Just to survive we do what we can
we read the maps and signs, and we make the plans
by our design I write it down to get me by
the worst time in my life
And all I had was the memory of what was
so let's pretend it never mattered to us
I hope this message finds you well
Never thought I'd live to tell
what's a dream and what is real,
the way I really feel
And so, they fled. Hermione wasn't quite sure where they were headed, but she knew Harry must have a reason. With that thought alone she allowed him to rush her, hurrying between terminals with their luggage in hand to their designated flight gate. With few minutes to spare they managed to make it, breathing heavy, to the terminal. A portly, friendly attendant greeted them and promptly checked them in. Harry, still in pain and littered with bruises, collapsed heavily into a plastic chair suspended over the sea foam colored carpet by a metal bar. No sooner had he sat down to rest he found himself popping back up with the announcement by the male flight attendant to the boarding of their plane.
The flight was smooth with a little turbulence. Hermione was terrified, clutching Harry's arm and leaving her own bruises. The idea that the only thing separating her feet and 20,000 feet of pure nothing was a thin layer of insulation and metal did nothing to comfort her. Trying to find a happy place and breathing deeply she managed to survive the flight. The attendants were more than gracious and friendly to the couple.
Harry said nary a word the whole flight. He stared out to the clouds floating past, holding Hermione's hand absently. When Hermione tried to open conversation, he shut it down with one worded answers.
"Harry?" she would ask.
"Hmm?"
"Are you okay?"
"Fine." was his monotonous reply.
Giving up on conversation, Hermione instead turned to her other option - sleep. Trying to settle her nerves she asked for a cup of tea and reclined her seat. Breathing deeply she began to reminisce on the past month of her life without Harry.
It had been rough. Being with him since the demise of Lord Voldemort nearly 2 years ago had been great and she couldn't be happier. Their romantic relationship was flawless, and when they did have blemishes they were soon to fix them. They hardly argued, but there was never a need - they knew each other too well. They avoided the cause of conflict by communication. To Hermione, it was a fairy tale. Until one night they had a heart to heart discussion.
It was a quiet night that summer. The crickets were chirping in the trees surrounding their porch, all their friends were tucked away in the lopsided rooms of the Burrow, and the couple sat alone on the makeshift Quidditch field behind the house. Harry and Hermione gazed at the stars, humbled at the thought of the entire universe spinning around them.
"Pick one." Harry said, gesturing at the constellations and planets overhead.
"Pick one?" Hermione clarified, unsure of his point.
"Yes, pick one. Any one. It'll be yours."
"Harry, how can you get me a star?" she asked, turning on her side to look at him instead of the inky black night.
"Hermione, I can do anything for you." He replied, looking at her through his glasses. She smiled and kissed him softly.
"You are so sweet." She whispered between kisses. He looked at her slyly.They shared a quiet laugh under the Milky Way. A comfortable silence ensued while creatures of the night serenaded them. Suddenly, as if coming out of a reverie, Harry turned to look at Hermione.
"I don't know if I want to be an Auror, Hermione." He said. Flabbergasted at his random outburst, Hermione didn't reply.
"I mean, it's what I'm expected to do. I never really thought I'd live past Voldemort, so I picked something that was cool when we were at Hogwarts for something to look forward to, something to try to aspire to if I ever did survive. Now that I have, I have you to look forward to. I don't know if this is what I want. I mean, it's a great thing - you'll never get bored, you get to take risks, be your own boss most of the time, and of course catch bad guys. That's all I've seem to do though…fight people. I'm sick of fighting, Hermione. I just want to take time off, relax and live a little." He continued, voicing thoughts Hermione could tell had been mulling about for some time.
"What would you do then?" she asked quietly, touching his scar.
"I don't know…play Quidditch? Or maybe…"
"Maybe? Maybe what?" she questioned, curiosity peaked.
"Well, I've been thinking about opening my own thing. Maybe a restaurant. Something different - a pub or a bar or something. I like cooking; I'm good at it too. I don't know, it's stupid but it's an idea…" he told her, hesitantly. He looked at her, desire to hear her thoughts in his eyes.
"Harry, I think it'd be great for you. I want you to be happy more than anything in the world. If it takes cooking or flying or fighting banshees to make that happen, I'm all for it. You know I'll worry about you no matter what you do, but if you go into the Auror program, I'll be afraid for you. I want you to be happy, Harry, but I want you to be safe too. But it's not up to me, after all you've done you deserve a chance to live." She whispered, kissing his forehead. He buried his face in her neck and they laid in the dewy grass for another moment.
"I hate not knowing what you do down there." Harry said into her neck.
"Where? The Department of Mysteries?" she asked, pulling back his hair to look him in the eyes.
"Yes. I'm afraid it's dangerous or something." he confessed boyishly. He shook his head. "I don't like not knowing what you're being exposed to. I want to protect you, you know."
"Harry, I can protect myself- "she started.
"I know that, Hermione, it's just that I feel better when I help. It makes me feel like I've done something important. All I've seem to do lately is attend charity functions, press interviews, posing with various important wizards and witches…it's nothing! You, you're doing well. You're finding stuff. Hell, I don't know what you're doing, but it's more important than what I'm doing." He lamented, frustrated ruffling his hair. She smiled at him and shook her head.
"Harry, but you've been doing so much. Take time off, let's get away. Just one day drop everything and go somewhere. Just us, no magic if we want. Just get out of here and live as a normal couple." She suggested to him. He contemplated it for a moment before replying.
"Do you promise to go away with me one day?"
"I promise Harry. I promise."
She never knew he felt that being an elite Auror wasn't his calling. In Hogwarts when the discussion of future careers surfaced he only mentioned Auror training. In retrospect, the entire wizarding world seemed to expect it of him. Near the end of their seventh year and immediately following the Last Battle, all they, the press, could talk about was where he was going after that. Owls from thousands of businesses and organizations sent him letters pleading with him to be one of their advocates or employees. A few he accepted, mostly charities he felt passionate about. For the most part though, he stayed home and worked out or played Quidditch with Ron. He didn't go out much, he didn't need to. He stayed in his circle of friends and family. The rest of the world was only hungry to be drenched in his glory. To them, Harry Potter was very much a mystery.
But to Hermione, he was not so much a mystery as a thriller. She loved him, she knew that. He loved her, she was almost positive of. They hadn't voiced it, but then again it was difficult. In the early stages of their courtship he confessed he would have a hard time voicing that. He had a subliminal fear that those whom he loved were in constant danger. These fears were not unfounded due to the fact of the large number of fugitive Death Eaters fleeing capture. Death threats on lives of the Weasly's, Hermione's, and his own were common practice. They seemed to not faze him any more, but then again, part of Harry will never be figured out. No matter how many jigsaws or codes given to her in the Department of Mysteries, the one thing that will never be cracked by Hermione is Harry. Looking at him in such deep concentration on the plane confirmed this. Knowing him so well, she never expected a random out burst such as this where he wouldn't shine even the thinnest ray of light on as to why they were leaving, where they were headed, or what he had endured the past month.
Biting her lip at asking the torrent of questions ripping at her lips, she also wanted to say so much to him. To tell him off for keeping her in the dark, to tell him how he scared her by leaving without a word and to how angry she was when he left without saying goodbye. A letter explaining the reason arrived shortly later, but for a while it wasn't a sufficient source of information. After a while without another letter, she realized that the post she got three days after his disappearance was the only word she'd get until he returned and she tried to put the matter behind her.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the seatbelt sign clicked on again and the flight attendant's voice came over the fuzzy intercom.
"We will be landing shortly so please return the seat back table tops to their upright position and fasten your seatbelts. The weather outside is the high eighties and sunny. Welcome to the Caribbean everybody; we hope you have a safe and lovely stay and thank you for flying with us. We hope to see you again!" she said cheerily, her falcetto voice already bubbling with excitment of tropical paradise.
After exiting the plane, grabbing their luggage, and leaving the airport terminal the magical couple finally set foot on their getaway spot - sunny, mystical island in the middle of the Caribbean.
A gentleman with long black hair in dreads and dark lashes swathed in ratty clothes and flashy jewelry swaggered up to them with two flowers in his hand. He handed them both to Hermione and shook Harry's hand.
"Welcome to the Caribbean, lads." He said. With a clink of gold and fake silver he turned on the heel of his boot and swaggered in a half drunken sway in the other direction.
A/N: okay, so it's not much but I wanted to give you guys something! This is what you call a `filler chapter'. Next chapter will be much better and hopefully longer - I work a lot and have so much school work during the week so I hardly have time. Thankfully tomorrow is Friday and that is followed by the weekend so I should have time to write a chapter with substance to it. I finalized my plot today and I think you all will enjoy it! I do hope it's fresh and original and I believe it will keep you all guessing. Again, REVIEWs are great! Drop me a line please! I've had over 900 hits and 6 reviews. Come on guys! Please? Thanks all.
Peace
-->