One Night, In a Dream

Hermione sat on a lone swing set on top of a grassy hill. There was no wind yet the swing next to her was pumping quietly up and down. She stared at it; then she too began to swing. She and the swing went on for what seemed like an hour until, finally, Hermione stopped and turned to her invisible partner.

"Who are you?"

A light chuckle came as a response and a tall, thin man with greying hair and light, translucent brown eyes appeared on the swing.

"Hello, Hermione."

She stared. No, it couldn't be. He was dead, shot in the head with a muggle pistol. Suicide.

"Remus?" she whispered.

He smiled and again began to swing. She watched him, amazed.

"Why are you here?" Hermione asked, waving her arms at the swing set and hill. "You've been gone a long time." That was true. Remus had killed himself three weeks after Sirius' death. Now, exactly one year later, he was here looking just as he had the last time she had seen him.

Remus stopped swinging and he wasn't smiling now. Now he looked concerned.

"Hermione, I'm here because there is something you have to know," he whispered. He paused and looked around. To Hermione, he looked as if he was waiting for something. His pale eyes showed no emotion, they looked so... dead.

"Hermione, where I've been, I've noticed some very drastic changes in Harry."

Hermione nodded. He was right; Harry was different. He barely ate. He never talked to anyone besides Buckbeak and, before his death, to Remus. Now that Remus was gone, Harry had gone into absolute silence. He had thinned out in the face and, even though he was almost six feet tall, he looked short. Truthfully, he looked a lot like Remus had looked before...

Remus jumped up, his eyes glancing back and forth frantically. He turned to face Hermione and shouted, "Go! Find Harry and stop him before he goes through with it! Go now, Hermione!" Remus began to run down the hill and into the nearby field.

Hermione wanted to follow him, but she felt as though an unseen force held her on top of the hill. She screamed for Remus to wait for her, but he kept going. Soon, he was gone.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Wake up, Hermione!"

Hermione sat up straight in her bed at the Burrow.

"Where is Harry?" she shouted at Ginny, who only moments ago had been trying to wake up her sleeping friend.

"I-in his room. Why?" Ginny's eyes were wide. Hermione was always so calm.

"He's going to do it," Hermione whispered to herself as she ran out of the tiny room, leaving a very confused Ginny in her wake. She crashed up what seemed like a hundred stairs to Ron's room, throwing open the door. Ron was lying in his bed, bound and gagged. Harry was nowhere to be seen. Hermione ran down all the stairs, through the kitchen, and saw a small, wrinkled piece of parchment that had not been there the night before. She picked it up with shaking fingers, knowing exactly what message she would find on the tear stained page. If the tears were hers or the writers she couldn't tell, only that the words were a large jumble of ink. She struggled to concentrate and read.

I love you all. I'm sorry, but I have to do this. I've let you all down. What kind of hero am I if I cannot even protect my friends? Seeing what has happened to my parents, Sirius, and now Remus has shown me that I am a failure and do not deserve your friendship, trust or support. Forgive me. Ron, you were my best friend. Thanks for always being there, but I have to go. Hermione, I should have told you. I love you. You were my only friend for most of fourth year, but I loved you even before then. I was blinded by, well, something that I can't even imagine. My own stupidness I suppose. I had to have been very lost to have never noticed how looking at you made my heart flutter. I owe my getting this far to you. But I can't have you both in danger. You say you don't care. I tried to be distant, but you both still want to be my friend.

I love you. Good-bye.

Harry

She ran out into the cool morning. She flew on her feet across the yard, which had never seemed so large and menacing, faster and faster until she was a few feet behind him, in the middle of the Weasley's Quidditch pitch Harry had spent so many days enjoying one of the only things he ever loved. Hermione stopped, stunned. Harry was crying! Deep and mournful sobs echoed from the boy's throat. Harry never cried, not even when Sirius had died and when Remus had killed himself. But there he was now, sobbing like a child in the early morning light. Standing on a stool next to a tree, with some sort of rope around his neck...

Hermione watched in absolute horror as Harry quit weeping and sighed. He stretched his arms out in a look of defeat, the light of the rising sun streaming around him like a surreal angel. He fell.

"NOOO!" Hermione yelled, running up behind Harry. "Wingardium Leviosa!" she screamed. There was a large sputtering response from Harry, who, though he couldn't see her, had heard her yell.

"Put me down, Hermione. Let me die. It's what I want!"

"No, Harry, you don't want this," she said, "Diffindo!" The rope around Harry's neck cut and he fell to the earth with a soft thud. Hermione stayed where she was. Harry had his back to her and was crying again.

"Go away, Hermione. Please, just leave me alone," he sobbed.

"No, Harry. I'm not leaving," she said as she walked over to sit beside him.

"Why can't you let me die in peace?" he demanded, tears streaming down his pale face. It was cold outside, but not nearly as cold as his voice and it caused her to shiver.

"Harry..." she trailed off, not knowing where to begin. Harry had sat up and turned to face her. His usually emotionless face was ragged with tears and his eyes were wide.

"You don't have to say it, I know. I let you all down, but you still will love me," he yelled bitterly. Hermione was frightened and she resisted the urge to wipe Harry's spittle from her face. She stood up after a moment.

"Harry, I'll leave you here and I won't tell anyone, at least not until everyone is awake. But first you have to listen to me. Do we have a deal?" Hermione stared into his eyes, searching for the Harry she once knew.

Harry looked as though he was thinking very hard about what she said. He sat in silence, his brow furrowed in deep thought. "Alright. Say what you came to say," he mumbled, staring at his shoes.

Hermione drew herself to her full height. She took a deep breath and began.

"Harry, you are so stupid."

Her voice rang out in the silence. Harry made to say something but she held her hand up.

"You think that by dying you are doing the world a favour? No, Harry, you'll be setting us all up to die. Harry, once you're gone, there is nothing-- no one to stop Voldemort. No one to avenge Sirius, your father, your mother, and every other bloody person Voldemort killed."

"I know that you're worried about Ron and me. I understand that. Ron and I discussed it and we decided we don't care. You're our best friend and we would die for you."

"Harry, you're not alone. There are hundreds of people who will stand behind you. You're the Boy Who Lived for God's sake! Do you think people won't care if you die? There will be a panic. Attacks on muggle-borns and muggles will only get worse. Ron and I will probably be the first to die."

Hermione stopped to breathe and noticed as a sudden look of realization crept into Harry's eyes. He shuttered.

"Didn't think about that did you? Do you think that if you die Voldemort will just stop killing? No, he'll more than likely kick it up a notch. He'll hunt down the Order and Ron and me. Voldemort wants to rid the world of those that allied themselves with you. And Ron and I are just a few of the people he's after."

"So stop trying to be the 'big hero,' Harry! All that you'll be doing is enabling hundreds of innocent people to die. Is that what you want?"

The silence was horrible. Harry stared at her and Hermione looked back at him. Did she dare say want she wanted to?

"I love you Harry," she whispered, almost to herself, but he had heard her. He looked up startled. She had always wanted to say that. To tell him how much he meant to her. He was her best friend and maybe even more. She loved him.

"As a friend," he croaked, "nothing more."

"No, Harry," she mumbled, "You're more than my friend..."

Hermione stared at her feet. She couldn't hear or see Harry, because her tangled hair had fallen in front of her eyes.

"I love you too, Hermione."

Hermione looked up. Harry was standing right in front of her. He was staring straight into her eyes, unblinking.

"Really?"

"Yes." Harry wiped tears from her face, tears she couldn't remember crying. She hugged him. They stood there, embracing for what could have been hours. Neither wanted to break the hug.

Hermione turned to look at his face.

"Well, I guess I should go. I believe we made a deal. Remember though Harry, I love you," she sighed. Hermione kissed him on the cheek before running back to the Burrow.

She never turned around once. She couldn't help Harry now. It was up to him.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Harry arrived in the kitchen that next morning. No one other than he and Hermione knew what had gone on the night before. Harry sat down on one of the wooden chairs.

I can't believe I almost went through with it,

he thought, shaking his head before placing it in his hands.

"Morning, Harry."

Harry looked up. There she was. Hermione was standing in the doorframe with a huge smile on her face. She ran up to him and engulfed him in a monstrous hug, sending both of them to the floor.

"I love you," she said, kissing him softly on the mouth.

"I love you too," he whispered into her hair.

Grabbing her hand, Harry stood up. He and Hermione sat down and waited for the Weasleys to arrive for breakfast.

If Harry had been listening as he and Hermione sat in silence, he would have heard Hermione as she whispered to the heavens above.

"Thank you, Remus."