Unofficial Portkey Archive

A warning, before we start. RON'S FANS STAY AWAY! There, done.

Now, I've been reading a LOT of fics over at ff.net, where most HHr writers hate Ron with an ASTRONOMICAL passion, and while I don't condone bashing of any kind (I'm of the mind-set that, if it can be avoided, don't write a character you don't like), this same writers do it in such a way that's impossible not to, well, like them.

So, yeah, that aside, doesn't mean I'll be doing that HERE. I'm not. At least, I think I didn't in this one.

Anyway, I've been reading too many fics of that kind, and much of them settled on the timeline of the DH, specifically around the Battle of Hogwarts, and this kind of popped up. It wasn't out of nowhere, per se, simply as a response to how I felt when reading a certain section of that chapter, you know, the RHr kiss. I mean, the way Hermione sounded so… un-Hermione-like there was disturbing. But then, I think a lot of the last two books was disturbing, so nothing new there.

Also, the paragraphs/dialogues/sentences/etc in BOLD were taken from the books, word for word. Copy/Paste and all that stuff.

Um, yeah, so, Ron's fans, you've been warned.

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Title: "high treason"

Rating: PG-13

Words: 6,403

Characters/Pairings: Harry/Hermione, (brief, almost not there) Ron/Hermione

Theme/Prompt: #094 - war

Warnings/AN: dh-au, set during ch31 - the battle of Hogwarts. In which Ayumi tries to fix the disturbing feelings she gets when reading this particular chapter in a plausible way (and, really, do it like it should have been done).

Summary: In which Harry discovers a most disheartening truth.

Disclaimer: The Usual.

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As soon as he heard the word bathroom he knew where his two best friends were, he also realized they had no way of getting into the Chamber of Secrets without a Parselmouth, ergo not without him. Cursing under his breath, at their recklessness, he turned around and started running, all the while lamenting the lost time. If only they waited for him, if only he'd remembered to tell them about it, but he'd forgotten; how could he not! Hermione had explained to him all about being a Parselmouth in their Second Year. Oh.

Well, there, no wonder I don't remember.

But, Hermione, certainly she would've remembered… then again, they'd all been very stressed these past days, so… Well, no use in placing blame or pointing fingers. The important thing was to reach the Girls' Bathroom as fast as he could, for it was only a matter of time before Voldemort arrived with his army of Death Eaters and whatever other creature decided to join him.

"Almost there, almost there," he kept mumbling under his breath. And just as Harry had turned the corner to the hall that led to the Bathroom's corridor, he was met with a strange sight.

Ron and Hermione were running towards him, arms full of brooms and some Basilisk's fangs. He stopped and stared, and his best friends reached his side, panting and smiling proudly. Something rang in the back of his mind, warning him about the wrongness of this scene, and the ringing became louder and more annoying as Hermione explained how they had entered the Chamber and-

"It was Ron, all Ron's idea!" said Hermione breathlessly. "Wasn't it absolutely brilliant? There we were, after you left, and I said to Ron, even if we find the other one, how are we going to get rid of it? We still hadn't got rid of the cup! And then he thought of it! The basilisk!"

"What the - ?"

"Something to get rid of Horcruxes," said Ron simply.

Harry's eyes dropped to the objects clutched in Ron and Hermione's arms: great curved fangs, torn, he now realized, from the skull of a dead basilisk.

"But how did you get in there?" he asked, staring from the fangs to Ron. "You need to speak Parseltongue!"

"He did!" whispered Hermione. "Show him, Ron!"

Ron made a horrible strangled hissing noise.

"It's what you did to open the locket," he told Harry apologetically. "I had to have a few goes to get it right, but," he shrugged modestly, "we got there in the end."

"He was amazing." said Hermione. "Amazing!"

-and that wasn't right. Slowly, anger began to boil inside him, pushing at his limits, begging him to let it out. He looked at them and thought of the past two years. He thought of Hermione's horrible behaviour towards him most of their Sixth Year and her incredibly erratic moods this year. And of Ron's behaviour this year-his betrayal. Something started tugging at the back of his head, almost as if urging him to remember something. Something…

"Amortentia doesn't create actual love, of course. That's impossible. But it does cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. For that reason, it is probably the most dangerous potion in this room."

…oh, shite.

His hands curled in, digging his nails into his palms painfully, and he gave the pair of them an icy stare. Hermione blinked, calmly, almost clueless, but Ron… Ron looked down right terrified.

"Do you take me for a fool?" Harry asked, and strode forward purposely.

"He-hey, what is it, mate? We just told you-Hermione saw me, how can you not believe us?" As he stammered his response, Ron backed away, taking Hermione with him and that act only served to push Harry further over the edge. "No-now, shouldn't we warn the-the house-elves? I mean, we-we don't want any more Dobbies, do we?"

Hermione went suddenly tense and dropped the fangs on her arms with a clatter. She moved towards Ron quickly, arms spread wide in a clear intent to hug him, but Harry was quicker and managed to intercept her mid-sprint by wrapping an arm around her waist and placing a hand over her mouth. The voice of Professor Slughorn still ringing inside his head.

Ron looked livid for a second, then he paled, eyes widening as he kept moving back. His hand twitched but Harry flicked his wrist and had his wand pointed at him. After a few seconds, Hermione seemed to snap out of whatever trance she'd fallen into and looked alarmed between him and Ron.

"Harry?" she asked, sounding worried and fearful, but, he realized, she wasn't afraid of him, because she pressed closer into his chest and gripped the arm embracing her waist tightly.

"Come on, Ron, let's go back to the Bathroom so you can show me your brilliant imitation of Parseltongue," he snarled, and started walking forward, wand still trained on the redhead as the three of them moved back to the Girls' Bathroom.

"What are you talking about, Harry? There's no imitation of Parseltongue! It's a language based on vibrations, not sounds, it's why non-speakers can't copy it. I told you about this on our Second Year!"

Harry turned his head to Hermione slightly, gaze still locked on Ron, as he answered. "I know that. But Ron insists that he could imitate the sounds and you corroborated his story just a few minutes ago. Have you forgotten already?"

Hermione gasped and started trembling. "Oh God…"

He never got to inquiry about her sudden agitation, because just then they arrived into the Bathroom. As soon as the door closed, Myrtle flew out of her cubicle, making Ron pale further.

"Oh, back again? Did she catch you already? I told you she would," she asked, looking straight at Ron.

Hermione suppressed as sob, and the ghost turned her focus on them, smiling when she caught sight of him.

"Oh, hello, Harry. Did you know? He used the Imperius Curse on her a while ago," said Myrtle, pointing first at Ron and then at Hermione. "They barged in and he started making horrible hissing sounds in front of the sink. Nothing like you, Harry. And when she pointed out only you could make it work, he turned his wand on her and, boom! He placed her under the Imperius."

Myrtle giggled as she floated around their heads. Ron was pressed against the opposite wall, as if trying to pass through it, deathly pale and shaking, while Hermione burrowed her trembling form into him, mumbling denials.

"What did he say when he casted the Imperius, Myrtle? Please, I need to know," said Harry, forcefully, doing a monumental effort to control his ire.

Dammit, there wasn't time for this! Why the hell would Ron do something like that, right this moment when loyalty meant everything to him?

"Ooh, well, he told her to forget his failure and say they did enter the… Chamber, and that he was the one to make it happen by speaking Par… Par…"

"Parseltongue?" prompted Harry, becoming more anxious and angry by the second.

"Yes! Parseltongue! He told her to say he was amazing."

The way Myrtle said the last word reminded Harry of the way Hermione had said it while she was going on and on about how brilliant Ron's idea was. But the ghost wasn't finished yet. And Harry would soon realize his best mate stopped being his best mate a long time ago.

"He did something else too, but by then there was so much noise! And he had blown up those sinks over there," said Myrtle, point at the other side of where the entrance to the Chamber's tunnel was. "So there was so much dust! But he definitely did something else to her, because when the dust cleared he was pointing his wand and muttering. Hmm, he transfigured the rubble into some fangs and brooms-don't know why, Harry, but he did."

The silence that followed was deafening, broken only by the happy humming of Myrtle and the occasional sob from Hermione. Harry took several deep breaths before turning to look at Ron. He didn't know it, but his magic was flaring around him, surrounding him and Hermione.

"How long…?" Harry took another calming breath, urging himself to relax lest he did something he might regret later. "How long have you been feeding her Amortentia?"

Hermione gasped and turned her head to Ron so fast, he thought she might have pulled a muscle. Ron swallowed, but said nothing; his silence only served to confirm his doubts.

Harry snapped. "HOW LONG!"

"After Slughorn's first class…" mumbled Ron. "I… I told him I wanted to understand the individual components of the Potion and he gave me some… for… for research purposes…"

"And? That must've ran out eventually, and Hermione's been unusually obsessed with you for almost two years now," Harry snarled, taking a threatening step towards Ron, and he would have probably kept walking, had Hermione not grabbed him into a hug.

"I mail-ordered some more at the end of the year, before-before the attack. And then I… I asked Mum to help me brew a homemade love potion. She asked me why and I told her it was for Neville, because he was so shy around this girl he-ARGH!"

Harry couldn't listen anymore, and fired a bone-shattering hex at his left knee. Ron howled in pain, but he was beyond caring now. There was no time, however, to deal with the traitorous bastard, so he quickly stunned him and tied him up. Then, he threw him into one of the cubicles, and told Myrtle to keep an eye on him until it was all over.

At last, he turned to Hermione, who looked as if the world had literally ended before her eyes.

"Hermione?"

"How could he do this?" she asked, turning her teary eyes on him. "How could he do this to me, Harry, to us?"

Doing something he thought he should've done a long time ago, when she spent night after night crying in the tent, Harry pulled her into his arms and let her weep for a while. "I don't know, but… No more, Hermione, he gets no more chances."

Hermione shook her head. "Everything… All this time, everything could have been so different…"

"Look, we don't have time for this now. We'll deal with him later. Now we have to find a way to destroy the Horcruxes, but first, we have to gather everyone in the Great Hall, especially Madam Pomfrey."

He waited a few seconds for her to compose herself, and then they left the Bathroom. At Hermione's suggestion, he sent Prongs ahead of them to contact McGonagall and inform her of his decision.

~

They arrived at the Great Hall seconds before the remaining members of the Order and the DA, along with those students that decided to stay behind and fight. Not surprising, none of those students were Slytherins.

Unluckily, before he could explain their situation, Mrs Weasley pounced on them, smothering them with her hugs and then her questions.

"Harry, what is going on? Where is Ron?"

Her worried expression, along with those of the rest of her family, would have once made him feel terribly guilty. But after what transpired between the youngest Weasley son and Hermione, Harry simply couldn't find it in him to care.

"Ronald Weasley if bound and locked in a secure location within the Castle," he replied instead, his voice flat.

This, of course, brought everyone's attention to him and the silence that followed didn't last long. It was, however, Mr Weasley the one who spoke.

"What happened, Harry?"

His voice was not the soft baritone he was used to, this hard tone surprised him but didn't deter him.

"You will know soon enough," said Harry, and then turned to Madam Pomfrey. "I need you to check Hermione."

The nurse, too shocked by the situation to reproach his attitude, nodded and closed in on Hermione. Pulling her wand, she paused briefly. "What should I check for?"

It was Hermione the one to answer that question. "Amortentia," she said in a small voice, but still loud enough for everyone to hear.

The collective gasp rang loud around them, and Madam Pomfrey hurried to perform the diagnosis, paling rapidly at what she found. "Oh, dear Merlin…"

"Well?" prompted Harry, anxious to hear if Hermione could be fixed.

"There are traces, but they are old and no longer influencing her as it should; probably, she stopped consuming it months ago." A pause, and the woman flicked her wands in intrinsic patterns. "There is another trace, stronger, of a weaker love potion, probably homemade," she said, and someone gasped off to the side. "But Miss Granger's magic has been fighting it and the potion is losing its control on her."

Harry nodded, partially satisfied, and then turned to the Weasleys. "Ron did it. He confessed and said he started giving it to her at the start of Sixth Year."

"That explains her behaviour last year," said Neville, looking at Hermione. "How could we miss it?"

"But there's more, isn't there?" said Mr Weasley.

Harry nodded.

"What else, Mr Potter?" demanded Madam Pomfrey, hovering over Hermione ready to snap at anyone who dared to stand too close to the girl.

"I'm not sure. Ron casted the Imperius on her. And he did something else, a spell of some kind. Maybe a compulsion charm?"

The nurse nodded and waved her wand some more. "There are some compulsion charms, very basic, and… another that's trigged by something."

Harry paused at that, thinking back to the moment on the corridor, when Ron said something with too much emphasis, something about Dobby-We don't want any more Dobbies, do we-why, the bloody bastard. "Can you fix it?"

The look Madam Pomfrey gave him would have made him recoil in fear, but as it was, Harry was too angry and riled up with Ron's betrayal to feel intimidated by anything. He could barely keep his magic under control and wasn't about to let anyone prevent him from getting his Hermione back.

Madam Pomfrey shook her head slightly at seeing her glare fail, and set to work on the girl standing in front of her. Mr Weasley tried to apologize to him, but Harry stopped him, saying he didn't do anything and shouldn't apologize for his son's betrayal. The other Weasley boys looked upset at this revelation about their brother and Ginny and Mrs Weasley were distraught. A quick word informed all those curious of his attitude that he had not the time, nor the energy to deal the Ron right now, as there were more pressing matters at hand.

"Done," announced Madam Pomfrey after a while.

Harry turned to face Hermione, staring into her eyes, and finding only despair and sadness in them, but it was his best friend Hermione Granger the one staring back; his Hermione, the one he thought he'd lost somewhere around the summer of '96. He reached for her, pulling her into a hug as she took several breaths to prevent the tears gathered in her eyes.

"Hey…" he whispered.

"He ruined everything, Harry, everything I wanted to do last year…" said Hermione softly, her voice partly muffled by his jacket.

"It's okay, you can do it after this war… after it's over. For now, let's focus on what we have to do, yeah?"

Hermione nodded and pulled back reluctantly.

Harry stared at her a few seconds longer, before turning to the gathered crowd. They all looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to lead them; Harry loathed to think so, but really, what else was there to do when the bloody Prophesy singled him out in this War? Taking a deep breath, he spoke. "As of right now, we cannot defeat Riddle for good because he's immortal," he said, and immediately raised his hand, forestalling any kind of interruptions. "Hear me out! Hermione, Ronald and I went on a Hunt to find the objects that allow Riddle to chain himself to this world."

In the following pause, Colin Creevey asked the question most of them were wondering. "Who's Riddle?"

Harry blinked perplexed and turned to Hermione for some sort of guidance. The girl must have taken pity on his lost expression, because she stepped forward to stand to his left, and faced the crowd.

"Riddle is the muggle last name of You-Know-Who."

The stunned silence worked on their favour as Harry continued his tale. "He made six of this objects, three have been destroyed, one is in our possession," at this point he motioned for Hermione to show them the cup, dully noting the gasp coming from Professor Sprout and several other Hufflepuffs, "another is hidden within Hogwarts, and the last is with Riddle."

"How do we destroy these things?" asked Neville, putting emphasis on the `we' and it was clear from the determinate looks on everyone's faces that he spoke for all.

"One way is Basilisk's venom, but since I killed the Basilisk five years ago, I doubt there's any venom left in its fangs."

"We've been using the Sword of Gryffindor, but it was stolen from us by someone we thought was a friend, so we're pretty much stumped right now," added Hermione, shifting nervously.

Mr Weasley opened his mouth, his face showing his distress, so Harry was quick to put his doubt as ease. "It wasn't Ronald, Mr Weasley. It was Griphook, a goblin we rescued from Malfoy Manor."

There were shocked gasps from everyone around. Understandable, as the Wizarding world knew of the goblin's high morale and their value of honour, and to have their saviour be betrayed like this-unthinkable.

"What shall we do, Harry?"

Harry looked at Luna, the one who had voiced his concern, and took the time to actually think before charging forward, as it was his custom. His eyes swept around the eager faces, all his friends and all ready to help. It was at this point that he understood he didn't have to do this alone, keeping this secret had cost him too much-Hermione had been tortured, he'd almost been killed, Ron had abandoned them and then, betrayed them. No, it was time to have a little faith in those who deserved it, as were several of those gathered around him now.

"Right," he said, turning to Hermione. "Take Neville, Professor Flitwick and any Ravenclaw in here to the Room of Requirement to search for the Diadem. But be careful, let no one touch it lest something happens," he told her, then grabbed her arm and pulled her closer, adding in a whisper, "the Diadem is where I hid the Prince's Book. Just think `I need a place to hide my Horcrux' and you should be fine." He watched in silence as Hermione left the Great Hall with those mentioned before turning to those left behind. "Professor McGonagall, can you lock down the Castle?"

"What do you mean, Potter?"

"Lock down Hogwarts, rise all its shields or wards or whatever. I need you to do that, to make sure no one enters or leaves without your knowing. I need you to make sure all the remaining Slytherins stay locked in their Common Room; I just don't want to take any chances with them. I need to know if you can do that to protect those inside the Castle and to give me time. Riddle is coming, but I need time. That's all."

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips in thought, before nodding her head. "I can do that, but I must reclaim my position as Headmistress first, and that can only be accomplished in the Headmaster's office."

"Okay, fine. I was going to talk with Professor Dumbledore's portrait anyway, so… Come on," said Harry, moving towards the door, but was intercepted by Remus.

"What about us Harry?"

Professor McGonagall stopped by his side, giving him a pointed stare that never failed to make him feel like a misbehaving first year, but Harry looked at Remus thoughtfully and then pulled the Marauders' Map from his pouch.

"Divide and conquer. Use this and round up any misbehaving student out of their Common Rooms and escort them back there," he said, handing over the blank parchment; his expression turned sombre. "Several of those Slytherins are Death Eater, Remus, so I don't want you to hesitate if they resist-no," he cut the oncoming protest quickly. "No. They're not children, they're not innocent or redeemable like Dumbledore said. They wouldn't hesitate to hurt you, or anyone else in this room, so don't give them the benefit of doubt. Your hesitation only gives them a chance to kill you."

That said, Harry turned and walked out, McGonagall following his lead.

"What made you change, Potter? Last year you were all for following Albus' steps," she said quietly as they hurried through the now deserted halls.

"I don't really know. It's something that's been building up since Christmas last year. Hermione and I were almost killed by Riddle's pet and then Hermione was tortured and-and then Ron's betrayal…" Harry bit his lip trying to come up with a good explanation of his sudden change of heart, because he had been all for following Dumbledore's steps before, so what changed? "I can't say for sure, but maybe the fact that we're at War-that these bastards will stop at anything to kill us finally caught up with me. I'm not saying let's go on a killing spree like they do, but… putting them to sleep is not an option if they can wake up. We have to put them down, permanently."

~

Minutes later, McGonagall had regained control of the School and stood frozen next to him, staring in unblinking disbelief at her one-time dear friend. Harry, instead, stared blankly at the old man, waiting… for the disappointing feeling that never came.

It should surprise him, but somehow, Harry couldn't really come up with the energy to do so. It's just-he suspected. He'd been suspecting this since around Christmas, he just hadn't wanted to believe it.

This, however, this latest revelation, crushed whatever respect he had for the old man. And, surprisingly, it made Harry look at things from a different perspective. Whatever was expected from him, Harry decided right there and then, he'd finish this his way.

"Harry, I must insist-"

"You must insist nothing, Old Man. If I have to go down for your bloody puppet show, I'll do it my way. If I have to go down, I'll go down with a bang," said Harry, turning on his heels and storming out of the office.

If he had to go down, he'd do it in a blaze of glory.

~~~

While part of her mind was busy inspecting every nook and cranny of the RoR, looking for the Diadem, the other kept reliving everything she'd lived since her Sixth Year. She analysed every memory, every thought, every word uttered by her and to her. And it always came down to the same conclusion, it must have been the morning before the Quidditch try-outs-the day Ron started feeding her the love potion.

She had been complimenting Harry, of course she had, telling him how fanciable he was. That must have been the catalyst, what pushed Ron to do what he did. He must have done so while no one was looking, and even if someone had seen him handling her drink, why would they think anything wrong of him? Ron was their best friend!

"No more, Hermione, he gets no more chances."

"No more chances…" she mumbled.

Hermione knew Harry felt wronged, betrayed, but she didn't think he could ever understand how she felt. The level of betrayal in her eyes was astronomical compared to what Harry felt, because Sixth Year was the year she had resolved to make a move on Harry, seeing as he was completely clueless about girls. That's why she'd complimented him before the try-outs, it was all part of her plan, to get him to notice her as a girl he might, one day, fancy.

But Ronald Weasley ruined it, and not only ruined it, but stole her choice from her and forced her to make a fool out of herself as she tried to pursue him while he snogged Lavender.

"It was all a game for him…"

"Oh, I don't think so."

Hermione started and quickly turned around, pointing her wand at a smiling Luna. "God-Luna! Don't do that again, I could've hexed you-or worse!"

Luna merely smiled at her before glancing around distractedly. "Mmm. I think Ronald had true feeling for you, but his jealousy of Harry consumed him so much he stopped caring about his feelings and started plotting ways to keep Harry from being happy. You see, he's as clueless as any male when it comes to girls, but he had it worse by being constantly in the shadow of his brothers and he never really moved past that stage where it was okay to pick on the person you fancied." Then, as suddenly as her appearance was, her expression turns solemn. "I'm not condoning what he did, nor am I excusing him. What he did was despicable and horrible, but not completely unexpected due to his upbringing and other circumstances."

She could see the quirky Ravenclaw wanted to say something more but held it back, and simply smiled at her again in her unique way as she informed her that she'd found the Diadem. Hermione followed her until they came to a desk filled with cauldrons and books and broken broomsticks-and a box. As her bead-bag started to hum, Hermione knew they'd found the Horcrux, as the cup seemed to resonate with its par.

That, of course, brought another unpleasant thought forward, which she immediately squashed before it took its proper form. Some things were better left untouched.

Carefully, Hermione opened the box, nodding as she identified the Diadem, then closed it and placed it into her bag. She made her way to Professor Flitwick and announced their success, to which the miniature Professor nodded before casting the Sonorus spell, and telling everyone it was time to go back to the Great Hall.

Regardless of what had happened just over an hour ago, Hermione felt truly excited about finding the Horcrux. Now they only needed to find a way to destroy the two in their possession and kill Nagini, and then end Voldemort. Funny, how it all sounded oh so easy but was so very bloody hard.

But still, it was one step closer to ending the War.

Of course, as it had been the norm as of late, the jolly mood didn't last long, for as soon as the small group entered the Great Hall, it was crushed by the depressed atmosphere around those present. Only two girls noticed the missing person.

"Where's Harry?" asked Hermione and Luna, both girls turning to look at each other, though only Luna smiled in amusement.

McGonagall pressed her lips into a hard line before answering, her expression sombre. "It seems Mr Potter is not coping well with the information he acquired from the portrait of Albus. He left the office shortly after the end of the conversation and hasn't returned yet."

"Oh, dear," said Luna, in her dreamy fashion.

Hermione, however, was not so calm about it. "But where is he?"

Remus tapped her shoulder and showed her the map. "The Astronomy Tower."

He barely managed to utter the last word before the bushy-haired girl ran out of the Great Hall, not even bothering to stay as McGonagall related what had transpired in the Headmaster-or rather, Headmistress' Office.

She ran through the deserted halls non-stop, even when her legs started to ache and her lungs screamed for a break, Hermione kept on going. Not much later, she stumbled upon the first steps of the spiral-staircase that lead to the top of the Astronomy Tower, and had to stop a moment to catch her breath as she found herself close to hyperventilating. Her hands and knees now scratched, it hurt all the more when she began climbing the steps, but still, her desire to find Harry and make sure he was okay overrode everything else.

Half-way up there, she had to stop again, only this time for different reasons. The Castle was so silent, that she could hear the sounds of the night, along with the lazy splashing of the Giant Squid. But more than that, Hermione could hear the mumbling of someone-of Harry, talking at the top of the Tower. She held her breath briefly, trying to calm down because she didn't want to be a liability to the boy who had the task of saving the world thrust upon his shoulders.

That was when Hermione heard it, and her heart stopped.

"I'm ready to die."

~

Hermione remembered clearly the day she'd realized her life was closely entwined with Harry's; the day she realized she could not live without him.

It was Third Year, right after Harry had cast a corporeal Patronus and driven away the horde of Dementors attempting to suck their souls. It was when Harry climbed on Buckbeak's back and turned expectantly to her, hand outstretched and ready to pull her up with him. It was when she was, for several seconds, frozen on the spot, looking at the fearsome beast and dreading the prospect of being up in the sky. It was when, against her better judgement, against her ingrained fear of heights, she grasped Harry's hand and let him pull her up behind him.

It was when she wrapped her arms around him and even through the haze of terror managed to do what was expected of her simply because rescuing Sirius meant that Harry would have a chance to get away from his relatives and be, finally, happy.

Only, it was after the announcement of the Yule Ball that she realized her feeling for her green-eyed best friend were more than platonic, more than sisterly feelings. Because the first thought that went through her head was that she wanted Harry to ask her, that she wanted to spend the night in Harry's arms, dancing, even if her feet would suffer later. The way Hermione saw it back then, sore feet were but a small sacrifice to spend the evening in his company.

But her attempts didn't work. And at the end of the year, her kiss didn't do the trick either. Then she thought she'd have time to make him see her as a girl during their Prefect rounds during Fifth Year (because, hey, of course Harry was going to be Prefect), only to be disappointed upon finding out he didn't make it. Then came Cho, and she realized Harry was just like any other boy when it came to girls, completely clueless, so a much more direct approach was needed.

She was going for the direct approach in Sixth Year, hoping to convince Harry to let this one year be a normal one, but her plans were ruined again. By Ron. Again.

And now, now that she was finally free of potions and compulsions and all outside influence, she found herself in the middle of the War. Trying to think of ways to keep Harry alive, because, dammit, she wasn't going to let him die! Not now that she finally had her chance! Not now that she was finally free to love him with all she had…

So when she heard those words, she ignored the protest of her battered body and sprinted up the steps, stumbling through the door to find Harry with the Snitch in one hand whilst looking at the other. Her outburst made him turn to her, wand faltering when he realized it was not an enemy, but then he looked at her with so much sorrow in her eyes that Hermione could no longer restrain herself.

Tears gathered in her eyes and she rushed into his arms, wrapping hers around his neck and sobbing into his neck. He was going to say something but Hermione stopped him when she pulled back only slightly and then kissed him.

Her first kiss. It could have been perfect-with the perfect setting. As it is, it was wonderfully bittersweet. Because-Harry kissed her back.

There was no burning desire in the kiss, just tender passion and resignation-desperation. When they parted, Hermione was crying in earnest and Harry seemed to be doing his utmost best not to break down as well.

She knew what he was going to say, she didn't want to hear it, but there was no stopping it when she couldn't even talk properly.

"I'm a Horcrux," he said, his breath catching as he tried to stop the onslaught of tears. "The seventh Horcrux. Hermione…"

"No," she sobbed, shaking her head. "No…"

"Dumbledore knew… All this time and he didn't do anything-he never trained me to fight that monster because he knew I had to die!"

Hermione pulled back from him, grasping his arms and looking desperately into his eyes. "There must be another way-let me find another way, Harry, just-just… Please, this can't be, not now." She suddenly felt like the weight of the world was crushing her, which must be nothing compared to what Harry must feel, and for the life of her, Hermione could not think of a different outcome for this new twist in the plot. "I can't believe he'd do this, setting you up-"

"-to be the sacrificial lamb? Why not? It certainly makes sense, the way I've been raised-like a pig for slaughter."

Their depressing thoughts threatened to consume them. Harry pulled her in for another hug, one of the rare occasion where he initiated such affectionate contact, and it only served to break her heart. It almost felt like he was getting ready to say good-bye, for good.

She looked up at him, into his gorgeous eyes-she always loved his eyes, and thought she could understand James Potter for falling so thoroughly for Lily Evans. These were eyes that bewitched you without mercy, eyes that, once they caught you, they didn't let go. And really, Hermione was just fine by being their prisoner.

"I love you, Harry," she said, figuring it was now or never. His surprised look urged her to clarify her meaning, just in case there was any doubt. "I love you. I have since pretty much the end of Third Year. I've been falling for you since I saw you jump on the back of that Troll. I-I thought, it's now or never, eh? I don't want to be pessimistic, but I just can't let you d-die without knowing and…"

She couldn't keep going. First, because her body started wracking with sobs again and second-second, because Harry was kissing her as passionately as he could amidst their mingled tears.

"I wish," said Harry, after breaking the kiss. "I wish I'd realized what you really mean to me sooner. I wish I'd seen you-really seen you before all this blew up in our faces… God, how I wish things were different…"

Hermione latched onto the fact that he seemed to reciprocate her feeling, even if there was no verbal confession, and made a decision that could be considered idiotic and rash, but really-it was now or never, so… yeah. "Harry… how much time do you reckon we have left before… before he arrives?"

The black-haired boy blinked for several seconds, then closed his eyes briefly, a grimace marring his face before it cleared and his green eyes were peering down at her again. "A couple of hours, perhaps. He seems to be checking for his Horcruxes, and growing more anxious by the second. I really doubt he'd rush up here if he discovers what we've been doing."

She nodded and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Winky," she whispered, and the soft pop that indicated the arrival of the little house-elf was reassuring. "Winky, is there anyone in the Head Girl's room?"

"No, Miss. Headmistress Kitty didn't offer the position to anyone else."

Harry gave her a curious look, but otherwise remained silent and let her do the talking. He was probably curious about hearing of a private room, but now was not the time to answer his question on this matter.

"Would you, please, take us there?"

As way of an answer, Winky simply grabbed their legs and popped them away, and then they were standing in the middle of an empty room, alone. He sent her another curious look, but Hermione only smiled at him, a little sadly, but still genuine enough for him to know she meant it.

Then she stepped back and started taking off her clothes.

Gasping, Harry made to grab her hands, maybe to stop her, she didn't know, but he stopped and stared as layer after layer of clothing fell to the floor until all that separated her from complete nakedness were her green knickers. "What-Hermione, what are you doing?"

"I love you, Harry," said Hermione. "And I don't want to have any more regrets. We wasted these past two years, though not by choice, but still; years we could have had together and, Harry, if we had gotten together then, this-this would have happened a long time ago."

He swallowed but didn't make a move to indicate he wanted her to stop. When she reached for the waistband of her knickers, Harry finally reacted and started pulling off his clothes too. She was pleasantly surprised to see he was going commando, less barriers that way. Once naked, Harry pulled her into his arms again, letting his hands wander slowly over her body, as if to give her time to back off.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "Hermione, are you really sure?"

She looked into his eyes, seeing longing and raw desire and hope and-and. So, she kissed him and pushed him onto the bed, straddling his hips. "Yes, I am absolutely sure."

Hermione thought, before succumbing to the mindless bliss induced by Harry, that all of this would be perfect, were it not for the death sentence hanging over their heads.

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To be continued… next chapter.

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Well, it IS supposed to be a oneshot, but it kinda-sorta grew larger than I intended, pushing 15k words. I had to cut it in half… and I still HAVE finish the other half, :P

So, that's it for now, tell me what you think? Oh, and the issue of Ron shall be sorted at the end.

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