Unofficial Portkey Archive

Fallen

Author: VWChica
Email: [email protected]
Category: Romance
Rating: PG
Summary: She didn't mean to fall for him. Sometimes these things just... happen.

DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter and Co. belong to the lovely J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, WB, and various others. I'm a simple teenager who wishes to have some creative fun with these amazing characters. No money is being exchanged. No copyright infringement is intended.

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I didn't mean to fall for him. I didn't even want to, if you had asked me at the time. But... one day it just kind of happened.

It all started out like any normal day. I was in the great hall, minding my own business and eating some breakfast when he walked in. Yes, Harry walked into the great hall with Ron, the same as always, and something in my mind just... woke up, as if it had been in hibernation up until that point. I looked at Harry that morning and something in my mind just clicked. He was the One. The one I was supposed to be with.

I realized that morning that I loved Harry, plain and simple. It suddenly became as clear to me as my own name, or what one plus one equaled.

And it's not like he did anything different... anything to turn me on or notice him in any different way. He wore the same crisp uniform and robes that he always did. He smiled in that same familiar way as he has the whole time I have known him. Nope, it wasn't him. It was all me.

I suddenly found myself unable to look away from him. If you had asked me the day before if I'd ever have any romantic feelings towards Harry, I'd have told you that you were crazy. Nutso. Grade 'A' psycho. He's just Harry... just the sweetest, bravest, kindest, most selfless person in the world.

Ok, damn. I was sunk then too, I guess. I just never realised it. But that morning, oh boy, did I realize it. I realised it so badly that it hurt.

...and I was busted. He caught me staring at him. I quickly averted my gaze down to my suddenly fascinating muffin, but I fear it was all in vain. My blushing cheeks must have given me away. But if they had, he either seemed not to notice or chose to ignore it, as when I lifted my eyes back to his direction, he was no longer looking my way, but joking with Ron. I found myself fixated once again, wondering why I have never realized before what a catch he was.

He was a hero, yet not the typical muggle one. No spandex pants can be found, no bulging muscles. In fact, he had absolutely no resemblance to the typical superhero. Yet, if you compared Harry to Superman, Harry would win hands down. Harry may have been a bit too lanky for his own good. Sure, he might not have been popping out of his shirt with muscles, but the fact remained that he was the most amazing person I know. Superman? Pah. What's so super about him?

All too quickly I finished my food and headed out of the great hall towards my first class of the day, arithmancy. Normally I would wait until the guys finished eating and walk with them to the grand staircase where we would part, yet on that day I felt as if I had walked within three feet of Harry I would do something completely irrational.

Funny how there are some things that end up happening no matter how hard you try to avoid them.

I heard footsteps running towards me and I turned around to see whom it was. Figures that it was the one person I was trying to keep myself from.

"Hermione! Hey... why didn't you wait for Ron and I? We would have walked with you," he asked me, slightly out of breath.

"I... erm..." I had absolutely no idea what to say. How do you tell your best friend that you have suddenly fallen head over heels for him? It wasn't as if I could go up to him and just tell him. Not really every day conversation, if you'd ask me.

His exploring eyes made me nervous. It was almost as if he was gazing into my soul and discovering all of the secrets that were inside. I couldn't take it any longer. My eyes tore away from his as my gaze dropped to the floor.

My, what interesting patterns.

"Hermione," he spoke this time, his voice soft with concern, "are you alright?"

Some people thought I was a know-it-all. Well, this situation only proved that I still had a few things left to learn.

"Hey..." he coaxed me, his voice gentle as if he was afraid that he would end up offending. His hand gently grasped mine and gave a small squeeze. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

I looked back at him, my eyes naked and raw with emotion. How could I tell him? After all these years of friendship; of trials and sacrifices that have only made us stronger. How could I tell him that I wanted to take the grandest risk of all?

"I..." my words stumbled over themselves before they even reached my teeth, "... I can't." I pulled my hand away from his and started up the staircase, leaving him standing there startled.

"Hermione," he spoke from behind, his feet working overtime to catch up with mine, "Please just tell me what it is. What's gotten into you? I always thought we told each other everything."

"Please don't do this to me, Harry," the words came out my mouth without me even realizing it. "Please... just give me some time. I can't do this."

"Sure you can," his overconfident voice rang in my ears. "Just tell me."

I stopped dead in my tracks and turned around. I found myself suddenly aware of our closeness, with him being just one stair below me. Our noses were even, and I suddenly found it hard to breathe.

Time seemed to slow then, and the rest of the world just faded away. Every heartbeat was deafening to my ears. The air I breathed burned my throat. My mouth was suddenly as dry as the Sahara. It was downright mad for me to be acting this way around him, while just the day prior I was perfectly fine. How could only one day change so much?

He was closer to me now. I could feel his breath gently caressing my face, I could see right into those eyes of his - the piercing green hidden too often behind those glasses. It was then I realized that he was getting a little too close - and inching more forward by the moment.

Our lips were millimeters apart.

"Hermione," he said, voice a raspy whisper. It was all I needed to hear. I closed the gap between us, and time stopped.

I had never been so scared in my life before. These made any of my adventures with Harry in the past seem like children playing in the sandbox. Harry's kiss was feather-gentle, yet extremely intense at the same time. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before; a feeling of pure bliss I thought was only available in fairy tale form.

And all too quickly, like all good things, it was gone.

We both pulled back from the kiss, and I reluctantly opened my eyes. Harry was looking at me as if he was a scared, lost child. For a moment, I feared that the moment of pure heaven I just experienced would be my last. I was afraid that he would say it had all been a mistake, that he hadn't wanted a kiss and was just worried about me like a friend should be. A friend, not a boyfriend.

"I'm sorry," Harry bumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets and taking an intense interest in the wall to my right. "I shouldn't have done that. I mean sure, I've wanted to, for a while actually, but..." his voice stopped dead, as he finally realized what he was saying. "Umm... I guess I'll just shut up now." His face was crimson

He turned to walk away, and my instincts took over. My hand shot out and stopped him. This was my shining moment. This was where I proved to everyone that I truly belonged in Gryffindor.

I grasped the back of his head, my fingers dancing in his silken threads of hair, and pulled his lips to mine once again. This kiss was more intense than the last, having finally having found my courage. After a moment passed, Harry must have realized it was really happening and started to kiss me back with the same intensity.

Life doesn't get any better than this.

When we finally broke our kiss, having seemingly run out of air, we looked at one another with goofy grins on our faces. We both knew what this meant. One of the biggest changes in our lives had just occurred. I no longer feared it, but invited it with open arms. They didn't put me in Gryffindor because I was a cowardly lion, after all.

Harry once again took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. I smiled broadly, my fingers entwined with his. "If that's all it takes to get Miss Granger to smile, I would have done that eons ago," he joked, blushing slightly. I smiled back, and we stood that way for a moment, enjoying each other's company. Sadly, our time was drawing to a close. The corridors were nearly empty now, most of the students having situated themselves in their classes already. I hated to leave this moment, a small part of me afraid that it was all just my imagination and would never happen again. Harry dispelled those worries, however, with a few simple words.

"May I walk you to class?"

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