Unofficial Portkey Archive

A/N: Third and final chapter, I hope you enjoy it..! Chap 1 was longest to lay the foundation, this chap is the about same length as chap 2. Hope that's ok but length was never the aim of this story... I just sometimes get hit with these quick ideas for lighter stories (a bit of escapism from all the angst!). I did contemplate posting as a one shot but it was a bit long. So I hope you're happy with the outcome. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing everyone xxx

For You I Will

Chapter 3.

I spend the day hiding in the dungeons of the Ministry.

Auror Clayton has been wanting someone to clear out a cluttered room downstairs for ages and today I suddenly get the urge to volunteer for the job.

Hiding in the bowels of the Ministry is pretty lame, but there it is. So what. I'm a coward, I don't want to face any of the boys, Natalie, and most of all Hermione. The whole day I stall, using the Ministry gym, having a long shower afterwards until finally at 8 o'clock I can't think of any more excuses.

I have to go home.

Besides I'm bloody tired now. All this angst is exhausting. Not to mention my early wake up call.

My stomach actually flips when I think about the kiss. I almost think it's worth the explaining I'm going to have to do because I can still remember how impossibly soft her lips were.

God it was good to kiss her.

Anyway, get it over with Potter. I stand close to our front door, listening hard. A couple of guys voices. Ah well, here we go.

I walk in and Ron and Luna are sitting on the couch, Seamus and Ernie on the other chairs. Great. Their heads whip around immediately and I don't know which is worse - the gleeful smiles on the lads faces or the caring concern on Ron and Luna's.

"Hi."

Silence.

"Ok! Well, goodnight!"

"Wait, Harry!" It's Ron. He doesn't know what to say when I turn around, he just looks at me. The lads are watching us like a particularly engrossing TV programme.

Finally Luna speaks up and rescues me.

"Hermione's here. For you. "She smiles serenely. "In the kitchen."

I smile and it feels like it's cracking my face.

"Thanks." I feel like such a twat.

I look at the lads and they grin, raising their eyebrows. I try not to smile at them but I can't help it and I can hear them laugh as I turn to walk through to the kitchen.

Seamus helpfully calls out.

"Dead Man Walking!"

I give him the finger without looking back and they all laugh.

So I'm smiling when I enter the kitchen.

And she's leaning against the bench.

Her hair is down tonight and she has on a great cream coloured top, faded jeans and no shoes. She's eating with her fingers from a plate behind her. One foot is standing on the other and she tilts her head to look at me.

"Hi Harry."

"Hi."

Silence again. God this sucks. I walk to the fridge and pull out something alcoholic. I look at her and gesture to the fridge, but she holds up a glass of red wine I didn't see earlier and I nod.

I take my time taking the top off the bottle of beer. I could've done it with my wand but it would've been too quick so I spend ages looking for an opener, taking it off, putting the cap in the bin. Finally I make my way to the bench diagonally across from her and lean against it like she is, looking at the kitchen tiles.

She speaks up first.

"How was your day..."

"I kissed you."

"Yeah...I noticed that."

I look up at her and she's smiling, and I do too.

"Look, I'm sorry. I thought...I thought it was just a passing thing and I'd get over it. But it got the better of me last night. This morning. Whenever it was."

I'm watching my foot as I kick at a mark on the floor. I notice her toenails are painted blood red. Since when did she do things like that?

I look slowly up the length of her body.

She really has changed. Since school. Well of course she has really.

She's become more girly. Less annoying. In fact, she's the least annoying girl I know. She can hang out with all of us and it's just...easy. Would it be like that if we were...like Ron and Luna...

My thoughts are interrupted as she comes to stand in front of me. I put my beer down, make my hands stick to the counter behind me and watch her as she chooses her words.

Her eyelashes really are long. And why does she always smell that good. How do girls do that.

I notice how much shorter she is than me now. Especially with no shoes on. She's folding her arms and biting her lower lip, her eyes somewhere on my chest.

Finally she looks up at me.

"Harry I'm sorry I didn't say anything this morning...didn't stop you leaving. I was just, shocked, and well..."

She stops because I'm kissing her again.

Slowly, gently, just to check that her lips really are that soft and it wasn't just my imagination.

I keep my hands firmly on the bench, just leaning forward. When I stop she's still closing her eyes, standing still.

"Okay so you've really got to stop doing that."

"Sorry" I mutter.

She looks up at me.

"But... I never knew you felt anything like this. You don't know... I thought we were friends - that was all we were ever going to be...so I resigned myself to it. You don't know how this turns everything on its head for me."

"Mmm. Well, yeah I think I know what you mean."

She places her palms on my chest and stares at her hands, thinking of what to say next.

"It's just...nothing could change the way I feel about you, you know. But if this IS just a phase for you, or whatever...I don't think I could take that."

She looks up at me now and I hate that her eyes are filled with tears. I don't want to cause her pain. Ever.

"I wouldn't do that to you."

She watches me for a moment then smiles, and I smile too. She speaks again and I just wish she'd stop.

"We could just...take it slow?"

I smile wider and bend to kiss her again. She fully responds this time, winding her arms around my neck. It feels so damn good.

I bend and pick her up and she twines her legs up and around my waist, still kissing me. I smile against her mouth.

"No."

She pulls back and looks at me questioningly.

"No...what?"

I start to walk out of the kitchen, still carrying her.

"No I don't think we should take it slow. We should take it fast. Really fast."

She throws her head back and laughs. I take the opportunity to kiss her neck but I'm laughing too.

She puts her hands out to stop our progress through the door and makes eye contact, looking serious again.

"What about...Natalie?"

I press my lips together in thought. "Smokescreen. Did I fool you?"

She's laughs again and wraps her arms right around me, burying her face in my neck.

"No" she laughs, muffled into my shoulder. "I didn't buy it for a second."

I'm smiling as I carry her out of the door, managing to give the finger again to our audience in the lounge who cheer and laugh as they catch sight of us. Hermione buries her face further into my shoulder but she's laughing too and I can't stop myself grinning.

Finally I get to my bed. Laying her down I shuffle us up the bed till we're face to face on the pillows, clinging to each other. I glance to the door and sit up, leaning across to kick it shut, raising another cheer from the other room. I come back to lie in the same position.

She's still smiling and she runs her hands over my face.

"This is too...I can't believe this."

"Yeah." I kiss her again.

"I love this bed."

"I've noticed. You don't know the hell you've put me through."

She laughs. "Me too. I've thought about charming it smaller."

I smile. "You can do what you want to it. It's yours now."

She kisses me, slowly, with promise.

"Good. Because I'm not gonna leave it. For quite a while."

I pull her on top of me. She's looking down, all long eyelashes and chocolate brown eyes. I smile.

"That's just what I was thinking."

And I kiss her.

THE END.

Final note... I borrowed a line from the movie Sliding Doors for this chapter. ('I kissed you.' - 'I noticed.') Also, after I wrote this, I heard this song and thought it suited the story, so I named the story after it.

So here's the lyrics to it.

"For You I Will (Confidence)"
By Teddy Geiger

Wandering the streets, in a world underneath it all
Nothing seems to be, nothing tastes as sweet
As what I can't have
Like you and the way that you're twisting your hair
Round your finger
Tonight I'm not afraid to tell you
What I feel about you.

Forgive me if I stutter
From all of the clutter in my head
Cause I could fall asleep in those eyes
Like a water bed
Do I seem familiar, I've crossed you in hallways
A thousand times

No more camouflage
I want to be exposed, and not be afraid to fall.

I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have
And cannon ball into the water
I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have
For you I will
You always want what you can't have
But I've got to try
I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have
For you I will
For you I will
For you I will
For you

Thanks for reading and all the reviews xxx