Harry Potter and the Secrets from the Past

34. A NEW START - First Part -

...

Stalactites on the ceiling were

My days with her.

I hugged death.

Now I fear to tell you

That with you

I woke up...

...

"I'd like to, no I won't like to, but if you want to" by Lucio Battisti

"Harry? HARRY, can you hear me?" Hermione's joy was huge, even if it was slightly obscured by the fear that it was only a dream. Harry had just pronounced her name, and that meant he was slowly coming to his senses. "Harry, please, try again! Open your eyes!"

Harry's eyelids started to move with great difficulty, but finally they opened and his eyes stared at Hermione for a few seconds, puzzled; she smiled happily at him in disbelief and squeezed his hands tightly between hers.

"Potter, do you hear me? Potter!" Professor Snape called him several times, but Harry didn't seem to realize it; his gaze was still intensely hooked in Hermione's eyes, as if nothing else existed for him in that moment.

"Professor Snape! Harry has woken up! He's back, he's back!" shouted Hermione enthusiastically, but the teacher was still looking at the boy, worriedly.

Suddenly, Harry closed his eyes and squeezed them strongly; then he ground the teeth in a grimace of pain; he left Hermione's hand and started to shake uncontrollably, moving his head from left to right and pulling away the bed linens.

"Nooooo!" Harry shouted desperately, while Hermione remained staring at him in shock.

"What's happening? Professor, what's going on?"

Harry was having a seizure; he was panting heavily, moving his head on the pillow frantically. Snape reached the bed table, where a silver pitcher full of a red liquid was standing; he poured the liquid into a nearby glass, got closer to the boy and tried his best to make him drink it, even if Harry was still shaking.

"HELP ME!" the teacher shouted to Hermione, who promptly grabbed Harry's arms; he was stronger than her and more than one time he managed to escape her hold.

As soon as Harry drank the whole glass of potion, he started to calm down; his breath became regular and shortly after he fell into a deep sleep.

Hermione brought her hands to the mouth, worriedly. "W-what's happened? He's going to get well, isn't he?" she asked with trembling voice, but Snape didn't reply. He just turned away and rushed out of the room in a fury.

***O***

Several days and nights passed by, and Hermione remained on Harry's side for the whole time. Dumbledore had given her permission to stay with him and she was doing her very best to attend her beloved one.

Mrs. Weasley, Tonks and Mrs. Figg in turn were helping Hermione in this difficult moment, even if unfortunately, Harry had not given any other sign of awakening; he still had frequent convulsions and his forehead was burning all the time because of his fever. Only Snape's potions were able to give him some relief, even if the teacher's opinion about Harry's health conditions was negative; his recovery was going to be extremely slow and difficult.

The Sanguinem Curse could have completely destroyed Harry's vascular system if Snape's intervention had not been timely; however, the curse had equally caused serious damage to his body.

Hermione kept feeling a painful lurch in her heart, seing him suffering in that way; Harry had not spent one single night in peace, since his sleep was regularly disturbed by fever and sharp pain.

Often during those terrible moments, Harry kept shouting his mother's name; it was unbearable for Hermione, but she didn't want to leave him for any reason; her only wish was to remain by Harry's side and help him.

That evening, Harry was deeply asleep; Mrs Figg had given him the usual calming potion before leaving. Hermione was sitting in a huge armchair by Harry's bed, without ever taking her gaze away from him. Her tiredness was great and after a good half an hour, she couldn't refrain herself from closing her eyes and falling asleep.

Oddly, she found herself in a warm and comforting place; she was feeling light and relaxed, as she hadn't in ages. Looking around, Hermione realized she was standing on Hogwarts' grounds and started walking along the lake, toward the forest; the sky was clear and the sun was shining.

Hermione was completely alone, when suddenly she saw a human figure coming out from the darkness of the forbidden forest and heading toward her. In her heart, she felt the deep desire to see who this person was and started to run to meet him.

Moving closer, she managed to better distinguish his body and face features; pretty soon she realized it was Harry and felt an endless joy inside. He was in good health and was smiling at her, happily. They gazed at each other intensely and held by the hands.

"I won't leave you alone ever again. I promise!" said Harry; Hermione's heart overflowed with love for him and happiness. She knew that he was saying the truth and that they were bound together for life.

Hermione was going to tell him how she felt, but in that moment she woke up abruptly; someone had laid a hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes and looked around, puzzled.

"Hermione? Maybe it's better if you go to bed now, dear. I'll stay with Harry." Mrs Figg. spoke with an encouraging tone, but Hermione didn't want to leave; she stared at Harry for a few seconds, though he was still deeply alseep.

"Thanks, but I prefer to stay."

"But he's sleeping like a little angel; there is no need to worry! I may assure you that nothing bad would happen while you're away."

Hermione wasn't sure about what to do and was still staring at the boy with apprehension; however, she was still feeling the weight of her tiredness and in the end, decided to take a short break. She slowly stood up nodding and Mrs. Figg took her place on the armchair. "If there is something new, I'll call you immediately!"

"Thanks! I just need an half an hour or so. I'll be back soon."

"Take your time, dear!"

With slow steps Hermione headed to the door and when she closed it behind her, she felt her heart slightly lighter. Her bedroom was right on the other side of the corridor; she reached her room and once inside, she lit a few candles. It was the exact copy of Harry's bedroom, just a bit smaller.

Hermione reached the sink and stared at her reflection in the small mirror over it; she hardly managed to recognize herself. Her face was pale, tired and slimer than ever, her hair was untidily falling over her forehead and shoulders. She sighed deeply, then tried to arrange her hair in a braid, washed her face with cold water and moved to her bed, collapsing heavily on top of it.

Almost automatically she covered her face with the hands and felt the uncontrollable need to cry and let it out. "I can't make it all alone. Harry, please don't leave me!" she kept telling to herself, while warm tears where already crossing her cheeks. She couldn't manage to hold them back anymore and started to sob like a little girl. She was feeling extremely lonely and desperate, having lost all her strength and hopes.

Knock, knock!

Suddenly, Hermione heard someone knocking at her door in a persistently way. She quickly wiped the tears and stood up. "Come in!"

"Hermione, quick! You absolutely need to see this!" Mrs. Figg flung the door open with a foolish twinkle in her eyes. Hermione's heart jumped backwards in fear and she rushed out and headed to Harry's bedroom.

"What's happened? Is he getting worse?" she asked, but Mrs. Figg stared at her enigmatically, hesitating in front of the closed door.

"You need to be strong! What you're going to see could give you a shock!" said the old lady seriously and Hermione nodded, feeling a knot in her throat.

When they slowly opened the door, they heard Albus Dumbledore's deep voice, animately talking with someone else. Mrs. Figg and Hermione moved inside the room, but it seemed as if the Headmaster wasn't aware of their presence. Dumbledore laughed noisily and turned to face the newcomers, who were still staring at him, astonished.

"Oh, here you are, finally! I was just telling Harry that the wild raspberry harvest is practiced in this part of England, and that this is the right period of the year!"

Hermione couldn't believe to her ears; Albus Dumbledore was talking about wild raspberries with whom? She moved a few more steps toward the canopy bed and when she saw Harry, she blinked several times before fully realizing what was going on.

Harry was sitting on the bed, with his back lying to the wall and was smiling peacefully at her. Of course, he was still really pale in the face and a lot slimmer than before, but he was fully awake. Hermione raised her hands to the mouth and stared in turn at Dumbledore, who was winking at her, and at Harry, who had just stretched his arms to her.

Losing no time, Hermione rushed forwards and hugged him tightly, hiding her face in his chest. She realized that his body was extremely slim; she almost feared hurting him with her hug. When Harry squeezed her even more tightly to him, Hermione couldn't keep herself from bursting into tears. Finally, her beloved one had woken up and she was holding him in her arms. It was like a wonderful dream, something hard to believe.

"Shhhhh, don't cry. It's all over now, I'm back!" Harry whispered sweetly in her ears, but Hermione wasn't able to stop crying from the joy. Then Harry moved slightly away, to gaze directly in her eyes and she tried her best to wipe her tears with the back of the hand.

"P-please forgive me! I-I had promised to myself that I wouldn't cry! I'm just a silly girl!"

"Don't say that, it's not true! YOU must forgive me! You've suffered so much and it's all my fault!" Harry spoke in a low voice, slowly caressing her face with his hand.

"I've missed you so much, Harry!" Hermione hugged him again. They remained like that for a while, one in the arms of the other, enjoying the happiness they had found again, while Mrs. Figg and Dumbledore shot each other glances of agreement.

***O***

That night, Hermione fell in a deep and refreshing sleep, managing to wake up just in the late morning. When she opened her eyes, she sat up quickly on her bed, fearing that the events of the previous day had been just a dream.

She still couldn't believe that Harry had finally come back to his senses; surely, Dumbledore's help had been extremely basic in this matter, even if it wasn't clear which kind of magic the Headmaster had used this time.

Hermione rushed out of bed and quickly got ready, then she reached Harry's bedroom and hesitated a few seconds in front of the door. From inside, the sound of indistinct voices was coming out; she slowly turned the handle and entered the room.

Harry was sitting on his bed, his back lying on the wall and Albus Dumbledore was sitting by his side; they were talking animately, like old friends and Hermione sighed in relief.

"Hermione!" Harry's face lit up with a large smile as he saw her coming in.

"I-I'm sorry! Shall I come back later?" she asked uncertainly, but Dumbledore stood up and stretched out a hand toward her.

"Not at all, my dear! Please, join us!"

Hermione closed the door and moved forwards; she turned for a second to the the table in the center of the room, where a tray with Harry's breakfast was lying; she happily noticed that dishes and cup had been fully emptied. Then she took a seat on Harry's side and the boy grabbed her hands, squeezing them tightly.

Both of them stared at each other for a few seconds; Hermione got lost in his sweet green eyes, which were again shining as in the past.

Dumbledore sat in a nearby armchair, waiting quietly.

"We were talking about that night in Knockturn Alley," started Harry. Then his face became gloomy and he added, "The Headmaster just told me what happened to Mark Evans."

Hermione nodded in silence; then Harry turned to Dumbledore. "We must find him! I don't want him to die! I'm sure he's redeemed himself, I know it!"

"We're doing our best to find him, Harry. The only think you should worry about now is getting well soon. We're all waiting to see you again at Hogwarts!"

Harry nodded; he also wanted to get well soon because there were still so many things he wanted to do. Then Dumbledore stood up and stared at Harry directly in the eyes before speaking.

"There is one last thing. You followed Mark Evans that night because you wanted to see Sirius Black, isn't that right?

Harry sighed deeply and lowered his gaze, mortified. "That's right. I've been a real idiot! I shouldn't have believed such a foolish thing!"

"Don't be too stern with yourself, Harry. You've just followed your heart. However, there is still a possibility left!"

The young wizard raised his head toward the Headmaster and Hermione did the same.

"If you want to, the next night of new moon, I'll help you performing the ceremony in front of the Veil of Death. And we won't need to go to the Ministry!" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled secretly, while Harry and Hermione exchanged a puzzled stare.

"You'll be happy to know that there are several Veils of Death all around the world. One of them is hidden at Hogwarts!"

"S-seriously?" Harry couldn't believe his ears; after all his efforts and all the dangers he had to overcome, now he found out that there was another Veil of Death hidden at school!

"Get well soon and when you've come back among us, we'll arrange everything about it. Now I must leave you. Anyway, you surely have lots of things to talk about!" Ending his sentence, Dumbledore reached the door and exited the room, with a light rustle of his clear blue robe.

Finally alone, Hermione couldn't refrain herself from commenting. "Did you hear that? It would have been wiser to talk to Dumbledore first, instead of following that raving mad Mark Evans!" Hermione looked extremely upset and went on talking in a resentful tone, "I can't understand why you're still worrying about him, after all that he's done to you!"

Harry smiled lightly and stretched out a hand to sweetly caress her face. "I know, you're right, but he doesn't deserve to die. I can't hate him! Dumbledore told me all about Mark. He was exactly my age when he joined Voldemort's side. He wanted to be a powerful wizard and at that time he didn't know how evil Voldemort was. When he became aware of this, it was too late! Short before my parents' death, Mark betrayed Voldemort and left England, hiding abroad. He knew that Voldemort would have killed him! He couldn't even ask for the Ministry's help, since he had been a Death Eater. I hope Dumbledore finds Mark soon, I need to talk to him. I'm sure that he regrets his actions!"

"I don't think so!" Hermione stood up abruptly and paced the room with slow steps. "He dragged us directly to Voldemort and his servants! You've risked your own life and it was all his fault! I'd never forgive him for this, NEVER!" Hermione tightened her fists, feeling tears rising to her eyes and swayed her gaze away.

"It's all my fault!" Harry felt extremely guilty and lowered his gaze. "I didn't realize what I was going to lose. If I only had listened to you! If I only had been wiser, If I only..." Harry felt a knot in his throat and couldn't be able to go on; he covered his face with the hands and sighed deeply to regain control over himself; the last thing he wanted to do was cry in front of his girlfriend.

Hermione suddenly understood how fragile Harry was feeling in that moment; she wiped her tears and rushed to hug him. "Shhhh, don't think about the past! We just need to forget it. I want to live every single present moment with you, that's all!"

Harry hugged her tightly and deeply smelt her light perfume; in his arms, he was holding the most important person of his life. If he had chosen to remain with his parents in the Astral World, he'd have lost all this.

"I need to tell you something!" Harry moved away and looked in her eyes. "While I was in a coma, I had an experience! My mum came to me and together we visited a wonderful place. I also met my father, it was incredible! Everything seemed so real. I also thought I should remain there with them."

Hermione smiled sweetly at him and passed a hand through his ruffled hair.

"But then, I understood that I had to come back. My place is here, with you!"

"Any regrets?" asked Hermione, shyly. Harry cupped her face in his hands, smiling.

"I'd have come back a thousand times, if I had to! I wish you could read my heart. I'm feeling something so deep, so intense." Harry stopped for a second, then he whispered, "I love you so much, Hermione."

Their hearts were overflowing with joy; their eyes were wet because of the emotion. Their lips got slowly closer and then kissed with passion.

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