A/N: Thanks, once again, for the reviews from the last part. Reviews really are the best motivator for a writer, so keep them coming, please! =)
*
It felt like several hours had passed when it really had only been one or two. The Weasleys emerged from the hospital room with ashen faces, each one looking as if they were going to collapse from exhaustion, worry, fear or just a combination of all. Ron took a spot in the waiting area next to Harry and Hermione, sitting down heavily. His breathing was shallow and his once friendly blue eyes had turned steely and cold.
Ginny was the last to exit the room, her eyes downcast as she walked slowly, following Ron's footsteps to the waiting area. She slowly lifted her head and her eyes met Harry's.
Without another word, she immediately walked forward and clutched at Harry, a sob escaping her mouth and silent tears streaming down her face.
Hermione quickly looked away, telling herself that she did not see Harry automatically wrap his arms around Ginny. She told herself that even if he did, it shouldn't matter anyway.
There are more important things to worry about.
Right now, Ron was beside her, his eyes tightly shut and his hands clutching his head. She hurriedly went to go fetch him some water.
*
Harry couldn't sleep.
Guilt gnawed viciously at him as images of what Mr. and Mrs. Weasley must have been through flashed through his head. Goose pimples appeared on his skin and a chill overtook him as he imagined the quaint Burrow, filled with memories and scents of blessed summers, with the Dark Mark looming treacherously overhead.
It was the least he could do to offer the Weasleys Grimmauld Place to stay in. It was close to St. Mungo's and well protected. His heart squeezed at the thought of more Death Eaters coming after the family he considered as good as his own.
Ron had told him not to blame himself.
But as Harry looked into the eyes of his friend, filled with anxiety and rendered almost lifeless as he reflected upon his ailing parents, he just couldn't help himself. He shivered uncontrollably, feeling so cold and alone.
A knock came from his door.
Harry jerked up in bed, surprised at the noise that disrupted the still night. His hand was already upon his wand and his mind was already ripping through all the curses he knew even though he told himself that it was very unlikely that he was going to be attacked at Grimmauld Place. He had made sure of that.
"Come in," he called out, sitting up.
He was surprised when he saw Ginny come into the room.
"Ginny?" Harry asked. "What are you doing in here?"
Ginny looked up at him shyly. "I, er, I couldn't sleep."
Harry understood. Death Eaters had just attacked her parents after all.
"Oh," was all he said.
"I was wondering if, er, I could... talk... with you," she finished lamely, looking at him helplessly.
Harry's eyes grew wide. "Oh! Right... of course. I mean, yeah, if you... need someone to talk to then..." He fumbled with the edges of his blanket for a minute before awkwardly patting a spot at the foot of his bed. Ginny sat down, not at the foot of the bed, but right next to him.
"Harry," she whispered, so low that he had to lean in to hear her. "I want you to kill him." She lifted her head to stare hard at him, her eyes shining in the moonlight. "Kill him for what he's done, Harry." She then rested her head against his shoulder, sniffing softly and it was all Harry could do to wrap his arms around her and try to comfort her.
"You're my hero, Harry," she whispered to him, her head resting against his chest.
Harry did not know whether those words empowered him or just added another burden to his shoulders.
*
Hermione's heart was beating frantically inside her chest.
She knew she was risking it now that the house was full... but she didn't think-she never would have thought--
But I should have.
After she saw Ginny enter Harry's room and close the door silently behind her, Hermione sunk down along the wall, letting out a shuddering breath she didn't know she was holding.
Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?
She dug her palms into her eyes, hoping to stop the onslaught of tears she knew was coming. She could feel the prickliness already. She dug harder and harder until stars bloomed behind her eyelids.
Taking a deep breath, she stood up straight in the dark. She blinked rapidly until the prickly feeling behind her eyes disappeared. Now was not the time. They did not have the time. Never will.
Knowing that she wasn't going to be getting any sleep that night, Hermione traipsed over to the Library. There were more important things to worry about. She had a duty to fulfill.
*
When Hermione awoke, she awoke staring into a pair of blue eyes, a tired smile twinkling in them.
"R-Ron?" she mumbled sleepily, picking up her head from the large tome it rested on.
"Hey, you," he said. "Why are you asleep here?"
Hermione rolled her head side to side trying to work the crick out from her neck. When she stopped, she saw Ron staring at her, patiently awaiting her answer.
"I had... things to do."
Ron's tiny smile disappeared from his face. "You have to get proper sleep, Hermione," he said.
She smirked. "I think you've been hanging around me for too long, Ronald."
The small smile reappeared at the corners of Ron's mouth. Hermione felt some of the misery from last night ebb away.
"Come on," said Ron. "Time for breakfast."
The thought of breakfast with everyone brought uncomfortable images of having to face Harry, possibly sitting next to Ginny, acting as if everything were normal... acting as if nothing had happened last night. At all. Between either her or Ginny.
"Only if we can eat it outside," Hermione blurted out. She was glad that the sun chose that moment to stream in through the windows.
Ron looked at her bewildered. "Hermione, it's February!"
She plastered on a smile. "But it's almost March. It can't be that cold. Besides, it looks gorgeous outside today."
*
Harry was beginning to wonder where Ron and Hermione were. Everyone was already in the kitchen, eating the breakfast that Charlie had prepared, except him or her. He would have gone to check on Hermione, maybe to wake her up, but something held him back. Ginny had found him standing outside her door and had convinced him to come to breakfast already.
"Morning, everyone!" Ron announced, entering the kitchen already fully dressed, with Hermione right behind him.
A chorus of "g'mornings" wound themselves around the table. Ron and Hermione sauntered over with their plates, piling food onto them and grabbing mugs of coffee or tea. Harry watched as they gathered everything, his eyes mostly following Hermione's movements. Her hand gently brushed against his as she reached for the jam. Harry's eyes shot up to her face and he felt slightly startled when he saw her staring right back at him.
It felt like a few moments had passed before they tore their gazes away from each other. Hermione mumbled a "sorry" for bumping his arm. Harry opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted when Ron called out her name.
"Hermione, you coming?"
Her head turned to face Ron, completely away from Harry.
"Yes, Ron! And don't remember to get our coats! We can't be catching our death out there!" she called after him, immediately turning back into the same, old Hermione. Except that she wasn't... to him.
Harry wanted to ask where they were going and why they needed their coats, but before he could say anything at all, the pair of them walked out of the kitchen with their plates and mugs in hand.
*
When Remus came to visit, Harry was expecting more bad news. He wasn't that much comforted when Remus informed everyone that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were doing splendid and should be waking up any time now. It did not help that he had gathered him, Ron and Hermione into one of Grimmauld Place's many drawing rooms so he could talk to them in private.
"You three are to begin your training this Saturday with Tonks, Kingsley, Moody and I," were the first words out of his mouth.
Harry, Ron and Hermione just stared stupidly at him.
"Training?" asked Harry. "For what?"
Remus pursed his lips. "For Voldemort and his Death Eaters of course... and anything else he might have up his sleeve." He crossed his arms looking down at the three of them. "There may not be a formal Order of the Phoenix right now, but we'd be damned to let you three do everything yourselves."
He dropped his arms, signaling that their private meeting was over. But before they could all pile out of the room, he stopped them.
"Oh! I almost forgot." He pulled something out from his pocket and tapped it with his wand. Five leather bound notebooks appeared in his hand, which he promptly handed over to Hermione. "From McGonagall. She says that she herself was unable to find anything more in them, but maybe you three might." He watched as Hermione traced her fingers on the faded, gold-lettering on the spine in awe.
"Dumbledore's diaries," she said, her voice floating around them all.
"Good luck on your search," Remus said before nodding at each one of them and leaving the room.
*
Hermione, whether she did it consciously or unconsciously, made it a point to avoid Harry as much as she could. It had been quite easy when all the Weasleys had been staying with them.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had woken up two days ago and were recovering smoothly.
The house felt extremely empty after they all left. Harry, Ron and Hermione were once again left to their own devices as everyone else departed and continued to do their own part in the war against Voldemort.
Hermione looked away as Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's neck before she left to go back to Hogwarts. She missed Harry slightly turning his head so that Ginny's lips caught themselves at the corner of his mouth.
Ginny stepped back from him, an unreadable expression on her face. She simply nodded curtly and proceeded to hugging Ron and Hermione goodbye.
"I'll write," she told them, her eyes lingering a little bit longer on Harry. "You, too, okay?"
"Goodbye, Ginny," he said to her, shoving his hands deep within his pockets and looking at her with apologetic eyes.
*
"Why have you been avoiding me?"
Hermione nearly dropped the mug of tea she had been making in surprise. She whipped around, breathing hard and her hand already upon her wand.
"Don't do that!" she said, hastily sticking her wand back into the waistband of her pajama bottoms.
"Why have you been avoiding me?" Harry repeated, stepping closer to her. She promptly turned her back to him, busying herself with making tea.
"I would never try to avoid you, Harry," she said, a hint of exasperation in her voice. She had thought that she had crept out of bed quiet enough so as not to wake either Harry or Ron... but especially Harry. "Want some tea?" she asked.
Harry stared hard at the back of her head, his brow furrowed in confusion.
"Ginny and I aren't together," he said, feeling compelled to tell her this... to make her understand, to make her believe, that this was true.
Hermione's fingers slipped a bit at these words, the teaspoon she had been holding almost falling out of her hands and clattering to the ground.
"Really?" She turned around to face him, her features a complete mask only showing him concern when he knew that what he really wanted to see was lying underneath. "Did you want to talk about it?"
Harry's eyebrows drew closer together. "No, I... no, that's not what I want to talk about!" he exclaimed. He did not understand why she was playing dumb. Hermione could be everything but dumb.
"How much sugar did you want in your tea, Harry?" she asked.
Something inside of Harry cracked at the way Hermione was asking him trivial questions, at the way she just stood there, making tea, acting as if nothing happened, acting as if that night had not happened. Sure, they hadn't exactly had the time to discuss things the past few days, but here he was now, trying to open the discussion and getting no results whatsoever. He severely doubted that anyone could forget that easily. Especially Hermione.
"You know how I like my tea," he said to her stiffly.
She nodded and continued making his tea.
Harry felt himself snap.
"Hermione, what's going on?" he whispered roughly, remembering to keep his voice low because Ron was asleep upstairs.
She stopped making tea and turned around to look at him, leaning against the counter. It suddenly occurred to Harry how tired she looked. She impatiently massaged one of her temples as her other hand clutched at the counter.
"Harry, I can't do this right now," she told him wearily.
But Harry wouldn't give up.
"Well, when can you?" he asked her stubbornly.
"Goodnight, Harry," she said, stepping past him and storming out of the kitchen, leaving her and Harry's tea, steam rising out of the mugs.
*
Hermione flipped through one of Dumbledore's volumes, jotting down notes whenever she found something remotely useful. The piece of parchment she was working with was covered with her handwriting and key phrases and words stood out only to Hermione amongst the scribbled mess.
She closed the latest notebook she had been scouring, focusing instead on her notes.
Tom Riddle... horcruxes... orphanage... Harry... cup... Ravenclaw... wand... Priori Incantatem... Lily and James Potter...
Her mind worked fast, sorting everything she read into predetermined categories and slots in her mind. It was like working out a very complicated puzzle. Some words filled in voids, others created new blanks, and still others seemed to fit nowhere.
"Come on, Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said to the empty room around her. "Help me find something!"
*
Attacks were becoming more and more common, news of some attacks coming all the way from France. The Ministry still tried to cover things up, but the general Wizarding public wasn't stupid. News traveled faster by mouth anyway.
Harry felt it approaching. It scared him to death. It also killed him a little bit inside when he looked into Hermione's eyes and only saw hardness and raw determination for her research.
She didn't sneak into his room at night anymore. He stayed up often, a tiny hope flickering inside of him that she would.
"This came for you," Hermione said to him, breaking his thoughts. She handed him an envelope.
To Arnold
Harry stared at it cryptically.
"Arnold? I don't any Arnolds... the only Arnold I know is Ginny's little Pygmy..." his voice trailed off as realization dawned on him. It was a letter from Ginny, disguised. He looked to Hermione, only to have her quickly look away from him.
"Oi! You two, you better come in here. Remus is in the Floo!"
Harry and Hermione quickly hurried to the room Ron called from. Remus' head was in the fireplace and he looked up at the three of them gravely.
"I think you three better come here quick," he said to them, speaking fast so their communication did not last too long.
"What is it?" Harry asked in alarm.
Remus' expression darkened. "It's Mundungus Fletcher. We... we found him dead in an alleyway last night and... I think there's something that you need to see."