Chapter 4-Come Through the Emptiness
People always talk about things they don't know much about.
You take your chances when you toss them all aside.
Songy Darko by Headlights
Silence hung heavy in the room, weighing down on its occupants.
Harry remained standing, his palms flat on the table before him, leaning forward slightly; his eyes roaming the faces of the inner members of the Order of the Phoenix, as though daring them to contradict him.
Mad-Eye Moody, naturally, was first to raise his objections. "Listen, Potter. All you said is well and good, but think of your source." He nodded toward Hermione. "She and You-Know-Who-"
"Voldemort." Harry corrected.
"-Could have concocted this whole plan months ago. It could be an elaborate plot to get you to charge into Voldemort's lair thinking he's mortal, and then WHAM! YOU'RE DEAD!" He slammed his fist on the desk to emphasize his point.
Tonks jumped in her seat and swore violently under her breath.
"Moody, she brought Nagini with her, and everyone can tell my scar has dimmed."
"Plots! Trickery! CONSTANT VILGILANCE!"
Tonks jumped again. "Dammit, Moody! I'm going to-"
"But to what end, Moody?" Harry interrupted. "I was already captured, sentenced to death, with no way out. Why bother with such a complicated plan?"
"Actually," Hermione interrupted, "That would have been an absolutely ingenious idea. The Dark Lord could have not only lured you into the trap, but also the rest of your Order when you all came to invade his castle. He likely would have crushed the entire resistance with such a plot."
Harry shot her an aspirated glance.
You're not exactly helping anything, Hermione.
"EXACTLY! You see, Potter-" Moody stopped short, realizing who had agreed with him. Both his normal and magical eyes turned on a calm Hermione. "Mind games," he muttered. "I don't trust you, girl."
Harry stood up straighter. "After Albus died, I entrusted you all with information about the prophesy and the horcruxes. After time, you all, in turn, endorsed me for leadership in the overall Order. In that position, I am to make decisions, and you're to respect those decisions. Albus had his reasons for trusting Severus, and though many members of this Order didn't like it, they respected and trusted Albus, and went along with it. I expect that same treatment in this situation because it's very much the same. You don't have to trust Hermione, or like her, but she will be helping me, and this Order. If you feel strongly against this, then remove me from my position as Head of the Order, because I will not be backing down."
More silence met his speech. He felt Hermione attempting to restrain some form of emotion through their link, but could not tell its nature.
"Very well, Harry." Remus Lupin stood, his chin high. "I will defend you when you bring this issue in front of the full Order. You have my support."
"Mine too," quipped Tonks.
One by one, the members of the inner circle of the Order of the Phoenix gave their support, ending with the grudging words of Mad-Eye Moody. "I'll be keeping my eye on her, Potter."
Harry maintained his rigid stance; even after the Order members left the room. He dared not relax a single muscle, lest a member of the Order come back in and detect any weakness.
Hermione stood up next to him, an odd glint in her eyes, a strange flush to her cheeks.
"I'm so hot for you right now."
Whipping his head around to look at her, his entire posture changed. Her lips curled into an absolutely naughty smile, and she stopped trying to block the link.
Harry's mouth went dry.
"Mr. Potter. Miss Granger. A word, if you please."
Surely he could deny McGonagall's request; claiming to have important Order business to take care of. Yes, very important Order business that required one of the abandoned classrooms on this floor and a certain brown-eyed female-
Hermione, however, was already moving towards McGonagall, looking entirely too composed. Harry, restraining himself from grumbling, followed her.
"Yes, Professor?" He managed to keep the resentful tone out of his voice, but only barely.
"Mr. Potter, I thought it prudent to remind you that, even if the entire Order does accept Miss Granger, and that is, of course, doubtful, after this war is over, assuming she survives, there will be a thirst for Death Eater blood from the public. There will be no exceptions."
Goodbye mood, so full of wonderfully intense desire. I hope to see you again.
"Oh, I fully expect to die for what I've done."
Wait, what?
He imagined his face looked rather like McGonagall's, but with a slack jaw and wider eyes.
"It's simply the way any society functions." Hermione continued, as though speaking of the weather. "Categorization of people, especially after a war, into heroes and villains is necessary in stabilizing a new government. With each execution of a criminal or award ceremony for a hero, a civilization feels more at ease. It's an age-old process, really, present in the most ancient tales. I don't imagine I would be able to escape such a concrete thing."
"Well-then-We'll-I'll lie." Harry decided finally. "I'll tell everyone Hermione was working as a spy the whole, or she was under Imperious, or-or we'll just run away. I'll hide her with a Fidelius and make sure no one finds her."
"Honestly, Harry-"
"What? It could work. I'll make it work!"
"Harry, I don't-"
"No, Hermione. Give me this. When this is all over, I'll do this for you."
Though it went unspoken, the unbidden thought still passed between them.
If you survive; if I survive.
McGonagall cleared her throat. "Also, Mr. Potter, the Room of Requirement is free today as are Miss Tonks and Mr. Lupin, if you feel well enough to continue with your training.
"Thank you, Professor."
"And I believe two very irate Weasleys are waiting for you outside."
"Brilliant."
"Shall I send them in as I depart?"
"Yes, that'd be fine. Thanks again, Professor."
McGonagall nodded and quickly left the room. Harry had little time to prepare himself before a fuming Ginny Weasley entered the room, followed by a sullen Ron.
"Harry Potter!" She shrieked. "I can't believe you held a meeting without us!"
"Or, at least, that you told the inner circle before us. I mean, I understand why you couldn't include us-"
"I don't," Ginny snapped.
"-But really, you should have come to us earlier, like you said you would."
"Ron-you're my best mate, but it was necessary to hold this meeting before the full Order meeting tonight. You know that."
"Yeah, yeah-"
"Just because some mysterious girl waltzes in to your life doesn't mean you should abandon your friends, Harry! You shouldn't put a Death Eater before us, no matter what the circumstances!" Ginny hissed vehemently.
"Even if it means my survival?"
Ginny sputtered. "Well-that's-that's just-"
"Oh, shut it, Ginny. Let's just let Harry explain." Ron turned to Harry. "So, explain."
Harry ran a hand through his hair. "Fine, but let's sit down first. This might take a while."
When he finished his tale, Ginny's anger had only settled down to a slow burn, but Ron was looking at Hermione with more than a little respect.
"You tricked Voldemort? Wicked!"
Harry smiled and stood. "I thought so too. Hey, we're going to go to the Room of Requirement, want to come along?"
"Sure! I bet me, Ginny, and Hermione could take you on, Harry."
"I don't doubt it."
Ron pumped his fist in the air as they left the room. "Today will be the day I help beat Harry Potter in a duel!"
"I don't know about help," Harry ribbed. "I'll take you out first."
"Har, har. You think you're so good. I'll be wiping that smirk off your face off your face today, Potter!"
"Literally, if you use a mouth removal curse."
Ron's eyes widened. "Do you know one?"
Hermione smirked. "I'll show it to you when we get to this dueling room of yours."
"Wicked!"
"It's probably Dark Magic." Ginny muttered, looking at Hermione with a dark scowl.
"I find it's hard to classify things as such, when you move outside of the realm Unforgivables and rituals." Hermione stated calmly.
Ginny sneered. "Codswallop. Anyone can classify a spell as light or dark."
"What about Accio?"
"Light." Ginny sounded confident, but slightly confused.
"I suppose you haven't used it to summon a vital organ, then?"
Harry's eyebrows rose. "That's possible?"
"If you have enough power, it is."
"But, you haven't done that, right Hermione?" Ron asked, looking fearful of her answer.
Hermione's silence was not reassuring.
"Okay then, note to self; never duel against Hermione."
"That's just one example," said Ginny recovering. "What about Sectumsempra? I can't imagine you can think of a way when it isn't Dark."
"Snape's spell?" Hermione asked, her eyebrow raised. "Actually, I used that spell to once to make an incision in my leg to drain the poison from an Acromantula bite. Besides, if it's such Dark Magic, then why is your Order so fond of it? Surely you lot aren't Dark Arts users?"
Ginny scowled. "Fine! But what about-"
"That's enough, Ginny. We're here anyways."
She harrumphed and pushed past him and through the door to the Room of Requirement as soon as it appeared.
"I think she may hate me as much as Bellatrix Lestrange does," claimed Hermione, amused. "I didn't think that was possible."
Ron's face turned dark. "Not a fan of Lestrange, then?"
"Gods no. I'll kill that woman the first chance I get."
"You'll have to get to get before me."
Ron opened the door and disappeared into the room. Hermione shot Harry a curious glance.
"Lestrange killed a member of their family-it was really hard on Ron."
Hermione winced.
"Hermione-"
"I did that too-killed people's family members. I was probably part of the strike team that-"
"It's okay, Hermione."
"It's not, Harry!" She sighed and reached for his hand. He ran his thumb over the back of hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"You've got to try to let it go. Let it go and start making amends. You've already started, after all."
She nodded and he released her hand. "Come on then. You can teach me some new spells, I'm sure."
Hermione seemed to find the Room of Requirement absolutely fascinating. She browsed around the shelves lining the walls, asked questions, and tested its capabilities. She was delighted when she found the newest edition of Hogwart's A History on the shelves, and Harry had to drag her away to the center of the room where Tonks, Remus, Ron, and Ginny waited.
"Right! So whatta wanna learn today, kiddies? Defensive? Offensive?"
"Offensive." Ron stated flatly.
Tonks and Remus exchanged looks.
"Actually, I'd like to know that spell that nearly fried me when we were dueling, Hermione."
"Ah. Well-that was modified version of Fiendfyre, actually."
"Merlin's Beard!" Tonks exclaimed. "You used Fiendfyre in a duel?"
"A modified version, yes."
"I've never heard of such a thing." Lupin rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Well, you wouldn't have. You see, I modified it myself."
"That's incredible!" Remus exclaimed, clearly excited. "Did you modify the inner spell structure itself or add upon it?"
"A bit of both. In the end, it was simply a matter of Arithmancy, see I-"
"You all seem to be forgetting that she used this spell on Harry." Ginny cut in.
"Well, he's alive, isn't he? Though, I'm not sure how you managed to block it Harry, that shouldn't have been possible." She smiled crookedly. "I shouldn't be surprised though. It's you, after all."
Harry shrugged. "I didn't think of any particular shield charm, it just happened."
"What is this Fiendfyre, anyways?" Ron questioned.
"In its base form, it's a type of cursed fire. It doesn't take a great deal of control to cast, but that's only because the spell has no control. Mostly anything it touches turns to ash, and worse, if you let it keep burning, the fire will change in nature, forming shapes of beasts that attack anyone around them."
"Bloody brilliant!"
"The problem is," Remus continued, "or, apparently was, now that Miss Granger has found a way around it, is the fire will turn on you as well, especially in a dueling setting."
"I modified the spell so that it produces the same type of cursed fire, but in a controlled jet from the wand, which spreads out over a distance to envelop your opponent. It's a rather difficult spell, not in the motions, but in the control it takes to cast, unlike the original version."
"Do all-erm-Death Eaters know this one?" Tonks asked.
"Oh no. I never gave them any of my spells, either modified or original. I'd hate to have one turned against me one day, and with Death Eaters, that would be an entirely plausible event."
"Thank Merlin. I'd hate to face that in a duel."
"I'll teach you all though, if you like," Hermione said, as near shy as she could likely get.
Harry smiled at her and placed a hand on the small of her back. "That'd be great, Hermione."
Hermione, Harry observed, clearly had a knack for teaching others what she knew, and that was saying a great deal, since she seemed to know quite a bit. Several times throughout her explanation of the spell, Remus and she went off on tangents dealing with the finer points of spell creation and modification, all of which went far beyond Harry's understanding of magic. However, she managed to explain the important details of the spell in complete layman's terms, making him think she may just have a future as a Professor, after this was all over.
They were all just about to try the spell when they were interrupted by the room's door banging opening and sizzle of a spell flying across the room.
Hermione erected a shield quickly, allowing the spell to bounce harmlessly off, but did not retaliate, for which Harry was rather gratefully. Molly Weasley was clearly mad enough.
"RONALD! GINEVRA! What are you doing with her! Get over here NOW!"
While Ginny obeyed her mother, Ron simply rolled his eyes. "Mum-"
"Ronald, do not make me come over there and drag you out of this building. We're leaving at once. I will not put my family in danger by the presence of a Death Eater!"
"Mum-look-"
"THEY KILLED YOUR FATHER, RONALD!"
"I know, Mum! I know! Why do you think I'm here, training? It's so I can kill the bitch that took Dad! And dammit, Hermione's helping with that!"
"Hermione is one of the reasons your father is dead!"
"Lestrange did that!"
"It could just as easily have been your new friend here!"
"But it wasn't! Hermione's on our side now, and I plan on taking advantage of the skills she possesses. I'm of age, Mum, so I'm staying, whether you like it or not!"
"Fine!" She turned to Harry. "I will raise question about this decision at tonight's meeting, Harry. I can assure you of that. Ginny, we're leaving."
She slammed the door on her way out.
"I think I'm ready to cast that curse now, Hermione," Ron stated grimly.
"Remember, it's not about anger, Ron. You have to focus all that emotion, channel it."
Ron took a deep breath. "Okay, okay."
"PRAVUS FLAMMA!"
A jet of fire shot out of Ron's wand, but died before it hit the wall on the other side of the room.
"Well done, Ron." Hermione said with a smile. "That was a fantastic first attempt!"
He beamed, but flushed a little at Hermione's praise. Harry had a sudden strong urge to perform the spell a great deal better than Ron.
Tonks and Remus both cast the spell well; Tonks' spell fizzled out a bit further than Ron's, and Remus' nearly hit the wall.
"As you practice more, you'll get a better feel for the nature of the spell, and your castings will get stronger. You're up, Harry. Show me what you've got."
He winked at her. "Well, remember you asked for it. PRAVUS FLAMMA!"
The beam of flame that shot out his wand was extremely bright and hot, causing his wand to not only heat up, but also shake slightly. He was awarded, however, when his flame not only hit the wall, but also continued to burn. When he finally ended the spell, breathing heavily, a charred crater was burned into the wall."
"Wow." Hermione breathed, her eyes alight.
"Merlin's foot, Harry! What did those Death Eaters feed you? I mean, you've always been powerful, but wow! I've never seen you do something like that!"
"Having said that," Remus began with a small grin at the excited Tonks, "who wants to duel Harry today?"
"I bet the rest of us could take him," said Ron, looking uneasy. "As long as he promises not to use that spell on me."
"I'll give it a try," Hermione cut in. "We never did get to finish our last duel."
"Okay, so how come now I'm even more frightened?" Ron muttered. "Do you think the room will supply us with some sort of blast shield?"
Tonks laughed, but then stopped suddenly. "Actually, that might be a good idea."
Remus stared at Harry and Hermione seriously. "Non-lethal spells only."
"Oh, damn." Hermione snapped her fingers.
Remus, Tonks, and Ron gapped at her.
"What? I can make jokes, you know. Occasionally… Sometimes… Oh, bother! Of course I'm not going to use lethal spells!"
"Alright you two, just stand in the center of the room. We'll stand a ways off."
Harry and Hermione walked to opposite sides of the room, before pulling out their wands and bowing. After that however, they merely started at each other.
"Do you ever make the first move?" Harry asked, slightly on edge.
"I prefer a counter-attack."
"I guess we'll just stand here, then." He winked at her. "I'm onto you, Granger."
Though Hermione did not move her wand or say anything, Harry suddenly found himself on his back, victim of a surreptitious Tripping Jinx. He righted himself quickly to find Hermione laughing quietly at his expense.
"Funny."
"I thought so."
"No more Mr. Nice guy, then."
"Bring it on, Potter."
Despite their bravado, the beginning of the duel was nothing more than small jinxes and curses, nothing more powerful than a Jelly-Legs.
"You're going easy on me, Hermione."
"Oh? And you're not?"
"Fine, we'll step it up then, agreed?"
"Well, since you asked so nicely." She twisted her wand in the air and moved it downward in a sharp motion. The ground beneath him began to rumble, and then rose, tossing him backwards into the wall.
"Bugger," he groaned, righting himself again and throwing a heavy freezing charm at her.
And then the duel began in earnest. Remus and Tonks would later account it with great enthusiasm, comparing it to a show with flashes of light and bangs of sound, a demonstration of sizzling heat and electric charge, a dance with intensity and complexity.
Ron would simply say it had been `bloody brilliant'.
Eventually, Remus ended it by shooting a flare in between them (and praying they would stop before they brought the entire room down). When the spells died, and the dust settled, leaving a panting Harry and Hermione, something still hung in the air.
"Well," started Ron, with an odd mixture of amusement and jealousy, "you could always get Voldemort to watch you two duel-the sexual tension would probably kill him."
Remus and Tonks laughed uneasily; Harry and Hermione continued to stare each other.
"While I normally thrive under uncomfortably awkward situations, Wolfie, I think we should declare this training session over and book."
Remus nodded. "Well, we'll just be off then. Good show, erm, keep it up," he said loudly.
Harry and Hermione ignored him, ignored the sound of the door closing, ignored everything but each other.
Harry flashed across the room so quickly that in the back of his mind he realized he must have apparated, despite the impossibility of such a feat inside Hogwarts, but then his lips were on hers; his body against hers, pushing her into the bookcase behind her, and he did not care much for such speculation.
And then her hands were in his hair, tugging at the strands, and his were diving into the folds of her robes, impatiently looking for skin. When he found it, the softness and warmth of her hips, he gripped her tightly and pushed her up into the bookcase until she was sitting on the ridge, her legs coming to wrap around him.
He shifted against her, moaning into her mouth, and slid his hand under her skirt, to her inner thigh. She gasped, a delightful sound, and bucked into him, then began to fumble with his robes, pushing them off and then slipping her hands under his shirt, her nails raking over the lean muscles of his chest.
"Harry," she whimpered, her lips moving to a spot just under his ear and sucking at it.
His senses flew into a state of overdrive, but the need to feel more enslaved him, caused him to press harder into her. He pulled away slightly before the feeling completely overtook him, staring into her darkened eyes, nearly black with feral emotions.
"We should stop," he whispered, his voice husky.
"I know," she breathed, but her hands continued to roam his chest. "I know."
Seemingly mustering up control at the same time, Hermione pulled her hands out from under his shirt, and he stepped away from her, giving her room to slide down from her perch on the bookshelf.
"We probably shouldn't duel anymore," he said, his eyes twinkling.
"Nor should you give any speeches where you act so assertive, or show any signs of power at all, for that matter," she added with a wistful look in her eyes.
"Then you'll have to not be absolutely brilliant, or have any moments of inspiration."
"Hmm. Something tells me that won't work."
"Bugger it all then."
She laughed and leaned forward to brush her lips against his cheek quickly. "We may have to tone it down a little."
"If we want to get anything done at all."
"Like that Order meeting you have tonight."
Harry sighed. "I wish I could just take you away from all this."
"I can handle it, Harry."
"I know-I just don't want you to have to."
"I'll be fine. You'll be with me, after all."
"Always," he promised.
Always.
Notes:
In this Universe, Harry never went on a wild-goose chase for Horcruxes. After all, without Hermione around, such a feat would have been even more impossible than it should have been in book 7. Instead, he gathered a select group of the finest of the Order, and told them about everything. Eventually he became the head of the entire order. After Dumbledore's death, people would naturally turn to Harry for support; they viewed him as Dumbledore's protégée.
Harry wouldn't have allowed Ron or Ginny into his inner circle-that would have showed a bias that a leader of such an organization could not afford to show.
The "I'm so hot for you right now" quote is from the second Fantastic Four movie. Definitely the best line from that movie. One day I will use that line, I swear. Haha.
Hermione wouldn't be Hermione without having unorthodox views that sometimes catch people off-guard (her acceptance of her fate and her idea of `dark' and `light' magic') and I enjoy writing her in such a way. ^^
In a Harry/Hermione romance fic, my two favorite ideas are a sexually charged duel between the pair, and wall kisses. Naturally, I had to include them both in this scene. When writing the wall kiss, I had the scene from Atonement in mind, in case anyone was wondering. Now that was a great scene.
One of these days, I may end this build up of tension between Harry and Hermione.
I told you guys I'd be getting these chapters uploaded more quickly! Although, I will be in NY until the 17th, and I'm not sure if I'll have internet access until I get back…
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