Disclaimer: I don't own HP. JK bowling does, and we saw that in DH…
A/N: My take on the "Secret Admirer" challenge by BloodyRegrets that you can find here: http://talk.portkey.org/index.php?showtopic=26225 . Hope you'll enjoy this fic, I'm sure I'll enjoy writing it! And if you read, please review, it makes me happy and it just takes you few moments! *laughs* Ignores the epilogue.
Some things are explained here, and they won't be pretty…
The Stalker
Chapter Four: Shock
"What the…"
Hermione looked around, to find the room walls filled with pictures of her, in various attires. As she kept scanning the walls, her eyes widened.
She could see herself in pyjamas, in her usual work attire, in casual attire when she would go out with Harry and Ron, or with some fancy dress on the rare occasions she would go out on dates, or would want to feel good with herself raising some glances from men.
She could recognize the attire she wore the night Harry had come to her place for dinner and had pecked her on the lips.
But what really shocked her, and made her feel dirty, was that there were lots of photos of her in various states of undress, some with her in only her underwear, others evidently taken while she was dressing, as she would have only a shirt and her panties on, or just her skirt and her bra…
The brunette then gasped when she took sight of photos of her just out of the shower, with only a towel on, and of her completely naked.
As her eyes roamed the walls of the room, she spotted some frames, and encased in them she found the hairbrush she had lost, with some of her hair just near it, and two sets of her underwear in the other two ones.
"Nice, isn't it?" John said, unaware of her distress, as what he had in the room was completely normal.
Something clicked in Hermione's brain, as she examined the cases with her belongings. This was the reason why lately she had felt watched more than once then.
She regretted telling Harry she would be fine, and wished he hadn't left them alone with this psycho. Right now, she would really need his help, because who knew what this pervert would try to do to her.
What she didn't know was that Harry was hid in a corner of the room, his blood boiling. He wanted nothing more than to kill this man, and if he still were a teenage boy he probably would have. But, he was a trained Auror, and had learned to control his instincts.
He had his wand trained on the man, ready to take him down, but he decided to wait and see how the scene unfolded. Maybe he could incriminate the man with something heavier and have him in Azkaban for a good share of his life.
Hermione turned toward the man, who was casually sipping a glass of whiskey he had poured for himself.
"You're a pervert" she spat, glaring at him. "I'm out of here" she then said, taking a step toward the door.
"I don't think so" the man casually said. "I'm between you and the door, and I'm not going to let you leave"
Hermione knew he was right. Well, she was a witch, she would fight her way out, if needed. She went to grab her wand, but found it was missing.
"Searching for this, dear?" the man said, rolling her wand through his fingers, almost bored.
Hermione was shocked to see he had it. "How…" she said, unable to finish the sentence.
"How did I take it? Simple, I did while we were strolling through Diagon Alley and I had my arm around your waist"
Harry's eyes widened, he hadn't spotted the movement of the man, but he was sure he had been watching them closely! He wanted to bang his head on the wall for missing such a thing. Some Auror he was proving to be, and he was the Head of the Department!
He guessed he had been too blinded by his jealousy, and in that moment he understood why there was a rule that stopped Aurors too emotionally involved in a case to take it. Emotions could cloud their judgement.
Hermione was at a loss for words. The room was completely silent, until John finished drinking his whiskey.
"Now, would you come here on the couch with me and drink this pumpkin juice I have prepared for you?" he asked.
"No way!" Hermione spat. "I don't know what came over me to agree having a date with you" she angrily spat, tears starting to pool in her eyes.
"I do, instead. See, I knew you were getting more and more attached to my letters, my flowers, day after day, because they were the only ray of light in your hard work days. I knew you were feeling down because you couldn't find cures for your patients, you who had always been so brilliant in your job"
Hermione narrowed her eyes at him, sudden realization hitting her. "It was you! You tampered with their cures making them not recover, so you could continue your sick plan!" she said.
"Spot on! I love how you're so smart, Mione"
"Don't call me Mione!"
"Potter does" the other man nonchalantly said. "And you don't mind when it's him"
Harry's wand hand itched to hex the man into next millennium, but the raven haired man willed himself to wait. He was sure the man hadn't the slightest clue he was there, so it would take a flash to bring him down if needed.
"I'll tell you more. I made sure on of them died, because that would affect you terribly and would make you much more emotionally attached to my little letters"
"You bastard! You killed an innocent just so you could have your way!" she shouted, now crying freely.
"Aww, don't cry. I'll make you feel better, I promise" the man said, standing up. "Now come here"
"No!" she shouted, backing against a wall.
"You don't really have a choice, honey" the other man smirked, then he raised his own wand.
"Imperio!" he cried, and the spell hit Hermione, who went rigid for a moment. Then, she started walking toward the man, smiling sexily to him.
Harry guessed she had been ordered to act that way. It was clear she couldn't fight the curse.
"Stupeficium!" he cried, and the man slumped to the ground. "Finite Incantatem!" he then said, stopping the curse affecting Hermione. The man was going to spend his life in Azkaban now, and Harry was glad he had waited before intervening.
She looked lost for a moment, then remembered everything, and was shocked to see him standing there, as he had discarded his cloak.
"Harry!" she said, running into his arms. He engulfed her in a tight hug, kissing the top of her head.
"I'm sorry Hermione. I'm sorry that I didn't notice him taking your wand, I could have spared you this experience"
She snuggled into his embrace. "Doesn't matter. You were here to save me, and I could never thank you enough for it"
He noticed she was trembling, and that tears were staining his shirt.
"Why don't you go home and rest now? I'll bring this scum to the Ministry, and then I'll come there"
She nodded, and forced herself to leave the safety of his embrace. Then, she took her wand, and Apparated away.
Once alone, Harry kicked the man hard in the face, and spat on him. Then, he Apparated them both to the Ministry cells.
"This one is to go straight to Azkaban for using an Unforgivable" he said to the guard. Then he let the man perform the Prior Incantatio on the wand of the man, and collected Harry's memory of the facts. They then proceeded to check the pumpkin juice that had been offered to Hermione, and as Harry suspected they found a very powerful love potion in it. Not that it affected much the guy's situation, having used an unforgivable had already gained him the maximum of the punishment anyway, but it made Harry realize how near to lose Hermione forever he had come.
"That's all. Good night" the guard said with a slight bow, and Harry briskly nodded, then Apparated to Hermione's, still shaken by the discovery.
He found her curled up in a ball on the couch.
"Hey, there" he softly said, and she looked up at him, giving him an half-smile.
"You up for a cup of tea?" he said, and she nodded. Once it was ready, they sipped it quietly, in silent companionship.
"I'm sorry I waited so much to act but I wanted to see if he did something to incriminate him harder, which he did. A life sentence in Azkaban suits him well"
Hermione nodded, her eyes still dull. "It's my fault" she whispered then.
He hugged her, and whispered soothing words into her ear, as he knew what she was speaking about, and he knew how it felt to believe it was your fault. He had done it too many times in his teenage years, and ironically it had always been Hermione who brought him out of it.
"No, it's not. You know it's not. You did your best, and you saved most of them, even with that man's tampering and trying to stop you. You're a brilliant Healer, Hermione Granger, never you doubt it"
She smiled sadly at him. "How is it that you always know how to cheer me up, Harry?" she said, looking up at him. He could spot raw emotion there, and gulped. He didn't expect it.
"Please, stay with me tonight?" she then asked. "I don't want to stay alone"
He knew he was done then. He could never refuse her anything, and a night spent with her in his arms would surely bring his feelings for her full force up to the surface.
"Of course I will, Mione" he said, and she smiled, a real smile this time.
"Thanks" she said, and settled with her head on his chest, hugging him tightly, almost holding on him for dear life. Harry conjured a sheet to cover them both, and then hugged her back, kissing the top of her head just as sleep engulfed her.
He inwardly sighed.
It would be a long night.
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