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Chapter 11
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"Where is she? I demand to know what is going on!" Ron screamed at a Healer. The Healer just shook his head..
"I'm sorry Mr Weasley, no one is allowed inside."
"Ron!" Harry was walking towards them down a long corridor. Ron ran past the Healer and wrapped his arms around his best friend.Â
"What the hell is going on?" Ron demanded. Harry looked at the Healer and then took Ron's arm and pulled him farther down the corridor.  They entered an empty room.
"It's Hermione…" Harry finally answered.
"I bloody well know that it's about her. But what has happened? Is she ok?"
Harry proceeded in telling the whole story. He tried not leave out any details, and he ignored Ron's objections about Malfoy and about how he should have been there instead.
"So how is she now?" Ron asked.
"Alive," Harry answered sadly.
"Harry, are you all right?" Ron asked with much concern.
Harry was swaying slightly from side to side, and he finally reached out and grabbed Ron's shoulder. Â Ron helped him to sit down on the floor.Â
"She almost died Ron, she was hanging there… like an animal."Â Tears escaped his eyes, and soon he was shaking violently. Ron wrapped his arms around Harry
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"You saved her, Harry."
Ron hadn't seen Harry this deep in despair, ever. Even after all they had seen together, Harry had never broken down like this.
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Hermione slept for four days but Harry never left her side.  He sat in a chair in her room most of the time. Sometimes he would wander around in the halls, but he was always at St. Mungo's. The Weasleys stopped by everyday; Draco came in the mornings, and once every evening. Â
It was late in the evening on the fourth day when Hermione started to wake up. Her body ached her head was pounding. She felt sore from not moving her muscles in a few days.  She was thirsty, hungry, dirty, scared, soar… but then she opened her eyes.
Harry
He is here, he is with me. We're alive…
She saw him slumped in an armchair, asleep.
She let her fingers examine the bandage on her head. She looked at her hands, scratched and bruised, but she felt pretty all right considering. She looked at Harry again, he looked sad somehow.
"Harry," she whispered softly.
His eyes immediately shot open.
"You're awake," he dashed forwards. He grabbed her hand and stroked it, kneeling on the floor next to her. She smiled sweetly at him.
"LeStrange, Pettigrew?" she asked.
"Dead, both of them, you never have to worry about that again."
"You saved me…" she squeezed his hand.
"Well, Malfoy and I did," he admitted.Â
Hermione smiled and started to feel very tired again, and she fell asleep in a matter of seconds. Harry stroked her forehead and lovingly kissed it. "You should rest," he whispered and went back to his guarding post.
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The next morning Hermione was wide-awake. When Harry brought her breakfast tray she ate it with almost as much hunger as Ron did on an everyday basis. Harry enjoyed watching her, knowing that she was safe. They hadn't really talked about what had happened, what had been said and what they would do now. They knew there would be time for that later. As Harry watched Hermione eat, he heard a soft knock on the door and Draco opened it slightly.
"May I come in?" he asked with caution.
Harry frowned. Draco had helped him save Hermione, but Harry hadn't forgotten what Draco had done to her.  He knew that hadn't Draco joined him in the cave, Harry would be dead for sure, and Hermione might have been as well. Harry knew that Draco had risked his own life when he called out for Rodolphus. He was thankful for what Draco had done, but that didn't change the fact that he was a Malfoy. Harry hadn't forgotten the things Draco and Cho had said at the Ball. Hermione nodded.
"I'll just leave you two alone; I'll just go and get some coffee." Harry started to get up and Hermione smiled gratefully at him.
Draco sat down on the edge of the bed next to her and just watched her for a while.
"Do you hate me?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"I know I have so much to explain, but I just want you to know how happy I am to see you," he said as he took her hand and squeezed it lightly.
"I hear you were quite the hero," Hermione finally spoke.
Draco looked down at her hand and felt very sad.
"I need for you to know Hermione that I was never with you because of what Cho offered me. That might have been the reason why I initiated contact with you, but I truly fell for you. I think you know that."
Hermione closed her eyes and leaned her head back.
"I don't really want to talk about this right now. So much has happened, I just need sometime to let it all sink in."
They sat silent a while longer. Hermione had her eyes closed and Draco was just gently stroking her hand. The door opened and Harry returned with his coffee. He knew he could have given them more time, but he didn't really feel like leaving Hermione alone with Malfoy. Draco took a moment to gather his composure. He became very aware of Harry's burning gaze.
"When will you be released?" he asked.
"Tomorrow, I can't wait to sleep in my own bed," she exclaimed.
He smiled sweetly at her.
"Ok, well can I come by tomorrow?"
She nodded and Draco leaned forward and their lips gently met.
Harry's insides immediately caught fire. He could see that it was a fairly friendly kiss, but it was still a kiss that you share with someone you've shared a history with. There was something there, between Hermione and Draco.
After Draco left the room Harry didn't know what to say. He didn't want to act like a jealous boyfriend, but that was exactly what he felt like.
Hermione pleaded with Harry to make sure there were not a lot of people in her flat when she would arrive home. And he had to talk to Ron, because there had indeed been planned a welcome home party for her.
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The next day, Harry helped Hermione to the flat and tried to help her settle back into her room.
"Is there anything you need?"
"I could really get used to this queen treatment!" He smiled kindly at her.
"Well guess what, we have the flat to ourselves tonight, and I am making you dinner."
Her eyes shot open.
"Are you really?"
"No, I'm not…Mrs Weasley has sent some food over," he admitted with a sheepish grin.
"Even better."
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When Hermione walked down into the living room later that evening, she could see that Harry had really put a lot of effort into making her feel pleasant. He had decorated it so that only the faint candlelight was lightening it up. Hermione sat down and looked hungrily at the chicken on her plate, she took a sip of her wine and looked across the table at Harry.
"This is nice," she smiled sweetly at him. He didn't answer but just looked at her and he felt so truly happy that she was safe.
Harry followed suit and dug in on Mrs Weasley's wonderful chicken.
"Damn, that woman knows how to cook!" he stated and leaned back after they had finished eating.
"I know I'm bursting," Hermione agreed.
They moved over to the sofa, and Harry filled their glasses with more wine. Hermione was lounging comfortably on the sofa and Harry took a seat next to her.
"So…" Harry said and turned to face her.
"So?"
"I guess there's a lot you want to ask me," he tried to read her expression.
"I'd prefer it if you told me what you feel like telling me."
Harry gathered his courage, drank some more wine and then started:
"I don't know how much exactly you heard that night. But I will tell you exactly what happened…" He became quiet again and looked down at his hands, they were shaking.
Hermione leaned forward and placed her hand on both his.
"It's OK Harry," she encouraged.
"Well, basically the story is this… I killed Bellatrix, Rodolphus wanted revenge by killing the one I loved. Voldemort told him who that was…"
He turned and looked at Hermione.
"Love, how?" she asked with caution.
"You know how."
They both had a quiet moment.
"But after that night at the cabin, you never seemed…"
Harry interrupted her.
"I couldn't very well be with you. I was so afraid that Rodulphus would break free, I just thought that if we weren't together he wouldn't think I was in love with you."
"And were you?"
Harry looked at her again, this was the most intense moment of his life. He had never told a girl he loved her before.
"Yes."
Hermione ran both her hands through her hair.
"And now?" she asked, her voice shaking.
"Still," he admitted.
"Oh my God Harry... All this damn time," she was raising her voice, "I've had to see you with all those women, my friends even…"
"I was just trying to forget!"
"But making me, remember even more. You must have known what I felt. All this time that has been wasted." She stood up in frustration and Harry followed.
She walked over to the window and stared down at the dark street. Harry stood closely behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.
Should he leave? Did she want to be alone? Was it too late? Should he kiss her? Should he get down on one knee and proclaim his love?
"Can't we make up that time?" he sounded almost scared.
There was a knock on the door.
Hermione didn't react, so Harry went and opened the door and Draco stood before him.
Harry nodded towards the living room and Draco walked straight in. He came to a halt as he entered, taking in the scenery. The lights were off, candles were lit and there were two wine glasses on the living room table.
He walked up to Hermione by the window and stood next to her. She turned to him, a look of surprise.
"Oh, hi, Draco, I forgot that you were stopping by."
"Obviously," he replied.
She didn't understand his sarcasm, still in shock from her previous conversation. He gazed at her from the side.
"You look sad," he finally said.
She turned and looked at him, tears in her eyes.
"I just feel so lost Draco," she put her head against his shoulder and started crying.
He didn't quite know how to react, but patted her head.
"I have a week to accept the Auror training, the Paris offer still stands," he said in a kind voice. She sobbed slightly and then pulled herself together.
I will never leave Harry
She turned and saw Harry watching them from the hallway. She could see by his face that he was very unhappy, seeing Draco holding her. Draco turned and followed her gaze.
"I guess you two have some stuff to talk about huh?" he asked.
She nodded slowly.
"I'm finding it very difficult being a gentleman about this," he admitted.
"Well I guess you owe me, considering that it turns out you weren't a gentleman at all these past weeks," she answered.
"I guess I deserved that one," he joked. Draco left shortly after that.
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Harry watched Hermione as she sat down on her bed.
"Are you alright?"
"I just want to sleep," she answered sadly.
He kneeled in front of her and helped her take her socks of.
"Well tomorrow will be fun, don't you think?" he tried cautiously.
She nodded, not really interested.
"The whole gang is coming over, for a small party."
She looked him in the eye and gave him a small smile.
"Yeah," she said, "that will actually be fun. I need some normalcy around here."
Harry sat down next to her and Hermione leaned her head against his shoulder.
"I'll sleep on the sofa," he whispered. She nodded slowly and Harry kissed her forehead.  Just as he got up to leave Hermione grabbed his arm. He looked inquiringly at her. "What is it, sweetie?"
"Sleep in here, I don't want to be alone."
Harry got a mattress and put in on the floor next to Hermione's. He looked up at her. She had never looked this small before. He had seen Hermione scared many times during the war, but still she was always brave. It felt so awful to see her like this.
They hadn't talked about what had happened before Harry had reached her, but there was no doubt that she had been severely beaten and tortured by LeStrange. Harry's heart started beating faster, he became furious just thinking about that man. He would have loved nothing more than to Crucio him out of his mind, or let a Dementor do its business. Lestrange had gotten away so easily.
Hermione was afraid, and she hated it. She didn't want Harry to see her like this. But she just couldn't help it, when she closed her eyes she was back in that cave. When Lestrange had taken her she had truly thought she would die, and she would never get to see Harry again. All the things she wanted to tell him would be unsaid. When he had saved her and she had heard that he had loved her for years, and only kept her at a distance to protect her, everything had changed. She felt so sad about the time they had wasted. She felt angry at Harry for making her watch him with all those girls - he must have known what it felt like for her. In fact she knew he knew, because he had snogged her in the toilet when he got jealous of George. Then there was Draco, she had actually gotten quite close to Draco. She had even shared his bed. Harry had pushed her away, and Draco had been good to her. No, no he hadn't, she had to remind herself. He had been doing it as a favour for Cho Chang. Even though Hermione knew that, she also knew and felt that Draco had feelings for her. Stronger feelings than she had for him. It was all so confusing. She listened to Harry's deep breathing as he slept. She rolled over on her side and looked down at him. It gave her peace just watching him.
God, I love him so much. I feel like my heart could literally explode… she thought.
Only Harry could make her feel safe no matter what.  When she had been in that cave and heard his voice, she knew everything would be all right. Even though she might die there, he was there with her.  She wasn't afraid of dying as long as he was with her when she left this world. She looked at his handsome face and felt as she had so many times before, completely in aw, completely dismantled.  She couldn't find a single flaw in his beautiful appearance. It wasn't often one got to see Harry without his glasses, and she enjoyed it. Harry started tugging at his blanket and Hermione held her breath.  He pulled it down, obviously hot, but to Hermione's disappointment he was wearing a t-shirt.
Stop staring at him you twit! she told herself.
She was truly looking forward to tomorrow; she knew it would be somewhat awkward. Naturally the others wouldn't know how to act around her, but they would get over it. She reminded herself to get extra firewhiskey - that always helped.
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