Chapter Twelve
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Harry arrived at the hospital and found Draco at Hermione's side. He was sitting next to her on the bed, silently watching her. Harry slowly approached.
"She looks better," Draco said, and he sounded almost like he was trying to reassure himself more than Harry.
"Yeah, her wounds are healing."
They were silent a bit longer.
"Do you think she will make it?" Draco asked.
"She must!" Harry answered.
"What the hell is he doing here?" Ron voice came from behind and they both turned around. Harry looked at the huge bouquet of red roses in Ron's hand.
"I'm visiting Granger," Draco said.
Ron had of course no idea that Hermione and Draco worked together, but he did know that they had been on a date the night Hermione had been attacked.
"Get out of here ferret face!" Ron snarled at Draco.
"Are you going to make me?" Draco got off from Hermione's bed and Harry grabbed his arm.
"Malfoy saved Hermione's life!" Harry reminded Ron.
"I don't care, he shouldn't be here."
"And why are you here then? You and Granger aren't even together anymore!" Draco snarled.
"We're still best friends! A concept I'm sure you're not familiar with!" Ron spat at Draco.
Draco swore and stormed out.
"I don't know how you can let him visit her," Ron said.
Harry didn't bother answering; he couldn't be bothered with unimportant things like this. Ron walked over to the large glass vase next to Hermione's bed. A bouquet was already in it and Ron read the card loudly.
"Get well soon, love Connor Cowell," he snorted. "Has the git even been here to see her?" Ron asked.
"No," Harry answered. The truth was that no one except the people Harry had approved was allowed to visit Hermione.
Ron grabbed the flowers and threw them in the bin.
He stayed with Harry and Hermione for two hours.
"Look I have to go back to the States for a little while," Ron explained.
"Alright,"
"Do you think she'll mind?" he nodded towards Hermione.
"No, she would understand. You'll lose your place on the team if you don't get back soon."
"Yeah, the coach gave me a week off, and I've already been here for ten days, so…"
"Don't worry Ron, she would understand."
Ron looked down at her again.
"This is like second year, watching Hermione in a hospital bed."
Harry thought about how long they'd had to wait for her to wake up last time, he didn't think he could wait that long again.
"Yeah," he answered sadly.
Ron bent down and lifted Hermione's hand to his lips. He kissed it lightly.
"I'll be back," he whispered and Harry wasn't sure if he had said it to him or to Hermione.
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Ginny stopped by the gift shop and bought an enchanted bouquet of tulips. They changed color once every hour, she thought Hermione would like them.
She felt sad as she walked through the hall towards Hermione's bed. Her friend really didn't deserve this.
She came around the corner and saw Hermione's bed. Harry was sitting on the bed, and he was stroking Hermione's hair with one hand and holding her hand with the other. He was slightly leaned forward and looking intently at Hermione.
Ginny stopped in her tracks; she got an awful feeling in her stomach. She looked Harry's monotone and frequent movement over Hermione's hair. His hand was stroking it so gently.
She took a few steps forward and Harry didn't notice her.
Ginny started shaking.
She walked up to his side; she frowned at the look on Harry's face. He looked like he was praying, doing magic and cursing all at once. He stared so fixedly at Hermione's face. She was standing very close to Harry but he didn't even notice her presence. Ginny looked from him to Hermione and started backing away.
She started walking faster and soon she was running down the hall. When she came outside St Mungos she realized that she was still holding Hermione's flowers.
She dropped them on the pavement and started walking away from the hospital.
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Ginny sat in Harry's flat. She had walked around London for hours just thinking. Could she have overreacted? Had she misunderstood? She needed to talk to Harry.
He came home from the hospital four hours after she had seen him with Hermione. He was surprised at seeing her in his flat.
"Ginny!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk," she answered softly.
Harry raised an eyebrow suspiciously and hung his jacket over a chair. He sat down on the sofa next to her.
"What's up?" he asked and looked a bit concerned at her intense face.
"I hope I'm going crazy, and I hope I am Imagineering things Harry. But today when I went to the hospital,"
"You came to the hospital?"
"Yeah but I left. I saw you sitting at Hermione's side and…"
Her eyes were tearing up and Harry immediately knew what Ginny was going to say.
"I swear, the way you were looking at her, it was just like… like… are you in love with her Harry?"
Harry was silent, he reached for Ginny hand and squeezed it.
"You haven't looked at me like that for a very long time, I actually think you've never looked at me like that," Ginny was now sobbing.
"Ginny…" Harry couldn't find the words.
"Are you in love with her?" Ginny asked again.
Harry looked sadly at her and nodded.
Ginny jerked her hand from his grasp and wiped away a few tears.
"So you don't want to marry me then?" she asked.
"I-I don't know…"
"Are you having an affair with her?" Ginny asked in a hard tone.
"No! I swear!"
Ginny seemed content with that answer.
She looked down at her engagement ring. Her dreams were crumbling around her. She was supposed to marry Harry Potter. It had been her dream since first year at Hogwarts, how could she ever find her path now. She had waited so long for this, and now he didn't want her anymore.
"Does she love you?" Ginny asked.
"I don't know."
Ginny stood up and walked over to a frame of her and Harry on the mantelpiece.
"Did you sleep with her?" she demanded and turned around. Harry stood up and walked over to her. He couldn't lie to Ginny.
"Never when we were together," he answered and Ginny's eye shot open.
"Damn you Harry!" she screamed and pushed him hard in the chest. She grabbed the frame and smashed it on the floor.
"Does Ron know about that?" she cried, tears were now streaming her whole face. Harry shook his head.
"Ginny I am so sorry," he lowered his head. He was ashamed. He never wanted to hurt Ginny, and now he had. Ginny looked into Harry's eyes, and the look she was giving him was breaking his heart.
"I love you Harry!" it sounded like she was begging him for something.
"And I love you to Ginny, I do," he answered and tears were burning his eyes now.
"Yeah, just not enough," she whispered.
He couldn't say anything, this was the truth. He loved only one truly, one that he had tried to forget… tried to forget and now almost lost to death. He only loved Hermione!
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Another week passed, Hermione was still the same. Harry sat with her everyday and everyday Draco would come and visit. News spread about the engagement. Ginny told no one about the real reason why they had called of the engagement, people just figured it was because of everything that had happened to Hermione.
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Draco was home in his living room reading a book on magical comas when he heard someone at the front door. The maid Sally entered the living room followed by Pansy. Draco waited until Sally had left and then rounded on Pansy.
"What the fuck are you doing here Pansy?" he hissed.
"I missed you so much Draco, haven't you missed me?" she batted her eyes.
"Pansy I am a damn Auror. I work for the other side now, and you almost killed the best friend of Harry Potter. I can not be around you!"
"But you haven't turned me in, you must have feelings for me!"
She placed her hand on his chest and gently stroked it, her thumb grazing his nipple. Draco grabbed it and with force
pushed her back.
"I have tried to hard to change my life, and you are pulling me right back to all that old misery. I thought you had left everything behind as well Pansy!"
"Make love to me Draco," she purred.
He couldn't believe it, it was just as she wasn't hearing his words.
"You are helping Bellatrix, Bellatrix has my mother - do you understand that you fucking idiot!" he hissed again.
"Oh she won't hurt her, I am sure of it. Forget about what happened with that mudblood Draco, I just got carried away. No one will think you did it!"
"That's not what I'm afraid of Pansy, I just… Oh forget it!"
Pansy crossed her arms and glared at him.
"Yeah well I have a message for you."
"So you didn't just come to be social," he rolled his eyes.
"Draco you better watch it, you don't want to cross Bellatrix… or me!"
Something in the way she said it made Draco worried.
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In the middle of the third week, Hermione finally woke up. Harry was there, of course. He was reading the Daily Prophet to her when she suddenly just opened her eyes.
"Harry?" she hardly had her voice.
"I'm here!" He jumped up.
"I'm hungry," she mumbled and fell back asleep.
The mediwitch examined her and declared her out of the woods. The relief Harry felt was beyond words. He felt like getting down on his knees and thanking Merlin himself. He hoped it was his mother, father, Dumbledore or someone who had watched over Hermione. Someone had at least brought her back to him.
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"Give me one more chocolate frog!" she ordered and hungrily stuffed it into her mouth.
"Yes miss bossy!" Harry joked and tossed her a frog.
Hermione was now sitting up in her bed. She had read through all the get-well cards she had received. Draco was standing in the corner, looking out of the window.
"Are you alright?" she asked. She had now been awake for two days, but she still didn't know much
about what had been happening in the outside world.
Draco turned and smiled weakly at her.
"Yeah."
Hermione frowned and continued.
"Well now that I'm awake we should finish just were we left off. I mean, someone attacked me - that must mean that I was on to something."
Harry sprang up from the bed.
"No, never!" he declared.
"Potter is right. It's too dangerous!" Draco agreed.
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Hermione was informed that a flat had been arranged for her, she would no longer be staying at the hotel. Harry had talked to the Healers about the dangers of doing Occlumency on Hermione, something she had asked for herself. She was deemed too weak, but in a few weeks it would be okay to try it on her. Harry hoped he would be able to see who attacked her that way, and he could hunt that person down!
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