Disclaimer: THIS STORY IS THE PROPERTY OF LE
The Letters
A/N: I was rushing to get this posted because I couldn't wait any longer. Remember that this story is completely different and has nothing to do with Damn Car.
Without further ado, Chapter 3 of Letters is here.
Ron couldn't believe the words that came out of his mouth. It's impossible; Harry's dead! But he felt the beat of his best friend's heart as his hand laid on his chest, and he could hear his shallow breaths for air. Hermione tightened her grip on Ron's hand and he could feel her shaking slightly. Hermione was crying but this time it was not of despair but relief. For what seemed like the millionth time, she encircled around Harry's still body.
"Harry's alive! He's alive…" Hermione repeated over and over again.
Ron looked away as an indescribable feeling started to form inside. He slowly parted with the crowd and walked unsteadily like he was drunk. Harry's alive? Did I actually feel…disappointed that my best friend was alive? Suddenly, he felt disgusted with himself. He turned around to face the direction where most of the people had crowded around. Madam Pomfrey had managed to pry Hermione off Harry and was now administering proper charms.
Luna Lovegood, that odd girl from Ravenclaw, embraced Hermione. It was an abnormal sight, really. The two girls were complete opposites. Hermione was the sensible, I-won't-believe-it-until-I-see-it type of girl whereas Luna was the dreamy, sometimes clueless girl, successfully earning the cruel but true nickname "Loony". Now it seemed as if they were old friends. His girlfriend pulled away from the younger girl and smiled.
Hermione wiped her tears with the back of her hand and turned her head to glance at her boyfriend, standing there, looking forlorn. Then she glanced back at her best friend who was alive. The teachers were now shoeing the curious people away and told them not to come near anymore. Quickly thanking Luna with a hand squeeze, she rushed over to Harry's station.
"Is he-is he going to be-"
Someone answered, "He will be fine but right now, he needs to be taken care of."
"But-" Hermione tried to finish. Headmistress McGonagall was faintly reminded of the other times Harry had to be sent to the hospital wing. The young girl was always the first to ask of Harry's condition and she would continually badger for information if it wasn't given to her. The senior witch remembered how annoyed she would get. But this time, Harry wasn't in the hospital for minor Quidditch injuries. Hours ago, he fought for his life against the darkest sorcerer and now he was fighting for his life again.
Her tone softened and she placed a hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Miss Granger--Hermione-I will not lie to you this time. Harry is currently lying between the lines of life and death. Now, I know how much you are worried. We're all worried. But we promise we will do our best to revive Harry. Do you understand?"
Hermione nodded mutely, her eyes glued onto the floor. McGonagall managed a smile that was not seen by the girl and promptly left to take care of her student. Hermione stood there for what felt like hours until she felt a pair of arms encircling her. She jumped at first, feeling a sense of unfamiliarity. Ready to hex the person, she swiftly faced the person.
Ron took a step back when he saw Hermione pull out her wand. "Whoa! Hermione, put that down." At once she apologized, "Oh gosh, Ron, I'm sorry, it's-it's just the thing with Harry is making me crazy right now."
"It's making everyone crazy I bet, but you're probably overreacting a bit." Those words were the wrong thing to say at the moment and Ron knew it. Nice, Weasley. Really nice. Hermione lowered her wand, but she still had a firm grip around it.
"Overreacting? Ronald, you do realize that Harry is lying on his bed, dieing and you think I'm overreacting?" She asked, her voice sounding dangerous.
"Look, Hermione. I'm sorry, okay?" Luckily, Hermione chose to forget what Ron said and took a deep breath. She covered her face with both hands and then dropped her arms.
"It's fine, Ron. It's fine. " She looked around the corridor but only a few volunteers were left. Ron decided to try again and pulled her close to his body. Hermione let him, but she didn't wrap her arms around him as she would have usually done.
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"Neville's gone." whispered Ginny as she stood at the end of Luna's bed. The blond young witch looked up, instantly alert. The quick change of emotions on her face was chilling. Before the days of the war, Luna usually kept a dreamy and carefree look. But when it came to important matters, such as the death of their dear friend, seriousness was needed. Her redheaded friend quickly approached her and found comfort in her arms.
This was the second time Luna found her arms around another person. The girl in question had lost her dearest friend and boyfriend. Her cries grew louder as the memory of Neville Longbottom, alive and well, faded.
"Why did he leave, Loony?" Loony was her nickname, but it held not cruel intentions. As the year progressed, the two had become even better friends than before, feeding off of each other every time something bad happened.
"It was time for him to go. Just like everyone else."
Just like Parvati. Just like Dean. And Dennis. Anthony. Friends crossed over to a better place.
"We were in love." Ginny whispered, the words causing the ache in her heart to grow. An emotion flashed through Luna's eyes and then was gone. She said nothing.
"We were going to have kids. Jenny and Chester. He was going to be a Herbology teacher and I was supposed to become a Healer."
"You can still do that, Ginny."
The girl shook her head, grabbing fistfuls of Luna's nightgown.
"Not without Neville." With a sudden change in scene, Luna roughly pulled Ginny away and forced her to look straight in her eyes. She wasn't angry; in fact she was eerily calm.
"Love is stronger than death even though it can't stop death from happening, but no matter how hard death tries it can't separate people from love. It can't take away our memories either. In the end, life is stronger than death." Ginny looked confused at her words. Luna let go and jumped off the bed. "That's what papa said to me when my mum died."
You can never forget a person who you love with your whole heart. Never…even in death. Neville may be gone, but remember, Ginny…remember the love you two shared and take it as a-something that gets you through."
Luna stood by the window, fingering her pendent around which rested around her neck. She loved her mum. She was full of life, intelligent and also her best friend. Luna still thought of her mum; in fact it was everyday at night when she would talk to her. She knew it was impossible to hear her mum talking back but she could feel it. Her mum was there and always will be.
She continued to stare out of the window. But now she was thinking of another person who she loved and was gone now.
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"…and now, we will contact Augusta and notify her of her grandson's death," finished Headmistress McGonagall with a fatigued tone. Hermione gripped Harry's hand tighter as she listened to her former professor in the Hospital Wing. Ron sat across from her, but never said a word. We lost another one, she thought, tears blurring her vision.
"Does-does Ginny know?" asked Ron, his voice dry and unused.
"Yes. She went into her dormitory."
Hermione's gaze onto her hand, fingers intertwined with Harry's. He was still out; no significant response had been given. Even though he was bundled in layers of blanket, had the heating charm performed on him, Harry felt cold. Without much thought, Hermione brought their hands to her cheek. She closed her eyes, relishing the feel of his soft and smooth hand. Ron made no comment.
It disturbed Hermione when she didn't feel any shock of Neville's death. She supposed it was because death was like a cold in the winter. It was contagious. When day a person would be normal and the next, have coughing fits and high fevers. With death, one day a person is there and the next…gone.
All that matter now was Harry.
"Harry, please wake up soon," Hermione spoke softly, "We miss you here." A hand combed through his jet-black hair.
"How 'bout Harry here? When do you think he'll wake?" Ron inquired monotonously.
"In a minute or so." someone answered.
Ron, Hermione, and McGonagall looked around the room, trying to identify the direction where the voice had come from. But all they had to do was to look down.
Harry Potter was finally awake.
"Hey, Hermione."
Those were Harry Potter's second words after waking up. A weak, but impish grin was directed toward the brunette with a look of disbelief on her face. There was a moment of silence where no one could think or speak.
Then Hermione slapped him.
She forgot momentarily that she just slapped a man who had just come out of a death match against the strongest sorcerer in the world. But the slap did not seem to affect Harry for the smile was still there. Ron and the Headmistress were still shocked from her slap.
"Not too hard, Hermione!" was all he managed to say until he was completely covered by her mass of bushy hair. She embraced her friend like the other times but now her tears that slipped down her cheeks were of joy.
Hermione finally released him and the smiles still remained on their faces. Headmistress McGonagall, who just stood and watched the scene before her, wiped her eyes with her handkerchief. Then she cleared her throat and said, "Well, I best be leaving the three of you alone."
She turned to leave and reached the door when Harry called out, "Thank you, Professor."
Not knowing what he meant by the thanks, Minerva just nodded. The door closed behind her and also cut off the cheerful atmosphere. A blanket of unresolved tension hung in the room.
"I came back, you guys," Harry began, his voice weak but still loud for them to hear. "A few hours late, but you know me; I'm always late for everything." His attempt to lighten the mood quickly fell short.
"You scared us." Hermione whispered as tears were still evident in her eyes.
Then with shame of a kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar, Harry bowed his head and mumbled, "Sorry."
Hermione sniffed and Ron finally looked up. "He's dead?" They didn't need to say his name because now it was meaningless.
Harry lifted his head and with a final nod, he answered, "He's dead."
Ron returned the nod. Silence quickly came once more. Hermione acted as if Harry would drop dead any moment and Ron looked like he didn't like his girlfriend's keen attention on Harry.
Finally a voice broke through and asked the question that the two did not want to answer.
"So…did you open the desk drawer?" Hermione knew this question would have come soon or later. She thought about saying "no". That'd way there'd be now tension between the Trio and then everything would be normal. But then again, she hated the thought of torturing Harry by being with Ron. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Ron cut in.
"No, actually. We couldn't give up on you that easily." Hermione's head whirled to face her boyfriend. Only he could see the look of shock on her face.
"Oh. Okay." His voice sounded disappointed and relieved at the same time. Harry absently fingered a loose thread in his blanket, avoiding his friends' eyes. Hermione kept her glare on Ron, whose face was turning red.
"Ron, can I see you for a moment?" Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed his arm and dragged him out. Hermione could feel Harry's gaze on the back of her head. They exited through the doors and once they closed, Hermione lashed out at him.
"Ronald! Why in the name of Merlin did you say that?"
"Hermione-"
"You lied to Harry! We did open the drawer and we did read the letters. How could you lie to him about it?"
"I didn't want to hurt him." Hermione let out a snort.
"Hurt him? We'll hurt him if we don't tell the truth!"
"Hermione, it'd be too awkward, your best friend knowing that you know that he loves your girlfriend!" Ron explained, waving his hands around. "And-and, I was afraid that I'd lose you." His voice stopped all thought in her head.
Confused, she said, quietly, "Lose me? Ron-why?" She saw the look of embarrassment on Ron's face and sighed.
"Harry said told me in the letter that he was in love with you. I'm afraid that you…" His voice failed in the end.
"Ron, you're not going to lose me. I love you, Ron and only you." Hermione instantly felt regret inside. The words didn't sound right when said to Ron. What? I love Ron. It shouldn't feel wrong. I love Ron. He's the one I love. As much as she continued to think it, her stomach dropped every time. She thought about correcting herself but when she saw the pleased look on Ron's face, she just couldn't.
"I love you too Hermione." Ron bent down to give her a kiss and his chapped lips met hers. She kissed back, but without much enthusiasm. "Now let's go in to see Harry." He turned and opened the doors again. She saw Harry as Ron walked in and his face showed confusion.
Hermione noted the change in mood of Ron. He thought he would lose me to Harry? Why would he think that? I love him, not Harry. Well, I do love Harry but not like that. Never like that.
She opened the doors and put on a smile. Harry sat up in his bed and gave her one of his lopsided smiles that suddenly made Hermione feel dizzy. I love Ron and only him.
Again, the words felt empty, like she was only saying it as a mantra. But she still ignored it and sat down next to Ron. She was hiding a secret, a secret she never wanted to hide; however she had to-for the sake of the Trio's friendship.
Hermione had her attention focused on the lamp by his bed. Harry and Ron laughed at a quick exchange and all seemed normal just like the days before the war. But now…now that she knew of Harry's feelings, nothing seemed real anymore.
For some reason, her cheeks began to burn, sensing someone was looking at her. She lifted her head. It was Harry. His eyes stared back at hers with intensity. Days before, she would have just passed this exchange as another Harry-Hermione random moment.
Except, this time she saw the pain in his eyes. The pain of loving someone he couldn't have.
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I really hope you liked this one. It's not over, just to straighten everything out. There will probably three more chapters, but we'll see.
Merry Christmas to all! And for those who don't celebrate it, Happy Holidays!!!!
Vio