The Things We Do For Love

THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

CHAPTER 4

Breakfast Friday morning was awkward. Ron couldn't place his finger on what had changed between his two best friends, but it was apparent something had. He had tried to keep the conversation going, but it always reverted back to this uncomfortable silence.

In the midst of this silence, Elisa claimed the seat next to Ron. He turned to his right to smile at the red-haired, brown-eyed witch that had captured his heart.

"Hello, love," he greeted while kissing the tip of her nose.

Hermione and Harry looked at the two sitting across from them, then at each other, and then commenced to stare at their golden plates, their faces burning into another hot blush.

"Hello, my ickle Ronniekins," came Elisa's response. She smiled fondly as Ron blushed a very unflattering shade of pink to the tips of his ears.

Watching the little by play, Hermione couldn't help but notice how perfectly the two complemented each other. Elisa made Ron so happy; he was positively glowing whenever she was around.

"So, are we still on for tonight?" Elisa asked, fixing her eyes on both Hermione and Harry.

Hermione gulped. "Tonight?" she asked at exactly the same time as Harry.

Elisa watched them both blush deeply with a raised brow. Something had changed between the two of them, but she didn't know what. They were acting very similar to the way Ron and herself were when they first started liking each other. Strange, really.

"We're all going to the Three Broomsticks for Butterbeer, remember?" she asked in growing curiosity.

Hermione winced, but managed to hide it well. "Oh-h, that," she began with a slight quiver in her voice. "Of course I remember. What time did you say we were going?"

The crease between Elisa's brows deepened. "I didn't say."

Hermione had done it now. Why couldn't she remember these things as of late? True, her mind had been preoccupied throughout the week. She had to find a way to kidnap herself, had to sneak away from Harry's prying, had to keep away from Harry altogether or she might do something she very well might regret.

It had been a good, long three days since Harry found her that night. Those three days consisted of many awkward pauses, furious blushing, and cold showers on Harry's part. It was forgivable for her to forget this little engagement, wasn't it?

'Understandable, but not forgivable,' Hermione told herself. She should be more alert, especially in her line of work. She couldn't go around daydreaming about her best friend; it wasn't right nor forgivable.

Harry, on the other hand, smiled at this diversion. It had not been an easy three days, and he welcomed the distraction. It was exactly what he needed; to go out with his friends, just like the good old days. This was his chance to fix things with Hermione. He could act like his heart didn't skip a beat when she looked at him, or that his breathing didn't quicken pace whenever she spoke to him. He'd act like he didn't want to hold her, touch her soft skin, smell her sweet scent of apple cinnamon and brown sugar.

Everything would be normal. It would be like he didn't have to fight his self control around her, like he didn't want to fondle her like a rabbit in heat...Oh, no, he could feel himself blushing again.

"We're all meeting in the Gryffindor Common room at six o'clock," Ron stated, hesitant as to whether they were even listening to him.

They both nodded distractedly.

"Ron, hon, what's with them?" Elisa whispered in Ron's ear.

Ron cast a quick look over at his friends, and then hurriedly whispered to Elisa, "I don't know. They've been acting this way for the past three days."

Elisa frowned. She found this extremely interesting.

'Could it be that they've finally realized that they're in love...?' she wondered, 'Not bloody likely. They're both too stubborn to admit that...Ah-ha! They've finally began to look at each other in a new light...Awe, the beginning of true love!' Elisa smiled broadly.

"Elisa, quit grinning. People are going to think we're up to something" Ron proclaimed, wearing a slightly similar grin.

"When are we not up to something?" she questioned innocently.

He winked at her in response while finishing up his pumpkin juice and rising out of his seat to go to their first class for the day, Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"Ready for DADA?" Ron asked Hermione and Harry.

Hermione nodded while rising, while Harry frowned slightly.

Harry had been true to his word; he had spoken to Sirius early the following morning after Hermione's startling revelation...

"Harry," Sirius had said, "I believe that you should respect Hermione's wishes. If this is as serious as you are led to believe, perhaps it is best to just wait for her to come to you."

"But Sirius, something is wrong; not just really wrong, but disturbingly wrong. She spoke as if the fate of the world was in her hands. It scared me."

Sirius sighed while trying to find a way to put his godson's mind at rest and not lying to him at the same time. "Harry, do you trust me?"

He frowned at the sudden change of topic. "With my life."

"And do you trust Hermione?"

"Of course."

Sirius had met his gaze unwaveringly. "Then perhaps you should let this go until *she* decides to bring it up. It is wrong to try and figure out her problems without her permission. And, if what she says about her deception keeping us all alive is true, don't you think you should allow her to continue being deceptive until she deems it safe to confide?"

And then it hit Harry. Sirius knew. Whatever it was Hermione was keeping from Harry, Sirius knew it. He had felt so betrayed. How could Hermione tell Sirius, Harry's godfather, before even telling him? And how could Sirius know without telling him?

He was angry, but not at Sirius. *Hermione* had betrayed him. He couldn't believe it.

Harry's flashback drifted away as the trio hurriedly walked down the hall, up two flights of stairs, and then, finally, through their classroom door.

Once all students had taken their seats, Sirius began their lesson for the day.

"Good morning class. Today, we are going to learn the Unforgivable Curses-" he stopped suddenly as Hermione's hand went up into the air. "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"We already learned about the Unforgivables during our fourth year, Professor Black," she stated smugly.

Sirius smiled fondly at her. "Yes, you learned *about* them. Today, you are going to actually learn to *use* them."

Everyone was shocked into silence.

Tentatively, Neville Longbottom rose his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Longbottom?"

He looked pale and scared as he answered, "Bu-but, they're illegal, Professor. We're not allowed to use them."

"Good, Mr. Longbottom. Five points to Gryffindor, for that comment. You are correct, or *were* correct. We are living in dark times, class. Professor Dumbledore has requested that I be allowed to teach my seventh year students two of the Unforgivables, and the Ministry has agreed. Now, I teach you these curses as a last resort to protect yourselves from dark wizards- Yes, Mr. Weasley?"

Ron pulled down his arm. "Which two are we going to learn?"

"The Imperius Curse and the Cruciatus Curse," he answered.

Harry let out a breath he hadn't been aware of holding in.

"Now, it takes a very long time to master these curses, and I don't expect anyone to get it right today, or even these next few lessons. For today, I want you to try and use the curses on these spiders, just so you can realize how hard it is. It takes a great deal of concentrated power for the curses to work, and I want you all to appreciate that most of you won't be able to master them."

With that, everyone in the class got up to get their spider.

"Why, oh, why do we have to use spiders?" Ron groaned as he plopped back down next to Hermione.

"Think of it this way, Ron," Harry began while leaning past Hermione with a little smile. "You can try and make your spider break dance on the table."

Ron didn't want to, but he smiled at the image.

Soon, the class was filled with different voices using the Unforgivables, all except for Hermione's.

She could already yield these curses, as well as the third. She didn't want to be the only one in class that could do the curses; it would be too suspicious.

"Hermione, why aren't you trying?" Ron asked innocently.

She could feel several people turn to look at her, but she stubbornly refused to look at anything besides the spider on her desk. Ron gazed at her from her right and Harry's eyes bored into her from the left.

They, and others, were waiting intently for her answer.

"I-I just don't feel comfortable with trying to use dark magic," she brilliantly lied.

Ron frowned. "It's for our own protection, and you heard Sirius, I mean, Professor Black. Most of us won't even be able to use them."

Hermione was about to retort, when the most annoying voice spoke from behind her.

"What's this? Hermione Granger refusing to do a school lesson?"

She visibly stiffened as she turned around to face the slimy git. "Sod off, Malfoy."

He continued to speak as if she had remained silent. "Or maybe she's just afraid that she won't be able to do it. They are very complicated, and that means that Mudbloods probably won't be able to yield them. More's the pity."

The next thing Hermione knew, she was out of her chair, glaring angrily at Malfoy. It was ideas like that that supported Voldemort; ideas like that that made it necessary for spies.

Harry stood beside her, along with Ron. They were not glaring at Malfoy, however; they were more intent on Hermione not doing anything that might get her into serious trouble. She had that gleam in her eyes that only appeared when she was really pissed. It was times like these that she was the most unpredictable.

"I said go away, Malfoy. Do you need me to turn you into an albino ferret and bounce you out of the room?" she asked in a chillingly sweet voice.

"Why don't you make me, Granger? I'm not afraid of a dirty Mudblood like you that won't even try to use the Cruciatus Curse because she knows she can't do it."

Before she could rationally think about what she was doing, Hermione had her wand in her hand. For a quick second, Harry thought she was going to hex Malfoy to death and beyond, but then watched in amazement as Hermione turned to the spider on her table, pointed her steady wand at it and declared in a firm, commanding voice, "Crucio!"

Silence descended as everyone watched the spider twitch and rock in pain. Its legs bent up, and although no sound came from it, there was no doubt that it was screaming.

Hermione ended the curse quite suddenly, breathing heavily from her anger and the surge of adreniline power she always felt when using one of the Unforgivables. Slowly, she turned back to face Malfoy, who had gone pale white in shock.

"Care to take your chances, Malfoy?" she asked in a harshness alien to the others.

Before he could think of a retort, Professor Black was there, asking, "What seems to be the problem here?"

"He-Hermione, sh-she did the Cruciatus Curse on her fi-first t-t-try," stuttered an awestruct Neville.

Sirius gazed intently at Hermione, then at the scowling Malfoy. It wasn't that hard to tell what had happened.

He sighed deeply. "Mr. Malfoy, if you could take your seat, along with the rest of the class, and resume trying to yield the curses; I would like to have a word alone with Miss Granger."

Everyone shuffled back to their seats, unsuccessfully trying not to stare at Hermione as she followed Professor Black out of the class room.

Sighing heavily once closing the door, a very serious and concerned Sirius faced Hermione. "You should have known better than to let him push you into using the curse, Hermione," he stated.

Hermione suddenly became very interested in her shoe laces. "I know," she mumbled.

Sirius smiled kindly at her. "Hermione, you need to be more careful. Harry suspects something, you know." It was a statement, not a question.

Her head snapped up to meet his worried eyes. "What?"

"He spoke to me the morning after he saw you come in with bruises and cuts. He is worried about you," he explained.

"You didn't tell him anything, did you?" she accused.

Sirius looked briefly taken aback. "Of course not. Not after what you did for me, Hermione. I'd never betray your trust."

The anger immediately faded and she allowed herself to smile at the kind man. "Thank you, Sirius. I know it's not easy lying to him. I'm sorry you're in the position where you have to."

A broad, reassuring smile came over his face. "I don't like it, but I'll do it happily for you, Hermione. I owe you so much. If you hadn't caught Peter-"

"It was nothing," she cut him off. "You owe me nothing, Sirius. It was the least I could do for you. After all that you've done for us, and for Harry. I did it for him as much as I did it for you."

"You could've gotten caught, or worse, exposed. You risked a lot to capture him," he stated.

She sighed heavily. "I know, and yet if I could, I'd do it all over again, so let's not dwell on it. And thank you for not telling Harry who caught Wormtail, I know how much he wanted to know."

"Hermione, he'll find out soon. He knows something is not as it should be; I think he even knew that I was covering for you."

Hermione took a deep breath. "Yes, Harry is a perceptive bastard. I'll have to tell him, and soon, too."

Sirius smiled once again. "Until you decide to let him know, I shall remain forever silent."

A small smile formed on her lips. "I know you will, Sirius, I know."

Without another word, Sirius opened the door for Hermione, falling into step behind her. Hermione sat silently through the class, thankful that both Harry and Ron felt it wise not to pester her with any questions; but that didn't mean that Harry wasn't drawing any of his own conclusions.

There was some sort of connection between Sirius and Hermione. He was protecting her secrets. And then, there was the fact that she had been able to use the Cruciatus Curse successfully on her first try. A sudden and disturbing thought took hold of Harry, making him frown. Had it been her first try?

It was one grand conspiracy, that's what it was. A conspiracy involving Hermione, Sirius, the Unforgivable Curses, and God knew what else.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was over in no time, ending with Hermione being the only student being successfull in using an Unforgivable Curse.