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More Important Things	By : twitchelittleferret Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Harry/Hermione Views: 15269 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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To Start Anew

You took all there was to take,

And left me with an empty plate

And you don�t care about it, yeah.

And I am givin' up this game

I�m leaving you with all the blame cause I don�t care,
yeah, yeah yeah,

Could you look me in the eye?

And tell me that you�re happy now, oohh oohhh

Would you tell it to my face or have I been erased,

Are you happy now? Ohhh, ohhhh

Are you happy now?

Are you happy now? yeah, yeah, yeah.

Do you really have everything you want?

You can't ever give somethin' you ain't got

You can�t run away from yourself

Could you look me in the eye?

and tell me that you're happy now, yeah, yeah

come on, tell it to my face or have i been replaced,

are you happy now? Ohhh, ohhhh

are you happy now?

(Are You Happy Now?—Michelle Branch)

~*~

Remus watched as Harry carefully and slowly peeled off the
label from the bottle of butterbeer in front of him. They were the only two people awake in the house or at least
upstairs in their rooms, or so he hoped.
Christmas had come and gone at Grimmauld Place, Hermione�s absence was
notable by some of the packages that were left for her as well as the gifts she
had left her friends. Harry had
joined in the festivities, finally coming out of his room after his�attack on
her but he was pensive and quiet.
He was finally taking showers again on a regular basis and taking care
of himself but some days, like today, his quieter days, there was a shadow that
formed on his jaw line that made him seem older than his seventeen years. He supposed going through all Harry was
going through had a tendency to age you faster than you should, he would know,
being a werewolf was no walk in the park.

�The night Dumbledore died,� Harry spoke in a low and quiet
voice, �we were attempting to destroy a horcrux.�

Lupin stared at him, taking in this startling
revelation. The Order had always
wondered what it was that Harry and Dumbledore were up to that night, where
they had gone that they had missed the beginning of the attack on
Hogwarts.

�Do you know what that is?� Harry asked, looking up at the
last marauder.

Remus had only general knowledge of what a horcrux was. There was passing mention of them in
the Dark Magic books that he, James and Sirius used to joke about. Dark Magic that was beyond their
capabilities, Dark Magic that no one, not even the greasiest and vilest Snape,
would attempt to do.

�Ripping a piece of your soul and transferring to another
object or person,� Remus replied.

�Voldemort created six of them,� Harry continued. �Four of them have been destroyed. They all have to be destroyed in order
to finally finish him off.�

Remus exhaled and put his hands on the table, leaning
forward as he eyed the weary teen.
�That�s what you three have been up to?� Harry�s eyes moved away from his gaze. �The mirror?� he asked and Harry
nodded. �The potion accident in
the room�,� Harry nodded again.
�Hermione�s—�

�No,� Harry cut him off, a troubled and pained look crossed
his face. Remus didn�t want to
push him on that topic. He was
lucky enough to have Harry open up to him with this.

�Thank you for trusting me with this,� Remus said.

�Sometimes I feel like you�re the only adult I can trust,�
Harry replied.

Remus frowned.
�Harry, destroying the horcruxes is a very, very dangerous task.�

�It�s the only way,� he replied softly.

�Must this war sacrifice our children�s childhoods?� Remus
sighed wearily.

Harry propped his upper arm on the table, bending his
forearm up to cradle his head as he looked at him. �I never had a childhood,� he replied simply. �Voldemort made sure of that.� He reached out rolled the empty butterbeer
bottle back in forth between his fingers.
Lupin could tell that he wasn�t really watching the bottle, Harry�s gaze
was far off. �But you�re right. Sometimes, I wonder if the sacrifices
we make are too much,� he said in a near whisper. The pained expression flickered briefly on his face before
he masked it with a look of detachment.

�Thank you for trusting me with this,� Remus said
softly. Harry looked over at him
and gave him an odd look.

�I think thanks are a bit premature considering the graveness
of what I�ve just told you. I�ve
put your life in more danger just by letting you into this,� Harry sighed. �But I don�t want to hide this burden
from you anymore.�

�I�ll not tell a soul,� Remus assured him.

�I know you won�t,� Harry said before he gazed off into
nothingness.

�So�two left?� he asked.

Harry nodded slowly.
�I don�t know what one of them is but the other is a�� he stopped
suddenly and cleared his throat in an awkward manner, ��a gold locket.�

Lupin stared at Harry then rolled his eyes. �Like one that you could find in
jewelry stores or pawn shops?�
Harry reddened slightly.
�Well, that explains Hermione�s little jaunt during the summer.� Harry smirked and Lupin frowned as a
thought came forward. �Harry,� he
said, leaning forward, �does Draco Malfoy know about the horcruxes?�

Harry sat back and thought this over. �No, I don�t think so,� he said.

�I�m only asking because of the video we have of Hermione
and Draco in the jewelry store.�

�That was something different,� Harry shook his head.

�Do you remember asking me about Unbreakable Vows and the
Fidelius?� Lupin asked and Harry nodded slowly.

�She�s, um, well, the Fidelius is broken,� he replied
awkwardly.

�Is that why you were in her head?� he asked and Harry
looked away. �So, it�s
broken. You�re sure of it?�

�Malfoy�jinxed it so that if she broke it, both of them
would most definitely know,� Harry shifted awkwardly. He didn�t really want to be talking about this, he wasn�t at
all comfortable with the topic. He
looked up at his former professor.
�What?� he asked at Remus� frown.

�It�s just that,� he scratched the back of his head,
�Hermione can�t stand him but yet she�s constantly taking risks for him.�

�That was the idea, wasn�t it?� Harry said bitterly.

�Harry,� Remus said in a very serious tone, �Hermione
wouldn�t normally agree to even put herself in this situation unless Draco was
holding something over her.� He
sighed. �And considering how long
this has been going on, it had to have been big.�

~*~

It happened at the most inconvenient time. He had been walking up the steps of
Hogwarts with the two incompetent aurors when he felt the sting on his
arm. He couldn�t attend to it at
the moment and it only grew more awkward when Headmistress McGonagall greeted
him. The aurors had left him in
her care and he had to endure an hour long lecture about leaving the safety of
the school. He tuned out of
it. The stinging on his arm
becoming a bit uncomfortable. When
he was finally allowed to leave her presence, he was escorted back to his
common room. In the privacy of his
room, then and only then did he finally roll up his sleeve and touched his wand
to his skin. Dark ink swirled away
from the point of contact, snaking around forming and joining lines until the
Dark Mark was revealed and he felt its familiar tug.

Dolohov and McNair opened the doors in front of him as he
stepped forward. The tall and dark
wood was engraved with the Dark Mark as well. He walked into a round chamber where the Dark Lord sat on
the far end, flanked by Bellatrix and Snape. Nagini hissed at him, coiled at the Dark Lord�s feet.

�You insolent little fool,� Bellatrix sniped, �you do not
keep the Dark Lord waiting when you are summoned, you—�

�I was in Headmistress McGonagall�s office when the summons
came,� Draco snarled back. �I
can�t exactly disappear in front of her.�
He knelt down in front of Voldemort.

�There are certain exceptions in his position,� Snape said
to Bellatrix. �The important thing
is that he arrived as soon as he could.�
Draco got back up to his feet.

�Unlike most of you,� Voldemort spoke up, �the Malfoy�s have
some sort of use in this society.
Well, one of them at least, Lucius has become a sort of loose cannon
lately.� Voldemort noticed Draco�s
uneasy movement at the mention of his father. �Lucius does not take well the fact that I hold you in
higher favor. That is his own
fault, he has failed me so many times but still�he is a Malfoy. I assume he�s trying to make you look
incompetent in my eyes.�

�That�s an understatement,� Draco muttered.

Bellatrix spoke up again. �You do not speak—� She was cut off when Voldemort
held up a hand.

�The young Malfoy was only speaking the truth,� he
said. A faint smirk grew on his
face. �After all, I do know a
thing or two about father-son dysfunction.�

Draco could feel the Dark Lord�s penetrating gaze on
him.

�I believe I may have underestimated you, Draco,� he
said. �I had a most interesting
discovery the other day. I
was�wandering about when I discovered that Potter was most desperately trying
to discover the connection you had with his mudblood friend. I applaud your little curse you
attached to it. The mudblood
nearly died, how clever of you.�
Draco�s insides turned to ice but he showed nothing on the outside. �Her blood was literally on his hands
and from what I had seen, I doubt she�s going to let him near her again. Even if she did, Potter is probably so
wracked with guilt that he won�t touch her. I was hoping he�d throw himself off a tall building but��

�Potter�s weakness has always been his friends,� Snape
added.

�And this is where you come in again, Draco,� Voldemort
looked at the young man.

Draco stared at him.
�You want me to get chummy with his friends?� he asked,
incredulously. �You must be
joking!�

�Crucio!�

Draco fell to the floor in pain, screaming. His nerves felt as if they were on
fire.

�You�re going to do what I say,� Voldemort said, releasing
Draco.

�Okay, okay,� he said, gasping for breath and staggering to
his feet.

�Crucio!� Voldemort hit him again with the curse, making him
fall back to the ground. �I want
to know what those little brats are up to, what plans they are making, who they
are making them with.� He released
Draco from the curse.

�Yes Master,� he gasped only to be hit again with the
Cruciatus.

�If you fail me,� Voldemort said in a deadly voice, �I will
concentrate all my efforts into finding your mother. Her death will not be a slow one and you�ll be the one to do
it. Now get out of my sight!�

The doors to the chamber flew open and Draco felt himself
slide across the ground until he smacked into the wall on the other side of the
doors. They slammed shut and Draco
once again attempted to get to his feet.
He felt sick.

�So the little Malfoy thinks he can take his father�s place
in the Dark Lord�s circle?� McNair asked as he stepped over to him. He kicked out is foot and made contact
with Draco�s abdomen. He curled up
in pain, coughing and gasping.
Dolohov leaned over him and grabbed a fistful of hair, yanking his head
up and taking a deep breath.

�Hmm, I can smell the little mudblood on you,� he sneered at
Draco then slammed his head back down on the ground. Draco felt a blinding pain and saw stars. �Steal me some of the mudblood�s
knickers and I�ll keep your father at bay.�

�Get off me you sick fuck!� Draco replied, getting
angry. Dolohov only laughed before
releasing him.

~*~

Harry walked into the lobby of the Ministry at the peak of
the start of the workday. It was a
bit crowded with everyone bustling to get to their offices. �Hold the elevator,� he said, jogging
to squeeze himself into the already crammed car.

The sound of paper rustling above everyone�s heads from the
airplane memos and the low chatter of fellow co-workers filled in the
silence. Harry didn�t know anyone
in the car but his mind was on what Kingsley may want to talk to him
about. He was the one who had sent
the message that he needed to speak with him.

The ride was a long one, considering they stopped at every
floor to let someone off. The
doors opened letting the rest of the car�s passengers off and Harry stepped
back to lean against the far wall and close his eyes. He thought about Hermione and he wondered how she was doing,
what she was doing, was she enjoying the rest of her holiday? What would happen when he saw her again
at Hogwarts? His heart ached for
that moment and dreaded it at the same time. Most of all, he missed her.

A faint and familiar scent suddenly filled his nostrils and
his mind tossed around where he had smelt it before. He opened his eyes, and in his peripheral, he realized that
he wasn�t alone in the lift. It
was if time had somehow slowed down to a crawl and he could feel the blood
rushing in his ears, his heart was pounding in his chest. He was momentarily stunned. His hand felt a ghost of the pain she
had inflicted on him.

She stood in the corner of the lift wearing a hideous hot
pink cardigan, the ridiculous bow still perched on her head, her toad-like face
was watching him. �Hello Harry
Potter,� she said. Harry
instinctively flexed his right hand, the one that still bore the faint scars on
the back from very undeserved and painful detentions. He blinked at her then stared straight ahead.

�I saw the article about you the other day,� she said,
disregarding Harry�s blatant message that he had no desire at all to
acknowledge her presence. �People
still cater to the attention that you so desperately seek?� Harry kept his eyes forward. �I personally do not care for the
rubbish that they print in the Quibbler.
The article that everyone was talking about was pure fiction, I told
them so.� The muscles in his jaw
tensed and he shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he stared at the
doors ahead of him.

�I tend to stick to more reputable papers like the Daily
Prophet,� she continued on. �In
fact, I�m in the latest article about you. I was the only former teacher of yours brave enough to come
forward and expose this sham of a hero story they have printing at that other
publication.� Her voice was like
nails on a chalkboard and he could feel his temper rising as she baited him
like she always did in fifth year.
Except this time, there was no Hermione to tell him to back off. He began to think of the manual for his
Broomstick Servicing Kit that Hermione had bought him.

�I mean, honestly, who would believe that you of all people could take on three alleged Death
Eaters? I had to set the record
straight as your former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, I, above all,
know exactly what you�re capable of.
Readers can be so blind.
Nobody thought it odd that the �young woman you saved� was none other
than Hermione Granger. The same
insolent little girl who nearly sent me, her teacher and Headmistress, to my
death. People can be such silly
and stupid romantics but from what read of that girl, she�s no stranger to being linked to other
famous young men—�

Harry jabbed at the Elevator Stop button and turned to
Dolores Umbridge. The lights in
the car became very dim and there was a low rumble. She pressed herself back against the wall, her eyes widening
as he approached her. He placed
both hands by her to pin her to where she was. �Say what you want about me, I don�t care,� he said in a low
and surprisingly calm voice, �but don�t even dare think about going after my friends. I will make what those centaurs did to you look like a
cheering charm placed on a caffeinated fairy.� He leaned even closer to her. �You have no
idea what I�m capable of.�

He stepped away from her and released the stop button as the
lights brightened back up. A
moment later the doors opened to his floor and he stepped out of the lift, not
even glancing at the trembling and pale Umbridge in the car.

There was only a moderate amount of activity in the
office. The auror trainees bustled
about with stacks of papers and files in their hands to deliver to the aurors
that they were working with, several of them balancing cups of coffee in their
hands.

He nodded to a few of those whom he recognized and gave a
formal wave to the aurors whose desks he passed on the way to see
Kingsley. He knocked politely on
his office door.

�Morning Harry,� he said, lifting his head briefly from the
file on his desk. �Come on in and
close the door behind you before you take a seat.� Harry did as he was asked, sitting down in silence for only
a moment as Kingsley signed off on a report and put it away.

�Harry, I�m just going to come right down to it,� he said,
turning back to the teen. �You�re
off the Granger case.�

�What?!� Harry said, stunned.

�To be honest with you, I should�ve thought this through
more clearly before assigning it to you.�

�But I—�

�Harry you were assigned to protect her and you, instead,
nearly killed her,� Kingsley said patiently and Harry slumped back angrily in
his chair. �You were way too
emotionally involved in this case and I should�ve taken that into
consideration.�

�She�s my best friend,� he said quietly, not looking at
Kingsley.

�Harry, she was more than that,� he replied firmly. �The smartest thing you did was send
her away with her parents. I�m
assigning someone more neutral to this case.�

�Fine,� Harry replied in a whisper. Not that he had a choice in this
anyway.

�And as such,� Kingsley continued. �You are no longer forced to continue on at Hogwarts.� Harry looked up at this.

�I don�t have to go back?� he asked.

�That�s up to you.
Like I said, you�re off the case and therefore no longer forced to
attend. If you wish to go back,
that�s your prerogative. However,�
he stressed, �I should remind you that in order to complete your training and
be a full-fledged Auror, you need to finish your education at Hogwarts. The choice is yours.�

*

�Wait, wait, wait!�

Harry was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly missed
flinging his arm out to stop the doors from closing. A young witch clambered into the lift with him, spilling
some of the stacks of files and papers in her arms.

�Shit,� she muttered as she knelt down to pick them up.

Harry couldn�t help but notice the nice outfit she was
wearing, the fitted white blouse and the short grey skirt that showed off her
smooth long legs that ended in pretty little sandals and painted toenails. Her dark hair was wrapped up in a bun
with some hairs falling out of place and falling into her face.

�Here, let me help,� he said, kneeling down and picking up
some of the files.

�Harry?�

He looked up at her sharply. �Cho?�

�Wow! Uh, hi!�
she said as she got to her feet.
�What are you doing here?�

�I was in the Auror department. You?� He stood and straightened the files in his arms.

�Ministry Assistant,� she replied, struggling with the files
she had in her arms and reaching for the pile that Harry had.

�That�s okay, I�ve got this,� he said, offering to help
her. A smile of relief formed over
her face and she braced herself against the wall of the elevator.

�Could you press the lower button?� she asked. Harry looked at her curiously, she was
heading down to the Magical Research Department. She bent one knee, bringing her foot back to take her sandal
off, repeating the motion with her other foot.

�I knew I shouldn�t have broken in these shoes today,� she
grumbled. Harry really had no idea
what she was talking about. �The
git has me running all over the place every damn day.� She straightened and looked at
him. �I know Percy Weasley is your
best friend�s brother and all but he really is a first class wanker.� Harry responded to her comment with a
wry smile.

�Still, assistant to Percy Weasley in the Minister�s office
isn�t a bad start,� he offered helpfully.
It really was a good opportunity for someone fresh out of Hogwarts�if
the Ministry didn�t suck.

�If he doesn�t kill me first,� she mumbled. �The guy has me running around
non-stop. �Fetch me this�find me that�on your way in could you stop by the
muggle Starbucks and get me a scone and a latte�� She huffed and blew a strand of hair out of her face.

Harry held in a burst of laughter that threatened to seep
out.

�Hey I read the article in the Quibbler the other day,� she
said with a soft smile as Harry shifted uncomfortably. �Very brave Harry Potter,� she
commended him softly. �Really it
was a wonderful thing. You�ve
given hope to so many people.
Everyone in the office was reading it, well,� she added quickly, �all of
us assistants. Scrimgour, Umbridge
and Weasley banned it from the office. In fact, they banned the Quibbler altogether and are
petitioning to make the Daily Prophet the only acceptable piece of reading
material outside of Ministry documents.

�Umbridge, go figure,� he muttered.

Cho rolled her eyes.
�Tell me about it. It�s a little
too familiar an action. Anyway, we
still read it, it�s just hidden in our purses and desks.�

�Rebelling are we?� he asked with a mischievous grin.

Cho blushed furiously.
�We all do our little parts.�

Being as he was still technically an Unofficial
Auror-in-Training, Harry didn�t have access to the research labs, but he helped
Cho just the same. He eyed her
badge with interest as she waved it front of the magical sensor to Lab Level
One. Cho noticed his gaze.

�I get unlimited access in the building,� she explained,
half-bragging her importance of her position. �This job has gotta have some perks.�

�Unlimited access?� he asked, eyeing the plaque by the
doorway listing all five levels of the Research Department. Level Five was very restricted, only a
select few ministry workers were allowed access here. Kingsley had it but he still had to go through a lot of
paperwork for it.

�Unlimited access,�
she grinned. Harry watched her
clip the badge back on the hem of her shirt so it rested against her hip.

She worked efficiently, quickly handing off the paperwork
and files, picking up more as Harry followed behind, taking in all of the work
going on around him. There were
some whispers and stares as he made his way through the lab. On the second floor, he noticed that
many of the females had clustered together and some had shyly smiled and waved
at him. He politely smiled back at
them. By the third floor, he noticed
that most of the females had suddenly become a little more made up, their hair
done, make-up applied. He was
beginning to feel a bit more uncomfortable with some of the dreamy far-off
looks the women were giving him.
He wondered if maybe the Ministry was working them all a little bit too
hard that they might need to get out of the lab for awhile and see the outside
world.

�Sorry Harry,� Cho said, turning to him and taking the stack
of papers and files from his arms. �But I can�t let you past Level Three.� They were standing in the Department�s
foyer by their private elevators.
�You�ll have to take the lift back down to Level One to get out of
here.�

�Yeah, it�s no problem,� Harry smiled. �It was nice to catch up.�

Cho bit her lower lip and smiled. She tore a piece of parchment off one of the papers she was
holding and reached back to remove what Harry thought was a clip holding her
hair in a bun. It was a quill and
as she removed it, her hair fell into a lovely cascade of dark silky hair. A couple of years ago, the action
would�ve brought him to his knees but instead, he felt a sharp pang of longing
for Hermione. She sometimes used a
quill to knot up her hair and he loved it when she removed it and her hair
would come tumbling down, the scent of her shampoo would fill his nostrils and
stir strong desires within him. He
wondered if he would ever get over her or if he even wanted to.

�Here�s my owl address, the address to my flat, my floo
access code and my communication charm code so you can get a hold of me
whenever,� she said, handing him the parchment.

Harry took it as his eyes fell on her badge again. �Yeah, I�ll give you a call sometime,�
he replied.

�Good day Miss Chang!�

�Miles!� Cho replied with a smile.

The lift doors had opened and a strange and eccentric
looking wizard was standing before them.
He was short and portly man with white hair that stuck up in every
direction, he even had some sprouting out of his ears. He wore faded brown leather shoes,
plaid pants that were a little short for him since they showed off his argyle
patterned socks. He had bright red
suspenders that clashed with his baby blue and wrinkled button-down shirt. He wore a white cloak over the clothes
that resembled a muggle lab coat and Harry could see his wand sticking out of
one of the pockets. He was holding
a large wire cage with mice inside divided by a wire mesh wall. There was a faint blue glow around the
outside of the cage. The wizard
looked up at Harry with large blue eyes that were magnified further by the very
thick glasses he wore, his eyes widened.

�You�re�you�but�Harry Potter!� he gaped at him.

Harry stood there being uncomfortably stared at. But Cho stepped forward.

�Um, Miles, this is�my old friend, Harry Potter. Harry, this is Dr. Miles Erlenmyer, top
reseacher on Level Five.�

�Please to meet you,� Harry said with a smile. There was a small poof sound and Harry saw one mouse disappear then reappear
on the other side of the wire wall.

The wizard struggled a little to shift the cage in his arms
and extended one hand to eagerly shake Harry�s.

�No, it�s a pleasure to meet you! (poof!) Such an honor! Such an honor!!� He handed the cage off to Cho, who
struggled to juggle her paperwork and this new added weight, just so he could
shake Harry�s hand with both of his.
�(Poof!) If there�s
anything I can do for you Mr. Potter, just ask it. You should come up and see me sometime. We have some things we�re working on
that you may find of interest.�

Harry took his eyes away from the mice. �Really?� he asked with genuine
curiosity.

The wizard noticed Harry watching the mice. �My apparating mice,� he explained.

�Apparating?� Harry asked, surely he misheard.

�Yes,� the wizard sighed wearily. �The little buggers got loose one day. Took me nearly a month to find all
twelve. Hopefully they didn�t
breed.� His brow wrinkled in
thought.

�Doctor?� Cho said with a pleading voice, struggling to hold
the cage.

�Oh sorry,� he said absently as he took it back from
her. �Have to keep anti-apparition
wards on the cage at all times.�

�I imagine so,� Harry said as he watched the mice disappear
then reappear.

�The offer is there Mr. Potter,� the wizard said sincerely,
�anything you need. Anything at
all.�

Cho stepped into the lift with the eccentric wizard. �Bye Harry,� she smiled shyly at him
and he waved a small goodbye back.

~*~

Harry kept the news about his decision about whether to
return to Hogwarts or not to himself for the rest of the holidays, although he
had already made up his mind. He
would go back. Dumbledore would�ve
wanted it, so would his parents and Sirius and of course, he wanted to be an
Auror, badly. Something inside him
told him it was important that he stay at the school, that he was most useful
there. But most of all, he wanted
to be near her. He knew that being in close proximity
to her again, seeing her everyday would be like pouring salt on a raw wound but
he was a glutton for punishment.
Especially when it came to her.
It was almost frightening, the power over him that she possessed. She could make him feel like the most
luckiest bloke in the universe or crush him like he was the tiniest ant with a
single look, a single gesture.

The news of their breakup had traveled marvelously quickly
in the house. One night he was
sitting alone in Neville�s room, her present undelivered in his hands, as he
recovered from the emotional kick in the balls she had dealt him (not that he
didn�t deserve it). By Christmas
dinner, no one spoke her name to him and whenever conversation about her came
up, it was quickly hushed as soon as he walked into the room. He wished they didn�t do that, it
wasn�t as if he was going to break down and bawl like a baby or throw a
magically induced tantrum at her name.
At least, he hoped not.

But it became very clear that even his friend�s were deeply
divided on this and that there were even sides.

�How can you stand there, Ginny, and justify her actions!�
he heard Neville hiss to her one morning when they were in the kitchen. Harry was hidden behind the door. He knew that Ginny would defend
Hermione, she was her friend. It
was the same with Luna. The two
girls were a bit frosty to him.
Ron had decided to stay out of it.
He didn�t blame him, he was stuck in the middle of this whole thing. He already felt bad that Neville felt
compelled to defend him since his and Ginny�s fledgling relationship was
floundering in the torrent sea that teenage romance was. Harry guessed that the Hate potion had
brought to surface some issues that they had yet to resolve. It made for even more awkward moments
with Ginny. Harry knew that Ginny
would always hold a special place in his heart, he would always have some part
of him that still cared for her wellbeing more than a friend would. Naturally, she felt the same way about
him but she genuinely liked Neville and he was�miserably and hopelessly in love
with Hermione. He and Ginny had
both moved on and managed to stay good friends but he had some idea of the
resentment Neville harbored for him, no matter how small it was. There was still a part of Harry that
was a little jealous of Ron and Hermione�s relationship.

Everyone had gathered in the kitchen for one last breakfast
before they had to leave for the school year. The table was a bit crowded since they had the extra guests
of Fred, George, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Moody. Their trunks were all lined up in the hallway, animals all
packed away securely, ready to pick up and go after breakfast. Harry sat and listened to Ron talk to
his twin brothers about their latest adventure as he pushed around his eggs. He was too nervous, he would be seeing
Hermione in less than an hour. His
stomach jumped violently at the thought.
Luna looked up at him with a knowing smirk.

��supposed to get us a whole load of muggle rubber chickens
but he was detained a couple of days ago,� Fred was saying.

�Aurors caught him with some fraudulent chocolate frog cards
that he was planning to put out on the street,� George cut in.

�They were actually very decent replicas. You couldn�t really tell the
difference. The only reason he was
caught is because the manufacturer keeps close tabs on how many cards are
made,� Fred explained.

�The bloke Dung was carrying for apparently is very good and
very stealthy. Ministry hasn�t
caught him yet. He�s been making a
load of money off the muggles though, making fake IDs and stuff. Muggle police haven�t caught up with
him either,� George added.

�So he can replicate anything?� Harry cut in.

Fred shrugged.
�I don�t know about anything. He specializes in trading cards, muggle
and wizard kinds, IDs��

�Badges?� Harry asked.

Fred, George and Ron�s gazes all turned to him. �Why do you ask?� George asked with an
eyebrow raised.

Harry carefully kept his expression guarded as he pushed
around his eggs on his plate.
�Just curious,� he replied.
He was saved a better explanation when Lupin looked at his watch and
announced that it was time for everyone to get up and leave if they were going
to make the train on time.

*

The platform was just as busy as it was at the beginning of
the year. There were aurors on
patrol and Ministry officials keeping watch. Families were gathered about their children wishing them all
goodbye. The students wore some
new robes and clothing that they had received over the holidays, joining their
friends and fawning over each other.
Ginny and Luna left the group to join another circle of girls to catch
up on the gossip over the break as Seamus and Dean joined Ron, Harry and
Neville.

�Hey mate,� Dean said as he approached them and looked at
Harry. �Sorry to hear about you
and Hermione.�

�Huh?� Harry looked at him.

�We heard about the break up,� Seamus explained.

�What?! Who told you?� he hissed in a whisper. He looked up and scanned the
crowd. He swore he could literally
see the news being passed along like a giant wave over the students as some of
them looked over at him then turned to quickly whisper something to the person
next to them. He groaned and
wished he could disappear.

�Hey, what�s up hero?�
Terry Boot said, good-naturedly, as he clapped Harry on the back as he walked
by.

�Bloody brilliant Harry!� Seamus said, shaking his
head. �Play your Wounded-Hero card
right and you could have any bird in the school dropping her knickers for you.�

Harry blushed slightly. �Don�t be ridiculous,� he said irritably.

�Hello Harry,� came a chorus of female voices. The guys looked over to see two
drop-dead gorgeous Ravenclaws pass by, both of them giving Harry extremely
flirty looks.

�Bloody hell!� Neville whispered as Ron finally decided to
pick up his jaw from the floor.

�See what I mean?� Seamus grinned. �Hey if we stick around you, maybe some of that will rub off
on us?� he teased, elbowing Dean who grinned back.

Harry was getting thoroughly irritated about this. �I don�t want—�

�Hey Harry,� Anthony Wellington stepped up to him. He was a chaser for Ravenclaw and was,
according to all the girls in Gryffindor, absolutely dreamy with his dark hair
and blue eyes. �I was wondering
since you and Hermione crashed and burned if you wouldn�t mind if I had a
chance with her?�

Something violent wanted to leap out of Harry and wrap his
fingers around Anthony�s throat. Crash
and burn??!! He and Hermione did NOT crash and burn!! He wasn�t sure how he looked but he
must have given something off because Neville and Ron jumped in front of him.

�Er, now�s not a good time Anthony,� Neville said,
placatingly. Anthony shrugged and
walked away taking his stupid dark hair and ugly blue eyes with him.

�Oh, well isn�t this admirable. The Wounded Hero�s friends rally around him in his time of
need.�

Harry closed his eyes and cringed.

�Oh bloody hell, not now, not now,� he heard Ron mutter.

�Harry, Harry, Harry,� Rita Skeeter smiled up at him. Her green quill stood at attention by
her side, her hair in ringlets on her head, her stupid gaudy glasses sparkled
in the light, her manicured nails represented talons that were blood
tipped. �How is our little hero
today, knowing he will have to come face to face with the muggleborn who
shattered his heart into a million tiny pieces?� she asked.

Harry felt his anger threatening to explode. �She didn�t—�

�But our young hero is so na�ve and innocent in the ways of
love,� Rita said as her quill scratched away. �He should�ve known better, especially the way she trampled
over the Bulgarian Bon-Bon Viktor Krum.�

�Hermione and Viktor—�

�But you�re not at all that innocent, are you Harry?� she winked at him. �Isn�t it true that you stole her from your very own best
friend here, Ronald Weasley.� Her
gaze fell on Ron who squirmed uncomfortably. �Tell me, Ronnie, may I call you Ronnie? How did it feel to have your own best
friend, the person who was almost a brother to you, steal away the woman you
loved?� Ron opened his mouth to
protest but she cut him off.

�We�ve known each other for quite a while,� Rita winked at
Harry. �You can be honest with
me. That whole stunt at the muggle
hotel was just one big set up. How
ironic was it that you �rescued� of all people, Hermione Granger?�

Harry stepped forward.
�Listen here you—� He
didn�t finish because his friends surrounded him and pushed him forward to
board the train.

�No comment. He
has no comment!� Dean said angrily to the reporter. �Go find some other person�s blood to suck, you leech.�

Harry threw his trunk in the overhead bin in the empty
compartment and slumped down into his seat. The guys filed in after him and Seamus drew the shades down,
giving him some privacy. A tense
silence filled the air as Harry peered out broodingly at the platform below
him. His eyes briefly scanned the
crowd but he had not seen Hermione, yet.

�So, uh, how �bout West Ham, huh?� Dean said, breaking the
silence.

�Oh shut it about your stupid football,� Seamus
replied. �Quidditch is the best
game ever!�

Harry�s tension eased as he listened to Dean defend himself
against Seamus and Ron about wizard and muggle sports. It brought home a sense of normalcy
that he desperately needed right now.
At some point after the train gave a lurch, signaling its voyage from
the platform, Ginny and Luna wandered into the compartment.

�What are you guys doing here?� Harry muttered, irritably.

�Wow, Harry. Do
you think you could be more of a jerk?� Ginny gave a sarcastic smile.

�Were you guys the ones that told everyone?� Ron asked.

�I�m flattered Ronald that you would think people would
believe anything I have to say,� Luna replied testily.

�For your information, people were already talking about it
when we got here. But we thank you
for your votes of confidence.� Ginny said as she and Luna sat down.

�Sorry,� Harry and Ron said softly. Both of them felt really bad about
accusing their friends.

�Sod off!�

�Piss off!�

*

Ginny and Luna blatantly ignored Harry and Ron while they
had polite conversation with the other guys in the compartment. Ron seemed a little too eager to leave
for his Prefect�s meeting, Harry thought when he stumbled over Seamus and
Neville in his haste to leave. Coward, Harry thought. But Dean sat across from him and provided good conversation
about football.

An hour later, Ron returned with an odd look on his
face. �Ron?� Ginny asked.

�Um�Hermione�s not on the train,� he announced.

�What?!� came the reply. Harry�s hand instinctively went to his wand.

�What happened?� he asked.

�No, no, no!� Ron held up his hands. �It�s nothing like that. She, uh, she�s already at Hogwarts.�

�Did she miss the train?� Neville asked.

�Ooh, maybe her new tanned American boyfriend that she
picked up on the cruise kept her delayed,� Ginny grinned a Cheshire cat grin.

Harry glared at her.
�Why don�t you just kick me while I�m down?�

Luna looked at him.
�Oh Harry, kicking you would be if we said the new boyfriend looked like
Draco Malfoy.�

The guys recoiled violently. �That�s enough you two,� Ron ordered. Ginny opened her mouth to reply but no
sound came out. Her eyes widened
and she looked at Luna who also had no sound coming out of her mouth. They also found that they were,
literally, stuck to their seats.
The two of them glared at Harry who looked back at them with
mock-innocence.

�So what happened?� he asked Ron.

�She, er, she�s cleaning out her room,� Ron said slowly,
meeting Harry�s gaze. �She
resigned as Head Girl.�

Silence.

Followed by a collective, �WHAT???� At least from the guys, Ginny and Luna
said it in silence.

�Ernie is up there now with her and Susan Bones, who is
taking her place. Helping her
clean out her stuff, move her out and Susan in. Just us Prefects in charge on this train.�

Harry slumped back down in his seat and stared out of the
window, stunned. How could
Hermione do this? Why? Please, oh please, don�t let it be
because of him. Don�t let her
throw away her future just because he was a brainless prat.

*

�Finite incantatem,� Harry said as he rushed out of the
compartment as soon as the train came to a stop, freeing Ginny and Luna from
their enchantments. He scrambled
into the nearest carriage, his foot tapping impatiently as he waited. Oh sod it, it was going to take forever
for everyone to get on these blasted carriages. He leaped out and sprinted to the gates of Hogwarts. But he was held up there trying to
convince the auror on duty that he really was Harry Potter before he continued
on his way.

�Hermione?� he called out her name in the Gryffindor common
room. The house elves looked up at
him in curiosity, wondering what a student was doing here so early. He sprinted up the stairs to the girl�s
rooms but was thwarted when they turned into a slide. �Hermione?� he called out again.

She wasn�t there.
Harry ran out of the common room to the Head Boy and Girl suites. Ernie answered the knock.

�Harry what are you—�

�Have you seen Hermione?� Harry panted.

Ernie frowned.
�She�s somewhere around the castle with Susan, showing her the ropes.�

Crap. He didn�t
have his Map on him.

�I take it you�ve heard,� he said, eyeing Harry who nodded.

�I really hope you had nothing to do with this. I would hate to think that someone as
brilliant as her with a promising future would throw that all away for you.�

�Hope you had a good holiday too, Ernie,� Harry replied
before walking away.

�In a bit of a hurry?� Ron asked him when he met up with
everyone else as they walked into the Great Hall. �Did you find her?�

Harry shook his head and took a seat across from Seamus and
Dean. Neville sat down next to him
as did Ron.

�Hey there boys,� came a very familiar voice that sent
Harry�s insides to goo.

Harry looked up and was momentarily stunned to see a very
tan Hermione walk by and sit with Ginny, diagonally across the table. She had a light dusting of freckles on
her cute little nose and her hair had blond highlights from being out in the
sun. Neville, Dean and Seamus all
had stupid smiles on their faces as the latter raised his hand to give a little
wave. �Harry, Ron,� she smiled
politely at the two of them, although Harry noted that his greeting wasn�t as
warm as Ron�s.

He was the first to shake himself out of this stupor. �Hermione, could we talk for a moment?�
he managed to ask.

Hermione poured herself a cup of pumpkin juice. �I don�t think so, Harry.�

He was momentarily stunned followed immediately with a swoop
of impatience. �What�s this I hear
about you giving up your Head Girl position?� he hissed at her.

Hermione stared at him and he suddenly became very aware
that the table had become very quiet.

Lavender looked at Hermione. �You gave up the position?�

Parvati looked equally stunned. �What on Earth made you do such a thing?�

Evidently, the news about Hermione resigning her post did
not spread as quickly as their break up did. Hermione�s eyes moved from Harry to Ron who suddenly shrank
away in his seat. Her gaze moved
back up to Harry�s.

�Well, Harry, you just get right down to it, don�t you?�

Okay, so maybe just blurting that right out loud wasn�t the
best way to go about this, he�d concede that. But the news had stunned him so much that she had to expect
that he�d be a little shocked by it, more than a little shocked.

�May I have your attention please?� McGonagall�s voice
sounded out loud. �Settle down,
settle down. I am pleased to
welcome you all back from your holiday break. I trust that you all received some much needed rest and
relaxation and are now fresh and prepared to learn.� There was a flutter of snickers at that but it quickly died
down with a severe look from the Headmistress. �Just a quick announcement before we begin our feast.� Harry heard Ron�s stomach gurgle loudly
next to him. Hermione and Ginny
rolled their eyes.

�What?� Ron whispered defensively.

Harry turned his attention back up front. �It is with a heavy heart and personal
reasons that Miss Hermione Granger has decided to step down from her duties as
Head Girl.� There was an instant
rumble of murmurs and whispers.

Draco was snapped out of his bored stupor with this
announcement and his gaze wandered over to the Gryffindor table. He didn�t see her right away but he did
notice the tanned girl next to the pale and sickly looking Weaslette.

�Personal reasons my ass,� Pansy muttered next to him. �McGonagall probably caught her and
Potter violating some broom closet.�

�Not since they broke up,� Millicent chimed.

�What?� Pansy leaned forward eagerly.

Hermione could feel someone�s gaze burning into the back of
her head and she turned around to see Draco staring at her. She turned back around face forward to
join in the students who were clapping and the Hufflepuff�s who were cheering when
Susan Bones was announced as the new Head Girl.

Harry was quiet for the rest of the meal, Hermione didn�t
know whether she was grateful or distraught over it. To be honest, she was so nervous about seeing him
again. Would she burst into tears
the moment she saw him or punch his lights out? Maybe both?
From the way he was stabbing his potatoes, she could tell that he was
desperately wanting to say something to her but at the last minute decided to
stuff his mouth with food instead.
Maybe it was for the best.
She had a pretty good idea of what he wanted to say to her.

At long last, the food and dishes disappeared and everyone
was leaving their seats to return with sleepy eyes to their common rooms.

�Mr. Potter,� Professor Sinistra stopped Harry as he got up
from his seat. �Headmistress McGonagall
wishes to speak with you.�

�Um, okay,� he said, hesitantly, looking over at
Hermione. She looked back at him
and gave him a shrug. He gave her
a pointed look that said that this conversation was still going to happen.

She filed out of the Great Hall, following her fellow
students instead of leading them.
She didn�t mind at all. As
she listened to Lavender and Parvati banter back and forth, she actually enjoyed
the company of her fellow housemates.
She didn�t have to worry about rounds tonight, she could head up to bed
whenever she wanted, hell, maybe even read a book.

As they filed up the staircase and headed down the corridor,
she felt a tug on her arm and was pulled quickly into an empty classroom.

�Who the hell—� she started to yell but was cut off
with a �Shh!�

The classroom was dark but there suddenly came a soft glow
from the tip of a wand.

�I should�ve known it was you,� she said dryly, not
bothering to hide her disappointment.

�You gave up your Head Girl position?� he asked.

�Oh don�t give me any of your fake concern,� Hermione
replied as she brushed past him to open the door.

He moved past her and shut it. �Why?� he asked.

Hermione looked at him. �None of your damn business!� she answered.

�Hermione—�

�Just stay the hell away from me, Malfoy,� she replied and
yanked open the door.

Harry wasn�t in the best of moods to begin with. The minutes in the Headmistresses
office ticked away like hours. He
desperately wanted to get out of here and just talk to Hermione. She was informing him that even though
he had returned as a student, he still had open campus privileges that came
with being an auror-in-training.
But at long last, when he was dismissed, he hesitated at McGonagall�s
door.

�Did she say why she gave up the Head Girl position?� Harry
asked her.

McGonagall looked up at him from her desk. �Mr. Potter, even if she told me, I
could not divulge that information to you. That would be a violation of student-Headmistress
privacy.� Harry nodded in
defeat. �But I must say if I am
very confused in my own judgments.
Both of my first choices for the Head Girl and Boy offices have opted
out. I have to wonder exactly what
toll this is war is taking on my students that they neglect to forget that they
are, in fact, still young men and women and in school.�

Harry thought a moment about her words. �Goodnight Professor,� he said quietly
before closing the door.

Hermione was sitting on a sofa when Harry returned to the
common room. Her hair was tied
back in a ponytail and she was wearing the same pink plaid flannel pajamas that
she wore the first night she had stayed with him at the Dursleys. He couldn�t honestly know why he
remembered that little fact. Maybe
that was the moment that he realized that perhaps he had more than friendly
feelings toward her.

She was reading a book but looked up at him when he walked
into the room. He walked toward
the sofa and she bent her knees, clearing up the space next to her.

�Is everything okay?� she asked him as he sat down next to
her. There were very few people
left in the common room and the lights had been dimmed.

�Yeah, it wasn�t anything major or important. Just some auror formalities,� he said
dismissively.

Hermione closed her book to give him her full
attention. �You look tired.�

Harry gave her a soft laugh. It seemed so absurd that she would say that to him
considering he hadn�t gotten more than a few hours sleep each night since she
left. Since the look on her face
when he told her that he didn�t love her was burned into his eyelids that it
replayed over and over again as he lay down.

�So why did you give it up?� he asked.

Hermione took a deep breath. �I did some thinking and I realized that there are more
important things in this world than being Head Girl and all the wonderful perks that come with the position.�

Harry scoffed.
�Such as?�

�Such as making more time to help a friend defeat the most
terrible wizard of our time.�

�Hermione—�

She held up a hand to stop him. �And taking my nose
out of my studies to take in all the beautiful life around me. Harry, one night, after I returned to
that ship, I was working all evening on the Prefect Rounds Schedule when my
parents came into the room and asked what I thought of�it. I had asked them what they were talking
about and they said that they had just witnessed the most beautiful sunset,
with the water turning the ocean gold as fireworks shot into the sky from the
coast. The way they spoke about
it, the way my parents were holding each other as they danced together in my
doorway, how happy my parents looked�� she frowned. �Harry, I missed it.
I missed the beautiful sunset, I missed the fireworks. I was stuck in my room
doing�schoolwork. And then I
realized, we were in the middle of a war.
We have no idea how long we are going to be here in this world. Did I really want to spend my time
taking house points away from the Slytherins, or having fun, making the most
out of life while at the same time helping a friend of mine make it through
this battle a winner so he could have a life?�

Harry looked at her.
He could�ve kissed her right then and there. He wanted to.

�Hermione, I didn�t want you or Ron to ruin your lives for
me or—�

�But we haven�t,� Hermione cut in with a gentle voice. �I should be thanking you, Harry. Remember what I said to you in our
first year? About books and
cleverness and friendship and bravery?�
Harry hung his head and sighed.
Of course he remembered.

�It�s late,� she said after a moment of silence. �I, for once, do not have to worry
about rounds tonight so I am going to take advantage of a long night�s sleep,�
she said as she stretched and got up off the couch. Harry got up as well and followed her.

He reached out and stopped her at the stairs. �Hermione?� He shifted awkwardly under
her gaze. �What happens now?�

�What do you mean?� she asked.

�Us,� he gestured between the two of them. �What happens with us?�

She looked at him for what seemed the longest time. �We�re friends, Harry. Above all else, we�re friends and we�ll
always be friends. It�s what you
wanted, right?� She turned and
continued on her way.

Harry watched her until he could no longer see her as she
turned the corner. He made himself
turn around and head up to his own dorm.
Everyone was asleep and softly snoring when he got there. He quickly and silently got himself
ready for bed.

�Good night, Isis,� he said as he took off his glasses and
placed them on his nightstand.

�Good night, Harry,� she hissed back and he closed his eyes
for another night of restless sleep.
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