Chapter Five
Ron
Harry was sitting on the old log bench when Hermione appeared at the Burrow still with the echo of "MEN" reverberating in the air around her. She immediately rounded on Harry. "What were you on about? You have a nickname for me? What have you heard?" poor Harry it was like being beaten with a stick, but he shrugged it off.
"Nothing," he said innocently, and smiled at her, "only joking," it was only a little lie, and he hid it well.
"Oh, well that's alright then," said Hermione calming down and her humour returning. Then just as quickly it disappeared again as she took stock of their surroundings. "Look." she said sullenly, pointing into the sky.
Two fields away a lone figure on a broomstick flew back and forth, alternately throwing and catching a large red oddly shaped ball. "Umm… he must have heard about his captaincy to be keen enough to practice on his own like that," said Harry. "I wonder where Ginny is?"
"Why?" Hermione snapped back, a bit too fiercely.
"Because I am surprised she isn't up there with him," said Harry, as if the reason could only be that simple. He took the opportunity to score a point and he rolled his eyes at her, Hermione giggled.
"Sorry," she whispered and no more was said. Harry smiled to himself; it was fairly obvious that the game was still afoot.
Ginny, as it happened, was sitting in her usual seat in the kitchen where she could help her mother and keep an eye out on that old bench. She knew that sooner or later the wayward pair would return to confront her brother, but she was growing concerned that they might not appear before school started, and time was getting on. Then suddenly she was happy, well reasonably so, for there they were and their timing was impeccable. Ginny had worked through many Ron, Harry, Hermione meetings in her mind over the last few weeks and the situation that presented itself now fitted one of them perfectly.
"You OK for a bit Mum?" she said as she collected a very smart broomstick from the rack by the backdoor.
"What? OH yes fine," Molly said lightly, then when she saw her daughter disappearing with the broom she added with a warning tone, "You be careful that's Harry's you shouldn't really be …... what's the use." she said to herself, Ginny had already gone.
"There she is," said Hermione, but Harry wasn't really listening, he was back watching Ron continue his solo game of Quidditch.
"Who?" he asked, without thinking.
"Ginny," growled Hermione, "and she's got your Firebolt." Harry's head snapped round, as the red headed witch ran up to them.
Ginny's mind was running through her plan, and what with trying to stay out of sight of Ron, and not dropping Harry's broom, she paid little attention to her two friends until she was almost upon them.
"Wow! cool clothes guys," Ginny said as she took in the sight of them in their long black coats. Then she stopped dead, all her plans forgotten and stared open mouthed at the change in Hermione. "What have you done? It looks great, Oh Mum will go spare. When did you do it?" she rushed up to her friend and gave a little teenage shriek of delight.
"I'll tell you all about it later," replied Hermione calmly, "Why have you got Harry's broom?"
"What, Oh sorry, quite went out of my head," said Ginny with a giddy giggle. She held out the broom to Harry. "Hi Harry, here, go and make it OK with Ron …pleeease." she pleaded.
Harry took the proffered broom and turned to Hermione who nodded her head in Ron's direction, "Strike while the iron is hot Harry, but remind him he still has to make peace with me." Hermione said with a steely glint in her eye. Ginny was looking back and forth between her two friends hoping they would agree that Ron deserved his chance to apologise and explain, if he could.
"OK," said Harry, "I suppose mid-air is sort of neutral territory." Ginny breathed a sigh of relief, until Harry, with a completely straight face said, "What do you want me to do with the bits Hermione?"
"Bring them to me in a bucket and I'll finish him off," there was no trace of humour in her words. Ginny began to feel that Ron was about to get his payback, and in a way, although she thought he deserved what was coming, she felt sorry for him.
Hermione turned and marched off toward the Burrow, lugging the large parcel they had brought from Diagon Alley, with Ginny trailing in her wake running to keep up with her. Harry watched them go then stared up into the sky again, the lone flyer weaving back and forth, the quaffle arching up in the air as he threw it to himself. Harry knew that once he and Ron started to talk things would work themselves out, they always had before, but how was he going to get the ball rolling. Then as he saw the quaffle descend into Ron's hand again, he knew what to do.
He mounted his broom and lifted from the ground sneaking through the trees he positioned himself below and to one side of Ron. Then as Ron lofted the quaffle into the air for what must have been the hundredth time Harry burst out of his cover and streaked upwards. His Firebolt reached maximum speed in the time the quaffle was rising, and Harry shot past Ron at over one hundred and fifty miles an hour, his coat tails cracked like a whip in the wind, and Ron whose eyes had been on the quaffle very nearly fell of his broom. He saw a black blur rocketing upwards, he tried to follow its path but then to his surprise found that both the blur and the quaffle had vanished.
"Fred, George," Ron yelled, "which one of you idiots did that?" he scanned the sky but apart from the sun shining brightly he could see nothing. Then something in the glare of the sun moved and a voice floated across the air to him.
"Not sure you should be calling anyone idiot, Ron." Ron squinted into the sunlight trying to see, and knowing what he would find, for he recognised that voice immediately and he had never been so glad to hear it in all his life.
"Harry, it's you, I know it is," joy was confounded by apprehension at the way his old friend would treat him, "please, I can't see you, come out of the sun."
Harry looked down at his friend and he could see the anguish in his eyes. There were a lot of things Harry could forgive Ron for and a few he couldn't, that would be up to Hermione, but at least he could start with his bit, and he urged his broom forward and came to a stop next to Ron.
"Hi," said Harry his face neutral, "I think this is yours?" he held out the quaffle and Ron took it from him hardly daring to look him in the eyes.
"Thanks," there was a second or two of silence, "Harry I'm really sorry, can we talk? I'll understand if you don't want to."
"Let's go down," Harry replied, "I think we both need to keep our feet on the ground for this, don't you?" He turned his broom and pointing it down went into a gentle dive landing back under the trees by the stream.
Ron was following close behind; his landing was a little clumsy, partly because of the quaffle in his arms but mainly because he was concentrating on what he should say. He slowly dismounted his broom and put it down, the quaffle with it, he stood up his head bent low in embarrassment, mustering the courage to look at Harry he squared his shoulders and raised his head to gaze down at his friend. Harry's face was a blank mask as they stared at each other, but Ron's was full of emotion, he struggled to control it but the glassy sheen in his eyes gave him away. He was moments away from breaking down completely when without any change in his expression Harry simply held out his hand. For a second Ron stared uncomprehendingly at it and then he realised what it meant, Harry was forgiving him. He grabbed the outstretched hand and burst into tears then pulled Harry into a fierce hug, murmuring over and over again "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."
The boys sat and talked under the trees for a while, Harry was right, once the talking started the problems began to unwind and Ron became more like his old self, but not quite. There was still a concern for their relationship that was keeping him bottled up.
Ron knew he had stretched his friendship with Harry to the limit and beyond and he didn't want to do that again. In his turn Harry regarded his best friend, he knew Ron wouldn't stray again now, at least not too far. This whole episode had been a massive shock to them both and none was more pleased to see it at an end than Harry; but Harry knew he must place a condition on his continued friendship with Ron and it concerned Hermione.
As they stood to return to the Burrow and Ron's meeting with Hermione Harry decided that now was the time. "You'll find she's changed, more than you'd think." said Harry, "and you need to know something."
Ron said nothing but he thought he knew what was coming, Ginny had mentioned it. It was the reason she wasn't going to chase Harry again, and if he was right it would be the reason he would have to consider Hermione in a different light. "She has become very important to me,"
Ron's stomach dropped 'here it comes,' he thought.
"Not that she wasn't before, but she must never know how important," Harry looked at Ron whose face was a picture of surprise, he couldn't understand why Harry would not want Hermione to know he was in love with her, but Harry wasn't finished. "I've begun to realise she is the one thing that drives me on, she has become my lucky charm. If anything was to happen to her I will fail, Voldemort will beat me and I will die. Don't get me wrong Ron if I die killing Voldemort then that's OK, but Hermione must survive and that is the promise I want you to make me. You will protect Hermione when I can't and that whatever happens to me you will make sure Hermione lives. Promise me Ron."
Ron had not expected this, he imagined it would be, she's mine now, leave her alone, keep your paws off her, but this …Harry's commitment to her was something Ron knew he had never felt even with all those potions, it was something he could hardly understand, but he could help. He felt those emerald green eyes boring into him as Harry waited for his answer Ron returned the look. "I promise," he said.
"Thanks mate," said Harry with undisguised relief and clapped Ron on the back. Linking arms the two wizards walked side by side across the field back to the strange lopsided house that the Weasleys called home.
* * *
As Harry flew off to deal with his side of the Ron problem, Hermione and Ginny reached the back door of the Burrow and ran straight into the apron strings of Molly Weasley.
"Ginny who's this… Hermione? Oh my goodness! What have you done to your lovely hair," she cried, holding her hands up to her face to hide her eyes, and then she made a motherly decision that something had to be done to correct this awful state of affairs. "Come inside before some one sees. I'm sure I have a spell in my household book that will put things right, your poor mother would be distraught I am sure."
As Mrs Weasley bustled over to the old kitchen chest, Ginny tried to interrupt and tell her to mind her own business, but Hermione restrained her with a look and a small smile. "Here I knew I had one," Molly returned with a tattered book that proclaimed 'Control Your Family, Household Spells for the Helpless', and advanced on Hermione with her wand out. Only then she saw what Hermione was wearing and it stopped her in her tracks. "Oh no that will never do," she looked disparagingly at the wide collared matt black garment that hung down to Hermione's ankles and swirled about her feet, that part was OK, but up at the top, it fitted her far too well.
Now she was acting as any completely flustered mother would, total indecision as to which deplorable change, deplorable in her eyes, needed correcting first. Molly thumbed the pages of her book looking for a suitable clothes changing spell but none fitted the bill, so she fell back on the tried and tested. "Well if you have nothing else to wear then you can borrow something of Ginny's. Now let's see about your hair."
"No thank-you Mrs Weasley," said Hermione fighting hard to stop from laughing at the matriarch of the Weasley clan. "I like my hair this way and as for my coat, it was a present from my mother, so you see I wouldn't want to change that either."
Molly's mouth dropped open, "And why would she give you something like that?" She asked once her composure returned. So Ginny had her mother sit down at the kitchen table and Hermione told her. By the time Molly had heard the whole story, well most of it, from the moment Hermione had blasted the Burrow to bits to their arrival back, she didn't know what to think. Her mind was a welter of emotions as she realised that two of her 'children' had slipped out of her control, and she was very worried as to what was going to happen to them.
"Did you really tell McGonagall to stick the Head Girl job?" said Ginny mightily impressed.
"Language Ginny!" said Molly automatically.
"Well, I was much more polite," said Hermione primly, "but basically, yes," she giggled.
"How are you going to cope being out of school, with Harry?" said Ginny with a touch of jealousy that she vigorously suppressed.
"We'll manage," said Hermione matter of factly, "I don't think Dobby will let us starve, and the school will help us all it can."
Then it occurred to Ginny that in all her plans to get the three of them together again they had all been back at Hogwarts by September. "What is Ron going to think?"
"What is Ron going to think about what?" said Ron smiling as he and Harry marched through the back door. His smile vanished as he caught sight of Hermione, "Oh bloody hell!" he exclaimed, and he went bright red.
"Oh bugger!" said Hermione through tightly clenched teeth, as in seeing Ron all her anger suddenly boiled to the top again and she had to run out of the kitchen and into the lounge, closely followed by Ginny.
"Oh Heaven's!" said Molly her hand to her forehead looking as if she would faint away, as she saw Harry dressed in his black dragon hide armour, and the realisation of it all hit her again.
"Oh well," said Harry in a resigned tone, it had all fallen apart as he expected, "any one mind if I put the kettle on? I think we could all do with a cup of tea."
* * *
It had taken Ginny, and then Harry working on Hermione for nearly an hour to persuade her to suppress her anger and attempt to settle her differences with Ron. Now the pair of them were shut in the lounge on their own, with the two arbitrators sitting guard on the door, they heard the occasional, well slightly more that occasional, raised voice from Hermione; but so far they had not found it necessary to intervene.
Hermione was using her full vocabulary of questionable terms, the odd one at the top of her voice, Ron amazingly, considering the way he and Hermione used to spat, was saying very little. Harry assumed that Ginny had worked hard on her brother and must have persuaded him that his best course of action was to sit still and take it. His strategy appeared to be working, the tenor of the conversation had calmed in the last ten minutes, and only the quiet murmur of comment and reply was audible through the door.
Inside the lounge things had settled, Hermione was done berating Ron, she didn't even think about him as a former boyfriend, as far as she was concerned that particular period of time had not existed in the real world. Friend was the only title she was going to bestow on him, if he wanted to upgrade to best friend he would have to work on it. He was so contrite that he even suggested a memory charm to remove all references of their relationship from their minds. It was a solution that Hermione vetoed immediately, what was the point of all this yelling and swearing only to have it removed by magic, he would never learn that way.
"You can't force love, Ron," Hermione had told him, "it grows naturally or it doesn't grow at all. Give it time, that's what I am going to do, someday the right girl for you and the right guy for me will come along then if you're lucky it will be OK."
Ron kept his own council, he now knew who the right guy was for her even if she hadn't twigged it yet, and he would keep his promise to Harry he would keep her safe as best as he could. He was going to be the third wheel again, the sidekick, but he would swallow his pride, not that there was much left of that, and play the part. Then Hermione asked him something which totally changed the position he saw himself in.
"I want you to promise me something Ron,"
Twice in one day this was uncanny. …What was the feeling oh yeh, dèjá vu.'
"I want you to promise that you will always watch Harry's back, he sometimes gets sidetracked and he is not always as careful as he should be. I'm not important to the fight," …'tell that one to Harry'… "but Harry is, and it's your job to make sure he is there at the end. Now promise!"
Growing up was not something that came naturally to Ron, with the twins still acting as if they were six years old at times perhaps the condition was understandable. Hermione and Harry had changed, of that there was no doubt, life was no longer a game for them and it couldn't be for him either if he was to be with them. The first inklings of his place in the lives of two remarkable people began to seep into his consciousness. They didn't want him to be the third wheel, or the sidekick, they wanted him to stand between them holding their two lives together, protecting each from his position in the middle. A task he had very nearly thrown away by his behaviour. "I promise." he said, sincerely, and hoped against hope that he would not have to break either promise he had made that day.
It was well after mid-day by the time Hermione and Ron emerged from the lounge. Hermione graced Harry with a tight smile as she passed, and grabbed Ginny by the arm and steered her out into the garden. Harry waited for Ron, he was looking very thoughtful, but not that bad for someone that had suffered the verbal lashing that Hermione had given him.
"OK mate?" Harry asked, patting him on the shoulder.
Ron took a deep breath and blew out his cheeks letting the air slowly whistle out through his pursed lips. "Yeah, bit shaky though," he said, then he looked at his friend, "Harry, if I ever do anything as stupid as this again stop me before it goes too far?" Harry laughed and nodded at him. "The cure is much too painful."
"Come on Ron, I think the girls have some drinks out in the garden; there is something else we have to tell you." Ron followed Harry out through the back door happy that the worst was over, but Harry knew it wasn't, and he was worried how Ron was going to take this latest bit of news.
Ginny and Hermione were sitting at the picnic table out on the lawn, their conversation stopped as the boys crossed the grass to them. Ginny picked up the large jug filled with Mrs Weasley's homemade lemonade, "Drink, you two?" she asked.
"Please," said Harry gratefully.
"Thanks Gin," said Ron.
They sat and Ron glanced furtively at Hermione who although still a bit stern was not actually looking as if she wanted to strangle him anymore. "Err… since we've umm… made up," Hermione flashed a daggered look at him, "well… sort of." Ron continued. "I wanted to ask you Harry if you would consider playing Quidditch again this year?"
"Love to," said Harry, with a sigh.
"GREAT!" Ron shouted.
"Love to," Harry repeated, and now he had made the first step he had no choice but to finish, "but I can't. I am not going back to Hogwarts in September."
"WHAT!" The expected eruption was blurted forth.
"I'm not going back and neither is Hermione."
Harry thought it would take eight seconds for Ron to respond it took him three, but the response was exactly as he predicted. Ron was adamant that he was staying away as well, and appeared hurt when he was very forcefully told that he had to go back. He began to rant and rave and was getting close to saying things that would stretch the tentative friendship that had just been mended. It only took one shout from Ginny to shut him up, and allow Harry to tell him what was going on.
Ron listened with half an ear, but inside despite his joy of only a few minutes ago that his friendship with Harry and Hermione was on the mend, his disappointment began to grow.
'He had fooled himself, he wasn't the protector after all; he was and always would be the hanger on, confined to Hogwarts while the other two had all the fun. Perhaps this was the punishment his actions deserved, forever apart from the people he cared about the most, never to be one of the three again, damn what an idiot he had been'.
Then through the fug he managed to work himself into he heard words like "Shrieking Shack", "easy to get to", "don't want you to feel left out", "contact with students", "most important", and he began to listen to Harry properly.
"So you see how vital it is Ron," were the first words that filtered across in a sensible form. "If we don't have some idea what the Ministry, and the other side is up to, we could walk straight into a trap, and one of those instances is quite enough for me," Harry said giving Hermione a 'sorry' smile as the image of Dolohov's curse striking her down flashed across his mind .
"Well yes of course," Ron replied, hoping that he would catch up on what he missed by his inattention. If necessary he'd ask Ginny later but well out of anyone's earshot, the moon might be a good place.
"We thought you would understand," said Harry lying through his teeth, they hadn't expected it at all, and never realised how close they came to being right. "And to make you one of us again," Harry continued, "we bought you this." and he retrieved the cardboard box from under the table where Hermione had stowed it.
Ron loved presents mainly for the fun of ripping them open to see what surprise lurked inside, which considering some of the things his twin brothers had given him over the years, showed how much he enjoyed it. With this gift he was more careful, he knew this was a peace offering, one he was well aware that he didn't deserve, and when he finally removed the coat from its wrapping, he knew that as a fact. He reacted in much the same way Harry had when he received his from the Grangers, but the only word that escaped his lips was "Thanks." The expression on his face said all the rest.
"Well put it on Ron," said Ginny exasperated by his inaction.
"Oh …yes …OK," and he complied with his stilted response and slipped his arms into the coat and drew it around him.
Unlike Harry's or Hermione's, Ron's coat finished a good three inches above his wrists and only just below his knees. He stood there like a patron of the buy-something-five-sizes-too-small shop, and a look of dismay crossed his features, but before he could say anything or anyone could laugh at his predicament the coat, as had the others, did what it said it would do on the label. By the count of ten it had expanded to fit his lanky frame like a glove, he beamed in happiness at his sister and then at his two best friends. They were standing hand in hand facing him and Ron reached out and grasped Harry's free hand and tentatively held out his other for Hermione to take, he looked imploringly at her. Her eyes still held a smidgen of distrust, then she glanced at Harry who gave the minutest nod, she sighed in resignation and took the proffered hand. Ginny crowed and ran round the three of them in delight.
"At last, at last," she chanted.
She was happy the three were back together again. What neither she nor any of the others saw was the distraught face that was peering at them out of the kitchen window. All that Molly Weasley could see was her youngest son and his two friends, who might as well be her kids dressed for war, and she despaired, she knew in her heart of hearts that they would never stand like that again. As the tears coursed down her face she knew, she just did, that she would lose at least one of them and might possibly lose all three.
* * *
Harry and Hermione decided to stay at the Burrow and return to the Shrieking Shack the following day, Ron was going as well and Hermione had persuaded Molly to allow Ginny to accompany them on the understanding that she was back before the end of the week. The evening meal that night was one of mixed feelings for those concerned. Molly had spoken to Arthur and he shared her worries over the trio; their meal was eaten in silence and some tension.
Harry and Ron had apparently completely buried the hatchet and were acting much as they had always done. Ginny had placed herself in between the boys and Hermione, who although she had relaxed her feelings towards Ron, found on occasion that some of his comments grated, and Ginny could see her clench her teeth to hold back a scathing remark. The rest of the evening passed in relative calm and it was as everyone was thinking of heading of to bed that Ginny cornered Harry. Making sure they would not be overheard she dragged him up the stairs and into the twins' old room.
"You're going to have to watch Hermione carefully for the moment Harry," she told him in a whisper." She is trying very hard to brush it all under the carpet but things like this hurt, girls more than most …I should know," and she glanced at him with a sad smile. "If Ron says something stupid she could still round on him, and Ron says something stupid every other sentence."
Harry looked at the girl that only two short months ago had set his heart racing. He felt he had let her down almost as much as Ron had Hermione. "I'm sorry Ginny, I didn't mean to hurt you, and for those few weeks it was great to feel wanted and loved, but…."
"But you have things to do," Ginny finished for him, "and although I would give anything to be the one for you I know I am not." Ginny shook her head sadly and the scent of her perfume, assailed Harry's senses once more and he closed his eyes at the memory of it. "She is," she said obliquely, "and she will be with you right to the bitter end, I know that and Ron knows that, even if you haven't caught on to what that means yet."
Harry was listening to Ginny's words but behind his closed eyes the face that 'Dream Flowers' had conjured for him was framed by lightly curling brown hair that sparkled in the sunlight and not the fiery red of the girl with him. "Treat her right Harry, and make sure my brother doesn't cock things up again, I don't think I could stand the strain." Ginny gave Harry one last look, then leaned forward and stole one final kiss. "I love you Harry Potter, and I always will." She turned quickly and left him standing in the empty room, ran up the landing and to her own room, and threw the door closed. Had she glanced back to the top of the stairs she would have seen a figure standing in the shadows who at the slam of the bedroom door stepped forward into the light.
Hermione had heard every word, and it didn't take a genius to work out that she was the girl Ginny was talking about. Was she surprised by this revelation, no not really, but to hear others talking about it made the little tingly sensation that invaded her stomach when she thought seriously about Harry grow and spread until it reached her fingers and toes. Ginny was right, Hermione told herself, she cared for Harry, so much, that it hurt to be out of his sight, that was why she had told him she would never leave him. Even Petunia had said she would do as much and now it was Ginny, but was there more to that promise than the reasons she had given herself for making it.
Hermione was worried now that flirting with Harry had been the wrong thing to do, what if he thought that she was doing it on the rebound from Ron, something to lighten the mood, but it wasn't like that at all. She was only seventeen; the only real love she had ever experienced had come from her mum and dad, she had suffered the odd crush, survived those, and then Ron, well the less she thought about that episode the better.
Harry was different, always there, undemanding, except when he needed help, and then she was always willing to provide it. He made her feel safe, he made her feel scared, he made her feel that she needed to be near him to comfort him, that's what most of those kisses had been about. Then she thought of the first one again, in that little room in the Leaky Cauldron, that one was for her, that was her banker, the one to store away forever, so that if anything, or was it that if nothing happened, she would always have that one wonderful memory.
Did she love Harry, yes that was easy; she could just as easily say she loved Ginny, or if she gritted her teeth Ron, but was she in love with Harry? She walked towards Ginny's room and as she passed the twins' bedroom the door opened and Harry was standing there thrown into silhouette by the moon shining through the window behind him.……………
The scent of the perfume was receding from his senses, but he could still feel the presence of Ginny's lips on his and the sound of her words floating in his mind, and he knew she was right, he knew who he wanted to share his life with, he had known it from the moment she appeared in his room at the Dursleys but he imagined he had known long before that. Possibly from the time at the Ministry when he thought she was dead, possibly from the time she alone supported him through the Triwizard competition, possibly from the time she had helped him defeat the Dementors and save Sirius, or possibly from the time she had been frozen by the basilisk. So many times it might have started; he even remembered her telling him he was a great wizard giving him the confidence to confront Quirrell, and that very first time on the train when Ron had tried to turn Scabbers yellow. He heard her voice again as it floated to him across the years, "I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"..…………..
"Harry Potter." said Hermione quietly. Harry lost in his thoughts had opened the bedroom door and almost walked straight into her. He stood there staring at her, her face lit by the light of the moon, the light curly bouncy hair even shone in this dim light at least that is the way it seemed to Harry.
Her eyes were thoughtful and she was biting gently on her bottom lip. Harry could feel himself begin to tremble, not with fear, he'd felt that before, this was not the same. He knew he wanted to hold her and he knew he was scared of doing it, he was being pulled toward her by some invisible force and he tried to resist it, but not very hard because he let it draw him in.
Then in less than a heartbeat something snapped and he found himself with arms full of Hermione who was hanging onto him as tightly as he was hanging onto her, a split-second later his mouth found hers and their lips were crushed together as they surrendered themselves to each other.
They sat close together on George or Fred's old bed it didn't matter whose it was as they were both the same. The kiss was over, it had burned itself out a while ago and although their emotions were still in turmoil they were content to sit like this and hold hands. Harry could look nowhere but at their joined hands he almost felt he had done something wrong but then Hermione had not objected to the kiss. The silence between them was awkward they each wanted to speak up but both were waiting for the other to start. In the end as usual in these circumstances they started together, then both stopped, and only then Harry dared to look at Hermione.
He cleared his throat, swallowed once, and then launched his thoughts into the silence. "I was going to say I'm sorry, but I'd be lying, and you know I can't lie to you."
"What have you got to be sorry about?" she asked in a whisper. "Nothing happened that I did not want to happen," she paused for the briefest moment and looked out of the bedroom window at the moonlit countryside, the ghostly coloured trees moving in the slight summer breeze, a snowy owl silently flew past, Hedwig out on a hunt. "I heard what Ginny was saying, and I was there, standing on the landing, asking myself do I love Harry Potter?" Harry shifted his gaze from her eyes back down to their hands again.
"And how did you answer yourself?" said Harry very quietly.
"I said yes," she replied without any hesitation, and she felt Harry's hand squeeze hers tightly, "but what I really needed to know was… was I in love with Harry Potter?"
Harry was looking at her again his eyes their usual brilliant emerald green colour washed away by the moonlight, were begging to know her answer. "Such a silly difference that one word 'in', and I was thinking about that very difference just now when you opened the door and kissed me." She smiled, took a very deep breath, and closed her eyes remembering the moment. "That was a first you know, the other times we kissed like that I kissed you, this time you kissed me and you answered all my questions for me." Hermione pulled him closer and very gently brushed her lips against his.
"Am I in love with Harry Potter?" she asked herself out loud; then savouring each word she answered her rhetorical question, "Yes, I am."
* * *