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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
- 37
- 38
- 39
A/N: Sorry it took me so
long to get this chapter out. It�s
shorter than the others but I hope you enjoy all the same. Thanks for all the reviews. Take care and happy reading!

From Bad To Worse

I... I came here by day, but I
left here in darkness

And found you, found you on the
way

And now, it is silver and
silent, it is silver and cold

You, in somber resplendence, I
hold

Your sins into me

Oh, my beautiful one

Your sins into me

As a rapturous voice escapes, I
will tremble a prayer

And I'll beg for forgiveness

(Your sins into me) Your sins
into...

(Your sins into me) Your sins
into me

Oh, my beautiful one

(Silver and Cold—AFI)

~*~

He paused in front of the wall in his room to take a
moment and close his eyes. He
imagined what it would be like to kiss her again, to run his hands over her, to
have her in the way Potty had her.

He sighed and removed the loose brick only to find that
the potion was missing.

There was a soft shuffling sound and Draco turned around
to see Potty step out from the shadows in his room. He was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a black t-shirt so
he didn�t see him when he first came in the room. He was holding the vial of potion in his hand.

�Looking for this?�

Draco looked at the vial in his hand then up at his
face. A smirk grew on the corners
of his mouth a moment before he reached into his robes and drew his wand. Harry was quicker and with a flick of
his wand Draco was thrown against the brick wall. Draco slumped to the floor, the wind knocked out of him as
he gasped for breath. Harry
reached him in two strides, grabbing him by the front of his robes and punching
him across the jaw. He swiped at
Draco�s hand, knocking his wand away.
He lifted him up slightly, again by the front of his robes before
slamming his head back down on the floor.
Draco�s hand floundered at his side, searching for anything he could
reach. He made contact with an
empty glass vial and smashed it against the side of Harry�s head.

Harry swore loudly as he clutched at his head and Draco
knocked him away from him. He
reached out for his wand and it flew into his hand as he scrambled out of the
room.

�Fuck!� Harry said as he brought his hand away from his head
and saw blood. He tore out of the
room after Malfoy.

He quickly ducked his head just as another hex whizzed just
above where it was previously, smashing into the doorframe and raining
splintered pieces of wood down on him.
Harry looked up to see Malfoy disappear around the curve of the stairs. He quickly followed him to the busy
Slytherin common room.

Students looked up to see Draco rushing past them, shock and
surprise quickly replaced their quizzical looks when they saw Harry Potter hot
in pursuit. It was an outrage that
a Gryffindor was befouling their space and they quickly closed in around Harry
to hinder his chase. But Harry
could see that Malfoy was almost to the door. With a wave of his hand a large table turned on its end and
slid to block his way.

Draco skidded to a stop, falling on his bottom as he
scrambled out of the way of the chunky piece of furniture. He swore under his breath and turned
back to see that, although his housemates did slow Potty down a bit, he was
quite effectively bulldozing his way through.

�Reducto!� he cried and the offending piece of furniture
exploded, clearing the way somewhat and he scrambled out of the portrait.

�Colloportus!�

The woman in the portrait shook her head. �Sorry dearie, it won�t work.�

�Damn it!� Draco cursed and sprinted up the stairs of the
dungeon.

Harry burst through the portrait door and quickly followed
after him. He saw Malfoy just
ahead of him and he sent a strong hex his way. Draco turned the corner just in time for the hex to catch the
fabric of his sleeve. He sprinted
forward and hid in an alcove and sent a curse toward Harry as soon as he came
into view.

Harry took a step back and let the curse fly by him. He then darted across the corridor into
another alcove, sending a hex in Draco�s direction to keep him in place. However, a pair of Hufflepuff fourth
year girls rounded the corner and Malfoy grabbed one of them and used her as a
shield as he shuffled backward.
Her companion ducked into a corner when she turned around and saw Harry
Potter on the other end of the corridor, his wand drawn.

�Let her go, Malfoy!� he demanded.

�Not a chance, Potty!� Draco replied.

�Harry!� the girl pleaded.

Draco sent a hex toward him and he ducked out of the way,
covering his head as stone fell around him. He got back to his feet and sprinted toward Malfoy. Draco looked above him and saw a heavy
iron chandelier.

�Petrificus totalis!� he petrified the girl he was holding
then aimed his wand to where the chandelier was attached.

�Malfoy!� Harry shouted.

Draco grinned and with a wand blast the chandelier
disconnected. He left the girl
where she was while he turned and ran onto a set of stairs of the moving
staircases just as it was leaving the landing.

Harry dove for the girl, pushing her out of the way just in
time as the chandelier came crashing to the ground. The commotion drew the attention of more students and a
small crowd began to form.

�Finite incantatem,� Harry said, bringing the girl out of
her petrification. �Are you
alright?� The girl looked up at
him with wide eyes of disbelief as she soundlessly nodded she was fine. �Okay,� Harry replied then helped her to
sit up before he took off after Malfoy.

The Hufflepuff�s friend joined her and helped her to her
feet as the crowd of students watched as Harry stepped onto the moving
staircase. Malfoy was already on
the stairs above him.

�Shit,� Draco muttered as he watched Harry step onto the
stairs below him. He trotted up
the end of the stairs, turned then went up another set. Harry didn�t even wait, he perched
himself on the banister, carefully balancing himself, timing it just right
before he leapt from the banister to the other one as it passed above him and
pulling himself up. Peeves
suddenly showed up, sitting on the banister that Harry was holding on to.

�Need a hand?� he asked before he laughed in Harry�s face.

*

The doors to the Gryffindor common room burst open and an
excited first year came running in, yelling at the top of his lungs.

�HARRY POTTER AND DRACO MALFOY ARE DUELING ON THE
STAIRCASES!�

�What?!� Ginny said, jumping up from her seat on the
sofa.

Ron was playing chess with Neville and he shook his
head. �Damn it!� he muttered and
threw down a pawn as the two of them grabbed their wands and left the common
room followed shortly by the other Gryffindors. Colin Creevey grabbed his camera before leaving in a rush
with his brother.

Hermione was in the library studying with Anthony and Susan
when Pansy Parkinson ran in and stopped in front of Blaise�s table. �Potty attacked Draco and now they�re
fighting on the staircases.�

Books, bags and homework were forgotten as the library�s
occupants scrambled out of their seats.
As they rushed through the corridors, they joined other students as they
crowded around balconies watching the fight between the Gryffindor and the Slytherin.

�Harry!� Ron and Neville said as they made their way down
the stairs, waiting for it to move and rotate so they could make their way down
to their friend.

Harry pulled himself up and over the banister just as Malfoy
sent a Reducto his way from above.
He rolled to the side to avoid the blast. Draco cast it again then again, each time missing Harry
until another blast caught his attention.
It came from above, where Weasley had his wand drawn. Draco sneered and sent a hex his way as
the two Gryffindors ducked out of the way. Harry took the opportunity of the distraction to leap onto
the staircase Draco was on.

Draco turned around and saw Harry climbing over. �Reducto!� he said and the part of the
banister that Harry was hanging onto crumbled. Some of the students gasped as Harry tumbled, just catching
himself on a post next to him, stopping his fall but his wand clattered to the
staircase two floors beneath him.
Draco grinned.

Harry looked up at him and held out his hand. �Accio wand!� he said and to Draco�s
surprise his own wand flew out of his hand and into Potter�s. It happened so quickly that he didn�t
have time to think about dodging the wand blast that came his way until it hit
him squarely in the chest. The
pain of a very strong stinging hex had him falling to his knees.

Harry wasted no time as he pulled himself up onto the stairs
and marched toward Draco. �You
sick�� Harry kicked out at him, �pathetic (another kick), psychotic (another
kick), fucking traitorous�� Draco grabbed Harry�s foot this time and jerked his
ankle. Harry flailed and grabbed
the railing to keep himself from tumbling down the stairs. Draco slowly got to his feet but not
before Harry tackled him.
McGonagall and the other teachers finally caught wind of the fight and
joined the students, stopping the staircases from moving. The abrupt cessation of motion caused
Harry�s momentum to be greater than it was and the two of them went over the
railing. Some of the students
screamed as they fell.

CRACK!!!!

There was a sharp pain in Draco�s shoulder and his right arm
hurt badly but the most pain came from his right leg, which was bent at an
unnatural angle. He groaned in
pain. Harry rolled away from him. He couldn�t catch his breath, he
couldn�t breathe it hurt too much.
His left arm was broken, he knew it by the familiar pain he felt.

~*~

Harry choked down the Skele-Gro that Madame Pomfrey gave
him. He really should have been
used to the flavor by now but it still wanted to make him gag. Ron, Neville, Ginny and Luna all
hovered around him anxiously.
Madame Pomfrey had mended the shallow cuts he had and she stitched up
the side of his head where the Ferret had used it to break a glass vial. There was a small bandage covering that
up. She had wrapped a bandage
around his ribs (he had broken two of them) and he winced every time he
moved. Those hurt the most. His left arm was in a sling and he was
currently trying to button up his pajama top with one hand before Ginny tutted
impatiently.

�Here let me,� she said, brushing Harry�s hands aside to
button his top up. She looked up
at Ron and Neville. �Honestly, you
two,� she said waspishly, �he�s your best friend.�

�I�m sorry Gin but it�s just weird having to button up
another bloke�s top,� Ron said apologetically.

Luna glared at her boyfriend then moved to the other side of
Harry to arrange his pillows so he could sit up more comfortably. Harry wasn�t used to such doting, he�d
never really had that in his life except for the few times Molly had taken care
of him. But he was careful not to
the look like he was enjoying it too much under the watchful eyes of Ginny and
Luna�s boyfriends.

�Ow! Watch what
you�re doing woman!� Harry heard Draco yell. He hated the fact that he had to spend the night in this
room with that git across from him.
Pansy had apparently tried to give him the same TLC that Harry was
getting and somehow failed at it.
It was awkward enough as it was in that room with the group of
Gryffindors and Luna huddled on one side of the room around Harry and the group
of Slytherin�s on the other surrounding Draco. Ron snarled at Crabbe and Goyle.

The doors opened and Hermione stepped through and stood
against them as they closed behind her.
It was a very frosty reception.
Harry watched as she held her head up high and walked over to him.

�I just wanted to see if you were okay,� she said as she
approached.

�I�ve had better days,� he replied.

�Visiting hours are over, go back to your common rooms,�
Madame Pomfrey announced and the groups began to disperse.

�See you, Harry.�

�I�ll come back tomorrow.�

�Take care.�

�Hermione, wait,� he called out to her. She stopped and turned to look at
him. �There�s something you need
to kn--.�

�That�s enough visitors for one night Mr. Potter,� Madame
Pomfrey fixed his bed so he could lie down.

�But, I just need to speak with her for a moment.�

�Tomorrow, Mr. Potter.�

But, Harry couldn�t sleep.

A groan from Malfoy would pierce the air once in awhile as
he tossed and turned in his bed.
In addition to the month�s worth of detention, near-expulsion of them
both, their fates still as undecided in these halls, the headmistress thought a
night without Dreamless Sleep potion or any pain-killing potion would add to
the punishment.

He winced as a shot of pain went up his arm. He wanted to roll to his side but any
movement like that made his ribs feel like they were on fire. The clock chimed and two gongs
sounded. Two a.m. Still awake at bloody two a.m.

Maybe he was anxious.
The need to throttle Malfoy had been temporarily tamped down until the
next time the git opened his mouth.
Now he was occupied with the thought of telling Hermione about what
Draco had done to her. The
possibility of salvaging their friendship was up in the air and could be
decided by how he presented this to her.
What happened left so many things in the air.

It was an Inhibitus potion. Not a love potion.

~*~

�You�re awake,� Isis hissed. Harry blinked and reached out for his glasses, bringing the
snake into focus. �I wasss ssso
worried about you.�

�Wh-what time is it?� he asked.

�Near lunch.
You misssssed the fight.�

�Huh?� he asked.
He didn�t miss any fight.
He was quite involved in it if he remembered correctly.

�Your�um�Hermione and that boy acrossss from you.�

Harry tried to sit up but he winced at the dull pain in his
ribs.

�You know, all your hissing is a bit distracting,� Draco snarled.

�I can bite him,� Isis offered.

Harry ignored her offer�for now. �I figured you�d be used to that with the company you keep.�

Draco scoffed and looked away.

�Hermione was here?� Harry asked.

Draco slowly turned back to him. �Yes.� A sneer
grew on his face.

Harry slowly sat up.
�I need to speak to her,� he said in a low voice to Isis.

�But I don�t think she�s in the mood to see anyone after I
told her about the Inhibitus potion,� Draco said plainly with disinterest.

Harry stilled.
�What did you tell her?� he asked slowly and softly. Scenarios played in Harry�s mind of the
conversation he had missed. Merlin
only knew what sort of tale Malfoy spun to pawn this whole thing off one
someone else, probably him.

Draco was looking at the plain white hangings around his bed
as if they were the most interesting things in the room. �The truth,� he shrugged.

�Your version of it?� Harry cocked an eyebrow.

�The version about how I�ve been using Winky to slip her the
potion during meals that lowered her inhibitions and led to the eventual�� he
paused and leveled his gaze at Harry, ��kiss.�

Harry just stared at him.

�What�s the matter Potter?� Malfoy tilted his head. �Someone steal your thunder?�

To say that Harry was pissed was an understatement. Maybe it was selfish of him to want to
tell Hermione about this himself.
He felt as if that would at least bring their friendship back to the
starting point, but Malfoy fessing up what he had done just blew that idea out
of the water. The git had now
planted a seed of redemption in her mind.

�Stay away from Hermione. You�ve done enough to her,� Harry threatened.

Draco scoffed.
�You have no idea how funny it is to hear you, of all people, say that
especially since you were the one who tossed her friendship aside like a
useless piece of rubbish.�

�Had I known what the circumstances were,� Harry
interjected.

�You would�ve done different?� he asked with an eyebrow
raised. �Careful how you answer
that one, Potter.� Harry�s fingers
were itching for his wand. Draco
knew it, his eyes slid to his nightstand before return back to his gaze.

�Oh good, you�re awake,� Madame Pomfrey said, bustling
over. Isis slid off the bed but
still stayed near Harry. �The
Headmistress would like a word with you.
But you aren�t cleared yet.
I expect to see you back here when you are done meeting with her.�

The mediwitch made Harry sit up and he winced at the dull
pain. She gave him a potion that
tasted like burnt rubber but made the pain subside somewhat. At least he could put on a shirt with
only mild amounts of hurt. Any
sort of bending or twisting just made the little flame of pain flare. His arm was still in a sling, his ribs
bandaged but at least he could walk.
Draco still had his leg wrapped and elevated in the bed. Too bad Pomfrey was tending to Draco
now or else a clever little severing charm would have sent the injured leg
falling back to the bed with a thump.
Bummer.

The halls were busy with students making their way to the
Great Hall for lunch and even though McGonagall wanted to see him, he hadn�t
eaten in quite some time.

�Harry, you�re out!� Ron exclaimed when Harry sat down
across from him. �How are you
feeling mate?�

�Hungry,� Harry replied as he grabbed a sandwich. �Listen, I hate to just grab and go but
McGonagall wants to see me.�

�I�ll catch you later then?� Ron asked and Harry nodded
before walking away.

�Hey was that Harry?� Seamus asked as he and Lavender sat
down.

�Yeah, he�s on his way to see the Headmistress.�

�He isn�t going to get expelled is he?� Lavender asked,
wrinkling her brow in worry.

Ron frowned. �I
don�t think so,� he replied without much confidence. Was Harry going to get expelled? I mean it wasn�t his fault what Malfoy had done, Harry was
just�defending his friend. In a
kick ass sort of way but still.

It was if the thought of Hermione had summoned her to the
Great Hall. Ron watched her as she
walked in and took a seat at the end of the table. Guilt ate at him.
Maybe he shouldn�t have been so harsh on her but�really she was kissing
the ferret. Although she was being drugged and probably not completely
in her senses but he really couldn�t get the image out of his mind. It was hard enough to swallow losing
her to Harry but, ARGH! He couldn�t
think about this anymore or else he�d ruin his own breakfast.

He walked over to her, not entirely sure what he should
say. She was looking pretty pissed
right now and he assumed that she had heard what the Ferret had done.

�Hey Hermione,� he said awkwardly as he stuffed his hands in
the pockets of his trousers.

She had been carefully examining the food in front of her
and looked up at Ron. She wasn�t
saying anything but she still seemed really agitated. She picked up a muffin and peered at it before she threw it
back down.

�I can�t eat this,� she finally declared as she tossed it
back on the plate and got up from the table. Ron went after her as she marched out of the Great
Hall.

�Hey Hermione!
Wait!�

She stopped with a huff and turned around. �What do you want, Ron?� she demanded.

�I just wanted to talk,� he replied softly, a little
frightened of her mood.

�I�m really not in
the mood for a heart to heart right now,� she replied and continued on her
way. Ron frowned and followed her
back to the common room.

*****

Harry�s internal warning alarms went off when he saw a few
members of the Order clustered in McGonagall�s office, the headmistress herself
had a scowl on her face.

�Sit down, Mr. Potter,� she said briskly. Harry looked at everyone cautiously
before taking his seat. �Fighting
or dueling of any kind is strictly forbidden within these halls,� she said,
frowning. �As soon as you had
discovered this issue with Mr. Malfoy, it should�ve been brought to my
attention immediately so it could be dealt with properly.� Harry didn�t say anything. If she was waiting for an apology from
him for landing Malfoy in the hospital wing, she wasn�t going to get it.

�Your punishment stands,� she declared. �You will not be expelled but you will
have detention every night for a month and you have no permission to
participate in the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend.� Harry said nothing to this. Detention was a pain in the ass but he�d been apparating off
of school grounds to go into London at least once a week. Hogsmeade was no big deal.

�As for Mr. Malfoy,� McGonagall turned her attention to the
other members of the Order. �My
request for his expulsion from this school has been�denied by the governors.�

Harry flew out of his chair. �WHAT?!!�

Remus held out his arm to gently hold Harry back. �How did this happen?� he asked, calmly
while Harry raged.

�I�m not entirely sure but it is clear that the Malfoy�s
still have some sort of control over the board considering that Lucius is
officially a wanted criminal and his mother is nowhere to be found, it worries
me where his support is coming from.�

�One guess,� Harry muttered angrily.

�I agree with the governors,� came a voice so painfully
familiar that Harry felt a deep emotional wound in his chest rip open. He looked up and saw Dumbledore�s
portrait smiling down at him.
�Hello Harry,� he said.
Harry stepped back into the shadows until he hit the wall behind
him.

�What do you mean, Albus?� McGonagall asked.

�Young Mr. Malfoy is at an important crossroads right now,
hovering in a delicate balance. I
would rather have him under our watchful eyes and protection than�under someone
else�s influence.�

�He�s a Death Eater,� Moody growled.

�So was Regalus Black,� Dumbledore replied. Harry knew the comment was directed at
him, he could feel Dumbledore watching him as well as the other members of the
Order.

~*~

His mind was heavy with thoughts and he could feel the
pain-killing potion beginning to wear off when he walked through the portrait
door to the common room. He only
stopped by to get a change of clothes but was immediately confronted by Ron.

�Maybe you can talk some sense into her!� he exclaimed. �She�s gone mad!

�What are you talking about?� Harry asked, moving past him.

There she was kneeling in front of the fire on the floor of
the common room tossing her knitting into the flames.

�Hermione, what are you doing?!� he asked, walking over and stopping next to her. He watched as she tossed away a handful
of wooly bladders. She stopped and
looked up at him.

�Are you out?� she asked.

Harry stared at her then at another handful of knitting in
her hand. He knelt down next to
her. �Not yet, what are you
doing?�

�What does it look like I�m doing?� she answered,
irritated. �S.P.E.W. is officially
done with.�

�What are you talking about?�

�After all I�ve done for them!� she shook her head. �I only wanted to make their lives
better, treat them with respect, give them the same rights as everyone
else.� Harry could see the tears
in her eyes. �But after all this
time, they hate me. Hate me enough
to—� She grabbed a SPEW
button and moved to toss it in the fire but Harry stopped her, holding on to
her wrist gently but firmly.

�Everyday I think about the sacrifices I have made, the
sacrifices my friends have made to fight evil in this world so we can all have
a better life. A life free of
Voldemort. I think of all we have
been through and all that I�ve seen and I wonder how people like Death Eaters
can still exist. How can they be
on his side? I read the paper and
I see what they write about me, I get howlers everyday that are filtered off,
exploding who knows where from people who criticize me as well.

�But I don�t give up.
I�ll never give up because I know in my heart that what I�m doing is
right, that it�s important. You
shouldn�t give up, either. I know
how important S.P.E.W. is to you and I would hate to see you throw it all away
over a disgruntled elf who doesn�t agree with you. You can�t win everyone over Hermione and you�re going to be
constantly disappointed if you keep thinking you can.�

Hermione stared at him, wondering when Harry had grown up,
when he had become so wise. He let
go of her wrist and she plopped the button back down with the others.

Harry stood up from the floor. �I�m going to change and get back to the hospital wing,� he
announced.

�I�ll walk with you,� Ron offered and joined his friend.

~*~

The fight between Harry and Draco remained a hot topic
around the school for the next few days.
The origins of the skirmish were shrouded in mystery and exaggerated in
school lore. The Hufflepuff girl
that Harry had saved kept blushing furiously whenever she came in proximity of
him and her friend was happy to tell anyone who listened about how brave Harry
had been. It made him uncomfortable,
Romilda was looking a little too dreamily at him.

Harry looked down the table and saw that Hermione was, once
again, absent. Dobby had informed
him that he was personally delivering the meals to Hermione and Harry had given
the elf some of the potion that Miles gave him to make sure that Hermione�s
food didn�t have any extra ingredients in it.

Ron sighed and Harry turned back to look at him. He too was looking down the table at
her absence. It was unsaid but it
lingered between them. They were
going to eventually have to talk to her.
Ron said he tried but she wasn�t willing to listen. There weren�t a lot of opportunities to
talk to her, in between classes seemed inappropriate, she wasn�t in the library
after school and she didn�t come down for meals.

Where Harry found her that night was in the corridor next to
the Room of Requirement setting traps.

�Peter�s not in the castle.�

Hermione looked up at him. �Huh?� He was
leaning against the wall, one leg crossed in front of the other, tie undone and
hanging around his neck, his arms were crossed in front of his chest.

�How do you know?� she asked. Harry reached into his robes and pulled out the Map, tapping
it lightly with a finger.

�I checked but it doesn�t mean that he�s not somewhere around
here. The Map doesn�t show the
chamber, in between walls and secret passages.�

�Oh,� she nodded solemnly.

�Need help?� he asked, putting the map away.

Hermione carefully placed the cheese in the trap with a
levitating charm and set it. �No,
that was the last one. I just need
to empty those.�

Harry looked over at the small pile of cages that had
various vermin inside of them.
�Well I�ll help you with these then.�

Hermione eyed him as she got up and dusted herself off. �That�s okay, I have it.� Her tone
wasn�t harsh but it wasn�t open and inviting either.

�It�s not a problem.�
His voice was firm as he picked up some of the cages. Hermione didn�t look too pleased. �We need to talk anyway.�

*

The air outside was still a little crisp but it was a clear
and beautiful night. Hermione
walked down the steps and turned right to a row of hedges where she set her
traps down. Harry followed suit,
watching how she opened the trap to release her captives so he could do the
same.

�Not you again,� he heard her mutter. She held up one of the cages that had a
little white mouse inside of it.
�This one I�ve caught every night since I started. He�s looking forward to another free
meal tonight.� She tipped the
cage. �Go on, you! Shoo!�

Harry looked at her.

�I�m sorry.�

Hermione�s hand stilled for a moment as she folded the
trap. �For what?�

�I shouldn�t have judged you. I should�ve believed that there was something wrong with you
to make you want—�

�Something wrong with
me, Harry?� she turned to look at him.
�It was an Inhibitus potion not an Imperius curse or a stupid love
potion.�

�I know that, Hermione,� he replied quickly. �I know you wouldn�t have done it if
you really didn�t want to. I was
just,� he floundered on how to continue then decided that bluntness was
probably the best way to go. �Why
him? Of all people, why him?�

She sighed. �I
don�t know what to tell you. I
messed up. I honestly thought that
there was a part of him, a tiny part, that would change him. There was a side of him that was different
than what we�ve seen. I thought he
could be redeemable.�

�Hermione, he�s a Death Eater, deep down you knew that. He�s the one who tortured you all these
years, he�s a sick racist. He�s
the one who attempted to kill Dumbledore the one who let in all those Death
Eaters to attack the school.�

She held up a hand.
�I know all that, okay? And
it makes me sick to my stomach that I even had those feelings in the first
place. What can I say?� she
demanded. �For a time, I honestly
thought he was just as scared and lost in this whole war as we are. I made a stupid mistake, Harry. I�m only human.�

�I know that.�

�Do you?
Because you seem to be more forgiving to Ron who left me alone when
Dolohov attacked than you were of me.�

Harry looked guiltily away. Hermione emptied the last trap then piled them in her arms
before standing up and walking away.
Harry reached out and stopped her.
�I messed up.�

�So did I,� she replied.

�Then how do we fix this?� he asked softly.

�Harry,� she sighed heavily.

�I need to fix this�us,� he interrupted. �Because I don�t think I can do this
without you. Not without
your�friendship. And I honestly
don�t know how to get us back there.�

�I don�t think we can go back,� she said slowly. �But�I think we can start something
new.�

Harry could live with that. �I�m sorry,� he said.
�For everything.�

�Me too, Harry.
Honestly, I am.�

�Listen, I�ve got a game of chess that I have to get my ass
kicked at but it would be nice if you would sit down and join the rest of us.�

�I�m going to set the rest of these traps tonight,� she
replied.

�You know, I know someone who has a particular affinity for
brown colored rats. She�s probably
a lot more effective because she can go through the pipes and cracks in the
walls.�

�Isis?� Hermione guessed. �Well, we need all the help we can get.�

�Well, should we get started?� he asked, gesturing to the
traps.

Hermione held them closer to her chest. �Thank you but I think I�ve got it from
here.� He could take a hint.

�Okay then. I
hope I�ll see you tonight then?�

*

He did see her that night. She walked in then went straight up to her room. He exhaled long and slow. Ron moved his eyes from Hermione back
to Harry.

�I really don�t know what to do, mate,� he said, shaking his
head.

Harry moved his knight to take out a pawn. �You shouldn�t have left her alone that
day.�

Ron narrowed his eyes.
�You don�t think I feel guilty about that? But I was pretty pissed off that day and for good reason.�

Harry sighed and rubbed his jaw as he watched Ron�s queen
swing her staff and knock his king flat on his back.

~*~

�Okay, remember to look for a brown rat,� Harry hissed.

�Oooh, I love brown ratssss,� Isis replied, itching to get
on with the hunt but Harry still held on to her.

�Specifically one with a silver paw.�

�What kind of crazy rat hasss a sssilver paw?�

�And don�t kill it.�

�Where�sss the fun in the hunt?�

�Bring it back alive.�
Harry gently placed Isis down and she slithered toward a large crack in
the baseboard.

�Not even a nibble?� she asked, looking back.

�Isis,� Harry said sternly.

Isis hissed and bared her fangs. �Fine,� she hissed and continued on her way.

�Good luck,� Hermione called out after her feeling kind of
weird to be saying that to a snake.

Harry took out the Marauder�s Map and began to scan it. �You know, Neville brought up the idea
that I should start up the DA again.�

�It�s not a bad idea, especially after what happened last
year.�

�And since we�ve got a spy in our midst.�

�If Isis is as good as you say she is, you may want to use her
to keep a watch out for Peter if in fact you do anything like that. Maybe even during Order meetings or
when you go down into the Chamber,� Hermione advised.

�Hmm, that�s not a bad idea,� he said thoughtfully.

The two of them stood there facing each other, a million
thoughts running through each other�s heads. Hermione realized how much she had missed Harry, as a friend
and as�much more. Harry was
battling internally whether he should reach out and touch her or just cut his
losses and walk away.

Walking away won.

�I�ve got detention,� he said, nodding his head to his left
in the direction he was to go.

�I�m going to check on the traps,� Hermione gestured in the
opposite direction.

�Be careful,� he said to her and she nodded. He watched her until she turned the
corner before he made his way to the dungeons.

Draco was already there, sitting at a desk in the empty
classroom. Professor Smith was in
charge of detention today and she sat on top of the desk in the front of the
room, legs crossed and swinging slightly.

�The Headmistress wishes to see you right away,� she said
lazily as she filed her nails.
�You�re out of detention for tonight but you will make it up with one
extra night at the end.�

Harry looked at Draco who was busy scribbling down �I will
not duel in the halls� over and over again on a very, very, very long piece of
parchment. They had to do that
yesterday and Harry�s writing hand involuntarily cramped up again at the
thought. He massaged it as he
nodded to his teacher and left the room to go upstairs.

Once again, the feeling of unease settled into his stomach
when he walked in the room to find the Minister of Magic Scrimgeour and his
assistant Percy Weasley waiting patiently for him along with McGonagall. His eyes flitted to the Dumbledore�s
portrait that didn�t look at all happy.
Anxiety made his nerves dance on end.

�Good evening, Mr. Potter,� McGonagall greeted him with a
nod of her head that indicated that she wanted him to take a seat. Harry did so, but not comfortably.

�It�s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance again, Mr.
Potter,� Scrimgeour said politely with a smile that only a politician could
master. Percy immediately began to
scribble down notes, not even giving Harry a greeting. Not that he cared. �I hope you are doing well?�

�Yes, sir.� Harry�s answer was
polite with no hint of a subtext.

�Very good, very good.
Well we should just get right down to it, shall we? No need to waste any time, it�s already
so late.� He reached for the
tartan tin on McGonagall�s desk and helped himself to the biscuits inside. Percy stopped writing and looked
eagerly at the minister.

�If I understand correctly, you have benefited greatly from
some training received by the Auror department.� He looked over at Harry whose face was passive. �I�ve been reading in the papers all
about your�heroic endeavors. Taking a
bit of the spotlight away from the true and ministry authorized aurors, aren�t
you?� The sound of the quill
scratching stopped and Percy frowned at Harry.

�I underwent the same training as the rest of my class
and---�

�But you�re not an auror are you? Shacklebolt seemed to have glossed over the fact that you
have not finished your schooling at Hogwarts and are thereby�unqualified to be in the program.�

Harry stared hard at him. �What�s your point?� he asked flatly, getting to the bottom
of this discussion.

�My point is, Harry, the Ministry as of late has been
suffering from some bad PR since You-Know-Who has sprung up again. And articles printed in the Quibbler of
the last few attacks have portrayed you as some kind of hero to the people,
taking away the spotlight from all the hard work me and my staff have been
doing to prevent these attacks.�

�If you don�t mind me saying, sir, but you and your staff are doing a horrible job of
it,� Harry said coldly.
Dumbledore�s picture smirked.

Scrimgeour frowned.
�I had asked you once before to speak on behalf of the Ministry to the
people.�

�You wanted me to lie and tell them that you are doing a
great job as Minister. Are you asking
me to lie again?�

Percy cleared his throat and gave Harry a stern but pointed
look. Harry ignored him.

�I came to you last year at a most difficult time. Time has passed and I�m hoping that
you�ll take my offer into consideration.�

�My answer is still the same,� he replied.

There was silence as Scrimgeour stared at him, even Percy
had paused in his writing and looking at Harry with a scowl of disappointment
on his face. Harry didn�t back
down from his defiant look. He was
Dumbledore�s man through and through.

�That is a shame, Mr. Potter. I was hoping we could work something out.� Scrimgeour turned and picked up his
cloak from the armchair he had tossed it on and dusted some residual floo
powder off of it before he put it on.
�You are thereby terminated from the Auror program at the
Ministry—�

�What?!� Harry jumped out of the chair and looked at
Scrimgeour then McGonagall. �You
can�t do that!�

�All rights and privileges that go along with such a
position are hereby terminated immediately.�

�Professor,� Harry turned to the Headmistress who shook her
head.

�It�s out of my jurisdiction,� she replied. Scrimgeour contined on.

�You are to turn in your uniforms, any books and equipment
and your badge. You will have
nothing to do with the Aurors.
This shall go down in your permanent record and will be used in the
decision should you try to apply for the Auror training program again.� He turned to McGonagall. �Professor McGonagall, I thank you for
your time and use of your office although I�m afraid it was all in vain. Good night and good luck, Mr.
Potter.�

With a swish of his cloak he left the office with Percy,
nose up in the air with a sniff of disapproval went following after him. Harry just couldn�t believe that he
came from the same family as his best friend, he had even liked him, thought he
was an okay bloke at one time.

�How could you let this happen?� he turned to McGonagall.

�It was out of my hands, Mr. Potter. I have no jurisdiction over the
Minister.�

Dumbledore�s portrait spoke out. �You did the right thing, Harry?�

Harry looked at the two of them in disbelief. �The right thing?� he scoffed. �I�m out of the Auror program. I wanted to be an auror. I liked
being an auror.� He backed away and left the office in a huff.

He was mad. Pissed
off. He had never felt so
angry. Since fifth year he had
wanted to be an auror, a dark wizard catcher. It was something he was almost born to do and now Scrimgeour
had taken it all away because he didn�t want to play his stupid political
games.

�Move it!� he shouted to a group of third year Ravenclaws
who had gathered in the middle of the corridor. He practically plowed right through them on his warpath back
to the common room.

Hermione came around the corner, traps in her arms and
nearly ran into him.

�Harry! What
are you—�

He brushed past her, muttering colorful language under his
breath. She went after him,
trotting to keep up as he shouted the password to the Fat Lady (�There�s no
need to be rude!�)

Tonks was in the common room waiting for him, sitting and
chatting with Ron. �Wotcher,
Harry,� she said as she took in his demeanor. �We�re all pretty pissed about it. Remus is furious and Shacklebolt is too.�

Harry stared at her.
�I suppose you�re here to collect my things,� he said harshly. He didn�t mean to be so mean but he was
so angry that he took it out on her.
She didn�t seem to be completely affected by his words. She gave him a patronizing look
instead.

�A house elf had been notified and was sent to collect your
things, already.�

�Well, isn�t that convenient?� he snarled.

�Harry what�s going on?� Ron asked.

�You aren�t expelled, are you?� Hermione asked with worry
and concern on her face.

He whirled to face her. �No I�m not expelled
from Hogwarts. There are worse
things than that, Hermione. But
you wouldn�t know because you�re all books and cleverness and snogging
Ferrets!� FUCK! He
didn�t mean that.

�Harry!� Tonks scolded.

�Hermione�fuck, I didn�t mean that,� Harry said
apologetically, not caring about his language in front of his Head of
House. �I�m just so angry and I
took it out on you and�oh fuck it all.�
He threw his hands up in the air in a gesture of surrender before
turning and dashing up to the boy�s dormitory, slamming the door loudly in his
wake.

Hermione and Ron turned to Tonks for an explanation. �Scrimgeour kicked Harry out of the
Auror program.�

�He can�t do that!� Ron blurted out.

�No!� Hermione gasped, dropping her traps. They clattered to the floor in chimes
of clangs. �Why?�

�Harry didn�t want to be his poster boy,� Tonks sighed.

�And for good reason!� Hermione said. �He�s been after Harry since he had
been elected Minister, asking him to tell people what a good job he�s
doing. What a joke!�

�This whole thing is so messed up,� Tonks sighed. �I just wanted to come by and see how
Harry was faring to the news. I
knew he wouldn�t agree to Scrimgeour�s offer.� She sighed wearily and left the room.

Hermione and Ron looked at each other. Usually Hermione was the one to go
upstairs and try to talk to Harry, calm him down, make him feel better. Ron shifted from one foot to the other.

�I guess I should�� His voice trailed off as he jerked his
head in the direction of the dormitory.

Hermione just stood there, awkward. �Yes, I suppose you should.�

Ron walked to the stairs and stopped to turn around and look
back at Hermione. She was kneeling
on the floor picking up her traps that she had dropped earlier. He looked back up at the closed
door. The two of them should
really be going up there, Harry needed them. He frowned. At
least, he thought Harry did. Right
now, Ron wasn�t sure what exactly Harry needed.

Coming Up: What did Hermione and Draco say to each other? The return of the DA perhaps? And Harry and Hermione do a little
investigating together.
- 37
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- 39
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