A/N: Still coming fast, so I'd better take advantage of it while I can. Thanks for the reviews. Enjoy!
Harry was so lost in his own thoughts he didn't notice when Hermione began to wake up. Her softly whispering his name shook him back to reality. A wave of relief crashed over him so great he didn't trust his voice.
Hermione was still as confused as she had been before, she knew she felt better however, and wondered how that had come to be. Quicker than ever though, the knowledge that she had lost an entire day came back to her. She met Harry's gaze and saw a mix of emotions. Her own eyes clouded as tears unwillingly made their way forward, she hated herself for falling apart but the not knowing what had happened to her was too much.
"Oh luv, come here." Harry knew she would beat herself up for breaking down in front of him, but he figured she was due. He pulled her up towards him and maneuvered them on the bed so she was essentially in his lap. Once she felt herself being drawn to him the sobs overtook her and she just let go. Clutching his shirt in a desperate grip, she tucked her face under his chin and shook with the force of her release.
Harry was sure he had never felt so hopeless, even when facing Voldemort He stroked her hair softly and muttered nonsense that neither of them really heard. Harry knew that the bond between them was special and went beyond mere friends, even best friends, they had been through too much together, but they had always been very careful to not explore what else they could be. After Ron and Hermione had attempted to date, Harry swore to himself that it wasn't meant to be. He would rather have her friendship than risk losing her forever if things didn't work out. He had dated other girls periodically but no one ever lasted long. It seemed that it was impossible for others to view him as someone other than Harry Potter, the Hero. But Hermione, she knew everything about him, she had before they had even met and she still hadn't treated him as anyone other than his real self. Seeing her so broken was making him re-evaluate things, maybe staying away wasn't such a good idea anymore.
Hermione's sobs began to quiet and she focused on a single thread of his shirt while she fought to control herself. The not knowing was tearing her apart. A tiny part of her was glad she couldn't remember, her injuries had been so painful she wasn't sure wanted to be able to recall how she had gotten hem, but she knew that it was more painful to not know, to have lost that part of her. She sat quietly for a moment listening to Harry's heartbeat, and focused on the rhythmic caress of his hand through her hair.
He felt her begin to calm and reached down to wipe the tears from her face, his thumb coming dangerously close to brushing her lips. Her breath caught in her throat for a moment and she allowed herself to sink a little further into him. Her and Harry had always kept their relationship firmly in the friendship category, neither of them had been successful in dating, she was too busy, he too famous. They were each others family, support, sounding board, they were each others everything. She had always secretly felt that there was a reason they were both still alone, that maybe they were both waiting for the same thing.
Harry mentally chided himself for allowing the slip, Hermione didn't need to be dealing with his rapidly changing feeling right now. He hooked two fingers under her chin and raised it up so that he could see her better. "Hey, how are you feeling?" He asked softly
"I'm ok." She said, trying to put as much strength into her voice as possible.
"No you're not, you don't have to lie for my sake." He returned
Hermione dropped her head again and leaned back to her former position curled up against his chest. "I'm scared Harry. I can't remember what happened. How can I not remember something that bad?"
His arms tightened around her and she thought she felt him press a kiss onto the top of her head. "What's the last thing you do remember?"
"Leaving the seminar Tuesday night. We got out early and I was going to join someone for dinner. The next thing I remember is waking up in the bathroom. But today is Thursday isn't it? I've lost an entire day." The tremor was returning to her voice.
"We're going to figure this out ok? Trust me, I'm going to find out what happened to you and who did this." Harry assured her.
"I trust you with my life." She whispered
Harry made to move from the bed but her desperate clutching kept him there. "Ok, Ok, don't worry I'm not going anywhere."
Hermione shut her eyes and relaxed as she felt Harry readjust them so that he could lean against the headboard with her still clasped to him. She felt a slight blush hit her cheeks as she realized for the first time since waking up that Ron wasn't in the room.
"Harry, where's Ron?" she asked
"He went down to where the conference was being held to see what he could find out. You know Ron, he's not very patient." Harry answered.
She gave him a small smile and began to take mental check of her injuries. The potion bottles next to the bed look suspiciously like Madame Pomfrey's. Harry caught where she was looking and explained how he had brought the former school nurse to help her.
"Thank you for that, for finding me." She said quietly
"I'll always find you `Mione." Harry replied.
She savored the feeling that his words gave her. As much as she hated this not knowing, she was grateful that Harry was here with her and that he would be beside her through it all.
"Why don't you just rest for a bit until Ron gets back and then we can go over everything we know." He suggested.
Hermione smiled her consent and snuggled closer, sighing when she felt his arms hold her closer.
Harry let his head fall against the wood behind him, wrestling with himself and trying to pin down exactly what was going on. He shut his eyes and told himself he'd only rest for a moment before promptly falling asleep.
When Ron finally arrived back at Hermione's room he had to chuckle to himself at what he saw. Harry and Hermione couldn't have been closer if they tried, Harry was propped up at the head of the bed, Hermione draped across his lap and held securely to him, both asleep. Ron was glad to see that Hermione seemed to be more at peace although he knew the toll this experience was taking on her.
Ron stopped in the doorway of the bathroom, this time more prepared for what he saw. He had to hold back from cleaning the mess up but he knew that they might need the evidence to piece together what had happened. Why the hell did this have to happen to Hermione? She didn't deserve this. On his way out of the bathroom his foot caught a piece of debris and sent it skidding across the room. Harry was on his feet and had his wand out before Ron could blink.
"Whoa mate! It's just me!" Ron shouted, holding his hands up
Harry dropped his wand immediately and tried to stop his racing heart, he hadn't felt the need to be that on guard in a long time.
Hermione had received quite a shock when Harry sprang from the bed so suddenly and now had a hand clutched to her side.
Harry was back to her side in an instant, his hand covering hers, head bowing to speak to her in low tones. Ron saw her nod and raise her head to give Harry a small smile.
"Sorry `Mione." Ron mumbled, feeling like a complete ass for scaring them again.
"That's ok Ron." She assured him, patting the bed next to her "Come sit and tell us what you found out." Her expression wavered only slightly, betraying the strong exterior she was displaying.
Ron and Harry settled themselves on either side of her, although Ron noticed that Harry sat considerably closer to Hermione.
"You should know Ron, my last memory is from Tuesday night, leaving the last seminar, I have no knowledge of yesterday at all." Hermione informed him, wringing her hands.
Ron reached over and stopped Hermione's fidgeting with a squeeze. "It's going to be alright `Mione, we're going to figure this out."
Her eyes shown bright as she clasped his hand, grateful once again that she had such wonderful friends.
"Well I don't know if I have much more to add. You were last seen Tuesday night leaving the seminar. Several people said they overhead you making dinner plans and that they were surprised when you didn't show up yesterday, but they just assumed that you went home early. I talked to the desk clerk on the way back up but she wasn't exactly helpful." Ron shrugged, realizing how unhelpful his information was.
"Who were you meeting for dinner Hermione, maybe they have an idea as to what happened to you. " Harry questioned, clutching to the only clue they had in all of this.
"Max Donnegan, he's a researcher from Montreal. He wanted to discuss some new spells I've been working on, said that some of our theories were similar in nature." Hermione explained, completely missing how fast Harry's jaw had clenched upon hearing that Hermione's dinner partner was a man, but Ron had noticed over the years that that particular muscle in Harry's jaw only ticked when the topic of Hermione and dating came up.
"Donnegan you say? His name came up a few times, not just as the person you were going to dinner with. Apparently he also was missing from the conference yesterday." Ron wasn't going to share that several people had speculated that Hermione and Max had ran off together.
"Well, I think it's obvious, that's where we start. Did you get where he was staying by chance?" Harry asked
"Yeah, his hotel is close, only a few blocks." Ron answered
Harry turned to Hermione and began to reach a hand out to stroke her cheek but changed course at the last moment and dropped it to her more benign shoulder. "You up to this?"
"Yeah, of course, I need to find out what happened Harry. I need to be a part of this too. I know this is what you guys do but I can't just sit back and wait." Hermione stated, her eyes pleading to be allowed to join them.
"I know you do, I would never ask you to sit this out, not like we would dare to ask." Harry said with a slight grin, glad to see that the real Hermione was starting to show herself again.
"Ok then, let's get going." Hermione said moving to get off the bed "I'd better get
changed and then we can leave." She crossed to her trunk and then made to head for the bathroom when Ron and Harry both jumped in front of her. "Uh guys, you need to let me through." She said with a smile, thinking it was sweet they were trying to help her so much.
"No Hermione, the bathroom its…."Ron started, not sure what to say
"You can't `Mione. Just trust us.."but Harry was cut off by Hermione catching a glimpse of the inside over his shoulder.
She went ghostly white and was immediately grasped on both sides by the boys. "Oh my god." She gasped. "I remember waking up in there, there was so much blood and my wrist, it was hurt."
Harry slipped an arm around her waist and deftly turned her around so that she couldn't see anymore. She leaned on him for a moment before steeling herself and pulling away from him to stand on her own.
"I think I'll just change out here." Her voice stronger than she felt "If you wouldn't mind turning around."
Ron and Harry both had the decency to flush and turned their backs to her. A few short waves of her wand and she was ready to go.
"Alright. Let's go see if Max can tell us anything." She said
In fresh clothes and her hair fixed she didn't look as if she had just been found bloody and beaten only hours earlier. They walked out of the door, Ron not failing to notice how naturally Hermione's hand slipped into Harry's.
-->