You First Believed

Title: You First Believed

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He walked down the Hogwarts steps out into the grounds. Harry was under his invisibility cloak as usual. Why he went out of the castle and made his way to the grounds he didn't know, but soon he found himself by the lake under the beech tree.

This place held fine memories of his years in Hogwarts. Soon he would leave school. He was bound to leave his wizarding home. The place he first felt that he was loved. Funny, how his first year flashed through his mind. He met Ron in King's Cross. Who would have thought they'd be best of friends. Then there was the nosey little girl who was with the boy who lost a toad. Who would have thought she would become his reason for living, his lifesaver, his strength. She was just after all, Hermione.

How many times did I pray
You'd find me
How many wishes on a star
Gazing off into the dark
Dreaming I'd see your face
Safe at home unafraid
Captured in your embrace

In times when he was in deep trouble, when he needed someone to talk to and when he felt that no one understood, she was there. She was always by his side. In times when he was lost he would wish for her to be close and truthfully she had always been there. She supported him, cared for him. She was as constant and unwavering as the stars shining brightly in the clear midnight sky. Her eyes were his deep pool of comfort, his source of understanding and love. She was seemingly fragile but to have her close made him feel safe.

So many times
When my heart was broken
Visions of you
Would keep me strong
You were with me all along
Guiding my every step
You are all that I am
And I'll never forget

He had done many mistakes in his early life. He was no expert when it came to matters of the heart. He had made many choices that had proven to be wrong, she neither condemned him nor ridiculed him. She knew that he would only learn about love if he discovered it himself. She patiently showed him what he could not see and thought him what he did not understand, most of all she made him feel what was that one emotion he was deprived off as a child. To many it seemed simple actions, a shower of affection, but to him, it meant comforts no riches could offer. She provided him assurance. Her loyalty was something he could not find in anyone else. What he had become was what she had helped him to be.

It was you who first believed
In all that I was made to be
It was you looking in my eyes
You held my hand
And showed me life
And I've never been the same
Since you first believed

The night that changed his life, it had been his first step in fulfilling his destiny, he could still remember, in his first year he had to save the sorcerer's stone. And before he had to face his accursed enemy she had spoken the words he had never expected from anyone. She had spoken words of trust, of strong faith in him. No one had ever done that before but those words she said gave him enough strength to face what was up ahead. She was the first. She had undoubtedly placed her trust in his hands. She believed that a small boy could defend the stone from whom they thought at first as Snape but turned out to be Quirell possessed by the dark lord himself. He succeeded with his task all for the help of his friends and her trust.

There were times
When I'd thought I'd lost you
Fearing forever was a dream
But it wasn't what it seemed
Placing your hand in mine
You could see in the dark
You were guiding my heart

During his long stay in school he had also suffered many incidents of almost losing her. During their first year, a troll had almost trampled her down. She was from then on the completing piece of the trio. In their second year she had accidentally turned into a human cat and after being cured had also been petrified. Though young, he felt the emptiness without her presence. He needed her more than he thought he did. During their third year they were amidst soul sucking Dementors and she collapsed beside him. His other self knew what to do and saved them from the Dementors. He once thought it was his father but it was himself and Hermione using the time turning. They saved not just Buckbeak and themselves; she was also the person he was with when he saved Sirius. In their fourth year when even Ron doubted him, she still stood by him, believed him and helped him in any way she could. She was one of the people that were to be saved from the Mere people and without a doubt he would have saved her with Ron if only they'd let him. In his fifth year it became clear, what she really was to him. She almost died from a curse that was sent to her. Her motionless body had almost got his thoughts in disarray. The thought of losing her was unbearable and nothing in the world could prepare him to the idea.

It was you who first believed
In all that I was made to be
It was you looking in my eyes
You held my hand
And you showed me life
And I've never been the same
Since you first believed

Sirius' death almost brought Harry to the edge. He lost the one person he considered almost like a father. He had also found out the fate that waited for him. He was distraught and afraid and she was the only one who had the courage to confront him, to tell him that he was not alone. She was the spark of hope in his life. She told him that she loved him and it changed everything. He once wanted to die but her love gave him reason to live. She was his reason. Early on in his last year, she and her parents got caught up in the battle. A battle her poor muggle parents shouldn't have been involved. She lost them and he almost lost her. She was willing to sacrifice her life for him and he would have done the same for her. Their love was the answer. It was what destroyed the dark lord. A love he could not understand. Their love was great that it would have defied even death.

"Harry!" her soft voice called out in the night. He thought he was imagining things but she placed a soft hand on his shoulder.

"I knew I'd find you here," she whispered to her.

He pulled her down and she snuggled in his embrace. His face was brushing her cheeks. They were soft and warm just as the person she was. She was warm and affectionate and had a heart willing to help.

"I know you're scared. I am too. Soon we'll be living our school life for the real world. But come to think of it there is nothing to be scared of. We'll do just fine, Ron, you and me. We'll be okay," she said.

"I never had a chance to thank you," Harry openly admitted as he placed a lingering kiss on his forehead. The sky was still dark with the stars sparkling their jewel like spark.

"Having you here is enough," Hermione muttered.

"I've always known you're a fighter and a survivor. There is nothing you can't do," she mused as she caressed the arms wrapped protectively around her.

"There is one thing I can't do. I don't think I would be able to live a day without you," he said and captured her lips in a passionate kiss.

"Nor would I Harry," she whispered back and returned his kisses.

They sat there for a little while, Harry, with his back resting on the trunk of the Beech tree and Hermione right in his arms. They laid there and fell asleep in each others arms.

Ever since he was a young boy he prayed that someday he'd find someone that will love him. He'd try to sneak out of his little room under the stairs and look up the starry skies and wish. That dream was bound to come true that day he had set foot in the Hogwarts Express. His prayer finally came true when the bushy haired girl set foot in their compartment.

How many times did I pray
You'd find me
How many wishes on a star...

~*~*~THE END~*~*~