3. The Ties of Friendship
Hermione Granger was on the verge of losing her mind. Ever since she has found herself alone in the presence of her best friend, Harry James Potter, she has been in an utter and continuous state of suffering as she tried to bury the more-than-platonic feelings she had for him. What has happened to me? I've never needed to try so hard to hide my feelings like I am now. Could it be because of the near-death experiences we had experienced before the summer began? If this continues, I am going to have to be forced to tell him how I feel, or otherwise I'll break down from this feeling of emptiness inside of me. Please Merlin. Please let him love me in return.
She then managed to get herself to look back at the man she so dearly loved, the man whose grin seemed to have no end, she noticed, and that fact alone made her spirits lift all the more higher. They were walking, close and side-by-side, down the sidewalk of Privet Drive in the community of Little Whinging.
They were nearing a part of the road where the left side of the road forked off into that same direction, forming another road not unlike Privet Drive where nearly identical houses were closely packed together. Without hesitating, she followed Harry down that road, a smile beginning to form on her face as she saw the sun poking out from the clouds, giving the day a better mood and atmosphere. When queried about the name of the street, Harry told Hermione that it was called "Wisteria Walk."
Looking down at their hands, Hermione realized that they were getting closer and closer as they continued to walk down Wisteria Walk, and before she could stop herself, her hand had brushed alongside Harry's, almost forcefully. Looking up at his face in slight anxiety, she was happy to see that he didn't seem to have noticed her. Then, almost suddenly, her hand was in his.
It didn't take long for a blush to form on her face. What is he doing? She thought, but then heard herself reply: what you wanted him to do. Her breathing began to become more and more strained, and she was unsure how she was managing to keep herself calm when she had so many fireworks going off in her body.
Surely he's just doing this in a friendly manner. Yes, that must be it. She finished her debate in her mind. However, a certain part of her mind, and her heart, thought quite differently. Just as well, she felt content as they continued to walk down the peaceful Wisteria Walk, hand-in-hand without any worries in the world.
Not even if Lord Voldemort himself were to suddenly appear would the happiness these two children felt completely dissipate into thin air.
* * *
Sometime later, after they had traveled along a couple of other streets in Little Whinging (when asked, Harry told her they were called "Magnolia Road," and "Magnolia Crescent"), the two found themselves face-to-face with a very peaceful-looking park. A short distance away, Hermione could discern that there was a small and bordered play area underlined with gravel, and occupied by a swing set. Since she could see no one there, she giggled and dragged herself and Harry, in a run, to the play area where she quickly sat herself into one of the swings, and soon found that Harry had sat in the other one.
Hermione began to swing higher and higher, emitting uncharacteristic giggles along the way, and a happy-looking Harry Potter followed suit.
There the two best friends found themselves for a great deal of time. Without the two of them realizing, so involved in their undisturbed and effervesce bubble of existence, the sun was beginning to fall, and the evening was almost upon them.
Harry was the first to bring the both of them back into reality, "Hermione, I think that we should be getting back. It's going to be getting dark soon." Hermione looked at him, looking frustrated like any kid would when told they had to abandon something that was exciting, and then said, "Of course, Harry. Let's get going."
Along the way back to 4 Privet Drive, Hermione glanced up to Harry and said, "I was actually thinking, Harry. Once we get back, we'll no doubt eventually find ourselves back into your room. I was thinking that we could perhaps try and practice for Transfiguration by trying to make your bed, and other furniture, slightly more… useable," With a slight frown, and a short pause, she continued, "And I don't mean this, by any means, in a bad way. I just think that, like I said before, you shouldn't have to suffer this summer as much as you used to. I'm here to help, remember! And the fact we can use magic makes this summer that so much more exciting." She ended her speech with a huge grin, and after seeing this Harry couldn't help but grin back.
"Of course, Hermione. I was actually thinking we could try and practice more and do some homework when we can before we go back to your parent's house," he replied as easily as if he was talking about the weather, and that along with what he said made Hermione stare at him in shock.
"Did you just mention homework, and summer, in the same sentence… willingly?" Hermione eyed him questionably, and was almost somewhat scared of his response.
"Well, yes. The battle at the Ministry sort of got me thinking that maybe I have been paying very little attention to what's important lately. If I had been stronger and smarter, and maybe a bit wiser, I'd not have done the same mistakes that I had last year, and all those years before. I need to be strong when I fight Voldemort again.
"And, of course, I have you to thanks for all of the comments you made to me about my study habits. They seem to have finally broken through to me." He looked at her with so much care in his eyes that Hermione couldn't help but blush, and thus glance away. They were now both standing there in the middle of Privet Drive and were no longer walking.
"Mione?"
She still felt the heat in her cheeks, so she nodded to show she was listening, "Yes, Harry?"
"I didn't really get a chance… to actually… to thank you."
"For what?" She was very confused now, and didn't care how she looked like when she looked into his eyes,
searching for the source of his sudden shift in emotions.
She was shocked to see how much sincerity those two glossy orbs held within them, and the depth of their concern, "For always being there for me… for being my friend in the first place. Just for being you, Hermione. You-you're the light that keeps me going."
Hermione immediately knew that Harry was being completely honest with her, and she knew that in that single moment, she fell even deeper in love with her best friend, if that was even possible.
"What about the others, like Ron?" Hermione dared to ask.
"Hermione, you don't understand. Ron may be my friend, but he, or anyone else at that matter, has never been as caring and understanding of me than you have since we have met each other on that train so many years ago. I may think of Ron as a friend, but you are the only one I could call my companion."
Hermione wasn't the least upset that she asked him now, and she then realized just how important their bond was. Their bond of friendship. She would give everything else away just to be able to keep that friendship forever. Even if they were friends forever and nothing more than that, she'd still be content.
However, she then become conscious of the fact that if they ever did become more than friends, she'd certainly be the happiest person in the world.
"Harry, I feel the same about you. I never did say thank you either… thank you for being a friend to me all these years Harry. For sticking close to me when no one else did. Thank you for believing in me, and putting up with me, and finally, thank you for being my companion, like you said I am to you." She continued to stare at his eyes, and tried her best to mimic his sincerity and concern.
She felt butterflies in her stomach when Harry replied, "You don't have to thank me, Hermione. What you've done for me spoke those words and more."
* * *
After expressing the depth of their concern and appreciation for each other, both Harry and Hermione managed to drag their glances away from each other and had managed to make it back to 4 Privet Drive soon after. Once they entered into the home, Harry immediately realized that his uncle and aunt must have returned as he could hear other people in the house.
He eyed Hermione, and said quietly to her, "My aunt and uncle must be back. Come on, let's go and tell them about what's happening this summer." Before he could go, however, she felt Hermione's gentle hands grasp his arm, "Harry, don't be scared to use your magic to try and make them understand that they can't push you around. And remember, I'll be right there behind you to help in any way I can."
After looking at her for a moment and seeing the great deal of care and affection her eyes and body were emanating, he nodded and said, "Thanks, Hermione. Come on, let's go." Harry was finally allowed to go and find his uncle and aunt. This task didn't seem to prove itself to be difficult because as soon as they had entered the kitchen they were unfortunate enough to have their eyes land on a plump Dudley and his Uncle Vernon filling their mouths with food, and an irritated-looking Aunt Petunia, seemingly eyeing Harry and the girl besides him.
Once Dudley and his uncle realized the addition of another presence, they glared at the two of them. After clearing his mouth of any excess food, Vernon yelled out in a frustrated tone, "Who is this girl, boy? There better not be any funny business going on between you two under my house! I will not stand for it!"
Harry and Hermione blushed, but Harry immediately replied, "This girl is my best friend Hermione Granger, who is a student from my school, and for your information she is staying the summer with me here. She is also definitely not partaking in any sort of funny business." After emphasizing the many points of his reply, he was glad to see that he had managed to make all three of his relatives look at the two of them in shock and fear.
"What? Two of you freaks under my roof? This is outrageous! Get out of this house, boy, and take that cow with you!" Uncle Vernon was practically steaming now, and Harry was using all of his willpower to avoid his anger from going out of control.
"I hope that you're aware, uncle, that I have no say in the matter on whether or not I can leave the confines of this home, and if I could leave I would have done so many years ago and left your so-called 'care' behind. I also hope you're aware of the fact that I and Hermione here beside me now have the ability to use magic, so maybe you should be more cautious when you're around us."
Hermione beamed at him appreciatively, as if thanking him he did not go to any extremes. He nodded in return, and stared back at his uncle, awaiting his reply. After a few minutes of strained silence, his uncle replied, "Are you trying to yank my chain, boy? I know that your bloody magic government or whatnot doesn't allow you to use magic out of school until you're of age."
Harry stood tall and straight and grinned mischievously in response, "I was given special permission this year to be able to use magic."
His aunt and cousin eyed him fearfully, but at the same time slightly deniably. Uncle Vernon finally said, "Prove it."
Taking hold of the wand he was carrying inside his jean pockets, he raised it up and pointed it towards the jar that was behind Aunt Petunia. Without any hesitation, he muttered "Reducto," and watched as his curse flew out towards the jar behind Aunt Petunia, who visibly flinched, reducing the jar to rubble and shards of clay. His relatives now glared at him and shrunk back in fear, apparently very afraid to invoke his wrath.
Hermione looked at in sympathy, and flicked her own wand towards the rubble, "Reparo." The jar returned to its normal form in the blink of an eye.
"I think that I deserve my own voice in this matter. Like Harry said, I'm his best friend. I also really do think as his guardians, he deserves much more respect from people like you. Even if you might not be capable of kindness towards him, can't you at least make him feel at home? Do you even know what he has on his shoulders? A killer is chasing him down, and you treat him like trash! You three are pathetic."
Harry had never ever seen his aunt, uncle, and cousin look so horrified, as if Death himself were staring them down. He also never seen Hermione so angered at anyone ever before. Feeling like he did enough harm as it is, he lightly grasped Hermione's hand and smiled at her, trying to show her his thanks for what she was doing for him. She smiled back at him, but then glared angrily at his guardians again, an evil-like glare in her eyes, "With or without your consent, I am staying with Harry in your home. It's the least you could do for him. You have already stripped him of a childhood, so why not make up for your mistakes and actually act like guardians?"
As if they both could understand each other without any form of communication, they both turned away at the same time and stormed off, not waiting for any sort of response from Harry's horror-struck guardians.
* * *
Harry could still not believe the aggressiveness his best friend has showed towards his guardians, and for his cause further more. His heart fluttered again, and he felt mysteriously complete and overwhelmed with happiness at the same time. Looking at Hermione beside him as they climbed up the stairs only amplified this feeling.
The conversation he had with Hermione while they were walking replayed through his mind. He didn't realize it until then, when he was walking with Hermione through his neighborhood, just how deep a friendship that he had with Hermione, and how much they were connected and bonded together. Sure, he may have thought of it before, but seeing her walking beside him, and the feeling of completeness he felt beside her, made the thought concrete.
He grinned, and was thankful that he had managed to dig out that Gryffindor courage from inside himself to be able to show her the amount of gratitude that he had of her friendship with him. He was also surprised how he managed to extract enough courage from inside himself to be able to grasp and hold her hand while they were walking down the street. He dearly hoped that she hadn't thought it was awkward. That's the last thing I need right now.
He was now surer than ever before about one particular fact regarding the girl beside him. Despite knowing very little about the nature of love, he felt more confident than anything he had ever known that the girl beside him would be the only girl he could ever love. The amount of completeness and the happiness he felt around her, and had felt around her ever since they met and became friends, was evidence of that. He did not ever feel that sort of feeling when he was beside Ron, or anyone else he knew. This was a feeling unique to them, and he knew now that he could never find that sort of completeness with anyone else. He loved Hermione Granger.
He had come to this conclusion while walking with Hermione through Little Whinging. That entire time, he was thinking. He was thinking back to all of the experiences he had ever shared with Hermione, all of the times they seemed to almost be completely in sync with each other, and all of the times he remembered being awed by her presence and intelligence (which he, at the time, realized was quite a number).
This was much more than anything he had felt for that Cho Chang. That was simply a crush, and a foolish one at that. This is much more. This is love, and there was no one else that could make him feel more absolute than Hermione Granger. She was the girl of his dreams, and nobody else can say anything to change his mind. She was the girl he couldn't ever imagine being without in his future.
What am I going to do? I hope more than anything that she loves me back. If not, then the already unique friendship that we now have would be enough… as long as I'm with her. Oh, Hermione, if only you knew how much you meant to me. I promise you, I'll tell you one day, but if it could risk our friendship, I'd rather wait and hope for the time when it would sound right if I told you: I love you, Hermione Granger, with all my heart.
* * *
Hermione suddenly had the strangest feeling that someone was speaking to her… telling her something very important. It started as a strange curl up her back, but evolved into a strange itchy feeling at the back of her head. Apart from that, she just knew in her heart that someone was trying to communicate with her. She looked over to Harry beside him. He seemed to be thinking about something, so she didn't interrupt him and just waited for him to come out of it himself while waiting beside his bedroom door.
Harry eventually put his head up and stared at her, "Hermione?"
The feeling came back, lightly but still identical to the first feeling she had when she felt someone communicating with her. It hit her. Could that person be Harry? What was he trying to say to her, and why did it feel like this? She's certainly read a number of books regarding the subject of telepathy and non-verbal magical communication, but she's never heard of something like this. She silently sighed, making up her mind to think about it later. Her mind was probably just playing tricks with her.
She grinned at Harry, and replied, "You were thinking about something, so I was just waiting for you."
He frowned slightly and said, "Sorry, I just sort of zoned out. I was just thinking about what could… happen in
the future. You know. What we could be doing years from now."
She drew her eyebrows together in an expression of confusion, "The future? You don't tend to talk a lot about
it. I guess if we do manage to make it through this mess, which I'm fairly confident we will," she grinned at
him, "I think that whatever we both decide to do, we do together."
He nodded, "I think so too. I can't imagine ever being without y-."
Hermione froze. Was he going to say what I thought he was going to say?
"I just can't imagine ever not being friends with you, you know?" He made a nervous face and looked away, going into his room.
She looked past him and stared into space. Does this mean what I think it means? I shouldn't put too much hope in it, but if it is, thank you Merlin!