oh, okay," she replied, hoping she didn't sound as disappointed as she felt.
Looking down at the floor so that hopefully he wouldn't see her feelings mirrored on her face, she watched his feet as he walked closer to her. Putting his finger under her chin, he gently raised her head until she brought her eyes up to return his intense gaze. Slowly, he bent down, brushed his lips across hers, and proceeded to lean his forehead against hers. "Wish me luck today?"
"Good luck," she said quietly. "Though I somehow doubt that you need it."
"Never hurts to get a good luck kiss from a beautiful girl right before a match," he replied. "Especially after she kisses you first, the way you just did."
Hermione felt her cheeks grow very hot, and she ached to kiss him again. "You'd better get going," she said. "I need to go shower and change, then head down to breakfast myself."
"So I'll see you after the match?" he asked.
"Yes, you will see me after the match," she replied. "Luna has already said that she would sit by me and explain the game to me."
"Good," he said, giving her that smile again. Running his hand over her hair, he planted a small kiss on the tip of her nose and said, "I'll see you later."
She watched him walk away and wished immediately that he was back with her again. Shaking herself a bit, trying to snap out of the haze she was in, she called, "Harry?" He stopped just as he opened the portrait and turned to look at her. Giving him a brief smile that was quickly replaced with a worried frown, she said, "Be careful today, okay? I'm going to do all I can to protect you if anything should happen, but..."
"I trust you," he said, not letting her finish. "I know I'm in good hands." And with that, he smiled at her and walked out of the room, leaving her wishing she felt as confident as he did.